That night, I stayed in the apartment in the Cirsam District. With nowhere else to go, it seemed better than the alternative of living on the streets. Damien never came back that night, not that I would be caught unawares. I dozed off once for about thirty seconds. It was not that I had no desire to sleep; no, I tried desperately to sleep and escape my waking reality. No relief came, and my alarm finally rang signifying the beginning of a new day.

  I was scared to go back to school, but I had questions that needed to be answered. I had grabbed my pass before I left home, and I boarded the metro once again bound for what was supposed to be a place of happiness and excitement for the future. Again, I stared at the daunting concrete giant when I came to the gates of Toriyama High. Off to my right sat the same patrol car that had been present the day prior.

  "Excuse us," a voice called out.

  Keep walking, find a crowd to duck into. The last thing I need right now is the authorities after me.

  "You there!"

  "Me?" another voice answered behind me.

  "Yes, you, young man," another voice responded with a grunt. "We have some questions for you. Come over here."

  Being a ghost has its perks, I guess.

  Outside of the classroom, exhausted cleaners filled the halls after a long night of work. I rounded the corner to see the desk where I had been violated and almost murdered less than twenty-four hours prior. It was completely sanitized, and the area had been utterly sterilized. There lacked any hint of the brutality that had taken place, save one.

  I touched the frame of the door to feel a deep cut in the wood. I peeked outside of the classroom and noticed a small spray of blood on the ceiling. I thought back to the incident as I sat down at my desk.

  Komamura was in the doorway, and the cut was about where her face was, I think. Did Damien do something after I passed out? What about the blood on the ceiling? That was way too far back to be hers, and if I try to get anything off of it, I'll only draw unwanted attention.

  Ms Kimura walked into the classroom to signal the start of homeroom; Denki, Chika, and Rito were missing, though. I glanced over to where she had sat the day before, less than ten meters away but in a whole other world all the same.

  "For those of you that do not know," Ms Kimura looked up from her podium with an uncharacteristic gaze. "A student of Toriyama High was taken from us yesterday. Any who wish to speak with the team of counselors are welcomed to do so; we will be dismissing you all after homeroom today to grieve in whatever way you see fit. Her memorial will be at Bitoné Memorial Gardens tomorrow afternoon. Those that wish to attend will be excused from classes for the day."

  She's dead then? Both good and bad, I guess...

  Huh?

  Why... am I crying?

  She took everything from me! I should hate her! Wh—

  Oh, that's right... She was still our friend.

  I flashed back to the previous evening, staring up into her animalistic eyes. Within them, I saw unbridled insanity, but I also saw something else, helpless regret. As she drooled over me, she also fought back tears. Like so many others, she was a prisoner to her own ability. Whatever had brought her to that point was so far outside what she had wanted in life that along with all of my being, she desperately wanted death.

  As the remainder of homeroom went on, I lost track of everything happening around me. My mind replayed the happy times as the tears slowly formed in the corners of my eyes before trickling down my cheeks. I would never know what had thrown her into the pit of insanity, be it her own ability, a consequence of such, or another actor. Before I knew it, I sat in an empty classroom. I forced myself up and returned to my new home far away from all I had known.

  *  *  *  *  *

  If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  Clouds filled the sky that dreary afternoon. It reminded me of Hiro's funeral. The memorial gardens were tucked away on the western side of Hoenn City, a massive expanse of land on the incline to the mountains with hills and a breathtaking view of the city itself. The winding driveway through the gardens was covered for several dozen meters both ways from the site of Kaori's service. I myself sat on a hill well over one hundred meters away looking down at the precession.

  Almost every last part of the service reminded me of his: the speakers would get choked up every few words, her grandparents along with presumably her mother and uncle simply sat and mourned, and my friends sat almost in the front rows. The black and grey dots on the field were unmistakable. One by one, the group shrank over the course of half an hour after the conclusion of the service. Once almost everyone had left, I stood up and began my trek down.

  Eventually, I made it to the driveway as cars slowly passed. One such car held the light of my life, Chika. Time grinded to a halt, and I turned to face her as she sat in the back seat. Ino was in the middle seat with Rito to her left. She was still almost buried in his chest as she let loose the flood gates of her eyes. Chika looked outwards with her beautiful jade eyes. They were horribly red and puffy from all the crying, and her face told me that she was about to cry again.

  I softly placed my hand on the window as I felt tears filling my own eyes again. I would have given anything for her to remember me, to be the comfort to her that Rito was to Ino. Even if the way I felt would forever be one-sided, I would do anything to keep her from shedding one more tear. As I pulled away, my eyes shifted down, and I beheld the half-sun hanging around her neck. Fighting the tears and nearly gasping for air, I went further on.

  Time resumed, and I continued my walk. No one stood around by the time I reached her resting spot on the hill. I walked up, stood over it, and bit my lip. I was still filled with so much anger that I wanted to shatter the small stone pillar and shred each last flower laid there. At the same time, I wanted to fall to my knees and cry for the loss of a friend and the fear that much of that friendship was just an obsession taking control. I stood frozen, torn between those two violently different actions.

  "Did you know her well?" A low and familiar voice spoke up beside me.

  I glanced over to see Denki who had returned with another bouquet of flowers in his hand.

  "Sort of," I responded looking back at the pillar.

  "She was something else, that's for sure. She could light up a room with her smile, and everyone she met just adored her in no time at all. I'll never understand why she had to go."

  "Yeah," I almost whispered.

  He knelt to the ground and placed the flowers among the others. Before he got up, I heard him declare under his breath.

  "I'll find whoever did this... I promise."

  Without another word, he stood up, wiped the tears from his eyes, and walked off. Again, I was left alone. Seeing his declaration gave me a certain strength to make my own.

  I won't forget you or the friendship we shared, even if it was rooted in depravity, and I'll find a way to undo what you did, no matter what.

  *  *  *  *  *

  The remainder of the week dragged on. After an eternity, the weekend came, and I was allowed to stay away from the school that had become a new torture. Late Friday night, I stayed awake with a single light on for reading when said light began to flicker. The temperature seemed to drop, and my eyes darted to the door. Against the wall just inside the door, there he stood.

  "What do you think of the place, Kazuma? I got it for a really nice discount." He held up his hand in an OK sign.

  "A dump of an apartment in a crime-infested district, a fitting lair for someone like you. How do you even know who I am, anyway?"

  "Heh," he sneered. "You really expect one little Mind Jacker to keep me from my goals? Honestly, I really do live for these little chats of ours, but I'm on a tight schedule. Now, seeing as how you’re all but forgotten, and how homelessness isn’t a good look on you or anyone for that matter, I'll let you have this place all to yourself in exchange for one little thing."

  "And that is?" I slowly reached beside me for a kitchen knife that I had refashioned for throwing.

  "There are monsters in this city, Kazuma, worse than what you've branded me. Creatures in the shadows that are working towards being strong enough to block out the sun, if you get my meaning."

  "Eclipse." My knuckles grew white as I gripped the blade.

  "Bingo," I could feel his smile under the mask. "We're going to prevent Eclipse from forming. They served their purpose last time, but my plans no longer require them. Now, their future existence is... problematic."

  “What do you mean?”

  My question was met with a blank stare from behind his ivory mask.

  "I'm pretty sure I told you that I would never work for you." I continued.

  "And I'm pretty sure that I told you that knowing or not, willing or not, everything you do comes back to helping me." He dangled the knife in front of him. "Convenient little gambit, don't you think?"

  I looked to the side to see that the knife was missing from my hand. When I looked back, all I could see was a flash of dark before his knee collided with my face. My head launched back and bounced off the wall before I could put my hands up. Two incredibly solid punches landed in my ribs, and I halved over from the pain.

  "Like I said before, my stubborn child," he stood over me. "Your fate was sealed a long time ago. Now, shall we begin?"

  ***END OF BOOK 2***