Troya, Origins Part 1 - Duelist

Number of posts : 6 Registration date : 2009-03-28

Japan, Hokkaido Region, Hiyama District

Two samurai stood facing each other in the street. The flow of traffic had halted as all had begun to watch. This was a duel and as was typical, no one wanted to miss the spectacle of a battle between two warriors. It had to have looked odd though, as the combatant in the black hakama pants and black haori stood there with his sword drawn and the one in the black hakama and dark blue haori had yet to draw. It was a fact that the samurai in all black could not ignore.

“Are you gonna draw? If you don't do it soon, I'm gonna attack anyways.” He said in an arrogant tone with a slight snarl to his lips.

There was no response from the samurai who had yet to draw. Determining that his opponent was a coward, the samurai in in black quickly charged his opponent with his katana raised, preparing to rain down a fatal strike.

He would take a step forward with his right foot while simultaneously drawing his sword, which extended into a slash. Battoujutsu (also referred to as iaido or battokiri). The result was that his opponent was slash DEEPLY from his right hip all the way up to his left shoulder. His opponent would fall. And as it seemed that the man would stay down, he would wipe the blood from his blade with a cloth and sheath it. Without pause he would turn on a heel and begin to walk home, leaving the crowd to deal with the mess that was left behind.

“what a pain. That is the 5^th duel this week. It seems that the challenges will never stop.” He mumbled to himself before reaching the gate of his home. It was left unlocked so he would enter and manuever his way through the estate until he reached his personal room. Removing his sandals before opening the sliding door, he would move to the far wall and sit with his back leaned against it. He let out a sigh and began to relax there. He would brush his fingers through his long black hair. As the eldest heir, it had been his responsibility to run the estate when his father was gone. As much as he liked to avoid responsibility, he had to answer the challengers calls whenever they came. It was so tiresome.

“Hiyama-sama!” A servant suddenly called out while frantically opening the door. “Barbarians from the West wish to meet with you. They are frightening! What will you do?”

“Meet with them, of course. It had better be worth my time.” He would reluctantly rise to his feet once more. He was not sure how this was going to work, or even how the barbarians were able to communicate with anyone around this region for that matter. He would make his way toward the room that was reserved for meeting with guests and enter.

“What do you bastards want?” He would speak as he examined two cloaked beings before him. Both were at least a half of a foot taller than he was. None of their features could be seen at all. He would wait impatiently for their response, expecting it to be something he would not comprehend anyways.

*”Speak not with your mouth, but with your mind.”* These words would not be spoken by the foreigners, but rather sent to Troya's mind. He was taken by surprise and his body moved backward a step instinctively. More words would suddenly flood his mind. *”Have no fear. We have come to offer you a deal.”*

*”Do tell.”*

*” We have heard that you are the most skilled swordsman on the island. With that in mind we would like you to kill a man of the West for us. Of course we will pay your fief well for your services.”* One of the cloaked ones would allow their arms to extend from their cloak to reveal a medium sized treasure chest and open it before him, revealing that it was full of gold.

*” Tell me their name” * He thought as his gaze appeared to harden then.

*” Mik McLaine Pendragon” *

Number of posts : 6 Registration date : 2009-03-28

*” Mik McLaine Pendragon, eh...he must be quite strong for you to have traveled so far searching for a swordsman to defeat him.” * This made Troya just the slightest bit excited. There was always something ingrained in his spirit that made him wish to fight the strongest of opponents.

*” Indeed. He has never known defeat.”* A black gloved hand would rise out of one foreigners cloak and point in a direction. *” Now..we will waste no more of your time. If you will accept this, meet us at the beach in two sunrises. Thank you for your time.” * The men from the West would then exit the room and be shown the way out by a servant then.

He would let out a sigh as they left. The offer was quite interesting. Not only would he make money for his House, but he would have the duel of a lifetime. He just stood there, staring out the door as he contemplated it all.

“Troya-chan! Thank goodness you're alright!”

He did not even have time to turn to look at the owner of the voice. He was suddenly half hugged, half tackled. “wahhgg! Otsu, what in the hell are you doing?! And do not call me that!” -.-

“I wanted to see what the men from the West looked like! Why where you just staring at each other?” The young woman was roughly his age and stood chin-high on Troya. She was a cute, girl-next-door type and obviously a bit ditzy.

He would look as if he were angry for a moment then, but would soon smile at her. She was of a lesser house that worked for his own, but he had grown up with her and thought of her as a good friend. “They wish for me to duel a man of the West for them.”

“Oh..”

“I am going to my usual spot to train and to think.” He would move out of the room and move down to slip his sandals on once more. As soon as this was done he would head for the gate. He would notice that Otsu was following him and speak to her without looking back in her direction. “Don't you have chores to do?”

“Nope! I finished them already!” She would smile widely. He wouldn't discourage her from spending time with him. No way.

“Fine..fine..” He would grumble as he moved along the path. After some walking they would tread through a bamboo forest. They would stop when they hit a clearing with a stream creating one of its borders. The water was crystal clear, likely coming from a fresh spring. He would use this area to practice with his sword. Even though focused on his swings, his mind was able to wander just a bit. He tended to live inside his head a lot. He was a dreamer, and yet talented and capable.

She was sure to stay out of his way. Absently brushing off her kimono, despite it being clean. Something was obviously weighing on her mind. She knew that if he'd decided to go and fight, that he'd be sailing off to a far away land..and may never return.

He had finally worn himself out enough to take a breather. He would look over to Otsu, who was outside the clearing watching him. He noticed that she lacked he usual goofy smile. “This must be rather boring for you..why did you decide to tag along?”

She would look at him with sadness in those big, youthful brown eyes. “Troya-chan..if you go..” Her eyes would begin to water and look glossy. “You may never come back and..I..I'll be so lonely!” The tears would then pour out from her eyes. There was a part of her that felt a little bit ashamed, feeling the slightest bit selfish.

He watched her with his usual stoic expression. However the was something in his eyes that said that he indeed did care for this girl. He was beginning to think that she was right. Maybe he shouldn't leave after all.

“Ah, there he is!” Two samurai from his House suddenly approached the clearing. “Hiyama-sama, you shouldn't wander off like that. Not with so many who want to make a name for themselves by defeating you.”

He would look to the men briefly. “Have no worries.”

Right as he turned to look at Otsu once more he felt it. There was a sudden pressure on his body. He could not move at all. And then came an agonizing pain. “Ahhhghh!!” He would fall to his knees then. Although all he knew was the pain, his body was changing. He was growing larger, more muscular, taller. His face was even morphing. He was not even able to cry out, he could only bear it, although he felt as if he would rather die at this point.

Otsu saw what was happening but could only stand there in shock. She was so afraid that she couldn't move a muscle. Half of her wanted to run away, the other to his side.

The samurai would looked shocked at first as their master fell to his knees, but as they saw his body changing and reshaping, a fear suddenly ran through them. They would run off screaming incoherently, likely sprinting toward the estate as fast as their legs could carry them.

The pain would lessen as whatever was happening to him seemed to cease. It had not, however subsided completely. He felt a sudden thirst and began to crawl to the stream. Just as he had reached it and prepared to drink, he would realize that he did not recognize what was being reflected in the water. His eyes would widen then and he barely managed to choke out words.

“What..what devilry is this..?”

» Tales by the Fireside (Part One: To his father, a son)
» Excerp from my WIP - Chapter 1
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» A test of blades and Spirit.