These are the times that try men's souls.
When he fought for the sake of his world, it was easy for Sarajin to save as many lives as he could.
But here he was faced with a massive army on both sides and didn't have the focus necessary to be where he needed to be.
The most ferocious of the Youkai charged headlong towards the Lunar Capital, leaving fire and cracks in their wake.
Having no experience with any of these beasts left him with a dilemma. How much power could he use? What elements would be effective?
He was relying on pure swordplay to keep the beasts at bay while his mind struggled to piece together the answers through the fog.
These weren't weak beasts like the ones meant for hunting and consuming. Their attacks affected the air around them in many ways, chilling it, shaking it, leaving it burning with ash.
Sounds were firing off in all surroundings, Sarajin remaining deaf to anything that wasn't immediately in front of him.
His mind flashed between moments of the present every time he blinked. One second he could be repelling the club of a mighty oni, the next he could be consumed by the spirit fire of a multi-tailed fox.
He was gasping for breath and forcing himself to hold that sword tight and keep fighting forward.
Attack. Attack. Attack.
No time to retreat, no temptation to defend. Only his body was aware of the damage he was taking, his mind had tapped out of factoring it in long ago.
Shards of metal fired out the moon rabbit's weapon and pierced some of the Youkais hides. The more panicked bunnies charged headfirst into the horde and stabbed the knives into their enemies, only to pay the price of retaliation that sent them flying all over the place.
Their weapons were effective so long as they actually managed to hit. Stray bullets could hit other Youkai, bunnies, or even Sarajin himself.
Sarajin was able to jump from one Youkai to the next and focused on disarming them, only to discover they housed a variety of tricks and the weapons were merely their way of holding back.
He was certain that using his blade to deliver quick slices would wear down the Youkai enough to exhaust them, and perhaps in the aftermath of this battle they could be carried back home.
He wasn't certain.
He kept moving forward, never looking back.
The only thing telling him that the battle was still being waged were the roars of the Youkai, echoing in unison with their unrelenting stomps.
He was slowly piecing together how some of these Youkai functioned. Any spiritual entities could be struck as long as he put fire or lightning around his blade.
Oni need to be attacked at the limbs, as that was the sole source of their strength.
The Youkai were no different than him at the moment. They kept moving forward, marching for the sake of absolute victory, but because of his efforts they were not getting any closer to their goal.
But then the Youkai started fighting back harder. The beasts so far were simple-minded in their approach and were able to deal effective damage to the enemy forces in their path.
But then came the clap of thunder in a rhythm similar to a drum. The half-bodies of humanoid figures floated atop large clouds with a ring of hexagonal pads floating behind them.
As those pads were pounded with invisible force, lightning surged from their bodies and cut swathes through the moon's surface.
Any rabbit unlucky to be in the way were electrified and thrown back, covered in smoke, their weapons exploding and messing up their hands.
Sarajin paused briefly and started hyperventilating before gritting his teeth and rushing towards the forces of lightning.
Their second barrage was intercepted by his even faster speed. He slashed every bolt and moved on to the next before a single one managed to hit the ground.
He then threw his hand out and with a powerful tug, ripped the cloud out from the beasts and made their bodies fall to the ground.
"Ha...ha...!" With every throb of his heartbeat his vision turned blacker. He swallowed deep and charged the army head on, relying on his speed to weave between what he deemed the strongest of their lot and hitting them with his best shots.
Fire, electricity, nature, water, ice, earth, and wind...He had every tool available to deal with these beasts. What was being left in his wake was enough to make the beasts recoil, doubting their advantage...
It didn't make a difference how deep his blade sunk into their flesh. They were ultimately beasts after all. As long as he didn't kill them...well, would it really have made a difference?
Nothing he saw of these creatures suggested they were anything but autonomous beings of violent instinct.
They had no plan, no dreams, no ideals. They were weapons being pointed at their enemy so someone else can claim a victory.
There was a mastermind behind all this, he had almost forgotten as much...Really, he could barely remember much of anything from the past few hours.
How long has he been fighting this battle? Was there even an end in sight?
Too long...MUCH too long...
WHY a sword...?
Because it was a tool to defend the weak.
So you claim.
Who wielded a bladed weapon against you?
Gabriel.
WRONG.
It was Ophelia.
Why am I thinking about this now?
Who cares why it's a sword?
Because the sharp edge of that knife taught you to fear death.
Sarajin winced painfully and dug his heels into the dirt. The next few moments were a blur as he found himself surrounded by desperate beasts, and then when the flashes stopped, he was still moving forward...
Moon rabbits were crying and screaming, driven mad with lucid insanity to save their own skins. They started mowing down the Youkai with a relentless salvo of bullets until they had no ammo left to give.
Sarajin took a few bullets to the back but pressed onward regardless.
Forward. Forward. Forward.
Keep your back pointed towards the enemies fallen in your wake.
Shield yourself from any possible consequences.
The Youkai recognize the might of the strongest and start piling on Sarajin in an attempt to take him out of the picture.
But Sarajin's blade is sharp, unbreakable. They were willingly throwing themselves into a losing battle.
There were less and less noises in the air as the battle raged on. The blood caking his ear wasn't helping him at all.
The Youkai were starting to turn their backs on the barrier and howled in fear.
Then came the searing sounds of a sky burning, as streaks of glittery pearl-silver blitzed through the air and struck the Youkai.
It didn't pierce, it erased.
Sarajin looked back at the barrier and saw more shots being fired off from the outer walls of the capital. His eyes widened, his body shook.
"They're leaving...!" He murmured bitterly.
He picked up his heavy feet and ran for the Youkai. They turned to him, eyes wide and hollow with fright.
But he cut those looks out of his mind and drew his sword to strike at the beams of silver, giving the Youkai a chance to escape into the sea.
But as the light reflected off his blade it illuminated the reflection inside.
HER...reflection.
Smiling, anticipating.
She has always been by his side, the black wind pushing his wings.
As long as you can see her, it's OK to tell yourself that you haven't taken a life.
A sword is a tool of justice to protect the innocent.
…But just WHO is…innocent?
Eventually the lightshow ceased and the moon was silent save for his tired, heavy breaths.
He collapses onto his knees, the last Youkai retreating into the sealing gap in the sea behind him.
For the warrior on the battlefield the air is the only clean thing they can take in at the end of screaming and pain.
He could barely enjoy that much. His lungs were choking on every breath.
How could he still stand? How could he still think?
Historians will examine him at this moment and never come to a decisive conclusion.
He picked himself and his sword off the ground and moved towards the Lunar Capital. His vision faded in and out, and the bodies on the ground burned his eyes.
Wading through dead Youkai and moon rabbits, he stopped to check their wounds. Mostly punctured holes and cuts, a few burn marks here and there…
It was the rabbit's weapons that finished the beasts off. Yes. The rabbits.
The poor, small things. They died with their faces frozen in fear. Others looked…happy. Relieved. And the rest waded into the murky depths of lucidity.
Sarajin shivered. "I should have saved them!" He shouted at himself, a voice banging against muffled walls.
Did it really matter? The world was safe. Balance was once again restored.
He felt a weak tug anchoring itself to his leg…
When he looked down he saw that peculiar pink-haired rabbit half-dead with the light in her eyes fading.
His heart skipped a precious beat and he dove to his knees to pick her up and cradle her against his chest.
"It's OK, it's ok…! I'll get you home…!"
The rabbit was smiling and staring up at the starry sky, "I…I am…"
Sarajin shook his head and weakly pleaded with her, "Y-You fought well! Please rest easy! Please!"
The rabbit's voice began to fade, and with her last breath she reached out and tugged at his heart, "I am finally…free…"
Her eyes closed gently and her life faded into the night…
Sarajin lost his breath to rapid gasps and squeezed the corpse against his body, mouthing the word "Bunny…" with paistricken grief.
Those weren't the tears of a weapon, that rabbit had life, dreams…All of it snuffed out to feed that cruel, cruel monster that was war.
And now…it all made sense.
Arrogance.
Callousness towards all other life.
Treating those beneath you as inferior.
Making this innocent soul…into a slave.
This was the justification of "Paradise".
THIS…was the "solution" to war.
"..."
Sarajin rose high with the rabbit still in his arms and took one step towards the Lubar Capital.
The least he could do was put her to rest somewhere beautiful.
"That's far enough, human." Echoed Lord Watatsuki's voice beyond the barrier.
Sarajin stopped, his eyes basking in shadow while his lips were pressed into a frown.
"You've done what's expected of you. All corpses are to be purified from the moon's surface, lest our lands be tainted by death."
Death is frightening. So much can be left unsaid and undone.
But it wasn't the fear of death that drove this man's voice…It was a complete disregard for life.
"Put that corpse down and return to your masters. You have done the best a human can ever hope to manage."
Sarajin stood silent for many seconds…and then moved forward.
"I made myself clear, human. Stop."
Never stop moving forward…
"..." A finger snap echoed through the moon as Lord Watatsuki said calmly, "Cleanse this impurity from my sight."
The soldiers took aim and fired their silver beams upon Sarajin's location.
They hit his body and jerked him around but couldn't cause any permanent harm.
His expression remained stoic as every step was repelled, the corpse in his hands being erased bit by bit.
Until nothing remained…not even ash.
He stopped in place, raising his hands to stiffly grasp empty air. The salvo stopped, the council of Lunarian Sages waiting with an elevated sense of amusement at his silence.
They were blind.
Sarajin's heart pounded against his chest as he looked at his hands again and saw he had nothing…
The heartbeat grew louder, and louder…
Dark thoughts swirled through his head, sweeping up any sense of accomplishment he may have had gained and leaving only his failures to reflect upon…
So much time WASTED…
Maybe he could have done more if he just kil-
"NO!"
"..."
You're right.
Your sword protects the innocent.
It's not meant to be used on humans.
"..."
"..."
"..."
Sarajin raised his hand, then dropped it upon his hilt, clenching it tight.
He hunched over, and the moon shook.
Dust loosened from the walls of the Lunar Palace but the Lunarians brushed it off.
Save for Lord Watatsuki, who began to rise from his floating seat and reach for his own hilt.
Across vast distances the two's eyes met, the Lord's piercing through the sheer darkness shrouding Sarajin's.
And for the briefest of moments, he saw two piercing pupils, and then as light was swallowed into nothingness...Sarajin disappeared.
Utter silence haunted the Lunar Palace, the Sages motionless as the hairs rose on their arms and a succulent, cold set of fingers crawling up their spine.
Lord Watatsuki reached for his blade, mere nanoseconds passing in the time it took for him to start drawing it.
Legends speak of his blade. With a single stroke, he cut the moon's image in the night sky into 28 distinct phases, so that the impure humans may have something to look upon and dread...
For when the moon became full again, that would be when the Youkai were at their most fearsome.
His skill with the blade was unparalleled, and his power was second only to Lord Tsukuyomi.
He edged his lips with a smirk and pierced his gaze towards the oncoming threat...
The moment he drew his sword, it had already been pierced through, the blade snapping in twine as the bottom half was pierced into his chest alongside another sword.
He was crucified against the back wall and his blood splattered the pristine white stone with a permanent stain.
The other Sages were wrestled from their gilded thrones with pale faces and equal looks of abject horror.
A hurricane of holy wind stormed through the hole in the palace, ripping apart house and home along the path their assailant took.
Sarajin, wreathed in Light and with eyes burning with conviction, grit his teeth and plunged the sword in deep and left the visceral sound of this monster's insides being mulched burning in the Sages' ears.
Gawking and choking on black blood coming up his throat, Lord Watatsuki shivered and lost his composure entirely, "H-H-How...dare...YOU...HU-"
Sarajin pulled the sword and stabbed it rapidly. Every stab caused a different face to appear over his own.
Nimus.
Colrez.
Magmankey.
Borealis.
Borealis…
BOREALIS…!
Over and over until the man's chest cavity was barren, then he grabbed the man by the throat to hold him down and stabbed him in the tongue.
He ripped the sword free and let his body slide down the wall all the way to the bottom floor of the palace.
He then jolted back to face the other Sages, all of them shivering with intensity as words failed to escape them...
They assumed they were untouchable.
No...
The means to crush their warped, fascist mentality simply hadn't been born yet.
Sarajin narrowed his eyes and one Sage retaliated in fear, firing a flurry of advanced magical comets that could streak through the night sky as fast as real ones.
Sarajin held his hand up and caught them all into a single orb, then squeezed it down, thrusting his hand to launch the energy out as a spear to impale the Sage and destroy his throne.
A heavily armored Lunarian jumped from the ground floor and rammed Sarajin full force to disorient him...
Except it won't WORK.
Sarajin floated unflinching and was instantly ready to cut him down. The Lunarian, however, drew his own sword and clashed against it, attempting to use its power to drain Sarajin of his energy.
Sarajin pushed forward, forcing his hate-filled eyes against the man's face as he pushed the energy into the sword until it shattered, then cleaved the monster down the middle.
As the body split he flew between them and started attacking the other Sages.
They were ill with fear and rationality marred their better judgment. They tried to fire off attacks of a variety of sorts but he countered every spell, every attack, and broke every chain.
The best the Lunarians could do was avoid dying instantly to his blade.
And in the chaos this duel caused, an opportunity arose for a grief-stricken warrior...
Sarajin's relentless rampage was frozen when he found himself stabbed in the back and greeted by a scream.
Yorihime had grabbed the end of her father's sword and taken her chance, fueled by tears born of true, primal fear and rage.
But the blade only made it an inch deep and Sarajin thrust his gaze over his shoulder.
Yorihime shook and barked at him through bitter teeth, "W-What did you do to our father...?!"
Sheltered from mortality, she only knew what her father had taught her, and she was already too corrupted by this doctrine...That look in her eyes said enough.
Sarajin jerked around and swatted the sword out of her hand with such force it threw her back towards her sister.
He then grabbed his blade in both hands and charged after them.
Sagume flew in and tackled the children out of the way, losing her right wing in the act. As she fell to the platform below the thrones, Sarajin had already dropped down holding his blade tightly in one hand.
Sagume rose tall and powered through her bleeding wing socket to face Sarajin and shield the children from his judgment.
Sagume lowered her hand from her mouth and began to whisper, "You will succeed. And then what?"
Sarajin glared at her. All he saw was a malleable arrangement of black scratches trying to take human shape, with red slits for eyes and her surroundings marred in disorienting kaleidoscope patterns...
He tightened his sword and held it forward with conviction.
A black shadow crawled up his back like a cloak and a smile formed that whispered in his ear and, after a satisfactory grin widened, came out his mouth.
"No. More. Monsters...!"
He prepared to swing with all his might...
The world around him was drenched in monochrome tones and he felt a tight grip on his arm lurching him back.
Time had stopped, and Yen Sid had dropped behind him to hold him down.
His grip was omnipotent despite the feel of his hand being so soft...
His eyes cast judgment, aching with pain and hints of disappointment.
Sarajin grit his teeth and continued to try and break free, justifying his unrelenting will to him with his voice cracking, "I'm so close...! I can make this world a better place for everyone...!"
"You had already done enough..." Remarked the sage.
"Ghh...! How can you stand here and justify letting these monsters live?! How can they...possibly benefit anyone?!"
Yen Sid closed his eyes and moaned deeply.
Sarajin bit his teeth and trembled, "Y-Yeah...no, it's all about your precious balance. I forgot."
When the wise man opened his eyes back up he kept his cool, "You have made the Lunarians remember what it is like to fear death. If this persists, the Youkai will strike back, even stronger than before..."
Sarajin switched his gaze off from him over to the black, monstrous mess guarding the already corrupted youths behind her...
Shivering with a series of grunts, he began to loosen his conviction until Yen Sid felt it was safe to finally let go.
He then let his blade hang beside his hip and whispered, "So some of the Youkai need to be dealt with before they realize what's happened..."
Yen Sid tucked his hands in his sleeves and nodded, "I will arrange for the guardian of this quadrant to deal with the matter, they are-"
"No," Sarajin whispered calmly, then turned around and started walking past the wise man, his expression listless, "...You gave me this mission, it's my job to see it through to the end..."
Yen Sid glared at his back with worry, "I fear your heart may not handle any further strain..."
"...What's the problem?" Sarajin shrugged, grumbling under his breath, "They're just monsters..."
…
The full moon's light felt paler than usual to the denizens of ancient Japan, human and Youkai alike.
The Youkai missed their usual parade of fear throughout the land for the sake of this invasion, and now they were left licking their wounds and wondering what will happen next...
The moon's light was overpowered by a descending shadow, and as it unfurled its wings the beasts craned their heads and stumbled back in fear.
Sarajin floated in the sky with his sword held in one hand and his other arm limp.
His eyes were half-open, all the beasts below him a mere blur...
His body was trembling, his blade illuminated with a grim glow that reflected in the eyes of the beasts.
He didn't hesitate.
Just move forward, and cut the beasts down in one stroke. They didn't need to suffer, his sword just needed to spread fear through death.
Every life cut down led to their lingering screams aching in his heart, but his expression remained cold...
What was the point of counting the numbers slain? One was already too many.
They were only beasts...
They were only beasts...
He raised his blade over his head and towered over a small group of Youkai huddled together. They were shedding tears, seeking only to save each other...
His hand hesitated, his mind flashing through past images of tears dribbling down other people's cheeks.
These Youkai mourned the dead.
They expressed love and courage in the face of their utter demise...
Sarajin's lips quivered into a frown and soon his own tears were starting to flow...
They washed away the delusion shielding him from the truth.
This wasn't some bad dream, or a moment of weakness that could be justified with insane logic...
These Youkai were innocent living beings being slain by his own hand.
HIS hand guided the sword that cleaved the souls from the flesh.
It was a nightmare...and it was entirely of his own creation.
But...this is what you wanted, isn't it?
There was no looking back. Just keep moving forward.
Let a thousand tears weigh down your cheeks as heavy as the guilt in your soul.
You're a prisoner in your own body. Let your screams bang against hollow walls.
Every life you take now is an act of hypocrisy against your ideals.
By the time this night was over, Sarajin had killed over a hundred Youkai, ten minor Gods, and two major deities.
Their stories ended with a period colored dark crimson, so that his legend may move forward...
A legend...forever stained by one moment of pitiable, tragic, human weakness...
"..."
"..."
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
Chapter -45: The Bloodstains of a Broken Promise
Atop a far off mountain, a lone lady stands under the pale moonlight, smiling daintily at the process of the man breaking down far below.
Dressed in nothing but a long violet night gown, a white mob cap, and white gloves, she holds a fine parasol while her long locks of blonde hair move stiffly in the breeze.
"And so once more, the legend of the Godslayer of Gensokyo and the Butcher of Sin is written into the history of our world."
She let out a tiny, high-pitched chuckle and raised her fingertips before her lips, "Fate has shielded your mortality from my hand, Elemental Overlord, but I am not one to suffer kindly to setbacks..."
"If nothing else I, Yukari Yakumo, will take pleasure in being the one who pushed you towards your downfall."
"And so, the pages of your story turn ever closer to the end..." She then stepped backwards into a gap with eyes inside, unseen by anyone who would care to know she was ever there to begin with...
Next Time: Not a Hero