The Hinomoto Rebellion (57 page)
Epilogue
A few weeks later...
Autumn was already starting to come to Hinomoto. There was a distinct chill in the wind that whipped through Shibasaki, but the city was buzzing with excitement. Citizens bustled through the streets, some wearing light coats as they went along. Small pockets of people were singing songs as they went down the sidewalks, children following along and singing as much of the lyrics as they knew.
From the top of a hill, Andrea “The Tiger” huddled in a light coat and smiled out at the city where most people were heading toward the first sanctioned Martial Arts Expo and Tournament. Andrea’s silver hair blew around her face as she looked out toward the stadium where huge banners were blowing in the breeze, straining against their ties. Andrea was excited to be going to the Expo, and she grinned with delight.
She looked down at her feet, noting that the grass she was standing on was starting to turn crunchy and die as the weather gradually turned cooler. She let out a small smile.
“I...” she started, swallowing back a lump in her throat, “I just wanted to stop by and say that I’m sorry. I treated you badly, and it was wrong of me to do so. I never got to explain things to you, and I don’t know if there’s a way that you can hear me right now. Saying this will make me feel better, though.
“We both had a deep impact on each other. We changed each other’s lives. I didn’t realize just how much of an effect you had until recently. We were good for each other. And we were bad for each other as well. Our lives would have turned out so much differently had we never met.”
Andrea paused and hung her head, digging into her pocket and wrapping her fingers around the item that was inside. A gust of wind buffeted her and made her shiver a bit. “I wanted to let you know, though, that I’m going to move on. I’m going to try to forget about you, but I somehow don’t think I can. I’ll keep living, and eventually I’ll get over what all this did to me. The pain of the past will heal now, and I can stop thinking about it.”
She pulled her hand out of her coat pocket and looked down at the photograph that she had pulled out. The younger version of herself looked back at her from the ratty, taped together and splotchy picture. She was still a little shocked every time she looked at the image. She’d forgotten what her original hair color had looked like, had forgotten what her face looked like with a smile on it until Yasakuto had shown her the bedraggled old photo.
“I’m going to get over it. I should have gotten over what was done to me years ago, but instead I let it eat me alive and kill my heart. No more of that. You at least taught me enough to know that life is too short to keep harping on the past. I’m over my nightmares and my fears. And I’m over you,” Andrea crouched down and clawed at some fresh dirt, digging a small hole with her hand and placing the photograph into it. She gave it one last look before she covered it back up with the fresh soil. She patted the small mound down a little with her bare fingers, then stood and brushed her hands off on her jeans as she stared down at the grave.
“Well, I guess this is it then. Please forgive me... Ran.” The Tiger turned away from Yasakuto’s grave and wove her way back through the graves as grass crunched underfoot. D was waiting for her at the road that circled through the graveyard, leaning against his new sport motorcycle with a helmet tucked under his arm.
Andrea walked up to him and stopped, saying nothing as they looked at each other. After a moment, D handed her the helmet from the back of his bike. “Did you say everything you needed to say?” he asked.
“So, can I ask what the future holds for us? I meant it when I said I loved you, Andrea. That hasn’t stopped at all, despite what changes have happened to me physically.” He reached out and took one of her hands, entwining her fingers with his.
She was quiet for a moment, then let out a chuckle that had an edge of coldness in it. “I have to warn you, Taro, apparently those that love me go crazy and try to take over entire countries before dying. And those aren’t even the ones that have a
relationship
with me. Think you can promise that you won’t go psycho on me? Because if you can’t, then I’m sorry, but I can’t date you.” She smirked at him teasingly.
D smiled back, pulling her close to him and leaning his face in close to hers. “Yeah,” he whispered, his lips a hair’s breadth from hers, “I think I can handle that, Tiger.”
It was Andrea that finally leaned in and kissed Densetsu as a brisk wind whipped through the graveyard, blowing their hair and their coats around them as D snaked an arm around her waist. They stood there for a few moments before Andrea finally broke away, a grin on her face. “Come on, you. We’re going to be late. Your dad won’t like it if we’re late. He’ll accuse me of shenanigans again.”
are
up to shenanigans, Tiger. Just like always.”
Andrea didn’t answer as she put her helmet on and leaped on the back of the bike, wrapping her arms around D’s waist as he started up the rumbling engine and sped off down the lane.
From behind a tree, a small figure with blond hair watched as the two Aka Ryuu sped off. The girl gripped the sides of the tree trunk as she shivered under her short red dress that was paired with kneehigh boots. Tears welled up in her turquoise-colored eyes as the two
ronin
rode out of sight.
The blond girl fell to her knees and put her back against the tree, sobbing as she covered her face with her hands. “Ryoku!” she cried as the wind howled through the cemetery.
The only answer to her plea was the far-off sound of cheering and music coming from the Martial Arts tournament halfway across Shibasaki.
Daimyo
Kemono
Appendix
In this case, the word is used as a title for the equivalent of a United States Senator or Congressman. The word daimyo literally means “big name.” In the Tokugawa period a daimyo was a samurai whose revenues were greater than 50,000 bushels of rice.
Name of the country once known as Japan. The name was changed after the revolution of 2033, when martial artist and citizens of what was then Japan overthrew a corrupted government by using martial arts. The new democracy renamed the country as well as several major cities.
Kemono
is a genre of Japanese art and character design that prominently features anthropomorphic animal characters. The word has been adopted by the group of genetic experiments funded by the government- mainly because most o the experiments involved merging animal DNA with Human DNA to create certain characteristics in the test subjects (e.g. fur, wings, claws, fangs, hooves, etc). However, some of these experiments are also as simple as boosting muscle mass or endurance and therefore are barely recognizable as
Kemono
. Some of these experiments have escaped or were let go after failing, and have formed their own communities in Hinomoto- the largest one being in Shibasaki. Most of the test subjects that retain their human features become
ronin
and compete in tournaments, while the ones with more animal traits scavenge what they need at night.
A masterless
samurai
that has become a criminal. In
this case, it’s the term used for illegal martial artists by the government. It is considered a highly offensive word by the martial artists, who describe themselves as “
ronin
.” The government, police, and press use the term
ochiudo
to shame the martial artists and paint them as criminals among the public.
Ronin
A
ronin
was a
samurai
with no lord or master during the feudal period (1185–1868) of Japan. The word literally means “wandering person.” In this case, it has evolved over the years in Hinomoto as the term used by illegal martial artists to describe themselves.
Shibasaki Name of the capitol of Hinomoto. Was once called Tokyo, and was renamed after the revolution of 2033. Shibasaki is an ancient name for the city.
Shogun In this instance, the word has come to mean the leader of the country- the equivalent of a United States President. Originally the term referred to the commander of the Imperial armies who led the campaigns against the Ainu in 794.
Taro Taro roots are a Hawaiian food that is used to make poi- a mash of roots and water. A bowl of poi is considered to be a sacred part of daily Hawaiian life.
Torii A traditional Japanese gate found at the entry to a Shinto or Buddhist shrine. A torii has two columns that are topped with two horizontal rails. The top rail is called the kasagi and the nuki. They are traditionally painted red. Sometimes they are made from stone, or more recently metal and stainless steel. Torii mark the transition from the world of the spiritual to the mundane world.
TK-52 Enforcer Laser TK-52 pistols require special certification to operate. It Pistol consists of a hand-held pistol unit, a power cord, and a backpack energy source. Each backpack contains six non-rechargeable power packs with five shots each. Some officers in a TK Squad will also carry belts with two additional power packs. The TK-52 is extremely inaccurate unless the user puts in many hours of practice and training time. The system is also extremely volatile, and a slight tear in the power cord shielding has been known to make the TK-52 malfunction or explode. Many
ronin
refer to a TK Squad as “Laserheads.”
TS-82 Shitai Rifle TS-82s are the “big brother” of the TK-52 Enforcers. They require much more power to operate, and so the six power packs on the backpack only deliver two shots each. The gun consists of a rifle unit, power cord, and energy backpack. These units do not come with additional belt power packs. Just like the TK-52 pistols, these systems are volatile and may malfunction or explode if the system is damaged in any way- especially the power cord.
Wakame Wakame is a type of seaweed used in Japan for soups. Because it’s green and so is D’s hair, Andrea uses the word as a derogatory nickname for him, essentially meaning that she thinks he’s “all wet” or wishy-washy.
