章 5: I'll kill them. I'll kill them all.
Seeing how welcome to Grigori Akeno was, Shuri had decided to move away from the Himejima clan two years after Akeno's acceptance into Grigori and cut ties with the Himejima. The Himejima clan had proven more and more hostile towards Shuri for her relationship with Baraqiel and conceiving a child not pure human. Being the human supremacists they are, they had tried to kidnap Akeno on numerous occasions but Baraqiel's presence had deterred them. Though his deterrence could only keep them at bay for so long. Grigori needed him more frequently. So much so, that when Akeno was ten years old, he would often be away from home for weeks at a time.
Thanks to that, the Himejima became more active in their harassment of Akeno and Shuri. Even going as far as to send their clan members over to Kuoh, where Akeno and her Mother lived. Akeno would miss her cousins Tobio and Suzaku but nobody else. Everyone had been taken in by the prejudiced human Supremacy ideals. Though Akeno didn't seem to really care. Not unless they directly tried anything. If they did, they often found themselves waking up two hours afterwards with burn marks across their bodies.
Though even still, they had become more brave as the years went by. It was only a matter of time before they sent someone to start a deathmatch.
Baraqiel was growing increasingly worried but he could not act against the Himejima clan or, more specifically, Suou Himejima. Akeno sat at the table watching TV while thinking about her 'GreatUncle'. Twirling a pen in her hand, she hardly noticed her Mother sitting next to her with tea and biscuits until she had her cheek poked.
"Ara.. Akeno, you look so serious. Why don't you tell me what has you making such a mature expression?" Shuri questioned, handing a cup over to her daughter.
"Eh? I was-" Akeno felt her face, making her Mother chuckle at the cute action.
"You were. Now come. Tell me what's on your mind. Is it school? Is it a boy? Oooh if it is, I won't tell your Father.." Shuri laughed at the grimace Akeno gave her at her last question.
"Oh absolutely not. I'm not... Well let's revisit that later. I'm just thinking is all." Akeno answered, taking a sip of her Mother's herbal tea.
"Hmm.. you're worried?" Shuri asked, looking intently at Akeno's face.
"Worried...? No, that's not it" Shuri's eyebrows raised at her daughter's response and expression.
It was very brief but it showed nothing but pure contempt.
~I've never seen that look on her face before.. Is it the Sacred Gear? Speaking of.. Azazel still doesn't know what it is.~ Shuri sighed, sending a worried glance at her daughter.
She had very little issue with how she acted. She was taught etiquette at six years old and had a relatively easy time learning and acting refined in front of certain people. Though every time she used proper etiquette, it was always in front of strangers or people she didn't like. Like it was a sort of defense mechanism. Shuri had no idea where it had come from but Akeno often hid her true feelings and expressions to everyone but a handful of people.
"Akeno.. have you made any friends so far?" Shuri couldn't help the worrisome tone in her voice.
"Raynare, Kalawarner, Mittelt and Dohnaseek. I like Penemue too. Azazel is like an Uncle so he doesn't count, I guess" Akeno amswered absent-mindedly.
Shuri sighed, "That's what I was worried about. You should make friends your own age. You have some at school, don't you? Besides, I worry about that Raynare woman.. Doesn't her outfit seem... strange to you?"
"Her exhibitionist outfit? Yeah.. but it doesn't seem all that weird. I saw you wear something like that once. You carried a whip and I heard a muffled scream after you went to your room" Akeno smirked and glanced at her Mother as she froze.
"...Okay fair enough" Shuri cleared her throat.
"Well there are these two interesting kids at school. Issei and Irina. Irina's moving away and Issei is a little sad about it. He feels...." Akeno went into thought as Shuri's eyes brightened for a moment.
"...Weak for now. Maybe not in the future." Akeno finished as Shuri sighed at her battle-enthusiastic daughter.
"At least try to make friends with someone your age. I worry that you're growing up too fast, being in Grigori. For God's sake, you're even being asked by Azazel about what your opinions are on certain factions." Shuri set her cup down and glanced at the slight smile on Akeno's face.
"You think he's preparing me to take a senior position. You may be right about that. I promise you though; I won't be doing anything like that for a good long while. I don't wanna think about leaving you for a long time." Akeno replied, feeling her Mother embrace her from behind.
"That makes me feel better. I swear.. you're more mature than me sometimes" Shuri quietly said while brushing Akeno's hair.
-Later that night-
Akeno couldn't sleep. Usually it wouldn't be a problem. She would have another dream and be awoken by it. Usually the violent, sad or horrifying dreams would wake her up in a cold sweat. They became more frequent and unlike most dreams, the memory of them had never faded away. She would get confused at times and zone out briefly due to this. The dreams piled up like another set of memories. They never followed a particular order but over the years she'd been piecing them together like a jigsaw puzzle.
She had a feeling they were almost complete. The dreams of her going from a young teenaged boy, into a battle-hardened man who fought against a tyrannical King, Supernatural entities, elemental beings and Godly creatures that gave their power to those who had found their dwelling.
Akeno was unable to fall asleep in the first place, not for fear of completing the memories. But for something else. Some unease had come over her for some reason, so she remained awake. It was a good call, as her senses picked up a sudden attack coming at her window.
Akeno leapt out of her room as an explosion rocked their home. A fireball about a meter in size had decimated Akeno's room rather abruptly. Although Akeno acted to avoid injury by leaping away, she was not unscathed. Her clothes were partially burned away and quite a few burn marks marred her skin, though none were too serious. Akeno didn't waste any time and ran down the stairs before another blast destroyed part of the second floor. Akeno slid to the kitchen and saw her Mother come scrambling out of her first floor room in a panic. Though it partially subsided when she saw Akeno at the kitchen counter and pick up two large knives.
Before Shuri could speak, Akeno shushed her and pushed her down below the counter before yet another blast rocked the house. Shuri was about to protest until she saw the ominous green glow in Akeno's eyes. She saw Akeno pick up a butcher's knife and launch it at a Himejima warrior who had run inside from the recent opening made on the first floor. The throw was far too fast for him to dodge and successfully split his head in half, his blood and viscera flying back into the faces of his clansmen.
She had already started moving when they were wiping the blood from their eyes. Picking up the now dead warrior's wakizashi, Akeno cut a bloody streak across another one's throat and threw his body at his fellow warriors. They quickly recovered but found Akeno in front of them, having already sliced through one of their skulls and killing yet another. The two remaining warriors threw the dead body off them and stood ready in front of Akeno, undisturbed by the deaths of their clansmen.
Though this was due to the extreme conditioning they had been subjected to. It was required of them to deaden their emotions to serve as lower class Himejima warriors. Different to them, Akeno stoically stood there and watched them prepare to attack her. Usually she enjoyed fighting, but this was less a contest of strength and more so a killing floor. Her body blurred forward, only to hear a cold harrumph from outside before an inferno engulfed both warriors and hit Akeno at once.
Akeno was forced to roll outside into the grass, her four black wings now out, having covered her head and vital organs. As she rolled to a stop, she hissed in pain, feeling the scorch marks on her arms and legs.
"You're far more difficult to kill then I believed." An older man spoke in front of her, prompting her to look up at the voice.
Suou Himejima was there, dressed in elegant robes as tongues of flame licked his arms. He glared down at his Grand-Niece with utter contempt. Even looking repulsed by her unscathed black feathered wings as she stood back up. He had two more lesser warriors beside him who were staring vacantly at the house. Seeing that, Akeno's expression darkened.
"Leave her out of this." Akeno demanded in a deceptively calm voice.
"You seem to have misunderstood your position, half-blooded filth. You do not command them, much less me. You and that traitorous whore of a Mother are going to die here for the crime of desertion, copulation with a filthy Fallen and being born a disgusting half breed. The only path ahead of you, is death." He arrogantly glared at Akeno and explained, motioning the warriors to go inside.
As they started to move, Akeno felt a wave of anger come over her. Not the kind that spirals out of control and turns one into a berserker, killing anyone in their path. This particular wrath lacked any heat. Instead, a chilling sensation assailed Suou and the warriors before it became harder and harder to move. All of a sudden, by the time the warriors got to the front step of the house, they had already collapsed. As if a significant weight were pressing down on them. Suou was faring a lot better after he channeled the divine blessing from Kagutsuchi, their God. Even still, he was breathing heavily.
Looking at Akeno, he saw her eyes had been glowing an emerald green and her hair was loose and flowing freely, as if a gentle wind was running through it. She took a step and Suou heard the crackling and crunching of bone as his warriors were flattened by this unknown pressure, turning into human meat patties.
"What... is.. this?" He asked calmly, though on the inside he was rather quickly becoming afraid of her.
Instead of answering, Akeno dashed toward him, swinging the wakizashi at his throat. Suou managed to block, but the newfound strength Akeno was emitting also made her physical strength improve. He continually dodged the relentless strikes Akeno was raining down upon him where he could and blocking the powerful attacks when he couldn't move away. Imbuing his blades with fire hadn't seemed to help either, any swing was met by her own and he was forced back into a defensive position.
On top of that, he started to feel painful shocks every time their bladed met. His hands, now sweaty, had started to become numb from the force and the electricity running through her blades.
Suou noticed her nose begin to bleed and smirked before leaping back and gathering Kagutsuchi's flames all at once for one last attack. He aimed at Akeno as she stood ready but panting from the exertion. His wicked grin only grew as he unleashed his attack.
Right at her house.
Seeing a massive wave of flames coming at her house, Akeno quickly jumped in front of it. A bright flash encompassed the sealed off neighborhood and all was quiet.
"Haah... All of this for one brat and a whore.." Suou muttered while glaring down at the bright flames that congregated at the front of the house.
"She managed to block it..?" Suou grit his teeth in annoyance before he broke out into a cold sweat.
The pressure had increased. So much so, that his knees gave and he was forced to kneel as his knees cracked the concrete walkway. Unable to stand up, he looked up and noticed the sky was far cloudier than it had been earlier. Then he noticed her. Akeno, far more burned, was walking towards him. Her emerald green eyes staring at him murderously through her bangs. Suou started shivering as she stood before him. His blade dropped unceremoniously to the ground as he stared at the girl- No, the thing in front of him. No spark of flame made its way out of him, no matter how hard he willed it to. She grabbed his throat to prevent him from speaking before she spoke.
"I need you to understand the dire mistake you have just made.. You will pay for this. You don't know how yet.. A day will come when you think you are safe and happy. You will believe I am gone and forgotten. And one day.... on some dark road.. or safe in your bed.. I will be there. Suddenly your joy will turn to fire in your mouth. And you will know the debt.. has been paid.. You will never sleep again, never live in peace again. You will tell all of them.. all of the Himejima never to come looking for me or my Mother. Because if they do? I'll kill them. I'll kill them all. Every last one. I'll give you a few days.. a headstart. Now go. Run." Akeno calmly spoke in but a whisper.
To Suou, it was loud and clear. Thunder echoing in the far distance. He felt the pressure loosen and he ran. He fled as fast as his feet could take him. Past the seal he placed on the neighborhood and down the street. His skin as white as paper, he ran away.
After confirming he had left, Akeno shakily fell down onto the grass and nearly puked half a litre of blood. She looked up at the sky, hearing her Mother running out to her. She smiled, knowing she had saved her from dying. A sense of fulfillment came over her until she looked up and saw a little girl her age looking down at her in awe. Her crimson hair and bright blue eyes being the last thing she remembered before falling unconscious.
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