Categories > Games > Final Fantasy 6 > Path of a Shadow
Remnant
Chapter 5
Prologue arc
A/N: Here is the final chapter of the arc. Thank you Shadow's Interceptor for the review, and to my beta reader morbid333. Final fantasy six belongs to square Enix.
XXX
Zozo. A town where all citizens were scum... just like him. Shadow sat alone, away from the rest of the patrons. Only Interceptor was willing to stay near him. This was what he preferred. This was how it was ever since... He quickly raised the glass to his unmasked lips, allowing the bitter, light brown liquid to pour into his mouth and down his throat. Obviously, he needed a few more glasses if his thoughts were still able to turn to then.
The pub was polluted with the shouts and screams of thief's. Cut throats. Rapists. Harlots. Assassins. Everything that personified the epitome of humanity. Whatever forms of 'innocents' that dared walk through the doors were quickly devoured by the darkness that lurked within the compounds of these four decrepit walls. He had come here before. Many would-be assassins thought they had what it took to take his title, and all of them faced the same end. Dead. Their blood pumped from their bodies and onto the floor.
They were all the same as him. No better. No worse. There was always a fight. Never subsiding or ceasing. Whenever someone entered, the chances were that they would be drawn into it. This was the place where the death of a man named Clyde was completed. Where Shadow was born. Again, Shadow raised the glass to his lips, this time finishing the entirety of the glass. For a few seconds now, the drunken roars of the patrons were different. Joyful. Lustful. Mocking. He had little else to do, so he might as well see what the cause of the change was. He pulled his mask back up over his mouth, before turning his head to the commotion. He was ever so slightly surprised at what he saw. He had not paid much mind to this woman, though he had seen her before. It was the girl Leanne's mother.
'Let me go!' the woman demanded. She was answered by thunderous laughter by those harassing her. He should have left her, but the obnoxious laughter was starting to drill into his skull. He hadn't drunk enough to get intoxicated, but enough for his tolerance to drop. If they didn't shut up, someone's throat would be cut. Honestly, he couldn't bother exerting the effort that it took to kill the worthless worms. He stood to his feet and approached the crowd.
'Leave her,' he calmly ordered.
'Or what?' One of the men, clearly the leader, spat as he spun around. His arrogant smirk soon faded at the sight of the assassin, and was soon replaced by a look of horror. He stumbled back, before making as much distance between the two as possible. The rest of the crowd did the same, many mumbled whispers of fear.
'It is you,' The woman stated, drawing the Ninja's attention, 'Please, we need your help. Leanne's been kidnapped! It was him. Akihiko, The leader of those bastards. I will gladly give you everything I own if you return her to me.'
'You already have,' Shadow replied.
'I will make the money! Just return her to me!' She pleaded.
He was silent. Should he bother? Was it truly worth it? Money was money. To hell with it, he might as well. 'Fine. He lives in the building beyond the village, correct?'
'Yes,' she quickly answered.
Without a response, Shadow made for the door, exiting swiftly. 'Come!' as soon as he heard his master, Interceptor jumped to his feet and made for the door.
XXX
Night had completely shrouded the land as Shadow made the trip between Zozo and back to the village. He passed through without so much as glancing at the inhabitants. As he passed through the town's back gate, he began to ascend the rough terrain that rose to be a steep hill. It stretched onwards for several minutes, and as he continued on his path, the harsh wind battered against his masked face. Even though he was masked, Shadow could still make out the pungent and familiar stench. Blood. A lot of it. It brought back memories of all he had killed over the years. What was it? Hundreds? Thousands? He couldn't recall such a trivial fact. Finally, the terrain smoothed out, and the two came to a stop. Shadow looked with little interest at the enormous mansion before him. Interceptor lifted his nose into the air, and let loose a threatening growl.
'Come.' Shadow ordered as the two made their way towards the house. The assassin scaled the wall, and took to the roof. The only possible entrance he could see was a glass panel. He wasted no time in examining it. No guards lay below. He rose his foot and slammed it down on the glass, shattering it before hastily falling back. He waited awhile. Still no guards. He looked back down to his partner and sent him a hand sign, which meant 'wait.' There was something uneasy about this, and as such, he needed to go in alone. The assassin jumped down into the mansion.
As soon as he was in, he took in his surroundings. This looked to be a dining room, and there was only one way out. Shadow approached the large brown doors, and pushed them open. The action soon revealed an enormous hallway. Doors were placed all over the walls, and to the north lay a large staircase, one that spiralled around to the next floor. He ascended them making his way towards the door above. He came to a halt, putting his ear to the door. He heard a strange growling coming from the room. He reached for the door handle, and quietly opened it, peeking into the room as he did. Inside, there lay at least a dozen corpses. Their bodies were ripped apart, and their blood spilled about the room. Most notably though was the beast in the middle. It was the same species as the creature Shadow killed before travelling to the village.
The beast, which was currently feeding on one of the corpses, stopped as it raised its head in the air, obviously noticing the new scent. It spun around, but was soon rewarded by a kunai to the throat.
'You've returned? But for what purpose?' Shadow quickly spun around, and was met by the glance of a dark-haired man.
'You're Akihiko?' Shadow asked.
'Why yes I am,' Was the man's casual response.
'Where's the girl?' he asked.
'Can't you tell? She's over there,' Akihiko answered as he pointed to one of the bodies. Shadow didn't need to see where he was pointing, as the image was still fresh within his mind. One of the corpses had been ripped beyond recognition. This was clearly Leanne. That meant that there was no reason for him to remain. He would leave but first, he would kill this man. There was something unsettling about him. 'Your death will be much more satisfying than that of hers.' Akihiko stated as he pulled free a whip from his side and snapped it in the air. Shadow reached for his blades and began to draw them, 'you shall pay for what you did to master Kefka.'
Shadow suddenly froze. Master Kefka? Now that he examined the man's clothing, he began to recognise the green and white robe that this man wore. Yes, it must be, it was unambiguous, and Shadow was sure that no one else wore the same robe. The members of the cult of Kefka wore the same robe.
'Die you scum!' with a flick of his wrist, the whip hurled at Shadow. The assassin jumped back to safety before fully drawing his blades. He threw one forward with precision and speed, though Akihiko evaded it, but was unaware as Shadow charged forward, readying his weapon to kill. As he brought it down though, an enormous weight pushed him to the floor. Shadow found himself face-to-face with another of the beasts, and its fangs were ready to kill. Shadow acted quickly, delivering a strike from his knee to the beast's gut. It growled in pain as it was forced off the assassin's body. Taking the opportunity, Shadow slid away, before kicking with both feet, sending his prey into the air. He jumped to the air, before pulling loose a kunai and hurling it. The weapon struck it in the throat before it dropped to the ground, whining and gurgling in defeat.
'How dare you harm my beloved pets!' Akihiko exclaimed before letting loose a whistle. Instantly, more of the animals emerged from the depths of the mansion.
Killing the beasts was clearly a fruitless task. For all Shadow knew, there could be hundreds of the putrid creatures in the house. He needed to kill their master first.
'Kill!' Akihiko ordered. One of the monsters lunged forward. However, a dark entity brought it to the ground. It was Interceptor! He had clearly heard the commotion, and now he had the beast by the throat. Blood fell to the ground as his fangs penetrated its jugular. Shadow, though he hid it well, was glad. His partner was more than capable of taking out the creatures, despite his age of seventeen years (1)
Shadow spun his blade around in a ninety-degree angle and charged at Akihiko. He stabbed down at him, but he evaded the blade by jumping back. The black-clad assassin returned his blade to its original position before charging at full speed towards the robed man, who flicked his whip at his attacker, but to no avail. Just before entering striking distance, Shadow took to the air. Quickly, he readied a shuriken, and threw it at Akihiko, however he shifted his body, causing the weapon to strike him in the shoulder of the unarmed appendage. He howled in pain as Shadow landed behind him. The assassin spun around and charged forward, however Akihiko spun around and slapped him away in the face with his whip.
'Did you think I would die like my foolish henchmen? No, I won't go down so easily.'
Shadow jumped back to his feet, before pulling free another shuriken and tossing it at his targets head. He evaded it, though it did manage to cut his cheek.
'Again, I won't-' Akihiko began, but suddenly let out a scream of agony as a dozen shuriken struck his chest. He suddenly dropped his weapon as he fell to his knees. Shadow wasted no time as he rushed behind him, pulled him up roughly by the hair, and positioned his blade at his throat, 'no wait! W-we can make a deal!' Without hesitation, he applied pressure and cut, splitting the throat and jugular in two. Blood spilled profusely from his throat as he fell to the ground. Only one thing remained now. He quickly helped Interceptor finish off all of the remaining beasts. With that done, he waited as the sound of Akihiko's gurgles as the saliva gathered in the back of his throat ceased before making his way back down to the village.
XXX
Leanne's mother's heart nearly stopped as Shadow and Interceptor returned alone. She rushed forward.
'M-my daughter! Where is she?!' She asked. The two pushed past her without even the slightest sound. The silence was enough. She fell to her knees, 'Leanne...No. My Leanne...'
Shadow didn't even so much as give a second glance as they left the village. Why should he, after all, he wouldn't be coming back here again.
XXX
A/N: I am so sorry for the wait. Thanks to playing final fantasy six a week or so back, I was motivated enough to write this. Speaking of ff6, I'm almost finished. I'm playing the GBA version. I need to go to the fanatics tower and get the relic that lets you double-cast. Get the cactur Magicite. Kill the last three dragons. Get crusader. Teach Terra, Cyan, Shadow, and Relm the last pieces of magic. Then I can take on Kefka. I hope this was any good.
1. Just so you don't have to do the math, that's about 119 in dog years
Chapter 5
Prologue arc
A/N: Here is the final chapter of the arc. Thank you Shadow's Interceptor for the review, and to my beta reader morbid333. Final fantasy six belongs to square Enix.
XXX
Zozo. A town where all citizens were scum... just like him. Shadow sat alone, away from the rest of the patrons. Only Interceptor was willing to stay near him. This was what he preferred. This was how it was ever since... He quickly raised the glass to his unmasked lips, allowing the bitter, light brown liquid to pour into his mouth and down his throat. Obviously, he needed a few more glasses if his thoughts were still able to turn to then.
The pub was polluted with the shouts and screams of thief's. Cut throats. Rapists. Harlots. Assassins. Everything that personified the epitome of humanity. Whatever forms of 'innocents' that dared walk through the doors were quickly devoured by the darkness that lurked within the compounds of these four decrepit walls. He had come here before. Many would-be assassins thought they had what it took to take his title, and all of them faced the same end. Dead. Their blood pumped from their bodies and onto the floor.
They were all the same as him. No better. No worse. There was always a fight. Never subsiding or ceasing. Whenever someone entered, the chances were that they would be drawn into it. This was the place where the death of a man named Clyde was completed. Where Shadow was born. Again, Shadow raised the glass to his lips, this time finishing the entirety of the glass. For a few seconds now, the drunken roars of the patrons were different. Joyful. Lustful. Mocking. He had little else to do, so he might as well see what the cause of the change was. He pulled his mask back up over his mouth, before turning his head to the commotion. He was ever so slightly surprised at what he saw. He had not paid much mind to this woman, though he had seen her before. It was the girl Leanne's mother.
'Let me go!' the woman demanded. She was answered by thunderous laughter by those harassing her. He should have left her, but the obnoxious laughter was starting to drill into his skull. He hadn't drunk enough to get intoxicated, but enough for his tolerance to drop. If they didn't shut up, someone's throat would be cut. Honestly, he couldn't bother exerting the effort that it took to kill the worthless worms. He stood to his feet and approached the crowd.
'Leave her,' he calmly ordered.
'Or what?' One of the men, clearly the leader, spat as he spun around. His arrogant smirk soon faded at the sight of the assassin, and was soon replaced by a look of horror. He stumbled back, before making as much distance between the two as possible. The rest of the crowd did the same, many mumbled whispers of fear.
'It is you,' The woman stated, drawing the Ninja's attention, 'Please, we need your help. Leanne's been kidnapped! It was him. Akihiko, The leader of those bastards. I will gladly give you everything I own if you return her to me.'
'You already have,' Shadow replied.
'I will make the money! Just return her to me!' She pleaded.
He was silent. Should he bother? Was it truly worth it? Money was money. To hell with it, he might as well. 'Fine. He lives in the building beyond the village, correct?'
'Yes,' she quickly answered.
Without a response, Shadow made for the door, exiting swiftly. 'Come!' as soon as he heard his master, Interceptor jumped to his feet and made for the door.
XXX
Night had completely shrouded the land as Shadow made the trip between Zozo and back to the village. He passed through without so much as glancing at the inhabitants. As he passed through the town's back gate, he began to ascend the rough terrain that rose to be a steep hill. It stretched onwards for several minutes, and as he continued on his path, the harsh wind battered against his masked face. Even though he was masked, Shadow could still make out the pungent and familiar stench. Blood. A lot of it. It brought back memories of all he had killed over the years. What was it? Hundreds? Thousands? He couldn't recall such a trivial fact. Finally, the terrain smoothed out, and the two came to a stop. Shadow looked with little interest at the enormous mansion before him. Interceptor lifted his nose into the air, and let loose a threatening growl.
'Come.' Shadow ordered as the two made their way towards the house. The assassin scaled the wall, and took to the roof. The only possible entrance he could see was a glass panel. He wasted no time in examining it. No guards lay below. He rose his foot and slammed it down on the glass, shattering it before hastily falling back. He waited awhile. Still no guards. He looked back down to his partner and sent him a hand sign, which meant 'wait.' There was something uneasy about this, and as such, he needed to go in alone. The assassin jumped down into the mansion.
As soon as he was in, he took in his surroundings. This looked to be a dining room, and there was only one way out. Shadow approached the large brown doors, and pushed them open. The action soon revealed an enormous hallway. Doors were placed all over the walls, and to the north lay a large staircase, one that spiralled around to the next floor. He ascended them making his way towards the door above. He came to a halt, putting his ear to the door. He heard a strange growling coming from the room. He reached for the door handle, and quietly opened it, peeking into the room as he did. Inside, there lay at least a dozen corpses. Their bodies were ripped apart, and their blood spilled about the room. Most notably though was the beast in the middle. It was the same species as the creature Shadow killed before travelling to the village.
The beast, which was currently feeding on one of the corpses, stopped as it raised its head in the air, obviously noticing the new scent. It spun around, but was soon rewarded by a kunai to the throat.
'You've returned? But for what purpose?' Shadow quickly spun around, and was met by the glance of a dark-haired man.
'You're Akihiko?' Shadow asked.
'Why yes I am,' Was the man's casual response.
'Where's the girl?' he asked.
'Can't you tell? She's over there,' Akihiko answered as he pointed to one of the bodies. Shadow didn't need to see where he was pointing, as the image was still fresh within his mind. One of the corpses had been ripped beyond recognition. This was clearly Leanne. That meant that there was no reason for him to remain. He would leave but first, he would kill this man. There was something unsettling about him. 'Your death will be much more satisfying than that of hers.' Akihiko stated as he pulled free a whip from his side and snapped it in the air. Shadow reached for his blades and began to draw them, 'you shall pay for what you did to master Kefka.'
Shadow suddenly froze. Master Kefka? Now that he examined the man's clothing, he began to recognise the green and white robe that this man wore. Yes, it must be, it was unambiguous, and Shadow was sure that no one else wore the same robe. The members of the cult of Kefka wore the same robe.
'Die you scum!' with a flick of his wrist, the whip hurled at Shadow. The assassin jumped back to safety before fully drawing his blades. He threw one forward with precision and speed, though Akihiko evaded it, but was unaware as Shadow charged forward, readying his weapon to kill. As he brought it down though, an enormous weight pushed him to the floor. Shadow found himself face-to-face with another of the beasts, and its fangs were ready to kill. Shadow acted quickly, delivering a strike from his knee to the beast's gut. It growled in pain as it was forced off the assassin's body. Taking the opportunity, Shadow slid away, before kicking with both feet, sending his prey into the air. He jumped to the air, before pulling loose a kunai and hurling it. The weapon struck it in the throat before it dropped to the ground, whining and gurgling in defeat.
'How dare you harm my beloved pets!' Akihiko exclaimed before letting loose a whistle. Instantly, more of the animals emerged from the depths of the mansion.
Killing the beasts was clearly a fruitless task. For all Shadow knew, there could be hundreds of the putrid creatures in the house. He needed to kill their master first.
'Kill!' Akihiko ordered. One of the monsters lunged forward. However, a dark entity brought it to the ground. It was Interceptor! He had clearly heard the commotion, and now he had the beast by the throat. Blood fell to the ground as his fangs penetrated its jugular. Shadow, though he hid it well, was glad. His partner was more than capable of taking out the creatures, despite his age of seventeen years (1)
Shadow spun his blade around in a ninety-degree angle and charged at Akihiko. He stabbed down at him, but he evaded the blade by jumping back. The black-clad assassin returned his blade to its original position before charging at full speed towards the robed man, who flicked his whip at his attacker, but to no avail. Just before entering striking distance, Shadow took to the air. Quickly, he readied a shuriken, and threw it at Akihiko, however he shifted his body, causing the weapon to strike him in the shoulder of the unarmed appendage. He howled in pain as Shadow landed behind him. The assassin spun around and charged forward, however Akihiko spun around and slapped him away in the face with his whip.
'Did you think I would die like my foolish henchmen? No, I won't go down so easily.'
Shadow jumped back to his feet, before pulling free another shuriken and tossing it at his targets head. He evaded it, though it did manage to cut his cheek.
'Again, I won't-' Akihiko began, but suddenly let out a scream of agony as a dozen shuriken struck his chest. He suddenly dropped his weapon as he fell to his knees. Shadow wasted no time as he rushed behind him, pulled him up roughly by the hair, and positioned his blade at his throat, 'no wait! W-we can make a deal!' Without hesitation, he applied pressure and cut, splitting the throat and jugular in two. Blood spilled profusely from his throat as he fell to the ground. Only one thing remained now. He quickly helped Interceptor finish off all of the remaining beasts. With that done, he waited as the sound of Akihiko's gurgles as the saliva gathered in the back of his throat ceased before making his way back down to the village.
XXX
Leanne's mother's heart nearly stopped as Shadow and Interceptor returned alone. She rushed forward.
'M-my daughter! Where is she?!' She asked. The two pushed past her without even the slightest sound. The silence was enough. She fell to her knees, 'Leanne...No. My Leanne...'
Shadow didn't even so much as give a second glance as they left the village. Why should he, after all, he wouldn't be coming back here again.
XXX
A/N: I am so sorry for the wait. Thanks to playing final fantasy six a week or so back, I was motivated enough to write this. Speaking of ff6, I'm almost finished. I'm playing the GBA version. I need to go to the fanatics tower and get the relic that lets you double-cast. Get the cactur Magicite. Kill the last three dragons. Get crusader. Teach Terra, Cyan, Shadow, and Relm the last pieces of magic. Then I can take on Kefka. I hope this was any good.
1. Just so you don't have to do the math, that's about 119 in dog years
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