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Old 01-12-2014, 12:09 AM   #1
Doppleganger
我が名は勇者王!
 
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Jinsei wa Hikikomogomo!

Jinsei wa Hikikomogomo! // 人生は悲喜交交!
Copyright © 2014 UPNDoppleganger
Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

...

Prologue

-Visions of the Future-

"Batteries?"

My voice sounded jarringly loud, but that was likely because the thicket was so quiet. Few animals would be found this deep in the woods during the dead of night, especially with four predators making noises out in the open. We are well isolated from prying eyes or curious ears, with only the moon looking down on our conference.

"Yes. That's the closest item I can think of worthy of a suitable analogy." said Eunectes. The huge man raised his arm from his waist, palm up in a welcoming motion, knowing he was speaking to a notorious skeptic.

"Consider an object, be it a car, phone, or toy. From your perspective, when seeing such an object, what do you immediately think of, Katsuyuki?"

Where's he going with this?

"If it's a car, phone, or toy, it'll obviously look like a car, phone, or toy to me. How it looks is how I know what it really is."

"Are appearances only what matter?" asked Eunectes.

I thought for a moment. Just a moment.

"What you're getting at is that the appearance is only one aspect of an object, and that there's much beneath the surface that makes an object 'an object'?"

"Yes, exactly." Eunectes beamed.

"It helped that you lead me in by mentioning 'batteries'. Afterall, a battery is usually not visible on the outside, but it's an integral part of making an object what it is."

Eunectes sat down on a stump. He didn't have to say it, but I could tell he was thinking "Go on". Typical teacher attitude, wanting the student to spell out the answers so he could lazily take credit for the insight. I'm the only one generating Blue Prana, here.

"So? Where are you going with this?"

Eunectes slapped his knees.

"Katsuyuki!" he roared. "What is more important, the battery or the object?"

No need to be so loud.

"The object, naturally." I replied.

"Batteries can be easily replaced, and they're simpler and more compact than the object they're powering. Usually. Take the car: automobiles are expensive, but the component pieces are relatively cheap. That's why people have their cars repaired rather than buy new ones when the components die. When it comes to phones, often the battery itself costs almost the same as the phone, so it's cheaper overall to just buy a new one rather than have the battery replaced."

"But you can buy a new battery, can you not?" Eunectes asked.

"Well, yeah. I don't see why you would, though."

"But you can. Why would companies provide that opportunity?"

The giant rocket back and forth, gripping his knees with his huge hands. Out of the corner of my eye I spied Hannah leaning on a tree some distance away, not looking at us but listening intently. She normally tunes out what this loudmouth has to say, so maybe...

"Think about that for a moment, Katsuyuki. I know you're smart so a moment should be all you need."

The moment came and went.

"I give up. Explain."

"Sentimentality."

"Is that all?" I frowned. Not this delusional bullshit again.

"Katsuyuki, you are practical man. Selling individual batteries isn't a good business idea for the manufacturer or retailer. Wouldn't you think that, if the world were populated by no one but Katou Katsuyukis, no one would ever buy an individual battery?"

"That just means that there's a lot of fools out there who pay premiums for objects with diminished utility. That's the only way a market like that could sustain itself."

Eunectes smiled. It was a pretty creepy smile, the kind that a predator makes when its cornered its prey and is going in for the kill. I imagine that if Eunectes were born human and not an Ophidian, he'd be making a difference expression right now, but that one is the only one he knows to fit this scenario.

"What if I told you that those fools were not indulging in fantasy, but the truth of this world?"

"What truth?" I asked.

"Katsuyuki, do you believe in the afterlife?"

"No."

"I'm not religious at all, if there was a God my brother wouldn't have been killed."

"But you do believe in fate."

Fate. Yes, that abhorrent concept that drove me to pursue any means to avoid predestination. I reached to my waist and lightly gripped the Cosmic Compass, the symbol of my struggle against it.

"Yes and no. Fate is real. There is no belief involved, no skepticism required."

"What would you do if I told you there is an afterlife?" Eunectes smiled. What a wicked smile. I could just imagine a rabbit's pupils dilating at the sight of that grin staring at it from a swamp.

"I wouldn't believe you, naturally. There's no proof either way."

"I anticipated as much. You are quite the stubborn man. But I know that's just your approach, and not your attitude."

I grimaced. He continued.

"You pursued the legend of the haunted house despite not believing in ghosts. When you finally met a ghost, you accepted it

"The fact is, Katsuyuki, all manipulation of causation is founded on some faith. You have to believe in what you are observing to recognize "evidence", and then be confident enough in the causal rules to replicate the phenomenon at a critical time."

"If you did not have faith in your magic, could you cast spells?"

"No, I'd rely on something else."

"What if I said your magic was just a series of coincidences, a sinister demon playing a trick on you, and from now on your spells will always fail?"

I smiled. What a dumb invitation!

"There's only one way to find out, Eunectes."

I pointed my finger at him. His face turned into the moon.

"Mahou-"

"WAIT ONE SECOND!" He got up and waved his hands, signaling he didn't want to be fried from point blank range.

Not that I blame him.

"Joking."

"Whew." he collapsed on the stump. There's no way he'd die from this, but he'd definitely be in a world of hurt. I still have to teach them how to use the spell, although I think Hannah already figured it out.

"You scared me there. For a moment, I thought I saw my God."

"Don't tell me your God is the afterlife you were hinting about?"

"No."

Eunectes leaned forward.

"My God, Dark Eclipse, is literally that. He isn't a supernatural diety like what humans believe in, he is a fully natural creator being. He fathered the ancestors of the Ophidians and taught us many things."

"Then he ate your sun?"

Eunectes closed his eyes and gave a solemn expression. Looks like I hit a sensitive spot.

"Katsuyuki, referring back to the battery and the object...let's take the example of a phone."

"Alright."

"You and the phone spend six years together, and then the battery dies. You replace the battery. Is it the same phone?"

"Of course it is."

"It is not!" says with his typical enthusiasm.

"I know what you're referring to. The Ship of Theseus, right?"

Eunectes looks surprised. He shouldn't be...this is pretty textbook stuff.

"Plutarch was the first to propose the idea, using the analogy of a ship. If a ship has its parts replaced, overtime all of the original will be superseded by the new pieces. He then asks if the ship could still be called the original."

"And what do you think?" asks Eunectes.

"It's definitely the same. The new components became one with the original 'ship' the moment they were integrated into the hull. It doesn't matter what the original material was at that point, it's all part of the 'ship'. It's no different from how an infant is the same person as an adult."

Eunectes gives a complex expression. I don't know what to make of it, but my gut tells me he's pleased with the direction of this conversation.

"Your analogy is misplaced. The infant and adult are very different from the ship example."

"Oh?"

"Listen, Katsuyuki. I am about to tell you something that is well known within the Ophidian society, as it is our understanding of how the afterlife functions. You need to keep an open mind, can you promise me that?"

"No promises."

"I expected as much. As you wish. In the end, it will be up to you to decide whether I speak the truth or not. But I am interested in seeing how you will react."

I'm interested, too. Stop beating around the bush already.

"Referring back to the phone, let us divide the phone into two components: the phone, and the battery."

I nodded.

"When the battery dies, it is replaced and the user treats the phone just as they did before the replacement. But when the phone itself dies, the battery is not saved, it is thrown away with the original phone, even if it is still useful."

His use of replacing the battery continues to annoy me. The phone doesn't have any value on its own, while the battery can be used in other phones and other electronics. It's the more valuable component, so while I can believe stupid people throw away the whole thing, it's in their best interest to salvage the battery in case their new one is defective and dies prematurely.

"You are probably thinking the battery has more utility than the phone, and I agree in principle. But the reality is both are equally important."

...huh.

"Katsuyuki. Why do humans consider the battery disposable, replaceable, even if it's the more integral part of the phone? Why would they throw it away when they buy a new phone?"

Good question. I'd say because it isn't visible. When people look at a phone, they don't take the battery or CPU into consideration when they think phone. They only reflect on the outward appearance, its functionality, and the UI.

"It's because the battery is hidden." I say.

"Correct." replies Eunectes.

"Human beings, and all sentient, are biased toward their senses and experiences derived from the senses. When a man sees a woman, he only acknowledges she is beautiful or ugly. He has no way of discerning anything else about her beyond her physical appearance."

"Yet, would you not consider such factors as personality, history, and social status relevant in pursuing a mate? Men have no way of knowing this, but they still tend to avoid ugly women in favour of the beautiful. All those factors, while just as important as physical beauty, are judged secondary to the skin because they cannot be interpreted with the basic senses."

I nodded. Makes sense to me. There's probably a marginal difference in the quality of sex between an ugly girl and a hot babe, assuming their faces were different but their body types are similar. But guys would rarely go for an ugly girl if they weren't desperate. Humans place a lot of value on physical appearance, what they can see with their own eyes.

I got the feeling Eunectes was going to relate this back to "non-sensory belief" somehow, although I'm not sure how he'll do it.

"The phone," continues Eunectes, "is an existence defined by both the battery and its outer shell. It would be easier if I described this in terms of a phone's microchip, with all of the stored memory and call history recorded...but the real world is more similar to the battery than the chip."

"When either the phone or the battery dies, the original existence that was defined by that phone ends. It continues to exist only in the memory of its owner. Replace either the phone, or the battery, and it is technically a different existence from the original, although in the case of the unseen battery change, it is treated as the original."

"So is the battery the soul, and the phone the body?" I asked.

"You're on the right track, although 'souls' do not exist. We refer to the battery as 'subjectivity'."

Subjectivity. The ability to express judgment and evaluate on and reflect upon the empirical universe.

"Like 'souls', subjectivity is immortal, although not in the way you would anticipate. A subjective existence cannot acknowledge its own end. Once a specific subjectivity it finds a system capable of supporting its unique sense of self, it will maintain that sense of self until the system cannot support itself any longer."

"Basically death."

"No and yes." smiles Eunectes.

"It is not exclusively death. Anything that interrupts continuous subjective perception will change that system's sense of subjectivity."

A chill ran up my spine.

You can't really blame me, that's a pretty scary concept. It's like going to sleep and waking up as a different person. But when we sleep, our brains do not turn off, so a situation where the brain isn't functioning for a period of time would mean that the original subjectivity would be lost.

Eunectes apparently detected my agitation, because his lecture continued on with a not-so-subtle air of obvious amusement.

"Katsuyuki, if you were to die here, and I were to resurrect you, you would not be the same person."

He confirms my fears.

"To me, you would be identical. You would have the same memories, and act in the same way, with the same abilities. But the subjectivity would be different. The 'you' speaking to me now would not inhabit your resurrected body. In other terms, you would be like a plane with a new pilot."

An interesting theory, I guess.

"So how is this connected to the afterlife?" I asked.

"I already explained that a subjective existence cannot recognize its own end. It can only exist, continually reflecting on itself or the world it inhabits. As a result, if your current system, whatever the form, cannot support your existence any longer, your subjectivity will jump to a system that can."

He just said a mouthful. I need to slow him down.

"Two things, Eunectes." I raised my hand to motion him to stop.

"First, you said 'whatever the form'. Does that imply that robots can express subjectivity, too?"

"Yes, it does."

Makes sense. Robots and humans are both a type of machine. There's no reason a big bag of chemicals should be more special than a hulking box of metal.

"Second...what you're proposing is basically reincarnation. So, when I die, or if something happens to interrupt my sense of existence, my subjectivity will permanently jump to something like, a bug?"

"It is different from reincarnation." says Eunectes.

How?

"Hinduism ascribes a moral theme to their interpretation of reincarnation, in how actions taken in the past life determine where one goes in the next. That is not true at all."

"It is random."

I was surprised. This isn't like any afterlife concept I'm familiar with, except maybe vaguely similar to Calvinistic Christianity - you know, the brand that says you are damned from birth, and nothing you can do can change that fate?

Unsurprisingly, I hated that concept. And I'm none too fond of Eunectes' afterlife, either.

"So you're basically saying your next life is predetermined for you?" I asked him.

"No. The complete opposite."

"What?"

"The laws of probability determine where your subjectivity continues. When you die, or cease function, your subjectivity enters the void - we use the term merely to describe an interim where subjectivities spend time before they resume function. To the existence itself, the time spent in the void is never recognized."

"You spend time in the void until a new system opens up that can support your sense of subjectivity. That system can be anywhere in the universe...or even outside of it, in other universes."

Wait...parallel worlds?

"You mean parallel worlds?"

"Correct, Katsuyuki. The time-space of the multiverse is a closed loop, with subjectivities leaving the void like the central hub of a bus station, jumping into capable systems in both the past and future, across different dimensions."

"This is the only way objective time travel is possible." says Eunectes.

"As you know, the artifact in your possession, the Cosmic Compass, is capable of subjective time travel. But in both time travel cases, causality cannot be violated. It can only flow into the future. So for objective time travel to work, your subjectivity at the time of your death must have a capable system in a past, somewhere in the endless sea of time."

"And when your subjectivity tranfers over, nothing from your past life is retained. Nothing. Carl Jung be damned, the world doesn't work like that."

I gulped.

"Your memories are tied to your brain. They are neurological impulses recorded chemically and electrically. They are not connected to your subjectivity in any way beyond how your subjectivity is influenced by them. Hence, if you were to die right now and be resurrected, the new Katsuyuki would act exactly like you."

"In fact, he would be indistinguishable. I might even like him better, ha ha ha!"

That a fact, big man? I scowled at him.

"That's what I love about you, kid! You know how to take a joke!"

This isn't a time for jokes, I was really into your story, dammit.

"So I still don't get how this isn't tied to fate." I said.

"The fate your dislike so much is the weaker force, Katsuyuki. It is second in power to the Fifth Dimension, probability."

Fifth dimension?

"What do you mean?"

"There are three spatial dimensions, and one temporal. Acting on that further is a probabilistic one."

"Your idea of there being a grand plan in place, where all humans cannot deviate from that plan, is mistaken. Rather, your current state of existence is the result of random chance...where either the previous host of your subjectivity died right as 'Katou Katsuyuki' was gestating, or the gestating Katsuyuki gave rise to a brand new sense of subjectivity."

It was then that I realized what he was getting at. I was shaking at my core, as to acknowledge this is a rejection of everything I've been fighting for until now.

My idea of changing "fate" wasn't to change a cruel, predetermined plan, because no such plan exists. The default state of the universe is one ruled by probability. I wasn't born because it was fate, but purely due to chance. All this time, I was not fighting against the will of a God I never believed in, but the entropic chaos in the absence of God.

"So, the Cosmic Compass...the artifact that gives one the ability to control my own fate." I began.

"It actually doesn't change fate, it creates fate as a means of resisting the effects of probability?"

"The Cosmic Compass is a fairy artifact," Eunectes admitted. "I do not have much knowledge about its powers, but from my understanding of the universe. that is how it functions."

Alright...looks like the story's almost over. Let's see if I got everything.

"To summarize," I started. "What you're saying is that there is no soul, there is just a 'subjectivity' independent of memories and experiences, a obscured battery that makes life complete. This subjectivity is jumping all over time and space, in the future, past, and in alternate realities to any system that can support it, creating a sense of perpetual existence."

Eunectes nodded.

"And..." I continued, "Where that subjectivity lands is due entirely to random chance, a supernatural process we cannot measure or manipulate. If two systems capable of supporting my subjectivity exist at the same time, I would be unpredictably assigned to one of them."

Eunectes nods again.

"Is that all?"

"There is more." he admitted.

"Remember when I said there was objective time travel? This means that you, Katou Katsuyuki could reincarnate as yourself at the time of your gestation, when you first began to support your own subjectivity."

Time loop theory, huh?

"Why's that?" I asked. I had an idea anyway but I was getting tired of asking, and this booming man didn't look winded at all.

"The system 'Katou Katsuyuki' is capable of supporting your own subjectivity. It's only natural that, if your subjectivity was available and your system 'vacant', it would be a viable candidate for containing you again. You would reawaken in your original body, but without any memories or experience from the previous run through your life."

"How common is this?" I asked.

"Very rare, in fact. To return to the same universe you once inhabited, immediately after you die, is an extremely unlikely event in our probabilistic universe."

Eunectes pointed his finger in the air.

"Have you hear of Jesus of Nazareth?"

Well, duh.

"Yes, I have."

"Also known as Jesus Christ, he is famed for returning from the dead back to the world of the living."

"His resurrection was widely acknowledged as a miracle and evidence he was the Son of God."

"I don't believe that story, obviously."

Though I'm leaning toward it more than I did about thirty minutes ago.

"I believe it plausible, although we have no means of proving it. It is fairly easy to reanimate a corpse. It is less likely, but still possible to give that corpse a sense of subjectivity."

"But...for the same subjectivity to return to the same universe, to the same body, a mere three days after death...that would indeed be miraculous, for it would mean manipulation of probability, which is strictly in the domain of God."

I reached for the Cosmic Compass. The domain of God, huh?

"Eunectes. Your story is needlessly grim and depressing. How is this knowledge of the afterlife relevant to me? All I'm taking from it is that I cannot die."

Eunectes sighed. "We've had a long chat, it is almost time to retire. So I will get straight to the point."

You should have done that from the start.

"Probability can be opposed, in a small way. That is accomplished by true love."

Love?

"When a subjectivity is anchored to a person, it can interact with other people. Interaction with others is the only way that the subjectivity can be affected, would you not agree?"

Considering subjectivity are pretty much off-limits in the void, that's the only plausible explanation.

"Like with the brain, a subjectivity can store information, albeit very small amounts - these are bonds formed with other subjectivities. If a human loving a human is analogous to a phone connecting with a phone, a subjectivity loving a subjectivity is equivalent to a battery loving a battery.

"That is abstract." I admitted.

"Yes, so you can imagine it doesn't happen every often. The bond is only strong enough to resist probability if it is mutual, and with how humans and other sentients have evolved, they do not even consider the subjectivity as an essential part of a person, so they are unlikely to establish the necessary bond."

"But it can happen...in a case of true love, between two people only, where the bond is at its most powerful. Where a man loves a person's whole, the phone and the battery, and recognizes the battery as an essential part of the person. Consider a comatose man and his wife. The two loved one another superficially at some point, but then the man became comatose."

"Right," I interrupted. "There is no benefit to the woman in a practical sense to take care of the vegetable. He can't love her back, and he is nothing but a burden to her. Her life is wasted taking care of him".

I said it with a straight face, but those words felt very heavy to me. It's too cruel even for someone as utilitarian as myself to discard another life for a sense of convenience...society is so reprehensible now because humans are treated so superficially, no differently from phones.

"Let us assume the man is conscious, but has no way of telling his wife that." says Eunectes. "The wife cares for the man in spite of his coma, and the man recognizes that the wife is looking past his physical appearance and caring about the man inside him. In this case, the man now exhibits true love for his wife, and visa versa - the wife loves the man within his broken flesh, and the man loves the wife who looks past his broken body."

It's a sketchy scenario - why would the wife love the comatose man's subjectivity - but I get what Eunectes is saying, and the difficulty of establishing a mutual bond is pretty clear to me. The man in the example becomes aware of his subjectivity in seeing how his wife treats him despite his disability.

Ah...

"So Eunectes, in telling me about the subjectivity, now that I'm aware of it, does this make it easier for me to make a bond with someone?"

Eunectes smiled. He looked like my Dad for a second there.

"Is that Blue Prana I see spraying from your head, Katsuyuki?"

I looked up. So it is. Blue Prana emission is stimulated by a sense of understanding, and after this lecture I felt quite wiser than I was going into it.

Still, there was one thing that needed explaining. I stood up, and Eunectes did the same.

"Eunectes...what exactly is the purpose of the bond you spoke of?"

Eunectes put his hands behind his back, his cape concealing everything but his biceps.

"When you die," he began, "Connected subjectivities seek each other out. If your subjectivity lands in one universe, the chances are much greater that your mate will follow you to that universe, and land in a place where she can meet you again in a compatible sex and species."

"How much is the probability improved?"

"NOT MUCH!" bellowed Eunectes. He began a deep bellied laugh.

"Probability is almost all-powerful, this is but a small defiance, an ant standing up to an unstoppable deluge. There are many circumstances that must be overcome to recreate the original love that formed the bond. They must reincarnate as the same species, in the same area, in compatible ages. They must survive to adulthood and meet. It's very unlikely even if they land in the same universe, but the concept is a small star of hope in the black sea of the sky."

"Eunectes," I laughed. "Who do you think we are? Hope? My magic thrives on the power of despair. That kind of hope does nothing for me."

That was a lie, surprisingly. I did feel better about ordinary humans - or any sentients, in theory - being able to resist the overwhelming power of the universal forces which conspire to destroy and terrorize us. I am the only human in any reality or across time who possesses the Cosmic Compass, but before I obtained it I was an ordinary human, too. That humans can love each other in such a way as to overcome their 'fate'...there's no way I could hate that story, even if I'm supposed to be the villain.

I then noticed Hannah had left for home ages ago, and Mambamaru had ceased his patrols not long after. Even if this is review to them, they're still lazy gits. I'll have to think up a delicious deviant punishment for both of them tomorrow during lunch.

"That's enough for tonight, Eunectes. Come on, let's go home."

Eunectes walked up to me and put his huge hand on my shoulder. He leaned in close.

"Katsuyuki...do you know why I told you this story?"

Certainly not for the stupid reason you're about to bring up, I assure you, Eunectes.

"Because I'm curious about everything and you felt I'd like it?"

"NO, not at all." he grinned.

"I want you to get a girlfriend, and make a 'bond' with her...since you know what I mean."

Haah. This again?

"When I was your age, I had already fathered twenty five broods. Yet you are still unknown to a woman, despite your numerous chances with the Bitter Sweets."

Boy this guy can be annoying!

"Alright, shaddap Eunectes. I've heard enough for now."

"HA HA HA, is a joke, Katsuyuki."

Kind of a half and half, really.

As we waded through the dark forest, the city came back into view, and we started leaping our way back home. On the way, and in my bed that night, I reflected on the long lecture as my heavy eyelids started to close.

"The wife cares for the man in spite of his coma, and the man recognizes that the wife is looking past his physical appearance and caring about the man inside him. In this case, the man now exhibits true love for his wife..."

Eunectes' words rang in my head.

Really, it was the woman who was special in that case. She loves the guy independently of his looks and status, which are rock bottom since he's in a coma.

Our society isn't founded on Eunectes' theory of the afterlife, but it values women like that no less than the Ophidians do. I can't imagine someone as evil as myself finding a fitting bride...I'm definitely not worthy of someone that virtuous and pure.

But...

I wouldn't dislike meeting someone like that.

If she exists, somewhere in this world.

-Visions of the Future-

~End~
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Last edited by Doppleganger; 09-17-2014 at 04:57 AM.
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Old 04-05-2014, 02:54 AM   #2
Doppleganger
我が名は勇者王!
 
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Jinsei wa Hikikomogomo! // 人生は悲喜交交!
Copyright © 2014 UPNDoppleganger
Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

History of the Marmalade Kingdom

As of this writing, the Marmalade Kingdom has stood for nearly two centuries and is facing what might be its ultimate end. The founding principles that have maintained the peace and prosperity over these decades have been crushed under the heel of tyranny. I will not survive this night, as we philosophers of the conclave are to be executed as a threat to this emerging regime. I leave this text then, to whatever future generations or other races who can read it, as a monument to Marmalade's legacy and what we were able to accomplish that no other civilization could.

I will begin by shamefully admitting that the glorious peace we created was baptized in a font filled with blood. We fairies have had many civilizations over our long history, but competition for scarce resources due to tremendous population tore apart nations and governments, families and friends. Perhaps it is a remnant of our evolution, but we fairies were never able to curb our biological fecundity, and as technology advanced, our quality of life worsened.

Fairies have always had an unusual ability, compared against the other life forms that once inhabited our world before we drove them to extinction. We have the ability to transform into nearly anything we desire - trees, buildings, or even other fairies. It was a skill that defies any sort of evolutionary pressure, as there were nothing in a fairy's body that was capable of initiating it. It merely happened, and we couldn't explain why. Needless to say, from antiquity through that time, philosophers had been interested in it and how it worked.

My colleagues and I unlocked the secret. We stood on the shoulders of giants, building on the accumulated work of our forefathers, but we discerned the nature of the transformation - innate magic - and discovered the rules of magic and the existence of prana. This knowledge is what changed the world, because now fairies had an escape. A means of escaping the appetites of the Material, to nail scarcity upon a tree of bounty. Magic allowed fairies to create whatever they desired purely from emotion, and it was our desire to create a country like the one of our youths, but free of the violence and chaos that haunted our adulthood.

All fairies can transform, but few demonstrated the aptitude for learned magic needed to guide our infant civilization. We gathered as many candidates as we could and taught our secrets - many failed, and of those who succeeded, many more left our conclave with the knowledge, seeking to conquer the world with the power they had unlocked. We were unconcerned. "Let those who do not agree with our vision destroy themselves and others." We could not save everyone, so we saved who we could.

There were several hundred among our number in the conclave when we decided to form the kingdom. We traveled to a distance land, with verdant fields, clear water and virgin forests, enticing followers as we went with the amnesties we created through our own power. By the time we reached the Land of Milk and Honey, we had a parish of over 100,000 fairies who shared our vision. In one night, we build the Topaz City and gave every future subject a house and food.

The conclave then met to discuss governance. It was agreed that through our struggles and selectivity, the conclave was united in its goal toward the best interests of the people. We wanted them to own property. We wanted them to have children, and to experience what life had to offer. We wanted them to not experience the conflicts brought about by scarcity that lead to the destruction of our world. All of us possessed the power and wisdom to be a ruler, but united we were closer to that of a God. Omnipresent, and all-powerful. Decisions would be made as a group, but a kingdom needs a king, a single recognizable ruler for which the subjects can invest their loyalties into. The fairy we selected was Custard, who was agreed to be the most skilled and wise among the skilled and wise. He became Custard, the Philosopher King, and we became the nobility, the bureau who would safeguard the people of the Marmalade Kingdom forever.

Or so we had thought. Using our own magic, we were able to extend our lives far beyond what a normal fairy could ever hope to see, but even as our bodies didn't age, our minds grew weary. We would occasionally be attacked by rogue bands of fairies in the wastelands, often minions of those who left the conclave long ago. Initially we had little trouble repelling them, but as out spirits weakened, so did our resolve, and the strength of our spells. Out of necessity, we hand picked commoners with inborn resistance to magic, and had them marry until we were able to create a new social class, the Knights of Orange, who not only acted as our bodies in the cities (as we grew too decrepit to venture far out of our district) but as our swords against invaders.

Time passed, and our numbers dwindled. The anti-aging enchantments wore off and nobles turned to dust. Others committed suicide to escape the weariness of living. We had watched hundreds, thousands of fairies live happy lives over the years, without the ability to have those ourselves. Such was our vow, to not interfere or interact beyond what was necessary for them to experience the joys and sorrows of life. We wanted to protect them from the violence we experienced, even at the cost of our own happiness and sanity.

More time passed, and there was only a handful of us left. Even our king, the mighty Custard, had grown old. The Marmalade Kingdom's subjects lived happy lives, eternally, while ours were at our end. But for those still alive, the desire to protect these fairies was still strong, and it was decided that we would foster a new generation to rule over the people.

A female was chosen from the far cities, a fairy with immense magical potential, one we had not seen since our own generation. Her name was Whip, and she became Custard's consort, bearing him a child and the hope for our future, the one who would inherit our will: Princess Cream.

Cream was the greatest prodigy fairykind had ever seen, far more gifted than any of us. But while she took to magic and quickly grasped the concepts, she was rebellious and a tomboy, rejecting her father's efforts to raise her as a proper princess and instead interacting with the Knights of Orange. It was here that she attracted the attention of a promising young knight, named Ice.

After a few years, when Cream was 16 years old, King Custard grew frail, his life coming to an end. The conclave came to the conclusion that Cream was not mature enough to rule the Marmalade Kingdom as we did, she was too young and self-centered, and innocent to the violence that motivated us to sacrifice our happiness for the people. Custard decided that Cream shall be married to a member of the knights, who already had the mindset of service in protection to the people. He ordered a tournament, where knights would compete against one another for Cream's heart, and Ice emerged victorious. The two were immediately betrothed. King Custard died, and Princess Cream and Prince Ice became rulers in his place, although the conclave maintained absolute authority.

We found Prince Ice very difficult to deal with, a man with immense ambition for one who was devoted to the sword. Ice felt that the world we set up for the peasants - one without competition, violence, and scarcity - denied the fairies a very important part of their experiences. As a knight, who trained against one another and got stronger to protect the people, Ice believed the peasants were emasculated, and not truly living. This alarmed us, and we realized our grave error in creating the Knights to be our proxy: while Ice was the most ambitious of them, many of the other knights had similar reservations, and with the magical resistance we bred in them, they were capable of resisting our restraints if we ever chose to move against them. The best we could do was deny Ice access to the knowledge he so sought.

More of the conclave died. It would not be long now, we would not be able to resist Ice forever. What would he do with knowledge of magic? What would he do knowing the history of violence we fairies shamefully initiated? For a man with immense ambition and, as I was able to divine, appetites, I feared that the utopia we created was in jeopardy.

It was because of my fading power that I and the conclave could not foresee the coming of the Ophidians. They, who had invaded on the opposite side of the world and consumed all life, converging on our kingdom as the last place to conquer. We had no idea the Ophidians had laid waste to what remained of our enemy fairies, explaining why we did not experience raid attempts over the years. It was not until the Nisshoku Jashin, their unholy god, manifested in our world and blocked out the sun did we know what was upon us.

The Ophidians invaded the borderlands and devoured or murdered all who lived there, spawning a creature native to their homeworld called a Taihenna. These Taihenna possessed fairies and used them to attack more fairies, spawn more Taihenna, and possess more, creating an army of darkness that marched on our capital city. The Knights of Orange fought valiantly against them, but the Ophidians were brutes, able to restrain themselves from using magic and destroying our prized forces in personal combat.

We realized that we fairies were too weak to oppose them, so we formulated a plan. The conclave used its divination power to find a species in another dimension, far from our world, who were highly capable of using prana. We discovered such a species, called humans in the home world of Earth and country of Japan. Enchanting dress, we sent Ice and Cream into their world to recruit them as warriors, to help us fight off the Ophidians and save us from their tyranny. Shortly after those two fled the city, we were overwhelmed.

Many of us went into hiding as Marmalade was sacked by the Ophidians, but surprisingly what felt like a year, Cream and Ice returned with two warriors, Bitter Sweet Choco and Bitter Sweet Vanilla. The two warriors had defeated all the Ophidians that went to Earth, and came to Marmalade and wiped out the rest. They did battle with the Nisshoku Jashin and managed to wound it severely, allowing Ice to stab through its head with an enchanted sword. The sword sealed the snake's consciousness, not killing it but permanently immobilizing it, and the threat of the Ophidians was over.

But so was the Marmalade Kingdom.

Ice, Cream, and the Bitter Sweets returned to Earth...but only Ice and Bitter Sweet Choco returned. Choco's personality had also changed dramatically, and she was introduced as Ice's Queen. This naturally alarmed the people who held Cream as the one true princess, and Ice as more like her consort than official husband. Ice silenced them, then exerted his control over the city using the Knights of Orange, who were all to eager to support one of their own.

That brings us to the present day. The conclave cannot provide for the people any longer, so Ice has introduced technology and industry - the masks of competition and scarcity - into the kingdom. He has encouraged entrepreneurship and settling disputes without royal consultation. When he does levy decisions, he is a fair ruler, but his immense appetites have lead him to harbor a harem of concubines on top of his Queen, the former Bitter Sweet Choco. The conclave tried unsuccessfully to have Ice assassinated last night, and now he has come for us.

My life is at an end already, so it matters little to me how I die. But I hoped I would never experience this feeling again. This radiance of prana from my heart, taking the form of black tendrils that choke my neck as I try to swallow the painful reality of what is around me. The kingdom I and my colleagues once built is crumbling, and a new era of suffering and pain for the pitiful fairy race is upon us. We held out for 200 years, but pledged to be sentinels forever. We...I could not keep that promise. So I say to you, whoever you may be, if you can speak to the people...on my behalf, tell them I am sorry. I am sorry I was too weak. I am sorry I died. And I am sorry that, in my last moments, I do not have hope for you to escape your doom, for all I can think about is how I failed you.

Glycos

Duke of Orange
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Last edited by Doppleganger; 09-17-2014 at 04:57 AM.
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Old 07-15-2014, 09:20 PM   #3
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An explanation on how the world works!

In Jinsei wa Hikikomogomo!, fundamental to all concepts is duality. All the important systems have two complementary, conflicting parts that form a singular whole. The recurring pattern of duality sometimes leads to an inferrence of a false duality, the most famous of which is "good and evil". There is no good, nor an evil in any context. But it's easy to believe in because it's a duality, so common in the universe.

After that, the ultimate driving force in the universe is Probability. JwH agrees with the Everett Interpretation - assuming parallel worlds - but these worlds can't be entered by someone in another parallel world. A person's life story, or the sum of their subjective experience from 'birth' to 'death', is Fate or Destiny. The ability to influence one's Fate/Destiny through causality is defined by Power. Probability is defined as the difference between a person's Power and "omnipotence".

For example, let's say I want to go to school tomorrow. If I don't leave my house, I can't go to school. If I don't get dressed, I'll be sent back home. My preparations to go to school and the act of undertaking them help lead me to the desired outcome of "going to school". Probability would be defined as whatever, outside of my control, would get in the way of this effort. Say there's a snow day and school is cancelled. It's outside of my control, then, but if I were all-powerful I could end the snow day.

Below this, we arrive at to spheres of existence, the Physical and the Metaphysical (or, Material and Immaterial). The physical describes the physical reality we live in, defined by natural laws. The metaphysical has no direct interaction on the physical, but awareness of it drives behaviour in the physical.

The mind, or Subjectivity, is government by the metaphysical. Once a system in the physical world is complex enough to host a subjectivity, it becomes Existence. Once existence starts to exhibit emotion, it becomes Life. Life in the biological sense isn't unique or special, machines can exhibit both properties too. The spirit doesn't exist either, that's an outdated philosophical construct that has endured throughout human civilization.

Emotion is a duality of positive/negative experiences, while subjectivity is neutral. So to explain the title's significance, while you can exist, you are not truly "living" without experiencing both good and bad emotional states.

But what is Emotion? It's the sum total of both a physical and mental experience. The physical experience is caused by a number of physiological responses to a stimuli. However, non-humans like robots can experience emotion despite lacking the body capable of simulating these stimuli, so it stands to reason that all emotion is caused mentally.

The source of the mental aspect is less certain, but some studies have concluded some things. Each subjectivity has access to what appears to be an ocean of limitless "potential energy", energy which can be transformed and manipulated at will within the metaphysical space. This is most apparent through the Imagination - a person can create an entire universe within their imagination, something that would take limitless energy in the real world, and the experiences under certain circumstances can be indistinguishable from the physical reality.

Life can Tap into this well of energy and draw it out as Prana. The experience of drawing out Prana creates the mental sensation of emotion, which in turn causes the body to experience it as well. Emotion is the only mental process that draws out Prana from the metaphysical world and brings it forth into the physical, where it radiates outward like a fountain spewing water.

The amount of energy, and how it is used, is controlled involuntarily by a person's mental state, and can be analogous to the volume of water discharged by a spigot. A more severe emotion = a larger gauge opening. The unit of Prana is the cc, which in the real world is a growingly outdated term for the ml, but in-universe is short for Circe, named after the witch from Greek mythology.

Life isn't restricted to tapping itself, it can tap objects or other living beings as well. This is because emotions (and thoughts) can be communicated across many different mediums, including words, actions, and letters. Thus, the Prana and energy can be transferred through physical means, and once the Prana is tapped the real-world conveyance disappears. For example, if there's a love letter, one can experience emotion reading the love letter, or tap the letter itself and receive the emotion within it, causing the words on the letter to disappear.

Prana is the same energy used by the Imagination to form the worlds and ideas within the mind, only it exists in the real world. Thus, Spellcasters are capable of molding it within the real world into spells.

That's enough for today!
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Old 07-21-2014, 01:05 AM   #4
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Main character backstory!

Katou Katsuyuki is the second child of Katou Kotarou and Katou Kotori. He had an older brother by three years named Katou Kouki. Yes, this family loves alliteration.

Katou Katsuyuki (born 15 January 1993, Age 15)
Katou Kouki (1990-2002, Age 11)

Kotarou is a programmer, while Kotori is a florist. Both work out of the home and are ever present in the boy's lives. Kouki is an ordinary if adventurous, while Katsuyuki is reserved but a child prodigy. Katsuyuki has received national recognition for his prowess in chess, shogi, and academics. He doesn't make many friends at school, but is widely respected by his peers and adults. His parents don't pay as much attention to him as they do Kouki, their beloved first child, but he doesn't care as much. They give him enough attention, and he has the rest of the world to recognize him. Also, Kouki is his close friend and there isn't much jealousy.

Katsuyuki, however, does want to distance himself from others, including Kouki, in whatever way possible, to reaffirm to himself that he is "special". Katsuyuki strongly believes that special things happen to special people and he is constantly looking for things to reaffirm to himself that he is such, in case those special events accidentally don't notice him. He does this by wearing glasses even though he doesn't need them, they are an old pair of his father's, and adopting his aloof, reclusive personality despite a competitive streak.

Kouki loves to adventure and he and Katsuyuki explore the lands around where they live. Kouki wants to do something outdoors as his job, and is considering being a bicycle policeman. He explains to Katsuyuki that as a guy who doesn't think, of very little imagination, he does not appreciate the "fake worlds" of fiction created by story writers, and wants to experience the world with his own eyes, nose, and hands. Someone writing about a far-off land is ignoring the exoticism of his own backyard, and if that gets boring he is too close-minded to move somewhere else and see more. Katsuyuki, who has a vivid imagination, feels conflicted about this, he doesn't tell his brother that he loves thinking because he doesn't want his brother to hate him for it. Kouki doesn't believe in destiny, thinking humans make their own future, while Katsuyuki believes that certain special people are preordained for greatness and will reach it without any additional effort.

Kouki is killed when a Shinsen train he is traveling on to his new junior high school derails, and a handful of people are killed. His parents are devastated but do not turn to Katsuyuki as a replacement for Kouki, they treat him as distantly as they always had, as the personable Kouki could never be replaced. Katusyuki (Age 9) himself misses his brother and maintains his brother's legacy of exploration even though he himself doesn't care for it. As Katsuyuki gets older his child prodigy status fades, and so does the attention that comes with it. However, he remains unable to open up to people and while on good terms with some classmates has no close friends or anyone to open up to. Katsuyuki, who always believed that fate would bless the special, cannot understand why his brother, the not special Kouki, was recognized to die instead of him, and curses it for subjecting him to an ordinary life of silent suffering and loneliness. He had been lead to believe that he had a destiny set out for him but he has no idea where his future lies now, and is afraid. He does not stop believing in Fate, but believes that is has turned against him, and would love nothing better than for it to be destroyed so that he could make his own future like how his brother believed.
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Old 09-15-2014, 05:21 AM   #5
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Jinsei wa Hikikomogomo! // 人生は悲喜交交!
Copyright © 2014 UPNDoppleganger
Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Part 1: Love is Bittersweet! (恋愛はビタースイート!)

...

BORKED

The haunted house on a hill.

About five kilometres due west of this school is the site of a legend particular to this area.

It's an ordinary house, although it's been around for longer than 20 years, and hasn't been torn down.

Nobody's offered to by the property or even approach it. There isn't anything special going on here, so I guess people have nothing better to do than believe in a silly superstition.

The house became haunted about 11 years ago. Originally, it was home to a young couple and their teenage daughter.

All of a sudden, they disappeared. Nobody knows what happened. The locals assume they were "spirited away".

In their absence, the house has taken on a will of its own. As if possessed by some strange power.

If you try to approach the house, the very trees and shadows rise up against you to bar passage.

The attacks represent a very real danger, and have been reported in the papers to be "kamaitachi".

Our city power company has long since stopped supplying electricity to the place, but every night, the lights in the house remain on, as if the residents were actually home.

Since the house overlooks a nearby residential area, the locals can't ignore it, and live in perpetual fear of the house's ghostly gaze.

For 11 years, that house has watched the city slumber, learning all of its dark secrets.

Secrets that will soon be no secret to me.

Yes, that's right.

After school today, I plan on breaking into that house and solving the mystery once and for all!

【Voice】 But wouldn't you rather attend the History Club instead?

Eh. Could it be?

A voice from the heavens? Is it you, God?

Are you warning me of a great danger lurking in that house?

BORKED



【Voice】 Yes, I am God.

Buuuuuuuull.

【Voice】 Oh, how did you know?

I don't believe in God. If he existed, when I go to the pool, I'd be swimming in girls.

【Voice】 Then why did you appeal to him...

Hey, how are we holding this conversation? Are you reading my thoughts?

【Voice】 You're saying them out loud. It's the last period of the day. You asked me about the haunted house and I told you what I knew, then you began a verbal monologue.

Ahh, I remember now.

And this guy.

BORKED

【Katsuyuki】 Yeah...your name. It's No-Face, right?

【No-Face】 It isn't!

【Katsuyuki】 But look at you, I see no eyes or nose. Did you accidentally shave them off this morning?

【No-Face】 I didn't!! And I don't have to shave!

I push my desk forward, nudging No-Face's desk back slightly. My legs free, I leap to my feet and turn toward the exit.

【Katsuyuki】 I'm off. See you later.

【No-Face】 Wait, you're leaving already? School isn't over yet.

I knock on my own head.

【Katsuyuki】 Ding-dong-dong-dong. Hear that? Sounds like school's over to me.

No-Face sighs.

【Katsuyuki】 What? You deaf?

I stare at his mud flat of a face.

We make "eye contact".

There's an instinctive understanding between us.

Girls wouldn't understand the bond between bros. No-Face will cover for my attendance when the next teacher comes in.

【No-Face】 I'm not going to cover for you, and we're not really "bro's". I'm your classmate, Ma-

I nod.

【Katsuyuki】 Thank you, No-Face. Your sacrifice will never be forgotten.

【No-Face】 ...

【No-Face】 ..alright, I'll cover. I'm curious about the house too.

I smile.

Everyone in town believes in the curse. Even No-Face.

I don't believe in God or the supernatural. Perhaps that makes me the ideal investigator.

【Katsuyuki】 I'll bring you back a souvenir. A new nose. The one you have, it's too small.

【No-Face】 Perhaps I'll not afterall...

I walk out into the hallway and close the door behind me.

...

BORKED



I've been walking for about an hour now.

The bright sun beams down at me, causing my forehead to mildly perspire.

There aren't any bicyclists to be seen, with the occasional car passing by. I left about two hours before school would end, anyway.

My own house was only 30 minutes north of Iwamatsu High School, but I'm a good two hours southeast of there. It'll be a long way back.

The mountains are within view, and I can see some houses. But I'll be damned if I could pick out the haunted one.

I'm disappointed, since I'm going to have to kill a lot of time until it gets dark.

I would have rather done other things before coming here. It'll be pretty boring just walking around the neighbourhood like a hoodlum.

I could walk home. But my parents are on a trip right now, and there's nothing interesting there anyway.

I know, I'll have a conversation with myself. That's staple entertainment for an ordinary well-adjusted, sociable young man!

...

My name is Katō Katsuyuki. Age 15. Male.

I live in Yukinomiya City. It's a modestly large city in northern Japan, although not the largest in our region.

I haven't lived here very long, my family moved to the city's suburbs about 4 years ago, when I was in junior high.

Life is peaceful. Or, to put it another way, boring.

I'm not going to say I'm big on "aliens, time travelers and espers" but I do have an eye for the unusual. I'm the president of the Adventure Club.

As you'd expect, we're not an officially sanctioned club. We don't have a budget or show up for the cultural festival. I usually recruit the day of an adventure.

I didn't put a lot of effort in it today. I fell asleep in class, was rudely awaken by our class rep, then promptly asked him for a good adventure spot.

The haunted house.

It's just that what I find unusual are things most people take for granted. A lot of my classmates are blind to the natural beauty around them.

It's easy to be blind when your face is glued to a screen. Everywhere you go around these days, people are obsessed with their phones or television.

The domain of fiction.

Like me, those people are bored with their daily lives, either due to lack of challenge or an aversion to it. They desire escape. But our methods couldn't be more different.

There was a movie a few years ago called "Avatarus" about a gladiator seeking freedom on a faraway, jungle planet. It was immensely popular around the world, but I hated it.

I heard reports about people who wished the world was real, so they could live on that planet. I share the same wish: I don't want to share my planet with such people.

The world of "Avatarus" looked pretty fake to me. It's hard to describe except that all the vegetation seemed like it came out of a human's imagination. It wasn't a product of nature.

I've been told by a few teachers that I lack imagination. I believe it. I really refuse to think about "fake" things.

I'm not a bad student. I'm good (not great) at every subject. But my best subjects are history and math, which most find an odd marriage.

I don't see any contradiction: math describes the world of today. History describes the world of yesterday.

There isn't a subject that deals with tomorrow, unfortunately. You can use history and math to engineer tomorrow. Or you could be a fortune teller.

Like so many of my classmates with their horoscope garbage. Bleh.

If I can't see something with my own eyes, I won't believe it. If I can't experience it, it's not something worth thinking about.

...

It's been three hours.

The sun is eager to give me cancer. I've accumulated so much Vitamin D my skin could cure the world of rickets.

I'm starting to think this was a dumb idea, and I should have gone home first. Boring or not, at least I could take a nap there.

I have my phone, but like I mentioned earlier, there isn't anything fun to do on it. I'm not a fan of video games.

Damn you, No-Face! Tricking me into skipping out on the History Club!

...

Whew, time sure flies! It feels like I've been here for TEN HOURS!

...when in fact, I've been here for five. Maybe there's a convini around here for me to get some dinner...

...

BORKED

It's nighttime.

For real, this time.

It's pretty late, but most of the houses in this area still have their lights on.

However, I can clearly see the house in question that has inflamed the fears of the local residents. It's impossible to miss.

Right there. Piercing the backdrop of an otherwise black horizon, there is a single shining light.

A demonic eye that watches over the suburb slumbering beneath it.

Including the vertical climb, it's about three kilometres away.

I start running down the street, toward the foot of the hill. I don't want to wait any longer.

...

I'm at a fork in the road. The street curves left or continues to the right, into the forest at the foot of the mountain.

I have to go right to climb the hill, but a sign bars entry. It merely indicates no entry.

I'm not heeding it, of course. Up the mountain I go.

...

I'm breathing a bit more heavily. It's a pretty steep climb. Even though this is a street, there is a sidewalk that I can follow.

I don't see anymore steet lamps, so I presume the rumours of the power company shutting off power are true.

I mean, the street lights could be out for other reasons, but don't tell me otherwise, okay?

...

I'm still climbing the hill, but I see a light over this hump. I think I'm at the peak.

I'm exhausted, having practically sprinted straight upward. I hold the handrail as I slow down to a walk.

My shins are sluggish and my feet feel like they're on fire. That was quite a workout.

...




The first thing I notice is a lamp post. There is light here.

Well, if that were the only light, I'd be disappointed. But the house itself is clearly lit.

The road ends, all I see is a thick hedge of trees. It's really dark, but one could fit through those trees if desired.

The house is very brightly lit. It's a huge, two-story mansion, with a wide lot.

Two stone walls and a metal gate prevent entry into the front yard. Neither are very tall, and I easily leap over the fence.

There aren't any lights in the windows facing the street on the first floor, but I do see one on the second floor.

The hallway behind the front door is also illuminated.

There's a blue car in the driveway. I can't tell what brand it is.

This is where a phone comes in handy. Let me see if I can get a description.

...

It's a Eunos. A 2000 Eunos 800.

The car looks like it's been kept in shape. The tires are inflated, I don't see any cobwebs, moss or rust. It looks like it was parked here earlier today.

I walk up to the doorway.

【Katsuyuki】 Is anyone home?

I yell.

A strong breeze brushes by, stirring up some fallen leaves.

There wasn't any wind before. I don't see any clouds in the sky, either. Perhaps it's a mountain breeze?

I knock on the door. No answer.

I grip the handle and shake it. It firmly resists, indicating it's been locked.

Now, if I wasn't a burglar, and had honest intentions for investigating the house, this is where I'd leave.

But this isn't the first time I've snuck into a place I wasn't supposed to.

I reach into my school bag and pull out a mask.



This is essential in case I am seen. I can't risk getting caught and jeopardizing future adventures.

I put on the mask and go around the house to try and find an alternate route.

More often than not, families leave the back doors open to air out their homes. It's a summer habit that sometimes bleeds into the winter.

It's spring right now, but maybe someone was careless.

I walk toward the side of the house and go forward until I reach another fence.

It's a wooden fence, but unlike the rest of the house it looks aged.

It isn't rotten, but it's clear it hasn't been repaired at all since the family originally moved here.

I shake the fence. Locked. I'm a bit too short to reach over and unlock it, but...

Oof!

I can climb over it just fine.

I land in total darkness. This part of the house isn't illuminated so I don't have a good view of the back yard. I'm not interested in cherry trees, anyway.

I edge along the side of the house toward the porch and feel it.

It's a shōji. Forget everything I said about locks.

I push it open.



BORKED

It's an ordinary, traditional-style Japanese house from the back. Not what I expected at all.

I mean, I expect a washitsu. But this is a lavish dining room.

I turn back to the yard, now illuminated by the inside light and see an ornate garden.

Interesting. It's like a half and half house.

I take off my shoes. Call me a crappy burglar, but the ghosts won't have any rest if I go pronouncing about in shoes.

I slide over and walk toward the other edge of the room. There's some modern electric bulbs that are the source of the lighting.

I reach up and pull the shade aside. I then unscrew the bulb.

The room darkens a bit. Power is flowing into the house, at least.

I guess this debunks that rumour. I screw the bulb back on.

I pause for a second.

If there's power, there's likely someone paying for the electric bill. So, this house is likely still inhabited.

I won't leave without confirming that with my own two eyes, however. I open the door to the next room.

...

It's a hallway. At the far end I can see the entryway. There's a light there, too.

There are a number of doors in the hallway. I open them as I pass by.

Clothes.

Bathroom.

This looks like laundry.

Nothing of note.

I make my way to the entryway.

There are stairs upward to the left of me. I feel strangely drawn to them.

As I approach, I feel a chill. The lights in the house flicker for a second.

The chill doesn't go away. It's especially cold behind me.

BORKED

I turn around. Very slowly.

I don't see anything. Or anyone, rather.

But then I notice it.

Along the floor, there's a long shadow.

It has an unusual shape, like a flame. But nothing's actually casting it.

What's more...it's getting longer??

And approaching my own shadow.

I leap back. The figure on the ground continues to approach, and it starts to ripple.

Now it's rising up off the floor!

I stare at the black shadow. I see a face!



Taaaaaaaaaaaaaaihenaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!

【Katsuyuki】 HOLY SHIT!

I turn and run!

KABOOM!

I hit the door at full speed, and full down, stunned. My mask shatters on the impact, and the shards cut my face.

The shadow lunches at me, and I turn to my side to avoid it. I push myself up, and run forward.

I'm in the kitchen. I turn left, and head into another dining room.

I head back into the washitsu. I throw open the shōji, leap out, and turn around.

For a moment I don't see anything. But then I see the shadow fly from the left, away from the kitchen I just left, and back down the hallway.

BORKED

Taihenna!

It sees me and flies this way!

I slam the shōji shut.

The shadow ends up bursting right through!



It rears above me, sprouting two long arms, ending in sharp-looking claws.

It slashes!

Woosh!

I roll to the left, and hit a beam. I feel the air rush out of my lungs.

Cough!

I push myself to me feet and race back along the edge of the house, toward the back.

My hands come to the wooden fence.

Adrenaline is surging through my brain. I grip the fence and push myself off.

I hear a sharp creak, and the fence collapses under the force of my weight, and I collapse to the floor.

I knock my head against something, and see white. But I'm too scared to just stay here.

I stagger to my feet and try to run, but I can't get any orientation. I'm just staggering around! Shit!

I shake my head around. I don't look back. I bite my lip.

Get in control, damn it!

The pain clears my head. I sprint forward.

I look back. I don't see or hear the shadow, but I don't have any doubts it's pursuing me.

If it's really a ghost, perhaps it'll stick to the house. I'm not going to take the chance though!

I run down the hill. I'm so dizzy my feet stumble over themselves, and about halfway down I trip and start to roll down it.

I'm exhausted, and I can't feel my hands or feet, but I reach out my instinct and try to grab the asphalt. I badly scrape my hands, but I manage to slow my descent.

I try to push up. My palms are screaming, and though it's dark I can tell they're bleeding from the scrapes.

I crawl to the curb, grab it, and pull myself up with my fingers, avoiding my palms.

Now standing, I walk down hill. It's a feeble attempt at escape at this point, but I won't feel safe until I'm completely off this property.

...

BORKED

It feels like an eternity, but I get back to the "NO ENTRY" sign from earlier. I have no idea how long it's been.

My mask is gone. My phone broke..I dropped my bag on that property as well.

I didn't have anything in it to indicate my identity, but I probably left enough hair and blood there for a DNA test.

Basically, if that house is still inhabited, I'm-

No, it's not inhabited. Not by the living, anyway.

There's a ghost! A real one! I think?

It could be a yōkai. Or it could be my imagination.

I'm not really ready to settle on anything yet. Either way, legend true: there is "something" there.

I'm not equipped to handle it right now. My style has always been to retreat, plan ahead, then execute whatever I want to do. It's always been like that.

Whims like deciding on today's adventure are how I end up torn up like this.

I can't make my way home this way. I'm too exhausted, I'm bleeding out and it's the middle of the night. I don't have any ID.

What do I do? I think for a moment.

...

...

If I recall, there's a shinto shrine not far from here. It's to the southeast.

It's further from my house, but I'll be able to sleep in peace on the grounds at least. I can get some water.

I stagger to my feet. I really just want to rest here.

But if I do collapse here, the police will certainly find me tomorrow morning.

There's no way the locals would tolerate some vagabond lying on the sidewalk, half-dead. They'd either bury me or arrest me.

I head in the general direction of the shrine. It's on a hill, too, but no one as steep as that house.

...



BORKED

This is it. I guess.

It's still dark and the hill has no artificial light, but the moon is bright enough to shine down on it. It's a shrine alright.

I try to climb up. Every step is laborious.

My legs actually don't hurt anymore. But they're tired. I sprinted up the hill, then sprinted down. There's no energy left in either.

I kneel down and spread out half-way on the stairs. I'm going to rest here. I got close enough.

I look up toward my would-be goal.

I see a person against the backdrop of moonlight.



【Tsuchiko】 ...?

【Tsuchiko】 ...!!

Princess...Kaguya?

My mind fades to black.
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Last edited by Doppleganger; 09-17-2014 at 04:58 AM.
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Old 10-07-2014, 03:06 AM   #6
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Part 1: Love is Bittersweet! (恋愛はビタースイート!)

May 16, 2015

I don't dream often.

Most of the time, when I hit the sack I dive straight into a deep sleep, past the REM stage where dreams occur.

When I do dream, I try to not pay attention. There isn't anything special about dreams.

They're a random assembly of sensory information acquired through the day.

They're illusions, and whether awake or asleep, I care not for anything fake.

But sometimes, dreams touch long slumbering memories. Things you couldn't remember if you thought as hard as you could for years.

That's what I see now. It's a story I heard a long time ago.

A tale of two brothers.

In a small town on the eastern coast, there lived two boys.

They were four years apart, but many swore them to be twins. Their parents could not understand why.

While there was some physical resemblance, the two were polar opposites in personality.

The elder brother was daring. He had no fear of the world, and would was known to run away in the morning and return home in the dead of night.

When he did return, his face was covered in dirt, and his arms and legs in scratches.

He'd say things like he got scraped by trees. When, really, he had fought with other boys.

The elder brother was popular with his classmates, but upset his parents at his lack of interest in schoolwork. His teachers would complain about his poor marks on a regular basis.

The younger brother was quiet and antisocial. He had little interest in the outside world, preferring the safety brought upon by books.

Why travel a mere couple miles on land when you could travel light years to distant solar systems, he would think.

You could call him a dreamer. He preferred the company of his own thoughts to other people, but enjoyed recognition by other people.

While he read for his own enjoyment, he read more voraciously in pursuit of praise from his teachers and parents, and the glares of jealousy from his classmates.

The brothers couldn't be anymore different. One loved company, the other hated it. One disliked attention, the other basked in it.

One believed in fate. The other believed...

【Katsuyuki】 ...

I wake up in a room that isn't my own.

Have I been here before? I can't remember right now.

Light is illuminating through the paper screen.

I'm in a futon that isn't my own, and smells of plastic. It's probably new.

When in a situation like this, I've very methodical about collecting my bearings.

Okay...

First, where am I?

It's a room I don't recognize.

Why am I here?

I struggle to think back.



The ghost!

I remember now. I invaded the mysterious haunted house and actually came face to face with a ghost.

Realizing I had injured myself in the botched escape, I rub down my legs and arms.

There are some light bandages, and some sore spots. Cuts and bruises.

My head feels quite sore as well. I likely bruised the skin as well.

I hope I don't have a concussion.

Well, I'm crazy anyway, so I don't think it would do much.

I pull myself out of the futon.

There are cuts and bruises on my chest as well. I was staggering around like a drunkard, so it's not surprising I hit things I don't even remember.

I look down. I'm completely naked except for my boxers.

Someone took care of me. Who, though?

I try to think back as to the last events of the night.



A surreal image comes to mind. A hauntingly beautiful young girl in a ghostly kimono across a lunar backdrop.

I hear a door sliding behind me.

【Tsuchiko】 ♥~

There is the girl from heaven, on her knees, wearing a very familiar looking sailor uniform.

【Katsuyuki】 Hey.

【Tsuchiko】 ...?

She stares at my solar plexus.

【Tsuchiko】 ...ahh....AHHH!!

【Tsuchiko】 oh...I'm s-so s-sorry for intruding!!

She slams the door.

【Katsuyuki】 No problem. THANK YOU!

I shout.

...

【Tsuchiko】 You're welcome!

A very distant response.

Princess Kaguya, huh? Certainly not.

I collapsed at the Amagi Shrine, so it stands to reason that that girl is either the shrine maiden or the daughter of the priest here.

I've never been here before, but I felt like I could take advantage of religious charity in a time of crisis. I had always planned to crash here if the walk back home was too troublesome.

Why a temple? Well, if you bang on the door of ordinary folks, they're more likely to call the police on you than let you in.

That's just a reflection of our times. There's dangerous people on the streets.

Now, being taken in by the police isn't the end-all, but chances are they'd find out I was burglarizing the local legend. And that is a dicey.

The religious don't ask questions. They deal with people from all walks of life. Their mantra is to help others without looking for anything in return.

I will have to make a donation in gratitude. It's my parent's money, so I have no gripes spending it. I'm morally consistent.

...

A few hours pass by.

The girl, whose name I have learned (through the wall) is Minami Tsuchiko, is indeed the maiden of Amagi Shrine.

She lives here with her grandfather, who is retired. I asked to speak with him before I leave.

My school uniform was badly torn up that night, so I'm wearing some surprisingly fitting clothes that I assume belonged to her late father...or perhaps brother.

In spite of my injuries, it's only been half a day since I stumbled onto the steps of the shrine. The whole "three day recovery" exaggeration from comics is seriously overblown.

I leave my room of recovery and head out of the house.

...

【Katsuyuki】 Thank you very much!

I give a bow before the shrine maiden and her grandfather.

【Grandfather】 It was nothing, young man. I'm glad your injuries were not that serious. I can't imagine what could have caused them.

He doesn't say it, but he's implying that he wants to know. I owe him that much, at least.

【Grandfather】 Tsuchiko, run along and start dinner, won't you?

【Tsuchiko】 Yes!

She leaves. I guess I have no choice but to sing.

【Katsuyuki】 I was out on a hike, sir. I'm the president of my school's Exploration Club, and I went too far and too late and stumbled in the dark.

Not a lie! The old man seems satisfied with the answer.

【Grandfather】 Exploration? That's an interesting club name. What around these parts is worth exploring?

I smirk at him.

【Grandfather】 Sir, the whole prefecture is full of wonder and adventure. It's just that people who live here all the time fail to notice it.

Minami-san's grandfather gives a distant expression, as if he's recalling personal experiences from long ago.

【Grandfather】 I understand what you're saying. When I moved here, the city was small and there were forests as far as the eye could see. Forests that existed for hundreds of years undisturbed by man.

【Grandfather】 Now, the only major forests are near the mountains. But there's fun to be had in the city too, am I right?

【Katsuyuki】 Yes, that's part of it. We're into everything, from the countryside to the downtown district.

【Grandfather】 How about haunted houses? Have you heard about the one not far from here?

【Katsuyuki】 ...

【Katsuyuki】 I'm quite scared of that one, sir.

He laughs.

【Grandfather】 You lack courage, young man. If I were in your club I'd definitely go there!

【Katsuyuki】 Haah.

Hmm, I'm curious myself.

【Katsuyuki】 Sir, do you think that house is haunted?

【Grandfather】 Of courses it is. Who do you think you're talking to?

【Katsuyuki】 Well, I don't believe in ghosts myself. I'm not superstitious in the slightest.

The old man closes his eyes.

【Grandfather】 Kids these days...they'd have to see to believe in anything.

So true. So very true.

【Grandfather】 I've gotten near the house, but I was repelled by a powerful malevolent force. There's something evil in there, fore sure.

【Katsuyuki】 But, how do you know it isn't just an ordinary house, with the owners on vacation?

【Grandfather】 I knew the original owners. The Tomoe family, who paid homage to our shrine when Tsuchiko was just a baby.

【Grandfather】 They were wonderful people. The father worked for the city as a policeman, while the mother took care of their daughter. She was about Tsuchiko's age now.

【Katsuyuki】 So is there any truth that they were murdered?

I just made that up. The rumour, of course, is that they were spirited away by supernatural means. But he probably suspects foul play.

【Grandfather】 Murder? No, I believe they were dragged into hell by ogres.

Seriously?

【Katsuyuki】 I find that hard to believe.

【Grandfather】 There isn't much you believe in, is there, young man?

【Katsuyuki】 Nope.

【Grandfather】 Kids today...they don't know no goddamn fear!

I see, he forgot I brought up how I was shitting bricks at the idea of investigating the haunted house.

【Katsuyuki】 But is there any proof that they were spirited away? If they disappeared suddenly, how would you know what happened?

He scowls.

【Grandfather】 Well, that night I saw lights in the sky.

【Katsuyuki】 Perhaps they were airplanes?

【Grandfather】 I know what an airplane looks like. No, they were closer to fireworks, but they danced in the heavens.

【Katsuyuki】 That was the day they disappeared?

【Grandfather】 Yes. It was also the day I felt an evil presence over the house. I promptly informed the neighbours.

Wait. So is this guy the source of the urban legend, then?

I mean, it's a real legend. But he concluded they were dragged into hell just from that?

【Katsuyuki】 Why didn't you try to remove the presence?

【Grandfather】 Remove?

【Katsuyuki】 You're a priest, right? Shouldn't you have the power to cleanse the karma of that area?

He looks away.

【Grandfather】 I'm not actually a priest. I'm a business man.

Huh?

【Grandfather】 My daughter-in-law was the shrine maiden, and the mantle was passed onto Tsuchiko. I have very little spiritual awareness, myself.

【Katsuyuki] So why tell the townsfolk about it?

【Grandfather】 That was for their own protection. I lacked the power to remove the problem, so I told them to avoid it.

That kind of makes sense.

I did feel some eeriness when approaching the house, but nothing like some "malevolent presence". Not until I saw the ghost, anyway.

But to my knowledge, I have no ESP. For someone with even a slimmer of it, a powerful enough presence would certainly be spooky.

Knowing that he couldn't do anything, this grandfather warned the townsfolk about it. And so they just stayed away.

【Katsuyuki】 So whose side of the family does you granddaughter get her spiritual powers from?

【Grandfather】 That would be my daughter-in-law. The Amagi side of the family was well known for spiritual strength.

Ah, so that explains it.

【Katsuyuki】 Can your granddaughter cleanse the house?

【Grandfather】 No.

He answers quickly.

【Grandfather】 I won't even let her try. There's no point to it.

【Katsuyuki】 But isn't it a shrine maiden's duty to purify evil spirits?

【Grandfather】 ...

【Grandfather】 My daughter-in-law once said the same thing.

【Katsuyuki】 ...?

Wait.

Ah shit.

I reach the unsaid conclusion from his words. It sounds like Minami Tsuchiko's mother died trying to purify the spirits in that house.

Now that I've stirred up some unpleasant memories.

I feel bad.

I decide to make a quick exit from this conversation. The perfect distraction was something I noticed earlier.

【Katsuyuki】 This has absolutely nothing to do with what we talked about earlier...

【Grandfather】 Hmm, yes?

【Katsuyuki】 But your granddaughter's uniform. By any chance, does she attend Misaki Junior High School?

【Grandfather】 Why, yes she does! Are you a former student?

【Katsuyuki】 No, my girlfriend is a first year there.

【Grandfather】 WHAT?!

He somersaults. Pretty dexterous for an old guy!

【Katsuyuki】 I'm just kidding. Yeah, I'm an alum.

The old man's face is beet red.

【Grandfather】 Such indecency! Kids today!!

【Katsuyuki】 I'm sorry for lying.

No I'm not.

【Katsuyuki】 Your granddaughter just looks very beautiful in it, so I couldn't resist making a joke. You've done a splendid job raising her.

I recall her coming into my room. No doubt she was the one taking care of me all this time.

【Grandfather】 When I was young, men said similar things when they sought a woman's hand in marriage.

I suddenly feel an immense pressure bearing down on me from somewhere.

【Katsuyuki】 She'd probably make a wonderful bride, though!

He beams.

【Grandfather】 I am quite proud of her femininity and domestic skills. It isn't easy when a old man has to teach a young girl how to act like a adult woman.

【Grandfather】 In spite of her busy schedule, she still has time to hone her martial prowess.

【Katsuyuki】 What discipline?

【Grandfather】 Archery.

How stereotypical of a shrine maiden.

【Grandfather】 She has the top grades in her class, participates in the Science Club while still tending to her personal fitness and household duties...

Tears of joy gush out of his eyes.

The Science Club...

【Katsuyuki】 Ah...Haruka-sensei...err, Tendō-sensei's club.

【Grandfather】 I'm not familiar with her teachers. Unfortunately, I'm too old and frequently ill to leave the shrine's perimeter.

Too bad. I definitely wanted to hear about Haruka-sensei.

I sense a good opportunity to finally leave.

【Katsuyuki】 Well.

I announce.

【Katsuyuki】 It's getting late, sir. Again, I am very grateful for taking care of me last night.

【Grandfather】 You are very welcome, young man.

【Katsuyuki】 I will return with an offering for the temple, and I will clean these clothes and return them to you. I hope to see you again sometime soon.

【Grandfather】 Our thanks to you! The exit is down those stairs. Watch your step!

I turn my back and walk away, but turn back and wave to him. He waves back.

As I head down the long flight of stone steps, a few hours from sunset, I can only think of one thing - solving the secret of the haunted house.

The old man's stories just engorged my curiosity. The danger of that place excites me to no end.

What happened to the family who lived there? What could have summoned such an evil spirit to that place?

I'm not big on homework, but I'll organize my findings and look for a connection. I'll probably pull and all-nighter.

But that's fine. Ever since I was little, the night was mine.
__________________
あなたの勇気が切り開く未来
ふたりの想いが見つけだす希望
今 信じあえる
あきらめない 心かさね
永遠を抱きしめて
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Old 10-12-2014, 04:36 AM   #7
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Part 1: Love is Bittersweet! (恋愛はビタースイート!)

Saturday, 23 May 2015, 9:00 AM

I'm at home.

It's been a week since my adventure in the haunted house.

I haven't been idle. I've spent most of the week in preparation for my second expedition.

I told no one at school what I saw. Nothing was mentioned in the news either, so it's safe to say I didn't cause any noticeable disturbances.

I did research on the "Tomoe Family" mentioned by the old man at Amagi Shrine.

Not knowing the spelling, it took a while to find them, but I did find some newspaper articles discussing a "Tomoe Mamoru-junsa".

They're over a decade old, and consist mostly of interviews with the officer about various local topics. Nothing about him specifically.

Once I got his name and proper spelling, I did a serious search but still came up short. Just sparse newspaper articles, not even any hits on ancestry websites.

I called the Yukinomiya police stations and asked about Tomoe-junsa. Nobody knew who he was, although that isn't proof of anything. I might have to find an officer who knew him personally.

What I fear is a phenomenon I've heard in horror stories, where if someone is "spirited away" all of reality, including memories, are altered to erase that person's existence.

Of course, the Amagi Shrine old man remembered the man's name. And I've found newspaper articles about him.

It's pretty clear to me that the ghost haunting the house is likely the cause of the disappearance of the Tomoe family.

I can't say for certain if the house was always haunted, but the disappearance of the family ten years ago coincided with the emergence of that evil presence.

Given that, after organizing my priorities, I've decided I'll have to exorcise the ghost.

My ultimate goal is to figure out the mystery of the Tomoe disappearances. To do that, I'll have to search the entire house for clues.

It's possible I might even find the family's remains.

If the ghost attacks me every time I get near, I won't be able to do that. I don't really have an interest in where it came from now that I know why it's there.

It doesn't belong in this world anyway, and is a danger to the living. Any person who comes near is at risk, so I must be prepared to defend myself.

Now, I'm a human of the modern age. I don't have any equipment or knowledge on how to defeat something supernatural.

Even my modern understanding of the world gives me nothing to draw from on how a ghost can possibly exist.

But I don't have to understand it to beat it. Really, that goes for a lot of connections made throughout human history.

And that history tells me that charms and magical spells are believed to remove evil spirits. Invoking the name of God has held power over the supernatural.

I won't actually believe it until I see it, but it's worth a shot. I don't really have other options.

Thus, the fruits of my labour - ofuda.

I've gathered ofuda from all of the shrines in Yukinomiya, and a few others on the far reaches of the prefecture.

The Shinkansen runs right through the heart of the city, so transportation was not a big deal. I did skip a lot of school to get here before home.

There's one shrine I still have to get some charms from, but I have other business there anyway.

I pack the ofuda into my spare bag, and pack my new phone. I have a spare mask, but I need the space for the charms.

It's not like I was scaring anyone there with the mask anyway.

I head off toward the Amagi Shrine.

...

12:13 PM

I see someone sweeping the lower steppes leading up to the shrine.

It's a girl, dressed like a shrine maiden. Albeit an unusual one, with blue

【Tsuchiko】 Welcome! Oh...

The dark haired beauty gives a warm welcome, but is taken aback at recognizing me.

【Katsuyuki】 Yo.

【Tsuchiko】 H-hello again, sempai.

【Katsuyuki】 Sempai? How did you know?

She turns away and blushes slightly.

【Tsuchiko】 Y-your...uniform...

【Katsuyuki】 Ahaha, I see. You don't have to say anymore.

I imagine her stripping me while I was unconscious. I know I had my underwear on, but my mind wanders at what could have happened.

【Katsuyuki】 Tell me...did you like what you saw?

Her face goes beet red and steam puffs out of her ears. That must be genetic!

【Tsuchiko] I-I-I-I n-n-never...!

【Katsuyuki】 Ahaha, I see. You don't have to say anymore.

I wish she'd keep talking.

【Katsuyuki】 Anyway, here are the clothes you lent me. I've carefully cleaned them.

I present her with the folded clothes.

【Tsuchiko】 Ah...

She hugs the clothing.

【Tsuchiko】 Thank you for returning these. They hold special meaning for my family.

【Katsuyuki】 How's that?

【Tsuchiko】 They belonged to my brother.

I recall what the grandfather suggested about her mother, who may have died trying to exorcise the Tomoe Ghost.

I want to pry though...

【Katsuyuki】 Is your brother...away?

She nods. Ho.

【Tsuchiko】 Yes...he is away on a long trip. I hope to see him again someday.

I smile.

【Katsuyuki】 I hope you do. And here.

I put a small bag on top of the clothes.

【Katsuyuki】 This is my offering to the shrine.

I bow. I'm not on my hands and knees, but I am sincerely grateful to the shrine caretakers.

【Katsuyuki】 Thank you very much for caring for me.

The girl smiles. It's the first time I've seen her relaxed. You'd think she'd be super timid, but the person I'm looking at right now looks very dignified.

【Tsuchiko】 You are welcome. We appreciate the offering.

【Katsuyuki】 I have a request to make, actually.

【Tsuchiko】 ...?

【Katsuyuki】 I would like to purchase some ofuda from your shrine. I trust you are the one who inscribes them?

【Tsuchiko】 Yes, that would be me. And I would certainly be pleased to provide you with some. Wait one moment!

She runs up the steps.

After about eight minutes, I see her carefully walking down the steps.

She presents me with five ofuda.

【Katsuyuki】 Oh, thank you so much. How much do I owe you?

【Tsuchiko】 Please, take them. The offering was more than generous.

I did give them a lot, but I didn't really want to carry all this money. It'll weigh me down when I hike back to the house.

【Katsuyuki】 Then do me another favour - please present this to your grandfather. Tell him it's a thanks from the young man who stayed the night.

I hand her a small bag. It contains the rest of the money I didn't want to carry. Her eyes widen as she figures out what it is, and but she says no more.

For a small shrine like this, they could use whatever patronage they can get. It's no big loss to me.

【Tsuchiko】 ...thank you.

She says heartfully.

【Katsuyuki】 I appreciate the ofuda. You guys are my good luck charm, I hope you can continue to look over me for the rest of the year.

【Tsuchiko】 Yes!

She smiles. I turn away and start to exit the forest at the mountain's base.

【Katsuyuki】 Thanks again! I hope to see you again sometime!

She waves back. She also says something...but I can't hear it anymore.

As I head through the forest, I take a look at the ofuda. They're written in a very beautiful script, and I see clearly the case of "Amagi Shrine" on it.

But this God. I don't recognize the name at all.

It reads Nisshoku - 日食. "Sun Eater"?

It's not one of the major ones for sure. But even amongst the minor kami I've never heard of its name. It might be local to this area...I'm not exactly familiar with it.

The name literally means eclipse. So maybe it's a god of eclipses?

Even more surprising, there's an odd warmth to these ofuda I don't get from the others.

I have a feeling. A baseless, empty feeling. That I should hold onto these charms.

They feel...special.
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あなたの勇気が切り開く未来
ふたりの想いが見つけだす希望
今 信じあえる
あきらめない 心かさね
永遠を抱きしめて
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Old 02-27-2015, 01:09 AM   #8
Doppleganger
我が名は勇者王!
 
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Judgment Day.

I learned in school it's when every Catholic goes to face their destiny. The dead will return to life, and either go to kingdom come, or burn forever in hell.

My destiny faces me, draped in a coat of darkness.

I slowly ascend the hill back up to the haunted house. I'm much more athletic than when I first challenged this place, so my heavy steps are with determination, not fatigue.

The top of the hill greets me with an eerie sight. One I've seen once before, a brightly lit home that appears completely inhabited.

But the only inhabitant here is some evil spirit.

I take out the charms from my sack and immediately start laying them thickly over anything I can get my hands on.

The car looks like something out of a presidential parade, and the house becomes even more eerie, like a haunted shrine.

After I finish, I decide to try the front door.

I don't want a repeat of last time, where I was stumbling around in the dark and tumbling over objects I couldn't see.

I jiggle the handle.

It's unlocked. How daring, to leave a door unlocked in this day and age.

Why, you're opening yourself up to burglars.

...

Inexplicably, I take off my shoes. I don't know why, but it doesn't feel write for a cat burglar to be a puss in boots.

I walk inside and look for the ghost. I don't see it, but as I pass through the hall I'm layering on as many charms as possible.

I re-enter the shouji and realize I'm running out of charms. Well, shit. This is the last room on the first floor that isn't bound by the spells, so the ghost isn't on this floor.

Perhaps it's upstairs? I backtrack toward the stair-well.

They're wooden with no carpet,

I haven't explored upstairs, but it doesn't look ominous at all. I can see lights up there. I walk up two steps at a time, holding the rail. The stairs moan slightly under the weight of my feet.

Upstairs there's a single window to the outside, and two doors on either side.

I open the nearest.

It's the master bedroom, likely where the man and woman of the house sleep. They probably did more than sleep here, but I don't dwell on that thought for long.

Rather inexplicably, I don't feel any chills or fear coming from up here. Perhaps the ghost got scared by my charms and ran away! Ha ha, no. It's likely somewhere trying to scare me!

I open the door next to it. Bathroom, larger than the one below. Unlike the other bathroom, there's a sink and a toilet in the same place, which is very Western-style.

On the other side is a door closest adjacent to the window.

I feel something special about this room, so I open it.

Should I be surprised? I am, so I can't help it. But I probably shouldn't be.

Before my eyes is is a room dressed in pink. It's rather messy, with slippers on the floor, an empty back-pack, sportsgear and pillows about to topple over.

All the objects from the carpet to the bedsheets are covered in designs: bunny rabbits, hearts, flowers. There are posters of musicians I don't recognize, and a shelf with what looks like manga.

It's a girl's room. Probably a teenaged one.

I don't see the ghost in here, so I better lea...

Suddenly, I feel something.

One of my ofuda starts to hum. It's vibrating!

I take it out and the paper charm is as stiff like wood, completely hard.

There's a green halo glowing around it, and the kanji of "SUN EATER" is glowing green.

"Holy shit..."

I say to no one in particular.

The charm's working alright. Some of the ones I have haven't reacted, but I bet the ones outside did. Perhaps the ghost ran into them?

Out of the corner of my eye, I see a twinkle. Candlelight? I turn towards the desk. It's quite messy, with cups full of pens, and letters sprawled all over. The chair in front of it has clothes draped over them...underwear.

"I think I get why this Sun Eater God's charm got hard. He's a pedo."

I push the chair out of the way and get a look at the desk.

The room is brightly lit, with the overhead light staying the darkness coming out of the balcony window. But there's something on the flat, and I can see it twinkle in spite of all the light.

It's a journal. Or a dairy, if that's what you call it. There's a round compass-like object next to it.

The journal is very pink, with an embroidered design on the front edges I don't recognize. There's a plastic, faux feather-pen to go along with it.

My heat begins to pound enough to hear, and I can feel my blood racing in circles through my brain. This is my key to figure out what happened to the family here, if presumably the family's daughter actually wrote in it.

I reach for the journal and flip the seal. It has an opening for a key, but it wasn't locked.

Sure enough, there are many entries, all written with very sloppy penmanship. After a cursory glance I realize the author probably talked as well as she wrote.

That is, badly.

There's twenty four entries in the journal. They go as follows:
__________________
あなたの勇気が切り開く未来
ふたりの想いが見つけだす希望
今 信じあえる
あきらめない 心かさね
永遠を抱きしめて
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