DISCLAIMER: Starting with the next update, this little fic is getting a rating change to M. ^,^ For the people who like reading this, be aware that it will need to be searched out using the appropriate filter now. That doesn't mean that we're suddenly going to be having smut every chapter or something, but I figured it was better to be safe than risk offending anyone.
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Tuesday April 30, 2000
Mai again tried to force down the rising insistent feeling of panic that urged her to find some way out of this situation, inching closer to Natsuki as they trudged along the dark narrow underground stone passageway, the flickering light of Natsuki's lantern casting strange shadows on the crudely carved out rock. She hadn't known that she was claustrophobic but it felt like they had been slowly heading further and further down into this narrow fissure in the earth for hours; and the longer they walked along, the more the stone walls themselves seemed to actively narrow. Over the last couple minutes they had gotten so close that Mai's slim shoulders scraped against the rough walls of the passage that got darker by the minute, the darkness around them a living creature that was fighting to extinguish Natsuki's feeble lamplight. At this very moment both teenagers were supposed to be sitting safely in their desks in class, but instead they had returned together to the abandoned monastery deep in the forest, Natsuki stating that the underground chamber she found her first time here was the safest place she could think of to perform the spirit walker trial. The Slayer had said something about the Key protecting them from anyone else reaching this place that Mai didn't understand, but now they had been walking for so long and Mai couldn't help wondering if this mysterious 'Key' didn't want for the two of them to be here either.
She gasped in surprise when suddenly the passage ahead of them was lit by more than the feeble light of Natsuki's lantern, nearly dropping the armful of blankets that she was carrying for them, Natsuki having decided it would be wise to bring them for warmth. The Slayer was carrying a small cooler with drinks and a few days worth of dry food saying that she thought it was better to be over prepared. As they rounded the next turn, all of her doubts over the wisdom of their venturing into the underground passage fell away, replaced by the wonder that only comes from seeing something more beautiful than you've ever imagined for the first time. "Natsuki, you didn't tell me how beautiful this place is." Mai said softly, unwilling to raise her voice much above a whisper for fear of disturbing the silent chamber.
Natsuki could only nod in response, again awed to motionlessness by the huge underground room. Since the last time she had been here, the fairy lights appeared to have multiplied in number, their soft white glows much brighter than the weak sunlight shining indirectly through the open skylight in the natural limestone ceiling. The little willow tree was now in full bloom, its furry drooping branches covered in tiny white flowers and seeming to glow itself from the inside because of all of the tiny fairy lights huddling close against it. The full grandeur of the natural room reflected itself off of the shallow glasslike water that covered most of the flat stone floor, except for the entrance where they stood and a raised area around the base of the little tree that would be just large enough for the two girls to set up their spell.
With effort Natsuki shook herself out of simply staring at the amazing splendor of the cavern, gently nudging Mai to let her know they still needed to get started. But even knowing the necessity of their mission here, the Slayer felt hesitant as she stepped into the inches deep silent glassy waters, her boots sending small ripples across the surface and disturbing the perfect reflection of the room's beauty. Mai followed quietly behind, her blue eyes nearly unblinking as they tried to take in the natural magicks surrounding them. No matter what happened with the spell she wanted to remember being in this place with Natsuki. It seemed so untraveled, as though she and Natsuki were the only two humans to venture here in unimaginable ages, and the thought that the Slayer trusted Mai out of all the people she knew to share this place with was humbling.
As they reached the small island, Natsuki placed the cooler and extinguished lantern down against the ridged bark at the base of the tree and then set about helping Mai to lay the blankets down over the surprisingly dry limestone, enough so that they soon had a softly cushioned surface upon which to cast their spell. Natsuki was thankful that this was one magickal ritual which didn't require any flames, allowing them to cast it both safely and in relative comfort. When they had finished setting up the area for the casting she heard Mai gasp again in surprise, and looked out to see that a countless number of the many fairy lights had lowered themselves down into the water. Their faint lights seemed to dissipate out across the once more still surface of the shallow pond making the whole of it simmer a pale silver, looking much like the faint river of distant stars that make up the Milky Way.
"…They didn't do that the last time I was here." Natsuki murmured in surprise, even as she pulled the folded pages with the words to initiate the trial from her jacket pocket. Red's girlfriend had explained that this ritual didn't require much in the way of ceremony because of the great sacrifice the casters offered to the deity that they were summoning. Ceremony, she had explained was just another way of showing one's respect for the Goddess, but offering Her complete control over the fate of one's soul was considered an ultimate gift of sorts, binding Her worshipers in a very permanent way. Natsuki was somewhat skeptical that this spell would even work since she didn't really consider herself to be a particularly spiritual person. Still she hoped that there might be at least one eternal powerful entity on the side of good to balance out all of the demons.
Natsuki and Mai sat awkwardly on their nest of blankets, Natsuki handing the witch the slightly crumpled print out since the only parts she needed to speak aloud were a few words that Mai would read that she repeated. For a few quiet moments they simply looked into each others' eyes across the small distance between them, the strangeness of the setting and the risk they were about to take giving the whole situation a disjointed sense of unreality that served only to heighten the tension they were both feeling. As one they reached out, intertwining their fingers for a moment, the feeling of their warm nervously sweaty palms touching almost enough to reassure both of them that this wasn't simply a dream. "Are you ready?" Natsuki asked, not knowing what her own answer would be to that question.
"...I think so."
Nodding slowly, Natsuki shifted so she could pull up her pant-leg slightly to unbuckle the leather sheath that held the large blade of her favourite knife, offering the hilt to Mai who carefully took the weapon from her hand with a reverence that startled the Slayer. When she was holding the knife Mai slowly drew the heavy blade from its worn leather home, her nervous blue eyes studying the well-sharpened serrated edge for a moment. Then she took a deep calming breath and her eyes hardened as she ran an experimental finger over the edge, allowing her skin to feel its sharpness. Natsuki stared in fascination, her breathing becoming quicker and shallower as she watched Mai practically caressing the hard steel of her knife, the sight almost unbearably erotic to the Slayer despite the seriousness of their task.
Mai glanced up from her study of the blade to gaze into Natsuki's bright eyes, distracting herself from what she was about to do. Not giving herself another moment to think, Mai quickly drew the sharp metal across the palm of her hand, not even wincing as the teeth of the blade shredded into the tiny muscles there. She leaned in to gently kiss Natsuki's soft lips, her own smiling sadly against them. "Good luck Natsuki." She murmured, the nervousness now gone from her voice. Reluctantly she pulled back, raising two fingers dripping with her warm blood and rubbing them over Natsuki's slightly parted lips, painting them darker, the feeling of the Slayer's hot breath on her fingers a pleasant balm for the sharp pain. Watching Natsuki's now closed eyes and the calm trusting expression on her face, suddenly the words of the spell came to her without need to read them from the paper.
"Artemis, Soul of Luna, Protector of Maidens, I invoke thee. With the blood of my heart, I call you forth. If you find my blood pure, I ask that you make my body your own."
"Artemis, Soul of Luna, Protector of Maidens, I invoke thee. With my own soulfire, I invite you. If you find my fire worthy, I ask that you make my spirit your own."
Mai spoke softly, but her low voice seemed to fill the stone chamber, reverberating across the room with strength and confidence. Reaching out again with bloody fingers, she now painted dark lines on Natsuki's cheekbones under her eyes, the deep red looking like warpaint on the young Champion's face. As she finished painting Natsuki's face with her blood, she offered the hilt of the knife back to its owner, wincing as Natsuki drew the still bloodstained blade along her own hand. Glowing green eyes opened again as Natsuki raised her bleeding palm to Mai's lips, watching enthralled as her witch drank down a few mouthfuls of the hot thick liquid before continuing her chant with a rivulet of the Slayer's blood dripping slowly down her soft feminine chin.
"I implore thee to feel the intent of my plea, that you will allow us who are now as one to protect your daughter who has fallen into darkness.
"This Champion of the Old Ones before me offers the power of her blood for you and the strength of her soul to bring your daughter back from the realm between. Goddess of the Hunt that you find her worthy, help me guide her to the Realm of Spirits to search for your lost daughter."
As Mai finished speaking, Natsuki echoed her words softly, altering them to reaffirm her status as the Champion, and Mai as her guide into the spirit realms; trying her hardest to concentrate on the words instead of the pleasantly painful sting of Mai continuing to drink her blood from the wound on her hand. Moments passed, and soon the room around them began to ripple subtly, the waters of the shallow pool glowing whiter and the fairy lights still floating in the air around them beginning to circle them at faster and faster speeds. Then suddenly Natsuki felt her entire body enveloped in a cold fluid darkness, except for the wound on her hand where Mai's warm mouth caressed her broken skin. The heavy darkness was like night given physical form, and it closed in tighter around both of them until soon they didn't even have space to draw breath. A calm force in the cold darkness prevented them from panicking at the feeling of suffocating, their bodies shutting down peacefully under the constant crushing pressure.
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It was hot. That was the first thing Natsuki noticed as she slowly came back into awareness. It was a dry, baking heat that soaked into her muscles, relaxing them in a pleasant way. Natsuki stretched lazily as she opened her eyes, unable to remember when she'd fallen asleep. She blinked in surprise as she took in her surroundings; it was a place she knew she had never been, but in some deep primal way it still felt like home. She was inside a small stone cave; the large mouth of it was partially covered by a primitive curtain of animal hide that was opened enough to allow the bright hot midday sun to stream into the meagre shelter, offering more light than the brightest modern light bulbs. The bright sunlight revealed light tan stone walls covered in crude paintings of various animals and demons, as well as a dark female warrior armed with primitive weapons. Her body was covered in intricate patterns of white paint that made her look very much like the fearless ideal fighter that Natsuki always envisioned herself as. The painted warrior was obviously the hunter of these various creatures, perhaps even the owner of this shelter. In the corners of the cave stacked high were the skulls of many of the creatures depicted in the paintings, both natural and demonic; one large fanged skull looked about half as long from muzzle to the base of its cranium as Natsuki was tall.
She was lying comfortably atop a crude pallet type bed, which was nothing more than a few thin animal-hide mattresses piled on the dusty floor, likely stuffed with dry grasses to aid in their thickness. The covers that she was laying on top of seemed to be the furs of some large cats judging by the stripes and softness. At her side under the covers Mai lay sleeping soundly on her back and Natsuki blushed when she saw from the pale freckled flesh of her exposed shoulders and chest that her witch was almost certainly naked underneath them. In a brief moment of panic she glanced down to assess her own state of dress, and breathed a sigh of relief when she found she was wearing simple crude leather armour that was really nothing more than a thigh length belted tunic of sorts. She felt her heart beating faster when she noticed her exposed skin was painted with what seemed to be dark red warpaint, but from the coppery scent of it she imagined it was actually dried blood, the patterns on her body identical to the painted warrior on the cave wall.
She felt a sense of urgency despite the relaxing heat around her, remembering vaguely that she was here to accomplish something important. She reached out and rested her calloused palm on the Mai's warm shoulder, gently shaking the witch and murmuring her name, "Come on Mai... you can't sleep all day. You have to get up so you can come with me." She pleaded softly, feeling a bit guilty at first about waking the peacefully sleeping witch but then growing a bit frightened when her efforts yielded no response from Mai. She froze to complete stillness when she suddenly detected a familiar scent she would recognize anywhere, faint vanilla and cinnamon that were far more civilized than the rest of her primitive surroundings.
"My Natsuki won't be able to wake her pet in this place." The familiar lilt said apologetically, but despite the warning when she turned she was still surprised to see Shizuru standing a few feet away, her body framed by the brilliant sunlight. The Slayer thought that her elegant friend looked lovely even dressed in primitive leather clothing similar to her own, though Shizuru's was cut differently allowing the hide to hug her generous curves more tightly. Shizuru's pale skin was not painted, but she had several necklaces of small light purple flowers draped around her that rested on top of the intertwined snakes of her Auryn pendant, that somehow out of all of her normal attire had followed her to this strange place.
"S-Shizuru...? How...?" Natsuki asked, staring at her best friend with wide eyes.
Shizuru pouted playfully at Natsuki, as though her presence here should not have caused the Slayer any surprise. "Natsuki is such a meanie, acting as though I am not always welcome in her home. If she is worried about my sneaking a peek at her pet, I promise to keep my eyes averted."
"I-Um..." Natsuki growled in frustration as she stood on slightly shaky legs and took a cautious step toward the tawny brunette, wondering if Shizuru would disappear if she tried to reach out and touch her. "Gah... Shizuru... I didn't mean that I didn't want you here. I just don't understand how you could be here at all... I don't even know where here is."
"Hmmm... well from what I saw when I arrived outside of Natsuki's home, we are somewhere in Africa... though as for when exactly we are... Natsuki's guess is as good as mine." Shizuru answered helpfully, making no move to step closer to Natsuki.
"Africa? ...When we are?" Natsuki questioned dumbly, running hesitant fingers over the smooth bare skin of Shizuru's arm, surprised to find that her friend was solid and touchable instead of a mere apparition. "You're real." Her voice was hushed and full of awe; her tone of voice could not have been more reverent if she had just touched the flesh of a goddess. Though as far as I'm concerned, that is what I just did.
Shizuru nodded answering Natsuki's first question, "Time travels differently and sometimes not at all in the realms between. This one that my Natsuki and her pet sought is the place and time where our entire world was allowed to come into being, when countless possible Earths branched off from each other. Her sister's soul is trapped here as payment for a greater balance between the light and dark."
"Alyssa... So I made it? This is the spirit trial?" Natsuki asked, surprised when Shizuru gave her another nod of affirmation. "I thought it was just a vision quest? But we're really here?"
"Natsuki and her pet are here... I seem real, but for myself all of this has already happened in a dream." Shizuru explained with a wistful smile playing across her full lips, gesturing for Natsuki to follow her out into the sunlight.
Natsuki blinked against the blindingly bright sun, shielding her eyes with her hand so that she could take a look at their surroundings while her eyes adjusted to the brightness, she couldn't remember the midday sun ever being quite so painful. Despite the sun's brightness the light it cast was tinted to the red, giving the vast savannah spread out before them a sinister look to it that she'd never seen in the many nature documentaries about African wildlife that she'd watched. Still the flat grassland as far as the eye could see, dotted with short stretched out trees and alive with herds of wildebeest and zebra grazing under the watchful eye of a pride of lions resting in the shade of a nearby tree, felt like a place that she knew deep in her bones even if she had never set foot here. It was beautiful, but it was also foreboding. The animals seemed larger and with teeth and horns bigger than she remembered, the lions having fangs that protruded far out of their muzzles almost like the prehistoric smilodon. "How am I supposed to know what I need to do here? This place is huge."
Shizuru stepped behind Natsuki resting her chin on the Slayer's shoulder wrapping one arm around her slim waist and pulling her close, the humidity of her breath against Natsuki's skin a sharp contrast to the dry heat. For a few moments they simply enjoyed their closeness as they both stared out over the vast unfamiliar savannah, until Shizuru raised her arm and pointed out in the distance to the left of the cave. "See the darkness there on the eastern horizon? That is the dark jungle from which the beasts from other worlds always seem to come forth." She explained smoothly, as though she had spent all of her life surviving the many difficulties of this unforgiving environment.
Natsuki merely nodded, figuring that if she dreamed of this place frequently, Shizuru's guess about where Natsuki needed to be was certainly better than her own. "You said that Mai won't wake...? Is she... okay?" Natsuki asked, her voice tight in her throat and cracking roughly as she worried that already this reckless adventure was causing harm to someone she cared for.
"Natsuki need not worry, her pet is fine. She simply cannot wake in this realm while the one she is tethering to our own time and space is so close by. If my Natsuki wishes, it was my intention to remain here and protect her pet from harm. I admit it would be my preference to protect Natsuki, but one taking this trial is not permitted to bring another human companion to aid them." Shizuru explained sadly, her voice betraying her intense unrest at allowing Natsuki to fight alone, causing the Slayer to wonder if Shizuru always felt so strongly about her being Chosen. Still there was something that her friend had said that Natsuki just couldn't let pass.
Green eyes shifted to try and look at her teasing friend, though it was difficult in their current position, and the awkwardness of her attempt blunted the impact of her protest, "I told you not to call Mai a pet."
Natsuki felt Shizuru's lips curl into a wry smile as her friend gently kissed her cheek, "My Natsuki is always so over protective of the ones she cares for, even when they do not need protecting. Strictly speaking I have not yet had the conversation with Natsuki where she tells me not to call her pet a pet." Shizuru teased cryptically, "But no matter my likely acquiescence to Natsuki's request for a more politically correct term, I do not feel that Mai-san would object to my referring to her as Natsuki's pet anymore than that lion over there would object to being called a cat."
"But she means so much more to me than that..." Natsuki protested and she meant it, but her words lacked any real force because the idea of Mai being desperately needy of her protection and attention wasn't entirely unappealing to her.
Shizuru nodded, again understanding more than just the words that Natsuki spoke. "Even if she means the world to Natsuki, it is important that you understand that she would do anything for you simply because Natsuki asked it of her. Her own life is a reasonable sacrifice if Natsuki requests it."
"...But wouldn't you act the same way...?" Natsuki asks hesitantly, "I know I would do that for either of you. But I guess that's what I am."
Shizuru sighed sadly, "My Natsuki has always been so quick to put herself in danger for the safety of others. And of course I would sacrifice myself for Natsuki if such an action was the only thing I could do to save her. However, I would also be willing to stop Natsuki from doing something that she was insistent upon because she thought was the right thing to do."
"Mai would do that too. She doesn't just do whatever I tell her to." Natsuki protested.
"Would she? I do not think that she would. From what I have seen Mai-san would attempt to dissuade Natsuki from her dangerous actions, but if she was unsuccessful she would still attempt to help Natsuki. She would not go to any lengths necessary to stop you from doing something that you truly believed in the rightness of." Shizuru explained calmly, her voice not really conveying her opinion of Mai's supposed moral inclinations.
"...And you would? Stop me?"
Shizuru nodded solemnly, "Nothing is more important to me than Natsuki, not even her ideals as a Champion."
"...oh." Natsuki wondered briefly just what exactly Shizuru could do to stop her, after all Natsuki was easily physically stronger. Or would Shizuru simply be able to stand up to her in some way that would sway her opinions differently from what Mai's actions could? "Is that was what you were trying to warn me about? Your visions were telling you that you would do something to try and prevent me from doing my job?" Natsuki asked cautiously, trying to keep her tone of voice from sounding accusatory.
Shizuru laughed softly "Natsuki says that like she thinks I can see the future."
The Slayer took a step away from Shizuru so that she could look her friend in the eye, though she reached out to hold one of her hands, fearing that if she stopped physical contact, Shizuru would disappear out of this strange dreamlike world. "I thought that's what you told me you could do...?"
"No. I told Natsuki that I have dark dreams that sometimes contain hints of things to come. The darkness that lately haunts my dreams could be because I must betray Natsuki in some way in order to save her, but I am not so foolish as to think that this is the only possibility; certainly not in a world as full of darkness as our own, or the many other darker ones that touch it." Shizuru explained sadly, her pain at the thought that she could soon betray Natsuki clear to the Slayer even if Shizuru was trying to play it off like it was no big deal.
"Shizuru... I know you wouldn't do anything to hurt me on purpose." Natsuki squeezed Shizuru's lightly calloused hand, trying her best to comfort her friend.
To Natsuki's surprise Shizuru let go of her hand and took a step away, hugging her arms around herself despite the hot sunlight beating down on both of them. Red eyes swirled with dark intense emotion, downcast as Shizuru let out a soft sigh her harshly spoken words both comforting and chilling, "Natsuki has no idea what I would do to keep her near me." She shifted her eyes back to Natsuki, almost glaring at the Slayer in a way that made Natsuki take an involuntary step back. "Natsuki should get going if she wishes to get where she needs to be in time."
"...But you won't remember this?" She asked, hesitantly moving closer to Shizuru again, still not quite able to understand how her best friend could be here with her real enough to touch, but somehow she wasn't really physically aware in quite the same way that Natsuki was. Or perhaps she is... it's not like I know what happens when I wake up from one of these do I? Do I remember everything from what happened to tell me about Alyssa being in peril for the first place? As always when she tried to concentrate on that experience the specifics of the memory seemed to scurry away from her conscious mind, only hints of their presence remaining.
Shizuru shook her head, again smiling more warmly at Natsuki, "Only one thing."
The Slayer ran a careful hand over Shizuru's jaw, careful not to get any of the paint on herself on her friend's pale skin, "I think I remember it too..." She said softly, leaning in and capturing Shizuru's lightly pouting bottom lip between her own, gently biting down on the sweet tasting flesh. She smiled inwardly as Shizuru whimpered happily and wrapped her arms tightly around Natsuki, as though needing the support so that she could continue to stand in the face of pleasurable feelings. For long minutes Natsuki continued to kiss her beloved friend, caressing her mouth and tongue with her own and drawing strength for what would probably be a long lonely journey ahead of her. Finally when the sense of urgency to complete her mission here became too great, she reluctantly pulled back, watching Shizuru's flushed cheeks and the way she was breathing so heavily with satisfaction. "I have to go." She said mournfully, running her fingers through Shizuru's soft hair that was pleasantly warm from the sunlight.
Shizuru nodded sadly, "I know. I will stay here to keep Natsuki's pet safe. I promise no harm will come to her."
Natsuki gave Shizuru one more brief kiss in thanks, "Make sure that you don't get hurt either."
"I promise, if only because as long as I have had them, I have never been hurt by a dream." Shizuru said with a smirk.
"You joke now, but remember how I ended up in the hospital last time yah?"
"True... but Natsuki's dream was not a dream." Shizuru replied cryptically, her eyes wistful.
Natsuki snorted with amusement, though a vague memory tickled at her mind of yellow feline eyes and a huge red and black sword. "Nothing is ever as it seems for me anymore." Natsuki turned to gaze out over the flat grasslands, the darkness on the eastern horizon seemed to ripple as though it were alive, but it was probably just the heat distorting her view. She had never felt so unprepared for a journey, but it only seemed appropriate that she would be required to venture into the unknown here with nothing but her own body and wits to help her achieve the impossible. "Alright wish me luck." Natsuki said confidently squeezing Shizuru's hand lightly.
"Mhmm. I know I shall see Natsuki again tomorrow, she has no need of luck." Shizuru replied with even more confidence in Natsuki than the Slayer had in herself. Shizuru hugged her most important person close to her once more, before very reluctantly releasing the slender girl and watching with almost painful longing in her red eyes as Natsuki simply turned and walked away into the sweltering hot primitive wilderness. The flatness of the plain was such that Natsuki did not disappear over the horizon, but all too soon the tall grasses and rippling air thick from the sweltering heat were enough to obscure the movement of the Slayer's small form. Shizuru continued to watch the eastern grasses for a moment, her eyes narrowing slightly and a mysterious smile forming on her full lips before she turned and headed back into the rocky shelter to escape the heat and watch over the other that her most important person cared for.
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Natsuki had been trudging through the tall dry grasses for what felt like hours when the darkness on the horizon finally began to appear closer, resolving itself from a vague green into individual trees. It was still hot, the sun seemed to keep its position high in the sky overhead not venturing any closer to the western horizon despite the Natsuki's long journey, and the Slayer's body was covered in a layer of sticky salt from the rapidly evaporating sweat that still moistened her skin. And she was so hungry; rarely did Natsuki have to go so long between meals, especially when she was engaged in any sort of strenuous activity. And even though she was only walking at a fairly normal pace, the extreme heat made any activity out here in this grassy wilderness strenuous. More annoyingly, the surprisingly sharp blades of dried grass had made countless shallow scratches on her bare legs that were now red and swollen and itched uncomfortably. It took all of her willpower not to scratch at them and make them worse.
The Slayer found herself staring longingly at the plump wildebeest and antelope feeding on the tall grasses, imagining that she lived in these prehistoric wilds and that the purpose of her journey was something less dire. How nice it would be if she were making this trek to hunt for meat instead; she would surely be able to take down that impressive looking bull with his huge horns. She could just picture dragging it home to her cave and the two sweet females she cared for making all of them a most satisfying feast; and the way that both Mai and Shizuru would make a fuss over her skill at hunting, easing the soreness in her tired muscles in the most pleasant ways... Suddenly she pictured herself as some sort of prehistoric Neanderthal Slayer, and found the thought of her more beastly and fuzzy self both unappealing and silly.
Snorting quietly in amusement at the fanciful wanderings of her overheated brain, Natsuki finally stepped out of the open grassland and under the first of the tall jungle trees, picking her way carefully beneath the thick undergrowth. She was finally out of the baking direct sunlight, but if anything it felt even hotter here in the dense shade of the forest, the moisture from the plants making the air so thick and humid that breathing it felt like drowning. The air was alive with the sound of the beating wings of insects, and echoing down from the tall canopy she could hear the cries of animals living high up in the sunlit treetops out of sight from the darkened jungle floor. As she ventured deeper into the forest, the reason for the sudden increase in vegetation became clear, as she could hear the cheerful sound of swift running water travelling over rock. Her dry throat ached painfully at the wonderful sound, and Natsuki found herself irresistibly drawn to it.
The resilient Slayer forced her way through the even thicker plants surrounding the stream, their broad green leaves taking advantage of the extra moisture and the break in the heavy trees that allowed them to catch a bit of sunlight for themselves. She kept her eyes downward to watch her step, as the simple sandals she wore provided much less protection than her normal boots would against the bites of the numerous likely venomous reptiles patrolling the forest floor that she saw several fleeting glimpses of as she made her way closer to the sound of the running water. When she reached the steep rocky banks of the small river, Natsuki gasped in surprise when she finally felt safe enough to glance up and take in the sight before her. The rough fast moving water was actually running towards her instead of to the side as she had thought, its stream disappearing underground as its path reached the rock beneath her feet.
Carefully the Slayer made her way down to the water; anxious to replace some of the moisture she had been losing rapidly due to her body's desperate attempts to cool itself through sweating. Eagerly she knelt next to the fast moving water and cupping her hands she brought heavenly mouthfuls of the pleasantly cool tangy liquid to her mouth, drinking it down quickly. She had a brief worry that drinking this wild untreated water could cause her to come down with a nasty case of dysentery, but quickly convinced herself that she was a Slayer so surely her immune system must be strong enough to fight off such petty concerns. After drinking her fill until her stomach practically sloshed with water, Natsuki's green eyes glinted with greed when she spotted a nearby tree whose low hanging branches were heavy with a soft skinned orange fruit and despite her stomach being full up with water Natsuki felt it grumbling eagerly at the tempting sight. Smiling she quickly scaled back up the steep stone river bank, her now cooled and hydrated muscles readily responding to the task she set to them.
Happily chewing on a mouthful of the succulent orange fruit, she was finally able to turn her mind to concerns that had less to do with her immediate comfort, and sharp green eyes now took in their surroundings more carefully. Reaching up to gather a few more of the fruits to carry with her on her journey, the Slayer took a frightened step backwards when she noticed the heavy muscular coils of a large snake resting on the branch. Its dark chocolate brown scales softly reflected the faint sunlight; with scales a lighter tan colour making beautiful intricate rounded patterns along the animal's lazily coiled body. From the shallow pits along the mouth of its broad rounded head, Natsuki found herself easily identifying the beautiful reptile as some sort of python and breathed a sigh of relief that the animal wasn't venomous. Sure her Slayer-reflexes probably meant that she could easily get a high paying job with the Discovery Channel being a super hot chick who wrangled snakes for their drooling viewers; but even if she regularly faced dangers most could never imagine, Natsuki didn't fancy that as a particularly intelligent pastime.
She blinked in surprise as the large snake nudged the juicy looking fruit nearest its head, staring unblinkingly into Natsuki's eyes with its own hauntingly red orbs. Natsuki found herself blushing slightly, feeling suddenly like Eve from the Christian mythology being tempted by the serpent, and a curious feeling of warmth gathered in her stomach when those mysterious red eyes seemed to glint with amusement at her embarrassment. "Thanks." She said quietly to the eye-catching reptile, picking the fruits near it she was still surprised when the animal nodded its broad head in acknowledgement. She had always heard that snakes had very poor vision, but still she followed its gaze when it turned its head to the side and gazed significantly at the land upriver from the fruit tree. Her heart started beating faster in apprehension at the sight of a large stone cliff thrusting upwards into the sky several kilometres in the distance, the thin waterfall of the river plummeting over its side appearing to smoke with mist. "I suppose that's where I need to go." She pondered aloud, no longer shocked when the animal nodded again, as though it knew the purpose of her journey here. And perhaps it did; this was after all a mythical realm of sorts, even if it looked so much like home. "Thanks again." She said awkwardly to the snake, again starting her trek, staying in sight of the water as she headed up river so that she would not lose her way. As she walked she could glimpse hints of glinting dark scales travelling beside her through the heavy undergrowth, making her more and more curious as to the nature of the mysterious reptile.
Natsuki travelled as quickly as she dared through the forest towards the foreboding towering rock face, along a path cleared out by a large animal that she had seen no other signs of. As she walked she ate the fruits that she carried with her, since she had no pack in which to store them and wasn't sure if she would be lucky enough to find anything else edible once she once she reached her next destination, if indeed there was not yet further to travel once she did. The Slayer soon found that the towering cliff was farther away and larger than it had appeared from the place down river where the water disappeared from the surface and underneath the rocks, and felt certain that she must have walked for over an hour before she finally rested her hands on its cool reddish brown surface.
Her stomach felt uneasy with vertigo as she stared at up at the edge of the sheer cliff towering above her, wondering how she was supposed to climb the purely vertical rock. She walked alongside the cliff, trailing her rough fingers over the moist stone and blinking in surprise when her sensitive skin encountered an indentation in the rock about six centimetres deep, just wide enough for her to be able to grip onto it with her smallish hands. She looked up the cliff, and not a third of a metre higher she noticed another indentation and the small dents seemed to travel up as high as her eyes could see; it was as though they were handholds carved out specifically to aid a human female in climbing up to the tall flat summit.
The fear of scaling the immense cliff made Natsuki stand still, her neck aching from staring upwards until she growled angrily in disgust with herself, her fear of the inanimate rock an intolerable weakness; never mind that even a Slayer could be fatally injured if she fell from such a great height, particularly with all of the trees and rocks below. Deciding that she'd already wasted too much time on pointless fear, she crouched slightly and jumped, the powerful muscles in her legs easily carrying her metres into the air. She slammed into the stone wall, her arms flexing as she gripped onto two of the handholds her feet scrambling desperately at the rock for purchase before finally finding their own holds, one of them already slipping slightly as it encountered loose sliding pebbles inside its hold. Gritting her teeth she wasted no time pulling herself upwards, quickly placing her feet in the holds occupied by her hands, making sure to clear out the small slippery bits of dust from each hold with her fingers before moving higher, staring only at the holds a little bit above her instead of up or down, not wanting to know either how far she had left to climb or how high off the ground she now was.
It wasn't long before her arms and legs ached, she couldn't remember the last time she had really pushed her endurance like this and she made a note to herself to ask Midori about setting up a more intensive training schedule when she got home. If I even remember any of this. Hesitantly she glanced upwards, her vision spinning slightly again as she leaned closer to the hard rock, gripping more tightly to her precarious hand holds. She still had a third of the way to climb, and she knew that if she glanced down she would want to throw up because she was certainly already up much higher than her entire dorm building was tall. Natsuki rested her forehead on the rough rock, taking a few shaky breaths before continuing her careful upward climb. Finally after what seemed like an eternity of climbing Natsuki used one last burst of strength to pull her exhausted body up onto the top of the cliff, laying flat on her back and just breathing heavily for long minutes, the reddish sun still directly overhead after so much travelling making her feel more and more uneasy.
Movement out of the corner of her eye caused her to turn her head to the left, and she blinked in surprise when she saw the dark brown snake sliding on its belly towards her. How could the large animal have gotten up here? The heavy bodied snake certainly could not have made the steep climb up the cliff, but yet it she could tell from the red eyes glinting with uncanny intelligence that this was the same animal. For long moments they stared into each other's eyes, something ancient passing between them until Natsuki noticed with curiosity that even though she was no longer breathing hard from exertion, each breath still burned faintly in her chest and sniffing the air carefully she became aware of a foul noxious odour.
Curious, Natsuki rolled onto her stomach. Rising to her knees eyes wide in amazement as she stared out over an inexplicably a large lake on top of the flat plateau. Steam rose in wispy plumes from the centre of the lake, great geysers of superheated water spouting up from tall yellowish columns of crystallized minerals. Probably sulphur... damn that explains why the water I drank in the stream at the bottom was slightly tangy I guess. Natsuki thought with fascination, now surprised that the water in the stream had seemed like mostly normal freshwater, though the water at the edges of the lake did seem to be pure and clear instead of a murky white like that at its centre. She was amazed to see that the heat of the Earth under her was still breaking through the surface at such a high elevation, and she wondered if maybe there was something more than just this one planet's own still molten interior causing the disturbance.
The dark cone of a volcano suddenly rising from the centre of the lake and toppling the fragile geysers answered her question for her, the summit of its frighteningly quick growing tower of rock seemingly pulled up into the sky by some unseen force. Great splashes of orange hot molten iron fell sizzling into the lake, in mere moments obscuring her direct view of the new angry formation with thick white clouds of steam, though the bright glow of bleeding lava was still easily seen glancing off of the water vapour. Obviously this wasn't a purely naturally occurring formation. Of course it isn't... this is supposed to be a test of bravery. Natsuki thought sarcastically, staring with great apprehension at the rocky path that rose out of the water along with the volcano, leading from where she stood to the base of the new mountain thrusting itself up ever higher into the clouds. The sides of the path sizzled where it touched the strongly acidic lake, and she could tell from the clouds of vaporized noxious liquid shrouding it that breathing the air over the lake would be painful. But what choice did she have? She couldn't turn back now.
Letting out a resigned sigh Natsuki rose reluctantly to her feet and began making her way across the narrow path, looking down when she suddenly felt something bump against her leg. She was almost surprised that she was surprised at all with how strange this place was, but there behind her was the dark coloured snake following her determinedly into certain danger. "You really shouldn't be following me. It's going to be really hard to even breathe over there, and I don't know what else we might find." Natsuki reasoned with the strange reptile, sighing when the animal continued to simply stare at her, going as far as to raise the front part of its body up from the ground so that it could better look her in the eye. I didn't know pythons could even do that... and those eyes... they seem so familiar. "I guess there's no convincing you to turn back?" The snake gave the impression of shaking its head, and if Natsuki didn't know better she would have sworn that it smirked teasingly at her. "...Alright then. Um... would you at least agree to me carrying you? The rock is wet, and the water on it is almost certainly dangerous enough to burn your scales." The Slayer offered helpfully, smiling when the animal moved closer to her and allowed her to get her hands under part of its thick belly and start lifting its impressive bulk from the ground. She again felt a strange warmth inside as the python began coiling its long body around her arms and torso, its muscles gripping at her pleasantly until its broad head was resting on her shoulder. She blushed slightly as a long dry forked tongue flicked affectionately at her chin. Still the Slayer grinned at somehow having made friends with such an interesting creature, running her hands over the soft sun-warmed scales in fascination.
But her momentary pleasant distraction from the task at hand was cut short by a low rumbling roar originating in the centre of the hellish lake, and Natsuki swallowed hard as her eyes strained to make out what could be producing the sound, but her view was still completely obscured by the superheated fog. Every sane thought was screaming at her to turn around and get out of here, but the proud warrior in the Slayer refused to allow a retreat. Squaring her shoulders Natsuki again began her careful trek across the slippery stone pathway; the snake's coils gripping more tightly around her as they finally stepped into the burning fog. "I sure hope I know what I'm doing. You really should have listened to me and left while you could." She said apologetically to her reptilian friend, smiling despite her fear when the forked tongue again flicked out at her. Natsuki hoped that both of them would make it out of this alive. Alyssa and Mai depended on her success here; failure was not an option even in the face of these impossible odds. What the hell was I thinking?