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V11 Story IV – Part 03

“Odagiri… Hey, what’s the matter?”

Aya’s voice snapped me back to reality. I knocked on the window, urgently calling out to Mikage, but she remained unresponsive. Shaking her head irritably, she shut her eyes.

I grabbed the handle and yanked the door open. It wasn’t locked. I reached for Mikage’s shoulder, but as soon as my hand made contact, a strange sensation washed over me. Startled, I quickly pulled back.

Something wasn’t right. Her body felt unnaturally limp, and she was burning up, drenched in sweat.

“Mikage-san… Can you hear me? Mikage-san?”

“Ugh… so loud… who is it?”

She groaned in pain, opening her eyes. She looked at me with eyes moist from tears. Mikage squinted in confusion, absentmindedly touching her eye patch before tilting her head.

“Odagiri? What are you… doing here? Actually, where am I? What’s going on?”

Mikage pressed a hand to her forehead, then cocked her head to the side.

“No… it doesn’t matter,” she muttered low. “Yeah, it doesn’t matter anymore.”

Her lips quivered. Her face scrunched up, and she clamped her hand over her mouth. Her throat convulsed. Her body arched as she vomited something out. Her cheeks swelled, and something flew from her hand. Blood splattered onto the windshield. Red spilled between her fingers.

I shuddered and recoiled in horror. This amount of blood was far from normal. Confusion and panic gripped me. We needed to find the flower, but I couldn’t just ignore her.

“Mikage-san, what’s happening? Just wait here. I’ll call an ambulance right away.”

“An ambulance? Did you say ambulance? Stop wasting time. Who told you to do that?”

Her bloodstained hand knocked my phone away. I caught it just before it disappeared into the petals. Mikage glared at me fiercely, shaking her head like a madman.

“Stop,” she growled. “Those assholes treat people like freaks… Even the doctor who was supposed to remove my eyes… He wanted to take my right eye, too. You want me to get called a monster again? How much do I have to pay to those pushing all these damn tests and those who won’t leave me alone?”

Mikage spat out blood, wiping her mouth with her fist. Tears streamed down her face as she glared at me. She scratched at her left eye over the eye patch with her sharp nails.

“I’ve had enough. I don’t want any of this. I didn’t ask for these eyes! I just wanted normal ones! Fuck, fuck! I’m human. I didn’t ask to see the future. I don’t want any more tests. Just leave me alone!” she shrieked in anguish, clutching her head.

Her back heaved. Then, her breathing slowed, and she lifted her head, looking around curiously.

Studying her bloodied palm, she said, “I’m fine. It’s all right. I’ll… handle it myself.”

Mikage collapsed backwards as if a string had snapped. She lay down, closed her eyes, and began snoring peacefully. I had no idea what was happening. Shirayuki, who had been observing, opened the backseat door and started feeling around on the floor. Her figure sank into the sea of flowers. I reached out to grab her, and at the same time, a pale hand emerged from the petals.

Shirayuki waved a fan in front of my face and quickly conveyed her message through writing.

“You followed the red flowers and stopped at this car. There is a high likelihood that it is here, right? Let’s find the flower quickly. Something is not right with her. The disturbing receptacle that Lady Mayuzumi mentioned could be inside and is affecting her. Transporting an injured person is not easy. I can draw an animal, but running in daylight is difficult. Let’s find the flower, figure out what is wrong, and guarantee safety. Call the hospital immediately.”

Shirayuki disappeared back into the sea of flowers. Only I could see the flowers. She must be looking under the seat. She was probably right. If these flowers bloomed, nearby hospitals would also be affected.

As I nodded, Aya quickly opened the door on the other side and disappeared into the sea of flowers. I wondered if it wasn’t cramped in there with the two of them.

Surveying the driver’s seat, I found nothing suspicious. I climbed over Mikage to check the dashboard. She remained asleep. As I studied her bloodied face, Mayuzumi’s words echoed in my mind.

“Keeping distance is the best and most peaceful solution. Otherwise, the only remaining option would be to kill each other.”

Why was Mikage here? She agreed with Mayuzumi’s suggestion. Her eye was no longer in this world. We had avoided the prophecy.

I chewed my lips. Even I doubted that. It must have been harder for her, who feared the prophecy’s fulfillment. I recalled the car parked outside the apartment. Was she secretly observing Mayuzumi and me? Something must have occurred then.

Closing the dashboard, I glanced at the windshield. Sticky blood stained it.

Once again, anxiety gripped me. I looked down at Mikage, my mind racing.

Mikage’s eye had vanished from this world. The oracle’s visions would never come to pass. Mayuzumi’s fate had been avoided. We should be able to change our destiny.

But was it really that simple?

Ring, ring, ring, ring.

My cellphone rang. I stepped outside to answer it, the unease lingering all the while. A part of my mind kept operating on its own. My rational side continued to scream.

Is that really it? Are you really sure that destiny has been avoided?

Beep.

“Hello, who’s this?”

“What are you doing? Check the caller ID before picking up. It’s me, Yusuke.”

“Oh, Yusuke. What’s up?”

“Mayuzumi-san… I… Where… now…”

The call crackled with static. It seemed like the signal was weak. I moved a few steps forward. After some static, Yusuke’s voice cleared up.

“Like I said,” he repeated irritably, “What the hell is going on? I went to the office, and heard something about a flower from Mayuzumi-san! Where are you now?”

“I’m not sure… after leaving Mayu-san’s apartment, I ended up in some parking lot down a slope… Give me a sec. I’ll check the sign.”

I read the name on the sign protruding out of the sea of flowers.

“Hmm… I’m not sure where that is. Let me look it up.”

As I listened to Yusuke’s voice, my thoughts drifted elsewhere. Something continued to nag at me.

Almost instinctively, I recalled Mayuzumi’s mention of a disturbing vessel. And then, the scarlet woman’s malice flashed in my mind. Memories of our dialogue in the spirit world resurfaced, back when she dragged me, Yusuke, and Kugutsu inside.

We shouldn’t underestimate its malevolence. It exceeded my imagination. But I should be able to make a guess. I’d seen all sorts of human malice. I just needed to rack my brains.

Think. I must think. I’m capable of making a prediction.

“Is that right? All right, I’ll head over too. I’ll grab some drinks on the way.”

Predict. Why did Mayuzumi say that? Why the lack of details?

A spot already linked to the spirit world, or a place filled with blood and specially sealed. Something disturbing. The scarlet woman. The Mayuzumi clan’s impending downfall. Mikage’s death. The figures of Mayuzumi and me etched onto the card. The palms crushing two eyeballs. My left hand, a gift from the scarlet woman.

And a soft, warm, wet place where flowers blossomed.

“It… can’t be…”

My grip loosened, and the cellphone slipped from my hand. Yusuke’s voice faded. Slowly, I turned. The car accelerated towards me.

“…Huh?”

Like a behemoth swimming in a sea of flowers, the car charged in my direction. The fleeting moment etched itself strongly into my vision.

From the back seat, Shirayuki landed a precise kick. Mikage, jolted by it, lost control of the wheel.

The car screeched sideways. Shirayuki grabbed Aya and flung herself out. They rolled on the ground. The car crashed on the fence and ground to a halt.

Smoke billowed from the hood. I stood stock still, stunned by the turn of events.

Slowly, my brain caught up. A figure in white lay sprawled in the parking lot.

“Shirayuki-san!” I cried out and bolted towards her.

My mind went blank. I couldn’t think properly. My trembling hands touched Shirayuki. She was unconscious, but miraculously, no major injuries. I glanced at Aya. She lifted a hand weakly. My breath seized in my throat.

“Th-Thank goodness. I-I hope I could help a little.”

Aya managed a weak smile. Her belly and back had turned into white flesh.

Aya had instantly shielded Shirayuki by allowing a part of her to disintegrate. The flesh continued to spread. We needed to act fast.

I passed Shirayuki to Aya. “Take Shirayuki-san and run!” I urged. “Get as far as you can, then contact the hospital and Mayu-san. There’s no time. Go, now!”

“B-But what about you?”

“Hurry! Before it’s too late!”

Aya hugged Shirayuki’s shoulder and dragged her away. I should be the one to carry her, but I couldn’t leave. I whirled around. The car door was already open, revealing slim legs in torn pants.

Mikage stumbled out. Buried within a pile of flowers, she turned her eyes to me.

She had cut her forehead; blood marred her face. The strap of her torn eyepatch dangled from her ear.

She stared at me without a word, and I held her gaze. My hunch struck home.

“I knew it…”

Her left bangs swayed gently. Striking eyes—one golden, the other black—regarded me.