■ Chapter 1: Settling In
The car slowly comes to a stop. I guess we've finally arrived at Uncle's home. I waste no time and get out of the car, moving all of my luggage into the room I'll be staying in with the help of Uncle Dojima and Nanako.
First thing I notice? The room is rather small. Quite a bit smaller than the room I was staying in previously. There's still plenty of room, however. More than enough for a couch, a small tabletop in front of it, a work table in the far left corner, a futon tucked away in the opposite corner, and a small TV that's sitting on top of a tall clothes drawer that sits opposite the couch.
As I note every object in the room and its position, I come to a conclusion I knew I would, even before I stepped onto the first train.
"Looks like I made the right call leaving my workshop behind," I murmur as I organise my belongings. "No way I would have been able to fit all of it here."
Well, it's not like I'm totally cut off from that world. I have my charms to defend myself with, and, in a pinch, I could turn this place into a temporary workshop... It's not ideal, but it's something I should keep in mind, just in case.
My clothes, books, CD's. Everything is now where it should be. The only things that are still to be sorted are what's in my backpack. I place the wooden box on the tabletop and put the books on the work table.
Right! That's taken care of. What time is it anyway? ...Geez, six o'clock already? Guess I must have lost track of time. I should head down and see about dinner.
Thankfully, the Dojima's have already prepared something for my arrival. To celebrate, they say. It takes a while to cook, so I sit down at the table near the TV. Well, I say 'cook', but it's really just shoving it in an oven, turning it around half-way, and leaving it there until it's ready.
It's more comparable to take-out food than an actual home cooked meal. It's something I don't really mind, though. When you've worked at a fast-food place for a while, one starts to become indifferent to the kind of food they usually provide.
Luckily, we have some refreshments to wash it down. Dojima has a can of beer in his hand, Nanako's juice carton sits next to her plate, while my can of soda has just been opened.
"Let's have a toast," Dojima says as he raises his can to the air. Nanako and I follow suit, and take a drink before setting them down on the table.
"So... your mom is busy with something important, right?" he asks. "I know it's only for a year, but getting stuck in a place like this because of that... It's rough being a kid. Well, it's just me and Nanako here, so it'll be nice to have someone else around. So long as you're here, you're part of the family. So make yourself at home."
...Does Dojima know exactly what my mother is doing right now? The reason why she's made her way to the Greek isles? If he does know, he's probably not going to speak of it in front of Nanako. Might be best to keep quiet about that particular subject.
"I thank you for your hospitality," I say politely, bowing my head in a show of gratitude. Dojima chuckles dryly at my formal tone and demeanour.
"Oh, come on, there's no need to act so formal. Look, you're making Nanako all tense!"
My formal nature isn't something that's likely to chance. But if it gets Nanako to relax, I can afford to ease up a little. Though I don't think pointing it out is going to help in that regard, Uncle. In fact, I'm pretty sure she's more tense now than before.
"Anyway, let's eat."
Yes, Uncle, let's. Trying to hide how hungry I am is starting to become exhausting.
Picking up my chopsticks, I begin to⸻
Eh? What's that ringing sound?
"Ugh... Who's calling at this hour?"
Dojima rifles through his pockets until he finds his mobile phone, which he holds to his ear.
"Dojima speaking," he says as he stands up and walks to the kitchen table. "Yeah? I see... So where is it?"
Oh, he doesn't look happy. The response he got must have been bad.
"Alright, I'm on my way." He hangs up and looks down at the device in his hand before he pockets it. "Looks like I made the right choice to skip the booze." He turns to look at me and Nanako. "Sorry, but I gotta take care of some business. Go ahead and eat without me. I don't know how late I'll be. Nanako, you help her out, okay?"
"...Okay," Nanako responds sadly. This must have been a common occurrence, going by her tone and the way she looks—her sight cast down at the table and unwilling to look any of us in the eye.
The front door opens, and immediately the sound of pouring rain reaches my ears.
"Nanako, it's raining out! What did you do to the laundry?!"
"I already brought it in!"
"...Alright. Well, I'm off."
The door closes, leaving me alone with my cousin. As soon as the noise of the door closing fades, Nanako grabs the TV remote and turns the television on. The weather channel's the first thing to appear on the screen.
"⸻for this week. Next, let's take a look at the hourly breakdown of tomorrow's weather. With storm clouds moving from the west, expect rain throughout the day tomorrow in most areas."
The rain continues to batter against the glass door near me, not helping the irritation I feel when I hear that this was going to continue into the next day. I cannot stand rainy days. I especially cannot stand them if I have to go out and walk through it. Happens far too often for my liking.
"Let's eat," the emotionless voice of Nanako says, bringing my focus back to her. Okay, that's rather unsettling, not going to lie. While Nanako manages to eat most of her food, I do not.
The silence drags on... If I don't want this to continue for the rest of the night, I might want to speak up.
"So, what does your dad do? Sounds like it's important, going by how quickly he bolted after that call," I say with a glance towards the door.
Nanako looks unsure as to how to answer that question. She stares down at the table in thought before raising her head back up.
"He... investigates stuff? Like crime scenes."
"Mother did mention he works for the police. Is he a part of the regular force?"
Nanako shakes her head.
"No. He's a detective."
"Rather high profile, indeed..."
I refrain from saying that it must have kept him out of the house often. Something tells me that's a topic I don't want to touch right now. Not when we barely know each other.
The silence from before settles in again. Damn, and I was making progress, too... Well, at least I still have my food. Not going to waste it if I can help it. I grab my chopsticks and⸻
"And now for the local news."
That's two strikes, TV. First the weather report, and now this?
"A new victim in the recent string of murders has been discovered in the city limits. A 45-year-old male named Yagyu Toshino was found by his neighbour deceased in his bed. Initial investigations conducted by the Inaba Police Department have concluded the cause of death to be the same as past victims: poison entering a wound caused by a bladed instrument. The exact type of poison remains a mystery, though sources from inside the police have claimed that it appears to be a type of snake venom. We shall have more details by the hour⸻"
The channel changes before the newscaster finishes her report. My eyes dart over to look at Nanako, who's holding the remote in her hand. She seems as though she doesn't want to hear any more of that... Can't say I blame her. It is rather morbid.
Still, it intrigues me somewhat. A killer who uses snake venom to conduct their murders? And why use a blade? Wouldn't it have been easier, not to mention more discreet, to poison the victim's food or drink? Or perhaps even inject it into their body?
Maybe there's some special circumstances involved with this particular case?
What's even more interesting is that the police can't identify the poison. If they found that the same poison was used for all the victims then why can't they figure out what it is?
...I shouldn't think about it too much. Getting myself worried over this will be bad for my health. Besides, there's more pressing concerns at hand.
"I'm sure your dad will be alright," I try to reassure Nanako with a soft tone. It's not hard to put together what has her concerned, given that her father most likely works at the Inaba Police Department, and might be involved in the investigation of this case.
The worried look vanishes, leaving only the blank look from before.
"...I know. It's his job, so this happens..." Her face lights up suddenly. "Oh, it's Junes."
Her change in demeanour leaves me feeling a slight tinge of emotional whiplash. It doesn't take me long to discover the reason for her sudden burst of joy.
"At Junes, everyday is Customer Appreciation Day. Come see for yourself, and get in touch with our products! Every day's great at your Junes!~"
Oh, no. That jingle. I have a bad feeling it'll get stuck in my head if I have to listen to it a few more times. It's one of those jingles. Just like that Tanaka guy's TV shopping channel. It took me a while to get that damn tune out of my mind.
"Every day's great at your Junes!~" Nanako repeats, smiling and moving her arm back and forth in tune with the song. This is the first time I've actually seen her smile. It's quite jarring, since all I've seen from her up to this point is either a blank stare or worry. The same feeling of whiplash returns when the smile disappears and she turns to look at me with the same blank expression she had before the commercial played. "Aren't you going to eat?"
I quickly move back to my food. Needless to say, there's silence for the rest of the night.
※※※※※
By the time I make my way to my room, it's already quite late. Dojima didn't come back and Nanako told me to get some rest. Something which I'm finding rather difficult to do.
For some reason, I'm still awake... No, I know the reason why. I can't relax without knowing for sure. I get up and grab my phone from the table, checking the time with a worried look. Only a few seconds 'till midnight. Three, two, one...
...Nothing happens. No shift in the world, no immediate sense of dread. I look out the window and see that the night sky is still there. The same stars, the same darkness, the same world that I've come to know.
...Damn it all.
"It's been two years, Sayuri. It's not coming back."
Even with the quiet affirmation of that fact, I find myself checking again, just to make sure. I guess... some part of me is still stuck in that time, in that city, reliving those events that have long since past.
It's not someone one can forget easily. All the death, the destruction. But it's not that which keeps me awake at night. I've come to terms with it a long time ago. In a world that's cut-throat like ours, you won't last long if you aren't willing to accept the deaths of others.
No, it's the aftermath of the last battle that causes me so much worry. It's the implications of what I'd seen and heard. I'm not sure about this, but I think I was one of the few who truly saw that battle for what it was, and know just how difficult the path ahead is for the one who lost.
...I just don't understand her. Something so transient and cruel as humanity... it isn't worth defending. No, that's not fair. Rather, it's vile humans like that boy who aren't worth defending. And yet, she wants to save everyone she can, even the one who is at fault for the desolation that was caused.
Sometimes, I wonder. Just how things could have been different if some of those events never occurred. Shirakawa, Yakushima, the Hermit Arcana. Maybe that tragedy could have been averted had the events that placed us on that path...
"...What good will thinking about that do us now? It's been so long... I hope you're doing well, Senpai, wherever you are."
Knowing my luck, I'll run into her sooner or later... Still, I can't help but wonder⸻
"Right, going to sleep," I say, annoyed at myself for thinking too much about it. "I'm going to sleep, I'm going to sleep, I'm going to sleep."
Ordering myself to just lie down and go to sleep, I drop down onto the futon and force my eyes shut. Eventually, I'm able to fall into a very uneasy slumber...
...Living in this place for a whole year...
※※※※※
"Ah...!"
Wha... Where am I? My eyes didn't open naturally. It was like some outside force forced them open. I glance around, seeing that the dark room I was in a second ago has been replaced with a significantly larger one. Clean, sterile. The slightly uncomfortable bed that I'm lying on. The uniformity of the room that quite frankly makes me sick.
I recognise what it is quickly.
"A... hospital room...?"
There's no time to be confused. I need to see what's going on. The bed creaks as I stand up and take a closer look at my environment. The room is tinted a rather sickly green colour, courtesy of the light pouring in from the window.
A familiar colouration that brings back memories of that time two years past. Walking up to the window, I see... nothing. Nothing but that sky, the moon, and the red sea below—its colours a mixture of green, yellow, and red. The moon's a sharp yellow, standing out amongst all that corruption.
Yet, like back then, I'm not fooled. I know that orb is just as poisoned, perhaps suffering even worse than the sky and the sea. I turn away and make my way to the door. If I'm correct about what lies beyond it, then the sight won't surprise me in the slightest.
I pull the door. Eh? It's locked? ...No, it's just jammed. Something on the other side is causing it to get stuck. I pull again.
"Ah..."
This door is showing quite a bit of resilience. One more strong pull should be enough, though.
"Three... two... one!"
Putting more strength into this pull, the door slides open, nearly making me fall over. I regain my balance quickly and stand back up straight, only to find that the hospital room has vanished completely. Replaced by a sight that I stare blankly at.
"...I see. So I'm back here."
A city in ruins, a city that I recognise. Off in the distance, I can see a raging fire that has consumed a vast majority of the buildings. And to my right, I can see a part of the island slowly being submerged into the sea of blood. Collapsed buildings, abandoned streets, the light of life fading completely and swallowed by the encroaching chaos.
It's a sight that lingers in my memory, and the memories of those who still live to remember it. The image is vivid enough that it even lingers in the minds of those who have only heard about it second-hand.
This sight that is the consequence of one boy's failure.
My hands tighten into fists as I grit my teeth in vexation. I don't even realise I'm doing this until I notice just how angry I'm beginning to feel. This isn't something I can change or just ignore. This is something that has fundamentally changed the lives of so many, including my own. I take a breath to calm myself, letting my hands relax and fall back to my side.
"...Just how long will this haunt me?" I ask with silent resignation, expecting no answer to my question.
I won't, I can't, forget about this. Not when I made a promise to remember the outcome of the last battle I witnessed. It's so intrinsically linked to the trials we all went through, that to forget this sight would be to willingly go back on that.
Sayuri Narukami is many things, but she isn't one to break a promise.
Lifting my head to face this tragedy, I begin to walk forward. The empty streets, lit only by the poisoned sky, show no signs of life other than myself. Expected, really. This is a dream, after all... Or perhaps 'nightmare' would be a more accurate descriptor.
I walk forward without a goal in mind... Actually, that's not completely true. I am heading towards something in particular. The flames off in the distance.
Something about them is pulling me towards it. A feeling like if I can just get close enough, I might be able to find something. I don't really know what I expect to find, if anything. Only that uncertain feeling drives me forward.
I stop suddenly, turning to look behind me. The same sight as when I walked through it just a few moments ago. Rubble, abandoned cars, and the heat from the distant flames reaching over.
...It's hard to believe that it's been two years. With how these vivid images make it seem as though I'm recalling something that had happened only yesterday... It was hell.
That's the only word that can describe this sight. Hell. Back then, I had awoken to a hell of humanity's making. And once the chaos had passed, what was left was a place too steeped in sorrow and death for anyone to live in without the risk of losing themselves.
Last I heard, they call it the 'Lost City' now... If there was ever a more appropriate name for that place, I haven't heard it. And I doubt I will.
While these images are vivid, there's a distinct lack of sound beyond the sound of the flames. I am very much thankful for that. I don't think my sanity would have lasted for very long if I was able to recall some of the sounds I was privy to. Sounds which I refuse to describe.
I turn back around to continue my journey. Only... there's someone else here. Someone who stands out because of the hellish landscape behind them.
A young girl, wearing a pink floral kimono. Her black hair is long and reaches down to her back, and she stands in the middle of this hell like it doesn't concern her. She lifts her head to look at me, opening her closed eyes. Her eyes are a light shade of blue, but there's no life to them. She stares at me with a blank look, similar to Nanako's, and her mouth slightly open.
"...If you don't see the truth with your own eyes... you will both die. ⸻-sama," she says emotionlessly.
A loud burst of white noise blasts through my mind, my hand immediately goes to clutch my forehead as the pain shoots through my system.
What... was that?
It was like I was hearing something forbidden. Something that my mind refuses to comprehend and it took whatever measures it needed to prevent me from understanding.
I lift my head, opening my eyes, to address the girl, to ask her what exactly she meant by 'you will both die.' I find that she has completely disappeared. I look around in search of her, but she has vanished without a trace.
...That's the second time someone's intruded on my dreams. Only, it doesn't feel like a foreign element was invading like the two denizens of the Velvet Room were. This time, it feels as though the girl actually belongs here.
The sheer randomness of her appearance is what makes the whole thing strange, however.
"...I can forgive it happening once, but twice in the same day?" I ask myself, feeling absolutely insulted. It's an attack on my pride as an Onmyōji. I resolve to prepare a spell after school that'll stop that from happening again. "Hmm?"
I find myself distracted by something off in the distance. Distant sounds of battle that sound as though they're coming from within the flames. I can't hear it very well from where I am... Have to get closer.
The moment I decide to do so and take a step forward, the world is engulfed in fire, and myself along with it.
◆ Next Time - Chapter 2: The Midnight Channel ◆