Chapter 3: Darkness

What is the Darkness?

It's a question often asked, but any possibility of an explanation given is denied. Any clear reasoning from millennials at the very least. And don't believe what that old weather book in Hyun's library tells you. Completely misleading and a nest of lies, which every soul is gullible enough to believe it without dubiousness. Uncertainty about any little detail entirely fictitious to all the ludicrous minds of this planet.

So, I believe you too are wondering what the entire big deal here is. It's easy to explain. The book entitled 'The History of Cier' (important note this nation or country that we all reside in is not alluded to as 'Cier', or anything to my knowledge. but why don't we let it slide for now) adequately explains the brief summary of the last 100 years or so of my species' history. And it's horrendously wrong. Although, like many questionable values, beliefs and ideas in this world, it's made to be incorrect on purpose, where the majority, if not all of the populous, consider it accurate, their credulous minds accept. There is no evidence to prove any of this story telling, aside from the word of a presumable dying man. Gullibility is a common trope around here, didn't you already figure that out?

Why don't we start with the second chapter of seven? Quite brief indeed. This opening passage claims that the Darkness, a sentient being created from the descent and hatred of the shadows... according to an idiot. However this is all just speculation, as the writing clearly has no idea himself, and neither did anyone else at the time. I know. Anyone simply referring to this mysterious being as evil, clearly doesn't know what they are talking about. Evil does not to even come close to beginning to cover the Darkness.

Perhaps some context is necessary, and not what the book misleads you into believing. And the time, the rulers of the 'first' dojo has absolutely no idea what they were doing. Their intentions were indeed pure, but their execution was horrifically horrendous. Their values of peace and prosperity weren't mainstream as they first thought. Bandits and grotesque monsters, deformed and distorted beings that should have never existed, roamed the lands. The population was about a quarter of what was recently summed in the latest census. Around 15 million people, but I'm assuming based off multiple reports. Enforcing balance across the wide ranges and valleys of the land failed spectacularly, which eventually led to an anarchist uproar of many riots. People don't like authoritarian leaders, even if they were nearly completely selfless. Go figure. At the time magical powers were mythical, perhaps even unimaginable, while guns were not yet invented, so they had to make do with iron swords and shields. Rice, a magical item in the form of rice (hence the name) that in various ways holds balance in the world, was only known and used by the elders at this point for their own inhuman strength that started to wane on them. Any peace left in the lands slowly evaporated, as many factions rose up to take down the elders, who grew weaker for each passing day for unknown reasons, and each other. Rice corrupted people to do what was once unspeakable deeds, yet it has evolved into highly possible.

The Great Downfall, as historians recall the travesty (War of the World has a better tune to it), occurred before the Darkness ever became a factor at all. But that's not what the writer of this oh-so precious book wants you to know. The Darkness pounced on the weakness of the lands, their inferior technology of weaponry and the lack and refusal of communication with rarely anyone else (unless you were in your faction). It had mind-controlled several leaders of numerous factions, including one elder, to carry out its chores. The possessed were slowly corrupted, even those with iron wills, fell down too easily. It had timed this when riots began to stop, and peace deals were being made, which for the Darkness was not a good thing. It considered picking them off one-by-one while in conflict with one another, but decided against it for whatever reason. The possessed stirred up even more tensions, and riots broke out again, being misled that one faction were trying to consume enough Rice to become too powerful and disrupt the balance further. The elders weren't safe from these accusations. Then, once it climaxed at the Battle of Holmfirth, the Darkness arrived in physical form at least. How? He took some of the possessed and made their jobs, simple and easy enough, bring certain amounts of Rice, not too much, and not too little, to a secret unknown location (that wasn't the shadow-hold, as you might be misinformed about) so it could feed. Live. Long enough to become powerful, and feast off the world, and then perhaps the entire world.

That horrifying screech coming from beyond a mountain, loud enough for everyone to hear, sent fear through everyone's spines, the oblivious and the ignorant. The possessed began attacking their own factions, as confusion and chaos rose through the lands. The power surging through the controlled elder sent shock through the other elders, and indeed, every other faction members. They soon then realised they had been conned to attack each other. Their attempts to band together and fight these puppet abominations were futile. Towns and village were invaded by creatures infused with power from the Darkness, slaughtering innocent civilians and small helpless factions unopposed. All the elders and the rest of the factions could do is observe their world slowly falling apart, afraid to take any action, which would be pointless in itself. The Darkness had obtained too much Rice for any opponent to show their faces.

Once the possessed had been used for its deeds, they were immediately executed. Everyone was broken and defeated at this point in time. Now, here is an interesting part of the story. This book claims that the elders used all the Rice they had to cut the Darkness from its power source, sacrificing themselves, as factions gained unfamiliar powers. Complete lie. An entity from another world, perhaps dimension, interfered and fought off the Darkness itself, while the Elders took credit for it. Because they didn't want anyone else to think they could be defeated in battle. Then one day, they mysterious vanished without a trace. Or went into hiding for some reason or another. To test anyone to the role of a leader? Your pick. I'd quite like to know the motives of the entity, fighting the Darkness then leaving. Was it killed? The real report doesn't go into details about this. Perhaps someone didn't want anyone to truly know why.

Back to the recollection, the entity was the one who cut the Darkness in half, creating a massive dispersal of Rice across the entire lands, the West being an exception, while the entity disappeared. Unintentionally laying the foundations of duels, as Rice started to effect the local populous like never before. Quite terrifying, with that kind of power at the time could have led to someone letting all the Rice get to their heads, and attempt to become a dictator. Oddly enough no one was led down this path (somehow). The abundance of such an item made training to stop the creatures owning their lands much easier to fend off. They were, in a sense, mindless zombies (without the disease to infect their prey).

And here, is where the power of friendship trumps in the end. Once the elders left the remaining factions, they had to band together to stop this threat that had still managed to ravage the lands. Of course, there had to be some evil factions out there. Four of them resided in Shadow-Hold, which appeared to embrace the Darkness and their intentions were to outlast the invasion and take over the world. The Alliance, as the collective factions unoriginally deemed themselves, defeated them rather swiftly (they didn't have any Rice, and wasn't aware of its existence either). All factions communicated together in an effort to stop this menace, sending a large army of an unrecorded number to stop the Darkness.

And failed the first time. Yes, the book forgets to mention that there was more than one fight. Three, to be exact. It only recalls the last one, and attempts to remove any traces of the previous two, as they were highly unprepared and unorganised as well. Training be damned. 9 million lives were lost as the Darkness' invasion had been fought off, once and for all… Well, at least the Darkness never returned. Balance had been restored after a few months of the Third Battle of Holmfirth. Fields had been rifled with rotting corpses, as the surviving populous became victorious as peace and prosperity returned to the world. There was a lot mourning at the sheer numbers that perished over the course of six months.

And that was the true story that the book writer doesn't want to tell you. He was revising what might have happened. Taking something that was there, and rephrasing it. History would be wonderful if only it were true. Which is why, among many other reasons, I despise this book. I got my sources from multiple different books they I worked up and down to find its legitimacy. I'm devoted to the truth. Also my multiple connections show that certain stories were authentic, and even more information about the backstory of this world that the ones at the top refuse to tell anyone. These connections descended from the survivors at the time, and kept recordings of papers through generations. And yet everyone still believed this passed person (if he isn't still alive right now) instead of the real quotes. Because these people were deem unauthentic. Which, coming from them, is stating a lot.

Why is Hyun and the other veterans on his council hiding? Well it's simple. They don't want the world to lose the peace everyone thrives on. They can't handle another large revolt against their dojo, the world will perish to the Darkness. What, you thought it was dead and removed from existence? Not quite. It's still out there. Somewhere. Too weak to control anyone or absorbed Rice. It's out there. They know it, and so do I. Connections are quite useful at times. And having similar goals and dreams can go hand-in-hand in accomplishing them. There's more to the story that explains this further, of course. But I was filling in time as Jade talks with that silent lost cause. Seriously what does she see in him? Love better not blind her on this case. She'll regret it as time passes on. It doesn't help if it's a sexual relationship (if the spic knows how, which I doubt). Having a sexual relationship with a woman never ends well. And it's not a good ride to step onto.

And that is it for now. I can carry on, but I have to keep you entertained long enough. The next phase of my original plan… is currently being stalled. The people and factors I need aren't present right now. So story telling will have to make-do. I can leave you dear viewer with a quote on what someone stated on the Darkness a hundred years ago. Adieu.

'A world of fear and treachery tormented everyone. A world of trampling and being trampled upon was the norm. A world which will grow not less but more merciless as it refines itself. Progress in our world will be progress towards more pain. This was the time before the Darkness attacked. The elders claimed that they were founded on love or justice. It soon would be controlled under an unstoppable abomination. In this world there will be no emotions except for fear, regret, resignation, and self-abasement. Everything else will be destroyed inevitably from the Darkness' invasion. Everything will submit before it.

Everything.'