Of course, he owned the bar. That couldn't be more of a surprise. I looked at Mr Ash one more time and I began to reckon.
"Something that would be of interest to me?" I asked and he smiled again.
"Come with me, Alex" he said as he began walking out.
"What?"
Although, I was hesitant but he still prompted me to stand up and follow him. I began to think to myself. 'Maybe firing me that day was all some kind of prank then? Maybe he'll re-employ me, to a better position too'. My statelessness earlier had been smothered now I was talking with the man on top. I had to follow him up.
"What are you talking about, Mr Ash?" I asked, reverting back to addressing him formally. "What do you mean?"
"Don't worry. I will explain to you in time"
It was my decision to follow Mr Ash that day that would begin to change the life I knew. Two days from then, that was when I had my first direct experience with 'them'. But first, he had to reveal 'them' to me that day; the Yaomo.
---
If anyone told me that the horrifying ghouls we only hear about and see in myths and legends were in fact real and actively roaming the planet, I would have labelled such a person as 'insane' before I even ask for proof. If someone were to tell me that fish-men and two headed boars were actual living monsters prowling about, I would have laughed it off like any other normal human being.
And that was exactly what I did when Mr Ash told me about them. We had exited the bar and outside, his entourage waited on him. Following him, we both entered the limousine parked between two other cars and then slowly, we drove off.
"Have you ever heard of the 'Yaomo'?" he began, reclining on the soft lounge seat and facing me directly.
"Yaomo?" I asked.
"Yes. You must have heard about them, in myths and legends taught at school"
It was obvious that I had no idea what he was talking about, and so he continued.
"The Yaomo are more like 'shifting monsters'" Mr Ash said. "According to folklore, they are called 'strange creatures', with supernatural capabilities"
I listened to him, trying to grab the concept that he was trying to express using the Yaomo.
"What about the Youka? Surely, you must have heard about them from school or your home..."
"You mean those strange animal creatures in books..."
"Exactly!" Mr Ash said with a soft clap. "Although the Yaomo are considered to be lesser compared to the Youka, they are all still considered as 'strange creatures'" he said before reclining again. He inhaled calmly and then continued.
"But the Youka were known to be powerful creatures. They bridged the gap between the realm of men and gods. Some of them were so powerful that they nearly transcended into godhood. And during eras like that, they were even worshipped by men. Occasionally, that lead to wars with the gods, who always triumphed" Mr Ash said and then scoffed inaudibly.
I still couldn't tell where he was going with all this. Did he love storytelling? Perhaps, he was once a teacher before he became a successful billionaire. At that thought, I felt like I should listen to him more.
"So tell me, Alex. Have you ever seen a Yaomo?" Mr Ash asked suddenly. Somehow, I could see his eye read me at that moment.
"A Yaomo? You mean a Youka. I think I have seen some of them in textbooks and posters" I answered.
"I see. But I am referring to the Yaomo actually"
"Ohh. I told you I didn't know anything about the Yaomo" I answered again.
Mr Ash smiled faintly.
"Alright" he said then exhaled calmly. "Perhaps you may not even believe me. But then, if you are willing to, I can show and prove it to you"
"Huh?"
"Will you tag along? What I want to show you is just around the corner" Mr Ash offered.
I still thought he was probably insane but then I agreed. I wanted to see this 'proof' he talked about.
I really thought he must have had a loose screw or two since I initially thought he was referring to the actual entity he had described earlier as the Yaomo. But then, I wrote it off. Perhaps, he was going to show me something else. Something he simply used the Yaomo to describe.
"There are so many things hidden from the sights of men, for reasons which we cannot overlook. But then, for some reason, I feel compelled to show you. You should prepare your mind, Alex" Mr Ash forewarned.
My eyes squinted in contemplation. Was he actually going to show me something scary? Was he being literal or metaphorical? I was getting confused at that moment. All I knew was, whatever it was that he was about to show me, it was definitely not pretty.
Of course, I never really thought he meant them literally.
We soon arrived at the base of a tower. One with the initials A.R. and a crest quite familiar to me. It didn't take a second for me to remember. The firm that I had just been fired from also used the same crest in their logo design.
On realisation, I smiled to myself.
"Mr Ash, are you by any chance the owner of this building as well"
"Indeed, I am"
So he owned even bigger conglomerates. He was much richer than I thought he was at first. At that, I couldn't blame him for looking down on me earlier, since he is literally standing way above my level. Of course he would have to look down.
After parking, we alighted at once and together with all the escorts Mr Ash brought with him, we walked into the building and went straight to the elevator.
After a minute or two, we arrived at the floor which we were headed to and immediately the doors parted, and I stepped out, that was when I felt it for the first time.
The place was damp, with smears on the walls here and there. Anyone could perceive the eeriness of this place and I became really uncomfortable.
"Mr Ash. Where exactly are we going?"
"This is a holding area twenty meters underground"
Truly, when we were in the elevator, I could feel that we were going downwards, not upwards. But then, it seemed he intentionally hid whatever was here from the public. If that was the case, why was I being shown? The question propped up in my thoughts and made me even more uncomfortable. All the 'what-ifs' began crossing my mind and I became hesitant. And surely, Mr Ash noticed it immediately.
"We're not hiding anything illegal here, Alex. You can rest assured. Instead of worrying about something like that, you should prepare your mind for what I am about to show you"
"Heh. And what are you about to show me?" I asked with a forced grin on my face.
"The Yaomo we just spoke about"
As soon as he said that, we all stopped. Even the lighting was eerie as some of them blinked continuously. Moreover, there was this particular chill I had been feeling since we stepped out of the elevator. Just what did he put here? I asked myself.
Even at that time, I hadn't thought he referred to the actual Yaomo which he had described earlier. I thought, maybe, being all rich and influential, perhaps he was allowed to keep certain exotic animals or something like that.
The room we stopped in front of had a blue door. There were many other rooms with doors of other colours.
"Open it" Mr Ash said and for some reason, my body tightened up, like I was getting ready for something bizarre.
The door propped forward at first with a metallic clang before sliding towards the right. And behind it was another door. A transparent one. It was entirely dark inside but then, I could see something move behind it. Something rubbed on the door from inside and I stared into it intently. Was he really keeping something in there? Inside such a dark...
"B6, lights" one of the escorts said and in a second, the lighting from the room went on.
And that was the first time I saw one of them.
The deep black, two headed creature stared at us from inside with its hands pressing against the glass door. One of its heads had a very sad expression and the other, a furious grimace. It made a 'woooo' sound continuously from inside and kept rubbing on the glass door. From where its rib was meant to be, a shorter pair of hands protruded from there with a black vapour pouring out from its chest and emanating from its whole body.
I wanted to run as far as I could from that place and never return, but then I froze. That was all I could do. I tried to say something but the words wouldn't come out. The unearthly being before us then looked at me directly. I flinched. I could feel my heart rate go up and my skin tingle. My hairs stood on end and I became highly alert with the only thought that I could hear in my mind, that this can't be real. And just when I thought I had seen it all, it spoke.
"You've brought another one, 'Ash'ar'"
Once again, I was shocked. Its voice was like a raspy whisper, full of malice and intent. It seemed to speak to one of us standing there.
Who is Ashar? And what does it mean by 'another one'?