The full moon looked down curiously over the desolate white mountain landscape known as The Spine of the World, an appropriate name from the moons unique perspective. Right now though, the tranquil white landscape was now interrupted by two figures walking slowly towards one of the lower snow caps in the mighty mountain range, leaving a trail behind them which was quickly filling with the gently falling snow despite the clearness of the star filled night sky.
One walked slightly in front of the other, her bare porcelain feet sinking unprotected into the soft snow, the other though seemed to walk as if in a trance, her stumbling steps and blindly staring eyes showed that something was definitely not correct with her behaviour. Kiko looked back towards her sacrifice now stumbling behind her, simultaneously under a group of very specific genjutsu and impelled to follow her with no resistance, Kiko thought on the unfortunate fate of the woman.
Kiko had found her lost at the base of the great mountains, having been split from her traveling companions during a fierce storm the night before. The woman’s bright soul shone through the gloom of the faceless demon’s world and so she had been lead to her light like a beacon in the fog. Kiko felt a deep impulse as her body flushed with the dark chakra of her Goddess, the leviathan of the deep waters… The Goddess had named her prize and Kiko would not deny her god.
It had taken Kiko only moments to place the sacrifice in the compliant trance which now saw them walking to the high places of the world for she knew that to be where the gods could see the world the easiest.
After many hours of walking they were high enough, the gods would have a clear view and the Goddess would have her sacrifice, a soul to be taken to the deep waters, a body to feed the earth, and blood for Jashin, as he was a greedy god who always took what was offered…
The snow suddenly melted around them, cold stone lifting itself above the snow level in a rough circle around the strange pair. The puppet moved to the blankly staring woman, gently reaching for her unresisting right hand and holding it between both of her own delicate porcelain hands, her unliving puppet eyes staring into the woman’s own unresponsive pupils now gently reflecting the full moon brightly above them.
“I need to use your blood my dear.”
The blindly staring face gently nodded before holding her hands together in a cupping action in front of her. The puppet ran her bare finger across the woman’s bare palms, a thin red trail appearing across the perfect skin before a solid flow of the bright red liquid began to pool in the woman’s hands. Kiko dipped the tips of the fingers deeply into the quickly overfilling cupped hands, blood trickling freely onto the exposed stone.
Quickly the sacrificial circle was drawn in the sacrifices own, still warm lifeblood, esoteric symbols and strange curves that seemed to bend the focus of one’s perception now surrounded the pair in a complex yet seemingly chaotic pattern with no discernible beginning or end. Kiko moved to the centre of the stone alter, the hypnotised woman moving unbeckoned and kneeling before the priestess of deep waters, her hands loosely held by her sides and her unseeing eyes staring blankly skywards.
A porcelain index finger was gently moved against the woman’s forehead seemingly unnoticed. Kiko spoke quietly, for she knew her gods needed no bellowing voices to hear the prayer of the faithful.
“Goddess of the Dark Waters… wrathful God of blood… take this bright soul into your deep waters… take her blood for your thirst… take her past for judgment… take her future as you will… Gods of my fathers, accept this sacrifice and turn your eyes towards me in this Kumogakure’s dark night… guide my fate as you have and will… ogthrod ai’f… geb’l-ee’h… Yog-Sothoth… ‘ngah’ng ai’y… ZHRO!”
The last words echoed through the mountains, though not spoken any louder than the rest of the prayer it had been spoken with all of the prophetess’ dark intent. As the first sound of the last word escaped the puppets porcelain lips, fright fuelled panic returned to the sacrifices face, released from all of Kiko’s genjutsu and puppet influence for a split second before her body flexed backwards violently, he eyes widening and her mouth widely open in a silent scream and her limps contorted as if an electrical current had been applied simultaneously to every cell in her body.
The woman now lay still in the centre of the sacrificial circle, the still fresh cuts in her palms now freely flowed deep red blood over the stone. Her last breath escaping her innocent and quickly whitening lips as her chest lowered one last time with her souls morbid release. She would now go to the deep waters and Kiko did not even know her name…
The priestess of deep waters closed her eyes as a smile spread over her unnatural face, on this bright night she knew the gods would be watching, she knew the gods would see her devotion and be pleased.
With her eyes still closed the living puppet heard the rumble of a deep growl, a strange voice seeming to come from the sounds but not directly, instead coming as if a suggestion implied at a primal level.
“I, friend and companion of night, who rejoicest in the baying of dogs and spilt blood, who wanderest in the midst of shades among the tombs, who longest for blood and bringest terror to mortals, the thousand-faced moon, I look favorably on your sacrifice!”
Kiko opened her eyes and turned slowly to face the origin of the unexpected sound in this white wasteland. Her eyes greeted with an unexpected sight as alien as Kiko was herself in this barren place. Her artificial eyes focused on the creature before her, a large Rottweiler circling her, it’s tongue panting gently as it circled the sacrificial circle. Kiko noted the chain around its neck, she highly doubted it symbolised servitude to another, instead assuming it held some symbolic relevance to the spirit dog now circling her. Kiko bowed deeply to the beast, showing respect before responding.
“I apologise proud God-Dog… for this sacrifice’s soul was given to the deep waters to dwell with my goddess… and her blood spilt to momentarily satiate the endless thirst of the god of blood…”
Kiko hesitated for a moment as if in thought, her porcelain head tilting slightly as she turned her body to face the beast as it continued to stalk around the quickly cooling body and the ice cold porcelain puppet.
“…proud god of Dogs… please take this flesh to fill your belly and take your fill… I offer this freely, a sign and a token of peace from me to you…”
A growl escaped the deep throat of the still circling canine coming out as if almost a laugh. The beast now turning and walking slowly towards the dwarfed puppet, it’s large nose moved to within inches of the puppet’s face, it’s huge size requiring it to lower its head to do so. The dog sniffed deeply, and Kiko knew the strange god of Dog’s was learning more about her than simply her smell. She could somehow feel the creature drawing out her past, her secrets and somehow her future. She felt cosmically small before him, her offer seeming so insignificant now more of the god’s true power had been revealed. Kiko fell to her knees in the newly revealed majesty of the leader of the Canine Contract both by birth rite and power. Her eyes cast downwards as the god-dog stepped backwards slightly, creating a small distance between the kneeling puppet-woman and his own significant form.
“I… my… forgive me Lord… I did not mean to offer you so little…”
The low growl of a voice spoke calmly to the girl interrupting he apology, it’s large snout moving forward once more, gently lifting the puppets lowered head allowing her to look at him once more.
“Be at peace little Kiko, for I, Kimijun, lord of all Dogs, accept your offered sacrifice with grace for I have seen you laid bare before me and know that the gift, though slight, was offered with a pure heart and no expectation of returned reward of favour…”
The large canine head nudged the puppet girl once more, encouraging her to stand and gently grazing against her as it moved towards to the still warm body of the sacrificial bright soul. The dog’s large teeth opened slowly and closed over the dead woman’s outstretched arm, unresisting flesh and wetly snapping bones tore away from the body as the dog-god began to feed. The massive canine continued to speak to the girl is the huge creature fed, the flesh and bone occupying its mouth seemed to have no effect on the clarity of the creatures growled speech.
“In return I offer an unasked payment and a token if accepted…”
The large Rottweiler continued to consume the cooling flesh, bones and sinew tearing away before the god’s teeth.
“Little Kiko of the Myakashi, child of many Gods and slayer of many men, daughter of a murdered mother, orphan of fate… I offer this… a promise and a contract. Accept this token and run with the dog pack! I know of your gods, little Myakashi, and they are not jealous gods… they would look on this with approval and apathy respectively for the Leviathan knows all things must come to pass and the dark god Jashin cares not why the blood flows, simply that it continues to do so.”
The growl lowered further as the large dog swallowed the last mouthful of human flesh, lifting its great head once more to face the porcelain puppet’s own comparatively small frame. The dog-god’s large brown eyes locked on the girl, seeming to look beyond the artificial exterior and straight to her unguarded core.
“What do you say pup?”
A grin came over the puppets white face, the gods truly looked on her with favour for such a meeting of fate to take place so far away from their respective homes and yet a contract offered and a kindred bond formed as if it had always existed, Kiko realising she desired this offered contract and family more than almost anything else and she could not hide this from the god’s intense focus now directly placed solidly on her soul stripped bare.
“Kimojin, lord of dogs… I gladly accept this offered blessing… and am humbled by your generosity to one as lowly as I…”
The puppet broke eye contact once more, lowering her head in formal respect to the god-dog made manifest before her. The bow was interrupted however as the large beast leapt forward, slamming the puppet girl hard against the shallow snow covered mountainside beside the alter. If Kiko had lungs the air filling them would have just been forcefully expelled by the sheer weight now bearing down on her chest. The dogs huge head leaned down and a monstrously slobbery, oversized tongue moved excruciatingly up her torso and face. The dog-god jumped away from the momentarily shocked living-puppet.
“Welcome to the pack pup, you will fit in fine…”
One walked slightly in front of the other, her bare porcelain feet sinking unprotected into the soft snow, the other though seemed to walk as if in a trance, her stumbling steps and blindly staring eyes showed that something was definitely not correct with her behaviour. Kiko looked back towards her sacrifice now stumbling behind her, simultaneously under a group of very specific genjutsu and impelled to follow her with no resistance, Kiko thought on the unfortunate fate of the woman.
Kiko had found her lost at the base of the great mountains, having been split from her traveling companions during a fierce storm the night before. The woman’s bright soul shone through the gloom of the faceless demon’s world and so she had been lead to her light like a beacon in the fog. Kiko felt a deep impulse as her body flushed with the dark chakra of her Goddess, the leviathan of the deep waters… The Goddess had named her prize and Kiko would not deny her god.
It had taken Kiko only moments to place the sacrifice in the compliant trance which now saw them walking to the high places of the world for she knew that to be where the gods could see the world the easiest.
After many hours of walking they were high enough, the gods would have a clear view and the Goddess would have her sacrifice, a soul to be taken to the deep waters, a body to feed the earth, and blood for Jashin, as he was a greedy god who always took what was offered…
The snow suddenly melted around them, cold stone lifting itself above the snow level in a rough circle around the strange pair. The puppet moved to the blankly staring woman, gently reaching for her unresisting right hand and holding it between both of her own delicate porcelain hands, her unliving puppet eyes staring into the woman’s own unresponsive pupils now gently reflecting the full moon brightly above them.
“I need to use your blood my dear.”
The blindly staring face gently nodded before holding her hands together in a cupping action in front of her. The puppet ran her bare finger across the woman’s bare palms, a thin red trail appearing across the perfect skin before a solid flow of the bright red liquid began to pool in the woman’s hands. Kiko dipped the tips of the fingers deeply into the quickly overfilling cupped hands, blood trickling freely onto the exposed stone.
Quickly the sacrificial circle was drawn in the sacrifices own, still warm lifeblood, esoteric symbols and strange curves that seemed to bend the focus of one’s perception now surrounded the pair in a complex yet seemingly chaotic pattern with no discernible beginning or end. Kiko moved to the centre of the stone alter, the hypnotised woman moving unbeckoned and kneeling before the priestess of deep waters, her hands loosely held by her sides and her unseeing eyes staring blankly skywards.
A porcelain index finger was gently moved against the woman’s forehead seemingly unnoticed. Kiko spoke quietly, for she knew her gods needed no bellowing voices to hear the prayer of the faithful.
“Goddess of the Dark Waters… wrathful God of blood… take this bright soul into your deep waters… take her blood for your thirst… take her past for judgment… take her future as you will… Gods of my fathers, accept this sacrifice and turn your eyes towards me in this Kumogakure’s dark night… guide my fate as you have and will… ogthrod ai’f… geb’l-ee’h… Yog-Sothoth… ‘ngah’ng ai’y… ZHRO!”
The last words echoed through the mountains, though not spoken any louder than the rest of the prayer it had been spoken with all of the prophetess’ dark intent. As the first sound of the last word escaped the puppets porcelain lips, fright fuelled panic returned to the sacrifices face, released from all of Kiko’s genjutsu and puppet influence for a split second before her body flexed backwards violently, he eyes widening and her mouth widely open in a silent scream and her limps contorted as if an electrical current had been applied simultaneously to every cell in her body.
The woman now lay still in the centre of the sacrificial circle, the still fresh cuts in her palms now freely flowed deep red blood over the stone. Her last breath escaping her innocent and quickly whitening lips as her chest lowered one last time with her souls morbid release. She would now go to the deep waters and Kiko did not even know her name…
The priestess of deep waters closed her eyes as a smile spread over her unnatural face, on this bright night she knew the gods would be watching, she knew the gods would see her devotion and be pleased.
With her eyes still closed the living puppet heard the rumble of a deep growl, a strange voice seeming to come from the sounds but not directly, instead coming as if a suggestion implied at a primal level.
“I, friend and companion of night, who rejoicest in the baying of dogs and spilt blood, who wanderest in the midst of shades among the tombs, who longest for blood and bringest terror to mortals, the thousand-faced moon, I look favorably on your sacrifice!”
Kiko opened her eyes and turned slowly to face the origin of the unexpected sound in this white wasteland. Her eyes greeted with an unexpected sight as alien as Kiko was herself in this barren place. Her artificial eyes focused on the creature before her, a large Rottweiler circling her, it’s tongue panting gently as it circled the sacrificial circle. Kiko noted the chain around its neck, she highly doubted it symbolised servitude to another, instead assuming it held some symbolic relevance to the spirit dog now circling her. Kiko bowed deeply to the beast, showing respect before responding.
“I apologise proud God-Dog… for this sacrifice’s soul was given to the deep waters to dwell with my goddess… and her blood spilt to momentarily satiate the endless thirst of the god of blood…”
Kiko hesitated for a moment as if in thought, her porcelain head tilting slightly as she turned her body to face the beast as it continued to stalk around the quickly cooling body and the ice cold porcelain puppet.
“…proud god of Dogs… please take this flesh to fill your belly and take your fill… I offer this freely, a sign and a token of peace from me to you…”
A growl escaped the deep throat of the still circling canine coming out as if almost a laugh. The beast now turning and walking slowly towards the dwarfed puppet, it’s large nose moved to within inches of the puppet’s face, it’s huge size requiring it to lower its head to do so. The dog sniffed deeply, and Kiko knew the strange god of Dog’s was learning more about her than simply her smell. She could somehow feel the creature drawing out her past, her secrets and somehow her future. She felt cosmically small before him, her offer seeming so insignificant now more of the god’s true power had been revealed. Kiko fell to her knees in the newly revealed majesty of the leader of the Canine Contract both by birth rite and power. Her eyes cast downwards as the god-dog stepped backwards slightly, creating a small distance between the kneeling puppet-woman and his own significant form.
“I… my… forgive me Lord… I did not mean to offer you so little…”
The low growl of a voice spoke calmly to the girl interrupting he apology, it’s large snout moving forward once more, gently lifting the puppets lowered head allowing her to look at him once more.
“Be at peace little Kiko, for I, Kimijun, lord of all Dogs, accept your offered sacrifice with grace for I have seen you laid bare before me and know that the gift, though slight, was offered with a pure heart and no expectation of returned reward of favour…”
The large canine head nudged the puppet girl once more, encouraging her to stand and gently grazing against her as it moved towards to the still warm body of the sacrificial bright soul. The dog’s large teeth opened slowly and closed over the dead woman’s outstretched arm, unresisting flesh and wetly snapping bones tore away from the body as the dog-god began to feed. The massive canine continued to speak to the girl is the huge creature fed, the flesh and bone occupying its mouth seemed to have no effect on the clarity of the creatures growled speech.
“In return I offer an unasked payment and a token if accepted…”
The large Rottweiler continued to consume the cooling flesh, bones and sinew tearing away before the god’s teeth.
“Little Kiko of the Myakashi, child of many Gods and slayer of many men, daughter of a murdered mother, orphan of fate… I offer this… a promise and a contract. Accept this token and run with the dog pack! I know of your gods, little Myakashi, and they are not jealous gods… they would look on this with approval and apathy respectively for the Leviathan knows all things must come to pass and the dark god Jashin cares not why the blood flows, simply that it continues to do so.”
The growl lowered further as the large dog swallowed the last mouthful of human flesh, lifting its great head once more to face the porcelain puppet’s own comparatively small frame. The dog-god’s large brown eyes locked on the girl, seeming to look beyond the artificial exterior and straight to her unguarded core.
“What do you say pup?”
A grin came over the puppets white face, the gods truly looked on her with favour for such a meeting of fate to take place so far away from their respective homes and yet a contract offered and a kindred bond formed as if it had always existed, Kiko realising she desired this offered contract and family more than almost anything else and she could not hide this from the god’s intense focus now directly placed solidly on her soul stripped bare.
“Kimojin, lord of dogs… I gladly accept this offered blessing… and am humbled by your generosity to one as lowly as I…”
The puppet broke eye contact once more, lowering her head in formal respect to the god-dog made manifest before her. The bow was interrupted however as the large beast leapt forward, slamming the puppet girl hard against the shallow snow covered mountainside beside the alter. If Kiko had lungs the air filling them would have just been forcefully expelled by the sheer weight now bearing down on her chest. The dogs huge head leaned down and a monstrously slobbery, oversized tongue moved excruciatingly up her torso and face. The dog-god jumped away from the momentarily shocked living-puppet.
“Welcome to the pack pup, you will fit in fine…”
using contract of choice -> https://ninpocho.com/shinobi-shop/inventory/
Choosing Canine
1800ish words
Choosing Canine
1800ish words
