Screaming, Kagetsu dashed down the hill, almost tumbling over his own feet. The roar behind him pummeled him like a hailstorm. All he could think was to run away. To save himself.
"Take my hand!" a woman's voice called out to him.
Snapping his head to the right, he saw a woman in armor and silk clothes riding a cloud. Her hand hung in the air. All he needed was to take it, and he grabbed it. With a jump and pull, he stood behind the woman, hugging her around the waist. Regardless of how unappropriated it could be.
The cloud rose higher until the herd of animals was nothing but a speck of dust. They flew in silence until Kagetsu's hug loosened.
"T-Thank you," he whispered. "For saving me."
"You are welcomed, brave man."
He chuckled. "Not exactly, my legs are still shaking like jello."
The woman arched her eyebrow, not getting what jello was. However, her cloud headed to a majestic structure among the clouds. Its rectangular roof shone under the sunlight, its white stone sparkling like newly fallen snow.
Pillars held the massive hat of the temple, their tops, and bottoms decorated with spirals and engravings of heroes and slain monsters. Vine grew around some of them, breaking the monotonous white with lush greenery.
She landed by the entrance, and Kagetsu needed a few steps to bring his legs back to life. His eyes wandered across the marble floor, mesmerized by the optical illusions under his feet and detailed engravings of waves and sailors crossing sevens seas.
"Wow, where are we?"
"In a secret place," she answered, and tapped with a spear that appeared in her other hand.
The ring flew across the whole space, returning in a silencing echo.
"I need your help, brave man."
"I'm not really that brave," Kagetsu disagreed, nodding. "But I'll do what I can."
The woman headed inside the temple without a word, and he followed. Those few steps turned into minutes as the stairs seemed to be infinite. Entering the building, a vast space surrounded the boy.
In the middle, he noticed a big black spot with shining light from inside it. Taking a few steps forward, he realized he was looking at a black horse that was chained to the floor and four smaller pillars around it.
His heartbeat skyrocketed.
"This animal had devoured my treasure."
Kagetsu's eyes ventured to the light coming out of the animal's stomach. "How so?"
She ignored his question, placing her weapon into his hands. "Slay it, and you shall keep it as your reward." Her figure moved like a mist behind him, and as he turned around, she was gone.
The horse neighed, calling all of his attention. Stepping back, he grasped the weapon, not realizing it weighed less than a feather.
"Kill it! And you shall prove yourself a man!" the woman's voice came from above as if she became part of the sky.
"B-But why?" Kagetsu pivoted his body, trying to find her. "Can't we just wait for it to... come out naturally?"
"No!" her shrieked made him duck as if bullets rained around him. "Slay it! Now!" Gone were the smile and gentle voice that guided him here.
Standing up, his teeth clattered. The horse watched him with fiery eyes that burned. Thick hoof scratched the floor, leaving marks in the stone. One kick would be enough for Kagetsu to die.
However, the chains prevented the animal to move more than a few inches. But not enough to avoid a slash of Kagetsu's weapon. All he needed to do was to take the last few steps, and one swift movement would end this animal's life.
"What are you waiting for?" she asked, impatience seeping from her tone.
"I don't wanna kill him," the boy argued. "Or her."
"It's not a real animal," the woman's voice came out surprisingly soothing. "It's a manifestation of your fear. Slay it, and you shall be free of it."
This shone a different light onto the whole situation. If this wasn't a real animal, he didn't need worry. He moved forward, and the animal neighed once more.
Its stare slowed down Kagetsu's progress, but he overcame the distance. Now, only a step divided them, but the chains made sure the horse couldn't do anything to him.
His black eyes moved from the horse's ones, up the wavering mane. It reminded him of a mist or a gentle touch that sent shivers down one's spine. The pitch-black fur sparkled, and the muscles moved under it, begging to race across fields and hills.
'Is this really my fear? It looks like a real animal.'
Circling the horse, Kagetsu got a good grasp of its size. He couldn't see past its back even when he stood up on his toes. But he was undersized, so it didn't tell him much.
Its tail swished back and forth, its ends wavering like a haze. The horse looked over its shoulder, watching the boy's every movement. His fingers gripped the weapon, pulling it closer like a shield.
"Hi," he said to the horse, "so, you are my fear?"
The horse shook its head as if agreeing. The chains around its neck clattered.
"Nice to meet you."
"Enough!" the angry woman's voice interrupted his thread of thoughts. "Kill it!"
Kagetsu stepped away as if his body could move without his will. The clouds around the temple darkened, and thunder slashed across the sky. The howling wind hit both of them, and Kagetsu needed to shield his eyes to see through his wavering hair.
Whatever was heading their way brought nothing but destruction.
"Oh, crab!" Kagetsu yelled as he recognized a tidal wave.
Regardless of how a tsunami couldn't occur high in the sky, Kagetsu's brain urged him to run away. Turning away, he almost dashed at the other side of the temple when the horse kicked and clanged with his chains. The manifestation of his fear or not, it didn't want to drown.
"Kill it, and I shall save you! Do it now!"
The woman's voice didn't help him at all. His body trembled that he could pass entrance tests for vibrators with flying colors.
"What should I do?"
His question didn't travel far as the roaring weather had drowned every sound.
"Ri... Ai... Freya-chan... Help me..." he whispered, unable to take a step.