The Laughing Storm
(Time: 1683 Minazuki, jūichi-nichi, nichiyōbi (June,11,Sunday)
(Hitsuji province) (Gozen nakaba: Mid-Morning)
The day was long, a sodden rain poured down on them, drenching their clothes to the point of waterlog.
It had rained for the past few days, ever since they had come into the region.
As they walked, they avoided large pools of water covering the fields, as far as the eye could see.
The only animals that lived in this water-soaked land were fish and other amphibious wildlife.
There was no vegetation for there was no sun, everything choked on the endless rain that poured from the sky.
Finally, they came across a small town.
"Hey guys, could we find some place to dry off, please? I don't know how much more I can take of this!" Complained Senshi.
"I guess we should, if I'm not careful my talismans will get soaked..." Replied Tamari.
Ko looked around, spotting a gazebo in a nearby garden.
"We can take shelter over there-" He said pointing to the gazebo.
They ran over to the garden, sitting down to rest.
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As they dried their things, Tamari looked around, noticing that the garden wasn't much to speak of. It held the characteristics of a swamp, murky and filled with greenish water.
There were no flowers or anything beyond moss, lily pads and crooked trees; twisted in their deary dances.
Yet there was one little girl who sat alone in this garden of melancholy; she seemed to be planting something.
"I'm going to go over and see what that girl's doing." Said Tamari as he stood up.
"You do that, I'm going to stay here and dry off." Said Ko as he twisted his yukata.
"I'ma hit the sack!" Added Senshi as she drifted off to sleep.
Tamari walked over, kneeling next to the girl.
"What are you planting?" He asked politely.
The girl looked up to him, then back down at the soil. "I'm planting flowers so that we can restore the garden."
"But the sun doesn't shine, and the soil is devastated." He spoke.
"I know... but maybe if I nurture a few seeds well enough, they'll finally grow." She said hopefully.
"..." He felt a sinking feeling in his chest, that this girl's struggles were all for naught.
He left her to her own devices and went back to the gazebo.
"So, what's the deal with the little girl?" Asked Ko.
"Oh, she's just planting some flowers." He replied.
"In this weather? They'll never grow!"
"We should probably find a place to stay while we're here. Come on Ko, Senshi- ...Senshi?"
Senshi had fallen into a deep sleep. "Mmhmm...Taiyaki*"
(Fish shaped cake with red bean paste, cheese or custard)*
"...Suama*... (Dessert made of rice flour and sugar)*
Tamari and Ko stared at her with stupid expressions.
"Ugh...Come on!" Tamari slung her over his back while Ko carried their belongings.
"Why do I have to carry our stuff?" Whined Ko.
"Because I have to carry Senshi, and she weighs a ton!" He complained. "How is she still so skinny!?"
Senshi hugged onto Tamari's back as if he was a pillow. "Heh heh… That tickles…" Mumbled Senshi sleepily.
Tamari pushed her back. "Ugh…"
(Time: 1683 Minazuki, yokka, nichiyōbi (June,4,Sunday) (Hitsuji province)
(Shōgo: Noon)
The storm had grown worse, thunder raged throughout the sky as flashes of light struck the ground. They watched as it poured from the comfort of their ryokan.
"The storm doesn't seem to be letting up." Said a concerned Tamari.
"Does it ever? It's been raining every day since we got here." Replied Ko.
"Tentō and Ame laugh, that is why." Said an old woman suddenly.
Tamari and Ko turned around to the woman. "Huh?"
She wore a light blue Houmongi kimono with black fox designs; she had grayish red hair, with long golden earrings shaped like lotus.
"They came one year ago when the temple was destroyed."
"Wait, you mean Kame temple?" Asked Tamari concerningly.
"Yes, when Master Sheno Kado was murdered, that is when they appeared."
"Murdered…?" Replied Tamari.
"Since then, the storm has never let up... Can you hear them?" She asked ominously.
"Hear them?" Asked Tamari.
"Their laughter… They laugh and mock us, listen…"
The room fell silent; only the rain and crack of thunder could be heard. They listened closely...
a chill crept up their spines as they heard it…
The laughter, the cries of insanity as the rain fell, as the lighting struck the ground.
It was forbidding, ceaseless, maniacal. It sounded beyond human comprehension.
A loud crack of lightning came down not far from them, shaking the ryokan. /Boom!/
Senshi wiggled around in her spot. "Nghhhh… go away Gensai…I already trained today..."
"How can she sleep through this?" Asked Ko.
"Heh, it's just one of her many quirks." Replied Tamari.
"It would please us if you could calm the storm." Said the old woman.
Tamari looked toward the garden in solemn silence; he stood up grabbing his naginata.
"Fine, where can I find Tentō and Ame?" He asked.
"They wander the temple grounds, located to the south."
"Come on Ko, let Senshi sleep; we have work to do."
"R-right! I'm coming!" Said Ko getting up.
They began walking in the direction of the temple.
--------
As they grew closer to the temple the storm grew more intensely; the lighting raged as it struck the ground furiously.
The rain beat down on them causing their shoulders to ache, but Tamari kept walking.
"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Asked Ko.
"We can't leave these people, it just wouldn't be right."
/Gulp!/ "...Okay."
The storm roared, as if screaming at them to turn back. They walked up the steps of the temple reaching the top, then, there was a calm.
They had reached the eye of the storm, the sky was a clear blue, with the sun shining over the fragmented temple.
"Wha... why is it so clear?" Asked Ko.
Tamari waved his hand, silencing Ko. "Quiet, they're here."
Lightning cracked as two figures appeared on the roof of the temple.
The two figures appeared to be two boys in their late teens. Tentō, with yellow hair that cracked with streaks of black; his eyes a fierce yellow with black pupils; his ears were a pointed shape as well.
He wore a light-yellow sash with a black loincloth that crackled with electricity.
He held two white wooden bachi*; a large ring protruding out of his back with three drums attached, each with a different kanji; (Bolt), (Flash), (Thunder). (Drum sticks) *
"Ha ha ha! Look brother! Someone has come to challenge us!" He laughed mockingly.
His brother Ame had long black hair with waves of blue, as well as pointed ears.
He wore a blue robe with rain patterns inscribed; a flow of water moved around him in a spiral motion. He carried with him a long wooden hishaku*.
(Long bamboo ladle with a nodule in the middle of the handle) *
"Your right dear brother, but he looks weak...what a bore…" Sighed Ame.
"I've come to end your lives, finishing this accursed rain you placed upon this land." Said Tamari.
Ko tapped his fingers together nervously. "Or maybe, we could just talk it out and come to a compromise?" He said.
The brothers looked at eachother confused; then they laughed.
"Why would we do that!?" Laughed Tentō.
"We own this land! The clouds that cover it dictate so!" Added Ame.
"You humans are just miserable insects to be blown away by our storm; just like that pathetic Monk Sheno..." Mocked Tentō.
Tamari's anger began to boil, churning from within his soul.
----------
"Humans are a miserable existence...grasping at some thread of meaning to their lives. Hope is a concept created by those who wish to deny their pitiful fate…"
Said a man cloaked in shadow; his face covered by a demonic red mask, his long hair flowing amongst the flames of a burning temple.
--------
With a grim expression Tamari stepped forward, drawing his weapon. "I see... you're just spoiled brats who do not notice the fault of their own condescension."
"Are you making fun of us!?" Yelled Tentō.
"We're centuries older than you! We have seen the rise and fall of empires; we have witnessed the first hand the folly and stupidity of man!" Said Ame.
"Well, you sure don't act like it!" Said Ko crossing his arms.
Ame's brow furrowed, a sense of anger about him. "Tch…"
Tentō smirked, smacking one of his drums. /Bang!/ A bolt of lightning came crashing down, aiming for Ko.
"Watch out!" Tamari raced over to Ko, pushing him out of the way, taking the full brunt of the blow himself.
"AHHHHHH!!" Screamed Tamari as his body felt like it was being ripped apart from the inside out.
"Tamari!!" Yelled Ko.
"Ha ha ha! See? He really was just another pathetic human, he couldn't even stomach one strike!" Laughed Tentō.
Ko ran into the newly formed crater, coming to Tamari's side.
"Tamari! Tamari, please! I'm sorry! Please get up!" He pleaded.
Ko looked up to them, a fury in his eyes. "You bastards!" He screamed.
"What's wrong little one?" Asked Ame.
"Lost your poor friend? Do not worry, you will join him soon." Said Tentō.
Ko stood up, clasping his tanto. A deep fear slithered through his body, screaming at him to run. But he fought back his dread, steeling himself.
"Rgh... I'll make you pay for what you did to him!" Said Ko in a vexed tone.
The brothers smirked. "You? I fear you are mistaken child."
"You cannot hope to defeat us, for we are the Gods of the storm!"
They laughed, their heads flinging back in a sickening humor.
Ko tensed up, repulsed by their behavior. "Tch..."
"Ha ha ha...Hm? Where did he go?" Asked Tentō.
Tamari had disappeared from the crater.
Ame scanned the area, looking for the missing monk. "I-I don't see him bro...Gah!"
Ame's head lurched back as he was violently thrown into the temple. /BOOM!/
Destroying a large portion of the already desolated building.
Tentō swung around, facing the now standing Tamari. "What!? How!?"
Tamari stood silent, his demeanor cold and overwhelming. His eyes gleamed with a reddish purple; his aura was pitch black, a void of nothing among the darkness of the storm clouds.
A vast chill creeped its way up Tentō's spine, this was no ordinary man.
"Rgh...Raaaah DIE!!"
He struck a drum; a bolt of lightning came down on Tamari almost instantaneously.
Tamari held out his blade as the bolt struck him, backhanding the lightning into a mountain.
/Boom!/ The top of the landscape erupted with an explosion of tremendous proportions.
Ko watched from the ground; in awe at the might that Tamari imposed. This was not the friend he knew; this was something different. Something sinister.
Tentō stared into the cold nothingness of Tamari's eyes; a primal fear welling up from within him.
"Wha-what are you!?" He screamed.
Thunder crashed behind him, creating an atmosphere of absolute terror about Tamari.
And with the coldness of death itself he spoke. "Human."