Disenchantment

"Well, I don't much have a choice but help you, you saved my life, and that's no laughing matter! But I know what you mean about the people not knowing who we are anymore. Usually people just laugh and think I'm drunk when I say I'm the God of the earth and mountains. I mean, usually I AM drunk when I say it, but you get my point. *sigh* Something needs to change, and in helping you on your quest, perhaps something will...yes, I owe you that much at least!" Ohoyagi strained in his current condition, but was just healthy enough at this point to change into his human form. He grabbed his massive hammer and struck it's top upon the ground, causing a tiny tremor. "By my hammer, I shall entrust myself to you until your quest has ended!"

"haha ohoyagi always going over the top" she said with a smile "but how about we rest for now hm? a nice sleep would be wooonderful... and we all know how much i love sleeping.. well.." she said and chuckled "haruko, maiko. you should rest too." kaguya curled into a bally inbetween ohoyagi and haruko to keep herself warm while she slept, even thought the fire was roaring infront of them

"i dont know if its possible but i think you grew a bunch too ohoyagi" she said sleepily as her eyes closed "its nice... to see a familiar face" she mumbled before drifting off


((you guys can continue but i need to hit the hay :/ last day of school is tomorro though~! yay!yayayyayayay! night guys!))

Maiko and Haruko both blinked when the boar turned into a guy, an incredibly tall and dangerous looking one at that. Even Maiko's eyes widdened at the hammer and she looked at Kaguya.
"And you trust this guy why?" She whispered to Kaguya and Haruko elbowed her to get her to shut up before Ohoyagi heard her.
"It;s good to have numbers when dealing with more of those demons." Haruko reminded her and Maiko flopped back onto the grass, completely ignoring her brother's comment.
"Rest sounds good for now, I'm beat." She huffed and Haruko wanted to laugh. It wasn't everyday Maiko was actually tired. Haruko yawned himself and felt himself drifting off to sleep when he laid down.

"That sounds like a good idea, It'll give me time to recover. Gnight Kaguya, Gnight...well actually, I don't know your names..." He looked at the two others who Kaguya had been traveling with and noticed that they were already half asleep. "Ah well, I suppose I'll find out tomorrow morning. For now...I think it's time...To hit the hay." As he lay down, his thoughts turned to Kaguya and her guardians, the strange black entity, and the road that lay ahead of him.

when kaguya felt her eyes flitter open she stretched out her front paws and blinked a few times. the sun was beaming down on her. she rolled onto her back to warm her tummy and fluff her fur that she had been laying on. she got up and squeezed out between ohoyagi and haruko. she limped past the fire that was now just letting off smoke and to the canteen. unfortunately she couldnt get it open with her paws or her teeth and sighed walking a little ways down the path to get some water from the stream. she lapped it up then crawled into it rubbing the stained blood fur against the rocks to scrub it clean. she got out and shook looking at her celestial stones. since there would only be a sliver of moon they had shrunken to a necklace around her neck and her small celestial wings had taken their place on her back. she sighed. 'no more fighting for me... its a good thing we found ohoyagi' she thought as she walked onto a sunny hill looking down at the three still sleeping. she let her fur dry as she looked down the road. it spiraled down into a small village by the beach and then headed inbetween a mountain pass where on the other side she could see the top ofthe imperial palace. "hmmm... we made good time so far... but this rest of the way if going to be tricky... especially that cold village on the mountains..." she mumbled to herself "ill find something to eat for the others" she thought after a moment trotting down the path once more looking up into the trees to see if they had any fruit. she sighed and then saw two villagers walking through the forest with weapons and she hid under a large tree root listening. they where mumbling about too much to carry and she looked up at the tree they where standing under. it was a dirty trick she was going to pull but... she had no other choice... right?

she disappeared using a cloak of stardust and reappeared on the branch above them where a behive hung. she wiggled it loose and it smashed down int he center of the two. she disappeared again reappeareing in the safety of her roots and watched as they dropped everything and ran for their lives. she came back out and went over to what they had dropped. a basket of fresh berries a rabbit and a few fish. that and the honey that had come from the hive. she smiled loading it up into the large sack she pulled with all her might barely moving it. by the time she got back to camp it was late noon as she pulled it to the fire "BREAKFAST" she said loud enough for them all to jolt awake

She didn't have to tell Maiko twice. She bolted up and instantly she was grinning at the food. "Whoa Haru look!" she nudged her brother and Haru woke with a start.
"What-what is it Mai?" he asked , looking around for any sign of danger. Instead he found Kaguya and the food. "Nice job Kaguya." he said, shocked that an injured fox could round up all of that. "I would have offered my help but, I don't think you need it." he smiled and looked over at Ohoyagi. Before Haruko could even say a word to him, Maiko was shaking the guy awake. "Hey earth guy, Kaguya got food!" she said loudly and looked up at Kaguya. "Take me with ya next time, will ya? I could get an awesome training session in just trying to chase down a rabbit." she giggled.

"Oyyyyy, It's way to early for this. Gimme another hour, I'm having a wonderful dream" Ohoyagi took one sniff of the food Kaguya had prepared and jolted up immediately. The dream about the drinking competition and the gorgeous female servers would have to wait. "Mmmmmm, I smell...fish is it? Oooh and rabbit! I haven't eaten since yesterday morning!" He happily grabbed an entire fish and downed it in one big chomp. "Ahhhh, I can feel myself getting stronger already! Almost at full strength now, just need a bit more time to heal. So, what's the plan for today? where are we heading? Imperial city right?"

"yes on our way to the imperial city... i dont know why the emporer has been so harsh lately... i think it may have to do with... some ... things" she said mulling them over in her head before sticking her head into the large basket of berries and taking a biteful. her mouth was stained a raspberry color and she laughed "mmm these are really tart!" she said with a giggle licking the juice off her face curling herself around the burnt out fire again "soon after the festival... its going to snow... i just have that feeling" she said "i hope to be in god form by then" she wished alloud and looked at haruko and maiko "you needed your rest... haruko? you going to eat?" she asked still chuckling at ohoyagi's bright spirit

"your going to get a tummy ache ohoyagi! dont forget to chew your food!

"Ha! I'm not some little pansy who needs to cut every meal into tiny little pieces! One time I ate 2 whole cooked chickens in a single bite, bones and all!" Ohoyagi wondered at what she meant about the emperor. He hadn't really been up to date on current events in a while, usually he just traveled from bar to tavern to pub, all the while simply enjoying himself. He didn't care for whatever was going on in the news, usually it was just politics that would be gone in another hundred years that wouldn't even affect him. "Now, I seem to be a bit out of the loop with what's going on with you guys, and apparently with the world. Any of you care to get me up to speed?"

"well. seems theres been an outbreak of demons... we ran into two yesterday... first a scroll demon... then that last one... i havent seem before." she said taking a bite of a piece of fish. "there is this horrible funk hanging over the city... ive heard talk of sickness outbroken there... ive also heard that the drawbridge has been pulled up and they arent allowing anyone to leave or enter.... the emporer would never do that, normally" she said with a sigh "i want to beleive that the start of this outbreak is in the city... because if i dont get to the imperial city by the festival i may never get back to my god form. i was attacked with a royal curse. i cant get ride of it with regular magic or medicines... and its keeping me as weak as possible. you as wella s i know the only way to get ride of a royal curse is to kill the demon who sent for you. my gut tells me it was the one in the city." she said gritting her teeth at how foolish she had been to attack the curse.

"Hmmmm, so all we need to do is break into the imperial city, find a demon, and kill it, right? seems like an easy enough job. And that always means it's gonna be way more complicated than that." Ohoyagi imagined himself smashing down the drawbridge, killing the demon, and being declared the mighty hero of the city, and a big reward of all the food, money, ale, and women he could ask for. the thought made him break out into a smile. "So then, What are we waiting for?! Let's get going! Kaguya, wipe the raspberry off your mouth and get ready, and the same goes to you two as well! We've got a mission now, and that means I'm gonna get to finally have some fun! It's been ages since i took up on a journey with an actual purpose to it, and I'M FEELING EXCITED! AHAHAHAHA!"

Maiko liked the way Ohoyagi was thinking and tossed her food over her shoulder and patted her sword. "Sounds like a plan." she smiled and Haruko frowned in thought.
'Draw bridges have gaurds...if this is going to turn out like Kaguya thinks, this place being the start of some sort of sickness, things are going to get messy fast.' he thought and noticed Kaguya's berry mouth and smiled. "Here." he swiped a cloth that Maiko used to use to polish her katana and wiped her mouth off.
"But how far are we from the imperial city? All I see is mountains." Haruko asked as he pulled the cloth away looking at Maiko who shrugged.

"through the mountain pass... basically the only way through is to go over them. i dont want to go through the pass... no light ever shines through it, its nothing but danger and i would prefer to go the long way and be a bit safer" she stated and rolled her eyes at ohoyagi then felt heat brush to her face when haruko wipped her mouth off "ah... thank you" she said and gave a small smile as they started to walk. "ohoyagi... this is a very DELECATE situation" kaguya tried to explain "the kind that prohibits from the brutal destruction and or beating of the palace and its people. remember this place is still a house to gods. it just has some unwelcome guests. and if this sickness is a curse then these poor people are dangerous and hostile but its out of fear. we are GODS its our job to protect the people the best way possible. we will sneak in. find the problem... dispose of it as quickly and quitely as we can... then ... i suppose there isnt really a whole bunch more work after that" she stated thinking about how nice it would be to lounge on silk pillows while her leg healed.

"first stop though... the fishing village... ahhh i havent seen the ocean in such a long time! i wonder if suijin still lurks the waters near here... ah he was always so pleasent to talk to. the moon and the water have a strong bond. without the moon the water would not travel..." she said and smiled brightly beaming at this thought as the ocean glistened on the horizon. you could even see the large stone dock sticking out into the ocean. but something was off. as soon as they got far enough to see the village all there was was a shadow cast over the town with a red aura over it. indeed it reminded of kaguya of sickness... but not a mortal sickness. she looked toward the ocean. a few of the ships had wrecked and where scattered in the rocks just out to sea of them.

as the hours grew and they drew closer her side became more painfil. till finally she had to stop to keep her paws from trembling as she walked. "lets rest for a moment" she said brightly not letting on. "this seems like a good stopping point for today" she said trotting off the path in search of water. the water would do her good.

"Hmmm, this can't be good. What's wrong with that village?" Ohoyagi had been worrying through the entire walk. Not only was he worried about little Kaguya's illness, and the fact that he'd have to figure out whether it'd be easier to be stealthy and quiet as a 9 foot tall man with a colossal warhammer or a boar as big as a house, but now he was worried about the state of the village ahead of him. "Bah, I guess we'll find out soon enough. What do you guys think it is?"

"If I had to guess, it looks like the same stuff that came out of the demon that was killed earlier." Haruko said and Maiko shivered slightly at the sight of the ships.
"I can't see anything in there very well....it's like fog but creepier." Maiko said and Haruko noticed her hand trembling. If Maiko was scared, Haruko already had a horrible feeling about this place.

kaguya curled herself into the tightest ball she could next to the waters edge breathing heavily. it had been a while since she had been in that amount of pain. most of it had been cushioned by the fact her precious moon had been giving her more strength but... not anymore.



((yayayayayay! off of school!! woot woot!))

"Kaguya's been gone a while." Maiko said and stood little taller. "And to be honest I'd rather get in and get out of this place quickly." She added but didn't make a move to take her eyes off the village. Haruko forwned at Maiko's unease and nodded to himself with the knowledge she was hinting at him going to find her.
"I'll be back in a bit." He said and walked off where he'd seen Kaguya leave. When he stumbled upon her by the waters edge he picked up his pace towards her. "Kaguya, what's wrong?" He asked noticing how she looked like she was in pain and lots of it. "It isn't your leg is it?" He mentally kicked himself for letting her walk on her injured foot all this way.

"no im fine" she said getting back up "just... really weak" she mumbled "honestly.. its my side. i havent been inthis type of pain in so long... i must have forgotten how miserable it really is. but no matter we have to go on so" she said but her words about moving forward were strained and uneasy "the quicker we get ride of the darkness ahead the better rest i will be able to get" she added but only made it to his shoes before she laid down again "um... i know this may seem a bit silly but... would you mind giving me a hand" she asked a little embarrased

Haruko gave her a look that didn't quite show his true concern and picked Kaguya up. She wasn't heavy like most canines her size and to his luck the rumors of touching a god turned mere mortals to dust was a lie. He smiled a little to himself at the thought and made his way back to the others.
"Kay, are you guys ready to leave?" Maiko asked quickly and took a small step back to hopefully let the gods go first.

"Yeah, Let's do this!" Despite his worries, Ohoyagi was excited to finally be going into the town. He wondered at what awaited them, maybe a decently challenging fight! "Alright, guys, let's finally find out what's going on. I'm excited! You guys think it's demons? Or maybe a small band of thieves? or maybe pirates! Ah, who cares, we'll find out soon enough!"

kaguya chuckled at ohoyagi's enthusiasm. she did indeed think it was demons aswell... no pirates could cause a curse like that. kaguya yawned as she laid her head against haruko's arm while he carried her. she had to admit it was nice. his body heat kept her warm and he wasnt crushing her to death. by the time they got to the outskirts of the fishing town she took in a breath. all of the plants and trees that were in the dark fog was dead. "ohoyagi..." she said looking at all of the destruction "rejuvinating a small section of earth is one thing but i dont think i have enough celestial power to rejuvinate the entire village" she said looking at the demonic fog hanging over the village. "the villagers!" kaguyas heart dropped and she lept from haruko's hands running straight into the fog. it was a blast of weight and she felt her celestial power being burned away. she ran into the village and looked around. the towns people where gray and walking around aimlessly. her heart went out to the poor things. they where like mindless zombies under this fog. before her celestial power was completely gone she ran to the middle of the town and cleared a small patch of the fog away so she could sit and rest for a moment, gain some of that power and try to clear some of the fog off the populated area.

"Wow...This is different. Who's responsible for this!?" Ohoyagi was furious. These people were simply villagers, there was no honor in doing this to people who couldn't even defend themselves. Something had to be done, but he didn't know what. "Alright, who did this!? Come out here and face me, you coward! You guys think he's still here, or maybe he's left these people to their fate?"

“Kaguya-wait!” Maiko called after her and Haruko went forward to follow but she put a hand on his arm. He looked at her and the two watched Ohoyagi’s reaction before their eyes were trained on the village. “come on there’s no sense standing here.” She said, taking a deep breath before she hurried into the fog. Fear flashed through Haruko’s features as he jogged to catch up with her.
“Maiko get back here! We don’t know what this sickness thing is capable of-“ He called after her but couldn’t see her very well in the fog. He brushed a hand across an area to clear it with some of his wind but nothing happened. He frowned in confusion trying again and again till he heard someone shriek.
Maiko had smacked into one of the villagers and was on the ground, visibly shaken by the sight. “Wh-what happened to them?” She said when she felt her brother’s hands pulling her to her feet.
The two looked around now lost in the fog and Maiko gulped. “We should find Kaguya and Ohoyagi…” Haruko said to her and they began to wander through the village in search of the others.

"Hah, this fog, is thick. Where is..." Ohoyagi turned around quickly and suddenly noticed there was no one standing next to him. He was alone in this unbearable fog, stranded from the others. He was worried about their safety; with Kaguya's injured state, and the other two being mere humans, he felt that they were in danger without him around. "Guys! Hang on! I'm coming!" He charged through the fog, hoping for a sign of the others, but it was no use. The only thing he could see was the occasional group of the villagers, who had fallen to the curse of this village. "Hmmmm, where are they... I gotta find them before they get themselves into trouble. Guys! Don't worry! I'm coming to save you!" He continued to search hopelessly, fear gripping him, for the safety of Kaguya and the others was in jeopardy.

Haruko heard someone shouting and guessed it was Ohoyagi looking for someone. "Hey Mai, we should maybe-" He paused when he looked back at where Maiko was suposed to be but instead found open space. "Maiko?!" he called but got no response. He was alone in the lower part of town.
Maiko had caught sight of a figure in the fog then followed it till she found Kaguya. "Kaguya!" she whirled around to tell haruko she found Kaguya but he wasn't there.