Interlude: A Tale of Tears
Hoarse cries of pain came from the room. "It hurts! By Irari, it hurts!" A three tailed kitsune gripped the screaming kitsune's hand. She had three white tails, and white hair to match.
"I know, my mate." The male three-tailed said. He rubbed his free hands on hers. Two females with three red tails a piece were keeping the white-tailed legs apart.
"Very soon, Guren. Your child will be out very soon."
"Inari, let it be so."
"Now push!"
The white-tailed kitsune yowl pierced the heavens, her muscles contracted. There was a loud pop, and two squealing kits came out in a large bundle.
The kits were covered in birthing fluids. They were bald, each with a single tail. One had a red tail, the other white. Their eyes were closed, their mouths open in howls of fear and confusion. Their tiny arms wrapped around each other, like the bodies were lifelines.
"My mate, we have twins." Horror resounded in the male's voice.
The female raised her head, and saw her children being swaddled by one of the other females. The white-tailed gazed at them for minutes.
"I claim both of them."
Gasps echoed among the room. "Mito-"
The white-tailed cut off the female who spoke. "I claim both of them."
"I support my mate." The red-tailed male squeezed the females hand.
"Very well. I will inform the village." One of the red-tailed females left the room. The other who had swaddled the twins looked at them closely.
"They are female."
"Kushina and Shizune, Kushina the red tailed." As she named her children, the white-tailed and red-tailed cried tears of joy.
The bodies burned in the fires. Kitsune of all ages gathered around the fire, chanting softly. The forest seemed to follow the flow of the words. Song-birds chirped along, squirrels banged nuts on trees to produce a beat.
A white-tailed kitsune with three tails watched as the fire in front of her was reduced to nothing but ashes. In each hand she held the hand of a daughter, one with a two white-tails, the other two red. Tears streaked down their faces.
The mother stepped forward, and grabbed a shovel. "Let us…let us return your father to the Earth so his spirit may depart." The three-tailed shoved the tool into the damp earth, and raised it.
The two daughters stepped forward, and grabbed their own shovels. The chanting continued; low and sad.
A small hole was dug in the ground. The black ashes were shoveled into the hole, and the two young kitsune poured dirt on top.
A male kitsune with six white tails stepped forward. "Lord Inari, Supreme Fox Above All Others, please bless this departed spirit. Let him leave his mortal body to become once again one with the Earth and Sky. Let him know no pain or sadness. Let him know that one day his loved ones will join him."
The six tails, in two clumps of three, swirled around hypnotically. A thin white essence swirled out, and enveloped the grave. It glowed brightly, then faded like mist in the sun.
The female kitsune shed their tears over the grave. "Inari damn this endless war for taking him away." One woman cried in grief. Two daughters cried for vengeance. Tears fell down from three faces.
"You want to fight! You saw what happened to Dad! You helped to bury him! If you die, what would happen to Mother?" The three-tailed kitsune with white tails was screaming at the top of her lungs.
"Shizune, you know I want to do this, even if you don't." The red-tailed kitsune smiled softly. "You know this must be done."
"But we have always done everything together! I don't want to lose you Kushina!"
"You won't."
"You don't know that." The white tailed huffed. "Fine! Be that way! See if I care!" She turned around.
"Shizune-"
"Just go already!"
In the room next door, an older kitsune cried as she listened to her beloved daughters fight.
The fires in the village were dying down. A four tailed fox with white tails stood before the assembled kitsune.
"Our leader is dead, killed in this pointless war. I have taken control to lead us out it, to preserve our village. My sister, who has grown to love the taste of battle, has been exiled from the village, along with anyone else who feels the same way. Today, we take the first steps to rebuilding our village."
Away from the crowed, a middle aged kitsune who looked to be over seventy cried among her three tails at the utter breaking of her family.
"So you now have a village of your own sister. I guess even a war hawk like you has to settle somewhere."
"Enough. Save your quarrel after the council of the villages is over."
There were no tears here; all the tears had already been shed by this point.
The temple was full of fighting kitsune. Bodies heaved and rolled in the wild melee. Cries of pain and anguish abounded.
There were three groups fighting. Two belonged to embittered sisters, the others were the defenders of this temple who were caught in the middle.
Two shapes broke through the fighting. Each seven-tailed, one red, one white.
The white one chased after the red, who cut through the remaining guards. They entered the temple, and into a large room. The red turned to confront the white.
Sitting ignored by the two was an ageless kitsune. Nine red tails, in three bunches of three, flowed behind him. He watched with amused eyes as red tore into white, only to be torn into as well. A wine glass was in his right hand. He drank from it, then smashed the priceless crystal into the ground.
The nine-tailed rose from the throne like a shadow. He strutted forward, distinctly out of place among the fighting kitsune.
By the time he had reached the two, the fighting had died down. Scorch marks and ectoplasma adored the walls and floor. The two sisters were weak, standing on four wobbly feet.
"You both have forgotten your place. You, Kushina, for thinking you could take my power, and you, Shizune, for thinking I needed protection. For this, you both will die."
He grabbed both by their necks. They kicked in the air, trying to find purchase on ground that wasn't there. They weakly clawed at their captor, too weakened to hit effectively.
Then the male gasped, as twelve tails filled with fire and ectoplasma pierced his stomach and spine. He coughed up blood, and collapsed to the floor, his powerful defenses penetrated by their combined might.
The twins rolled on the floor as pure power entered their bodies. Two tails popped out of each kitsune, making a set on nine on each. Their wounds, which had seemed deep, were revealed as shallow.
Slowly the red and white tailed females picked themselves up. Hesitantly, they approached each other. Soft steps as blood was splashed from the feet echoed in the temple. Suddenly they leaped towards each other, arms wide.
There was a smack as bodies collided; arms were wrapped around the waste. "You remembered sister!" They cried as one. Tears of relief poured down as fifty years of deception was ended.
Two ageless females, each with nine tails, one red and one white, sat in the throne room. To the side, an older female with three white tails was sewing a thread through a needle. A male kitsune with five red tails burst into the room. "Kyuubi-sama, I have important news from Yokia Academy. There is a female kitsune, possibly a survivor of the massacre of Kohona Village Massacre, attending the academy with her human brother."
The two kitsune shared a glance. "Continue." They spoke as one.
"We learned about one Ahri Aono, proclaimed sister of one Tsukune Aono, a full-blooded human. Said human was let in as an experiment by the headmaster. His human status was announced at the end of the school start speech. He was to be "treated like a monster". Shortly afterwards he was attacked by a monstrel called Saizo.
Saizo had armored forearms and was strong. Estimated combat ability is that of a high C-Rank. Tsukune fought back with a bo staff. After several ineffectual strikes by both parties, Tsukune delivered a large combo to Saizo that brought the monstrel to his knees. Tsukune then ended the fight by ripping out Saizo's eyes with his hands.
Immediately afterwards, Ahri declared herself to be Tsukune's sister, revealing her two red tails. The students cleared out quickly.
Saizo has since disappeared, and is presumed dead, though not by Ahri or Tsukune's hands. The only other piece of information we have is that Tsukune and Ahri are in a dorm for mates."
"Gather all the information on them that you can. This is a new priority!"
"I obey Kyuubi-sama!" The kitsune hurried out of the room.
"This could be troublesome. Kuyo should have an easy time of making this Ahri his mate, and if he does so…"
"He will be legitimate in the eyes of the lower monsters, and more importantly those of the Succubae. That would be problematic in the future. We must end this as soon as possible."
"Their family is not an option; they are almost certainty under the protection of the headmaster. We will need to think of other options."
"Let us retire for the night, and think on this in the morning." The two females left for their bedroom and were asleep in minutes. Their mother continued sewing. A single tear of happiness fell down her cheek. What could go wrong now that her family was together, as it had been for decades? How could she not be happy with the pure and absolute her daughters had for each other?
Monster Codex: Kitsunes:
One of the dominate Yokia races, kitsune are one of the most well-known Japanese Yokia. Kitsune are a bi or quad-pedal race with multiple "forms". Human form looks just like the human race. Kitsune form is mostly human with fox tails, pointed ears, and whiskers. Fox form is full fox shape, though bigger and with more tails. Fox form is only assumed for combat.
Kitsune live in villages, and in each village there are at least three clans. The clans compete for leadership in the village, and the villages compete for power in the council. A village must have one clan with viable heirs to be on the council.
Because of the commonness of political backstabbing among villages, among clans, and even in the clans themselves, there is a stigma on twins, or any multiple birthing. Siblings tend to have dangerous rivalries, and twins are especially bitter, and are the most likely to end up with one dead from an assassination. As a result, most female kitsune choose to have the weaker kit killed.
Power in Kitsune society is determined by tails. All kitsune can reach three tails. If a kitsune manages to break the "fourth tail barrier" they are capable of reaching six tails, and if they break the "seventh tail barrier" they can reach nine. A kitsune who kills another kitsune with higher tails claims their power and tails for themselves. While killing a lower level kitsune will result in more power, it will never result in more tails.
At nine tails, the kitsune undergoes a change to accommodate their immense power. They become ageless, seemingly immortal. Their power is beyond all other Kitsune. A nine tails is always head of their village, even if they have no political sense.
Normally the Kitsunes are split in loose alliances between two nine-tails, ensuring mutual destruction so one does not gain too much power. Rather than the two dying in combat, most nine-tails are killed by ambitious kitsune in their own camp. Recently this balance has been disrupted by the ascension of the Kurama twins. Though each twin is weaker than the other nine tails, Ginta, combined they will destroy him. As a result, far more villages are in Ginta's camp in an attempt to keep the balance.
Kitsune come in two types, fire kitsunes and spirit kitsunes. Fire kitsunes have red tails, control fire, and make up about fourth fifths of the kitsune population. The rest is made of spirit kitsunes, who have white tails and can fight spirits and ghosts.
Kitsunes are mercenaries, selling their expertise in espionage, seduction, mayhem, and exorcism to the highest bidder. They also provide lumber to many other Yokia species. Most Yokia look down on Kitsune for their mercenary tendencies, though not to their faces.
Most Kitsune wars are short and violent. Actual war between villages does not generally occur until one side has politically outmaneuvered the other. The losing side is offered a choice: disband your clans and join the victors' villages, or be destroyed to the last kitsune.
When it comes to fighting, kitsunes are on the lower tier in high class fighting monsters. Though they have great potential as fighters, their lack of experience in actual wars that aren't one sided slaughters gets them killed in fair fights. Compared to vampires and werewolves, kitsune are sadly lacking. However, once they get that experience kitsunes are deadly fighters, as proved in the Great War. In the beginning they lost continuously, until their fighters gained experience. Then they began to win.
In actual fights, most kitsune use their tails the most. Kitsune tails contain their power, allowing them to launch fire or spirit attacks. Tails can also be used to pierce defenses. Kitsunes also have sharp claws and teeth, though the teeth are rarely used. They are fast on their feet, as well as agile. However, kitsunes are not that durable, and several solid hits will leave them reeling and wounded. Kitsunes are protected by a shield of magic that surrounds their body. The shield's strength is determined by the number of tails a Kitsune has, and requires no conscious thought to be used, rather it is a passive defense.
Theoretically a kitsune could live to 1000 years, but this has never happened. Most kitsunes die by the age of 500. The average age is 369 years, but this is brought down by half-kitsunes, who are considered a part of the village. The longest living kitsune lived to be 753, before being killed in the Great War. Kitsune can get sick from both human an Yokia diseases.
Kitsune are capable of mating with humans, to produce a half-kitsune kit. If the mother is a kitsune the kit will be a half, if not then it will be human with better attributes. A half-kitsune who mates with a full kitsune will sire a full kitsune, and two half-kitsunes who mate have a fifty-percent chance of siring a full kitsune, the other half are half-kitsunes. Half-kitsunes live in the village. They have little political power, and only live about 150 years. They will only ever reach two tails.