Taiyotaiyang, the Maiden of Light (Ty-yoh-ty-yong)

Clouds of all shades dark covered over the setting sun just as Kanuichi and the others with her burst through the gates into the estate of the Heiwan Shogun. The sky, once a deep red-orange turned an unnatural dark as if to say night wished to force itself on this land.   Kanuichi's hands clung tightly to the blade sheathed at her left hip. The others with her, adorned in whites and golds did the same as they spread out inside the courtyard. None dared make a sudden move, and she knew why. At the other end near the front entrance into the pagoda-like castle, numerous people stood before them, cloaked in dark greys and reds. From just inside their sleeves, Kanuichi saw the glint of the tips of blades.   Hoods were drawn over their heads, obscuring everything but the lower half of their faces, which too were covered by demonic red masks. Kanuichi flicked her right thumb and felt a click on her sheath, unclipping it and the blade. Now, she could draw her katana at a moment's notice with ease; she was certain she would need to in these next few moments.   Kanuichi had worried the shogun would be in danger, but she hadn't known it would be to this degree. She wondered if they were already too late.   Another figure emerged from inside the main structure, flanked by four others who wielded iron-bound glaives of lethal sharpness. The man they escorted, she saw had two blades on his side, one shorter than the other. From behind his mask, Kanuichi heard the figure speak.   "The Taiyang Shogunate. You are forbidden from entering the estate of the shogun. What a severe law you have broken."   "It is a law granted leniency when the shogun is put in peril." Kanuichi watched the man run delicate fingers along the red railing of the front porch.   "Oh?" He questioned. "And what peril do you see?"   "I'd only ever heard rumors of such a thing, but I see clearly by the masks you wear what you are. Spawns of Emoguiji." A whistle of metal sang through the air as in a breath, Kanuichi's blade was drawn in both hands, its tip angled straight to the man who was speaking. Whistles of the same kind echoed as the rest of her followers did the same. "'Where a demon you find, terror lurks close by.'"   "The words of the Northern Poet, Nishida." The man applauded. Kanuichi had always respected his writings, given the fact the ancient man had written the Book of Holy Teachings, the Hon Seinaru, that spoke of the many realities in the world.   "You don't deny those words." Kanuichi challenged. The four escorts converged in front of the supposed leader, moving in unison and bracing their glaives her way in a phalanx.   "It doesn't matter if I do or not. Neither will change what is about to happen."   Kanuichi steadied her blade. "Surrender and be welcomed with a painless death."   "Funny," the man purred, "I was about to say the exact same thing."   Wind blew through the estate, ruffling the plants, clothes, loose hair, everything. But everyone stood still, and no one spoke. Kanuichi kept her eyes glued on the man behind those glaive-wielders, slowing her breath and concentrating. In her mind, she uttered a small prayer to Taiyotaiyang.   ...   The wind continued to sing in Kanuichi's ears. To a far-off observer, she was confident everyone in this courtyard resembled nothing more than clothed statues. But, in truth, none dared to make the first move. In Heiwa, to strike first was to give your opponent more analysis than you and suffer defeat against a better-placed counter. Kanuichi had grown in this tradition, her parents had grown in it, and her ancestors, this courtyard, and the entire nation had grown in it.   Out of the corner of her eye, one of those cloaked men shifted. Her irises glanced their way for only an instant. When she refocused on the leader, just like that, he was gone.   There was a sudden displacement of wind from right behind Kanuichi, several gasps from her followers, and a sense of immediate shock that shot through her legs as she hefted with all her might her blade to swing it right around her. In a fraction of a second, she felt her pearly white katana collide against another with tremendous force that dug her feet more than inch into the ground as it cracked beneath her. Teeth clenched in a frightening grimace, she stood with blades locked in a mighty struggle against that man.   A simple glance. That had been all it'd taken, and Kanuichi had almost lost her life because of it. With a shove, she pushed the man back and leapt back herself. There was a second of hesitation, then the courtyard sprang to life and each side charged the other.   Kanuichi and the man's swords came together again. With a resounding clang, she braced herself and pushed against him with all she had to try and overtake him. It was like looking into the face of death itself as she stared into the smile of that criminal's mask. But, his left foot collided with her right knee and the shock sent her stumbling down. In a flash he unsheathed his second, smaller one in order to cut her in half in her fall.   As fast as she could, she planted her left hand on the ground, then with tremendous energy launched herself up into the air just as the man made his full swing. She let momentum carry her up through the air, forward flipping before landing on the apex of a red shackle roof. Kanuichi looked out across the sky at the clouds that still smothered the sun.   Just a little more time.   The man didn't hesitate and jumped after her in pursuit. He hit the roof and she held her ground as he launched himself at her. Once again their blades connected, but at that same time Kanuichi clenched the hilt of her blade, bringing it forward and dodging around the man's weapon.   Like a punch, her hilt collided with the man's mask. The force of the blow sent him flying backwards and tumbling down the roof until he crashed on the ground and quickly righted himself.   Slowly, he stood up, one hand grasping the mask that was now dangling from his face, cracked in half. Like a bad piece of weight, he took it off and tossed it aside, where it shattered against a nearby rock. Next his hand rose to the fringe of his hood.   "The air around you," he called, "is filled with irony."   "What do you mean by that?" Kanuichi asked, her voice incredulous but curious, eyes still fixated on the clouded sky.   Please. Just a little more time.   "You say you're here to protect your shogun," the man pulled back the hood, and immediately Kanuichi's heart sank, "yet he is the very man you aim to kill!"   She couldn't believe it. Shogun Kosaki, the wise and powerful leader over Heiwa was the dark, murderous, and demonic man standing before her now.   "No, Kosaki is a good man. You must be an impostor!" Kanuichi dashed at him with her katana. Both his blades came up in a cross shape and blocked her attack. She bounced off him, gliding for several feet through the air until she came to a stop, right in front of the main gate she first came through.   "'In horrid times most dire, the fools will believe a tender lie rather the hard truth.'" Kosaki mocked at her with more of the ancient poet's words.   The clouds up in the sky began to move. Color slowly began to return to its darkness. "It really is you..." Kanuichi breathed. "Why do you cast your lot with such a foul future? You have forsaken every holy thing you were entrusted!"   "No!" He rebuked, aiming a sword her way with one arm. "Light is a mere façade. It blinds us and shuts our eyes in its presence. Only in darkness do we see with eyes fully open and without strain! I was enlightened to this, long ago, frail woman, and oh how I have prepared for this very day!"   The smallest strand of sunlight broke through the moving clouds just then. In its light, Kanuichi felt her sword begin to hum. Shogun or not, she saw clearly that this man, Kosaki was no different than any other monster of the shogunate that needed to be stopped. Letting the hum fill her entire body, she raised her sword above her head with both hands, positioning herself in a readied striking stance.   "These 'preparations' you made here shall amount to nothing!" As if the clouds were disintegrating, the sun revealed itself until it fully filled the sky yet again, and Kanuichi felt immense power fill her katana. "In the name of Taiyotaiyang, be burned away!" She brought down her blade in a swing that caught only her air, but her eyes were fixed on the ground at the man's feet.   There was a terrible rumbling sound, then, as if from the heavens themselves, a beam short forth from the sun that enveloped Kosaki, his minions, and the entire estate in front of Kanuichi. Screams filled the air as they were all burned to nothing in a matter of seconds.   When the beam dissipated and silence filled the air, nothing that was inside the beam remained, except for the patch of seared ground which had left the Heiwan characters for "divine punishment."   The rest of Kanuichi's followers gathered behind her as she let out a long breath, thankful the danger was over, but regretful Heiwa had lost its prominent shogun.   But, then a heavy breath filled the air, filled her ears. It poured through them and made her shiver as she felt as if this was touching the deepest parts of her spirit. She stood on guard when, suddenly, it spoke. What she heard was the whispered voice of Kosaki.   "We care not for death. We have been alive since the beginning of all things. Kill us and we live on in the depths of others. From the lands furthest west to your villages furthest east, we are found."   Instantly, haunting images shot through Kanuichi's mind, and the voice — no, voices — continued. "From your lands furthest west, to your villages furthest east, we consume this land."   Then, the voices died off and the images ended. But, what Kanuichi saw were people just like Kosaki and his minions, in towns and villages she recognized all across Heiwa. She dropped to her knees as the severity of it all sank in. She was braced by several of her followers who helped hold her up.   "What is the matter?" One of them asked.   "It's not just here," Kanuichi said, "whatever happened to these people is happening all over Heiwa."   The Taiyang Shogunate was not through. In fact, Kanuichi realized it likely had its toughest fight on its hands yet.