By The light Of The Moon, It Found Its Path

Akari woke up, feeling disoriented. She sat up and looked around, realizing that she was not in the care of the forest anymore but rather inside a small, dilapidated, hut located just a few jumps away from the end of the river opposite to the sea. She peeks out of the back window, left and right, it's almost midnight with the moon peeking back at her.

Oddly enough, she was dressed in a worn out 𝘺𝘶𝘬𝘢𝘵𝘢 with scratches and knit traces all over it. She touches her chest and feels that nothing is wrong with her. Every part of her is intact except for her right arm.

As she acquaint herself to the creaky old hut, a strange smell caught her attention. It was the unmistakable scent of burning firewood, and it seemed to be coming in from the walls themselves. Curious, she followed her nose until she found herself standing in front of a damp and rotten bamboo door. With a deep breath, she pushed it open.

Outside, she saw a bald man seated in front of a small forest of bamboo trees. The man seemed lost in thought, staring blankly at the dimly lit bonfire in front of him. The flames flickered weakly, as if it were about to go out any moment.

She couldn't help but wonder what this man was doing there, all alone in the middle of nowhere. It was an eerie sight, and she couldn't shake off the feeling that something wasn't quite right.

Akari notices something strange about the man. He had a very dark skin, not like a complexion, but as if it were like burnt charcoal, and from his head up to his torso, it was covered with glowing purple veins, and it looked as though his skin was slowly being cooked up. The man doesn't seem to be bothered by it, moreover, he seems to be unaware in his surroundings and he did not even notice the creaking sound of the door that Akari made.

She was vexed about the situation and tries to recall how she ended up in the place but couldn't entirely remember anything. Only the mysterious voice filled every portion of her head and she couldn't help but to grind her gears on what the voice meant about saving someone from their dream.

"Shiro... I need to find him..."

A train of motivation suddenly struck her and before she knew it, she was at the edge of the wooden platform. She almost lost her balance when her left arm grabbed the rotten vertical edges of the door which prevented her from falling. But the incident made the most adequate sound that caught the man's attention.

"Oh, you're awake?" the man spoke in a gruff and ghastly voice.

"Did you bring me here?" she asks.

"The pilgrim's path has guided you here,"

"What do you mean?"

He turns around and Akari sees an old weathered man with a gruff demeanor. He has a shaved head with a prominent bald spot in the center, and a thick white beard that hangs down to his chest. His face is littered with moles and is heavily lined, with deep wrinkles around his eyes and mouth, giving him a weather-beaten look. The only thing familiar that Akari notices was the glowing purple veins that was etched all over the man's lanky, and scorched body.

"I see the face of a newcomer. What fares you here, child, to our humble little town?"

"Your body... are you alright?"

"The physique is but a vessel, a temporary shell that encaseth the true essence within. Like a fragile and earthen jar, it is only a matter of time before it doth crack and shatter, release the fiery flame that resides within."

Akari was confused about the old man's responses but was convinced that it had a very deep meaning behind those words. Still, she wasn't satisfied.

"I cannot sense the great 𝘮𝘪𝘢𝘴𝘮𝘢 within you. But 'tis only a matter of time before it doth lurk around to devour you. No one may escape the lord's mercy,"

The old man turns around and starts praying in silence.

Despite her best efforts, Akari couldn't get the old man to say anything more. He seated there like a statue, bowing and holding his hands on his chest. Frustrated by his vague responses, she was about to give up and leave when the old man suddenly turned around and revealed a worn-out bionic arm in his palm. The arm looked ancient, rusty, and rough to the touch, with an uneven surface. Even though it appeared to be heavy and cumbersome, the old man held it with ease using only one arm.

"For thy only way to escape thy nightmare is confrontation, for running only prolongs thy torment." he said.

The man throws the bionic arm in front of Akari and she manages to catch it. Despite its perfect edges, it was a hopeless craft with areas filled with corrosion and flaking paint. The parts were tied up with loose straw knots and some of its metallic fingers were bent and misshapen. But what good is a one-armed soldier?

Akari did not hesitate on picking up the cybernetic part and attaches it into the stump of her right arm.

"Verifying hardware compatibility... compatibility assessed!"

"Attempting repairs-- Error! C6 unit not found, reversing changes."

"This is better than none at all," she muttered.

"Walk straight past the waving trees, upon reaching the fields of labor, an old friend should be resting upon the stone amidst the murky waters of blood". The old man added.

"I shall not delay my atonement. For his holiness is unforgiving to such actions".

Again, the old man turned away from Akari and starts praying.

She takes everything pretty bizarre and seemingly off but on the bright side, she feels that the hermit had no ulterior motives as seen through his actions. But still she couldn't stop thinking about the dream that she had and somehow, the hermit's words proved to have a vague connection with it. She had a lot of questions in mind but she cannot afford to trouble the praying man.

After a few troubling minutes of examining the bionic arm, she packs up a few of the hermit's belongings and bows to him in respect and again, the old man seem to not care as he was pretty unfazed with all of the praying.

Akari wraps her neck with a red and rugged cloth to compensate from the chilling air of the night. She walks past the bamboo trees sticking and bending towards each other. Her big and clanky steps splashed within the murky waters as she treaded the path where the fireflies light up the path. Her topographic scanner has not worked ever since she stepped foot of the place which confuses her the most.

She is a seasoned cyborg from the Erika class, known for her unique ability to map out her surroundings using the electromagnetic waves instead of the typical auxiliary vision that relied on heat signatures. She had been deployed in the European Quadrant for a long time, where she honed her skills as a rogue inquisitor tasked with scanning for Zeno infestations, Ursa territories, and dilapidated bunkers in remote areas like caves, forests, and mountains.

Unlike any other classes, they only work alone, abiding the orders of the Zero-One Council. Their ability to map out an area's topography provided new information and great advantage for the military but it is only the extent of their hardware. Erika classes were considered as one of the oldest nomadic cyborgs and they were designed to have a maximum of three rudimentary implants and one of it is an implant capable of topographical scanning.

They are revered as lone wolves that are able to handle anything on their own for long periods of time, without aid, and their ability to map out topographical locations was such a great feat during her time.

Ever since Akari arrived in the land of the sun's origin, her GPR mapping hardware has been acting up. It's like something is stopping it from functioning properly. This is a big problem since she had relied heavily on this equipment during her time as a rogue inquisitor for the Aetherian Military. However, She isn't too worried about it. She knows her military work is over, and as clanky as she had gotten, she kind of left her habits of managing her operating system and some of her old shenanigans. It's a strange feeling to know that a part of her is no longer useful, but she has come to terms with it.

She steps out of the bamboo forest and into the grassy fields right in the middle of the Sumire river. A few steps away, she slowly sees the silhouette of several houses illuminated by dimly-lit lanterns, she might have wandered off the plane of exclusion, she thought. She turns her sight towards the river and into the rice fields, and takes a few steps towards the murky waters.

She mutters to herself, "The fields of labor...."

As she gazed out over the water, she spotted a large boulder in the middle of the river. And upon closer inspection, she saw a massive mechanical claymore embedded in the crevices of the rocks, its edge rusted and jagged from the water's constant flow.

Without hesitation, she marched towards the sword and pulled it from the boulder's grip. She examined the blade for any disfigurements and found it to be in relatively bad condition but it didn't stop her from putting a smile on her face. She easily swung it through the air despite its massive size, testing its balance, and was pleased to find it felt natural in her grip.

It was a blade designed for her, specifically, a blade that is called for cleaving huge hunks of flesh, which was also one of her dire jobs in her time in the military. The blade's corners were like the teeth of a shark, and despite it's rusty and jagged edges, it is huge structure is enough to strike fear into the eyes of unsuspecting guests. Only a fool shall not tremble before it.

It has a silver hilt that was wrapped in a worn leather grip with pieces of zinc and copper wires coiling around it, probably for conducting electricity, but found no signs of usage for it now. In front of the hilt was a withered branch of an ironwood tree that is wrapped around the dull edges of the blade near the hilt, supposedly to maintain balance, despite how ridiculous one may seem to think about it, it definitely did its job.

Although dull and tarnished, the blade still did shone with a faint glimmer.

"Eisen," her words proved joy as she look at it with a delightful smile on her face.

The cool breeze of the night brushed lightly against her hair. Their fated reunion was long but a short moment. As she looked out into the calm waters of the river, a sudden feeling of dread began to build inside her.

In a flash, the area around her was engulfed in a violet fog that seemed to come out of nowhere. The once peaceful river was now a deep shade of red that resembled the color of blood. She knew what was happening; it was the start of another battle against her nemesis, the Zenos.

Her heart racing, she drew her sword and readied herself for the onslaught. In a blink of an eye, her old foes appeared right in her sight.

The Zenos, having a slender body that is covered in a blackish-purple exoskeleton with bits of flesh-like materials covering massive parts in its body. Its head is curved and elongated, with three small eyes sticking above its jaws. It has two sets of teeth, one inside the other, that are revealed when it opens its jaws. Its arms are long and have sharp claws, while its legs are like that of an old reptilian, standing in two feet.

One by one, they began to emerge from the violet fog, their glowing eyes staring hungrily at her, and ready to pounce at her anytime. With a deep breath, Akari charged forward, her sword held high, and engaged the Zenos in battle.

With each swing of her mechanical claymore sword, she expertly cleaved through them, slicing them into pieces. Her movements were fluid, graceful, and deadly, as she spun, twirled, and leaped through the air, evading their attacks and striking back with deadly precision. The sound of metal clashing against flesh echoed throughout the area, mixed with the sickening sounds of the creatures' screams.

Despite the chaos and danger that surrounded her, Akari felt alive. She had trained for this moment, and the thrill of battle coursed through her veins. As the battle wore on, Akari began to lose herself in the fight, reveling in the adrenaline rush that came with each kill.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the last of the Zenos lay defeated at her feet. Akari stood there, breathing heavily, the sword still gripped tightly in her hand. Looking out into the now peaceful Sumire river, she knew that this battle was just one in a long line of battles to come. She was always ready, for the conquest for her brother may come in many dangers and battles ahead. She cannot afford to lose, not one bit.

She wipes the blood from her forehead with the back of her hand. Her face was flushed and glistening from the tint of red liquid flowing from her face. Her skin was smooth and glowing, with a touch of pink on her cheeks from the heat of the battle. She was standing in the middle of bloodied corpses, yet, her looks seemed unfazed. The feeling was like déjà vu, and it was enjoying.

The violet fog started to dissipate, slowly at first, but gradually becoming thinner and thinner until it was almost gone. She looked up at the sky in wonder, her faces lighting up as she saw the most beautiful form of the moon, showing itself to those who wanted to see. She felt a sudden motivation, that no matter what foe may come in her way, she will not hesitate to strike them down one by one.

"The moon is beautiful today," she smiled,

"I won't be long, brother".