Chapter 28: Divination.

Asherah’s shoes clacked against the ground Rhythmically as she sat in a small and crowded waiting room. She had been sitting at her current location for almost two hours.

She held the job request up and read it for what must have been the one thousandth time. The place she was currently visiting was called the Anansi soul gazing school. The job description had instructed her to come here in search of a spirit medium. This was so that she could get a divination done on the vengeful spirit’s location. Unfortunately for her, she had arrived at an extremely busy time and was told to wait for her turn.

The ornate shadows of curtains were projected onto the wall as the setting sun shined through the windows behind her. In the sunlight a few of the other waiting people let out several impatient groans, waiting for the spirit medium to emerge from the door at the end of the room.

Eventually the door did creek open and Asherah turned her head to look towards the person emerging from inside. Much to Asherah’s surprise, it wasn’t the young lady she had seen regularly call out for customers by name before going back inside with them. This was an older woman who had greying brown hair and green eyes.

The customer she had been serving, a young woman and her infant daughter appeared from the room behind her before saying goodbye and leaving. The younger woman Asherah had seen before also appeared and said her goodbyes presumably about to go home from work. She then pointed at Asherah and the older woman’s face went deathly pale immediately upon looking at her.

“Umm…” Asherah quickly grew to feel awkward again.

“Bathley you idiot!” The older woman immediately began to lampoon. “People in the Azurai clan are supposed be prioritised.”

“I forgot I’m so sorry.” The younger girl’s expression immediately became one of extreme panic. She quickly turned to face Asherah before saying. “I’m so sorry, please enter the room and my superior will help you.”

“Ok.” Asherah smiled before standing up and entering the room.

Several people who were waiting let out intense groans and sighs, visibly enraged by the fact that Asherah was chosen to enter despite not being the next in line.

Upon entering the room Asherah took her time to look around. The place was extremely pleasant and homely resembling an old country cottage. The smell of crisp cinnamon rolls gently caressed Asherah’s nose as she was led through the glossy wooden corridor. She was led out to an ornate veranda overlooking an endless landscape of flowing white clouds. It was if the country cottage was flying, or perhaps it would be more accurate to describe it as a cottage that was a ship sailing across an ocean made from clouds.

The woman sat down on a somewhat dusty red single person couch. She folded her right leg over her left before motioning towards an identical single person couch facing towards her. “Please, take a seat.”

Asherah smiled and quickly did what she was told, plopping down on the chair like an unloved doll. She shivered as the cold high altitude air blew an icy chill across her back and shoulders. She crossed her arms across her belly for warmth and leaned forward before saying. “I came here seeking a divination. There is a vengeful spirit seeking to harm my fellow Azurai.”

The woman leaned forward while dawning a wide grin. “I’m actually happy you came here to ask me that, I’m so sick and tired of all of the heart broken teens, divorcees and naive noble girls, coming here begging me to grant them the perfect relationship.”

Having no idea what the hell this woman was on about, Asherah leaned forward in her seat and asked. “I need you to perform a divination on the location of the vengeful spirit before it has the chance to hurt innocent people.”

The woman sighed before saying. “Do you know the name of the person who originally spotted the entity? The divine eastern sky spirit can only see those whose names it knows.”

“The divine eastern sky spirit?” Asherah’s eyes lit up in fascination before looking around. “I don’t see a spirit anywhere?”

The woman leaned back before laughing. “You appear to be at least in your early teens yet you act like a Toddler who’s seeing a supernatural entity for the first time. This entire place is the divine eastern sky spirit.”

Asherah quickly blushed with embarrassment, having failed to disguise her new born naivety. “My apologies.”

“No need to apologise!” The woman scoffed before rolling her eyes. “Where were we again? Ah, do you know who first saw the vengeful spirit?”

“It was a boy named Okimodo and a girl I don’t know, I don’t remember him telling me where he spotted it.” Asherah answered honestly.

“As long as you know his name, that’s all I need.” The woman retrieved a stone paper note book along with an ink pen from her long white frizzy coat. She placed the book open on her lap before holding the pen to it and asking. “How is his name spelt? In the traditional Coronatian way or the viriticilian way.”

“I’m not sure…” Asherah admitted. “I don’t know how to write.”

The woman looked at Asherah stunned. “Well I’ll just assume it’s spelt in the Coronatian way.”

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She wrote down the name spelling it as: Okimodo.

She then motioned for Asherah to look towards the clouds that floated by.

Asherah gazed across the vast sky and her eyes widened in fascination when the image of a random boy appeared floating static before the veranda.

“Is that him?” The woman asked flatly.

“No.” Asherah answered honestly. “He’s very tall and handsome with extremely long black hair and he has a rosette on his cheek.”

“Ok…” The woman focused her mind again.

The image of the boy suddenly changed becoming that of a man with long black hair. This was not Okimodo however and Asherah shook her head before saying. “He’s from the Azurai clan like me.”

“Why didn’t you just say that from the start.” The woman sighed. “Let’s see Azurai…”

The image changed once more becoming that of the young man Asherah had embarrassed herself in front of.

“That’s him.” Asherah nodded. “He’s the one who originally reported it.”

“Ok let’s go a bit deeper.” The woman closed her eyes a sweat dripped from her forehead.

At the next moment the vast and cloudy sky disappeared and was replaced by a nighttime beach, its waters shimmering under the moon.

“I feel it already…” the woman’s eyebrows lowered and the skin on her forehead wrinkled. “This… this amount of hatred. It’s been a long time since I’ve felt something like it. There’s undoubtedly a vengeful spirit here. Let’s go even deeper.

The perspective beyond the veranda changed again. It was now that of a dark jungle with two youths walking towards a clearing in the trees. One was Okimodo and the other one was the girl Asherah had seen with him.

“Oh my.” The woman suddenly became red. “These kids are really growing up too fast these days.”

“What do you mean by that?” Asherah asked.

“I can sense their emotions.” The woman answered. “They are here to do something truly inappropriate.”

Asherah quickly gave up on trying to understand the woman as she continued to observe.

The woman suddenly tensed up sensing the hatred from before intensify rapidly.

At the next moment they both witnessed the sighting for themselves.

The image of a guant and mangled woman emerged from the clearing ahead of the two youths. Her clothes were tattered and her skin was pale with impressions of fractured bones sticking out of it. As she passed by the two youngsters, her neck lengthened and contorted.

“There we go.” The woman let out a tense sigh before gritting her teeth. “Yup, that's a real problem. I can’t exactly pinpoint where she originated from, but I can sense that she has an insatiable hatred towards a few people within the Azurai residence.”

“Do you know where she is now?” Asherah’s tone became increasingly serious.

“Let me see…” The woman fell into deep focus before suddenly jolting up and saying. “It’s already killed one of its targets.”

“What?” Asherah had a horrified expression as she watched the images change again.

This time they were looking at a dark bedroom that appeared to be rarely used. On the bed there was a hand stretched out and hanging over the side. Due to the angle at which they were viewing the room, it was impossible to see the person’s face. They were motionless as if they were a doll. In the corner of the room a red shang rokai robe hung on the coat hanger.

“Do you know when he died?” Asherah asked hoping that it wasn’t too recent as that would make her responsible for his demise.

“He died approximately ten hours ago, his soul should still be accessible to me let’s see…” the woman explained as she started to lean forward slowly. “Here he is.”

At the next moment a man with a disgustingly bent neck suddenly appeared standing in the middle of the room. Blood dripped from his eyes as his head dangled as if it were only attached by skin.

Asherah immediately felt herself get sick at the sight of him.

“Do you know why you died?” The woman opened her eyes as she turned to face the man.

“That pathetic bitch snuck up on me while I was sleeping.” The man scowled deeply continuing to say. “We were just doing our jobs. Surely she must understand that it wasn’t personal.

“Just doing your job?” The woman raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean by it wasn’t personal?”

“Unfortunately I can’t tell you.” The man shook his head. “If I do, then I’ll be kil- wait a second! I’m already dead!”

The man than laughed hysterically. “I guess it doesn’t really matter anymore then does it. Fine I’ll tell.”

“Hold that thought.” Another voice echoed across the air.

Both the woman and Asherah and even the man’s soul looked around in puzzlement.

“Agent four eighty eight is here for your service.” The voice spoke again.

At the next moment a blinding light consumed everything.

Asherah quickly covered her eyes and so did the woman.

A tall young man with messy blonde hair, a black suit and tie and blacked out glasses appeared standing next to the soul of the murdered man. He extended his hand towards the soul of the murder victim and said. “You may now pass on.”

At the next moment a pillar of golden light pierced through the room’s ceiling. It enveloped the soul of the murder victim and caused him to slowly disperse into numerous light fragments.

When the soul had passed on, the blonde man turned to the two women and said. “I’ll take care of things from here on out.”

“Who decided that?” The woman immediately protested. “What right does a government dog have to do my job.”

“Please maintain your composure.” The man’s lips curled into a smile as he spoke. “We have recognised this vengeful spirit as a threat to national security. From here on out only Asherah is authorised to join me in pursuit of the murderous entity.”

“She doesn’t want your help, she’s fine without it.” The woman sneered.

“To be honest, I really don’t care who helps me.” Asherah spoke her mind honestly. “I just want to get to the bottom of this.”

“If that’s really how you feel then fine.” The woman let out a defeated sigh.

“Good.” The man nodded before fixing his gaze at Asherah. “Now let’s leave shall we, I already have the entities most recent location tracked.”

Asherah stood up and smiled softly at the older woman. “Thanks for your help. According to the job description, the clan will pay you three thousand Greater Coronation shekels.”

“Wait for me outside.” The man instructed. “I’ll be there in my physical body to pick you up in ten minutes.”

Asherah nodded before leaving.

The man then immediately dispersed into light as if he was never there.

The woman whose name was Chibun frowned deeply. The only time government agents interfere with divinations was when the divination threatened to expose information the government didn’t want everyday people to know. There was a part of her that wanted to find out more, but her rationality told her that such things were best left untouched. She had seen plenty of her fellow Anansi soul gazing school peers suddenly disappear after encountering government agents before. It was best that she didn’t meddle any further.

End of chapter 28.