Exorcist Servant: Demon Hunter

John repeated her words in his head, and then went back to them.Until the third time, he still felt that sentence was unreasonable.

"Sir?" he asked helplessly.

"Can you keep Mr. Johnson in your apartment?"

What the hell is this? "According to the regulations, non-human spiritual bodies need to be carefully guarded." He is not a person who sticks to the rules, at least he knows how to make changes within the regulations.But she was talking about a federal felony.Not to mention the unpredictable dangers that may come from Hui entering a berserk state.

There was nothing to be seen on Kania's face.Those great god-level empaths in the control center had nothing to do with her, either because her self-control ability was too strong, or because she had no feelings at all.Of course, according to the wisecrackers, she might as well be a robot. "You heard McNamara's report. Mr. Jensen stated that after his brother's body walked out of the funeral home by itself, he and his sister-in-law and some of her friends came here to retrieve it."

Why is she saying what she already knows? "Okay. I was the detective in charge of Ben Jensen's murder and I should have been told about it. So I'm going to assume it's because the funeral director didn't write the report?"

If so, the funeral home would be forced out of business—perhaps closed now—and on top of that, the owner of the funeral home would be jailed.They deserved it, though; it's just that if he'd known about it sooner, maybe he could have done something to change the way Caleb ended up being possessed.

"You are wrong. She did report it." Kania's gaze was cold and sharp as a blade. "Someone at SPECTR reviewed the tape, which should have been prioritized and sent straight to my desk. And even if the tape was not properly reviewed, you should have seen this report. But, it disappeared gone."

Well, yes, he was pissed at the mishandling.Caleb's life is hanging by a thread right now, but none of this would have happened if everything had gone according to plan.But it would be too much to imply that someone deliberately suppressed this matter, "I don't quite understand what you mean, Director."

"Don't play dumb with me, Starkweather. You know best as hell what I'm talking about. There should be clues that this is going to go wrong. But no, it means someone erased their tell. I It will take time to investigate this matter. So I don't expect that vampire to be around headquarters for the next few days."

He couldn't believe it all.No one at SPECTR would sabotage an investigation.Some people may say that this is government incompetence, but this superpower project must not be joked.Everything they do is to help the public, whether it is superpowers or ordinary people.

"And those who went with Mr. Johnson—how are they?" he asked word for word.

Kania frowned towards the barren yard outside, "They disappeared. We have notified all the local hospitals to report to us if they find anyone with bite marks on their bodies. No news so far. I Detectives have been sent to check Melanie Jensen's apartment, but no one is home."

"What about the others?"

"Mr. Jensen said he didn't know them; they were supposed to be friends with his sister-in-law and brother. He also said he didn't know how they tracked the inhuman spirit all the way here. As far as Pittman judged, Mr. Jensen didn't Lying, but there must be something he hasn't told us. You can ask about it at supper."

How much John wanted to have the ability to predict at this time, even a little bit, as long as it could tell him what to do next.He swept the bumpy porch and put his hands in his pockets.He could just see Caleb sitting in the chalk circle, his arms wrapped around his thin legs, his chin resting on his knees, his brown eyes gleaming with anger and frustration.

Ben was responsible for investigating the cause of Ben's death.Sure, he did what he could...but none of this would have happened if he had solved that murder.

"One more thing." Kania said, "Mr. Jansen seems to be an unregistered superpower."

"It seems that there is finally good news." Although his mood was only a little bit better, John still said.Poor Caleb: His parents must have listened to the false rumors about SPECTR, or they were anti-government types themselves, so they decided to hide their son from the help he deserved.No wonder he was staring and making a nasty voice before. "What are his abilities?"

"Agent Pittman didn't press further because there were more urgent matters," she said dryly. "I think we can at least rule out fire control - that kind of ability can't be hidden anyway. Now the point is, he has a much higher distrust of the government than ordinary people. But if we can cooperate with him, That would be much better than him working with an inhuman spirit."

If Caleb decides that SPECTR will hurt him, will he surrender to Ash in order to protect himself?Kania is right; just an uncooperative Caleb is enough to cause headaches.

Of course, things would be just as difficult if Ash decided to suck John's blood dry in the middle of the night.

"Starkweather, what do you think?" Kania raised her eyebrows and asked, "Can you handle this task?"

He took a deep breath and let it out slowly.He is in charge of the Ben Jensen case.He has a responsibility to deal with his case.

"Yes sir. I'm ready."

"Very good." She paused, then added, "By the way, this is all confidential at the moment. Don't talk about it with anyone who hasn't been to the scene of the crime. Now, go and tell Mr. Johnson about the good news." News."

***

Caleb sat on the ground, trying to clear his mind, not to think about anything, not to feel anything.

The exorcism didn't work.How would it work, what the hell was he thinking; what could he expect a gang of magicians to do?Maybe it was all just a big show, just to punish him for evading registration.

What are they going to do to him now?Take him away, that's for sure; lock him up, most likely; wait for the monster in his body to swallow him forever... also possible?

Something moved in his body, and the tiger awoke from his doze. "Why would I do this?"

Caleb pressed his lips together, unable to stop his thoughts.Demons -- that is, non-human spirits -- whatever the fuck you want to call them -- possess people.Everyone, whether ordinary or superhuman, is warned from an early age not to take chances and do anything that would attract the attention of a spirit entity.Community relations officials come to the school twice a year to tell students not to use drugs, drink and drive, play with guns or summon demons.He never gave it much thought, unless it was a life-related danger, like looking left and right before crossing the street.

And look at himself now, he's finished.

"Are all mortals illogical?"

It's been trying to play tricks on him.The thing that stayed in his head, the thing that killed Ben—

"Mortals are not prey. Our prey are demons. But it is too late now, I cannot even smell it."

It wasn't "us," and no matter what the monster inside him wanted him to think, there had never been a "us."But a desire rolled up Caleb's spine, to get up, to rush out into the night, track down the demon's side, sink its teeth into its body, and consume its life.

No.His nails dug deep into the palm.He is still human.He will not surrender.

"Caleb?"

He sat up straight all of a sudden and let out a small hum of surprise.The agent came back in the midst of his heated debate with the thing in his head, and he didn't notice it at all.Starkweather crouched down so that they were both on eye level.Perhaps it is some psychological strategy taught in the school that can increase the intimacy between people.

He swallowed the dryness in his throat. "And now what?" he asked, cursing in his head his trembling voice.

"I've talked to my superiors." Starkweather could see faint circles under his eyes, but the charm in his smile didn't diminish in the slightest.But he should know that Caleb Jansen has a point, and that a pretty smile and lifelike blue eyes won't sway him.Neither can broad shoulders.

"How would you like to come home with me?"

Countless extremely inappropriate images flashed before Caleb's eyes, "I...what did you say?"

Starkweather raised his eyebrows, as if he knew what Caleb was thinking just now: "I'll take care of you these two days until we figure things out. You won't mind, will you?"

Caleb dismissed the flirtatious undertones in that statement—was that flirting? ——but focus on the key point of the sentence. "Do you think I can still be saved?"

"Of course. I'll be working around the clock to figure it out - you're my number one priority right now. My apartment is pretty safe and the guest room is great. It's definitely a good idea for you to stay with me for two days."

There is a problem with this sentence.Starkweather must be up to something ulterior motives. "This isn't normal procedure," Caleb said, squinting and glaring at him. "You don't expect me to believe that you bring home possessed people on a regular basis, let alone unregistered espers."

Starkweather let out a long sigh, his breath condensed into a thin mist by the cold air.Caleb realized he wasn't cold at all, and hadn't since he... died.

No, since he woke up, the word "woke up" sounded better.It's as if he's just been knocked unconscious instead of...

"Can I be honest with you?" the detective asked.His voice was lower and more restrained.

"A magician, tell the truth with an unregistered superpower? Did the sun come out from the west?"

Displeasure flashed in Starkweather's eyes.This is just great. "I don't know what you've heard about SPECTR, but you don't need to be so scared. Normally you'd be sent to SPECTR headquarters and locked up until we managed to cast the demon out of you. But you belong to the special Situation. We're not quite sure what is attached to you, but we're calling it a vampire for now. Now that the situation is under control, we've decided to let you go through the back door. Come home with me, or be sent to headquarters. The choice is yours."

"Option." Jesus, that's not true.Just this morning, he'd been so sure he'd put it all in order and life would be back to normal.And now, being possessed by a demon, even if those agents wanted to help him expel the vampire from him, he would still be registered.

"I didn't expect this to happen today either. Interesting... twist."

Caleb let out a wry smile—his hand covered his mouth as soon as he realized what he was doing. "Damn it," he put his hand down, "it's talking to me again."

Starkweather looked worried, but not defensive.He may have been trained to look so calm, "What did it say?"

"He was thinking that everything that happened today was beyond his expectations."

The detective smiled. "I noticed you used 'he'?"

Oh shit. "I didn't mean to say that."

"Does he consider himself masculine?"

"He, she; male, female. A bunch of mortal crap."

"I'm not sure." Caleb rubbed his eyes. "I don't want to talk about it."

"Any clues about Ash are very useful now."

"Give me a name? Mortals are becoming more and more unreasonable."

"But these things can wait first." Starkweather continued, completely oblivious to Caleb's distraction.He stood up and held out his hand to Caleb. "Come on. Let's get you something to eat and a cup of coffee."

Caleb stared at the agent's hand for a moment.The fingers were stubby and strong, with well-manicured nails.The white cuffs of the shirt were stained in this room.A small crescent of skin peeked out from the slightly pulled-up cuff, and the edge of a red scar was faintly visible on the wrist.

How did things get to this point?Caleb's fate is in the hands of a magician.He's now either obediently cooperating with the government and keeping what little freedom he has, or telling them all to fuck off, starting with Starkweather, as far as he can go, and finally being imprisoned.

Going to jail is futile.But if the agent had expelled the ashes from him, he might have had a slight chance of escape.First struggle to escape here, and then start a new life elsewhere.Melanie's friend looked like the kind of guy who knew how to forge a fake identity.

They also look like the kind of people who would punch the shit out of a psychic, registered or not.Or simply, shoot him directly in the head.But if they hadn't discovered his ability, then all the above assumptions would not exist.

Caleb took Starkweather's hand.The man's skin was warm, and there was a slight tingling in his palm, as if sparks had burst out from the skin contact. "Coffee sounds good," he agreed.

The agent grinned and pulled him up easily, leading him to the sunken porch.Outside, the gray and purple light of dawn shone on the abandoned houses and shops that had long since been destroyed by fire.

A new day begins.

Arms wrapped around himself, Caleb left the house that had once claimed his life.As he walked, he wondered whether his life could go back to the way it was before.