Pure fear was running through him, like shockwaves. He didn't scream or cry, Kagehara didn't have even strength for that. Just running.

He heard the man behind him, and turned to look back. The figure, sword drawn, hadn't even bothered move. The boy realized why. 

Even though he was moving his legs as fast as he could, his legs burning in pain, it was as if a really strong wind blew against him. He wasn't moving at all.

The swordman just stared at him.

-Fear is important for survival, you know?- said. His voice was really soft, yet low and respectful. The best description he could think of in his panic was like a cotton blanket.

-Leave me alone- he screamed, yet his voice came out broken and painful. It was as if the words had to be pushed, one by one, slowly traversing his throat.

He started walking towards him.

-Hey, at least you've done something. That's progress- said as his only answer.

Kagehara stared in shock. This man, who was killing him every night, who was just hurting him, now was encouraging him? He was so confused.

His legs didn't stop moving though. The sword was nice this time. 

A loud hit and a really strong pain on the side of his neck, combined with his breath cutting instantly told him that his spinal cord had been broken. A painless death usually.

Except he didn't instantly fall unconscious.

In panic, he stared down from the floor. Even if he tried, his legs wouldn't move, his arms where unresponsive and he found no way of making the slightest sound. 

That wasn't still the worst part.

His heart, now stopped because of the lack of signal, wasn't pumping blood to any of the organs. 

The boy died slowly, completely paralized, with no way of reacting to the sudden stop of his body. He stared at his executioner, seeing blurry because of the tears. At least he didn't feel the pain.

-Sorry, I thought it would knock you unconscious- said as an answer.

His agonizing brain took still a few seconds to completely die, that felt like lifetimes.

The ground felt hard and cold as he slowly regained conciousness laying on it, now back to reality. The clock nicely informed him that it was 2:22. Way too early.

It was going to be a long night.

He walked to the kitchen really silently, and brewed more coffee. Then he went to his father's office. A heavy and loud breathing came from there. The boy sighed, defeated.

Dragging his feet, he went back to his room. He was tired, stressed, in pain and now also bored.

Unfinished homework offered him a temporary relief. The teenager focused on doing them, explaining way too much the open questions, overdoing and rechecking more times than necessary the math and so on.

That took away an hour or two. Staring at the clock would only get time to go by even slower. 

Drawing didn't even seem entertaining anymore.

He reread the anatomy manual, that was laying on his bed. 

Exhaustion just forced his eyes shut with increasing strength. He tried doing more push ups, yet his shoulders hurt from the night before.

That didn't stop the boy from trying. However he had to stop after a bit, the pain being now unbearable, both the physical one and the mental one.

He finally got himself to look at the clock.

4:30.

Disappointment was what broke him. 

He wouldn't cry, that relief had been taken away from him long away. He just felt the pressure, building up in his chest, the air seemed to thicken around him. 

The attack lasted way longer than Kagehara would ever admit. And way way longer than he'd like.

After an insufferable while, his consciousness faded away. At that point, sleeping felt even more bearable.

He woke up breathing heavily, trying to mentally prepare to die. Again.

However the teenager was laying down.

On his bed.

The alarm had never sounded so amazingly. 

Kagehara got up, jumping straight out of his bed. He quickly had breakfast and got ready for class.

A happy whistle surprised him as he prepared his backpack. It took him a second to realize it was his own.

It just happened once per night. Just once.

Once.

Every night.

His smile froze.

Panic was coming back. 

Definitely his sanity was escaping down the drain, spiraling him down deep into madness.

He tried to affirm himself. It was still just a one time a day thing. And then he could sleep as long as he wanted. However the thought had lost it's strength.

The boy walked to school silent while trying to reorganize his thoughts. However the cloud of chaos that conformed his mind wasn't feeling like being threaded into useful thoughts.

When he arrived to class, the girl that sat next to him was already there.

Her long dark hair fell over her shoulder, pitch black and deorganized, though not as much as his thoughts were.

She timidly said hi, almost in a whisper.

Kagehara said it back, and pulled out his sketchbook. It remained unopened on the table. It seemed unpolite to start drawing and leave her all alone doing nothing.

The girl turned towards him, undecisive. She opened her mouth and closed it again, grasping a bit of air.

-Yes?- asked him. 

He felt guilty for screaming at her, but his pride wouldn't allow him to say sorry so fast.

-Umm... About yesterday...- she was having trouble saying it.

-Yeah no, sorry- those words were hard to say for him.

The teenager managed not to then add the "however" that his mind was racing into thinking. 

-It's ok. It's just that being alive is hard- she said as her only answer.

-Actually living is really easy, it's just that we live lives that actively try to put us down- said the boy.

-Damn that's edgy- she joked- I'm Hikkari by the way.

-Kagehara at your service- responded him, with fake formality- I'm afraid, our first presentation wasn't exactly what one would call pleasant.

-Yeah well it's ok, I was saying stupid stuff- said the girl- I won't say it again.

-As I said, don't worry. I'm the one apologizing for screaming at you- he stopped her before she could continue- you have no guilt to take.

-Whatever you say- answered Hikkari.

Her eyes showed clearly that she would still feel responsible for a while.

It wasn't his problem though. He had already apologized and been nice so no need for more. 

The students started to enter the classroom, so their conversation stopped abruptly.

A minor Amalgamation tried to enter the school grounds, but the new guardian efficiently took care of it. She entered back holding her crossbow as if nothing had happened and Kagehara didn't even get the chance to see the creature.

He actually didn't draw through the classes either. The boy wasn't feeling like drawing afer doing it so often for so many days straight.

It was really boring, seeing those teachers who coulddn't care less about their jobs trying to get people to learn. Or at least making it look like they were trying.

Kagehara quickly got lost on his thoughts. Was it worth the effort of faking they were putting effort or was it easier to just put effort? He thought about it as their middle aged Technology teacher tried to point out the different parts of a circuit or something.

His thoughts went back to the subject that had been keeping him awake though (pun not intended). Running away hadn't worked. Neither had standing still or just not knowing anything about it. 

A random idea crossed his mind after a while of planning. 

It was stupid and pointless, it would never work. But maybe and just maybe there was a chance it would.

And so his mind woke up as he had the realization.

The answer to the impossible puzzle he had inadvertely put into was quite simple yet impossible too.

The way of escaping a nightmare is easy yet fundamentally complex.

You just need to wake up. And fight back.

He pulled out his sketchbook, not for drawing but for planning.

This time he wrote through his classes.

As he left at the end, Hikkari said bye to him. 

Kagehara would never admit it, but it was a nice feeling.

He answered adequately with his own good bye and went back home by walking as always. However he walked way quicker and more energized than how he had gone. 

His neutral face did a pretty good job at hiding the excitement the boy was hiding.

It was time to perform quite some experiments.

He was going to beat his nightmare or die trying. 

And that made his blood boil in expectation. Kagehara had finally fell into madness. Or maybe he had never been sane. Either way now he had totally gone from going restless as long as possible to waiting impatiently.

On his way home he took a bit of attention to the beggars and drug dealers on the streets. They didn't even seem that dangerous anymore. 

Drunk on his power fantasy, he could swear he would be able to beat them all on a fight.

As he fantasized with the hope of his nightmare stopping and all the power he had got from that realization, he stared into a particular alley.

There wasn't a soul in there. It was a packed city, so that went through his mine as weird.

Then someone appeared in the alley, running from a secondary alleyway.

It was a boy, with green dyed hair and very black contacts.

His way of walking clearly showed intoxication of some substance, and he had wounds all over his body.

People in the main street didn't seem to notice. Or maybe they just acted like they didn't.

Kagehara however was feeling powerful.

So he walked towards the stranger, even tho he was already sprinting towards him.

When they met, he grabbed him, trying to find anything on his giant pupils other than fear.

-Let me go man, I don't wanna die- said the wounded boy, his voice filled with panic.

-What's going on?- asked the teenager, to try and help.

Suddenly a cold shiver travelled through his spine as he realized something.

Up close, he could inspect the wounds more easily.

At first he thought they were stab marks like the ones broken glasses leave. But upon a closer look, they were too big and wide for being a broken glass or even an actual knife the ones responsible. 

No, what those were beyond the shadow of a doubt bite marks.

Big ones, with missing flesh and filled with blood. Then he noticed a metallic-like shine in one of them.

Kagehara turned towards the main street, only able to scream:

-AMALGAMATIONS!

Then he heard a low hissing behind him.

Behind him there was one of them. In the shock he stopped grabbing the stranger, who ran away.

It was the size of a big dog, dark grey, shining slightly under the sun. Its head was horrifying, with a mouth similar to a dog one, filled with sharp small teeth. 

A big amount of black dots on the front of its face allowed it to see. 

From its quadrupedal position, it stared at the boy, ready to jump on him. 

The boy pulled out his backpack.

It was the closest he had to a weapon, not enough but maybe it could block its bites.

To his horror, two more of the creatures came out of the alleyway.

The boy knew that only really powerful weapons and gold-plated ones could actually kill Amalgamations.

Everyone had always been told not to even attempt to attack them, and his reflexes, mind and body were all telling him to run away.

Except a small voice on his head:

-Running away hadn't worked. Neither had standing still or just not knowing anything about it.

He looked back.

People in the streets were already running away, not even noticing that he had been left behind. They weren't in danger, so why was he getting that fighting urge?

Maybe he was tired of running away, or just wanted to leave a good looking dead body. He turned back to the monsters and smiled.

The first one had been staring at him, probably waiting for the rest of its pack or waiting for him to run away to know for sure he was a prey.

Kagehara noticed some surprise and expectation in the Amalgamation because of his reaction.

However as soon as the others were close enough, it launched itself, with its strong hind legs.

The backpack took the bite, but the creature was really strong, pushing the boy strongly.

He noticed the others flanking him, trying to surround him.

From his pocket he pulled out a small knife his mother had forced him to carry with him for security.

It wouldn't do anything, but better than nothing.

He stabbed the Amalgamation in the back of the neck.

The pressure in the backpack relieved as the creature loosened its jaws.

Just in time as another one attacked him from behind. 

Kagehara went for a kick, guided by nothing but reflexes and adrenaline.

It connected with its side, stopping the trajectory. However, it quickly got up, not really harmed.

The third one didn't wait, and so didn't the first, both jumping straight towards him, mouths full of teeth looking to bite down on his neck.

Suddenly, the first one fell into the floor, beheaded. The other two died right away, in golden flashes.

The boy looked around him looking for the source of this instantaneous death.

And to his horror he found it.

Blocking the entrance of the alleyway, the escape, was a man.

It was tall, with long brown hair, holding a golden sword.

And a mask.

A wooden mask, small, with a cross on it.

It was bracing a round shield, also with a cross on it.

His nightmare, the assassin. 

He was real. 

And in front of him.

Fear ran through his body, in waves that pushed him over into tears.

The man noticed him.

-Good fight- he said, with his low voice- let's see how you do tonight.

And then ran away.

The hunters arrived a minute later, to find Kagehara among the dead bodies of the Amalgamations, in shock and panicking.

A short woman with a spear walked up to him.

-Who killed them?- asked, with a sweet and caring voice.

He didn't answer though.

-Was it you?- she interrogated him again, with surprise.

The boy just ran away.

No one tried to stop him.

He arrived home, covered in sweat but alive. 

His mind, racing in free fall at 300 kilometers per hour.

It was the man, no doubt. There was no way he could have killed the creatures, not with the means he had. Yet it felt surreal. 

Why had he saved him?

He wasn't an Amalgamation hunter though, he hadn't arrived with the others and wasn't wearing the uniform.

However he knew something.

He still needed to fight in his nightmares that night.

Kagehara walked up to his father's office.

The door was open, no one inside as usual. 

He walked towards the bookshelf. The boy examined the volumes, focused on his task. After a brief selection, a book in medieval history of combat and weapons, another treaty in medicine and one in asian martial arts succeeded at catching his attention. 

Then he deposited them on his bed.

In a surge of responsibility he did his homework first.

Then went on, reading about the use of weapons, the different punching and kicking techniques and anything that could be useful.

He spent a while studying and preparing, until he got tired.

Before going to sleep, he cut himself with a paper sheet on the left pinky, drew a spot on his hand, and then put a coin on the pocket of his pijama.

It was time for the experiments.

He went to bed and after a long while, drifted away asleep.

Kagehara was suddenly in the middle of the usual grass plains.

Three different bodies, two pretty close together and another about twenty meters away were there to welcome him, turning the grass under them red.

In front of him was his murderer, as always.

He looked at his hand.

The cut was there, and so was the dot.

Took a hand to his pocket, but the coin wasn't there.

In a realisation he decided to look at his clothes. The clones, he noticed, weren't wearing a pijama, but a long and baggy white t-shirt and also white and wide trousers.

Then he went on with his strategy.

The boy turned towards the figure, trying to hide the fear, using the hope he felt.

The masked man had already drawn out his sword and shield, and stood there, slightly curious.

-This is unfair, why don't I get any weapons?- said, trying to appear confident.

His nightmare made a noise. Took him a few seconds to understand it was a laugh, clear and relieved.

-Finally you wake up- said, with joy, as he took off his mask.

He was handsome, with gray clear eyes, his long hair kept apart from his face and no facial hair. His smile transmitted happiness, contagious if it wasn't because of the context.

Kagehara stared at him in confusion.

In front of him, swords, spears, bows, staff, knives, crossbows and an entire pile of weapons he couldn't even name manifested out of nowhere.

-Pick your favorite my child- said the man while smiling, yet his eyes had gone colder, preparing and focusing on the boy- now that you woke up, the fun begins.