A thick wooden gate blocked the trio's progress and a tall fence stretched into the haze.
"This is new," Souji remarked as he stared up at the gate.
"It's not a full barrier," Butterfly added, placing his hand on the thick wood.
Raidou looked more intently at the gate, taking note of a faded symbol on the wood. "It's not for us."
Souji looked at Raidou. "What do you mean?"
Butterfly recoiled, shaking his hands as though something disgusting had gotten on it. "It keeps the Shadow in."
"But it stops us, too." Souji reasoned.
Raidou sighed. Souji may have been used to this strange world, but he seemed woefully unprepared for other oddities. "Anything that should never enter the world should never even indirectly enter the world."
"Isolation." Butterfly whispered.
"Why would this be here?" Souji pressed. "You've already met your Shadow."
Raidou took a deep breath. "I put it there."
Butterfly nodded. "If we open this you have to resolve things with your Shadow."
"If we leave it here someone else might tamper with it." Souji looked at Raidou, as did Butterfly.
Raidou stepped closer to the door. Placing a hand on his katana, the devil summoner took a deep breath. The strange Mag he had sensed from the shadows in the park permeated the area, but within the katana it felt pure. He channeled that through his body, forming a circuit between himself and the sword. The seal came into focus, now a physical rope and charm.
He barely registered the movement. The rope and charm broke apart. The world returned to its hazy focus. His sword was drawn, its tip next to Souji's forehead. A few stands of silver hair drifted in the fog. The heavy wooden gate creaked open.
Raidou sheathed his sword. Even with the gate open he couldn't see the courtyard beyond.
"What happened?" Souji asked.
"I broke the seal." No further explanation seemed necessary so Raidou strode through the open gate.
He could smell the cherry blossoms. The haze took on a different quality. It could have resembled feathers before, but now the air felt thick with falling blossoms. A simple gravel path led to a traditional wooden shrine, very similar to the Nameless Shrine. Two Inari statues stood by the stairs, crumbling and filthy to the point they were barely recognizable. The plants along the walkway were wilted, as though hit by a long drought.
"Cherry blossoms?"
Raidou turned his head to look at the baffled Souji, then towards Butterfly. The shadow seemed larger than it had before, wrapping itself around the more human figure.
"Kuzunoha Village is covered by the blossoms in the spring." Raidou looked straight ahead again.
"Akira," Gouto muttered. "If these plants were alive _"
"It looks like the shrine where I trained. I arrived as the blossoms fell."
"I don't see any shadows," Souji commented.
"Mine is inside."
With quick nods the group approached the shallow stairs. A tingle ran down Raidou's spine as they approached, and his mouth felt dry.
"Ready?" Souji asked, adjusting his glasses.
"There's already no turning back," Butterfly reminded them. A piece of his shadow solidified, forming a katana too large to really fit in his hands.
They were nervous. Raidou looked down to Gouto.
"Let's go."
The tingle seemed a little warmer then. They walked past the altar to the wooden door behind it. Taking a deep breath, Raidou placed his hand on the old door. The warped wood made it hard to distinguish a handle. He found it.
Raidou slammed the door open, putting more force into the effort than required. It was much lighter than he had anticipated and the door clacked loudly against its frame.
A wooden hallway stretched into the darkness.
"Still no shadows," Butterfly whispered. His soft voice faded into the darkness, as though he spoke through a pillow.
"Why not?" Souji mused.
"You sure?" Raidou asked Butterfly, tensing. "Something's here."
Souji pulled something out of his pocket. Light filled the hallway, casting away the darkness. Raidou immediately wished the other man would just put that away.
Vincent glared at them from further down. At least, his head did. It swayed on a long neck before a slender torso that exposed the rib cage. One arm hung awkwardly and held a large needle. The other arm was large and muscular. A curved horn jutted out from his crotch and a serpent's tail replaced legs.
"Dog," the abomination hissed, sliding forward.
Raidou drew his sword and began to pull out Raiho's tube, but stopped. Raiho was more than a minion, and he didn't want his friend to see this.
The creature charged.
A powerful bolt of electricity slammed into its chest. The creature staggered back from the force, but no marks remained on its emaciated form. Butterfly flashed past, katana leading. The slender arm fell to the ground, needle clanking against the wooden floor.
Unfortunately, that didn't account for the stronger arm, which reached across to grab the top of Butterfly's head. The abomination lifted the boy off of the ground.
"Loki," Souji called out. Ice surrounded the creature.
It squeezed its hand and moved forward, ice falling off easily. Butterfly seemed to burst and the entire area filled with blue butterflies, a grim shadow seeming to link them together.
Raidou could no longer see the abomination. The fear let him go. He would kill it or it would kill him. It was nothing more than insane demon after all. Raidou positioned his katana before him.
The creature flailed at the butterflies but couldn't seem to really hurt them.
Raidou charged. If the butterflies were directly surrounding the monster he knew where to aim. His katana hit something and kept going, sliding in until the hilt stopped its progress. Raidou was nose to nose with Vincent's face.
"I won't let this happen." Raidou channeled his Mag, letting loose the same energy that caused the flurry of blows. The enhanced katana easily slashed down, then up. He nicked the shoulder and ended his swing.
Raidou took a step back, flicking his sword to remove the blood before sheathing it. The head fell where he had been standing.
Beside him the butterflies came together to form Butterfly's human form. Souji's loping steps thudded behind them.
"Well done," Butterfly whispered.
Raidou didn't look at him. He didn't look at anything. Everything seemed far away.
"It had to be done."
A slow chill slid down Raidou's spine. Had he said that? He couldn't remember if his lips had moved or not.
"Anything that threatens the Capital must be destroyed."
"Raidou," Souji pressed, coming beside him.
"Should I destroy myself then?"
Something bumped against his leg. Looking down Gouto came into focus, staring up at him.
"You don't have to destroy yourself," the guardian whispered.
Raidou nodded and looked ahead. "Let's go."
"Let's run," the voice which could or could not have been him echoed in the darkness.
Author's Note: Look, it's a new chapter! In a timely manner no less. I can't believe the number of people making it to chapter 9 of this story and am definitely flattered. That said, hits are kind of like eating candy. They're wonderful, but somehow not very filling. If there's something you're not sure of, really love, or might like to see changed, please review and let me know. If you've made it this far I assume there's a reason and would love to know what it is. I'd hate to fall down on the job and get rid of whatever drew people to this story in the first place.
You all know what this mean. Please, read and review.
