Kana From Hell: Part Four

 

Long, slender fingers curled around Kana's neck.

"Help..." Kana managed a whisper as the tall woman's face came closer.

Kana could smell the stench of decay coming from the Hachishakusama. Her eyes widened as she gazed into the dark, hollow eyes of the demon.

In her eyes, she saw Michi picking flowers in a garden. It was the first time Kana had laid eyes on her and realized that she loved her.

She saw Michi looking at her shyly and then laughing at something Kana had said.

Someone came up behind Michi, someone taller and dressed in dark robes.

The man behind Michi grasped the chain around her neck and pulled.

Michi cried out as she was dragged away. Kana tried to reach for her but Michi slipped from her grasp.

"Remember what you did?" Hachishakusama hissed in her ear. "You have to pay for your sins. You have to return to hell where you belong."

Kana was mesmerized by the visions she was shown in Hachishakusama's eyes. The second she saw Michi, her heart was wrenched with pain.

She remembered that day. She remembered why she was condemned to hell.

"Hey, let go of her!" The old man tried to swat away at the tall lady but she merely glanced at him and scoffed.

Kana looked at him desperately as her throat constricted and her breathing was restrained.

Just for a moment, she thought she saw the old man hesitate and then saw him step back and look away. Her terror surmounted when she realized he intended to leave her.

Her eyes began to flicker as her vision darkened.

And that is when she heard the incantation. The voice was urgent and low.

Kana saw wisps of brilliant light and then suddenly she heard a sound.

A child's laughter, pure and happy.

Kana thought she was imagining it all. But then suddenly the grip around her neck loosened.

She slumped to the ground when the Hachishakusama let go without a warning.

She gasped for breath and watched as the Hachishakusama glided towards the woods. Kana blinked several times unable to comprehend what she was witnessing.

"It's a mirage," the old man wheezed. "A spell that I used. There's nothing more a Hachishakusama loves more than stalking a young one."

Kana turned her head and clutched her painful neck. The Hachishakusama was following a child that kept skipping away from her reach.

"It will keep her occupied for some time. I cannot fathom for how long," the old man replied. "It will keep her distracted and away from you. Once the magic wears off, however..."

"She will come after me again?" Kana coughed and got to her feet. She dusted the dirt off her hands. "You couldn’t just trap her using your magic?"

The old man narrowed his eyes. "You can be very ungrateful."

"It was just a question."

"If I could, I would."

Kana stared at the old man dubiously.

The old man began moving again but Kana didn't follow him immediately.

It was true that the old man had saved her but she couldn’t help but feel like he was hiding something from her.

"Are you coming?" The old man asked impatiently.

Kana dug her feet into the ground. "Why are you helping me?"

"Because you need it," pat came the reply.

Kana was still not convinced. The old man had dragged her out of hell and had saved her from a yokai. She couldn’t imagine he would go through that much trouble for a stranger. He needed something, she could sense it but couldn't imagine what.

"Where are we going?"

The old man shrugged causing another clanging sound that made him appear comical. "First we must find a way to conceal that scar from more yokai attacks. I have an idea and I think..."

"I want to see my mother," Kana interjected. She held her chest. She didn't know why but something suddenly felt very wrong and she felt like she was being beckoned home. She turned on her heels and began walking briskly towards her home.

"I wouldn’t advise that," he called out. Then after a pause, he spoke again. "Alright, I will accompany you."

Kana turned her head to look at him. There it was again. His insistence to join her.

Just as she knew with all her heart that her mother wanted to see her, she also knew with utmost certainty that the old man needed something from her.

Or he wanted to use her. She would have to be careful around him.