I stood in front of the broken carriage, one hand resting on the neck of the last horse. The other had run off. This one stayed. Loyal. Quiet. Like it understood what had happened.
I whispered my thanks and untied it.
The silence in the air was unnatural. Not even birds. Only the wind and the occasional creak of wood. I had buried what was left of my family, but the scenes wouldn't leave my mind. They followed me. In every shadow. In every breath.
I didn't know what did this. Demon. Beast. Something worse. It didn't matter.
I needed answers.
So I rode.
The town I remembered was northeast of the farmland. Father once pointed it out during a trip. Said they had good fish and better people. We never stopped, but the name stayed with me.
It took me a day to reach it.
By sunset, lanterns lined the roads. Orange light flickered across shop signs and quiet windows. People laughed in the streets. A child ran past me with a wooden toy. His mother called after him.
Everything here was alive.
And I felt like a ghost walking through it.
My clothes were filthy. My eyes burned. I kept my hood low and didn't speak.
I found an inn tucked between a pottery store and an old tea shop. The woman behind the counter looked me over once, then asked where I'd come from.
"South," I muttered.
She didn't press. Just handed me a key and a plate of hot food.
I went to the room upstairs. Ate in silence. Washed. Sat by the window and stared out at the lanterns swaying gently in the wind.
Then I wrote two letters.
The first was for my master. I told him my family was gone. An unfortunate event happened, a group of bandits ambushed and I am somehow alive. I wont be returning soon.
I just didn't know any other way to explain.
The second was harder.
It was for Yuki.
I stared at the paper for a long time before writing.
I told her my family was gone. That I was still alive. That I wouldn't be able to come back yet. That I missed her. That I needed time.
I sealed both letters and left them by the door for delivery.
Later that night, I walked through the town.
The market was closing down. Shopkeepers folding cloths. Street cooks cleaning their stalls. Somewhere behind me, two old men spoke in hushed voices.
"Another one gone last night…"
"Same as before. Disappeared."
I kept walking, but their words stuck.
Disappeared?
Like the farmland?
Could it be connected?
The sky darkened. Deep blue, nearly black. The lanterns looked like stars hanging low.
I kept walking until the streets thinned out. Just a few drunks leaning on fences. A dog barking at something in the dark.
Then I heard it.
Metal.
Scraping stone.
Fast.
I followed the sound into an alley.
It opened into a courtyard behind a row of storage houses.
Three figures stood in the moonlight.
Two men with swords. Uniformed. Focused.
And something else.
It was tall. Wrong. Its arms too long, its back curved like a hound. Scales shimmered across its skin. Its face twisted. Too many teeth. Its eyes glowed green.
The Monster laughed.
The two swordsmen attacked at once—fluid, practiced, sharp. One was taller, his blade heavier. The other moved with clean footwork and short bursts of speed.
I stayed hidden.
Then the demon flickered.
It disappeared.
And reappeared behind the taller swordsman.
"Behind you!" I shouted.
He turned just in time. Took a claw to the side but avoided the worst of it.
Both swordsmen turned toward me.
"Get back!" the short one shouted. "Run!"
"I'm a samurai!" I yelled. "I can fight!"
"Your sword won't work!"
What?
But I didn't stop. I rushed in, blade drawn.
I slashed at the demon. My strike landed deep into its chest.
But the wound closed.
Instantly.
The demon smiled at me. Its teeth were sharp and wrong.
We fought together, the three of us. My strikes were clean. Precise. But they meant nothing.
It kept healing.
Then it spoke.
Its voice was like rusted nails sliding across ice.
"You smell of grief... so tasty…"
Suddenly, it split in two. Two identical demons. Both laughing.
Illusions?
No. One didn't have a shadow.
That one.
The tall swordsman was down now. Blood pooling. Breathing shallow.
The short one shouted, "Take his blade! Do it now!"
I leapt and grabbed the fallen sword.
The moment I touched it, something shifted.
It felt alive.
The handle was warm, like it recognized me.
I didn't know what made it special, but I didn't hesitate.
The demon came at me again.
I dodged. Watched its feet. Every time it lunged, it twitched first.
Left foot, small bend.
I ducked. Countered.
Still not enough.
Then it split again.
This time, I saw it.
The one with no shadow leaned heavier on its right foot.
That was it.
I baited the move.
Let it come close.
Then sidestepped. Spun the blade. Slashed across its throat. It was hard. As hard a metal plate. I didn't expect it to be this hard as it was just skin, no armor.
The short swordsman jumped from the back and sliced a portion of the neck.
That was it, just the thing needed.
I again adjusted my posture and with full power, I struck in the open slice.
Clean.
The head rolled.
The body stilled.
Then turned to ash.
I stood there, panting, the demon gone, turned in to ashes and even the ashes vanished.
The short swordsman stared at me.
"You… actually did it…"
I didn't say anything.
He looked at the man on the ground. Barely breathing.
"No time. We need help."
I nodded. Threw the injured man's arm over my shoulder.
We disappeared into the night, searching for someone who could save him.
To Be Continued…