Chap. 36
"Lovely," Kieci murmured as they motioned for her to follow. Tsume, the silver haired boy in black, muttered:
"I told him it wouldn't work--we're not the right kind of demon."
"You told who what wouldn't work?" Kieci wanted to know.
"It's Kurama." Kiba explained. "You know that he is a demon, right?"
"Yes."
"Well, he is not in his most powerful form as the human male you know him as. He has two other forms, one of which is a very powerful morphed fox-demon shape. He asked Tsume and I to help him regain it, using our energy to twist his own back into a demonic aura."
"I already don't like the sound of this. Continue." It was Tsume who obliged her.
"Kurama had us channel our life energy for him, thinking we, as demon wolves, would have enough of a demonic aura of our own to morph him."
"And?"
"I think our energy--being wolves' energy at the core--was too primitive to suit his needs," Kiba explained as the three of them reached the door that led out to the front porch.
"So he didn't morph. What's the problem?" Kieci was quickly losing patience. Tsume pushed the door open.
"No, he morphed--it just wasn't into Yoko Kurama. It was into plain old Yoko." The Dragon stepped past him, looking outside.
Then her jaw fell.
She had expected to see Kurama, and instead found a large fox sitting on the lawn before her. Its fur was the color of liquid silver, and its four tails were tipped with claret tufts at their distal ends. It was too large to be a normal fox, too odd a color to be natural. There was that, and the fact that its eyes were a deep, twinkling emerald green.
"You're kidding," was all Kieci could manage. She massaged her temples absently, feeling a migraine in the works. "That's...gods and goddesses; I thought I'd seen it all." She turned back to the wolves. "So he's stuck like that now?"
"Until he finds another demonic power source strong enough to drag him out of it. The kitsune form is his truest one, though. He began his life this way, before he grew powerful enough to morph on his own."
"Which he's not powerful enough to manage here. I hate this damn planet," she added as a side thought. "You can still understand me, right?" The fox bobbed its head. "We'd best warn the others. I'd hate to have someone shoot you by mistake." Kieci put two fingers in her mouth and loosed three loud whistles: the first and third short and shrill, the second long. That signal had come to mean "congregate" during the last two weeks of their restful confinement.
From all around the area people entered the clearing, most of them looking as tense as the Dragon had said they were acting. Many of them had their weapons in hand--trying to get back into proper shape was about all they had to stay occupied. Kieci opened her mouth to speak as the last straggler, Trunks, rounded the corner of the house to joint the congregation, but she hesitated at the sound of hoofbeats. More than one sword came up as the galloping sounds grew louder. It was another moment before two large horse-like figures came trotting out of the wooded area of the compound.
"Oh my," Kieci muttered, and actually bowed to the foremost of the two.
He was a tall, long-legged centaur, his horse half the most radiant shade of palomino any of them had ever seen. Each of his hooves was topped by socks and his tail, the same shade of light white, just barely brushed the ground. The sunlight in the clearing played off the modest--though noticeable--definition on his human chest, and shone in his sandy blonde hair that just barely brushed his shoulders. The light also threw bright reflections from the sapphire set in his left ear, as well as the heavy black opal ring on his right hand. Something about the centaur's build, coloration...something about the light blue eyes just seemed regal.
"May I introduce LeMicheal of Aklinnor, first son of the highest order of his class, crown prince of the Windhoof family," she cut the grim formality with a grin. "You may call him Dusty." The centaur smiled in return, motioning forth his comrade: the enormous dun stallion that had almost bit Yuna her first day in Technica.
"This lad was throwing fits when I came across him. It seems he's claustrophobic," Dusty's voice was soft and melodic for his size.
"I know the feeling," the Dragon admitted. "We've had a bit of trouble with that recently as well." She looked around, confused. "I can't believe you came only with Storm. I had thought you'd bring..." she cut off as over above the trees something plummeted from the sky, landing with much cracking of branches and thudding. "Ah, yes. Birdbrain. I'm not even going into her titles: this is Melissa." Another shape had emerged from the trees; this one was flying as opposed to trotting. She landed not so gracefully, feathers flying.
"For I so resemble a honeybee," she joked.
"Perhaps when spinning in circles for hours when you ingest too much honey," Dusty added dryly and Melissa laughed, pulling branches from her long brown hair. In body she most closely resembled a muscular, shapely human female with white-flecked blue eyes not that unlike Dusty's. The unusual thing was that her arms were more like wings, lined with long, ginger colored feathers. She had not hands but four slender, clawed talons sprouting from each wrist. Where skin met feather and claw, it became ridged and bumpy just like a bird's. Her dress-like russet tunic was separated into a top and a skirt to show off a muscular torso; both articles were tattered along their edges and gilded in gold thread at the seams. The gold choker and bicep rings she wore showed her standing in her flock.
"Have you ever eaten the stuff?" the harpy wanted to know. "It's like a drug, there's so much sugar rush involved. It's great."
"Yes, great. That's why she flies into cliff sides when she's eaten too much," the centaur told the people in the clearing. Yuna and the others watched in silence at the odd reunion. The Summoner then leaned up and said to Auron:
"I thought harpies were supposed to be vicious."
"Most of them are," Kieci murmured. "This one...isn't."
"Being uptight is no fun. It's easier just to roll with the punches," Melissa explained, absently poking Storm, who was trying with all he had to bite her. Her movements, though, were too quick for the large animal. "Speaking of which, we have some not-so-good news for you, Dragon and friends."
"A surefire cure for your cabin fever, I'm willing to bet," Dusty agreed. "The Dark has not been as stationary as you have been the last two weeks."
"We didn't receive any word," Aerith told him. "No one's contacted us with any problems."
"That's because there's no one left to contact you. The five towns the Dark hit were utterly destroyed. Anyone unfortunate enough to survive through the frontal attacks was hunted down by the Chaotic creatures waiting in the forests." Melissa wasn't laughing or joking now.
"I believe you know whom we have to thank for the Chaos," Dusty said coolly, and the spear of a comment was thrown directly at Kieci. "You failed to get him back again, didn't you?" The girl scowled, and the emotion in the clearing changed quickly.
"It's not like I didn't try." She motioned around her. "We all have tried, in different ways. The wizard is always a step ahead. It took everything we could manage just to liberate the few that Tari drug into his trap." An indignant growl sounded from her left; she threw up a hand. "Don't even start, Trunks--I haven't the time to argue this out with you again." She turned her attention back to Dusty, whose handsome face was darkening.
"We would like to suggest you try harder. All but the wisest and strongest of our clans have fallen into the net of Chaos the wizard and your elemental have woven. They turn on their own friends and leave to join the filthy army that is amassing at the Fortress. A war is coming, Dragon, and you need to fix your mistakes before it gets any worse."
"The godsdamn war's been coming for two years," Kieci replied. "I've been trying ever since then to get him back--you know that."
"That's not all, though," Melissa cut in, serious but not looking as fierce as the other two conversationalists did just then. "There're a few other problems up north. Several of the trade cities on the west coast have ceased to make their runs, and that's bad considering that they provide all of the fish trade for the more central cities. I've heard rumors of a plague but when I flew over nothing really looked wrong except there was no traffic in or out of the towns. On the eastern end...I don't even know. It's all just one huge cloud of gray. You can't see any--Ouch!" Storm had finally repaid the harpy for her ceaseless poking; the gelding, ears laid flat, spat a mouthful of brownish red feathers onto the ground with a snort. Melissa thumped him on the head. "Do you know how long it takes to grow wing feathers?!" she demanded.
"A week," Dusty muttered.
"It's the principle of the thing!"
"It seems," Auron cut in, "that we have finally been given a task. We should address it quickly, especially if there are innocents involved."
"He's right," Aerith agreed wholeheartedly, "we've sat around here long enough. One question, though," she added, pointing at the fox, "what is that?"
"Kurama," Kieci and Dusty chorused together. The Dragon looked at the centaur, surprised. "He is a demon, is he not? though he's stuck now in his most elementary form."
"How did you..?" The prince straightened his back a little.
"I can decipher the formations of millions of stars in the sky--interpreting the words of a fellow creature standing four feet away is not a challenge." He faced the others. "That is the Kurama you all knew as a red-headed human male. As you can plainly see, he is not human. There are many among you that are similar in this aspect."
"How many?" Melissa wanted to know. "I mean, how many of you aren't human?" Three hands went up--Trunks, Rose, and Legolas--and Kurama licked a paw. "Interesting," she grinned, "Guess this is officially the funny farm, huh?"
"Only because you're here," Kieci murmured, still cross. "What's everyone say we sleep on Birdbrain's news about the north and head off in the morning? I'm tired of hanging around here too, but it's too late in the day to get started now." There were motions of agreement from the circle and people began to disperse. To Dusty and Melissa the Dragon asked: "Will you be staying? There is room inside..."
"Smells too much like humans," Melissa cut in. "Even with your nonhumans to mix it up a little, it still reeks like mortals in there. I can smell it from here. I'd rather sleep in a tree." At that she took back to the air, slipping in amongst the trees inside the Dragon's dome.
"As if their nests smell anything close to pleasant," Dusty sighed, ever the patient one when it came to his feathered comrade. "I too will pass on the offer. The barn is well enough for me--a bit of a downgrade, but your Storm has the most interesting attitude for a gelding. I was unaware a male without his...aspects…could have such a multifaceted attitude. I think I too will retire but," his eyes sharpened again, "we will discuss the Chaos in more depth soon. You need to get him back."
"I know, but I'm getting tired of failing. When I try again, it will be with a better plan."
"You have said this to me before."
"Yeah, yeah. Go sleep with the ponies," the woman grumbled, waving him off and heading in the others' wake back into the house.
Two updates--whoo!! Please R&R! The action will cycle back up veeeerrrrrrry soon...
-K-