Chapter 15: First Kalpa – By Any Means Necessary
The furniture was moving. As he looked around again, he sensed that small poltergeists had emerged. That made some sense of the nonsensical furniture placement. The magatama were again telling him not to worry and press forward to solve this kalpa's riddle. This time, they were sensible about it. "The sign says we need to find the pedestals, so let's go find them," Naoki said.
"I found a key!" one of the poltergeists shouted excitedly.
"Hey, lemme see that," another asked, dropping the vase it was holding and ignoring that it smashed all over the floor.
"Nooo, mine!" The two poltergeists fled the room, a few others following.
Since he had bare feet, Naoki chose to take the opposite passage first. A door on one side opened up to let three human ghosts through. One of them was far ahead of the others and passed through him with a damp cold feeling, a fruity taste of hope. "Oh sorry," the ghost said, pausing long enough to bow.
"Is the door out over here?" another ghost asked to him while the other ran ahead. "We finally got a reasonable amount of light here, so we came to find it."
"No, it sealed itself shut when we came in," Naoki said.
"Really?" the third ghost asked. "That's a pain. The only other way out is on the third level below, and that's locked tight with three keys."
"The poltergeists ran off with one just now," he realized. So he'd have to find them, at least the one who had the key.
"Well the one key holder I know of is a jerk who says he'll sell it, but then he takes your money and flees," the ghost said.
"The one I know of is obstinate, saying that the key must go to one specific person," the other ghost said. "But I don't think that person is even here. There may be no way to get that key from him honestly."
"Hey, who sealed this door?" the third ghost shouted in the entrance area.
"Maybe there's a third way we haven't found yet? The lights only just returned." The two of them passed by Naoki's group to get their friend.
"Do we really have to key hunt?" Momunofu asked. "We might as well beat up any of those key holders to get them."
"Let's try talking first," Naoki said, touching the round door frame that the ghosts had passed through.
A blue-winged tengu as tall as he was dropped down as the door was opening again. "You will not pass!" the karasu tengu claimed.
But talking did no good with the karasu and they had to win a fight against him to pass. It was easier than the Mantra trial fights. Did he have to give up on negotiations totally here? Every one of the many doors were guarded by various demons that demanded a battle from them. They even got ambushed in the middle of halls or the larger rooms.
Reaching the third floor was simple enough, just two ornate ladders down. While his horn couldn't sense as far into the labyrinth's passages, Naoki could tell there were a number of other ladders between levels. They were able to locate the next two pedestals by seeing them past a magical barrier. Unfortunately, the only way past the barrier was a hallway of three locked doors in a row and just seeing them didn't change the Kalpa at all.
Thinking that it wouldn't hurt to check the entrance area again, Naoki led his two demons back upstairs through a different route. There was a human ghost at the top of one of the ladders; he was made of a reddish-purple smoke rather than the blue or orange Naoki had seen before. "Oh hey buddy, are you searching for the keys to the exit below?" the ghost asked, putting on a ghostly top hat. "I can tell you the location of one of the keys, for a small fee. What do you say? 999 macca? It's a bargain considering it will allow you to solve this kalpa easier."
"Is it the one that was in a vase in the entrance room?" Naoki asked.
The shady ghost got flustered with disappointment. "Ah, ha ha, so you already found that one? Well, ah," he clicked his tongue, "do you know anything about the other two?"
"I heard that you were cheating other ghosts out of their money about the keys," he said.
"Well I told them good information, it's just they failed to utilize it." The ghost shifted his hat. "You still don't believe me?"
Naoki shook his head.
He held his hands up. "Okay, okay, I admit, key information was a novelty sales for me. Just trying new things out; I don't mind staying here, but others want to leave. My main business is the sales of spells. As a demon, have you felt restricted by your natural move set?"
"No," Naoki said, although there was how Momunofu didn't inherit Hua Po's Agi spells. His own magatama kept a lot of spells for him. No matter what group of demons he ended up with, he felt like he could fill in any tactical gaps by shifting around what skills of his were active.
"Demi's a special demon," Uzume said.
The shady ghost nearly faltered, but rallied back up quickly. "Ah, I see, I see. Well, I'm sure I have something you'd find handy in my inventory. Like a spell that will brighten your way and keep you from getting lost."
"I used Lightoma to get in here," Naoki said; the light orb had popped at some point, so it was no longer following him. Even without it, he was fairly sure that he could navigate a dark passage with the way his horn sensed structures.
"Ooooh, well then, have you ever really been in a mood for a fight but nobody's around? Or maybe you just want to get somewhere without being challenged every few steps. There's spells that can help you with that, a wonderful pairing that have complementary compatibility."
"No, we'll just be on our way," he said, starting to head for the door of his small room. Although the latter spell of the pair had an obvious benefit, he didn't feel like haggling with someone with a reputation as a cheat.
But the shady ghost was oddly desperate for the sale. "No, no, I give you my word as an honest salesman that my spell sales are not simply information you could get from any gossip! They're the real deal." When Naoki put his hand on the door to open it, the shady ghost took his other hand. "Here, we'll make a special deal this time only. I'll give you Riberama right now for free, absolutely nothing! It's the attraction enchantment, and if you want the companion spell Estoma to dissuade fights, I'll give you a very special pricing on it."
"Twice as much to cover the costs of both spells?" Naoki asked, feeling his magatamas shifting. They comprehended the spell, but it felt like there wasn't going to be a way for him to learn it or Estoma from the others.
"Uh, no," he said reluctantly. "I, I'll only increase the base price a bit. 2100 macca?"
That could be a decent deal, we think. Remember, Light Balls that cast Lightoma were 600 macca in the underpass junk shop. For a utility spell, that much seems fair.
The magatama didn't seem sure, but they were in favor of the purchase. To Naoki, getting both Riberama and Estoma for that price could work out. That little macca should be easily replaced with smart use of the attraction spell. "Fine. Momunofu?" His demon saluted him. "If this guy runs before he gives me the Estoma spell, feel free to skewer him."
"Yes sir," Momunofu said, getting his spear ready.
"Well now, run into another salesman of the Abyss already?" the shady ghost said. "Fine, it's a deal."
Naoki nodded and paid him the price asked for. Under the strict watch of Momunofu, the salesman then taught him Estoma in the same manner. He even passed over a heavy black key. "What's this for?"
"The keys are to be obtained by any means possible, and being a hard sale suits me just fine," he said. Then he sighed, slowly drifting towards the ladder. "Or by accident, I suppose that qualifies as 'any means' as well. Man, I hope I didn't just lose too much face with the association."
"I think he gave up too easily," Momunofu said once the ghost was out of the room.
"Well we've got the key," Naoki said. "If it doesn't work on any of those three doors, we'll know for sure it was too easy."
Just outside of that door, he noticed a healing bead in a vase nearby. That was one good thing about this place: there were small treasures like that everywhere. But there were also many more demons who wanted a fight. Sometimes he'd be focused on one battle and another demon would try to sneak in for an instant ambush. Some had a habit of dropping out of the ceiling even though there didn't appear to be any holes in it until they jumped through. But the further they got from the main hub of the kalpa, the fewer battles they had.
They ran across the poltergeists in a large hallway, playing with more furniture. There was a lot of broken shards all over the floor; he'd have to be careful. Keeping close to the wall, Naoki headed for a poltergeist that was focused on moving any little thing it could find onto one table. There was no key there, at least not an obvious one.
"Wait wait, I'm not ready!" the poltergeist said, waving a tubby arm and trying not to drop a chess rook.
"I'm just looking for the key to the kalpa's exit," Naoki said.
"I don't have any keys," the poltergeist said in a way that reminded him of a pouting child. "Those two have been fighting over it, but I'm the one that's gonna open up a shop! I outta have it."
"I found the key, I should have it!" another poltergeist said angrily. It threw the chair it had at another, only managing to break the chair's legs.
"I'm the strongest, I should have it!" it said, smug over dodging the chair. It did have a black key hanging on one arm, like the one from the shady ghost.
If he thinks he's the strongest here, he's sadly mistaken. Here, we've been waiting for a good time to upgrade your spells. Try one out!
There was a twitch in Naoki's skull, making him grimace. Now he had Tornado and Shock available, along with his own Way Cry, Taunt, a physical skill in Heat Wave, and some others. Then there was another twitch as the magatama argued over which attack spell would work better. "Stop arguing and state one," he mumbled.
One of his demons asked, "What's that?" But Naoki was too distracted by the dissent. He had nine magatama and… three wanted Shock, six wanted Tornado. Outside his head, the poltergeists were arguing amongst themselves. He really should be tolerant and ignore such small annoyances. But they were annoyances and these poltergeists were nothing but low tier pests that posed no threat to him. Before his thoughts could turn back towards his human side, Naoki cast Tornado into the hall.
Zan would cast a little whirlwind around one enemy to attack. Tornado threw out five cyclones to fill the hallway. As the spell picked up all the shards, broken furniture, whole furniture, and the poltergeists, Momunofu quickly pulled Naoki and Uzume close to him to shield them as best he could. The poltergeists shrieked just like children; Naoki grimaced at that. Then a bit of pottery hit his horn. While it didn't damage him, he felt further rattled.
Just as he went to grip tighter on Momunofu's arm, the armored demon vanished into a glow of magatsuhi. Would he…? Yes, Naoki instantly recognized his new form as Arahabaki. As long as he and Uzume stayed downwind, all the flying debris in the hall pelted the larger demon's clay body to no effect. When the Tornado finally died off, the black iron key clattered onto the floor in front of them. There was no sign of the poltergeists, nor any recognizable furniture in the scattered debris.
That had been awesome power that others could fear. That had been a terrifying mess, way too powerful for all the potential shrapnel that had been in here. If it hadn't been for Momunofu's change, they could have been badly damaged by his own spell. It was incidental, probably from being unused to this level of power. If he could just let go… if he could just think more rationally…
For a moment, Naoki hated both sides of himself.
Damn it, quit fighting yourself! We're trying to bridge the divide of human and demon, but it isn't going to work if you keep acting like this. If you just stop worrying and use both sides together, you'll find things to be so much better. The whole point of this Kalpa was to get those keys by any means necessary, remember? But watch the impulsive attacks and try to find more clever ways about the third key. Now take our wrath as punishment and work with us to complete your new self.
His chest seized up. For a moment, he wondered if he'd stopped breathing. "Naoki?" Arahabaki asked in concern. His voice was even deeper, enough to make Naoki's bones throb from being so close to him.
Uzume took his other arm. "Ouch, that's some heavy curse on you. But it's strange, the poltergeists shouldn't be capable of this."
When he looked to her, his vision briefly doubled. She's been a faithful friend. She's been good, but one shouldn't be too attached to followers. Oh, they'd given both of his voices equal weight in his mind instead of full Kagutsuchi being the only time his demon side had any real influence over his actions and thoughts. This would be bad; this would suck.
"Th-th-th..." and there were those mind twinges, fleeting impulses adding to the chaos. Naoki put his hand back near his horn and licked his lips, but neither helped this time.
"The magatama?" Uzume guessed.
Naoki nodded as it was easier than speaking.
"Don't see why you would've made them mad, because that was awesome," Arahabaki said. "Maybe I should've gone down a magic line too, but this seems fun." His defenses were certainly going to help, although they'd have to be careful with his severe weaknesses.
"One of the ghosts mentioned a healer being around, so we should try to find that person," Uzume said, going to pick up the key for him. "But, this hall is going to really hurt trying to walk through. It's not so good when you're like this."
While that was a concern, Arahabaki chuckled. "Why don't you both get up on my shoulders? I'm sure I can carry you both across without harm. This stuff should be nothing to me now."
Uzume laughed. "Ah, you keep getting easier to get along with as you change, thank you."
"Well who's going to deny my awesomeness now?" he asked. By then, Naoki got enough of a hold on himself to take Arahabaki's shoulder and climb up there. Uzume nimbly got on the other shoulder and they got out of the littered hallway without trouble.
Being cursed meant that he got easily disoriented. The layout in his head and the layout of the floors didn't seem to match up. "S-sorry," Naoki mumbled when he lost himself again and ended up punching Arahabaki.
He wasn't bothered, even laughing. "Hah, it tickles, it's so great! Just stay away from Uzume."
"I know," Naoki said, trying to recall which doors and ladders they'd already tried in this area.
"I hope we can find the healer soon," Uzume said. She'd been keeping to the other side of Arahabaki during battles now. "This is making things far too difficult."
After a moment, he gave up trying to figure it out himself. "Are we on the third floor?"
"No, it's the second," she said.
"Okay, okay." Knowing that made it easier to compare his sensory map to his visual range. Although once he pinned down two doors they hadn't passed through, it started slipping from him again. He pointed out the nearer of the doors and headed there.
As he'd thought, it was another small enclosed room. Even in his cursed state, he recognized the ghost inside as the doctor he'd met in this place before; it was hard not to recall that syringe. "Hello again," he said. "It's only natural for the strong to thrive and the weak to perish. If you've come to defy nature by seeking treatment, I'll have to charge you this time."
"Can you do anything about his curse?" Uzume asked as Naoki was caught in a momentary conflict that it made sense and was horribly apathetic.
"Hmm?" The doctor came closer to him, putting his free hand on Naoki's forehead. "Ah, well no. It's the magatama's curse and unless my master says otherwise, I'm not allowed to remove it. He'd have to appease the magatama himself, or find an unaffiliated healer that cares for all. But since you are cursed, I'll reduce my usual fee for its duration."
It wasn't much help because now he had to get out of the labyrinth to undo the curse for certain, but Naoki went ahead and paid for the treatment for all of them. That at least made Uzume less tired from the spell casting they'd been doing. Back outside the room, he tried to figure out where to go next. Thinking that they should clear this as soon as possible, Naoki tried his new spell to clear their path outside of the doctor's room.
"Um, did you mean to cast Estoma instead?" Uzume asked, moving back towards the wall.
His heart thumped as he realized that mistake. After he nodded, two karasu tengu were the first to show up. Many more demons showed up soon after, eager at a call to battle. Before long, Naoki's mind went into a total white haze. This wasn't rage; it was something far milder, a taste of rice that brought out qualities one would miss if it wasn't on its own. There were two that he wasn't to attack, but everyone else was fair game. Flowing from blow to blow, sometimes using a spell if the crowd got too thick… there was something peaceful to this, detached from everything but his immediate senses.
If he could call on this state and maintain it when needed, he really wouldn't need to worry, wouldn't need to fear anything.
When the haze lifted, his body seemed terribly heavy. Blood was smeared on his left arm and parts of his chest, his own from the smell of it. And he was still cursed. Something felt new, though: a large increase of magatsuhi that he'd taken from those he'd defeated. It must not have been noticeable before, either because it was in smaller amounts or he was distracted with other things. But having fought so many… how many had he defeated? His body had yet to convert it all to his own.
It was so much power that he felt giddy at realizing that it would soon all be his own. Some of it was even going towards countering the magatama's curse, so it didn't afflict him as badly. No wonder demons liked fighting so much, it was the way they had to grow and potentially change. It wasn't human to feel this way, he knew, but maybe this existence wasn't so bad. He just had to be responsible with it… no, loosen his control even more. Was sleeping going to help or was it a bad idea like this?
He heard giggling behind him; there were three demons back there. Despite his haze, he'd been able to not hurt his allies this time. The third was Kinshin Sarutahiko… oh, that explained things. Naoki turned to them and started to walk over. He soon had to adapt to a slower pace to keep from tripping up.
"Are you back to your senses now?" Arahabaki asked, getting the other two to notice.
"Mostly," Naoki said. "What happened?"
The shade of Sarutahiko sounded impressed as he said, "You were a damn war god out there, knocking everyone aside like they were nothing. Towards the end of it, some of them started fleeing as they realized what they were up against. However," he raised his sword at him, "I still challenge you for the loyalty of Lady Uzume!"
"She's a megami," Naoki said, not wanting to deal with this. Maybe he had fought off an impressive amount of demons, but now that he was out of that battle haze, he'd rather go take a nap even if it might be ill-advised with the curse.
"Err," he was at a loss on getting that for a response.
"Sorry, but I would like to keep hanging out with these two," Uzume said to him. "It's nice to see you and it'd be fun to be with you, but," she seemed uncharacteristically unsure of herself.
"We still have a contract," Naoki said to her. His two minds came close to the same idea, so it should work.
"Yes," she said, putting a hand to her cheek.
"And that's why I challenge you!" Sarutahiko said, trying to threaten with his sword again. But there was a tinge of cautious fear in that; he would recall more of that lengthy battle.
"New contracts can't be made within the kalpas, it said so on the sign," Naoki said. Sarutahiko nodded to that, still trying to provoke him. "And that goes for you two should she break with me. But informal agreements should be fine, right?"
"Informal?" he asked, confused now.
Naoki nodded. Now that he was close, he pushed the sword to the side. "I can't make a contract with you here, so I can't give you orders. So you're free to follow us if you like. I can't stop you from that, nor from following us through the terminal outside of the Amala labyrinth. If you happen to do that, and once I get this curse lifted, we can discuss if you want to join us with a contract to me there. In case that happens, I won't fight you in this place."
Uzume laughed at that. "See? That's one reason why I stick around him."
"Yeah, I guess there is nothing stopping me from doing that," Sarutahiko said with a grin. "All right, I'll stay my sword for now as well. I think what survivors are around are going to be too terrified of you to challenge you either."
"Good, I want to find that last key and get out of here," Naoki said.
"We already have that," Arahabaki said, making the third black iron key materialize between them. "One girl started to flee, mumbling that she needed to find somebody to give the key to. I smacked her for it when she refused intiailly."
Taking it, Naoki said, "Thanks. So what did happen with him?"
"Well I spotted her in the rioting crowd and just knew that I had to fall back and protect her," Sarutahiko said.
"He was one of the guys that she charmed into adding to the chaos and then they started flirting." Arahabaki sighed. "Even if this is informal, you might regret it from how sickeningly sweet they are."
"You're just jealous," Uzume said, beaming with happiness.
After paying the doctor to treat their wounds again, Naoki tried to lead his group down to the third floor. Their tag-along knew the First Kalpa well, so Sarutahiko eventually corrected their route and led them back to the locked doors. Naoki felt demons that were still lurking around, but they didn't try to approach now. Since he had gotten stronger (and wealthier) out of that, the accidental Riberama didn't seem so bad.
And thankfully, the three black iron keys worked to unlock the exit.
Being a shade of someone greater wasn't something Sarutahiko had thought about. He knew he was an imitation, but it never seemed to matter. All it did was give him an instant mastery of combat and tactics, right? But then he'd never considered he could run into a shade of Uzume and seeing her for the first time was like finally seeing the sun!
Funny thing was, he wasn't the only shade of this god in the First Kalpa. There had been two others; the three of them had a friendly rivalry, chasing each other through the darkened halls for duels and races. They'd all challenged the Demifiend as he was passing through, reforming themselves as soon as they could to try again. After all, that fit what their purpose was. They'd all showed up to the call of Riberama, and they'd all got hit by Uzume's charm spell.
But when it wore off, the other two shades were hateful to her about it. They'd actually tried to kill her, and he had killed them in her defense. It wasn't because of the charm, though. Actually, it had worn off in him quicker. Sarutahiko had been a bit angry; status ailments were a pain, especially in a big brawl. But he'd looked at her again and didn't want anything to harm her. So he'd protected her even from his kin.
He really shouldn't be doing this. The Demifiend had completed the First Kalpa, so Sarutahiko's purpose should be fulfilled. At this point, he could accept a rebirth to a lower Kalpa. He knew his kin would be doing that. Or he could hang around the First Kalpa in case it got revisited. He really should not be doing this, even if it was informal as he put it. It was still done with the intent of making a formal contract.
To make matters worse, the servant who was close to Lucifer was waiting near the terminal room after they'd teleported up to the entrance hall. Sarutahiko knew he could slip back now. He could choose the rebirth, avoiding this problem later on. But he wanted to be with Uzume, even if it meant defying the purpose he'd been created for. At least it was just the servant up here; she had no combat capabilities, only a few utility spells. Sarutahiko should be able to get by her.
"Congratulations on completing the First Kalpa," the servant said, bowing to Demifiend. "Especially in being cursed for the later part of it. Fighting under such adversity is admirable."
Demifiend actually seemed embarrassed about that. Or maybe he was tired, it could be how humans were. "I didn't expect to get locked in. Would you send us to Shibuya shortly after we left the Underpass?"
She nodded. "As you wish, I'll arrange for that."
Well now… it would be hard to sneak after them into the terminal room, but Sarutahiko was pretty sure that he could get to Shibuya as well. The question would be if he'd show up at a reasonable time. The servant would go back to Lucifer's side once she was done. Right?
No, she came out of the terminal room and looked right to him. "Do you really mean to go through with this?"
"Yeah, a man's gotta follow his heart," Sarutahiko said.
She actually smiled at that. Then the very air around them changed. While he was looking at that powerless female servant, he was now speaking directly to Lucifer. "Yes, that's one way to put it. If that's what you truly want, I won't stop you. But you must not forget the terms of your service. You are not to speak of things you know as a demon of this labyrinth to him."
"Sure, I'll keep quiet on that," he said. Especially with Uzume, since she seemed to be an adviser that Demifiend listened to.
The servant nodded. "Good. It seems he has learned his lesson; serve him well."
"Of course," Sarutahiko said.
And then the servant vanished; she should not be capable of that herself. For a moment, he couldn't believe he really was free to go. He did have to keep quiet about some things, but it shouldn't matter. Happy with that, Sarutahiko went to the terminal to follow the others to Shibuya. Lucifer's power intervened again.
But it was nothing to worry about as he arrived to find his Uzume waiting on him. "Good, you did come," she said in delight, taking his arm. "I was worried for a bit that you couldn't leave the labyrinth."
Unable to resist, he smiled at her. "It was no trouble at all. I hope you weren't waiting on your own for long."
"No, they just headed out to get to the healer," she said. "Unless that curse takes time to lift, we should meet them as they come out."
They didn't have to wait even a minute out in the underground mall before Demifiend and Arahabaki came out of the Fountain of Life. The former smiled on seeing him while the latter dimmed his glowing eyes. "Oh goody, the sappiness is going to continue," Arahabaki said sarcastically.
"You're just going to have to live with it," Uzume teased.
"I hope you don't get in trouble for leaving," Demifiend said, which was more thoughtful of a potential follower than he'd expected out of a fiend.
Sarutahiko shrugged. "Technically I did leave my post, but you completed the First Kalpa. It shouldn't be a major issue. Let's just get down to it, all right? I'm Sarutahiko of the Kinshin clan, my sword is yours now." He even offered a hand for this one.
He accepted the handshake for this. "I'm Demi of the Fiends, I'm grateful for your service."
That Kinshin's silence can only last so long. I'm not worried about that. For one thing, this potential heir of mine has been picking up on things quickly. He's already fitting the pieces together himself, so confirmation of his theories shouldn't affect much. Come to think of it, I may have made this one too sensitive. None of his failed predecessors figured out who I was almost immediately.
He's always been willing to use trickery, but felt guilty for taking advantage of another. Even of that angel who would have murdered him again otherwise. He's getting past that slowly. At least that fit from the magatamas has made him more accepting of battles, and closer to accepting them. The fiends in the Ikebukuro area mean to help with that, but the Riders really need to be on guard for those encounters.
Ah, Naoki, you're keeping me in such suspense. You could still go either way, following me or following your strong desire to restore the world you once knew, and I don't know which is more likely at this time. You're definitely not boring me. Keep going like this and I might not even care if you chase after your small-minded dream.
I'll be watching you.
Clouds of dust appear around the bridge without there being a strong enough wind to kick up that much. A group of demons gathered outside the Nihilo base. Not that long ago, they received a message directly from Commander Hikawa. The odd sign proved it right: a large force from the Mantra was coming to attack. Those who had been directed out here were to fend them off, keeping them from reaching the true core of this place.
Glancing at each other, something became apparent to them. There were not nearly enough of them to properly counter the brutal troops marching off the bridge. They could slow them down if they fought with all their wits. However, they were simply a token force. Sacrifices. Hikawa did not expect them to win; he expected them to make the Mantra think they won.
But then… Shijima would be a world of serenity where differences that caused conflict would be erased. Everyone was equal under Shijima: demons, angels, humans, gods. That's right, they would be like gods. No one would deny their existence. They would be acknowledged and accepted, not ignored and hated. And anyone who became a martyr for a Reason in the Vortex World was guaranteed to be reborn in the new world if their Reason won.
Hikawa would surely win, so dying here would be an honor.