By Molly Bolder

Beyond the veil of our material world exists another. This place is called the Other World and it is home to thousands of demons, spirits and deities . These beings are masters of magic and the martial art known as ninjutsu. These beings lived together in harmony until the great demon Oni became restless and desired more power for himself. He had heard that deep within the mountains is a hidden shrine which holds a fantastical treasure. It is said that it could grant the finder with absolute peace or unrivalled power. Due to his blind desire to rule over the Other World, Oni decides to seek out this treasure but unbeknownst to him, the young Inari, along with her sidekick Kitsune, has taken it upon herself to stop him. The clock is ticking as they race to the shrine, but who, if anyone, will be the victor?

Age: 23 Role: Deity of luck bringing and protection. Height: 5'5 Qualities: Nimble, emotionally strong, determined, caring, brave and selfless. Weaknesses: Not that physically strong, prone to taking risks to help others. About: Incredibly fast to act, Inari takes her role as protector very seriously. Of course, not so seriously that she can't enjoy herself between fighting demons and chasing Kitsune around. She may not look like much but her shoulder basket caries within it everything she needs to face down any foe. To protect herself, and those around her, she can manipulate the items she caries with only her mind, allowing her to sneak around efficiently and with little noise. She wears her full ninjutsu uniform as it allows her to become completely invisible and distort her appearance so she blends in to any crowd. Her one desire in life is to protect those that need her, no matter the risk.

Age: Unknown Role: Demon of destruction. Height: 8' Qualities: Clever, incredibly strong, controls dark magic, impatient and a controlling leader. Weaknesses: His dark magic can overpower him, his impatience and desire lead to rash decisions About: A harsh and unpleasant individual, Oni suffers no fools and will allow nothing to prevent him from getting what he wants. His huge 3-clawed hands and feet are twisted and contorted by the black magic he uses and the flaming amulet that lives on his chest acts as a conduit for it. He is incredibly strong both physically and magically, but his impatience and desire can lead him to use too much of his power and this can be devastating for anyone involved, including himself. He wears elements of his ninjutsu uniform but his use of dark magic has lead them to sit unnaturally on his frame. Instead, he prefers to don his flaming sashes and horns. These green flames change with his moods and actions and can sometimes engulf him completely.

Age: Unknown Role: Inari's messenger and companion. Height: 2' Qualities: Nimble, shape-shifter, cunning, caring, selfless, light-hearted, considerate and playful. Weaknesses: Can be easily distracted, disappears from time to time, shape-shifting can be temporarily debilitating. About: A loving, trustworthy friend to Inari, Kitsune is always there to defend her (unless there is something to chase). Her real form is that of a white fox with a vibrant red, rippling scarf, but her shape-shifting abilities allow her to morph into any creature she chooses, while still retaining a little of her fox-ness. This ability allows her to turn into a great 9-tailed fox, resembling a Japanese dragon, to fly across the Other World, but that takes a lot of energy out of her and can leave her vulnerable. Due to her light-hearted nature she'll often use her abilities for fun and games but no matter what she gets up to, she never loses her priorities.

By

Molly Bolder