Traitors of the Shogunate

All hell had broken loose. Fire and water melded into a brilliant, yet horrifying display of utter chaos just as the attack began. The Ishin-shishi knew that they were coming - that the invasion was to begin at Tenken's core. The enemy was prepared for their boat landings. Just as the fifth boat sailed into the city, from all sides seemingly, gunfire blazed around them.

The entire first boat was annihilated right there on the spot, then most of the second and third. Even the steadfast, yet shocked commands of the COs were drowned out by the yelling of the surprised and bewildered soldiers, and those that lay dying on the boats. Many fell into the water, quite dead or barely alive only to drown after a few moments. The water ran red with the blood of the Shogunal Invasion Army.

However, even with all the chaos about them, the Generals and his adjutants snapped their soldiers back into action. Those still in boats crouched and aimed, firing into the mobs of enemy soldiers. Those who could, launched themselves onto land from the rocking boats and formed into ranks to bring hell down upon the ambushers. Barking commands, the General, Jushiro Onihara, formed the army back up - most could only just tell how shaken up he was.

Just as the ranks were made, the Ishin-shishi formed a charge - cries of Banzai and Yatta pierced the air as their feet stomped into the stone courtyard that the core of Tenken consisted of. Without fear, the CO of each regiment and platoon commanded the ranks to simply aim and open fire without fail. The Shogunal Army, finally drawn out of the clutches of despair and confusion, followed the orders to the T. Their muskets and longrifles roared to life as the ranks fired upon the charging enemy.

White smoke filled the air around them, however before the plumes set down upon them, it was quite evident that many of the enemy fell. Shots continued to fire from their backside, indicating that the enemy behind hadn't charged at the troops set over there. Onihara gave the next command: fix bayonets and prepare for the remaining enemies to charge.

The infantry did so, unsheathing their gleaming bayonets and snapping them onto the ends of their rifles. The Samurai within the ranks drew their katana and prepared with narrowed, menacing eyes for the oncoming onslaught. The white smoke started to clear then, allowing for a full view before them - the enemy was nearly there - a line of dead bodies littered the ground behind them.

When the ranks clashed, the clangs of metal on metal rang out. Screams of the soldiers being slain down on the spot created a dread atmosphere for the newer soldiers who hesitated before plunging their own blades into another man. And during this entire time, the Shinsengumi had made their slip...

The Shinsengumi detached from the army during the first volley, covered by the billowing clouds of gunpowder smoke. They ran past the suffering enemy and to a sidestreet. Their exit was well planned, and conducted smoothly. As they ran, the soldiers that they met up with - small groups of Ishin-shishi taken completely unawares, were swiftly cut down without prejudice.

As they made their way through the city, they finally found the great walls surrounding the "Hidden City" - the very hub of the Emperor's regime. The members of the Shinsengumi's 1st Unit all looked to each other, then to their commander - Souji Okita.

"Prepare yourselves. Order 117 must be fulfilled."

The center of the city, eventually, was occupied by Shogunal Forces. This resulted in the widespread retreat of the Ishin-Shishi from the core to all over the outer fringes. However, with the orders from General Onihara, no advance was made. The dead lay around the entire courtyard - many of whom happened to be soldiers of the Shogunate. Those Ishin-shishi who were still alive were either taken as prisoner, or killed on the spot depending on their condition. All in all, the first battle of the siege of Tenken was quite unsuccessful.

Nothing was going as planned. Onihara sat amongst his advisers, tacticians, and fellow COs to discuss the recent happenings in the battle while the soldiers started to fortify the city core. As they started down at the battle map, something was horribly wrong. The distant explosions and gunfire told them that the decoy attack was still progressing to their west by the city limits, however if that was the case, the enemy should have had no idea that the main force was to advance through the river and into the center. How did they know - this question pounded through the General's mind as he angrily looked down to the map.

By all means, the battle wasn't over; however now, the tables had turned. Their own intelligence was flawed, despite all confidences - the enemy had the upper hand now. The popular consensus was that either their intelligence was false, or that their battle plans were leaked. Both results boded ill for the Shogunal Army, every officer and soldier alike knew what this meant. The invasion had quickly turned against them - now they had to hold the city core for their lives.




Meanwhile, the Shinsengumi progressed with their own, shadowy mission. As they ran from side street to side street and finally came upon the "Hidden City of Tenken", their true intentions were finally enacted. Order 117, the assassination of the current Emperor, and the massacre of all His retainers was to be made that very day. Luckily for them, their intelligence was not flawed - the defense of the Hidden City was lax, as evident by the severe lack of guards around the Palace's walls.

The 1st Unit under Souji Okita advanced, slicing down the gate guards before the wall's gates. Making things a bit harder, the gates were closed, however four of the Shinsengumi brought grappling hooks and long rope. Breaking into two homes adjacent to the Palace walls, the Shinsengumi climbed to the top floors and threw their hooks. Making it to the walls, they secured the ropes and shimmied across one by one.

Making it to the battlements, engagement was almost immediate once the patrolling guards caught sight of the soldiers traveling across. The Shinsengumi that made it across split and started their attack against the guards who hastened to load their muskets that they carried. It was too late.

The two Shinsengumi who advanced upon them, instead of drawing blades, drew their sidearms and fired upon the defenders with dread efficiency. The guards fell lifeless to the ground, both with musket balls to their heads. As they crumpled, the Shinsengumi advanced still, not waiting for their comrades who still shimmied across the grappling rope. The attack began just as soon as their shots were fired. However, the entire 1st Unit was across soon enough and the massacre had started.

Several guards, heavily armored and armed had come out to defend the court in which the Shinsengumi converged upon. Battle commenced quickly as swords clanged and yells of invasion had been cried by the defenders. The Hidden City went into full alert, however it was far too late for an effective defense. The reality of the situation hit the defenders like a load of bricks - they weren't fighting ordinary soldiers.

Not one of the Shinsengumi fell yet, however more and more bodies hit the ground limply. A Sergeant of the Guard had come out from the Main Palace and into the courtyard, peering to the battle before him. That's when he bellowed in a loud voice, addressing his soldiers.

"We fight the Wolves of Mibu! Hold fast, men!"

The Shinsengumi continued their vicious assault just as the toll of alarm bells began from one of the towers within the Palace. More and more guards arrived, only to be cut down as the increasing number of unarmored, ill-prepared defenders piled up. The last of the veteran guards called for the retreat and ran off toward the gates of the palace, however were pursued by their assailants.

Several gunshots broke out, felling those closest to the gates, which prompted for those running behind to drop to the ground in fright. The Shinsengumi continued forward, only stopping to impale the stragglers and pass through the gates. As soon as they were inside the Palace, the next phase of Order 117 went into action. The gates were closed and bolted by the Shinsengumi. Splitting up, they went on in pairs to each successive room in the Palace.

The Massacre took only around twenty minutes - the Shinsengumi lost not one person in the assault but slew everyone who got into the path. Servants, Council Members, cooks, family members; all within the Palace was soon dead - all aside from the Emperor himself who still sat within the Imperial Chamber Hall.

Covered in the blood of the fallen, and the grime and filth of battle, the Shinsengumi all stood before the great double doors to the Chamber Hall. The last, most important target sat just inside, upon the throne he was thus deemed unfit for. Souji Okita approached the door, and to his surprise, he found it quite unlocked. As he pushed it open, the Unit made its way into the great Hall.

It was quite a marvel; the architecture of the Hall was indeed of Kyokan tradition, however long and elegant with marble columns and gold-trimmed groin arches. At both sides of the long expansive hallway, stood white-rocked statues depicting all the past Emperors of Kyokai in their regal poses. The great symbol of the Imperial Family sat at the very center of the hall, glittering with specks of silver and gold - a giant Chrysanthemum symbol.

The Emperor sat still upon his gilded throne, peering proudly upon the soldiers sent to kill him. The Shinsengumi stood still where they were at the opposite end of the hall, Souji took a step forward and bowed lowly toward the Emperor.

"So the Wolves bear their fangs against me? I suppose it was only a matter of time." The Emperor said quietly and calmly as he sat upon his throne in lush robes of red and gold.

"Heianhito, you have been deemed a threat to this nation and thus must be put down. The Mandate of Heaven shall be passed on to the one most worthy. Do you have any last words?" Souji said, still bowing.

"I only hold one regret, and that is that my life should end so soon before a new regime starts under the Ishin-Shishi. Perhaps my successor shall be more fit as a ruler of the world."

Souji and the rest of the Shinsengumi said nothing, however the Commander straightened back up. Drawing his own katana, he started to advance on the Emperor, who still sat quietly. The rest of the Shinsengumi stood behind at the gates, watching intently on the situation.

"Meisuru, Heianhito-dono" (Rest in Peace...)

At the moment that Souji was around twenty feet from the throne, the Emperor fished a hand into his robes and retrieved a vial of white liquid. Going to pop open the cork cap, he tipped the bottle toward his lips, prompting Souji to run forward in surprise. Running his blade through the Emperor's stomach, he fell back upon his throne, impaled and coughing up blood at the blade within struck his lung. The Emperor dropped the vial before he could take a draught, causing the glass to shatter all over the floor and the contents to spill over the velvet, silken rug.

"There will come the day... when the Shogunate falls and... leads the way unto the true Ruler of the Land. Your efforts are futile... even with my death." The Emperor managed to splutter out before he collapsed upon the throne in a pool of his own blood.

Souji removed his blade from the Emperor, and cleaned it with a white cloth. Sheathing it, he walked back to his comrades in arms and with that, they left the Chamber, calling the mission a complete success - a far cry from how the main body of the Shogunal forces perceived their situation.

"The troops are on the way home to the Shogunate today, however not in victory as one might have hoped. The Shogunal Forces mobilized to take the Imperial City of Tenken have met disaster at the hands of the enemy, the Ishin-Shishi. With over three quarters of the entire force decimated, the rest have called forth the retreat and are currently en-route south along the coast. Word has reached us, however, that perhaps a total defeat was not sustained!

Though the main forces met the enemy in defeat, the battle may not have been a total loss. The first Unit of the Shinsengumi, under the directive of the Shogun himself, had single-handedly seized the Hidden City and put an end to the Emperor's reign of terror throughout the north. Perhaps now, without their leader, the rebels will end hostilities and---"


With a look of utter disgust, Ieyasu Torunaga threw the paper down onto his dark, wooded desk. His mood, since learning of the several mistakes that he, and everyone else involved in formulating the battle plans for Tenken, had turned quite sour. This article, as true as it might have been, did nothing to quell his rising temper. Even his wife, Yuki, could not calm him.

This defeat resounded around Kyokai as if a gong had been hit. What was worse, such a blunder would be known across the seas as well. One of the only saving graces for his military was that the Shinsengumi had been able to return to the main body of the SKA and coordinate a retreat before even more people could die. The Capuan observers, whom survived the conflict, but not without their share of wounds, would indeed have many things to report back to the President - Ieyasu could already see the glaring Capuan headline upon their papers "Shogun Makes Blunder - Intelligence or Inadequacy?".

Of course, the one thing that helped to soothe such a defeat for him, such a loss of life, was the fact that Order 117 had been successfully completed. He knew that the Emperor and all but one of his party were dead - all but one - a small, small child. It was the last child of the Emperor, not yet 1 year old. The Shogun fully intended for this one survivor to make it back, for they would be the future Empress of Kyokai. Of course, she would be properly raised as all children of the Shogunate - well educated, taught manners and all traditional values of society - and most importantly, they would not be told of their eventual future until the time was right. Ieyasu wished for the child to live a mostly carefree life, and thus adopted the child into his family.

As for the truth of how she came to be a part of the Torunaga... that would be kept a secret only until the child asked questions of their true heritage. It was only right that she know why such a thing had to be done. However, alongside the defeat at Tenken, this bitter thought of the future also plagued Ieyasu's mind.

Looking back down to the paper, he read the last few lines once more. "...and put an end to the Emperor's reign of terror throughout the north. Perhaps now, without their leader, the rebels will end hostilities...". And end to hostilities? Their leader? Ieyasu questioned out loud with a frustrated laugh. He knew better than anyone within the Shogunate, that their Revolution wasn't finished yet. The real ringleader in this act had yet to rear their ugly face - the Emperor was only a figurehead, a person to rally behind.

How ironic that two governments so similar in practice could be completely different.

(REMINDER WIP - working on this Friday at some point)