Vashni, the water exorcist, could manipulate water in any form with his 'pure water element.' He could make the water safe, acidic, poisonous, or capable of healing. Using his ability, he manipulated the water inside the body of the possessed child, making the Phantasm feel as if it were drowning. However, Vashni knew that this technique required time, and he had to finish the exorcism quickly. Delaying it would mean more damage to the child's body, something he wished to prevent.

Seeing Vashni's determined expression, Mitchell knew he had to act fast as well. Facing such a powerful Phantasm, both Mitchell and Vashni knew they would have problems dealing with it. They were both worried about the possessed child but couldn't afford to lose either.

"C-curse you! Exorcists... You think your water can save you?" the Phantasm snarled, coughing up bluish liquid.

"It's strong, but the poison should severely weaken its spirit," Vashni said.

The Phantasm controlling the child leaped toward Mitchell and Vashni, but their quick reflexes saved them, resulting in a plume of dust after the Phantasm's attack. Vashni looked at Mitchell and urged him to use his abilities.

"But what if it harms the child?" Mitchell said, his voice tinged with fear.

"Nonsense, do as I say and it will be over quickly!" Vashni replied firmly.

"I have to get near him. Do something to slow him down!" Mitchell responded.

"I'll try!" Vashni said, focusing on the possessed child's feet.

The Phantasm's movement was slowed by the weight on its feet added by the liquids Vashni manipulated from the possessed child's body. Screaming in pain, the Phantasm once again cursed and shifted its gaze to Vashni. Mitchell got close and used himself as a distraction, attacking with his pyrokinetic abilities, which the Phantasm dodged.

Mitchell's punches and flames couldn’t touch the child’s body, but that was exactly what they wanted. The possessed child was nearing the huge rune of Jingo drawn on the ground earlier. As the Phantasm controlling the child stepped on the rune, it suddenly stopped moving and was held in stasis.

"I guess that's it..." Mitchell said, picking up a stick from the ground.

Vashni looked at Mitchell and said, "Mitchell, we will use our abilities together! That way, we can successfully exorcise the child."

Vashni walked near the rune that trapped the possessed child, and afterimages of the Phantasm reflected from the child's body. Mitchell sighed and took a stick from the ground, igniting it with his pure flame ability. Warm heat radiated from the fire as he used it to light the rune of Jingo on the ground.

"I don't want to do this, but you leave me no choice!" Mitchell said, observing the rune burning with scarlet flames.

The possessed child held his throat, struggling in pain as it felt that it was burning. The bluish hue from his body faded. As the child collapsed to the ground, the light in front of the house faded. The sky began to clear, and the furious cold winds calmed.

"Is he...?" Mitchell asked, worried about the child.

"No, he isn’t, but he needs help," Vashni replied.

"I see..." Mitchell said, snuffing out the flame from his stick.

"This was a tough battle, but I'm glad we finished it quickly. Otherwise, we would have had some haunting to deal with..." Vashni commented as he began to administer aid to the child.

"What are you doing?" Mitchell asked, watching Vashni kneel in front of the boy.

"I will use my pure element of water to administer first aid," Vashni replied.

This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

The ground around the boy glowed with a bluish hue. The boy’s pale skin turned normal as Vashni continued to administer first aid using the pure water element. Vashni continued the treatment for several minutes until he stopped, sweating and catching his breath.

"Don't overdo it!" Mitchell warned.

"You're right..." Vashni replied, standing up. "I've healed most of the damage from poisoning and organ damage from my earlier abilities."

Vashni walked over to where Mitchell was sitting and sat down. "It has been ages since I helped someone with my ability."

"What do you mean?" Mitchell asked.

"I have been a faithful follower of Lord Jingo. I followed his tenets, the rules of our religion, read the sutras every day, and studied. Exorcism was not my calling, not until the great Pandemonium happened ten years ago. When the veil started to rupture near our town, it weakened the veil around the world. It was troubling times; I lost so many!" Vashni explained. "This Phantasm Phenomenon didn’t happen naturally. Someone, no, something, must be responsible for this. I can tell..."

Mitchell listened to Vashni’s story, his eyes reflecting the somber gravity of Vashni’s tale. "I see... It sounds like you’ve been through so much."

"It all came to me, to help the child. As a wandering vagabond, I happened to find a lone herbalist, Pateel, a follower of the same religion as I am. He did not suspect me of anything. When he approached me, I realized that the village of Emille needed help. So I arrived and did my best to contain the possession, not only of the boy but of the village."

"I see..." Mitchell said thoughtfully.

As the sky cleared, the great void was uncovered—a huge black hole. Seeing this, Vashni said, "The veil in this part has been punctured! We need to leave as soon as possible!"

Mitchell was both amazed and horrified by what he saw above the sky. The black hole was very dark and looked as if it could engulf almost anything in its path. He decided to stand up after Vashni. After their talk, Sergeant Erick and several other mercenaries who were knocked unconscious earlier stood up.

"What happened here?" Sergeant Erick asked.

"You’ve been out cold for a while, Sarge..." Mitchell said.

"Where are the others?" Sergeant Erick asked Mitchell once again.

"The village was successfully evacuated earlier. However, with the veil torn in this place, I believe that we have to leave," Mitchell explained to the Sergeant.

Sergeant Erick, still unable to properly process the information, was confused. Looking at Vashni, he asked Mitchell who he was. Mitchell replied and said, "This is our new companion, Sarge! He said that he wished to join us!"

Hearing this, Vashni was surprised but did not speak on his behalf. Mitchell knew that he and Major Galahad needed help to form the paranormal department. Sergeant Erick did not object and looked at Vashni. "He’d better not be a quack!" Then the sergeant laughed and said, "It’s just a joke, Vashni!"

Vashni and the others laughed as the Sergeant tried to lift the mood. Meanwhile, Lucia and Gary, among the five mercenaries with them, arrived at the scene. Seeing the huge hole in the sky, they felt fear about what it meant. After looking at the sky, they approached Mitchell and tried to separate him from Vashni.

"If it isn’t that coward who tried to escape earlier!" Gary said to Vashni.

"What do you mean by that?" Vashni replied.

"Maureej, right, your name? We saw you trying to escape earlier, alone!" Gary told him what he saw earlier.

Lucia, too, gave Vashni a suspicious stare and kept silent in the corner. Mitchell, seeing this, explained to Gary and the others, "Guys, his name is Vashni. He helped me defeat the Phantasm and stop this village from becoming a portal. I see that he has the abilities to help us. I am recommending him to Major Galahad!"

Hearing this, Gary and Lucia were surprised. The sergeant, who was against Vashni earlier, did not say a thing. Gary then said, "What do you mean by that, Mitchell! The sergeant earlier was right; he is a quack!"

"No, without his help, I could not have defeated the Phantasm that possessed the boy," Mitchell persisted.

The sergeant interfered with their argument and said, "Let Major Galahad decide!" Then he looked at Lucia and said, "Do you have the carrier pigeon with you?"

Lucia replied and said, "Yes sir! I hid it somewhere nearby."

"Good, tell the Major that we will be heading home. The crisis for now in this village has been averted," the sergeant said.

"Yes sir, it will be done!" Lucia said and went to fetch the carrier pigeon she had hidden.

After the carrier pigeon was sent back to the Legion’s headquarters, Sergeant Erick ordered his men on-site to leave the village. Lucia and the others organized the villagers to evacuate as well. As they left, a loud thunder sounded from the hole in the sky, signaling something ominous, which even made Vashni, a seasoned exorcist, flinch.

At the foot of the mountain, they saw the vehicle and the three mercenaries and the driver sleeping outside. The sergeant, seeing this, was furious and kicked one of the mercenaries in anger. But as the mercenary did not respond, he noticed something was amiss.

Vashni, looking at the sleeping mercenaries, knelt down and touched one of them. He looked for any marks of puncture in their bodies and saw a puncture.

"Poison! It’s not an ordinary one," he said, a frown on his face.

Hearing this, the sergeant was surprised by what Vashni said. He ordered his men to put the poisoned men inside first. Mitchell and the others could only watch as Vashni approached the driver.

"You need someone to drive? Am I correct?" Vashni asked and continued, "Let me apply first aid on him for now!"