The Twelve Kingdoms: The Shore in Twilight

opened like sails seeking a fresh breeze. But the air had fallen still since noon. The open windows and doors welcomed only the faded, reflected light, the baking air, and a quiet hustle and bustle that invited sleep.
    Perhaps having grown tired of the insufferable heat as well, the birds deserted the skies, escaping the rays of the sun for the shade of the trees. A dog crawled into the thin, dark shadow beneath the eaves of a house and dozed off. An old man napped in a chair next to the slumbering dog. As the old man slept, his fan dropped from his hand. The dog managed to raise his snout and cast his master a languid look.
    At that moment a shadow fell across the sun.
    The dog aroused himself expectantly. From the east a cloud stole across the summer sky like invading shoku. The smell of the humid breeze reached his snout and he heard the sound of distant thunder. The cloud now covered the entirety of the heavens and in short order the surrounding area plunged into darkness.
    The black shadow appeared in the skies above Gyouten at the same time. As if driven on by the lead-colored clouds, it appeared from the east, tracing a wide arc as it approached Ryou'un Mountain. The denizens of the city awaited the rain. Among them some looked up and recognized what they saw.
    Its wings were pathetically weak, the plumage covering the white wings fouled and out of kilter, the black flight feathers torn and missing. It could barely maintain its glide path. The wings desperately raked at the heavy, wet air. Descending like a wounded bird, it closed on Ryou'un Mountain.
    Drops of rain began to fall, as if to batter the shadow into the ground. In a flash the rain became a downpour assaulting its wings. Just before it vanished into the mists, it seemed to the spectators watching this spectacle that the upper reaches of mountain had taken a breath and sucked it into the towering heights.
    The figure was swallowed up in the streaks of pouring rain.

    Toshin loitered beside the enormous gates. The gates were located halfway up the side of Gyouten Mountain on a cliff just below the Sea of Clouds. The secured gates were set into a cave-like alcove many times the height of a man. In front of the alcove was a broad ledge. This was the "Forbidden Gate," which provided the only direct access to the Imperial Court and the highest levels of Kinpa Palace on Gyouten Mountain above the Sea of Clouds.
    It was past noon. Along with the regular rotation of the guard, Toshin took his position in front of the gate. Below the ledge, the city of Gyouten spread out below him, shimmering in the hot air. There were no breezes even at this great height. The heat hung around him like a sauna.
    Clouds finally began to gather in the skies above his head. The clouds came from the east, crawling towards the Sea of Clouds as if licking at its base. Toshin heard the sound of distant thunder. A misty haze filled the surrounding air. The sheer weight of the clouds seemed to push them down towards the Forbidden Gate, blotting out the sun.
    The light drizzle did not even reach as far as the shuttered gates. Toshin observed the leading edge of the ledge turning gray with dampness. Along with the cool, damp breeze the faint rumbling seemed to course along the ground where he stood.
    Toshin sighed nonchalantly. "Looks like rain," he said to Gaishi next to him.
    "Yeah." Gaishi took a deep breath, showing his white teeth. "At least it makes the weather easier to put up with. Armor gets awfully stuffy in this heat." He grinned.
    Gaishi was the sergeant in charge of the five-man squad at the Forbidden Gate. Being the sergeant he was the most experienced, the most skilled, and the one most likely to take charge of a situation. Yet Gaishi didn't lord it over the rest of them. He wasn't stuffy or high-handed. Whether that was how a sergeant should be, or whether that was simply the way Gaishi was, the inexperienced Toshin really didn't know.
    Toshin had joined the military a year after the new Empress was enthroned. Following a year of training he was assigned to the Army of the Left. He'd served officially in this position for half a year. He hadn't worked under any other command but Gaishi's.
    A platoon of twenty-five soldiers guarded the Forbidden Gate. One platoon consisted of five squads. Many of the other sergeants and the captain in charge of the platoon were as personable as Gaishi. At least according to the rumors he'd heard, this was hardly the case with other