FOREVER TWENTY-ONE
Mysterious Power
I casually trotted up the steps leading to Ankoku Temple. Ryoshima coast had been in an absolutely terrible state when we arrived, the cursed zone reached across the sea and blocked us from reaching the great bell by the temple. Hiraku and I quickly found the hidden guardian sapling and revived it to restore the coast to a state of peace. Mother had told me so much about this great coast, and I couldn't wait to explore all of it. I climbed up the final stone steps to the temple and I looked around. It had a somber, yet peaceful look about it, a faint mist seemed to cover the area. A gentle tinkling came from wind chimes outside, which made calming music. The grass was overrun by weeds, and the water in the pond to the left looked green and slightly murky, small silver minnows darted in and out of the reeds within. I padded closer to the temple, plants crunching under my feet, they were dry and unkempt, most of them weeds. I slowly nosed open the door, scents of books and old clothes came to meet my nose, also, the smell of fresh meat. It made my mouth water, and I yawned my sudden tiredness away and entered.
It was almost completely dark inside, and I called out hesitantly: "Hello? Is anyone there?" Two big, bright green eyes opened in the middle of the room. "Yes. And who enters my home? You look like a dog, but smell of something else, there is a divine air…Almost… Godlike." The eyes blinked. "Well your nose isn't lying, she is a god!" Hiraku proclaimed into the darkness. "I am Ookami Akimeterasu, who are you? What are you?" I asked, straightening up, starting to wonder about the fresh meat smell. "You cannot tell?" The eyes said, moving in the gloom, and I could make out the outline of a four-legged creature. "Wolf eyes are so weak compared to those of my kind, even a god's. But if you truly need the mystery relieved, I will show myself to you." The green orbs moved around the room, coming to another dark shape closer to us, and then light filled the temple. I blinked a few times to get used to the light, then looked at the stranger. "Ah... Now I see your markings, indeed, you are a god. Ookami Akimeterasu. I am honored to have you here, Dearie."
It was a cat. Perched on her back legs and standing upright, her tail nothing more than a stub, a handkerchief on her head with her ears poking out the sides. An old, calico cat. She arched her back and hissed. "Do not call me old, Dearie." The cat snarled, narrowing her eyes. I lowered my ears sheepishly, and her fur flattened. "I have mastered the art of true empathy, and can tell what you think just by looking at your eyes." I was startled, but then she spoke again. "Ah, this little bug thinks that I should shut up, but I should tell him: I have not ever tried his kind of bug before, and I have not eaten yet today." She crouched down onto all fours to look him in the eyes and licked her lips. Hiraku crossed his arms. "I'm not a bug, you cat! I'm a poncle!" The cat took on a look of fake surprise. "Oh, is that so very different?" She said, licking her paw then raising it to her forehead. Seeing Hiraku steaming up for an attack I quickly spoke: "What is your name, cat, and how did you come to be here?" The she-cat turned away from me and kneaded a thick velvet pillow while answering. "The humans in this area call me Kabe, and so may you." She said in a dignified tone. "I specialize in riddles, in revealing the future for those who wish it." I tilted my head, and she took a deep breath:
"In a shrine by the mountain's foot lives a koi-colored cat known by a god's name.
She is wise and sly, yet to those who sought her, a vital ally she became;
For she knows all there is to tell, and with some yen she is easily game..."
The cat purred, and sat cross-legged upon the pillow. "Not my strongest work, but I made that riddle on the spot." The slightly aged feline meowed, staring at me with her bright green eyes. Seeing the awe in my face, she elaborated. "I learned how to make such frustratingly simple hints by an old woman I lived with for some time in the forest, when she passed on I decided to keep up her art, if not improving it. And a clever one like yourself could surely tell right away what it meant, my secondsight can see what your shining, clear, destiny-coated path holds, it keeps no secrets from me Dearie. But as I said before, I can share MY secrets if you can pay…" She smoothly slid a piece of paper towards us, marked with services and prices, kneaded her pillow again, then turned in a few circles and settled down to face me, I considered what she said, could she really see what the future holds? She appeared to have a gift similar to Jun's, but to meet another prophet in our journey so soon? It seemed impossible. "Now, let's get to business…" She said, looking at me with her piercing green eyes. "Will you allow me to read your fate?" Hiraku made a scoffing sound, but I reached into my purse and pulled out a bit of yen. I put it down in front of the tail-less cat, and she smiled, then closed her eyes. The room seemed to get darker around us, and for a few moments, everything was quiet, then the cat opened her eyes, which were glowing.
"Endless shadows bar the way for crimson light.
A battle between two forces shall soon take flight,
and the Son of the Fox shall be the one to begin the fight.
But look! To the cliffs, there is starlight."
She finished, and the light returned to the room, as her eyes dimmed. "The meaning of the prophecy will come with time." I nodded uncertainly. "Thank you for the advice, Kabe." I said gratefully, and rose to my paws. "Once you realize the true purpose of the prophecy, please, return and tell me your adventure." Her cat-eyes glittered, and she rose to her back paws. "Then perhaps I will have another hint to give, Dearie." Her voice echoed from the darkness as I nosed open the door. I blinked at the bright light of the outdoors and took a deep breath of fresh air. "That was a waste of time." Hiraku said, looking over his shoulder. "She's a con-cat. I can't believe you gave her our hard-earned yen."
"Hey, I had to check if she was going to be any help, and it wasn't that much: She only repeated what Jun said…" That part intrigued me. Now I had received the same message twice, about the son of the fox… And a huge battle. What did that mean? And what about the cliffs?
"Pfft. NEVER let go of money if you don't need to. There is a time for money to be spent- but on psychics… No." I chuckled and nodded my head. "Especially since we have a friend that can offer the same services for free."
The moon was now high in the sky, casting a quiet calmness over the coast. I could hear the ocean gently lapping at the shore far below, and the graves that lined in front of the temple's steps stood somberly but proudly. I wondered for a moment if I could power-slash a grave to get any yen out of it like a pot, but when I waved my tail over the stone the ink appeared blotchy. I tilted my head and decided to see what that meant. So I blotted up the entire marker and after a second the ink sprung off, then a ghost appeared out of the stone. Hiraku and I leapt back with yelps of surprise and the ghost stared at us curiously. I guess this was one of the new powers unlocked with Shugami's ink. The specter had the appearance of an old man, but had no legs, its lower body simply tapered off into smoke. "Ah… This is most peculiar…" The spirit said, first looking down at his own ghostly appearance then at us. "Hello…" He creaked in a wheezy voice. "Who might you be?… You appear to be a maiden most fair; glowing white and crimson. And…" The ghostly man drifted off.
"A little booger." I finished under my breath with a giggle, and Hiraku poked my side. "A tiny pinprick of light. Small but still brilliant." He finished instead. "Who are you?" I inquired, tilting my head. "I'm a weary traveler, searching some much-needed rest. I believe I'd just settled down for a nap prior to our meeting…" He said, looking around again, confused. "In my old age I decided to travel the countryside, visit all the places I never got to see in my youth. I was on my way to the last place I've never been, Ryo Ruins…"
"Where?" I asked, head tilting to the other side curiously. "Ryo Ruins, the great dragon-ruins in the northern region of the coast… Used to be a great temple built in their honor, where the Ryo Court would meet and discuss things of great importance. High up in the cliffs, swathed in the cool sea mist, still stand the stones of the dragons' gathering place… I hear that it's calm up there, tranquil-like, that the old stones almost hum with ancient power, although the Ryo Court hasn't assembled there in ages…" He seemed to lose his train of thought. "My apologies, I still appear to be in need of rest. I'm far too tired to climb up there by myself. Young ones, would you mind going to the ruins, and taking something for me? So that this old soul will have been to every corner of Nippon?" I nodded, and he popped his hand out of his wrist, after a moment of shock I realized it was probably just a fake. I carefully took the phantom limb and stored it. "Thank you. I should probably get back to my nap now."
"Sorry to wake you, we'll let you rest in peace." I murmured, lowering my tail to break the spell, and the man slowly faded back into the stone. "That was weird…" Hiraku stated, staring at the headstone. "…But I guess a good skill to have around. In case we need it, to solve any murder mysteries or anything."
"True. All we have to do is resurrect the person and ask them what happened." I laughed, and Hiraku bounced onto my forehead in his usual position. Who knew what other powers the new gods had unlocked? I concluded that sometimes the best teacher is simply curiosity.
(AN: Another animal prophet? What? Surely she must play a bigger part than that…
Honestly I don't know when the next chapter will be up, I've been horrifically busy with school and work, and I've been working on original stories as well, but I have not and will not forget TDO. Even if it takes many more years, I plan to get it done. For you guys and for me. I promise.)