~Notes~
You know, I’ve been planning this chapter for ages. It feels good to finally finish it. ^^

Episode 47 The Howl of a Monster

The sun gleams cheerfully above in a tender blue sky, shedding its warm, comforting light upon those of the realm Asgard. Arai, Yttrius, and Kunai sit at a table under a white pavilion, eating a light breakfast.

Kunai stares gloomily at his plate of bacon and eggs, picking them apart with his fork. “What’s wrong, Kunai?” Arai asks, noticing Kunai’s foul mood. “You’ve got to eat up, you know. Today’s lesson is going to be the most difficult.”

“I know,” Kunai murmurs, “but something just doesn’t feel right still. It’s also kinda hard, not having the others here to support me.”

“Well if you’re just missing them, then you should be seeing them soon enough,” Yttrius replies. “If you finish your lessons in three days as you asked to, you’ll be on your way back by the end of tomorrow.”

“Yeah,” Kunai retorts, “but still, there’s this weird feeling in my stomach, like I really want them to be with me on this particular lesson.”

“A-Azuma!” Arai stutters in surprise upon seeing the grave figure approach them in broad daylight. He stands up, throwing the remnants of breakfast on his plate into a trashcan.

Kunai turns as well, staring the old man in the eye. “Is it time?”

“Yes,” Azuma replies in a low roar. “We must begin in a timely manner. Lesson Three will take all of today to complete.”

On the plain of Idavoll, Kunai stands once again in the midst of a desolate, blackened field of stalagmites. Azuma stands as before on top of his platform, looking down on Kunai.

“Kunai,” Azuma announces, “before we begin Lesson Three, there is something I must warn you of.”

Kunai glances up in surprise at the graveness in Azuma’s voice. “Huh? Well…what is it?”

“First of all, you must absolutely follow every order given to you in this lesson, no matter how controversial. It is by far the most dangerous lesson I will teach you, and if you fail, there will be very serious consequences.”

“Got it…” Kunai murmurs slowly in reply.

“Also,” Azuma adds warningly, “we will be conducting this lesson inside a special chamber. Arai and Yttrius will not follow us. Do you understand?”

“I-I think so,” Kunai replies.

“Very well then.” Without warning, Azuma leaps freely from the platform, floating all the way to the ground. He turns, and with a brief incantation, places the hilt of his sheathed sword upon the platform wall before him.

With a loud, chiming ring, a swirling, black portal appears in the empty space before the wall. Azuma signals to Kunai, motioning for him to enter the portal.

Kunai nods in understanding, and walks headfirst through the portal, disappearing with a soft gush of wind. Azuma turns, about to enter, before Arai stops him.

“So you’re really gonna teach him to release Myou, huh?” Arai asks, a knowing smile on his face.

“Of course,” Azuma replies, “it is part of my plan.”

“Tell me,” Arai asks probingly, “what is the real reason you’re teaching him to wield a sword? You could’ve chosen any other class you wanted, but instead you chose to teach him how to be a swordsman specifically.”

Azuma sighs, staring silently at Arai for a very long time. “There is a legend, that not even the Four of Victoria Island themselves dare shed light upon. It regards the Maple Hero’s Sword.”

“The legendary sword said to have been used by the Four to seal away Lilith and the four worlds, the one that legends say has the power to destroy anything real, imaginary, present, past, future?” Arai questions.

“It may be the only way to defeat the monster that is Lord Kimura,” Azuma mutters gravely, “that is why I must teach him to wield a sword, and to become strong enough to possibly obtain it.”

“Have you told Kunai all this?” Arai asks.

“No,” Azuma replies. “If I were to tell him of this sword, he would force me to tell him the method of obtaining it, and that knowledge would be too great of a burden for him to bear. It is enough that he has the ability to acquire it.”

Without waiting for a reply from Arai, Azuma steps through the portal, disappearing into it. The portal disappears with a last gasp of air, leaving Arai to stare at a blank wall of rock.

The echoing of footsteps howls through the dark, empty space of a vast underground hall. The walls are made of some kind of ancient crystalline stone, with cracked marble stone pillars scattered here and there. Torches hang on metal brackets lining the walls, illuminating the cave with a harsh, unfriendly light.

Kunai shivers as he enters the cavern, staring about at his surroundings. “There are torches hanging on the walls, but they don’t seem to give off any warmth at all.”

“This hall is known as the Soul Stairway. Not much is known about the origins of this ancient cave, except that it is said this is the place where hybrids such as yourself were first born thousands of years ago,” Azuma explains.

“The Soul Stairway…?” Kunai murmurs softly.

Azuma stands upon a short platform at the right side of the room, with two or three stone steps leading up to it. At the center of the cavern is a slightly higher platform, with six or seven short stone steps at its foot.

Sitting on this platform is a stone bed, with a thin crack threading its way from the base to the very peak of the cold, solid stone. Above, the ceiling rises high into the sky, a smooth stone ceiling standing about fifty feet above them.

Azuma speaks again, his voice sharp and menacing. “I will now go ahead and release my blade, should anything go wrong later on.”

Kunai watches, as Azuma reaches for the hilt of the sheathed sword by his side. Suddenly, he slides it free from its scabbard, and Kunai gasps loudly in response. “Blue Screamer!”

Azuma looks confusedly at Kunai for a moment. “That is correct. Why do you look so appalled to see my blade?”

“I just realized right now,” Kunai mutters slowly, “and especially with that Blue Screamer…you look just like Lord Kimura. Black hair, black eyes, and…a Blue Screamer.”

“Of course,” Azuma replies matter-of-factly, “it isn’t surprising when you consider the fact we’re brothers.”

The silence rings suspended in the air for several long moments, as the blood pounds in Kunai’s ears. “Br…brothers?” he whispers into the quiet.

“Brother-in-laws, to be more exact,” Azuma explains. “Oh? You did not know?”

“No…I had no idea,” Kunai replies, “that you were related to…”

Azuma sighs, a brief flutter of pain blazing across his dark eyes. “It is a long story. A very long time ago, I was only a weapons smith who worked in Perion. I had married his sister, but I knew very little about the young Lord Kimura. You see, he lived in Kerning City, away from us.

“But our fates met, and intertwined when he came to Perion. He was young then, but incredibly strong. When he left and came back months later, he had asked me to forge a sword for him. And so I made the very same sword he wields today. This blade, my Blue Screamer, is that sword’s twin brother.”

“Th-that’s impossible…” Kunai murmurs.

“It is not,” Azuma sighs heavily, “it is the truth. He disappeared, and I assumed him dead. But somehow, some way, he came back from the dead, and murdered me in my exile in the mountains of El Nath. I was dead before you had reached me with Ryuu and the others.”

“I could’ve never imagined that to be the truth…” Kunai replies.

“It is no matter. That dreaded past is of no relevance to this lesson. Have you brought Myou along as I asked?” Azuma continues.

“Yeah,” Kunai replies.

Azuma nods. He suddenly raises in his hand a silvery black stone, its smooth contours gleaming strangely in the half-light. It begins glowing brightly, and then, as if reacting to the stone, Myou begins to glow brightly in reply as well, so that the two entities produce two stars of blinding white light inside the dim cavern.

All at once, Kunai feels the solid structure of Myou dissipate in his very fingers, and it collapses altogether, melting away into thin air.

Kunai stares at the air, where a thick, dusty black fog seems to form, hovering about his arm where Myou had been. He sticks his hand in it, and it goes through.

“I have now released Myou,” Azuma’s voice echoes throughout the silent hall. “Because you have asked to complete your training in three days, I have combined Lesson Three and Four into one. Finishing this lesson will take at least one day, for it is the most dangerous of all.”

Azuma pauses slightly, as if considering his own words. “Take note,” he continues, “that there is a time limit to how long you can remain in here. That time limit is exactly twenty-four hours. If you exceed it, you will die from a soul imbalance.”

“What am I supposed to do for this lesson?” Kunai inquires, staring at the mass of heavy black floating in the air in front of him.

Azuma’s eyes narrow ever so slightly, as he waves his arm to the platform at the center of the room. Kunai turns and follows his gaze as well, and suppresses a scream in his shock.

Kunai’s heart rapidly begins beating faster, as Ivy appears on the stone bed, apparently driven immobile by some sort of spell. She screams and fights to escape the confines of the spell, while above looms the foul face of a gigantic Paradox.

“What the hell is going on here?!” Kunai shouts, his voice frantic.

“Your task,” Azuma answers him coldly, “is to turn Myou into a sword and save this girl by defeating this Paradox before it devours her.”

Kunai instantly begins shaking violently, his knees giving way as he collapses onto the ground. “You’ve…gotta be kidding me…”

“I am not,” Azuma retorts, “I am completely serious. There is little time to waste. You have one of three choices to make here. Firstly, as I have mentioned, I have already released Myou for you. Your first choice is to compress it into the form of a sword and defeat this Paradox.

“Your second choice is to attempt to hold back Myou from its release, and mold it back into a claw in order to stop this Paradox. However, should you try that, you will have to go through me first before you may reach the girl. I guarantee you will die then, whether accidentally by my blade or not.

“Lastly, your choice is to cowardly deny this lesson, and remain here doing nothing until the time runs out. As I have said, when your twenty-four hours are up, you will die. However—should I have even one tiny suspicion that you will take that path, I will kill you. Do you understand me?”

“Yeah,” Kunai replies, a smirk crossing his face, “so basically, I only have one choice, right?”

“That is up for you to decide,” Azuma retorts.

“Heh, then I’ll take—wait…wait a minute!” Kunai suddenly cries out loud, his eyes widening in realization. “That’s impossible! How can Ivy be here and on the bed now, if I saw her leave with the others to the Rift World with my own two eyes?”

Azuma narrows his eyes fiendishly at these words. “Do you dare gamble on that possibility?” he whispers malevolently. “I am merely a stranger to you. You do not know the extent of my power, and you acknowledge that I am superior to you in strength, as evident by your willingness to obey my orders.

“Even so, if you believe I lie, you love this girl, do you not? Can you stand to watch her in pain, even if it isn’t her? Can you stand to watch her blood spill on this sacred ground?”

Kunai stares back into Azuma’s dark, lightless eyes for several long moments, before shaking his head. “No,” Kunai answers defiantly, rising to his feet, “I will not allow that. I’ll turn Myou into a sword, just watch!”

Kunai collapses to the floor, worn out and out of breath. He breathes heavily, clutching his chest. The black particles of Myou float just above his head, tauntingly obstinate.

“The Paradox will not be able to devour the girl until your time is up,” Azuma’s voice growls from above. “However, three hours have already elapsed, and you have hardly made any progress.”

“I know, I know!” Kunai retorts irritably. “You don’t have to keep reminding me.”

Kunai stares loathingly at the grinning face of the monstrous Paradox, hovering just within reach of Ivy. Meanwhile, Ivy continues to struggle under her bonds, screaming desperately out loud. “Kunai! Please help!”

“Damn it all!” Kunai curses under his breath. ‘Okay, Kunai, okay…don’t forget the lessons you learned in preparation for this. Concentrate. Control. Compress!’

He reaches his hand out, grasping at the black dust in the air. “C’mon, please become a sword for me!” However, the dust remains stubbornly just that—dust.

Kunai swipes angrily at it, but nothing happens. His eyes dart back to the howling Paradox, and the shrieking girl. Azuma continues to watch the scene stoically, biding his time, his hand clutched around the handle of his blade.

‘If Myou’s already been released, then all I have to do is compress it,’ Kunai tells himself, ‘so why is it so damn hard to do so?!’

He lunges at the dust particles, screaming, “Turn into a sword already!” Nothing happens, and Kunai merely stares grimly at the unmoving air.

“Is there something I’m not doing right?” Kunai murmurs to himself. “Okay, think back to those lessons with Arai and Yttrius. Concentrate. I’ve gotta keep my mind clear.”

Kunai stretches out his hand, closing his eyes at the same time. He reaches forward, feeling the humming black dust of Myou at his fingertips. ‘Control. Keep these particles clumped together.’

The particles slowly move towards the inner palm of his hand, while Azuma watches intently. ‘Compress. Keep them bunched together and force them into the shape of a sword.’

“Damn…” Kunai slumps to the ground, unable to move. ‘How long has it been? I can’t tell anymore. All I know is that it seems like it’s been an eternity, an eternity of trying to complete an impossible feat. Why can’t I turn these dust particles into a sword?

‘It’s gotten to the point now where I can actually see the shape of the sword, but for some reason I can’t keep Myou glued together. I feel like I’m so close, but…’

“Twenty minutes remain,” Azuma mutters hoarsely.

From the ground, Kunai’s eyes widen in panic. ‘It’s been that long already?!’

With a grimace, Kunai forces himself to his feet, stumbling slightly in his lack of strength. He breathes heavily, clutching at his side.

“There is very little time left,” Azuma growls. “If you do not complete this lesson in time, you already know the consequences.”

Suddenly, both the ground and ceiling begin shaking furiously. The Paradox gives a loud, angry roar, and pounces upon Ivy.

“Wait—! Time hasn’t run out already, has it?!” Kunai cries.

“No,” Azuma replies softly, “but it will soon.”

“KUNAI!” Ivy screams, thrashing about as the Paradox looms over her, licking its greedy lips. The ground begins shaking even more violently, as the Paradox opens its wide, fanged mouth, preparing itself for its imminent feast.

“Concentrate.” Kunai’s voice rises high above the violent crashes of the collapsing hall.

“Control!” Azuma watches with narrowed eyes, as the black particles zoom straight towards Kunai’s outstretched hand.

“COMPRESS!”

With a bang, the dust particles envelop Kunai completely, forming a pitch-black wall. The particles swirl violently, and as they spread apart and diminish, Azuma watches the shadows on the ground cast by the firelight, where the long, thin shape of a sword has appeared.

Kunai grasps in his right hand a very long, narrow, and brittle black sword, the edges of its blade crooked and chipped.

Azuma stares wonderingly at the sword in Kunai’s hands. ‘It may not be a very impressive thing to look at, but it is still definitely a sword.’

Kunai himself glances at the sword he now holds in his hand. “So this is it, huh? Myou.” The Paradox and Ivy scream simultaneously, as one begins devouring the other.

Kunai slips forward, blindingly fast, and plants a deep, paper-thin wound on the Paradox’s arm. Blood gushes out from the wound, as Kunai turns in midair and strikes again, landing an even deeper, larger gash this time.

The Paradox screams in pain and protests, rounding on Kunai and swiping at him with its uninjured hand. “I’m sorry,” Kunai growls, “but I can’t allow you to win, not after you tried to attack Ivy.”

He slashes at the air, leaving a clean cut on the Paradox, from left shoulder to right knee. With an explosion, the Paradox disintegrates, screaming wrathfully.

“Take her hand,” Azuma orders to Kunai.

Kunai looks up in surprise, and then glances back down at Ivy. He nods, reaching out for the girl’s hand. Suddenly, he pauses, as shock etches itself into his face, for he stares not at Ivy, but at a sneering reflection of himself.

“What are you waiting for?!” Azuma screams. “This cavern is about to collapse. If you wait any longer, you will run out of time and die.”

“Take my hand, Kunai,” Ivy says softly.

Kunai stares again, the face of Ivy having reappeared on the body before him. He nods, and grabs her outstretched hand. Within seconds, Kunai finds himself standing outside on the stalagmite plain once more.

“Lesson Three,” Azuma says next to him, “is finished.”

Next Time: Episode 48 Hidden Beneath the Sands of Time

Arai: Lesson Three explained, and a forbidden art! All of this and more next time!

Episode 48 Hidden Beneath the Sands of Time coming soon!