Can’t Escape From Crossing Fate

Don't drink so much.

"Why not?" Oka downs another cup of sake. This is her fifth one. So far. She always wondered how people could deal with the unpleasant sensation of alcohol. Now she understands that it's because they're running away from something even more unpleasant.

It's unladylike to drink.

"You really are from a different time." Oka's about to pour herself another glass but then all five drinks hit her at once. She suddenly feels like she's floating around in the ocean, being tossed around by the currents. "I'm not like this normally, I promise."

I'd doubt you but your memories do check out.

"Mmm." Oka lies down on the ground, letting her sense of self dissolve into the aether. "You saw it too, didn't you?"

Yep.

"I'm not like my psychopathic sister." Oka takes off her glasses and places them on the table where she can accidentally break them. "I can't just shrug off my sins with even more sins. That's why I have to run away. Run much farther, soar much higher, Go where my mistakes won't reach me."

I understand the feeling.

"I don't think you do."

No. I do, I do. My hands are… tainted. Just like yours. I've done terrible things. I suppose the only difference between you and me is that I would do it again, while you wouldn't.

"What do you mean I wouldn't? I killed them in cold blood. Not just Shosuko's parents but others too. Other people's sons and daughters." The words are Oka's but they feel like they're coming out of someone else's mouth. "It's all my fault."

So that's how you see things…

Oka nods. "I took away their lives in the name of a duty no one ever imposed upon me but myself. That's the ultimate kind of pointlessness, isn't it?"

The spirit is silent. Unsure of what to say. All that fills the silence is the distant cricket chirps.

"I wish… I wish that hell was real so that I may at least find some atonement in an eternity of suffering. I can't do it anymore. I can't continue living. I just want to disappear–"

Right as the words leave her mouth, she feels herself sink into the floorboards. Her body crumples onto the ground.

What's happening?

She wants to answer that she doesn't know but she no longer has a mouth. The world shrinks into a tiny insignificant speck amidst a black void. It's like she's being pulled into the depths of a deep, dark, ocean. A strange calmness overtakes her. This is what she asked for, isn't it? To disappear? At last, there is peace.

"What the…" The spirit looks down at his new body, noting that the black markings that were contained to Oka's eyes have spread all throughout his skin. How long has it been since he's last felt the fresh air in his lungs? How long since he last could see such a beautiful full moon? How long since he's tasted sweet drunkenness? Oka's no longer sharing this body with him, He's sharing this body with Oka.

He stumbles towards the bathroom and looks at himself in the mirror. It feels strange being this young again. It feels strange being this tall. It feels strange to be a woman. Everything feels strange, everything feels foreign.

Where am I?

A voice speaks in his head—a thought, but not his own. "Is that you, Oka?"

I think so?

"What happened?"

I don't know.

With a newborn foal's bumbling footsteps, he makes his way out of the bathroom and onto the dojo's landing outside. The chirping of the crickets grinds against his eardrums so he covers them. The soft moonlight hurts his eyes so he closes them. He remains that way for a moment, allowing his senses to reset. Then, he opens his eyes, uncovers his ears, and beholds the world around him in full. It's peaceful. Save for a distant thrumming, it's quiet.

There's the sound of shrieking metal. He turns to his side and sees a car. 'Car', according to Oka's memories. It just looks like a giant metal beast to his eyes. Someone steps out.

"Ayo, Oka! You seem…" Daisuko purses her lips. "You're… not Oka, are you?"

"It seems that we've swapped places." The spirit looks down at his hands.

"Hm, I wasn't made aware you could do that."

"Yeah, me neither."

"Alllllrighty, everyone! This is where we're going to be staying." Daisuko claps her hands together and announces. "That's enough shenaniganry for today. It's bedtime, everyone."

Much to her surprise, everyone listens.