Chapter 2: Japan, 214 years ago
"Incompetent girl. You die now, you know that?" a tall, strong man with long, white hair, armed with a long blade said to a seventeen year old girl in front of him. The girl had long, black hair. A ribbon held it in place and made a few strangs of hair fall before her ears. She had closed her dark-blue eyes. She wore a white, sleveless, cotton dress, which was decorated with red symbols. Underneath the dress, she wore white pants made of the same material. Red gloves covered her hands and a sheath hung on the back of her waist. The sword was in it and she held it with one hand as she sat on her knees on the ground, panting and supporting her weight with her free hand. Blood dripped down from her side and coloured her white suit. "Forgive me, Mother Nature..." she whispered. She slowly removed her sword from the sheath, which hung horizontally and not vertically like most of the samurai had. Her sword was short. It was covered with blood from the demon in front of her. The girl was able to use it with incredible skill and swiftness. She put the tip at the place where her heart was. "Chosing the easy way out, toots?" the man asked with a sarcastic tone. "My sister will become Priestess now. She will avenge me." the girl said without looking up at the man. "Rimururu? She can't handle that task. She's even more of a kid than you are!"
"You will see." the girl said softly. She pressed the tip of her sword against her dress right when she heard a familiar barking. She pulled her sword back as the demon looked in the direction of the sound. The barking echoed through the cursed valley of stone and leafless trees. The girl looked up and indeed saw the dog she hoped to see. The dog which would bring her last bit of hope. It was a pretty big dog, black with white, wolf- like. He growled at the demon. Then appeared a twenty year old young man behind the dog. He was holding his sword at the ready. He wore a blue suit with metal pads on his shoulders, metal gloves and metal plates on his boots. Underneath the blue suit, he wore some kind of black chain mail. An orange cape followed his movements and some of his unruly, blond bangs hang in front of his blue eyes. His eyes radiated a certain nonchalant, but determined look. "We're not going to kill innocent girls, are we, Zankurou?"
"Galford... Our pitifull boy. Still fighting for justice, I see?" the demon said, turning around to the young man and his dog. Behind Galford, someone else came walking. It was a fourteen year old girl, wearing the same outfit as the black-haired girl. Only she had a shawl wrapped around her head to keep her brown hair in place and the red markings were replaced by blue ones. She had something... tomboyisch about her. A flying ice-crystal floated behind her, following her where-ever she went. "Sis!" she yelled to the black-haired girl. A smile appeared on the girl's face as soon as she saw the three. "Hello, Rimu." Zankurou said. "Come to witness your sister's death?" Rimururu just looked at Zankurou with an angry look in her eyes. The crystal nervously floated behind her. Galford started to walk to Zankurou. "Well, Galford. Still in love with that girl?" Zankurou said as he pointed a finger at the black-haired girl, not removing his eyes from Galford. The young man startled. "Shut up!" he yelled. "You want to fuck her, don't you?" Zankurou continued with an evil smirk. Galford just got more and more angry. How could the demon know his deepest secret? Of all the beings in the world, only Poppy knew about that. Galford was able to talk to the dog, though no one believed he could do that. Poppy and he were best friends and they shared each other's secrets. Suddenly, Zankurou grabbed the black-haired girl at her neck and lifted her up. He was strong enough to do that with one hand. The girl startled from the sudden, swift move and dropped her sword. She tried to break free, but couldn't. "I've murdered a lot of innocent people in my life, Galford. So I won't hesitate to kill this one as well. But I want to toy with you a little, fighter for justice. You always were in my way and now it's time for me to take a little vengeance by ways of the person you love most."
"If you kill her, I..."
"You won't do a thing as long as I have her right here." Zankurou interrupted. Suddenly, a strange shriek echoed throught the valley and Zankurou was just in time to look up to see a hawk flying right in his face. The demon startled and let go of the girl as he tried to get the furious hawk off of him. The girl quickly walked to Galford and looked amused when she recognised the hawk. Galford noticed that she walked far from comfortable and held one hand at the wound in her side. The girl stretched out her free arm. "Come, Mamahaha." she said calmly. The hawk flew up, away from Zankurou and landed neatly on the girl's arm. "Are you alright, Nako?" he asked her, pointing at her wound. "I'm fine. Mother Nature is in more pain." Nakoruru said. Galford always called her Nako, since the young American thought all those Japanese names were pretty crap. "Blasted critter!" Zankurou yelled, pointing a finger at the hawk with a bloody face. "I will destroy you kids for my fun!" he yelled. Galford shove Nakoruru back as Zankurou charged the two with a howl impossibly made by a normal person. Right when Galford and Zankurou would meet with each other's blades, there was a bright flash and... Zankurou was gone. "What the heck..." Galford murmered, swiftly looking around himself to see if Zankurou would appear somewhere behind him. "Great move, Galford!" Rimururu yelled victoriously as she ran to her sister. Poppy barked enthousiasticly, but Mamahaha wasn't sure about it all. He seemed to be nervous. "I didn't do a thing!" Galford said, still confused. But his fear that Zankurou would strike from somewhere disappeared as the environment started to change back to it's original form. Trees started to grow, gras shot out from the ground and water poured down the distant waterfall again. The skies cleared and the sun peaked through the white clouds, causing a comfortable warmth. "Nature is healing. I can feel it." Nakoruru said with a releaved sigh. Galford was puzzled about it, though the evidence was clear that the demon was gone. He put his sword back in the sheath on his back, though he remained on alert. He looked at Nakoruru. Had she not heard what the demon had said? Or hadn't she taken it seriously? "Nako..." he started in a wave of courage. Nakoruru looked up at him, her dark-blue eyes in question. Those eyes always fascinated Galford. Pure innocence was written in them. "Eh... Never mind." Galford said as he quickly turned away from her, his eyes closed. His cape almost hit Nakoruru in her face. He started to walk away as Poppy followed him. His mission was successfull. The evil had been defeated. He didn't know how, but it was gone, even he could sense it. Now it was time for him to return home. To return to San Fransisco. He missed his family, that was true, but he didn't want to leave Nakoruru. Though he knew there was no chance for him with her. She had dedicated her life to protect nature as an Ainu maiden and Priestess. There was no time for love. Though Galford was sure Nakoruru saw him as just a friend and nothing more. "Where are you going?" Nakoruru asked as soon as Galford had walked a couple of meters. "Home." Galford simply said. "Why?"
"My job is finished here." Galford continued without turning around. "But... you can stay a while. It would be great!" Nakoruru said, sounding a bit like an excited child. This surprised Galford. Nakoruru was always calm, shy and preferred to be alone. It wasn't a thing for her to get excited about something. This gave him a slight bit of hope. He turned around and saw her standing with her arm on her wound. He noticed he stood next to her sword. He picked it up at the blade and walked back to her. "ChichiUshi, if I'm not mistaken." he said with a grin as he sticked it out for her to grab. It was usual for samurai to give names to their weapons. Mamahaha flew up and Nakoruru grabbed the sword and sheathed it. She gave Galford a soft smile. It was a smile the ninja would never forget. Galford also didn't know that the event he had just witnessed was changing the world. Changing the universe. It was no longer 1788. It was 2002. He didn't know what had happened with time. And he wouldn't know for some time, since a large area was still stuck in 1788. And it was all part of a sinister plan. A sinister plan that would bring death and decay to Japan, the world and the universe.
Nakoruru, who was an orphan, lived with her grandparents in a small house, somewhere in the great forests. Nakoruru wasn't often at home. She was usually outside in the forests. When she went there, she just picked a spot and sat down with her hawk, Mamahaha and her wolf, Shikuruu. She would then listen to the sounds of nature until it would turn dark. People who knew Nakoruru thought she was weird. A bit crazy, perhaps. Galford was aware that Nakoruru wasn't a normal girl. You could flatter normal girls with jewelry, flowers, compliments and chivalry. But, though Nakoruru shared the same sense of justice Galford had, she felt nothing for gifts or romance. She tried to keep them away from her as far as possible. This sometimes angered Galford. She was so impossible at times and she would deny all attempts of him to get close to her. She remained untouched by his words and his gifts. But Galford couldn't stay angry with her for long. She had stolen his heart, denying so was impossible. He sat against a tree and observed Nakoruru as she sat in between her wolf and her hawk. The celebrations were going on in town and there was a huge party because the evil had been defeated. Galford wanted to ask Nakoruru out, but when he saw her sitting like that, he got angry again and sat down as well. Poppy sat next to him and looked at his friend. "Look at her, Poppy. If I had such an exciting life, I..." Galford broke off his sentence and sighed. "I'm sorry, Poppy. I'm just... in love, I suppose." The dog softly whined and put his head on his paws. Galford looked down at the ground. "Crap. I should leave her to her peace and stop bothering her. I should respect her as the young woman as she is and find someone else." Poppy looked up again. His friend had always tried to be subtle when confronting Nakoruru. As far as the dog knew, the girl had no idea that Galford loved her. He put his head back on his paws again and closed his eyes. All these Human problems were too much for a simple dog. Galford looked up again. "Just look at her, Poppy. She's so beautiful with her fair skin and her long hair. I wish I could just... be with her. You know? I can protect her until I die, but I'll never be with her. Why can't I reach her? Is there something wrong with me? Can't she see how much I love her? Or does she just... not like me? I suppose I should stop trying. She deserves to live her life just the way she sees fit." Galford stood up. He decided not to bother her. Never again. He had to respect her and leave her be. When he looked at Poppy, he saw that the dog was asleep. He picked him up and started to walk back to town with a broken heart. He had to leave Japan. And as soon as possible. He wanted to return home. As far away from Nakoruru as possible.
"Incompetent girl. You die now, you know that?" a tall, strong man with long, white hair, armed with a long blade said to a seventeen year old girl in front of him. The girl had long, black hair. A ribbon held it in place and made a few strangs of hair fall before her ears. She had closed her dark-blue eyes. She wore a white, sleveless, cotton dress, which was decorated with red symbols. Underneath the dress, she wore white pants made of the same material. Red gloves covered her hands and a sheath hung on the back of her waist. The sword was in it and she held it with one hand as she sat on her knees on the ground, panting and supporting her weight with her free hand. Blood dripped down from her side and coloured her white suit. "Forgive me, Mother Nature..." she whispered. She slowly removed her sword from the sheath, which hung horizontally and not vertically like most of the samurai had. Her sword was short. It was covered with blood from the demon in front of her. The girl was able to use it with incredible skill and swiftness. She put the tip at the place where her heart was. "Chosing the easy way out, toots?" the man asked with a sarcastic tone. "My sister will become Priestess now. She will avenge me." the girl said without looking up at the man. "Rimururu? She can't handle that task. She's even more of a kid than you are!"
"You will see." the girl said softly. She pressed the tip of her sword against her dress right when she heard a familiar barking. She pulled her sword back as the demon looked in the direction of the sound. The barking echoed through the cursed valley of stone and leafless trees. The girl looked up and indeed saw the dog she hoped to see. The dog which would bring her last bit of hope. It was a pretty big dog, black with white, wolf- like. He growled at the demon. Then appeared a twenty year old young man behind the dog. He was holding his sword at the ready. He wore a blue suit with metal pads on his shoulders, metal gloves and metal plates on his boots. Underneath the blue suit, he wore some kind of black chain mail. An orange cape followed his movements and some of his unruly, blond bangs hang in front of his blue eyes. His eyes radiated a certain nonchalant, but determined look. "We're not going to kill innocent girls, are we, Zankurou?"
"Galford... Our pitifull boy. Still fighting for justice, I see?" the demon said, turning around to the young man and his dog. Behind Galford, someone else came walking. It was a fourteen year old girl, wearing the same outfit as the black-haired girl. Only she had a shawl wrapped around her head to keep her brown hair in place and the red markings were replaced by blue ones. She had something... tomboyisch about her. A flying ice-crystal floated behind her, following her where-ever she went. "Sis!" she yelled to the black-haired girl. A smile appeared on the girl's face as soon as she saw the three. "Hello, Rimu." Zankurou said. "Come to witness your sister's death?" Rimururu just looked at Zankurou with an angry look in her eyes. The crystal nervously floated behind her. Galford started to walk to Zankurou. "Well, Galford. Still in love with that girl?" Zankurou said as he pointed a finger at the black-haired girl, not removing his eyes from Galford. The young man startled. "Shut up!" he yelled. "You want to fuck her, don't you?" Zankurou continued with an evil smirk. Galford just got more and more angry. How could the demon know his deepest secret? Of all the beings in the world, only Poppy knew about that. Galford was able to talk to the dog, though no one believed he could do that. Poppy and he were best friends and they shared each other's secrets. Suddenly, Zankurou grabbed the black-haired girl at her neck and lifted her up. He was strong enough to do that with one hand. The girl startled from the sudden, swift move and dropped her sword. She tried to break free, but couldn't. "I've murdered a lot of innocent people in my life, Galford. So I won't hesitate to kill this one as well. But I want to toy with you a little, fighter for justice. You always were in my way and now it's time for me to take a little vengeance by ways of the person you love most."
"If you kill her, I..."
"You won't do a thing as long as I have her right here." Zankurou interrupted. Suddenly, a strange shriek echoed throught the valley and Zankurou was just in time to look up to see a hawk flying right in his face. The demon startled and let go of the girl as he tried to get the furious hawk off of him. The girl quickly walked to Galford and looked amused when she recognised the hawk. Galford noticed that she walked far from comfortable and held one hand at the wound in her side. The girl stretched out her free arm. "Come, Mamahaha." she said calmly. The hawk flew up, away from Zankurou and landed neatly on the girl's arm. "Are you alright, Nako?" he asked her, pointing at her wound. "I'm fine. Mother Nature is in more pain." Nakoruru said. Galford always called her Nako, since the young American thought all those Japanese names were pretty crap. "Blasted critter!" Zankurou yelled, pointing a finger at the hawk with a bloody face. "I will destroy you kids for my fun!" he yelled. Galford shove Nakoruru back as Zankurou charged the two with a howl impossibly made by a normal person. Right when Galford and Zankurou would meet with each other's blades, there was a bright flash and... Zankurou was gone. "What the heck..." Galford murmered, swiftly looking around himself to see if Zankurou would appear somewhere behind him. "Great move, Galford!" Rimururu yelled victoriously as she ran to her sister. Poppy barked enthousiasticly, but Mamahaha wasn't sure about it all. He seemed to be nervous. "I didn't do a thing!" Galford said, still confused. But his fear that Zankurou would strike from somewhere disappeared as the environment started to change back to it's original form. Trees started to grow, gras shot out from the ground and water poured down the distant waterfall again. The skies cleared and the sun peaked through the white clouds, causing a comfortable warmth. "Nature is healing. I can feel it." Nakoruru said with a releaved sigh. Galford was puzzled about it, though the evidence was clear that the demon was gone. He put his sword back in the sheath on his back, though he remained on alert. He looked at Nakoruru. Had she not heard what the demon had said? Or hadn't she taken it seriously? "Nako..." he started in a wave of courage. Nakoruru looked up at him, her dark-blue eyes in question. Those eyes always fascinated Galford. Pure innocence was written in them. "Eh... Never mind." Galford said as he quickly turned away from her, his eyes closed. His cape almost hit Nakoruru in her face. He started to walk away as Poppy followed him. His mission was successfull. The evil had been defeated. He didn't know how, but it was gone, even he could sense it. Now it was time for him to return home. To return to San Fransisco. He missed his family, that was true, but he didn't want to leave Nakoruru. Though he knew there was no chance for him with her. She had dedicated her life to protect nature as an Ainu maiden and Priestess. There was no time for love. Though Galford was sure Nakoruru saw him as just a friend and nothing more. "Where are you going?" Nakoruru asked as soon as Galford had walked a couple of meters. "Home." Galford simply said. "Why?"
"My job is finished here." Galford continued without turning around. "But... you can stay a while. It would be great!" Nakoruru said, sounding a bit like an excited child. This surprised Galford. Nakoruru was always calm, shy and preferred to be alone. It wasn't a thing for her to get excited about something. This gave him a slight bit of hope. He turned around and saw her standing with her arm on her wound. He noticed he stood next to her sword. He picked it up at the blade and walked back to her. "ChichiUshi, if I'm not mistaken." he said with a grin as he sticked it out for her to grab. It was usual for samurai to give names to their weapons. Mamahaha flew up and Nakoruru grabbed the sword and sheathed it. She gave Galford a soft smile. It was a smile the ninja would never forget. Galford also didn't know that the event he had just witnessed was changing the world. Changing the universe. It was no longer 1788. It was 2002. He didn't know what had happened with time. And he wouldn't know for some time, since a large area was still stuck in 1788. And it was all part of a sinister plan. A sinister plan that would bring death and decay to Japan, the world and the universe.
Nakoruru, who was an orphan, lived with her grandparents in a small house, somewhere in the great forests. Nakoruru wasn't often at home. She was usually outside in the forests. When she went there, she just picked a spot and sat down with her hawk, Mamahaha and her wolf, Shikuruu. She would then listen to the sounds of nature until it would turn dark. People who knew Nakoruru thought she was weird. A bit crazy, perhaps. Galford was aware that Nakoruru wasn't a normal girl. You could flatter normal girls with jewelry, flowers, compliments and chivalry. But, though Nakoruru shared the same sense of justice Galford had, she felt nothing for gifts or romance. She tried to keep them away from her as far as possible. This sometimes angered Galford. She was so impossible at times and she would deny all attempts of him to get close to her. She remained untouched by his words and his gifts. But Galford couldn't stay angry with her for long. She had stolen his heart, denying so was impossible. He sat against a tree and observed Nakoruru as she sat in between her wolf and her hawk. The celebrations were going on in town and there was a huge party because the evil had been defeated. Galford wanted to ask Nakoruru out, but when he saw her sitting like that, he got angry again and sat down as well. Poppy sat next to him and looked at his friend. "Look at her, Poppy. If I had such an exciting life, I..." Galford broke off his sentence and sighed. "I'm sorry, Poppy. I'm just... in love, I suppose." The dog softly whined and put his head on his paws. Galford looked down at the ground. "Crap. I should leave her to her peace and stop bothering her. I should respect her as the young woman as she is and find someone else." Poppy looked up again. His friend had always tried to be subtle when confronting Nakoruru. As far as the dog knew, the girl had no idea that Galford loved her. He put his head back on his paws again and closed his eyes. All these Human problems were too much for a simple dog. Galford looked up again. "Just look at her, Poppy. She's so beautiful with her fair skin and her long hair. I wish I could just... be with her. You know? I can protect her until I die, but I'll never be with her. Why can't I reach her? Is there something wrong with me? Can't she see how much I love her? Or does she just... not like me? I suppose I should stop trying. She deserves to live her life just the way she sees fit." Galford stood up. He decided not to bother her. Never again. He had to respect her and leave her be. When he looked at Poppy, he saw that the dog was asleep. He picked him up and started to walk back to town with a broken heart. He had to leave Japan. And as soon as possible. He wanted to return home. As far away from Nakoruru as possible.