History's
Shadow By M.E.
For a moment he just stood
there, staring at the ring he held in his hand, allowing his fingers to trace
the smooth, oily carvings etched in its surface. The tiny piece of jewelry was
old, older than many would think. And it was familiar.
He had seen it before, and
tried hard to drudge the memories out of his mind, but he found it near
impossible. Whoever, or whatever, had locked his past had done a very thorough
job, and no memories were stirred in the blank emptiness that was his mind.
No... That wasn't quite true.
His mind was not empty, memories flowed through the paths and tunnels of his
brain. But... whose were they? Common sense told him that they were his own, but
something deeper... hidden... told him otherwise. They offered false protection
in a world of chaos, torn apart by the constant threat of war and the loss of
all faith.
Somehow he knew that he was
directly responsible for the disrepair of the world that surrounded him, but he
had no clue as to how. What was he? A warrior... a ruler... a leader... what?
And, for that matter, who was he?
Firm brown fingers curled around the jade ornament, threatening to crush the
delicate piece of jewelry. He would find what he was, and know the origin of the
ring. Lifting himself to his feet, he glanced around himself. A jacket was flung
over a chair, and a ratty backpack slumped against what had once been a wall.
His golden eyes flashed with determination and he walked over, picking them up.
Whoever had done this to him would pay. Dearly.
***They still
hadn't found him. He was probably dead, or at least captured, which was in
itself a death sentence. Botan turned to face the window, not allowing them to
see the tears that streamed down her cheeks. It had been so long since any of
them had rested, had had time to really think about what had happened. Was
happening.
How long had it been
since those days when they only had to worry about little things, like missing
souls, or petty demons invading Ningenkai? Decades, most likely, considering how
much time had passed. Botan didn't care, it didn't matter since *he* wasn't
there.
What had long been anticipated had finally happened. A youkai of immense power
had decided to take their army invade Reikai. And had succeeded. They had
slaughtered the oni, and those that had not fallen to the blade had been
tortured. The afterlife was chaos. Only a few of the ferry girls had escaped,
taking as many as they could along with them on their oars. No one had seen
Koenma since that day.
The blood began to pound in Botan's ears again, and her head hurt with the
pressure inside. She needed someone to comfort her, reassure her that everything
would be all right. But she would not allow herself that comfort, not while he
was still missing. Of course, he had been missing for nearly twenty years, but
she wasn't about to let that get her down.
And so she squared her shoulders, tugging at the tough, all-purpose vest she
wore over her conventional black turtle neck. Tossing her head, once again
reminded that her blue hair was now short, she turned around. Death was ready to
look herself in the face.
***They told me that my name is Kyle.
For some reason that never seemed correct, and always bothered me. So I took
another name, Kage. That is what I feel I am, a shadow, a mockery of something
once great, now forgotten with time.
I left the small town where I had spent the time that I was beginning to call
'Kyle's Life', and wandered around for several years, searching for something
that would give me a hint to what I once was. Something that won't tell me what
I already know, that I'm a twenty three year-old male with nowhere to go and no
real life.
They said that before I was a goth. I didn't believe them, and I still don't, of
course.
When I first saw her, I was almost knocked off my feet. She was there, outlined
by the static ringing the edges of the old TV set. Her blue hair was in a boyish
cut, and she wore all black, except for a gray army combat vest.
They called me a goth, but she looked like Death.
I think it was when I first saw her eyes, a beautiful purple-pink color, that I
felt the wrench in my heart. My hand moved to caress the jade ring that adorned
the index finger of my left hand. I *knew* her.
I snapped at the bartender who was brushing peanut shells and cigarette butts
off the surface of the counter, "Who is she?"
"Huh? Who...?" He was clueless.
"That girl. On the TV. With the blue hair. Who is she?" My patience
was wearing thin, an inner voice told me I didn't have time for this.
" *Her*? Man, don't you ever watch the tube? She's the second-in-command
for the rebellion forces."
"What's her *name*?"
The older man shrugged, disinterested. "Dunno, calls herself Death."
My heart raced faster and I had the strange urge to tear out of the sleazy bar,
to find this girl. Listening to my more rational half, I stayed put.
***Yuusuke
watched nervously as Botan called out commands, drilling the troops. Maybe this
group would bring them victory. Maybe this time they would free Ningenkai. He
shook his head in disgust. Maybe this time he wouldn't get his hopes up.
She tried to hide it. Hide the pain she felt and the emptiness that now
dominated her existence. Of all of them, she had felt his loss the most. Even
George was not as upset over Koenma's disappearance. It only helped to prove
what Yuusuke had long suspected, Botan was in love with her boss. And because of
that attachment, she was now slowly dying inside.
All this only helped remind him of his own loss. Keiko hadn't been a survivor,
not like him, not like the others. She had died in the tenth year of the war.
Ironically, it hadn't been the actual fighting that had pulled her down, but
childbirth. Now all he had for a reminder of her was a thirteen year-old son who
refused to listen to him. Che, the boy reminded him of himself.
***So
that's why I joined the rebellion. Because of a girl- no, not even a girl, but a
pair of eyes- eyes that seemed to plead me for help, for escape. I've been a
shadow long enough, now I will be a part of the action.
My pack slung over my shoulder, I stand at the edge of the encampment. A
young boy darts between the tents, his unruly black hair flying forward to hide
his wide brown eyes. Trailing behind him runs a blue-skinned oni, calling out
what I assume to be the boy's name, trying to get him to stop. When I hear the
name I freeze. "Koenma!!!!" the oni shouts yet again...
Taking control of myself, I walk into the camp, nervously twisting my
ring. A young man walks over, several years older than myself. "What are
you doing here?" he growls.
I shrug, trying to be indifferent, "Wanna join up. Name's Kage."
His mouth twists in a half-smirk, transforming the features of his
ape-like face. "Yah, sure, call yourself whatever you want, we don'
care."
A smile spreads lightly across my lips, and I pull back my sandy-brown
hair to get a better look around myself. I notice how quiet it is around me and
I turn to ape-man in confusion. He's staring at my forehead. Damn, must be that
birthmark again... *** Author's
Notes
The oni running after the boy is George. The boy is Yusuke's son, who has been
named Koenma after (who else?) Koenma.
Guess who ape-man is.