Tails of Innocence

by CommanderX5

Tails of Innocence

Tails of Innocence

-

Prologue

---

It wasn’t the first time she walked through this hallway alongside her tall caretakers, yet something felt off as she could feel the tension in the air, as if something was out of the ordinary.

Step by step, her paws made repetitive and silent contact with the marble floor of the church. The floor itself was made of square blocks and was covered by dust in multiple spots as purifying the land left residents of the church with little time to clean.

She looked around nervously, glancing at numerous supporting pillars while admiring their design, specifically the cute little winged humans called angels, as if the little marble figurines were attached to each pillar while praying to the heavens. Occasionally she spotted a wooden door that looked like so many others that she often lost count of how many there were in this massive church.

She quickened her pace to match the longer steps made by her caretakers as she looked up, no longer seeing their cheerful and comforting expressions, but instead narrowed eyes and faces that shown nothing but urgency. She always felt a little intimidated by their size as she needed to stand on her rear paws in order to reach their middle, but now it felt even worse.

With her full attention on an elderly human in long-white robes, whose face was covered a very long beard, she narrowed her eyes and concentrated. Out of her three fluffy tails, the middle one raised upward as a white magical aura surrounded it. F-father Rodrigo… she spoke telepathically, yet failed to get his attention.

She repeated with higher volume, Father Rodrigo, is something wrong? Seeing as he looked down at her, she smiled and asked, I couldn’t help but notice that everyone is very stressed today, and it’s making me nervous. Is there anything I can do to help?

Seeing the priest just sigh in response only deepened her worries. She lowered her head and whimpered, only to feel comforting hands pick her up.

Now held in monk’s embrace as if she was a baby, she blushed while looking at him, the very person she saw as a parental figure. H-hey… I’m not a little kid anymore… quit it... she spoke telepathically, finding herself in an embarrassing predicament. It was a pleasant experience back when she was the size of a kitten, but now…

“Small or not, you’ll always be my little kid, my little Kyuubi.”

Kyuubi closed her eyes, feeling the pleasant scratches behind her ears and under her chin while red collar decorated her neck with silvery emblem attached to it with her name written on it. Petting, scratching sessions, affection and time, he gave her the most whenever others were busy.

While trapped in an awkward position, she stretched her neck, nuzzling the monk’s cheek. The tips of his white beard and white hooded cloak ticked her snow-white fur. She always wished that she could wear one of those robes, as pure white as snow with runes of bronze, silver, and gold on the back to rank how high one was in the hierarchy. Each of them a symbol to demonstrate what type of magic each priest was specialized in or the various deeds they had accomplished for the church. She wished for one for herself so she could be like her caretakers and help the world with pride.

Thankies for the scratches, Timothy, but I would rather know why everyone is so stressed today? She assaulted the monk with her best puppy-eyes, whimpering like a pleading dog. Can you tell me what’s going on? Pretty please…

Timothy looked to the side, not daring to look her in the eyes. “Stop looking at me like that. You’re making it harder than it already is…”

What do you mean?

The monk sighed and looked back as his eyes started tearing up, his tone of voice now more somber than before. “I hate being the one to tell you the bad news… but…” Despite his efforts, a few tears slid down his cheeks.

Yes? Kyuubi asked as sudden feeling of dread was born in her heart. Something bad was coming and her anxiety grew.

“Today is the day we’ll have to say our goodbyes.”

W-what? What are you talking about? She pushed herself free from monk’s hold, landing on the floor as she gazed back in confusion.

“I am sorry Kyuubi, but we have no choice but to send you away.”

Feeling as if her heart started to sink, she walked backward, not daring to take her eyes away from the parental figure. Send me away? But why? Did I do something wrong? Is it my fault? She stood on her rear paws, pressing her forepaws against Timothy’s belly. Whatever I did, I’m sorry. Please, let me fix it… I’ll do whatever…

“It’s not your fault. It is about your safety.”

Kyuubi lowered herself to the floor and resumed her walk, following Timothy as Father Rodrigo gestured for them to enter the most spacious room in the church, a place filled with numerous empty seats and an altar. Rays of the sun filled the room through stained glass, alongside light form a few candles.

My own… safety? Kyuubi asked as she looked at Father Rodrigo, who gestured for them to approach the main altar. Her attention focused on numerous priests and sisters, all gathered around a blessed shining orb. Not that she was ever allowed to enter this part of the church during mass, nor interact with the faithful, but she peeked in from time to time, and barricaded doors certainly wasn’t part of the decor.

With hesitant steps, she approached the gathered group as each priest and sister gave her a saddened look, which only served as confirmation that she indeed would be cast away. She glanced at statue of an angel which held a holy orb in its hands, one that shined with power. As she looked between each face, she noticed that one priest refused to meet her gaze.

She stopped in pointed spot in front of the orb and turned around, sending a telepathic message to Rodrigo. Why is everyone gathered like that? Is this a judging ritual? Are you planning to purify a group of monsters? I was sure there’s no need for this many priests to do that. As she looked around, she noticed that everyone knelt before the orb, sending their prayers. She whimpered, wondering if it was a sort of banishment ritual.

Rodrigo looked at Timothy and said, “It will take some time before the ritual is over. Father Timothy, I believe it is just to tell her. She deserves to know.”

Timothy sighed before nodding hesitantly. He wiped tears from his face before approaching the altar and kneeling before Kyuubi. He stretched his hand and rubbed her cheek.

Deserve to know what? Kyuubi asked as her own eyes started watering. It wasn’t surprising to her that her caretakers were hiding something from her as she got used to it, but now she was beyoung worried what this secret can be.

“My dear Kyuubi. Before I tell you a story, allow me to tell you something about you, or rather about your species,” Timothy said, receiving a nod of agreement as she looked at him with knowledge-hungry eyes. “There was a time when your species was numerous, but was also intensively hunted as your tails possessed valuable magical properties, making them very valuable.”

Kyuubi wrapped her paws around her three tails, holding them close to her chest as she trembled in fear. She wanted to object to such cruel treatment, but felt too afraid to respond.

“A few talented wizards were studying your species, and according to their notes, you possess an interesting surviving trait,” Timothy said as he forced himself to smile, yet it and his scratching did little to raise Kyuubi’s spirit. “As long as your species is numerous and healthy, each member possesses an average magic and lifespan between a hundred and two hundred years. Most multi-tailed foxes had three or four tails at best.”

Kyuubi nodded, concentration and curiosity clear by one look at her face.

“However, as your species became less and less numerous, each remaining member gained stronger magic and longer life spans. Some people even claimed to see a fox with five or even six tails that were bigger than a human despite them standing on four paws.”

Kyuubi tilted her head to the side. Does this mean I will one day grow six tails and will live for centuries, will I grow very big?

TImothy nodded. “You will grow further than that, and that’s the problem.”

What do you mean? she asked, blinking in confusion.

“And now this is where the sad story starts. For decades no one could find any members of your species, only for the darkest day to come,” Timothy said as he no longer could keep up his smile, his tone of voice now serious. “Five years ago a gigantic nine-tailed fox made his appearance. This creature was bigger than a cathedral and wielded destructive black magic.”

Kyuubi curled herself while holding forepaws very close to her chin.

“Blinded by desire for vengeance or overcome with lust for power, this creature became a most cruel beast...” Timothy started in harsher tone. “It turned any animal it came across into a monster for his army and summoned demons to serve it. Anyone who fought back was killed and resurrected as an undead corpse. Curses, necromancy, it knew it all. In only a month this beast created legions and invaded one kingdom after another, bringing ruin and destruction to those who refused to bow to it.”

M-monsters? Wait… are you talking about all those creatures we were purifying? Are you saying that all those animals we saved… were turned into those aggressive creatures by… someone like me? She lowered herself to the floor, whimpering sadly as guilt started weighing on her young heart. So all this destruction… No…

Timothy grit his teeth and looking to the side, forcing himself to continue, “If two wizards of equal skills would fight each other and one would use black magic, the black mage would win. This magic was created for destruction and battle. For a gigantic and powerful creature like this Ninetales to use it… Any army that got in its way was burned in black flames.”

More whimpers escaped Kyuubi’s mouth and her ears were now flat against her head.

“Many people gifted with powerful magic tried to fight it, using the power of fire, electricity and earth itself against Ninetales, only for this creature to break their strongest defenses and eat them. Witnesses claimed that each time it ate a mage, it grew in size a little bit and became even more powerful.”

Father Rodrigo grimaced and narrowed his eyes, as if relieving the past.

“Knights and warriors possessing inhuman power tried to kill it, but brute force couldn’t stand a chance against black magic,” the monk added before looking at his own clenched fists. “In desperation we prayed to our God for salvation, and in return he blessed us with holy magic. Not one to heal, but one to smite evil. While this gift would barely scratch a good creature, it proved to be a powerful way to fight this black magic.”

Kyuubi raised her head. You mean… like that game of paper, scissors and a rock? She stood up as her paws trembled. Black magic beats everyone, everyone beats holy magic and holy magic beats black magic. R-right?

Timothy allowed himself to chuckle, though his voice still possessed a hint of dread. “That’s one way to put it. When priests unleashed holy spells, and when I and other monks used holy power in direct combat, we managed to defeat one legion after another, even forcing Ninetales to retreat more than once. Other kingdoms sent their armies to support us, seeing hope for salvation in those dark times.”

But… but why did this Ninetales attack in the first place? Why was he so cruel? Kyuubi asked. Was it revenge?

Timothy rubbed the back of his neck. “To be honest, I am not sure. There’s a possibility that it tried to avenge its species for being hunted to near-extinction for its valuable tails, which would explain its rage.” He looked to the side, adding, “But there’s also a possibility that this creature hunted and ate its own kind, hoping to become the most powerful creature on the continent. Either it was desire for vengeance or lust for power. We’ll never know.”

Kyuubi nodded. On one side, it made sense to fight back against those who were killing them, at least somewhat justifying all those cruel actions. On another, was returning pain for pain the only course of action? Wasn’t there a peaceful alternative? As much as she wanted to think it through, she had to focus on the ongoing story.

“Despite possessing magic and power to fight back, our opponent was clever. It used its legions as shield and killed as many priests and monks as it could before retreating to heal its wounds. One battle after another, it drained our strength before regrouping his forces to strike again. This creature was too fast and too clever to be killed and it would win sooner or later. Unable to take away its life, we sealed it away,” Timothy said as he glanced at the present priests, who kept doing their prayers with full focus while holy orb shined brighter than before.

I… see… Kyuubi lowered her head and held forepaw on her chest. But if that’s the case, why did you raise me? Am I not your enemy? Why did it take so long for you to decide to banish me?

“That’s not it,” Timothy said as he shook his head, quickly patting the three-tailed fox. “In an attempt to restore the land, we tried to help animals as well. It was a bit surprising to us when a fox we took under our care spawned a second tail.”

Father Rodrigo spoke up, catching her attention, “We didn’t let fear blind our judgement, so we sought God's guidance. We performed a judging ritual on you.”

Kyuubi looked up at the priest and nodded, remembering such ritual being performed on three goblins. If I remember correctly, this ritual didn’t harm two goblins that seemed a bit aggressive, but it took away the ability to speak from a cooperative one. Later it turned out that the third one was a cunning liar who caused a lot of harm while the other two just defended their territory.

The priest nodded. “Indeed. This ritual bypass appearances and judge one by its heart. When it gave you affinity to holy magic, we decided to comply with God's wishes and raised you the best we could.”

Timothy looked at the barricaded door as some sort of knocking sound came from it. “The problem is that in the eyes of others, you have the potential to grow into someone as powerful, if not more powerful than that Ninetales. Your existence is no longer a secret, while those blinded by fear and hate wish to take away your life. That’s why we need to send you away, away to a place where you’ll be safe.”

Kyuubi once again felt her heart sink. So all this time those who suffered the most by fighting a member of her species were kind enough to raise her. With a firm jump, she tackled the monk while wrapping her paws around his neck, nuzzling him affectionately while showing the most cheerful smile she could muster. Only Timothy’s inhuman strength prevented him from being knocked onto his back. Thank you… thank you… oh thank you, thank you, thank you! Much to her disappointment, she was quickly separated from the embrace and placed next to the altar.

“Please don’t get even more attached. It will only make this separation harder,” Timothy said while Rodrigo gave them both a warm smile.

“Father Rodrigo, noble monks and priests, you all are making a big mistake. In the name of the king I demand that you open this door!”

Kyuubi took a step back and curled in fear. Despite the distance and barricade, she could hear clearly as the voice was high volume and filled with authority. It wasn’t hard to tell that she was the center of this conflict.

Father Rodrigo glanced at the orb while examining its shine. “We are almost done. We need a little more time.” He turned around and spread his hands. “Our merciful and kind god, our savior, please head call from your faithful servants and aid us in time of need…”

“Open this damn door! Don’t make me do something we all will regret!”

Timothy picked up the bag that lay behind the altar, away from Kyuubi’s view of sight. “Listen carefully. We’ll send you to a faraway place, maybe even another continent, to a place away from your race’s infamous history and those who wish you harm.” He placed the bag next to the trembling three-tailed fox. “Here are your supplies and a few books that will help you. I wish we could raise you, but it would only cause conflict between the kingdoms and the church with your life being on the line.”

B-but… where will you send me? What if people there will be mean to me? What should I do?

“Just be yourself and try to befriend the locals. Our God is merciful and I have faith he’ll send you to a place where you’ll be met with kindness and friendship,” Timothy reassured as he gave a quick farewell embrace. “Just listen to your heart and follow our teachings. My only wish is for you to grow into a good-hearted servant of God and prove to everyone that the evils of one don’t condemn you. Besides, I am sure there are many out there who will benefit from your healing touch.”

Kyuubi nodded in understanding, only for their discussion to be interupted as the barricade was penetrated. Fragments of wood and furniture flew across the room while crushing numerous seats. The double door that was often open to the faithful now lay scattered on the marble floor.

Kyuubi’s attention focused on an intimidating figure, a fully armored knight covered in armor up to his neck. The sunlight shone on the polished metal, shield the size of a human's belly was attached to his left hand while a bastard sword was held effortlessly by his right hand. Only the distance prevented her from seeing his face-expression.

---

Timothy rose up and stood protectively between the knight and the three-tailed fox. “Honorable knight, how dare you force yourself inside those holy grounds with ill intention in mind.” He clenched his fists and shook his hand. “Are you really that determined to commit a cold-blood murder inside the house of God?”

With firm steps, the knight walked forward, its metallic boots causing thudding noise with each step. His long sharp sword was raised, though one could notice trembling of the hand that held it. “Monk Timothy, is that you?” As he good closer, he narrowed his eyes as both humans stared at each other. “After all those battles, after the risk we took and blood we saw as we faced those cursed monsters on the battlefield, are you really going to defend spawn of that hellish creature!”

“Being a member of the same species doesn’t make Kyuubi evil, and God itself decided to grant it a chance to prove it. Please, just listen to reason…”

“Silence!” the knight shouted, slamming his sword against the floor as the pure strength of his push sunk it half a meter deep, the enhancement on the sword preventing the blade from breaking. “Are you that blinded? That Ninetales who brought ruin to the land was only two centuries old, and it already possessed enough power to conquer the entire continent and destroy armies.” He pointed at the magical fox. “And this is the last member of its species. Can you even imagine how powerful it can grow over centuries if left alone? I must slay it while it’s still vulnerable.”

“And you think it’s a reason to just murder her?” Timothy asked. “The knight I fought alongside was honorable, and now look at you, willing to commit a sin in those sacred halls, willing to kill a child while she can’t even defend herself. Sir Willard, you’re better than that.”

Willard held shield on his chest and yelled, “Do you think I want to do any of this?! I hate what I have to do. I’m about to commit grave sin, spilling blood inside the house of God, throwing my honor away by killing a defenseless youth. I’ll become a mere bug deserving of death and with soul beyond redemption.” He pointed at the burned part of his face as no helmet hid his scars, a damage made by black flames that even the priests couldn’t fully heal. “But after this war, after seeing my family slaughtered and my town burned before my eyes, I’ll not allow the history to repeat itself. If I have to sacrifice my soul for the sake of this kingdom, so be it.”

Timothy grit his teeth. At first he was determined to protect Kyuubi from harm, but stopping his war-comrade and friend from condemning his soul strengthened his resolve.

Jumping left and right, he blocked the knight’s path as his fist clashed with the enhanced shield. His attempts to push back Willard or disarm him failed as the power his opponent possessed matched his own. While he and his opponent didn’t want to harm each other, his holy magic was near-powerless against the dutiful and honorable knight. There seemed no evil behind his action, but rather fear and desperation as he could see regret behind the crumbling mask.

---

Kyuubi pressed her back against the altar as her heart-beat increased in speed. Her life was in danger and the very idea of that massive sword slicing her in half now haunted her mind. As much as she wanted to stop a fight between two friends, as much as she wanted to stop this violence, she could do nothing but remain paralyzed by fear. The strength between exchanged blows could effortlessly turn her fragile body to dust.

“Please allow your young servant to escape the fear and hate of misguided people. If it’s in your will, allow her to find a welcoming home and learn kindness in the distant land, a place where her magic won’t be feared, but become a force of good and spread your will,” Father Rodrigo said as the holy orb started initiating a powerful light.

Kyuubi felt a pleasant warmth, which in turn filled her with hope. If this violence could be stopped by taking her away, if her life wouldn’t be at the mercy of that large sword, she would accept it. Her hopeful thinking was cut off when she heard a scream of pain. Timothy ended up slammed aside by the knight’s shield, only for swift slice of the sword to cause bleeding on both of his legs. It became obvious that this strike was meant to immobilize rather than to kill him, yet it didn’t look any less painful.

Timothy! she screamed in her friend’s mind as her body was no longer paralyzed. Three of her tails raised upward, flashing in a white aura as she focused her magic, redirecting it towards the bleeding wounds on her friend’s legs. Distracted, she failed to notice the knight as she ended up in his shadow. Other priests collapsed to the floor, exhausted from the ritual as she felt holy magic surround her body.

“God, forgive me!” Willard shouted as he raised his sword high.

Kyuubi jumped towards the bag with supplies, only for it to be slammed into the wall by the knight’s shield. Her heart-beat stopped for a split second while her eyes became wide, purely focused on the sharp edge of the sword.

One of the priests rushed forward despite his exhaustion, getting in between the knight and the shining fox. “Sir Willard, please, stop!”

“Y-you…” Willard said as he hesitated for a moment. “I recognize you. You’re that paranoid priest who many times tried to approach me or my officers. I know what you tried to tell me but lacked the courage.” The knight pushed him aside, adding, “I’ll put your fears at ease.”

“My fears caused this secret to come to light, but I can still make up for my sins,” the priest responded as he rushed to fox’s protection. The sword descended, only to strike priest’s shoulder while injuring Kyuubi’s side. More blood spilled onto the carpet before the altar.

Kyuubi screamed, feeling intense pain as she dropped to her knees. Seeing blood dripping from her own wound as well from priests’ injury, she was left with a choice in her suffering. She could hasty stop her growing suffering, or aid the one who came to her aid.

With the rest of her strength, she looked at the massive injury on the priest’s shoulder, sending her magic in a desperate attempt to heal it. Before she could tell if her magic healed her suffering protector, her vision turned dark.

As her vision sharpened, she could see that she was no longer in the shadow of the knight, but surrounded by flowers and bushes as the walls of some kind of castle and a few towers came to her view. She grit her teeth and screamed, overwhelmed by the growing pain.

---

Hearing some sort of loud shriek, as if someone was skinning a cat or a wolf alive, the two pegasi guards flew towards the source of noise, their golden armor decorating their bodies while each carried a spear in their hooves.

Noticing that the noise came from the Royal Garden, they descended and landed, only for their faces to become pale. Some sort of fox next to a small puddle of blood screeched in pain while one of its tails shone with a white light.

Resisting the urge to puke, both guards looked at each other.

“Doctor, veterinarian? How far it is?” one guard asked.

“I think four kilometers, should we take this creature?” the other guard responded.

“I’m not sure if it can even survive the trip. How about I’ll pick up the veterinarian and… ummm…” Noticing that his partner looked ahead with his mouth agape, he looked at the injured fox, only to blink in confusion. The open bleeding cut and forepaw that seemed ready to fall off were all but healed as the poor creature now lay flat on the ground, covered in sweat and breathing heavily.

As both guards approached to take a better look, they failed to find even a mark of injury, but they did notice stream of tears escaping this creature’s eyes. The grass and a fair share of the fox’s fur was stained red.

“Ummm… did it just… heal itself… in an instant?” one guard asked, not believing his eyes as he lowered his spear.

“I believe Princess Celestia should be informed about it,” the other guard said.

“But what do we do with this fox?”

“Guard it while I inform the princess.”

“S-sure.”

Comments

[Eroraf86]

Kitsune in Equestria and wholesome religious themes? I like it already. A little grammar cleanup and this will be a masterpiece.

[itsune9tl]

YOU have at least two instances of "coming a sin" I suggest you stop trusting your Spell Checker, and go over your story for content.
I'm only going to highlight the Errors That stick out to me. with content to make them easier to find.

their golden armor decorating their bodies while each carried a in their hooves.

Missing a word.

[Adenbadens]

Really nice start!

A few small errors, but two really stood out to me:

Hearing some sort of loud whimper, as if someone was skinning a cat or a wolf alive, the two pegasi guards flew towards the source of noise, their golden armor decorating their bodies while each carried a in their hooves.

You don’t say what the guards are holding. We know it’s a spear from a few paragraphs down, but you accidentally a word there. Second, a whimper is, by definition, a low sound. It won’t be loud, and considering how you describe the whimper, I doubt that’s what an animal would make of it were being skinned alive. A yelp or a shriek or a howl would make more sense for that level of pain. It’s just that I don’t think the descriptors match up.

Other than that I really enjoyed the start!

[Animatorsnake]

I know the human characters won't be important anymore, but I like the name for the knight - Willard - at some point it changed to William, but Willard sounds awesome - the name, not sure about the character yet. Kyuubi lost her books, NOOOOOOOOOOO!

[Tali_The_Lamia]

Ah cliche humans. They easily let fear blind their judgement while believing killing an innocent child is justified. Thats the irony in it all.
Plus I do hope that Ninetailed fox started that war because of vengeance. Because if it was just a lust for power, then its just another cheap lazily written villain.

[Warrior Kitten]

There’s a couple of mistakes in this chapter, but the story itself is good so far :3