-38-40-

First Story:    First game

-41-
somewhere, mostly in the middle of nowhere, a jeep makes its roadless way…
Son Goku
Gojyo! Switch seats with me! When you sit up front, all your cigarette smoke blows back on me!
Sha Gojyo
Oh yeah. Sorry. I forgot we had a kid riding in the back.
Goku- Whadjyu say?!

-42-
Genjo Sanzou
Would you two twits knock it off. You wanna get tossed out and have to run?
Cho Hakkai
Ha ha ha… patience, patience. We should be able to see the next town shortly. Supposedly, it has a place where we can sleep in real beds for a change.

-43-
in a chaos-riddled age where Heaven and Earth mingled indiscriminately, there was a land where human and youkai could live side by side. the land from which came civilization and organized religion--- Tougenkyou. however, now a Calamity has begun, casting its shadow over all lands…

-44-
Kouchin Town.
a young girl finds herself cornered by three thuggish kids. in true city fashion, all the passers-by are just that-- passing by. even with no help forthcoming, the girl puts a brave face on things, protectively clutching a small parcel to her chest.
Thug 1- Yo girlie! Where's your apology, huh?
Girl- Nowhere! You ran into me on purpose!
Thug 2- Hand over them veggies and we'll forgive you. Don't wanna scar up such a pretty face, y'know.
Girl- ! Knock it off---!

-45-
of a sudden, one of the thugs finds himself looking at the ground from point-blank range, one heavy boot mishing his face into the pavement. da da da DA, Hero Gojyo to the rescue! …right?
Gojyo- Well crap. Too young. Oi, is there an inn around here somewheres? Tavern maybe?

-46-
Girl- ……huh?
…she's still working over the whole being-rescued-by-strangers bit.
Thug 2- Who the hell are you two?! You think you can just butt in and---
WHAM
though Goku's smaller, his punch sends the freckled punk spinning like a top.
Goku- Bingo!

-47-
Sanzou- Oi! Goku! Gojyo! Didn't I just get done telling you two twits to keep a low profile?
…he shouts across a crowded market square while standing in a rare metal vehicle decked out in his full priestly regalia.
Hakkai- We stand out quite a bit ourselves, Sanzou.
Goku- But we were just…
Sanzou- Be quieter about it next time.
Girl- A jeep……? //thinking// Like riding in a metal vehicle around here isn't going to stand out. Just who are those people?
somewhere along the line, a pepper fell out of the Girl's bag of veggies. Goku helpfully picks it up and hands it back to her.
Goku- Here.

-48-
Goku- Me 'n my friends are making a journey. Do you know where an inn with great food is?
Hakkai- If there is also space to park Jeep, we would be most grateful.
Girl- Uhm… actually, my family…
little does the poor girl know what she's getting into. not only is she agreeing to feed Goku, a monumental task in and of itself, but she's also feeding Gojyo. at the same time. whenever those two are confined to the same small space at the same time, some sort of chaos ensues sooner or later…
Goku- AH!! Bastard, that's MY sweet 'n sour pork! Give it back!
Gojyo- Sit down, shut up and live with it, Monkey Boy. Why don'tcha try eating some greens for once, eh?
Girl- o.O;;

-49-
Goku- Don't you tell me what to eat, you C-class lech kappa!
Gojyo- What did you just call me? Shitty CHIMP!
…alright. Sanzou's short temper has had enough. out comes the halisen from wherever the hell he keeps the thing…
WHAM
Sanzou- Eat quietly! QUIETLY!!
Hakkai- Excuse me, could we have some more tea please?
Girl- //thinking// hee hee. They're so weird.
a bespectacled elderly man, the innkeeper, comes walking up to the table, a bright grin on his face.
Girl- Daddy!
Innkeeper- Gentlemen, this is thanks for saving Houmei. Eat as much as you want!
Hakkai- We're in your debt.
Innkeeper- Nah, it's nothing. By the way, y'all came from the East, right?

-50-
Sanzou- Yeah, we did.
Houmei- Wow, that's odd!
The Guys- ::gak!::
…the last thing they need is even more reason to stand out…
Houmei- The Eastern Desert is so dangerous, humans don't usually cross it. I'm so glad you all made it through safely! ::you've gotta be really brave!:: Especially now that there's those rumors about a super-violent gang of 4 youkai over that way. It's said that wherever the go, they leave a mountain of youkai corpses behind. Yet, they're leaving humans alone for some reason.

-51-
Goku- Gee…. Y'know, that sounds a lot like u--
THUNK
fortunately for the Guys, Gojyo stopped Goku before he could say too much. unfortunately for Goku, it was by slamming his face into the table.
Gojyo- Sorry. There was a fly on the back of your head.
rii~~ight…
Goku- ………
Sanzou- Too bad you missed it.
Hakkai- Don't mind us.
Houmei- ……? ^.^;;;
Sanzou- Speaking of youkai, has the behavior of the local ones changed much recently?
Innkeeper- Yes, though nobody really knows the how or why of it. They'd been living peacefully like always until just a little while ago, when they just up and vanished one day-- after eating 10 of the human villagers. None of the humans here have the vaguest idea what happened.
Sanzou- //thinking// …same story as the other villages.

-52-
Sanzou- //thinking// Just like the Sanbutsushin said. The Calamity's already touched every part of Tougenkai. Youkai contaminated by the Frenzy are sowing seeds of fear in humanity, tipping the Balance further… it's a vicious cycle.
Houmei- I hate youkai!!
Innkeeper- Houmei!
Houmei- But daddy! They EAT humans! They're just monsters!
Innkeeper- Houmei!! //to the Guys// … sorry. One of the victims in that first attack was her friend…

-53-
sensing an upcoming touchy subject, Hakkai, gentleman that he is, quickly steers the conversation onto safer ground.
Hakkai- Thank you for dinner. It was quite delicious. Houmei, were you the one to make it all for us?
Houmei- …yes.
Goku- Really? That's so cool! It's been forever since I had such good stuff! Thanks!
Houmei- uhm… your welcome.
tender topics dully danced around, and information gleaned on both sides, the Guys head off to bed. but first, a round of cards… otherwise known as Hakkai Stomps Gojyo and Goku.
Goku- Ta daa~~! Twenty-one! I got twenty-one!

-54-
Hakkai- Oh. I have black jack.
Gojyo- Dammit! This makes how many times in a row?!
Sanzou- //thinking// It's been ten days since we left Choan…
flashback, ten days ago…
Male Sanbutsushin- The Calamity is continuously eroding away at our world. The cause of it, and the Frenzy, is rooted in the resurrection attempt of Gyumaoh. The dirty magicks being used by those conducting the experiment-- this "Synthesis of Chemistry and Demonology"-- carry such negative force that it's permeated through all Tougenkai.

-55-
Male Sanbutsushin- Your mission is to discover and ascertain by whom and for what reason the "Gyumaoh Resurrection Experiment" is being conducted. Then disrupt it.

"Gyumaoh" -- the Greater Youkai 500 years defeated and buried in Houtou Castle, Tenjikukoku, by the warrior god Prince Nataku. Refusing to co-exist with humans, he instead chose to eat them.

Male Sanbutsushin- All the answers lie in Tenjikukoku. Genjo Sanzo, you are to depart immediately for the West.
Sanzou- As you wish.
Blonde Female Sanbutsushin- Oh, one more thing…

-56-
Blonde Female Sanbutsushin- The "keepsake" from your Master for which you have been searching -- the "Heavenly Sutra" Sei Ten Kyoumon -- is purportedly necessary for the revival attempt.
Sanzou-  !!   //thinking//  The one I carry is the "Demon Sky Sutra"-- the Ma Ten Kyoumon. In it resides the power to shatter darkness. My Master, Koumyou Sanzou Houshi, carried the Sei Ten Kyoumon, a Sutra that could birth the light of hope. The night he was murdered by some nameless youkai, that Kyoumon disappeared without a trace. How the hell did it end up going West…?
Voice- ….zou?

-57-
present.
Hakkai- Sanzou? Would you like some coffee?
Sanzou- Yeah, thanks.
Hakkai- Bringing up our previous conversation, it seems humankind has developed a healthy distrust of all youkai.
Sanzou- True. Regular people don't know the reasons behind the Calamity. To them, it's gotta look like youkai are "finally showing their true natures."
Gojyo- It'd be pointless to tell them "please understand" now, after all that's been done.

-58-59-
Hakkai- Even in our case, aside from Gojyo, Goku and I have to wear these Power Limiters before we're fit for polite company.
Sanzou- //thinking// Those three…
ten days ago…
Male Sanbutsushin- The one who insists you travel with those three youkai is none other than Kanzeon Bosatsu, Heaven's First Among Equals. As you know, those three are youkai, yet human-- twinned beings. For precisely that reason, they will not feel the effects of the Minus Wave.

With that power to resist the Minus, plus your strength of spirit…
For the sake of Togenkyou… nay
For the sake of that which you hold dear…
GO WEST

-60-
Reality
Sanzou- //thinking// …but will it actually work?
::Hakkai- oh my::
Goku- YO! What's up with this "win then run", huh?!
Gojyo- Hey, YOU were the one who said "just ONE more time", remember?!
despite the ruckus Goku and Gojyo are kicking up inside, they Guys are still good enough to notice when there's a ruckus nearby that's not (yet) their fault. looking out the window, a trio of pretty girls can be seen walking towards the inn.
Sanzou- Oh yeah. The innkeeper did say there was another reservation for tonight-- some sort of tourist group.
Gojyo- Hot damn! Dancing girls! Maybe I can get one of them to give me a private dance…
Hakkai quickly blows the whistle on that one, literally.
Hakkai- PG please!

-61-
several men bring up the rear of the tourist group, some of whom look decidedly sketchy. one locks eyes with Sanzou for the briefest of moments…
Sanzou- ……?
definite sketchiness.
Goku- So what're we going to do for the night? Houmei said that once the tourists get here, the only rooms that'll be left are all singles.
Sanzou- Right. We never know when or where youkai will ambush us, so staying together as much as possible is wisest…or so I should say. But…

-62-
Sanzou- …in the time it took us to get here, I've seen enough of your unconscious mugs to last me a lifetime. Split up!
Hakkai- Everyone be careful. Good night.
so the Guys head off, each to their own separate room and, without the goad of the others' presence, each falls quickly into peaceful sleep.

-63-
…which is precisely the opportunity the "tourists" were looking for. the guy whom Sanzou spotted earlier in the evening slips quietly into the priest's room, bare dagger upraised and ready to strike down a sleeping Sanzou…

-64-
unfortunately for him, the Sanzou in this room is an awake one.
Sanzou- Weak.
he easily catches the dagger, knocking it out of the Intruder's hand while at the same time slamming the guy face first into the floor, arm still torqued up a painful angle.

-65-
not quite that easy to beat, the Intruder squirms his way out of the hold, claws aimed for Sanzou's throat. he misses by a mile. Sanzou doesn't, his axe kick neatly arcing up and crashing down square on the Intruder's head.
Sanzou- Sooooo pathetic.
Invader- Damnit, YOU DIE!

-66-
alright, play-time is over. who knows where he hid it, but Sanzou whips out a snub-nosed pistol, snugging it right under the Intruder's chin.
Sanzou- Uh-uh. Not me, pal.
the Intruder freezes instantly, his first smart move of the evening. incidentally, this gives Sanzou ample time to get a good look at him.
Sanzou- Thought so. Going a little overboard, are we? …Who's paying you? //thinking// Pointed ears. A patterned birthmark. You can tell at a glance that this guy's something other than human. -------obviously youkai.
**click** Sanzou thumbs back the hammer. it looks like his short temper's fraying already…
Sanzou- Commit the forbidden and you'll birth chaos. Who's the guy pulling your strings.

-67-
Sanzou- //thinking// and where the hell's my Master's keepsake? //aloud// Spill. You've got 10 seconds.
1......
the Intruder gulps.
2......
have I mentioned Sanzou's got a short temper?
Sanzou- Time's up!
BANG
he sends a shot whizzing past the youkai's ear.
Intruder- HUH?! ::But it's only been 2...::
still, the intimidation tactic worked.
Intruder- I don't know nothing about string pulling. We're just following Kougaiji-sama's orders.
Sanzou- //thinking// Kougaiji? He's the only son of Gyumaoh and Rasetsunyo, the Lady of the Silken Temple. I heard he's skilled in both martial and demonic arts. He's supposed to be a decent guy too. I dunno if he's got the scientific know-how to revive a demon king on his own but…

-68-
Intruder- You sure you should be so complacent…?
Sanzou- Hm?
Intruder- An assassin was sent to each room. Even now, your friends could be---
Sanzou- Hmph. Yeah, and? Sorry, pal, I'm not the kind of guy who's gonna freeze up worrying about someone els---?!
well, that distraction worked nicely. Sanzou's caught completely by surprise by the white strings that fly out of nowhere, wrapping snuggly around his hands. the gun is knocked free.

-69-
Sanzou- //thinking// Shit, adhesive strings?!
hon, you were waaaay out of it there. another youkai, the source of the strings, has made her way into the room. naked from the waist up, there's a large rose mark on her sternum. an unconscious Houmei dangles from her arms.
Spider-Witch- That's right, boy. No need to worry your pretty head about others…
Sanzou- //thinking// A Were-spider!
Spider-Witch- …because you'll be dead soon yourself.

-70-
still a smidge slow on the uptake, Sanzou finally notices Houmei.
Sanzou- So you've got a hostage, huh.
Spider-Witch- No prey has ever escaped from the nets cast by we of the Night Spider Clan. Your Eminence Genjou Sanzou Houshi.
somewhere else, the Innkeeper lies sprawled on the floor, blood seeping steadily from an impressive cut on his forehead.
Innkeeper- Hou……mei…

-71-
Spider-Witch- It seems we've caught quite the prize this time, heh heh.
Sanzou- //thinking// There's some sort of distortion on the ceiling. That means illusion-magic, not demon power. Thoughtless.
gingerly, he tugs on the threads binding his arms but his skin starts to give way before they do.
Spider-Witch- Do give up your pointless resistance, would you? Don't you care what happens to this girl?
Sanzou- Enough. I'll kill you.

First Game
OWARI

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