One World: Prologue Part 2

Prologue Part 2
“Get back here!” the voice of a young man shouted as he ran through the middle of the town with a folded newspaper angrily pumped into the air. He was chasing down a small child who jumped from ceiling to ceiling as he tried to make his escape.

As he ran with a paint brush in his hand, some of the white paint inside slipped out and splattered itself on his jet black shirt and shorts. He gripped the paint brush hard and threw it in the opposite direction, landing a direct hit on the young man’s face and stopping his pursuit of the boy.

The boy stopped running long enough to stick his tongue out at the young man and give him a toothy grin at him before running off again, infuriating the young man even further. “Tch, the annoying brat strikes again eh?” one of the older men commented as he walked up to the young man with paint on his face.

The poor sap with a face now dripping of paint wiped it off with his shirt and threw the paint brush on the ground angrily.

“This is the last damn straw! The Elder needs to do something about that damn kid!” he exasperated while walking back to his inn that was now vandalized with a painting of the child smiling.

A mother with her child sighed as she witnessed the scene transpired.

“It can’t be helped, you know that the Elder favors him and the child’s parents are rarely here”

Whispers and murmurs could be heard from all over the village as the topic of the energetic red haired boy was now the town’s gossip. Little did they know however that he was just behind one of the houses nearby and was fully aware of their feelings towards him.

The boy ignored their harsh words directed at him and started running down a path that led to a hill perched at the top of the village. Standing tall on top of the hill was a large house that looked abandoned and was big enough to take care of two entire families.

He walked inside of the house and ran to the living room where he grabbed a photograph placed on the fireplace. He glared at the photo that had a three people in it, a father smiling while putting his hands on a child's head, a mother who held the boy close to her buxom, and a young boy who had an unforgettable grin on his face. It was a family, his family…or it was up until a few months ago when they both had left him on his own and hadn’t even come to visit once.

The boy gritted his teeth as he couldn’t begin to understand why they had just decided to up and leave. Did he do something wrong? Was he just a nuisance that they wanted to get rid of? Why did they do it!? Why!?

Abruptly, the boy launched the photograph high into the air and proceeded to bring it back down with the full intention of smashing it into a million pieces. At the last moment however, he stopped dead in his tracks and just held it just a few inches away from the ground.

He picked it back up and placed it on the shelf, choosing to walk away from the photo and headed up the stairs to his room. He jumped on his big soft bed and stared at the ceiling, contemplating everything that was going on in his mind. The kid was barely old enough to talk and here he had to think about things no child should ever have to face.

Before his thoughts could go any further, he heard the sound of glass breaking in his own home. He quickly rushed to the window and saw a group of children throwing rocks at his house, laughing as if they were enjoying themselves.

“Just stay in there forever! Nobody likes you!” one of the children shouted as he threw a moderately sized rock at the window, breaking it into a hundred smaller pieces.

“All you do is cause trouble! Stay away from us!” another one screamed while he joined his friend and threw and even bigger rock at the house.

<p class="MsoNormal">The cycle went on for hours until the kids finally got bored and decided to call it a day, but not before leaving the house the boy stayed in a complete mess with broken glass everywhere.

<p class="MsoNormal">Crouched up in the corner of the room, the boy silently wept as he didn’t get any of what was going on. He didn’t understand why they hated him so much. He only wanted people to notice him and wanted to be friends with them but all they did was make fun of him and ridicule him. He thought his pranks were funny and would attract people but obviously, these assumptions were wrong and made the villagers despise him even further. It didn’t help that he also had a bad temper and was prone to resorting to violence when things didn’t go his way.

<p class="MsoNormal">As the day went by and it soon turned into darkness, the young boy came to the decision that he didn’t belong in this town. He didn’t care about his parents or the villagers; even Elder Noboya who had looked after him was beginning to fade from his positive thoughts. He just wanted to find people who would accept him and like him for who he was despite his flaws and short comings.

<p class="MsoNormal">In the middle of the night while the rest of the town was fast asleep, the boy ran into the dark forest and wanted to begin his search for a place where he could call his home. It was easier said than done though as travelling through the forest at night proved to be a quite the difficult task for the adventurous boy.

<p class="MsoNormal">The silence made it even worse as he didn’t know what were lurking in the shadows, watching him and waiting for the perfect opportunity to pounce. He frantically looked around from side to side, hoping to find another person who could at least protect him. He was scared as obvious as it was, what with his constant shaking and facial expression.

<p class="MsoNormal">He continued walking down the path until he tripped on a stone embedded in the earth and tumbled down a hill continuously until he smack dead first with the front of a tree nearby.

<p class="MsoNormal">“Owie…” he rubbed his throbbing face as he tried to walk forward into an open grass field. Suddenly, the boy sniffed a scent that smelled divine to him and a pool of drool fell out of his mouth as he followed the scent.

<p class="MsoNormal">He popped his head out of some bushes and noticed a campfire with several sticks of cooked fish sticking in the ground. The boy gulped with hunger as he slowly made his way to the fish and abruptly jumped forward, trying to devour where the enticing smell was coming from. As he bit down into the fish, he felt himself being picked up off the floor as he dangled in the air.

<p class="MsoNormal">Slowly, the boy turned his head around and noticed the presence of a frightening old man with a terrible scar running down his eye glaring at him while he held the boy in his hands. It was obvious that he was some sort of rogue bandit judging by his appearance and the putrid smell coming from his armpits, which by the way were as hairy as a grandmother’s back.

<p class="MsoNormal">“Oi brat… just who’s fish do you think you’re eating? Huh?” the bandit’s eerie voice was cold and rough as he showed his moss infected teeth.

<p class="MsoNormal">Appearing from several different bushes around the campfire, a group of bandits who looked similar to the one that was holding the child gathered around, trying to intimidate him.

<p class="MsoNormal">“Gozu, what the hell is that you’re holding? A kid?” one of the bandits asked as he squinted his eyes at the now sweating boy who still had the fish in  his mouth.

<p class="MsoNormal">“That’s what I’m trying to find out, I found this kid eating my lunch and picked him up.” Gozu responded.

<p class="MsoNormal">“What’s your name squirt?” a bandit asked as he walked up to the child until he was only a few inches away from his face.

<p class="MsoNormal">The boy just continued to stare at the bandit before he spit the bones of the fish he had just eaten right at the bandit’s face.

<p class="MsoNormal">“Ah!” the bandit screamed as he held his throbbing eye sockets while stomping on the ground due to the pain. The bandits around him just laughed at the sudden action while the boy oddly enough, laughed along with him as he found it amusing.

<p class="MsoNormal">“What a carefree brat, you sure got it rough Kain” Gozu laughed while he watched his bandit comrade slowly pull the stick out of his eye and glare at the brat.

<p class="MsoNormal">Infuriated, he reached for his dagger and locked eyes with the child who was now squirming to get free from Gozu who had stopped laughing and grinned.

<p class="MsoNormal">“What’s wrong brat? Don’t you know the law of bandits? We take an eye for an eye; you damaged one of his eyes so we’re going to cut out one of yours.”

<p class="MsoNormal">“L-Let me go! Leave me alone you jerks! Grandpa Nobo! Help me!” the boy screamed as he tried his hardest to get loose but ultimately failed as he was too tired from his walk to have the strength to break free. He could only watch as the bandit moved inches closer to his face with the sharp blade in his hand and him disgustingly licking his lips with the full intention of harming the young lad.

<p class="MsoNormal">“Now hold him nice and tight Gozu…If I don’t stab it quick.. then I won’t be able to get it in one try.”

<p class="MsoNormal">Gozu readjusted the boy with his arms and now held them both out away from his torso as all the boy could do now was witness something he never should have in the first place.

<p class="MsoNormal">“''M-Mom! D-Dad! Grandpa Grandpa! Someone!''” was all he could contemplate as the dagger was now thrust directly at him and he watched as it slowly got closer and closer. He didn’t have time to scream or shout as the blade was mere inches away from his eye, seemingly making contact with the pupil until…

<p class="MsoNormal">“Fool!” a voice shouted from nowhere and suddenly, the silhouette of a large animal appeared above the campfire and slammed its foot directly in the bandit’s face. Kain was sent flying backwards and collided back first with a nearby tree, knocking him out and shocking the rest of the bandits nearby as the dagger he was just holding dropped to the floor.

<p class="MsoNormal">Landing on the ground, the creature span around viciously as it placed its hands on the ground and let its feet follow the path, allowing it to simultaneously kick two bandits with roundhouse kicks. They were sent soaring in opposite directions and were knocked into the bushes as the animal regained its footing and landed on its feet.

<p class="MsoNormal">The rest of the bandits who were witnessing this were in utter shock at what was going on and readied their weapons, with Gozu throwing the child to the side and unsheathing his broadsword from its hilt.

<p class="MsoNormal">“Kill the bloody bastard men!” Gozu commanded, causing the other bandits to shout alongside him and charge at the creature who remained motionless as it stood there glaring at the horde coming after it.

<p class="MsoNormal">Before any of them could even get close to it, a large and husky shadow appeared from the bushes next to them and raises its sharp horns to the bandits, tackling the entire group and catapulting them several meters back.

<p class="MsoNormal">The bandits definitely landed ungracefully and a good majority of them were down for the count, with only a small number of were able to get up after that assault albeit they were trembling at the sheer power held in the beast’s husk.

<p class="MsoNormal">“W-What the hell are those things?!” Gozu cried as he backed away slowly with the few men he had left. He decided to cut his losses and make a break for it, scurrying through the forests like a frightened child.

<p class="MsoNormal">Too bad he had no absolutely no idea that he was being watched from the sky by a large bird who kept its eyes directly on Gozu and his fleeing men. The bird squawked and dived down at their location which it knew indefinitely and followed them until they were at the edge of a cliff with nowhere else to turn.

<p class="MsoNormal">The bird picked up the remaining group of bandits with its yellow and sharp claws and flew them over the wide range of Penica Island. Gozu and his gang screamed to be let go, with Gozu himself bringing out his knife and began violently swinging it around in the air like a mad man.

<p class="MsoNormal">“Let me go you damn bird! I’ll skewer you! You don’t know who you’re messing with!” his voice becoming more terrified and pained by the passing second. The bird didn’t even seem to care as he decided to let go of them while they were still struggling and they all landed in the ocean where the bird had dropped them, far away from the campfire and where the boy had been.

<p class="MsoNormal">Sitting on the ground in complete shock and awe, the young boy was amazed and dazzled at their display of skill and strength. He never knew people or whatever they were could fight the way he did and he wanted to get to know them better. However, he didn’t even get the chance as he saw his vision go blurry and ultimately, he fell to the ground with a large thump as he laid their unconscious with the three creatures watching over him.

<p class="MsoNormal">_______________________________________________________________________________________________________

<p class="MsoNormal">“Don’t leave me!” the boy screamed as he sprung up from his bed and clutched his eye, wanting to make sure it was still there. He was panting heavily and had sweat dripping from his face as he slowly looked around his environment and recognized where he was. It was Lucky Town’s hospital that was made not too long ago, which explained why it only had one floor and only a few rooms for patients.

<p class="MsoNormal">The door In front of him opened and along with an old man, a young girl with orange hair stood behind the door and watched him from afar as the boy didn’t care to pay any attention to her. The old man who walked with his wooden cane made his way to the boy while he continued to stare at his bed with a lifeless expression.

<p class="MsoNormal">Raising his arm into the air, the old man smacked his fist into the back of the boy’s head causing him to clutch it in agony and return back to his normal self. A bump appeared on his head as comic tears ran down his face while he looked at the old man.

<p class="MsoNormal">“G-Grandpa Nobo? What was that for! It really hurt!”

<p class="MsoNormal">This old man was called Noboya who held the position of village chief and was responsible for looking out for the town. He was a short old man with most of his hair already long gone from his scalp except two stretched bushes that came out from the sides of his head. He was wearing a blue and orange stripped vest and a similar colored clown hat on top of his head.

<p class="MsoNormal">He sat down on the bed next to the child and sighed heavily, prompting the child to look at him curiously.

<p class="MsoNormal">“Seriously, just what am I supposed to do with you?”

<p class="MsoNormal">This angered the boy and he seemed to get even angrier than before. “And just what does that mean!”

<p class="MsoNormal">“Haven’t I told you a million times not to leave the village? You could have easily been killed out there without anyone knowing of it, is that what you want!” he shouted which caused the young girl behind the door to hide at the old man’s ferocity.

<p class="MsoNormal">The boy seemed to quiet down and had his eyes shadowed out as he stared at the blanket over him.

<p class="MsoNormal">“It’s not just that, ever since your father and mother left you’ve been running wild and causing trouble for everyone, especially me. I don’t like coming home and having the entire village at my door step begging for me to do something about you.”

<p class="MsoNormal">His words seemed to affect the boy as he gripped the sheets over his body tighter and was beginning to grit his teeth in an aggressive manner.

<p class="MsoNormal">“If you know all this why do you-“

<p class="MsoNormal">“Just shut up!”

<p class="MsoNormal">Noboya was flabbergasted by this remark and turned his head to the boy who now had tears running down his face and was glaring at him which shocked him even further.

<p class="MsoNormal">“What the hell do you know about anything!? You-You think you know what I’m going through? Mom and Dad left me, they left me all alone. No one… no one likes me, wants to play with me, and they all think I should just go die!”

<p class="MsoNormal">“N-No that isn’t true, no one here thinks like that”

<p class="MsoNormal">“It is true! Just look at Mom and Dad’s house! They all threw rocks and now it’s broken!”

<p class="MsoNormal">Noboya looked like he had just discovered a revelation about something and couldn’t believe what the boy was saying. Had they really done such a thing? He knew the boy to be excessive and upbeat but he never pegged the possibility that the villagers would despise him to such a degree.

<p class="MsoNormal">“I-I-I don’t care about this place anymore! I’m going!” the boy screamed as he got up from the bed and ran for the exit, passing the little orange haired girl who cowered down as she watched him run out.

<p class="MsoNormal">“Wait a second! Damn it I said wait!” Noboya shouted after him and tried to go but he completely lost sight of the boy and clenched his fists tighter as he felt ashamed he couldn’t do anything for him. This was bad, he needed to find the boy as quickly as possible seeing as how hr was recently informed that bandits were seen sighted in the woods not too far from here.

<p class="MsoNormal">As the boy ran out of the town as fast as he could, he looked at the sky and pictured those three creatures from before and had made up his mind. He was going to become their friends so that he was never going to have to be alone again.

<p class="MsoNormal">Never!