As the week went on, the team went on with classes and the homecoming plans. But also in free period and after classes they were investigating the school grounds. Inside and out. Liu knew what to look for. He knew the energy left behind wasn't energy at all. It was magic. The others were having a hard time all week but how could he tell them that he knew what it was? Also he had a gut feeling he knew his brother was the one behind this. But he had seen his brother in three years- he had just left one day and never came back. Just like their mother. She had just left them when Liu was only four years old. His brother was six. A knock came at his door, breaking his train of thought.
" Liu. You in there?"
It was Ronin.
Getting up from his desk he went to open the door. " Hey."
" Hey. Hideki sent me to get you. We are heading out to town to do a sweep of the area there."
" The energy went to the town? But that is at least a few hours away." Why would the energy be going to the town. The main source is in the woods. That is a definite thing. The main source is somewhere near the school. But again I am the only one that can sense that. Damn it...how do I tell them..
" Yeah it is but there have been a few sighting of those creatures and they have gotten violent. Three people were put in the hospital and a few kids were pretty scared. Plus we have a few things to get for homecoming tonight." Nodding he grabbed his shoes. Following Ronin they soon joined the others.
They rode a bus into town taking in the scenery, Liu saw that forest and the mountains in all its glory. Just as he had the first day he had arrived. Only the magic in the air was growing thicker around the school and the forest . But as they got closer to town it lessened. Liu noticed as they entered town the magic was not even there for him to sense at all. The bus came to a halt. The girls grabbed there purses and Yukio grabbed his backpack that he had brought. As the bus left they all looked to Hideki.
" All right. The sightenings were in the park and in the shopping district of town. The park is pretty huge so we need to go in pairs. Yukio you and Ren go to the south end. Ronin and I will go west. Sachiko you and the new guy go to the east side. We all will meet in an hour at the north end. Then we go to the shopping district and look there and do our errands. But if anything happens, contact Ronin or Ronin will get to you all." Hideki saw Liu confused face. " Ronin has the power to communicate with others with his spirit energy. His family is very spiritually aware." Hideki looked to the group. "Everyone understood the plan of action?"
" You go it. See you guys in an hour." Yukio said, Ren going off with him.
" See you guys soon." Sachiko turned to Liu, " Shall we?"
Liu blinked and just nodded. Her eyes and the way she treated him made him fall her even more. Her kindness was to great and her eyes…. He couldn't look away.
Hideki stayed with Ronin for a moment longer as they walked off.
" Yeah know if you don't trust him with Sachiko you should have gone with him instead."
"She can handle herself. But I still don't trust him. He is hiding something. I just don't know what. Let's go. We need to hurry and get done so we can get back tonight But we have to be-"
" Through. I know. I know. I worked with you long enough to know by now. Not to mention I was raised with you." Ronin said.
Liu walked next to Sachiko and didn't say a word. Damn what was wrong with him? He was with a beautiful girl and not saying one word to her. Was he crazy? As they came to the east end of the park they saw a wide open space. Nothing but the color of fall everywhere. There was bushes and trees and a few gazebos so they split up but stayed in view of each other. Nothing was odd about the shrubs so they went on the the large gazebos. Again nothing. Liu felt his gut turn to knots. Something was off and he knew it. Very small traces of magic were here but not enough to really pay attention or even worry about. What the hell was going on?
" You know you can talk to me about what what is on your mind."
" Sorry?"
" Really Liu, you can just talk to me. We are friends. I can tell something has been bothering you all week. Are you nervous about this case? I know it's kind of sudden for you as you are still new."
" No. Well I am nervous but that's not it. It's just…." He looked away from her. Could he trust her? With what he knew of the energy being magic around the school? That the monster were really the walking dead.
" Liu. Please."
Liu looked at her. And that was it. Those emerald eyes held him. Taking a deep breath he closed his eyes then faced her. " The energy we have been trying to find the source of it is not here it is in the woods. I think these sighting of the monsters are a set up for something. Also the energy in the words it isn't really energy. It's magic. The main source is in the woods surrounding the school."
Sachiko was stunned by his words. Was that possible the energy was magic and not spirit energy? Maybe. They had been having a hard time tracking anything to a source. Even her powers over the plants were not picking up anything here or at the school. Also she had not real knowledge of magic. Never had she learned anything about it. So what if they had been going about this all wrong? If so then Liu was going to be a major asset to this case if he knew about magic. Oh yeah Hideki was going to love that. Looking Liu dead in the eyes she saw that he wasn't lying to her. Her father had taught her that reading and studying the opponent was a necessary assets in battle and in life. By his body language she could tell he was telling her the truth- but he was holding something back from her. Also how did he know about magic? Did someone teach him? Needing to test a theory she knew she had to ask the question, " Do you have a clue to whom might be behind all this?"
Liu avoided her gaze. Looking to the ground, but then just as quick back to her. " I am not hundred percent sure yet. I don't want to give the team false information."
Nodding in her agreement she looked over the area in the park. This area seemed okay. But…." So do you feel any magic at all?"
" No, not really. There are very little trace amounts here. All the energy is back around the school." Liu made it a matter of fact.
Sachiko again looked to tell if he was lying to her. Nothing at all told her he was. His eyes were set. Still, he was holding back from her. But he had told her about the magic not being spirit energy, and if he could tell that and us magic even maybe he was the biggest key to this case.
" Should we return to the others then?"
" Yes. I think this end of the park is fine. We need to tell the team what you told me about the magic around the school."
Ren sat swinging her feet as she and her brother waited for the others to come to the meeting area in the Stone Garden at the North end of the park. Yukio stood leaned back against a tree not that far from his sister. They had found nothing about those creatures or the strange energy at their end of the park. They had even talked to a few people who had been resting and they never saw anything. He kept thinking about the creatures from the footage they had been shown. The creatures had looked like zombies and he had no idea how they would have been created. The only thing he knew of that could do that to someone was with a demon whistle, which turned normal people into a living zombie of sorts. And his father had destroyed that when he was a teenager. Looking over he saw Ronin walking over to sit with Ren and Hideki came over to him. Liu and Sachiko were right behind him as well.
" You guys find anything?" Hideki asked.
" No. Our end was clean." Yukio looked to Liu and Sachiko. " What about you guys?"
Sachiko looked at Liu giving him a nod of encouragement and a small smile. Liu felt his heart jump in his chest as that small made him sore. Taking a deep breath he looked at Hideki and Yuiko to tell them everything. As he told them they looked at him as if he was crazy. Sighing, he put his hand out and created a black ball. " Can you sense any spirit energy in that ball?"
" No. Well there is a trace but whatever the other energy is it is very dominant." Yuiko spoke.
" So that is why you have been taking lessons with my father. To learn how to use this magic and your spirit energy." Hideki said as a matter of fact. His unease was even more clear on his face.
Well this was just going great. Nothing like showing off that you were a freak of nature. Closing his hand he made the ball vanish. " I know this seems odd and yes this is why Headmaster Hiei has been training me and honestly it has been a major help to me. But this power is all I have even known, I can't change but I can be of help in this case more now then you probably first thought."
Hideki didn't say a word. He just decided to process all the information in his head while the others talked. His main question was- why around the school? Was there something there that none of them knew about? Was a teacher or student a target? Was it a prank of some kind? No. A prank would be a stupid thing to do with something as this. Still, it wasn't making sense for the energy to come to town. Even the small traces at Liu claimed there was- and what of the monsters? What was their purpose in this as well? Who was controlling them. Hideki glanced up at Liu in suspicion. He may be here helping them but all that magic energy came not that long after he came to the school. Was he playing them?
Liu felt a spike of magic behind them. Looking behind he saw Ren and Ronin. The magic was there. Under them!
" Ren! Ronin! Get out of there now!"
They both looked at him confused. As they got up from the bench The stone began to shake beneath their feet. Then cracks formed. The shaking became more fierce and the ground started rumbling.
" Ren move!" Ronin pushed Ren hard out of the way as something came shooting up from the stone. Ren fell to the grass outside the stone garden area. Pushing up she looked up to see Ronin trapped in a tail of stone.
" What the hell is that?" Liu asked as they can over to Ren.
Yuiko helped his sister up and glared at the beast. " It's a Saint Beast."
" What? No way our parents defeated those guys when they were our age. How are they back from the dead?" Hideki gritted his teeth as he felt helpless.
Back from the dead? Those words rang in his mind as they all watched at Ronin struggles against the stone. The stone in front of them was moving like crazy as if it had a live of its own. Thy couldn't even get close enough to even help him. Liu focused then, he knew he was right but he had to be sure. There it was. The magic energy was seeping through the stone.
Ronin struggled and the stone tightened and he screamed.
" If Yuiko is right then I know who Saint Beast this is. Genbu. He was the stone beast the my father fought." Sachiko pulled the rose from her braid and turned it into a bow and took aim. " Ronin hang on!" She took the shot. Hitting the tail, they heard a roar and Ronin feel to the ground. The stone stopped moving and the magic vanished. Liu felt his body grow lighter as the magic went away. That power…. Far more than he could have known.
Hideki was to Ronin first. Helping him sit up he saw Ronin holding his arm. Examining it he gave a sigh of relief. " I think it's fractured. Not broken thankfully."
Ronin hissed in pain as he got to his feet with his cousin's help. He looked to the others. " Ren you okay?"
" Yeah. I am so sorry I should have been paying more attention."
" Don't do that , Ren. As long as you are safe. Look, why don't you guys go do those errands while Hideki takes me to Dad. Don't worry about it, I am all right, Ren. I really am guys. Go on."
" Are you sure?" Sachiko asked.
Ronin just smiled.
" Well okay. We will see you guys in a few hours." Yukio gave a small smile to them. Hideki took off then.
" You better take care of him Hideki!" Ren yelled after them.
They all walked onto the shopping district. Liu however was not really focusing on the errands, he was thinking of the monster they never saw a face too. He knew of the Saint Beast and knew the one that could turn stone into a weapon. Yet they were all dead. The magic seeping from the stone was proof enough. But why? Why bring back the dead?
What the hell was all this about?
