Mysteries of the Shadows
Azure Kitsune
A small child wandered the desolate forest. His kimono was tattered, and tears streaked down his face from the ashes that burnt into his eyes. A heated fire blazed at his back from the village of which he had come. He touched his face and looked at his bloody fingers. Blood. Crimson red blood dribbled down his tanned hand. The newly formed gash under his eye oozed it in bloody tears down his face. Horrified, he sat down on a fallen tree and cried. Salty, red tears formed in two small puddles by his feet.
The whine of a pack-dog brought the boy out from his contemplation. A large, black wolf stood at his feet. "Hello," the boy rasped. "My name is Cale. Who are you?" he questioned and expected a response.
The dog whined its reply and licked the boy's face. You are one with the Shadows of the Forest. The wolf said.
Cale cocked his head. "What does that mean?"
Come with me, child. We will protect you. The wolf began to walk and hesitated for Cale to scramble up and follow. It moved up next to the boy as he limped trough the foliage. You're hurt. Climb onto my back. The wolf bent down, and Cale clutched the midnight black fur as he clambered on. As the wolf sprinted through the thick forest Cale reflected on what had just happened to him. All of his thoughts made the drawn out ride shorter. The wolf slowed to a halt, and looked at the rest of the pack. I found the Shadow of the Forest. He is injured so we must protect him with our lives. The black wolf explained to the others.
A long, warming howl filled Cale's ears. The howls told him that he was safe from whatever lurked at the ghosts of his village. He climbed down off his new friend's back and sat in the middle of the pack. The large furry bodies huddled around him, and he found the Realm of the Dreamers after just a few minutes.
~*~
A thirteen-year-old boy ran along side a pack of wolves. They chased down some unfortunate creature and killed it. Cale was first allowed to take his share to roast over a blazing fire, and then the others are their fill. The boy threw his head back and let out a piercing, triumphant bawl. He was part of the pack; he was part of what he called The Shadow Pack.
Somewhere in the distance a being loomed over a decaying area. It watched young Cale in fascination as he ate with the wolves. "The Shadow Warrior has finally come to me," a baritone voice rumbled through the mountainside. "You shall hear my call, Cale. You shall come to your master without question. Your heart will become corrupt with the greed for power, and you will no longer need your pack of mongrels to sustain your life."
Cale sniffed the incoming breeze. An unfamiliar scent flooded his system, yet it was familiar at the same time. The wind tempted him to come forth to the intoxicating scent, but he held back from it and returned to his meal.
"You will not ignore my bays for long," the voice thundered with a crackle from the oncoming storm. "You can't resist destiny."
~*~
A man at the age of seventeen stared down at the depressing sight before him. The animal that he had for all of his life found solace was dying. "Don't leave me, Rakshi, please," a tear trickled down his cheek and over his scar. The wolf let out a low whine and closed its yellow eyes. "Please, Rakshi, no." The wolf feebly thumped its tail on the ground and let out a sigh. Cale bent down and hugged his dying friend. The creature surprisingly howled and released its soul. Cale watched in wonder as the spirit flooded into him, making them one. He looked down at his hands like he had never seen them before and let out a searing, drawn out howl. The rest of the pack joined their leader's cries in the harmony of their own.
~*~
Cale's bare feet crumpled the dry leaves under his weight. A strange scent flooded his system, and he followed it. A woman stood in the moonlight with an eerie glow surrounding her body. "Who are you?" Cale questioned.
"I am called Akkya," she replied. Her pale blue hair wound around her shoulders and down to her hips.
"I didn't know that there were other humans in this region of the forest," Cale mused.
"There aren't," Akkya replied with a small laugh.
"Then what are you?"
"Merely a Spirit," the woman replied. "You know me well though. Just try to remember your destiny."
Cale thought for a moment. He shallowly recognized the name Akkya, he just couldn't figure out why. "How do I know you?"
"The Dynasty, silly," Akkya replied as if it was the most sensible thing in the world. "And you, Cale, are the Warrior of Corruption." She held her hand out in an inviting manner. "Here, I can help you find yourself." Cale took the pale woman's hand and was at once flooded with images. Battles, blood, faces, laughter, tears, they all rushed into his mind like an exploding dam.
"Akkya," he murmured.
"Now do I make sense?" she questioned. Cale swallowed and nodded. Akkya's laugh rang in Cale's ears like a trickling stream. "Come, Cale. The Master wants you," she enticed him with a drawing finger. Cale made one step closer to her and the two vanished with the whistling wind.
~*~
As soon as Cale rematerialized, he felt the warm wind winding around him. In a whisper it called his name. In a shriek, it bayed the names of the dead.
"Cale," a deep, female voice thundered. "Welcome home, my child."
"Okaa-san?"
~Yes, yes, I know. It was a little short. Oh well. I just thought that this was a good place to leave you readers hangin'. I'll put up the next chapter if I get three or more reviews on this one. FLAMES DO NOT COUNT AS REVIEWS. Now that my point is clear I'll start workin' on the next chapter and post it when I get those teeny lil three reviews. Oh yeah! I don't own Ronin Warriors, but I own that wind spirit named Akkya.
Luv,
Azure Kitsune