Vortex World,
Minatogawa Stateside Town, Assembly of Nihilo
Kagatsuchi 7/8 Waxing
"Well, so much for recruiting…I didn't think demons would want actual macca and items for joining me." Tenchi sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose in embarrassment. "I got a Jack Frost after I let him take some of my energy and I got a bead from that really weird exchange with that unicorn, but…maybe I just suck at speaking to demons." The youth sighed. "…And yet some how, I still found a freaking pool noodle for the damn horn." He glanced at the small plastic bag slung slung casually over one arm. "Get a bead, trade it for noods." He paused, narrowing his eyes at the ripped piece of pink foam. "…I feel like I got ripped off."
As he was want to do, the demi-fiend shrugged it off. "Win some, lose some."
Now the teen roamed the open market which lined the main road of Minatogawa Stateside Town in open curiosity, his hands shoved in his pockets and plastic bag filled with a quarter of an old pool noodle bouncing against his hip as he wandered from one booth to the next. An angel sold stationary and pens to a Jack Frost and a Pyro Jack. A troll, large and sleepy, exchanged moss covered stones with a nozuchi coupled with two smaller members of its race. A lilim accompanied with several other feminine demons examined clothes hanging from a wire mesh near a twitching manikin.
Tenchi took a wide berth around the lilim-her resemblance to Lilly was uncanny, though she wore her hair much longer compared to her deceased kin. When she gazed his ways her eyes passed over him as if she didn't see him, and perhaps in some ways she didn't; the lad was no human man, and perhaps in her eyes not worth preying on in a place like the Assembly.
It's strange. Tenchi thought, stopping near a vendor which appeared to be selling dried meat and taking an immediate step away from it when he saw what appeared to be deceased kodama grilling on bamboo skewers. I've gotten so…used to this. Yes, there are some things that creep me out, he passed a vendor selling wings and feathers-some which were almost as large as him-and quickly averted his eyes, but for the most part the creatures here are just…people. People living their own lives and trying to make due with what they have.
It was an odd revelation, and one that brought with it a wave of sudden and intense homesickness. "I am a stranger in a strange land." He murmured, and thought of his father, his friends from school, and even his grandfather. Even if they survived…would they recognize me? He wondered, recalling Sakuya's joyful relief at their reunion. Would I recognize them? He watched a member of Berith's army purchased grilled kodama, and felt his stomach churn as several bamboo skewers were passed up to the mounted soldier. Would they even last that long? Or would they be like the kodama-food for a stronger demon?
The thought made him shiver, and he looked down at one hand, examining his own glowing brands as he ran his tongue along his teeth.
The incisors felt longer. Larger. More prominent in an almost uncomfortable manner. The magatama are changing me. He acknowledged, shoving his hands into his pockets and continuing on his way, slipping past the mounted soldier and being mindful of the smaller fae that sped through the marketplace on translucent, gossamer wings, at times speeding over his head, other, more reckless ones threading between his and other demons' legs. "Wonder what will happen to me by the end of this." He murmured. "Will I even still look human?"
He suddenly wished Ryoko was with him; to ruffle his head and reassure him that of course he'd still look human, to yell at him for such self-depricating thoughts, or even just to wrap an arm around his shoulders and tell him it didn't matter.
The youth ran a hand through his hair. "Guess Ryoko really is having an influence on me." He scoffed, "I go my whole life with only the summer visits to her cave, then the world ends and I can't go an hour without missing her. What happened to your sense of adventure, Masaki?"
He already knew the answer to that question.
One, he'd never had it to begin with; he'd always preferred the familiarities of home and his grandfather's shrine.
Two, he'd experienced the danger which that sense of 'adventure' brought with it.
"If I could find some quiet place to just…live my life in peace, I'd be all for it." He thought aloud. "Someplace that's…I guess on the outskirts of a place like this-away from the crowds but still safe from Kagatsuchi's eyes for Ryoko." A small smile spread across his face. "Hi P and Paperball and Tsuki-tuski could all make their lives there free of retaliation or attack or thoughts of fusion, and Ryoko and I could just…live our lives in peace."
It was an idealist's fantasy, he knew that; this world was too cruel, its denizens a reflection of its nature. Ryoko and he were strangers to it-relics of an age long past which had known the comforts of peace-they belonged to another world, another time, and unless they could acclimate to this new world, would fall like the humans before them. Kagatsuchi still burned bright, and it was anyone's guess if there were areas other than Minatogawa which could negate its rays.
Still, Tenchi thought, To just live in some semblance of peace…it'd be nice.
He didn't think it would happen, though.
"Sorry-excuse me!" A voice, dignified and formal, roused Tenchi from his thoughts, and the demi-fiend looked up, watching in bemusement as what appeared to be a Western man in a red vicorian-era tailcoat, matching silken slacks, and a black silk dress shirt made his way through the crowded open market. He held a mahogany cane in one hand, and a red top hat with a black silken sleeve around it in the other, his head darting left and right in open panic as he bumped into one demon after the other. "Pardon Madam-oh, forgive me, gentleman!" A Nozuchi trumpeted at him as he backed into it. The man wheeled. "Oh dear! No my good…furry…friend!" He exclaimed. "I meant no harm! I am simply looking for my company. Tell me, have you seen a man dressed in black passing through here?"
The Nozuchi seemed to pause, its trunk twisting into a question mark before it gave a softer, lower honk.
The man pursed his lips. "I see…how about a child. She would have been young-close to ten, dressed in a deep-blue gown?"
Another softer, lower honk, and a look of distress passed across the man's face. "…I see. Well, thank you dearly for your time, apologies for interrupting you. Pardon me, I must take my leave." He nodded to the demon, then turned and looked around in despair. Tenchi, his own curiosity getting the better of him, looked around in turn, and instead spied two of Eligor's soldiers watching from a distance, eyes narrowed as one leaned over in his saddle to speak with his partner. The other nodded and the two began to make their way forward, their gazes foused on the formal stranger.
"Shit." Tenchi hissed, and before he even realized what he was doing, found himself approaching the stranger in turn, intercepting him before the two guards could interfere.
"Hello Sir." He said, and bowed in greetings. "If you'll follow me, I can assist you. Please regain controlof yourself as we go though." He pointed to one of the smaller allies which he and Ryoko had first navigated towards Urd's Well, half-expecting the man to scoff him, and was instead surprised when the man nodded.
"Oh goodness, what a blessing. Please, lead the way young man! I apologize for my duress, I am quite concerned for my companion and my dear daughter."
"Yes Sir." Tenchi nodded. "I'll get you back to them. Please follow me." Seeing the encroaching guards, Tenchi hurried down the alleyway, glancing back once to ensure the man was following him. The Red Count was, and when the demi-fiend slipped down a smaller, narrower alley, so too did the Man in Red, trailing after the youth as if Tenchi was the most trustworthy teen in the world. I could attack him right now if I wanted to. A stray thought-a fish thought, there and gone again-trailed through Tenchi's mind. And he couldn't do anything to stop me.
It was a terrible thought, one which both did and did not feel like his own; the Magatama he had ingested perhaps, or maybe one of the others exerting their influence over him.
Yet Tenchi remained as he always was-a good natured youth whose first intentions were always to help, not to harm, and as the two entered the road on the other side of the ally, Tenchi peeked back, finding one of the guards watching on the other side of the narrow space, his mount too large and armor too cumbersome to pursue further. The youth sighed in relief, and guided the man onwards before circling back towards the open market. At its entrance he paused and turned back to the man. "I apologize Sir." He said, and bowed deeply. "But I don't know where your comrades are. You were in danger of being confronted by the local authorities and I wanted to prevent you from getting into trouble."
The man blinked in surprise, the white of his eyes a strange, sickly yellow against deep red irises. "Ah, I see…" He said.
"We've thrown them off, and if you like, I could still help you. You said you were searching for someone?"
The man stared at him for a moment longer, his fingers drumming across the mahogany cane, which had a bronze head shaped in a demon's motif. "Yes…yes indeed Young Master. I am searching for my partner, Master Black, a man of a tall and lankly disposition dressed as I. Have you seen anyone matching that description?"
Tenchi shook his head. "I haven't." He admitted. "And pardon me if I seem rude, but…I'd have remembered. We don't have many…demons who look quite so…human in this area. None of which are dressed as…formally as you."
The man's face fell. "A shame." He said. "My partner and I had been attempting to navigate the Amala Network with our daughter, Alice. We had heard that this place might be a refuge for us but were separated during teleportation. I had hoped Master Black and Alice had made it here as well."
"What's your daughter look like?" Tenchi asked.
"A young girl, nine or ten years old, dressed in a royal blue dress with snow white skin and golden hair." He paused, and examined Tenchi's face, frowning in defeat as Tenchi shook his head. "I see." The man sighed. "Perhaps I was too eager in my first thoughts that they arrived before me."
"Maybe." Tenchi murmured. "But…that doesn't mean there still isn't a chance they won't arrive afterwards, right?" He asked.
The Red Count looked at him in surprise. "Indeed…I suppose you have a point."
"I'm sure if you just wait around here for a while, they'll show up on their own." Tenchi nodded. "You just need to be patient and until then, find a place to stay while you wait." The youth pursed his lips, crossing his arms over his chest in consideration. His foot tapped a beat. "I guess…I could take you to Urd's Well." He said, "Urd doesn't have any rooms, but she probably knows some places you could stay…She could help you."
"'Urd' you say?" The Man in Red stared at him with a queer expression. "Would you by chance mean the Daimakaicho's rapscallion daughter?" The man brought his ornate cane to his chest. "Goodness me, she's been trapped in this world too? The Lady Daimakaicho must be livid."
Tenchi ran his hand through his hair. "I…don't know." He said. "Maybe? I'm not familiar with that terminology."
"Ah yes, forgive me." The Westerner stated. "You are not of Niflheim, are you? You are a…forgive me if I misspeak, but a…Hitoshura, is it?"
Tenchi nodded. "I'm Masaki Tenchi." He introduced with a small bow. "I also came here through the Amala Drum. My friend and I are staying at Urd's Well while we figure out our next move."
"It is a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Masaki!" The man exclaimed. "I am Mister Red-forgive me, a bad habit of mine-Belial-Alice, my sweet daughter, calls me Mister Red. Thank you for your assistance good chap; I must admit, I had been a little concerned when you first led me down that ally-I was afraid I'd have to kill you!" He laughed, "But you turned out to be an honest sort; such fortune that I came across you!"
Tenchi gave the man a nervous smile as a spike of ice slipped down his spine. Ryoko isn't with me…I forgot I can't sense auras the same way she can. How strong is this guy to say such things so casually? Aloud he said, "R-right. Ah, Nice to meet you Belial-san."
"Oh please, no need for such formalities, my boy!" The man exclaimed. "You've been a brilliant asset and a fine guide to me. 'Belial' is fine."
"Thank you…" Tenchi said, staring at the man in uncertainty…I think…Aloud he said, "Follow me, please."
"Of course!" Belial exclaimed. "Lead the way, good chap. I hope I am not interrupting your day out." The man came to walk beside Tenchi, and despite himself the youth smiled.
"You aren't." He assured. "I was kind of…wandering, anyways."
"Just out for a stroll?"
"Well, not quite." Tenchi rubbed the back of his neck, and felt the low hum from his horn as his fingers glided over it. "I was…well, I guess looking for demons who might aide me in my journey."
"Oh?" Belial looked at him in unveiled interest. "And what might this journey be?"
"I don't know." Tenchi said, and paused, scowling at his own words. "That's…true. I really don't know." The youth sighed, looking up to the brightness of Kagatsuchi. "Since waking up in the Vortex World…I haven't really had any goal or ambition other than staying alive, which is…pretty hard to do in a place like this." He pursed his lips. "I've…mostly been roaming. The latest thing I've been doing is helping a friend of mine see if this place is safe-like you and your family, she wanted to come here after learning this place might be safe from Kagatsuchi's influence. Now that I've seen it for myself, I want to return to her during New Kagatsuchi and pass along the information so that she and her own people can migrate here."
"A simple enough task and a noble cause." Belial nodded. "…And after that?"
"I don't know." Tenchi admitted.
"I see." The Count's fingers drummed over the bronze demon motif of his cane in thought. "And I take it you have had little luck?"
"In recruiting others to help me out?" Tenchi asked, and at Belial's nod, the youth nodded in turn. "Most don't want anything to do with me, it seems."
"Perhaps your problem then is twofold." Belial offered. "You have no goals, no Reason for travel, and thus no Reason for those demons to join you-what can you offer them which would convince them to leave the comforts of this refuge? Macca? This place is abundant with markets and so jobs and careers are plentiful. Adventure? Few wish to endanger themselves any further than the boundaries of this land's protection from Kagatsuchi. Honor, glory? Those demons won't be here to begin with-such are templates for the Mantra Army, who frown at the Assembly of Niholo and what they stand for." The man looked down at Tenchi with a sidelong glance. "If you have no Reason, they have no want to join you. Obtain a goal, and seek out those who hold a similar view, and you will find greater success."
Tenchi stared at the Red Count in silence, then looked down at his feet, considering the demon's words with care. At length he spoke, "You…might have a point." He murmured. "But…what goals would someone like me have in a land like this?" He asked.
"What is it you want in a world like this?" Belial asked.
"Peace maybe?" Tenchi sounded uncertain. "For myself and my friends, I guess. Some place where we don't have to worry about Kagatsuchi's influence on us, or wayward attacks, and where…I guess a place where demons and what's left of humanity can live together."
Belial regarded him with a thoughtful expression, but otherwise did not comment. They traveled further on in silence, the open market long since faded and the surrounding area growing quiet as they neared Urd's Well. When they were two blocks away from the bar, Belial spoke again. "Perhaps what you lack is perspective." He said.
"Perspective?"
"Indeed. This is a land beholden to those with Reason, and you stand at the forefront as One Without Reason." The man's hands were clad in white gloves which beat a steady drum against his hat. "Let that be your goal: seek out those with Reason, and learn their values, their perspectives, and their own goals. Learn their Reasons, and see who best aligns with your perspeective of the world."
Tenchi pursed his lips in thought. "But…what if I don't agree with their Reasons?" He asked.
"Then you'll have still gained a greater understanding of yourself and your own personal values." Belial replied. "And will have learned who you don't support, and why." The man smiled, his teeth bright and white against his skin. "And most importantly…remember that you are not required to follow anyone's Reason, should they not suit you. You are first and foremost, your own demon, and should not allow yourself to be swayed to the golden-laced words of Man if they do not believe what you, in your heart of hearts, hold of value. Travel the world, experience the world, learn the world, and the ones who dwell in it-demon, divine, spirit, and mortal alike. Find yourself amidst it, and decide how to live your life, Young Master."
Tenchi stared at the man in surprise, then fell into quiet thoughtfulness, considering the demon's wisdom.
They continued the remainder of their journey in amiable silence, the Red Count and the Demi-fiend, the Elder and the Youth, the Wise and the Foolhardy. One walked a little slower, one walked a little faster, yet both walked side-by-side, as equals.
Perhaps, in time, as mentor and student.
Slimmer still in ages not yet realized, as friends.
Vortex World,
Okinawa Prefecture, Naha Wharf
Full Kagatsuchi
"Well, looks like you're getting better." Skuld said, watching as Sasami slipped into Raidou's guard and almost scored a strike against him before Raidou, in a casual gesture, smashed one leg into her shin, hooked her foot, and spun. The girl lost her footing with a painful yelp, smashing to the ground with enough force to make the Norn wince. She glanced back at Raidou, who had enough discretion to retreat and allow Sasami to recover, an amused look on his face as, with a moan, Sasami sat up.
"You don't hold back against anyone do you." Skuld asked.
Raidou looked at her, and for a moment she perceived the thoughts running through his mind-there and gone again with such agility it was but a shadow. 'Death awaits those who are take opponents lightly.'
"You go this hard against every kid you meet?"
Raidou's nod was solemn, then he grabbed his blouse top and rolled up one long sleeve. Scars from a multitude of battles covered his arms-acid burns, magical burns, scratches, tears, clean cuts being the rarity-and pointed to one in particular, then back to Sasami.
"Ah. A kid her age gave you a pretty gnarly one, huh?" Skuld translated, and Raidou nodded.
"The child had been a demon." Gouto, who'd come to rest in Skuld's lap as the Norn tinkered with her latest device, stretched, yawned, then shook his head. Skuld stroked his head with one hand, and Gouto tried to bat her hand away, failed, then resigned himself to his fate. "A ghost girl accompanied by two demons of great power and prestige. They had arrived in Tokyo after the girl had been summoned by the Cult of Gaia. The Cult did not understand the true powers they had called upon, however, and were slain without mercy almost immediately, their blood ruining the summoning circle which would have normally bound the girl and her accomplices and allowing her to run free through Harijuku. It had been…absolute carnage when we finally forced her to reveal herself. She had already slain several Summoners of both Yatagarasu, whom we serve, and the rebellious Dark Summoners which we oftentimes find ourselves at odds against."
"I take it you underestimated her?" Skuld looked down at the cat in her lap as Sasami picked herself up, rubbing the back of her head as she scowled at Raidou. Raidou offered her a hand, and the scowl faded into a smile as Sasami accepted it, allowing the older teen to pull her to her feet.
"Raidou did." Gouto said quietly. "I had encountered the ghost once before…with Raiduo's predecessor, Raidou Kuzunoha XIV. She was…dangerous back then. Dangerous but defeatable. She could be stopped, and with my partner we succeeded."
"It was different this time?"
"It was." Gouto agreed. "With my old partner, she was a mere ghost-a being of the Undead with a penchant for similar death spells, made strong by the two demons which had accompanied her-they had adopted her and raised her as one of their own, and while powerful, she remained just that-a ghost."
"I'm sensing a 'but'. Skuld murmured.
"When she appeared in Tokyo with my student, she had grown in rank and power." Gouto said. "She was a Fiend-a demon of such incomprehensible power that facing her almost led to our death. We had been forced to retreat thrice. Once with barely our lives, once to observe her weaknesses, and once with what was necessary to seal her and return her soul to the Underworld where it belonged." The cat's fur had bristled in memory, making Gouto looked twice his normal size, and claws sank into the teen's overalls, pricking the skin beneath.
Skuld stroked him gently, soothing the fur as she eased the claws out of her pants leg with her free hand, her grip on the paw gentle as she considered the feline's words. She'd never encountered a Fiend before, though she'd heard of them; rare spirits of the Fifth Dimension which could travel between all those realms beneath them. Cthonic entities which had in their original origin been concept models for what had eventually evolved into Ultimate Destruction Programs, they were creatures capable of complex thought and great power. Only a handful had ever been drafted, the most infamous being the Four Horsemen, but through some system error or by design, more had been discovered as time had passed-Fiends which had been artificially created or, worse yet, spirits who had risen to such a state where they had become Fiends through their own efforts. They were amongst the most dangerous of creatures, sans the Greater Tier divinities and demons, seen as an ill-omen by all who came across them.
"Do you think there are any Fiends here?" Skuld asked.
"I know so." Gouto replied. "I have had the misfortune of visiting a Vortex World with XIV. We came across a demi-fiend there and many others. I would find it more surprising-more concerning-if we did not come across something similar here." The cat looked up at her. "Though you claim yourself a goddess…I must implore you-should you and the others encounter a Fiend or anything resembling it-a demi-fiend perhaps, or even a Proto-Fiend-you must avoid it. The Fiends and their ilk are absurdly dangerous, and many will not think twice to attack first, speak with you later. Theirs is a race which hungers for death first and foremost, for they are the ones who drink from Death's Chalice and sleeps in Death's Embrace. They are Heralds to an End of Days, and care not what stands before them-only that it be removed form their path as they march ever onwards."
Skuld frowned but nodded, taking the words into careful consideration. "Doesn't sound like something I want any part of anyways." She muttered. "I just want to find Belldandy and Urd and for things to go back to normal." Sighing, she rose to her feet, spilling Gouto from her lap and sending the black cat trotting back towards Raidou.
Raidou and Sasami both paused from where they were about to re-engage in another sparring match, and placing her current project down near the hidden computer connected to the Amala Drum, Skuld approached, stretching her arms high over her head and sighing as she felt the tug of stiff muscles flexing once more. "Well…fuck it. You two look like you're having way too much fun." She held an arm out, the palm facing up, and as if by magic a long warhammer phased into existence. "How about I join you two for a few rounds?"
Sasami looked over at her from beneath her staff. "…You're gonna spar with us?" She asked, and sounded both hesitant and hopeful.
"Sure." Skuld shrugged. "Raidou looks like he's teaching you pretty well, and to be honest…I'm under-stimulated right now." She sighed, and looked down at her feet. "Normally Urd would have already come out of nowhere and gotten into a fight with me by now. I always thought she was just being an ass but…now I'm starting to see things a bit differently. Without her around I'd just keep on working on my projects day in an day out without stop. Now I see she was making sure I didn't burn myself out. So…in light of that…" She twisted her wrist, spinning the war hammer over her palm and catching it as it danced over her hand. She pointed the hammer at both of them. "Lets have a scuffle as we Aesir do-a free-for-all. No magic, no allies, no demons. Just your weapons and the aptitude of your body."
Raidou smiled broadly, his eyes shining in open delight.
Sasami was more hesitant. "Isn't that a bit…much?"
Skuld shrugged. "Sit out if you don't like it." She said. "I want-no, need-to cut loose a bit. Kagatsuchi is shining bright and even though I'm in here, I'm restless. So lets go crazy before I do."
The Devil Summoner turned to face Skuld and raised his weapon against her, staring the Norn down in open excitement. After a moment's hesitation, Sasami followed suit, stepping to square off against both of them as she raised her bo staff in a defensive position, lips pursed with focus. Skuld felt a smile of her own rise across her face, and grabbed her hammer with both hands, her own dark eyes bright with glee.
For a long moment the three of them stood poised against each other. One too hesitant to strike first, one waiting to counter, and one studying the stature of the others.
Skuld, of a warrior people who thrived in violence, struck first, stepping forward with an almost casual swing at Raidou. Raidou blocked, yet rather than counter as he'd set himself up for, found himself stumbling backwards by the sheer force behind the blow. Yet rather than follow through, Skuld re-vectored her attack on Sasami, bringing the metal-tipped butt of her hammer up in a thrust towards the princess.
Sasami knocked the butt end away from her in a swift strike, stepping back to give herself distance and countering with an overarching swing that pushed Skuld back towards Raidou. Raidou brought his sword down on her in a horizontal sweep, yet Skuld was more agile than she let on, sweeping under the blow and lashing out at Raidou's shins with the hammer's blunt end. Raidou danced away from her before the metal connected, and Sasami jabbed at Skuld in turn.
Skuld darted back, deflected a blow from Raidou, and narrowly missed a follow-up thrust from Sasami. The teen was smiling now, a large, bright smile that beamed adrenaline and excitement to both her opponents as the Norn laughed, swinging the spiked end of the hammer towards Raidou and catching the full blunt of a swing from Sasami in turn. The girl grunted as she shielded herself with one arm, and sensed the princess stall, as if surprised she'd earned a blow.
It would be her undoing as Skuld countered, wrapping the same arm used to shield herself around the bow and twisting into Sasami's guard. The Bo staff was ripped from Sasami's hands, and with a yelp the pigtailed girl ducked under the wild, horizontal swing of Skuld's own weapon, a grimace of panic on her face.
The Norn paid her no mind, instead dismissing the disarmed girl and focusing on the greater threat of Raidou, who'd stepped away from her to give himself room to maneuver. "Come on, is this all you got?" She taunted them both, holding the war hammer in one hand and the staff propped against her shoulder in a deceptively dismissive gesture-the butt end of the staff held out in front of her and preventing the Devil Summoner from drawing too close for fear of retaliation. "Marller can put up more of a fight than you with holy arrow shoved up her ass, and she's allergic to blessed relics! C'mon, give me a challenge."
A flash of anger swept across Raidou's face, and the youth feinted right, then dipped left, swatting at the Bo staff with his left hand and stepping into Skuld's guard, deflecting the war hammer with a fierce and terrible speed. Skuld cackled as he drew in close, thrusting his sword towards her chest, and steel rang against steel as she caught his blade against the war hammer's pole. Raidou snarled, baring his weight down on the smaller Norn, yet Skuld held her own against him as though he were a child. "Better…" She said, then raised a foot and lashed out at his right knee.
Raidou broke away on instinct, escaping a busted kneecap, and Skuld lunged after him, catching his blade in the crook of her own steel spike and disarming him in a single, savage twist. "You've never dealt with a war hammer like this, have you?" Skuld asked.
Between them, Raidou's sword clattered to the ground with a metallic clang.
Raidou scowled at the Norn.
Skuld smirked. "Guess I—" Something collided with the teen's back, knocking her forward and to the ground as Sasami wrapped an arm around the Norn's throat in an arm bar.
Startled, Raidou stumbled backwards and stared.
Sasami smiled up at him from where she still had one arm wrapped around Skuld's throat. "My mommy drilled me on this on this one over and over again." With her free hand, she pushed Skuld's head forward into her arm and leaned back as Skuld began to thrash. "She always told me this was one of the most important skills I could learn, and it only worked if my opponent wasn't aware of me."
Skuld's thrashing grew weaker, and Sasami let off on her grip. Below her Skuld gasped, and the princess scurried off the Norn as the teen coughed and rolled onto her back.
Raidou continued to stare, his eyes large and holding with it a strange and alien expression Sasami did not recognize.
Then the teen smiled; a savage grin that seemed to highlight a level of fresh madness the princess had at that point been unaware of.
Raidou looked…excited.
"Um…" Sasami stepped back as Skuld crawled to her feet, a deep and angry glower on her face.
Raidou kicked his sword off to one side. Skuld stalked past her, placing Sasami between herself and Raidou with a snarl.
Sasami glanced between the two of them with nervous pink eyes, and found herself trapped, a tiger on one end who smiled at her with challenging black eyes, a dragon on the other side which snarled at her from a face which raged. "Uh…"
With laughter that went unheard, Raidou rushed forward, his fists up in a boxer's stance as he lunged at Sasami. He lashed out with a kick rather than a punch, his long legs having better range with her smaller stature than his fists, and Sasami rushed backwards, dipping and weaving between the strikes with instinctual elegance drilled into her from years of practice and drill with her mother disguised as play.
Her sixth senses screamed at her, and a growl was the only other warning the princess received as Skuld lunged at her with a strike of her own. More closer to her height than Raidou, she had no issues using her fists, and as Sasami discovered, was quite proficient in using them; whereas Raidou's strikes she could weave in and around, Skuld's were too fast to follow, little more than blur which Sasami was forced to deflect, and even those glancing blows hurt.
Yet Sasami had been raised on Jurai by not one but two mothers: her birth mother, who was Head of the Royal Bodyguards and possessed a physical prowess which some thought supernatural, and her second mother, the Royal Spymaster of Jurai and as great a tactician as her sister-wife was strong. And Sasami had grown up impressionable by, in her mind, the two greatest women in her life.
And so it was the Second Princess of Jurai put her mothers' influence into action.
Against Raidou she could hold her own. The teen was experienced, yes, and had greater reach than she did, but his blows were paltry when compared to the Norn at her back. Skuld was by far the more dangerous one of them both, and while her strikes hinted at not only power and speed but training and experience too, her anger made her sloppy, and Sasami found that, with time, she could navigate around and deflect the blows from doing additional harm.
Yet the real magic came as Sasami led them both into each other.
Skuld, her anger leaving her with tunnel vision, missed a kick from Raidou which collided with her cheek. The teen grunted, but did not budge, and Sasami instead watched the girl's heated brown eyes go from hers to the teen behind her.
Suddenly there were no more attacks from Raidou.
Suddenly Raidou was retreating, a look of fresh calculation and anticipation on his face as Sasami slipped away from them both, taking a moment to catch her breath and recover as she examined her arms. Both were red and quickly bruising from Skuld's strikes, and some had even torn flesh, making the youth bleed. The girl grimaced, then looked back at Skuld and Raidou.
I should intervene. She thought. Raidou was skilled, but mortal-a Terrain man like Funaho had once been, and weak compared even to Jurain enhancements. Without his weapons, without his demons, he could do little against a goddess like Skuld, young though she was.
Yet the Devil Summoner, Sasami had to admit, was a persistent bastard. Raidou was fast. Skuld was faster. The teen was strong. The Norn was stronger. Raidou took glancing blow after glancing blow from the teen, and barely flinched, and Skuld grew more and more frustrated with every blow that failed to connect, the angry grimace on her face rising into an enraged snarl.
The verdict of victory came in the form of a left haymaker, one of such force that, even as Raidou saw it coming, he could do little to prepare himself against. Skuld struck and she struck hard. Raidou raised his arm up to defend himself, a grimace of dismay on his face as though he too, knew what was coming, and Skuld's left fist connected with him in a heavy blow. The Devil Summoner was knocked off his feet and sent flying towards the wall, his mouth parting in a mute shout of pain, clutching his right arm as he fell and rolled to a stop against the wall.
"Raidou!" Sasami ran to him, and Skuld stood where she was, panting as she glowered at them both. The princess looked up as Skuld stalked towards them, and held her hands up in surrender. "You win!" She exclaimed, giving Skuld pause. "I think-I think Raidou might be really hurt!" She knelt beside the teen, who wore a pained grimace on his face as he clutched his right arm to his body. "Your arm…" Sasami trailed off as the Devil Summoner opened eyes dark with pain.
The teen smiled at her, and it came across as strained. Then, with deliberate concentration, he pushed himself up as Skuld approached and smirked at them both. He was sweating.
"Looks like I was a little too hard on you." Skuld grumbled, wearing a scowl that did little to hide the worry on her face.
Something that might have been laughter passed from Raidou's throat, and with his left hand, he flipped them both off.
Skuld bristled.
Sasami sighed in relief.
Still using his left hand, the teen then gave them both a thumbs up, then hissed and clutched his right arm again.
With a mrr, Gouto trotted between them all to sniff at Raidou's arm. The cat sat and yowled, as if scolding the youth, and Raidou bowed his head with a sigh, looking away from the cat as if in shame.
The cat trilled, then looked over his shoulder at Skuld, who seemed to perk up underneath the cat's green gaze. "Yeah yeah." She sighed, then reached into a pocket and withdrew some medicinal tablets-some of the last few they had, and approached, kneeling down beside Raidou and offering them to him.
"Sorry." She grumbled. "Didn't mean to break your arm." She looked away with a scowl, and Raidou took them with his left hand and popped them into his mouth, dry swallowing them a one-shouldered shrug.
Sasami sighed as well. "Are you going to be okay, Raidou?" She asked, and gained a sharp nod from the teen.
Gouto was watching her, and as he trilled, to Sasami it almost sounded like a word. "Clever."
"My moms taught me." She told it, and found both Raidou and Skuld glancing at her in curiosity. "If you can't beat an opponent who's faster and stronger than you, if you're surrounded by many enemies, than make them fight each other. The best fight is the one which you are not a part of."
The feline blinked slowly at her, as if taking her words into consideration, and Raidou tilted his head, staring between Gouto and her in curiosity.
"Can you understand him?" Skuld asked Raidou's question aloud.
"I don't think so, but it would be neat if I could." Sasami said. "Sometimes it sounds like Gouto is talking but I think its just my imagination."
Skuld and Raidou shared a look. Raidou shrugged, this time with both shoulders, and Skuld glanced back down at Gouto. Gouto yowled again.
Skuld glanced back at Sasami. "He…is talking." She said.
Sasami blinked. "He is?"
Raidou nodded, and Skuld looked back at Gouto as the cat yowled once more. "He is. He says he…can't be heard by most people. Only Devil Summoners, people with high spiritual sensitivity, or spiritual beings such as myself can understand him." Skuld smirked. "Guess all your time around us is heightening your sensitivity."
Sasami stared at her with a strange disquiet. "…Right." She said, and felt her stomach twist into a knot of dread.
Gingerly, Raidou flexed his right arm, his hand flexing the fingers before gyrating the shoulder as the medicine mended his arm. A tight and pensive grimace lining his face as he examined the healing injury.
Gouto trilled again, and once more-this time with more clarity-Sasami heard him speak. "B…Gentle."
Raidou nodded, then picked himself up, looking over to Sasami with a confident smile. He ruffled her hair with brotherly affection, and the Princess hid her anxiety behind a smile, swallowing the lump in her throat.
She didn't want to be able to understand Gouto now.
Not while yet within Tsunami's Shadow.
"Hey, you okay?" Sasami started and looked to Skuld, who was peering at her with a strange expression. "You're pale."
"I'm fine." Sasami lied. "Just…spooked is all. I thought I was hearing things; I wasn't thinking I could actually understand Gouto. It's…a little shocking."
Skuld shrugged, unconcerned. "You'll get used to it." She stretched her arms over her head with a tight frown. "Well…it was fun for a little bit. Guess I better get back to the Amala Drum and…" She trailed off as a whir started to rise behind her, and the three kids turned to regard the Terminal, watching as it began a slow spin before picking up speed.
"Shit." Skuld swore.
Raidou tensed, reaching inside his jacket for one of the vials of green mist, yet Skuld raised a hand. "No. Not this time. I just got the thing fixed and right now I don't care. I will personally kill whatever comes out of it if its a threat to us." The Norn growled.
Raidou glared at her, then huffed in irritation, brushing past her and retrieving his sword before coming to stand beside her, angling himself towards the Drum as bolts of electricity began to manifest from the terminal.
Sasami looked between them both, then raced to gather her own weapon, coming to stand beside Skuld as anxiety thrashed in her stomach. "I'm not letting you guys do all the fighting." She said, and dipped her staff into a defensive position.
As one, the children: a teenage boy who summoned demons, a younger teenage deity who dictated the future, and a pre-teen princess who held a goddess in her breast, stood wary and ready with tense anticipation.
A figure manifested before them, long and tall and bright. It stood as a human, though it was taller than any man at close to seven feet tall. Its form condensed, a beacon of light which began to darken, and with it a silhouette grew apparent. Shadows appeared, and the light faded as more details became visible.
A sharply dressed, tall man stood before them. He wore a black suit, his skin a deep brown-black that shown in the yellow light of the terminal room. A cane of black ebony rested on one arm, and as he came to observe the room, thick lips pursed in displeasure. Eyes of a bright, pure white navigated the room before settling on the three children, and the gang tensed as those same lips dipped into a frown.
"My, what have I stumbled upon here?" The Black Baron spoke, and his voice was a wispy spirit, feint of voice or gender or even emotion. He observed the trio, then turned to face them fully. "A Devil Summoner, a Norn, and a foreign goddess?" He said, "To what misfortune do I owe the displeasure?" The man asked.
"We could ask you the same." Skuld's eyes darted to Sasami in question, yet the princess didn't notice; the girl had gone white.
The demon hummed. "Point." He murmured, and greeted them with a sweeping bow. "You stand before General Nebiros, twenty-fourth of the seventy-two Goetia. I arrived seeking my companion, Belial, and our daughter, Alice." The man narrowed his white eyes as he straightened, and Raidou edged out between Skuld and Sasami, a careful and stoic look transforming him from the teen he was and into the Devil Summoner he fashioned himself after. "I must say…I find this setting…disheartening. When last I met a Devil Summoner, it was not on, shall we say…the best of terms. And I've no love for gods."
The Black Baron straightened, his expression fading into an expressionless mask. "Tell me, children…have you seen a Red Count or a lost child? Speak swiftly, and I'll ensure you're death is swift and painless as you transition to the Underworld."
Vortex World,
Okinawa Prefecture, Shintoshi Hill Apartment Complex
Kagatsuchi 7/8 Waning
"I'll be out in a second." Kiyone waved Belldandy off. "I need to retrieve some ammunition for your husband. He's burning through a lot of it."
"But he's improving?"
Kiyone nodded. "He's improving." She assured. "Slowly but surely. He might even hit the target soon." The woman sighed. "I just need to hope we don't burn through all our ammunition before that time comes."
"Leave me five cases and I will replenish the stock." Belldandy advised. "While I cannot say I enjoy watching Keiichi-chan work with a weapon he himself does not like…I will support him regardless."
"You know he's doing it because he loves you." Kiyone said.
Belldandy nodded. "I am aware." She said. "And it is my own love for him which prevents me from voicing my displeasure. I do not wish to discourage him; it is a necessary evil in this world, and though it pains me to admit, I would rather have him armed and capable than not. I have been warned of the dangers of this world before, and now after experiencing them first hand…" She trailed off.
Kiyone nodded. "Shit sucks, but what can you do?" She said. "Anyways, don't let me stop you-I bet your hubby's waiting for you outside even now and I'm sure he'll be happy for the time with you."
Belldandy looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "And you?"
Kiyone released a bark of laughter. "This is my one and only time to have some peace to myself." She said. "And I need a bit of a break. I've gotten too used to solitude and no offense, but you and the others are overwhelming."
"Noted." Belldandy inclined her head. "Should you need anything or encounter any danger, shout. If I do not meet you, Thor surely will."
Kiyone sighed. "Maybe that's who I'm trying to avoid." She grumbled.
"He means well, in his own way." Belldandy assured. "He is merely…how to say…of a more…traditional mindset."
"You don't say." Kiyone said, staring at the goddess with a flat expression. "Trust me, I know. I had to deal with guys like him on the Force on the daily back in the States. Call me hard to impress."
The Norn chuckled. "I'd say you just have much more…liberal tastes, Kiyone-chan."
Kiyone snorted. "Yeah, you could say that." She muttered and rolled her eyes.
"I'll meet you back at the apartment complex." Belldandy said. "This will grant me time to repair the guitar."
"Please don't…" Kiyone groaned. "I can't take it with me and you aren't staying here-don't waste your time on it."
"Nonsense." Belldandy approached the door to the Amala Terminal and hit the switch which opened the door. Kagatsuchi's light in all its noisy static flooded the room, and Belldandy shuddered, a moment of trepidation overtaking her expression as the aftereffects of a dying Frenzy buffeted her. She shook herself, and with a steely resolve strode out. "Anything that is done with love is worth the care and consideration of the one who uses it."
The door slid shut behind her before Kiyone could retort, leaving the woman to glare at it with a scowl. Rolling her eyes, the woman shook her head and sighed. "She's doing too much for me." The ex-officer muttered. "I don't need some big and bulky instrument-with my luck it'd be destroyed as soon as we left this place. She better keep the damn thing for herself, because I'm not hauling it all over this hellhole." Grumbling under her breath, she returned to her bag, opening it and digging through it, finding the case of nine mil bullets at the bottom of the bag. She scowled. "I'll need to repack this. Last thing I need is to run out of ammo in the middle of a fight and have no quick access to the bullets."
Sighing in irritation, the woman made herself comfortable before the backpack, laying the 72-hour bag on its side and removing the contents from within. "I see. Shit got moved around in travel…" she pulled out the old clothes she'd been wearing when she'd first met Yosho, the ammunition, and the bags of unopened rice, dried fruit, and nuts out of the pack. For a moment her gaze lingered on the food, and the woman frowned, for a moment abandoning her original task as she handled the food rations. "We haven't eaten since finding this food." She murmured. "It's been what, two, three cycles now?" The woman pursed her lips. "Every cycle is roughly two hours, call it three cycles including this closing cycle and that's…two, three days?"
The woman stared at the food. "Am I hungry?" She asked herself, and listened to how her body reacted.
Nothing. No rumble at the sight of food, no salivating at the prospect of eating, no sudden, overwhelming hunger…not even the weakness of fatigue and exhaustion that normally came from low energy.
"I'm not hungry." Kiyone said, and frowned. With pursed lips, the woman grabbed an open bag of cashews and poured two of the nuts out into one palm. "I love cashews." She said. "Them and pistachios are some of my favorite snacks. So surely…" She popped first one, then the other into her mouth, frowning with concentration as she chewed them.
They tasted…bland. Not like they were stale or even lacking flavor but…as if she found the flavor uninteresting.
She swallowed and found them difficult to eat, the food lodging in her throat like sand. With some effort, they went down, and Kiyone looked back at the open bag in distaste. "Are they bad? No…no, they didn't taste bad. There wasn't any mold on them either. So what…" She stared at the bag, and teased another cashew out, examining it carefully. Yet despite her best examination, she could find nothing strange or abnormal about the piece of food.
It was as it had always been. A cashew.
Food for human consumption.
"And I can barely eat it now." Kiyone murmured in growing distress, and as she held it between two fingers her eyes drifted to the nails, black and shining in the artificial light of the terminal. "I'm burning energy though. I know that. So then…what's sustaining me if food's no longer on the table? Magatsuhi?"
With some distaste, she flicked the cashew off and rolled the bag of cashews back up, placing it off to one side and pushing all the food items farther away from her. Maybe Yosho is different. She thought. Or Keiichi. He's more human than either of us.
But she hadn't seen him eat anything since their initial meeting either almost two cycles past.
"Is this the Vortex World affecting us?" She wondered. "Or is it because of how we came to be here? Are we really still…human?"
She found she didn't want the answer.
The woman shivered. She felt cold.
"C'mon Makibi. Pack your shit and get the hell out of here before you have some other terrible revelation." The woman shuddered, then stuffed first her clothes, then the food items back into the bag, letting the heavier items sit cushioned at the bottom by her old clothes. Then, placing the box of ammunition off to one side, she zipped up and secured the seventy-two hour bag once more before placing it off near Yosho's.
It was as she was moving to retrieve the box of ammunition that the Amala drum began to spin.
Kiyone froze, staring at the pillar half-bent with widening teal eyes. "Well…shit." She said, and grabbed the box, retreating towards the door with one hand sliding to her hip, undoing the saftey fastner on her holster-once meant for a Ruger, now reconfigured by the hands of a goddess to hold a GXP Mk 3 blaster. She rested her hand on the weapon, ready to draw it as necessary, and watched as a small form began to condense in a ball of bright, blue-white light in front of her. In her mind, she heard Chamrosh growl a challenge, and knew in that moment that is she drew and fired, even if she wasn't aiming, the shot would fly true to its target.
"Easy." She murmured, rubbing the grip with her thumb. "Hold. It may not be hostile."
Yet Chamrosh was as sensitive to her emotions as Pascal was, and only growled louder.
The form began to consolidate, revealing not a demon or even a man but something small and child-sized.
Kiyone narrowed her eyes, watching in growing trepidation as the figure grew more definable. "It…it looks like a child." She whispered. "Why does it look like a child?"
She took a step back, and found her memory awash with horrors of Roanipur. Of two children, two twins, two platinum blonds on a rampage through the tiny island of black market deals and criminal syndicates. Two tiny terrors who took hostages and who killed without remorse, laughing as the spread people open like children dissecting frogs, unfeeling, uncaring, unaffected by the howls of their victims.
Her heart skipped a beat.
"It is a child." Kiyone breathed, and watched as a little girl appeared. She couldn't have been older than ten (they were on record roughly eight). Her hair was long and blond (their hair was platinum blond, the boy's cut short, the girl's long and straight), in a Victorian-era blue dress (their dress was strange and black and Gothic). Her eyes matched her hair, a bright gold (their eyes matched their hair, a strange gray-silver) and as she looked at Kiyone, she smiled (they smiled at her, and the girl aimed the M1918 BAR at her and pulled the trigger, the two giggling as the gun kicked and she felt fire-
Teal-haired woman shook her head, and found the little girl approaching her.
Kiyone stepped back.
"Lady?" The girl called out with a soft voice. "Lady, hey, Lady, I need your help!"
Kiyone took another step back. The hand wrapped around the Mk 3. In her head she could hear Chamrosh growl, its voice rising into a scream that almost drowned out the child's words-and oh by the gods how she wanted them drowned out.
"Lady?" The child paused, and a look of despair flitted across her face. "Please! I need your help! I-I got lost! I'm looking for my parents and I can't-I can't find them!" The child sniffed, and Kiyone watched with cold, guarded eyes and tears gathered in her strange and unruly golden eyes.
The girl scrubbed at her face and sniffed. "Please…Papa and Daddy were taking me through the Amala Network, but-but I saw a white rabbit and—and we got separated! I, I can't find them and I'm-I'm scared!"
Kiyone didn't move.
"Have you seen them? Either of them? They-they're like you! One dressed in red, one dressed in black! I've been searching everywhere and I can't…I can't…" The child's shoulders began to tremble, and Kiyone watched expressionless as tears began to race down the child's porcelain white cheeks. A sob escaped her, and the child wrapped her arms around herself in a hug, looking up at Kiyone as she began to cry. "I-I want my Daddy!" She cried. "Paaapa! Where are you!?" The little girl began to bawl, and it was with much effort that Kiyone pried her hand off the Mk 3. Her hands felt clammy and slick with sweat.
The woman's breath was heavy; she was almost panting in fear.
Warily, Kiyone took a step forward. "What's-" Her voice cracked, and the woman stopped, swallowed, licked her lips and tried again, finding her throat dry. "What's your name?" She said, and her tone was hard and without emotion. Had she still been The Officer, the words would have come easily; she'd helped more than her fair share of children make their way back home or to safety.
But The Officer, White Cadejo died when she went to Roanipur.
In its place, Black Cadejo watched on with suspicion and caution. It knew how dangerous children could be under the right circumstances, and if she squinted, she could see it even know-the Black Dog, pressed into her side with tail tucked, a high whine echoing in her ears as it beheld the child before her.
The girl sniffed but did not respond. Instead she continued to cry.
"Hey!" The woman snapped, and the girl before her flinched and drew away from her, falling quiet as she looked up at Kiyone with tearful eyes. "What. Is. Your. Name." She repeated.
"A-Alice."
"What are your parents names?"
"B-Belial an-and Nebiros." She sniffed at scrubbed at her face with one arm. "M-mister Red and-and Mister Black."
Kiyone took a deliberate deep breath, trying to bring herself back under control (but The Twins stand before her, and they have a wig as they tower over her. One passes the long wig to the other, and the M1918 BAR is exchanged for a woodsman's ax. "You be Frate Meu now, Sora Mea." The children giggle amongst themselves, and look down at her bleeding form with terrible, inhuman eyes. The boy-the girl?-Raises the ax high, and fresh pain overwhelms her-)
The woman closed eyes and grit her teeth, banishing the memory, the dream, the life which passed by, there and gone again like so many others. "My name is Kiyone." She said, and deliberately ignored the high whine from the imagined hound at her side. She looked down at the girl. "My friends and I have not seen anyone by those names come through here, but I can ask them if either names are familiar to them, Alice." Her words were slow, careful, and deliberate.
They were not warm.
They were not kind.
Regardless, Alice sniffed and nodded. "I'm scared." She whispered. "I don't want to be alone. It's scary." She looked at Kiyone with earnest gold eyes. "May I meet your friends?"
No. Kiyone thought. "…Yes."
Another sniff, and Alice approached her. "Will-will you be my friend?" She asked. "I-I'm so very lonely without Daddy and Papa and all of my friends back home!" Fresh tears began to bead at the corner of the girl's eyes. "Please, won't you be my friend?"
No! Kiyone grit her teeth, and ground out, "Yes…"
A small, shy smile began to spread across Alice's face, and she looked at Kiyone with a hopeful expression. "May-may I hold you hand, that I may not grow further lost?" She held her hand up to Kiyone, and the ex-officer examined it.
Don't. Some piece of her, the wary, broken piece she'd thought had been abandoned in the tiny Thai port town of Roanipur, raised its head with a broken sob. Don't. You don't know what she'll do to you. She's not human. Just like you aren't human. Don't let her touch you, please don't let her touch you.
She debated the logic of it. A strange child coming through a teleporter, unaccompanied and unharmed. A child with a strange aura and whom awakened terrible, long-buried memories of a life left behind, and who now looked up at her with hope and excitement.
Was there something else though?
Something hidden behind those bright golden orbs?
Something dark and sinister and deadly, something which made the Hounds of her imagination wilt and slink away where nothing else could?
In her inner ear, a pair of twins laughed and called themselves Frate Meu and Sora Mea-Romanian, if memory served her. Romanian assassins serving under the Sicilian Mafia.
Fiend. The Black Cadejo warned.
"…You may not." Kiyone decided, and watched as the child dropped her hand, a disappointed frown on her face.
"You're quite mean, Miss Kiyone."
"I don't like kids." Kiyone replied, the words clipped, cold, and direct.
"I see." Alice said, and sighed, looking dispirited for a moment before brightening. "Yet even still…Miss Kiyone, I have one final request of you, if you'll be so kind."
Kiyone stared at Alice with one raised teal eyebrow.
Alice beamed at her. "Won't you please, please Die For Me?" She asked.
"Run!" The Black Cadejo howled, yet even as Kiyone turned for the door, she found herself engulfed in violet light. With it came a strange image-a hallucination-of playing cards, tiny card soldiers armed with tiny spears, as if pulled from Lewis Carroll himself.
She felt her breath stolen from her as the tiny cards assaulted her with toothpick spears, felt her life fade away, and felt herself fall as the world grayed, the laughter of cruel children echoing in her ears.
Comments of a Madwoman: What is common for the spider is chaos for the fly. What is normal amongst demons is terrible amongst mortals.
Cathedral of Shadows:
Belial: The 68th spirit of the Goetia. A grand Prince of Hell, he is known as the 'Worthless One', anything he touches can be made worthless. He led Sodom and Gomorrah to ruin and grants high social status to those who summon him.
Nebiros: The 24th spirit of the Goetia. Field Marshal and Inspector General of the armies of Hell. He can be conjured to inflict woes upon anyone, discover the Hand of Glory, teach the mystic and occult qualities of all animals, plants, and minerals, and supply necromantic advice.
Alice: English, based off Lewis Carroll's 'Alice in Wonderland. A ghost who appears as a young blonde girl. She seems young, but her magic powers are formidable. Some say she is the ghost of a poor English girl who died an unfortunate death.