Xenudah was sitting in a dark cave, huddled over a purple fire from his powers over shadow. He was curled over, with his forehead in his hands. He was alone, without his father, all because of that blasted First Spinjitzu Master. He had done nothing wrong, and yet he had still been abandoned. He had been trapped here in this dark cave for over 60 years, all because of the First Spinjitzu Master. He hadn't really been expecting his father to find him. That was impossible. He had been here alone for over half a century. But he still hoped.
This cave that his father had locked him away in was gloomy and cold. It was a cave under a mountain, and a large cave at that. Xenudah decided to try and think about something else, something pleasant. He was reminded of his father. The very thought of him brought a small smile to his face. He recalled the time before he was trapped here. He remembered all those brave adventures with his father. He remembered his stories. But then the memories turned to his father's betrayal and abandonment. He slammed his fists into the ground and shouted in anger. "CURSE YOU, FATHER! YOU DID THIS TO ME!" He wanted Yakunan to suffer.
What had he done wrong? He had been an excellent son. A good student, a great fighter. Yet his father, though it was never truly his fault, left him for dead nonetheless. Xenudah wasn't done with the painful memories, and he continued to recall them.
His mind was spinning, and the memories flooded. He didn't really know what he was doing right now; he was just trying to distract himself. He didn't want to reflect on his memories. He almost wanted them to consume him. After all, what would he have to reflect on after what his father had done? He was not supposed to be alone; he had a father, and yet he was alone. His eyes were closed as he remembered the memories, and they burned in his mind. Xenudah snarled, and his anger grew.
In the darkest depths of his mind, a fire began to glow brighter and brighter, consuming his very thoughts, fueled by the hatred he had towards the First Spinjitzu Master who had likely killed his own father. Xenudah could sense it. He could sense that the memories were about to consume his soul. He didn't care at this point, he wanted his memories to consume him, and let him forget. In the end, he remembered one thing that caused him to snap.
A warm embrace, a loving smile.
His father.
He opened his eyes, and all he saw was darkness. The light that he saw was emanating from himself. He didn't know he could do this. He began to scream, a high piercing shriek that echoed within the cavern. After a few moments, the strange burning light subsided and subdued. Yet Xenudah was still panting hard.
He stood up and looked around. Where once was a dim cave, was now glowing purple. Xenudah looked down at the floor. It was glowing. He looked around, wondering if perhaps he had imagined it. He recalled feeling the creepy sensation of the melting ice shore, but it didn't feel as cold as the terrain he could see now. He started to walk away, in what seemed to be a westerly direction. He felt as if he was walking through the remains of an avalanche. He recalled the cold of the ice, and the bitter scent as it flowed along with the snow. Yet the surrounding darkness, and the light from within him cast it in a much different light. What he saw was now warm and glowing purple. But these were not the timid flames that could be seen in a normal fire. These were bright and purple.
Then, a bright light flashed and everything went dark.
Xenudah had been in the cave for decades, but he looked just as young as he did when he was banished. Granted, that was the dragon part of him that caused him to look like that, but still. He let out a shuddering sigh, letting his emotions come forth. He missed his father dearly. He didn't know what to do; his world was crashing down all around him. His entire life felt like it was falling apart. No matter where his thoughts took him, they always led back to his father, and it hurt far too much.
He let out a shuddering sob as he collapsed to his knees, curling into a ball, his wings folding to cover him up, swallowing him up like the shadows which he wielded. He was so undeniably scared about what the future would hold now that his father wasn't by his side.
His father…
The thought of his paternal guardian sent another wave of despair through his soul.
He felt so lost and alone, not knowing how to handle the loss of his father. He shivered and hunched forward, his entire being aching. He was broken.
He felt as if his very reason for existing was just to protect the ones he loved. He wasn't supposed to leave, but he had. His father had vanished without a trace.
Xenudah Akurai took a shaky breath and forced himself to stand up, huddling over the fire he had created for himself.
He needed to do something. He couldn't keep going on like this. He needed to move. He needed to do something other than sitting here and wallow in his despair.
But he just felt so weak, and he hated that weakness itself. He needed to get his mind off of his father, because the pain was nearly unbearable. The truth was that he knew it was ridiculous to be so weak over his father, but this was how he was and there was no changing that. Xenudah was never one to be strong on his own, and he knew that, but he knew his father would abandon him. Yakunan had never left for this long, and without a word to his child. Something just didn't seem right.
It made him hiss with rage, and he began to stalk around his cave, his soul deeply aching.
There was nothing he could do but wait. He was sure that his father would eventually return. Yakunan loved him too much to just up and leave so suddenly. But Xenudah wasn't sure how long that would be. And the truth was that it didn't matter. He might not even be able to see him ever again. His world was crumbling around him.
It was hard to think of anything else but his father's disappearance, and he was struggling to keep his mind off of it. He knew that it was what was stressing him the most, and if he didn't get his mind off of it, the dragonoid would quickly swallow him up and he would be lost. He knew that the world was a cruel place, and he had survived long enough to know that, but he couldn't bear to think of living without his father. It was unfair, far too unfair.
This was just too much.
His eyes stung, and he felt the hot tears rushing down his face. He curled up into a ball, his tail wrapped around his forelegs. He sniffled, a low, faint cry of rage, sadness, and despair erupting from his lungs.
Xenudah forced himself to regain his composure. He pushed himself to take deep breaths through his nose, calming himself down. He knew he had to be strong and not let his sorrow consume him. He couldn't let himself go down this path. He knew that he had too much to look forward to. He could see it. He needed to be strong for all that. And yet he felt like he was being crushed into the ground.
It didn't matter; he just needed to be strong.
He just didn't know what to do.
Blinded by his own despair, he had no idea that he was so close to solving the puzzle that had been decimating him for far too long. He hadn't even noticed the shadow and the open mouth of the cave
Xenudah shivered in the cold misty air, curling against the walls of the cave, and rolled onto his back just in time to see his dear father watching him. He recognized the navy blue eyes, like a swirling ocean typhoon.
But his father was different. Instead of the dragon he thought his father was, in his place stood a human with jet black hair and a wrinkled face. He wore a dark blue kimono with purple and magenta dragons swirling up the sides.
"F-Father…" Xenudah gasped, his entire body shaking as he spoke.
"Xenudah…" Yakunan replied, reaching up to carefully brush his son's hair in reassurance.
It was definitely his father's voice, but the dragonoid did not want to believe it. He wasn't sure what this could be, but this wasn't the way that this was supposed to happen. This wasn't the way things were supposed to go. He let out a piercing shriek as he scrambled back, further into the cave, his wings flaring out and his tail wrapped around his body.
"Please… Calm down... It's me..."
"Why are you–" Xenudah stuttered, unsure of what he was going to ask.
"I'm sorry…" Yakunan said, his eyes beginning to water. "I'm sorry for ever leaving you..."
"What is going on? How did you end up here? I thought you had left me for good!" Xenudah demanded, eyes glowing a bright indigo in warning. "You weren't supposed to leave!" he snapped. "And for this long! You were supposed to keep me safe!"
"I'm sorry..." Yakunan whispered, lowering his eyes to the ground.
Xenudah struggled to his feet, uncertainty brimming in his eyes. He didn't know what to think, but he felt…heated. He felt as if he was on fire from within. "You… You were never going to come back for me, were you? You were going to abandon me!" he cried. His heart was breaking as he tore his eyes away from his father. He felt like he was going to cry again.
"That's not true..." Yakunan said softly, a tempest of emotions raging within him.
"Don't you lie to me! I hate you for leaving me alone like this! I'm terrified of living like this!" Xenudah snarled, his fists clenching and his eyes glowing a brighter blue. He struggled to keep his emotions at bay. "Why did you leave like that? I hate you!" he shouted, throwing a punch at his father.
"Xenudah! You don't mean that!" Yakunan said, taking the blow to the face.
"Don't touch me!" Xenudah hissed, shoving him away. He couldn't believe his own words. He didn't want to believe them. He tried to convince himself that this wasn't what he was feeling, but he was too blinded by his emotions to care.
"But you wanted to see me!"
"What were you thinking!? You left me alone with no one to take care of me! You abandoned me!" Xenudah screamed.
"I'm sorry! I never wanted to leave!" his father said. The dragonoid was stunned by his words; he stood there in wonderment, reading his words and trying to understand their meaning. "I never wanted to leave you."
"Then why did you?" Xenudah asked, his voice breaking as he spoke. "I-I thought you died!"
"Look, Xenu…" Yakunan took a deep breath grasping his son's hands in his own. "I was trying to keep you safe while I battled Hikari, but what I didn't realize was that when I overwhelmed him with the stone army, he split the land in two. He trapped me on the other island and I didn't have a choice. I wanted to come back, to be here for you, but–"
"What are you saying?" Xenudah asked, his eyes narrowing and his soul turning ice cold. "You left me to face the pain and trouble by myself? You thought it would be easier for you than staying here for me?"
"I didn't have a choice, Xenudah" Yakunan said quietly, shame welling deep within him. "A-And I should have known better than to leave you alone..." he continued, despair welling deep inside of him, threatening to overtake everything he knew. If he hadn't done that, Xenudah wouldn't feel abandoned. He wouldn't feel so lonely and afraid. He wouldn't feel the way he did right now…
"Don't talk to me! Don't try to apologize! You're only making it worse!" Xenudah snarled, turning away.
"Xenu… I'm sorry…" Yakunan said through choked sobs, as he was overcome with regret. "I can't believe I did that…" He sank to the floor, burying his face into his hands. "I can't believe…I did that…"
"What am I supposed to do now? Am I supposed to just forget everything and forgive you? I-I can't believe it!" Xenudah cried, pacing around the cavern. "Everything that I have been through is all because of you alone!"
"You were and still are too much of a comfort to me… I wanted to stay, but I couldn't…" Yakunan said. His voice was barely audible as he spoke. "But now that I'm here, you are the one that I want to protect."
"Me? Why am I not good enough for you?" Xenudah asked, his voice trembling.
"What?" Yakunan asked, looking up in disbelief. His eyes widened, and his heart raced as he stared at the stars above him. He wasn't going to say what he thought he was going to say. No, not to his own son. He wasn't going to say those words… "No, Xenu…"
"What about your promise to me? You said you would do everything you could to keep me safe! Not for yourself– Don't you dare do this to me!" Xenudah snapped, glaring at his father. He couldn't stay in the same room as this man. He just couldn't!
"I was afraid..."
"Of what?" Xenudah asked, his voice rising with anger. He chuckled bitterly. "Of what? Are you afraid of me? You should be; I'm nothing more than a threat to you now. As long as you are breathing, I can keep coming after you!" Xenudah shouted.
"Xenu…" Yakunan pleaded. "I don't want to hurt you…"
"You're NOTHING to me!" Xenudah hissed, his eyes blazing with anger as he shoved his father to the side, flying out of the cave without another word.