One by one he felt them vanish. One by one their lives flickered before becoming silenced. The darkness swallowed them, leaving behind cooling corpses. Among the battlefield of the dead, only he remained, battered and beaten, his will to live weakening as the monster stood over him, her face in a scowl.
They were fools. A cornered animal was always a dangerous one. They had underestimated her desperation.
"Surrender." Her voice cut across the burning landscape like a knife through flesh and buried itself within his heart, leaving a wound which could never be healed. "Your hope is gone. Your comrades have paid the price for your arrogance. All that remains-"
She raised a finger,
"-is you."
He looked down at the swiveled body, their face forever etched in screaming agony when their life was drained away like those around him. He knew them all. He ate with them this morning.
Now they're gone. A hand reached for his throat and yanked him up.
"Pathetic."
He was. As he gazed up the moon shined and bathed the world in a white glow which unveiled the scattered corpses, showing the fruits of their endeavors, of all the lives lost for no gains. It seemed to smile and dance for joy and he wanted nothing more than to destroy it and then bury the memory deep within the confines of his mind.
"I expected more."
The falling ashes and burning flesh embraced him. It was a second skin which provided no warmth or protection, only regrets and heavy burdens, a reminder of his failures. A reminder of his empty words and empty promises.
"I'll send you to them."
There was nothing left to fight for. There was nothing left to accomplish. Everything was gone and there was nothing left to lose. The morbid realization struck his limp body as his brain accepted the decision and fanned the dying embers. He opened his eyes; her cold eyes were the first thing he saw.
"Goodbye - hmm?"
He struggled and he screamed. He clawed and he kicked against the unyielding grip as he forced his burning body to move one last time against their crying will in a desperate gamble to ensure that if he was going down-
"What are you doing?"
-then he would bring her down with him.
"Die Kaguya!"
He knew no more.
XoX
"Boss?"
Najenda glanced at her subordinate, Leone, who had a similar frown on her face, her arms crossed as she carefully examined the items on the table. Najenda then turned toward the other person in the impromptu meeting and called for her. "Akame."
Akame stood at attention, her sword rattled by the movement. "Yes?"
"Where did you say you found him?" Her eyes narrowed at the unknown headband.
"On the forest floors. He had a substantial amount of injuries on his body."
"Any trails?" She picked up one of the knives and tested its weight. It was light. 'Probably made for throwing,' she mused. She twirled it around her finger then held it in a reverse grip. 'Balanced. Made for close encounters too.'
Akame shook her head. "No."
Najenda sat and rubbed her chin. Many theories flashed before her eyes and she discarded them as soon as they appeared, all the while idly throwing the weapon up and catching it. "And Lubbock?"
"He claimed the alarm was never triggered."
She hummed in thought. Their hideout was located deep within the forest with natural defenses and roaming Danger Beasts, making it hard to find. The area was surrounded with a detection barrier made out of thin, special strings - strong enough to break skin - positioned at every possible entry point. It served as an earlier warning system and could also roughly estimate the enemy forces, or be a death trap for the enemy if Lubbock wanted it to be. While the barrier itself wasn't foolproof, the fact he got in without triggering any alarms or leaving any trails was unnerving.
"Take a look at this," Leone said. She slid a picture frame across the table. It was a photo of three teens along with a silver-haired adult. "Recognize their clothes anywhere?"
They both shook their head. "No," Najenda said. "None of the building designs looked familiar so we can at least rule out the empire as his origins." She tilt her head in thought. "A different continent maybe," she added after a moment. She had traveled a lot when she was in the empire but nothing in the picture was familiar.
'Hmm,' she mused as she took a closer look. 'A four-person cell.' She eyed the weapon in her hand as she analyzed its combat potential. 'Interesting.'
"Maybe from beyond the coast?" Akame suggested. To the east of the empire laid a sea with many unexplored islands and several tribes they had yet to come in contact with. It was possible he had came from one of those tribes, Najenda mused.
"Then how did he end up here?" Leone countered. Najenda wondered about that as well. Their location was relatively inland so he would have had to cross various mountainous terrain and forests not to mention pass several Imperial checkpoints before reaching this place.
Najenda closed her lighter and exhaled, covering the room with smoke. "He may have gotten his hands on an imperial arms, one with the ability to teleport. There are still some weapons that have yet to be recovered and documented," she theorized. "Did you check his body?" she asked Akame. "Some aren't physical manifestation but are instead marks on the body like tattoos." A certain bloodthirsty and sadistic general raging war in the North came to her mind.
Akame nodded. "None matched the database we have and nothing stood out. His belongings also came out clean." There was a miniscule frown on her face and a tiny tinge of frustration in her voice as she relayed the answer.
Leone shrugged and her blond locks swayed. "This whole situation seems odd. It's like the guy appeared out of thin air." She waved her hands around. "Are you sure he's not a spy? I wouldn't put this past them."
"Possibly." She wouldn't put it past them either. "However," she let a puff of smoke, "had the empire knew of our whereabouts they would have sent their armies to confront us, not a single agent. It would have been a wasted opportunity for them if you think about it. Why plant a spy when they could strike at our very heart?" she reasoned. The other two nodded in agreement. 'But he might be a hired mercenary for all we know and was sent ahead of the main group.' She frowned at that thought before shaking her head. "Though, we can only speculate at this point," she said to no one in particular.
Leone sighed and placed her hands on her hips, her frustration as clear as day. "Well damn," she cursed. She then ran her fingers through her hair and scratched her head. "It would be a waste to kill him after all the trouble we went through to keep him alive," she mused out loud and Najenda couldn't help but agree. They had gone through a good portions of their remaining supplies when Akame carried him into the infirmary looking like he was a step away from death. "How's his condition?"
"Stable, but he won't be waking up anytime soon." She steepled her hands together and furrowed her brows.
She remembered his arrival. Face beaten purple, bruises everywhere. His clothes were in shreds, ripped apart now that she thought about it, by someone or something. His arms were nearly gone: gashes, deep ones, covered the entire limb as it hung loosely at the sides - she had expected them to fall off at any moment. Several fist-sized holes were in his midsection, a river of blood seeping out of them. Third degree burns covered his legs and those were the only injuries they could see.
"It was a miracle that he even survived," she muttered to herself before refocusing on the task at hand. "Lubbock is watching over him at the moment. He'll tell us if anything happens." She remembered his complaints when he realized he was stuck babysitting and playing nurse, causing her to silently chuckle.
"Maybe we can keep him around?" Leone suggested.
She juggled the idea in her head. "I'll take it under consideration," she said. The ex-general pondered for moment. The room was silence as Akame stood waiting for further orders while Leone shuffled through his items again. "For now," she suddenly spoke and looked toward Leone, "I want you to follow Akame to the spot you found him and see if you can find anything worth mentioning. I'll go tell the others of our unexpected guest. Maybe one of them could shed some light onto this."
"You got it boss!" she saluted.
"Dismissed."
XoX
Akame sighed as she stood inside the briefing room. It was a spacious interior which seemed to stretch endlessly when devoid of people with the woodwork chipped and scratched. The smell of smoke lingered in the air and she idly wondered if her boss ever opened the window while she smoked.
"Don't look so gloomy," her companion said, her hands behind her head without a care in the world as her sunny disposition seemed to light up the room. They were as opposite as day and night yet Akame wouldn't have it any other way.
"Sorry Leone." She had taken it upon herself to discover any signs of his entry. She had spent days in the area, checking behind every tree and every mountain, every bush and every cave. No stone was left unturned and even the river was thoroughly looked through only to come up empty-handed after a week of searching.
A week in which all of Night Raid was preparing for a possible enemy attack. A week in which contingency plans were drawn and escape routes were made in the event that the enemy really did discovered their location.
Leone shrugged. "Look on the bright side," she said as if she hadn't spent the past week in the capital gathering information. "At least we know the enemy doesn't know where we are."
She nodded. "Yes, but we still don't know how he got here or if the same thing could happen again." She had stayed in the area since then, lying in wait in case more showed up while hunting some of the Danger Beasts for dinner.
The Danger Beasts made everything worth it. She should start on dinner soon.
Meat. Definitely meat.
"True," Leone admitted. Having an unknown weak point exposed in their defenses wasn't something she wanted but there was nothing she could do. "We can always ask the sleeping beauty himself. Any ideas when he'll come to?"
"Soon."
They turned and saw Najenda leaning against the door.
"Hey Boss!" Leone waved while Akame nodded.
She returned their greetings. "Lubbock just told me that our guest is waking up so I came to fetch the two of you. You can give me your reports on our way there." Without waiting for a formal response, she turned and walked away, her subordinates following close behind with their footsteps echoing across the quiet hallway.
"Well," Leone decided to speak first after catching up, "I met up with the people in the slums and heard, from multiple sources, what some of the nobles did in their past-time. Some had a few interesting hobbies." Akame heard her friend growl before composing herself. "I haven't checked them out myself but I'll compose a list once I can verify the rumors." Najenda nodded and Leone gave her a piece of paper. "I also managed to get in contact with some of the remaining officers in the army who aren't happy with the current corruption and they all plan on defecting whenever they get the chance."
"Good work," she praised. Akame was happy with the news as well. The more that quit the empire, the stronger their side will be, and the less opposition that will be in the way once they confront Honest and slay that evil demon. Najenda tucked the list in her pockets. "Let them know we'll be here to support them if they need it."
"Got it." Leone stepped back as Akame stepped forward.
"Right. Akame?"
She shook her head. "I haven't been able to find anything even with Leone's help. There was nothing that pointed toward his entry point," she paused. She replayed the memories of her patrols in her head. "However, the lack of activities in the area over the past week could mean he came here on his own, or at least as an independent party."
"Do you believe that?" their boss asked without sparing her a glance.
"Not for certain," she replied. Assumptions were what got people killed in their line of work.
Najenda glanced at her with a look that Akame couldn't quite place her finger on. "Don't worry too much about it," she suddenly said. "You did good. I take it you also checked the rest of the perimeter?"
"Yes. Everything is in running order and I made sure to test them out myself."
"You all keep taking the initiatives." She took her head in what could be described as both exasperation and pride, the hint of a smile formed on her lips which placed Akame at ease.
"There, see?" Leone fell back and walked beside her. "There was nothing to worry about!" She then proceeded to pat her on the head like a pet while smiling like a loon.
Akame said nothing in response and ignored the world around her with practiced ease.
Najenda smiled at the scene as they walked, hands in pocket.
They rounded the corner and saw Lubbock. "Hey Boss, Akame, Leone," he waved. He was leaning against the wall outside the infirmary and looking as if he had woken up. He lazily pointed a thumb inside. "The guy's up but nothing I did could get him to talk. He might have been gone mute." He gave a helpless shrugged.
"I wished you could go mute." Akame heard Leone whispered loudly as she released her head and stepped forward, causing her lips to twitch.
"What was that?"
"Nothing!" There was a bright and cheerful look on her face as she placed her arm on Najenda's shoulder as if they were long lost friends. "Why don't you step aside and let Boss and big sis handle this, yeah?" Her eyes seemed to sparkle and her smile widened a tiny bit.
Lubbock snorted and crossed his arms. "As if you can do better. You'll probably just beat him into submission before giving him the chance to talk." She had done that before but no one was going to say it out loud.
She moved toward him, eyes narrowed and shoulders locked, and he backed away in fear. "What was that?" she growled.
"Uh, I mean-"
"Need I remind you that I'm the one who goes around town talking to people while you're the one playing bookkeeper?" Said bookstore housed a secret underground hideout that came equipped with a minibar for maximum comfort. Needless to say, it was obvious what they did while on break.
"Hey!" he exclaimed, his fear of her forgottened. "The cover is a success and any money I get goes directly to Night Raid!" Both of them were not on any wanted posters so they had more freedom in the capital than others. "And you wouldn't believe how many hot girls visit my shop on a daily basis!" He had a perversed look on his face as he started giggling to himself.
Akame watched as Leone twitched while their boss palmed her face. "There he goes," she sighed in exasperation.
"I really love my job," he muttered while daydreaming and giggling.
"Uh huh." Leone's tone was dull and she was not impressed. "I bet a lot of them wanted to leave as soon as possible too," she snarked.
"Andddd there she goes." Najenda shook her head though Akame could see that she was amused.
Lubbock leaned forward and butted heads with Leone - they were like two bulls trying to overpower the other. Sparks began flying between them. "Why you-"
As the two of them dissolved into a shouting match, out of the corner of her eyes, Akame saw Najenda signaling her to follow. She nodded and schooled her expression.
It was time.
XoX
The familiar smell of antiseptic assaulted their nose as they entered. Behind them, the voices of Leone and Lubbock slowly faded into the background as the door closed with a clicked. Najenda rolled her eyes. There was a time and a place for these things and as interesting as the show was, they had a schedule to keep.
She eyed the place. The walls were bland and showed signs of wear, the colors chipped and faded. There were also a few stain marks - dried blood, she assumed - here and there. On the bed was their guest who was up and sitting, his head downcasted. Only a small portion of his face and hair was visible. Several rolls of empty bandages laid in and around the trash, and the dull lightings made the place seemed more like an illegal laboratory setting than an infirmary.
She made a mental note to renovate the room a bit. It wouldn't do well for her people to freak out whenever they're sent here no matter how amusing their reactions may be.
"Glad to see you're still alive," Najenda said while Akame stood behind her, her red eyes focused on their mysterious visitor. "There's a few questions we'd like to ask and we would appreciate it if you could answer them truthfully."
No response.
The overhead lights buzzed while the clock's hands ticked as she stared at him in silent. "You mind if I smoke here?" she suddenly asked. "No? Alright."
He sat unmoving.
"So," she exhaled and covered the room in smoke. "How did you find this place?" She pulled over a chair and sat down beside his bed.
"..."
"Who do you work for?" She began tapping the chair with her nails. "You don't look like someone from around here. Did the empire hired you?"
"..."
She tilt her head. "Do you know anything about the empire? Or anything about the current state of affairs?"
Questions came yet he did nothing.
She glanced at Akame who shook her head. "Hmm, alright." She stretched her neck. "Let's try a different approach." She leaned closer. "Where are you from?"
A finger twitched.
'There,' they both thought.
"Where's your home?" she pressed.
He clenched the sheets and the bandages turned red. His jaw tightened, his eyes raw with flickering emotions. His mouth moved. "Gone."
It was a mere whisper yet the emotions could not be hidden.
'Ah,' she realized. 'So that's how it is.' Pieces clicked together and her face softened. "How?"
His head lowered. "Because I failed."
Najenda leaned back and gave him space. "Who did you fight?" she gently asked.
"Does it matter?" His words were lifeless and it reminded her of the refugees back at headquarters, the ones who had lost everything.
The ones who had lost their will to live and questioned why they were still alive.
"I see," she muttered. She gazed up at the ceiling as if expecting the answers to all her questions to be there. The room was engulfed in deafening silence as she was lost in thinking while he was remembering the past. The minute hand ticked by and the birds chirped. "Let's go," she suddenly said and Akame, who was also lost in memory, jolted a bit. "We got what we needed."
Akame spared him a glance but followed her out without a word. As they exited the room, Lubbock and Leone stood waiting with a mask of professionalism on their face as if they hadn't spent the the entire time fighting. Their boss meanwhile was leaning against the wall with her eyes closed in deep thoughts.
Akame closed the door behind her.
No one said anything.
"So," Leone drawled out, wanting to break the tense atmosphere in the air. Her eyes darted back and forth between her commander and her companion. "How did it go? Do we need to take care of him?" She pounded her fist together with a wicked smile, her intentions clear.
Lubbock stepped away and shook his head in exasperation. "That's harsh. The guy's injured you know."
"Sooo we'll just put him in a cell until he breaks!" she exclaimed as if it was the most normal thing in the world. She hands were on her hips as she nodded to herself.
"Why the hell are Night Raid women so damn vicious and scary?" he muttered as he took another step away. He had the look of someone who had just realized that they've made a poor life decision.
"There'll be none of that." Najenda's voice cut through and stopped any arguments they were about to have. She puffed out smoke. "Akame."
"Yes?"
"You'll be in charge of him from now on." She ignored the surprised blinked from Akame and the shouts of the others and carried on. "As soon as he's able, you are to get him into the workshop. Make sure he knows what he's doing since he'll be staying here. Are there any questions?"
Akame blinked and opened her mouth but ultimately shook her head. Orders were orders. "No. I understand."
Najenda nodded. "You may go." She waited until Akame had left before addressing the other two. "Is there a problem?" She had already made up her mind but she knew they deserved some answers.
They shook their heads but gave each other unsure looks. A silent conversation took place which ended with Leone frowning at Lubbock before Leone spoke. "No boss. It's just," she gestured toward Akame's direction, "why?"
The order was strange even for her.
She let out smoke. "You know how Akame is. The empire did a good deal of damage on her well-being even to this day. Almost all of the people she knew were either traitors, dead, or will be once this whole thing is finished." She wished for everyone under her command to survive but she knew reality was harsh. They all knew the people besides them might disappear at any point as long as they fought to end this oppression.
Some still had people waiting for them, some still had things to do once the war was over.
But others never had such luxuries.
"Akame cares about her comrades even if she never shows it."
She did. Everyone in Night Raid knew that she did. They only had each other to count on when things go south and would be devastated if anything were to happen.
"What I hope by placing him under Akame's wing is to ease her burdens, to let her know someone will be waiting for her once everything is said and done. I want her to have a purpose after the war and have one less person to worry about returning alive."
It was her job as their superior to look after the well-beings of those under her command. If what she does bring them even a tiny moment of happiness in this cold, dark world, if what she does allow them to find a purpose in life, then she would take it regardless of what might happen to her.
It was one of the prices to pay in this line of work. And if she just so happen to keep a certain bedridden guest from making any reckless mistakes, all the better. They could use all the help they could get.
"Can we trust him?" Lubbock asked. There weren't any trace of foolhardiness on his face.
"Only time will tell," she admitted. She stared at the clouds outside, her mind replaying the whole encounter, of the words he spoke and the emotions behind them. "No," she said softly, "I don't think he's an enemy."
He stared at her, his eyes searching for something, before eventually shrugging. "Alright," he said. "If you say so."
Leone on the other hand merely rolled her eyes and smiled. "You really are a big softie aren't ya Boss."
She gave a ghost of a smile. Damn these subordinates.
"Let's go." She walked away without waiting for them. "He needs his rest."
"Right!"
But little did she know that he never did sleep. Not even when the sun fell and the moon rose, nor when the crickets and owls sang their lullaby outside. While everyone slept, he was up, sitting in the exact same position from when they had left him - tears falling onto the bed sheets as he refused to close his eyes no matter what.
For the smiling faces of everyone he had loved appeared behind every blink.