This post makes me look like a gigantic dick so no looking!
by Jack E Breaker
The weather had been particularly harsh over the mountains over the past few days, yet the clear blue skies on this afternoon served to add to the tranquillity of the land, it's colour reflecting in the clear waters of the lake below and providing a contrast to the snow that covered the ground and the many pines that had grew straight upwards from it. It was a bitterly cold day but not particularly punishing, as any winds that blew were so weak that they could barely be felt on the most sensitive skin of the weakest souls and should any human be taking a stroll around this area at this time, then they might have felt the need for a fleece, a pair of jeans, boots and little else. Yet it was also a lonely place, completely isolated from the modern world and with the only road leading to the only building within miles only being a rough trail that been made with a machete and little else.
Despite being incredibly difficult to reach or even find, the building itself was a rather large and well made log cabin that was filled with large shelves that stacked many books, comforts such as a fireplace and two single, black leather armchairs and a bedroom in the back, although that merely served as a study filled with weapons, clothing and more books due to the lack of a need for anything to sleep on. Outside, the building itself was surrounded by thick pines in order to conceal it from satellites but follow a trail to the back and one would find a large, dome shaped building covered in vines and further covered by surrounding trees that had grown higher and thicker than the others. It was here where the owner, Mr Jack Nathanson was situated at the time of documentation, figured that he would settle in a place like this, somewhere hidden from view and cut off from civilisation.
The dome served as nothing but a ceiling over the ground as Jack stood there in black boots that were covered in mud and some of the snow that he had brought in with him, as well as black jeans, a black long sleeved dress shirt, black leather gloves and an open white trench coat. After just twenty one days, Jack's hair had grown to shoulder length and had turned a light grey, but it glistened and was smooth and looked well kept. Also his skin had become pale but looked to belong to a man identical to him, who was few years younger and hadn't spent most of his life being punched in the face. Yet it was the eyes, those deep blue eyes, with a colour stronger, more intense than before, especially in contrast to his complexion, which gave him a look so unusual, so different from what he used to be. Yet it was what he gripped in his hands, a black handled katana and what he would do with it which would reveal a glimpse into some of his bigger changes, as he stood there with his feet wide apart and the blade held out straight in front of him, waiting to practice and test his skills out further. Jack had mastered a few weapons and many other skills since he had angrily walked from the ARCO Arena and dedicated his life to growth and evolution, and although he preferred the swordstick, he would soon be satisfied with his skill with handling the weapon that he held.
Shadows began to form all around the walls of the dome, each one taking humanoid form and holding a different kind of weapon that made it unique. They varied in size, from five foot three to six foot ten but the first to drop from the walls had attributes that roughly mirrored Jack's, standing six foot five and holding what looked like a katana of its own, although it was black, just like the figure itself and the ones that were still existing on the walls. The sword wielding figure charged at Jack and Jack didn't even blink as he swatted the blade away with his own from the right, then span around and drove his katana behind him, into the body of the shadow that immediately faded into nothingness. From then on, the shadows detached themselves from the wall as new ones replaced them, each one charging and quickly being dispatched as the blade went through them from the right, the left, from below, from above and diagonally. Wave after wave of shadows attacked and Jack was in constant motion, swinging the katana through each shadow then immediately removing the next from existence, taking two or three out with a single swipe at times. The waves then turned to a constant barrage of offence from an army with unlimited personnel, yet they were all dealt with, one by one, or two or three at a time.
Seconds turned to minutes and minutes turned to hours as Jack swung, stabbed, ducked and dodged, paying no attention to the coming darkness as the sun outside began to set. He didn't sweat, slow, nor did he blink or even breathe as the sun disappeared beyond the horizon and left him in complete darkness against the shadows, yet Jack did not stop, nor did he slow or take any damage as he continued to work, to practice, to train and to test his skills and himself. He was physically evolving, just like he had believed that he would do although he never expected it to be a gradual process, yet he was growing regardless, vast amounts of information about the world and beyond had unlocked within his mind, yet that mind had also grew in order to adapt to it. It had it's drawbacks but he had gotten used to them and had either forgotten or was in the process of forgetting the simple human pleasures such as taste, pain, love and hate. He had lost most of his humanity, yet he still felt a sense of comradery with the woman who had helped him through such nightmarish times in the past and helped battle the being who had allowed all of this to happen to him in the first place. Yet that would soon fade too, Jack had predicted not so long ago, when he first became aware of the fact that he no longer loved who he used to call his soul mate. Yet it was for the greater good, Jack believed, before he stopped believing and just knew, the greater good.
Finally satisfied with his skill with the Katana, Jack swung his weapon around and feeds it into the black mounting that he wore on his hip then turned around and walked straight out of the door as the shadows on the walls faded. It was dark and the only source of light came from that which was reflected off of the moon, which was little help due to the trees and bushes that served as means to keep the buildings concealed from view from above. It didn't matter to Jack though, who could see what was ahead with his minds eye and his senses were so sharp that there would be no chance of anything taking him by surprise. Jack was evolving from his human beginnings into a weapon of war, a hunter of the wayward deities that threatened the Earth, but there was still much to learn, many things that could help him become more effective as a warrior and on the day after, he would continue to utilise the gift that he had been given, to the best of his boundless abilities.