“Beautiful Place in My Heart: journey to the west”
Even today, nearly sixty years after Earth’s last war, China was still one of the most populated and powerful regions. It had ceased to be a Communist country long before the war, and while the massively unbalanced population caused occasional fluctuations between rich economy and miserable poverty, it seemed to have found a balance at last. Nearly half the people in the world spoke some degree of Mandarin; they had even sent one of their own to the moons of Jupiter, before any other country. Of course, the Chinese did not forget their roots, and kept a large portion of their country (and Asia in general) pristine, dedicated to their traditions, honoring their rich culture and heritage. Marsa Rosemont began her journey here, at Big Wild Goose Pagoda, though none of her accomplices knew why.
Alala naturally jumped at the chance to accompany her idol, and wherever she went, Yenae was sure to follow. This decision caused the Felinis some distress, but at least not as much as it once did. There was a consistency in Marliir’s choices, something none of Alala’s previous love interests had, and with each day the barrier around her heart weakened a little more. She was still aggravated by Yenae’s flirting, but even she could no longer deny that all the attention felt really good. Marsa was honored to have such good company with her— but then came Valti and Chandra to upset the balance.
“I’ve been doing nothing for weeks on end,” Brignor complained, dressed unusually provocatively, resembling a Hindu goddess with uncanny accuracy. She claimed she kept it from Franklin Hill’s wardrobe; the outfits were so gaudy that she couldn’t possibly refuse them. “Nothing!” she yelled again to emphasize her point. “I need an adventure as badly as I need to get laid. Nobody’s interested in poor Valti anymore. Nobody cares.”
“Join the club,” Kyrie had grumbled, before setting off on her own adventure. Marsa welcomed Valti, even though her unpredictability was a liability. Chandra had a slightly better reason for going: she wanted to see how a person like Marsa conducted herself, and whether or not she, a former high priestess of Tigris, knew anything about the mysterious correlation between sex, lust, and love. Rebecca was the last to join, and hers was the purest reason of them all: she wanted to test her abilities and push her limits. She wanted to see how she would fare as an independent woman. She had been dragging her heels, hiding in the background, and relying on others far too much; it was time to boost her confidence and— literally and figuratively— stretch her wings. In a sense, she was glad that Riene wouldn’t be around. She wanted to show the woman she loved how much she had improved during their separation.
“I have a few questions,” Valti said as the Dauntless flew away. “You know where you’re headed to, so why didn’t you just let us drop you off there?”
“I couldn’t do that. This is a personal pilgrimage I must make— a sacred journey of trials and truth. How could I test myself if I sat in your ship the entire time?”
“Uh, okay, I think I understand, but it would be a whole lot faster than— ”
“I don’t think you do understand,” she replied. “There’s an old saying that goes, ‘it’s not the destination but how you get there’, or something along those lines. And anyway, there are specific markers I must follow in order to reach the exact place. I would not be able to find them if we flew.”
“Fine, okay,” Valti grumbled. So much for taking the easy route. “Since we’re going to be on foot, you may as well tell us what our objective is.”
“My objective is to undergo calamities as a way of refining my spirit, and to retrieve holy sutras for personal and public use. Yours, my friends, is whatever you would like it to be. Come with me all the way, leave right now, or sign out midway: it’s your decision.”
“Sutras from this India place?” Yenae said. “I think I’ve heard something like this before from Fuuka. One of her crazy cartoon shows had something along those lines.”
“So did one of Amy’s books,” Rebecca said. Since she felt that getting a few clues would help their journey, she decided to call Amy and ask about it. Miracle was surprised at Marsa’s story, and giggled a little before replying.
“Oh yes, Fuuka has several favorite animes revolving around that theme. I’m not surprised none of you know about it; it‘s very obscure, even for Earth. Marsa’s quest is almost exactly the same as Journey to the West in the Great Tang Dynasty, one of the great ancient Chinese novels. It’s based on the exploits of Xuanzang, a Buddhist priest that lived around 600 CE. He was sometimes known as Genjo Sanzo and Tripitaka. He also traveled from China to India to obtain holy sutras. In fact, if I’m not mistaken, the building you’re in right now is said to store those same scriptures.”
“So we’ll practically be following in this Xuanzang’s footsteps.”
“There’s more to it than that. His journey was romanticized about a thousand years later into an epic tale simply called Journey to the West. In it, Tripitaka gathers four disciples: a Monkey-King, a Pig-General, a Sand Priest, and a dragon turned into a horse, but it’s still for the same purpose. As you might expect from my description, it’s a little fantastic, and the trials he faced were a little more extreme. Fuuka says that the anime Dragon Ball was loosely based on it, and they even performed a play version in Love Hina.” When Rebecca announced all this, Marsa laughed out loud.
“We’re doing a historical reenactment! I’m the priest searching for holy scriptures and you’re my eclectic group of disciples! Right down to the letter!”
“Hopefully without most of the calamities,” Chandra muttered. Valti ribbed her playfully.
“Oh come on, you need to get out and face a little danger; it’ll be good for you. I have a feeling it’ll be good for all of us! Hey, ask Amy if this priest guy found any treasures.” Rebecca posed the question, which Miracle had naturally anticipated.
“You mean aside from the scriptures? Well, the Monkey King was given the rúyì-jīngū-bàng, or ‘will-following golden-banded staff’, which he could shrink down to the size of a needle or expand it to gigantic proportions, hence the will-following. It was originally a pillar supporting the undersea palace of the East Sea Dragon King. Of course, I doubt you’ll find anything like that on your trip…but then again, stranger things have happened. Oh— I have to go. Riene’s just arrived. She’s coming with us.”
“Tell her…” Rebecca stopped herself before she could say anything she would regret. Tell her what? That I miss her? I wish her luck? I’m glad she’s back? I’m crazy about her? No. Nothing would suffice. Whatever she had to say could wait until they met again. “Tell her I said hello,” she decided. “You all have a safe journey, now.”
“You too. Look out for burning mountains and Demon Bull Kings!” She laughed and hung up; Rebecca made a face.
“What is it?” Alala said. Hill smiled flatly and put her phone away.
“I’ll tell you on the way. I think our fearless leader has been watching too many cartoons.”
“Nothing wrong with that,” Valti smiled.
Meanwhile, unbeknownst to our intrepid heroines…
A force of pure (hilarious) evil was watching from a distance!
“Ooooh…going on a little JOURNEY, huh? Gonna find some FREAKING SCROLLS, huh?! And they’re gonna meet the freaking DEMON BULL KING OF BURNING HATRED MOUNTAIN?! HUH!!!?? AAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!! …Wait, what am I laughing about? THAT’S NOT FUNNY AT ALL, LITTLE MUFFINS! I’M GONNA BAKE YOU AND BUTTER YOU UP FOR MAKING ME LAUGH AT NOTHING!!! AAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!!”
Snap.
“Uh-oh.” The branch Ferocious was perched on broke— and when the bough breaks, the cradle will fall.
……
Their journey immediately got off to a rough beginning when, about three or four kilometers into their hike, the group came to a wide, rushing river, too deep to wade through and too fast to swim across. They could only just see the other side, a dull patch of brown and green crowning the crystal blue gushing before them. The river stretched on and on no matter which direction they looked in, and there was no bridge.
“We’re off to a pleasant start!” Valti noted, crossing her arms. Alala was already trying to figure a way out; she was good at seemingly impossible situations.
“When there’s no bridge available, just make one! Let’s chop some trees down.”
“We could just make a raft,” Chandra noted.
“There wouldn’t be one big enough to hold us all. Besides, that current’s too quick. Do we have to go directly across, Lady Rosemont?”
“You can just call me Marsa,” she smiled. The holy cat-girl approached the lake’s shore, slipping a walking stick into the waves to measure depth and speed. Her paw nearly touched water before she jerked the stick out, almost carried away by the water’s fury. “I don’t know how long this river goes on, but it’s safe to assume we can’t take the long way around, not without losing time. A bridge it is.”
“Did anybody bring an axe or something?” Rebecca asked. Valti cackled and reached into her traveling kit. Leave it up to the good Professor to carry several hacksaws with her. Yenae paled as she took one.
“I don’t even want to know why you have these with you. Okay, which tree are we cutting?”
“The tallest and widest,” Alala said, scampering through the wilderness to find the perfect specimen. Rebecca didn’t have such mastery of her new wings that she could fly up in the air whenever she wished; however, she could hover a little, and climbing was considerably easier now that she had some thrust. She shimmied up a fairly tall tree and started gliding from branch to branch like a flying squirrel, until she came to one she liked.
“Here!” she shouted, waving a bright light. She jumped off and circled down, then picked up a saw and started cutting. The tree’s trunk was as broad as a grown man’s armspan, nearly two meters in diameter, and even with everyone working in tandem, it took a long time to cut down. Of course, now there was another problem: their ideal bridge was a good distance away from the river, and not exactly easy to carry.
“Alala to the rescue once more!” she exclaimed. She asked that everyone cut wedges from the tree’s branches and prop the massive trunk up with them, then had everyone put some of the straighter branches underneath the space, producing a crude method of rolling the tree down. The rollers would be interchanged as they came out the other end, so in this fashion— with a lot of pushing, pulling, yelling, sweating, and more than a few splinters— they guided their bridge to the river, shoving it into the water and tying it down on their end. The very tip of the highest branch barely brushed against the shore on the opposite end, but the current skewed and bent it, so the last leg of this trial would be rough. Since Rebecca and Alala could keep the best balance, they went across first. The tree was a little wobbly, and they nearly fell in the drink several times, but at last they made it to the other side. Rebecca had to hop off and straighten out the other end, then waved her light in the air, signaling the others to cross.
“My turn next,” Yenae said. “Chandra, just hold onto me and keep looking ahead. There’s no need to rush, so take your time. I’m a great swimmer, so don’t worry if you slip.” Chandra nervously nodded, but instead of grabbing Yenae’s shoulders, she wrapped her arms around her tummy, like she was sharing a motorcycle, and sidled gingerly, not even bothering to lift her feet. Alala bravely came out and met them halfway; the wind knocked against them, making them shriek. The Felinis caught Chandra first and helped her the rest of the way; Yenae followed suit, having a much easier time without her burden.
“Nothing to it,” Valti whistled. “Now it’s our turn. I can’t swim well, Marsa, so I hope for your sake you have excellent balance. But what am I saying? You’re a cat-girl!” She smiled brightly and held four of her arms out to maintain her center of gravity; Marsa held onto the other two from behind, using her walking-stick as extra leverage. Suddenly, they felt the river bucking and protesting their passage, and a great surge of water started gushing in, slapping them fiercely and nearly throwing them off. To make matters worse, Rebecca noticed they now had a visitor coming towards them from the other side, and from Eve’s descriptions, she could guess who it was.
“Ohhh, crap,” she muttered. The muscular bald man in a woman’s dress cackled as he unsheathed four swords.
“BAAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAA!!! Heeeeeeeeeere’s LOOKINGATYOUKID!!!”
“Hurry!” Chandra yelled. Valti and Marsa were now feeling the river’s entire fury. Something must be happening at the source, maybe a melted block of snow or a burst dam. The water was surging and they were only halfway across. Rebecca tried hovering after them while Alala crawled, using her claws to keep herself fixed on the bridge. She yelped every time she was splashed.
“Take my hand!” she yelled. Valti knelt down on the bridge and grabbed hold, turning around and extending her many hands to Marsa. The priestess caught her, but then the river finally had enough, and battered the log. The women stumbled and Marsa fell into the water, still clinging to Valti. She thrust her walking stick out, and the others grabbed it and combined their strength to pull her in. They ran to the other side just as the log started to loosen its bonds. Ferocious was in the middle and keeping perfect balance despite the chaos.
“THAT’S NO FUN, PIGGIES! Leaving me out here with my SOAKING DRESS! I’ve got FOUR SWORDS with your names on it and— well, they’re not literally on there, that would be WEIRD— HEY, ARE YOU TRYING TO DISTRACT ME? AND ISN’T THIS THE MOST UNUSUAL FREAKING WEATHER?! AAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!!” He ran, actually ran after them, his blades smiling brightly, laughing maniacally. Yenae and Valti quickly took the other end of the bridge and untied it, then everyone else gave it a kick and sent it hurtling down the river, Ferocious clinging onto it for dear life.
“I DIDN’T PAY FOR THIS RIDE!! LEMME OFF! At least give me the proper tour! KEEP YOUR HANDS INSIDE AT ALL TIMES, AND NO FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY! AAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!! Ooh, fish!” He was thrown off and disappeared into the distance, hopefully the last they would see of him.
“What the heck was that?” Marsa sputtered. Everyone was dripping wet, but she and Alala looked the worst of the bunch.
“Just some nut,” Yenae muttered.
Once everyone put the river behind them, Chandra, being Chandra, suggested they undress and take a “sky-clad” walk in the sun for awhile until their clothes dried off. This idea was only half-approved: everyone undressed, but they quickly put a fresh change of clothes on, even those who had liked the idea.
“Mmm, I never get tired of that cute tail of yours,” Yenae purred, giving Alala’s bare bottom a playful swat. The cat-girl shrieked but couldn’t deny she liked it; however, for the sake of the mission, she tried not to let her pleasure control her.
“I’m gonna slap that pervy face of yours if you don’t behave yourself!”
“That wouldn’t be so bad,” she giggled. Alala backed down in bewilderment.
“Sadist.”
“That wasn’t so bad!” Rebecca exclaimed enthusiastically. “Should we take a break or keep going?”
“We’ll put a few more kilometers behind us before we stop,” Marsa said. “According to my map, there’s a city not very far from here. We should make it there before dark.” None of the travelers had any knowledge of Gaean geography (or much of anything else related to that world), so one direction seemed as good as another. It was kind of fun exploring the world that supposedly “began it all” for humans— it was certainly more diverse than anything else they had seen. After hearing a history of Gaea’s two major space exploration movements, Rebecca and Valti (and all the other “pure” humans aboard the Dauntless) had to wonder where they came into the mix. If Gaea had only recently started reaching for the stars, where had those other human beings come from, how long had they been living there, and how did they arrive?
“There are three popular theories that I’ve heard in my travels,” Marsa said. “The first is religious, the second is scientific, and the third relies wholly on chance. You all know about evolution; it’s how people explain the existence of Yenae’s kind, and our own, and all the other ‘intelligent animal descendents’ of the galaxy, like Fuuka and Athena. Animals evolve and some achieve sentience. But that relies on astronomical odds claiming that life simply sprang out from nothing on the thousands of populated planets, and I’d rather not think of my existence as an accident.
“The scientific opinion, which has become very popular in the past century, is that there once existed a primordial menagerie of ancestral species all living on the same world. One day, these species, a few males and females for each, began populating and colonizing all the planets. Human ancestors came to worlds like Gaea, Felinis ancestors to Tigris, and so on. Now where these people came from, I have no idea— maybe other galaxies, maybe through evolution. But Gaea could very well have been ‘seeded’ by extraterrestrials. The religious theory is, of course, that some extra-universal deity, like a god or goddess, simply made life unique on each world, or perhaps that original world.”
“What about people like me?” Chandra wondered numbly. Marsa smiled at her.
“What about it? You’re human, aren’t you? You may have been tampered with a little, whether according to your will or against it, but that doesn’t change what you really are. You certainly weren’t made in a factory: you have feelings and thoughts wholly apart from the most sophisticated AI.” Many people had said those very words to Chandra ever since she began to question herself, but hearing them from a holy woman put everything into context. Marsa didn’t have to worry about experience clouding her judgment: she didn’t know Chandra at all and could speak honestly.
Just as Marsa was hoping, they came across a city well before dark. Its name would mean nothing if I revealed it. The guards carried no weapons, for they were a peaceful city, but they were all women: something Chandra noticed at once and everyone caught onto as they explored the city. There were plenty of men but they were not given much prominence. They tended the fields, raised some livestock, helped clean the city, and generally worked menial tasks. The women, however, were viewed in high standards: they had the best clothes, the best food, the best income, and the best positions. It was nearly like seeing Amazonia again, except that none of the men were slaves or studs, and the contempt was not there.
“Weird,” Yenae murmured.
“Not so much,” Marsa said, once again ready to show off her knowledge. “There are plenty of cultures that hold one gender or another in the highest regard. If I’m not mistaken, most of Gaea was the reverse up until about six-hundred years ago. It seems like a perfectly normal society otherwise.”
“I like it here,” Chandra smiled. But she was gravely mistaken in her assumptions: women came first in this city, but very few were homosexual; they regarded it as a deviation of the norm and only permitted it to those who could not bear children. As they explored this city, the small group learned that the founders were descendents of a fertility cult that worshipped “the Goddess”— that is, the child-bearing female, who only viewed men as little more than laborers and sewers of seed. A family that had many girls was praised; however, not having any male children was scorned. In a sense, this practice was the most logical to assume if you wanted a large population quickly. One man could impregnate very many women, and then work to sustain them. Since ladies were held in much higher regard, the travelers were granted permission to rest in the city, but their Queen craved an audience.
“Unbelievable!” Chandra spat as she flopped on her bed. “I’ve been running around this city since we came here and there aren’t enough lesbians to fill a closet! What’s wrong with everybody?!”
“Maybe they just don’t swing that way,” Marsa smirked.
“Or maybe they think it inhibits breeding,” Alala suggested. “I’m sure that if they found a way to mate with other girls like we did, there’d be a lot more.”
“So how do the Felinis on your world breed?” Rebecca said as she sat up. “I’ve always been curious about that. Do you…you know…keep something hidden, or…”
“How am I supposed to know?!” Alala growled as her face turned bright purple. “My mothers never told me and I was too embarrassed to ask!”
“Maybe we could find out while we’re here,” Yenae cooed as she hugged her. Alala bashed her face with a pillow and kicked her away.
“You sleep on the floor!!”
……
Despite being thrown around by a raging river, Ferocious recovered with phenomenal speed and quickly resumed his pursuit. Unlike most hunters, he didn’t rely on any of the civilized means— footprints, likely hiding places, traps, waiting in ambush— he simply plowed through whatever was in his way with an unbreakable will and an unquenchable thirst for battle. His was a mind pure with madness— nobody knew if he had really been driven insane by looking at Origin, or if he had simply been this way all his life— the only driving force that kept him going was the indefatigable lust of swinging his swords around, cutting whatever was in his way, and laughing about it. In a sense, he was even more terrifying than the Dutchman, for van der Decken could be controlled and predictable, to a point, but Ferocious was indescribable. He only obeyed if there was a fight to be had and could only be counted on to kill and destroy.
Even he was not so brainless as to ignore the trail his prey made. He followed it as best he could in the glimmering twilight and came across the city they were staying in to reward his efforts. Even if they moved on, he reasoned, he could interrogate a few people and simply kill the rest (if he was even capable of that civility), so he ran towards the city at full speed, yelling and chortling as he drew out five swords. Ferocious could fight with eight at the most, but this was incredibly dangerous for himself and everyone around him, and he had only attempted it once: the results were ghastly and he didn’t have much fun. Five was pushing it, but it had been a long time since his last kill; he needed to feel that godly sensation again.
“KNOCK KNOCK, ANYBODY HOME?!” he yelled, battering down the city gates. He burst through, scattering chips and debris everywhere, killing the two guards with a single flick of the wrist. “Honey, I hope you have a fresh turkey in the oven! The boss is COMING FOR DINNER and…OH MY GOD, YOU BURNT THE TURKEY!!! BAD EVIL WOMAN! DO YOU WANT ME TO GET FIRED! Fire, get it? Fired— burnt— ROAST DUCK!!! AAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!!!” Ferocious never made any sense when he was on a rampage, but his actions made up for his babble: he slaughtered by the dozen, flinging his swords around like a fierce gale, cutting down masses in seconds. Alarms went off and the town guard charged him— they were cleaved apart and rivers of blood flowed through the city.
“I WISH I WAS IN DIXIE, HOORAY! HOORAY! Hey, POPS! Where’s the freaking DONUT SHOP?! I can’t wake up in the morning without my freaking DONUTS, now can I?! Oh, can’t anybody tell me where I can find them?! DONUTS AND WARM FREAKING CRESCENT ROLLS!!! AAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!!!”
He paused to admire his work, his face covered by an enormous, savage smile. Bodies laid sprawled, hacked, ripped, torn, and dismembered all around him. Not a single person had survived his onslaught. He growled with satisfaction and began searching the city, like a panther bloated on its kill, checking every home and building he had missed. With his bloodlust satisfied for the moment, Ferocious remained generally harmless, content to pop his head through doors and windows, asking for the group he had been ordered to kill.
“Yoo-hoo! Anybody in there? I’m, uh, looking for these people, see— BANG, BOOM, THEY’LL BREAK YOUR WORLD APART IF YOU LET THEM!! …I mean, um, there’s probably a large group. Uh…I think they may have passed this way…WEARING A DUCK FOR PANTS AND HIGH HEELS IN THEIR EARS, EATING NAILS OFF THE RAILROAD…HELLO, MILK MAIDS! AAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!! …Uh, so, you’ll tell me if you see them, right?”
Someone tried to shoot him with a gun. His swords deflected the bullet and he rushed the sniper angrily, picking her up and glaring into her eyes. He bent the barrel of her shotgun with his bare hand and demanded, “Have you hugged your full metal jacket lately? OR HOW ABOUT A LONG SHAFT OF STEEL, BABY?!” He impaled her and sent her body flying; a child that had been left on the corner suddenly ran up to him and kicked him in the shin.
“OUCH!!!” he cried, suddenly grabbing his leg. “You little PUNK! DIDN’T YOUR MOMMY TELL YOU THAT SORT OF VIOLENCE CAN SCAR A PERSON?! Uh, but seriously, uh…I’m looking for these people…”
“Go away!” he snapped. “Leave us alone! They already left us yesterday! Go bother them! Just get out of here!!” Ferocious stood in the corpse-filled streets for a long time, waiting for his empty brain to churn out enough juice to comprehend this.
“Uhh…they already left?”
“Yesterday!!”
He paused again, dumbfounded. Whoops.
“Uh, right. Carry on, everyone. It seems I, uh…YOU CAME A DAY LATE AND A DOLLAR SHORT, DIDN’T YOU?! LITTLE PUNK KIDS SHOULDN’T KICK ME IN THE FREAKING KNEECAP!! Go home to your grandma, kid— IF I DIDN’T THROW HER FREAKING GUTS ALL OVER THE CITY!! AAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!!! …Uh, but seriously, thanks for the info. Sorry I bothered you all…heheh.” And without further delay, Ferocious ran out of the city as fast as he could.
Although Marsa and her followers managed to escape certain death at the hands of a lunatic, they were by no means safe. The morning light they were thrust into as soon as the Queen and her consorts saw them off did not help save them from the trap they fell into. As they walked through a forest, an immense net suddenly caught them and hoisted them high into the air. This would not be much of a problem, but for the sticky solution the rope was made of. No amount of struggling could free them from the snare, and plenty of shouting and cursing rose up as the group tried. Alala got her fur caught in the sticky rope and screamed as she pulled on it; Rebecca had her wings to worry about; Valti’s arms were tangled everywhere. Chandra kept her cool— she had been tied up many times before, and getting sticky was nothing new to her— and Marsa sat patiently, waiting for the devious trap-makers to show themselves.
“Feels like we’re flies caught in a web,” Yenae grunted. Valti suddenly lit up as she heard this, remembering a previous sticky experience she had been through.
“Of course! This is just the kind of thing the Arachne do!”
“The who?”
“Arachne, spider-women from the planet of the same name. I researched them a lot back in my younger days. Fascinating people. Their society is entirely composed of women, you know.”
“Lesbians?” Chandra squealed hopefully. Valti laughed.
“Some of them, yes. But they mostly go after men.”
“Uh, this is a really stupid question,” Rebecca said, “but by ‘go after’, you wouldn’t happen to mean…”
“Well, where do you think we are now?” she asked. The white-haired maiden grumbled.
“Just perfect. They don’t suck their blood or anything, do they?”
“No, no, they’re not monsters. They raise animals for that. The men they just keep around for sex.”
“That doesn’t sound too bad,” Chandra shrugged.
“Yeah, but remember Melena? They kind of have the same aggression. From what I hear, though, it’s an incredible few hours, while it lasts. The men all die with smiles on their faces.”
“Forget that, then!” Chandra bleated. “I’m getting out of here!”
“You’re wasting your time,” Valti said. “These cords are so thick that even if I could get to them, my hacksaws wouldn’t be able to cut them. They’re fireproof and waterproof, too, although I hear there’s a certain corrosive that will break them.”
“So?! Break it out, professor!”
“Bad idea. I might scald one of you in the process. We’ll just have to wait for the Arachnes to set us free. Don’t worry, they’re good people— just not particularly good wives. Poor things.”
“But won’t they want to…do that with us?” Alala gulped.
“Of course not! We’re not men, are we? Oh, wait— you two can get other women pregnant, can’t you? Wow, sucks to be you, huh?”
“I swear,” Alala growled, “I’m going to scratch you so hard if we manage to get out of here!” They didn’t have to wait long, fortunately. Four of the Arachnes crept through the forest with the frightening grace of spiders, their eight legs moving in perfect harmony. Their lower part was all spider, but from the waist up, they were rather beautiful women, naked and happy. The leader, an older female with tribal tattoos on her pale skin, noticed one of their traps had been sprung, and began singing in a strange language. The others sang along, but then the smallest pointed to the net, her voice trilling like a bird’s. The Arachnes were apparently noticing they had captured the wrong gender, and one of them climbed a tree, spun out to the net, and released it very gently. She spoke three syllables and the cords loosened their hold, freeing their captives.
“I wish Riene were here,” Yenae sighed as the Arachne bleated at them. “I can’t understand a word they’re saying. Valti?”
“Hold on, it’s been a long time since I studied them. No, I’m not one of you! Darn it— hold on. Hope I get this right.” She attempted to answer them, first insisting that she was not an Arachne in spite of her eight limbs, and second explaining who they were and what they were doing. The leader was obviously sorry for the mistake— she bowed and clapped her hands together— and gave them leave to continue. Now that she could see the Arachne up close, Chandra could easily understand why some people would enjoy copulating with them, even if it killed them. They were neither disgusting, frightening, or misshapen in any way: these creatures were beautiful, kind, and magnificent, almost enough to make her forget what she had heard and join them in a little romp.
“So are we safe?” Marsa asked as a lull broke in the conversation. Valti stretched her back gingerly.
“As long as we stick to a different road, yes. The one we’re on right now is littered with webs like this.”
“I mean, Alala and myself.”
“Huh? Oh sure, sure. Even if I could tell them what you can do in their language, which I can’t, I don’t think they’d care. They’re only interested in human men and, if they can’t have that, other Arachne. I think they’d just look at an Arachne-Felinis crossbreed as something of an anathema.”
“Thank Goddess,” she sighed, and Alala sighed with her. The Arachnes sang to them as they left, and Valti didn’t have the capacity or the heart to translate; it sounded too beautiful.
Meanwhile…
“Hey, gimme down from here! Hey! HEY!! Little butterflies like me shouldn’t be kept HANGING AROUND!! GET IT!!? BUTTERFLIES!! If you don’t let me go right now, my swords won’t be responsible for…ooh, spider-ladies! Hey down there! NAKED SPIDER WOMEN SHOULD LISTEN TO THEIR LAWNMOWERS BEFORE COMING OUT TO PLAY CHECKERS! AAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!!!!”
……
The next few days were by far the most interesting. There seemed to be at least one major trial or peril every day— some meant for the group to overcome as a team, others designed, it seemed, specifically to test certain individuals. Alala had to fight through snares, traps, and confining places, Chandra’s willpower was put to the test against a traveling harem, Valti had to recall her studies in one incident involving animal disease, Yenae fought off bounty hunters, and Rebecca was thrown into the fire as she battled a giant preying mantis by herself. There was also something about a mountain in flames and an iron fan they needed to put it out, but this was just one incident in a long string of unpredictable, exasperating events. The women could certainly say the tasks strengthened them.
The most noteworthy part happened a few days after the “mountain of fire” incident, which had required a little cunning on Yenae’s part and a lot of seduction on Chandra’s. Rebecca was just storing her new Iron Fan away and Chandra was wishing she could bathe for the tenth time, when they came across a small cliffside temple and decided to rest. Aside from the building itself, the view, and the wild gardens that led to it, the only thing of interest was a decaying bronze statue standing watch over the area. The image it had been sculpted in was almost completely worn away by time, elements, and vandals, but they could still see an inscription below it. The letters were in Chinese and Hindi, but Alala had some skill at reading them.
“It reads, ‘Come this way, pilgrim, to receive truth; go back the way you came, pilgrim, to deliver it.’ I guess it was put up not long after that Xuanzang guy completed his task. That’s my guess, at any rate, or else it’s just a coincidence.”
“It certainly looks like it was made to represent a Buddhist monk,” Marsa noted. “See, he’s wearing their traditional robes, and he’s carrying a staff.”
“Do you think this is the will-following staff?” Valti joked as she reached up to touch it. Everyone found a place to sit down and spread some rations around. This was a serene place where travelers could rest without fear, a shelter in bad weather and a beacon of encouragement for the weary. Even the gardens were bearing wild fruit; Chandra tasted a few and gathered some. Yenae sniffled, blew her nose, and asked how much further it would be.
“Well, we’re not in India yet, but I’d say…we’ve crossed over the worst of it. That shortcut those Arachne people gave us sure was helpful. We’re certainly at least a quarter of the way finished— that’s about halfway to India.”
“And so far no sign of treasures,” Valti sighed. Marsa munched on her rations solemnly.
“It was not my task to find treasures. I told you, this is my mission, not yours. If you only travel in search of material wealth, you will never be satisfied.”
“I’m just saying, is all,” she shrugged. “That is why most of us came on this voyage.”
“Treasure?!” screamed a voice nearby. Something fell out of a nearby tree, a bulgy pink lump with a tattered cloth and several leaves and branches stuck on. The lump wriggled to its feet, shook itself off, drew four swords, and grinned avariciously. “Is that what this is all about?! Freaking gold and diamonds? You mean I’ve been sent to kill treasure hunters!? OH, THE TRAGIC STORY OF BEING A LIVING WEAPON! See this heart-wrenching drama while you still can! KIDDIES GET IN FREE! AAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!!!”
Ferocious threw himself at them without a moment’s pause; it was sheer luck none of them were eviscerated. Flying proved useless as Ferocious threw his swords at Rebecca with deadly accuracy, and hiding in the shrine was futile as Ferocious chopped at the pillars and boards indiscriminately. Yenae threw her knives and Valti attacked with her saws, but Ferocious managed to hold them back with one sword, while he swung with another. Brignor was sliced on the abdomen but the cut wasn’t bad; she groped herself and winced.
“Who the hell are you? And why are you following us?”
“I’m not following!!” he screamed, dancing and whirling out of control. “You’re just going in the same direction I am! YOU’RE REVERSE-FOLLOWING ME!!!” His attacks intensified; there was no way any of them could defend themselves. They couldn’t even run: for a man wearing a dress, Ferocious was blindingly fast, and his swords had a chain on them, so he could throw and swing at a great distance. Half the shrine and most of the gardens were decimated in minutes; everyone tried staying one step ahead of him, but with the cliff on one side and their maniacal enemy on the other, it was practically impossible. Eventually he cornered Chandra, who tried distracting him by flashing her chest. He made a face and swung with a lecherous grin, but his arm suddenly went limp. A dagger had been thrust into it, care of a last-ditch effort by Yenae. Ferocious glared at her, then pulled the dagger out with his teeth, licking his blood.
“FINGER-LICKING GOOD!!” he screamed, barreling after her. She ducked behind the rotting state just as he sent three swords crashing down at once. They broke through the bronze easily, but came to a crashing halt as they bounced against the statue’s staff. Ferocious shivered as the recoil overwhelmed him, and stood swaying as he tried to regain his equilibrium. Something about that staff…
“Oh my goodness, it can’t be,” Marsa muttered. Valti gawked.
“I was only kidding!” She decided to go for broke and made a run for the staff while Ferocious was still dizzy. He tried moving after her, but fell over backwards. Valti took the staff in both hands and pulled it out of the statue’s fingers, holding it and testing its weight. It felt like an ordinary bronze rod to her, but if it could repel that madman’s attacks…
“I must be crazy,” she exclaimed. “But what the hey! I was crazy to begin with, right? Staff get longer!” To her amazement, the bronze rod expanded in length, striking Ferocious on the forehead just as he sat up. The knock on the head was surprisingly effective: it actually pushed him back and made him even dizzier. Valti squealed like a kid with a new toy.
“Smaller!” she exclaimed, and it shrunk to the size of a needle. Before she could play with it anymore, Ferocious stood up, a little wobbly, weaving like a drunk as he staggered towards his prey.
“You won’t…eat…my pic-a-nic basket, Ranger Bob! Not even…feed it…to a bear! Ha, ha, ha…”
“INAKCHOK!” Valti screamed. The staff shot out and rammed Ferocious in the gut, carrying him over the edge and then slithering back to its original shape. After that, the dazzled cross-dresser had nowhere to go but down.
……
Marsa Rosemont sighed dreamily as she soaked in the pool. It was rare to find a clean body of water out in the wilderness like this, and after everything she had been through, Marsa felt she deserved to take advantage of it. A nice, long bath sounded like the perfect reward, but she chose to bathe alone: she also wanted to observe ritualistic cleansing. They were roughly three-fourths into their journey to India and were taxed by the rough road; a few of them even thought about leaving and resuming other obligations. Marsa had told them several times that there would be no hard feelings if they left her, although she would miss the company. They were not her disciples and this was not their quest; she was the only one with a genuine obligation.
Now that she was thinking about it, perhaps it was time to part ways with them and continue alone. They had been a great help, and together they overcame what felt like the worst of all the disasters, but they were weary and in need of a change— and besides, they had their group to return to. Yes, she decided: she would sever her ties with them and wish them well. From here on out, she would walk alone. She stepped out of the pool, wrapping a towel around her furry body, resolved to confront them. As she dried herself off, Marsa’s sharp cat eats picked up the sound of something slithering through the wilderness towards her. She stiffened cautiously— she had no means of defending herself and her companions were far away— and looked for a safe place to hide. The pool was a death-trap— what if the creature could swim?— and the foliage around her was too thick to run in; besides, she was naked.
Everything happened so quickly after this that words really could not do it any justice. A large serpent emerged from the foliage, half-slithering inside the pool, its hood wide open and its mouth yawning in hunger. Marsa yelped and stumbled away, tripping on the ground, her towel rippling away. The serpent, easily five or six meters in length, its head alone as large as its prey, darted towards her like a bolt. Marsa clenched her eyes shut— it was incredible that she would die here, in this manner, of all things— but the great Felinis gods saw fit for her to live another day, and sent a savior to destroy the creature.
She heard a strong, deep voice say, “It’s okay. It’s dead now. You’re safe.” She gradually opened her eyes and saw two things that startled her: one was the serpent, its head chopped off and its body pinned down by a sword; the other was her apparent deliverer, sitting on the grass with his back to her. A large green cloak had been laid on the ground for her use; he was clearly being considerate and waited patiently for her to dress.
“Take it,” he said.
“M-my clothes aren’t far away,” she muttered. Marsa was still a little frightened, but she regained her senses (and her clothes), and approached the man. Although he was reclining, she could tell he had a powerful build, and bore the face of a King: noble, beautiful, but with worries carved on his face and a distant expression in his dark eyes. He was dressed with very royal clothes, somber and quiet to reflect the regal bearing he had and the grave expression he now adapted. He finally stood up once he was satisfied with Marsa’s state of dress, and pulled his sword from the serpent’s body.
“Thank you for saving me,” Marsa whispered.
“You are welcome,” he replied as he cleaned the blood off. “May I ask where you are headed?”
“To India. I’m on a pilgrimage— a sacred journey.”
“And are you by yourself?”
“No, not up until now. But I feel it’s time to cut my ties and resume my travels alone. It would be best for us all.”
“Must you make the journey on foot?”
“Yes. Well, I’m not forbidden to have a beast of burden…”
“The road from here to India does not get any easier,” he said, gazing directly into her eyes. Marsa felt herself weaken under his stare, but it was not a discomforting feeling at all. It was like looking at the wisest, most experienced person the galaxy had to offer: a somber, reflective man who had seen it all, and could approach any situation reasonably and prudently. “To travel it alone,” he continued, “would be nearly impossible. If it will not trouble you, I could accompany you there. I know the land very well and could help you overcome some obstacles.”
“I wouldn’t want to trouble you,” she replied softly.
“There would be no trouble. I have no important business to attend to. Besides, I could not let you proceed by yourself with a clear conscience. As I said, I know this road: it can be deadly if you’re not careful.”
“So I’ve noticed,” she smiled. “Well then, if it is no trouble, and if I am not imposing on your obligations, I would be honored to have you. I am Marsa Rosemont, ex-priestess of Tigris.”
“And I…Hendrick van der Decken, at your service.” He bowed deeply, impressing her.
“Well then, Lord van der Decken, if you will permit me to inform my companions of my decision, I shan’t be long.”
“Of course. I will wait here for you.” As Barbarossa watched her go, he took a deep breath and sighed. He always was a sucker for these kinds of people. “Well, so much for finding Marliir and Brignor.”
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
Preview of next chapter
Kyrie: Here comes the main event! Get ready! The rest of the crew teams up to go on the greatest adventure of all time! …Well, except for Kate and Allegra— but I think they’re going on a completely different “adventure”! Heheheh!
Herut: Leave it to Kyrie to turn a perfectly adorable couple into a perverted fantasy.
Shana: At least you and I are together! KAWAII CUDDLE TIME!!!
Herut: Huh? Um…oh, okay, if you insist.
Everyone: Aww…
Allegra: Stop that!
Riene: Anyway, you won’t believe the treasure we’re after in the next chapter!
Eve: Or who we run into! Hey, I hope this isn’t my only line! No, wait— don’t move to the next person! I still have a lot I wanna say!
Athena: We’re going after the fabled Golden Fleece.
Fuuka: And we meet the Dead Rose pirates! Yup, Rose and the gang are back!
Eve: Damn it, you guys!
Teleah: It’s a race…
Kayleigh: It’s a chase…
Both: So hurry up and feed your face!!
Rachel: All this and maybe even more in the next chapter, “Beautiful Place in My Heart: Amy and the Argonauts?”
Naja: It’s not plagiarism if the author has been dead for 3000 years! Lookit me, I’m dancing!
Amy: Hey, don’t I get any lines?
Mink: It’s amazingly amazing.
Turalyen: NOT AGAIN!!
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