PROLOGUE

"But Nana, I still don't get it" said the child.

The old woman smiled patiently at the boy, her five year old grandson.

"I'm sure you will in due time. With age comes wisdom. Nonetheless, I will explain it to you one last time."

The night was rich with laughter of men and women who were either extremely happy or had had too much to drink. The only peace was by the fire side of the tavern; where the woman sat with the child.

"As you know our world is blessed with extraordinary gifts. Most of the sentient beings that walk this world possess magic that is in every way beautiful as dangerous. Mankind was especially blessed and at first we flourished , using our gifts to advance and conquer the planet. But when all conquests were completed , humanity imploded it's viciousness on itself. There was..."

"Imploded ? " the boy asked.

"Oh, sorry.I've grown used to over flowery speech. What I mean is that they turned on one another , dividing into feuds and clans. The weak were used as slaves and one could only hope to stay alive. Life wasn't much to be desired..."

" But why ? Isn't that wrong?" he said with conviction.

The old woman put a finger to his lips and replied, " Your heart is in the right place young Anthony but not everyone listens to their conscience. Power unchecked can corrupt the noblest of souls and half the time those with extreme power aren't even noble to begin with. Yes it wasn't the best of times for those without talent."

"Wouldn't they eventually discover what they were doing to themselves? They couldn't have all been bad."

The old lady sighed at his naivety.

Men are easily deceived with promises of honor and by petty feelings of hatred and pride. Perpetrators of evil hid in the shadows and manipulated those in power to commit worse atrocities that would help their selfish plans.Feuds were controlled by feudal lord's that kept those beneath them in iron grasps. When the world was at it's bleakest and chaos was a step away, a hero arose from a weak kingdom and freed the world of the grasp of it's evil rule. Her power was said to be on par with the gods themselves; rumored to even be beyond. Do you know who she is?"

"Isn't that the flower lady my dad is always telling us about ?" said a newcomer.

He was dark skinned and wore glasses that reflected most light he was about Tony's age.

" Rose Akagi was her name , young William." said the woman to the newcomer as he sat on the floor beside Tony.

"Her hair was the flaming color of the rising sun and like the dawn she brought light to our world."

" She sounds pretty cool. Bet she was crazy strong. "said William.

"Yes, but her strength was not unparalleled.She met her match in the king of the Yugure feud, our nemesis. She killed him in their last fight but was fatally wounded herself. With her last breath she gave her magic to her trusted friend and from then the magic has grown in both power and meaning."

Both Of the boys looked on in awe. She smiled to see she had caught the boys attention completely.

"But isn't that the magic they say that princess has" asked Tony.

" The same princess we know?"asked William bewildered. "But she's not crazy strong. She's not strong at all"

" But all grow, as she will and it is the responsibility of the two of you to protect her as she grows. You are the heirs of the Obi and Dai clans respectively. You are the ones specially appointed to protect the wielder of this great magic. This magic symbolizes the strength of our feud, the power of our hero and the hope to defeat all evil that will arise in this world. That is why those of us in the Yoake feud; one of the few feuds that still exist have dedicated our lives to protecting that magic from falling into the wrong hands.

We hide from the world to save it from itself. Do you two understand why you have to take this seriously now?"

"Sure it's simple enough." said William

"Wow that's a lot of responsibility." said Tony.

"Don't worry. It's not anything we can't handle. We've got each other's backs." William said to Tony.

"Thanks Will."

The boys ran ahead to their parents to talk about the story she had told them. She smiled as they ran on until they out of earshot. Her smile slowly faded as they and their parents left the tavern and went home.

"Those boys have great potential. I feel it in my bones everytime they're around me."

said the bartender who had been almost invisible the whole time.

"Aye, that's why I try to keep them around me. Can't believe they'll waste it on this stupid feud."

"You know you could just go ahead and get the clan destroyed. There's really..."

"Hasty as always, aren't we. Patience is the key. Besides it's just a few more years."she said as she departed.

"If you say so, milady ."

And so the night grew dark in the settlement of the Yoake feud.