1

Whether it was for days, months, or years that he fell through the darkness, Tatsumi wasn't sure. There was only one thing he was sure of now.

He was dead.

It was the only thing true here, where voices screamed, laughed, and almost seemed to possess physical dimensions, brushing against his limbs and body like wispy branches as he fell. A breath whispered roughly against his cheek; a child's voice cried out. The voices had accompanied him for an immeasurable amount of time, but there was still no identifiable pattern to them.

Was this his fate, to spiral down through a black void forever? The elders of his small village had never thought of anything like this, obsessed as some were with matters of death and the afterlife.

No, they had very different theories.

When he'd left, most had insisted that nothingness was what awaited those who died, a state where the mind no longer existed. Tatsumi didn't buy it. He wasn't sure what he was experiencing, but at the moment he was existing as much as he ever had in life.

Of course, other theories existed, theories that Tatsumi tried to keep out of his mind as he fell. Still, his thoughts flashed briefly to smoke, fire, molten rock—

No. Don't.

Thin laughter sounded around him, as if the voices found his terror amusing. Then again, why wouldn't they? It seemed that anyone here remained long enough to lose their mind, let alone a little thing like empathy.

Was this where Bulat and Sheele had ended up too? With the thought, his exhausted mind was struck by memories of their deaths, agonizing horrors of blood and pain. Even through his despair he'd held onto the hope that they were at peace, happy somehow. This was no place for those who'd suffered as much as they had.

His vision swam with tears, both of renewed grief and terror. As if the memory had triggered some internal switch, more images were in front of him, their grim contents seemingly tinting the darkness red. Phantom pains coursed through him as he remembered.

Lubbock. Mine. Ieyasu. Sayo…

They were all there, accompanied by a multitude of faceless others—those who'd died in front of his eyes, some of them by his own hand.

The voices' murmurs rose to an accusing clamor.

Something about the chaos around him had changed, subtly, but he couldn't put his finger on it. It was more than the tone of the whispers around him; even the darkness seemed different, lighter somehow. Why, then, did he feel so much dread? The grisly images around him had faded, but something of them seemed to remain there, something he couldn't quite—

All at once, he saw.

The darkness really was rippling with red light, rolling waves that seemed to come from beneath him. Where there was light, he knew, there was always a source. Several explanations came to mind, none of them good. Still, he couldn't help himself.

He looked down.

A gleam of light twinkled beneath him, looking for all the world like a distant star. Another glimmered in the corner of his eye; a pair twinkled not far away. The voices had stopped too, like spectators finally seeing the curtains draw back at a theater. Tatsumi had time for an instant of foreboding before—

The stars exploded in a sheet of white light.

Tatsumi's eyes flew shut almost by themselves. The light shone as a dull red glow, even on the inside of his eyelids. He had no desire to face that head on, not after spending so much time in darkness. Strangely enough, his skin felt as cold as ever, even as the glow intensified.

Around him, the explosion's roar faded to a dry, whispering wind. The dull red glow disappeared as the breeze grew stronger. The whispers, along with the sensation of falling, had vanished.

It seemed he had escaped that terrible darkness for now.

Tatsumi just lay there, enjoying the first true rest he had gained since his death. Maybe this was what they'd meant by "resting in peace."

He was able to think that for a blissful five seconds before an impossible voice shattered his reverie.


Stealth and tracking had been a large part of Akame's training. She could find a target as skillfully as any bloodhound, with considerably less noise. That was one reason why it took her about half a minute to locate her latest intruder.

Of course, it helped that this intruder shouted out the same forlorn call every ten seconds, like clockwork.

"Please, is anyone there?"

If this really was an assassin trying to find Akame, she (grudgingly) had to acknowledge their persistence. Still, even her hardened mind had trouble identifying the sight before her as anything but harmless.

A little girl stood in the clearing. Her back was to Akame and she was a fair distance away, but even from here, Akame could see her blond bob of hair, almost orange because of the setting sun. The tattered white skirt she was wearing stood out just as brightly, despite the splotches of dirt scattered across it. As Akame watched, the girl yelled again.

"Hello?"

It had to be a trap. The girl was too helpless, too innocent. Why would she choose to go into these woods? Everyone living nearby knew about the beasts that roamed here at night. It was far too late, and the girl would've had to start her journey at midday. The nearest settlement that Akame knew of was a fair distance away from here—a journey that she couldn't imagine a little girl like this undertaking alone.

Unless, of course, she wasn't.

There was no other way that this could've been a trap. Even if the girl was faking her innocence, Akame could sense no killing intent emanating from her. Maybe she was masking it, somehow, but—

"Please, it's getting dark and I'm scared!"

Oh, what the hell.

Akame dropped down from her perch in the tree, landing silently on the forest floor. Moving slowly, concealing herself in the shadows, she crept towards the girl.

End of Chapter One


It's short, I know. I have a habit of obsessing over every line I write, so it's this or a five-month wait per chapter (sorry). I'll try not to keep you all waiting for too long.

And gosh, I really was surprised by just how many of you responded! I've really got to thank you all for the favorites, follows, and reviews. I was expecting about 3-4 responses total, maybe a follow or two—certainly not the number I ended up getting. Again, thank you. I'd give a shout-out to each of the people that gave their support, but inevitably I'd forget someone. That doesn't make me any less grateful, though.

I'd appreciate it if you told me what you thought of this chapter; I'm always looking to make things easier and better-looking for you guys. Speaking of which, I'll keep trying to up the chapter lengths while keeping efficiency (though it's always been hard for me).

Thanks for reading! Time to end on a high note.

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Akame ga Kill or any media associated with it. Not saying I do, not going to try.