The Oni of Waukasha

[Revenant]

At first glance, the fishing village of Waukasha appeared to be a pleasant, off the path community. Like many Akashiman fishing villages, the simple wooden buildings clustered together, huddled around the bobbing piers that extended from the shore like greedy fingers reaching to claim the sea’s bountiful harvest. A gentle breeze flowed away from Waukasha, bringing the scent of rotting seaweed and old fish along with it. Closer inspection revealed that there was something off about Waukasha however. Despite the hour, the village’s numerous fishing vessels remained lashed to their berths, and there were no signs of motion through the barren, windswept streets. Though this was William Arcus’ first trek into Akashima, his burning eyes took in Waukasha’s visage with the experienced eyes of one who has seen much in his life and travelled far, leaving only one thought in his mind.

Seen one fishing village, seen them all.

Six warriors accompanied the Revenant, dragging along a steel-laden wagon filled with thick boar spears and heavy crossbows. Each of the six, as was William, were members of Sei Orlouge’s Ixian Knights, and each was well versed in the specialized field of combating monstrous creatures. They had drilled, and fought, and bled together on numerous occasions, a close-knit team forged into a single cohesive unit in order to bring down the mightiest terrors that Althanas could breed.

“Heigei, to me,” William called, never taking his eyes from Waukasha. The lone Akashiman from the squad bounded up the trail to attend his Captain, his sheer black hair swaying lightly in the salty morning breeze. Heigei had spent the better part of the squad’s two day run from Radasanth to Waukasha filling his comrades in on the particulars of Akashima’s history, culture, and lore.

“Heigei?” William questioned, making sure he had the Akashiman’s attention.

“Yes, Captian?” Heigei replied, scanning the village himself.

A moment of silence passed as William finished his study before finally turning to his subordinate. “Well?”

“There appears to be no sign of the creature aside from the charred buildings on Waukasha’s south end.” Heigei paused for a moment, but seeing the questioning look in William’s gaze continued, “That alone is no indication that the creature isn’t still around though. If the report given to Sei-sama was correct, then this creature is likely to be a bound oni.”

“Which means what?” asked Jerrick, former mercenary and current second-in-command of the squad.

William inclined his head briefly in Jerrick’s direction, acknowledging the mercenary’s arrival, while Heigei bowed his head low in respect. Jerrick grimaced, waving off the formality and gesturing for Heigei to continue.

“As I have mentioned, Akashima is called the Land of a Thousand Spirits for a reason. Oni are the malevolent, chaotic spirits which infest the land, though they normally have little more influence than to whisper their corruption in one’s ear. All that changes when a summoner manages to connect one of the oni with a powerful soul however, at which point the oni is given a physical form.”

William grimaced at Heigei’s description. The entire process sounded far too similar to the soul-binding process that had been used to turn him from a human to the creature that he now was and the thought of another Kal’Necroth rising to power was something he could not abide.

“So where is this oni now?” William asked, his voice gritty and on-edge.

“Since oni are just spirits, their physical forms can be banished back to the spirit world by their summoner and then called back as needed,” Heigei paused for a moment before adding, “though doing so repeatedly would put much strain on the soul that the oni is bound to.”

“So we’ve got a giant monster lurking in the shadows, waiting to be sprung on us like a trap,” Jerrick grimaced. The day was not turning out well for the Ixian Knights’ monster hunters.

“Well then,” William waved for the rest of the squad to start driving the wagon towards Waukasha, “let’s not keep it waiting.”

[Hysteria]

The salty smell of fish and seaweed greeted Talen as he rocked side to side in the weapon filled wagon towards the small fishing town of Waukasha. The village was not the youth's ideal place to visit, but he was there for business, not pleasure. Talen was not your normal 13 year old. The small boy, who until a few months ago made his money as a travelling puppeteer, was now one of the Ixian Knights. All the knights had been assigned to an area of work and for Talen that was information gathering.

There were two reasons that led to Talen to be sitting in the wagon heading towards the small town. The first being that if the reports of this giant Oni were true, it was a power worth studying and depending on the circumstance either destroyed or harnessed. The second was that Talen was small enough to not raise objections of the other men who were forced to pull the weapon.

Despite his size, the youth was not what he seemed. Behind the average and slightly greying black pants and shirt was a being of magic. Talen controlled the shadows, using them in a variety of ways to further whatever nefarious motives he had. His arsenal was not limited to the dark arts either, at his waist he carried two sword he could wield with deadly proficiency and on his body were a few other various useful items.

Talen didn't bother to get out of the cart as William surveyed the town. The youth continued to recline against the side of the cart and his blue eyes stared up into the sky.

Waiting in the shadows? What a nice idea.

“Marching straight in huh? Looks like the Oni thing to do.” shouted Talen with a smug grin of self-satisfaction.

[black knight]

Stepping off of the wagon with a thud, Issac just let out a heavy sigh. His red eyes looking all over the place. Spotting a tavern where people were walking in and out, he just smirked behind his armored helmet. His black armor shinning in the sunlight as the wind blows from behind him. Reaching back on the wagon to grab his dual-bladed axe.

Grabbing his axe from the wagon with a deep inhale, he just grips it tight in his right hand and walked off with a heavy footstep as he just brushes past people. His armor gleaming in the light as he just stops a few paces from the wagon as people just start walking off into town.. Looking around him, he let out a heavy breath as he just looked around as people walked around all over. Young kids playing together, men and women walking around doing what they need to do. The local blacksmith in his shop talking to a young man about something.

Then further up the road, he just shivered as he felt something tugging at him. Like calling to him. Fighting the urge, he just stands there and listens to the people around him speaking.

Hearing the man who employed him for this speak, he caught wind of something about an Oni. Issac just turned his head to the man who called himself William.

"Well what are we gonna do? Just stand here and let it come to us? If it was up to me, I'd find a way to set a trap or something for it when it comes, but that is just my opinion." says the man clad in black armor. His red eyes looking into the distance as he just exhales a deep sigh as he turns back to the boat, a shiver down his spine as he just stands there, waiting to know how things are to go down.

[Nightstalker]

He was sent to the small village of Waukasha for one reason, nobody had yet defeated the oni ravaging the village. Nightstalker waited in the shadows in his black stealth suit, hunting his prey. When conventional soldiers failed, the safety of Akashima went to those who were trained to be naught but whispers on the wind.

Yet, it seemed the young ninja wasn't the only one hunting this oni. A group of foreign soldiers had come to town, possibly seeking glory for their own. Nightstalker scowled from his hiding place, Akashima did not need foreign heroes. Yet, he had to admit that he might need help in dispatching this creature. Setting aside his feelings, he decided he would introduce himself to this group.

So it was that one of the lesser soldiers first spotted the black clad figure coming towards the group. Aside from his eyes, nothing else could be seen of the ninja, so greatly did his suit cover him. They prepared to draw swords on him, and Nightstalker put his hands up to show he had no ill intent towards the group.

“Welcome my friends to Akashima, where a spirit lurks around every corner. Unless my guess is mistaken, your here looking for the same thing I am, a bug that needs to be stepped on. I'm glad you arrived, I was set to tackle it all on my own. Call me Nightstalker, and if my guess is correct and we're all here to save this town, then I'd like to work with you to increase our mutual chances of success.” he said, introducing himself to the group.

He had no doubts they'd accept him, he was a local, and they were not. He knew the area better than they did, was friendlier with the locals, and even if none of that was true, for a creature like an Oni one more friendly blade was always welcome.

[Revenant]

At William’s command the procession started forward again, the ox-drawn wagon creaking slightly as is shifted back into motion. Talen’s shouted pun roused a chuckle from a few of William’s men, but brought only a scowl to the Revenant’s face. And then, as if completely oblivious to the unpleasant demeanor that William was giving off, the mercenary Issac came forward to offer his less-than-wanted opinion on the matter before them.

A low growl escaped William’s throat before he could stop it. He hadn’t wanted to bring either of the two men along, not wanting to throw an element of the unknown into the workings of his smoothly drilled squad. But, as so frequently happened, the Revenant’s plans had been upset at the last moment by an order from Sei. William had acquiesced to the mute’s demands that he bring his fellow Ixian Captain along, but had fought hard against adding the mercenary dark night to his cadre. Sei, however, was always on the lookout for new talent and had insisted that Issac be brought along.

Sei always got what he wanted.

“Oh we’re not going to just walk in unprepared,” Lorelai, the sole woman in William’s squad, replied. “Captain is going to take two of us in to rout the bastard right out of there and the rest of us will be waiting for it on the outskirts with these babies.” Lorelai pulled back the tarp in the center of the wagon to reveal the heavy crossbows and thick boar spears beneath. “The tips on these are special forged back in the Tomb and are heavy enough to punch through most of these bastards’ hides.”

William walked on quietly, preferring to leave the friendly banter up to his subordinates rather than waste his own time on it. His burning eyes scanned Waukasha’s streets diligently, taking in everything. Darting motions from the streets around the wharf told him that Waukasha was not quite as abandoned as he first believed. Perhaps the arrival of his forces had roused the town’s occupants to some semblance of life? He could see even more of the residents hiding behind their curtains, peering at him with furtive glances that seemed to either warn him to flee as quickly as he could or otherwise urge him onwards.

It was at that moment, while he was studying Waukasha’s layout, that a flurry of spewed curses and quick motions drew the Revenant’s attention back to his squad. Another figure, clad entirely in swaths of night, had appeared out of nowhere and was approaching his wagon with hands upraised.

Not another one, William mentally groaned and rolled his eyes but waved for his men to stand down. Heigei, he noted, maintained an alert stance, muttering something about ‘ninjas.’ William wasn’t familiar with the term, assuming it was Akashiman in origin, and made a note to ask Heigei what it meant when he had a free moment.

Once again the Revenant’s first impulse was to deny Nightstalker’s request. But Nightstalker was a local and Sei was always going on about the importance of creating and maintaining good relations with the locals wherever the Ixian Knights went. It wasn’t enough to motivate William to accept the man, but the further knowledge that the man’s local status meant that he wasn’t likely to sit the fight out if he was denied made up William’s mind for him. He just couldn’t afford to have Nightstalker running around as a rogue agent in the middle of their fight.

“The Ixian Knights welcome your assistance Nightstalker,” William offered, noting the warning glance that Heigei gave him. He would really have to speak to Heigei and figure out what made the Akashiman so wary towards Nightstalker.

At that moment, as if to ensure that William was not given a moment of free time to think, let alone act, a cold wind rose behind him. It was no common wind, driven off the waters by the early morning shift of the breeze, but a foul, fetid wind that threatened to rob William of his breath.

“So,” a sinister, raspy voice filled William’s mind, riding on the foul, mounting wind. “I finally receive some new visitors.” William whipped around, his eyes instinctively seeking out the source of the sinister voice. “My town offers me little in the way of a challenge since I slaughtered its guards and I was beginning to get bored.”

The voice belonged to the first of the two lone figures that strode down Waukasha’s main thoroughfare. He was a tall, thin man, though his stopped posture camouflaged his true height. Threadbare robes of a sickly green color draped over his hunched shoulders, and he supported himself with a staff that appeared to be fashioned out of a single piece of polished obsidian. His face was hidden behind a similarly fashioned horned skull mask, though William could see the sallow, bloodshot eyes behind it.

Behind him, attached by a thin length of chain and bound in manacles, stumbled a bone-thin, wasted looking man. Like his captor, the bound man’s face was hidden by a mask, though his was a blank façade of pure white porcelain. This, William surmised, must be the soul focus for the summoner’s power.

But though the wicked man fairly pulsed with the power of the dark magic available to him, William main concern wasn’t focused on him. Rather, it was focused on the gathering cloud of glowing mist behind him, the source of the summoner’s fetid wind. Odd shapes twisted within the mist, defying human logic and forcing William to look away lest his mind be drawn to places where it shouldn’t go. But the forming shapes didn’t last long, and quicker than the eye could follow they resolved into a house sized creature. It looked nothing so much as a cross between a centipede and a spider, with acidic slather dripping from its segmented jaws and an armored hide that looked like it would deter even the Ixian Knights’ heavy weapons.

“Go Oni no Kosaku,” the summoner shrieked in delight at the stunned look coming from the would-be slayers. “Crush everyone who would stand against me.”

[Hysteria]

Talen's pale blue eyes reflected the sparse clouds hanging in the morning sky. The youth inhaled as the ninja introduced himself to the rest of the crew. Talen exhaled and focused on the sensation of the quiet release of air.

This day is going to be long.

The thoughts drifted through the pale boy's mind like the salt upon the sea air. Talen pushed himself up to a sitting position and glanced towards the city as the unnaturally loud voice of the summoner carried to the group. Talen's relaxed eyes narrowed at the challenge and his peaceful and open face steeled. The youth recognised the sudden rise in threat. The summoner was arrogant, but few men in his profession were without reason.

“Pride goeth before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.” Mumbled Talen as he pushed himself off the wagon and landed on the ground with a thud and a puff of dirt.

The youth placed his hand on his sword hilt and walked towards William. Talen only came up to the demonic man's chin, and he raised his head when he was next to him.

“I'll flank him and try and get behind to take out the summoner. I'll be no good against that beast head on.” Said Talen calmly.

The youth didn't wait for an answer from his equal. Instead he walked away from the group and the creature with a sway in his step. His actions were simple and calm, so that he didn't gain the attention of the giant creature. Once he had moved far enough away from the group he planned to double around to take the advantage.

[Nightstalker]

“A weakness, I need a weakness. I've faced tougher situations than this, such as that giant roach-like monster in Koriko's domain with its hundreds of eyes looking at me and filling me with fear. But this creature appears to have no visible flaws in its creation, yet I wonder what would happen if that prisoner attached to it were to die. I'd hate to kill an innocent man without cause, but if it means saving the village, I'll do it. First though, I'm going to try saving him.” Nightstalker thought after the oni appeared.

“I'm going to save that prisoner. It'll do something, I'm certain, hopefully expose a weakness.

Nightstalker drew his Wakizashi, and charged the unnatural creature. His blade, shining black in the light, had a secret few other weapons possessed. That very same creature's blood that Nightstalker had faced in the afterlife was now imbued in his blade, giving it the power of acid. This made it a very damaging weapon, for the blood was acidic in nature.

Mandibles clacked together as they missed the charging ninja, and the shadowy warrior narrowly avoided being stepped on as he wound around to the prisoner. With a slash he began attacking the chain, but it would take several blows to completely sever it. Even still, a shallow score could be seen in the chain.

Nightstalker spotted a leg coming for him, and narrowly flipped out of the way in time. However, his form was off and he fell flat on his face anyway. It was obvious to the Ninja, that despite his recent training with a new master, he was still not any better than he was before. Hokkaido would probably punish him for his failure to pull off a successful back-flip. Nightstalker began getting back up, but the Oni was turning on him, to finish him off.

[Revenant]

The Ixian monster hunters sprang into action, needing no prompting from their leader. Two of the hunters trailed Talen, focusing fire on the summoner in an effort to draw the man’s attention away from the shadowmancer. The rest bolted in the opposite direction, firing at Oni no Kosaku. William grabbed one of the heavy spears and charged forward with the Dark Knight Issac, freeing his molten power as he went and undergoing the transformation into his demonic form.

“Move you bastard,” William yelled out as his supernaturally enhanced speed easily outpaced the Knight. Noting their approach with one of its massive, rolling eyes, the Oni lashed out with a massive, armored claw. The speed of the attack was nearly unbelievable given the creature’s size, but William was practiced in fighting creatures of this magnitude and ducked under the lashing claw, barely breaking stride. Issac didn’t fare quite as well however, and the claw caught his right in the chest, snapping the Knight’s body through the air with a horrendously inhuman crack. William cursed as the man’s body disappeared into the sandy brush. That’s why I don’t want tagalongs, Sei.

But William had more pressing concerns as the moment than the fate of a mercenary. Now inside the Oni’s stance, William was in an excellent position to do extensive harm to the creature. Roaring a battle cry, the Revenant thrust his heavy tipped spear into Oni no Kosaku’s underbelly, but his cry was cut short and replaced with a curse as his weapon made little more impact than to leave a heavy scratch on the Oni’s armored underside.

The creature’s hind end slammed down as the Oni dropped, no longer paying attention to the ninja and instead seeking to crush the insect who dared to attack it. Acting purely on instinct, William dropped his spear and dove out from under the descending abdomen. A cloud of dust kicked up as the creature’s hindquarters slammed into the ground and the ground rumbled from the force, but once again William’s superhuman speed saved him.

The dust cloud filled William’s lungs as he pushed himself back to his feet. Coughing, he backed away from the creature and surveyed the battle. The shots from his squad’s heavy crossbows seemed to have little more effect than his spear had, though one of them appeared to have scored a lucky shot and stuck in between the segmented joints of the Oni’s body. It didn’t look to be doing much to slow the creature down, but it was something. He wondered if he could exploit it somehow.

Fire from the other two hunters was equally ineffective as the summoner brought his staff up and deflected them with a shield of dark energy. There was no sign of Talen yet, but the focused fire had allowed the ninja to score a hit on the chain that bound the summoner’s prisoner to him. But even as William noticed this, the summoner jerked his prisoner away and spun his shield of dark energy towards the ninja, letting the magic pulse outwards to drive the shadowy figure back. He then stomped his foot and reached out with his free hand, grasping at the air. Under the ninja, the dirt of Waukasha flowed like a living creature, mimicking the summoner’s grasping features.

“You dare try to take my things, my land from me?” he snarled, a shimmering aura of power enveloping him.

[Hysteria]

Slow easy steps guided Talen around the few buildings on the outside of town. The youth was in no rush, but the men with him were just about to jump out of their skin. The youth’s eyes glanced back at them as he walked. He knew they were going to stuff up a silent approach; they were too loyal to their comrades to stand idle why they fought.

The youth stopped between two buildings and glanced between them. He was just past the Oni, but not behind the summoner yet. Talen lifted his hand and pointed at the summoner and the two men moved down the narrow gap and then rushed to engage the masked man. The youth didn’t move from his spot. His hand lifted in the air and a spiral of darkness formed above it. The darkness solidified into a large black rose that hung in the air with purposeful malice. The flower slowly started to bloom as Talen jogged once again away from the action and further around the creature.

The little shadow warrior edged along the side of a building and glanced around the corner. The two men he had sent to attack the summoner had been pushed back easily but didn’t seem too badly hurt. Talen’s eyes shifted to the ninja and he inwardly sighed.

A ninja with a sense of right and wrong and no sense of concealment. Fantastic.

The cynical thoughts moved through Talen’s mind as he slowly drew his Katana. With once last deep breath and flash of regret, he ran out from the corner towards the summoner.

The salty air rushed past Talen’s ears and stung his eyes slightly, but he focused on the summoner. The youth held himself low to the ground and kept his sword lower. He felt like he was skimming the road quickly, although he knew his little legs weren’t fast enough to reach the summoner before he was detected.

In a flash the masked menace had turned and the wall of dark energy pushed towards the youth. Talen shifted his feet and changed direction so he was running parallel to the summoner. The wall of energy brushed past him and the pale boy grinned.

From between the buildings the shadow flower puffed out of existence with a little cloud of darkness. From within its shadowy folds two palm size petals shot towards the back summoner with razor sharp intent. The attack would have worked on lesser foes, but not this one. With a slight hand movement the summoner moved the wall of energy in front of the projectiles and they bounced harmlessly off.

Talen drove his foot into the ground and changed his direction back towards the summoner. His sword lifted and his grin broke into a full smile as he brought his sword down in a spray of ruby red blood. Talen’s blue eyes looked up at the eyes of the masked man and through the slits he could see them wide with fear. The youth didn’t hesitate and slashed upwards in another spray of blood. The chained prisoner managed a gargled cry as he fell to the ground. His white mask fell off and cracked as it hit the ground amid a growing pool of blood.

Talen didn’t have time to turn as he was hit by the wall of energy from the enraged summoner. The youth was flung through the air and skidded along the ground in a flail of arms and legs and he hit the side of a house with a thud. Slowly Talen’s mind caught up with his body and he focused on the Summoner looking down at the dead prisoner.

“Much quicker than cutting the chain.” Mumbled Talen as he pushed himself back to his feet.

[Nightstalker]

Nightstalker got up only to realize the man he was trying to save was now dead. His only regret was that he had failed his self-assigned mission. He looked to the oni to see if there was any change. Yes, the Oni had begun to slow down! Nightstalker swung for its side, and succeeded in scoring a deep gash in its side bringing a bellow of pain to the creature's maw. The wound Nightstalker had made was visible to all, and infuriated the summoner.

“My pet! I shall not let you harm my servant!” The Summoner screamed.

Nightstalker saw the wave of dark energy coming for him, and dived under the beast between the legs. The wave of energy hit the beast instead and brought more harm to the creature. The ninja barely crawled out to the other side in time to avoid being trampled on. Nightstalker changed his target, keeping the creature between himself and the summoner for protection. Now he began attacking the legs, seeking to hamper the thing's movement even further.