" You two look kind of confused. Here, I'll explain it for you. For the sake of time, would you prefer the short version or the extended version ?"
Mitsuya wants the short version, Julianna wants the longer version. But after much arguing, the long version was finally decided on.
" Okay, I'll try to make it simple so you two can understand it. In the World of the Living, there are certain gates which can lead to the Spirit Realm. In order to summon one of these gates, a tremendous amount of magical energy is required. Either that or some piece of valuable craft had to already be in place in the location that you were at. When a strong magical reaction occurs, the amount of energy causes the opening of one or more portals to this place. You can call it the Land of the Forgotten, but an easier name is the Raven's Circle. It was dubbed that after Edgar Allan Poe made his way through here a few hundred years ago. Are you following along ?"
They both nod. Closely followed by Mitsuya saying " Wait, so Edgar Allan Poe is here?" , before Julianna promptly shuts him up. Elle laughs at him, getting closer until she puts her finger on his nose. " Even I don't know. Nobody has seen him for like , fifty years. He probably went into seclusion somewhere. He'll be back in about 80 years." Mitsuya is disappointed.
" Anyways, let's continue with the explanation. If you believe that there is a heaven, then there also must be Hell. And by medieval writings we typically believe that the realm between those two is called Purgatory, or Limbo for basic people. People who go to Limbo aren't necessarily good or evil, but they might have some regrets in life or are unable to remember how and why they died. For that reason, they are trapped here until their final wish or goal can be accomplished by someone in the living world. Needless to say, most people never leave from here. The Raven's Circle is one of 4 parts of the Realm of the Undead. The Western end, to be exact. You must have opened one of the portals in the human world that brought you to this specific end. Either that, or you have business with someone here."
" Business with someone here What's that supposed to mean?" Mitsuya blurts out.
" Well that's an easy one. It means that someone is here who wants to speak to you. They can't move on until they tell you their wish or command. From that point on, you'll be binded in a geas contract until you carry out their wish in the realm of the living. And you won't be able to leave until they speak to you.Don't question it. That's just how it works."
They follow her orders. Next Julianna asks a question. " Ms. Elle, forgive me for asking, but who exactly are you?"
Elle is hesitant in her answer. " Young lady, I'm sorry. But I can't tell you much about me. The most I can probably tell you is I was a mage while I was still alive. Now I'm a gatekeeper. I greet, guide and send spirits to their rightful place. In my original life, you could say that I was quite the character. But you wouldn't want to hear about that. What about you two?"
" My name is Julianna Cantrelle, and he's Mitsuya Nieto. We're both thirteen years old. I'm originally French but I'm part American and he's Japanese and French."
Elle looks a little dumbfounded. " Nieto… Nieto… Nieto and Cantrelle. Those are some odd names. Could have sworn that I heard those before," After a moment of silence, she smiles brightly again. " I don't remember. Might have just been a coincidence. Anyways, why are you two here? You must have been doing some really unusual stuff to end up in the Raven's Circle."
Julianna explains everything while Mitsuya just sits there staring at Elle, wondering why she's such a mysterious person. " It's kind of a long story. Listen, we were once members of the United Mage's Society." Elle instantly becomes alert, and Mitsuya notices it right away. He doesn't say anything while Julianna continues speaking. " We left, and are now under the mentor ship of Himura Tsubasa, who was once a high ranking member in the Organization…" Elle became wide eyed, interrupting her for a moment. " TSUBASA ! NOW THAT NAME SOUNDS FAMILIAR." She calms down at the sight of Mitsuya's confused face. " Carry on. Sorry about that." Julianna looks at Mitsuya questioningly , then continues. " Anyways, Himura sent us to Yokohama to investigate spirits showing up. Apparently they had last been seen at the Grand Orient Yacht, but somehow ended up in another location, making it appear as if they had been involved in a suicide.I got captured on purpose so I could figure out what happened to them. Turns out they were involved in an illegal fighting scheme, which ended in the body of the loser being disposed of. However, after Mitsuya and the others rescued me, we devised a plan to locate the location of the next spirit. It was Kamine Temple. When we got there, we discovered that the bodies of the victims had had their souls extracted until they became emotionless zombies. So I jumped to the conclusion that someone was controlling the spirits. We had to engage both of the spirits and the physical bodies in battle, which ended in our friend getting possessed. Luckily our other friend was also there to handle him. We exposed the location of the one who was controlling the spirits. She was also controlling the brother of our friend, who was captured by slave traffickers. We battled him, but he got consumed by darkness.All of our magical energies collided, and we ended up here."
" Well, that does sound like a pretty weird predicament. But you realize that if you're here, then your physical bodies ended up somewhere else, right?"
" They did? That's weird. So you're saying that we're still in spirit form?" Mitsuya asks.
" Have you looked at your clothes, smart guy?"
They hadn't done that. They were still in the same clothes that they had been brought into after they transformed into spirits. " That's besides the point, but thanks for the information. You said you were a mage in your original life, right? What type of magic did you have?"
Elle paces around humming a lullaby out loud. " Funny that you should ask that. I actually have 3 types of magic, as passed on from my parents in addition to my own original one. The first would be the ability to seal and undo magic. The second would be the ability to altercate physical form derived from life energy, like so." Suddenly a fine blade appears in her hand. At the same moment, Julianna yawns. " You might feel sleepy given that I just took some of your magic to create this blade. It was of limited use in my regular life, and I never really got a hold of it. So really the only things that I can make with it are small swords and other things. As for the last one, I think it would be better if I demonstrated." She turns to Mitsuya, and reaches her hand out to him. " Touch my hand." Mitsuya stares at her as if she's crazy before taking her hand. In an instant, Elle's eyes become a light gold color. Mitsuya is temporarily blinded, and a plethora of thoughts run through his mind. Elle quickly steps back from him, snatching her hand away. " Well, that was a different kind of experience that I'm used to. You've sure been through a lot Mitsuya."
" What did you see?" Mitsuya asks frantically.
" You and your sister were the children of top ranking members of the Mage's Society. That was until your father abandoned you and your mother was murdered. When you went to the Organization for refuge, you were turned away and exiled. From then on you lived in an orphanage until you decided to go find your mother's killer. With little to no luck, you had to make a living from odd jobs. Then you met a bar owner who took you in, even though you were mages. You found out that the Orphanage had burned down, and your sister was almost kidnapped before you had a breakdown and killed the men who had her. But then, you were consumed with greed and hatred, leading you to turn to the dark arts to amplify your abilities. The incantation didn't work, causing your sister to go blind and you to lose your powers. That is, until you met Himura Tsubasa on the night that you killed men who attacked you in an alleyway. Then you almost died trying to rescue a colleague of his. Is that correct?"
This is the first time that Julianna has heard all of this. She is intrigued, but saddened at the same time. She doesn't ask any questions. She just stares at Mitsuya, who has his head bowed with clenched fists. Julianna finally speaks up after a moment of silence.
" The ability to see memories with a touch. Is that right?" Elle nods her head. " It was both a blessing and a curse in my lifetime." Mitsuya speaks up. " Ms. Elle, please…" Elle cuts him off. " It's fine , Mitsuya. I have no reason to pry any further. I understand everything now. I'm sorry." Mitsuya lifts his eyes, full of determination and courage. " No problem. I would be a wimp if I sobbed every time I think about all of the tragedies in my life, now wouldn't I?" Elle doesn't know how to respond to that. She just pats him on the head- " That's right kid."
After a few moments of deliberation, they make it back to the main topic.
" So what I've reached from the things that you told me is that there were two entrances to the Raven's Circle in the Realm of the Living. One was located at Kamine Temple, and the other was at the Grand Orient Yacht. The person who was controlling the spirits must have found a way into the portal at the Grand Orient. But that's highly unlikely given that I would have seen her. So the probability is that she performed some type of ritual on the bodies before the souls fully left them. And now she went to Kamine Temple to finish the ritual. But you two and your friends interrupted it.That's probably the most likely way of thinking about this situation." All the while , she had been creating a drawing with stick figures to explain this scenario. " You understand ?"
" Yeah, but the kindergarten drawings aren't helping at all." Mitsuya gets both kicked in the face by Elle and punched in the arm by Julianna.
" Now, about your friend's brother. If he was able to revert forms, then there is only one explanation for that. He was already dead when you met him. Julianna and Mitsuya are both shocked, the horror written on their faces. Mitsuya jumps up - " So you mean that we can't get him back ?" Elle nods her head. She gets startled when Mitsuya punches the ground. " DAMNIT." His voice gets lower. " I… promised Keiko… that I would let him see his brother and sister again." Julianna pats his back. " Mitsuya , Keiko will understand. After everything that he's been through, this was always a possibility." Deep down, Julianna's heart is aching badly. Elle lets them have their moment. " There's a way for him to see his brother again. Would you want to do that for your friend?" Julianna nods to Elle.
" Okay, so you said that he was corrupted by the darkness. If that happened, then he would have gone through the process of a traditional onryo, reverting back to the appearance of his human form for a short span of time. That was when he was first summoned in the temple. He's not a demon. Nothing is demonic because Hell could be fiction for all that we know. That means that he's probably ascended to his final form by now."
" Then how to stop him? Magic doesn't affect him." Mitsuya asks.
" I'm getting there. Magic probably didn't work on him in the human realm, but the same boundaries don't apply in Spirit Realm. He'll be under the influence of magic attacks here. And he won't have time to adapt to the boundaries of this realm. As for how we can stop him, that's an easy one. I just gave you the answer a few minutes ago."
" Memories, how's that gonna help?" Mitsuya asks.
" Not the memories themselves. The only way to defeat an onryo besides actually destroying the soul core would be to seal it. And you must have already learned how to seal an otherworldly creature , correct." Mitsuya thinks for a moment before Julianna finally comes up with the answer. " HIS NAME. You need to touch him and learn his name through his memories, then eliminate all of the darkness within him, reverting him back to a normal spirit."
" And then we reopen the portal, giving him a chance to get back here. You catch on quickly girl." Julianna lets out a faint smile.
" Chances are, when all of that is done, you'll be able to instantly find your physical bodies and sever your connection to this place. When I come back here, both the Gate of Opening at the Grand Orient Yacht, and the Gate of Closing at Kamine Temple will be concealed from magical properties. Now, all we have to do is wait."
" Wait, what do you mean?"- Julianna.
" Oh, I forgot to mention. The Spirit Realm consists of exactly 10 floors that one must go through until you get to move on. When one spirit or spiritual body is sent to the Spirit Realm , you can end up on any random floor, depending on your sheer willpower and amount of energy. In any other case, you two would have ended up on a higher floor, but you came here. I myself reside on the 7th floor."
" THEN HOW DID YOU MAKE IT DOWN HERE?" Mitsuya asks in a fuss.
" I jumped down here. You can get in trouble for doing stuff like that, but I never get caught when I do it. I call myself the gatekeeper for new arrivals. I take them up to a specific floor on the Thought Elevator, and then I go back to my humble residence to think about life, or death, I don't know. I guess you must have a lot of questions. See, the empty white place where we are standing at is the entrance. Behind that door over there is the actual gateway into the Raven's Circle, where all of the spirits here reside.Your friend's brother couldn't make it to this point because he had dark energy. But by some way, he'll find his way to this part through that gate. He hasn't been caught yet because we can't sense his animosity or corrupt behavior. So, as before, we wait."
Mitsuya has a face of such discontent. He doesn't say anything, he just paces around the room. Suddenly Elle has a thought. " Mitsuya, would you like to go into the Thought Elevator ?"
" What's that again?"
" If there's someone here who has a connection to you, then after you enter the elevator, the spirit of that person will appear before you. If someone does, then you'll be allowed at least 3 minutes of time to talk to them. In this time, they'll be able to tell you their regret or their wish."
After a slight hesitation, Mitsuya agrees. " Would you like to go too, Julianna?" She shakes her head. " If my parents had any regrets, then I can carry them out on my own. They'll be fine if I pray to them on a daily basis." Elle shakes her head. " Well, so be it." A golden embroidered rectangular prism box appears beside Elle. A series of buttons appear on it as well, each with fancy markings all outlined in black, recognizable from magecraft studies. " MITSUYA NIETO, enter." Mitsuya disappears from beside Julianna. A bright light can be seen from inside the box. " MITSUYA, when you get into there, state your name, and reveal your promised mark. After you do that, recite the prayer." The elevator disappears into oblivion. At that moment, Julianna began coughing. When she takes her hand from her mouth, the color red is vividly shown on her. Elle looks over at her. " You're sick, aren't you?" Julianna reverts her eyes away. " It's no big deal. I'm fine." But Elle doesn't believe it. " I sensed it when you came here. This isn't the first time today that you've done that. How long has this been happening?" Julianna thinks for a while. " About 6 years now. Himura has been trying to find a cue for me. But I keep telling him that I'm fine." Elle eyes her. " This Himura fellow sounds like he gets himself into a lot of things. You should take care of yourself. If you got better, then you would have a much better connection to mage craft. From my estimation, you aren't even using fifty percent of your full potential." Julianna's eyes become wider for a second, until her face goes back to normal. " I'm okay. I've survived this long with this illness, so I know that I won't be able to die soon. Though I don't know the full effects of it, it isn't so much of a pain to live with. Thanks for worrying."
" Is Himura the only one who knows?"
" Him, his wife Mayuri and their classmate- Mayomi. And the other boy who I was telling you about, Casanova Vanguard." There's silence for several seconds.
" You should tell Mitsuya. He'll worry about you." Julianna laughs.
" Of course I won't tell him yet. I don't even know the boy. We've only known each other for one day." She pauses. " When the right time comes, he'll know. From my mouth and mine alone."
" Well getting on another topic, what do you think of him?"
" He's soft and careful. His intelligence might be able to match my own, but I realize that I think more rationally about things that he does. In all, I'm sure that we can get along someday. From what I've seen, I would probably entrust my life to him." She pauses again. " He's had his share of tragedy. That's certain. But another thing is for sure: Mitsuya Nieto , no matter how hard he tries not to show it, is one of the most empathetic people who I have ever met."
Inside the elevator, Mitsuya stands on a velvet colored carpet. A series of flowers are painted on the two sides of the wall perpendicular to each other, while the elevator door and the back wall are painted with gold and black, respectively. A symbol which takes the shape of a raven's claw appears on the ceiling of the elevator, outlined in black and purple. The mark also appears on his forehead. Suddenly he hears a voice. It's Elle's.
" Mitsuya, the Thought Elevator restricts all spiritual pressure from coming from the inside. Which means that while you are in there, you won't be able to use magic. If the elevator door opens, then that means that a spirit will form. You'll be temporarily blinded until it completely appears. Then you'll be able to speak to that person. Do you understand?" Mitsuya says "Yes" within his mind, and begins the prayer.
" Justice may come to the one who contemplates wisdom
And thou who succumbs to greed and pride is subject to eternal innocent sorrow
Within the great land of Earth, the one who is guided under the truths of heaven shall remain victorious
And be ensured a life of freedom upon his final breath
But it is also certain, that whoever follows this path, will face countless trials and tribulations.
Hear this prayer, far and wide.
Holder of the Mind."
When the light from the raven's claw disappears, the elevator door opens. As Mitsuya had heard from Elle, he was temporarily blinded by a sudden flash of light. Something rises in the air, and Mitsuya feels something touching his forehead. Suddenly the feeling of someone hugging him consumes his body. It seems strangely familiar. From his peripheral vision, he can see something. The black , curly hair becomes apparent. The woman hugging him is fair skin, with the normal build of a twenty something year old. Not to mention the obvious peculiar shape of her ears. Mitsuya realizes it almost immediately, hugging her back. " HARUKO." The woman with emerald eyes laughs and lets go of him. " It took you long enough. Good to see you Mitsuya. It's been a while , hasn't it?" She smiles at him brightly. Mitsuya sheds a tear after staring at her for so long.
" Haruko… I'm sorry that I wasn't able to protect you and everyone. I said that I would come back, but I couldn't keep my promise. I guess I'm just a usele-" She cuts him off.
" Hey, this is no place to talk like that. It wasn't your fault Mitsuya. No one could have stopped that fire if they didn't already know about it. You have no reason to call yourself useless."
" But, I couldn't save you and everyone else. If it weren't for me leaving, I probably could have prevented it. And then I could have seen you guys everyday without any worry."
Haruko smiles at him again. " You always were a caring child. As the oldest in the Orphanage, you carried a lot of responsibility on your shoulders. I spent many nights wondering what had become of you and Kaoru, but your letters and phone calls were a reminder that you two were safe, somewhere out there in that vast world. I knew that you would have been able to accomplish whatever you set out to do, and then we would see each other again someday. Even if one of us isn't alive, you kept your promise. You came back to me. Speaking of that, how is Kaoru?"
Mitsuya bows his head. " I tried to use magic to take revenge. It didn't work. She's blind. I've been trying to get her sight back, but nothing that I've done has worked so far." Haruko's face becomes empathetic. She pats Mitsuya on the head. " Hopefully she's still in strong spirits." Mitsuya nods his head. " As long as you two remain together, you can defeat all obstacles. That's just the type of bond that the two of you always had. I'm sure that she'll be able to see once again someday. If the grace of God wills it." Mitsuya ponders those words… The Grace of God. They replay over and over again in his mind. Suddenly he has an epiphany.
" Haruko, this is the Realm of the Dead. Only people who can't move on after death end up here. How'd you get here? Didn't all of the children and the other workers move on?"
She nods her head. " Yes, it is true that everyone else moved on. I've been so lonely here by myself. Maybe I had to stay here because I was waiting for you to come. Or perhaps it was something else."
" Something else? What do you mean?"
Haruko begins passing around the room. " Remember, the promise for you to come was passed along to me from someone else. You still have to see that other person." Mitsuya thinks for a second before his heart drops. " ANGEL. SHE'S STILL ALIVE?" He becomes frantic, more frantic than we have ever seen so far. Haruko calms him down. " Easy there. If I believe so, Angel is still alive. She was the last person who I saw before I died. Nothing happened to her."
" THEN WHERE IS SHE? WHAT HAPPENED TO HER?" Mitsuya shouts.
" Calm down Mitsuya. You're gonna have to sit down for this one. Angel… she was… she was taken." Mitsuya's head begins hurting as his chest begins pounding. His face becomes hot red with anger. " TAKEN, WHAT DO YOU MEAN? WHO TOOK HER?"
" The last thing that I saw were two people with her. A man and a woman. They took her." She begins crying a little bit. " They were mages. They came into the Orphanage, and they binded everybody to the point where they couldn't move or speak.I hid in a closet. From then on, they began to kill all of the children. I had never heard such horrendous cries in my life. I quickly came to protect them, but it didn't work out. They tried to knock me unconscious, but I didn't go out. I just couldn't speak or move. The last thing that I saw was Angel leaving the Orphanage with those people. Her eyes were full of sorrow and fear. I don't know what happened to her after that." Mitsuya calms down, but a swarm of thoughts are running in his mind again. He begins crying a little bit. But when he lifts his eyes, his eyes are full of determination. " I'll find her. I'll make sure of it."
Haruko sighs. " If I'm still here, that means that you haven't made contact with her in the past 3 years. Mitsuya, this is my final wish. If you carry it out, then I might be able to move on with everyone else. Find Angel, and protect her. When you do, don't let anyone take her. You, her and Kaoru are my last living will and testament. I leave everything to you." She reaches out her hand, and Mitsuya promptly takes it. " I accept this." The symbol of the Raven's claw appears on both of their hands. " This mark will remain permanent until you achieve this goal." Mitsuya nods his head. At the same time, Haruko begins dissolving. He stands and prepares to leave the elevator. The door opens. He walks out, but just before it closes, Haruko's voice resonates one last time. "Mitsuya, remember. The brightest light in the world is the one that lies within your heart. No matter how dark it is right now, you'll be able to overcome it." Mitsuya pauses and turns back. " Are you quoting Kaoru?" Haruko laughs, as she fades away. " GOOD LUCK, AKEMI HYEDO."
Mitsuya is blinded again. In a few moments, he wakes back up at Julianna's side. Elle is hovering above him. " So , how'd it go?"
Mitsuya quickly stands up. " I'd rather not talk about it. But I know one thing now." He looks at Julianna. " I'm as fired up as I've ever been." She smiles at him. Elle smiles as well. At that exact moment, a portal opens up within the sky. An enormous white circle appears in the center of it, and a white light covers the area below.
" He's here. Are we ready to put this plan into action?" Elle nods her head. " You're the most important piece. But this is gonna take a minute at most." A large roar is heard throughout the entire place. A humongous claw appears from the portal. The next thing we see is the emergence of a monster. A pitch black , dragon like figure emerges. His bloodshot yellow eyes stare directly atMitsuya, as his gigantic tail furiously wakes in the air. It opens its wide, gaping mouth to reveal several rows of sharp fangs.A crimson crescent lies on its forehead, in the shape of the Seal of Solomon. It roars directly at Mitsuya, blowing large gusts of wind. But he is unfazed. He stands there confidently as Julianna and Elle look on.
" Nice to meet you, Keiko's brother."