…
Hey wassup, I'm back!
It's been…awhile…but hey i haven't abandoned this story, and i don't plan to.
This was meant to be longer, buuuuuuuuut the second half was difficult asf so I'm just gonna postpone that for later.
So...sorry for the short chapter.
Lord knows this would have never come out if I had been stubborn and waited to finish the next half.
But besides that…everything is starting to pick up again. So hopefully I'll be able to update more often from now on.
Anyhow enough about me, that's for the end notes. Onto the story.
Chapter 8: Chosen Truth
"Prostate yourselves before me." his voice betrayed his now female appearance. It was as deep and menacing as the day he had come to their aid.
The first test for the lower moons. To judge their worth.
They had failed spectacularly.
5 heads came crashing down to the wooden floor. Hands appraised in front of them as if they were worshiping a god.
Besides, said 'woman' was a young woman, kneeling. Her black hair covers her features. With an almost undetectable presence.
Agonizing silence took over.
Muzan stared at each of the 5 lower moons.
The albino haired girl, with horns protruding from her forehead, and red marks on her cheeks. She spoke up first. Her voice quivering with profound respect and fear.
"P-Please forgive us my lord! We didn't realize you had assumed a different form so-"
"Who granted you permission to speak?" his voice refused to change from its commanding demeanor.
She flinched and trapped her mouth shut the moment he interrupted her.
"Don't presume to voice your worthless thoughts to me."
She started sweating bullets at her mistake. She slumped her head onto her hands in silence.
"Answer my questions, and my questions. Only."
The lower moons all fell silent as the castle provided no noise from the outside world.
No birds singing.
No wind blowing, rustling the grass tenderly.
No breathes to be wasted.
No insects.
Just Muzan's unholy gaze upon them.
"The lower five was killed. Again."
Muzan let that settle in for them to make sure they grasp the situation.
"So I have but one, single question for all of you. Why is it that the lower Blood Moons are so utterly weak?"
None of the heads dared to flinch under the discerning eyes of their lord and master. Not a single muscle twitched. Their eyes pointed directly to the ground.
"Joining the ranks of the Blood Moons should not be enough to satisfy you." He exclaimed, as if it was the most obvious thing to me.
"This is merely your starting point."
"You must devour more humans, to obtain more power…"
"That is the path to making yourselves useful to me."
One of the heads started grinding his teeth in silence.
Not out of frustration.
But out of fear.
"The members of the upper Six have remained unchanged for centuries. They have always been the ones to dispose of those Hashira's."
"But what of the lower Six? How many times have you been replaced?"
One of the other heads, one with orange tips. He had a vertical and horizontal green line going across his face. He appeared to be rather skittish, upon further inspection, he held some molecule of self respect. Muzan didn't care, as long as he knew his place.
And the lack of discipline to not think out loud. Not in the talking manner, but in a less literal manner. Muzan resisted the urge to scoff.
A prideful coward. A bonafide idiot. How did he make it this far?
'Easy for you to say, but we-' The demon thought to himself, trying his best to hold his tongue. He decided that thinking was a good way to voice his grievances without having to face consequences.
"Easy for you to say, but we…What is it? Go ahead. Enlighten me." he mocked with that same indiscernible look.
The demon nearly shitted himself in fear.
'He-he can read my mind?! I'm screwed!'
"'Screwed' how exactly?"
He lifted his head aggravatingly.
"Tell me. Finish that thought." Muzans face veins began bulging slightly, his discernable face now morphed into pure annoyance.
Muzan snatched the young demon by his leg. Before he could even react.
Before the child knew it, he was dangling from the lovecraftian arm of the demon king a couple feet from the ground.
The arm was twice the size of Muzans body, darkened with streaks of blood running across it, eyes protruding from the limb. Darkened with no hint of life. He had no issue controlling it.
It was a show of strength to some. A showing of the inevitable to others. And to one it was pure bliss incarnate.
The demon child began pleading for his life, tears falling from his face, desperation evident in his tone. Despite the apparent immobilization of his body.
"Please forgive me, Lord Kibutsuji! Please! Please show me mercy!"
The other lower moons continued bowing their heads in expectant fear of what was to come for them.
"I'm truly sorry! I'm truly sorry! I'm truly-"
Swiftly and vagrantly, a monstrous mouth chewed on flesh and bone, the crushing sounds sending chills as the demon kicked and screamed to try and escape.
But the grip was far too strong. He screamed and screamed, pleading for mercy. However none would come for him.
One head had been terminated, his regeneration never kicked in, as blood splattered over the remaining heads.
Then the monstrous entity burped. The lovecraftian arm went back into Muzan, despite them being much larger, Muzan had no trouble in his absorption of the boy, the beast, and the normalization of his arm.
The kimono barely even shifted from the rapid movements. He went back to normal in but only a few seconds. As if the shifting in mass had no bearing to a dignified being such as himself.
'Why is this happening?' another demon with scars dotting his face thought to himself.
'Am I next? Is he going to kill me? After everything I went through to become a Blood Moon?'
'Why? Why?!'
'This was supposed to be my stepping stone towards greater things!'
His eyes quivered at the thought, and quickly silenced himself. Feeling Muzan's gaze being directed towards him. It lasted for a few seconds. Until Muzan looked to address the group again.
"Do you fear the demon slayers more than me?"
"No!" the white haired girl said quickly. Bouncing up desperately to address her master. However futile they are in front.
Muzan bore into her skull. He grew tired of the excuses and blatant lies. He saw the truth, the exact moments, the memories.
"I'm sure when you run into a Hashira level human, your only thoughts are those of escaping."
"I-i'd never do that! I'd put my own life on the line in order to fight for you!"
"You're not contradicting what I just said are you?"
Her eyes opened slightly wider, tears of fear poured from out her body as she shook in dread.
The arm beast came with a hungry growl. It lunged at her, and devoured her, she grunted, tried to resist, but she'd soon meet the same fate of the orange tipped demon. Her neck was snapped in twain as the entity lunged at her in a mere instant.
Blood splattered again. 3 heads remaining.
'It's all hopeless! Our minds are being read, and whether we agree or disagree. He's going to kill us!'
The scarred demon stole a peak at the beast, as it devoured the girl's entire body with little effort.
'We can't beat him in a fight….'
He looked up at Muzan, he was still focused on the girl.
'In that case….'
He flexed his cabs. And jumped. Leaping off the platform, a small burst of air was the after product as he seemingly afterimaged away.
One of the remaining two heads looked up in confusion and back. Realizing what his comrade had done. He returned to his resting position.
He began sprinting across the labyrinth. Dashing and leaping from caverns throughout the floating corridors of the castle. Light seemed nonexistent here. Not that it mattered to them.
'I just need to make it out of here somehow, and now that I'm far away i-!'
He took another step.
It was like a blur. There wasn't any sound.
Blood splattered again, onto the floor.
The demon's eyes never closed, yet he couldn't figure out what had happened. He felt something gripping his head. He saw the other 2 demons who had stayed behind. One was shivering, the other stayed dead still.
"The twelve Kizuki are better off consisting of just the upper ranks. I will be dismantling the others."
'He got me? How?'
'Was it that Biwa's player technique? No, I didn't hear it make any sounds!'
'I can't…regenerate my body…"
He tried to groan, but his mouth failed to open, his face muscles didn't even register his thoughts.
'Why?'
Muzan callously threw the demon's head towards the last two lower moons, who seemed to know better than to flinch.
"Do either of you have any last words?"
One of the last two demons piped up, terrified of the progenitor of demonkind. He wore a kimono, and looked like an old man. He had a jagged beard.
"I can still be of use to you! If you could give me a short reprieve, I swear, I'll be of use to you!"
"Exactly how long are you asking for? How do you intend to make yourself useful? What precisely can you accomplish with your meager skills?"
"Your blood!"
Muzan's eyes seemed to glow in interest.
"Give me a share of your blood! And I will acclimate without fail!"
Muzans eyes dulled just as quickly as the demon dared to utter such a statement to his lord and master.
"I will fight for you, stronger than before!"
"What makes you think you can order me to give you my blood?"
The bearded demon flinched.
"Shameless would be an understatement. Know your place."
"You misunderstand! I-"
"Silence. I misunderstand nothing." Muzan replied with calm fury in his voice.
The demon's heart stopped, he felt his body immobilize as blood fell from his nose.
"I'm never mistaken about anything. I hold the authority. My word is absolute. You have no right to object to my words. Whatever I say is correct by default."
"It is not for you to refute…And yet you tried to give me instructions."
"That act merits death."
"No-"
Blood splatters again. There was only one head. He was still, having said nothing since he kneeled, he barely thought anything.
Muzan turned his attention to the last lower moon.
The scarred demon head could tell…..
"Do you have any last words?"
'This was the end!
Such was the will of the demon king.
Muzan Kibutsuji'
No animals.
No enforcers.
No drugees.
No homeless.
No gangs.
Not even a breeze in the wind.
Aggggfgggggffffffffuaaaaaaack!
He held it in pain as another wave of hunger struck him. He could feel his stomach eating itself. He felt like he got punched by Velocity himself.
He kicked a trash can over. Instead of going through the wall or even denting it, it just bounced off with a loud crash, trash went everywhere across the alleyway in god knows where he was at now.
He eyed the trash with vitriol.
Why did he have to be the fucking vampire guy?
It was hard to make sense of things. Everything seemed to blend in on each other. Like a script that's two bits from a finale yet to come.
The sounds, the smells. Like an arrangement of colors and fragrances that refused to be coherent in his mind. Like a picasso that had some meaning, but he couldn't focus enough to grant any meaningful response. He'd see strange things, of places of people, of people of places. He even saw a castle, however he didn't try to make sense of it. He could hear blood gushing, screaming, yelling, flames, it all blended in with each other and made a horrid beeping screech. He saw a little girl in a hospital bed. He even saw a man with long black, red tipped hair and sun earrings-
"No luck?"
Chris was knocked out of his stupor and back to reality, the beeping stopped, replaced by rain. Then he saw the world as it was.
"That's much better. Don't you think?"
He put his pale hand across the wall. The street light dimmed in and out of existence. With a faint glow under the dramatically dark blue sky. The shadows seemed more extravagent and taunting than usual.
The street itself was busted, pot holes lined it with a strange tune that he couldn't fathom.
"Nothing. I feel tired."
"You're tired?" He replied genuinely surprised.
"Mentally. I don't know i…I feel like I'm losing touch with reality. With myself."
"Well you aren't yourself. Because it isn't you anymore."
Chris looked at him. A vexed, thin drool falling from his mouth as dark rings seemed to grow under eyelids.
With Muzan's help, Chris struggled to his feet in a daze. He felt some static go away.
"It's us now."
Chris's pained expression found peace with a tiny, weak giggle. It sounded like a door creaking open before it died off.
"Heh…thanks for the…never ending support."
"Anytime bro."
Muzan merely nodded.
"Hey…does every other Case 53 go through this? Or is it just me?"
Muzan looked up at the clouds, it seemed he was waiting on something.
"I don't know."
So it was just him that got the shit end of the stick. Nothing unusual.
Then again it wouldn't be the first time wouldn't it?
"No it would not."
Before he really thought it might've been some sort of reincarnation of the japanese demon king from that old kung fu movie from…..1962? It was called Dance with Devils.
Shit it was based on an old legend…..
Muzan looked drasticallydifferent there. A fat obese demon who raped young girls. No hat, hell he rarely had clothes on.
Yet here in front of him, his worries felt soothed by the presence of his counterpart. Rocking the same exact name.
He couldn't be the same, that'd be just nonsense. Besides in the movie they trapped him and killed him with the sun. Doubt they'd deviate from whatever legend it stemmed from.
….or maybe it was him being biased towards wanting to think Muzan is good….regardless.
They are they. Muzan and Chris? Their one. And nothings going to change that.
Not imminent starvation.
Not the murder hobo death squad.
Not the endbringers.
Not golden man himself.
Less of an inner demon and more of an alternate personality turned long lost best friend. One he never knew he needed. Was it this fun actually talking to people? No wonder Dad enjoyed Danny's company. Talking was nice.
When it wasn't with buffoons.
His drool was thin now, if it could be called that, now it was almost a gassy foam that flowed out of his mouth. So little was there.
He really didn't want to die. Not now…..maybe not ever. But he can't deny…..he was tapped out, if not physically, then mentally.
"You won't, because I am here."
"What do you mean?"
"I'll watch over the body, find food, while you rest. You've done enough for tonight."
"Muzan…."
"No butts…you need your rest. You've more than earned it." He said with a kind smile.
Chris pondered for only a few seconds before relenting. Muzan was still him. It'd be like he never left.
"...alright." Chris began falling head first towards the ground.
However Muzan appeared and stopped him before he could hit the ground.
Muzan gently laid Chris out on the side of the street. On the curbside.
"I'll take good care of us…just sleep bro."
Chris closed his eyes as felt himself sink and push back into his mind palace.
He found himself in his old room again. The computer, the toys, the dresser, the bed.
He examined the window quickly…..it seemed to lead to the sky as it stretched across the infinite horizon.
He lifted the sheets as he stared at the bed. A memory of his mom tucking him in came to mind.
Her gentle touch, her kind smile, her welcoming presence.
He crawled into the bed. Tucked nice and tight. The smell of his old, dingy, dusty bed made him feel as comfortable as mom and dad were still here.
He decided Muzan was more than capable enough to do what he couldn't.
With that, he wept himself to sleep.
The body puts its hand on the ground unfamiliarly, softly caressing the concrete. Taxingly the muscles spasmed. Pressing against the earth. The blood circulated through the veins, the arteries, the capillaries. A familiar sense took hold as it scrunched itself onto its legs and overlooked its surroundings with new intrigue.
Then he opened his blood red sclera. He breathed in a long curdled breath.
He vanished.
He ran so fast the sound didn't seem to register his movements as he hopped. Building to building as silent as a ninja.
His feet hit the ground lightly as he leaped from one building to the next.
The buildings looked like tiny little props, a paper thin world that could be crumpled into a ball. Nothing was visible from this height, a bird's eye view. The colors of the buildings are muted, like a watercolor painting from a long time ago.
The streets are dark and desolate, the buildings dilapidated. The sky is a black slate, curved and endless with no beginning or end.
He eventually made it to the top of a large building. He eventually made it to the top of a large building's flat roof, his feet crunching against pebbles and dust. His legs groaned and buckled as he leaned over the edge and looked down at the ground far below. Cars zoomed by on streets like streaks of light with small dark shapes moving inside them. Cars that looked to be the size of mere toys.
His hair waved in the wind as he stood over the entire city of Brockton Bay.
It was majestic. Even Tokyo didn't compare to the size of this city.
Tokyo….Japan….
The more he thought about it. The more he wanted to smile gleefully and laugh out loud.
In a way, he had won. The bloodline that had...haunted him for centuries was gone now! It was finally vanquished.
He'd have to give his praise to the beast that had sunk Japan. In some ways it stung. Knowing he wasn't the one who could've personally had ended the land of the rising sun. But he wasn't going to complain. He wasn't even alive when that event happened.
Early bird gets the first worm after all.
…..it all seemed so off.
Buildings stretching towards the sky. A bomb capable of shattering mountains. An entire world of trash. A flying ship that takes people over the, what was thought to be infinite, ocean, within hours of course.
Chris's memories told him so much…..yet oh so little.
Machines that can achieve speeds only the most skilled were capable of. Weapons that may rival, if not surpass the might of his demonsfrom so long ago. Heroes…..some of which were fodder, others of whom he may convert, few of which could fight him at his peak strength. Uninhibited by the sciences of the past.
The endbringers that could rival the might of that man from so long ago.
The golden man that everyone revered and praised. A being bathed in a light as bright as the sun. A being that even he, at his peak, stood no chance against.
Again his body shook at the thought.
A being stronger than the sun?
The idea itself was baffling. More so the fact it had appeared only recently, instead of before in human history.
He felt a shiver go down his spine at that.
Things have changed. This was 2011.
He could see humans sleeping, drinking, fighting, arguing, procreating, wasting their lives away. Like everything was commonplace. Like they actually mattered in the slightest. Consumed by their sins and wants.
He could see one attempting to rape another woman.
He saw a man stab another man in the back.
He witnessed some guy get gunned down.
He glared at heroes scrambling around.
He seethed at the drugs being sold.
Even the ones with those strange bugs in their head seemed to waste their 'gifts'. It only made them presumptuous, irreversible, overconfident, complacent, annoying, unwilling, uncivilized, unrefined, unreliable, mentally compromised, foolish, ignorant, assumptive, terrifically dumb, psychopathic, and even violent.
His face reverted to a disgusted look as he stared at the inhabitants of Brockton Bay.
Things never change.
He distastefully glared at the mortal vermin beneath him. His eyes as sharp as a jagged dagger. Before turning his eyes to the bay itself. He spared only a few seconds as he squinted to what seemed to be a semblance of sunlight.
"About an hour…that should be enough."
One warehouse seemed to call out to him with a certain intensity, its windows hidden behind thick steel shutters. A potent mix of sweat and gasoline wafted in the air around it, with the faint scent of cigarettes and musk that tickled his nose...
No...there was something far stronger...mixed with something else.
The sweet smell of drugs and sex.
It was almost nostalgic.
He plotted a course towards the warehouse. Perhaps it was time for a test run with this starving body of his. And if any of these...villains got in his way.
He'd be happy to demonstrate to this new generation what true evil was...
...or maybe it was too early to reveal his full hand...perhaps it doesn't matter at all.
They'll all be dead soon.
And that's the end of that. Sorry it took so long. Schools been eating away at my life. Summer is coming up so hopefully I can establish a proper schedule.
Oh who am I kidding. I'm about to pass out on this like I did during spring break.
In all seriousness. This was a bit more difficult to write. Mostly because i didnt want to fuck it up, their was supposed to be another part to it. WHICH I AM NOT LOOKING FORWARD TO BUT AT THE SAME TIME I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO.
But I felt this was a good place to stop for tonight. So hopefully this is satisfactory. Again sorry for the shorter chapter. I wanted to get something out for yall.
Will attempt to post more on Ao3 as well. I haven't forgotten about that.
Anyhow thanks for reading this dumb story so far. Hopefully you got something out of this!
I'm about to go to slumber. So good night yall! Have a great week!