Collaborative Writing Project: The Fading Light: A Tale of Zan

Welcome to The Masters of Animanga: A Wikia Collaborative Writing Project! Join with legendary icons of anime and manga to create three exciting, original stories based on their character designs and outlines.

We've written Red Bat, and TAO! - Rize of the Ying-Yang. Now, join with other co-authors from the Wikia community to pen an exciting samurai-themed story that crosses the boundaries of space and time.

The inspiration for our third tale, Fading Light: A Tale of Zan, is provided by legendary artist Yoshitaka Amano (Vampire Hunter D, Final Fantasy) in the form of an iconic samurai character who first appeared in Amano's graphic novel Deva Zan. The story is executive produced by Kazuo Koike (Lone Wolf and Cub, Lady Snowblood).

We want YOU to co-write this story! And you're also welcome to post any original artwork to illustrate it. Just take a few moments to read the rules, familiarize yourself with the world and characters, then edit this page to begin creating.

THE RULES
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 * Start editing below the previous contributions of another user by clicking "Edit" at the top left.
 * The story will end September 21.
 * By contributing to the story as a signed in user, you acknowledge your acceptance of the following rules, terms, and conditions.

2. Each user is allowed to contribute one paragraph (up to six sentences max) at a time.

3. Do not edit again until at least THREE new users have contributed. In other words, there must be three paragraphs between contributions from any one user.

4. Contribute to the story in a linear fashion.

5. Only add to the story section of this page – do not alter the “characters,” “world,” or “rules” sections.

6. You must leave your signature at the end of your contribution.

7. Do not revert, delete, edit or alter an entry entered by another user -- respect the work of your fellow Wikia community members.

8. Your story must focus only on the original characters and world created by the Masters of Animanga for this particular project. No other pre-existing characters or universes can be referenced, anime or otherwise. That said, you may create a wholly original character specifically for this story.

9. Wikia Staff has the final say on edits. While we will not alter your work lightly, if rules are broken, we reserve the right to change your story/contribution.

10. Be aware that edit conflicts may occur. Before publishing, please save your work so that it will not get lost in case someone else is contributing to the page!

11. Your contributions to the Masters of Animanga Collaborative Writing Project are governed by the Wikia Terms of Use and by the CC-by-NC license.

12. If you contribute to the Masters of Animanga Collaborative Writing Project and your contribution is used, you acknowledge that if/when the story is published or released in any manner, you will be given attribution for your participation in the project, and that any such attribution is your sole consideration for participating in the project.

If any user is found to be in violation of these rules, we reserve the right to rollback/remove your contribution.

THE WORLD
A samurai warrior with no memory of his past, Zan has the power to travel through all of time and space while riding atop Panther, his animal companion.

The many adventures of Zan could never be chronicled in a single volume. In this story, we follow our hero from feudal Japan to Victorian-era England (and beyond) as he meets a beautiful woman who changes him forever, and faces an adversary unlike any he has encountered before.

THE CHARACTERS

 * Zan, our hero, is a samurai warrior who has no memory of his past. He is on a quest to restore order to existence, which will ultimately lead him to the discovery of his own mysterious origin. While riding atop Panther, his faithful animal companion, Zan has the power to travel anywhere in space and time.


 * Lord Chataway, the villain of the story, is encountered by Zan when he is transported to 1870s England. Lord Chataway is a British noble who may be more than who he first seems to be.


 * Virginia, the beautiful daughter of Lord Chataway. She is fiercely independent, but finds herself strangely drawn to the mysterious Zan.

THE STORY
It wasn't a memory -- more like a dream. As the silent warrior hid in the shadows, waiting to strike, he couldn't shake the sense that he'd been here before. But he could not dwell on that feeling right now. His sensei had been killed by an assassin from the Shadow Clan, and he was there for a reckoning. Zan lurked on a rooftop near the Shadow lair. He would wait there until the Shadow Master came into view and then exact his revenge. Minutes passed, and then hours… but the Shadow Master did not appear. Surely, they hadn't been made aware of his presence. Or had they?

Calling to Panther, his animal companion -- a black cat-like creature with otherworldly features -- who had been lurking nearby in the dark, Zan climbed on to the big cat, and the pair leaped from the rooftop and into the pathway in front of the temple below. At that moment, Zan knew he was in trouble. He sensed a dark presence, but before he could act, he was surrounded by twelve Shadow Clan warriors. "I can take them," he thought. But just then another two dozen fighters from the Shadow Clan emerged from the darkness.

Zan was wise enough to know he couldn't win. And he knew there was only one way out. He leaned forward to whisper a command into Panther's ear, and suddenly the cat leapt into the air towards the surrounding warriors. There was a blinding flash of light -- Zan and Panther had vanished. --Brian 17:49, September 23, 2013 (UTC)

"Good Heavens!" He woke up to the cry of a woman who sounded like a noblewoman. Opening his eyes, Zan got up, and found himself in the middle of the street of a strange city that he had not been to, with Panther beside him, surrounding by a crowd of people. Judging from their clothes, they looked like a mixture of nobility, merchants, civil servants, commoners and beggars, yet they all looked frightened at the sight of him since they had likely never seen someone quite like him or his companion before, especially coming out of nowhere as he did! Hoping to take cover somewhere before he caused more of a disturbance, Zan got on top of Panther and began to ride. "YOU, STOP RIGHT WHERE YOU ARE!" Shouted a man with a club that Zan could only guess was a law enforcer. (Anonymius (talk) 17:14, September 23, 2013 (UTC))

In the dark basement of a Victorian mansion, an old man named Lord Amadeus Chataway, looked upon a statue of a great fish. It had long, sharp teeth, and a lure-like thing on top of its head, like a deep-sea fish. "I am quite impressed with this," said Amadeus, "Before long, I-" Before he could finish, his daughter was knocking on the door. --ScorpionTail (talk) 17:20, September 23, 2013 (UTC)

Elsewhere, there was a small village home to many farmers where there was a teenage boy named Ryuunosuke Kageyama who, unlike the others at his age, he ditched the farm work and went to train with duel katanas for he wanted to become a samurai instead of staying as a farmer. As he was on his way back home from training he heard a voice which appeared to be weakly asking for help. Rushing towards the source of the voice, he found a beautiful girl about his age leaning on a tree and he asked, "Are you okay!?! What's your name?" "My name is Virginia," the girl replied, "Please, help me find a man named Zan. He's the only hope left for this world." When she lost consciousness, Ryuunosuke carried her back to his village wondering what was happening. Forest Dragon Slayer (talk) 17:23, September 23, 2013 (UTC)

Little did he know, the girl Virginia had just escaped from a terrible fight with her father, Lord Amadaeus Chataway. Angry that her father seemed to be losing his mind and ignoring her words of advice, she had stormed off but was attacked by thugs looking for an easy target. Unfortunately for them, Virginia was a fierce fighter thanks to her old friend and butler, Charles. She was able to fight most of them off until one attacked her from behind, and the last thing she remembered seeing was a strange man on top of a panther... Grace (profile)•(talk) 17:35, September 23, 2013 (UTC)

Zan sped off onto top of Panther, who had leaped over the gasping (And he couldn't help but think impressed) crowd of spectators, running away from the law enforcers, using some kind of artifacts as if to get his attention. It would take too long to explain. Heck he wasn't even sure if he could explain it! Besides he was certain that he hadn't broken any alien law! At least he thought he hadn't. Panther leaped onto a nearby building, and scuttled up the wall to the top, before running and leaping off of several buildings to get away. (Anonymius (talk) 17:44, September 23, 2013 (UTC))

Suddenly the world fell apart and light came from everywhere as Zan fell from his panther. Plummeting to the ground, the light and sky changed, and, within a blink of an eye, he was surrounded by huge metal temples with blinking lights. Machines filled the air, whizzing past him, but, before hitting the ground, hundreds of paper origami cranes flocked toward him and carried him to safety. Zan looked at the floating mass of paper cranes that was ascending him to safety with curiosity. The cranes landed Zan on the highest building in Tokyo. The origami paper cranes began to unfold and transformed into his Panther. (Christina Coffaro (talk) --Christina Coffaro (talk) 17:56, September 23, 2013 (UTC)

"Master Mar'riana, Lord of the Seas of Time," said Lord Amadeus Chataway, "I managed to keep my eldest daughter Virginia away for now, so that we can speak about the plan." In that instant, a phantom-like creature that resembled a viperfish or some other deep-sea fish appeared in front of Lord Chataway, the fish's bioluminescent body being the sole glimmer of light in the room. "Lord Chataway," said Mar'riana, "you have done well, but the legends are true, for the hero of the ages has surfaced..." --ScorpionTail (talk) 18:05, September 23, 2013 (UTC)

At Ryuunosuke's house, Virginia began to wake up from her sleep, and she got up in a panic thinking that she was still on the run but she was surprised to see herself in a soft bed. "So you finally woke up, huh, Virginia," Ryuunosuke said causing the girl to panic at the stranger. "Who are you and how do you know my name!?!" "My name's Ryuunosuke and I know your name because you told me yesterday before you lost conscious. Don't worry, I won't let anything hurt you." "Are you trying to flirt with me using those lines!?!" Virginia exclaimed as Ryuunosuke had a nervous smile on his face because flirting was not his intention. Forest Dragon Slayer (talk) 18:29, September 23, 2013 (UTC)

Zan opened his eyes and found himself still on his companion where he was before, before that vision. Having traveled so many times to so many places throughout time he couldn't keep a track of where he's been, and sometimes he has visions or dreams of places he's never quite sure if he's been there before or yet. He looked around and wondered where he was. It definitely looked like a city, but unlike cities he was used to (that were made of wood). This one was entirely made of stone, and was much bigger, and filthier as well. Eventually, once he was certain that he had lost those law enforcers, Panther leaped down into an alleyway where he grabbed a large rag and threw it over himself to cover his appearance. (Anonymius (talk) 18:33, September 23, 2013 (UTC))

The nameless Panther, his ancient companion and the only constant in the tumult of space-time travel that had become his life, stepped forward as his paws shrank to the size of those of a housecat, advancing and decreasing until it was only a black cat with burning white eyes before leaping away far beyond Zan, who shuffled awkwardly in the rag he had hastily cast over himself as the hapless samurai took stock of his surroundings. The alley was filthy, strewn with garbage and feces and the corpses of dead animals, but was given a crawling life by the impoverished who sat in drunken or opium-induced stupors and the children who rummaged amongst the trash in search of cast away treasures. "Sah, sah. sah, sah!" cried one child, a cripple with a dead eye that lolled blindly and teared in its corners, groping with his tiny hands as he begged alms from the strange newcomer. In his travels, Zan had encountered and mastered many languages, but such vernacular was unfamiliar to him. The samurai, taking the plea as an entreaty for money, produced from a pouch hanging at his side a dull golden coin. Whether it would have value in this strange world, Zan could not know, but he wordlessly placed it in the young invalid's outstretched palm and closed his fingers around it. Jottie22 (talk) 19:54, September 23, 2013 (UTC)Jottie22

Like a crystal ball, Mar'riana used the anglerfish-esque lure to observe the young samurai, showing his lackey Amadeus this strange new threat to their plans. "His name is Zan," said Mar'riana. "What do you suppose we should do about him, though?" asked Amadeus nervously. "Let time take care of things," chuckled Mar'riana. Within a few seconds, bubbles began to shoot out of his mouth, and demons from Feudal Japan, in this case the Tengu, appeared, bowing to Amadeus. "May they serve us well," said Mar'riana, vanishing into the dark depths of what looked like a murky ocean trench. --ScorpionTail (talk) 20:09, September 23, 2013 (UTC)

"So, you were talking about some guy called Zan and how he was the last hope for the world?" Ryuunosuke asked as he set some food in front of Virginia. "That is correct," Virginia said with a somewhat sad expression, "I am currently running away from my father who wants to kill Zan and I wanted to warn him before it's too late. I thank you for the hospitality but I must go." As she got up to leave, Ryuunosuke grabbed her wrist and stopped her, saying, "I'm coming with you then, I can't just let you go and put yourself in danger by yourself. I'll protect you the entire way." Forest Dragon Slayer (talk) 20:23, September 23, 2013 (UTC)

After conversing with Mar'riana, Lord Chateley was taking a ride in a carriage through the city, along with his daughter, who was looking bored, so he asked her what was wrong.

"Oh I was just thinking, Father," She told him, "about life in general; like, if there is something more to it than simply saying "How do you do?" and "I am quite well, thanks for asking" all the time, and going to balls and letting boring men trying to court me and laughing at their comments when they're not funny; just about my purpose in life, that's all."

"Your purpose, child," her father told her calmly, "Is to be a dutiful child, and then to be a dutiful wife, nothing more; what more is there for a young lady of your stature?"

As Virginia tried to prepare a rebuttal to her father's unsympathetic response, she overheard some people they were passing talking about a giant cat they had seen and what they swore was a wild man on top of it, an old man swore he had seen it leap down into an alleyway he was pointing at. Curious, and desperate to get away from her father for a while, she got out of the carriage and ran for the alleyway that the man pointed at with her father running after her. (Anonymius (talk) 20:33, September 23, 2013 (UTC))

Virginia sat back down and Ryunnosuke asked, "What is going on and why are you here?" since, judging by her clothes, she was not from anywhere near here. Flustered, Virginia explaned: "This, I believe is Feudal Japan, yes?" This was common knowledge, why she was bothering to state it was puzzling so he questioned her sanity.

"My father was a historian," continued the girl, "This may be hard to believe but I am from the future and a man from this time named Zan brought me here. I believe he may...no I FEAR he may have come here to kill Oda the warlord, before he conquers a 3rd of Japan and starts it's unification," she rasped. Ryunnosuke looked at her with a mixture of shock and suspicion, but he couldn't help but wonder why such a beautiful woman seemed so insane. (Amyar (talk) 21:38, September 23, 2013

Zan could hear the sound of flapping wings. He and his panther companion ceased moving, and quickly looked around. He suspicions were correct; the Tengu, those red-faced crow-men, had found him. With a war cry, some of the tengu warriors sorrounded Zan. Just looking at them told Zan that the only way out of this mess would be bloody... --ScorpionTail (talk) 20:49, September 23, 2013 (UTC)

"So do you see how dangerous this is going to be," Virginia asked Ryuunosuke after finishing her more in depth explanation of what she has to do. "So? I'm still going with you. I'm more than capable to take on whatever's out there." Ryuunosuke said already ready for this trip. "I said I'd stay by your side for this no matter what." This made Virginia blush a little. Forest Dragon Slayer (talk) 21:10, September 23, 2013 (UTC)

The Tengu men let out a loud war cry and flew directly towards Zan and his panther. Zan cut down his opponents swiftly, like a hot knife through better whilst his pet constantly pounced into the air and mauled some of the Tengu men. Things were going well until Zan noticed he and missed one Tengu man, who was flying straight towards Zan to end him. However, the Tengu man was sent flying as an arrows struck him straight in the chest. Zan looked and noticed a man in relatively simply village clothing wielding a long bow, which seemed a bit out of place. Zan's panther growled at the stranger, but Zan calmed him. The villager began walking towards Zan to greet him. --Ezvil (talk) 21:20, September 23, 2013 (UTC)

Zan caught a good glimpse of the boy before the vision faded, and he found himself back in the strange stone city. Hearing the cry of a Tengu, Zan turned around to see more coming at him, so he ran, but not out of cowardice since he knew from that vision where to go next. As he and Panther ran to the end of the alleyway, he leaped onto his companion as he grew to his larger size, and prepared to escape this time. Just as he was, however, the Virginia of this time, unaware of the knowledge that she would later know in life, caught a glimpse of the man and the growing cat; curiosity getting the better of her, she ran to them, not noticing the Tengu. She called out to the man, but he didn't hear her, and her hand just brushed the cat's tail as she was pulled into the time portal with them, with her father just clasping her arm: and the visions she saw changed her life forever. (Anonymius (talk) 21:39, September 23, 2013 (UTC))

Zan Returns to Japan
Zan was back in Japan this time near a village, the archer from before had revealed himself, but then boy revealed his true form as a large red fox with crimson fur and eyes with a sword on his back. "Long time no see, I hear you go by the name Zan now." Zan was confused on how the creature knew his name. "You don't remember me? That's a shame, I was almost positive that my presence would trigger a memory, oh well a promise is a promise either way." The fox took the sword off his back unsheathed and held it in his hand, "before we fight call me Shotora for now."--Zeromaro (talk) 21:59, September 23, 2013 (UTC)(I told you he'd be back.)

Zan unsheathed his sword, a long, curved beauty. He fingered the worn handle of the blade as the two circled each other cautiously. Shotaro... he had heard this name before. He looked at the fox, assessing its movements - steady and clean, clearly one experienced in fighting. Then, without warning, Zan lunged forwards. The ringing sound of blades clashing echoed through the air. He blocked, Zan thought admiringly, A worthy opponent it would seem.--Alleyworkings00103 (talk) 22:13, September 23, 2013 (UTC)

"Hopefully you'll be able to do more to challenge me," Shotora said with a smirk, "or else I won't be able to be serious about this." He then went into a different stance signaling a charge attack. The boy charged at Zan who was already swinging his sword. But at the last moment, Shotora jumped back dodging Zan's attack and then jumped forward once more with a slash attack giving a light cut to Zan's face as he tried to dodge. "I'm not the trickster swordsman for nothing." Why do I remember that? Zan thought. Forest Dragon Slayer (talk) 22:25, September 23, 2013 (UTC)

Virginia looked around. She certainly wasn't very happy to know that she was here, in Feudal Japan, a time period that she had researched often in her spare time. Surely with all of the fighting that took place back then, she'd surely perish. Perplexed by her situation, she asked for answers. "What the bloody hell is going on here?" she asked, confused by all of the ruckus. --ScorpionTail (talk) 22:49, September 23, 2013 (UTC)

"You're the one who said you got dragged here by a time traveler riding a Bakeneko (Cat monster), that's crazy enough." Ryunosuke was still trying to get his head around things, "Wait what's going on over there?" On the pathway to the village, the teens noticed the duel between Zan and a bipedal fox. "That man, he's-" "Zan!" Screamed Virginia, "The man who first taught me how to wield a sword is Zan?" Ryunosuke was getting surprised at every turn.--Zeromaro (talk) 23:01, September 23, 2013 (UTC)

Virginia and Ryuunosuke were near the edge of the village when Virginia heard the sounds of the duel. "No, not here!" she cried, "This is where I first met Zan! We have to go." Ryuunosuke was confused. "Go? Go where?" Virginia smiled and pulled a very lifelike, beautiful origami panther out of her pocket. "Forward," she said, and as the panther expanded into it's true form they vanished in a flash of light.

TheReturnOfTheKing - O_o I'm watching… 23:26, September 23, 2013 (UTC)

"Where are we?" Ryuunosuke asked as the two of them appeared in a new location. "We are in my time also known as the Victorian Era," Virginia replied as she took him by the hand and led him through the busy street. Ryuunosuke was amazed at the new sights he's never seen before. "But why did we have to leave when you wanted to find that Zan guy in the first place," he asked. "It would've caused a time paradox if my younger self saw me," she replied, but Ryuunosuke still looked confused. Forest Dragon Slayer (talk) 23:37, September 23, 2013 (UTC)

Amadeus looked at his two other daughters, Dakota and Carolina, as they walked into the mansion. "What's wrong, father?" asked Dakota, "Where's Virginia?" "That's what I'm trying to find out," answered Amadeus, "I've been looking everywhere for that girl." His mind was set on finding his daughter, who he hoped would never find out his secret... --ScorpionTail (talk) 23:53, September 23, 2013 (UTC)

We should get back to Zan and Shotora, Zan was exhausted while the fox barely even panted. He never even drew his sword from its saya, and he fought in a way I've never seen before: legwork, acrobatics, different forms of grappling, he even used his tail to strike pressure points or restrain, not to mention those strikes from different parts of his body. "Looks like I'll have to wait until you recover all of your memories before we can fight again, oh and if you meet a young man by the name of Ryunosuke, he's that farmer's child you trained in the basics of swordsmanship. It's good that he hasn't learned your jiku-no-zangetsu-ryu." Jiku-no-zangetsu-ryu is an advanced form of Japanese swordsmanship created by Zan that calculates the distance and timing of an opponent's movement in order to counterattack, its a flexible style that not only uses swords but other weapons too. As Shotora disappeared Zan called out, "I apologize for bringing you into this, it's safe to come out now," a slightly younger Virginia came out of the tall grass she was hiding in.--Zeromaro (talk) 01:23, September 24, 2013 (UTC)

"Who are you?" Virginia asked. Zan surveyed her - she was a pretty thing, this girl, with her shimmering blonde hair that flowed and glowed with light, eyes that were proud and blue, light skin that spoke of femininity and softness. She had high cheekbones, very prominent, and highlighted the length of her curved lashes that brushed skin every time she closed them. She was highborn, he knew, from the way she spoke and the way she held herself. "My name is Zan," the samurai said. "And you are?"--Alleyworkings00103 (talk) 02:53, September 24, 2013 (UTC)

"My name is Virginia, I'm 12 years old." The girl said shyly due to the height difference of the two of them. "Where am I? I want to go home." "You are in Japan right now." Forest Dragon Slayer (talk) 03:00, September 24, 2013 (UTC)

Viriginia was unable to reply again, as she suddenly shrieked as an arrow came flying towards Zan's head. Zan, as though by instinct, caught the arrow in midair without even turning his head to look at it. He then starred as the villager from before stood a way's away, with a grin on his face. "So I guess you still have some skills after all, pitiful you lost to that fox though," the villager said harshly, but the smile on his face hinted that he was not seriously condoning Zan. Virginia still looked horrified, but she eased tensions a bit when Zan referred to the villager by his name. "Im confused as to how that boy, er, fox knows my name, Yumoa" Zan told the villager. "Nonetheless, I'm off watch duty for the time being, so perhaps I can help figure out what's going on," Yumoa the villager replied, although he stopped for a moment before saying to Virginia, "Oh I apologize, miss, welcome to Japan!" --Ezvil (talk) 03:04, September 24, 2013 (UTC)