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Reigen stepped off the elevator into the hall and made a mental note to take the stairs back down. The car had creaked and shaken all the way up to the third floor. Behind him came Mob, who had to trot quickly so he could walk in step with his master. He was still wearing his elementary school uniform even though Reigen had told him many times he didn’t have to for work. The apartment doors they passed were old and most of them had cracks in their wooden fronts or old nail holes that were growing bigger. Reigen tossed up the key in his hand and caught it.
“You nervous?” he asked Mob. This was the first time he had brought his new student with him for a house call, so to speak.
Mob stared at the faded carpet passing beneath him. “A little.”
“You’ll be fine,” said Reigen with confidence. Most of the “hauntings” he visited turned out to be faulty wiring or weirdly shaped mold on the walls. Not that Reigen hadn’t seen real supernatural cases, but they were rare. Although this one…he had to confess there was something odd about it, even for an exorcism service. He looked at the apartment key in his hand. The client, a long-haired women with a dreary atmosphere to her, had handed it to him after describing the case. She said something had been haunting her kitchen. Cold spots, moving items, the usual. But Reigen had been caught off guard when she told him that she didn’t want to be present for it. People usually wanted some sort of visual proof that their ghosts had been dealt with, especially in their own homes. Perhaps he should have asked for payment up front.
As he was walking, something grabbed his sleeve. He flinched.
“Master, isn’t this it?” Mob was holding his cuff and pointing to the door they had just passed.
“A-ah right, of course!” said Reigen, stepping back to it quickly. It didn’t look too different from the other apartments, aside from its number. The lock even stuck when he tried to work the key into it.
“Is it okay to rush into this?”
Reigen stopped fiddling to look back at his student, who had spoken in such a small voice he might have missed it.
“What’s wrong?”
“I know Master can handle anything. I was just…wondering if we should prepare or something.”
“Hm? I mentioned, didn’t I? A lot of these house calls end up being fakes.”
“There’s something in there, though.”
Reigen turned back to the door. It looked the same. Old and cracking, just like the others. Maybe shady by the average person’s view, but nothing unnatural. If Mob wasn’t here, he’d never have known.
Oh wait, he was supposed to.
“Well, of course,” he said quickly, “But it’s nothing unusual. I’m sure you can handle it.”
Mob took another look at the door and nodded silently. He watched as Reigen shoved it open with his shoulder.
The entry hall was dark. Reigen felt along the wall for a light switch and flipped it. The bulb that flickered on was clear with nothing shielding the filament, so it was painful to look at. The hall it lit up was equally unimpressive. It was a dull cream that may once have been something brighter and the paint was peeling at the corners. Why did he take house calls again? Oh right. Money.
“Okay. Time to work.”
He entered and Mob followed just a few steps behind. Reigen peeked into the first doorway they passed. It looked like a living area. Not where they needed to be. They continued to the second doorway.
The air seemed to get colder when they entered and ended up in an unclean kitchen. The floor was dusty and covered in crumbs and nameless bits of food. Dishes were piled by the sink with ants scattered around them and there was a stain on the counter. Reigen’s apartment may have been small and cheap, but he liked to think he kept it in reasonable condition.
“What do you see?” he asked Mob.
“There’s a lot. They’re all pretty small, but…”
“Easy, then. What did I tell you?”
“Mm,” was Mob’s response.
“…Well? Have at it.”
“Ah-” He straightened up. “Right.”
Mob lifted his hand before him. A flash of light flared up in the air and vanished just as quickly. He raised his other hand and more flashes followed. Reigen wished that he could see spirits, if only to watch his student’s work. Mob didn’t look like he was using much effort, even when the number of exorcisms passed a dozen. It was amazing. Of all the kids in the city how had this one managed to stumble into his office? Well, not stumble. He had been looking for a psychic. Reigen wondered for a moment what would have happened if he had asked someone else first. A different fake. He didn’t notice how many objects in the kitchen were beginning to shake and rise. Not until one of the dishes slipped and shattered on the floor. Reigen nearly leapt onto the kitchen table.
“Easy, Mob,” he said, “I know we’re doing a service, but we don’t want to cause too much damage to the client’s home.” Then quietly, “Not that that would be very noticeable in here.”
“That wasn’t me, Master.”
“O-oh?”
The energy flashes stopped and Mob let his arms fall. “Also,” he said, looking around, “None of these spirits seem to be the one I felt coming in. I can’t find it, can you?”
They weren’t?
“W-well,” he said hesitantly, “This wouldn’t be a very good test if I gave you the answer.”
“I guess so...”
By this point nearly every item they could see in the room was floating. Reigen assumed it must be the smaller spirits, since he couldn’t see what was doing it. But hadn’t Mob just exorcised them? How many were in here? Another dish flew across floor, breaking when it landed.
“Careful, Mob,” said Reigen before a damp dish towel slapped him in the face. Alright. He was officially done with this case. Reigen yanked the towel down and scowled at the empty air. He was about to tell Mob to melt anything he could find in here when the cloth flew out of his grip and wrapped around his neck. He opened his mouth to shout, but the knot tightened and was crushing his trachea. This was bad. Reigen furiously dug his fingers into it trying to scrape it off. He only succeeded in scratching his neck as his diaphragm fought desperately to suck in air. Just as his thoughts were beginning to cloud, the dish cloth was ripped off. “Shredded” may have been more accurate. The material beneath his fingers was reduced to bits of fiber in an instant. He coughed and doubled over, sucking in lungfuls of wonderful air.
“Master.”
Reigen looked sideways at Mob, who was watching him with a hint of concern in his neutral face. Yeah, this was bad, Reigen thought as he rubbed his sore neck.
“We should…we should leave,” he said between gasps, “I’m not sure you’re ready for this.”
Their attention was drawn back to the kitchen by the sound of clinking metal. All the drawers had opened up and various utensils were rising out of them, including knives. Lots of knives. This was worse than bad. The knives straightened out in unison, each of their tips magnetizing towards one point. Aimed at-
“Mob!” screamed Reigen as the blades shot towards his student. Mob was much less phased as the weapons ricocheted off the kinetic barrier surrounding him. One wayward knife veered off to the side, missing Reigen’s face by a few centimeters.
“Ah-” Mob’s composure broke. “I-I’m sorry!”
“It’s fine, it’s fine!” said Reigen quickly, “We need to leave!”
A wave of icy air washed over them. Reigen had to cough again as the cold bit at his lungs. When he looked up Mob was dangling in the air, held up by a dark, smoky figure. It was almost man-shaped, but its body quivered and shifted around even as it appeared to stand still. There were two bright, blank holes towards the top that could have been eyes. The only piece of it that looked truly solid was its thick-fingered, claw-like hand that was wrapped around Mob’s throat. Reigen had taken a step towards them when the figure threw Mob through the wall. Not into. Through. The smoky specter was sucked after him until Reigen was standing in the kitchen alone.
He stared. His mind wasn’t functioning right. He should have been putting some sort of plan together or actually doing something, but instead he just stood there. There was a voice far in the back of his head that asked him why he had done this. A dish that had been balancing on the edge of the counter fell to the ground with a crash, startling him. Reigen breathed and found his focus again. The hole was in the wall adjacent to the front hall and he ran towards the doorway there, stumbling over some of the scattered utensils.
The force had created a second hole in the hallway that led into the room they passed on the way in. Reigen ran inside. It seemed large for an apartment and was furnished much nicer than the kitchen, although it had no windows. Reigen didn’t notice of this. He was preoccupied with the boy lying face-up on the carpet and the smoky specter looming over him. One of its hands was still clasped around Mob’s throat and the other was latched over his face.
Reigen considered himself a planner. He thought things through before initiating an encounter, carefully considering the risks and the best way to get through it unharmed. That was not what he was doing when he grabbed a nearby table lamp, approached the specter, and swung it into the monster’s head. It met no resistance and phased through the figure as if it didn’t exist. Reigen was thrown off balance as his swing kept its momentum. He had to let go to avoid being pulled down with it and it clunked across the floor.
The specter looked up. The blank spots in its head were now facing Reigen, but it had not released its grip on Mob. With no better option, Reigen swung a punch at the creature’s face. It phased through as well. Not a second later Reigen’s own face was being clutched by a smoky hand. It was colder than ice. His face went completely numb in seconds, followed by his head, then his neck. It spread down his body, sapping any strength he had until he was dangling from the hand like a limp puppet. Then the feeling worked inward and he could feel his lungs slowing…and slowing… With the little control he had, Reigen managed to shift his eye so he was looking down between the creature’s fingers. Mob’s throat was still held, but his face was uncovered and he was staring straight back at Reigen, more expressive than he had ever seen him. He looked terrified.
Sorry, thought Reigen as his eyes began to cloud, I’m sorry, Mob.
Reigen’s numbing mind was dimly aware something had changed in the room. There was a noise like screaming, rushing wind around him. He was much more acutely aware of his own body being lifted and tossed like a ragdoll to the other end of the room. He landed face-down, luckily, since the wind was tossing items around the room. In this position at least part of his face was protected as his body regained feeling. When he could move again, he threw his arms over his head, shielding it as best he could. Things were crashing into the walls and shattered bit of glass and wood were sprinkling over him. Even the room itself was shaking. Part of his mind tried to argue that this was an earthquake. The other part laughed. It must have lasted for only a minute or two but for Reigen, preoccupied with wondering if the ceiling would collapse on top of him or if Mob was even still alive, it felt much longer.
Finally it calmed. Within an instant the noise, the wind, everything stopped. Reigen slowly lowered his hands. His knuckles were white from gripping. The furniture in the room, or whatever had been there before, was smashed up against the walls. Anything fragile enough to shatter had, and the leftover fragments were blown towards the wall as well. The center of the room was clear and in it lay Mob in the same spot as before. The specter was nowhere to be seen. Reigen shakily got to his feet. He was dizzy from the storm…earthquake…whatever it was that the ghost had created, but he approached Mob as quickly as he could.
The boy was still, with his eyes closed. He was so pale. “Please don’t be dead,” Reigen whispered as he knelt beside him. He reached over his throat to look for a pulse when Mob inhaled a deep, shaky breath. Reigen yanked his hand back as the boy’s eyes blinked open and he exhaled.
Reigen leaned on his arms and laughed weakly. Thank God…
Mob sat up easily, as if he had not just been attacked by a malicious spirit. He looked around the room at the destruction.
“It happened again…” he mumbled.
“Huh?”
Mob’s head drooped and he stared at his hands.
Realization dawned on Reigen and he sat up. “That…was you?”
Mob was unwilling to meet his eye. He nodded silently.
They had talked about his power exploding at times but…Reigen thought of the screaming wind and the shaking building and looked at the shredded remains of the furniture. Then at Mob who sat immobile, his own gaze still on the ground. He was small, and skinny, and extremely powerful. Was…was this really alright? Should he really be here? Trying to learn how to control this…storm, from a conman of all people?
“What did you do?”
Both of them looked to the entryway of the room. The client stood in the doorframe, staring at what remained of her living room in shock. Well crap, thought Reigen. He pushed himself to his feet and grabbed Mob’s elbow to pull him up as well.
“Excellent timing,” he spoke up brightly, “We’ve just finished! Now, if the spirit reduction is to your satisfaction, we’ll be on our way.”
“You killed him.” Her voice was thin, bordering on a whisper.
“I’m sorry?” Reigen frowned.
“How could you?” Her eyes drifted across the room to Reigen. “You’re a hack.”
Well…doesn’t this shed some light on things?
Reigen’s concern vanished. “If you didn’t want the spirit exorcised, you shouldn’t have called an exorcist.”
“You’re a hack,” she repeated, slowly walking towards them, “You couldn’t have killed him. There’s nothing special about you.” Reigen placed a hand on Mob’s neck as she neared. Her eyes fell to him. “The boy…that’s why...” She dove at him and latched her fingers into his shirt.
“How could you?!” she screamed, “He was beautiful! And you killed him! You monster!” Mob tried to pull away. He could feel her nails starting to dig into his skin. He could handle spirits, but people…
“Ma’am.” Reigen took her wrists. “You’re being hysterical.” He slowly pulled them away, keeping his grip just firm enough for hers to weaken. The last bit of shirt was pulled from her fingernails.
“Mob, wait by the door,” Reigen instructed quietly. Mob gripped his shirt protectively as he obeyed. The woman started at the space where he had been standing. Her eyes were unfocused as she repeated, “You…you…”
Reigen’s voice took on a business-like tone. “Ma’am. I’m afraid there may have been some damage done to your property during the exorcism. We will of course make reparations. I believe the cost should be about equal to your bill, so there’s no need for you to come by the office again.” He released her hands which fell into her lap. She sat there, staring ahead and mumbling to no one as he turned and left the room. Mob was standing at the exit with one hand still holding the front of his clothes. He looked up at Reigen’s approach.
“Was she-”
“We’re going,” said Reigen bluntly.
Mob stepped aside timidly as Reigen opened the front door. He had to yank on it a few times to get it to close behind them. They traveled back down the hall in silence. Mob glanced briefly up at his master. He was glaring ahead as they went, wrapped in his own thoughts. He had half a mind to call the cops on her if he didn’t already know they’d never believe a spirit was behind all the damage. No, that wouldn’t help at all. When they reached the door to the stairwell, Reigen stopped. He rolled his shoulders back and exhaled.
“Alright,” he said, turning around, “Let’s see your neck.”
Mob unconsciously touched the marks growing on his throat as Reigen knelt down.
“Look up,” he said, lifting Mob’s jaw with his fingertips. Mob stared at the ratty-looking ceiling.
“Master?” he said eventually.
“Hm?”
“Was that really okay?”
“Was what really okay?”
“The exorcism.”
“Of course. It was an evil spirit.”
“It seemed like she loved it.”
“That doesn’t mean it was good.” Reigen tilted his head so he could see the sides. “It tried to kill both of us, remember? And I doubt we were the first ones.” His tone softened. “Does it hurt?”
“A little,” Mob admitted. He let his gaze drop when he was let go. Reigen met it sympathetically for a moment, then closed his eyes and ran a hand through his hair uneasily.
“Master?”
“Sorry.” He forced a smile on his face. “Guess I should’ve gotten us out sooner.”
“Did I hurt you?”
Reigen started. He asked it so openly.
“Mob,” he said uncertainly, “That was-”
Mob had already tensed up and was staring at the ground again, as if remembering something painful. Or expecting it.
Damn, that really got to him, didn’t it? Reigen still wasn’t used to reading the boy’s minimal expressions. Plus he’d been fuming when they left the apartment. Mob might’ve misread that, too.
“Look,” he said gently, “If anything, you saved me. Again.”
Mob met his eyes again with his usual neutral face. No, Reigen corrected. He still looked pained, if only a little. Reigen sighed and clapped his hands on Mob’s shoulders. His student’s face shifted to one of mild surprise. That was an improvement, at least.
“You did a good job in there, Mob.”
Support. Reigen may not have known anything about real psychic powers, but the least he could do was give him encouragement and support.
Mob did not look convinced yet. “But-”
“Ah!” Reigen held up a hand to stop him. “I’m your master, and I tell you you did a good job.”
He smiled. Finally. When he looked down it was in embarrassment instead of shame or fear. Good. Reigen’s legs were beginning to ache so he finally pushed himself to his feet.
“So hold your head up higher,” he said, “I’d like to see more than just the top of it sometimes.”
“Okay.” Mob gave him another small smile.
Yeah…this was something Reigen could do.