Fan Fiction ❯ Soul Calibur II: Return of the Soul Edge ❯ The Introduction ( Chapter 1 )

Soul Calibur II:

The Return of Soul Edge

-The Introduction-

 

 

He was running.

 

His eyes bore a terrified look, a desperate one.

 

He needed to escape, but there was nowhere to run. The town was silent; there were nobody around. He turned a corner and stumbled over to an empty wagon. Resting against it, he took in a ragged breath while perspiration dotted his forehead. A shriek caused him to look around, fear occupying his face. Pushing away from the wagon, he started to run again, only to be greeted by a horrific sight. The decapitated body stood over him, blood staining its clothing. His eyes caught sight of the severed head, staring up at him as it lay in a pool of its own blood.

 

He got away quickly and ran away, only to turn the corner and trip something over and fall to the ground. When he turned over to see what cause him to fall, he screamed. It was another body. Then the pounding of heavy footsteps from around the corner jerked him back to reality. He ran again, turned a corner, and then into another. He stopped in his tracks suddenly. The town square was filled with the dead bodies, and water in the fountain has been turned red, like blood…

 

"No! No! No!" He said as he closed his eyes. Then a loud crash sounded behind him. He covered his face from the swirling dirt with his arm. Taking a defensive step backwards, he slowly lowered his arms from his eyes to look directly at the source of the disturbance.

 

The menacing form of the azure knight stood in front of him. Its crimson eyes locking onto his figure straight. The knight's right hand was deformed; it looked like a huge claw and held something on it. Its left hand held a giant sword. He noticed that there is something blinking at the sword. A single, huge yellowish, blood shot eye stared him. It throbbed like his heartbeat. A disembodied voice spoke,

 

"Come back…Take what is yours! Take the Soul Edge back!" He screamed vehemently.

 

"No! I don't want the Soul Edge anymore! I want no more of that accursed sword; there will be no more death done in my name!" Instead, the azure knight shoved his right hand, showing what it held. It was a severed head! From its appearance, the head was belonged to a middle-aged man with blond beard and blue eyes. Suddenly, the head stared him and spoke,

 

"Have you forgotten me, son? I can understand why you killed me, but these people…they are innocent…" To his horror, the head was transformed into a middle-aged woman. It stared him with an underlying sadness, while a pearly tear rolled upon its cheek,

 

"Why are you doing this, son? Probably, it is better that you'd never born to this world…you have become a nightmare, Siegfried Schtauffen…" At the same time, the knight in azure armor laughed hideously. The laugh continued, getting louder. And louder. And louder. He closed both ears with his hands, while screaming in terror…

 

 

He screamed in terror, his eyes bursting open as he awoke. Heavy perspiration was present on his face, his breathing labored. He lay still for a short moment, finding himself at the grassland. A little girl with red sash over her head stared him incredulously. She had curly hairs, while her hands held the flowers. He tried to smile, but it was very hard. Finally, he offered a weak smile,

 

"Hi…" Then two people ran toward them. The little girl turned to the black-moustache man and the black-haired woman; they wore the clothing, which has usually worn by the Gypsies. The woman hugged the little girl, saying,

 

"Kara, how many times I've told you to not disturb people?" The girl smiled in reply. Then the mother turned to the stranger,

 

"I'm apologize if my daughter has disturbing your nap…" The man looked haggard and unshaven. His blond hair was mixed with some reddish strands; while he didn't wear any clothing saves some armoring. The black-moustache man watched him with suspicion. The Gypsy woman spoke again,

 

"Sir, would you care to join us? Our caravan isn't very far. You can eat there…" The mustached man quickly cut her,

 

"Magda, please don't bother this gentleman. Probably he doesn't like to join with people like us…" Slowly, the man rose and covered himself with a dirty cloak. He held a huge, but broken sword on his left hand. The Gypsies was alarmed, yet he said to defuse their apprehension,

 

"Thanks for your kindness, but I have something important to do…" He left them alone and went to the nearest forest. While returned to their caravan, the Gypsy woman stared her companion as she carried the girl,

 

"Ravel, you don't have to be rude. The poor man can use some help…" Ravel replied without any expression,

 

"He is a stranger, Magda! Beside, I have another reason to not invite him…" He explained,

 

"Two villages nearby have been destroyed and the villagers were slaughtered…rumors said that it must be the workings of a demon, since nobody could massacre so many people single-handedly…" Magda sniffed,

 

"So, do you think that poor man have something to do with that?" The Gypsy sighed,

 

"Perhaps, I don't know for sure. But I won't take any chances…" As they conversed, the man who once had called Siegfried or Nightmare disappeared into the forest. Few hours later, a loud scream was heard…

 

 

 

Four years later,

 

Four people huddled around the bonfire, not far from the abandoned Egyptian crypt. They wore the brownish, thick tunic with black coat. The largest among them started to speak,

 

"What a boring night! Nobody passes the trail tonight…" The mouse-looking man beside him answered,

 

"Probably they took another trail…" The man with a scarred face harrumphed,

 

"Huh, if they keep doing that, soon we'll be jobless…" The gold-toothed man in front of him smiled, showing his glittering teeth,

 

"Calm down, Qarim! It isn't the first time we haven't got anything…hey, do you remember one of our victim four months ago?" The large man laughed,

 

"Yeah, do you see his face when we said to him that we're going to kill him? It was very pathetic…" The mouse-looking man followed,

 

"He has nothing but the worthless pieces of metal…" Everybody laughed again, savoring the event like nothing. Suddenly the mouse-looking man went hurriedly to another direction. The scarred man called,

 

"Hey, Qassim! Where are you going? To relieve your bladder?" Once again, those bandits laughed.

 

 

 

At the secluded place, Qassim breathed in relief after finished. Then he spotted a shadow behind him.

 

"Hey, is that you, Hussain?" No answer came. He called again,

 

"Come on, don't make me doing this!" Qassim instantly unsheathed his scimitar and sneak silently toward the shadow. Without warning, he jumped in front of the shadow, and shouted,

 

"Gotcha! I've got you now, Huss…" In no time, the shout turned into a scream.

 

 

 

The scream instantly alarmed Qassim's accomplices. They prepared their weapons just in case. Hussain, the tall man held a morning star and a wicked-looking scythe. Chains held both weapons together. He turned to the scarred man,

 

"What is that, Qarim?" Qarim merely produced a claw weapon at his right hand; he answered roughly,

 

"How do I know?" Then he shouted,

 

"Qassim, is this one of your jokes? If it is, it isn't funny!" The gold-toothed bandit has pulled his twin daggers as well. Qarim called again with impatient tone,

 

"Damn you, Qassim! May Allah curse you to eternity!" Suddenly, something large fell to their sight. To their horror, it was the crumpled body of Qassim. It bore the stab wounds. Hussain broke into tears upon the sight of his friend,

 

"Qassim!" Then he snarled like a rabid dog, "Who dares to kill my friend? I swear that I'm going to skin that bastard alive…" In response of the bandit, a lumbering shadow came forward. It became clearer with the bonfire. The bandit gasped in shock and revulsion when they saw the thing…

 

 

The thing that stood in front of those bandits was composed of skeletal remains, yet it wasn't look like a human skeleton. It didn't have a skull, while its limbs looked disproportionate. In the place of the entrails, the fleshy core with a huge, yellowish eye suspended by the makeshift ribcage. The eye stared the bandits one by one, as the core throbbed along with their heartbeats. They noted that the creature's left limb wet with fresh blood; no doubt, it was the one who had killed Qassim. The gold-toothed bandit exclaimed,

 

"Astagafirullah! What kind of djinn is that?" Hussain merely grinded his teeth out of anger,

 

"Djinn or not, this wretch has killed Qassim and I'm going to send it back to where it belongs…" However, the scarface stopped him,

 

"Wait, Hussain! I want to play with this creature for a while, and then the rest is yours…" Qarim jumped forward, while shoving his claws to taunt the creature. The skeletal creature itself watched his stance carefully. The bandit smiled,

 

"Hey, what is your name? Djinn? Demon? Eaah, let's stop this charades! I'm going to tear you…"

 

Inside the core, a hideous voice spoke, '…charades…charade…" The eye watched its opponent intensely, while flashy images passed inside. Qarim opened the first attack by slashing the claw horizontally, and then followed by the vertical one. The creature moved in a nimble posture, avoiding the attack perfectly. The scarred bandit forced his attack with swirling his body before sending the thrust attack. Again, the creature evaded it. They continued the stance, while Hussain shouted impatiently,

 

"Qarim, what are you waiting for? Kill that bastard quickly!"

 

"I'm trying!" As the creature watched Qarim's stance, an image of a pirate that held the twin sword passed inside its thought, followed by an azure knight, a huge golem and finally a crawling blind assassin. Then it charged forward, giving the simultaneous stomp and head butt to the bandit. Everyone laughed when saw what happened.

Angrily, Qarim swung his weapon furiously. Instantly, the creature's right arm materialized into a scimitar and blocked the attack. The bandit growled,

 

"So, you finally have a weapon, hah? I'd bet it must belonged to the poor Qassim!" The creature was silent; instead it performed an uppercut strike that forced Qarim out. Then it followed by a two-handed sideswipe that changed into a giant overhead chop. It managed to tear the bandit's tunic. Furious, Qarim started to attack in erratic manner. Yet, the strange creature merely counters it with ease. When the bandit charged, it performed a vertical cut toward the right side. Qarim heard a faint, moist sound that thrilled and repulsed him at the same time. His accomplices took a single deep breath and groaned. Glancing down, he saw his own severed right hand, still with the claw attached. Instantly, he howled in pain, holding the severed arm.

 

The creature nodded in satisfaction, but then the morning star suddenly crushed its appendages. It turned its attention to Hussain who had swung his weapons above his head,

 

"For Qassim, I'll ground you into dust!" The eye squinted in response. Amazingly, the crushed limb were pulled back to their place and returned to the normal. The large bandit threw again its weapon, but the creature avoided the attack at the nick of time. Now Hussain threw the scythe toward its target, and it hit the left limb. The creature fell upon the sand. The bandit quickly took the chance to bring both morning star and scythe to crushing blow. The creature incredibly crawled away, allowing the blow hit empty place. Once again, it has regenerated its own limb. In addition of the scimitar, now it has added the claw weapon at its right limb. When the bandit attacked again, it performed a horizontal attack to the feet. Hussain grunted, but he forced himself to stand ground. He immediately swung both weapons into a whirl, spinning around. The creature watched its movement carefully. Suddenly, the bandit swung the morning star toward the core. Instinctively, it blocked the attack by crossing the weapons, yet it didn't ready when the scythe struck the head part. It fell on the ground, while Hussain laughed,

 

"Nobody survive from Hussain! I'm the only one who mastered this kind of weapon…" To his dismay, the creature regenerated its broken part and stood again like nothing happened. This time, the huge bandit lost his patience. He quickly uses again the same maneuver, but this time the creature was ready. It spins away while performing a horizontal arc with its scimitar. The weapons clashed each other; Hussain was stunned with the attack and lost control of his weapons. The creature quickly charged in with two sweeping horizontal blows, rendering the bandit helpless. Finally, it rushes forward with claw weapon and drove it deeply to its opponent. Hussain could only stare with disbelief as the creature stabbed him. The eye was throbbed wildly as the bandit's blood gushed over it. It slowly let Hussain's body fall on the ground. The gold-toothed man was shaken with the event; he didn't expect the creature could kill his friend. Throwing away his weapon, he quickly left the place. The mysterious creature followed him, while Hussain's weapon materialized in its hands. It whirled the weapon overhead and threw the scythe toward the running bandit. Instantly, the weapon yanked his feet and he fell to the ground. Before he managed to utter a scream, the creature already swung the morning star toward his head…

 

After finished its victim, the eye turned around, looking for the remaining bandit. The only clue was a trail of blood toward the crypt. The creature decided to ignore him and turned to the corpses. It dragged Qassim and Hussain's body toward east…it left a glittering object…a gold tooth.

 

 

Qarim ran as far as he could. Without further thinking, he entered the dark crypt, hoping the creature didn't pursue him. He didn't even realize that the fiery glowing eyes watched him. The bandit breathed in relief, while he held his severed arm. When turned around, he was speechless. From the darkness, a huge, green-skinned creature came out. Its chest plate glowed with an unnatural blaze and the creature snorted with displeasure as Qarim shuddered in fear. Before the bandit managed to run, the green creature bashed him to the ground and impaled him with an energy-like weapon. Crushed now against the cold floor and felt the weapon was pulled out from his body slowly, Qarim prayed silently in his native tongue. The man was gurgling upon his own blood. His screams were barely audible.

 

 

 

Meanwhile at the ruins of the Ostrheinsburg Castle, rain poured endlessly on the ruined castle. The ruins have become a silent witness to the bloodshed that happened at its ground. It have witnessed Stefan's vain attempt to defend it against Marquis Andre's superior force, and then Nightmare's horrible massacre in order to resurrect his dead father, without knowing it was the scheme of the demonic Soul Edge. It also witnessed his fall and breaking of the Soul Edge. The fragments buried beneath the ground, yet they emanated the reddish aura faintly. Now it would witness the resurrection of the Merciless Destroyer…

 

While the rain still poured down, the harsh voice came to the air,

 

"Ker, hear me! I want Soul Edge!" The ground where the fragments of the evil sword once scattered, shook violently. Again, the voice shouted with a louder tone,

 

"Ker, heed my command! Bring Soul Edge to me! Rise up, my champion! I bid you to arise! Come forth, Astaroth! COME FORTH!" In a sudden, the ground cracked and opened into a huge crack. From the crack, something huge appeared. It was a huge man with a broken chest plate and a mask that covered his mouth. His throbbing heart peeked from the broken plate. He roared aloud in the midst of the ruins, and then turned to the rained sky. The voice spoke to him,

 

"Astaroth, I've brought you back from the death! You must find Soul Edge for me! Find and bring the sword for me!" The golem thudded his chest and shouted,

 

"Exterminate!" The voice continued,

 

"You won't have any difficulty to find it, since you're made from the soil of this place and it has contained the fragments of Soul Edge! Do you feel it, my champion?" Astaroth didn't answer,

 

"Not only that, it would render you stronger than before! Now, depart! Find the Soul Edge for me!! Find it!" The golem bent down and took his Kulutues. The lightning cracked as Astaroth roared again,

 

"Destroy all! It will rain blood today!!" Laid his axe upon the shoulder, he went into the black mist and vanished…

 

 

 

On the Mediterranean Ocean, two ships were anchored at the open ship. The smaller ship rested beside the huge one. On the ship, two people were conversing. The young-looking man with blue eyes turned to the burly one. The young man wore the white shirt with brown blazer, while his head wrapped with red bandanna. His friend has an auburn hair and held an axe. The man asked,

 

"Hey, Svenson! What does Captain Paulo doing there? It' s already three hours since they went aboard that ship!" The burly man answered,

 

"You're right, Marle! Let's come to check it…" Then they climbed aboard to the large ship. Once inside, the sprawling bodies around the hull greeted them. Marle could only gasp in fear, while Svenson called,

 

"Marle, Captain is here! He's…wounded…" The young sailor came and saw his friends held an old man. His throat was cut severely by a sharp object. He screamed,

 

"Captain! Who did this to you?" Struggling, the dying man pointed to the main mast of the ship. When they turned around, they saw someone stood at the top. A tall figure watched them coldly; he wore the green pirate clothing and a captain's cap, while crossing his arms on the chest. The right hand held a blade with a pistol-like hilt, while the other has a longer blade. Then he greeted them with a loud voice,

 

"Ahoy, mates! Welcome aboard to the Adrian!" After saying that, the man jumped below, somersaulted and finally landed on his feet. Svenson pulled his axe, while Marle prepared his pistol. At the same time, the old man breathed his last breath. As the mysterious figure went closer, they could see clearly despite the mist around them. The man's face was pallid like a corpse, while the eyes looked opaque. Sometimes it has a red or white glare on it. The noxious smell filled the air around them. While smiled, the man put his right blade and took his hat, offering a salute,

 

"Cervantes de Leon at your service…what brings you two here?" Marle asked, while trying hard to control his anger,

 

"You…are you the one who did this?" Svenson watched the pirate's movement carefully. Then Cervantes put his hat again and looked around with disdain,

 

"Pshaw, these good-for nothings think that they can salvage my beloved Adrian and getting away without punishment…" The young man gritted his teeth,

 

"Those good for nothings are our friends!!" The pirate smiled only,

 

"Ah, I see…now, leave your soul here." Unable to control himself, Marle fired his pistol. However, Cervantes deflected the bullet with flick of his left hand. Svenson saw that the long blade somehow has a throbbing eye. Sound of clang echoed in the darkness. The burly man quickly stopped his friend from wasting the bullet,

 

"Stop it, would you?" He glanced darkly to the demented pirate, who commented,

 

"Ah, look what we have here! A brave one!" Then Cervantes taunted them,

 

"So kill me if you can. Others have tried and failed…"

 

"Maybe they just didn't cut you into small enough pieces." Svenson slashed the axe horizontally to the midsection of the pirate. However it was avoided with ease. Suddenly the pirate changed his position into a charging one,

 

"Dread Charge!" As he ran toward his opponent, Cervantes immediately changed the stance,

 

"Geo Da Ray!" His head hit Svenson's chest squarely; forcing his opponent stumbled backward. The burly sailor rose up angrily, yet the undead pirate attacked again. This time, he sent a kick to his opponent's knee,

 

"Sadistic Sweep!" Svenson roared and bent his body forward due to the attack. He quickly slashed his weapon maniacally, but nothing hit the pirate. Cervantes himself took a backward step, while crossing his weapons above the head and then slashed upwardly,

 

"Crossbone Divider!" The attack sent the sailor airborne. The pirate didn't let the chance pass. When his opponent almost landed, he quickly caught him with his long sword at the chest and smashed his victim with the knee. Svenson could only cough blood, as his ribs broken. Throwing him to the ground, Cervantes has prepared his final attack. He charged again and slashed his weapons downward in a X formation, cutting into the flesh,

 

"Killer X! Die with regret, you fool!" The burly sailor screamed for the last time, and blood spurts from the slash wound. Cervantes smiled widely upon the scene. Marle could only cover his mouth when he saw Svenson's horrible death. He immediately ran to the side of the ship, only to found the pirate standing there. His knee shook violently, when the pirate came closer and said,

 

"Hmm, where are you going, matey? The party isn't over yet…why don't you tell who you are?" The young sailor screamed, when Cervantes slashed him. However the pirate merely faked it, he slashed his bandanna from the other side. Instantly the blond long hair fell from his head. Cervantes shook his stiffened neck with amusement. Marle actually was a woman.

 

"Hmm, what a beautiful scene…" Marle was terrified; her body was wet with cold sweats, especially when the pirate touched her gently. Then he flicked Nirvana to her shirt, plucking the buttons one by one to reveal the sailor's chest. She closed her eyes as the icy cold fingers passed over her skin. She shivered because of that. Slowly, Cervantes pulled the terrified young girl closer and whispered softly,

 

"You're so beautiful…almost reminds me to the one who had destroyed my Soul Edge before…" He distanced himself from her, before saying the terrible word that she dreaded,

 

"You shall be my nourishment!" With a sudden movement, he turned his back to her and stabbed her at the chest without turning back. Marle's blue eyes bulged out as she let out the blood-curdling scream. She felt that her blood was drained slowly from her. The last thing she saw was the blade that Cervantes use to stab her. It has a bloodshot eye and blinked several time as it drank her blood. Then everything passed to the darkness…

 

Few minutes later, the woman's body thudded the wooden floor face up. Her face was frozen with utter fear, while her chest bore a gaping wound. Cervantes ignored it like nothing happened; he walked over Marle's cold body and turned to the Soul Edge. The evil blade was bathed with the fresh blood, and throbbed rhythmically. The pirate asked adoringly,

 

"What do you think, my dear? Did her blood satisfy you?" The Soul Edge responded with the unknown rhythm. Cervantes touched the blade lovingly, at the same time the mist disappeared and the moon was full on the midnight sky.

 

"I know that you've missed your pair…we shall find the thief who had called himself Nightmare, my dear! There I will crush him, and what he has taken in his insolence shall be mine again forever." The pirate laughed with an inhuman tone.

 

 

 

At the same time, someone stood at the top of a mountain. It was the azure knight. His crimson hair flew with the wind. He stared the sky menacingly, waiting something. Then a raven came and threw something to him. The knight took it with his huge, clawed right hand and watched it with pleasure. The crimson eyes glinted as the fragment in his hand reverberated and emitted a red aura. He lifted his huge sword. Close to its hilt, there was a huge eye with something like muscles strands. The eye throbbed faster in response to the fragment. He shouted aloud,

 

"If they wanted the Soul Edge, let them come then! Their souls shall be mine!!" The lightning cracked thrice as Nightmare laughed with infernal merriment, resonates to the Void and answered by Inferno himself…

 

 

 

Author's note: OK, guys! This is my first SC fanfic. I wrote this, based from the information I could get about SC II. The fight might be not exciting, and needs to be improved. The story explains about the appearance of Charade & Necrid, and also return of Cervantes, Astaroth and Nightmare. I would continue this once I have a time. Reviews, critics (or flames) are welcomed! Enjoy this!

 

Disclaimer: Soul Calibur II and its characters are belongs to Namco and Sony Playstation. The other characters that are not mentioned are belongs to me.