Capítulo 1: Unfortunate Beginning
The screams of adults and the cries of children resonated across the small village of Fireham. People could be seen running frantically, trying to get away from invading pirates that were killing and pillaging as if they had done it hundreds of times. However, not everyone was running, one man wasn't, not because he didn't want to, but because he couldn't. His wife and newborn baby were fleeing, he had to stop anyone trying to go after them.
"Hey cap'n! There's another one over here!" A man with a lanky stature sounded out as he caught a glimpse of a lean and tall man standing in their way. Feldwin was staring at the group of pirates in front of him, the anger and hatred in his eyes betrayed his intentions–although the sword situated tightly in the palm of his hand surely didn't help either.
"You pieces of shit better not take another step or I'll kill ya!" Feldwin screamed, trying to give himself a little bit of courage while standing in front of these hardened criminals. But despite his efforts, Feldwin still couldn't help but be frightened. He was a normal man after all, his only redeeming qualities being his looks and humour.
While Feldwin was hyping himself up, around the corner of a house came a man–no, a monster. Standing at a little over 2.5 meters tall (8'2") and sporting a face even a mother wouldn't love, the captain of the Gargoyle Pirates, Jerrak, grinned widely at the sight of a new prey. With blood dripping from his metal gauntlets, he suddenly spoke in a deep and raspy voice. "I sure love it when they put up a fight! Gyagyagyagya!"
Him and his crew of miscreants laughed together, the fate of the man in front of them already clear in their minds. As the sound of laughter quieted, Jerrak spoke, "I don't know what gave you the idea that standing up to me was smart, but I'm not complaining." Laughing once again, Jerrak rushed towards his prey, with his lips forming a maniacal smile. His facial expression had morphed into one of ecstasy, as if reaping the life of innocents was the greatest joy one could experience. Seeing this, despite being scared out of his wits, Feldwin managed to stand his ground and not falter.
As he came in close proximity to Feldwin, Jerrak threw a punch with all the power he could muster. Seeing that, Feldwin reacted instinctively by raising up his sword and blocking the metal clad fist of Jerrak. As the fist and sword clashed, Feldwin felt as if he had just stopped a cannonball, his arms and legs both being in extreme pain from stopping one single punch from the giant of a man.
"Gygyagyagya, you're better than I expected!" The monster said, as he reared back his left arm, going in for another punch. Despite having close to no experience in combat, Feldwin found himself blocking the second punch of the giant in front of him, his muscles tearing from the strain of stopping one of those punches once again. Feldwin gnashed his teeth violently as the muscles in his arms and legs had never felt this terrible in his entire life, Feldwin even doubted that his right arm might've been fractured–although if it was, the adrenaline coursing through him was doing one hell of a job hiding it.
Unfortunately for the young man, this surprising display of skill was short lived, as he suddenly keeled over from a sudden pain in his chest. A spiked knee had found its way to his sternum, not only breaking it but also stabbing him through his right lung and taking away all the air from them. "Gyagyagya, how's it? Painful, right? Gyagyagya!" Jerrak and his crew laughed boisterously as they relished the expression of pain Feldwin was making.
As Feldwin was on his knees, bleeding and gasping for breath, the laughter of the pirates was muffled by his thoughts, 'I can't…Let them pass me. My wife, my kid. I can't let these bastards get to them.' As he thought about the fate his wife and little boy would suffer if he didn't stall these pirates long enough, Feldwin's rage once again flared inside of him. The pain from his broken sternum and punctured lung disappeared, as only rage and hatred took over his body. Exerting strength he didn't know he had, Feldwin stood up with unusual speed as he suddenly thrust his cutlass with all the power he could muster. His left arm almost seemed like a blur, as before long, the blade it was wielding found itself lodged into something–or more like, someone.
*SHICK* Laughter ceased. Blood spilled. Bodies fell. Jerrak fell to the ground, now a corpse, a cutlass sticking out of the top of his head. Feldwin dropped to his knees, blood flowing from his wounds, as he smiled victoriously seeing the bastard with a cutlass through his head. He hoped that he had bought enough time for his wife and kid. He knew that his wounds were serious, that even with medical attention he would've most likely died, yet it didn't lessen the pain of knowing he'd never see his child grow up. As Feldwin dropped to his side, his consciousness slowly slipping away from all the blood he lost, the rest of the Gargoyle Pirates were speechless at what they just witnessed.
"YOU BASTARD! YOU KILLED CAP'N!" The lanky man that had originally spotted Feldwin cried out as he took out his gun. "DIE YOU BASTARD!" He screamed as he didn't hesitate one second to pull the trigger of his flintlock pistol.
*BANG* *BANG* *BANG* *BANG*
As shots were fired, Feldwin smiled gently, thinking once again about his family. 'I love you, Stella, and I love you even more…Edwin.' And thus, the man known as Reergard Feldwin, took his last breath
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Far away from the small village, a young woman could be seen running towards the shore with all the strength she could muster. Despite the darkness of the forest, the weight of the bag on her shoulders and the katana tied around her waist, she ran through the forest's treacherous terrain with great mobility. This was without adding the fact that she was holding a child in her arms.
Ambrose D. Stella was out of breath, her legs were shaking, her whole body was aching. She had run almost 2 kilometers (~1.3 miles) at her full speed, an impressive feat for a woman who has not once trained in her life. Stella had a worried expression on her face, thinking about her husband, the dreams that they shared and the family that they wanted to raise together. 'Please make it back, Feldy, I need you.'
Despite the fact that she wanted to go back and help her husband, even if it meant dying, she knew she couldn't. The little life in her arms stopped her from going back. Although she loved her husband, beyond anything in this world, after all he was her everything, just as she was his everything. But that was before little Edwin came into this world, now, he was their everything.
As she kept running, Stella suddenly felt a cold fist of terror form in her gut. She felt sick to her stomach, her heart ached painfully as if someone had just stabbed it. She knew what had happened, but she didn't want to believe it, she didn't want to acknowledge it. 'Feldy, wait for me a little longer, okay?' Tears streamed down her face uncontrollably, yet no sound was made, just lots and lots of tears. Stella and Feldwin had known each other for almost their entire life, they had grown up together, the love they had for each other was not something one could put into words. And yet, she had lost him. As tears kept streaming down her face, she hugged Edwin tightly, making sure he could never leave her embrace.
5 more minutes passed and Stella looked like a wreck, her hair disheveled, hurried breaths going in and out of her lungs, her legs were shaking like branches during a storm and her body was aching as if she had just been run over by a stampede of horses. However, it was all worth it, she had finally reached the other side of the island. In front of her lay a beach, small fishing boats decorating it. They were old boats used by the village when rotating their fishing spots.
Quickly running up to one of the old boats, she put in her bag, the katana and Edwin. Having put them down, she tried her hardest to push the boat to sea, but her pitiful state made it incredibly hard. After struggling for about three minutes, she finally succeeded. Quickly getting in, Stella finally relaxed a little, letting the sea waves take her away from the island. Laying back, she picked up a still sleeping Edwin, rocking him gently she planted a few kisses on his little face. 'It's just you and I now, my beautiful boy.' Tears once again escaped her eyes, thinking about her husband, and the future that awaits her and Edwin. With heavy pupils and unfocused eyes, Stella started to fall asleep, holding Edwin as tight as possible.
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-10 Days Later-
The sun shone down on the village of Shimotsuki, as birds sang and people went about their days. In a small dojo, an old man could be seen enjoying a nice cup of tea when all of a sudden someone barged in, "Father! Come quickly, you need to see this!" The old man was startled by the sudden entrance of his son, almost spilling his tea over. However, holding true to the patience and serenity of a samurai, he calmly responded. "What is it, Koushirou?"
"Father, a small boat occupied by a woman and a child just came ashore."
"Is this the reason why you interrupted my tea time, Koushirou?" The old man, Shimotsuki Kozaburo, gave an annoyed look to his son, his calm temperament receding ever so slightly. Koushirou couldn't help but sweat a little at the look his father gave him. "Well, father, the thing is…The woman is dead," Kozaburo raised his unibrow at this, but Koshirou didn't give time for his father to speak, as he continued, "and she was carrying along with her…One of the 12 Supreme Grade Blades." The old man's eyes popped out of his head as he immediately got up, inadvertently spilling his tea all over himself.
"Bring me there immediately!!" Kozaburo, at the mention of such a blade, felt excited for the first time in years. As a samurai and a swordsmith, his love and interest for blades was beyond what one could explain. His eagerness at seeing one of the 12 Supreme Grade Blades was understandable, when you account for the fact that he might get a glimpse at the truth behind creating such a blade. Koushirou, not wanting to make his father wait any longer, immediately led him to the beach where the boat was.
Not taking even five minutes to reach their destination, Kozaburo and Koshirou soon could see the boat along with two young men next to it, one of them was holding a child, and the other one was standing there, his haori nowhere in sight as it covered the corpse of a woman. Seeing the father and son pair, they bowed deeply.
""Kozaburo-sama! Koushirou-sensei!""
Not even acknowledging the duo, Kozaburo immediately headed for the small boat. As he came close to it, Kozaburo immediately saw it, a work of art with a beauty none could put into words, a katana sporting a red hilt with white and orange accents, along with a silver round crossguard that would be hollow if it weren't for the intricately carved flames–painted in red–lining the inside of it. As he picked it up, Kozaburo inspected the sheath, it was completely red, except for the finely interwoven flower branches along its length which were a mix of black and white.
As Kozaburo regarded the sheath, he couldn't help but gulp as he proceeded to remove the katana from the sheath's embrace. What appeared in front of this old swordsmith was the most beautiful blade he had ever laid eyes upon. The sharp edge of the blade was adorned with a red flaming pattern that glimmered beautifully under the sunlight, reminiscent of the midday sun, as for the flat part of the blade it was a beautiful silver, one so resplendent it could blind one's enemy.
The old man couldn't believe his eyes, this was a Supreme Grade Blade, one of only 12 in the world and he was holding it. Yet, as he kept his gaze on the sword he couldn't but feel reluctant at the fact that this blade already had an owner, he felt it as soon as he unsheathed it. Although, it isn't as if he has any intention to steal it, after all, he could very well see the name tag attached to the hilt. "Ambrose D. Edwin." Kozaburo gazed towards the baby in the disciple's arm, "So this is yours, huh? Well, I guess I got myself a disciple now, wouldn't want some dumbass going around and waving this like it's a toy." Edwin curiously looked back towards Kozaburo, as he soon started to laugh towards the bizarre old man.
Smiling ever so slightly, Kozaburo put the sword back in its sheath. He looked towards his son and the two disciples, as he sounded out. "Prepare a funeral for this boy's mother, it's the least we can do." Giving his orders, Kozaburo started walking back towards the dojo, but not without taking the child from the disciple's hands.
Whilst walking at a steady pace, he said softly to himself, "To think that an infant is now the owner of Hi-no-Kagutsuchi, what a world we li-" The old man's rambling was cut short, as Edwin pulled on his beard, while giggling cutely. "Heh, you're a lively one, aren't ya?" Kozaburo smiled at the boy's antics. "Don't worry kid, your mom might be gone, but now ya got yourself a grandpa, ya hear? Burorororo!"
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