The police descended on the metro station like a feral pack of wolves, their keening sirens heard by the entire street. A hundred strong, they blocked off the entrances and exits, herding the morning commuters away in a throng of grumble and protest. All hoped to find out the reason for the public prohibition of entering.
"Damn it! I am going to be late for work. I am so going to get fired!" A young man of early twenties stood among the group of men in the same black thick blazer suit and tie, complained to his peer.
"This is chaos! First was the earthquake, and now this!" The slightly older men next to him adjusted his scarf and replied.
Before the older man continued with his rampant, loud sharp sound of police whistle came from the station's main entrance. "Get out of the way! No photographs!" A dozen young police officers made way to escort a massive black plastic sack out of the station into a black van.
"What is that? That thing smells like rotten corpse!" The young man in suite found a nearby bush and started to puke out his breakfast.
Wild speculation buzzed among the crowd as rumors flew through them like flies. All eyes were on that ominous parcel when an unnoticed girl of early teen who dressed in blue Kimoto with a Wasaga in her hands slipped past them.
The petite shadow moved fast to pass the officers who guarded each of the hallways of the station. She stopped and hid behind the pillar when she reached the station lobby where the majority police force was located. Detectives, and evident specialists roamed the site tried to collect all necessities.
The lobby was a cavernous space, its high ceilings adorned with intricate carvings and stained-glass skylights that cast a kaleidoscope of colors on the marble floors. The 2 stories high wall hung the massive clock which was symbolic to the station's history. Along with the obvious curry smell, the popular breakfast choice for the commuters, a pungent reminder of the many lives that passed through these halls every day.
"I've never seen anything like it! Twenty feet tall with a long snake-like neck!" The first to arrive on the scene, a young officer, recounted his horror to an investigator.
"Was there anyone who looked suspicious when you arrived?" The investigator questioned him. He was a short, lean man with graying hair and a weathered face, his eyes sharp and assessing as they took in every detail of the scene.
"No! I was alone here. When I got here, all I found was broken window glasses, and the dead "thing" lying in the middle of the lobby. Called for backup right away!" The officer replied in concern of his job.
"Very well then. Can you tell me what this is? They found it by the site." Slipping a sealed plastic bag out of his pocket, inside was a small piece of black nylon fabric that seemed to be ripped from its owner by some sharp object.
"No, sir. I don't know what that is, but I did smell something terribly bad when I got here." The officer scratched his head as he tried to remember any additional details that might be helpful.
"Excellent work, now remember not to talk to anyone about this or they'll start calling you crazy-- especially no one from press. Clear?"
"Yes sir! Not a word." He saluted and marched off, heading straight home. As he left, the investigator watched with hawk-like eyes before slipping the of black fabric back into his pocket and walked towards the east gate. Keeping her distance, the small teen girl followed, her eyes narrowed as she tried to adjust to the dramatic change in brightness.
The east gate of the station was usually closed in the morning. Today, a young girl in Kimono trespassed it as she moved fast yet quiet, the wood clogs she wore didn't make any sound in the dark. She couldn't see, but she could sense the man she followed was only few dozen feet in front of her.
The man who guised as investigator revealed his face under the dim light came from the windows on the ceiling. A tint of green on his skin and his fish like eyes exposed him to be nonhuman.
"Ha ha ha. Is this what you want? Everyone is looking for him ever since the rumor says he came back. Bulldog was his last victim." The ghost like man took out the fabric in the plastic bag.
"He He He, I don't want it… But it doesn't mean I want you to have it." The girl spoke with an infant like voice.
"You don't sound very convincing." The ghost like man mocked, yet his pale skin tightened.
"You are not so foolish after all. If you know who I am, you will not fight me." The young girl was relaxed.
"You are Shogon." The ghost like man tried to maintain his threatening smile but failed as his pale skin tightened at the recognition of her.
"Yes indeed, I am."
At the time of dinner, the heavy snowfall blanketed the city in pristine whiteness, muffling the sounds of the few brave souls still hung about in the chill evening street. While the rest were either arriving home or having meals in restaurants, a young girl in blue Kimono walked alone in the small alleys, Shogon. Her presence was usual, yet it was apparent unlike most people, she had an important destination. The cold air bit at her cheeks, turning them a rosy hue, but she remained undeterred.
In her clenched fist was a piece of evident that the person she had been looking for was near, which she brought the piece of black nylon close to her nose and rubbed it softly. With similar properties and attribute as nylon, Shogon knew this piece of textile was unusual. It was made from a very rare kind of lotus web that could only be harvested in mountains of Kuju. Such material was also considered sacred and extremely time consuming in production. So only high-status priests could wear them, someone like the Gatekeeper. She glanced at the textile, the tiny flame ignited from the tip of it, and it got burned to ashes.
The time was exactly at nine pm. Shogon arrived at the business district of the city on foot, where the late workers filled the street rushed to go home. Her kimono and her heading stood in stark contrast to the somber grays and blacks of the business attire surrounding her.
She strode towards a large building, swathed in darkness except for one security guard at its entrance. "Mrs., the building is closed," he told her gruffly.
"I am going to the fourth floor." Shogon replied.
The security looked surprised, but he allowed her entrance anyway. "Please come in, the elevator is on your left."
Shogon walked pass the common elevator to the staff elevator. She entered it and pressed the only button on the lift control panel, fourth floor.
The elevator was enlarged for the purpose for the staffs to move heavy equipment, it was also slower in comparison to the common elevator. Shogon stood patiently while the lift made squeaky scratching sound going upward.
When the elevator door opened, an illumination with no light source brightened the entire interior space. Shogon's eyes didn't blink as she was use to it. A massive storage like area with monks of at least hundred in number, gathered in circular formation around two statues that its foundations were splintered.
As Shogon arrived, three old monks with long white beard came forward to greet her with obvious owe. "Sir, you came back. Did you find him?"
"He is for certain in the city. I found this." Shogon held the used match she took from the ghost man.
"Sir, with all the respect, we can't have him run around like a mad dog. We must find him and take him back with us. He had already casted the spell of Awaken Dragon. Our neutral position had been compromised." One of the old monks said.
"I also sensed a birth of a strong awakening. Something very different from what we had seen before." The old monk with slightly shorter in height added.
Shogon closed her eyes and contemplated. "I think I know where to find him."
The bustling shopping street was bathed in the warm glow of the setting sun, the people hurried past knew soon they would be packed among thousands of commuters in the metro station. At the end hour of the popular shopping street, shopkeepers began to close their stores, pulling down metal shutters with a resounding clatter. Young and old cheered loudly by their newly bought items to head home for an evening of joy. A lone slim man stood in front of the display cabinet sealed by a thick glass wall. He was looking at a beautiful fluffy animal doll that he knew he couldn't afford to buy for his newborn son. The fading light caught the plush toy's fur, making it appear even more enticing as it seemed to beckon him from behind the glass. He took out a small cloth sack and realized there were only few hundred yen inside.
As he stood there, a strong wind picked up, ruffling his clothes, and carrying with it the sweet flagrance of nearby dessert shop. It was then that a baby-like voice, both innocent and reserved drifted towards him from behind. "You know with your power you can get your son anything he wants," the voice said.
"I am not a criminal," the man replied while staring at the reflection of the young girl on the glass wall.
"You're sad because this glass wall represents that you will never find the happiness you seek inside it?" she asked, tilting her head to the side as if trying to provoke him to his limit. "You know your existence here only threatens those you love and care," Shogon continued, her voice intensifying with every syllable. "Wake up! Rin, the Gatekeeper! You are more lost than you think."
He scowled, the muscles in his jaw tightening as he turned away from her and started walking. "It doesn't concern you," came his gruff reply. "I am the Gatekeeper; I'm pursuing my duty."
But Shogon followed him, her footsteps soft and silent as a cat stalking its toy. "You know your son is special! He is different! Are you going to train him yourself? Are you capable?"
Rin ground to a halt but refused to turn around, his shoulders tense as his neck straightened. "Like I said, it doesn't concern you."
Shogon smiled mockingly, "It is my concern when you took the scripture from us. I must make it my business when you failed both of your successors, and I know about Claus's death. You need to come back with me before more people get hurt."
"Don't!" His face twisted in rage as he snarled without turning his head, "Don't you dare speak of her!" Rin took another step forward before adding coldly, "The most important thing now is to protect my family. If anyone dares cross that line… they will deal with the consequences."
"Very well." Shogon's voice was filled with resignation as she spoke, she never left her eyes upon Rin''s troubled face. The dim light from the nearby streetlamp cast her features in sharp relief, making her appear even more ethereal and timeless. "But before you go, I must impart some knowledge upon you that could shift the course of your life." Her words seemed to freeze in the air between them, the main of the information she was about to share only they understood its importance.
☆☆☆
The midnight sky hung like a cloak of velvet, a vast expanse of darkness that was occasionally punctuated by the twinkling of distant stars. The antique old houses of the residences brought the city back into its past times, when things were much quieter and slower. In the old alleys, all the light sources were turned off after the resting hours, and shadows began to move under the moon light.
Next to a wilted cherry tree, a two-floor high modern designed residence that stood out from the neighboring traditional houses and had faint light came out from its upper floor window.
The duo stood at the corner of the alley; they melt seamlessly with the shades that swirled around them like inky tendrils. Rin closed his eyes as he concentrated, his senses heightened as he reached out to the energies that flowed around them. He spoke first, his voice low with unease: "I sense something extremely evil and powerful."
Shogon nodded grimly, she shut her eyes like Rin to scan their surroundings with her sixth sense, her body poised with patient. "Yes. A young girl who resides here has been ill for months with no sign of recovery. Unless we can help her, she will die."
Rin's eyes stare towards the house and expressed concern and confusion. "But why have you brought me here? Surely you could deal with this on your own…?"
"No, listen carefully…" Shogon raised a slender finger to her lips, signaling for him to be quiet. She pointed towards the rooftop of the house. A luring seductive melody mixed with agony of torture delivered from somewhere nearby, its haunting notes clawing his heart like ants on sweets. The tantalizing tune quickly morphed into a shrill squeal of a woman crouching on the roof.
"This demon is stealing and consuming the young girl's soul, though I know not why. It is too powerful for even me to expel back into purgatory!" Shogon seemed calm as though she brought Rin here for some other reasons.
Rin's eyes finally snapped open; he recognized the rarity of such possession. "No! It's not a demon--it's a human with the power of a fiend!"
Shogon's voice lowered to a hushed, she was cautious not to alert the twisted succubus who was still unaware of their presence. "Yes, it is most unusual for one of our kind to have such strength of darkness. Look closely." Her eyes bore into Rin's, urging him to peer closer at the voided creature.
"Fung? Is that her?" As his eyes adjusted, recognition dawned on him as he had looked for Fung since she went missing at the bat cave.
"You finally recognize her," Shogon said, her tone somber as Fung's mournful wail echoing the neighborhood. "I brought you here to witness what your apprentice had become--half-demon, half-human, sustained by consuming human souls."
"I followed my augury; I have no regrets." Rin's knuckles turning white as he steeled his fists, he had to prepare himself before battling Fung, his own protégé.
"The chosen keeper?" Shogon mocked Rin with intention. "Look at her! The power of the scripture has devoured her mind and body!"
Rin didn't speak, grappling with the reality that had unfolded before him.
"This demonic entity has grown too powerful, even my discipline can no longer contain it," Shogon's experiences with subduing demons were only second to Rin. Her eyes alerting the turmoil that threatened to consume them all. "You must take responsibility for this."
With a deep breath, Rin raised his hands to summon holy spirits in a fluid, circular motion, the streetlights around him brighten by surge of energy as he began. The arcane tattoo etched into his skin began to glow with a faint, ethereal glow. As he was about to execute a remote exorcism, Shogon's hand shot out, grabbing his arm in surprise. "Wait! She's gone! We must had alarmed her!" Shogon turned to look for Haran and found only emptiness of the midnight alley. Rin had left Shogon behind to go after Fung by himself.