Baychiro Pt. 5

When we stepped onto the deck of the ship at last the air shifted slightly and we were able to see each other, though almost translucent and like a mirage. Meaning Aiko and myself on the present Baychiro could see images of Keisuke and Genbo on the past Baychiro. 

In both versions the sky was completely empty, full of nothing before us but black emptiness. The ship's image seemed to shift between the two and it was a truly majestic sight in either with huge wings sweeping off the sides and a massive blackened steel ring encircling the hull which held the fire elemental that kept the ship aloft. It seemed...off though and sickly, with the elemental appearing to be composed of green and black flames and sputtering angrily within the ring. 

A single figure stood at the ship's wheel, a partially translucent woman with long, gleaming black hair, turquoise and green robes (favored by the nobility of the Crab clan), and exhausted-looking eyes that stared off into the distance. Her one hand was on the wheel with the other on a curled dragon staff made of gleaming metal. That is, until Genbo stepped forward and held forth the turquoise amulet which immediately caught her attention causing her to blink before screaming with her features twisting in horror. 

It was then Genbo that changed before our eyes, his face adopting a cruel smile and chuckling darkly before calling her a "wretched bitch" and yelling at her, "how dare you imprison me!". 

We were lied too! Genbo wasn't the lover, but the traitorous brother. The forbidden love was between Tennen, a half oni, and Kyonshi. We'd been completely duped and played right into Genbo's hand. Gods damn him!

As Genbo drew his blade and turned he was joined by Kyonshi (now evidently under his control) staff in hand and starting to chant magical spells...to face Keisuke alone. Before we could even think of swapping one of us to aid him through the foxes, on the present, rotted version of the ship the great iron ring binding the elemental shattered and it flowed down toward the deck, a massive being composed of black and green flame, full of wrath and hatred. Aiko quickly warned me it seemed composed of necrotic energies just before the battles began simultaneously. 

As Keisuke battled Tennen and the ghost, I charged the elemental, rolling under its swipes and using Ashura to deliver precise strikes against the limbs as they swung. Enraged, it released black fire across the ship which rotted our flesh but we managed to avoid the worst of it. Aiko worked to mend the damage as I fell into a zen state, humming softly one of Grandfather's tunes and began to parry and sidestep the hefty swings from the creature. Aiko quickly worked her magic to hide us both from sight causing it to once again loose a burst of necrotic flame in its fury, this time dealing heavy damage to us both as our flesh seemed to literally melt off us in great wretched hunks. As I took off one of its great flaming arms with a powerful swing, I glanced just in time to see Keisuke bring his hammer down in an overhead arc and crush Tennen into the floor of the ship with immense force, even the floorboards buckling under the incredible power.

The elemental stopped suddenly, seeming confused as the flame that seemed to compose it simply seemed to go out all at once from a strong wind and before we realized it we were all standing on a single ship, the present, ancient version. There was a sigh from Kiyonshi as she said, "It is finally time for this ship to rest...thank you". 

The next part...was strange. I remember falling suddenly, plummeting through darkness but hearing a strangely soothing voice. It told us we denied the Morbenkai (the council of Akerfall) the necro-elemental weapon and elemental galleon flying ships, saving countless lives in the process and avoiding numerous costly wars. Even Terra itself thanked us for that, as the damage would have been to the world, as well. There was the feeling of suddenly sinking into plush, comfortable grass as shadows seemed to dance around us and it seemed to bid us farewell in some manner as it said, "Kiyo Chuk Chuk" before my consciousness seemed to slip away.

When I eventually awoke it was to the sounds of Aiko's screams of terror, crying for Iki! I struggled to push aside the fatigue that gripped my body and  awoke with a start to find her having a nightmare that Iki had died not far from me. We were on grass though...and definitely not a ship. Once we got her settled down, we realized we could still see Iki and Jiba floating in the air before us. While I was petting Jiba, I realized there were child-like voices around us and we all turned to see we were surrounded by a small group of tiny, fuzzy,...adorable creatures. They stood about 3 ft tall and appeared liked clothed small bears or racoons with differing fur colors that walked upright. They kept saying, "Wooska" but also spoke Seiya Zein to our immediate relief.

Keisuke, startled at first, leaped to his feet and drew his hammer before realizing they barely came up to his thigh. This startled them and sent a number of them running or hiding before the larger ones who brandished various farm implements. They were holding large woven baskets filled with clams they were taking from the multitude of streams near us.

At this point we took our first real look at where we were. The place was...well beyond my ability to describe. It was like a magical forest, full of life and primal power. The land was broken up and floating in immense islands in the air as if suspended by magic. It was full of flowing waterfalls, jagged mountains, and the lushest forests I've ever seen. Our collective breaths were stolen by the sight.

One eventually stepped forward, the largest of the bunch, with a coating of brown fur who called himself Kuoappa. He told us we were in Ula'ree and that they were the Tanuki. He told us he would take us to their home, called Taewe Village, where we could meet their elder Connitsu who would answer our questions. Aiko pointed out while he was explaining Terra's three moons and ring were still in the sky here, to our great relief. So we're still on Terra, but none of us have the foggiest notion of where!

It's also worth noting most of the Tanuki were staring in rapt attention at Iki and Jiba. Kuoppa told us these spirit foxes were the children of Kaylaviira quickly before wandering off. Even Aiko doesn't seem certain of what that means or the significance of it. 

He's now given us a moment to gather out things and adapt to our surroundings while he gets our mounts to carry us to their elder. I have no idea where we are, how we got here, or how we are going to get back but it seems like this Connitsu is our best bet so far. Hopefully he'll have some idea on-

BY THE GODDESS, HE BROUGHT US CHOCOBOS TO RIDE!!!