"Child..." the Seller gasps and runs over to her to grab her in his arms and sprints away through the door. Her cry doesn't stop and is louder than the screech of the Ōmukade. Blood runs down from her nose where her mother hit her. "Mr...Mr...Medicine seller..." Centipedes dig their way out of the walls and pictures, on which someone wrote poems or entire texts. Behind them the Ōmukade rips apart all of these, spits blood onto the ground and opens its teeth-claws to snap like daggers. Everything melts and that the Medicine seller doesn't slide on it, to fall all over his body, is beyond him.
"The door left, Seller." Her voice shifts, or is he imagining things?
Prepared, he thrusts his form against it, regains his posture and run again and continues to sprint up the stairs, taking multiple at once. Pressed into her back, the head in utter silence, the sword supports the child's balance, but he can't run forever.
"Up the other side." In a sharp curve, he almost slitters over, but manages it. Ōmukade's power hits holes in the walls, destroys its trails left behind and a herd of centipede follows, one over one over one, a flute of bugs right beside it.
What is missing? The reason is right, it was the honest story of Atsumotchi, his sword confirmed. They have the full story in detail. All the parts they searched for. What only is wrong, or not there?
Think, Medicine seller, think deeply.
"Now right! Right and up the stairs!"
His throat dries, suddenly the need for water strengthens itself in such an enormous manner, he could dive straight into a lake for that matter.
How does Natsumi know where they are?
They aren't in the front. Their figures aren't even visible. Where ever they decided to go, they must have reached it by now. How well does she know them that she'd guess where they are? Her firm voice, steady and as if nothing of before happened. Exchanged to an older version...for some reason, maturity drips out of her words in poisonous flow, the child gone.
"There will be a large door. Through that one and we will be at the highest point."
The seller does exactly as told, as the members gasp and scream into the eye of death, he slides over, drops Natsumi who tries to lift his head with her small hands. Ignoring the searing pain, pulling and burning, he jumps up, collects the sword he dropped.
A look at Natsumi, close and certain, taking in every feature of her while not leaving the monster out of the last drop of power left in him. Centipedes cover the ground, the wall, make their way to the members in the back but avoid the two, Natsumi and the medicine seller. Glass shatters in loud cries, the building trembles, but his ears ring with the screech of the Ōmukade.
Natsumi...Natsumi...
A...Centipede! A centipede!
Sugemi holds her hand out, tries to grab but can't even reach Tori's leg.
A centipede...A centipede...
"I knew you were never my real mother! I look nothing like you!"
"The door left, seller."
Steady steps, controlled walking. One foot after another in perfect rhythm, the arms in sync with her legs.
"An angel requires a demon as well, ha?"
"Had you never been born!"
"You can have her, take her back!"
Natsumi, the one who seeks the use of life, questions human nature, demons, and gods.
Natsumi...Natsumi...save...me...Natsumi...
Save...me...
Save me.
"Natsumi..." She looks up, her eyes beam. "You never said my name before!"
"Might you take out..." the seller pants, his power fades. "The scale...I gave you..." From in her Kimono, she takes out the scale, without a further word even lets it float on her finger. Its bells ring.
"You are..." Shaking hands bring up the sword.
At the very moment, the scale flips, and as if imaginary weight is put on the side of Natsumi, it falls, pointing at her.
"You are the Mononoke."
The sword shuts its mouth closed, the clicking metal rings in the Seller's ears.
Time stops, all movements freeze together. A needle's drop could be heard, so quiet, even the biting sharp sounds of the centipedes can be identified. Natsumi's knuckles turn yellow from the grip on the scale, which can't move an inch. The Ōmukade stays still, the same, obedient way it had when Atsumotchi told his story. Only its legs vibrate, toneless, swinging hot air reaches him, humid like in summer. "...what?" Her father seems to lose all his breath, the weak, faint word barely makes it over to them.
She is the demon, the truth the seller hunted. Never had he seen this in his life, a human born a Mononoke. "The rage and fear of your mother manifested inside of you, I understand now. It devoured your normal human soul, leaving behind a demon's manifestation, ready to hunt down those who gave you these feelings." Something grows cold inside of his heart, wraps icy fingers around the fragile piece of flesh, presses out all warmth it had. Could he really?...a child...She looks so much like-
"How!? Natsumi...Sugemi! Did I give you this much pain that you birthed a Mononoke?!"
Natsumi lowers her head, strands of dark brown hair hide her face. "So that was the reason why you are so off! So...different from the other children! Learned walking so fast, learned speaking so correctly! Bold and uncontrolled tantrums...your force of power enough that you split our table once!" They tell him this...only now? Natsumi looks up, into his eyes, with a glance he has only ever seen in crazy, mind-lost humans. Wide-open, all of the warmth of a child's soul gone.
"I hate you! You all!" All the centipede and the Ōmukade itself rush towards her, circle her until she is buried under them, as soon, in the flooding light of the sun, they dissolve into this ash-like dust that turns into violet, bubbly thick energy. The Ōmukade connects around her hand where she holds the scale securely. With a quick turn to the members and forward movement of her arm, the Ōmukade shots to them.
The medicine seller's barriers evolve around them, the Ōmukade presses against them and breaks a few holes in but not enough. He hurries.
Over his point fingers, the sword floats. He holds it up above his head. "Unsheathe," he calmly says.
The sword shouts; its hair stands up like a chill down one's spine, the bell hanging from it rings louder than before. "UNSHEATHE!" it repeats, a distorted, high voice, close to a boy's one, though not a human one.
Like an explosion, of colors, of sounds. Bells ring unstoppable, warmth spreads across his body, engulfs him inside of it, similar to an embrace. His vision blackens, until reopening brings him a wave of colors, sharper, deeper, no spot can hide. The humid air brushes his skin in sweet response, the sword's blade, out of its cover, is nothing but a huge mass of light that trembles and at the same time, flow in rhythmic, calm energy, a few meters long.
His barriers turn golden and the holes close, the members protected behind those. "Mr. Medicine seller? You look so different! Is this the way how you fight Mononoke?" It is a new, interesting way to engage with these demons. He never truly talked to them before but as one now manifested in the body of a child, with a mind on its own, it isn't like these dull, redemption seeking monsters anymore.
Natsumi uses the Ōmukade to jump up high in the air, multiple of the Mononoke come out of her body, her back, and another hand until they hold her up like gigantic legs. One of those races to him, he grabs the emblem formerly on his chest, as the ghost-like creature of his other self presents it to him. With a jump up, the emblem with the mirror embedded enlarges itself higher than a human and shields him from the attacks. A glance at his tanned skin with the golden markings, until he vanishes through the glass, to appear right behind Natsumi. A beat sends her flying through the wall just above the members, who scream and shield their heads, but the build of the castle gives in. With turmoil and rumble, it starts breaking down into pieces.
"Out, as fast as possible!" They stumble and hit against falling parts, which the seller tries to fend off as good as possible. Natsumi makes it harder, blows from the outside, and speeds up the process. Large pieces of wood, wardrobes, and tables, chairs, and candles fall over, onto them or destroy more things. The barriers will follow and hopefully, be good enough for them to survive until out of the building.
Through the window, the Seller strikes another beat against Natsumi's Ōmukade arm, but nothing happens. How is that? An exchange between the two and the Ōmukade parts, but none of these get affected, their armor solid without a scratch. Could it be? Is Natsumi this strong to defend from his sword? If this is possible, they will be lost.
A baffled scream leaves her, claws emerge from her nails. It is lightly possible to see through the Ōmukade's energetic body. "Medicine seller, such a shame!" The scale shivers in her hand. His scale..."If you would join me, instead you fight against me! I have no desire whatsoever to go against you or to hurt you. In all my honesty, I want you to be safe. For the longest time, I felt normal around you, I forgot that I was a demon. There was the spirit of a child inside of me, that I didn't know existed! Do you not know how it feels like to be a monster with the mind of a human?"
The seller hits another attack, this throws Natsumi into the grass that burns under the mere touch of her power. "You're a very quiet man. Do you not speak to me now since my truth came out? Or are you now even more silent with that new look you got, with the golden marks and clothes and all? I enjoyed your short answers. As a being like me, the world can get so boring when every action of humans is foreseeable. But there is some mystery regarding you, it's intriguing."
The seller takes a deep breath, stops before her a few meters away on the grass, watches, as she collects herself up on her legs. "I am...sincerely sorry that...you turned to be like that."
"Are you? Or are you just spitting pity as everyone else does?" She puffs her cheeks up as if she still is a child, sulking at her parents. "I don't want to fight you. Leave me be and let me get my target! I do care about you. If you leave, I'll have nothing against you."
I do care about you.
He shakes his head, presses his fingers into his skin. "I cannot. I must cleanse your spirit. And there is nothing that will hold me back from it."
"Fine." With her hands forward, the Ōmukade circle him but he dodges their attacks, drags his sword on them, although still, nothing happens. He might have to hit Natsumi herself. His ribs wrench his heart into a crumbled piece of nothing at the thought to stab and eliminate her soul. Though, the dark energy she shots out envelops him before he can do that. The seller's vision turns white.