The origin plain as usual was very quiet. But it gives me enough time to plan at least on what my next move should be. After constantly thinking, I came to a conclusion. But the execution is the only problem. In fact that was the only frustrating part. To execute a plan but without the means is another issue.
I was getting frustrated again. So much so I started to practice punches and kicks at my location. Eventually it went to the change of stances and acrobatics of flips and gainers, mixed with kicks. Eventually a memory started to materialize. It was fighting with the old man on hand to hand combat. It was a mixture of different styles.
Mr. Williams was one that was immoveable as an iron wall as mine was as wild as a typhoon. We were evenly matched as the man blocked and parried at all my hits as mine were coming from all directions from the air and ground. He then grabs my foot at the right moment and throws me at the other direction. Instead of falling flat at the ground, I recovered with a backwards, ground roll umeki.
The position of my body soon formed into that of an animal ready to pounce. That when I bounced forward with a cross punch, following up with a bunch of rapid hand strikes. But the man manages to counter one of my strikes and goes for a punch to the gut. However I barely managed to block that with both my arms. The punch slides me two feet away but the distance gave me enough to go with a counter attack with a flurry of punches and kicks. But the man manages to read them all and we were at a constant exchange of parries and blows.
We were are out peak now, both at the zone with our will. There was no magic, just pure technique and skill. Our movements were focused at each others constantly, circling each other per hit. We were never static but always turning with eyes locked at each other. It was like a dance of fists, kicks, and grapples. But for a brief moment both of us had an opening. The both of us aimed at each other for a cross punch at the head. But our hits missed and our arms were straight and overlapping each others shoulders. With a brief moment, a gust of wind came from our arms as the might of our punches were so fast that the air couldn't catch up.
The both of us were out of breath as we were too tired to continue. The both of us fell on the floor, tired. The sun soaked the forest in rays. But it was just a memory as I trained in a dense forest again. Sakuya then kneeled down and put a towel on my head. "Onii-san...can you not do this all the time alone...when you are at the forest?" She asked me rather annoyed.
I took the towel and started to wipe myself up. "I have to practice fighting whenever I need to you know...I have people waiting for me to come back after all." I told her.
"Why don't you just do it at home then?"
"I still have to take care of them too you know."
But Sakuya then gets a pouty face and starts to smoother me with my towel. "Onii-chan take care of yourself too! You devil may care bastard!" She shouted annoyed in Japanese.
Soon I return to the present as the memory passed. I laid at the floor tired and looked up. Above my head I then see Furukizu and Kenshin standing in front of me. "So that orb thing looks like it's waiting for you...what do you think of it?" Kenshin asked.
I sat up and faced them. "I think I need to handle it." I replied.
"Handle it? How? Your team is a wreck." Furukizu questioned.
"I'm going to handle it alone this time." I told them.
"Alone? You were barely able to walk on your two feet the first time you came." Furukizu mocked.
"The spirits came to me and looked like it needed help. Looks like I'm being invited." I told him.
"Then what of your friends? Is this fair for them for you to just leave without warning?" Kenshin questioned.
"They're already a wreck just by seeing me. And if we don't resolve whatever I'm here for now, then they're going to lose it." I answered.
"Yet what about you? You're broken! You think you can deal with it alone?!" Kenshin questioned as he gripped onto my shirt.
I then smack his hand away. "It's been my problem to begin with. I should be dealing with this on my own." I told him.
"Do you really think you're the only one effected? How about the people about that care about you?"
"They're affected because of me! And I can tell that it's going to get a whole lot worse the more they are with me!"
"Yet how long are you going to keep on like this? You give them details but whenever your memories become so dark, you burrow it in the deepest part of your mind, hopping they'll pass as fast as your sword swing! You think that's better?!"
"Every night I've seen the same censored horror, only for it to reveal itself little by little to a massacre! What if they get the equivilent? Does it look like I want that to happen to them?!"
Kenshin then takes me by the shirt. "Quit making excuses, you hack!" He reprimands at me, "You just want this all to be over so you can go back to normal. But since when was your life ever normal?"
"I was just a martial arts teacher for fuck sake!" I shouted back.
"Well it doesn't look like it. You were never normal to begin with."
"Well what if I wanted to be normal, huh? What if I just wanted a nice sleep without hearing something scream, the smell of blood, or something that didn't involve blood and guts everywhere, huh? What if I wanted that, huh?"
"Then what happens if you manage to remember everything, huh? You think it will go back to normal? What would happen if all of it is over?"
But that's where my mouth stopped moving. Instead my mouth froze and I couldn't think after. Kenshin then takes a seat and looks at me very attentively. "Now tell me the main reason why you wanna do it solo." He demanded.
"I just want to get the bottom of these memories so I can move on." I tell him, "I'm getting tired of being trapped in the same Limbo over and over again. And if I'm going to stay in this sorry state even more I'm probably going to blow my fucking brains out."
The three of us just sat there quietly in the origin plain. The stress was getting in my head none of us spoke a word. But soon, Furukizu stops playing with his knife and coughs. "Lets let him do it." He said. "Are you insane? You think he's going to last with his sorry state? What if he has another panic attack?" Kenshin questioned him.
"You may not know this but I have all of Sora's past memories as a slayer pre-HAP in my head. And judging by the fae that has visited him...I think the forest is inviting him." He told us.
"This doesn't make any sense...How is the forest inviting me?" I questioned.
"The fae are connected to the woods and nature. Several spirits back at Japan and North America act similary. How the forest acts will be how the fae would respond." Furukizu said.
"Then the forest made a Eitherium storm as a result and attacked Rin then?" Kenshin questioned.
"It's more complicated than that." Furukizu told us.
"How is it complicated?" I asked.
"This might be a theory but maybe the fae made the storm to retract the party as a defence but only laid interest in you." Furukizu told me.
"Then why effect the whole party then?" Kenshin asked.
"Maybe because they haven't noticed Rin. After all Rin's aura is barely detectable and the fae only realized that they needed him when he was going away." Furukizu said.
"Why would the fae need Rin then?" Kenshin asked.
"Remember when Richard said the fae can read thoughts?" Furukizu put out.
"What about it?" I asked.
"What if the fae were able to see through your repressed memories and see that you can be of use to them." Furukizu asked me.
"That doesn't make any sense. Even if they did why did they harm Rin by illusions?" Kenshin asked.
"I didn't see it like that. It looked like they were trying to pin him down, just enough for for something to grab him."
"Grab him? What for?" Kenshin asked.
"Maybe there's something inside Rin's old memories that they need from him, back when he was still Sora. You may have taught him how to kill with magic but remember, you and others taught him many other skills too." Furukizu established.
"Yet what are we supposed to do?" I asked.
"I'd say...go into the forest alone this time. Aid the fae and you might get something in return." Furukizu established.
"And what would that be?" Kenshin questioned.
"They got into your head, right? Ask nicely and they might give your memories back."