Ascension to Hell

“That is so unfair!” Yui exclaimed, nearly falling from her seat. “You were so against us looking for the boss, and then you go and fight a demon all on your own?” She said once I’d shared last night’s events with her.

“I can’t believe that’s the part you’re fixating on,” I said, displeased with her response. “I just told you they’re watching us even in the bath, and you just want to fight demons?”

“So what?” she asked, sipping her juice box.

“So what!? Are you not concerned by this?”

“Well, I mean, the baths at the monastery were communal, so it’s nothing new to me.”

“Hope, please tell me you’re at least a little concerned about this,” I ask, realizing that Yui’s muscle brain is a lost cause.

“Well… I-in the garden, Adam and Eve were naked and without sin, so… It makes sense that you can look at the naked-” Hope begins, but I cut her off.

“Okay, I guess I’m the crazy person concerned about being watched in the bath,” I say, throwing my arms up. I’d hoped bringing this up at lunch would help me feel relieved, but they seemed rather indifferent.

“Serves you right for not searching with me and Hope just to go fight a demon on your own,” Yui says smugly.

“I don’t need your sass right now,” I say, rubbing my eyes.

“Well, how about we tell you what we found yesterday?” Yui says, grinning and leaning in.

“What do you mean by ‘what you found out’? Don’t tell me you guys actually went and found that boss; what was his name?”

“Shrimpo,” Yui says confidently, despite her clearly wrong answer.

“Shino,” Hope corrects her.

“Yes, thank you, Hope. And no, we didn’t go there, but we did locate it,” Yui says, looking at Hope, who pulls out her phone.

“How could you locate it without actually going there?”

“Internet,” Yui says, grinning. “It was Hope’s idea. I'll let her explain.” Hope looks a little shocked at being put on the spot, but takes a deep breath and clears her throat.

“Well, from the squid, hippo, demons thing the night before last, we know it’s on a mountaintop, and Shino means bamboo. All we had to do was number all the mountains with bamboo forests. Then find ones that were either abandoned or had some kind of strange stories, leaving us with just one,” she said, placing her phone down and revealing a map with a pin.

“We narrowed it down to here,” Yui said, pointing at the pin and then scrolling out to reveal its position just outside Tokyo. “Apparently, this is also where the bodies of those missing kids have been found, ya know, the ones drained of their blood? The police think it’s a serial killer, but it could actually be our demon boss.”

“Missing children?” I thought, remembering back to last night. The demon I’d encountered had mentioned the name Shino and seemed to be about to kidnap Chō. “What exactly was going on?” I wondered.

“What exactly would demons want with children?” I finally asked, my curiosity getting the best of me.

“That I don't know,” Yui said, looking a bit puzzled. “Any idea, Hope?” Hope also looked puzzled, as if it’d never occurred to her to ask why the demons would do something like that.

“Can't say,” she said, pondering. “The kids were said to be drained of all their blood, so the demons are clearly using it for something… But what exactly that could be, I don't know.”

“All the more reason for us to go!” Yui declared in excitement. “If we take the bus, we can be there before dark.”

“Why would we head there?” I ask.

“To fight their boss and save the kids. What else?” Yui said it was the most obvious thing in the world.

“We can’t fight their boss!” I exclaim. “I nearly died last night; we all nearly died the night before, and you want to fight the boss?”

“We didn’t all have our powers going in last time,” Yui says confidently. “Now that we do, I’m sure we can manage between the three of us.”

“You can’t just decide these things on your own,” I say, pointing at her, then Hope and me. “We have a say too, don’t we?”

“I already got Hope to agree,” Yui says, smiling. “Didn’t you, Hope?”

“How did you get Hope to agree to go with you?” I asked, looking to Hope, who looked down in turn.

“She said she would go with or without me,” she whimpered. I looked back at Yui, who crossed her arms and grinned like she was a master negotiator.

“Really? You threatened her with your own life like that?”

“That’s blackmail!” I nearly shouted, lowering my voice at the last possible moment.

“What does your mailman’s race have to do with this?” Yui asks, the smile only faintly dimming from her lips.

“No blackmail is when you threaten to leak information,” Hope whimpered. “This is more like a hostage situation.”

“It doesn't matter what you want to call it,” I say, raising my voice a bit. “It’s wrong, and you can’t do that.”

“I was actually hoping it’d work on you too.”

“What would work?”

“Come with us to make sure nothing happens,” Yui says, dropping her smile and leaning in. “Just to make sure we’re fine.” I look at her, sickened. I knew she enjoyed fighting; I’d known this for as long as I’d known her. I’d seen her beat up bullies and spar for her club, but this was too far. I had to come up with a way to keep her from going.

“But how?” I pondered, thinking of all the ways I could do it. I knew I couldn’t stop her physically; if anything, she’d just drag me behind her, kicking and screaming. I knew she could, and at this point, I believed she would. I could also tell that she’d made up her mind. To threaten Hope like that was a dirty move I never thought she’d stoop to. If there was a way to talk her out of it, then I couldn’t do it. “Think, Yukki, who else could stop her? Who else-”

“I’ll tell The Abbot,” I threaten, staring directly into Yui's eyes. She looks back at me, surprised, but that quickly fades, leaving a much more hostile aura.

“How?” she asks. The question shocked me, and I suddenly realized that I had no idea how to contact The Abbot; he’d always been the one to contact us. If anything, he and The Iron Cross seemed to be taking great lengths to prevent us from knowing their true identities.

“How would I contact him?” I racked my brain for the answer, looking for possibilities, but came up with nothing.

“You can’t contact him either, can you?” Yui asked, a wicked smile forming on her lips.

“Yes, I can,” I lied. “Why do you think he came to save me yesterday?”

“Because you got lucky!” Yui barks, slamming her hand down on the table. “You’re always lucky. You get the special cross that lets you use ice; you get to wear that cloth over your face so you can whisper to your angel whenever you want; you get to go home where both your-” she stops in the middle of her sentence, abruptly clenching her teeth. Her whole face is tense, with her eyes clenched shut, her nostrils flaring, and her lips puckered; she looks like she’s using every ounce of self-control. She relaxes a bit after taking a deep breath and stands, holding the remains of her crushed school bread in her hand. “I’m going at seven, with or without you two,” she declares and steps away from our table, leaving me and Hope alone in the courtyard.

Once Yui’s out of sight, I meet Hope’s panicked eyes. “What are we going to do?” She asks, desperation saturating her voice. “We can’t let her go on her own. I mean, last time she almost…”

“I know,” I don't want her to finish her sentence. “But if we go with her, then we could just as easily end up in the same boat.”

“So what do we do?” Hope asks. I think for a moment before looking upwards.

“Khanethael, are you there?” I whisper.

“What part of ‘I have always and will always be present’ is so difficult for you to understand?” he asks, his shimmering form appearing before me. “Yes, I am always here.”

“Then you heard what happened?”

“Yes, I am well aware of Yui’s actions.”

“So what should we do?” His form shimmers and distorts like an old antenna TV losing signal for a second, then stabilizes.

“Are you actually asking me for advice?” he asks, his words dripping with shock.

“Should I not be?” I ask, wondering if that’s some kind of rule for him.

“No, though it is quite surprising you would,” he says, his aura becoming more contemplative. “A soldier who will not heed the words of his comrades may yet heed the words of his commander,” he finally says.

“So we do need to find the Abbot?”

“That would definitely be the simplest solution,” he says.

“So you can go and tell him?”

“No.” The words hit me like a stone wall.

“Why not?” I asked, nearly shouting. I’d been trying to keep at a whisper, but this had me up in arms. He’d explained it as if it were as simple as becoming a tattletale. Dad had warned me about the dangers of crying wolf, but considering the situation, Yui was sprinting into; it could hardly be seen as a tattletale.

“Strict order,” he responded confidently. “I am only to intervene if your life is in danger.”

“Well, wouldn’t Yui’s angel have the same orders?”

“Indeed, he does, but to what degree he will follow them only God knows.”

“Ugh, you’re not helping.”

“And I am under no obligation either,” he responds snidely. “You are the breadth and width of my assignment; what happens to Yui is not my concern, save for how it affects you.”

“So, will you help or not?”

“Not until your life is in danger,” he says, his aura relaxing. “Until then, your actions are upon your own head.” With that, his form dissipates, and I hang my head in defeat.

“No luck?” Hope asked me, her concern evident in the welling in her throat.

“As useful as a hole in my head, what about your angel?”

“I have a feeling you got a pretty similar answer.” We looked at each other, unsure of what to do next. “Well, we need to do something,” Hope said, finally breaking the silence.

“I agree, but what?”

“How about we split up?”

“Split up?”

“Yeah, I’ll go with Yui to make sure she doesn't get hurt, and you figure out a way to find The Abbot.”

“What makes you think I can find him?”

“He’ll probably find you. Call me crazy, but I don't think it’s a coincidence that he showed up to save you last night or that he only intervened when you were about to die the night before. I have a feeling that he’ll find you if you're in danger.”

“So what am I supposed to do to find another demon and nearly get myself killed?” I wonder how someone so smart could come up with such a stupid plan.

“I don't know, but-” she’s cut off by the ringing of the bell, signaling that classes were about to resume. We hurry to pack our belongings and head back to the classroom, exchanging no words as we do so. Yui rushes into the classroom at the last possible moment and takes her seat. For the rest of the day, she doesn't come over to chat during breaks like usual, she doesn't wave, and she doesn't even look at Hope and me. Once school is over, I try calling out to her, but she grabs her backpack and rushes out of the classroom like lightning.

“So what are we going to do?” Hope asks, looking at me.

“Well, we can’t just let her go off on her own,” I say unconvincingly. “We have to go with her.”

“I was afraid you would say that,” she says, sighing.

It was warm despite the recently setting sun as the three of us made our way up the mountain. The degradation trail was full of roots and sticks. My Niqaba made it hard for me to step over them, so Yui went ahead, pushing the larger ones out of the way while Hope helped me. Yui hadn’t said anything when Hope and I arrived at the bus stop, but her smile said it all. As we ascended the mountain top, I looked back at the city's lights growing fainter and fainter as we went further and higher. I briefly shuddered at the thought of how high up we were, but distracted myself with prayer. I prayed that Yui and Hope had been wrong. I never stopped praying they’d been wrong, not until the path veered right on the edge of a cliff. “Just a little further, and we should find it,” Yui says, tossing a branch over the side. I watched as the branch fell down the 500-meter ravine, smashing onto the sides and into the deep blackness below. The sound of splintering wood echoed for an eternity afterward. My heart sank into my shoes, my knees buckled, and I gripped onto Hope’s hand for dear life.

“Please, God, let her be wrong. Let them be wrong and make this cliff the most terrifying part of the night.” The thought echoed in my mind over and over again.

“Hey, do you guys hear that?” Yui called from the front, either not noticing my distress or ignoring it. I can’t hear anything over my thumping heartbeat, but Hope agrees that she hears something. As we get closer, I hear a bit, too—the sound of chiming bells.

“Ready your resolve,” Khanethael says in a commanding voice. “Tonight, we shall see how well your parents choose your name. Tonight shall determine much, not just for you, but for them.” He points away, presumably to Yui and Hope, but all I can focus on is the chasm below us. Yui pays no mind to it, though, rushing through the bamboo to get ahead. Hope pulls me closer, and I try desperately to follow, but my shaking legs are of no help. Once we catch up, Yui’s hiding behind a rock overlooking a clearing. I crouch down as well, glad to finally be out of sight of the chasm. There, we see a disfigured tree surrounded by a charred black circle and oozing sap. Shimmering in the bright moonlight are five bells hung on the tree, shining like Christmas ornaments and releasing a constant chiming from the breeze. All around it, a dim blue light seems to swirl and circle as if some kind of barrier surrounds it.

“That has to be what we’re looking for, right?” Yui asks, barely containing her excitement.

“I’m not sure what else it could be,” Hope says, with much hesitation in her voice.

“Okay, we found it now. Once we see The Abbot again, we can tell him, and then-”

“No, we can take care of it now!” Yui says, cutting me off and leaping out from behind the rock.

‘Yui, wait!” Hope and I call in unison, but she continues skipping towards the tree. Once she reaches it, she seems to stop; her footsteps become more hesitant as she circles the tree.

“Did it work? Has she realized how crazy this is and that we need to-” My heart sinks as she reaches out to the tree. With a single finger, she wipes some of the sap and brings it to her nose, where she sniffs. “What is she doing?” I wonder, wanting to scream at her. Wanting to yell, “Stop touching it!” and “Come back here, you moron!” but my voice is caught in my throat.

“You guys should come down here,” Yui calls, holding up her now wet finger. I don't want to come; I want to stay behind the rock or run away, but Hope’s hand keeps me firmly placed. Her face is full of morbid curiosity as she begins pulling me closer. I want to resist her; I want to dig my heels in and then run back, but the thought of heading back on my own keeps me from running. Clutching Hope’s hand, I step out and cautiously approach the tree. The wind blows, and the bells again jingle, unnerving me, and we make our final approach. Once we arrived, Yui held out her finger; even in the dim light, I could still make out the faint hint of red.

“Is that?” Hope begins, but can’t finish.

“Blood,” Yui finishes, whipping her fingers on the ground. I looked back up at the tree and felt the scent invade my nose. The entire tree is glistened in it, and the knowledge of where it came from is all the more horrifying. I shudder, less than with the cliff, but my knees still buckle.

“We… We have to destroy it,” Yui finally manages to say. I look at her and see determination in her eyes.

“But how?” Hope asks, turning away from the tree, no doubt to prevent looking at it. “It looks like it was already burnt, and that didn’t do the trick.”

“Oh, you don’t want to do that,” declares a high-pitched, almost squawking voice. I turn to its origin but only catch a glimpse of a deep crimson tail feather disappearing behind a tree. The breezy air becomes radically still as Yui pulls me closer and pushes my back against Hope’s, so the three of us are all looking outwards.

“Who’s there?” she calls, her body tensing up.

“Are you telling me you three came all this way and didn’t know?” it says again. This time, I hear it come from behind a rock, and I look just in time to see a jagged beak pull back.

“We know it’s you, Shino!” Yui declares undeterred. “We’ve come to defeat you.”

“Have you now?” he asks; this time, I can't tell where he’s coming from. “That would make you all fools then, but fools bleed the same red as anyone else.”

“Show yourself, coward!” Yui demands again. Her voice is strong, and her unshaken back helps keep me calm as I peer out into the darkness, unlike Hope, who’s already shaking like a leaf.

“You say that like I’m hiding,” he jests. I feel a tap on my head from a falling twig and look up. There, at the top of the tree, stands a massive crane. Its blood-red feathers cover the moonlight, casting a striking silhouette. From its open mouth, I see rows of jagged, unorganized teeth, curved and mangled into a decrepit smile. I feel Yui pull away, leaving me with only Hope’s trembling body to press against. “Took ya long enough to notice!” Shino sneers; with a mighty flap of his wings, he creates a gust of wind that sways every branch of the tree. Though the bells are silent, the branches groan and creak, enveloping us in a cacophony of noise. Though they’d been tamed a mere moment ago, the noise is deafening now. “Now, what could you three want with Shino, devil of Pride?” he inquired.

“We’ve come to destroy you and your tree,” Yui declares, taking on a fighting pose.

“Oh, have you now?” he asks condescendingly. As he speaks, he begins stepping down onto lower branches. With each step, the tree releases a horrific squeak as if it were screaming in pain. “Then are you also the ones who defeated my underlings? The squid I haven’t heard from in a few nights, and my headless one was supposed to bring the final sacrifice here yesterday but hasn’t returned.”

“Yeah, and now we’re here to beat you!” Yui says, reading herself.

“You and what army?” Shino mocks now at the bottom of the tree.

“We’re the army!” Yui declares, gasping, leaving me holding both their hands. She prays, making the sign of the cross. All Shino does is laugh in a horribly high-pitched squawk, his teeth rattling as he spreads his terrible wings.

Yui made the sign of the cross and transfigured. She glows bright green as her street clothes are replaced with a gi. Her shoes become slippers, and her hair twists into an intricate braid. A dragon mask hides her face as her canines extend into wicked fangs. Finally, her nails extend into wicked, curved claws as long as steak knives.

No sooner did Yui transfigure than Shino snapped his beak shut and formed a demented grin.

“Let’s call the weak first, shall we?” he says, flapping his wings. The mighty breeze blew me back, and gripping Hope’s hand was the only thing that kept me on my feet. My Niqaba whipped violently, nearly tearing my face cloth away from me. I looked up to see Hope standing firm, her flowing red curls barely swaying in the breeze. I now noticed that she, too, had transfiguration. Before me stood not a meek freckled girl who’d be quieter than a church mouse but instead a tall beast of a woman who’d scare even the Nemean Lion; her small hands felt more robust, and her fingers ended in sickle-like claws. A lion's head had replaced her glasses, her face obscured by the mouth’s wicked fangs, and her curled, untameable hair had become a dignified mane, barely swaying in the force of the wind. The two of them stood in abject defiance of the crane, whose wicked eyes held a lifetime's worth of hatred within them. His wings keep flapping as if he’s trying to blow us off the mountain; all around, sticks and leaves fly past us with reckless abandon, but despite the whirlwind he’s producing, the bells are completely still and silent.

“Hang on!” Yui shouts, desperately clinging to my hand. Despite both their hands now having wicked claws, their palms are soft, and I don’t feel anything sharp on my skin. We kneel down, trying to reduce the wind on us and grab a branch rooted firmly in the ground, but it’s still intense. I feel my Niqaba peeling off, one piece at a time, first my face cloth, then my hair veil, both about to be blown away. On instinct, I let go of Hope’s hand and grasped my veil in a desperate attempt to keep it on—a most unwise decision, as it turns out. As soon as I release Hope’s hand, I feel my feet begin to float off the ground.

“Hang on, Yukki!” She cries as I feel her mane wrap around me in a tight embrace. She plants her other hand into the ground to try and keep herself steady; I can see her neck straining to keep me held.

“You need to do as they have,” I hear Khanethael say, but I can’t see him.

“What do you mean?” I try to ask, but I cannot even hear my words with the vortex surrounding us.

“You need a free hand; let go of it and trust in God,” he commands with more conviction.

“Let go? Are you insane?” I think. ”If I let go, I’ll be swept off the mountain. I’m barely holding on with both hands, and you want me to. No, not taking his advice nearly got me killed last night. Now… Now I need to trust him,” I think. I take a deep breath, hoping and believing, against all my reason, that I won’t be blown off the mountain. I release Yui’s hand, bring it to my chest, and pray.

“Dear God. In this-” Is all I manage to get out before the whirlwind blows me from Hope’s mane. I feel it strain and pop as follicles are ripped from her scalp. I think I hear both of them call my name, but I can’t be sure. I’m too focused on myself as I tumble head over heels and side over side through the bamboo forest. Even as I tumble across the forest floor, I still feel the wind pushing me. Branches beat against my body, leaves cover my eyes, and my bones crack as I tumble over rocks.

“IT HURTS!” is all I can think of for a moment. “Please, God, make it stop. I DON’T CARE HOW!'' It rushes through my mind, and then it’s answered. For a brief second, I don’t bump into a rock, and no bamboo smacks my face; I don’t even feel the rustle of leaves anymore. I open my eyes in adoration, ready to stand up and sing praises, but when I do, I learn the meaning of “be careful what you wish for.” As I open my eyes, I see nothing. An empty black void is before me; a second later, I realize my veil has covered my eyes. As I pull it back, I see hell. I see I’m whipping down the mountainside towards the lights of the city before I faint.