At the northernmost point of Rubiihoppou sat its treacherous and mighty ruby mountain, Ketsuyama. Even in the blinding white, it seemed to be a stairway from Heaven for God to reach the mortals living in the barren wilderness and icy tundra of the earth. The sapphire demons rested on a hidden slab of rock in a narrow grotto and stared at the perilous and looming path in front of them, attempting to traverse the peak with their minds. Below them, the wind blew snow across the rock, chafing and corroding the surface of the mountain. Above them, the freezing snow fell from the eons of rock that loomed to the sky. Within that grotto, they were safe from the merciless, harsh weather. Kevin kneeled and held Minako’s hand tightly as he examined it. Nick leaned his head on her shoulder, groaning as his adrenaline subsided. Howie, Brian, and AJ crouched beside them.
“No!” Minako jerked her hand back.
“No?” Kevin frowned.
Minako held it tightly with her other hand and shook her head. “Heal Nick first! He’s hurting!”
“But… If you bleed too much…”
“It’s okay!”
“We’re stronger...”
“It’s okay,” she smiled, tears forming in her eyes. “Don’t let Nick hurt anymore.”
Kevin turned to Nick and raised his hand over him as he pressed the other to his chest. As they emanated a deep sapphire light, the blood dripping down Nick’s face ceased, then the gashes in his cheek began disappearing. Eventually, Nick’s strained face began to relax. Kevin smiled as he hovered his hand over, around, and between Nick’s abdomen, back, and shoulder. Then he clenched his hand into a fist and removed the other from Nick’s chest, as he leaned back and exhaled, “Stop being so reckless, understood?”
AJ handed Nick his tunic, then backed away from Kevin.
Nick smirked as he pulled it over his shoulders, “I can’t make any promises.”
Kevin narrowed his eyes as his nostrils flared, then shut them quickly and shook his head. When he opened his eyes, he turned to Minako. “I’ll heal you now.”
Minako smiled and shook her head, “No, don’t waste your powers on me. We’re about to go to the castle! I’ll be fine with just a bandage, it’s stopped bleeding already, see?” She held it up to Kevin, but closed it quickly when he reached for it again. She winced.
Kevin shook his head as he pulled his salve and the leftover bandages from his tunic, “You’re a terrible liar. Both of you need to stop minimizing things.”
Minako turned to Brian as she hesitantly held her hand back toward Kevin, “Do you think you can get us any closer to the castle?”
Kevin began applying the salve to her hand.
Brian glanced away from her and shook his head as he frowned,his eyes drooping in concern. “No, my power isn’t that strong. This is as far as I can take us. There’s also a miasma surrounding this castle, I don’t think I’m strong enough to break it…”
“A miasma? Of what?” Minako frowned as well.
Brian shook his head again as he stared up the mountain, “I’m not sure, but it feels dangerous and empty all at once.”
Minako lowered her head.
AJ put a hand on her shoulder, “Hey. Cheer up. The path looks like it’s an even ascent, so we won’t have to actually climb the mountain.”
Howie nodded, “And it is fortuitous that Brian could bring us to this point rather than having to ascend on foot.”
Minako smiled and nodded, “Yeah… Thank you, Brian. You’re always taking good care of us.” Her hand flinched as Kevin put pressure on her palm.
Brian smiled, ”Of course.”
Kevin applied a few layers of the bandage, then began wrapping several more layers. After tying the loose ends, he gave her a pat on the back of her hand. “I’m finished. But, the next time you want to grab a sword, you should call one of us instead.”
Minako lowered her head again, “Yeah… Thank you for taking such good care of us, too, Kevin.”
Kevin made a small grunt as he nodded.
AJ stood slowly, “I hate to act like I’m the boss here, but… Let’s get going toward the castle. It’s probably a day hike at least and, well… The sooner we get there, the sooner we get the box. Right?” He smiled.
Howie, Brian, and Kevin turned to Minako.
“Yeah,” she smiled, “Let’s go. If Nick’s better, I’m ready.”
Nick patted his abdomen and nodded. The other three stood and then the four men began heading toward the grotto’s exit to the mountain’s icy path. Minako pulled her knees to her chest and leaned her head on them as she wrapped her arms around them.
Nick ran his hand along her hair and pressed a kiss to her head. When she glanced up at him, he smiled and stood as well, “Let’s go, Minako.” He held out his hand.
Minako leaned her head against her knees again and said nothing.
Nick kneeled back down and grabbed her shoulder. “Hey, we’re almost to the castle. Everything will be okay. We’re together...” Nick bit his lip, “It’s what Kevin said, isn’t it?”
“Yes… And no…”
He sat back down beside her and pulled her into his arms, “You really did want to call one of them. Were you afraid the general would pull the sword out and stab one of us?”
Tears began to stream down Minako’s cheeks.
Nick held her tightly, “Don’t worry. You’re trying to protect all of us so badly, but you’re missing the point…”
“What else is the point? I need you all to return the box to all of you. I can’t help if you’re not...” She covered her face with her hands as she trailed off.
Nick pulled her hand away and laced his fingers in hers as he lifted her chin, staring into her tear filled eyes. “Minako, we exist only for you…”
“What?”
“I shouldn’t speak for them… Me at least… I’m sure I exist only for you.” He bit his lip again and pulled her into his lap. “That’s why I’m scared to death. You came from a complete other world and I was never really living until the moment I met you… I spent my whole life waiting for Pandora, and now that I’ve found you, I’m finally someone who should exist… I’m finally alive… When you leave, we might not… I probably won’t... be alive any more…”
“But, you were alive before I came here… For decades! You’ve always mattered! You always deserved to exist!” She gripped his tunic at his chest.
Nick smiled weakly and ran his fingers through her hair, “I never said how long for sure. Decades… It could be more, it could be less… I’m pretty much a clean slate, you know?”
She gripped his cheek. “Nick… But your memories… I know you don’t remember your family, but...”
He frowned, “I have amnesia… That’s what Kevin called it...”
“But the priestesses and the tree…”
“Of course there’s bits and pieces, but…” he smiled, “I’m sure you knew.” He turned his head, “Kevin and I discussed it when we were traveling here…”
~*~
At the outset of their journey, the area of Rubiihoppou closest to the border resembled the lush green vibrancy of the more southern countries. A light breeze rustled the leaves of the trees that Howie and Brian leaned against while deep in slumber. At the center of the mock campsite, a small fire crackled and danced across Nick and Kevin’s faces. Nick ran his hand lightly through Minako’s hair while she slept in his lap, curled into a small ball.
“So, you’re remembering things you didn’t before?” Kevin asked.
Nick nodded and frowned, “Not a lot, but…” He bit his lip.
Kevin folded his hands in his lap and leaned forward, “How much since I healed you?”
“Only bits and pieces…” Nick frowned as he fiddled with Minako’s hair. “There are small things that will trigger something, but… It’s not a lot…”
“Like the gate?”
“I remember it shining like silver. There were tall demons and a tall woman with light hair…”
“And their faces?”
Nick shook his head, “Nothing else.” He stared at the sky as he continued to fiddle with Minako’s hair, “Of course, there were fragments before… But, nothing like now… No clear pictures, just things like unattached words or shapes or colors… Not much else…”
“Words?”
Nick nodded, “Mountain… Brian mentioned gold and blue mountains once and I’d like to see that.” He smiled, then frowned, “But even back when he said it, I recognized that word before we met you… Why would I recognize ‘mountain’? I don’t think I’ve been to one...”
Kevin frowned, “Anything else?”
Nick put his hands to his heart, “Just the priestesses… The countries… The box… God… That Pandora would know my name when she found me...”
“So that when you met Pandora you would know what to tell her… I wonder if you made yourself remember those things.” Kevin ran his hand along his chin. “It sounds like you have selective amnesia. A great deal of your memory probably centers around one particularly painful moment or several. I’m surprised you’re so chipper if you made yourself forget.”
Nick smiled and looked to the sky, “I didn’t use to be that way… I was sad, scared, and angry when I was all alone. I spent most of my time trying to figure out why I lived in that dark and dank place wearing chains… The best I could come up with was that I was a shame to God, being a demon and all…” He frowned. “It was really confusing at first seeing that other demons existed out here without those chains, but…” His gentle smile gleamed as he stared at her and ran his fingers through her hair, “But as Minako and I traveled together, she constantly showed me that I deserved to be away from that place, that I was worthwhile. She called me gentle and kind, brave and strong. She just made the world that much brighter as she surrounded me in her warmth and brightness. Then she brought me to all of you and then all of you treated me like I was worthwhile too. And now we can all be surrounded in that warmth and brightness...”
Kevin chuckled, “You really adore her, don’t you?”
“Adore?”
Kevin smiled, “It’s a deep love and respect… Or maybe worship?”
Nick stared at the sky again, “Maybe… Everybody says Pandoras are supposed to be goddesses…” He shook his head, “I don’t want to worship her, though, she’s not really that legendary Goddess. But I do... cherish her. I’ll do anything I can to protect her and that feeling grows more and more as time goes.” He chuckled and stared back at Kevin, “I used to care more about the box. It was all I thought about because I thought that maybe my memories were sealed in it. Then, when I got it, I could wish for a miracle and I could return to whatever my life used to be after everything was done. I dreamed that I could be surrounded in light and out of the darkness...” He smiled down at her again and tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear, “But, I’m surrounded by the warmth and brightness that I wanted right now and we’ve spent so much time together that I’ve made new memories. So I decided that I only want to be with her now and my old memories aren’t important any more.”
Kevin frowned and put his hand on Nick’s shoulder, “But if you do get your memories back and you’re someone different from this--”
Nick shook his head, “Doesn’t matter. My new memories matter more.”
~*~
Minako’s tears poured down her cheeks as she flung her arms around his neck tightly.
He gently cradled her head as he tightened his arm around her waist, then kissed her temple. “See? It’s important that we’re okay, but it’s important that you’re okay too. You will always be more important than the box.”
She gripped his cheek again, “You too. You’re most important to me.”
Nick pressed a hard, but tender kiss to her lips as he held her tightly to his chest. She held his shoulders tightly in response. He then stood up and pulled her up with him, steadying her as he did. He drew back his lips, then ran his hand through her hair. “Let’s go to the others, they’re probably worried. And the sooner we get to the box, the sooner we can figure out what to do afterward.”
Minako responded with a small, but determined nod.
Nick gave her a short kiss, then released his embrace. He gripped her hand tightly as he led her toward the entrance into the blinding snow where the others were patiently waiting for them to continue up the mountain.
~*~
The mountain loomed above them. It was a giant stairway to the castle of the glowing red eyes, the castle that Minako and her demons had disappeared to. Renee stared at its obscured top hidden within the clouds. It was only a few hours from our previous location, but those hours will cost us when it comes to catching up to them. Renee held her hands in front of her mouth, trying to catch her warm breath within them, then turned to Justin quickly.
“Are you sure this is where they are?”
He nodded, “Yes, Lady Renee. Ketsuyama, the blood mountain surrounded by death and mystery.”
“It took forever to get here! Is there a quicker way to the top?”
“No.”
“How do we climb this mountain then?! We’ll never catch up!”
“If you please, Priestess…” Joseph interrupted them meekly, “There is a hidden path to the top of the mountain. I can take you.” He pointed toward a nook in the base of the mountain.
Renee followed his gaze and smiled, “Yes, thank you, Joseph. That’s wonderful.”
Joseph squeezed through the narrow crevice and beckoned the other emerald demons to follow him. Inside, the crevice’s stone walls were blanketed by ice. Stalactites dripped pools of water to the ground of the tunnel. Several stalagmites rose from the path to join the stalactites. It may have been a comfort from the harsh wind, but it was damp and endlessly dark. Lance summoned a small, glowing orb to his hand, lighting their way as the emerald demons started down the narrow path. Renee grabbed Lance’s free hand quickly and shivered.
Joseph pointed ahead of him, “At the end, the path emerges on the mountain, so be careful, it will get very cold.”
Renee scanned the dim tunnel. How long have we been walking on this bleak path? It seems like ages. In this shadowed world, time stands still as it hides from the sun. Is the weather always bad in Rubiihoppou? This is suffocating... She held her shoulder and continued to clench Lance’s hand. Justin flanked her, pushing to the front of the group. Joshua and Christopher brought up the rear. Water from the ceiling continued to drip on them as they walked. Christopher shivered.
“Aren’t you comfortable in this type of environment, thief?” Joshua sneered.
Christopher shivered again, “It’s too dark for me to take pleasure in the ice.”
“We’re here.” Joseph eventually announced.
They emerged through a second crevice and into a small grotto. At the entrance, snow poured from the mountain, but inside, the cold rocky ground remained untouched. Justin inhaled and put his hand on the wall.
“What is it?” Renee asked.
“The smell of the blood is strongest here. But after that, I can’t smell it.”
Renee growled, “Did they magically heal themselves? How?”
“Wait. There is a faint smell of blood, but it is very faint…”
“No need to worry about scents.” Lance closed his hand, consuming the bright light, and pointed ahead. “These tracks on the ground must belong to them.”
Renee stared at the tracks. While most of them resembled shoe prints, a set of large clawed prints walked alongside them. That grotesque creature that Minako claimed to love wasn’t wearing shoes. These are fresh. Renee smiled, “We must be close!” She began to scan the path with her eyes and her elation began to sink. This is endless! Just how far is the castle from this cave?
Joshua leaned against the wall with crossed arms as he surveyed the grotto and the path beyond. “My guess is that they appeared here with that priest’s power and have been climbing the mountain while we were just trying to come to it.”
Renee clenched her fists. “This is so frustrating! Just how long is this path anyway?!”
Lance frowned. “If we don’t hurry, Your Eminence, the snow will wipe the prints away, and we’ll lose sight of their path.”
“But--”
Justin smirked. “Perhaps Lance has an intelligent idea for once. We must leave while the path is still navigable.”
Renee clenched her fists. Minako… Why are you making it so hard to reach you? Why do you keep trying for those creatures? Your demons are unbelievably weak. They can only protect themselves with weak barriers. And yet, you are winning. What do those creatures have that I don’t? Why are you treating them like they matter at all?
“Priestess…” Joseph tip toed toward her and put his hand on her shoulder.
Renee turned to him, “What?”
“This may not be a comfort, but this castle likely has traps to guard it. If we’re second, the other demons will spring them for us and we’ll be safe.”
Renee gasped. Of course! Minako, you can still suffer more. That’s what you get for going first, you suffer. A smirk spread across her face.
Justin took his usual spot at the lead of the party, then started up the icy path. Ahead of them, the sapphire demons would battle whatever horrors awaited in the castle for them.
Joseph hung back and clenched his fists. “Alex…” he whispered.
~*~
The storm was blinding, a furious blizzard of ice and snow. They shielded their faces from the encompassing white world, but the cold still stung their eyes. They cradled their shoulders trying to mask the paralyzing cold. Yet, even against its bitter sting, they moved forward.
“How long has it been?” Minako whispered to Nick as she huddled against his chest.
“Too long.” He rose his fist to his lips, blowing a warm breath that was quickly snuffed by the cold.
“Up ahead!” Brian called, shining his sun like scepter in the distance and illuminating the peak of the mountain.
It finally stood before them, the castle. It seemed old in appearance, desecrated, rotted, and decayed next to the palaces in the other countries, a beautiful and haunting ghost of bygone times. The moat surrounding it had frozen over and fused to the tall wall surrounding the compound. The keep and several towers could be seen looming over the outer wall. Despite the decay of time, the castle remained untouched by the blizzard that surrounded them.
Brian stopped abruptly at the edge of the frozen moat.
Minako huddled against him, “Brian?”
“This is the miasma.” He tapped it with his staff, and the miasma responded with electric sparks, “It’s a barrier of some sort, but not like mine.”
“Can you break it?” Nick frowned.
Brian shook his head, “I’m not strong enough… It’s made of something strange...”
At that moment, the barrier rippled in front of them, seeming to create a passage into the castle. They stared at each other with dread.
“We did receive an invitation…” AJ held out his hand, motioning the others to enter.
Brian led the way through the opening. Once all six were inside, the entrance faded.
Nick breathed on his hand again, the warmth actually reaching his skin. “From in here, it barely feels like we’re on top of a blizzarding mountain…”
The grounds of the castle compound were littered with the decayed and rotting remains of patches of pine trees and likely once lush gardens overgrown with weeds. These surrounded the scattered stone remains of the foundations of building compounds and gates. Several holes were nestled in the ground of the barren garden that once held tranquil ponds. Beyond the desolate gardens, a large, sloped stone foundation loomed above them, the only structure fully intact, though the stone was draped in ivy and moss. Towering above that, sat the five story castle’s keep -- the last sanctuary from impending infiltration. Nestled within the stone foundation was a final gate featuring a sloped stone roof and surrounded by four stone columns. Between the columns, listless half-open chipped and rotting wood doors barred the gate and weakly protected this bastion of refuge. Everywhere, the castle smelled of death and decay.
Kevin kneeled and picked up a yellowed flower, then clenched it tightly. He narrowed his eyes and scanned the overgrown gardens. “No one’s been in here for years.”
He stood, then they walked through the decayed gardens, searching for an entrance to the castle.
“Brian, do you have thoughts on the makeup of this miasma?” Howie scanned their surroundings as well.
Brian looked around aimlessly, “I have no idea.” He covered his nose with his arm, “But it reeks of death everywhere.”
Once they reached the front face of the castle, the half-opened doors creaked on their hinges, opening to their full width. “Enter, Sapphire demons…” the rumbling voice called, “I hate to invite guests who refuse to accept an invitation…”
Kevin eyed the doors suspiciously.
“I feel like we’re walking on twigs…” AJ stared at the others and then the doors as he adjusted his collar.
“That’s because we probably are.” Nick held the back of his neck as he cocked his head and pursed his lips. “They’re all over the ground…”
Kevin put his hand to his forehead and made a quiet grunt, “Nick… He means that it might be a trap.”
The five men continued scanning the doors, the garden, the blizzard outside, and each other. Meanwhile, Minako stared intently at the castle’s keep that loomed above them. On the top floor beneath the sloped roof, the gating surrounding the veranda was decorated by five winged and horned creatures that resembled the five men standing beside her. She gripped and pulled on Nick’s sleeve and pointed toward them. “Look at the pretty gargoyles, Nick! You guys!”
Nick turned quickly and put his hand on her shoulder as he squinted to follow her gaze. AJ cocked his head as he crossed his arms. Howie rose his hand to his mouth and shuddered, his face blanching. Brian walked closer toward the castle and stared up at it.
“Howie?” Kevin put his hand on his shoulder and frowned.
Howie moved his shaking hand slowly, “We do not mean to dampen Pandora’s spirit…”
“Dampen? Why?” Minako questioned.
“We are concerned that judging by the age of this castle, the accuracy of sculpting would not match their features.”
“The features?” Brian pursed his lips and turned back toward Howie
AJ put his hand to his chin, stroking his facial hair. “Come to think of it, don’t most gargoyles look like dogs or horses or cats or something?”
“These are men, or at least, nearly human.” Kevin crossed his arms, his eyebrows narrowing.
“These are hardly humans.” Howie shook his head, “These are clearly demons. And the features on that one are identical to the first king of our dynasty…”
Nick bit his lip, “Demons were brought from the sky to bring order to the warring states… They were made kings of the great lands…” Nick’s eyes grew wide as a realization washed over him. “Howie, that’s really true? All the countries used to be ruled by demons?!”
Howie nodded, “Indeed, though it seems Safaiananpou may be the last nation with demon lineage in the monarchy.”
“So they look like the first kings of the great nations?” Minako frowned as she fiddled with Nick’s sleeve, “Don’t understand why there’s five though if there’s only four countries…”
Howie stared back up at the gargoyles as he lowered his head, “Worse than that, We fear that they are the first kings descended to earth.”
“Then…” Brian froze and gripped his staff tightly, “We might be walking into our own tomb.”
AJ turned and quickly walked back toward the edge of the barrier, “I’ll see you all at the bottom of the mountain!” He started running and tried to cross into the blizzard, but the barrier flung him to the ground. Sparks shot from his body as he landed.
“AJ!” Minako ran toward him, then kneeled beside him and gripped his shoulders.
AJ sat up slowly and growled as he clutched his head.
Kevin clenched his fist and snarled, “I thought so, it is a trap.”
Minako’s hands shook violently as she clutched AJ, “Then… The box isn’t here?”
Brian scanned the grounds again, “It probably is here. We’d have no reason to come if it wasn’t. But, it looks like there’s a price on admission to this castle. When we lose, we get turned into ornaments as well…”
Nick strode over to Minako and AJ, then helped pull them from the ground. “It’ll be fine. If they were the first kings, then they’ve been dead a really long time… Let’s wait to worry until we see the others.”
“The others?” Brian frowned.
Nick clenched Minako’s hand tightly, “If the box is here, and we think that dead demons are turned to stone, then the demons from Rubiihoppou and Topazuseihou are ornaments in here somewhere...” He started pulling Minako toward the entrance, “And we’re already here, so we can worry or we can go forward.”
Nick pushed aside the swinging doors and the others tentatively followed him. As usual, Brian led the group, followed by Howie, then Kevin, then AJ. With high suspicions, tightly strung nerves, and suffocating fear, the ensuing darkness became their path. A misstep surely meant death, if not an eternity as a stone monument -- the embodiment of their looming worries. Yet Nick’s words rang in their ears: worry or go forward.
Chapter End Notes:
As mentioned in the chapter, Ketsuyama (Kay-tsoo-yah-mah; the “tsoo” sound is a close approximation to if you elided together “eight” and “suits” in English, isolating the sound made when the /t/ in “eight” and the “su” in “suits” are combined) translates roughly as "blood mountain."
