Summery: After some strange behaviors, Ren leaves the group and goes back to China. The group of shamans follow him, only to find out that the Ren they had known had never existed! They discover the true Tao Ren, only to find a shy, hurt boy, having been beaten by his father, and they take him in and try to befriend him. He is the exact opposite of the Tao Ren they knew, and who should learn to befriend him but a certain pink-haired shaman who just happens to be visiting at the time of his arrival. Could there be a bit more to Tamara than meets the eye? And what secrets about her do the Tao's know; the sole reason that Ren was not allowed to leave the walls of his prison was because of her, but why? Takes place before Ren confronts him father, so none of the shamans know about his family.
It was late at night; the stars hung low to earth, signaling that it was nearing midnight. No one in their right mind would be awake at this time of night, but one person was. Tao Ren was packing him bags, planning to leave Japan as fast as was possible, and return to China where he would deal with what he called 'family issues'. No one knew for certain when he would be back, but knowing him, he could handle anything his family threw at him, and he would be back quickly, no matter how much he said that he despised living there.
Ren had been planning on leaving the Inn early that morning, but something had kept him from doing so. No one knew for certain, but he had told them that he just needed some time to think. He had taken to the forests, far away from civilization, and was no seen all of that day until he came back late that night in time to leave. The others could tell something was wrong with him, but they all just assumed that he was worrying about going back to China, and nervous to reunite with his family.
Ren left that night, with every intention to return to China, but the next day, and even the next week, no news came, and they had not seen or heard from Ren for a long time; this worried the shamans, who were going to search for him if he did not return in one more week. They had hoped that they would not have to travel to China, and that Ren would come back on his own, but they had no such luck. They gave it time, but after three weeks of not hearing anything about Ren, they decided to follow his trail to China in hopes of finding him and helping him with whatever was going on between him and his family.
Yoh, Horo, and Rio were the only ones who could make it on such short notice, and in almost a week's time, they had made it to China. The magnificent landscaping and beautiful view, this was unmistakably China. But, as they traveled through the wonderful scenery that was Ren's birthplace, they knew better than to underestimate this place. Ren had not told them exactly what his family was like, but they knew a little bit, about the Tao history, and so they knew that while they enjoyed it, they must also keep in mind what was behind all of the beauty.
There were quite a few roads to be traveled, but eventually the shaman group made it all the way to the Tao Mansion. And upon entering they met up with none other than En Tao, Ren's father who, though they did not know all about him, had been the source of Ren's anger towards his family.
En Tao held his head high, not at all afraid of defeat. With his oversoul now fully charged, he knew that it was only a matter of time before three more shamans' souls would be forever a part of the Tao legacy. And the worst part was, they had come all the way to China for nothing. For someone who did not even exist, or at least, to them. Yoh and the others readied their oversouls, but when En dismantled his, they knew that he was not looking for a fight with them right away. And so they did the same, disengaging their oversouls, and listening to what he had to say, though they doubted that they would believe it anyway. Yoh, however, did not turn his oversoul off all the way, as he wanted to be ready should En turn on them with a surprise attack.
"There is not need to be hasty, you will get your fight if that is what you want. But first listen to what I have to say, because there is no guarantee that you will still wish to stay here once you hear what it is I have to say. You see, the boy you came to rescue, your friend Ren, never existed," there was a sharp intake of breath from Horo and Rio, but Yoh did not believe that Ren was made up. They had met him after all, and he knew that he was not just imagining things, "Oh, there is a real Tao Ren, my son, but you have never met him. He has lived here, in this very house, all of his life; the Ren you knew that just a fake, one created out of oversoul. And I was the one who made him. I had to make him a bit snobby, that way no one would get close to him, and I would have no problems keeping him in full functions. I made him for a reason, but one that you will never find out!" En launched his oversoul high into the air, dropping it down as hard as he could. Yoh and the others dodged perfectly, but they were losing, and they could tell. What En had said had had too much effect on them, and they knew better to believe it.
No, Yoh thought, the Ren we knew – we know- is real. There is no other Ren, and we can prove it once we find him. We will take him back, and things will return back to normal. We just have to defeat Ren's dad, and then we can all get out of here- with Ren, our Ren.
Yoh narrowly dodged another attack, and then they all headed down a small hallway, escaping En's oversoul for a while. That gave them some time to search for Ren, and then to get out before being found.
Horo was in the lead, running down the hallway until it got narrower with fewer rooms to choose from. Horo headed to his right, entering a pitch black room filled with the sound of dripping water. It was a bit eerie, but it would be a great place to hide until En left.
The room was darker than the night sky outside the single window that was in the room, bearing no light. The room seemed empty, as though there had never been anyone in it. It was also cold, like ice, to the point were even Horo was shivering after a while. They listened, but heard nothing, and were about to leave when they heard a slight shuffling and a clanking sound. Yoh was the first to turn, followed by Rio, and finally Horo. They turned around right on time to see a small pair of bright golden eyes shoot open, followed by the sound of someone standing up.
"Ren? Is that you?" Rio asked, and out of the darkness came a voice, one that sounded like Ren's, though a bit more shaky and scared. And when the voice answered, it was chilling and gloomy, much like Ren's, but somehow… different. And it spoke three simple yet powerful words, ones that would change everything.
"Who are you?"