Outpour

"What are you guys doing here?" I ask, dropping my arms to my knees to catch my breath. Exhaustion and confusion were already making it hard to process what had happened, but now that Yui and Hope were here, I wasn’t sure if I should be glad to see them or frightened.

“What the Hell are you planning to do with us? Why did you drag Yukki and Hope here!?" Yui demands, staring down at nothing. She pauses for a moment and speaks again despite no response coming. “Then who the hell did?"

“I did,” called an unfamiliar voice. It sounds like a whisper booming with authority. Yui and Hope must’ve heard it, too, because Yui began spinning around with her fists balled and raised as if she were ready to strike at a moment’s notice. I also looked for the source of the voice and noticed a faint silhouette against the distant city skyline, standing on the street lamp. Hope and Yui were under.

"Up there," I called, pointing above the streetlamp. Yui darted over to me just outside the light's glow and looked up. As we looked, I could barely make out a human with something like a scabbard at the waist.

"Who are you? Why did you bring us here? What do you want with us?" Yui questioned as Hope joined us just outside, and the streetlamps glowed.

“Quiet!” the figure barked, turning to me. I felt an icy glare come our way, but I didn't buckle.

“My name isn't important. If you must call me something, then call me Abbot. You three are far more important.” He holds out his finger, pointing at us. "Hope Grant, youngest daughter of Oscar and Nora Grant, Yui Niǎo, youngest daughter of Min and Wu Niǎo, and finally, Yuki GoKegawa, youngest daughter of Samson and Serana Gokegawa." As he spoke each of our names, he shifted his finger; I felt something pierce through me as he spoke, like he was looking straight through me.

“What’s this feeling?” I wondered as he continued speaking.

“You three have been selected by the powers above me to join a secret religious order called the Maidens of Maria, an organization dedicated to eradicating sin and preparing the earth for the second coming of Jesus Christ in the last days. To this end, you've been given powers wholly unique to you and have had your guardian angels revealed to you. Ask them their names later, for we have far more pressing concerns at hand." His voice is definitive and direct, more like an order than a lecture."Now begins your field test. Iron Cross, give them their sight." Suddenly, a harsh sucking sound bursts from behind me. I turn to look and glimpse two huge red circles and a hand crashing into Yui’s chest. The vaguely person-shaped figure makes a weird, soft chant in a modulated, robotic voice, nearly knocking Yui to her knees. The figure goes silent, and Yui begins scratching at her eyes. I see a flash of green, and my first thought is that she’s torn them out with her bare hands. I don’t have time to come up with a second thought when the red-eyed figure turns to look at me. I don’t have time to react as I feel a hand on my chest and hear the same modulated, robotic voice.

"By the authority given to me as a Cardinal of Maria and the power of The Spirit within, be given The True Sight to see the Spirits without," it says. That very instant, my eyes go blurry, and I feel like I have sand and hot sauce under my contact lenses. Even though I know I shouldn’t rub when I have something in my eyes, I can't control the urge and begin furiously rubbing my eyes. I feel some kind of strange layer peeling off my eyes, like tearing the skin off a fresh fish. When I look down, I hold two brown lenses, like fish scales, and I can see again. I turn to look around just in time to see Yui rush past me. She’s headed to Hope, who’s also rubbing her eyes as the red-eyed figure stands over her. I get a better look and see that it is a person. No skin is exposed, and he wears a dull gray military-style uniform. His hands were covered in thick gloves made from leather and rubber. His thick black boots added a half dozen centimeters to his already impressive height, and atop his head, he wore a curved army helmet. What I thought to be red eyes were actually eye lenses for a gas mask, and displayed proudly upon his chest is a perfectly symmetrical black cross with a silver outline. As he places his gloved hand upon Hope's back, her eyes cloud up and form the same lenses I have in my hands. Yui leaped at the figure, no doubt ready to bring down a devastating blow with both fists upon his head, but she missed it entirely. Stalling mid-air and then falling forward to her knees, looking up into the open air.

"Now you all have The Sight; look forth at the opponent before you."

"For before us? What did he mean by-" My thoughts are cut short when Hope screams. I look at her and see her desperately crawling away from something on her back. I follow her gaze and can hardly believe my eyes. There stands a translucent gray man. His face is old and wrinkly; his mouth hangs half open, revealing only half a row of teeth, all mangled and misaligned.

"You can see us now, can't you?" he says, his stride choppy and uneven but quick, if nothing else.

"NO! STAY AWAY!" Hope screams, trying to get up, but she trips over her own feet in panic. I rush towards her to help her up, but Yui’s faster. She rushes right past Hope and steps up to the gray man, raising a fist to uppercut him, but her fist goes right through him. First, her fist, then her arm, and finally, her whole body is enveloped by the mass of the ghostly gray man. She pops out the other side as if she were walking through open air and lands on her knees when she fails to regain her balance. I reach Hope just as Yui lands and try to help her up. Hope’s legs are like jelly, though, and the more I try to help her up, the tighter her panicked clinging becomes, her nails digging into my arm, trembling like a trapped animal. Soon, I can’t run away any better than she can.

“STAY AWAY! STAY AWAY FROM ME!” Is all she can manage to scream while holding me in an iron-like vice as the gray man approaches. Suddenly, his face was less gray. A shoe comes exploding through his face, and then a leg. Yui had tried jumping and kicking him, only to pass right through again. She lands on her feet this time, just in front of us, and she looks horrible. Her face was dripping with sweat, her breathing was heavy, and I swear I could hear her heart beating from where I was standing.

“Don’t *huff* Worry,” she says between deep, labored breaths."I’ll *puff* slow him *huff* down while *puff* you and Hope *huff* run.” She lunges up, stomping on the ground and swaying with her body mass.

“You won’t get anywhere like that,” said a voice from above. I turned to look and saw the same figure still standing on the streetlight.”In order to defeat him, you must-”

“Nobody asked you!” Yui screams. She slinks down a bit after screaming so loud, and I can’t let her go off again.

“Yui, look at yourself. You can’t fight that thing alone. We should-”

“Just shut up and RUN!” She yells, charging at the gray man again with a thunderous battle cry. She strikes with her fists, kicks, knees, and elbows. Each time, she passes right through the man and looks more weary. Her cheeks sink into her face, dark circles form around her eyes, and she becomes completely drenched in sweat, only to be completely dry in a matter of seconds. Nothing she does even slows down the gray man. With each step he takes, Yui lashes out even more violently, but each strike just seems to weaken more. By now, she looks like she can hardly stand, let alone fight. Her legs shake and buckle, and she drops to her knees, panting.

“Yui!” I call, trying to stand, but Hope has me in such a tangle that I can’t lift my feet.

“This isn’t real; it’s just a dream. This isn’t real; it’s just a dream. This isn’t real; it’s just a dream,” she repeats like it’s a chant that’ll protect her, almost drowning out the voice behind me.

“If you are worried, then go after her,” booms my father’s voice from behind me. My mind is flooded with a brigade of questions faster than I can think.

“Papa? How’d he get here, why-” And then it’s cut just as quickly. Behind me isn’t my father but the same ball of light as before. He still doesn't have a body, but I can feel his gaze upon me.

“Why do you panic? Has The Lord not given you all you need to face the foe before you?” he asks, looking down at me."Have you not read when-”

“Fine then!” I call, reaching out my hand in a gesture of opposition. I look up to the ghost, still sauntering closer to me and Hope.

“Please, please let this work,” I think, holding it firm in my clenched fist.

“In the name of the Lord, stop!” I declare, but the ghostly man doesn't so much as flinch. He keeps sauntering as if nothing's happened. In fact, the only change is that Yui begins screaming behind him. Her words are in Chinese, so I can’t tell what she’s saying, but it sounds like she’s tearing her throat out, shouting at the top of her lungs.

“That didn’t work. Why didn’t it work? I should’ve worked. Did I not say it loud enough? Or maybe I need more focus?” I wonder, trying to think of what to do."I can’t move with Hope clinging to me, and if he gets any closer, he’ll…”

“No, Yukki, you need to use the cross and-”

“Why would that help anything?” I demand, trying to scoop Hope into my arms and pull her."It’s just a piece of metal; what’s it going to do?” Once again, I feel the light gaze upon me, though it’s different now. Instead of staring daggers into my back, he’s chilling me. I feel my entire chest plummet in temperature; it’s as if ice were poured down my shirt, focused right above my sternum.

“No, wait, it’s just on my heart where-” I don’t finish the thought, pulling on the chain necklace holding my cross. As I do, I’m nearly blinded by the fierce blue light shining from it. As I hold it in front of my face, I feel an icy wind worse than any blizzard I’ve ever experienced blowing from my cross. Icr condenses around it and covers it in sharp ends. I chuck it as hard as I can out of fear or confusion, I don't know, but it flies from my hand like a snowflake. Landing just in front of the gray man. A tsunami of ice bursts from the spot the cross touched and cascades towards it. Huge spikes taller than I am begin to rampage their way through the park, encasing the gray man. “I got him!” I think about cheering when I see the spikes continuing straight on towards Yui.

“Yui, look out!” I called, but it was too late. She looks up towards me, and I can see the defeat in her eyes. She’s completely exhausted, unable to stand, let alone dodge the glacier of blades coming for her. And then she’s gone. Entombed just like the gray man, frozen with a look of shock on her face."YUI!” I call again, finally shoving Hope away and rushing towards her. I slip and stumble on the ice a bit as I make my way towards her. I bash my fists on the ice, but it’s so cold the traces of sweat on my sleeves freeze, stuck to it, pinning me.

“WHY IS THIS HAPPENING!” I scream, falling to my knees.

“Because you are cold,” says the light hovering over me."No man, when he hath lighted a candle, covereth it under a vessel, neither does he light a candle with frozen matches.” He looks down at me with an apathetic gaze but turns away soon enough." And now bear witness to the fruits of a cold faith,” he commands, turning my chin to look back at Hope. I see her alone, crawling backward on her hands, screaming to stay away between sobs. I wondered what she could be screaming about when a gray hand phased through the ice. The gray man who’d been completely encased was moving as if nothing had happened. It looked like the ice was slowing him down, but by no means stopping him. He pulled both hands and then his head from the ice, continuing to move toward Hope.

“No, Hope!” I thought, trying to pull my hands from their frozen states, but I only tore at my sleeves.

“Help her!” I demanded, turning towards the light."You can stop him, can’t you? Do something!”

“I most certainly could,” he said indifferently. “But I may no more stop this than the great betrayal.”

“Would you stop with your ridiculous pros and just-” My words are stopped by my hands becoming free from ice and my yank sending my flat on my butt. I looked up and saw a huge hole in the ice where I’d been stuck, too, and Yui had been entombed. Yui was nowhere to be seen; not even a scrap of clothes or ashes had been left.

“Did he incinerate her?!” I wondered."He had threatened to hurt Pearl, and Papa always said never to trust someone who’d needlessly hurt dogs. Maybe he really did-”

“Augh,” cried an ethereal voice to the side. My eyes moved on their own as I saw the gray man being held by the throat by a radiating figure. The humanoid figure wore a turquoise martial arts gi and had a short pixie cut tied in a shorter braid. Its hands end in massive claws, and a draconic mask covers her face. The ghostly man squirms and grasps at her grip, but she doesn't relent. With a flick of its wrist, it sends the gray man flying backward across the park. He lands in a bush near the wall without rustling it. As the man disappears out of sight, the dragon-masked figure turns its eyes to Hope. It bends down and offers her a hand, but Hope bats it away.

“No more spirits,” she cries, finally managing to climb to her feet and run toward me, falling into my arms as she does so. The dragon-masked fighter follows Hope’s steps with their eyes and begins walking our way once Hope reaches me.

“What’s wrong with you?” It asks, in a deep guttural voice one would expect from a dragon.

“I’m done, I’m done, I’m done, I’m done, I’m done,” Hope kept repeating like a broken record, clinging to me even tighter than before.

“Come on, Hope, I saved you from that ghost, and this is my thanks?”

“How do you know her name?” I demand as Hope buries her face deeper into my chest.

“Is this another one of your jokes? I don’t understand?”

“Jokes, I don’t understand?” I wonder, looking at the dragon-masked figure.

“Yui?” I ask hesitantly.

“Who else would I be?” The dragon-masked figure said, "What do I look different?” She asks, looking down at her new clothes.

“The mask isn’t doin' you any favors.”

“Mask?” Yui asks, reaching up to her face. Her clawed hands fumbling around the edges and fine points.

“Now may not be the best time for a fashion show,” calls the Abbot. I turn to see he’s still atop the streetlight. Arms crossed, posture straight as a steel pillar. He deliberately uncrossed one arm and pointed down towards the bushes, where Yui had thrown the gray man in. I looked over and saw his ghostly head peeking out from the bushes. His maw opened, revealing more teeth as his jaw unhinged. The rage in his eyes burned so hot I felt like it could melt the ice around us. He wasn’t speaking anymore, just howling like a rabid hyena. He charged directly at Hope and me, leaping up in his final approach. Just as he was about to land, Yui appeared between us. She was so fast, I hadn’t even seen her move. She struck out with her leg, delivering a kick that sank into the gray man’s face. Her foot vanished into his head, and for a moment, I was afraid it was just going to pass through like it had at first, but as they reached the ground, Yui yanked her foot back, leaving the man’s face turned in on itself like a mangled clay figurine. He fell on his back but was up in a flash. Even though I couldn’t see his eyes, I could still feel his icy glare radiating from the crater of his face. He charged again; he couldn’t see and veered off to the right. Yui took full advantage of that and tripped him, then bent his arm back into a joint lock. But his arm didn’t bend properly. Instead of flexing like bones, it bent and wrapped more like a pipe cleaner. Allowing her to wrap his arm around her like an eerie taffy puller. She wrapped again and again, bending all of his limbs out of shape, smashing his face further and further into the ground.

“Stop!” Calls a commanding voice from above, making me look upwards on reflex, more than anything else. It was The Abbot, finally adjusting his posture to take a step from the streetlamp and then falling silently to the ground. He walked over to Yui, who still stood over the mangled remains of the gray man. He walked as silently as he’d fallen, never making a sound."Congratulations on your victory,” he says, looking at Yui."Now, it’s simply a matter of exercising him.”

“Excer-what-?” Yui asked, but The Abbot didn’t reply. Simply kneeling at the man’s remains. He draws a small cross on the man's chest, saying, "Lord, we send this soul to your dominion; deliver upon him your grace as you have me." In a swift motion, he plunges his palm into the man's chest, causing a dim yellow glow to radiate from his chest to his entire body. Once the yellow light emanates from his whole body, the man begins to fade away; his body flutters away like dust in the wind. It flies upwards into the night sky, for as far as I can see against the city skylines.

The Abbot stands and looks directly at me. A visor covers his eyes, so I can’t see them, but I still feel his intense gaze upon me. He reaches out a hand and motions for me to approach. As I take Hope’s hand and begin standing, Hope continues her shallow weeping as she presses her face into my back.

“It’s just a bad dream, it’s just a bad dream,” she says, as if chanting it will make it so.

“Is she going to be okay?” I wonder, peeking back at her. Once I look back, I see Yui dressed in the same way she always was. The dragon mask and turquoise gi are gone, and the massive claws that had covered her hands have been replaced with her short, slender fingers.

“Hope!” she calls, rushing up to us. She stops after a single step, looking down at her hands and feeling her face.

“Don't look so surprised,” The Abbot calls. “That form is for combat; you turned back once the fight was won.” He begins walking towards us, and Yui turns, taking a fighting stance.

“Oh yeah, smart guy, then why don't I bring it back to fight you?” She says, clasping her hands together as if to pray.

“As good of a first encounter as that was, I wouldn’t dare ask for a miracle that astonishing.”

“We’ll see about that!” Yui declares, muttering a prayer to herself and then finishing with the sign of the cross. As soon as she’s done, she poses as if she’d expected to transform again, but nothing happens.

“And so we have seen,” he says, walking past Yui. She turns to grab at him, but he leans forward, completely dodging her grab without interrupting his steps. Yui catches her balance and looks at him with a mix of astonishment and disgust, as if she couldn’t believe he did that so effortlessly. He walks towards me and Hope. I feel a pit of anxiety well up in my chest.

“If he can dodge Yui so effortlessly like that, what could I do to stop him?” I think back to the basic self-defense training Papa had put me through, but nothing comes to mind.

“Come along,” he said in a calm, gentle tone as he passed Hope and me. It was so different from the harsh, commanding voice he'd been using earlier that I thought it was a different person.

“Well… I can’t see his face or any distinguishing features… So it very easily could be someone else… He does seem to blend into the background.” I thought as he led us to a bench. He had us sit in a row, Hope between Yui and me. Neither Hope nor Yui was the touch-feely type, but Yui gave no resistance as Hope clutched both of us as hard as she could. He stood in front of us, waiting patiently for us to settle in before speaking.

“That was well done,” he says, a bit of joy leaking out from his masked face. “It isn’t uncommon for all initiates to completely shut down upon their first interaction with the spiritual, so to only have one is very good indeed.” I wasn’t sure if he was putting on an act. His words seemed oddly stiff, as if he’d been rehearsing these lines, but his aura gave me the sense that he still meant every word. “I’m sure you all have plenty of questions, but please hold off on them for your guardians to answer as they see fit. I’ll give you some basic instructions and then send you on your way.”

“That’s a load of crap,” Yui yelled. She sat and leaned back with her legs crossed. One leg bounced impatiently as she scowled menacingly. It was as if she were trying to impersonate a delinquent that you wouldn’t want to mess with, but it didn’t seem to be working.

“Be that as it may, Niǎo-san, we have rules; you will either follow them on your own, or I will enforce them by any means necessary.” His arms were crossed, and he made no movements towards his sword, but his words were so sharp he didn’t have to.

“You don’t scare me,” Yui challenges, her eyes fierce.

“I wasn’t trying to,” he said, matching her volume. “I prefer you follow the rules out of love for God and helping others, but should that fail, then you will be made to follow them out of fear of consequences.” Hope gripped my arm a little tighter. His words may not have scared Yui, but they affected Hope.

“Just tell us the rules,” she peeped out so quietly I could barely hear. I thought there was no way he’d hear her, but he responded immediately.

“Rule number one,” he said, holding up a single finger. “Tonight's events stay between those present here tonight. They aren’t to be discussed or shared with anyone not present, not your classmates, not your pastor, not even your parents. Should you attempt it, your guardian shall put a stop to it by any means necessary.” He took a moment to look sternly at each of us. When he got to Yui, she scoffed and looked away. “Rule number two,” he said, pointing up another finger. “Follow the orders and directives of those appointed over you, so far as they align with the laws of God. At this time, that means both your guardians and I.”

“That seems rather convenient for you, doesn't it?” Yui challenged.

“Almost as convenient as a chance to release your unrelenting aggression on somebody other than your unwilling new clubmates, wouldn’t you say?” His head turned to look directly at Yui, who straightened her posture.

“How do-”

“Don’t bother asking, I won't tell you, and it’s only getting later,” he says, eying her more intensely. Once the point had been made, he turned back to the rest of us, pulling up a third finger. “And finally, no unnecessary fight. Until you’ve proven yourself, you will never go into combat alone. There will be no exceptions to this rule.” He tilts his head upwards to look above us and continues speaking. “Should they be ambushed, protect them by any means necessary, up to calling upon the full army of heaven should the need arise. Are we clear?”

“Yes, sir,” says a voice above me. I look up and see the same glowing light from before hovering above my head. The experience with the gray man had been so terrifying, I’d almost forgotten about him.

“Great, now we’ve gotten that established, we can move on,” the black-clad figure said, clapping his hands to emphasize the point. “You each get one question; don’t waste it or-.”

“Who the hell are you?” Yui said before he could finish. He turned deliberately to look at her.

“That’s a waste of your question,” he says, swapping back to his serious tone. “I already told you I’m your Abbot. If you don’t know what that is, look it up.”

“That’s not what I mean,” Yui said, looking like she was about to leap off the bench. “What’s your name?”

“As far as you’re concerned, my name is Abbot. If you’re unhappy with that, then be unhappy.”

“What if I call you Jacka-”

“Then I’ll ignore your childish name-calling for what it is and pray God gives you a kinder tongue. Next question, he asks, turning away from Yui and looking to Hope. She hugged my arm a little tighter and made herself smaller before speaking.

“What was that thing Yui fought?” She said in a voice so small it would make a church mouse seem like roaring thunder.

“That,” the Abbot says, a smile seemingly plastered on his face. “Was a wandering spirit.” His tone is much less sly and more pleased than he was with my question. “When a person dies, they go to one of three places to wait out the time until the resurrection and judgment in the last days. Those covered by the blood of our Lord Jesus are called by the angels and ascend into Heaven and await there in the presence of the saints and angels,” he says, pointing upwards to the sky. “Those whose debt of sin is particularly great, or who have lived life particularly far from God, are dragged into Hell by demons or plunge in willingly. There, they await their final judgment in the company of demons in the darkness and separation of Hell,” he says, turning his finger down to the ground. “But those that died without that grand of a debt, relatively speaking, are left here,” he says, gesturing to the park around us. “They are left to wander the earth as spirits, ghosts, Yūrei; they're called many things by many people. Here, they await the day of resurrection, surrounded by living people but almost never seen by them. If they're unlucky, they'll be targeted by a demon and dragged down into Hell, so being exercised by us is preferable as it gives them a chance to be given grace, as our earlier friend was.” His words are slow and calculated, and again, I get the feeling that his words are rehearsed somehow.

“Last question,” he says, looking directly at me. I look back at Yui and Hope, and they look at each other as if carefully contemplating what they should ask. Finally, I came up with a question.

“Who was that other person with you?” I ask.

"Who me?" asks the man in soldier attire, appearing behind us from seemingly nowhere. Hope jumps forward, almost falling on her face if not for having one arm each hooked around me and Yui. The Abbot does not react in a way I can see. “Why, I'm the Iron Cross, though that's just a code name," he explains, walking around to the front of the bench and holding out a hand to shake. “You guys don't find out my real identity till the end of the book, so please refer to me as such for now,” he says in an utterly severe tone. The insanity of his words takes the three of us by surprise, but seems to have little effect on the Abbot. “Also, Yukki, I'm a woman, so if you could stop referring to me as 'he' to the audience, that'd be great. I wanted to correct you earlier, but I knew it'd completely break the tone, so I restrained myself.” The three of us just looked at him her with a blank stare. Finally, the Abbot breaks the silence with a sigh.

“You get used to that after a while; for now, just think of her as a crazy colleague.”

"How rude," he she says, turning back to the Abbot. “Calling me crazy when I'm the only one who believes in your little scheme.” His Her words seem to put The Abbot on edge.

“And with that, we'll be leaving,” he says, grasping the Iron Cross's hand.” Make your way home, don’t worry about your parents. They should be sound asleep and entirely unaware of your absence from home. Thank your guardian angels for that, and ask them any more questions.” He looks above our heads and keeps speaking. “Keep them from harm and keep an eye out for my next orders, understood?"

“Yes, sir,” the light says, giving a gesture that bleeds with respect and fealty. With that, The Abbot vanishes in a plume of smoke, leaving just the three of us alone in the park with many more questions than answers.