Gensomaden Saiyuki Fan Fiction ❯ Beneath the Skin ❯ Prologue ( Prologue )

Disclaimer: I do not own Gensomaden Saiyuki or its related characters. I do, however, claim the rights to any and all original characters appearing in this work of fiction. This work is for entertainment purposes only.

Beneath the Skin

Prologue

The setting sun washed the walls of the castle in hues of blood red and dusky orange. Standing in one of the many window alcoves that lined the side of the tall imposing building, a lone man stared out into the spreading darkness. His dark eyes were trained towards the east, which had already been engulfed by the night.

He was a big man, tall and well-muscled with short dark hair; and he wore a long white coat that reached to the mid-calf of his dark trousers. The man had a face that someone had once called handsome, but he had never really thought so. He also possessed blue tattoo-like markings across the bridge of his nose and on his forehead - leaving no doubt as to his race, even if his pointed ears were not proof enough. But his was only one of many races that had existed peacefully together for generations throughout the vast land called Tougenkyou.

But Tougenkyou was peaceful no longer, and had not been for well over a year. For it was then that his people - the Youkai - had set in motion a plan that had caused chaos to rain and blood to be spilled. As he gazed out towards the lands of the east, Dokugakuji knew that there would be more of the same in the months to come; before either the Empress achieved her goal or the Youkai were crushed in the process. So much of what was to come hinged on the shoulders of his prince - the man he had sworn to serve - and therefore it fell on his shoulders as well. No matter where his heart might lie, his place was there - in Tenjiku - at the side of his lord. Dokugakuji was so lost in his thoughts, that he never heard the approaching footsteps or realized that he was no longer alone.

Kougaiji stopped and observed his closest confident and friend - noticing the slim silvery bracelet that the other man absently twirled through his fingers as he gazed out into the deepening darkness. Without having to look any closer, the young man knew what it was that his friend held - a youryoku limiter - a device that allowed the Youkai to appear in a more human guise. And in the past year, such devices had also aided some in overcoming the maddening loss of personality and self that had plagued their race due to the actions of his step-mother. But it was not the device itself that caused the young prince such concern; it was where it had come from and more importantly, what it meant to the man standing before him.

"So, I find you here." Kougaiji's voice seemed unusually loud in the quiet of the hall.

Turning quickly, Dokugakuji met the gaze of his sworn lord and friend. "My lord . . ."

The young prince joined him at the window and silently the two looked out for a few minutes. It was the newcomer who broke the quiet stillness first. "Do you want to leave?"

"Leave? Why would I want to leave?" The dark-haired man asked.

Kougaiji regarded him for a few moments before gesturing towards the device in his companion's hand, "For that." Dokugakuji looked away from him and back towards the window silently. The young man continued on, "If that is what you want, then I will release you from your pledge to me . . . it's the least I can do - I still owe a debt for my sister's life."

Dokugakuji turned back towards him. "No Kou . . . I swore to serve you - to always be by your side - and I won't renege on my word. I will stand with you until the end - whatever way it goes." He looked down at the bracelet in his hands, "It was understood between us." The older man's voice was tinged with a bit of sadness.

The two men stood quietly for a short time. Once again, it was Kougaiji who spoke first. "If that is your final decision," he turned away to leave. "But if you ever change your mind . . . or if our circumstances change, then you are free to go - I won't hold you here against your will." The young man quietly departed.

With a weary sigh, Dokugakuji's eyes once again strayed towards the shadowed lands in the east, while he clutched the silvery bracelet to his chest.

Tjaden . . .