That evening (Saturday, May 28, 2022) Ella’s Childhood Home, Jackson Heights, Queens, New York, United States

Ella was eating dhal and rice. Her mothers standard, ‘I’m angry’ dish. It wasn’t a surprise who it was at either: her mother was to her right glowering at Ella. While Ella’s father was chatting with her brother and his new girlfriend across from her.

This girlfriend was at least slightly less vacuous than the last. She was attending junior college nearby and majoring in real estate. Ella tuned out the conversation there and focused on her food.

When she was done she was going to head to her room but her mother put her hand on her elbow. Harish went upstairs and the sound of muffled hip-hop music came through the walls.

“Eesha, why didn’t you tell us what was happening?”

“We already had this conversation. Do we have to relitigate it?” Ella asked plaintively.

“Yes. I was obviously emotional after your recovery and let you off too easy.”

“You know about everything. Well, except… the two sets of neighbors that just moved in, they are Aqrabuamelu, to protect you.”

Her father interrupted, “Guards?”

“No, well yes, more like immortal soldiers. My soldiers.”

Perhaps it wasn’t fair to dump that on her mother. Ella had taken a long time to get here herself and she found herself wanting to seize her new authority and reluctant at the same time.

Her mother suddenly scolded, “Is that it? We live a life in fear?”

And that set Ella off.

“Did you know that there are thousands of these hidden kingdoms filled with creatures both alive and dead. Do you want to know what I did on Thanksgiving last year? I went for a walk and destroyed a strange corpse like creature in the cemetery. I have been shot at, stabbed more than once, and have had armed mercenaries coming for me!” Ella was shouting. She was so upset. “I live in fear all of the time.”

Her parents sat there uncertain what to make of it.

Ella continued on, she had to drive this home. “Mother, you are sitting exposed from two angles to a sniper. Father has three possible angles. The door in front won’t last long enough if someone wants to break it down. You don’t have strong escape routes and coming from the second floor, there is only the one stairwell, meaning if someone comes at night, you are all dead.”

“This is the reality I live with. So yes, there are soldiers in the houses next door. And some that follow each of you to work and Harish to school. The soldiers at Fort Hamilton are on rapid response if anything happens here as well as the off duty ones at the Aqrabuamelu compound. And they will be here in the next week to replace these ridiculously large windows with ballistic glass and add a better security system!” Ella paused to catch her breath.

She caught her sudden temper and stuffed it in a mental box, and finished with, “I have fulfilled their prophecy. I would have ordered all of them here to defend you if I thought I needed to.”

Only to be interrupted, “Prophecy?”

Harish was standing there with a Mountain Dew in hand.

Well shit.

That same day Kamagasaki, Osaka, Japan

Officer Tanaka had his flashlight out in one hand and riot shield in the other. The multiple 110 calls from Kamagasaki, not somewhere people bothered calling the police, had described horrid screaming.

The apartment building they were in was decrepit and was empty. There was no electricity. There were sleeping bags and various other items indicating squatters, but they had abandoned the building.

“Oi, kite”. His partner was further ahead and was putting his flashlight partway up the stairs.

Dark red blood was gently dripping down the stairsteps from above. Tanaka signaled and then went into the stairwell, turning to face upwards but there was nothing. Just the quiet dripping of blood.

They retreated back to out of the stairwell, and Tanaka went to his radio.

“Kaidan o oritekuru chi. Ouku rittoru. Bakkuappu hitsuyou”

The reply came back, backup was incoming and when they came, it was in force.

Two of Osaka’s elite Special Assault Team units came, armed to the teeth.

Tanaka followed the lead officer up the stairs, trying to ignore the iron stench of blood and slipperiness of it underneath his boots. This was going to be a bad one.

Why hadn’t he stayed below with his partner?

They entered the room and saw what was causing the blood.

Six bodies hung upside down from the ceiling, skinned, missing their heads. Tanaka turned to the side, nauseous.

“Kuso,” one of the officers swore.

The room was a mess. Not just the blood and entrails on the floor. But furniture had been overturned.

“Junsabucho. Mite.”

The skins of the bodies had been pinned up along one wall, carefully set out to dry. But that wasn’t what had caused the officer to call over his sergeant. The skins were very unique and instantly recognizable, their telltale tattoos extensive.

“Bouryokudan.” growled the sergeant.

A noise came from above and the offices swung their guns upwards. Nothing.

Then another noise to the side, and for a brief moment, Tanaka thought he saw something glowing

Their was strange wind noise and suddenly one of the officers lights went out. The others, well trained, moved into covered positions. Another movement and another light went out. Then a third. The two remaining SAT officers just started firing, screaming. And then there were none of the officers. Just Tanaka hiding under his riot shield shaking.