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Whispers of the Forest
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Chapter 1: Journey
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Author: Kintora
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A/N: Hey all, I'm currently in the process of revising most of my stories. It's just been too frustrating, trying to continue old fics I could barely read without dying of embarrassment. Some of the plot and characters may change from the original story.
I've always wondered what happened to Kaya after Ashitaka left the Emishi village. She was incredibly brave and intriguing, it was a shame we never saw her again after Ashitaka began his journey. Growing up watching the film, I always thought they were siblings. However, I'm not sure if that was Miyazaki's true intention. Coming from a cultural perspective of the Muromachi period and the last records of the Emishi history, it's possible that Kaya and Ashitaka were the equivalent of royalty and actually betrothed. Due to these revelations, I will write with certain sensitivities in mind. As for what those would be - read on to see for yourself.
Finally, I'd like to thank you all for reaching out to me over the years. Your encouragement means a lot, and helps re-inspire me when I lose interest or hit a writer's block. This new chapter is dedicated to all of you who have supported my writing in the past. To veteran and new readers, enjoy!
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My eyes snapped wide open as I sprang to my feet silently. It was still dark, though a feeling of unease woke me from a deep sleep. Adrenaline raced through my body like cold fire, evaporating my fatigue. It wasn't the first time I woke with my heart pounding, hearing phantom sounds outside. I lived alone these last seven years, relegated to the village border. Listening intently, I picked up on alarming sounds coming from the village in the distance. Faint yells echoed in the night outside my home.
Dressing as quickly as I could, I donned my cloak and stone dagger. Swiftly tying a sash around my waist, I searched for my sheathed chokuto in the semi-darkness. Grabbing my bow and quiver, I cautiously brushed my straw mat to the side.
There was smoke rising from the village, and an malevolent crimson glow illuminating the forest line. Rushing over the foot path towards the village, an unnatural heat fanned over me as I broke through the brambles in my way. Fire swept through half the small buildings in the area, staining the inky night sky with a sickening sheen of blood red. For a moment, I could only stare at the destructive light, easily consuming wood and straw structures in the clearing.
On instinct, I ducked just as something lodged into the branch above my head with an ominous thud. Greasy red feathers glistened in the blazing fire light.
I dodged again, taking cover as I fled to towards the nearest building. There was so much smoke, heat, and chaos. Men fought, as screams of the fearful and dying rended the night air. A woman's blood-curdling cry pierced my ears, but as I started towards it, her scream cut off with an ominous gurgle. Amidst the clash of weapons, the yelling and screaming, I could also pick out the the voices of panicked children.
I was close to the stables. I could find Kiba, and I could escape the bloodbath. But my feet were glued to the ground, frozen in place. Dirt caked between my toes. Icy sweat soaked my back and face. My heart thundered in my ears, as short, hasty breaths sawed through my lungs. I was scared. More scared than I had ever been.
Perhaps, more scared than facing a giant demon boar god as it slowly turned towards my friends and I, evil eyes widening as the monster descended upon us. Once again I stood face to face with certain death. But this time, Ashitaka wasn't here. I was alone.
Looking around the corner, I could see a young boy dragging himself along the wooden building I was hiding behind. Arrows stuck from his leg and back. Slipping back into the open again, I grabbed his arm and looped it around my neck, pulling him into the shadows with me.
"You're going to be okay," I heard myself saying, "Yuuya, right? I remember you."
The boy looked up weakly, blood dripping from his chin. "Princess!"
"Don't speak, you'll lose more blood. Stay with me."
Tears slipped from the corners of his gritty eyes, carving tracks in the dust covering his face. "...S-scared. I'm so scared."
"I know." A knot formed in my throat as I watched his small chest stop moving, "May you find peace, Yuuya."
As I moved his small, cooling body from my lap, I wondered how many more Yuuyas this madness would create. As I looked upon the little boy's crumpled corpse, I realized peace was merely an illusion. How many more people - my people - would be lost tonight? In the future? We were all dying. And not just dying; we were dying out.
Suddenly, I was flooded with a reckless abandon born from rage. If we were all to die, then I would die honorably tonight alongside my people. But first, I would spill as much of the enemies' blood as payment.
"Kaya."
I spun around, searching for the voice that spoke my name and met the wizened visage of the village wise woman. Why had she not fled? What was she still doing here?
"These beasts will not stop until everything here is destroyed. You will not be spared. Leave while you still can, my princess."
I stubbornly remained rooted to the ground. "I'm no coward! I will not run away."
The elderly wise woman peered into my face, the leathery creases in her tranquil face deepening in the eerie light. Her wrinkled lips moved softly, "Leave. You cannot save any lives tonight. And if to your heart's desire, continue your fight upon your return. To die here is not your destiny. The fate of the Emishi rests with you."
"What do you mean?" My anger lifted briefly, "What can I do to save our people?"
She nodded calmly and looked into the distance, her purposeful gaze seemed to see something beyond the forest. Her voice softened, "Head for the West, my child. There, you will encounter a crossroad. Which path you will choose, not even the gods know. But what you choose will shift the balance."
"What balance?" I demanded, my hands grasped her frail shoulders, "Please tell me. I don't want to choose wrongly!"
I bit back a shriek as the ground below me tore open violently. I covered my face and fell to my feet from the explosion nearby as the wind whipped my face and snagged at my clothes.
As soon as I could control the vertigo - the awful ringing in my ears, I looked for the wise old woman. I found her on the ground beside me. Bracing her small, broken body against mine, I felt something wet and warm gush past my fingers. Looking down, I saw wooden splinters piercing her chest. With each gaping breath, her blood poured from her lips. Her eyes were barely open as she looked up at me. With the last of her strength, she pushed my hand up against the deerskin pouch around her neck.
Then the wise woman's breath ceased and her eyes stared sightlessly up at mine. No, through me to some point beyond even the fathomless sky. I held her hand for a brief moment before taking the pouch from her. The dwindling warmth in her fingers began to dissipate as I let them go to close her eyes.
The battle cries and fighting brought me back to the present. Stowing the pouch away, I retrieved my chokuto and fled to the stables.
Most of the horses were gone - either spooked and escaped already, or looted by our attackers. I let out a sharp whistle, but there wasn't any movement except for a few startled pigs and sheep. My elk wasn't here. Struggling to control my panic, I left the stables. But before I could get very far, a sharp piercing pain in the side of my thigh crippled me. Looking down, I spotted the arrow lodged in my upper thigh.
Throwing myself to the side into a crouch, I narrowly escaped another barrage of arrows thudding into the ground in my wake. Hearing the shouts of foreign invaders drove me further into the forest cover, despite the white hot flashes of pain throbbing in my leg. Letting out another short, sharp whistle, I prayed Kiba was close enough to hear me.
Unable to move any further without addressing my wound, I sat and stretched out my bloody leg under the overhang of a girthy tree. Gritting my teeth, I snapped the arrow shaft and slipped the broken end into my sash. Black and white spots appeared before my eyes, as I fought back the nausea from the pain. Feeling the bloody wound, I realized the arrowhead hadn't gone through my leg. Yet it was too dark to fish out with my dagger. All I could do was bind it as tightly as I could for now.
Before long, I could hear my pursuers crashing through the inky foliage, following my trail by torchlight. I could see the line of floating lights coming closer and spreading out. It was only a matter of time until they found me, hidden under the tree. Turning away, I leaned the back of my head against the rough, mossy bark. Sweat poured over my eyes despite the early morning chill.
I had been ready to die back there. And now, after receiving even the smallest glimmer of hope, I realized I didn't want to die. I couldn't die. Not here. Not yet.
But a light flickered across my face, and my eyes snapped open. It was one of them. He was a young man, not much older than I. He was dressed in foreign armor. One of the Yamato, but... His black eyes met mine, sweat dotting the side of his face. Deliriously, I winced in the light playing over me. He opened his mouth to shout, but I spoke first.
"...Nii-sama. Is that you?"
He paused, blinking as the hard look he'd pinned on me softened. The blade he had pressed against my neck trembled, drawing a trickling line of blood. Roughly, he drew his weapon back. For a moment I thought he was preparing to thrust it into my heart, when instead, he suddenly spoke in a harsh whisper.
"I'll distract them. Get as far away as you can." He turned away, but paused, "I'm not your brother. But if he were here, I'm sure he would want you to live."
And just like that, the torchlight was gone and the footsteps with it. I didn't know how long I laid there, but dawn was breaking when I felt something warm and wet nuzzling my forehead. A thick, musky clover scent wafted over my feverish face.
"Kiba." My elk had somehow found me. He came back. Tears sprang to the corners of my eyes as I lifted a hand to his bristly muzzle. "You're safe."
Wrapping my hands around his wooly neck, I stood up with his help and weakly mounted his back. Into the dark, bluish dawn, he broke into a trot and then a canter. I nudged him in the opposite direction of the rising sun. As the frosty mountain mist billowed up against us, Kiba's hooves seemed to take flight as we raced down the forested hillside.
I shoved away memories of my village and the people that I've known all my life. If I were to revisit them now, I thought I would lose my mind. Focusing on the pulsing pain in my leg was easier. It reminded me that I was alive, and not to give in to despair. I will meet my crossroad, my destiny, just as the wise woman had predicted. I had no choice.
And she had urged me to head to the lands of the West. There was only one thing out there I wanted find.
It's been seven years. Perhaps finally, I will discover what became of Ashitaka.
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