ARC 25 SPAWN
A flash of silver. A splash of red. And then, the smell of ash and wood.
There was a solid
click as Myojingiri returned to its scabbard, as yet another Oni met its end at the edge of Musashi Miyamoto's blade.
Two years had passed since the world had been shaken to its very foundation, as a primordial being with an intrinsic link to the fabric of reality itself had manifested, and subsequently been laid low (in a sense) by its offspring. The results of such an encounter, which Musashi had not herself borne witness too...were quite literally cataclysmic. A moon, sundered, and subsequently turned into debris which rained upon the planet and bore tremendous devastation upon the lands.
Both the planet and those who dwelt upon it had much recovering to do in the aftermath of such an event, and such healings were complicated by wounds, both new and old. Strange figures arose following the arrival of these celestial entities, some of a similar nature if rumors were to be believed. Metropolises sprung up quickly, land terraformed, and tempers flared. Wars waged over land and tensions ran high. A new - or ancient, depending on one's view point - race of beings called Arali graced the land, denizens of Heaven and Hell, as it were. Of course, such immigrants were not necessarily met with open arms, and their acceptance across the land was about as one would expect of the human race, who did not always even accept their own. Mixed, to say the least.
And for Musashi, the hunt for the Oni continued. After her fateful encounter with Upper One in the lands of Kamiyasumi, she had not again run into an Oni of such overwhelming strength or such inexplicable power. She shared her knowledge of the creatures - demon did not seem so quite an appropriate moniker given recent arrivals - but had taken to hunting them down herself. Few seemed to grasp how to slay the creatures, and their mysterious and elusive nature would only make things worse with the precarious state of things in this day and age...
...not that Musashi knew or cared much for the politics of it all. But it stood that the Oni were a danger to everyone, and she could not - would not - simply sit idly by. There was much the wanderlust filled swordswoman wished to do, and the constant journeys across the various continents sat well with her, giving her time to see the world and hone her skill with her blade, all the same. Soon, she would return to Kamiyasumi, with intentions of renewing the maps she had drafted originally. Explorer that she was, it seemed the land had somewhat stabilized in the aftermath of the Cataclysm, and she would see these new vista with her own eyes.
But even still, more recent rumors in the Land of Fire peaked her interest. People spoke of a strange, localized aberration in reality, a tear into what
was.
Musashi, having seemingly entered this world through a similar manner, could not help but be intrigued. Would it provide a way home? ...if it did, did she even wish to return? And all the more, with her encounter with Upper One taking place in an area where it seemed the tapestry of creation was thin enough as it were, there was always the chance that it could be related; or if it were, that it was a phenomena actively being sought out by the Oni. And if the Oni were interested in it, then so too would the swordswoman be.
Musashi continued on her trek, heading in the direction, towards the Ruins of Chungsu, as she had been directed by some locals who had heard the rumors.
She let out a very loud, long, exasperated sigh. She had not had a chance to sit in one place and enjoy some good food in drink in weeks! She swore that when this was done, she was going to take the time to indulge herself a bit - after all, Musashi was one who liked to walk a joyful path, and while she was no stranger to being serious and taking serious endeavors...there was a life to be lived, and pleasures to enjoy!
But those were musings for later.
Adjusting her scabbards, Musashi continued on her way, a familiar presence dancing at the edge of her awareness....
Leaving Landmark for Ruins of Chungsu (001).
