Mitchell, South Dakota -- 1995
"Poltergeist," Dad announced, spreading newspaper clippings across the motel table. "Three injuries, one death. Local family thinks it's their grandfather."
I watched Dean examine the articles, noting how the silver cross at his neck caught the light strangely. At sixteen, my brother was becoming something extraordinary, even if he didn't know it yet.
"Sam?" Dad's voice pulled me from my observations. "What do the records show?"
I looked through my research notes from the library archives. Despite my knowledge of many future events, current cases were still a mystery that required more careful investigation.
"George Mitchell, died 1982. The house belonged to him, but..." I frowned at the death certificate copy. "Something's weird about how he died."
Dad raised an eyebrow. "Weird how?"
"The certificate just says 'accident at home' with no details. And the police reports are similarly vague. Like someone was hiding something."
The darkness inside me stirred uneasily as I studied the documents. Whatever had happened in that house thirteen years ago, it was more than a simple accident.
Thunder rumbled outside, and Dean's hand went instinctively to his cross.
I had a feeling this case would reveal itself to be far more complicated than a standard haunting.
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The Mitchell house loomed against the evening sky, a Victorian relic with too many shadows. The moment we stepped onto the property, I felt something different – this wasn't just angry spirit energy.
The darkness inside me recoiled in danger and yearned in connection at the same time, sensing something old. Something wrong.
"Standard sweep," Dad instructed, handing out EMF meters. "Dean, take the second floor. Sam, stay with me."
I caught Dean's concerned glance as the sky darkened overhead. He'd been watching me more carefully lately, noticing how supernatural encounters affected me.
The house felt wrong inside. The EMF meter squealed constantly, but the readings were erratic, unlike anything I'd seen before.
The protection symbols I'd drawn on my arms tingled beneath my sleeves, warning me of something beyond a normal haunting.
As we moved through the ground floor, my flashlight beam caught something beneath the peeling wallpaper. Strange markings, definitely not the usual religious protective sigils some homeowners put up.
"Dad," I called softly. "Look at this."
He moved closer, examining the partially revealed symbols. "Those aren't protection marks."
"They look... deliberate." I traced the air above one marking, not daring to touch it. "Like someone was trying to do something."
A crash from upstairs cut through our investigation. Dean's shotgun blast followed immediately.
"Dean?" Dad called up.
"I'm fine! But this isn't-" Another crash. "This isn't a normal spirit!"
The darkness inside me pulsed as something stirred in the house. Whatever the old man had been messing with, it was powerful enough for the my demonic instincts to be wary.
Thunder shook the windows, and upstairs, Dean started praying in Latin without realizing it.
My heart pounded as I realized we were dealing with something none of us understood. Not even me, with all my foreknowledge of what was to come.
This was going to get worse before it got better.
We raced upstairs, shotguns ready, only to freeze at the sight before us. This was no ghost - the entity that filled the Victorian hallway stood nearly eight feet tall, its muscular form shifting between solid and shadow.
A horned mask-like face turned toward us, revealing eyes that glowed with ancient malice.
"Down!" Dad's voice cracked like a whip, but his next words caught in his throat. "That's... that's an Oni."
The Japanese demon's eyes fixed on me, and the darkness inside me twisted in recognition. Something passed between us - a moment of terrible understanding.
Then its gaze shifted to Dean, whose silver cross slowly got brighter with sudden brilliance, casting sharp shadows across the worn wallpaper.
"An Oni?" Dean's voice was steady despite the impossibility before us. "Like the Japanese demons?"
"Eight feet tall, horns, face like a mask," Dad was already backing us toward the stairs, hunter's knowledge flowing automatically. "But they're bound to Japanese territories. One shouldn't be able to manifest here."
The Oni moved with liquid grace, each step leaving smoking footprints on the wooden floor.
Dad realising the bad situation we were in but himself between us and the Oni and ordered "The car. Now." his tone brooking no argument.
The Oni moved to block the stairway, its massive form rippling like ink in water. Dean stepped forward, iron rod raised, and something extraordinary happened - the cross around his neck that pulsed with light, made the demon actually hesitate.
"Dean, cover our retreat," Dad commanded, shotgun ready though we all knew rock salt would be useless against something this powerful.
We backed toward the stairs, the Oni watching us with unsettling intelligence. Its mask-like face twisted into what might have been a smile, revealing teeth like ancient daggers.
"Sammy, move!" Dean's voice snapped me back just as the demon lunged.
Dean swung the iron rod in a perfect arc, blessed metal meeting ancient flesh with a flash of golden light. The Oni recoiled, more surprised than hurt, its eyes fixed on Dean with something like wonder.
Then it spoke - a sound like stone grinding against stone, that I would later know, only I comprehended: "Mikael no utsuwa..."
The darkness inside me recognized the words even if I didn't understand them. Dean's cross flared brighter.
We hit the stairs running, Dad in rear guard position. The Oni followed, but strangely slowly, as if more interested in observing than attacking.
Its eyes kept shifting between Dean and me, ancient recognition in its gaze.
The front door slammed shut of its own accord. Dad moved to kick it open, but I felt the power holding it - this wasn't normal spirit energy.
"The window!" Dean shouted, already moving.
The Oni's laughter shook the house as Dean smashed through the bay window, iron rod clearing the way.
We followed, glass crunching under our boots. The demon appeared in the doorway, filling the frame with its massive form, but made no move to pursue.
Instead, it spoke again, this time looking directly at me: "Akatsuki no utsuwa mo..."
Thunder cracked overhead as the darkness in me responded to its words.
We sprinted for the Impala, but the Oni remained in the doorway, watching. Just... watching. Like it had found something it never expected to see in this part of the world.
The car roared to life, tires spitting gravel as Dad accelerated. In the rearview mirror, I could still see the demon's form in the doorway, its eyes glowing with ancient knowledge.
Dean's cross slowly dimmed as we put distance between us and the house, but his hands were shaking slightly as he examined the iron rod. "Dad... what did it say? Those words... They hurt my ears, I couldn't understand anything he said."
"Same here, but if I had to guess, something in Japanese," Dad replied grimly. "We need Bobby. And maybe some contacts who know about Eastern lore."
I stayed silent, watching storm clouds gather. The Oni had called Dean something - "Mikael no utsuwa." Even without speaking Japanese, the familiar name and the darkness inside me easily allowed me to understand.
Michael's vessel.
Which meant the second thing it said, looking at me...
Lightning split the sky as we raced toward Bobby's, carrying questions I wasn't sure I wanted answered.
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(Author note: Hello everyone! I hope you all enjoyed the chapter!
Do tell how you found it.
Also, an Oni, interesting right? What is that thing doing in America?
Also for those who want to know the translation, this is what I got:
"Akatsuki no utsuwa mo" roughly translates to "Vessel of the Dawn/Morning Star" (Lucifer), with "mo" being a particle meaning "also/too."
And the Mikael one is clear enough.
So yeah, hope you to see you all later,
Bye!)