Keeper of Demonic Forces - Bella_Artz

Genres: Shojo, Action, Supernatural, Urban Fantasy

Lily & Rose Issue 1 Sample Part 2

I'm so caught up in the spiralling return of my memories that I didn't realise I had unwittingly drawn attention to myself. One of the Jorōgumo spots me and leaps toward where I stand.

A thick chain launches out from the ground, wrapping it up and throwing it into a wall.

"Get out of here!" She screams at me.

I turned to the streets, how was anyone else not noticing this absurd display going on? I'm too afraid to call out, but I need to do something other than just stand there.

Run!

That seemed like a good idea. But instead, I had to look up and take in the state the city's acclaimed vigilante was in.

She was bleeding badly like she had just gone through one fight after another. But she kept fighting, despite these spiders being strangely larger than the one she had rescued me from.

I should be scared, and I am, really, but more than that fear, I feel pity and irritation, why did I easily have to feel indebted to people?

Run! A sensible part of my brain calls out for me to listen.

I don't. I grab the nearest object that feels heavy in my hold, a trash can lid, and run right into a spider woman creeping up on Demona and bashing it on it's human head.

"Suck on that, creep!" I yell. Now that I'm not too busy being terrified from seeing it for the first time, all my self-defense lessons were actually working their way into my head and boy were they seeming useless.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Demona screeches, slicing a spider in half with her huge ass sword.

"Repaying you, stupid. You look like shit by the way."

I hear a frustrated grunt from where she stands beside me. Then I feel an arm around my waist and right after I can feel the wind rush past my face as my feet leave the ground.

She's scaling the walls at breakneck speed until we finally reached the rooftop. She deposits me on the ground roughly, glaring with her scary-as-shit blue-green eyes.

She opens her mouth to yell but instead, all that comes out is blood.

Lots

And lots

Of blood.

I flinch, reaching into my pocket for a napkin and hold it out to her but she slaps my arm away.

"You shouldn't have done that," She says stiffly, tone as cold as the rain that beat down on us.

"Why? You're in bad shape and there were a lot of them."

"You've interacted with those yokai, now they know you, they'll track you if I don't kill them now."

"You don't look in shape to do any fighting any time soon," I say simply, a little irritated I wasn't getting at least a thanks.

"He's been hammering me with monsters all morning...and this curse..." I hear her whisper. She falls to her knees, seemingly tired. "Kira Vermilion...you have to...no...I have to... that's unlikely. Sath, help me out here...no I won't do that." She keeps talking to herself, or probably some invisible spirits.

"Who are you talking to?" I kneel in front of her.

"Nothing, just thinking about your predicament. You must have had quite the impression of me last time not to forget completely."

"I'm actually strongly suspicious of you."

The dark hood doesn't hide her amused smile.

I don't know what I'd been expecting but I definitely wasn't expecting to see how simple, non-threatening and human it seemed on her.

She's about to speak again but more blood begins to make its way out of her mouth, the scarlet color mixing with raindrops at our knees.

Then I see it.

A shadow above us.

I look up to see the spider descending, a claw poised to stab the vigilante.

Like an idiot, I did the one thing you shouldn't do for a stranger you've known for less than ten minutes.

I try to save her.

I shove her back and decide to act as a shield. At the moment, it sounded far cooler than what actually went down. A sharp pain flares up my left arm, I let out a blood-curdling scream as I fell to the ground squirming while watching half of my arm fly through the air and land right beside me.

I don't know what to do other than to keep screaming and letting the tears fall free.

Through the blur, I barely note the panicked expression in Demona's eyes, and more spiders climbing the rooftop. She moves closer to me.

"I'm very sorry for what is about to happen next, Kira." Her voice was solemn like she had no other course of action and had come to a realisation I had no idea of.

I keep whimpering, mind too busy frying over the pain and blood loss to realise what's going on.

She picks up my arm and places it next to the stump. A calming warmth envelopes me but as soon as it does, everything flares up into more pain. I'd love to say I grit my teeth through it but in all honesty, I cried only sob more and more.

More screams join my own and soon I realise it's the Jorōgumo. Their pained cries melding with mine as Demona sings a deathly enchanting song that almost makes me want to stop screaming and listen. I hear the sound of explosions and the pouring rain around us. I look around, the spiders are blowing up.

Silence follows once all the lifeless spirits are on the ground dissolving into ash.

I can feel my hand again but I flex it to be sure.

The rain keeps pouring. The only sound other than the white noise going on in my head.

Demona tries to get to her feet but falls back almost instantly.

"Shit." I hear her whisper, it sounds faint and broken like she's near tears, "Shit, shit, shit!!!"

"Thank you...for saving me, again," I say, I don't know how to ease her frustration but I can feel the sorrow rolling off her in waves.

She turns to me, eyes full of pure gloom. "This is a thankless job, Kira." Her eyes then turned back to the sky, "But I've failed."

I say nothing, I don't want to know.

"Kira." I looked into her eyes, she was holding the hand she had reattached but this time there was something placed in my palm. It felt wooden and shaped like tiny balls in a ring. Not just that but the skin of her palm had lost all warmth, exchanged instead for frigid cold and the appearance of cracked coal.

"I'm so sorry I have to drop this on you, but I can't go without passing something on. These unfortunate circumstances have led me to make this decision."

My eyes widen, "What are you-"

"Please remember me," She sobs, trailing off absently, "I wish I could have seen them one last time..."

"What the hell?!" I'm cut off as white-hot pain fills my body again, making me unable to speak, unable to think, this pain was different though like I could feel something settling into my skin, making its home in my soul, the very essence of myself, something else was taking hold of me.

I slump back down, breathing hard, fresh tears rolling down my face. I had a feeling I'd just gotten myself into something I should have just stayed far away from.

I meet those turquoise eyes only to see not a vigilante in a cloak but a young girl no older than me wearing a beautifully colored kimono. She had the most beautiful eyes and a small bloody smile, but her fair skin was being quickly eclipsed by the darkness taking her whole body.

"Try not to give into pride, he's a bit persuasive." She says, a small chuckle escaping her as I watch her beaten form dissolve to dust that's beaten further by the rain. "You're not the ideal type but please...do try, you've shown me how amazing you can be today."

I can only keep my eyes for so long after.

A powerful wave of exhaustion hits me almost immediately after she vanishes. I know I have to get out of the rain but at that moment, being unable to stand or think or speak, I can't think of anywhere more comfortable to fall asleep.

Note:

A bit embarrassed to admit but I wrote this chapter with zero planning almost 2 years ago and didn't bother doing any work to build on Demona's personality. I wanted it to be a sort of gag that Kira got stuck with the power, with Demona happy to die and be free of it like a "Your problem now sucker!" Kinda vibe. I didn't intend for the moment between them to turn out as intimate and a bit vulnerable as it does now but after listening to some sad music it couldn't be helped...

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