Chapter 5: Escaping
That night, Shirou dreamt for the first time. He dreamt all of the possible scenarios, all of the different paths he could have taken. The dream seemed to have lasted forever. The scariest thing is that he died at the end of every other path.
"This isn't a bad route…"
What do you mean?
There was no reply.
Are you going to leave me alone again?
No reply.
Shirou sat up, looking around at the unfamiliar forest. It looked much different than last night. The trees were large, tall pines. They covered the ground for as far as he could see.
The gray sky casted a dull haze over the forest, and it looked like it would rain at any minute.
Shirou felt something heavy weighing his arm down.
Much to his surprise, Kanashi was curled up beside him, using his arm as some sort of comfort.
Sakusei, who was sitting about six feet away in front of a small fire, started giggling.
"You were making noise in your sleep," She said, a kind, happy look on her face.
"What should I do?" He had never dealt with anything like this yet.
"Just let her sleep for now."
My arm is starting to go numb. How much longer do you expect me to stay in this position?
They sat in silence, until the small girl besides Shirou began to wake up.
"Mmm...What time is- UAAHHH!" Kanashi shot backwards like a feral cat being attacked. "Why are you laying next to me?!"
Shirou didn't know how to react, as he didn't understand what her issue was.
"You laid next to me," Shirou said, a confused look on his face.
"I would never!" She said that as if she was sleeping next to a pile of trash.
Kanashi continued her rambling of insults and denials, while Shirou sat there, silently.
Shirou's indifference only seemed to make her more mad, and she readied herself to punch him.
"MHM." Sakusei cleared her throat loudly, "I think we better get moving now."
"Fine." Kanashi turned her head away from them grumpily.
After they put out their small fire, and did their best to erase their tracks, they began to move out.
According to Sakusei, there wasn't much outside of Tokyo, except for barren wasteland and rusted out, hundreds of years old cities. But this was perfect for them, as it would give plenty of places to hide.
They had light hearts as they traveled, despite the events of the previous night. They laughed, told jokes, and made fun of each other.
Shirou felt a long lost feeling return. Even if it was just small, or inconsequential, he would savor the feeling.
Is this happiness?
They continued walking for hours. Along their way, they passed rushing white water rivers, open fields of flowers, old temples and other buildings. They traveled late into the evening, until they arrived at a small, deserted town. It looked as though it had been uninhabited for at least 10 years. The grass was overgrown, and the buildings were weathering and destroyed.
"We're here," Sakusei said, exhausted.
"What is this place?"
"It's where I used to live, up until 5 years ago."
Shirou looked at her, trying to read her emotions.
She looked distant. Or even sad.
Nighttime had come, and they found shelter in an old house.
Shirou and Sakusei sat in silence in front of a man made fire. Neither of them could bring themselves to speak.
After a few more minutes, Sakusei finally said something.
"I guess I owe you an explanation."
Shirou didn't get what she meant.
"Do you want to know what happened 10 years ago?" Sakusei sounded more grim than Shirou could ever have imagined.
He nodded, despite this.
"Before I tell you this, know that this is a dark story." Her eyes were shrouded in shadow. "Please promise me one thing. Don't think different of me after I tell you." She looked up, solemnly with wide eyes.
"I won't."
She began her story.
"Up until ten years ago, I lived in a country called America. It was a fairly peaceful country with loads of work and money. However, not all of us were fortunate, including me. I was born on the streets. I have no memories of anyone who could be my parents. I had no money, no family, no life. That was how I spent my first 12 years in this world."
Shirou watched silently as she explained.
"I wandered aimlessly with no goal. I was no one, nameless. I continued this disgusting way of life for many years, until I ended up dying in an alleyway. It was then that they saved me. They took me in, gave me a name, and taught me their ways. Their name was the Honshitsu"
She sounded as if she was worshipping a god.
"In a sense, we were strangers. We never truly cared about each other. The only thing that held us together was one thing. The Essence of the Creator."
That phrase was familiar to Shirou.
"You've heard that before, right? It's an extremely rare power. Even at the time I was with them, there were only about 200 known holders of the Essence. They made up with their small numbers by overwhelming power, similar to the power you have."
Shirou had many questions, but didn't dare to say anything.
"I was with them for about 3 years, until it happened. By then, the Honshitsu had gained quite the reputation. The general public was aware of their great powers, and worshipped them like gods. We never once used our powers for combat. But still, even though we were so peaceful, they grew to hate us. The International Government eventually learned of our existence, and moved to destroy us based on a whim. Our leader, whom we loved dearly, took us all and ran."
Her eyes widened in anger as she recalled the next events.
"He led us right into the Government's hands. That bastard...he left us there. He left us to die...he left us…"
A sound escaped her mouth, then dripping.
She was crying, no… more like sobbing.
"I'll kill him... I swear…" She repeated those lines over and over again, stifling sobs.
What Shirou did next was very out of character.
She felt arms wrapped around her.
Huh? Sakusei thought.
As she realized what was happening, her face turned bright red.
"I don't understand your emotions. I probably never will. But even so, don't. Please. Don't hate. Nothing good will come out of it."
Sakusei felt a twinge of annoyance at Shirou's idealistic words, but the feeling completely subsided as he hugged her closer.
After a couple of minutes, they both pulled away from each other. Sakusei's expression had returned to normal.
"...Do you want to control the Essence of the Creator?"
Shirou was shocked by the words she had just said.
While he didn't understand everything, he understood that this power had caused her a great deal of pain.
"It would be an issue if you lost control again. Plus, once you do learn to control it, it can become very useful."
"Isn't my power the thing that has caused you so much pain?"
She looked distant again.
"It's worth it if we can all survive," Sakusei faltered a bit in those last words. "So tell me, do you want to become strong?"