A revamped version of something I wrote as a young brat, which Princes of the Empire was inspired from.

WARNINGS!: OCCness. Anachronism. Unbeta'd. Uneven pacing. Footnotes offer explanation.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Princess of the Empire

It was autumn in the earthly branch[1] of the rabbit; yin[2], 2nd trine[3], when Riko found a newborn babe swathed in black cloth abandoned at the edge of the highland woods. Taking pity on the child, Riko took her back to her home deep in the heart of the woods. Since the child had nothing except for the fabric which she had been wrapped in, she was given the name Kuroko.

Kuroko had been cold and starving when Riko found her. Yet, even when she was in the warmth of Riko's protection, she would neither feed nor cry. Despite her growling stomach and sunken cheeks, the baby would not open her eyes or drink the milk given to her. It was as if she instinctively knew that she had been abandoned, that she was unwanted.

"Don't give up my little baby. I'm alone too, but if you don't mind someone like me, I'll be your new mama."

With that, the babe opened her eyes, revealing a pair of vacant cerulean irises, and proceeded to cry. It was then Riko understood why the babe was abandoned; her eyes shone in the dark.

Never leaving the safety of the highland woods, Riko taught her daughter the healing arts of the druids[4].

Druids were once a revered people, but their golden age had long since passed. Hunted out of the pages of history, now, only Riko remained.

After two blissful crossings of Suìxīng[5] across the heavens, Riko breathed her last breath. However, along with the death of her mother and benefactor, Kuroko was dealt another blow. At her deathbed, Riko bared the dark past of the druids. The druidic arts were considered high treason, a crime punishable by death.

Shintarō of the house of Midorima was a lieutenant general in charge of the fourth army corps of the Shūtoku Kingdom. Coming from a long line of lords and ladies, his status was acknowledged even amongst the highest of nobility. One day, in the spring of the earthly branch of the dragon; yang[6], 1st trine, Shintarō saw in the movements of the heavens something that urged him to leave for the highland woods. He was convinced that something awaited him there.

When Shintarō had finally arrived in the highland woods, its unforgiving denseness mocked his presence. Lost, alone, and disoriented, he could not even rely on divination to guide him back to civilization for the heavens were obstructed by the thick canopy. After a harrowing two full moons spent unable to escape the grip of the highland woods, he collapsed to the ground, overwrought with a high fever. He was ready to accept his fate.

Yet, when Shintarō came to, he found himself carefully wrapped in layers of animal hide in front of an open fire. He had been saved by a mysterious medicine man, a silent recluse who hid himself from the world and lived off the land. He was clothed in heavy black robes and wore headgear which completely hid his face from view. In such attire, he literally melded into the woods, disappearing from sight as soon as Shintarō lapsed in concentration.

"Is he leprous?"

Although unwilling to either speak or show his face, the runty medicine man nursed him back to health. Leprosy stigma in the Shūtoku Kingdom had been slowly declining. Despite that, the facial disfigurement, mutilation of limbs, and its mysterious origins still inspired horror, fear, and disgust; prompting most lepers to conceal themselves or seek a life of solitude. Supposing he truly was a leper, the medicine man still trumped each and every one of the palace physicians in terms of skill. Shintarō respected skill, regardless of its source.

After 2 nights of rest, Shintarō made a full recovery. The medicine man led him to the edge of the forest. Shintarō noticed how the medicine man used a tree branch with bells attached to it to ward off would-be predators. The medicine man even found an injured wolf cub and nursed it back to health. By the time they reached the edge of the highland woods, six sunsets and seven sunrises had passed.

Shintarō gave his thanks to the medicine man, but before they parted ways, he was given a strange artifact. It was a homogeneous solid substance having a natural, geometrically-regular form with symmetrically-arranged planes. Shintarō accepted the gift. Having no idea of its significance, he decided to treat it as a protective charm, a lucky ornament of sorts.

Watching Shintarō's retreating back, Kuroko withdrew herself back into the familiar safety of the highland woods. It was the first time she had laid eyes on a male of her kind. He wore heavy armor and carried peculiar weapons, sharper than any canine tooth she had ever seen. True to her mother's warnings, the outside world was a cruel and unforgiving place, full of blood-hungry, violence-craving beasts of men.

In spite of that, she could not bring herself to leave the stranger to die. Whether by compassion, concern, or just simple curiosity, Kuroko found herself dragging the man back to her home. It had been laborious. The man's size eclipsed hers by leaps and bounds. Long bones enveloped in tough sinew and skin, he towered over her when he finally stood. Reserved and rigid, he hadn't been forceful when she chose to remain silent or conceal her identity.

She had shown him the wonders of Gaia[7], and taught him to appreciate the tranquil harmony of nature, all of which he accepted respectfully. The days they spent together had been surprisingly serene, so much so that she had wondered if she had finally met a kindred spirit.

"But, he cannot stay."

If he realised her connection to the druids of old, who knew what he would do?

In the Shūtoku Kingdom, the people were shocked to learn that Shintarō had returned from the dead. What was even more amazing though, was his elevated prowess compared to the past. He and his army brought down warlord after warlord, and within the span of an earthly branch, had replaced his superior as the Shūtoku Kingdom's general.

It was as if the heavens itself willed for his victories. High waters inexplicably emerged from far beyond the great sea and wiped out entire opposing armadas[8]. Hordes of invading marauders ransacking Shūtoku's farmlands mystifyingly went mad[9]. Even the dragons, esteemed creatures of ages past, came to his aid, blocking out the sun to give him the upper hand in battle[10]. With him in command of the Shūtoku's strongest battle-hardened warriors, the kingdom greatly expanded its lands.

Indeed, Shintarō was so loved by the heavens that his miraculous fortune became the envy of various political officials. In the end, even the king of the Kingdom of Shūtoku felt threatened. His majesty summoned the general to appear before the high court on false charges of attempting to usurp the throne. There, before the masses, he was stripped of his official regalia and whipped within an inch of his life. On his knees, hands tied behind his back, and forehead upon the cold stone floor, his labored breaths continued to seek vindication. Despite that, after 195 lashes, even the resolve of someone as proud as Shintarō cracked. He looked to the crystallum[11] around his neck to bless him with a quick and painless death.

However, his keepsake from an earthly branch ago was noticed by the King. His majesty recognized the artifact as a healing crystallum of the druids, thaumaturges[12] of a lost pagan religion. They were sacrifice-obsessed heathens whom his great grandfather had made a mission to snuff out of existence.

"Where did you get this?" The king descended from his throne and ripped the crystallum from Shintarō.

The wounded general clambered to retrieve his charm. But, the subjugator whipped him again, wrapping the qilinbian[13] around his neck, and pulling him back from the king. He groaned from the choking, baring his teeth to the king.

"Your Excellency, I believe that the son of the house of Midorima returned from the highland woods bearing the crystallum."

The king ordered a squadron of the kingdom's fiercest warriors to capture the druids he was sure hid within the woods. He would carry out his great grandfather's mission, and hunt down every last of the primitive criminals. When informed of the mysterious forces within the highland woods. The king merely solidified his resolution.

"Then burn that cursed place! Raze it to the ground! Wipe it from the annals of history along with the druids!"

Shintarō was labelled a traitor for fraternizing with enemies of the kingdom and sentenced to slavery in the mines. The slaves who died laboring in the mines numbered in the hundreds of thousands. The king was certain that fallen general would be no different.

Yet, even without the crystallum, luck still shined upon Shintarō. Kazunari of the house of Takao, Kiyoshi of the house of Miyaji, and Shinsuke of the house of Kimura, led by brigadier Taisuke of the house of Ōtsubo stormed the slave quarters and freed their fellow warrior and friend. Along with 3000 freed men who chose to join them, Shintarō led his comrades north.

Taisuke, Kiyoshi, and Shinsuke took the men to seek asylum in the Northern Kingdom of Seihō. Shintarō and Kazunari took a longer path, choosing to go through the highland woods in an attempt to save the druid. Shintarō refused to believe his former king's actions to be justified. Even if the exercise were to end in vain, he vowed to rescue his own rescuer.

Meanwhile, in the highland woods, Kuroko was presenting an offer of song and poetry to the goddess Brighid[14] upon a triskellion[15] when she heard the cries of fleeing woodland creatures. The sounds of chaos and destruction soon followed. The highland woods, her home, was being scorched to ashes.

Kuroko ran to her home, but was soon pursued by a team of heavy-hooved riders. Arrows were continually aimed at her, yet the trees of the forest protected her from them. In spite of that, there was no way she could ever outrun a well-trained team of horsemen. She jumped headfirst off of a cliff into the lake below, and immediately swam toward the underwater cave she had discovered as a child. Gasping for air as she surfaced in the limestone chamber, she knew it was only a matter of time before the riders caught up. She had to move, fast.

Grabbing the pouch, and sickle she had hid in the chamber for just such an occasion, Kuroko traversed the narrow passageways of the underground rock formation. The darkness would slow down her pursuers. She, however, had always been able to see perfectly well in the dark. It was a gift she truly valued in her current predicament.

When Kuroko saw a faint glimmer of light, she knew she neared the end of the tunnel. Thankful that the blaze had yet to consume that part of the highland woods, she exited the cave mouth. From there on, she was one full moon away from the western edge of the highland forest.

That was too long.

Even if those who hunted her pulled back, she could never outrun the fire.

Still, Kuroko refused to surrender her life. She ran, and when she tired she walked. When the smoke reached her, she tied a wet cloth around her nose and mouth, got on her hands and knees, and crawled for her life. Her body ached and bruised, and her lungs stung in incredible pain. Nevertheless, caked as she was in dirt, sweat, and blood, she urged herself to plod on. She would not die by the hands of murderers.

Yet, by the third sunset, the inferno finally reached her. The heat was so intense it was as if the very fires of hell itself licked at her. Even as she trudged along, she knew that there would be no escape. The fire would return her ashes to Gaia, along with all the creatures of the highland woods she had come to regard as her family.

Tired beyond anything she had ever felt in her life, Kuroko closed her eyes. With the last of her strength, she dug her fingers into the earth and traced the triskellion that would mark her final resting place.

Shintarō and Kazunari had ridden relentlessly, but they were constantly delayed by soldiers and mercenaries alike. By the time they reached what used to be the south eastern edge of the highland woods, the sun had already reached its zenith[16] a total of six times.

They were too late.

The piles of ash, cinder, and soot stretched as far as the eye could see. The king had succeeded; the highland woods had been razed to the ground. In the face of such loss, Shintarō could not remain optimistic about the druid's fate. But, he didn't have time to mourn. They needed to reunite with the others, and the Shūtoku forces were still on their trail. Gripping the reins of their horses, Shintarō and Kazunari steered their horses uphill into the devastated landscape. To make up for lost time, they rode straight through the desolation.

Far away in the north, in the summer of the earthly branch of the snake; yin, 2nd trine, Kuroko awoke to the sight of her own eyes. There was only one creature she knew of that possessed those eyes, the wolf cub she had found back in the earthly branch of the dragon. However, the one before her was a massive full-grown wolf. It stood eye to eye to her when she rose to her full height.

"Did you save me?" Kuroko reached out her hand.

Regardless of what mystic forces drove the wolf to grow to such a size, there was no doubt that it was the same wolf. It bowed its head to meet Kuroko's hand and wagged its tail with enthusiasm.

Kuroko was inside some sort of shelter, empty barring the hay she stood on. She banged on the wooden frame of the locked gate in frustration, wondering if she had been captured. With her back to the gate, she sunk to the ground and finally allowed herself to cry. Guilt ate at her. Every possibility led back to that man. By helping him, she had brought forth persecution upon herself and destruction upon her home.

"I should've left him to die."

"Scary words from such a pretty mouth." Ryūhei of the house of Kasuga, a major general of Seihō opened the gates.

Last sunset, a single wolf the size of a horse had entered his division's encampment. In its immense jaws was the still body of a young woman. It didn't take much to deduce what had occurred. Even now, they carried the fetid stench of burnt flesh.

When it became obvious that the wolf was not hostile, Ryūhei brought the peculiar pair to the abandoned barn and locked the gate. Not to keep them in, but to keep his men out. The Shūtoku Kingdom had all but massacred the Senshinkan Kingdom. Now, its forces encroached upon the Seihō Kingdom, an enterprise Shūtoku had commemorated by setting the ancient highland woods ablaze. Tasked with protecting the border between Seihō and Senshinkan, now a province of Shūtoku, his men hadn't seen so much as a shadow of a woman for a long time.

Ryūhei threw Kuroko a sack. "There's a stream 200 paces to the east. Bathe, eat, and go as far north as you can – druid."

He dangled her sickle in front of her before unceremoniously depositing it on the ground. Evidently, some druids had survived the purging. Only their civilisation had forged sickles of gold[17]. An entirely useless weapon, it was more ornament than armament.

Underneath the filth, Ryūhei was sure the druid was beautiful. She had the most enticing eyes. Yet, he had no time to marvel at that novelty of a human being. The Shūtoku army theatre[18] commanded by the Commander-in-chief Shōgo of the house of Haizaki had annihilated Seihō's western field army[19]. There was no way his division of 400 could survive an army theatre of 60000. They had to decamp and regroup with Seihō's own army theatre to have any chance at all.

To their dismay, the soldiers never even saw the druid leave. How they had missed a woman and a giant wolf, they did not know. But, for now, they had to concentrate on keeping awake. The men had marched throughout the night, hoping to arrive at the new base at sunrise.

However, they were ambushed in the cover of darkness by two scouting divisions from Shūtoku's field army. The battle was a mess. Unable to differentiate friend from foe in the dim light of the torches, Ryūhei's men took blow after painful blow.

Suddenly, from a sea of agonising cries came an inhuman growl of a snarl. Ryūhei was unsure of the situation, but he could see the faint outline of the enemy being thrown and flung aside like sacks of wheat. He saw two pairs of luminous eyes, flaming with the silent ferocity of blue fire.

As the day broke and the sunrays peeked through the highland mountains, both Seihō and Shūtoku forces were greeted with an astonishing sight. With her long hair the colour of the midday sky loose and billowing in the wind, sitting astride a creature that looked as if it came straight out of legend, and wielding a golden sickle pointed towards the empyrean[20], the troops thought they had come into the presence of a goddess.

Along with the sunrise, Kuroko's presence brought forth incredible morale for the Seihō troops. The Shūtoku soldiers shook with fear. Their arrows and spears were useless against the wolf's impregnable hide. Guided by the female warrior, it smashed through their infantry like a juggernaut, paving the way for the opposition to deliver the finishing blows.

Their morale crushed, the enemy fled the battlefield.

Kuroko soon amazed Ryūhei and his men even more when she prayed for the dead of both enemy and ally.

"The dead carry no standards[21]."

Ryūhei knew Kuroko's circumstances resulted from Shūtoku's aggression, but he never really asked. One could only crudely assume that her conviction to join their cause stemmed from a yearning for vengeance.

At the Seihō base, Kuroko helped their field physicians heal the wounded. With her vast knowledge of medicinal herbs and a fearsome beast for a guardian, Kuroko proved invaluable on and off the battlefield. She was assiduous, brave, and always placed the needs of others above her own. Mounted atop her beast, she charged alongside them into skirmish after skirmish. It wasn't long before she evolved into more than just a comrade.

She became a symbol. In battle, her presence, bolstered by that of her giant guardian's, infinitely boosted morale. They loved her so much that she earned the moniker Kuroko the Princess of the Empire. In the eyes of the soldiers of Seihō, she alone stood above all the three kingdoms.

Before the final battle, Kuroko had led a squadron to attack Shūtoku's supply lines, stripping them of their resources. Despite that, going up against an enemy 60000 strong with just 45000 soldiers proved exceedingly difficult.

To counter the enemy's advantage in numbers, Seihō made use of the environment and chose an elevated position atop a hill as their theatre of war[22]. This allowed their arrows and catapults strategic advantage against the enemy's infantry. Nevertheless, when Shūtoku's cavalry came, the battle turned into a stalemate.

In an unexpected turn of events, 3000 allies charged into the battle and flanked Shūtoku's forces. In the ensuing confusion, Commander-in-chief Shōgo was beheaded. Deprived of their commander, the enemy fell into chaos. They were caught between Seihō in the front, and its unidentified ally at the rear.

After the battle ultimately went to the Kingdom of Seihō, a man who called himself Shintarō of the house of Midorima presented the head of Commander-in-chief Shōgo to Seihō's own Commander-in-chief Tsutomu of the house of Iwamura. He pleaded his and his men's wish for refuge in Seihō.

Tsutomu, strong-willed, kind and wise, respected and acknowledged the younger man's strength and honour, even if he was a defector who merely led an army of former slaves. He allowed them into Seihō provided that they join his army, and fight under the same standard.

However, immediately after Shintarō accepted the offer, a woman appeared out of thin air and stabbed him.

Shocked that he didn't even sense her killing intent, he ordered his comrades to fall back as blood rushed up his throat and spilled from his lips.

Even through blurred vision, he saw the eyes of the giant wolf behind her, snarling at his men.

"You're the druid?"

"Yes."

Kuroko pulled the dagger out and her victim fell to the floor.

It was beyond the realm of logic, but as Shintarō clutched his wound, willing his blood and intestines from spilling out, the only thing he thought was how surprising it was that the druid turned out to be a woman. He couldn't even bring himself to feel bitter, only relief and joy that she was alive.

She was the one who had once saved his life.

If anyone had the right to take it back, it was her.

"I will heal you; bring you back from the dead. But, for my pain, my home, and the lives my family forfeited, allow me this one single sacrifice[23]."

Remarkably, Shintarō laughed. Only a druid, only a woman such as her would save a man, kill him, and then bring him back from the dead again.

Kuroko.

Princess of the Empire they called her.

When he was reborn, Shintarō vowed to never again let her out of his sight. She would be his raison d'être[24].

And together, may they leave behind a tale that would last the ages.

Footnotes

1 A system for reckoning time. 12 earthly branches = 12 years.

2 The passive female principle of the universe characterized as female and sustaining and associated with earth, dark, and cold.

3 (Astrology) an aspect of 120°.

4 Members of the priestly class in the ancient Celtic religion.

5 Jupiter the Year Star. Its orbit is rounded to 12 years.

6 The active male principle of the universe characterized as male and creative and associated with heaven, heat, and light.

7 Earth viewed as a vast self-regulating organism.

8 Tsunami.

9 Claviceps purpurea - An ergot fungus that grows on the ears of rye and related cereal and forage plants. Consumption may cause hallucinations and attendant irrational behaviour, convulsions, and even death.

10 Solar eclipse.

11 Latin for crystal.

12 A worker of wonders or miracles.

13 Literally meaning 'unicorn whip', it is a metal whip.

14 The triple Celtic deity of healing, poetry and smithcraft. She is associated with many healing springs and wells.

15 A Celtic symbol consisting of three legs or lines radiating from a centre.

16 Refers to the highest point reached by a celestial body during its apparent orbit around a given point of observation.

17 Tacitus, a senator and a historian of the Roman Empire, reports that golden sickles were used in Druidic rituals.

18 Largest military formation.

19 A military formation composed of two or more corps.

20 The highest part of heaven, thought by the ancients to be the realm of pure fire. Refers to the sky in literature.

21 Military or ceremonial flags.

22 An area or place in which important military events occur or are progressing.

23 Greek and Roman writers frequently made reference to the druids as practitioners of human sacrifice.

24 The most important reason or purpose for someone or something's existence.