The events of that day are more of a blur to me, clouded memories I faintly remember, or rather, broken, the loud screams of anguish from that day, followed by the numerous clutters of dead bodies, I don’t know why he did it, but then again, it doesn’t matter anymore, I now only sought for one thing, and that is, revenge.  

     It a was gloomy day, the sun ray shimmered faintly prompting a sluggish atmosphere around the town, but even at that, the whole place bustled with buyers and tourists roaming in every nook and cranny, to be honest, I don’t recall who I was or where I was back then, but if for some reason anyone had told me that the town would suddenly turn into a pool of blood, I most definitely wouldn’t believe it, but somehow, someway, it happened, and that was the genesis of it all.

   I was weak and utterly helpless, I couldn’t save anyone, I couldn’t even save myself, I only stared at those cold eyes of his, they peered down at me as he tilted his katana, aiming for my neck, drenched in sweat with both eyes fully open, I steered at him completely helpless, 

  But then, in that very moment when I thought it was all over, he just sighed and walked away.   

   I was completely bewildered by his action and for some reason, I called for him to end it all, but he only turned around to say those words, words which always echoes in my dream and instantly vanishes when I wake up, words I deemed a curse.

  After speaking, he turned around and gaited off into the darkness beyond.

  I can’t recall what exactly cursed the dizziness I felt that day, it might have been the smoke from the houses on fire, or rather, the dripping sounds followed by the awful sight of gushing blood, either way, I blacked out.

When I woke up I found myself in kai sect with no knowledge of how I got there, master said that I was found amidst rubles and clutters of dead bodies, and I was the lone survival of my town.

After speaking he left me to my own devices, I felt immense pain and at the same time great hatred, it was on that very day I made the decision, I would seek power at all cost, and by all means I will exert my revenge. 

After seven years of unwavering training and patience, I had finally come of age to partake in the awakening, and without doubt, I was ready.

  As I stared at other disciples going forth one after the other, I didn’t have the slightest feeling of nervousness, rather, it was more like I had awaited that day my whole life, the day which will decide my faith.

  After a number of turns, it was finally my turn, stepping into the array, I was instructed by master to slit my index finger with my katana, and then release a drop of blood unto the array.   

   After that, I was told to close my eyes and dive deep into the subconscious, there, I would find a power sealed deep within me, a gift of redemption,

   I then closed my eyes.

It didn’t seem like the subconscious to me, it was more like a vast sea with an endless span.

  In that instant, I began drowning, falling deeper and deeper into the sea as the memories of that day came back calling, I tried the best I could to escape, but the grip of the sea was impossible to resist.

  But then, it was at that very moment that it at moment that it all came back to me.  

“When you possess the power, Akashi…… find me……… find shadow”

And then…… I opened my eyes.

They elders, master, and everyone else, the glared at me completely short of words, and that made me realize it, something had gone really wrong.

The whole atmosphere was completely stern.

“Akashi…. You… you awakened a cursed element” master muttered, staggering towards me.

“What do mean by that?” I asked.

“You possess an aberrant element, one which power resides outside natural law” he said

“What!”

“Be warned, do not use its power unless when caught in a dire situation, of which concerns life or death, if not, the consequences would be to grief for you to bear” he added.

“Is that why you called it a cursed element” I asked.

“Yes….. Those blue are testament” he replied.

“Blue…. Eyes” I muttered, rubbing my fore head.

“On any account you activate its power, your eyes would instantly turn blue, and within that moment, something of great importance will be immediately stolen from you, bear in mind, the stronger the element, the greater the curse” he warned.  

   I always sorted power to exert my revenge, but never in my wildest imaginations would I have thought it would come at such a cost, it was a gamble of which I would risk my life, but for a fact, it felt exhilarating, who gave a damn about consequences, as long as I could get the power I seek, I didn’t care……. or so I thought.

   It was ten in the night which was sleeping hours, I had finished all preparations and awaited the right moment, escaping wouldn't be easy, that I knew, but at the very least I had to try,

   Suddenly, I heard a stomping sound on my roof, I stood up and walked gingerly towards the window, getting there, I stretched my neck through and peered around, but there was no one there,

   I then took to the door, opened it slightly and peeked out, but still, no one was there,

“Hmmm, maybe it was a cat“I thought.

  Turning around, I was met with a familiar, undeniably annoying face

“Boom” she suddenly screamed. 

“Aggggghhhhh! Why are you here again Yusa” I grumbled.

   Yusa was much more of a nightmare than a person to me, she was extremely annoying whenever we were together, and I always felt as though she puts up that demeanor for the sole purpose of annoying me,

    “What do you mean by that, can’t a friend visit a fellow friend” she asserted with a smile, she then leaped unto my futon.

   “We...Are…not…friends!” I lashed out.

“Calm down, calm down, you know what Akashi… if you keep on at this pace, you may one day end up dead” she started.

“And who's fault is that” I asked.

“Your emotions, I mean you just can’t control those feelings when you see a beautiful girl like me” she replied.

“…what….” I said dumbfounded.

“And seriously, if you do end up dying, there would be no one left to annoy, and that’s just unacceptable” she jested.

    Asides her annoying personality, calling her beautiful wasn’t far from the truth, but, I always got so worked up by her attitude that I don’t really pay any attention to her face

    “You know what Yusa, just leave, am not in the mood for your taunts” I said.

“But am in the mood” she replied with a smirk.

“Fine, then you leave me no choice” 

  In that instant, I bolted forward to grab hold of her right hand, but then, as swift as wind she evaded my hand and suddenly appeared right next to the window.

  “Now, now, you do know you can’t stop me by resulting to violence” she said.

     She was right about that, in the whole sect, she was the only one who was able to annoy me, and still get away with it,

  There was once a time when I got so feed up of her pestering that I challenged her to a duel, we made a bet, if I won, she would stay away from me, but if I lost, she could do what ever she wanted.

  At first I was really confident, but when the fight started things got really awkward, it was a rather unpleasant experience, we fought and fought...... and fought, yet, there was still no winner, in the end; we just called it a draw.

"Why do you always act this way when I visit?" she asked.

"Well that’s because I don't want you visiting" I replied.

  "Wow, so hash..... Well then, why did you visit me back then"she asked.

  “Ha… you call that a visit, I went to retrieve my katana you stole”

“I took, not stole, friends don’t steal” she asserted.

“What the…… why pester me all the time, that’s all I ask”

“Because, you’re the only male disciple, who isn’t hitting on me” she replied.

“……wait…. The…. the only” I muttered.

“Yep….. And that’s the reason I always stay close to you” she said.

“I don’t understand” I said, completely lost.

“What is there to understand, I use you as a shield to chase off numerous admirers I can’t stand” she explained.

“Huh”

“Hold on, do you mean you don't know how popular you are these days" she asked.

"You not making any sense, you do know that, right" I said.

"You literally beat up anyone who piss you off, isn't that alone enough to make you popular, I mean, the even call you Akashi the strangler" she explained.

"What, strangler, but I use Katana not bare hands” I claimed.

"That’s not the point"

"Huh, I hate everyone" I mumbled, "and by the way, why use me as a shield when you could just beat up any one who hits on you" I added.

“I could, but I can't “she replied.

"Why"

“That’s because, in everyone's eyes, except you by the way, I am a sweet, cute, lovable angel, so I can't just, up and go around beating people up" she replied.

I knew it; she only acts this annoying towards me.

"So that's just how it is, in everyone's eyes, I am fragile, but you are dangerous” she said with a smile.

Well, I wouldn't dispute that fact, during the past seven years I had fought every and anyone I could find, no matter how strong the were, I literally challenged low ranked masters to duels, it got to the point when master gave me strict warnings against my competitiveness.

But, I don't regret it; it's because of that experience that I got this strong.

She sat by the window, tossing her feet back and forth,

Seeing her all relaxed, I took to the futon, and closed my eyes in the pretense of sleeping.

"Hey Akashi, don't think you can chase me off with that pretentious act..."

Out of my many years of staying in the sect, I only learnt one effective way of chasing her off, and that was to completely ignore her.

She talked and talked…… and talked, after a long tiring moment of pretending. I heard a stomping sound again, on my roof.

I turned around and she was gone.

"Phew... For a moment there I thought she wouldn't leave" I heaved a sigh of relieve.

It was now twelve on the dot, and finally the moment to escape.

If there was something I was going to miss in the sect, it sure wasn't that annoying girl.

I took my sack packed with my clothes, grab my katana and through the window I landed careful on the roof top, I began running, leaping from one roof to another, my target was the wall behind the sect, that was the only place I thought was safe enough to escape through.

As I landed on a roof top, I found a dark figure of someone sited there.

"Who.... Are you" I muttered.

"So really were going to try escaping”

"That…… that voice….. Yusa, how are you here" I muttered.

"I had a gut feeling, so I waited here" she answered.

That was another annoying ability she had, she was extremely perceptive.

"When did you find out" I asked.

"The very moment I saw that sack bag, packed and hidden underneath your futon" she replied.

"So what now"

"You’re planning to escape, aren't you" she asked.

"Yes, what's it to you" I replied.

"I want to make you an offer"

"Huh"

"I have a map which holds the full layout of this sect and also locations beyond the sect"

"A….. A map" I muttered,

“And I also know a way to escape this hell of a sect”

“What!”

  For some reason, she seemed…… different from before.

“I mean it……. Here” she said; she then pulled out a rough cream paper from out nowhere.

“Wait, even if you do have a map like that, why in the world would I accept an offer, from no less you” I asked.

“Oh, I see” she said.

“What……”

“You share the same mentality as the other disciples”

“And what mentality is that?” I asked.

“You all foolishly think that the back walls is a safe place to escape through, don’t you” she asked, with her hands behind her back, she walked run about me.

“How… did you” I muttered.

“Ha…… and also, you may not know this, but the back walls is everything but safe” she asserted,

“What!” 

“Where in the sect, do you think the five elemental illusion array was placed?”

“No….. Way, would the sect go that far?” I said, completely bewildered.

“And also, the array spans approximately five kilometer from the back walls, so won’t even be able to get to the walls itself” she added,

“Then, I was just about to walk straight into a trap” I thought

“So now, what do you say about my map” she asked.

“First of all, what sort of a map is it and where did you get it”

“It’s a map containing locations within and out the sect, but I can’t tell you where I got it” she replied.

“Why”

“That’s a trade secret”

“…..fine, then what do you want” I asked.

“Quite simple actually, for you to take me wherever you’re going” she stated,

“What! But….. If you leave the sect without proper permission, you will be labeled a traitor as I” I explained,

“I don’t care about that,” she replied.

“I still can’t”

“Why”

“You don’t get it, am not going on a casual journey” I further tried to convince her,

“I know”

“You could end up dead” I warned,

“So…”

“Ahhh……”

“You should hurry up with you decision, even with the map, time is of the essence” she said,

“Damn, why can’t you just understand?” I thought,

  In that moment it came to me.

“Hold on, I could agree now, then ditch her later on” I thought.

“Fine, if you want to die so badly, then I won’t stop you”

“Alright, you better not go back on your words, or rather, plan on ditching me, cause if you do, I won’t let things slide so easily” she threatened,

“Somehow that sounds like a threat” I thought.

   I then took the map, there was a location marked with red, it felt somewhat familiar but I couldn’t quite place my finger on it,

“Alright, let’s go” she said.

     We kept leaping and running past numerous roof tops and after a long while, we were finally there, but then, it was at that very moment it occurred to me.

   “Wait a minute, isn’t this the main gate” I whispered.

  I felt a strong pressure on around my knee,

“shhhh…. Get down, do you want to get caught by the guards” she said, already laying down flat,

I then prone,

“Why the main gate, isn’t this more of a suicide than it already is” I whispered,

“Shut up” she replied, in a rather brash tone,

“Huh…”

“The guards patrolling this area are especially perceptive, so just keep it down and wait”

    Those words instantly shut me up and for a fact, it felt really strange, I was always the cold and quiet one, but now, it felt as though we had our personalities switched.

  We waited and waited, after a while, the guards suddenly vanished.

“Now” she whispered.

    We made a dash down the roof, and through the huge gate, we made our escape.

“What….. Just happened” I asked, completely puzzled,

“Fine, I’ll explain, it’s been seven years now since when I found out about the illusion array, it felt really strange to me, more like the whole sect had turned into a fortress where you can’t get in or out, since then, I began scouting for a way to escape, but, it felt hopeless, night after night I kept looking for loopholes but there were none, well, not till that day when I noticed a constant behavior from the guards at the main gate” she explained.

“…behavior.”

“Every morning, by one, they would leave there post, to check the array at the back walls, and within ten minutes they would immediately return” she said,

“Then we have only ten minutes to escape”

“Yes, and that should be enough”

    We ran for a long while and finally got to the Kai Bridge,

“Let’s hide here” she said,

   Hiding amidst the overgrown bushes, I noticed some strange figures coming through the bridge, 

“Who are those?” I asked by a whisper,

“I…. don’t know” she answered, completely unsure,

    We waited for them to walk past by in order to get an opportunity for an escape through the bridge,

  They reduced the distance between us with every step, and after a while, they were clearly revealed to us by the illuminating moon light, they were four in number and each had a mask on which barely covered their nose and mouth, as they walked past us I saw something, at first I couldn’t believe my eyes, I thought I was hallucinating, but, looking again I still saw it, the word “shadow” clearly written behind there cloth.

   I could hardly breathe anymore, I began drifting away from reality with every second that pasted by, and in that instant, I grabbed my katana and was about to get up, but then, I felt a hard jab on around my neck and I blacked out.

    Waking up, I was met with pieces of sunlight which slightly blinded my vision, I sat up and l looked around, I was in a forest amidst lots of tress which gave out strange noises as the wind went through their branches.

  “So you’re awake” I voice echoed,

Looking up, I could see a figure of someone sited on one of the trees; I shielded my eyes slightly with my right hand leaving only a little gap so I won’t be affected by direct sunlight. 

“Yusa, is that….. You” I asked.

“Yep”

  She then dashed down from the tree.

“What happened, I don’t…. remember how I got here” I muttered.

“Well that’s because I knocked you out” she replied with a smirk.

“You did what!” I yelled.

“Exactly what I said” she replied,

“Wh……why”

“You were about to blow our cover, and obviously I couldn’t just let you ruin everything” she said,

“Ohh, that’s right, thanks…… but wait, did you carry me on your back all the way here” I asked, feeling a bit flustered,

“Absolutely not!” she screamed out,

“Then how did I get here” I asked,

   She tithed slightly, folded her arms and said “isn’t it obvious, I dragged you all the way here”

“What the hell!”

   I looked down and found my cloth in jumbles.

“You… you heartless…...” she raved bitterly,

“I don’t care what you think, just because am so cute doesn’t mean I would readily distort my figure by carrying someone as dense on my back” she explained,

“And what do you mean by dense” I asked,

“I won’t say, anyways get dressed, we have to now” she replied.

“Your right, the sect would be looking for both of us by now, so where next”

“Somewhere further west, a small town called, Badilled”