Chapter Text
“Unhand me!” A feeble man of mature age shouts out as he’s forced to his knees.
“Silence! You are in the presence of our supreme leader.” A commanding woman pushes his head towards the floor, as though he was bowing. “Show some respect!”
“Sara.” A chilling voice addresses the dark-haired woman with a reasonable tone, yet it’s enough to turn her to immediate attention.
“Forgive me Raiden-sama, I lost my composure. I will leave this in your capable hands.” She bows respectfully, and swiftly flits backwards in the cover of her crow feathers.
The Raiden Shogun, supreme ruler of the land of Inazuma, gets to her feet and gazes down at the man from her throne. As the vessel of the original Archon, she holds divine powers few have witnessed and lived to tell the tale. She rules with an almighty sword and even mightier will. All to realize her ambitions of Eternity. She acts only towards this end, relentlessly.
“You,” she addresses the man, “you are in possession of a vision and therefore a threat to my pursuit of eternity.” She slowly starts to descend the stairs towards the man. “I have no malice towards you, and only wish to seize that which I once so graciously gave. Willingly release it to me and you will be released at once with your dignity intact.” She holds out her hand to the man. “Deny me, and you shall be detained indefinitely, stripped of your honor."
The man stares at her hand spitefully. “Even if the almighty shogun commands me, I will never willingly surrender what I consider to be an extension of my soul so easily. Do what you will.” He speaks in an indignant tone, as he holds his head proudly.
The shogun looks down on him with an amused smile. “Noble words, but you are a fool.”
She turns away and as she returns to her throne, she commands her most trusted general to act. “Sara, you know what to do. Please be quick about it, I wish to retire to my chambers.”
“Of course Raiden-sama! I will see your will is done.” She motions to two guards and they immediately grab the man on either side and restrain him.
“Let go of me you heathens! You’re nothing more than pawns. Why serve her so blindly?”
“Bite your tongue! Or I shall have it removed.” She eyes the vision strapped to his waist. She reaches for it. “Under the order of the Vision Hunt Decree, I strip you of your vision by the authority of the Almighty Raiden Shogun. Furthermore, for your defiance of the shogun’s mercy, you shall be imprisoned for eternity, or however long your soul can hold out.”
Just as Sara grasps his vision in her hand, the man abruptly lashes out and rams his head upwards, knocking Sara back and causing her to groan. The guards immediately react, jabbing the dull end of their spears into his back and side, forcing him face down on the ground.
Quickly recovering, Sara reaches for an arrow in her quiver. “You dare strike the captain of the shogun’s army? You shall pay with your life!” She prepares to load her bow but is once again halted by the familiar voice.
“Sara, compose yourself.”
“Yes, of course Raiden-sama!” As before, she stands down and backs away, allowing her to take action as she desires.
The shogun once again stands before the man, the mild amusement in her eyes replaced with a coldness that unsettles one to their very core. As he looks up at her, his blood runs cold and he realizes he may have made a mistake. “Please, have mercy. I will hand over my vision at once.”
“Mercy? Did I not offer you mercy when I lowered my hand? I granted you the chance to have an audience with the exalted shogun on reasonable terms and leave honorably, but you refused it with scorn. I again, so graciously afforded you mercy when I sentenced you to an eternity of imprisonment, when opposition of my authority is grounds for execution. However, you again refused me, and even harmed my most trusted servant in my presence. Inconceivable.”
Her eyes suddenly glow with a soft lavender light and leaning back, a purple sword rises from her chest. With a steady hand and firm grip, she pulls the sword out and swipes to the side with swift force. Her long purple braid swings with the motion. Moments later, the sword vanishes with a flash, seemingly having been nothing more than an impressive show.
However, when the man’s head goes rolling several inches from his neck and the room falls silent, it becomes clear; the divine punishment she served.
Her eyes return to normal, and she turns to Sara. “I believe he will give no further resistance in the seizing of his vision. See that it’s secured and have the guards dispose of the trash. I will be retiring to my chambers now. I do not wish to be disturbed.”
“Yes Raiden-sama, at once!” Sara doesn’t hesitate to respond and jumps to action. She instructs the men to take the vision and store it with the others, and to dispose of the man’s body quickly. “What happened here today is to remain known to only those present. Is that understood?”
“Yes General!” The men collectively acknowledge the demand of their superior and get to work.
As they rush to carry out their duties, Sara looks to the direction that the shogun exited to. As anticipated, she catches the purple-tinted gaze of the shogun, staring with expectant eyes. As soon as their eyes meet, the shogun disappears behind a wicker sliding door. Sara’s heart skips with anticipation, but she remains stern in the eyes of her men, maintaining her demeanor.
After several minutes pass and the commotion starts to die down, she feels now is the time to make her move. “I’m going to brief her excellency on critical information regarding the decree. If you need me, don’t. You all are competent enough to handle yourselves in my absence.”
“Of course General, but I thought the shogun requested to not be disturbed?” The newest recruit of the palace guard speaks carelessly, getting him amused chuckles from the other men and the subtle embarrassed scorn of his commander.
“You dare question me recruit?” Sara speaks in a stern voice to hide her shame.
“No ma’am! I apologize for speaking out of turn!” Realizing he made a grave mistake, he quickly cleans it up, sparing him from punishment of his own.
“That’s what I thought.” She turns her back to them and starts for the door. “After the shogun, my orders are absolute. Don’t any of you dare forget that.” She then exits through the door, pretending not to hear the hushed whispers among the men as she slides it shut.
She walks down a long corridor, finally reaching a large double door. She knocks lightly, once then twice, just as she had been instructed.
“Enter, Sara.” The unmistakable voice calls her inside, and she doesn’t waste a moment.
“Raiden-sama, I’m sorry for the delay. I-.”
“Hurry inside and shut the door, or will you keep me waiting longer?” The shogun sits in a large bath, the steaming water just below her neckline and tinted with the color of the most expensive fragrant oils. A faint outline of her figure can be seen, but the finer details are obscured.
Sara enters and shuts the door as requested, instinctively averting her eyes. “I’m sorry Raiden-sama, that was thoughtless of me.”
“Sara, come here.” She says this in a firm, yet softer voice.
Sara does as she’s told, and approaches the bath, kneeling beside it and facing her master. “Yes, Raiden-sama?”
“Didn’t I tell you to call me Baal when we’re alone?”
“Yes, but I shouldn’t. I’m just your servant after all. For one who serves you to speak your name so casually is-.”
“You are no mere servant. Do not insult me as though I’d have such an unworthy individual at my side. Surely you don’t doubt my fondness of you after all this time?”
“Of course, I would never! It’s just, earlier, you said to that man….”
“Sara, look at me.” When the girl’s golden eyes meet hers, she says, “How many times must I say it? Only the words I speak to you directly should hold any significance. The rest are not of your concern. Is that so hard a concept to grasp?”
“No Raiden-, uh, I mean, Baal-sama.”
“One day, I’ll get you to drop the honorifics too.” She sighs before gripping Sara’s face, examining it carefully. “Are you hurt? That man seemed to strike you with such force.”
“I’m fine Baal-sama, it hurt no more than my pride. I won’t be caught off guard again.” She cannot hide the flush of her cheeks, the close contact pushing her limits.
Baal seems to smirk at this reaction, understanding the significance. “Join me on the bath. This new aroma is just lovely.”
“Oh no, I couldn’t!” Sara says in a panic. “For someone like me to share such an intimate moment with you…it’d be blasphemous. I shouldn’t dare consider it.”
“So, you will defy your almighty shogun then when she gives you an order?”
“No, I-!” Sara lowers her voice, finding it disrespectful to raise her voice in such a way. “If anyone were to find out about us, it would ruin your reputation. I don’t worry for my image, but to bring such shame to the shogun, I could never forgive myself.”
“Shame?” She laughs. “The concept of shame is something that holds no power over me now. Let them speak. Let them see. If they dare oppose my decisions, they will be judged by my divine blade. My reputation precedes me, so worrying over it is futile. Now, get in the bath.”
Sara would not dare oppose her again, and so casting her shame aside, she obliges. Her loyalty lies only with the shogun and her alone. Nothing else matters, not even her own will. Eternity is what her shogun seeks, and even if she doesn’t live to see the day, she will devote her life to ensuring the shogun can get even just a bit closer to her ambition.