Itzumi

The morning was a double edged blade. For some, it was the messiah of life and the welcoming of a new day. A beacon of hope and prosperity across the land. For others, it was the harbinger of doom, signaling the end of a peaceful slumber. It also meant that Itzumi had to get up.

Itzumi yawned when the sunlight knocked on her eyelids. Even when she turned her head around to hide herself, it seemed as if the wind was trying to wake her up, swooshing fiercely at her blanket.

She groaned in resistance. "Noooo... I don't wanna wake up yet." She mentally noted that it was a bad idea to sleep in open areas. "Why... oh why, did I sleep on a windmill?" Itzumi didn't ask anyone in particular but she decided it would be nice to just speak her mind out to no one. Itzumi stretched her arms up toward the sky and sat up. She breathed a loud and generous yawn, rubbing her eye with one arm as she leaned on the other. Itzumi cracked her eyes at the sun filled world, reflexively closing her eyes when the light attacked her sensitive pupils. Eventually she was enjoying the gaze across the countryside that was provided by the top of the windmill, but eventually the wind annoyed her enough to get her to get off the windmill.

"Off we go!" She yelled half-heartedly as she leaped off the twenty-foot high rooftop, only to land on her feet with a loud thud. Dirt and grass picked up in small patterns around her feet. Itzumi wiped off a patch of dirt that clung to her silk dress. She patted more dirt off when she noticed that the dirt did not compliment the intricate chinese characters that patterned up and down the white dress.

Her hand nudged the handle of her sword on accident. She smiled as she let her fingers slide over the black bandages that covered the handle, and let her hand slide over the cool surface of the hilt and down the smooth black wooden sheath. There was only one character on the sheath, and she slid her fingernail over it and etched at it eagerly, mouthing the meaning of the word.

"Sister." Itzumi spoke to herself, smiling. "You taught me all that I know." Itzumi let her eyes wander as memories flooded into her mind. Her eyes focused on the leaves that softly floated downward, picked off by the harsh wind.

"But what am I going to do if you're not there with me? We're a team remember?" Itzumi clenched her jaw, upset that she let the tears wash over the borders of her eyes and down her cheeks. She was even more upset that her beloved sister, Yuki, was leaving.

Yuki smiled, and placed a reassuring hand on her sister's shoulder. She took a deep breath to allow her emotions some breathing room, otherwise she would've cried as well.

"You and I Itzu, we're O'men knights, and we have duties to uphold the oath we took to protect the innocent. The council and I have decided that two of the best knights working in one country is more then enough, and that is why I'm leaving to Asia to help the other knights there."

"But..." Itzumi shook her head, frowning. "Those old people don't know anything about sisters, they're all hags! We work the best together, not alone!" Itzumi crossed her arms, turning her head away in a pout.

Yuki smiled at her little sister's comment, and flicked her in the forehead. She was met with an annoyed grunt. "Remember Itzu, we have to respect the council's decisions okay? Besides...you've grown up so strong and beautiful. I'm proud of you."

Itzumi leaned her head back and let her senses be drawn in by nature, allowing the beauty of the natural order to envelope her in a blissful dance of peace.

"Hi." Itzumi spoke out in the air, loud and resonating. She placed a hand on the handle of her sword and pulled it inches out. The sliding metal on metal let out a whispering warning to all of those near, like a rattlesnake shaking it's tail.

"Itzumi....the Rising Moon Swordswoman." A man spoke from behind on of the trees. Itzumi lazily turned her head to face him. He was a man in his early 30's, he was an asian man with an oval head and long hair that was tied back in a traditional samurai ponytail. His eyes were a glossy brown that were strong and fearless. He flashed a grin to show yellow teeth, probably a habit of smoking. The man wore a dark purple robe, and wore black tabi. He unsheathed his katana, a blade that was at least three inches longer then Itzumi's own.

"Yes?" Itzumi replied, widening her stance. She stretched her legs out, with one leg bent a little and the other in the 5 o'clock position.

Her guess was just as right. Seven more men appeared from behind trees, all wielding different weapons. They held Bo-staff's, Sai's, shuriken and kunai, and even a Kusara Kama weapon.

"We're going to bring you in for the bounty on your head. If you're lucky, we might just bring you in alive." They circled her, pacing around her like wolves all dying for the kill.

Itzumi drew her weapon slowly, and winked at the man who she guessed was the leader. She held her short sword with her right hand and held it behind her.

"When are you boys going to learn? The odds aren't against me."

Itzumi raised her left hand in front of her, and a claw shot out from her sleeve. Three long metal like attachments on a glove that was on her left hand shined in the sun.

"They're against you." She spoke with a smile and winked.

The first assassin charged her with a katana, raised above his head.

'Typical, maybe too typical.' Itzumi thought to herself as merely side-stepped his vertical slash and drove her hand into his abdomen. He smiled, vanishing into a thick smoke.

"Boring!" Itzumi cried out as she quickly jumped out of the way of some shuriken that flew down on her from above, and then parried three consecutive strikes from some Sai. Itzumi made some distance between her and the seven assassins, they all stood together and wickedly grinned at her.

"Looks like we've got a feisty one Akatsu!" One of the assassins called and the man who had approached her first nodded his head and simply put his hands together.

"Then let's bring her down the hard way." As he put his hands together he vanished into smoke again, white thick clouds evaporated like gray clothes that faded into the air.

Itzumi grunted in acknowledgement. She pulled out her sword with her free hand and held her claw arm at her side as she raised her sword.

"Fog-shifter huh? I haven't killed one of you in a long time." Itzumi called out. The assassins stood there, merely applauding and hollering for their leader to finish her off.

"What makes you think you can kill me?" He asked from behind her. Itzumi quickly swirled around and slashed at him diagonally, the claw going straight through him as it was yet again another fog image.

"Oh, trust me, by the way you're fog-shifting you're just a rookie." Itzumi called out, standing still as she eyed her surroundings.

"You seem to be having trouble with me as it is." He said again, and this time he was under her. She kicked at the dirt, and his face dissapeared in the soft wind, fog now surrounding her completely.

"I'm just playing around with you." Itzumi said, this time dodging a strike from his sword and clawing again at his mirror-form. His mirror-form blocked the attack, and snarled as he rotated his blade quickly in an attempt to dis-arm and break Itzumi's arm. She anticipated the attack and jumped in the air, the effort only spinning her in the air. She landed swiftly and smiled, closing her fist.

"Gotcha." The man tried to pull his sword out of her claw, and widened his eyes.

"What!?" He called, Itzumi rolled her eyes.

"Like I said, you're just a rookie. You don't even deserve to die." Itzumi then quickly flipped her sword and smashed it over his head, effectively knocking him unconscious with the blunt side of her weapon. "Easy pickings."

Outside of the fog, the rest of the assassins waited for their leader to do his dirty work. They had been in assignments many times before, and they generally didn't have to do anything due to his leader's abilities. They had to strike here and there and maybe throw and shoot things there and there, but with their leader's superior ability, no one was a match for them.

Which was why most of them nearly crapped their pants when they saw their leader laying down on the ground with the girl standing over him. She gave a happy grin as she posed in a victory stance over him, resting her shoe on his back.

They all exclaimed and gasped.

"How did you!?" "What have you done!?" "Captian" "You're a monster!" "Impossible!"

"Come again? I couldn't hear you over his body." Itzumi replied, twirling her sword in her hand repeatedly. Given four twirls she stopped and swung it so fast that the leaves rustled around her. She held the blade by side and then raised it, aiming it at the assassins.

"Who is next?"

They all cowered in fear, running for their lives in varios means of transportation. Some just flat out ran on the ground, others leapt from tree to tree, and one stuck his head in the dirt.

'Uhh...okay...? They say I'm crazy.' Itzumi thought to herself, before dancing near his body in a victory dance.

"Hooyah, who da best? Me me me!"


"I'm hungry. Like, really hungry." Itzumi patted her belly. She was travelling through the woods, attempting to find some sort of settlement or village. She had been searching for nearly half of the evening, and she hadn't even seen a road! Hungry and frustrated she found the nearest pile of leaves and jumped into it. Her head popping out of the leaves only a moment later.

"I wish I had something to eat." Itzumi pouted, looking around. Not even a squirrel. She jumped out of the leaves and looked around, noticing that the sun was setting soon. She smiled at that observation, and felt her mood slightly increase. As she took another step, she nearly stopped dead in her tracks. She had nearly even fainted.

The smell of pork.

Spicy pork.

...

Itzumi stuck her nose as far as it could in the air and immediately ran after the scent. One word was lit up in her mind, complete with stage lights and fireworks. "FOOD!"

It was only half a mile away but she had found a small shack. It was an ideal little shack, complete with cobblestone walls and a chimney that had a soft flame coming out of it. There were no windows, and she saw a log pile next to the house, along with a woodcutter's axe and stump, and she saw a horse that was tethered to a post. It eyed her and neighed, kicking up one if it's legs.

"Shh, it's okay." Itzumi calmly spoke. Surprisingly, the horse calmed nearly almost immediately after that. Maybe it was Itzumi that was surprised, or perhaps it was the horse. Itzumi didn't care.

She turned her attention to the door, the smell of spicy pork intoxicated her greatly. She quickly stepped up to the door and raised the copper handle. She struck it three times, noticing that the handle seemed a little slimy. ' Gross. ' She thought to herself as she put her hands behind her face and gave a big smile.

The door opened, and she opened opened her mouth to explode a mouth-watery greeting that was sure to melt their hearts. But unfortunately, no words came out. She was too stunned to speak. She was too stunned to move. There, in the door, was her sister.

~ Sometime in the near distant but not so distant it's like really far away, actually it's about a few moments, and if you don't know moments it- ...wait, nvm. 30 minutes later, GAWD GET OFF MY CASE! AHHHHHHHHHHHHH ~

Itzumi forgot about her appetite the moment she saw her sister. So many emotions flooded to her that she didn't even know what she was feeling. Was it excitement? Was it happiness? What was it? So many things bounced and radiated within her, it was difficult to hold the cup of tea that she had offered her. She drank half of it out of the anticipation, the taste was a little bitter but it was sweet.

The woman glanced down at Itzumi's hands. They were shaking so much that the tea almost spilled out. She grouched slightly, leaning down to meet Itzumi's eyes.

"Are you alright?" She asked. Itzumi nearly pounced out of her skin. It was true that she probably seemed like a nervous wreck the moment she showed up at the door and saw her sister. She just didn't know what to say? What could she say? It had been almost a year since she had last seen her sister. She did want to say something, but what could she say?

"I'm...okay." She finally breathed, unable to think up of words to say. She looked up at her sister, who looked curiously back at her with a concerned face. She couldn't take the tension in the air anymore.

"Where have you been?" Itzumi finally asked, placing the tea on the table. Her sister seemed confused, freezing for a moment. She pulled at the collar of her worn shirt.

"What do you mean?" She responded, taking a sip of her tea before sitting down on a seat and crossing her legs. Itzumi started becoming confused too, but she was also becoming agitated at how her sister was dodging her question.

"Stop it!" Itzumi finally yelled, startling both herself and her sister. Yuki nearly jumped out of her skin, and Itzumi grit her teeth, breathing heavily. She got up out of her seat and hugged her sister. "I've missed you so much, you don't know what it's like without you!" Itzumi cried, holding her sister tight. "You made me endure so much." She whispered, nuzzling her chin into Yuki's shoulder.

Yuki was surprised, and wrapped her arms around Itzumi. "There there," she spoke softly. Itzumi calmed down instantly at the soothing voice of her sister's. Itzumi smiled, knowing full well that her sister could only have that kind of effect on her.

Yuki smiled, and looked at Itzumi with sincere eyes. "I have something to tell you." Yuki placed a hand on her shoulder. Itzumi looked up at her, curious.

"I....do not know who you are."

Time froze.

Itzumi felt her heart drop down to her toes as a chill blasted through her spine like water through a pipe.

"Wh...what do you mean?" Itzumi asked. She felt her emotions igniting like a forest fire within her heart. "Don't joke around!"

"My name is Karene, I live in this cottage with my husband Orli who is on his way to town." The woman spoke softly, and did not sound like she was lying. Itzumi bewilderedly stared at the woman in front of her.

"No way.." She breathed, feeling very lightheaded from the information. She felt her face flush and she tried backing away, but the light-headedness of standing up so fast cause blots of of her vision to go blurry and she fell on her butt. She groaned in pain and looked at the woman, her vision still blurred she noticed something weird. The woman that looked like Yuki had lines all over her face. She blinked again and the lines disappeared.

"Calm down young one," the woman spoke and she stood up walking slowly towards Itzumi.

Itzumi shook her head and blinked a few times trying to regain her vision, but her lightheaded feeling would not disappear. She felt as if the room was on top of a mountain and was spinning in circles which caused her to feel nauseated.

"What..." Itzumi started before she felt her eyelids droop and she fainted.

The woman knelt by Itzumi, and placed a hand on her cheek. She delicately ran her hand across her cheek and leaned closer to Itzumi, licking her ear.

"Mmm...it will all be over soon my child. Soon." The woman raised her eyes to look in a mirror, and the face of a sister disappeared into that of a deformed demon with large fangs and horns. A demonic set of purple and gold eyes stared back at her, and she bared her fangs in excitement at the prey she had caught.


Itzumi began feeling hunger stirring in her stomach. The feeling grew and grew until the low grumble of her stomach could be heard. "Hungry." She said, or in this case wanted to say. The sound of "Mmph" could only be heard to hear ears. Her senses began firing up and she realized with the attempt to move her arms and legs that she was tied up and bound on a table.

Opening her eyes she was suprised to see not the face of her sister staring at her, but a cracked version with many black lines running across her face. She groaned as the nauseating feeling remained in her stomach. The woman came closer to her.

"Karene?" Itzumi asked in a muffled voice.

"My dear child, thank you for stumbling on my cottage." The woman circled around Itzumi and smiled wickedly, an ear to ear grin. "You see, I don't get many visitors. But when I do...it's so, exciting." Itzumi picked up on the evil intent almost instantly and knew that she was in danger. Who was this woman, and what is up with her face?

"If you haven't noticed...I'm not necessarily..." She stopped for a moment, and leaned down to face Itzumi. Itzumi watched with eyes of loathe, and they spoke of near murderous intent. The lines on the womans' face began intensifying before it looked as if peices of her skin evaporated into air. Slowly, her true form was revealed to Itzumi in all of it's demonness. The woman smiled as she bared her fangs and pounced on top of Itzumi. "...your sister." She finished.

Itzumi didn't make a sound, but glared at the woman. Karene lowered herself above Itzumi, sprawling herself ontop of her. Itzumi gritted her teeth, as the demonness placed herself above her.Itzumi felt the scales on the woman's lower body scrape against her skin, and it felt slimy as well. Itzumi groaned in disgust.

"My dear... I will enjoy devouring you..." Karene said, and bared her fangs above Itzumi. Itzumi closed her eyes and her muffled voice came through in a hymn of strange high-pitched sounds. Karene smiled wickedly and licked her lips.

"Yes...scream. Struggle...it wets my appetite. You should know, a Lacra-Maski Demonness such as myself loves to devour the lives of those who have been lost." She nipped at the air in ritualistic manner. Itzumi still hummed her high-pitched rhythm, and it grew louder against the cloth that was bound around her mouth.

The Lacra-Maski Demonness known as Karene threw her hair back and extended her mouth open. There was a sickening crack as her jaw snapped out of its hinges. Her mouth grew even bigger and drool began pooling out of her mouth and slowly dripping on Itzumi's shirt. Itzumi did not waver,nor did she open her eyes. Karene widened her eyes.

"Enjoy your last view!" She cried before diving headfirst with her mouth wide opened. She lunged towards Itzumi's chest, directly at her heart. Her head flew down and she clamped her teeth as it dug into....ice. Karene was shocked to see a large block of ice in the shape of an arm in the way of her desired treat. Angry, she clamped her teeth down harder on the arm and felt it snapping and cracking under the pressure of her jaws before finally coming off.

Growling she looked at the source and to her surprise stood the shape of a man who was made completely out of ice. With his other hand he made a fist and lunged at her. Karene easily evaded the ice man's blow and opened one of her hands to create an open palm.

"An elemental? Surprising for such a young girl!" Karene exclaimed before she placed her open palm on the face of the elemental. "Kourmuu," she spoke in a foreign tongue, but she dis-spelled the elemental. Red characters in what seemed to be an ancient latin script ran from her where her hand was on the head of the elemental and in an instant shot throughout his whole body and lit up for a second before he melted instantaneously.

Turning around to face her prey, she gasped and ducked. Itzumi's claw horizontally flew merely centimeters above Karene's head, barely dodging it. Several more swipes pinned the Lacra-Maski against the wall. Itzumi had created the door of opoortunity she was looking for, and with both claws glistening in the air, she held a stern face as she delivered an impossible to dodge blow.

"Got you!" Itzumi exclaimed and thrusted her arm to impale the demonness in her stomach. Karene smiled and closed her eyes as the claw embedded itself into her. Purple ooze poured out of her wounds. Itzumi felt satisfaction and tugged at her claw that was within Karene. To her suprise, it wouldn't budge. Looking down, she saw that one of Karene's arms was holding onto her arm. Itzumi looked up at Karene who was licking her lips and staring straight at her with hungry eyes.

"Or I've got you..." Karene purred in her voice. Itzumi grimanced and swung her other arm towards Karene's face, but it was easily evaded and caught by Karene's free hand. With both of them at a stalemate, Itzumi figured she would knee Karene's jaw with a back-flip. Itzumi shivered however when she feltt the legs of Karene wrap behind hers, giving no room for her knees to build up momentum for a strike. Gasping, Itzumi knew that she had to hymn another spell but quickly this time to escape.

She took a sharp breath intake and was about to hymn another song-spell when Karene's tongue seemed to burst out of her mouth like that of a snake. It was long and it shot out and wrapped itself around Itzumi's throat. Itzumi watched in horror and was paralyzed the moment the tongue touched her neck. It was slimy, sickly, and dark purple as it cut off her voicebox and almost her breathing.

"My dear... I won't let you do anything now." Karene said, smiling as she could finally sense the fear in Itzumi's presence. The stench of the woman's breath brought tears to Itzumi's eyes, and the situation didn't help her one bit. She was completely trapped in everyway.

Her vision blurred and she felt the sharp teeth graze over her neck.

"I will drink your spirit and your flesh within these fangs my dear. Do struggle as much as you would like." Karene whispered in Itzumi's ears as she clamped down on her neck. Tears rolled down her cheeks as the pain overwhelmed her, her arms feeling limp in the hold of Karene's hands.

She felt her energy being sapped, and nausea began to fill her stomach. She also became lightheaded at the same time from the blood loss. She grit her teeth and her strength left her slowly. Her vision became blotted and cloudy. Her hands went limp and she began to lose her will power, falling into the dark abyss of unconscious defeat.

In her last blur of vision, she saw Karene turn her head away from Itzumi, and she felt herself fall to the floor as someone else entered the building. She tried to make out the second figure, but her sight refused to focus. The saliva from the Lacra-Maski still held her at paralysis, and Itzumi tried to move again. No muscle budged, and she slowly fell asleep, wondering what would happen to her next.

~ An hour later ~

Itzumi woke when she felt the coolness of a wet towel being placed on her forehead. Instinctively she reached a hand to place against her forehead and tried to open her eyes. Pain pounded her from different directions. The light nearly blinded her, and all of her muscles were numb and sore. She groaned in pain and tried to move her neck. That too was wracked with pain.

"Calm down." A male voice said. It sounded old, like wind that flowed through the canyons. His voice was slightly hoarse and it carried a sense of wisdom to it. Yet to Itzumi, her memories flooded back to her with the current events and she attempted to sit up and open her eyes yet again. Her eyes focused in on the man who sat cross legged next to her. She sat up through the pain that latched onto her like a foreboding disease and took a quick glimpse of her surroundings.

She was laying on a hammock that was tied between two dark brown tall trees. These trees had long blades of what looked like moss-green grass that flowed down from their branches in a cascading waterfall. Taking in more, she noticed that they were in the middle of a swamp, the familiar smell of decaying earth filling up her nostrils made her stomach crawl.

She eyed the man beside her again. He wore a dark red robe that had turquoise blue colored lining. The robe had a hood that came over his head shadowing most of his face. His dark brown hair wore in tight small braids and hung a few inches below his chin. His rugged face and neatly shaven shadow indicated he was at least a middle-aged man.

End Prologue