"Behind Dynasty walls, the power to shatter one's sanity lies sleeping…"

Shattered

(Inspired by Weiß Kreuz)

Written by Lord Lykouleon

Act I ~ Preservation Of Memories

+Chapter One+

Victory's Repercussions 

I guess I should start from the beginning… Hi. My name is Mia Koji. I'm twenty-two years old. It's January 10, 1993, almost four years after the Dynasty War. God, I never thought that war would end. It was one nightmare after the other. But now, when I look back, see my empty house that was once full of life, full of their life… the trials and tribulations I endured during the war were nothing compared to the suffering I face now. Alone. …I'm getting carried away again. I get like that sometimes. More often now. But like I said, let's start from the beginning. The day the Ronin Warriors defeated Talpa. It was a glorious day. So much celebrating. So much joy. Nothing could have kept us down. …Absolutely, nothing. 

[Shinjuku: March 17, 1989]

"You've been watching them for quite some time."

The girl gave a small start. She had almost forgotten that they were there. "Look at them," she gestured to the teenagers below from their vantage point atop one of the city's high rise buildings. "They really are just children. Hard to imagine they just fought a war."

Dais frowned. No doubt her current preoccupation had nothing to do with what was really weighing on her mind. "Something wrong?"

As expected, there was no reply. Cale crossed his arms, becoming restless with the delay. "Are we done here?" he snapped, tapping his armored foot against the floor in a very irate manner. "I fail to see the point of watching those five prance around like a bunch of idiots."

Dais was more than ready to give the blue-haired ruffian a piece of his mind and then some when Sekhmet snorted, eyes lazily regarding the former Warlord of Corruption. "No one's stopping you from leaving," he flatly reminded him. "Unless you're waiting for one of us to go with you."

It was Cale's turn to snort, turning away indignantly. "I don't need an escort." And with that, he disappeared.

Sekhmet smirked, rather pleased with himself. "That gets rid of one problem." Dais chuckled softly.

He looked back at the girl by the roof's edge. A breeze had picked up, playing with her long, raven blue hair and rustling the edges of her kimono in a melancholy tone. They had won. The Nether Realm was now free from Talpa's tyrannical grasp. They were now free from the mad emperor's control. Yet, with her small frame standing pathetically in the wind, it seemed like the world had just come to an end. What's bothering you, Kayura?

"Lady Kayura." She bristled slightly at the formal address, but turned to face the one who called her. "I understand you'd like to be alone with your thoughts," Sekhmet began, bowing slightly in apology. "But we have much to do in the Nether Realm. It's imperative that we get started as soon as possible."

She regarded him for a moment before nodding in agreement. "You're right." She glanced back one last time, to the group of teens fooling around in the middle of Shinjuku Central Park. The Ronin Warriors.

Kayura nodded to herself, this time with more confidence, her brooding state of mind being washed away by the sense of duty that accompanied her new position as ruler of the Nether Realm. "We have much work to do."

A set of large, chestnut brown eyes regarded the trio on the rooftop, the wisdom hidden deep behind the calm hue laden with worry. He watched them vanish, back to their own world where, no doubt, trouble had already started brewing.

"White Blaze." His ears perked up at the sound of Mia's voice. The older woman tilted her head to the side inquiringly, a smile gracing her lips at the sight of the large tiger lounging languidly in the grass. "Tired already?"

White Blaze gave a low grunt, turning his head away at the absurd notion that spiritual beings such as himself grew tired. Mia giggled at the tiger's sudden defensiveness. "Alright. But join us when you feel like it okay?"

She was going to rejoin the guys when a flash of blonde hair caught her attention. Not too far away, Sage was sitting by himself on one of the park benches, arms crossed and gaze directed towards the sky in a meditative pose. Behind him, the remaining Ronin Warriors and Yulie were playing a game of keep away with the Jewel of Life, tackle football style.

Mia couldn't exactly blame him for not wanting to participate, cringing as she witnessed Rowen eat the dirt after being rammed by Kento's much larger form. But still, he didn't have to isolate himself. Smiling mischievously, she decided that he needed some company.

Although it seemed like he was idly watching the clouds drift by, Sage wasn't at all concerned with their movements. Lost in thought, almost drowning in it, he fought to comprehend the feelings that had made him grow uneasy and pull away from his friends. He didn't know at the time that his discomfort was being shared with Lady Kayura, the last of the Ancient's clan. If he did, he would have taken his feeling of foreboding more seriously.

He stiffened, vision suddenly obscured by a pair of slender hands. "Guess who?" the voice teased, trying to stifle the giggles that were threatening to overcome her.

Sage pursed his lips, mimicking the posture of someone deep in thought. "Hm. That musical tone… It must be Her Imperial Highness Princess Nori."

"Wrong!" Mia promptly slapped him on the shoulder, removing her hands before joining him on the bench. "I could never measure up to Emperor Akihito's daughter."

"Oh, I wouldn't say that," he said, sliding over to make room for her. "I think you come pretty close." Sage didn't realize the implications of that remark until he said it, growing slightly flushed at his slip of the tongue. But if Mia had noticed, she didn't say anything.

"So, what are you doing here all by yourself?" she asked, then cast a glance behind her at the boys. "Too much adrenaline for you?"

He smiled, charmed, before turning back to the sky once again. "No. Just…" He groped for words to somehow describe his current state of mind. "It feels strange."

"What does?"

"…Everything." Sage knew he had just lost her, and her expression showed it. Turning his body towards Mia so he could talk to her better, he tried a different approach. "Imagine this. You're in the middle of a frenzy. You see something happen off to your left, but you can't pay attention to it because something else happens in the opposite direction, followed by another, slightly closer to you this time. On top of that, you have to consider yourself, and what you're doing, and what you need to do. In other words, complete chaos surrounds you."

He was talking about the final battle against Talpa. And even though Mia had witnessed it herself, it took on a whole new spin with the way Sage was telling it. She found herself captivated by every word.

"Then all of a sudden, it's over. The nightmare has ended. Cheers of joy and celebration ring through your ears. You're overwhelmed with glee. And then, the pace of things starts to slow down. You finally have some time to yourself. And during that lull in the excitement, you realize…" He paused, taking in breath as if it just dawned on him for the first time. "My God, I just saved the world."

Sage laughed, running a hand through his wild, blonde hair. "It leaves your head spinning, doesn't it Mia? …Mia?" She was giving him an alien look that he had never seen on her face before. Was it fascination and… admiration he saw in her eyes?

Snapping out of her daze, Mia began to applaud him. "That was beautiful."

He raised an eyebrow, bewildered. "I wasn't giving a speech."

"I know." She smiled sweetly at him. "You have such a way with words, Sage. It's a shame that you don't talk that often." He suddenly found interest in something off in the distance, knowing that he must be blushing under the praise.

"Have you ever thought of becoming a writer?"

"What?"

"A writer," Mia repeated. "Or a poet, maybe."

"To be perfectly honest, Mia, I haven't had the time to think about my future."

"You do now!" she beamed, grabbing hold of his hand and startling him for the second time that day. "You have all the time in the world."

Their eyes met, each gazing at each other for a long, indefinable moment. She didn't know how much her words had lifted his spirits. He had a future. A future he could create by his own choosing. "Mia—"

Sage was suddenly jerked back against the bench, giving both of them a good scare as Kento dropped in from behind, his arms locked around the blonde's neck in his normal headlock greeting. "Hi guys!" he chirped, ignoring his struggling comrade and grinning at Mia impishly. "Am I… interrupting anything?"

"Kento! Let go of me!"

Mia tried hard not to laugh. "No, Kento. We were just talking."

Kento looked from Mia, then to Sage, who was giving him a murderous look, eyebrows rising in suspicion. "R~ight." He finally released his captive, crouching down behind the bench and folding his arms on top of the backrest. "And I'm the prince of Egypt."

"Kento!" Mia exclaimed, slightly put out that he didn't believe her.

"So," he turned to Sage, who was straightening out his jacket in annoyance. "What are you doing over here?"

"Is everyone going to ask me that until I go over there?" he snapped back.

"No." Cye came up on the other side of the bench. "But it could amount to that."

"C'mon, Sage." Kento got up, punching him lightly in the arm. "Don't be such a stick in the mud!"

He looked like he was about ready to argue that he wasn't when Cye passed Kento a sly look. "I think he needs a push in the right direction, don't you?"

Kento cracked his knuckles loudly. "Oh yeah."

Sage didn't like what that had implied. Nor was he feeling very comfortable with the wicked smiles his friends were giving him. Without so much as a warning, Sage launched himself out of his seat. But Kento had thought he'd make a break for it and reacted the second he moved, grabbing hold of his jacket and yanking him back by the collar.

"Oh my…" Mia covered her mouth in surprise, watching the mini battle that had suddenly erupted on the park bench. She got up, not wanting to accidentally be drawn into the scuffle, when it already came to an end. Mia hid back a grin behind her raised hands, her eyes dancing with laughter.

"Put me down!" a very indignant Sage yelled as he was roughly lifted off the bench, still struggling against his captors.

Cye, who had the blonde by his legs, looked over at his fellow conspirator. "Arr. He's quite a catch, ain't he?" he asked with a fake pirate accent that Kento immediately picked up.

"Aye, Capt'n. We've got ourselves a live one." He readjusted his hold on the swordsman's arms before giving the British boy a meaningful look. "The pond?"

Sage looked on in horror as Cye nodded in agreement. "The pond."

"Y-You can't be serious!" Sage sputtered, eyes wide as the two boys proceeded to carry him towards 'the pond,' which in reality was a good sized lake smack in the middle of the park. Turning to his only hope, Sage called out to the lovely brunette watching calmly from the sidelines. "Mia! Say something!"

"Don't play too rough now," Mia warned, waving a hand good-bye in a motherly fashion.

"We won't!" they chorused cheerfully. Sage's jaw went slack.

"MIA!!!!!!"

It was a few moments later, after a colorful array of threats and curses, that a short cry followed by a splash was heard as Sage was unceremoniously dropped into the lake, courtesy of Kento and Cye. The former was peering over the water's edge from where they stood on the dock, grinning like mad, while the latter was laughing hysterically on the floor.

"That's what you get for ditching us for a girl!" Kento called into the water, waiting for Sage to resurface. The blonde never came up.

Blinking, Kento turned to Cye, who was lying on his back, trying to recover from his fits of laughter. "Cye, does Sage know how to swim?" the Chinese boy asked calmly.

Cye sat up, his eyebrows bunching together in thought. "Actually, I don't know," he answered. "I've never seen him… Why?"

Kento pointed to a spot in the water where they had previously dumped Sage. "Because he's not coming up."

"What?!" Cye crawled over to the edge of the dock, frantically searching for a shimmer of yellow within the endless blue. "Oh God… Sage!" His panic, however, was short-lived when two hands burst through the water and grabbed hold of the front of his shirt. Cye yelped, unprepared for the surprise attack, and was easily dragged into the lake.

The water was calm for a few seconds before a blonde head broke through the surface, followed by a now waterlogged brunette. "I can't believe you!" Cye exclaimed, slapping some water into Sage's face.

"What's the matter, Cye?" he teased, a smug smile on his lips. "I thought you liked the water."

Cye glowered at him in between coughs, then turned an accusing glare at Kento, who was fighting to restrain himself. It didn't work.

"BWAHAHAHAHA!!"

"Damn it, Kento! You set me up! You knew he could swim!!"

"Did not!" he shouted back, but his guilt was self-evident at this point. "Your own fault for believing me!"

"That's not fair!"

"Hey, who said life's fair?" he shrugged his shoulders, a wide grin plastered on his face. But that was before Rowen had shoved him from behind, sending the larger boy flying headfirst into the lake. A third splash was heard that day.

"Hey!" Kento cried out, wiping away his sodden bangs to glare at the lanky boy now standing alone and unchallenged on the dock.

Rowen raised his fists into the air in triumph. "Victory is mine!!"

"Man, why didn't you guys tell me he was behind me?" Kento grumbled.

"Now where's the fun in that?" Sage swam over to the edge of the dock, half hauling himself out of the water.

"Aww," Rowen pouted his lips mockingly. "Is Sage done playing for the day?"

The blonde cocked an eyebrow at him. "Are you?" he threw back. "I don't see you in the water."

He suddenly grinned, going down on one knee and lacing his fingers together in a basket formation. "Be careful what you wish for."

Puzzled at his actions, Sage turned towards the direction Rowen was facing. His eyes widened for a second in surprise as Yulie, clad only in his shorts, raced down the dock towards Rowen. With a whoop and holler, Yulie stepped into the foothold Rowen had made, jumping the same time the older boy pushed up, launching the nine-year old straight into the air. Cye and Kento could only raise their arms to shield themselves from the splash of water Yulie's cannonball had created, the boy breaking the surface only a few moments later.

"Didja see me Kento?" he asked excitedly. "Did I make a big wave?"

"Oh yeah, Yuls!" Kento laughed, spurred on by his enthusiasm. "But let me show you how a pro does it."

"Wait your turn." Kento's eyebrows furrowed, confused as he looked at the blonde with a questioning gaze. Sage only jerked his thumb back in the direction of the park, a familiar black-haired youth prepping himself for a running start.

"Ready!!" Rowen hollered, and Ryo was off like a bullet, racing towards the edge of the dock in record speed.

"Oh sh—!!" Kento's curse was cut short by a large wave that engulfed his head, Ryo landing right besides the Chinese boy and sending him under with the force of his cannonball.

His role as a springboard now over, Rowen hurriedly stripped down to his boxers and jumped in, creating another splash in the lake, this time near Cye, who wasn't too appreciative of the gesture.

"Ack! Rowen!!" Cye spit out some water that had gotten into his mouth by accident, then looked around eagerly for where the blue-haired tactician would resurface. Rowen broke water nearby, only to have his head dunked back under, Cye eager for payback.

Sage watched on as the water fight began, battle lines already drawn… as uneven as they were. "Sage! Get over here!" Kento cried, trying to keep a hold of Ryo while Yulie was latched onto the Warrior of Strength, trying to force him underwater in an attempt to free the Ronin leader. Cye, at the moment, was too busy grappling with Rowen to help Kento's losing battle.

"Sage!!" The blonde rolled his eyes, shaking his head before throwing his jacket and shirt on the dock and swimming over to Kento's aid.

Mia watched the little war rage on by the lakeside, White Blaze standing next to her. She couldn't help but smile when Sage snatched Yulie off Kento's back, tossing him into the water only to have Ryo grab him from behind, followed by Kento who was trying to rescue his rescuer. All three of them went down when Yulie, Cye, and Rowen suddenly jumped on top of them in an act of treason. Treaties were broken and new alliances were formed as it was now Ryo, Sage, and Kento verses Yulie, Rowen, and Cye. The battle begun anew.

Mia sighed, she and White Blaze exchanging looks. "I guess we're the only ones going home dry today."

But that was just fine with me. …It was fun. Watching them be so happy and carefree… It was fun. A lot of our days were like that. Though, I wish I could say that our new friends in the Nether Realm shared a similar celebration experience. …No. They got headaches. And worries. And stress. The moment they were freed, our former enemies had to set about correcting centuries of abuse and misrule. I felt the worse for Kayura. She, of all people, didn't need this. Not here. Not now. …I remembered that she used to stop by our house a lot. The ex-warlords too, but her most often. I think she was trying to get away. Trying to escape. I couldn't blame her. Actually, I admired her courage. Her strength and will to persevere. It took a lot to do what she did. To rule in the wake on an evil tyrant. …Kayura once told me that, as a leader, there was a fine line between being commanding and being overbearing. Sometimes, the line was too blurred to even notice that there was a difference.

[The Dynasty: March 18, 1989]

"We need construction to begin as soon as the building materials arrive. Start fortifying the outer walls first, then work your way in. Strengthening the palace walls and purifying the remaining Dynasty Soldiers that still have parts of Talpa's soul fused inside them are my top priorities." Kayura strode through the halls, not missing a beat as she issued orders to her officials. Dais and Sekhmet flanked her on both sides, keeping to her constant, fast-moving pace and even faster commands. "Sekhmet, I want you to be in charge of the purification process. Cale's already been assigned to the reconstruction. And Dais," she slowed down a step, turning to face the white-haired general as she walked. "I'll need you to handle diplomacy outside of the Dynasty."

Dais stopped mid stride, causing Kayura, Sekhmet, and the two soldiers forever guarding them to stop as well. "Kayura, that's a rather broad order."

"I know. I meant it to be. I want you to do as you see fit." She continued to walk, this time at half the speed she was traveling earlier, Dais walking besides her. "Dealing with the castle and the affairs that come with it is a simple job compared to how we are to handle all the problems outside of these walls. We need to assert our presence in the Nether Realm and, on top of that, smoke out the remaining warriors still loyal to Talpa. Though dealing with loyalists isn't my main concern."

"You're referring to the demon soldiers that want to take Talpa's place on the throne," Sekhmet spoke, receiving a short nod from Kayura. "It's only the second day, but everyone in the Nether Realm knows that Talpa's dead. In our situation, fortifying the castle and organizing our troops should be our first move, not—"

"No, Sekhmet. She has a point." The former Warlord of Venom looked at his brother-in-arms, waiting for a response. "They'll come here only if they think the castle is still up for grabs. Making a formal statement and presenting Kayura as the new ruler of the Dynasty will stop them from trying anything foolish."

"For the time being," Sekhmet argued. "They'll try it anyway. Maybe not now, but later."

"And why's that?" Dais demanded.

"Because we're not Talpa." They had stopped in their walking, both Dais and Sekhmet turning to regard the young lady who had managed to sum up their situation in one simple phrase. "We're riding through hell, boys." Kayura met each of them in the eyes, that flash of stubborn pride shining in her own. "I, for one, would like to be prepared this time."

With an audible whoosh of her long, ceremonial robes, Kayura sharply turned on her heels and started walking. Dais and Sekhmet exchanged looks, confirming what each of them saw in her eyes. Pure determination.

After a short pause, they followed after her, the two Dynasty Soldiers doing the same. "Dais, when you're planning your delegation, make sure to include this message to all the Dynasty's enemies, new and old. That Talpa has been defeated, and his former generals now rule the Nether Realm. That I am Lady Kayura, the last of the Ancients, and I plan to issue this world into a peaceful era, absent of tears and bloodshed. That if anyone, who possesses a demon's black heart and iron fist, dares to block the path towards lasting peace in favor of tyranny and chaos, let them know that they will be struck down by my staff." She looked at Dais, the fire lit in her eyes as she continued on. "I will show no mercy to the ones that freely walk the path of destruction. Make this known to everyone."

~+~+~+~+~

Reference Note: His Imperial Majesty Akihito is Japan's 125th emperor (1989). Her Imperial Highness Princess Nori is his third child and only daughter. She would have been nineteen at the time of Sage's reference to her.