The Twelve Kingdoms: The Shore in Twilight

by Fuyumi Ono

  "It was even worse for Sairin. When the ministers ran back to the place to inform Sairin of the calamity that had befallen Jun Tei, they found only her remains left behind. Her shirei had completely devoured her."

  Rokuta scowled and folded his hands on top of the table. "These were definitely not normal ways to die. No one had ever seen a king die in such a fashion. No one had seen a kirin's shirei attack him in such a manner. Consuming the kirin is the special privilege of the shirei, but they simply don't run wild without regard to the circumstances. The body of every kirin, when he breaths his last for whatever reason, is placed in a coffin and born to the Imperial Mausoleum to lie in state. While there, the hall in which the coffin resides is sealed. When the mourning period has ended, the coffin is removed, but during that time it will have been emptied of its contents. That's pretty much how it works."

  Youko raised her hand to the base of her throat. Hearing the fate of the kirin from a kirin himself made her chest hurt.

  "Something very unusual had occurred. Furthermore, Jin Tei had committed no sin to account for such a fall. He was a righteous king who held fast to the Way. No one objected when he dispatched the Imperial Army to Han. He certainly hadn't sent the Imperial Army to Han to torment its citizens. He was a king whose deep compassion extended to other kingdoms. He mobilized his troops in order to save the people of Han. He had the support of the ministers and his subjects. No one criticized this action. Nevertheless, such was the fate of both Juntei and Sairin. When they both died without forewarning, all the customary procedures went out the window. Clearly, these were no ordinary deaths, but at first nobody made the connection between them and the mobilization of the Imperial Army."

  "Did Enki and Jun Tei--?"

  "We never crossed paths. Jun Tei ruled long before my time, though it is said that he and the Royal Sou had met."

  "The Royal Sou--"

  "It seems that briefly after the coronation of the Royal Sou, Jun Tei had generously offered Sou foreign aid. And then he was suddenly struck down. When the Royal Sou ascended to the throne, Sai had been enjoying a three hundred year reign under the most enlightened monarch of the south."

  Enki swirled his tea and stared into the cup. "Nobody understood why Jun Tei had to die. After that, a new king ascended to the throne. It was then that they realized that the impression on the Imperial Seal had changed, and thus concluded Jun Tei must have committed a grievous sin. There was a precedent in this case. The kokushi of Tai had changed once before, from Tai (meaning 'generation') to Tai (meaning 'peaceful calm'). The triggering event was said to be a king who strayed from the Way. His kirin subsequently died, and in order to prevent the next kirin from being born, he invaded Mt. Hou, slaughtered the wizardesses, and set fire to the Shashinboku. There are cases where the kokushi has changed as the result of the crimes committed by the king. This was the first time it was understood that Jun Tei had been called to account for sending his troops across an international border."

  "That bad a crime--"

  "That bad a crime. Borders cannot be trespassed, even for the most humanitarian of reasons. Not for any reason at all. Only then were the implications of this precept fully understood."

  "Wait a minute. Who exactly laid down that precept? Tentei?"

  "Who's to say? All we know is that the precept exists. The only thing written in the Divine Decrees is that one kingdom may not invade another under the force of arms. This sentence was without a doubt a transcription of the will of Heaven. These precepts exist in the world. Go against them, commit a sin, and the punishment is sure."

  "But who knew that what Jun Tei was doing was a sin? Who delivered the punishment? There's gotta be somebody up there, right?"

  "Not necessarily. When the king and Saiho are enthroned, they climb those stairs. The same ones you climbed. And by doing so, they receive the Divine Unction. That which they did not know before was newly written upon their minds. Or you could say that the essence of those precepts was imbued within their bodies. Turning against the precepts of Heaven would seem to activate a previously-instilled punishment. Think in terms of the body itself being conditioned for a specific response, like there was an angel perched on Jun Tei's shoulder judging the rightness and wrongness of his actions. There's no need for any 'person' to be handing down the sentence."

  "What about the Imperial Seal?"

  "You could think of the Seal being imbued with those qualities in the same way."

  "But don't you end up with the same problem anyway? If everything gets imbued with these qualities, then who does the imbuing?"

  "Who, indeed?" Rokuta stared up at the ceiling. "We have to say that Tentei does the imbuing. But the fact is, nobody knows anybody who's actually met Him."

  Youko nodded. "Me neither."

  "Nobody knows whether Tentei exists or not. Except that His precepts certainly exist here in the world, covering the world like a net. If they are transgressed, a punishment is guaranteed. Moreover, the circumstances are not taken into account. The problem with Jun Tei was not the purity of his intent, or rightness or wrongness of his actions. All that mattered in the end was whether his actions touched upon that which is written in the Divine Decrees. The rest was automatic."

  Youko shivered. A bad feeling crawled up her spine.

  "One proof of that is when we helped you. Simply examining our actions, then it sure looks like Shouryuu sent the Imperial Army across an international border. No matter how you look at it, this would seem to be a sin of the most immediate nature. To be sure, you came to En, but you didn't come to En with the express purpose of seeking our help. You didn't ask us to help you so you could strike down the pretender. You came to En because you had no place else to turn to and you needed asylum. Those were sufficient grounds to us. We persuaded you of the necessity of retrieving Keiki from the clutches of the pretender. You took command of the En Imperial Army, but for appearances only. Believe me, we were quite aware that what we were doing was not substantively different than what Jun Tei did. But the precepts are not balanced on such distinctions. As long as the Royal Kei was in En, as long as the letter of the law was fulfilled, then no punishment was forthcoming."

  "But don't you find that rather strange?"

  "It is strange. A loophole that a lawyer of low character would come up with. The Divine Decrees definitely prohibit invading another kingdom under force of arms. But nothing says a rightful ruler can't borrow the forces of a neighboring kingdom. At the same time, if this is something the Royal Kei wishes--if the Royal Kei herself is at the vanguard--then it surely can't be called an invasion. However unbelievable it might be, this passes muster."

  "It is unbelievable."

  "It does no good to debate what is 'good' and what is 'bad.' This world must be accepted for the way it is. Explaining exactly why things are the way they are may tax our facilities. To tell the truth, you weren't the first to make use of our armed forces in such a manner. It had come to our attention that the precepts of Heaven operate in an extremely dogmatic manner, and we concluded that with the proper king in the saddle, we would not brush up against the law. Still, we were pretty much on pins and needles the first time we put the theory into action. We had our own doubts about 'outfoxing god,' as it were."

  "So you gave it a shot and watched what happened?"

  "Don't be silly." Rokuta scowled. "We weren't going to take a gamble like that. So like we're doing now, we turned to Genkun for advice."

  "To Genkun--"

  "Yeah. The Mistress of Mt. Hou. According to some, Oufujin, the guardian deity of Mt. Hou runs the show. But I happen to know for a fact that it's Genkun who's in charge of the wizardesses. She wasn't born here, but she was brought up here. So who do you think appoints the wizardesses here to be wizardesses in the first place?"

  "Well, that'd be Genkun, wouldn't it? It wouldn't be the kings or empresses."

  "You're exactly right. The wizardesses of Mt. Hou are called Wizards of the Air. The rulers of the kingdoms do
n't appoint them, and they in turn don't serve any king or empress. Moreover, the wizardesses of Mt. Hou won't be found on the census of any kingdom. They reside in a world apart from any head of state. They are separately recorded on the Registry of Wizards and serve Genkun."

  "Doesn't that mean that there's a thirteenth kingdom then? Genkun's position would seem on a part with an Empress."

  "Yes, it does seem that way. Except that this is clearly not a kingdom. Its distinguished citizens notwithstanding, there are no subjects. Besides, there are no kirin here to rein in the ruler. Genkun can't really be said to govern Mt. Hou. Nothing that could be called a 'government' exists on Mt. Hou."

  "Then what exactly is this place?"

  "A part of Heaven. I'm pretty sure that's what it is."

  "Heaven--"

  "That's the only thing that makes sense to me. Houro Palace exists only for the kirin. The kirin are raised here and sent into the world. And the kirin exist to create new kings. Moreover, somebody unaffiliated with any kingdom, whose authority exists independently in its own right, must belong to Heaven.

  "But as for Genkun?"

  "I really can't say," Rokuta said with a sigh. "You can ask her straight out if she's the one who appoints the wizardesses. But she's not the kind of deferential being who'll give you an unequivocal answer. If it's not her, then that means that there's somebody above her with the power to appoint the wizardesses. That may be Oufujin. Or somebody else. Either way, that's who Genkun ultimately serves. In other words, there's an organization called Heaven. At one end of the organizational chart are the wizardesses, and Genkun is in charge of them."

  "An organization called Heaven--"

  "I think there is a world of the Gods. According to the legends, Tentei resides in Gyokkei, where he reigns over the other Gods and keeps the world shipshape. If there really is a Gyokkei, I wouldn't be surprised. My information is limited, though, and I've yet to meet anybody who's on a first-name basis with a God. While I've heard what the myths and tales have to say, it seems that Gods don't care to hang around with the likes of us. There's no way to seek one out and ask for an interview."

  Rokuta paused and then said, "However, here alone are the Gods in constant contact with the mortal world. Genkun definitely has the ability to inquire into the intentions of Heaven. I don't know how she goes about doing so, but in any case she is our point of contact. The only person who can peer through the windows of Heaven is Genkun."

  Chapter 29

  As promised, Gyokuyou's pronouncement came the next day at noon: "The kingdoms uniting to search for Taiki does not violate any of the precepts of Heaven."

  "So it's all right, then?"

  "However, no one not listed upon the Registry of Gods or Registry of Wizards at the rank of count or above may cross the Kyokai. This rule is inviolable."

  "As I suspected. But that does leave us short-handed. Although the rule of law is defined in the Divine Decrees, nothing there prohibits the creation of new ranks. This perhaps suggests that new counts may be appointed for this purpose?"

  "It does not. Rank equal to or exceeding that of count are, even from the perspective of Heaven, dispensational in nature, and are therefore accorded special rights and privileges. Those who may be so appointed are, according to established rule, the closest relatives of the king, the Chousai, and the members of the Sankou. All others should be thought of as unsuitable to receive such dispensations."

  Rokuta clucked his tongue. "How about borrowing some of the wizardesses?"

  "I have been informed that that is not permissible. The wizardesses of Mt. Hou cannot leave here without my permission. In this instance, I cannot grant that permission. Sending them forth from here to China or Yamato would require opening the Gogou Gate, and thus triggering a great number of shoku. The Kouka is currently growing on Mt. Hou. We cannot permit the possibility of a shoku spreading across Mt. Hou and sweeping away the Kouka. The wizardesses must protect the Kouka above all else."

  "Oh. Yes, indeed. A shoku."

  "This is not a divine precept, but a request that I am making off you. I wish to keep the shoku to the bare minimum. Even if the Gogou Gate is opened on the other side of the Kyokai, there is no guessing how it might spread. Such is the nature of shoku. Thus I would ask you to please act with all due restraint."

  "Will do," said Rokuta, and Youko nodded.

  Gyokuyou smiled. "However, a kingdom cannot be deprived of both its King and its province lords. According to the Divine Decrees, if there is no king, then all of the province lords are required to maintain a quorum. Even when there is a king, of the eight provinces aside from the capital, at least four or more must be present to constitute a quorum. You must understand that this is one of the precepts of Heaven. Let me explain what I mean. Even temporarily, no more than four province lords can leave a kingdom at any one time."

  Rokuta gave Gyokuyou a hard look. "That's the first time I've heard of such a thing. If that's the case, then it should be written down."

  Gyokuyou smiled nonchalantly in return. "If you've got a problem with that, then tell it to Tentei."

  "This is why there's no guestimating when it comes to the precepts of Heaven. Well, fine. Anything else?"

  "Even given the consent of all the kingdoms, invading another kingdom under force of arms is prohibited. There are no exceptions. Without the acquiescence of the Royal Tai, troops cannot be dispatched to Tai."

  "Understood. What about dispatching troops as observers only?"

  "The precepts state that invasion is prohibited. But that does not mean that posting troops to another kingdom is prohibited in all cases. For example, when a king visits another kingdom, a contingent of soldiers will accompany him as bodyguards. No precept expressly prohibits this. Also, none prohibits the posting of a diplomatic staff consisting of nothing but military officers. In fact, this would seem to take place on a rather frequent basis. The problem is not with the entry of military officers into another kingdom, but under what pretext, and whether this could be construed as an invasion."

  "That's splitting a lot of hairs."

  "In the case of Tai, the hairs get even finer. The question is what exactly would be construed as an 'invasion.' For example, engaging in actions contrary to the national policy of that kingdom's king. This Jun Tei did do. The Royal Han was oppressing his people. Although contrary to the Way, it was the national policy of the then-rightful king of Han. Jun Tei sought to obstruct this policy. Thus his intervention was construed as an invasion. In the case of a vacated throne, the policy of the provisional court holds sway. In short, the policy of a provisional court is the national policy. However--"

  "The Royal Tai is not dead. The throne is not truly vacated."

  "Yes. But even in the case of a provisional court led by a pretender, interfering with the decisions of the court would constitute an invasion. Except that the rightful king is still in Tai. A pretender typically deceives the court and claims to be the rightful king. In the case of Tai, the acting head of state could not be rightly called a pretender. There is no precedent for this type of situation, so there's some uncertainty as what he should be called."

  "So there's a question whether Asen's Imperial Court would be so deemed by Heaven--"

  "That's what it comes down to. This alone is without precedent. So there are no established precepts governing it. Not even I could say how those dice would roll. But you would do well to bear in mind that national policy is not so much royal policy as it is the policy of the current Imperial Court."

  "That does complicate things."

  "Battle lines are not allowed. Not a single square foot may be subtracted from a kingdom's divinely-recognized land. The people of Tai or the king of Tai cannot allow the occupation of their inviolable lands by another kingdom. No matter what the reasoning, you must understand that as soon as battle lines are drawn and troops quartered, you are touching upon a sin of a most immediate nature."

  "Understood."

  Enki pose
d two or three more questions, but in any case it seemed to Youko more a matter of drawing bright lines around vague precepts. She was left with an uneasy feeling. Gyokuyou elucidated the Divine Decrees, taking precedence into consideration with her answers. In every case, it seemed that the precepts trumped all, and the legalistic interpretation of the precepts trumped all.

  Youko was left with the impression that Gyokuyou had somehow or another spent the previous night researching interpretations and precedents concerning the precepts. But exactly what were these precepts?

  Since being brought to this world, she had pretty much accepted it as it was. A world where magical beings called youma rampaged about. A world where wizards performed miracles. A world filled with the strange and the fantastic. She accepted it all the same way a child accepts fairy tales at face value. Except that this world was something quite apart from such idyllic dream worlds.

  Why youma existed--why kings lived such long lives--why children were born from trees--how it was that kirin went about choosing kings--everything she'd come to treat as "normal" that probably should have been a complete mystery to her.

  That was the kind of uncanny feeling she was stuck with. She couldn't put it into words, and it stayed with her as they left Houro Palace. Climbing the white staircase to the top of the mountain, she struggled to articulate what she was feeling, but remained at a loss.

  "Did you understand what Genkun was telling us?" Rokuta asked. When Youko nodded he added, "I'm going on to Sou to fill them in. It was about time I dropped by and said hello, anyway. Why don't you head back and wait for word from Shouryuu?"

  "Yeah. Sure."

  "Later," Rokuta said with a casual wave. He climbed onto his suugu and flew away to the south and disappeared from view.

  Interlude

  Two and then three years passed. The impurities accumulated, steadily eating away at him. The dusky golden hue of his shadow grew darker and darker.

  And, thought Sanshi cynically, it seemed that the more polluted his shadow became, the easier things got for them. Despite how difficult slipping away from Taiki's shadow once had been, it was becoming surprisingly easy. Perhaps they were drawing energy from the pollution itself. Or perhaps this was proof that the shell enclosing them was growing thinner and more brittle.