The Samurai: Eru's Origin

Read Part 1 of this Story Here

The bolt of lightning that exploded through the roof of the barn had rocketed her of her feet and thrown her mind into the past. Into the memories that brought her to this moment…

The land that stretched out before Eiramus was barren, the air pungent with war and poverty, she could feel the despair of the land just as vividly as the wind blowing through her viridescent hair. She lightly brushes her cheek, setting the trapped stand of hair free from her damp face. 

“How did it come to this?” she mumbles into nothingness while slowly crouching down. She marks her territory with her village’s symbol, a snake wrapped around an olive branch. How ironic, she thought that this would be their symbol. A snake, everlasting symbol of evil and despair and the olive branch signifying hope. Which one is she? The snake or the olive branch. The questions never plagued her when in training, believing she would be fighting for a better cause, but looking out at the dying land, she started thinking that she might be the snake. 

“Eiramus, get up, the others have departed to the Thasues mountains already. You know well you cannot let your soldiers travel that path alone, the gods will frown upon your actions child” 

Eiramus turned around while still crouching, looking up into her father’s eyes “Teacher, tell me, how can you still call me a child when I’ve taken the lives of hundreds? When I’ve conquered almost half the kingdom in our gods names and helped you push back the enemies you’ve feared for years.” She could see her father’s anger rise in his stance, the way his lip slightly twitched in the right corner, the way his knuckles turned white around his trumpet, Eiramus could not care less. She stood up and faced her father “They call you the mighty conqueror, but I lead your battles and slaughter your enemies before you. Can you not feel the ground mourning for the lives lost, can you not see the three suns hiding behind the darkness we’ve cast upon the land.” 

With that Chikura flung his trumped to the ground and wrapped his hand around Eiramus’ neck “Don’t you ever mention what you feel, do you hear me, girl? Your feelings are a fiction of your imagination and don’t you dare ever defy me again” He slung Eiramus to the ground and stood over her.

“Child”
With that Eiramus watched her father whom she once loved dearly walk away from her for the last time…

DevantArt Cred: fearn

At that moment Eiramus knew what she had to do, she picked up her father’s trumpet and once again looked out to the landscape she had ruined. Slowly making her way the mountain, she knew this was the path she was meant to follow. Her heartbeat was in tune with her steps, and in turn her steps were in tune with the heartbeat of the land beneath her feet. It was as if she could already smell life returning to the lands, even though it laid, destroyed before her. 

She knew she had to escape her father’s wrath, he would stop at nothing to force her into her destiny to become the leader of this land by becoming the executioner to anyone who would defy her. No, she did not want her followers to fear her, but to love her. Harmony was key, and she knew it. She would return to her father, this time fighting against him, instead of for him. 

By the time Eiramus came to this conclusion the ledge on which she stood with her father was a speckle in the horizons behind her. She turned around and swore in her mother tongue 

“Heishbag kvosiera au hijden” – {I will return to claim my land} 

With that parting promise, Eiramus picked up the pace, she felt the wind in her lungs, cleaner somehow. The air around her was no longer weighed down by the despair of past and future conquers. She was no longer the snake, but the olive branch. She was free and she was freedom entwined into one magnificent being. She knew what she had to do, she'd head for a realm far from hers, where magic was in abundance and you aren’t imprisoned for wielding with the forces of the universe. 

She had heard whispers of a woman opening portals to another realm, she’d heard villages call out her name in despair as she slaughtered them to claim her father’s victory. The name was Nezebeth, and she lived where no man or woman would dare wander. 

Eiramus made her decision, she would find this sorcerer, and she would find an army powerful enough that her father would not dare stand against her. 

The moment she decided,  the land beneath her feet started to move. Changing, laying out a path that she has yet to walk. Walking she became certain that she’d made the right decision, jogging and eventually running towards her destiny. Before she knew it, she found herself in the middle of the bog. A place she’d only heard of in stories to scare toddlers and adults alike. 

“Why are you here, child?” a mysterious voice filled the air around her. 

“Don’t call me child, I am Eiramus, samurai trained by the great Conqueror Chikura, king of these lands. You will address me with respect or live to regret it.” Eiramus suddenly felt the ground starting to suck her in and her breathing became frantic, like she wasn’t getting enough air. 

“Oh child, how do you fight an enemy you can’t see? An enemy you can’t hear, unless it wishes to be heard. An enemy you can’t feel unless it wants to be felt? But you already know you can’t fight such an enemy. That is why you are here, isn’t it young samurai?”

Eiramus fell to the ground, whatever was holding her released. She closed her eyes and thought about her father. The days he spent training her, the nights he spent tucking her into bed and the men he fought and killed to stay in power and for her, a woman, to become the leader of his army. Suddenly she wanted to turn back, wanted to look for the quickest path out of the bog “It’s too late child, you already made your decision. You can’t turn back now.” 

Eiramus felt herself rising involuntarily, she clutched her trumpet and katana. Before she knew it, darkness engulfed her. She begged for unconsciousness to replace the nothingness. She did not know how long or how far she traveled. All she knew was that she was on her way to another realm. And the sorceress in the bog somehow knew what she felt, she knew her past and her future. While on the journey, Eiramus held fast to two vows: 

First, she will return to claim her land and second, she would find the sorcerer that sent her away, and confront her about the kingdom’s past, present and future.

the_seven_virtues__hope_by_sijeney

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Authors Note

While joking with some great friends, the basis for this story was formed. Part 1 of this story can be found here.

Last week I featured The Unicorn Queen: Ari's Origin

We got to talking & the girls started writing their own versions of the how the characters came to be.
This awesome Origin/Background story on the Character Eiramus, was brought to you by unbelievably amazing Sumarie Steenkamp

She was born to write fantasy and I cannot wait for more.

Part 2 of "The Unicorn Queen, The Samurai & The Wizard" will be posted next week, which continues where the storyline left off.

~Be Kind to One Another~ Ellen Degeneres