Haru stood not sure if the mission at hand was really that important to him. He thought about the pack that he was leaving behind, about all the ones that he would miss. On the other hand he realized that he wanted to do it all for them. He needed to get stronger, and he needed to do it fast, and what faster way than going into unknown lands that could, or better yet should help him.
Standing in front of the portal Haru closed his eyes and gripped his sword. His fingers started to go white from the pressure, but that was one of his unwanted ticks. When he was afraid he would hold on to Eisenmeteor like it was a person and not an object. He had that ever since he can remember anything, but like most times he is not aware of it concisely.
Opening his eyes slowly he swallowed him spit, wanting to ease the teleportation. It was not much, but Haru was sure that even such small things could disrupt something, and he could end up as a fly. He stepped into the portal and yanked his sword forward. What ever was on the other side he wanted to have his trusty weapon to cut it down.
Smell of rust and iron filled the air. It smelled like a forge, just without the heat. The smell was pleasant, and he remembered Quill and his lectures. He was going to miss him, but this was more important than feelings of happiness and longing, so he proceeded to look around. The land here was very cold, snow was falling all the time and it was obscuring all the surrounding. He was not dressed for this weather, but it did not bother him much, as he thought about his years on the streets.
"If I did not die than from cold, I will not die now. I still have my trusty blade. Nothing can stop us."
Haru's sword was still by his side, but there were traces of what seemed like ice forming on the blade, it was only going to get harder, and he knew it. So he started walking, forward as he had no clear goal to his journey and for that reason it did not matter which way he went. Walking through the snow it took him several hours to come to the first interesting thing. A giant pillar of black iron stood surrounded by snow, defying all reason. There was nothing around it. It stood alone, like a colossal piece of iron ore, stabbed into the ground by some titan. It towered over 100 meters, ripping the clouds, that could barely be seen.
Haru looked around but nothing was near, he was not even sure if there were animals, still he approached it, sword ready if need be.
Every step felt like a new segment of an everlasting journey. As he was getting near to the pillar and his feet were splitting the snow, they became heavier. The steps were slower, and Haru noticed that the closer he was to the pillar the greater the effect became. He could feel there was some kind of magic effect involved, but he was not sure how and why. Still he persisted. The snow was clinging to his feet like a small child clinging to its mother's skirt, quickly and without intention of releasing. The heaviness was not only physical, which Haru realized late. It penetrated into the mind and the soul grabbing on to the heart like a chain and pulling out all the bad feelings. The thoughts of abandoned guild members started to resurface. Haru's commitment to training started to become pushed aside in his mind. He stopped moving, and stood in place, still while the wind was sticking layers of snow on to him.
"I am all alone again. In a different dimension."
It had seemed like his will to live was also getting weight down.
"I will freeze, and even if I don't there is nothing to eat."
His knees got weaker and started to buckle, and instinctively he used his sword as a crutch. As much as his mind was sinking his body did not. It was a wake-up call, like a fool needs a slap to the face, Haru needed to see his sword. The one that was always with him, the thing that was a part of his body as much as his hand. Seeing it changed Haru's thoughts, all the self-pity that was pushing him down was now being pushed out. It was like he saw his sword for the first time, with a par of fresh eyes. It felt like a new sword, a new being in his life. Straightening his back he lifted the Eisenmeteor in front of his face and studied its grooves and shine. The ice that had formed on the blade did not look a pure ice, it was like a new sheen on the sword. He stared at the sword with his reflection staring back at him.
"What will I do without you?" Haru smiled and made funny faces, forgetting the somberness that he felt a second ago.
Haru saw that there was no snow stuck to the blade, even though it was in it.
He closed his eyes, placed the sword on his forehead and turned his back on the gigantic piece of iron. He felt that his current goal was to come to the pillar but that he, at his current state, was not powerful enough to do that. He saw the build up of snow and the increase in weight from it as a way to train his body. Haru knew that he wouldn't die from hunger and thirst as he had come here prepared for it.
Next couple of hours Haru spent in the same spot, swinging his sword slowly. He wanted to feel every muscle movement that was involved in the sword swing. His triceps pushing the sword away, his shoulder holding it at the right height, the way his thumb moved slightly when he was doing a down stroke. Every movement needed to be accounted for. It was an exercise he was trying to replicate, since the day he understood what he saw a street martial artist do. It always looked strange seeing it from the outside. The man always looked like he was standing still, not moving the whole day, but Haru stared for hours at the time, and he remembered that the man started his performance with his guard up and fists in front of his face and at the end of the day his fist would be extended fully in front. A single punch that lasted several hours. It was not made to hit anyone, but to show what dedication and hard work could look like.
The mount of snow that surrounded the pillar, and divided Haru and the titan iron ore, was a formidable obstacle and the build up of snow on his feet was not making the path in front an easy one. Haru's body had become accustomed to the frigid air and the heavy deep snow, but even so he did not feel fully confident in his ability to reach it. Pondering possible solutions he knew that going straight ahead was the only real path he could take. Haru used his sword to remove some of the snow that was stuck to him, and release himself from the magic that was weighting him down. He thought that his sword was a good enough tool to solve the snow problem, but after a single step like it was attached by a magnet the snow would rush back to the place from which it was removed. Haru tried removing it many times but the snow never wavered in its action to return to Haru's legs. It became like a game to Haru, that occupied his mind and helped him not lose his focus.
The magic that could be felt from the pillar was unlike any Haru had felt before. The closer his was to it the stronger the effect. The wind that blew had increased in strength and the mental pressure was penetrating deeper, still Haru was managing to keep his thoughts together and not let it all distress him. Always keeping his eye on his Eisenmeteor, Haru had created a kind of a ritual. Every time he would suspect that his mind would wander to places of pain, he would lift his sword in front of his face, seeing his own reflection and using the edge of it to hit himself. It was painful, but he knew it hurt less than not completing his mission and dying in this strange land. This had happened multiple times and the closer he was the stronger he needed to remind himself. Haru's fingers were completely white, almost without blood, from the force he was excluding on the sword handle. Breathing the air, felt like breathing rust and pieces of sharp iron, cutting the nostrils. Air even had a taste of the oxidized iron. The pillar became totally obscured by the thick fog and the only way Haru knew that he was going in the right direction was the fact that everything was becoming worse with every step, giving him even more confidence. Like a mad man he was walking into his own doom and suffering, with a smile.
The wind's power increased even more and like a tornado of razors it cut Haru's skin. There was no blood dripping from the wounds only a stinging feeling like a thousand of paper cuts at the same time. Haru had a need to scratch his skin, but his will to not release his grip on the Eisenmeteor was stronger. He pushed though it all slowly and at the moment when he could not see the tip of his sword he extended his arm.
Finally, he was able to touch the pillar and a wave of warmth started to penetrate his body. All the wounds, all the increase in weight, all the coldness disappeared in a moment. Pillar's magic started to flow inside his body. Unknown to Haru, his pupils changed shape. The once circular oval black dots in purple, were now in a shape of a letter omega. Haru could now see through the fog and the snow. The smell of rust intensified and for the first time since he came to this place, Haru had a feeling of peace. Looking at the falling snow brought a realization that the snow was not really made out of cold water, but was instead really flakes of iron floating in the air. He could now see above the clouds, and he found out the source of them. Hundreds of gigantic rusty, broken swords, all in different stages of decay, floated in the air, imposing on those underneath them. Haru's eyes widened and his hands started to shake, and the feeling of peace disappeared again.
"If any of them fell. They could destroy everything in a huge radius."
The iron world was much stranger than Haru could have imagined. He stared at the floating swords. No two swords were alike, not only in the level of destruction but even in the way they looked. The one that was closest to Haru was mainly silver and white in color. This sword had a long blade and its grip had a curving, a long segment that curved from the left side to the blade on the right side. The sword had colorful orbs as ornaments. The second sword Haru could see was gold in color with a purple orb decorating the hilt. The sword had a large blade with intricate patterns decorating it and a thin grip. The sword had a decorated cross guard which protected the side of the grip. Around it were red and blue swords, both with irregular blade shapes and orbs of corresponding colors, with V shaped cross guards. And next to them was a claw-like blade of dark stone, and next to it a sword with words engraved into the blade. As much as he was fearful he was very intrigued by all of them.
"Finally!" a voice rumbled from inside the pillar and Haru at the same time.
The warmth, in Haru, grew and changed. Like when water inside boiling milk tries to become steam and escape but gets stuck to the fat, so had the warmth become stuck to Haru. Trying to get out, the magic boiled, and being on a verge of boiling over, Haru repeated his ritual. Lifting his sword he smashed it on to his forehead, this time making it bleed. The heat returned to warmth, and Haru stood waiting for the second wave.
"You are a wild one." the voice again rumbled.
"Hahaha. You passed the first test, and then you disrupted the second one. So in a way you passed that one too."
Haru was still not sure if the heat would change.
"Tests? Who are you?" Haru asked the unknown voice, gritting his teeth.
"I could tell you, but what kind of master gives in to every desire of their student."
"What master? What student?"
"I am your master now. You have endured my punishment you have calmed down my power, weirdly, but it is calm now. And, so I will take you as my student."
The voice started to sound much crisper to Haru. He was not sure what to think, as the words of the voice did make sense, and he would have loved to learn, but he was not sure of the way all that had happened.
"What if I say no? Haru said with confidence in his voice and a smirk on his face.
"Well, you would die. As it is my power that is giving you heat and vision. In this land of iron, it is not only us that live, there are those like you that came from the outside to take our power. I will be the last one to die. I will live though you. Wild one. For now just know that I will not hurt you."
Haru was still surprised. It had only been a few days since he came here, and with every moment here his intrigue grew larger. The iron snow, the floating swords, the disembodied voice all was too strange for Haru, still he came to this strange world to train and the student master relationship sounded beneficial to him, if for nothing else but to help him survive, and return home to his guild.
Haru took the rust smelling air, filled his lungs with it and nodded his head.
"I accept you as my master. But I need more explanation. As this world is too strange for me."
The voice rumbled and the vibration of it all shook Haru from the inside.
"Good. You will understand everything in time. For now know this. My tests were made to give you the taste of this world. There are those that could kill you. And those that would like you as their slave. You have potential. And an interesting weapon."
WC:2532
Standing in front of the portal Haru closed his eyes and gripped his sword. His fingers started to go white from the pressure, but that was one of his unwanted ticks. When he was afraid he would hold on to Eisenmeteor like it was a person and not an object. He had that ever since he can remember anything, but like most times he is not aware of it concisely.
Opening his eyes slowly he swallowed him spit, wanting to ease the teleportation. It was not much, but Haru was sure that even such small things could disrupt something, and he could end up as a fly. He stepped into the portal and yanked his sword forward. What ever was on the other side he wanted to have his trusty weapon to cut it down.
Smell of rust and iron filled the air. It smelled like a forge, just without the heat. The smell was pleasant, and he remembered Quill and his lectures. He was going to miss him, but this was more important than feelings of happiness and longing, so he proceeded to look around. The land here was very cold, snow was falling all the time and it was obscuring all the surrounding. He was not dressed for this weather, but it did not bother him much, as he thought about his years on the streets.
"If I did not die than from cold, I will not die now. I still have my trusty blade. Nothing can stop us."
Haru's sword was still by his side, but there were traces of what seemed like ice forming on the blade, it was only going to get harder, and he knew it. So he started walking, forward as he had no clear goal to his journey and for that reason it did not matter which way he went. Walking through the snow it took him several hours to come to the first interesting thing. A giant pillar of black iron stood surrounded by snow, defying all reason. There was nothing around it. It stood alone, like a colossal piece of iron ore, stabbed into the ground by some titan. It towered over 100 meters, ripping the clouds, that could barely be seen.
Haru looked around but nothing was near, he was not even sure if there were animals, still he approached it, sword ready if need be.
Every step felt like a new segment of an everlasting journey. As he was getting near to the pillar and his feet were splitting the snow, they became heavier. The steps were slower, and Haru noticed that the closer he was to the pillar the greater the effect became. He could feel there was some kind of magic effect involved, but he was not sure how and why. Still he persisted. The snow was clinging to his feet like a small child clinging to its mother's skirt, quickly and without intention of releasing. The heaviness was not only physical, which Haru realized late. It penetrated into the mind and the soul grabbing on to the heart like a chain and pulling out all the bad feelings. The thoughts of abandoned guild members started to resurface. Haru's commitment to training started to become pushed aside in his mind. He stopped moving, and stood in place, still while the wind was sticking layers of snow on to him.
"I am all alone again. In a different dimension."
It had seemed like his will to live was also getting weight down.
"I will freeze, and even if I don't there is nothing to eat."
His knees got weaker and started to buckle, and instinctively he used his sword as a crutch. As much as his mind was sinking his body did not. It was a wake-up call, like a fool needs a slap to the face, Haru needed to see his sword. The one that was always with him, the thing that was a part of his body as much as his hand. Seeing it changed Haru's thoughts, all the self-pity that was pushing him down was now being pushed out. It was like he saw his sword for the first time, with a par of fresh eyes. It felt like a new sword, a new being in his life. Straightening his back he lifted the Eisenmeteor in front of his face and studied its grooves and shine. The ice that had formed on the blade did not look a pure ice, it was like a new sheen on the sword. He stared at the sword with his reflection staring back at him.
"What will I do without you?" Haru smiled and made funny faces, forgetting the somberness that he felt a second ago.
Haru saw that there was no snow stuck to the blade, even though it was in it.
He closed his eyes, placed the sword on his forehead and turned his back on the gigantic piece of iron. He felt that his current goal was to come to the pillar but that he, at his current state, was not powerful enough to do that. He saw the build up of snow and the increase in weight from it as a way to train his body. Haru knew that he wouldn't die from hunger and thirst as he had come here prepared for it.
Next couple of hours Haru spent in the same spot, swinging his sword slowly. He wanted to feel every muscle movement that was involved in the sword swing. His triceps pushing the sword away, his shoulder holding it at the right height, the way his thumb moved slightly when he was doing a down stroke. Every movement needed to be accounted for. It was an exercise he was trying to replicate, since the day he understood what he saw a street martial artist do. It always looked strange seeing it from the outside. The man always looked like he was standing still, not moving the whole day, but Haru stared for hours at the time, and he remembered that the man started his performance with his guard up and fists in front of his face and at the end of the day his fist would be extended fully in front. A single punch that lasted several hours. It was not made to hit anyone, but to show what dedication and hard work could look like.
The mount of snow that surrounded the pillar, and divided Haru and the titan iron ore, was a formidable obstacle and the build up of snow on his feet was not making the path in front an easy one. Haru's body had become accustomed to the frigid air and the heavy deep snow, but even so he did not feel fully confident in his ability to reach it. Pondering possible solutions he knew that going straight ahead was the only real path he could take. Haru used his sword to remove some of the snow that was stuck to him, and release himself from the magic that was weighting him down. He thought that his sword was a good enough tool to solve the snow problem, but after a single step like it was attached by a magnet the snow would rush back to the place from which it was removed. Haru tried removing it many times but the snow never wavered in its action to return to Haru's legs. It became like a game to Haru, that occupied his mind and helped him not lose his focus.
The magic that could be felt from the pillar was unlike any Haru had felt before. The closer his was to it the stronger the effect. The wind that blew had increased in strength and the mental pressure was penetrating deeper, still Haru was managing to keep his thoughts together and not let it all distress him. Always keeping his eye on his Eisenmeteor, Haru had created a kind of a ritual. Every time he would suspect that his mind would wander to places of pain, he would lift his sword in front of his face, seeing his own reflection and using the edge of it to hit himself. It was painful, but he knew it hurt less than not completing his mission and dying in this strange land. This had happened multiple times and the closer he was the stronger he needed to remind himself. Haru's fingers were completely white, almost without blood, from the force he was excluding on the sword handle. Breathing the air, felt like breathing rust and pieces of sharp iron, cutting the nostrils. Air even had a taste of the oxidized iron. The pillar became totally obscured by the thick fog and the only way Haru knew that he was going in the right direction was the fact that everything was becoming worse with every step, giving him even more confidence. Like a mad man he was walking into his own doom and suffering, with a smile.
The wind's power increased even more and like a tornado of razors it cut Haru's skin. There was no blood dripping from the wounds only a stinging feeling like a thousand of paper cuts at the same time. Haru had a need to scratch his skin, but his will to not release his grip on the Eisenmeteor was stronger. He pushed though it all slowly and at the moment when he could not see the tip of his sword he extended his arm.
Finally, he was able to touch the pillar and a wave of warmth started to penetrate his body. All the wounds, all the increase in weight, all the coldness disappeared in a moment. Pillar's magic started to flow inside his body. Unknown to Haru, his pupils changed shape. The once circular oval black dots in purple, were now in a shape of a letter omega. Haru could now see through the fog and the snow. The smell of rust intensified and for the first time since he came to this place, Haru had a feeling of peace. Looking at the falling snow brought a realization that the snow was not really made out of cold water, but was instead really flakes of iron floating in the air. He could now see above the clouds, and he found out the source of them. Hundreds of gigantic rusty, broken swords, all in different stages of decay, floated in the air, imposing on those underneath them. Haru's eyes widened and his hands started to shake, and the feeling of peace disappeared again.
"If any of them fell. They could destroy everything in a huge radius."
The iron world was much stranger than Haru could have imagined. He stared at the floating swords. No two swords were alike, not only in the level of destruction but even in the way they looked. The one that was closest to Haru was mainly silver and white in color. This sword had a long blade and its grip had a curving, a long segment that curved from the left side to the blade on the right side. The sword had colorful orbs as ornaments. The second sword Haru could see was gold in color with a purple orb decorating the hilt. The sword had a large blade with intricate patterns decorating it and a thin grip. The sword had a decorated cross guard which protected the side of the grip. Around it were red and blue swords, both with irregular blade shapes and orbs of corresponding colors, with V shaped cross guards. And next to them was a claw-like blade of dark stone, and next to it a sword with words engraved into the blade. As much as he was fearful he was very intrigued by all of them.
"Finally!" a voice rumbled from inside the pillar and Haru at the same time.
The warmth, in Haru, grew and changed. Like when water inside boiling milk tries to become steam and escape but gets stuck to the fat, so had the warmth become stuck to Haru. Trying to get out, the magic boiled, and being on a verge of boiling over, Haru repeated his ritual. Lifting his sword he smashed it on to his forehead, this time making it bleed. The heat returned to warmth, and Haru stood waiting for the second wave.
"You are a wild one." the voice again rumbled.
"Hahaha. You passed the first test, and then you disrupted the second one. So in a way you passed that one too."
Haru was still not sure if the heat would change.
"Tests? Who are you?" Haru asked the unknown voice, gritting his teeth.
"I could tell you, but what kind of master gives in to every desire of their student."
"What master? What student?"
"I am your master now. You have endured my punishment you have calmed down my power, weirdly, but it is calm now. And, so I will take you as my student."
The voice started to sound much crisper to Haru. He was not sure what to think, as the words of the voice did make sense, and he would have loved to learn, but he was not sure of the way all that had happened.
"What if I say no? Haru said with confidence in his voice and a smirk on his face.
"Well, you would die. As it is my power that is giving you heat and vision. In this land of iron, it is not only us that live, there are those like you that came from the outside to take our power. I will be the last one to die. I will live though you. Wild one. For now just know that I will not hurt you."
Haru was still surprised. It had only been a few days since he came here, and with every moment here his intrigue grew larger. The iron snow, the floating swords, the disembodied voice all was too strange for Haru, still he came to this strange world to train and the student master relationship sounded beneficial to him, if for nothing else but to help him survive, and return home to his guild.
Haru took the rust smelling air, filled his lungs with it and nodded his head.
"I accept you as my master. But I need more explanation. As this world is too strange for me."
The voice rumbled and the vibration of it all shook Haru from the inside.
"Good. You will understand everything in time. For now know this. My tests were made to give you the taste of this world. There are those that could kill you. And those that would like you as their slave. You have potential. And an interesting weapon."
WC:2532
