The Dream Shifter

Chapter 17

"Yuki Hayashi..." The words echoed through Yuki's head repeated pounding on his insides taking advantage of his weakened state to induce mental injures. He could not get the voice out of his head and all he could think of was the past in his mind. The assassin from earlier played through his memories slicing through his strength and will. This was far beyond anything that he could hope to survive.

'Another assassin so soon…I'm still so weak from before.' Yuki's eyes darted around the blood plain to see his sister and brothers huddled together. They still did not seem to have the danger sunk into them, but Momoko knew all too well how dangerous this man was just by the display he made thus far. She had seen her home fall apart into a pool of blood. It was a horrific sight for her. Yuki was surprised that she had even managed to move. His body had been frozen since this began and now he was too weak to even move now that he could feel his body. 'Ayumi is not even here to save me. She probably doesn't even know. I'm all alone here. I'm going to die this time. I-I'm dead…'

The assassin stepped forward towards Yuki. Light from the moon had given a small look at the man's appearance. He was covered in blood it seemed while it had a silk-like cloth appearance as well. Every corner or edge of the cloth dripped blood that the pool drank. This was only the clothes that he wore that the blood flowed; the skin remained untouched by the blood. The silk-like material covered his large muscular chest as a solid piece and tied off firmly at the waist by a black belt. His pants seemed to continue on as though they were uninterrupted by the belt left a little loose around the legs. Leather boots covered in black and shining with crimson went up to his knees. His head and arms remained bare with only gauntlets covering his muscular arms. The man was as well built as he was tall and menacing, but none of the muscles were to excess simply being well defined. His entire presence breathed the sight of death.

'Die…die…die…I-I'm…' Yuki's mind was stuck stuttering not even aware of his surroundings anymore. The shaking from his body continued to formed ripples through the pool of blood to the feet of the assassin. He could not hear the steps of the assassin moving closer to him. The words that the man spoke rang empty on his ears. When the darkened figure in the moonlight stood over him he did not even feeling the slight tinge of his presence. Yuki did not know there was a world around him. Fear was all he knew tying him down. 'Is there someone to save me?'

The man grabbed Yuki by the collar of his school uniform putting him face to face with him and nearly a foot off the ground. It was an effortless motion that still did not make Yuki respond to the man. The assassin's dark blue eyes attempted to pierce Yuki, but Yuki's head tilted at an angle away with his own eyes distant almost empty of life. "Such a worthless kid. So paralyzed by fear that you can't even see the world around you. I thought you might actually be interesting for a few minutes from watching you at lunch." He narrowed his eyes in annoyance rather than anger.

His free right hand pulled back a little as the gauntlet on his forearm suddenly changed its shape. It had been a simple metal guard that covered only the front of the forearm with a leather and bronze clasp holding it in place just below the wrist. The metal was altered growing up around his tightened fist as three pointed spikes along the knuckles formed solidifying in polished steel. The armored right hand was released from its tensed position digging into Yuki's stomach pulling at his body ripping his collar and shredding the threads where the spikes penetrated.

Yuki coughed out of reflex from his body, but still remained clocked out from the world. It was then that his brothers understood very clearly what was happening. All Momoko could do was hold them back and gasp in pain for Yuki.

"Sis! Yuki's getting hurt!" shouted Ken through panicked lips that struggled against Momoko's arms. He did not understand why she was stopping him.

The man punched Yuki again this time drawing blood from him staining his uniform. Ken watched his sister turn away with tears in her eyes. Momoko had wanted to move from the beginning, but her body was acting on its own to protect Ken and Jun. It knew that they would try to attack the man to stop him from hurting Yuki. "K-Ken…don't look…please…"

"Let me go, sis! I've got to stop that man!"

"No, Ken. You mustn't…"

"But why is he hurting Yuki! He didn't do anything wrong. We have to stop him!"

The man turned his face to the three children to the side of him after he finished placing another punch into Yuki. "I've got to break through his fear. Or how else can he see me killing his family!" He landed another punch into his chest making Yuki cough up blood and rip through his collar completely. Yuki flew back in the blood soaking through the back of his uniform. He coughed repeated from the ground lying on his back slowly moving legs. "Ah. Looks like I finally woke him up."

'Kill us!?' Momoko thought in fear as she looked into the man's eyes when he had said it. The cold empty eyes of a killer had stared back at her and burned into her memory. She could not see anything else but the man eyes surrounding her. 'Yuki…why does this man want to kill us? What's going on?' She did not know what Yuki had gotten himself into, but she could not believe he would have been so stupid to be making some street g**g angry. However, the strange things that had already happened made her wonder what exact had Yuki gotten into. This was not some angry bully from school. This man wanted more than just blood. 'I wish you were here, father.'

The man raised his hand up at Yuki's direction. "Now that I have your attention…" All around Yuki the blood began to bubble suddenly like it was boiling, but he could not feel any heat. He attempted to move away, but he could only manage to roll over still feeling the deep stinging pain from being punched repeatedly. A solid wall of blood rose out from the pool reaching to a height greater than even the assassin. When Yuki began to move again tentacles burst from the wall out towards Yuki. They were too fast for him to escape, even if he was not injured. The tentacles wrapped around his wrists and ankles pulling him up against the wall holding his arms around horizontally. "You can watch while I kill your family."

Yuki, now aware, pulled at the bindings as his eyes widened in panic. 'He's getting them involved now!' He struggled against the bindings that held his arms nearly getting his arm to move a few inches before it was slammed back against the wall. "NO! Leave them out of this! It's me you want. Not them. Kill me and leave them alone."

"I had considered it. Perhaps leaving them alone. However, they've seen me and I can't allow them to live. Once they are dead I will have to kill you and then your neighbors. Anyone that saw can't be allowed to live."

"Leave them…alone please…"

"Begging now? You aren't a challenge for me. So I might as well watch your heart being shattered." The tall man in crimson began walking towards Momoko and the two she was protected. There was an eager desire to kill and l**t for it burning within his eyes.

Momoko had been shaking the entire time, but once he had begun to move she felt her body return to her. She stood up pulling Ken and Jun behind her. "Run now! Get away and don't look back."

"But Sis!" Ken said with Jun staring mutely at her.

Momoko refused to turn her head stepping backwards in line with the man. "Don't argue with me! Run!"

Jun took a hold of Ken's hand and pulled him roughly until he started to run on his own drawing him away from Momoko. "Jun! Stop, we got to protect, Sis!" However, Jun's stubborn eyes, that seemed to understand better than Ken, stared at him slowly convincing him to run together. They could see the end of the blood pool in the distance running for that as safety.

The blood bubbled and shot up several walls too high to see over in front of Jun's path bringing them to a halt. "I didn't say that you could leave."

"Ken! Jun!" Yuki shouted straining at his bindings feeling helpless and desperate to do anything. 'They're going to die because of me…this is all…my fault…'