RECORD #2: COURAGE WITHIN THE FEAR
Mizuhashi Mansion...
Being heroes of the world was, of course, not something one would consider a walk in the park. Especially if you were truly a novice in the field. So that's where trainers come forth. And in the Vessels' case, their trainers were the people close to them.
Their training began two days after their first encounter and battle with the Tareans. Hideoki and Nanami left their jobs at the pastry job and the bookstore respectively to their trusted assistants for a while for them to personally oversee the Vessels' training.
First up: Hasureiki invocation.
"Hasureiki is already existing within the five of you. Now the real problem lies in how to conjure it from within for you to turn it into a force meant to attack. That's where the Reikarajustu comes in," Hideoki started.
Eichirou raised his hand which caught the historian's attention.
"Can we conjure Hasureiki even if we're not transformed? I mean, you did that when you summoned ice spears to attack Juman even from your hiding position at that time."
"You can, but it's not as powerful as the Hasureiki you use to battle the Tareans when you're transformed." Hideoki cleared his throat before he continued. "It is the Heaven's Medallion placed in each of your Shifters that taps the full capacity of your Hasureiki. That's why you become stronger whenever you become Seitengers."
Nanami stepped into the discussion as soon as Hideoki gave the signal. "Now, everyone, I want you to look at what I'm about to do. This is the first step of Reikarajutsu." With her right palm on top of the other, she took a deep breath as she closed her eyes.
The Vessels could only watch in anticipation of what was about to happen. Well, whatever it was that would happen, they must have carefully observed it.
It didn't take long before something happened.
"Woah!"
A wall of pale pink light appeared on Nanami's palm that slowly rotated. They thought they'd seen enough until the ball gently opened... like a flower blossoming.
"Lotus...?"
Nanami opened her eyes soon after and smiled at the sight of the surprised looks on the faces of her "students."
"This is the physical manifestation of the Hasureiki that we know. One reason for this flower shape to exist is because the lotus flower is the symbol of the Heavenly Spirit Guardians."
"So that's why the same flower was engraved in Mom's chest box," Eichirou stated as he nodded.
"Do all of our Hasureiki have that kind of physical manifestation, Nanami-san?" Erika inquired.
"That's for you to find out for yourself."
All Nanami got were skeptical looks as a response to what she said. She beckoned them to stand up. With a simple instruction of focusing their Hasureiki on one single point, they all did as they were told. But they all couldn't help thinking that in a way, there was still something missing.
Moments later, balls of colored light in their respective colors appeared on their palm. Of course, it wasn't a wonder that the five of them were delighted. But here comes the real problem.
"Uh, guys... Do you know how to open this Hasureiki ball and make it a blossoming lotus?" It was a weird thing for a guy to ask that. Or at least that's what Eichirou thought.
Even so, it was the very same question that the rest of the Vessels had in mind.
"It all starts with that ball of light, Eichirou," Hideoki said as he decided to step into the training. "The mere fact that you could conjure that ball only proves that you're one step closer to tapping your Hasureiki's full power."
"That means... the blossoming lotus is like a measurement of our powers' growth?" Itsuki added which Hideoki answered with a nod.
Moments later, the ball of light that each of the Vessels conjured disappeared. All five of them felt weak after that.
"I guess it won't be easy to conjure that Hasureiki ball until we get a full grasp on how to manipulate our Hasureiki," Erika commented as she breathed heavily.
"But we have to try," Shuichi said, which made the others look at him. "Giving up just after learning that won't get us anywhere and it won't even help us gain the Grand Vessel Spirits' trust to support us in our battles."
None of them were able to say anything after that. But soon after, Hideoki and Nanami smiled. The other four Vessels glanced at each other and shared a knowing smile.
"You know, Shuichi," Eichirou started. "I wouldn't be surprised if you truly end up becoming the team's leader."
But all the photographer got was a frown from the biker. "What do you mean? You're the oldest among the five of us."
"He may be the oldest but his brain is more of a 10-year-old boy, if you ask me, Shuichi-san," Itsuki nonchalantly replied, which made the two girls giggle. "Besides, does he look like a leader material to you?"
"Hey! That's already a foul, Itsu-chan!" Eichirou exclaimed.
And the usual cat-and-dog fight between Eichirou and Itsuki began once again. Misae and Erika could only shake their heads. Shuichi just scratched the back of his neck. Nanami and Hideoki only heaved heavy sighs.
This was surely going to be a long day.
xxxxxx
It was only the first day of training and it felt like hell. Well, at least that's what Eichirou felt as he sat on one of the single-seater sofas in the living room. As he looked around, he couldn't believe how it didn't bother his friends at all.
Shuichi was wiping his helmet as he tried his best to polish it. Itsuki was just sitting on the windowsill while reading another history book. Misae was replacing the string of her bow while Erika was busy reading a music sheet as she tried humming some of the notes.
"Still can't get over the fact that we're tortured on our first day of training, Eichirou-san?"
The said man looked up and saw Misae carrying her bow as she sat on the long sofa. He smiled and shrugged.
"Dad can be the strictest teacher of all when needed. We all know that. But this is the first time that he pushed me to my limits. I can't believe it..." Eichirou sighed and slightly shook his head.
"But I can live with the fact that it's your Dad who's teaching us and not someone else."
Eichirou turned to Shuichi when he heard that. "What made you say that, Shuichi?"
Shuichi looked up from polishing his helmet and faced him. "Hideoki-san's someone we're already comfortable with. Nanami-san acted most of the time as a mother figure to us. Of course, you can't forget the fact that your father saved us that night and that he took care of us for the past ten years. He knew us better than anyone else---just as a caring parent would do."
All Eichirou could do as a response was to smile. Well, he didn't want to brag but his father took care of them. Hideoki never treated Shuichi, Misae, Itsuki, and Erika any differently than how the man treated Eichirou. It was something that all five of them were grateful for.
The rest of the Vessels resumed their activities while Eichirou was still busy thinking of what else to do other than photography. He groaned. Come to think of it, he was supposed to finish the photo mosaic that he needed to submit for the photo exhibit two weeks from now. But with his mind going around like this, how in the world was he supposed to do his project now?
As they were all busy doing their own thing, Nanami appeared from the kitchen.
"Can any of you head to the grocery and buy something for me? I'm supposed to cook lunch for you but we're missing a few ingredients."
It didn't take long for Eichirou to decide on that. "I'll do it."
"Really? I thought you're tired," Itsuki remarked as he raised his head from the book he was reading.
"This is better than staying here wallowing about how Dad tortured us on our first day of training. I need to walk around and find a few inspirations here and there. I won't be able to start walking on my project if I'm like this."
Erika smiled when she faced Eichirou. "Good luck with that, then."
After that, Eichirou took the list from Nanami and left the house.
xxxxxx
Tareus Dimension...
In the Great Hall of the Fortress of Screams, the Great Shadow Defenders once again gathered in front of Emperor Darshao. Only five of the seven were present, though. The leader's fury at the fact that the Seitengers' powers were revived in the bodies of young people that Hideoki had hidden from the enemy's radar for the past ten years.
"That damn Hideoki should've been killed that night, as well!" Siriso growled as he clenched his clawed fist.
"Who would've thought that they could still use that much Hasureiki despite knowing the obvious that those chosen to become the new Seitengers are novices in the field?" Alvre remarked as she faced Siriso with a smirk. "And you, my dear General Siriso, lost to a bunch of novices. To think you're a warrior for 5,000 years... Have you lost your raging desire to kill them?"
The general didn't like the condescending tone that accompanied Alvre's words, at all. Out of anger and frustration, he unsheathed his sword and swung it to Alvre who managed to evade it with her speed. It only infuriated Siriso even more and Alvre was laughing at his behavior. The deed went on for about a minute or so.
It only stopped when the general and the assassin were thrown by a blast of dark energy. As the two struggled to get up, they saw the emperor's right palm facing them. They realized that it was Darshao who threw that attack to stop them.
"You're only giving me a headache from your foolishness! And you call yourselves warriors for doing that?" In seconds, he cast an electric attack on the two thrown Shadow Defenders which caused them to scream in pain.
It went on for a few moments before Darshao immediately stopped and collapsed on his throne.
"Your Majesty!"
Orcus and Nemia attended to the emperor. Karkino approached the slightly weakened Siriso and Alvre.
"Save your squabbles to the Seitengers. We could use it more to defeat them," Karkino stated calmly.
Alvre looked up to the Lieutenant. "It's rare to see you calm in this kind of situation, Karkino."
The Lieutenant scoffed. "I'm saving my temper for dealing with those Seitenger brats. Not even the emperor would dare stop me if I decided to unleash my rage on them." He faced Siriso. "While the emperor sleeps, do your job outside the dimension. I think he collapsed because the negative emotions your Triske Monster gathered weren't enough. Our ruler needs all the energy from those negative emotions. Of course, you know that we're after the energy of one particular emotion. That's why we're causing terror to the humans."
As much as Siriso hated being lectured and ordered to, he couldn't think of a retort. He knew that his fellow Shadow Defender was right.
"Gather hopelessness..." Siriso stood up and started walking away. "You got it. Though you must remember, humans are stubborn beings. The same goes for their hope."
As soon as Siriso got out of the Great Hall, he kicked the nearby wall with intensity because of his frustration. It was meant not only to the Seitengers revived but also to what Emperor Darshao did to him. He could care less about Alvre. She could die for all he cared.
Once he managed to calm himself down, he found a hidden spot where he could concentrate. This time, he must do what it takes to win. By conjuring a rune circle in front of him, he began summoning a Triske Monster that would be perfect for the job.
The monster materialized after a few moments, its features blocked by the dark shadow that engulfed the area.
"Cyone... it's your chance. Appease my frustration. Do all that you can to destroy the Seitengers."
xxxxxx
"Thank you so much!" Eichirou said to the cashier as he took the bags with his grocery items in them after paying the total amount. With that done, he went out of the grocery store.
He didn't have any trouble carrying two bags full of groceries. Ever since he was a child, he was always the strongest among his friends in terms of physical strength. Come to think of it, he didn't struggle too much in fighting the Gargonema that day. He was able to throw them away or beat them to the point of unconsciousness with just a few punches and kicks.
It looked like he was able to put his strength to good use.
If he would analyze his friends' strong points, he could say that they were unique. Eichirou already knew his strong point was power. Shuichi was, no doubt, his leadership skills and perhaps even the brutality and ability to easily adapt to different situations as he had already observed. Itsuki was reading too many books ever since, so he knew the composer would surely become the brain of the team. Misae's strong points would be precision and control due to her archery training. Maybe he could also add speed to that. Erika would be her strong will and calm mind no matter the gravity of the situation.
Eichirou just smiled as he thought of that. Why in the world did he begin thinking of such issues?
But all of a sudden, his smile faded as he stopped in his tracks. He looked around but found nothing unusual. And yet he couldn't shake off that weird feeling.
Until it hit him!
'That's the same feeling I got when the Tareans first attacked!'
As soon as he realized that, he heard a familiar beeping sound. He put the grocery bags down on the nearby bench and saw his Celestial Shifter on his wrist. The lotus symbol on it was blinking.
"Not the Tareans again..." Eichirou could only mumble as he pushed a certain button on the side. It soon materialized as a holographic screen displaying a map with a black dot blinking on one particular location in the city. "It's not far from here."
He took a deep breath, determined. Before he decided to head out, he saw a perfect place to hide his groceries since he didn't want his Aunt Nanami to scold him for losing them. As soon as he secured it. he rushed toward the scene of the attack.
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