Can Akai, the wolf god, stop himself from destroying all the things most dear to him? |
The sky was darkening overhead and the village was in chaos. They blamed him, their protector, their god, for the disease that had swept quickly and fatally over the area, wreaking havoc on its unfortunate victims. 'I'm not giving up yet,' he thought determinedly, trying to channel his power to heal the villagers. Alas, it was no use, though, his monstrous power has long ago been diminished when he forced his evil self away. .....He was nothing but a normal wolf, now..... Could he be betraying his villagers by not telling them? He would always fight for the villagers' safety, even at the cost of his own life. The villagers, though, had already made it clear that they didn't want his help. He feared they had seen through him, and knew he was but a shell of what he used to be. They had chased him out of the village, just as his other self had once done to them... And now he was being followed again. He guessed that they were plotting to kill his family and set fire to his shrine, so he quickly increased his pace. He could easily outrun them, so he wasn't worried. This was the usual practice. They were getting a bit better, but they couldn't match his speed, no matter how much progress they made. But the footfalls behind him suggested otherwise. It didn't matter, he assured himself, he was almost home, and they couldn't follow him in there. All he had to do was be careful, a turn there and a snap there, and he was home free. 'Wait...what's that smell?' he thought, alerted by the smell of smoke, 'They couldn't have...' But, sadly, they had. The rising smoke circled their den, with orange flame licking at the edges. "No!" he cried out, his bark reverberating through the forest, and he stopped dead, shocked to his core. The villagers had finally caught up to him, and their malignant laughter irked him. He hadn't felt like this since he had been possessed by his other half. "Not so high and mighty now, are you, _wolf_? Now that we aren't kissing your feet? You've had this coming anyway - you couldn't stop the disease, you fraud. Surrender now or face the consequences; though I can't ensure your safety on either choice..." a particularly heavyset villager barked, pointing his gun straight at the wolf's chest. "Yeah," an annoying, shrill voice echoed. "Now that your 'shrine' is gone and your family dealt with, you're all that remains. You should have known all along it would come to this. Humans have always been and will always be superior to you tricky animals. You may have fooled us once, but it will not happen again. We will _not_ let our guards down again." 'If you're fooled by us, wouldn't that make YOU the inferior species, though?' he thought, but was interrupted by a familiar voice emanating from out of nowhere. 'Let me out......' it whispered. Where did that come from?! "Inside you, dummy. You really thought that you had killed me? Banished me forever? Well, I've come to your aid, so now what? Let me save you. Get revenge for your family." he reasoned. "N-no!" his own voice countered as he staggered back with surprise, "You're evil. You just want to kill!" "What about your family? YOU can't bring them back, but I can." he chided coolly. From behind him, a impatient, mischievious villager pointed his gun at Akai. I mean, his guard was down, preoccupied with something I couldn't see or hear, and he was the cause of all of our problems. 'Yes, that's it' he thought as his hand itched for the trigger, 'He's nothing but a hindrance and he needs to be taken care of, lest he begin to harm our children.' "N-never!" Akai cried in response to the voice in his head, but a shot to his back shattered his will. Pain seared through him as he let loose a yelp of pain and toppled to the ground. His family... his respect...his home...how much more could they take?! How many times had he saved them...had he been there, helping them? Rage consumed him as he spiraled around to see a villager grinning with a smoking gun. Gloatingly, he even had the audacity to blow on it! Thoughts clouded his mind, focused on revenge. "RRRRRRRRRRR!" an earth-shattering growl resonated from his own throat, 'Wait! No!' his conscience finally kicked in, 'Killing isn't good!' But his conscience was too late...it couldn't stop him now that he had already started to transform. Shocking white fur turned black. Green eyes became red. The demon wolf was back.....and he wasn't sure he could stop himself again. ~Chapter 2~ Akai's view- "Where am I?" Akai asked himself as he stared around the dark room. He couldn't remember anything at all. All he knew was that his family---that word stopped him short, and a sharp stab in his gut told him it wasn't good. "What happened to me?" he wondered as he felt overwhelming pain in his back when he staggered to his feet. "It couldn't be..." he gasped with surprise. He had been here more than once, his gut once again told him the information he didn't know. And the only time he remembered being in a dark chamber like this was before he had renounced his power... "T-that means....that means I'm no longer in control of this body!" Images flashed before his mind as he realized Mizu had taken over yet again. Of pain. Of misery. Of children calling for the mothers they would never find. Overcoming him last time was hard enough, but how would he make it this time when he had no shred of power to call his own? He would have to wait for the perfect time, though he doubted it would ever come. So he settled to the floor, blocking the visions that he shared with Mizu, that unveiled the heinous crimes his alter personality was currently doing. Mizu's view- "That fool! He should've never left himself open when that villager shot him. Sure, I'll avenge his family, but only because it feels so great to kill!" Mizu laughed raucously, and continued, "Now it's time for fun..." He felt for the familiar power inside him, and allowed it to ebb, forming around him. It healed his wounds, (actually Akai's wounds), and then started for the villagers. He felt good, the last time he had used this power was when he tried to destroy Akai. Only he wouldn't die then. His power, the benevolence of it all had blinded him and in that moment of weakness, it had overcome him. But his power had never killed him, Akai's good will wouldn't allow it. So he left me broken and assumed me dead. That's why I will kill Akai, draw his death out, so he can also experience the pain of almost dying. And that's why if his family is alive, I'll kill them too. He smiled at the thought of revenge and resumed his attention to the villagers, his awaiting prey. They cowered in the corner of the woods, his senses told him, pleading for forgiveness from their new false god. They'll face judgement, all right, but only from the real almighty god, me. "Hmm, it can't save them now. That 'god' they pray for isn't real at all. They're at _my_ mercy, not their god's." he cried maliciously and crowded his immense power into the ground. A fierce rumbling emitted from the ground, then slowly split the field and gained velocity, growing wider. The villagers' eyes widened in fear as they felt the ground's rumbling increase. Scrambling from the soil, they ran for the cover of a cave. Except, instead of the cave protecting them, his earthquake crept around it. It split the land slowly around the cavern until it caved. Their cries echoed as they slowly were crushed, sound to Mizu's ears. Grinning, he ran toward the village, spreading flames and chaos around it. 'When will my fun end?' he thought to himself. ------------------------ I know, I know, it's horrible. I just can't get back to my old self today. But, please review and help me slowly fix it. I can't figure out what's wrong, and I feel aggravated for that fact. (And I know it's cynical and depressing at this part, but I can't figure how to make it a bit lighter in feeling....) Please help! -Minuit |