Outbreak of Shadows

On the open seas of a freezing temperature in the, a lone battle ship of the Marines makes its way through the seas to their destination that stands before them in plane view. That destination is the winter island, Isvan Kingdom. An island that is constantly ravaged by freezing, sub-zero wind storms, blowing snow up off the ground and pushing it to follow the directions of the wind in various directions nearly covering the island in a giant wind of snow, making it difficult to navigate through the island. The strength of these winds blows through the land with the strength of a hurricane pushing against anyone daring enough to travel through it, giving them the feeling that the mere strength of the wind is enough to be carried away by it. The freezing wasteland of this temperature ranks one hundred degrees below zero, which will freeze anything or anyone who wonders into this tundra frozen solid within 15 minutes, if left without any precautions. It is an island of an eternal blizzard, a true hellish island.

Despite all of the dangers the climate introduces, it is still the home of one of the of the World Government, The Isvan Kingdom lead by its Royal Family, the Elworth Family.

The ship had some difficulty navigating through Isvan's waters. While the island itself was encased in a blizzard, its waters were immensely cold, having some shards of ice amongst them.

The Marine Commander known as Herculean Leo had stationed a chair in the frontal parts of the Marine vessel, sitting on it as he used binoculars to observe the island. The blizzard didn't help, and the fact that it was night time neither. "So many mountains..." He puffed out a cold breath. Leo, naturally, wore pretty warm clothes. A brown, fully sleeved coat with white fur at its collar and wrists, along with baggy dark pants and large brown boots. In his face, Leo had dark goggles. Attached to his hip, was a wooden sword. However, one would not notice the many additional clothes he had inside these.

The ship was close to docking. A large stone chamber stood on the land, being blocked by a large iron door. "Sir, this is the Portuary Settlement of Irand. It's a small town located in the underground, this back entrance can only be acessed by us and the Government." A soldier pronnounced himself, looking at Leo fiercely. Another Commander talked to a man at the entrance, asking for permission to enter.

Seconds later, the iron door suspended itself from the waters, achieved through a mechanism. "We shall enter now." The soldier from before said. The insides of the chamber connected to the underground city of Irand, being akin to a market place, as many shops could be seen. Lamps hung in high points of the rocky walls, illuminating everything.

"Sure, sure." Leo chuckled and nodded. The soldiers began to walk through the small bridge which connected to the docks, quickly leaving Leo alone- though, in fact, he wasn't. "Is Sir gonna' be stay here...?" He scratched the back of his head and quickly focused his mind. "C'mon...work!" There, he felt it. The person he wanted to locate was indeed resting at the ship's quarters, Leo would not bother him then.

Openning his vest, golden locks of hair which reached his jaw could be seen, Leo's hair was spiky and wavy at the same time. He walked alongside the Soldiers and sighed, using Haki was more difficult than he thought. As the number of Marines had decreased over time, many of the newbies had to be taught how to use Haki, lest they don't survive in the hell that is the New World. Leo had learned both Busoshoku and Kenbunshoku, though he certainly specialized in the former, he also liked the latter.

The Commander wouldn't say anything, he didn't want to. After all, he felt like the Vice-Admiral earned that rest, he always did. Leo heard that after visiting this island, the Vice-Admiral would have to attend a meeting with other Marines, something about who could fill the spot for Admiral. He certainly believed this man fit the bill, the others treated him as a weapon, but Leo treated him like the man he was. However, Leo felt like he had been working too much as of lately, not that he couldn't handle it, but, he worried about his superior.

Despite this, Leo didn't know how Kanto truly felt.

Bambina, one of his favorite teachers, always joked. "Don't let those bunny ears fool you, BAHAHAHA!" He chuckled at the memory, remembering how much Bambina and Valentine laughed at it. He always thought that Bambina, Sir Valentine, Funori and many of their Commodores, worked more than they should. Yet, they were all so energetic and much more stronger than he was. And Leo hadn't been fooled, indeed.

"Oi, Kinshi-san!" A soldier, the same from before, snapped Leo out of thoughts, as he hadn't even realized how far he had walked. "You're oozing off again, hahaha! I bet'cha thinking about Kanto-san, don't worry about him." He smiled and gestured towards a large opened, iron door. "We've reached the other entrance of Irand, from here on, we'll go by the Carriage arranged by the King. Said he'd be easying our trip to there or something."

Leo's eyes widened, but he nodded. He remembered the soldier's name as Ivan. "Oh! Right, right, sorry man, I'as just thinkin' 'bout that yeah." He grinned and lied, he hadn't only thought about that, but also about his own capacity. Was he enough for this mission? Sure, they just had to oversee the Royal Family, but given how slowly he has improved, Leo couldn't hold back his doubts. He was already twenty-six, and felt like people younger than him were stronger.

Ivan looked with worry towards Leo, he knew much about his Commander, and always worried why he was so unconfident, despite his bright smile. Leo always hid his emotions with that smile. Even so, he thought Leo was incredible. They had battled two pirate crews in the past week, and both him and Kanto were vital to achieve victory.

The Marines, totalling by ten, all entered the big carriage. The interior was comfortable enough, having a dark color and several wine-colored couches. A ready message was sent to the Coachman, who wore extremely fat clothes and had his eyes closed. "Okay, young fellas, we'll be there in an hour or so." He pulled a cord lightly, making the beasts which acted as the carriage's horses begin their sprint. These beasts had an incredible amount of fur, such that their faces couldn't even be seen.

Leo rested his head against the padded seat and breathed heavily, closing his eyes. He had to remember to call Kanto when they reach the castle. He just hoped this mission didn't give him much of a headache.

Leo woke up to murmurs, as people talked outside of the carriage, that and the sound of wind. He groggily opened his eyes and looked around, not moving his head. Most of the Soldiers had their jaws wide open, saliva dripping from it as they slept peacefully. Only two weren't there. Leo slapped his face and slowly got up from the couch.

Stepping outside, he smiled and saw the missing Soldiers talking with the Coachman as they all observed a large wall of white wind. "Oi, what d'y miss?" Leo blinked a few times, eyeing the wall.

"Oh, Sir Kinshi." Ivan said with a smile, looking at Leo. "The blizzard is specially strong in this area...so we had to stop before the carriage got torn apart by it."

The Coachman nodded. "Indeed, 'ere there's not much m'ntains, so the win's free to pass." He spat in the snow. "Sorry lads, we've got to wai' 'ere for som' time." He walked back to his seat outside the carriage. "How odd, we wer' just a few miles away from the castle."

"Oooi, I can take care of it." Leo smiled widely while approaching the barrier and holding his wood sword. "I'm sure Eva can tank this!" He drew his sword, which was indeed a Shinai, and pointed it at the wind, taking a kendo stance while gripping the handle with both hands. With his left foot standing in the front, Leo advanced with a yell. "HURYAAAAAH!" He thrusted forward, making snow rise and part of the barrier cave in.

The Coachman gasped and the Soldiers clapped their hands, amazed at it. "See?" Leo turned back at them. "Just fine-" The barrier suddenly got back to its normal form with full force, interrupting Leo. The soldiers' eyes widened and the Coachman gasped, shaking his head sadly.

Leo turned to look at it, his eyes wide and his teeth grit. His hold on Eva tightened as he cursed himself internally. He felt the weight of the world upon his shoulders, and it made his knees slowly bend, his hands slowly unwrap the handle, as his sensations of earlier hit him with full power. Leo knew he wasn't fit for the job, he never was. He had remembered the many voices of disapproval back at home, back at the headquarters...and also, at the back of his mind. It made him deaf, he couldn't hear the blizzard anymore, nor the sad sighs of the Coachman. Leo would never improve, he would always stay still like the trash he is.

But, then, the glinting of a small light resonated within his head, making him snap out of it instantly.

"YOU CAN DO IT!!!" Ivan yelled at him with a determined face. "YOU CAN DO IT!" Only then, Leo noticed that all of the Soldiers had woken up and joined their comrade. "YOU CAN DO IT!!!" They all yelled together, bumping their arms up and down constantly.

"Look, Leo, you can't get so down about yourself. Every failure isn't a travesty, but a step towards a greater success. Ernest and I believe in ya' alright, so stop looking down and start climbing up!" Valentine's words resonated within Leo's head, making him adopt the first genuine smile after weeks.

"I have to stop disappointing the others...and more importanyly, disappoint myself!!!" His knees had bent in weakness, but now they bent for his stance. His hands loosened in failure, but now they tightened in conviction. An immense aura surrounded Leo as he readied Eva, his eyes filled with determination.

With absurd speed, he struck high at the barrier, then at its left and right side, leaving after-images with each attack. "MEN- DOU- KOTE!" In fact, Leo had been so fast, he hit the three spots at the same time, smiling and yelling at the end of all of it: "SHISHIKU!!!" The barrier exploded in a wide range, blowing much snow away as the Marines and the Coachman held themselves in place, nearly blown by the shockwave.

All of the Soldiers yelled in excitement, jumping high, while the Coachman dropped his jaw, his eyes openning for the first time. "H-H-H-H-H-HE DID IT!!!"

Leo breathed heavily, sweating a bit, despite the cold, as he eyed the effect of his attack on the barrier. He smiled, nearly letting out a few tears. This was a step, a slow, but still a step towards the path of confidence. "O'right! Let's freakin' go guys!!!" He rose Eva in the air, smiling widely as everyone cheered along with him.

The path to the castle was all clear now. And the one to Leo's confidence too.

Leo sang with a few whistles, walking around the large hall. His coat and additional shirts were gone, as well as his goggles, seeing how the Castle was warm enough.

It was his patrol time, and he was happy to do so, walking and looking through the many rooms. He had to keep his confidence. The other soldiers were sleeping, and would stay like that until the next five hours. It was already two in the morning, but Leo had been tasked with visiting the Princess and checking if she was okay. She had some sleeping problems, apparently.

Leo only knew that, and her name, Elworth Miyu. He stopped whistling as soon as he reached her door, which was the biggest in the hall. "Just a tid bit spoiled." He smirked and lightly tapped his fist against the door. But, such a simple act was enough to get the door open, making Leo's widen. "Oi, Princess, are you ok?" The door had fully, showing all of the insides of the room clearly.