I breathed, and my hands moved.I had felt emotions, had begun figuring out how to use my soul power. But this... was a whole new idea.
I put my soul INTO the notes. MY emotions rang out, clear and true, my will made into music.
And I played.
As I played, ghosts formed and gathered, called by the sorrow of their last.
The audience watched, shocked. The music cut into them, as it was fast, chaotic, disorganized and confused. It was as if whoever wrote it intended to give a violent reaction of sound.
Yet underneath it all... was sorrow.
"Where... does my sadness come from? This forlorn feeling... the ease with which I wanted to give up on this world without even trying... where does it come from?"
And with the burning heat of my soul, for now I finally knew that was indeed what it was, I saw memories.
Flashes of people, faces blurred out. Schools, buses, airplanes roaring overhead.
Laughter as a girl held my hand, sadness as I stood on a hill watching her leave with her friends, and the music swung up in joy, then down in melancholy.
Images of a woman standing over me, holding me close. "Mommy, what"s for dinner!?" My voice sounded out, so young, so sweet, as she answered "hmm, how about we get kraft dinner?" I nodded, happy to get the cheesy goodness, and the music became gentle and slow, a loving caress.
Images of others, violent and angry. Pain as I was. .h.i.t, violent and fast notes playing once again.
Going to school, the oppressive air of expectancy mixed with constant dissatisfaction, as the music became repet.i.tive and bland, yet filled with underlying tension, a string ready to snap.
I had been smart but... I had no pa.s.sion. Again and again I was told this, until all the pa.s.sions I had held, to doodle and draw, to play music, all of them began to flicker and die as I believed what they said... until it was true, and the music became flat for a brief 5 seconds...
Finally... panic, mom was in the hospital, she"d been attacked... had to get the emergency cash from the bank savings account to pay for medical expenses... the music swung into fast paced action, raising the stakes, giving urgency and tension to the song, to my life.
My brother standing in my room, me knowing he stole my money. "G.o.dd.a.m.nit! I will not pay for your life when you can manage it yourself!" Annoyance and despair at how those meant to be close to me only took away...
Getting to the bank, robbers came in, wanted the cash... panic again, and despair...
I explained what had happened, and showed an image of my mother... gentle and hopeful the music swung...
And he held the gun to my head, smiled, and said "if I"d met that hot thing in an alleyway she wouldn"t have been able to walk to walk to the hospital, if you get what I mean." the music screeched, shocking the audience with the sudden shift, becoming dark and foreboding, filled with rage bound in chains of despair.
That smile... so lecherous. Disgusting. And then... a blip of pain as a trigger was pulled.
I hadn"t been a huge music person who knew a million songs and followed artists... but right now this song was somehow letting it all go.
Luna felt tears coming from her eyes, as a song that started violent became gentle and sweet, like a mothers touch, then boring, Gray and pa.s.sionless, as if all hope was gone... until finally it spoke of annoyance, anger, fear, desperation and denial, until finally it culminated towards the climax!
All those fast sliding notes suddenly cut off, and my hand raised to pluck at the middle of the strings, causing a small popping noise rather than a long note like the bow would release.
That pop slammed into the audience, and all felt a flash of pain and nothingness... the note becoming a bullet, leaving them feeling as if they"d died, many for the second time as crowds of ghosts had come in, many dead Foxkin listening to this...
The lost life of the last Kitsune.
The noise faded away, and I opened my eyes, tears spilling out.
Finally a hoa.r.s.e voice asked. "Boy... what"s your name?"
Without looking up I thought. And I remembered. I looked up, seeing the crowd of the dead, but some part of me had felt them listening, felt them come.
"My name is Kyoku."
An old crone walked forward with a smile. "Kyoku the Musician... thank you."
And with that, the crowds faded away, leaving only the first ghost and my two companions.
With my memory, had come peace to them, knowing they didn"t die for nothing, as another still lived.
The old ghost gave a gentle smile, and for some reason I saw... pride. Before had been a sense of sorrow, and disappointment. I knew I wasn"t very impressive but now... he seemed elated almost, while still filled with empathy.
"Not even the last of us has lived a kind life I see... I"m sorry. As the previous generations, we"ve failed you."
"No... I don"t believe you were wrong in what you did, other than perhaps being too kind. You were too kind for this cruel world, and you all underestimated how feared you were."
He nodded. "Perhaps..." he sighed. Then he brightened up a bit. "But hey, we figured out what you"re job cla.s.s proper is! But a musician of such skill having talent with a dancer cla.s.s as well... it"s pretty rare. Also men usually don"t have the emotional sensitivity and openness to have such talent in such an area."
I nodded, and he bowed. "As the first guardian, I declare that the Kitsune known as Kyoku to have pa.s.sed the test of talents as a music cla.s.s!"
The building once again fell to disrepair, as the instrument in my hands fell to dust and splinters. He gestured to the back, where the path up the mountain lay, and said "quickly now, I can"t hold this building for much longer!"
We ran out, and turned to watch it collapse. And it seemed as if a ripple in a pond, and the destruction spread, building after the building falling until only rotten wood and splintered remains were left of the town.
"Up the path will be the rest of the 9 tests, 8 are left for you."
I nodded to the ghost, who was already beginning to fade away.
"Thank you young man... you have given our kind peace knowing we did not die holding the line for nothing."
And... he was gone.
I stared at where he had been, until Fenrir b.u.mped my side with his nose.
I let out a low chuckle at him. "I"m fine buddy. Let"s keep going."
We began to step up the stone stairs. Luna kept glancing at me, as if unwilling to believe I could be okay after all that.
"Uh... Kyo-Kyoku?"
I smiled. "Yeah that"s me."
"What... was that?"
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My smile remained... but Luna saw a shift in my eyes, as if a well of water was within them, the bright red gold turning dark and dim.
"I remembered more of my life, my family, and how I died."
"Oh." What else could she say?
I looked up at the sky.
"I hope mom ended up okay... hopefully somebody got the money... insurance from my death probably covered it unless my brother lost all humanity and took the money for himself."
I laughed within my head bitterly. "Honestly viewing how humans are in every world so far, maybe the true "humanity" would be stealing another"s life for cash."
I shook my head. My next test would probably have something to do with my growth and path as well... which meant I needed to choose a job cla.s.s. Only get one, right?
"What?! Can you better explain?"