As soon as the period ends, Zika rises up from her seat and storms in my direction.
She kinda cuts Chiaki off, who I believe was on her way to me.
Then she grabs my hand, yet different from my expectations doesn't drag me away but waits until I'm ready to follow.
For a moment, I forgot that she totally fears I might devour her.
And seriously, she has a point in so far as I don't know how it would be triggered.
She rather fast drags me away to the upper floor and into the toilet.
Not the cursed one.

 

"C-could you tell me what this is about? We have swimming class next and I need some time to change." (I)

"You gave him my name! Told him my binding! To an exorcist!" (Z)

 

Okay, that was a rather bad slip.

 

"I-I covered it!" (I)

"Oh yes! Zikarin! How incredibly creative! I am sure he will need at least twenty minutes to deduct that one!" (Z)

"I am sorry. Really!" (I)

"You have no idea what my name in someone like his hands means to me! He can bind me! Erase my existence! Lock me for all eternity behind a seal! Enslave me! With enough time there are no limits!" (Z)

"Th-that really wasn't my intention." (I)

"Sadly that won't help me when I am at his mercy. Or whoever else will know about it." (Z)

 

I realize how incredibly stupid I was and what I have done to someone I owe a favor.

 

"For-forgive me. I-I could try to talk to him." (I)

"So instead of doing something smart, you're going to tell him that he already has my name for the shallow hope that your personal relationship might be enough to convince him? Since exorcists are known to be so lenient about their duties? Or what was the idea?" (Z)

 

I don't know what to answer.
She might be right that this could make everything worse.

 

"I'm so deeply sorry. Can't I do anything at all?" (I)

"Yes, you can." (Z)

"Really?" (I)

"To be honest this isn't my favorite option, but as things get worse and worse on that front I need some kind of precaution. Or more a backstop." (Z)

"I honestly don't understand." (I)

"You don't need to! But were you honest about your offer?" (Z)

"Yes, sure!" (I)

"Then I just need you to recite a small line for me! More I don't need!" (Z)

"Ehm..." (I)

"What is it now?" (Z)

"This won't allow you to take over my body and soul or such stuff, right?" (I)

 

For all I know, this is an actual concern right now.

 

"Don't be silly! As if I even have a chance to control your little nightmare zoo. You are in a far too convenient symbiosis with your own self. In fact, one could say you are already possessed. By yourself that is. Or in words even you can understand: Demons are the ones doing the possessing not getting possessed! And you are one!" (Z)

"F-fine then. I still owe you a favor." (I)

 

And please stop telling me that I'm a demon.

 

"Good! Then just repeat the words as I say them!" (Z)

 

And like this she begins:

"Emperii in veos vis; Zika dos nomi dominis;

Annia pax demonitas; deus dimes ni separas;

Nuvia nox sanctuaria; in surrealis obscuria!" (Z)

 

As I promised I start to speak those words.
They don't sound too difficult and the rhyme was so short one wouldn't believe it to be dangerous.
Even if Zika's eyes turn demonic.

But as soon I am at the second verse something changes.
The words come slower and slower over my lips and while I try to speak them suddenly my mouth fills with the black sludge.
At least I think so since it has the same taste.
And that is surely none that will easily be forgotten.

Nonetheless, I keep on.
I don't even know why.
On one side, something inside me wants to finish and tells me that it would be very bad to stop midway.
The other meanwhile is completely grossed out.
As soon I finish the last word I cannot contain the vicious stuff in my mouth anymore and spew it on the ground.
But to my horror, it doesn't stay still.
Instead, it comes to life.

For a moment I wonder if this demon has tricked me.
However, different from my expectation the sludge doesn't go for me, but Zika.
I can see pure terror in her face before the stuff is below her feet and promptly thousand black liquid strands rush up, grasping at her.
Before I can even come close she is already pulled down, vanishing under the black surface.
Then the current like with a will of its own draws to me, crawling up my feet and somehow gets sucked in through my legs.

Frantic I panic and start to search inside me for Zika.
My only hope is that she was still in this liquid when she got sucked in and that I can prevent her soul from dispersing.

The next moment I think I perceive something.
It feels a little bit like the known sensation I had with those big demons.
But this one is calmer, yet at the same time more pressuring.

And feels more... focused.
Intensively I try to think about not destroying this one.

The presence slowly draws to the surface of my chest.
I start to get the weird feeling of something pressing from within my skin, and soon it begins to spread my front.
Suddenly my body opens up in thousand creepy tentacles.
And out of all this living chaos, which makes my ridden mind bordering my mental limit once again, abruptly a claw emerges.

Then another!
They desperately try to find hold in all this crawling and somehow manage to pull forward.
At next I see a head.
Then a torso, hooved legs...

 

"Splosh"

 

And like this Zika splurts out.

 

"Great ones! Fucking, cursed great ones!!!" (Z)

 

And I slump down on the wall.

 

"Wha-wha-wha-wha-what, wa-wa-was, th-tha-that?" (I)

"A tour through hell, without any souvenirs from the host!" (Z)

"What?" (I)

"Fine. For the mentally challenged. We two my dear, now have a pact." (Z)

"A pact? How?" (I)

 

Again this pitying "seriously" look.

 

"Right, the recitation." (I)

"At least a little bit of intellectual capability." (Z)

"But why? And what?" (I)

"I needed something stronger than the average pact or spell someone could use to bind me. Now whatever happens I have something stronger to overthrow whatever ritual is coming my way. Or for a figurative metaphor: When they try to catch me with ropes I have iron chains to pull me away." (Z)

"Ropes? Iron chains?" (I)

"Urrgh, the rope is whatever summoning one might try with my name and the iron chains are a pact with a goddess. I don't think I need to tell you which one is stronger." (Z)

"But why did you do this? And what does this mean?" (I)

"Okay, listen carefully. You can now summon me whenever you want right there inside you." (Z)

 

She pokes my chest.

 

"Why would you want this?" (I)

"Honestly, what I witnessed just now, even the greatest masochist wouldn't want this. But it's better than eternal agony. However, you seriously have to create some order in there!" (Z)

"I still don't understand anything about what just happened." (I)

"Well, calling it a pact might not be exactly right, since It wasn't directly a mutual contract." (Z)

"What!? Did you force me into something?" (I)

"No, you did." (Z)

"Huh?" (I)

"As I said before, one can do quite much with a name. And with your resources it's not like I have much of a choice if you wish for something." (Z)

 

This is very disturbing.
It's not like I want to enslave someone.

 

"But what exactly did I? I don't even have an idea what I said there." (I)

"Do you want the exact wording, would be difficult, just a rough translation, or a summary?" (Z)

"The translation?" (I)

Fine, it was something along the lines of: By command of living will, I hereby order Zika through her name, to forge a bond of demonic kind, which no gods can break, bringing her to our dark sanctuary, made of twisted nightmares! Essentially it means I am now part of your personal nightmare and can be called there whenever you want, or I want." (Z)

"Why would you want that?! And-and personal nightmare?" (I)

"Didn't I already say that I would rather go to such a place than let him do whatever he wants to me? This is the safer option." (Z)

"Wh-what kind of option? And what even is a personal nightmare?" (I)

 

This doesn't sound like something I would want.

 

"I really have to explain every little detail, huh? I've told you that you are a living dream. Inside you is an endless, empty space. Or how do you think you can gobble up things many times bigger than yourself?" (Z)

"This, this sounds complicated." (I)

"Like it always is with multidimensional topics. Just think about it as your own little dream world. Extremely vile and unsettling, but yours. You control everything in there. Like in a lucid dream. You could say a fortress shall rise at one place and it does. Probably a very dark and oppressing fortress. It could be difficult to change the common theme. But honestly, a fairyland made from nightmares would disturb me much more. However, I digress. Everything you devour in fact ends up there and in general, gets instantly absorbed. At the moment, brrr... It's pure chaos! All crawling and, and... great ones!" (Z)

"Is it this bad?" (I)

"An understatement! Let's say you need to tidy up in there if you want anyone to make it longer than five minutes before his mind shatters." (Z)

"I don't even know anything about this weird world you tell me about!" (I)

"You should be able to physically enter it with your creepy 'goddess-world-crossing-powers'. So please, take some time and do something about it. That was certainly not an experience I wish to repeat." (Z)

"B-but if it's so bad in there..." (I)

"Gosh, then just keep it like it is! I have no nerve for your antics right now!" (Z)

"Wait! Shouldn't we talk about this? Like... We barely know each other and now this pact?" (I)

"It's not like you would do anything else than you already do. You know, taking advantage of me, calling me at the most inconvenient times, and so on. So if you want to do me a favor at least make the place I'm bound to less horrific. This pact can be beneficial for me as for sure you are giving me some stability. As long you don't intend to reshape me, that is. You could at times show a little gratitude in my direction. But as you said before, you fear that we might be late to the swimming class, and right now we are." (Z)

"Shit! I have to get going!" (I)

 

While running I hear from behind:

 

"You could just change your looks directly! Might spare time!" (Z)

"Over my dead body!" (I)

"Said the immortal." (Z)

 

Crap!