Cold is the Void

[Amaterasu]

Expedition, Day 17 - Day 5 of the Ascent

The Fifth Hall: Pride

Despite Amaterasu’s initial protest she felt hungry the next morning she ate the dried meat offered by Oki from their provisions, and even Urist and Fiara, whose appetite was sorely lacking after having their bodies transformed - they still had their arm and head, respectively, turned into food - ate something to keep them going. Neither knew how they would be able to show ‘restraint and self-control’, as Senecianus had put it, but they had agreed that starving themselves was not the way to go.

The wampa spoke as if the events from last night had never taken place: “Are you ready… mmmh, to continue the journey?”

“Yes”, said Amaterasu. “Please lead us to the next trial.”

“Ah… right this way… hmmh, please follow me.” It stood and led them, as it had done before, through a darkened tunnel and into a new room.

“Welcome”, it spoke as they arrived, “to the Trial of Pride.” It let them pass and take in the sights. Before them extended a large ruin of what had to have been a big castle once, looking like it was of dwarven origin. Unlike most other rooms which held no snow or ice, this one had stone walls, a coat of snow covering the ruins and in some parts ice blocking the path or making the stairs a dangerous hazard.

“Here… hmm, your ways shall part…” said Senecianus. “As you are likely aware, Amaterasu as the only Prime among you is far stronger than the others, and likely the only one who could have done this trip on her own.”

“Hey! What’s that supposed to mean?!” Fiara shouted angrily at the wampa.

“Had she not been with you, you would have failed”, the wampa said, still with that tired-sounding tone that really made its words all the more enraging. Amaterasu however could not help but to smile at the compliments. “And this trial, the Trial of Pride, will involve you all making your way through it by yourselves.”

“And so you believe that because Ama is more powerful than Urist, Fiara and myself”, said Oki, “we would be unable to pass the trial?”

“Hmm… indeed. Even you, Oki, who comes a close second behind Amaterasu, rely on her and her powers. Though you may have passed Lust, Envy, Wrath and Gluttony by yourself you would have run out of provisions before making it here on your own, and the trials to come are even harder than those which you have done already.”

Oki unsheathed Kutone and pointed it at the wampa. “Then I will prove to you that I am not the weakling you take me for! Tell us, what is our task?”

Urist and Fiara were seething but spoke no word, and Senecianus only shot them a brief glance before turning to the ruins. “Your task… hmm, before you lays an obstacle course, if you will, that you must pass. Do you see the crumbled bell tower of the temple, with the glimmer of a weathercock on its highest spot? Inside the top you will find four items. Your task is to bring back one of these items to me, on the other side of the cave.” It pointed upwards and only then did Amaterasu realize that there was a lengthy staircase carved into the opposite wall, leading up to a lip on which was the cavern exit. Senecianus’s claw was pointed at that exit.

The one to win the race would obviously be ‘better’ than the others, Amaterasu thought, and indeed found herself sizing up her opponents. Oki was the biggest threat, he was endurant and could navigate the labyrinth… Fiara and Urist would no doubt occupy third and fourth places. With their partial transformations they were crippled. But the two of them seemed rather confident… well, it was going to get interesting.

“Ah… please pick a route”, the wampa then added, pointing towards the ground leading into the ruins. Indeed there were four arrows that Amaterasu had not noticed before, made with pebbles. Two of them led up onto the rubble, another two led down into the maze between the pieces. “The routes leading downwards are the harder ones.”

No sooner had it said that, than that Amaterasu and Oki stood at two of the lower routes. “I will leave the others with a chance”, Oki said with a smug grin. “I don’t need to prove to anyone that I can do this on my own, and do the hardest if it needs be, but I will do it anyway.”

“Ditto”, said Amaterasu, feeling rather confident in her abilities after Senecianus’s words. She was, after all, a Prime. The only one among them, no less… making it through this would be a breeze. She cracked her knuckles as Urist and Fiara took their places for the higher paths and Senecianus finished explaining: “Your goal is to make the race within the time… focus and do not allow for unnecessary distractions… I shall now count. Ready… set… and go.” The race was on.

Well, of course not really a race. Before it started it was clear that she, Amaterasu, would be the first by a landslide. Even so, she hurried a little. The ruins were not just creating a maze but the ground was also uneven and in some areas frozen over, making navigation very difficult. A number of times she took a path only to find out that it led into a dead end. But whenever she caught sight of the bell tower it was closer than before so she knew that she was on the right track. She was advancing rapidly too, running and jumping like it was an obstacle course. Heh… she probably was way ahead of Urist and-

Urist! She noticed him hanging from the side of a pillar, his hands dug into a decorative carving but slowly slipping. He was right above a number of icicles that would skewer him if he fell. His attempts at climbing back up were only causing him to lose his grip more. “Ama?!” he asked, barely able to turn his puffy head.

“What happened? Did you slip?”

“Leave me alone. I’m gettin’ out o’ this meself!” the dwarf yelled. Blatant lies. Amaterasu laughed as she used her brush to conjure a powerful Gale, pushing Urist upwards so that he almost flew over the edge and onto the path again.

“That better, lard-face? Because I got a race to win.”

Urist struggled to get on his feet again, from what Amaterasu could see. Part of the path was frozen over. He was starting to walk forward again. Amaterasu shrugged and continued to run along a path that, as it were, was pretty close to the one Urist was running along.

Ten minutes later Oki and her nearly ran into each other when their paths joined as they turned a corner. How had he come this far so fast?! No matter, if he had made it and Urist too, then there was a chance that Fiara was nearby as well. She accelerated her steps, leaving Oki behind her. The bell tower was coming into view. Leaping over the debris, she climbed the ruins and got into the fallen giant, climbed the staircase inside and, finding the door closed and locked, rammed it down with a shoulder tackle. The rotten wood gave away under her attack and she stumbled inside, hitting the large bell that dominated the room in the process.

On the other side of the room stood Fiara, with a small item in hand. When the door broke down she raised her head, and caught the edge of the swinging bell full-on to her temple, knocking her out on the spot. She fell over like a sack of potatoes and, given the tower’s inclination, rolled down the slope until she hit a low wall. The bell rung once, twice, then the momentum that it had was insufficient to chime again and it just rocked back and forth with less and less force.

Amaterasu eyed Fiara, then the item in her hands. Though she had dropped it when getting knocked out it had rolled down and was now resting against her stomach. A small statuette representing… an owl? Something of that sort. There were other statues, she now noticed, all carved of the same gray rock. A typical fish, a human and a horned Youkai. Or perhaps an Akuma. She reached for the fish one without as much as a second thought, but something stirred in her. She had knocked Fiara out… she may have injured her. Concussed her head. Maybe worse. Should she help her? But if she did she would lose the race. But then again, Urist and Oki were going to pass this room too and they were behind her anyway… the last of them could… but it was her fault! And Fiara was her…

“Up there! Hurry up! Ama is probably miles ahead of us now!” Oki’s voice echoed up from downstairs, and footsteps could be heard. Hurried footsteps climbing the staircase. Were they going to catch up to her? Realize what she had done? Maybe force her to stay so one of them could snag victory from her?

No. She would not allow that. Her pride commanded that she, as the Prime and strongest of the group, win the race.

Twenty minutes later, she stood before Senecianus at the top of the staircase, and panting with exhaustion but beaming with confidence tossed the statue at its feet. “I am the first. I’ve passed the trial… I’ve won the race.”

“Indeed… hmm, let me bring you to the exit, where you can wait for the others.”

18 minutes earlier, back at the tower…

Oki and Urist rushed into the room with the door torn down and found the room to be empty… no. Not empty! Oki rushed to the unconscious Fiara as Urist inspected the door. “Someone… blasted that door open”, he said. “An’ I can’t believe that it’d have been Fiara. She doesn’ have the power.”

“Do you think it was Ama?” asked Oki as he tugged Fiara away from the edge and inspected her head. Luckily the injury was nowhere near as bad as it could have been… there would be a nasty bump for a while and bruises from where she had fallen down but she would be fine. It did not take an expert to figure out how she had been hit, seeing how the bell had rung just a few minutes ago and the mark on Fiara’s head where she had been hit corresponded to a wide metallic object. Like the lower lip of the bell.

“Mighta been… hey, there’s somethin’ ‘ere.” He leant down and picked up two statues. “Oh… an artic cod an’ a human.”

“Fiara’s holding something here too… looks like an owl.”

“Eh? Oh… then all tha’s missin’ is the demon. It’s an alchemical thing o’ humans, y’know. The owl stands fer birds, rulers o’ the sky. The artic cod’s a fish found ‘ere in the Frozen Fields… represents fishes, tha emperors o’ the sea. Then we hav’ the demons, tha lords o’ Hell, an’ man representin’ elves, dwarves, humans an’ all the other humanoid races, as the kings o’ Earth. Air, water, fire an’ earth.”

“So… Amaterasu took the demon?”

“Looks like it. Ah wouldn’ put it past ‘er. She’s a goddess o’ sun, after all. Guess this fish’s meant fer you, an’ I get the human.”

Oki frowned. “Urist… why are you still here with me? You could have pursued Amaterasu for a chance to still win this.”

Urist shook his head, flinging his spaghetti beard everywhere. “Ama is gonna win one way or ‘nother. Ah’m not gonna pretend ta be able ta catch up t’her. We lost already.”

Oki simply nodded as he wondered what losing the race would entail. Losing the trial maybe? Would they be turned into something just like the people who had given in to their gluttony? He stroked over Fiara’s forehead as she slowly opened her eyes. “Wait… she’s waking up. Fiara, are you okay?”

“Mnnngh… head… hurts...“

“Let’s get you to the exit. I can’t patch you up in this place, but I have some items.”

“The race...“

“Don’ bother. We’ll get you out of here together. We’ll run out of time but that can’t be helped.” He passed her arm over his shoulder and let Urist pick up the statues for them. As they were about to exit the tower he caught a glance of Amaterasu, climbing the stairs. She was far away, but he could have sworn that she had an almost maniacal grin on her face.

It took them almost an entire hour before they too arrived at the summit - all three of them. Senecianus was there to greet them and accepted the statues from their hands. “Hmm… you are late.”

“Have we run out of time?” asked Oki resignedly.

“Hmm… long ago.”

“I figured… what happens to us now, then? For failing the trial?”

“Are you sure that you have… hmm, failed the trial?”

Oki blinked with surprise. “You just told us that we had run out of time for the race.”

“Yes, but the true trial was not to win the race… to beat the trial of Pride you overcome your pride, one of the… hmm, greatest sins of man. Have I not told you? You were told not to let any unnecessary distractions divert you… now tell me, Oki Kurumi, was stopping to aid an ally and to bring them with you an unnecessary distraction?”

Oki realized now… blinded by his pride, he had forgotten that the trials were about defeating one’s sins. The race… they had elevated it to their single goal when Senecianus had pitted them against each other, filled their minds with honeyed words, stirred the pride in them. Urist chuckled. “Not ta toot me own horn or anythin’, bu’ I realized tha’ the goal ain’t winnin’ the race. It ain’t like the loser doesn’ get ta pass the trial, or Senecianus woulda told us. Ah realized tha’ the only thing gettin’ a hit fer losin’ the race is me pride. An’ if ah followed me pride, ah wouldn’ have made it through the trial. Ah would be dead.”

“Impaled on icicles, right?” asked Oki.

“Mmmh… indeed”, said Senecianus as it reached out and put its paw on Fiara’s forehead. The bump shrunk and disappeared and the Phoenix girl gasped as the pain vanished almost instantly. “You were used to test the pride of… hmm, the others, and for that I apologize and mend the wounds that were a necessity for this test… it would seem that Pride is the sin deepest rooted in Amaterasu Omikami’s heart. Even a god is not exempt from the sins… though it makes sense for one to be afflicted with the Sin of pride.”

“Where IS Amaterasu anyway?” asked Oki.

“She has moved onward. You will meet her again when you proceed… but now she must face her punishment, the punishment for her pride. Please… hmm, follow me.” And yet again, they were led through a series of dark tunnels.

Meanwhile Amaterasu emerged into a cave just like the ones before, with Senecianus leading her. As she left the area of the trial the powers governing the Hall stopped their influence on her mind, and as her mind returned to normal she gasped, realizing what she had done. “I… Fiara! Oh no… what have I done?!” She tried to get up, to rush back into the cave, but found herself hitting an invisible barrier blocking her way back. “What is the- Senecianus! Let me back! I - my friends! I must help them!”

“Hmm… you cannot see your friends again, Amaterasu Omikami, at least not for now. Your pride has hurt them greatly… you do not have the right to return”, said Senecianus. Amaterasu wanted to yell at him but when she turned to face him he was gone. Just at this moment figures emerged from the absolute darkness of the tunnels: Senecianus was there, and behind him followed Oki, Urist and Fiara. Amaterasu was so happy that Fiara was okay, from what it seemed!

“Oki! Fiara! Urist! You have… I’m so sor-” She wanted to hug Fiara and apologize profusely, to express her mortification, but they walked through her without taking the slightest notice. Like an immaterial spirit, all three of them passed through her, and not hearing her screams, not feeling her attempts at touching them, not seeing her gesticulating form, sat down and got a little fire going. They were not in the best of moods, missing a valuable member of their team, and a good friend… to Oki, the best friend. To Fiara, the mother she never had. And to Urist, the powerful leader figure that he could trust in.

Senecianus took a seat back at the end of the cave, waiting for them to request to proceed. Amaterasu followed him and tried the same, but as for her friends, she could not touch the wampa. However, it could see her, and spoke to her. Strangely, none of the others seemed to notice.

“Hmm… your pride seems to not have as big as I thought after all. Had it been greater you may not even have seen them again.”

With tears in her eyes Amaterasu shook her head. “This is not fair! I…”

“You let your pride get the better of you. You let them all down. You… hmm, you behaved not like a Kami would.”

These words hit Amaterasu harder than a punch to the face. “... will I ever be able to be with them again?”

“If you overcome your Pride, perhaps you shall one day.”

And so, the fifth day of the ascension ended on a bitter note. Oki, Fiara and Urist put out three bedrolls and went to sleep with a stomach full of food they had not enjoyed, missing a dear friend and not knowing what the next day would bring… their motivation had taken a severe hit and they questioned, each for themselves, if it was worth pursuing it all. But their ill mood was nothing compared to Amaterasu, who knelt near their hearthfire, sobbing uncontrollably. Between her cries she muttered “I’m sorry”, time and time again, to Fiara, but no matter how often she tried her hand could not touch the sleeping Phoenix’s cheek. All she could do was to cry more, with not a soul aware of her presence, her misery, to console her.

Oh man, this one turned out darker than I thought it would...

22320 + 3096 = 25.416 / 20.000 words.