Chapter 12: here's Daddy!
"I tell ya this ain't gettin any easier," Dr. Maddiman sighed.
After Komanes little attack on the hospital they suddenly had six more patients to deal with. Jibanyan had been easy to deal with, just an icepack and some food and he was good to go, the four that had been reduced to souls were more problematic, but some bitter medicine did the trick. No-bot was missing a vital screw which had screwed(get it?) up his entire system, that would require a replacement part from yopple, so he wouldn't be online for a while. And finally Damona, she was up and flying again, despite being advised to rest for the next couple of hours to be sure her wounds healed properly.
"Geez, things really went to the infinite inferno without me," the Demon princess said.
Nate sighed, "even with all mine and katie's yokai friends, pluss No-bot, we weren't able to beat him."
"And it's beginning to look like every time he shows up someone ends up in the hospital," Katie added, "we can't keep doing this, Komane knows this is the only place we can heal our yokai, and he keeps knocking them down!"
"You're right, Komane can stomp almost every yokai we have, Damona was able to beat him back, but was badly hurt in the process" her friend agreed.
"Nate, I'm fine, see? All healed up," Damona replied showing off the now nonexistent wound.
"Well regardless," Maddiman spoke up lighting a cigar, "with that Komane on the loose the streets aren't safe, and I don't have the funding to keep all the victims up and about."
"Is there anything you could do?" Nate asked.
"Well…." Maddiman rubbed his chin, "I suppose we could get the eyepos back online."
"Eyepos?" Nate, Katie, and Damona all said at once.
"Oh, of course, Eyepos! Dr. Maddiman, what a brilliant idea, why didn't I think of it," Whisper began saying, doing something behind his back.
"You have no idea what they are, do you?" Nate eyed him.
"Of course I know what eyepos are! What kind of Nonuttin wouldn't! Eyepos-" the undead butler began yelling before Maddiman swatted him away.
"The Eyepos are a network of spirit beacons with healing properties, they are placed in areas where yokai healthcare isn't easy to obtain in case of emergency, they'll be able to heal almost any injury a yokai may be victim to," the Doctor explained, "yokai stopped using them as very rarely were they needed."
"So then will be able to use them to heal up no matter where we are?" Damona asked with intrigue.
"Mostly, they're will be limitations, although I will try and place them in any area large groups of yokai hang out, or areas yokai regularly visit," Maddiman answer, "I'll just go get them from the basement."
After about ten minutes, the doctor came back with a moldy, old cardboard box. He set it down and used one of his surgical knives to cut the tape. He opened the box revealing it to be filled with hundreds of blue, palm sized disks each with a button in the middle resembling an eye.
Maddiman took out a single disk, then pressed it's button. The eye began beeping rapidly, and the large yokai threw it over by the door. After a few seconds, the disk exploded in blue flame. The fire floated upwards forming a wisp with an eye at the bottom.
"there, alright Leadoni, Line up!" He said as the Leadoni of the room began to line up holding out their large purple hands.
Maddiman took the box and began handing a disk to each of them, "Sparkopolis, Springdale Elementary, Flower road, Excellent tower, Timers and More, Mount wildwood shrine…"
As the little blue oni received their disk, they immediately ran out the door, likely to the locations the doctor had mentioned.
"Hey you two," Maddiman pointed to Nate and Katie, he took out two disks and threw them to them, "I want each of you to have one in your home, just in case."
"Right, come on guys!" Katie said as she headed to the door, "seeya nate!"
"Seeya!" Nate said before he turned to damona, "you good to travel?"
"I'll be fine," Damona scoffed as she began to float towards the door. Nate began to follow her as Jibanyan joined.
The three had walked for about a block before nate asked, "so why do you think that Komane is attacking now?"
"He's a familiar," Damona bluntly stated.
"What's a familiar?" her fiance asked quizzically.
Damona sighed, "A familiar is a yokai bound to a human's soul, everyone has one. most of the time you can only see them if you're an exorcist, as exorcists tend to keep their familiars nearby to help them detain yokai."
"So wait… bound to their soul… so you're my familiar?" Nate asked again.
"I guess," Damona shrugged, "technically your familiar is bound to your soul at birth, someone you were destined to find, but by using the crank-a-kai you added me to the equation, and before you ask, yes, you can have more than one.
"Oh," Nate said, "so wait then, Komane is working with an exorcist?"
"Oh, yeah, probably should'a started with that, if the Komane is a familiar then that means he's likely doing this in kahoots with an exorcist, which especially sucks cause even if we do take him down, the exorcist can summon him back," Damona said in a deadpan tone.
"Well that suc-" Nate began but was cut off by the Yokai watch blinking a red light as it beeped rapidly, he brought it to his sight line to see what the issue was. The dial opened up, revealing a a red drawing that kinda looked like someone put horns on a jack-o-lantern. Next thing you know, the clouds started to swirl towards each other, blocking out any trace of the sun, the color seemed to drain from the world, as if it were suddenly a 1940's style movie.
Nate looked around thinking, "weren't there people around just a second ago?" his question was correct, it was as if everyone had suddenly ceased to exist,
"What's going on?" Jibanyan asked with a worried look.
"Terror Time," Damona whispered.
"Terror what?" both Nate and Jibanyan gulped.
"Terror Time," Damona spoke up, "it happens when certain oni enter the human world."
"But aren't you an oni?" her fiance asked looking around. It was practically night out now.
"I'm only half oni, my Yuki-onna half causes me to behave much more like regular yokai," Damona said. She began to float away, "I'm going to see where the exit is, I'll come get you once I've found it, stay put."
"Got it," the human and Nekomata nodded.
"Oh and if you see a giant ogre with a metal club that is either red, blue or black, run like hell," Damona yelled as she flew away, "I know most would do that just off common sense but the likelihood it happens is actually quite high!"
"Wait, what?!" Nate yelled in shot but damona was already out of sight.
Nate and Jibanyan looked at each other.
"I-it's o-ok, w-we just g-gotta s-sit tite," Nate said nervously.
The two stood there for a few minutes, then suddenly the ground shook. A few seconds later another shake took place, and another, it almost sounded like… giant footsteps.
Nate and Jibanyan looked at each other again, sweat rolling down their faces. As the stomping continued, the two slowly looked over to the origin of the sound. The sound increased, as a red foot about the size of Jibanyan stomped from the side of a building. The two were frozen with fear.
The owner of said foot stomped forward. He was a large red oni, about three times nates height, with a single eye and Black ram like horns that went straight up. He wore black pants with a grey cloth belt, Gold and bronze shoulder pads, a brown flaming pirates hat, a blue cape, and a globe held to his chest with a golden chain. His stomach had a black tattoo pattern, and his eye patch was encrusted with a diamond. Resting on his shoulder was a black iron club, encrusted with golden spike and a diamond on the handle.
The giant oni turned in their direction, his eye narrowed making it clear he saw them.
Nate stumbled back a few feet, then took off running, Jibanyan ran after him screaming, "We're dead, we're dead, we're dead, we're dead!"
Nate looked back toward the oni, who had given chase. The Boy and his nekomata increased in speed to the point of sprinting, the oni increased speed as well, but began to cough, as if it was taking a lot out of him.
"Looks like, he can't keep up!" Jibanyan exclaimed.
"Bad thing is, the big guys make good time!" Nate replied screaming. The two kept running, eventually passing Damona who was confused.
"Hey, didn't I tell you guys to stay put!" she yelled at them. Suddenly the large oni stomped passed her, she got a decent look at him, and instantly smiled, and not her usual grin, a genuine smile of joy. She began flying after the three. She swooped up to nate, "Hey! Stop running!"
"Are you CRAZY!" Nate said, "That things trying to kill me!"
"Nate, I likely am nuts, but I need you to trust me!" Damona said. Nate looked at her, her eyes gave off something he hadn't seen in her before, sincerity.
Nate took a deep breath, the stopped. He turned around and stared the charging oni down.
"Enjoy the afterlife!" Jibanyan said continuing to run.
The oni halted and put both hands on his club, ready to swing, until he saw the demon girl by Nate's side. His jaw dropped with his club, "Da… Damona?"
"Hi, Daddy!" Damona said in a cutesy voice.
"DADDY?!" Nate asked in shock.
"Me daughter, me precious Damona!" the oni said on the brink of tears, he snatched the Demon princess in a hug, "I was so worried, every day I thought of where ye' been! I had every one of me best trackers lookin' fur ya and every day nothin! I'm so glad ye safe!"
"Good to see you too, dad," Damona said in slight annoyance to being crushed.
Her father released her and asked, "What happened ta' ye? All me trackers said it was a lost cause, that ye were gone fer good, then Maddiman rings me up sayin' ye be in the hospital!"
"Some self righteous monk locked me in a capsule machine for the last hundred and ninety years," Damona explained, "I'm only out now because of Nate." she pointed to her fiance, "we're engaged."
"Aye, so ye be the one to thank for me daughter's freedom," the oni king said eyeing nate, who was visibly nervous, he then laughed, "ye picked a good one damona, the lad's got guts."
"Wait, ya really think so?" Nate said in question.
"Aye, ya see lad, I've met a lot of humans in my time, almost all of them have ran, but few have had the guts to face me down," the oni chuckled, "the name be Plundros, King of the oni."
Plundros: S rank
Tough.
"Uh, Pleasure to meet you, sir," Nate replied.
"Sorry about chasing ya, by the way," Plundros said, "I haven't had a good terror time in a long while."
"Dad, you know you're too old to be chasing kids around, you might pull a muscle!" Damona scolded him.
"Aye, I ain't as young as I used to be," Plundros sighed with a smile, "tell ye what, I'll give ye a lift."
He held a hand out for nate to climb onto. He did so and after 15 minutes they were at the hotel.
"Thanks dad!" Damona said floating down as Plundros set nate down near the door.
"Ye welcome, and don't worry, I'll have ye weddin arranged by the end of the year," Plundros winked, "only the best for me daughter!"
"Goodbye, Plundros!" Nate said as the oni-king began his departure.
"Take care of me daughter!" the king replied, Terror Time fading away as he was out of sight. Nate activated the eyepo as he said, "your dad's pretty cool."
"Thanks," Damona smiled to her fiance.
"Wait, did we forget something?" Nate asked.
Damona thought for a moment, "nah."
Meanwhile Jibanyan was still running, "I don't care if the stomping stop! I'm still nyot stopping!"