I lived in the small and remote Ficren village tucked deep inside in the forest, somewhere between two regions. Between western and eastern, that, according to the rumours, conflicted a while now.
Although my village was still a paradise, and all the people who lived in, it seemed to agree. My mother sat on the edge of my bed humming relaxing hymns, as I laid there, unable to sleep.
“Mum, when is dad coming back?” I mumbled into my pillow, fiddling with the seams.
The steady melody cut off, and a heavy sigh replaced it. Mom stared at me, a wistful smile plastered on her face that hid her true feelings. Her stance was relaxed, but I could sense that she did not want to talk about it, but I could not understand why.
"He is protecting other people who are in need. Your father is a mighty warrior, after all. “She replied.
"But I want to see him...“ I was frustrated. Every time I asked about the man, she would repeat the same excuse, leaving me with nothing but the fact he was a warrior.
I always peered at the other kids and their parents. Ah, how much fun they had together, their joyful screams and laughter were still ringing in my ears.
Although my mum never wanted to say a word about it, she tried to force me to sleep.
“I think that you should go to sleep, Zack.” She spoke in a soft but stern tone.
No matter how hard I tried to pressure her, my efforts were meaningless, so I had decided to hold back my insurmountable curiosity for now.
I slid my fingers across the blanket, reaching up to tug at my mum’s sleeve.
„Could you tell me a story first? A legend maybe?“
„If you promise me that you will go to sleep after that,“ she whispered as she covered me in another blanket. Everything but my head and fingers were under the cover.
„I promise!“ Unable to suppress my excitement, I let out a softly bellowed shout.
Her eyes focused on me, and she shifted closer to run her fingers through my hair. She took a deep breath and begun the tale.
"This is a legend about the brave swordsman who was seeking adventures in dangerous places. He wanted to be the most heroic and most well-known swordsman ever to live. The man faced monsters and even stronger foes than himself, but never backed down from a challenge.
One day, he was exploring a mysterious cave and found a gem. Poor swordsman touched it, and this mysterious shard corrupted him, which led him to lose control over his body. His intentions and ultimate goals have changed, and so on. All he wanted was power and chaos.
He slaughtered everybody in his way, searching for more gems to boost his power. Fortunately, shinobi masters showed up and defeated him. To keep the world in peace, they split the gem into three pieces. Legend says that those fragments will keep searching for a chosen one to control them and possess their power. But -"
Suddenly, a spine-chilling scream pierced through the air, akin to the sound of someone scratching at a chalkboard cut her off mid-sentence.
My eyes widened as I gripped on my sheets.
Alarmed by such a sound, my mum looked through the window.
There was nothing in sight, only the same one-storey wooden houses with straws roofs. The way her brow furrowed... She balled up her fists... There was no doubt that she was terrified just like me.
„I will come back soon,“ she murmured with a slight crack in her voice.
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She opened the front door, filling the rooms with irritating acrid smoke.
Her eyes gazed at what was happening outside, unleashing a horrible image just a few metres away from their own house. She saw the size of temperature flames that blazed outside. What was once beautiful, were mercilessly being eaten by hungering fire. Not even a second had passed before a plume of fire burst out from a nearby building, unleashing the dangerous sparks into the howling winds.
A stray spark landed on the top of their straw roof, painting it in glowing orange and yellow colours there would be nothing but ashes left soon enough.
As she stared in horror, she soon realised that her son was still in a room. She immediately rushed back.
Seeing how terror overtook her face, my face became pale as well. “What is going on?”
She stood there, frozen, but a massive trembling shook their house, jolting mum back into the action.
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She glanced up at the construction that was barely holding itself from falling.
„We have to get out of here.“ My mum gripped my hand and pulled me out of bed, dragging me to the door without any further explanation. I could not understand what was happening.
She pushed me right through the door and soon, something behind me crumbled and sent me flying, separating me from my mum.
I turned around and saw my mum trapped underneath the piece of wood.
“Mum! Mum!” I was despairing, as she did not answer.
My eyes widened as I saw my mum being swallowed whole in flames. Her flesh was turning black as coal...
I dropped to my knees and sobbed, my throat becoming a sore mess. Each breath that I was taking pained me, but it was nothing compared to the agonizing ache in my heart. I let out a scream that echoed through this wrecked town. I could not do anything. I let her die just like that!
The place I called paradise all along was nothing but a catastrophe. The happiness that flickered inside of me extinguished into nothingness as if I had ripped my heart out of my chest and buried alongside the ruins.
I turned my head at the side I watched how the survivors ran away, but a group of people I did not recognise caught my eyes, their uniform and hats were not something that locals would wear.
They were the ones who set my village on fire with the torches in their filthy hands.
My wish was to run at them and scream into their ears while trying to hurt them, but I, alone, could not do anything against them as everyone fled in terror. So I decided to follow everyone’s actions and ran away.
None of this could be real!
As I ran, my tear-filled eyes clouded my view, and I did not know where I was going. But it did not matter anymore. The warm sheets, the roof above my head, my loving mum, and her support – everything was gone! The event played on repeat in my mind—each run causing my heart to throb in misery.
As I looked around, the people that I was following were nowhere in sight. The small of stamina drops of stamina that I had run out as well. I could not run anymore. My sweat-soaked sent violent shivers down my spine. Not only was I losing control over myself from the inside, but outside as well.
The gloom in my eyes became worse. My steps became smaller and smaller, until I slumped to the ground, landing on my chest, right into the snow. The noises of my surroundings soon faded into numbing static, the vivid images blurring into unrecognisable blobs. I clenched my fist. I could not give up just now!
Suddenly, a giant blob clouded my view, and I looked up to see a tall man. I barely lifted my chin.
The only thing I could make out was his light grey hair.
“What are you doing here, little boy?” He asked.
“I-I-I am s-searching f-for help. M-my v-village…” I muttered.
„What is your name, little one?“ He asked, pulling me up by my arm.
„R-r-retrograde.“ I mumbled as I kept nervously stirring my fingers together. My mum had always said that I should not say anything about myself to strangers and stay away from them.
The memories of my mum caused my tears to swarm. Had not, I cried enough?
„I am so sorry about what happened to your village. The tears of yours have already told me that it was horrifying.“ The man paused. „Are your parents still alive?“
I shook my head.
The man pointed at the big grey mountain, "I live there, close to the Sacred Mountain, in the temple. Do you want to take a look?"
I had nothing to lose at this point, so I dipped my head, "That... that would be very nice, S-sir."
The man took my ice-cold hand, warming it. "Let's keep on moving then. You can call me Shinz."
The entire way there, both of us did not speak, so in the meantime, I focused on calming myself down. It felt like an eternity before we reached the colossal gates with enormous dragon pillars at sides.
How could anybody open such gates?
With a swipe of Shinz’s hands, the gates, I thought impenetrable flung open, and we walked inside.”
The mossy surface of the temple piqued my interest, and I wished to observe it more, but the thought of warmth drew me back to my bed, where my mum swaddled me in blankets. Mum.
We walked through a door, and I stood there lost in darkness as Shinz closed the door behind me. A tangy scent floated around the food, causing my stomach to growl. How long had it been since I had eaten something?
My stomach let out another embarrassing sound that made Shinz glance at me.
"Are you hungry, little one?" He smiled whilst looking at me. "You do not have to be shy. After all, this is going to be your new home. Make yourself comfortable, won't you?"
Despite that the man gladly took me in, this place gave me chills; I wouldn't say I liked it. I could not explain the reason for it. I blamed the negative emotions that overtook me. I was lost in my world of thoughts whilst I stood there, not knowing what to do.
"Don't you want to come closer and take a seat?" The man tried to encourage me asked as he put placed a bowl of rice on the table
I took a few steps forward and sat down on the chair whilst he sat at the other end of the table.
"I appreciate it, Sir." I glanced at the food and thanked him with a slight nod.
"No worries."
Shinz pointed at the bowl as a sign to eat. Not waiting any longer, shovelled heaps of rice in my mouth, and after a few seconds, the bowl was empty.
Shinz glanced at me with a mysterious look glint in his eyes and stood up after a while.
„You will need a room as well.“ The man took the candle, and we walked through a vast hall, full of numerous shabby portraits with unfamiliar faces, relic, and a fascinating weapon section at the end.
Its crimson and cold azure colours hypnotising me, as I walked past the shiny sword.
It reminded me of the legendary swordsman's legend that the man from the fairytales was not afraid to challenge his foes. The more I kept thinking about this, the more I wanted to tear up again.
I thought back to the strangers that had burned down my village.
"Admiring the legendary weapon?" He turned back.
I clenched my fist to stop myself from crying and shook my head. I quickly ran up to him.
"I want to become a swordsman too." A murmur escaped my mouth.
"Everything is possible..." The man chuckled and continued. "Before we reach your new room, I have to tell you about one rule. See those doors at the end, little one? You should never enter them by any means. We do not want to have problems, do we?" He finally stopped next to the other door.
I slightly nodded in agreement.
He led me to a room with a brown door, right beside the forbidden one, and turned the doorknob.
The interior shocked me.
The only thing in the room was a small bed, and there were no windows whatsoever. The walls were made of cold bricks, and the earthy smell of copper in the room stung my nose.
It was like a prison cell.
"Training starts tomorrow. Get some rest." The man notified me.
„Training?“ I wondered and looked back.
He left before I had a chance to ask, and closed the door behind him, leaving me alone. I slowly peeled off my burnt clothes and dropped them on the cold ground to my new bed.
The bed did not have any warm sheets, only a thin piece of clothing and was drastically smaller than the older one.
When I laid down, I snatched the pillow and pressed it against my chest to muffle the crying. I knew that this room would never be able to replace my previous house's warmth and mum's love.
I should have just died with my mum.