Chapter One
Revolutions never got to choose their names. They were usually just given. Whether it was by a catchy sound bite on the nightly news or whispers in the streets. So when the phrase 'Shikon Rebellion' was thrown around a few times, it seemed to just stick.
Souta and Asako Higurashi were owners of a historical shine in the city of Shikon. They had grown up in the community and had decided to carry on the Higurashi tradition to upkeep the grounds. They lived a humble life but they were happy. And then their family was complete when their daughter Kagome was born. But it wasn't long after that that the couple noticed a shift in the community. The crime rate was rising, the tensions between youkai and humans were becoming more violent and it was no longer felt safe to walk the streets at night. It all seemed to stem from newly elected Governor Onigumo Naraku.
Souta Higurashi was the kannushi of the family, the one with spiritual powers, and he knew Naraku was no good the moment he saw the man. Souta knew Naraku was powerful but also knew he was shielding his true self. It wasn't until Naraku passed heinous legislation that separated the communities of humans and youkai. This sent them back hundreds of years and the Higurashis could no longer sit back and watch these injustices happen. And so the Shikon Rebellion was born. The Higurashis were not the only ones who felt this way and their movement grew steadily in the shadows of Naraku's city. And so it wasn't long before they had a target on their back.
Kagome was eight when her life changed forever. Her parents always put the family's safety over everything else, even their work with the Rebellion. But apparently they weren't careful enough. The memories of that night never left Kagome. They played over and over again in her head for years as if a movie was imprinted on her mind. She was awoken by her mother, rushed down the hallway and then shoved into the vent near the kitchen wall. Asako quickly screwed the cover back into place and whispered, "We love you Kagome."
Her father answered the door a few moments later. Kagome hadn't even heard a knock. "We thought you were one of Naraku's men." She heard the relief in her father's voice. Someone walked into her house. By the sounds of the footfalls it was a man. Something crackled in the air too but Kagome didn't know what. She stayed silent and listened. The two men walked into the living room. They were far away from Kagome's hiding spot but she could just barely make out her parents' faces. Asako was waiting for them when they walked in. Her mother's voice did not sound as relieved, "What are you doing here?"
The man said nothing. Kagome craned her neck but the man was not facing her. He was taller than both Souta and Asako and dressed in a black suit. He had long hair tied in a high ponytail but Kagome couldn't make out the color of it in the dim light.
"What is wrong with your eyes?" Souta asked suddenly. His voice no longer sounded comfortable.
Before Kagome could look away, the man was running a hidden knife through her father's chest. His face was filled with shock and pain as he looked up at the man before he fell to his knees. Asako screamed and ran to her husband. Kagome did everything in her power to stay silent, her father's face burned into her mind for eternity. The man then turned to her wailing mother, "NO! Wh-why? Whyyy?!"
Kagome squeezed her eyes shut and bit into her forearm. The same sound she heard come from her father was now being pulled from her mother's body. The thud of the knife, the grunt from her mother's throat, the squelch of the blood hitting the floor and then finally the sound of her mother crumbling to the ground next to her father. And then, there was silence. Kagome forced her eyes open, trying to see who did this to her parents. The man turned to leave but not before Kagome saw his profile. And she burned his face into her memory vowing to get justice for her parents. At the sound of the home's door slamming closed, Kagome's eyes shut again. She didn't know how long it was before she moved. Looking through the vent grate, she saw her parents limp bodies on the floor together. Fearing the man would come back, Kagome tried to stay quiet but her body was rejecting that idea. Her chest hurt, her throat burned and she felt like she couldn't breathe. What was she supposed to do?
"Repeat it again." Her father's voice was stern as he sat behind his desk, Kagome standing in front of it.
"I grab the bag in the vent by the bathroom. Get a change of clothes. I take the money and buy a bus ticket to Sengoku. When I get there, use the phone in the bag to call Mushin." Kagome had said the same phrase correctly countless times now.
"And what do you say when Mushin answers?"
"The weather next Thursday looks like rain."
"Good. Repeat it again."
The vent system of her house was larger than normal due to the year it was built. This made it easier for her eight-year-old body to maneuver through the walls to where the bag was hidden. The first thing she found in the bag was a tool to help her get the vent cover off. Her small fingers gripped between the metal slats so it did not clamor to the floor. Once she was back in her hallway, she debated her next move. She knew she needed to grab a change of clothes and leave at once. But her parents were just down the hall, unjustly slain. Kagome's heart screamed for her to get one last look at them before she left, one last goodbye. But her brain told her she would never get the picture of their lifeless bodies out of her head if she did. Instead she closed her eyes, said a tearful prayer and whispered, "I love you too."
The next thing Kagome could remember was the cabin where Mushin had brought her, far outside the small town of Sengoku. It was nestled in the woods at the base of the Northern Mountain Range and had beauty unlike Kagome had ever seen. There was another child there, an eleven year old boy named Miroku. He was quiet and reserved, not wanting to trust her at first. It didn't take long before that changed. Not only did Miroku now have a training partner, he had a friend as well. (Living with a sixty year old man in the woods wasn't always the most entertaining.) Kagome grew to love the cabin and her new family. They helped ease the sting of losing her parents so horrifically. Miroku has also lost his parents years before and was taken in by Mushin.
Mushin was a gifted kannushi and he was happy to see that Kagome was gifted with her family's historical spiritual abilities. With his help she was able to harness her spiritual powers and become an forceful miko. One part of her training was learning to shield her powers from demons and other spiritual beings. Both for safety and for the element of surprise. Although Mushin was old, he still trained Miroku and Kagome hard. Miroku had some reiki in him but not nearly as much as Kagome or Mushin. He relied more on his combat skills than his spiritual prowess. The two sparred against each other, learned how to use different weapons and even how to add their reiki into those weapons. Kagome preferred a bow and arrow but was not opposed to throwing knives or daggers. Miroku usually practiced with a traditional staff but knew that wouldn't be practical in a real fight.
Kagome was fourteen and Miroku was seventeen when Mushin introduced them to firearms. That was a fun day. The mentor did not let them neglect their hand to hand training or the practice with other weapons but it was clear both teens preferred the powerful pieces of mental to anything else. And when Kagome was able to add her reiki to the bullets, she was unstoppable even against a youkai opponent.
Twenty years Kagome stayed in those woods with Mushin and Miroku. And then, the morning came where Mushin did not wake up. Miroku and Kagome had sensed his reiki weakening for weeks but still they held out hope. The man was the only family Miroku ever had. And he had taken Kagome in during her most vulnerable moment. The pair gave him a proper burial and had to decide what was next for them. Without Mushin, Kagome knew it was time to begin her plan. And Miroku was more than happy to join her on her mission.
They took on the names Kagome and Miroku Houshi. Siblings orphaned by a car crash when they were children. With no family left, they grew up in the foster system, unwilling to be separated and therefore unadopted. The cover was sad enough that no one would dig into it. And even if they did, Miroku had made sure all the documents and government files would corroborate their story. Miroku was a good fighter but his true gift was with computers. Kagome didn't know how he learned to do it but he could hack into any government agency, organization and security camera. If it used the internet, Miroku could get in. So it wasn't hard for Kagome to keep tabs on what The Militia was doing and who its lower ranking members were. That's all she needed to get in.
Kagome was thankful Miroku was willing to help her. He had no dog in her fight but they were family and he wouldn't leave her to do this on her own. The only clues she had were the man was most likely a member of the Shikon Rebellion considering how her father greeted him that night. And the mental picture of his profile.
