Chapter Eighteen
"Do you think it worked?"
As Chichiri set the watch to one side, taking a deep breath into his lungs to steady his fatigued body, Shishi eyed him anxiously, chewing on her lip as she settled herself more comfortably on the blue patterned kesa. The fabric was strange beneath her touch, almost as if it tingled with spiritual life still, and as she brushed her fingers against it, she was once more reminded of Jin.
"Well, you spoke to her." At length, Chichiri spoke, tiredness flickering in his red eye as he met her gaze. "What she'll do about it, I don't know. But we made contact. Taiitsukun was right. You were the one who could reach her."
"I guess I was." Shishi looked startled. Then she sighed. "Chichiri, if Hiki doesn't come back - what do we do?"
"After being threatened like that? She'd be scared not to." Chichiri said ruefully. "Don't worry. I'm sure she's thinking it over carefully, Shishi-chan. I think she'll be back. I have faith in her spirit...I don't think she'll abandon Kounan. She is Miaka's daughter, after all."
"Miaka-sama." Shishi pursed her lips. "Suzaku no Miko is still protecting Kounan, isn't she? I mean, by having Hiki and all...and sending her here."
"I think so." Chichiri nodded, sitting back against the wall as he folded his arms across his chest. "It's not easy, though, making contact through this kind of time lapse to their world. That Hikari would transport herself there...even though she has Hotohori-sama's shinken, I have to wonder about her own strength, too. Whether it means her magic is finally manifesting itself."
"Jin died for it, so it better damn well have." Shishi bit her lip, and Chichiri's gaze softened. He reached out a hand to touch her shoulder, offering her a slight smile.
"Suzaku will look after Jin." He said softly. "Believe me, he will. I know it hurts a lot for you right now, Shishi. You and Tasuki and Anzu...all of you. You've lost someone you love and it's painful. I know how that feels, you know. But it will be all right. Jin gave his life for Kounan. For that unselfish act, Suzaku will reward him. We may have lost him, but he himself isn't lost. His spirit will be blessed, I'm sure of it. And like my Seishi brethren, he will be reborn."
"I guess so." Shishi sighed. "But it doesn't help. It might be selfish as hell, but I want him back here. I don't want him to start a new life and forget everything - I want him to carry on with the one he had before. I didn't realise I relied on him quite as much. I took for granted that he'd always be here, like Aniue is always on the mountain with Papa. Everyone always said we'd be like them, one day. And I believed it. But even if I am Kashira, one day...Jin won't be my second. It can't happen now. Because he...he's gone."
"But if he hadn't done what he did, Reikaku-zan itself and all the bandits living there may have been lost." Chichiri reflected. "Listen, Shishi. Taiitsukun made it very very plain that whatever we can do to save this world, Hikari must be both alive and here in this world to achieve it. If Miramu had killed her, it's possible that her body would have retained Suzaku's divine power. That her bones would have become holy relics, and that, disgusting as it may sound, she might have remained Shinzahou. But Taiitsukun said Hikari's active involvement was the key. That girl has power beyond what even she realises...and we have to find a way to unlock that. Whether as Suzaku no Miko or...whatever form it takes."
"I don't want Hiki to die either." Shishi admitted. "To be honest, I wish she wasn't from the other world at all, Chichiri. Because even if she comes back now, she'll go away again in the end. When all is fixed up and everything. And I hate that...because I want her to stay here."
She grimaced, looking embarrassed.
"I never had a girl for a friend before." She added. "But even though she's a weirdo, Hiki's all right."
Chichiri's expression broke into an amused grin, and he nodded.
"You and she are much like your father and Tamahome." He agreed. "You know, I think, that they were more or less the same age when we were fighting for Suzaku together. And even though their first encounter was violent and hostile...they became very close friends."
"But Tamahome's in that world an' Papa's in this." Shishi rested her chin in her hands. "Jus' like it'll be with Hiki an' me, won't it? Is it really selfish to hate that, Chichiri? Papa at least hadyou in this world, an' Aniue, an' Okaa-san, too, when it came to it. I...I lost Jin an' I feel sort of strange without him. I know I have family, an' all - but..."
She trailed off, and Chichiri shook his head.
"Having Hikari back here will take the edge off it some." He said wisely. "But you're stronger than you think, trust me. Besides, you'll have to find that strength somehow...this is just how it is. Taiitsukun is sure that you're destined to be involved in all of this. And I think so too. Suzaku's blood runs through your veins, after all. Your father is one of the Chosen - and Celestial Warriors are never individuals who easily fit into ordinary life. We're not designed to do that - we're designed to be different. For that reason, I'm sure there are not many children out there who have the same divine legacy connecting them to the Beast God that you or my own children have. Eiju and Meikyo are far too young to be involved in anything like this...but you're not. You're fourteen, Shishi - and with the summer drawing on, you'll soon be fifteen. In spirit and will, you're often older than that. So Suzaku has put his faith in you to help protect his precious treasure."
"Papa doesn't like that that's the case, and Okaa-san cried about it, when he told her I had no choice." Shishi reflected. "But the truth is, I'm glad. I mean, I don't want to sit on the mountain an' cry over Jin's grave. I want to be useful. To help. To avenge him, somehow. An' most of all, to save Kounan. Cos that's why he died...to do that. An' I want to make sure he didn't die in vain."
"Those are good sentiments." Chichiri nodded. "Although I'm sure your father would rather you didn't take it upon yourself to avenge his murder. Miramu - Amefuri - is a dangerous opponant. We already knew that. Now we know how dangerous, he'll want you to steer clear even more. And we'll be doubly vigilant to his presence, too."
"Papa already made me promise not to go hell for leather after that guy." Shishi sighed. "An' he looked so serious that I promised. It's really torn at him, losin' Jin. I think maybe he's scared somethin's gonna happen to me too. But it ain't, Chichiri. I'm not gonna let it."
Before Chichiri could respond, a faint flicker of red light darted up the shakujou that leant casually against the wall beside him and he tensed, glancing at it as he reached out his fingers to touch it. Shishi bit her lip, staring at her uncle's sudden change in demeanour as a second, then a third tongue of vermillion flame licked its way around the staff.
"Chichiri?" She murmured, and Chichiri closed his eyes, holding the shakujouin both hands as he concentrated the last of his energy on the intermittent flares. As he did so, the light seemed to stabilise into a haze of red, and a faint smile touched his lips.
"Thank you, Hotohori-sama." He murmured, almost too quietly for Shishi to hear. "I'll take it from here."
His brow creased in concentration as the light flared more brightly, and as it spread into a ball of red energy, Shishi shuffled back, covering her eyes as she shielded them from the glare.
As the light faded, she opened her eyes cautiously, her expression becoming one of incredulity and relief as she registered the form that huddled before them on the floor. Breathing heavily, and with her dark hair tousled and flying loose around her face, Hikari crouched on the floor of the Ri family home, and as Chichiri set aside his staff, Shishi let out a yell.
"Hiki!" She exclaimed, flinging herself on her startled friend and hugging her tightly. "You came back!"
"Hey, are you trying to stifle me?" Hikari demanded, struggling to disentangle herself from the bandit's eager grasp. "Shishi, stop it! You're like a puppy gone mad - stop it!"
"You ran out on me!" Shishi objected. "You deserve to be stifled! What the hell were you playin' at, you idiot? Leavin' me in the desert like that? An' after Jin...you have no idea how pissed off I am!"
But even as she said it, she knew her tone and expression belied her, and Hikari offered her a rueful smile.
"I'm sorry." She said contritely. "It wasn't on purpose. Me leaving, I mean. I was just...after Jin..."
She faltered, biting her lip, and Shishi nodded, gravity entering her own bronze eyes.
"Myoume came back with me." She said softly. "An' she arranged for people to bring Jin home, too. Like he wanted. But without you - we can't do anythin' else. An' we can't give up...because he did this so we wouldn't. So...I'm glad you're back. Kounan needs you."
"Yeah, I know." Hikari admitted.
"What the hell are you wearing?" Shishi held her friend at arm's length. "That's even worse than what you had on when I first met you - what the hell kind of clothing do you have in your world, anyway? Aidou-obasama will throw a fit when she sees you."
"School uniform." Hikari replied. "It wasn't like I could wear...what I wore when I left. It was...there was...blood."
She sighed, setting her bag and the divine sword down on the floor as she cast Chichiri a glance.
"I'm sorry I caused so much trouble." She said apologetically. "Thank you for helping me get here. I felt you reaching out for me...I know it's because of that that I got back safely."
"It was easy enough to follow the threads of Hotohori-sama's spirit to guide you." Chichiri smiled. "His shinken was what really brought you back. That and your own power, of course."
He winked at her, the effect odd on his lopsided face.
"I'm glad you're back, Hikari-chan." He added. "And so will Meikyo and Eiju be. They've missed their big sister. I didn't really know what to tell them, when Shishi came back without you."
"Well, I'm here now." Hikari said resolutely. "For Jin's sake. I'm not going to run away again. Mum and I had a long chat about this last night - about what happened. She told me...some things about being Suzaku no Miko and the things that happened when she was. I know a little more now, I think. So I came back."
She glanced around her.
"Did you say that Myoume was here too?"
"Yes, I am, Hikari." A fresh voice came from the doorway, and Hikari turned, offering the Seishi a smile.
"I'm glad." She said softly. "We might need your help."
"You have it." Myoume nodded. "I'm sorry I couldn't prevent Jin's death, Hikari. And even more sorry by the nature of it. But even if I did not have a blood responsibility to Kounan to repay that debt, I would be here. This is the right thing to do - to ally myself with the lion and the light."
"What do you mean, a blood responsibility?" Hikari looked confused, and Shishi grimaced.
"Miramu - Amefuri - is Myoume's brother." She said quietly, and Hikari's eyes widened.
"For real?" She whispered and Myoume nodded.
"Yes." She admitted sadly. "We've been estranged for ten years - but it's true. We are half-siblings."
"Then it must suck doubly for you." Hikari said frankly. "Having to fight against him."
"It's not a matter of that...it's a matter of saving this world." Myoume said slowly. "Which is the most important thing to me."
She frowned, her gaze darting to the open door, and Shishi pursed her lips, eying her keenly.
"What?" She murmured. "Myoume, what the hell's the matter with you now?"
"Miramu." Myoume murmured, a troubled look flitting across her indigo eyes, and Hikari's expression became one of dismay.
"Miramu?" She repeated. "Wait...here? In Kounan?"
"Yes." Myoume nodded. "I can sense his life force. He's doing his best to conceal it, but I can pick it up nonetheless. He must know it's futile to hide from me."
"But...the children...if he comes to the village..." Shishi trailed off, and Myoume shook her head.
"He won't. I'll head him off." She said resolutely. "I don't think he wants to fight me, at the moment. And I'll drive him away from here. I can track his movements - and once he picks up mine, I think he'll leave."
"What if he doesn't?" Chichiri asked softly. Myoume shrugged.
"He will." She said bitterly. "Because he knows what kind of power I can unleash on him if we cross paths. Even though it would hurt me as much or more than it would him - I doubt he wants to have Toroki invade his mind. Trust me, Chichiri."
She moved towards the door, then she frowned, shaking her head.
"He's not alone." She murmured. "Someone else is with him. Or wait...no. Not with him. I can't picture it clearly, but...the spirit in his company...is on edge. Agitated. Uncertain."
"He's attacking someone?" Shishi was on her feet in a moment, and Chichiri held out his hand to stop her, shaking his head as he got to his feet.
"Let Myoume handle Miramu." He said evenly. "Remember what your father said, Shishi."
"Yes, but dammit, if he's going to hurt someone else..."
"I don't know." Myoume's eyes narrowed. "I think Miramu's chi is foxing my senses a little - it's taking so much of my concentration to pinpoint his location. But...the one with him...is not his friend. That seems clear enough."
"In which case, whoever it is could be a victim." Chichiri reflected. Myoume hesitated, then she nodded.
"I sense blood." She whispered. "Blood spilling. Miramu...will hurt this one. I can feel it."
"Then we need to go do something about it." Hikari said quietly.
"If Myoume can deal with her brother, we will." Chichiri said firmly. "Shishi, go ask Aidou to gather together some of our remedies. We'll go on a rescue mission. With any luck we'll reach the individual before Miramu has a chance to kill him - Myoume, you go on ahead. We'll follow - and take care, all right?"
"I will." Myoume agreed grimly, and a faint flicker of white light glittered briefly in her indigo eyes. "I'm flaring my life force strongly enough for him to pick it up a mile away. If he's got any sense, he'll flee...leave it to me."
With that she was gone, and Shishi hurried into the back room to find her aunt, her heart pounding in her chest at the thought of Miramu's proximity.
"He's so damn arrogant - how dare he come to Kounan after killing Jin!" She hissed fiercely under her breath. "Well, we'll stop him! We'll make him pay, dammit - he won't hurt anyone else while he's in the southern lands!"
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"You know, Aoi-kun, if I didn't know better, I'd think you really would rather not be travelling south with me as your companion."
As they crossed the mountain landscape, Miramu cast his young companion a thoughtful look, and Aoi grimaced, his seiran eyes clouding as he returned the assassin's gaze with a defiant one of his own.
"You're perceptive." He said quietly. "You already know I don't like you. You're crazy and dangerous…If it wasn't Hyoushin-sama's order, I wouldn't be here now."
"Hyoushin-sama." Miramu repeated this, amusement flickering in his eyes as he slowly nodded his head. "You really are his little puppet, aren't you? Of all the puppies yapping at his heels, Aoiketsu, you have to be the most eager of them all. Or is it just a case of remorse? Of carried family guilt from one generation to another?"
"Huh?" Aoiketsu started, and Miramu chuckled.
"You are Kaiga Aoiketsu, correct?" He asked quietly. Aoiketsu nodded.
"Yes." He agreed warily. "What about it?"
"Well, I've spent the past four or five years in Kutou. I know the story of your family and many, many others." Miramu reflected. "You're the only son of the bastard who enslaved our favourite china statue and his kind, aren't you?"
His eyes narrowed thoughtfully.
"That must make for an interesting working relationship."
"My family…" Aoiketsu faltered, then he shook his head. "Hyoushin-sama's past is private. Even I don't know much about it. You certainly can't claim to, so don't bait me as if you do. Whether he was or he wasn't a slave for Kaiga Gin is his business. It happened before I was born. Kaiga Gin died before I was born. It has nothing to do with me and the Commander knows it. He doesn't carry grudges – he knows that I'm not the same as that man. Besides…"
He hesitated, and Miramu eyed him keenly.
"Besides, you're not even sure you are Kaiga Aoiketsu, after all?" He asked softly, and Aoiketsu flinched, staring at him in confusion.
"What do you mean by that?" He asked softly, and Miramu shrugged.
"I heard your conversation with that block-headed friend of yours. Maichu, or whatever he calls himself." He said carelessly. "I told you already – doubts are the only attraction in existence. The only thing that truly makes life. You can't pretend you haven't wondered about it, in terms of Hyoushin and the history you gloss over so easily. Even a man with no soul would balk at training the son of the one that drove it out of him…don't you think so?"
"I don't know what you mean." Aoiketsu said softly, and Miramu snorted.
"Yes you do." He said evenly. "More's the pity, you know exactly what I mean. And you are curious. You do want to know why you're so favoured among all the war-orphaned children of Kutou when it comes to the Emperor and his sidekick."
"And I suppose you know all the answers?"
"Not at all." Miramu looked amused. "I don't know who you are, Aoiketsu. I only know who you are not. You are not the son of Kaiga Gin. I'd stake my existence on that fact."
"Well, it's none of your business either way if he is or he isn't. He's dead. End of subject." Aoiketsu said shortly. "I never knew him or my mother, so what does it matter what their names are?"
"It matters to men like Hyoushin." Miramu said quietly, and Aoiketsu started at the sudden serious note in his companion's tone. "You are naïve and it makes you stupid. And pitiful, too. You don't understand anything about life yet – or the bad things that it has to offer. You're still a baby in all those things. You innocently believe that a man such as that Meihi would take you and train you regardless of your heritage…don't be a fool. Hyoushin would never have trained the son of Kaiga Gin. Never."
"What makes you so sure?" Aoiketsu was irritated by this, glaring across at his companion as his horse negotiated a difficult section of rocky track. "Stop being such a pain, Miramu. I know we have to travel together, bt you've spent the whole time trying to bait me. I don't even know what you want to achieve, let alone…"
"Perhaps to show a soft-hearted, stupid little boy the cold hard facts of life." Miramu said bluntly, twitching his reins to make his steed keep pace with the young soldier's. "You are a good fighter, you ride well. You have fine features and I'm sure you must be very popular with the young ladies, back in Kutou. But you will never win a battle. You vomit at the sight of blood, like a little girl at her first town execution. You are a good student but ultimately, nothing else. A failure. Hyoushin is cold but he is no fool. He would not keep one such as you in such close proximity unless there was something more to you. And he would never have given such deference to Kaiga Gin's offspring. Never."
"I keep telling you it's not your business."
"Do you really know what being a slave is, Aoi-kun?" Miramu asked softly. Aoiketsu snorted.
"Like you'd know anything about it, either."
"I know more than you think." Miramu's eyes narrowed. "In my time travelling through the lands to Kutou…in my first year in Kutou I saw much slavery on the western border. Even though it is illegal in the East, your Emperor is unable to keep all of his people in check and so it goes on."
A dark look flickered in his indigo gaze.
"I despise slavery, and more I despise slaves." He murmured. "People beaten or trained until they have no will of their own. People led along by false promises or the call of the divine. Such demeaned, trampled beasts, Aoi-kun. What living thing submits to such beatings or assaults day in and day out, without at least fighting for their freedom or their life? What creature allows himself to be so treated just for the meagre reward of living to see another day of work?"
He shook his head.
"Hyoushin was a slave who survived, and his slave mentality endures." He added. "Beaten, starved, raped – I don't know what he endured in his own personal captive hell. But he endured it. And he did not fight it. And I despise him for that. I despise him for choosing to live chained rather than to die free."
He shrugged his shoulders, sending Aoiketsu a disparaging look.
"And he makes slaves of you all, too, the way you jump to attention when he so much as breathes." He added disdainfully. "He is still a slave. You are all slaves. And it's nauseating watching you all follow orders without even asking questions. Do you none of you have any respect for your own selves, Aoi-kun? Or are you so in love with your Meihi ghost of a Commander that you'll do anything, even die to gain his cold-eyed approval?"
"You don't know anything about us or about Hyoushin-sama." Aoiketsu snapped back angrily. "We're soldiers. I told you this already. We fight for Kutou, and so does he. If that makes us slaves in your eyes, fine. That's what we are. But it doesn't make a difference to me what word you use. We're going to find a way to bring peace to the East. When we do, those people you mentioned – noone will be able to make them slaves ever again. Noone will be killed in fights or will go without food or water because of war. Our land will be happy. And if that costs me my life – so be it."
"So naïve." Miramu said cuttingly. "You really believe that it will be so simple as that? That a Beast God in the shape of a dragon can magically mend all ills?"
He snorted.
"In Sairou there are thieves and bandits. There are towns that struggle, such as Eiroku, and ones which do not." He murmured. "There are crimes and criminals, poor and poverty. Drought and starvation. Byakko has done nothing for this land, yet still we are meant to give thanks to him for saving us. Saving us from what? Our own desert scrubland? Noone in their right mind would attack Sairou with a view to invading it. What is there here for anyone to take pleasure in? Byakko hasn't solved all of Sairou's problems. And Seiryuu won't solve all of Kutou's. No matter how much you want to believe it."
"How did you get to be so twisted, anyway?" Aoiketsu had had enough, and he turned the tables on the assassin, glaring at him darkly. "Why are you always saying things like this? You're a man who killed his father, so don't preach to me about anything. You've the blood of innocent people on your hands – I don't have that."
"No. If you did, you'd fall off your horse and faint." Miramu said evenly. "And not all the men I've killed have been innocents, Aoiketsu. Your naivety allows you to see the world in black and white. Kutou is good, therefore Kounan is bad. Hyoushin is good, therefore Miramu is bad. But the world isn't in black and white. There are colours too…you should learn to read them."
"Hyoushin-sama is good. And loyal." Aoiketsu retorted hotly, and Miramu's eyes widened. Then he laughed.
"Aoi-kun, is it possible that your affection for your commander goes beyond that of soldier and leader?" He asked softly. "You have the pretty looks of a girl – are you drawn to him in that way, that you can defend him so readily?"
"Don't be stupid!" Aoiketsu exclaimed indignantly. "I'm as much a man as you are or Maichu is and I'm not in love with the Commander. Stop saying crazy things! But I am loyal to him. I've been with him since I was five years old – why would I not be? After all, who the hell do you think I learnt things from? He trained me. And maybe I do respect him more than just as my Commander. But what do you expect, when I've spent thirteen years of my life living up to his standards and instruction?"
"Ah. So he's your substitute father." Miramu smirked. "Cute. Very cute."
"I didn't say that."
"But it's what you imply nonetheless." Miramu glanced down at his reins thoughtfully, then, "I wonder if he knows he inspires such pointless devotion in you, Aoi-kun. It's all very touching – but rather wasted on a man whose soul was probably struck down and killed when he was first bound in chains and sold."
"He's not who you think he is."
"And perhaps the same is true of me."
"Why do you keep targeting me like this?" Aoiketsu demanded. "Why is it me you spew all your random crap at, huh? I don't get it. You don't do it to any of the others – do you just like to creep me out?"
"It passes the time." Miramu said carelessly. "And besides, I feel a connection to you, I suppose. Maybe it's the Western eyes. Who really knows for sure?"
He shrugged his shoulders.
"Or maybe I'm attracted to you." He added mischievously. "Would you like that to be my answer? That your pretty looks have captivated me and induced me to tell you my darkest thoughts?"
"Do you want to make me vomit?" Aoiketsu demanded. Miramu laughed.
"I don't mind." He admitted. "Whatever makes you happy."
"You're really, really annoying – you know that?"
"I do my best." Was Miramu's frustrating response.
"And my eyes aren't Western. I told you. I'm from Kutou."
"You might be, but your eyes aren't." Miramu shrugged. "Theirheritage is settler or Hin, like it or don't like it. And even though you are a naïve fool, there is something about you that attracts me. I won't deny it…of all your travel companions, Aoiketsu, you have something that they don't."
His eyes narrowed, as if seeing Aoiketsu for the first time.
"Your blood opened Suiko's seal." He added softly. "If you don't understand the significance of that fact, I won't be the one to explain it. But I'm sure you're not so stupid as to not realise what it means. You're not Kaiga Aoiketsu. You've never been him. And you've certainly no obligation to act in the name of Kutou or any other country that comes calling."
"What are you talking about now?" Aoiketsu demanded, and Miramu chuckled.
"Give it some thought." He advised. "You might well see that I'm right."
"It's not like it would change anything." Aoiketsu shook his head. "Wherever my ancestors came from. It certainly doesn't benefit you, Miramu – so why bother?"
"Why else?" Miramu smiled. "To create doubt, of course. To make you think. To make you see. To make you something other than just a clone of every other soldier in Kutou. You're not every other soldier in Kutou. You're more than they are. If you harnessed that, who knows what you could do or be? You're not a slave, Aoiketsu. You're not shackled to this life. You're more than that. That's all."
"You really are weird, you know that?" Aoiketsu said helplessly. "I don't understand you at all."
"Mm…that might be as well for all concerned." Miramu reflected. "Even I don't spend much time trying to understand my own reasoning. It's complex, obtuse and not always rational – so it's probably safer you don't attempt it."
"Miramu!"
"I was serious, by the way, when I said not every man who died at my hand was innocent." Miramu spoke softly, and Aoiketsu saw the flicker of solemnity return to his companion's indigo gaze. "I killed my father because he deserved it. He destroyed my life, my sister's life…most of all, my mother's life. I killed him because of that. And I would do it again. This innocence you have, Aoi-kun, it's a dangerous thing. I had it too, once, until I learnt the truth about who he was and what he had done. You need to see the world as it is, before it's thrust in front of you in plain sight. I'm twisted, perhaps, but I'm a product of my past. Who knows how many more people will suffer because of that man's existence?"
He turned, offering the young soldier a strange, sad smile.
"I suppose I have become fond of you." He admitted. "It's not like me, but in an odd way, you do remind me of myself. Your hopes and dreams are almost painful, Aoiketsu. I hate how simplistic they are, but I envy them, too. I haven't had hopes or dreams in ten years. I've just existed, waiting for the day I'll be the killed and not the killer. That's why I ask you about your father. About your family. About who you really are."
He fingered his collar absently, then,
"I am not Geiyo Miramu." He owned. "That name – was a lie. Geiyo was a man my mother married, but he was not my father. Yet I still use it, because I am ashamed to align myself with my true father – the man whose blood I spilled all over the house in Eiroku. My past was dumped upon me – it came as a shock, like a bolt from the blue."
He shrugged resignedly.
"You are not Kaiga Aoiketsu." He continued. "Though like me, you persist in the illusion that you are. But you doubt – and because you do, you have a chance to find this and face it before it overwhelms you. The past can be a bitter thing, Aoi-kun. And not all of us can escape, when it spreads its wings over you and casts its shadow down."
"You…almost sound human, when you speak like that." Aoiketsu looked startled. "How many personalities do you have, Miramu? You sound sincere, but I find it hard to believe that you are. You killed a boy younger than me in that shrine, didn't you? And you'd have killed his companions too, if not for Toroki. Yet you can say things like this…?"
"I am the product of evil, forced into existence by a sadistic force beyond my control." Miramu said bitterly. "I taint everything I touch, because that is how and who I was born. The only escape from such a life is death – but I can't even have that. I have tried – many times, I have tried. But each time I have survived. Toroki's prophesy still hangs over me. I am condemned to live until the day her prediction comes true. So instead I take the lives of others. I give them the oblivion I can't have. And so I became what I am – the assassin Miramu, the Shadow of the West."
"Did it ever occur to you that those people might not want to die yet?"
"That's not really my concern." Miramu shrugged. "I don't kill indiscriminately, you know. I have no intention of killing you, for example – even though there's no witnesses and we're in remote land. As I said, I like you – and besides, I'm being paid by your Emperor to act in Kutou's name. There's an element of pragmatism to my bitterness – I have to eke a living, if I must live. So I do. That's all. I am not good at many things, but I am a good executioner. So logically this is my trade. I left home too young, after all, to make a proper apprentice."
"Because you killed your father."
"I gave him justice." Miramu corrected.
"What, exactly, for?"
"He raped my mother." Miramu said coldly, and Aoiketsu's eyes widened at the hardness that glittered in the gemstone indigo eyes. "And I was born."
"He…" The soldier faltered, and Miramu nodded.
"So now you understand, don't you?" He murmured. "That if there is something…to know it by your own choice is better than to live in ignorant oblivion, waiting for the day the axe might fall."
"But if you'd never known, would you have killed him?"
"No." Miramu shook his head. "And he might have committed the same sin against another woman in another place. Perhaps he already did. Either way, his crimes were unforgivable. Death was deserved. I have no regrets."
His eyes narrowed.
"I have standards too, you know." He murmured. "I can maim, I can kill. I will do both, and I will walk away without regret. But there are things I will not stoop to. Twisted as I am, I would never do to any woman what my father did to my mother. I would never take after him...or risk spawning something into this world with as much evil as I have running through my veins."
He lifted the reins, urging his horse into a canter.
"We should pick up the pace." He added. "If we are to get to our destination by nightfall. I could travel more quickly alone, but you are the star attraction in this little deception – so I suppose I have to take you with me."
Aoiketsu was silent for a moment, digesting this. Then,
"You didn't want to kill Toroki." He murmured, as he obediently pressed his heels to his horse's side, forcing him on across the difficult terrain. "You kill without regrets and you seem to take pleasure in it. But you wouldn't kill her. Are you really so afraid of Byakko's revenge? You don't sound afraid of him to me."
"You're more perceptive than those pretty boy looks give you credit for." Miramu reflected. "You're right. I'm not afraid of Byakko. He's already inflicted enough hell on my life. Death by comparison would be a release."
"So why so fussy? Why didn't you kill her, if you're so keen on bringing people oblivion?" Aoiketsu's eyes narrowed. "She's the one who tied you to this prediction, isn't she? The one you hate and pity. Why not slay her and get the prediction settled and out of the way? I don't understand. Why didn't you face her? Why?"
Miramu did not answer right away, and Aoiketsu saw a strange look cross his companion's face.
"If I told you that, I might have to kill you." He murmured. "And I don't want to do that. You're far too pretty to be a corpse."
"Will you stop taking jibes at my appearance and answer a question straight for once?" Aoiketsu was frustrated. "I'm not afraid of you. Maybe you have poisoned arrows, but as you've already said, I'm a good fighter. And if it's a choice between letting you kill me and throwing up over a little blood, I'll take my chances with the red stuff. I'm not as much of a coward as you think...you might not be able to kill me as easily as all that."
Miramu stared at him for a moment. Then he began to laugh, nodding his head appreciatively.
"Yes, I do like you." He decided. "My kindred spirit from the East, with the seiran eyes of the West."
"Kindred spirit?" Aoiketsu arched an eyebrow, and Miramu nodded.
"Those whose destinies are entangled hopelessly in the paths their fathers chose to take." He murmured, and Aoiketsu's eyes narrowed.
"You do know something about my family. You lied to me."
"Maybe." Miramu acknowledged. "Or rather, I greatly suspect things about your family, shall we put it that way? I'm a shadow, Aoi-kun. I slip in and out of places and I learn things that people don't know I've heard. Why do you think I sought you out on the boat how I did? I knew your name long before we met. I'm interested by you. Even more so now I know your blood broke Suiko's shrine seal. It points in an intriguing direction, and if the bits and pieces I've put together are true..."
"Then if you won't tell me about Toroki, tell me that!"
"And you'd believe the word of an assassin?" Miramu shook his head. "No. You can figure it out for yourself well enough. Besides, you're about to go into an important mission for your precious commander, aren't you? You wouldn't want your head clouded by unecessary details...would you?"
"Damn you." Aoiketsu muttered, but inwardly he knew that his elusive companion was right. "Fine. I guess I do have to think like Kaiga Aoiketsu. After all, that's who I'm going to be...even if it's not who I actually am."
"Such are the trials and tribulations of living a shadow-life." Miramu observed. "But you do look like a discarded noble son. And you have the facts to back it up. Convincing the men of the South that you are an exiled child of the slaughtered Kaiga dynasty shouldn't be too hard. Especially not since you have that ring to back up your story."
Aoiketsu glanced at his hand, nodding.
"My mother left it as a keepsake." He agreed. "She didn't leave me much...she couldn't. But she did leave me this. I know it's the Kaiga family's insignia, engraved on it. I'm not sure why, if I'm not Kaiga Gin's son...but maybe she had her reasons. There are a lot of things I'd like to ask her - but I guess the little I do know will have to get me by for the time being."
"Not to mention the fact that your Commander is indeed a former slave of the Kaiga family." Miramu said wickedly. Aoiketsu frowned.
"I don't like that fact." He owned. "Even if I'm not...Miramu, I've never seen him show true hate or resentment for anyone or anything in his past. But...when I remember that he was a slave, I...I find I'm hopeful that Kaiga Gin is not my father. Even if my true birth father was ignominious, or I was born out of wedlock, or whatever it means...even if my father was one like...like yours. Surely it can't be worse than having that monster of a man for a father. I don't want a blood association to such a cruel person. Even if you say it's naive - it's how I feel."
"I don't think there's a danger of that, Aoi-kun." Miramu murmured. "I am absolutely sure that you are not Kaiga Gin's son."
"I guess only my mother knew for sure." Aoiketsu sighed. "And right now, I suppose, it's all right if it stays that way."
"I think you're wrong, by the way."
"Hrm?"
"About your Commander. And hate." Miramu's eyes narrowed pensively. "He hides it well. He lives his static, sterile life...he never lets his guard down. But he has weaknesses. And I have seen it - the flicker of hate in his eyes when someone or something threatens Kintsusei-sama's life. When we first met, some years ago, the Emperor had taken serious injury in a civil uprising. Hyoushin was forced to utilise my skills rather than engage the enemy in battle with a depleted, demoralised Imperial army. And I have no doubt it killed him to do it - to send me instead of going himself. But I saw it then - the hate in his eyes as he spoke of the ones who hurt the Emperor."
"Hyoushin is loyal to the Emperor."
"Or in love with him, perhaps."
"You have really sick thoughts sometimes, you know that?" Aoiketsu demanded, and Miramu laughed.
"But you never know." He said flippantly. "I told you. Uncertainty. Doubt. These are my lifeblood. The one amusement I have - asking the questions noone else ever asks."
"Hyoushin is not in love with the Emperor." Aoiketsu said derisively. "He owes him a debt. That's all. His freedom came at Kintsusei-sama's hand."
"Ah. So you know that, but nothing more about your enigmatic Commander's past?"
"It's not a secret." Aoiketsu shrugged. "He's always said that his life is the Emperor's, because it was given him by the Emperor. So that's how it is. People like and respect other people for other reasons than sex, you know - talking like that you sound like Maichu. I never thought I'd say that, but it's true."
"Perhaps." Miramu seemed unconcerned. "Although, considering the way some of those slave-masters treat their property, it wouldn't surprise me if Hyoushin didn't have some expert first hand experience of all kinds of seduction techniques. And your Emperor is unmarried. Even at the age he is, he has no consort or harem..."
"Shut up!" Rage flared in Aoiketsu's heart. "Saying things like that about the Emperor is enough to be treason, and Hyoushin-sama...Hyoushin-sama..."
"Oh, relax." Miramu snorted. "You're far too sensitive. And there's nothing untrue in what I said, even if I added certain implications. Slaves are the property of the master - you really have no idea what kind of perversions a life of servitude might have instilled in your Commander. For all you know, he might secretly covet you ...or one of your companions. Anything is possible."
"I already told you. Shut up." Aoiketsu said coldly. "Hyoushin-sama's past is his business, I told you. And whatever happened to him, it was bad enough that he chooses not to talk about it. And we don't ask. Ever. You're saying things just to make me angry, because you want me to attack you - and it isn't going to work."
"Perhaps I am." Miramu admitted. "Just to see if you really do have a soldier's instinct inside of you."
Aoiketsu brushed a finger against the hilt of his sword.
"Take my word for it that I do." He said quietly. "And stop talking about the two people I respect most in such an ugly way."
"I wouldn't say ugly. Innovative, perhaps." Miramu rubbed his chin. "Come to think of it, there are probably a lot of young men who'd find you of interest - no wonder this is a sore point with you. Have you been propositioned, Aoi-kun? By some bad, brawny soldier who didn't want to take no for an answer?"
His eyes glittered with malicious amusement, and Aoiketsu shook his head slowly.
"I'm not taking your bait." He said frankly. "No, I've not been propositioned. And I have no interest in other men except as comrades and Commanders. Sorry to disappoint you, but this pretty boy is only attracted to women. And that can wait too, until Kutou is saved."
"Ah, there's that fine patriotic spirit again." Miramu remarked. "All right. But what I said about your Commander has some basis in fact. Hyoushin truly hates anyone who might hurt Kintsusei. And if he looked at you, with that ice in his eyes, you'd have no problem believing that he'd kill you where you stood. He has a reputation, you know, for beheading miscreants in a single stroke with that formidable left arm of his. No doubt with the look of the devil in his eyes, too."
He shrugged.
"I was rather hoping to see him in action." He added. "But so far I've been disappointed. It seems the only way to get that man to show any emotion at all is to royally piss him off - and even with all my attempts, I've not yet managed to achieve it. It's a shame...I'd like to see if the rumours are true."
Aoiketsu shivered, feeling faintly queasy at his companion's casual description, and Miramu shot him a sidelong glance, amusement twitching at his lips.
"Sorry. I guess that doesn't appeal to your feminine sensibilities." He said frankly, and Aoiketsu glowered at him.
"I'm not a girl." He snapped. "And anyone who takes pleasure in the idea of someone cutting anyone's head off has issues!"
"Your Commander is the one with the reputation."
"Hyoushin-sama only decapitates traitors on the orders of the Emperor." Aoiketsu said coldly. "Which is no different from any other court - not even your Sairou one, I'm sure!"
"Perhaps." Miramu acknowledged. "But I'm rather intrigued by the idea of the frozen ghost meting out imperial justice."
He reined in his horse, glancing around him as he pursed his lips.
"This is as good a place as any." He reflected. "We're well into Kounan's territory now. We avoided the direct mountain path, so we haven't met any of Tasuki's charming bandit posse - I didn't think that that would be a good introduction for you, to be ransacked and looted by them. Especially since you're only interested in women - I wouldn't like to bet that all that bunch of brawny braindeads do in their spare time is count tribute and wait for the next drink."
He chuckled, and Aoiketsu narrowed his eyes.
"So where abouts are we?" He asked quietly, halting his own horse as he gazed at his surroundings. "I've never been to Kounan before. Hyoushin-sama wanted me to be somewhere in the vicinity of Reikaku-zan...how far is that, from where we are?"
"Do you see the peaks to the East?" Miramu seemed to realise he was not going to get another rise from the young soldier, for he answered simply. He gestured towards the rising hills that loomed before them, and Aoiketsu realised that the base of the nearest was likely less than an hour's ride away. "The two tallest are Reikaku-zan and Kaou-zan. Both of them are home to bandit troupes. The town glittering at the foot is known as "Souun" - and it's the centre of trade for this area, so I was told when I was last here on your Emperor's errand. As for where we are exactly - this is the forestland between Eiyou and the villages at the foot of that mountain. Chichiri's village isn't far away...it seemed prudent to drop you near the apothecary's home, rather than the bandit's."
"Apothecary?" Aoiketsu looked startled. "Why would I need that?"
Miramu glanced at him for a moment, then a wicked grin touched his features. There was a sudden glint of something silver, and Aoiketsu let out an exclamation, almost falling from his horse as he felt a burning pain slash through his arm. Instinctively he loosed the reins, clutching at his wounded limb, and as he did so he felt something wet and sticky oozing between his fingers. His eyes widened, as he stared at the assassin in shock.
"What the hell did you do that for?" He whispered. "Shit, Miramu, that wasn't part of the deal!"
"Oh, come off it." Miramu snorted. "Aoi-kao, get off your horse before you fall off. Don't you realise that this is the perfect foil for your little deception? The wounded exile escaping the clutches of the vicious assassin known as Miramu? Why do you think Hyoushin sent me with you? Just as a tour guide? Don't be naive."
Aoiketsu stumbled down from his mount, gripping the reins tightly as nausea and dizziness washed over him. He sank to the floor, glaring up at his companion with as much venom as he could muster.
"You're a sick, sick bastard." He muttered. "You just did that because you want me to puke up again. And you want to laugh at me...that's the real reason. It has nothing to do with...with anything else. You just like to see people bleeding."
"You hurt my feelings, saying things like that." Miramu said playfully. "I'm only acting on your Commander's instructions."
"I bet Hyoushin-sama didn't ask you to stab me!"
"No, he didn't." Miramu admitted. "But it's a logical progression from his order, and I'm an original thinker. Consider this, Aoi-kun. I'm not much loved by these Southern folk. I killed one of their own in Kitora's shrine. True, it was incidental - I didn't go there with that intention, and they rather got in my way. But I'm sure they don't see it like that. And they're more than aware of who I am, considering that I relieved them of the Seiryuu Shinzahou. I'm their bitter enemy by now, I imagine. If they know you've been attacked by me, and somehow escaped, they're bound to take you in. An enemy of yours is an enemy of theirs...in this case, quite literally."
He smiled, bending to pull the band from his companion's thick dark hair, and as it fell loose around Aoiketsu's face, the assassin stood back as if admiring the effect.
"There. You look less like a warrior with your hair like that. More like the pretentious exiled rich boy, who's always run and never fought." He reflected. "You should make the most of your pretty looks and inbuilt weaknesses, Aoi...I think they make you rather convincing."
"Shut your face, you jerk." Aoiketsu glared up at him. "You don't have to enjoy it quite so much - and don't you dare touch me again!"
"You are sensitive." Miramu tut-tutted. "I'm only doing as I was instructed. I brought you here, I've helped you to set up your scenario."
He paused, pursing his lips.
"Besides, right now you look as pitiful as you could do." He added. "Their soft Southern hearts will fall for you in a moment, and they'll take you in like a lost puppy. I guarantee it, Aoi-kun. I know you're a soldier, but right now even I'm having a hard time believing you can lift a sword. Speaking of which..."
He bent down, removing the soldier's weapon from his belt.
"Since you're not here on military ends, I'll take this with me."
Aoiketsu swallowed hard, cursing under his breath.
"You could've warned me you were going to cut me." He snapped. "I almost fell off the damn horse...and what am I meant to do with that, now? Hyoushin said to discard mounts before I was found!"
"I'll take the horse, too. Don't worry - I am capable of doing that, you know." Miramu assured him. "And don't look so angry. Besides, it doesn't suit your beauty. And I imagine you'll have company soon, too."
He cocked his head to one side, as if listening for something. Then he nodded.
"Time I left." He remarked. "Toroki is with them, and I'm sure by now she knows I'm here. Remember who you're meant to be, and I'm sure you'll not be killed too quickly...all right? Widen those beautiful blue eyes at them a little, bat your lashes and I know they'll take to you at once."
With that he winked, slipping his hand through the reins of Aoiketsu's horse.
"Good luck." He added. "I'll report back to your Commander that when I left you at least, you were alive and...in more or less one piece."
With that he gave his animal a spurring kick, and Aoiketsu found himself alone in the woodland of a strange country. He glanced at his injured limb, fighting the urge to be sick as he inwardly called the assassin every name he could think of.
"He might be right about tactics, but he didn't have to take such pleasure in it." He muttered. "Now if the world would stop spinning...if they're suspicious of me, I'm going to be in no shape to defend myself. And he took my damn sword, too. Right now, I don't know if they will believe me. I was attacked by Miramu and I escaped...would I believe that, if one of my friends had been killed by that man?"
He closed his eyes against his swirling surroundings, sinking back against the trunk of a tree as he struggled for something to stabilise him. Even as he heard the sound of voices coming towards him, however, the effort was too much, and with a murmur he sank into unconsciousness as the world dimmed and faded to black.