Episode 8- Never Easy
General Mash Aikawa is in a stretch of low grassy field behind his large castle. Sweat beads fall from his large, red beard with his long, twisted locks of red hair swirling around, tracing his movements. Mash continues his breathing techniques and arm motions as his legs stay planted firmly into the ground. Balls of water start to build up and rise all around his immediate area, then seemingly dance with his arm motions. He continues to twist, turn, and rotate his arms in a smooth, yet firm motion.
"Practicing your Qigong?", asks a familiar voice in the distance. The control and concentration of the water surrounding Mash gets interrupted and falls to the ground with a soft "splash". Mash turns around to see Morgiana bite into a pear she is holding. With her mouth full, Morgiana says "Seems like something lit a fire under your backside. Care to share?". "I watched an intriguing show yesterday", responds Mash. Already having an understanding of what is on his mind, Morgiana asks, "What kind of show?". "A good one", responds Mash. Morgiana doesn't ask any further questions as she knows the answer he gave is the best she'll get out of him while he has his focus on something. Mash is a man of hard focus and little explaining. "Well, showman, supper is ready and we are hungry", says Morgiana. The two head towards the castle together.
In the murky chasm lays Zero, with his stomach to the ground and his face turned to the right side of him. His eyes are open but contain a cold, numb stare. He lies nude except for the more tattered robes on his body. The darkness of the chasm feels warming to Zero as if it's a living entity. The darkness feels his injuries and battered body as black smoke sizzles from Zero, slowly sealing and healing his injuries internally and externally from the battle with Yin. His mind shifts, thinking of long buried memories.
Flashback to Past Memory
A young, eleven year old Kibo opens his eyes. He's laying on his left side in a fetal position underneath a wooden dining room table in his home. As he wakes up, he quietly looks around to see if anyone is around. He slowly lifts up the cloth laid out on the top of the dining room table. he doesn't see anyone so he quietly creeps from underneath the table and opens a nearby closet made of old wood. The closet is full of hanging clothes that were intentionally ripped up, and neatly placed hanging up after. "I'll try my best today", Kibo whispers, then immediately looks around to see if anyone heard him. He grabs a ripped up shirt, ripped pants, ripped socks, a top hat with poked holes in it, and shoes with poked holes in them from the closet. With his black clothing and the highest of optimism, Kibo says with a smile, "Fathers' clothes should work". He then puts the clothes on which don't fit him properly. He sees a belt in the closet and grabs it, but the belt makes a loud clinking noise due to the steel belt buckle. In shock and fear of what could happen, Kibo rushes to put on the belt as it continues to make a loud clinking sound. He tries to run quickly out of the home, through the wooden door in the room. Before he could make it out of the door, a bottle is thrown at him and breaks on his head. Kibo falls to the ground dizzy and in pain as his top hat lands on the ground. He looks behind him to see his mother with a cold, disgusted look on her face. A long drip of blood leaks from the head of Kibo as he tries to pick up his top hat. A young and drunk Chizu runs towards Kibo and punches him directly in the nose, making Kibo fall lower to the ground. Ignoring the pain, Kibo knows a familiar beating will take place for hours if he doesn't act. Kibo clutches his top hat, quickly gets up, and darts out of the door as fast as he possibly can. "Don't come back you cursed child! You made him leave us! This life is all your fault! Go find wherever you left him! I should have ripped up those damn clothes a lot more!", shouts Chizu from the other side of the door. Kibo runs away from the home, still able to hear everything being shouted by his mother.
Kibo stops at a nearby stream of water to wash off the blood in his face and hair. He quickly runs off further away. "I hope I'm not too late!", Kibo says to himself as he runs. Up ahead, an adult man is on a wooden cart with a horse connected by a brown harness. The man sits on a wooden cart with a lot of space behind him. The cart is long and rectangle shaped with no covering on the top. Inside the cart sits children around Kibo's age wearing fine clothing. All of the children are wearing clean, white shirts, with dark blue pants, and black formal shoes. The man at the front of the cart notices Kibo running towards the cart. The man quickly whips the ropes attached to the horse, making the horse speed forward. The out of breath Kibo stops running and makes eye contact with the man pulling the cart. The children in the back of the cart all laugh together as the cart continues to speed further and further away. Kibo tilts his worn top hat to cover his eyes, then begins to walk in the same direction that the now gone cart had sped towards.
Thirty minutes later, Kibo reaches a large building with large stone letters on it. The stone is smoothly carved and painted white, reading "GRANDORIA INTERMEDIATE". Kibo enters the building through a thin steel door then walks down a long hallway with several adults standing around with some working, and some simply carrying conversations. As the adults notice Kibo, they move away from his area in shock and disgust. "Why does that damn Watanabe woman keep sending him here!?", an adult woman says nearby. Kibo eventually reaches a thick, wooden door with a silver door knob on it. Inside are children dressed in the same white shirts and dark blue pants as the children from the cart. All of the children are sitting at neat wooden chairs with wooden desks in front of them. In the front of the room is an adult female with a look of shock and anger focused on Kibo. Kibo looks around to see that there are no chairs or desks available to sit at in the classroom. Kibo walks to the back of the room and sits down on the shaggy carpet as the room falls silent. The teacher clears her throat then begins to speak, "Open your books to chapter thirteen. We will continue discussing the history of magical development over the years". Kibo looks around the room to see all of the children open their books resting neatly on the desks. "Teacher", Kibo reluctantly says, "Teacher, I don't have a book. Is there an extra one I can use?". The teacher gives a cold stare off into the distance, trying her best to ignore Kibo. The teacher then continues to speak to the children about the chapter in the book. Kibo raises his hand and the teacher immediately loses her patience. "Get out of my classroom! You are interrupting my lesson and the children who have actually decided to come to school prepared! Leave, cursed child!", shouts the teacher. She then points sternly at the door without putting her arm down for any moment.
Outside of the building walks Kibo as he tilts his top hat downward over his eyes. As he walks down the long road back home, a large man on horseback stops at his location. The man is wearing golden armor with a large, red cape slightly blowing in the wind. He has long, straight, black hair with a large black mustache. He doesn't look directly at Kibo, but says, "Come boy", then grabs Kibo by the shirt and forcefully sits him at the back of the horse, making Kibo's top hat fall to the ground. The man is a youthful General Teno, with all his normally white hair, all black. Kibo stays silent as the horse begins to trot away, leaving his father's hat behind.
After a seven minute horse ride in silence, the two stop at a large castle. The general gets off the horse, grabs Kibo by the shirt with one hand, then roughly puts him on the ground. Kibo stumbles but keeps from falling over. "Follow", says General Teno. The two slowly walk up to large silver, double doors with dragon carvings on each face of the doors. They then walk until they reach a room within the large castle that has an already opened wooden door. Inside the door is Teno Jr, with a white blindfold covering his eyes. Also inside the room is an adult male standing in front of Teno Jr. Teno Jr sits in a chair with a silver desk in front of him. On the desk is a book with no writing inside it, only several lines and hills within the pages. The adult man in front grabs Teno Jr's right hand and begins to trace his hand on the pages. "Ever since you cursed my boy, he's had to practice his braille and can't go to a normal classroom.", says General Teno. Teno Jr begins to yell and throw his book off of the table. He then slams the desk in front of him, then flips it over making it crash into the ground. "This is garbage! Forget braille! I want to go to a normal school and see my friends! I hate this and I hate you! Stupid teacher!", shouts Teno Jr. General Teno grabs Kibo by the back of his shirt and walks back down the hall. The feet of Kibo don't touch the ground as General Teno marches forward with one hand holding Kibo.
General Teno walks out of the castle and up to the nearby road in front. General Teno then picks Kibo up higher, then quickly throws him in the middle of the road. Kibo collides with the dirty and dusty road then tumbles forward. "If I ever get the opportunity and privilege of seeing you as an adult, make no mistake, I will kill you", promises General Teno. Kibo gets to his feet and starts to drag his feet down the road while trying to ignore the pain from the throw. Kibo looks with a numb stare and thinks to himself, "Today was supposed to be special. It's my birthday.".
End of Past Memory
Zero stands up as his wounds from the previous battle have all healed. In his tattered robes, he jumps from wall to wall in the chasm, then disappears into black smoke. He then reappears at the top of the chasm and walks aimlessly to clear his mind. Ten miles from Grandoria lies the town of Creston, a town built on tourism, relaxation, and the black market. In the day, the town is booming with people, but at night, the streets are clear due to possible robbery, or worse. Zero enters the town and reads the giant stone letters above, held on thick pieces of wood. "CRESTON. THE LAND OF FREEDOM AND OPPORTUNITIES".