The Dream Shifter

Chapter 56

Yuki turned away from the scene and looked at Seiji staring down at him. It was then that his curiosity kicked in changing his expression again to confusion.

"What's with the clothes, Seiji? I thought you hated…"

"Huh?" Seiji said nearly as confused as Yuki looked, but Yuki pointed at the clothes to direct his eye down.

When Seiji gave into Yuki's questioning and looked his eyes widen in shock making him jump back.

"What am I wearing these stupid clothes for?!"

Seiji began to pull at them checking to see if it is as real and where his school clothes had gone. It was sadly very real and very missing.

"That's what I'm asking. When you woke up you were wearing them. I didn't say much then because we had other matters."

Yuki's mind ran through the events that led up trying to figure out what had happened since it was becoming very clear to him that Seiji was in the dark.

"And what's with those papers? They look like charms or something."

Seiji was not able to keep up with everything that Yuki was saying still trying to deal with the clothes.

'Why didn't I notice this before? And what's Yuki talking about paper charms?'

It required Yuki to grab Seiji's hand and show him what it was that he was holding the entire time.

"You were throwing them around all over the place like out of a manga I read. It was pretty cool."

"Huh? Wait…these are Ofuda, talismans that we use at the shrine. But why do I have them?"

Seiji attempted to replay what he was doing before, but it was all a blur to him now. All he could remember from when he was fighting was a sense that he knew what had to be done without needing to understand. It was all reflexive like he had done it before and just knew without needing to concentrate.

'What happened to me? Why can't I remember what happened? What's this strange feeling I have? What's going on?'

Yuki had a ton of questions left, but he suddenly knew that he should not be sticking around any longer than necessary. Unfortunately, he was still in a problem.

'I can't turn it off again. Damn…wish I knew how to work this.'

Yuki walked over to Seiji trying to look as serious as he could.

"Hey Seiji, I need a favor."

"Wha—"

"We probably shouldn't stick around any longer, but I need you to whack me in the head hard."

"Huh? Why?!"

"I'll explain later, just hurry!"

Seiji did not understand what Yuki was getting, but the dead serious look in his eyes told Seiji that it was important. He took a moment and pulled back his arm tightly letting it go flying through Yuki and dropping him flat on the alley concrete once more. All of the grass, sword, armor and everything faded away before Yuki touched the ground.

"Not sure I understand, but this is getting complicated," he said looking around at the alley seeing the few areas of damage that were sustained to the environment from the fighting.

However, Seiji could not dawdle too long and with Yuki unconscious, it made his task harder now.

'If this was just to get a free ride I'm going to…'

Seiji bent down and lifted Yuki up over the shoulder and began slowly walking away trying not to stand out as much as it appeared.

On top of the four-story building looking down at the alley stood a thin figure that had been watching the fight unfold. Over the shoulder of the individual lay a dead body, another assassin by the judging of the clothes. The figure jumped over the ledge and slowly descended to the ground landing in the snow. A wind blew through the alley and the clouds peeled backcasting light on Ayumi standing up.

"Still too soft," she said as she approached the injured assassin that was left by Yuki.

She held up her sword gleaming in the sunlight before plunging it into the assassin's heart putting an end to the man's life.

She spun around letting the field and everything of hers disappear with the wind walking away.

'Though I've never seen Meso Prosecho applied in this manner… Is this the power of the King? Or is this something unique to Yuki?'

Ayumi knew what happened, but it was beyond what she could have expected from Yuki at his level. She did not even know such a thing was even possible with their power. The strength and degree of Yuki's power continued to surprise her even if it was still terribly unrefined.

'If he can control his power nothing…'

Before she left she turned to look back at the body of the assassin watching it fade away as every piece of living matter disintegrated leaving nothing but broken concrete and buildings behind. Ayumi had plenty to ponder leaving her to walk back to school before she was missed greatly.

Her distraction left her to leaving the onlooker unnoticed still watching from a distance stunned at what they had seen. They had been unable to move during the fight that they had witnessed. It was, of course, beyond anything that they had ever seen in their lives before.

The sheer sight of the unknown was enough to paralyze every muscle in their body, but what's more was the fact that it was Yuki, someone that they knew.

"What's just happened?"

Hiroshi said finally managing to c***k his stone face to speak.

He walked into the alley that was empty apart from the broken ground.

'What is Yuki? And Ayumi? Even Seiji… I don't understand what going on!'

Hiroshi's mind did not even register that there had been someone dead where stepped until cracked masonry fell snapping him out of his trance. He looked down at where Yuki's sword had come to a stop and where Ayumi's pierced the man's heart.

"He's dead…Ayumi killed him! What have I gotten myself into?! Yuki!"

"Huh?"

Yuki said turning suddenly in response to his name being called. He sat on a large semi-flat stone in the back of the shrine that Seiji had carried him back to. Yuki was not sure if he was welcomed by their grandfather, but he did not seem to be area and Seiji was staring at him intending to get answers from Yuki.

"Don't 'huh' me, Yuki! You seem to know what's going and who that guy was."

Seiji leaned in on Yuki if it would help get him the answers that he needed from Yuki. They had left the alley so quickly after defeating that strange guy that Seiji did not have any time for answers. Everything that he had seen had plenty of time to finally pour into him on his walk back.

'What was that strange power? How could I do such things? It's not possible, it like something from a movie. It can't be real!'

He needed answers from Yuki.

Yuki swallowed slowly knowing that this was coming. He knew that he was going to have to explain it when Seiji refused to run away. It was inevitable now.

"Well, I'm not sure where to start, it's kinda complicated."

"Let's start with that guy that attacked you. He seemed to be out for more than just a few drops of your blood."

"He's someone from where I was born and he wanted to kill me because I'm the rightful heir to their dead leader."

Seiji pulled back and took a step back before pacing around the dirt. This was not an answer that he was expecting.

'I thought it was just a g**g fight or something, but this…'

He rubbed his hand through his hair not finding the answer as thorough or complete as he would have liked.

"If what you say is true and you're the heir, why do they want you dead?"

"I'm not clear on their plans or details myself, but if I'm dead there won't be an heir anymore and the rebelling faction that wants me dead can take power for themselves."

"Where is this place that you're supposed to be from?"

Yuki thought and looked around holding his index finger up along the side of his face sliding it along his jawline as he thought back.

"You know…I don't know! I've never asked!"

"What?!" Seiji said falling over to the ground.

He jumped back up to his feet and leaned into Yuki who seemed to be taking the realization a little too well.

"How can you say it so simply?! If you're telling the truth, it's your homeland! It's your place of birth. It's important!"

"Huh? I guess… Never really thought about it that much," Yuki said plainly still not letting it sink in.

"I've focused on the assassins and my power that I never really gave it thought. I don't even know if I want to go, though I don't know how Ayumi will take that."

He nearly laughed to himself as he could picture the berating that he would take from Ayumi for so casually talking about such matters.

Seiji was left quite stunned by the whole scene from Yuki. 'He takes it all so nonchalantly like it's not a worry for him.' He closed up his mouth and readjusted his form trying to make things a little more serious.

"Who's Ayumi?"

"Oh, I probably shouldn't have mentioned her, huh? She's the one that told me about this. She's protected me from the assassins and trains me in using my power so I can control it."

"What is this power you're talking about?"

"It's the Kasou-ryoku, it's a power that I have as well as the assassins. Um…how do I explain it? I wish that I could control it to show you. I guess the short of it is that it is a power that makes anything that I can think up real."

'Makes anything real…' It was a hard thing to think possible and if Yuki had told him before that fight he had that sort of power he would have laughed at him. Yet, Seiji knew that he could not simply shrug it off as Yuki's new personality and the quirks he had. It was impossible, but Yuki was being completely serious and honest with Seiji. This much he knew.

"I see…and what about me. You do that too?"

"I dunno, I guess that would only make sense. That's pretty cool I gave you real Shinto powers, huh?!"

"Cool?!" Seiji said grabbed Yuki up by the collar of his uniform.

"How could you think what you did to me was cool?! You shamed me by making me into one of them! You're lucky that no one saw me. It'll ruin my image!"

Yuki flailed his arms about panicking from Seiji's anger. He knew that Seiji hated everything about the training that he had been forced to take when he was younger. But Yuki changed in expression when he heard Seiji.

"Image?"

"Yeah, I've got an image to keep and I'd never lived it down if folks started seeing me going around in some priest robes. I'd lose all respect!"

"You're worried about that?" Yuki said grinning to himself before he started laughing uncontrollably, while still being held up by Seiji.

Seiji's veins in his forehead began to pop pulsing in frustration and anger that Yuki would be laughing at him. He pulled tighter on Yuki's collar making Yuki start to cough while he was laughing, but still, it did not stop him. Seiji dropped Yuki back to the ground and turned away becoming frustrated with him.

Ayumi walked up the street coming to pass by Yuki's house on the way to her own. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught the figure of someone suspicious that was not trying to disguise themselves. She turned to face them already knowing who they would be.

'Another so soon... They aren't messing around…' Ayumi began to walk towards them.

"Waiting for someone?"