Chapter two - Brave young warrior
Age 747
Planet Khoraha
Barren scrublands stretched out as far as the eye could see as a light breeze blew by, rustling the sparse shrubs and vegetation. Another gentle gust of wind fluttered the blue gi worn by the youngster who stood strong with his boots slightly apart near the cliffside. A beanie sat atop his head, unmoved by the wind.
Eight years had passed by and the young Jiren had grown strong over those few years, progressing well in his pursuit to becoming a true warrior. For a youth, he was quite strong and had mastered his flight by now.
Jiren's stance reflected his confidence before he took off into the horizon in the blink of an eye. Flying with his arms outstretched ahead of him, he brushed past hillsides and mountaintops and as his speed grew rapidly in intensity the vast variety of landscapes became nothing but a blur of organic colours. However, at the familiar sight of his homeland, Jiren slowed.
Flying above the town where he arrived at years prior, several townsfolk took note of his presence in the air and waved at him from below.
Jiren descended down to approach the group of faces he'd come to know over the years and landed at the clearing near their feet. They were a diverse group of alien races of various ages from all across the galaxy. They all wore a matching blue gi, showing that they too were warriors in training much like Jiren himself.
One of the scruffy looking beings from the group took a few steps out towards Jiren, grinning with confidence and standing up in the grey's face. The young man was fairly bulky, with pointy ears, cerulean skin and red hair. He was certainly quite a fair bit larger than Jiren himself. His head tipped down slightly to look at Jiren,
"Alright kid, I want to see if you are as strong as the folk here claim you to be."
"Are you sure you don't want me to hold back for your own safety?"
Jiren warned, giving off a slight smirk. The young man looked rather baffled, yet with a hint of friendly competition in his shifting expression.
"Heh, no holding back, man. I don't intend to do the same either if you can live up to the hype!"
Both Jiren and his opponent got into their battle stances and the other warriors, young and old alike, took a few steps back to encircle them. They chanted "fight, fight!" with some throwing out Jiren's name in between, followed by the opponent's name here and there.
The eager duo immediately clashed fists before diving into a flurry of punches and kicks. Jiren was on the defense while his rival was high on offense. Jiren preferred to allow his opponents to attack first so he could observe their movements and strength to calculate his own form of retaliation. He also did this to get a general feel of their power in comparison to his own.
"Tama, you better watch carefully with this little guy! Most of us have experienced what he's capable of!"
"Keep it down; I'm trying to land a hit on him!"
Tama shouted, whilst Jiren continued to block every single blow from him. His keen eyes remained locked onto the larger form of his opponent as he made his first offensive strike by connecting his fist with Tama's abdomen.
He gasped and stumbled backwards, "Argh damn, that actually hurt from such a small fist!"
Jiren bounced back grinning, falling back into his fighter's stance, calculating his next form of attack. Tama drove in again with his flurry of punches but this time he managed to land an unsuspecting kick at Jiren's left side, catching the grey by surprise. Jiren didn't lose any focus however and quickly regained his footing, bracing himself for Tama's next move,
"Jiren, do that eye-thing of yours!" one of the men in the crowd shouted.
"Eye-thing?" questioned Tama, painted with a confused look before he turned around to face the young grey, standing by waiting for his next attack.
"I don't know. It might be a bit unfair on this guy."
Said Jiren, giving off a cheeky grin at his opponent. Tama's face screwed up in annoyance, clearly taking offense, "You cocky little bugger!"
Tama let out a yell, powering up his ki and setting off a bright aura around his entire body. He suddenly threw himself forward at an insane speed that only experienced martial artists could bear witness.
Yet time had seemingly stood still for Jiren, who had begun closing his eyes...
He stood strong with his eyes closed and, as Tama got closer at his point of view his eyes shot open. His large pupils were red, causing space-time between the two to become altered. Jiren's glare was so intense that Tama was caught by it, slowed down and left exposed. From Jiren's point of view, he was able to move freely, thus allowing him to throw a series of punches at Tama's exposed weak points. The young warrior struck him many times before shoving him aside into a nearby obstacle.
Jiren's eyes switched back to normal in the milliseconds that followed and Tama went crashing into a wooden shack near the mountainside. Everyone who had witnessed the technique were amazed and stumped by what they saw.
To them, they couldn't see Jiren move. They could only see that his eyes had changed red for a brief moment, and Tama suffering an invisible flurry of blows before he went crashing into the hut nearby.
It was a puzzling sight to most common folk that was for certain.
Jiren hurried over to Tama who lay in the debris and broken wooden planks. Their audience followed to watch was about to unfold before them.
Tama lay there, quite fazed and worn out after such an intense attack and he coughed at the dust that had been thrown up. A moment passed and the cloud began to clear and settle down revealing Jiren's small frame standing before him.
"Man, you really are as strong as they say. I honestly don't think I would have stood a chance if you were fighting serious! Heh, how embarrassing of me to lose to a kid…"
Tama looked ashamed with himself, yet Jiren grinned and kneeled down. He offered his hand out and Tama accepted immediately, letting the small grey pull him onto his feet.
"You landed a hit on me, so don't beat yourself up over it. Most of the other guys haven't been able to hit me yet."
"Heh I see. Either way keep growing stronger, Jiren. Maybe you'll surpass Master Tahu someday!" Tama chuckled, moving in to shake hands with Jiren, but a tall, dark figure caught everybody's attention on the nearby hill, "Speak of the devil…"
All the warriors turned to see that the great Tahu was standing by, overlooking them with a sense of pride.
"Master!"
Jiren wasted no time and flew over to Tahu. The other students watched by, pleased to see their teacher had come visit them out of the blue.
"Jiren, just the fellow I needed to see; I need to have a word with you. It won't be long."
"Oh, if it's about the mess here, we'll clean and uhh… repair that shed as soon as possible!"
"Heh, it's not about that. Although, a repair job would be appreciated by the locals 'round here. But first, we must speak"
Jiren simply looked up at Tahu, who was still much taller than he was. "I wonder what he's going to talk about? Am I in trouble or something?" He pondered.
"Please excuse us for a moment, fellow students."
And with that, both Tahu and Jiren levitated off the ground and took off into the skies with a sudden gust of energy.
Both student and master sat atop a cliffside, overlooking the brilliant hues of reds and purples illuminating the landscape around them. With the two of them seated comfortably, Tahu spoke up,
"Jiren, this is about your training-"
"I'm sorry. I don't mean to damage houses, mountains and other things. I try my best to avoid that… sometimes I get a bit carried away." Jiren looked away awkwardly, avoiding any eye contact with Tahu.
"It's not about that - although less damage to personal property would be nice. Yet on the contrary, the locals have the privilege of there being no criminals around when you're about. Anyhow, the fact being is that this planet is becoming a bit too... restrictive for your training. Don't you think?"
"What do you mean?"
"How long does it take you to fly around the globe of this planet? Or more precisely, how many times can you do so in one go?"
Jiren rubbed his forehead with his fingers, "Well… I don't know, I do it so quickly that it's kind of difficult to keep track of, especially when everything becomes nothing but a blur."
"See? There isn't enough room for you to truly spread your wings here. I feel that being confined to this planet is hindering your potential as a warrior."
Jiren looked up at his master, uncertain with what to make out of the words he was saying. Yet he could feel that Tahu was right. He knew deep down that there really wasn't enough space here for him to reach further potential. It didn't help that he was unable to get much of a challenge out of the other students.
"So… what can I do to become even stronger then, Master?"
"Jiren, your kind can survive in the vacuum of space. Unlike most of us here who are confined to the surface and spaceships."
"Hmm... I do remember hearing rumours about that, but how would I breathe? How come none of the other greys here fly into space?"
Tahu scratched his goatee, peering downward, "They're probably too afraid to try, or feel they have no reason to. I believe it requires a certain level of power to withstand the elements in space. As for the breathing part, I wouldn't know. Perhaps you simply hold your breath?"
Tahu looked at his young student, who noticed that he was deep in thought. Jiren did wonder to himself if he was able to handle such a feat and he imagined all the possibilities of being able to roam outer space without relying on a spaceship.
After all, Tahu would sometimes take everybody on class trips to train on deserted planets around the galaxy. Even returning to Cal'or from time to time to grab natural resources. Jiren rather liked the idea of being able to fly wherever he pleased.
Jiren looked out into the navy coloured sky, now that the sun had all but vanished beyond the horizon. The stars lit up the sky, accompanied by the glowing moons of Khoraha. The two bright spheres caught Jiren's interest.
"I could try flying to one of those moons."
"Well then, how about you give it a shot? Although if you feel that it's putting you under any pressure, simply turn back and try another time."
Jiren eagerly took a stand, brushing himself off, "Heh, I believe I can do this…"
"I believe in you too, Jiren. I'm proud to see how strong you've become at such a young age. One day you could be aiding all sorts of folk across the galaxy. I envision a bright future ahead of you with your hidden potential..."
Tahu got up, smiling appreciatively at his young student, who beamed back at him. Jiren's eyes were filled with the most utmost determination and confidence.
The grey's stance was powerful and he clenched both his fists tight. Eliciting a piercing yell, he powered a fierce array of energy around him. Tahu stepped back from Jiren to watch as his aura grew more powerful and intense. His eyes crinkled in the corners from his smile, not at all hiding how proud he was of the youngster. He was very much aware of the kind of power the young grey was unleashing, being able to feel it in all its might.
Jiren blasted off into the darkening sky, heading straight for the moon ahead of him. His master remained on the mountain, folding his arms and keeping a watchful eye on his pupil. Tahu held him in high regards and had faith in the grey but couldn't help but feel slightly concerned, as if Jiren were a son to him.
It didn't take long for Jiren to come face to face with the surface of the nearby moon he had chosen to land upon. His powerful aura protected him from the extremes of outer space. He did not feel cold and his body did not burn from radiation. Though at the forefront of it all, Jiren felt strange. The absolute absence of an atmosphere was an odd sensation to him - he certainly wasn't breathing, yet, he felt as if he didn't need to. Perhaps he had enough oxygen in his body to sustain himself here for the time being. What baffled him the most was he was able to hear the sounds of himself and the aura all around him. Even straining his ears, Jiren heard nothing else in the vast void of space.
He turned around to look back at the view of outer space and his breath was caught in his throat at the sight of Koraha before him. The planet he now called home was partially illuminated by the sun.
Breaking free from the astounding sight before him, Jiren took advantage of the weak pull of gravity and sat down. Although it was very weak, it was enough for him remain seated on the moon. His aura stayed illuminated around his body, and he pondered to himself,
"I feel like I can do… so much more now. I could roam the stars and find ways to become a better fighter. I could seek other strong people to further improve myself! And defeat criminals!"
Brainstorming the possibilities, Jiren became quite excited at the goals he could aim for in due time. Perhaps even sooner than anybody else would expect. He closed his eyes and smiled to himself but then a sharp jolt of energy - a strange sensation, struck him at that very moment.
Something odd.
Something...
Strangely familiar, and uncomfortable.
Discomfort.
But, why?
Jiren looked all around him and the moon's surface. There was nothing but the empty landscape of asteroids and spacedust. But then he felt that sensation hit him again, and he glanced out into the direction of planet Khoraha. It was coming from there. Jiren felt a gut wrenching feeling deep within, and he began to sweat.
"No… it can't be…"
He immediately stood, powered himself up even more and fired himself back towards the planet at breakneck speeds.
"What was that thing!?"
"RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!"
"Somebody, help! Please, help me!"
"Seerah's been cut down, we need assistance!"
"Where the hell did it go now?!"
The town was in panic; several buildings and vehicles were aflame and tossed into pure chaos. Frightened people were running in all directions, confused as to where to run and hide from the unidentified danger. The night sky was illuminated by the flames and Jiren was able to pinpoint the location for that very reason.
He landed in the middle of the road as other civilians fled the fires and collapsing buildings. One structure nearby crumbled in on itself and smoke and debris blew past him and the terrified townsfolk. Jiren was shocked by what was happening and he reached out to grab a man by his arm,
"What is going on here!?"
The man flinched and bounced backwards from his grasp, "AHH Jiren! You're okay, what a relief!"
"Can you explain what's happening?!" Jiren asked in desperation.
"I… I don't know how to say this. This- this strange thing just appeared and…"
An explosion at the nearby fueling depot startled everyone and the man near Jiren yelped in fear, before scurrying off, "Jiren, you must leave, NOW!"
Jiren frowned in annoyance, lifting himself off the ground to fly over to the source of the explosion. A couple civilians had fled from the scene to avoid being hurt by the fiery hazard that was ever growing thanks to the nearby fuel canisters.
As Jiren drew in closer, he could sense the energy of something familiar.
Something dark.
From behind the fire, he spotted a figure lying on the ground. He pushed through with his aura to protect himself from the flickering flames in an attempt to retrieve the victim but when he approached him, he realized the person was already gone.
Yet he was no victim of the flames, or smoke inhalation for that matter. Upon further inspection Jiren realised that the deceased was a grey, and he had a stab wound in the side of his head.
But why? how?
Jiren felt greatly disturbed, stepping back before flying in reverse into the sky.
"The demon… it's back…."
He screwed his face up in sheer fury, pupils shrinking, as he raced through the sky to find his fellow comrades. It didn't take him long to locate them and he saw that they too were bracing themselves against this unknown being. Jiren's eyes homed in on the familiar shadowy figure surrounded in its purple haze and he knew for sure it was the same demon of his past. The energy was just as devious and just as intense as he could recall from all those years ago.
He rushed to the side of his warrior companions, all of which were standing together to brace themselves for what was to come.
"Jiren! Thank the gods you made it! Is this the so called evil-doer…?"
Jiren took a few steps out in front of the group, glaring at the demonic being with searing hatred, "Yes…"
"I… honestly don't think we stand a chance against this... otherworldly thing…"
One of the fellow men stuttered. Admittedly, most of the group were afraid of this dastardly foe. Some had already witnessed the mysterious methods in which it brought upon destruction and death to parts of the town in such a short amount of time.
"I believe we have a chance if we stand together. If you want to leave, then do so. But those of you who choose to fight, stand with me!"
Shouted Jiren, positioning himself defensively and flaring up his scarlet aura. Amazingly, all of the other warriors took a stand with him, engulfing themselves with their own auras. Despite their fear, they all took on defensive stances alongside the brave young Jiren.
The hazy figure reacted to their aggressive poses and made a move immediately for Jiren who avoided it with extreme speed and agility.
The other warriors followed, some dodging and some firing back ki-blasts from their palms, all of which had no immediate effect on this hazy figure. Its red eyes glared in the direction of one of the other grey fighters…
The action of the being was incredibly swift. And ruthless. A blade struck the unsuspecting grey from out of the shadows, piercing his back and killing him instantly. Jiren had witnessed the cruel fate of his comrade just metres ahead and fear took hold of him, watching the body of this young adult fall to the ground with the splatter of blood.
The other alien warriors at his side watched in horror. It didn't make any sense - where did that blade come from? How did this being pull off such a feat without any obvious signs?
Most puzzling of all was why it was targeting the greys?
The nearby warriors felt the gravity of what they were up against and some of them retreated into the air. A couple more adult grey warriors among the few who fled the scene in panic.
Jiren remained with the other fighters, regaining his composure and powering up the palm of his hand. He swished through the sky to come face to face with the evil doer, shooting fearsome ki-blasts from both his hands to try and distract it from the fleeing warriors.
It hastily disappeared and reappeared from sight to halt the fleeing group of fighters in their flight, immediately striking down two of them in a single swipe. The intended victim was a grey, but the non-grey near him was cut down as well. It disappeared from reality to reappear before the trio of the opposing side of the field…
Suddenly, the form of Tahu exploded into view and pushed the would-be victims out of harm's way. The shadowy figure stopped in its tracks and came before Master Tahu. He glared, before retreating backwards to join the other fighters alongside Jiren.
"I'm sorry I took my time to join, I was aiding some civilians who were trapped in a burning apartment complex."
Tahu explained, breathing heavily and looking around to take in what his students had been going through while he wasn't present. The other warriors acknowledged him and nodded,
"You're here now, and that's all that matters." Jiren rushed over to stay suspended in the air at his master's side.
"Don't give in to this monster, fellow students! Fire together if you wish to fight for our fallen comrades - and our homeland!"
"Come on everybody, give it everything you've got!"
Jiren shouted after Tahu, powering up the palms of both his hands, large energy spheres forming at the base of them. As his power grew, so did Tahu and the other surviving fighters at their side who all had their own energy emitting from their hands. Together, they fired their ray of light in unison impacting the devilish form of the evil-doer. An immense blast followed, lighting up the surrounding skies and engulfing the area.
The fighters alongside Jiren and Tahu waited by for the dust to settle. They couldn't sense the evil-doer no more, but they didn't know if they were a success or not. Seeing as the energy signature of this being was unpredictable.
Unfortunately, the dark essence returned in the sky before them seemingly unscathed. It floated above them all looking down at them with formidable red eyes. Its arms spread out wide.
Jiren and the others watched on, utterly stumped by what they witnessed. Many of them felt the utmost feeling of hopelessness, dread and fear…
"No… we can't fall to this evil, not like this!"
Jiren's thoughts ran wild and he braced himself, preparing to use his glaring technique if he had to. Yet the evil-doer did not come for him. Instead, it teleported behind him and ruthlessly drew out its blade, hacking down many of the warriors with such ruthlessness that they simply had no chance to react or escape. Not only were greys being targeted this time but the other warriors as well. The entity was not picky, slicing up both the old and young, and many of his victims fell to the surface, one by one, all in the flash of mere seconds. Shrieks of death and terror echoed all around.
Jiren simply couldn't take it any more. The sight of so much bloodlust was too much for him to handle and he froze in mid air, feeling helpless in his abilities. His eyes widened.
"Jiren, WATCH OUT!"
The youthful grey snapped out of his trance-like state but soon realised that his attempt to dodge was a failure by the immediate spike of pain near the base of his knee. The foreign blade had penetrated his flesh and scratched the bone, forcing him to reel in pain and fly sideways, crashing heavily into the ground below.
It appeared that whilst he was still struck, his dodge was enough to save his vitals. Nevertheless, it caused him immense pain, forcing Jiren to clutch the source of his bleeding injury. He swung his head around to see the ghastly figure advance towards him. Its large crimson eyes glowed devilishly as it moved in closer, blade drawn.
"NO! Leave him be, he's just a child!"
Tahu made a mad dash out in front of the evil in a desperate attempt to shield Jiren from his incoming fate-
"MASTER, NO!"
Jiren watched in horror as Master Tahu cried out in agony as the sword pierced his body, impaling him before the grey. Jiren's eyes followed the body of his master as he slumped to the ground. And just like that, Tahu had been taken from him meeting the same fate as his parents.
Pain filled Jiren's eyes as he rose off the ground onto his feet. His body shook, not sure how to display his surge of pain, fear and sheer anger and hatred towards this being. Suddenly, something inside him snapped,
"I will… I will destroy you!"
Jiren grit his teeth, eyes glowing red with fury as his raging aura engulfed his body once more. His entire form still shook but from a mixture of agony and anger - his fear almost non-existent now from the rage bubbling just under his skin. He was ready to unleash his intense glare on the incoming foe. Jiren refused to back off, even if he knew deep down that he was no match for this kind of enemy. It had to pay.
The violet haze-strewn figure simply looked at the young warrior. It almost seemed as if it were curious. The pair of eyes drew in close to Jiren and the figure of the being became ever so slightly more visible to Jiren's furious eyes…
"You're… not weak like the rest of them were."
A whispering voice spoke to him from inside his head and Jiren felt a dash of intimidation from this thing. He was astonished to see how it was completely unaffected by his intense glare and was disturbed by the fact that it was communicating with him telepathically.
"I will return one day when you're more capable..."
Upon hearing those ghastly words within the confines of his mind, the violet figure vanished into thin air. This time, with no real evidence of it being present anymore; the purple mist had dissipated and the wasteland was only lit up by the raging fires. Everything became quiet.
Jiren's traumatized form stood silent for a moment, until he looked down in front of him to see his fallen master. His angered gaze broke down into a look of despair as the feeling of loss took hold of him.
"Master… I'm… I'm sorry..."
His voice was weak and his small unsteady steps conveyed his mental anguish. Jiren fell to his knees at the side of his fatherly figure, feeling a burning behind his eyes. The physical pain he endured paled in comparison to what he felt deep within right now, and the heartache that suddenly clawed at him led to his arms being thrown around the body of his master. The burning at the backs of his eyes gave way to tears and they streamed down his face as he buried himself in his master's ravaged attire.
The few warriors who had survived the final onslaught moved in close to stand over their fallen master, bowing down in respect. One of the survivors kneeled down to place a hand on Jiren's shoulder as he wept away in silence.
There was little they could do but grieve as one through the dark of the night.
