The Calamity
Date of Event: December 13th, 1837
Location: Himuro Mansion
Game: Fatal Frame
The Calamity (禍刻) was the disaster which resulted when Kirie Himuro's Strangling Ritual failed and the Hell Gate opened. Kirie's regrets and second thoughts about sacrificing her life meant that she was no longer suited to be the Rope Shrine Maiden,[1] and her blood on the Laceration Rope was not strong enough to seal the gate.
When the Hell Gate burst open, Malice spilled out and spread throughout the mansion,[2] and everyone it touched was bound to the earth.[3] At the same time, the Holy Mirror shattered into five separate pieces. Those that survived the initial blast were massacred by the Himuro Family Master, who had been driven mad by the Malice.[4]
As a result of the Calamity, all 1347 souls within Himuro Mansion perished,[2] and more spirits returned from the Underworld.[5] Kirie herself was split into two entities: a violent, vengeful spirit tainted by the Malice, and a younger version of herself (White Kimono), who remained unaffected and wished to help her older self.[6]
Kirie and the others continued to haunt Himuro Mansion. Legends of children being taken by ghosts were common in the region,[7] and for years afterwards, locals would shut their windows on the anniversary of the ritual.[8] Later, after Ryozo Munakata inadvertently released Kirie from behind the doors in the Demon Mouth, she began to spread her curse to anyone who entered the mansion, forcing them to endure the same pain she had felt during the Strangling Ritual. Their bodies were later found with their heads and limbs severed.[9]
Though disastrous for the residents of Himuro Mansion, the Calamity in 1837 was nevertheless weakened by the influence of the remaining mirrors housed at the Five Gods Shrines,[10][11] and the Hell Gate only partially opened.[4] In 1986, the other mirrors were all shattered by an earthquake, and another Calamity threatened.[12] It was averted when Miku Hinasaki was able to gather the missing pieces of the Holy Mirror and purify Kirie Himuro's soul. Kirie's reunified spirit then sealed the Hell Gate once more, and the spirits of those trapped within the mansion were released.
References
- ↑ Priest's Writings 1, Fatal Frame
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 The Calamity Document, Fatal Frame
- ↑ Priest's Manual 1, Fatal Frame
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Priest's Writings 4, Fatal Frame
- ↑ Research Scrap 10, Fatal Frame
- ↑ Mafuyu Notes 6, Fatal Frame
- ↑ Old News Article 1, Fatal Frame
- ↑ Research Scrap 1, Fatal Frame
- ↑ News Clipping 3, Fatal Frame
- ↑ Research Scrap 3, Fatal Frame
- ↑ Black Notebook Scrap 5, Fatal Frame
- ↑ Kirie Himuro, Fatal Frame ending cutscene: "I must stop the Calamity, or else it will happen again!"