Chapter 13

Two people standing against an army of five hundred, the shadows slowly took a form of humans in ragged clothes and rotten flesh. "This is going to be tough," Sachiko said roughly baring her sharp teeth at the enemies. Both had suffered minor flesh wounds, but they can't let that slow them down or they will perish. "If we work together…" Yumi said in between breaths. "We can destroy them…" she was getting tired and suddenly withdrawn her weapons. With one swift movement, Yumi stood in the embrace of the towering wolf as she touched the Tiphon Spear giving it an even deeper blue glow to it.

"Follow my lead, just stay calm and control your breathing." Yumi whispered and Sachiko's ears twitches cutely (even in dire situation). "Under the guiding of Gaia, we will purge all darkness from this land. Grant us the power to protect this country, our Queen and our people. Lend us the strength to cleanse these poor souls, sending them into the waiting arms of eternal peace. Sapphire…" both recited in unison. "...Vortex!!!" Deep blue lights showering down around them like sparks of meteor showers, their enemies burned by the blue flames until they returned into the essence of a soul and flow upward into the heavenly sky above. Five hundred souls surrounded them causing the place to lit up in a bright white light like they're standing above a sphere.

Overexerting her limit, Yumi slumped forward and Sachiko caught her with her left hand… paw… Letting go of her weapon, Sachiko scoop the other girl up in her arms, the weapon returned to its original form and sheath itself on her waist. Oh rats… was all that her mind could form as Yumi's form changed from human to a cute little brown pup, and Sachiko found herself shrinking as well. The weapon and amulet disappeared and the same thing happened to Yumi's things as well, though it's a mystery as to where those things disappeared to.

MgM

Mocha eyes fluttered open when something wet hit her nose; the first thing Yumi saw was dark sky and blurry rain before her. Finally she noticed that she have a snout, she quickly sat up and felt dizzy that her head swaying from side-to-side for a minute or two. Oh great, I went and get myself turned into this for using too much power. Yumi heaved a sigh as she let her head hung low, but then something hit her as to why it's pouring and she's not wet. Turning her gaze upward, she was greeted with a sight of a large blue wolf sheltering her from the rains that managed to fell through the leaves of the oak tree.

Yumi's teacher had told her that her powers were borrowed from Inu Kentaro, and if she overexert herself or used too much of that borrowed power she will be transformed into a defenseless fox. Yumi had never forgotten that lesson, but now it seemed like she has as she's now just a small brown fox. She once overused her powers and was turned into a fox, and for days she remained in that form until her power replenished completely.

Quietly, she lay back down and drifted off to sleep, and for a long moment everything becomes peaceful and quiet. The rain had lifted and Sachiko had moved away so that she could lay down next to Yumi, pondering if the young hunter was from an aristocrat bloodline or not. From what Sachiko know, only those of royal bloodline or aristocrat bloodline follow the ever elusive Fox Deity: Inu Kentaro, the mighty son of Gaia. Even then, not many come close to obtaining such power from him, let alone the ability to transform into the bestial form that Yumi are in at the moment.

The feeling of something warm and wet brushed against Sachiko's nose woke her up, sapphire eyes focused on the pink tongue darting out licking her face and muzzle in a slow and normal pace. The licking suddenly stopped and Sachiko looked up to see the fox in front of her looked a bit stiffened. She saw the fox's ears flicked back and twitches lightly, Is she blushing?! Her mind pondered as the fox looked away to avoid staring at her for some reason, taking the chance Sachiko gave her companion a good lick on the face that got the brown fur to be brushed against its position (now it sticking up instead of being flat). Yumi shivered at Sachiko's action, though she didn't protest to it.

"Umm… thank you for sheltering me…" Yumi stuttered still looking away from Sachiko. "You're from the royal bloodline," Sachiko said as she stood up. "My teacher said he found me in the forest, and that Gaia had granted him his wish for a child." Yumi said softly. Compare to Sachiko, Yumi was half her size and height but in this form they're not at odds with each other, to be honest they're friendlier than before. It's only in need will you see true friendship or in this case, comrade.

MgM

"So he never tells you to call him father?" Sachiko asked as they walked side-by-side through the thick forest. "No, but he taught me all that he knows and I'm glad to have him as a mentor and a father figure," Yumi replied as her tail wagged slightly talking about her teacher. "What about you? I'm sure you're not just another peasant turning knight," Yumi said looking over at Sachiko. "Not to mention that your Tiphon Spear isn't the kind of weapon that any person could just wield it easily," she added. "Hmm… you seem to know a lot of my weapon," Sachiko said after a long thoughtful pause. "You don't think my teacher would only teach me how to hunt do you?" Yumi asked once they stopped near the river embankment. It was getting to hot for them to continue onward, so they found a tree near the river and decided to rest there until sunset.

That afternoon, Yumi recounts the tales of her younger days learning to hunt with her teacher. The man who was always there for her and taught her the art of hunting and planning ahead, Sachiko listened intently as she rested her head on her front paws. Then Sachiko in turn talked about her family, her duty as a knight and her love for her country, and her dislike of men along with of her cousin: Kashiwagi Suguru, whom she mildly dislike. The fact was strange to Yumi as to why Sachiko only mildly dislike her cousin, as he too was of the male specie. The reason was that he was the only person in her house that give her a sense of normalcy, after all the Ogasawara name was known throughout the kingdom. Thus, Sachiko was never treated like a normal girl as people around her always treated her with respect or having very high expectation from her.

Sachiko had spent much of her young life learning the art of being the perfect woman, but by the time she reached her teens she was sent to become a knight instead. Though still being trained in the art of being lady-like, her superior forced her to quit it all and moved into the squire quarter permanently for better training purposes. Now Sachiko cast an aura of a strong knight but when in court, she would looked as delicate as any lady in waiting would be and as scholarly as any man serving the Queen.

A/N: If you go back to chapter 6, I have already give the name of the deities and what they are as in their natural/true form.