In the Wake of What Follows

Chapter One: A Second Death

The sun beat down like an angry god. This summer was brutal, worse than normal. Even so high up on the mountain, Genkai felt as if the heat could boil her alive. The soft breeze that twisted through her hair barely gave her any comfort. With a heavy sigh, Genkai brought her tea to her lips and drank.

It had been a great number of years since the demon world tournament and everything was peaceful. Her lands were a refuge to many demons, and despite the challenges that brought, Genkai had to admit to herself that things were almost boring. Her life full of danger and excitement had finally settled down, and now the part of her that wasn't old and decaying still yearned for something new. Fighting wasn't in her anymore. Her bones had grown weak, and her eyes tired. She knew her time was coming soon.

The hope of one last excitement had been teasing her mind for weeks now. She wasn't one to go out without a bang.

As Genkai set her cup down, a sudden shift of energies caught her attention. She closed her eyes to follow the thread. Every once in a while, a new apparition would wander onto her estate and make camp, so to speak, and Genkai would allow it provided they didn't stir trouble. The new energy signatures she picked up on, however, weren't demonic. Humans crossing into her lands could be a cause for concern. While the mountain and the forests were a sanctuary to those who wanted it, that didn't mean she could protect strays if an altercation should arise.

The sound of sliding doors took Genkai out of her thoughts. "They're too far away to reach before nightfall," she stated, her sight set in the direction of the foreign energies.

"Then I best make haste."

"I'm not sure about this, guys," Terra said. "The sign does say private property."

"What, are you chicken?" Conner asked, throwing his bag over the fence. He shot Terra a pout and made a few baby noises. "Little Terra not up for any adventures?"

She pushed his shoulder and rolled her eyes. "Oh, shut it, Conner. I just don't want to be caught doing anything illegal." What she didn't tell him about was the gut-wrenching feeling in the pit of her stomach. Something didn't feel right about this place, as if the shadows in the trees weren't just shadows.

Jeremy, who was standing behind her, placed a hand on top of her head. She turned up to look into his smiling blue eyes. "Ignore him. He's just sour Miyako broke up with him and has to see us this entire trip." Jeremy leaned down and planted a soft kiss on her lips.

Conner told them to get a room as he began to climb the fence. Before Terra had time to protest, Jeremy went and tossed his bag over as well. "Come on, Terra, live a little," he said with a smile. While his smile was something that could always calm her nerves, it didn't shake the feeling she had towards the grounds they were about to enter. "We're not going to get caught," he continued, sensing her reaction. "The land is like five hundred acres. It reaches all the way to the coast. The only ones living there are the people keeping up the temple, which is much closer to the other side than where we are. We're not likely to be seen by anybody."

"This sounds like the start of a horror movie," she quipped.

Jeremy held out his hand for her pack as Conner landed on the other side. "Trust me."

With one last wayward glance around her, Terra did. She trusted him wholly.

The deeper into the woods they traveled, the more on edge Terra became. Without knowing why, she was drawn towards steeper climbs and less open paths. She urged the boys on with mocking cajoles, not unlike Conner calling her a chicken. Throwing it back in his face was enough to keep them moving for some time, avoiding the prickling sensation that kept her away from the accessible looking routes. The tactic only lasted so long under the midday sun.

Conner dropped his bag and sprawled across the stone once he reached the top of their latest climb. They were shaded by trees, but this only did so much to protect them from the fierce heat. They were all beat red and breathless and bone tired. "That's it," Conner said after a few deep breaths. "Once my legs move again, I'm playing leader." Terra was too exhausted to put up any complaint. She and Jeremy followed suit, dropping their bags and then collapsing onto the ground.

"I'd cuddle," Jeremy said, "but I think we'd stick to each other or burst into flames or something," he joked.

"That's fine," she laughed. "You stink anyway." Terra leaned over and pecked his cheek. "We should find an onsen tomorrow. I don't think we're going to get out of here tonight, even if we just backtracked."

Conner agreed. "We still have time before we need to make camp, though." A long yawn came from him and then a mumbled, "Can still make it a little further."

Terra looked over Jeremy to where Conner lay and rolled her eyes. He was asleep already. True, it was still early, but all of them had overexerted themselves today. They were in a spot where she almost felt safe, so she pushed the prickling feeling to the back of her mind and let herself rest. Jeremy reached out; calloused fingers stroked over her knuckles. She reveled in his soft touch for a moment, content. They didn't say anything, silly smiles overrunning their features as they stared at each other.

Before long, they too were asleep in the hot summer haze.

Terra was having a nightmare. It wasn't uncommon for her to be haunted in her sleep. She was always very aware when she was in a dream, but it didn't do anything to lessen the fears that gripped her. Terra was never able to control what happened or what she did. If it were a simple dream, she wouldn't mind, but there was something extra harsh about being trapped in your own nightmare.

The shadows that had unnerved her upon entering the woods came out of their hiding as she slept, with bared teeth and sharp claws. The sun's fire was gone, and Terra was left in a cold, dark wood with darker creatures out for her blood.

Jeremy's bright eyes found hers in the darkness, beckoning her closer. Terra was pulled to him, but no matter how many steps she took, he seemed only to get further away. She ran, arms scrapped by tree branches and feet mangled on sharp rocks. She ran after him, but he was swallowed by the darkness and she no longer knew where she was running.

That's when something pulled her back, knocking the wind out of her.

She woke with a start, breath heavy and a scream still ringing in her ears. The moonlight was scarce under the tree's guard and it took a moment for her eyes to adjust. Before her heart could settle, it spiked again, her mind making connections she was barely cognizant of. Fear brought her to her feet as the realization hit - the scream ringing in her ears wasn't her own. A phantom echo could still be heard from somewhere deeper into the woods. Despite the warm air, a chill ran down her spine. There was something in the dark.

Terra rushed over to Jeremy and shook him awake. He tried to shoo her off, but her persistence got his attention. "What?" he finally managed, sitting up and eyes mostly closed. Her voice came out panicked and rushed. "We're not safe here. We have to go. I don't know where, but we do," she pleaded.

Her hair was plastered to her face by a light sheen of sweat and her eyes were wild. Jeremy reached up to push the strays behind her ear and left his hand on her cheek. "Did you have another nightmare?" he asked. Jeremy's thumb lightly ran across her skin, just under her eye. Terra had been having nightmares frequently the last two years, so it didn't come as too much of a surprise for Jeremy when she woke up with frantic gestures and teary looks. Terra nodded into his hand and let out a shaky breath. Jeremy dropped his hand and stood. "Come on. I'll get you your water." With tired steps, he walked towards her bag, expecting her to sit and calm down.

"I heard a scream," she told him, breath still shaky. "I don't think it was my dream. I really think I heard a scream." Jeremy looked at her with a comforting smile and suddenly she wasn't as sure. "I mean. It was just as I woke up, so I could be wrong." Terra looked down at her hands in her lap, wishing she was strong enough to get over her nightmares.

"Was it the car dream again," he asked, "or a different one?" Jeremy handed her water bottle over and sat next to her.

Terra shook her head and took a sip. The water was lukewarm, but it did something to settle her. "There were monsters in this one," she said. Her breath had returned to normal, but her heart still raced as if she were running. "And you were in it."

"I hope I wasn't the monster," he said with a warm smile. Terra shook her head and took another drink. "Was Conner?"

Terra looked over to the lump of shadow that was Conner's bag, saying no. Her eyes scrutinized the dark, trying to make out Conner himself. "Is he over there?" The words came out barely a whisper, fear gripping everything inside her.

With a heavy sigh, Jeremy stood up again and walked over to where Conner had fallen asleep. "No, he's not," Jeremy said, slightly surprised. When he looked back up, Jeremy caught sight of Terra's terrified expression and immediately put his hands up in a placating gesture. "He probably just went to pee or something. Calm down, there's nothing in these woods."

His words were soothing and his eyes were loving, but just as he finished his sentence, something pulled him into the darkness. Another scream rang through the trees – Jeremy's. The air became cold. Terra didn't know whether to run towards him or away. The sound of his voice reached her ears, freezing her where she stood. Fight or flight failed her as he disappeared into the densely packed forest. Something, sharp as a knife, tore at her side. The shock of pain stopped her breath, but that didn't prevent one last scream to echo across the mountain.

It took a few blinks before Terra was able to form even an inkling of a thought. The first thing she felt was the sun on her face, flittered through the window on her left. The warmth was welcome.

The second thing she felt was pain.

With a sudden pulse of agony, Terra gasped. Her breath quickly became as rigid as it had been after her nightmare and a flood of memories coursed through her brain.

A wail escaped her lips. The pain barely registered next to the fear that clung to her, keeping her in the moments of the night before. She sobbed like a frightened child. No matter how Terra tried to recall Jeremy's eyes, her mind brought her back to the pale yellow irises that had surrounded her like a hundred tiny moons.

She didn't hear as people rushed to her side. The sight of strangers was not something she had the capacity to comprehend. They were like ghosts in her vision, voices barely audible as they asked her to be still. It took several minutes for Terra to calm down and several more before she was able to think clearly. The small group merely waited for her to speak, now that she wasn't at risk of tearing at her wound.

"Help me sit up?" were the first words out of her mouth. Terra looked over at the people in the room, eyes pleading with them to let her.

"Your wound was deep," one of them said. It took a minute for Terra's eyes to focus on the speaker. When she did, she felt she had seen him before. He almost looked like a girl. His features were so soft and his deep auburn hair was quite long. "We don't want to put any strain on it."

"Please?"

The old woman among them nodded her head slightly. The redhead and a girl with long brown hair made their way to Terra's side and gently eased her into a sitting position. She winced, ragged breaths pushing against the bandaged injury as she moved. Terra placed a hand on her side. The slightest pressure led to a rush of pain that she shuddered against to keep from shouting out.

Terra looked at her aids, too tired to bother wiping away the tears that collected in her eyes. The old woman could have been asleep save for the fact she sat ramrod straight. Her wrinkly frown seemed deep in thought. The girl, who looked about Terra's age, watched Terra with kind yet wary eyes, almost as if she were afraid to get bitten by the creature she was trying to help. The redhead, by contrast, looked at Terra with a perfect mask of calm serenity.

"Where are my friends?" Terra asked, her voice carrying every note of fear she held within her.

The girl flinched. Terra's mind grasped at the implications. Instinctively, she tried to stand. The redhead reached over and placed a hand on her shoulder. Despite his gentle touch, he was more than strong enough to force Terra seated.

"Where are my friends?" she repeated, slightly higher in pitch than before.

The man holding her steady sighed. The short, sharp sigh of someone forced into an unpleasant task. "I truly am sorry." He spoke with a voice that had said these words many times. "Your friends' wounds were too vast and too many. Even had they gotten proper treatment, I don't think they would have…" he trailed off.

Terra's voice cracked as she tried to confirm her worst suspicions. "They're dead?"

His hand gripped ever the slightest bit tighter in a show of comfort. "They're dead."

Before another moment could pass, Terra dissolved into tears.

The three persons with Terra didn't leave her side as she cried. What felt like hours passed, and yet they all sat and waited for Terra to cry herself out. She didn't know if she was glad for their presence or not. When she had no more tears, the atmosphere staled around her like a numbing shield.

"Keiko," the old woman said, her eyes still closed in meditation, "bring the girl some rice and tea, will you?"

With a slight scramble, the girl stood and rushed away, her long hair swishing elegantly behind her. After the sliding door closed again and Keiko's footsteps faded, the silence that fell over the room was deafening. Terra's throat was sore from crying, but she couldn't stand the quiet anymore. She drew a deep breath – in and out – before speaking.

"What," she paused for a second, running her tongue over her lips, "what attacked us?"

"A pack of wolves, it appears," the man supplied. "There are a number of wild anim-" but he was unable to finish his lie.

"Wolves don't grab people." Terra looked at the man, her jaw set in a hard line. "They don't have hands to do that."

He seemed unfazed by her underlying accusation. His shockingly green eyes lit with an out of place sense of amusement, a whisper of a smile at his lips. "Do you have a good experience with wolves?" he asked.

"Enough to know they don't have hands." This man knew something, it was evident in the way he looked at her, and it gave Terra a whole new set of chills. "What attacked us," she repeated.

Keiko opened the door again, a tray under her arm. She placed the food and drink beside where Terra sat and then turned to the old woman. "Genkai, the people are here to get the" - she quickly glanced at Terra before setting her eyes to the floor. She took a breath before continuing. "Do you want me to ask them to wait, or should I direct them to…" the words stuck in her throat. Terra could see tears well up in the girl's eyes. Keiko cleared her throat and waited for instruction.

The old woman stood and gave Terra a stern look. "Eat. You need to keep your strength up." With that, she took her leave, Keiko following behind.

"Genkai is right. You need to eat," the man said, still looking at her with the same bright eyes.

"You were there," Terra said, parsing out events in her pained haze of memories. She studied his face, more sure by the second. "I remember your hair." It was vague, the memory of a man's shadowed form standing above her, but she was certain. His hair almost glistened when the moonlight had hit it.

He nodded. "Yes, I happened to be in the area when I heard screams. I was able to bring you back here after scaring off the wolves."

"By yourself?" she asked, incredulous to his words. "Who are you?" she asked when no further explanation was given.

He paused for a moment, lips parted in a response he held back. He looked her over like one might assess a painting that held an optical illusion – there was something off, but it couldn't be pinned down.

"My name is Kurama," he stated, and then stayed silent, the former mirth leaving his eyes.

"But who are you?"

Another silence passed between them before he responded. "I'm a doctor in the neighboring city. Professionally known as Shuichi Minamino. I was visiting Genkai to check up on her health. Lucky for you, I was here and able to treat your wounds."

Terra absently stroked the bandages on her side in silent contemplation. She meant to thank him for that, but she couldn't with so many questions swimming around in her head. She still hadn't fully processed what it meant that Jeremy and Conner were… she couldn't go there. Questions were better. She opened her mouth to say something, anything to distract from the layers of pain. "What was a doctor doing in the woods, halfway down the mountain, in the middle of the night?"

The glint of amusement was back in Kurama's brilliant green eyes. Before he could respond, however, voices flooded the hallway and headed towards them. When the door opened, a uniformed police officer and a paramedic entered, Genkai and Keiko on their tails. Kurama filled the paramedic in as to Terra's condition. The medic seemed to have known Kurama as a doctor already. He simply took Terra's vitals and asked if she wanted to be checked into the hospital for follow up care. It wasn't necessary, based on Kurama's – Dr. Minamino's – statement, although a few days of bed rest were recommended before traveling if she didn't return with them.

Terra thought she should go. But she hated hospitals. And she hadn't gotten her answers yet.

"If they'll let me, I'd rather stay," she admitted.

"Stay it is," Genkai said.

"I'm sorry for having to do this," the police officer said. His voice carried all the calculated warmth for dealing with such situations. "But I have to ask you a few questions."

Terra nodded slowly, shifting her gaze to the floor.

"Your name?" he asked, sitting down next to Kurama.

"Terra Nakashima."

The officer continued with the basics of who Terra was before coming to the actual incident at hand. Terra listed them off without much thought. "Twenty-two . . . I'm a Japanese citizen . . . I'm a student, or I was. I graduated in March."

"Who were the boys with you?"

Terra paused a moment before collecting herself and answering. "Conner Black and Jeremy Scotts."

"And how were the three of you affiliated?"

"School. We went to Tokyo University together. Conner and Jeremy had been roommates."

"Were you aware that you had been trespassing on private property?"

Terra thought of her weak attempt to persuade the boys into not jumping the fence. If she had been more upset over the matter, more determined not to go, then maybe they'd still be here. Tears would have threatened to break if she had any left to spare.

"Yes."

"What happened last night while you were on this property?"

"We had fallen asleep before night set from exhaustion. I woke up by," by Conner's scream, she thought. "By the howling of wolves." The lies tasted bitter on her tongue, but they were the safer ones to speak. She didn't need a psych evaluation after all of this. "I woke Jeremy up, told him we needed to leave. Conner was missing. Jeremy thought he had just gone to the bathroom or something. That's when Jeremy was attacked." Terra paused in her story, reliving the moment in her head.

"By the wolves," the officer prompted.

Terra dared a glance at Kurama. His almost-smile had been replaced with pity. Terra had fallen into a rabbit hole, and this man knew the secrets, but secrets meant lying, even about the death of the people closest to her. Somehow, she thought he understood, and that was why he looked at her that way. He understood what she was giving up by lying.

"By the wolves," Terra repeated. "One got me soon after, and I blacked out. Apparently, this man came to my rescue." She gestured to Kurama with a slight nod of her head.

"Pure serendipity on my part," Kurama said before the officer could ask him any questions. "I was out searching for a plant I knew grew in that area of Genkai's land when I heard the screams. I had my tranquilizer gun with me, knowing such beasts lived on this mountain. I was able to subdue the wolves and immediately went to try and stop the bleed of her and her friends. Knowing it was too much to handle solely, I called my friend Yusuke, who is also visiting Genkai, and together we were able to bring them back here."

"And where is this friend of yours?" the officer asked Kurama, eyeing him dully.

To this, Genkai responded. "I sent him on an errand." The room seemed to turn to look at the old crone as if she hadn't been there before. "He should be back before long."

The officer nodded and jotted down a few notes. "Genkai has chosen not to press charges as to your trespassing. You should be lucky for that and your life." He stood up, scribbling more into his notes. "Now, Miss Nakashima, is there anyone you would like me to notify? The parents of your friends will be contacted as soon as I get back to the station, but if there's anyone you'd like me to send for," he offered.

Terra shook her head. "No," she said softly. "There's no one."

The officer shut his notebook, and he and the medic took their leave. This was an open and shut case for the man, and there was still plenty left to do before he could call it a day.

"Now eat." Genkai's words hung in the air for a moment before Terra finally obliged.

Terra was left alone. Kurama had gone sometime during her meal and had yet to return. Keiko came and went, making sure she wasn't moving too much or wished for more after clearing her tray. The old woman hadn't been seen since her last command to eat, but Terra thought she heard her voice sigh behind the door more than once over the course of the day.

She could have burned a hole in the floor with how hard she stared. When the door opened again, she didn't turn to look. Terra was surprised to hear four deliberate steps against the wood floor and not Keiko's nervous shuffling. A thud echoed in the quiet room as something heavy hit against the floor, causing Terra to turn her head. Kurama stood behind a mound of hiking backpacks, the same three Terra, Jeremy, and Conner had carried with them halfway up the mountain.

"I thought you might want these. My friend Yusuke went back to the site to bring them up. I'm not sure which one is yours."

"What attacked me?" Terra asked, eyes locking with Kurama's, "Really." She waited, but he said nothing. She nearly growled her next words. "What killed my friends?"

"You sound like someone preparing for revenge," he remarked casually.

Terra had to scoff at that. "Revenge, right. I just wan- I just need to know the truth." Her voice had become softer but more determined. The steady resonance of someone who has nothing left to lose and too tired to be angry. "Those weren't wolves, which you obviously know. And you weren't just looking for a rare herb in the middle of the night and just so happened to save me." Terra had spent a lot of time trying to remember the moments she was conscious. "You knew we were there. You asked where the third one was, at one point. They don't make handheld tranquilizer guns, and you carried me on your back, so where was your rifle? Tell me the truth."

Genkai's gruff voice came from behind Kurama. "Tell her. She can handle it." Terra didn't know when Genkai had arrived, too focused on a Kurama to notice much else. She gave off an aura of control, now that Terra saw her, and Terra knew she would finally get answers.

Kurama looked behind him for a moment and then nodded. He and the old woman took their same seats in front of Terra. "I'm not sure how you're going to take this, Terra," Kurama began, the first any of them had said her name. "Most people tend to dismiss such things as a mere trick of the mind and convince themselves away from the truth. But as you seem convinced that it was not a band of wolves that attacked you and your friends, then maybe you'll be more open to the alternative."

"Which is," she prompted.

"Demons."

"Demons?" she repeated, the word sounded right and yet completely insane at the same time. It was as if every book, every TV show, every movie she ever saw come to light in the worst possible way. There had been so many variations of what that single word meant; it was like it had no meaning at all.

Genkai spoke up again. "You could feel it, couldn't you." It wasn't so much a question as a pull for Terra's understanding.

She didn't want to admit it. It sounded crazy to her own ears, but Terra nodded. "I had a bad feeling looking at this place. It was like the shadows weren't just shadows."

Genkai nodded. "And these feelings are what had you take the path you did, one with the least amount of bad feeling, as you say." Terra looked at her, surprised. That was it exactly. "No one would have taken the path you chose without some strong spirit awareness." Before Terra could ask what spirit awareness was, the old woman continued. "Tell me, have you always seen things out of the corner of your eye, felt shadows move, seen a face change for just a second to something monstrous?"

To this, Terra shook her head. She had yet to come to terms with the reality of demons, but a part of her already believed every word the pair were saying. "No, no, it's more recent." The words came out before she realized it. She had seen things out of the corner of her eye, faces change, avoided that strange feeling more than just when she stepped foot on these grounds. Terra had always shaken it off as a trick of the light or irrational fear.

"How recent," Kurama asked, his tone seeming more serious than she had heard it before.

Terra thought back to the first time she had the same foreboding feeling as when she entered Genkai's land. She had been walking to school, a route she was so familiar with she wasn't even thinking about where she was going when something froze her in her tracks. A chill ran down her spine despite the warm spring weather. To her right was a darkened ally. It was light enough to tell there was no one there but it felt as if something was staring at her with hungry eyes. Without a second thought, Terra tore off until she was among a throng of people, the crowd giving her some security.

"About two years ago, I think."

"Did anything happen to you that could have led to you gaining higher spirit awareness? Had anyone approached you, or-"

"I died," she said suddenly, as if all the gears of her mind suddenly clicked together. "My heart stopped for almost two minutes. They said I was legally dead for that time." Terra's eyes searched those of Kurama and Genkai for answers but found none. "What happened to me?"

Kurama smiled a bit and stood. "Perhaps Yusuke would be best at explaining this. He went through quite a similar experience."

He went to leave, but before he reached the door, another man with shaggy black hair poked his head in. A toothy grin was plastered on the boy's face. "Someone say my name?"