Each and every night Eld slept with his scythe nearby, he met with Kageko in his sleep, rather than experience any sort of dream. For all intents and purposes, she kept his nightmares away, either by spending time with him (sometimes including less than moral practices, all things considered) or providing him a dream that would be much more pleasant than one of the others he might have. Eld had a tendency to have nightmares, after all.

But that could only happen when he was sleeping with the scythe nearby-- and that night, it just so happened that his scythe was in his room, with Etsu. That night, he would not encounter Kageko in her "world." He'd be at the mercy of his own natural sleep and his own natural dreams, with no one there to help him . . .

The potential nightmares that Eldridge Tsukimono could have were almost as endless as space itself.

Nevertheless, in the afternoon, he would be awoken, rather than waking up on his own. It wasn't by Etsu this time, though-- nor was it one of his parents, though given a few more hours, it was likely that either Rebbecca or Urikuse Tsukimono would wake him up with some sort of prod at him, about some sort of fight with Etsu he might have.

Rather, it was a different familiar voice, an accented voice, speaking with a sense of urgency-- a rueful sense of urgency. "Eld? Eld-- wake up-- 'ey, Eld, c'mon, wake up . . ."

Huh? Where am I?

The last thing Eld remembered was laying on the couch in the living room, but suddenly he was standing in...the middle of the village, it seemed like. Oh...I haven't started sleepwalking, have I? His sleeping habits were irregular enough as it was without this.

But something was wrong. It was Hillcrest, no doubt about that, but it seemed...empty. There was none of the usual hustle and bustle of the village, nor was there anything obviously disrupting events. It was just...dead.

The more he looked, the more wrong he realized things were. Vegetation lay decayed in every direction, buildings were dusty and in disrepair, a lifeless village...a ghost town.

His heart began to beat faster. Something had happened while he slept. But what? What could possibly have caused this much desolation? Even with everything strange he'd seen lately, overnight the village had turned from being mostly normal to looking like nobody had lived in it for years.

With a rising sense of panic, he rushed back towards the clinic--Etsu might have seen something, maybe even his parents, they were a lot sharper than they often let on. Though he was near the village center, it seemed to take hours to arrive, and when he did he had to lean heavily on his knees, panting for breath. But as his eyes focused, what he saw nearly made his heart stop. A pair of skeletons were at his feet, each one wearing a lab coat.

"No..." he moaned with growing dread. A few feet further, there were another pair, one a fair amount small than the other. The smaller one was clutching hedge clippers, the larger held what looked like reins that had snapped off.

Another few feet further was another one, this one holding a torn notebook, a small lock on it to keep the writing within from being viewed by anyone but the owner--at least in theory.

The last one was actually leaning against the door, kept upright by the long polearm it was holding. Next to it lay the remains of a scythe, broken in several places, its blade rusting.

"This...this can't be happening," he whispered, taking a step backwards in horror. "This isn't real!" But the skeletons claimed otherwise, and even worse was that he knew, without a doubt, that they were waiting for someone, counting on someone they trusted to save them.

And he never came.

"You....prom.....ised....."

The voice echoed throughout, hauntingly familiar, and yet he couldn't place it.

"You......promised....."

With ever growing dread he looked around, but the area was suddenly covered in a thick mist, and he could see nothing.

"You promised...!" the voice hissed once more, suddenly much more angry than before, much more alive. And much closer.

Eld turned around.

"YOU PROMISED ME!" the skeleton roared, a claymore raised high over its head. "THAT YOU WOULD PROTECT THEM!" And bony yet mighty arms swung the blade down with blinding speed...

-----

The person waking up Eldridge Tsukimono was used to waking him up, and could probably predict how things would go. He would groan, turn over, cover his head with his blanket and try to go back to sleep, at which point she would kick him and he'd slowly come around ask woozily what was going on.

That wouldn't happen this time.

This time, he came awake all at once with a gasp, wide-eyed and dripping with cold sweat, clutching the couch with all his might and lifting himself off of it slightly. A look of absolute terror was on his face, which didn't abate until he'd not only focused enough to see who woke him up, but also darted his eyes around the room to figure out where he was.

A...dream? That was...just a dream, right? It seemed so, but he'd been wrong before. Hesitantly he lowered himself back down onto the couch, breathing deeply to calm himself.

Things might not have been as bad as that dream (he hoped), but the person standing over him still sounded worried. "S-Sarah?" he asked, confused and worried--it had been a long time since she'd come to wake him up. "What's wrong?"

Sarah sat before him, her glasses slid half-way down her face, her pajamas still fairly disheveled. Pajamas-- indeed, she was still wearing her pajamas. spaghetti strap shirt, no bra underneath, and needlessly baggy sweatpants. The only thing not worn to bed for her were her glasses and her boots.

"I-- um," Sarah trailed off as she looked away, "Sorry. I don't-- I don't really wanna wake ya, I--"

Eld's rude awakening had really surprised her. She had expected him to just roll over and grumble, but that wasn't the case. He may as well have screamed his head off. For a brief moment, her own problems went on the back burner. Eld was important to her! They may never be more than friends, but that was fine. Sarah made her peace with that. That sort of relationship was probably doomed by nature, anyways.

So, she set her hand upon his shoulder and smiled weakly at him. He'd had a bad dream, it looked like. No one woke up like that if they weren't in the middle of a horrifying nightmare. What could he have possibly seen? Part of her didn't even want to know. Part of her wanted to remain ignorant to those sorts of things.

If he hugged her, or sought any sort of extra comfort like that . . . well, she wouldn't have minded at all. For a minute, her business could wait. But only for a minute. It was best not to just pile that kind of stuff onto someone's lap when they were already in a bad state. But even still-- it could only wait for so long.

As Sarah placed a hand on his shoulder, he placed his over hers, holding it there for a moment and smiling in relief. This was real; she was warm, alive, and his bad dream was likely just that: a nightmare.

"It's fine...I think I'm better off awake anyway," he replied with black humor. It had been a long time since he had a nightmare...he supposed that the living room was too far from his bedroom, and thus Kageko couldn't intervene. He wondered if he'd ever get sleep without her.

Stretching a bit, he sat up so he could better talk to Sarah. It seemed like she had come over here in her pajamas; that was definitely unusual, as whenever she woke him up she was already dressed, at least most of the time.

"So, what's going on?" he asked apprehensively; it must be important if she'd rushed over here like this.

"W-well . . ." Sarah trailed off, looking away.

It really took a lot for Sarah to stumble over her words. Something serious had to go down for that sort of reality. And it had, apparently. She had to take a momentary break for thought so she could get back into the mind needed to convey this sort of information.

"There's been a murder," she replied, "In Galaens."

Which may or may not have been a prompt for immediate concern. This wasn't the first time that there was a murder in Galaens, nor was it going to be the last time. Emma had business in Galaens and went there frequently to see her boyfriend, but Eld was usually with her during times like that, and if he wasn't, Davis was-- usually Davis and someone else, because Eld wasn't the only person that didn't want a twelve year old girl alone with her boyfriend--a young man who turned nineteen shortly before Emma turned twelve.

She was safe, for the most part.

"One of . . . one of those tax people . . ." Sarah looked away again, "Emma told me, when she got back from a delivery . . ."

But likewise, it wasn't the first time there had been a murder in Galaens that Eldridge Tsukimono may have had vested interest in. One person, for a period of time, picked off tax collectors, thugs, and all of that sort, sometimes in very brutal ways. And that was the connection, all his victims were directly involved with dirty money, obtained through even dirtier deeds.

Sarah didn't say it, but by the way she looked away and tensed up, it would be quite obvious to Eld what she was thinking. Maybe even what she was hoping . . .

Eld looked down into his lap for several seconds, conflicted. He could see where she was going with this, as much as he didn't want to. He usually got along quite well with her, but when it came to him they didn't exactly see eye to eye. He wondered, sometimes, why she was so willing to overlook that man's flaws when she was so often critical of him...

Doesn't matter--that ship has already sailed anyway.

"Well...I need to go to Galaens anyway, so...I'll see what I can find out."

There was a long pause, as he worked up the courage to say something he really didn't want to, but he knew he had to. "Sarah...if he's back, and he's killing people...you know I can't just let him go," he stated. He didn't care what his reasons were, anyone who went around murdering others--even if most who he murdered were bad people--couldn't be allowed to roam free. He needed to be locked up.

Sarah gave a knowing nod. She didn't make eye contact or say anything-- all she could do was continue to stare at the floor and nod.

She . . . was afraid he'd say that. Genuinely. It almost made the entire trip over here not worth it. She . . . maybe she-- she should've just gone over there herself! Sarah sat and stewed for a moment. Really, this was just the first thing that came to mind, when she heard the news. Eld and Davis were the only two who were there, during the last moments he was in town. And at current, only Eld, Davis, and Sarah knew the truth about what happened that day. They didn't tell a soul. Not even Emma. It wasn't pretty. It wasn't something anyone could be proud of.

"I'm-- I'm comin' with ya, then," she declared outright as she stood up.

Inarguable! Eld wasn't going to be going by horse, not for free, if he wasn't going to let Sarah come with-- and even still, if he really was adamant, she could always take one of her horses on her own, and she was a much better rider than Eld. She could get, and control, a horse going fast. Eld could not control a horse going fast. This was a documented fact. Sarah put her hands on her hips and stared at Eld with a certain degree of determination as she concluded this.

"If . . . it's him-- I'll just haveta punch some sense into 'im-- 'fore ya get the chance to . . ." put him away. She left out the last part. That wasn't something she wanted to think about. Maybe . . . if she got her hands on him first, Eld wouldn't be able to do something like that . . .

"Sarah..." For several long moments, Eld closed his eyes in thought. Outright telling her to stay would be pointless--if he refused to take her with him, at best she'd just follow him, and even worse she could actually beat him there, being a much better rider than anyone left in the village.

But he really didn't want her to go. "If...it was just to investigate that, I'd agree...but...something else has come up, something dangerous. I don't want you to get dragged into it...and if you come with, you probably will be."

He couldn't force her not to go--all he could do was make her aware of the risk she'd be taking if she did. His face was known by the mysterious newcomers--if he went into Galaens, even if he they hadn't yet figured out he gave them a normal scythe, there might be trouble. "Besides...it could be this new problem is the cause of the murder, not him."

Sarah had a bit of a double take. "Wait-- what?"

A double take, particularly because this was entirely new to her. Before, she knew a lot of the problems Eld had to deal with. She knew now, too, that he had his powers back-- and that it had to do with the Reapers again . . . well, sort of. Someone had granted his powers back, claiming to be a Reaper, even thought that wasn't the case.

The point is, though, she knew these things. Eld kept them informed, usually . . .

"What new problem?" Sarah demanded.

He'd broken the boundary of ignorance when he told Sarah the truth about him, Etsu, and the Reapers. Part of her didn't want to know, but that part was mainly gone. Now, he was almost obligated to keep her informed. At least, that's how she felt about that.

Eld hadn't mentioned any details, because part of him knew that Sarah sometimes didn't want to know things--it had been her reaction when he first told her about the Reapers, a reaction that had hurt even if it had been understandable. But if she asked, he had no reason to hide anything.

"There's some group that wants to take Kageko...they were harassing the Krigensons for information. There's two of them that seem pretty reasonable, but one of them attacked me and Etsu yesterday, and the other one..."

He trailed off...he wasn't really sure how to explain it, especially as Sarah didn't have quite the imagination Emma or Mayako did, but he had to try his best. "The other one...somehow, he can turn people into...kind of living zombies. They move, and act, but they just...go through the motions, I guess. It's like their bodies continue to live, but their minds are just...gone. Mrs. Krigenson and her daughter are currently like that, as well as another family, and some people in Galaens."

He sighed. Now it was time to admit the hard part. "I...tried to trick him, by giving them a regular scythe and saying it was her, in exchange for undoing it, but...he didn't hold up his end of it. None of them seemed to know exactly what it was they were looking for, so I don't think they can tell I gave them a fake, but I can't be sure. And to top it off, one of them was saying their leader is pretty violent."

"They're supposed to be staying in Galaens...somehow, I need to get them to turn everyone back, but I don't know how yet, so I was hoping to scope things out." He wasn't sure he could beat Illorex in a fight--he might just turn him into a living doll, and even if he couldn't, he had a massive amount of Qi, enough to make him second guess his own power.

"So...going to Galaens would be especially dangerous. Even...just being around me, is probably..." he trailed off. As long as these people were around, he thought it'd be best if Sarah, Emma, and Mayako tried not to be associated with him. All too often they were dragged into his messes, sometimes just by virtue of being people he cared about. With someone like Illorex around, the less they were involved, the better.

It was a bit of a long description. Hard to follow, maybe. A little jumpy, perhaps. Well, she had asked for it. The subject matter bothered her a lot less, now-- the whole idea of the supernatural, the notion that there was something inside of Eld's scythe, some sort of consciousness . . . it was strange, still, but it bothered her a little less. It was almost like facing an atheist, happier as an atheist, with proof of God's existence.

Eld had Mayako to thank for convincing Sarah to be a lot more open. Unfortunately, that was a fact he was unlikely to ever be aware of.

"I get it . . ." Sarah sighed, "I'd just get in ya way. Fine, fine . . ."

Sometimes, she wished she could fight better. Before the bandits, she could have whooped Eld's ass any day. He really didn't stand a chance against her, physically, not back then. If she wanted to, she could have tackled him to the ground and pounded his face in, or tackled him and pinned him like she was going to beat him up or something, and kissed him, or whatever-- it didn't matter. Things changed. It just sucked that they had to change so quickly.

"Just . . . if it's him . . ." she trailed off, trying not to sound hopeful. It felt sick, to feel hope that it was Noah-- but she couldn't help that. So, instead, she sounded sad. "Could ya bring him back? Back home-- before ya decide anythin' else . . .?"

"I..." He swallowed hard. He wasn't to reassure her, but he couldn't lie to her, so he had to find middle ground. "I'll try to, but I can't promise anything." Now such a thing would be easier, with all the tools at his disposal, but he still couldn't guarantee it. He also couldn't guarantee that he'd even want to, if he was killing again.

But even through his own complicated feelings on the matter, he couldn't help but feel for Sarah, too. He knew all too well what it was like, wanting to see the person you loved even knowing their presence could not indicate anything good...

So he gave a weak smile and said, "If it makes you feel better, there's no one else I'd rather have beside me in a fist fight." Etsu was definitely better with a weapon (and when she had Qi), but Sarah could probably clean her clock hand to hand.

Sarah grinned a little. But only a little. "Heh, yeah . . ."

There was no cheering her up about this, inevitably. In either case, it was a topic bound to do nothing more than depress her. Though, she was probably going to be a little sad for the entirety of the day. Sad and worried. Maybe it was futile to think she could help Eld out with things like this, or to think that he needed someone to look after him, but . . .

Sarah sighed.

Eld probably wanted to leave soon-- meant she should probably get on with getting him a horse. Her grin faded as she looked away. She would have stuffed her hands into her pockets and walked off like a hurt dog with too much pride to announce its pain-- if she had pockets. Inevitably, all she could do was fold her arms over her diaphragm.

"I'll get ya a horse ready," she remarked quietly as she looked away.

And without a word, turned and started out, leaving from the house door, rather than the clinic.

“Thanks.” Eld wished there was more he could do, but he knew there was no way Sarah could be cheery in this situation. The best thing would be to come back safe and help her keep her mind off things; hopefully in the meantime she’d have enough work to do to keep from worrying.

After she left, he sat in thought for a few minutes, wondering if he should get Etsu or simply go alone. On one hand, it would be dangerous, and Etsu would be safer here—it would also leave someone to protect Hillcrest. But on the other hand, simply leaving without her…wouldn’t that show the kind of lack of trust that made her so mad to begin with?

Figuring he’d better at least consult her opinion, he took a deep breath and headed for the door to his room. He was still very tired—nightmares didn’t make for very restful sleep—but if he wanted to be back before nightfall, he needed to leave soon.

“Etsu, are you awake and decent?” he asked, knocking on the door. He knew from experience he needed to add that last part—not speaking Common as her native language, she didn’t automatically know to tell him whether or not it was okay to enter if he didn’t.

"Hai," was all Eld would hear on the other side.

She sounded wide awake, too-- understandable, because she had gone to sleep before Eld did. She'd fallen fast asleep, too. Sometimes, it was easier to just go to sleep. A lot of the time, Etsu didn't really have trouble falling asleep, and while upset with Eld, it didn't really matter if he wasn't there in the same bed with her. She might have slept poorly if he were there, in fact. Besides, she had company that, believe it or not, she didn't mind . . .

Etsu was sitting upright upon Eld's bed. She was decent, and dressed in the same blue sleeveless jacket and tan shorts as yesterday. She had changed clothes shortly after waking up, anywhere between two hours ago and twenty minutes ago. She seemed occupied with the window, though, staring out it at the hills, trees, and such, preoccupied with the view. It was a temporary preoccupation, though.