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Chapter 5: Case 1
Chapter 6
"The name of a previous tie to the spirit world, blood of an astral walker, and consent of flesh; these are three things that are needed to gain access to a person's spiritual link. Tampering with a person's spiritual link can have two effects, one, it cut them from all things spiritual, and they can lose their abilities, and the second, it can kill them and trap on the astral plane to stay for all eternity. If the apparition got a hold of Mai's spirit link he wouldn't need to kill girls anymore, he could become a demon instantly." Lin finished his eyes gravely resting on Mai.
'It all makes sense now, why he was so willing to let me go and so forceful. He wanted to trap me in the astral plane through my link.' Mai realized filling with tears she resolved not to shed.
"So this spirit can kill Mai whenever he wants too?" Ayako said her voice cracking as tears made their way to her eyes. Lin only nodded meekly as Ayako burst into tears Monk coming over to comfort the distraught woman.
"Naru, there's got to be something we can do to stop this! I mean, this is Mai, our Mai! We can't just let some damned spirit sign her death warrant!" Monk said his voice filled with rage at the thought of losing his daughter- figure.
"Lin is there a way to reverse this?" Naru asked his longtime partner, while his face was stoic he seemed as desperate as the rest. Under his mask Lin could see panic and apprehension, there was also sadness.
'There's got to be a way.' Noll thought to deny the truth of what Lin had just shared.
"I'll have to do research and question a colleague who is well versed in these things. In the meantime don't let Mai fall asleep, it's bad enough that she can be pulled into the plane, we don't need to minimize her chances." And with that Lin was on his laptop typing furiously.
Mai took this time limp her way over to Ayako and placed her hand on her thigh to get the priestess's attention. Ayako turned to Mai, eyes red and tears freely flowing. Of course, the woman felt foolish being so hysterical, but this wasn't a time for pride when she could lose someone she truly loved. Even Masako was crying and John looked still in shock, and Yasu's head was bent in sadness.
"Ayako, don't be sad. It's my fault for being so careless when the spirit plane is such a dangerous place. Besides I've gotten in plenty of tough situations and made it out of the better end." Mai offered her words of comfort.
"Mai, this is d-different. This is something that can take you at a-any m-moment, and we don't even know how to fight it. Your life is already been so difficult, and you've had to fight so h-hard. You don't deserve to d-die so young, and not be able to pass on." Ayako tears grew bigger and bigger the more she spoke to the girl; she was even stuttering and trembling.
"Well Ayako, even if I do die I have no regrets. I was able to save a little girl today and reunited a boy with his only family. Even though I'm an orphan I was able to have a family again through SPR and become happier than I have been in a long time. It may have been difficult at times, but I can honestly say I'll have no regrets; I was able to protect the people I care about most." Mai finished a big heartwarming smile. Ayako yanked the girls into a hug, and held onto her for dear life. Naru watched the entire scene unfold and was impressed at the resolve the girl showed even in the face of death.
"I can't believe I've hired such sappy idiots." Naru said coldly getting the attention of everyone in the room.
"Naru! I can't believe you could still act like such a pompous ass right now when you could lose a friend. You heartless bastard!" Monk rose and yelled looking ready to clobber the boy.
"Well unlike all of you I realize that Mai is still here, so instead of acting like she's already dead why aren't using what little time we have to try and save her. Because I for one have not given up, and have no intention of losing any of my team members today." Naru said making the young girl blush at his, however indirect, display of affection.
'Leave it to Naru to motivate and criticize all in the same speech.' Mai sweatdropped at his methods but relieved they were effective.
"Yasuhara, the research! What have you found out about Shadow?" Naru asked bring the investigation back to the forefront and regroup the team. Yasu quickly refocused himself and gathered up papers from the tables and cleared his throat.
"Yes, I searched all the town's records for a person by the name of shadow, but nothing came up. That's when I understood that the spirit gave us all the details of the case indirectly. 'Shadow' in Japanese can also be related to the term 'kage', and there were three people in this town that went by that name, and lucky the other two were female. Thus I discovered that Kage Fujioka was the only person in the records who could be our culprit. He was a man who attended this church regularly and was held in high esteem by the people here. That is until he was discovered to be participating in satanic rituals out in the forest near the church grounds. Under the court of law, he had done no wrong, and there wasn't much that could to have him arrested. The villagers here seemed to have their own plans despite this, and formed an angry mob. Upon arriving to Kage's home he was found with slit wrist in his rose garden, dead. It was said at the scene that the roses were covered in talismans made of his own blood." Yasu concluded the tale by adjusting his glasses.
"That still doesn't explain why he chose the girls." Masako said not connecting the dots quite yet.
"I thought the same as well, but it's clear in what he said 'Think of it like taking a plain white piece of paper, and covering in marks and making your own. I gain power from taking what was once theirs'. Then you think of the victims that he's gone after, mostly young girls, and the outliers of two older nuns who worked here, and they all have one thing in common." Yasu said hoping Masako who catch his drifts.
"And that would be…" Masako asked required further assistance.
"They were all virgins, female virgins. It seems a bit prehistoric, but not unheard the practice of sacrificing virgins for the gain of power or longevity." Naru commented.
"Is that how he gains the power to make the girls disappear?" John asked.
"It's just as Mai said it was before, he doesn't have the power to do that yet. I took a second look at the blueprints of the building. In the blind spot of the camera, there is a large vent that leads to underneath the church, from there is a large clean water run off that leads into the woods, it would be trivial for the girls to enter the woods that way unnoticed." Naru shared as he let the others examine the blue prints.
"Now that we know more about the spirit, is it possible to act and save for Mai? If we attempt an exorcism before he can get to Mai will it work?" John questioned nervously.
"No, a direct attack has too much of a risk of failure, for all we know he doesn't even know he's found out. That's why we have to take away the thing that has made him a strong as he is." Naru reasoned.
"The girls that he's sacrificed, but how it'd be nearly impossible to cleanse them all at once. We don't have that kind of time! We don't even know where their bodies are." Masako commented hoping that Naru wouldn't kill the spirits of the innocent victims. Takigawa then interjected his findings.
"Actually, when I was pulling Suki out of the tree, I was able to get a pretty good look at the surrounding area. The tree tops were all filled the bones and corpses, of what I can only assume were his past victims. With the types of Evergreens in the area, he could stow the bodies in the trees and they would be no way to see from the forest floor, and the bones could easily wither away in the elements, devoured by birds of prey, and never be found." Monk commented gravely.
"Well then Matsuzaki from here on out we'll have to rest our faith in you." Naru said.
"W-why me?" Ayako said still flustered and only just coming down from her emotions.
"The trees in the area are quite healthy and well taken care of; I'd anticipation that will be enough for a successful cleanse." Naru elaborated raising his eyebrow as if his point should have been obvious.
"Right, I'll be prepared in 15 minutes." With that Ayako was gone to arrange her materials.
"The rest of you I need to be at her beck and call and make sure that this goes flawlessly. No excuses, there's too much at stake." They needn't be told twice and they were all behind Matsuzaki. That only left the three of them in base, and Lin was waist deep in research and in the middle of a phone call with a colleague. Naru took a seat next to Mai and uncharacteristically sighed deeply before meeting her eyes with vulnerable eyes. Mai blushed and tried to look away from his honest eyes, but was surprised when he grabbed her hand and squeezed it in his. She met his gaze once again and getting lost in his indigo pools.
"Even when I'm on my best behavior I can't stay out of trouble, can I?" Mai said attempting to lighten the mood. Naru humored her with a sad smirk that broken Mai's heart.
'I've never seen him look so defenseless and dejected. I thought I'd be head over heels if I ever saw this side of him, but it just makes me feel… hopeless.' Mai thought to herself. Naru pulled his mask back on and stalked out the room quickly slamming the door behind him. Mai kept a close watch on the door until she let out a deep sigh, and took off her backpack and rested it on the ground.
'So, I could die today.' Mai said to herself the words finally sinking in. She looked over at her backpack and notices her papers sticking out. Mai grabbed it suddenly remembering her list and opened it, as she eyed the half song and her list.
"Well even if I die today I want to at least finish this.' Mai said to herself as she quickly added the finishing touches on her song.
'Then that leaves Lin and Naru…'
Naru stormed into his the bedroom and slammed the door behind him. He tore into his suitcase tossing belongings and found his hand mirror. He looked into it and suddenly it cracked and broken into pieces.
'Damn it, my PK is all over the place. I need to calm down.' His mind returning to basics breathing in through his nose and out through his mouth. He closed his eyes and imagined his PK to be a cup with a small hole in the bottom. He mentally watched it drain until even the smallest droplets were gone. Once his opened his eyes again he paced quickly into the bathroom, and closed the door behind him. He reached the sink and looked at his reflection demanding to see some kind of change, nearly begging for it.
"Gene! I need you, NOW!" Naru yelled his burning gaze getting angrier and angrier as he his reflection remained the same. He looked at his watch and saw he'd already been gone for fifteen minutes, fifteen minutes that Mai didn't have, time her wouldn't get to spend with her in her last moments.
'No, I can't think like that. Even though logic deems th-" Naru could feel a lump forming in his throat as the odds and percentages rolled through his overactive brain. No matter how he calculated and reworked, even if everything went according to plan there was still a chance she- that Mai would…
"Gene, please, I need you …brother." Naru voiced desperately as he looked up in the mirror and could see himself with a sad smile and empathetic eyes.
"Noll, you don't have to beg. You'll know I'll always be here when you ask."
Naru feel a wave a relief cover him for the moment before he was reminded of his task at hand, saving Mai's life.
"I need you to go to Mai's spirit plane, and protect spiritual connection. There's a man Kage F-" Naru started before he was cut off by his twin.
"I know, I've been trying to get through for a while now, but this guy is good." Gene said frustration seeping from his voice.
"Then try harder because Mai could die at any moment if you don't get there first!"
"The name of a previous tie to the spirit world, blood of an astral walker, and consent of flesh. These are three things that are needed to gain access to a person's spiritual link. Tampering with a person's spiritual can have two effects, one, it cut them from all things spiritual, and they can lose their abilities, and the second, it can kill them and trap on the astral plane to stay for all eternity." Naru repeated exactly.
"Don't you think I know that! I'll do everything I can, but I'll need some help on your end as well. I'll let you know when it's time, so keep your telepathic link open. Mai has a compact mirror in her bag, bring it just on case." With that Naru saw his own red rimmed eyes and stressed demeanor.
'With Gene helping Mai we'll have a better chance against Kage, at least her odds are better.' Naru followed his brother's instructions and entered Mai's bag. Just as he opened her bag and emptied it out Mai hobbled into the door.
"Hey the others a-… what the hell are you doing?" Mai shrieked as she saw her clothing including her unmentionables thrown precariously around the room. She stepped over a pile of broken glass and closer to Oliver.
"Mai, you know better than with what little time we have. Stop goofing around and give me you compact mirror." Understanding the stress he was under Mai only sighed and did as she was told. She also grabbed a few items from her suitcase.
"Like I was saying the others are waiting in base for your okay to start the cleansing, and I have something I wanted to tell everyone." Mai said soberly. Naru immediately noted the girls change in attitude, sadness almost radiating off of her. They both proceeded to base, the rest were waiting; Ayako was dressed in her ceremonial attire.
"Are you ready Matsuzaki?"
"Yes." Ayako was a ball of nerves right now, everyone's blind faith in her. She'd prayed a bit with John prior to coming to base that she could do it.
'I have to; Mai's life depends on it. They rest of our lives depend on it." Ayako thinking positively and confidently.
"Lin, times up. What have you got?" Noll announces surprising his assistant, who was off the phone, but swamped with paper.
"Well, not much. My colleague said that if the cleansing goes as planned she should be able to fend off the spirit. Or at least put up some barriers around her connection until he can be exorcised, but there isn't really much to say about reversing the curse. I think this is a case of what's done is done." Lin feeling defeated that he was unable to help his young friend.
"Thank you, for all your hard work Lin." Mai said sensing his change in stoic attitude. Lin looked up at her and gave a small smile in reply.
"I'm sorry everyone, I know that time isn't really on our side right now, but I've been thinking about this since before the case even started." Mai began butterflies in her stomach.
'Why am I so nervous, these are my friends, no my family.' Mai sucked in a deep breath and then spoke.
"You all are always working so hard to make sure that my life is perfect and you all have provided so much for me that I just wanted to make sure I showed my thanks. Let's see, John I noticed how much you like sweets every time I bake, especially cookies. I was going to bake you some, but with everything happening I decided to give you the recipe instead. That's my mom's recipe to so keep it close to you okay?" Mai said handing him a piece of paper. John hugged the girl tightly surprising Mai making her laugh in surprise and hug him back.
"Masako, I know how busy you always are with work, and how you don't have much time to be a normal person as much as you'd like, and just have fun on your own terms, you know. My friend got me these ticket to this great amusement park, and if things go as planned I'd want us to go together, and if not, well you can take someone else." Mai handed Masako the tickets. She looked surprised that and even blushed, almost unbelieving that the girl considered her a friend despite their past.
"Th-thank you Mai, this really does mean a lot." Masako felt tears welling up again giving the girl a hug like John before her. Mai patted her back and offered her a warm smile.
"I was hoping to grow a little more, but alas, it seems that I'm destined to this short. Ayako, this dress was my Mom's and I was hoping to grow into it, because my mom always looked so beautiful when she wore it. It's way to long for me still, but Ayako you're so beautiful I'm sure you'll do it justice." Mai handed her the red dress and Mai teared up all over again. Ayako hugged the girl tightly and kissed her forehead a single tear leaving her eyes.
"Monk, I remember you telling me that your band was trying to write a song for their new set list. Well I had a friend who was really into song writing; she taught me and we'd always write them together, so I wrote you a song. It's called Clarity (*Zedd, acoustic) maybe I'll be able to sing t for you one day, but if not all the notes are there as well." Monk took the sheet of paper and kissed her on the cheek and ruffled her hair a bit.
"That's my little girl! I love it already Mai, honestly thank you so much." Monk replied.
"Yasu, I know how girl crazy you are, so I decided to set you up on a date with a very good friend of mine. I've already told her and she's expecting your call soon, so make sure you're a gentleman or so help my Yasu, I will castrate you." Mai said handing him the number and glaring at him before punching him affectionately. A few of them shared some laughter at this.
"Have a little faith in me Mai, geez." Yasu replied laughing and scratching the back of his head.
"Lin, honestly it took me forever to figure out what to get for you. Here, this is my grandfather's pocket watch, you seem classy enough to pull it off. There's something written inside in Chinese, that I never was able to decipher." Mai handed him the pocket watch and Lin read it and smiled.
"It says time is precious, thank you Mai." Then she turned to Naru and immediately started blushing nervously.
"Well Naru, I was hoping that this wasn't to girly for you." Mai steadied herself on her crutches and reached behind her neck to undo the locket she wore.
"Here, before you left for England your mother left me with a picture, and I made it into a locket. On one side is a picture of all of us together, and on the other side is one of you and your brother when you were younger. I had a protective charm put on it, so it'll keep you safe since you have such a dangerous occupation and all." Naru took it and opened it and then stared at Mai, making her very flustered.
"I know, it's weird and girly, if you don't like it-"
"No, it's very thoughtful Mai. Thank you." The scientist immediately putting it on and tucking is beneath his shirt line.
"Alright, let's go." Naru said as he lead the team out of base and into the forest.
HEY READER! I hope you enjoy this emotional roller coaster of a chapter, and hope none of the character were too out of character. Thanks for the awesome reviews, favs, and follows. BTW I love reviews, even if their small words, every single one means a lot ! So until next time!