Thank you people for following How Things came to be! I honestly never thought I reach twenty.
Anyway, this chapter will have quite a lot of violence, but uh, I'm terrible at fast paced events/actions so I hope you guys will bear with me. I apologize if Shinoa is very OOC.
The day started and ended just like any other day. Ryuu arrived home just as the sun was setting back into the horizon.
"I'm home!" The kid shouted as he ran through the doorway.
"Ah Ryuu-chan! Hold on for a few minutes! Dinner's almost ready soon!" The elderly's voice boomed from the kitchen as the smell of delicious cooking wafted throughout the house and made Ryuu's mouth drool.
Right after the old lady had finished her statement, Ryuu's mother stepped out of her bedroom. She would usually be working around that time, but that day was an off day, so she was taking the chance to slack off at home. "Ah, good evening Ryuu-chan. How was training?"
Ryuu unslung the bokken hanging from his back to his front. "We learnt a new technique today, mommy. And Kogami-sensei said that I'm still the best in the class!" Ryuu told her cheerfully. He did not want to brag, but it was the truth.
"That's my son! Now please show it to me."
The boy obediently did so. He skillfully twirled the wooden sword and did a series of basic and complicated strikes. His mother clapped her hands in delight after he was done.
"That was beautiful, Ryuu-chan! But there were still some mistakes. Swing the sword down faster. And don't stretch your arms too far. You need to protect your chest; it is one of the most vital parts of your body, after all."
"Okay."
That was the thing with his mother. Ryuu was enrolled into the village's fighting lessons for children two years ago. Most kids joined for leisure, just swinging the wooden stick for fun. Like the other kids, Ryuu found the sport exiting too.
However, it seemed like his mother had other plans for him.
Whenever training had ended, his mother would always ask him to show what he had learnt to her. After doing so, his mother would then alter the fighting style. She would make him practice every single day, even on days when were no lessons for about three to four hours each time.
At first he was irked and displeased that his mother kept making changes to the fighting methods that his teacher taught him. But he soon came to realize that his mother's advice did improve his combat skills, and so he listened more attentively in any of their sessions. He also wondered why she would make him train all the time like as if his life depended on it. However, he could not come up with a reason other than something that had happened in the past.
Being trained by his mother was actually quite fun, and he would had boasted to his friends that his mommy taught him if he wasn't for the fact that she swore him to secrecy by telling him not tell anybody that she could probably fight. It wasn't that combat was hard for Ryuu; in fact it came naturally to him in the first place. Also, many villagers had also noted that Ryuu was far more intelligent than any other child they knew. His mother had once told him that he had his father's talents and her brains. In a nutshell, he was a prodigy.
"You're doing good! Now widen your legs further. Don't' forget to-"
"Maiha-chan! Don't make the boy train with an empty stomach! At least let him eat first!" The old lady stood at the entrance of the kitchen with both hands on her plumb hips and a crossed expression on her face.
"Ahahaha…..Ah… Sorry Baba. Come on, Ryuu-chan. Let's eat." Ryuu's mother, known to the people as Maiha said nervously, not wanting to trigger the senior citizen's wrath.
The trio sat at their wooden dining table, enjoying their nice home-cooked dinner. As Ryuu shoved his food into his mouth with vigor, he noticed his mother staring blankly at her meal, her plate left untouched.
"Mommy?' The young woman did not reply.
"Mommy?" Ryuu asked again.
"Wha-Wha? Oh, I'm sorry, sweetie. I didn't hear you." His mother replied when she snapped out of her daze.
"What were you thinking about?"
"Nothing. Nothing important." Maiha turned her head towards the window, which was right behind her. The outside was already darkening into night, and the wind was blowing harshly.
"It just feels like a storm is coming. That's all." She murmured.
The loud banging on the door in the middle of the night made Ryuu stirred. He sat up and dragged himself sleepily to the living room, his mother and Baba following him groggily. Maiha, who was dressed in a short light pink nightwear dress, went to open the door.
Their neighbour, Kenda, a man in his late-thirties, stood panting heavily at their doorway with his hands on his knees. He was clad in a sweaty and dirty crumpled polo shirt and a pair of black trousers.
"Kenda-san? It's the middle of the night, what is it that you want? And you looked like you just ran all the way here."
"Everyone," he said between breaths, "must go to the main square."
"Why?"
"Some outsiders had just arrived. They had demanded to see all residents."
"Outsiders? Do you know where they came from?"
"Not a clue. Just hurry!" Immediately, Maiha threw on her favorite red coat to look more presentable and Baba hung her cotton white sweater on her shoulders to protect herself from the cold. Ryuu remained in his long baby blue button-up pajamas. They all placed on their shoes and rushed to the center of the village as fast as they could without the old lady tripping.
Everyone had already gathered. Some people were still in their nightclothes, and some were wearing bathroom robes. Yet, all the people held the same looks on their faces; fear and wariness. Harsh whispers emitted from the villagers as they huddled together in numerous groups. Surrounding them were many similar dressed men fanned out in a circle, keeping the residents in the center with barely an opening between them.
The strangers themselves all wore black long-sleeved uniforms with gold buttons and bright green strips around the wrist along with a pair of white gloves that adorn their hands. White belts were tightened around their waists, from which katanas were hung in their sheaths. Their black boots reached up almost to the knees, and some even had caps or capes on.
Ryuu could feel his mother's arms stiffening around his neck. It felt slightly painful, like as if she was strangling him, but he did not complain.
One of the strangers at the front spoke up. "We are from the Japanese Imperial Army! We are here to take your village under our protection!" It seemed like he was the leader of the group as he had a few badges pinned on his suit. Even more whisperings and mutterings erupted from the crowd.
"This village does not need any protection! It hasn't had any attacks in several years!" A wizened stick of an old man shouted from the mass of people.
The leader narrowed his eyes at the one who opposed him. "And who might you be?"
"I am the head of this village! And I order you lot to leave at once! Whether you are from the Japanese Imperial Army or not, we do not need you! Leave at once!" After shouting out his disapproval, he ancient man went into a coughing fit and his grandchildren tended to him quickly.
"So what happens if your village gets attacked by a Four Horsemen of John? Or even worse, vampires? How can you be so selfish towards your village? Surely you must be senile." The leader said with a smirk.
The chief of the village was shaking uncontrollably by then in anger. "Shut your mouth up! Both you and I and everybody here know that this protection nonsense is nothing more than taking over this village! And I will not stand around letting you do so!"
The villagers watched as the two leaders, both young and old strew insults back and forth in a heated debate with wide eyes, most not daring to say a word. Some of the babies and toddlers started wailing at the rising tension and their parents had to hush them by singing lullabies and other silly things. Others like the older children were trembling at their parents' sides, and their older kin had to place a comforting hand on them to calm them down while also feeling terrified at what this exchange between the leaders would lead to. Ryuu was clutching tightly to mother's wrists, which were encircled around his neck, and she had pulled Baba next to her without the boy knowing.
The leader of the soldiers, who was getting impatient of the meaningless batter, finally addressed the crowd. "And what do all of you want? Do you still want to live here and follow this fool-hardly head while being absolutely vulnerable to anything that may come one day? Or have sound defense where everyday you know that you are under protection?"
The people looked at one another and some minor murmurings could be heard. Yet there were no discussions. Everybody had already made their decision since the day they joined the village.
"We trust our Elder." Many men and women chorused in unison.
The leader of the soldiers made a tsk sound. His shaggy brown hair shaded his eyes and he was baring his teeth furiously. "You leave me no choice then. We are going to have do this the hard way." He growled out the statement before rushing towards the elderly chief. Roughly tugging the old man's shirt, he pulled the pensioner out of his shrieking grandchildren's hands.
And pierced his unsheathed sword through the elderly's chest.
The women and children screamed their lungs out. The men gave off throaty shouts of anguish. Ryuu's jaw hung slack at the scene before him, fear emitting from every fiber of his being. He did not yell like his friends did, but he felt as if he was carved into the ground like wood. His mother's arms tightened themselves around him and Baba was gripping on to her like vice.
The late head of the village did not even have the chance to blink. The sharp, deadly object, which had killed him in one blow, had stabbed him through the heart and emerged from his back. He collapsed to the ground in a heap, covered in the scarlet monster oozing from both wounds.
The leader removed his weapon out from the corpse, making a disgusting sucking sound from the flesh in the process.
Several things happened at once; the late head's grandchildren, no more than prepubescent teenagers, threw themselves at the lead soldier with nothing but their fingernails outstretched. The men who brought their katanas for emergencies charged towards him as well.
Unfortunately, luck was not their side and everything ended the next second. The captain simply slashed at the three adolescents, their blood mingling with their grandfather's as they lay near him. The soldiers that were standing like statues at the sidelines rushed forward while brutally and fatally intercepting the avenging men with similar moves to their superior.
Dead bodies fell into unsightly heaps everywhere as droplets of blood scattered like red rose petals. The remaining survivors let out cries of grief as they clustered together even tighter if possible.
The leader swung the blood off his sword, revealing a black and bright green blade underneath the thick red liquid. "This is an enchanted gear, capable of making one stronger by three or four times. Your retaliation is futile. Surrender now, or die." A sadistic smile was etched on his face the while time he was speaking.
Like all the other kids, tears were streaming down Ryuu's cheeks. The scene they just witnessed was shattering their innocence forever. The villagers grabbed one another, sobbing their hearts out.
"Baba, please take care of Ryuu for a while." Ryuu heard his mother speak tenderly. The boy, who had previously latched on to his mother's side when the whole massacre occurred with clenched-tight eyes, opened them and stared at her in shock. The short woman pushed him gently to their caretaker.
"Mommy!"
"Maiha-chan!"
The rest of the villagers shriek similar warnings as Ryuu's mother strolled away from the crowd calmly, not wanting her to end her own life violently.
She stopped short from where the lead elite fighter stood. "Please, I'm begging you sir, let this village go. It has done nothing wrong." Her tone was sad and full of despair.
"Woman, what makes you think we will do such thing?" His eyes surveyed her slender figure from head to toe. "I'm going to make you regret what you just said." His tongue visibly licked his lips.
Something seemed to snap inside the young woman and for a moment, she bent down her head, making her lavender bangs cover her coppery orbs. The leader, obviously angered at such an act of defiance, roared at her. "Hey are you listening-"
A swift, whistling sound could be heard as a black blur appeared out of nowhere and slashed at the man. He fell into two pieces, his upper body separated from his lower torso. His eyes were wide open and his jaw-hung slack on the soil. The attack was so quick; he did not even have the opportunity to cry out.
Both the soldiers and civilians reacted to the horror unleashed before them with similar screeches and gasps. It wasn't the first killing scene they had seen the whole night, but it was the first for most of them to see a citizen defeat a trained serviceman, and in such a vicious manner.
It seemed almost even worse than how the soldiers dealt with the rebelling villagers previously.
The one who sent the leader to the maker turned and faced the humans. Her face was splattered with fresh blood and in her hand laid a giant black and neon scythe. Each living soul in the vicinity could feel cold eyes sweeping over them; the seasoned eyes of a killer. This was obviously not her first time committing murder.
"Enchanted gear, also known as mass cursed gear, indeed makes one stronger. However, it can never match up against a cursed gear now, can it?" She stated monotonously.
The massive weapon was already on the move before the JIDA soldiers nearest to the young mother could take action. She vanished in a blink of an eye, seemingly having teleported herself right in front of them before swinging her sickle. The army men went down in one blow. Her body twisted agilely and gracefully like a cat's with the mammoth weapon spinning impossibly fast at rapid speed. To most people, she was like a goddess of death.
The soldiers furthest from the attacker retreated to the borders of the village, their enchanted swords clutched tightly with both hands in defensive positions, yet they were trembling so badly that their katanas were shaking so much as well. How was it possible that a commoner possessed a cursed gear? It was only possible if…
"I recognized that hair colour!"
"It's the same as Mahiru Hiragi!"
"It's-"
"Shi-chan!"
A black and amber colored androgynous shape materialized and slammed into the solider before he could fully state his sentence. The breaking of bones could be heard as he was bashed into a concrete wall. He landed on the floor on his stomach once the figure dissipated. He was not bleeding, but his neck was twisted unnaturally to one side and his spine was bent weirdly along the back.
"You were saying?" Maiha stood over the fallen trooper, scowling at the living members of the JIDA squad with killing intent written all over her. She had managed to prevent her victim from exposing her name. However, it was too late. Realization had dawned on them who she actually was. In desperation, she let loose the mysterious being on a few other soldiers until there were only four or five of them left as they were too far from her partner's attack range.
The last few members of the group, having just witnessed the death of their comrades, made the wise decision of running away instead of avenging their recently deceased friends. They were no match against her, after all.
"Get reinforcements!"
"We must inform Kureto Hiragi at once!"
"We must capture the traitor!"
Maiha watched the retreating figures with furiousness. They were too far for her, and running after them was not an option as they may lead her into a trap.
"Shit! Shit! Shit!" She cursed outwardly. She ran all over to a few dead soldiers and savaged anything useful from their corpses. Gathering what she needed in one arm, she turned around to find the villagers huddled together and gazing at her in fear. Not even a sound came out of their mouths.
Maiha ignored the stares directed at her and ran over to her little family. Ryuu was still held within Baba's arms, and Baba was also giving her the same dazed look like the other villagers were giving.
"Mommy?" Her son blinked at her. He was in a state of great confusion and terror, but he was mostly relief and glad that his mother was alive and unharmed.
"Ryuu…" His mother bent down and gave him a brief comforting hug before standing back up. "C'mon. We have to go."
"Huh?"
She pulled him out of Baba's grasp and tugged his little hand as she dashed off. Ryuu stumbled a little, puzzled at his mother's sudden actions, but the pair managed to make it home quickly.
Shinoa pulled Ryuu into his room. Kneeling down till she was eye-level with him, she placed her hands on his tiny arms. "Ryuu-chan, pack whatever essentials you need. We're leaving."
"But mommy, why?"
"Ryuu-chan, I know you are smarter than this. You saw what I did. You and I are no longer safe here anymore."
"But must we really leave?"
"Ryuu just do it!" She shouted.
Ryuu shrank backwards while tears welled up at the corner of his eyes. His mother had never yelled at him before. Not even during their training sessions.
Shinoa, seeing Ryuu' frightened reaction, gave him a hug. "I'm sorry Ryuu-chan. But please, just do what you are told." The boy obediently complied as he left her embrace.
The young mother went inside her own room and shoved what she needed into a duffel bag. After she was done, she changed her now dirty sleepwear into a more suitable attire for travelling then sat on her bed, rubbing her temples.
How did things take a turn for the worse so quickly? Just yesterday she was working merrily in the village's only bookstore, and now everything transformed into a disaster. The two of them would be able to leave the village; she did buy enough time after all. She knew this day would come, but why did it have to arrive so soon?
Shinoa went into the toilet, which was nothing more a small cubicle with a shower and a toilet bowl squeezed together and stared at her reflection. She had a haggard and messy appearance even though she had changed her outfit and the wild look of a cornered animal was apparent in her eyes. The soldiers had recognized her… What was she going to do?
Yuu-san, what am I suppose to do? I wish you were here. She fished out a Swiss Army knife from her pocket and slashed at her long lilac ringlets. The length of her hair now fell to the lower end of her neck while the sliced-off locks descended lightly to the ground. She gathered them and threw them away.
As she was almost done packing up, the door behind Shinoa slammed open. "Maiha-chan! What's going on?"
Shinoa spun a circle to see Baba with an anxious look plastered on her withered face as she panted heavily. The edge of her long white night dress had dirt brushed along it, and her feet were bruised from continuously dragging herself to the cottage without stopping from the site amidst the chaos. Her sunken eyes widened slightly at Shinoa's new haircut but she did not say anything about it.
"Ah… Baba…" Shinoa was immediately overwhelmed by guilt. This woman took her in when she was weak and cold, who took care of her when she discovered that she was with child and allowed Ryuu and her to stay for six years; the mother figure that she never had her whole life, and this was she repays her?
"I'm sorry, Baba. But Ryuu-chan and I are leaving." The stout old lady seemed to have expected her answer, yet it did not stop her from forming an even more devastating expression when tears streaked down to her chin.
"Is it necessary for you to leave?"
"For your sake, and Ryuu-chan's, we have to."
The elderly just bitterly chuckled. "How funny. Everyone I love always leave me. My husband Saki, my son, Ryuu and now you two as well. I really should have prepared myself."
Hearing that, Shinoa couldn't help but threw herself at the wizened woman. "Oh Baba! I'm so sorry! When everything clears up, we'll come back and see you, okay?" However, the two females knew that was an empty promise.
"I'm done." A childish voice spoke up. Ryuu came up to them, clad in a windbreaker and a pair of blue jeans. His rucksacks hung from his bony shoulders. Similar to the elderly's reaction, his jaw dropped at the sight of his mother's new hairstyle but he did not comment about it, as he understood the situation. He was her son; he had her smarts.
"Ryuu-chan, come here and say goodbye to Baba." Shinoa found herself forcing the sentence out of her mouth. Bawling loudly, Ryuu ran into Baba's open arms and exchanged his final words with her. It was simply too heartbreaking, tear jerking and emotional for Shinoa to watch the sentimental scenario as she turned her head to the side, trying to prevent any waterworks from spilling out.
Baba had been a great granny to Ryuu and had taught Shinoa how to care for her newborn baby from birth till now. To top it off, she had named Ryuu after her late son. Though they were not blood-related, they were a family. That was what Yuu would have said.
The small combatant went up and wrapped Baba in her arms. "Goodbye. Baba. We will always be Maiha and Ryuu Iwasawa, your family. I love you." She whispered into her foster mother's ear.
As mother and son took their stuff and were about to step out into the opening hand-in-hand, Baba's voice called out to her.
"Maiha?" Shinoa turned to look at her. "I'm well aware that it is not your real name. May I at least know what is my adopted daughter's real name?"
Shinoa considered the question. If Baba knew who she really was, how would she react? Even the country folk knew who the Hiragis were. And since the JIDA was returning soon…
"I'm sorry, Baba. But for your safety, I can't tell you." The burden of guilt weighed Shinoa down even more.
That being said, parent and child walked out of the hut toward the wilderness; into what fate awaited them.
Yes I am done! Gosh this was quite long! Anyway this chapter is about Shinoa and Ryuu running away, thus the name of this chapter The Night They Fled. So Shinoa is a serious badass and her son is quite smart, since his mother was also very aware of the cruelty of the world from a tender young age. And finally there was the emotional scene between the two and Baba. The end was so dramatic, it seems that i always end off my stories like that.
I'm not really good at sentimental and mushy stuff… or even action scenes… I guess what I'm saying is I totally suck at writing. Oh and I added some honorifics too.
Oops, I'm ranting. Haha lol.
Thank you all of you for putting up with my crap writing along with the grammar and tenses errors.
Please Review!
