Lo and behold I am once again back at it just chilling here inside the empty expanse of my mind. Okay, that sounds totally out of whack but whatever. That’s right darkness ol’ buddy, I hope everyone is hungry because one newly solved mystery dish is steaming hot and ready to eat: I’ve been stuck inside my own goddamn head. Better start chowing down the foods Shin because there’s more where that comes from. A whole lot more in the back kitchen waiting to be served coming right up inside this head of mine!

Fun.

And apparently I am not quite alone.

“We greet the One who gives us strength. May your enemies tremble before our might.”

“Erm...The pleasure is all mine? We are speaking inside my mind you said? Oh and umm you don’t have to keep kneeling by the way, stand and speak normally.”

“As you command Wielder.”

After my brief snippets of skinny-dipping as young Rayshin down the memory lane, I am back to where I was before the consciousness jump...Hmm hold up, wouldn’t it also be my memory lane as well though?

Bah! I’ll cross that burning bridge later, no point in worrying about it now. Well at least this is all taking place in my mind if it’s to be believed which begs the question: Why is it so damn dark in here?! C’mon Shin think happy rainbows and waterfalls or some shit, I really need to brighten this place up. Everything around me is blackness except for the a huge bright spotlight shining right over my head. It is so strange but I realize I can see myself both in first and third person, like an invisible spirit floating around while my body chills behind with my field of vision shared between both bodies.

“How do I erm...address you and tell me more about this ‘Wielder’ title thing.” Shanya mentions something similar if I can recall correctly.

Looking at the...female being in front of me as she stands, I’m surprised by how respectful and docile she seems. I mean, she scares the crap out of me materializing out of nowhere and it doesn’t really help by the fact that she has a gothic, grim-reaper look going on to boot. A young woman with long straight black hair, husky voice, dark lipstick and eyeshadows, there is a glowing red tattooed mark below her right eye. Snow-white skin, barefoot and dresses in a dark velvet gown that exposes her bare shoulders and left thigh, there’s a certain shimmering black fiery thing enveloping her entire body.

“...You are our Wielder and thus We, the extensions of your power. You may address us however you wish.”

“We? Are there more of you?” I look around to see if there might be others of her kind just waiting on their cues to jump out. There’re never enough surprises around here as far as I’m concerned.

“...Yes Wielder, there are two of us. My brother will awaken shortly but I alone is more than enough to take action,” curtsying as she puts her both hands over her heart.

Her brother?

“Okay...I’m not really sure what you’re on about but everyone deserves a name. We can’t go on talking without me knowing how to address you. Tell me, how would you like to be called?”

…

…...

Silence.

Man this is awkward, she’s been staring at me for awhile now with that lost puppy look. Do I have to come up with something for her to get this show on the road? Breathing out an impatient sigh, I rack my brain for a name before asking, “How about X-”

“Xina.” Interrupting before I can finish, she completes my thoughts for me.

“Umm yeah. How about we call you Xina? Do you like it? If not you can always change it later.”

“Thank you Wielder. Xina obeys your wish and is pleased with her name,” eyes sparkling as she leans in closer.

“Alrighty! I am Shin and now that we are on the topic of introduction...what are you Xina?” Please don’t say that you really are a grim reaper or something because you do look the part.

Smiling as she settles a hand on her hips, Xina begins to look up toward the bright light and squints her eyes. “I believe that action speaks louder than words. I hope this will show you the answer to your question my Wielder. Please get ready for battle.”

“What? Oka-”

A sudden lightning flash disorients me. One second I am standing and talking to Xina and the next I can feel the humid sands underneath my body. My left hand reaches up to grab hold of my hurting stomach while my right is trying to get the dirt out of my eyes. My mind is suppressing the sudden urge to vomit as the glaring sun looms overhead. Coughing up a mouthful of sands, the air around me smells of heat and blood.

My blood.

*ROAR*

In a moment of deja vu, I see the good ol’ manticore closing in with his stinger raised readying to impale me. Rolling out of the way with a renewed vigor, I dodge a follow up tail swipe before jumping away to avoid a bite to the face. Glancing down at my hand, I see my torned tunic soaked in blood. Damn it the pain is unreal. With my adrenaline pumping I doubt this is the full force of it. Jumping backwards I land on my rear, barely dodging the stinger as it aims to puncture right through my crotch. Somersaulting as I dive forward, I begin to run for my life. How I can move around with so much blood loss and not fainting is a mystery to me. Mind over body I guess.

Sliding down a nearby narrowed sand slope, I twist my head back to see the chasing manticore hot on my heels growling with its meat-slicer teeths bared. Digging with both hands and feet in the shifting sands, I calculate the distance between our locations and slow my body down to keep a steady balance. With a full body twist, I turn around and face my enemy head on, surprising the beast as it tries to stop its forward momentum with little success. Holding in my breath, I launch myself headfirst with fingers outstretched.

Right onto the creature’s back.

Wrapping my fingers tight around the beast’s furry mane, I unsheathe a small dagger that I remember strapping on my right ankle and in a quick motion impaling it deep into the creature’s jowl. Well, I was actually aiming for the right eye but my short arm can only reached so far. The beast howls in agony as it tries to buckle me off but with my grip firmly grasped around the handle, I make sure that the dagger is lodged deep enough to withstand the violent flailing. Spinning around in what seems like an eternity, I shut my eyes to drown out the dizziness as the world warps around me. Feeling as though I’m suddenly weightless, I open my eyes to see myself landing face first onto the ground, with the sands cushioning most of the impact.

Well so much for that, I hope it did some damage at least.

Rolling and jumping around in the sands, the beast tries to dislodge the dagger that is protruding out of its bleeding face. Well that looks like it’s working better than I intended, this’ll stop the damn thing from using its mouth for a while. At least I hope so. Looking around, I’m trying to get a sense of direction to get back to the others before a familiar voice echoes inside my head, “My physical form is now ready to be activated Wielder.”

“Xina?!” Oh yeah I totally forgot about her. “How can I-”

My right hand suddenly feels like it’s on fire. Looking down in a panic, I see a familiar blackfire sword materializes out of thin air. Realizing that it’s actually not burning my hand into a crisp but instead radiates a caressing coolness, I lift the sword up for a quick look. Obsidian in color and transparent in its physical form, the blade itself is fiery in design with a glowing arrow-head like gem situated near the handle. I can feel the humming magical energies coiling around the edges of the blade and circling at the tip. For some strange reason holding it makes me feel at ease, as if finally finding one of the missing pieces of my heart. “Beautiful,” I sigh in amazement, impressed by the power that pulsates throughout my body just from having it in my hand. “Err I’m guessing this is what you meant Xina…”

“Yes Wielder this is what I am. Allow me to demonstrate to you my capabilities.”

Flicking the sword down, my gaze concentrates upon our wailing manticore friend who still has not been able to get rid of the dagger stuck in his jaw. Dashing toward my opponent I slash at the base of the creature’s stinger tail, severing it right off in one fluid strike. As if someone is guiding and augmenting my movements, my body feels lighter and I’m able to recognize the weak spots all over the beast’s body. “What’s happening? Did you do something to my body?” I ask Xina as I make a hard sword thrust deep into the beast’s anus, ramming the entire length of the sword all the way through right up to the base of the handle.

Oh man this is brutal! But hey, that is definitely one of the weak spots alright.

“Yes Wielder. I am treating the injuries sustained and boosting your combat reflexes.”

Yelping in surprise, the manticore limps forward and trips itself on the sands. One of the beast’s hind leg is bent as it turns its head around to inspect the gruesome damage. I feel a little bad looking at the blood squirting wounds on its behind even though I’m the one responsible for delivering the blow in the first place. “Allow me to finish this!” As if approving my previous action and literally adding fuel to the fire, Xina laughs and ignites the pinned sword, burning the beast with a roaring blackfire from the inside out. In a span of half a minute or so, nothing except for the shadowy ashes of the beast remains as the ever drifting sands blow away all traces of the once mighty creature.

“Hahahaha first blood and it tastes so delicious. Let us head toward the main battlefield Wielder!” Still cackling in delight I can see an image of Xina’s spiritual form with a wide smile and both hands resting on her hips, eyes glowing bright orange and looking every bit as terrifying as I have feared she would become.

Oh great, another battle maniac joins the crew. Running up the slope, I check my injuries and surprised to see that the open wounds have been sealed. The pain is still there but I no longer need to put pressure or worry about further blood loss. Listening to Xina describing how she would skewer and burn every last one of our enemies, I smile at the girlish expression that is plastered on her cheeks. Perhaps it is the thought that I’m no longer alone but I feel relieved at her fiery presence. My new crazy tenant no longer looking intimidating but in fact a little endearing. Whatever happens every cloud has a silver lining, I hope to believe that my lucky break has just begun.