Chapter One
In ancient times, a land laid covered in forests. Wherefrom ages long past dwelt the spirits of the gods. Back then, man and beast lived in harmony. But as time went by, many forests were destroyed. Those that remained were guarded by gigantic beasts who owed their allegiance to the great forest spirit. For those where the days of gods and demons.
Sunlight shone through each individual tree, hitting Ashitaka's eyes as he moved through the forest. He rode on his trusty red elk, Yakul. The forest was anything but peaceful today. On his daily ride with Yakul, Ashitaka noticed some trails in the forest. It seemed that whatever the creature was, it left a trail of death and decay. Yakul galloped into the clearing. As Yakul moved into the walkway, Ashitaka stood on the Elk's back and jumped onto the rocks along the pathway. Every step he took he could feel the stones could touch on his bare feet. With his bow in hand, Ashitaka looked around for the mysterious beast. Seeing that it was nowhere to be seen, Ashitaka ran forward.
"Yakul! Come on boy!" Ashitaka urged as the elk trotted up the wooden ramp, making creaking sounds as he went up. Yakul galloped forward as Ashitaka ran alongside him. Using the elk's strong antlers, Ashitka climbed back up on the elk. Three girls ran towards him and the elk. "Girls!" Ashitaka yelled. He gently kicked Yakul's side. The elk slowed to a stop just before the girls. "There's something strange going on! You have to hurry, the oracle wants everybody back in the village at once!" Ashitaka urged.
"We just came back from Ji-san!" Kaya said.
"Did he see something?" Ashitaka asked.
"Yes, somethings in the forest!" Kaya said.
"The birds are all gone. And the animals too!" The two girls beside Kaya added.
"I'll go to the watchtower and check with Ji-san. You three go on home, and be quick about it!" Ashitaka urged. He gently kicked the elk again. Yakul ran forward with great speed.
"Be careful!" Kaya yelled as the three of them ran back to the village.
They made their way up the tall hill. On the top was a watchtower made entirely of wood and rope. The watchtower was supported by only three logs crossed in the middle and tied with rope. Yakul made his way under the watchtower. Ashitaka jumped off Yakul and onto the ladder leading up to the middle segment of the watchtower. On his way up the watchtower, Ashitaka looked towards the forest. There was a low groaning noise in the forest. Yakul looked up and sniffed in the direction of the noise. In the clearing, Ashitaka could see what looked like a swarm of bugs.
"Something's coming," Ashitaka mumbled to himself. He made his way up to the top of the watchtower, where Ji-san was sitting looking towards the forest.
"Ji-san, did you see it too?" Ashitaka asked in a quiet voice. The old man kept looking forward.
"I did. Whatever it is it isn't human," He said in his low raspy voice.
"The oracle called everyone back to the village," Ashitaka looked back at the village below the tall hill. From the watchtower, you could see the whole village. The village was empty, meaning everybody was inside their homes.
"There, look!" Ji-san quickly spoke. Ashitaka darted his eyes to the forest. He pulled out his bow and drew an arrow. The bowstrings creaked under the pressure. The wind quietly howled as the sunlight seemed to disappear. Ashitaka stayed focused on the forest, ready to let his arrow fly at any moment. In the rocks along the forest's edge, a swarm of small purple tentacles seeped through the cracks of the stones. The ones on the top flopped around like fish out of water. The trees behind the blob of tentacles rotted away just by being near the tentacles. For a second the swarm of tentacles seemed to disappear, only for the rocks to burst and roll down the hill. A giant insect looking beast with red eyes came scattering forth, leaving a trail of death and decay behind it.
"A demon!" Ji-san yelled.
"A demon?" Ashitaka said uncertain of what he was looking at. The demon walked towards the sunlight. The tentacles stooped before the light and revealed what was underneath. A red boar roared as the tentacles wrapped around the boar's head once again. The demon then ran towards the watchtower. Ashitaka looked down towards Yakul.
"Run Yakul!" Ashitaka shouted. The terrified elk only stood in fear as the swarm of tentacles crawled towards him. Ashitaka leaned out of the watchtower and fired an arrow at one of the legs of the watchtower. Being jolted by the arrow, Yakul ran back down the hill. The demon ran into the legs of the watchtower causing it to fall. Ashitaka barely had time to grab Ji-san before jumping off the watchtower and into a nearby tree. The tower completely crumbled apart as it fell down the hill. Unsatisfied, the demon ran towards the village, a trail of decay following behind it.
"It's headed for the village! I have to stop it!" Ashitaka yelled as he jumped down from the tree.
"Prince Ashitaka, wait! That things cursed, don't let it touch you!" Ji-san warned. Ashitaka climbed up on the rock where the demon was. He whistled for Yakul. The red elk came running towards his master. Ashitaka quickly mounted Yakul and jumped down the hill towards the demon. The Demon tore down trees and bushes alike as it rampaged through the forest. Ashitaka made his way through the forest and into the pathway to the village. The demon burst through the trees and into the same path. Now chasing Ashitaka, the demon began to speed up towards the village. Ashitaka turned towards the demon and motioned for it to stop.
"Calm your fury, oh mighty spirit! Whatever you may be, god or demon, please leave us in peace!" Ashitaka yelled, trying to calm the demon.
The three girls ran down the hill just outside the village. The girls heard a noise coming from behind them. They turned to see Ashitaka emerging from the forest with a demon running behind him. The demon lost interest in Ashitaka and turned towards the girls. It then crawled towards the girls at an alarming speed.
"A monster!" One of the girls yelled.
"Come on!" Kaya yelled. The girls turned around and ran towards the village. Ashitaka caught up to the demon and tried again to calm it.
"Go back! Please leave our village alone! Stop, please!" Ashitaka yelled desperate to the demon's attention. The girls ran down the grassy hill as fast as they could. The ground was uneven and very slippery. One of the girls tripped and fell.
"Get up!" Kaya yelled. Looking back she saw that the demon was fastly approaching. She pulled out her machete and stood ready.
"Kaya!" Ashitaka yelled. He pulled out his bow and drew back an arrow. He fired the arrow straight into the demon's red-eye. The beast cried out in pain as the purple tentacles swarm around the boar. "Run!" Yelled Ashitaka. Kaya yelped carry the girl that had fallen. The tentacles pulsated around the boar and then flew out towards Ashitaka. The tentacles quickly caught up to the prince and enveloped his right arm. Ashitaka felt the burning rage seep down into his flesh as the tentacles wrapped themselves around his arm. With all the strength he could muster, Ashitaka swung his arm out of the tentacles grasp. Ashitaka pulled back another arrow and waited for Yakul to run around to the boar's other side. When he saw the red eye of the boar, Ashitaka let his arrow fly. It hit the boar straight between the eyes. The purple tentacles chased Ashitaka but soon after fell to the ground, lifeless. The tentacles around the boar melted away into black goop and it fell down onto its side.
Ashitaka slowed down Yakul. He slowly pulled up his arm to see the black goop burn its way into his arm.
"He killed it! Fetch the oracle!" One of the townspeople called. Kaya looked over to see Ashitaka wincing in pain.
"Ashitaka!" Yelled Kaya. Yakul slowly made his way towards the fallen boar. Ashitaka slowly fell off the elk and onto the soft green grass. Kaya went over to examine Ashitaka's wound.
"Kaya, don't touch it! This wound isn't natural." Ashitaka warned. He took up some dirt from the ground and rubbed it on his arm. Desperate to help her brother in any way, She helped him rub dirt on the wound.
"Here comes the oracle!" One of the villagers yelled. A man carrying the oracle came running near. The oracle held a big jug of hot water.
"Keep away, all of you!" She warned.
"What should we do?" Kaya asked. The oracle got off the man's back and gave the jug to the young girl.
"Pour this over his wound, slowly." The oracle advised. Kaya took the jug and slowly poured it over Ashitaka's arm. The water burned his arm, but he could feel the black goop being wash away. The oracle walked over to where the boar had fallen. She bowed towards the giant boar.
"Oh god of rage and nameless hate, I bow before you. A mound will be raised and funeral rights will be performed where you have fallen. Pass on in peace and bear us no hatred." The oracle spoke, giving one last bow. With blood flowing out of his mouth, the boar began to speak.
"Disgusting little creatures. Soon all of you will feel my hate and suffer as I have suffered," The boar spoke as its flesh began to melt and rot away. Steam rose off of the skeletal remains of the boar. Many villagers covered their eyes and noses from the stench of the remains. The blood of the boars slowly seeped into the soil below.
After the beast was properly buried, a sacred funeral was performed at sunset. A shrine made out of stone and wood stood where the boar had fallen. Just after the battle was over, Kaya walked Ashitaka to the village's doctor. After looking at it, the doctor concluded that the injury was spiritual in nature and couldn't be dealt with. The oracle called a meeting to discuss Ashitaka's injury.
The night was cold and windy. No one dared to speak as the oracle tossed her stones. The only sound inside the hut was the crackle of the fire and the sound of stones being tossed against one another. Ashitaka sat crosslegged before the oracle, waiting for what she had to say. The village's wise men sat alongside the wall, observing the scene.
"This is very bad," The oracle spoke, cutting the silence in the room. Everyone looked up in anticipation of what the oracle was saying. "The stones tell me the boar came far from the west. He had some poison inside of him, causing him to go mad. A poison that caused him to become a demon." The oracle spoke. She paused before looking up at Ashitaka. "Young prince," The oracle spoke. Ashitaka looked up and nodded. "Show everyone your arm," She spoke. Ashitaka unwrapped the white linen bandage around his arm, revealing a purple burn marks. Quiet gasps followed at the sight of the prince's arm.
"What does it mean?" Ji-san asked. The oracle simply looked at Ashitaka.
"My prince are you ready to hear what destiny befalls you?" The oracle asked. Ashitaka nodded.
"I was ready the moment I let my arrow fly," Ashitaka stated. The oracle smiled at the young man's bravery.
"The poison will spread throughout your entire body, bone and flesh alike. First, it will tear your soul apart, then kill you," The oracle spoke. Ashitaka simply looked at the ground.
"Is there nothing to be done for the boy?" Ji-san asked, wide-eyed that such a fate followed Ashitaka.
"The prince got that wound protecting everybody from that demon!" One wise man said.
"Are we to just sit here and watch him die?" Another wise man said.
"One cannot alter their fate. However one can instead rise to meet it. Look at this here," The oracle opened her hand and dropped a ball of metal on the rug. "This iron ball was found inside the boar's remains. It shattered his bones and rotted his flesh, this is what turned him into a demon," The oracle spoke. Ashitaka looked at the iron ball. He pondered about how such a small thing could turn a god into a demon. His attention was put back onto the oracle when she started to speak again. "There's an evil out to the west, Prince Ashitaka. It's your destiny to go there and see what evil lurks there with eyes unclouded by hate. You may even find a way to reverse the curse, do you understand?" The oracle asked.
"Yes," Ashitaka simply said.
"We are the last of the Emishi. It's been five hundred years since the emperor destroyed our tribe and sent us far to the east. We have survived all these years, but the blood of our tribe runs thin. Now our last prince has to leave us, never to return? Sometimes I think the gods are laughing at us," One elder spoke. Ashitaka turned towards the red table beside him. A small red dagger presented itself to Ashitaka. The young prince unsheathed the dagger and pulled on his bun on the top of his head. With a few swipes, the bun came off with the rest of his hair falling down to his shoulders. He placed his bun on top of the table. Ashitaka sheathed the dagger and bowed towards the table. He then turned back towards the oracle.
"Our laws forbid us from seeing you go, Ashitaka. Whatever comes to past now, you are dead to us, forever. Farewell," The oracle spoke. Ashitaka stood up and bowed. He then turned to leave the hut.
Ashitaka was met with the cold air of the night as he walked down towards the stables. There he was met with Yakul, who was already packed for their journey. He lowered the wood and walked the elk out towards the town. He got up and they made their way to the exit of the town. They were just about to leave until Ashitaka noticed someone running towards him.
"Ashitaka!" Kaya quietly spoke. She ran towards him with something in her hands.
"Kaya, what are you doing here? You know it's forbidden!" Ashitaka spoke. Kaya shook her head and outstretched her arms.
"Do you think I care about that stuff? I came to give you this, so you won't forget your little sister," Kaya said. In her hands was a small crystal dagger. A bundle of string was attached to the end of the dagger, so it could be worn on the neck. Even in the moonlight, it shined with stunning beauty.
"Your crystal dagger? Kaya, I can't take this." Ashitaka spoke.
"Please keep it with you, brother, to protect you. Please, you must take it with you, I want you to have it, so you won't forget about us." Kaya said with tears in her eyes. Ashitaka brought down his mask and smiled.
"Kaya, you know I could never forget you," Ashitaka said has Yakul leaned back and galloped towards the exit. He and Ashitaka rode out of the village and into the forest, never to return. Kaya ran up to the exit of the village.
"Goodbye, brother," Kaya spoke.