Veilwalkers: Shadows Between Worlds

Chapter 17: Battle Scars and Broken Spirits

The Elder Hall was in chaos. Shamans of all ranks gathered in the grand chamber, their voices a cacophony of concern and fear. Something terrible had happened, and the urgency in the air was palpable. At the center of the hall, two stretchers were carried in, bearing the heavily injured forms of Kaede and Hiroshi. Their bodies were battered and broken, bloodied bandages wrapped around their limbs, and their faces pale with exhaustion. It was clear that they had narrowly escaped with their lives.

The High Priest, a figure of great authority and wisdom, stepped forward, his brow furrowed with worry. "What happened?" he demanded, his voice steady but laced with concern.

Kaede, her voice trembling, struggled to speak through the pain. "It wasn't just one Onryō... there were two of them. And worse, a high-level Oni was hidden in an altar, masked by their presence. We barely made it out alive."

Hiroshi, his voice weaker, added, "They had slave marks on them... it wasn't their own doing. Someone was controlling them. It's the work of a human."

A murmur of disbelief rippled through the hall. The idea of a human controlling such powerful spirits was alarming. The High Priest's eyes darkened as he processed the information. "The gate to the east has been broken," he said gravely. "That's why there has been an increase in malevolent spirits. Something must have happened to cause this breach. But what?"

Just then, Riku arrived, his expression serious. He had been gathering information and was now ready to share what he had learned. He approached Kaede and Hiroshi, his eyes narrowing as he asked, "Did the slave mark look like this?" He sketched a rough symbol on a piece of paper and showed it to them.

Kaede and Hiroshi gasped, their eyes wide with shock. "Yes... that's exactly the mark," Kaede whispered. "How do you know?"

Riku took a deep breath, then explained the situation that had been unfolding at the school. He told them about the mysterious man who had infiltrated the Paranormal Activity Club, providing them with dangerous vessels that contained malevolent spirits. The club members, unaware of the true nature of these objects, had unwittingly unleashed something far beyond their control.

"And it doesn't end there," Riku continued. "We captured one of the club members who seemed to know more than the others. After interrogating him, we learned that he was connected to a larger organization—a cult, really. They're a newly emerged group, but they're well-organized and incredibly dangerous. Their goal seems to be to harness and control spirits for their own ends."

The High Priest listened intently, his face grim. "This cult... what do they call themselves?"

"They call themselves the 'Covenant of the Black Gate,'" Riku replied. "They're not just after power—they're trying to create chaos by breaking the barriers between the worlds of the living and the dead."

The High Priest nodded, understanding the gravity of the situation. "We'll need to gather all our forces to deal with this threat. The eastern gate must be sealed, and we need to find out who is leading this cult."

Riku then turned back to Kaede and Hiroshi. "Tell me about the fight. What did the Onryō and Oni look like? How did you manage to survive?"

Kaede closed her eyes, recalling the harrowing battle. "The Onryō were terrifying... their faces were twisted in agony, their eyes burning with hatred. They moved so fast, almost like shadows, and their screams... their screams were enough to freeze the blood in your veins."

Hiroshi nodded, adding, "The Oni was something else entirely. It was massive, at least ten feet tall, with dark red skin and horns that seemed to pierce the very air. It was hiding in an altar, waiting for the right moment to strike. We didn't see it until it was too late."

Kaede shivered as she remembered. "We used every chant, every spell we knew, but it wasn't enough. The Oni was stronger than anything we'd faced before. It would have killed us if not for a protective barrier that one of our talismans activated at the last second. Even then, it broke through, and we barely escaped with our lives."

The room fell silent as the shamans absorbed their words. The threat was real, and it was growing. The Covenant of the Black Gate was powerful, and their influence was spreading. If they were behind the broken eastern gate and the control of the Onryō and Oni, then they were far more dangerous than anyone had realized.

The High Priest finally spoke, his voice calm but firm. "We'll need to act quickly. This is no longer just a battle against rogue spirits. This is a war against those who would use the dead for their own gain. We must protect our world, no matter the cost."

Riku nodded in agreement, his resolve hardened. "I'll continue investigating the cult and track down any leads on the mysterious man. We'll need to find him before he can cause any more damage."

As the meeting came to an end, Riku couldn't shake the feeling that the battle had only just begun. The fight against the Onryō and Oni had been brutal, but it was only a glimpse of what was to come. The Covenant of the Black Gate was a shadowy organization with dark ambitions, and it would take everything the High Order had to stop them.

And somewhere out there, the man with the tattoo on his neck was still at large, plotting his next move.