Heiwa clicked her tongue and glared at the bandage around her arm. She was angry. Not because she was injured but because she was too incompetent during important moments and she was having a hard time tyring to fix it.
'The wounds are quite deep, it'll take a few days for it to recover,' the nurse in charge of the infirmary reminded her.
She nodded in understanding and bowed her head before exiting the place. Then headed straight for the exorcism room underground. There were elevators provided on either side of the building but Heiwa preferred the stairs because it was easier and quicker. The staircase was located beside the elevator at the northern side and she pushed the door open, descending quickly to catch up with her team. The room was close to the staircase so it only took her a few steps to reach there.
When she arrived, Akashi was outside, leaning against the door. He heard her footsteps and turned to look. 'Oh, Heiwa, did you get it treated?' he asked.
She showed her bandaged arm and he nodded. 'Is Towa exorcising?' she questioned and reached for the door handle but Akashi stopped her. She stared at him questioningly.
'Towa says no,' he said.
'I work with him.'
'I am the chief and I was kicked out.'
Heiwa sighed and stood back-facing the door, beside her husband. 'Mikage is inside? Why is he allowed?' she queried, dissatisfied.
'Only one helper was needed,' replied Akashi.
Heiwa chuckled. 'And you weren't chosen?'
'That's totally fine by me. Less for me to worry about.'
Heiwa looked into his eyes and shortened the distance of their faces, having to tiptoe a bit. 'Are you sure? Aren't your pride hurt?' she cooed.
The redhead frowned and gave a quick peck on her lips, in which she quickly retracted her head back and went red with embarrassment.
'What was that for?' she asked, voice muffled as she placed the back of her palm over her mouth.
Akashi shrugged. 'You were so close. I couldn't just let the opportunity fly by.'
Heiwa huffed angrily.
'You were feeling irritated ever since we ran from the car,' he suddenly said.
She looked away. 'How did you know?' she murmured, barely heard.
'I know everything,' he retorted with a smile but Heiwa merely gave him the side-eye. He ignored her response.
Heiwa took it as a sign for her to explain herself. 'It's just,' she began. 'Just that I am mad at myself for being a coward. I've been seeing souls for years but I'm still terrified when it comes near. The fact that I need to be calmed and helped every single time I face them frustrates me.'
Akashi stared at her.
'I freeze whenever they come and I seem to not be able to do anything. And it's annoying.'
He took her hand and gripped it tight. 'Heiwayuki.'
'What? I know it's pathetic—'
'It's okay to be afraid,' he said it so seriously that Heiwa blinked in surprise. 'A normal person would've gone crazy in your shoes.'
'Yeah but it's a hassle to everyone around me....'
'Don't ever feel that way around me,' he replied. 'I'm here to support you and I will always do that and I'm sure neither Mikage nor Towa mind it when you need help. I mean that's why we are all here right?'
Heiwa went silent.
'You're never a burden,' he added.
'Really?' she whispered.
'Really,' he stood properly and turned to the door. 'Look, enough with these cheesy talks and let's do a real mission.'
Heiwa laughed. 'Okay, they should be out by now. Towa doesn't usually take this long.'
As if on cue, the door was unlocked and opened from inside. Mikage appeared and flinched at the sight of the two. 'Why are you guys so close to the door?' he mumbled then made way for them to enter.
Heiwa and Akashi walked inside and approached the bed where Takayama lay unconscious. Immediately, Towa began reporting. 'Banished the souls away for now. It might come back due to their master's order so I'm planning to have Heiwa question them for me. Since she's the only one who can see them,' he said.
'Fine by me,' Heiwa shrugged, more than happy to receive a job offer.
'Of course, she'd be guided by me since I can actually listen to them,' Towa continued.
'I approve,' Akashi nodded. 'When will he regain consciousness?'
Towa looked at Takayama and thought for a moment. 'I say by tonight.'
'And someone has to stay behind to look after him, right?' Mikage queried.
'Yeah, whoever's willing,' Towa said.
'I don't have much to do for today, I can stay,' said Akashi. 'Besides, I have several questions to ask him.'
'Ah,' Heiwa interjected. 'I'll stay too.'
Mikage rolled his eyes. 'Okay, lovebirds.'
'Just say you're jealous and go, Mikage-senpai,' Heiwa retorted.
'Wait till I get a girl, Heiwa. You wait.'
'Ooh, is that a threat?'
Mikage clicked his tongue and Heiwa laughed.
-
The clock struck 11.30pm but Takayama was still out of it. Heiwa stared at the man in deep thought as she sat by his bed. Akashi was having a phone call a few feet away from the bed so as not to disturb the patient and she was getting sleepy as the night deepened but she sensed something out of place from the man so she wanted to wait for him to wake up.
Then, all of a sudden, the man gasped and his eyes sprang open as if someone had electrocuted him awake. Heiwa flinched and tried to help him but a strong gust of wind knocked her out of her chair and she saw three black figures fly past her eyes and into Takayama's gaping mouth.
Akashi had rushed to the bed as soon as he heard the man wake up but he couldn't see what Heiwa was seeing. She watched in shock and quickly placed her fingers around Takayama's neck, in an attempt to stop the souls from entering his body through his mouth. He struggled against her grips, scratching her arms and kicking the air.
'Quick!' Heiwa yelled at Akashi, who was stunned to see her suddenly strangling a stranger.
His brilliant mind worked it out real quick. He chanted the exorcism chants and Heiwa saw slimy black liquid crawling out of Takayama's mouth and trying to get into his nose and ears but the chants were weakening them down.
An idea came to her mind. It was disgusting but it was the only thing that could help her. Heiwa gripped the slime and pulled it off the man's face.
She turned to the bedside table and placed it in a glass before turning it upside down so the slime wouldn't be able to escape. Takayama stopped struggling and lay still, out of it. She exhaled sharply then looked at her husband.
Akashi smiled slightly. 'Good job,' he whispered.
'What the hell was that, though.' she muttered.
They both looked at Takayama.
'They were trying to infiltrate his body through his mouth, in the form of black slimes,' Heiwa reported then pointed at the upside-down glass. Akashi couldn't see anything but he felt an ominous aura from there. 'I put it in there.'
The redhead stared at the glass for a moment then quickly grabbed Heiwa's hands and examined it.
'I'm fine,' she said, assuring him. 'We should call Towa–'
The glass rattled viciously, stopping Heiwa from speaking any further. Both of them turned to look. There weren't any external factors leading it to shake but it was doing so, and it was nearing the edge of the bedside table.
In Heiwa's view, the black slimes were pushing against the glass desperately so she quickly held the glass down against the table. But she had to use most of her energy trying to make it stay put because it was too aggressive.
Akashi began chanting spells to keep the souls down as soon as the thing acted up.
Heiwa winced as the immense force coming from under the glass weakened her grips. The tip of her fingers turned white from latching onto it too tightly. The thing clattered even stronger against the glass and she lost it. The glass fell on the floor and broke into pieces. The sound echoed throughout the silent room and the light flickered on and off.
Akashi grasped Heiwa's arm and pulled her away from the glass and the bed and closer to him. Heiwa watched in dismay as the slimes rose and merged into one large black creature. The room turned cold and the creature materialized into a human body without face or any features; just visible shapes of hands, legs and a head.
'Are you still treating me like a ghost?' a gravelling voice spoke mockingly.
Heiwa frowned.
'Dumbasses keep doing pointless things,' the creature's supposed-to-be hand reached over to Takayama.
'Don't touch him!' Heiwa warned.
'Or what?'
'Who sent you?' all of a sudden, Akashi questioned. Heiwa turned to him in surprise.
'Y-you can see it?' she whispered.
Akashi returned her stare and gestured at their linking arms. 'Nos coniungere, ut possimus videre,' he said.
Heiwa felt a sharp pain behind her eyes. The spell worked. Akashi could see the creature through her eyes.
'I think we can all agree that my client's privacy is really important,' said the creature.
'So this is pure hatred by your client,' said Akashi calmly.
The black thing shrugged in response. 'Or pure boredom?' it suggested then burst into a horrible laugh.
Heiwa exhaled sharply, annoyed at the creature's attitude.
'Why, young girl, you must hate me,' said the creature sarcastically.
'We have no time to entertain you. Who sent you?' she demanded.
'Not so aggressive with the questioning, please, I like it when you talk to me softly,' although there were no features, it sounded like the creature was smiling. 'Girls usually scream when they see me.'
'Look,' Heiwa frowned. 'I'm not here to play with you.'
The creature laughed. 'And I'm not here to be questioned either. We should meet again when the time's right. Until then.'
To Heiwa's horror, the creature began dissipating, vanishing or in a simpler term, running away.
'You're not going anywhere!' Heiwa yelled angrily then wriggled herself off Akashi.
'Heiwa, no–' Akashi tried to stop her but she had released her arm from his and was running to the creature, trying to grab at the stateless matter.
'Lentem Intercipias,' she chanted rushingly, touching the air where the creature appeared to be.
It felt like she had entered an endless spiral of blackness and was floating in nothingness. Her surroundings were cold and empty and there were voices. They sounded distant and mixed up and she concentrated to listen.
She couldn't see anything and her head began to hurt terribly. But she wouldn't give up. She knew she could find out something from inside it.
Then, as if magic, she could make out some words amidst the chaotic whispers around her.
'... send him some... too weak... ruined... my children... anything... revenge...'
Heiwa held her head in her hands, gritting her teeth trying to contain the pain. The voices weren't getting any clearer but she had to find something useful for the case.
'... him dead... suffer... not ghosts.... Demons.... Return... '
'Retrahō!'
Heiwa thought she was sucked through a very narrow cylinder and it crushed her bones and organs but it was just her being brought back to reality, out of the creature's memory.
She was thrown off and Akashi managed to catch her before she could collide with the floor. Without missing any beat, taking advantage of their touching bodies, the redhead chanted again, 'Nos coniungere, ut possimus videre.'
The creature seemed taken aback, seeing it motionless.
'What did you do?' it asked.
'Vade retro, liberate te ex inferis,' Akashi murmured then waited.
Nothing happened. The creature seemed to expect something to occur, like melting or burning. So it moved its "limbs" to check. And when it realized there wasn't any damage done, it laughed hysterically.
Heiwa, being half-conscious, tugged at her partner's shirt. Akashi bent down to listen.
'It's...' she croaked. 'A demon... not... a soul...'
The redhead frowned and looked at the slimy and airy-like creature, examining it carefully.
'You can't do anything! I'm invincible!' the creature beamed victoriously.
Akashi smirked at its triumphant exclaim then said in a low voice, 'Arde in regnum phasmatis.'
There was a flash of orange light filling the room and instead of the cold atmosphere, it felt like there was a fire that had randomly spread. Akashi grasped Heiwa tighter, so as not to let her slip from him then watched as sparks of fire began eating at the ends of the creature's silhouette from beneath.
The creature screamed in fear rather than in pain while the fire grew and spread onto it. It tried to escape the fire but it was to no avail. Then it growled, 'You found out, didn't you? But you can't destroy me!'
The fire spread even faster and soon, the creature was engulfed in flames and vanished into thin air. The screaming had stopped and the room's atmosphere returned to normal.
Akashi sighed with relief then looked at Heiwa in his arms. They were both on the floor, exhausted.
'Are you okay?' he asked.
She tried to sit and he helped her up.
'Where did you learn Interception?' without waiting for anything, he questioned her.
'I read it once in a case file,' answered Heiwa, not meeting his eyes. 'I couldn't think of anything else. I'm sorry.'
It was against the ethics to practice a spell or anything of that sort without proper guidance.
Akashi looked like he wanted to argue but instead, he caressed her head affectionately. 'You could've been absorbed,' he said.
'It hurt like hell,' she said and shook her head, remembering the experience. 'I probably need to train with somebody before doing that again.'
'It's actually impressive that you could even explore him even though it's your first time using it.'
Heiwa grinned. Then remembered something more important.
'The perpetrator is executing revenge and decided to send demons instead of souls,' she began reporting and Akashi listened attentively. 'He mentioned something about his children and wanted Takayama to suffer. He also mentioned the word "return". Could it be having the demon return to him after destroying the man's life?'
'It couldn't have been done by one man alone,' said Akashi. 'I think a medium was used. A shaman or some sort. A normal human is not capable of summoning and commanding demons.'
'The demon also mentioned the perpetrator being its client, not the other way around.'
'It's not the first time but we're dealing with a dangerous category of supernatural creatures,' said Akashi, standing up. 'I'm holding an emergency meeting tomorrow morning. Let's go home.'
Heiwa glanced at Takayama who was still unconscious then stood as well. But right at that moment, her head spun and she lost her balance. Akashi grabbed her arm, preventing her from falling down.
'Dizzy?' he asked.
She shook her head, 'Kinda.'
They walked together to the carpark and Akashi drove back home (using another car that he kept parked)(since the one they used earlier had exploded).