CHAPTER 19: From Beyond


A pair of gold, cat-like eyes glinted in the dim evening light as a small shrew made its way through the forest undergrowth. It paused and checked around at regular intervals, whiskers and ears twitching nervously as it continued on its way. The pair of eyes continued to silently watch the tiny mammal from behind a cover of leaves.
The evening was still and cool, with only the slightest hint of a breeze gently winding its way through the trees. The air was fragrant with the smells of summer blooms and thick foliage. Under these, the less perceptible musks and scents of dozens of woodland inhabitants could be found, hanging heavy in the air like a fog on a damp morning. Now and again a woodpecker broke the relative quiet of the woods in his search for a meal, or a squirrel would dart up a tree and along a branch, causing a light rustle of leaves. The shrew continued on along the ground under the forest canopy, its ears alert to the sounds around it, its tiny nose picking up a kaleidoscope of smells.
Suddenly in a flurry of leaves and brush, a large shape shot out from the bushes and pounced upon the shrew, swiftly silencing the small animal forever. With a satisfied look, a fox trotted off with his dinner. Granted it wasn't a very large one, but then, the fox wasn't choosy, and would soon be hunting again for his next meal.
The setting sun's red light occasionally made its way through the thick foliage to cast it's glow upon the fox's pumpkin-colored fur as he made his way through the woods to his den. As he sat enjoying his meal, he did not notice the approach of a second fox. This second fox's fur had just the faintest odd shimmer to it, the tip of its ears and tail seeming to glimmer eerily in the dim evening light.
"My friend," it asked to the first fox, "what you doing here?"
The first fox glared briefly up at the stranger. "Eating," he replied.
"I see," the second fox said thoughtfully. "These woods... they are your home, then?"
"Yes," the first fox answered, paying little attention to the inquisitive stranger.
The second fox, apparently satisfied with the answer, sat down on his haunches and waited patiently for the first fox to complete his meal. "Tell me," it asked eventually, "have you always lived in these woods?"
The first fox licked his lips from his meal. "Of course."
"I see," the second fox said, again in a thoughtful tone. "And, are you sure about that?"
The first fox looked back with confusion. "What do you mean?"
"I mean," the second fox began, moving closer and sitting next to the first fox, "that you do not belong here."
It was only with the second fox's new proximity that the first fox was able to notice the odd scent coming from it. It was oddly weak, and seemed to carry not only the scent of a fox, but of several other animals as well, all mixed and blended. The first fox blinked curiously, noticing the other fox's strangely shimmering fur. "This is my den," he shrugged honestly. "It has been for many seasons. I've never had anyone dispute me over it."
"Nevertheless," the second fox said quietly, "you do not belong out here when there are two squirrels who miss you very much."
"Squirrels?" The first fox looked back with a start. "I don't know any squirrels. Why would I?"
The second fox chuckled warmly. "No, I suppose you don't." He placed one of his forepaws on top of the first fox's. "I think we can give you back your memories now."
The first fox shuddered slightly then, his ears splaying as he suddenly felt the urge to yawn. He closed his eyes briefly as he did so, and when he opened them again they had changed color, and were now a bright green hue. The fox shook his head and blinked, a swirl of uncovered memories and feelings resurfacing to fill his mind, causing him to feel slightly dizzy and sick. His gaze wavered as the dizziness in his head made the world swim and tilt around him in a stormy sea of colors. After several seconds, the dizziness began to slowly ebb away, and clarity returned to the fox's mind. He turned and looked at the second fox, seeming to now see everything around him for the first time. His jaw opened slightly as he now realized who exactly was sitting with him. He lowered his head to his paws in a bow.
The second fox regarded him with a kind look. "It has been a week, my friend. Your quest here is at an end. What you seek... lies elsewhere."
The first fox looked across to him, disheartened and feeling somehow cheated. The second fox seemed to sense this. It removed its paw from his and stood up, walking out to face the him.
"Your animal spirit was never in question," it explained, trying to sound comforting. "You have always had the heart and mind of a fox within you, otherwise you would not have lasted an entire week out here. You've been" a rather crafty fox as I hear it, but it is time for you to return."
The first fox looked down again, then his head shot up with alarm as he saw the traces of blood from his just-finished dinner. "Oh God," he said, shakily. "I hope I didn't... I mean... Oh, dear God. I haven't been killing, have I? I mean..." He looked in shock and worry at the second fox. "I... have friends here... Oh no! Did I..."
The second fox grinned oddly, giving the first fox an uneasy feeling. "Oh, no no no," he assured. "You are a fox, not a monster. Even The Rite cannot take away your sense of right and wrong, or the memories of who is a friend, and who is not."
"But..." The first fox said, looking at the red stains upon the ground where the shrew had been, a faint taste from the wild kill lingering in his mouth.
"Each creature has its own life to live," the second fox told him. "There are things here in this place that you still do not understand, my friend. One distant day you will, and you'll come to find that no harm has occurred here. There are no endings, only changes. You, yourself, are proof of that."
The first fox lowered his head. "So, I have failed The Rite?"
"On the contrary," the second fox answered. "Your rite of passage ended before it even began."
"What?"
The second fox chuckled oddly then. "It is, perhaps, a fortunate happenstance that you were to go to Earth and retrieve the two mice. When you took the hand of your other half, and he your paw, the two of you become one once more."
The first fox looked back, astonished. The second fox saw his concern and nodded. "Yes, I am aware of these things. There is indeed a fox within you, my friend. It gave you the strength to take the journey, and face your other half, who gave you a strength you have always possessed, and the truth and knowledge that you had been seeking, though you still refuse to accept it."
"Accept what?" the first fox asked.
"You are a 'receiver', my friend, a being born of the cosmos who has been endowed with the ancient powers and knowledge of the universe. For eons the power had passed from one receiver to another, each to do with it as their destiny wills, to decide for itself what type of being it wishes to become. The powers are then passed on to another who is destined to receive them. This, my friend, is your heritage, and your destiny. In all of the cosmos, dimensions, and worlds in existence, you have been drawn to this one by a special force that goes beyond the physical and have chosen it as your home, but your spirit still remains distant--ungraspable amid the drifting currents and eddys of the cosmos from which you came."
"...she said she knew about my family... that I was a stranger in 'spirit only'," the fox muttered. "Lady Amber--she told me that."
The second fox nodded knowingly. "Yes. She knew, as many animals do, that you are more than what can be seen."
"But, I am a toon now," the first fox insisted. "My body..."
"You are a toon in body and mind, yes. However, your spirit still remains free and unanchored. One final decision--one final action remains. You now have a family to share this world with--a special family where all are all descendents of natural animals. The squirrel you are with... her family is a very special one, full of natural toon animals. It was not fate that brought you two together. Across the boundless reaches of the dimensions you found each other, drawn as your two halves longed to be whole. You have given her the life she had always wanted, and she has given you your path to your own future. The rabbit living with you has helped as well. You have become his most cherished friend in this world. He too, has given you a path."
"One day, you will join your family and this world in spirit as well," the fox concluded, "but this is not how to do it. This was only a step along your final path. You already know what must be done, my friend, but you are afraid to face it. You will face sadness and pain before you finally discover the answer. When you do, and make the decision, only then will you be forever bound to this world, and only then will it be your true home."
"Do..." the first fox began. He hesitated to ask the one question that had plagued him all his life. He looked at the ground, then away, and finally back to the second fox.
"Go ahead," the second fox encouraged, his ears turning to hear.
"Do you... know where I came from? I mean... can you tell me about... my family? Were they where I got my powers from?"
The second fox looked tired then, his head hanging down slightly. He turned and looked away to where a small tree lizard was scurrying across the ground. "That... I cannot tell you," he responded distantly, traces of regret in his words. "For, just as your past is shrouded in mist and fog from you, so it is from me. I am sorry, my friend," he added, looking back apologetically, "but some things must be revealed in their own time, and sometimes, not at all."
Both foxes remained silent for several minutes, each lost in the small closed world of the cosmos in their two minds as the world slowly revolved around them--faded, darkened, and dream-like.
"Then..." the first fox began slowly, remembering how Slappy had commented on her mother's newfound tree climbing abilities after taking The Rite, and suddenly feeling an odd and unjust sense of loss, asked, "I am to receive nothing?"
The second fox looked at him oddly. "The rite of passage itself does not change a toon. Only a toon can change himself. The rite is here to help you find your path."
The first fox cowered and bowed his head to the ground in deep apology and shame for being so bold and selfish. The second fox turned away, pretending to be unswayed by the action. "Well..." it thought aloud.
The first fox crept over to the second. Touching his nose to the other's right paw he spoke timidly. "En nolish mala, ser Frith."
The second fox turned back to face the first. It bent down and gave him an affectionate lick on his brow. "It's quite all right. Your apology is not necessary. However, perhaps we can give you a small... gift."

The evening had turned into twilight as the warmth of the day slipped away into the cooling air. Moisture condensing out of the air formed a thin haze along the low banks of the river through the woods where Andy had met Lady Amber--so long ago it seemed to him, the memory now veiled in clouds of lost memories and confused times. Insects took to the air, ever in search for a meal, and the sound of crickets began to fill the still night air, echoing in amongst the trees and undergrowth as, through a mist of confused memories and forgotten feelings, a figure slowly made his way out of the woods and across a large back yard of full green lawn, to the back door of a large brick mansion.