Mikiri Part 1-3
(Formerly titled Towairaito no Tatara-Ba(Twilight of Tatara-Ba))
A Mononoke Hime/Princess Mononoke fanfic by John "Aren" Neal
[Introduction/Notes]
I saw Mononoke Hime in a limited-release theater once and it became my favorite movie.
Unable to wait for yet another video delay, I purchased a fansub at Dragon*Con in summer
2000. Because of this, I've become more aquatinted with the Japanese terms than the changed
American dub ones. For those of you who aren't familiar with these names- most can be guessed
with ease, but here's a few of them just in case.
(Japanese Term) --- (American Term)
Tatara-Ba --- Iron Town
Yakkuru --- Yakkle
Jiko-Bou --- Jigo
Shishigami --- Great Forest Spirit
Tatarigami --- Curse God
Shoujou --- Ape Spirits
Ishibaya --- I don't recall what the dub called them- they're the guns used by Tatara-Ba.
Ishibayashi --- Soldiers trained in using said Ishibaya
Naginata --- Not called by anything in the movie, but they're the long polearms with katana-like
blades on the end used by Gonza and his guards.
Mononoke Hime --- Essentially, means "Princess Mononoke."
Also, I've decided to name the two younger wolves of the Moro clan "Ookami" and
"Urufu," both of which are Japanese words for "wolf."
That's about it, I suppose... Oh yeah, Mononoke Hime/Princess Mononoke and related
characters and events are copyright Hayao Miyazaki/Studio Ghibli and Mirimax. Original
characters and such are copyright John "Aren" Neal- so hands off my gumbo.
[Prologue]
Two years had passed since the fateful day of the Shishigami Hunt. After many months
of hard work, Tatara-Ba had finally been restored to its former grandeur. The walls had been
rebuilt, the forge restored, and the people's hopes replenished. One thing was different, though-
Eboshi Gozen was a smart woman, and when a lesson was to be learned, she learned it.
This one she had learned the hard way, and it had cost her an arm- and her city. This time
around, Eboshi knew better. The forge of Tatara-Ba no longer would take all of its power from
the neighboring forests. She had even assigned some of her subjects to plant saplings on the
fringes, even though the occasional militant Shoujou might attempt to drive them out.
The loss of her arm had taken most of Eboshi's dreams of conquest from her mind. Now
she would focus on her city and its inhabitants once again.
Ashitaka lived in Tatara-Ba as well. He had his own small hut, and stable space for
Yakkuru. And, as he had promised, he rode Yakkuru into the forest periodically, where San
would be waiting for him.
San herself was attempting to adjust to the new way of life in the forest. Moro, her
mother, was gone, as was the Shishigami himself. Kodama and Shoujou still lived to urge the
forest's resurgence, even if the Shoujou were often offset from their more important task by their
hatred for the nearby humans. Last was the remnants of the Moro clan and San herself. The most
they could do now was to help protect the forest from threats, but even dangers to the forest were
scarce these days. San supposed she was supposed to be gladdened by that, but she felt
incomplete and empty for some reason deep inside her. She spent much of her time just sitting
on a rock alcove, looking down onto Tatara-Ba and waiting for Ashitaka.
But, San wasn't the only one watching from the forest....
[One]
The alarm resounded throughout Tatara-Ba. "Eboshi-Sama!" came the call from the
watchtower. "We're under attack! Eboshi-Sama!"
Shocked, Eboshi ran to the tower as quickly as she could. On her way, she stopped to
meet with Gonza. She told him to ready the ishibaya.
"Eboshi-Sama," Gonza responded, alarmed, "we haven't needed ishibaya in years!"
"Ready the ishibaya, Gonza. That's an order. I don't know what it is, but I fear for the
safety of Tatara-Ba." Gonza bowed and acknowledged her orders. He ran off to the old armory
and began distributing the ishibaya, along with katanas and naginatas, to anyone who could use
them. Eboshi-Sama usually didn't get this alarmed. Perhaps it was because peace had recently
prevailed, but Gonza didn't want to take chances.
From the tower, Eboshi looked out onto the nearby mountain ridge that the watchman
had pointed out to her. Much to her surprise, the approaching foe wasn't an army of samurai or
ronin- but rather a lone, masked figure riding atop a giant wolf. "Mononoke Hime..." Eboshi
gasped to herself. "So she's still rampaging..."
The town readied itself for the attack. Eboshi prepared her own sword, and positioned
herself in the center of the town. She called for Ashitaka to come, and to bring his weapons. He
complied.
Meanwhile, the wolf had reached the town wall. Its masked rider sprang up and scaled
the wall with the aid of a sword. Leaping onto the wall, the assailant took out two guards in the
immediate vicinity before leaping onto a roof. The townspeople, gathered in the main square,
caught sight of the figure and immediately began attacking with ishibaya. The attacker continued
running along the building, dodging the balls of iron being shot at them. The figure reached the
central forge and lept into it.
"Eboshi-Sama!" Ashitaka exclaimed. "What's going on here?!" He clenched his teeth.
"Ashitaka," Eboshi replied, "your Mononoke Hime is still bent on revenge after two years
of peace. My apologies, but I will kill her this time." Ashitaka looked confused, surprised, and
angry. Eboshi called out to the town. "She's in the forge! Get her! Kill her once and for all!" The
people, weapons drawn, crowded the forge's entrance, ready to kill.
All of a sudden, an enormous fire welled up at the opening of the forge building. The
people drew back for fear of being burned. The masked attacker came rushing out of the fire and
straight into the town center, sword drawn and lunging at anyone who got in its way. Dodging
another barrage of ishibaya fire, the assailant went straight for the one-armed Eboshi.
Immediately their fight commenced- Eboshi held her own quite well to only have one arm, but
the primal ruthlessness of the attacker was another matter. Eboshi was fighting a losing battle,
despite the constant iron bullets sent in the direction of her opponent from the town's citizens.
The figure, cloaked in black wolf's fur with a red clay full-facial mask, made one final
strike that knocked Eboshi's sword right out of her hand. She fell to the ground, and the attacker's
sword was held at her neck. "Mononoke Hime..." Eboshi said to her opponent. "You've finally
beaten me. Will you now stop rampaging? I had thought that this had all ended two years ago..."
The attacker made no response.
The sword was pressed closer to Eboshi's neck, the attacker showing immense
concentration. This position was broken, however, as Gonza charged in with his naginata and
slashed angrily. The attacker jumped the attack and landed a strong kick at Gonza's chest,
knocking him back. He came close in for another strike, but the sword of the attacker met the
shaft of his polearm fast and hard, severing the thing. With the bladed end he still gripped,
Gonza had to choice but to continue his attack or face death. During these events, Eboshi had
gotten to her feet and retrieved her own sword. She joined Gonza in the battle. The enemy
showed extreme prowess, parrying both of their attacks with their one sword. Most of the
attacker's
motions were defensive as it was now two to one, but they did manage a number of good strikes.
The ishibaya were still going off, but none of the three were hit.
Seeing San, the Mononoke Hime, Ashitaka charged into the fight in a desperate attempt
to protect all three of them, and hopefully bring San back to her senses. Noticing the newcomer,
the attacker began focusing all offensive aggression on Ashitaka in blind desperation. Moving in
very close, they made a powerful thrust towards Ashitaka's abdomen, which was parried. It did,
however, give Ashitaka a good chance to look at the assailant's eyes through their mask. Startled,
Ashitaka drew back.
Even more rampant than before, the masked attacker swung at Gonza a last time, but
pulled their sword back at the last moment. Gonza's naginata blade hit nothing but air, and the
attacker got a good kick to his stomach, flooring him. The attacker spun under a lunge from
Eboshi and caught her neck with the top of their fist. She fell backwards, where she was caught
by three of her forge girls before she could hit the ground.
Now free, the attacker ran off, dodging still more volleys of ishibaya fire. The figure
climbed upon the wall again, and, silhouetted by the moon, held its sword with the tip pointing
right at Eboshi, looking up at it from down below. The figure nodded slowly before jumping
down off the wall and onto the giant black wolf that waited below and rode off into the
nighttime forest.
Eboshi pulled herself up with the aid of her girls. "Well, Ashitaka," she said to him,
"what do you think about that? Your wolf-princess appears to still be out for my death."
Ashitaka shook his head. "No," he said solemnly. "That definitely wasn't San..."
[Two]
That evening, Eboshi consulted with Gonza. Ashitaka went along with them at Eboshi's
request. "So the Mononoke Hime has decided to bring the fight back again. She wants my life;
My arm must not have been enough revenge in her eyes." She stopped for a second to pick up a
newly developed ishibaya handed to her by one of the cured leper workers. She tilted it and
tested positions before handing it back. "Almost perfect," she said to the worker, who nodded
and carried the firearm back to their workshop.
Gonza turned to Ashitaka. "Eboshi-Sama hasn't had the workers build ishibaya since the
battle two years ago," he said. "She'll get the Mononoke Hime yet, and when she does, I'll
personally cut the monster's throat!"
Ashitaka just stared back blankly.
Eboshi continued. "It's sad to see that things haven't improved in the past years. The girl's
blindness to the fact that she's human and her hatred for me have clouded any reason she might
have ever possessed, I suppose. But if she's so intent on killing me, then I'll have to finish this
once and for all. Any thoughts, Ashitaka?"
Ashitaka spoke for the first time. "Eboshi-Sama, you are making a mistake. That attacker
was not San- That was not the Mononoke Hime! I'm sure of it," he said, with grim determination.
Eboshi raised an eyebrow at this. "Are you? The attacker was dressed in wolfskin, and
fought much like your princess. I'd be a fool to think it was otherwise."
Ashitaka shook his head. "I saw his eyes."
Gonza stepped between the two, facing Ashitaka with a naginata drawn. He snarled,
"How dare you contest with Eboshi-Sama? You've helped us in the past, but now is different! I
won't allow-"
He was cut off by Eboshi's voice. "Gonza, calm down. Ashitaka will act of his own
accord, he isn't your soldier. But Ashitaka, the fact of the matter is that the war with the
Mononoke Hime has begun again. Gonza."
"Yes, Eboshi-Sama?"
"Tomorrow, send eight of your best men into the forest with naginata and ishibaya. Tell
them their mission is to retrieve the body of the Mononoke Hime. Have them dispatch at
sunrise."
"Shall I accompany them, Eboshi-Sama?"
"No, Gonza. You will remain here." With that, Gonza bowed and walked off to his
guards' quarters. Ashitaka grabbed Eboshi's one remaining arm in distress.
"Eboshi-Sama, you can't possibly-"
"The order has been passed, Ashitaka. This time, the battle will be ended. What you do
from now on is up to you." Ashitaka nodded, and walked off somberly into the commons of
Tatara-Ba.
Later that night, Ashitaka set out with all of his possessions packed. He exited his
Tatara-Ba hut and retrieved Yakkuru from the stables. Saddling up, he led the faithful red elk
towards the gates of the town. However, he halted when a voice called for him.
"Ashitaka!"
He turned with a start to see the shout came from Toki. "Hello, Toki," he said to the
forgewoman.
She smiled at him. "Where are you headed out at this hour? Off to meet with your
princess again? But with that much load...."
He looked into her eyes compassionately. "I'm heading out. Goodbye, Toki," he said.
She frowned, but said goodbye after a moment's contemplation. Walking him watch
away, she thought to herself about how Ashitaka never made any sense to her. He'll be back
eventually, she thought. I know he will.
Ashitaka continued with Yakkuru to the gates. The gatekeeper guards put their naginatas
out crossed, in their traditional fashion. "We apologize, Ashitaka," one of them said. "We can't
let you leave at this hour. The gates must remain closed."
Ashitaka nodded. "I understand, but I have Eboshi-Sama's permission for visa."
The gatemen lowered their weapons. "In that case, we will open the gate," the one that
spoke earlier said. He and the others got to the gate's system and opened it for him, closing it
with a crash as he left.
Ashitaka had left Tatara-Ba. He trodded on, steering Yakkuru out into the forest...
[Three]
Ookami stretched as he woke with the sun. Shaking out his fur and standing on all four
legs, he yawned. Looking around, he noticed Urufu doing the same.
San was nowhere to be seen, though- Ookami jumped to the conclusion that she had
woken up before they had, and was probably alone at the rock outcropping overlooking the
human city again. He set off to make sure, not bothering to bring it to his brother's attention.
Sure enough, he was correct. She was sitting intently, staring down at Tatara-Ba...
Probably waiting for that human boy again. San seemed so depressed, so dismal after the deaths
of Mother and the Shishigami. Ookami hoped this wasn't permanent. The only times she really
even seemed happy any more was when that human showed up in the forest. How oddly ironic.
"San," he called out to her, "is everything all right? You're out earlier than usual..."
No response. He walked up to her side and brushed against her. Giving in, she put her
arm around his neck and smiled faintly. "I'm all right, Ookami," she said. "I guess it just must be
the forest. It hasn't been the same since-"
The wolf nodded. "Yes, I know... It hasn't..."
They were interrupted when Urufu came rushing in, determination and anger in his eyes
and a slender gash in his left side- Definitely the mark of a human weapon. "Humans!" he
shouted, stopping by San and Ookami. "They're attacking..."
Ookami rose once again. "So the humans have decided to rekindle their fight with the
forest. Wasn't it enough for them to do what has already been done...?" He shook his head. He
was sounding more and more like Mother to himself by the day, it seemed. It made sense, he
supposed- the Moro clan did need a new leader, especially now that it seemed the humans were
on the rise again. He would assume the position. "We must fight back, then. Urufu! Are you hurt
badly?"
"No, brother. I can still fight," replied the slightly younger of the two wolves.
"Good. San, you get on Urufu," Ookami ordered. She hopped on Urufu's back, and they
awaited further instruction. "All right, Urufu. Direct us to the humans-"
Ookami had no sooner said those words than eight armed humans jumped out onto the
outcropping from behind them. They darted into a spread formation, keeping the wolves and San
between them and the cliff edge, naginatas drawn. San recognized their garb as the Tatara-Ba
guard uniform. So that city was back on the warpath, she thought. She bolted down from Urufu's
back and readied her long dagger that she kept at her side out of habit. Urufu himself bolted
forward at one of the guards, one with a bloodied edge on his weapon- the one that had initially
attacked him- with his jaws open. The human was caught off guard, and the large wolf nabbed
him in his jaws and proceeded to shake him off of the cliff.
Two of the remaining seven humans rushed at Ookami, swinging their naginatas. The
large wolf dodged both of their strikes and launched at one of them with a clawed arm extended.
His blow made contact with the man's left shoulder, and he continued his motion, slamming the
now-left-armless guard into the ground. He dug his claws into the human's chest, ignoring their
screams as he spun and caught his other assailant at the base of the skull with his enormous
fangs.
Seeing the death of three of his comrades, one of the remaining guards took off in fright-
Gonza-Sama would not be pleased, but he would hopefully make it out alive. Urufu began to
chase after him, but he was distracted by a shout from Ookami. He turned to find the three last
guards converging on San. They had her surrounded.
"Don't lose her off the cliff!" one of the guards said to the others. "Gonza-Sama wants the
body as proof of her death!" The others nodded as they moved in closer.
San lashed out with her knife, catching one of the men's naginatas in a struggle of power.
They each gripped their weapons tighter and pressed forward, contending with each other. San
saw it as a challenge. The Tatara-Ba guards saw it as an opportunity. The man with whom she
was in a bind with pulled back sharply, and the other two raised their naginatas over her as she
struggled to regain balance. Acting on instinct, she thrust her knife forward hard as she lurched,
catching the guard she had contended with in the stomach. His eyes widened, he clutched his
abdomen, and he fell, blood coming forth from his new orifice. Urufu had made it back to the
outcropping just in time to catch one of the last two soldiers, and butted him off of the cliff. San
rolled from her low position to regain an advantage- But the last guard was fast. he positioned
himself right where she got up, and wrapped one of his arms around her throat, holding his
naginata blade at her neck. She struggled, but the man had her in a powerful hold.
The man turned to the wolves. "Come closer," he taunted them, "and I'll slit your
princess' throat. She'll die either way. Your choice, nice and easy, or you could contest with me
and I'll do it brutally right now." Ookami and Urufu reared back and snarled, showing their full
maws of teeth, but came no closer. This was certainly a bind, Ookami thought. We must save
San, but how?
The guard began to back away from the outcropping, with a struggling San in tow. She
kicked and bit at him, but his resolve was very strong. He laughed out loud as he eased nearer to
the forest on his way back to town. Gonza and Eboshi-Sama would be very pleased with him. He
could see the promotion in store for him.
Ookami and Urufu saw the flash of black fur dart through the woods behind the guard
and San, and stopped snarling in confusion. Their change in disposition didn't go unnoticed by
the guard, and he snapped his head around to see what was wrong, keeping his hold on the
Mononoke Hime.
He looked just in time to see another large wolf, this one black as opposed to the other
two white wolves, and a masked rider with a sword drawn converging on him from above. The
black wolf landed on top of him, pinning him with his claws as San broke free and ran to
Ookami. The rider leaped off, and the wolf released the guard, who stood up to find himself
face-to-face with the newcomer.
"A... Another human Mononoke...?" the guard gasped in astonishment. He pulled the
naginata into attack position as he quickly looked over the black-clad rider, and delivered a
powerful downward slash. The rider deflected the blade, and the guard pulled the butt of the
polearm around and struck him in the face with a force that shattered the mask. A young male
face, about 18 years old, with dark eyes stared back at him, teeth clenched in struggle. Ducking a
second attack from the guard's blade, the boy jumped aside and made a quick stab with his
sword. The guard fell- direct hit to the heart.
No more guards remained. The black wolf walked up next to his rider, and the two of
them stood for a moment observing the Moro clan. San and the white wolves stared back. Not a
word was uttered between them until San spoke up.
"Thank you. Who are you?" she asked. A simple enough question.
The black-clad boy smiled and replied, "My name's not important." He hopped on the back of the black wolf. "Kaze, let's go," he said, and they turned and left.
"Wait! Where are you from? You aren't from this forest..." He didn't wait.
San and the wolves didn't know what to make of it. All they were sure of was that the war
with the humans had begun anew. And that they would have to fight back for their survival.
When the runaway guard returned to Tatara-Ba, the news was spread that the Mononoke
Hime was indeed on the rise again- and that she and her wolves had already taken seven men.
Ashitaka was still nowhere to be found.
[Author's Note]
Well, that's all I've got for now. I hope you've enjoyed it, any suggestions, reviews,
constructive criticism, etc. is certainly welcome! Also, does anyone know if the two younger
wolves of the Moro clan are ever officially named by Studio Ghibli? If they have, I need to
change their names to the real ones so as not to contradict it. I guess if you know, you could just
say so in a response or review or something. Ideas for a final title are welcome, too.
If anyone wants to contact me, my AIM screen name is Vash60BillionMan, ICQ number
is 39072552, MSN Messenger is pankurokku@hotmail.com(I don't use that for e-mail though),
and e-mail is john_neal@att.net.
[Notes/Response to Feedback Comments]
Uh, I guess I've decided to set this area to clear up any comment and feedback confusion.
Ch. One: The reason I referred to 'San' with generic terms like 'it,' 'their,' and 'attacker'
was to keep from gender labeling until I thought it should be put in there... I didn't call them 'San'
because, well, they aren't San. There probably is a clearer way to manage that, but I haven't given
one much thought yet.
(Formerly titled Towairaito no Tatara-Ba(Twilight of Tatara-Ba))
A Mononoke Hime/Princess Mononoke fanfic by John "Aren" Neal
[Introduction/Notes]
I saw Mononoke Hime in a limited-release theater once and it became my favorite movie.
Unable to wait for yet another video delay, I purchased a fansub at Dragon*Con in summer
2000. Because of this, I've become more aquatinted with the Japanese terms than the changed
American dub ones. For those of you who aren't familiar with these names- most can be guessed
with ease, but here's a few of them just in case.
(Japanese Term) --- (American Term)
Tatara-Ba --- Iron Town
Yakkuru --- Yakkle
Jiko-Bou --- Jigo
Shishigami --- Great Forest Spirit
Tatarigami --- Curse God
Shoujou --- Ape Spirits
Ishibaya --- I don't recall what the dub called them- they're the guns used by Tatara-Ba.
Ishibayashi --- Soldiers trained in using said Ishibaya
Naginata --- Not called by anything in the movie, but they're the long polearms with katana-like
blades on the end used by Gonza and his guards.
Mononoke Hime --- Essentially, means "Princess Mononoke."
Also, I've decided to name the two younger wolves of the Moro clan "Ookami" and
"Urufu," both of which are Japanese words for "wolf."
That's about it, I suppose... Oh yeah, Mononoke Hime/Princess Mononoke and related
characters and events are copyright Hayao Miyazaki/Studio Ghibli and Mirimax. Original
characters and such are copyright John "Aren" Neal- so hands off my gumbo.
[Prologue]
Two years had passed since the fateful day of the Shishigami Hunt. After many months
of hard work, Tatara-Ba had finally been restored to its former grandeur. The walls had been
rebuilt, the forge restored, and the people's hopes replenished. One thing was different, though-
Eboshi Gozen was a smart woman, and when a lesson was to be learned, she learned it.
This one she had learned the hard way, and it had cost her an arm- and her city. This time
around, Eboshi knew better. The forge of Tatara-Ba no longer would take all of its power from
the neighboring forests. She had even assigned some of her subjects to plant saplings on the
fringes, even though the occasional militant Shoujou might attempt to drive them out.
The loss of her arm had taken most of Eboshi's dreams of conquest from her mind. Now
she would focus on her city and its inhabitants once again.
Ashitaka lived in Tatara-Ba as well. He had his own small hut, and stable space for
Yakkuru. And, as he had promised, he rode Yakkuru into the forest periodically, where San
would be waiting for him.
San herself was attempting to adjust to the new way of life in the forest. Moro, her
mother, was gone, as was the Shishigami himself. Kodama and Shoujou still lived to urge the
forest's resurgence, even if the Shoujou were often offset from their more important task by their
hatred for the nearby humans. Last was the remnants of the Moro clan and San herself. The most
they could do now was to help protect the forest from threats, but even dangers to the forest were
scarce these days. San supposed she was supposed to be gladdened by that, but she felt
incomplete and empty for some reason deep inside her. She spent much of her time just sitting
on a rock alcove, looking down onto Tatara-Ba and waiting for Ashitaka.
But, San wasn't the only one watching from the forest....
[One]
The alarm resounded throughout Tatara-Ba. "Eboshi-Sama!" came the call from the
watchtower. "We're under attack! Eboshi-Sama!"
Shocked, Eboshi ran to the tower as quickly as she could. On her way, she stopped to
meet with Gonza. She told him to ready the ishibaya.
"Eboshi-Sama," Gonza responded, alarmed, "we haven't needed ishibaya in years!"
"Ready the ishibaya, Gonza. That's an order. I don't know what it is, but I fear for the
safety of Tatara-Ba." Gonza bowed and acknowledged her orders. He ran off to the old armory
and began distributing the ishibaya, along with katanas and naginatas, to anyone who could use
them. Eboshi-Sama usually didn't get this alarmed. Perhaps it was because peace had recently
prevailed, but Gonza didn't want to take chances.
From the tower, Eboshi looked out onto the nearby mountain ridge that the watchman
had pointed out to her. Much to her surprise, the approaching foe wasn't an army of samurai or
ronin- but rather a lone, masked figure riding atop a giant wolf. "Mononoke Hime..." Eboshi
gasped to herself. "So she's still rampaging..."
The town readied itself for the attack. Eboshi prepared her own sword, and positioned
herself in the center of the town. She called for Ashitaka to come, and to bring his weapons. He
complied.
Meanwhile, the wolf had reached the town wall. Its masked rider sprang up and scaled
the wall with the aid of a sword. Leaping onto the wall, the assailant took out two guards in the
immediate vicinity before leaping onto a roof. The townspeople, gathered in the main square,
caught sight of the figure and immediately began attacking with ishibaya. The attacker continued
running along the building, dodging the balls of iron being shot at them. The figure reached the
central forge and lept into it.
"Eboshi-Sama!" Ashitaka exclaimed. "What's going on here?!" He clenched his teeth.
"Ashitaka," Eboshi replied, "your Mononoke Hime is still bent on revenge after two years
of peace. My apologies, but I will kill her this time." Ashitaka looked confused, surprised, and
angry. Eboshi called out to the town. "She's in the forge! Get her! Kill her once and for all!" The
people, weapons drawn, crowded the forge's entrance, ready to kill.
All of a sudden, an enormous fire welled up at the opening of the forge building. The
people drew back for fear of being burned. The masked attacker came rushing out of the fire and
straight into the town center, sword drawn and lunging at anyone who got in its way. Dodging
another barrage of ishibaya fire, the assailant went straight for the one-armed Eboshi.
Immediately their fight commenced- Eboshi held her own quite well to only have one arm, but
the primal ruthlessness of the attacker was another matter. Eboshi was fighting a losing battle,
despite the constant iron bullets sent in the direction of her opponent from the town's citizens.
The figure, cloaked in black wolf's fur with a red clay full-facial mask, made one final
strike that knocked Eboshi's sword right out of her hand. She fell to the ground, and the attacker's
sword was held at her neck. "Mononoke Hime..." Eboshi said to her opponent. "You've finally
beaten me. Will you now stop rampaging? I had thought that this had all ended two years ago..."
The attacker made no response.
The sword was pressed closer to Eboshi's neck, the attacker showing immense
concentration. This position was broken, however, as Gonza charged in with his naginata and
slashed angrily. The attacker jumped the attack and landed a strong kick at Gonza's chest,
knocking him back. He came close in for another strike, but the sword of the attacker met the
shaft of his polearm fast and hard, severing the thing. With the bladed end he still gripped,
Gonza had to choice but to continue his attack or face death. During these events, Eboshi had
gotten to her feet and retrieved her own sword. She joined Gonza in the battle. The enemy
showed extreme prowess, parrying both of their attacks with their one sword. Most of the
attacker's
motions were defensive as it was now two to one, but they did manage a number of good strikes.
The ishibaya were still going off, but none of the three were hit.
Seeing San, the Mononoke Hime, Ashitaka charged into the fight in a desperate attempt
to protect all three of them, and hopefully bring San back to her senses. Noticing the newcomer,
the attacker began focusing all offensive aggression on Ashitaka in blind desperation. Moving in
very close, they made a powerful thrust towards Ashitaka's abdomen, which was parried. It did,
however, give Ashitaka a good chance to look at the assailant's eyes through their mask. Startled,
Ashitaka drew back.
Even more rampant than before, the masked attacker swung at Gonza a last time, but
pulled their sword back at the last moment. Gonza's naginata blade hit nothing but air, and the
attacker got a good kick to his stomach, flooring him. The attacker spun under a lunge from
Eboshi and caught her neck with the top of their fist. She fell backwards, where she was caught
by three of her forge girls before she could hit the ground.
Now free, the attacker ran off, dodging still more volleys of ishibaya fire. The figure
climbed upon the wall again, and, silhouetted by the moon, held its sword with the tip pointing
right at Eboshi, looking up at it from down below. The figure nodded slowly before jumping
down off the wall and onto the giant black wolf that waited below and rode off into the
nighttime forest.
Eboshi pulled herself up with the aid of her girls. "Well, Ashitaka," she said to him,
"what do you think about that? Your wolf-princess appears to still be out for my death."
Ashitaka shook his head. "No," he said solemnly. "That definitely wasn't San..."
[Two]
That evening, Eboshi consulted with Gonza. Ashitaka went along with them at Eboshi's
request. "So the Mononoke Hime has decided to bring the fight back again. She wants my life;
My arm must not have been enough revenge in her eyes." She stopped for a second to pick up a
newly developed ishibaya handed to her by one of the cured leper workers. She tilted it and
tested positions before handing it back. "Almost perfect," she said to the worker, who nodded
and carried the firearm back to their workshop.
Gonza turned to Ashitaka. "Eboshi-Sama hasn't had the workers build ishibaya since the
battle two years ago," he said. "She'll get the Mononoke Hime yet, and when she does, I'll
personally cut the monster's throat!"
Ashitaka just stared back blankly.
Eboshi continued. "It's sad to see that things haven't improved in the past years. The girl's
blindness to the fact that she's human and her hatred for me have clouded any reason she might
have ever possessed, I suppose. But if she's so intent on killing me, then I'll have to finish this
once and for all. Any thoughts, Ashitaka?"
Ashitaka spoke for the first time. "Eboshi-Sama, you are making a mistake. That attacker
was not San- That was not the Mononoke Hime! I'm sure of it," he said, with grim determination.
Eboshi raised an eyebrow at this. "Are you? The attacker was dressed in wolfskin, and
fought much like your princess. I'd be a fool to think it was otherwise."
Ashitaka shook his head. "I saw his eyes."
Gonza stepped between the two, facing Ashitaka with a naginata drawn. He snarled,
"How dare you contest with Eboshi-Sama? You've helped us in the past, but now is different! I
won't allow-"
He was cut off by Eboshi's voice. "Gonza, calm down. Ashitaka will act of his own
accord, he isn't your soldier. But Ashitaka, the fact of the matter is that the war with the
Mononoke Hime has begun again. Gonza."
"Yes, Eboshi-Sama?"
"Tomorrow, send eight of your best men into the forest with naginata and ishibaya. Tell
them their mission is to retrieve the body of the Mononoke Hime. Have them dispatch at
sunrise."
"Shall I accompany them, Eboshi-Sama?"
"No, Gonza. You will remain here." With that, Gonza bowed and walked off to his
guards' quarters. Ashitaka grabbed Eboshi's one remaining arm in distress.
"Eboshi-Sama, you can't possibly-"
"The order has been passed, Ashitaka. This time, the battle will be ended. What you do
from now on is up to you." Ashitaka nodded, and walked off somberly into the commons of
Tatara-Ba.
Later that night, Ashitaka set out with all of his possessions packed. He exited his
Tatara-Ba hut and retrieved Yakkuru from the stables. Saddling up, he led the faithful red elk
towards the gates of the town. However, he halted when a voice called for him.
"Ashitaka!"
He turned with a start to see the shout came from Toki. "Hello, Toki," he said to the
forgewoman.
She smiled at him. "Where are you headed out at this hour? Off to meet with your
princess again? But with that much load...."
He looked into her eyes compassionately. "I'm heading out. Goodbye, Toki," he said.
She frowned, but said goodbye after a moment's contemplation. Walking him watch
away, she thought to herself about how Ashitaka never made any sense to her. He'll be back
eventually, she thought. I know he will.
Ashitaka continued with Yakkuru to the gates. The gatekeeper guards put their naginatas
out crossed, in their traditional fashion. "We apologize, Ashitaka," one of them said. "We can't
let you leave at this hour. The gates must remain closed."
Ashitaka nodded. "I understand, but I have Eboshi-Sama's permission for visa."
The gatemen lowered their weapons. "In that case, we will open the gate," the one that
spoke earlier said. He and the others got to the gate's system and opened it for him, closing it
with a crash as he left.
Ashitaka had left Tatara-Ba. He trodded on, steering Yakkuru out into the forest...
[Three]
Ookami stretched as he woke with the sun. Shaking out his fur and standing on all four
legs, he yawned. Looking around, he noticed Urufu doing the same.
San was nowhere to be seen, though- Ookami jumped to the conclusion that she had
woken up before they had, and was probably alone at the rock outcropping overlooking the
human city again. He set off to make sure, not bothering to bring it to his brother's attention.
Sure enough, he was correct. She was sitting intently, staring down at Tatara-Ba...
Probably waiting for that human boy again. San seemed so depressed, so dismal after the deaths
of Mother and the Shishigami. Ookami hoped this wasn't permanent. The only times she really
even seemed happy any more was when that human showed up in the forest. How oddly ironic.
"San," he called out to her, "is everything all right? You're out earlier than usual..."
No response. He walked up to her side and brushed against her. Giving in, she put her
arm around his neck and smiled faintly. "I'm all right, Ookami," she said. "I guess it just must be
the forest. It hasn't been the same since-"
The wolf nodded. "Yes, I know... It hasn't..."
They were interrupted when Urufu came rushing in, determination and anger in his eyes
and a slender gash in his left side- Definitely the mark of a human weapon. "Humans!" he
shouted, stopping by San and Ookami. "They're attacking..."
Ookami rose once again. "So the humans have decided to rekindle their fight with the
forest. Wasn't it enough for them to do what has already been done...?" He shook his head. He
was sounding more and more like Mother to himself by the day, it seemed. It made sense, he
supposed- the Moro clan did need a new leader, especially now that it seemed the humans were
on the rise again. He would assume the position. "We must fight back, then. Urufu! Are you hurt
badly?"
"No, brother. I can still fight," replied the slightly younger of the two wolves.
"Good. San, you get on Urufu," Ookami ordered. She hopped on Urufu's back, and they
awaited further instruction. "All right, Urufu. Direct us to the humans-"
Ookami had no sooner said those words than eight armed humans jumped out onto the
outcropping from behind them. They darted into a spread formation, keeping the wolves and San
between them and the cliff edge, naginatas drawn. San recognized their garb as the Tatara-Ba
guard uniform. So that city was back on the warpath, she thought. She bolted down from Urufu's
back and readied her long dagger that she kept at her side out of habit. Urufu himself bolted
forward at one of the guards, one with a bloodied edge on his weapon- the one that had initially
attacked him- with his jaws open. The human was caught off guard, and the large wolf nabbed
him in his jaws and proceeded to shake him off of the cliff.
Two of the remaining seven humans rushed at Ookami, swinging their naginatas. The
large wolf dodged both of their strikes and launched at one of them with a clawed arm extended.
His blow made contact with the man's left shoulder, and he continued his motion, slamming the
now-left-armless guard into the ground. He dug his claws into the human's chest, ignoring their
screams as he spun and caught his other assailant at the base of the skull with his enormous
fangs.
Seeing the death of three of his comrades, one of the remaining guards took off in fright-
Gonza-Sama would not be pleased, but he would hopefully make it out alive. Urufu began to
chase after him, but he was distracted by a shout from Ookami. He turned to find the three last
guards converging on San. They had her surrounded.
"Don't lose her off the cliff!" one of the guards said to the others. "Gonza-Sama wants the
body as proof of her death!" The others nodded as they moved in closer.
San lashed out with her knife, catching one of the men's naginatas in a struggle of power.
They each gripped their weapons tighter and pressed forward, contending with each other. San
saw it as a challenge. The Tatara-Ba guards saw it as an opportunity. The man with whom she
was in a bind with pulled back sharply, and the other two raised their naginatas over her as she
struggled to regain balance. Acting on instinct, she thrust her knife forward hard as she lurched,
catching the guard she had contended with in the stomach. His eyes widened, he clutched his
abdomen, and he fell, blood coming forth from his new orifice. Urufu had made it back to the
outcropping just in time to catch one of the last two soldiers, and butted him off of the cliff. San
rolled from her low position to regain an advantage- But the last guard was fast. he positioned
himself right where she got up, and wrapped one of his arms around her throat, holding his
naginata blade at her neck. She struggled, but the man had her in a powerful hold.
The man turned to the wolves. "Come closer," he taunted them, "and I'll slit your
princess' throat. She'll die either way. Your choice, nice and easy, or you could contest with me
and I'll do it brutally right now." Ookami and Urufu reared back and snarled, showing their full
maws of teeth, but came no closer. This was certainly a bind, Ookami thought. We must save
San, but how?
The guard began to back away from the outcropping, with a struggling San in tow. She
kicked and bit at him, but his resolve was very strong. He laughed out loud as he eased nearer to
the forest on his way back to town. Gonza and Eboshi-Sama would be very pleased with him. He
could see the promotion in store for him.
Ookami and Urufu saw the flash of black fur dart through the woods behind the guard
and San, and stopped snarling in confusion. Their change in disposition didn't go unnoticed by
the guard, and he snapped his head around to see what was wrong, keeping his hold on the
Mononoke Hime.
He looked just in time to see another large wolf, this one black as opposed to the other
two white wolves, and a masked rider with a sword drawn converging on him from above. The
black wolf landed on top of him, pinning him with his claws as San broke free and ran to
Ookami. The rider leaped off, and the wolf released the guard, who stood up to find himself
face-to-face with the newcomer.
"A... Another human Mononoke...?" the guard gasped in astonishment. He pulled the
naginata into attack position as he quickly looked over the black-clad rider, and delivered a
powerful downward slash. The rider deflected the blade, and the guard pulled the butt of the
polearm around and struck him in the face with a force that shattered the mask. A young male
face, about 18 years old, with dark eyes stared back at him, teeth clenched in struggle. Ducking a
second attack from the guard's blade, the boy jumped aside and made a quick stab with his
sword. The guard fell- direct hit to the heart.
No more guards remained. The black wolf walked up next to his rider, and the two of
them stood for a moment observing the Moro clan. San and the white wolves stared back. Not a
word was uttered between them until San spoke up.
"Thank you. Who are you?" she asked. A simple enough question.
The black-clad boy smiled and replied, "My name's not important." He hopped on the back of the black wolf. "Kaze, let's go," he said, and they turned and left.
"Wait! Where are you from? You aren't from this forest..." He didn't wait.
San and the wolves didn't know what to make of it. All they were sure of was that the war
with the humans had begun anew. And that they would have to fight back for their survival.
When the runaway guard returned to Tatara-Ba, the news was spread that the Mononoke
Hime was indeed on the rise again- and that she and her wolves had already taken seven men.
Ashitaka was still nowhere to be found.
[Author's Note]
Well, that's all I've got for now. I hope you've enjoyed it, any suggestions, reviews,
constructive criticism, etc. is certainly welcome! Also, does anyone know if the two younger
wolves of the Moro clan are ever officially named by Studio Ghibli? If they have, I need to
change their names to the real ones so as not to contradict it. I guess if you know, you could just
say so in a response or review or something. Ideas for a final title are welcome, too.
If anyone wants to contact me, my AIM screen name is Vash60BillionMan, ICQ number
is 39072552, MSN Messenger is pankurokku@hotmail.com(I don't use that for e-mail though),
and e-mail is john_neal@att.net.
[Notes/Response to Feedback Comments]
Uh, I guess I've decided to set this area to clear up any comment and feedback confusion.
Ch. One: The reason I referred to 'San' with generic terms like 'it,' 'their,' and 'attacker'
was to keep from gender labeling until I thought it should be put in there... I didn't call them 'San'
because, well, they aren't San. There probably is a clearer way to manage that, but I haven't given
one much thought yet.
