Chapter Six - [World: Mob Psycho 100]

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Pov - Lee

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Fim gathers his energy, channelling it into a thin lance or "needle." It looks about as thin as a nail, yet the power rolling off it is enough to ruffle my hair. I stand there, eyes wide and mouth open in awe as Fim's small form waves the lance in the air.

"That was about as easy as expected," he says with a hum. "Thinking back on it, I never considered the possibilities of other worlds until now."

For the first time since he's made himself known, Fim gives me a genuine smile. I can feel the joy as if it were my own.

"Thank you for this opportunity, Lee." He muses and pulls his small arm back, thrusting it out a second later. As if penetrating a thin sheet of paper, the glowing, golden needle stabs into space itself. A ripple rolls over the air, over reality itself. It's as if a droplet of water hitting a clear pool of water in slow motion. The only thing I can do is watch as Fim twists the needle and the ripples intensify.

Soon enough, an oval-shaped pool of energy forms in the middle of my living room. Space bulges and contracts, tossing and turning like the churning of waves.

"Alright, this should be it," Fim says, dismissing the needle in his hand. "All we need to do is head on though."

I take a quick gulp of air and steel myself.

"W-We can come back, right?"

Fim nods.

"Once we're on the other side, gathering the required energy is a bit harder, so I really suggest returning before the gate fades, but even if it does, I should be able to manage."

A small, relieved breath leaves my lips. And just like that, I step through the raging portal in space. What lay ahead of me, even I didn't know. Still, it would be just a bit more exciting than my current life.

And, as bad as that sounded, that was enough for me.

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Darkness greeted us as we stepped through to the other side. The faint traces of light flickered in from the distance, but right now, I could barely see my hand in front of my face.

"Absolute darkness," Fim starts. "I had grown used to it in my long, solitary journey, but now, It feels so... sad?"

He sighs with yet another bout of uncharacteristic emotion.

"I'll have you know that you've been a great teacher!" Fim counters, his tiny hand bouncing off the side of my head. Wait, I felt that?

"Correct!" Fim nods, a small bit of excitement licking at his words. "I've managed to link your senses to that of this illusionary body! It's not a true manifestation, but to you, it might as well be!"

...

Should I be worried about that? That definitely sounds like something I should be worried about.

"As the people in your TV say, you're far too paranoid!"

"You say that, but it's hard to not be when there's an alien space god in your head."

Fim blows yet another sigh and shakes his head.

"I do hope the day you fully trust me comes soon enough," he says.

"Me too, Fim. Me too." It would make sleeping at night so much easier.

A frigid wind rolls over my back, the cold nipping at my exposed flesh. Mist vapour rushes out as I exhale. A quick look around Is enough to tell me the sort of place I'm at. It's a tunnel, though an old one. No, not a tunnel, but a cave. The ground is wet, slippery, and I can feel moss rubbing up against my fingers as I kneel down to touch the cavern floor.

"Hmm, there's a strange buildup of energy happening close by," Fim suddenly says. He points behind me.

No, wait, why the heck can I see him just fine? Is it because he's an illusion? Yeah, that's probably it. A glow in the dark Fim, heh.

"Energy? Is it part of-"  My eyes snap open. Fear and surprise pound into my mind. Part of me still doesn't believe it, but I'm in another world now. I'm in a world where ghosts, curses, and psychics are real. And, right now, I'm in some old, abandoned cave where I can barely see a foot ahead of myself. If there's any place where ghosts could pop up, it's here, right?

"Time to go!" I snap, turning back toward the distant light. The cave's exit, no doubt. I rush forward, slipping and nearly smashing my face onto the rocks. Damn it! This place is a lot slippier than I thought. Taking a breath, I do the opposite of what My instincts are telling me and slow down.

As I climb and trudge over sharp, slippery rocks, the cold continues to seep into my very bones. By the time I make it to the exit, the snot in my nose has frozen over and my teeth are making a perfect impression of maracas.

"It's just behind us," Fim notes. "Odd, it has the shape of a young human spawn, but it's also... malleable? It's like water?"

I ignore his voice and leap out of the cave and into the warm light of the sun. Not a moment later, an Icy hand brushes up against my neck. I snap around and find a small girl. She's the perfect picture of a ghost. From her torn, bloodstained dress, to the blood staining her fingernails. Her eyes are an ominous gold. She just stares at me, not leaving the confines of the cave.

"I hypothesize that she cannot step into the light," Fim notes. "Curiously, her make up, while not identical to mine, should provide as a practical substitute."

My heart threatens to explode, and all I can say is a stuttered "W-What?"

This is an actual ghost. Just looking at her fills me with primal dread. She's not even all that scary! Is it part of being a ghost?

"I mean, that should you let me consume the energy that maintains her manifestation, I might be able to strengthen your powers; our powers."

...

"O-Oh..."

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To eat or not to eat, those were the words of a certain protagonist of a certain story. It'd been some time since I checked it out, but they were quite applicable to this situation. The little ghost girl hovered in place, her cold, unfeeling gaze chilling me to the bone. Then again, that might have been the strange, ice-like aura that she exuded. Even out of the cave, just being close to her sent a shiver down my spine.

She was a real ghost. In a way, the certainty of it made it a little bit less scary. Oh, I was still pretty scared, but actually putting a face and form to the things that go bump in the night makes them surprisingly more manageable. The fear of the unknown, of an invisible predator just about to pounce is what really gets people.

I take a deep, calming breath. The frigid air that rushes down into my lungs has me waylaid by a number of dry coughs. It feels like winter...

Right, I can't just ignore it anymore. I have to make a choice. The simplest would be to just turn around and leave, but that also passes up a great opportunity. And, an opportunity this was. If what Fim said was true, then he could essentially let her pass on and eat her essence to boost both of us. Of course, the was the whole morality of the situation. Was this ghost alive? Erm, well, sapient would probably be a better word. She definitely wasn't alive anymore.

Thus, it was with that mindset that I asked a simple question.

"Hello? Is anyone there?"

It was only after I had spoken that I realized my choice of words. I chuckled at that and shook my head. Thankfully, this was real life, not a horror movie.

I waited for her response, but the little ghost girl just stared at me. She continued to hover in place for about a minute before finally trying to reach out. The second her hand left the shadow overlooking the cave, it started to hiss as a small trickle of smoke billowed from the bits of pale flesh exposed to sunlight.

She quickly pulled her hand away, a pained expression on her face. So the ghost could feel pain? Well, that wasn't something all that strange. If I recall, most ghosts in this world were formed of negative energies. There definitely were some that had enough of a mind to hold a decent conversation, but I wasn't going to be that all of them were like that.

Once more, I tried to speak to the ghost.

"Can you understand me?"

The small girl's head rose, meeting my eyes. She took a step back and beckoned for me to step into her domain. What? Was she an idiot? Why the hell would I ever do that?

"Look, If you want to talk, then we do it from this distance."

Her brow furrowed and she glanced up into the sky, no doubt thinking of how to answer. Well, at the very least, I learned that she does understand me. What the hell am I going to do with that, though? Now trying to kill her will just make me feel bad.

"I guess I'll g-"

The comforting rays of sunlight vanished and a chill like no other seeped through the forest. My teeth began to clatter and the tips of my hair frosted over. As frigid mist rolled out from my mouth, up above, I saw that a wayward cloud had blotted out the sun, expanding the little girl's reach.

"Son of a-"

"Jump to the right!"

I followed Fim's judgement without hesitation, jumping to the right and stumbling to the ground. I was back up a second later, but very much alive. Had I not heeded his advice, a tiny hand would have likely ripped my throat out. The little girl stood where I had been before. Her nails now sported razor-sharp spears of ice. She turned to me, a scowl on her face.

She just tried to kill me. Maybe I was stupid for trying to talk to her, but she literally tried to rip my head off!

"Fim, I think I'll take you up on that offer."

The little skull-mage on my shoulder smiles and nods.

"While you've been chatting away, I've been adapting my energy to affect this wraith."

So my powers work on it now? Good.

I took a breath and wondered why she hadn't attacked already. A look at the ground gave me my answer. By sheer luck, I had wound up in one of the few spots where the sun's warmth still reached. It was only a matter of time before it vanished as the cloud moved, but I only needed a few seconds.

I gathered the golden energy, moving it from my fingertips like a snake. It slithered through the air, straight at the ghost. I had expected her to see or react to it in some way, but she simply looked at me, oblivious to her coming end. It was surprisingly easy to wrap it around her neck. I didn't stop there, though. This wasn't something I could do half-heartedly. She was a ghost, and snaping her neck or crushing her head might not be enough to put her down for good.

So I went all in. As the barrier of light surrounding me started to shrink, she drew closer, nails ready to slice my head off. The wicked grin on her face was one filled with bloodlust. If the sadistic glint in her eye was anything to go by, she would not make it a quick death.

Finally, after about a minute of work, Fim's energy had completely enveloped her. Amusingly enough, I had made an invisible coffin for her. All it would take was a simple command and all the force I could bring to bear would come crashing down on her from all sides. It kinda reminded me of a certain sand user's attack.

I took a readying breath and reached out. A part of me wanted to shout a name or something, imitating that certain ninja. I didn't, though. Aside from probably giving her a second to react, it was also in poor taste.

And, with just a thought and not a single sign, I crushed the ghost's body like a tin can under a car's tire. She exploded in a shower of azure goop. Bits and pieces flew in all directions. Rather than leaving behind chunk or such, it was more like popping a water balloon. I didn't know if that made me feel better or worse. Either way, my heart would not stop pounding against my chest.

"Good work," Fim hummed as he gathered up all the pieces, forming a small ball of blue energy. A second later, he took it into himself, though, to be precise, he took it into my body.

I felt a rush of power flow through my veins.

After a moment to calm my breath, I considered what to do next.