REVENGE「GOJO SATORU X OC」

TWENTY-ONE

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Chapter Twenty-One: Hell Welcomes With Open Arms

warning: slight gore

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AKI was never one to freak out. She was relatively calm and collected in dangerous and stressful situations. She took after her father, having his sense of rationality and tranquility. In times where as many others would have ultimately flipped and ran away with their tails tucked between their legs, she stood her ground and never showed her fear or anxiousness.

Perhaps this was why she was feared in the community of Hell. Her name was well-known amongst demons, and whenever word came around that she was near, there would be two types of demons. First, there were the ones that would cower away from her and surrender to die peacefully and easily. Then, you had the ones that would try to fight her tooth and nail, always hoping to earn the title of killing the very last demon hunter—the amount of respect they would have! Yet, they all were destroyed with no remorse or mercy.

She was skilled. She was stern. She was ruthless. She didn't care about anyone, much less herself. She was only carrying on her legacy. She was only finishing what her father had started. And she knew that after her...there would be no one. She was the very last of her kind, and she shouldn't care about anyone else.

Yet, here she was. On her knees, her hands holding her head as she sobbed. Her chest hurt with every stabbing breath. Her lungs felt like they were being pricked with needles, and it felt like someone had her heart in their fist. Her legs ached, and her shoulders shook. A path was cut through her red cheeks as she sobbed, clutching her phone in her hand.

A picture of Nathan holding up a basketball illuminated the screen.

She didn't know how long she'd been searching, only that it had been a few days. She couldn't tell you what exact city she was in, but she'd been to every single one. She was at every train station, every bus station, and every airport. She went into every hotel and convenience store.

She damned herself for this. She was the one who taught her brother about hiding. She knew that she wasn't going to find him until he was ready to be found.

Damn her for teaching him to be a hunter, even when she knew he couldn't be.

The cold nipped at her arms, causing goosebumps to arise. Her heavy breaths came out in puffs in the freezing air. Every breath she sucked in felt like she was inhaling needles. The tips of her fingers had turned a light blue, her jaw quaking as her teeth chattered. Her cheeks and nose were red, and her body trembled. Her body was screaming at her to find warmth.

But despite her external breezing, her eyes burned with a fiery hatred. She set her jaw, ceasing the cold tremble. Her grip on the blade in her hand tightened, her fingers feeling stiff. She could feel the warm blood sliding down her arms, gathering over her hands and racing down the silver blade.

She raised a shaking hand to her face, smearing black blood across her cheek. The front of her tank top was drenched with it, practically dripping with the thick substance. Her shoes left imprints in the snow as she walked forward, leaving the hundred of demon corpses behind her.

"Rey!" She yelled, her voice bouncing off of the trees around her. "Get the fuck out here, you hellish bastard!"

"Didn't even slow you down,"

She snapped her head to the side. He was there, leaning against a tree. He'd dropped his cover, revealing his true form to her. He was tall—much taller than the average man. His eyes held a glowing light, mocking the sense of what an angel would produce. His mouth twisted into a sly grin, the rows of his gruesomely sharp teeth flashing at her. He taunted her, the pentagram above his head pulsating with light, perfectly placed through the gap of his horns.

"Very impressive, Akeldama," He praised, though it made her glare rather than smile. "It's not often that you come seeking after me. To what do I owe this very special pleasure?"

"Tell me what demon is attacking all the sorcerers," She demanded.

"Woah-ho-ho," He laughed. "You think I'm just gonna hand information out like that?"

"Do not make me force it out of you!" She yelled, startling him. "I am in a pissy mood and I don't have time to play your stupid fucking games! If you don't tell me, I'm going to fucking kill you!"

His playful, snarky attitude dropped. "You'd break a law."

"Fuck that law," She spat. "And who's gonna punish me, huh? I'm the last fucking one, moron."

He pushed off the tree, morphing back into his human form. He raked his hands through his dark hair nervously. "A-Alright, alright. Just calm down. You're freaking me out here, Aki."

She glanced at the pentagram burned into the inside of his wrist. "I'm not in a good mood. Just tell me what I want to know, and I'll leave you alone."

"What'd you ask again?"

"The demon attacking sorcerers," She repeated with an aggravated sigh. "It's blowing their hearts out and then stealing their ring fingers and feeding it to Jorōgumos. It's marking them with three gashes on their backs and then strikes and slaughters them."

Rey frowned. "I haven't heard of anything like that."

He yelped out of surprise, slipping in the snow as he fell to the ground. Aki pushed him onto his back with her foot, pinning him under her. The sword shifted into a gun as she pointed it at him, the barrel aimed between his eyes. He stared up at her with wide eyes.

"I-It's the truth!" He yelled, writhing under her. "I swear to everything that I really don't!"

She narrowed her eyes. "Swear to God."

"Y-You know I can't say His name!" He cried. "Aki, believe me! I seriously don't know what demon you're talking about! I only know—"

He suddenly cut himself off. He scrambled up from under Aki, but she merely grabbed him by the back of his neck, slamming him up against the tree. She curled her hand around his throat, tipping his head back as she pressed the muzzle of the gun to the underside of his chin.

"Don't even try it," She sneered. "Finish, or I end you here."

"I-I–!"

A click filled the air as she turned the safety off.

"ALRIGHT!"

She grinned.

"It's Marius!" He yelled. "Marius is doing this! I don't know why, but I saw him feeding the fingers to the Jorōgumo! I swear, Aki, that's all I know! I promise!"

She slowly let go of him. He swallowed hard, turning to face her. He could see her eyebrows lace together, her face slowly twisting into anger.

"I swear to God," She said between grit teeth, making him tense up. "If I found out you're lying to me, you better hope I'm in a good mood when I find you."

"I'm not lying, Akeldama," He stated firmly, swallowing hard. "I saw Marius Dragavei feeding a Jorōgumo seven fingers in the forest."

The weapon in her hand shifted into a necklace as she raised her hand to her neck. "I'll be in touch."

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