21) Kawagoe VI

The air was laden with the smell of blood at the Shimo Base. The sky illuminated by a blood red moon and the temperature was freezing. The Hokkaido mountains were covered in dense fog.

There was no life to be seen at the base. No lights, no sounds, no laughters. Just smell of blood.

Hikaru walked with effort through the thick snow in the courtyard of his clan base. He looked around at the corpse of men and women scattered here and there in the base.

A faint footstep was heard behind Hikaru.

Hikaru took out his sword facing the direction of the sword, and held to the helm of it firmly. He kept a serious expression.

Suddenly he felt a hand on his shoulder and someone standing behind him. She said in a cold tone,

"You're good, but not good enough".

Hikaru didn't have the time to look back so he immediately turned his arms making his sword slash with the mysterious woman's sword.

A bright spark erupted from the contact and there it was. Hikaru was baffled.

Her kimono, covered in blood, it was Hikaru's sister.

She kept ahold of her katana in place while maintaining the height advantage against Hikaru.

"A-ane... Why are you here ...", Hikaru said his gaurd breaking.

"Don't call me that", she replied harshly as she leaped back.

At this point, Hikaru was unable to comprehend what was happening. He didn't even get ready for the next attack and he was zoning out about what is she doing here in this place.

"I assume you still haven't figured it out", she scoffed looking up at the sky.

Hikaru looked at her, his face still in sorrow.

"You see all this?", she says turning around pointing her katana at the corpse.

"I did it," she looks back with a sly face.

His heart dropped even more. This wasn't a dream was it? He woke up before. Why is his sister back now and doing this? So many questions yet no answers.

"I left this clan because it's all pathetic. You, mom, brother and everyone else... And guess what? I killed mom before I left," she cackles in a villainous tone.

Hikaru was zoning out he didn't even understand what was happening.

"B-big Sister... This isn't you!", Hikaru yells desperately as he tumbles down, standing on his knees.

She scoffs coldy and remarks,

"Enough talk".

She held her katana firmly and dashes forward towards Hikaru.

Hikaru was completely zoned out, no idea of the danger that was running towards him.

Her katana came close to Hikaru's chest and with a powerful lunge, she penetrates the katana through his chest piercing his heart and bursting out of his back.

Hikaru flew in midair, carrying his sister with the katana in chest, for a few seconds from the sheer force of the piercing.

Hikaru fell on the cold snowy grounds, his blood splattering nearby. His sister held her katana and pulled it with force out of Hikaru's chest. Blood following behind it.

Hikaru was passing out, his eyes were about to close.

The last image Hikaru ever saw was his sister pointing the blood stained katana at his forehead.

"Ane...".

Meanwhile, Harushi,

"HOLY MOLY AAHHHHHH WHAT'S HAPPENING!", Harushi yelled as he travelled at high speeds through the weird guy's mouth or whatever it was.

And then a hard crash.

"Ow. That hurts..", Harushi exclaims as he stood up dusting the dust off himself.

Suddenly, a voice of an announcer interrupts Harushi's train of thought.

"Welcome, everyone. To the execution of Sakura Hayashi. The execution will be carried out by Akimoro Hayashi. This woman cheated on the clan head is to atone for her sins by being executed".

The voice sent a chilling shiver down Harushi's back. An anger igniting in him .

It was his mother on the platform. She had a guilty expression as she sat with her head down awaiting the sword the strike at any moment.

It was a moment of Harushi's childhood. A few years before he left the Hayashi Clan. But why was he here as an adult to relieve the moment?

Harushi was blinded by rage and all his thoughts, and ran towards the execution platform shouting,

"YOU FUCKING FOOLS! THAT'S MY MOTHER!".

Harushi leaped above the crowd and landed on the platform. The crowd gasped and Harushi began untying his mother's hands desperately.

As Harushi was untying her hands he felt blood dripping down from his head until...

He realised his head was drilled by a Vine Attack by his father, who stood next to Harushi.

"Foolish child dies with his foolish bitch of a mother...", Akimoro says bluntly as he holds Harushi's head and pushes it off the vine.

Harushi didn't even react. He couldn't even sense pain because his neurological system was destroyed. He felt nothing except the feeling of his eyes slowly closing, turning dark.

Meanwhile, Ren,

It was midnight and the forests only noise was the winds passing by, making the leaves rustle.

Ren was in utter shock as he saw a man and a woman hanged from a tall coniferous tree's branch.

"Papa... Mama...", Ren said silently as he kept staring up at the corpses.

"So... This is what happened to them...", Ren continued as he kept staring.

Ren wasn't terrified nor felt anguish yet. He was mature enough to know what happened, happened a decade ago.

Ren sat on his legs and bowed his head slightly and began praying with his eyes closed

"May god forgive you for any sins that you did, papa and mama".

Out of nowhere, a large curved black blade pierced ferociously through Ren's back and out of his chest pulling Ren up.

"Ngh, w-what the-", Ren grimaced in pain as he turned his head around.

A creepy large figure held up Ren by it's blade, which was it's hand. The figure had two eyes with yellow iris and pupils and a blood red sclera. The body was furry and black and the large muscular figure had a set of long thin glowing white teeth with a muzzle. It felt like a human and a bear.

Ren's eyes widened and he understood what it was... an eclipse.

The Bear Eclipse raised it's arm up, along with Ren on its blade and threw Ren violently through the forest downs a few miles.

Hikaru, Harushi and Ren all woke up from their nightmare, jumping out of their floor beds. They was gasping and panting and Hikaru was vomiting in the trash bin. All three of them had a panicked expression over their face.

"W-what the hell was that!", Harushi yells in panicked state.

"Blegh! I don't know...", Hikaru responds throwing up again in pain.

Ren remained silent but was clearly in shock.

A loud clap was heard.

"Boys, you need to calm down~", a woman's cunning voice was heard coming from the bookshelves.

All three of them looked up and saw it... That same woman who Harushi met that night.

"AH ITS THAT FUCKING ECLIPSE!", Harushi yells as he begins taking out his wine whips.

Hikaru and Ren jump on Harushi trying to stop him from doing anything careless.

"Enough", she said in a booming voice.

All three of them quite downed and looked up at the Eclipse in a serious expression.

She nodded as she laid against the wall, sitting on the bookshelves. Her legs crossed, sitting elegantly with a smug expression.

She raised her hand slyly and said,

"Well, yes, I am the so called Eclipse you guys call. Call me the Dreamweaver or Lucy if you want. And I should have told you guys earlier, but I love messing with humans. It's so pitiful really. Welcome to my Territory, the Dreamscape. If I want I could make you see good dreams, but I can make you see nightmares like this one. It's all a part of my Senzai Art, Dreamweaving".

She then jumped down facing them, and continued,

"A fun factor of my Territory, the Dreamscape is that I can make it like a game. I know what your heart wants and what you fear so I used it effectively. You guys fight your past fears or things that kept you dragged down and you have three tries. Well... You have two lives left... Check your right arm".

Harushi, Hikaru and Ren pulled their sleeves and saw two black marks left.

"What the hell is this? You should have told us earlier!", Harushi complains as he looks at her furiously.

The Dreamweaver giggles as she holds Harushi's chin, looking deep into his eyes.

"Well, dear, it isn't fun without making you guys go through death isn't it? I really enjoyed you being so awfully desperate... desperate for your mother's pathetic life...", she saids in a sly way.

Harushi pulls away.

"You- you fucking!", Harushi yells as he's about to punch her, his hands erupting in Senzai.

Hikaru stops him and says,

"Harushi, no! It must be her Territory Condition! I heard about it from Miss Yoru. Some Senzai Users or Eclipses possess an extension of their Art, a Territory, and once in the territory, if it's something like a game, we have to adhere to her rules otherwise something bad would happen!".

The Dreamweaver smiles.

"Well, look at that. If you punched me, your one life would wither away. Welcome to the Dreamscape, friends. Kill all the three entities you encountered and you shall be free to pass. If you don't, we'll you don't wana know~", the Dreamweaver says as she walks back, phasing through the walls.

Her feminine giggles echoed for a few seconds and it stopped.

Harushi stood there looking lifelessly and shocked. Hikaru held him by putting his hand on his shoulder, trying to comfort him.

"So she's psychologically manipulating us into doing things...", Hikaru says looking a bit hesitant.

"Not for me, I suppose... I have to avenge my parents," Ren responded as he came close to them.

"What about you, Harushi?", Hikaru asked looking rather innocent.

Harushi snapped out of his shock and looked back at them, giving a hesitant shake of the head. Saying,

"I'd rather not discuss...".

Chapter 21, end