Author's Note: Hello again everyone! I hope you all enjoyed the first chapter, I know that I had a really fun time writing it. If you have any questions or comments, leave a review or please PM me, I'm always happy to talk to anybody that likes any of my stories. Enjoy!
Chapter 2: Half-Demon
Shiemi was at a loss for words, frantically waving her arms in some sort of motion that would hopefully get across the notion that she had no idea why she had a tail.
"Where did you get that?!" Paku asked in a hushed tone, poking her tail to see if it was real.
"How should I know? I didn't have this last night!" she replied.
"Well, it would seem that you turned into a half-demon overnight then, because I can't find any other explanation as to why you would have a tail like his." Paku said.
"But that doesn't even make sense, I'm completely human! I don't have a drop of demon blood in me!" Shiemi shouted back.
"Did Rin do something to you?" Paku asked, and Shiemi went red and shook her head furiously.
"No no no, we didn't do anything. He did give me this, though." she said, pulling out her hair ornament from underneath her bed and handing it to Paku. At first, Paku was in awe at how pretty and well crafted it was, but her smile faded and she pointed to a tiny stain on one of the leaves.
"Shiemi, is this blood?" she asked, and she nodded in reply.
"Yeah, I pricked my fing-" she began, stopping herself mid-sentence as she realised what Paku was implying. "You don't think..."
"Doesn't it look that way?" Paku asked.
"I mean, it's just a tail, it's not like I have the pointy ears or anything..." she said, brushing her hair to the side and revealing, yes, Rin's same pointy demon ears.
"You have got to be kidding me, Rin." Shiemi said with a sigh.
"Maybe it's not what you want to hear, but you're definitely like the demon couple now. It's kind of cute." Paku said with a giggle, and Shiemi shot her back an annoyed glance.
"Well, look at it this way. Rin was able to hide being half-demon for years, I'm sure you can too. Just cover up your ears and wrap your tail around your stomach. Nobody will ever know, unless they ask you to take a bath in holy water or something." Paku said reassuringly.
"I guess I'll just do that then. Listen, Paku, there's something I need to talk to you about." Shiemi said, as Paku took a seat next to her on the bottom bunk.
"What is it?" she asked, and Shiemi looked at the wall of the tent for a moment before continuing.
"I met Rin in the forest last night. He's changed since we've last seen him, Paku. He's selfless, even kinder than ever, and he has a plan, Paku. Rin wants to bring peace to the kingdoms of Gehenna and Assiah, and coexist in Assiah." Shiemi said, and Paku surprisingly didn't laugh, but looked more confused than anything.
"It's a little far fetched, but he can probably do it. What does all that have to do with you?" she asked her.
"I... I want to help him. I offered to return to Gehenna with him, but he declined. He said that he wanted to be together with me in a free world, a world that Izumo and I have to create. Please, Paku, do you have any idea how to get into contact with Izumo?" Shiemi begged, her tail wagging back and forth.
"Sorry, Shiemi, I haven't heard from Izumo either, and I've no idea where she's stationed. Unless..." Paku began, her voice trailing off.
"Unless what?" Shiemi asked excitedly.
"Well, I heard that the supervisor keeps records of all the incoming recruits for each camp, if you got a hold of that list, you'd probably be able to figure out where everyone is." Paku said.
"Well, sorry Paku, but I can't just magically make myself invisible and sneak into the supervisor's tent and steal her papers." Shiemi said exasperatedly, throwing her hands up into the air.
"Why don't you ever ask Rin for help in situations like these?" Paku asked.
"He says I should do this mostly on my own. He thinks it'll make me a good Queen in the future." Shiemi said, and Paku gasped.
"Ooooh, he offered to make you his Queen? That's so cute!" she squealed, and Shiemi couldn't help but smile.
"Yeah, I'm looking forward to it too, but for now, I have to do my part. So, how am I gonna get the list?" Shiemi asked her.
"You mean how are we going to get the list, Shiemi. If you're going on some grand old adventure to bring peace to the world, I'm coming with you." Paku insisted.
"No, you can't, Paku. This is something I need to do alone, or at the very least, just Izumo and I." Shiemi replied.
"We've been friends for a long time, Shiemi, and I can't just let my only tentmate handle such a big responsibility by herself. I'm coming with you, that's final." Paku said, leaving no room for disagreement.
"Ugh... fine. How are we going to get the paper?" Shiemi said, emphasising the 'we'.
"I don't know yet, we'll figure something... hey, is that... Kuro?!" Paku exclaimed, pointing out of the entrance of their tent and off towards the forest that wasn't too far from their tent. Poking her head out the flap of the tent, Shiemi did notice the familiar wagging of two separate tails sticking out of the bushes, waving back and forth while a pair of yellow eyes peeked out of the shrubbery.
"Kuro!" Shiemi quietly shouted, waving him forwards with her hand as he grinned and leapt back into the dense forest to work his way around to the two girls without being seen by the other early birds of the camp. After about a minute, Kuro returned, this time having worked his way around to their side of the camp from the forest as he crept into their tent. He was larger than the last time Shiemi had seen him, almost the size of a small tiger and carrying a package on his back.
"Shiemi!" Kuro exclaimed, pouncing on her and licking her affectionately with his large tongue.
"Hello Kuro, it's good to see you too." Shiemi said, scratching behind his ears.
"Shiemi, can you hear me too?" Kuro asked in disbelief, and she nodded and flashed her tail to him.
"Oh, wow! When Rin told me he wasn't sure if the hair ornament would turn you into a demon or not, but I'm sure he'll be so proud of you!" Kuro shouted happily.
"Oh, so Rin had an idea this would happen? Go figure." she said exasperatedly.
"I'm sorry if you didn't want this to happen, Shiemi, but I don't think Rin would have made something like this possible if he didn't think you would like it. You're all he talks about after all." Kuro said.
"All he talks about, huh... never mind that, what's that package there, Kuro?" she asked, pointing to the long and brown paper box strapped to his back.
"Rin said it was important that I give these to you, he said it would help you along your way. There's something for Izumo too, but he said not to open that until you two met." Kuro replied, bending down and allowing Shiemi to remove the parcel on his back.
Removing the straps and unwrapping the package, she pulled out a long black case, attached with another letter from Rin. Before opening the case, she read the letter aloud to everyone present:
"Shiemi,
Sorry about the surprise this morning, to be honest I wasn't expecting you to change so quickly, I probably should have mentioned that my blood and my fire are practically one in the same, which explains why you're half-demon now.
For the duration of your journey, I'll be having Kuro accompany you lot. Tell him not to return until you've completed your mission.
If you haven't already opened the case, it contains a sword that I've hand-crafted for you. I understand how you probably feel about it, and you can discard it if you choose to do so, but it's important to not have to rely on your familiar in battle. Since we now share blood, the sword functions similarly to my own, in that it's essentially a small portal to Gehenna. Unsheathing it will release your flames, so be careful who's present when you choose to draw it.
When you inevitably leave to find Izumo, you'll be considered a deserter, and become a target by both exorcists and demons alike. Even though I command my own armies with an iron will and none of my soldiers will harm you, I cannot say the same for all demons in Assiah. There are plenty of demons that still do not acknowledge my authority, so please do be careful.
Know that while I do want you to be able to handle life-threatening situations on your own, and I think it's important you become more adept in combat, I won't allow you to die, not while I remain as King. Still, do your best to learn to wield the sword, and steel your heart, Shiemi. You're much stronger than you think.
I cannot always promise to protect you every moment of the day, but should you find yourself in the gravest of danger, draw your own blood and coat your hair ornament in it. If I am unavailable, one of my subordinates, or brothers, will come to your aid. (Most of them are busy fighting but Egyn and Iblis should usually be available.) Egyn should remind you a lot of myself but Iblis can be a bit 'cranky' at times, so just hope that Egyn appears should you need to summon either of them.
Once you meet up with Izumo, I'll meet you again in person to discuss the details of our plan. Until then, I love you Shiemi. Good luck!
-Rin" she said, finishing reading the letter aloud.
"Yay, I get to come with you on your adventure, Shiemi!" Kuro exclaimed.
"Who are Egyn and Iblis?" Shiemi asked.
"Rin's older brothers! I've met them myself before, at one of Rin's war councils." Kuro replied.
"What are they like?" Shiemi asked.
"Well, Egyn is a nice demon, but he's a little over the top sometimes, and Iblis can go either ways. You don't wanna make Iblis mad." Kuro said with a shudder.
"I just thought of something, shouldn't Rin be one of the eight, or nine I suppose, Demon Kings now?" Paku asked Shiemi.
"I don't know, is he Kuro?" Shiemi asked.
"Well, since Rin is the ruler of Gehenna, he's the God of Demons now. You can't really call him a demon any more. He's on his own level." Kuro said.
"God of Demons... but Rin isn't a god, right?" Shiemi asked, still quite confused.
"If you want to get really technical about it, no, but his power is akin to that of a god. Those that don't refer to Rin as the God of Demons call him the Blue Rose, but that's more of an unofficial term." Kuro replied.
"Rin doesn't seem like the type of man that would condone being addressed as a flower." Shiemi said with a giggle.
"Eh, he prefers King Rin anyways. So, what's our next step Shiemi?" Kuro asked excitedly.
"Well, I was telling Paku that I can't exactly just sneak into her tent and grab something so important. Do you have any ideas, Kuro?" Shiemi said.
"I can steal it for you! Just tell me what you're looking for, Shiemi, and I'll find it!" Kuro said excitedly.
"Really? Well, I suppose it's just a simple sheet of paper with the names of each camp's incoming recruits, but I don't know where to go about looking for it inside the supervisor's tent." Shiemi said, scratching her head.
"Don't worry, Shiemi, I'll find it! In the meantime, practice using that sword you got from Rin, but go in the forest first. Those flames of yours are sure to attract attention." Kuro replied.
"Is that really a good idea? Why don't we just wait here, and then when you get the list, we can leave?" Shiemi asked.
"Well, do whatever you want while we wait for nightfall. You can practice anytime, but I'm not much use in a fight and unless I'm mistaken, your friend can't even use any skills or weapons, right? We're going to be counting on you to be our main fighter, Shiemi." Kuro said, eyeing her sword.
"Main fighter… but we won't be fighting anybody anytime soon, right?" she asked nervously. While Shiemi wasn't too scared to wield a sword, killing another human for no reason was outside her comfort zone.
"I've no idea, but it's better to be prepared. On second thought, just lay low and act as you normally do. I'll wait in the forest until it gets dark, and then I'll wait for the right opportunity to steal the list. Take care, Shiemi!" Kuro said enthusiastically as he leapt out of their tent and off into the forest behind their tent.
"Okay, I have no idea what you two were just talking about, so fill me in Shiemi." Paku said, sitting down on the bottom bunk. Smiling at her, Shiemi sat down as well and gave her the run down.
Many hours later…
Shiemi drummed her fingers against her journal that rested on her lap as she finally set the book down and stretched. Night had fallen, and it was time to commence the operation to steal the list.
Poking her head out of the tent and surveying the campgrounds, she saw the usual mess of exorcists that weren't injured huddling among different crowds chatting and generally having a good time. It was the beginning of dinner time, and everyone in camp had began to crowd around the food line to get their hot meal. Looking over to the supervisor's tent, Shiemi saw a light from a lantern as well as shadows moving about inside.
So the supervisor's still in her tent. How am I going to get her out? Shiemi thought. What would Rin do?
Probably destroy the camp. Okay, what wouldn't Rin do?
Thinking of Rin immediately brought up his love for cooking, and Shiemi had a stroke of brilliance in that moment. Hurrying over to the back of the food line that was away from watchful eyes, she approached the cook preparing the next pot of stew and said,
"Excuse me, my name is Shiemi Moriyama and I'm on punishment tonight, so please allow me to serve food to all the exorcists here in your place."
"Is that so? I haven't heard of any such thing." the chef said suspiciously.
"Between you and me, this was a direct order from the supervisor. Wouldn't it be best if you just enjoy your night off? I'm sure you've earned it." Shiemi said with a sly grin.
"Well, if it's a direct order from the supervisor, I wouldn't want to cause her any trouble. Thanks Miss." the chef said, removing his apron and hat and handing them to her before returning to his tent.
All right, now for the next step of my plan, Shiemi thought.
Summoning her familiar, she asked,
"Nii-chan, can you prepare some butterfly weed?"
Squeaking in reply, the Greenman grew a long patch of butterfly weed from it's chest as Shiemi thanked it and removed the plant and turned it around in her hand. Ripping it up and then scattering it inside of the stew, Shiemi grinned at her cunning idea as she put on her apron and hat and picked up the pot and carried it out to the centre of camp, where food was being served.
"Great, now we can finally eat!" one exorcist shouted as Shiemi just smiled her devilish grin and began doling out portions of her tainted stew.
With this amount of butterfly weed in their stew, it's sure to make everyone that eats it sick to their stomach. Less destructive than what Rin would have done, but all the more effective, Shiemi thought to herself as she handed out the last bowl of stew. Hurrying back to the makeshift kitchen across camp, she removed her uniform and scurried back to her tent to watch the fireworks.
The butterfly weed inside of the stew might have been a little too much, because only a minute after the exorcists began hungrily wolfing down their food, they began to vomit profusely, making a mess all over themselves and their friends.
"Someone get the supervisor!" she heard one man yell, and she saw the supervisor finally exit her tent to come inspect the situation. She didn't even need to tell Kuro that it was time to go, because by the time she had turned her head to the forest, Kuro was already rocketing out of the bushes and bounding into her tent. Sighing in relief, she began hurriedly packing her bag of clothing, while Paku had already prepared and lay on the top bunk prepared to leave at a moment's notice.
"Is Kuro already inside?" Paku asked her, poking her head over the bed.
"Yes, now we just have to hope that he finds it quick enough." Shiemi replied, not taking her eyes off the disgusting scene in front of her.
The grounds of the camp had become a sea of sick, people blowing chunks everywhere as the camp nurses and the supervisor tried to determine what in the hell was going on. Scampering back out of the tent and into hers, Kuro carried the treasured list in his mouth with a proud look in his eyes.
"Good job, Kuro!" Shiemi said, praising her/Rin's familiar and petting his head.
"Shiemi, we should go before people come looking for you." Paku said urgently, and Shiemi nodded and unfolded the paper and read the list:
Camp 23:
Okumura, Yukio
Suguro, Ryuji
Kamiki, Izumo
"That's it, Camp 23! Let's see… that's in… wow, that's like, fifty miles from here!" Shiemi exclaimed as she put the list in her bag and slung her sword over her back.
"Closer than I expected. Which way do we go?" Paku asked.
Peeking her head out of the tent and looking up at the night sky, she looked for the constellation that should reveal which direction they needed to head.
"East." Shiemi said, which was conveniently the direction that led through the forest.
"Someone get Morayima and Noriko!" they heard a man call as someone rushed into the entrance of their tent as his jaw dropped at the sight of a demon the size of a tiger inside of their tent.
Swiftly knocking him over the head with his paw, Kuro knocked the man unconscious as he flew about ten yards backwards into the centre of camp, attracting the attention of everyone else.
"Demon! They're working with a demon!" one of the exorcists called as they all took up arms.
"Shiemi, follow me!" Kuro shouted as he shot off towards the forest and left her and Paku in the dust.
"Paku, run!" Shiemi shouted as she grabbed her friend's hand and rocketed off into the bushes behind them.
"Kill them!" they heard the supervisor shout as a hail of bullets came whizzing in their direction, one or two catching Shiemi in the shoulder as she yelped in pain but continued to sprint through the forest. At the rate they were gaining on the two girls, the exorcists would quickly overpower them. Knowing that this was a kill or be killed situation, Shiemi drew her sword from the sheathe on her back, her blue flames erupting from her body in a brilliant blue flash of light as she slashed at the air with her jet-black katana, sending a wave of fire at the oncoming exorcists and setting a large portion of the forest on fire as she turned around to continue sprinting away.
Reaching the edge of the wooded area that had gone up in flames, the two girls finally reunited with Kuro as they panted and breathes heavily as they knelt over and got their bearings.
"That was great, Shiemi! You should've just done that in the first place." Kuro exclaimed.
"Well, I just adore destroying nature and killing people as much as the next girl, but…" she replied sarcastically.
"I get it, I get it. Anyways, we should get going. Once we make it to a safe area, we can rest for the night." Kuro said, walking at a slow pace as he hobbled slightly on three legs.
"Kuro, you're hurt!" Shiemi exclaimed, laying him on his back and examining his leg. It was bleeding heavily, and she guessed a bullet had snagged him on his way out of the forest.
"Don't worry about me, Shiemi, I'll be fine…" Kuro protested, but Shiemi insisted on taking a few minutes to treat it properly. Bandaging his leg and having removed the bullet and treated his wound with disinfectant, she allowed Kuro to get to his feet and continue walking. Scratching her head idly, she felt like she was missing something important. Patting all around her blonde hair, she gasped loudly as she began to sob.
"Shiemi, what's wrong?" Paku asked.
"My hair ornament… it's gone." she said between tears.
"You mean this one?" Paku asked, pulling her blue rose out of her bag and holding it in her outstretched hand.
"Paku! Thank you so much!" Shiemi cried, taking her ornament and properly placing it back in it's usual spot. "Where did you find this?"
"It fell off your head when we were running. I almost got shot picking it up, but it was worth it." she said warmly.
"Paku…" Shiemi sobbed, pulling her friend into a tight hug, "thank you. I don't know how I can possibly repay you."
"Well, you can start by walking fast. I wanna get to sleep." Paku said, waving her forwards to follow Kuro's lead.
"Right!" Shiemi shouted, hurriedly following behind her friend.
Meanwhile in Gehenna…
"Your girlfriend is quite something, Brother." a demon clad in black and blue garb said to Rin, who sat on his throne watching Shiemi, Paku and Kuro on a large screen from the viewpoint of a bat.
"I know, right? She's quite resourceful if I do say so myself." Rin replied with his trademark grin.
"Are you sure she is the right one to go about bringing the peace we so desire? Why not your own brother, Yukio?" the demon asked.
"Do not speak that traitor's name in my throne room, Egyn. Shiemi is the only one capable of such a feat." Rin snarled.
"If you say so, Brother. As good as your ideas may be, you still do realise that they are very much idealistic?" Egyn asked him.
"Yes, I do. Idealism is not the best way of thinking, especially in war time, but idealistic ideas are the only way to go in this situation. Oh, and Egyn?" Rin said, looking at his brother.
"Yes, Brother?" he replied.
"My human brother is at the same camp as the one they are all headed to, is he not?" Rin asked.
"Indeed, him and your ex-classmate, Ryuji Suguro." Egyn said.
"When their business is done there, bring them to me. I have much to say to the both of them. I think I shall mount their heads on my mantle, but I don't believe my Queen would appreciate the décor, no?" Rin asked with a smug grin.
"I should think not, Brother. If you so desire, you might want to ask Iblis to torture them for the rest of eternity?" Egyn suggested.
"Eh, that seems a little harsh, I am supposed to be a benevolent king, you know. No matter, just capture them both alive and you can take a vacation in Assiah." Rin said.
"Oh my, you really are too kind, Brother. But what of the girl, Izumo Kamiki?" Egyn asked.
"What of her?" Rin asked.
"What plan do you have for her? Surely you are confident enough in our future Queen and her company to succeed on their own?" Egyn asked curiously.
"Shiemi has much to learn about the world, and she can't handle it all on her own. Besides, Izumo is my friend, and I trust that she'll be useful to her." Rin answered.
"I am sure she will, Brother. What will you do about the large counter-attack being mounted by the Vatican as we speak? Should they break though to the Gate…" Egyn began, but Rin silenced him with his hand.
"I will deal with them myself." Rin said, getting to his feet and walking over to the centre of the room, shouting,
"Bring my armour!"
A moment later, a few demons hauling a rack of armour scurried into the room and left it to Rin, bowing before exiting the throne room. Equipping himself, Rin stood clad in a suit of pure gold samurai armour, complete with a menpō* and a large sapphire glimmering in the centre of his kabuto.
"I shall see to it that nothing breaches these Gates." Rin said, his fiery blue eyes burning behind his mask as he departed the throne room, leaving the smell of ash lingering in the air.
menpō - is the term for various types of facial armour worn by the samurai class and their retainers in feudal Japan.