Hikaru (UNFINISHED & CRINGEY)

Chapter 1

   I woke up to the sound of birds chirping outside of my window. As I would any normal day, I combed my light-coloured, shoulder-length hair and changed my clothes, then grabbed my scabbard and bag, and made my way out of my wooden apartment. When I walked out the door, the sun shone brightly. After my eyes adjusted, I walked down the gravel path in front of the building, towards the village's market.
As I was buying fruit from one of the stands, I heard a familiar voice call my name. "Hey, Hikaru!" I turned to face the direction of the voice. It was one of the merchants selling drinks. He thinks he and I are friends, but his enthusiasm just annoys me.
"Good morning!" He waved to me. "Are you going to Mose's house to train your sword skills today?" I made myself go to him to be polite.
"Yes, I am," I told him. I hope I don't have to talk to him for long for him to get a hint.
"Why don't you have a lemonade?" He offered as he looked through his cooler.
I rolled my eyes. I knew this was going to take a long time, so I decided to decline his offer.
"No thanks, I already have a Cola with me," I said, showing him the can of soda from my bag.
"Oh, okay," he smiles at me. "So, why do you still need to train? You're the best swordsman in this whole village."
"I know I am, but I feel I can still improve," I try to act interested, but I think he can see through my act and tell that I don't care. "I should be going now,"
I start walking toward the end of the village, crossing a bridge over a river to the southern side. I'm sure he waved to me, but I probably turned before I could see. The small village I live in, called Sihna, is surrounded by mountains because the village is in the mountain region of the country of Sceininia. Our ancestors founded the village in the mountains decades ago to hide something, but no one alive now knows what it was. ...Or they don't trust me.
I walked to the tunnel connecting the village to the outside. Mostly merchants and their carriages go through here to deliver produce from our farms to other villages and to the Citadel. The cave was pretty darn dark, so I turned on a light to make the path brighter.
After walking for about three minutes, I came to the end of the tunnel. Outside the tunnel was a forest, and Thanmos' house beside the beginning of the forest.
He opened the door of his small house after I knocked. He was about a foot taller than me and had brown hair with a yellow highlight in the front.
"Oh, Hikaru!" he said. I wonder why everyone addresses me like that. "I didn't expect you to be here."
"Was it not a practice day?" I ask him, confused at his ignorance. Today was Tuesday, one of the days I train with him.
   "Today is Friday," Thanmos said, clearly unamused. "Even if today were Tuesday, you're late by 4 hours."
   Darn it! No wonder the market was open. I hate being wrong...
   "Punctuality clearly isn't your best quality," Thanmos smiled at me.
   "Whatever," I said, rolling my eyes.
                      ***
   "Hiyah!" I slashed my longsword  at the practice dummy Mose set up, followed by a quick kick, making it topple over. Serves it right. I never liked it. It's beady little eyes always creeped me out. It's like it's staring into my soul...
   "You're not hitting hard enough," Mose criticized.
   I got irritated and sat down at the table Mose was sitting at. I looked at the light coming through the trees. I've been training in this arena-type thing he made in his backyard for about a year now. I've improved a lot since I first asked him to train me.
   "Hikaru," Mose turned to me. I turned to face him. "In about 80 days from now, a great evil will be arisen. The demon of destruction called Icarrus will be resurrected from its imprisonment,"
   "You're lying, right?" I was surprised at what he said. He was probably just kidding. "The legend of Icarrus is just a myth,"
   "No, I'm not lying," he told me. "The myths are based upon truth,"
"There were four swords, each representing one of the four elements, which were used by a legendary hero to seal Icarrus in a hundred-thousand year imprisonment," Mose continued. "The swords were combined to create the Sword of Light, a weapon of pure light that purges all darkness. You have to find these swords to avert the destruction of all of Terra Utopius!"
This reminded me of how almost every roleplaying game I've played has four objects representing the four elements.
   "What if I don't want to do it?" I said almost sassily.
   "Then you'll be responsible for the deaths of billions of innocent people across the world," Mose responded in the same tone I asked in. I was silent for a few seconds. I wonder why he expects a 14-year-old to do this. I must be pretty strong now.
   "I'll find them so we can save the world!" I said with determination. I realized how cheesy I sounded shortly after.
   "Good. A friend of mine is currently in a village beside of Midnight City called Tamana Village. She should be able to help you on your journey," Thanmos explained.
   "I was already going to Tamana Village for the Moon Festival, anyway." I waved to him and began walking out of his house. "I'll be back soon, with the Icarrus destroyed!" I went back home to pack my bag with clothes, food and water for the trip to Tamana Village.
   I left the village at about 13 o'clock, and started walking to the west from Mose' house, to a grassy field.