The Earth trembles under the steps the Colossal Skeleton makes. The people of the city scrambled to evacuate. Screams of terror and calls for their children drown the city, a terrifying contrast to the sunny morning. Children call for their parents while others trample on them without any care. A stampede was about to occur. The soldiers attempted to line people up, "Everyone! We will evacuate in an organized manner, do not be scared!" The voices of the soldiers were barely noticeable, but even if the people could indeed hear their orders, they did not care for their words any longer, trying to escape this city for their life and their families.
The city's crowded street became its greatest enemy for evacuation. People scream in terror as the colossal skeleton slowly makes its way to the city. The glowing light of the skeleton's hollow eyes pierced the soul of every single person in the city. Some were frozen and some were pushing others away.
The city fell into panic and chaos, as the soldiers struggled to maintain order.
While some soldiers were tasked with the civilian's order and safety, most of them were tasked to fight the skeleton. "Archers, prepare for fire!" The voice of a commander pierced the loud city. A line of 200 archers along the walls raised their bows, preparing to fire. Some of the archers were shaking in fear, while some focused on shooting. After a few moments, the commander screamed, "FIRE!" The archers fired a huge barrage of arrows. Most of the arrows managed to hit the giant skeleton. Despite the hundreds of arrows that hit it, it continued walking, not even noticing the arrows on its body. The archers' faces paled in horror, contrasting the emotionless look of the Skeleton's skull.
The archers were frozen in fear, though some obviously started to doubt their safety. Some of the archers took off, leaving their comrades. "Deserters!" The commanders' words did not even change the fleeing archers' hearts. The commander looked at the lines of foot soldiers behind the main gate of the city. Even from far away, the commander could tell the soldiers were terrified, who wouldn't be? The commander's focused face crumbled, as he saw the approaching giant, realizing this might be his final moments. His face was threatening to break down from the tears. He pulled out a small doll under his armor and caressed it gently.
He steeled himself, he must survive this. He ran towards the main gate to command the foot soldiers. He yells to them, "Soldiers! We cannot ever imagine defeating that creature... Focus on evacuating the people! No need for any orders, act as you see fit for the better of our city! Man, the docks!" The soldiers froze for a moment until they started to scramble. Though some used that moment to leave for their own safety, a lot of soldiers chose to help organize the civilians.
The commander turned around to face the approaching creature and muttered under his breath, "Yamamoto-sama... Forgive us." His expression was sorrowful, filled with regret for something that happened. He looked at the doll in his hand one more time and smiled, "Aiko-chan, your dad may not be able to visit you after all." Tears were about to flow out of his eyes when he saw a group of unknown armored soldiers appear throughout the city. With white writings on them, and an image of a crow.
He immediately recognized the symbol on the back of their armor. His face was struck with realization, as he muttered in fear, "The White Crow Rebellion..."
...
The soldiers were determined to evacuate the people. "Prepare the docks!" one soldier yelled. The bulk of the people were already waiting on the docks, awaiting evacuation, when all of a sudden, the head of one soldier flew off. The people gasped in horror. More and more soldiers were killed by a group of assassins. The people cowered in fear and tried to flee in the other way, but they were already surrounded by unknown people. The rest of the hundreds of soldiers were already scared enough, so all of them surrendered.
One woman begged, her voice shaky with fear, "P-please have mercy! We only want-"
One of the soldiers, who had better armor than the others, yelled, "People of Edo! This is what the greed of the Emperor gets you! Die under our swords, die with honor, die for the sake of our nation!"
The people were horrified, some tried to run through the lines of soldiers, but they were killed immediately. People and soldiers alike were struck with fear by their merciless actions.
"This is... This is to send the Emperor a message... As our leader is merciful, he grants you the right to a painless death!" The commander exclaimed with sadistic joy. The people and soldiers' faces were horrified, some of them started breaking down, and some children cried for their parents, "M-mama!" One child sobbed. The mother did her best to comfort her child, but she was just as scared as well. The people thought this was their last moment.
The enemy rebels restrained some soldiers of Edo and lined them up one by one, they seemed to be putting up a show.
The commander screamed, "Behold! The fate of those who dare stand in our way!"
The kneeling soldiers were blindfolded by masked men in armor. Some of them were shaking in fear. Behind each soldier was a rebel carrying a sword. They all lined up to execute their orders. One of them asked, "S-sir, what's going to happen to us-"
Before he could finish his words, the rebels decapitated their heads.
The other soldiers gasped in shock. The families covered the eyes of their children. The people were screaming. Panic was inside their hearts, as some were either stupid or brave enough to attempt what others did earlier, they tried to run through the enemy, but they were all cut down immediately. One woman whispered to her son, "It's all gonna be okay..." She held back tears.
One young boy wondered where his mother was, "M-mom...?" he looked around and saw no one but strangers, out of fear, he ran, trying to get outside to find his mom in the city. The other people tried to chase him down, but it was too late, the boy was too far. One of the rebels raised his sword directed to the boy. The people screamed for the boy to come back. But it was too late. The rebel was about to strike down, when...
...
The people were scrambling, determined to escape this hellish city. The rebels surrounded the gates, striking despair in every individual. The people could only cower in fear, as the skeleton slowly demolished the city's buildings and other structures. The walls were already crumbling. The families held their children near them, as they were about to face their imminent death, when suddenly... A shadow of a winged creature was zooming across the ground. The citizens looked up and shouted, "M-Miyako-sama! It's Miyako-sama!" Some people regained their hope.
Miyako, in her Tengu Shift, was flying across the sky, carrying what seemed to be a man. The man's silhouette was sharp against the rising sun. Clad in worn but sturdy samurai garb, his twin swords, katana, and wakizashi, gleam with the promise of hope. In the midst of it all, his presence commands respect and awe, a living embodiment of the bushido code.
...
The people looked above, and those who were old enough to witness his story recognized the man immediately. The eyes of the old were widened after seeing the man, "Is that..." The other people nodded, "It's him." A glimmer of hope enveloped their hearts, as the people who heard of his legend muttered his name in unison.
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"Yamamoto-sama."
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Eiji Yamamoto, Hero-Stone: [Miyamoto Musashi]