Disclaimer: I do not own Shaman King or any of the Shaman King characters that will be shown in this story. I do, however, own Era as she is my own character.
Note: This story is based off of the Anime. Also, before I forget, I am aware that most of the characters are between thirteen and sixteen years of age. For this story, I am changing that to between fifteen and eighteen, because the romance aspect just does not work, otherwise. Basically, everyone is two or three years older.
Chapter Six: New Companions
Dull pain throbbed at the back of my head as I felt myself slowly awaken. The force from the fall and abrupt stop obviously had some unpleasant side effects. I could do no more than hope my headache would pass in not all too long.
Slowly, I opened my eyes and took in my surroundings. No longer was I in the air; from what I could tell, we had landed on a mountain, or hill. There didn't seem to be nearly as many people as before, yet I couldn't properly judge that, considering I hadn't seen everyone before.
Groaning very slightly, I pushed myself into a sitting position and rubbed my temple. That damn tournament would be the death of me. I'd almost died three times since the start of it and Ren was the cause of two of the times. He had it out for me, I swear.
Hao – was that his name? – and Opacho sat on a large boulder together, looking at the scenery. I found it hard to believe Hao had been so cruel before; he looked so peaceful, sitting there with such a young girl. On cue, Opacho glanced over her shoulder and spotted me, awake. She turned back around to Hao.
"Hao-sama," she said, tugging lightly on his poncho. "She's awake."
"Yes, I noticed that, Opacho," he spoke in a calm, all-knowing tone. I watched as he stood up and jumped off the rock to walk over to me. Once Hao reached me, he kneeled down beside me. "How are you feeling, Era-chan?"
"Erm… I'm fine," I answered, slightly nervous about his presence. He seemed far too nice compared to before. A thought then crossed my mind. "How did you –"
"Know your name?" he offered, smiling. "Your guardian spirit told me; she's been extremely helpful."
Huh. So much for not talking to strangers; I'd need to discuss that matter with her in private, later. For now though, I had to deal with the situation at hand, which was Hao - and figuring out where the hell I was.
"Where are we?"
"America, we've made it quite far to the west." Hao regarded me with a calm expression, smiling.
America? I guess my luck hadn't quite run out just yet; at least I'd made it into the right country. Now I needed to find the village and I assumed it would be harder than it seemed. But before that, I wanted to get away from Hao and his gang. Though grateful for the help, I did not plan to travel with them, not after seeing Hao attack the others so ruthlessly.
"It seems most of your belongings were lost in the crash," Hao stated. "You're welcome to stay with us, Era-chan."
A frown tugged at the corners of my mouth - Hao had a very nasty habit of talking about whatever I happened to be thinking about. It annoyed me, to say the least. It was almost as if he could read my thoughts, but I doubted that; such a gift was far too rare.
"I appreciate the offer," I said, pushing myself to my feet. "But I really do think I should be going now."
His smile never left him as he, too, stood up. "It's a three day walk to the nearest town and you have no food or water. It would be best if you stayed with us, at least until we reach the town."
Shit. Reluctant as I was to admit it, Hao had a very good point. Traveling for three days in the desert, without food or water, would cause my fourth near-death experience in the tournament. I preferred to keep it to three; after all, the third time's the charm, right? I didn't want to risk the fourth time actually killing me. Yet staying with Hao's gang could very well be the fourth time. Sadly, I couldn't look into the future to see if my safety would be endangered by staying with them.
Opacho hopped down from the rock and walked over to Hao's side. "Opacho would like it if Era-san stays with us." Judging from her expression, she spoke the truth and it felt as if she had tugged on my heartstrings.
At that moment, she reminded me a lot of my younger brother - where was he, anyways? I hadn't seen – or spoken to – him since we'd traveled to Tokyo together for the first round; I didn't even know if he'd won the qualification fight, or made it to the second round. That thought made me decide to stay with them for a little while. If I stayed with them, I might find him somewhere on the way to Patch Village.
"…Alright," I agreed, nodding. "I'll stay, at least until we get to the next village."
Hao nodded and glanced over my shoulder. Only then did I notice the man standing behind me; how long had he been there? "Luchist," Hao spoke. "Make sure there's enough food and drinks for an extra person."
The older man, named Luchist, nodded and left immediately. I assumed he was another one of Hao's followers; that could be the only explanation.
Sighing softly, I sat back down; I hoped I wasn't making a mistake by staying with them. For all I knew, it could've been a trap that I had now walked right into. Yet Serena had sought them out to help me and they had apparently obliged. If they had saved me, they couldn't be all that bad, could they?
Opacho sat down next to me and stared up at the sky; the sun had almost fully set, casting a beautiful reddish glow over the world. Those were the moments I loved, the few moments when I could stop, sit back and be a part of nature. Life went by too fast in the current world and hardly anyone took the time to embrace what was given to us by nature. They abandoned the most beautiful things of all; they destroyed not just nature, but themselves, as well.
I could sense Hao watching me, from the boulder he sat on again, but I didn't pay attention to him. Instead, I simply watched the rest of the sun set beneath the horizon, with Opacho watching the same thing with me.
Opacho and I both understood nature's beauty… and power.
And so, Era will be spending a couple days with Hao and his followers; things might get a little interesting from here on out. After all, new companions bring new adventures...
If you spot any mistakes, feel free to mention them so I can edit it. ^-^
