THIRTY-EIGHTH SCROLL: TO THE NORTH
Storm clouds blotted out the sun over Shinshu Field. An ominous feeling made the air oppressive. No rain fell, but flashes of lightning glinted in the sky and thunder rumbled in the black depths. Nothing stirred on Shinshu Field. All of the animals had fled, as if sensing a growing danger.
My hackles rose as I loped across the Field towards the bridge near Tama's house. I had explored all of Shinshu Field earlier in my travels…all places except one. There was a rise that was too tall for me to reach unaided. Now that I had Kabegami's Catwalk Brush however, I could climb up and explore a great stone ruin that loomed over the landscape. It reminded me a little of the massive windmill in Kusa Village, except that the windmill shaft, if that's what it was, had fallen at an angle with age. Lightning flashed yellow light, briefly illuminating the ruin's silhouette.
I hauled myself over the edge of the ridge and raced up towards the tower. It didn't seem quite as tall now that I was closer to it. Perhaps it had been a tower a long time ago, but there was little left now. An eerie feeling slipped along my spine as I remembered the little gear-master talking about all the structures in Nippon that no one knew anything about. I circled it and found some kind of door made of metal and heavy wood, but it refused to budge. So, I backed away and examined the ruin from a distance. The shaft which I thought was part of a windmill was, on closer inspection, more like a great ridged sword, similar to Ninetails' blade, pointing south. And I knew that shape drew lightning very well. I recalled your words about "a brilliant zap and it opens." Still trying to help me then, Waka? Or was I once again playing errand-wolf? But I needed to know what this had to do with the north and the evil spirits who fled there.
A quick stroke of my Celestial Brush drew lightning from the sky to the tip of the leaning sword. Something in the top of the ruin exploded and electricity crackled along the stones. With a groan, the top of the ruin started to turn. The sword swung around to face the north. The grinding of stone and gears stopped, and I carefully circled the structure to the door once more. This time, the door stood open. A cool breeze wafted from within, carrying with it the scent of earth and the faintest hint of snow. I growled softly, unnerved by the scent. Here in Shinshu Field it was spring. Snow could not be anywhere near here. And how could this tunnel lead to the Northern Lands? But this was where my travels had led me, so I would follow the tunnel and see where it led. I took a deep breath and plunged into the darkness.
I don't know how long I ran through the dark. Time seemed to cease here, but I know that I did not run as long as I should have. The time it would take to run from Shinshu Field to the north was far longer than I spent in the tunnel. Something…happened in there, a kind of twist in space or time. Or perhaps both. But suddenly, the temperature was much colder, a faint bluish light was filtering into the dark and I could see my breath rising in white clouds before me. My paws struck wood instead of packed earth and stone. The light grew and then I was out in the middle of whirling snow.
Even as a goddess with the heat of the sun pouring through my veins, I felt cold. The snow itself was not a problem; in fact I took a certain unrestrained joy in leaving paw prints in the vast white blanket. But the wind…that chilling wind that tore past cloaks and burrowed into your bones…if I did not keep moving, there was a chance that even I might freeze to death.
Luckily there were broad paths sheltered enough from the wind so the snow wasn't as deep. I'll admit that I pranced a little, kicking snow into the air behind me. Issun just huddled deeper into my fur and muttered unhappily to himself. Around the bend, I saw an open area with a small hut on the left. Curious, I moved closer.
With a roar, six demons leapt from the snow to surround me. Their bodies were covered in coats made of straw with huge red and green masks painted with great staring eyes and rows of sharp teeth. Some carried huge iron cleavers while others had only their fists. These were namahage, demons unique to the snowy lands. The demons roared and I feared their echoing cries might start an avalanche. Despite their numbers, the namahage were slower than me. I dodged their cleavers and struck back with my Divine Instrument. It didn't do as much damage as I expected; their skins were tough, almost like stone from the cold. Strikes that would have felled the imps of Shinshu Field were shrugged off by the namahage. I snarled and dropped a fireball into their midst. The namehage shrank back and shrieked in pain as their straw coats caught fire. It took two Power Slashes to fell each one as they howled on the snow. The last one actually beat out the flames and managed to parry my first strike before I cut it down.
My breath steamed in the icy air. I looked around, but saw no more demons. The area around me was strangely empty, like some kind of arena with several large urns half-buried in the snow. Only the small hut to my left revealed any sign of habitation, but I saw no other human dwellings nearby, which seemed strange. In such a harsh landscape, wouldn't humans huddle together to share their meager resources? Or was this some kind of holy place, perhaps the home of a medicine man or shaman who stayed apart from the rest. Perhaps the place I now stood was a gathering ground for rituals or dancing.
Either way, I suddenly felt the cold much more keenly after the battle, so I padded through the snow and pushed my way past the heavy red and white cloth hanging over the doorway. A blast of warmth chased the cold from my bones. Issun jumped from my head to get closer to the fire blazing away in the central hearth. I shook the snow from my back and gratefully sank onto a lovely rug lying just inside. But as I glanced across the fire, I leapt to my feet again, reached out a paw, and drew Issun back towards me. The hut was not unoccupied.
A humanoid figure, half-obscured by the haze of heat, stood. It slowly turned towards us. For a second, I thought it might be the owner of the hut, but the face that turned to face me was anything but human. It looked like a red-eyed wolf, the face deep blue with a white muzzle and a red and black mane cascading down its back. It reminded me of Evil Rao with her fox-head on a woman's body, only this was a hybrid of human and wolf. It stared at us, and then I heard the hiss of a sword being drawn from its sheath. The grey blade flicked across the flames. The thing was fast. I couldn't scent it; the smell of wood smoke was too overwhelming. I jumped back a pace and growled, warning the thing to stay back. Issun finally noticed that something was wrong and jumped back to his perch on my head.
The sword-wielding creature began to circle the fire. I kept pace, never taking my eyes off it, keeping the flames between us. It paused when its back was to the door, then lowered its sword slightly. It jerked its head towards the outside, then carefully backed out. I waited, listening to the crunch of footsteps as it retreated…and then stopped. Waiting. Apparently, our masked friend wanted a fight. Well, I was willing to oblige, especially if it had stolen the body of the person who used to live in this house. I bared my teeth, ignored Issun's excited chatter about the beast's sword being a masterpiece, and stepped outside.
Our masked opponent was there, waiting for us at the other side of the clearing. The crosswinds still kept its scent from me, so I still wasn't sure what demon it could be. It looked small, but looks could be deceiving, like with Evil Rao. So I crouched and snarled a challenge to the beast, daring it to attack me. We faced off, staring at one another, and then I felt a strange build-up of power. The great, half-buried urns set around the clearing suddenly burst into flame as the power reached a fever pitch. The demon threw back its head and roared, tearing the air around it. Eyes blazing, it charged, a cone of icy air forming around the blade.
I dodged the first strike, feeling the hairs on the tip of my tail freeze solid as the icy blast nicked them. Snapping at the demon's heels, I slid on the snow, overshooting my target. I scrabbled for purchase and the demon's sword glowed. This time, glowing blue copies of the blade appeared and shot through the air at me. I bared my teeth in a smile. I'd seen this trick before, both with Blight and Ninetails. My Power Slash deflected the blades and the beast paused for a fraction of a second, as if surprised. I pulled fire from one of the urns to set the demon's red and blue-black robes on fire, but a blue light rose around the beast, killing the flames. It lunged at me with great sweeps of its sword, which I blocked with my Divine Instrument. I snarled and flung a gust of wind at it to give myself some space, then started to circle him, lashing out with my weapon to give glancing blows, although nothing solid enough to bring it down.
The demon leapt into the air and I felt that same burst of power suddenly rise. Blue light flashed and I found myself facing…a wolf. A huge wolf with the same blue-black fur as the demon's robes, a great red mane, and the same blue masked face staring at me. But the mask was now more like an ornament on the beast's forehead as slavering jaws opened to breathe out an icy gust. But the red eyes were the same, as was the sword slung over its back. I sensed a force emanating from the beast, a force similar to what I used to wield my Divine Instrument without hands. But the transformation was what unnerved me the most. It left me facing a foe that looked far, far too similar to myself for comfort.
With a howl, the demon wolf swept the great sword in an arc, trying to slice me in two. I leapt out of the way. The demon jumped, whirling the blade in a somersault and tried to slice me in half from above. I slipped on the snow, sliding out of the way of the sword's strike. The attack was slow, slower than the humanoid form, and I wondered how much practice the demon had fighting with a sword in this form. But I was forced to rethink that thought when the demon wolf's head collided with my side. I barely managed to block the oncoming strikes as they rained down on me. A small cut stung across my side, then another on my back.
Issun screamed a warning and I flung myself blindly to the side. Three huge spears of ice impaled the ground where I'd just stood. I looked to see the new attacker and saw a ghostly white wolf, a mirror image of the demon I fought, melting away. But another was rising from the snow, and another. No fair. I couldn't make doubles of myself to help fight! The demon wolf's blade swept towards me. I dropped a dab of ink onto the ground, forcing a tree to suddenly appear. I heard the thunk of the blade impacting the trunk as I scrabbled out of the way. The heat of one of the urns pulsed at my back and with a gleeful smile, I pulled the flames across the two snow-wolves, melting them.
A blue blur shot through the steam from the melted snow-wolves. I leapt aside with a yelp of pain as it cut a red line across my chest. Now I was mad. Really mad. Another snow-wolf tried to ram me, but I cut it in half with my Power Slash. The demon was coming around for another series of strikes, but this time, instead of leaping away, I charged. I slammed into it, chest to chest, muscles straining as we clawed and snapped at one another, too close to use our weapons. The demon slipped in the snow and I strained forward, trying to bite through the thick mane to reach its throat. It must have sensed my sudden fury, because the demon gave way, trying to wriggle free. I grabbed a hunk of mane and twisted. The demon slammed into the snow, stunned. I leapt backwards, grabbing for fire from the nearest urn. The snow hissed and melted as the flames struck the snow, but the demon managed to jump out of the way. We landed, facing away from each other. I whirled, snarling, ready to finish the fight.
But, to my astonishment, the demon did not turn. Instead, motes of light surrounded it, and the wolf stood on its hind legs, melting back into humanoid form. Then, as it turned, the wind shifted, bringing the scent of a human to my nostrils. I stared. This…this was a human? No, not quite. Mixed in with the human scent was the smell of a wolf. And yet, both were uniquely this individual, who introduced himself as Oki, warrior of the Oina Tribe.
I rose from my fighting crouch. The Oina Tribe. I remembered them. They were a reclusive people, few in number, who never left the icy Northern Land, which they called "Kamui." Unlike most other beings, they straddled the line between human and animal. Alone among mortals, they had the power to wear the forms of both human and wolf. It was custom for them to wear special masks to aid in the shift between the forms, and to distinguish them from other humans. They were great warriors and had a strong spiritual sense, allowing them to see what others could not. In this case, this man Oki knew that I was not an ordinary wolf, nor one of his people in wolf form. And yet he had attacked me without warning or provocation…so he was either very brave or very stupid.
Issun was asking the same questions…but Oki seemed to recognize Issun, mentioning his painting. He said that Issun had left Kamui in disgust a year ago. My companion sounded both angry and afraid as he blustered for a response. I eyed Oki warily. I did not know much about Issun. Not really. Oh, yes we'd traveled together so I knew Issun could be an irritating, talkative womanizer who nevertheless cared about the plight of Nippon and had helped out of (as well as into) a few jams. But I know nothing about who he had been or where he came from or why he had been in Kamiki Village when Sakuya woke me. What had Issun left behind here in Kamui?
But before I could say anything (since it was possible Oki could understand me), Issun was off and asking why Oki was wielding that sword. I looked at the weapon. Now that it was not being used, it seemed like a perfectly ordinary blade…but something about Oki having it seemed to make Issun afraid. Oki explained that Kamui had been watched over, protected from the worst dangers, by the sacred twin mountains of Ezofuki. But the sacred place had been taken over by two demons, Lechku and Nechku that had been imprisoned there. Fierce blizzards and demonic attacks had killed many Oina and the land itself was starting to die. If something was not done, then Kamui would be completely destroyed.
Another blast of cold wind made me shiver. So that was why Kamui was so cold…Snow covered the land for much of the year, but it was still unnatural for the snows to be this deep and the air so frigid. And those demons were to blame, so Oki had taken it upon himself to go and slay Lechku and Nechku. Issun was still upset, demanding to know why Oki had taken the village's guardian sword, Kutone. Oki snorted impatiently, saying that it was time for the sword to be used. A prophecy said that when the sword started to glow silver, then a way to the heavens would be open, allowing him to rid the land of demons.
I looked at the sword; Kutone did not seem to be glowing. Oki turned away, saying that Kutone would not awaken until it had drunk more demon blood. That was why he was out here, outside the village, killing demons. Something about Oki's reasoning worried me. Blood-drinking swords were rarely safe to use, especially not by hot-headed young warriors eager to be heroes and willing to attack a goddess. But I had a feeling that Oki was not going to listen to Issun or I, so I decided it would be best to head to the village of the Oina Tribe and try to find out what else was going on here in the icy north.