Chapter 12 ~ Signs ~

Michaelis walked quickly through the thick grass; he rounded a corner and saw the cave entrance where he resided. He halted for a second, and his knees began to shake. Ahead in the darkness, someone was waiting for him. It was a shadowy figure, its head bowed forward. He took a few steps toward the cave and the familiar darkness and emptiness under the hood. The hood rose. A pair of red eyes gleamed at him from within the shadows.

"She likes you.," The man's words were harsh and laced with derision."Why anyone would feel for an insufferable mongrel like you is beyond me."

Troubled, Michaelis went inside and sat against the wall opposite the figure. He lost count of how many times he dealt with this creature.

"How long would you keep following me?" said Michaelis.

The figure stood and removed its hood, fully exposing its face. Underneath, the man's hair was long, a cascade of white. His skin was too pale, almost translucent. Purple veins spread across his cheeks in chaotic lines, giving the impression that his face was horrifically bruised.

A jagged scar ran from his left temple to his cheekbone, splitting one eyelid. There was a deep cut along his abdomen, and dried blood covered it from his chest bones, down to his waist.

Toshizo Hijikata, the father of the estranged son Michaelis.

The man had been his father once but now he was...well, he was just not what Michaelis thought was real at all. Michaelis wondered if it even counted as a 'he' because it was so twisted, broken, evil. He couldn't understand what is this thing.

"What is the matter, son?" His voice was hoarse, as if he had smoked his entire life. "You do not want your papa to watch over you?"

Michaelis clenched his fists until his nails were digging through his skin. This must be some kind of punishment for him. "My father died a long time ago," he said. "You are just an imposter of what he used to look like." His voice was nothing more than a whisper.

The smirk grew on the wraith's face as he gilded closer and knelt down to stare into Michealis's eyes. "Is that regret I sense in your voice, son? No, it cannot be. You are an independent demon king who has no need for family." There it was; the wraith was mocking him again.

...

A decade ago...

Slowly, he stepped out into the valley, determined to find his father. They should at least talk before he left with the rest of the demons. He didn't want to admit it, but he felt terrible for how he ended things with his father.

The valley was eerily silent, with no sound but the crows that followed him. He hurried toward the house and called out.

"Father, are you in here?"

There was no reply. When he opened the bedroom door, he found nothing. He looked through the window at the backyard and still saw no sign of his father. His door was left open, and his closet was emptied. His clothes and everything were gone, as if someone had robbed the place.

He felt it in the pit of his stomach; something was wrong. He ran out of the house and went to the only place his father could be - Chizuru's grave. His heart thudded loudly as he saw something like the spindly legs of a spider extended upwards.

When he came closer, what he thought were spider's legs were gnarled, blood-stained flower petals. From the corner of his eye, he saw a crimson color coming closer to him. The strange butterfly that always appeared for him flew up and landed on his shoulder.

Under his foot was his father's katana, slightly shoved into the ground. A large amount of sand surrounded the sword and formed a silhouette of a body.

Michaelis broke out into strange laughter, unable to restrain himself.

He kept laughing and laughing, slowly growing silent and distraught again as reality crashed back on him like lightning. His entire family was gone. There was no doubt in his mind that his father had committed suicide; all the signs were there. It must be his fault that this happened.

The silence in the valley gave him a renewed, horrifying sense of emptiness. Something wet ran from his eyes and splashed onto the sand. He shook his head, wiping his face free of tears. This was nothing like him.

...

From there on, he started traveling alone; he did not have a home.

Then out of nowhere, the wraith showed up. This creature cannot be his father, there is just no way.

"I will forever be a thorn in your side, Kondo," the wraith whispered one last time before he vanished within the inky fog.

The crimson butterfly entered the cave and landed atop his head. He cracked a slight smile at the sight of the only loyal friend he had over the years. He reached out with his hand, and the butterfly landed on his fingers. It remained still for a moment like it was watching him.

It was just one of those days. Even a feather could fall without drifting one way or the other. The grass was straight and silent, and the leaves stayed still as if they had been painted there. If a person could hear the beating of a bird's wings, that would have been the only breeze. It was utterly still.

Michaelis heaved before he stood and went over to the cave entrance. There, he spotted something green a few feet away, as if it was a sign of hope for the light to come back. He opened his palm and drew it closer to the outcast leaf in the middle of poisonous growths. Dark color started to spread on it, like an eclipse swallowing the light of the sun, until green was replaced with a crooked-dying leaf. It crumbled and fell to the ground when Michaelis tried to pick it up.

He was a force that destroyed everything healthy in his path. A black hole. At least, that was how he came to understand himself and his powers.

He was a demon; this was his nature. But the question remained, why the white flower never withered, not even with his touch? That would be the last remnants of his past that he could get rid of. He pulled out the flower from his pocket, its petals now bent downward. He remind there with it clutched between his thumb and forefinger, staring into its yellow center.

"I'm scared, Mother."

His ears caught the sound of a child talking.

"It will be alright, son. We will find a way out."

A smirk spread across his face like a hungry wolf. A human had entered his domain. It was lunchtime. Children, especially, were so deliciously pure. The voices got closer with each second. Ecstatic, he jumped high into the tree branches and started moving between them like a ghost that couldn't be seen until someone focused enough on his movements. He knew all their minds; every thought, every emotion, even their thoughts of love. They all almost the same. This was the perfect moment to feed off their fear.

...

The child held onto his mother's waist, shaking. The woman held a lamp, stress lines evident on her face. She knew there must be a path that would lead out into the village where they could seek shelter from the demons.

"Don't worry, son, we will be safe soon," she said, her voice breaking slightly as she saw a parting in the trees that led to a clearing. She couldn't spot mushrooms or disgusting leaks there, so it must be a close way out.

"But you keep repeating the same thing again and again. We are not out," the child cried.

The woman stopped and stared at her boy, ready to lose her temper; she had been holding on to her anger for too long. " Listen there…."

"I must say, I agree with you on this, my whining little friend."

His warm and husky voice echoed around them, stopping the woman. They watched their surroundings, but their eyes couldn't penetrate the darkness; there was nothing. The two felt a cold rush of air before seeing a shadow slowly standing in front of them, and only its red eyes were visible.

"Welcome to my domain, human," said Michaelis as he placed a hand on his chest. "I'm the harvester of sorrow."

The child let out a scream and buried himself behind his mother. On the other hand, the woman was stunned, eyes wide open. Michaelis laughed, a sound that could penetrate the soul of anyone who could hear it.

"I love the fear in their eyes when it dawns on them." Michaelis chuckled and grabbed the boy by the shirt.

The little human had a death grip on his mom, but it was nothing compared to Michaelis's strength as he brought the child closer until they were face to face. The child ceased crying once his eyes locked upon Micahelis's dark orange ones.

"You have anger within you. Isn't that right, little friend?" Michaelis spoke in a soft tone. "Your mother brought you to this dangerous place, away from your dear father, who you miss dearly."

The child's face softened as he listened intently to his words.

The mother awakened from her stunned state. "Please, let my baby go." But even as she spoke, Michaelis continued.

"Don't you wish for your mother to pay the price for the fear she put you through? All you had to do is use this." He opened the child's palm and placed a wakizashi. "She is the reason your fate is sealed. You can take your revenge, at least."

The boy furrowed his eyebrows as Michaelis placed him down on his feet. He looked back at his mother, who was crying, beckoning for him to come to her. The boy raised the blade.

"You are a terrible mother.," he screamed and charged at her.

The woman gasped and ran, barely avoiding the blade slashing her chest. The child chased after her, yelling profanities one after the other. Michaelis crossed his arms and watched the scene in amusement. Even pure children have darkness within them; all they need is a little push, and it will be revealed.

The woman lost her balance and fell on her face. The boy looked down at her, angry.

"Why are you doing this, son? I'm your mother!" she cried, but it was like talking to a statue.

The boy raised the blade and shoved it deep into her abdomen. The woman's gurgling screams were like music to the demon's ears. He expected a bit more drama, but the boy let go of the blade, his breathing stifled slightly as if he was done with harsh labor.

"Well done, little friend. You will be tasty."

The boy's eyes widened in surprise before he glanced down at his mother's corpse. Reality settled in for what he just did, and a horrific tightness consumed his heart.

"Mother…" His voice wobbled, but he didn't have the chance to cry out before the demon grabbed him, and he was lifted off the ground to face Michaelis. "You made me kill my mother," he cried.

A sadistic smile grew on Michaelis's twisted face. His eyes narrowed to mere slits that pierced the souls of any who dared look into them for too long, leaving nothing but fear in their place. "I did no such thing. Your mother died at your own hands. Do not fear; you will follow her."

In the silent forest, the child's agonizing screams echoed as a song of the tormented souls from the depths of hell.

...

A bright light appeared. So lustrous. Sara had never seen anything like it before. She could hear multiple voices chanting.

"Morir es vivir. Nosotras nos levantaremos de nuevo."

Then, she fell. The sudden rush of air came from nowhere, and the glow went out, pitch black shifting all around her, an obsidian abyss.

Hands held onto her.

A familiar, cacophonous laugh punctured her eardrums. But she couldn't understand where she had heard it before.

"...you unclean creature!" the voice croaked. "You shall be cleansed soon enough."

Its laugh bellowed on and on, fluctuating between male and female.

"Show yourselves!" she screamed as hard she could, trying to drown out the laughter. But there wasn't a thing she could do to defend herself.

From beyond, in some place that was nowhere, a hand grabbed onto her and pulled her up. Taken from the dark, she emerged into the light, and blindness greeted her abrupt transportation. She came to stand on solid ground, shivering. Once her vision cleared, there were royal white clothes worn by someone she couldn't see beyond the light. The only thing she was able to spot is a feather.

Sara jolted herself awake, screaming.

"Are you okay, milady?" Haru asked, standing in front of her horse. Still groggy, she saw the familiar scene before her, the beautiful giant trees as they passed through them.

"I'm fine," she said.

The group finally reached their home, but Sara felt like she couldn't breathe, as if a heavy weight was strapped to her chest. She separated from them when they passed the entrance and hurried toward the house, not hearing her brothers calling out to her.

She closed the door to her room and fell to her knees. Harsh cries escaped her lips; she couldn't hold them in anymore. It hurt. Her dream had crashed painfully into her. Tears poured out of her eyes freely as she felt herself slowly crumbling under her own weight. She was too weak to do anything else but cry. Everything had gone wrong for once.

Her eyes were glued to the ground that she didn't realize someone followed her and waited outside of her room.

"Sara." Her father's muffled voice called out to her from behind the door.

She lifted herself from the floor and tried to calm down, forcing herself to take several deep breaths. The door slid open, revealing the lord of the village Chikage Kazama. His sandy hair was now pale, and wrinkles were evident around his eyes and mouth. His whole face made him look weary, too tired from the horrors he had witnessed over the years to deal with anything more.

Kazama touched Sara's rosy cheek and asked, "What happened?"

However, Sara couldn't look him in the eyes; speaking such things to her father was difficult. But he was always the one she opened up to, so maybe he would understand.

"I found Kondo."

Her answer made the lord flinch, and he fully entered the room and closed the door behind him. A severe expression painted his face.

"Are you sure about this?" he asked.

Sara nodded as she gestured for him to sit so she could tell him what had happened. in the candlelight, the father and daughter sat silently for a couple of seconds before Sara finally spoke.

"He rejected me." Her voice wobbled, and she paused to hold back the urge to cry. "He is completely different than the boy who was brought here. He resides in a forest near the Yase village, and some other ancients live there."

Kazama patted her on the head, a gentle smile on his face. "I am sorry that you went through this, but you cannot help those who do not want to. You should let this go. That young man has been bad news since he showed up here years ago, the way his powers pulsed."

Sara shook her head, altogether rejecting his words. This wasn't what she expected, but she had a dream - Kondo living with them, the two sitting near the pond and talking, the same as in the past. She would show him her favorite book she liked to read once every month.

"He is the last Yukimura, Father," she countered. "He shouldn't be left behind."

Kazama sighed, unsure how to handle this conflict. It is not like he wanted to disown Chizuru's son, but he still didn't understand what the boy was.

" Father?" Sara's voice cut off his thoughts.

There was apparent fear in her eyes, and her rosy cheeks were suddenly too pale. Her shoulders trembled.

"I dreamt about a winged creature, and the wraith followed me again in this trip," she said. "Am I cursed, Father? What is going on?"

"Do not talk like this," Kazama replied. "You should rest now. We will talk about this tomorrow."

He leaned in and kissed her forehead, then left her room and returned to his wife in their bedroom.

Once again, she was left alone with her thoughts. Her world is turning upside down and she didn't know what to think. So many things to worry about.

...

Sen sat near the window, watching the sky outside.

"Why is our daughter so hung over the late Hijikata's son?" His voice was cold and low, and the irritation rose with every sentence he spoke.

Sen glanced back at him with a smile. Again with this conversation. "Can't you see? Her heart flutters for him, but I'm not sure she realizes it."

Kazama's face darkened at the mention of the heart. This couldn't be. He always imagined his daughter marrying someone worthy of a beloved princess like her. Hijikata's son was a half-breed of some sort, even if he was a Yukimura.

"The son of my rival? Over my dead body," he spat.

Sen pursed her lips, annoyed by his typical attitude. She faced him and chose to give him a piece of her mind. "Chikage Kazama, don't you care about your daughter's happiness? Don't you see the amount of pain she is in?"

"That young man is bad news; he is the one who caused the darkness we live in now. How do you expect me to be okay with this?" he said.

That was something Sen couldn't argue against. She didn't know what to feel about the son of her late friend.

Kazama's face fell in horror. There was something much bigger than this that they needed to worry about, and it seemed his wife had forgotten it completely. Not that he blamed her for it.

He lay on the futon and beckoned for her to come. Sen sighed and snuggled into him.

"Remember the angels?" He could sense her body immediately tense at the mention of those deities.

"Why are you asking about them?" she replied, having forgotten what happened.

"Our daughter has angel blood in her. Don't you remember the incident where I first found you?"

As Sen thought back to it, she found it was an anomaly. An angel attacked her house in the Yase Village, and for some reason, this gave their daughter an angel ability to heal through her voice. They could never find a reasonable explanation for such a thing.

Sen slightly lifted herself to look at him worried about what he might think. " You know I've never been an infidel, right? no angel touched me. Sara is your flesh and blood."

Kazama's lips formed a slight smile that barely reached his eyes. "I know that. Still, our daughter is in a way a Nephalem because of the power of her voice, she is one of her kind." he paused for a second, contemplating what any of this could mean. "Something is brewing here, and I feel Chizuru's son is in the center of it all."

Nephalems, a hybrid of demons and angels. For years they were nothing more than a myth. A folk tale to tell around a campfire. However, ever since two decades ago...their world was expanding and so many deities are showing up everywhere. Then Chizuru gave birth to the one they called Michaelis. Almost like so many prophecies are following each other.

"Maybe we do need to make contact with Kondo. We just have to try." Sen broke the silence.

Thank you Samantha Novak for your help.