Tantalising Cacodemons
The noble Akashi Family of the Teikō Empire reigns over the crippled lands of a once prosperous modern society. Fearless and dignified, General Seijuurō Akashi will stop at nothing to achieve his goals; to purge the rampant D-Virus from destroying the world and to unite all nations under the Teikō Empire – all for the sake of one man; for the crown prince, Tetsuya Kuroko.
Chapter One
Teeming with grubby young troops, not a single square inch of the colossal field went without the pained grunt of a soldier. Every man wore the same khaki garbs, adoring patches of dirt and grime that clung to their clothes as clouds of fine dust flitted through the morning quell. The Imperial Training Grounds – affectionately dubbed as the 'dirt bin' – was never without sound in the light of day; spasmodic groans and emphatic war cries constantly entrenched the area with life.
"General Akashi, sir."
Unfettered by the disturbance of a nameless sergeant, Army General Seijuurō Akashi gazed at the furore of men grappling and hauling each other in a bout of hand-to-hand combat.
"Colonel Midorima has requested for your presence in the council room."
Akashi curtly hummed in response, making no indication of any movement. The sergeant shuffled nervously behind him in response.
"I will proceed as I see fit." Akashi responded evenly. He unfolded his arms with subtle grace, the pristine white coat draped over his shoulders fluttering with movement as the elaborate display of embellishments glittered in the sunlight.
"Pardon my insolence, sir, however I was informed that it is an urgent-"
The sharp gaze of a single, glowing red orb was all it took to send an unsettling shiver down the man's spine, the words dying on his tongue as his mouth went dry with fear. Infamously fearless and dignified, esteemed General Seijuurō Akashi possessed a perpetual aura of authority. The youngest to ever stand in his position, his regal presence graced the Empire with fortitude and prosperity; Akashi was a prideful individual who bowed to absolutely nobody.
Without another glance, Akashi stepped down from the wooden podium and silently disappeared into the whirlwind of furore and dust.
The sparsely decorated council room clamoured with disorder, vociferous threats flying across all ends of the oval meeting table. Though as a commonality, the fragmented display of uninhibited behaviour was nothing less than norm.
"Face the facts, you fools!" A deep, throaty voice roared as calloused hands slammed onto the table "The north-eastern tower is beyond repair. If we go forward with that plan, the losses will needlessly damage our forces!"
A collective response of grumbles and shouts filled the room, multiple voices attempting to talk over each other.
"The only fool here is you, Kasamatsu." Daiki Aomine drawled, his black boots propped up onto the table in a display of undisciplined manners.
Captain Kasamatsu glared in response, daring the tanned male to repeat his words. Fearing another squabble, Ryōta Kise intervened in attempt to placate the enraged man before slinking down into his seat in exhaustion.
"Look, unless supplies start flowing in freely by some miracle, we are most definitely going to crumble at this rate." Major Reo Mibuchi contested confidently, "I'd rather not deal with another supply crisis."
Resisting the urge to repeatedly smash his head onto the table, Shintarō Midorima sighed in exasperation as the meeting broke out into pandemonium. What he had originally intended as a civilised meeting to discuss pressing issues had turned into a lawless jungle session jammed with rambunctious fools. Tuning out from Lieutenant Takao's incessant laughter beside him, he was ready to give up when the old mahogany doors creaked open with a piercing grate.
In an instant, the room fell into a subdued silence.
Poised and composed, Akashi wordlessly strode to the head of the table and flitted his impassive gaze over to Midorima, who promptly cleared his throat and stood up to take control of the meeting once more.
"As I mentioned earlier, there are three pressing matters to discuss on today's agenda." He paused and slid three manila folders towards Akashi, who promptly flicked through them. "I say three, however in the end it all boils down to one. Now that the north-eastern tower has fallen, we are unable to restock our medical supplies in a timely manner. As a result, this month's vaccine has been delayed which has been stirring trouble in the lower divisions."
Akashi tossed the manila folder back onto the table and gazed back up, locking eyes with all twelve occupants who had grown stiff and quiet with his solitary action.
"Who is the person in charge over there?" he asked deceptively calmly, casually resting his head on the back of his left hand.
Captain Junpei Hyuuga stood up to address the question. "That would be Officer Yuusuke Tanimura of Shinkyō, sir. He is currently being held in isolation for—"
"Execute him." Akashi interrupted swiftly, subjugating the room with a stifling silence. His eyes caught onto Major Hayama's fidgeting, the blond male looking as if he wanted to protest otherwise.
"Moving on," Midorima said promptly, "We shall now commence a hearing of suggestions to resolve these matters at hand." Just as he opened his mouth to speak again, Akashi motioned for him to be seated.
"There is no need for that." Akashi began, rising from his seat as he folded his arms. "Lieutenant Takao, report on the situation at the north-eastern tower."
Takao bowed respectfully before opening a thick folder filled with loose documents. "Two nights ago at approximately 0021, administration received an emergency line call from Sergeant Ueno. He admittedly reported that the tower was under attack by a group of unknown assailants from the east flanks during the absence of their commander, Officer Tanimura." He paused, his face pulled into a grimace at the following information. "Upon further investigation, we found that a single foot troop returned from an on-field operation carrying the D-Virus. It is unknown how he contracted it, however we are speculating that the carelessness of upper commandment at the tower is a decisive factor."
He returned to his seat with a bow and Akashi remained silent, allowing others in the room to interject and comment on the situation. Captain Wakamatsu leaned back and scoffed at the carelessness of the inept officers, much to the agreement of the other captains sitting around him.
"Securing the tower," Akashi began, "Is but a trivial matter." He settled his gaze on three individuals sitting to his left; Reo Mibuchi, Kotarō Hayama and Eikichi Nebuya. "You three will lead the Second Extermination Unit and eliminate every last infected being. Captain Wakamatsu, see to it that absolutely everything inside of that tower is burned."
"Even the supplies?" Wakamatsu asked incredulously, swallowing a lump of saliva.
"I'd say the supplies matter not. As long as the tower is secured, we will be able to procure new supply routes." Captain Himuro offered softly.
"Akashicchi, why don't you send us out?" Kise said suddenly, referring to the First Extermination Unit which consisted of himself, Aomine, Midorima and Murasakibara. Aomine turned to the side and stared at the blond man as if he had grown two heads.
"Fret not, Ryōta. I have a different job for you." Akashi replied with an unsettling bemused smile. "Shintarō, accompany Lieutenant Takao to the—"
The men sitting around the table slumped into another bout of silence, confusion permeating the atmosphere in the room. It was unlike the young General to cut off his own words without warning. Murasakibara called out to their leader but ceased when he noticed the redhead's sharp gaze settling on the closed doors. The chair legs screeched against the tiled floor as he stood abruptly, joined by the others in his unit.
"What's going on?" Captain Hyuuga murmured, eyes flickering around the room at the sudden tension.
Akashi tore his gaze away and motioned for everyone to sit down, in which they obeyed wordlessly. "Even if you continue hiding, I know you're eavesdropping."
The old mahogany doors creaked open exceedingly slowly; every man aside from Akashi surveyed the entrance with anticipation. Then suddenly, a messy tuft of pastel sky blue hair peeked through the gap.
"Tetsuya."
A smirk crept its way onto Akashi's lips, watching as the boy fidgeted under the multitude of curious gazes. There was no chance of escape now – Akashi made sure to direct all immediate attention towards the supposed intruder as punishment.
"Akashi-kun, I'm sorry for eavesdropping." The boy said softly with an impassive façade. Akashi could vaguely make out the faintest semblance of guilt. "I didn't mean to."
Akashi's closest aides included, all of the high-ranked men in the room watched the unforeseen situation unfold, confounded. The boy was perhaps barely a head shorter than Akashi and had pale, unblemished skin that seemed to glow under the light. His small, delicate frame was dressed in layers of intricate white robes with subtle pink accents.
Captain Hyuuga was the first to emerge from his dumfounded stupor – his eyes almost bulged when realisation dawned upon him. Aside from the sky blue hair, the flowing robes were most definitely official empirical robes belonging to the royal family.
"G-General Akashi, this person—"
Akashi walked around the table and stood half a metre in front of the boy, suddenly looking less than amused. Absolutely nobody escaped Akashi's wrath, and from experience, not even his own parents. The General's next action however, sent the whole room into a frenzy of hushed whispers.
The prideful redhead knelt down in front of the smaller male and reached a hand in between the robes, pulling out a bare, slender leg.
"Oi, oi, oi! What the hell is he doing?" Nebuya half-whispered, half-shouted. The pointed looks of astonishment from his companions proved that they hadn't a clue either.
"Tetsuya, why aren't you wearing your bells?"
The boy, Tetsuya, averted his gaze with a barely noticeable pout. "They make too much unnecessary noise." He took them off again, Akashi mused.
Akashi heaved a sigh and looked up with his hand still holding the boy's bare foot. They locked eyes and engaged in a silent war for a few seconds, until the boy gave in and reached into the folds of his sleeve, pulling out a thin red ribbon dangling with two golden bells.
"Good boy." Akashi muttered, tying the ribbon around the pale ankle. "You know you aren't supposed to remove the bells when you go outside. What happened to the guards I stationed outside your quarters?"
The boy remained calm as the redhead straightened up again. "They didn't notice me when I took off the bells so I left them behind." Incompetent fools, Akashi added silently.
"Sei-chan?" Mibuchi interrupted carefully, "Who might this darling be?"
The rest looked at Akashi with the same expectation, their gazes alternating between the boy and their leader. With a nod, Akashi moved to the side to allow them a better view.
"I suppose introductions are in order." He briefly met eyes with Midorima, who already knew the identity of the boy. "This esteemed figure is the only remaining member of the royal lineage and the next heir to the throne. It shall do you well to remember the face of the crown prince of our Empire."
When the boy stepped forward, the faint tinkle of bells resonated throughout the room. "It's a pleasure to meet you all. My name is Tetsuya Kuroko."
The hollow sound of a plastic pen rolling onto the tiled floor accompanied what was turning out to be a morning of perpetual silence.
Author's Note;
Hello everyone, I hope this first chapter caught your fancy.