Disclaimer: Please see the Prologue of Suzaku's Oracle for a blanket disclaimer.
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Warnings: Rated PG-13 or Fiction T. Tasuki and Kouji get a scene. Judging by the cast list, you can expect some language!
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Notes: 7-11-13 Back for more? Thank-you! Now, about story structure for "Oracles of the Four Gods" (OFG abbreviated). As I mention before, I've divided my story into three 'books'. This, the first, is called "Suzaku's Oracle" (SO). The second is "Oracle's Destiny" (OD) and the third is "Destiny Altered" (DA). There is a prologue and thirty chapters in SO. There are forty chapters in OD (because Kitty Lynne convinced me it was okay to make OFG longer than I'd originally intended!). DA has thirty chapters and an epilogue. Throughout OFG, the chapter length is under five pages in a word processor, usually three to four, sometimes less. The later chapters in DA get lengthy as I wrap up the story, and some chapters are close to seven pages. If you're still reading at that point, I don't think you'll mind! ~Sapphire
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Oracles of the Four Gods
"Suzaku's Oracle"
By: Sapphire
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Part Three ~ Fate's Hand
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Among the fields and trees there was only solitude for the lost and confused woman. Her only companions were her own thoughts, much to her dismay. Her mind was in such a turmoil she didn't make very good company for herself. It was strange that she couldn't remember how she had gotten there, how she had come to be in this strange and foreign land. And what she remembered before that was confusing. Why had she been out in the cold autumn mist wandering around? And that cave, what was it's significance? Each time she felt as though she were coming close to remembering something, the shadowy outline of a man filled her mind. Who he was, she didn't know, but something about him brought her to tears.
"I wonder- I wonder why I cry? Is this a memory of someone I knew?" she asked herself aloud, wiping tears from her face. She simply didn't know, and now she was all alone in a strange place with strange images filling her head.
She had walked a long way before her tears ceased and she was able to collect herself. She stopped beside a clear running stream and bent down on it's bank beside a still pool to look at her own reflection. She looked horrible. Her face was quite dirty, tear tracks running down her cheeks, smudges from her attempts to wipe them dry. Her hair was tangled, loose tendrils sticking out at odd angles. Bending down close to the water, Aneko splashed the crisp water onto her face, washing away both dirt and tears. When her face was clean, she dried it on the edge of her jacket lining. Then, finding a little comb in one of her cavernous coat pockets, she ran it through her hair until it was in order. Feeling better, Aneko sat back on her heels and looked around.
The sky was growing dim as the sun was sinking on the horizon. It would be dark soon. Aneko had nowhere to go, her head ached, she felt utterly exhausted, and she was tired of traveling. Here she had water, the shelter of trees, tall grass and soft ground beneath her feet. She decided this was as good a place as any to spend the night.
Suddenly she felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end. Something was not right. Aneko looked around, trying to determine the source of her discomfort. She could see nothing unusual or threatening. Becoming more uneasy in that quiet, secluded place, Aneko stood and returned to the road she'd been traveling. Setting off at a quick pace, she continued on, her attention concentrated on the environment around her. She would not sleep that night, she knew. She would keep going, at least until the creepy feeling finally dissipated.
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…...
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Chichiri sat with his fishing line dangling in the clear, woodland brook. He was hoping to catch one of the silvery trout hovering just below the water's surface for his breakfast. But his mind wasn't on his task. It was far away, wandering across memories of long ago, and recent times past. He had been so restless lately, both in body and spirit. He didn't understand why, though he tried to.
Life in the Imperial Court was vastly different than anything he had been accustomed to in the past. As an advisor to the Empress-Regent he was quite important to Konan. Having seen so much of the country for himself, together with the fact he was one of Suzaku's seven Celestial Warriors, or Shichiseishi, the Empress often depended on his insight to make decisions affecting places and people she had no real knowledge of herself. Chichiri was more than happy to lend his services and it was, in a way, his duty as a Suzaku Warrior. But more importantly, he was working to ensure a contented nation was there for Hotohori's son to rule when he came of age. All noble causes that earned great honor for his name, but it had all become tiresome of late. He often found himself thinking that there was something more out there, something else that needed him. Yet, when he thought about it, there really wasn't anything else except returning to the life of a wandering monk. Chichiri hesitated to do so because he was needed at the Imperial Court.
The Empress had noticed the change in him, however. Chichiri had found himself more and more often distracted while council meetings were in session, and more and more often the Empress would catch him in one of his mental wanderings. After a time she had grown concerned and approached him about his seeming disinterest.
Chichiri had explained to her as best he could, but he didn't really understand himself. It was not surprising that she didn't comprehend what was bothering him, either. Never-the-less, she saw he was not himself and suggested he go off for a while on his own. Chichiri recalled how he had refused at first. He felt obligated to remain in the palace. As more days passed and he became more withdrawn from everything and everyone, including himself, he realized that it was best he go away for a little while, at least. And so he had left, letting the road take him where it would. His feet led him to the sparsely populated countryside somewhere in the west of Konan, and no closer to that strange something than he had been at the Imperial Court.
Until yesterday. Yesterday he'd felt that surge of power, the fourth such in as many months, this last one so much stronger than the others. So far he'd been unable to specifically track it down, but he knew he was getting close. And that earthquake… Chichiri was trying not to think about it, though it troubled him greatly.
Chichiri sighed as the fish refused to take the bait they were offered. He bobbed the hook around a little, trying to entice the trout, but still they refused to bite. Uncharacteristic to his nature, he gave up and pulled his line out of the water. He sighed again, then stared at the water while going over his muddled thoughts once more. It was so frustrating to him not knowing what the cause of his anxieties were.
Then all at once his perceptiveness completely changed. The restlessness he'd been experiencing was suddenly gone. In its place was an assortment of emotions that were obviously not his own. It was the strangest thing Chichiri had ever experienced. He felt as if he were in danger, though he knew there was nothing threatening to him in the nearby vicinity. He'd have sensed it if there were. He felt an uncertainty about something he couldn't put his finger on, and it was accompanied by a raw fear that was unlike any fear he had personally experienced. Perhaps it was the fear of something he had never faced or would never have to face. But most startling of all was that he knew where the emotions were coming from. They were coming from the very thing he'd been searching for since the previous afternoon. He quickly got to his feet, collecting his shakujo and mask, and ran out onto the deserted dirt road. He headed west without questioning.
"It's as if I'm being led," he thought to himself. "By who? Fate? Destiny? Suzaku?" He didn't know. He could only go forward and see what the road brought him to.
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"Genrou, you really worry me, ya know that?"
"Yeah, why's that, Kouji?" Tasuki replied sarcastically as they and the group of men they led finally pushed into the foothills of Mt. Leikaku. They hadn't made as good of time as Tasuki had hoped, but it couldn't be helped. Some of the horses couldn't be found, and some men had to ride double, though they tried to rotate the extra passengers to give the horses a little break.
"Be serious a minute," Kouji admonished. "Somethin's buggin' ya. I can tell." Tasuki remained silent. "It is Shinkouyama?."
"Its nothin'," Tasuki said, shaking his head. "At least, nothin' important," he added as he looked away from his friend.
"Sure," Kouji replied dubiously. "Lately ya seem ta wanna be somewhere else." He looked at his friend critically. "And since that 'quake yesterday, you're worse."
"Nah," Tasuki replied with a shrug. "I'm boss. This is where I belong. This is where I'll stay." The two fell silent, but Tasuki's thoughts remained noisy. Kouji was right, he admitted, if only to himself. He'd been sensing bizarre things lately, like little nudges, and feeling restless afterward. Then yesterday's episode… That wasn't so much a nudge as a force akin to Nuriko's little shoves he'd been the recipient of far too often for his liking. Now he felt like he had to be somewhere else. Just not Shinkouyama, despite it's tempting attraction, as Kouji was thinking. It confounded him beyond all belief. Leading the Mt. Leikaku bandits and the responsibilities associated with it was his whole life now that his duty as a Suzaku Seishi was complete.
But lately... Gah! What did any of it matter? After the 'quake yesterday afternoon, he was needed more than ever right where he was, and that was that.
A strange new feeling came over him. It was as if he sensed some kind of danger, but not quite. He'd never felt anything like it before. He looked around, scanning his surroundings, searching out the cause of his unease.
"What?" Kouji was suddenly on alert. "Somethin' wrong?" Tasuki shook his head.
"Not sure," he replied. He turned his thoughts inward. No, he wasn't in danger, but someone else was. He was sure of it. But who? "Somethin's wrong," Tasuki said, "but not here. Somewhere else." Kouji looked at him, bewildered.
"What the hell are you talkin' about?" he demanded.
"Don't know," Tasuki said. He'd had enough of this nonsense. "But I'm damned well gonna find out." He turned and headed toward the southwest.
"What are ya doing now?" Kouji shouted after him. Tasuki growled to himself as he reined in his horse and turned to face Kouji and all the men staring at him in confusion.
"I'm goin' ta Eiyou," he stated matter-of-factly.
"Eiyou?!" Kouji exclaimed. "The Imperial Capital?" Tasuki nodded. "Why?"
"Suzaku," Genrou replied with an angry glint in his eyes.
"The beast god?" Kouji queried.
"Yeah. Whenever things get weird, you can damned well be sure Suzaku has somethin' ta do with it," Tasuki explained. "Chichiri ought ta know what's goin' on, and he's at the Palace in Eiyou." That monk was more in tune with Suzaku than anyone he knew, except Taiitsukun, but Tasuki wasn't exactly on speaking terms with the old hag. If Chichiri didn't know what was going on, the monk could talk to the witch on Mt. Daikyoku. Kouji sighed in exasperation.
"Can't they leave you alone?" he wanted to know. "I get sick of takin' over all the time," he complained. "It's yer job not mine."
"Yeah?" Tasuki demanded, "Well, who the fuck else am I gonna leave in charge? I don't trust any a those other guys ta do it. You saw what happened when Eiken got a taste a power. Then there was Matsumoto's mutiny a couple a months back. I still don't trust some of these guys."
"Yeah, yeah, I know," Kouji admonished. "I'll take care of things, as usual."
"I knew you would," Tasuki flashed him a triumphant look. "Anyway, I shouldn't be gone longer than a couple a months-"
"A couple a MONTHS! I need some sake," Kouji groaned, holding his head in his hands.
"Don't forget Shinkouyama!" Tasuki reminded as he rode away.
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…...
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To be continued…
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End Note: And so Tasuki leaves his beloved bandits behind… You haven't seen the last of them. They'll be back! ~Sapphire
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