The Second Shrine

A few hours rest saw the sun climb high into the sky, the walled town barely visible to the west could still be heard in full bustle as the day reached its zenith. From now on their course was more due east, hoping the shrine still existed. Marigold reluctantly let Marcus up and the pair found Kia off to the side in the tangle of bushes sleeping soundly. After yesterday, little wonder they were all dead on their feet, still finding the shrine and avoiding Rensdale patrols were priority, so Marcus was quick to pick up the lapine woman and carried her as Marigold lead the way deeper into the woods.

"So what are we looking for Mari? Is there another mountain or hill out this way?" He asked, readjusting his grip on Kia as she seemed to wriggle about and curl in closer.

"From what that stone said, we're lookin' for a free standin' shrine. T' be honest, never been to it, sure I've read about it, but made the trip? Can't say I 'ave. Shouldn't be too much further along, shrines don't exactly blend in unless they've fallen."

The pair continued their March through the thick overgrowth, though Marigold kept glancing back, her eyes narrowing on the bundle in Marcus' arms. Sighing softly he whispered, "Time to get up Kia, she's not buying your act of sleeping any further. Long since time you walked on your own..."

Kia's red eyes opened with a playful pout, "Aw an' 'ere I thought ye'd carry meself all da way dere. Pui! No fun at all that pretty pretty o' yers. Wit all the snugglin' ye both got on wit can't blame a lass fer stealin' some 'erself eh?" Grumbling the lapine jumped down from his arms and quick stepped up beside Marigold, "So, ye both are lookin' fer the forest shrine eh? Coulda just said so, I've been dere once or twice. What do ye want wit the old place? 'asn't been maintained in years, well least not since beast folk done gone and got ourselves put on the damn menu any ways."

Marigold glanced at Kia with a frown, "Will the town guards think to look there fer us?"

Kia shook her head, he drooping ears whipping back and forth gently, "Naw those bully boyos never come out dis way, dis was a beast folk shrine after all. Most humans in town didnt give much o' a shite about wat we believed in even before tha' noble nancy boyo figgered we looked good on plates. So naw, should be a safe enough spot, just dont expect a shinin' temple er somethin', since the take over not a one dat knew o' the place 'as been able ta git out 'ere."

"Yerself doesn't seem to 'ave much troubles, even knowin' where it is."

"Oi! I'm a thief pretty pretty, I goes where I wants. Even so, thief maintain' a shrine? Not exactly me skill set. Usually figgered even gettin' close woulda one day seen my butt struck down by 'is lairdship. Lucky fer me 'is lairdship seems a good sort... even if 'is maiden is a bitch." Kia remarked off hand and quickly darted ahead with that last comment, deftly dodging under the swing of Marigolds hand that had meant to grab the smaller woman up by her rabbit ears.

Marcus sped up watching Marigold swear and run ahead after Kia, shaking his head at how the pair seemed to have endless energy to take pokes at each other. If only they used that boundless energy to tease and verbally joust to find the shrine. Turning his head he stopped in his tracks, "Ladies..."

"One moment lord, I just need a minute to tie this snarky lil shit to a tree branch by her ears." Marigold stomped back over with a struggling Kia in her arms, the latter squirming around trying to escape her captors cruel clutches.

Marcus shook his head pointing a dark finger southward, "Look there, is that what we're looking for?"

Marigold turned dropping the lapine woman unceremoniously at her feet, Kia originally thought to stamp on the bigger womans foot and run but saw Marigold gaping, turning her head Kia blinked. How was this a run down shrine? Through the trees could be seen a structure made of well cut stones and thick logs, stone pillars surrounded the structure and seemed to serve as a ward that blocked vegetation from consuming the courtyard area. "Well someone or somethin' 'as been lookin' after this place, looks even better kept then our own shrine." She whispered as the trio crossed from the unyielding tangle of roots and shrubs and stood upon freshly swept pavers. Each block was inscribed with a symbol denoting one of the twelve zodiacs. The pillars themselves that they had spotted along the perimeter were covered in runes, soft golden energy dimly pulse in each marking.

The main structure looked like an old style japanese shinto shrine, from the northern approach they used one could see the rear of the main hall, but Marcus could make out a set of overgrown torii gates beyond the roof. As they walked around the side, following the winding pavers the entrance was exposed, here the pavers connected to a seamless stone entry way that stretched from the torii gate to the main hall front steps. The trio blinked as the once sunny day became overcast, the once cloudless sky choked by rumbling thunder clouds.

Glancing around Marcus frowned, this shrine was indeed different from the one his egg had been in, and even worse the ominous weather was making his scales crawl. Looking around he pointed to a small basin with several bamboo ladles framing it, "I think we should use that before going further."

Kia sighed and quickly ran over, "Ahhh jest what I needed, me throat was feelin' like a desert, a cool drink would 'it tha spot..."

Before she could go too far Marcus had snagged the neck of her tunic pulling her back with a shake of his head, "Not for drinking, its first cleansing, rinse hands and mouth, don't swallow, don't spit back into the pool. This onset of bad weather likely means we've pissed off whatever guards this shrine by not approaching properly."

"It figures you would spoil their fun. It's been so long since they've eaten mortal flesh, the least you could have done was let the rabbit feed their bellies."

An aged voice, spoke out from the hall entrance. An aged woman stood before the entry frowning at Marcus in disappointment. The woman looked human but she also looked like an aged tree, her tanned skin wrinkled and dark. Rough as bark yet sturdy and unyielding having experienced the March of time unbending before wind and rain. A thick, dark pony tail was braided behind her looping over her shoulders and around her neck like a shawl. Most notable however, was her eyes. Those eyes weren't human in the least, more like a snakes eyes that stared at the trio with an indifferent menevolence that told just how little she cared if the lapine had tempted fate.

Kia shivered glancing around but Marcus patted her shoulder pointing to the statues that framed the entry way. In passing the pair of sculptures looked like a matched set of marble tigers, but on closer look they could see the sides slightly expanding and retracting, the slow breathing of a living beast, and they were a pair. With their disguise ruined both tigers turned, eyes opening to drown the trio in a killing intent that made Kia slump to her knees, a sour odor tickled Marcus' nostrils as he realized just how badly the tigers had scared the lapine.

"Was there really a need for that?" He asked striding forward to take the baleful intents himself instead of letting Marigold and Kia get drowned in it, bad enough the latter had wet herself, had these three made Mari do the same he could feel the Dragon god instinct wanting to be let out.

"Yes..."

"... there was."

Both tigers spoke finishing each others reply, "Are you pretender..."

"... or are you real?"

Marcus frowned crossing his arms, focusing on the trio before the shrine while Marigold moved to help the terrified Kia, "And the verdict?"

"Un...

"... determined."

The twin tigers laughed at each other casually laying back down on their pedestals looking every bit a pair of overgrown and very bored felines.

The old woman snorted and motioned to Marcus, "Don't mind those two, it's been ages and they're bored. Your trial is inside, your maiden and follower stays outside, they can clean up the shrine while we test you, now come along, I don't have all eternity to wait on you." Turning she walked back into the shrine paying neither Dragon god nor the women at his back any further mind.

Glancing to Mari and Kia he was torn about leaving them until the tigers spoke again. "Go inside..."

"... your people are..."

"... safe with us. We'll..."

"...not eat them, not..."

"... even the rabbit."

Marcus nodded giving the two women each a hug, looking to Mari's eyes before he turned to walk between the tigers, paying the malicious pair no mind as he followed the old woman inside. The interior of the shrine was unlike the shinto shrines on earth, hell, the interior looked larger than the outside of the shrine. A vast hall stretched before him, marble and jade columns as thick as he could probably reach lined the central path. Each pillar was topped with either a variant eastern Dragon or a colored western dragon. All of which seemed to watch as he marched down the middle.

On a raised dias at the end the old woman stood before a brazier that burned high into the air behind her, these flames emitted a heat that seemed to suck the moisture from the very air around it for at least a ten foot radius, yet the old woman stood there casually, denying the heat and watched Marcus with disdain. "So reborn Dragon god, your thoughts?"

Marcus looked up at the woman than the oversized hall around him, rolling his shoulders in a helpless shrug, "There is no trial is there? Seeing as you, yourself, are an outsider. Makes sense this is more a power play than a trial."