Chapter 12

Chapter 12

 

 

     Feeling stronger and more sure of myself than ever, I return to my room. I glimpse Yuuin sleeping at the foot of the bed, and feel pain constricting my chest. I clutch at it, and I know it’s because of my attachment to Yuuin. I don’t want to be without him, but tomorrow morning, he’ll be able to be human again, and I won’t be able to take him with me. I have to convince myself several times over that this is best for him, and finally climb into bed and into a fitful sleep.

     I rise as I’m greeted by an artificial sunrise, and something less expected. “What the hell did you do?!” Rubbing the lack of sleep from my eyes I respond, “Good morning to you too.” “Depends on your point of view. Now please explain to me why it’s utter anarchy downstairs.” “Um, well...” I look around for Yuuin, but he isn’t here. “Have you seen Yuuin?” “Nice. Just change the subject.” She sighs. “Yes, he left with some fox, I believe. Now I answered yours, so lend me the same courtesy.” I cringe. “Right, well you see, um, I was just visiting all the shrines, and I felt compelled by Varterus Himself to drink from His spring. I did, and I knew that all the Animos were meant to receive it, I don’t know how, but I just KNEW. So... I convinced some kids to drink and well... they transformed back to normal again, so then everyone wanted the water.”

     I can only watch as tears stream down Torikibo’s face. “Why now? Why didn’t He help us before if it was so damn easy?! I hate Him!” I go to her and hold her. “Shhh, it’ll be alright. Torikibo, I don’t think it was as easy as you seem to think. I doubt this is the power of Varterus alone. This is the power of ALL of the gods, but out of fear of losing the last, the Animos dared not touch His power. You should know this better than I.” She’s completely sobbing at this point. “I’m sorry, I just don’t know what to do now. Pomeiyahn is useless now.” “Oh don’t say that. Pomeiyahn is the coolest, most unique city I’ve ever seen, and it is the pinnacle of Animos culture. It should always be protected and treasured. If I weren’t kind of a fugitive, I would gladly live here, but I think we both know I have to go.” She nods and finally lets go of me.

     When I open the front door, I see Yuuin and a very large white fox beside him sitting in the hallway. “Yuuin. I thought you would’ve gone downstairs already.” I look at the fox and back at Yuuin. “So who’s your friend?” A familiar male voice fills the air, and it causes me to jump. “Sweetheart, how could you forget me so soon? And after all we’ve been through?” The words are followed by fake sniffling and I find myself very confused. “Tsuren?” The fox takes its humanoid shape revealing that it is, indeed Tsuren, wearing nothing but white furs. “Ah, so you did know me. It must be a sign that we’re meant to be together my love.” I shove him away. “Uh, no, not happening. How’d you get in here anyway? And why aren’t you wearing anything decent?!” “These furs are the only thing I’ve found that integrate into my fox form. If you prefer, I don’t mind transforming naked.” “Ugh, forget I asked. But um, what’s going on here?”

     “Miya my dear, you’ve tarried here too long and though Ivernis gives his fiery lass good chase, you are still a prime target. The Council WILL be taking action, whether she reaches them or not, especially once they hear what has happened here.” “Oh, but you didn’t mind “tarrying” long enough to get in on the action! Who are you to chastise me?” “Sweet cheeks, if you’re talking bout the life spring, well that’s old news. I drank from it when I first heard the voice of Varterus. Actually, I gave Yuuin the water when you were out cold at the Grizzly village. Now no more talking, let’s go.” I don’t see his transformation. One moment I’m talking to Tsuren, the next a tall white fox is already reaching the staircase with Yuuin sprinting after it. “Hey! Get back here! I’m not done with you!”

     I chase after them, screaming the whole time. “You have some frickin explaining to do! If Yuuin drank the water than why didn’t he change back!” I hear him faintly yelling back, “He’ll change back if he ever wants to!” Huh, well, that actually makes sense. But wait… “Why didn’t you tell the whole damn world about the life spring if you’ve known for so long!” “What? You think anyone would believe me? They’d sooner see me dead.” “And you think I’m not wanted dead?! You’re a coward!” “I’m just smart enough to bide my time, and it looks like it paid off! And honey, you’re too damn slow!” He turns on his heels, somehow gets behind me in the blink of an eye, and scoops me onto his back. “So what’s the rush anyway?” “For crying out loud, are you really so dense? Several clans are already looking for you and you can bet your a*s that they aren’t completely ignorant of this place. They ARE neighbors after all, and the powers that keep this place hidden have been steadily waning over time. You won’t be safe here and worse, you’ll expose this place to the Council.”

     “Tsuren, if things have gotten that urgent then I doubt we’ll even make it to Yeir.” “You let me worry about that. Just enjoy the ride my lucky lady.” I KNOW he meant that as an innuendo, and I pinch him hard with my fingernails for it, but his only reaction is to chuckle. I swear if he weren’t such a stupid jerk he’d actually be a pretty good guy. Stupid jerk. He’s actually pretty fast though, impossibly fast really. Half the time I’m afraid we’ll crash into something, and poor Yuuin is left desperately trying to keep up. “Why aren’t there any people around?” “Why do you think? They’re all at the shrine.” “Oh.”

Tsuren navigates around the castle quite well, but I’m not sure how we’re going to get past the guards at the door. As it turns out, we don’t have to. Eventually I’m able to see natural light at the end of a corridor and I realize it’s an open archway, a window of sorts. My eyes widen right before he leaps through it and now I’m clutching at his fur for dear life with my eyes squeezed tightly shut. In my head I’m thinking this b*****d is crazy and gonna break his legs, even if there is snow below. Yuuin, please don’t jump, please pleaseplease don’t jump! I feel snow crash into my body, but only momentarily since Tsuren immediately jumps again, helping to redirect some of our momentum. I open my eyes and look up at the castle. Yuuin is already in the air and follows Tsuren’s example of leaping right after he’s landed. I breathe a sigh of relief and am about to chastise Tsuren, but he takes off once more, catching me off guard.

     “Woah!” I almost fall off but manage to reclaim my grip. “Hey, are you trying to kill me?” “If that were my aim you would’ve been long dead already.” “Psh, whatever.” Behind us I hear those bird calls the ThunderBirds make, and thinking of them, I’m reminded of something. “Did you ever go see Raikon?” “Yes, and you’ll be seeing him soon too, sugar. Anymore questions?” “No, not right now.” Nestling my face into his thick fur I try to absorb all that’s happened lately, and find myself wondering once more if this really is all just a dream. So what if it is? My mind asks me. As much as I’d like to feel that I’ll experience this to the fullest, real or not, I also feel a pang of guilt for questioning the realness of all that has happened, because no matter what, all the people I’ve met ARE real, realer than anything I’ve ever known in my own world. Though honestly, me being at the center everything IS kinda unreal.

     My thoughts shift to back to the present, and now I find myself wondering how quickly news of the power of the life spring will spread, and how it’ll affect this world, how it’ll affect the Council.

     I don’t get much time to speculate, because Tsurenreturns to his humanoid form, and I shriek as I fall butt first into the snow. “A heads up would’ve been nice.” “Yeah, but this was funnier.” He smiles mischievously and I groan my frustration. “You’re worse than a little kid!” “Ooo, is mommy gonna spank me?” I seriously want to slap him, but since that’s what he wants, I try to restrain myself by switching subjects. Yuuin finally catches up to us, but he seems pretty worn out. Reaching us, he stands close to me, fur raised. “What’s wrong Yuuin? You should rest.” He remains fixated on something in the distance and I try to see what it could be, but I see nothing. “When they get here, hop on fast or you’ll miss your ride. You too cat.” He doesn’t bother to explain what he means, and I don’t feel like bothering to ask him.

     I patiently keep my eyes trained on the spot in the distance Yuuin and Tsuren seem to be fixated on, and finally a see a black dot in the distance, a rapidly moving one at that. Very soon I notice that it seems to be a sort of dog sleigh. As they begin to approach us, I see that the giant sleigh is being pulled by reindeer. “Get ready to jump”, Tsuren advises. He himself is already in the crouching stance and Yuuin and I follow suit. In my head I’m praying that I don’t make a fool of myself by missing it completely.

     It comes, I take my chances and leap, and find that I never had to worry about making it or not. Tsuren wraps his arm around me mid air and we land perfectly, feet first onto the quickly moving sleigh. Yuuin doesn’t have any trouble either, and I start to feel rather handicapped compared to them. Ignoring my internal sulking I push the clingy Tusren away from me and take a seat, turning my attention to the other man in the sleigh. “Hi, I’m Miya. You’re Raikon, right?” “That is right.” Raikon is a lean man with a stoic face, somehow carefree eyes, and salt and pepper hair even though he looks fairly young. “Well, it’s a pleasure to meet you. Where did these reindeer come from?” “They belong to the Caribou Clan. I am close with their leader, so I have permission to use them.” “I see. And um, where are we going?” He looks at me curiously for a moment, the first time he’s bothered to do so, but shows no interest. “It is sad when one forgets their own plans, especially those of great importance.” Now I’m the one confused and Tsuren’s girly giggles only serve to annoy me.

     “You’re taking me all the way to Yeir? I had the impression that there wouldn’t be snow that far south.” “Your lack of intelligence astounds me. Of course we cannot ride in the south.” I feel my patience systematically breaking down. With balled fists I try my best to maintain politeness. “Yes, I understand that, so then my original question stands. To where will you be taking me on this sleigh?” “That was not your original question. If that is what was meant, then you should learn to speak thusly.” I put my fingertips to my temples and massage them lightly. What an irksome man this is. “Please just answer the question.” “I’m taking you to an EMT.”“EMT? You mean that eme thing I’ve heard about?” “It is called the EMT, or Electromagnetic Transporter, though people have taken to calling it the EME or eme for quite some time now.”He smiles without looking at me and speaks more gently, “I suspect you will enjoy it very much. It will take you directly to your destination.” Hmm, so it’s a vehicle or teleporter. Cool.

     After finally garnering that information, I’m pretty content. Yuuin and Tsuren seem to be lost in thought, so after awhile I try to continue making small talk with Raikon, which proves futile as he only chastises my need to fill the silence. I sulkily slouch in my seat and instead wonder about the eme and about the people of Pomeiyahn. It takes me awhile to notice that there has not been a single tree in our path and I come to the conclusion that we must be riding on a road. I also notice bits of green undergrowth poking through the snow here and there and the snow itself doesn’t seem to be all that deep anymore, maybe only a foot thick now. Eventually we approach a clearing, and what looks like a giant snowball. As we draw closer, its oblong shape makes it look more like an egg on its side, and we slow to a stop before it.

     “Is this the eme?” “Some of us just call it the Egg now. That’s what the E stands for by the way.” I look at Tsuren curiously before figuring out that he means the E in EME. Ugh, brain, why can’t you be a little faster?I walk up to it and, removing my gloves, lightly place my fingers on it. Its white surface is smooth and cold like glass, but without the shine. “So how does this thing work?” Tsuren places his palm flat on its surface, towards the left side of it, which is closer to the point. He slides his palm upwards and as he does, the seam of a door appears and comes outward from the egg swinging up away from it. As I peer inside I notice that it looks much larger on the inside. The seats look like a black, cushioned, u-shaped bench, but more squared. I think eight people could be comfortably seated in it. Near the point, where there are no seats, is a small holographic screen.

     “We haven’t got all day you know.” “Oh, sorry.” I step in and take a seat in the middle. Yuuin follows and lies on the floor by my feet. Tsuren enters and touches his fingers several times to the screen. “Alright, our destination is entered.” He transforms back into a fox and lies on the floor as well on the other side of my feet. “Now what?” But my question is immediately answered by the egg itself. The unused seats manage to disappear into the walls and the walls themselves move inward, and my seat with it, making the egg look smaller. Part of the wall forms a semi bubble shape behind me and black cushions line it turning my seat into a rounded, cushioned egg shaped chair, back and all.

     I sink into it to get comfy, but the egg itself suddenly disappears; yet somehow I’m still seated in my white chair, and Tsuren and Yuuin are lying on air. Alarmed, I try to make sense of things.”Tsuren, what’s going on?” My voice is a little shaky. “Just relax and enjoy the view. Don’t worry, everyone on the outside still sees the egg.” Uh-huh... I think I seriously misjudged these people’s level of technology.

     Slowly, we rise and I can see Raikon and his caribou get smaller beneath us. We continue to slowly rise (to me it looks like we’re levitating) until we are well above the trees. On my right, the sun is just beginning to set and the sight is utterly breathtaking, Snow covered evergreens lay behind me, but in the distance is green foliage. We finally stop our ascent, and without notice, we zoom forward at impossible speeds and I’m pushed back into the cushions. It’s so fast I can barely see for all the blurriness. It isn’t long at all until there’s no snow to be seen at all, but the foliage seems to continue on forever broken only by a mighty, glittering river. I have to stress again how beautiful it all is. Unlike an airplane, I can really see the terrain I’m flying over, and not just through a little window. It’s all around me.

     As we continue on our way, the sea finally becomes visible on my left, though it is still far off and the river we passed makes the occasional reappearance, but each time it is less sift, and dirtier. Marshes appear and bodies of water dot the landscape. We finally start to approach the sea and marshes are replaced with foliage littered white sand. The ocean waves are magnificent and glitter with the last light of day. It is starting to grow dark, and hard to see, but in the distance along the shore is the twinkling of light and I know what it must be. We are finally approaching Yeir and I can’t take my eyes off it. I feel my chest constrict from the pain of my overexcited heart and I can’t help but smile. When in my usual life have I ever been so thrilled? I really do love this place.

     The eme stops somewhere in the city and slowly we descend on what looks like a landing pad near a street. Once we reach the ground, the egg solidifies, the back of my chair disappears, the walls stretch out and the rest of the seats reappear, along with the holographic display. “Well that was pretty awesome!” I say as I stretch out. “So we got a game plan or are we just winging it?” “A bit of both” comes the reply from a half dressed human Tsuren. “You know, I think I like you better as I fox.” “Too much to handle?” I seriously want to punch his smug face but instead stomp on his bare foot on my way out of the eme. “More like too repulsive to look at. Get some clothes or change form.” “Sweetheart as much as it pains me to not comply with your every wish, I cannot get some clothes in my other form, and I cannot guide you if I cannot talk.” “I know you can talk just fine in fox form.” “Yes but we aren’t at Pomeiyahn anymore dear. No one in this city has seen a talking animal and I don’t want to cause any unnecessary alarm. Wouldn’t you agree?” I only glare at him. God I hate him.

     Turning away from foxman I take stock of our new surroundings. What catches my attention is the odd shapes of many of the buildings, most of which also have the strangest windows. A building nearby is composed of several twisting parts, each rotating slowly and independently of each other with only the very top staying in place to cool the street below. Other buildings with a conical shape, but stacked like building blocks, have elaborate lattice frameworks, rather than glass for windows, that prevent one from seeing in, though I can’t imagine why they wouldn’t just use windows. They look super cool though. Another building has a series of dark panels protruding from its sides. Yet another looks as if the building is hiding within a shell with light shining through its intricate spikes, and still I see more and more unusual structures. Even though this is a city, there is no lack of greenery whatsoever. Bushes and palms trees litter the streets and even attach themselves beautifully to many of the buildings. In the center of the road runs a stream of pristine water, covered by glass, or something of the sort.

     Oddly, other than our landing pad, I don’t spot any vehicles at all, nor is there any real road. The street is just one giant side walk, or rather, walk walk… hmm, I’ll have to work on that… lined in a soft red light, which shows the wonderfully immaculate geometric patterns etched into parts of the… walk walk… street thing. I’ll just keep calling it the street. Long poles, street lamps, also dot the streets, though they really are just straight poles which release soft yellow light at their tops. Looking up I notice that most of this giant street lies underneath the buildings, which stretch out toward each other, keeping the streets cool and shaded, day and night. Above the buildings, against the night sky I can see panels of a differently patterned lattice work, and I have no clue what it’s for, but it all looks so awesome! Curiously, the clean, breezy air barely carries the smell of the ocean even though we’re so close.

     “Hey Tsuren, aren’t we really close to the ocean?” “Yeah, I thought you would’ve noticed on our way here.” “Well, yes, I did thank you very much, but it doesn’t smell salty.” “That’s because this wind isn’t from the ocean.” “It’s… not?” Is he messing with me? “This city is designed to stay cool, since many Animos can’t tolerate high temperatures. All over the city are giant cylinders that funnel air downwards and through the city.” “So shouldn’t it still smell salty?” “My dear, try to think these things out. The funnels also filter the air, capturing much of the morbid humidity and recycling the water.” My eyes widen at this. They recycle HUMIDITY? How frickin cool is that? I gotta hand it to them, I think the Animos did technology right.

     “Um, how come there aren’t any vehicles? It seemed like a big city to be walking to every destination.” “We have mini emes below ground that can take you anywhere in the city. There’s some above ground too, but they only travel along specific pathways within the city. The big emes take you to specific places outside the city.” “I see. You know, I really like Yeir. I really like this whole world!” “Try saying that when you can feel it dying.” “Oh sorry I didn’t mean to…“ “Don’t worry about it babe. Just enjoy it while you can.”

Author's Note

So this is all I've written so far, but I'll do my best to release the next chapter within the week. Stay tuned!