Arc 2: A vigorous first month
Road to a Hero:
Three chances in another world
Chapter 10: Flame filled memories
On a small island, visible from the shore of Walgonia is a small village. This village holds about four hundred to five hundred people. A boy with dark black hair plays with his mother in their backyard.
“STOP… I’M NOT TICKLISH!”
Mom: “Oh sure? *pfft*”
Dad: “Ok! HONEY, EDWARD COME ON INSIDE DINNERS FINISHED!”
Both the boy and the mother yell, “ALRIGHT!”, and dash off inside. They then sit down in their cozy kitchen and prepare to eat dinner.
Dad: “So, how was your guy’s day?”
Mom: “Oh we had fun, I’m glad to get the day off!”
Edward: “Im glad too."
They finish their food. The mother and father walk with Edward to his bedroom.
Edward: “Uhgth. Do I have to go to bed?”
Mom: “Yeah we don’t want you to be tired now do we?”
Edward: “But I'm not tired!"
Dad: “Hey calm down, if you sleep now you can get up early tomorrow with me."
Edward: "I guess..."
Mom: “Here why don’t I tell you a story.”
Edward: “Arent I too old for it?"
Mom: "That doesn't matter, here I'll make it about dad okay?"
The mother looks at the father, almost like she feels awkward.
Dad: “Look I know I’m not his real dad, but don’t let it detract from him learning about his real father, he was a hero! And a friend.”
Mom: “Alright then. I’ll tell you about his first mission. When he got his white hair he was only fifteen years old. That's only three years older than you! He was really scared, though Musashi was excited! He had already gotten his white hair and was pumped for his first big mission! Now when they got there your father stayed near the back, holding his sword close to himself. His brother was at the very front, mowing through his opponents, though unbeknownst to any of the Leviathon army soldiers a group of the Demi-human army had snuck around them! Your father was frozen in fear, though he swung with all his might! The demi-human he was fighting had a big sword bigger than your father! Though the demi-human wasn’t expecting your father to swing, he knocked him down. Though the demi-human got back up, about to finish your father off! Your father, filled with adrenaline, roared like a beast ramming into the monster pushing him down the hill they were standing on! Once they got to the ground the demi-human was stunned, Your father looked more like a monster than the real monster! The man swung the big sword at your father, though your father blocked it! Though the strike broke his blade, he was able to get up to the man, punching him so hard is flung him back, the demi-human dropped his sword, and your father filled with rage and adrenaline somehow picked up the giant sword, he put so much strain on his body, his hair turned white from the stress, “RAAAH” he said as he swung the giant sword at the monster, killing him in one swing! He looked around and saw that everyone was watching him friend or foe. Then he looked back at the monster and realized that the MONSTER WAS THE LEADER OF THE OPPOSITE TEAM, everyone on their team surrendered, making your father the MVP of the battle, and after that, he earned his title as “Gotsu the Monster hunter.”
Edward: “Cool!”
Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
Mom: “Alright, good night sweety.”
Dad: “Good night champ.”
The mom kisses Edward goodnight before she leaves his room. Edward fell asleep, though he jolted awake after hearing people screaming. He runs to his window looking out to see dead bodies everywhere, houses burning and pirates running around killing the villagers. Then his parents rush into his room, pick Edward up trying to run to the basement.
Edward: "Mom!? Dad!? What's happening?"
Mom: "It's okay sweety, there are bad people here and we need to get to the basement."
Edward: "What? Why? If there are bad guys you can fight then right?"
Mom: "I'm a proficient swordsmen and your step-father, Bjørn, he's a master martial artist...he can -
She gets cut off mid sentence by an explosion, one that consumes the front of the house and sends all three of them out the side. The mother had protected Edward, but in the process had suffered massive injuries. Broken legs, a broken wrist, and horrible burn marks on her back, prohibiting any further movements. Edward is speechless as he looks around frantically for any semblance of hope. The sounds of screaming villagers fill the air, thicker than the black smoke already doing so. Edward feels his mother grabs his leg, trying to speak to her son.
Mom: "Honey...you need to run... Mommy is fine, we're going to go to the basement okay?"
Once again she's cut off, but this time it's by her husband. Bjørn is thrown beside the two, destroyed. His tears flood the blood off of his face, and the gruesome sight of his legs snapped in half, just like his arms. His skin is far worse though, bubbling from the fire currently blazing on him. Then a large figure walks out of the smoke of their destroyed home, smoking a cigar. The large Demi-human with blue fur, a nose ring, a black coat with a fur collar, and a large Fu Manchu mustache to boot. He picks up a barely alive Bjørn, chuckling to himself as he watches him struggle.
Moro: "Names Moro, and we're the Gravestone Pirates. I thought you'd be a difficult fight, you fought with Musashi, Alon, Jasmine, Jong, and Gotsu, yet you fell before a fight."
Bjørn tries to get out a word, but with his body being closer to a crisp than an actual human, it's simply impossible. Moro understands this, simply throwing his body onto the grass so hard that it explodes in a pile of ash, covering Jasmine and Edward. Jasmine tries to swat Moro away, but without a sword, hand, or legs, it means nothing.
Moro: "Wife of Iron Fist Bjørn, mother of Gotsu Van Helsing's child, and you're this weak?"
Jasmine spits on Moro's face, causing him to drop his cigar. Moro of course is angered by this, and right in front of Edward's already horrified face, uses his large razor-sharp teeth to rip through his mother's neck, tearing her head clean off. The area sprays with even more blood, getting in Edward's dead eyes.
Moro: "Nothin personal."
With that horrific display, Moro simply walks away. And without a thought in the young boy's head, he crawls to the secret basement Sitting there for hours, completely still and quiet. He hears more people walk into his house. An old man opens the hatch Edward was hiding in. The old man looks at the child in horror.
Edward looks at the other man recognizing him.
Edward: “Uncle Musashi…? And who are you…?”
Al: “My name is Al… and you must be young Edward… I am deeply sorry for what has happened. Would you like to come to live with Your uncle and me?”
Edward: “Al…”
Now the current Edward is currently looking at Al lying dead on the ground. He turns around to see the mansion he has called his home for eight years, starting to burn due to the fire magic Conroy had used to fight Edward earlier. Edward feels something pounding at the back of his head, like a beast about to go berserk. He starts taking steps towards the Anarchists, though before he can fully devolve himself into a pure rage he hears something in the distance.
Gray: “EDWARD REACH OUT YOUR HAND!”
Flying through the air on what looks to be a winged drake, is Gray and the others riding atop it.
Conroy: “WHAT THE FU-”
Edward grabs Gray's hand just before the anarchists can reach him. Anibys tries to use her chain, but it’s no luck, they are going fast enough to get away from them, flying through the air to safety.
Gray: “WOOOOOOH!”
Edward: “You got Musashi's earth-bound dragon! Nice!”
Gray: “I KNOW RIGHT!”
Soku: “WAIT WHAT ABOUT AL?”
Opheilia: “YEAH WHERE’S HE AT?”
Edward: “He… he…”
Rosemary: “It’s okay…We get it…now Gray get it to land us down near the main street!”
Gray: “I DON’T KNOW HOW TO MOVE THIS THING! IT JUST DID ALL THIS ON ITS OWN, UM GO DOWN OVER- WOOOOH!”
The drake flies down, landing safely on the street.
Edward: “I’m glad you came back… I was probably gonna die there. Thank you, Gray.”
Gray: “Yeah you were gonna die, though we got lucky there was this dragon. Like a deus ex machina.”
Edward: “Well it’s Musashi's, so it’s well-trained.”
Ophelia: “The mansion, it’s burning…”
Soku: “So what do we do now?”
Rosemary: “Just wait I guess.”
Gray: “Rose your stomach, it’s still bleeding, you good?”
Rosemary: “I’m fine, but you’re bashed up.”
Gray: “I’m good, I’m just gonna take a long nap. So what’s this Drake thing name?”
Edward: “Actually I don’t think she has one?”
Gray: “Oh, Ima call her…um. Dema. for deus ex machina animal.”
Soku: “So clever.”
Opheilia: “What’s a deus ex machina?”
They all sit there for a while, waiting for something to happen. Gray sleeping on Rosemary's lap, Soku, and Ophelia sleeping on each other while Edward watches the mansion burn to the ground.
Musashi: “MY HOUSE!”
Edward: “HEY WE’RE DOWN HERE!”
Musashi: “WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED.”
Arthur: “We go out for drinks for one evening and come back to this. That’s some bad luck huh.”
Musashi: “Damit! Oh well, you guys come with me, explain on the way.”
Edward: “Why? What's happening?”
Musashi: “The Lord selection is happening sooner than we thought, so you guys have to preform in the knight exam in two days. We are gonna head to the Royal Castle and will stay there until then.”
Gray: “UHG! Come on let me sleep! And I hate tournament arcs.”
END OF CHAPTER
10