Chapter 8: The Spiritual Force
"Oh no! I forgot about Aya!" Ayumi rose to her feet as she looked around the room frantically. Yoshiki gave her a confused look and rose himself.
"Who's Aya?" He asked, and Ayumi turned to him.
"Yoshiki… She was Satoshi and Naomi's daughter," She replied, and his eyes widened.
"What?! They're here too?" He inquired and she nodded. Ayumi gazed to the floor as a fisted hand went to her chest.
"She must have run off when that thing attacked me…" She murmured. Yoshiki let out a sigh and turned to the ghost children.
"Hey… um… Did any of you see another child with us?" He asked, and the three children exchanged glances.
"No… But we could sense that another living being had been in the area before you were attacked. Unfortunately, we can no longer sense their presence," Yuki replied and Ayumi gasped.
"She isn't dead… is she?" Ayumi walked next to Yoshiki. Yuki shook her head.
"No. We can't sense her anymore because the spiritual force of the school is starting to weaken…" Yuki looked down.
"Spiritual force…? Do you mean… ghosts are disappearing?" Ayumi tilted her head.
"Yes. All the spirits in the school have a duty once they die. Apart of their soul is linked to the dimension energy, making up the forces that keep this school together. Whoever is the core of the school is the one that controls everything, and can rise or lower the amount of energy put into the spiritual force. It's that energy that keeps those from escaping so easily… but now…" Yuki explained to the two adults, but paused.
"…Spirits are starting to disappear. We think it is the work of that creature doing so, as his energy is much stronger than the dimension's energy ever could be, even with a powerful core. We think he's going behind Sachiko's back, and slaughtering spirits that seemed the most defenseless," Yuki continued, and Ayumi and Yoshiki glanced at each other.
"Aren't ghosts… dead already?" Yoshiki asked.
"Their bodies are gone, but their souls aren't. The creature is going beyond that, and using a type of magic that allows him to do such things to us. The only problem is… the more spirits that disappear, the weaker the spiritual force will get… soon, if he completely demolishes us, the force will be gone," Yuki answered, and Yoshiki let out a groan.
"What… will happen to us?" Ayumi looked at the ghost girl, and her brows furrowed.
"All of you will disappear as well. That force is the only thing keeping living beings alive until they have been killed by the school. With it gone, all of you will fall," Yuki replied.
"There has to be a way to destroy that creature," Ayumi muttered, and Yoshiki looked to her.
"We could use the swor-"
"Will you now?" A dark, brooding voice cut him off, and all of them turned to the back of the room. Before them, stood the creature, the air turning hot. Sachiko stood next to him, the bloody scissors in her hands. Without a moment's notice, Yoshiki grabbed Ami and let her hide behind her parents.
"Yuki, Tokiko, Ryou… why are you helping them?" Sachiko looked at her former followers, the three of them having appeared before the three humans. Yuki stepped forward.
"This isn't right Sachiko! Don't you see that creature is using you to destroy the school?" Yuki warned her former ruler, but the ghost girl didn't seem to be listening.
"Ahaha! Don't lie to me, Yuki! He's making us all stronger… but first, let us kill the living," Sachiko stepped forward, raising her scissors.
"No. We won't let you," Yuki stood her ground, and Sachiko only giggled.
"You're making this difficult Yuki… what happened to the children that I had killed?" Sachiko tilted her head, a creepy smile crossing her lips. Yuki, as well as the other two spirits stayed silent.
"Very well," Sachiko responded.
"Such foolish spirits to be going against your former queen. Don't you know what happens to those that defy us? Those that are traitors?" The creature stepped forward. Yoshiki gripped the handle of the sword if that thing came any closer to his family.
"Ah ah ah, I can sense your movements, my blonde friend. Your actions are louder than words," The creature replied, and Yoshiki's eyes narrowed. His grip on the sword didn't cease, he wasn't falling into this trap again.
"Run, big sis… big bro… we'll keep them down as long as we can," Yuki whispered to Ayumi and Yoshiki. Ayumi nodded as they looked back at the creature and Sachiko.
Without warning, both adults turned sharply, Ami following suit as her father grabbed her hand. The creature growled and lunged for them, but was quickly stopped as Yuki used unknown forces to stop him short. He fell back, landing on his feet, his talons digging into the wood.
The group of three had managed to get out into the hallway before a loud scream echoed off the walls. Ayumi stopped short, looking back.
"Yuki… no…" She murmured, but Yoshiki grabbed her arm with his free hand.
"We don't have time Ayumi, we have to go!" He yelled at her, and she turned to him, nodding before they continued to run.
After a while, the small family had run to the doors leading to the bridge. Yoshiki watched their backs as Ayumi pushed Ami outside. He then slipped out quickly, closing the large doors.
Ayumi collapsed onto the concrete, panting heavily. Ami joined her, her tiny body worn out from the amount of running they had done. Yoshiki stayed alert however, worried that they would be ambushed again.
"I-I… think we… lost them… for now…" Ayumi panted out.
"Yeah…" Yoshiki agreed. He looked out into the forest. The rain refused to end, it coming down in large downpours. Puddles never formed though. Another crash of thunder hit the skies, followed with a flash of lightning. Ami didn't flinch this time, her mind and body too tired to pay attention to that.
"Mommy…?" Ami started and Ayumi looked over to her daughter.
"Yes sweetie?"
"Will we ever get home?" Ami looked to her mother, and the woman paused for a second. At this point, she didn't know how to escape from here. But she didn't want to crush Ami's hopes.
"We'll get out of here, I promise you we will," She finally responded, leaning over and wrapping her arms around her daughter. Ami didn't reply after that, just enjoyed the warmth from her mother as the rain came down.
Another flash of lightning crossed the skies and thunder rang out. In that single moment, a large figure appeared before them, standing in the way to the second wing. Yoshiki grabbed the sword immediately, the blade pointed out. Another flash, and behind them stood a spirit.
"I have to say, that was quite the meal. They were a bit harder to take down than normal, but they were satisfying," The creature spoke out, his muzzle covered in glowing blood. Ayumi gasped at the sight; the three ghost children… were gone.
"Ehehe… but it's always nice to have fresh meat, don't you think?" Sachiko asked the scissors tight in her grip.
"Ahh yes… the sensation of warm blood running down your throat. It never gets old…" The creature answered as the two stepped closer to the family. Yoshiki focused on the creature, knowing he shouldn't turn his back on it. Ayumi held Ami close, one hand in her pocket, ready to spray out holy water if the spirit got any closer.
The creature lunged forward, right at Yoshiki. The blonde was ready for the beast, the sword in his hand ready to swipe. As the creature neared him, he swung his arm, aiming for the throat. But he misjudged his movements, the creature quickly dodging the attack.
"You still don't know how to use the sword correctly. So sad," The creature replied, before readying his talons, and swiped them across Yoshiki's face. Fortunately, only one talon had made contact, the sharp claw digging across the bridge of Yoshiki's nose. It was deep, as blood started to pool out and stream down his face.
"Oh damn, I missed your eyes," The creature muttered, before lunging forward again.
"Not this time, you sick bastard," Yoshiki growled, before swinging the sword out again. He missed his throat, but the sword caught the creature's shoulder. The blade immediately cut into it. The creature roared out at the new pain, jumping back. Black blood dripped from the wound, and onto the ground.
"Well then, if you're going to be like that…" The creature started, before lunging again. But this time, he wasn't going for Yoshiki. He immediately went for Ayumi and Ami. With the two distracted by Sachiko, Ayumi didn't have enough time to see him before her daughter was ripped right out of her arms.
"Ami!" Ayumi screamed as the creature grabbed the girl by the hood of her jacket and ran over to the nearest pole; he climbed up it quickly, disappearing on the roof.
"No!" Yoshiki ran over, and quickly jumped the fence to see his daughter better. Ayumi looked back to Sachiko, and the ghost child grinned.
"Say goodbye," She replied as she waved and disappeared…
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