Secular Fast

[Kisho]

Huddled beneath a thick blanket, Kisho sat removed from the group basking in flames. He could still feel the heat from the fire, but its crackling was louder than any of the voices drifting from the circle. His eyes fixated on the fire, seldom blinking. As if under a genjutsu, he saw a dozen sets of eyes staring at him, their gazes cold. Self-consciously he drew the blankets closer to his body, thinking about the day's events...

A stag marched into a small clearing of pines, investigating a hollowed out log hiding a few clusters of grass and clovers. Lowering it’s head, it snatched a mouthful of greens and chewed slowly, apparently savoring their taste. Kisho stood at its flank, thirty yards away, hidden by a few trees and a small bush. He watched the creature closely, momentarily admiring its beauty.

A hand signal from his left caught his attention, prompting him to quietly raise his bow and take aim. The words his father said before the hunt played again: “This is your hunt, Kisho. Your responsibility. You are no longer a child, but a man. We eat only if you make the kill. Remember everything I taught you”. A grave look overcame his face as he steadied his breathing. He held the bow's string back, patiently waiting for the next signal.

The signal came and he released the arrow. It flew over the stag's shoulder and thudded into a tree. The beast took off immediately, disappearing into the forest. Kisho's heart dropped into his stomach. ‘I...I missed. How did I --?’

A noticeably disappointed voiced pierced his ears. “Go get it. “ His father spoke again. The words stung his ears. “Go get your arrow. The deer is gone.”

The walk to get the arrow was long and it seemed like the forest was mocking him. Branches twisted and pointed at him while tree trunks laughed. Birds sang of his defeat and the wind applauded. Even the sun seemed to dampen its light. He recovered his arrow and rejoined the group, sulking quietly...

The fire moaned pleasureably as more wood was added. The sounds of empty stomachs beat against his ear drums repeatedly, while his own angrily taunted him. “How could you miss? What will we eat now?”

Kisho grimaced and clenched his jaw. ‘I’m so sorry everyone'. He closed his eyes knowing that he would get no comfort from sleep.

(MFT)

 

[Shinrya Riko]

This part of the forest had rumors about it. Some could believe the tale that had begun some few years ago that a wild girl lived in this land. The stories twisted and turns with as tall tales tend to do until the truth was so far from the twisted version of the story that it was impossible to recognize. The truth in this particular tale was that this territory belong to a hunter. Over recent times hunters had come to find that this area was quite safe from the strange predators of the forest, for this part of the forest was home to some unknown creature. This was Komora’s part of the forest.

The arrow flew and missed its mark and the deer bolted. There was a moment of quiet before the deer bolted back towards the young hunter and his father as the youth attempted to retrieve his arrow. Like a bolt of lightning she flew out of the brush and sharp fangs sunk into the neck of the stag as the beast was tackled to the ground. It struggled to stand, but with only half a throat it only sputtered and collapsed under rits own weight. Blood pooling into a red lake beneath its body. Above it was a creature. It was covered in fur with a long rest red - no wait! She turned to eye the hunters suspiciously. It wasn’t a beast at all. It was Komora. She was a 12 year old girl with hair as red as rust and covered in the pelt of a bear. A cloth wrap was around her chest and ripped up hakama and bare feet. Her toes and fingers seemed sharp like claws, and the gore in her mouth suggested her teeth were just as sharp.

The red trickled from her mouth onto the rest of her body without concern. Soon after a dog trotted out of the brush. ”Oh. Thats where you went.” The dog mumbled. He was a proud breed that resembled a wolf. He was easily big enough for a girl like Komora to ride. His fur was dark save for some greying and white fur on the tips of his features. ”Hmm?” He paused her turned to examine the pair of hunters with his one eye, the other covered with an eye patch. ”Hunters? As long as its not another lost academy student. Hehehe. We seem to get a lot of those in here.” The dog spoke the language of the humans and seemed to find his own remarks humorous. ”Ah...Did Komora steal your Quarry? I’m sorry about that. Come on Komora they found it first, we should go!”

The girl, sounding more beast than the dog growled at the dog as she swallowed the gore raw.

Seeing as how she had no reaction. from the boy. She began to drag the mark away for her own consumption.

[exit]