The next morning I woke up with a headache that felt like I was hit by a truck. I sat up, rubbing the knot on my forehead and the room spun for a dizzying second. That bastard.
I then went to shower and it did its best to cleanse my exhaustion but not the headache. I got into my attire and walked to the door afterwards but paused there for some while, my mind feeling hazy. Am I forgetting something?
I frowned, running a mental checklist. Everything was present and accounted for, so I went out. And drove toward the precinct.
When I finally staggered into the station, I looked exactly how I felt. I ignored the stares, bypassed my desk and went straight for the water cooler, pouring an entire cup of ice water down my throat.
"Yamada! About time you showed up." Detective Miller called out, walking by. "The Captain's been asking for you."
"Argh, again?" I muttered, setting the cup down and already turning toward the Captain's office.
I opened the door and sauntered in. "Hey, Cap." I said, leaning against the doorframe.
The Captain looked better than he was yesterday but still looked exhausted. I instantly sensed a spiritual presence that I wasn't used to.
And my eyes landed on the woman standing beside the Captain's desk. She was dressed in an impeccable black trouser suit and her dark hair pulled back severely. She looked like a highly paid corporate lawyer who had absolutely no sense of humor.
I straightened, already turning for the door. "Oh? I'll come back later."
"No, Yamada." the Captain called out. "Miss Suzuki is actually here for you."
Miss Suzuki turned her eyes to me. "Wait." she said to the Captain. "This is the man? With a hangover on a Tuesday?"
I pushed off the doorframe, bristling instantly. "In my defense, ma'am, this is not a hangover. I headbutted the wrong person yesterday. And not at a bar because I was never there."
The Captain threw his hands up, trying to smooth things over. "Miss Suzuki, Kenichi is very talented. His combat skills surpass even those bound with a demon."
"Thanks for the compliment, Captain." I said, leaning back against the wall. "But are you seriously selling me right now? I'm like the best detective you've got around here."
The Captain sighed, running a weary hand over his face. "Kenichi, you also have a gift that can..."
"Stop right there, Cap." I cut him off, raising a hand. "I gave someone the hero speech yesterday, so I can't do that today. Besides, I wasn't really complaining about going."
Miss Suzuki didn't waste another second. "Good, then let's go." She was already heading for the door.
I pushed off the wall and followed behind her, hands shoved deep into my pockets.
"We're using my car." she said me, not even looking back.
We walked across the parking lot to a black sedan. As I reached for the passenger door handle, I stopped. My cigarettes?
My fists clenched inside my pockets, my fingers digging into my palms to hold the rising wave of panic and anger.
I slid into the car, forcing myself to exhale slowly and fighting the desperate urge to turn the car around to my apartment to get my lucky charms.
Miss Suzuki drove smoothly, her eyes focused on the road, though I could feel her stealing glances at me from the corner of her eye.
She finally broke the silence. "Are you nervous?"
I replied instantly. "I'm not nervous."
The awkwardness returned and she kept staring again and again. Her expression was now less judgmental and more genuinely curious.
"So?" she asked. "Why did you want to become an Exorcist?"
Is she really trying to hold a conversation while I'm a minute away from lashing out?
I stared straight ahead, clenching my jaw. And the answer came out louder than I intended. "I never wanted to be an Exorcist."
She turned to me, her composure finally breaking. "Huh?"
And then the lash came out.
"FUCK!"
The car swerved slightly. Miss Suzuki slammed on the brakes, pulling over to the side of the road. "What the hell was that?!"
I took a deep breath, forcing the tension out of my shoulders. "I'm sorry, ma'am." I said, the excuse sliding out with a weird sincerity. "I left my lucky charms at home."
She stared at me, her mouth slightly agape. And took a moment, then sighed heavily. "Right. Now that you've got that out of your system, can we get back to where we were?"
"Oh, yeah." I said, settling back into the seat. "You were wondering why I'm were here? It's quite a short story, though. I applied to become a police officer and I was turned into a police exorcist instead."
Miss Suzuki looked at me for a second and ignored the rest of my existence for the remainder of the ride, pulling back onto the road.
We drove until we reached an older section of the city, pulling up to a temple and walked up the moss-covered steps and through the massive gates.
Miss Suzuki stopped by the main building. "Now, as for why you're here." she said, turning to me. "I brought you here to test your abilities myself and you'll be paired with a partner from the Exorcist Academy, who was chosen by my partner."
"A test?" I repeated, rubbing my face. "What kind of test?"
"I'll tell you when your partner arrives." she said, checking her wristwatch. "Ah, they should be here."
I followed her gaze and they were two figures walking toward us from the far end. And the one in the lead was Takeo Miyoshi. The man beside him was younger and seemed to be sweating profusely.
Takeo saw me, his approach slowed and the smile he wore vanished instantly. We stared at each other. And Takeo was the first to speak. "What is he doing here?"
Miss Suzuki looked between us. "So, you two know each other? Oh, I get it now. The hangover headbutt." She seemed vaguely amused.
Takeo stopped in front of me. "Give me back my money!" he aggressively said.
"Why don't you make me give it back?" I replied instantly.
"Enough, you two." Miss Suzuki said, stepping between us before either of us could move. "Since you guys already know each other, let's include our friend as well."
Takeo simply gestured to the nervous-looking kid beside him. "This is Yoshiro."
Miss Suzuki gave him a nod. "Well, Yoshiro. I'm Suzuki and this..." she gestured toward me. "is Kenichi."
I nodded and before I could ask about the test again, her phone buzzed. She snatched it from her pocket, listened for a few tense seconds and then turned back to us. She snapped the phone shut. "The test will have to wait. We have a situation nearby."
"What is it?" Takeo asked immediately, instantly.
"We'll find out when we get there." she replied, already walking away and signaling for us to follow.
Just after we left the temple, we rounded the first corner and at a hotel down the street there was some sort of a dome of dark but clear glass.
"What is that?" I asked, staring right at it.
"A barrier." Miss Suzuki answered. "And it's filled with Demonic Energy. Since when do demons cast barriers?"
I looked around. Pedestrians walked past the hotel entrance, talking on their phones and completely oblivious to the dome that encased the building.
"Why are people walking next to it like they don't see it?" I asked.
Takeo walked toward the barrier, hands held slightly out. "That's because they don't." he replied, his eyes focused on the barrier. "It's the same as demons. If you don't have the spiritual energy, it simply doesn't exist for you."
I frowned, stepping beside him. "Hold on, how can you see it?"
Takeo shot me an irritated look. Miss Suzuki answered instead. "Because he has spiritual energy but he was born with an unusually low amount, just enough to see demons."
Takeo clicked his tongue. "Yeah, thanks for the reminder."
He reached out and cautiously poked a finger into the barrier. His hand went right through, he pulled it back out instantly. And walked straight through the barrier, disappearing entirely.
"Miyoshi, wait!" Miss Suzuki yelled but it was too late.
We followed, rushing into the membrane. The transition was like stepping from warm atmosphere into a cold one.
Takeo was on his knees immediately, just inside the threshold. He was clutching his head, his breathing coming in ragged. "I don't feel right." he choke out before his eyes rolled back and he fell face-first.
Miss Suzuki rushed to him, checking his pulse. She slapped his cheek lightly. "Takeo! Wake up!"
Yoshiro dropped to his knees beside him. "Why is he the only one affected?"
Miss Suzuki didn't look at him. "He's spiritual energy can't protect him from some demon spells!" She then looked up at us desperately. "Kenichi, Yoshiro, please take him outside now!"
We grabbed Takeo's unconscious body and dragged him back and we pushed against the barrier but we couldn't get out. We hit the barrier and it refused to budge, pushing us back gently.
"The hell?" I muttered, slamming my fist against the barrier. I'm trapped in another demon trick? How great.
Miss Suzuki sighed. "So, to go out we need to take down the caster first?" She rose to her feet. "Alright, let's go."
Yoshiro and I followed Miss Suzuki into the hotel. We walked through the main lobby door and the floor was littered with bodies. Dozens of people lay slumped over, exactly like how Takeo collapsed.
"What in the world happened here?"