Age of Darkness

by Brandon Chen

  There was a moment of silence. The only sound was that of the rain.

  Keimaro ran a hand through his wet hair, sighing. “You warned me about this. You told me so many times that maybe this path wasn’t the right one. Vengeance. I always thought that when I killed Junko, I would feel fulfilled. But right now, I don’t feel happy. I don’t feel anything but this terrible pain in my chest. All of this time, I’ve been chasing the past.” He bit his lip, and the rain finally stopped, the clouds beginning to part in the darkened skies. The moon’s light shined through the opening and beamed down on Yata’s body, bathing him in a bright glow. “And I never realized what I had until I finally lost it. I’m sorry, Yata.

  “But now I realize what I have to do. Chasing the past isn’t going to help. In order to have a future, I’ll cast away the past. I have friends behind me now; I’m not alone. But I want to open up a bright future for myself. No, not just for myself, but Mai, Lena, Yuri, and all the others, too! I want to have a future of peace. In order to do that, I’m going to have to defeat Kuro,” Keimaro said, extending his hand outward before him. His hand began to morph from skin into gleaming metal, and a small smile appeared on his face, tears still glistening in the corners of his eyes. “I know that you’ll be watching me, Yata. So watch closely. I’ll crush the Bount organization with this power, and I’ll save this world.”

  ***

  Tobimaru and Hidan walked silently behind Kuro through the destroyed streets of Bassada. There were people in the streets, quaking in fear at the very sight of Kuro. Tobimaru knew who Kuro was, but he didn’t exactly know what to do now that Junko was gone. Junko had been their original leader since Kuro had been in his slumber. Now that Junko was dead, did that mean that Kuro was leading them? Realistically, even if Junko had survived, Kuro probably would still have ended up leading them. “Hey,” Tobimaru called out to Kuro, who stopped in his tracks. “Why did we let Keimaro go? He’s only going to become more dangerous. With those black flames, he already managed to kill Junko. It won’t be long before he masters control over fire and metal. He’ll become a more formidable opponent and a threat like that shouldn’t be allowed to roam freely.”

  Kuro sighed, glancing over his shoulder at Tobimaru. “You’re a member of the Hayashi clan, aren’t you? Two survivors of the massacre … that was something that I did not expect. You must’ve been recruited by Junko in my absence,” he said with a sly smile. “Keimaro is growing strong; you’re correct. In the future, if he continues the same way, then he will become a problem. But with only two-thirds of the meteor’s power, he cannot defeat me. I have the full, harnessed natural energy of the meteor’s strength. Someone who hasn’t obtained all of the meteor’s power cannot defeat me—and I suppose that you know the only way he can get the other third of the power.”

  Tobimaru said nothing. It was Aika’s death. If Aika died, then the power would be transferred to whoever touched her next. In other words, Keimaro would have to sacrifice her in order to gain the strength to defeat Kuro. He scoffed. So Kuro really isn’t worried about anything. He believes that Keimaro won’t kill Aika.

  “As he currently is, Keimaro doesn’t have what it takes to sacrifice anything to obtain power,” Kuro explained, beginning to walk away. “Soon he will begin to realize that he is too insignificant to make a difference in this world … and he will succumb to the darkness that I have offered him.”