Wings of Wax

Cris gasped as he emerged from an ocean, the water glistening in the sun, the blue sky reflected on its surface. It was cool near the water, but a shiver passed through him as he found himself flying at an unexpected speed. Unclear as to how he managed it, Cris willed himself higher, embracing the feeling of the sun warming his back.

For a while, he maintained an equal distance from the ocean and the clear sky above, noticing a burning sensation whenever he soared too high. There was a frustration, however. The sensation of flight was so great a feeling, that Cris desired more. He wished to reach greater heights. He felt a hunger well up within him to reach the potential his new power provided him. But the heat was a great as his desire, if not more. He burned the further he pushed, and went lower as he failed.

The ocean was just as much a nemesis in his enjoyment. The cold water raged, crashing and reaching out towards him, shaking his concentration and getting him off balance. The waves tickled him as he struggled to keep his distance, each attempt at taking him making his flight all the more difficult. A furious strength of will was all that allowed him to regain a comfortable height.

Once he had managed a comfortable flying height, Cris embraced the rush of the wind as he soared. The warmth from the sun was comforting, the cooling breeze from the water refreshing. The balance of his flight was both peaceful and invigorating. He could burn in the heat above, be lost in the cool darkness of the ocean below, but rather he flew forward.

But temptation loomed in both directions. A gentle song joined the warmth from above, calling him to the heavens. It encouraged him, drawing on his desire for strength and his determined personality. But below, a more ominous tune played. It was like a cry for help, chilling his Cris' heart and urging him to come to the aid of some unknown figure.

Cris was unsure of which way to go. The further forward he flew, each song would echo louder in his ears. He found that if he fell back and began to fly in the reverse direction, the songs grew quieter, but his motivation would falter and he would lose the invigorating rush of the flight. It seemed to leave him with a choice.

To fly high was to burn, to fly low was to drown, to fly back was to lose his future and to fly forward was to torment himself with the same choice again and again.

Cris looked in all directions. High in the sky, the sun seemed to burn hotter, making him sweat without even approaching it. Behind him, the path he'd taken seemed to become shrouded in fog, making him wonder how he could even return and wonder what that would even be back there by the time he did so. Ahead, it was similar, only instead of fog, it was like seeing many versions of the same path ahead, filling him only with confusion. And, below, a dark pit seemed to expand, shadow replacing the ocean. A haunting feeling welled up within Cris, and he knew great danger resided there. Even more haunting to him, however, was how it still drew him towards it. Did a part of him wish to be enveloped in darkness and simply disappear?

Cris.

He blinked, managing to maintain his position. He could not remain where he was, and he knew danger, or at least uncertainty, awaited him no matter where he went. A decision was necessary and he feared the way behind, and the realms above and below. Uncertainty was ahead, but perhaps he needed to embrace it.

Cris.

The voice was with him, but it spoke from each direction as well. It sounded familiar, but distant behind him. It sounded warm, but overbearing above. It sounded cold, but seductive below. Ahead, it was muffled. Was it the same voice? He did not know. There was a gentleness that he felt with him, however, and he used it to propel himself forward.

Cris.

"Cris."

He opened his eyes, feeling a dull pain throughout his body, but a sluggish warmth as well. His mind was foggy and his vision blurry. Everything felt unfamiliar. The noises around him, the light upon him, the feeling of the bed he lay in. He was in a place he did not recognize with people he did not know.

Cris tried to sit up, but immediately felt faint, falling back into the too comfortable bed. It frustrated him how nice it felt. The pillows gently cushioned his head, the mattress doing the same for his body. Even the warm sunlight from a large window nearby was an eerie comfort, Cris being used to being woken up by a small, cracked window providing his morning sunlight.

He groaned, feeling a dull ache in his stomach. He had no idea where he was and how he'd gotten there. His mind seemed to be foggier the more he tried to remember. His body felt tense, almost as though he'd been worried about something, or perhaps having nightmares. He couldn't remember having a nightmare, though.

Wait...nightmares...

Cris shot up again, and once more, he nearly passed out, falling back into the comfortable bed. He felt nauseous, trying to reach out in all directions, wanting to grab onto something to better orient himself. He needed to get out of here. David was in trouble. David had been having nightmares. And David...

"Cris..."

The voice was warm, gentle and familiar. It calmed Cris for a moment, and he tried to look in the direction it had come from. He felt something take hold of his outstretched hand. It was soft, but firm, and above it, through his blurry vision, Cris could see brown eyes looking back at him.

He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. He blinked once, twice and a third time, his focus increasing each time. He slowly turned his head, the bed and room around him coming into focus. The sounds in the room grew clearer as well.

Cris was in a hospital room, although it wasn't quite like hospitals he knew of. This one wasn't all white with cold, bright lights and a sickly smell. It was almost like a log cabin, the smell of pine in the air and the sun providing most of the light. Painted pictures were on the walls, such as a raven, some kind of serpentine creature and a majestic looking bird. The bed was large for a hospital bed, the blankets thick and warm. The chairs around it appeared comfortable, too, Cris' unexpected visitors having sunk into them. There was another bed in the room as well, also occupied, its occupant appearing just as snug as Cris. And, in the chair between the beds, sat a girl Cris recognized quickly.

"Heidi?"

She smiled, nodding as she squeezed his hand. He glared at the hand, but he felt too weak to pull away, and instead turned his gaze back to her. She didn't seem to get what his look meant, or at least decided to ignore it.

"You've been asleep for almost a week," she said. "It's a miracle you survived."

"Survived?" Cris tilted his head in confusion. "Survived what? I was just..."

Cris hesitated, turning away and looking out the window. Something outside was strange, and he couldn't quite place it. But his focus wasn't on that. Instead, he tried to remember what had happened. David's nightmares. That was the last thing he remembered. But no...there was more. David...he'd been sitting in the dark when Cris had arrived home. David had...

Cris felt bile rise in his throat and he turned his head over the side of the bed, gagging. Almost nothing came up. Heidi had said he'd been out for almost a week, so perhaps there was nothing to come up. Nonetheless, he tried to force it, coughing and spitting up what little he could. He heard one of the other people in the room groan in disgust, but he ignored it. He felt sick. Worse than he'd ever felt in his life.

His best friend was dead.

"There was...there was a monster," Cris finally said, his voice hoarse. "It...it attacked me after...after it killed David."

"A demon," another voice said, this one coming from a chair in front of Cris. Another familiar voice.

"Finn."

Finn smiled awkwardly. "At your service."

Cris narrowed his eyes, but didn't respond to that, his mind still trying to piece together the fragmented memories. "Demon...no, it wasn't just one."

"No, it sure as hell wasn't," came another voice, this one from the bed. Cris managed to painfully sit up a little, getting a better look. He recognized Elsa, sitting there with bandages along her neck that likely extended across her chest. She looked awful, but grinned regardless. "Beat you by two days, Parker. Guess you enjoy your beauty sleep."

"I...what?"

"Elsa was hurt pretty bad, too," Heidi explained. "Finn got pretty lucky, but you and Elsa easily could've died. The demons that attacked us at the convenience store-"

"The convenience store..." Cris finally managed to pull his hand away from Heidi, reaching it under his covers and pulling up his shirt. He felt at his stomach, noticing a bandage. It was quite tender and the dull ache remained. His back was similar.

"Gross, Parker," Finn said, grinning as he watched Cris feel his wounds. "Not in front of everyone, kay?"

Cris glanced down, realizing how he looked and quickly stopped. "These wounds don't seem so bad. I thought I'd been..."

"You were run through."

Another voice. Also familiar, but one not from the night with the demons. Less friendly than the others, too. Cris glanced over to a chair that was closer to Elsa's bed, seeing green eyes staring back at him. She swished her glossy brown hair back and smirked.

"Mara."

"Good to see you, too, Cristopher."

"That's not my name."

Mara simply smirked, getting up from her seat and making her way over. The others watched her distrustfully, and Cris was glad his natural distrust of people wasn't misplaced here. Clearly he had hit the mark with his analysis of this girl.

"Spirit energy can do wonders," she said, reaching out and tracing her fingers over the covers, just where Cris' stomach was. He shuffled away, wincing in discomfort. He noticed Heidi making a noise of alarm as well.

"What's spirit energy?" Cris asked, hoping to get Mara talking instead of focusing on his stomach.

"That's a question with a lifetime of answers," Elsa muttered, sighing as she glared at Mara. "Just give him the rundown."

Mara smirked, sitting down at the edge of the bed. Cris was tempted to kick her off, but decided he probably didn't have the strength. Fortunately, Mara seemed to lose her teasing demeanor and she grew more serious as she looked at Cris.

"Spirit energy is what started this. It's the reason demons were after David...and I guess you as well." Mara looked unsure of that last part, but continued nonetheless. "It's also what brought us to your school."

Cris raised an eyebrow. "What, you came to my school because of me and David? Why wait all this time to say anything?"

"We haven't been there that long." Mara's eyes focused on Cris'. "We've only known you a few days, Cris."

Cris blinked, almost wanting to laugh. He wasn't exactly friends with these people, but he certainly knew them. They'd been around for...long enough. He shook his head, trying to remember when he'd first started talking to Heidi. She'd been talking to him for...how long? Elsa had been in his math class for...a while.

Wait...Elsa...

Cris turned his gaze to the black-haired girl, seeing her appearing somewhat uncomfortable. "You started sitting next to me only a few days ago." Elsa nodded. Cris glanced at Mara again. "And you became popular only recently...it felt like longer, but...it's only been..."

"A few days, yeah." Mara leaned forward, her lips twitching into a smile. "You did have me worried a few times."

Cris ignored that statement, and glanced at Finn, and then Heidi. "And the backpack. When did you give that to me?"

Heidi stared down at her lap, shame in her eyes. "The first day. It had listening devices in it. It was..."

"So you could listen in on me," Cris said, turning to Finn. "With that echolocation thing you were doing."

Finn nodded slowly, swallowing nervously. "Look, we don't like manipulating people like that. It's just necessary sometimes."

Cris held up a hand, turning his attention back on Mara. "So hold on...how the hell were you able to make me think it'd been so long. Did you guys drug me or something?"

Mara smirked, shuffling forward to get closer to Cris, before leaning forward. She whispered in a low, almost musical voice. "I would never hurt you, Cris. I just want you to like me."

Cris felt a shiver run down his spine and he gaped at Mara for a moment. "I know you wouldn't...I do like..." He paused, shaking his head somewhat. His mind had been clearing up, but it had started to fog up again. A warmth was felt in his chest, and it seemed to travel to his brain, and he narrowed his eyes, leaning away from Mara.

She smiled again, but pulled away herself. "Mmm, you do seem to be Stirring. If you're not actually Awakened."

"Not bad," Finn murmured with a chuckle. "Even B-Ranks struggle with Mara's Siren Song."

"Siren Song?" Cris glanced between the two, trying to piece things together. "Wait a minute...Finn can do some kind of echolocation thing. And you said...Siren Song? So...you can manipulate people? With your voice?"

Mara looked impressed. "Exactly. So day one at school, after getting the staff to bring us all in no problem, all I needed to do was get on the announcements. Before anyone knew it, they were all at the feet of Mara Keres."

"That's a nasty ability," Cris muttered. He paused, taking in the group around him, remembering Elsa's fighting with the demon and her quick movements. "So you all have some kind of...ability?"

"It's a little more complicated than that," Finn explained. "But pretty much."

"And it has something to do with this...spirit energy stuff? Is that like martial arts?"

"It's magic."

Cris frowned, turning to Heidi, who had just spoken. "Magic? Like...real magic?" He shook his head. He supposed there wasn't any reason to doubt it. Demons had just attacked him. Monsters from another world. If that wasn't some kind of magic, even if dark, then what was? "Okay...so how does it work?"

"We have different types," Elsa said. "It depends on your Spirit Guide. An animal, or creature of some kind, that lives within your soul. Some just say they're spirit animals."

"Depending on your Spirit Guide, you have powers or abilities relating to it. We can channel its power and use it." Heidi's eyes, usually brown, took on a yellowish glow for a moment, causing Cris to shuffle back slightly. She merely smiled, though, ending the glow quickly. "My Spirit Guide is a cat. I can use it to increase vision in the night or improve my balance. Things a cat can do. It's...not that strong. That's why I wasn't much help against the demons." She looked away uneasily.

"You were very useful," Elsa argued, glancing between Heidi and Cris. "She had your back from day one. Noticed demons even Finn couldn't spot."

Finn nodded. "Echolocation is hard to control. Always good to have a good set of eyes." He smirked as he received Cris' attention. "My Spirit Guide-"

"It's a bat."

"Huh?" Finn looked disappointed. "How did you..."

"Well echolocation isn't hard to figure out for one," Cris muttered. "But you also called yourself the neighborhood-"

"Okay! Okay!" Finn looked alarmed. "Yeah yeah, you got it."

Elsa chuckled at the interaction. "Don't tell me he was doing his Bat-Boy routine again!"

Finn narrowed his eyes at her. "Can it, birdie."

Elsa maintained her smirk, but turned her gaze to Cris as he looked at her next. "Mine is a falcon. I can manipulate wind currents to fly, and I can increase my speed. Pretty agile, too, and increased vision."

"Seemed pretty useful," Cris noted. He glanced uneasily in the direction of her feet. "You weren't using...talons were you?"

Mara laughed at that. Rather, she cackled. "It doesn't change our bodies like that. We design special items sometimes to combine with our abilities."

"Like my listening devices," Finn explained, holding up the little microphone-like item Heidi had used on the night of the attack. "They're specially designed to work with spirit energy. Elsa has blades in her shoes."

Cris' head was beginning to spin. Whether that was because of his injuries or the new information, he wasn't sure. Nonetheless, he was still curious to learn more. "So what's your spirit animal?" he asked Mara.

"Mine is special." She leaned forward and whispered in her eerily song-like voice. "A Siren."

Cris stared at her, perplexed. "That's not an animal. That's...isn't that a Greek monster? A myth?"

The others had grown quiet, apparently rather uncomfortable about this stage of the conversation. Mara continued, however, maintaining her smile. "Yes, I have a special creature for a Spirit Guide. I'm what is known as a Mythical."

"And?" Cris wasn't sure what she was getting at, sensing that Mara was quite pleased about this explanation.

"Well," she said, leaning back, looking more pleased as she noticed the others' uneasy looks, "I'm special. My Spirit Guide is much more powerful than a basic animal spirit."

Cris raised an eyebrow. "I don't know. You don't seem that special to me. I mean...you didn't even fight. I saw Elsa take a demon's head clean off."

"Pfft!"

Mara's eyes flashed angrily, and she glanced at Finn, who appeared to be holding back a laugh. Elsa as well appeared amused, while Heidi was looking away uncomfortably, but hiding her face. "You should be a little more grateful, Cristopher. I-"

"Not my name."

"I'm a dangerous enemy to have," Mara continued, ignoring the interruption with a twitch in her eye. "Mythicals are the lifeblood of this city."

"Of the city?" Cris sat up a little more. "There are more of you around here?"

"Er...Cris," Finn said uncertainly. "You're not at home, anymore."

Before he could answer, there was a knock at the door and Cris looked up as it began to open, seeing a familiar face as someone entered. He was used to seeing those grey eyes peering at him across the school hall, or across a desk. "Mr. Rainier?" he said, surprised. He did remember Finn mentioning Mr. Rainier's involvement the other night.

The man smiled, slowly walking forward and pausing behind Mara's chair. "Good to see you up, Mr. Parker. I take it you've been...briefed on some of what has happened."

"We've told him about Spirit Guides," Finn said. "A little bit anyway."

Rainier nodded, appearing somewhat troubled. "I'm sure you have many more questions, Mr. Parker. In time, I hope to answer as many as I can. But first, I wish to offer you my greatest condolences. We failed in our duty to you and Mr. Frater. I failed most of all."

Cris was surprised to feel tears begin stinging his eyes and he looked away immediately. He felt the tension in the room rising considerably. He was curious what Rainier meant about their failure, though. "How did you fail?"

Rainier sighed, eyes drifting towards the window. "I'm not sure what these four have told you of Spirit Guides. Perhaps their abilities and what they offer?" He nodded, seeing the others appearing somewhat bashful. "The world of spirits and demons is much more complicated than that. They are deeply intertwined."

Cris hesitated, a memory of the night of the attack coming to him. He glanced at Finn. "You mentioned something about the demons being attracted to spirit energy."

Finn shifted uncomfortably, but nodded. "They feed off of it."

Rainier coughed slightly, regaining Cris' attention. "Demons reside in two worlds. Here...and Hell. When they begin to cross into our realm, they often still remain in Hell as well. You may have noticed their forms being shrouded in shadow." He paused, ensuring Cris continued to follow. "That connection to Hell drives their hunger. Hell itself seeks to absorb that energy, extract its power, corrupt it, and make it its own."

"So the demons that killed David and attacked us...they were seeking spirit energy. Were they seeking all of yours?" Cris clenched his fists. He tried to keep his voice calm, but anger was creeping in.

"Not quite." Cris looked up, narrowing his eyes as he and Rainier eyed one another. "Mr. Parker...they were seeking yours."

Cris gaped at him. "Mine?"

"I believe so. And Mr. Frater's." Rainier rubbed his eyes, appearing quite tired in the moment. "It's called a Stirring. Every person has a Spirit Guide. Most will never know, however. It often takes some kind of special event in someone's life to bring about the connection. That connection begins as a Stirring, which involves the Spirit Guide...reaching out to its host, slowly and gradually connecting spirit energy with the individual's soul. When the process is completing, it is known as an Awakening. We were at your school after having sensed a Stirring in your city. We were aiming to extract the one we believed to be Stirring and bring them to our community for training."

"So why didn't you bring us?" Cris' head was spinning even more than before. All these terms were hard to keep track of. "You knew it was us. I know you did. You were all around me all the time."

"We weren't sure which of you it was."

That was Heidi, and Cris glared in her direction. He could see the uneasiness in her eyes, but it didn't stop him from turning his frustration on her. "Why does it matter? You could've got us both and waited." His voice grew louder. "You guys let this happen!"

"That's not it," Elsa said quietly. "It's more complicated than that."

"Spirit Shock."

Cris looked back towards Rainier, frustrated by the pitying look the man gave him. "What? Another one of these stupid terms?"

"It's an important one, Mr. Parker." Rainier sighed again. "Spirit Shock is when someone is exposed to too much spirit energy before they are ready. An individual who is in the early stages of Stirring may suffer Spirit Shock if taken to a community such as ours. It will kill them if they are lucky. Shatter their soul if they are not."

"But you were planning to take us anyway, weren't you?"

"We were waiting for the Awakening. At least...for one of you to be closer to the Awakening." Rainier frowned, looking confused despite his explanation. "The problem, Mr. Parker, is that Mr. Frater was likely our correct target, but you began Stirring as well unexpectedly."

Cris' eyes widened, even more frustration welling up within him. "You're saying it's my fault? You guys knew these monsters were after David, but it's my fault? You could've warned us! Anything!"

"It's not that at all, Mr. Parker." Rainier looked around the room. Everyone was quiet. Even Mara. "Something unusual happened. Something we can't explain. The demons were coordinated. They attacked Mr. Frater during the day. They crossed between realms out of sight of our scouting. This combined with your own Stirring was all unforeseen. This is no excuse. I failed in my leadership of this mission. But Mr. Parker...your circumstances were very strange. They will need investigating."

Cris suddenly felt somewhat nervous. "What's that supposed to mean?" He noticed the others watching him curiously. "I think I'd rather get the hell out of here."

Rainier made his way past Mara and Finn, coming to a stop by the window and looking out. Cris glanced out as well, trying better to take in what was out there. He noticed something strange. There were a couple of buildings in the distance. One was fairly standard, but the other...looked old. White stone and less even around the edges.

"We need to keep you here for now, Mr. Parker. You're safer in this city. At least until you've Awakened. And, ideally, until you've been trained."

"What city is this...?"

Rainier turned towards Cris, smiling kindly. "This is Babylon. The city of spirits."

The activity around the school was particularly vibrant when classes ended. It wasn't uncommon for the students of Daedal Academy to enjoy the end of a long week of classes and look forward to the weekend, but there certainly was an extra buzz to the air. The reason for that was obvious. Because although it was a secret, everyone knew.

A new student had arrived. And he had arrived in extraordinary fashion.

"I heard he fought a demon!"

"Apparently the mission was a total failure."

"Rainier's probably gonna get fired!"

"Maybe Hale and Keres are going to get demoted!"

Perhaps it was silly to say everyone knew. The rumors were just that. Rumors. Nonetheless, everyone had a general idea of what had happened. Rainier's most recent mission to collect a potential spirit user had gone very wrong. Unexpected demon activity had met the squad that had accompanied him, and two targets were discovered instead of one. Unfortunately, one of them had been killed. And the other one, Cris Parker, had ended up fighting.

"They just can't wait to get official confirmation of what happened. Always gotta spread their rumors…"

"Hm? You say something, Hikari?"

Hikari Kita shook her head, pausing as she turned towards the boy who had just spoken to her. She had the bad habit of blurting out her thoughts like this. Fortunately, her best friend at this school, Oliver, was so quiet and reserved that he would never share what she said. And sometimes what she said was very unflattering.

"Nothing," she murmured. "Just a weird day, huh?"

Oliver nodded, running his hand through his bushy hair. "Wouldn't have ever thought Mr. Rainier would fail a mission."

"That just tells me it was really bad," Hikari said. "No way Rainier fails a mission without good reason."

Oliver simply shrugged, staying silent as they made their way outside, catching a glimpse of Babylon down the hill and before them. The city was bustling as usual, its strange blend of cultures and time periods visible in the many streets ahead. It was a warm day, but there was a soft, cool breeze blowing as well, causing Hikari to tuck her light blue hair behind her ear.

"Wanna head to the Acropolis?" Hikari asked, glancing down the hill towards the popular marketplace modeled after the ancient Athenian one. It appeared ancient from a distance with its cobbled streets and Greek architecture, but once there, many modern entertainment options and shops were available.

"It'll be kind of crowded…" Oliver muttered, clearly not too thrilled with the idea.

Hikari grinned. "We can get there a little early."

He cracked a smile at that and nodded, the two of them stepping aside as their fellow students continued making their way down the Academy steps. Once they were huddled away from the crowd, Hikari tried to pinpoint a spot where there was a good amount of sunlight, managing to find a good spot fairly quickly and grinning as she reached out to her Spirit Guide.

"Let's see…don't need too much…" she whispered, raising a hand and focusing. A moment later, a chill passed through her fingers and a light mist sprayed out before them, the sunlight passing through it and creating a mini rainbow. "You're up," Hikari then said to Oliver.

"You know I don't like showing this off too much. If someone sees us…" Hikari merely gestured for him to hurry up, though, and he sighed and stepped forward. A moment later, a glow spread from his hands, the rainbow shimmering in front of them and becoming a bright, white hole in the air. He stepped forward and disappeared into it. Hikari waited a moment, and then followed him through.

By now, Hikari was so used to stepping through Oliver's portals that it didn't feel strange anymore, but she could still remember the bizarre sensation the first time. It had felt like going down a steep roller coaster, but instant. Like being plucked from one spot and quickly dropped in another. Of course, that is essentially what it was. A moment earlier she had been at the entrance to Daedal Academy, but suddenly, she was finding herself at the center of the Acropolis about a mile and a half away.

No one seemed to notice their arrival, and Oliver quickly released the portal, glancing around nervously. Although most of the students from the school had yet to arrive, it was still fairly busy. A couple of older and more experienced students were checking out a weapons shop nearby, while a group of younger students who had probably gotten off school early were heading towards an arcade. Strangely, they seemed to be in a somber mood, with the exception of one child who smiled and waved as she noticed Hikari glancing over. Other than that, there were many common city folk around, merely going about their business.

"Need to check out any place in particular?" Hikari asked Oliver, eyeing the weapons shop she'd seen the older students at. She did need a new dagger. One of her abilities was using electricity and she'd fried her last one somehow.

Oliver didn't answer, simply looking up into the sky, frowning. "You didn't cause a rain cloud when we made the portal, did you?"

"No, I just made some mist," Hikari said, glancing upwards. She could see what Oliver was referring to, a dark cloud hovering over the city, almost right above them. It was quickly fading, though, as often happened in Babylon. The spirit energy did give them fairly good weather most of the time.

"Hm…guess it's no big deal," Oliver murmured, turning away. He hesitated a moment later, though, his eyes passing over some of the shops, and then the arcade. Hikari followed his gaze, feeling a sense of unease as she noticed the people around them appearing to almost…freeze up.

"What the heck…"

Again, though, the moment passed, the people returning to their business, the Acropolis beginning to buzz with its usual activity. But as the two friends began making their way through the shops, Hikari couldn't help but notice some of the strange behavior cropping up again from time to time. It was mostly children, such as a boy's hands twitching as he tried to pick up a toy in one store, or a girl staring blankly at a doll in another. Even adults were having odd moments, though, such as the man at the weapons shop whispering to himself as Hikari perused the shop in search of her dagger.

Of course, perhaps it was all nothing. This was, after all, a city of spirits. What were some strange looks and whispering but the eccentricities of those surrounded by magic. It wasn't as though a demon was roaming the streets. Nothing of the sort could enter the city.

Babylon was always safe.