Chapter 4
The Journey Begins

Beep, beep, beep, beep! Beep, beep, beep, beep! Beep, beep- "Ugh!" I awoke
halfway off my bed that morning and feeling weak. I brushed my weakness away
and turned my attention to the alarm clock. "At least it's Saturday," I
thought to myself as I turned off the annoying alarm clock. Then I
remembered what had happened the night before. "Was that real? Am I truly a
shaman or was it all a dream?" I sat in bed for a while thinking about it.
"Nah. It couldn't have been true. Could it?" I said to myself as I
stretched. My stomach growled in response making me realize how hungry I
was. "I guess its time for breakfast." I jumped off my bed and ran to my
closet to pick out something to wear. "This should do." I said as I pulled
out a black long-sleeved shirt with red-orange flames coming up from the
bottom to about the middle of the shirt and dark navy blue jeans.
I got changed quickly and walked to the top of the staircase when, all of a
sudden, I heard voices coming from the kitchen. At first I thought it was
just mom and dad's voices, but, as I listened, I heard another strong male
voice. I slowly crept down the stairs and to the doorway to the kitchen. I
quietly eavesdropped on their conversation still thinking that all of this
shaman business was just a dream. I was wrong. "Shiva, what are you doing
here?" I heard my dad say. "I have come to inform you that you must tell
Zeke about his powers. The shaman tournament will be starting soon, and it
could be a good thing for the world if he entered into it." "Why's that?" my
mom asked. "Because he was born unusually strong. If you train him
correctly, he has an excellent chance of becoming the next Shaman King. Of
course, this is just a theory. However, if we train him to fight for the
right reasons, and he wins, our world will be saved." "I see," my dad said
quietly. "There's only one problem." "What's that?" the man called Shiva
said. I think he might already have found out. All I know is that if he
finds out that he truly is a shaman, he will become upset" my mom said.
"How did he find out?" My parents looked down sadly. Only my mom had the
courage to speak. "You see, he.he caused a fire in the school down the
street, but when we came to look for him, he was gone. I think someone
might have told him the truth." My eyes widened. I couldn't believe it!
It was all true! I couldn't take anymore. The room started spinning and I
collapsed. My parents and guest heard a thud from outside and found me.
"Oh no" my mom said under her breath. "He heard us." Shiva walked over to
me and checked my pulse. "That's not all. He seems exhausted. Both his
shamanistic and humanistic strength are weak. I think the smart thing to do
is let him rest." He lifted me and brought me to my bed. He laid me gently
on my bed and turned to my parents. My mother had a worried expression.
"He'll be okay, Mrs. Asakura." My mother sighed in relief.
A few days later I woke up feeling unusually weak. I tried getting up but I
found it particularly difficult. My mom walked over to me gently putting
her hand on my shoulder. "You should stay in bed. You're still a little
weak." "Mom?" I said as she gently laid me down again. "Yes, honey?" "All
that stuff Shiva said was wrong right? I mean, I'm not really a shaman with
a special gift am I?" My mother sighed. "Zeke, please understand this. We
never meant to hurt you when we refused to tell you about it. We were just
trying to protect you. But, yes, it's all true." I stared at her both
horrified and angered. "Why," I said under my breath. "What, Zeke?"
"Why!" I said louder. "Why would you keep something like this from me!
All these years I never knew who I really was, and it turns out I didn't
know because you never told me!" My mom looked a little frightened. "Zeke,
we were trying to protect you!" she yelled. "From what! Myself!" She
looked down, tears in her eyes. "No.We.we didn't want you to get hurt."
"Oh so you wait 10 years before you tell me and then expect everything to be
fine and dandy!" I said angrily. My mother was in tears. "I'm sorry," she
sobbed, "We didn't mean for you to get upset. We're sorry." "Well I think
it's a little too late for apologies," I said as I began getting up. I
turned and began walking to the door. My mother ran over to me and put her
hands around my shoulders. I stopped. "Please, Zeke, don't leave," she
said, tears streaming down her face. I turned to face her, gently taking
her hands off my shoulders. "I'm sorry," I said softly. "No," my mother
sank to her knees. I turned once again to the door and left.
"Well, well, well," a figure in a tree said quietly. Unknowingly to me, he
was a shaman who had heard all that Shiva had said and now knew that I was
by myself. "We can't let all that power go to waste, can we?" he said to
himself. He evilly chuckled under his breath. "Zeke, your journey has only
just begun." And he was right.