The table was quiet. Sitting in a small wooden cottage atop a hill was Esther's home.
His legs crossed and hands in his lap as he sat on the floor mat in front of a table low to the ground. The smell of freshly cooked noodles fills the room up.
"You said she was showing up, right?" Ellis slides the door open, revealing a platter with four bowls of noodles. Wooden chopsticks aside them as she made her way over to the table in a smooth manner. She wears a pink robe, two toed socks, and her hair in a neat bun.
"She said she'd be showing up." Esther licks his lips at the sight of the food on the wooden platter.
"It's been so long since I've seen her. I heard she got Balmung." Ellis places the platter on the table, sitting on the other side and crossing her legs. Her arms rest among the table as she begins to pass out the bowls of noodles.
"Orion!" Ellis calls out.
A little giggle comes from one of the rooms. Past the exotic plants and paintings of their distant family, she could see a little boy running through the rooms just a few feet from the dining area.
"Orion! Come eat your food before it gets cold!" Ellis commands.
Orion comes running out of the room filled with blankets. In his hand was a wooden sword Esther had made for him when he was just a little baby. Esther chuckles at Orion slashing the sword at the corner of the walls pretending to be fighting off bad guys.
"Dammit." Ellis stands, pulling the curtains in front of the windows to block the little star light coming into the home.
The clouds stood thick this evening. Their planet was tidally locked but they managed to differ night and day. Around this time, clouds would form, making this side of the planet a little darker as if it were about to rain. The clouds on this planet got so thick it nearly blocked all star light from hitting this side, thus making it night for them in some way.
"Is Friza coming over!?" Orion jumps onto his floor mat, throwing his sword in the air in joy.
"She will if you sit and behave, Orion!" Ellis raises her eyebrow.
Orion sits down, instantly grabbing his chipsticks and begins chewing. Esther smiles and digs into his bowl as well. A knock enters the air just before the front door slides open.
Friza takes her straw hat off, smiling at the family sitting and enjoying their meal of the night.
"FRIZA!" Orion had a mouth full of noodles, jumping to his feet and running towards Friza. Friza slides the door closed and was nearly pushed into the wall by Orion's momentum.
"Welcome, Friza. Come sit." Esther motions for her to take a seat at the end of the table.
"I missed you too, buddy." Friza squeezes Orion in her arms before standing all the way up and heading towards the low table.
"Hey, Friza. You look amazing," Ellis speaks.
Friza places her chopsticks in the right fingers, looking around the home in amazement for she hadn't been inside for a while.
"I can say the same for you, Ellis. I heard you have another child on the way." Friza takes a bite of her noodles. The sweat taste of them made her take a second bite without finishing the first.
"Yes." Ellis takes a bite of her noodles. In front of each noodle bowl was a smaller bowl filled halfway with water.
Friza places both hands on either side of the water bowl, sipping it as if she were drinking the liquid from a soup bowl. The sweet smell of the freshly made candles Esther gets from the elder lady across they way made the come smell of sweet flowers and fresh honey.
"Those twenty years felt like they had just started yesterday. I remember me and you being three years old when your father had sent you off to the Soul Eater Plantation." Ellis sips her water.
Friza finishes chewing her food, looking down at the table as everyone else did the same.
"Yeah. Haven't seen him since. Matteo and I plan to go searching for him. But this place is huge. And very dangerous to say the least," Friza says.
"Be careful not to get your hair in the food, Orion." Esther uses his fingers, pushing Orion's long hair behind his ears. Esther then places his chipsticks down and rolls Orion's robe sleeves up to his elbows.
"How is his training going?" Friza asks.
"He's getting there. Training for the Water Element doesn't seem to be his thing." Ellis takes another bite of her food.
"Perhaps watching him learn Terra," Friza suggests.
The room was washed with silence. But then that's when Friza paused. Her chopsticks are still in her mouth. A soft scream was heard from outside. Friza looks at Orion who seemed to not notice. A smile wrapped on his face as he and Esther play fight.
"I don't think I'm the only person who heard that." Ellis says.
"What?" Esther looks at Friza and Ellis in concern. His eyes wide as all of them turn to the front door.
There it was again. Another scream. Friza instantly stands, placing her index finger and thumb on the small fire flame that was lit on the candle in the center of the table.
"What's going on, mommy?" Orion says. His mouth being covered by Ellis's palm as Esther wasted no time. He stands, running to the dresser that sat neatly near the sliding door that led to the bedroom. His fingers wrap around the handle before sliding the door open. Inside on the shelf were two swords. Each one with a black handle and a golden dragon wrapped around the handle as decoration. The blade was too jet black and shiny as if it hadn't been used in decades yet maintained by the owner.
Friza was now standing by the back door. Through the little crack she could see that the star that they orbited had gone further. The light was so dim, so low. The clouds were thick and heavy.
Her eyes move from the sky, down to the pathway of dirt and gravel. Her eyes widened with what she saw.
On the ground was a body. The skin grey and wrinkled, the eyes lifeless and white. Popping out of the body black veins as if they were worms eating the flesh from the inside out. The corpse looked as if all the blood had been sucked out of it like some kind of blood sucker. Friza pulls her head back. Her breathing softened yet she still panted in shock.
"What is it, Friza?" Ellis holds Orion to her legs. Esther had his sword, waiting for Friza to tell them what the fuck was going on.
Friza looks at the family in shock. Pointing to the candle on the other table, she nodded, signalling for them to let it out.
Esther holds his sword tightly, walking backwards before placing his index finger and thumb on the fire flame.
"Soul Takers. They escaped." Friza whispered.
A loud thud came from above. The sounds of a man screaming pierced their ears as Orion began to shed tears. Friza instantly grabs Balmung, her straw hat, and looks around the home for a safe place to hide Orion.
Friza speed walks towards the kitchen. Sliding the door open, she steps aside before rushing Orion and Ellis inside.
"Go." Friza demands. She points at Esther who nods and lightly jogs to the front door. Friza closes the door, leaving it slightly ajar before poking her head through at Orion and Ellis who hide behind a pile of pots and pans.
"Don't move. Do you understand?" Friza asks. The fear in Friza's voice became clear for she hadn't dealt with this before. Her hands were sweaty and eyes watering as she nodded and closed the doors all the way.
Friza unsheaths Balmung. She approaches the door in a stance she has been learning for over 20 years.
Both hands on the handle as she points the sword in the direction she walks. Her back arched and legs moving in a formation in such a way no one with enhanced hearing could hear her walk.
"Open." Friza demands.
Esther does just that. Esther throws himself out of the cottage, looking in all direction with his sword drawn. There was nothing. No people running, no screaming. The only thing they could see was the corpse Friza had seen earlier. The pure silence and the smell of rotten flesh roaming the grounds. Friza drops her sword to her side, looking around as the hills and pathways were filled with corpses of Kaians.
"AHHHH!" Esther and Friza both hear.
Not wasting any time, they both take off in the direction of the scream. Her heart races as she runs with Balmung to her side.
As she leaps over a hill, she slides under a gate before getting back to her feet. Her strides begin to get longer as she now runs atop cottages. From the height she stands, she could see fire. People running, the screams. The wailing of children being burnt alive right in front of her face.
"ESTHER!" Friza screams. She hops onto the pathway and looks ahead. Standing right in front of her was a creature of sorts.
The arms long, legs shaky and skinny, the skin scorching black, and the face looked as if it were wearing a mask. A smiling expression on its face, for that was the only expression these creatures have proven to show for over 3 million years.
He slowly turns around in a psychotic way. His head began twisting in all kinds of ways as if it were some monster from a horror movie.
"You alrig… shit!" Esther had made it to Friza, too looking at the Soul Taker that stands in front of them.
Another crackling sound came through as if someone were dropping nuts on a tile floor. She looks ahead, drawing her sword back up as she notices three more standing in the same position as the first. Another crackling sound came from their right. Esther got into stance, looking up to see six more atop a hill.
"What the hell!" Esther panics.
"Where are the other Soul Eaters?" Friza panics.
The first one takes a step. His head twisting to the right as he came closer and closer.
"How did they escape?" Esther looks at the rest, constantly turning in all directions to make sure none of them were sneaking up on Friza and himself.
"Esther!" Friza screams. The first one attacks. Launching himself at her. Black smoke-like substance trailed behind his body like a cape. His fingers grew long and in all directions. His fingernails were worn out and scorching black as he slashed at Friza.
She sliced upwards with Balmung, cutting off the hand before kicking the chest of the Soul Taker while standing in the same spot.
Screeching noises now came from everywhere. Friza noticed she'd kicked a hole through his chest, leaving a black blooded heart pulsating on the ground with the strings still attached to the corpse.
All the Soul Takers began going crazy now. Friza refused to believe her whole village was destroyed but it was.
"Friza!" Esther and Friza both hear. A child's voice coming from afar. All the screeching stopped.
Friza's heart stopped, eyes frozen as she turned her head as quickly as possible. She sees Orion running at her. The screeching begins once more with all the Soul Takers launching themselves at Orion.
"ORION!" Esther screams. He drops his sword, sprinting at Orion as the Soul Takers did the same. Friza throws her sword as hard as she could, jumping before doing a 360 double kick, knocking off two Soul Taker's heads off their shoulders.
Her sword grazes Orion's ear, piercing a Soul Taker's eye socket. His body began moving in a formation as if it were trying to figure out what was going on before toppling over to the ground.
Friza holds out her hand. The handle of Balmung lit a bright white color before cutting through the Soul Taker's head and zooming into the palm of Friza's. As it lands in her palm, she instantly slices upwards, cutting off a Soul Taker's face as it stands there in disbelief. The face began dripping with black blood before hitting the ground followed by a squishy sound.
She begins slicing and ducking. The screeching only got louder as the Soul Taker's rush at Esther and Orion who were hugging each other tightly.
Friza looks to see three Soul Takers coming at them. Friza throws Balmung into the air, kicking the handle as it soars through the air, going through five Soul Taker's heads in a row. The sky got darker and darker by the second. Friza watches as the sword heads straight for Esther. Like second nature, he dodges the blade, grabbing the sword and jabbing at a Soul Taker in the direction it was flying. The blade goes through the palm of the Soul Taker and through the chest, nailing its hand to its body before he pulls it out with a splatter of black blood.
Friza kicks Esther's sword into the air, roundhouse kicking it through another three Soul Takers before Esther grabs ahold of that one too.
He stands surrounded as so did Friza who was now unarmed. Her fist made and fighting stance ready. Esther stands in front of Orion. Balmung in one hand and his sword in the other as he squatted and pointed them in different directions. His face is straight and red as he watches each movement these things took.
A Soul Taker launched itself at Friza. She jumps into the air, kicking its head from its shoulders before landing.
Another one came as Friza simply lifts up her hand, squeezing her hand closed. Like magic, a fire flame came scorching from the ground, frying the Soul Taker alive. Her fist was red and eyes glowing a bright red color as it fell to ash. The Soul Takers back off a little as Friza waves her hand, bending down with one leg out and the other kneeled. Her fist now on fire as she looks ahead.
All of them attack her. She throws a punch to one's chest. She burns right through it before spinning. Her entire body turned into one big flame, teleporting herself through a Soul Taker who had intentions of tackling her. She teleported behind him, letting it fall face first to the ground.
Another came from the side. Friza moves aside as quickly as possible, ripping its leg from its body as it was still in mid air. She lets the body fall to the ground, spinning and slapping five more with the same leg.
All six of the Soul Takers jump into the air at Esther. The tears from Orion fall down his face as he curls into a ball.
Esther points the blades behind him, closing his eyes and leaning forward.
"Soul Slash!" he screams.
As fast as light, his body launches forward 10 feet. His eyes open and the limbs and corpses of the Soul Takers fall to the ground as he sliced each one up individually in under one second.
He inhales deeply and exhales the same sweating as black blood drips from either sword like he dipped them in a bowl of black water.
"ORION!" Ellis came running down the hill.
In the background were burning cottages. Bodies fill the land. Friza falls to the ground. Her nose is bleeding as she quickly rolls back up to her feet, kneeling down on one knee and one hand on the ground as if she were in some superhero stance. Her fist burst into flames again as she watches a Soul Taker standing in front of her.
It jumped into the air, kicking Friza a few feet away. She recovers as quickly as possible, leaping off the ground and at the Soul Taker who was coming down at her. They collide before it throws Friza into the ground.
"Friza!" Esther screams. He sprints at her as so does Ellis and Orion.
Friza hits the ground, sliding before shaking herself to get to all fours. This Soul Taker took off his face. Showing off a mouth full of nothing but razor sharp teeth. The pupils in its eyes sideways and and three large holes in the center of its face to smell. It had spikes that dripped of venom atop its head.
Esther throws Balmung at the Soul Taker only for it to go straight through the Soul Taker's body.
The Soul Taker purposely created a hole for it to fly through before grabbing Friza by the neck and lifting her off the ground. Esther leaps at the Soul Taker only for it to throw a missile kick at him. He flies into a cottage as fast as he leaped.
Friza closes her eyes, letting her limbs fall to her sides. Just as all hope was lost, she could hear something soaring through the air. Her eyes opened just as a glowing stick came cutting through the Soul Taker's body.
The smell of burnt flesh rushes through Friza's nose as it drops Friza to the ground. She coughs blood upon hitting the ground. Her cloak was dirty and ripped. Her fist smokes as she backs away. The glowing stick came flying backwards, cutting off the Soul Taker's head like a hot knife in butter.
"FRIZA!" Ellis came running at Friza as Orion did the same for Esther who was stuck in a torn down cottage due to his impact.
Friza looks up in blurred vision. Running at her was Arlo and Zola. Zola had her weapon drawn. The Tizona. The presses a button and both fire blades retract back inside the small pole not even a foot long.
"FRIZA!" Zola screams.
"ESTHER!" Arlo went sprinting at the cottage.
Friza lies her head back, trying to distract herself from the deep pain she was in from that thing. That was the Soul Taker group leader. Alpha of the group for each Soul Taker group had one.