Fire and Water | A Blue Eye Samurai Story

Chapter 15

With Ryuu's back turned to her, Mizu can clearly tell that Ryuu is doused in blood. Her heart begins to race as she ignores the men that push against the door she is currently holding up.

Gods, please don't be his. He has to be okay. Surely that's not his blood, it can't be. As Mizu worries about Ryuu's well-being, she doesn't even realize that the men behind the door are successfully pushing her backwards. Mizu whips her attention towards the door that's falling on top of her and her feet stagger in efforts to maintain the door's angle. No no no! Her feet slide on the slippery ground and in one great push, the men send the door flying forward and Mizu is found falling backwards towards the ground.

The door lands directly on top of her with great force and the air is quickly stripped from her lungs. Mizu gasps for air as the weight of the door changes and the men from the brothel start to step on it. Her face is pinned to the side and the door begins crushing her skull against the blood-stained ground. She cries out as she struggles with the crushing weight of the massive wooden door. Mizu desperately tries to force the door upwards but fails as multiple feet press against the top of it.

Ryuu's attention snaps over to the sound of Mizu struggling under the weight of the door, and he can just barely see about 15 men crowding around the noise. Ryuu's pupils dilate just slightly and he immediately calculates a path through the 30 men that stand in his way.

Ryuu's eyes dart to each of the men that crowd his view and he rolls his shoulders back. He quickly exhales and then makes an insanely quick dash towards them. Many of the men's eyes fly wide at the sudden reaction, and they start to funnel towards one another. As the men begin grouping towards each other in attempts to put a stop to Ryuu, he places his right sword in his left hand with the other and reaches back to grab the extension strapped to his waist. He pulls down and it unhooks from his flame-print belt. He brings it to the front of his body and he forcefully shoves it onto the end of his white-diamond sword. Ryuu grabs the other sword with his free hand and twists the extension piece to lock it into place with a soft click.

With his weighted and unweighted swords, Ryuu begins hacking through multiple men that crowd and dive towards him. Ryuu flips the weighted sword around so that the extension piece is aimed towards the sky and he sends it flying straight into a man's nose, breaking it on forceful impact. Blood spews from his newly shattered nose and he flies backwards into another man's claws. The man looks as shocked as one can be as hot crimson drips from his own claws. The other man drops to the ground dead, and with his left hand, Ryuu throws his arm forward and slices just barely through his throat. Red sprays from his neck and he doubles backwards as he clutches his throat.

In Ryuu's other hand, he takes his red-diamond blade and lobs off another enemy's head with a quick flick of the wrist. His head drops to the ground and rolls away as two more men charge forward. Ryuu is quickly forced to back up as they both lunge at him with 8 claws and he is now farther from Mizu. He hears Mizu grunt and struggle from afar and groans at the fact that he has to keep backing away. The group forms a tight circle around him and he considers his next move immediately.

The pain in the side of her cheek grows as Mizu tries to wiggle out from under the heavy door. The weight seems to grow more as she realizes that some men have started to pile on top of the door, not just step on it. Something shifts in Mizu's mind and all she feels is anger and hate.

"You are a monster." Mizu's pupils constrict at the sound of her ex-husband's words that rattle through her brain. He called you a monster. He ran and sold your horse. They... Mizu starts to remember how she watched her mother stand by to smoke opium inside their home. They turned you in for money. She gave you up and sold you for drugs. Mizu makes an effort to slide further out from under the door. He sold your horse and turned you in for bounty money. Mizu's breathing starts to grow erratic as the rage boils on. Those men showed up and he was supposed to protect you! You loved him and he turned his back on you. They feared you! Tears start to form in Mizu's eyes as the negative thoughts roll on and on. This was all your fault! THEY BETRAYED YOU! Mizu screams out as the rage hits its max. YOU ARE UNLOVABLE AND YOU ARE NOTHING BUT A DEMON! The thoughts scream through her mind as she remembers the 6 men who showed up to kill her. Show them exactly the monster you are...