Blood Rage Chapter 1: Fallen into darkness
A girl sleeps on her sword, a man walk over. She wakes up at his presence "Rubel, you have a job I take it. He said "yes, it will be a tough one Maria". Maris said "It's a awakened beast right, otherwise you wouldn't summon me." Maria asked "so how far away, is it". Rubel said "2 towns over, it shouldn't take too long." She arrives in the town after 1 week of walking. The chief of the village walks out t meet her. We have your payment right here. Maria said "A man in black will pick it up, if I fail then you don't have to pay." It may take me some time "the creature is a Veracious eater it will take me a while they are crafty."
She sat the edge of the village and went to sleep. She felt something moving, a person said "you okay". Maria said "I am surprised anyone's concerned." this person said "I just want to make sure you don't get frostbite until you kill that thing." "I am fine" she said. She wandered the village and for several days found nothing. She stepped out of the village for a few moments, she felt a presence she followed it. She found the beast in the forest hiding.
Maria said "you have been hiding from me". The Awakened Beast said "I was just wondering what the black raven would do." She rushes at the beast and her sword bounces of his hide. She laughs "my skin can block any attack". Maria starts to use more of the Yoma power inside her body and tries to break her opponent down.
She keeps this battle up but he stick his claws in her stomach she starts to bleed out and her body regeneration can't heal the damage. She laughs "I have won this." Maria starts to output a tremendous amount of power. The awakened beast asks "what are you doing?" Maria glows and energy explodes. Maria stands there "I am using 100% of the Yoma's power in my body". She chops off the beast's head. However her body starts to awaken. After a few moment everything goes black and she wakes in a person's house. A man stands there, "I found you lying there bleeding out." She looks at him "your in danger now, I am going to lose control soon". He puts a plate of offal in front of her there I saw you but I believe you can change you were human once, as a former Claymore you can try to live a normal life here.
Maria smiled for the first time in a long time, "maybe I could make this work with you help". The man said "my name is William, I am an an ex mercenary I did a lot of work for Yoma, they pay well and well are not too bad once you get to know them. Usually I was hired because one Yoma wanted another dead. It was challenging work but Yoma are not invincible it just takes a sword strike to the right place." Maria smiled "I was a slave child to be honest this job was the first sense of kinship I had, I was sold to a Yoma in a small town after he was killed by a Claymore I asked to join their ranks."
William said "that was bad but I was very different I was a rich kid my father gave me everything. He was attacked by a Yoma during the night, I woke to find him dead on the ground and I lived in the forest for several years after that. I killed my first Yoma at the age of twelve I saw him wandering around the forest. I ripped his eyes out of his skull with my teeth and tore him apart with my bare hands.' Maria asked "you sound like an animal". William replied "I was like an animal I live like that for several days until a mercenary saw me and trained me to be a mercenary. My mercenary and was killed by a Yoma all except for me, that's why I mad it my profession to kill Yoma as a man. I was more animal than human I stopped relying on skill but bestial strength, I am able to use about 3 - 4 times what a human can use without hurting their body."
Maria said "wow that's amazing, I didn't now humans had such strength." William said "Yoma have long since forgotten human's old strength many are new not knowing of the past, they once feared us millions of years ago we were stronger, I am only able to use a small amount of what that is, anyway I have to go the chief knows your here he trusts me to do this properly he has faith in me." Maria sat there for several hours (what does this village want with me?) William came back "come with me many would like to meet you". Maria walked out the, Chief said "Maria everyone has their demons we are going to help you fight them."
Many of the citizens were smiling but one or two were angry. They say "she may kill us all." the Chief said "we help those who need help it is what we have all done". Maria said "If you want me to leave." The chief said "no we are sworn to help others. William will care for you." William nodded and took her back home he smiled "you are going to be fine, we will keep you safe." Maria said "thanks I have not been shown kindness in a long time." William said "I know what your thinking who are we to be protecting you, well we are an ancient order known as defenders, this village had been protecting all innocents for many centuries before Claymores even existed. The people here have been fighting evil for centuries I joined them 10 years ago." Maria said "wow that's a long history, i guess that explains how humans survived before Claymores were around."
2 days later, William was sitting there, "hey Maria" he said. Maria said "hi, how are you going?" William said "I just wanted to talk." Maria said "what do you want to talk about." William said "I'm not sure, I feel slightly confronted." Maria said "I enjoy your company, your the first person to treat me like a human." William said "I wish for you to be happy." Maria said "You like me in that way don't you, I can't understand why?" William said "You may not understand it but it's something we all share, it makes no sense it is just a uncontrollable feeling." Maria said "I don't understand... (why do I feel strange and flustered)." William said "It doesn't make sense that is why it special it is something more powerful than anything we can comprehend."
Maria runs out of the building into the forest. (Why do I feel this way it makes no sense). She sits there for a while. (I wonder what he's doing) she thinks to herself. Maria is sitting there (what should I do? I am conflicted I don't know how to live a normal life with someone.) William walked out "I finally found you, you ran almost 2 hours away from the village." Maria said "I never new what It is like to live a normal life." William said "I can help you it will be a new experience just trust me." Maria asked "but what if it goes wrong, I may never be able to deal with it."
William said "life is all about risk join me and we will find a path to happiness." Maria asked "you would really do that for me, I have nothing and I am a monster to many." William said "we will not let that stop us we will find a future together, two souls, whose past has been bad and filled with problems." Maria said "maybe we could try to work our problems out together, it would good to finally have a family." William asked "so are you ready to try?" Maria replied "yes I hope this can work?"
A month past quickly, Maria asked "this has been going great hasn't it William?" as she starts cooking over the fire, William smiles sitting there "yeah it has." Maria said "I never imagined cooking for someone else like this and just enjoying life." A voice shouts out "help we are under attack?" Maria opens up the floorboards, she runs out bandits are everywhere. She yells "come on fight me." She bursts forward cutting 5 of them in half. Many of the bandits yell "monster , she's a monster." A man steps out "I will handle this.' The man rushes at her she barely stops his blow. She said "you are an awakened one, why are you hiding among bandits." He said "they leave a lot of corpses behind plenty of food." He smiles and swings at her she takes a defensive stance barely able to block his massive quick strokes.
William steps out wondering what is going on(She should be back by now) he goes out to the back and grabs his sword (this weapon I haven't used in years I never thought it would see use again.) He bolts out the door when he gets there, Maria is bleeding on the ground. He shouts out "who did this?" The man said "I am Talon a mighty awakened beast from long a ago." He transforms into a huge monster with teeth the size of a building, Talon said laughing "I will crush you and her, you will be all my food." William ( I can't win this without maximizing the animal inside). He starts to change ,his hands turn to claws and his face starts to be covered in fur. He looks like a bear like creature but with wolf teeth and claws. He charges into Talon's legs disabling his ability to move. Talon roars "how dare you hurt me".
Maria stands up, Talon said "this could be complicated". Maria said"my turn she cuts into his head and he roars in agony. William jumps into his throat and rips it out. Talon went silent as he coughed up blood. He stopped moving, William starts to turn back into his human form when fully returned he said "I now know why i was to never use that form, I may not be able to return to being human." He picks up his sword and they cut off Talon's head. "That will stop him from regenerating." They both said. Maria smiled "I think we make a good team," She kisses him on the cheek. He smiles.
A few weeks pass since the incident all the bandits have run away after their boss turned into a monster. Maria heads over to train with William, they spar for 5 hours. William at the end of the session said "usually I'm exhausted at the end of these sessions but I'm not today that is strange and you seem unusually winded." Maria then coughs out some blood, William asked scared "are you okay?" She smiled "I haven't told you, have I it's just the little one is quite a kicker." William asked "what?" Maria said "we have a kid on the way, let's just hope they aren't too wild." William said"that is great news." Maria said "I never believed I would have a kid."
Maria spent more time at home while William did more work. Days past quite quickly Maria was starting to have doubts. When William returned home after his hunting Maria sat there crying. He asked what is wrong but she said nothing. After 6 months she finally told him "I am really worried, what if our child is a monster and hurts others." William said "It'll be alright our child will be fine. After all both of us have human in us, the human side will outweigh the Yoma." Maria smiles , then she starts to feel a tremendous amount of pain. William asked frantically "what is happening". Maria said "The baby's coming." William asked "what do we do?" Maria screamed "get help now!" William ran out to the elder's house,
Elder we need your help." The elder asked "what happened?" William said "Maria is having her child right now." The Elder gets there with William as fast as he can, Maria is screaming."
The elder tells William "you should wait outside". William waits outside for several hours. The elder comes out, "William you should see your kid." Maria is sitting there smiling, "she is quite healthy isn't she". William asks "she is glowing with a blue energy around her ,why?" Maria said "I'm not sure but maybe it's because my aura is around ,the aura of my Yoma side." William said "oh well that's fine." William asked "what should we name her?" Maria said "Mist sounds good." William said "that's a good name, Mist give your dad a hug." He picked up Mist and smiled.
Raising Mist ,however ,had many complications early on, she had all the usual baby problems but as she got older and stated to crawl she got out often ended up in the forest. Maria and William were better at dealing with that then when she interacted with other kids, many kids teased her because of her red eyes, often calling her a monster. She spent a lot of her time with her mother. Mist one day opened a hatch in her mother's room and pulled out her mother's massive Claymore. She went outside and practiced swinging with it. To most kids her age, they would struggle to lift it but she could lift with ease.
Maria walked around looking for her inside the house, then went out the back only to see Mist practicing with the sword, Maria ran over and asked angrily "where did you find this?" Mist said "I found under that hatch, I'm sorry I was curious." Maria said "I want you to live peacefully, you will starts school tomorrow." Mist said "as long I don't get bullied I'll be fine." Maria said "I will complain if you're bullied." Mist said "thanks"
That night a few people met up and gathered together some money "we will call them to come, we got the payment for the guy." The next morning Mist got ready for school, her mother said "I made this white dress for you, it is for you to wear today. Mist said "I will take it with me but not where it it rained yesterday there will be mud everywhere. Mist went to school and one of the students asks "hi how are you going?" Mist asked "It's my first day of school anyway, who are you?" He said "my name is Leon". Mist said "I am glad to meet you Leon."
The teacher said "we have a new student named Mist." Mist walked "hi nice to meet you." one of the students a piece of paper at her "get out of here monster." The teacher yelled "go to my office and sit there until class is over." Mist sits down and listens attentively for 2 hours but then her aura starts glowing really brightly. The teacher asks "what is happening". Mist said "My mother is in danger, I have to go." She bolts out the door and runs out really fast. Meanwhile her mother is walking through town when someone with a sword walk up to hers "you are an awakened beast and you have to die." Maria bolts and manages to get home and Mist is standing there. Maria said "they won't find us." Mist said "there is more than 1 they know we are here." A sword flies through the door into Maria's back. Mist said "mum, you will be alright."
Maria said "I will be hunted now, I will be caught eventually, Mist stay strong I have to go." Mist yelled "no you can't." A Claymore came in "you ready to die." Maria said "you are rank 1 and have several others with you, it's my time." The Claymore pulled the sword out and chopped off Maria's head. The Claymore said "you should leave here girl." Mist asked crying "what is your name?" The Claymore said "Aqua." Mist said "well Aqua." She glows brightly "you and I are going to fight". Aqua said "why, you want vengeance for a monster." Mist yells "she was my mother." Mist dashed so fast , Aqua couldn't even see it, Mist had ripped her heart out. Aqua is coughing up blood.
Mist pulled out her dress and her mother's sword and soaked then in her mother's blood, She buried her mother in a grave in the back. She chucked the Claymore's body in the forest for her fellow Claymore's to bury. She said over the grave "thanks for everything but I will find my place in the world." Mist joined a band of mercenaries in the south and she fought with them for 10 years, she sent regular letters home to her father. She then left them and formed her personal mercenary band which became known as the Blood Rage mercenaries.
Chapter 1 end