Disclaimer: None of the recognizable characters, etc. belong to me. I'm not getting paid for this, and you couldn't get much money from me by suing me, so please don't. However, new characters (Skye, Nobuyuki, Suki, Akira, Mirachtunel, Chephren) and this story are my sole creation and should NOT be used without my permission.
Part Three
Akira's father's workshop was more of a huge, messy study that could have doubled as a mini-museum on the occult and mythology. It was deep in the proverbial dungeons of their nice home on the outskirts of Tokyo, and Rowen flinched slightly as they drove up into the driveway, right past his old home - his second passing that day.
It was well after dark now, but Akira's parents had had guests for dinner who had yet to leave and both boys wished to avoid explanations, so they snuck in through a window in the back, right in the middle of a large, spacious hallway with luxuriously framed family photos spotting the cream-colored walls here and there. The hallway was dark, but there was a light at the far end where it opened up to the living room, where the guests were being entertained. Rowen paused to listen to their voices, and found it difficult to not go to them. Akira's parents had once seemed like family to him, and he missed those days terribly.
Akira nudged his shoulder and silently signaled for Rowen to follow him as he slipped through one of the heavy oak doors. Rowen obeyed reluctantly, ducking into the doorway and closing it behind him as quietly as he could. Once they were at the bottom of the long dark staircase on the other side, Akira slipped through another door and flipped on a small Tiffany lamp. It cast an array of light and shadows over the room, so Akira hurriedly pulled Rowen in and shut the door tightly.
He spoke in a hushed semi-whisper, instructing Rowen, "The sound carries really well in here, so we'll have to be quiet." Rowen listened and found that it was true; he could still hear the Ueda's and their company faintly above him somewhere. "Now there's a First Aid kit in the closet over there that I suggest you use in case we do have to encounter anyone. I will later, when we leave. And then you can mill around in search of the sword and dagger if you want to help. Last time I saw them, they were on one of those tables."
Akira turned to a large bookcase and started his search, and Rowen looked dubiously at the aforementioned tables that were piled high with every sort of artifact, manuscript and tool he could imagine. He glanced at his reflection in the antique mirror nearby and decided to search for the First Aid kit first.
An hour more had produced a few bandages, a few more piles of junk in the middle of the room, a lot of yawning in exhaustion and boredom. Finally, Akira exclaimed, a little too loudly, "Got it!"
Rowen abandoned his piles and came over to the boy, kneeling next to him and peering at the ancient-looking spellbook over his shoulder. Most of the text was in an ancient rune-like script which Akira seemed to understand.
"What does it say?" he asked.
"Well, it's more an instruction manual to constructing counterspells than a spell itself. It says we have to duplicate the original spell's conditions exactly, reciting the original spell backwards, as well as using the counter of any greatly symbolic elements - sacrifices, potions, whatever. And in our case, we have to draw Mirachtunel through a portal to this world and slay him with the instruments used to call him in the first place - meaning the sword and dagger for us." He paused in thought, then added, "And I think I can find a spell that will work well enough. The only trick is how we're gonna manage to pull this off..."
"I don't suppose it'll be easy. Do we have to drag Skye into this, too?" Rowen's concern for his own life was bad enough without worrying about both of his friends.
"I think we'll have to, Ro," Akira said sadly. "We'll already be missing one of the original elements of the spell without Suki, and the spellbook says we must duplicate the situation exactly. We can't risk changing it unnecessarily."
Rowen frowned. "Yeah, I guess you're right. So what do we do?"
"First, we find these artifacts. Then we get ready for the most dangerous day of our lives."
*****
After doing all they could that night, Akira and Rowen had agreed to catch a few hours of sleep and some breakfast and meet again at Akira's early in the morning. Then they could get Skye and fill her in. And later, the time would come when they'd be forced to meet their fates.
Rowen's eyes were drooping dangerously the entire drive home and his entire body felt like a plaster cast filled with lead. he couldn't even remember the last thing he'd eaten, and he was sure it hadn't been big. He parked the car in front of the Koji mansion and gratefully dragged himself in the door, plunked the keys on the shelf in the hall, and dragged himself through the dark, quiet house to his room.
He fell on his bed face-first and lay there without even taking his shoes off.
"Rowen?" Sage's sleepy voice called out. Rowen heard him, but didn't answer. "Rowen?" His voice grew more insistent, so Rowen turned his head toward his friend's voice.
"Yeah, I'm here," he groaned softly.
"I know you won't tell me what's going on, so I won't bother asking. I guess I can understand that there're things you want to keep to yourself. I just want you to know that we're always here when you need us. I'll always be here. You know that, right Ro?"
"Yeah, man. I know it." Rowen squeezed his eyes shut and one saline drop landed on his pillow before he fell deep into an uneasy, dream-filled sleep.
*****
Rowen sighed as he flipped through the channels on his dad's small, cable-deprived t.v. He was lucky it even had a remote. He sifted through his reheated macaroni listlessly after eventually settling on the news. He wasn't even listening to the t.v. until he caught the name Victor Watanabe. Then his food was forgotten and he stared at the screen intently, trying to catch every word. His heart froze in his chest and his stomach sank to his knees when they posted a picture of Watanabe. He was a forty-ish Japanese businessman, and the picture showed him with a large, loving family, all happy and smiling brightly.
"Watanabe's body was found in the forest just northwest of Tokyo by some hikers. Police suspect a wild animal attack to be the cause of the death. Watanabe is survived by his four young daughters, who are to be sent to foster homes pending permanent arrangements. Watanabe's wife, Yuka Watanabe, died last year after a long battle with breast cancer. Watanabe had just been released from jail after involvement in a drunk driving accident last week, in which a young boy died..."
*****
Rowen's eyes opened slowly. His whole body felt reluctant to move, as if moving meant he'd have to face the day, which he supposed it did. He laid there for a few minutes, until Sage called behind him, "Rowen? Are you awake?" Then he rolled onto his back and gave his roommate a blank look.
"Yeah," he responded. "What time is it?"
"A little after five, I think. I didn't wake you up, did I?"
"No, I was awake."
"Okay... Good," he said, amazed by his own lameness. He ran a hand through his wet, freshly washed hair and said, "Look, I'm going to get something to eat. Do you want anything?"
"No, thanks. I'll get something later."
"Okay." Sage stood uncomfortably for a few moments, then turned and left Rowen to himself.
Rowen sighed heavily, trying not to think about anything, but found it a lot harder than one would imagine. He sighed again and rose tiredly. He'd slept fitfully all night and probably wouldn't have felt any less rested if he hadn't gone to sleep at all. With that thought, he trudged down the hallway and thanked his lucky stars that no one woke up as early as Sage did, which meant he wouldn't have too much trouble avoiding everyone before he left, which he both hoped and dreaded was going to be soon.
In the bathroom, he splashed his face with cool water to wake himself up more and stared at his reflection in the mirror. There was a small but nasty-looking gash on his cheekbone just below his eye that was held closed by a wing-shaped bandage and an irritated red scrape on his forehead where he'd had a run-in with a tree the day before. Beyond that, the tousled blue shock of hair and overall sense of exhaustion gave him the look of a man who'd been through one too many trials. His deep, soulful indigo eyes looked old and wizened, but his face was young and made him look more like a lost little boy. He stared himself down for a long time, hunched over the porcelain sink with taut, tension-filled muscles.
It seemed he didn't like what he found in the silver surface, because he broke the stare-down by shoving away from the sink and stalking back to his room. He dressed quickly and ran a brush through his hair, then a small glare hit his eye. He traced it to the small, marble-like ball on his dresser and picked it up. He studied its smooth, clear blue surface and the faintly glowing symbol within. Rowen furrowed his brow slightly and set it back down before retreating back to the hallway.
He walked into the kitchen where Sage was preparing himself a breakfast sandwich and opened the fridge to see what he could grab and run with. He settled on some leftover supreme pizza and an apple, took it from the fridge and went to throw on his shoes and leave. Before he made it out of the kitchen, Sage's calm, quiet voice inquired, "Are you leaving right away?"
Rowen hesitated and turned his head back towards his friend, who was still making his breakfast just as he had been.
"Yeah, I was planning on it."
"Are you going to show up for school today?"
"I...maybe. I have to do some things first, then maybe." Rowen thought this was the end of the conversation, so he turned to leave again, but Sage set his knife down and turned around, saying, "Be careful out there, 'kay Ro? I wouldn't want to have to come and save your ass."
Rowen glanced back at Sage's weakly-smiling face and forced a small grin. "'Course," he replied. "I'm always careful." Then he walked out of view, and Sage sighed.
"I hope so, buddy."
*****
The sun was still a pale pink just rising over the treetops and houses as Rowen drove to the Ueda's house. The sky was a palette of pastels smeared across the heavens with a few fluffy white clouds here and there, and it illuminated the world below with a dim, warm light. The smell of dew on grass and the chirping of early-rising birds greeted him through the open window of Mia's jeep. It was the most peaceful moment he'd had in weeks, and at just the right moment. He felt his tense muscles relax and his mind being soothed by the early morning atmosphere.
It was shattered by the wailing of sirens and the roar of a fire as he turned into Akira's neighborhood. A pair of police cars were blocking the road for any cars trying to get through, and beyond them were several large firetrucks and a scattered mess of bystanders and police. Rowen abandoned the jeep and ran through the crowd. He broke through and made it past the police, and was devastated by what he saw.
The large, expensive-looking home that the Ueda family had lived in for two decades or more had been swallowed by flames the likes of which Rowen had never seen. It was a raging inferno that leapt up into the sky and scorched the lower heavens with its heat. Hardly a tile of roofing or a single panel of wood could be seen within its territory. The blasts of the firemen were futile, and everyone there knew it was no use by now; the place would be no more than a pile of ash and charcoal in no time.
Rowen felt his face drain and his legs grow weak. He stumbled and nearly fell, the world spinning away from him, until he felt a pair of arms wrap around his shoulders and try to steady him.
"Rowen? Rowen?" He looked up at Skye, and the world came crashing back again. She had been crying hard for some time, and her pale face was wet with tears. She sniffled and tried to control herself.
"Was-was he...?" Rowen's voice shook.
Skye could only cry more and nod, saying, "They were in there."
The grief-stricken pair stood, hugging each other tightly and trying to soothe one another as the hopeless fight continued on. A long time later, when the onlookers had become sparse and the firefighters had done everything they could but watch and wait for the flames to run out of fuel so they could search for victims, Rowen and Skye had lapsed into catatonic silence. They sat on the curb in front of the last remnants of the once-beautiful home and stared at it mournfully. Now and then Skye suppressed a sob and the urge to break down all over again, but for the most part she just sat there, waiting to wake up from this nightmare. Rowen was in much the same state, but he was lost in a hell of his own.
"This is all my fault..." he mumbled. "I should never have left him alone after yesterday..."
"What do you mean?" Skye asked, suddenly very interested in another human being again. But just then, Rowen caught sight of a figure in red peering around the edge of a fire truck. He jumped to his feet and pulled Skye with him.
"C'mon, we're not safe here," he said, practically dragging her to the jeep. As they pulled away, both teens glanced back and caught a glimpse of a person wrapped in shadow behind one of the monstrous trucks.
Chephren watched them leave and grinned maliciously, laughing to herself as she melted away into the blackness of the shadows.
*****
Rowen and Skye found themselves in the heart of Shinjuku, the large, bustling district of Tokyo notorious for its shopping complexes and commercial area. They were in a dim corner of Le Cafe de la Fleur, a small but prospering coffee house in the middle of one of Tokyo's largest shopping centers that was known for its superior cappachinos, one of which Skye was sipping on just now. Rowen had a cup of black coffee on the table before him, but it was virtually untouched and had been for more than ten minutes.
"So are you going to tell me, or do I have to wait all day?" Skye said, keeping her honey-sweet voice soft so their conversation wouldn't attract any attention.
Rowen didn't meet her eyes. Instead, he traced the smoky patterns on the top of his coffee. When he did speak, it sounded like he was far, far away and there was a heavy burden on his shoulders.
"After you and I parted yesterday, I was attacked by a woman claiming to be a messenger from Mirachtunel. She wanted me to go to the Dark Realm with her, supposedly at his command. I refused, and we fought. When I eventually came to, she was gone and I went home. A few minutes later Akira showed up, telling a similar story and informing me that he was going to search for a way to kill Mirachtunel. We snuck into his father's workshop, found what we needed, and...I left him. I knew we would be attacked if Mirachtunel figured out what we were up to, but I left both of you alone - and you unaware of the dangers. And now he's gone. Chephren killed him."
"Rowen... There was nothing you could have done. If you had stayed you just would have died with them, and then where would I be? Alone and defenseless for Mirachtunel to take at will, that's where. You can't blame yourself for this, Ro." She took his hands in hers and tried to meet his eyes. He looked up with eyes of moist blue, and she continued, "Now we're going to make them pay for this, you hear me? I'm terrified of what they might do to us, but running isn't going to help anything. We have to face him, and we have to do it now. Now, you said you two found a way to kill him, right?"
Rowen nodded sadly, and said, "Yeah... A spell. Akira said it had to be done just like the first one, with as few exceptions as possible."
"Then we'll do it tonight, in the forest, you and me, together. Mirachtunel won't know what hit him."
*****
"I assure you, Ms. Koji, the students are our utmost concern, and we all want to see Rowen get through this as soon as possible. All I need from you is your trust and your word as Rowen's guardian that you will give us your full cooperation while he goes through this difficult mourning period."
"Of course, Mrs. Aoki. The boys and I will do whatever we can for Rowen," said Mia, near tears. Ryo's hands were rested on her shoulders, and he frowned grimly. He stood behind the chair she was sitting in, right across from the social worker from the boys' school.
Sage spoke up from his perch against the wall a few feet away, by Cye and Kento. "Why wouldn't Rowen have told us about this?" His voice sounded more than a little suspicious and angry.
The thirty-ish woman pushed up the golden, wire-rimmed glasses she wore and smoothed out the imaginary wrinkles in the skirt of her pale pink business suit. "Well, Sage, I suppose it was very difficult for Rowen to speak about. After all, he and Miss Tanaka were very close, as was he and Mr. Tanaka, her deceased twin brother. And then with Akira Ueda's death on top of that, and the way our society teaches young men to be strong in times of pain, it's really no wonder that he may have had trouble admitting his feelings. It's really very common for boys such as him to think they must handle difficult situations on their own. After all, his parents divorced when he was still very young, he's an only child who has never had a large number of friends, and his former therapist's records show that he was very traumatized by the accident which resulted in Nobuyuki Tanaka's death. He may simply feel that he can't talk about it, even to friends as wonderful as I'm sure you five must be."
Sage shook his head. "I don't buy it. There's more to it than that. Rowen can tell us anything. He knows it, and he'd never hold something like this back from us without a reason."
Mrs. Aoki was just about to respond to that when the front door could clearly be heard slamming shut and a pair of voices talking quietly.
"Rowen?" Mia called. The voices stopped, and they waited patiently as footsteps approached.
Rowen walked in cautiously, with Skye right behind him. Rowen surveyed the group assembled in the room and stopped in the doorway when he saw Mrs. Aoki.
"What the hell are you doing here?" he demanded of her, his voice low and threatening. His eyes were like two steely daggers aimed right for her, and he wouldn't allow Skye to walk past him, as if he were protecting her.
"Rowen!" Mia reprimanded. In a mildly accusing tone, she said, "This is Mrs. Aoki, a social worker from school. She heard about the deaths of your friends and came to speak with you."
"The hell she is! She's the bitch who killed my friends!" he spat vehemently.
Skye gasped and exclaimed, "She's Chephren?!"
Ryo walked towards them a step and demanded, "Rowen, what are you talking about? I thought they were accidents-"
"Accidents my ass!" Rowen snapped. "That demon bastard sent her here to kill them, and now she's trying to get me!"
Mrs. Aoki laughed kindly and stood. "My dear boy, you seem to have me mistaken for someone else. My name is Mrs. Aoki, and I just came to help you through this difficult time-"
"Save it!" he yelled, lunging for her and grabbing her by the arm.
"Rowen!" everyone exclaimed in disbelief.
"Tell them the truth, Chephren!" She didn't respond, and he tightened his grip around her arms. "Tell them!"
"Rowen, stop it! Let her go!" Sage said, pleading from just behind him.
"Not until she pays for killing Akira and Suki," Rowen snarled, watching the woman watch him coolly.
In one fluid motion, she pulled away from his grip and grabbed Sage from behind, whipping out a large, double-edged knife from its hiding place and pressing it tightly against his throat. She backed away from everyone, her wild eyes flashing dangerously.
"One move and blondie gets it," she warned.
"Don't you dare hurt him, you murderer," Rowen threatened in a low, gutteral voice.
Chephren laughed coldly. "If I am a murderer, you must be a cold-blooded, orphaning, hate-filled killer. I have killed many times, yes, but always under orders, to fulfill my pledge to my master. But you killed out of pure, calculated hate and rage. So tell me, Strata, if I am a murderer, what low of lows are you and your lady friend?"
Rowen and Skye could say nothing. Shock-filled looks of hurt and disbelief were suddenly shot at them by the others gathered in the room, but only Sage's captured Rowen. He tried to look away from the wide, hurt-filled eyes that were begging him to deny her accusations or at least say something, but Rowen couldn't deny the truth that had been haunting his nightmares for years. In his own mind - in the deep, dark pits he's kept it locked in for so long - he'd always thought of himself as a murderer, ever since the day he learned about Victor Watanabe.
"Ro..." Sage pleaded in a whisper, "Tell me it's not true. You would never..."
Rowen bowed his head, unable to hold his tears back any longer, but too ashamed to face his friends if they saw his guilt and knew his terrible secret. Chephren saw the clear, salty tears slip down his cheeks silently and laughed, seeing she'd won.
"As I thought. You are wise to not deny the truth, but I'm afraid that's where your wisdom seems to end. I would not have resorted to such extremes, but your stubborn behavior has left me no choice. Rowen Hashiba and Skye Robinson, come alone and unarmed to the 'usual place' by nightfall, or this boy will die," Chephren sneered as she declared. A misty, red substance surrounded Sage and Chephren like a small, contained tornado, and they were gone. Rowen cried and leaped for his friend as the last words rang out from the red cloud, but it was too late.
"Dammit!" he cursed, throwing himself down on his knees and punching the floor. He bowed his head low in a split second of despair and self-pity. Then he jumped back up and walked as if to leave, but at the doorway he stopped and turned to his friends. Looking straight at Mia, he said, "I'll bring him back. I swear, if I have to die for it, I will not let him suffer for my mistakes." Then he turned to Skye, took her hand in his, and said, "C'mon, Skye. We've got to go. We don't have much more time."
"Wait, Rowen! You can't!" Mia yelled desperately, clutching Ryo's arm.
"I have to, Mia," he sighed sorrowfully, wishing she could understand.
"No you don't, man!" Kento exclaimed. "You're talking crazy. You can't go alone."
"Kento's right. Do you even know what you're going up against?" Cye reasoned.
"It doesn't matter! There's no way we can just let you guys walk into this alone. It's bound to be a deathtrap," said Ryo.
"There's nothing to argue about!" Rowen said stubbornly. "This is the way it has to be! If you come, Sage dies, and you might as well. I won't risk that for this! This is our curse - mine and Skye's - and I'm not going to let anyone else die because of it!"
Skye stood up against him, her arm entwined around his and their hands tightly clasped together. Looking calmly and reassuringly at the others, she said, "Don't worry about us. Mirachtunel won't kill your friend if we go like he asked. And if we die, we die. It can't be helped. All we can hope for is that if we die, he goes with us."
Rowen looked at his friends pleadingly, and they eventually relented. Barely able to control her fears, Mia hugged him, and Ryo, Cye and Kento made him promise to be careful, and call for them if it got too hot to handle. Rowen promised him they would, and he and Skye left on foot.