The sound of the flames crackle in his ears. The smell of the smoke fill his nostrils. The screams of everyone he knows and loves echo in his head. The night he lost everything.
This is the story of Zakai Snyder. A boy who lost everything and was...
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The sky was clear of all clouds and was a bright blue. The sun shun down on Zakai. He was in a small village he had come upon a few months ago. He had stumbled in injured and tired with torn clothes. The people said he had passed out upon reaching the middle of the village and they had taken care of him. Dressed his wounds, lied him in a bed, and repaired and made some adjustments to his clothes. "Do you really have to leave Kai?" One of the children named Lea pouted. "Please stay a little longer! You've only been here a few months." Another kid named Mina begged. "I'd love to guys, but the adventure is calling my name, ya know?" Zakai smiled. "What's that even mean?" Lea asked. "How does the adventure call your name?" "Haha. It's just a saying. It basically means I feel like I have something to do out there," Zakai patted his head. "And I can't ignore it." He looked over at the path that lead out the village into the unknown. "Well, before you leave at least let my dad fix your sword, it's broken." Mina said. "No it's not. It was made that way," Zakai laughed. She had said the same thing he had said to the old man the first time he saw the sword. 'It's broken'. "Well...let him gear you up with attachments and dust." "I can't," Zakai waved his hands in refusal. "I have no money and I couldn't-" "None sense, Kai," Jeremy, the villages blacksmith, the father of Mina, said. "You have helped this village. Defended us from Grimm attacks, helped us build a fence around our village, and played and helped the kids. Giving you some free stuff is no where near enough to repay you." "Sir, I never did any of that to get something out of it. I did it-" "Out of the kindness of your heart? Yes, I know. And I'm doing this out of the kindness of my heart." He tossed Zakai some Dust and a chain. "What's the chain?" He asked. "It connects to the bottom of your sword, and the chain wraps around your arm and forearm to allow you to toss it around and make it mid-ranged and close range." "Ah, I see," Zakai mumbled as he connected the chain to the bottom of his sword where Jeremy had made a small hoop for a chain to link to. He then wrapped the chain around his left arm and forearm and sheathed the weapon. The chain unlinked on its own. "Did it break?" He asked. "No, I implemented some dust and my wife added some glyphs to the chain. It won't disconnect from your arm and when your weapon is sheathed the chain unlocks from your weapon so as to give you free movement. And when you grab your sword, the chain links on its own." "You didn-" "We know," Jeremy smiled. "I really wish I could stay..." Zakai said softly, a sad smile on his face. "But you can't, and you know that. It's not your fate." Jeremy stated. "Yeah...." Zakai looked at the path he was meant to head towards. "Promise me something." "Of course." "If anything ever happens, call me, and I'll be on my way as fast as I can." "Mmm, I promise. I can't guarantee though. With the fall of Beacon some cell towers where destroyed and scroll communication can be very difficult." Zakai scratched the back of his head in frustration. "Ugh, true." He looked at Marco, a messenger hawk that Jeremy owned. "Well, then send a message via Marco. Update me whenever you can, good or bad." "Haha," Jeremy laughed. "I will do. Now be on your way," Jeremy pushed him softly. "Yeah..." Zakai slowly made his way down the path out the village. All the villagers where waving him goodbye, thanking him for everything. A tear fell down his cheek and his vision went static for a moment and he staggered and the scent of smoke seemed to surround him. As fast as the vision appeared, it vanished. 'What was that?' He thought as he played off his staggering as loosing balance and made his way off into the unknown.
"Crap! Crap crap crap!" Zakai yelled as he ran. He was being chased by 5 Beowulf's and an Ursa as well as a Death stalker. "How do I always get into messes like this!" He complained as he pushed through trees and bushes. "What am I gonna do!" He cried as he ran over a hill. As he ran down the hill, he almost tripped from the steepness. He regained balance and continued running until he couldn't anymore. "I...think I lost them....." he said as he gasped for breathe. When he got it back he sat down and looked around. He was in an old destroyed village. "Huh...."he stood back up and and walked around. "Grimm...." he said as he saw a slash mark on the ground. Voices approaching caught his attention and he hid in some nearby rubble. "All I'm saying is JUNR sounds better!" His eyes widened at the voice and he instinctively shot up. "WHO'S THERE!" A grenade launched in his direction. He dodged just in time, directly in front of them. "Oh, hi?" Zakai laughed softly and nervously. "Zakai?!" All of them said at once. "Yeah?" He asked more than said, confused as to how they knew his name. "You're alive!" A girl in red ran up to him and hugged him. "It's so good to see you again! What happened to you? Are you okay? Where'd you go? I like your new outfit." "Woah, slow down there," he laughed softly. "It's good to see you too, but who are you again?" He looked her up and down. "Oh wait, Ruby," he said, answering his own question. "Stop doing that," she frowned. "What?" "Acting like you don't know me every time we meet." "Ah, I see," he scratched the back of his head. "Sorry, I just think it's a funny thing to do," he grinned. "It isn't...." "Haha.....got it," a drop of sweat appeared on his face. "Good," she smiled. "Now answer all my questions!" "Well I was grabbed by the griffon at Beacon, it carried me high in the sky over the city, I got free from its grasp, fell down in a crash landing into a building, protected the people escaping from the Grimm in the city, headed back to Beacon to help you and everyone, got caught up in a big fight with Grimm and robots, got injured, was saved by some old guy, and now I'm here. So yeah, I'm okay. And thanks, you really like it?" "Wow, all that happened to you? I'm sorry....I'm glad you're safe though. And yes. I love it." She grinned. "We've been worried about you," she said not soon after. "Ah. I see." 'Wait...I'm starting to sound like that old man when I speak!!!' "What are y'all doing here though? Why aren't you at home or whatever?" He asked. "Well, you see, Zakai," Juan started. "Call me Kai, it's faster and easier to say," Zakai interrupted. "O....Kay.... Well, we're on our way to Mistral." "Why? What's there?" "Answers," Ruby finished. "Ah, I see," he blinked slowly. "Well I'm looking for....well I don't know what exactly," he laughed nervously. "I know it's someone or something, but I just have this feeling in my chest, in my heart and stomach, that I'll know what it is when I find it, or them." "...if it's someone, do you know what they look like? Is it a girl? Or a boy?" Ruby asked, her voice sounded slightly shaken. "I don't know, but I do know that the feeling that I usually have in my chest is gone right now, like I've found what I was looking for, but I don't think I did, because nothings clicked, ya know?" "...." "You okay, Ruby?" He asked. "Zakai...I want to ask you something..." "Yeah?" "Do you li-" "Ohhhh hahahahahaha!" Someone laughed from no where. Everyone unsheathed their weapons, including Zakai. "I think I found them! The girl she was talking about," a man came from the shadows. He had a scorpion tale and an insane look in his eyes. "Who are you?" Zakai asked. "Not that it matters, you're of no importance, really. Probably just another crazy per-" in an instant the strange man was in front of Zakai, causing his eyes to widen as his tail went to stab him, but he reacted fast and blocked it with the sword. The man jumped back and laughed. "Oh hoho! You're pretty quick to have been able to react to my attack that fast." "Yeah, well I've been training," he shrugged. "Now," he tossed the sword at him. The man deflected it with his tail and Zakai quickly yanked the chain, it quickly returned to his hand. "Answer my question before I force it out of you."
