FILE 8: HOT SPRINGS PART 2

[The onsen was all to myself as I bathed. It was silent all around me. All the lights were out, and the bath was only lit by the moonlight.

Doors that weren't made of glass, but were ancient Shoji doors, were closed. They were opened roughly, and I looked up, startled, as a furious woman stood in the doorway.

"I told you once, I told you a thousand times not to bathe in the hot springs! They are for guests only. Get out of there and continue cleaning. Tomorrow there will be more guests, and I can't have you lazing on me.

We have too much work on our hands!" I shook in fear. It was the owner of Haneda Onsen.

She shook her hands at me in fury as she yelled. I sank lower, fearing those hands that had hit me hundreds of times.

Seeing that I wasn't moving, she got angrier. Her face was red, and she marched towards me, grabbing my hair and pulling me painfully out of the water. 

I shrieked and struggled madly as she pulled. "Stop! Stop! You're hurting me. I'll work; just let go!"

"No. You need to be punished first. I must make sure you learn your lesson, or else you will just go back and do it again," the owner said coldly.

She dropped me on my stomach at the edge of the pool, took a stick she carried with her, and started whipping me. 

It was the worst pain I had ever felt. She whipped me for so long that I lost track of time. My world started to spin as she threw away the piece of wood.

"You have ten minutes to get dressed, and then I want to see you in the hall cleaning, understand?"

She slapped my face when I didn't answer immediately. I managed a moan.

She then stormed away as I lay there in excruciating pain. My breathing was laboured, and my body was numb.

I couldn't even turn to look at the moon to comfort myself as I lay there.

In relief, I realised I was about to lose consciousness. It was a small solace, but I welcomed it nonetheless. I didn't grasp that I would never wake up again.]

The next morning, my face was slick with sweat, and my back seemed as though it was burning. I shuddered as I thought back to the whipping. It felt as if I was literally being beaten.

Mars told me I never made a sound in my sleep when I asked. That was weird.

"I'm going to the sauna. Want to come with me, Mars?" I offered. "No way. A cat would die of heatstroke. I'll wait for you in the game room instead," he refused, waving a paw.

So we separated, and I carried on to the sauna. There were already people inside, but that's okay. No one was naked, so I didn't have to endure any embarrassment.

I sauntered inside and sat beside a big dude who gave me a thumbs-up.

"American?" I asked. "You got it," he grinned. There were three others.

One was Chinese (oh, bother), the other was South African, and the last one was Costa Rican.

"Nathan McNeill. I'm from Scotland. I'm here only for a few days on holiday. How about you?" I inquired. The American slapped me on the back.

"You came to the right place! I'm here for my anniversary. This is our third time. But it's so nice here in Japan that my wife and I are thinking of moving to Haneda. Say, you guys want to have dinner with us?

My wife loves having friends over to talk to," he invited enthusiastically. We all declined, to his disappointment, though.

"I'm here for business, so I can't. I have to join my boss at dinner for a meeting. Sorry, sir," the Chinese apologised.

I wonder what this Chinaman did for his boss to take him to an onsen. 

"It's not your business," the Costa Rican muttered. It was suspicious, but true, it wasn't our business.

The South African was friendly, however. And he had a lot to say. He also vacationed, wanted a bit of a getaway from his country, etc.

I rather had a good time, until the American talked about a ghost story. I'm on holiday, enough about ghosts!

"After Patricia made friends with the maids, she heard some good stories about this hotel. One in particular stood out. They didn't want to talk about it at first, but Patricia isn't one to let a juicy story go.

After some prompting, she managed to drag it out of the girl serving us. And (censor), what a story it is!" His eyes glinted.

The others looked interested, but I had seen too many ghosts for it to get my attention. George, seeing almost everyone's attention, recited the tale; "It was the year seventeen ninety-eight.

It was a busy year for the onsen since there had just been a battle, and all the soldiers needed a place to relax. The owner was anxious because she was understaffed. She vented her frustrations to the girls working under her, rather violently. 

As it had nothing to do with them, the guests turned a blind eye to her outbursts and beatings. She started to overwork the girls, forcing them to work during the night and sometimes without food."

"Is this a ghost story or a crime story?" South African Francois asked quietly. No one answered, as they were listening too intently. I was even becoming uncomfortable. Was it going where I thought it was going?

George continued in a hushed tone; "One night, a young servant named Hizuki reasoned that she was getting a bit too smelly and felt very dirty, so she took a bath very late at night, when everyone was asleep."

I shifted. This sounds very familiar. "Sadly, the owner came upon her as she searched high and low for her. It was Hizuki's shift, and she didn't show up on time.

The owner was furious when she found her bathing instead of being on duty.

She was beaten to death on the spot with a wooden stick that the owner always carried with her. According to her testament, the owner thought she hadn't beaten her that badly, since she had done it several times before.

But the magistrate thought she had gone into a rage and couldn't control her strength. Hizuki was murdered, and to the relief of many, the owner was arrested, and imprisoned. Her young nephew and his wife took over, and they were much gentler than his aunt.

The servants were treated kinder, and the onsen were more prosperous under his management."

"Good for them! She sounds like a witch. I hope she got the death penalty," Bruce, the Costa Rican, declared.

Well, that's a surprise. I guess he has a sense of justice. George continued in a serious tone, "I don't know about the death penalty, but I do know she was never freed.

Anyway, since her nephew took over, many have claimed the place is haunted.

They would see a figure of a naked woman roaming in the bath.

Hear a giggle as they undress, or the employees hear a splash in the springs while they're cleaning, only to find no one there.

Many guests complained to the staff that the water was dirty, saying it was blood-red instead of the advertised clear water.

The worst that happened was that a young employee in her teens who had just started working nearly drowned. After being saved, she said someone had pushed her under, but witnesses testified that she was alone.

How about it, huh? Is this a cool story or what?"

I agreed with the others that it was cool, but I felt really creeped out. I now ascertain that it was Hizuki that I dreamed about and that I should talk to Mars about this.

He didn't look surprised after I told him about my dream and the conversation in the sauna.

"It seems you are showing early signs of HUNT," he explained nonchalantly. Hey, would you be more concerned? "You never mentioned this before. What kind of skill is HUNT, exactly?

And how did I activate it without knowing?" I demanded. I was sitting beside him in the game room, playing Street Fighter in the arcade.

"It's not a skill, but more a power. Your grandfather was given psychic power by a client of his as payment. He called it HUNT, as it showed him the past and future events of ghost phenomena.

The best thing about it is that his descendants can inherit it as well. Aren't you happy you got a new ability?" He informed me with a wicked grin.

"No, I'm not! It's a terrible feeling. I thought I had died for real! Isn't there a way to prevent HUNT? Or maybe not dream altogether?" I whined desperately.

He stared at me. "Don't be stupid. Having it is a privilege. And I can't stop it even if I want to. Don't worry, it won't happen every night. Only if there is a ghost or spirit in a high emotional state.

So even if you visit haunted places, it doesn't guarantee you will have any dreams," he assured me. Oh, good. I sighed in relief. "However," he added. (Censor).

"The probability of that isn't very high. Ghosts are mostly always emotional, so naturally you will dream each time," he said nastily.

I hate this cat. "Great. So what about the murdered Hizuki? Do we exorcise her?" I mumbled moodily.

"Of course. But it'll be difficult. It seems she can hide her presence very well. Even I had a hard time sensing her," Mars looked thoughtful.

I was on level twenty-three of Street Fighter while we spoke. I'm not a gamer, but I have to say, I was pretty good as an amateur and while talking to a cat. "Usually I don't like casting it, but we have no choice."

He was still mumbling to himself. "What? What is it?" I concentrated on the game and didn't pay attention to Mars.

"It's a time-freezing spell. It's very dangerous for the caster, so I haven't taught it even to your grandfather," he said gravely. "Oh?" I uttered it distractedly.

"Are you listening?" He scowled. "Yeah. Time-freezing spell. I'm listening," I brushed him off. He harrumphed before continuing, "Listen to me, boy.

When casting this spell, not only must you be careful of your surroundings, but you must also make sure not to lose concentration during the spell. 

Even after the ghost has been frozen, one slip-up, and you might end up frozen yourself! Hey, Nathan!" he meowed. I jumped as he screeched, causing my avatar to die.

"Aw, man. Vega got killed. What was that for?" I complained while other people muttered in bewilderment. 

"Not my problem. I had enough games. Let's go have lunch," he purred.

Upset, I carried him as we set off, leaving a bunch of confused tourists. After I ordered some dishes, Mars started to nag.

"Now you listen to me. I don't want to tell your parents that you ended up frozen for eternity. Follow my directions tonight when we exorcise her. And don't go off on your own and try anything funny."

I picked at my lamb chops, listening to my cat badger.

In the entirety of the universe, I was sure I was the only person who had to listen to a cat scolding me. "I got it. I promise, I won't leave you behind. Now can I eat in peace?" I begged exasperatedly.

He finally relented, and we ate in silence. I wanted to get some wine, but the glare Mars gave me changed my mind. I gave the waitress a large smile as a tip when we left for our room, making her blush. I bet I made her day.