The forest swallowed Hiroto and Yui as they sprinted through the underbrush, branches slashing at their arms and faces. Behind them, the village burned—an orange inferno lighting the entire mountainside. Smoke rolled across the sky like a shroud. Yui stumbled over a root. Hiroto grabbed her hand and pulled her up.
"Don't stop! Keep running!"
"I—I can't breathe—!" she panted, tears streaking her ash-covered cheeks.
He didn't blame her. He could hardly breathe himself. Every muscle in his body throbbed. His heart pounded like a hammer. And that blade—the thing of shadow still clinging to his hand—pulsed with faint, dark energy. He didn't know how he created it. He didn't know how to make it disappear. He only knew one thing: If we stop, they'll kill us. A distant horn blast echoed through the trees.
Hiroto's gut tightened. "They're tracking us."
Yui whimpered, clutching his sleeve. "Hiroto… where's Mama?",His chest tightened with a pain worse than exhaustion.
"She'll catch up," he lied.
Because he couldn't bring himself to say the truth. The forest parted slightly, revealing a narrow mountain path that wound upward between jagged rocks. "If we reach the ridge, we can hide until morning," Hiroto said. "Come on."
But as they started climbing, a strange sensation tugged at Hiroto's mind. A whisper. A presence. A voice without sound.
"You cannot outrun them. Use me."
Hiroto stumbled, nearly dropping Yui's hand.
"Wh—who said that?"
Yui looked up at him, confused. "What?" Hiroto froze.
The voice wasn't in the forest.
It was inside him.
"I am the shadow you forged. Call me, and I will kill for you again." He nearly fell backward in fear.
Kill…?He had killed one of those soldiers.
He hadn't even meant to.
"I… I don't want to kill anyone," Hiroto whispered. The voice laughed softly. "Then you will die, boy."
A sharp snap echoed behind them. Branches breaking. Footsteps. Shadows moving between the trees.
Hiroto grabbed Yui and ran again, pushing himself so hard his legs felt like they were tearing apart. The forest thinned as they neared the top of the ridge, And suddenly, a figure stepped into view.
A tall man in battered armor, leaning on a sword like it was a cane. His hair was long and wild, tied in a messy knot. His kimono was torn, revealing old scars and fresh bruises.
A ronin.
He eyed the two siblings with drunken disinterest. "You two look like you're being chased by hell itself." Hiroto skidded to a stop. "Run. There are soldiers coming." The ronin raised an eyebrow. "Soldiers? At this hour? Strange."
"Please!" Hiroto begged. "Get out of the way!",But the ronin didn't move. Instead, he sighed loudly and rolled his neck.
"Well… I suppose a warm-up won't hurt."
Four shadow soldiers burst from the trees behind Hiroto and Yui. The ronin only cracked his knuckles.
"This might be fun."