I have returned! I'd like to thank everyone for the great reception and encouragement that this story has had so far, and I hope that this new chapter wont disappoint! Lets get on with the story!
Disclaimer: I don't own Akame Ga Kill, nor any of its characters, respective content, Etc. All I own is this story.
"... If you don't agree, I will bury everyone in this city under 50 ft of ice."
Esdeath had a slight smile on her face, a sadistic one that sent shivers down Najenda's spine, and not from the cold. Before she could reply, Akame snarled."
"I'll kill you first. You were right, holding a limp body does put people at a disadvantage." In a flash of speed, Akame charged. Esdeath's reaction was was almost leisurely. She formed a sword of ice and parried the blow. Her grin widened.
"Sloppy. What, are you worried about hurting MY Tatsumi? You see Akame, this position puts me at no disadvantage. I wield a one handed sword and control a teigu with my mind. I could kill you... so easily." She laughed. Before the furious Akame could strike again, Najenda pulled her back.
"Akame don't be a fool! She's playing mind games with you. Would you really weigh the life of 2 million innocent people equally with your friendship?" Akame tried to shrug Najenda off.
"I'm making sure neither thing is lost." Esdeath watched, amused, as Najenda punched Akame in the face.
"Don't lie to me! Stop being selfish girl, if letting Tatsumi go means we deal with the threat of a monster-" She hissed this at Esdeath, her feelings towards the blue haired general getting the better of her. "Then we need to accept!" Akame's eyes widened. She finally shook away Najenda's metal hand.
"Hagel Sprung!" Esdeath shouted. All eyes turned as a huge ball of ice formed at her finger tips. it was easily bigger that the great teigu. Although she was grinning, her eyes were lit in a dangerous blaze. "Just in case you can't remember it, Najenda, I was never very good at waiting. I should advice you to hurry up with your decision, before I kill you all and take Tatsumi."
Najenda pulled Akame into a quick discussion. Esdeath caught little snippets of what was being said, but not the whole thing. "How can we trust her?"
"Shes many things, but - liar"-
"Im not okay with this- monster- Tatsumi doesn't - with her-"
"Don't be - this is for - country, yes?"
"What about - and us? don't we - something?"
"She - no family - at least deserves this."
Esdeath tried to hide her shock. Her mind spun. Najenda, her old enemy, said she deserves... something? While Esdeath fell into some kind of shocked state, the conversation escalated into argument. Finally, with one final hiss from Najenda, they turned back to Esdeath.
Akame had bridled her aggression and anger, but it was clear from the swirling vortex in her blood red eyes that she wasn't happy about the decision.
Najenda looked very stiff and uncomfortable. Her teeth were gritted and her metal fist was clenched. "Very well, Esdeath, we-" With a hasty glance at Akame, fixed her phrase "- I, accept your offer." Akame didn't lower her sword.
"Well, I thought you might see it my way. How very nice of you, Najenda, Akame." Akame gritted her teeth and at Najenda's command lowered murasame. Her eyes glinted as the blue haired grinned at her. Her grin was brimming with false sincerity, as if mocking the assassin. The huge ball of ice at the tips of her fingers shattered into tiny flakes.
"Listen to me, Esdeath." Akame's voice was calm, but there was a hint of threat in the way she hissed the ends of her words. "If I ever find out that you've hurt him, left him, done anything to him... You'll jump right back to the top of my mission list."
Esdeath looked to her coolly, but it was obvious by her tone that the raven haired assassins implication that she would hurt Tatsumi riled her up. "Well then I shouldn't be on your list anymore then, should I?" Akame knew she had finally made a dent in the bluenettes pride. She pressed the offensive now, trying to regain footing. Akame used the same tactics in their talk as she did in a fight.
"I give it a month." Esdeath seemed unphased by this thought. She brought back her half smile.
"Well then, I guess for a month I can sleep next to Tatsumi with both eyes closed. Not that sleeping next to him after a month will feel any different..." she smirked as Akame furrowed her brow. Before she could retort, Najenda dragged her back away from the dangerous general.
Esdeath brought Tatsumi's brow to her lips and smiled at his face warmly. "Now nobody can separate us..." She was only trying to aggravate Akame a little bit.
It had the desired effect. The raven haired girl stared so hard at Esdeath that Najenda was wondering if she had a new teigu that could make people explode by looking at them. Unfortunately, this wasn't the case. Try as she might, Esdeath still stayed where she was, with that smirk of victory pressing against Tatsumi's head.
Even Najenda was losing her temper with Esdeath victory flaunt. "I suggest you leave now, before I change my mind and find out how you like it with only one eye." Her voice was as cold and steely as her replacement arm.
Esdeath, with her smirk still firmly plastered on her face, backed up in a false show of submission. "Alright, alright. I was just sharing a victory hug with my Tatsumi. As interesting as partial blindness sounds, I think that I'll pass up on that one. Its best left to those who are used to it, right?"
Najenda shook outwardly with anger. Esdeath's smile increased in size. It was a sickening sight for the rebels, the smile that they had seen before watching entire towns freeze over.
"I feel I should take my leave now. I wouldn't want to fight a cripple and spoil my image." She leapt up into the air as Najenda lunged, her face red with anger.
"Go to hell, you bitch!" The grey haired woman screamed at her arch enemy.
Esdeath turned completely serious. "See you there. I look forward to testing some torture methods on Mephisto." With that she launched off another building and quickly jumped out of sight. Najenda began to cuss furiously, not actually forming sentences, but describing what Esdeath was and what she would do if she caught the woman.
Akame was silent. Staring at the last spot she had seen Tatsumi at. Her hand slowly clenched and unclenched around Murasame. In her mind, she was picturing it. The monster who stole Tatsumi, with her throat slit. At last her face wiped clean of that smirk and replaced with a shocked expression. Tatsumi was running up, hugging her tightly... Akame closed her eyes, savouring the thought.
"Tatsumi... I will find you. And when I do, we will never be apart again."
A terrified scream disrupted her. Flinging her eyes open and drawing herself into an immediate battle stance, from pure reflex alone, Akame looked for the danger. However, it was hard to see beyond the clearing they were in because of the growing shadows. Wait, shadows? It was early morning still! Akame turned to where the sun should be. Instead she saw a huge wall, rising up and blotting out the sun. The whole city was suddenly full of screams as the blue wall grew taller than the highest building.
The ice was so thick that nothing could be seen through it, and it surrounded the whole city. Esdeath was making sure nobody could follow her. Najenda was pale, almost as pale as Esdeath was, although none of the men who wanted to keep their private areas intact said it.
"No,nononono!" Najenda raged, running over to the wall, through the broken gate. She slammed her fist against it, only to hear a metallic ring and have the shockwaves rebound and knock her back. She got right back up and punched it even harder, only for Akame to yank her back this time. The front of the fist had a small dent in one of the knuckles.
"Boss, look." Akame returned to her professional state of mind. Najenda looked in the direction that Akame was pointing to see a figure that looked like an angel slowly and calmly float down towards them, hands up in the air.
"Thousand-mile flight: Mamesta..." Najenda confirmed. Akame raised her sword.
"Greetings Night Raid." Run looked shaky, unlike his normal self. "I understand the cause for concern, Akame, but raising your weapon is unnecessary. There is no longer any Jaegers. We have no captain and only two members. Therefore I am not your enemy, but instead a messenger."
Najenda nodded at Akame to lower the weapon. "I'm listening. What's the message, and it better be good." The raven haired assassin next to her lowered murasame, but did not sheathe the cursed blade.
"My ex-captain, Esdeath, would like me to explain that her intentions are not to trap you within the city, but instead to ensure that she is not followed. The ice will melt in a few days."
Najenda snorted. "And how do you expect me to trust that?"
Run shrugged. "Surely you were told by the member of your group that I fought with that my true intentions were to overthrow the capital from the inside?"
Najenda looked a little sheepish. "True. But why didn't you go with Esdeath?" Run deadpanned.
"Why would I want to? She made it quite clear what would happen if I attempted to follow her too." Najenda shrugged, and the walls finally stopped growing.
Esdeath stood on the outside of the wall. She had a wide grin on her face, despite the blood flowing from her nose. "Just to be sure I'm afraid Najenda..."
She tutted as blood dripped onto her boot. Then, looking to Tatsumi, she gasped. The side of his face was covered in fresh blood. She quickly wiped his face off lovingly. "Nothing will ever part us, dearest Tatsumi..." She leant in, and brushed her lips against his, gently brushing his bangs out of his closed eyes.
"I'll never let you go..." Then, as if remembering where she was, the woman lurched up, eyeing the surroundings suspiciously. She had gone into full hunter mode. They needed to get out of here as fast as possible. With a thrill, Esdeath realised that, for the first time in years she could go where she liked and do as she wanted, without the burden of those little men beneath her. As if invigorated, she bounded away down a path that led to a thick coniferous woods, one she spent much of her time in.
Esdeath was no fool. She knew that they'd come eventually. But by then, Tatsumi and her would be long gone, exploring the other side of the world. Just her and him... One of her dreams was coming true already. When she woke this morning, she thought their time together was at an end. It turns out that it was just beginning.
The strings of fate are a delicate thing. One persons decision will re-thread a whole new destiny. We joined these people at the end only to find a new beginning for them, because no matter what happens... There was always another way.
And there we have it! Another chapter done and out before my deadline of a week too! I once again want to thank everyone who read this, and of course I want to thank everyone who gave such encouraging words to this story! In particular I want to shout out to T.E. Bbz. Initially I was going to only include a few new places, but after reading that review, I think that I can afford to be a bit more daring!
So guys, let me know what you think, and if you have any personal requests of a landscape you want me to do a chapter on, drop me a PM or just review it to me! I will only be accepting the best five for now, so please make it possible for me to write about if you want to see it happen!
That's all for now, so see you in a week or so with another chapter! The deadline for requests will be the day the next chapter gets released!
