Domain.

Gaius had decided that intangibility was bullshit. He had to be unaffected by the fundamental forces, (gravity, electromagnetism, strong force and weak force) to go through matter. Yet he was still affected by one of them, gravity, because he didn't accelerate to escape velocity and was thrown off world when he turned intangible. He also had to be affected by inertia so his corpse would not end up in another galaxy in a few millennia. Electromagnetic force in order to see, etc.

He was not complaining about having it though, because it was amazing. While immaterial he could not only go through matter but through all kinds of energy, (another thing that made no sense, since he could see) and he was immune to all non supernatural things. That last was the one that had him giddy, since that included things up to nuclear bombs or being dropped in the Sun. Also his form while affected by gravity had nearly no mass. So gravity didn't so much accelerate him as keep him in orbit, that once again didn't make sense, so he could fly and escape increased gravity fields.

It's inconvenients were clear. First, it was a trait, so it's maximum duration, ten minutes, was constant as was its cost. The last one wasn't very punishing, for him. People without Senjutsu would find their reserves drained fast, which explained why Reiko only used it in short bursts. Second, he wasn't affected by physical forces while in the state, which meant no acceleration, which meant he moved in a straight line and couldn't deviate from his course without magical intervention. Thankfully a few common Patterns could take care of that. And the third and most limiting one, while he could move through supernatural things the more supernatural they were the more effort it required. Due to this he couldn't move through ki or spells, which meant they could damage him.

Despite those flaws it was still an incredible trait, one that he was glad to add to his repertoire. So it was with an incredible mood that he rose that morning and did his exercises, and with even better mood that he went to meet Akihiko and Ryuunosuke.

While on his way to their meeting point, the door of the residential complex, he felt a disconcerting feeling, like he was forgetting something. Shrugging it off he continued to walk. Once he reached the door he saw his partners and greeting them, dived right into business.

“Good morning you two. What are we doing today, patrolling?”

Akihiko waved his hand without energy, while Ryuunosuke responded loudly.

“Good morning, Gaius!”

“I see you are energetic this morning. Did something good happen?”

“My sister and her boyfriend are moving together, so I'll get more space for myself.” He said while grinning.

Gaius paused for a moment. “They are another culture Gaius. Don't let it weird you.” He muttered to himself, too low to be heard.

He then nodded as Ryuunosuke blabbed about how much space he would have, and how the bathroom would be free and the such. This kept on while they went to the car. Once there Akihiko cleared his throat and said.

“While I'm glad for you, you have already repeated yourself at least thrice. Please let it rest.”

Ryuunosuke looked at him with narrowed eyes, displeased at having his enthusiasm interrupted, but nodded and agreed to drop the theme.

“Thanks. Now about your question Gaius. Today we are actually going to a thirteen member association that has dropped off the grid for the last ten days. They haven't been seen or heard of, so we are looking if they have been involved in the Cult. It's more likely it was the Blue Leathers, but we'll still investigate.”

“I see. May God or whatever they believe in have mercy on them. Anything I should know?”

“They had eight outer members, who were taught in exchange of managing their businesses and all that stuff. The other five were inner members, who took vows of silence in exchange of spiritual awareness. They took on Evil Spirits and things like that.”

“A dangerous business for those who are not Senjutsu users or priests.”

“True. It's why I want you to keep your third eye open.”

Gaius tilted his head at that. “That still seems funny to me. I don't see, I feel.”

“How would you describe it then?” Asked Ryuunosuke.

“As I said I feel.” He stressed the last word.

They spent the drive to their headquarters making Gaius describe how he felt things with Senjutsu. Once there Ryuunosuke asked.

“Then what are you feeling right now?”

Gaius rolled his eyes, before cracking his neck and focusing.

“I-.” He paused. “Actually I have no idea, what is this feeling?”

Akihiko stopped trying to open the door when he heard that, and jumped back.

“I didn't detect anything, how does it feel?”

Gaius stared at the building. “It feels as if there was a layer of mist between me and the building, something clouds my, sigh, sight from the interior.”

Ryuunosuke smiled smugly at that. “Thus does camp sight win.”

“Focus Ryuunosuke, this is serious.” Scolded Akihiko.

“Sorry.”

“Alright. Gaius you enter first, once you get a better feeling come out and tell us. If you are not out in a minute I will call reinforcements.”

“Alright.”

Gaius went to the door while Akihiko and Ryuunosuke went to block pedestrians from getting in the way. Akihiko gave Gaius the go ahead and he entered.

Then something sudden happened. Akihiko and Ryuunosuke felt a force driving them to the door and were sucked in the building, however the pedestrians didn't feel a thing. There was a little alarm, before their eyes dulled.

“Why have I stopped again?” A woman wondered.

In the building a strange scene presented itself before Gaius. He was in a dark and damp cavern, a tunnel that twisted forwards with no exit behind his back. The strangest thing was that he was not alone.

In the tunnel several children, about thirty total, were mining a silvery white metal that bizarrely wasn't present in veins, but clumps. Even stranger was that it seemed pure, not mixed with other minerals. The children looked at him when he entered and then ignored him. He was observing them when a little child, pale as a corpse appeared before one of them.

“Why did you leave me alone? I was a good kid, I didn't want to be left alone. I was a good kid, why did you leave me alone? I was a good kid, did you leave me because I was a bad one? Was I not a good kid? I was a good kid, why did our parents leave? Did they not love me?”

The child that was being spoken to trembled, but the one to his left grabbed him and shook his head.

“Did you leave me because you didn't love me? Because mom and dad left us because of me? Because you wanted mom and dad to come back?”

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The other child opened his mouth, tears falling from his eyes. But the one to the left put his, or her now that he looked closely, hands on his mouth, not letting him say anything.

The pale child’s face twisted. It's eyes bulging and becoming bloodshot, their hair stringy and wet, as its mouth widened and split its head in half.

“Or did you want to get rid of me? Because I was a bother? Because you wanted to be free of me? Because I was a burden.”

It's tongue left its mouth, tasting the air, long and pointy.

“I feel regret. Did you enjoy when they took me? Is that why you feel guilt? Did you hate me?”

The elder brother looked as if something had ripped his heart from his chest, but he remained silent.

“But you made a mistake. They didn't kill me, they made me join them. So now I'm one of them, and you are the one that made it possible. I thank you.”

The older child couldn't handle it anymore and began to shout.

“No! I-”

His explanation was cut short when several of the metal lumps shattered and spectral white hands rose from the floor, dragging the elder brother through it.

The child shaped thing began dancing and singing.

“Big brother joined us! Big brother loved us! We'll be together! Forever and ever and ever and ever-”

Gaius decided he had seen enough and spoke.

“I have seen enough, vanish.” He stopped the corruption from influencing his thoughts.

The reflection of past events shattered and Gaius found himself in a storefront. One with a floor filled roots that looked like flesh with moss growing on them. The air was filled with corruption and spores. Gaius could hear soft whispers, too low to be understood. As Gaius took the place in the same spectral hands that took the child rose for him.

Gaius responded by setting himself on fire and making them dissolve into corruption, but they reformed fast. Seeing no other choice Gaius decided to absorb the corruption around him, and then destroyed and absorbed the hands too. This time they didn't return.

He looked at his surroundings and saw Akihiko standing, unable to wake up but keeping a barrier around himself.

In his mind Akihiko saw much the same as Gaius, but where Gaius saw children he saw adults. And where they mined white metal they harvested blue coal from trees, that grew fused to the mines.

He was trembling, chanting a Shinto prayer while keeping a barrier around him, having recognised he was in an illusion, but unable to free himself. It was in this state that he heard a voice as a presence poked his mind.

“Akihiko. It's me, let me in. I have to purge your spirit.”

He didn't listen, for he was surely another illusion, this voice may not be Gaius, he-. Huh, who was Gaius again? He thought.

“Akihiko! I swear to God that if you don't let me in I will break your legs and force you to faint! You fool, can't you distinguish illusion from reality? Aren't you the great investigator?”

Akihiko was startled, if the illusion didn't know it didn't come from him which meant… He stopped his prayer and he found himself in reality.

The hand obstructing his vision retired, showing Gaius’ face. He spoke quickly.

“Don't separate from me. I'm absorbing the corruption so if you remain near me it won't affect you.”

Akihiko calmed down and began assessing the situation.

“Do you have a time limit?”

“Not as long as I don't have to do this for more than an hour. Even then if I concentrate on myself I can keep the corruption at bay.”

“Let's search for Ryuunosuke.”

They began to move when Gaius noticed movement in the roots and grabbed Akihiko. He then jumped back from where he was, managing to avoid the now sharp roots. He decided to not take chances and produced an intense fire form his Touki, burning everything in the shop, and once again he took the corruption in.

Akihiko cursed. “Shit, is everything here an Evil Spirit. I think this is…”

“It's a domain, I can feel a very powerful Evil Spirit bellow.”

“Then it's there where we'll find Ryuunosuke.”

Having chosen their course of action they moved deeper in the buildings passageways. On the way they had to deal with more roots and hands. Ten minutes in they found something strange. A child, like that in Gaius’ vision appeared in their way.

“Misters, I-”

Gaius didn't waste time punching it, dispersing it back into corruption.

“I can't do anything for you now. I hope you found yourselves in a better place. I will at least put down your regrets, so you may rest not fearing they may harm others. And I'll pray.

Our Father, Who is in heaven,

Holy is Your Name;

Your kingdom come,

Your will be done,

on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread,

and forgive us our sins,

as we forgive those who sin against us;

and lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from evil. Amen.”

His prayer finished Gaius moved on. Akihiko was overcome by curiosity.

“That was a wraith wasn't it?”

“Yes. An Evil Spirit born when someone dies in regret. Soulless and mindless it is twisted by its regrets and corruption into a cursed existence that only spreads suffering. A mockery of the living, it lives to see others dragged to its state.”

“Aren't they stronger?”

“You are thinking of spectres, the wraiths, hmm. Evolved its wrong since evolving does not make one better. Improved form. The result of a wraith living long enough to actually become a danger. Wraiths are still dangerous for mundanes.”

“That's weird, there shouldn't be murdered children near. Nor enslaved adults now that I think about it.”

“I think this corruption isn't from here. It came with an accursed object. It seems they bit more they could chew.”

Akihiko looked downwards. “Poor idiots.”

Gaius nodded weakly. “Yes. I should also pray for them.

Hail Mary full of Grace, the Lord is with thee.

Blessed are thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb Jesus.

Holy Mary Mother of God,

pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death

Amen.”

They kept going on. Bringing peace to wraiths and killing Evil Spirits as they appeared. As they went deeper Gaius began to look paler and paused.

“I'm reaching my limits. A domain is too much to absorb.”

Akihiko frowned. “I've seen priests purify entire domains.”

“They don't absorb corruption, they call upon divine beings to purify it. And while it flows through them for a while their faith helps them handle it.”

“What if you do the same? Try to whoa!”

Akihiko dodged, just in time to avoid a speeding corpse. Gaius attacked the corpse, throwing it to wall, before pummelling it. While the corpse had improved durability it was only as tough as granite, and as such it perished quickly.

Akihiko swore. “What the fuck was that! Not a zombie, or a kasha. It was too fast for the first and too strong for the latter.”

“I think it was a draugr. It was denser than a human, and heavier.”

“Draugr? In Japan?”

Gaius shrugged. Akihiko moved to examine the corpse.

“Now we know what happened to the owners.”

Gaius knelt in prayer once more. He then rose and asked.

“What were they called? It seems disrespectful not to use their name.”

Akihiko nodded, tired from the stress and his uselessness.

“Yes. They were called the Ablution Society.”

They began to walk once more, while Gaius grew weaker with each step. They had to deal with five other draugr on their way.

It was after dealing with the sixth one that Gaius stopped to take a breath. He heaved, his body fine, but his mind weary.

“What were you saying?”

“What?”

“Before the first draugr, the way to deal with the corruption.”

“Oh. What if you use faith to deal with the corruption. You know, rely on your God. You guys are supposed to do that, no?”

Gaius began laughing a bit, but soon began coughing.

“Yes, we do.” He got out, painfully. “How foolish of me to forget. Let's see. Yes that one is tailor made for this. The Lord is my shepherd…”

They began advancing once more, Gaius showing an improvement, the suggested solution effective. They kept going until they found a hall with two draugr and five zombie mages, undead still capable of using magic bound to their masters will. The two draugr were at the start of the hall leading to a door, while the mages were separated. Two in the opposite walls of the hall, and three before the door.

“That's the end. After that door is what caused this.” Said Gaius. “Cover me.”

He charged into the fray, managing to bash one of the draugrs head in. He then used three Judgement Lights that headed towards one of the zombies in the walls.

Gaius kicked the draugr’s left knee, shattering it and making it tumble. Then he tried to head for the zombies but it grabbed his leg. While it couldn't keep Gaius occupied for long at peak state, at his current weakness it held him for five seconds before Gaius managed to break its head. That was enough for the four remaining zombie mages to bombard him with spells.

However Gaius also had reinforcements. Akihiko managed to put a barrier that stopped the spells. From the smoke produced Gaius charged at them, kicking the last undead in the walls in the chest and causing too much damage for it to keep functioning. He then run to the door, before Akihiko had to stop another fireball.

Gaius stopped and decided to conserve his Touki. Thus he casted many Judgement Lights at the mages, managing to take down two, that put themselves on the way between the Lights and the final one.

This last one had yet to attack, concentrating all its magic in a single lightning that it launched at Gaius. Akihiko put a barrier but it was instantly shattered, and Gaius thrown against the hall’s entrance. Its final spell casted, the zombie crumbled into dust, unable to withstand the magical energy it used.

Gaius’ ears ringed and his chest hurt. He lifted his head and saw Akihiko begin to try and heal him.

“Don't bother.” He said in a raspy voice, his throat a bit damaged. “I'll regenerate faster you can heal me, perks of Touki. Just give me five minutes.”

Akihiko nodded and began guarding him as he rested.

“I'm too spent.” Said Gaius once he had recovered. “If I didn't have to absorb the corruption I could regenerate more of my energy, but as I am right now.” He coughed and spit some blood that had been left in his lungs. “I won't be able to. And I think I can't take that thing in there with my current reserves.”

“Fuck. Alright, think, what can we do.”

Akihiko began thinking. They bounced ideas before they settled on a plan. Akihiko would use all his remaining energy to blow the door, in the meantime Gaius would use his intangibility to slip through the now corruption devoid walls and take the spirit by surprise. Not much, but it was all they had.

They started the plan, and it went well, until Gaius identified the source of the corruption. A sword, in an obviously possessed Ryuunosuke’s hand.