I'm a college student. Do the math.
"Japanese"
"English"
Connall awoke the next morning with the gentle lapping of waves against the shoreline and the purring of an engine as Shizuka drove the Hummer across the shallowest section of canal that they could find. Connall sat up and began his morning stretches waiting for the rest of the group to wake up and to prepare for the day.
He didn't have to wait long as Shizuka made land fall with a gentle bump that woke up Takashi and Saeko, who was using Takashi as a pillow. Saya was the next to awaken and felt a strange weight on her shoulder and looking over saw Kohta using her much like Saeko and Rei were using Takashi. She quickly put an end to it by throwing poor Kohta into the opposite side of the car which woke him up. Takashi woke up Rei after Saeko pointed out the position they were in and soon the only one left sleeping was the new girl and her dog.
They stopped once the Hummer was out of the canal and back on dry land to stretch from being crammed in the Hummer and Kohta woke up the little girl so she could take a chance to stretch her legs. Once they were all out of the Hummer Connall quickly grabbed a small bag from his pack and ran up the rest of the bank to take a lookout position. Kohta followed him interested in why he wanted such a position when he had no long range weapons. When he reached the top of the embankment he saw Connall dumping the contents of the bag on the ground revealing a plethora of laser sensors and 4 motion activated lights.
Connall looked around for the best sight lines that could cover every approach with as little equipment as possible. Seeing that there were no tunnels and that they could see any one coming from along the bank he grabbed two lasers and pointed them at the bridge pylons since so nothing could bypass them and sneak up on them. He then took the motion activated light and pointed the lights towards the Hummer and the motion sensor over the lasers so that if anything moved towards them from that direction the light would activate and give them time, however limited, to prepare for what ever was coming.
Kohta looked over the setup looking for any weak points in the simplistic set-up and upon seeing non he marveled at how well the man had covered the approaches towards the group with so little equipment. Connall smirked at the chubby boy's face as he saw an array of emotions from disbelief to awe as he overlooked the setup Connall had just made. Connall got Kohta's attention and gestured that they should join the rest of the group before they started breakfast without them.
Kohta took one last look at the setup and then followed the Connall down to the group where they could be properly introduced to the newest member of their rag-tag little band. As they approached the others food was being brought out and upon seeing that they would have to make do with a cold breakfast Rei and Takashi groaned quietly remembering the breakfast that Connall had prepared for them the day before. Connall looked at the two with a smile tugging at the corners of his lips as if knowing exactly what the two were mentally fussing about.
After they had finished their canned breakfast Takashi introduced the little girl to the rest of the group. Connall sat next to Saeko to get a translation as the rest of the group introduced themselves in turn. They introduced them selves by stating their name, age, and favorite food.
"I'm Takashi, I'm 17 and I like ramen."
"I'm Rei, I'm also 17 and I like dango."
"I'm Saeko, I'm 19, and I like salad."
"I'm Connall," He began before switching to his native language with Saeko translating, "I'm 21, and I like steak."
"I'm Kohta, I'm 17, and I like pizza."
"I'M Shizuka, I'm 22 and I like oden."
"I'm Saya, I'm 18 and I like sukiyaki."
After introducing themselves they all looked at the little girl in askance of who she was.
"I'm Alice, I'm 5 and I like rain drop cake." she said causing the rest of the group to chuckle at her liking of the dessert.
After finishing their breakfast and relaxing and talking amongst themselves for a little while they all piled into the Hummer with Saeko joining Connall on the roof to avoid the cramped quarters of the interior causing him to chuckle as the group had finally discovered the second biggest annoyance of the mammoth vehicle. As they drove through the outskirts the happy atmosphere of earlier was replaced with one of anxiousness and dread as the longer they drove they continued to not happen upon a single one of Them.
Finally after 3 hours of driving they happened upon their first one who was shambling across the road. Shizuka took a right at the first road only to happen upon an entire mob of them on the street. She quickly began to take random turns trying to find a clear road only to find more and more of Them as she continued. Connall looked ahead and saw that further down the street the path became clear again at the same time as Saya. Saya told Shizuka to gun the engine and run Them over and continue on since her house was not too far away. Saeko saw something different. She saw a glint of something hanging across the road and screamed for Shizuka to stop, but it was too late.
Shizuka slammed on the brakes and turned the wheel to try and avoid whatever was on the road only to put the vehicle into a skid. Connall saw they wouldn't stop in time and tripped Saeko onto the roof from her standing position before jumping on top of her and grabbing onto the roof rack with all his strength trying to keep both of them on the roof. Those inside the Hummer were not so lucky. Not using their seatbelts they were thrown about inside the unforgiving metal chassis and all of them except Alice were bruised and bloody before they could even get out of the car and into a fight.
The zombies hearing the crash from blocks around began to converge on the vehicle. Saeko was the first to react and threw Connall from on top of her and with her wooden sword advanced on the closest of Them and began to dispatch them in an effort to give the others time to act. The rest of the group began to get their bearings inside the vehicle but it was clear that they would be useless in a fight with their current wounds.
Connall's Viewpoint
After Saeko threw me off of her I looked in the vehicle to ascertain the shape that the rest of the group was in. They picked themselves off of each other and the floor and looked around with glazed eyes and a confused look. Seeing the clear signs of concussions and with Shizuka being the only one in any shape to move since she was the only one wearing her seat belt I sighed knowing that if we survived this fight and if I wished to stay with them I would have to answer many questions that they were likely not going to like the answers to.
I hopped off the roof and saw Saeko trying to buy the rest of the group time to recover by leaping forward into the front ranks, dispatching 2 or 3 of them before retreating out of their reach. I reached under the Hummer and grabbed a cloth wrapped object that I had had since I could remember and began unwrapping it. The zombies had closed to maybe 4 meters out by the time I had fully unraveled to full blade. It was a monstrous claymore with a demonic skull at the end of the handle and runes of death, destruction, and mayhem carved into the base of the blade. It stood at 5 foot long and had an aura of death that surrounded the blade. On one side of the cross guard were the words 'Demon Prince' in Latin and on the other was a Celtic rune meaning 'Death'.
"Saeko! Fall Back!" I yelled in a tone of voice that I hadn't used since my training days. When she fell back beside me she looked at the blade with fear, awe, and another emotion that I had never seen before. "I'll handle this. Get the others through the fence with the gear. I'll meet you guys on the other side." I lied. She nodded and when she had turned around I closed my eyes and entered a meditative state.
As time slowed around me I ignored the moans of the soon-to-be-dead, I ignored the slamming of car doors and the groans of the injured. I ventured to a door that was covered in chains and locks. It was dented, scratched, and worn but still it held. And for the first time ever I reached up and broke the chains. Behind the door was a creature wreathed in chains and cloaked in shadows. I broke the chains that bound it letting it free.
It didn't move.
"What's up?" I asked, "I'm finally giving you what you want. Full control, no restrictions."
"I can't." It mumbled, "You've kept me here under your will for so long I can't do anything anymore. You have won."
"No. You have to help!" I cried, "You are the only way I can protect my friends!"
"You know me. I'm as likely to help your friends as I am to kill them."
"Then what can I do? I know I can't protect them myself."
"Then don't ask for my power. You know I've only been a place holder until you accepted yourself and your past."
"What? What do you mean?"
"I'm only a figment of your mind for you to do battle with until you were strong enough to face your fear. Will you face it? Or will you let your friends die?"
"I...I" I stammered while It looked at me. Gathering my courage and stilling my inner turmoil I looked once more upon the creature "I will. I will face my fears and conquer them.
"Then tell me. Who are you?"
Walking forward I gathered my self and stood tall. "I am Connall McLoughin. Son of the Leader of Shadows and his wife the last princess of the Land of Demons. I am the Demon Prince, He Who Hunts In the Dark. And I command you Shade, give me my power!"
As I finished my command the shade that had plagued my dreams and haunted my every battle chuckled. "As you wish my liege. Now go forth, and show the world why we are the most feared beings in existence." With that the Shade melted into the floor and my shadow returned.
"I am complete once more. I hope the others aren't here to see this." I whispered to my self before returning to the land of Reality and back to the blood soaked days there.
Upon waking the closest of Them was closing his teeth around my throat but before he could kill me my blade slashed and his head parted ways with his body. I looked back even as the pack closed in and saw that my friends were safely behind the fence. Giving a sad smile I returned my attention to the monsters that were clamoring towards me.
"This is good-bye my friends. Take care and watch each others backs." I yelled as I slashed through the necks of the first 3 zombies. "Trust no one unless they have proven themselves. And Saeko, What you have is not a curse nor is it a blessing. It is a tool and it will be whatever you make of it."
With those last words I delved deep into my self before unleashing the beast upon those that would harm me and my friends.
After his farewell Saeko's eyes widened wondering how he knew. Then she relayed most of what he said to the rest of the group. They watched in awe as he raised his head and screamed a challenge to any and all thay could hear. Saeko's knees quaked at the power held in that scream that the others seemed to not hear. Connall dashed forward into the depths of the monsters and began to cut them down like wheat before a scythe.
Kohta who was shaking off the worst of the affects of the crash stood and looked upon the death that Connall was dishing out with a look of awe. He had not known that so much carnage was possible with a simple piece of steel. As Connall continued to cut through the hoard he got farther and farther from them. Saeko, fed up with being stuck on the sidelines, ducked through the fence of wire as a group of adults with water cannons stepped up from the rear.
Saya was the first one to get treatment for her cuts and when her caretaker removed their helmet the resemblance between them showed their relationship as mother daughter. "Lets get them back to the house and get them treated." Saya's mom said.
"What about them?" Kohta asked pointing at Saeko and Connall who were surrounded by Them.
"I'll leave a team here in case they make it through. That's the best that I can do."
As they left carrying the rest of the group to the car along with their meager belongings Kohta couldn't help but hope that his friends would come back.
As Connall slipped further and further from his friends he hoped that they would forgive him as he saw a zombie from the corner of his eye come from behind and knew that he wouldn't be able to parry such an attack with his sword going the opposite direction. Then just as he finished mentally apologizing for his early death a wooden sword crushed the creatures skull form behind.
He froze in shock for a moment before returning to the fight. He knew only one person who used a wooden sword and if he was right there was no way that he was going to die in front of her. At least not before he read her the riot act for ignoring him and leaping head first into danger.
As they kept up the slaughter they reached the cross roads and were quickly surrounded since the monsters could come from all sides. Realizing their tactical mistake too late Connall cursed under his breath before seeing so stairs that they could use. He quickly relayed his plan to Saeko and they began to carve a path of carnage towards the stairs. When they reached the stairs Connall ordered Saeko to go first since she was more tired of the two and Connall followed her shortly after.
The two broke off their engagement with the monsters quickly and made their way through several streets to make sure they lost Them. "I am so gonna kill you for this shit when we are safe again." Connall threatened between breathes.
"You started it when you said that what I had was a tool not a curse." Saeko replied, "I want to know what you meant and how you knew of it when we find a place to camp."
Connall groaned as they began their way through the city trying to find a path back to the others. When they stumble across an outdoor activities shop they made their way to it to scavenge for anything they could use. After clearing the showroom floors and the ware house at the back they locked all the doors and started to search for anything of use. Connall found a hiking backpack that they could use to fit everything in that was very light and then found cooking supplies and food. He then headed for the clothing section to try and get new clothes to wear since his were covered in blood and other fluids.
Saeko found the keys to a four-wheeler that would allow them to get around easier and quicker, then she headed to the clothes section to try and find something more durable than her school uniform. As she looked through the racks she heard a small scuffling sound, grabbing her wooden sword she approached one of the dressing rooms where the noise, quiet as it was, was loudest. She prepared her self to strike and yanked open the door before bringing her sword down towards its head.
"Whoah!" Connall shouted as he dropped the new underwear that he was about to put on and raised his hands in a surrendering gesture.
Saeko was stunned at the appearance of her teammate and mortified as she ogled his naked body. Her sense of modesty quickly asserted itself as she "eeped" and quickly spun around. Connall quickly closed the door before calling through it "Sorry if I scared you.' Saeko replied "No its my fault, we had already checked for any of Them and I let myself think that one of them might have gotten through the barricades."
"Its better to be prepared than be caught off guard." Connall said as he exited the dressing room. "I'm gonna look around for anything else we might need. If you hear a noise yell and if I reply and the noise ain't me brain it."
"Yes. That's a good plan." Saeko replied as Connall grinned and walked away. As she looked for sturdy clothes to wear her mind kept going back to Connall's naked body. 'How is he so fit? Where did those scars come from? They look almost surgical.' She wondered to herself as she found some clothes before grabbing a dressing room. When she was naked she looked at her body in the mirror wondering when she would be able to take another bath like before at Shizuka's friends house.
After she had gotten dressed she met Connall at the front of the store. "Alright I have, hats, sunglasses, ammunition, guns, crossbow, binoculars, and a selection of clothes that should fit everyone for when it gets colder." All of this was crammed into a foot locker that Connall had strapped to the back of the four-wheeler. "Anything else we might need?"
"Nothing that I can think of." Saeko replied.
After checking everything again they made their way out of the store and up the road with Saeko giving Connall directions the whole way. As it became darker they decided to hole up in an abandoned temple. After parking the four-wheeler a block away and locking the footlocker they walked to the temple with the hiking back pack and locked themselves inside.
After a quick dinner of pre-packaged hiking meals warmed over a hot-hands pack. They sat listening to the wind blow amongst the trees for a few minutes before Saeko plucked up her courage and asked, "Where did you get those scars?"
Connall looked at her for a moment before saying rather evasively, "From a myriad of opponents many of whom would give you a run for your money."
Saeko scowled prettily before asking, "How did you know of my curse.?
It was Connells turn to scowl. "It's not a curse. It's a tool, and for as to how I knew you had it well it takes one to know one."
"What do you mean? How do you control it? I thought it was impossible."
"To answer that question I would have to tell you my story. It's not a pretty one. Could you handle it? Could you handle knowing what humans can do to each other if they wish?"
"To know how to control this 'tool' as you call it, Yes. Yes I could."
Connall scoffed for a moment, "Alrighty then, Settle your self down and don't interrupt. To understand this burden you must understand its beginnings. It began over 2 thousand years ago..."
Connall spoke until the wee hours of dawn. Telling tales of daring, and tales of woe. His burden began with the Vikings of old, the original berserkers. His mother could trace her heritage back through the greatest of chieftains who were also the most fell of Vikings. Men who made rivers of blood and drank from the skulls of their enemies. His father could trace his lineage back to the original ninjas of Japan, the people of the Shadow. He focused on the Vikings first telling how if they were pushed far enough they fell into a rage that would crush all that stood before them. Be it friend or foe.
That was what made the chieftains so great. They could fall into the rage and yet control who they attacked. They were the reason that in the year 1000 A.D. the Vikings were outlawed world wide. To avoid genocide they split up and joined the standing armies of the day. One day centuries later a man from those tribes joined a fight in the oriental nations. He was the most deadly warrior any one had every seen. And fearing for their lives the government hired the greatest assassin's of their time, the ninja from the Land of Shadows.
A ninja was given the assignment and went to slay the man. But for the first time since their inception, the man failed to be assassinated. They sent ninja after ninja to the man until one day three of the ninjas that they thought were dead came back. They told the tale of the man fighting them but never delivering the final blow. The princess of the land was intrigued as this was a time when cold blooded murder was the norm. She left her home that night without telling anyone of her destination. She found the man several days later in a tavern and wooed him. She led him to her room and laid with him. When he was asleep she lifted her knife and brought it down to his throat but his hand leapt up and halted her in her tracks.
After asking her why she tried to kill him she told him of the contract on his life. He merely smiled at her and released his hold on her. He knew of the contract but he enjoyed fighting. He said that if they continued to send men after him he would continue to fight. The contract merely served to help him get the fights that he wished for. Stunned at his reply she left and went home.
A week later her father found the man and with a platoon of his best men he attacked the man in a rage. It was the hardest fight of the mans life. After defeating all the men but the father he asked why they attacked in a group instead of one at a time like was the norm for assassinations. The father replied that it was no longer about the contract but familial honor. He had killed his daughter so his life was forfeit. Greatly confused the man said that he had let the daughter go almost a fortnight ago. The father looked into the mans eyes and seeing no sign of deceit believed that the man was telling the truth.
The father then began to rage that the emperor would pay. He was the only one who could make his daughter disappear so easily. The emperor had wanted his daughter for years but the father had always declined the offers of marriage. What better way to get both the man he was afraid of dead and the prize of the ninja leaders daughter. Hearing this the warrior was furious to the point that his aura was visible. He had taken a personal vow many years ago to end rape no matter how long it took. The warrior stepped up to the aggrieved father and bowed to one knee before drawing his short sword.
The warrior drew the sword across his arm before grabbing the ninjas right arm in an unbreakable grip and slicing into it with ease. Grabbing leaders arm he began to recite a prayer and at the end of the prayer he looked the aged ninja in the eyes and said "This I swear to you, as long as I draw breath and as long as my blood flows upon this earth your daughter will be brought home. No matter what is in my way, for there are not enough demons in hell, angels in heaven, or humans on earth that will stop me from rescuing your daughter. I, Ailis Cael, so swear this."
Upon completion of his pledge Ailis left with his weapons and armor and marched upon the capital. He sliced through the front gates and then massacred all that stood between him and the emperor. After killing his soldiers the warrior gave a simple ultimatum to the emperor, give me the princess of the ninja or watch as your kingdom falls forever.
The emperor caved and told Ailis where the princess was, and upon finding her he decapitated the emperor in front of his son with the threat that if he tried anything he would meet the same fate along with his entire kingdom. And so the warrior rescued the princess and after returning her the leader invited him to join their clan. Ailis accepted and many years later married the princess that had tried to kill him.
Those were my great-grandparents. They are the ones that gave me the Rage as we call it. As for my scars, They are another story entirely.
When I was a boy I was trained on how to kill, with the least amount of effort for assassinations by my father, and how to fight against entire army's from my mother. I was gifted in the art of death gaining my sword at the age of 6, Connell said as he patted his sword. Then it all changed my families compound was attacked and even with my great skill there were simply too many for me to fight against. I was separated and overwhelmed.
I was forced to work for an organization known as Vigilate Mortem which is Latin for Death Watch. They wanted to control the world and the easiest way to do that was to put their own puppets into leadership. Which is where I came in, They threatened my family and forced me to assassinate whoever they wanted whenever they wanted. Whenever I even slightly disobeyed them they tortured me. I've been burned, whipped, beaten, starved, and worse. I was stuck in that life until about 3 weeks ago. I found out that they never had any of my family captive. They lost over three-quarters of their forces just getting me. I was young and easily swayed to try and protect my parents. Once I found out I grabbed my sword and rose up against my captors, they had become lax over the years believing me broken. Stupid fools, my family may bend but we never break.
I was trying to find my family when this plague broke out. It would have taken me at least 3 months just to find my family with the world recording every single move people make, now unless I stumble upon them I will never find them again. And that's not to mention that Vigilate Mortem is still looking for me. They have more resources and assets than you could possibly imagine. If you see this symbol, Connall said as he drew a celtic knot with another celtic knot inverted inside it, they are my clan. But this symbol, he said as he drew a stylized heart that looked much like the symbol on the Full Metal Alchemist cloak, they are Vigilate Mortem. Do not hesitate around them, just run, if they try to stop you kill them for they will show you no mercy.
As he wound down from his story telling he saw that Saeko was in shock as to the history of his family and his own. When she gathered her wits she looked at Connall with a new fire in her eyes.
"Can you teach me how to harness the Rage?" Saeko asked.
"I can try. I've only really harnessed it once and that was earlier today."
"That's ok. Anything you can teach me I can use. After all its my families motto, 'Take what's useful, discard what's not, add what is uniquely yours'.
"If that's what you want. But for now lets get some rest. We need to find our friends again in the morning."
Saeko smiled knowing that she was able to bring Connall back to the group. She would have missed him too much otherwise. She thought with a blush as she slipped off into the arms of Morpheus.
