Nezumi's Resolve

Teo sat atop a hill, far from the Shi and Kamakura villages. He relaxed on the dewy grass and stared up at the night sky. The sky's black tranquility made him feel at ease.

He lay down on the grass with his hands folded behind his head. Not a single cloud drifted by to block the moon's luminous white glow. The same soothing light that made him feel relaxed enough to rest.

Teo closed his eyes, and his thoughts drifted back to the times with Mia. Although she was controlling at times, Teo remembered her protecting him from the humans' cruelty.

Everywhere he and Mia went, humanity met them with the same reaction. When those around them felt their aura and recognized their tattoos, they ridiculed them.

Teo often felt the urge to fight back, but Mia stopped him each time. "Why can't we fight?" Teo's younger self asked, "we are devils. Humans could never hope to reach our level of potential. A devil that has unlocked its full potential would be able to destroy humanity effortlessly.

"They have no reason to hate me, you, or any devil. It's just our name that strikes fear into their hearts. Devil. Humans hate that name.

"When I reach my full potential, any human that so much as disrespects me will feel the true power of a devil."

"Don't mind these humans," he remembered her telling him, "they fear the unknown. Humans are feeble creatures. When faced with adversity, they defend themselves by trying to control everything around them. Humans fear us because we are unknown, and they cannot control the unknown."

"Fear isn't an excuse for prejudice," Teo shot back.

"It's not," she agreed, "but it's an emotion necessary for survival."

Teo put his head down and tried to hide his anger through gritted teeth, but his balled fists gave it away.

Mia smiled and hugged him, "If a god came in contact with humanity, humanity would treat them like a devil. Think of it this way. You're so powerful that humans fear what you could become. You can't blame them for your own strength. All you can do is persevere."

Teo relaxed his fist, and Mia grabbed his hand.

"Come on, Teo," she said, "let's go somewhere else for the night."

"Maybe she wasn't that bad," Teo admitted as his mind drifted away.

His eyes snapped open due to a sudden clash of weapons, and he looked to his side.

His sword, Teiden, had expanded drastically to shield him from the double-bladed ax swung at him.

The ax's wielder was a minotaur that towered over Teo and the hill. Its hot breath ruined Teo's calm mood, causing him to sit upright and stare up at the minotaur's eyes.

"You reek," Teo growled.

Across the dense forest and inside the Shi Mountains fitness center, Raijah was working on completing the third set of his workout.

"Now I understand why every member of the Shi Family is so well built," Raijah thought, "they have this massive gym open all day."

Due to it being nighttime, Raijah was the only person in the gym. It was a large gym built to sustain the large population of people in the Shi Mountains.

Raijah was clothed in a weighted bodysuit, working on handstand push-ups. Instead of placing his palms on the ground, Raijah increased the difficulty of the exercise by using his thumbs.

The pool of sweat under him grew as he lowered and raised his body while maintaining an inverted vertical position. He took slow, controlled breaths to maintain focus.

"998...

"999...

"1000."

Raijah got on his feet and removed his bodysuit, revealing his sweat-drenched shorts.

He put the bodysuit in the correct rack and began to clean after himself. He grabbed a nearby towel and dropped it on the puddle of sweat.

Suddenly, he felt his nerves tingle.

"That's Teo," Raijah pondered.

"I can feel his aura growing. He's using prana. Is he engaged in battle?"

After procrastinating a bit, Raijah made up his mind.

"It wouldn't hurt to check," Raijah said as he turned to head in Teo's direction.

An ax suddenly tore through the gym's roof, aimed at Raijah.

Raijah flipped back and instinctively dodged the ax.

He looked up and through the demolished roof.

Although separated, both minotaurs simultaneously threw their heads back. The beasts bellowed with rage. Their roar shook the mountains themselves, ripping across the air and through the trees like thunder.

Hours before the minotaurs appeared on the surface, Nezumi's eyes suddenly popped open. He arose suddenly and slammed his fist into a window, shattering it into shards.

He looked to the side. On his wall-mounted shelf were pictures of him with various members of the Shi family.

He swept the pictures from the shelf and sent them smashing into the floor.

Due to his parents dying early, from a very young age, Nezumi shouldered the task of leading his family, the Kamakura.

The Kamakura were deeply associated with the Shi and were familiar with most of their secrets. However, despite their alliance, the Shi shunned the Kamakura from their biggest secret, doragonken.

Nezumi carefully swathed his hands and feet in a protective wrap. He ripped the wrap with his teeth and applied the finishing touches.

Nezumi now stared intensely at the punching bag hanging before him.

He thought back to his fights with Val and Raijah, reminiscing about every technique they used. Nezumi took a deep breath and attempted to mimic the dragon's stance.

Nezumi slowly moved his body, taking slow, deep breaths to heighten his concentration and relieve stress.

He stretched his right foot forward, leaving it straight, and his left foot back pointing to the side.

"They refuse to let me in on doragonken," Nezumi muttered, "me. Their greatest ally and supporter. And yet they taught it to Raijah, someone who shares no form of relation to them."

He crunched his fist into the punching bag.

"The Shi family is a joke."

He jumped into the air and delivered a flying roundhouse kick.

"I couldn't care less if they refuse to teach me doragonken."

He reared his arm and banged his fist into the punching bag, causing it to tear and release the grains that gave it weight.

"Doragonken, the perfect art. An art that is said to have no weaknesses. That requires an almost flawless fighter to master."

He bashed his heel into the punching bag, tearing it further. The grains fell to the floor like droplets of rain.

"Unmatched strength, unrivaled speed, unparalleled stamina, and an unbreakable will. Those are the requirements that paired with unique techniques and founded the most devastating martial art."

He lunged forward and unleashed a hammer kick that shredded through the punching bag.

"I must learn it. I must become stronger. I must prove to Valerie that I am the missing piece to her puzzle, that I am the piece that completes her role.

"And if the Shi won't teach me. . ."

He cocked back his arm as if he were winding a clock. With immense force, he released it, and it arced forward, headed straight for the center of the punching bag.

His fist landed with a thump, sending ripples of foam and fiber cascading throughout the punching bag.

His punch decimated the bag, leaving the grains and filling on the floor as the only memory of its existence.

He stared blankly at the floor, unsure of what he felt inside him.

"Nezumi," a voice came from behind him.

His head jerked backward in the direction of the sound.

He saw Tensai, relaxed on the sill of the window he broke.

"Let's talk," Tensai said with a sinister smile.