I am the anger within you,

When you see a comrade in need.

I am the fire that burns within,

When your fight for survival begins.

I am your rage; and I am your passion.

I am your courage; and I am your fury.

I am your strength; and I am your lust.

When in need with nothing else to aid you,

Always remember to call for me,

And release the beast within.

Written in the tomb of the gods,

The philosophy of the God of War

The red samurai was the greatest. And no one knows who he is or how to beat him. The only way you could tell he was coming for you was the lone cry of a Hell Cat. And by the time you knew it your head was rolling on the floor.

I saw him once riding his demon steed through the forests. His armor was blood red. His face was covered by helm and mask, but the look in his eyes was enough to strike fear to the core of you. His stained sword was never sheathed. And when I saw him it dripped blood from a recent kill. The jewel in its hilt shone with a brilliance of an entire clan’s wealth.

If you ever see him you’ll know why he is so feared. Just hope that he has come for someone else, because to be struck by him and walk away is certain death. He cleans his blade with hell fire instead of oil. This poison will slowly drain the life out of you. It burns within yourself until you give up, but you still won’t die. You won’t die until he says so.

That is the description of the legendary red samurai told by one man. But he was real and he was never beaten. But he did not rule the samurai he merely dressed as one. When he was seen riding from the forests people thought he was a demon sent to bring chaos to their world.

But he did not. He brought about a time of peace in the world were no king was more powerful than another and they all were neutral with no allegiances, enemies, or quarrels. But like all things it came to pass. One day when a king grew too powerful he began a conquest to expand his lands. And the red samurai never came. No one knows what happened to him except that he was gone.

Some say he died in a fierce battle against the king and his army. Others say he is in hiding waiting until the world truly needs him again. And then there are a slim few who think he never really existed at all and was merely a ghost or pigmentation of our hopes. But personally I think he died, not in battle or of old age, but someone figured his identity out and murdered him. And so I wait for the return of the red samurai. Not the one of legend but the one who should take his place.

But this is not a tale of red samurai but of his son. He once had a name, the red samurai. He was called Nundum Demenka. He had a son named Gradius Demenka. But he never took that name, for when he was still a babe his family was killed and he was left for dead. But as fate would have it a messenger from the Horanos court was traveling through that forest. He found the Demenka’s house charred and smoky, but hiding beneath the rubble a baby lay drenched in blood. He thought it was dead, but the baby’s eyes opened wide and stared at the stranger, and it cried out for attention. And so the messenger brought the child back to his own court not knowing what else to do with him. For that messenger had taken that road that many times but that house had never been there.

So the king took him in as his own, for he thought that the gods had cursed him for he still had no sons. But in two years time that thought was changed as he was granted a strong healthy son. And so he brought up both his son, and Nundum’s son as his own. He granted Nundum’s son the name Gradius for the ancient hero of the Tagar, and his own son he bestowed the name Jeremiuth. And they became the brothers Armon.

But because of Gradius’ great strength in war he was sent to the Tagar for his education only to have him return over midwinter.

This is the story of that child Gradius and the realization of his inheritance, to become a great warrior and bring peace into this world, and his quest to avenge his family.