Chapter 17: First Glimpse

Arriving back at the car, Hiyori felt herself revitalized, excited by the thought she had something which would make her cursed shadow tremble the same way she did throughout the years, every time the sun went down. She even walked forward, with the zip bag in her hands, raising it up, towards Everlong’s car, with a triumphant look in her eyes. He did not stop her, already knowing the outcome. It was best to experience it now… than later.

 

The moment she stepped close to the car, a bright streak of lightning ran through the clouds, rumbling like thousands of horses galloping through the sky. Hiyori was frozen in place, even dropping the little bag, falling to her butt as a big, wet stain formed between her legs very quickly. She saw it. For that mere split second, while the world was brighter than during the day, when the lightning revealed to her the same figure, Everlong saw since she first looked into his eyes. 

 

It was not human. Not even resembling one. It was a thin, dark strand, entirely made out of black smudge, dripping from its appendages, right onto the concrete below them. It stood on multiple, squelching, coiling tentacle-like… things. From it grew out an elongated torso, which had other, thin, continuously smoking tendrils attached to it, flopping in the air every time it moved. Where a human would have its head, it also had… something that only resembled the shape of a human head. She could not make out any facial expressions, just the outline of its jawline, where the nose should be or where its eye sockets may have been. It was continuously morphing, flowing as the whole being of it was like a melting, black sludge. It was clearly attached to the back of the car, looking at her. Not at the bag she dropped to the ground, not at Everlong or the cemetery behind them but at her. 

 

Hiyori only saw it for a fraction of a second before it was gone from her eyes again, but it was not something she was expecting. Every positive thought, bravery or playfulness evaporated from her immediately. What remained now was fear, dread and the feeling she was hopeless against something like that!

 

“It has been twisted and deformed by her own unfulfilled desires. Those pent up feelings and resentment towards others resulted in this malformed being that has attached itself to you.” said Everlong, crouching down behind her, placing his hands on her shoulders, somewhat relieving her mind. 

 

“I feel it…” said, while her tears streamed down her face “Those… things, attached to its body! Coiling around me at night, digging under my skin, into my brain!” leaned forward, retching while trying to hold her mouth shut with one hand. 

 

“When you stepped into my office, it was attached to you like a parasiete, fused with you deeply. You barely had any time left.”

 

“...”

 

“Luckily now it is different! But you gotta be careful! You can’t underestimate them, no matter the circumstances! If you get complacent, you get sloppy. One crack on your mind’s defense and this will happen! You fell from the top, feeling victorious, right down to the bottom, soaking in your own piss!” 

 

“Yeah…” nodded, looking down at herself, letting Everlong to help her up.

 

“Come!” patted her head, picking up the zip bag from the ground and stepping towards the car but Hiyori’s body refused to move. It still knew the thing was there. No matter if she wanted to go with Everlong, her body was not listening. “Come, Hiyori.” said, holding her trembling hand, “Don’t worry. It is not a demon yet. It can’t physically hurt you.” 

 

They stood there for almost a minute, before Hiyori finally blinked and took a wobbling step forward, letting the smiling Everlong lead her to the trunk of the car. Opening it, to her surprise he just picked out a black skirt, a white blouse, a dark gray vest and a change of underwear, just at her right size!

 

“Change quickly!” threw a fresh towel on her head as he started to strip right at the middle of the empty parking lot, while above them the storm was getting ready to open the heavenly flood gates at any time. “One, you pissed yourself, two, we are dirty from grave robbing and three, I won’t let us stain my nice seats inside the car!” chuckled, quickly dressing up in a fresh set of black trousers and white shirt. 

 

At first Hiyori was doing it by reflex, listening to his words but as she was pulling up her new panty her hands froze, looking up at him, wearing only that and her old, dirt covert top. 

 

“Why do you have clothes at my size?” blinked, regaining some of her peace of mind.

 

“I’ll leave it to your imagination!” laughed, finishing dressing up, putting the old clothes of his and hers into the trunk.

 

“Perv.” replied, quickly finishing changing. 

 

“Sort of.” answered, getting into the car as Hiyori hurriedly followed suit, not wanting to stay where she saw that… thing. Just as she closed the door, it was like the rain was waiting for that exact moment, because it started pouring down, so heavily, she thought their car was dropped into a river. 

 

“Do they all look like this?” asked, as Everlong started up the car and they left the little town, heading back out to the highway. 

 

“Nope. Do every human look the same?”

 

“For me? They sometimes do.” nodded Hiyori “Same blank faces, same empty smiles, same scripted conversations as if they are stuck in a loop…”

 

“Well, it did influence you for a decade… anyway, my point is, their looks are as varied as humans can be! But there are categories.”

 

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“Categories?” looked at him, watching his face from the side while he was looking at the road through the heavy downpour. 

 

“Yes, from Level 0 to Level 5. It is something that I made up, so don’t go looking for them in any other places!” chuckled “I call apparitions that have almost no intellect the Level 0 ones. They are just a mark, left behind by someone. For example, like when you are sitting at home, and from the corner of your eye you see somebody standing there, walking past by your window, or things like that. The moment you look it is gone and you won’t encounter it again. Those are Level 0 things. Creepy? Yes. Dangerous? No. Then Level 1 are your typical ghosts. They are weak, usually they just want to communicate with the living, telling them their stories so they could move on. Four out of five of them are harmless.”

 

“There is still that one…” murmured Hiyori.

 

“Yeah, and those are the ones that usually turn into Level 2 hauntings, to things like the one who haunts you. You could call it a proto-demon. Or how do you say it nowadays? A hipster ghost?” 

 

“Very funny…” rolled her eyes but still smiled a little. “So my curse is just… a Level 2 being?”

 

“Yep. Sorry, but it is nothing special! A ghost that started to reform itself, choosing to morph into a demon. They are still unable to directly harm you or anyone else around you but they sure will try to influence you so you do it yourself!” 

 

“If they successfully turn into a demon… they became Level 3?” guessed, receiving an approving nod and glance from Everlong.

 

“Yes. Now, Level 3 is where most of the things “live”, if you let me paraphrase it that way! They can even manifest, possess things or other living beings, simply put, they are as dangerous as any man! There are big power differences amongst them, depending on how long they have been around or what kind of demonic belief they are part of! For example, there are demons who embody the sins of never ending lust, excess of pleasure or emotions. The legends of succubi, your nation's fox demons, etc… all come from them! Then there are the kind of demons who love carnage, the voices that tell someone to go and murder his or her whole family! The so-called legends in the land of the Dynasty of the Ancients, the yāoguài are also a prime example. If yours finally transforms it probably is going to be a revenger or torture loving ghost, like the slavic myths about’ the baba yaga.”

 

“Charming…”

 

“Isn’t it?” laughed a little.

 

“Then what about Level 4?” asked, taking a deep breath, not really knowing where it could go from there.

 

“True demons.” replied with simple words. “The ones who never even were a human to begin with.” 

 

“True… demons…” gulped, tasting the word itself, feeling a shiver run through her body. 

 

“Yeah. As you already guessed, there is the thing called afterlife. Don’t ask how it came to be, because I don’t know! And I’m not brave enough to ask or try to find it out! But there are things there that never were part of our reality. Our world. They are the true demons! Or angels. Depends on how you look at them!”

 

“Did you meet things like them?”

 

“Yes.” nodded immediately. “You will too. They are much, much more civilized than you would think! I call them demons and they can be dangerous, weird and conniving but can also be curious, honorable or good natured!”

 

“It is hard to believe…” replied, licking her dried lips, listening to his words.

 

“Think of it this way; Picture a coin. On one side, there we are, humans. The other is the demons. Just as some of us decide to try and flip it, like the thing that is following my car right now, there are demons who do the same and act more human than you would expect!”

 

“What about those at Level 5?”

 

“...” fell silent suddenly, scaring Hiyori for a moment.

 

“We don’t talk about them.” replied in a serious tone “There is a reason why some religions forbid to speak their God’s name! Beings at that level, by just mentioning them, would immediately know… and you don’t want them to know about you!”

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