Chapter 1
I gasped as I found myself swinging my sword down, only for it to smash into another blade. I was confused for a split second before I remembered where I was and what I was doing. I grimaced inwardly and did my best to rouse myself from the nightmare I was trapped in. When I found myself unable to escape, I groaned and resigned myself to live through my mistake once more.
"Not again…"
The scene was the same every time. Thick black clouds tumbled and roared above. Lightning flashed through the clouds, briefly lighting up the small clearing I was standing in. Across from me, a familiar figure stood, their cloak and sword covered in fresh blood. I heard my heart beat loudly in my ears.
Tha-thump.
I swung my blade again, causing red hot chips of metal to shoot off into the air. I was covered in a shower of sparks before they were extinguished by the downpour of rain. We continued to exchange blows for a few minutes, eliciting grunts and snarls from each other as we struggled in the ankle deep mud. Despite the slippery ground, I didn't lose my footing and moved quickly, twisting around my opponent with grace and speed. We met again, our faces inches apart as we struggled, before I shoved her sword to the side and attempted to get a quick jab in. She saw this coming and ducked low at the last second, only to slip in the mud. I could hear my heart beat faster, straining my chest.
Tha-thump. Tha-thump.
I lunged forward with a low strike that was caught by a quick parry. This caught me off guard and it was followed by a strong kick that hit me in my stomach, launching me back into the ground. After a few moments of tumbling through the mud, I oriented myself and rolled to my feet with my sword at the ready, angled slightly downwards in a defensive posture. Mud fell from my body in thick chunks, and my hands trembled with fear as dark black and purple energy seeped out of my opponent. A wind blew violently through the clearing, pushing back the hood of the other figure. Long black hair whipped back with the wind and revealed the face of a young woman. Aside from her smooth features and pale skin, the most noticeable feature I saw were her eyes. Yellow, piercing orbs with narrow slits glared out at the world, bereft of life or consciousness. I could barely keep my focus as the emotional strain started to drown out other thoughts.
Tha-thump. Tha-thump. Tha-Thump.
I was tired. Days of fighting had left me fairly weak and drained of chakra. I gripped my weapon tighter, my heart clenching inside of my chest, and called out to her desperately. I could hear the strain and sorrow in my own voice, further reminding me of what was about to happen.
"Luna... stop what you're doing! Can't you see what you've done?! You've betrayed everyone you were supposed to protect! Doesn't that mean anything to you?!"
She ignored my pleas and lifted her weapon with a hiss. She then broke into a blindingly fast sprint towards me. Realizing I only had a moment to react, I drew in a deep breath and let it out slowly, settling into a calm and ready state, prepared to do what was necessary. I stood still, my own sword ready, prepared to strike when the time was right. I could feel tears start to work their way down my face, mixing in with the rain that was already there.
Tha-thump. Tha-thump. Tha-thump. Tha-thump.
It only took a split second for her to close the gap, her sword aimed for my chest. I did two things at the same time, in a last ditch effort to save my own life and possibly hers: I cast a small wind justu that pushed her blade to the side a few inches and then twisted my body into a better position the moment she reached me. I thrust my blade forward and our swords met flesh. I felt a sharp pain pierce my shoulder and I shuddered as small flecks of blood flew into the air. I tried to breathe, but time seemed to slow and I stood quietly, frozen in place. I noticed blood begin to stain the chest of the woman in front of me and I could feel warm blood dripping down my arm. Normally I would have been in pain, but it was overshadowed by the icy numbness that coursed through my veins.
I watched Luna as the purple and black glow that surrounded her faded away, causing her to pull back. I let go of my sword, leaving it in her chest as blood began to spill out of the wound. She coughed, gasping for air as her once yellow eyes regained some of their former color. Luna's eyes widened in shock and she dropped her blade. Realization dawned on her face and she feebly attempted to dislodge the blade in her heart. When that failed, she looked up and met my eyes, sending a wave of guilt ripping through my heart. A small confused frown crossed her lips and she gurgled out three words, blood and bile at her lips.
"Kiran.. But… Why..."
Luna fell back and I tried to grab her. I staggered and missed by inches due to my exhaustion and the mud around my feet. A wordless scream emanated from my lips as I cried out, watching as she fell further away from me. I couldn't lose her here. Right as she hit the ground, a large darkness shot up and consumed her. I stared at the ground in shock and soon after, the entire land was quickly engulfed in a thick black cloak that spread out from the ground in front of me. Dark hands emerged from the black sea, accompanied by the sounds of subdued and desperate voices that made my skin start to crawl. I began to panic as a few words made themselves heard over the whispers.
"Wretch!"
"Monster!"
"Traitor!"
THA-THUMP. THA-THUMP. THA-THUMP. THA-THUMP. THA-THUMP.
The cacophony of voices continued to grow louder and louder as the hands drew closer to me. I put my hands over my ears in an attempt to drown out the voices and screamed out in frustration and pain.
"N-no, please! You don't understand!"
Before I could move, a large hand shot up and wrapped itself around my throat. I choked, my words caught inside of my throat. I grabbed the hand as it lifted me off of the ground and desperately tried to pull it away. It refused to move and soon, other hands grabbed onto other parts of my body. I tried to kick and squirm as a deep chill began to spread throughout my body, but nothing I did was able to free me from their grasp. Slowly, the hands dragged me down into the thick blackness and my vision began to blur. I felt the strain on my lungs as I fought for a final breath, but I realized that there was nothing I could do. As my vision filled with black and I faded out of consciousness, a deep booming voice laughs to himself in the distance. Everything went silent before one final, terrifying scream ripped through my head.
"MURDERER!"
Updated 5/29/2021 - Minor Grammar and Spelling fixes