Decline

They had set up a teleport on a group of small islands off the coast of Shikoku, which was free of human occupation and far enough from the mainland not to be caught in any photos of the horizon. The wind was icy out here, the stone mostly exposed, the few plants that held on yellow and seemingly dead.

“Do your thing. I’m here,” Aki said.

Aki and Kazu were still his personal team. Kazu collected energy on his own while observing the situation, Aki was responsible for direct protection. Naoya took a deep breath.

“I don’t know if you can hear me, but we need to cooperate here,” Naoya whispered.

His body was battered, he knew it. Apart from the bite wounds, his right hand and forearm were gone, and every muscle hurt. He wasn’t even talking about his head, which was temporarily appeased by a large dose of painkillers. When all was over he would look into a mirror and likely not recognise himself. But none of that was important at that moment.

The moment Naoya opened his right eye, the weird sensation returned, his head growing heavy, eyes burning. For a moment, his vision flashed white, then it was done. He blinked.

“How are you?” Aki asked.

“Cold.”

“Naoya…”

“It hurts, but I’m not passing out anymore. Let’s go.”

Aki nodded, signalling to Kazu. Together they shifted into the Deadrealm, then jumped through a new yellow light, falling on the ground in front of Shurijo Castle on Okinawa. The red building looked menacing in the purple light, but the rift above it was even more so.

Naoya could see two agents sitting on the ground in front of the castle, deep in meditation. Yet their efforts only seemed to stall the rift, not to close it. One person was defending the rift from the air. Most of the rifts were like that. Keep the status quo until proper help arrived.

It had now.

“Aki,” Naoya said. “Get ready.”

“I still don’t like it,” Aki replied.

“Maybe you’ll get some years off your service if you help me?”

“I could’ve left decades ago.”

“Ah, yes. Well.”

This time, Aki held Naoya’s shoulders as they chanted together, lighting up the sky together even brighter than the rift. The whole plaza in front of the castle was bathed in silver light, which was so potent, most of the ghosts either fled or were disoriented. When it faded, everything fell back into the now familiar, purple twilight. The agents all fell to the ground, exhausted. And so did Naoya, only he landed in Aki’s arms. She pressed a kiss to the side of his head.

“Not unconscious this time, huh?”

“Barely. But I’ve got you, so it’s all good.”

“Mhm. Flirting will get you anywhere.”

Naoya felt an impossible love for Aki. He had long stopped trying to discern which of these feelings were real, and which were induced through possession. He didn’t care anymore. As long as he had someone at his side, he was content.

“Let’s go back. To that island. We need to get to the next rift.”

Aki nodded, holding Naoya closer. “Let’s go.”

She walked him back through the light, jumping at once from mild evening air into the biting cold. Kazu was still waiting for them, the previous, tiny tear created by Naoya’s intervention already patched up. Since the area was so remote, there were no ghosts to be seen. They watched as some agents took away the talismans Kazu was producing like a machine.

“It worked?” Kazu asked.

“Yes. Where’s the next target?” Aki asked.

“Himeji Castle. We could only put two people there,” Ruri said from inside her earpiece. “Okinawa has reported back to HQ. Good work.”

Aki looked at Naoya, who was already half dead before the whole thing started. Good work was… subjective.

“Thank you. We’ll move out. Naoya, can we go again?”

Naoya nodded. He gave a plea to Hinako and felt the energy surge into his head again, making him sway for a moment, vertigo taking over. He shook his head.

“I’m good, let’s go.”

“Alright, if you say so. Kazu.”

Kazu nodded. He was already working to patch the next tear between the realms. Naoya could see the wind tear at the feathers on his head, and then they were walking through the light, directly onto the highest roof of Himeji Castle. Naoya clutched at Aki’s arm as he tried to appreciate the view instead of staring down from the cascading rooftops.

Even in the Deadrealm, the view was magnificent. Naoya looked out over the park surrounding the castle and at the sprawling cityscape of Himeji City beyond. From his vantage point, he could see all the way from the ocean to the forested hills, between which the city was nestled.

He could also see the rift in the sky above the castle, and the singular agent fighting for their life in the air around it, moving like an angry bee, their punches lighting fireworks. The force of which these people threw themselves into this task was admirable—mostly because almost no one in the living world knew of their sacrifice.

“Sit down for this one. I don’t want you to fall,” Aki said.

She sat on the very top of the roof, legs on either side for balance, patting the space between them. Naoya sat down, glad to have her literally at his back. He pushed down the nausea and drew another talisman from his pocket.

Jugemu Jugemu, Gokou no Surikire, Kaijarisuigyo no, Suigyoumatsu, Unraimatsu, Fuuraimatsu…

Aki huffed a laugh at Naoya’s back just before the chant took hold. Naoya’s body convulsed in her arms as the energy surged, and she held him until it was done. The light in the sky faded, and the agent landed in front of them.

“Thank you,” he managed before he fell to his knees.

Naoya couldn’t see him. He held both eyes closed in pain, his head between his hands.

“This much energy was never meant to pass though a living person, Naoya. You’ve done plenty. We should—”

“No!” Naoya cut Aki off. “How many more places are under threat right now? 10? 20? How can we get on top of protecting the people if we’re wearing thin? We’ll go on.”

Aki pressed her lips together into a thin line, but nodded. “As you say.”

Naoya let himself be led through the teleport light again, which wasn’t quite as bright anymore, because there was a shadow hanging over his vision. He blinked a few times to make it go away. 

It didn’t.