Shin Touitsukyou

So-termed 'New Religions' are on the rise in Japan. Shin Touitsukyou was among them. Unlike most of these religions, though, the organization hid something a little darker.

Overview

Shin Touitsukyou was effectively a cult, if a benign one for most of its public tenure. However, that eventually changed, and the group suddenly became much more dangerous. This happened because through uncertain means, one of their members, Shigehito Mishima, had come across information that stated that there was an entity, a God that could bring about their aims much faster and appeared to also support his much-scorned academic theories. It was a short stop from there to convincing their leader, Yokoro, of the importance of their work.

The only problem was that to summon the God, five people would have to die. After the first, Mishima began to have his doubts. And so the wheel turned, onwards to the near-emergence of the God into this world. Once it was half-summoned upon Mifune's slope, it infected all of the cultists, slowly turning them into twisted monsters. Marei attempted to stop this through continuing the rite, but this too was ended.

The God was finally stopped after minions under its direct control were defeated while in the process of trying to sacrifice Ayaka Watanabe within Lunarvale's ruins, and the group was disbanded, though not without cost.

Beliefs

The following were among Shin Touitsukyou's beliefs:

• All people are one
• Separation is the cause of all woes
• Death is not the end; people are reunified with the cosmic whole when they die
• They emphasized meditation
• Things happen for a reason - a sort of deification of contingency and chance
• The believed that mankind's separation from one another will be its end, and that this must be rectified
• Technology played a role in mankind's separation

Believers tended to be those who felt for one reason or another, they were outsiders in this world.

Goals

Simply put, the group believed that all people should be reunited.

It was just that events granted that a more sinister twist, leading them to wish to do so 'by force' if necessary. Many of their own people died, either as sacrifices for their God or as they succumbed by the force of their God's half-presence into the world, mutating into monsters that were soon expunged.

Prominent Members

• Katsumori Yokoro - The leader. Died on Mifune along with Daichi Fujino. He was the one who orchestrated the plan to revive the god.
• Michiyo Suzuki - The first to be killed as a sacrifice. Very devout, went willingly to her death.
• Shigehito Mishima - The director of the Lunarvale Historical Society. He was a close friend and was shaken by Michiyo's death. Losing his faith in the religion, he was gathering evidence against them when he was killed as the second sacrifice. It was he who originally conceived of summoning the god, but he came to regret it. Had very unorthodox ideas about Japanese history, and had a theory that 'Himiko' was a title rather than a singular person, and that the Himikos played an important role with the ancient bronze mirrors and cleansing rites.
• Daichi Fujino - A young man and the third sacrifice. He temporarily became host to the God, and would have been the God's body had he not been killed on Mifune.
• Kyouko Hirasawa - A doubter, similar to Shigehito. She provided some information on the group. Sadly, she transformed as many of the cultists had and was killed.
• Yuzuru Okada - The man serving as executioner for the sacrifices. In jail now.
• Marei Nanae - Became leader after Yokoro's death. She was to be the fourth sacrifice, but was stopped. Currently in jail.

Current Status

Basically defunct. A few die-hards are around somewhere though.

Remaining Questions

For those who like to poke at old things!

• What was the God and where did it come from? Mishima's old schoolmate suggested their academic adviser and mentor had met something in the mountain that terrified him, and may have led to the man's death from a heart attack months later.
• What was the mirror? It was not actually found in Lunarvale as claimed, but had been collected by Mishima from his mentor's belongings and later planted in the ruins for his own student to find.
• If there are any believers left, what are they doing? Would they try it again?
• For that matter, is the God dead? Or worse, what if there are more like it?