Fireflies

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I am trying a different crop. Tell me which one you like more. You can see the other by clicking on the print. I think I actually like this crop more but before I change, i need other opinions. end edit

These are a couple characters from the novel I am writing. It will be fully illustrated. This is Koji and Miakai. Miakai has wings but you can't really see them in this shot.

To see more Koji art follow the links below. (the previous image also happens to be the close up of this one if you are interested.

Koji: <--previous<-- (close up) next-->

I am starting to build up enough images of Miakai to offer links to more of her as well, so to see more Miakai, follow these links below:

Miakai: <--previous<-- next-->


Beauty Contest Entry I am entering this in a beauty contest. to see more about it, follow this link --> [link]


I referenced the pose from this image here. -->[link] I asked for permission from the artist, but never got a reply. As it stands, this is available as a print, but I will change its status if I the artist asks me to do so.

That being said, I hope you like. =^.^=

The below excerpt doesn't fit the picture perfectly, but it is a good part of the story, and i have a piece up that comes directly after this part.

From In the Time of Dragons


This was it. Kiala recognized the scene from Miakai’s memories. The beautifully arranged garden, with stepping stones artfully placed leading to the door, the bamboo fencing, the bamboo forest further back… the pond with coy fish lazily swimming, the small waterfall… the sand garden, all of it; deceptively peaceful. There was no question. As she headed for the door, she wondered how a place so elegant could house something so dangerous. He will be as much a contradiction as this place, she reminded herself. Ryu had described him as young and innocent looking, so she was mentally prepared to ignore the appearances of things. If he was innocent and delicate, he wouldn’t be a threat to Ryu’s life and she wouldn’t even be here.

Resolutely, she marched up to the door and prepared to hit it hard, but it opened before her fist moved and a face looked out at her quizzically. She was taken aback at the sight. Ryu said young and innocent, even delicate looking… not… beautiful. This face was flawless and friendly looking… and confused. He’s after Ryu, she thought stubbornly. I can’t let him trick me.

“Can I… help you… Miss?” He asked. He had a cup in his hand, and she realized he was about to have some tea.

“You’re Koji, right.” She said it in an accusing voice. He nodded, waiting for more. His eyes caught her attention; they were so welcoming, and … NO! He is after Ryu! “I have a bone to pick with you.” She snarled.

“Likely. A lot of people have a bone to pick with me. What is my crime?” His voice was even and unbothered. That proved it. He was rotten to the core if he was so used to being the bad guy. This made it easier for her to see him as he was; dangerous.

“I’ll make it easy for you. Give me the fate stone so that Ryu won’t try to take it from you, and I’ll leave you in peace.” Her voice was even and deep.

Koji’s expression changed instantly; into one of anger and disgust. “He sent a girl to try to coax it out of me?” The energy emanating from those eyes was so strong it almost threw her off balance. “I thought he at least had honor.” His voice was soft, but all the more dangerous for it.

“How dare you think that of him!’ Kiala barked, now defending the one she loved. Koji looked surprised. “He didn’t send me, I sent myself. He didn’t even tell me, and he keeps NOTHING from me, I figured it out from MIAKAI, who is just as worried as I am, you creep!” her voice was not raised either, but there was no mistaking the daggers that flew from her eyes.

Understanding crossed Koji’s face at that moment. “So you are his Kiala-Chan?” Warmth returned to his eyes. He didn’t ask how she was able to commune with Miakai, which surprised her at first, but she brushed that aside, focusing on what she had to do.

“Yes. If Ryu fights you again, he’ll be defeated, and you will kill him. If you kill him, I will have to kill you for killing him. Doesn’t sound to pleasant, does it?”

“Not in the least, I’m not interested in having any more rivals than I have. So tell Ryu not to try to collect the Fate Stone and leave it at that.”

“Don’t you think I tried that? He is bent on getting it! He thinks it will end the war. It probably will too, so I don’t understand why you won’t let him use it unless you just don’t care.”

“Well I don’t. The human world can go to hell for all I care.” His blatant statement threw her off for a minute. She was starting to let the way he looked get to her, she realized. This reminded her that she was dealing with a cold blooded killer.

“If that is the case, our fighting is inevitable, so we might as well get it over with now. If I can cripple or kill you now, you can’t hurt Ryu again… or Miakai.” Again, her voice was hard. She expected him to try to weasel out of it, after all, she was a girl, and people didn’t like to fight girls.

Koji grinned as he eyed her up and down. “A fight with you would be satisfying. You are quite skilled.” He said simply. Again, surprise.

“You are willing to hit a woman?” She asked.

“I do not strike defenseless people. You do not fit that category. If we are going to do this though, would you mind terribly if we do it away from the house. I would rather not brake anything. Pick a spot.”

Kiala felt her blood start to flow and her heart pound with the anticipation of a real fight. He was letting her pick the battle field, so she looked around in the fading light for a perfect setup. Her eyes settled on a small clearing in the forest. She pointed. “Will that work for you?”

Nodding, he rested his hand on his sword and started over. She followed, staring at the sword in surprise. What kind of metal sparkled like that? It was beautiful. “Scandium. Light, yet strong. But also expensive.” Koji said, as if he had read her mind. “If you happen to get lucky enough to kill me, you should take it. Very useful it is.” He glanced over his shoulder and grinned at her, and her heart melted for a moment. An image of Ryu skipped into her mind and she quickly hardened it again.

“I’ll remember that.”

He laughed.

They reached the clearing in the trees and both started the process of clearing their minds to prepare for battle. Kiala decided to start with the more traditional fighting stance. He used a katana, so she would as well. She spread her feet shoulder width apart, bent her knees a bit and drew her sword, holding it in front of her like a shield. She would wait for his attack. Counter attacks were her strong point when in this stance… but then her concentration was thrown off when she realized he was in the same position, staring at her with a curious expression. She couldn’t’ help but think he looked very catty with that look on his face… just like Miakai when she is considering an interesting bug. “You…” she said.

“So you must be the ‘Tiger’ everyone is going on about these days. This should be fun. I had no idea I would be fighting my successor in that title.” He grinned at the thought.

“You’re… the real Tiger?” Kiala remembered how she got the title. People had said that she fought the same way the Tiger from the earlier wars fought, and how she had striking bright eyes… since they could not see anything else of her in her disguise, they had assumed she was the same person. She let them think that because it made it easier to hide who she really was. She never thought she would meet the real one. A shiver threatened to run down her spine, but she brushed it aside, reminding herself that she had powers he did not. She felt the fire inside her, warming her fingers, and she prepared to use it if needed.

“I guess. That is what they liked to call me anyway. Since both of us rely on counter attacks this way, I think I’ll try something different.”

“I don’t think I want to use a technique you already know against you, so maybe I’ll try something else too.” She straightened her legs and repositioned her feet as she lifted her katana into the air, ready to thrust. She held herself in the pose she used when ready to begin a dance.

Koji lowered himself into more of a crouch, sword held lower as well. He looked just like a tiger, preparing to pounce and his expression was no contradiction. There was something almost hungry in his eyes. This was a new stance. She had never seen anything like it before. He really was the true Tiger.

Neither moved for a while, waiting for an opening. It wasn’t until a coy fish broke the surface of the pond to catch a fly that they came to life, both moving instantly. He shot from the earth, flying through the air and she sprung forward in a fluid motion, driving the blade at his heart. As she predicted he would, he twisted the path of his blade to catch hers and divert it. Now was her chance. As they were still moving closer together, she pulled out her fan. This was her real weapon of choice, and just as she expected, a look of shock crossed his eyes. I’ve got him! But as she opened it and prepared to strike, he twisted with incredible agility and slipped out of her reach just in time, her katana, somehow, in his other hand. Surprise crossed her face as she realized her hand was empty. How had he? The little thief!

It didn’t matter really though. She reached in and took out her other fan, and held both in a seemingly demure pose. Really, they were perfect shields now. He fell into another pose, and watched her. His expression was one of delight. She would not make the first move this time. Watching him, she waited to see what he would do. In a mere blink of an eye, he was moving, and FAST! Heading sideways, she knew he was going to sweep behind her, she spun, keeping him locked in her line of sight, one foot up, and ready to strike at him with a solid kick. He came in, low, his foot ready to strike her off balance, and his swords held to block any attack she might have. She leapt clear, and as she spun in the air, she slashed at him. Her fan caught his blade, and he countered with the other, which she blocked.

As she landed, she slid her fan around one of the blades and locked onto it. Using the centrifugal force, she kept her momentum, and brought him into the air, throwing him backward, but he used that to spring into the air, trying to take her fan from her. In an instant, she was in the air for a moment as well, both fighting to take possession of the other person’s weapon. This time she saw him, as they were landing. His other hand was free, the sword in its sheath. His hand was wrapping around her fan, just above where her hand was.

Thinking quickly, she twisted her wrist to force him to let go and tried to slash at him, but he pulled back, drawing his blade again. It wasn’t fully sheathed, so it wasn’t hard. They pulled apart and charged again. Her dancing into a strike and him pouncing. Again, their weapons collided. But this time, she prepared to kick him, only to find he was doing the same. Their legs locked and both fell to the ground. They caught themselves and launched out of the other’s range.

Now was the time to use it, she though. She let the fire build. Putting her fan away for the moment, she let the fire form in a ball near her hand and sent a surge of it at him. But then it was quenched by an equally powerful wave of water. Both flame and water vanished in a cloud of vapor. A water master? Figures. This time, he created a wave and threw it at her, which she put out with her fire. That is when she started to giggle. She noticed he was doing the same.

“Just a thought.” He said lightly between bouts of laughter. “Maybe we should conserve our energy and skip that part. All we are going to do is put each other out.”

“I think you are right.” She grudgingly agreed. He was half Samo-Yan like Ryu, which meant that he had a lot of power, and she doubted she could best him in endurance or strength in the end. It seemed they were equal opposites in that department. They both got back into their stances

It was another stand-off. Kiala noticed that the light was starting to fade fast and fireflies were beginning to come out. A worried thought crossed her mind. Could he see in the dark? Probably, so she decided that she needed to end this quickly. This time, she didn’t’ wait for him. She charged. Her quick action caught him slightly off guard, but he was still able to block her. She tried to strike with her other fan again, but it was just like before. That is when he changed his move into a thrust, sliding his katana against her fan, creating sparks as he went. She dodged just in time, and twirled around to catch him from behind, but he ducked. She saw a couple strands of his hairs floating lazily to the ground… wait… where was he? She looked around quickly to see him landing easily on the branch above her. He had a rock in his hand, and he tossed it at her, but she dodged, and as she did so, she collected her own rock and threw it at him. He leaped from his perch, laughing as he landed on another. Then he dove off it right at her.

They continued like this for a while, and panic started to set it. Kiala couldn’t find an opening, and it was getting darker more quickly. As they jumped out of range again, she realized with fear that she couldn’t’ see him. She strained to listen, but heard nothing. Then one of the fireflies drifted near him, lighting up a golden eye. She charged but found he wasn’t there anymore.

Listening hard, she looked around, hoping for a sign. She sensed it more then heard it; coming up from behind. She whirled around, and froze. There he was, a triumphant look on his face, her own katana held close her throat and his other blade held both fans at bay. “Gotcha!”

She pulled back, but not so far that he would disappear again. He could have killed her just then. But he didn’t. “I don’t care if I can’t see you! I won’t let you hurt Ryu!” She yelled angrily.

His expression turned soft, and he sighed heavily. “You love him that much. You would die for him.”

“Yes.”

“But it would kill him if you died. Why do women have such a hard time getting that?” She heard a catch in his voice that startled her again. “Very well then. If you must have it that way.” He tossed her sword back to her and it landed at her feet. At the same moment, he put his own blade away and smiled sadly at her.

She put her fan away and picked up the blade. Could it be? Was he letting her finish this herself?

“Do what you came here to do. If I am gone, he can’t fight me and die, right?” He lowered his eyes, all mirth gone from his face.

A trick. It was a trick, it had to be. He took his blade from his belt and set it down, standing to face her. Then he closed his eyes. She thought it over. It wasn’t a trap; he could have killed her already. If it was a trick, he would regret it. She decided that she had to do what she came to do, for Miakai and for Ryu. Stepping forward, she lifted the blade and glared at him. Fine. He asked for it. Furiously, she drove the blade at his throat. But as she drew nearer, he opened his eyes. They were beautiful. His entire face was. There was nothing vile about it. Killing him like this was cold-blooded murder. A shiver ran through her entire body and the blade flew passed him, jamming into the tree behind him. She was so close to his throat, and a tear threatened her eyes. How could she have even considered that an option? She pushed the tear back before he could see it.

"There now,” He said almost soothingly. “You win.” And he smiled at her with his entire face. A firefly drifted by and she saw the smile all too clearly. The last of the anger melted away. And then she realized he knew all along she would be able to do it, and a new anger replaced the old.

“You idiot! I could have killed you! What were you thinking? I SHOULD have killed you!”

“Same here, but we didn’t, did we?” His grin got bigger. “Now, how about some tea?”

To read the next part of the story, go to my deviation called, Kanite's Diary --> [link]