Vast anthology 1: Tengu's Flight

Chapter 1: Once again

Welcome to the world of Vast. A place filled with joy and bliss, but also despair and trauma. Every corner holds life and story, do not avert your eyes...

The Tengu's Flight 

Chapter 1: Once Again

Amidst the concrete rubble of his destroyed home, sat a young teenage boy. His jet-black hair settled across his protruding nose, sharp chin and feathered eyelashes, framed along his wandering emotions. He is part of the tengu species, a poignant blend between humans and avians. And at this very moment, he is gripping the straps of his backpack, afraid to make a sound.

As the tengus were slaughtered one by one, screams of agony and anguish filled the valley. The once lovely houses now starkly demolished into ruin and dust. Memories of peace completely vandalised into nothing.

Dusk descended, and the sun settled comfortably atop the corpses' shadows. What once were familiar faces now reduced to nothing but blood. A few horned figures stood atop the bodies and jested upon this bleak atmosphere. These people were part of the oni species, their red horns as sharp as a canine tooth.

Those onis were finely dressed, no doubt, they were yakuza. A few Oni lackeys were holding down an old Tengu man, forcing him to be an audience to this macabre tableau. Two Onis took turns decapitating the children, their flashy suits dressed to kill. The vile sounds of the screams could be heard drowning across the empty town.

The old Tengu yelled in complete desperation, scornful tears colour his eyes

"Please, I beg, the land is yours, we'll move out!"

The one-horned oni grinned and grabbed him by the scarce white hair he has, fiddling him around like a toy. "A little too late, promises can't be broken that easily, my friend."

The old tengu man closed his eyes, regretting everything that had led up to this moment. Is his legacy going to be remembered, will there even be anyone who remembers him. These thoughts surfaced as he stared reluctantly at the execution in front of him. The three-horned oni readied his curved sword, aiming directly at a small sobbing young girl. He swung his blade, and a head rolled, the loud cries seemingly end. The young boy gripped his bag tighter.

The old tengu broke down crying, and he screamed

"THE TENGUS' WINGS WILL FLY ONCE AG...

As the old man was finishing his cry, the three-horned swung his blade and ended his sorrowful existence. Uncomfortable silence fell upon the summer winds. Desperation and chaos stirred up the valley, in a short day, an entire mountain village ceased to exist.

The three-horned oni scoffed "Flightless freak." while caressing his red velvet horns.

As the rampage settled, the young teenage boy remained behind the rubble, he couldn't help but cry and sob silently. Tear droplets rippled down his skin, as he ruffled and tugged the feathers in his hair. His eyes had seen more blood than a sky full of stars. He knew that from now onward, his legacy is set, a dark uncertain path forward.

The young teenage boy gripped tightly on his bag, as the sound of extinction echoed deep into his mind.

He gripped tighter and tighter.

****

10 years later, the young boy is now an adult, a rugged looking man with broad shoulders, pierced ear pieces on both sides, green dyed spiky hair reaching his shoulders. He wears a black oversized trench coat, white buttons dotted on his shoulder, red linings on his zippers. He dons a red long nosed Mask, obscuring his face from prying eyes. In an ironic twist of fate, he has embraced the darkness that consumed his world, he is now a yakuza.