Chapter 4

They arrived at their destination with 20 minutes to go before the Tiered Demon was set to arrive. His mysterious chauffeur had needed to drive through a few back streets and alleys of downtown Colorado Springs in order to get to a specific parking lot, given the mass of people flooding Nevada and Tejon. Seriously, there had to be at least 400 people there, easy. Henry wouldn’t be surprised if there was actually over a thousand.

And yet somehow, they got a parking spot. The parking garage, which looked extremely rundown and was covered with graffiti, required a special card to gain access. A card which this masked exorcist happened to have. Once they parked, Henry noticed the parking garage was strangely empty.

“Go ahead and change here.” The individual told him, unlocking the doors as he did. Henry got out slowly and glanced around. There was the possibility he could get away if he made a run for it now…but given the surprising security he’d noticed once they’d made their way into the parking garage, and everything else going on, he was concerned he wouldn’t get very far. Additionally, while he was still wrapping his head around the whole Digitally Energized Demons being real things, he was more than a little hesitant to push angering that demonic looking dog that his masked companion had called a Grim. Henry knew of Grims from stories. They were usually omens of death. He didn’t want to put that theory to the test.

Instead, Henry got out of the car and grabbed the strange clothes. The bundle included a massive dark cloak, identical to the one the masked person was wearing, along with a solid black outfit that appeared to be the exorcist uniform. The material itself was strange. He’d expected it to be stiff, and yet it was silky smooth. As he put it on, it felt as if the strands, the woven fibers, whatever they were of the outfit, clung to him, fitting his form perfectly. Once he finished buttoning up the shirt and putting on the old fashioned, pointed toe shoes, he flung the cloak around his form. It hung perfectly, barely brushing the ground, to hide his entire body from view.

“And you’ll have to use this for now.” The masked individual opened the trunk, pulling out a blank mask. It was simple, extremely so. Pure white with two holes for eyes. No facial features, nothing. “Once you’ve completed your indoctrination, you’ll get your own mask. For now, you’re one of the faceless.”

“Do I want to know?” Henry asked, taking the mask in his hands. He’d thought they were plastic, or perhaps made of a sort of porcelain. In his hands though, it was sturdier. Whatever the mask was made of it was heavy, and durable.

“Within the organization, there are different classifications and tiers for exorcists. Faceless are the bottom tier. They are observers. They are to remain silent and to barely be seen or heard. They are there simply to observe and provide the bare minimum of support. Usually, a faceless has the weakest palpable reaction to the frequency. Just enough to make them a target. Just enough to allow them a small, weak ability to bond with lesser D.E.D.s”

“Lovely.” Henry put the mask on, tightening the straps around his head to secure it in place. The inside of the mask had a type of memory foam substance which seemed to create a perfect seal against his face. Pulling the mask tight, it fit like a second set of skin. “So what’s your mask mean?”

The creepy, smiling face turned to him, and laughed. “My mask is completely unique to me.” With a snap of their fingers, the Grim appeared from their shadow. “Meaning you’d best do as I say.”

Henry stuck his tongue out at the masked individual. Benefit of wearing a mask, they couldn’t see his facial expressions anymore.

“So, now that I’m in your cosplay,” Henry added, “what happens now?”

“We’re to go to the gathering area and prepare for the rift to open.”

“We’re going out in public like this?” Henry looked towards the elevator for the parking garage. They would stick out like sore thumbs if they went out like this. Sure, people were getting into the game, but this…this was a bit over the top.

“No.” The masked figure shook their head. “We’re the away team. We’re going through the rift, to fight the Tiered Demon in between our dimensions. Our home team will be blending in with the individuals gathered outside, and will conduct their battles hidden in plain sight.”

“Uh, what?”

The masked individual let out a heavy sigh. “Seen, not heard.” They started walking towards the elevator. “Just be a good faceless and observe.”

Henry looked around and let out a defeated sigh of his own. He’d come this far, might as well keep going.

Once they entered the elevator, the individual held their phone up to the panel. For a brief second nothing happened. Then, all the lights on the floor indicators lit up. A moment later the elevator was moving quickly downwards. So quickly in fact that Henry was afraid the thing had broken.

“What the hell did you-“ A growl from the grim silenced him.

Perhaps it is best you remain silent? The raspy voice of the Evil Eye said in his head. I’ve not the power to protect you from that Grim, Awakened One.

Henry stared hard at the floating eye. For the whole ride it had remained silent. It hadn’t even said a dozen lines to him. He wasn’t even certain it was real. And yet, just now, it voiced an intent to want to keep him safe? Now he was even more unsettled. Come to think of it, his masked acquaintance had mentioned those with attuned frequencies were in danger. Everything, everything about this D.E.D. Exorcist situation, continued to get more convoluted.

“Remember,” the creepy mask said, “stay quiet and just observe.” The elevator stopped, and as the doors opened Henry couldn’t help but suck in deeply. They were underground. That much was certain. How deeply, he had no idea. Yet before them a massive expanse was laid out. In that expanse perhaps a dozen or so cloaked individuals were all gathered around a singular feature.

The center of the room was even further hollowed out, and rising up from the ground was what appeared to be a massive tuning fork. A single bridge led from the room to a platform just in front of the tuning fork’s prongs. Between the prongs the air seemed to dance and swirl as the metallic object vibrated with a soft hum.

All the figures turned to watch as they exited the elevator. Henry saw among all those gathered not a single one had a creepy smiling face like the individual beside him. Instead, most wore the same mask; a simple, expressionless mask, that had a single slash across it.

“Those are scarred ones.” His captor said quietly. “They’re mid-tiered exorcists.” Everyone stayed silent and watched as Henry and his guide walked towards the tuning fork. “The others here, are jokers.” The masked individual pointed to the other variety of masks. Those of a smiling, clown like face, with stars for eyes. “They’re a little higher than scarred ones, but still mid-tiered.”

Henry wasn’t sure if he was supposed to say anything in response. After all, he’d been told to stay silent. And yet, he felt the question boiling up within, and his mouth opened to ask. Before the words even escaped him though, a single individual, a joker, bowed towards the sinister smiling mask.

“We’ve awaited your arrival Loki.” The others bowed. “It’s an honor to join battle with you today.”

The man beside Henry, Loki they’d called him, stopped walking, and nodded ever so slightly to the others.

“The pleasure is mine.” Loki said. “Now then, let us prepare for this battle.” The masked face turned slowly to look at all the bowing heads. “Let us prepare to once again repel the demonic force trying to disrupt our world. Let us once again, Exorcise the D.E.D.”