Wanikani Origin Story

[Abstormal]

I thought the birds was inside Mrs. Chou

[Jirachi]

I guess it could be both! At least for the first bird-related appearance, here’s the (somewhat graphic) desciption from the 鳥 mnemonic:

Honestly, Mrs. Chou deserves her own spin-off series of wanikani.
“The Adventures of Mrs. Chou” or “Chou and Co.” or something…

[Abstormal]

I don’t remember this!
I thought she came and ate the bird! and a “Oh no! Be angry she ate it!”
I think they changed it (was 4 years since I was that level =P )

I like the new one better!

[KyokaJiro]

The story is going well.

I had to change the storylines multiple times based on the way the characters are evolving. Most (70%) of the major characters and acts are set at the moment.

A special thanks to @BrunoCaesar san for their incredible help in editing/rewriting the dialogue to add OOMPH factor to the story.

I still plan to release the chapter by this weekend, but if we are delayed by a few days please do not mind.

Thanks for your patience

[Jirachi]

That’s great! Can’t wait. If you need chapter covers/illustrations, I’d love to help!

[KyokaJiro]

Sure Jirachi san

[KyokaJiro]

Been hammered at work. No chance of writing the remaining part before the weekend. I am looking forward to the break to relax and write.

[KyokaJiro]

I am finally done with the Prologue.

Nothing like a break from work to get out of funk

We still have editing and other quality checks. Once all the checks are complete - the chapter will be posted in this thread.

Thanks for your patience.

[Catherine670]

If it is not too much trouble, please tag me when the prologue is out. I’m waiting for it!

[Abstormal]

Set to Watching and you’ll get notified whenever there is a reply on the topic =) (can always go back to Tracking again later)

[KyokaJiro]

@Catherine670 san and @Abstormal san

Hopefully it will be out by this weekend. (I know I made that promise twice before ). This time for sure.

There were major changes at work and in personal life in the last 2 weeks, I was barely staying afloat. Hopefully things are easing a bit One more quality check and the chapter should be ready for consumption.

The scope of what I envisioned and the current form are vastly different (In a better way). And that was before wonderful people on the forum stepped in and shared responsibilities.

Everyone would be better served if I make the chapters “Monthly” and post them early than make them “Biweekly” and postpone.

It might be called prologue, but it is more than a full chapter length. It is spanning 3 pages. (My original plan was for each chapter to last at least 2 pages on a MS Word document.)

[ekuroe]

I’m looking forward to reading it!
But take as long as you need.

[Catherine670]

@KyokaJiro If it is possible do try to add something about Koichi’s hula dancing abilities.

[ekg]

Iz getting excited by this project! Ganbatte @KyokaJiro! <3<3<3

[Nemuitanuki]

Yes!!! Let the tale continue

[KyokaJiro]

@Catherine670

@KyokaJiro If it is possible do try to add something about Koichi’s hula dancing abilities.

If you can add the relevant background story/mnemonic link in the wiki post (third post on this thread), I will do my best Catherine san. There is only one spot where I can probably mention this, at the very least I can certainly make a reference to Hula dance.

@ekg

Iz getting excited by this project! Ganbatte @KyokaJiro! <3<3<3

Thanks EKG san

@Nemuitanuki

Yes!!! Let the tale continue

Yep, your story traces can be seen in chapter 4 Tanuki san

I made one more major edit. I will post the prologue by today evening. (There could be minor cosmetic changes if needed after posting, but the content wouldn’t change.) In the meantime, I can post a teaser

Thanks for your patronage everyone

[KyokaJiro]

                                **Teaser**
                                **Prologue**

Read this in the voice of Morgan Freeman

Summary

これは昔話の伝説…(This is a legend from eons ago)

This tale begins at a moment when the concept of time did not exist.

.

.

.

In the beginning there was nothing.

Then there was a whirlpool of energy. In the empty void, the energy that will eventually become me whirls and roils.

As the energy congealed into a corporeal form, I can already feel some of its effects. The universe is vast, and I am alone amidst its energies. My sentience and near limitless power to turn anything I wanted into reality makes me giddy. But I must be careful; if I let this energy run wild, it might tear through the fabric of universe back to nothing. That could be interesting… but no. It won’t do. I start channeling these energies, almost by reflex.

[KyokaJiro]

Details
Chapter Number - 0 (Prologue)
Chapter Name - Celestial Beings
Story - @KyokaJiro
Editor - @BrunoCaesar
Illustrator - @Jirachi
Quality Checks - Kyoka,Bruno,Jirachi

Thanks to all the folks who helped to make this chapter come true This would not have been possible without your support. As we take this first step to learn the tale of Crabigator, I am bursting with excitement Hope you are too

Chapter - 0:Celestial Beings

これは昔話の伝説…(This is a legend from eons ago)

This tale begins at a moment when the concept of time did not exist.

.

.

.

In the beginning there was nothing.

Then there was a whirlpool of energy. In the empty void, the energy that will eventually become me whirls and roils.

As the energy congealed into a corporeal form, I can already feel some of its effects. The universe is vast, and I am alone amidst its energies. My sentience and near limitless power to turn anything I wanted into reality makes me giddy. But I must be careful; if I let this energy run wild, it might tear through the fabric of universe back to nothing. That could be interesting… but no. It won’t do. I start channeling these energies, almost by reflex.

As I impose order on the unruly energy, it slowly turns into nurturing energy. Instinctively, I know my name is Shougun and I like it. Even though it is I who is doing the channeling, the energies have a will of their own, however rudimentary. They become light; ten orbs of unparalleled, beautiful, colored, swirling lights. My children. They will add stability to this 'universe’.

I know I cannot stay awake for a long time, for my will is too strong for this world to handle. I will go to sleep. Yes, this is for the best.

In my sleep, I can still sense my children. They look at themselves, at me, and at each other. They look at the universe. We are everywhere. Nothing is far away. We need to turn our attention towards something, and there it is, for us to know of it. My children slowly gain sentience during my slumber. They become acquainted with each other and start roaming all the corners of universe. Eventually, my children notice I am ready to awaken.

I have been asleep for one hundred million years, after all; even I can only sleep for so long. But I can only stay awake for a day, lest I run into the same problem as last time. My children are excited to see me wake up. Maybe I can figure out a way for them to start helping. Fulfilling one’s nature is important for primordial beings like us.

As the dense fog around me cleared, my children come to me. We are all afloat in the cosmos, adrift but together. They look at me and say: “Shougun-sama, you are a cat!” And I know they are right as soon as they say it. What other shape would fit the most powerful being in the world as much as the shape of a cat?” None”

“So I am!”, I reply. My children are talking over each other.

“Look at your body! It’s white!”

“With black spots!”

“And shiny eyes!”

“And a tail that swings this way and that way!”

“Ooh, this thing in Shougun-sama’s eyes got bigger!” Children like cats, apparently.

Click to open: Illustration of Shougun and Children

We play for a bit. As a good parent, I lick and pat each of them. Soon one of them comes close to my ear and screams: "Shougun-sama, this is boring. It has been a hundred million years and I didn’t do anything apart from roaming all the corners of the universe and then coming to meet you! Apart from our family, there is nothing to see or do. Isn’t there anything interesting to do? Please? Please make something interesting Shougun-sama.”

“Hahahahaha!”
The sudden outburst from one of my children caused me to break into explosive laughter. It turns out that my laughter is just what we needed, for with it comes the phenomenon of time, and the sudden, turbulent appearance and expansion of matter in all its glorious variety. I and the children are rapt, looking at all the matter speeding and spreading along the cosmos. It is gorgeous.

Once everything is in place, the children calm down a little, and I beam at them with pride. “Well, you certainly started something interesting, Ryuu. Who knows where this winding path leads?” The mischievous spark in my child’s eyes, impossible to miss, told me their name is Ryuu. “Do you truly want to cease being a cosmic entity and join the cycle of birth and reincarnation, Ryuu? There is no turning back.”

“Yes, Shougun-sama. My siblings are awesome and loving, especially Nick,” Ryuu practically screamed again, looking at the child I now know is called Nick, “but I am ready. I want to experience the universe, and I know I can’t do that as a cosmic entity. Not completely.”

I nod. “I will grant your wish, Ryuu.” Ryuu jumps all over me, shouting ‘Shougun-sama is the best’; I turn to Nick: “What about you, Nick? Since you are close to Ryuu, will you go with him?” Nick smiled and said: “As if you don’t know the answer Shougun-sama. Of course, I’ll take care of my innocent little brother.”

“NICK- NII- SAMA- IS THE BEST! NICK- NII- SAMA- IS THE BEST!” Ryuu is running around.

“-There is still one small thing…” Nick continues, approaching me.

Once Nick is right next to my ear, he whispers the rest of his request. “I will grant your wish, Nick.” Gradually all the children whisper their wishes into my ear. I grant all of them.

“My dear children, I ask again: are you sure about entering the cycle of birth and reincarnation?”

“Yes, Shougun-sama!” The children reply in unison.

"So be it, my dear children. Through the process of reincarnation, you will lose your powers. They will be melded into the universe slowly to avoid causing violent disruptions. Once you leave this realm, I will not be able to help you. I wish all of you find and cherish the beings you love. Goodbye my dear children." I must sleep again.

The beings started losing their sheen as their powers leaked into the universe at a glacial pace. The power, as it seeped into the universe, boiled and excited its atoms, creating a primordial soup of pure chance. Untold billions of years passed as the beings lost enough of their power to join the cycle of birth and reincarnation. In the meantime, unicellular and multicellular organisms were created by a chance coincidence, eventually leading to the rise of sentient beings. But even the most intelligent species, at its apex, would still blindly call this primordial soup “dark energy”, unable to unravel the mysteries behind this miraculous source of power.

That species, however, is of no concern right now. In a tiny planet, smaller than a speck of dust when compared to the mighty universe, a wani was born, unleashing a chain of events that would destroy norms and remake the world in a brilliant fashion.

Thus, begins the legend of the Crabigator.

[Catherine670]

That was awesome!

I don’t know how else to say it. If the prologue is this wonderful, I can’t imagine what the chapters will be like. It was so mysterious and I really liked the part of the Shougun-sama being a cat. All members of the Cat Club should be happy! Thanks a lot, @KyokaJiro for taking time to build this story.

[KyokaJiro]

Thanks for your kind words Catherine san