Tales of Kijo - Book One: "It All Began"

3: Encounter The Blades

Successful, they arrived on the edge of the Northern farmlands and within sight they could see the village beneath the great Castle Mountain. There were some slight changes but the castle remained to be the same surprisingly. With caution they continued walking on the same path leading towards the village. Kaki, Oukoji, And Ai we're in awe that they've finally reached home. Kijo was taking in the scenery of everything and burning it into memory. She couldn't believe how beautiful the place was.

The Northern Lands were a traditional home for Beast culture. Beasts like wolves, canines, felines, etc. Lived for centuries amongst these lands. At some point their rich pure blood had bred with humans, half breeds were now common in modern time. However, the Wolven Beasts owned this particular territory since the beginning and each lineage bestowed the responsibility of a leader unto their heirs. Royalty customs did not officially take place until the children's mother Leila was crowned as Queen in her marriage, with the King of the Southern Lands.

The Southern Lands held the Wolven Beasts of the desert. However, it is a never ending battle for the throne and thirst of dominance among others. Their Father King Rochus, was the last generation of competitors to approach the throne. The children had no idea what society has been like for either of the lands.

Few moments later, they finally reached the village boundaries. Elderly people immediately recognized Ai, Kaki, And Oukoji to a point they would greet them personally with a handshake or giant hug. Despite the greetings as they entered the village, Kijo felt annoyed by all the attention her siblings received. She stood by quietly and observed everything at the sidelines, arms crossed and leaning against any wall nearby. That was until she caught a glimpse of young people her age, running off into an opposite direction.

Kijo glanced at her siblings before shaking her head, "I'm done with this." And decided to investigate the young group of people.

In swifts she was able to quietly keep up and stalk behind the youth from a close distance. Once they stopped Kijo crept around a village home's corner, peeking her head out to have a better look. The raise in her eyebrows suggests she was suspicious of their clothing. They were very similar to her own, detail and color were almost identical. Did Baba train off the islands?

"No way..." she thought to herself.

Suddenly a hand grasped her shoulder. By instinct, Kijo quickly grabbed the wrist of the unknown hand with both of her hands and used the force of weight to throw the body over. She immediately switched her stance to a defensive position and looked down at the person. Normally her siblings would always come with a surprise attack and counter her flips. So she wondered why this was suddenly easy? Turns out she flipped a young man about her age into the ground.

"Oh my- I'm so sorry!" She crinkled her face with worry and kneeled down, not to sure if she should help him up. "I thought.. well.."

"Aw man... you a new student or something?" The boy grunted as he turned to his side and curled up in pain.

"What's going on over there?" Kijo overheard the group of kids noticing from afar and coming her way. She felt abit of panic inside.

"Listen, I thought you were someone I know. Please don't be mad!" She nervously spoke as she stood up and waved her hands a little.

The young boy gave Kijo a strange expression. "And you attack this person often?" He asked with curiosity until he noticed the group of kids surround them.

"Hey Syrik, this girl causing you trouble?" One of the three boys asked.

"Don't tell me she did this to you?" Another one asked but laughed afterwards.