9
Masanori
Deep lavender mist pooled around Masanori’s feet as he raced from Ryoka’s room, his bare feet slapping on the wooden planks of narrow corridors. Shadowy hands stretched from the floor, grabbing for his ankle. He cried out, lost his momentum, and crashed into the wall. More hands groped for him, clawing his shoulders and arms.
He wrenched himself free and jumped back to his feet. Around the corner, he ran into an old man with a shaved head, leading a parade of children through the halls.
The man turned from Masanori’s nakedness. “Watch yourself, young man. This is a sacred place.”
Masanori kept running, the two young boys and the little girl’s giggles vibrating in his ears as he went. Children in a place with monsters. Shouldn’t he stop, scoop them up, free them?
Each footf
