High above the land, the sun beat down on its subjects below. The cloudless sky even seemed to singe under its reign. Keniji glanced upward, wiping the sweat from his brow and cursed the very sphere that warmed the land. It burned hotter this day, and rightly so. The Empress’s anger would forever be upon Keniji’s back, that is, until the very day his blade would taste her blood.

The wandering pegasai travelled far northbound, abandoning his home and his land. By first light of the following day, he burned the very memoir that would only haunt his mind along with the stallions that wrecked it. The following week, he set out towards the Celestial Palace, knowing full well the Empress would have heard of his traitorous deed. His assailers did not possess much, but Keniji was able to scrap a few bits from the battle, just enough to get him by until he passed Kita Village. Keniji refastened his katana around his hip and hastened his pace. It was a good five miles before Kita village would come into view; however, Keniji was not looking forward to the massive landmark that separated this backwater village from the rest of Eqyoto.

As Keniji’s canter developed into a full gallop, a large spire began to rise from the horizon. The closer Keniji got, the bigger the Celestial temple became, completely dwarfing the rest of the town in both stature and elegance. The very sight of the overzealous temple sickened the pegasai warrior, and he regretted ever swearing loyalty to that witch Celestia. Her mark hung high on every wall, scaling across the entire temple signifying her domain in this region. Large jade sculptures mimicking her visage were perched on each rooftop corner, peering down on the land, watching her subjects’ every move. Keniji halted his tracks at the gate entrance and brayed spitefully at the empress.

“Please sir, could you spare some wheat?” a weak voice called out. The pony’s voice startled Keniji just enough to prompt him to extend his blade in the direction of the now cowering beggar. The colt cried in fear, groveling at Keniji’s hooves and apologized profusely. “I-I did not mean it Pegasai-san! Do not kill me!”

Keniji sighed in relief and sheathed his blade. He looked upon the pathetic figure of the malnourished stallion and bowed slightly.

“I am sorry, but I have nothing of worth to you. All I have is needed for myself, I hope you can forgive me,” Keniji replied solemly. He had more than that street urchin, but he could not risk letting any of it go. It was barely equal to a day’s portion of food. Keniji trotted past many more beggars and vagabonds, consciously trying to avoid eye contact.  His eyes instead focused on the large temple in the center of town, and he plotted his next move.

The structure rested exactly in the middle of town, spanning wide enough to separate Kita village into two districts. To enter or exit either, one had to pass through the temple’s great hall. Keniji apprehensively approached the building, scanning the area for guarding pegasai. Various villagers shuffled through the ten story hall, stopping at different shrines and paying their respects to Celestia and her priests. This temple was the only thing these villagers really had, and it was a sick display of hope. Keniji could not even feel a hint of remorse should their goddess and empress fall.

“How peculiar your mane is,” a sweet sounding voice called from behind Keniji. “Ha, no need to fret stranger, I am not a foe,” the violet coated monk explained to the startled pegasai. Keniji dropped his guard, scolding himself for doing that twice now.

“Forgive me, but what business do you have with me Priest?” Keniji asked.

“Straight to the point, I like that. Very well then, it’s about your mane my friend. Oh, where are my manners, my name is Hakumei, a pleasure to meet you…?” Hakumei trailed off, prompting Keniji to reply, but instead, the pegasai warrior turned and left the monk. Keniji exited the great hall and stepped into the “better” part of town. Only a few shops were available, and those held items of less than intriguing value, let alone nutritional value.

“You know, it is customary to respond when someone speaks to you. Especially a Celestial Priest,” Hakumei spoke from beside Keniji then. Keniji turned his head and narrowed his eyes at the strange monk. The tate-eboshi atop of his head read “sun” and the same cap portrayed Celestia’s mark definitely. Hakumei straightened out his jōe, still awaiting an answer from Keniji.

“I have nothing positive, or enlightening to say to you monk, please leave,” was all that Keniji uttered. He once more proceeded to leave, but was halted by the Unicorn’s shaku. Keniji eyed the ceremonial baton furiously, and glared at the pony that dared to lay it on his shoulder.

“I am ordering you to stop and speak to me, Kaze, Keniji,” Hakumei said lowly. As fast as Keniji’s wings flared up, so too was his blade drawn and poised to strike the priest’s neck. Keniji halted, as he was being held in check by a floating dagger, emanating the very same aura as the priest’s horn. Any further would have resulted in a very short journey. Luckily for the pegasai however, this so-called priest was at the mercy of Keniji’s blade as well.

“There is a reason for my badgering Keniji, all I require is that you listen for once. I know it cannot be that difficult for you,” Hakuemi said calmly. Keniji finally lowered his blade, allowing Hakumei a chance to speak. The Celestial monk grinned and bowed. “See, that is not-” Hakumei began but quickly arched back, just avoiding Keniji’s katana. The priest clicked his tongue and slapped the shaku in his hoof on his thigh. The foot-long baton extended a half-foot blade, and floated in the air along with the dagger from earlier. Hakumei’s countenance was void of all pleasantries now, and he eyed Keniji with as much ferocity as the pegasai did to him.

Keniji hovered in the air, his hooves gripping the hilt of his katana tightly. The rainbow manned pegasai decided to strike first, rushing in at Hakumei faster than the Unicorn had anticipated. Hakuemi raised his blades in defense, countering the strike at the last second. Hakumei’s flying knives assaulted Keniji now, stabbing ferociously at the faltering pegasai. Keniji regained his stance and avoided each strike in an elegant display of aerial acrobatics or in a small exchange of sparking metal.

Keniji lost his opportunity to attack now, as his opponent was using magic on him. Hakumei could easily keep Keniji away as long as the Unicorn had control over his weapons telepathically. The rainbow manned pegasai quickly dashed into the sky, avoiding one of Hakumei’s thrusts, and gaining the attention of the monk’s weapons. Keniji continued his ascent, higher and higher until Kita Village’s temple was just a speck on the earth. Keniji waited, listening and watching fervently at the ground below. After a moment, Hakumei’s blades came into view, darting straight at the Pegasus. The pegasai inhaled sharply, and plummeted to the earth, diving directly into the oncoming assault. Keniji concentrated on the incoming knives, and arched his katana back for a strike.

The blades whistled through the air, getting closer each second, until Keniji’s arm swung violently to the side, knocking the weapons off course and removing the spell over them. Back on the ground, Hakumei chuckled surprisingly, having felt his magic burst in defeat and peered into the sky above. Rocketing down was a blur of a Pegasus, ready to kill his opponent on the spot. Hakumei grinned mischievously and allowed Keniji to fly closer, only to stop the Pegasus in mid-flight with the very same magic used on his blades.

“Enough, you are scaring the townsfolk,” Hakumei said, staring at the gawking crowd. Keniji struggled to free himself from the magic aura that confined him, but to no avail. His eyes suddenly wandered along the crowd and he grunted in manic fury.

“Look at what you’ve done, I meant to pass by undetected, and now the entire village knows of my presence!” Keniji shouted bitterly. Hakumei smiled impishly once more and dropped the pegasai hard onto the floor, knocking the wind out the pony.

“All I asked, was to speak with you, pegasai-san,” Hakumei said rather seriously now. Keniji gasped for breath, and stumbled to his hooves. His blade stuck neatly into the earth not too far away, gaining some attention of its own by the people of the village. Keniji growled, frustrated at the world and reclaimed his blade, dispersing the crowd around it.  

“Well, while you have my attention, you should do well to utilize it before I strike at you again,” Keniji said in short breaths. Hakumei laughed and grabbed his blades as they dropped from their flight. He motioned over to a tea house not too far away.

“Meet me in there, when you are ready to talk. I am, and will be waiting,” Hakumei said mysteriously and finally left.

“Insane monk,” Keniji gasped out, not quite catching his breath yet. He stayed on the side of the road, regulating his breathing and looking more like an embarrassment more so than a pegasai. When enough time had passed, Keniji sheathed his sword and eyed the tiny building that Hakumei had ventured into. He groaned miserbly and shuffled past the crowd and into the empty establishment. Hakumei sat there, alone with a steaming cup and in deep prayer. Keniji waited in the doorway for a moment, and then finally went inside.

“Welcome Keniji, I have been expecting you,” Hakumei said without opening his eyes. He lifted his cup and drank quietly, ordering one for the pegasai as well.

“So it seems,” Keniji responded to Hakumei’s earlier statement. “As to why, I am at a loss,” Keniji finished while thanking the tea mare.

“I am no monk,” Hakumei said rather flatly, sipping his tea a little rougher this time. Keniji shook his head in agreement.

“No monk can fight, nor are they allowed to use magic for lethal purposes,” Keniji said, quite familiar with the code of priests. He peered over at Hakumei then, who was apparently not drinking tea, but sake.

“I used to be a priest in the Celestial Palace,” Hakumei said bringing out his shaku once more. “This was issued to me by the empress herself. I have adjusted it to my needs, but at the time, it was merely a show of my expertise.” Hakuemi returned the baton to his jōe and grinned at Keniji. The colt didn’t like how this Hakumei was always smiling, and in his direction either.

“Why are you telling me this?” Keniji asked, sniffing his drink.

“I can only guess at what you’re going to do, seeing as how your family was executed and that you left Poshido,” Hakuemi began, catching Keniji’s attention. The grave Unicorn continued speaking, refusing to look at Keniji now. “It is a dark and terrible time we live in Keniji. One that shuns priests for doing their duty and punishes pegasai for having honor. But I believe you can help me,” Hakumei finished, pouring himself another cup.

“You know so much about me already,” Keniji said, drinking. “You must have just left your order.”

“True, and so I was familiar with your plight and was journeying to your home to catch you, but it seems fate has brought us together in Kita Village instead.” Hakumei’s grin returned, and he chuckled lightly. It could have been from the sake, but Keniji felt this colt could hold his alcohol.

“You have speculated correctly, Hakumei-san,” Keniji said.

“Ah, no, not Hakumei-san, just Hakumei,” the purple Unicorn corrected sharply. Keniji apologized promptly finishing his tea then.

“I mean to kill the empress. I vow to avenge the death of my family, if not by winning then by dying while I try,” Keniji reaffirmed more to himself than anything. Hakumei nodded and dropped his cup.

“That’s what I wanted to hear. And we set off,” Hakuemi said rising from the table and motioning towards the door. He walked about halfway, and then turned around to look at the still seated Keniji Kaze. “What are you doing?”

“I must complete this task alone. I do not mean disrespect, and I am thankful for your offer, but I cannot allow distractions on my quest or promote my own journey, as I mean to do this with as little confrontation as possible.” Keniji pointed to the table after explaining himself. “You forgot to pay,” he said and rose now.

“Heh, are you so sure of yourself pegasai? I mean, of completing your task alone?” Hakumei asked, tossing a few bits at the tea house manager. Both ponies exited the building and stopped in front of a line of heavily armored pegasai.

“Kaze, Keniji, the rainbow manned Pegasus. I always expected you to come to this,” the commander of this troupe said to Keniji. Keniji slowly lifted off of the ground and into the air. The seven warriors before him did the same.

“You pegasai, can’t you learn to fight on the ground like everypony else?” Hakumei teased. The crowd outside the tea shop began to flee, fully aware of who was fighting whom now. Keniji waited until the very last pony cleared the street before he unsheathed his katana.

“You said you were unsure of my ability,” Keniji said to Hakumei. Hakumei scoffed.

“You’re paraphrasing,” Hakumei replied back.

“I’ll show you I can kill these ponies and then you’ll leave me alone,” Keniji said snapping into position. The other pegasai prepared as well, taking up their blades and surrounding Keniji.

“You could barely fight me, what makes you think you can handle seven ponies?” Hakumei asked.

“They are not Unicorns. They are pegasai,” Keniji responded, darting into the air. The seven pegasai charged after the rainbow blur, unable to keep up. Keniji slowed his pace, allowing one of the pegasai to catch up. Just as the foal edged closer to Keniji, Keniji swung diagonally upward, forcing a block on his opponent’s part. The rainbow manned pegasai hit with more force, shattering the other pegasai’s blade. The force sent shards of metal into the pegsai’s eyes. Left screaming in agony, Keniji stabbed through the small opening in his neck armor, and one pegasai began his fall.

Two more Celestial warriors caught up with Keniji and began their assault. Keniji swiftly wove in and out of attacks, blocking, parrying, and countering each strike he was able to. The frustrated pegasai synchronized attacks now, working off of each other’s swings. Keniji bolted out of the conflict, and distanced himself from the threat, but backed into another pegasai awaiting his escape. Rather than completely spin around, Keniji shifted his blade to his side, holding it behind him and zooming into the pegasai. The armored warrior noticed Keniji’s blade and dodged to the left, but Keniji anticipated his move, and slashed against the warrior’s waist. Blood spilled, signaling a successful hit, and Keniji bucked the pegasai out of the air.

The previous duo of pegasai now charged at Keniji. Keniji dove, making sure to stay just out of reach of his pursuers. The ground came fast and Keniji pulled up, just avoiding a deadly collision. The other two, were not so lucky, as their armor weighed them down heavy enough for the pegasai to crash into the earth.

“The impact killed them both,” Hakumei commented, examining Keniji’s work so far. Another body fell from the sky, a bloodied mess and completely dead. Keniji landed in front of Hakumei then, boasting a bloody sword and a demon-like countenance. The remaining two pegasai landed as well, out of breath.

“Only five?” Hakumei asked playfully. Keniji grinned and pointed his blade at the other pegasai. The two warriors stripped themselves of their outer armor, taking in the full comfort ability of the natural hitatare they wore under their armor.

“Damn him. That Keniji is a master swordsman,” one of the pegasai uttered stretching out his limbs. The other inhaled deeply and resumed his flight, now being able to move more swiftly.

“You’ve only two left Keniji,” Hakumei said. “If you cannot defeat these two, I cannot uphold our promise.”

“Do not worry, you Priest,” the pegasai closest to Keniji said. “He will not live to pay for your consequences should he fail.” Keniji charged the colts now, staying low to the ground this time, kicking up a cloud of dust as he moved in. Both pegasai opposing him raised their blades and entered the dirt cloud Keniji had kicked up.

The sound of metal clanging off of each other resonated from within the dust, producing random occurrences of sparks every now and then. Both sides shared powerful blows, though Hakumei could only guess as to who was winning. After a moment, the sound of flesh being sliced preceded a yelp in pain. A few more seconds, another cry ripped through the air, and somepony dropped his katana on the floor.

The dust began to fade away now, revealing the weary figure of a solitary pegasai holding two blades and suspended in mid-flight. Keniji was panting hard, but held a satisfied look on his face. His coat and clothes were once more stained with the appalling sight of gore, yet he showed no concern at the moment. In fact, he was waiting for Hakumei to admit that he was indeed a formidable warrior.

“The talk of the Palace was that you could hold your own against Celestia’s elite pegasai single-hoofidly. Of course, these pawns were no problem then,” Hakuemi said, glancing at each body sprawled upon the earth.

“I have proven that I do not need nor want your assistance with my goal. Farewell Hakumei,” Keniji said and chucked the other pegasai’s sword onto the ground. Sheathing his blade, he spit on the floor and began to fly away.

Keniji could hear the rustling of somepony behind him, and gritted his teeth in irritation. “Hakumei, I told you-” Keniji began, but instead of Hakuemi, met with the incoming blade of one of the barely breathing pegasai.

“Die you bastard!” the half-dead pegasai cried out and swung down. Keniji could not draw his blade in time, but halted any movement when the pegasai suddenly quit breathing. Keniji stared in confusion at the corpse, and moved when it fell forward, revealing a familiar looking shaku wedged between the base of its skull and the beginning of the spine.

“You missed one,” Hakumei said, trotting over to Keniji casually. He pulled the shaku out of the pony’s skull and wiped it clean. “Shall we continue on then?” Hakumei asked, smiling that devilishly irritating smile. Keniji, speechless stared at the dead body, and then at Hakumei who was lightly dancing along as if nothing had even happened.

“You planned that,” Keniji said, annoyed at the monk’s lackadaisical demeanor. Hakumei simply waved his tail and pointed at the route leading to the exit of Kita Village.

“What now?” Hakumei asked pulling out some intriguing items.

“I stopped here to buy some supplies,” Keniji said. Hakumei shook his head.

“You’ll find nothing of worth here. Come, we shall take the route to Ringo. There are more adequate shops there,” Hakumei said motioning for Keniji to follow. Keniji reluctantly trudged on, still grimacing at Hakumei.

“I do not remember inviting you to travel with me,” Keniji said still trying to shake the monk. Hakumei sighed, scratching his head with the quill he had just brought out from his hakama.

“You said, ‘I’ll show you I can kill these ponies and then you’ll leave me alone,’ correct?” Hakumei asked, gaining Keniji’s understanding then. “Well, I also agreed on the terms that if you could not defeat all of the ponies, I would travel along with you,” Hakumei finished. Keniji jumped in disbelief.

“You never said that!” he cried out.

“I did, after you had slain that first pegasai. But then, maybe you were so engrossed in battle you just didn’t hear me,” Hakumei said disappointedly. He pulled a piece of parchment folded within his jōe and levitated both items in front of him. “How should I start this?” Hakumei asked then. Keniji, who was still mumbling about the earlier predicament, looked at Hakumei with muddled eyes.

“Start what?” Keniji wondered.

“My letter. Obviously, this feat needs to be recorded so the world can now what you’ve done,” Hakumei said still thinking.

“I told you, I do not want my travels documented monk, nor do I want to alert the nation as to what I plan on doing,” Keniji replied bitterly. Oddly enough, he was still following Hakumei to the edge of town.

“Tell that to the ponies of Kita Village, and to everpony who sees how well you and blood get along,” Hakumei remarked pointing at the villagers who were now exiting their homes and examining the lifeless bodies a few yards away. Keniji bit his lip. So far, everything this monk was telling him was making sense. Keniji would not admit defeat though.

“The road I travel entails great danger then. I am and will forever be a fugitive criminal, wanted by the empress and the land. Bounty hunters and pegasai will chase after me, I cannot guarantee you will safely traverse the land with me,” Keniji said in a final attempt to rid himself of Hakumei.

“Try as hard as you might, but I will not leave. Rather than counter every point you’ve presented me with, I will promise you one more thing,” Hakumei said and stopped as they found themselves outside of the village walls.

“I promise, my logging will not distract or interfere with your quest. As a matter of fact, all I see it doing is giving you more reason to hack and slash your way to the Celestial Palace,” Hakumei said and began writing finally.

“Who will see these?” Keniji asked.

“Everypony everywhere. I know every printing shop in this province, so do not worry about that. Like I said, it will not interfere,” Hakumei promised once more deeply engrossed in thought and writing now. Keniji sighed and peered oddly at the funny little priest that now stood before him. If Hakumei had spoken the truth, then Keniji would be fine with that.

“If your stories should somehow interfere, I will not hesitate to cut you down,” Keniji said then, laying out more terms for their partnership. Hakumei looked up from his parchment and smiled.

“That’s a good line.”

Keniji brushed past Hakumei and started along the dirt road before them. Hakumei followed closely behind, still writing.

“I’m awfully proud of this one. One of my best works yet,” Hakumei said. Keniji gazed at the Unicorn inquisitively. “I used to also be a scribe for the empress. I handled official reports and was in charge of the announcements that were to be passed from town to town,” Hakumei explained.

“What does it say?” Keniji asked curious now. His question evoked a larger grin from Hakumei, and Keniji regretted even asking now.

”To the ponies of Eqyoto and to Her Highness above:

Dear Empress Celestia-”

“Enough, I do not want to hear anymore,” Keniji said, floating along uninterested now. Hakumei looked at him rather offended and stuffed the parchment back into his tunic.

“Very well then, I’ll save it for those who do,” Hakumei said and took the lead.

“You do that,” Keniji replied, equally annoyed. The two travelers carried along, setting their sights upon the horizon.