Disclaimer: I do not own the characters.
Phew, I had a lot of trouble writing this chapter up. I wanted to put more detail in my writing. I hope it came out alright. Anyway, thank you all so far for your reviews. They really keep me motivated to continue this story and update more frequently.
Superior
Chapter two
- sleepless in the wilderness -
I'm a demon. I'm a demon. I'm a demon. Ever since Michiru had told Haruka what she really was both hadn't spoken one word to each other. In response Haruka simply nodded her head as if to say she understood and started walking north. Michiru simply followed the blonde warrior. She obviously knew Haruka had some serious thinking to do and decided not to press the matter.
To Haruka, everything she knew or thought she knew had fallen to pieces. Demons who looked like humanbeings. Why couldn't they all have snakes on their heads or six wings. Atleast then she could recognize those damned bastards. Who knew how many demons she already passed on her way here. It wasn't like she would even know the difference now. That Michi girl even had her fooled.
What if the demon queen looked like a normal woman as well? That would make it even harder to kill her. Haruka thought it was terrible enough as it was that she actually had to kill someone or something. But the thought of having to kill something that might look human really troubled her. She always imagined the demon queen as some dark mysterious creature with black wings, black hair and a dark purple-like skin. Probably because some people in the village talked about the demon queen being the most evil and darkest creature among all of them.
Michiru, who was still walking behind the blonde warrior noticed someone follow them from the corner of her eye. She couldn't quite tell whether the person was human or a demon. He or she had to get a little closer to her. She usually was really great at smelling demons from a long distance. But unfortunately this forest was covered in the smell of the dead. She could tell many people died her while fighting for their lives.
The thought pained her. How could some demons just kill innocent people? Why couldn't they just kill the criminals? Michiru could still remember what the world looked like when she first arrived here. Everywhere were buildings, cars and people crossing the street without even worrying about devils or demons. When the demons arrived a long time ago they didn't try to control the human world. Not right away.
As the time went by more and more demons started to turn their backs to their queen and started to attack the humans. And before anyone even knew what was happening the world had turned into some kind of wasteland. It was as if the earth went back into time. A time where there was no electricity, cars, stores or even schools. Everyone was too afraid to go outside. And if they dared to leave their house it wouldn't be far.
Finally Michiru could identify the person who was following them as a demon. As he got closer she could clearly feel its killer intent. But it wasn't directed at her but Haruka instead. Deciding it would be better that Haruka wasn't bothered now Michiru snapped her fingers and smirked. Behind her the demon that had been following them burst into flames. And within two seconds there was nothing left of him besides ashes.
For now Michiru was going to protect this strange warrior. Besides, maybe she could actually push Haruka into killing the seraphim. The aqua haired demon had been too deep in thought to notice Haruka who had suddenly stopped, and bumped right into Haruka's back. ''Ouch,'' She muttered and rubbed her nose. ''Why did you stop?''
''I smell fire.'' Haruka replied causing Michiru to smile nervously.
''I smell nothing. You're probably getting tired from all that walking. There's a town close by. You could rest there.''
The blonde warrior turned around to face the smaller girl. ''I'm fine. What about you, aren't you tired yet?'' She asked. For a moment it looked like the blonde wasn't going to let the fact she was traveling with a demon bother her, but when Michiru looked closer she could clearly see a certain sign of loathing in Haruka's eyes.
''No. I don't sleep.'' Michiru replied. She knew it would've been better if she had lied about not sleeping but the look in Haruka's eyes somewhat made her feel uncomfortable and hurt. She wanted to upset Haruka just like she was upset right now. Although she had no idea why she was upset.
''Right.'' Haruka muttered. Michiru wasn't sure but she could swear she heard the blonde add something that sounded like an 'ofcourse you don't'.
Without saying anything else the blonde turned around and started to walk away again. The demon sighed and started to walk after the taller woman. She wondered if it was going to be like this the whole way to the north. This was no fun. She wanted to talk to Haruka about her mission. She wanted to convince the other not all demons were monsters.
It hadn't been until then Michiru noticed what village they were close to. It was a little village which had been taken over by demons completely. There were hardly any humans left. Which was not a big surprise considering the queen's castle being only a few miles away from here. Most people fled to the east. It was said there were no demons there. Ofcourse that was a lie started by the demons themselves. Somewhere along the way they lost their will to hunt the humans down and decided to just lure them to them.
A pointless way of killing. And no fun if you asked Michiru. Ever since the demons had taken over the earth she hadn't killed one person. Only a couple of demons who opposed the queen or attacked her without reason. ''Haruka, this village...'' The aqua haired girl started.
''I know.'' The other replied wryly. ''You're one of them aren't you? So I'll be safe as long as I'm with you. They won't hurt me if they think I'm your prey or something. I don't know how your minds work.''
Michiru was surprised by how much that last comment hurt. Pain was an emotion she wasn't used to having. ''Just like yours. Only we're smarter.''
''Smarter?'' Haruka tried her best not to laugh. ''You're foolish creatures who only care about killing. You have no respect for our kind at all.''
''Just like your kind has no respect for us. Not all of us demons eat humanbeings or kill them for fun. Some of us actually hope to live among your kind one day. In peace.'' The smaller girl shot back.
''Have you ever killed a human?'' Haruka now wanted to know.
Michiru snorted. ''If you really need to ask that I won't tell you the answer.''
''So that's a yes.''
''As a matter of fact, no. I haven't killed a human. Never. Besides, demons are not all friends. If you walk into the village full of hungry demons they might just kill you. Not like I would care. I'm just a lower level demon. I'm not as strong as most of them. I can hardly protect myself as it is.''
''Bullshit,'' The blonde warrior shot back. ''I'm not as naive as you think I am. I knew we were being followed. And I know you killed that creature by just snapping your fingers. Lower lever demon my human ass.''
Michiru swallowed. She hadn't realized Haruka had noticed any of it. Maybe this blonde wasn't as completely useless as she thought she would be. She might actually be a lot of fun if she played her cards right. ''But I did prove you wrong about your vision on demons, didn't I?'' The aqua haired girl said, quickly changing the subject.
''I still dislike your kind.''
''But you didn't know we could look like normal people.''
''I'm sure this isn't your true form.'' Haruka replied, stopping in her track once more. She didn't turn around though and just stood there as if she was waiting for Michiru to reply and confess.
Michiru's bad mood suddenly washed away as a giggle escaped her lips. ''Yes it is. This is what I look like and how I was born. I look just like you and the rest of your kind. I could ofcourse undress myself. You could search ever inch of my for something I'm not suppossed to have like wings.''
''That sounds rather perverted.'' Haruka couldn't help it but blush at the thought of seeing this girl naked. But the moment she realized her thought she shook it off. It was a disgusting idea. Michi was a demon for crying out loud! She would probably suck her soul out of her body the moment she touched her.
''Ah. So maybe you're secretly hoping I have a penis under this dress. Bad Haruka.'' Michiru couldn't help it but laugh upon seeing Haruka's face turn even more red than before. It made her wonder if the blonde warrior had ever seen anyone naked.
''I'm not into that kind of thing. I prefer...'' Haruka shook her head. Why was she even bothering to tell this demon girl about her preferences?
Michiru blinked a couple of times. It didn't hit her right away what Haruka had meant by those words. Until it was her turn to blush. ''You're a....''
The blonde finally turned around to face the smaller girl. ''So what? You want to be disgusted about it? Go ahead. We could be disgusted about each other.''
The aqua haired girl smiled sadly and shook her head. ''I'm not disgusted. It's just a surprise. I haven't met someone like you before. So when you see a pretty girl you want to have sex with her?''
''Does every guy who sees a girl want to have sex with her? I'm just a normal person. It doesn't change anything.'' Haruka said. Se suddenly felt rather guilty about her last comment to the smaller girl. Maybe it was the look on Michiru's face that made her feel weak all of a sudden.
''To answer that question; yes. Guys love sex. And we girls are just the same. Only we don't admit it. We might even be worse than the male population.'' The last part was added to a wink. ''Well, fine. Let's rest. I'll just pretend to be tired in order not to hurt your pride.''
''I don't need any rest.'' Haruka put a hand through her short blonde hair. ''I'm used to walking all day and not sleeping much.''
''But you are tired.'' Michiru stated matter-of-factly.
Haruka didn't like to admit it but it was true. She'd been walking without any rest for almost two days now. She had expected to have killed the demon queen by now. Instead she had to travel all the way north. And to make things worse she had to travel north with a demon girl who turned out to be not so bad. ''Alright. We could rest here. I don't feel comfortable sleeping in a demon village anyway. And a couple of hours of sleep would be very much apprectiated.''
''Good girl.'' Michiru smiled a bit and watched Haruka sit down against a tree. She could clearly see the tired look in Haruka's eyes she hadn't noticed before. She guessed humans really couldn't go without any sleep. Maybe that's why Haruka had been really nice earlier and was a bit on the grumpy side now. Ofcourse her confession could've played a big role in her change of character as well.
As Michiru sat down as well she could feel Haruka's eyes on her. Michiru just ignored it. She just hoped the blonde wasn't looking at her because she didn't trust her. It wasn't like Michiru was going to kill Haruka in her sleep or anything. She wondered if the other girl knew that.
The blonde warrior watched Michiru close her eyes as if she was asleep as well. She couldn't even begin to imagine what it would be like to never sleep. Not sleeping meant that the world never paused; there's no sense that today will end or tomorrow will come. She wondered what it would feel like to live in that monotonous time flow for decades.
''Hey Michi,'' Haruka started. ''What does the demon queen look like?'' She asked curiously. She had to know, after all it was her mission to kill that queen. It would come in handy to know what she looked like. At this point she could even look like as pretty as Michiru and Haruka wouldn't know.
''I don't know.'' Michiru replied, her eyes still closed. ''I never met her in person. They say she's really pretty though.''
''So,'' Haruka thought about it for a moment. ''She looks like a human as well?''
The smaller girl muttered something under her breath and finally opened her eyes. ''No, she has black wings. And when she smiles you can see her fangs. They look like vampire teeth. Atleast, that's what I've heard.''
''Good.'' Haruka sounded somewhat relieved by that answer. ''So, do you believe in god?''
Michiru's eyes met Haruka's green ones. ''Do you?''
The blonde warrior thought about her own answer for a moment. After everything she'd seen and after everything that had happened, after all the prayers she had sent up to heaven in the hope He would answer her or help her. ''I think god is a man of such perfect, flawless character that he watches and loves everyone equally. Rich or poor, strong or weak. And he never plays favourites or reaches his hand out to any of them,''
Michiru just sat there and listened. It was obvious Haruka had given this a lot of thought already.
''Oh, what a wonderful god,'' Haruka went on sarcastically. ''He can just drop dead.''
The other couldn't help it but smile at the last part of Haruka's sentence. ''I actually believe in god,'' She finally admitted. ''But I think he's too far away to reach us right now. I think he's so disappointed in his creations that he left. But I do believe there's a god out there looking out for us. I mean, Haruka, why don't you kill demons even though they attack you?''
''Is it because you fear hell or is it because it's against your believes? Who do you think gave you your morals?''
''I could just decide to kill everyone of them right now.'' Haruka lied.
Michiru shook her head. ''I know. But it wouldn't feel right to you. You would always feel a certain sense of guilt. And that's why in the end, I'm sure you won't kill the demon queen.''
''And what makes you so certain?''
''Because of what you said yourself. If you kill the queen all the demons will die with her. That means I'll die as well. And you've already seen that not all of us are heartless monsters. You won't admit it but you've already let me into your heart.''
''You seem pretty sure of yourself.'' Haruka replied. She tried her best not to let on that she feared truth in the demon girl's words. ''Besides if all of it is true then why are you going with me? Shouldn't you be enjoying life while it lasts. Because I am going to kill that queen. I have to. For my parents, my sister, my village and everyone else who died in this pointless battle. People depend on me.''
''We just happen to go to the same place.'' Michiru said plainly. ''I still have to kill that seraphim. And I don't want that thing to die because the queen dies. I want it to suffer.''
''Jinx...'' Haruka cursed to herself and turned her gaze away from the demon girl again. For someone who tried to convince her demons weren't all evil creatures she sure was hung on killing that seraphim. Could it be it actually killed her parents? Or was it a lie to make Haruka feel sorry for her. She wanted to ask the aqua haired girl about it but didn't. She really didn't want to know the answer.
To be continued
I thought I would reveal Michiru's story and identity in this chapter but it turned out otherwise. I wanted to give Haruka and Michiru some 'moments' before the trouble really begins.