Blades Of Hatred: Chapter One

Breaking through the fog, a city, a glowing phantom of neon lights outlining the towering monoliths whose tops remained elusive above the fog, hidden in the clouds. Across the bay from the decadent jungle of lights stood an abandoned shrine standing silently in an equally abandoned park. A light rain evolved to a torrent of water which pooled at the moss covered foundation and soaked the rotting wood and tatami floor. Kneeling before the bronze statue of a forgotten local deity, a silent figure meditating without even the smallest movement. The figure slowly turned, dragging his wet yukata across the floor to look back towards the entrance of the sacred grounds. Standing under the eternal torii gate was a dark cloaked figure. It slowly approached the shrine leaving deep cavities in the mud and light scrapes in the ruined stone path. As the shadow reached the front steps of the shrine, it stopped to watch the worshiper inside who had turned back to face the shrine. The worshipper lifted his hands and placed them together in prayer while he watched the stranger in the reflection of the aged statue. The eyes of the shadow cast a red glare through the rain and bathed the entrance of the derelict shrine in an eerie sea of artificial light. Cautiously, the shadow took one uneasy step onto the first decaying step. Waiting as if the shrine itself would rebuke it, and seeing no reaction, fully stepped into the dilapidated building. The shadow started to investigate the trash and garbage that littered the floor, moving pieces around with a sheathed katana. The walls remained almost hidden under the mountain of graffiti and faded words carved into the wood. A short synthetic chuckle escaped from the stranger. He turned to look at the worshiper, seeing his long black hair nearly cover his face in its unkempt state.

“What a sorry state” declared the shadow with the quake of his mechanical voice.

“And yet there is life,” replied the worshipper. He remained in prayer, eyes closed and head bent in reverence.

“That is yet to be seen” the stranger began to circle the statue. “You know why I am here”

The worshipper lowered his hands to rest them on his legs as he remained kneeled. Amidst the rain he could smell the growing scent of oil and steel.

“My employer is dissatisfied with my resignation” he answered as he looked to the circling beast.

“Those who would face your blade would come to call you ‘The Demon of Steel’, ironic” the shadow stopped behind the statue.

“Ironic, that the company sent a real demon to kill the imposter” he moved to rest his hand on his katana, sheathed at his waist. “What does it take to buy the services of a demon?” he asked.

“For the enslavement of your soul by the Arashi Corporation, I am to receive one hundred souls of those in terrible debt to the company” The assassin spoke plainly as if discussing a daily business transaction.

“What a waste. One hundred lives for the death of one man”

“One man of infamy. Your worth both to the company and to us in the shadows easily surpasses that of one hundred average men” The demon took a quick step to the side, giving him eye contact with his target. “First you sold your soul to the company, a failure as an individual. Next you forsake your wife for the sake of your master, failure as a husband. You let the company take your daughter, a failure as a father. The pain and misery that surrounds you makes your soul so very desirable” The demon rested his hand on his katana to mirror his target.

The man finally stood, slowly dropping coins into the offering box.

“You make your point clear fiend. Despite my failures I will not allow the company to exist as long as I am alive. I will eradicate any who dare hoist the banner of Arashi” The instant the last coin bounced against the bottom of the offering box, the statue released a green pulse of light and energy. The two demons were ejected from the shrine by an invisible wave, casting them into the rain. The human was launched further than the machine who had dug his titanium feet into the mud to stop himself. Mud and water exploded forth as the machine came to a halt. The demon’s cloak had been ripped from him revealing the intricate engineering of his robotic form. Rain poured down the fanged metallic skull as he watched his prey with caution. In perfect unison, the two drew their blades. An ignition of blood red plasma engulfed the hunter’s blade. The human took up his stance bathed in the light of the blue-grey plasma of his own sword.

“Like all humans, you’re a slave to your desires, your desire to fight controls you, and that intrigues me”

“And you? Are you not a slave yourself?” returned the human.

“We who live beyond, we are free. I choose to take your soul only because I want to. I have no need to fight, I have the choice to leave this behind me. However, I want this, regardless of the eternity that stands before me, I choose this moment. I choose this fight.” The demon’s declaration of war seemed to freeze the two warriors. They stood motionless, waiting for the right moment to strike. Rain drops evaporated as they landed on their blades. Suddenly, as if the two shared one mind, they both lunged forward at incredible speed. Their blades clashed in a blur of flesh and metal. Despite the demon’s mechanical body the human kept pace with its movements. The whirlwind of superheated blades sliced through the storm as the two adeptly avoided each other's attacks. Ducking the machine's lightning fast swipe, and seeing his opening, sliced through the demon’s stomach. Blood and oil gushed forth as the machine fell to his knees.

“It's only one body,” the demon said, his voice cracking and distorting as his robotic body began to shut down. “I hunt you still slave. I do not tire, eventually, I will take you, Katsu” The demon spoke his last as the machine lay still, eyes dimmed to darkness. The victor sheathed his sword and gave a short bow to his enemy. Katsu gave another bow to the shrine that had sheltered him from the restless storm. He departed from the park, setting his sights on the fortress of towering monoliths that loomed over the bay.