Secret of the Princess
Chapter 7
San spent most of the night tossing and turning. Although she and Ashitaka were taking up the offensive against the samurai, she felt really weak. She got up off the floor and pushed her bedding over to Ashitaka. A breeze blew through the opening that led to the stone ledge. She shivered, and knelt down beside Ashitaka, shaking him with her good hand.
"Ashitaka, please wake up."
Not long after, Ashitaka awoke. He looked up to see San knelt beside him.
"What's wrong San? Is your arm hurting?"
San shook her head, then nodded, and then shrugged. Ashitaka smiled.
"Bit of everything is it? Snuggle down then, we'll sleep together."
San wiped a tear from her eyes and kissed Ashitaka on the cheek. She snuggled up to him, blushing as Ashitaka pulled the blankets over her. In seconds she was fast asleep. Ashitaka stroked her head gently, and softly kissed her forehead.
"Sleep well, Princess Mononoke."
He lay back and fell asleep too. Without even knowing it, in sleep they both embraced one another.
Lord Asano sat in his tent half a mile from where San had been beaten. He was deep in thought as to what to do. Iron Town's defenders were well organised, and if he mounted an attack from the forest, the men would quickly get demoralised by the rumours of wolves and Princess Mononoke. He had over 700 samurai at his disposal, as well as a few ballistae. But now San was dead, he had lost some of his incentive to battle. Things just didn't seem right without San in the equation somewhere. His force had been whittled down from somewhere in the region of 1000 to 700 in a few weeks. Either he sat around until he was down to his last samurai, or he marched in on Iron Town and smashed through its defences. He studied a map of the area, and realised that Iron Town had one critical flaw in its' design. It was faced with water on three sides. He decided to exploit this weakness to its fullest, and capture the entire iron foundry.
San woke up again. It was still pitch black, suggesting it was about midnight. She looked at her wrist stump. Ashitaka had put a glove made of deer hide over her wound. She could easily tighten or loosen the glove, and it kept her wrist from bleeding. She loosened the glove and slid the cast off her arm. For what seemed like hours, she just stared at her severed limb. Having two hands was something she had always taken for granted. She'd had one or two cuts on her hands and wrists, but had never, even in her worst nightmare, dreamt one of her hands would be cut off. She ran her fingers across the flesh of her severed wrist. She winced as her fingers touched severed nerves. She walked onto the stone ledge overlooking the forest. She looked out at the forest and sighed. Although changing with life was something she had no trouble with, the thought of losing her beloved forest was a huge concern. She lay on the rocky ledge and dozed off. Falling off wasn't a concern; she'd slept in a similar position dozens of times. She was worried about how she'd defeat the samurai, literally single-handed.
San awoke in the early morning. The sun wasn't quite up yet, and the land was still cold. She made to draw her wolf pelt around her, but then remembered she'd washed it and left it inside. She rubbed her right arm with her left hand to warm herself up, but stopped short when she made to repeat the gesture on her left arm. She could feel the tears building up in her eyes. The thought her worst enemy since Lady Eboshi had incapacitated her like this and then said he was her true father was too much. She covered her dark eyes with her hand and a few tears leaked out. Suddenly she felt a warm presence behind her. She gasped, and looked around. It was Ashitaka, crouching behind her. He wasn't smiling, and he didn't speak. He just put a hand on her cheek and caressed her jaw with his thumb. San smiled, and leant into him. Just as they were about to kiss, the sun crested the horizon. Almost immediately, a shadow flew over them. From seemingly nowhere came a giant golden eagle. San looked somewhat surprised, but had obviously seen it before.
"Lord Chrysaetos, we meet again."
"Princess Mononoke. Is Moro here? I wish to speak with her."
"She's dead. Only two of her kin live to this day, apart from myself."
"Well, we've come from the mountains to aid you. Although the Eagle Clan is smaller than it once was, we are here to purge the forest of any threat."
San smiled at the giant eagle.
"I see you're the same from the last time we met. How many have you brought with you?"
"Eleven including myself. We hope to serve anyway we can."
"Well, right now we're taking a rest. The threat comes from a horde of samurai from elsewhere in the country. An iron foundry in the forest is essentially neutral to us, and there might be one or two wild boar left from Lord Okkoto's tribe. Other than that, we have little in the way of fighting units."
Ashitaka stood back as the two old comrades talked. Suddenly he turned around, shocked to see no less than twenty samurai charging into San's home.
"Watch out! San, get out of here! You can't fight in this condition!"
San spun around to see the enemy bearing down on them. Behind her, the eagle Chrysaetos bared his talons and gave a high-pitched cry. Ten other eagles flew in and began to savage the samurai trying to get into the cave. Ashitaka drew his sword and leapt into the fray, bringing down two samurai in five seconds.
The fighters that had left Iron Town with Lancet were returning to their homes. The fight hadn't been entirely one-sided; six of their best riflemen were dead and another four were wounded. But the fight had gone well, and Lancet's test run was confirmed as a success. Koroku led his fighters back into the fortress, being pleasantly surprised by the fact his wife, Toki, had no criticisms to make on his handling of the situation. He made his report to Lady Eboshi, who was resting in her home. Since Moro had ripped her right arm off in her last moments of life, Eboshi had been just as assertive, but calmer and more prepared to think things through. Before, she'd been convinced even the gods couldn't touch her. Now her arrogance had been wiped out of her character. She smiled as Koroku entered.
"Good afternoon Koroku. How did Lancet's test run go?"
"I-it went well, Milady. Six men were killed on our side, and four injured. But the samurai were all killed by our newest weapon."
"You've done well Koroku, I congratulate you. Take your men and have a rest now. The second of Lancet's type is nearly ready. You may name it as you see fit."
Koroku bowed and left Eboshi alone. In the new weapons factory, a second spread-shot cannon was being finished. Long spears were added to the front and sides, making it hard for anyone to interfere with the cannon's five barrels. It also gave the otherwise comical-looking weapon a more fearsome look. He went back to his home, and bedded down.
San took hold of her knife and leapt upon a samurai. Her blood-red tattoos stood out on her face, distorted by pure rage. She lightly touched the knifepoint to the man's forehead, then dragged and slashed downwards in a viciously fast movement. Blood sprayed up as the man yelled in agony. San elbowed him in the gut with her bad arm, and then thrust the knife into his throat with all her might. Her brutal attack took less than twenty seconds. The samurai gave a gurgle as his life ebbed away. By now, only a few samurai were left. Ashitaka was holding his own admirably well, and the eagles were fighting hard too. In a short space of time, all the samurai were dead. San gave a deep sigh and collapsed onto her bed, blood decorating her fair hued skin. Ashitaka wiped the gore off his sword and took all valuables off the dead warriors before pushing them off the ledge. Chrysaetos sat on the top of the stone doorway and cleaned his feathers of the filth of battle.
For the rest of the day, the eagles set up nests around the wolf lair. San was exhausted by her fight, and dozed fitfully on her bed, still bloodied from the battle. At least no samurai had been able to report where she hid in the forest.
That night, a thousand creatures left their assorted homes in the forest and marched on Asano's camp. They were determined to play their part in the saving of their home. The kodama sat in the trees, making their typical clicking sounds as the horde beneath them ran at a considerable pace towards the human encampment. Their tactic wouldn't be to force the samurai out by vast slaughter and death. Their tactic would be one entirely unexpected.
Note to anyone curious, Chrysaetos is part of the Latin name for the golden eagle. Aquila is the other part
Chapter 7
San spent most of the night tossing and turning. Although she and Ashitaka were taking up the offensive against the samurai, she felt really weak. She got up off the floor and pushed her bedding over to Ashitaka. A breeze blew through the opening that led to the stone ledge. She shivered, and knelt down beside Ashitaka, shaking him with her good hand.
"Ashitaka, please wake up."
Not long after, Ashitaka awoke. He looked up to see San knelt beside him.
"What's wrong San? Is your arm hurting?"
San shook her head, then nodded, and then shrugged. Ashitaka smiled.
"Bit of everything is it? Snuggle down then, we'll sleep together."
San wiped a tear from her eyes and kissed Ashitaka on the cheek. She snuggled up to him, blushing as Ashitaka pulled the blankets over her. In seconds she was fast asleep. Ashitaka stroked her head gently, and softly kissed her forehead.
"Sleep well, Princess Mononoke."
He lay back and fell asleep too. Without even knowing it, in sleep they both embraced one another.
Lord Asano sat in his tent half a mile from where San had been beaten. He was deep in thought as to what to do. Iron Town's defenders were well organised, and if he mounted an attack from the forest, the men would quickly get demoralised by the rumours of wolves and Princess Mononoke. He had over 700 samurai at his disposal, as well as a few ballistae. But now San was dead, he had lost some of his incentive to battle. Things just didn't seem right without San in the equation somewhere. His force had been whittled down from somewhere in the region of 1000 to 700 in a few weeks. Either he sat around until he was down to his last samurai, or he marched in on Iron Town and smashed through its defences. He studied a map of the area, and realised that Iron Town had one critical flaw in its' design. It was faced with water on three sides. He decided to exploit this weakness to its fullest, and capture the entire iron foundry.
San woke up again. It was still pitch black, suggesting it was about midnight. She looked at her wrist stump. Ashitaka had put a glove made of deer hide over her wound. She could easily tighten or loosen the glove, and it kept her wrist from bleeding. She loosened the glove and slid the cast off her arm. For what seemed like hours, she just stared at her severed limb. Having two hands was something she had always taken for granted. She'd had one or two cuts on her hands and wrists, but had never, even in her worst nightmare, dreamt one of her hands would be cut off. She ran her fingers across the flesh of her severed wrist. She winced as her fingers touched severed nerves. She walked onto the stone ledge overlooking the forest. She looked out at the forest and sighed. Although changing with life was something she had no trouble with, the thought of losing her beloved forest was a huge concern. She lay on the rocky ledge and dozed off. Falling off wasn't a concern; she'd slept in a similar position dozens of times. She was worried about how she'd defeat the samurai, literally single-handed.
San awoke in the early morning. The sun wasn't quite up yet, and the land was still cold. She made to draw her wolf pelt around her, but then remembered she'd washed it and left it inside. She rubbed her right arm with her left hand to warm herself up, but stopped short when she made to repeat the gesture on her left arm. She could feel the tears building up in her eyes. The thought her worst enemy since Lady Eboshi had incapacitated her like this and then said he was her true father was too much. She covered her dark eyes with her hand and a few tears leaked out. Suddenly she felt a warm presence behind her. She gasped, and looked around. It was Ashitaka, crouching behind her. He wasn't smiling, and he didn't speak. He just put a hand on her cheek and caressed her jaw with his thumb. San smiled, and leant into him. Just as they were about to kiss, the sun crested the horizon. Almost immediately, a shadow flew over them. From seemingly nowhere came a giant golden eagle. San looked somewhat surprised, but had obviously seen it before.
"Lord Chrysaetos, we meet again."
"Princess Mononoke. Is Moro here? I wish to speak with her."
"She's dead. Only two of her kin live to this day, apart from myself."
"Well, we've come from the mountains to aid you. Although the Eagle Clan is smaller than it once was, we are here to purge the forest of any threat."
San smiled at the giant eagle.
"I see you're the same from the last time we met. How many have you brought with you?"
"Eleven including myself. We hope to serve anyway we can."
"Well, right now we're taking a rest. The threat comes from a horde of samurai from elsewhere in the country. An iron foundry in the forest is essentially neutral to us, and there might be one or two wild boar left from Lord Okkoto's tribe. Other than that, we have little in the way of fighting units."
Ashitaka stood back as the two old comrades talked. Suddenly he turned around, shocked to see no less than twenty samurai charging into San's home.
"Watch out! San, get out of here! You can't fight in this condition!"
San spun around to see the enemy bearing down on them. Behind her, the eagle Chrysaetos bared his talons and gave a high-pitched cry. Ten other eagles flew in and began to savage the samurai trying to get into the cave. Ashitaka drew his sword and leapt into the fray, bringing down two samurai in five seconds.
The fighters that had left Iron Town with Lancet were returning to their homes. The fight hadn't been entirely one-sided; six of their best riflemen were dead and another four were wounded. But the fight had gone well, and Lancet's test run was confirmed as a success. Koroku led his fighters back into the fortress, being pleasantly surprised by the fact his wife, Toki, had no criticisms to make on his handling of the situation. He made his report to Lady Eboshi, who was resting in her home. Since Moro had ripped her right arm off in her last moments of life, Eboshi had been just as assertive, but calmer and more prepared to think things through. Before, she'd been convinced even the gods couldn't touch her. Now her arrogance had been wiped out of her character. She smiled as Koroku entered.
"Good afternoon Koroku. How did Lancet's test run go?"
"I-it went well, Milady. Six men were killed on our side, and four injured. But the samurai were all killed by our newest weapon."
"You've done well Koroku, I congratulate you. Take your men and have a rest now. The second of Lancet's type is nearly ready. You may name it as you see fit."
Koroku bowed and left Eboshi alone. In the new weapons factory, a second spread-shot cannon was being finished. Long spears were added to the front and sides, making it hard for anyone to interfere with the cannon's five barrels. It also gave the otherwise comical-looking weapon a more fearsome look. He went back to his home, and bedded down.
San took hold of her knife and leapt upon a samurai. Her blood-red tattoos stood out on her face, distorted by pure rage. She lightly touched the knifepoint to the man's forehead, then dragged and slashed downwards in a viciously fast movement. Blood sprayed up as the man yelled in agony. San elbowed him in the gut with her bad arm, and then thrust the knife into his throat with all her might. Her brutal attack took less than twenty seconds. The samurai gave a gurgle as his life ebbed away. By now, only a few samurai were left. Ashitaka was holding his own admirably well, and the eagles were fighting hard too. In a short space of time, all the samurai were dead. San gave a deep sigh and collapsed onto her bed, blood decorating her fair hued skin. Ashitaka wiped the gore off his sword and took all valuables off the dead warriors before pushing them off the ledge. Chrysaetos sat on the top of the stone doorway and cleaned his feathers of the filth of battle.
For the rest of the day, the eagles set up nests around the wolf lair. San was exhausted by her fight, and dozed fitfully on her bed, still bloodied from the battle. At least no samurai had been able to report where she hid in the forest.
That night, a thousand creatures left their assorted homes in the forest and marched on Asano's camp. They were determined to play their part in the saving of their home. The kodama sat in the trees, making their typical clicking sounds as the horde beneath them ran at a considerable pace towards the human encampment. Their tactic wouldn't be to force the samurai out by vast slaughter and death. Their tactic would be one entirely unexpected.
Note to anyone curious, Chrysaetos is part of the Latin name for the golden eagle. Aquila is the other part