Kyoko admonished. âDo you want me to call Grandpa again?â
Tasuki froze and felt a bone deep chill pass through his body. Yeah, there were things the agency faced that scared the shit out of him⦠but nothing was worse than a visit from the master of all terror⦠Grandpa Hogo.
âNot necessary Kyoko, just keep that weirdo away from me tonight,â Tasuki finally managed, hoping the old man wouldnât show up in the center of town tonight. He had a way of just popping up out of nowhere when they were out on their demon hunts.
Amni grinned at him again, winking suggestively to make Tasuki blanch before turning back to the group. He pressed his fingertips together and closed his eyes as he called on his power of sight. Behind his eyelids time sped up, day turned to night, and he was flying past the vast skyscrapers of downtown. Amni abruptly found himself in the middle of the city after dark and surrounded by humans dressed up in Halloween garb.
Thrusting his supernatural sight out in all directions, he inhaled slowly, feeling for the things that did not belong⦠there were so many. Distorted shadows writhed all around him, absorbing people from all directions before vanishing from sight. Wraiths that looked like nothing more than filmy spider webs flew around him as if trying to attack, but there was nothing there.
On the very edge of his consciousness, Amni began to hear something sinister, almost like demon claws scraping against metal. Something screamed past him and he was jerked back to the present. He felt a small hand on his shoulder and looked up into Yuuhiâs knowing eyes. Thatâs when Amni noticed he was on the floor with the chair heâd been sitting in toppled over.
âNo one should go out on their own tonight,â was all Amni said as he turned away from his brother and they both looked out toward the rain. The silhouette vanished, leaving the rain to fall within the empty space.
âEveryone will partner up tonight and have their cell phones with them,â Kyou ordered. âKamui will track everyone from here, so call him if you run into trouble. Whoever is closest to your position will be sent to assist. Yuuhi and Amni will stay with Kamui, so he can relay any warnings if it comes to them.â
Kyou looked at Kotaro, âKotaro, you and Yohji will patrol the city square for the police department, and wherever they send Tasuki is where Shinbe will follow. Toya and Kyoko will dress up to blend in with the festivities, and possibly keep their identities safe should something unforeseen happen. They will patrol the childrenâs area, on the lookout for the witch.â He gave a slight nod to Kyoko knowing that was her heart's intention.
âAmni, you and Yuuhi will also be doubling as the âclean upâ crew. Should anything get out of hand with too many spectators, you must be ready.â He silently gave them a look to let them know to do a mind wipe of every living being they sense if need be. âSuki will be waiting with the arsenal van for anyone who needs weapons or a pick-up.â
Toya crossed his arms over his chest, completely satisfied that he would be with Kyoko tonight, even if it meant he would have to dress up for demon night. Suspicion crept in when he realized Kyou had not offered his position for the night.
âWhat about you?â Toya asked suspiciously.
Kyou narrowed his gaze toward the window knowing they were no longer alone within the room. He had felt the air shift from movement not seen and the hidden power within it was staggering.
âThis meeting is over,â Kyou kept his voice calm but demanding so as not to alert the others.
At first no one moved, waiting on Kyou to leave as he normally did after meetings. When it was obvious he wasnât leaving, one by one they got up and vacated the area. Kyoko also took the hint when Kyou released his hold on her ankle. Within moments, the room was empty and Kyou closed the door behind them⦠locking it so he wouldnât be interrupted.
He leaned his back against the door as he looked out at the empty room.
Kyou let his heightened senses scan every square inch of the area before lifting his gaze toward the window. He stared intently at a place directly next to the window frame. He knew this had to be the same entity that had caused Kyoko to pass out a few minutes prior. What he couldnât figure out is why. It obviously meant no ill will⦠almost as though it was simply visiting.
However, Kyou couldnât shake the sensation that heâd felt this entity before. Whatever it was, Kyou knew he needed to find out its secrets and why it was there. In the meantime, he actually humored the idea of staring at its hiding place until it either introduced itself or left.
Darious was sitting on the wide windowsill leaning his back against the frame and had one leg propped up in a relaxed position. He had heard everything and it had left him feeling an odd since of belonging that he was trying hard to ignore. He had always worked alone against the demons and here he had found a whole room full of ⦠humans wasnât the right word for some of them, even though that was what they were pretending to be.
His proof was the fact that the man knew he was there even if he couldnât see him. However, the stare the man was giving him was challenging to his nature. The silver-haired male wasnât human⦠he wasnât demon⦠what the hell was he? Darious frowned a bit until a powerful aura swept through the room toward him. It wasnât threatening⦠merely stating the man knew exactly where he was.
Darious narrowed his eyes at the man⦠Kyou, heâd been called. Where had he heard that name before? He froze in mid-breath and his dark eyes became bottomless pits. It was impossible.
When he had gone back to the monastery only to find it abandoned and the statue gone, he had searched the tunnels beneath the rubble and found the lost scrolls pertaining to the guardians. It was within those ledgers that he had heard of Kyou and his brothers. The monkâs writings had indicated that the guardians surrounded their priestess and protected the world from demons.
He had thought the guardians were a myth⦠nothing more than the hopes of man added to the dire scrolls' foretelling. He searched his mind for what the scrolls had actually said but the memory eluded him because he hadnât paid the fables any attention. Heâd left the scrolls where he had found them, only to return years later to find one more scroll added. It had been about the guardians.
One thing he did recall from the new scroll was that he was older than the guardians and they had abandoned this world the same time hellâs seal had been broken. Even the monks had not understood why they had abandoned him during his darkest times.
Now they were back and pretending to be human⦠living among them as if they belonged, while he was left out in the cold to fight the demons as if it was meant to be? What made the humans accept the guardians when they had always turned a frightened eye on him? All the humans had ever offered him was loneliness.
Darious stood to his full height as he drew his longings back behind the hard walls he kept them trapped in. If he allowed himself to feel, then he would only find pain⦠he had learned that lesson the hard way. Heâd never needed anyone and he wasnât about to start now⦠especially those who were weaker than him. He snarled silently at the man before taking his leave, shattering the window as he went.
Kyou stood there with his hands buried in his pants pockets letting the wind whip through his long hair. He arched an eyebrow wondering what heâd done to anger the entity. He was no closer to finding out what it was⦠but again, the familiarity of it haunted him. Something told him it would not be the last time they crossed paths.
Turning toward the door, he gave a knowing smile. He quickly pulled it open and stepped back just in time to see everyone fall through the entry.
They had left the room, but as soon as Kyou locked the door behind them, theyâd crowded around it, pressing their ears to the polished wood. It took them all by surprise when the door was abruptly pulled open, making them all fall forward and onto the floor.
âI