by Dixon, TJ
Magic flows from the mountain. It isn’t our magic, but rather it is the Spirit of the Mountain. We have called him forth to destroy those who have trespassed on this sacred land. Angry at those who would defile him, he mercilessly crushes the enemy with huge hands of spiritually charged stone. It takes only a moment and the enemy are dead. He takes their remains inside his body, the mountain itself.
It is not a magic we can use often but it was certainly worth using it against such a powerful foe. Should we anger the Spirit of the Mountain by relying on him too often though, he will kill us as well as our enemy. Certainly it would not be wise to use it again until a few years have passed. The High Priestess and High Monk will be the ones to decide that though.
With the enemy dead we will be celebrating tomorrow. Even the miko will get to eat the feast that will be held. I am glad that Haru Kii will have something that she can actually enjoy. Most of the night guards will get some sleep tonight, but there will still be a light guard in case the enemy have more forces nearby. As I am not part of the night guard I can just go back to my room and get some sleep without having to worry about drawing straws to see who has to stay on guard.
The rest of the night passes peacefully. I get up in the morning and prepare our breakfast. Haru Kii is relieved now the enemy have been defeated. She is really happy when I tell her about the victory feast we will be holding.
I leave Haru Kii to practise her dance whilst I help prepare for the feast. We will be holding it just outside the temple entrance as is customary. It is the first time I have helped prepare for a victory feast but it is very similar to preparing for any other celebratory feast. We create stone tables and seats with magic. Despite being stone they are actually very soft because of the way we form them.
The most important work is of course preparing and cooking the food. I only help prepare some of the vegetables but soon the smell of cooking meats, fish and vegetables along with the smell of spices fills the temple kitchen. Then they are joined by the smell of sweeter foods.
It is midday by the time everything is ready and the tempting smells have made us all even more eager to enjoy the feast. As everyone else starts to take their seats I go to get Haru Kii. She is still hard at work practising but even from here she can smell the food and is delighted to hear it is time to eat. This will be the first time in a very long time that she can eat as much as she wants.
Nico Na has saved a couple of seats to his immediate left so I sit next to him and Haru Kii sits to my left. To her left is a catman I don’t know. Haru Kii seems a little intimidated by him but the catman is much more interested in the food than in a human miko.
“It will be a long time before you eat like this again, so make the most of it.” I tell Haru Kii. It isn’t long before the lovely food makes her forget about everything else. After a while the High Priestess calls on three of the older miko to dance. They are dancing for us and not for the Kuroneko so it is just their practise dance and there is no risk of execution. It is fun to watch the miko dance without having to watch for mistakes.
The miko have long white hair, bright green eyes and pale skin. They wear simple white sleeveless dresses instead of their spirit clothes, which are only worn when dancing for the Kuroneko. They all have a relaxed smile as they dance.
“I’ll never be that good.” Haru Kii says quietly. I pat her on the head.
“You will be. You just need to carry on working hard at it.” I quietly tell her.
The miko are not quite as elegant as normal, but they are much more energetic because they aren’t worrying about every possible mistake. Haru Kii is cute but she is very young. These miko are young adults rather than children so they are rather attractive. Of course they are reserved for the Kuroneko so even if they found someone they loved they couldn’t even tell him their feelings.
I have sometimes wondered why the Kuroneko chooses humans instead of cat people to serve as her miko. Cat people are considered superior and wouldn’t a god want the best? It is pointless thinking about such things though, because whatever her reasons may be it isn’t going to change the fact that human girls like Haru Kii must serve as miko.
It must be hard for her parents to lose two daughters to the Kuroneko. They live in a village under the mountain. Like all the other villages of the Kuroneko Mountains it can only be accessed through the temple. It is ideal for defence from invaders like we fought off last night, but it does mean the people are completely at the mercy of the cat people who control the temple. If the cat people come for your child you really have no choice because there is no escape and nowhere to hide. Fighting is of course impossible.
I drink some wine and then return my attention to my food. It is only at feasts like this that we are allowed wine so it tastes all the sweeter for being such a rare treat. Of course as a monk even at a feast it would not do to get drunk so I will only drink the one glass.
“What’s that song?” Haru Kii asks.
“What song?” I ask her. There is the gentle sound of a harp in the air but I can’t hear singing.
“It’s really quiet, but it sounds so beautiful.” Haru Kii says with a smile.
“It must be too quiet for me to hear.” I say with a shrug. I didn’t realise she had better hearing than me.
“It’s a pity it isn’t louder. You would like it if you could hear it.” Haru Kii says sadly.
“You enjoy it for me then.” I say with a smile and pat her on the head. She smiles back, and then returns her attention to her food.
Somehow we manage to finish the huge amount of food. We always do at feasts despite normally eating so modestly or perhaps because we are used to eating so modestly. Haru Kii sits there contently rubbing her full belly with a smile on her face. Her breath smells like she had a little wine. She isn’t really meant to but I didn’t notice and I don’t think anyone will care. I had best take her back to her room before anyone else notices though, just in case they do care.
“We’re going back to your room.” I tell Haru Kii quietly.
“Ok.” Haru Kii says sounding a little absent minded. I hold her hand as we walk because she doesn’t seem able to focus without being guided. The temple corridors are made of white stone with occasional statues of famous catmen and catwomen.
I stop by the statue of the Kuroneko. It is the only black statue in the corridor and is much larger than the other statues. The Kuroneko statue is sitting elegantly in a pure cat form. Sometimes the statue takes the form of a catman or a catwoman. Some believe the Kuroneko is male and others believe the Kuroneko is female. Only the High Priestess and the Kuroneko know for sure. It is beside the door to the common room. I bow my head and clap my hands three times as a sign of respect to the Kuroneko. Then I turn to walk on but as I turn I notice the Contractians in the common room. They are leaving through a portal.
The Contractians may at times have been rude but they helped us defend ourselves against the enemy and they never did anything to me personally. It seems sad for them to leave unnoticed and without thanks. Haru Kii looks at them like she shares my feelings. So I lead her into the room.
“Thank you.” I say. It isn’t much but I am not great with words and I don’t know what else to say. The woman who seemed to be their leader turns to me with a smile.
“You’re welcome. Who’s the little girl?”
“This is my sister, Haru Kii. She is a miko of the Kuroneko.” I tell her and approach closer.
“I wish you the best of luck young miko.” She says with a sad smile. It seems she knows the meaning of being a miko. “The portal will close soon and everyone has now gone, so I must now leave. Farewell.”
She walks through the portal, which is now only a few feet away, and it starts to shrink. As it does so I sense enemies. Not just any enemies but powerful ones. I have never sensed them before but they are certainly elves. I sense ten. Fighting one elf would be suicide but the thought of fighting ten is just laughable.
The portal is far too small
now for me to pass through, but for Haru Kii it is still just about possible. I pick her up much to her shock and literally throw her through. She makes it and I breathe a sigh of relief.
I turn and find an elf right behind me. I did not sense her before so there are at least eleven enemies. She is about Haru Kii’s size, so if she were human she would be about ten or eleven years old. As an elf she is surely much older though. Even looking straight at her I can’t sense her presence. It would be easy to mistake this for weakness, but there is no doubt in my mind. She is the strongest enemy by far. Of course there’s no way I could beat even the weakest of elves.
Chapter 3 (Yu Kii)
“Before we start today’s lesson I would like to remind everyone about the field trip tomorrow. Attendance is required and we will meet here at dawn. Make sure you are not late and do not forget to bring enough money to last the whole week. You will have free time on your day off, so if there is anything you wish to do then make sure you have enough money for it. You must wear your uniform for the whole trip, so there is no need to bring casual clothing.” Professor Schwarz tells us. It is the first time anyone has told me about a field trip and it looks like Rin knows nothing more than I do about it.
“Where are we going?” Rin asks. Professor Schwarz frowns at Rin for a moment before seeming to realise that she must have told the rest of the class before we got promoted.
“We will be visiting Portalis, the old capital. We normally visit Minerva, but due to the war it was considered too dangerous. Portalis is a bit more expensive, but other than Minerva it is the oldest city in Contractia. There is plenty to see. Not least the Circle of Portals and the Great Shield. There was talk when the new Queen came to power of reinstating Portalis as the capital. They decided against it but Portalis is still the second most important city in Contractia. As the saying goes, all rivers flow to Portalis.” Professor Schwarz tells us.
“What does that mean?” I ask confused.
“You’re not from Contractia, are you?” Professor Schwarz asks with a smirk and a few of our classmates laugh.
“No, I’m not.” I answer honestly and try to ignore the laughter.
“All rivers cross dimensions. Not physically of course, but their true essence passes through the dimensions.”
“Their spirit.” I say with a nod.
“I suppose you could say it like that.” Professor Schwarz says with a frown and more students laugh. Perhaps I should have just asked Rin later. “Anyway, their essence crosses the dimensions and so all rivers in all dimensions are in a manner connected. It is said that they meet in Portalis because of the sheer number of magical portals there. Of course they don’t really, it is just a saying. Most Contractian worlds though can be reached from Portalis or from a world connected to Portalis. The outer worlds are all connected via Minerva. The inner worlds mostly connect directly or via the new capital, Regalia.”
“Thank you.” I say politely but unable to hide my embarrassment. It is probably the first time I have asked Professor Schwarz a question in class. I don’t think I’ll be asking another question for a while.
“We will be travelling via the new capital, Regalia. The academy will be paying for travel costs and accommodation. All other costs, including food, you will need to pay for.” Professor Schwarz tells us. “Now for today’s lesson… You must port small stones into moving buckets. The buckets and stones are over there. For practise you will need to control the buckets with wind magic or earth magic. Naturally that means working in pairs. There will be a test at the end and I will be moving the buckets for that.”
I silently groan as I hear this. I had a feeling it would be dimensional magic today, but I hoped I was wrong. No such luck! I work with Rin but I am only able to succeed when she moves the bucket really slowly. I doubt the teacher will be moving it anywhere near as slowly. The lesson is painful but finally it is time to take the test.
“I will be starting with Yu Kii.” Professor Schwarz says and I gulp. “Come to the front.”
“Ok.” I say and walk to the front.
“Start by porting one into the bucket and I will then start moving the bucket slowly. The more you can get in the better. We will stop when you miss. Ready?”
“Yes.” I say and port one into the bucket. I am so nervous that I miss. The class roars in laughter.
“Stay behind after the afternoon lesson.” Professor Schwarz says with a sigh. “Next is Emma.”
Emma at least manages to get the first couple in but Professor Schwarz tells her to stay behind as well. The rest of the class do much better. I hope it isn’t another overnight lesson, especially with the trip starting tomorrow. I can’t focus on lunch and have a hard time focusing on the afternoon lesson but thankfully it is just theory so I can catch up later with Rin’s help.
“Other than Emma and Yu Kii, everyone leave, and make sure you are here by dawn.” Professor Schwarz says. Rin takes a quick but sympathetic look at me before porting away. Soon it is just the three of us.
“So is it going to be another whole night?” I ask nervously.
“We have the trip tomorrow so that would be unwise. We will only do an hour today, but once we get back I will be working with you both for two hours after lessons every day, except your day off.” Professor Schwarz tells us. I am relieved we don’t have to work for too long today but an extra two hours a day six days a week. That’s an extra twelve hours each week! On dimensional magic…
The dimensional training is just as hard as I feared it would be but I do at least make some progress. I then go to our usual training. The earth training relaxes me a bit and then we move onto fire training. Jenny is a great teacher but fire is never going to be my element. I am relieved when we finish. I skip practising porting at the end because I have spent way too much time on dimensional magic today already. Rin frowns at me but doesn’t say anything.
As soon as we get back to our room I get changed into my nightwear and go to bed. I sleep well but like always Rin has to wake me. I get washed, dressed and packed as quickly as possible. I only have to pack my night clothes and a spare uniform though so there wasn’t much point packing last night. We share a smallish bag but it isn’t Rin’s special one. Perhaps she is worried it might get lost or stolen.
I am still sleepy when we get to class but I am far from the only one. It is still just before dawn when Professor Schwarz wearing her usual white robes with the black hood ports into the classroom. As always the hood is down. She is carrying a large bag in one hand. It looks really heavy but I can tell it has a minor enchantment to reduce the weight.
“Everyone is here on time. That is good. Everyone please step inside the circle.” Professor Schwarz says and a blue glowing circle forms on the floor. She is of course at the centre but it is large enough for all of us to fit inside easily. Once we are all inside the circle the blue glow rises into the air forming a wall. Then a green glow forms a roof above us. Once the roof is complete we are ported. It is instant like normal but I feel queasy afterwards.
“This is the main port hub at the capital.” Rin whispers to me. I notice that our unseen guards don’t seem to have followed us.
“Everyone head to queue number seven.” Professor Schwarz tells us. I look up and follow everyone else.
We are in a huge blue marble room with about twenty large queues of people. Either side of the queues are large black buildings each the size of a small house. The house on the left of each queue has a large number written in blue. They are ordered from one to twenty. The one we are headed towards has the number seven on it. As we get closer I see that there are mages walking up and down the queues on both sides. They are always watching the people in the queue but every now and again they stop to look at someone in a bit more detail.
“They’re scanners.” Rin tells me.
“What are they doing?” I ask.
“They use magic to see through physical objects. Bags, clothes, etc.” Rin says and I gulp.
“They c
an see through our clothes?!”
“Don’t worry, only women are allowed to be scanners. It’s the guys you should feel sorry for. Not that many guys go through here.” Rin tells me.
“Even if it is a woman, don’t you feel uncomfortable knowing that they can see you as if you weren’t wearing anything?” I ask.
“They’re only doing this for our safety. You should feel comfortable knowing that anyone trying to harm us will get caught.” Rin tells me as if it is common sense that I should feel comfortable having a stranger look at me as if I was naked. It really doesn’t make me feel comfortable. Rin can obviously tell. “Don’t cause any trouble, or they can take you into one of those black buildings and search your mind, as well as your body, for hours.”
“This is so weird.” I say shaking my head and feeling even more uncomfortable.
“Don’t worry.” One of the scanner mages tells me. I guess she overheard our conversation. “If you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear.”
I nod back politely to her but her words don’t help calm me at all. They just make things worse. I have nothing to hide, but I would still like a little human dignity. Even the Kuroneko gave me that. The scanner looks me over more closely and I squirm. I don’t want to be taken into the black building though, so I don’t say anything. Eventually she moves on.
“How long does this queue normally take?” I ask Rin.
“I think it is meant to take about a couple of hours. Only top students and the military are allowed to pass through the gate so I’ve never been here before. My class last year went to Drake Mountain for our school trip. That was of course just a day trip.” Rin tells me.
“So everyone in this queue is either a student or in the military?” I ask.