Masaki Moto
An Onmyōji Master — Masaki resides deep in the winter forest located in Northern Japan and protects its nearby grounds and villages from otherworldly threats. He has a contract with a mystical snow wolf he met from tales long ago.
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A Bird and a Wolf
In the northern part of Japan laid a small quiet village. This village was situated at the edge of an enormous forest. Entry into the forest was banned by the village elders to protect the youth from succumbing to the harsh cold. Nonetheless, the village lived peacefully. It was the perfect place for someone like Masaki – Someone akin to a solitary-soul. The village elders welcomed him in with open arms, not inquiring on his past nor his misdeeds. For months, he kept to himself and spent his time on top of a small hill, located behind the village. He found solace in the quietness of the wind and during winter, the gentle whispers of the falling snow.
It was the mystical beauty shared by the village that kept Masaki grounded in such a place. He felt warmth from the villagers in contrast to the harsh winds during those cold months. However, it was this particular noise ringing in his ears one day that disrupted his peaceful abode. Lasting for weeks, Masaki was tormented by the whispers in his head. The words urged him to approach the forbidden forest but he knew more than to listen to such delusions in his brain. His torment continued for a few more months in which he started to seclude himself more, trapping himself in his home. The nearby neighbors, worried for his safety, tried knocking on his door, urging him to come out. However, nothing could bring Masaki out of his own self-manifested prison.
During a heavy barrage of rain in the midst of spring, the whispers became too strong for Masaki to handle. Succumbing to their words, he grabbed his raincoat and made his way towards the forest. All the way there, rain pounded against his coat, droplets sharp as bullets piercing his cloth.
At the entrance of the forest laid a weathered path with water filling the cracks between the ruined rocks. It was a sign of the village’s abandonment many years ago. Even as Masaki stood in front of the forest, the whispers continued to pierce his ears. It was only when he took a step inside that the whispers dissipated.
Inside the forest, it was quiet but the cold instantly made itself known to Masaki. He wrapped himself up, trying to retain the only warmth left in his body. However, the sheer cold was too much for him and as he trudged through the snow, he slowly loss consciousness. Through the snow, Masaki faintly saw a figure but before his eyes could focus in, he fell to the ground, succumbing to the forest’s cold.
After a while, Masaki opened his eyes surrounded by trees adorned with beautiful blue-colored cherry blossoms, their petals glistening amongst the falling snow. As he got up, he looked at his environment and realized he was now in a small clearing in the middle of the forest. The snow fell graciously and merged with the rest of the snow as it made contact with the ground. In this new place, Masaki wondered where he had been transported to. He started to move around the clearing, exploring the beautiful flora that filled the area. It was the complete opposite of the harsh cold that the village elders had described. As he bent down to admire a beautiful blue flower, he pondered over the possibility of its survivability in such weather conditions. As he thought to himself, he heard footsteps coming from a short distance in front of him. Pulling back, he watched as the figure revealed itself under the blue moon.
As the figure revealed itself, Masaki stared forward sternly – The creature was none other than a snow wolf. However, at that moment, he did not feel an ounce of fear… Rather, he felt safe in the wolf’s presence. As Masaki stared at the wolf, a little bird flew from the forest’s shadow and landed on top of the wolf’s head. He had never seen such relationship between wolf and bird and just stood still, perplexed about the entire situation. Finally, the whispers that Masaki had been trying to remove since months ago suddenly came back. The wolf opened its mouth and spoke:
“It seems you took longer than expected to find us, master. There are things we must discuss. Come with me.”