Vormund

VORMUND: That Which Creeps And Crawls

Chapter 3

That Which Creeps and Crawls

Danger is one of the many things in the world that is truly everywhere; one might say it possesses a sort of omnipresence. Danger has many forms. Off of the top of any child's head, one could be told that strangers are dangerous.

But why?

Why are strange, new, unknown things dangerous?

Who knows? Who cares? The human psyche is a mysterious thing. After all, the unknown is not always a dangerous thing, despite our suspicions.

If this one might pause his retelling of Kisaragi's tale, there is a bet of wisdom in linguistics to be shared. In the Chinese language, the symbol for "crisis" is written with two strokes;the first means danger... and the second reads opportunity.

The unknown is often dangerous. Amidst peril and danger, though, lies the chance to create. To meet a new friend or to find a new hobby... are those not created by venturing into the unknown?

Ah, but this one digresses. Enveloped in the dark unknown, will Naoya Kisaragi have an opportunity to make something new and powerful? Or will he succumb to danger?

_______________________

Seated at a quaint, whitewashed table, Naoya gazed out the window with glazed-over eyes. The morning sun had somehow fought its way through the city's ever present fog, and its warm glow permeated into the Hasegawa household.

Naoya had not gone straight to Tsubaki's home, of course; he had made a brief visit to his father's apartment. Because he had arrived at four in the morning, he had assumed that the complex would be empty and that its weekly rabble would have vacated. Alas, he had been able to hear thumping sounds from his father's room, along with drunken moans-

"God," he spat, physically shaking the thought from his mind, "he's such a great influence."

Naoya returned to the work in front of him. He had asked Tsubaki if he could come in and use his unofficial spot by the kitchen window to do some research. She had permitted it, though she seemed irked at being awakened only minutes after she herself had settled into bed. He had accessed Shield's files on the case he'd been assigned and was utterly confused and frustrated.

Susanoo's voice came over his shoulder, "Master Kisaragi, perhaps you should get some sleep."

Naoya jumped at his Guardian's voice, almost spilling his fourth cup of coffee all over the keyboard. He gave the god a glare before turning back to his laptop, which he'd fetched from home during his short time there.

"I just... don't know what the hell I'm doing," he said with a forlorn sigh, "There's no pattern in the victims, just the same method over and over again."

"Maybe they're supposed to be random," Susanoo guessed, his attention abruptly captured by the energetic yips of a tiny dog outside the window.

"No," Naoya murmured, shaking his head as he rifled through another file onscreen, "Keter said there had to be some sort of pattern behind the attacks... he said that most monster attacks of this scale are... I think 'ceremonial' was the word?"

The god absentmindedly nodded, his gaze still locked on the pup outside, "Yes, if monsters fall under the control of something greater, they often work in tandem to create Haunts."

Naoya cocked his head and asked, "Susie, what's a Haunt?"

Susanoo slowly brought a drape over the window, which seemed to cease the incessant barking of the canine on the street.