Chapter 32: Sleep Shifting
The woman saw Hiro pass out, she stopped.
She shook Hiro. "H-Honey, are you okay?"
She didn't wake.
"You must return Mistress Hiro to the building at once." Said a Leviathan.
She jumped. "Oh yeah, I forgot about you!"
"She's having a trial dream, return her at once." He said again.
The woman looked confused. "A trial dream?"
...
Hiro and Eiji were in the dream again, their feet stuck to the floor.
"Hiro..." He said. "If I did something wrong, you should tell me."
She stared at him. "I-Is that what you thought? No, Eiji... I just didn't want to keep getting you in trouble."
He shook his head. "Don't worry about that! Hiro, I-"
They heard a roar in the distance.
Hiro looked around, then she realized her armor was gone, and so was Eiji's.
"Eiji! Where did our ARMOR GO!?"
His eyes widened. "Y-You're right! It's GONE!"
"I'm afraid all of that disappeared when the dream ended, Mistress Hiro..."
She looked over, and saw max.
He was injured, and looked weary.
"You might want to be quiet..." He said.
"It hasn't eaten yet, and it likes it's prey to squirm..."
It entered, and they froze.
"Don't move..." Max whispered.
Hiro was shaking...
That was the BIGGEST spider she had EVER seen.
The spider stood still for a moment, then edged slowly over to Hiro.
It had no eyes, but Hiro could feel it staring right through her.
She sobbed. "No..."
It went to swallow her...
Hiro closed her eyes tightly... Was it over?
She opened her eyes, and saw a dragon head... No, a Hydra. Eiji had turned into a twelve headed Hydra!?
The spider's pinchers were around the throat of the one head, it bit it off, and two more grew back.
"GO MASTER! KILL HIS FACE!" Max screamed.
"I DONT... Yeah, I don't wanna eat that... You can have him."
The spider lifted it's stinger, and prepared to stab Eiji with it. Hiro saw an impossible outcome...
...The world stopped.
There's no way he can dodge that. His feet are stuck, and so are mine.
The ground is made of sticky webs, but there are small holes in the webs. If I were small, I could get unstuck. But Dad said your mind set matters when shifting. Eiji needed something big to protect me. I need something small to protect him. Something small that can fly, but it has to be powerful...
Come on Hiro, Mom was right. Now is the time something small will come in handy.
How would I feel if I were small and powerful...?
I'd feel, more than meets the eye... Yes!
Mischievous, and small... But deceptively powerful!
Hiro shifted into a Pixie, and melted the spider's stinger.
...
They all heard the crash from upstairs.
Haku and Chihiro came running down.
"He shifted, but he's asleep!" Haku exclaimed.
"I think they're having one of those dreams again!" Chihiro said frantically.
Kuhn nodded. "Yeah, I know. A woman just brought Hiro back from outside, she said she fell asleep."
"Pretty excellent shift though..." Said Haku.
"Yeah, a Twelve Headed Hydra." Said Chihiro. "We can't afford to fix the ceiling though..."
Hiro jolted. "Eiji, NO!"
She seemed to calm for a moment, and then she shrank...
"A pixie!?" Linn exclaimed.
Hiro flitted unconsciously around the room. Kuhn walked over to a sword on the wall, it was melted.
He heard a crash, and saw that several of the house plants had exploded.
"Die spider DIE!" She squealed.
They saw her fly through the air, and into a wall.
She had been hurt in the dream...
They ran to her.
"Oh no, what's happening in there!?" Kuhn exclaimed.
They heard a massive roar from upstairs, and more crashing.
Haku and Chihiro went to the stairwell.
"We'll help evacuate the upper floors." Said Haku.
"But first, we'll check on Eiji." Said Chihiro.
They ran up the stairs, and we saw some residents running down.
"What's going on!?" One asked.
"A bit of an emergency." Said Linn.
"We'll make sure nothing happens to our residents." Said Kuhn.
"Like we always do."
The man saluted him. "If there's anything I can do? You let me know."
Linn nodded. "Then help evacuate the upper floors." She said.
He gave a sharp nod, and ran upstairs.
Kuhn shook his head. "We really do have the best residents..."
"No! EIJI!" Hiro screamed.
They looked over at her, and she shifted again.
She was a cat sized scorpion.
"That's a Death stalker too!" Kuhn exclaimed.
"Look at the size of that though!?" Linn yelled.
She jumped up on the table.
"I DON'T DO BUGS!" Linn yelled.
She screamed and back behind Kuhn as the Death stalker scorpion launched into the air, and clung to the chandelier, rapidly stinging it.
She shifted back to normal, and did a tuck and roll, landing safely.
"How do you LIKE ME NOW!?" She screamed.
She fell on her side, and clutched it.
They ran to her.
"She's bleeding!" Linn exclaimed. "Look at her left side, it's been punctured by something."
Shisuta ran down.
"What in BLAZES is it NOW!?" She exclaimed.
"Do you have a serum!?" Kuhn asked frantically.
She nodded. "Yes, but I'm running out of supplies for them. Let me see her..."
Karo walked up. "Wait, save those. Maybe I can help..."
He walked up to Hiro, and knelt down.
He tried his magic... Nothing.
"What!? Why can't I heal her!?" He exclaimed.
Shisuta ran up, and injected the serum.
Nothing.
She froze.
"What!? No! That should have worked!"
...
I was trying my hardest, but Eiji wasn't healing.
"Why is nothing working!?" I exclaimed.
Eiji was gasping in air. Some kind of poison was spreading, and he was clutching his stomach, which was bleeding.
"Hiro... I'm, I'm sorry..." He gasped.
"I couldn't... I couldn't let it... Hurt you."
I had tried two serum's, my best healing abilities, and Haku included in that.
Nothing was working.
...
Hiro sobbed. "Eiji... But, but... DON'T BE STUPID! You can't DIE! What will everyone think when you're gone!? Eiji! I can't lose you..."
She continued to sob, clutching her side painfully. She didn't seem like she was dying, but she was very injured.
...
Eiji coughed, and spoke again.
"Hiro... Don't worry about me... We did it... WE, did it."
His breathing slowed.
Chihiro clutched onto him. "No! NO! EIJI! NOO! Try again! Please... PLEASE!"
She sobbed into him.
...
Hiro sat up.
"Eiji! EIJI NO!"
Shisuta's serum had worked now, and Hiro stood.
"Eiji!" She yelled.
She ran up the stairs.
...
Eiji's color had started to return. He gasped in, and coughed.
His parents wrapped him in a hug. Chihiro was still sobbing.
"Eiji! I'm so glad you're... My boy... My little boy..."
"I'm not very little anymore..." He said softly.
Chihiro shook her head.
"No, you'll always be to me..."
Haku pulled him in.
"You're very brave... Just, don't get yourself killed..."
His eyes were spilling with tears.
Hiro ran in.
Eiji ran up to her.
"Hiro!"
He wrapped her in a hug.
She cried. "Don't do that to me!" She exclaimed.
"You stupid idiot!"
He held her in a warm hug.
"It's okay... I'm alright..."
Everyone walked in, and sighed. Linn practically collapsed on the floor.
"Wow... Is this going to be every night!? Damn..."
Kuhn tapped Hiro on the shoulder, she looked at him.
"Dad... I know you said six feet, but-"
He pressed a small kiss to her forehead.
"I'll let it slide this time."
I was glad things had worked out alright...
I was also expecting some white hairs in my comb tomorrow...
And I thought Shisuta and Karo were a handful... Look at where I was wrong.