The Arkana: The Demon Hunters
Atma

With a thumping heart, the young man looked at the campus bridge standing before him. The pale moonlight illuminated only part of the old iron structure that curved over the campus lake. The thin mist narrowed his gaze and added a horror impression to the bridge connecting the two faculties.

The view on this bridge should be beautiful, yes beautiful, if passed in the afternoon. But when the night is different. There is no more beauty. Now the place has become a scary place.

Not to mention a lot of bad rumors about the bridge. He said, at night many who caught the sightings of subtle creatures there. The more rumors that circulated made the bridge even more cursed. The creatures that live around there make use of the rumors to strengthen themselves. Naturally, human fear is the food of evil spirits.

When evil spirits get stronger, they become more dangerous because they are able to hurt humans. Those who have lived for hundreds of years even often hunt humans and make food.

"Safe, secure. Calm down, there will be nothing" the young man murmured inwardly, trying to calm himself down. He looked towards the ceiling of the campus across the bridge, where the engineering faculty was located. His favorite bike is left there and the fastest way to get there is by passing this bridge. Actually it could have been the young man passing another road, only when compared to passing the bridge, the distance took six times as much.

With doubtful steps, he stepped on that bridge. Each of his steps sounded trembling above the old metal structure that was rumbling as he went further. The sound of a gentle breeze rustling, as if forming an inaudible whisper.

As the young man walked past the midpoint of the bridge, he felt a change in mood. It was as if the air had become even colder and thicker, making his hair goosebumps. He tried not to look around and just focus forward.

At the end of the lonely bridge, a faint shadow was seen. His heartbeat suddenly thumped with hunting breath. The shadow grew more and more real as his steps approached, forming the silhouette of a woman standing in the middle of the road. His long hair flowed like the wind, covering part of his face in the darkness.

"Well," he murmured weakly. "Aren't you?"

The closer the young man was the more hesitant, but his steps stopped and just kept going. Now that figure is becoming clearer. A long-haired woman in all-black clothes was standing in the middle of the bridge.

The young man somewhat covered to the side and continued to step. The woman was still motionless with her face staring straight ahead with a blank look. When the distance was close, the young man closed his eyes and quickened his pace.

One, two, three, four, five, six, to some extent, after feeling far enough the young man opened his eyes again. Suddenly his steps stopped with his eyeballs rounded intact. Right beside him, the woman walked back to follow him while looking at him with a horrifying grin. Both of the women's eyes were bathed in blood.

"YYYYYYYYYY!"

...****************...

The dark has vanished in the light. This afternoon in the canteen of the engineering faculty, four students were sitting and chatting. Not spared to nudge news about one of the students from his department that early this morning was found unconscious on the campus bridge. It is known, until now the young man looks like a dazed person who lost his soul.

"Kasian tuh the Billy," said one of the students with gray hair.

"Bold to go through the damned bridge alone. The cave is just a random not want, what else is alone," replied a student in a hat.

"Yes, mending muter far away," said the gondrong ala Student Sekre.

A bald student in a black varsity jacket sighed. "By the way what the hell are you on?"

"Okay, the cave forgot that Bowo was a supernatural student who often truant. Naturally, he did not know the rumors about the bridge on our campus," replied the kribo.

"What rumors?" bowo asked, the fierce-faced bald man with a birthmark like a tattoo on his left forehead.

"The bridge on our campus is a horror, Wo. If your malem-malem dare to go through it, you can go crazy," replied the kribo.

Bowo laughed crisply. "Gua doesn't believe the same thing. Strange as you all."

The man in the hat pinned Bowo's head. "Lu don't be so corporal, Wo! Can yummy you!"

Bowo moved from his seat. "Whatever. The cave's gonna pull it out."

"Third hour, Wo. Where are you going? Stupid again?" ask the gondrong.

"The banging of the doang," replied Bowo who stepped away.

...****************...

The clash of doang according to bowo apparently until dark days and the atmosphere in the Faculty of Letters met a stopping point. Bowo went from the Technical Canteen to the Literary Canteen from this afternoon, then he took a nap there until he woke up when Maghrib arrived.

"Wake up, Mas, it's maghrib," said a mother who was cleaning up in the canteen.

Bowo got up while looking at the mother with a dull face that still looked sleepy. "Bu, double boiled noodle pesen, yes. Put on a lot of eggs."

"I'm closing, Mom."

"Come on, I woke up this laper," he said. "want to go home, but it's very limp. How is dong?"

"I made it, I stayed, yeah. You pay for it tomorrow. Later after eating, the bowl just put it on the table, and you go home quickly."

"Hurry up, like there's anything," Bowo replied.

The canteen mother sighed. He walked with a bowl of boiled noodles Bowo orders to his desk. "I know you're not a literary child. If you want to go back to the Faculty of Engineering, you better hurry. The bridge is haunted when it is dark. My advice is you just turn around."

"OK, okay. Later abis eat me back to the Faculty of Engineering by way of muter deh," reply Bowo.

"Yes, I go first. Don't stay here long. The clock is empty usually."

"Yes, santuy," Bowo replied as he chuckled.

The mother of the canteen shook her head while sighing heavily. He left Bowo with plastic in both hands. After the departure of the old woman, now Bowo became the last person in the Faculty of Letters. Due to overnight events, some SMEs and communities postpone their agendas for fear of unwanted events.

After finishing his meal, Bowo did not go immediately. He was still sitting while playing mobile phone for about two hours. After his cell phone battery ran out, he just got out of his seat, then walked towards the bridge he passed this afternoon.

As he stared at the bridge, Bowo's steps came to a halt. For a moment he fell silent while holding his goosebumps.

"Okay, serem also turns out to be malem," murmured Bowo monologue.

The branches of the tree swayed like the hands of darkness. The cold air made the bald man shiver despite wearing a black varsity jacket that was quite thick. He yawned because of his sleepiness that had not disappeared, then stepped onto the bridge and walked further and further.

The wind was blowing boisterously as if into whispers that filled his eardrums. Every now and then the whisper of the wind sounded sad for help.

The atmosphere on the bridge is dark without any lighting. There was only moonlight to be the only illumination there. When it was almost halfway through, it saw the silhouette of another person from the opposite direction. Bowo smiled.

"Kan, there are still people who dare to pass even though it is already malem. People are so scared this way already," he murmured along with the rarity.

However, gradually as the distance got closer. Apparently the figure was not walking. The long-haired lady in all-black clothes was just standing in the middle of the bridge.

Bowo walked leisurely past the figure with a flat face as if there was no fear in him. As soon as he passed by, there was a sound like footsteps being dragged. He looked back, but there was no one. The figure of the woman he had not long passed by had already disappeared from his sight.

"Well? How's yang?" bowo said astonished.

As soon as he looked back to the front, the figure was already right in front of his face. The woman gave Bowo a creepy grin until his lips were torn. Bowo momentarily fell silent, his gaze suddenly blank as if his soul was drawn into the woman's vast eyeball.

"Kilihih."

While enjoying the soul of his prey, suddenly Bowo's left hand reached for the creature's face and gripped it tightly. He pulled back his soul, then turned around grinning.

"Yo, Hell," said Bowo accompanied by a thin ruckus.

The creature tried to remove Bowo's hand from his face, but it was so strong it grabbed him.

"Who are you?!" shouted the creature with a huffed voice. "Why can you touch me?!"

"Atma" replied Bowo.

Atma is the existence of spiritual energy. Some people are able to control it to combat the darkness. There are always two opposite sides. If the things dealing with the devil are referred to as black magic, then the atma is the form of its true opponent. And those who are able to use the atma are called ....

"I am an Arkana" continued the bald man. One idle hand he positioned with a swiping gesture of hitting.

"Tu-wait a minute .. let's make a deal," the creature murmured. It was goosebumps looking at the bluish-white cluster of light gathering on Bowo's right fist.

Bowo chuckled, then suddenly his expression turned flat. "People who are allied with demons are called polytheists!" He swung the fist until it hit the belly of the evil spirit waiting for the bridge.

Instantly the stomach of the creature was hollow, then its form turned into a puff of black smoke and faded with the night wind. After the defeat of the creature, from within the lake the trapped souls flocked to find their bodies. Although, some of them had already lost their bodies due to a considerable period of time.

"Thank you ..," said one of the souls who went to Bowo.

Bowo now took a pack of cigarettes inside his jacket pocket, then picked up a stick and burned the tip. He slowly smoked the cigarette, then threw away the smoke while staring at the clear night sky. After a few seconds, he resumed his steps to the bridge.