1 Vol. 1: Chp. 1 The Newborn
This chapter contains
*Conceiving of a child
* death
* Magic
*etc.
All is to be explained in future chapters, but this is the first chapter. I hope you enjoy it.
This chapter might also seem rushed, but not all chapters will progress at this pace.
XXX
The year is 2005, the first of March, and the center of the village of Furusato is dominated by a castle. Inside the edifice, a local family is expecting a child. The family's mother, Hana Ketsueki, is a 5'10" fair-skinned, parous woman with green eyes and long, dark-brown hair. She can be seen sitting in the medical labor room of the castle. Her husband, Oritsu Ketsueki, stands tall off to the side.
"The doctor should be here any minute."
Oritsu Ketsueki is presented as a man with short black hair, a scruffy beard, and apparel that would be appropriate for royalty. In short, Oritsu Ketsueki was the king of Furusato. Next to the sharp king, Regashi Ketsueki, their firstborn kid, sits next to Oritsu. The 14-year-old, brown-haired, green-eyed kid observed the monumental scene with a look of carelessness and a touch of something deeper.
A bald individual in a signature doctor's costume, a white long coat, and a shining head mirror fastened to his head then strolled into the labor room, holding a clipboard with a copious amount of thin sheet paper clipped to it.
"Does Mrs. Ketsueki appear to be prepared for the procedure?" The doctor promptly inquired, resting his paperwork on a nearby counter.
Hearing the doctor, Oritsu shifted to face his wife, "Well, are you?"
Hana wiggled her body excitedly, but the anxious tug on her countenance contrasted the exuberant reaction. The woman was fighting a mental battle of emotions and was immensely galvanized.
"I guess that I'm ready as I'll ever be!" Hana nervously and enthusiastically responded, clamping her eyes shut.
Once her words reached the ears of the doctor, the beautiful procedure of delivering a baby started, and painfully so.
{Mid Delivery}
"AAAHH!"
Throughout the palace, sharp screams could be heard. From the shrieking, guards and troops within the vicinity would storm the site at any other moment to identify the source of the trouble, but now certainly isn't the time.
"You're fine, honey. Just keep listening to the doctor." Oritsu ushered his wife, feeling Hana's tight grip on his right hand. Admittedly, it had felt like his hand would snap at any given second.
"We're almost done, keep pushing." The doctor declared, being hidden underneath a long white sheet.
Hana definitely was one of the doctor's loudest patients.
{5 minutes later}
After seemingly forever, the baby was conceived, which elicited a crying sound that spread across the room, signifying its conscience. Everybody was silent, enamored with the newborn within the doctor's grasp. The small and dazed being that will soon have a life of its own.
"Waaah!" The newborn baby cried, squirming within the doctor's gloved hands.
A few seconds after the delivery, the doctor found great news to share, a joyous grin stretching across his face. "It's a boy!"
The father was overjoyed when the news was announced loudly. "Oh, what wonderful news!" exclaimed Oritsu, his arm encircling his now-eldest kid. The father could not simply avert his gaze from the whining infant; tears were escaping from his eyes.
Hana squealed in delight, "Isn't this amazing, Regashi?"
The mother, whose eyes were glued to the baby, asked the brown-haired child. At first, Regashi had not replied to his mother, but his silence appeared to have gone unnoticed—everybody seemed to be entirely enthralled with the birth of the boy.
"Yeah..." Regashi finally answered, narrowing his eyes at the sight.
"May I see him?" Hana queried with a newfound frisson of excitement, still breathing slightly heavily from the recent events.
"Of course!" The doctor replied, ambling over to Hana's bedside and lovingly handed her the newborn. "Must we proclaim the news to the village, your excellency?" the doctor then quizzed, turning to Oritsu.
"Yes! We will alert everyone in the village, as well as host a party that will be public for all to come!" Announced Oritsu, brimming with noticeable excitement.
The doctor only smiled at his majesty's excitement and said, "Very wel-"
*BOOM*
With a vicious vibration, the entire labor room shook, spawning panic in the hearts of everyone nearby. Items fell off of tables, and the clipboard from before slammed into the ground, sliding from the countertop.
Oritsu's expression grew stolid, his eyes darting to every corner. "What is happening!?"
"I have no clue!" The doctor practically yelled.
Meanwhile, Regashi never contributed to the frantic yelling, but instead, he started smirking. Fortunately for him, no one in the room took notice of it.
"Oritsu, do something!" Mrs. Ketsueki curdled out to her husband, tightening her soft grip on the newborn.
"I'm going to assemble the soldiers!" Oritsu announced this as he began racing out of the room, followed by outside guards. Multiple explosions could be heard outside the castle, all of which were in different areas.
*BOOM*
*BOOM*
*BOOM*
"What's going on!?" The doctor screamed as he then huddled in the corner, residing underneath a medium-sized desk.
"I'm not sure!" yelled out Mrs. Ketsueki, as she started to hug her child tighter and tighter.
"We need to lea---"
*BOOM!
The doctor tried to speak as the wall to the right of the hospital bed blew up, allowing any outside forces to enter. The doctor could be seen beneath the rubble as Mrs. Ketsueki crept out of bed with her infant in her arms all the way to the corner of the room behind some curtains. The sound of footsteps entering the room was then audible. Mrs. Ketsueki took a chance and looked for the source of the noise.
Due to the dust and debris, two males, both dressed in dark clothing and barely visible, can be seen walking in. Regashi then made his presence known by walking slowly towards the invaders, a malicious smile on his face.
"About time you made it!" Regashi exclaimed, his arms outstretched.
"The barrier the village has is tricky as hell to bypass." One of the men stated, now clear to be holding a scythe in his left hand.
"So, where is the newborn brat?" The other intruder asked, now seen holding a sword with markings written on the length of the blade.
"He and the Queen are somewhere in here, she was just cowering on the bed before the explosion," Regashi informed.
Suddenly, two guards rushed in. They were decked out in red armor that encased their whole body with the exception of their arms and heads, as well as wielding swords that glow at the blade and heat the air around them.
"YOU THERE!" One of the guards called out to the invaders. "In regards to intruding into the village without permission and launching an attack on the castle, you are to be killed!" The guard declared, holding the sword tighter and raising it to neck level.
"I thought you killed all the guards, you morons!" Regashi yelled at the two intruders.
"Woah, wait! That wasn't my job, though!" The scythe-wielding intruder barked back, stomping on the ground.
"Whatever, it doesn't matter. Just kill them, Kiyo!" Regashi yelled in anger at the scythe wielder, revealing their name.
The intruder breathed in and out. "Very well." The intruder that is now known as Kiyo simply stated, moving towards the guards.
XXX
{OUTSIDE THE CASTLE}
Outside the castle, Oritsu can be seen sprinting through the village, squinting to block out the intense brightness of the scorching flame that surrounded them, but all he could hear were villagers' screams and the smoke of burning structures.
"How did they get in?" Oritsu asked the remaining men who are allotted beside him.
"We don't know sir." One warrior replied, trying to match the king's pace.
"YOUR MAJESTY!" A loud voice took them out of their thoughts as they saw a warrior heading towards them, seemingly having something important.
"What is it, Chikara?" Oritsu asked the female warrior, closing the distance between them by running.
"A massive hole can be seen outside the village through the barrier!" The warrior notified the king, exhaustion taking her over completely.
"How? It was said that the barrier was nearly impenetrable!?" In fresh terror and curiosity, the king inquired with bulging eyes.
"I'm not sure, but I do know we've got some tough opponents, and half of our militia has been wiped out! Sir, you should go somewhere safe." Chikara, the warrior, said with surprise and urgency.
"Where's Kaminari Nozomu?" Asked the King in a questioning and urgent tone.
"Trying to find your family, sir," Chikara announced to the King.
"Let's hope he has fou---"
*SWOOSH*
A blinding, flaming light raced past the king and Chikara, appearing seemingly out of nowhere and annihilating several nearby warriors. Numerous corpses were set ablaze; not a soul that came into contact with the attack survived.
"Get down, Sir!" Chikara screamed in a commanding tone.
"Where did that come from? we need t-.... WATCH OUT!" the King directed as he pushed Chikara to the side to avoid a flying fireball heading their direction.
A shadows figure can be seen emerging from the haze left by the fireball, heading closer to the group. The figure then walked out of the smoke and came to a complete stop.
"Hello, your Majesty," A deep and unknown voice spoke out.
{BACK TO MRS. KETSUEKI}
She was terrified and perplexed, and she felt a sinking feeling of betrayal in her gut. She watched as two high-class guards were effortlessly dispatched by two assailants, with Regashi siding with the adversary. Regashi, she knew, was always a social and genteel person. However, as of late, her son had changed drastically. Even with these changes, Hana persisted in trying to pull him out of his shell; she vaguely recalls his 11th birthday celebration, which he despised owing to the large number of attendees.
XXX
{Regashi's 11th birthday [flashback]}
Regashi POV:
There was a darkly lit room, only containing a king-sized bed with black sheets, a big wooden dresser, and a lamp. The sound of a door was heard, followed by footsteps, then a voice called out.
"Regashi, it's time to get up!" My mother said, in an extremely exuberant tone, "Today is your birthday, Regashi. Isn't that thrilling!? You'll have folks from all around the nation come to rejoice with you!" I turned pale and stiffened in response to my mother's announcement.
"I'm not going out to be greeted by hundreds of people for one little day," I Growled, still not moving from my bed.
"Regashi Ketsueki, you're coming to the celebration! Many individuals took time out of their busy schedules to come to see you. Please be considerate and make their travels worthwhile!" My mother demanded, her voice firm but compassionate.
"That's exactly the reason why I said I'm not going!" I yelled in a tone laced with indignation.
Her face only softened when hearing those words, "...Fine," Mother said before slowly walking out, "Love you, Regashi." Mother quietly declared, I only grunted in response.
XXX
"There's the woman of the hour!" exclaimed a voice as Hana gasped and raised her eyes to see the half-bandaged guy with his brown hair still visible on the right side of his face—the side that was still uncovered from the bandages—looming over her and the baby, wielding a kanji-marked sword.
"My name is Gimu, and I'd like to introduce myself. I'll be the one to take care of killing you two!" The man exclaimed, his tone befuddlingly comfortable and mature. The man was about to swing at the pair when a lightning bolt struck him in the waist, propelling him across the room and crashing into the rubble from the previously shattered wall.
"QUEEN!" A man called out. Mrs. Ketsueki looked over and saw a sprinting male with long, bright white hair with black tints running towards her. "Are you okay?" He asked in a concerned tone.
"Y-yes, Nozomu. I'm fine." Mrs. Ketsueki said, almost sobbing.
"Come on, let's get out of here." Nozomu directed as he heard someone yell out behind him.
"YOU'RE GOING TO PAY FOR THAT, ASSHOLE!" When Nozomu and the queen turned around, they saw the man with the kanji-marked sword approaching them at breakneck speed. "You shouldn't have done that, you serf!" The man barked as they both clashed weapons.
Nozomu dove beneath an incoming swing and attempted a jab at the man, only narrowly missing and cutting his side before hitting him in the same exact spot where he had been struck by lightning before.
"OW! YOU BITCH!" The assailant screamed. The man's aura seemed to grow stronger, with a golden glow enveloping his body. Nozomu swiftly moved back to escape being sliced, then put up his palm and created a little blue protective barrier to block an incoming yellow beam flaring with heat and heading towards Nozomu. "Fight me!" The bandaged man screamed angrily.
"As you wish." Nozomu monotonously stated, rushing forward then seemingly disappearing, leaving a trail of lightning behind, only to reappear behind the man and stab him in the back.
"AAGGHH" The man yelped in pain. Just as Nozomu went to finish the man, a swirl of fire combusted around the invader, swallowing him whole; only a pool of blood remained on the ground to show where he was last. Nozomu quickly turned to the Queen and urgently stated,
"We have to leave, now!"
XXX
AND THAT'S THE FIRST CHAPTER!
This is my first story, and I hope I did a good job. Some of the powers described in this chapter may appear perplexing at first, but they will all be explained in due time. I hope you'll stay with us! Also, please let me know if you enjoy my writing style and the way the narrative is conveyed! Keep an eye out for more action to come!
(The story is vastly improved later down the line, this is coming from future me)
Have a Good Day!
Peace - Cr1ticalz_
