It's not the most well-written thing, I admit, but it will give you an idea of an important point in Mokujin's story. Hope you can find the family guy reference hidden deep in there.
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It was a crime… no, a sin. In the grasp of their tainted hands we had fallen, our lives trapped at their every whim. Even I could not deny that I was fearful; not for my own life, nor of the torture, but for the sake of…
“Time to wake up, old boy!” yelled a cackling voice, forcing my tired eyes to dart open; an act not of surprise, but of annoyance. Silently, I rubbed the sleep out of my heavy eyes, still narrow from the deep REM period I had managed to attain.
“Is that really necessary?” I asked, bringing myself to my feet as my tiredness began to shake itself away. “This had better be important, Hiruko…”
“You bet it is.” Said Hiruko. Not unlike any other old man, he was perverse and senile, constantly turning even the most ordinary situation into a case of hysteria, but there were few could ask for an ally stronger or wiser; just smarter. “While you were getting your beauty sleep -lord knows you need it- we’ve been dodging bullets left and right. Those damned Ennshu just don’t know when to quit.”
The Ennshu… after the last encounter with them, there was little doubt we would be in trouble if we didn’t act quickly. Gently I placed my forearm against my stomach, painfully forcing my body to create endorphins in an attempt to ignore my wounds and ready myself for battle.
“Hold on, there!” shouted Hiruko, placing his hand before me in an attempt to stop me from progressing. “You’re crazy if you think I’m going to let you go out there and repeat what happened yesterday.”
The moment I heard that, I knew it… he was there. The same Ennshu general who we had encountered the other day was here. The battle was already lost.
“In that case…” I began, my eye contact with Hiruko deepening as I lead him to a solution. “They can have me. Get out of here now, and take Hana with you. They need me too badly to kill me, so for the sake of your survival, leave me.”
“Are you off your rocker? If they get you, then we’ll just be handing everything to them on a silver platter!” contested Hiruko, his usual sarcastic tone quickly fading away. “I won’t let it happen.”
“You will.” I replied, my voice more forceful than its usual passive tone. “I have a plan. Now go, or else all may be lost for nothing.” Leaning against a nearby wall, my breathing began to normalize itself as I found some temporary comfort.
“You had better survive this…” said Hiruko, his concern evident on his face. “If you don’t, you can prepare for the ass-kicking of a lifetime.” With those words, he ran through the rear exit of the building, where a young woman with long black hair lay in a deep slumber. “C’mon Hana, we’re outta here. Our friend here is pulling another crazy one. But then, who am I to stop him?
Taking the sleeping girl into his arms, Hiruko darted off in a great burst of speed. He truly was fast; far faster than any normal man his age.
“Alright…” I mumbled to myself, finally managing to ignore the pain of my wounds. “Time for me to take action.”
“Action, you say?” came a voice from the outside. It was a deep, rough voice, carrying a powerful tone. Following suit was the event of the front door flying off of its hinges, flying directly into a nearby wall in a burst of flame. Through the newly formed doorway was a familiar face: Kishi, the general who had beaten me to and inch of my life the other day. “Now, what action could you possibly be taking now? Playing possum? As if that could save you.”
To say he was big would be a terrible understatement. Literally towering over me, he was at least 8 feet tall. Demonic in appearance, his entire body seemed to be made up of what could only be described as solidified flame, white hot around his body, yet a jet black form sitting within. His facial expression was always clear, however; a cocky grin. He could easily back up this cockiness with his sheer power, however, considering he had beaten me earlier.
Slowly, he approached, chuckling to himself as he drew nearer to his quarry; we both knew I was helpless. I wouldn’t let him get me that, easily, however. It was here that my plan would go into motion.
“So, you think you’re all powerful, just because I let you win a single fight? Don’t make me laugh.” I said, forcing a false smirk upon my face. His eyes narrowed in recognition of my words. No doubt he was bothered. Men like this were quite simple to figure out. Give them some doubt in their strength and they become enraged; that would give me my advantage. “Truth be told, I just felt sorry for you. Hell, even in my ravaged state here, I could still probably hand your ass to you within a moment’s notice… wimp.”
“Wimp? WIMP?”he began, his tone shifting from an arrogant blabbery to an almost defensive position. “Ha. You’re bluffing. You don’t have that kind of power. No human could have anywhere near the strength of an Ennshu.”
“Heh… Right.” I responded, seeing my plan working its way right into his spirit. “Then why do they want me so badly? Do they see me as a threat, perhaps? Or maybe you need me because you’re not as powerful as you’d like to be? Either which way, it seems that I have the power you seek; a power that I have yet to use on you. I suppose now would be a good time to pay you back for the little present you gave me last time. After all, one good thing des-”
Sternly he interrupted, his mighty right fist colliding into the wall beside me, his eyes now filled with a burning that I had never seen before. Instantly, the wall behind me burst into flame, quickly falling into ash, littering the floor with gray.
“Screw you...” he said, in a groaning, spiteful tone of voice. “I’ll beat you to an inch of your life, and bring that last inch to my lord.”
“Lord? Ha, now you’re telling me that you’re some king’s bitch.” I teased onward, despite my current situation already thickening into something dangerous. “Now I’m really starting to wonder if it was a good idea to let you win that round…”
I could feel the bones in my face vibrating as his incredibly hard knuckles collided with my cheek, leaving me stumbling as the shock and pain found a way to travel throughout my entire body, further enhancing the pain of my wounds; not to mention the fact that it burned. Regaining my footing, I quickly avoided an onslaught of fiery haymakers that would have surely taken me out, making my toward the exit for a quick escape. But my efforts were short-lived as I felt the pain of an extremely powerful blow find its way to my already wounded abdomen. Forcing myself to hold back from vomiting, I looked up to see my assailant. She wore a mask, but from her anatomy I could tell that it was a woman.
“Now where do you think you’re going?” she said, her tone both flirtatious and teasing at the same time. “You really don’t want to leave… otherwise your friends would be all we have to play with. And surely you wouldn’t want that to happen, right?” Pointing to her right, she directed me toward the unconscious bodies of Hiruko and Hana; heavy burn marks covered Hiruko’s clothing, but both he and Hana appeared relatively unharmed.
“Don’t worry, they’re fine.” She said, her tone still filled with that previous arrogance. “But, if you don’t want us to kill them, then you had better cooperate. Not that you have a choice.”
My consciousness was already fading from the pain. I had no choice. I would give.
“Take me… but just leave them alone.” I said, my voice slurred from the difficulty in concentrating.
“Oh, on the contrary, if we leave them alone, then what guarantee do we have you’ll cooperate the whole way through?” she chuckled to herself. “I think we’ll hold on to them until our plans are complete. Can’t have you messing things up, now can we?”
“You…” I started, irritated at her foul play. “I’ll kill you… rest assured, you will die.” With those words, I would lose consciousness from blood loss and every growing pain.
“Sa…ve…u…s…”
A voice whispered in the back of my mind, awakening me from my slumber. I found myself in a large castle complex, knelt in the middle of a highly decorated floor. My arms were shackled together, my legs chained to the floor.
“So finally, you awaken.” Said a voice, causing me to dart my head in the direction of a large throne, catching sight of what appeared to be a normal young man. No doubt he was the lord of this castle; an Ennshu, most likely. “Can’t perform the ceremony without our most important piece of the puzzle primed and ready, am I right?”
“Ceremony? What ceremony?” I asked, examining the various images around me; each of them resembled the birth marks located on various points of my body. “If you’re going to use me, at least give me an explanation for what.”
“I suppose I can tell you that much. It’s not like you can change your destiny, anyway.” Replied the lord as he rose from his throne, approaching calmly, a cocky grin upon his face. “You are what fate has titled the “Zentai”. Within you sleeps the power of absolution, a strength of such magnitude that the fates themselves could be overwhelmed with ease. And with this ceremony, that power shall become mine. I will become a god, and all worlds will fall beneath my will. I will be unrivaled.”
“And if I resist this “ceremony”? Any ceremony requires all participants to be willing; of this much I know.” I said, in an attempt to meddle with his thought for only a moment.
“I figured you’d think as much.” He replied, knowing the cards he had in his hands. “Bring out his friends, men.” From behind the curtains came a group of Ennshu foot soldiers, their swords at the necks of both Hiruko and Hana. “Basically, if you don’t cooperate, they die; simple as that. You have until the count of 5 to decide.”
It was a crime… no, a sin. In the grasp of their tainted hands we had fallen, our lives trapped at their every whim. Even I could not deny that I was fearful; not for my own life, nor of the torture, but for the sake of my allies. I had no choice.
“I’ll do it…” I conceded, unable to take any other course of action in the situation. And at those words, the imprints on the floor around me began to glow magnificently.
“Hahaha.” Laughed the lord, as he observed the event at hand. “It’s too bad I have to kill them anyway. Can’t have a world of Ennshu with humans around, now can I? Don’t worry, though, you won’t have to witness their deaths.”
”Bastard…” I thought to myself. ”Power of absolution… If I have it, why can’t I use it to save them? If this power is so great, why can’t I bring it out…?
“But you can.” Came a voice. It was the same voice that had awoken me before. “You can use this power, but you must be willing to sacrifice something vital. If it isn’t worthy, then you shall fail not only to save your friends, but to complete your destiny.”
[i]Destiny, fate. Who gave a damn about that? All such things bring about are pain and suffering. They’re worthless. Yet to some they’re the most worthwhile of things…
That was it. That was my sacrifice.
“I’ll do it… I’ll give up my destiny.” I said, aloud, confident that it would be the necessary sacrifice. “I relinquish it. This fate of mine, I cast aside, and forever leave it in the dust. For the sake of those I care for.”
And, with the end of that chant, I was enveloped in light.
“It shall be done.” Said the voice. “Be warned. Great trials await those who no longer follow the fates. Possibly even greater than those who do.”
Blinded momentarily, I shut his eyes, unbeknownst of the event that had just taken place. A sudden change had occurred. He could feel a… breeze? He felt a mountain breeze. Opening his eyes, he could see now where he was. It was the mountain looking over the castle he had just been trapped in; the castle itself was now left in ruins. His allies lay beside him, now awake.
“The hell…?” said Hiruko, rubbing his head. “Did I just get laid?”
I was silent.
“You alright, buddy boy? I don’t know how you did it, but you somehow got us outta there. ”
Silent I remained.
“Ugh...?” came the soft voice of Hana. “What just happened? One minute I have a sword pressed to my throat, the next I’m on a mountain, looking at the rubble of a castle I was just in.”
Still I was silent.
“He must be confused.” Said Hiruko. “All of this happened in one moment, it’s no wonder he’s in shock of the power he just released. It’s not every day a man gets a destiny like that.”
“I see.” Replied Hana. “But still, after all this time, I don’t think Mr. Hiruko and I really got to ask… just who are you?”
Slowly, I shifted my gaze over my shoulder, my now cold eyes meeting with Hana’s, almost immediately striking her with a paralyzing fear.
“I am nothing… Just as I chose to be…” my tone had changed. I was no longer the man I had been earlier. Yet I remained unsurprised. My sacrifice had done more than I could have ever imagined. “I am… Mokujin.”
And with those words, I vanished without a trace. Now walking a path without fate to guide, my road seems eternal.
What had I done to myself?