The Shadow Master Series
Prologue: Pulse
Within the heat of
war and darkness,
Innocence is lost.
Bonds and Promises
will be broken;
Often to protect that
Innocence.
Though, it causes more
Pain than Joy.
~Paradise~
You welcomed darkness as if it were an old friend. Your body, now lifeless, felt calm and relaxed as your soul lifted from it to another place. Maybe even another time.
"Finally," you thought as you saw a faint light a head of you. You lift your ghostly hand to shield your eyes from the bright light emanating from the After Life sun; your After Life sun to be exact. You knew the landscape before you better than anything you've ever known because it was yours. This place was your After Life.
You stood atop a glittering, clear body of water, (bigger than a lake, but it couldn't be an ocean), that was so alive you could feel it pulsing beneath your feet. Though you were only a soul, your senses were as accute as they were when you were alive. You breathed in a large amout of the fresh, cool air; smelling just a hint of the sweet scent of cherry blossoms from the sakura trees growing straight out of the water. They were a beautiful sight to behold with their long, curled branches and soft petals as they fell graciously from the trees to the water. Yes indeed, your After Life was traquile and yet... there was still an uncertainty in it.
There was a small house up ahead, right in the middle of the lake, that you automatically recognized. Your eyes grew wide with fear at what had happened in that house. It still had it's busted windows and angry holes in your death like it did when you were living. As you gazed at it in silent horror, you didn't realize you were taking cautious steps back; not wanting to get any closer.
"No," you muttered, hands shaking as you brought them up to grip your head in disbelief, "no more. I don't want to go back."
You knew that there was no changing the will of Destiny. No arguement with such a being would work. No excuse, no deal, no other reason could change your fate and you knew it; but you still remained stubborn. You didn't want to go back to the living world...not after what just happened. Your family had just been slaughtered; you along with them! Your innocent, hardworking family who did nothing wrong to anyone and were honest people. You turned and ran as fast as you could from the house, the sun, everything that you knew would only hurt you even more. Unfortunately, you didn't get very far when something from below the water's surface reached out and grabbed your ankles. Letting out a fearful yelp, you tried lifting your legs higher while shaking off the grip. It was hopeless. You were being pulled under the water, back to life, back to the Living World, back to your horror...
You heard Destiny calling your name, telling you that your time was not yet done; you still had work to do. Furios with Destiny's calls, you cried out, "I am no hero! Just leave me to die in peace! Let me go!"
Your attempts at persuading Destiny and releasing yourself were futile but you still persisted. Destiny would never let you go, not after three-hundred years of being The Shadow Master. Since the dawn of time, Destiny had known about you and your place in this world among all other creatures. The reason why you were brought back to life, (the few times you died), was still unknown to you but it must be extremely important if Destiny had to shape and create a being like you... a Shadow Master.
Your soul was now chest deep beneath the water but you kept yelling and pleading for Destiny to have mercy on you. Deeper and deeper you were pulled until you could yell no more and you began to feel the cold chill of life. You felt your soul begin to reattach to your corpse; your senses opened up. You felt your lungs moving and a stream of burning air fill your nostrils. Your body was cold and hungry.
"This one's still alive!" you heard a panicked voice yell, though it sounded very distant. You tried to move your body only to realize that you couldn't. Worst even, you couldn't remember what happened to you. Why couldn't you move? Why won't your eyes open? You felt scared until you heard the voice again, this time louder.
"Hurry, I think she's still breathing!" their accent was really thick but you could tell it was a male. For some strange reason, as soon as a warm hand touched you, your eyes snapped open. You let out a terrified wail and all you saw was red...