Categories > Original > Fantasy > Eternal Requiem
Arrangement 1: Changing Destinies
5 reviewsA Devil-Human in a mercenary organization is assigned to kill a female Devil-Human, but can he do it? And is this emerald eyed girl really what people thought she was?
3Original
Eternal Requiem
Author’s note: Here is my first original story ever. I’m actually the co-author who is working with my best friend on it. I’ve had this chapter written already for half a year, but decided to post it on a fanfic site recently.
Also, this story and its characters belong to me, M. M. Saenz, and my friend, A. E. Marean. Please don’t copy, reproduce, or steal it in any way.
Arrangement 1: Changing Destinies
Right above him; one large, lightning-bolt shaped crack extending from the center all the way to the wall opposite of where it starts. On the left; large spots where the paint chipped away, leaving a color even uglier than the grayish paint that remained intact. On the right; a large rusting pipe leading down to the floor. Mold formed around where water leaked from it. Accompanying the greater details were smaller ones that no one else would have noticed.
He noticed. He knew it all. Every detail of that ceiling he knew. Every crack, leak, and spider web. Every spot where the paint chipped and every inch of mold. He could close his eyes and see where every detail was. He has stared at the ceiling for hours each day, long enough to know it like the back of his hand. He turned his head to the window. He could look out the window instead, but he already knew what was out there; old buildings, broken down streets, and homeless people. He knew this because he use to stare out the window everyday like he would stare at the ceiling now. It was like this everyday, except when-
“Demon Blood respond,” came a woman’s voice from the intercom next to the door. The dark haired man snapped out of his trance.
“What do you want,” he asked in an annoyed voice.
“You shouldn’t act so rude to a superior officer, Demon Blood. In any case, you’ve been assigned to another Rank-5 mission. Report to your captain immediately and prepare for departure.” Then, once again, there was silence.
The man called Demon Blood lazily got up from his worn-down bed and walked out the door. There was nothing else he could do here, so he wasn’t complaining.
He maneuvered his way through the halls of the Dead Snakes Mercenary Organization, avoiding as many people as possible. This wasn’t that hard, though, considering most everyone in the building knew enough about him and his reputation to stay out of his way. He reached the door to the outside and walked through it, immediately seeing a group of people standing around a blonde-haired man; his captain.
“Hurry up Tenryu, we’re leaving for the mission now! Or should I call you Demon Blood?” The captain, whose name is Lyle Maires, grinned at the unamused Demon Blood. “I’ll give you a briefing of the mission along the way.”
Everyone got into two separate jeeps and were on their way. Captain Maires shuffled through some papers in a folder labeled CLASSIFIED: RANK 5 MISSION FILES. “Now Demon Blood, our current assignment-”
“Let me guess, another Devil-Human assassination.”
“Ha ha! Bingo,” laughed the captain, “this makes your fifteenth assassination this month, and your seventh involving a Devil-Human. Anyway, this one is reported to have been seen by Grant Street in the Neumont District. Description; female, approximately five feet tall, long black hair, and wearing worn-down clothes. Ha! What person living in that District isn’t wearing worn-down clothes? Hmm… the payout isn’t that much, though, only eight grand. Oh well, you should be able to finish relatively quickly, considering it’s so cheap.” Demon Blood made no comment as they drove to their destination.
"""
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“What’s up with that Demon Blood guy,” one of the soldiers in the other jeep asked, “he seems different from everyone else in the organization.”
“You haven’t been here long, have you?” asked a second soldier. The first one shook his head. “Why do you think everyone calls him Demon Blood?”
The first soldier shrugged his shoulders. “Because he kills Demons?”
“No. It’s because… he’s a Devil-Human.”
This took the first soldier by surprise. “Devil-Human?! Why the hell would a Devil-Human join a Mercenary Organization?!”
“Why would Devil-Humans be the leaders of gangs full of Humans? We don’t know, but that’s how it is.” The first soldier thought for a moment.
“What kind of guns would a Devil-Human use? I didn’t see him carry any heavy weaponry.”
The second soldier laughed out loud. “Demon Blood? Guns? He doesn’t even wear a bullet-proof vest!”
“What?! Well, how does he complete all of his missions? And what kind of idiot doesn’t wear a bullet-proof vest on a Rank-5 mission?!”
“The only weapon Demon Blood uses,” the second soldier smiled, “is a sword.”
“Sword? Why just a sword? And in this day and age?”
“Hey, there are still plenty of people who still carry swords now, and he’s completed every one of his missions so far with just that.” The second soldier turned and looked at the first behind him. “Don’t you know anything about Devil-Humans? You could empty a whole clip into them and they’ll keep fighting at full strength, only to have their wounds fully healed the next day.”
“I heard Devil-Humans are really Demons that are forced to take a human form when they try to cross into this world from the Underworld.”
“No way man! The way I hear it is when a woman with a lot of hatred in her heart is about to give birth, the baby absorbs all the hatred, killing the mother, and gains Demonic powers.”
“You two are a couple of damn morons!” The driver yelled at the two soldiers. “That’s not how Devil-Humans are created!” Both soldiers glared at him.
“Okay smart-ass, since you know everything, enlighten us. How are Devil-Humans created?” asked the second soldier.
“Any brainless monkey would know the real answer. People become Devil-Humans when their soul is forcibly fused with a Demon’s soul. The end result is a being that is neither Human nor Demon, but an entirely new species.”
“Yea right,” said the first soldier, doubtful. “Sound like a bunch of bull to me.”
“Like I give a damn what you think. Now shut your holes, we’ve reached our destination.” Both vehicles came to a stop on a street surrounded by abandoned buildings. Everyone got out and gathered around the captain.
“Everybody spread out and search for the target. Our best bet is if we scan the area on the roofs of these buildings. If you spot the target, do not confront. Contact me via radio and we’ll all meet back here.”
“Yes sir!” Everyone but Demon Blood and the captain dispersed in search of the target.
Captain Maires lit a cigarette and sat down on some old steps. He looked over at Demon Blood, whom was leaning on one of the jeeps with his arms crossed and eyes closed.
“It’s been a while since we’ve had a female Devil-Human to kill.”
“…”
“Heh, I’ve never seen you kill a girl before, Tenryu. You think you can bring yourself to do it?”
“…”
“Is that a ‘no’?”
“… as far as I’m concerned, she’s like every other Devil-Human I’ve killed.”
Captain Maires grinned at him. “That’s just like you Tenryu. As cold and heartless as any Demon. And that’s just why I like you. You don’t hesitate or let your emotions prevent you from completing the mission at hand.” He let out a puff of smoke through his nostrils. “If only all the other soldiers were as efficient a killing machine as you are. We’d be making a lot more-”
“Sir, I’ve confirmed the target’s location,” came a voice from the captain’s earpiece radio.
“That was fast.” The captain pressed a button on the earpiece and a small microphone extended out. “All right, everyone meet back here ASAP.”
“Yes sir.”
Captain Maires put out his cigarette and stood up. “Time to get to work.”
When all the soldiers returned to the jeeps, everyone got their guns ready and let the soldier lead the way. They walked down the street and into an alleyway, stopping just before they reached a turn into another alley on the left.
“She’s down that alley sir,” the soldier whispered to the captain. He nodded his head and looked to Demon Blood.
“Take her out.”
From behind his black cloak, Demon Blood grasped the scabbard of his katana with his right hand and the hilt with his left. Then in and instant, he was off and turned the corner. He saw the target about eighty feet away and went into a full-on sprint. As he approached with great speed the target turned around with a sudden surprise. He was five feet away when he began to draw his sword, but the second his eyes met hers, his body froze.
His sword was halfway out of the scabbard and neither it nor his body moved and inch further. For the longest moment, the two of them stood bewildered and unmoving. Demon Blood finally came back to his senses and realized his current state.
‘What the hell?! Why won’t my body move?’ He looked at his arm. His hand still clenched the handle but no amount of effort could get it to move.
Thump!
He looked in the direction of the noise to see the girl had fallen over trying to back away. There was absolute terror on her face, her body shaking, and face sweating. That’s when he noticed something wrong. Every Devil-Human he’s fought before had a dark and evil aura, but he couldn’t sense such an aura in this girl. Her aura was that of a regular human.
“Tenryu! Why are you hesitating?”
He looked behind him. The captain and the other soldiers were standing in the alley.
“What’s wrong? Don’t tell me you really can’t kill a girl.” There was a look of disappointment on his face.
Demon Blood didn’t know what to say. He looked from the captain to his hand, trying to figure out what to do next. In the two years he’s been in the organization, he’s never been in a situation remotely close to this. He looked back toward the girl, whom was too frightened to move. Her emerald-colored eyes watched the dark-haired man standing in front of her, afraid of what he might do to her.
“This girl,” Demon Blood started, turning back to his captain, “is not a Devil-Human. She’s just a regular Human.” Everyone, even the girl, was astonished by his news.
At first the captain said nothing. Everyone watched Maires, waiting to hear what his response would be.
After a long moment of silence, a maniacal grin spread across his face.
“So what?”
‘Huh?!’
The captain stood arms crossed watching Demon Blood’s reaction to his response. “Our assignment is to kill that girl. Who cares whether she’s Human, Devil-Human, or whatever.” Even the soldiers seemed a little shocked at his cold response.
“B-But…” Demon Blood tried desperately to think of an excuse. “Our mission is to kill a Devil-Human, but I’m the only-”
“AND SINCE WHEN DID YOU GIVE A DAMN ABOUT THE MISSION?!”
“…” He was right. Demon Blood never once cared about how a mission was carried out and whether it was completed or not. All he had to do was kill whoever he was told to kill and nothing more, he wouldn’t even stick around for cleanup.
“As your commanding officer, I’m ordering you to kill her right now!”
Demon Blood didn’t move.
“Tenryu, you know the punishment for disobeying your commanding officer is death. So… do you refuse to obey my order?”
Demon Blood stood for nearly a minute before he made his decision. He lifted his head and looked defiantly at Captain Maires.
“Yes!”
Maires let out a sigh. “You disappoint me, Tenryu. I really had high hopes for you. Ah well.” He looked back at the other soldiers. “Listen up men! Whoever kills both of them will receive triple the entire bounty!” This definitely peaked the soldiers’ interest.
“Triple? That’s a hell of a lot of money!” All four of the soldiers stepped up from behind the captain and approached Demon Blood. “Too bad for you Demon Blood. Nothing personal, eh?”
They lifted their AK-47’s and aimed at Demon Blood, but before any of them could pull the trigger, Demon Blood had blindingly ran toward them. In an instant he unsheathed his sword and swung it twice, the first cutting cleanly through their guns and the second slashing right through three of the soldiers.
The severely wounded soldiers fell over crying in agony, leaving one more still standing. The remaining soldier stopped his advance on the Devil-Human at his display of talent with a sword. There was no longer greed on his face, only fear. He turned to start running away and found himself staring down the barrel of the captain’s gun.
“Coward.”
Bang!
The soldier fell over, dead in one shot. Maires looked down at the three men in pain. “Never leave a grunt to do a Captain’s job.”
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The cries of pain stopped as the soldiers’ now lifeless bodies lay on the ground. Maires tossed the pistol aside and reached behind him.
“Failure, cowardice, and treason are all unacceptable and call for punishment. Now prepare yourself Tenryu!” And the captain brandished his weapon: a double-barreled Gun Sword. Without hesitation, he aimed directly at Demon Blood and fired.
Anticipating this, Demon Blood ducked and sprinted at Maires, narrowly dodging his gunshots by watching the angle of his weapon and moving in a zigzag formation.
The Devil-Human swung his sword upward, but Maires saw it coming and easily blocked the attack. He then angled his weapon to where the barrel was aimed straight at his opponent’s face. Demon Blood moved his head out of the way just in time for the captain to miss him, but now his guard was down. Maires took advantage of this opening, lifting his blade high in the air and swinging down with all his might. With the sword in his left hand unready to block this strike, Demon Blood reached with his free hand within his cloak and pulled out a second sword, barely blocking the attack in time.
“You can’t fool me Tenryu! I know all about your two sword style and all you're tricks that come with it!” And their clash of swords continued with neither side letting up. Maires continued to frustrate Demon Blood by constantly switching from the use of his blade, to his gun, and back again, keeping him on his toes.
“C’mon Tenryu! A Devil-Human is supposed to be stronger than a human!” Now Demon Blood was getting pissed off.
“Go to Hell!” he yelled, putting all his rage into a hard swing with his right hand. But in his blind fury he left his body unprotected, with which Maires took full advantage of. He easily stepped in close to Demon Blood and delivered a powerful punch to his solar plexus, knocking the wind out of the dark-haired man. He fell onto the hard cement hugging his abdomen and gasping for breath. The sound of metal clanging echoed throughout the alley as his swords fell to the ground next to him.
Maires sighed again, getting out and lighting another cigarette. “That’s just like a Devil-Human. Easily angered and thus, easily beaten. Look at you, sprawled out on the ground like the weak beast you are.” He nonchalantly walked in the direction of the girl whilst reloading his weapon. “That’s why people like me are in the Dead Snakes. We must destroy the weak to make room for the strong. But don’t worry, I’m only fulfilling the natural cycle of things.”
‘Damn you!’ Demon Blood struggled to get up. His body was still weak from the blow to his chest, but he wanted with all his might to get up. He didn’t want to lose to this guy. He will never accept defeat from him, not now, not ever.
“I told you,” he started grabbing one of his swords, “to go to Hell!”
“Tenryu, you don’t think-” but his sentence was cut off, because as he turned to face Demon Blood again, he caught a brief glimpse of a sword flying right at him. The next thing he knew, it pierced his right arm.
“Gah!” He dropped his weapon, utterly shocked at the unexpected and foolish attack. ‘Damn it! What kind of moronic swordsman throws his weapon in such an idiotic-’ Maires was unable to finish his thought because the dark-haired swordsman had suddenly lunged forward thrusting his second sword at the captain. Maires tried to dodge his assault, but the Devil-Human collided into the blonde-haired man shoving his sword clean through the man’s left shoulder. The collision knocked him to the ground, Demon Blood on top of Maires with his weapons impaled in the captain.
“Damn. I was aiming for your face. Oh well, at least now you can’t use your weapon anymore.” He stood up, pulling his swords out of the injured captain and swung his weapons once to get the blood off of them before returning them to their sheaths. He once again approached the girl whom was still sitting on the ground. The emerald-eyed girl saw his hand reach out to her and shut her eves tight, fearful for her life, but he didn’t attack her. Instead, he grabbed her arm and lifted the girl to her feet.
She opened her eyes befuddled and looked up at the man. Demon Blood averted his eyes. ‘What… what is it about her eyes that had such an affect on me?’ Shaking the thought from his head he turned to leave. “Girl. You’d better get out of this city now. The Organization probably won’t come to see what the holdup is for a couple hours, but when they do find them, soldiers will be dispatched all over the city looking to find and kill us. I guess… you’re on your own now.”
“WAIT!”
Demon Blood stopped in his tracks at the girl’s desperate cry.
She quickly covered her mouth with her hands as if she had accidentally let the outburst slip. She could feel her face blushing from embarrassment. Seeing that the man stood waiting for her, the timid girl tried to gather her thoughts into words.
“Uh… w-when you said that I wasn’t a Devil-Human… d-did you mean it?”
“… yes.”
“But, h-how do you know?”
“… you don’t have the same type of aura as a Devil-Human.”
“… oh.” When she failed to come up with any more questions, the Devil-Human started walking off again. “Hold on. Before you go, c-could you at least tell me your name? I’m Jessica Yamamori.”
He thought for a moment deciding whether or not he should, but concluded it wouldn’t do any harm.
“Saishu Tenryu.” A small smile appeared on Jessica’s face.
Ch-chk.
The captain held the gun sword in his left hand and aimed directly at Jessica. “My mission isn’t complete yet!” He pulled the trigger.
Bang!
The bullets flew directly at Jessica, but didn’t hit her. Instead, at the very last second, Saishu jumped directly in its path taking the bullets in his left shoulder. “Rrrg! You bastard,” he said, “just stay down!” The Devil-Human kicked Maires’ face hard, knocking him out. “Dumbass doesn’t know when to quit.”
Suddenly the sound of tires screeching filled the air. Instantly knowing what it was, Saishu ran to the end of the alley and looked out toward the street. One of the jeeps that transported the soldiers was speeding off. “Shit!” He had completely forgotten. On these kinds of missions, one man always stayed behind just in case something like this would happen. By now the soldier for sure would have contacted the station, meaning he had to leave now!
He started to run, but heard the girl walking toward him. “W-What’s going on?” Now he was in a predicament. If Saishu leaves her, her death was assured, but if he takes her with him, she could slow him down. The worried look on her face made it clear she didn’t stand a chance on her own. One more look at her emerald eyes helped the Devil-Human to reluctantly make his decision.
“The organization has been informed about this faster than I thought they would. This city will be infested with soldiers in a matter of minutes.” Fear once again spread across Jessica’s face. “If you want to live, I suggest you follow me.”
Jessica looked at him surprised at his offer, but nodded her head. "O-Okay."
"""
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“Come in Station B! This is John Sykes reporting,” the driver of the jeep yelled into his radio.
“Sykes, what’s your status,” came a female’s voice from the other end of the radio.
“We have a Code 13! Repeat, Code 13! Demon Blood’s gone rogue. Captain Maires is injured and we have four dead soldiers.”
“Copy that. Return to the station and prepare for Alert Level 4 dispatching.”
“Wait, don’t you mean Level 3,” asked the driver.
“Need I remind you this is Saishu ‘Demon Blood’ Tenryu we’re talking about? The mere fact that he’s a Devil-Human calls for raising the level. Now hurry and get back here.”
“Yes ma’am.”
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The two renegades ran through buildings and alleys, avoiding the streets at all costs. Saishu listened intently for any cars driving by, because he knew it would be a matter of time before they did. Neither of them really knew where they were going, and to make matters worse, the girl named Jessica wasn’t faring too well on their escape. She couldn’t run very fast and would easily run out of breath, forcing them to stop and rest a few times.
‘Damn! I knew this would happen.’ Saishu had stopped again to let her catch her breath and by now he was getting frustrated. “We’re not going to make it out at this rate.”
“/Huff, huff, huff/... I’m sorry. I’m slowing us down, aren’t I?”
“Yea, you are.” His bluntness clearly had discouraged Jessica. “But… I guess it can’t be helped. Well, I have no other choice.”
“Huh? What do you… AAH!” The Devil-Human suddenly grabbed the girl and hauled her onto his shoulder. “Wait! W-What are you doing?!”
“Don’t worry. This way you won’t slow me down. Now stop struggling, unless you want to fall off.”
“Well o-okay, but wait a sec-AAAH!” Saishu leaped into the air, kicking off the side of a building at the highest point of his jump, sending them even higher. Even when he reached the roof, he didn’t let up. He ran across the roof towards the edge.
“Wait! Don’t tell me you’re going to-” He was and he did. Saishu jumped across the large gap the length of the street’s width. Jessica, facing backwards on the man’s shoulder, looked down to see the road more than a hundred feet below them. After what seemed like many long minutes to her, they landed on the building across the street.
“Hey, you stopped yelling. You okay?”
“Uuuh… y-yea… sure…” She felt like she had just had a heart attack.
He continued to run across building after building for the next hour. They spotted jeeps driving below them three times already, all filled with heavily armed men. The escapees had to become more cautious since they were almost spotted by soldiers on foot.
The sun was just setting when Saishu finally stopped from exhaustion. He spotted a door that lead to a small dark room. In it was broken down stairs leading to the bottom floors of the building they were on. He went in, shutting the door behind him and set the scared girl on the ground. Even though she hadn’t been running, she was breathing heavily. “I-It’s… a m-miracle. I’m s-still a-a-alive…” Her legs felt weak and she plopped onto the floor.
Saishu sat down opposite of her facing the wall. When Jessica snapped back into reality, she noticed her shirt was wet. ‘What the?’ She looked down. There was a large red stain where the Devil-Human was carrying her. ‘Blood?’ She then looked at him and saw the same stain on the shoulder he carried her on. ‘That’s right, that’s where the guy shot him. But that means he’s been carrying me on his injury this whole time. Why didn’t he stop?’ Apparently Saishu wasn’t aware of the blood on him.
“U-Um… Mr. Saishu?”
“Hm?”
“U-Uh… your shoulder… it’s bleeding.”
The man turned his head to it. “Oh. I almost forgot.” He removed his cloak and shirt, leaving a black tank top which exposed his bare shoulder. The blood ran down his arm and back from the two bullet holes.
Jessica’s face blushed at his undressing but she nevertheless approached him. “U-Um, I think I can help you with that…” Her hand lightly touched the wound, but Saishu’s body quickly jerked away as if her hand burned his skin.
“Don’t touch me! I can do it myself!”
“Oh… sorry.” She returned to her seat discouraged.
It was at a time like this that Saishu was glad he started carrying a medical kit with him. A few months ago, on one of his missions, he was pitted against an extremely powerful human. He barely managed to make it out alive, receiving many grave injuries. Since then, he’s brought the medical kit everywhere with him. Jessica watched the Devil-Human administer first aid on himself, a question brewing within her mind.
It wasn’t long before he finished. Both of them sat without saying a word in the dimly lit room, so Jessica broke the silence.
“Um… Mr. Saishu?”
“I’m only eighteen, you know, so don’t call me Mr. Just Sai is fine.” He had no idea why he just said that. No one has called him Sai since…
“Sorry. Y-You can call me Jessie… if you want.” He made no response, but she continued anyway. “Can I ask you a few questions?”
“…”
“Back there, you were supposed to kill me, right?” Sai just nodded his head. “Well… not that I’m not grateful you refused to, but… why didn’t you?”
“Yes, Tenryu, I would like to know that as well.” Sai suddenly got up hearing the voice of a second person and looked around, finding no one. But then, hearing footsteps in the darkness of the room, he saw a dark figure emerging from the shadows. The figure stepped into the light emitting from a crack in the wall. Sai gasped, instantly recognizing the man standing in front of him.
“First Captain, James Griffith.”
The man smiled at Sai. “I’m flattered you recognize who I am so quickly, Saishu Tenryu. But please, call me Griffin.” Sai knew him alright. There wasn’t a single person in the Dead Snakes who didn’t know about Demon Killer Griffin. Stronger than any other captain in the organization, he once killed seven Demons and four Devil-Humans single handedly.
‘Damn it! I don’t stand a chance against this guy!’
“What, no answer? Don’t tell me it’s just because she’s really a human.” Sai was stunned by his knowledge of the girl. “Surprised? C’mon Tenryu, anyone can train themselves to be able to sense someone’s life aura. That’s how I found you.” Griffin took a minute to study Sai. “I knew having you under Maires’ command was the wrong choice. You’re much too strong and talented to be with that sorry excuse of a captain.”
“… what do you mean?”
He smiled again. “Well, you see, I have a certain… knack for spotting people with hidden talent. And you, Tenryu… I’ve never seen anyone with such amazing potential. Ever since you joined I’ve tried to convince Commander Cain that you deserve to be under my command, but to no avail.” He sighed shaking his head. “It’s really a shame I’ve been ordered to kill you. It would be a waste to kill someone with such great promise, which is why I have a proposition for you.”
“Proposition?”
Griffin nodded his head. “Yes. I have connections with the higher-ups in the organization, people with more authority than Commander Cain. I think I can convince them to take the hit off your head and allow you to rejoin us, as long as you swear absolute loyalty to the organization.”
Sai glared at Griffin. “Yea right. I know this organization, and they’d never take me back at this point.”
“That’s true, but… I know a certain man called ‘King Cobra’.” He noticed the name rung a bell for Sai. King Cobra is the code name for the founder and leader of the Dead Snakes. “Yup, the King Cobra. I know him personally, and am pretty sure I can get him to agree to let you back in.”
“Y-You’re lying!”
“I never lie Tenryu.”
‘There’s no way...’ Sai didn’t want to believe him, but something inside of him told him Griffin was telling the truth. He really could return and stop running for his life.
“But,” Griffin started, “if you really want to earn our trust back, you’ll have to finish your mission: kill the girl. Yea, I know. It’s not something I’d really want to do either, but it’s the only way.” Sai glanced over at Jessie. Would he really take her life after saving it, just so he could keep living the lowly life of a mercenary? No. He had already made his decision and was sticking to it.
But the real problem: how the hell was he going to get out of there? There’s no way he could fight and win, and Griffin surely wouldn’t let them leave. Desperate, Sai looked around the room for anything that might aid in their escape. Hearing a slight creaking sound, Sai looked over in Jessie’s direction thinking it was her. Instead, he noticed the noise came from an old and rusted support beam next to her. He looked up and saw that the beam was the only thing holding the ceiling up… barely.
At that moment, Sai was stricken with an idea. He slowly walked toward Jessie placing a hand on his left sword. Griffin smiled pleased as he watched the Devil-Human. “So Tenryu, do you accept my offer, or decline,” he asked, expecting Sai to accept.
Sai looked at Griffin gripping the handle of his sword. “I decline!” In one swift motion he slashed through the beam and almost immediately, the ceiling above them started crashing down.
Griffin jumped back, surprised at Sai’s observation. ‘If that’s how you want it, then I have no choice but to-’ halfway through his thought, the ground beneath him gave out due to the falling debris, taking the captain with it to the lower floors. Shocked at the situation he was in, Griffin’s mind raced as he tried to think of a way to escape his predicament before he fell to his death. Grabbing hold of a large chunk of stairs, he planted his feet on them and jumped off of them into one of the lower floors.
Recovering from his narrow escape, Griffin watched behind him as the last bits of debris crashed into the first floor in a pile with the rest of the rubble. When the dust settled, he looked up through the large hole that lead through all of the floors to the room on the roof. Sai and Jessie were no longer there.
“Wow,” he chuckled, amazed at Sai’s resourcefulness, “perhaps I’ve underestimated him.” With one large leap, Griffin jumped all the way to the rooftop into the sunlight. With all the commotion that occurred, Griffin found that he could no longer sense Sai’s aura. After letting out a long sigh, he pressed a button on his earpiece radio. “Station B, this is Captain James Griffith reporting.”
“Captain Griffith, what’s your status,” asked the same female’s voice as before.
“The targets have escaped. Cancel the search and have all soldiers return to the station at once.”
“Escaped? They got away from Captain Griffin,” the woman asked half teasingly.
“Hey! He caught me off guard,” he said defending himself.
“Sure. Very well then, I’ll relay the information to the commander and have everyone return to the station. Over and out.”
Griffin stared out in the direction of the falling sun. He couldn’t remember the last time he actually watched the sun set. The bright colors in the horizon brought back nostalgic memories of another life, but he quickly pulled his mind back into reality.
“Saishu Tenryu. I have a feeling this won’t be the last we see of each other. Tomorrow is a new day, and the beginning of a whole new chapter for all of us.”""""""
Sai noticed an absence of soldiers looking for them. This was convenient because there were barely any buildings left to hide on. Taking this opportunity to stop jumping from rooftop to rooftop, and much to Jessie’s relief, he jumped back to the ground.
“We’re almost out of the city now. Just a little further.”
“Okay.” Jessie nodded. She was being carried in the same fashion as before, this time on his uninjured shoulder. The emerald-eyed girl looked towards the city. Though she had lived there for nearly two years, now, as they got further away, it seemed foreign to her. The dark sky of night hung over New Gamdon as the prosperous city glowed from the lights of the busy downtown districts. She wouldn’t miss this city at all. Life on the Neumont District was rough and unforgiving, barely deserving to be called a life at all. But a new hope unfolded before her today; a second chance at life and an opportunity to start over, in the form of a dark haired Devil-Human.
Wondering what could be in store for her, Jessie looked to the sky. The glowing colors were all that remained of the set sun in the west, the direction they were headed. To the east, the stars appeared in the sky en masse despite the slight glow coming from the city. She watched in delight at the twinkling specs of light shining like millions of floating souls. Two particular stars shone brightly before escaping the sky and shooting off towards the hiding sun.
Author’s note: You have no idea how long it took to write this, let alone type it with so much homework to do. Anyways, please tell me what you think of it. If you like it, I’ll continue it with the next chapter. Arigatougozaimasu!
Author’s note: Here is my first original story ever. I’m actually the co-author who is working with my best friend on it. I’ve had this chapter written already for half a year, but decided to post it on a fanfic site recently.
Also, this story and its characters belong to me, M. M. Saenz, and my friend, A. E. Marean. Please don’t copy, reproduce, or steal it in any way.
Arrangement 1: Changing Destinies
Right above him; one large, lightning-bolt shaped crack extending from the center all the way to the wall opposite of where it starts. On the left; large spots where the paint chipped away, leaving a color even uglier than the grayish paint that remained intact. On the right; a large rusting pipe leading down to the floor. Mold formed around where water leaked from it. Accompanying the greater details were smaller ones that no one else would have noticed.
He noticed. He knew it all. Every detail of that ceiling he knew. Every crack, leak, and spider web. Every spot where the paint chipped and every inch of mold. He could close his eyes and see where every detail was. He has stared at the ceiling for hours each day, long enough to know it like the back of his hand. He turned his head to the window. He could look out the window instead, but he already knew what was out there; old buildings, broken down streets, and homeless people. He knew this because he use to stare out the window everyday like he would stare at the ceiling now. It was like this everyday, except when-
“Demon Blood respond,” came a woman’s voice from the intercom next to the door. The dark haired man snapped out of his trance.
“What do you want,” he asked in an annoyed voice.
“You shouldn’t act so rude to a superior officer, Demon Blood. In any case, you’ve been assigned to another Rank-5 mission. Report to your captain immediately and prepare for departure.” Then, once again, there was silence.
The man called Demon Blood lazily got up from his worn-down bed and walked out the door. There was nothing else he could do here, so he wasn’t complaining.
He maneuvered his way through the halls of the Dead Snakes Mercenary Organization, avoiding as many people as possible. This wasn’t that hard, though, considering most everyone in the building knew enough about him and his reputation to stay out of his way. He reached the door to the outside and walked through it, immediately seeing a group of people standing around a blonde-haired man; his captain.
“Hurry up Tenryu, we’re leaving for the mission now! Or should I call you Demon Blood?” The captain, whose name is Lyle Maires, grinned at the unamused Demon Blood. “I’ll give you a briefing of the mission along the way.”
Everyone got into two separate jeeps and were on their way. Captain Maires shuffled through some papers in a folder labeled CLASSIFIED: RANK 5 MISSION FILES. “Now Demon Blood, our current assignment-”
“Let me guess, another Devil-Human assassination.”
“Ha ha! Bingo,” laughed the captain, “this makes your fifteenth assassination this month, and your seventh involving a Devil-Human. Anyway, this one is reported to have been seen by Grant Street in the Neumont District. Description; female, approximately five feet tall, long black hair, and wearing worn-down clothes. Ha! What person living in that District isn’t wearing worn-down clothes? Hmm… the payout isn’t that much, though, only eight grand. Oh well, you should be able to finish relatively quickly, considering it’s so cheap.” Demon Blood made no comment as they drove to their destination.
"""
"""
“What’s up with that Demon Blood guy,” one of the soldiers in the other jeep asked, “he seems different from everyone else in the organization.”
“You haven’t been here long, have you?” asked a second soldier. The first one shook his head. “Why do you think everyone calls him Demon Blood?”
The first soldier shrugged his shoulders. “Because he kills Demons?”
“No. It’s because… he’s a Devil-Human.”
This took the first soldier by surprise. “Devil-Human?! Why the hell would a Devil-Human join a Mercenary Organization?!”
“Why would Devil-Humans be the leaders of gangs full of Humans? We don’t know, but that’s how it is.” The first soldier thought for a moment.
“What kind of guns would a Devil-Human use? I didn’t see him carry any heavy weaponry.”
The second soldier laughed out loud. “Demon Blood? Guns? He doesn’t even wear a bullet-proof vest!”
“What?! Well, how does he complete all of his missions? And what kind of idiot doesn’t wear a bullet-proof vest on a Rank-5 mission?!”
“The only weapon Demon Blood uses,” the second soldier smiled, “is a sword.”
“Sword? Why just a sword? And in this day and age?”
“Hey, there are still plenty of people who still carry swords now, and he’s completed every one of his missions so far with just that.” The second soldier turned and looked at the first behind him. “Don’t you know anything about Devil-Humans? You could empty a whole clip into them and they’ll keep fighting at full strength, only to have their wounds fully healed the next day.”
“I heard Devil-Humans are really Demons that are forced to take a human form when they try to cross into this world from the Underworld.”
“No way man! The way I hear it is when a woman with a lot of hatred in her heart is about to give birth, the baby absorbs all the hatred, killing the mother, and gains Demonic powers.”
“You two are a couple of damn morons!” The driver yelled at the two soldiers. “That’s not how Devil-Humans are created!” Both soldiers glared at him.
“Okay smart-ass, since you know everything, enlighten us. How are Devil-Humans created?” asked the second soldier.
“Any brainless monkey would know the real answer. People become Devil-Humans when their soul is forcibly fused with a Demon’s soul. The end result is a being that is neither Human nor Demon, but an entirely new species.”
“Yea right,” said the first soldier, doubtful. “Sound like a bunch of bull to me.”
“Like I give a damn what you think. Now shut your holes, we’ve reached our destination.” Both vehicles came to a stop on a street surrounded by abandoned buildings. Everyone got out and gathered around the captain.
“Everybody spread out and search for the target. Our best bet is if we scan the area on the roofs of these buildings. If you spot the target, do not confront. Contact me via radio and we’ll all meet back here.”
“Yes sir!” Everyone but Demon Blood and the captain dispersed in search of the target.
Captain Maires lit a cigarette and sat down on some old steps. He looked over at Demon Blood, whom was leaning on one of the jeeps with his arms crossed and eyes closed.
“It’s been a while since we’ve had a female Devil-Human to kill.”
“…”
“Heh, I’ve never seen you kill a girl before, Tenryu. You think you can bring yourself to do it?”
“…”
“Is that a ‘no’?”
“… as far as I’m concerned, she’s like every other Devil-Human I’ve killed.”
Captain Maires grinned at him. “That’s just like you Tenryu. As cold and heartless as any Demon. And that’s just why I like you. You don’t hesitate or let your emotions prevent you from completing the mission at hand.” He let out a puff of smoke through his nostrils. “If only all the other soldiers were as efficient a killing machine as you are. We’d be making a lot more-”
“Sir, I’ve confirmed the target’s location,” came a voice from the captain’s earpiece radio.
“That was fast.” The captain pressed a button on the earpiece and a small microphone extended out. “All right, everyone meet back here ASAP.”
“Yes sir.”
Captain Maires put out his cigarette and stood up. “Time to get to work.”
When all the soldiers returned to the jeeps, everyone got their guns ready and let the soldier lead the way. They walked down the street and into an alleyway, stopping just before they reached a turn into another alley on the left.
“She’s down that alley sir,” the soldier whispered to the captain. He nodded his head and looked to Demon Blood.
“Take her out.”
From behind his black cloak, Demon Blood grasped the scabbard of his katana with his right hand and the hilt with his left. Then in and instant, he was off and turned the corner. He saw the target about eighty feet away and went into a full-on sprint. As he approached with great speed the target turned around with a sudden surprise. He was five feet away when he began to draw his sword, but the second his eyes met hers, his body froze.
His sword was halfway out of the scabbard and neither it nor his body moved and inch further. For the longest moment, the two of them stood bewildered and unmoving. Demon Blood finally came back to his senses and realized his current state.
‘What the hell?! Why won’t my body move?’ He looked at his arm. His hand still clenched the handle but no amount of effort could get it to move.
Thump!
He looked in the direction of the noise to see the girl had fallen over trying to back away. There was absolute terror on her face, her body shaking, and face sweating. That’s when he noticed something wrong. Every Devil-Human he’s fought before had a dark and evil aura, but he couldn’t sense such an aura in this girl. Her aura was that of a regular human.
“Tenryu! Why are you hesitating?”
He looked behind him. The captain and the other soldiers were standing in the alley.
“What’s wrong? Don’t tell me you really can’t kill a girl.” There was a look of disappointment on his face.
Demon Blood didn’t know what to say. He looked from the captain to his hand, trying to figure out what to do next. In the two years he’s been in the organization, he’s never been in a situation remotely close to this. He looked back toward the girl, whom was too frightened to move. Her emerald-colored eyes watched the dark-haired man standing in front of her, afraid of what he might do to her.
“This girl,” Demon Blood started, turning back to his captain, “is not a Devil-Human. She’s just a regular Human.” Everyone, even the girl, was astonished by his news.
At first the captain said nothing. Everyone watched Maires, waiting to hear what his response would be.
After a long moment of silence, a maniacal grin spread across his face.
“So what?”
‘Huh?!’
The captain stood arms crossed watching Demon Blood’s reaction to his response. “Our assignment is to kill that girl. Who cares whether she’s Human, Devil-Human, or whatever.” Even the soldiers seemed a little shocked at his cold response.
“B-But…” Demon Blood tried desperately to think of an excuse. “Our mission is to kill a Devil-Human, but I’m the only-”
“AND SINCE WHEN DID YOU GIVE A DAMN ABOUT THE MISSION?!”
“…” He was right. Demon Blood never once cared about how a mission was carried out and whether it was completed or not. All he had to do was kill whoever he was told to kill and nothing more, he wouldn’t even stick around for cleanup.
“As your commanding officer, I’m ordering you to kill her right now!”
Demon Blood didn’t move.
“Tenryu, you know the punishment for disobeying your commanding officer is death. So… do you refuse to obey my order?”
Demon Blood stood for nearly a minute before he made his decision. He lifted his head and looked defiantly at Captain Maires.
“Yes!”
Maires let out a sigh. “You disappoint me, Tenryu. I really had high hopes for you. Ah well.” He looked back at the other soldiers. “Listen up men! Whoever kills both of them will receive triple the entire bounty!” This definitely peaked the soldiers’ interest.
“Triple? That’s a hell of a lot of money!” All four of the soldiers stepped up from behind the captain and approached Demon Blood. “Too bad for you Demon Blood. Nothing personal, eh?”
They lifted their AK-47’s and aimed at Demon Blood, but before any of them could pull the trigger, Demon Blood had blindingly ran toward them. In an instant he unsheathed his sword and swung it twice, the first cutting cleanly through their guns and the second slashing right through three of the soldiers.
The severely wounded soldiers fell over crying in agony, leaving one more still standing. The remaining soldier stopped his advance on the Devil-Human at his display of talent with a sword. There was no longer greed on his face, only fear. He turned to start running away and found himself staring down the barrel of the captain’s gun.
“Coward.”
Bang!
The soldier fell over, dead in one shot. Maires looked down at the three men in pain. “Never leave a grunt to do a Captain’s job.”
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The cries of pain stopped as the soldiers’ now lifeless bodies lay on the ground. Maires tossed the pistol aside and reached behind him.
“Failure, cowardice, and treason are all unacceptable and call for punishment. Now prepare yourself Tenryu!” And the captain brandished his weapon: a double-barreled Gun Sword. Without hesitation, he aimed directly at Demon Blood and fired.
Anticipating this, Demon Blood ducked and sprinted at Maires, narrowly dodging his gunshots by watching the angle of his weapon and moving in a zigzag formation.
The Devil-Human swung his sword upward, but Maires saw it coming and easily blocked the attack. He then angled his weapon to where the barrel was aimed straight at his opponent’s face. Demon Blood moved his head out of the way just in time for the captain to miss him, but now his guard was down. Maires took advantage of this opening, lifting his blade high in the air and swinging down with all his might. With the sword in his left hand unready to block this strike, Demon Blood reached with his free hand within his cloak and pulled out a second sword, barely blocking the attack in time.
“You can’t fool me Tenryu! I know all about your two sword style and all you're tricks that come with it!” And their clash of swords continued with neither side letting up. Maires continued to frustrate Demon Blood by constantly switching from the use of his blade, to his gun, and back again, keeping him on his toes.
“C’mon Tenryu! A Devil-Human is supposed to be stronger than a human!” Now Demon Blood was getting pissed off.
“Go to Hell!” he yelled, putting all his rage into a hard swing with his right hand. But in his blind fury he left his body unprotected, with which Maires took full advantage of. He easily stepped in close to Demon Blood and delivered a powerful punch to his solar plexus, knocking the wind out of the dark-haired man. He fell onto the hard cement hugging his abdomen and gasping for breath. The sound of metal clanging echoed throughout the alley as his swords fell to the ground next to him.
Maires sighed again, getting out and lighting another cigarette. “That’s just like a Devil-Human. Easily angered and thus, easily beaten. Look at you, sprawled out on the ground like the weak beast you are.” He nonchalantly walked in the direction of the girl whilst reloading his weapon. “That’s why people like me are in the Dead Snakes. We must destroy the weak to make room for the strong. But don’t worry, I’m only fulfilling the natural cycle of things.”
‘Damn you!’ Demon Blood struggled to get up. His body was still weak from the blow to his chest, but he wanted with all his might to get up. He didn’t want to lose to this guy. He will never accept defeat from him, not now, not ever.
“I told you,” he started grabbing one of his swords, “to go to Hell!”
“Tenryu, you don’t think-” but his sentence was cut off, because as he turned to face Demon Blood again, he caught a brief glimpse of a sword flying right at him. The next thing he knew, it pierced his right arm.
“Gah!” He dropped his weapon, utterly shocked at the unexpected and foolish attack. ‘Damn it! What kind of moronic swordsman throws his weapon in such an idiotic-’ Maires was unable to finish his thought because the dark-haired swordsman had suddenly lunged forward thrusting his second sword at the captain. Maires tried to dodge his assault, but the Devil-Human collided into the blonde-haired man shoving his sword clean through the man’s left shoulder. The collision knocked him to the ground, Demon Blood on top of Maires with his weapons impaled in the captain.
“Damn. I was aiming for your face. Oh well, at least now you can’t use your weapon anymore.” He stood up, pulling his swords out of the injured captain and swung his weapons once to get the blood off of them before returning them to their sheaths. He once again approached the girl whom was still sitting on the ground. The emerald-eyed girl saw his hand reach out to her and shut her eves tight, fearful for her life, but he didn’t attack her. Instead, he grabbed her arm and lifted the girl to her feet.
She opened her eyes befuddled and looked up at the man. Demon Blood averted his eyes. ‘What… what is it about her eyes that had such an affect on me?’ Shaking the thought from his head he turned to leave. “Girl. You’d better get out of this city now. The Organization probably won’t come to see what the holdup is for a couple hours, but when they do find them, soldiers will be dispatched all over the city looking to find and kill us. I guess… you’re on your own now.”
“WAIT!”
Demon Blood stopped in his tracks at the girl’s desperate cry.
She quickly covered her mouth with her hands as if she had accidentally let the outburst slip. She could feel her face blushing from embarrassment. Seeing that the man stood waiting for her, the timid girl tried to gather her thoughts into words.
“Uh… w-when you said that I wasn’t a Devil-Human… d-did you mean it?”
“… yes.”
“But, h-how do you know?”
“… you don’t have the same type of aura as a Devil-Human.”
“… oh.” When she failed to come up with any more questions, the Devil-Human started walking off again. “Hold on. Before you go, c-could you at least tell me your name? I’m Jessica Yamamori.”
He thought for a moment deciding whether or not he should, but concluded it wouldn’t do any harm.
“Saishu Tenryu.” A small smile appeared on Jessica’s face.
Ch-chk.
The captain held the gun sword in his left hand and aimed directly at Jessica. “My mission isn’t complete yet!” He pulled the trigger.
Bang!
The bullets flew directly at Jessica, but didn’t hit her. Instead, at the very last second, Saishu jumped directly in its path taking the bullets in his left shoulder. “Rrrg! You bastard,” he said, “just stay down!” The Devil-Human kicked Maires’ face hard, knocking him out. “Dumbass doesn’t know when to quit.”
Suddenly the sound of tires screeching filled the air. Instantly knowing what it was, Saishu ran to the end of the alley and looked out toward the street. One of the jeeps that transported the soldiers was speeding off. “Shit!” He had completely forgotten. On these kinds of missions, one man always stayed behind just in case something like this would happen. By now the soldier for sure would have contacted the station, meaning he had to leave now!
He started to run, but heard the girl walking toward him. “W-What’s going on?” Now he was in a predicament. If Saishu leaves her, her death was assured, but if he takes her with him, she could slow him down. The worried look on her face made it clear she didn’t stand a chance on her own. One more look at her emerald eyes helped the Devil-Human to reluctantly make his decision.
“The organization has been informed about this faster than I thought they would. This city will be infested with soldiers in a matter of minutes.” Fear once again spread across Jessica’s face. “If you want to live, I suggest you follow me.”
Jessica looked at him surprised at his offer, but nodded her head. "O-Okay."
"""
"""
“Come in Station B! This is John Sykes reporting,” the driver of the jeep yelled into his radio.
“Sykes, what’s your status,” came a female’s voice from the other end of the radio.
“We have a Code 13! Repeat, Code 13! Demon Blood’s gone rogue. Captain Maires is injured and we have four dead soldiers.”
“Copy that. Return to the station and prepare for Alert Level 4 dispatching.”
“Wait, don’t you mean Level 3,” asked the driver.
“Need I remind you this is Saishu ‘Demon Blood’ Tenryu we’re talking about? The mere fact that he’s a Devil-Human calls for raising the level. Now hurry and get back here.”
“Yes ma’am.”
"""
"""
The two renegades ran through buildings and alleys, avoiding the streets at all costs. Saishu listened intently for any cars driving by, because he knew it would be a matter of time before they did. Neither of them really knew where they were going, and to make matters worse, the girl named Jessica wasn’t faring too well on their escape. She couldn’t run very fast and would easily run out of breath, forcing them to stop and rest a few times.
‘Damn! I knew this would happen.’ Saishu had stopped again to let her catch her breath and by now he was getting frustrated. “We’re not going to make it out at this rate.”
“/Huff, huff, huff/... I’m sorry. I’m slowing us down, aren’t I?”
“Yea, you are.” His bluntness clearly had discouraged Jessica. “But… I guess it can’t be helped. Well, I have no other choice.”
“Huh? What do you… AAH!” The Devil-Human suddenly grabbed the girl and hauled her onto his shoulder. “Wait! W-What are you doing?!”
“Don’t worry. This way you won’t slow me down. Now stop struggling, unless you want to fall off.”
“Well o-okay, but wait a sec-AAAH!” Saishu leaped into the air, kicking off the side of a building at the highest point of his jump, sending them even higher. Even when he reached the roof, he didn’t let up. He ran across the roof towards the edge.
“Wait! Don’t tell me you’re going to-” He was and he did. Saishu jumped across the large gap the length of the street’s width. Jessica, facing backwards on the man’s shoulder, looked down to see the road more than a hundred feet below them. After what seemed like many long minutes to her, they landed on the building across the street.
“Hey, you stopped yelling. You okay?”
“Uuuh… y-yea… sure…” She felt like she had just had a heart attack.
He continued to run across building after building for the next hour. They spotted jeeps driving below them three times already, all filled with heavily armed men. The escapees had to become more cautious since they were almost spotted by soldiers on foot.
The sun was just setting when Saishu finally stopped from exhaustion. He spotted a door that lead to a small dark room. In it was broken down stairs leading to the bottom floors of the building they were on. He went in, shutting the door behind him and set the scared girl on the ground. Even though she hadn’t been running, she was breathing heavily. “I-It’s… a m-miracle. I’m s-still a-a-alive…” Her legs felt weak and she plopped onto the floor.
Saishu sat down opposite of her facing the wall. When Jessica snapped back into reality, she noticed her shirt was wet. ‘What the?’ She looked down. There was a large red stain where the Devil-Human was carrying her. ‘Blood?’ She then looked at him and saw the same stain on the shoulder he carried her on. ‘That’s right, that’s where the guy shot him. But that means he’s been carrying me on his injury this whole time. Why didn’t he stop?’ Apparently Saishu wasn’t aware of the blood on him.
“U-Um… Mr. Saishu?”
“Hm?”
“U-Uh… your shoulder… it’s bleeding.”
The man turned his head to it. “Oh. I almost forgot.” He removed his cloak and shirt, leaving a black tank top which exposed his bare shoulder. The blood ran down his arm and back from the two bullet holes.
Jessica’s face blushed at his undressing but she nevertheless approached him. “U-Um, I think I can help you with that…” Her hand lightly touched the wound, but Saishu’s body quickly jerked away as if her hand burned his skin.
“Don’t touch me! I can do it myself!”
“Oh… sorry.” She returned to her seat discouraged.
It was at a time like this that Saishu was glad he started carrying a medical kit with him. A few months ago, on one of his missions, he was pitted against an extremely powerful human. He barely managed to make it out alive, receiving many grave injuries. Since then, he’s brought the medical kit everywhere with him. Jessica watched the Devil-Human administer first aid on himself, a question brewing within her mind.
It wasn’t long before he finished. Both of them sat without saying a word in the dimly lit room, so Jessica broke the silence.
“Um… Mr. Saishu?”
“I’m only eighteen, you know, so don’t call me Mr. Just Sai is fine.” He had no idea why he just said that. No one has called him Sai since…
“Sorry. Y-You can call me Jessie… if you want.” He made no response, but she continued anyway. “Can I ask you a few questions?”
“…”
“Back there, you were supposed to kill me, right?” Sai just nodded his head. “Well… not that I’m not grateful you refused to, but… why didn’t you?”
“Yes, Tenryu, I would like to know that as well.” Sai suddenly got up hearing the voice of a second person and looked around, finding no one. But then, hearing footsteps in the darkness of the room, he saw a dark figure emerging from the shadows. The figure stepped into the light emitting from a crack in the wall. Sai gasped, instantly recognizing the man standing in front of him.
“First Captain, James Griffith.”
The man smiled at Sai. “I’m flattered you recognize who I am so quickly, Saishu Tenryu. But please, call me Griffin.” Sai knew him alright. There wasn’t a single person in the Dead Snakes who didn’t know about Demon Killer Griffin. Stronger than any other captain in the organization, he once killed seven Demons and four Devil-Humans single handedly.
‘Damn it! I don’t stand a chance against this guy!’
“What, no answer? Don’t tell me it’s just because she’s really a human.” Sai was stunned by his knowledge of the girl. “Surprised? C’mon Tenryu, anyone can train themselves to be able to sense someone’s life aura. That’s how I found you.” Griffin took a minute to study Sai. “I knew having you under Maires’ command was the wrong choice. You’re much too strong and talented to be with that sorry excuse of a captain.”
“… what do you mean?”
He smiled again. “Well, you see, I have a certain… knack for spotting people with hidden talent. And you, Tenryu… I’ve never seen anyone with such amazing potential. Ever since you joined I’ve tried to convince Commander Cain that you deserve to be under my command, but to no avail.” He sighed shaking his head. “It’s really a shame I’ve been ordered to kill you. It would be a waste to kill someone with such great promise, which is why I have a proposition for you.”
“Proposition?”
Griffin nodded his head. “Yes. I have connections with the higher-ups in the organization, people with more authority than Commander Cain. I think I can convince them to take the hit off your head and allow you to rejoin us, as long as you swear absolute loyalty to the organization.”
Sai glared at Griffin. “Yea right. I know this organization, and they’d never take me back at this point.”
“That’s true, but… I know a certain man called ‘King Cobra’.” He noticed the name rung a bell for Sai. King Cobra is the code name for the founder and leader of the Dead Snakes. “Yup, the King Cobra. I know him personally, and am pretty sure I can get him to agree to let you back in.”
“Y-You’re lying!”
“I never lie Tenryu.”
‘There’s no way...’ Sai didn’t want to believe him, but something inside of him told him Griffin was telling the truth. He really could return and stop running for his life.
“But,” Griffin started, “if you really want to earn our trust back, you’ll have to finish your mission: kill the girl. Yea, I know. It’s not something I’d really want to do either, but it’s the only way.” Sai glanced over at Jessie. Would he really take her life after saving it, just so he could keep living the lowly life of a mercenary? No. He had already made his decision and was sticking to it.
But the real problem: how the hell was he going to get out of there? There’s no way he could fight and win, and Griffin surely wouldn’t let them leave. Desperate, Sai looked around the room for anything that might aid in their escape. Hearing a slight creaking sound, Sai looked over in Jessie’s direction thinking it was her. Instead, he noticed the noise came from an old and rusted support beam next to her. He looked up and saw that the beam was the only thing holding the ceiling up… barely.
At that moment, Sai was stricken with an idea. He slowly walked toward Jessie placing a hand on his left sword. Griffin smiled pleased as he watched the Devil-Human. “So Tenryu, do you accept my offer, or decline,” he asked, expecting Sai to accept.
Sai looked at Griffin gripping the handle of his sword. “I decline!” In one swift motion he slashed through the beam and almost immediately, the ceiling above them started crashing down.
Griffin jumped back, surprised at Sai’s observation. ‘If that’s how you want it, then I have no choice but to-’ halfway through his thought, the ground beneath him gave out due to the falling debris, taking the captain with it to the lower floors. Shocked at the situation he was in, Griffin’s mind raced as he tried to think of a way to escape his predicament before he fell to his death. Grabbing hold of a large chunk of stairs, he planted his feet on them and jumped off of them into one of the lower floors.
Recovering from his narrow escape, Griffin watched behind him as the last bits of debris crashed into the first floor in a pile with the rest of the rubble. When the dust settled, he looked up through the large hole that lead through all of the floors to the room on the roof. Sai and Jessie were no longer there.
“Wow,” he chuckled, amazed at Sai’s resourcefulness, “perhaps I’ve underestimated him.” With one large leap, Griffin jumped all the way to the rooftop into the sunlight. With all the commotion that occurred, Griffin found that he could no longer sense Sai’s aura. After letting out a long sigh, he pressed a button on his earpiece radio. “Station B, this is Captain James Griffith reporting.”
“Captain Griffith, what’s your status,” asked the same female’s voice as before.
“The targets have escaped. Cancel the search and have all soldiers return to the station at once.”
“Escaped? They got away from Captain Griffin,” the woman asked half teasingly.
“Hey! He caught me off guard,” he said defending himself.
“Sure. Very well then, I’ll relay the information to the commander and have everyone return to the station. Over and out.”
Griffin stared out in the direction of the falling sun. He couldn’t remember the last time he actually watched the sun set. The bright colors in the horizon brought back nostalgic memories of another life, but he quickly pulled his mind back into reality.
“Saishu Tenryu. I have a feeling this won’t be the last we see of each other. Tomorrow is a new day, and the beginning of a whole new chapter for all of us.”""""""
Sai noticed an absence of soldiers looking for them. This was convenient because there were barely any buildings left to hide on. Taking this opportunity to stop jumping from rooftop to rooftop, and much to Jessie’s relief, he jumped back to the ground.
“We’re almost out of the city now. Just a little further.”
“Okay.” Jessie nodded. She was being carried in the same fashion as before, this time on his uninjured shoulder. The emerald-eyed girl looked towards the city. Though she had lived there for nearly two years, now, as they got further away, it seemed foreign to her. The dark sky of night hung over New Gamdon as the prosperous city glowed from the lights of the busy downtown districts. She wouldn’t miss this city at all. Life on the Neumont District was rough and unforgiving, barely deserving to be called a life at all. But a new hope unfolded before her today; a second chance at life and an opportunity to start over, in the form of a dark haired Devil-Human.
Wondering what could be in store for her, Jessie looked to the sky. The glowing colors were all that remained of the set sun in the west, the direction they were headed. To the east, the stars appeared in the sky en masse despite the slight glow coming from the city. She watched in delight at the twinkling specs of light shining like millions of floating souls. Two particular stars shone brightly before escaping the sky and shooting off towards the hiding sun.
Author’s note: You have no idea how long it took to write this, let alone type it with so much homework to do. Anyways, please tell me what you think of it. If you like it, I’ll continue it with the next chapter. Arigatougozaimasu!
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