Author's Note: Hey all! I bring you the latest and greatest of Tengoku no hi! I must say, this is probably my best chapter yet, I think. I hope you guys will enjoy reading it and find it just as emotional as when I was writing it. Also, a little warning - there is a bit of gore in this chapter, so if you're kind of squeemish and don't do well with blood, I'm just advising you right now not to eat anything while reading this chapter. But other than that, please enjoy, and don't forget to review!
~ With love, Haachi ~
~ A Recap ~
Amaterasu bowed and hid her smile as the goofy sheep took a swig of whatever was in her gourd. "I now wish to pass on the ability of Veil of Mist, in hopes that you will use it to slow down your enemies in my thick fog."
Ammy felt the regained power sink into her chest, and she felt revitalized. Kasugami bleated and was gone in a whirl of heavenly mist, leaving Ammy by herself.
She returned to Kaede and the two warriors, who were all at the gate that led out of Sei-an, across Lake Biwa and into the plains of Nasu.
"There you are," Kaede said. "What did you need to do?"
"Oh, you know, just Goddess stuff," Ammy replied. "Now, let's get going."
( Amaterasu's P.O.V. )
The vast seaside plains of Nasu stretched before the group. Ammy observed the scenery, taking in the lush green grass and small hills that littered the stretch of ground. Farther to the West, the roaring seas stretched endlessly beyond the horizon. To the north, a wide mountain range towered and spread out across the land. Kaede let out a low whistle.
"How come none of this was here before?" Ammy couldn't help but ask.
"This western territory was only discovered and claimed by Sei-an city around 60 years ago," Miura said. "Before that, Nippon lacked the technology to cross Lake Biwa and explore what was to the west."
"But then the inventor Gen created motor boats that were small enough to cross the lake," Kazusa continued. "Ever since then Nippon has been expanding and growing."
Ammy nodded, impressed with the eccentric old inventor. "Alright, back to business," She said. "How do we find Ninetails?"
"What about that over there?" Came Kaede's voice to Ammy's right. She turned to see Kaede pointing at something grey in the distance. The four of them drew closer to it, and as they approached Ammy realized it was a tower hidden in a group of tall trees at the base of the mountains.
"Would you look at that," Ammy said. "Come on, let's find a way to get inside."
As the four skirted all the way around the circular tower, Amaterasu realized with a sinking feeling that there was no visible way in. She should have known.
Turning, she looked up through the trees to see that familiar sight; a constellation, this time of the cat. Kabegami let out a meow and jumped down the stars until she landed safely on the ground in front of Ammy.
"Amaterasu, creator of that is good and mother to us all…" She purred. "Long have I awaited your return when I was forced to leave my perch in the clouds." She took a few dainty steps forward, her tail flicking. "Now I bestow upon you the power of Catwalk. Use it to reach new heights as you soar for victory!"
She felt that usual rush of vigor as the ability was reclaimed, and in a puff of white mist Kabegami was gone.
"What was that?" Kaede said from behind her. She turned to see the three of them looking at her with awe in their eyes.
"I've gained a new Brush Technique," She said, turning back to look up the walls of the tower. She saw it now; an old stone statue that represented Kabegami. "Hold on," She said. She aimed her brush and drew a perfect trail up the side of the tower, where a door was located.
She backed up and got a running start, then let her feet fly up onto the wall, and the three on the ground gasped when she didn't fall. Her feet moved easily as she made her way up, and in a matter of minutes she was on the ledge that allowed access into Ninetails' stronghold.
Now came the problem of trying to get the others up; her vine could bring others to her, but she doubted it was strong enough to carry the weight of two warriors. She sighed and drew a vine connecting her and Kaede, and with a surprised cry she was carried up and dropped gently next to Ammy.
"Whew!" She said as she brushed herself off and smoothed her hair. "What about them?"
"I can try to bring them up, but I don't know if my vine can carry them," She said. She tried drawing a vine connected Miura to her, but as soon as his feet were lifted off the ground, the vine snapped under his muscular body.
"No use," She said with a sigh. "Hold on, you two," She called, then turned and pushed open the door to the temple. "I'll see if I can find a way to let you two in. Just sit tight for awhile."
They nodded, and Amaterasu and Kaede turned and entered the tower. The door closed on its own behind them, and it took Ammy's eyes a moment to adjust to the dim light. They faced a long corridor illuminated by burning torches; the corridor split off into a few smaller hallways, and as the two began walking Ammy saw that one of them was a staircase guarded by an imp.
"Who goes there?" The imp said in its screechy voice when it saw them approach. "Get lost! Scram!"
Suddenly the atmosphere burst into that cursed barrier that formed whenever Ammy engaged in battle. She pulled out her reflector and growled at the imp, who had been joined by several more green monsters. Kaede took a couple of steps back as Ammy began attacking one of them, while another began to slowly move toward her, its flute ready to attack her.
She squeezed her left eye shut as the imp lunged, but just as he was about to make contact with her, an electric barrier sent him flying backward, stunning him for just long enough so that Amaterasu could power slash him clean in half.
"W-what was that?" She said as the barrier dispelled once all of the imps were defeated. Ammy put her brush away and fixed her dark eyes on the innkeeper.
"I…I don't think they can touch you," Ammy said after a moment as she pondered this. "They can't touch you because one of Ninetails' tails is attached to you."
She watched as Kaede looked down at her hands, then back up at the Goddess. "So, they can't hurt me at all?"
Ammy shook her head. "Not while the tail is attached to your eye. Now, let's keep moving."
With this, the two girls began descending down the stairs, defeating any imps that may dare to oppose them with ease, until they came to the last flight of stairs.
"A dead end?" Ammy said once they had reached the very bottom floor. "Wait…"
She drew a circle with a fuse next to the wall and watched as the wall blew to smithereens, revealing Miura and Kazusa standing there. She hadn't even seen the weakness in the wall from outside.
"Come on," She said to Miura. "You're coming with us. Kazusa, you keep watch outside."
The man nodded and turned to keep an eye out for any danger, and the others turned and headed back up the stairs to head further down the corridor. Even as they walked, solving riddles, finding keys, taking out demons, Amaterasu still had a very bad feeling about what was to come.
( Kaede's P.O.V. )
Kaede felt extremely happy that she was finally of some use to Amaterasu; as they made their way through the temple, through many secret passageways and tunnels trying to find that dreaded fox, every time Amaterasu would have to fight something, there was Kaede, ready to defend. In all honesty she had no idea how the whole curse thing worked, but as long as she was finally able to help.
Maybe it was intuition, or maybe it was the curse that she carried on her eye that told her now that Ninetails was very near. She could feel him, the darkness radiating like waves of heat throughout the very top floor of the tower. But as scared and exhausted as she was, she would be there to defend and assist Amaterasu anyway that she could.
She had to give Miura credit too; Amaterasu had really put his incredible strength to use. He could smash doors down, break through barriers, pretty much anything that required brute strength. His strong, lean arms were sweaty now as the three of them faced a final trial; getting into the main chamber where the Divine Arrow awaited.
"What's going to happen beyond that door?" Miura asked nervously. Amaterasu said nothing, simply kept her face blank as she advanced toward the big stone double doors, pure evil billowing from underneath.
Kaede remained silent, her mind reeling, as the Goddess put one hand on the door. "Wait!" She cried; Amaterasu stopped, her hand on the stone surface, but she didn't turn around to look at her.
"Let us come with you," She pleaded softly. "We can help. It's too dangerous for you to face him on your own."
Ammy shook her head. "I'm sorry, Kaede," She said, turning to look at her with a soft smile on her face. "I have to do this alone. I couldn't bear to see any more of my friends get hurt."
Before Kaede could say anything more, Ammy had pushed the doors open, the thick clouds of evil smoke consuming her completely.
( Amaterasu's P.O.V. )
It took her deep black eyes a moment to adjust to the blackness of the room; the air was clogged with evil, and Ammy knew in an instant that she was in the presence of Ninetails. As she advanced slowly, Divine Retribution at the ready, she saw something in the center of the circular room; the Emperor.
She rushed toward him, and as she approached she knew she had made a mistake. Torches all around the room lit up one after another, until the room was ablaze with light. Ammy blinked and looked to where the Emperor lay, and there she was: Tamamo, leaning over him, his head cradled in her hands.
"Still not showing your face, eh Ninetails?" She sneered at Tamamo's body. "You really are a coward."
She looked up, her eyes wide in confusion. "Who are you? What are you talking about?"
She growled and took a step forward, causing her to flinch. "Don't play that game with me! I know who you are!"
She laid Konoe's head down gently before standing and taking a small step toward her. "Please," She said. "I don't know what you're talking about. Can you help my husband?"
Ammy stepped backward, not daring to let Ninetails too close. "I…I won't let you hurt Konoe," She said, her voice shaking. She knew that Ninetails was a master at deceiving others, but she had no idea if Tamamo was already dead or not. Would she have to take a chance in order to defeat him once and for all?
That's when she noticed it; a purple glowing object hovering on an altar above Konoe's body. The Divine Arrow! She thought excitedly. Now if I can just get to it before he does…
Deciding to go out on a limb, Amaterasu ran at Tamamo and leaped right over her head, landing cleanly beside the Emperor. She turned and grabbed the arrow, the purple energy pulsing through her arm as she held it up threateningly.
"Don't come any closer," She said; Tamamo simply stared at her with wide, confused eyes. Ammy watched, still trembling, as her warm brown eyes went from Ammy's face to something above her head, and she spun around just as she was knocked aside like a ragdoll.
"So, you decided to come after me after all, hmm?" Came that rumbling growl as Ninetails materialized, one of his tails hitting Amaterasu in the side of the head and knocking her off her feet. She gasped as red spots filled her vision, and Ninetails leaped over to stand behind Tamamo.
"You're such a sorry sight, Amaterasu," He teased her. "I almost pity your foolishness."
Ammy watched in gut-wrenching horror as he used one of his massive paws to clamp down on top of Tamamo, and she screamed. The sound of her ribs snapping like twigs under the crushing force of his weight made Amaterasu want to vomit, but she could only watch helplessly as Ninetails dug his claws into her chest, blood splattering onto the floor like a fountain.
"T-Tamamo!" She choked, dizziness overtaking her as she tried to stand. She began to see stars, and when she reached up to touch her head she felt the sickening warmness of blood oozing through her ripped-open scalp.
"No…no, you can't…" She gasped as she felt her eyes closing. She shook her head and tried again to stand, but she only fell again as more and more blood poured out of the top of her head where Ninetails' claw had sliced.
Just then, through her fading and blood-clotted vision, Amaterasu saw a faint trickle of another light source, and the sound of the door bursting open.
"Amaterasu!" came Kaede's voice. She heard Miura slicing his sword wildly at Ninetails, and then a grimace as the fox landed a blow on him. She tried to focus her vision long enough to see Kaede crouched in front of her, her face wild with worry. She smiled feebly.
"Sorry," She said. "I seemed to have lost my touch."
Kaede hushed her, a small gasp escaping her lips as she saw the evident damage done to Ammy's now-throbbing head. With the last of her strength, she lifted her hand, where the Divine Arrow was still safe.
"T-take this," She said softly. "Give it to Miura. He can do the job just as well as I could."
Kaede nodded and took the arrow, then waved at Miura to catch his attention. The warrior caught the arrow when Kaede threw it to him and gave both of them a reassuring smile.
The innkeeper helped Ammy lay down flat on her back, and she sighed when she felt Kaede's cool hand brush her hair back from her face. Then the coolness was gone, and Ammy opened her eyes enough to see Kaede stand and put her hand on her right eye.
"O, Ninetails, dreaded slayer of Queen Himiko and Priestess Rao," Kaede called to the giant fox. Ninetails swung his great ugly head around to look at her, his glowing red eyes boring into hers.
"I have suffered the curse of one of your tails for many years now," She continued, the white piece of cloth falling from her face, exposing her cursed eye. "Hear me when I say that you will be defeated. The power of light always overcomes darkness. I know that now." She looked back at Ammy as she said this, a small smile lighting up her scarred face.
"I have faith in you now, Amaterasu," She said. "I used to not believe in the gods, but that's changed now. I know that you can overcome this."
Ammy listened to Kaede's words, tears forming in her bloodied eyes. She managed the strength to stand slowly, and stagger a few steps toward Ninetails.
"Hahaha! This is too rich!" Ninetails sneered. "All of you mortals with your false hopes and fairytales! Well it's too late for Amaterasu or anyone to stop me!" With this, he howled a horrible roaring sound, and Kaede cried out as her scar started to glow red.
"Kaede!" Ammy cried. She gripped her torn head in her hands as an odd golden glow began to overcome her. What was happening?
As Kaede collapsed and writhed on the ground as the fox's ninth tail tried to escape, Ammy felt the pain fading, her strength returning. In just a matter of moments, she had been fully healed. Was it Kaede's words of faith that had healed her?
Now wasn't the time to think about that. Whipping out her Celestial Brush, Ammy aimed a careful power slash at the partially-emerged tail that was slowly clawing its way out of Kaede's eye socket. The line slashed cleanly through the tail, and it screeched, emerging from Kaede's eye quickly and writhing on the floor before disintegrating into a puff of little flowers. Kaede shivered as her eye bled, curling into a fetal position to protect herself from anything else.
"Amaterasu!" Miura called to her over Ninetails' screech of loss. "You have to end this now! This is your only chance!"
She watched as he threw the Divine Arrow in a high arc over her head, but it was short-reached, and she clenched her teeth as she leapt up onto Ninetails' back and dodged his thrashing tails. She mounted on of the tails and leaped as high as she could, catching the arrow and turning to drive it right into the center of his back.
His muscles constricted with the pain and he let out a deafening screech. He thrashed around uncontrollably, throwing Amaterasu off of his back, and she landed with a thud on the hard floor.
Kaede sat up, holding one hand over her bleeding eye, and the three of them watched in triumph as Ninetails slumped over and, his tails whipping around and twitching in a last feeble attempt to live, disintegrated into an inky black cloud, then disappeared into the atmosphere entirely.
Ammy sighed at the release of the evil in the air, and she looked to Kaede, who was already being helped by Miura. She smiled at the way he cradled her head in his hands, the way she held onto his arm for support. Deciding they would be okay on their own, Amaterasu turned her attention to something much more important: Tamamo and the Emperor.
She crawled over to Tamamo's motionless form, and felt her heart constrict when she saw the gaping wound right over her heart. Her eyes were hardly open, and she managed to smile when she saw Amaterasu lean anxiously over her.
"I don't know…who you are," She said feebly, the blood that had filled her lungs gurgling up into her throat and trickling out of her mouth. "But…thank you. I just have…one request, before I…join my ancestors…"
Ammy felt tears well up in her eyes as she watched Tamamo take a tentative breath, only to have more blood leak out of the corners of her mouth; this incredibly strong woman, who sacrificed everything, even her life, to protect the one she loved. With the last drop of her strength, Tamamo reached up and rested her fingertips lightly on Ammy's cheek.
"Please…take care of my husband," she said as a content smile formed on her lips. "Tell him that I'll be watching over him…as he leads the country…we built together."
She closed her eyes, and more blood spattered out of her mouth as she coughed. Blood from the wound in her chest had completely drenched her clothes and was forming a puddle that stained Amaterasu's knees.
"Also…tell him that…" She took one of her last staggering breaths, and the tears began to leak down Ammy's dirt-streaked cheeks. "Tell him…that I love him."
She exhaled her last three words, her eyes gently fluttered closed, and she didn't take another breath.
Ammy wept silently as she leaned over Tamamo's body, the sobs quaking through her and tears making little dark spots on Tamamo's already blood-stained clothes. She had gone through so much, sacrificing herself to keep her husband out of harm's way, and now she was gone. Even though this was her first time actually meeting Tamamo, she felt an ache deep inside her heart like she had known Tamamo all of her life.
But as she mourned the loss of Sei-an's great Empress, another thought came into her mind; what about the Emperor? Still shaking, she wiped her tears away and bowed respectfully to the fallen Queen before standing up weakly and stumbling to where Konoe still lay.
As she leaned over him to see if he was even alive anymore, she noticed something different about him; that red feverish look to his skin was gone, and he looked more like he was sleeping peacefully than on the verge of joining his ancestors.
As if sensing she was there, his eyes gently opened, and he smiled. "A-Amaterasu…is that you?"
She nodded, feeling an overwhelming feeling of happiness that he was alright. "I feel so much better," He said, slowly sitting up with the Goddess's help. "The evil I would always feel…it's gone now."
She faked a smile, the dread and grief of Tamamo's death coming back into her mind. How could she tell the Emperor that his beloved wife had sacrificed her own life to save him?
"I sense her here," He said softly as he stood and looked around weakly. "Amaterasu, is Tamamo here?"
Ammy felt the tears threatening to come out again, but she choked them back and nodded with a smile. It was obvious in her face, and he looked around wildly until he spotted her across the room.
"Oh, my darling," He said once he had ran over to her and collapsed next to her body. "My Tamamo…" Amaterasu watched in silence as the Emperor grieved for his beloved wife, his sadness shaking him from head to toe as he pressed his forehead to hers.
"She…was very brave," Ammy finally got the courage to say. "Before she died, she…wanted me to tell you that she loved you. And that you need to go on to rule the country you two raised together.
She felt tears begin to leak out of the corners of her eyes again as he kissed her forehead, whispering his love to her, his tears moistening her peaceful face.
"Tamamo has been avenged, Your Excellency," Ammy said softly. "Ninetails is dead. He was the one responsible for her death."
For the first time he looked up at her, then took off the top layer of his kimono and draped it lovingly over Tamamo's body before standing and straightening the layer underneath.
"I must thank you from the bottom of my heart, Amaterasu," He said with a sad smile. "Even though my wife has passed, Sei-an city will be at peace now. I can go on to be a mighty ruler as I know Tamamo wanted me to. She will be by my side forever and always, and her spirit and memory will live on inside of my heart until the day I join her in the heavens."
With this, he dropped into a kowtow, making her take a step back. She looked around and saw Miura and Kaede, who both did the same thing.
The Emperor rose first and looked down at Tamamo one last time. "I must arrange a proper funeral for my beloved," He said, looking to Miura, who nodded and left the room with Kaede at his side to find Kazusa. "Until then, let us go back to the city. I must also make some arrangements for a statue to be built in your memory."
Ammy started to object, but thought better of it; instead, she wrapped Konoe's arm around her shoulder so she could assist him back to the city. As they turned to walk out the door and back outside, Amaterasu looked back at the form of Tamamo.
"Thank you…Tamamo…"