"Shensheng bei dou..." The sun elf intones, his voice raised slightly. He was tracing a ward on the floor with sand as he chants. "Zhege yinzang baohu." He speaks in an ancient language used by demon hunters, for the last seven thousand years., to beseech the deities for aid.
He finishes the seal and feels the energy pulse, leaving him and entering the demon ward. His shoulders sag, momentarily drained. The spell is a difficult one, even for accomplished clerics, let alone a young demon hunter. He smiles, pleased that the spell worked at all. It was the first time he had ever tried to cast it in an actual setting.
Satisfied that the ward is in place, he looks back to the rest of the room he was given to use. A desk made of hard wood rests against the far wall, a window just above it. On the desk is a small pot of tea that the elf had requested earlier and a small piece of wood, folded in two, with several small black and white stones next to it. A hardwood bench rests before the desk. In the far corner rests a drawer of dark oak. Next to that rests a bed. *An actual western bed!* Wusheng thinks, excitedly. *Not even Shao-sifu has one of these! Now all I have to do is figure out what all these layers are for....*
His daydream is interrupted by a slight chill that fingers its way across the elf's skin. He becomes suddenly alert to all of his surroundings.
"Hello." he says softly. His eyes move from side to side, taking in the whole of the room in less than a second. He walks over to the desk, taking a seat on the bench, and pours himself a cup of tea. It takes a little effort, but he forces himself to be as casual as possible. "Come now. Show yourself."
In the far corner, a soft outline of a man begins to appear. In moments, the figure is fully discernible. Dull orange robes drape over an emaciated body of dark green skin. It's head cleanly shaven, nine white dots, heavily faded, mark his skull. Long claws at the end of it's arms scratch gently at the air as it stares at the sun elf.
"Nihao." the sun elf says, bowing slightly to the ghastly figure.
The creature scrutinizes the elf for a moment before speaking in a hissing, whispering voice. "You know what I am?" it asks.
Wusheng merely nods. "Jiki-ketsu-gaki." he says nonchalantly. "The spirit of a corrupted monk guilty of heresy."
"And you know what sssuch ssspiritsss are like?" it asks, eyes narrowed.
Again, the elf merely nods. "Jiki-ketsu-gaki are among the most evil spirits there are."
"And all you sssay isss 'nihao?'" it asks. A sudden chill enters the room as it's filled with the creatures presence. Wusheng's stomach turns and it takes all of his willpower to not vomit, then turn and run as far away, as quickly, as he can. Instead, he does his best to look taken back by the question.
"Oh, yes. Most inappropriate." he says softly. He slowly reaches over and picks up a small cup. "Would you care for some tea?"
The surprise on the ghost's face is obvious. "You invite me for tea." it says, more than asks. He eyes the sun elf suspiciously. "You are armed." the ghost says at last.
"Of course." the elf response casually. "You are, after all, Jiki-ketsu-gaki." A slight grin tugs at his lips.
A sound not unlike a death rattle escapes the ghosts mouth as it laughs, likely for the first time since it died. It nods in agreement, then moves closer to the elf. Wusheng pours a cup of tea, then hands it to the ghost, before refilling his own cup. They sat in silence for a moment, each on the opposite side of the desk, drinking the tea. Wusheng looks down to the wooden plats on the desk before him. A slight grin crossing his face once more, he looks up to the ghost.
"Do you play?" he asks, nodding down to the beaten boards.
The ghost looks at him curiously at first, then down to the boards as Wusheng sets them together, assembling a gaming board. "Go." the ghost says softly.
Go. The ancient game of strategy where players moved their 'armies', the coloured stones, about a board marked with lines running across the board. Each line is considered a path. Players attempt to surround the enemy's armies with his own. If all routes of an army were blocked by an opposing army, the army was defeated.
"Care to play a game?" the sun elf asks pleasantly. The spirit takes a seat next to the demon hunter. Instead of speaking, he merely scoops up a handful of the white stones and places one on crossing lines, starting the game.
The elf smiles, and places one of his own. He has always enjoyed this game.
-------------
Erin leans against the wall as a cool breeze blows gently down from the mountains. Master Chiang stands next to her, looking through a window.
"I do not believe it." Master Chiang says in heavily accented common. It was the first time he had spoken since she found him looking through the window.
"What?" she asks, suddenly curious. She peaks through the window to see the sun elf she had been traveling with sat across a desk from some kind of monk. "So? He is playing some kind of game with a monk? What is that, some form of chess?"
The master of the monastery looks at her oddly. "The game is called 'go', but that is not what I meant. I meant the fact that he is playing a game with a gaki. A Jiki-ketsu-gaki, no less. Very evil." he adds, seeing the look on her face.
"I fear he has been corrupted." Chiang-sifu says. As much as this bothers her, what he says next disturbs her more.
"He must be destroyed."
--------------
Translations can be found at http://wuyausu.homestead.com/home.html under glossary.
He finishes the seal and feels the energy pulse, leaving him and entering the demon ward. His shoulders sag, momentarily drained. The spell is a difficult one, even for accomplished clerics, let alone a young demon hunter. He smiles, pleased that the spell worked at all. It was the first time he had ever tried to cast it in an actual setting.
Satisfied that the ward is in place, he looks back to the rest of the room he was given to use. A desk made of hard wood rests against the far wall, a window just above it. On the desk is a small pot of tea that the elf had requested earlier and a small piece of wood, folded in two, with several small black and white stones next to it. A hardwood bench rests before the desk. In the far corner rests a drawer of dark oak. Next to that rests a bed. *An actual western bed!* Wusheng thinks, excitedly. *Not even Shao-sifu has one of these! Now all I have to do is figure out what all these layers are for....*
His daydream is interrupted by a slight chill that fingers its way across the elf's skin. He becomes suddenly alert to all of his surroundings.
"Hello." he says softly. His eyes move from side to side, taking in the whole of the room in less than a second. He walks over to the desk, taking a seat on the bench, and pours himself a cup of tea. It takes a little effort, but he forces himself to be as casual as possible. "Come now. Show yourself."
In the far corner, a soft outline of a man begins to appear. In moments, the figure is fully discernible. Dull orange robes drape over an emaciated body of dark green skin. It's head cleanly shaven, nine white dots, heavily faded, mark his skull. Long claws at the end of it's arms scratch gently at the air as it stares at the sun elf.
"Nihao." the sun elf says, bowing slightly to the ghastly figure.
The creature scrutinizes the elf for a moment before speaking in a hissing, whispering voice. "You know what I am?" it asks.
Wusheng merely nods. "Jiki-ketsu-gaki." he says nonchalantly. "The spirit of a corrupted monk guilty of heresy."
"And you know what sssuch ssspiritsss are like?" it asks, eyes narrowed.
Again, the elf merely nods. "Jiki-ketsu-gaki are among the most evil spirits there are."
"And all you sssay isss 'nihao?'" it asks. A sudden chill enters the room as it's filled with the creatures presence. Wusheng's stomach turns and it takes all of his willpower to not vomit, then turn and run as far away, as quickly, as he can. Instead, he does his best to look taken back by the question.
"Oh, yes. Most inappropriate." he says softly. He slowly reaches over and picks up a small cup. "Would you care for some tea?"
The surprise on the ghost's face is obvious. "You invite me for tea." it says, more than asks. He eyes the sun elf suspiciously. "You are armed." the ghost says at last.
"Of course." the elf response casually. "You are, after all, Jiki-ketsu-gaki." A slight grin tugs at his lips.
A sound not unlike a death rattle escapes the ghosts mouth as it laughs, likely for the first time since it died. It nods in agreement, then moves closer to the elf. Wusheng pours a cup of tea, then hands it to the ghost, before refilling his own cup. They sat in silence for a moment, each on the opposite side of the desk, drinking the tea. Wusheng looks down to the wooden plats on the desk before him. A slight grin crossing his face once more, he looks up to the ghost.
"Do you play?" he asks, nodding down to the beaten boards.
The ghost looks at him curiously at first, then down to the boards as Wusheng sets them together, assembling a gaming board. "Go." the ghost says softly.
Go. The ancient game of strategy where players moved their 'armies', the coloured stones, about a board marked with lines running across the board. Each line is considered a path. Players attempt to surround the enemy's armies with his own. If all routes of an army were blocked by an opposing army, the army was defeated.
"Care to play a game?" the sun elf asks pleasantly. The spirit takes a seat next to the demon hunter. Instead of speaking, he merely scoops up a handful of the white stones and places one on crossing lines, starting the game.
The elf smiles, and places one of his own. He has always enjoyed this game.
-------------
Erin leans against the wall as a cool breeze blows gently down from the mountains. Master Chiang stands next to her, looking through a window.
"I do not believe it." Master Chiang says in heavily accented common. It was the first time he had spoken since she found him looking through the window.
"What?" she asks, suddenly curious. She peaks through the window to see the sun elf she had been traveling with sat across a desk from some kind of monk. "So? He is playing some kind of game with a monk? What is that, some form of chess?"
The master of the monastery looks at her oddly. "The game is called 'go', but that is not what I meant. I meant the fact that he is playing a game with a gaki. A Jiki-ketsu-gaki, no less. Very evil." he adds, seeing the look on her face.
"I fear he has been corrupted." Chiang-sifu says. As much as this bothers her, what he says next disturbs her more.
"He must be destroyed."
--------------
Translations can be found at http://wuyausu.homestead.com/home.html under glossary.
