The Soul of a Warrior
By: Tellemicus Sundance
Chapter 6--Choices
"You have grown remarkably," Master Riyo stated clearly.
Ulrich stood once again before the line of old men. The hot summer sun beat down on his bare shoulders as a cold breeze raced passed him. However, this time was different: the entire village seemed to have gathered to witness Ulrich's tests.
Shrugging off his discomfort of being the center of attention yet again, he forced himself to listen to Riyo whom was continuing. "Your skills have surpassed all our expectations. You have shown yourself to be an honest individual who one can trust. You have passed all our conditions to prove yourself worthy of returning to your old home, except one. You must pass this final test before you are allowed to leave."
A sinking feeling opened up in Ulrich's stomach. He instinctively knew that this final condition was going to be something that he would hate to complete, much less consider. After a glance at Taki, he saw her face drop slightly. She knew what it was, and she wouldn't tell him despite his asking her multiple times.
"Your final test is," Master Riyo paused momentarily to take a breath. That moment seemed like eternity to Ulrich. "… Mortal combat against a person of your skill level and… only one can walk away."
Ulrich stared at Riyo, his face as stoic as he could manage. In his mind processed the information that was just given to him. Mortal combat? He thought with bitterness. So in simple terms, you want me to kill or be killed… KILL A PERSON! NO WAY!
It was only after an echo died that he realized that he'd spoken, or rather shouted, his thoughts. From the confused expressions of many of the villagers, Ulrich was realized that he'd spoken in his native tongue. Though many didn't understand his words, they quickly understood his attitude.
"Do you accept?" asked Master Maki.
The graying old man suppressed a grin as Ulrich shot a deadly glare at him. Though he'd never admit it, Maki was rather impressed with the boy's motivation, determination, and perseverance from what he'd seen of him in the training field. The boy's spirit was powerful yet he had no guidance as to how to use it.
"NO!" Ulrich snapped. "I will not kill anyone! Not even you, you overused pile of horseshit!"
The villagers suddenly looked away. They knew where this was going; it was inevitable. Taki closed her eyes and looked away from her friend. He had just refused to take the final test and that was forgivable; but not showing respect to the council wasn't.
Standing up awkwardly in the loose sand, Ulrich glared up at the men standing above him. They had just shoved him into a sandpit that was easily three times deeper than he was tall. It was his punishment.
Master Maki walked forward into Ulrich's line-of-vision and smiled. Of all the things that changed with time, a boy's respect and humility were often changed. While most developed these morals slowly, others needed reminders where their places were. So this was the 'reward' for a warrior-would-be whose arrogance had grown.
"Let me out of here right now!" Ulrich shouted. His fists were clenched so tightly that his knuckles were pale. But other than that, his face and body language were blank.
"You have shown severe disrespect to an elder and a warrior," Maki said. "Thus you shall remain here until deemed otherwise. Consider yourself lucky, boy. Normally I kill those who insult me!" Then he walked away. It took only a moment before loud shouting and swearing erupted from the pit.
After a few minutes, Ulrich's enraged voice died away. Sitting down roughly on the sandy floor, he forced himself to breathe deeply and slowly. It was pointless to scream and shout like he had been moments ago. As he sat there in the moist shade of the pit, his anger was dampened by its coolness. Within moments, he realized just how immature he had been acting; he deserved this punishment.
Resting his hands on his knees, Ulrich's eyes slowly closed. A calm darkness filled his mind. Concentrating, he focused on the sounds, smells, and feel of his new surroundings. Peace quickly began to fill him. Then, unbidden memories flooded into his mind.
Up on the surface, Taki walked forward. She knelt down at the edge and peered over. Quickly finding the lone boy inside, she saw him as he entered into a meditative stance.
Smiling slightly, she watched him for a moment. When his face was in the shadows with his quickly growing hair partially covering it, he was awfully cute. It was painful for her look at him. She knew that he had already found the girl that held his heart; it was painstakingly obvious from the way he was always reluctant to share her company. It hurt her so much because she knew that she'd fallen in love with him the moment she'd first seen him.
Sighing to herself, she stood and walked over to a nearby tree. Sitting down, she looked around at her familiar surroundings. She was in the nearest corner of the training field to the village.
The pit that Ulrich-san was in had always served two purposes to the villagers. It was a perfect training simulation of how to escape a deep hole or trap. But it was used much more for the use of solitary confinement; everyone was put down there eventually: even herself.
He was in darkness. It was a cold, lonely feeling. An evil presence loomed somewhere nearby; he couldn't see it, but he knew it was there. It was always there, watching and waiting. Now, however, it had found him. Alone, he was no match against this deadly foe. He knew that he had to find someone, anyone, before the darkness consumed him.
Looking around, he spotted the flicker of a light in the distance. Sprinting as fast as he could toward, the light grew in size and brightness. Squinting against the blinding glare, he glimpsed several silhouettes that suddenly appeared in the light. There was one, two, three, four…five of them and all looked familiar.
Just as he was a few paces away from them, his body suddenly gave under the strain of his sprint. Stumbling, he tried to reach out for their aid as they lunged to his assistance. Just before he could get hold of them, the ground suddenly gave out from under him.
He fell. He fell back into the darkness, far and fast from the light and silhouettes. He knew he was falling but he didn't feel any wind rushing around him, only that the evil presence was growing continually stronger. Then, all at once, he saw a red symbol. It was symbol he'd not seen in almost two months, but he recognized it instantaneously.
XANA!
Opening his eyes quickly, Ulrich looked around him in fear. A cold sweat made his body feel clammy and the night air was ruthless. The gentle sounds of the night enveloped him and promised that all was at peace, but he knew things weren't. Xana had found him. He just knew it somehow. Even now, he could almost sense the evil eye upon him.
"About time you came to, boy," growled a voice dangerously.
Looking up to the surface of the pit, Ulrich instantly spotted the silhouette of Master Maki. In the limited light of the moon, he could see the man was clearly ecstatic for some reason. It was rather unnerving to Ulrich.
"We can leave you in here for days, boy," Maki said coldly. "Or you can end your time here by accepting the challenge…Do you accept?"
Fighting back his newly awakened anger, Ulrich forced himself to look Maki in the eye. It would not do to appear weak before this man ever again. It was as he was thinking this that his stomach growled hungrily. Instantly contradicting his previous mindset, he closed his eyes and tried to force himself to ignore the emptiness of his stomach.
Looking down toward the ground, he thought out his options quickly. He could and probably would be trapped in this pit for at least a few more days, enduring starvation and thirst, or he could swallow his pride and accept. To choose to continue his torment as his pride was telling him to could easily lead to his own undoing. But to choose the latter of his options, he would allow himself to become a murderer! I will not sink that low! he screamed at himself.
Seeing the look of grim determination on the boy's face was answer enough for Maki. "Perhaps in a few days, you'll change your mind," he stated as he turned and walked away.
Sitting down roughly on the sandy floor, Ulrich ground his hands into the dirt. He could go a few days without food and water. As his body begged for rest and relaxation, he slowly laid himself down. His last thought before sleep claimed him was that he would his training regime in the morning.
(A/N) Things don't seem to be in Ulrich's favor not now, huh? Just you wait 'til the next chapter! You're going to get a gentle reminder of someone important in this world.