Calamity Rising (Deathwalker Book 1)

by Z. V. Hunter

  "Use your magic, and do something about that," I said and silently kicked myself. Now wasn't the time to rag on him for things he'd done ten years ago. That was mature of me, all things considered.

  He coughed again, deep and raking. Like the presence of the Spirit World weighed on him. "Can't seem to summon any power here. It's like the well beneath my feet is empty. Isn't that how it feels to you?"

  In the Spirit World, the power always bristled around me and begged me to suck it in and use it until I exploded. Only those who did ended up as corrupted Calamities themselves. Not a fate I wanted.

  "Couldn't say. Where is it?"

  "Don't know. I've been here since you disappeared. Where is here?"

  He felt the difference between this side and the human side. Not really the time to discuss that either.

  Scrape.

  Scrape.

  Scrape.

  The sound didn't come from as far away as I'd hoped. Right at the entrance to the attic, and I, foolishly, had my back to it.

  The beams in an ancient attic are not a place to spin around unless you want to tumble through the ceiling and break several of your limbs in the process. I didn't. But I turned as quickly as I could.

  Just in time to see the gaping maw of that Calamity as it peeked into the attic. It slithered through the hole faster than it ever moved before.

  "Hurry. Before it bites you."

  My fingers snagged on Kuro's blade, and I yanked it free of my trench. The power of the Calamity trapped within it pulsed, and bile rose in my throat. I swallowed thickly and threw the blade.

  It cut through the air and sliced the Calamity's head.

  The slug shrieked and writhed.

  "It's weak. Now!"

  I yanked the Spirit Bottle from my pocket and set it on the beam in front of me. This is what my mother trained me to do. I held my right hand up to my face, two fingers held erect while the others curled into an 'O,' and spoke the incantation—the words ancient and powerful as they flowed off my tongue. The best thing about incantations is anyone with magic can use them if they know the words and have a Spirit Vessel close by.

  I couldn't kill Calamities or perform a curse-breaking ceremony, like Aki, but I can do this.

  It's one thing death didn't take away from me.

  Behind me, Kuro muttered the spell as well—strengthening it.

  The Calamity let out a piercing cry as it dissipated into smoke and was sucked inside the bottle. Heart-pounding, I slapped a Spirit Seal over the top.

  My fingers tightened around the blade lodged in the beam, and the Calamity inside it screamed.

  The last thing I remember was falling from a great height into darkness for the second time in one night.

  14

  WARMTH AND LIGHT met me when I woke.

  Had I died?

  Did that Calamity do something to me after I sealed it or—

  No. That wasn't it. Something else rumbled inside my head. Something that didn't make any sense.

  My wings are gone.

  Tears pricked at the corners of my eyes, and I blinked them back. Squeezed them shut and took a deep breath. The room smelled like the spicy incense used at Temples—the kind that drives away evil. The distinct musk of a guy's apartment was a close second. The stringent odor of body wash and aftershave tingled under my nose, and the fog that clouded my mind cleared.

  But I had no fucking clue where I was.

  It sure as hell wasn't my apartment, I could tell that much. For one, there wasn't a pile of clean laundry at the foot of the couch. Don't judge me. It's easier to pick clothes out of the clean pile than shove them into my closet.

  It was larger than my two measly rooms as well. Shibuya is expensive, and I couldn't afford much. It was worth it not to live in a pile of kindling like the cheap apartments on the outskirts of Neo-Tokyo.

  This place looked like a penthouse with huge floor to ceiling windows that showed the city in all its gray-clouded glory. And it was spotless.

  I sat up and pushed the blankets back. They were white and clean just like the shirt I wore.

  Wait.

  My shirt was not white.

  None of my clothes were.

  I'd been wearing a gray dress and hot pink leggings the day before. Now I was in a clean white shirt that was longer than anything I owned. My hair smelled suspiciously like someone else's shampoo. And my hands, which I distinctly remember being full of splinters and cuts, had been carefully bandaged with a familiar cat's Band-Aids.

  Hello Kitty.

  I smiled and that old warmth flooded my chest.

  So, Aki had been here, but I knew this wasn't her place. Shrine Maidens and Priestesses need to live on premises, for one. For another, no matter how large the Shrine, everyone who lived there had to subsist on the donations of the patrons. Sure, Meiji was powerful and popular, but even when my mother ran it we weren't rolling in money. Not the way Kuro's family was.

  Kuro Abe.

  That was the only thing that made sense.

  And it meant we escaped the Spirit World.

  My hand instinctively went to the stone around my neck. Like usual, it was warm to the touch and glowed faintly, but Lux remained silent. Strange for him.

  "What is that thing anyway?" Kuro said, and I started. He stood at the opposite side of the room and wore nothing but a pair of loose black sleeping pants and a tank top that showed off how delicately muscular he'd gotten in the last ten years.

  I licked my lips. "A necklace. Why am I here? And where is here?"

  Kuro smirked, that old familiar smirk that let me know he was still a complete ass. And yet, now, it didn't twist my insides into a fit of rage. It was almost endearing, and I hated myself for thinking that.

  "Before you get angry, I called Akatsuki, and she's the one who washed you, changed your clothes and put the bandages on your hands. I didn't know where else to go, and we were closer to my place then Meiji. Hope you don't mind."

  Of course I minded. His apartment was one of the last places I wanted to be—besides that twisted mossy forest that called me back repeatedly. But at least I wasn't dead. And neither was he, if that can be considered a good thing.

  At the moment, it felt like it.

  "What did she have to say?"

  Kuro wandered into the kitchen and went through his cupboards and fridge. He took out various piles of food. My stomach grumbled as I watched from my place on the couch. "She was happy we were okay. She fussed over you for hours, but I was exhausted and passed out before she left. Do you want to know if she was mad?"

  He had his back to me, so I sensed more than saw the smirk.

  "I don't need you to tell me if she was mad. She was mad."

  Had to be if she knew I walked into a Calamity infested house like that. And—shit—that other problem. "You didn't call the cops, did you?"

  Kuro turned, a carton of eggs in his hand. "Do you like omelets? I feel like an omelet this morning. Considering I didn't get to take you out to dinner last night, I'm going to make it up with breakfast."

  Heat flooded my cheeks, and I would've stood up if not for the fact that that shirt only hit me mid-thigh, and I could tell Aki hadn't left my underwear on. "Dinner? You think I would've gone to dinner with you? I needed the Vessel, and you got yourself kidnapped by a Calamity! Some Conjuror!"

  Kuro pulled out a pile of colorful vegetables and started chopping them into tiny pieces. "You say that like it's an insult, but I think I saved your life a couple of times last night."

  I was torn between the anger bubbling inside my chest and wondering why the hell he knew how to cook. "I like omelets, but you didn't answer my question."

  And Lux still hadn't said anything. Still wasn't teasing me. Where the hell was he?

  I noticed a few wards, like the ones in my apartment, paper ones, scrawled with kanji and stuck to the walls, but they radiated an energy I'd never felt before. It oppressed me. The Spirit World, which always seemed so close, felt far off. In
fact, every kind of magic, including the sort that rumbled under the earth, felt far away.

  How did these wards manage that?

  Kuro's expression sobered, and he ran his fingers through his hair. It flopped on his forehead. He must've put a lot of product in it to keep it back the day before.

  "I didn't tell anyone about the bodies. Not even Akatsuki. And no, I didn't call the police either, though someone should. That's how hauntings begin, and you know that."

  A stab of guilt hit me right in the gut. I did know that, and I also knew that the little girl they were looking for was the case I was working. The Calamity that caused that triple suicide was a distraction.

  Kuro was a distraction.

  However, he said the Longneck Woman he dealt with also had a missing kid. A daughter. That tied together. Even if the Calamity we fought had nothing to do with the missing children, Kuro gave me another piece of the puzzle.

  "I'll let the police know today."

  He threw the eggs, veggies and meat into the pan and did things with a spatula I've never seen before. Okay, so I'm not a cook. It's not like I have time to cook anyway. Plus, that's one thing my mother didn't teach me.

  "What happened before you went private? I thought you joined the force. Weren't you a detective?"

  I pinched my lips into a scowl and threw my legs over the edge of the couch. "I never made detective. I worked in a police box for three years, and when I finally used my power to help them track down a missing woman, they made it abundantly clear that someone with my abilities wouldn't be given the position."

  Kuro looked up from the sizzling pan. "Did someone say that or did you just assume?"

  My scowl morphed into a glare. "You're right. I just assume people hate my magic."

  I'd been born with Spiritual Power, but I gained the other powers after I clawed my way out of Yomi-no-kuni. That was the part other magic users didn't like. How does someone die and come back? If they can't do it, no one should be able to.

  Kuro nodded and shrugged. It's not like I expected a Conjuror to understand. He'd been blessed his entire life. Rich family. Powerful and influential in every way. Even this penthouse was probably paid for by his trust fund. I had the sudden urge to scuff his perfectly smooth hardwood floors, but I held it at bay.

  "Yeah, I guess you have a point. It doesn't mean they're right."

  I blinked and stood up, pulling the shirt down to keep from flashing him. He didn't deserve it. "I know that. I'm not ashamed of what I can do. Now, where's the bathroom?"

  Kuro smirked again and pointed down the hall. "You can get a pair of pants from my room too. It's next door."

  Like I wanted to wear a pair of his pants. But I didn't know where my clothes were.

  I took off down the hallway and found the bathroom.

  I've looked worse. Sure, my eyes were bloodshot and puffy. I had a scrape on my jaw and a bruise on my cheek that I didn't remember getting. Probably happened in the root cellar. Not to mention the other bumps, bruises, and cuts I'd gotten along the way. The one on my thigh hurt nearly as bad as the ones on my hands, but none of them were life-threatening. And all of them were easy to ignore.

  I didn't have an extra band for my hair, so it hung in a tangled mess over my shoulders. I ran my fingers through it as best I could, smoothed it into the semblance of order, and went in search of the sweatpants.

  Kuro's bedroom was another place I never thought I'd be. Never wanted to be.

  It smelled like him. My stomach did a stupid little flip that was more uncomfortable than anything I'd felt in the last twenty-four hours.

  His oversized bed faced one of those huge floor-to-ceiling windows. The view was better than the one in the living room. It looked over Yoyogi Park, the trees thick and dense and gray-green in the overcast sky. Around it, the high-rises towered, all gray cement and slick glass. At night, the whole city lit up like a neon peacock. During the day, it looked as drab as a pigeon.

  I thought of my own tiny place with the bed scrunched into the corner, and the kitchen a mess of takeout boxes and dirty Ramen cups, and frowned. Well, he probably had a maid. That made me feel a little better.

  Tentatively, I opened the drawer. I half expected to find a bunch of women's underwear that he'd collected from his various conquests. Instead, I found the pajama pants. Relief flooded my chest, and I ignored it.

  It was the perfect time for Lux to jab at me. Hell, I wanted him to say something. Prove to me that everything was still okay. Kuro hadn’t just turned my life on its side.

  I tugged on the necklace and frowned. Hopefully, this didn't mean he was saving it all up for later.

  The omelets set on the table next to steaming cups of coffee when I got back to the kitchen. Kuro smiled and nodded like he approved of my appearance. Like I cared if he approved.

  We ate in silence, though I managed to mumble 'this is good' and meant it. Maybe being that rich left him bored, and he decided to take cooking classes just for the hell of it. But why did he have to be good at it?

  That was annoying.

  He watched me chew over his own breakfast, and took slow sips of the coffee, also good. "That place last night. It was the Spirit World, wasn't it?"

  I shrugged. "Course it was. Where else would it be?"

  Kuro shook his head. "Well, unlike some people, I've never been there before. Most of us haven't."

  Shrines don't really count as stepping into the Spirit World proper since they're heavily protected. It was more like a place that hovered between both sides.

  There were other places where it was easy to slip over the barrier. There's a mountain near Kyoto that has over four hundred Torii Gates in a row, which creates a constant back and forth between the human world and the Spirit World. It's easy to get lost in a place like that. Humans do at times, and they're never heard from again.

  It never occurred to me that he hadn't been there, but, why would he?

  Calamities were nothing more than malicious, at worst, and a nuisance, at best. Who'd visit their world unless they had to?

  "Well, don't let it ruin your experience. That was a small corner of the Spirit World, and that Calamity ruled over it. Now that it's sealed, that area might improve. A bit."

  In truth, one could never tell. That house in the Spirit World might be forever cut off, or it might integrate with it properly. I didn't know, and I wasn't about to pop back and find out.

  Kuro nodded and leaned his elbows on the table. He rested his chin on his hands, and I noticed the stubble on his cheeks. The bruise near his eye was darker than it'd been the day before, and the cut near his nose had a few tiny butterfly bandages across it. His green eyes bored into mine. "Tell me about it. The other places over there."

  I frowned. My fork dropped to the plate with a clink. "Why?"

  "Because I'm curious. And I want to know what kind of things you experience on a normal basis. And if that wasn't normal, what is?"

  I might have saved his life last night, and I hadn't punched him in the face—yet—but that didn't mean I trusted him. He was a Conjuror. A member of the Abe family. The people who capture and enslave Calamities of all types for their own gain. Who knows what he'd do with any information I gave him?

  "Every point is different, so I can't really say what's normal and what isn't. Go ask Aki. She knows as much as I do."

  Kuro smirked. "Bullshit."

  "Fine. How about you tell me what kind of magic you use to see Calamities then," I said and crossed my arms.

  Kuro stared at me and shook his head.

  I scoffed and stood up. That old anger flickered. Set my blood on fire. I had work to do. A case to solve. And yet here I was palling around with an old enemy. "Typical Conjuror. You want answers to your questions, but if someone questions you, you don't have anything to say for yourself."

  "No," Kuro said and stood. He reached across the table and snatched my hand. I pulled free of his grip. A few of my hello Kitty Band-Aids fell off in the process, and I winc
ed. "That's not what I meant. It's not any kind of magic that I know. I didn't do an incantation to see Calamities—it happened after my accident."

  "What kind of accident was that? An accident when you were summoning something? Pulling a Calamity from the Spirit World?"

  Kuro's fingers dug into the table. "No. I said it had nothing to do with magic. I was in college, Neo-Todai, when I was in a car accident on my way home from class one day. I don't—I don't remember what happened, but I woke up three months later from a coma. I'm surprised Akatsuki didn't tell you."

  I bit the inside of my cheek to keep from saying something nasty. Like 'why would Aki tell me some guy I hated got in a car accident and was in a coma?' Especially when I was in Los Angeles at the time.

  But she hadn't mentioned it since I'd returned either. That was a little strange. Unless she didn't think I'd be moved. The day before, she would've been right.

  "Do you remember anything from the coma?" I asked, my mouth suddenly dry. I picked up the coffee and finished it in one gulp.

  Kuro shook his head and ran his fingers through his hair. He rubbed the dark purple bruise on his cheekbone. "Not a thing. But when I woke up I could see Calamities. I didn't realize what they were at first. I thought I was going crazy, and my mother took me to a Temple to have me blessed. We also visited several Shrines, including Meiji, but no one could fix it. They thought it was a curse. Maybe it is."

  My lip curled into a sneer. Curse? That sounded about right. "How clearly do you see them? Did you notice the fog in the house yesterday?"

  Conjurors might use Calamities for their own selfish gains, but they can only see them within a Conjuror's Circle. Even then, they must expand a huge amount of Ame power to hold it there. However, once a Calamity is formally bound to them as a Shade, it's their slave until they free it.

  I've never heard of a Conjurer freeing anything.

  "No. I see them mostly out of the corner of my eye. Or like indistinct shapes. I must be close to notice them. But I sense the presences constantly, and that never happened before. And I'd never do any kind of magic to enhance it." He sat down heavily and stared into his empty coffee cup. "So, that's why I became an Exorcist. I figured if I have this strange ability, I might as well use it."