A distant chorus of screams catch Axel’s attention when he exits out to the street. Around the corner of the tavern, Axel catches a glimpse of a partially collapsed home. Some of the dust hasn’t settled, but residents try to clear the area before the rest comes down. One of the remaining loose walls breaks free from the restraints. Residents rush to secure the wall, but its weight pulls them as it falls in the opposite direction. Just below a young lady falls unable to stand back up. Axel pushes past the crowd to help, however, Ryo appears beside the lady. With his good arm up above his head the wall makes contact, pushing his body downward in the dirt. Through sheer will force, Ryo slowly pushes against it, moving the wall back upwards. His unnatural strength creates a buzz from the onlookers.

Frozen in place, Axel listens to the murmurs arise from the gathered crowd. Between a few sneers and head shakes raises their suspicions about Ryo. The lady in trouble stands up then moves away like a scared mouse. The head worker, James Otaro, rushes to her side. Instead of a ‘thank you’ he glares at Ryo.

“I don’t know who you are but who asked you to help!?” James barks at Ryo. A big cut above his left eye and bruising on his body are visible. His buddies arrive, supporting the woman to remove her from the situation.

“We had it under control! We don’t need an outsider getting involved!” He doesn’t let up.

“I only wanted to help her. I don’t want any trouble.” Ryo answers, unfazed by the man’s intimidating stance.

“Well, you made trouble!” He points his finger directly at Ryo’s chest.  “Let me tell you about this town. We don’t welcome outsiders and we don’t welcome those who stick their nose into where it doesn’t belong.” He turns his head to Axel, speaking the last few words directly to him. From behind the crowd nods in agreement with the man’s words.

The level of hostility triggers a wave of deep anxiety inside of Ryo. The look of judgement by a group of people, not feeling welcomed anywhere he goes, and the curse feeling of shouldering the burdens of someone else. These feelings festered within Ryo’s chest. Unsure of what’s happening, a slight pulse of pain travels from the back of his head to the front. The man’s shout reverberates and overlaps with words spoken by another unknown individual. Axel sees Ryo bend his head to the side in pain and rushes to his side to interfere between them. “He didn’t cause any trouble. I think we can just let this be.”

James laughs at Axel. “No trouble? Says the source of all our problems! If you didn’t stick your nose into that situation then we wouldn’t be in the debt, we are now!” He shouts. “Look at this!” He points to the scar on his head, and the bruise on his arm. “This was caused by you!”

Anger bubbles up in the pit of Axel’s stomach. But the man continues his rant. “We strive to make a living for ourselves! We were doing just fine until you stepped in and made it worse for us! This place was a lot better when your father-!“

That’s it.  Everything inside just snapped. Unable to hold back any longer, a blind rage fills Axel’s eyes, when he shoves the man off his feet onto the ground. The wind is knocked out of his lungs. Without hesitation, Axel pulls his fist back, and brings it downward into a full punch to the stomach. Midway, a hand comes from behind him and stops the hit. Even a short distance away, Ryo catches the fear hidden in the James’s eyes. Ryo’s hand grip shakes from the sheer tension of Axel’s anger.

“We should probably go now.” Ryo’s low voice reaches Axel’s ears. Some of his rage dies down and he comes back to his senses.

Without a word, his head low, Axel turns striding past the crowd. Everyone moves out of their way to avoid him. Ryo follows behind him, ignoring most of their pity and hardened stares.

On another street, Axel sits on a stone wall, watching small children play at the fountain in the center of town. Ryo joins him, leaning up against one of the house gates.

“I’ve never seen a town like this before.” Ryo speaks first. ‘I wonder if they are all like this.” He tries his best to break the tension in the air.

“No, it’s probably just here. Also, how can you know? You have no memories.” Axel dangles his head. “Forget it.” He shows exhaustion without arguing back. “They just don’t get it. Paying for your security. It’s no better than blackmail.”

Ryo turns his gaze forward. “What happened?”

Axel glances at him, ruffling the side of his hair. “There is a group that supposedly helps us with security. They make sure the town remains untouched. However, their last visit I noticed that their fee keeps going up. Almost to impossible levels. I confront them but instead of hurting me they decided to beat up James as an example.”

He looks up at the sky. “After that I became an outcast. More so than usual. I kind of always tried to cause trouble when the group arrived but the last visit, I grew suspicious of them. Only Thersea could see that I couldn’t stand by and not do anything.”

“You really do care about this place, huh?” Ryo watches some people giggle with the friends.

“Of course, it’s the only place even remotely close to a home. I won’t let others do what they want here.” That determination shows through Axel’s unwavering eyes.

“Agh!” Axel suddenly screams out, messing his hair up with both hands. “If only Finn was here. They wouldn’t have gotten away with what they did last time!”

“Finn? Who is that?” Ryo asks.

“I guess Remure’s leader? He is the one who discovered it. Lately he takes trips to nearby towns for trades and to gather information.”

“Well, it can’t be all bad. There are two people in town who don’t hate you.” Ryo adds to it.

“Hey! You know I’m not a-“ He looks at Ryo and for a brief moment catches a small smile creep on his face.”

“Did you just smile?” Axel jumps up.

Ryo turns the other way. “No, I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“I saw it! A smile!” Axel insists.

“Your imagination, just like your delusion of being a great swordsman.” He stands up, walking down the street.

“Hey! I will be a great swordsman!” He shouts, running after him.

On the outskirts of a neighboring town, a middle-aged man trudges down the path leading into the nearby forest. He walks with a slight limp and uses a cane to help balance himself. In his other hand, he grips a parchment paper with a small list of names. All the names except for the last one are crossed off with ink. At the outer edge of the forest he stops for a short break, bringing the paper up to his face. Steadying himself against a tree, he crosses off the last name on the list. Behind his spectacles, sharp eyes review the names again.

“This is the last one. Why did they suddenly stop the trades?” He scratchiness underneath his chin, confused by why the towns have turned cold to him. “We need to figure something out before Remure gets isolated from everyone.”

From above the sun begins to set behind the tree line, casting dark shadows on the path in front of him. A cold wind whistles through the leaves, dropping the temperature to cooler levels. To protect himself, he places his hood over his head. From his pocket, he takes out a small lantern, hooking it to the top of his cane. He places the paper away and from the tips of his fingers a small flame enters the glass rectangle. Its light illuminates a few feet around the man’s position. He continues to stride down the pathway weaving between the brush and trees. A few minutes later he comes across a small opening where a group of individuals are gathered. Behind the trees, he presses himself against the trunk to hide himself from view.

“Have the two reported back yet?” One of the outlooks says.

“They saw him leave the town accompanied by an unknown individual.”

The outlook approaches the back of the covered wagon and bows. “How should we proceed sir?”

“Looks like we need to visit Remure again.” A deep voice rings out from within the wagon. “If they can’t pay up then we will need to convince them to.”

The group moves out, disappearing in the darkness opposite of where the man is hiding. He moves out from the shadows and holds his cane up to light up the area. Behind him, a few sticks snap alerting him to the presence of other people.

“Looks like we have a snoop, who heard something they shouldn’t of.” One rough looking assailant says.

“The boss was right to have a few of us remain behind.” Another chimes in.

“But he looks like he is an old man, how hard would it be to silence him.” A third raises his sword up to his throat, with a wide grin.

“I don’t suppose we could talk this out?” The man steps back, wearily.

“Nope, your finished old man.”

“This will be over quickly.”

The other two assailants draw their swords. Their sneers and condescending attitudes contribute to the sense of victory. They all lunge at the man, who digs his feet in and grips the top part of his walking cane, preparing for their incoming attacks. The light from the lantern extinguishes, covering the whole area in darkness. The rough sound of a metallic impact rings out through the forest canopy.