by Aaron Oster
Light
Buryoku
Book Two
Aaron Oster
For my baby brother. I’m starting to run out of people to dedicate my books to, and you were the only one I could think of.
Prologue
Moramor Yen sat in a small room, her legs folded up under her in a meditative position. The thin cushion resting under her knees did almost nothing to protect them from the hardwood floor underneath. Not that Yen even noticed. She was too deep in her cycling for something so trivial to bother her.
Not to mention that to someone of her level of advancement, the wood floor was as soft as the softest of feather mats. The air around her was tinged green with Wind Essence, and as she breathed, she pulled the thin strands into her core, cycling and purifying it to turn into Qi. Normally, she wouldn’t be cycling at this time of day. Mornings were best for cycling Wind Essence, as it was when the cooler night air would be heated up, resulting in drafts.
A light rapping at the door interrupted her tranquil state, and her eyes snapped open. She could sense that it wasn’t her expected company, but one of her own.
“Enter,” Moramor Yen said, making sure to tinge her voice with the annoyance she felt.
The door slid open, revealing her grandson, Kaido.
“Apologies for disturbing you, Grandmother,” he said, bowing low at the waist.
Yen snorted, gesturing for him to enter.
“If you were truly sorry, you wouldn’t have disturbed me in the first place.”
Kaido had the good graces to look embarrassed as he slid the door shut behind him and came to sit before her. He opened his mouth, then shut it again, his hands fiddling with the Blue-Belt at his waist. Kaido was not yet thirty, so achieving his Blue-Belt was a massive achievement. The Moramor clan hadn’t seen a true prodigy in well over a millennium, which left them as the weakest clan within The Crater.
Yen herself was a Purple-Belt, but she was old and had been leading the clan for nearly two hundred years. Her time in this stage was quickly running out. At best, she had another few years before her body would give out, leaving her clan vulnerable. Kaido was their best hope for the future, as none of her six children were strong enough to take over once she was gone.
As it was, Kaido still wasn’t ready, and that was the only reason she’d agreed to take this meeting in the first place.
“Well?” she asked, having no patience for people who didn’t speak their minds.
“Forgive me for saying so, Grandmother,” Kaido said, steeling his nerve, “But I really don’t think it’s a good idea to be taking these visitors.”
“So you’ve said,” Yen replied. “And, as I said, I will be taking the meeting.”
“Grandmother. You are the leader of the clan, and if something were to happen…”
Yen held up a hand, silencing the youth midsentence.
“Do you not think me capable of making decisions on my own?”
“Of course not, I just…”
“Then trust that I am making the right decision. Now, if you will. Our guests should be arriving soon, and I would like some peace and quiet until then.”
Kaido looked as though he wanted to argue. But in the end, he clenched his jaw, then rose, bowed, and exited the room without another word.
Yen let out a sigh as the door closed, knowing full well that her grandson was right. She shouldn’t be taking this meeting, but she had no choice.
She’d just closed her eyes and gotten back into her meditative trance when another knock came at the door. It was Kaido, but this time he wasn’t alone. Yen opened her eyes, composing her features into a neutral expression before calling out to allow the guests in.
“Enter.”
The door slid to one side, revealing her grandson. He looked quite pale but was doing his best to keep his fear under control.
“Grandmother. Your guests have arrived.”
“Very well. Show them in,” she replied, not moving from her spot.
Kaido moved to the side, gesturing for her guests to enter. The first to come into the room was Kyofu Ma, the leader of the Kyofu clan and the third strongest in The Crater. He was a man in his middling years, his face lined and hard, and his black hair winged with silver.
A Purple-Belt containing two slashes of red sat belted around his waist, but Yen did not rise to greet the man, as would be proper for one of his advancement. Though she was two Dans below him, she was still the leader of a clan in her own home. Ma, it seemed, did not take offense, bowing at the waist before taking a seat across from her.
Yen returned the bow; then, her eyes flicked up to see her second guest. This one made her spirit tremble ever so slightly as he entered. The man was tall and broad, filling the doorway as he entered. He was bare-chested, though that was not to say he was indecent. His chest and abdomen stood out in contrast to all the surrounding fur.
A mane of shaggy black hair hung down his back, and a line of fur traced his jaw in an approximation of a beard. His face was narrow and sharp, his ears pointed, and the tips of fangs could be seen poking from the corners of his lips. The only articles of clothing he wore were a loose-fitting pair of pants, held up by a pristine Red-Belt.
The Beast King’s slitted eyes roamed over the room, landing on the shriveled old woman sitting behind a low table.
“Moramor Yen, I am pleased you decided to take me up on my offer,” he said, entering the room and taking a seat.
He did not bow, Yen noticed, though she hadn’t expected him to. When one was as powerful as he was, the proper respect did not need to be shown, even when meeting other clan heads. She, however, did not bow either. She knew she risked insulting the man, but she was too old to care, which was why she didn’t mince words.
“I didn’t,” she said flatly, motioning for Kaido to close the door. “I merely agreed to meet with you and listen to what you had to say.”
The Beast King’s eyes narrowed just a hair, but he kept his expression schooled.
“I was told that you’d agreed to join us in our efforts to crush those troublesome Tonde once and for all. And now you’re telling me that you didn’t. I trust those in my clan, Moramor, so you calling them liars is a direct insult to me.”
Most would have quailed under those words. In fact, Yen noticed the small twitch of Ma’s fingers, despite his best efforts to keep still.
“Please,” she snorted. “Is that how you got this coward to join you? By making idle threats?” she asked, gesturing to the leader of the Kyofu clan.
“What did you call me?” he demanded, shooting to his feet, the ground beginning to shake as he prepared a technique.
“This is supposed to be a civil meeting between allies,” the Beast King said, not taking his eyes off Yen. “Sit.”
Kyofu Ma ground his teeth together, clearly wanting to do nothing more than attack the leader of the Moramor clan. However, his fear of the Supreme sitting next to him tempered his rage, and the ground stopped trembling. He didn’t apologize for his behavior as he sat, glaring at Yen the entire time.
“See? It’s not so hard to speak in a civil manner,” the Beast King continued, as though nothing had happened. “I assure you, Yen, that I have not come here to make threats. I have come here for your allegiance, as you promised.”
Yen could already see where this was going. She may be weaker than him, but she would not surrender her clan as easily as Ma had. She was not so weak-willed that she would put her life before the lives of her clan. Besides, something about this whole situation seemed…off.
Sure, the Beast and Tonde clans had never gotten along. They’d had their squabbles, and even some pitched battles but never had anyone tried something on this scale. She’d had her people l
istening over the past few weeks and from what she’d gathered, the Beast King aimed to wipe the Tonde clan from existence.
She knew why he was trying to force the other clans to go against them, that much was obvious. Though the clans were both ruled by Supremes, the Tonde clan still had two more Purple-Belts than the Beast clan. That was a massive difference in military power. Sure, the Beast clan had some powerful Martial Artists, but if Tonde Kaeru could hold the Beast King off, the Tonde clan could wipe the Beats clan’s most powerful Martial Artists off the battlefield.
Then, their Purple-Belts could join up and put the Beast King down for good. From what she’d seen and heard of the Tonde clan leader, Yen wasn’t even sure he’d even need the help. Tonde Kaeru was a legend, a figure so powerful that some theorized that his advancement was far beyond the Base Red that the clan claimed.
Even if the Beast King cowed her and Ma into serving him, that would only give him an additional two Purple-Belts. Sure, it would technically even the odds, but she wasn’t so proud that she couldn’t admit that she was way past her prime. She might be able to hold one of the Tonde Purple-Belts at bay, but it wouldn’t be for long.
The Beast King had backed her into a corner, with just one way out. Her expression hardened, even as she moved her hand behind her back in a complicated gesture, allowing her Qi to flow out and into the air. The two sitting before her likely had their sense trained for any attack, but she wasn’t attacking. Rather, she was sending a message to her grandson. Yen knew she wouldn’t be coming out of this meeting alive, but that didn’t mean the rest of her family should go down with her.
“I never promised you my allegiance, Beast King,” Yen said, her face hardening. “I agreed to take this meeting out of respect for your clan. However, I do not respond kindly to threats, let alone someone calling me a liar. The Moramor clan will not be joining your little army, so feel free to leave.”
Kyofu Ma’s shoulders tensed as a red glow suddenly surrounded the man sitting next to him, and Yen had to force herself to remain calm as the Beast King’s Carnage Aura began spreading through the room. It was a technique that was well known, and it took its name from the man’s Advancement Path, the Path of Carnage.
When a Martial Artist reached the peak of 7th Dan Purple-Belt and began forming their Perfect-Body, the ability to create Chakra from their Qi became available to them. This allowed the Martial Artist to not only use a more powerful and pure form of energy but also to branch off their main Advancement Path and create one of their own.
This was a far more powerful and pure form of their main Path, as advancing to Red-Belt gave the Martial Artist an insight into their Path that others couldn’t even hope to comprehend. Thus, the power difference between a Purple and Red-Belt was many times greater between that of an Orange and Green.
And while Green-Belts could also start branching off into their own unique paths, it was only in a very limited capacity. For example, a Wind cultivator would be able to start doing things like using the friction in the air to create minor electrical currents. Once Chakra was formed, the Martial Artist would gain far more control over their Path.
“I would advise you to reconsider, Moramor Yen,” the Beast King said as his already bulging muscles began to grow even larger.
“I will not,” Yen replied, staying where she was despite the overwhelmingly powerful aura now filling the room. “You may destroy my body, but you will not chain my spirit.”
The Beast King’s eyes narrowed, and his lips pulled back in a snarl, showing his enlarged canines.
“Fine then. Have it your way. Perhaps your successor will be more agreeable.”
Yen did not flinch, even as the Beast King loomed over her, the massive power of his spirit crushing her long before her body was destroyed.
***
Moramor Kaido received his grandmother’s message to flee just two minutes after the Beast King entered. He felt his heart sink, even as his legs began carrying him away from the building, shouting warnings to all he passed to run.
He’d known it was a bad idea to invite those people into their home, yet his grandmother had insisted. Now they would all have to flee or be enslaved. He was quite aware of the Beast King’s reputation for brutality and knew that after he killed Yen, he would offer the remaining clan members an ultimatum: join him or perish.
The Moramor weren’t the most powerful clan. In fact, they were far from it. However, his grandmother’s spirit had seeped deep into their culture in all the time she’d headed the clan. They were all as stubborn as she was and would rather die than join the person who’d killed their leader.
Though it pained him more than he could put into words, Kaido knew he had to take whoever he could and flee. They had to run from The Crater and try to set up somewhere else. Somewhere far away from the Beast King. He also knew that he wouldn’t have the time to save everyone. This was a decision that a clan leader would have to make, and one that Kaido bitterly resented his grandmother for foisting upon him at such a young age.
“Kaido, what’s happening?!” Kaido turned his head, noting that around seventy people were following him through the halls of their home.
He instantly recognized the person that asked the question as his sister, Lily. She wasn’t even twenty and had yet to advance to Green-Belt. He was glad he’d caught her on his way out. Though everyone in the clan was related, not all were close relations. He knew he’d be leaving plenty of those behind as well, but if he could save any of them, he was glad it was her.
“The Beast King is going to kill Grandmother. We have to flee,” he said.
He noted that the worried expressions of those following him became fearful, and their pace increased. They, too, now shouted for any who would listen to run.
“What?” Lily asked aghast. “We can’t leave her! We need to go back!”
Kaido knew that every second was crucial, and if he had to try and fight with his stubborn sister, they could all end up dead. So, he did the only thing he could. His hand flashed out, rapping her on the side of the head and knocking her out cold. He scooped her up and over his shoulder before she hit the ground, not breaking his stride.
They made it out of the building, and he took a sharp right, angling for the border of The Crater, towards the Windblight. It was a dangerous and unforgiving land, but he had little choice. Just a couple of minutes later, Kaido felt his grandmother’s spirit fade.
He threw a look over his shoulder, taking one last glance at the sprawling wooden structure that had been his home for his entire life thus far. Only a hundred and fifty clan members followed him, most even younger than him. It seemed he hadn’t managed to save that many after all. There were well over a thousand in the main house of the Moramor clan, and an additional six thousand spread throughout their territory.
Kaido felt his sorrow turn to boiling anger as he ran. He felt like a coward for abandoning so many to either die or be enslaved. But he knew as the new head of the clan, it was his duty to try and safeguard as many as possible. And, as it seemed, he wasn’t capable of defending that many.
A single tear fell from the corner of his right eye, whisked away by Wind Essence just a moment later.
Lily was beside herself when she finally came to a few hours later. She’d screamed, wailed and carried on for hours before she finally fell asleep. When he awoke the next morning, he was greeted by the gruesome sight of his sister’s body, cold and unmoving in a pool of her own blood.
Despite the sorrow he felt at the loss of his sister, the remainder of his clan still depended on him, so he buried her and pushed on. It took them almost three weeks to reach the border of The Crater and the Windblight, and by then, Kaido had lost over half his remaining clan members, either to starvation, beast attacks, or illness.
They were ill-suited and ill-prepared for the harsh conditions of the wilderness. With every death, more of Kaido’s spirit was damaged, taking with it a portion of his sanity. Those who still followed him could
often hear him muttering to himself, and occasionally breaking into small fits of insane laughter, followed by screaming that would last for minutes on end.
So it was, when Kaido awoke one morning, it was to find that the remaining sixty-eight members of his clan were gone without a trace. That, apparently, was the final straw for the young man. He had now lost everything once dear to him, and there was only one person to blame.
For all the Beast King had taken, for all he’d done, he would die!
“No! Not just him,” he muttered to himself. “Everyone in The Crater will pay! The Beast King, Kyofu Ma, even Tonde Kaeru!”
The rational part of his mind tried to tell him that the Tonde clan couldn’t be held responsible, as they had nothing to do with this. But his mind was too far gone for him to be rational.
Kaido stumbled into the Windblight alone, his clothes ragged, and his stomach growling. The powerful winds buffeted him as he stumbled along, carrying with it sand and salt, tearing at his skin and spirit. Finally, unable to take any more, Kaido’s body finally gave out and he collapsed.
He lay on the ground, his entire body shuddering from the abuse he’d put it through. Ture, he was a Blue-Belt, but there was only so much a person could take before their bodies would give out. And it seemed Kaido had finally found those limits.
As his vision began to fuzz over and consciousness began to fade, Kaido only had a single regret: that he hadn’t avenged all those who had died.
“Oh my, aren’t you a sad-looking excuse of a Martial Artist?”
A voice coming from right above his prone form brought Kaido back from the brink of unconsciousness. He turned his head, staring blearily up at the indistinct form standing above him. He didn’t even have the strength to tell him to get lost, though that didn’t mean he wouldn’t try. His dry throat betrayed him, however, and all he managed was a painful croak.
“Not to worry, my downtrodden friend,” the man said, getting down on one knee. “I understand your pain, what they took from you. Join me, and together, we’ll destroy all those who have wronged us.”
