“Kaoru Kamiya here again. Aoshi and I have been fighting off Shishio’s constant parade of attackers. And Shishio even resorted to sending a mazoku after us! But who should appear right in the middle of that tight battle but Kenshin, our long-lost supernaturally fast, supernaturally clueless swordsman! And what should he have but the legendary Sword of Light, which slew the great demon Zanaffar, and he cut the mazoku’s head right off! But I don’t think Shishio’s going to give up this easily. I wonder what he’ll try next?

“…which brings us to today!” Kaoru said, pounding her hands on the table. “Okay, I may have skipped over some stuff, but that’s basically the whole story.”

Shikijou and Hannya stared at her with huge sweatdrops and dumfounded expressions.

“What, you don’t understand?” she asked. “Should I start over again?”

“No, the situation’s clear, that it is,” Kenshin sighed.

“It’s just… jeez, wench, you talk a lot!” Shikijou exclaimed.

Kaoru’s eyes went wide. “I do?”

Aoshi stepped into what promised to escalate into a quarrel. “Now that we’re all up to date, may I ask you a question? Are you going to give me the Philosopher’s Stone now?”

“That sessha will not,” Kenshin responded firmly. “I will not allow it to be used for your revenge.”

“Nani?” Aoshi demanded.

“Are you two gonna start a fight now?” Yahiko scolded.

Aoshi subsided, scowling.

“Shishio is not going to have the Stone, and neither are you. Ne, Kaoru-dono?” Kenshin asked with one of those sunny smiles.

“That’s right. We can’t trust Shishio either. But there’s more to this than him just wanting to be cured. What’s he really up to?”

“Here you go!” A perky waitress interrupted to set down several enormous platters of food.

“And here I go!” Kaoru cheered. “We haven’t had a decent meal with everything going on. I’ve been dreaming about this! This is what life is all about!”

Kenshin sweatdropped.

“Let’s eat!” Kaoru cried, and began cutting a swath of destruction through the food.

“You keep stuffin’ like that, you’re gonna get fat, busu!” Yahiko told her – earning a lot of lumps for his concern.

Next, Kaoru led everyone out of the restaurant in search of an inn. “Ahh, now I’m full,” she purred contentedly. “Now to find a nice soft bed to sleep in!”

“Shishio might attack at any time,” Hannya warned. “You shouldn’t be so relaxed.

“Well excuse me for wanting to relax a little!” Kaoru exclaimed – then stopped when something small and hard slammed into her. Aoshi and Hannya immediately dropped into fighting stance. But the “attacker” turned out to be nothing but a small boy who hadn’t been looking where he was running.

“Oh, are you okay?” Kaoru asked.

“Yeah, watch it, kid,” Yahiko warned. “You can get hurt runnin’ into somethin’ that bony.”

“Oi,” Kaoru warned.

The boy picked himself up. “I’m okay.”

“That’s good.” Kaoru smiled. “Watch where you’re running from now on, okay?”

“Okay,” the little boy replied. “Sorry.”

And then something very strange began to happen. An eerie red light filled the air, and the boy’s flesh hardened into stone before their eyes!

“Stone!?” Kaoru gasped.

“Up there!” Shikijou cried.

High over their heads, a glowing sphere floated in the reddened sky.

“Shishio’s magic!” Aoshi exclaimed.

The sphere opened an enormous eye. Crimson light poured down on the stone child, taking on the outline of the Red Priest.

“Shishio!” Kaoru whispered.

“Forgive my absence, dear friends,” the apparition greeted them, just as if the town were the Great Shrine itself.

“What do you want, Red Priest?” Kaoru demanded.

“Surely I don’t need to tell you,” the priest replied, still in that pleasant tone.

“The Philosopher’s Stone de gozaru yo,” Kenshin murmured. His eyes narrowed.

“Sorry, but you’re not getting the Stone,” Kaoru announced.

“Such hostility toward me,” Shishio mourned, “even though I intend to pay for it.”

“Oh?” Aoshi asked. “And what could be worth the price of the Philosopher’s Stone?”

“What indeed?” Shishio pretended to think. “Well… the lives of everyone in this village. Would that be worth it?”

In the crimson light, Kenshin’s eyes went ominously pale, like blood-stained steel.

“What?” Kaoru screeched.

“I imagine turning them to stone like this boy would be… quite artistic.”

“That’s mad even for you, Shishio!” Aoshi exclaimed.

“That’s monstrous!” cried Kaoru.

“Feel free to come to my tower if you wish to make a deal with me,” the Red Priest went on. “I’m sure Aoshi can show you the way.” The image faded.

“Damn you!” Aoshi cried and flung a kunai straight into the magical “eyeball.” The sphere shattered in a rain of glowing red dust.

“What will we do now, Kaoru?” Yahiko asked.

“We’re just going to have to play along with him,” she answered. “He wouldn’t stop here. He probably intends to kill people in other villages too. It’s like he’s taken an infinite number of hostages.”

“Huh?” a child’s voice piped up. “What’s with all you guys?” It was the little boy who’d been turned to stone, every bit as alive as ever.

Kaoru stared, then recovered her composure. “Nothing.” She managed a smile. “It’s late, you’d better run along home.”

“Okay! See you, oneesan! Bye bye!” The boy scampered up the street.

“Do you really intend to deal with Shishio?” Aoshi asked.

“I don’t know what I’ll do,” Kaoru answered. “But what’s the harm in just talking to him?”

“He isn’t one to listen to reason,” the chimaera pointed out.

“I’m sure,” she admitted.

Far away, a mountain rose from the midst of a barren desert. Long ago, holy monks had lived there; the slopes were covered with the burnt ruins of a vast temple complex. All that remained intact were the ceremonial gateways, leading deep within the mountain’s core. Powerful magic had sculpted its upper reaches into a tower that seemed to touch the clouds. From within that tower, Shishio the Red Priest watched through his scrying-crystal. So what will you do, Kaoru Kamiya?

The same moon shone down on the village inn, and on six adventurers, each preparing in their own way for the encounter to come.

Aoshi practiced his kata, his kodachi weaving patterns of light in the deadly dance of the waterflow.

“Clear the mind,” Shikijou repeated over and over. “Clear the mind and nothing will defeat you.”

Hannya stared glumly out the window. “What a mess,” he grumbled.

Yahiko sat up in bed and reached for his shinai. “Yeah, right,” he muttered. He fell back onto the pillow, once again asleep, and soon was splitting the air with his snores.

Kaoru turned the orihalcon statue over and over in her hand, staring at it as though the Stone within could tell her some way to defeat Shishio.

Kenshin sat against the wall, his sakabatou resting against his shoulder, his eyes hidden beneath his hair. It was impossible to tell if he was asleep or awake, or if his eyes were violet or golden.

“Aren’t we at Shishio’s tower yet?” Yahiko whined.

“We should be able to see it soon,” replied Hannya.

“What’s it like inside?” Kaoru asked.

“It’s mostly empty space up to the top hall,” replied Aoshi. “It was originally a temple complex, though it’s been in ruins for a thousand years or so.”

“A thousand years…” Kaoru murmured. “Around the time a part of Shabranigdo was reborn in the War of the Monsters’ Resurrection.”

“Sou de gozaru yo,” Kenshin observed.

“There. You can see it now.” Aoshi pointed ahead.

“That’s it?” Yahiko asked.

Across a vast expanse of blighted land, they could see a lonely mountain.

“That’s Shishio’s tower,” Aoshi said. “Built out of the mountain.”

“Shishio’s tower…” murmured Kaoru.

They felt the mountain’s oppressive presence long before they came into its shadow. By the time they reached the first of the ceremonial gateways, no one spoke. They felt like they were walking to their doom.

If I’d known he lived in a place like this… how can anyone who has any goodness in them live here? Kaoru thought.

The avenue of gates led into a natural canyon, that soon became a tunnel. Horrific statues of monsters leered down at them from vaulted ceilings. In the flickering torchlight, the stone beasts seemed to move and breathe.

“Shishio!” Kaoru shouted. “We’ve come like you told us to! Why don’t you show yourself?”

Ruby light gleamed ahead of them, and they could see a glowing figure at the head of the stairs. “Shishio!” Yahiko exclaimed and clutched the hilt of his shinai.

Kenshin put out a restraining hand. “It’s another projection de gozaru yo.”

“I bid you all welcome,” Shishio intoned. “Forgive this form I’ve taken, but I am occupied at the present.

Kaoru held up the orihalcon statue. “We’ve brought the Philosopher’s Stone, but I’d prefer to give it to you in person, and I have something to ask you.”

“Agreed,” the bandaged priest replied. “Forgive me, but would you please come to the topmost chamber?” The image vanished in a shower of crimson sparks. Where it had been, a staircase led up into unknown darkness.

“That’s going to be quite a climb,” Kaoru observed.

“Aa,” agreed Aoshi.

LEVITATION!

Kaoru, Aoshi and Hannya all rose into the air. Kaoru extended her hand. “Hang on, Kenshin! We’re going up!”

“Orororoooo…”

“Hey, what about me?” Yahiko yelled.

“Kaoru-dono, help Yahiko!” Kenshin sprang onto a balcony three levels up.

“Okay, Yahiko, hang on tight!” She floated up, slowing her rate of ascent to keep pace with Aoshi and Hannya, who were carrying the bulky Shikijou.

“Hey, busu, I can’t fall, can I?” Yahiko sounded worried.

“Only if you let go,” she told him.

“Don’t drop me!” he begged. Kaoru landed on the topmost balcony. “Don’t drop me!”

“You’ve landed de gozaru yo,” Kenshin pointed out.

They opened the door and found themselves in a huge, ornate room that might have been a king’s presence chamber. On a carved and gilded throne sat the man they sought, wrapped in bandages and robed in the color of blood. “Shishio!”

“I’ve been waiting for all of you,” he greeted them.

“Looks like he’s real this time,” Kaoru observed. She held up the statue. “The Philosopher’s Stone is inside of this.”

“Will you give it to me, then?” the priest asked.

“Oh, no, it’s not that easy!”

Shishio laughed. “Surely you don’t think I can be defeated here.”

She held onto the statue. “There’s two or three things I want to know first. Answer me or I’ll destroy it right here!”

“What are you playing at?” Aoshi demanded.

“Let’s get to the point,” Kaoru continued. “What do you really want the Philosopher’s Stone for?”

“Didn’t Aoshi tell you already?” Shishio asked. “Nothing has ever worked permanently on this burned skin of mine.”

“That cannot be your true motive.” Kenshin stepped forward. Kaoru and Aoshi stared; the gentle rurouni never spoke so forcefully. “A holy priest, seeking a cure for terrible injuries, even his own, would not need to resort to deceit. He would not summon mazoku for any reason, and would not force Aoshi to take the lives of his own men.”

“Force…” Aoshi whispered.

“Hyottoko and Beshimi were loyal members of the Oniwabanshuu,” Kenshin went on. “They would not have attacked their Okashira unless they were under some kind of compulsion. Shishio is accountable for their deaths.”

Shishio laughed. “I could explain it, but you are all too weak to understand. Especially you, Himura-san, you who have vowed not to take human life.”

Kaoru thought back, back to the night she first met the Red Priest…

“Shabranigdo? The Dark Lord? Resurrect him?”

“Undoubtedly. Aoshi is a creation of utter evil, an unholy blend of human, golem and demon. He wishes to revive the Dark Lord and destroy the world.”

“Why’d he wanna do somethin’ dumb like that?” asked Yahiko.

“That I still cannot guess,” the stranger replied. “But he is now your enemy as well as mine. I am only a humble priest, but I cannot overlook his evil ambition to revive the Dark Lord. Aoshi is after the key to its revival, which fate has placed in your hands. To recover it, he will surround you with enemies.”

“It’s you, isn’t it,” she breathed. “You’re the one who’s trying to resurrect the Dark Lord!”

“WHAT?” Yahiko screeched. “You mean he’s gonna resurrect Shabrawhozis? Him, the Red Priest, the guy who goes around helpin’ everybody?”

“That is why you did not tell the truth to Kaoru-dono,” Kenshin went on. He took a couple of steps forward. His narrow eyes gleamed like sharpened blades.

“Right,” Kaoru agreed. “And why he had to spend so much time in preparation.”

“I don’t believe it,” Hannya sputtered.

“Who would imagine?” murmured Aoshi.

Shishio rose to his feet. “Well done!” he applauded. “A brilliant deduction. You figured it out first, didn’t you, Himura-san?”

Huh? Kaoru blinked. It’s almost like Shishio knows Kenshin…

“I’ll be truthful,” the Red Priest continued. “It’s all exactly as you suppose. I do indeed seek a cure for my burns… resurrecting Shabranigdo is that cure!”

“That’s insane!” Hannya shouted. “You’d destroy the world just for your own benefit?”

Shishio shrugged. “It is the duty of the weak to become food for the strong. And if a man cannot be strong enough to achieve his ends by himself, then he must turn to either the Gods or the Mazoku. The Dark Lord’s power is the strongest of all.”

I was only half kidding about the stuff I said, Kaoru thought. I didn’t really expect it to be true… wow, life can be too deep to handle sometimes! “Well, now that we know that, there’s no way we’re letting you have the Stone!”

Kenshin dropped into battoujutsu stance. Aoshi’s hands tightened on his kodachi.

“Really?” Shishio asked in an amused tone. “Well, let’s see what happens.”

“I’ll blast it, right here and now!” Kaoru threatened. She drew her bokken, glowing with magical energy.

Shishio stood up. The base of his staff struck the floor, making the rings chime. Crimson light enveloped him.

Life born of hardest stone,
Formed of weak flesh,
Let the spell release you
And return you to your home.
Become one with my will
And become mine!

Behind Kaoru, Aoshi went rigid and cried out in agony.

“Now dance, my loyal puppet!” Shishio commanded.

His eyes glowing red and his marble face contorted in a monstrous snarl, Aoshi struck at Kaoru. The orihalcon statue flew from her hand. Encased in a bubble of magical light, it floated toward Shishio.

“The Philosopher’s Stone!” Shishio cried in triumph.

Kaoru made a supreme effort, jabbed her elbow into Aoshi’s middle, and broke free.

“Aoshi!” Kenshin cried.

“He’s under Shishio’s control!” Kaoru exclaimed.

“Now be so kind as to play with these people here,” Shishio purred to his puppet.

Aoshi drew his kodachi and charged at Kaoru, only to find his attack blocked by Shikijou’s massive blade.

Shishio turned and vanished into a dark doorway. The doors closed behind him.

“Shishio!” Kenshin raced after the Red Priest.

Shikijou wrapped his massive arms around Aoshi. “He’s going to resurrect Shabranigdo!” he yelled.

Aoshi broke free of Shikijou’s hold and leaped high over everyone’s heads. He landed in front of the door, blocking Kenshin’s path with the twin blades of his kodachi.

“Aoshi!”

“Okashira!”

And Shishio raced up a narrow, twisting stone corridor. “Buy me the time I need,” he murmured. He entered the tower’s topmost chamber, a great circular room whose floor was inlaid with magical symbols. At his touch, the masking orihalcon figurine vanished, leaving a small, irregular block of stone that floated in front of his burned and bandaged eyes.

“The true Philosopher’s Stone,” he said to himself. “With this…”

Shishio extended his staff toward the object. A ray of crimson light struck the stone, which began to glow in response. The stone’s light raced through the glyphs, filling them with magical radiance.

And below, the fight went on.

“Come to your senses, Okashira” Shishio cried.

“He’s delaying us!” Kenshin exclaimed.

“Leave it to me!” Kaoru declared.

“Kaoru-dono, what will you do?”

”We don’t have much time. I’ll settle this in one shot!”

“You’re going to do a spell attack?” gasped Hannya.

Aoshi saw her coming and charged toward her. Kaoru slashed down with her bokken.

DIEM WING!

A blast of energy blew Aoshi back and slammed him into the wall.

“WAKE UP!” Kaoru screamed, and followed the magical blast with a fierce kick to Aoshi’s marble midsection.

He sat up, rubbing his head. “What happened?”

“And another one!” Kaoru screeched, and smashed Aoshi over the head.

“He was already back to normal, Kaoru-dono,” Kenshin pointed out.

“Okashira!” Shikijou ran to Aoshi’s side.

“What happened to me?”

“You were under Shishio’s control,” Kaoru told him. “He probably programmed you when he changed your body, so that you’d be sure to follow his orders.” She looked at Shikijou and Hannya. “You two, if he changed you too, he might have put controls in as well.”

“And Hyottoko… and Beshimi,” Aoshi murmured. “He killed them, more surely than if he’d struck them down with his own hand!” His fist smashed into the stone floor. It left a dent.

“No time for that!” Kaoru exclaimed. “If we don’t stop Shishio…”

They rushed through the door and along the dark corridor, up seemingly endless stairs that ended in a room brilliant with magical light.

Kaoru recoiled from the glare.

“What a huge magic circle!” gasped Hannya.

Shishio stood in the center of the circle; he had already begun his invocation. “Shabranigdo,” he intoned. “The time of your rebirth has come!”

The Philosopher’s Stone, floating above his head, shattered!

“What the…?” the Red Priest gasped.

“Did he fail?” Hannya asked.

“No,” whispered Kaoru. “The power in here is getting stronger!

Shishio barely kept his feet, surrounded by swirling energies, enveloped in coruscating light.

“Were we too late?” Aoshi wondered.

Shishio screamed, the scream of a man in mortal agony. Red light shone through his bandages.

“He was wrong,” Kaoru observed.

“What?” Aoshi asked.

Then Shishio laughed. “At last! I’ve done it at last!” Then he screamed again, and the red light seemed to burn his form away.

“The tower isn’t the binding place of Shabranigdo at all,” Kaoru marveled. “This is only the place for the ceremony! The Dark Lord… the Dark Lord was bound within Shishio’s own body!”

The red light grew brighter.

“The Dark Lord is being reborn!”

And that which had been Makoto Shishio, Red Priest, was entirely consumed by the light! The glowing form warped, changed from the outline of a man into something monstrous, while the priest’s dying scream became a Mazoku lord’s triumphant roar.

NOTES, EXPLANATIONS ETC.

I warned everybody there was drama and angst ahead! And more to come – our heroes are in a real pinch! Just a couple more chapters, and then it’s back to silliness for a while!