The Bakeneko spun around to face Clark, thick saliva dripping from its jagged fangs as it licked its lips with anticipation. "I can feel it… an abundance of energy surging through your body. How kind of you to deliver yourself to me like this," it purred in a gravelly tone that echoed ominously through the bone-littered basement.
But before it could take a single step forward, Clark vanished. His white sweater fluttered in the air, the only sign he had been there at all—nothing more than a ghostly afterimage lingering where he stood.
Miku, still held painfully tight by her jaw, barely had time to process what had happened before Clark reappeared in her vision again. In the blink of an eye, he was behind the monstrous Yokai. The shadow of his hood cast a dark veil over his face, the only visible features being the twin crimson embers glowing where his eyes should have been. His stance was calm, deliberate—one hand pressed firmly against the Bakeneko's forehead, the other clenched around its jaw.
Then came the twist.
With a gruesome crack, Clark twisted the creature's neck violently. The sickening sound of bones snapping echoed like a gunshot in the silence, its furry neck contorting at an unnatural angle. The Bakeneko let out a strangled hiss, its grip faltering as it dropped Miku like a ragdoll. But before she could hit the cold, bloodstained ground, Clark moved again—blurring forward, catching her gently, and setting her a safe distance away behind a pillar of crumbling stone.
"Y-You're that boy" she whispered, her voice trembling with a mix of fear and disbelief, tears shining in her wide eyes.
Clark raised a finger to her lips, eyes still burning beneath his hood. "Shhh. Don't talk. You don't know me… and I don't know you."
Behind them, the Bakeneko stirred.
With a sickening crunch, its spring-like tail coiled beneath its body, launching it back upright as its dislocated head snapped gruesomely back into place. The bandages unraveled from its face, revealing a set of jagged feline features twisted in rage. It opened its mouth in a long, yawning stretch—its tongue slithering out like a snake.
"You'll pay for that," it snarled.
It lunged toward Clark with terrifying speed, claws outstretched, fangs gleaming in the dim, flickering light.
"Behind you!" Miku cried out instinctively.
But Clark didn't need the warning.
He turned sharply, eyes flaring like twin suns as beams of burning heat erupted from them. The searing rays smashed directly into the Bakeneko's torso, sending the creature hurtling backwards. It slammed into the far wall with explosive force, bricks shattered, debris flew in every direction, and the brittle remains of human bones clattered across the floor like brittle glass.
"Stay hidden," Clark ordered without looking back.
From the shadows to his right, the Bakeneko launched itself again, smashing into Clark and sending him crashing against the wall. The impact left a spiderweb of cracks across the concrete.
Its long, prehensile tail whipped around Clark's leg, lifting him effortlessly and slamming him hard against the ceiling with enough force to make the dim lights flicker. Then, with another hateful hiss, it hurled him across the room.
"You brat! You singed my fur!" the Bakeneko roared.
Clark tumbled midair but twisted his body, landing crouched against the wall like a missile ready to launch.
Miku stifled a scream and darted up the stairs, tears blurring her vision. She hid behind the railing at the top, peering through the gaps, her hands trembling.
Cracks spread from Clark's feet like a web of tension as he launched forward again, a white blur in the darkness. But the Bakeneko dove into the shadows, teleporting to dodge the strike. It reappeared behind him, its claws slashing and tail whipping. They exchanged a flurry of blows, their figures blurring in bursts of shadow and light. As Clark clung to him they both traverse through the shadows fist slamming into each other.
Clark grunted as one of the creature's punches landed square in his abdomen, driving him down towards the floor. He gasped—he was still just a kid. Stronger than most, yes, but far from invincible.
The Bakeneko clung to him, his jaw opened, mouth igniting with black, shadowy flames, ready to unleash a devastating blast.
Clark reacted fast.
With a roar, he seized its arm and blew out a frigid breath straight into its face. A surge of cold vapor erupted, instantly freezing its maw shut in a thick sheath of ice. The flames recoiled, backfiring in its throat. The creature coughed violently, its body convulsing from the backlash.
Clark didn't let go.
Still gripping the creature's wrist, he lifted both legs towards the Yokai's abdomen, kicking upward with incredible force. The Bakeneko flew like a ragdoll into the basement ceiling, chunks of plaster and dust raining down as the lights shattered and darkness took over.
Clark launched himself upward, punching through the air in hot pursuit. He met the Bakeneko halfway with a devastating uppercut. The creature's eyes rolled back, and the ice around its muzzle shattered—taking clumps of fur and flesh with it.
Their collision broke through the basement ceiling, then through the rotted floorboards of the ground floor. The Bakeneko soared higher, crashing through the second and third stories of the decaying house, embedding itself into the far ceiling with a grotesque thunk.
Clark landed hard on the ground floor, crouched and breathing heavily, arms at his sides as pebbles and debris levitated slightly around him from the raw kinetic force.
Then he moved again.
He shot upward like a rocket, leaping with all the strength in his young body. As he ascended, he cocked his arm back and unleashed another thunderous uppercut. This time, the punch shattered the rooftop entirely. Shingles exploded outward, the support beams groaned and collapsed, and a massive dust cloud spiraled into the night sky.
Civilians a block away shrieked and ducked from the sudden eruption. Dust blanketed the street, and eyes turned skyward, trying to track what had happened—but Clark and the Bakeneko were gone, streaks of motion lost in the clouds.
High above the city, Clark hovered, trembling midair. His hoodie rippled in the wind, and his breath was heavy. This… this had been the furthest he'd ever leapt. The Bakeneko continued to streak upward, its limp form rocketing through the air after the devastating blow. It sailed higher and higher until it was nothing more than a black blur against the pale clouds, completely unconscious.
Clark floated in place, hovering mid-air, eyes wide with realization.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa," he muttered, arms flailing for balance. "I'm actually flying! I could only leap super high before, but now—flying? Sick!"
Wind tugged at his dusty white sweater, making it flutter like a cape as he steadied himself. For the first time, he wasn't falling—he was suspended in the sky, soaring under his own power. A grin broke across his face, full of boyish excitement.
He squinted upward, and his vision automatically zoomed in on the Bakeneko, which was now beginning its inevitable descent, gravity reclaiming its grip. The unconscious Yokai tumbled downward like a ragdoll.
Clark extended one hand effortlessly and caught the creature by its thick, ringed tail, stopping it mid-fall. Its body hung limp, twitching slightly but showing no sign of awareness.
With the Bakeneko swaying in his grasp, Clark reached into the pocket of his torn hoodie and pulled out his phone. The screen was cracked, dust clinging to the surface, but it still worked. He thumbed the screen and called Grandma Seiko, the wind whispering around him at high altitude.
The phone rang once, then twice, before a voice crackled through.
"Clark? How's it going?" Seiko's voice was concerned but steady.
Clark tilted his head and smirked. "I've got it already. Brace yourself—it's about to come flying at you from the sky in about, oh, five seconds. Nine o'clock direction."
"Wait, what?! Wh—Clark, what are you—"
Her voice cut off just as Clark shifted the phone between his shoulder and cheek, grabbed the Bakeneko's tail with both hands, and began to spin.
He twisted in the air like a human gyroscope, spinning faster and faster until his body and the Yokai became a swirling blur of white and black. A small shockwave rippled from him as he gathered momentum, the clouds swirling above as though nature itself was responding to his motion.
Then—he let go.
With a thunderous boom, the Bakeneko was launched like a missile. It tore through the sky, punching a hole through the clouds, and vanished into the horizon in the direction of the shrine.
---
On the ground, Seiko's eyes widened as she ended the call, she had a faint idea of what Clark had in mind and acted on it.
She didn't hesitate.
"Everyone! Formation now!" she barked to her fellow spirit mediums. Her voice cut through the murmur of confusion like a whip. "Yokai incoming from the East—impact imminent!"
"But Seiko, what are you—"
"No time to explain! MOVE!"
They scrambled into action, forming a wide circle as instructed, each member holding a glowing talisman etched with runes. In the center of the formation stood an ancient urn inscribed with sealing marks and glowing faintly with spiritual energy.
As the talismans flared to life, streams of energy stretched from each medium to the urn, forming a pulsating web of light. The urn began to hum and shimmer as the power fed into it.
Seiko looked up. Her narrowed eyes focused on the rapidly approaching shadow.
"There you are," she muttered.
She slammed her bat to the ground, the force making it bounce up. In one smooth motion, she snatched it by the handle, crouched, and then launched herself into the air with the grace of a seasoned warrior.
Just as the Bakeneko was about to soar past her like a meteor, Seiko twisted her hips and swung her bat.
"NESSIE!!"
The impact was deafening. Her bat collided with the Yokai's face in a dazzling explosion of energy, redirecting its entire trajectory with a violent snap. The Bakeneko's body spun in mid-air, veering sharply from its original path and hurtling straight toward the urn like a homing projectile.
The moment its body struck the edge of the seal, the urn flared with light and suctioned the Yokai inside with a thunderous boom. Wind exploded outward, knocking back leaves and sending pebbles skittering across the shrine grounds.
"Seal it! Now!!" Seiko shouted, landing in a crouch.
The spirit mediums converged in a flash, slamming down the lid of the urn. They pressed their talismans onto the surface, each glowing with divine energy. Symbols crawled across the surface of the container like living ink, locking the seal into place.
A final pulse of light burst from the urn—and then silence.
Seiko exhaled slowly, flicked the half-burnt cigarette from her lips, and swung her bat over her shoulder with a cocky grin. "Sealing complete," she said coolly.
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