Rikunai: Genesis

Chapter Eight: The Prodigy

Viewer Discretion is advised for this chapter.

The sounds of footsteps on a puddled sidewalk along with the roaring of passing cars and the subsequent splashing of roadside water made for a distracting ambiance as a certain young man walked through the streets of Jacansko, the capital of Sinrami, the largest nation in Rikunai, comprising most of the southern half of the island. It was separated from Koshizuka and its neighboring villages and Maktin, a smaller nation on the west coast, by a massive river. The small sliver of land on the southeastern coast stretching from the southern tip of the island to about halfway to the midpoint between the tip and the river was uninhabited due to the extremely dangerous terrain, so Sinrami only had a small channel of land through the central desert of Rikunai and its surrounding mountains to the east coast to be able to trade with Nekuia and the smaller satellite islands under the umbrella of the barrier. This channel and most of the desert were sparsely inhabited and dubbed East Sinrami. Sections of Sinrami, including large neighborhoods in Jacansko and major cities, along with this territory of East Sinrami had been recently banding together to separate from Sinrami to form its own proper country without the severe corruption of the current government.

This corruption was evident as the stench of pollution and disease permeated the air and invaded the nostrils of the young man, drawing visible disgust from his handsome face. He noticed it was beginning to rain again and sighed, pulling the hood of his cloak up to hide his black and silver hair from the elements. The government of Sinrami was extremely corrupt, with almost all of its legislation being run by the various criminal organizations that regulated the trade of illegal substances, arms, and much more. Therefore, the living conditions in most of the country were poor at best, unbearable, and deadly at worst. The frequent gang violence, pollution, death, disease, and crime, sprinkled with a proportionate amount of drug overdoses and kidnappings made Sinrami one of the worst places in Rikunai to live. Only Maktin surpassed this level of debauchery and disgust, as it was practically lawless in the country trapped in constant civil war.

The young man recounted the various connections and organizations within Sinrami as he blankly stared at the endless sea of cars and people down the streets of Jacansko. The sun was about to set as twilight failed to properly break through the cloudy skies, failing to signal the further darkness the city and its two million inhabitants would experience.

"Riku..." The young man called aloud as a slight buzzing could be heard from his pocket. He fetched his cell phone from his pocket and cursed as a drop of rain landed on the screen signaling an incoming call. The young man quickly used Water-form to pick the rain up and throw it to his side as he placed the phone up to his ear.

"Yes?"

"The next one is here with her daughters."

"I see. Would you make our guests at home? I'm sure Ms. Oma would be delighted to have some food after her journey from Yosamatsu." The young man's smile twisted as he chuckled to himself. He took joy in the subtle humor of having people under his finger, unable to squirm. He loved control, so much so that any amount of dissent for leadership within his group would result in a removal from history.

"I'll see to it. Over a hundred... You must be proud of yourself, sir."

The young man cackled as he stopped dead in the street, alarming the quickly running civilians next to him. A glimmer of ambition flickered within his deep black eyes as he slicked his lips with his tongue. He smacked them together, tasting the smog in the air as he physically felt his health deteriorate. He hated it here, but this was the best place for his operation. He grinned as he relished the disgusting taste.

"I don't think it's very humble to be proud, do you?"

"I'm not in any place to have moral judgment."

"Really?" The young man laughed to himself as a car splashed water across him. He used Water-form again to simply move all of the moisture from his cloak onto the sidewalk before craning his head to the car, determining whether or not he wanted to use Metal-form to snap the car's brakes and send the driver into an unfortunate accident. He saw the happy face of a small child looking out the window at the young man. Her face was so full of life and passion, like she hadn't quite realized the reality of living in this cursed world of pain. How the young man wished to still have that within him, but, he knew that that spark was lost the moment he discovered what happened to his mother.