The Journey Of A Thousand Miles

Prologue: “Somebody, Someone…”

The frantic, ambiance of the outside world weighed heavily upon the broad shoulders of the weary, demon exterminator. He sat; hunched over in the far corner of the old, dilapidated warehouse he’d found shelter in the night before. The wounds he bore from battles long gone offered nothing, but excruciating pain; a sign foretelling he’s ill fortune. Eyelids began to droop as if someone had laid heavy weights on them, as if to blind him so he won’t have to witness his own demise, but somehow, be it stubbornness, or shear strength of will, he managed to keep his eyes open. A feat many a man hath tried and failed. It was times like this when the true measure of a man was tested.

Blood ran freely from the slowly clotting wound on his forehead, down his face, into his mauve eyes tinting his features; his usual cynical expression revamped. What was once cool and aloof, now twisted in bitter betrayal leaving the demon hunter with a raging inferno of anguish behind his soulful eyes. What once mauve was now incarnadined.

His lips curled into a crimson smirk, a ghastly rendition of the arrogant smile he was both renowned and feared for. The self-assuring glint that at one time shone effulgently from his eyes was replaced with suspicion. He was on the end of his rope and he knew it - it was only a matter of time.

“I’m glad to see one of us got something out of this,” he spoke through gritted teeth. The wound in his chest was bleeding more profusely now; he couldn’t clot the blood. He was never any good at healing magic; he lacked the purity he liked to think. His unquenchable thirst for revenge perverted his more humane qualities. The kind, which would’ve been particularly helpful at the time.

Straining muscles protested, as the exterminator savagely ripped the ever-glowing emerald from its position around his neck. Clutching the amulet in a death-grip, his stale breath whispered menacingly throughout the empty room.

“What’s the matter, Meridyth, don‘t you want to come out and play?” he sneered. Beads of sweat rolled down his face in rivulets, but he kept his back straight and his stance relaxed. His eyes gave him away though. Those ever-expressive mauve eyes of his spoke volumes. A maelstrom of mixed emotions held captive in amethyst irises. Anger, suspicion, disgust, and confused all rivaling each other for dominance. A story told in the blink of an eye.

He took a deep, cathartic breath, hoping to calm the raging sea of emotion inside his breast and relax his posture into something a little more non-threatening; after all, at one time or another they were friends …or at least that’s what he’d thought they were. Sometime along the way, the lines got a little blurry. The straight and narrow wasn’t as straight as they would have like to think, and the Technicolor faded into gray. Everything infallible, all that was clear and definite were mixed up and broken. However, of all the proofs and proven theories that had once been, he’d like to believe the only sure thing was there connection. They were bonded. He’d like to believe that wasn’t faux, but he just couldn’t shake the sting of betrayal. He should have known better. She was demon, after all. Betrayal was in her pedigree.

–—˜™–—˜™

Meridyth’s ears rang; she could barely hear over the deafening silence, the ear-piercing cacophony around her was mind shattering. She watched from an anesthetic standpoint as he sanity drip-dropped into nothingness. The apathetic guise fix squarely on her pixyish face was a complete 360 from her normal effervescent outlook towards life in general. She was tired and worn down, she’d lost the will to fight and maybe even live. Her honeyed eyes painted a haunting picture of disillusionment clashing with the playful, teasing optimism she use to carry in reserve. As far back as she could remember, Meridyth lived in constant contradiction of the blue blood that flowed oh so deeply in her demonic veins, clandestinely though, she wondered if tonight she might give into her inhibitions.

In the dark corner, where she sat reminiscing, rigidly watching the swirling colors dancing somberly in the air in front of her. Dreary blues and depressing grays weaved intricately around her, dancing like fairies on a dreamy midsummer’s night. She sat hunched over and alone, leaning heavily against the wall she sat on, thinking about all she …no they’d been through. She wondered if all their work had been in vein. Bleak, depressing thoughts buoyed on the surface of her mind, bidding the time until their release into her conscious. Nothing made sense to her anymore, she was sure she’d gone crazy at some point in their adventure. She tried to think back to when it was, but continued to come up short, like always.

It doesn’t make sense; it just doesn’t make any sense at all! She thought confusedly. She was sure he’d never turn on her, but now …well, thing just weren’t adding up. Somewhere along the way, one plus one stopped equaling two and began to equal seven. Right under her nose her world, as she knew it was inverted, and she couldn’t figure out for the life of her why or how.

“Kusanagi…”

–—˜™–—˜™

A cloaked figure leapt gracefully from tree to tree with the ease of a nimble lemur playing in the vast expanse of jungle foliage. Deftly, he soared across the sky, not unlike an angel falling from the heavens, touching down briefly before leaping once more as if to kiss the sky in search of absolution. His strong muscular arms were thrown behind him, like bronze wings, as he ran against the frigid, arctic winds that blew like frozen hurricanes in vast tundra surrounding him. His breath came in short, steady pants of dragon’s breath; a testament to the bitter weather, but he kept on without fail. He had a mission to complete. There was no pitter-patter of feet nor was there the crunch of crushed snow under the weigh of the garbed man, only half foot prints and silence followed the skilled tracker.

Stopping abruptly, he leapt to the highest branch of the large snow-ladened tree, and scanned the area. Carefully pulling down the wrap that covered his face, he stuck his rounded nose in the air and inhaled a sharp, gust of wind. He didn’t get to savor the crisp taste of the mountain air, though; fore there was a sharp, acidic taste on the tip of his tongue. Someone was following him, and whoever it was, was close. He’s eyes narrowed and he once again scanned the vicinity. He opened senses to nature and became like a conduit, letting nature speak through him. Down to his left, about twenty yards away, the deer and other wildlife had become skittish, squirming at the slightest movement, but not so afraid that they felt the need to run. He tried to block out the stale smell of urine permeating the air to the north of him. He could sense discord from that area. He pondered for a moment a fitting course of action, before shrugging it off and deciding to play it by ear.

Quickly pulling up his cowl, once more he leapt, ready to face whatever was headed his way. The constant running was becoming monotonous anyway; he was in the mood for a ‘Good Ol’ Rough-n-Tumble’.

Coming Soon…

Chapter One: “Fall Children! (Falling Away With You)”