Zealous Blade

Lantern

Managed to get another post in. I'm hoping that Kituo's fear of death will prompt him to get his act together. I don't know if there's anything special about the tree with the runes on it but I decided to have him check it out anyway.

Lantern

The rat was probably clung to Kituo no longer than five minutes. To him it felt like an eternity. He was frantic as the pain surged through him. It drove him insane and he couldn’t wait for it to be over. As the rat drove its claws deeper into his skin he released his agony and rebelled against the temptation to fall on his knees. The sound of the fiend’s raking squeak tortured his soul. It was then he truly lost all hope and realized there was nothing he could do. He was going to accept the attack like he accepted all of his other shortcomings. He stopped running and waited for the rat to finish him off. It wasn’t his ideal way to die but at least it would save him the trouble of living another day as a worthless shrimp.

He ceased his own yelling, closed his eyes, and allowed the rat to have a field day. He just didn’t want it to leave any scraps behind. The pain was excruciating and intolerable but still he persevered. He desired for his vision to go black and his ears to fall deaf - the latter of which would ironically become a possibility once the rat was done with its assault. In odds that Kituo thought were impossible, the rat took one last tug on his ear and released its hold on him. It took a moment to realize just how lucky he was. He felt around his body to check his condition but he was numb. The trauma had yet to waver. When it did he desperately wished for it back.

“My ear!”

The pain rushed back into his body like flooding water. He was bleeding profusely from a hole in his ear. He looked at his hand to see his fingertips stained red after feeling the gaping hole. The damned rat had not only attacked Kituo but it also robbed him of a piece of himself – at least that was how he looked at the whole ordeal. Not only was he physically injured but his confidence had dipped far below zero. It didn’t help him to see that the tall guy was indeed enduring his own crisis. Watching him suffer was like hope had jumped onto a ship set sail for the horizon. In Kituo’s mind, the tall guy was better equipped to deal with this predicament than he was. If he was having trouble then there was no way Kituo would last. He originally intended on using him as a crutch until he could find an escape route.

The will to survive was a drive with unimaginable strength. Once he understood that he wasn’t going to die at that moment, Kituo came to terms with the fact that he would have to at least make an attempt to persevere. He clenched his ear and let out an exasperated groan to express just how much agony he was in. The pain had died down a bit but allowing blood to continue flowing out of his wound would only be problematic. After managing to salvage as much of his composure as possible, he took his first steps and they were horrendous. He nearly toppled over but his will caught him. Kituo kept thinking that he had to retain his essence and get back home. His father’s voice rung through his head as he fought to keep his balance.

“I didn’t raise you to be so weak Kituo. Why is it that I must do everything for you?"

Kituo was becoming increasingly lightheaded from his leaking ear. He even started to hear his own responses to his father’s past criticisms.

“But father…nothing ever works out for me. There’s no point in me wasting time and resources when I’m going to fail anyway.”

“How can anything work out for you when you don’t even think about succeeding? That is not how a man should be. Get out of my sight until you grow a spine.”

Kituo huffed and puffed as he faded back into reality. His hearing within his good ear was beginning to adjust to his new handicap and his eyes were clearing up from all of his crying. He looked up at the green latern and watched as it swayed gently above him. His mind flashed back to the rat attack.

That…thing...it saved me.

It seemed as if the rat was fearful of the light that the latern gave off. Kituo conjured the conclusion that perhaps it was some sort of divine tool that could ward away evil spirits. The griot story tellers within the city had mentioned the existence of such objects before. Maybe the lantern could save him from further harm? Kituo wanted to smile at his first independently generated idea. Now he would have to figure out the right time and way to execute it. For now he had other matters to tend to. He was missing a piece of his ear and his only other hope was on the brink of destruction. Clenching his ear, he wobbled over to the tall guy as he reached for an object. Kituo’s eyes widened as the skeleton’s presence petrified him. There was no way he was tempting with that thing.

The waiting game starts now.

Kituo scanned the skeleton and noticed a sparkling ring on its finger. Other than the vial that the tall guy was reaching for it was the only thing he thought of as interesting. But there was no way he was going to risk his own life by reaching for anything the cocoon had to offer. In its life the skeleton had probably tried a similar maneuver only to end up where it was now. Kituo couldn’t stand and do nothing, however. While he was keen on awaiting the tall guy’s results he had to save his own skin. His head was
becoming light again which meant that it wouldn’t be much longer before he drifted out of consciousness again. And when he did there was no certainty that he would revive.

He turned and proceeded back to where he initially stood after the rat attack. Upon reaching his destination he noticed a tree that wasn’t ordinary. It was covered by strange markings which Kituo could not even begin to identify – runes.

Strange….

He was allured by the tree’s markings and walked closer to it in order to investigate. He didn’t consider any potential threat for his life did lose some self-value. Unfortunately, right when he got close enough to properly investigate the tree, his lightness of the head fully returned and he was overcome with weakness. Trying to support his own weight, Kituo’s shaking hand reached for the tree and latched onto its bark.

“I…I don’t think I’m…going to make it,” he gasped.

Lantern

Just when he thought it couldn't get any worse - and that thought had ran through his head at least five times within the past few minutes - everything went to smithereens. That was what he got for trying to be a good Samaritan. Kituo should have just remained in his comfort zone, his cowardly comfort zone where he was useless and safe. He looked at the now feral rat as it clung to his shoulder. That was a big mistake and it nearly caused him to hurl all over again. He was in pain and he didn't know how to deal with it. It frustrated Kituo and he fought with himself to come up with a solution for his predicament. Never before had he encountered a rat and had it jump on him. He had heard other men in the city speak about such things but he frequently tuned them out. Kituo cast aside everything he did not want to hear out. That did not help him as much as it made him naive to the travesties that could potentially occur.

"Argh, get off of me!" Kituo yelled. He did not take the rat's sharp teeth into account before he started swinging his arm around, hoping to shake it off like all of his other problems. "I tried to be your pal and this is how you repay me?"

Kituo never learned that nice guys usually finished last. He was now shrilling, the volume of his voice pushing his vocal chords to their limits. He just wanted someone to intervene and help him. Anybody would do at this point, particularly the tall guy who had comforted him before. To Kituo he seemed like the the trio's de facto leader. However, even Kituo knew that he couldn't always count on others to save him. The pain of the rat's digging claws was rushing him to build up the courage to defend himself.

What can I do? What can I do?

The stress griped Kituo as a ball of sweat rolled down his head. He felt like he couldn't do anything - the same feeling he had whenever he was faced with adversity. He continued to swing his arm hoping to pry the rat free. If it had bitten him by now he probably would not have noticed - okay he would have but in the midst of trying to get the rat off of him, fearing its teeth did not seem to be his utmost priority. He still had his other arm and his legs to put to use. So what does a coward like Kituo do with these resources available? He uses them to run around in a circle and cry.

Lantern

I'll probably be posting later on tonight or tomorrow once I think of a reasonable reaction for Kituo. Poor guy will probably never look at animals the same ever again.

Lantern

My bad about the double post. Didn't do that on purpose. Computer messed up.

Lantern

(Void).

Lantern

Kituo felt relieved that the object was harmless. A key – okay he could tolerate that. He emitted a sigh of relief and tried his best to calm his nerves. He was unapologetic about the whole ordeal. He couldn’t understand how the other members of the group could be so relaxed. Kituo on the other hand didn’t want to take any chances. He was in an unfamiliar place where just about anything could happen.

The tallest of their group seemed to take charge, at least to Kituo. He appreciated the assuring attitude he took towards him. Kituo rarely ever received such patience even from his own kin so for a complete stranger to console him really meant a lot. He started to loosen up a bit around the other three. They didn’t seem like bad people. As matter of fact, although they were certainly different, they didn’t seem much older than him. Perhaps they would easy to relate to later on down the road? Wherever that was.

Unfortunately, Kituo would learn that a young man as nervous as he should never let down his guard so quick. Not long after he finally began to simmer did he find himself riled back up. The sight of a human skeleton nearly sent him into a frenzy. He leaped back and let out a high pitched shriek which he was immediately embarrassed about but again did not fully regret. That was the only sign he needed to know that the forest wasn’t safe. Something had killed that guy and the odds were that it was still around. He was conflicted about how the tall guy could smile when there was the remnants of a man – a human being like they were – laying right within their reach.

And just when it seemed as if Kituo’s day couldn’t get any worse.

“What is that?” He yelped, looking at that the root that had wrapped around the girl’s root.

To anyone trying to survive, it was apparent that Kituo would be inherently useless. He was so squeamish and easily frightened that even the slightest unfamiliarity startled him. As the tall guy reached for the knife he sprinted back in hopes of creating more distance between himself and the ensnared girl for he didn’t want to be next.

Please let me get out of this alive!

Kituo whirled around and squatted, shielding his head with his arms as the tall guy reached into the cocoon. He fought not to listen as the sounds of squeaking and hissing cursed his ears. However, curiosity seemed to always kill the cat without difficulty. No matter how much he wanted to pretend like something serious wasn’t going on around him, Kituo could not completely shunt out the disturbance. He turned his head just when the snake latched onto the tall guy’s hand. Kituo winced. While he himself wasn’t bit he felt a tinge of pain course through his body. Watching alone was harmful to him.

I-I have to do something! M-move Kituo! Don’t just sit there!

But Kituo didn’t know what to do at all. When times got tough Kituo was always among those who ran and hid. He spent the entirety of his life in the shadows waiting for others to solve the problems that were both his and the world’s. Thankfully, Kituo didn’t have to intervene with the crisis for the tall guy’s strikes managed to defeat the root and send it packing.

By that point Kituo’s heart was nearly exploding within his chest. His stomach churned and he felt like vomiting. He bent over and clenched his stomach as he warred with himself to keep his breakfast contained. Not giving him even a second to recover, Kituo looked up to see the cocoon’s root open and begin what was probably the most scariest scene he ever had the displeasure of witnessing. He caught a clear glimpse of the skeleton and the snake’s corpse. Kituo’s dark skin nearly lost all of his coloring. He couldn’t hold on after that. He spun around and puked.

Fortunately for Kituo’s sake he didn’t see the small man get devoured. He did, however, experience an overwhelming amount of shock when he turned to see him gone. He knew what happened. He was glad that it wasn’t he was who killed. Now there were only three left in total – he, the tall guy, and the girl. Kituo was worried that their numbers had already been reduced. There was certainly safety in numbers when stuck in the middle of only the higher powers know where.

All that was left of the horror was a little rat that clung to the tall guy’s back. Strangely, although everything else had terrified him, Kituo wasn’t all that afraid of the rat. He could feel its weakness – or at least what he deemed weakness – as it shook. The poor creature was drenched with blood and presumably in a state of shock. Hoping to useful for once, Kituo slowly approached the tall guy and tried to coax the rat off of him.

“C’mon little guy,” he said. “Its okay.”

He stopped a few feet away in hopes of maintaining some security. He didn’t expect the rat to heed his generosity – it was an animal after all. Kituo’s only goal was to try and lose the title of weakest link.

Lantern

Green team, you're definitely up next! Since you guys lost your fourth player, do you want to keep going as you are or merge up with another team?

I'd prefer to continue as we are but I won't mind merging with another team if my teammates wish to do so.

Lantern

Having spent the entirety of his life behind the walls of a city in the middle of a desert which he did not know the boundaries to, it was only natural that Kituo had never seen a forest before. Upon coming to, he was met with the shock of being in an unfamiliar place - a great distress to someone with as much as no independence whatsoever. The pain that tortured his joints did not help to comfort him. His eyes fluttered as he regained consciousness, a feint green glow greeting him along with the twisted branches of the canopy. He lay on his back, his head throbbing in addition to his already aching arms and legs. He took a brief observation of his surroundings and, without little concern for the three others who shared his predicament, began to panic.

Just where am I?

Kituo's eyes darted from corner to corner. He couldn't focus long enough to take in any details for he desperately wanted to find his way back home. He stood up, a sharp pain almost forcing him back onto his behind. Once he was able to muster enough strength to balance, he exhaled the breath he had been holding in since his awakening. Kituo took a moment to calm himself for there was no foreseeable threat. This allowed him to start panicking all over again. Not only was he now inquiring on his whereabouts, he wanted to know where his father or rather his safety net was. Only then did it register with Kituo that there were other people with him.

They all looked very different from Kituo and this startled him. In the city were he originated, almost everyone was of dark complexion. He had heard about lighter skinned peoples living northward but he never had any experience with them. This was the most new things Kituo had ever been exposed to in a single dosage. He didn't know how to take it all in without briefly nibbling on his fingernails. He remained quiet but attentive as one of the others fiddled with a shiny object. That was just great. Not only was he stuck between a rock and a hard place with three potential harbingers of his demise, but there were now strange objects sitting around. Kituo wanted to tell the guy to leave it alone. There was no telling what kind of destructive properties it had. He hesitated as the only girl within the assembly approached the guy caressing the object. He couldn't stand it any further. Kituo had reached his breaking point.

"Um...excuse me," he meekly said, trembling. "Why are you touching that? What if its dangerous?"

That was probably the boldest he had ever been.

Lantern

Name: Kituo Maji

Age: 17

Appearance: While it would be expected of someone who has spent a lot of time lifting heavy rock to at least gain some muscle mass, this not the case for Kituo mostly due to his high metabolism and the amount of sweat he has leaked out from exposure to the intense desert sun. He is a slim young man standing at a modest height of five feet and eight inches and is likely still growing at a slow rate. His features are analogous to people of African descent, his skin being deep brown and his lips filled. He has thick and curly mid-length black hair which is a bit unkempt from his days of labor. His limbs are stringy while the shape of his face is triangular. His eyes are dark and small.

Growing up in a hot climate, Kituo prefers clothing that is loose fitting and of a thin material. He typically can be seen wearing a long burnt orange shirt that reaches below his waist in length. Running parallel down the shirt are two golden strips. The shirt itself is also sleeveless to further accommodate him against the heat. He wears dark pants which cut off just above his ankles. Around his right wrist he wears a gold bangle which was given to him as a birthday present when he was younger. On his feet are sandals.

Occupation: Apprentice Stonemason

Personality: Kituo has never really gotten as much as he wanted accomplished in life due to his apprehension. He always considers the consequences before making a decision, most times overthinking and convincing himself not to go through with something that he may have actually wanted. Because he has allowed his fear to restrict him, he has also become reliant on his family for support. He isn't argumentative nor confrontational and prefers to take a passive role in conflict. When faced with any kind of danger, he prefers flight over fight regardless of the circumstances.

Socially he is reserved and reluctant to interact. However, he'll talk to those he finds non-intimidating. As he doesn't take well to most people, it isn't abnormal for him to favor a particular person whom he feels he can connect with. Ironically, he takes better to people who aren't like him and would better be rather an exuberant person for he feels they usually emit a positive aura. As he lacks confidence, it can be inferred that his reasoning for preferring these kinds of people is that he hopes he'll gain some esteem himself.

Kituo has always been curious about the world beyond his village but was taught that It was dangerous. Therefore, despite his yearning to at least figure out what else was out there, he never took any initiative and thus remained in the dark. He has a wild imagination and likes to conjure up stories in his spare time with a ideal version of himself as the focal.

What burdens Kituo the most is the nagging regret he harbors. Having never realized nor lived up to his full potential, he is haunted by the memories of his failures and the knowledge that he won't be able to undo them. He has tendency to reflect on the past often - specifically on things he could have did better.

History: Kituo has spent the entirety of his life so far living safely within the sturdy walls of a desert city. As commoners had no particular reason to leave, Kituo never even so much as heard about what the outside world was like when he was a small child. His family was middle class being neither poor nor rich. He never had to struggle for food nor fight to survive. His parents coddled him and provided him and his siblings with everything they needed to live comfortably. His only true worry was school as his father pressured him heavily to perform. Unfortunately for his standards, Kituo wasn't the best student and his grades were mostly mediocre. At a young age his father, believing that educating him would be futile, withdrew him school due to the costs and forced Kituo to work alongside him as a stonemason. He found the work hard but eventually learned to tolerate it as he had no other options.

While he helped feed his family by working alongside his father, Kituo quickly found himself dissatisfied with his life. He watched as his younger brother excelled in his academics and took to a path for a brighter future. Kituo sensed that his father was disappointed in him and it upset him. They would frequently have brief spats about his failures with his father usually ending them with remarks about his laziness and lack of motivation. While he may not have expressed it at that moment, the words seeped into Kituo and took their toll on him. He always became silent when his father told him those things for he knew they were true. Not knowing what to do, he continued on with his work without giving any challenge.

Kituo was never really popular but did manage to make a few friends - most of them being fellow stonemasons who worked with to upkeep the city's buildings. There was one boy in particular who Kituo considered his best friend, mostly because his optimistic attitude helped keep his spirits up throughout the day's harsh heat. The boy insisted on speaking about his dream to leave the city and find a more amusing way of making a living. Kituo secretly shared this dream and silently listened to his friend's words as they cut and hauled stone together.