Kira
~
I spent a good amount of time before my supposed mission stretching and going over the self-defense techniques I learned in middle school.
Whatever I would meet on getting to where Lucifer would lead me I was determined not to meet it unprepared.
It was around 7 pm when I finally stepped out of my room, it was a work day so Ares was yet to come home and Kat was nowhere in sight.
I sent a quick text to Ares telling him that I would be hanging with some new friends, his reply was simple, 'Get back before nine,' followed by a tirade of emojis.
A small smile made its way to my face, Kat and I may not be on good terms but we both understood we were Ares' only family and because of that, I'll come back alive.
Just in time for bed too.
The crowds on the streets were slowly thinning out as I walked by, Lucifer's voice guiding my steps in the direction of what he said was beneath a cemetery. I had no idea how close we were but with each step, my heart seemed to beat faster, and my mind raced with thoughts of what I would meet there.
Was I really going to do this?
Was it really too late for me to back out?
'Your fears and doubts will attract yokai with ill intentions, you'll be discovered before we even reach our destination.'
I wanted to shoot back a biting comment but I remembered, once again, my life was in his hand.
Soon we arrived at the cemetery, I walked through the gates, eyes glancing around for any visitors. All I could see were vague cloudy shapes that shimmered now and then.
'Don't look too closely, once they sense your eyes it'll cause a commotion.'
'Why?' I asked, taking care to do so in my mind.
'Graveyards are crawling with more spirits than any other place in the world, they hang around either because they have nowhere to go or they're waiting for weak humans they can possess.' He explained as we came to a stop in front of a tomb that looked a foot taller than I was.
This one looked extremely new and plain, but I could feel a chill run down my spine just by looking at it. An almost compelling energy that ordered me to leave.
'You can always turn back human.' Lucifer drawled, 'There is no shame in dying with your family.'
"I don't care about shame, I just want them to be alive." I kicked the door of the small shrine open, and just like the sink at school, it came crashing down
'Work on being stealthy if you wish to survive following missions...granted you survive this one.'
I made blabbing motions with my hand which earned me a huff of irritation from the demon that spoke in my head
"What are the powers you give anyways?" I questioned in a whisper as I searched the inside. There was no coffin or urn of any sort. All one could see from the dim light that came from behind me were stairs that led downwards.
My first steps were hesitant, I could hardly see the stairs not to talk of how wide they were.
'My ability is enhancement; all your senses and skills are currently three percent better than they usually are.'
"Three percent?! Are you kidding me?!" I gawked quietly.
'If you increase your skills and practice, you stand the chance to become very powerful, human brat.'
"Isn't there some loophole around this?"
My question was met with silence. I groaned in annoyance until I reached the foot of the stairs.
What awaited me was a passage lit by small electric lamps. The light they gave was dim at best but it was better than nothing.
I picked up the pace, keeping an eye out for any signs of an attack, but the passage was barely silent.
'Are you sure we got the right address?'
'Are you trying to say I'm unreliable?' Lucifer's voice was cold and irritated, 'I never get things wrong. Just keep wal...'
I stopped listening once I spotted a door. I jogged up to it and, fortunately for me, it was open.
Unfortunately, it wasn't an empty room with a whiteboard that had the instructions 'How to deal with your new shitty life.'
Did I wish it was? Yes, very much.
Instead, the room was filled with people.
All of them were trapped in a giant cage with stood darkly in the stark center of the room.
Surrounding the cage were several poles to which were taped talismans. I could hardly make out the symbols in this light but for all I could tell, they weren't for anything good.
'Hey, Demon Prince, what do I do?'
'Actually, this is where I leave you to your own devices.'
'Wait, what?' I felt a chilling cold envelope around my whole body but quickly vanish like I had been naked for a split second. Fearing the worst I looked down, relieved to see that only my clothes had been changed. I was wearing a long-sleeved crop that matched a deep purple color with a pair of shorts. A part of the top's shoulder was absent, leaving the seal to glow a soft red out in the open and a dark cloak billowed out behind me.
I wasn't really into cosplay but I could manage this.
'Given what I've seen of your wardrobe, I could guess this costume is more your style.' Lucifer drawled, 'A bit of advice, not many first-timers can get this but in a dire situation, you can summon my weapon, The Spear of Pride, with that you gain the ability to manipulate the winds, but I warn you, doing so doesn't come easy.'
'You can't just abandon me, you bastard.'
'Watch me.'
I didn't need an oracle to know he was gone. Not exactly gone though, more like absent. I could feel his presence in my soul but it wasn't strong.
With a frustrated growl I peered back into the room, how was I supposed to free all these people? There were at least twenty of them or thirty at most.
While pondering my options I heard footsteps, followed by a voice.
I stepped back and picked out that they were coming down the path I had come from. I hurriedly looked around for an escape, ready to give up until my sights landed on a gap in the ceiling.
I prayed to whatever deity was on duty for the night and hoped Lucifer wasn't lying about the enhancement thing. I closed my eyes and jumped as high as I could, spreading my arms and legs in time to hold the sides of the alcove and keep myself from falling.
I held my breath.
Barely seconds later, the form of a hulking man probably twice my size passed beneath me. His gruff voice spoke to no one in particular.
I was too busy gawking in astonishment to care about what he was saying either way. That douche was huge.
'Belzeblub, he has the dead under his control.' Lucifer's voice whispered matter of fact, 'This should be interesting.'
Yeah, for you maybe.
That thought wasn't directed at him. It was a private jibe I would have the mercy of keeping to myself. I focused my strength on my arms and legs and listened closely.
"No, boss, we haven't seen the pest since when you hounded her with the Spider ladies. She's probably off-dead somewhere...You can always send out someone else if my work isn't enough for you?"
'What is he talking about, Lucifer?' I asked only to be met with silence. It seemed he would only enter his input when he deemed it necessary. I feigned being unaffected, 'If you're gonna be like that then fine, my head hasn't been this peaceful since this morning.' I scoffed quietly before returning to my watch.
Belzeblub, or whatever his name, was already gone, and judging by the sounds of a door opening, he was probably entering the room with the caged people.
"Alright meat sacks, I'll be sending you off pretty soon, just waiting for the last batch to arrive. Should be here any minute now."
"Please let us go!" A woman's terrified cry from the room. More pitiful screams followed until a large shockwave shook the whole underground structure. I caught myself just in time to stabilize before I could fall to the ground.
Whoa.
I really didn't want to know what that terrifying energy was. Just that shock wave was enough to tell me I wasn't anywhere near the same wavelength as him. In a fight, he would probably toss me around like a yoyo.
I definitely couldn't fight him so I set my brain to the task of figuring out what to do.
I felt a draft behind me from above, meaning this was probably a vent. But I had no idea how large it was or how far it went. If there was a dead end I could probably punch through that.
Yet again, leading thirty people would definitely draw suspicion and cause a lot of noise in the quiet vent.
No. They'd have to take the main hallway, meaning I'd have to make sure they couldn't be chased while I ran through the vents.
My train of thought was interrupted when I heard a loud shriek that definitely must have come from one of the captives.
"Rounding up you meatsacks was hard work, a light snack wouldn't hurt anyone." Belzeblub's cold amused voice rang through the room.
I felt my blood boil beneath my skin when I finally realized it was the scream of a young child. The urge to jump down and do something had its hold on me but I tampered it down with a vengeance. If I showed my face now, no one there would leave.
My limbs trembled with strain and rage as I held onto the walls, listening to Belzeblub drag his victim out of the room and further down the passageway. Thankfully it was in the opposite direction from the exit.
I waited for silence before I finally let myself down, knees shaking and sweat dripping down my brow from the exertion. I reminded myself that I had little time to carry out my plan before I pulled out my phone and dialed the police.
"Hello please I'm in trouble, some shady men have cornered me at the cemetery in Shizuoka. I need help." I said in my most terrified whisper.
"Miss please can you..."
"Please...oh no they're coming. Help me." I quickly cut the call, hopefully, they wouldn't call it off as a prank call and send some cops to receive these guys. I walked into the room, raising one hand to show I wasn't a threat and putting a finger to my lips to indicate they keep silent.
"I'm Demona, and I'm here to free you."
I could visibly see relief flood the faces of most in the cage. Others looked a bit tentative but they remained quiet as I approached.
"There is a young boy that was-" a woman began to speak but I cut her off.
"There's nothing I can do about that ma'am." I put my hands on the bars and focused all my energy on the muscles there.
"But we can't just abandon him."
"Listen, do you want to live or not." I snapped my eyes up to glare at the woman. She looked haggard and worn from spending God knows how long in this cell. All the prisoners looked like her. I could sense fear all around me and their expectations kept me from shirking back and running for my own life.
I wasn't some hero or a vigilante.
I was just a girl who wanted to protect her family long enough to figure things out.
Determined by my train of thought and finally able to concentrate without questions being thrown my way, I pulled the bars apart, slowly creating a large hole with each second until it was wide enough for them to step out.
I ushered them out in a straight line and towards the door. We were almost there when the large door was thrown open to reveal a Jorōgumo, a net held in one human hand containing at least five more victims that it had probably dragged all the way here.
The spider woman stared at the escaped captives who stared back in horror before finally letting out terrified cries. The spider screeched as well.
If Belzeblub wasn't alerted before, he would be now.
Without wasting time, I dug into the packs at the belt of my costume and pulled at a knife before launching myself at the monster.
With enhanced strength and a few skills, I was able to dodge its attack and chop off the arm holding the net. I looked at the knife.
Damn, this thing is sharp.
"Grab someone and start running!" I yelled at the captives who obeyed and herded themselves outside the door. Once the last one was out I joined them and pointed down the road they should go.
'How the heck would they explain this to the police?!' I exclaimed in my head.
'They'll be confused once they're finally out of harm's way.' I heard Lucifer's curt reply. Now he speaks.
They began running just as I noticed Belzeblub's figure emerge in the hallway, a limp lifeless figure in his grip.
He dropped the tiny body to the floor with no regard and began to approach us.
I punched the archway holding up the ceiling and walls on both sides causing the roof to cave in, sealing the ex-captives off from the hulking man. I then made a jump for my former hiding place, ready to run for my life while simultaneously diverting his attention.
I succeeded in only one of those things as my right ankle was grabbed by one large hand. I hardly had time to react before I was thrown into the nearest wall.
Pain blossomed in my back as my body connected, hitting the ground as well. I blinked away the dizziness, glaring at my foe with pure hate.
The good news, I had successfully diverted his attention. Bad news, I was so dead.
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