Dreams, 1197

Toshi Ranbo - Imperial College Early summer 1197

Hida Benjiro sat up in his bed, startled awake yet again by this dream. It was becoming more frequent as time passed. At first he could barely remember it, it was just as any other dream of fighting monsters he had, his father would probably say he should focus more on his studies instead of playing Heroes and Onis in his dreams, but this one felt different. It took him some time but he realised that it was not just any dream, it was the same dream.

In it, he was a giant of a man facing countless monsters and enemies, but felt an absolute conviction that he could not take a step back or all would be lost. He would strike down his enemies one by one, crushing them with his tetsubo until it was just a broken stick on the ground, standing tall as his armour was reduced to pieces by their claws, still he would stand and protect all that stood behind him.

The dream would continue until he was faced with an Oni, just a shadowy shape in the dream, his hands are all he has left, his armour creaks with every step he takes, and finally he faces the monster and launches himself at it.

That is when he would wake up, at first he couldn’t remember much, but now the dream was clear, as was the fact that it was trying to tell him something.