The Staff of Kyade
The Staff of Kyade
James L. Craig
The Bestiary
When royal soldiers attack his village in search of a magical relic, Kenji watches in horror as all that he loves is destroyed. Determined that they will not get what they want, he takes the staff they seek and flees, vowing to avenge those he lost as soon as he can.
The Staff of Kyade
The Bestiary, Volume One
By James L. Craig
Published by Less Than Three Press LLC
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner without written permission of the publisher, except for the purpose of reviews.
Edited by Tanni Fan
Cover designed by Megan Derr
Internal Illustration by V. Rios
This book is a work of fiction and as such all characters and situations are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual people, places, or events is coincidental.
First Edition November 2012
Copyright © 2012 by James L. Craig
Printed in the United States of America
ISBN 9781620040492
Dedicated to My father, Jimmie Lee Craig
"Mamaru, what are you still doing up? You should be asleep, young one." She said to her grandson. He was walking around his room with a stick, stalking the area.
"I am training to be a big, strong hero for Kyade like cousin Haruka. He fought off a wild bear!"
"Ha, I see. Well you do know that to be a hero does not necessarily mean you have to be big and strong.” She said to Mamaru, who was still in his pretend warrior stance.
"You don't?”
"You know the village of Kyade was once the scene of a terrible tragedy, but the courage of a brave young boy helped save it and eventually returned it back to the land of beauty that we enjoy."
"Really? Was he young like me?" Mamaru asked while sitting down on his bed.
"Yes, he was. I will tell you what—how about you get into bed, and I will tell you the legend of your great ancestor and how he saved this land, as well as the world, from evil. I'll tell you how he did it with nothing more than a courageous attitude and a pure heart."
"Ok, grandma." So Mamaru lay down in his bed and his grandmother sat by his side and began to tell him the story of the history of the village they lived in, the village known as Kyade.
"You see, long ago there was a village called Kyade and it was as beautiful then as it is now. The people were just as friendly and the land was just as peaceful. It was the closest to paradise that anyone could come. The land was known throughout the world as a sanctuary and anyone who had a sickness or trouble of any sort could come to the village and they would be taken in as if they had been born there. The village seemed like a holy place, but in all actuality, it was just a common village. The people farmed and traded and worked for everything they had, but there was something special about this village that set it apart from the others."
"What was it grandma?" Mamaru asked with anticipation."
"It was a staff. The staff, like the village, had been in the world as long as the people could remember. It was a long metal staff that had two specific features: it had two gold intersecting rings on top with a white seal in the middle. The legend stated that there was a guardian connected with the staff known as the Ujiima, who was the protector of the world. The staff was believed to be the tool used to make contact with the creature. Since Kyade was where the staff was kept, the village prospered through the connections of the Ujiima. Legend stated that part of the Ujiima's spirit was sealed in the staff. The Ujiima was said to have a plethora of mystical powers and is believed to be the sole effect of anything good in the world.
"The Ujiima was said to take the appearance of a beautiful white unicorn that glowed with a celestial bright light. Its mane and tail flowed in the wind. This is what the legend was at that time, but before then, no one really knew for sure what the Ujiima looked like."
"Wow, grandma, that sounds amazing. But if the Ujiima protected the village, then how did tragedy strike?"
"I am getting to that, sweetheart. The village of Kyade was left alone in its beautiful glory for years. That is, until a certain man started having nightmares. On the other side of the world, in a country called Teras, lived an evil emperor. He was greedy, mean, deceitful, and his lust for power was overwhelming. He would kill anything and anyone to get what he wanted. His name was Tokufumi.
"Although Tokufumi was a very bad man, he did have one fear. He was afraid of losing his empire. It meant everything to him and he hated the thought that someone would eventually overthrow him. What he was not smart enough to know was that his people feared him so much that no one had the nerve to ever rise up against him. Nonetheless, his fear of losing his empire grew. One night in his dream, he heard a voice call to him …
*~*~*
'Tokufumi … it's time,' said the strange voice.
'It's time? What is it time for?' The emperor asked fearfully.
'It is time for you to destroy Kyade.'
'Kyade? Why should I destroy it? That measly village is far away. It is of no threat to me … is it?'
'Yes.' The voice whispered. 'This village will be the end of you. There is one in the village who wants to be emperor and will take your place unless you destroy everything.'
'What about the staff that is believed to be in the village? Should I destroy that, too?'
'No!' said the voice in a scream so loud that it seemed to shake the very earth.
'You destroy the village and bring the staff to me.'
'Who are you?' Tokufumi asked.
'You need not worry about that right now, but when the time is right, I will reveal myself to you. Now sleep tight, my emperor, and when you awaken, let your will be done!'
With that final whisper, the chilling voice faded into the wind, but Tokufumi was no longer able to sleep. He was afraid of what the voice had said, but he was also fearful of where the voice was coming from, and he would not disobey it.
In truth, there was no one in Kyade who wanted to be the emperor of Teras, but the voice knew that Tokufumi held his empire in deep regard. Tokufumi was manipulated into doing something wicked, and because he was wicked himself, he went along with the evil plot for his own benefit. He was going to destroy Kyade and everyone in it. He was going to seek out the staff and take it back to his empire.
As the sun started to fade, Tokufumi ordered his men and their dragons to attack. The men flew through the village on dragons that were so ferocious the moon itself trembled with fear. The dragons set ablaze all there was in the village. The only sounds that drowned out the crumbling noises of the homes falling and burning to the ground were the screaming of the villagers being burned alive. Everything was destroyed; all the crops and animals were scorched and turned to ash. The people of Kyade never thought they would have to defend themselves from such a situation, so they had no way of fighting back. The village was quickly and easily reduced to rubble.
In the midst of all that, a young boy named Kenji watched in horror as his parents, sister, and neighbors all burned alive. He heard one of the invading warriors ask a villager for the staff, and he knew that had to be the reason they attacked the village. He quickly ran to the special hiding place of the staff and took it away. As he was leaving, he was startled by a flame that started a few feet away from him.
Kenji had been spotted. He darted into the forest, but the warriors were already in pursuit of him. The dragon set a flame to some of the trees, but that backfired because it created smoke which obscured their vision and allowed Kenji to escape. He ran and ran until he could no longer hear the screams of the villagers, nor see the flames in the forest.
As Kenji ran, he thought about why the dragon and warriors were in Kyade. He had thought that as long as the staff was in Kyade nothing bad could happen. He wondered if the legend had been a lie or exaggerated over time. He decided that there was only one thing he could do. He would find the Ujiima, and hopefully the Ujiima could restore his land. Since he believed the staff was connected to the Ujiima, he did not think the creature would be hard to find. He knew that if he could just find the Ujiima that he would get all the answers he needed. The Ujiima was said to be so powerful that it could control the very essence of time, control aspects of nature, and even revive the dead.
Even as exhaustion started to set in, he never stopped moving. He finally came across a body of water that was so vast he could not possibly swim through it. Even so, he tried. He put in a valiant effort, but already exhausted from the running, Kenji passed out.
On the other side of the country, the Emperor Tokufumi was displeased to find that the staff had been taken away. He ordered his men to go back to Kyade every day in hopes that the boy would return, but to no avail. Tokufumi went to sleep one night and once again, the voice came to him.
'Where is the staff?' The voice whispered.
'It is gone.'
'I thought I told you to bring it to me.'
'I tried but —'
'Silence!' The voice roared and froze Tokufumi's soul.
'You have failed me emperor! You do not deserve to live.' The voice said maliciously.
'Please don't hurt me.' Tokufumi begged. 'Everything in the village is destroyed and a mere child has the staff. He is no threat, I assure you. He was chased into the forest and he is surely dead.'
'For your sake emperor … he had better be.' The voice faded away and Tokufumi was left in bed with nothing to soothe his mind. He was terrified of that voice, but he was certain that there was nothing the young boy could do, even with the staff.
Kenji awoke to find himself blanketed in a small cabin. He looked up to see another young boy who seemed to be the same age. Fearing for his life, he tried to jump up and run away, but his body, still heavily fatigued, did not allow him to do so. He fell back down.
'Please, don't be scared. I won't hurt you, I promise,' the boy said, reaching out a hand to Kenji.
'How did I get here?' asked Kenji.
'I fished you out of the water, put you in my boat, and brought you here. I couldn't just let you die. I have to say that I was surprised you were still breathing when I pulled you out. How did you end up in the water like that anyway?'
'My village … my village was attacked and I fled,' Kenji said sadly as he remembered all that had happened.
'I see. Well, you can stay until you get enough strength to do whatever you need to do.' The boy said with a smile on his face.
'Thank you … for everything, but if you don't mind—please tell me what your name is.'
The stranger's smile got bigger. 'Oh, my name is Shin.'
'You're … You're my age. How do you have your own place and a boat?' Kenji asked, a confused look on his face.
'My village was attacked years back by a group of harpies. They devoured all the men in my village and enslaved the women. My mother was spared because she was with child—me. Using one of our boats, my mother escaped and gave birth to me in the boat. We eventually made it to land, where my mother met a merchant trader. He fell in love with her and though my mother did not love him, she agreed to stay with him because he provided us with food and shelter. He taught me to fight as I grew up. I spent all my days training for when I would come in contact with those harpies again and make them pay for what he did to my family.'
Kenji's eyes widened. 'What happened to your mother?'
'My mother eventually died of a broken heart because of the memories of seeing her husband and father killed. Then my adoptive father died from a broken heart over my mother. This is where we lived, and I learned how to go into town to find food and make it on my own. I had no other choice.'