Not That Bad

Prologue

"Kai"

"Kai wake up" I groan and rub my eyes, glancing at the figure.

"Kai come on, I want to show you something!" Ziek shakes me. I sit up and stare at him.

"Come on sleepy head before its too late" Ziek takes my arm and leads me down the hall. My feet drag slightly as he pulls me.

I begin to mumble. "Where are we going Ziek?"

He picks me up and carries me down the stairs. "You'll see"I look around at our dimly lit home. Its still dark outside. He opens a set of doors and puts me down. He flicks on the light, i squeeze my eyes shut at the sudden brightness. As i reopen them i notice we're in the armory.

"Ziek we cant be in here. Dad will get angry!" I whisper yell to him. Ziek puts on a helmet and grabs a sword.

"Dad sent me on my first mission yesterday." He begins swinging around the sword. I take a step back.

"Was it fun?" I tilt my head slightly. He walks over to me. "It was super fun! Look, I even cut someone!" he shows me his sword. I stare at the dried blood on the tip of the sword.

"Are you up for a quick melee lesson from your big bro?" He asks with a beaming smile. A small smile grows on my face as i nod. Ziek grabs a chest plate and straps it on me. I stumble backwards slightly from the weight.

"Here lets go outside" he puts his hand on my back and we head out to the front yard.

"Ziek are we gonna get in trouble?" He hands me a wooden rod, grabbing one for himself. "No, how will dad know? Besides its not like im not allowed to teach you stuff i learn"

I glance at the house before looking back towards him. He lifts my hands, positioning the rod as if it were a sword.

He raises his rod, "first things first, never take your eyes of your opponent" I nod and repeat his words back to him.

"Second," he smacks the rod out of my hands, "Good grip. Always. Now pick it up" I grab the rod from the floor and raise it again.

"Third step..." I hear rapid footsteps in the distance, i turn and stare at where the sound came from. Ziek knocks my rod and hits the chest plate. He chuckles, "Come on focus-"

I grab the rod, keeping my eyes locked in the direction, "I think we should go back inside ziek"

"Dont wuss out on me, we're fine" he hits my arm gently, making me glance back towards him.

His face turns serious for a moment as he looks past me. I hear the rapid footsteps once again this time louder. I turn my head to look...

Within a blink Ziek shoves me behind him.

I fall and land on my arm, turning around instantly, hearing snarling.

There's a huge wolf on top of Ziek, biting at the wooden rod. I scream at the top of my lungs. "GO INSIDE-" Ziek struggles against the wolf twice his size.

I run to the front door and hear the rod snap. I open the door and turn around, hearing Ziek yell. I get yanked into the house, the door slamming. Mom grabs me and checks my body. "Are you alright?!" She embraces me in a tight hug.

My mind races as i stare at the door, "Im...Im fine...Ziek.."

I jump seeing blood splash onto the window. Mom covers my eyes. I hear dads muffled scream, I freeze. Mom holds me tighter.

After what feels like an eternity i hear the door open. I slide down moms hand. Dad walks through the door. His eyes wide and his clothes covered in blood. As he takes another step i see the wolf's mangled face in the grass, zieks bracelet shining from its broken jaw. My body becomes stiff, my eyes welling with tears.

Dad closes the door and walks past mom and I.

Mom carries me upstairs to my room, setting me on my bed. I stare at her with my tear stained eyes. She kisses my forehead shakily and gives me a small smile. I can tell she's being strong for my sake.

After she leaves I look out of my window. I see the wolf's guts all over our green, now red grass.

I can hear mom and dad yelling in the room over. Mom is sobbing. I sit back down on my bed feeling a bit empty.

My door swings open, causing me to jump. Dad begins to scream, "WHY THE HELL WERE YOU GUYS OUTSIDE?! I TOLD YOU BOTH TO NEVER GO OUTSIDE PAST DARK!"

I flinch at his yelling, scooting away slightly. I mumble quietly, "I...It was his idea"

"YOU KNOW BETTER!-"

Mom hits dads arm and raises her voice. "Do not blame him!"

Dad glares and points at me, "HE WAS SIXTEEN KAIZEN. SIXTEEN AND DEAD BECAUSE YOU GUYS WANTED TO BE IDIOTS!"

My eyes refill with tears, "I-"

Mom stands in front of dad, blocking me from his view. "HES TEN. YOU WILL NOT SIT HERE AND PUT THE BLAME ON OUR TEN YEAR OLD SON BECAUSE WE FAILED TO PROTECT ZIEK." She screams.

A tear rolls down my cheek. I watch dads shoulders slump.

From that moment on...I knew everything would change.