This original "sequel" to the film assumes that Ashitaka and San fulfil their promises and meet every so often. This also assumes that the time period that the movie and this sequel are in is close to the end of the Muromachi period...specifically a few months before Ashikaga Yoshiaki is driven out of Kyoto. I'm sure you can guess how these two events come together ;)

Chapter 1 - Prologue

It was a crisp, new day as Ashitaka hammered in the final post to the outer wall. He looked down at his hands, able to see the natural skin that he was born with. Through each blister and scar from the physical exertion, Ashitaka saw memories about what happened a few years back. The curse that threatened his life changed the path he was walking on and led him to the current moment in time. Ashitaka smiled, believing that it was all worth it in the end.

The rebuilt Iron Town had grown over those years as well, becoming more in-tune with the surrounding nature. Gone were the days of taking the forest for granted, as the people now considered the effect on the forest before making any decisions. The men hunted along the river while the women kept the village clean and tidy - but sometimes those roles would switch if the women willed it. The children grew up playing and working as well, sometimes stopping to hear stories about the events that took place three years before - where the Spirit of the Forest died and was reborn. Each villager's account of the story was different, but each kept the children entertained as they were too young to remember the events in detail.

Ashitaka had been meeting with San ever since then. At first those meetings were short and infrequent, sometimes being no more than a short nod to acknowledge each other's presence. Over time, San stayed longer and longer, until the pair were meeting at least twice a month. Together, they would reminisce about those events - about Moro and the Boars. Sometimes, San ask questions about Ashitaka's old village, or about human customs that San was unfamiliar with. She would sit there listening to the man talk about his childhood friends, the elders of the village, and other tales from his past. And each time, Ashitaka would remember other things about his past that may have been buried for some time. While he prefered where he was now, sometimes Ashitaka longed for those days.

Meanwhile, Ashitaka would be doing odd jobs around the village, from leading the morning hunt, to repairing the walls of Iron Town, or some other job that Toki had for him. Ashitaka sat at the top of the finished wall, looking at the hard work that everyone had put in, and then at the forest on the other side of the riverbank. He was supposed to meet San earlier in the day, but she didn't show up. Ashitaka wondered what happened to her, as she had never missed a meeting since they decided to meet up in this fashion. Deep down in his stomach, Ashitaka had a feeling that something was wrong.

"Ashitaka!"

Toki's voice cut through the air so hard it could have sliced right through the walls of Iron Town. She had just finished scolding a group of men dozing on the job near the base of the wall where Ashitaka was working. Toki wiped the sweat off of her furrowed brow as she looked up at Ashitaka, noticing him staring out into the forest.

"It's not like you to get side-tracked. Is everything okay?" She asked in a sincere voice that snapped Ashitaka out of his daze.

"Yes, Toki. I just feel..." Ashitaka couldn't find the right words to say. Even after three years, San still did not approve of the humans, thinking of their reformed ways as "too late", and the villagers still referred to her as "Princess Mononoke", fearful that she may strike again if Ashitaka were to ever leave. The uneasy tension between the two parties persisted over the years, and neither side expressed signs of changing their views anytime soon. Ashitaka always acted as the mediator between both groups, wishing for peace.

Toki, however, did not care much for any of that. "Well, it seems like you finished here. I guess you can take a short break, but if I catch you gawking with the men..." Toki's eyes moved like daggers at the group of men, who froze in place. Ashitaka could not understand the rest of what Toki said as she departed, since it seemed like she was mainly directing that anger at the men instead.

"Well, I guess I can get a quick meal-" Ashitaka stopped mid-sentence as he saw San standing across the body of water...covered in blood. She was far away, but Ashitaka could tell she had a concerned look on her face. She raised an arm and gestured for Ashitaka to come to her.

"San? What happened?" Ashitaka thought to himself as he immediately jumped down and ran towards the entrance to Iron Town. "Open the gate!" Ashitaka yelled to the two men who were manning the gate. The men quickly got up and began turning the wince in a rush. Ashitaka ducked down and slid through the gate before it was even halfway opened. After exiting, he turned to his right and splashed through the water, not caring that his clothes were getting wet as he approached the wolf princess.

"San!"

"Ashitaka...the lake..." San murmured as Ashitaka caught his breath. Upon further inspection of San, he realized that the blood wasn't hers. She seemed just as exhausted as he was, as when he got closer he could see her still panting and catching her own breath. It was like her life energy had been drained out by a spirit and left her to dry. Even so, she turned to retreat back to the forest, motioning for Ashitaka to follow her.

San, as tired as she was, quickly maneuvered the forest with great dexterity. Whatever happened was pretty important if she could still find energy to run all the way back. Ashitaka wondered where they were going before he saw the giant forest lake in the distance. He had not been to the lake since the Forest Spirit revived him three years prior, but it still looked exactly the same as he had left it. On the ground in front of it was a dying animal. He was bloody, quiet, and was perfectly still. When Ashitaka approached, the animal rolled over as he realized it was a Boar...a small boar.

Ashitaka kneeled down next to the boar as San sat on his other side. "Is he still alive?" he asked as he placed a hand on the nape of the boar's neck. With the warmth of his hand, the boar stirred.

"I come from the south," The boar began to speak in a weak voice. "I was left behind with the smaller ones after my people went to battle three years ago...our homeland..."

"What? Don't die on me!" Ashitaka placed his other hand on the boar. Blood flowed onto the warrior's hands, but he didn't care as he held the boar closer. The battle that the boar spoke of still remained a vivid image in his mind, and it looked like it would be coming back to haunt them.

"...Humans...armor...they talked of an emperor...I was told to come here and warn the wolf princess...help us, please." The boar's last words echoed through the forest as its head dropped. Ashitaka slowly laid the animal back down as he looked over to San. Her eyes were closed as if asking the Forest Spirit to guide the animal's spirit.

"Ashitaka," She spoke up. "We must find out what happened. I won't allow humans to repeat what they've done here!" Ashitaka saw the quick change in her eyes as a sense of anger and frustration overcame the wolf princess. Ashitaka placed a bloody hand on her bloody shoulder in an attempt to calm her down.

"Don't worry. I'll get Yakul and we can depart tomorrow," Ashitaka reassured the girl. San nodded, closing her eyes again. Ashitaka nodded as well, turning to the boar to say some departing words, and stood up. He made his way to a clear area nearby and began to dig a hole using his hands. San made her way over to him.

"Is this another custom?" She asked. Ashitaka nodded.

"We should lay the boar to rest. Return him to the earth." He said in between handfuls of earth. Before long, San joined him in digging. When the hole was deep enough, the two returned to the boar and gently carried him into his final resting place. Ashitaka then took the dirt and filled the hole once more.

By the end, a few hours had passed and the two were even more exausted than before. "Thank you," San said to the warrior. "I will be waiting for you when the sun rises tomorrow." Ashitaka nodded in response, and the wolf princess walked away. Ashitaka made his own way back to Iron Town. It was a silent journey back as Ashitaka thought about what the boar meant. An emperor? Is there something happening in another part of the land?

"Open the gate!" The guards yelled out upon seeing the warrior walk up to the entrance. As the gate rose, Toki was the first to cross through, approaching Ashitaka with a swagger.

"Where were you!?" She exclaimed. "I said you could take a short break, NOT a vacation!" Toki pouted, ignoring the blood and dirt-stained Ashitaka's appearance.

All the warrior could do was laugh. "I'm sorry," He said, bowing to the woman. Her countenance changed to a smile as she laughed.

"Go get cleaned up and ready for dinner, okay?"

Ashitaka sat in the bath house, thinking about that boar from earlier. He saw the little life leave his hands, taking its place among the other spirits of the forest. He knew how much it pained San to see a life pass, especially at the hands of humans. She would journey south even if he didn't go with her; who knows what she would do without Ashitaka there to restrain her. Most of all, he didn't want her to get hurt by whatever danger may be out there.

The villagers of the new Iron Town crowded at the entrance as Ashitaka prepared for his journey. Some villagers had given Ashitaka some supplies for his journey, thinking it would only take a few days or so for him to do whatever he had to do. These goods were placed in Yakul's saddle. Many of the children approached the Elk to play with him before he departed. Out from the crowd, Lady Eboshi emerged and approached the warrior.

"So, you're off?" the woman asked as Ashitaka mounted his elk. Her stubbed arm dangled to her side as she stared into his eyes.

"There's some sort of disturbance to the south; something about the emperor." Ashitaka said. "I'll be gone with San for only a few days or so." Eboshi nodded, but they both knew it could possibly lead to something bigger.

Eboshi furrowed her brow and approached Ashitaka, beckoning him to lean in so she could speak privately. "Be careful around the emperor, if you run into him," She said in a low voice. "Same goes with the daimyo. Remember what happened here three years ago," She raised her stub arm. "My shortcomings..." Ashitaka nodded.

The warrior looked back up towards the crowd. "I feel bad about leaving you guys," Ashitaka looked at everyone in the crowd. He knew everyone in the village, and they all knew him. The warrior was relied upon during those three years, so he knew how sad they would be with him gone. Some in the crowd cried as others screamed their support.

"We'll be fine!" Toki assured Ashitaka, "Remember when we handled those Samurai? You've got nothing to worry about here! Just make sure you come back in one piece." She voice was as lively as always, but Ashitaka felt a tint of uncertainty in her words.

"Ashitaka?"

A little child emerged from the crowd. "Are you leaving us?" He asked, looking up at Ashitaka. "I thought we were going to train again..." A wooden kendo stick lay at his side, with one hand gripping the handle as the other held his yukata up. Ashitaka spent some of his time playing with the village children, teaching them swordplay. They all looked up to him as a brother.

"Don't worry, I'll come back soon." Ashitaka said with a smile. He looked back at Toki. "Take care of everyone."

"No worries! We've been strong before you showed up; I'm sure we can handle ourselves even better now!"

With a smile, Ashitaka pulled the reins, departing Iron Town with his longtime friend. At the southern edge of the forest he found San, who sat on the back of Mori, one of her wolf brothers. The other, Rutou, stood behind the two.

"Are you ready to go?" Ashitaka looked at San. She looked back at her home, and at her brother.

"Will you be okay watching the forest...and them?" San asked of Rutou, who nodded towards Iron Town as she spoke.

Rutou bowed. "I will, just as our mother was when she kept and eye on them before."

San turned back towards Ashitaka, who saw a look of determination on her face. "We are ready to go," She said, placing a hand on Mori's head. He nodded as well.

And with that, the two departed towards the south, not knowing that this was the beginning of a long and painful adventure together. Their leaving will start a chain of events that will determine the fate of the land and everyone living in it - both human and animal.

This was the beginning of their next journey.