Blind Choice

Chapter 34

Deep in the labyrinth of Luster’s subconscious he’s trapped in as Nomac runs havoc with the body of Luster. “… Why do we fight?” Luster asked himself. “What’s the use?”

He was in a church. It is cold and deadly silent. Out through the windows light shined down upon the rows of benches. The dust was very thick as it floated in the air. A single red dust carpet in the center ran up to the podium where the priest would have made his services. Behind the podium was a great tall statue of Luster’s father, Michael Wolf. It was so tall, it touched the ceiling on where stars and planets were painted. And there was Luster, on both knees before the podium.

He stared into the lifeless eyes of his father’s statue. “Why did you give me this destiny?” Luster’s shouted echoed loudly. “Tell me why!” As the echoed died down into the stirring silence, the Lone Wolf tried to shut his eyes closed. They trembled as water built up around the eyelashes. His chin dropped down as the tears splashed upon the dusty carpet. Clapping speared through the silence and Luster jerked back to see. It was Nomac, in full bodily form. He looked exactly like Luster if he wore all black and his pale and the left hand scaly and slimy.

“Yes, blame our father all your sorrows,” Nomac smirked, “blame him for giving you such a destiny. A destiny where you can be the greatest man alive. The last of your kind, the Lone Wolf of the Presian race.” Luster turned back as though the image of Nomac was too much, his words and appearance burned in his soul. Everything about the trickster brought chills to Luster’s spine.

All that could be heard was the sounds of Nomac’s footsteps drawing ever near to Luster. “Aren’t such a poor soul,” Nomac said in disgust, “isn’t everyone fortunate but you. You that never goes hungry, has a beautiful woman, all the power of the heavens in your fingertips, and we can’t forget the born of the greatest of warriors this universe has ever seen! Yes, everyone would hate to be you.” Luster only knelt and could do nothing but listen.

Luster feels his strength returning to him. His eyelashes slowly lifting as he focuses all his power into his right forearm. He looks into his palm and takes a moment to look at the wolf emblem of wind. Anger begins to swell within. Balling up a fist, soon the power becomes visible. A blue aura comes alive around his fist. It becomes so powerful. It begins spreading all over the Lone Wolf’s body. Nomac watches with much delight and mischief.

Soon the blue aura forces Luster to stand. “Yes, it’s the power that all Presian’s contain,” Nomac explains, “how do you think the Wolf of Beginning gained all his fame and glory? He’s exactly like you; you’re the spitting image of him, his twin. It’s the spirit that runs in each and every person. Presian only found a way to harness and bend it to his desires.” Luster quickly gritted his teeth, turned and swung a mighty right hook.

He only hit air. Before he could look back, he was struck with the back of Nomac’s fist. Luster crushed against the right wall of the church. The wall was perfectly unharmed, but Luster couldn’t stop groaning in pain as he held his back. “Don’t try that again,” Nomac warned as he was crouched down right beside Luster. “We don’t have time for such petty games. I could snap your weak neck like a twig. No matter how old you get or training you endure. I will always be stronger, faster, and better looking.” Nomac chuckled.

“The sooner you realize that, the better and we can move along.”

“I want you out!” Luster cried. Nomac crossed his eyes and smiled cutely as he seen the fury and anger in the Lone Wolf’s eyes. Nomac stood up and took a few steps away from Luster. The son of Michael wiped the blood from his mouth and quickly pulled out his sword as he struggled on the ground.

“Luster, what is really bothering you?” Nomac asked solemnly.

“This!” Luster answered. “I never asked for this! It was never my choice. Why me? Couldn’t I have something I’d want? Something I could enjoy? Anything but this! … Anything but this.” And Luster lessened his grip on the hilt of his sword. Suddenly, a burst of anger erupted within. “What father does this to his own son?” Luster cries out. “Suddenly I am the only hope for the universe…”

“Its your destiny rather you like it or not,” a voice spoke out. Luster confused, it didn’t sound like Nomac, it was female. He looked up and his whole body tingled. He couldn’t believe. Sindo! He dropped his sword and rushed to embrace her. She fell into his arms. Her whole presence was intoxicating, the feel of her delicate and perfect body, the smell of her hair, and her beautiful, beautiful spirit.

Suddenly thousands of answers wanted to burst out but a single slender finger placed softly on the Lone Wolf stopped it all. “Shush Luster, I know what troubles you,” she spoke strong and solid, “I watch you always, I want nothing more than your happiness.” Sindo guided Luster to the front bench to sit. His entire body was trembling as though he’s endured a whole’s day training. He couldn’t help the tears of happiness run down his face, dripping to the hard wood floor of his father’s church.

“I can’t do it Sindo, I can’t,” Luster confesses.

She takes a caring hand and runs his back softly. “My love, there is nothing you can’t do,” She explains, “ever since we first met, there was something about you that made me believe. It made me believe there was still good in the world. After all the wars, fighting, and chaos you healed my heart.”

“But… I couldn’t save you!” Luster snapped back.

“That doesn’t matter right now,” Sindo smiles, “what matters is, putting an end to the chaos that Presian had created. It must end with you, since the last time you couldn’t prevent it. It has struck yet again, this time claiming billions of innocent lives. All in the name of Presian Wolf, our good friend. And when you have completed your mission, your one purpose in life. You will be at peace and join me in the heavens…” A smile had come over Luster’s face, but it soon became a frown.

Sindo feeling her one love’s pain, “What’s wrong my love?”

“Its not that easy my dear,” Luster dreads, “I’m stuck in this labyrinth until my key is returned to me.” Sindo smiled as she gazed into Luster’s eyes, and he looked in her own.

“Don’t worry,” Sindo reassured, “an old friend with a different vessel will bring your redemption and with it, the salvation to all.” At that moment, she banished into thin air, but Luster wasn’t left alone. Another spirit behind the grave joined him. It was Presian Wolf. The strong facial features Luster remembered the day Sindo died. It was he with his long white hair. Thick clothes wrapped all over him. And there was big grin across his face.

“So we meet again young Lone Wolf,” he said warmly, “ And again your forced to decide rather our legacy dies or lives, the Presian existence. Strange how we always meet under these extreme circumstances. Now what will you do? Continue to watch the destruction the ignorant can create with the wolf’s spirit or cast down our mighty sword into a stone where no one can use?” Luster sits and listens to the wisdom of the oldest and wisest wolf of all.

He could feel some significant presence invade his mind, probing the where a bouts and thoughts. It was Presian, scouring the deepest darkest parts of Luster’s mind. Yes, your greatest foe is everything we are, wielding all our powers against us but twice the power we can ever deal out. He is the catalyst that ruined the millennium of equilibrium between the Shadow and the Wolf. But you Luster; you must fulfill the true meaning the Wolf. The real purpose, the Wolf’s only real purpose is to restore balance.

Presian took Luster’s shoulder firmly. “You must prevail where I failed and hid away,” Presian said sincerely. “I trained and stride to be the greatest I can ever be. What drove me to be, I cannot say. Whatever it is, it’s in all those that came after me. It was in Nero, in all the Arch-Wolves and it was in your father. Now, it’s in you. You’re the last.” Luster’s blue aura became visible as it began shining bright as the sun. Presian smiled. He knew it was power of Luster’s own spirit. Not even Presian’s spirit is that great to shine as the sun does.

Luster looked to Presian, as he became to dissolve into blackness. The entire church dissolved into blackness. The blackness was swirling into a great void in the distance. That all ended as Luster opened his real eyes. His sight was blurry. As it became clear, he found himself outside. He stared at his hands. They were covered in blood. Shocked he looked all around him. All he seen were rubble of a once great city. The great city was Talico Prime. There is nothing left of the planet’s largest city. He could feel the strong winds. So he looked up and witnessed the tornadoes return the sky, to the clouds from where they came. To the west, the sun was setting. The clouds were colored in purple, red, and orange.

It has happened again. He lost control and unleashed pure chaos. The chaos has wiped a city right off the map. Who knows how many Luster killed in his wild transformation? He dropped down both knees. He wanted to scream his lungs out, but he did no such thing. His hands balled into fists so tight they whitened. Anger began swelling within. Luster risen. He leaped straight into the clouds.

He dropped down from the clouds. The impact had shattered the ground beneath his feet. He had traveled thousands of miles in a single leap. He smiled as he felt his brother behind him. They stood in the outskirts of Folco Mountain.

“Are you ready for your final mission Lt. Luster Wolf, the Lone Wolf?” Markus asked.

“Yes…” and Luster stroked a single line in the dirt before with the tip of Howler.

“Show me,” Markus calmly demanded. Luster slide out Howler, a loud clash of steel on steel. Markus had blocked Luster’s simple strike. Behind Markus, the rubble and boulders were ripped right out of the ground by the wave of wind. The wave of wind created by Luster strike. Markus raised his right fist and his brace snapped out a sharp razor blade.

Markus punched at Luster with his right! The punch wasn’t as fast as Luster’s incredible spinning kick. The older brother was sent twisting, falling to the ground and quickly recovered. Luster leaped inches from the ground, traveling at high speeds. Howler out stretched. The strike was blocked, a wave of wind ripped at the ground behind Markus. Luster was stopped dead in his tracks. The piece of land the Flame Wolf stood in, was ripped out of the ground and stayed Markus’s platform. But was at an almost exact ninety degrees as Markus held Luster back from advancing any further.

Luster pushed and pushed. Sending Markus back each time on his one piece of land. The Lone Wolf smiled and let go of his advancements and sent another wild spinning kick. This time, Markus was lucky enough to dodge it. But another kick followed an equal powerful roundhouse that caught Markus square in the jaw! Before he could fly anywhere. Luster sent an equally strong wind behind his brother. It acted as an unbreakable wall, and Markus fell where he was struck. All in the same second he was struck.

As the Lone Wolf paced around the defeated Markus. His eyes snapped opened. There were flames blazing out of his eyes. High intense flames now caught them in a small circle. It was a circle of fire that had reached to the clouds. Heat so great that would melt titanium in a mere second. It had no affect on the two brothers of Michael Wolf. Their training had given them the ability to shut off all feeling just by thought. That combined with their healing trait. As quickly they’re skinned burnt, it healed. And they raised their swords.

They leaped to meet and single clashes of swords, land, turn, and leap yet again. The second leap met not a clash of swords, but sword with flesh. These wounds didn’t heal, since the healing abilities were already being over used. The Lone Wolf was bleeding at the ribs. Seeing the thick red blood in his hand. He turned and ran to meet his brother. Markus ran to meet Luster also.

Luster blocked, parried, parried, and slashed. His slashed was parried! Markus sent his own strike to the neck of his opponent. It missed, but cut a few strains of his brother’s hair. At that second, Luster slashed at Markus’s open ribs. Blood came gushing out of the Flame Wolf’s rib. He dropped trying to conceal his deep wound. He looked to his younger brother. It was his silhouette in the brightness of the flames behind him. At the outer edge of the blackness was a shining blue aura with blue smoking eyes. The flames were extinguished so Markus may heal.

Markus smiled. “ You are ready,” he admitted. “And I must leave you now. This is the last time we’ll see each other… my young brother.” He stood up, wiped off the blood from his sword and set in its sheath. The sound echoed louder than anything Luster had ever witnessed. Luster knew with their combined strength would be a useless jester. Markus’s mission sent down by his father has been fulfilled at last. He is now free to do what he wishes. This moment its letting his young do what he was always meant to.

Luster watched Markus walk into the distance, out of his life. He watched till his older brother was out of sight. Then he began walking towards Folco Mountain. He was happy to know he’ll be seeing his beautiful Epolee and those five other guys. On his little walk, he wonders whom Sindo was speaking of. Who will is his one aid through his life? It won’t be long till he the other is shown to him.