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The story begins as a monstrous creature is spotted outside a town. A brave young warrior, Ashitaka, riding a strange red elk fights the creature in order to save his village. In doing so he is cursed with the mark of the demon (which turned out to be a giant boar). Due to this, he is forced from his village, into an adventure. The mark would consume his flesh and bones, kill his soul, and then kill him. His clue was an iron ball in the boar’s body, so he moved west, hoping to see with “eyes unclouded” and maybe lift his curse. After encountering a monk, he is pointed towards a strange land of giant creatures and a strange town. At the same time, men from this town (led by a courageous Lady Iboshi) are trying to get rice to their town. They are attacked by three huge wolves, two pups and their mother, Marrow. Their mother, along with some of the men are hurled over a cliff… where Ashitaka happened to find them. He first finds the men, then is awed as the large wolf is met by her two pups and a girl who sucks the blood on her bullet wound, and spits it out. Ashitaka is found out, and asks who they are and if he is in the land of the forest spirit (for he hopes to have him life his curse). The strange girl tells him to “go away” and the wolves and her disappear. A yell from one of the men brings him back. Their is a small (very cute) tree spirit. The man is worried, but because Yakule (the red elk) is not and Ashitaka has heard of them, and thinks they may help, he asks for passage, which they give. While traveling Ashitaka sees a strange creature, but his arm again fires up, until he forces into water, the creature had disappeared. They go to a place called “Iron town” which manufactures Iron. Ashitaka finds out that Lady Iboshi is the leader and there he finds the women do all the work (keeping the bellows going that keep the fires going), that lepers are the ones who make Lady Eboshi’s guns (which she intended to use to kill the forest spirit), and that Lady Iboshi wasn’t afraid of God… she’d even driven the Boar God of war, Nago, from the forest. That same night, the girl seen earlier comes on the scene, and breaks into the town. Ashitaka had found her to be “princess Mononoke” and she was possessed (supposedly) by the wolf God, Marlow. She is trying to kill Lady Eboshi (due to the fact, to get iron, she destroyed the forest). She frantically searches for Lady Eboshi. She is drawn out by Lady Eboshi, who has set a trap for her. She is shot (only her mask is cracked), and tumbles down from the roof she was on. Ashitaka (who’s arm has again gone strange, expanded and is glowing with similar marks like those of the demon) protects her. She wakes up, and attacks Ashitaka then Iboshi, and in the midst of their fight Ashitaka steps in. Knocking them both out, he turns to take Mononoke away. One of the women shoots him, but he still walks away with her and even pushes the gate open by himself. He rides away, followed by the wolves. The princess of wolves wakes up, and Ashitaka falls off. She saves him from having his head bitten off, and being eaten by the apes (who want to protect the mountain, and eat humans to get their power). She uses Yakule to take him to the strange art of the forest where he had seen the spirit, and lays him there. That evening a strange and beautiful creature walks over the night, and transforms into a creature at day that looks similar to a deer with a face of a man. He heals Ashitaka. San, or princess Mononoke, finds him and feeds him. At the same time, the monk was watching the forest with a band of soldiers. They see a great tribe of boar coming in, lead by a giant gray, found to be Lord Akoto. The boars and the wolf clan conflict where Ashitaka lay, and his past on how he got the mark comes back. San cares for Ashitaka for weeks, until he wakes up one evening. He sees her sleeping as his arm again aches and goes outside. He talks with Marlo, revealing he cares deeply for San, the forest and humans. He wants them to love in peace, which could never happen. She tells him to leave the next day or she will kill him. He thanks San, who wakes up when he comes in. The next morning he wakes up and his stuff is laid out for him, he find Yakule ready as well. Led by one of the pups, he gives thanks and asks him to give the crystal dagger (which his sister had given him) in thanks. (click to continue)