Hi there. I´m able to release the 10th chapter, finally.
Normally, I´d now answer some questions or talk about some of the story´s evolvements, but not this time. This time, there is a far more urgent matter to talk about, which heavily influenced my past months as well as this chapter. Therefore, this will be settled at the end of the chapter.
First of all, I´d like you all to know about the events that changed my view of life somewhat during the last months.
Right now, I´m only 20. I graduated from school only 2 years ago. My fellow graduates and friends, as well as I, still have quite some way to go, and goals to acchieve in our lives.
Nonetheless, one close friend of mine tried to commit suicide by taking an excessive amount of high dosed medication. Fortunately, it failed and we have the possibility to help him overcome his depression.
As if that wasn´t enough, another fellow graduate disappeared quite some time ago. After a frantic search, his body was finally found weeks later. He had taken his life by jumping off a cliff...
Even though, I wasn´t influenced directly, all of this still got me thinking about a lot of things. And as a result, I´d like to share some words with you, I think to be important:
Depressions are a serious illness and nothing to take lightly. I can understand if you sometimes think life sucks and everything would be better if it all ended.
But please consider the following: Life is hard on everyone, and only the one´s who struggle will ultimately succeed.
Taking your life won´t help anyone. On the contrary, it will only worsen the lives of those close to you. And believe me if I say: There are always persons, caring for you!
Suicide isn´t a solution. It´s only the easiest way to end your own suffering. But going that way will just make others suffer even more than they already do. And such a thing shouldn´t be happening.
So face your problems, face your fears and fight your depressions. Talk to the one´s close to you! But if you shouldn´t feel able to do so, please talk to anyone caring for your life! Call the hotline(s) for suicidal prevention in your country!
That being said, I wish the best to all of you.
Originally, I had planned for the story to take another turn. But given the mentioned events, I felt it to be my duty to try and reappraise some of them in my story. Therefore, even though it wasn´t planned, I´ll make Tatsumi face his past one last time.
I want to apologize that the next chapter won´t be that fluent to read and the dialogues and events sometimes seem to be a bit off, eventually. But writing somewhat realistically about this theme proofed to be pretty difficult and I had to make sure that I´d be able to continue the story regularily with the next chapter.
I can assure you my Beta and I checked the chapter more than once to make it as pleasant to read as possible. So try to keep that in mind and don´t be too harsh with your critic this chapter...
DISCLAIMER:
I DON´T OWN ANY RIGHTS TO THE "AKAME GA KILL"-FRANCHISE. THE MANGA WAS WRITTEN BY TAKAHIRO AND ILLUSTRATED BY TETSUYA TASHIRO.
THIS FANFIC HAS NOT BEEN WRITTEN FOR PROFIT!
IT MAY CONTAINS SPOILER!
IT´LL INCLUDE BRUTAL CONSIDERED SCENES!
Chapter 10: Kill the mind´s burden
They had been flying for about half an hour now, leaving Esdeath´s army behind. And contrary to his initial misgivings, Tatsumi had to admit their ride was pretty enjoyable. They had pierced above those thick clouds behind so that he could now enjoy the warming rays of the shining sun and the landscapes beneath them.
It was true their ascent had been pretty rough and terrifying for the youngster, but since they had reached an ideal and stable flight level, everything had calmed down. Nonetheless, he firmly held on to the General´s waist as a precaution. There was no way he´d risk anything in this altitude...
The two of them had already travelled quite some distance in that short amount of time, the bigger animals strolling through the woods beneath them being the only signs of life this far up north. They were still in the borderland connecting the Empire and the Northern Kingdom, after all.
"Are you enjoying the view beneath us?" Esdeath asked, breaking the silence.
"Yes. It reminds me of my village and its surroundings."
"You and your friends originally came from a village far in the north of the Empire, right?"
Being reminded of his dead friends, a wave of sadness overcame the young boy. Even though quite some time had passed, the events still haunted him to the day. He just hadn´t been able to move on. Was it because he hadn´t been able to inform their parents, nor the rest of the village, about it? Would he finally be able to deal with the matter after he properly informed them? Would they blame him for their deaths? Tatsumi had no clue at all. But would it really be alright to remain that way...?
It was by then he made a decision. The youth didn´t know whether he´d regret it one day or not, but right now he couldn´t care less. In order to become stronger and help the people in need all over the empire, he had to deal with his past first.
"I´d like us to make a small detour on our way back. I have to deal with some matters in my village..."
"That would delay our arrival in the Capital for at least a day. We can go there on a later date."
"We have to go now! It can´t wait any longer!"
"O-ho... Since when are you able to order me around? You are in no position to command me," an intrigued Esdeath replied in a mocking tone.
"You may be right with that, but if it´s for this reason, I´m cashing in the favour you owe me..."
A cunning smile had found its way on the General´s lips.
Truth to be said, she had no problem at all in taking a small detour. Why would it matter to waste some more days in order to arrive at the Capital? She´d even get the chance to learn more about her beloved...
But that didn´t mean she´d fulfill his wishes for free. It was for the strong to decide the way something would be done, not for the weak. And if the weak wanted to decide, it always came at a price. The sooner he learned that lesson, the sooner he´d get one step closer to her level. The price he had to pay this time was nothing more than the one favour she owed him.
To her, it was nothing more than a little game being played between the two of them. And right now, she knew she had already won.
"Are you sure about that? You´d better think carefully about it," Esdeath said, feigning innocence.
"Yes, I am sure!" Tatsumi replied without a moment of hesitation. He simply had no clue about the General´s intentions at all.
"Fine, then," Esdeath replied with a shrug. "You just have to tell me where to go."
"I don´t know for sure from this point..."
Right now, the only thing Tatsumi could see was the large forest beneath them. There still was no evidence of any populace out there. His only hope was for Esdeath to know how to find the old trade route connecting the northern villages with the Capital; the same route he used to leave his home...
"Do you know where the old trade route leading north winds through the woods? I could tell you the way to the exact location of my village from there."
"Sure. I´ve flown over those woods quite some times."
The General had barely finished speaking, when she pulled lightly on the reins in her hand, making the dragon alter its route slightly to the right.
It took them about twenty more minutes before they finally located the old trading route, gliding right above it. After taking a look at the scenery beneath them now, Tatsumi knew they already were close to his village. He had been here quite some times with his friends, back when they were hunting, and when times passed innocently by.
They´d just have to follow the route down south, until a small path in bad condition would divert from it towards the west. His birth place would be right at the end of it.
Normally, it would have taken a person at least half an hour by foot to reach it, but given their way of travelling, Tatsumi was sure they´d make it in a few minutes. Then again... would it really be a good idea to fly all the way to the village? Who´d expect anyone to ride a dragon such as this Gorgoth, and land it right inside a village?
No matter how Tatsumi thought about this, it wasn´t a good idea at all. He would already feel bad enough to tell them the truth about Sayo and Ieyasu; why should he make it even worse by risking to terrify the whole village with a stunt that stupid...?
"We´ll have to follow this route down south for a little more, until a path diverts towards the west," he told his powerful companion, making her pull the reins once more in order to steer her pet. "Said path will lead us right to my village."
"All right. It shouldn´t take too long then," the General answered without looking back.
"But could you please land the dragon somewhere the villagers won´t see it? It would be better that way."
The news he was about to deliver were already bad enough. There was no way Tatsumi would make this even worse...
"Why should I? And how would that be `better´ in any way?"
"I don´t want anyone to panic seeing a dragon heading right for the village."
"People living in the north shouldn´t panic by such a thing. They should always be prepared for a fight to the death."
Tatsumi took a deep breath. Why couldn´t this woman understand that most people weren´t like her? Why didn´t she usually care about those weaker than her? Would this change in the distant future or was this just a dream of his never to become true? He´d seriously have to deal with this matter once he got the chance. But for now, he had to ignore those questions.
"But this won´t turn into a battle; I just want to meet up with them and settle some matters without any troubles. Let´s just land out of their sight, please."
"Fine. I wouldn´t like to have to kill all people of your village in a fight, after all."
"Thanks."
Even though he thought those words alone to be pretty terrifying, Tatsumi took a deep breath. At least this time, he had managed to avoid any sort of turmoil.
Looking down, the boy could see the crossroads right beneath them. After flying in a wide arc to the right, the pair had finally managed to change their direction right towards his small village at the end of the path.
It took them about three more minutes before they decided to land at a small clearing next to the path. It was just about far enough from the village so nobody could have spotted them from there.
After dismounting off Gorgoth, Esdeath sent the giant beast away to do as it pleased until she´d call for its services. With that, the pair turned around and left the clearing, walking the last few meters by foot.
"It´s right behind this small hill," Tatsumi said, after a few minutes of walking in silence. There was no way he could hide a slightly bitter tone from creeping in his voice.
It was true he felt overjoyed to get to see all the people he had grown up with once more, but at the same time, it pained him to think about having to deliver the news of Sayo´s and Ieyasu´s passing. But he had to do it.
"Is everything OK?" A somewhat concerned sounding Esdeath asked him, startling Tatsumi out of his thoughts.
"I´m fine, really. I´m just worried about the villagers´ reaction when they learn about my friends. I hope they´ll be able to handle it..."
"Mhm."
Esdeath didn´t know what to say. Frankly speaking, she couldn´t understand her beloved at all. Why would anyone in that village, except for their parents, care for those two weaklings at all? It just didn´t make any sense. But she knew asking this upfront would only enrage her mate, and she had no intentions at all to start another argument about his foolish ideology right then and there. Therefore, they walked on in silence.
It took them just a few more steps before they finally were able to see the village down from the hill. Much to Tatsumi´s surprise, it looked quite different from before. The whole village was surrounded by a palisade made of sharpened trunks which seemed to have been erected only recently, leaving only one entrance in form of a closed gate. The image of a friendly and open village had changed to the image of a military fortress, built to withstand any danger.
Tatsumi didn´t know what could have happened with his village, but there was no time at all to think about it, as a loud voice shouted from atop the palisade.
"Who´s out there?"
"It´s me, Tatsumi! I´ve come to pay a short visit."
The youth had barely finished his sentence when he noticed the gate being opened from the inside, slowly revealing the familiar huts behind it.
Still confused about the whole situation, Tatsumi continued his way towards the gate, having Esdeath walking right behind him. It took the pair just a few more steps before they finally entered through the gate.
The sight presenting itself in front of the boy´s eyes instantly blew all of his worries away for a moment, causing a bright smile to form on his face and tears of joy to stream down his cheeks. Upon hearing of his return, everyone in the village had gathered in a semicircle at the entrance to greet him. Right in the middle of them stood the village elder, who had been raising Tatsumi instead of his long-deceased parents.
"It´s good to see you, Tatsumi," the elder said, audibly moved, while stepping forward to embrace his young foster son, causing the crowd around them to erupt in loud cheering.
"It´s good to see all of you, too," answered the boy, returning the affectionate gesture.
"But I see you haven´t come alone." Still smiling, the elder released the youth of the embrace, turning his head towards Esdeath who had been standing idly by to watch the scene. "Pardon my bluntness, but who might you be, young lady?"
Tatsumi´s blood went cold as he sensed a sudden decrease in temperature from behind him. Basically, the elder hadn´t done anything wrong. But being aware of the person in question, the youth knew there was no possibility of her not taking this as an insult. Heaven forbid. That wouldn´t end well. He had to do something... now!
"This is my superior officer as well as the person I´m in love with, General Esdeath Partas, the Empire´s strongest!"
Following the boy´s hasty declaration, there was nothing but silence. Nobody dared to move. The villagers just stood there wide-eyed with mouths agape. Tatsumi had assumed them to react that way. But to be honest, he wasn´t any less flustered than them; but given the things being at stake, he knew this would be his only chance.
`Dear god, make this work!´
Even though he prayed for it, he couldn´t feel any increase in temperature at all. But truth to be told, there was no way for him to sense that in any way. The panic had caused all of his senses, except for hearing and sight, to shut down completely. He simply had to hope he had chosen the right words and would be able to solve this without any casualties...
He could hear the crunching sounds of the snow behind him as the `Ice-Queen´ slowly walked towards his position, but the youth just couldn´t bring himself to look back. He was just too afraid to look her in the face and tell whether this would end well or not. Time seemed to stop for the boy, while drops of sweat slowly ran down his neck.
Then the noise stopped, and another deafening silence followed, making the youth´s heart pound even harder and his body quiver. Everything would be determined in just a blink of an eye...
All the pressure finally melted away from Tatsumi as a pair of arms wrapped around his torso from behind, and a chin was placed on his right shoulder, making it possible to see the General´s smiling face, as well as a slight blush, out of the corner of his eyes.
"It´s just as he said," Esdeath confirmed cheerfully, hugging and pressing her sizeable breasts to her lover from behind. After all, he had finally admitted his true feelings for her.
It was only by then the youth realized the actual weight of his words.
`Fuck. Now I´ve done it. It won´t be easy to maneuver myself out of that one without pissing her off. But I´ll have to deal with that later; it´s working for now...´
"That´s quite some news. Who´d have thought you´d find your soulmate on your journey back when you left. And she´s even a general!" The elder smiled kindly at his foster son, before looking at Esdeath and bowing apologetically. "General Esdeath, I´m awfully sorry to not have recognized you, nor your status. It wasn´t my intention to speak out of place to you. But being the remote village we are, we rarely get any information about the events taking place in our Empire. Furthermore, I wouldn´t have expected a person of your standing to visit our humble village..."
"That´s already forgotten."
Tatsumi took another deep breath. He had indeed managed to avoid bloodshed. Finally, he was able to relax.
Looking around, he noticed the villagers regaining their composure one by one. He even caught sight of some suggestive grins and winks here and there, making his face turn red instantly. Hearing a silent snicker near his right ear as a result only worsened his blush.
His eyes kept wandering, until he spotted the parents of his two late friends amongst the crowd, bringing the youth´s mind back to the original purpose of his visit.
With a face now devoid of any emotions, the boy pulled himself out of the hug, causing everyone to stare at him in confusion as he slowly made his way towards their position. He wasn´t even halfway there as he noticed their saddened and slightly desperate faces. He could tell they already knew what he was about to say...
Stopping right in front of them, the boy fell to his knees, averting his gaze to avoid looking in their faces.
"I´m sorry. It was my fault..."
From there on, he told them everything which had happened to them on their way to the Capital, without sparing them any details. They deserved to know the whole truth.
He had barely finished speaking before he was pulled into a caring hug. Looking up, he recognized Sayo´s mother. He could hear her sobbing and feel a wetness on his left shoulder, exactly where her face was buried. Feeling her shaking body, the boy couldn´t help but wrap his arms around a mother, shaken to the core.
"Stop blaming yourself. All of us knew you´ve done everything you could for Ieyasu and our daughter."
Sayo´s father had positioned himself right behind his wife, holding her shoulders with his hands to comfort her, trying not to tremble too much himself. He was the one speaking the truth with a shaking voice.
"I don´t believe you to be at fault for anything..."
Looking up, Tatsumi was able to see Ieyasu´s parents trying to comfort each other in this dire moment. At that time, Tatsumi too couldn´t hold back his tears anymore, letting all of his emotions out; and with him cried along a whole village...
It took quite some time until there were no tears left to cry. But finally, everyone had calmed down somewhat. They had already spoken about the possibility of the youths´ deaths beforehand, after all. The journey to the Capital was long and dangerous, and it would have been foolish not to think about the worst case, even for the most optimistic among them.
Everyone knew it´d take much more time to finally stop mourning, especially for their parents, but at least all of them were aware of the trio´s fate, and nobody had to worry about their whereabouts anymore. It wouldn´t help to stop the pain from occurring, but most likely they would be able to bring their sorrow into a conclusion, over time.
Nonethelees, the villagers agreed tacitly to leave the parents of the two deceased youth´s alone for the moment. Therefore, the elder took the opportunity to lead them to their huts, comforting them all the while.
Returning after quite some time, he was also the first one to find the right words in front of the other villagers. "Even though they´re gone, we´ll remember both of them as the brave and skilled warriors they were. They´ll live on in our hearts and minds forever. Thank you, Tatsumi, for creating an appropriate grave for them. Now, they can rest in peace."
"Thank you..."
Just with those words, a simple, very simple eulogy, a great burden had been lifted from the boy´s shoulders. Finally, his wounds were able to heal completely. Finally, he´d be able to overcome this event of the past and focus on his future.
"I´ll do my best to support this village the way the three of us originally had planned. I´ll see through to fulfill their wishes!"
Noticing the kind and caring smile of the old man, Tatsumi felt the last remnants of sorrow disappear, and replaced by the joy he felt when he saw his village for the first time after the start of his journey earlier.
Right at that moment, there was only one more thing worrying the youth...
"Say, Elder, what is that wall surrounding the village? Are you under attack? If so, I consider it to be my duty to help."
Another round of silence followed. Tatsumi could see the elder was clearly uncomfortable to speak of the problem. Did he want to put even more of a burden on the boy? Why wouldn´t he tell the youth about the village´s problem? The youth wouldn´t be able to take it...
"Tell me, what is it?"
"Fine. Something is lurking in the woods..." Tatsumi could clearly hear the hesitation in the elder´s voice. "Some of the merchants making their way to this village were attacked, disappeared. Since then, nobody took the risk to visit this village anymore. The three of you were our best hunters, and we couldn´t manage to find a suitable replacement. Therefore, we decided to secure the village instead."
"I´ll hunt it down!" The boy´s answer came without a moment of hesitation.
"Tatsumi, you don´t have to..." The elder was thankful for the offered help, but there was no way he´d put any more burdens on the youth. His foster son had already gone through enough after all.
"That was no `offer´. I´ll hunt it down! There is no way..."
"Excuse my rude interruption, but you don´t really think that´s up to you to decide, do you?"
The boy hadn´t been able to finish his sentence, as a cold and petulant sounding whisper from behind reminded him of his accompaniment, causing a shiver to go through his body.
He could feel the General´s hands caressing his shoulders again. She must have gotten close whilst he had been distracted...
"We still need quite some time to get to the Capital, after all, and I don´t plan on wasting any time by hunting small fries."
"Esdeath, please. Do it for me..." The boy begged, barely loud enough for her to hear. There was no way he´d let anyone of his village in about her true nature...
"I don´t really care about the circumstances, and only death is for free..."
The youth instantly understood the meaning behind those whispered words. But he didn´t care. Right now, the only thing which mattered to him was to help his village...
"I´d be deeply indebted to you, Esdeath. And I always have been told a favour has to be paid back with another one..."
Even though her facial expressions didn´t change in the slightest, Tatsumi could outright imagine the General´s victorious smile and her longing glance.
"Don´t worry." Putting on a slightly caring expression, the General turned towards the villagers, still holding her mate. "As my beloved said, we´ll find out about whatever is lurking in the woods and deal with it. This is not only Tatsumi´s wish, but also my duty as general of the Empire. How could I possibly ignore the needs of the Empire´s citizens?"
Seeing the villagers´ expressions lighten up, Tatsumi felt at ease, even though he knew nearly every word Esdeath had spoken moments ago had been a lie. How would such a person have been able to massacre thousands of people without caring otherwise? But as long as this faked compassion showed effect, he wouldn´t worry about it for now.
"You have our gratitude, General Esdeath," the elder said with a bow. "When will you head out? Tomorrow?"
"I think we should go now." Looking at Esdeath for confirmation, Tatsumi preempted her answer with his suggestion. "Wild animals and Danger Beasts are more active at night after all."
A lot of time had passed since their arrival, and dusk had already darkened. There was no way he´d take this matter easily. Whatever threatened his village, it wouldn´t live through the night.
"Eager to go on a hunt, huh?" Esdeath replied, an expectant grin forming on her lips, exposing her teeth. "But you´re right. It´s better to hunt at night. Let´s go then."
With that, the General turned around, heading towards the gate, indicating the boy to follow her.
"Wait just one moment."
Having Tatsumi´s attention, the elder turned around, speaking to the villager closest to him, seemingly giving him orders to go and fetch something. After receiving his orders, the man turned around and disappeared into the closest hut, just to return with two portions of corned beef and a small bag.
"Take this. I know it isn´t much, but it should be enough to get through the night."
Thanking the elder, Tatsumi stowed the beef inside the bag and strapped it on his back. After a short farewell, he turned around, following Esdeath out of his village. With this, the pair disappeared into the woods.
The Capital
`There´s so much that´s wrong with this damned city...´
Once more, their group had successfully ended one of their purges. Once more, Logan had been surprised by the cruelty of the nobility and the powerful. He had experienced so much pain by himself during his childhood. And yet...
...standing in front of the opened shed, looking at all those tortured and mutilated corpses made his past seem easy...
"Finished with the job?"
A feline-looking woman with cat ears, a cat tail, two giant paws instead of hands and long blond hair, resembling a lion´s mane, brought the young man in his early twenties out of his thoughts.
"Yes, I am, Leone. But there are no remains of their daughter..."
Slowly, the man turned around with a serious expression on his face, until he faced the scantily-dressed woman. Normally, any man would have been instantly aroused by her figure, which was only covered by a long white scarf wrapped around her neck, a black wrapping across her abundant chest, two white sleeves over her lower arms and held in place by a pair of golden bangles, a black string, pair of knee-high brown boots and a pair of white trousers, exposing her inner thighs.
What stood out, however, was a bronze belt with a silver hexagonal buckle: Leone´s Teigu, called: The King of Beast´s Transformation: Lionelle.
"So you fed her to your eagles, huh?"
Leone already knew the answer. The two of them had already known each other for a long time, even before joining the assassins.
"It was the least I could do to avenge those poor souls the whole family has lured in and killed..."
"Fine with me. What matters is that they are no more. But let´s go now. We don´t want our identities exposed after being discovered here, do we?"
"No. Let´s meet up with Akame and the rest."
After one last short prayer for the souls of those having been killed in the shed, the pair turned around, heading towards the big mansion right behind them, where their friends already waited.
Together, the group finally disappeared into the night, leaving the capital. But it wouldn´t be their last visit; that much was for sure.
Wherever there would be the need to purge those corrupted by their power and drained in pleasure, they´d appear again to do their bloody work and avenge those without power.
Because that was what their organization had been doing for quite some time now.
The organization called: Night Raid...
With that, the chapter is finished.
As you read, I tried to process some feelings and acts of mourning into this chapter, especially the situation, parents have to face in a case as descriebed at the beginning.
Hopfully, I managed to get it done, at least somewhat.
Given the events I had to deal with, I moved the result of the competition into the next chapter.
Instead I introduced the first requested OC. The request came from TheCarlosInferno.
Questions:
1) Guest: She knew because Luke told her. She just had expected such an action by Tatsumi.
2) Cario Regun: Until now, I haven´t shown too much of Esdeath. She´s far stronger than what it seems. My work is indeed influenced by `Bent but not broken´. I had not too much joices for Tatsumi´s Teigu. I plan on a bigger role for Bulat, after all. Concerning other existent Teigu, I just didn´t think that a powerful one would fit Tatsumi at all. Concerning the "good demon" I don´t want to spill any beans. But keep the following in mind: Not everything is as it seems...
That was that.
Thanks for the support of my friends and ll of my readers.
As always:
Feel free to ask questions and tell me your opinions. Feel free to review.
Feel free to send in your (OC-)requests.
Until next time,
Marcel M.