Juu Sanshi
ChibiSchuldig
Long ago, there was a kingdom, ancient as the pounding sea... no
Yesterday, I woke out out of a dead sleep to find... hell no!
The truth is... it's not a good story. The truth is... I was walking through this meadow just outside of Barton, and to be honest, I wasn't paying much attention to what was lying in the deep, long grass. It was summer, and I was thinking more about how blue the sky was - and about how much the grass was making my nose itch - than about where my feet were going.
And...I tripped over a rock.
It could have happened to anyone. I'm a computer geek, NOT given to taking random walks through the meadow on any given day - it SHOULD have happened to someone else. I have allergies!
It happened to me.
I sat up to examine the gash on my knee, and I saw to my amazement that this was no ordinary stone. It was a huge, yellowish gem almost as big as my head! Even more strangely, the gem has a symbol cut into it, which looked vaguely familiar, though I didn't know what it meant, or where I'd seen it before.
Well, I figured I couldn't just leave that dangerous (*cough*valuable*cough*) object out in the middle of the field where just ANYONE could trip over it! So I picked it up and carried it home. It seemed to hum with a sort of vitality as I carried it, and it wasn't nearly as heavy as I would have expected from a chunk of rock that size.
Once I got home, I pulled out my kanji dictionary. I've been studying Japanese for years, and I was sure I'd seen that symbol before.
Sure enough, it means "light". Now what the heck does THAT mean?
Yesterday, I woke out out of a dead sleep to find... hell no!
The truth is... it's not a good story. The truth is... I was walking through this meadow just outside of Barton, and to be honest, I wasn't paying much attention to what was lying in the deep, long grass. It was summer, and I was thinking more about how blue the sky was - and about how much the grass was making my nose itch - than about where my feet were going.
And...I tripped over a rock.
It could have happened to anyone. I'm a computer geek, NOT given to taking random walks through the meadow on any given day - it SHOULD have happened to someone else. I have allergies!
It happened to me.
I sat up to examine the gash on my knee, and I saw to my amazement that this was no ordinary stone. It was a huge, yellowish gem almost as big as my head! Even more strangely, the gem has a symbol cut into it, which looked vaguely familiar, though I didn't know what it meant, or where I'd seen it before.
Well, I figured I couldn't just leave that dangerous (*cough*valuable*cough*) object out in the middle of the field where just ANYONE could trip over it! So I picked it up and carried it home. It seemed to hum with a sort of vitality as I carried it, and it wasn't nearly as heavy as I would have expected from a chunk of rock that size.
Once I got home, I pulled out my kanji dictionary. I've been studying Japanese for years, and I was sure I'd seen that symbol before.
Sure enough, it means "light". Now what the heck does THAT mean?
ChibiSchuldig
This morning, I was woken up by the sound of my gem CRACKING!! There's this big crazy crack down the front now, damnit! And it's starting to smoke... I wonder what's going to happen!
Satoshi
Schuldig has asked me to write a short treatise, explaining what, precisely, has transpired in my world, to precipitate my coming to yours.
Ah...he's asked me to "dumb down the language slightly". I apologize.
I am Satoshi, the ruler of the world of the Juusanshi, which our people have called Shisei. This world has a complex history, and an involved political structure, which I shall not go into here. There are thirteen types of Juusanshi, twelve of which correspond to the chinese system of the zodiac, which you are all familiar with. The thirteenth, the cats, are the rulers and the nobility of the world. The reason why the cats were left out of the Chinese zodiac is a mystery which I will be investigating in the future. I assure you.
In addition to the Juusanshi are the Tomoko, another race of intelligent beings who are more like the animals that you find on Earth. There are also 13 breeds of Tomoko, and they serve as familiars and companions to the Juusanshi.
And now that the explanation is out of the way, we come to the crux of the matter. Our world is dying.
Through forces that we do not yet fully understand, magic is leeching out of the world. The Juusanshi are spirit-beings; magic is our very nature. Without it, we cannot survive.
Through a great deal of research and experimentation, my people and I have determined a way to halt the slow death of our world. We must open up commerce with Earth. Those of us who are suffering the worst, must bond to humans and travel between here and Shisei.
Periodically, I will bring stones to this world, which are tied to a Juusanshi in Shisei. Once the Juusanshi is ready, the stone will crack and the Juusanshi will be summoned to your world, just as I was, and be bonded to the human who holds the stone. From then on, that Juusanshi will be able to travel freely between here and Shisei - and even bring others with him. He will help me to bring stones to Earth, and continue the healing of our people and our world.
Now I ask you, can you help us?
Ah...he's asked me to "dumb down the language slightly". I apologize.
I am Satoshi, the ruler of the world of the Juusanshi, which our people have called Shisei. This world has a complex history, and an involved political structure, which I shall not go into here. There are thirteen types of Juusanshi, twelve of which correspond to the chinese system of the zodiac, which you are all familiar with. The thirteenth, the cats, are the rulers and the nobility of the world. The reason why the cats were left out of the Chinese zodiac is a mystery which I will be investigating in the future. I assure you.
In addition to the Juusanshi are the Tomoko, another race of intelligent beings who are more like the animals that you find on Earth. There are also 13 breeds of Tomoko, and they serve as familiars and companions to the Juusanshi.
And now that the explanation is out of the way, we come to the crux of the matter. Our world is dying.
Through forces that we do not yet fully understand, magic is leeching out of the world. The Juusanshi are spirit-beings; magic is our very nature. Without it, we cannot survive.
Through a great deal of research and experimentation, my people and I have determined a way to halt the slow death of our world. We must open up commerce with Earth. Those of us who are suffering the worst, must bond to humans and travel between here and Shisei.
Periodically, I will bring stones to this world, which are tied to a Juusanshi in Shisei. Once the Juusanshi is ready, the stone will crack and the Juusanshi will be summoned to your world, just as I was, and be bonded to the human who holds the stone. From then on, that Juusanshi will be able to travel freely between here and Shisei - and even bring others with him. He will help me to bring stones to Earth, and continue the healing of our people and our world.
Now I ask you, can you help us?
The Ceremony
The three cats moved into the back room, carefully closing and locking the door and pulling the curtains securely closed.
...hours passed. Anyone listening at the door might have heard the sounds of chanting in any of the three voices, and sometimes in unison. Towards the end of the third hour, a crackling hum filled the shop, loud even through the heavy door.
The hum reached a pitch and then abruptly died as the energy they had pulled together was sucked instantly down the passage through space into Shisei.
When the door was opened, one could see that in one corner of the back room, a purple, twisting vortex now stood about a foot off the floor. It is the right height to easily step through, though it's impossible to see what lies on the other end.
...hours passed. Anyone listening at the door might have heard the sounds of chanting in any of the three voices, and sometimes in unison. Towards the end of the third hour, a crackling hum filled the shop, loud even through the heavy door.
The hum reached a pitch and then abruptly died as the energy they had pulled together was sucked instantly down the passage through space into Shisei.
When the door was opened, one could see that in one corner of the back room, a purple, twisting vortex now stood about a foot off the floor. It is the right height to easily step through, though it's impossible to see what lies on the other end.
