Chapter 22 - Junko ShirogetsuHollow Night“Getting anything yet?” I asked, bored.

  We’d just arrived at 104, and I tell you, I don’t think I’ll ever get used to just how creepy everything looks here.

  As we slithered past the Joli Becot I encountered Hoshino at the other day, the Gatto Nero I got a cute scarf from, and the Bubblevision I find myself sitting at and people-watching for hours on end, I was aware of the strange sensation of being watched.

  “Yes, it’s this way.” Cunningham replied in a low, dogly growl. It had just occurred to me that my trying to make conversation might be disturbing his concentration.

  Preferring the silence over a potential misdirection into a hungry pack of Noise, I opted to slow my pace and leave Arthur as our field guide. I span on my heel to find my older sister and Rusuban, who’ve been suspiciously buddy-buddy with each other as of recent, trailing behind.

  “I’ll have you know my sister is way out of your league, my dearest Representative.” I interrupted in the midst of their mumblings. “Perhaps Hoshino is more your speed?”

  As expected, our future President remained unfazed.

  “My, if you miss her so much, you need only ask.” He cheered, and I suddenly understood why Emiko and the others were so captivated by him. “Blood, after all, is thicker than water.”

  Something about the way in which he said that had unsettled me – though I suppose it could have been the crisp, wintery breeze that blew occasionally down this space’s derelict street corners.

  With that, he bent forward into a curt bow, princely as ever, before catching up with our tour guide up front, who had stopped briefly to orient himself.

  “Must you be so rude?” Mizuko compined, though I was probably the only one who could tell she didn’t really mean it – not if her marginally upturned lips were any indication.

  I took a deep breath and got right to the heart of the matter.

  “What did the two of you discuss yesterday, while the rest of us were leaving?”

  I was struggling to remember the st time I’d seen her eyes widen like this. Likely because life never seemed to offer her anything that pure logic and preparation couldn’t overcome.

  I had the strange desire to see her, for once, troubled and lost, unsure of what to do like everyone else, but pushed the bizarre urge aside upon hearing her reply once she’d regained composure.

  “It was student council business.” She responded coolly, though she didn’t look me in the eye.

  “What business?” I pressed.

  “It’s strictly confidential, I’m afraid, and of no relevance to you.”

  “You’re a terrible liar. Do you think I haven’t noticed the visual cues you’ve been giving each other since we arrived? Are the two of you pnning something?”

  The probing words had spilled out of me more aggressively than I’d intended, but my wish to get down to the bottom of this, whatever it was, remained the same.

  Unfortunately, I would not see any signs of her poise giving way again.

  “As I said, it’s student council business. We are not pnning anything, Junko.” This time she was looking me dead in the eye.

  I sighed.

  “Now come, we need to catch up. And stay vigint, I don’t want you getting hurt again like before.”

  Suppressing the surprising urge to smirk, I found it hirious that even in this life-or-death situation, I was still being scolded by my big sister.

  And I didn’t mind it one bit.

  Now, this was new.

  We’d taken a left after 104, toward Dogenzaka, when I detected the slightest increase in temperature.

  After taking a swift look around the vicinity, finding nothing of note, I brushed it off as a false arm and continued alongside the others.

  But that warmth never left. In fact, it had proceeded to climb further and further up, until we couldn’t ignore this unfamiliar, oppressive heat.

  Fortunately – or perhaps unfortunately – we’d discovered the cause soon enough. Or rather, it had discovered us.

  “Stay together!” Mizuko’s voice called out. At this point I could barely see her. Her voice, and her increasingly wetting hand clinging to mine for dear life were the only indicators I had of her existence.

  “It wants to separate us!”

  I was finding it hard to breathe, the steam was getting too thick.

  Arduously, I reached my free hand around, finding the warm handle of my katana. I thrust it upward, concentrating.

  “Cunningham!” I cried, hoping, wishing, praying that he understood, and that he did so speedily.

  It was when my vision was starting to darken that I began flying.

  Well, I suppose ‘gliding’ would be a more appropriate term to use here, for both Mizuko and I were barreling through the air, and for the first time, I missed the cold autumn breeze that was now shocking my body back into wakefulness.

  “Thank you,” I exhaled hoarsely.

  “I should be thanking you,” Our helper spoke, putting us down gently onto the concrete after having carried us with his thick arms. “Thanks to seeing your bde’s electricity, I was able to find you in time.”

  Our lungs washed with relief, both my sibling and I found our feet. From where we stood, an onsught of thick, gray fog was approaching, angry that two succulent meals were stolen from its jaws.

  “I reckon that the source ys somewhere behind all this.” Rusuban, who had been standing somewhat nonchantly behind us, theorized. “Now, that begs the question as to how exactly we get through this barrier to begin with.”

  “It is far too hot to even reach the center,” Mizuko admitted. “Either we target the source in one quick strike, or we find a way to dispel this steam.”

  For whatever reason, Rusuban began to cp, like a teacher having heard a model answer to a tough question.

  “As expected of the Vice-President.” He smiled. “As luck would have it, I have formuted a pn that will allow us to achieve both objectives. However, the timing is tight, and will require all three of you to move as precisely as possible. Are you up to the task?”

  Without waiting for a reply, he began walking off back towards 104.

  The three of us exchanged puzzled looks, before trailing him into the darkness, the fog of steam steadily in pursuit.

  He wasn’t wrong – if this pn was to work, we had only had one opportunity. We had to make it count.

  The temperature was rising again. It was here.

  I took a deep breath, the humid air encroaching on my body’s st respite, and y deathly still as the heat found me once more.

  It was when I lifted my forearm at the beads of liquid travelling down my forehead that I heard a sound. A discarded grey tin can, its original purpose having long been lost, rolled lonesome across the street, in the path of the giant cloud of steam moving in.

  Now having seen the signal, my annoyingly slippery fingers found my bde, wrapping around the hilt with as tight a grip as I could muster.

  A roar bellowed through the avenue suddenly, and even though I should’ve expected it, my head span in an arm nonetheless.

  With a swift, powerful motion, Cunningham lunged toward the hydrant just in front of the travelling smokescreen, jaws cmping onto the cap. The metallic cng resonated through the air as he successfully tore off the hydrant's cap.

  Water erupted from the hydrant in a forceful stream, and the werewolf, now drenched and formidable, maniputed the flow with calcuted precision.

  The creature, wherever within the miasma it y, evidently tried to close in on Cunningham and halt what it must’ve known was coming next - to no avail, of course.

  Skillfully directing the stream, the lycanthrope created a torrent that pierced through the scalding fog, the steam instantly cooling and condensing into droplets.

  The fiend, its sinuous and dragon-like form id bare, hissed and convulsed as its cover was blown.

  Unfortunately, escape would not be an option for the creature. I still had a role to py, after all.

  Leaping out from the darkness, I pulsed my spirit into my bde, and felt it sizzle with electrifying essence. As though time itself had stopped, my eyes were sharp, and focused. With my aim true, I unched my faithful silver in the beast’s direction.

  Though my heart sank as I watched its long grey body smoothly slither out of the bde’s path, the damage had more or less already been done.

  By the time the creature had noticed that it, alongside its immediate surroundings, were already soaked, the dominos had already been falling for quite some time.

  As gravity finally took control, sending me rolling onto the opposite side of the street, I looked back to see that Cunningham had vanished.

  Good.

  By the time I looked back in the demon’s direction, hoping to see it convulsing and suffering under the pain of electrocution, I was disappointed to find Arthur had already shot her in its direction, like a cannonball moments before sending many to a watery grave.

  In one mighty mid-air ssh with the naginata’s edge, the monster became deathly still as Mizuko flew right past it, tumbling with a few successive bounces in the distance.

  For many of those rigid moments, I couldn’t breathe. The air hung heavy with an unspoken dread, each passing second stretching into an eternity of uncertainty.

  Had that been enough to fell the monster?

  Just as I thought I’d pass out from the anxiety, the ethereal creature finally leaned forward lifelessly – or rather, its head did, falling onto the wet floor with a plop.

  My lungs have been through way too much tonight, I thought as reassurance washed over my taut body. A familiar cp echoed behind me.

  “Well done.” He congratuted. “The three of you performed even better than I expected.”

  I felt my chest heating up, and this time I knew the Noise wasn’t responsible.

  “Would be nice of you to join us next time,” I snarled.

  Rusuban then put his hands on his hips and nodded bashfully, shrugging his shoulders as if to say “Yeah, you have a point.”

  “Yeah, you have a point.” He then actually spoke, and all I could do was shake my head in exasperation.

  I followed him as we walked to the new gravesite, our enemy’s carcass fading away into the wind.

  Tentatively, I dipped my toes into the pool that had formed around it, and as hoped, it seemed I was immune to electrocution. If anything, an oddly rexing sensation filled me, as though my energy was slowly being restored.

  Satisfied, I removed my silver katana, also re-absorbing what little electricity remained active inside, and sheathed it.

  “Well, aren’t you in your element?” Rusuban chuckled.

  I didn’t respond, instead quickly checking in with our two other team members.

  Cunningham’s jaws were hurting slightly, and Mizuko was somewhat scratched up after that tumble, her grace having temporarily been compromised by the slight electric shock her weapon had understandably returned, though she didn’t seem injured otherwise (I was fine too, thanks for asking ~).

  Now, came the spoils. In the end, we decided to give the orb to Rusuban, deeming that the sooner his ability upgraded the sooner he could physically help us take down these increasingly stronger threats.

  “Excellent,” He remarked after absorbing the demon’s soul, clenching and opening his hands repeatedly. “Something has definitely changed, though I see no greenery around currently to demonstrate. In any case, I think I should now be able to contribute to our battles more.”

  “Here’s hoping,” I added.

  As we were about to discuss our next steps, Mizuko’s voice alerted, “Wait! There’s something else!”

  I’d almost forgotten our entire mission was to locate those relics – fighting for your life tends to have that effect.

  We approached her as she unearthed the strangest item of apparel I ever did see – a grey backpack with two miniature squares resembling vents at its bottom.

  “Is this what the noise was using to generate all of that steam?” Cunningham thought out loud.

  My reply came hastily as a dark realization dawned on me.

  “No, it can’t have been. This was clearly designed for a human being to use.” I began.

  My heart started to beat out of my chest. Part of me didn’t want to continue, but I felt as though if I didn’t get it off of my chest, I would burst.

  “What if-“

  I struggled to get the words out, though managed in the end.

  “What if we’re not the only people who’ve been here?”