A/N: I'm alive! O.O Yeah, it's been crazy these past few weeks. I had that 25 page biography to finish and a bunch of tests... on the plus side, I'm exempt from all my midterms. Anyway, because of all the stuff that has been going on, this chapter isn't as long as I'd have liked it to be...
Antithesis
Chapter 3: Deviation
I sat back, amused, as Amaterasu dug up turnips from Mushi's mother's turnip patch, nimbly dodging the woman and distracting her with strokes of the Celestial Brush.
"So, furball, think she'll get them all?" Issun sat on my muzzle, watching with interest as Ammy used her Power Slash technique on her chaser's hat. I barked.
Of course she'll get them all, I thought. As long as she keeps using the brush, that is.
"Is that a yes? Oh, never mind. There she goes."
Ammy left the turnip field holding her prize: the oddly-shaped turnip that Mushi and his dog Hayabusa had been aiming to dig up, while Mushi's mother looked at her now nearly vacant garden in distress. I watched as the wolf held out the turnip to Mushi, who turned pale.
"Hey! That's... that's... The oddly shaped turnip Hayabusa and I've been looking for!" gasped the boy, eyes widening in shock. "That means... You've broken Hayabusa's record by digging up all 10 turnips!" Mushi stomped one foot on the ground, then stomped the other one for emphasis. I yawned and sat back to watch the kid, half-expecting him to throw a fit even though he was in the middle of the village.
"Gosh darn it!" The kid fell silent for a moment. "... Fine... You're the better canine..." he admitted, and scratched the back of his head, looking back at his dog. Suddenly Mushi grinned and looked back at the sun goddess, who had gone to sleep on the ground in front of him.
"Just you wait, Snowy! Hayabusa and I will match your record!" said the boy excitedly, and ran over to his dog, urging the canine to get up and pointing at his mother's patch with such enthusiasm I thought he'd had seven cups of coffee. Not that coffee existed here... did it?
Issun hopped down from my muzzle and bounced over to Amaterasu, his aura flashing various colors, while I followed just behind him, taking another look back at the field of vegetables. Hayabusa had circled around Mushi's mother and was quickly digging up another turnip. As the woman turned her head in the dog's direction, I winced. Something tells me that won't end so well. I looked back at the wolf to see one amber eye open and look curiously at the Poncle as his aura turned back to its usual green color.
"All right, furball, maybe we should get moving. I mean, we've spent half the day here just helping the villagers."
It was true, too. We'd repaired the water mill that I'd accidentally broken, replaced Mrs. Orange's drying pole and helped her dry her clothes, and even cleared Kamiki of the strange evil influence that pervaded the air. There had been six -- count them, six -- imps Amaterasu and I had dispatched together, Divine Retribution and Ticking Death working in tandem to rid the village of the demons. Not that I'd done much of the work; the goddess had taken down four of them on her own. It was breathtaking to see her in action: darting this way and that with fluid grace; dodging attacks with an ease that made her look like she was the wind itself; bashing her enemies with such fury that I wanted to shrink back and hide in a corner; wielding her Celestial Brush with expert precision; it was here that she'd seemed more like a fierce goddess and less like a wolf.
Ammy let out a yip and wagged her tail, getting up while Issun hopped atop her head. I trailed quietly behind them, watching both Poncle and wolf interact as they made their way to the far end of the village. Issun talked about anything that came to mind, while the wolf goddess listened and sometimes yipped in agreement. Not that that was saying much -- most of the time the artist rambled on about beautiful women he'd encountered while wandering Nippon. On the rare occasion he wasn't talking about a beautiful woman, he'd talk about some of his sketches and paintings or his life as a wandering artist. It was only a few seconds before I noticed that the goddess had turned her head, that same curious look she'd given Issun directed at me. I looked back at her -- and let out a bark of warning.
"Shin? What are you --" The artist's sentence was cut short when the white wolf walked headfirst into the trunk of a tree, sending Issun crashing to the ground. I ran over to them, slowing as I looked at the goddess. She seemed fine. Issun, on the other hand, was a different story. Lifting one paw, I prodded the Poncle that lay supine on the ground. Issun?
He didn't move.
Um, Issun, really, time to get up. I prodded him again, and this time he let out a groan. I glanced at Amaterasu -- and we both burst into a fit of wolfish giggles as we realized what had happened. The poor Poncle had fainted. Issun hopped up and down angrily, his aura changing from a calm green to a bright red.
"What're you two laughing about?" he demanded, and unsheathed his tiny sword. Ammy and I looked at each other and rolled on our backs, howling with laughter. He didn't know what had happened, either!
"Gah... I don't know why you furballs are laughing, and maybe I don't want to know," muttered Issun, placing Denkomaru back in its sheath. "Ammy, watch where you're going next time, will ya?"
Our fit of giggles subsided and we both got up, doing our best to shake off the dirt that had found its way onto our coats. Issun hopped on my head, muttering something about goddesses and their lack of long attention spans, before we set off toward the path that led out of Kamiki. Strange... wasn't there supposed to be a boulder blocking the exit? I padded up to the merchant's stand, which was surprisingly vacant. My eyes narrowed when I spotted a tell-tale trail of blood leading from the stand to the field just outside the village. Pieces of rock were strewn about the path, while several strange crystals floated where the boulder had once been. It was clear that someone -- or something -- had destroyed the boulder and presumably killed the merchant.
Amaterasu ventured forward only to leap back, snarling, as the crystals released cracking bolts of energy that shot back and forth between each other. Together they formed a lethal barrier that was impossible to get through.
"Whoa!" cried Issun, and hopped from my head over to the barrier to get a better view. The Poncle examined the barrier, being careful not to get too close to the raging storm of energy. Finally he said, "Hey, Ammy, think you could Power Slash those crystals?"
She barked in response and swished her tail, covering the gems with a line of ink that stretched from one end of the barrier to the other. The shining crystals in front of her swayed from side to side, but did not break.
"Not even a scratch," muttered Issun. "Hmm... looks like we're stuck here. If only we could find a way to remove these things..." he said, lost in thought. The artist continued to talk, but I was no longer listening; instead, I was looking back and forth between my tail and the crystals in front of me. Issun's words had reminded me of how the pole and water wheel had reacted when I'd used the Abyssal Brush on them -- the pole had broken into pieces, while part of the water wheel had disappeared completely. Raising my tail, I quickly painted over all the crystals, checking to make sure that I hadn't left one out. When the canvas vanished, the crystals dissolved into fine white dust that mingled with the soil and grass. I hid a smug grin as the Poncle stared in shock at the now-empty path.
"Wha-?!" Issun stood above the dust, waving Denkomaru where the barrier had been seconds ago. "I don't get it; Power Slash didn't work, but the crystals are gone..." He turned to Amaterasu. "Was that you?"
The white wolf shook her head, puzzlement reflected in her eyes. I remained silent -- the Abyssal Brush was a powerful tool, and one that they didn't need to know about unless it was unavoidable.
"Ah, whatever." Issun made his way back to us and bounced up onto the goddess' head. "Let's go, furballs!"
I loped ahead of Ammy as we set off down the path, intent on tracking the now-obvious trail of blood leading into Shinshu Field -- but whatever thoughts running through my mind scattered when I entered the once-beautiful area. Playing Okami could never have prepared me for the sight before my eyes. The grass was brown and brittle, while the soil itself seemed to be crying out for rain. The roiling black and red mist known as the cursed zone saturated most of the field, petrifying the people it touched and choking the plants in its cold grasp.
"This is bad," said Issun. "See that Guardian Sapling?"
The poor, withered tree stood near the center of area, its branches drooping toward the ground.
"It's supposed to be a place for travelers to rest and recuperate, but just look at it! It looks like it could fall over at any moment!" Issun turned his attention back to the miasma that pervaded Shinshu Field. "Yep, this place is definitely cursed -"
"Shinryu!" A loud, silky voice echoed throughout the decaying field. I looked around for the source, but beyond the statues, Guardian Sapling, and cursed zone, I saw nothing. A quick glance at Amaterasu told me that she hadn't seen anything as well.
"Your insolent actions have displeased Lord Orochi!" continued the voice, a gleeful note imbued in its words. "And I have been granted the honor of killing you."
Inwardly, I groaned. Can't I go one day without someone trying to kill me?
"Do try and put up a fight, dear -- it'll be quite boring if you don't."
I crouched low, weathering the high winds that blasted past me as a thin, feminine figure landed with a resounding crash a few feet away. As the gusts died down I studied my opponent closely. She seemed to be made entirely of crystal, her body pulsating with a soft glow. Several shining diamonds floated in a circle behind her, glinting in the afternoon sun. In her hand was a ruby spear that cast a blood-red shadow on the ground. She looked from me to Amaterasu with disdain etched on her face.
"When I heard you were helping the origin of all that is good, I couldn't believe it at first." She tapped the point of her spear on the ground. "But it looks like it's true. Don't worry," she called to Ammy, pointing her spear at the wolf for emphasis, "I, Toyotama, the radiant jewel, will dispose of you next!"
"I generally like babes -" Issun had wormed out of the goddess' fur to gaze at Toyotama's lovely form "- but I can't stand it when they try to kill people. Let's get her, Ammy!"
Amaterasu let out a growl of approval.
I guess I don't have a choice in this, I thought as she and I both leapt at Toyotama, weapons swinging. We both let out a yelp and landed beside each other as both Instruments bounced off her crystalline skin.
What the hell?! I fumed, letting out a low growl. The woman simply laughed and motioned to the crystals behind her. They shot forward to surround me with the same barrier that had blocked the entrance to Kamiki. I struck each crystal several times without avail -- they simply refused to break. Abyssal Brush it is, then, I thought, and began to paint over the numerous crystals that circled me.
"Really, Shinryu, I expected better from you. You of all people should remember that such a degraded weapon won't do any good against me," she taunted, blocking Ammy's Power Slash with her spear.
"You were the one who made those crystals, weren't ya?!" yelled Issun while the sun goddess moved swiftly to avoid the point of her enemy's weapon.
"And what if I did --" Toyotama halted in mid-sentence as the crystals around me shattered. I let my tail fall and did my best to put a smug grin on my face when her face contorted with anger. As she opened her mouth to say something to me Amaterasu rammed her from the side, sending both goddess and demon crashing into the nearby rock wall.
"Petty god," she hissed, and swatted the wolf away with the butt of her spear. Before she could twist her weapon around to impale Ammy, I jumped up, smacking her on the head with Ticking Death. Toyotama staggered back, jabbing wildly at me with her spear. I let out a howl of pain as the fine ruby point embedded itself in my shoulder. The demon recovered her footing and thrust forward again, missing me by mere inches. She drew back for another strike -- only to shield her eyes from the harsh sunlight that rained down upon Shinshu Field. Amaterasu had recovered, using Sunrise to blind Toyotama temporarily. The aura around the crystalline figure faded to a soft glow in the cleansing light of the sun, the luster of her skin diminishing as she staggered toward the shadows. I ignored the pain in my shoulder and attacked, my scythe glancing off her skin once -- twice -- three times, only backing away when she brandished her spear at me.
"Cursed light," muttered Toyotama as soon as she'd regained the cover of darkness. She froze as white dust began to seep out of small cracks where Ticking Death had struck. "Impossible," she breathed, gazing in shock at her wounds. It was only when Ammy growled and bounded toward her that her head snapped up. Her aura flared around her as the demon vaulted over the white wolf to stab at me, but a single Power Slash knocked the spear from her hands. It spiraled through the air, splitting into two with a resounding crack as it landed on the ground. Wounded and disarmed, Toyotama glared at me, hatred reflected in her azure eyes.
"You'll regret today, Shinryu," she hissed, backing away. "Next we meet, I will make you suffer for every second that you defied me. And as for you, wolf goddess-- I will have my revenge for your little trick with the sun!" Toyotama vanished in a puff of smoke as I pounced onto the spot where she'd been a second ago. I winced as I landed on the ground, my shoulder protesting the merciless impact.
"Gah, she got away," muttered Issun, hopping up and down atop Ammy's head as she walked over to me. The wolf let out a whine of worry as she saw my injury. In response I lifted my paw and moved it around, trying to show that despite the wound on my shoulder, my leg was still usable. Her eyes flooded with relief while Issun made his way down Amaterasu's leg and onto the ground.
"He's fine, furball," said the artist abruptly. "Ammy, you don't mind leaving us alone for a while, do ya?"
The sun goddess cocked her head to one side in puzzlement.
"I need to talk to Shin about something," he said, a hint of irritation in his voice as his aura flickered between green and red. Amaterasu looked from the Poncle to me with interest reflected in her eyes.
"We won't be long," said Issun. She let out a yip and walked several yards away, taking a seat near the edge of the cursed zone.
"All right, Shin, I'm not good with speeches, so I'm just gonna tell ya..."
Tell me... what? I wondered, eying him questioningly.
"I don't trust ya, furball."
I blinked. Erm, what?
Issun's aura had changed from its flickering green color to a bright crimson. "Toyotama seemed to know you pretty well -- now tell me that's not suspicious."
It's not suspicious! I've never even met her! I thought indignantly.
The Poncle let out a gusty sigh. "Who am I kidding? Wolves can't talk." His aura became a calm green once again. "Anyway, the only reason you haven't tasted Denkomaru is because Ammy seems to have taken a liking toward ya."
Gee, thanks, I thought, and started off toward Amaterasu.
"Don't get any ideas, though," warned Issun while he ran alongside me. "If I even think you're gonna hurt Ammy I'll have myself a furball steak. Got it?" He drew his tiny sword for effect and swished it around, nearly hitting my paw.
Yeah yeah, I get it, I grumbled, waiting while the artist hopped atop the sun goddess' head. No harming Amaterasu. Not like I'd planned to, anyway, but Issun had no way of knowing that. With one last look at the desolate field around us, we set off down the trail that led to Hana Valley.
A/N: Oh, I almost forgot! Thanks to all who reviewed last time! I appreciate it! Getting reviews encourages me to keep this going.
