Prologue 2

Tabibito no Miyabita Village, a center of trade, always, but also a center of learning. Where the Agasha study to be one with the elements and practice their unique form of multi-elemental spells. Every morning the students would move to the town square and bow to the statue of Agasha. A statue whose eyes glowed with the light of void magic. It was normally a peaceful place of contemplation, but on this unfortunate day that was not to be. Tabibito no Miyabita was on fire.

"Drag the traitors out! If you can't get them out, burn them out!" Hitomi ordered from her steed. "No man or woman leaves my clan!"

Her horse trotted through the town which most of the Agasha abandoned recently when they fled their Champion's madness for safety in the Phoenix. She sneered at all the rebels for their cowardice before her. If they really had thought her mad, if they really wanted to do something for their clan they would stand up to her instead of fleeing. But their unwillingness showed her that heaven was on her side. She was far more powerful than any magic they could bring to bear.

Mirumoto samurai ran through the town square with determined purpose, rooting out Hitomi's traitors. She dismounted as she entered, something had caught her eye, the statue of Agasha that dominated the square. It looked noble and thoughtful but had an otherworldly quality to it. It's eyes... it's eyes shown with the light of void. When Hitomi looked into them only the emptiness of space peered back... but something more as well, something that couldn't penetrate the obsidian that flowed through her veins. The statue infuriated her. He was the founder of traitors, and will share their fate. She drew her sword.

Then there was light. Tiny rainbows fell over Hitomi and she looked up towards the sun. Butterflies descended down to her made of crystal, they refracted the sun's rays as the fell upon her and began to burn her obsidian arm. They overcame her and their crystal wings began to cut her flesh. She swiped at them with her sword but there were too many, she began to reel from the pain. Her guards entered the fray but were even less effective. Hitomi lashed out, grabbing one in her obsidian grip on instinct. The dark stone began to infiltrate it, small dark veins pushe themselves through the crystal and all the butterflies near it as well. Finally they burst into harmless glass shards on the cobblestones. "You can't defeat me old woman.” She said to the statue, “You're dead and your family is full of cowards." With a single swipe she cut the stone statue in two like it was flesh. The essence of void fell into the earth.

She turned to her guards who were now in battle with another, a swordsman of great skill, maybe even a rival to her own. He wore a dark blue kimono and stood on tall geta, a wide jingasa crowned his head. He had gentle features, even in the midst of battle, like the entire fight was as easy as cooking rice. He felled both men quickly using as little movement as possible and turned to Hitomi. "That was a mistake." He said gesturing to the fallen statue.

"What is it to you? You are not a Dragon... just some ronin. You should stay out of things that don't concern you." She didn't say a word about her fallen guards or gave any indication she care that they were killed so easily. Was she intimidated, or was it something else? Excitement?

"Agasha gave her word to me, said she would protect it, that her family would honor her pledge. Humans are such a young and naive race, they can not be trusted. Look at you, cursed." He chuckles, "Onnotangu's scent is all over you like cheap perfume." He flicked the blood from his blade and returned it to his saya.

"How dare you!" She snarled and pulled her sword up for a charging strike, but before she could the man was already in a traditional iaijutsu stance. She paused, "If that is the way you wish to die." Then returned her sword to her saya and moved to match the ronin's stance.

"I will not let you defile this land any longer, deamoness. I honor my pledges." A ripple of light glided over the man's surface as an illusion stripped off of him revealing black feathers and a beak. "I am Tenrai of the Kenku."

Hitomi felt her heart skip a beat, this was a revered creature and an expert swordsman that had lived many more years than the Champion. This wasn't right... but the obsidian did not care, it grew as it pulled more control and gripped her sword firmly. This man was in Hitomi's way and she will show him her might. Fire crackling in the distance and the sounds of injustice as innocent families were pulled from their homes was the setting, the music of the duel as both focused on each other, searching for weakness.

The town of Tabibito no Miyabita was never the same.