The Lawless Lands III: The Man who Cleaved the Heavens

The heavens stood above,

Higher than anything,

Until One man became their equal…

There lived a man in the Lawless lands, a swordsman known by all. He was infamous for having won almost every fight he’s been in, with his only defeat having been at the hands of an Old God. Many challenged him, but he only fought those he considered strong. He appeared in the Lawless lands one day, a popular rumour went around that he was the son of creation, while another rumour says that the goddess of creation descended into the lands. What really happened was that the Old Goddess of Thunder fell, he had emerged from her lifeless corpse, though nobody but him knows for certain which is true. The Old God that struck him down had done so only to put an end to his rampage, as moments after his arrival to the lands, he had been razing anything in his path, his goals and true strength were never seen again after his one and only loss. From that day on, the man worked toward becoming stronger, strong enough to challenge the heavens, as well as to achieve revenge for his mother. As time went on, he eventually cared less about his goal, it became nothing more than another thought in the back of his conscience. He never gave up, it was simply no longer his primary objective. He had become friends with the lord of the land, he had taken a liking to the city and its people, and he often spent most of his day sparing against the lord or fooling around. One night, the lord sought advice from his good friend. The capital was to go to war with another, he wished to unite the splintered cities into one. His friend pledged that whatever decision he made, he would stand with him. The man fought in the war, and his name spread even further and became even more feared. To the enemy, he was the Death incarnate, to his allies, he was the “Lightning God,”. But not everything would last. While out on battle, the capital had been attacked, the enemy knew that he was a problem, so they lured him away in order to strike the Lord directly. A pillar of fire was what caught his attention. The man feared for the worst. He ran as fast as his legs could carry him. By the time he made it to the capital, the place was as if hell had manifested itself. Bodies lay around, those of the enemy and allies. The man cut down those who remained standing, many civilians had died too. The man rushed to the palace to see that the Lord was still fighting, his opponent was an old god. The man stared in confusion as the deity fought against a mere mortal. Before the old god could kill the Lord, the man had intercepted the attack, blocking it with his own sword and pushing the god back. The man knelt down with the dying lord in his arms, the Lord was smiling at him, and despite his predicament, he was happy. “ Live, Raijin. For you are this land's Lord now.” His eyes remained locked with Raijin's, the remaining life gone. The man hadn’t felt such an emotion since he first arrived in this land. Lightning crackled around him as the skin on his face began tearing away to reveal a red scaly underlayer. Protruding from his forehead was a dark red horn. Raijin stood up, clutching his sword, and he took a stance facing the old god. He drew his sword in a straight arc, cutting through the old god. His true strength returned, and with it, he united the lands under his rule as Lord. From that day on, he lived, carrying on the will of his friend. Until another war broke out, and he was forced to fight against the gods once more, this time he cleaved the very heavens themselves, leaving a permanent scar on the sky as a reminder that they, are nothing.