Dark Shadow

Ch.10

Rikaru

The sun was high, everything sizzled and wilted in the heat, all the plants had lost their early morning dew, and the white flowers shrunk, and drooped into the shadows. Riku felt his tounge had become dry, and rough against his mouth. He wiped perspiration from his brow, his clothes stuck to his skin like honey sticks to leaves. His legs were burning, and his heart throbbed, but he dared not slow his pace to fall behind Naiou, he could only watch and feel his feet throb as she moved gracefully through the grove. Her feet moved with the elegance, and swiftness of a young doe.

Riku finally sighed as he saw the village gates approaching, his jaw dropped as he realized that the gate was actually two blue, white veined, stone pillars. The pillars were carved with all sorts of beasts, mystical, terrifying, harmless, and more. The pillars were about two times his length; he looked up to see a white, stone sign, edged with gold, deep engraved letters were crafted into the sign.

Welcome to the village of peace, no bringer's of

Death and fear are welcome here.

For this is the home of our hero, Rikaru.

Riku's brow furrowed as he walked under the sign. He had never heard or been to this place before, his eyes widened in awe as he approached a black, and obsidian statue. The statue was on top of a circular fountain; water quietly flowed from four, small, square holes underneath the statues, white ring.

The water rippled and danced in the sunlight, shining like a thousand fire lit starts in the night sky. Riku looked up into the statue's face, it appeared to be a young man, and he was covered in some type of dark, sleek armor. On his arms, and breast plate were, silver heart shaped symbols. His face seemed, serious, determined, his eyes seemed to have a sad look above his pointed nose. Riku felt his heart leaped as he scanned the weapon this warrior carried; he instantly recognized the dragon wing shaped keyblade, the lone piercing, dragon eye on the hilt. The eye rested in between a dragon, and angel wing. This blade was too familiar; riku's mind began to race as he slowly walked away.

"He has my keyblade! But how can that be? Who was this person?"

He quickly turned back into the bustling crowd, he felt his heart drop. Naiou had disappeared! His eyes darted back and forth, his heart raced, he was about to call for her when he heard a heart-retching shriek came from behind him.

He shot around to find a small girl had fallen and had scraped her leg against the scratchy, rough pavement. He sighed as he watched Naiou gently help the girl to her feet through her crying, teary face. Naiou smiled as she wrapped a soft, bandage around the small cut on the girl's knee. The girl paused her crying as she saw riku approach them, she quickly took off into the crowd as he reached them.

"Sorry… I didn't mean to scare her off." Riku said shyly.

"It's alright; she hurts herself all the time. And she really doesn't like strangers.

"Hey, Naiou? I was just wondering… who's that statue of?"

Naiou's eyes widened, she started turn away before riku gently grabbed her shoulder, and a sad look came into her eyes.

"Riku… I don't think-"

"Please Naiou, I need to know. And you're the only one that knows… that I can trust to tell me the truth."

Naiou somberly nodded, she gently grabbed his arm as she pulled him down to sit beside her against a red, cobbled wall. She sighed as she brushed some lose bangs away from her eyes.

"Riku… the person you saw is our hero. The story about a simple, disfavored boy that was a lot more than he seemed, everyone here knows the story. You see… the story goes, that a young man was born here, right in this very village. His parents had come here, wearing only ripped, torn, and scraggly clothes covered in dirt, and black ash. They said they had escaped their village as it was destroyed by an unknown enemy, and the mother was very heavy with child. The people here were kind to them and the husband was a very good healer, and studied in medicine, so soon they were thriving as one of the kindest and richest families here. But tragedy soon fell as an unknown man went and killed both parents a few months after the infant was born, he was passed along to the orphanage and had no recollection about his honorable, and wealthy blood line. The boy's true name was never known, so the people called him Ri, because-"

"wait a second!" riku interrupted. "Ri?" who the heck would name a kid "Ri" I mean if I had-"

Riku fell silent as he saw the cold, harsh look like cold, golden flames ignite in naiou's eyes, his cheeks turned red like little cherries as he coughed then shyly gestured her to continue.

"as I was saying…" she said with a touch of annoyance. "you see… "Ri" means rat in the ancient language, because he would always scavenge the streets like a small, thin rat. As the Ri grew into his teens he met a shadow being, we don't know what they truly look like, but there always dressed in black, and they come out of nothingness, as if they were born from the dark void. Ri wanted to flee, but this ancient shadow pulled, lured him in somehow. Soon hw disappeared from this place, and wasn't seen for years. It was during a terrible storm, the night was cold, clouds swirled darkly, and the wind was strong enough to lift young bodies off the ground and send them to the swirling abyss in the sky, never to return. Black shadows came from everywhere, killing and ripping out hearts, un challenged, not afraid of our best warriors, soon the people knew they would all die… no hope, no life, no escape… only death remained in many of their minds and hearts. Then through the darkness he came, he wore foreign armor, and wielded an extraordinary weapon, the shadows screamed as he approached, they tried to flee but he cut down five of them as he charged forward. He showed them no mercy, no sense of pity, compassion, or sympathy. His eyes glowed with a kind of darkness. Not like the darkness of the night or evil darkness, it was like a sacred, mysterious kind of darkness. He banished the shadows back to their world, soon the sky cleared; the sun finally warmed everything on the cold soil. My people kneeled down to him in praise and worship, He didn't take any of this praise, he only wanted to help rebuild the place he was born in. so to this day that boy is no longer known as "Ri" he is known as "Rikaru" which means the hero of darkness."