Leaving the abandoned house after exorcising the profane spirit, Joseph stopped on the sidewalk and looked up at the sky. The clouds drifted gently, tinted by the afternoon sun. "The day's way too pretty for this kind of shit"
"Haa..." Letting out a sigh, he snapped his fingers. The air around him shimmered and rippled, as if he'd been swallowed.
In the blink of an eye, the street was empty.
***
The space rippled into a large courtyard surrounded by old architecture buildings, with stone towers and stained glass windows that reflected golden light. Joseph appeared in the center, cracking his neck with a grimace. 'I can already hear the lecture'
That was the heart of the East Coast Exorcist Center, one of the three in the United States. Altogether, the American continent housed ten centers: three in Brazil, two in Central America, two in South America, and the three in the U.S. Each one served as a bastion against spiritual forces, protecting their regions.
The centers were multifunctional complexes. There was a school where rookies underwent three years of rigorous training. In the first and second years, Class 5 exorcists were introduced to the Spiritual Flow — the primordial energy that permeated everything, from living beings to inanimate objects.
They learned to manipulate their own spiritual energies and use their techniques, born from their souls. Additionally, they went on field missions supervised by third-year veterans, who ensured the safety of the exorcism.
Beyond the school, each center had an infirmary where exorcists were treated after missions, dormitories for everyone, a cafeteria, a training area, and a directorate.
The latter was led by the director, almost always the most powerful exorcist in the region, in other words, a classless exorcist, since their abilities had reached the highest level and could no longer be classified.
"Joseph"
And just as Joseph expected, a crow landed on his shoulder as soon as he took a few steps toward the cafeteria.
"Yes?" he asked innocently to the animal.
"The director is calling you" the crow said before dissolving into smoke.
"COUGH!" Joseph coughed and waved the air, trying to push the smoke from his face. "Fucking bird" Turning toward the directorate, he shoved his hands into his pants pockets and began to walk.
Joseph passed by a few other exorcists, but overall, the place was rather empty, reflecting the ever-decreasing number of people who could see the Flow and Spirit.
'And here we are' Stopping a few steps from the directorate building, Joseph raised an eyebrow upon seeing a flawless figure emerge through the oak doors.
It was Ellie. Shiny black hair, fair skin, the school uniform worn perfectly — unlike Joseph — with the button-up shirt fully fastened, black skirt below the knees, black tights and matching shoes.
As soon as she saw him, she marched in his direction, fists clenched and eyes blazing. "Joseph!"
"The one and only" he replied, with a crooked smile and a lazy wave.
"You hung up on me, didn't you?" Ellie planted herself in front of him, pointing an accusing finger. "No, forget that — how could you forget supervision day? Do you know how important that is for the first-year students? They need—"
Joseph let his mind wander while Ellie unleashed the lecture. 'Blah, blah, blah'. He already knew the speech by heart: responsibility, duty, blah, blah, blah.
"—and more importantly, they'll understand how dangerous it is to face a profane spirit, even the weaker ones!" Ellie went on, gesturing fervently.
"Look, Ellie," Joseph interrupted, raising a hand. "I know all that, alright? Let's skip the sermon."
She shut her mouth tightly, her face flushing red. For a moment, Ellie looked like she might explode, but then she let out a long, defeated sigh. "Fine... fine. Let's leave it at that." She crossed her arms, regaining her composure. "Where's the student you were supposed to be supervising?"
Joseph shrugged. "Dead."
"..."
"..."
"What?..."
"He died, Ellie. Deader than dead."
"... you've got to be kidding me," she murmured in disbelief. "How?... how did you fail?"
"Hey, I didn't fail," Joseph defended himself, not liking that his skills were being questioned. "The kid broke the rules and went in alone."
Ellie shook her head, her lips pressed into a thin line. 'Someone who ignores the importance of rules and disrespects orders... is more dangerous than useful.'
"Even so," she continued, jabbing her index finger firmly into Joseph's chest, "that doesn't change the fact that if you had arrived on time, this wouldn't have happened."
Joseph shrugged. "Guilty as charged. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to speak with the headmaster."
Ellie crossed her arms, scoffing. "Tsk. Go on. He's already in a bad mood, and with what you're going to say, get ready to end up in hot water, Joseph."
"Hot water?" He laughed, already opening the building's door. "Who even says that in the twenty-first century?"
"I do!" Ellie shouted as the door closed behind him.
Joseph smiled to himself. 'That girl really needs to spend more time with me. Way too uptight.' He climbed a flight of stairs that led to two large doors, flanked by two lions standing guard.
That was the headmaster's technique. He could create intelligent animals, of any kind and as many as his spiritual energy could sustain.
"Hey, Simba and Aslan. Nice day, huh?" Joseph stopped in front of them, grinning. The lions responded with a low growl, perfectly synchronized.
"Name," said the first.
"Rank," finished the second.
"And purpose of visit," both concluded.
Joseph's smile faded as he raised an eyebrow. "Seriously? We see each other every week. Don't pretend you don't know me."
"Name," repeated the first, unmoved.
"Rank," insisted the second.
"And purpose of visit," they finished together.
"Alright, alright..." Joseph rolled his eyes and answered grudgingly. "Joseph Harrington, class 3 exorcist, and I was summoned by the headmaster."
The lions exchanged a glance, as if evaluating his answer, then nodded slowly. "You may enter."
"Thank you, your majesties," Joseph muttered with a touch of sarcasm, pushing the doors open.
Inside the office, seated behind a desk buried under disorganized piles of paper, was William, the director. His red hair glowed like embers under the light streaming through the window, and his sharp eyes locked onto Joseph immediately. The spiritual energy radiating from him was almost tangible, a raw force that seemed to press against the space around him.
Joseph felt the director's spiritual energy trying to smother him. Instinctively, he released a bit of his own spiritual power—just enough not to feel crushed. He took a step forward, keeping his smile.
"Joseph Harrington," William said, turning his eyes back to the papers in front of him. "I already know what happened."
"Then why am I here?" Joseph asked, throwing himself into the chair in front of the desk without ceremony.
William looked up, eyes narrowed with a mix of irritation and exhaustion. "Because, as useless as a weak exorcist may be, our numbers are low. We don't have the luxury of losing more. That was the last time, understood?"
Joseph straightened slightly, catching the threat. "Yes, sir."
"Great." William picked up two papers from the desk and slid them toward Joseph. "Here."
"Hm? What's this?" Joseph asked, taking the documents and frowning as he read.
"Two locations. Two profane spirits, class 2. Exorcise them by the end of the day."
"Seriously?" Joseph let the papers fall back onto the desk, incredulous. "I just got back from a mission—"
"You just failed a mission," William corrected, his voice sharp as a blade. "And before you go, stop by the dorms. Room 10."
Joseph blinked, confused. "Uh... for what?"
"I want you to take my daughter with you."
"… Huh?!" Joseph leaned forward, as if he hadn't heard right. "Your daughter? Since when do you have a daughter? I mean, I didn't even know you left that desk to, like, have a life."
A vein throbbed on William's forehead, and the air in the office seemed to grow heavier. Joseph, either oblivious or pretending to be, went on: "And another thing, why me? I just let someone die under my supervision. I'm not exactly ideal babysitter material."
"Joseph," William began, his voice low and dangerous, each word pronounced slowly. "If you want to know about her, ask her. I'm not gonna tell you shit. She's going with you because it'll be beneficial to see another young person in action. And mainly, because I know you won't let anything happen, because if you do…" He leaned forward. "I'll kill you. Got all that?"
Joseph swallowed hard, but the corner of his mouth curled into a teasing smile. "Can you repeat that? I got lost at the beginning."
Before William could explode, Joseph snapped his fingers and vanished from the room, leaving only the echo of a laugh behind.
"Argh! These kids…" William growled, pressing his temples hard. He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath to calm himself. After a few seconds, he opened them again and focused on the message he'd received earlier, displayed on a device on the desk.
[The Exorcist Center of Ukraine has been completely annihilated]
The weight of those words made his shoulders slump, and he murmured to himself: "We won't have time to prepare…"