Chapter 1 – The Beginning
October, 1853 – The Side of Mt. Fuji
"Oi, Shigen-san! You up there?" shouted the man climbing the mountain. Looking remarkably out of place in his white western style overcoat and blonde hair, Kagami Shinnosuke carefully navigated his way up the mountainside, avoiding scattered rocks. Making his way along the mountain path with practiced ease, the supple grace to his movements reveals him as a warrior. A truly keen observer might note the calluses on his hands, revealing him to be a practiced user of the ivory hilted blade sheathed at his side.
"Shinnosuke! What the hell are you wearing? And what happened to your hair?" bellowed the target of Kagami's yell. At 26, Shigen Naoe felt he was sufficiently Kagami's senior to call him by his first name. A massive man with long white hair, more ogre than human, Shigen was duly amused by the sudden change in Kagami since the last time they had seen each other, in the Spring. While unarmed, Shigen's massive arms and stature made it obvious that he could probably rip any man foolish enough to challenge him to pieces without any need for steel to aid him. Stepping out of the cave he called home into the small meadow growing midway up the slopes of Mt. Fuji, he met Kagami at the end of the path and clapped the younger man on the back.
Grinning, Kagami pulled out a jug of sake. "What, you don't like it? I picked the clothes up from a Portuguese trader in Yokohama, and once I was dressed like this, I simply had to bleach my hair to match. I think they suit me very well, although I do admit more than a few people have found it odd as well. In any case, happy birthday, Shigen-san!"
Shigen beamed. It was indeed his birthday, and he was happy that Kagami had remembered. The young man had been an orphan adopted by Shigen's father's friend Kagami Orinosuke. Without any knowledge of his parents, the young Kagami had no idea when his real birthday was, although he knew he was 20. Ever since the boys had met and become friends when Shigen was 16 and the young Kagami was 10, the two had celebrated their birthdays together on Shigen's birthday. With the death of Shigen's father five years ago, Shigen had moved to the mountain, but Kagami still visited him several times a year. "Yes, and happy birthday to you too, Shinnosuke! How is Kagami-sensei?"
Kagami's face darkened. "My father is dead." Shigen's high spirits immediately crashed. "Shinnosuke… I'm sorry. How did it happen? Wait, no… this discussion should not be held so easily… come in, and let's open that bottle of sake." Leading Kagami into the cave, the two friends sat down at Shigen's table. Kagami produced two sake cups, and poured. Clinking their cups together, they toasted Kagami's father. "To Kagami Orinosuke! May he be happy in the world beyond!" After a few minutes, Kagami began his story.
"It happened a couple of months ago. Did you hear about the black ships?" Shaking his head, Shigen indicated that the news had not yet reached him. "In July, a gaijin named Perry arrived in Edo Bay with a small fleet of four black ships. He's from a country called America. These ships…" Kagami shook his head. "They're amazing. We don't have anything that comes close. They run on steam, and burn coal! On a ship! Their maneuverability and speed are unsurpassable, our navy is completely outmatched. If Perry wanted to, he could probably bomb all of Edo from the harbor and sail away without a scratch." Shigen could only sit back, shocked at the news.
"The Americans came as bullies, nothing less. They made a list of demands, and sent it to the shogunate. Well, that didn't sit well with us, of course, but what could we do?" Shigen nodded. "Their men came ashore, of course. Arrogant in their display of power, they were boors, starting trouble all over town. For the most part, the men of Tokyo were cowards, bowing and scraping to the damned gaijin, not daring to do anything." Sneering, Kagami spat in disgust. "You knew my father. He wasn't the type to take an insult lying down, and when a gaijin spilled sake on him, refused to apologize, and then called him outdated and stupid for having a sword instead of a gun… well, that was too much for him. He drew his sword, and it was over. One less gaijin, and good riddance, or so we thought." Kagami shook his head. "The next day, Shogunate soldiers came for him. He killed them all. Then they sent in a rifle squad. He killed all of them, too. Then they sent a messenger, saying that the Americans threatened to destroy the entire market district if he did not surrender. So he committed hara-kiri." Finishing his story in a bleak, emotionless tone. Kagami set down his cup.
"That night, I went to bed, and when I woke up, I had inherited his power." For the first time showing that he was something more than a young swordsman dressed in western garb, Kagami clenched his fist, which burst into flame. "The guardian of Suzaku…. I never wanted it this soon, you know?" Shigen nodded. "I didn't want Byakko's blessing when I received it, either. But fate cannot be denied. Now that you have inherited Suzaku's power, you should visit the gate." Kagami nodded. "Yes. I will, tomorrow morning. But for now, let's finish this bottle, and talk about old times, eh?" Shigen nodded, and the two friends talked late into the night.
The next morning, Kagami set out for the peak. The trip was not particularly arduous, the pilgrimage to the top of Mt. Fuji being a popular one for monks, spiritualists, and just general tourists. After several hours of travel, he arrived at a small clearing near the top of the mountain. Stepping into the middle of the clearing, he took a deep breath and kneeled, praying to Suzaku. "Mighty Suzaku, guardian of the south. I, Kagami Shinnosuke, accept the powers and duties you have granted to me." The sky rapidly darkening, a shimmering black portal crackling with magical energy began manifesting in the middle of the clearing, in front of Kagami. Presenting his treasured sword, the Young Phoenix, Kagami carefully and precisely performed each of the techniques of his father's style. Although it had no name, it was the fighting style that had been passed down by the champions of Suzaku since their creation, and its power was unquestioned. Kagami had mastered the style as much as possible for one not empowered by Suzaku by the age of 15, and now that he had inherited his father's power, his attacks took on new life and energy.
As he performed his kata, Kagami let his body take over, performing each motion mechanically, as he had thousands of times before. Remembering the man who had taught his style to an orphan he had found, and who had gone so far as to adopt that orphan and give him a family name, Kagami burst into tears as he finished. His depressive negative energy heightened by the ki he had gathered in performing his kata, he unknowingly beckoned toward Hell's Gate, toward the underworld – a world filled with the negative energies Kagami was radiating.
Drawn by Kagami, spirits of the unhappy dead began gathering on the other side of Hell's gate. Looking up, Kagami scowled angrily, and gathered his power, intending on banishing them and sealing Hell's Gate away again. As he did so, however, he was shocked to find his father on the other side of the gate. "Father! What are you doing in the underworld!" he exclaimed in shock. He received no answer from the angry spirit, which simply shrieked in anger and pain, and pressed against the boundary between its world and the living world.
Disturbed, Kagami hastily banished the gate and descended the mountain again. Arriving back at Shigen's cave, he refused to talk about his day and sullenly sat in the corner, sipping at a cup of sake. Finally, unable to bear it, he turned to Shigen. "I saw my father behind Hell's Gate today." Not entirely surprised, Shigen nodded. "I was afraid of that. Kagami-sensei obviously died angry and before he was willing to. Spirits such as those are the most likely to fail to proceed to the next world. I'm sorry, Shinnosuke, but there's nothing you can do for him now." Bitter, Kagami angrily shook his head. "That's not fair! Father is trapped in the underworld for all eternity now, and why? Because of the stupid commoners who had no conception of his importance. Without Suzaku's guardian, Hell's Gate would be out of balance and would open again, dooming the world to torment and eternal suffering. Yet, for merely defending his honor, they force him to death? That's bullshit!" Trembling with rage, Kagami dashed his cup to the ground, picked up his sword, and stalked out into the night.
Shaking his head, Shigen stood and followed Kagami. Following him up to the peak, he found Kagami standing in front of Hell's Gate, staring at his father's spirit, quivering with rage. Shaking his head, Shigen walked up to the younger man. "Shinnosuke… it's not healthy to leave the gate like this. It's over. There's nothing you can do now… mourn your father, and just do your duty and guard the Gate." Turning away, Shigen looked up at the full moon. "I remember when my father died, and I inherited the power of Byakko." Raising his massive right arm, Shigen concentrated briefly, and his arm changed into stone, his fingers sharpening into talons. Releasing the power of Byakko's Claw again, Shigen turned back to Kagami. "I too was angry for a long time. It felt unfair that the guardian of Byakko could fall to something so minor as a heart attack. I guess the size of the bodies of the men of the Naoe clan puts a great deal of strain on our hearts… we have a history of dying relatively young. Even so…. It's over. Death is final, there's no coming back from the underworld." Clapping Kagami on the shoulder, Shigen returned to his cave, hoping his friend would be alright.
Standing in front of Hell's Gate, Kagami grew angrier and angrier. Shigen's speech had had the opposite effect intended. At least Shigen's father had died of natural causes… in Kagami's eyes, his father's being forced to suicide was no better than murder. After all, why should he have had to kill himself? It was all to protect the stupid commoners. If he hadn't been concerned about the destruction of Tokyo, he would never have been taken. As Kagami's rage mounted, the spirits behind Hell's Gate trembled in excitement. Here, in front of them, was one of the guardians of the Gate, radiating immense negative energy. Carefully, delicately, they tried to seize a strand of the power Kagami was emitting. While Hell's Gate did not allow travel from the underworld into the living world, the reverse was not at all true. Capturing some of Kagami's radiating ki, the spirits gently pulled on it, infecting it with the dark energies of the underworld. Being the Guardian of Suzaku, Kagami's association with the Gate was different from that of normal men, and using this, the spirits of the underworld began subtly twisting his ki, and by extension his soul.
Suddenly filled with a murderous hatred of mankind, Kagami did not even notice what was happening. Turning, he looked at the lights of Tokyo, and spat in hatred. Speaking out loud to the night, he slowly formed his thoughts. "Yes. They need to learn. They are weak and corrupt, ignorant and stupid. Things must change, and they must learn their place in this world." Nodding, Kagami dismissed the Gate and began walking back to Shigen's cave, oblivious to the taint in his ki.
The next morning, Shigen woke up to find Kagami sitting at the mouth of the cave, brooding. Yawning, the massive guardian of Byakko stood up and stretched, walking up to his friend. "You don't look like you slept at all last night, Shinnosuke. Are you alright?" he asked. Kagami slowly stood, nodding. Turning to look at Shigen, a wild and insane light of fanaticism became evident in his eyes. "Yes, yes. I'm better than alright… I've realized what I, no, what, WE need to do to set things right." Kagami began rapidly pacing back and forth, full of nervous energy. "Shigen-san, look at the people out there. They're fools. They've lost touch with the spiritual side of the world… how many swordsmen even have any appreciable amount of ki these days? They train in their techniques, yes, but for the most part, they just swing blades around – they've forgotten the essence of what it is to be a warrior. And what about the Westerners? They're even worse. They've given up all the true gods for their one Christian god, and in doing so lost sight of the reality of the supernatural world. We guard them from the threat of the underworld, but they aren't even aware of our existence. They aren't even aware of the existence of the underworld, in fact."
Shigen nodded, slowly. What Kagami said was true, but he didn't like where this was going. "Yes, but even so, it is our duty to defend the gates. That is what the gods gave us this power for, and even if the threat is not what it once was, the role we play is essential. The people out there may not be aware of or appreciate our efforts, but that makes them no less important."
Kagami shook his head angrily. "They don't deserve it! They deserve to suffer and die. They need to learn what lurks beyond again, to taste true fear. Mankind is corrupt. The only reason we exist in the first place is because of humanity's meddling with the Gate, anyway. Look at them, smug with their guns and ships." Turning around, Kagami fixed his intense gaze on Shigen. "Shigen-san, it's time. The guardians were assigned their duties hundreds of years ago. The need to guard Hell's Gate has passed. We should use our abilities to cleanse humanity, to make them worthy of this world. Join with me! You agreed with me a moment ago, humanity is corrupt! As guardians, it is our job to excise that corruption, to destroy the weak and foolish, to make the world strong again!"
Horrified by Kagami's words, Shigen shook his head. "Shinnosuke, what's gotten into you! That's the exact opposite of what we are supposed to do. Calm down!" His ferver dying down slightly, Kagami composed himself and looked Shigen in the eye. Shaking his head, Kagami realized that Shigen was too stuck on the idea of adhering to the role of guardian to go along with his plans. Turning around, Kagami looked at Tokyo off in the distance, then breathed deeply and nodded. If Shigen would not be part of the solution, then he would be part of the problem. Gathering his energy and letting his hands fall to his sides, his right hand near the hilt of his sword, he turned around again. Looking Shigen in the eye, he simply said "I'm sorry, then, Shigen-san." before drawing his blade and quickly slashing at Shigen's neck.
Shocked, Shigen barely managed to step back, causing the sword to only lightly nick his shoulder rather than cutting his throat. "Shinnosuke! What are you-" he exclaimed, before Kagami continued his attack, this time slashing downward at Shigen's head. This time more prepared for the attack, Shigen called upon Byakko's powers and brought up his transformed arm, stopping the slash. "Stop this!" he shouted, pushing back at Kagami and forcing the guardian of Suzaku to disengage. As far as Kagami was concerned, however, the time for speech was over. Drawing upon his own powers, Kagami stepped in, performing a short uppercut with his flame sheathed left hand, crying the name of the attack. "Gouen Sou!" His reactions still delayed by his disbelief at Kagami's actions, Shigen managed to block the uppercut, but was caught offguard by Kagami's followup as he continued with the second part of the attack. "Shiranui!" shouted the younger man as his sword burst into flame as he lunged forward, smashing down with the blade at close range, striking Shigen full on his stony arm. With a small explosion of fire, Shigen was knocked back and to the ground. Stepping forward, Kagami stabbed down at his former friend, hoping to finish it then and there. Prepared for the coming attack, however, Shigen managed to roll out of the way just in time, only receiving a deep gash along his side rather than a potentially fatal gut wound.
Recognizing that Kagami had launched one killing strike after another, Shigen resigned himself to combat. Rolling back and to his feet, the massive man bellowed before charging forward into a shoulder slam. Kagami took the opportunity to counter the headlong rush with a powerful vertical chop, but Shigen took the blow on his stone arm. The sword left a deep gouge that would be a painful wound later, but for now Shigen accepted the pain and continued on, slamming into Kagami. "Byakko Shuu Tsuika!" shouted the massive man as he followed up his shoulder ram with a powerful kick that held much of the momentum of the charge. The powerful blow took the young swordsman right in the gut, slamming him back into the mountainside, bouncing him onto the ground.
Rolling to his feet, Kagami spat to the side. He had tensed his gut muscles at the last second and moved with the force of the blow, nullifying some of the damage. A lesser man would have been instantly killed by the force of that kick, his lower ribcage, diaphragm, liver, kidneys, and any number of other internal organs pulverized by its rock crushing force. He shook his head, and analyzed the situation more carefully. His opponent was also a champion of one of the four guardian gods, and would certainly be no pushover. Now that he had lost the element of surprise, it was time to fight wiser and more intelligently. For several moments the two men sparred, each dashing in, delivering quick blows toward the head and torso, occasionally crouching for a blow to the gut or legs. Both skilled warriors familiar with each other's style, however, none of these blows found their mark, and it seemed the fight was at a stalemate for the moment.
Shigen watched Kagami carefully. They had been probing each other's defenses for almost thirty seconds now, an eternity in a fight between two men as skilled in the arts of combat as the two of them. Finally, he decided to take the initiative. Moving in, he called upon the powers of Byakko again, converting much of his upper body to stone for a brief time. Seeing Shigen moving in, Kagami again drew on the powers Suzaku had granted to him, repeating the Gouen Sou. Shigen made no attempt to evade the blow, and Kagami was elated as his fire encased uppercut hit his opponent squarely in the chin. His elation was shortlived as he prepared to perform the Shiranui but Shigen interrupted him. Accepting the Gouen Sou, Shigen felt no pain even as he felt the impact of the blow. In his temporarily transformed state, no attack could phase him, even as they ravaged his body. As Kagami reared back for the followup slash to the uppercut, Shigen reached out and grabbed him by the throat. "Hisui Sai!" shouted the massive unarmed fighter, as he squeezed, crushing Kagami's throat as he slammed the smaller man into the ground, then lifted him and threw him into the ground again, and stomping on Kagami as he lay on the ground.
Not expecting his uppercut to not phase Shigen, Kagami was caught completely by surprise by the grapple. Slammed into the ground, he was dazed for a moment but managed to bring his arms up in time to buffer Shigen's stomp, keeping him from breaking any of his ribs. Rolling to his feet, Kagami hopped back, keeping his sword at the ready. Rather than backing off, he simply moved to a better range for a weapon as long as his sword, and then began a dazzling series of attacks, slashing horizontally at Shigen's head, then twice vertically, then chopping down with both hands on the hilt for a more powerful vertical strike, and finally striking down again, this time with an added stepin. His first horizontal slash caught Shigen right in the scalp as the big man was not ready for such a quick recovery from his attack. The blood began flowing immediately, momentarily blinding Shigen, giving Kagami the opportunity to land his subsequent attacks, slashing Shigen repeatedly across the chest, and then chopping down hard on the big man's shoulder. Expecting the final blow, Shigen managed to sidestep barely out of the way, accepting a heavy gash on his upper arm rather than having it chopped off or having a muscle severed.
"Byakko So!" shouted Shigen as he pumped ki into his transformed stony talons, chopping down powerfully and leaving actual claw-like trails in the air. Kagami had entered into closer range for his last strike, and was caught hard by the attack, and was knocked back and momentarily dazed. Shigen used the opportunity to repeat his shoulder ram attack. "Byakko Shuu Tsuika!" he shouted, rushing in. This time, Kagami was more prepared, and rather than simply slashing forward in an attempt to stop the attack, he ducked down and slashed up with his sword, focusing on repelling the attack with his ki. Kagami's blade met Shigen's stony shoulder at just the right moment, and the small amount of repelling ki Kagami had infused into his gentle blow was perfect, knocking Shigen slightly off balance. Continuing, Kagami immediately drew upon the power of Suzaku and performed his favorite attack. "Sho Hoko!" he shouted, as he leaped upward in a spinning uppercut with his sword, leaving a blazing spiral of flame behind as he spun in the air. The flaming blow slammed into Shigen's chest at nearly full force. The big man managed to lean back enough so that the blade did not shear right through his torso, but the force of the impact, sent him flying back into the air. Combined with all the damage he had already accepted to perform his own attacks, Kagami's perfectly executed Sho Hoko knocked the massive guardian of Byakko unconscious as it sent him flying backwards into the cave that was his home.
Landing from his jump, Kagami panted with exhaustion. The long battle had taken over a minute, and his resources were nearly drained. Collapsing to the ground, he placed his hand to the ground and drew upon the fiery power of the core of the world for a moment, reenergizing himself slightly. Standing up, he looked into the mouth of the cave. Shigen lay there, against the back wall, unmoving and covered in blood now that Byakko's stony transformation had left him. Unaware that Shigen had managed to avoid the killing stroke of the Sho Hoko, Kagami sorrowed for a moment for his dead friend. He had been forced to kill him the day after their shared birthday celebrations. In less than two seasons, he had lost his father and his only friend. Looking up at the cave, Kagami nodded. He had to conceal the evidence – if one of the other guardians happened to come by, it could not look as if Shigen had been murdered. Drawing upon the power of Suzaku again, he jumped into the air, smashing the roof of the cave mouth with all his power, destroying the entrance of the cave and covering it with rubble. Calling forth the power of the flaming phoenix god, he produced burst after burst of supernatural fire, smashing the mountainside until it seemed that a small avalanche had covered the entrance to the cave.
His work finished, Kagami sheathed his sword. Kneeling down and uttering a quick prayer for Shigen, he nodded. Shigen had not trained a successor and had no children, although there was a young orphaned niece he had adopted. She spent most of her time with the rest of the Naoe clan, however, the family having decided she was too young to live on the mountain. There would be no more guardians of Byakko unless the god himself chose to invest another human with his power, and Kagami was confident that in today's corrupt and weakened society, the god would be hard pressed to find one suitable for the job. That threat nullified, the young man nodded to himself. It was not yet time to open the gate, or to challenge the other guardians. First, he needed to study the gate more, to understand more fully how it worked. Next, he had to figure out how to open it in a controlled manner, so he could control the undead spirits entering the living world. He would have to be near the gate so he could study it for some years to come… perhaps it would be best if he raised some money and had a house built at Mt. Fuji's peak. The foolish humans knew the mountain was sacred, but with enough money anything was possible – corrupt officials abounded. Satisfied with his next goal, Kagami descended the mountain.
Much later... Shigen woke up in total darkness. Heavily injured, he barely struggled to his feet. Unable to see, he made his way to where he thought the cavern entrance should be, only to find it blocked by tons of stone. Alone, he roared into the darkness, hearing his own echoes bouncing back on him. He was trapped.
And so the chain of events began that would bring the world to near destruction, but be completely hidden from normal men began.
Author's Notes:
I did some research and I am trying to keep the fic accurate within both the story's timeline and within the timeline of the real world outside. Commodore Matthew Perry did in fact sail into Edo Bay in July of 1853, setting off a chain of events that would eventually lead to the Bakumatsu and the fall of the shogunate, and the beginning of the Meiji era.
Note that Kagami's father specifically commits hara-kiri rather than seppuku – there is a difference. His suicide was not to erase shame, but rather to avoid giving up on his ideals and to preserve his honor.