The Seventh Case

Prologue

"There would be one way to save him, though", a middle aged doctor whispered to a perturbed couple. The man's eyes softly shimmered with a ray of hope and clasped thr former's hands.

"Please. We'll do anything. He is the last of what remains of my sister's family", the heavily pregnant woman pleaded the doctor as she held a little boy close to her bosom.

"STL", he explained blankly. "I can explain no further as it is not a certified method yet. There is a close to a hundred percent chance that your nephew will..."

"Son", the woman interrupted the doctor and he nodded his head softly.

"Very well. As you said. There is a great chance that your son will survive. But should things go wrong, I will not be in a position to take responsibility of the same. If the method was certified and legal, you may approach the court, but since this is illegal, you too shall be held responsible for the same. So please, think carefully. The only reason I am offering this solution is because of your family name, Ashina-san", he explained, stressing on the woman's maiden name. The child began to cough heavily through the various tubes running over its frail body and another pair of tears dropped from the woman's eyes.

"We do not have the luxury of time, doctor. Please. If this is our only shot, we'll take it. My wife and I do not have another option, and the child has already faced enough for his age. I cannot make him go through anything else. I have to look after my wife as well since she is bearing a child", the man, Kirigaya Minetaka pleaded with the doctor and the latter yielded, finding no alternative way to convince the couple.

"Very well. This process would take only around an hour at max, so please follow me"

Few Minutes Later

"We have created a fictional world called the Underworld. For this procedure, we will extract your son's soul or as we have termed it - his fluctlight, and send it into the Underworld. Your son's fluctlight will absorb a fluctlight based on their compatibility level, and the damage suffered by his brain would subside on its own. I am aware that it sounds illogical, but out of the 20 patients, 18 have come out safely. The only problem is that your child may develop the characteristics of the person he absorbs. Do you still want to continue?", the doctor questioned the couple.

Minetaka looked at his pregnant wife Midori, who gently kissed the child's forehead and cradled his little body. That moment, he realised that he would do whatever it would take to protect the little child. His father-in-law was still unenlightened about the passing of his elder daughter and her husband. Minetaka knew that the day was going to be stressful and sorrowful, but he had to fight on for his emotionally broken wife, his unborn child and the dying child in his better half's arms. With a powerful stare, he nodded his head in the affirmative, and the doctor gently took the child from Midori's arms.

Midori watched from the side as the doctor placed the child on a bed with his head covered, such that it looked similar to a CT scan machine. The mother buried her face in her hands and softly began to shed tears for the umpteenth time. Minetaka wrapped his arm around her shoulders and softly kissed her forehead while rubbing her arm.

"Do not worry. This would be monitored by Kikuoka Seijirou - the genius behind this method. Do not be fooled by his young age for his expertise crosses that of most of his seniors'. Trust him"

"I do not have any other choice, doctor", Minetaka smiled, but the smile was not reflected in his eyes which burned with pain.

"Let us begin"

1 Hour Later

"It is done. He has recovered completely", one of the engineers sighed in relief, but Kikuoka shook his head as he began to rapidly type over his holographic keyboard.