by Unknown
This time I wanted him dead.
I wanted to rip him limb from limb and make him suffer and scream. I lunged out towards him but the chains sent another shock through my body and I collapsed.
“You shitty old man,” my voice was deep and rougher than usual. “How long do you intend to keep me here?”
“Hopefully not much longer,” he said. “I think I’ve found a way to make you do what I want."
“You,” I laughed. “You know nothing-” I said before I lunged towards him and the chains zapped me again. I felt like they were rendering me weaker with every shock. I glared at him with loathing and hate, but my vision became hazy and I began to feel powerless.
I saw a stack of charms and seals behind Kousuke Matsumoto, and when I looked down I noticed that the cave floor was covered in my blood.
I gazed through half closed eyes to see that he had pulled out a knife, and I screamed in agony when he dove it into my back.
* * *
I screamed. I screamed in pain and terror and no matter how much I tried I couldn’t make myself stop. Before I knew it the sensation of stone beneath my feet was replaced by paper, and I could feel someone frantically shaking me awake.
“Daisuke!” Called the voice of Akito. “Are you okay Daisuke?”
I cracked my eyes open to find that I was no longer standing in a cave with my crazy grandfather. I had instead collapsed in the middle of the living room and fallen face first onto Akito’s paper seal. I could see the symbols softly glowing under my fingers before they flickered and turned back into paint. My body felt heavy like someone had punched me in the stomach, and I barely had the energy to move. I lifted my head up slightly to see everyone staring at me in shock, and even the usually witty Kiyori had nothing to say. Nina’s brother was also holding Itsuki back like he had tried to take a shot at me while I was down.
“Let me go,” said Itsuki as he struggled against Nina’s brother’s grip, but the older exorcist refused to let him go. “You can’t possibly ignore that!”
“Just calm the hell down,” said Nina’s brother. “You just can’t go around breaking rules whenever you feel like it. It’ll make me look bad!”
“What the hell was that?” Asked Kurumi.
“Hey Daisuke are you alright?” Asked Mana as she slowly approached me. “You were screaming so much.”
“Mana get awa-” said Itsuki before Nina’s brother put his hand over Itsuki's mouth to silence him.
“Yo! Daisuke, what did you see?” Asked Taisei as he shoved his phone in my face. “Feel free to describe it all to the camera.”
“Was it depressing?” Asked Hugo.
“Did you go into a super exorcist trance?” Asked Taisei.
“Maybe it was just a fit,” said Nina to her brother. “I’ve seen it on TV.”
“How come he isn’t saying anything?” Asked Mana.
“Maybe Akito killed him,” said Kiyori.
“No way, he’s breathing,” said Mana.
“Daisuke?” Asked Akito as he gently shook me. “Did you remember anything?”
“Yeah, Daisuke hurry up and say something,” said Taisei. “My battery is about to die.”
“Daisuke?” Asked Mana.
Daisuke, Daisuke, Daisuke, Daisuke was all I could hear as they crowded around me in a circle. The pressure was overwhelming and sweat began to pour down my forehead. They all expected me to explain what happened, but I couldn't open my mouth and tell them what I saw. They would reject me if I told them the truth about what happened in that cave.
So I did the only thing I could do.
I fled.
Chapter 12
“Daisuke!” Yelled Akito as he knocked on the door. "I know you're in there. You can't keep hiding forever!"
“Yes I can!” I yelled back.
“No you can't, we all have to use the bathroom eventually!”
“No you don't!” I said. “You can just all go outside. It's better for the environment, and just think about the money you can save on power and water.”
“Do you really think the girls would agree to that?”
I went silent. I knew that it was unreasonable to force Nina and Mana to do their business and take a bath outside, but I didn't have the courage to leave the room.
I didn't want to hide in the bathroom, but it was the only room in headquarters that had a door I could easily lock. It was also one of the cleanest rooms thanks to my friend’s renovations. The tiles were smashed and the wall was destroyed during the attack, but Kurumi somehow managed to convince Akito to get a new bath and full length mirror. A new hair straightener also mysteriously turned up with the delivery.
I helped lay the tiles, and I quickly noticed the patch Kiyori did because it was cracked and uneven.
I wanted to believe that my vision had been a strange delusion brought on by the pain, but I knew what I saw was real. I felt the cave air on my face and the stone beneath my feet. I heard the echo of chains clanging against the wall as I tried to escape. I could remember the pain, confusion, and the million different thoughts which spun around my head.
It had all happened before.
My hand reached for my back and I ran my fingers along the many different scars. I had always thought of it as a random injury, but they did form a pattern like a seal painted on to a piece of paper. They were the result of that terrible event over fifteen years ago, and probably my last memory as an Obake.
I was an Obake.
The organization and Itsuki had been right all along. Did it mean that I was no different from the man eating beasts that I destroyed with my friends? Was I suddenly going to turn into a giant raccoon and begin eating people in the middle of math class? Just thinking about it was enough to give myself a panic attack.
If I was going to be honest with myself, I guess a part of me had always known from the moment Akito told everyone. The evidence had been overwhelming, but the truth had been too dark and terrifying for me to accept. It had been far easier to believe that I had gained mystic super powers instead. I must have looked like an idiot in front of everyone.
There was only one person who was to blame for everything, and he was the man who I had, or used to, admire the most.
I had always loved my grandfather, so I couldn’t comprehend the hate I felt towards him as he merrily cut into my back and shoved anti-monster charms in. I could think of only one reason why he would have gone to so much trouble.
Revenge.
Sis always told me that Kousuke Matsumoto changed after the fox monster murdered his real son, but maybe he turned far darker than she could have possibly imagined.
Perhaps I was just a trap that he created in order to avenge the other Daisuke Matsumoto. It seemed like an ingenious plan. All he had to do was lure the fox monster into thinking that she was going to eat a boy with the name of her favourite meal, then he could undo the seals on my back and unleash his pet monster. Maybe my name Daisuke Matsumoto was just a shortened version of Daisuke Matsumoto revenge plan.
It was too bad that his plan failed and the fox monster escaped. The old man was probably rolling around in his grave with anguish.
Akito began knocking on the door once more.
“Can I come in?” He asked.
I was about to tell him to go away until I realised that Akito seemed to know everything, and he was the only one who could answer my questions. As much as I didn’t want to look at his face, I had to inevitably let Akito in.
I got up and unlocked the door. I then went back to my spot in the middle of the bathtub, pulled my knees up to my chest, and resumed my angst.
Akito slowly opened the door and warily entered the room. He took a moment to stare at my huddled up body, and then walked over to the toilet opposite me and sat down on the closed lid. He crossed his legs and began anxiously tapping his fingers against them.
“Are you alright Daisuke?” He asked.
I had no idea how to put my current emotions into words, so I remained si
lent and watched the water drip from the bathtub faucet.
“Daisuke?” He asked again.
“I’m fine,” I muttered.
“Are you sure, you don’t seem fine?”
“I'm fine.”
“Daisuke I know this may be difficult for you to take in-”
“Difficult? Finding out that your whole life, no, your whole existence has been a lie is a little bit more than difficult if you ask me!” I snapped. I was shocked at my own outburst and even Akito looked taken back. He sighed and looked at his hands in his lap.
“I'm sorry Daisuke," he said. "Please believe that I didn't want this day to come. But when the fox monster attacked I couldn't think of any other way to save your life, and then the organization was already here before I knew it. There was nothing I could do. ”
I thought his excuses were pretty weak and pathetic considering that he'd ruined my life by uncovering the truth. If it weren't for Akito I would have still innocently lived out my days believing that I was normal. But I would have never met him if I hadn't tried so desperately to become an exorcist, so maybe it was my fault after all.
Things would have never turned out this way if I had never come to headquarters.
My eyes began to water and it took every ounce of energy to stop the tears from coming. I couldn’t look Akito in the eyes so I settled for staring at his feet instead.
“How?” I asked. “How did you know that I was an....?” I wanted to say Obake but I couldn't bring myself to say it.
Akito waited patiently for me to finish, but he gave up when my mouth snapped shut and I returned to watching the tap drip.
“I found out from your grandfather’s materials. The ones your sister gave me,” said Akito. “I assumed that Kanako never thoroughly looked at them, because they included pages and notes from what he did to you. At first I thought it was all just research, but when I compared the materials to the scars on your back, and your unusual amount of spiritual energy, I knew there was no mistake. The charms that he put in your back restrict your memories and spiritual powers. It’s all designed to make you look and appear like an average human boy.”
“But I feel like an average human boy!” I protested and hit my fist against the side of the bathtub. “Are you sure that this isn’t just some sort of strange trick caused by a mind altering super powerful Obake? It’s a completely believable idea. I mean, it would make more sense than me being an Obake, or a super exorcist, or maybe I could be some half human half monster super human monster hybrid, and my memories were altered by aliens-"
“I’m sorry Daisuke,” said Akito. “I am, so terribly sorry to say this to you, but I have to do it. What you believe being human is, isn’t. I once told you that it’s possible for humans who had strong grudges to become Obake, so maybe you were once human a long time ago, but what you are now is an Obake that is trapped in human form.”
An Obake trapped in human form. The words hurt more than all the times Kiyori shoved me with his shoulder. I looked down at my hands which seemed no different from Akito's, and I found it impossible to believe that I had more in common with monsters than the man before me.
“Was it for revenge?” I asked. “Grandpa, I mean Kousuke Matsumoto, wanted the fox monster dead right? Am I just some weapon he made?”
“I don’t know,” said Akito. “I’m not sure what Kousuke Matsumoto wanted from you. Maybe he wanted revenge for your step-brother, or maybe you were just a test, but you are the first recorded case, so we still don't know much.”
“This is all so messed up,” I muttered as I tried to curl up and make myself as small as possible. “I guess this means that Shinta and his minions get to kill me now?”
I thought if I was going to die young it would be at the hands of a terrible monster in a dramatic life or death battle. I never thought I would be murdered by the organization I tried so desperately to join. Maybe they would make it quick. Itsuki would probably be ecstatic if Shinta let him do it.
“This may come as a shock to you,” said Akito. “But we have already known about your situation from the very beginning. I did try to explain it to you, but you refused to listen. Although some exorcists are gifted with abnormal amounts of spiritual power, monster detector charms are flawless, and the organization is already fully aware of what you are. Thanks to your sister and I they have decided to leave you in our care, but there’s no telling what sort of actions they will take in the future.”
“Are they really going to cut me up and do terrible experiments to my body?” I asked.
“Perhaps,” said Akito. He then went silent for a moment as though he was contemplating something. “But you should be safe for a little while longer, I hope.”
“If you knew that I was like this from before the fox monster attacked, then why didn’t you tell me back then?”
“To tell the truth I thought about it,” said Akito. “I once tried to tell your sister, but what I realised was that even though you might have started out as an Obake, you Daisuke are very much human. You care very deeply for those close to you and want to protect them. You have your own strange personality, and you make mistakes just like a normal teenage boy. Out of all the students I’ve trained you’re by far the clumsiest and least threatnin-
“Okay, okay I get your point,” I snapped. As irritating as Akito speech was I had to admit that it did make me feel a little better.
“Now, are you ready to tell me what you saw back there?” Asked Akito in a tone more serious than before.
“I was,” I muttered. I wanted to hide the truth, but I was always a terrible liar and I couldn't look Akito in the eyes and pretend that I saw nothing. “I was being tortured by my grandfather.”
“Oh,” said Akito and his mouth even formed a dramatic O shape.
“I was in a cave, and it was dark,” I said while trying to recall what I saw to the best of my ability. “He was, doing whatever he did to my back. It was so painful and I hated him so much, it’s hard to believe, but I honestly wanted to kill him. Why would he do such a thing?”
“I don’t know,” said Akito. “The only way to find out would be to undo the seals aga-”
“No!” I protested. The idea of going back to that place was terrifying and sent shivers down my spine.
“Okay,” said Akito. “Hopefully we’ll never have to loosen them again, but under no circumstances are you to repeat what you told me to anyone else. “The organization belives that you’re here under house arrest. You’ve probably already realised that Commander Watanabe’s subordinate can be sly and cunning. I have no doubt that he's trying to work his way out of this situation and have you taken away so that he can go back to the main office.”
“Yeah I get it,” I said. “You don’t have to worry about me telling anyone.”
I always thought Nina’s brother was out of line, but now that I knew the truth, it did explain why he started crying when my sister decided to put me back in school.
“What about you?” I asked. “What are you going to do with me Akito?”
“As far as I’m concerned,” said Akito. “Your condition seems stable for now, so I don’t think there is any need to take drastic action at the moment. It should be fine for you to go home. I think a good rest is what you need most right now.”
“Sis,” I said. “I need to talk to my sister-” I said before the words died in my throat. There was no way that I could possibly return home and pretend that nothing had happen. Sis knew me so well that she could smell my issues from a mile away, but all I could imagine was my sister’s face contorting in horror as I told her the truth at the dinner table. After everything we had been through together as a family, this could be the one thing that could tear us apart and it terrified me.
I didn’t have the guts to break the news to Sis.
Everytime I thought about telling her my new discovery, I felt my throat close up and I couldn’t say anything.
“How about I call Kanako here?” Said Akito as he got
up and stretched his limbs. “If you agree to leave this room. Souta has spent the last ten minutes doing a strange dance in the living room and I’m not sure if he can hold on much longer.”
I nodded my head and got up from my spot in the bathtub. My legs were beginning to cramp up and there was nowhere comfortable to rest my back so it wasn't like I could stay there forever.
I spent the next few hours sitting in Akito’s study while waiting for my sister to finish her part-time job. I could hear the others walking around the house, and Nina and Kurumi fighting in the next room, but I didn’t have the courage to face them yet.
Akito had laid out all of Kousuke Matsumoto’s materials on his desk, and I ran my fingers over the handwritten pages while trying to decipher why such a kind looking man had done what he did. Every time I thought I understood Grandpa I would discover a whole new side to him that challenged everything I knew. The man was like a crazy onion.
Sis finally arrived in the evening and Akito told her everything in his study while I waited in the dim hallway. I sat on the floor with my back against the wall and listened to everything they had to say.
There was some crying from her side, actually a lot of crying as Akito patiently showed her Grandpa’s stuff and tried to explain everything as gently as he could. He had to pause a few times to comfort her before he could continue again.
I waited for the part where my sister would crack and reject me but it never came. I was relieved that she didn’t hate me, but it only made things harder. I had already decided for myself that it would be best to cut off all ties with Kanako Matsumoto and her family. Sis had already suffered with her family over the years, and the last thing she needed was an adopted monster brother to worry about. I knew that it would be hard for her at first, and Hikaru and Shuro would probably miss me, but it would be better to get the goodbyes out of the way as soon as I could. I knew Akito would let me stay at headquarters until the organization either decided to take me away or have me destroyed.
“Daisuke?” Came the gentle voice of my sister. I had been too lost in my thoughts to hear her leave Akito’s study. She was standing in the doorway looking at me. Her eyes were red and puffy from all the crying, and it reminded me of the time Grandpa passed away.