A blank canvas

[Amaterasu]

Note to readers: This post is unrelated to the prior ones, and takes place way in the future of it.

This is a continuation of the following post:
http://omniverse-rpg.com/showthread.php?...4#pid86984

Once Fiara stepped through the Nexus Gate, finding Kushi was a relatively easy task. After all the Nexus spanned a vast empty space and every detail stood out like a bloodstain on a white shirt. Kushi's hut however was quite far away from her and she needed to search for a bit before she found her hut, near the central fountain. From there it was a swift ride straight towards her. Her never-tiring horse carried her past a handful of Primes. In the distance she saw a raging battle with... a large number of people, the sight of which made her shudder. It was a chaotic, wide-open battlefield. Best steer clear of that, she could really not afford to get into another fight at the time. Luckily Kushi's hut was nowhere near that battle.

When she arrived, she swiftly dismounted and knocked at the door. Kushi had to be there, right? She couldn't have gone very far... unless something happened to her. But what if some Prime had found her and- her train of thought was swiftly cut short when she heard footsteps within that were too light-footed to be anyone's but the rice brewer's that she had grown to know and like back in Kamiki village. The door opened and Kushi, with a mortar and pestle in her hand, looked at Fiara before smiling brightly. "Fiara-chan! I did not expect you so soon! Please, do come in, make yourself comfy!"

"Thank you, Kushi-san! But I was really not intending to stay, we should depart soon and-"

"Nonsense. You smell of someone who's traveled, so have a seat. I've got some tea at hand that will revitalize you." She tugged Fiara into the hut and hung up a kettle all the while continuing to grind the items inside the mortar. "Besides, I have to pack things still. We can't take off immediately."

"Oh! You're right... I'm sorry." She stepped up to the fireplace and adjusted the position of a few logs to get the best out of the flames to heat the water. Being a Phoenix, she was a specialist at this after all. "I'll take out the mugs and prepare the tea, Kushi-san, so you can focus on packing up."

"That's nice of you! Right to your left, the bottom cupboard. You'll find the tea leaves there too. I'm not packing up yet though. I have a sake I want to finish setting up... a strong brew as a gift for our hosts, when they recieve us. I want to thank them appropriately for their hospitality."

"The dwarves? You know about that?" asked Fiara as she placed out two mugs and tossed the tea leaves into the kettle. Immediately a delicious fragrance spreaded through the room.

"Ama sent a messenger my way who informed me of everything. I didn't pack up yet because I wanted to bring along my tools and a lot of items, but I can't work if everything is stashed away."

"Hmm. Come to think of it, you were not very surprised to see me. So you were expecting me too, huh?"

"Yes, you were mentioned in the letter too. You had something to take care of in another of these locations, didn't you?"

"... I'd rather not talk about that." She took the kettle off and poured the tea into both mugs. "I got an item that Amaterasu is going to need though, and knowing her she can't stay in one place for very long. I'm worried that if we don't hurry it up a little she is going to be gone from this... dwarf city before we arrive there."

"Item?" asked Kushi. She poured the ground paste into a barrel and added a few spices. Fiara had no idea about fermentation processes, but she could tell how much effort was going into the sake Kushi was brewing right now.

"Yeah. There was a bar of some weird metal. I'm pretty sure that it's something useful, but I have no idea what it is. There was more in the vault, but Amaterasu isn't going to have much use for it." That, and she felt like the action figure belonged to her more than to Amaterasu. Just like the letter.

"I see... well, I am confident in that we will find her before she takes off again, and if not she knows that we will be in Dwarfholm. She'll find us, and she'll want to get the items that you found in the vault from your hands."

"You're right... thanks, Kushi-san. By the way, the tea is ready."

"Oh, right." The brewer took her mug into her hands and took a sip before putting it back aside and locking the lid of the barrel. "I'll go pack up, then. If you want to help, Fiara-chan, you can pack the two crates labeled 'sake' with the barrels that are next to them. Just be sure to add plenty of hay for cushioning."

"Got it. I came here by horse, by the way, but once we get to the Frozen Fields we will have other methods to get around, or so I understood."

"Oh, yes. Frozen plains cannot be navigated with a horse, after all. They are much too treacherous. Amaterasu isn't someone to send us in unprepared though, I am sure that whatever she has left behind for us will be more than adequate. And hopefully something capable of transporting my luggage... I would hate to leave too much behind."

"You know that Amaterasu can recreate any items that you lose, don't you? She's a Prime. Hell, she even created us..."

"I'm aware, Fiara-chan. But I have a lot of prepared items, mainly provisions and my sake, which you cannot simply recreate by thought. It is much too complex than that. Creating rice, water, maybe simple sake is possible. But something with the rich, deep flavour that my sake offers has too many facettes for a regular mind to imagine from scratch, and Amaterasu has never tasted my brews so she wouldn't know what it tastes like, to recreate it from memory." She smiled brightly as she packed the lid onto a box and put it out on the table, then sipped her tea again. "Besides, I am traditional in my works. Remember, Fiara-chan, unlike Amaterasu and yourself I am no goddess, I never was more than a mortal girl. I never found a reason to rely on supernatural powers to accomplish the goals that can be achieved just as well by effort, skill and knowledge."

Fiara frowned, but nodded and stacked a pair of boxes on top of the one Kushi had put out. The sake barrels were inside those, fermenting away. They would be a delicious offer to the dwarves, she was certain. "You're probably right. Now that I no longer have the most of my parent's powers I must learn a lot of things anew. But I cannot allow myself to fall behind... not if I want to pull my weight and aid Amaterasu in this world, with whatever her plans are."

"That's the spirit. Well then, Amaterasu has left me with a carriage, so we can transport everything to the gate with your horse. Let's load up and take off, shall we?"



It took them nearly two hours between preparations, tying everything down safely and closing the hut down, which they left behind should any Prime or Secondary ever need a shelter for a while. But then they climbed into the carriage and took off, towards the Frozen Fields gate. Their luggage: plenty of fresh provisions for the journey and sake for the dwarves. With the carriage the horse moved a lot slower, of course. But that was no problem. Fiara had a fair amount to share with Kushi, about what she had learned of this place. And of Dante's Abyss.