Chapter 1: Prologue: The History of Columbus
"One must overcome their demon to become the best version of themselves." Throughout the apocalyptic wars that occurred through the course of history, there was one thing they had in common. Malice. Malice, hatred, desire for power caused human to kill each other out of spite. The accumulation of these negative emotions gave birth to our demon. The demon lives inside of humans and cause them to commit terrible things. Hatred breeds hatred and the everlasting cycle continues...
Columbus was a beautiful island that is home to the city of Columbus. Located at the base of The Mountain of Columbus, Columbus was, as every beautiful city was, had tall skyscrapers and bloomed parks. Residing in this city was a man named, Tenzou. Tenzou was 49 years old, living peacefully with his 17-years-old grandson, Hiro. He lost his son and daughter-in-law in a car accident, and vowed to take care of Hiro.
Flashback
Hiro was 9-years-old when he lost his parents. He felt unimaginable grief and pain as he loved his parents more than anything, and his parents loved him as much.
Standing in the front of the coffins, a heartbroken Hiro asked his grandfather, "Why did my mom and dad died?"
Tenzou tried his best to hold his tears and answered, "All humans die, Hiro. It's just that your parents left a little earlier. It's fine if you can't accept their deaths right now. It takes time for a wound to heal."
Hiro looked at Tenzou with tearful eyes and said, "Thank god I still have you, grandpa."
Tenzou hugged his grandson tightly as he vowed to protect Hiro with his life.
End of Flashback
One peaceful evening, as Hiro got back from school, he saw Tenzou sitting on a bench right outside their house. Tenzou had a blank expression as he stared into the beautiful sunset. Hiro approached his grandfather and sat beside him with a worried look on his face. Hiro looked at Tenzou and calmly said, "The sunset looks especially beautiful today." Tenzou was snapped out of his thoughts when he realized Hiro was sitting aside him. Hiro continued, "You were lost in your own thoughts, grandpa. Is anything on your mind?" Tenzou debated whether or not he should tell his grandson about his upcoming endeavor to climb the mountain of Columbus. After a couple seconds of inner debate, Tenzou decided to tell Hiro.
Tenzou looked at Hiro who's looking at him with a worried expression," Hiro, I'm growing older and I haven't done enough to satisfy my thirst for excitement. I'm going to climb The Mountain of Columbus and be the first one to reach the peak. The scenery must be beautiful up there."
A challenging smile broke out on Hiro's face and he declared, "You're not thinking of climbing it alone, are you? It will probably take a month to reach the peak and another to climb back down. I'm not living alone for two months."
Tenzou chuckled, which soon turned into laughter. He then calmed down, smiling fondly at the boy. He ruffled Hiro's head, "We're leaving tomorrow at dawn. If you sleep in, I'm leaving without you." Hiro hugs Tenzou tightly and muttered, "You wish."
The next morning, the duo set out to climb the mountain of Columbus. After reaching the base, Hiro looks up to see the peak of the mountain. He could not see the peak but only white, fluffy clouds and the endless blue sky. He thought to himself, 'Oh boy, this is going to be one hell of an experience.' The duo climbed with steadfast resolution while taking breaks every four hours. It was a great bonding experience for the two as their love for each other only grew as time passes.
At the end of the first week, Hiro was exhausted, both mentally and physically. The peak of the mountain was still invisible and this shattered Hiro's resolution. While panting excessively, Hiro said, "Grandpa, I don't think I can do this anymore. It's been a week of non-stop climbing and we still can't see the peak." With a serious expression, Tenzou walks up to Hiro. Hiro expected a slap to the face, instead, Tenzou taps his forehead gently, "Once we set out to do something, our family don't give up. I know you have it in you to reach the peak, son. IT'S ALL GOING TO BE WORTH IT once we reach the top." Tenzou's wise words motivated Hiro. It was as if he had hundreds of adrenaline shots piercing into his blood flow. With renewed flames in his eyes, Hiro screamed, "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Tenzou smiled, "Follow my lead, this part of the mountain is tricky to climb."
Three more weeks have passed as the duo climbed day in and day out. It got harder to breathe as they grew closer to reaching the peak, due to the thin air pressure. Even so, the duo persevered. At the end of the fourth week, the two had reached the peak of The Mountain of Columbus.
Both Hiro and Tenzou gained something other than pride by reaching the peak. Their bodies grew exponentially stronger, as well as their mental fortitude.
Tenzou peacefully announced, "We did it, son. Let's enjoy the scenery and rest." Hiro nodded as he enjoys the magnificent scenery from atop. All good things must come to an end. For the duo, it ended when Tenzou discovers an ancient goblet 200 meters away from their tent.
He called Hiro and they examined it thoroughly. There was an inscription of a demon and a person chained together on the goblet, as well as the phrase 'nikushimi'. Under the goblet was a red, mossy, reflective gem. Hiro picked up the rock and stated, "I think this is supposed to go on the goblet." Tenzou replied, "I don't think it's smart to mess with things we don't understand. Let's go back and call for help once we get back to Columbus."
Hiro ignored Tenzou as he is in a zombie-like state. While his eyes were locked onto the gem, his voice deepened and turned demonic, "IT'S WORTH IT, RIGHT? GRANDPA." Hiro took the gem and placed it on the goblet. Tenzou leaped forward to stop the rock from making contact, but it was too late. As the rock made contact with the gem, the ground started to shake and nimbus clouds started rapidly forming. The clouds blocked sunlight from reaching Columbus and the island fell under everlasting darkness. Then suddenly, the goblet lit up and released a shock wave strong enough to shatter steel throughout the whole island. The shock wave sent Tenzou several meters back and Hiro down the mountain.
Tenzou quickly got up and realized his grandson is gone. Tears started forming in his eyes as it turned pitch black. A demonic voice formed inside his head, "You could've saved him. Because you're not good enough, your grandson died." Tenzou replies, "Who are you? No. What are you?"
The voice answered, "Look inside."
Tenzou opened his eyes realized a person sitting on top of a hill. It was night time and the moon shined brighter than ever. As the person turned around, Tenzou realized that the person was Tenzou with pitch black eyes. It was his inner demon. The light of enlightenment enabled Tenzou to connect with his inner demon. It was always present inside Tenzou, but the light of enlightenment allowed him to directly interact with his inner demon.
Without hesitation, Demon-Tenzou ran towards Tenzou with incredible speed and threw a punch at Tenzou. Tenzou dodged at the nick of time. The punch created a shockwave behind Tenzou, surprising him. He thought to himself, 'His speed, strength, he isn't human!' Demon-Tenzou retracted his punch and attempted to swing a kick at Tenzou. This time, Tenzou blocked the kick with his arm, and forcefully poked the demon's eyes with his fingers. Then, without wasting time on a speech like an anime character, Tenzou kicked the demon's head until it cracked.
After defeating his inner demon, Tenzou got back to his original place, on the peak of the mountain of Columbus. He felt an immense growth of physical prowess as well as no negative emotions. The anger and sadness he felt after Hiro's death was negated. Tenzou ascended as a human.
He's also gained the ability to manipulate light.
Tenzou thought to himself, 'If I'm like this, what would happen to Columbus?' Due to the improved physical prowess, he was able to reach the base of the mountain in one week. The disaster he witnessed as he reached Columbus terrified him. It was an apocalypse. Blood and dust were in the air. Corpses and bloody limbs filled the streets. Screams of children and women haunted the roads of the city. A demonic voice similar to Hiro's shouted, "AH a human. I'm going to have fun with this one." As Tenzou turned around, he sees a human with pitch black eyes smiling menacingly...
Author's Note: This story is not about Tenzou. This is the prequel. The main character, Nath, will appear next chapter or chapter 3.
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