Chapter Twenty One
The sun was still shining brightly in the sky over Jouzen when the other Seishi emerged from Chichiri's spell, landing with a rough bump on the green landscape leading down to the southern city. Birds still flew in a clear blue sky, and as the battered, shaken warriors and their companions pulled themselves to their feet, there was no sign of the looming storm on the horizon.
"You did it, Chichiri." Mitsukake reflected, as he glanced over towards the distinctive towers of Jouzen's skyline. "We're here, or near enough."
"Yes. Near enough." Chichiri scooped up his kesa, glancing it for a moment before re-fastening it around his body. "Thank goodness...I wasn't sure I'd hold the spell long enough, you...you know."
He faltered, stumbling to his knees, and Tasuki let out an exclamation.
"What the hell did you do to yourself?" He demanded. "You're grey, dammit - did you go and use all your strength bringing us here?"
"We got here. That's all that matters." Chichiri said weakly. "I'm all right. We need to find Chiriko...that's more important now."
"Tasuki's right, Chichiri. You don't look well." Nuriko bit his lip. "Maybe you should stay here, and we'll go look for Chiriko."
"No...no." Chichiri grabbed his shakujou more tightly, using it to pull himself to his feet. "You might need my senses to find his chi. Chiriko's signal is the weakest of all of you, and you're none of you as tuned as me to finding people."
"In that state, I doubt you could sense anything." Hotohori said, his eyes troubled. "At least let us give you some of our strength, Chichiri...Nuriko's right. We can't rely on you to do everything - you'll burn yourself out."
"We're all going to burn out, if this isn't resolved soon." Chichiri steadied himself, offering the former Emperor a weak smile. "It's the world that's the problem, not me or my magic. As time goes on, all of us are going to get weaker until we and this whole world is nothing at all. That's what's happening...the storm is the first sign of the world losing it's battle to stay stable. We're all weakening. Not just me. While we have our power, we need to use it. And for that, we need to find Chiriko, and then..."
He hesitated, and Nuriko sighed.
"And then what?" He asked softly. "We don't know what we have to do. Even with the six of us - we don't really have a plan, do we?"
"Let's not stand around worrying about it." Tasuki snapped. "We need to find the kid...if his brain is working, maybe he'll have an idea...and even if not, we can bash him a few times till he does. We'll come up with something - but standin' here ain't achieving anything. Chichiri is right...everything's messed up with this world. There have been weird things since all of this began - hell, I almost fought with Kouji over somethin' stupid, back on the mountain, an' that ain't the way bandits behave. I'm sick of this - of all the weird shit going on. Let's just find the kid and worry about what's next when it comes."
"I still think Chichiri should stay here." Nuriko said doubtfully. "You might be alive now, Chichiri, but if you keep pushing yourself...believe me, you don't want to be dead. It's not all that great."
"I'll be fine." Chichiri shook his head, and Mitsukake frowned, stepping forward as he reached out a hesitant hand to touch his friend's arm.
"Stand still." He said quietly, and the monk stared at him blankly. "At least...let me help you, if you won't remain behind."
"Mitsukake...?" Chichiri faltered, and Mitsukake held out his left hand, stretching and clenching it a couple of times, then slowly beginning to unwind the bandage that had hidden his character from view.
"Are you nuts?" Tasuki exclaimed. "After what you put into me - Mitsukake, you can't use that! You'll give him the damn byouma!"
"No...I won't." Mitsukake ran his finger over his palm again, then he smiled. "It's all right. And it's as Chichiri said. We have to take chances. We need him...just as we all need each other."
Chichiri eyed the doctor for a moment, then, slowly, he nodded his head.
"I have faith in you." He said softly. "Do it."
Mitsukake closed his eyes for a moment, as the vivid red character blazed across his skin. Then he flexed his fingers, holding his hand inches from the monk's exhausted body as he focused his Suzaku power. For a moment, nothing happened. Then there was the soft, spectral glow of green light, and Anzu let out a gasp, her eyes becoming big with disbelief.
"That's not like...in Choukou." She whispered faintly, and a smile touched Hotohori's lips.
"Mitsukake's back to himself." He observed. "The healer."
"In all the things I have had to do or face, one thing has always been a constant source of strength." Mitsukake agreed, as colour slowly began to return to Chichiri's worn features. "The trust and faith that my Suzaku brethren have in me. This, whatever it is, is to do with all of us. Our unity. That's why I knew this time I could heal, not harm. When I'm on my own, there are fears and there are doubts. But when I'm with you - with all of you - those things always go away."
"Suzaku's power is the power of love and rebirth, isn't it?" Nuriko said softly. "I suppose it's true - as a team, we are stronger than any of us are on our own."
"But we are still without Tamahome." Hotohori reminded him.
"Still, now we're near enough to Jouzen, we can find Chiriko, right?" Tasuki asked anxiously. "I mean, he has to be here."
"He is." Chichiri said softly, reaching out to push Mitsukake's hand away as life flickered once more in his red eye. "That's enough, Mitsukake...I know you'd heal me more, but you need your strength too, and you don't have as much opportunity to rebuild it as I do. I'm all right now. The atmosphere here is better...and I can sense Chiriko's chi now. It's not strong, but it's clear and distinct. I know where he is. Follow me."
"And just like that, the march is on again." Tamatama reflected, casting Nuriko a sidelong grin. Nuriko laughed.
"Now you understand." He said playfully. "What it means to be a Suzaku Seishi."
"Yeah..." Tamatama said thoughtfully. "Living and travelling in close companionship with some seriously attractive – if dead - males...now I understand the appeal all too well."
"Tamatama." Nuriko chuckled, shaking his head slowly.
"I've never been this far south. It's still an adventure for me." Tamatama owned. "Although I am worried about Yukigase...K...Nuriko, you will make sure...?"
"Whatever it is we have to do, I'm sure it will mean Yukigase is safe." Nuriko assured him. "And your father and everyone there. We're here to save Kounan, after all. Until we do that, I can't be reborn and nor can the others. So we'll do it...it will be all right. We'll find a way...we always do."
Tamatama pursed his lips, slowly nodding his head.
"You and your friends are strong beyond the strength Suzaku gave you." He reflected. "You're not like other people - I really see it now. You belong to Kounan...like Aidou-san said. You're Suzaku's sacrifice for this world...that's your purpose here. Your true purpose. Isn't it?"
"Guess so." Nuriko nodded. "Guess we'll see. But Mitsukake is right. We have faith in each other, and trust, too. So I think it will be fine. I'm determined to think that way, anyhow. We've overcome a lot of things, all of us - even death. This little star and world problem - we'll handle it. Just like we've handled everything else."
"You're damn quiet." As they headed into the city proper, Tasuki cast his sister a confused glance, and Aidou started, glancing up at him in surprise.
"Hrm?"
"You ain't said a word since we left the north country...you aren't travel sick, are you?" Tasuki frowned. "Just, quiet ain't a normal thing for you."
"No." Aidou shook her head. "I'm fine. Really."
"He really gave everything, didn't he, to get us here?" Anzu murmured, startling the bandit as she appeared on his other side. "Chichiri, I mean. Just like he did to drive out your demon, Genrou. He's really strong, isn't he...?"
"Of course he is. He's a Seishi, ain't he?" Tasuki's brow furrowed, and Aidou shook her head.
"No...it's not that." She murmured absently, a strange, half-distant look in her eyes. "It's not to do with his power. It's what Mitsukake-san said. Faith. In what he has to do. Just like...all of you."
"Yes..." Anzu said pensively. "Like...like you used your tessen last night to kill that thing, even though you were exhausted, Genrou. It's that same thing - never giving up on something because you believe you can overcome it. That."
Aidou frowned, a pinkish tint touching her cheeks.
"I'm sorry, Shun'u." She added quietly. "I didn't understand till now, what it meant to be Suzaku's chosen."
"Maybe Mitsukake should look at you, too, now he's back to normal. You've not been actin' like yourself at all since my fever." Tasuki eyed her warily. "What the hell are you apologisin' for?"
"For believing what you did was a curse...that that mark was something to be dreaded." Aidou admitted. "I...I think I...understand. You...and they...what you are. Really. And...and I'm proud of you...for being Tasuki. Really. I...I am. Now I know what it really means. It's not some...some divine star-studded being controlling your actions...but something stronger than anything else...not just to help Kounan, but each other. You...you and all of them..."
She trailed off, uttering a sigh.
"If Ma had known that, she wouldn't have cried." She reflected. "Miaka-sama was lucky - to have all of you to call to her aid. She really was."
"You are really weirdin' me out now. Shut up, all right?" Tasuki said bluntly. "I almost prefer it when you're hittin' me - at least I know what to do when you do that."
"Where are we heading, Chichiri?" Anzu shot the bandit an amused look, then turned towards the monk, who tilted his head, casting her a smile.
"The most logical place for someone like Chiriko to be, you know." He said frankly.
"Did he go home, then?" Hotohori wondered. "The last time, when we were flung out of Taikyoku-zan, I remember that he and I went to see his family..."
"No." Chichiri shook his head. "I think, like you, he's realised that home is somewhere he can't go any more. No, I meant somewhere more attuned to the kind of Seishi he is."
He paused, gesturing to a tall stone building, and Nuriko let out an exclamation.
"A school?"
"An archive." Chichiri's good eye twinkled. "Chiriko always was a dedicated student - it stands to reason that he'd be drawn to somewhere like this. Remember, he did want to be a government official, before Suzaku called him."
"He was a weird kid." Tasuki reflected. "He'd have made a better bandit, if I'd've had time to train him properly."
"I don't know about that, Tasuki-san."
A fresh voice interrupted them at that moment, and as one the group turned to face the speaker who waited in the doorway, eying them in composed, calm amusement. His thick hair pulled back from his face, and his green eyes sparking with amusement and relief, the boy who stood before them had a presence about him, despite his short stature and fragile appearance. At the sight of him, Tasuki let out a yell, darting forward as he hugged the youngster tightly.
"Chiriko! You brat - why've you been hidin' from us? We've been lookin' all over the place - what the hell were you tryin' to prove?"
"I'm sorry. I didn't really think I could leave here." Chiriko returned the hug warmly, grinning up at the flame-haired bandit that he had always considered an honorary big brother. "But you're all here now...I did hope you'd come. I've been trying to reach you for a few days now - on and off. I wasn't sure...if my signal was strong enough to get through."
"Yes, it did...eventually." Chichiri offered the boy a smile. "We're glad to see you...I don't think we have a lot of time to figure things out."
"Well, on those grounds, I have a few ideas." Chiriko disentangled himself from Tasuki's embrace, a serious expression touching his young features as he nodded his head. "I've been doing research - a lot of research. Waiting for you to turn up on the doorstep. I hoped you'd know to look for me in Jouzen...even if I wasn't strong enough to reach you in any other way. I'm glad I was right."
"That was Tasuki's thinking." Chichiri admitted. "He thought you'd be here, and he was right."
"I told you so." Tasuki said smugly. "I told you I knew how the kid thinks."
"Genrou." Anzu's eyes widened, and then she smiled. "You guys are close, huh?"
"He's like my kid brother, I suppose." Tasuki sent her a wolfish grin. "He's just a kid, after all - he needs a role model."
"And you're it?" Aidou arched an eyebrow, and Tasuki snorted, nodding his head.
"That's more like the Oneechan I know." He said frankly.
"So you're Chiriko."
Anzu stepped forward, eying the boy curiously. "Chichiri said you were smart...a genius. Is that true?"
"Some of the time." Chiriko nodded his head. "Are you a friend of Chichiri-san's, then? I don't think...we've not met before, have we? My memories are still a little hazy."
"No...we haven't." Anzu shook her head. "My name's Anzu - I...I'm a friend of...Chichiri and Genrou. Tasuki. Both of them."
"It's complicated to explain right now, and we don't have the time to worry about it." Chichiri said frankly. "Chiriko, the north country is under storms and I'm worried about the structure of this world. That's why we were so glad to find you."
"I was afraid it might be like that." Chiriko looked sober. "I haven't made as much progress as I'd like...but I've done my best. Maybe you should come inside - I'll show you what I've reasoned out."
"Inside...a library place?" Tasuki eyed it doubtfully. "Are you sure that's a good idea?"
"If the boy has come up with something, we should hear it." Mitsukake said with a wry smile. "It's all right, Tasuki. If you catch anything from being near dusty old scrolls, I'm sure I can heal you."
"Something like intelligence, maybe." Nuriko snorted, amusement in his eyes as he linked his arm in the reluctant bandit's. "Come on. It's not a boat, so you can't get seasick. Don't be a baby - it's only paper and ink. It won't bite."
"We'll wait outside." Aidou said quietly, touching Anzu on the arm and slowly shaking her head. "This is Seishi business, and we've no need to go in. They need to settle this themselves, Anzu-chan...you and I, we'll wait for them."
"Me too." Tamatama said with a grin. "Aidou-san is right - and I'd like to explore Jouzen while I have the chance. You go do all the boring business stuff, Nuriko...just don't disappear before I have a chance to say goodbye, all right?"
"Promise." Nuriko nodded. "All right, Chiriko. Lead the way...we're behind you."
"Well, like I said, I've had mixed progress." Chiriko admitted, entering the building and guiding them up the steps to the chamber in which he had spent the past few days. "My progress has been hampered a little by...other things."
He frowned, glancing down at his foot, which glittered with red light.
"It's been there since about half an hour ago, so I felt you were on your way - that maybe I'd made contact." He added. "And when it is, I'm fine. But I've had to do a lot of this work without it, and it's been hard going."
"I think maybe we understand." Hotohori said gravely. "None of us were sent back here quite ourselves...have you been plagued by demons too?"
"One demon." Chiriko nodded grimly. "Miboshi. To begin with, I was quite trapped. But when my character appeared on my foot, it was like it broke through it, just a little - and I realised that I could fight against it. That it wasn't real. So I did...I have. By analysing what was happening, I managed to force through it, little by little. It's not been easy...but even so, I realised that if I was here, the best thing I could do would be to try and work out why. I saw the sky, and the omen in the stars...and I decided to do all the reading I could. The more focused my brain has been, the less the demons have bothered me - so it's been helpful."
"I thought you were only a genius when your character showed up." Tasuki looked confused. Chiriko shrugged.
"Everything's mixed around. My brain seems to be working okay, most of the time...so long as Miboshi isn't stalking my thoughts." He said frankly. "I think it's because, when I died, I didn't have my character. I fought him without it. And when I was a spirit, I was able to merge the two parts of myself and use my intelligence more easily. So...maybe it's not dependant on that any more. I'm not sure. My understanding has been better when the character is there - probably because my mind is clearer. But even when it isn't, if I really concentrate hard - I can still piece things together."
He pushed open the door, ushering his fellow Seishi inside, and Chichiri let out an exclamation at the scrolls and books spread over every surface.
"You really have been busy, you know." He murmured. "All of this - you've read through everything here?"
"Everything I could lay hands on. To keep my brain busy as much as anything." Chiriko nodded his head, his hair bobbing as he did so. "And at last...I think I found something useful."
"So the answer is here." Hotohori pursed his lips. "In an ancient text, stored in a Jouzen archive?"
"Or a more recent version of one, yes." Chiriko gestured to the table in front of him, opening the dusty book carefully as he did so. "Like I said, I noticed that the stars had changed – that was how I first knew you were all in danger from Amiboshi's flute, so I knew it was something important. When I realised Tamahome's stars had gone, it got me thinking about Sukunami Taka and the fact that people from this world are not meant to enter that world. And then I took it further."
He gestured to a diagram on the page, and his companions gathered around to peer at it.
Even with the age and intricacy of the design, it was clear that it was a map of the sky, divided into four, with seven constellations assigned to each of the beast Gods.
"There are twenty eight mansions of the heavens, divided into four Gods to represent four lands." Chiriko said carefully. "They're stars, of course, but they're also us – the warriors of Suzaku. We're, essentially, the stars' human form – if you want to take it that way."
"You mean we are made up of stars?" Tasuki gazed at his hands in disbelief, and Nuriko snorted, shaking his head slowly.
"And he's already lost." He observed with some amusement.
"Not exactly." Chiriko hid a smile of his own. "Really, we're people, just like everyone else. Except that this world's designated each of us with some kind of stellar power – we're Suzaku's seven Seishi – that word alone means "celestial warrior", after all. The power each of us possesses is just a manifestation of the same relationship that exists between the seven mansions of Suzaku and the Beast God himself. That's all."
"Er. Ok." Tasuki nodded blankly, as Chichiri bent to skim over the contents of the page.
"I see." He said pensively. "So it's as we thought. What you're saying is that since Tamahome's no longer in this world, something's gone wrong with the natural order."
"Hey, how did we get from mansions and gods to your theory about Tamahome?" Tasuki demanded. "Did you switch pages when I wasn't looking? I thought we were still somewhere in the sky over Kounan."
He squinted at the paper, frowning.
"And you can read this stuff? It's all squiggles...half of these characters don't make any sense!"
"No, they're just a little more complicated than your average writing. That's all." Chiriko shook his head. "I learnt to read a lot more when I was studying for the civil service exam."
"And you can read it, too?" Tasuki glanced at Chichiri, who nodded.
"It's fairly clear." He admitted. "I probably don't know as many characters as Chiriko does, but I can understand this without too much trouble."
He sent Tasuki a playful smile.
"I might have taken that exam myself, once upon a time - another lifetime ago." He added. "My people were involved in governmental business, after all - before the Shouryuu flood. The Ri family were quite important in the North at one time and they expected me to follow suit - I'm not just a pretty face, you know."
"Yeesh." Tasuki snorted. "What happened to learning life by livin' it, huh? Friggin' bookworms, the pair of you."
"But if it answers our questions, then it's a good thing, you know." Chichiri grinned. "Think about it. We know Tamahome's stars are no longer there. We know Tamahome is no longer here, and that Sou Kishuku doesn't exist in this world any more. Everything that's happened since – it looks like maybe Chiriko's dug up the basic reason behind it."
"I think I have." Chiriko turned over a few pages, running his finger along the edge of a specific paragraph. "Chichiri-san, take a look at this. It's the legend of the Miko – almost as we understand it."
"The Priestesses come from another world, by way of kibon. The seven stars of Suzaku exist within the world, as pillars of the southern sky. The Miko comes to unite the stars and summon the Beast God, through whom the land can be granted eternal peace."
Chichiri read it out slowly, pursing his lips as he considered its meaning.
"Kibon?" Nuriko arched his head over Chiriko's head to see, frowning. "What is that? Some kind of magic from Miaka's world that we don't know anything about?"
"Yes and no." Chiriko frowned. "It took me a while, but I think I cracked it. I've read the legend of the Miko a thousand times. I was always so terrified of being one of the Suzaku Seishi, because I didn't wholly understand what I'd have to do – only that it would involve fighting and sometimes I felt so weak and useless. So I'd read and re-read in the hopes that I'd understand it. When I read it then, though, I glossed over the meaning of that word. I made a basic assumption about it, just as you did, Nuriko – that it was some kind of magic that we didn't understand – something from Miaka's world, that enabled the Miko to cross planes and enter here. I suppose I thought of her as some kind of divine spirit – some kind of higher being, with that kind of power."
He looked rueful, and Nuriko laughed.
"Miaka's divine power was to be able to consume six dishes at one sitting…" He said ruefully. "I don't think that's quite what you mean."
"Well, since I've been back here, I've needed something to keep my brain busy. If my mind is focused and occupied, the fears don't return." Chiriko said matter-of-factly. "And I got to analysing this properly for the first time. I really absorbed what it meant - Ki Bon. Ki, meaning spirit. Hon, meaning basis, or foundation. This isn't something belonging to Miaka's world, but it's something here – something which upholds everything that we understand and live around. Kibon is the spiritual foundation of our world – the overriding and underlying power that drives life and existence, even of Taiitsukun and Taikyoku-zan."
"So this world really is the one causing all of this? The world on its own, somehow?" Nuriko demanded. Chiriko nodded.
"Basically." He agreed. "It's confined Taiitsukun, no doubt, to try and prevent any further breakdowns in accepted order. She is the controller of this world – she provided the scrolls that helped the Miko summon the four Gods and she has an intrinsic connection with its inner workings. But why would she do all of that? Why go to the trouble of giving these scrolls, of needing the Gods, or any of these things? And reading this, it hit me. Taiitsukun is controller – but the world itself is founded on a greater power than even hers. It is the world's bidding that Taiitsukun is driven to do – to assemble us and stabilise its power base once and for all. To make sure this world continues to exist, even beyond the adventures of the Miko – all four Gods must be summoned, all four lands must be saved. And all twenty eight stellar mansions must reside within the Shijin-Tenchishou."
He shrugged his shoulders, offering a sober smile.
"But we all know that now, one of those twenty eight mansions is missing." He continued. "It's like removing a cornerstone from a building. It wobbles and shakes and then it falls down. Without Tamahome, this world's entire existence is in peril. Kibon has been upset…and that's why everything has been haywire."
"So we find this Kibon person and what, we reason with them?" Tasuki asked.
"Kibon isn't a person, Tasuki. Kibon is an entity. A core part of our existence." Chichiri explained, and Tasuki's brows drew together.
"The kid just said that Kibon has been upset." He objected. "What did he mean, then, if not that?"
"Tasuki's imagining some damsel in distress waiting to be rescued." Nuriko snorted, and Tasuki grimaced.
"You might be dead but I can hit you while you're in this body." He warned. "Just explain to me what's going on, all right? I was with you right up until Chiriko started talking about mansions, but then everything got a bit confused."
"Chiriko means that Kounan – and the other realms of Sairou, Kutou and Hokkan – exist because of this energy known as kibon." Hotohori said gravely. "That this is what makes our world exist in the way that we understand. It is through that power that Miaka was brought here – because this world needed her and her kind to maintain stability and existance…and it is also this power which controls our fate and our destinies, enables our world to live and even chose us to be the warriors of Suzaku in the first place."
"His Highness is right." Chiriko agreed. "Exactly that."
"Do you get it now?" Chichiri cast Tasuki a glance, and the redhead sighed.
"Not really, but go on." He said resignedly. "Just tell me who to burn and when and I'll do it, okay? I'll leave the bookworm stuff to you people – it all seems like a lot of gibberish to me."
"If this power has been upset, then somehow we must restore the balance." Mitsukake put in thoughtfully. "But Tamahome is no longer in this world. And we can't get to Miaka's world."
"Plus, it would be unfair to drag him back from there now that they are together in her world." Hotohori added. "Taiitsukun said that they would be able to exist in any world, now. Clearly she must have assumed that this – whatever regulates this – had been overcome somehow with the invention of Sukunami Taka. Otherwise, why did this not happen a lot sooner?"
"Because Tamahome was still here." Chichiri said softly. "When he went to Miaka's world, he had to shed his memories. They stayed behind, and acted in his place. We all know that Tenkou was able to utilise this to his own ends, manipulating a part of Tamahome's soul by possessing those seven stones. To beat Tenkou, Taka and Tamahome's memories fused together into one person. But that person is no longer here. And therein begins the problem."
"There is one other thing I realised, when I was reading this." Chiriko added, gesturing to the paragraph again. "It reminded me of something else Miaka said, which is why I'm certain I'm on the right track."
He tapped his nail against the second character of 'kibon'.
"Hon also reads as 'book'." He said quietly. "Isn't it true that Miaka-san's doorway to our world…was in the form of a book in hers? An enchanted book, that somehow connected her world to our own?"
"So kibon could be the spirit of the book, then." Hotohori reflected. Chiriko shrugged.
"It could…I don't know."
"So how do we fix this, then?" Nuriko demanded. "Can we fix it? We can't bring Tama back, that's a closed door. We don't have his memories here – another brick wall. What can we do? If the problem is that Tama isn't here any more – how do we handle that?"
"And if it's so important for us to be here, why are you guys dead?" Tasuki demanded, gesturing at Nuriko and the others with the end of his tessen.
"We're still here, though. And we will be reborn." Hotohori murmured. "Don't you remember? Anzu said it already. That Saihitei was dead but Hotohori was not – and in the end, perhaps she's more right than even she knew. Seven souls…seven stars…seven pillars of the southern sky. Our very existence is key, isn't it? The seven of us, as souls, as spirits – our physical form is secondary. We are here – perhaps we have always been here, even before these incarnations. For all we know, the legend may have already been told, and we just have no memory of those meetings, or those battles. Perhaps to sustain itself, this world must bring to the fore the Seishi of each land to strengthen its existence and stabilise it for further generations of peace. Our connection to one another is strong – and to Suzaku no Miko, too. Remember, the Miko comes when the country faces collapse - or maybe, she comes when the spiritual energy that sustains it is low. So long as she comes to this world to unite us, and so long as we exist here, the cycle can begin again. That is why we were able to return as spirits beyond death to assist Miaka. We are not like other souls…and perhaps that is why it was Miaka who was brought into this book. Because her soul is key too – she is always Suzaku no Miko, just as we are always Suzaku Shichi Seishi. Time goes on, lives begin and end. But we, as entities – we endure."
"What do you mean?" Nuriko looked startled. "That…we…are kibon? That we…are the power of this world?"
"His Highness might well be right." Chichiri said grimly. "That the Seishi are, when you take into account all twenty eight, in all four sectors of the sky…that it is we who keeps this world alive. Not the Miko, not Taiitsukun, not some divine power. But the stars – the constellations. The twenty eight mansions that make up the sky. And that Miaka – and the other Miko – act as catalysts, drawing those constellations out, honing their strength, summoning the Beast God – all so this world can continue to exist in the way it always has. For our part, it's the stability of Kounan that rests on our shoulders - but the same probably applies in Hokkan, Sairou and Kutou. And that's why Byakko did not grant Suzuno-sama and Tatara that wish."
"Shit." Tasuki let out his breath in a rush. "Are you serious? This world is running on us?"
"And now it's like a cart missing a wheel." Hotohori said slowly. "Tamahome is not here…so the world cannot function as normal."
"And the rest of us take the strain, because more of our strength is being used to try and keep things going." Nuriko's eyes widened. "Which is why everything's so unsettled!"
"Our fears and doubts, our memories, our very selves have been called into question by the absence of Tamahome's spirit." Hotohori frowned. "Are we truly that linked as Seishi, then?"
"It's something we ought to consider." Chichiri sighed. "Think about it. Just to use one example – when Nuriko was wounded, and when he died, only Tamahome and Miaka were with him. But we all felt it. Even you, Your Highness, at the palace in Eiyou. You weren't even within the same country borders – and yet, even then, you knew. We are tied to one another. It's a bond that we'll never be able to break."
"I'm touched." An ironic smile twitched at the corners of Nuriko's mouth.
"So what do we do about it, then?" Tasuki demanded. "This is all very well, but it's still all talking. When are we actually going to get some action, huh? Places like this give me the creeps anyway...far too many books!"
"Restore the constellation of Tamahome." Chiriko rolled up the scroll, setting it aside. "It's the only thing we can do. We can't refer to Taiitsukun or Suzaku, and we can't call on Miaka-san. So it's down to us to do."
"But that's impossible." Nuriko objected. "Tamahome isn't here…right? He and Miaka-no-baka are in the other world, and we can't get there. They can only come here. We've already said that."
"Well...perhaps he is." Mitsukake said quietly.
"Mitsukake?" Hotohori sent him a startled glance, and the gentle physician smiled.
"It occured to me, as you were talking." He said in his soft, measured tones, "That Tamahome has not truly left this world after all. If Chichiri is right, Tamahome's memories were enough to sustain his presence in the sky over Kounan. That it was this proof of his existance that kept him a part of Kounan's foundation, and therefore kept everything in balance. It is not the person of Tamahome that is important, but the spirit of his existance. His constellation in the southern sky - the proof that he is real."
"Meaning...?" Nuriko pursed his lips. "Tamahome's memories aren't here any more, either. They're inside Sukunami Taka."
"But our memories...are inside of us." Mitsukake said deliberately. "Our memories of Tamahome, and the encounters we shared."
Chiriko's eyes widened, and slowly he nodded.
"Mitsukake's right." He exclaimed, making Tasuki jump and almost fall backwards into one of the old bookcases. "If Tamahome's memories were enough to keep balance, why shouldn't it work for us, too?"
"Our memories of Tamahome?" Nuriko said thoughtfully. "Could that really fool this world into thinking he's still here?"
"But in a sense, he is. Just like Mitsukake said." Hotohori's eyes narrowed. "If we were able, somehow, to manifest those memories with our life force...into something...more powerful..."
"The shrine of Suzaku." Chichiri said with a grin. "That seems like the perfect place, you know? I think it could work. When I think about it, we are still linked to Tamahome. When we fought in Miaka's world, and when Tamahome defeated Nakago, he carried each of us with him into that battle. We pooled our spirits and our energy then, so that he could succeed in saving Miaka's world and our own, too. I think it's probably true that we've never been fully separate, you know? That like the stars, we're all bound together by the shadow of Suzaku. But in that moment we became one entity. We combined everything we had. And it must have left its mark inside of each of us. There's a piece of Tamahome in all of us. Just as there are bits of us in him, wherever he is. Maybe they exist as memories, like Mitsukake said - it's probably the most tangible way of looking at it. But if we could combine our strength - somehow focus that energy and those feelings into Suzaku's shrine, I think...it might be enough to create a...a sort of spirit of Tamahome, if you like. A proof that Sou Kishuku did exist, and so did Suzaku's seventh warrior."
"But if his spirit isn't in this world, Tamahome won't be reborn." Nuriko objected. "If Hotohori-sama is right about our souls being connected time and time again, what about that?"
"Sukunami Taka lives in Miaka's world." Chichiri said simply. "But the spirit of Tamahome belongs in this world, and probably always will. When Sukunami Taka dies, I expect Tamahome will be reborn in this world, not in Miaka's. If she is perpetually our Priestess, then she will always be reborn in that one. But it is one human form which Taiitsukun and Suzaku created, not one soul. Tamahome's soul fills Taka's body - to enable him to spend this lifetime alongside Miaka...not forever. Perhaps they are destined to meet, time and time again, but this is still a special circumstance."
He nodded.
"I think it would be enough, you know. To keep our world from collapsing, anyway."
"Well, we can stand here or we can give it a try." Tasuki said brusquely. "I'm still not totally sure what you guys are talking about, but if it's got a chance of working, I'm all for it."
"Then I suppose we're going to the palace. To my final resting place, within the shrine of Suzaku." A faint shadow flickered across Hotohori's face at this, and Nuriko cast him a smile, resting a hand reassuringly on his arm.
"It's up to you whether you let Houki see you." He said quietly. "But either way, Heika, this will be the last time. After this, you, and I, and Chiriko and Mitsukake -we get to start again...we have to leave our regrets behind, if we're going to be able to do that."
"I know. And I will." Hotohori nodded. He sighed, glancing at his hands.
"In the end, Suzaku's work came before everything else. For each of us, this has been the case." He reflected. "I suppose our fates really have been written in the stars. When I was a boy, my advisors more or less told me that I was fated to fight and die for Suzaku no Miko...and in the end, they were proven right. I was prepared for that - I think, in the end, we all were. But to leave a wife and child was a bittersweet factor I hadn't considered. Maybe that is why I did not want to marry."
"Boushin will be fine. He has plenty of his father in him." Chichiri said wisely. "And you needn't worry, Hotohori-sama. I give you my word that I'll visit Houki and the young Emperor often, and make sure they're both doing well. It'll be a pleasure - and I'm sure Houki-sama won't let him grow up without knowing how brave his father was as Emperor. He has a lot to live up to - that's for sure."
Hotohori looked startled, then he smiled.
"An Emperor must give everything for his country, even if it costs him his contentment and his life." He reflected with a shrug of his shoulders. "But I was lucky enough to have had happiness too, even if it was brief. Thank you, Chichiri. I would like it, if you would visit my widow and son and ensure their continued health, even after I can't see them any more. If I know that, then I can do as Nuriko says...when the time comes, I can relinquish this existance completely, and await the next."
"It's gonna be a whole lot of a bummer, isn't it, at the end of the day." Tasuki twitched his tessen thoughtfully. "We're doing this so that the world is right again, and you people can be reborn. But that means no more Suzaku Shichi Seishi, doesn't it? At least, not in this life. It really sucks...then there really will only be Chichiri and I left, won't there?"
"Don't worry, Tasuki-chan." Nuriko's eyes twinkled. "When I get old enough, I'll be sure to visit Reikaku-zan and see you as a doddery old man."
"You might not remember that Reikaku-zan exists." Chiriko said seriously. "There's a very real possibility that, when we are reborn, we won't remember any of these things at all."
"Then we should do our best to make sure we share as many memories as we can with Suzaku's shrine. Just in case, like Tamahome, we need them again one day." Nuriko said pragmatically.
"Either way, this is what we must do." Mitsukake added. "Even without Miaka, we exist to help people. Don't we?"
"We do." Chichiri nodded his head. "And that means we need to get to Suzaku's shrine as soon as possible, you know."