Prologue 1 – The Loss of Paradise
Prologue 1 – The Loss of Paradise
My name is Sakon Shima.
I've been born to a time which you may find hard to understand…
It is a time when contentment had vanished and peace was merely wishful thinking.
It is a time when death and destruction were desirable.
It is a time called the Warring States Period…
"Mother! Mother!" yelled Sakon cheerfully as he ran towards his mother who was tending their rice crops.
I was four back then. I remembered that me and my parents lived in a small village near a vast rice field in Kyoto.
"Sakon! So good to see you!" welcomed his mother as she dropped her crop scythe and gladly embraced her son.
My mother was a farmer while my dad was a soldier who joined the war.
"Look mother!" said Sakon anxiously as he pulled out a scroll from his simple cloth bag.
"Oh my! " praised his mother, amazed by her son's high marks. All of the subjects were marked "excellent".
While my mother worked in the fields, I studied on a small school on another village.
Sakon's mother suddenly fell to her knees, coughing heavily and gripping her chest.
"Mother!" cried Sakon as he supported her and lifted her to her feet.
"It's okay Sakon. It's just a cold…" assured his mother.
"Please mother, let me quit school! Let me help you instead!" pleaded Sakon.
"No Sakon. I don't want that life for you…" replied his mother as she went back to weeding her crops.
Mother supported my studies with what little she earns from selling rice. I've never aspired to be anything great back then. I only wanted to give my mother and father a comfortable life.
I only wanted a simple life of contentment and happiness. But a dark cloud loomed over that dream.
"Th-This can't be! How could he have surpassed Toru!" yelled Shinobu to Sakon's teacher, Sano.
"I assure you. Sakon has shown more promise than Toru. The boy can be wise without even trying!" replied Sano.
Lord Shinobu Tsutsui. He is the head of the House of Tsutsui in my time and son of Takeaki Tsutsui, one of the greatest strategists in all of Japan. Members of the Tsutsui family are tapped by various clans for strategists, believing that they have inherited Lord Takeaki's knowledge.
"How could he have failed in history?! I tutored him all that he knows about it!" hissed Shinobu to the educator.
"That's because Toru is a tardy child. He skips classes, sleeps on my lectures, draws on his textbooks, do I need to name more?" asked Sano as he sipped his piping hot cup of jasmine tea.
Unfortunately, the only male offspring of the Tsutsui clan in my generation, Toru, was a spoiled child who had no interest for education.
"He was lucky to have even passed most of his subjects. I "considered" passing him since I didn't want to tarnish your clan's name. We've been friends for a long time Shinobu, but I'm afraid that I cannot do anything for your grandson." said Sano as he stood up and left Shinobu.
Lord Shinobu was deeply disappointed at Toru and thus ordered him to be killed for disgracing the clan. However, the Tsutsui needed someone to take Toru's place.
"Mother, when is father coming home?" asked Sakon as he jabbed a spoonful of rice into his mouth.
"He said in his last letter that he'll be coming back after their campaign in Kyushu." smiled his mother.
"I wish he'd bring back a gift for me." thought Sakon.
"He's a soldier, not a merchant!" giggled Sakon's mother.
"Oh yeah, I forgot." laughed Sakon.
Lord Shinobu needed to find a boy with much potential when it comes to academics.
"This is the village my lord." pointed one of Shinobu's soldiers to Sakon's village.
"So… this is where that child lives. To think that such intellect would come from such a lowly place." spat Shinobu, disgusted by the village's simple appearance.
"Your orders my lord?" asked the soldier.
He needed someone that met his high expectations.
"Find the boy. Burn down every hut if necessary." grinned Shinobu.
He needed me.
"Mother, can I help you in the fields this summer? We won't have classes for two months." asked Sakon as his mother tucked him in for bed.
"No Sakon. You'll stay with your uncle in Miyako. He works on a library there and I'm sure that it will benefit you greatly." disagreed his mother.
Sakon frowned, displeased at his mother's answer.
"My sweet son, so helpful, always thinking of others…" smiled Sakon's mother as she gently stroked his soft black hair. "I don't want you to experience the hardships that me and your father experienced. I want you to be happy and prosperous. That's enough for me…"
Sakon was touched by his mother's words. A tear escaped his eyes unable to hold back his emotions.
"Now, now no crying. You should be happy Sakon!" cheered his mother.
"Can I at least stay here for a day? I want to meet Miyu and the others. It's been too long…" begged Sakon.
"Of course Sakon. It's your reward for making me so proud!" approved his mother. "But…" added his mother "you have to promise that you'll sleep early tonight. That means no late night reading, okay?"
"Yes mother!" nodded Sakon as he rested his head on his pillow and closed his eyes. His mother kissed him in the head before leaving his room.
My safe haven crumbled…
Sakon's mother heard a knock on the door.
"Who could that be in this time of the night?" wondered Sakon's mother as she made her way to the front door. She hesitantly opened it and was surprised to see a group of soldiers outside. "Yes, may I help you?" asked Sakon's mother. The soldiers stand aside, allowing a long haired man to pass through the group. He was dressed in a long noble robe, two katanas sheated on his side.
"Pardon our disturbance my lady. My name is Shinobu Tsutsui. We're here for Sakon." said the man.
"What do you want from my son?" asked Sakon's mother nervously.
"Are you aware that your son is a very intelligent child?" asked Shinobu.
"Yes I am." replied Sakon's mother.
"We are here to take him to a special place where he can harness his intellect further." grinned Shinobu.
"Your offer is very tempting, but I'm afraid I must refuse." said Sakon's Mother politely, slowly closing the door. Shinobu stopped the door with one hand and pushed it open, throwing Sakon's mother away from the door.
"You're missing the point my lady. We're TAKING him. We're not asking for your permission." hissed Shinobu. He signaled two of the soldiers to enter the house. The two soldiers headed upstairs.
"NO! DONT TAKE MY SON!" pleaded Sakon's mother as she grabbed one of the soldier's leg. The soldier shook her loose with one swift boot to the face. She fell to the floor, shooked by the blow.
Moments later, the two soldiers came down from the second floor, one of them carrying a struggling Sakon on his shoulder.
"Sakon Shima… There's something important that I need to tell you." said Shinobu as he cupped the boy's chin.
"LET ME GO! LET ME GO!" pleaded the child as he tried to escape the soldier's grip. He furiously pounded on the soldier's back but his thick armor barely felt the effects of his attacks.
"Look at me when I am talking at you!" shouted Shinobu as he slapped Sakon across the face.
"NOOO! STOP!" pleaded Sakon's mother as she wrapped her arms around Shinobu's leg.
"MOTHER! MOTHER HELP ME PLEASE!" begged Sakon.
Shinobu grabbed Sakon's mother by her long hair. He unsheated one of his katanas and placed it's blade close to her neck.
"Perhaps you'll listen to me better when this woman is dead." threatened Sakon.
"N-No… Don't please…" cried Sakon.
The only person that gave me love…
Shinobu raised his katana.
The only person that made me happy…
In a split second, Shinobu swung his katana. Blood splattered across the house's brown walls.
In one day, all of it was gone…
Sakon's mother's headless body fell lifelessly to the floor. His mother's severed head was still in Shinobu's grip.
Sakon was frozen in shock. His mouth was wide agape and his eyes were wide open, the tears flowing from them have completely halted.
"From now on Sakon, your only family is mine. You'll live with me and be my son. Forget the life you once had. Forget all of it and move on…" explained Shinobu.
And thus paradise was lost…
Whew, I'll try to update both of my fics everyday. Hope you won't stop reading and supporting my fics. R&R please!