Chapter 2

Festival of Lights

Dawn. The people of Nyte were busy with preparing for their annual festival. The whole town got into the spirit of the season. Every year carts full of games, foods, and exotic trinkets litter the streets of this small town. They celebrated the most common thing the rest of the world takes for granted; sunlight. It only graced them for one day a year. An atmospheric disturbance prevented any light from reaching their country. Outsiders called it The Falling. Due to this natural event the place became to be known as The Country of Night. Many people never enter it because of the overwhelming presence it has. It takes determination and great will to go there. Many believe it is a trivial concept, but they all say that until it becomes shown to them. The light and dark doesn't gradually coincide with each other. You just come to a wall of darkness that stretches high into the sky, As if the sun were mocking the Earth by showing itself everywhere on the planet except for one spot. But like everywhere else on the planet people lived there. Since the beginning of human history, they always have been there. Over the years evolution gave them a gift others didn't have. Their eyes were naturally attuned to darkness. The inhabitants had no need for any light; they saw the night as clearly as most people see on a cloudless day. That's why they celebrated the sun and its life giving rays when they could. The scent of puffy (a tiny nocturnal creature that feeds on small insects) filled the air as venders served food and presented games to children. The food was mostly animals and plants which they ate all the time. Offerings were free on the day of the festival and they all took advantage of the daytime, either drinking or playing with kids.

One family didn't have the luxury. Their home was one the outskirts of the village. A man paced himself around his home awaiting information about his wife. His spouse was in labor and it had been a troublesome pregnancy. Many times his wife was ill and on most days couldn't get out of her bed. He worried that his child might not be able to enter this world and that his wife might leave him for her next life. He knew he wouldn't be able to take the loss of them both. Unable to stop uneasiness he fidgeted with a cup of hot sable leaf (a plant whose fluids produce a sweet nectar when heated) tea. He heard his aunt, the midwife, enter the room and he asked.

-- How are they?

-- They are both fine Jai, so stop worrying and sit down.

His feelings dropped as hard as a bag of wet mud and he gulped the rest of his beverage. His aunt handed him his beautiful baby boy. The child opened his eyelids and he thought his saw the baby's eyes in a different form and shape other than normal. His thoughts ran rampant as he thought his child was deformed.

--What's wrong with his eyes?

The midwife looked at the child and dismissed the statement she had heard. He glanced at his offspring and the eyes were that of a normal child, white.

-- What are you taking about you know all newborns eyes are white. The color comes in after a few weeks.

-- Yeah, I must really be losing it.

Jai suddenly stared at the door as did his aunt. He pulled up his sleeve and removed a gauntlet which he always wore. After he handed it to his kin, she took the child from him and left the room. The man readied himself and the door busted open. The scent of blood and the cries of his clan arrived at his home and the same time as shinobi. They looked at each other and the ninja came at him with a life time of training. Jai skillfully dodged the blade of his opponent several times, before they broke from their engagement.

-- Who are you? What do you want from us?

Jai asked with sternness, but the ninja said nothing before slamming his hands together as he tried to perform a jutsu. At a speed the ninja couldn't match Jai struck his enemy with a hard blow to the center of his chest. Blood spat through a mask which the assassin had worn on his face. His rib cage collapsed inward and he was flung far into a wall behind him. Striking the surface with enough force, he broke through and was surrounded with rocky cement as he landed. Air quickly left his body and so did his life.

The sound of a scream drew Jai into the next room. His bed was lying covered in blood along with his wife. His eyes widened as his saw the horrible wounds in her chest and face. The sounds of gurgling blood came escaping her mouth. His aunt at his feet suffered a similar fate, and he began searching for his child his anger reaching points he didn't know he had. The stench of death overwhelmed him so much that he didn't hear the loud chirpings of birds. A hand protruded from his abdomen and his felt warmness wash over his lower half. Jai's legs gave out as his blood caressed them with its crimson, silky touch. Collapsing in a pool of his own blood Jai's life left him with thoughts of his son on his mind. An unseen ninja stood there staring at his bloody arm, contemplating what he had done. The guilt of his acts weighed heavily his mind as it always does.

-- I'm sorry.

Through the mask the ninja saw the life of his victims through the house. He went from room to room in a state of awe. He could tell that they had a nice quiet peaceful life. Drawings hung on the walls showing portraits of smiling faces, occasions, and picnics. The home was nicely kept. Everything in order, the furs under his feet felt nice, warm under the heat of a nearby fireplace. The ninja removed his mask and tears began falling down, the hairs on the floor were matted down with wetness as the ninja regretted what he had done. He could tell by the toys around him that the couple was expecting a child. Imprints of the fathers pacing was evident in the floor. The scent of copper and tea washed over him and through clenched teeth he yelled and punched the wall. Removing his broken fist from the wall, he looked at the ceiling in a blank state. One of his fellow ninjas appeared in the doorway and gave his report as he was ordered to.

-- We've eliminated all opposition and we've begun to burn the village.

The ninja leader lowered his head and turned to his fellow member with a sad look evident on his face.

-- Proceed to meet with the others I'll be along shortly.

His subordinate disappeared out the door and the he walked outside the home slowly putting his mask back on. Looking at the house one last time he vanished as a breeze went by carrying the smell of burning wood.

Nearby, heading toward the village two merchants walked along talking about events which proceeded to have their country's notice.

-- Yeah and I even heard that they have had emissaries from the Hidden Leaf village.

-- Hidden Leaf why would they want the Yugala Clan.

-- Are you kidding the Yugala Clan are a clan of prodigies. Normally one or two prodigies grace a village every generation, but with the Yugala Clan, every child that is born has natural talent. Imagine an entire clan full of skillful assassins. But we don't have to worry about the Leaf because the Yugala signed with us. The female stopped as her husband did and watched him sniff the air.

-- Do you smell something?

-- Smells like wood.

They glanced at each other and hurried to their destination. They encountered a home burning and crackling in the evening sun. The sound of crying was heard through the rumbling of the house. Wrapping his head in a cloth the merchant glanced at his wife. His wife understood his thoughts and she voiced hers.

-- Be careful.

-- I know don't worry.

The man nodded and ran toward the home. The flames surrounded him as he entered the house. The stench of burnt flesh hit him as did the heat. The crying came from a nearby bedroom and through flames and heat waves the man slowly made his way to that room. He kicked open the door and the yellow spikes leapt at him. The source of the wailing was a baby that was put in floor model cabinet. Snatching the child he quickly made his way out. Upon exiting the roof collapsed. The man coughed as he handed the child to his partner. He gathered himself and they quickly left as they figured out what happened. They were merchants but not ignorant to the politics of shinobi. They knew an attack when they saw one and they also knew they happened to be a part of it. Suddenly they were both struck in the back and they fell forward dropping the newborn to the ground. The salesman began to rise and he saw feet surrounding him. Trying to move away he felt himself getting stabbed repeatedly in the back. The child cried as the two merchants were killed by the band of assassins. One of the ninjas was about to kill the child but the leader stopped him.

-- Stop. I won't kill a helpless child. We've already done enough. I'll take the child with us.

He picked up the child and wrapped him in his medical bandages to keep warm. The group then dispersed and the headed for home leaving only death behind them.

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