The Demon Within

Prologue

An eerie wind blew through the trees, causing the leaves on the ground to pick up and sway with the wind. The moon was full, emitting its rays so the path through the forest was visible in the dead of night. A man, his sword slung across his shoulders, walked through the forest towards an abandoned cemetery that's been empty for years. The graves were broken and there were several holes in the ground with nothing in them. The man stopped in the shadows near the gate and examined the area. His eyes landed on a girl who was sitting on top of a grave, her head tilted towards the sky.

"You're late. Five minutes late to be exact." Grinning so his fangs showed, the man stepped out of the darkness and leaned against a fence post, the moonlight revealing half of his face.

"Excuse me for not being on time. I got a little distracted on the way here. You can't really blame me, sweetheart," the man said, lifting his arm.

The girl glanced over at him and saw the head the man was holding up. It was dripping with blood, the mouth was wide opened and eyes were opened, but the eyeballs were rolled into the back of the head. Chuckling, the man threw the head to where it rolled to the girls feet, looking up at her. She narrowed her eyes at him, unamused.

"This is the captain who leads one of the emperor's forces right?"

"I don't miss my targets," the man answered, raising his eyebrows.

"Huh," the girl said and jumped off of the gravestone and landed near the head. She kicked it and it went flying into an abandoned shack. She smiled at the man, revealing her fangs back at him. "I'm sure the boss will be proud of you, Ryou."

"Well I would hope so," Ryou said smirking. "I'm gaining a fabulous reputation because of it." Ryou examined his blade as it glinted in the moonlight. Sheathing his blade, Ryou turned towards the exit.

"The boss wants you to do another job," the girl stated.

"He knows I'll kill just about anything," Ryou laughed. He looked over his shoulder with an amused expression on his face. "Who am I to kill this time? Some pesky samurai thugs or an entire village? Personally I'd like to attack the village. 'Cause then the samurai come and then I get to kill them too. Plus it's a blood bath, and you know how much I enjoy those."

"He wants you to find something, idiot," the girl snorted. Ryou looked down at the ground, the smile on his face growing wider. He turned around, his eyes twinkling with amusement.

"I believe I have already found the item he is looking for," Ryou said darkly.

"Seriously? We don't have time to be making guesses, Ryou. How positive are you?"

"What if I said about 13 percent positive?" Ryou said.

"I would kill you," hissed the girl.

"Then it's a good thing I'm not 13 percent positive, but more." Ryou walked away from the girl and out of the cemetery. As he walked along the path, the clouds began to cover the moon, leaving it as black as an abyss. Ryou opened his eyes and they gleamed with a red light. I think it's time I made my move. Mmm, I can already smell the blood!! Ryou laughed with delight at the thought and his tongue traced over his fangs. His laughter echoed through the forest as he made his way towards the small village of Irailia.