Calamity Rising (Deathwalker Book 1)

by Z. V. Hunter

  Maybe I could figure out what that Calamity was, and why it wanted to kill me so badly. Even better, what was so special about it.

  The first flash was of darkness—a pit of black with a terrible ravenous thing at the bottom. The power it emitted turned my stomach inside out. At its side stood a man in a black suit and a tall twisted Shade loomed over him. It's only will, was that of its master and that thing in the pit.

  The second flash was of a cherry tree blooming in the spring. The pink blossoms looked as light and fluffy as clouds floating on the branches, and they fell to the ground like rain. Below them stood a handsome young man dressed in an old-fashioned yukata with a katana and wakizashi slung low around his hip. He leaned against the tree, his eyes shaded by a fringe of black hair, but a satisfied smile danced across his lips as he spoke.

  Then he laughed, and the sound rang like bells in my ears. All at once my heart filled with a mixture of joy and grief. Joy at the sound of his voice, and grief that the laughter would fade away as it did with all humans.

  Humans?

  Next, that old farmhouse filled my vision. However, it was the version in the Spirit World. The memories fractured like shards of broken glass. A child's bright laughter. A meal around the fireplace with the family. Working on the farm, tilling the soil, and pulling turnips from the land.

  Then all of that shattered on a stormy night. The bright flash of a sword cut through the air, slicing down a woman with gray and black streaked hair. She gurgled in a puddle of her own blood. Then came the children, and the words stuck in my throat, ripped my heart in two.

  "Please. Please don't kill them. I'll do anything."

  Finally, the attackers cut down the man. His heart hammered as he dragged himself up the stairs, trying to get to the attic. The place his wife hid the baby. He had to protect it from them.

  The fear turned into a great mass of hate and loneliness and resentment at what happened there, fueled by the spirits of the murdered family members. Just as it felt like my body couldn't take anymore torment, it faded.

  The last vision appeared.

  The bright green of that mossy twisted forest stung my eyes. A familiar black butterfly fluttered in the shadows, and the obnoxious caw of a crow broke the silence of the place.

  The boy I recognized from my last dip in the pool stood there. He smiled at the rays of sunlight that fell across his face. He looked so peaceful in that moment. Young and fresh and happy.

  Then an unholy desire filled my chest.

  Feed.

  His energy sparkled like the brightest star in the night sky, and that Calamity needed it.

  Wanted to feed on him.

  I must've climbed out of the pool at some point. Bathed. Dressed in a pair of borrowed pajamas from Aki—covered with smiling panda bears. I even vaguely remembered her re-wrapping my wounds and covering my hands and a brand-new set of hello Kitty Band-Aids, but the thing that kept lingering in my mind was the look on that boy's face.

  Who the hell was he?

  Why did that Calamity think I had him?

  And, most importantly, where was Lux?

  19

  FOR ONCE I felt better than Aki looked. The next morning as we sat at the kitchen table, she nursed a cup of coffee instead of her usual tea. I joined her and waited until the other Shrine Maidens left to do their morning chores before I spoke. Dark circles lined her eyes, and she grimaced at every sip she took.

  "You can always put milk in it."

  Aki grimaced at me. "I hate coffee, but I have a whole day to get through. So many rituals to perform, and I have to officiate a wedding. After last night. . ." She didn't finish that sentence, and my stomach tangled into a mess of knots.

  "What happened? I heard you get in late."

  She gripped the coffee between her palms and squeezed the mug. "I think we got rid of most of the mark. But she woke up screaming about her sister a few times. How did you free the woman from that Calamity?"

  I grabbed a piece of toast and chewed. It served two purposes. One: it kept me from grabbing Lux's stone. Two: it let me think of what to say.

  Of course, she knew about Lux. She's the only person I told about that forest and what I found there. But she always looked at his stone distastefully. She said she couldn't place the source of power, and that she didn't trust it.

  Well, if he came from the Spirit World and was trapped in a Spirit Stone he was no doubt a Calamity of some sort. That's all we'd ever known. The only thing we'd ever learned. And yet he could create a magic strong enough to banish another Calamity? As far as I knew, the only power capable of that was Ame.

  I finish the toast before I really knew what to say, but the look Aki gave me meant I had to answer soon or else she'd keep badgering me until I did.

  "I don't really know. I tried to escape to the Shrine in the middle of the park, but I took a wrong turn. So, I decided to fight. Well, to exercise it from that woman's body. But it didn't work out quite as I planned," I said and flinched.

  Aki's brows rose, and she finished the rest of her coffee in one gulp. "Then why aren't you wandering around with a death curse right now?"

  I shrugged and touched the stone at my throat. It was usually as warm as my flesh, but it chilled since the night before. Not as cold as a normal stone, but still cooler than it should be.

  And, just like the day before, Lux was as silent as the cave I found him in.

  Aki stared at it. "What did it do?"

  "Let out a blast of magic like Ame power. The malevolent Calamity vanished, but he's been quiet ever since."

  Aki coughed into her mug and set the cup down. She wiped her mouth and all traces of weariness vanished from her eyes. "He? When did it go from 'it' to 'he?'" She sounded like she was accusing me of something.

  "Hey, I've had this thing attached to me for years. It sounds male, so I call him a 'he.'"

  "Does he have a name?" she asked and tapped her fingers on the table. It's a habit she'd always had, and it used to drive my mother crazy. Now she was the one in charge.

  "One I gave him. He's never been forthcoming about who or what he is. He only hints at stuff."

  I couldn't believe I'd never told anybody that before. I'd lived with it for so long, and assumed that Aki of all people would judge me for growing almost attached to a Calamity. I wasn't. Not really. But I'd lived around them for so many years that no matter how much I despised them, I understood them too. That happens when you can see things no one else can.

  No one else but Kuro, my treacherous brain reminded me, and I frowned.

  "What do you call him?" Aki sounded pained.

  "Lux. But now he won't talk about it. That's not important. I think—what if this has something to do with the case I'm working on?"

  I was thinking out loud, and I stood and started to pace around the kitchen. At least it was larger than my own. The table we sat at was small and tucked into a corner only meant for the Priestess and her guests. The rest of the Shrine Maidens ate in the dining room at a long wooden table or picnicked on the Shrine grounds when there weren't too many visitors.

  The rest of the kitchen was a large room with plenty of cabinets and cooking space. It was cleaner than my own apartment, the dishes freshly done and stacked to dry next to the sink.

  "What case? That house with the Calamity?" Her gaze followed me. She poured herself another cup of coffee, but this time she forgot to grimace when she sipped it.

  I smiled. Told her about the case Ken gave me and how it connected to at least two Longneck Women. I also filled her in about the night with Kuro.

  "But that same Calamity attacked you before you got this case."

  She was right, and I felt the flash of confidence that filled me a moment before fade. Then it struck me. "It did, but that's the same night I faced the first Longneck Woman. It could be connected that way. And—"

  Aki shook her head. "And what about that house with Kuro. How is that connected?"

  "It was the home of one of
the missing girls. The Calamity we fought had nothing to do with this, but it did kill her family. Maybe whatever happened to her was kinder than their fate," I said and felt a chill race up my spine.

  That reminded me, I needed to call Ken later today. Tell him what I had so far.

  Aki pushed her fingers through her hair until her bangs stood on end. "Okay. The thing with Kuro was just to seal a dangerous Calamity for no other reason than because it was there."

  I open my mouth to protest and snapped it shut when I noticed her smile. "Yeah. So?"

  She shook her head. "So? If you're just exercising Calamities, why don't you do it for me? I could hire you out. It would be the same, but you'd have somewhere safe to sleep. And, more importantly, you'd have backup."

  I stopped in the middle of the floor and shook my head. My hair hung loose around my shoulders, and I let it curtain my face. "I can't risk that. Not again. You know what might happen, and I'm tired of having this conversation."

  "We were young and none of us knew what we were doing. You can't blame yourself entirely because Mimi was willing, and she knew the risks involved. You can't hold it against yourself any longer. It's not fair. And it's not fair to run off into a situation with a dangerous Calamity without a weapon either, and I'm not talking about those wrought iron swords."

  I scowled and ripped the crust of my toast to shreds. "Kuro told you?"

  Aki nodded and took another sip of her coffee. "And before you storm out, I—I'm not sorry for sending Kuro. Even if you had to rescue him, I knew you could do it. He knew you could do it. And you can't go in there unarmed. Even if your friend is willing to help sometimes. Did he help that night?"

  I shook my head, and wondered why he hadn't done it. Although Lux insisted for years that I turn him into a Calamity Weapon much like the one Kuro lent me.

  Then I thought of the sick sensation I'd had while using it. Not only would it hurt Lux, it made me ill. Maybe that's why he wanted it. Anything to make me uncomfortable.

  "Well, I'm glad he helped. You happy? And I needed his weapon. I wasn't expecting a Calamity that powerful during my investigation. But I don't want a Calamity Weapon. Not like that. I'll stick with iron and my own gumption."

  Aki looked like she was about to ask me why I wouldn't want something powerful enough to strike down a Calamity without rotting, when one of the Shrine Maidens rushed in and reminded her of an appointment.

  Aki sighed as she stood up. "I have to get dressed and get to work. You can stay as long as you like. And I'll have Luna take you to the store room. We have spare iron. From what I hear you're out of swords."

  "Maybe. What makes you think that?" I asked and narrowed my eyes.

  Aki smiled. "You do. You always give yourself away in the end."

  Internally, I kicked myself.

  "Just promise me," Aki said as she headed out of the room, "that you won't go and check out any dangerous leads without assistance."

  I opened my mouth to lie and snapped it shut. "You want me to take Kuro, don't you?"

  "I don't care who you take. Someone competent. I'll lend you one of my Shrine Maidens. Or I'll go if I get time," she grumbled under her breath. "Just not alone. Please. I don't want to get that call. Not about you."

  Not again.

  She didn't say the second part, but it hung in the air between us like the invisible wire that held the bells outside, imperceptible to most but present nonetheless.

  I nodded. "I promise."

  I hoped it wasn't a lie.

  Then she said the last thing I wanted to hear. "If you need help with train lines, ask Kuro. His family owns plenty of them."

  Of course they did.

  20

  KURO DIDN'T ANSWER when I called, so I decided to do my own research. Which meant I went to a café and called Ken.

  The Internet gave me several leads, and Ken helped me narrow them down.

  "I'm not even going to ask how you found those bodies the other day. The entire thing gave me a headache. Do you have any idea how many lies I had to tell?" he hissed at me from across the booth. His brows pinched into a frown above the rims of his glasses while the rest of his face remained poker smooth.

  "You didn't have to meet me in person. We could've done this over the phone." I had my laptop and my phone, both open to different locations of abandoned train lines in the city.

  Ken shook his head and his eyes darkened. "Calls can be traced."

  That was cryptic. "You don't think they trust you? Even after you made detective?"

  Ken smoothed his hands over the tabletop that separated us. "It's not myself I'm worried about."

  I snorted. Another person worried about me? They should start a club. "So, what can you tell me about the abandoned train lines in the city? Especially the ones with tunnels."

  Ken gave me a withering look. "Well, there are about fifty. But, we can cut out a good forty-three of those because they're all underground. Subway lines. The pictures you showed me didn't look like a subway unless it's the entrance to one. And, for another thing, they must be easy for elementary school students to reach on their own. Unless someone took the girls there, but from her pictures we'll assume they traveled by themselves. That means it must be either close to a stop that both girls took while going to or from school, or it's within walking distance," Ken said, and the slightest smile tugged at the corner of his lips.

  "I see why they made you detective," I said and nudged his feet under the table.

  Either the lighting was weird, or Ken blushed. After all those years working together, the only time I made him blush was when I told dirty jokes, and that was for kicks on my part. He never blushed when I complimented him. And it's not that I didn't compliment him—he was plenty talented and worthy of them. But he usually said something self-deprecating. Now he didn't.

  "Well, thank you. I know I already said you deserved it too, and I meant it."

  I grinned at him. That always seemed to happen. Unlike Aki, our relationship wasn't as strained. But there wasn't as much history there either. "So?"

  Ken nodded and pulled out a manila folder. Always a manila folder. Should I buy him colorful ones for his birthday? Maybe Hello Kitty. Maybe smiling pandas.

  "From what I could find out there are only two that suit our needs."

  He pointed at a map of Neo-Tokyo. It looked like the typical subway and train line map you see in any station, except these were defunct lines overlaid with running lines. I had no idea how he got it. That sting to my chest wasn't jealousy. I left on my own. But his resources sure were handy.

  The first place he pointed at was between Soka Station and Gotanno Station along the Tobu Skytree Line.

  "I cross-referenced the schools that all the girls went to and marked them here," he said and pointed at the various colored dots that littered the paper. Each one for a different girl.

  I swallowed the lump in my throat and nodded.

  They were clumped on the Northwest side of the city. The poorer side of the city. The kids whose parents might not have the resources to put up a stink to find them. Yeah, that was typical.

  "So, did they ride that line to school?"

  "I don't know. It's not a question I asked the parents when I interviewed them and, as you told me, plenty of the other families are either dead, or they don't trust us anymore." He said the second part like it pained him more than the first.

  I nodded. "And the second location?"

  He pointed. He had circled it with black felt tip marker. "Here. It's the Nippon Toneri Line. It dead ends at Yazaike Station, but there's an unused one at Toneri Park. It's been closed ever since it was built."

  I stared at the circle, the black ink seemed to swirl in my vision, and the Spirit Stone hummed.

  "And that other one? Was it ever used?"

  Ken nodded. "It was shut down in the sixties after an earthquake. It needed structural repairs that were too expensive to complete at the time. It was cheaper to shut the whole tunnel down and rerou
te the line somewhere else."

  That was common enough. And, Exorcist or not, there was no reason the second location should draw me as it did. Beyond a hunch, of course.

  "Do you think we should check them separately or work together?"

  The look Ken gave me was that withering one again. "What do you think I'm going to say?"

  "Together?"

  Ken nodded. He'd always been like that when we were partners. He never let me walk into a dangerous situation alone. And yet it's what I kept doing. What Aki told me not to do.

  "So, we go now or—"

  Ken frowned, although anyone who didn't know him might think it was his normal expression. "I have to get back to work now. But we can go on my day off. I hate doing this but—"

  "You have work to do. I get it," I said and forced a smile.

  Work that didn't involve me, and I had no right to feel the second stab of guilt or jealousy or whatever the hell it was. Because I'd been the one to walk away, rightfully, or not, it was my choice.

  "Do you think it's a bad idea if I peek at them alone?"

  Ken opened his mouth to say something when his cell phone rang. After a series of 'yes sir's' he paled and hung up. "Sorry, I have to go. Another girl's gone missing."

  "What? When?"

  "I don't know yet. I'll bring you the information when I have it."

  "Next week will be too late. How many other girls are going to go missing before—"

  Ken reached across the table and grabbed my hand. He squeezed it, and the coal around my heart cracked. I thought only Aki could do that. "Don't you think I know that? But we can't risk you, okay?"

  I shrugged and pretended I wasn't blushing.

  Then I watched him stalk out, a new purpose etched into his step, and let out a long sigh. For the first time since Lux stopped talking, I was glad he wasn't there to say anything. He'd tease me relentlessly for that. Almost more than he would've teased me for what happened at Kuro's penthouse.

  Then I shook the feeling away.

  I wasn't going to do anything but peek at the outside of the tunnel.