The Samurai Of The Thousand Tears

In the woods where the mystical fog hid the trees out of sight, the sun broke from its sleep and arose between the signs of nature. Everything is quiet and serene. But one person was bold enough to disrupt the peaceful rituals in the mountains.

"I'm sorry! I didn't know they were your children." The woman continued to scream while sprinting for its life away from a bear. The bear paid no attention to her pleas, the fact it saw how she almost stole its cubs away from the cave. No mother will rest until she got away from its territory. Running down the mountains is one of the things Amber wished to do since she arrived with other tourists like herself however, she was alone doing it. Plus, with a bear whose mouth-watering.

Amber stumbled down the slope, her knapsack made jingle noises as she went, branches and leaves strangled on her hair. She tripped over by a rock that seemed to have unnoticed her existence, and then her whole body landed straight on a pile of mud with a loud thud. Dirt and mud-splattered around like confetti. The party is yet to start.

"Argh, damn it!"

2 DAYS before the disaster.

"Please watch your step!" The tour guide said after Amber passed through first. She could no longer hide her excitement as they spent the whole morning hiking to reach their destination-the peak of one of the Okasagi mountains. It was said to be the most jaw-dropping landscape in the world. And it is believed that if you reach its peak, you will see the stairway to heaven.

Mr. Simp, the tour guide shook his head and looked over the others who were busy documenting the infamous Osakagi Hanging Bridge. Among the groups he had handled, these were the loudest and fullest of life. He clapped his hands several times and as soon as they diverted their eyes to him, Mr. Simp cleared his throat.

"We will arrive at the camp for lunch after we cross this bridge. Please let me remind you to behave. This is sacred ground, and everyone should be quiet to pay respect while crossing."

"Alright, let's go!"

Upon hearing this, Amber was the first to march towards the bridge. She held one of the railings as she looked down. She couldn't see anything aside from its thick fog covering the majesty under. Stories were told that the Osakagi bridge was built as an execution site for criminals way back in the 14th century.

Criminals were pushed to their deaths with the guilt they shouldered in committing crimes. Amber whistled at it, reminded herself what secrets lies under them might have held in a deep sense of danger and death. She felt relief by the thought that she is living in a century where modernization exists. Awed by the beauty under the bridge, the next thing she knew she already reached the other side.

On the other hand, Mr. Simp and the others were still crossing. Amber took out her phone and captured a shot where the group stood in the middle between the railings. Next, she lowered the angle to her shoes, focusing on the Osakagi stickers she bought from the souvenir shop a while ago before the hike. Amber went towards the bridge again to take another worthy Instagram shoot.

"I'm dead serious, Kevin! Stop moving!" Back at the other side of the bridge, one of the groups laughed. A man clutched himself against the railings with his eyes shut.

"Come on, don't be such a baby Tyler," his tall brother Kevin said and moved closer to whisper. "You know, Samantha is watching."

Tyler's face ripened in red. He was about to cry that second, but he is no longer the baby he used to be. He thought, he's a grown-ass man and he will not back down. Still, Tyler couldn't push to stand for himself. Kevin tagged him to a game who the first one to cross. He chuckled and continued their way across, leaving his friend behind. Tyler's eyes darted in his brother's direction. Kevin let his arm snake over the top shoulders of the girl he had a crush on. The girl giggled as he tickled her slender cheek. Tyler cracked his knuckles; his face grew dark and without a second thought took one giant leap then pushed down all his weight to his feet and at that moment the bridge shook. His friends clutched at the railings, surprised by the sudden wave but then they noticed something above them. Eyes widen in terror and then a scream came out from their lips as they watched Amber flew into the air.

Her face turned pale while she saw them upside down. She couldn't move from the shock she dealt with now. It happened so fast that she even couldn't reach the hand sticking out for her midair. The last thing she saw was crying shadows and the cold embrace of the deep under.

Life is short and unpredictable. All Amber wanted to do was to travel and experience the taste of adventure like she always dreamed of and when she got the opportunity, she promised herself that she will live up to the fullest. However, it won't ever happen again.

"I'm going to die," she said to herself.

Unbelievably. She couldn't help but picture the gruesome deaths that the criminals endured as they fall here back in the 14th century. What awaits her might be pointy rocks and edgy cliffs, or perhaps some pack of hungry-looking animals or a canyon full of poisonous snakes! It could be anything. Unlike them, she fell with no crimes done.

As she was falling, Amber opened her eyes and was surprised to see the water. Her skin tingled from the freezing surface as it caught her. Amber gasped and was strangled by the strong current. The water tossed her heavily, dragging her deeper to the river as if it was thrilling to have her after centuries hidden from the mist. She felt her head spinning and everything around her body ached. She kicked harder to fight back but it was too strong for her to battle with. She didn't know how long it took her out from the dark and endless river but when she saw the light coming ahead, she had her hopes rise. The current went slower when it got to the streams. Amber stepped on one of the rocks and then her body collapsed in exhaustion.

Since that day, Amber wandered around the unknown woods with a bag of chips on her knapsack for food and a bottle of mineral water. She survived the night without sleep, and she even defend herself from the wolves who tried to eat her one time.

"Grrr! I'm not tasty so go home!" She growled loudly and tried to look intimidating.

The pack of wolves who were a hundred meters away from her drooled and sprang. She yelped and threw rocks at them. Luckily, she was able to climb a tree on time so the wolves couldn't reach her.

Her bag of chips lasts only till morning. Her eyes were heavy, and her stomach was grumbling in hunger. She took her phone (that is drenched wet) out from her pocket often pound it against a tree to work and raised it in the air to find reception. No use. She frowned as she threw the useless thing far away.

"Do you think they're looking for me?" she asked the girl on the river. The day was clear, and nature was at her course for spring. Amber soaked her feet by the water and asked again, "Will someone find me here?"

"Of course, they will find you. Just try your best to keep it together. Once you get home, you will sleep on a nice bed, eat ice cream and watch Netflix all day long."

"Yeah." Amber pictured everything about home in her head. While daydreaming, an object floated in her direction Amber picked it up. It was just a piece of cloth with gold linens on its edge. She folded it open and frowned as she tried to figure out what was written. It had unfamiliar characters embroidered on the side, inked with weird figures and lines.

She shrugged. "At least I have a clean towel now."

She let it dry for a while and then moved on.

Amber groaned as she pulled herself out from the mud pile. This had been the worst day of Amber's survival journey in the mountains. She cursed under her breath when she felt the odd smell of the bear. It sniffed on her hair. Amber tried her best to play dead but as soon as the bear grunted away, it withdraws and this time the claws were out. Amber cried when she felt its teeth gnashed against her back. Her knapsack was taken away and ransacked thoroughly. While the bear was at it, she took the chance to run away from there and stay hidden under the bush.

The sun was already setting when she finally got out of her hiding. Amber trotted her way to the nearby river to drink. She looked at herself on the water. Amber could hardly recognize a person at this look. She knelt as she slammed her fist to the ground. Her tears came rushing to her cheeks. Amber was too tired and scared to let out the heavy lump on her throat.

Suddenly, a wolf's cry ruined her moment of distress. Her vision was blurry, but she recognizes the pack.

They had been searching for her not to save her but to have her as dinner. With a little strength left she ran farther from them into the forest. The packed growled hungrily after her, howling in victor, and when it had her cornered, they suddenly drew away.

Amber noticed this so she began to screech, backing them away. "That's right! Run because I am more beasty than you, guys."

One by one the wolves back down and it scrammed away from the place as if their instinct told them so.

Amber scoffed at the sight of them as she turns her back victoriously. The moment her foot touched the soil, it became soft and crumbled into a hole. Amber fell upon it as a clanking sound clicked around the trees. A huge wooden cage swoops her in and then mechanically tied her up to a tree.