Chapter 11 Spirit Animal

"Sit and let's talk." The fox said. Lee Seng let out a exasperated sigh and swung his feet around and sat in one motion.

"Alright, if you are apart of me then you must know everything, right?" Lee Seng asked.

The fox nodded. "I know how you are feeling. I know what you're thinking. I even know the secrets you keep to yourself." Lee Seng gave the fox an odd look.

"Alright, if you know everything then give me something only I know about." Lee Seng waved at the fox. He didn't believe the fox would know everything. If this fox was to truly be apart of him, he needed something deep and only something he knew about. The fox nodded, sounding off the bell.

"You and the Creator don't get along because he blames you for your mom's death." The fox tilted it's head at Lee Seng who shook his head.

"Everyone knows that."

"You ran away shortly after your mom's death. You never told anyone where you went, but you ended up staying with those, soon-to-be bullies, Jae and Jason Kang."

Lee Seng sat quiet. His heart was heavy and he looked away from the fox.

'If he knows that then...'

"You wonder why they turned on you suddenly." Fox said. Lee Seng looked up at the fox. He hugged his knees as fox trotter himself closer to Lee Seng. Fox wandered over to sit next to Lee Seng, pointing the same direction. "Do you believe me?"

Lee Seng didn't answer. He bit his lip in silence. The dark abyss felt like it was choking him now. He found it harder to breath. He grabbed his chest and tried his best to hide it. The short staccato breaths reminded Lee Seng of all the pain he went through. Everything he was currently going through.

'Would it even get better?' He thought. Hearing his own pain brought up by a fox that claimed to be apart of him, scared him. If he knew everything, would he betray him too? Lee Seng's chest felt like it was tightening even more. Something pushed at him and his mind was starting to race when the fox put a paw onto his leg.

He jerked his head to look who had touched him and saw the fox looking at him. A bunch of images started to flash in front of him. The black abyss held nothing and then a white fox suddenly appeared. Fox looked around and the black abyss began to shift around. Fox wandered for awhile and came across a necklace with a bell. It seemed like it was rusting but with a single touch from Fox, the rust disappeared. Fox stuck his head into the abyss opening where the necklace string lay opened. He pulled himself up and the bell started to ring.

He started his way forward again and a familiar yet foreign voice spoke.

"Try not to get into anymore trouble!" A female voice said

"I'm trying my best." Lee Seng answered. Fox heard the door shut and a small white light flickered in the distance.

Fox started to run towards the light. It was the first time he had seen anything bright in this place. The flickering white light quickly came closer and he found himself at an oasis of sorts. A glowing oasis sat in the middle of darkness. Fox came towards the water. It twinkled and Fox grew curious. It poked a paw into the oasis and it began to ripple.

The familiar voice spoke again. Fox turned to look and images of Lee Seng appeared. The images faded and fox waited patiently for Lee Seng to say something. Lee Seng looked at fox for the first time with curiosity.

"You were here from the beginning? You heard me leaving the nurses office and then... All the memories from the Oasis..." Lee Seng quietly spoke. "That's why you know..."

A film of silence surrounded them. Fox quietly waited at Lee Seng's side while he processed everything. Time had passed and Lee Seng finally ruffled his hair, screaming in frustration.

"Why is everything so damn complicated?" He shouted. He turned to look at fox who tilted his head in confusion. Lee Seng sighed. "You're apart of me. Created for a reason that I can't remember but you, you obviously do." Lee Seng wagged his finger at fox.

"I need you to figure out the gap of time I can't remember. But, I need to make sure I don't get locked up in the lab again." Lee Seng smiled. He didn't understand or like the circumstances he was in, but if this fox said he could help then what did he have to lose with this?

"So are we coming to an agreement of sort?" Fox asked, tilting his head. Lee Seng nodded.

"I need to understand what I am. What the extent of my power is and why I look like those fox-humanoids in Japanese and Korean stories. If you are apart of that answer them what do I have to lose?"

"Alright." Fox nodded. Fox lifted a paw into the air and tapped Lee Seng. "If you accept then let me tell you what I'm able to tell you." Lee Seng nodded, turning himself and his attention onto fox.

"As you know, you have fox traits that physically manifested. More precisely, a tail that's created from the excessive amount of Dark Matter you have now. Your ears physically changed because of the Dark Matter.

"Now, I know you're thinking, 'What does this have to do with my powers?' Well, like you initially thought, this is the price you paid for your power." Fox explained. Lee Seng confusingly nodded along and Fox continued without a beat. "Let's just say I am apart of the reason you have fox features. I'm curious as to why you chose white as your color."

"I chose the color?" Lee Seng asked. Fox nodded.

"The Chosen One chooses the color. It matches with their soul. I guess your soul manifested itself as white."

"White doesn't even reach top 3."

"I don't make the rules. Your soul color is white and had influence on the Spirit Animal, so that's why you and I are foxes."

"So, what does this have to do with everything else?" Lee Seng asked. Fox let out a sigh and shook his head.

"For a patient young man, you are quite impatient." Fox retorted. "I'll cut this short and just say this; you originally didn't even have a lot of Dark Matter in the first place so your power couldn't manifest. When you acquired me, you and I simultaneously broke something that caused you to heavily mutate and produce a lot of Dark Matter and even mutate your original power."

"Something broke that was stopping me from creating the amount of Dark Matter I had?" Lee Seng asked. Fox nodded. "But what could..." Lee Seng trailed off as a question manifested itself.

'Who could do such a thing?'

"I'm not sure who could've but that's why I want to make sure this is all clear before we agree. I have no qualms about you as a person and that's why I'm telling you this." Fox said. Fox stood up and moved forward closer to Lee Seng.

"So with that out of the way, let me tell you what a Spirit Animal can do." Fox leapt forward and Lee Seng flinched, bracing for impact but felt nothing. He glanced around and fox was nowhere to he seen.

"Uh, fox?" Lee Seng called out. The black abyss surrounded him and he was alone. Lee Seng stared to stand when he felt his whole body stat to shake.

"Every time you tried using your power, it didn't work as quickly as you wanted because you needed me. You'll have full range of everything, so you better prepare yourself for the full capability of what you can do." Fox's voice echoed throughout Lee Seng's mind.

"Okay, so is that it? Are we in agreement?" Lee Seng asked aloud.

"The pact is set when you name me." Fox answered.

"Name you?" Lee Seng asked. He began to think of names and came up with boring names. Nothing seems to fit fox's white, snowy exterior look and his straight forward personality. Lee Seng pondered for awhile and then snapped his fingers.

"Keng." Lee Seng announced. Lee Seng felt an energy surge within him and Keng the white fox giggled.

"Then I am Keng." Keng said.