Chapter 7
Leonardo silently crept in the darkness along side the walls of a village house. He and Karai had entered the village only a few minuets ago after the sun's light had completely disappeared behind the mountains. As a ninja, that was one thing about this world he guessed he should be happy about. But this utter blackness made him nervous. Something about it was unnatural. It was like he was walking underwater in the darkest part of the ocean. Even though he was confident in himself, he would feel safer if the moon's light were here to cast its familiar shadows. But it wasn't.
Karai, on the other hand, didn't seem to have any problem with the darkness. From appearances, she didn't seem uncomfortable at all. And something told him that those red eyes were the answer.
Suddenly, a tiny light flickered into view. Leo blinked as he adjusted his eyes to the unfamiliar brightness. Another surprise was that the light came from a piece of rock that was glowing green. It was mounted on a pole in the village's street and stood in line with other poles. It wasn't much different from light posts back in the city, though these were stranger by far. Staring at the green stones kinda reminded him of the stones from the underground city. If they were anything like them, He wondered if these did more than just light the village.
Leo was about to take a closer look when footsteps echoed down the empty street. He quickly crouched down as two figures walked past the house. They were two men dressed in primitive kimonos, one carrying a long sword and the other a spear. Leo knew right away that this place must be either Edo-Japan or something like its alternate counterpart. The foot steps grew fainter as the men walked further away, so Leo got up hoping to trail them. But as he did, sharp nails dug into his arm holding him back.
Leo silently cursed himself for forgetting about Karai. Honestly, he should have known this would happen. But it was already too late. The handle of Karai's tanto was already driving into the back of his skull. As he fell to the floor, edges of black entering his vision, he heard Karai's low voice:
"Sleep while you can, Leonardo."
TBC….