Dalai Lama

by gman2006

Sakaki and Chiyo are on their way to America when the two discover a small prayer card for an old Shinto god. Storm clouds gather around the plane as Chiyo quickly realizes that this god may be more than a myth, and he may be very interested in Chiyo.

Here is a oneshot that I have been meaning to post for a long time. This story is based off a song (by the same name as this story) by the German group, Rammstein. If you've never heard the song, don't worry because it doesn't matter. Anyways, the song is named "Dalai Lama" despite not having anything to do with the Dalai Lama. The song has that name because the current Dalai Lama is said to have a fear of flying (at least this is the reasoning I've heard). And this story is just named after the song for which it is based. So if you have time, listen to the song because it is awesome! As for the story, I hope everyone enjoys it; and if you got a minute, then please review. Thank you.

Dalai Lama

Chiyo glanced out the small window as the airplane traveled through the open sky. Not a cloud in sight as ocean waters splashed below. While Chiyo had traveled to many places with her parents before, this was her first time crossing an ocean. She hadn't quite known what to expect for a view, but with the clear blue sky, Chiyo could just barely make out the ocean in the distance; with rays of sunlight reflecting off the water's surface.

Chiyo couldn't help but think that this trip was off to a great start, despite not being able to see her friends for a year. But she had their addresses, and since Sakaki was accompanying her to America, Chiyo felt much calmer and actually found herself looking forward to studying abroad. And having Mr. Tadakichi tag along would certainly help Chiyo feel at home.

Eventually, Chiyo's gaze shifted from the outside view, to Sakaki, who sat in the aisle seat next to her. Sakaki had been caught up with a cat magazine for the past half hour. She was finally getting her own place for college and now diligently scanned the pages of her magazine for information on how to properly care for Maya. "Were you able to find anything, Sakaki-san," Chiyo asked, as she tried to peek over Sakaki's arm at the magazine.

A small blush crept onto Sakaki's face as she nodded her answer. Moving the magazine so Chiyo could see, she pointed to a picture of a small plush cat bed. "I'm trying to find something like this for Maya to nap on while I'm in class."

"That's really cute, Sakaki. I'm sure Maya would love something like that," Chiyo replied, as an idea suddenly sprang to her mind. Checking the magazine rack that rested on the back of the seat in front of her, Chiyo searched through sporting magazines, flying and travel brochures, newspapers; and other literature before coming upon a wildlife/animal care magazine. Pulling it out of the rack, Chiyo explained to Sakaki, "I wonder if this would have anything on Iriomote Cats." But as Chiyo scanned through the articles, a small card slipped out from between the pages and fell to the floor.

"What is it," Sakaki asked as Chiyo picked up the card.

"I don't know. It fell out of the magazine." Looking over the piece of paper, Chiyo first noticed that it was no bigger than an average business card. The paper old and tattered; Chiyo figured it must have been sitting in the magazine rack for a long time before finding its way into the wildlife magazine. And while one side of the card was blank, the other had some kind of ornate lines, decorating the words "Prayer to Susanoo." Underneath was the supposed prayer which Chiyo read aloud to Sakaki, "In this journey through your domain; carry us through with neither wind nor rain. Make your heavens take back the wind; and guide us safely back to earth."

Staring curiously at the card, Sakaki took it from Chiyo to get a closer look. Upon inspection, she recognized the name "Susanoo." But before she could say anything, Chiyo asked, "What do you think it means?"

Handing the card back, Sakaki replied, "It's a prayer to an old Shinto God." When Chiyo only stared back in confusion, Sakaki somehow felt awkwardly pleased knowing something that Chiyo didn't. "Shintoism was an old religion which lost much of its following after World War 2. Susanoo was the Shinto God of rain, wind, and storm." Not wanting to sound like an expert, Sakaki quickly added, "I did a paper on Shintoism last semester, so I don't know a whole lot about Susanoo . . . just some stories and legends . . ."

Intrigued by both the card they found and Sakaki's unexpected knowledge of the subject, Chiyo asked, "Could you tell me? I'd love to hear about him."

Nodding, Sakaki began, "Well, I do remember that people were afraid of him. They believed he was responsible for all deaths at sea and all deaths during storms. Some even believed that Susanoo prevented the souls of those he killed from crossing over." Stumbling over her words, Sakaki tried to remember more but little came through. "Sorry Chiyo, that's all I can remember. It's been a while since I wrote that paper."

Shaking her head in understanding, Chiyo answered, "Don't worry about it; I understand. But I wonder how this card ended up here? It's not like we're on a boat; we're in the sky."

"Well, Susanoo was also the God of wind." Taking the card from Chiyo once more, Sakaki carefully studied it. "And now that you mention it, I do remember reading that in World War Two, pilots often prayed to Susanoo before take-off. Maybe that's what this prayer was for."

Giving off a sort of nervous chuckle, Chiyo said, "Well, it's a good thing those are only stories. Otherwise we might be in a bit of trouble." Sakaki only nodded in response and handed the card back to Chiyo. Truthfully, the stories had frightened Chiyo, but she didn't want to admit that to Sakaki, because she knew Sakaki would get upset.

Without anything to say, an awkward silence settled between the two and eventually, Sakaki resumed her search for things to buy for Maya while Chiyo watched a flight attendant pass by her seat, handing out coffee to a couple seated a few rows in front of her. A yawn eventually escaped Chiyo's lips and she decided that maybe a little rest was in order. After all, they still had a long ways to go on the flight; and Chiyo hadn't got much sleep the night before. So, slowly but surely; Chiyo leaned back, closed her eyes, and fell into a deep sleep . . .

Waking up, Chiyo noticed that Sakaki had apparently fallen asleep. Chiyo looked towards the front of the plane and found the in-flight movie playing. Some action/war sequence was taking place and one of the military officers was shouting something to his comrades, "We must live until we die!" The strange piece of dialogue passed through the speakers when it occurred to Chiyo that none of the passengers seemed to be paying attention. Scanning the aisles and the rest of the seating, Chiyo realized that almost everyone had fallen asleep. Even the flight attendants stood dozed off next to their carts.

Turning to Sakaki, Chiyo lightly shook the girl in an effort to wake her. While Sakaki didn't respond, Chiyo did stop when she happened to glance out the window. They appeared to be flying over a typhoon or tropical storm of some sort. Rain fell so thick that Chiyo could hardly see the wing of the plane. The sky itself had turned a grayish-green and flashes of lightening could just barely be seen out the window.

But what worried Chiyo was the angle of the plane. The more she stared out the window, the more it looked like the plane was losing altitude. Had the storm caused some kind of malfunction with the engines, or had they been hit by lightening? Whatever the case, Chiyo didn't like the fact that the plane seemed to be going down.

Desperately wanting the reassurance that everything was alright, Chiyo refocused herself on waking up Sakaki. If anything, she just wanted to know what was going on, and since Sakaki had fallen asleep after her, maybe Sakaki had at least heard something from the pilots or flight attendants. Grabbing her friend's shoulders, Chiyo shook, a bit more violently than she wanted. "Sakaki, wake up. I think something's wrong," Chiyo whispered, glancing around to see if anyone else had woken up. With not even a yawn from the other passengers, Chiyo sighed and said anxiously, "Sakaki wake up!"

A shifting in the seat and the dark haired girl's eyes finally perked open. "What's wrong Chiyo," Sakaki asked groggily.

"Something's wrong. I think the plane is going down and everyone else is asleep." She quickly explained as her eyes darted across the plane. "And . . ." but Chiyo stopped as she noticed something strange about Sakaki. Sakaki's eyes were black. The iris, the pupil, everything lost in a sea of black. "S-Sakaki-san, are you alright? Your eyes . . ."

"What's wrong Chiyo-chan? You don't look so good," Sakaki answered in a voice that didn't quite sound like her own. Her face twisted into a smile and with those black, glaring eyes, Chiyo suddenly felt threatened.

"No," a short whisper escaped Chiyo's lips as she stood up, wormed past Sakaki and into the aisle. Sakaki had remained seated but her gaze followed Chiyo's every move, the smile never fading. Moving up the aisle, Chiyo finally turned and ran towards the cockpit, passing countless, sleeping passengers along the way. Narrowly dodging a food cart, Chiyo ran up to the front of the plane and entered the cockpit.

Taking a glance out the windshield, Chiyo found rain flooding the glass to the point where wipers of any kind only sloshed the water around. Ignoring the rain, Chiyo turned to one of the pilots and said, "Uh sir, we're losing altitude and uh . . ." But Chiyo stopped midway through her sentence as the pilot on her right leaned back over his seat and turned to face her. Eyes black as coal, his smiled twisted in the same unnatural, crooked manner as Sakaki's had.

"Don't worry Chiyo-chan. We'll take good care of you," he said and gave off an eerie sort of laugh as he turned back to the controls.

With no help, Chiyo ran out of the cockpit, feeling sweat dripping down her forehead and off the bangs of her hair. Reaching the passengers, Chiyo slowed herself to a walk as she remembered that she was heading right back for Sakaki. But something else now bothered her. It felt as though she was being watched. And looking around the plane, all the passengers now sat wide-awake, watching her every move. Even the flight attendants and the toddlers in their mothers' arms watched her. "B-Black? Why are the eyes black," Chiyo worriedly asked herself. She suddenly stopped walking and looked around, trying to figure out what she should do, where she should go. Every person on the plane focused on her; their eyes boring into her.

Chiyo backed up against a wall, just wanting it to end, and suddenly the passengers all stood up. The move was so sudden that it made her jump. People started walking towards her in a zombie sort of daze, surrounding her; and Chiyo quickly became cornered against the plane's wall. For what seemed like hours, all these people just stared at Chiyo, giving her hardly any room to breathe. A sudden break in the group appeared and Sakaki walked to the front. Her black eyes glistened, and as she looked down at the quivering Chiyo, her mouth curled into another smile. "Where do you think you're going? Humans don't belong in the sky."

Sakaki's words echoed through the plane as the people behind her nodded in agreement, almost angry at Chiyo for ever boarding this plane. Feeling around for something to grab onto, Chiyo said, "I'm sorry. I'm just . . ."

Before Chiyo could finish; Sakaki held out a hand towards Chiyo, her expression never changing. And in almost an apologetic tone, Sakaki said, "But we'll forgive you, if you come and stay with us."

At that moment, the people surrounding Chiyo began nodding in agreement and offered words of encouragement. One of the dazed passengers responded with, "Yes, you'll like it here." While another said, "We'll take good care of you." Even a small child, with his dead black eyes, said in an almost pleading voice, "Please stay. I need someone to play with."

Fear spreading through her body, Chiyo hastily shook her head and with a trembling voice, "No, I don't want to." The crowd of people reacted instantly and Sakaki's twisted face hardened. The crowd began closing in on Chiyo and she frantically combed the wall behind her in search of anything that she could defend herself with. A stroke of luck occurred when her hand grasped a metal handle and turning to see what she had; Chiyo gasped at the sight of the emergency exit's handle in her hand. Looking back to the crowd of people who had only begun to realize what she could be thinking, Chiyo pushed the handle down and her body shot out of the plane.

Screaming as she fell through the rain, Chiyo heard a loud BOOM of thunder as blackness surrounded her . . .

"Chiyo, wake up!" came a familiar voice. "Chiyo! Chiyo!"

Slowly opening her eyes, Chiyo saw Sakaki's concerned face staring back at her. Glancing around, Chiyo noticed that a flight attendant and a few other passengers were eyeing her. Looking back at Sakaki, Chiyo asked in a daze, "W-What's going on?"

"You were having a nightmare. Are you alright?"

"Nightmare, I . . ." Chiyo paused for a second and suddenly the dream came rushing back into her mind. Quickly looking into Sakaki's eyes, and the eyes of those around her, Chiyo felt relieved when she found that everything was back to normal. Taking a deep breath, Chiyo released it and said reassuringly to Sakaki, "I'm okay now. Thanks."

Still feeling a few lingering eyes from nearby passengers, Chiyo's face turned red from embarrassment. She turned to Sakaki for comfort, but Sakaki seemed to be eyeing the floor. She appeared to be upset about something. Placing a hand on Sakaki's shoulder, the tall girl responded in a soft, apologetic voice, "I'm sorry Chiyo-chan. I must have scared you with those stories. I didn't mean to."

"That's not your fault Sakaki. Please don't let it bother you," Chiyo said, trying to laugh off the incident. But when Sakaki didn't reply, Chiyo sank back in her seat, trying to figure out how to best handle the situation. With nothing coming to mind, Chiyo stood up, and scooted past Sakaki into the aisle. When Sakaki started to protest, Chiyo quickly responded, "I just wanna use the bathroom."

Chiyo hurriedly walked past flight attendants and countless passengers as she approached the small bathroom. All along the way, she felt people watching and whispering. Reaching her sanctuary, Chiyo opened the door, flung herself inside, and slammed the door shut.

Standing in front of the mirror, Chiyo stared at her own reflection, noticing just how out of breath she was by the heaving of her chest and the sweat running down her face. Her bangs lay in all different directions, and were wet from all the moisture. No wonder Sakaki had been so worried, and no wonder people were staring. She had probably appeared sick, or having some kind of attack.

"I'm such a mess," Chiyo said to herself as she turned on the faucet and cupped her hands. Splashing water on her face, Chiyo washed away the sweat. The cold water running down her cheeks and nose relaxed her. Closing her eyes, Chiyo remained still as she felt her breathing finally returning to normal. Now what to do about Sakaki? She had to think of some way to apologize; after all, Sakaki would only be in America temporarily, and then she'd be back in Japan for college.

Turning off the faucet, Chiyo grabbed the towel next to her and covered her face. Wiping away the cool water, Chiyo could feel her spirits rising already. Sure it'd been a terrible nightmare, but it was over. The water had awakened Chiyo to her senses, and she certainly wasn't about to let some silly dream get in-between her and Sakaki. "Yoshi," Chiyo confidently exclaimed as she returned the towel to its rack. Returning her gaze to the mirror, Chiyo stopped. Confidence gone, she stared in shock at the sight before her.

Black eyes stared at Chiyo through the mirror. Her reflection pale, as pale as a full moon; and her bright hair faded into a spindly brown. But the eyes, just like in her dream, no pupil or iris or even white could be seen; just black. Panicked, Chiyo's eyes shot down to her hands and arms which were lightly tanned, full of color. Glancing back up at the mirror, the same pale, black eyed figure stared back.

Chiyo moved away from the mirror and towards the door. Shaking her head in disbelief, she whispered, "Why? It was just a dream." But the reflection's mouth did not move. None of Chiyo's movements were mimicked in the mirror. As she backed against the wall, Chiyo felt around for the door, too scared to take her eyes off her reflection.

"Where are you going," the thing spoke, much to Chiyo's horror. Her reflection had spoken to her, and it wasn't even in her voice. Well, it sounded similar to her voice, but the reflection's voice sounded deeper, and threatening. It froze Chiyo in place with a twisting smile that had spread across its pale, rubber lips. "Stay with us. You can still be forgiven."

"No," Chiyo whispered. She couldn't take it. Chiyo frantically felt around for the door, not wanting to take her eyes off the mirror, afraid that whatever was inside would jump out at her. Finally locating the doorknob, Chiyo turned it and fell backwards out of the bathroom. A flight attendant, who must have been standing outside, caught Chiyo in mid-fall.

"Hey, take it easy," the flight attendant said to a squirming Chiyo, eventually helping Chiyo back to her feet.

Heart pounding and chest spasming from shortness of breath, Chiyo eyed the bathroom door, fearing something might crawl out after her. But when nothing did, she placed a hand to her chest and tried to calm down. A hand suddenly grabbed her shoulder and when Chiyo looked up, found the flight attendant quite worried.

"Are you alright?"

"I'm alright . . ." Chiyo said between breaths.

"Well if you can stand, I'm gonna have to escort you back to your seat." Concerned, Chiyo gazed up at the woman, afraid that she had disturbed the other passengers. But the flight attendant must have picked up on her and quickly assured, "It's not you. It's just that we're approaching a storm so the ride could get a little rough."

Returning to her seat, Chiyo said not a word to Sakaki until the flight attendant had left. She had been thinking about the Shinto God that she and Sakaki had discussed earlier. Was there really any truth to what Sakaki said? And if there were, what did that mean for everyone on the plane?

When she did finally speak, Chiyo asked, "Sakaki, do you remember anything else about Susanoo?"

The taller girl fell into silent thought, her expression difficult to read. "I'm sorry Chiyo," Sakaki's voice had come out so soft that Chiyo almost didn't hear her. "I can't think of anything. Besides, I don't want to scare you again . . ."

Nodding, Chiyo turned and glanced out the window, suddenly spotting a series of rather hostile looking storm clouds quickly approaching the plane's wing. The black leviathans closed around the plane like a Venus' flytrap. Chiyo averted her eyes as the sight of lightening shot chills down her spine.

Lights from above the cabin flickered, sending everyone into darkness for a second before coming back on. "You don't have to worry about that," Chiyo said as she noticed the uneasiness of the other passengers. Flight attendants nervously served food and drinks to keep them calm. Focusing back on Sakaki, she said, "I'm already scared."

A sudden announcement from the cockpit echoed over the speakers asking everyone to find their seats and buckle up. It didn't sound like the ride would be getting any smoother.

Sakaki's seatbelt clicked only a second after the announcement as Chiyo struggled with pulling hers over her waist. The seatbelt was caught, and wouldn't go any farther than halfway. No matter how hard Chiyo tugged, she could not get the seat belt to move. A sudden jolt of turbulence threw Chiyo toward the seat in front of her. Closing her eyes, Chiyo waited, but the impact never came. Eventually opening her eyes, she noticed two arms firmly holding her in place. Chiyo turned to a frightened Sakaki and squeaked her thanks, "My seatbelt's stuck."

Sakaki nodded, and helping Chiyo back into her seat, pulled Chiyo's seatbelt over her waist and clicked it into place. "Don't worry. We're gonna be okay."

Chiyo nodded in agreement, though she wasn't sure if she believed that or not. It was times like these that Chiyo wished she wasn't so little. Even for a thirteen year old, she was small for her age. Head drooping to the floor, she noticed the card with the prayer. Chiyo just barely scooped it up as the plane hit yet another pocket of turbulence, this one slightly stronger than the last. Chiyo's seatbelt held and so she remained safely in place.

Rereading the prayer to herself, Chiyo hoped that it hadn't been just an accident that she'd found this card. A deafening roar of thunder shook the plane, sending tears streaming down Chiyo's face. She could no longer control the fear that flooded through her body as another blast took out the lights, causing the emergency back-ups to come on. These created eerie shadows that seemed to crawl around the plane with each hurtle the storm threw.

Arms suddenly wrapped around Chiyo and pulled her in tight. Her head being drawn into her friend's chest, she heard Sakaki say, "Don't worry Chiyo, I'll protect you." The warmth calmed Chiyo a little, but the shaking of the plane and the crashing thunder kept her nerves wide awake.

"Stay with us."

The voice had been so soft and so close to Chiyo's ear that she almost felt the lips brushing up against her skin. It hadn't been Sakaki's voice and Chiyo knew it. She tried her best to ignore the voice as it repeated those same words over and over. Chiyo closed her eyes, trying to focus on the warmth of Sakaki's body, and the arms which held her in place. Sakaki's here. I'm gonna be fine. Susanoo isn't real. Sakaki's gonna protect me.

But the voice got louder, "Stay with us Chiyo. We'll take good care of you."

Other voices began to erupt from the storm, familiar voices. "I want someone to play with." "You can be forgiven." "Humans don't belong in the sky."

Her whole body convulsing from fear, Chiyo felt Sakaki's grip tighten, the hug forcing Chiyo's face harder into Sakaki's chest. It suddenly became a bit of a struggle for Chiyo to breathe, but when she opened her eyes, the voices stopped. Everything went silent. Barely able to see into the aisle, Chiyo looked past Sakaki's arms to get a look at what was going on.

Chiyo only managed a second's glance at the seats across from her when another loud crash hurtled thick, cloud-like black smoke into the plane. No one else seemed to notice as the smoke gathered in the aisle next to Chiyo. A black cloak that started at the floor, and ending at the ceiling with a long hood covering the figure's head; appeared out of the smoke. From what Chiyo could see, the cloak appeared to be made out of dark storm clouds. Small bursts of lightening rolled over the cloak, and the clouds seemed to disperse into thin air at the creature's unseen feet.

Chiyo froze as she watched the impossible creature drift forward, toward her and Sakaki. She attempted to alert her friend of the approaching danger but her arms were caught under Sakaki's grip and couldn't be moved. And the more Chiyo struggled, the tighter Sakaki's grip became. She heard Sakaki's voice falter in saying, "Don't worry Chiyo; it'll be over soon."

The creature knelt down in front of Chiyo and outstretched an arm to touch her head. Just the sight of the arm was enough to turn Chiyo's stomach. A gray, matted skin wrapped tightly around bone; ended in clawed hands as it brushed over Chiyo's scalp like frozen sandpaper.

Chiyo pleaded with the thing to stop but it ignored her muffled cries and continued. Another tightening squeeze from Sakaki's arms and suddenly Chiyo couldn't breathe. She felt her chest beginning to heave, desperately trying to bring in air. And with her face buried in Sakaki's chest, Chiyo almost lost sight of the creature which continued to pet her.

"Chiyo-chan." A deep, raspy voice called her name from within the hood, and through watering eyes, Chiyo watched as it approached her. The hood fell back to reveal the same gray, matted skin stretched over a skull. Hollow, black eyes bore into Chiyo as a shriveled tongue licked at rubber lips.

The hand leaving her head, she felt fingers intertwining with her own, claws digging into her wrists. Vision blurring from lack of oxygen, Chiyo fought the slipping of consciousness. She could no longer make out the black cloaked figure, but she heard the voice, "Stay with me, Chiyo-chan. I'll take good care of you."

As Chiyo felt her eyes rolling back into her head, her mind found less and less reason to object to the creature. The hand in hers suddenly felt warm and inviting, while everything else felt cold, even her skin was numb. And before she could think, she was being pulled out of Sakaki's arms, out of the plane. She no longer felt cold, all she felt was warm air, as the clawed hand never loosened its grip on hers, and for some strange reason, she didn't want it to let go . . .

"Ma'am. Ma'am, are you alright?"

Sakaki glanced up at the flight attendant and nodded. Finally, the storm had passed. She glanced around, and noticed that although shaken up, many of the passengers seemed to be alright. Looking down at her own arms, Chiyo rested motionless. Sakaki sat the little girl up, hoping she would wake, but she didn't. Her head simply slumped to the side. Sakaki gently shook Chiyo, but nothing. Becoming worried, Sakaki quickly laid Chiyo in her seat and placing a finger under the girl's nose, waited for the exhaling of air. Nothing.

"N-No. C-Chiyo?" Glancing around, Sakaki nervously cried out, "Someone help! She's not breathing!"

Tears fell from Sakaki's eyes as three flight attendants quickly ushered her out of her seat. Watching helplessly as they performed CPR, Sakaki covered her mouth and shook her head in shock. "No. Please don't be . . . You can't be . . ."

"Sa . . . ka . . . ki . . ."

A voice had whispered in her ear and Sakaki whirled around to see who, but no one was there. She hurriedly scanned the plane for the source of that familiar voice. Was someone playing a trick on her? But that voice, that pleading voice, it sounded exactly like . . . And turning back to the flight attendants who'd not had any success with CPR, Sakaki began to cry. She later arrived in America, alone.

THE END