Spirit Animals; The Forgotten World (AN APPLY FANFIC)

Chapter 1: Jade Among Ruins

Akari was happy with how her life was.

It was simple, predictable, and safe. The city she lived in was beautiful, her family;s business was doing fine, and she knew everyone. It would be foolish for anyone to want to leave and risk everything that they had to have a little fun.

Of course, she was subjected to that foolishness. The idea of leaving the city, going out and exploring the rest of Zhong, perhaps even the rest of Erdas was a thrilling thought. Perhaps if she did summon a spirit animal at her nectar ceremony, she might have done just that. Leave behind everything she knew to explore, to see the world, meet new people. However that fantasy was quickly wiped away the day she failed to summon a spirit animal.

The dream was a foolish one. She had been told by several people, whether it be her friends or her own family. Adventures like those happened hundreds of years before. Any quest or thrilling exploring had been speculated to be legends.

Folktales.

Spirit animals within themselves were rare, even in the stories. Any special bond that humans once had to the beasts were long gone, shriveled to almost nothing.

At least, that was the case in Zhong. Spirit animals were only summoned by very few kids. Though none stayed. They were quickly whisked away to the Zhongese palace. No one questioned why, nor did they want to know.

Many speculated that the children bonded to a beast were killed, or perhaps sent off to another continent to get training. With very few kids even bonding to a spirit animal, the rouse of suspicion or concern were low.

That was what happened with her brother.

During their nectar ceremony, despite her failure to call upon a beast, he succeeded. The creature wasn't the most impressive, only being a red panda, but the fact of him summoning one was the impressive, and terrifying part. He disappeared only days later. Her father blamed the Zhongese court, but without any evidence, and his past accusations, no one in the city seemed to listen, or to care.

That was the one reason that Akari was glad she didn't summon a spirit animal.

If she had, she too would have been whisked away.

It was midday in her hometown, the brilliant blue skies stretched for miles, with very few clouds in sight, the distant sound of chirping coming from the forests, and the tall grass surrounding her. Laying there, she could feel the soft breeze up against her skin. It was quite peaceful. She liked that.

Here, she didn't have to listen to the busy steel pounding sounds from her father's forge, or the sounds of her mother talking with her other friends about the latest gossip.

Even if she wasn't able to go out and see the world, at least she was able to enjoy this spot. She was sure that no were else in Erdas was this beautiful, and peaceful.

Akari closed her eyes, she could feel her skin warm to the sun's touch. Perhaps she could take a quick nap.

"Akari!"

The sound of her mother's voice pulled her out of her daydreaming. She quickly sat up, and after brushing off all the grass from her pants, she darted back to their small home.

Despite her father having his forge in town, they had enough money to have their own secluded home, just outside of the city. It really was a breathtaking place.

It was in a clearing in the forests. Not too far away from the rest of the world, but secluded and isolated enough that they didn't have little kids running through their yard, or the busy sounds of the city. She loved it.

Akari made her way over to the actual home. It was small, and was made of a reddish orange wood. The roof was a darker color, and the whole house was supported by a stone foundation. It didn't really seem to fit from the surrounding trees, neither by color or texture, leading her to believe that the wood must have been shipped out from another forest. Perhaps one from Amaya or maybe even Nilo or Oceanus.