“The Midnight Hand? What is that?” Jin stared down at the cat. 

“It’s a force strong enough to stop this… Well, more like five combined into one…” The cat licked his paw, staring at the cracked road. 

Jin shook his head, “I- I should check on my family.” 

He bit his lip as he observed the destruction around him. Somehow it had not felt very strong as he had run along, yet he could see that it had been a powerful earthquake. Sirens were resounding throughout the city, he could see smoke rising here and there. 

“Why are you still standing around then?” The cat meowed and started walking in front of Jin. 

Jin threw his arms up in the air, “Because you… You’re confusing me with your sudden deep conversation, and that voice I heard in my head… And this whole Midnight Hand thing…” 

“Perhaps you’re confusing yourself,” the cat grinned wide. 

“You’re the most annoying- Ugh, I need to check on my sister, and my parents,” Jin exclaimed in frustration. 

The cat wandered along the broken road, “Your sister is fine. Trust me. I know these things, but you do have a great excuse for skipping work today and start your search for The Midnight Hand.” 

Jin let out a grunt and muttered something incomprehensible under his breath. He was tired. The night before had been long and full of death. If he could, he would sleep. A long, sound sleep to soothe his soul. He scowled at the cat who was called elegantly ahead of him. This lazy demon posing as a cat, he hated him, yet he was also grateful to be able to save his sister. 

“This is getting too complicated,” Jin mumbled and looked up at the now clear blue sky. 

“You’re making it complicated, Jin. It’s quite simple. The world is in deep shit… Unless, we gather The Midnight Hand. I mean, the rest of the hand, you’re one part of it after all,” the cat meowed and glanced back at Jin. 

Jin stopped and swallowed hard, “I heard it. In my mind. The thing beneath us, whatever it is. I felt its malice. If- if you’re saying that my parents and my sister are fine for sure— then I think this is more important.”

“I’ll show you with my powers. You can see them as they are right now if you connect to my mind,” the cat meowed and leaped back onto Jin’s shoulder.

A light tap of the paw on Jin’s head connected their minds. Jin saw his sister and parents cleaning up broken kitchen plates, they appeared fine. His father had a small wound on his forehead, but it did not look deep. They were fine. The house seemed fine too, apart from the fact that everything had fallen over. Jin breathed out in relief. He wanted to go to them, help them push the shelves back up, and pick up books and whatever else had fallen down. He knew that his parents would scold him for not being at work, and for looking unpresentable. The voice of the being beneath the ground had struck something deep within him. He knew he was needed elsewhere. 

“You better not be screwing with me, demon cat. Where do we find this Midnight Hand?” Jin muttered, the cat perched on his shoulder. 

“The Midnight Hand is more of a title. It’s not a thing. It’s what they call the keepers of the serpent. Five individuals who together form a hand strong enough to suppress it. You are one of the fingers. Actually I would say you’re the middle finger,” the demon cat snickered. 

“I would not mind giving you the middle finger right now, “ Jin sneered, “I don’t get it though. I’ve never heard of any serpent.” He started walking back down the road— back towards the city where they had come from. 

The cat grinned, “You simply don’t remember. Each time you die, you’re simply reborn into another suitable body and the process repeats. It is as Jean Paul-Sartre said; every existing thing is born without reason, prolongs itself out of weakness, and dies by chance,” he gazed at Jin as he spoke, “But lucky for you, I am here. I was assigned to keep an eye on you, and well, make contact as your guardian.” 

“Some guardian you are, making me do dirty work for you. And always quoting some philosopher… Ugh, whatever. Let’s just find these other people and get it over with.” Jin glanced out at the city again, would this happen again? He felt like this was only the beginning. 

The cat purred on Jin’s shoulder, “I will show you where to find them. I can feel the other guardians. The closest one would be in Malaysia, I think that’s a good place to start.” 

“Great. How am I supposed to afford a plane ticket there? Or a hotel?” Jin complained, placing his hands into his pockets. He wouldn’t mind going to Malaysia, the weather would be nice at least, and a holiday sounded perfect right now. 

“Magic of course. The world is connected by a web of ley lines, each point has the power to take you anywhere in the world. Don’t worry, Jin. I know my magic.” The cat leaped down onto the road again, stepping over a large crack. 

“Alright demon cat. Let’s get this shit going then. Take me to this sunny tropical paradise.” Jin exclaimed with confidence, the wind pushing his dark short hair slightly out of place. 

The cat stared up at Jin, his eyes full of glee. He did love Jin’s spirit— no matter what he threw at him, Jin always accepted. The cat was concerned about how strong the earthquake had been, he did not expect the one beneath to be this strong at this point. It was supposed to happen slower. He shifted his eyes to the sky, Lys and Myrk should have told him sooner. Or perhaps even they did not know? 

“Where is the nearest ley line anyway?” Jin asked, pushing his hair out of his face. 

“We gotta get out of Tokyo for that. It’s on Awaji Island,” the demon cat explained. 

Jin sighed, he didn’t want to go so far away from his sister. But there was no choice, was there? He might have accepted everything easily, but it was only because it resonated deep inside of him. His very soul felt how true it was. Truth be told he could stay and help clean up after the earthquake. But he would be utterly useless. Let the pros handle it, that was his thinking. 

“I have to at least get some things from my apartment. That raven should be gone by now, right?” Jin picked up the pace and jolted down the road, leaping over the cracks made by the earthquake, “If it’s still standing that is.”