Chapter Text

Ever since he’d arrived in the temple, all Kurogane had been able to hear was the sound of waves.

He didn’t know where exactly this place was, nor was he certain how long he’d been here. There were vague memories roiling around in his head — he knew his name, he knew how to use a sword (though he didn’t have one and a thorough search of the only rooms he was able to enter had yet to turn one up, so he was making do with a fireplace poker), and he knew for certain that he hadn’t always been here. The names ‘Nihon’ and ‘Suwa’ wandered through his mind and he had visions of a high-walled castle of wood and stone, surrounded by cherry blossom trees. Wherever that place was — Nihon, Suwa, or some other country he hadn’t yet recalled — it certainly wasn’t this place, with its cold marble columns and high arched doorways. Nor was this a castle, though there was nothing specifically marking it as such. Kurogane had been aware from the moment he awoke that this was a holy place, some kind of temple to a god whose name he didn’t know. There was a heaviness to the air, something unseen but ‘pure,’ in its own way, and it prickled along his neck, as if he was constantly being watched by something outside his range of vision. His clothes, too, he was certain were not his own. He felt as though he should be wearing armor, something more protective, with a scabbard at his side, and instead he was wearing simple threadbare robes, inky black in color with red along the sleeves, loose black pants and a corded belt at his waist that barely allowed space for him to keep the poker close.

How big this temple was, Kurogane had no idea. For the moment he seemed to be confined to merely two rooms: the first, a circular antechamber that doubled as an entryway, with heavy bone-white marble doors trimmed in gold that were presumably how Kurogane had entered the temple in the first place. There were oval-shaped windows set on either side of the door and all Kurogane could see looking out of them were waves and water, and ominous dark clouds that seemed to stretch out forever as if the temple was floating in the middle of the open ocean. As far as Kurogane could tell there was no sign of a dock or a path, no indication of whether he’d arrived here by land or by sea, or how anyone else could arrive here after him. Despite this Kurogane had tried his strength against the marble doors more than once, all to no avail.

Connected to the antechamber by an arched doorway was a receiving chamber presumably for visitors, lined with opulent cushions and golden chaise lounges, ringed on all sides by deep blue curtains. Along one wall there was a small fireplace that glowed constantly with some odd sort of green fire even though no one ever arrived to tend it. Finely made golden statues with smooth featureless faces were scattered throughout the room, holding trays filled with a variety of fruits and meats that Kurogane had largely been subsisting on for however long he’d been here. Another statue held a golden jug and a tray of bejeweled cups, which were filled with clear cool water. Both the trays and the cups refilled themselves whenever Kurogane stepped out of the room, though he neither saw no sensed the presence of a single servant. The room was dimly lit by a stained glass chandelier that hung from the ceiling, casting small plays of light and shadow throughout the room.

There was a door in this room as well, golden and inlaid with blue jewels. The door had neither lock nor handle, nor any other apparent way of opening it. Kurogane had tried pushing this one too, had even tried using the poker on it like he would a sword against an enemy (which only served to break the poker, and a second one had appeared as soon as he left the room and came back) and nothing had worked.

Above the door there was flat sheet of marble that appeared to have once had words carved into it, but those had been long since worn away by time and were unreadable.

The passage of time was the other thing that worried him. Kurogane knew that he certainly hadn’t been born here and he hadn’t just arrived, but beyond that he had no idea how long it had been. The sky outside didn’t cycle between night and day so there was no counting that way, and the perpetual clouds made even something like a sundial worthless. He had at one point tried carving marks in the walls but they would disappear if he moved between rooms or even fell sleep. Despite that Kurogane didn’t feel anything beyond boredom and a slight continual sense of irritation, like there was somewhere else he should be, as if he had only been waiting here a short time. Some days he felt almost as if he was fading himself, becoming just another statue standing in the receiving chamber, and he would scowl and shake the thoughts from his head, stretching and walking to and fro between the rooms as if movement could chase away the dull feelings creeping into his mind. The days seemed to float away from his mind as they passed and he was aware that this was both unnatural and suspicious, but there wasn’t anything he could do about it either.

He did know that he hadn’t seen a soul since arriving here. For all he knew he was the only person in this entire damn place and that more than anything put him on edge. Even with his memories fuzzy Kurogane knew that he was a person who could sense the presence of others without needing to see them, and in this place he could sense absolutely nothing save for that one overwhelming and decidedly not human presence.

Kurogane cursed under his breath and stepped away from the window, wandering into the receiving chamber. As he stepped over the threshold he felt a sudden chill come over his whole body and his hand reached almost instinctively for the poker at his side. There was the sound of something creaking, ancient hinges straining to work for the first time in a very long while, and then Kurogane felt it at last.

Someone was here.

Kurogane whirled and turned back into the room he’d just come from. The door was still closed, as great and immovable as it had always been, but now there was someone collapsed in a heap in front of it. Kurogane approached slowly, not letting his guard down. There was no telling if this was some kind of trick or trap, as this whole damn place seemed to be. The figure crumpled in front of the door was wearing the same robes as Kurogane but these were pure white in color and trimmed in gold thread. Otherwise the person was wholly unfamiliar, with pale limbs and a mess of long blond hair. He didn’t look as though he could fight a plate of fruit but Kurogane knew better than to trust in appearances, not when he was in an unknown place with unreliable memories. He carefully drew the poker and held it close near the man’s throat.

“Ahh…” The blond man made a low moan as he sat up slowly, rubbing a hand in his hair. He shook his head a couple times as if clearing away cobwebs and then looked up at Kurogane with eyes that were wide and blue.

“Who are you?” Kurogane didn’t relax his stance, even as the man gave him an affable smile.

“I don’t get a ‘hello’? That’s not a very good welcome, Mr. Black.”

“Don’t call me that.”

“But you’re all black! Or should I call you Mr. Red, for your eyes? Black suits you more though…” The blond scrunched up his face as if trying to recall something.

“How did you get here?” Kurogane didn’t have time for all this idiot’s chatter. His luck, that the first person he’d met in this place was this kind of irritant.

“Hmm...through the door, I suppose?” The blond glanced back at the door and shrugged, calm smile still on his face despite the situation. “I don’t really remember! I just ended up here.”

“Just ended up here,” Kurogane repeated.

“I guess that sounds suspicious, doesn’t it? Your face says you think I’m a shifty guy now, doesn’t it? Even though I’m smiling.”

The stranger gave Kurogane another bright smile. Kurogane returned the smile with a stone cold glare, silently considering before finally lowering the poker.

“That’s better! Hey, let’s be friends?” The blond hopped to his feet. “You’d have more friends if you didn’t threaten them with pokers, Mr. Black.”

“I’m not ‘Mr.Black.’ I’m Kurogane.” Kurogane had already turned away, glancing back out the windows. As before he couldn’t even see so much as a boat floating away, nothing to indicate how this idiot had arrived at such a remote place without Kurogane seeing anyone enter or leave.

“Kurogane, huh….Kuro-tan, then? Kuro-rin?”

“Kurogane.” It was a flat denial.

“Kuro-sama it is then.” The man linked his hands behind his head. “I’m…” He paused, eyes unfocused for a moment. “You can call me Fai.”

The phrasing made Kurogane glance back at him, suspicious.

“What do other people call you?”

“Well…I don’t really know.” Fai shrugged. “I can’t quite recall much, to be honest. What about you, Kuro-sama? What do they call you in this big place of yours?”

“It’s not mine,” Kurogane said coldly. “I don’t even know how the hell I got here. I just know this isn’t my country.”

“I see…” Fai looked thoughtful.

“Hey. Idiot.”

“I said my name was Fai. You’re not a gracious host at all, Kuro-tan.”

“I told you, this place isn’t mine!” Kurogane snapped, then gave a sigh and looked Fai over carefully. “How the hell did you get here anyway? And why aren’t you wet?”

“Wet?” Fai repeated, curious.

“Those waves outside would toss even a large boat, and I haven’t seen any of those. So how did you arrive at this place at all, still dry?”

“That’s…” Fai paused, eyes far away again. “I think…I walked.”

“Walked.” Kurogane gave him a flat look. “Through that ocean.”

“I suppose that wouldn’t make any sense, would it?” Fai shrugged and laughed, unconcerned. “I don’t know! You’re a very observant person. We’ll definitely get to the bottom of this with Detective Kuro-sama on the case!”

Kurogane’s hands twitched for the poker and he held them down.

“I really don’t know though, Kuro-rin.” Fai gave him an innocent look that was possibly the worst lie Kurogane had seen in his life. “Ah, you don’t trust that either, do you? It’s written all over your face.”

“Something brought me here and messed with my memories,” Kurogane said darkly. “And then you show up out of nowhere and tell me you don’t know how you got here.”

“So we’re the same. Maybe I shouldn’t trust you, hmm, Kuro-sama?” For just a moment there was something hard and dangerous in Fai’s eyes, barely seen, and then it was swiftly papered over by the usual bright smile and empty headed expression. He pressed a hand thoughtfully to the wall. “But it seems like we’ve ended up somewhere belonging to someone very powerful. I suppose whoever that person is must be our host.”

“How do you know that?” Kurogane’s eyes narrowed.

“It’s…intuition, I guess?” Fai shrugged. “I feel like I was a person who used to know these kinds of things, just like how Kuro-sama knows to swing a poker and be grumpy.” He paused, walking over to the nearest window and staring out at the waves. When he spoke again his voice seemed oddly strained and faraway, as if lost in a dream. “I think maybe…I walked a long, long way, for someone else’s sake. I walked so long I couldn’t remember how much time had passed, only that there was someone I needed to see, and I couldn’t stop until I found them.”

“There’s no path out there,” Kurogane said, arms crossed.

“Of course there isn’t.” Fai looked back at him, smile firmly in place as he stepped away from the window. “Don’t mind me, Kuro-run, I think I’m the kind of person who says silly things. So, why don’t you show me around instead? Has Kuro-rin found any interesting hiding places? Oh, do you have a whole bunch of pokers, so you can threaten people with them?”

“There’s only one other room,” Kurogane said curtly, moving to enter the receiving room. Maybe if he went into the next room Fai would disappear by the time he came back. They had barely met but as far as Kurogane was concerned being alone was better than having to be stuck here in gods knew where for gods knew how long with just that idiot’s chatter in his ears.

He stopped dead in the doorway and Fai made a small noise as he walked right into Kurogane’s back.

“Kuro-rin! You shouldn’t block doorways.” Fai craned his neck, trying to see around Kurogane.

The room had changed. The pillows and lounges were gone, even the fireplace had disappeared. All that remained instead were the statues, lined up in a circle along the walls. No longer faceless and vaguely human shaped, now they all had wild hair that fell about their shoulders in intricately carved waves, and each bore the delicately formed face of a woman. In place of the food trays and water jugs were incense candles held in cupped hands and there was a vaguely spiced smell that hung in the air like mist. Each statue had closed eyes and a strange expression — at first glance the face looked benevolent, then capricious, then menacing, multiple different and incompatible expressions and yet the faces of the statues never moved or changed at all.

“Hyuu.” Fai stepped past Kurogane, looking around. “What an odd sense you have for interior decorating, Kuro-rin.”

“These weren’t here before.” Kurogane gave Fai a sharp look but Fai was busy studying the statues.

“There’s power here too,” he said softly, eyes hooded. Kurogane’s hand moved towards the poker at his side.

There was another creaking sound and Kurogane realized abruptly that the golden door, the one without any doorknob or lock, had begun to open.

“I suppose…we’re being welcomed?” Fai squinted up at the door. The marble sheet was still visible above the doorway but now there were words written clearly on it. “Can you read that, Kuro-sama?”

“It’s not my language,” Kurogane said, reflexively, before stopping himself. He had vague memories of that too, of his own language that he no name for, and as he stared at the words above the door he could see that they were shifting and changing under his gaze into something he could read.

“I think…it’s not mine either,” Fai said slowly. “But I can read it. ‘The Trial of Four Offerings has begun.’” He glanced back at Kurogane. “It looks like we’re in the middle of something interesting, doesn’t it, Kuro-rin?”

Kurogane didn’t respond, expression cold as he looked at the words. Suddenly behind them there was a crash and they both whirled as water began spilling into the room around them. The entrance door that had remained tightly shut even after Fai’s entrance had been thrown wide open and churning ocean waves were rushing through the opened door, rapidly submerging the antechamber. There was a muffled shattering sound as the windows broke under the pressure of the roaring waters, sending shining pieces of glass everywhere. More water began to pour in, as if the temple itself had begun to sink.

“I guess that’s one way of telling us that we don’t have a choice,” Fai said, blithely unconcerned for someone with water pooling rapidly around his feet. Kurogane swore as he looked for something to bar the doorway with in order to keep the water at bay but the only items left in the receiving room were the statues. Kurogane made a brief attempt to move one and swiftly abandoned it, the statue was all but rooted to the floor. Fai did a quick skip, like a child splashing through puddles as he moved towards the golden door, turning to wave at Kurogane. “It’s this way or no way, Kuro-sama.”

Kurogane glanced back towards the door. The water was getting higher, already up to his knees, and he couldn’t see anything outside but more waves. There was clearly only one way out now.

Or rather, only one way forward.

“This is such a pain,” Kurogane grumbled, dragging his legs through the water to join Fai by the door. Fai gave him another innocent smile and together they stepped through the doorway into a bright yellow light.

The door shut firmly behind them.

—

They were standing in a wide hallway that seemed to stretch onward into the distance, dimly lit by soft blue light that filtered in from the arched ceiling set with glass window panes.The scenery seen through the glass above was hazy, sunlight flowing in as if filtered through water, and the light danced along the marble tiles on the floor. There were statues along either side of the wall, the same as the ones they’d seen in the receiving room, each one holding an unlit incense candle.

“Hmm…we’ve ended up in a really interesting place, huh?” Fai eyed the statues thoughtfully, like a scientist observing ants.

“What the hell is ‘interesting’ about this?” Kurogane said. Glancing back the way they’d come he realized that the door they had entered in had disappeared and there was simply more hallway behind them as well, as far as the eye could see.

“You’re no fun at all, Kuro-tan. Where’s your sense of adventure?” Fai slapped Kurogane on the back, which only earned him another glare. “Say, Kuro-rin…did you notice?”

“How can I notice anything past your stupid chatter?” Kurogane muttered. He took a step forward and then glanced down at his feet, eyes narrowing.

“You see it too?” Fai’s smile was slow and mysterious. “We aren’t wet.”

“That water was up to our damn knees.” Kurogane touched one of his long sleeves. “Our clothes are dry too.”

“Maybe it was just for the purpose of herding us here? But I felt like if we’d stayed we still would have drowned—” Fai cut off abruptly as the candles suddenly flared to life, filling the room with light smoke. One by one the closed eyes of the statues opened, watching them. “Hyuu. That’s a bit scary, isn’t it?”

“Sleep with the covers over your head if you’re scared,” Kurogane said coldly. “I’m not going to let any damn statues scare me.”

“Luckily I have big strong Kuro-tan to protect me!” Fai said happily, attempting to wrap his arms around Kurogane and being abruptly shrugged off. “I suppose we can only go forward now.”

“Hmmph.” Kurogane touched a hand to the poker at his belt, wrinkling his nose at the sweet incense smell as he began to walk. “I don’t like doing what some unknown thing is trying to make me do.”

“It’s a trial, isn’t it?” Fai almost skipped along beside him. “’The Trial of Four Offerings.’ That’s what the banner said. Is this something Kuro-sama remembers at all?”

“No,” Kurogane said. “But I don’t even know how I got here in the first place.” He eyed Fai darkly. “All of this happened once you showed up.”

“I guess that makes me even more suspicious?” Fai laughed, as if it didn’t concern him at all. “But I’m afraid I don’t recall anything about a trial either. Maybe it just needed two of us. That would make us partners in crime, wouldn’t it?”

“I didn’t ask to be partners with you either,” Kurogane snapped.

Supplicant. Sacrifice.

The hallway suddenly shook, heavily enough that both Kurogane and Fai were stopped where they stood. The incense candles flared even brighter.

“Was that…a voice?” Fai wondered.

“No.” Kurogane shook his head. “But I still heard it.”

Supplicant. Sacrifice. Welcome. Supplicant. Sacrifice. Welcome.

The words repeated and reverberated, as if being spoken by multiple voices all at once, and Kurogane saw Fai wince and put a hand to his head. In front of them there was a flurry of movement as six statues stepped away from the wall, writhing stiffly in an odd dance, and their mouths were opened wide.

Welcome. Welcome.

Hands outstretched and bodies moving sinuously now, too smooth for statues made of gold. They clasped hands and legs and torsos, until all six had formed something like the frame of a giant mirror right in front of them. Through the frame the hallway ahead was hazy, as if viewed through a filter.

Supplicant. Sacrifice. We welcome you to the temple of Orphene, goddess of the world.

“‘Or-phe-ne’?” Fai repeated the word as if tasting it. He glanced over at Kurogane, who shook his head to indicate the name was unfamiliar to him as well. The statues seemed almost be laughing at them, though their expressions remained inscrutable and their mouths were still open.

If you wish to leave this place—

If you wish to pass—

If you wish to continue—

You, who have become a supplicant—

You, who have become a sacrifice—

You must pass the Trial of Four Offerings. Only then will you receive the right to an audience with the goddess.

“Who said we wanted an audience?” Kurogane retorted, unimpressed. The statues all smiled, like a lion watching a mouse, and Fai gave a nervous laugh.

“Perhaps you shouldn’t antagonize the goddess, Kuro-sama?” Fai made a conciliatory gesture to the nearest statue. “Please forgive this brutish Kuro-doggy, I’m afraid he hasn’t been trained very well.”

“Don’t call me like a dog!”

Supplicant. Sacrifice.

The trial has already begun.

There is nothing to do but continue.

If your offerings are accepted—

If your sacrifice is accepted—

Then—

Then—

Then I shall see you again. The last sentence was heavy and final like the tolling of a bell, like words carved into stone, and abruptly the incense candles all went out. The statues once again had closed eyes and inscrutable expressions but somehow Kurogane still had the sense that they were being watched — and that somewhere, the person watching them was smiling.

“Well, that was certainly amazing, wasn’t it? I suppose we just heard the voice of a goddess.” Fai’s tone suggested he had just spotted a fascinating bird while fishing.

“Great. A goddess,” Kurogane muttered.

“Hmm? You don’t like goddesses, Kuro-sama? Is that a memory?”

“No.” He wasn’t sure how to explain it and it wasn’t like he owed an explanation to this idiot anyway. “I just don’t like anything that wants to tell me what I’m supposed to do.”

“Such a rebel, Kuro-rin! But I suppose you do seem like that type.”

“What the hell does that mean?”

“The type to hate to lose, of course!” Fai said pleasantly. “Even to a goddess. But it seems like we won’t get out of here unless we take this trial, so you’ll have to put that stubbornness aside for the moment.” Fai quietly looked over the silent statues still contorted into a giant empty frame. “Supplicant. Sacrifice.”

“Huh?”

“That’s what they said, wasn’t it? Is that us?”

“Who cares?” As far as Kurogane was concerned, the entire experience had been pointless and wasn’t worth thinking more on.

“Are we both?” Fai murmured. “Or perhaps…one of us is a supplicant, and the other a sacrifice?”

Kurogane placed a hand on the poker again, giving Fai a sharp look, and Fai gave him another innocent smile in return.

“Don’t mind me, Kuro-sama, I’m just thinking.”

“It won’t do us any good to stand around and think,” Kurogane stated. “But if you’re intending to be my enemy…”

“I wouldn’t dream of it, Kuro-tan,” Fai assured him, reaching up as if to pet his head, and Kurogane very purposefully stepped to the side. “Are you worried I might try and mount a sneak attack?”

“As if I’d be afraid of a guy like you,” Kurogane snorted. “But I’m getting out of here no matter what it takes. I have a place to get back to.”

“Oh?” Fai made an intrigued noise and Kurogane paused, putting a hand to his head. He wasn’t sure why he had just said that but somehow he couldn’t deny that it was true. There was somewhere (or was it someone) that he was trying to go back to, just beyond the hazy mist in his mind.

“It looks like we should be ready to move forward.” Fai’s voice shook him out of his reverie and Kurogane looked up. The empty space within the frame had shifted and solidified, and now there was a large circular double door contained within the statues as if it had always been there. The door was dark onyx black, carved with sigils that looked almost like eyes staring out at them, and there was a curved obsidian handle on each side.

“It looks like this is a job for Kuro-sama,” Fai said, putting a hand against the door and making a face. “We have need for your manly muscles!”

“Just say you’re too weak to open it.” Kurogane reached out to grasp one of the handles, pulling as hard as he could. The door didn’t budge and Fai snickered, ignoring Kurogane’s glare.

“Maybe we need to pull on them both together?” Fai wondered, reaching for the other handle. “One, two…!”

Kurogane tugged on his again as Fai pulled on his side and the doors slowly began to swing open.

“We go together, or not at all, huh?” Kurogane murmured, annoyed. “What did I do to get stuck with you?”

“You wound me, Kuro-tan,” Fai said brightly. “But if we’re going to be companions on this journey, don’t you think you should be a little nicer?”

“No.”

“So mean. I suppose I’ll have to survive, having such a Kuro-beast next to me.” Fai gave an exaggerated sigh of long suffering and then gave Kurogane a conspiratorial wink. “Shall we go? It looks like our trial is just ahead.”

“Guess we don’t have much of a choice.” Kurogane shrugged. Fai held out a hand as if asking Kurogane to take it and Kurogane stared back at him darkly. Fai made a ‘tsk’ noise and shook his head, withdrawing his hand.

Side by side, they stepped through the door.