wolvenreign
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A shooting star screams across the dimly lit morning sky, painting the black canvas with a temporary spark of life. The scream itself sounds not unlike a newborn babe's cry, as new as this planet, which had been void and nothing but seven days previous.
Closer now, the star flew to the earth, lowering beneath the stratosphere. A strange feature begins to form on it, however; the fire which encases the meteor begins to solidify. It changes from burning ember to flowing cloth, it's gentle sway wrapping the star like a baby's swaddling cloth. It's cry is followed by a sonic boom, piercing the silent atmosphere as effortlessly as a bullet tearing it's way through a balloon. The crying is ever louder now, but it grows softer as two wings sprout from the star; both black and spotted with glowing white spots, as though to look into them is to look into the cosmos itself.
These new wings flap outward, evening themselves and slowing the meteors' racing fall. They are somewhat clumsy, however, much like a hatchling's wings during it's first flight, having been suddenly kicked from it's nest. At last, the star reaches its destination; a cracked, dried clay earth blessed only by the sunrise's gentle orange light. Soft crying can be heard inside, though the star no longer falls. From amidst the flame-like cloth, a small, childlike figure rises, untangling the nest of cloth from whence he fell. His face , and entire body, is shaded by the oversized robe which now trails behind him.
His vision is blurred at first by the tears of shock, the pain of birth. Wiping his eyes with his cloth, he watches his tears sink into the earth, creating an audible sizzling sound as they pierce the ground like acid. The confused child looks around him; there is no sign of life for miles. Only barren mountains and a beautiful sunrise.
Suddenly, the sunrise seizes his attention. The clouds passing by the sun rush by, creating a mezmerizing image that he could not look away from. As he stares into the sun, it grasps his entire being. Soon, there are no mountains and no earth, no tears and no cloth, no open sky; real or imagined, there was only a message, a morse code of clouds which spoke to him with no voice. And in it's godly magnificence, it enraptured his soul in meaning.
“Greetings, little one of the night sky. I am Ogen, the Grand Star. I hold absolute power over this world; with my majesty, I light this world, and with my judgement, I plunge it into darkness. In my greatness, I have chosen to bless you with life. Look at your feet once more, little one, and know that I am truth itself.”
A large pool of water begins to form at the child's feet. It surrounds him entirely, leaving only his cloak untouched. This miraculously spawning lake, which rose from the cracks of the seemingly dead earth, had a surface as reflective as a silver mirror. He stared into it, and what stared back was his own dimunitive image. Two little glowing eyes, one red, and one yellow, and a wide cheshire cat grin that did not budge despite his changing emotion.
Looking back toward the sun, the child seemed to remember something...obscure, but important. It was something called...identity. He did not know where he got such thoughts, only that it was important that he know. And thus, he tried to speak his first words. A high, raspy voice gargles from the back of his throat as he tries to speak. “Ogen...Ogen...”, he repeats, the word easy to remember, a delight to practice.
At last he begins to formulate his thoughts, swirling around this mysterious thing called “identity”, until at last he felt he could ask. “Ogen...who am I?”. Once again, the patterns swirl about the sun, sometimes spiraling and twisting upward to convey meaning, until there is only the message.
“You are my child, and I alone have the right to choose your name. I will name you Schaden, and you are a Bound, a human star. I gave you your smile that you might know happiness in this world, that you might be free to be joyful. But I warn you, my child; there are those who hunt stars in this world. They are known as “man”, and they will seek to take your smile away.”
Schaden, as he now knew his name was, seems confused. He believes his great, cosmic father, but can not fathom why anyone would want to take his joy away. “Ogen, great star...what must I do to keep my happiness?” Schaden became surprised as his own elocution. It seemed he was learning fast.
“My child, you must end anyone who comes close to you. They cannot give you warmth, nor light your soul as I can. I am your only friend in this world. Reach into the depths at your feet, my son, and I shall give you the means by which to protect your happiness.”
All too mesmerized by Ogen's great majesty, Schaden reaches into the waters before him and feels a handle on something quite heavy. With a few tugs, he manages to pull it out of the water, having it leap above his head like a fisherman pulling out an enormous fish. It falls to the ground behind him, dipping into the water from the lake, it's main body resting on the island that Schaden stood on.
Like the curious child he was, he came closer to what appeared to be a large greatsword. There was something unusual about the blade, however; it seemed as though when it was turned on it's side, it disappeared! The blade itself is two dimensional, though it's handle was fully three dimensional. As he attempts to pick it up, he feels a great burning begin in his stomach. His hands, once obscured by the cloth, began to glow purest white, with a purple vein pumping some bizarre plasma through his body. As he tensed up, he could lift the enormous blade.
Vast explosions erupted from the blade as it moved even the slightest! Twisting and churning about, one loud BOOM after another echoed forth, as if tearing holes in reality simply by existing.
“This is the Szizzor's Edge, my child. It's blade is infinitesimally thin, allowing it to cut through the building blocks of the universe; atoms. It is a thing of great power, and I grant it to you only because I love you dearly. So much so that I will allow you to pierce through my own creation, if only to protect you from those that would do you harm. Reach into the depths once more, little Schaden, and I shall grant you your other gift.”
Reaching into the pool once more, Schaden found a mysterious rod, which has five blades pointing upward, with what appears to be strange circuitry coursing throughout it. The five blades converge at the tip of the rod, where they make a single pointing edge in the shape of a star. “This is the Solid Star. It can pierce any rock and change it's shape according to your will. So great is my love that I allow you to shape my creation, if only it will keep you happy.”
Schaden finds something else strange about his two weapons; they seem to sink into his body when he touches them. Even the enormous Szizzor's Edge seems to be engulfed by his being.
“Oh, my child; yours is a form most magnificent. Anything you wish to carry can be dissolved into your body, and reformed at will. So great is my love that I wish for you to never be burdened, that all may be as part of you.”
At last, the patterns of the sun begin to die down, slowing as the sun rises into the afternoon. “Now, run, my child; they approach.”
End of Chapter 1
The now silent sun shone malevolently over the brown, grassless Earth. Great mountains towered in the distance, and the unreachable, ever-blue sky flowed in a steady rhythm, as though it were a sea above. So too did the young Schaden's steps flow to the coming battle. In the last thousand years, he had massacred the humans who attack him. Their technology flourished as a result; they leapt from worthless sticks and stones, to spears, to swords, all in a desperate attempt to destroy him.
All had failed. Nothing could stand against Schaden's incredible might and endless energy. It was as though he was restlessness itself. Nothing less could be expected of a living star.
Schaden now draws closer to the horde of humans, easily ten thousand strong. He laughed just under his breath as he saw them amass under a banner, decorated with a curious yellow symbol. They wore chainmail, some parts of it melted with silver. It was some silly human superstition that it would somehow repel Schaden.
However, there did to be something new among their ranks; an enormous, hulking cannon made of steel. A long fuse twisted down it's side, where a human wearing leather armor lit a match. "By humanity's vigor!", shouted the leader of the militia, "Taste death!". The fuse almost seemed to evaporate, leaving behind a twisted trail of smoke. The cannon's boom seemed to shake the air around it. A mountainous cannonball flew towards the fledgling Bound, leaving behind a trail of smoke and fire as bright and hot as humanity's passion!
As the cannonball careened towards him, Schaden simply stared at it. His permanent smile made it unclear whether he was trapped like a deer in the headlights, or merely smiling, knowing it could not stop him. When, at last, the ball made impact, there was no "THUD!" or "BOOM!" or "CRASH!". There was only the sound of sizzling. A hole the size of Schaden was burnt into the lead sphere! His stance did not even appear to be slightly effected. It was as though his body was made of an acid that could burn through anything, save for itself.
The youngling growled lowly. His primal nature had not evolved, even a thousand years after his birth. It seemed he aged like a star. He had never spoken a word. An idea seemed to sprout from the back of his nigh-feral mind. Jumping behind the cannonball, he reaches into his cloak and produces the Solid Star. When he stuck it into the cannonball, it seemed to enter this melty state.
The humans were not far behind. Charging with the battlecry of "Death to the predator!", they charged through the smoke and fire of the battlefield. Their spirit would soon be greeted with the worst massacre of humankind's prehistory.
Pellets of lead, derived from the cannonball, shot out in every direction. They were small enough to go through the human's chainmail armor. Even when the armor did protect them, it was touched with a set of strange symbols, similar to the circuit wiring on the Solid Star. The bullets derived from the cannonballs killed the humans whose armor they pierced, and went through their backside via exit wounds. These bullets went on to pierce other men, or attach to their armor.
An impish laugh howled from Schaden as he watched them fall. Deep inside, all he could think about was how they could never take his happiness away, so long as he held the great gifts of the sun. The metal armor on the humans began to melt, strangely enough. It pooled at their feet, forming a blob of metal. The humans looked on in horror as they were frozen in a lake of quicksilver! However, it was not over. Not by far.
Schaden, looking upon the destruction, took out a very small, pocket-knife version of the Szizzor's Edge. He outstretched his left arm, and with his right, cut across the balloon-like skin. A torrent of lightning bolts shot through the quicksilver, electrocuting the now armorless humans. They fried instantly...but there were more of them on the way. Suddenly, the blob of melted metal seemed to come to life! It gathered together into the shape of a cloud and rose to the sky. As more humans faithfully charged Schaden, their view of the sun was blotted out, as though they weren't worthy to receive it's light.
The little Bound's permanent smile was truly meant now. A large, jagged bolt of metal dashed down from the iron cloud, splitting a charging human in two. Before the humans around him could even process their horror, they too were rended in half by Schaden's metal death from on high! The bolts assimilated the humans' armor and returned to the metal cloud, which was growing bigger with each split. Even the cannon itself was bolted and retrieved into the blob of metal.
They couldn't get away in time. Within the span of the most horrific two minutes of humankind's history, the entire army was decimated. No human could stop the living death star. A mix of blood and melted steel rained down that day. As it rained a mix of blood and melted steel, a rainbow of grey and red arched across the sky. The sun, the grand star Ogen, shone once more...and for the first time in a thousand years, it began to speak to Schaden, using His patterns and signs.
"Well done, my child. Soon, very soon...happiness shall be yours. There are only two humans remaining, one male and one female. Pity them not, he who was born in the womb of the sky...for their descendants shall hunt you to the ends of eternity. You will find them just beyond the mountains, where green covers the earth, and I shine just a little more pleasantly. Rest for tonight, my child...dream of happiness."
Schaden bathed in His warm light, content like an animal after a satisfying meal. He fell asleep in that sunlight, adrift in it's infinite wisdom.
That night, two humans, Noal and Genevive, huddle over a small campfire. The shivers of the night's howling winds crept up their spines, their faces being the only things warmed by the fire. They held each other tightly, not only for warmth, but also because they were afraid. Terrified. They had seen the metal cloud gather over the horizon, where the human army had marched. They saw the bolts fly down...and they knew that they were the last two people alive. They knew, now...they only had each other.
Amidst terrified sobs of mourning for their lost, they could only look at the starry sky...and wish. "I wish...", said the terrified Noal, his voice shaking and hoarse, "I wish we could survive...I wish the hunter would leave us alone...I wish there was a future for humanity.".
It was then that he saw it. Streaking across the sky with a sound not unlike a newborn babe's cry...he saw a falling star.
The next day, Schaden began approaching the two. Walking step by step, he could only think about how happiness would soon be his...all his. They were cornered. Schaden could catch them any way they ran. There was no escaping him now. He reached into his cloak and brought out the enormous Szizzor's Edge, pointing it directly at the couple. They cowered in the corner, holding each other tight, their nails almost digging into each other's skin. Schaden laughed at the gesture.
Or at least, he would have.
In the flash of a moment, a scythe protruded out of of Schaden's chest. A high, grumbling voice could be heard behind him; the voice of a Bound. "In the name of the Sun...DIE!".
Chapter 2 End
Schaden is frozen, standing there, only able to stare at the scythe protruding from his chest. Bolts of plasma shoot everywhere from the wound, as though he was bleeding. "Who are you...to invoke the name of the sun?"
The voice, low, yet childlike, speaks in return. "I am the Bound, Dour, and child of the Grand Star, Ogen. Your senseless slaughter of the human race must end...for a new age has begun."
Suddenly, a large spark flies at Dour from Schaden's wounds. Instantly, it materialized into a bolt and shocked the diminutive creature , causing him to stagger backwards.
Seeing his opportunity, Schaden immediately and naively rips the scythe from his chest, throwing it away even as he writhes in agony. Looking back, he sees the visage of the one who had stabbed him. It looks almost exactly like him, save for the fact that his eyes are a deep, sad blue which almost fades into the blackness beneath his hood. The most jarring difference, however, is the upside down cheshire-cat smile.
Bolts of pure plasma continue to burst everywhere, crackling in the world around him as though a storm is brewing right where he stands. "Dour...you cannot...", said he, gasping even as the pupils in his eyes change shape to that of a crosshair, aiming directly at Dour. "You...cannot...TAKE MY HAPPINESS AWAY!" Schaden rushes at his new nemesis, drawing the full form of the Szizzor's Edge from his currently unwounded leg as he rushes after him.
Swing after swing, Dour dodges the lightning quick strikes. The chain explosions generated by each swing culminate behind Dour, unceasing as they begin to form the shape of a huge dragon. Dour swings his scythe at Schaden in the same manner. Explosions build from the scythe, as well. "Face holy judgement at the blade of my Szizzor's Scythe!" Again and again they swung and evaded each other's blows. When the two blades struck, there was an immediate and violent reaction; the two combatants were sent flying at the speed of sound.
Seeing each other fly apart, Dour and Schaden both instantly look up to the large explosions they had created. Brandishing their weapons once more, they swing in each other's direction, manipulating the enormous puppets of billowing fire. The two forms collide in the sky, grappling the other's long, sharp claws. Each attempted to twist each other's arms, but to no avail. Quickly, they disbanded, clashing against one another with enormous eruptions of sound and light.
On and on the battle goes, until at last one of the dragon-like forms piledrives the other, creating an enormous crater in the Earth. When the dust settled, the two Bound stared at each other, both of their crosshair-shaped eyes locked on target.
“You think you can beat me just because you have one of my toys?”, Schaden asks, snickering to himself even as he held his wound, which continued to bleed lightning. “Your sneaky little trick won't work twice.” Schaden's smile grows deeper as he draws the Solid Star from his leg. “And now, the Earth will swallow you...that you may not gaze upon the glory of the sun you so falsely hold as your justicar.”. Dropping it into the Earth, Schaden envisioned two mountains swallowing Dour from both sides...and in an instant, it is a reality.
The sound of rumbling earth echoes from the distance, as two landmasses gather from the horizon. Dour looks on in sudden horror as he tries to run from Schaden. Dashing off at a sonic burst of speed, the two masses of land begin to chase him. Dour even manages to get his two wings out, one soaked in sun and one in shadow. He lifts off from the ground, his wings buzzing like a hummingbird's. At last, however, he was swallowed by the two mountains.
Schaden laughed, even as he collapsed to the ground. Still struggling, he crawls his way from the battlefield, seeking refuge. His purple, neon-colored “blood” painted the earth, blending it's rich hues with that of the human's blood. Together, they paint the scene of a thousand battles, as though the earth was the canvas, and the blood was the paint. Onward did he crawl, his wounds healing slowly. He did not know whether or not he would make it.
However, back at the mountain that had swallowed Dour...
As though it had not fazed him in the slightest, Dour walks out of the mountain, having carved his path with the plasma that constitutes his body.
To Be Continued...
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The Bound and The Broken: PFE Saga Chapters 1-3 - 
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