Chapter Text
The Past Never Dies
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Chapter 1
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Her ears were still ringing, even an hour after their latest concert, the last one of their world tour, had ended.
But she didn’t mind the slight discomfort.
The gig had been epic. Sure, they’d been a bit late due to some demonic shenanigans with their plane, and even worse, they’d had their pre-concert snack time rudely interrupted. But everything else had been great!
They’d made an awesome entrance onto the stage mid-song, after skydiving – without a parachute – from an exploding plane ten thousand feet in the air. Only to then land on the stage in a cloud of smoking demon remains, and finish their first set.
Admittedly, the lack of snacks sucked, as they tended to burn over ten thousand calories a day, what with all the dancing, singing and demon hunting. But aside from feeling hungry and a little tired – her throat was also feeling a little bit rough after hitting some super high notes – she was riding high.
Their fans had been amazing, as always. Both Mira and Zoey, her fellow members of Huntrix, had been awesome. Their harmonies had ignited the crowd. But best of all, the Honmoon, the normally shimmering, magic blue barrier that the first demon hunters had created with their voices all those centuries ago, had finally started to turn gold.
Soon, their long-awaited goal, the goal that not just Huntrix, but all the demon hunter trios who had come before them had been pursuing since their inception, was nearing completion. Once the Honmoon turned gold, the demons on earth would all be banished to the Demon King Gwi-Ma’s realm, where they would forever be sealed away from the human realm. Once that happened, humanity would be safe from the soul-sucking demons' predations.
A grin lit up her face, even as her hand unconsciously shifted to her shoulder. Her fingers gripped the thick yellow leather her jacket was made out of.
Soon, it would all be over.
All they needed was one last big push.
All they needed to do was release their next and biggest single, "Golden." That should be enough to turn the Honmoon gold.
“Rumi!” Zoey’s voice knocked her out of her thoughts, even as the petite rapper slammed into her from behind, her thin but strong arms already encircling her as she dragged her into a hug. “There you are!”
“Hey,” Mira added more calmly, a slight smirk playing across her thin lips as she flicked her long pink hair over her shoulder. “We’ve been looking for you.”
Like her, they were both still in their stage costumes.
Mira, tall, fair-skinned with dark purple eyes, chest-length hot-pink hair tied into two twintails and two sidelocks framing her face. She was still wearing her concert attire: a short-sleeved purple crop-top, a choker, yellow denim skirt with a white chain on the belt and violet shoulder pads and artfully ripped magenta stockings. It was a far more punky vibe that she could ever pull off.
Zoey, meanwhile, with her petite build, pale skin, large dark grey eyes and long black hair, which she often tied into two low braided buns, was dressed far more casually than either of them. What with the black halter top, gold bracelets, violet and yellow trackpants and purple sneakers
They both reflected their personalities in their fashion choices. Which sometimes made her wonder whether she did the same.
“Well, I’ve just been here,” Rumi grinned back, forcing her mind away from her darker thoughts as she instead focused on the positive.
Currently, they were outside the back entrance of the main stadium, where she had gone to get some fresh air, away from the noise and heat of the forty thousand-plus audience they had just performed for.
Gently breaking free of Zoey’s cuddle, she stretched her arms and spun to look at them.
“So, that’s it, the final performance of our world tour over and done with, which now means…” she trailed off leadingly, her eyes twinkling as she saw the growing excitement in her best friend’s eyes.
As they had agreed with Bobby, Huntrix’s manager and PR guru, they now had a three-week break before their next live performance and the release of Golden.
“Couch,” Zoey whispered, her voice filled with a heady mix of awe, reverence and excitement.
“Couch,” Mira agreed sagely, a sharp smile spreading across her angular face.
“Couch,” Zoey repeated, her voice jubilant.
“Couch, couch, couch, couch!” They both started to chant, pumping their fists into the air at the thought of finally getting to crash out on their large, supremely comfortable couch in their penthouse with several buckets filled with snacky goodness.
Watching them both parade around, Rumi felt both happy for their joy and a little guilty at the thought of spoiling their upcoming hiatus. The Honmoon was on the verge of turning gold. It just needed one last big push, and what better way to do it than to release their newest and biggest single? The worldwide excitement and joy it would inspire would be enough to bring the Honmoon to full strength.
There was no time to waste.
She didn’t have any time to waste.
Her hand once again crept to her covered-up arm, and the traitorous demonic patterns she knew were lurking, hidden and just out of sight beneath her clothing. They were marks of her shame, and a cursed gift she had unwillingly received courtesy of her demonic father.
Her expression hardened.
Zoey and Mira thankfully didn't notice as they continued to celebrate and gush about lazing around on the couch watching crappy movies and eating junk food.
Looking away from their excitement, she was just in time to see a shadow flitting by across the rooftop of a nearby apartment building.
The shadow was big, and moving unusually quickly, and with an inhuman level of acrobatic ability.
“Demons,” she hissed suddenly, her hand extending as she focused on the magic coursing through her veins and summoned a glowing blue sword made from condensed spirit magic.
“Where?” Mira answered her at once, her voice serious and expression firm and resolved as she summoned her naginata. Her hands clenched tightly around the gleaming, lacquered pole of her glaive as she looked around at the surrounding buildings, her eyes narrowed.
On her other side, Zoey had already summoned some of her daggers of light, her expression firm as she too looked for the source of the threat.
There was no hesitation at all, only trust.
“The roof!” Rumi snapped, quickly taking the lead as she took the lead. Her feet smacked along the tarmac as she built up speed, before, with a surge of strength and magic, she leapt up, reaching over fifteen feet in height in a single bound as she landed on a nearby balcony before pushing off and landing on the next one.
Both Zoey and Mira followed her lead as she rapidly ascended the building from the outside, easily clearing the distance from the ground to the roof in barely thirty seconds.
Making it to the top, she pulled off a perfect three-point landing, her head flipping back, throwing her long braid of purple hair back over her shoulder, even as she kept her sword out and at the ready.
They hadn’t felt any disturbances in the Honmoon, which meant that whoever these demons were, they had been on the surface for a while. They might have even crossed over at the same time as the half dozen demons that had attacked them on the plane earlier that night. Which could mean that this was another desperate attempt from Gwi-Ma at ending them before they had a chance to seal him and his kind away forever.
With barely a whisper of sound, both Zoey and Mira landed at her side.
Smoothly rising into a fighting stance, her friends followed her lead, their eyes scanning the dimly lit rooftop looking for any sign of demons.
“It might’ve been a cat?” Zoey offered into the silence, as nothing initially stood out as abnormal.
“I think Rumi is sharp enough to tell the difference between a cat and a demon…” Mira replied dryly, giving Zoey the side-eye.
“Nu huh, it’s dark, we’re excited, and she caught movement out of the corner of her eye, it could easily happen to anyone.” Zoey shot back.
“Meaning it’s already happened to you?” Mira said blandly.
“One time!” Zoey hissed defensively.
“Quiet,” Rumi cut off Mira’s retort, her eyes narrowed as she caught movement from the shadows.
“Well, isn’t this interesting?” a soft, melodic voice sounded out from the dark.
“Show yourself!” Rumi demanded, her blade raised as she glared into the darkness, at her side, both Mira and Zoey, now serious once again, fanned out.
“Three beautiful women with glowing weapons… now, is it magic you're using, or technology?” The voice continued with interest.
“Flattery won’t help your case, demon!” Rumi shot back, inwardly filing away the distinct thrill of pleasure she got at the compliment, even as a wave of shame and disgust then followed.
“Demon?” The voice said softly, “So you know what I am. Interesting. This is my first time in Korea, and I’m already experiencing new things.”
“Your first time here? So, you’ve never left the demon realm before?” Rumi demanded.
“Demon realm?” the voice scoffed. “There is no demon realm. We demons were born here on earth. After all, we were all human once, and here we reside. The only time we might’ve ever left is if we were summoned to see our old master… but seeing as he’s been dead for two centuries now….”
The voice trailed off, leaving many more questions floating around her head.
“Your master, the Demon King, he’s not dead. He is still alive. We should know, as we’ve been fighting him and his minions for years, just as all those who came before us did!” Rumi shouted challengingly into the dark.
There was movement from the shadows at that.
It was enough to make them take a wary step backwards, even as a figure emerged from the gloom.
His hair was short and a reddish-pink colour. His eyes were an intense golden colour with slitted black pupils and bluish sclera. His flesh was flawless and incredibly pale, save for the oddly symmetrical, circular markings that ran across his face. They looked more like tattoos than the demon marking they knew. He almost looked human, especially considering he was wearing an expensive-looking, tailored suit and a gleaming silver Rolex.
But despite looking the part, he clearly wasn’t human.
Just the sight of him sent their senses haywire. As demon hunters, they were naturally in tune with the natural energy of the world and the Honmoon. It gave them the ability to see the supernatural world that was otherwise hidden from mortals.
At her side, she could see both Mira and Zoey start to tremble. It was a feeling she could very much understand. Whereas most demons were blots of negativity. This man was a swirling miasma of pain, horror and death.
It was stronger and more intense than anything she had ever experienced before; even now, she could feel the negative energy he exuded eating away at her psyche, demanding her compliance.
“W-what are you?” She managed to get out, her hands trembling as she raised her sword defensively.
On either side of her, she could hear both Zoey and Mira starting to hum. The music they created, while not as strong as when they let their voices sound out, was enough to strengthen their resolve and fully awaken the spiritual magic churning its way through their bodies.
“I’m a demon,” the man replied blandly, his annoyingly handsome face blank as he tilted it curiously to one side, like a curious puppy might. “A true demon, not one of those unfortunate, mangled, mutilated souls you’re probably used to fighting.”
“T-those are demons!” Zoey replied.
“Yeah, they are the servants of the Demon King, just like you?” Mira added on, her voice strengthening, even as they all started to hum, gearing themselves up to get straight to singing when they needed to.
Their magic, their power, was based on song, and as such, to be at their strongest, they needed to be singing.
“I serve no one, not anymore. And besides, like I said before those… things you fight. I met a couple of them when I first arrived in town. And let me tell you this much, they are not true demons. They are just the byproduct of a Blood Demon Art. Admittedly, it’s a pretty insidious and powerful Blood Demon Art. But that’s still all it is.”
“Blood Demon Art?” Rumi asked, her brow furrowing.
“Oh, you don’t even know that much?” the man asked curiously, a hint of slight confusion entering his tone now, too. “Whoever taught you of the hidden world didn’t do a very good job of it. They’ve only given you half the story.”
Rumi took a step back at the implication. “You’re lying.”
“And you’re in denial,” he shot back. “What do you think it is your doing? Waging a secret war against some kind of Demon King? The true Demon King, Muzan, died centuries ago. I should know, I was there. I saw him being slain by the Demon Slayer Corps, and I felt it in my blood as my sire, the sire of all demons, died. We all did. That night, the continuation of his bloodline ended. Most of his elites, those with the power to share his blood, were dead. He was dead. The Demon Slayers were victorious, and in the decades that followed, they culled nearly all the others that remained. Of the true demons, I suspect that there are only a handful of us that remain.”
Rumi looked to the others, confused, hurt and lost. She hadn’t heard about anything he was saying. None of it made any sense. Gwi-Ma was the Demon King. He and his kind had been preying on the people of Korea for two centuries and had only been held at bay from swarming across the country and then the rest of the world by each generation’s trio of demon hunters.
That was the story Celine told each of them after she had gathered them and taught them all they knew.
“You’re lying,” Mira snapped, “demons always lie.”
“What would be the point? What would I gain?” the demon opposite of them asked.
“You’re trying to buy time,” Mira snapped.
“Yeah, we have you cornered and you’re trying to confuse us so you can escape!” Zoey added.
Firming her resolve, Rumi nodded her head. “We’ll get to the bottom of what you’ve said later. Right now, it’s time to end this.”
Raising her sword, Rumi started singing one of their classic songs from their initial debut.
Quickly catching on, both Mira and Zoey joined her, their voice harmonising as one, even as they started advancing on the swirling bundle of negativity that was their opponent.
“Are you singing?” the man asked, a bemused expression on his face as he watched them approach. “Seriously.”
Bobbing her head to the beat, Rumi timed her first rush so it coincided with Zoey’s rap solo. On either side of her, Mira and Zoey mirrored her actions, both of them going for a pincer even as she attacked him head-on.
“What is this, West Life Story?” the demon laughed, easily sidestepping her first swipe, before dodging a thrown dagger from Zoey and flipping over Mira’s naginata, his hands in his pockets as he did an easy three-sixty flip and then landed it perfectly on Mira’s other side.
Reacting in an instant, Mira went for a vicious side swing, while Zoey hurled a trio of daggers above him and on each side, to box him in.
Falling flat, he landed in a plank position, his hands perfectly centred, his feet raised a foot off the ground, before then spinning to his feet and landing a knee into Mira’s ribs before she could close the opening in her form.
The force of the blow knocked the air out of Mira’s lungs, cutting off her voice, even as it sent her hurtling across the roof.
It was a heavy blow, far heavier than any she’d seen a demon throw before.
Those they dealt with before were only slightly stronger than a peak human man and thus were inferior to their own enhanced capabilities.
This demon, though, was on another level in terms of both speed and strength.
Taking over the lead of the song, Rumi allowed her voice to ring out powerfully as she swung her sword in figure-of-eight patterns, forcing the amused demon back and away from where Mira was unsteadily regaining her feet.
“So, you use singing to enhance yourselves, instead of breathing techniques,” the demon mused, easily avoiding her assault and Zoey’s hit-and-run attacks. He was clearly putting more effort in than he had at first in order to avoid them. Yet it still felt like he was holding back. “It’s an interesting technique. If a lot louder. It’ll be interesting to see if it is just as effective as the Demon Slayers' techniques. They were a formidable foe back in the day, you know. They managed to bring down some of the strongest demons that ever existed. I wonder if you can do the same.”
“You have a pretty high opinion of yourself, don’t you!?” Mira snapped as she re-entered the fight. She managed to time her lunge with the end of the song.
Taking the opportunity, Mira bought her, Rumi started a new track, this one ‘Wanderlust’ was one of the most popular songs from their second album, and their first to go triple platinum.
“Justified, though I’d say,” the demon acknowledged as he easily fended off both Mira and Zoey, his arms a blur as he finally took his hands out of his pockets.
Going low and sweeping high with her sword while he was distracted, Rumi felt a grin tug at her lips as her glowing blue sword bit into the flesh of his arm.
“Ow,” the demon hiss, his expression momentarily hardening as he rapidly moved, backhanding Zoey away with his uninjured arm, before then landing a bicycle kick on both her and Mira, knocking all three of them back a few feet. “That hurt.”
Flipping her long, purple braid back over her shoulder and regaining her balance, Rumi scowled as she saw the red-haired demon eying his smoking wound.
She landed a good hit, and with the force she was using, it should have taken his arm off. Yet despite that, all she’d scored was a flesh wound.
“Those glowing blades of yours. Is the glow from sunlight? There must be some kind of UV radiation coming off them,” the demon muttered, eying the blackened, bloody cut on his pale arm.
As they watched, the wound visibly knitted together, leaving only smooth, unmarred flesh in its wake.
“You’re more dangerous than I thought,” the demon grinned, turning to look at them.
Almost at once a flood of fear coursed through her, making not just her, but the other two take a step back. It was enough to cut them off mid-song, their rhythm dying an awkward death in the face of the raw and visceral bloodlust the demon in front of them was emanating.
Once again, it was like nothing she’d ever experienced before.
“Which begs the question of why I’ve not heard of you before?” He continued, his eyes narrowed in thought.
“You’ve never heard of Huntrix before?” Zoey managed to sound offended, even through the slight thrum of fear Rumi could hear in her voice.
“I’m guessing you’re a band of some sort?” The demon allowed his previous aura of bloodlust to slowly recede during the slight recess in the fighting. “I’m afraid I’ve never been that interested in popular culture. It’s the downside of being four hundred years old; time moves too fast, and by the time I get used to the happenings of the current generation, things have already started changing. Especially now, in the modern era. Things change far more rapidly now than they have at any other time in my memory.”
“Four hundred years,” Mira said, her tone almost mocking as the last of his bloodlust filtered away and she regained her equilibrium. “You’re not looking bad for an old man.”
“The benefits of immortality,” the demon nodded sagely. “It beats any other kind of skincare routine.”
Shifting her grip on her weapon and sharing a look with the other two, Rumi decided to keep the interlude in the fight going for a little while longer. “I’m afraid I’ll have to pass. But I do have a question. Why are you here? You say you don’t serve the Demon King, and that this is the first time you’ve visited Korea, why?”
The demon tilted his head to the side and hummed. “I got a feeling something interesting was happening here. Lots of unexplained deaths and disappearances, and a few associates I’ve made are fleeing the area. Also, talk of some kind of mystical field. It was a bit… too mysterious for me to stay away.”
He was talking about the Honmoon, and the Demon King’s last desperate attempts at stopping them from turning it gold by spamming as many demons as he could at the barrier in order to force through as many as he could.
“What will you do while you are here?” Rumi demanded.
“Look around, see the sights. Who knows, I might even try to catch one of your concerts. You’re singing wasn’t bad.” The demon shrugged.
“First off, our singing is great, and secondly, sorry but we’re going to be on a break for the next few weeks, and even when we do return, you’ll need to get a ticket like everyone else. Which honestly won’t be easy, considering the way the ticket websites are run. You actually might be better trying to get one from a scalper. They’ll be more expensive, but you’re a demon, so you should have some savings.” Zoey shot back, starting off angry, before shifting into a more contemplative mood by the end. “We really do need to do something about those ticket websites, for the fans.”
“I mean, yes, we do, but that’s not all that relevant now.” Mira rolled her eyes. “Instead, we have a murderous demon to deal with first.”
“In my defence, I’ve not murdered anyone here yet by the standards of the sitting government. I’ve killed a few of the ‘fake demons’ you fight, but that’s it.” The demon intruded into the conversation.
“I don’t like the sound of that yet,” Rumi scowled.
“Well, a guy’s gotta eat. But if it makes you feel better, I do have a code. I don’t eat women or children, and for the last few centuries I’ve only been predating criminals now too, and those of the violent variety too.” The demon replied defensively.
“I mean, it is marginally better, but you’re still killing people,” Mira rolled her eyes. “And now that you’ve told us what you’re planning to do, we’re duty-bound to stop you.”
“Yeah, sorry, mister demon, but our duty is to protect humanity from your kind, no matter who they are. The courts were formed to deal with criminals. They’re fate is not for you to decide.” Zoey added in. She actually sounded almost apologetic, too.
“Stop me?” The demon looked genuinely amused. “You’re strong. I’ll give you that. But I’m old, and powerful, and as you currently are, you can’t beat me.”
“So you say, but there is still only one way to find out.” Rumi raised her weapon and pointed it at him. Both Zoey and Mira followed her lead as they geared up for a new song. “You may claim not to serve Gwi-Ma, but-“
“Wait, Gwi-Ma the Souleater, he’s the Demon King you’ve been fighting?” The demon interrupted with a loud bark of laughter. “I didn’t even know that that little shit was still alive, and now he’s gone and set himself up as a Demon King.”
“You know Gwi-Ma?” Rumi asked, fully off kilter now.
“Yeah, from way back when. He was actually turned into a demon before me, and served as an upper-ranked member of the Twelve Kizuki, which I suppose you could say were the elite of the elite, but then he went missing, and was replaced by… I want to say Hantengu…” The demon scratched his chin thoughtfully. “But it might have been Gyokko. Honestly, it was a long time ago now. But well shit, so this is where he ran off to after leaving the Kizuki, and he’s set him up as a Demon King. Huh, this is getting interesting.”
Reeling from the info-overload, Rumi shared a look with the other two. “This demon, what he was saying, it went against everything that Celine, the woman who had taught them all they knew, had told them.
“Well, that doesn’t matter. The point is that you three need to go home, do a little research and gain some perspective.” The demon pressed on, already turning to walk away. “If we were to fight now, you’d lose, and considering your past demonstration, I might not be able to hold back as much as I’d like, which could mean that one or more of you could die. So yeah, I think this fight is over.”
“Wait, you can’t just go!” Rumi shouted at his back. “Zoey, Mira!”
“Let him go, Rumi,” Mira replied, her expression hard and pained, “He’s right. We just fought him and only managed to scratch him. While he fought with kid gloves, and still could have killed us all if he’d wanted to.”
“Zoey,” Rumi said, looking at her other friend.
Grimacing, the shorter girl nodded. “We’ll get him next time. Right now, we need to talk to Celine and get some answers.”
Holding back a snarl, Rumi turned and glared at the demon’s back as he retreated into the gloom. As much as she hated to admit it, they were right. This was not a normal demon they were fighting, and without knowing more about just who and what they were facing, continuing the battle was just stupid and irresponsible.
“You never told us your name!” She shouted at his back.
Her words caused him to pause for a moment and look back, his intense golden eyes meeting her own for a moment. Sending a cold chill down her spine.
“My name is Akaza, and don’t worry, I’m sure we’ll meet again; Rumi, Zoey and Mira,” Akaza said softly, before, with his piece now said, he leapt off the building and vanished from sight.
“Dammit,” Rumi cursed, allowing her blade to fade away into nothing. “Dammit.”
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