Chapter 14: Reincarnation
Dark clouds blocked out the sky as rain poured down on the city below. The storm had been going on for hours now, showing no signs of stopping anytime soon. Lightning occasionally flashed through the clouds, briefly illuminating the rooftop of the Tokyo-based Advertising Building.
"Tsk, is it too hard to ask for a sunny day even when it's my last?" A middle-aged woman muttered as she lit a cigarette, gazing down from the rooftop.
Her wet dark hair kept clinging to her face, making it difficult for her to see.
The woman, Fumiko, was having what she considered the worst day of her life.
"Those idiots, they don't know how much I did for them. How could they try to get rid of me? Me, of all people?"
"Especially that damn Naomi. If not for me, she'd be nothing but a poor bitch working a low-end job at a supermarket or something! How dare she, after everything I've done for her! All because of a guy, that trash Kenji... I should have gotten rid of him sooner," Fumiko said as she took another puff of her cigarette, coughing a little.
Fumiko was a very complicated person. Ever since she was a child, she always liked to be in control. Not just of her life, but of other people as well. When she was in preschool, she was naturally the most popular kid in school. She had found out that it was quite easy to control others if they saw you as their leader. So she had made sure to do her best to keep that up for the rest of her life.
She had started off not knowing why she loved being in control so much, but eventually in high school, when she manipulated her entire class to bully a girl to death, she had finally understood it. When she managed to get out of that situation with zero consequences, it made her feel like a god. It made her feel like she had everyone's lives in her hands, and that she had the ability to strip them of their free will.
In college, she met a girl who was quickly becoming a sensation among her course mates. She scored the highest in every course, did the most extracurricular activities, and supported the class the most as its Head. Her name was Naomi.
Fumiko did not like the situation at all, which was why she decided to get closer to Naomi. She knew everything about Naomi from her research, so they became quick friends. After a while, she started manipulating Naomi as well. Small at first, simply trying to make her lose her self-confidence by creating situations that made her feel insecure and subtly making her doubt herself. Eventually, she started helping Naomi out with anything she felt unsure about, instead of letting her do them herself. She slowly made Naomi rely on her until she became completely dependent on Fumiko.
After college, they both started working at the same company, thanks to Fumiko's contacts. This made Naomi even more thankful and more dependent on her 'best friend.'
Fumiko spent the next few years gathering enough information to manipulate her own company. She worked her way from top to bottom, gathering dirt on her bosses —enough dirt that they had no choice but to bend to her scarce demands. She knew not to push too much. The ones she couldn't blackmail, she simply seduced and kept under her thumb as well.
Anyone she didn't like was discreetly fired; anyone she did like was broken down and built back up by her to be completely loyal to her.
Everything was going great for her, until Kenji entered the picture. He was a nobody in a department different from hers, so she didn't pay attention to him at first. That was until Kenji and Naomi fell in love. Over time, Kenji noticed Fumiko's behavior towards Naomi: how she would act like her guardian angel while also making her look bad in front of others, how she would take credit for her work while making Naomi think it was a good thing.
Due to all this, he launched his own investigations. The higher-ups being blackmailed were more than happy to help him, as long as their secrets didn't come to light. Kenji also told Naomi about all this, but she didn't want to believe it until she was shown proof after proof.
Finally, the case was handed to the police, and Fumiko was given a nasty surprise when she came to work this morning. All her deeds had reached the light, and everyone she made loyal to her had turned against her.
She looked into the distance, enjoying the nightlife of Tokyo as she laughed at herself. "To think, after everything in my life, I would be doomed by such a childish thing like love," Fumiko said, remembering how this all started because of Naomi falling in love with someone who was willing to do whatever it took to help her.
"What is love anyway? It seems so fake, so uncontrollable, so flimsy," Fumiko said with a sigh.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
"Fumiko, open the door! Pay for your crimes like a normal person! There's nowhere for you to hide anymore. The police are here!" Kenji shouted from behind the roof door that Fumiko had secured properly, as he and the police tried to break it down. Naomi was behind them, feeling liberated but also worried for Fumiko, despite everything.
Fumiko had barely managed to run all the way here and barricade the door. She wasn't sure why she was choosing this, but she wanted to believe this was better than facing punishment.
"My life will not be controlled by anyone but me!" she shouted with tears in her eyes as Kenji and the police finally managed to bust through the door. She locked eyes with Naomi one last time before jumping off to her death.
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"What... what the hell..." Fumiko whispered, her voice trembling.
"I thought I died..."
"Where... am I?" she stammered, her consciousness slowly returning. She got up as she lifted her hands up to touch her face, then froze.
they were transparent, shimmering faintly.
She was a ghost.
"Ahh!" she screamed in fright as she realized her situation.
"What the hell? Souls actually exist? Am I heading to the afterlife right now? Please, let there be no heaven or hell," she muttered, panicking.
Then, something caught her attention. She'd been staring right past a massive, glaringly obvious white structure until just moments ago. Now, she saw it clearly — and it wasn't a structure at all.
Before her loomed a massive humanoid figure, its face housing a single spiraling eye with no other features present. One long arm extended from its right side, resting on its knee while it watched Kumiko. Its other side was completely bare,. its left shoulder ended in nothing, just a smooth dark stump.
The most striking feature about the humanoid being, was the gaping hole in its chest. It resembled a void of endless darkness.
This was the being that had brought Fumiko here.
This being was the PRIMORDIAL.