Disclaimer : Kenren, Tenpou, Goujun, and others... They aren't mine : neither them or their background, because they wouldn't like it, and their right owner would be sad I think (or maybe she is already, with what I do with them). The plot of this story only may be mine, since I don't think you'd want it?
Gaiden - First Litouten's attempt to get rid of a certain marshal and the one-time alliance between a taishou and a king dragon, because blood has been shed in Heaven.
Warnings :
Any criticism welcome, above all to improve my english... (For crying out loud : HELP WANTED ! )
Not my language…
Light plot. I just wanted to play with Kenren, Tenpou and Goujun…
Yaoi (pre-yaoï for instance) and future incarnations links scheduled only for the sequel…
Reviewers' corner : many thanks to Incandescens (coming from you, it makes me blush) and Sanada (see, I posted it as I said… It's not much, but I had fun writing it… tell me if you're disappointed, I'll work harder on the « currently-working-on » sequel) for putting with me and the twisted part of my mind in « Nightmare »…
Red Alliance 1/7 (revised)Huge thanks to Sanada, who took time to make the story have a better look… You're so niiiiice ! I dunno wether you received my answer mail, my modem is driving me nuts lately… Tell me pretty please ????
If there is still some mistakes though, they are mine and only mine… Be kind to me, minna-san !
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Somebody's POV or flashback
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######## = normal POV
Prologue : « Pieces » (lousy, you can skip the part, really!!)
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Gods can't die.
Therefore, gods can't (or shouldn't?) bleed.
Therefore, gods can't kill.
Really, they shouldn't kill !
(Too bad for the fishing, nee, Kenren?)
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Red has always been the color of a concept : taboo. Things that shouldn't happen, that aren't meant to happen. Unspeakable things, so. How do you recognize a taboo child : chi. Eyes, hair, the colour of blood. Redness.
That's why it was strange to see that the pillars sustaining the walls and roof of Tenten's palace were red, wasn't it?
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(Ne Sanzo, I hate secrets...)
I'm going to tell you a story. Hush, it's a secret. A very well kept secret...
Once upon a time, blood had been shed in the most unexpected place. Once upon a time, blood had been shed in Heaven.
It was during the time Kanzeon Bosatsu claimed to be brightest in all of Heaven's history. Oh sure, just before, a certain general suffered from many cuts because of some whipping, a high-ranked minister had a severe nosebleed after a punch in the jaw (it is rumoured he had been punched by a wife, hehe...), and during several days, a marshal wore a few bruises on his (said to be kirei) face... This is History.
But there are always some episodes unknown to the written history...
It was just before some strange creature brought from Earth (itan, they say, an animal... not a child...) sealed the fate of the three souls he was meant to find again down there 500 years later. A bloody episode, too. But this is another story. And unlike what chroniclers said, this wasn't the first time gods got killed in Heaven.
Here takes place the story I'm going to tell you...
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Somewhere in the dark, the sound of a voice - Litouten's one...
« A dangerous element... »
« Yes. We're hearing that someone's become suspicious about what we upper officers are doing », answered another one. « We think he's only a minor player, but he might threaten our plans, or else… »
« Very well. » said Litouten again. « When you find out who it is, get rid of him somehow. »
« Yes sir. » (1)
## (1) Aestheticism('s site) translation, extract from one page of Gaiden. Some more extracts could be used in later chapters. Bow low in front of the translator who made my day the first time I have seen it... ##
Part 1 "Bloodshed."
The smell of blood was lingering in the Western army's building, that late evening. Floating about in the corridor. Nearly unnoticeable even for holy noses. Not for draconic nostrils, though...
A white silhouette made its way, following the scent, feeling more and more disturbed. Blood wasn't an heavenly scent. It was... odd. Something had happened on his territory, and he had to know what. The dragon-king of the Western sea was hunting the smell, his long braid as white as his scaly skin trailing along behind him at each turn. He stopped abruptly in front of a big red door that was slightly ajar. He knew the room. It was Tenpou gensui's library.
In the same time...
Middle of the night. A bottle of fine sake balancing on one hip, a general was walking, whistling softly for himself. He knew a place where he was always welcome. Tonight would be no exception, he thought. Halls were empty. He went the direction he had chosen so many times, towards the library of a marshal, who, he was pretty sure, was certainly buried under tons of books about human wars, reading through facts nobody had cared about since millenaries ago... And he felt a warm smile grow on his face. If the word friendship had a meaning in Heaven, he thought he had found a friend. And maybe more.
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Dragons have a great sense of integrity. Dragons think their life as guided by their sense of honour. Above all, dragons are very polite and respectful of people's intimacy. That's why the dragon king of the Western sea knocked at the door that night, in spite of all. But the door was already open. And nobody answered. It was his subordinate's place so he settled that he had the right to come in. Although he hadn't come often into the library, he knew the place. But this night, the sight welcoming him was utterly unexpected. Red eyes met red blood. He remained there, standing in the doorway for a while, registering what his eyes had seen.
Same instant...
It was the last corner before the corridor where Tenpou's library was. Cheerfully quickening his pace, the general took the turn and stopped dead in his tracks. Something was really, really wrong. His superior was standing in his friend's doorway, eyes wide open, clearly in shock. Certainly, what was causing this state was in the room. He ran the last few meters, and by pushing the dragon king out of the way, he stormed into the library looking for Tenpou. But the first thing he saw was the form sprawled on the floor. Scratch it : in fact, it wasn't. The first thing he noticed was the blood everywhere in a corner of the room, then what had to be a corpse on the ground in the middle of the redness. His heart skipped a beat.
« He is dead... » came the whisper. It wasn't the dragon's voice. And the taishou was sure himself had remained silent. So...
He could feel hope in his heart, looking for the source of the whisper. Kenren couldn't help a sigh of relief as he caught the sight of the marshal, in his familiar lab coat and leaning against his own desk. But he frowned when he saw the man's state. His head was bent, the face hidden behind a curtain of dark hair. The right hand was clasped on the left arm where blood kept on flowing, the whole sleeve downwards red with the liquid. The marshal's whole body seemed to be shaking. The dagger, still stained with blood, was near his feet. Even though he couldn't make out Tenpou's face he was sure the man was staring at the corpse. It was a soldier, as showed the leather uniform, from their own army.
Goujun made his way towards the body. Each step careful made not to make contact with the sliperryred liquid spreading on the floor. He bent forward with one knee on a neat space remaining on the waxed floor. He reached out with his pale hand for the man's neck to check the pulse.
« He is, indeed »...
The new voice brought back Tenpou to the reality of the scene. He stared at the dragon, taken aback.
« Goujun-sama? »
The dragon stood up again, and then went to lock the library's doors. Kenren rushed towards his friend to look at the wound. The marshal seemed to pull himself together, and notice the general for the first time. And visually flinched at the sight.
« What are you doing here? »
« Since when do I need a reason for coming to see you? » he answered with a cheerfulness he was far to feel.
There was a nasty cut on the green-eyed man's arm. He motioned him to remove his lab coat in order to have a better look. The brunette let him do as he wanted, eyes shut, as the dragon remained motionless, back at the door, waiting. His features were unreadable. Silent spectator.
« Where do you hide the first aid kit? », inquired the taishou.
« I think you know better than me. You use it more often, ne? In the other room... ».
Fake humour and strained laugh, direction given by a slight wave of a bloody hand.
« Chotto matte. I'm going to take it. You don't move. »
« As if... »
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Tenpou######
Goujun hasn't moved from his position near the door leading to the corridor. I wonder why he hasn't given the alarm yet...
That's good. I'm thinking straight again. What is not good? I don't know how much time I spent in that frozen state. My superior's voice woke me up. The touch of my friend made me feel alive again.
Oh. Alive. Unlike the soldier and god on the floor. How did that happen?
« What happened? », inquired the dragon.
Good question, I was asking myself the same thing. Well, I can't say that to my superior officer... Analyze for God's sake... Kenren is coming back soon, and I don't want him to become involved.
Facts first...
« The soldier came into my office tonight, tried to stab me. I defended myself. I've won. »
« Obviously. »
Well, I forgot. Dragons aren't blind after all. HOo... He's speaking again: maybe I should listen...
« ...smarter than that. How did you get surprised in your own office? Your own place isn't the best of all places for an attempted murder against you. »
Good question again.
Well, Goujun has an awful lot of good questions tonight:
« Were you waiting for somebody? »
Something like that in fact. I was sitting on the floor, reading, surrounded as I was by (« walls » of) books. I vaguely heard somebody knocking at the door, and coming straight in without waiting for an answer. This late... I know only one person who would do that, so I kept reading. I caught a glimpse of leather uniform, and thought I was right. In fact, the books piles saved my life. The soldier, even striking at sight, missed his first move only because I was well-protected behind all those books...
« Are you listening to me? »
... and I raised up on my feet, too much surprised to duck the next blow, the one which caught me deep in the arm. But I am a field marshal. And I know how to fight (I remember Goku being surprised by the fact. Even Kenren did, the first time he saw me on the battlefield). All came with instinct of self-preservation. I grabbed the man's own dagger, I plunged it right in the heart, without thinking. Well, maybe not straight in the heart, there's too much bleeding.
Bright boy! You remember now… You should answer the question, maybe...
« No, I wasn't waiting for somebody especially. I wasn't expecting to be stabbed by one of my own men either. His leather uniform was the only thing I have seen before being assaulted. »
« Had the said soldier any grudge against you? »
« No. Unless he was thinking that serving under me could be regarded as a grudge... »
« Do you know anybody who could want to set you up? »
« I'm done ! », I heard and the taishou was back. Silence, too.
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Kenren######
Don't ask me how. I knew they wanted me to leave. I was sure the dragon never would speak in front of me. Goujun, dragon King of the western sea. One of the military elite from a family of toushin. That ramrod attitude of his, that pure-white skin and those red eyes.I don't care if he is my commanding officer, I just don't like him(1). The only thing that could make me leave was this wound which needed to be tended. Holy shit. Tenpou was bleeding all over the place. I was searching for the kit everywhere, but who with a bit of brain could expect the marshal's bedroom to be tidier than his library. It was a whole mess. I swear he must spend more time with books than in his bed (covered itself with books, I noticed absentmindedly). Looking for the kit was good. Kept me from thinking of the implications about what happened tonight in the library. Tenpou had killed somebody. Gods aren't allowed to kill. Tenpou had killed another god (I'd seen the chakra on the forehead as Goujun checked the pulse). That was worst. Tenpou had killed (so lost) one of his men. And I knew he tended to do foolish things in these kinds of cases. Such as take all the blame on himself. Don't think about it. Look for the fucking aid kit... Ha! Here it was!
I made my way back to the library (well Tenpou's office in fact, but everybody calls it the library, no wonder why...). My hand was on the door ready to push it when I heard them:
« What happened? »
Goujun's voice, calm, level.
« The soldier came into my office tonight, tried to stab me. I defended myself. I've won. »
« Obviously. »
Yhea, I could have guessed myself, too.
« I thought you were smarter than that. How did you got surprised in your own office? Your own place isn't the best of all places for an attempted murder against you. Were you waiting for somebody? »
No, he wasn't. I would have known, otherwise...
« Are you listening to me? »
Bad sign, maybe I should hurry with the first aid kit...
« No, I wasn't waiting for somebody especially. I wasn't expecting being stabbed by one of my own men either. His leather uniform was the only thing I saw before being assaulted. »
Kami-sama.
So it explains the wound. Goujun is right : our marshal shouldn't have been surprised so easily. He has been on his guard lately, even though he wouldn't let me know why...But all he saw was the uniform. This late, he thought it was me. I felt the urge to punch the wall. Walls in Tenten's palace are thick. They wouldn't have heard anything.
« Had the said soldier any grudge against you? »
« No. Unlike he was thinking that serving under me could be regarded as a grudge... »
Oh, no. And I thought I had showed you that...
« Do you know anybody who could want to set you up? »
This time I felt the urge to scream. Because I knew who...
« I'm done ! »
... and I came back faking a sing-song voice. And they shut up.
######to be followed#####