Chapter 1
Sitting on a grassy hill that crouched low before a small deciduous forest was a lone figure who cast his gaze up at the darkening sky. Although it was currently sometime during the afternoon, the sky was turning an ominous lavender-grey as large, billowing clouds crawled in. A flash of lightning shone in the distance, followed closely by the distant rumbled of thunder. It seemed Nature itself was growing tense as the great misfortune seemed to approach. The sight of vicious storm clouds unfazed the teenage boy as he simply blinked a bit to clear his vision of yellow blotches. Only until a shattering boom crackled through the air did the dark haired boy finally rise from the hill. The ice cold wind tore at his features, causing his dark jacket to flap wildly and his black hair to whip around at his face. "Almost here..." the boy breathed, his voice barely audible over the howling wind and rain.
An ear splitting crash blasted out of the Heavens; the sky lighting up like a Christmas tree. The boy stumbled back a bit, the air around him so harsh that he was tugged off his feet. Gritting his teeth, the boy dared to gaze directly above him and into the Eye of an enormous cyclone descending towards the Earth. "Sayonara, Min'na" he whispered, closing his eyes and allowing the enraged Tornado to consume him completely.
{Note: Sayonara Min'na = Goodbye everyone}
~*~
"And with that, he cast his icy glance out at the bleeding sunset, his breathing becoming feeble and the remainder of his strength seeping away into the Earth.”...my only wish... was to see him again... but I guess... it's too late for that... now..." he rasped, his voice reduced to a simple whisper. Before any response was given to him, his body disappeared in a bright flash of light, leaving behind a small, gold amulet with a sapphire crystal at its center. The world hasn't seen the mysterious boy Kaze ever again," Elder finished, closing the tagged old book on her lap.
At that moment, young Yuki covered her eyes and burst into tears. "Poor Kaze! He was so brave and awesome!" she wailed, her voice similar to that of a dying cat.
Her older brother Daisuke sighed deeply at his sister's reaction to the story, irritably running a slender hand through his mud brown hair. "Yuki, you do understand it's just a legend, right? Kaze is just a fictional character," he scoffed at his 12 year old sister, his voice bearing slight hints of a growl.
Yuki blew a white strand of hair out of her face before sticking her tongue out rudely at her brother. "No it isn't! Kaze was, and still is, real! Why else would Oba-san be reading us this story?" she shot back, her voice less screechy and more human now.
"Because that's what stories are for! To.Be.Told.To.Bakas.Like.You," Daisuke retorted, his emerald gaze narrowing slightly.
"Children! Silence this petty quarreling!" Elder rasped, her voice powerful despite her age.
Both children flinched, shutting away their harsh words and settling back down on their beige coloured couch. With a sigh and a slight grunt, Elder Arashi rose to her bony feet, her grey coloured hair falling over her eyes a bit. "Now, let us eat Lunch before your mother eats it all by herself. I believe your mother mentioned something about Chow Mein?" she rasped, grasping her cane tightly and leading the now excited teenagers towards the kitchen.
"Noodles! Hurrah! I love noodles!" Yuki cheered, jumping up and down in her excitement.
Pausing a moment to tie up her long, unusually white coloured hair, she ran to the kitchen and plopped herself down in her seat; the one beside Daisuke. Daisuke chewed on his noodles quietly, not acknowledging his sister's arrival to the table. Eventually Elder and their mother joined them, conversing in a language the two siblings were not yet knowledgeable in. "It sees a storm is approaching..." Elder murmured, casting her stormy grey gaze out the patio windows.
Dark, black and grey clouds tainted the horizon, blocking the Sun's bright rays. Suddenly, a loud thud could be heard on the rooftop, interrupting the family's little meal. "What... was that?" Daisuke mumbled through his mouthful of Chinese noodles.
"A bird, perhaps?" Yuki suggested, taking a sip of apple juice from her cup.
"It sounded a lot larger than a bird young ones..." Elder murmured, her voice bearing that sort of edge that told you she knew more about something then you did.
{Note: Baka = Stupid/idiot/dumb fool
Oba-san = Grandmother}
~*~
Daisuke rose from his seat, setting down his fork and wiping his mouth with a small napkin. "I'll go check. You all stay here," he murmured, turning to leave the kitchen.
"I want to come too!" Yuki insisted, jumping out of her chair and racing after her brother.
"I told you to wait with Mother and Grandmother," Daisuke scoffed, although, his voice hinted that he didn't care whether or not his little sister followed him around.
Yuki didn't respond right away, determined to find the source of the mysterious noise. "Be careful! The storm might change courses at any time and I don't want you two to get soaked from the rain!" their mother called, her voice a bit distant since the siblings were now ascending the stairs.
Once at the top, Daisuke paused a moment to allow himself and his sister to catch their breath before tugging on the small cord dangling from the ceiling. The cord slid downwards obediently, allowing a fold-able set of stairs to tumble down in front of them. "You sure you want to come? I thought you hated the Attic cause it creeped you out," Daisuke inquired, gazing at his sister curiously.
Yuki puffed out her cheeks a bit in a stubborn fashion. "I told you already, I'm going! Now move!" she snapped, beginning to feel very impatient.
Sighing a bit, Daisuke obediently climbed up the stairs and into the dusty attic. The attic was stuffed full of old bookshelves whose shelves overflowed with their Grandmother's books, journals and collectibles. Gazing around a bit, he then headed to the far left where a small little door was covered by stacks of decaying boxes. Wrinkling his nose at the strong scent of dust and musk, he pulled away the boxes; secretly hoping there was a spider hidden behind them so he could frighten his sister. Unfortunately, all there was was a ball of random fuzz. Scowling, he wrenched open the small door, letting in a strong blast of humid air. A loud sneeze resounded behind him, signaling that the dust was finally affecting his sister. "You alright back there?" Daisuke called, having to raise his voice due to the strong winds.
Yuki nodded stiffly towards him, her eyes streaming a bit from the high concentration of dust. Stepping out of the Attic, Daisuke allowed his sister to exit the Attic as well before wandering off to investigate the mysterious sound. It didn't take long until the two siblings found what they were looking for. Looking back, the two kind of wished the person laying there was indeed a bird.
~*~
It was quite the peculiar sight. The figure was a teenage boy around Daisuke's age with raggedly cut medium length black hair with a few strands of silver. He wore tattered, grass stained black jeans, a Chinese style storm grey shirt with a black cotton jacket on top. His shoes appeared to be white, but were so streaked with mud it was hard to tell. The jacket's hood partially covered the boy's face, hiding its cut up features. Astonished, Daisuke kept his distance in case the boy had mental problems. Yuki however, spotted something around his neck and instantly darted over to the stranger's side. "Hey! Are you alright? Talk to me!" she asked, shaking his shoulder gently.
A low moan escaped the boy's lungs, but it was enough to reassure the siblings that the boy was still alive. "Nii-san! Help me out over here!" Yuki called, rolling the boy over and examining him for wounds.
A shallow cut ran through the boy's left eye, snaking down his cheek and ending slightly above his jaw. Another gash slithered down his left arm, but other than that, he appeared to be fine on the outside. When her brother finally joined her, she pressed on the by's chest slightly, feeling for any broken ribs. There weren't any; even though it seemed he somehow landed on their roof. "We should get him inside where Oba-san can check him over...," Daisuke murmured, sounding a bit reluctant to allow his sister to lug an utter stranger into their home.
Nodding, Yuki slid her arms underneath the boy and mustered all her strength until she managed to carry the boy in her arms. Daisuke steadied her a bit, not wanting the weight of the boy to send his little sister toppling off the roof. Guiding her towards the Attic, Daisuke cast one final glance at where the boy had landed, shocked to see there wasn't even a dent. "How strange...," he murmured under his breath, but his sister's yelp tugged him back to reality.
As the two siblings slid the unconscious by down the Attic stairs, Daisuke finally spotted the object that had got Yuki so determined to help the strange boy. Around his neck was a gold and silver chain and at the bottom dangled a small gold amulet. The Amulet consisted of three gold rings, all situated around a mysterious sapphire crystal at its center like a globe. Kaze's Amulet... no way... th-that's virtually impossible... unless the kid is also a big fan of Elder's stories and somehow made a prototype of the Amulet... he thought, bewildered.
At the bottom of the stairs was Elder Arashi, whose stormy gaze settled on the boy. "Bring him into the family room. I'll tend to his wounds there," she ordered, hobbling off towards the medicine cabinet.
The Siblings nodded stiffly, shuffling into the large, comfy looking room quietly. After laying the boy on a couch, they backed away to allow their grandmother to do her thing. Moments later, Elder returned with her trustworthy First Aid kit. The boy released another low moan, shifting uncomfortably on the couch. Yuki and Daisuke backed away a bit, unsure what to do as their grandmother got to work. While the tough older woman bandaged up his wounds skillfully, she muttered a few things under her breath in a foreign language, kind of like some sort of incantation. After a few moments of silence that, to the siblings, felt like eternities; the boy suddenly jolted awake and shot upright, his eyes wild with confusion. A jumbled mess of gibberish spilled out from his mouth as if he was possessed by some outer being.
Yuki yelped in surprise, falling backwards a bit and hitting her elbow on the corner of a bookcase. While his sister blurted out pleasant language, Daisuke simply exclaimed, "the heck?!" His gaze narrowed on the spasmodic boy, who was being forced back onto the couch by their frail looking grandmother. She was murmuring what appeared to be words of comfort until she finally managed to lay him down straight. The boy allowed himself to be pushed down after an extent of time, his breathing a bit unsteady but more controlled then it was seconds earlier. "W...where... am I...?" the boy croaked, catching his raspy breath and casting it out into the dusty room.
It resonated around the room a bit since the walls were circular and shaped to encase noise, the accent a bit familiar to the ears of Yuki and Daisuke. The two cast their frazzled glances to Elder, wondering the same thing as the confused boy. Something told them this encounter would drastically change everything they knew about "reality." "Relax, young one. You're in the presence... of a Guardian Keeper...," Elder murmured, laying a lightly soaked cloth on the boy's forehead.
The boy let out a long groan, the type one would use when reluctant to perform a certain task. Interest flickered in Yuki's eyes as she rose to her feet and scooted closer to the couch, all sense of pain in her elbow forgotten. What's your name?" she suddenly asked with wide, curious light green eyes.
The boy opened his sapphire eyes and peered over at her blankly as if she were nothing but a blank piece of paper to him. "Kyle...," he murmured bluntly, his eyes naturally bright and sparking like lightning whipping through the night sky.
Yuki smiled happily at his response, so close to the couch that her knees left small depressions in the couch's soft material. "Cool! My name is Yukina Tsukime and over there is my older brother Daisuke! Nice to meetcha, Kyle!" she blabbered, doing her best to express her kindness and warmth through words.
She held out her hand socially, smiling warmly as she did so. Kyle blinked in astonishment and took a moment to observe the hand as if it were made of poison-filled needles. Alas, he reached out a shaky, gloved hand, and shook hers stiffly. "Yeah... hi....," he murmured before abruptly tugging his hand free from her grasps and withdrawing it to his side.
Yuki frowned when he literally turned his back to her but eventually, nodded obediently and slunk back over to her silent brother's side. Elder frowned a bit as well, having remained silent the whole time as an opportunity to examine the boy's actions and reactions to something as simple as a mere greeting. She furrowed her brow a bit, as if debating whether or not he was the correct brand of soap in the cleaning aisle. "Why am I here?" Kyle suddenly demanded, his voice the virtual opposite of how it was when speaking with Yuki; strong, defiant, and demanding like the loud boom of thunder during the climax of a thunderstorm.
Yuki and Daisuke jumped a bit, startled by his sudden change in tone. "You fell on our roof," Elder replied nonchalantly, resting a gentle old hand on his shoulder.
Kyle snorted indignantly, shrugging off her hand. "I wanted to get away from you persistent pests, not towards!" he hissed, purposely making his voice loud enough for all within the room to hear.
Elder let out a long sigh, seeing as things would not be as simple as she hoped. Yuki bit her lower lip nervously, but she could not stand to remain silent any longer. "Pests? We saved your life! If we just left you up there, you would have most definitely died!" she inquired, snapping to her feet.
Daisuke reached for her wrist but the young girl swatted away his hand. Elder narrowed her eyes in displeasure but allowed the two to converse a bit. "I didn't want to be saved you idiot! The whole reason why I jumped into that freakin tornado was so I wouldn't live!" he snarled, blue eyes flashing with ferocity.
Yuki's mouth immediately clamped shut, her eyes bearing traces of shock, disbelief and fear. "Why the heck would you want that?! And you jumped into a tornado?!?" Daisuke snapped, finally speaking up.
Kyle opened his mouth to let out a retort but he paused when the sibling's Mother stepped into the room. "Children! Calm down!" the two siblings had expected her to screech.
However, their mother simply stood at the mouth of the room, scanning them with her crisp, light green eyes. She and Kyle exchanged a glance, but neither looked away, almost as if the two were having a silent conversation. "Oka-san...?" Yuki murmured, her voice shaky with anxiety.
For once, Daisuke felt a bit bad for his little sister. He knew of her caring and compassionate personality, so it was hard for her when her kindness was abruptly turned away. He rose to his feet and wrapped his arms around her mid-section, hoping to comfort her in some way. Alas, their mother let out a long sigh and turned her back to Kyle. "When he is ready, let him go Arashi," she ordered, her voice firm and absolutely serious.
Elder nodded stiffly, understanding the matter completely. "Wait! We need answers! Now!" Daisuke growled, shooting a hostile glare towards his mother and grandmother.
The two exchanged a startled look before nodding in agreement. "Come. Tsubaki shall watch over the boy," Elder rasped, rising to her feet and clambering away with her cane.
Taking a moment to think things over, the siblings eventually gave in and chased after their grandmother. Watching them leave, Kyle wrapped one of his gloved hands around his prized Amulet. "Hand it over," the mother demanded, holding out her hand.
"Never, you filthy thief!" Kyle snarled, his heart beat accelerating when he realized just how stupid his 'plan' was.
"You're not controlled enough to handle its abilities, Kazerin. Relinquish your Amulet to us Keepers until you are fully awakened to your powers," the Keeper retorted, growing increasingly impatient.
Kyle's eyes burned with defiance as he shot off the couch and onto the floor a few feet back. "Make me!" he taunted, before whirling around and dashing towards the back door, swirls of air twisting and writhing behind him.
The Keep sighed deeply, rubbing her temples in irritation. "When grandmother said he was going to be a handful, she wasn't kidding," she groaned before racing after the Amulet holder.
{Note: Nii-san = Older brother [honorific]
Elder is a name the siblings refer their grandmother to due to her wise knowledge in the Amulets. More on that later}
