Of Moon and Sky; Fushimashi; Village Betwixt the Cherry Blossoms

[Fate I]

D'huro remained silent for several moments as his gaze drifted between the four Lotuses watching him from their elevated seats and he could feel their scrutiny filling the chamber. Cazzador's skepticism, Vana's guarded curiosity, Zion's quiet attention, and Azara's serene, almost unnerving patience. He had never formally stood before any of them, but listening to their exchanges had already given him enough insight to begin measuring their temperaments. Cautious, certainly. Suspicious, perhaps. But they were receptive.. for the most part.

And yet.

D'huro had faced armies that had fought tooth and nail to see his head mounted upon a spike. He had stood beneath gnashing fangs of Acheri behemoths and watched entire battlefields turn into killing grounds. And still, he could not remember the last time he had felt pressure quite like this..

The pressure of simply standing in this room.

“...”

His expression remained still and composed, but the same could not be said for the men surrounding him. Several of the Inuki hunters shifted uneasily. Fingers fidgeted against weapon hilts. Shoulders tightened. Eyes wandered across the unfamiliar architecture before quickly returning forward. Small movements. Almost imperceptible to the naked eye. But D'huro noticed.

Years of command had taught him that fear rarely announced itself through grand gestures. Sometimes it was nothing more than a thumb rubbing nervously against the guard of a sword. He allowed his men a moment to collect themselves. Then he drew a slow breath and cleared his throat.

“..We would not be here if the circumstances were not dire.” He said, crossing his arms at his back. “For nearly five thousand years, the Inuki have guarded Vescrutia from the breach located beneath the Strata Mountains.”

D'huro continued before reaching inside his cloak to retrieve a metallic orb.

“As you are aware, it is an aperture that connects this realm directly to that of Acheron. And across our tenure guarding its entrance, we have created territories within the realm to help maintain our foothold on the necks of the demonic blight.”

He said, pressing a button upon the metallic orb generating a sphere of pale light that rapidly spread throughout the center of the chamber.

Suddenly, the holographic visual of Acheron filled the space before them. A vast, hostile landscape unfolded beneath a grey sky of crimson clouds. Blackened earth stretched toward an indistinct horizon, somehow illuminated by neither sun nor moon. It was dark, but not blindingly so. The terrain was completely barren in places, twisted in others, and but so utterly alien that even some of the surrounding Mizu court seemed to grow quieter at the sight.

Yet scattered throughout that hellscape were signs of something distinctly Vescrutian.
Thousands upon thousands of Inuki hunters. Camps. Fortifications. Supply stations.
Massive lamps powered by Naten and artificial energy illuminated the surrounding darkness, creating islands of warmth against the oppressive grey sky.

Twenty thousand warriors stood stationed within the territory. Twenty thousand trained hunters. This was Navar Inuki's battalion. Practically an entire army operating as a unified extension of the Inuki military machine. And despite the incredibly bleak environment, the scene conveyed a sense of control and security that seemed almost reassuring in the face of doom itself. The Inuki had literally carved a foothold into Acheron and transformed it into a military frontier.

D'huro allowed the projection to remain for several seconds. Before he continued. And when he did, the calm certainty in his voice.. waivered.

“But something has changed.”

He said clicking another button, and immediately, the visual shifted. The next array of images illustrated what occurred merely moments later. The massive presence of New Vorelia was razed into a cauterized pit of bones, destruction, and molten debris. The visceral images forced most of the Inuki hunters standing behind Dhuro to avert their gaze. The event was only nearly a year ago, but the wounds of loss and sense of powerlessness and grief were crippling.

But Dhuro did not look back.

"For months, the Inuki have sent hunters beyond the breach in an attempt to locate and confront this.. threat.” His jaw tightened. "Thousands have been deployed.. And thousands have died.” He paused. “..Nalar and Jade Inuki were among them.”

The names carried through the chamber. And for the briefest moment, D'huro's expression betrayed something beneath his usual discipline.. Regret. But just as quickly, it was gone. And he continued.

"But prior to her death, Jade was able to accumulate empirical data from the battle.” The projection shifted again. Fragmented visual recordings appeared alongside diagrams, distorted silhouettes, environmental readings, and scattered pieces of testimony. "She collected accounts from those who survived long enough to speak. Fragmented images of what they encountered. Environmental changes. Biological abnormalities. And what we believe may be indications of vulnerabilities.”

His eyes narrowed.

“We have studied the remains of examined territories where entire Acheri forces simply ceased to exist.” He said, fixing his gaze against the Mizu Tsuki Council observing from above. “And while we have never encountered one before, we have every reason to believe that this is a Prime Acheri.”

The statement settled heavily over the chamber as his eyes shifted now across all bearing witnesses within the building.

[B["Entire regions of Acheron while, originally alien, have been rendered unrecognizable. Acheri swarms abandoning territories they had occupied for centuries, the air once compatible with our bodies, have become the agent of some incurable pathogen."[/b] His fingers curled slowly into fists as he continued.. “But everything we know is conjecture. All we can be certain of is that Prime Acheri possesses a level of power beyond anything the Inuki have previously encountered."

He looked toward the council.

"And it is moving toward the breach.”

He said, allowing the chamber to sift back into a loaded silence in reflection of his warning. The very room seemed to grow colder as he continued.

“Our Grand Luminary has thus made a decision; We will not wait for this monster to reach our doorstep.” He straightened his posture. "We will enter Acheron and vanquish the Prime before it reaches the breach."

His words were spoken without bravado. Without pride.. Only necessity. His softened expression had grown hardened and resolute. But his voice maintained that military control he'd been known for.

"But as resolute as we are, we are not daft." D'huro's returned now to the council.
"The Inuki recognize that If we are to accomplish this feat, this is no longer a battle we can afford to fight alone.”

He said, fixing his words toward the High Priestess.

"The Yaarou have agreed to accompany us into Acheron." He allowed the significance of that statement to settle beneath the hushed gasps. "We would not have sought their involvement lightly. The Yaarou possess abilities and knowledge that even the Inuki cannot replicate. But despite their.. legacy.. They alone are not enough."

The words drew another silence.

"For all the differences between our clans, the Inuki recognize an undeniable truth: Mizu Tsuki are the one of the greatest forces in Edo when it comes to understanding and destroying the Acheri.”

He continued now, softening his gaze.

"You possess knowledge our people do not." His gaze moved toward Zion.
"You have studied their biology." Toward Vana. "You have fought them across generations." Toward Cazzador. "You possess resources capable of supporting a campaign our traditional methods cannot sustain." And finally, toward Azara.
"And you possess knowledge of the supernatural that may be indispensable against something our clan has ever encountered.”

D'huro lowered his head slightly. "We have been rivals for generations.. I will not pretend otherwise." The admission carried more weight than any attempt at flattery could have. "We have disagreed over methods and doctrines that illustrate what it means to serve our people."

He looked around the chamber.

"You believe we cling too tightly to the past.. We believe you have allowed the pursuit of prosperity to corrupt a sacred duty." D'huro's eyes hardened. "But none of that matters if the physical world falls.”