Kin-Lin

~I CHÓRA TOU VULCAN~

~The King and his Queen~

"Have you seen it before?"

Vulcan's gaze had been eaten up by the intensity of his curiosity. He looked way from the guards who were carrying the corpse with several gores all of its body away.

"Yes. It's called Kin-Lin. It's of a Chinese origin."

Athena replied as he turned in the chair,

"What's a Chinese monster doing here then?"

"Do not call it a Monster. If one of the emperors of the Chinese empire hears that, your life would be more than bargained for."

The curiosity in his face melted into a molten lava of worries,

"If it's not a monster, then why would it had gored a man in such innumerable amount of places."

"Tell me, husband. If I go after a citizen and kill such, would you call me a monster?"

He shook his head,

"Of course not. You have your reasons."

"So then, why do you think the creature doesn't have its reason?"

He sighed and sat well in the throne. He restructured the question,

"So, what's there to know about this mystery creature and from where did it come?"

She stood up suddenly and stepped off the throne.

"Walk with me, my Lord."

She offered, reaching out one of her hands for him to hold. He did and they walked slowly down the hall as she explained,

"One thing I forgot to tell you is about the rift. That rift created by myself and Poseidon, to keep either of us at a barrier."

"What about it?"

"It's a portal for every magical creatures which live. All magical creatures which had been confined in their respective places would start rushing down here, to the only portal available in the whole world. To walk amongst men again and make their best of it, since such opportunity comes once in a millennium."

She paused and he took a side of her face in his gaze. She continued,

"Kin-Li is one of these various magical creatures. The last time it came into being was when the Chinese emperor, Huang-ti held it accountable to sacred rites in his palace."

She caught her breath,

"A Kin-Li is a Chinese variant of the Unicorn, which my father calls, Enas monókeros. It has the head of a Dragon, a lion’s mane, the body of a stag, the tail of an ox, and, of course, a single horn. Its body radiates the five sacred colors—blue, red, yellow, black, and white—and its voice rings like a temple bell."

"Wait."

They both halted at the door of the palace. He probed further,

"You meant the tolling of the bell we heard the previous day was its voice?"

"His."

She corrected.

"You did call it its also..."

"I have a spiritual stance to be able to say that, you don't."

He looked away and back at her,

"Tell me more."

"The Ki-Lin is king of the 360 beasts of the Earth, and one of the four auspicious animals—the Ssu Ling, or Spiritual Creatures of China. As gentle of a creature it is, it doesn't feed on the grass."

"What does he feed on then... humans?"

"No! Wisdom, Justice, and Righteousness. The three symbols he stands for. And he appears only during the time of an upright ruler or before the birth or death of a sage."

"The only sage in the land died few months ago. Which points at only one thing; he's here because of an upright ruler, you! But the question is why? He seems as the good guy? Why leave gores in helpless people and kill if it -- he's good?"

She resumed walking, into the brightness of the day. Her gentle hold on him guiding his thoughtful pace.

"Isn't it obvious, my Lord? He's here for justice. And he doesn't need any affirmation from anyone. His instincts are alert and pure. The only people he has killed and is set to kill are the evil ones. The ones plotting against us. The evil frames stalking the success of the land and its endeavors."

"But we can't fold our hands while the people are dying. How do we explain to them that the creature is here to kill only the bad people? No matter how evil a person is, he's someone's family. Even lover or admirer."

"You're right my Lord, here's what we will do."

She halted. The palace compound is now surrounded by a thick rampart, secluding it from the rest of the houses in the settlement.

"We'll take this first death as a coincidence. That's what we will make it seem to the people. The second as a warning. And the third as a prompt to take a bold step. Because, a Kin-Lin must kill at least three of the evil doers before fancying an option of being appeased."

She paused,

"And there is a good news."

"What's that?"

He seemed elated.

"Kin-Lin does not hunt only humans. Other evil magical creatures like the Kallicantzari, Satyr, Imp and the rest wouldn't escape his judgement."

"That makes sense."

He sighed.

"But there's a bad news."

"Are you playing on my feelings, my queen?"

His eyes bulging this time. She smiled,

"After the Kin-Lin, many other magical creatures which are deadlier and evil compared to him would visit our land. Unless the rift is closed. And closing the rift means that Poseidon has a chance again. So, we either set for war against these magical creatures or the god of the sea whose single blow could wipe out seven leagues from here."

"My Lord."

Came a voice from up ahead, a man running from the gate towards them. He was panting heavily as he dropped on his knees before both,

"What hails you?"

Vulcan queried.

"The monster. It's in the woods goring Taro, the faithful Hunter. My only brother. Now is the time to destroy it before it kills someone else."

Vulcan looked away from the crying man at Athena who looked away. He sighed,

"You go. We'll be unto you."

As soon as the fellow sprung up and began to hurry out, Vulcan turned to his queen,

"I'm sorry, but I can't."

He walked away and hailed at the captain of his chariot,

"Prepare the horses and your bows and spears. We're going into the woods."

He ordered, as the captain danced about to the rhythm of the plucked string...