Esdeath knew that one thousand men moving could not remain unnoticed even during night, especially when they were closely watched by two camps of the Revolutionary Army.
With ten thousands men each, they could easily surround and crush them in no time.
In order to prevent that from happening, Esdeath sent commandos sneak in the camps and light fires with order to target the ammunitions depots.
When the explosions started to resound, she ordered her battalion to march, taking advantage of the chaos in the camps.
Her soldiers were used to extended marches. Their impressive stamina was their brand ; when she was still serving under the Empire, Esdeath often used aggressive tactics requiring fast marches to surprise and obliterate the enemy.
And so, even if they all were wearing full plate armors, the soldiers of her battalion managed to reach the surroundings of the western gate within two hours.
After making sure they were hidden behind a small hill, Esdeath ordered her men to rest, recover and place sentinels. Then, she went to meet Akame at their rendezvous point.
Not far from the city gate, almost invisible in the darkness, Akame was standing alone. She was looking in the direction of the camps when Esdeath reached her.
"I saw the fires", Akame said. "Several groups with torches from the other camps are already heading there. We won't have much time before they notice your battalion's camp is empty."
"Not gonna be an issue", Esdeath answered. "They would've noticed it sooner or later."
She stretched her arms, then asked :
"So, how are the defenses here?"
Akame pointed the main gate.
"They closed and barricaded it for the night. Many sentinels on the wall, but they don't seem on the edge. Relaxed, I'd say, and bored, unlike the patrols I've seen before. Given the height and the distance, I'm sure they didn't notice anything."
"They do not expect a large scale surprise attack?"
"Not in the slightest. Obviously, they don't think an army could get here unnoticed. The ones that were really vigilant were the patrols, as I said. These soldiers do not believe they have a risky position."
"Perfect", said Esdeath with a shark's smile. "Now, we wait for the wolf's hour. The darkest hour of the night, when the entire world is asleep. That is when we will strike."
Akame nodded. A few hours before dawn, the night was totally dark and the men were almost sleeping or impatiently waiting for the relieving.
It was the best time to act, and as an assassin, she knew that too well.
Waiting in the night can seem long. But Akame was used to that. During her training and assignments, she often had to wait to seize the perfect opportunity.
Patience was the virtue to possess as an assassin.
And so, time passed until the awaited moment came.
Suddenly, the atmosphere seemed darker. Like a black cloud had invaded the night. The moonlight itself looked thinner.
"It is time".
Esdeath get up and all the soldiers, who were sat and laying all around did the same.
"Esdeath. How are you gonna retreat with all your soldiers? You'll be trapped inside the Capital" Akame observed.
"I have a plan. The only thing you have to focus on is the Teigu. Do you remember the description I gave you?"
"A silver ring with some sort of dragon head on it and a blue pearl?"
"Yes."
"We'll march on the palace and I'll open the gate. As soon as it's done, the guards will come. Once they're dead, you'll go inside."
"I know the plan, thanks. You better no hurt any civilian or I'll have your head", fiercely replied Akame.
Esdeath ignored the threat. She was used to.
The soldiers were in position, ready. Esdeath too. They advanced to the gate unnoticed, thanks to the ambient darkness and the laziness of the sentinels.
The main gate was twenty feet tall and eight large. It has been designed to let pass great amount of people and vehicles at the same time and resist assaults.
The others gates were built the same way and the northern one, –which the Revolutionary Army took to enter the city– only fell before a giant mounted ram.
One thousand foot soldiers without siege engines could never take this one.
But Esdeath was there.
As she stood before her troops, proud and strong, she lifted a finger.
"Grauhorn!"
A monstrous horn of ice as large as an Earth Dragon appeared at Esdeath's side,and heavily moved towards the gate.
With a terrible noise, it literally crushed it, shattering it to pieces, leaving only ruins at its emplacements.
A dusty cloud invaded the area, while the sentinels, brutally awakened by this unmerciful attack, showed themselves on the rampart to see what was going on.
Esdeath did not let them a single chance.
"Weissschnabel!"
On her hand gesture, dozens of icicles rows appeared and flew to perforate flesh, bones and skulls.
In less than a minute, the Strongest of the Empire had destroyed the main gate and cleared the high wall of most of its defenders.
All this under the stupefied eyes of Akame and the ovations of her battalion.
"March fast, we have to reach the palace as soon as possible!" she cried.
The night was full of boots noises and moans of agony.
Music to my ears, Esdeath thought .
Thanks to the rapidity of Esdeath's assault, they had no trouble to reach the palace's crossroad. On their way, they met some patrols but quickly get rid of them.
Like the Capital itself, the palace was protected by a large circular wall. The only access was a gate located south of the rampart.
All the streets leaded to the palace, but only the three main ones converged to the gate. It was an easy place to defend in case of attack : the defenders could dress barricades and move quickly, whilst the attackers would have to progress through the maze of buildings under constant fire.
Besides, in these streets, number didn't count. A hundred soldiers could easily hold a thousand.
As soon as they arrived, Esdeath used her Grauhorn again to destroy the gate the same way she did for the first.
When the guards in faction tried to go out, an ice blender welcomed and mashed them into pulp.
"Go", Esdeath told Akame. "Reinforcements will surely come in no time, so before long, this place will be a battlefield."
"How much time can you buy me?" asked Akame, looking at the rows of soldiers who were taking position around them.
"Dunno, so you better hurry. Oh, one more thing".
She gave Akame a frozen glare.
"Don't think about coming back without the Teigu".
Akame left without a word. It would've been useless to answer, because she didn't intend to come back empty handed.
(If I want to apply the escape plan, I have to spare my stamina since I used Grauhorn at this scale two times in a row), Esdeath thought .
"Listen up, men!" she called. "I want three hundreds of you on each street, shield wielders at vanguard. The remaining one hundred, take position at the palace's gate and take care of the guards coming from this way!"
To summarize, Esdeath and her troops were surrounded. They had to deal with the southern, western and eastern streets and with the gate of the palace that would soon spill dozens of guards.
Their advantages were their modern gear, their training, the narrowness of the streets…and of course, their General.
(It'll be a battle on four different fronts. I guess they are preparing themselves before attacking,and asking why we didn't enter the palace after breaking the gate… which gives us some time.)
They positioned themselves at the center of the crossroad and formed a square.
Ten minutes later, they heard a rumbling and ranks of men wearing the Revolutionary Army uniform appeared between the buildings.
Esdeath, who was standing on an ice pillar she created at the center of the square, looked at the situation. The Revolutionary Army probably coordinated its forces to attack at the same time.
She wanted to join the battle herself, but decided to assume the functions of operator and field monitor. Her soldiers were brave and powerful, but they needed to be correctly directed.
The Revolutionary Army warriors began to charge with loud warcries.
At this signal, a troop of guards from the palace came through the gate, engaging the one hundred men Esdeath put there.
(This attack is scattered and disorganized), Esdeath noticed. (They were probably waiting for reinforcements… I won't have to bother about it.)
She reported her attention on the three groups coming from the streets.
"Long range weapons", calmly ordered Esdeath.
The riflemen took position in perfect lines, sheltered behind the shields of their comrades.
Esdeath gauged the distance with an expert eye. When she judged that they were in their range :
"Rain fire on them."
On her words, her soldiers began to shoot, each line kneeling down after having fired to allow the next one to aim without fearing friendly fire.
The ones standing were shooting while the ones knelt were reloading, allowing a constant bullet rain on their foes.
This continuous fire made the enemy stop for a while, as more corpses were falling down and incommoding the living ones.
However, thanks to their number, the warriors continued to advance.
"Close quarter combat!" Esdeath ordered, when she estimated that firearms were useless.
The entire square, excepted the men fighting at the palace's gate, prepared for the melee.
As the enemies were getting closer and closer from everywhere, Esdeath felt a chill of pleasure, the same chill that ran through her every time she was about to fight.
She did not resist the urge of shouting the Empire's war cry.
"EMPIRE'S SWORDS!" she roared.
"UPON THE FILTH!" screamed back her men.
When the first ranks clashed, shield against spears, spears against armors, swords against swords, you would've sworn that a thousand blacksmiths were hitting their anvils at the same time.
The noises of metal impacts mixed with screams of pain and agony as the battle truly began.
Meanwhile, Akame was silently yet swiftly running though the corridors of the palace.
Thanks to Esdeath and her men, most of the guards had already rushed outside to fight the supposed invaders.
(Last floor, east wing, she told me. Well guarded, even situations of siege and attacks.)
The probabilities of meeting someone were still high, so she was careful not to alert anyone by making a fuss.
She needed to recover Black Marlin as soon as she could and escape before Teigu users showed themselves.
Fortunately, she didn't encounter any soldier or sentinel until she reached the vault. There, around thirty soldiers who looked like veterans were guarding the door.
(I have no choice but to neutralize all of them), Akame gloomily thought.
She had no chance to reach the imposing door of the vault without being attacked. Besides, she didn't have the key; it was the captain of the guards in faction who did.
(No. Not neutralize. I can't afford to knock out them. If one awakes while I'm searching for the Teigu…)
She came to a sad yet definitive conclusion.
(I have to kill them.)
She loathed that. She hated the simple fact of thinking about it.
(I will do it for Tatsumi. This is all for Tatsumi), she told herself. It was the only way to justify her actions.
(It doesn't matter in the end. With all the lives I've taken, if there's a hell, I'm surely promised to it. If I kill people to save the one I love, I will not regret it… But I will not enjoy it.)
She firmed her resolve. She was ready.
Akame flipped the switch.
(BURY!)
With a single step, she flew towards the guards.
Before they could notice her, she had cut five of them with Murasame, condemning them to death.
While they were convulsing on the ground, affected by the Teigu's deadly curse, she slashed four more men, including the captain.
Bereft of their commander, the remaining soldiers hesitated ; retreat or attack? Even if they were veterans, they realized that there was no ideal course of action against Akame.
And so, they began to panic.
"We need backup!" shouted a soldier wielding a spear. "Retreat!"
"Fuck that! If we surround her, she's done for!"
The one who said that made the mistake of advancing thinking his comrades would follow him. None did.
Murasame sliced his throat within a millisecond.
(Twenty targets. All in sight. Proceed to elimination).
Akame was in her bury mode. No emotion reached her, neither did the screams of the soldiers.
When five of them tried to protect themselves behind their shields, she simply kicked one to destroy their formation, and with a large movement, Murasame settled their fate.
The soldiers were running, now. They understood that in an open space, they had no chance against the One-Cut Killer and its merciless wielder.
Akame took them out one by one, even those who begged, cried or screamed.
When she killed the last one, she came back to the corpse of the captain, took the key he wore at his neck, and inserted it in the door's lock.
(This is for Tatsumi), she repeated to herself, ignoring the smell of the blood on the floor.
Without a single creaking, the vault door opened, slowly pivoting on its hinges.
"On the left! Don't let pass a single one!"
"Backups coming from the western gate!"
"Don't advance too far, you'll get separated from us!"
The battle in front of the palace was still ongoing.
Esdeath's troops had the upper hand on the Revolutionary Army soldiers. One of the reasons was that Esdeath was systematically targeting the officers.
With their chain of command beheaded, the enemies could not reorganize their lines nor focus their strikes.
And during this time, Esdeath's men were slaughtering them. Well protected by their armor, not fearing bullets or swords, they seemed invincible.
Only seemed though. In twenty minutes of battle, Esdeath had lost twenty five men. In comparison with the enemy's losses, it was laughable, but she needed every single one of her soldiers.
(Something's off), she thought as she threw an ice javelin to a high ranked horseman. (We're holding and butchering them, but for some reason, they don't seem discouraged…)
She stepped back to observe the battlefield, and found what she suspected.
Behind the enemy lines, but not too far away from the fight, a young man was playing a flute.
This flute was a Teigu : Scream. One of Esdeath's subordinate wielded it before being killed by Night Raid.
It was used to hypnotize people and manipulate their spirits in many ways. One of them was to raise their morale and fighting spirit.
(So they had Teigu users ready to act... This one's a bother, I'll take care of him.)
She materialized several ice spears and sent them to the musician, but suddenly, two little axes cut them as they were flying.
The axes came back in the hand of a woman with tan skin and fused to become one big axe.
(Belvaac… Deidara's former Teigu, who can separate into homing smaller ones…)
"Target : ESDEATH!" shouted a man.
She sliced with her rapier five arrows that were coming at her. Far away, she saw a silhouette backing away, bearing a great bow.
She recognized it. It was "l'Arc-Qui-Ne-Faut", a bow Teigu. By shouting the target's name, the arrows would go after it until they'd hit.
Esdeath killed the previous wielder, a fool who tried to defeat her with it. She didn't even bother about the Teigu, finding it boring and plain as hell.
(He wants me to go after him and isolate me from my soldiers), she understood.
She would have no problem to deal with them, but her men would die without her.
(They need me and I need them for now. But if I don't go after the Teigu users, they will continue to harass me and my troops. It has turned into a battle of attrition.)
She smiled. This was because she liked the battlefields so much : they were never boring.
(However, staying here too long will become an issue. If they bring more Teigu users, my soldiers won't stand a chance. Even if they're weak, while they deal with the rabble, I'm free to guide the battle as I wish to.)
She made up her mind.
"Don't push them too far! Step back slowly to drag them! Full retreat in ten minutes!" she told her soldiers.
(If Akame get killed, I swear I'll find a way to bring her back to life to torture her), she coldly thought.
The Teigu vault looked like a small museum. There were 48 pedestals, one for each Teigu, even though many of them had been destroyed or lost.
It seemed that the room has been built centuries ago, and yet none of the previous Emperors had it modified. Akame could feel the scent of antic power.
The majority of the pedestals were empty, but several ones had a closed box on them.
On the other hand, all of them had a page of an old book was attached to it, giving the name and the powers of a Teigu, as well as its story.
Unfortunately for Akame, they were not sorted by alphabetical order…nor sorted at all.
She began to search Black Marlin, reading the descriptions of the smaller boxes : it was obvious that it would be stocked in a rather tiny one.
(There!)
A page with a drawing of the Teigu. It looked like exactly as Esdeath said. Akame quickly opened the box.
Which was empty.
Panting, Akame was reflecting as fast as she could. If the box was empty, it meant that the Teigu was either lost or used by someone.
Esdeath said that it has been taken from her subordinate before. But what if the Army used it during the battle of the Capital and lost it?
If the Teigu still existed, she still had to find it…or its user, who could be anywhere in the Capital or in the camps surrounding the city.
(What should I do? Escape now? Take as many Teigus as I can and offer a trade to the Army if they still have Black Marlin? Start searching on my own? But Tatsumi doesn't have long to live…)
Because of her thoughts, Akame didn't notice nor feel the two people whom arrived at the entrance of the vault.
In fact, she noticed them only when they attacked.
"Extase!" cried a woman's voice.
Akame immediately turned back only to be blinded by a purple light coming from the giant scissors Teigu.
Thanks to her reflexes, she dived to the right. With that move, she avoided multiples spears threw at her, but one of them scratched her left side.
(What was that attack right now? This spear didn't have the cold of the steel…it was rather warm.)
Carefully, she looked at her opponents whom were blocking the exit of the vault.
A woman wearing a bandana and a scarf, carrying Extase, the Teigu that her friend Sheele used to wield.
A tall man with a large coat and an inexpressive mask hiding his face, pointing here with his fist.
She noticed the ring on his finger.
(That's it…that's Black Marlin!)
There was no mistake. It was what she was seeking for.
(But it is said to manipulate water. There is no water here, how did he attack me?)
Akame saw the blood on the floor. The long vertical marks, which resembled spears.
(No way… He used the blood of the guards I killed at the entrance?)
The situation didn't look good. Akame was facing two Teigu wielders, with a great handicap : she didn't want to kill them.
Also, she still hesitated : should she bring back Black Marlin's user alive, so they wouldn't have to search for a compatible user if none of them was?
But what if he rejected their request?
(Well, in that case, I'm pretty sure Esdeath would 'persuade' him...)
Keeping an eye on her opponents, she took a look at her wound. She was slightly losing blood, but the injury wasn't serious. However, she would not move at her full capacity.
Akame breathed in and out, and put back Murasame in its sheet. She'd go bare hands : the old fashioned way.
(Objective : knock them out and retrieve the Teigu Black Marlin…)
She adopted a fight posture.
(…with or without its user.)
Most of the people who knew Akame only by reputation thought she was strong because of her Teigu.
Of course, the One-Cut-Killer was a great threat but because of that, they often underestimated Akame herself. After all, killing someone doesn't require a Teigu.
She wasn't just a girl wielding a deadly katana. She was a former Elite Seven, those who had been chosen to become the greatest assassins of the Empire.
Akame, since her youngest age, had been trained to kill. Not to offer a fair and beautiful fight but to kill the opponent with a 100% success rate.
But most of her enemies didn't know that.
So, when they saw Akame putting back Murasame to its sheet, the two Teigu users she was fighting imperceptibly and unconsciously loosened up.
It was their first mistake but not their last.
The Teigu vault was quite large, enough to allow a two on one battle. However, the stone pedestals were bothering the woman wielding Extase.
She could've cut through them but didn't want to take the risk of destroying a Teigu stored in the boxes.
Thanks to that, Akame just had to stay near the pedestals, where her opponent would only launch vertical strikes, easily avoidable.
The one wearing Black Marlin was a pain in the ass but not dangerous. He wasn't yet used to his Teigu.
His attacks were powerful and well executed, but linear and repetitive. This was the proof that he didn't consider his weapon as a part of himself, but as a tool.
However, Akame was purposely avoiding the attacks but from an inch. She progressively let the blood spears graze her skin, and feigned to stumble when dodging the scissors.
It was all an act. An act to make them believe that if they were willing to take more risks, get closer to increase the accuracy of their strikes, they would hit her.
And little by little, they did. Two reasons to that.
First, they weren't assassins. They were soldiers. The gap between these two was gigantic.
The soldiers were taught to fight in rows, to never give up a fight, to obey the orders. The officers often had a sense of honor and fair play that they would transmit to their men.
The assassins were taught to kill the enemy, no matter what was the method as long as it was efficient and working.
Second, Akame's opponents wanted to believe that they could defeat her.
This is a common phenomenon, present in each and every human being : when you want something to happen or to be, your unconscious will interpret signs everywhere to persuade you that your wish is coming true.
For example, one who loves another will see signs that this person loves her too ; one who waits the results of a competition will persuade himself he did better than the others ; one who believes in ghost will see ghosts… The list is endless.
And so, by letting them graze her, Akame sent to her enemies multiples signals, captured by their unconsciouses.
To their eyes, Akame was wounded, not using Murasame, and barely dodging their assaults. They didn't see through her play, and worst, actually believed that they had the upper hand.
This was their second and last mistake.
Akame dodged a new Extase strike. It has been two minutes that her opponents were close enough for her to take action.
(I definitely can't bring this man back. He'll slow me, and I don't want to be tortured by Esdeath if he refuses to help us…)
Five blood dragons-shaped spears came to her. She used Murasame's sheet to block them.
(So…time to end this.)
As the Black Marlin's user was moving to obstruct her retreat, she suddenly turned towards him, and closed the distance between them in one step.
The man, surprised, tried to riposte, but Akame knocked him out with a single strike to the neck.
She was turning her back to the Extase's user, in purpose. She saw a silver shine, crouched and put the man's hand where she was standing one second ago.
The giant scissor cut through flesh and bones like it was a paper sheet. The man, who was unconscious, woke up and screamed as his hand, now separated from his arm, was now held by Akame.
"Fuck!" shouted the woman when she was what she had done.
Akame, as fast as a lightning, kicked her while she was distracted by the injury she inflicted to her ally, sending her fly and meet the vault's wall with a loud noise.
She fell on the ground, unconscious.
Akame removed the Teigu from the hand, dropped the latter and looked at the man who was bleeding and hyperventilating.
"Hold your arm tight", she told him. "If you can stop the bleeding, you will live."
And she simply left the room.
(Mission accomplished), she thought, the ring in her hand.
The night was still dark, however, it somewhat began to become a little bit brighter.
"Fall back!" shouted Esdeath.
Her men calmly retreated to the palace's gate, maintaining a distance with the Revolutionary Army's soldiers by firing at them.
"Everyone is here?" asked Esdeath.
"All the living ones, General!"
"Good. Get ready to apply the retreat plan!"
"Yes, General!"
Esdeath concentrated her power and joined her hands.
"Mahapadma!"
Within an instant, she froze time and space. She had spared her stamina only to execute her trump card in a large radius.
The time, in the entire Capital, was now stopped. But it wouldn't last long.
As everyone excepted her was immobilized, she summoned giants stalagmites all around her, under the streets, the houses, and the Revolutionary Army's warriors.
When the ice met the blood, the effects of Mahapadma dispelled and the time resumed his course.
The three streets, which were full of soldiers one moment ago, were now ice hells covered with corpses and submerged with ice spikes.
Esdeath, who had cleared the streets from all living being, shouted at her men.
"What are you waiting for? Apply the plan!"
Recovering their minds, they did as she ordered and all pressed a button located in their gauntlets.
This button activated a mechanism which separated the full plate armors from their owners within a few seconds.
The sound of metal meeting the stone pavement invaded the atmosphere, as hundreds of them fell down.
Under their armors, Esdeath's men were all wearing the Revolutionary Army's uniform.
"Go, now, before reinforcements arrive!" she told them. "Scatter in the streets by little groups, and you should be able to escape with all that chaos! If you can't pass through the barrages, get rid of your clothes and hide for a while!"
She hesitated. According to the plan, they were now separating. She would never see her soldiers again.
Esdeath wasn't a sentimental one – excepted when it came to Tatsumi –, but she didn't feel like leaving without a goodbye.
"Thanks to all of you. Be safe."
On these words, she wrapped ice around her, and took her flight, while her men sneakily escaped through the narrow streets to the favor of the night.
She could've wipe the enemy like this before, but there was no use.
The point of this operation was to make a fuss, to lure the enemies here, not to obliterate them. Besides, using Mahapadma and such powerful attacks was tiring, even for her.
(If Akame is half-skilled as the rumors say, she should be done by now.)
When Esdeath reached the cabin, Akame was already sit in a chair of the living room, calm but covered in blood.
The Doctor was stitching a wound on her side, but she looked totally indifferent. Wave and Kurome were converting the space into an operation room.
Esdeath didn't bother with civilities.
"Do you have it?"
"Of course."
Akame showed her the ring. Esdeath recognized it and nodded.
"Can you now explain to us why do we need this Teigu to save Tatsumi?"
"Of course. I told you that the biggest issue with Tatsumi's state was the blood loss. However, Black Marlin's trump card is to manipulate…blood. So with this Teigu, we can transfuse someone extremely quickly...in theory. I don't think anybody else ever thought to use this Teigu for medical purposes."
"I see. What do we do now?"
"Once I'm done with Akame, we'll take care of Tatsumi."
He put out of his bag some dressings and started to bandage Akame's side.
"Akame, give them the Teigu. I want them to try it, see if they're compatible with."
Kurome raised her hand.
"What about the Teigu limitation rule? We can only wield one Teigu, not two. Since I don't have one anymore, I'm alright, but what about you?"
"In fact, you cannot wield two Teigus at the same time, but being compatible and using two is possible", explained Akame. "Najenda is an example. Before being wounded by Esdeath, she was wielding Pumpkin. But after that, it appeared that she was compatible with Susanoo and able to use his trump card."
"I see…" nodded Kurome while equipping Black Marlin.
She immediately had a grimace and quickly removed the Teigu from her finger.
"It hurts my head", she whimpered.
"A reject", commented the Doctor. "Not an issue. Pass it to the others, please".
Kurome handed it to Akame, who handed it to Esdeath, who handed it to Wave…who kept the Teigu.
"Wave, pass it to the Doctor", ordered Esdeath.
"Hem…I'm fine, you know?"
"Stop joking around. Give it. Now."
"But I'm really fine!" he insisted.
Akame, Kurome and Esdeath gave him an incredulous look.
"Hey, what's with your faces? Don't give me these glares!"
"Sorry", apologized Akame. It's just…kinda surprising.
"This Teigu must be a dummy", commented Kurome.
"Stop it! I'm telling you it's ok! Doctor, what's next?"
"We have to achieve the preparations. I'll explain the procedure once we're ready."
They cleared the living room, took out all the chairs and the furniture to manage a space large enough to lay Tatsumi down.
The Doctor prepared several tools, medicines, and made a few tests with his Teigu, Perfector.
Dawn was near when he achieved his tries.
"Alright, we're set."
They carefully brought Tatsumi's body in the room and assembled around it.
"What we're going to do now is a premiere", started the Doctor. "I don't think something comparable has been tempted before. I will do everything I can to heal Tatsumi, but I need you to listen and obey me, only for a while."
He hesitated.
"I can't predict what will happen to Tatsumi after this... He also could be dead without us knowing it. We could accidentally turn him into some kind of zombie. Are you ready to take care of him, whatever happens?"
Everyone nodded.
"Good. Esdeath, on my signal, you will progressively unfreeze Tatsumi. Unfreeze only the parts I will tell you ; I will stitch and cure his wounds with my Perfector and tools as time goes by."
"Got it."
"Once we're done with the injuries of his body, you'll unfreeze his head ; I'll quickly treat it, and during this time, Wave will transfuse his blood to Tatsumi. I'll tell you where and when. Do you have questions?
Esdeath, Wave and Kurome began to talk at the same time.
"Only one at a time, please", said Akame.
"Will it be dangerous for Wave?" asked Kurome. "From what I understood, Tatsumi lost a lot of blood…if Wave gives him his, will he suffer or have issues?"
"Yes and no. Wave will give around a third of his blood to Tatsumi. It will be an effort, for sure, but won't put his life on the line. I can certify that."
Esdeath took over.
"The transfusion will be extremely fast and powerful", she said. "Will Tatsumi's blood vessels withstand this much pressure? And what about blood compatibility? We can't transfuse one to each other's blood like this, there are risks of reject!"
The Doctor smiled.
"Since Tatsumi highly trained his entire body, I think his organism will be able to endure this forced and powerful transfusion", he answered. "About blood compatibility, rest assured, I made some tests : it appears that Tatsumi is an universal receiver. He can receive the blood of anybody without any issue."
Esdeath crossed her arms. It was her way to show that she didn't have anything to say.
"By the way, Doc'", said Wave. "How am I supposed to do…that? I mean, the transfusion… I never used this Teigu, and you're asking me such a thing…"
"Just imagine, visualize that you're moving it. Create the movement in your head, and you'll have it reach your goal. At least, that's what the records say about this Teigu. You can train with water while we treat Tatsumi's other injuries. But train fast and well."
"If you fail, Wave, you know what awaits you", threatened him Esdeath.
With Esdeath and the Doctor's dexterity, they managed to take care of Tatsumi's wounds pretty quickly.
When they came to the transfusion, Wave had managed to master the Teigu enough to accomplish his task.
The Doctor ordered him to slit one of his veins, did the same for Tatsumi, and linked them with a small pipe.
He then ordered Wave to increase the blood flux at his maximum, while he was looking over his pressure and tension.
This delicate operation lasted less than forty seconds, and yet, it was by far the most testing for all of them.
Wave nearly collapsed once it was finished, but Kurome supported him.
The Doctor performed several tests and checks on Tatsumi, now totally defrost and covered of dressings from head to toe.
He finally smiled and sighed out of relief.
"He's alive and out of danger. We did it…"
Akame felt the pressure which was crushing her heart for days finally disappear.
Esdeath seemed relieved, Wave and Kurome exchanged a happy gaze.
"We just have to wait for him to awake", said the Doctor. "Let's clean up the room and drink something to celebrate!"
And so they did. After having laid Tatsumi on a couch, right in the middle of the room, they put back the chairs to sit, and had a drink.
They all took wine from the Doc's own supplies, excepted Kurome and Akame who had apple juice.
"I was wondering…was it the right thing to do?" muttered Akame.
The real question was "is it okay for us to take that many lives for our friend's sake?" but everyone understood.
"Of course", said Esdeath. "Letting him die would've been worse. I would've tormented myself forever if I didn't save him…"
"What the hell? You only saved him because I persuaded you. Before that, you were saying stuff like weaklings die, nothing more!"
Wave interrupted them before they would fight.
"I don't think we have the right to decide if it was good or evil. We did what we did. We saved a comrade, a friend. Someone we all like or respect. Akame, General, you both killed for Tatsumi. If I were you, I would not regret it, but I would not enjoy it."
He shrugged.
"It's up to you anyway. But I don't think Tatsumi would want you to torture yourselves with that."
"Wave, you said something cool and useful", cheered him Kurome. "I'm proud of you!"
"Hey!"
(This is thanks to Esdeath, and her plan), Akame thought. (Still, I can't bring myself to thank her. She has done too much awful things…as I did too, but…)
Akame also somewhat feared her reaction.
(What if Tatsumi, when he awakes, tells me right away that he loves me, in front of Esdeath?)
She checked that she was still bearing Murasame. If things went wrong, she'd maybe have to fight before the end of the day…
The sunlight began to light the room, previously only illuminated by candles.
Suddenly, Tatsumi slightly moved and moaned.
They all pressed up around him, watching all his movements.
"Mmh…gnnn…"
He continued to stammer and move for several moments. Until he opened his green, beautiful eyes.
Akame and Esdeath warmly smiled, as Wave chuckled.
"Tatsumi", whispered Esdeath, blushing.
Akame took his hand, and gazed at him as he did the same.
Her red eyes dived into his green eyes.
"Welcome home, Tatsumi", she said.
A worried and confused look appeared on Tatsumi's face, with his forehead covered in bandages.
He looked closely at Akame and asked :
"Who are you?"