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an excerpt from my book
Intermission:
The
four warriors of light: Murai’s story.
Ten
years prior to the events of zero's return to earth.
Neramic
Calendar, Odma Timezone.
Year
1299,
“Murai!
Wake up you blockhead!!” tiny hands belonging to the frail form of
a young twelve year old girl slammed down repeatedly on murai's
forehead, even as his eyes slowly opened.
“quit....hittin
me sis....lemme nap.”
“No!
Mama and papa want you to help pick Garadals For the harvest
festival!!” she cried angrily.
“why
do I have to do it?” he moaned, rising from the hay of the stables
to see the prized tamrin horse, a two headed species native to the
enchanted realms of neram, toss both of her heads and snort in
disappointment at the stable boy's ineptitude.
“what
you you looking at?” he groaned, rising up and moving to pet her
right head, for the left head was always aggressive, as evidenced by
how it nipped at him, not because it was angry, but because, unlike
the other head, it made no moves to hide its disappointment.
Murai
accepted the sting of the horse's flat teeth, and the other head
gingerly licked his hand as he strode out of the stable, the soft
loamy soil of the stable floors kicking up tiny clouds of dust as he
made his way into the azure light of day.
Clouds
towered behind a film of haze this day, their forms so abrupt and
breathtaking that he'd initially been taken aback by their presence.
“Get
to it!” she shouted, stamping her foot as he shrugged, shaking his
brown tunic and letting the wind pass through it, the gentle chill
enough to wake him up.
Practically
pushing her older brother into the fields, the blonde haired
pigtailed minion of the two farmers, husband and wife came to stand
proudly before her parents.
“He
was sleeping in the stables again!” she proudly proclaimed, and
murai's mother smiled warmly as she rubbed her daughter's head before
coming up to murai and handing him a hoe.
“Help
me out would you?” she asked sweetly.
“of
course mom.” he sighed, shrugging the final vestiges of sleep from
his mind as he took to work in the fields, the clouds of neram
passing over the green landscape that was beginning to drain of life
with the advent of fall.
Yes...fall
was indeed coming.
The
effect was quite telling. Wherein most places in neram, especially in
the southern half of the continent, didn't quite gain any transitions
of color, the northern lands of neram practically blossomed in the
radiant colors of the slumbering trees.
Reds,
golds, violet, brown, every color that could potentially herald
fall's presence exploded forth before the leaves fell to the ground
like snow to blanket the ground in anticipation of winter.
Day
turned to evening, the light of the seventh sun painting the clouds
and crystal floats above a sherbert orange hue.
Crystal
floats, strange formations of levitating windcrystals, were formed
when a cloud mixed with a spirit stream, crystallizing in a fashion
not dissimilar to water freezing. The result was a landmass mixed
with anti-gravity and wind magic. These great floating bodies of
stone eventually disintegrated into a gentle shower of jewels that
turned to water as soon as they struck the ground. But unlike ice,
they were not cold, and their consistency was almost entirely akin to
a true crystal.
Many
were the floats that gently collided with one another to reveal a
shower of gems that flew to the ground in vibrant displays, their
forms quite frail alone, and thus incapable of causing any real harm.
Many
floats collided with clouds as well, resulting in the float breaking
apart from striking a cloud, so frail were their magic based forms
that they could hardly tolerate mixing with water without becoming
unstable. Indeed, one had done so, and already the small spire of
crystal sending small splashes of gold sunlight painted cloud out
mixed with countless glittering float gems to paint the air in specks
of radiant stardust.
Yggrassa,
a realm so thick with magic that it practically swirled around the
planet proper in great glowing streams. The “stream of souls”
where all newborn souls were formed, or so the legends went.
Crystals
formed of the magic of these great magic belts that encircled the
entire planet, each one tied to a great arch crystal that floated
high in the twilit abyss far above, said to be the font of these soul
streams.
Murai
retired to his room later that evening, his mother entering the room
to hand him his dinner.
“Son.”
she began. “are you sure you won't consider the king's
offer?”
Murai shrugged, his brown tunic scratching against his skin as he looked out to the final rays of the setting sun.
Murai shrugged, his brown tunic scratching against his skin as he looked out to the final rays of the setting sun.
“I
don't want to be a knight mother.” he replied. “it's just not for
me.”
“The king doesn't make such offers lightly...and this cleric..knetsis? He seems like a kindly sort! He'll surely be able to instruct you in the magic arts to supplant your skills with a swor-”
“The king doesn't make such offers lightly...and this cleric..knetsis? He seems like a kindly sort! He'll surely be able to instruct you in the magic arts to supplant your skills with a swor-”
“Mother.”
murai interrupted and she smiled as she bit back her elaboration.
“your
grandfather was a great warrior.” she explained.
“I
just want to be a farmer...this..this peaceful life....” he
gestured to the skies and the green, fall tinged landscape.
She
walked over to him, kneeling down beside him and placing her hands
around his shoulders.
“I
know son. But...give it some thought. You shouldn't be shackled to
this humble life. You should find prestige, and honor. You should
become a great person...do us all proud.”
“why?” murai asked in irritation.
“why?” murai asked in irritation.
“Because
I only want what's best for you.” she explained, and murai's father
stepped in.
“she's
right of course, but regardless of your decision son, it's your
call.” he grinned when she turned and scowled at him.
He
knew she meant well, but he couldn't discount that being a warrior
didn't quite sit well with murai. Sure, he practiced with the sword
before retiring to the stables for a brief nap, but that wasn't the
reason he trained.
He
wanted to learn how to defend his family, not his nation of neram.
He
was a warrior who wanted a worthy cause to fight and die for, and to
murai, the only cause worthy of fighting for was his family. And he
didn't need to become a knight for something like that, a fact that
he, Grantsis shishigami, husband to tsukikaze shishigami, who herself
belonged to a warrior's bloodline, knew all too well.
Neramese
people were unlike the brandthirion, there was a strict sort of order
to a family and filial expectations were intrinsically tied to their
class.
Murai
belonged to the samurai class, as did his mother, and though grantsis
was a former knight of the branthirian empire, which had fallen long
ago, forcing an exile into neram.
Murai
went to bed later that evening while grantsis and his wife discussed
the future, for they were concerned that murai's abject refusal to
embrace his position in the hierarchy would reduce their station.
“should
he be a warrior?” grantsis asked as tsukikaze continued cleaning
her father's sword, applying various oils to it as she gently scented
the blade.
“He
has the instinct...but not the desire.” she admitted, her black
hair spilling about her shoulders as she adjusted her sagging silver
robes.
“a
warrior born must be made.” grantsis remarked. “doubtful murai
will find a cause worthy of him and our expectations.”
“he
seeks to enjoy the simpler things.” she lamented, staring up at the
red armor, the armor of her father which had been set in the back
room.
It
was a shrine to her family, a family that held a long and
distinguished bloodline that could trace its origins very far back,
far enough to identify her lineage as “noble” though the family
itself had grown quite small.
She
was worried that murai's refusal to take on his role as an apprentice
samurai to the kingdom was going to be the final straw that broke the
shishigami bloodline's status forevermore.
And
it saddened her deeply.
Still,
if that was what the fates had in store, so be it.
She
kissed her husband, gently stroking his fiery crimson hair, a trait
that murai shared with him.
“I
wonder what will happen to our family's place in society?” she
wondered aloud.
“we keep going until one of us sires a samurai headed, samurai bodied lion with enough determination to put us back on the map!” grantsis said with a laugh.
“dragons
don't need to show their power all the time. Let us be farmers for a
bit...if the shishigami lineage is as you make it, we'll be back.”
she smiled and kissed him.
Beneath
the light of the third moon of yggrassa, a shadowy portal slowly
opened in a field of roses, their colors varying from white, to
lavender, to gold and silver.
Moonlight
spilled over the rose field, their colors and hues extending for the
horizon as a lone figure clad in darkness stood in the midst of the
great field, his eyes clouded over.
Another
portal opened, and a woman in gold who wore a mask with three holes
in it stepped forth, her golden robes spilling over the rose petal
littered grass as she stood before the one she'd been instructed to
meet.
“My
lord.” she said with a graceful bow.
The
young man in the black trench coat did not respond, and indeed,
seemed to be struggling.
Slowly
she lifted her gaze to see that his eyes were clouded over, and he
groaned out each breath, as though his mind itself was weighted and
each action taxed him.
In
the silver light of the third moon, the other two clear on the other
end of the horizon, his glasses caught the lunar reflection as he
slowly turned his gaze up to witness the vast celestial body, a moon
so massive that it all but swallowed the skies.
“My
lord?” she asked, rising.
A
piercing golden glow suddenly issued forth from his eyes, as though a
light had simply turned on behind his irises, and the orbs gave off
their hellish gold glow, a glow so fierce, so vile that she felt
physically ill just from looking into them, and the figure turned to
regard her, his eyes now keenly aware of his surroundings.
“Lord
zero?” she asked once more, and with a sigh, he lifted his hand,
and a blast of energy sailed forth, striking her knees and forcing
her to kneel in pain.
“You
will bow with more respect next time.” he warned. “How are
preparations?”
she
gasped through the pain and continued kneeling as she spoke to him in
level tones. “the...preparations are proceeding well. We expect
that inversia shall be uncovered in the next three years.”
“good.
What of the other designs. Did vande send you all you needed?” he
asked.
She
nodded, not quite sure what to make of this new dark lord, one who
was to be lord vande's replacement and instrumental in bringing about
the goddess of night, who would destroy the dreams of yggrassa.
“all
is well my lord.” she explained.
“then
you will lead me to the fort of peltura.”
“Peltura?” she asked, recalling the name of the orc fortress.
“Peltura?” she asked, recalling the name of the orc fortress.
“I
have an agreement with the king there. We need to make ready while
neram is still weak.” he explained. “it will take the energy of a
thousand souls, and be it orc or man, I shall have them fueling the
opening of the inversian gate.”
she
grinned from behind her mask. Inversia, the sacred land and
wellspring of chaos, it was there she would find power alongside this
upstart dark lord.
His
eyes narrowing he stepped forth and backhanded her, sending her
sprawling into the roses.
“Next
time I hear you think the words “Upstart” in my presence in
reference to me girl, I shall strip your soul from the bones I flay!
Do you hear me?!” he growled angrily and she rose, stepping back in
surprise. “y-you can read minds?!” she cried in shock.
“Yes.
I can do a great number of things. Now make re-” he paused for a
moment, and she noted a hungry look emanating from his glowing eyes.
She
shrank back, no longer certain of anything about this newcomer as his
shadow seemed to grow larger, covering her huddling form entirely.
“let
me show you what nightmares truly come to those who crave them.” he
whispered, extending his hand with the vastness of the third moon
transforming his already darkened form into a silhouette against the
endless colorful field of roses, their vibrancy muted by the
unrelenting pressure of night.
Looking
into those golden orbs, she swallowed hard as she tried to puzzle it
all out. Perhaps he was a son or-
she
reached out, brushing aside whatever thoughts she had at the moment,
for surely they would damn her, and he lifted her to her feet.
“it's
time to unseal the celestial gate in this world and cleanse this
realm of its impurities.” he said.
And
she was so enraptured by fear that she could not even speak.
Who
or what was this being the lord vande had sent here?
1
year later
Murai
stood before the gates to the sprawling capitol city, his mind
spinning as he gripped his grandfather's sword.
His
mother and father had been quite clear. They wanted him to join the
neramic military as a samurai, in truth it didn't bother him that
much. But murai had always been a child of peace, preferring the
simpler lifestyle to anything else.
As
he walked through the gates, a pair of samurai in traditional crimson
armor said to be modeled after a legendary eight armed wandering
warrior demon who saved an entire universe, slowly opened the ornate
dragon emblazoned gates.
It
was midday, so merchant's road, a dusty alley thick with kiosks and
stands that sold piping hot food, jewels, and even women from the
pleasure quarter, was busy.
Thick
were the crowds of people of varying lifestyles, the lowest of which
were the merchants, who held no practical use and were typically
sneered upon as the lowest rung of the hierarchic ladder, the top
being samurai themselves.
Many
saw his attire, that of a noble, specifically of the shishigami clan,
for his light blue jacket had been emblazoned with the letters across
his family seal, and bowed or showed him deference, despite the fact
that his family had all but withered away, his grandfather being the
last truly great warrior among his clan.
Weaving
through the crowds and trying to ignore the scent of various foods, a
fishheaded humanoid stopped him and shoved a steak skewer into his
hands.
He
glared at the fishheaded humanoid as the merchant, for what else
could this foul spirit be? Bowed repeatedly saying “Please
honorable young samurai, take this food! It's free!”
Koyjin,
they were called, a pun on the word “koi” where the more
respectable fish often enjoyed their daily lives. “Koyjin” were
spirits that had formed due to the starvation of the fish in a koi
pond, though the occurrence was rare, the result was a merchant that
appeared half-fish in nature, and though the spirits themselves were
benign and often conducted business, they were frowned upon, for
their very scent painted the air with due malevolence.
Koyjin
were birthed from negligence and death, and this was a fact that none
of these otherwise kind-hearted spirits could escape, a fact that
clung to them in the form of the scent of their fishy nature. They
swam like fish, and when nobody was around they would disrobe and
swim in lakes, ponds and the like, and usually their appearance was
akin to that of a fishheaded merman, their lower limbs lined with
fins and blue scales.
In
water, koyjin were quite lovely to behold.
It
was unfortunate then that their penchant for walking around in the
open air and doing business with humans and other beings such as
earth and wind spirits lead to their reeking odor.
“thanks.”
murai sighed. “my apologies for covering my nose-” he began but
the koyjin merely smiled, the sunlight reflecting off his scales as
he humbly bowed. “You honor me more by covering your nose sire. I
do not wish to see such a dignified young master beset by the odor of
my former owner's evil.” with that he strode through the streets,
chomping a steak skewer while a pair of dwarves casually passed by,
their beards all but raking the dirt in their passing.
Dwarves
and the earth were intrinsically connected, the more dirt that clung
to their immense beards, the greater their magic reserves and the
healthier the dwarf. And these fine fellows were wearing suits of
neramic armor stylized in the way of their northern mountain homes
long before the red dragon sildatha came to settle there, chasing
them away from their beloved snowbound homeland.
“well
met.” murai said with a bow, for unlike koyjin, who were born of
death, dwarves were earth spirits born of diligence, a trait the
neramese respected.
“well
met yerself then sir samurai! Ah but aren't ye hagojinn's grandboy?”
one asked. “Hagojinn shishigami! Now there's a name tae take me
back! He still use the zantetsuken?” he asked and murai introduced
himself before explaining that hagojinn had long since passed from
this world.
“Blimey!
Burns me heart like coal tae hear it!”
“what
is...zantetsuken?” murai asked.
“it's
yer granda's ultimate technique! Best used on horseback, its original
master was a fabled black swordsman whose name was best known tae yer
father's folk! Yer grandda actually defeated him....with the same
technique.” he paused for dramatic effect, leading murai to bend
closer to hear it, his eyes open wide as he listened to the dwarf
recount his grandfather's feats.
“On
the ground. No horse, perfectly still. Saw it meself!”
“and you are...?” murai asked.
“and you are...?” murai asked.
“Name's
maltan! Maltan the blacksmith o' the harnereye smithy down tha way! I
accompanied yer family as their personal blacksmith afore they
decided to simmer down their numbers..apparently it was due to filial
politics causing lesser feuds. Yer family used tae be a lot
bigger...but....that was afore yer grandda cut em all down in the
name of tha king. They were branded traitors...but he restored the
shishigami honor he did!” maltan explained with a grin.
“and
look at ye! Finally making ready tae restore yer lineage! Oh but if
old hagojinn could see ye now! Listen laddie, ye let me know if ye
need some armor fixed up, got me?”
Murai nodded and the two departed with a respectful bow as he made his way through the streets to the castle, where the dojo was located.
Murai nodded and the two departed with a respectful bow as he made his way through the streets to the castle, where the dojo was located.
It
was there he would apply for apprenticeship and begin his service to
the neramic kingdom.
As
was his duty as a loyal citizen of a samurai family.
As
he strode into the dojo however, a peculiar sight greeted him.
It
was a man in a long black trenchcoat, the headmaster, a veritable
bear of a man whose hair was tied back in a topknot, seemed to be
yelling at him in some foreign language.
The
figure adjusted his spectacles before calmly backhanding the
headmaster so hard that the man flew into a wall, and the figure's
hand remained there, as though frozen in motion.
Slowly
he turned, and murai saw his boots, long knee high boots plated with
stylized armor fitted with countless symbols and images...in truth
his boots appeared to be more a great bias relief carving of some
ancient legend than actual boots...and his form bled shadows.
“A
spirit?!” murai cried, his hand going for his weapon.
It
was the headmaster, rising from the rubble, his eyes widening, who
stopped murai.
“No
young man! Do not draw against him!” he cried.
The
man slowly turned to face murai, the golden glow coming from his eyes
seeming to steal the vigor and rage right out of him, leaving only an
empty pit in his gut.
“and
what...have we here?” zero asked, walking up to murai to loom over
him, for the man's size was a foot taller than murai, and his glare
seemed to peer into the depths of murai's very soul.
“I
beg of you! Why are you doing this?” the headmaster cried.
“Because....examples
must be made. You defied me mugen......the sentence is either death,
or the deaths of your students.”
“spare the newblood! He is not a student!”
“Oh...I care not a whit.” zero laughed, grabbing murai by the throat and lifting him off his feet with ease.
“spare the newblood! He is not a student!”
“Oh...I care not a whit.” zero laughed, grabbing murai by the throat and lifting him off his feet with ease.
“Let
me peer into your soul lad.” he said, and murai felt
something...something ominous..invading his mind, a violation not of
the flesh, but of the very self.
He
could feel it then, like a great dragon's gaze looking deep into his
thoughts and memories.
With
a sigh, zero dropped murai before he could finish, turning on the
headmaster, who'd come up behind him, blade in hand, fully intending
to slay him.
“I
was about to destroy this city anyway.” he admitted before turning
to murai. “I'll let you live. But only so you can witness your
failure to protect anything..including that sister and those parents
of yours.”
with a snap of his fingers, the room filled with orcs that leaped from shadowy portals, equipped and battle ready.
with a snap of his fingers, the room filled with orcs that leaped from shadowy portals, equipped and battle ready.
“slay
them all...every student, every human, every spirit.....leave none
standing...save for this red haired fellow, harm him and I kill the
offenders.”
he touched murai's forehead, and murai's mind fell into darkness.
he touched murai's forehead, and murai's mind fell into darkness.
But
he did hear something before his mind faded out entirely.
That
awful, awful laughter.
The
laugh of a man who'd slain billions in his lifetime.
Hours
later murai awoke to find himself before his house, the house itself
ablaze.
He
felt a cold pit form in his stomach when he heard the screams of his
family from within.
Struggling
to stand a boot smashed into his back, and kept him pinned to the
dirt of the farm plot his parents had been tending to not three days
ago, his ragged breaths sending the soft loamy dirt flying as he
began screaming and struggling, trying to get up, despite the
pressure on his back.
He
looked up to see the man in black, the fire burning his house and
family reflecting in his glasses as he grinned cruelly, watching them
burn, laughing as they screamed all the louder.
Murai
struggled all the harder, screaming horribly, roaring, but he could
not move from beneath the weight of zero's boot.
Finally,
when their screams had subsided and the fires died down, rain began
to fall, and countless orcs rushed in to investigate the charred
remains before nodding in confirmation to zero.
“well...that
takes care of that.” he said with a sigh, stepping off murai and
walking away.
A
guttural roar of feral fury tore through him as he rose up and began
striking out at zero, and the orcs all began forming a ring around
the two combatants, zero laughing and glancing to his army as murai
swung his fists futilely about, zero always one or two steps ahead of
him.
“what's
wrong? Did their screams not delight you?” he asked. “don't
bother going to the city, everyone died not two hours ago. I made
certain to summon demons to support the orcs!”
“who are you?! Why did you do this?!” he cried, punching zero and actually landing the blow.
“who are you?! Why did you do this?!” he cried, punching zero and actually landing the blow.
Zero
sighed through the fist on his cheek, adjusting his glasses before
punching murai so hard as to send him sprawling several feet through
the mud, even as the rain poured.
“My
name is zero, but you may call me “lord zero.” I serve vande,
lord of nightmares as his second in command. Me and my subjects
are...well...we're going to be unleashing hell upon this world before
cleansing it entirely...with the help of the goddess of night
herself. izanami! The goddess of death and night!!” he laughed and
the orcs joined in. “too long have you people in the realm of
dreams been content to embrace your hopes and dreams for a brighter
future and better tomorrow. Now, i'll be livening things up a bit
with a war the likes of which your people have never seen! By the
time i'm done with your world little warrior....nothing will
survive.”
he drew his sword, stabbing murai in the chest, and murai's eyes widened in shock as the pain lanced through him.
he drew his sword, stabbing murai in the chest, and murai's eyes widened in shock as the pain lanced through him.
“goodbye
little human. Know that you shall not be missed.” he turned,
flicking the blood off the weapon before sheathing it and leaving.
Murai
felt his lifeblood pouring out to mix with the rainwater that
cascaded over his body.
Finally,
the world slowly went dark, the lines of orc troops passing him by,
but curiously avoiding his body.
Get the dark lord zero; Ichi edition here!!
http://www.amazon.com/Dark-Lord-Zero-Inspired-Nightmare-ebook/dp/B01E3CJBJ6?ie=UTF8&*Version*=1&*entries*=0Thursday, April 21, 2016
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