Master Bashiro closed his eyes and began to control his breathing, and River got the sense that he was meditating. There was a long silence, and just as River was about to open her mouth to say something, he spoke, as if he was testing her patience.
“The Kitsune are a special clan — gifted by the Yokai or Margreve spirit — to live long lives filled with magic. Many do not even believe that we exist—they tell wild stories of Kitsune’s shapeshifting into humans.” There was a sly smile on Saitomo’s face, but he said nothing. “Even if that were true,” – there was a pause before Master Bashiro continued, “I am not certain why we would do such a thing. Humans are such limited creatures – unable to truly see the world for what it is and certainly not able to see it for what it is not. Kitsune are fox spirits, not ghosts or undead, no. Instead, we are fox spirits in the sense that we have a state of knowledge or enlightenment, and some of us have developed what others would call supernatural abilities.”
“But those are not my words; that is what the other, lesser races say about our existence. To the few Kitsune who remain, we are fully enlightened guardians and watchers for Yokai. We have been given certain abilities to ‘see’ reality.”
Saitomo interjected, “The Tabaxi, who are under our watch whether they knew it or not, have been watched by Kitsune. We have seen what they have done and what they have not. That is why Master Bashiro had to write and burn a letter. He watched behaviors that angered him.” Master Bashiro sat quietly for a bit and then, again without warning, announced, “River, friend of the Margreve, you have shown respect for the Margreve this day, and we see your heart. The Yokai wishes you to know that your Clan lives but is in danger. You must go to them and lend aid.”
“But beware, Bast is punishing the Tabaxi for the Eyes of the Evening.”
River cocked her head. “Who is Bast? What are the Eyes of the Evening?”
Master Bashiro made a “humpf” sound and extended his hand to Saitomo. Saitomo quickly reached into his pack and fished out a pad, quill, and ink, and handed it to Master Bashiro. Saitomo said as Master Bashiro began writing something on his notepad, “Bast is a cat deity. Well, at least she is rumored to look like a cat, but whether she is or not, I don’t know. She is known to be a very selfish deity.
“According to worshipers, many who are Tabaxi and a number of elven clans, she spends most of her time grooming herself before toying with mortals for her amusement. While you may not know the name Bast, she has other names, such as Sharess or Shar. She has appeared in both male and female forms and often appears in the material plane as a feline. What we see, however, is that she is active in the Margreve, searching for her mate, who spurned her love, and somehow the tabaxi are the source of her wrath.”
Master Bashiro ripped the paper from the notepad and tossed it into the fire. “Bast is also known as the Felidae, Bastet, the Mother of Cats, and even the Cat Lord.”
River sighed and dropped her head. “Great. Just great. Remind me again, what’s so great about the gods? Do they actually ever help anyone? The last god who took an interest in me kept trying to get me to do mean things to my friends, and then left me in the lurch when I needed them. My people pay a certain homage to the Cat Lord, but we follow the Mountain Speakers more than him. Or her. Or whatever. We believe that he gives gifts to cubs when they’re born but otherwise ignores us unless something dire is happening. Which it is now, and if he cares more about his/her side piece than the fact that the world is burning, he can GO GET FUCKED!!!” she roared into the forest.
“We do not speak for the gods, nor can we explain them; we simply watch for Yokai,” Saitomo said, in his best imitation of Master Bashiro’s controlled tone.
“Yokai, the Margreve, is sensing this unbalance with Bast only because she, he, they, is in the Margreve and is quite upset… there is unbalance,” said Master Bashiro. “You should head to the Djurda Falls to find your clan; we must return to our watch at first light.”
River nodded, suddenly aware that she was very tired and that it had been a long day. “If you don’t mind, I’ll take the dawn watch. I don’t think I’ll be able to stay awake much longer.”
As the party prepared to retire for the evening, Master Bashiro went to sleep first, leaving Saitomo and River awake as Saitomo prepared to take the first watch. Saitomo looked at River as she prepared to rest and poked a stick in the fire, adjusting the logs. “What will you do when you find your clan?”
“It depends on what I find when I get to them. I don’t know why they’re at Djurda Falls, but the vision I had was that they were starving, so I hope they’ve found some game. I’ll probably try to bring some in, in case they haven’t, and I’ve been hunting to try to save my rations for them. We’ve got some kinship ties with the Forest Tabaxi, so hopefully, we can find one of their clans that my folks can shelter with. Otherwise, I’ll try to find a safer place in the Margreve for them. After that… I have to go back to our lands in the Draspines to try and find the Moonwell. I’m hoping by then that my friends will have come to help me, but I promised a friend that I’d try to set things right, so I have to go in whether they’re here or not.”
“Vision, you say? How did you have the vision? Were you sleeping? Drunk? Nearly dead?” Saitomo asked in a curious tone.
“My friends and I were traveling from the Crystalline Caves to the Grey Citadel through something called The Ways. It’s some sort of dimensional road that can be used to go between places very quickly. We each had a vision, and mine was of my people in the mountains, starving. I didn’t know if it was real or not, but by the time we had reached the Grey Citadel, I was so worried that I decided to head back on my own to make sure. The motherless bastard of a deity that I was serving – whom I also ran into in The Ways, by the way – demanded that I go back to the Grey Citadel and said that my Clan was going to die anyway, which proved to me that something was very wrong. When I refused, he stripped me of the power he had given me and abandoned me. I met up with a copper dragon who was… is, I hope… a friend. He told me that the problem with the Moonwell was tied to one of the boxes of Orden disappearing, which put him and all dragons in danger. I promised him that I would go back to the Moonwell once I had gotten my people to safety. He was gone when I woke up the next morning, and I don’t know if he’s still alive or not. Anyway, I continued traveling until I met up with the two of you, and you know the rest.”
“The Ways, you say. I have heard of them but have never seen one. Now that sounds interesting to one that watches. But alas, I can’t help you in understanding your vision as I know nothing about The Ways. One thing, however – we have not been able to see the Moonwell for over a month. It is blocked from us…as if it no longer exists.”
River curled up in her bedroll and sighed. “I expected as much. Whatever killed it has probably killed the territory around it, which might be what forced my people out of the mountains. I don’t even know if they’ll have a home range to go back to if or when this is all over, but I need to keep them alive and worry about that later. Wake me for my watch”, she said drowsily and fell asleep after a short time.
Very early in the morning, at the 4th watch, Master Bashiro shook River awake. “Wake, friend of the Margreve. She is calling you.” Without explaining more, Master Bashiro returned to the fire, and River saw that Saitomo had already loaded the canoe with their packs, and only River’s kettle was sitting on the fire, now steaming hot for a drink. “All ready, Master,” Saitomo said, seeing River awake. “Very good.”, Master Bashiro replied. “We will leave now; the friend of the Margreve must see to her people.”
Turning to River once she had stood up, Master Bashiro said, “It is said among many peoples of Vala that kittens are angels with whiskers. Their simple language to describe the peace and love that felines can bring is too simplistic to describe who you are North River Eye. May you be that angel to your Clan and perhaps all of the Margreve.”
River watched Master Bashiro and Saitomo head towards the canoe and said, “No one has ever accused me of being an angel, and I get the feeling that my teeth and claws and whatever other weapons I can bring to bear will be of more use than my whiskers in whatever is to come. Fare you well, and if you happen upon a group with a kobold, a genasi, a human with a talking sword, and a couple of dragonborn, send them after me. I hope to see you again someday, but if not, raise a glass to me when you think of it.”
Master Bashiro nodded, and Saitomo gave a little salute as they climbed into the canoe. Master Bashiro settled in the rear seat, and Saitomo waded knee-high into the water as he struggled to push the canoe off the embankment into deeper water. Once the canoe was floating on its own, Saitomo deftly hauled himself into the canoe, only slightly rocking it. They picked up paddles and started to row away. River watched them a bit before they faded into the dark early morning shadows. As they were just about of earshot, River heard a paddle hit the water hard, followed by a big splashing sound. In the darkness, she hears Saitomo, his voice nervous, “I….I’m sorry master…. I didn’t mean to splash you! It was an accident, I promise!” She then heard Master Bashiro grunt in frustration and bark, “Give me a piece of paper!” as they faded from her hearing and sight.
Packing up her gear, she put out the fire and turned to face the Margreve.
River’s Journey continues in Post 4
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