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There is a realm that exists on the border of life and death. Souls pass by it in an instant, desperate attempts to cling to life don’t slow them. This blurred line exists as long as there are souls to pass through it. The word “purgatory” could be used to describe it, but in this realm there is no heaven awaiting those within it. The blurred line can only be inhabited by those who have made a deal with a devil, and received a devil's heart in return. Such a small number of people are in this group that there isn’t an official name for them, yet they are commonly regarded as Weapons. When the soul of a Weapon is not in their body, this border is their waiting room. Stuck here until their soul is returned through revival, or their devil heart is crushed.
~~
The first time Denji died was also the first time he entered this realm. Pochita anchored Denji’s soul to the Earth, and in the process linked it to the blurred realm.
“Pochita… Did you take my body? Like I told you to?” Most of the alive hybrids winced as these words were inserted into their mind through their soul.
The Bow Hybrid twitched at the sound of the high pitched voice that spoke next. “I’ve always loved listening to you talk about your dreams. This is a contract. I’ll give you my heart. In exchange, show me your dreams.”
The woman was the oldest Weapon, which was to be expected with her title as the First Devil Hunter. This meant she was somewhat accustomed to the rare occasion that a new Weapon is born. It is an almost concrete rule that a Weapon’s soul can only interact with another Weapon’s soul within the border of life and death. This rule is bent when a contract is formed. When the link between the human soul and the border is established all those who have that same link feel the contract. All that means is once in a while, she gets devil voices in her head.
“Halloween! Halloween!”
“Can we get candy?”
The ageless hunter let the creation of a new Weapon slip into the back of her mind as her harem grabbed her attention. It was something that didn’t need to be addressed, especially when there were more important matters in front of her.
~~
The Bomb Devil has been in the blurred line for likely two days now. Food reserves had been running low for a few weeks in the facility she was stored in. To rid themselves of an extra mouth to eat, her supervisors temporarily suspended her life. When she was in the blurred realm, it was true that her rotting body didn’t demand food.
Most of the times she had been here so far, it was the same people alongside her. The Spear and Whip Devils were in the distance, laying down or propped against an invisible wall within the white void. She preferred to sit up straight, even if lying around wouldn’t affect her body’s fitness here. Like them, she presented herself in her transformed state. It was unlikely they may clash, but having her face be spread around in some soul-living-space was irresponsible and dangerous. The Bomb Devil had on occasion seen the Bow or Flamethrower Devils appear, but they too avoided interacting with the other hybrids. The less to be known about each other the better; they were all weapons who may be pitted against each other at any time.
Suddenly, a scene began to play out before the Bomb Devil within the blurred realm. This was a first for her, but not unexpected. When she appeared in the realm upon her first death as a hybrid, she managed to get the Spear Devil to explain the concept of this border. It seems like she was no longer the newest resident here.
A boy wearing an eyepatch appeared laying within a transparent dumpster. On top of him was a dog shaped devil with a chainsaw on its head.
The Chainsaw Devil? A chainsaw wouldn’t be a very deadly weapon. Although the Whip Devil has presumably made her weapon work. Then again she has been dead for a while. Maybe it didn’t work.
The boy called out to the Chainsaw Devil, with it barking back. He questioned the devil, asking “Did you take my body? Like I told you to?”
The Bomb Devil felt her curiosity rise towards this exchange. He wanted the devil to take his body? What a unique situation.
“I’ve always loved listening to you talk about your dreams. This is a contract. I’ll give you my heart. In exchange, show me your dreams.”
The scene before the Bomb Devil ended, and with it she was left with an odd feeling. She could recognize part of what she felt was guilt at herself for witnessing such a tender moment, and guilt for that boy who would never live a normal life again.
~~
Denji felt pretty mixed about his new devil powers. It was kickass to turn into a bunch of chainsaws and mow down some devils. The whole regeneration thing was sick too. At the same time he really missed his buddy Pochita, the one who gave him these powers in the first place.
His life was pretty weird now. He has two roommates named Aki and Power, one who must have his sword up his ass constantly and the other who is a bigoted fiend that tries to kill him daily. One of the weirdest things was a random voice being in his head.
He got woken up a few nights ago by a voice saying something about katanas and avenging a grandfather, but he was too tired to listen to it and just waited until his brain stopped being fucked to go back to bed.
His life was really weird now apparently, but it also felt closer to the normal he wanted.
If he had to say one thing he was fully grateful for in this normal-ish life, it would be Miss Makima.
Maybe she was kinda scary when she talked about putting him down like a dog if he disobeys her, but he hasn’t thought about that in a while. Plus, now that she really likes him, he doubts she would do that anymore.
She even had him fondle her tit to cheer him up!
If Denji knew one thing, it was that Miss Makima was the one for him. Not even Himeno’s barf kiss could keep him down. It is Miss Makima’s indirect lollipop kiss that caused him to reject Himeno's offer, make an alliance, and fully set the sail of the X.X.X. Makima!
It’s a shame that he got shot in a ramen shop before he could do much more with his renewed resolve.
His eyes opened pretty quick, much faster than he would’ve thought, but maybe time doesn’t really pass for you when you are dead, or did someone pull his ripcord? Nah, he doesn’t hear chainsaws or feel them ripping his flesh apart.
Around him is a… nothing? It seemed to stretch on for miles. Squinting his eyes, he could spot two.. Ah shit there’s devils here. They looked kinda like him, but not with the awesome chainsaws sticking out. Denji turned his head to the side, seeing a feminine looking Devil with a bomb for a head staring at him.
His eyes made contact with its very human boobs for a good while before looking back up to address the devil.
“The fuck is up with this?”
The bomb looking devil in front of him quietly laughed for a few seconds and then responded.
“This is where your soul goes when you die. This is the case for devils like us because we’re Weapon Humans.”
“Woah, I didn’t know there were more like me! Or that we were, like, soul linked!” He pointed back and forth between the two. “That’s so fucking cool!” He paused for another while, looking at the body of the devil who is now definitely a girl.
“So, you come here often?” Denji questioned in a way he hoped was suave.
The Bomb Devil let a large moment of silence pass between them. She cracked her fingers wrapped in fuses and repositioned herself to be more comfortable while sitting.
“You’re asking if I die a lot, which is true. My handlers like to test my durability in both my devil and human form which leads to lots of consecutive deaths. I normally get revived pretty quick, but sometimes it takes a while.”
It felt weird for the Bomb Devil to talk to someone in this place so openly, but the kid seemed entertaining to talk to and seemed too idiotic to use this information for anything.
“You’re the chainsaw boy right? You should probably imagine your soul image as your transformed state. No one here goes around looking like a human.”
The girl’s words caused Denji to look down at himself, and realize that he was in his public safety uniform and not transformed, while the three people here were all transformed. He thought about it for a second before shaking his head.
“Nah, this is comfortable right now. If I go full chainsaw I’ll get all bloody for no reason.”
“Well, suit yourself.” She paused, thinking about what to say next. “Are you not going to question how I know what devil you are?” The girl asked with genuine curiosity about how the boy thinks. If she had eyebrows right now one would definitely be raised.
“It’s probably got something to do with that soul junk you’ve been talking about, seems too complicated for me to try and think about. I’m just stoked that I get to lounge around here when I’m waiting to be revived. Not a shabby place at all.” The girl didn’t say anything in response, so the boy continued by wondering out loud. “I wonder how shit’s going with Aki, Power, and Himeno. I did just get shot next to them.”
“First death as a hybrid and it’s on the battlefield? Your handlers must be pretty slack on the training.” The Bomb Devil was surprised the boy was even seeing battle, when she got the Bomb Devil heart the amount of testing they made her do before any combat was mind breaking in terms of time and pain.
“Handlers? Nah, I’m employed by Public Safety. I got a whole job and everything. It’s a pretty sweet gig where I get to eat jam on toast everyday!” The boy bragged while pointing towards his chest, proud of what he’s got.
“I don’t think working for the Japanese government as a Weapon Human could be too ‘sweet’…”
Before the girl could continue her conversation with the recently deceased boy, a new devil entered the blurred line. A tall and broad man in his devil state, with katanas coming out of his arms and head.
Wow, I don’t think this place has ever been this full. Bomb mused to herself, the conversation with the Chainsaw Devil somewhat lifting her mood. It was nice to talk to someone without consequence honestly, even if her partner wasn’t too sharp.
The Katana Devil darted his head around his new environment. The Bomb Devil was cautious of the man, noticing his hostile attitude. The Katana Devil looked her way. The mood in the blurred realm immediately froze over as he roared at the untransformed Chainsaw Devil.
“What the fuck are you doing here, you damn murderer!?”
It was at this moment that the Bomb Devil knew her pin had been pulled. Her soul was being viciously tugged away and she couldn’t get out a word before vanishing.
Luckily for Denji, the Katana Devil’s stomping over to him was halted by the same phenomenon that happened to the Bomb Devil. This left him just kinda staring into the white void, wondering what just happened before being revived to face the Katana Devil he recently met.
~~
When the Bomb Devil entered the blurred realm, she was greeted with an interesting sight.
The Chainsaw Devil, still in his untransformed form, was on his knees with his head against the ground and slamming his right fist against the surface they stood on.
“-going to shred the old man so bad he won’t be able to drink booze for the rest of his short ass life!”
“Having fun?” The Bomb Devil teased.
The boy looked up to meet her head before whining childishly. “No the hell I’m not! The stinky ass old man keeps killing me and Powie! Even when I get time to think in here it doesn’t mean shit!”
The Bomb Devil sat down beside him, deciding to make more conversation with the other immortal.
“Seems like you’ve started standard training. This realm is a nice place to get some extra time to strategize. No one but us knows about it existing, and even if people did they couldn’t stop us from using it.”
Chainsaw was surprised at her words. “Wait, no one but us knows about this place? Really? I thought you guys had handlers or some shit. You don’t talk about it with them?”
Bomb shook her head and explained. “Saying that I’m still conscious when I die, that I go to a different realm, and that I have the ability to talk with other weapons of mass destruction would only make my handlers want to lock me away and never grant the peace of death. I’m sure it’s a similar situation for the other Weapon Humans. It’d be risky to say all Weapon souls are somewhat connected. That’s why I doubt any of them have told anyone about what awaits us when we die.”
He nodded at her words. “Makes sense. Wow, I sure don’t envy you guys. Huh. I feel like it’s taking a long time to be revived right now.” His words drifted off as he looked around, as if that would help make sense of the situation.
She offered him her guesswork. “This is a realm that exists outside of Earth or Hell. Time may work differently here. Do you see those two hybrids over there?” She pointed out the Spear and Whip Devils, who were in the same positions as always. “They have been dead a long time. Their eyes have glazed-over. When I talked to Spear, I had to shake him to get his attention. Time is likely up to our interpretation. Spacing out speeds it up, talking with others slows it down.”
The Chainsaw Devil whistled. “Wow, you think a lot. I’ll take that explanation if you say so. Hey, since we are such close talking buddies you gotta tell me your name.” He smiled and pointed his thumb towards his chest. “Mine’s Denji!”
She was impressed by his recklessness. He had to have some issues, if not from before being a hybrid then definitely after becoming one. Nevertheless, he is still showing his face and proclaiming his name for any other hybrid to potentially hear.
“I’m.. flattered you think we are so close, but passing around a name along with a face is dangerous. Stick with being Chainsaw and I’ll stay as Bomb.”
She didn’t like the disappointment she felt at her own words. Bomb knew that even if she wanted to give the boy her name, she had no name to give.
He pouted at her, making her feel amused at his naivety.
In an instant, he vanished. Likely back to whatever type of training that entailed being killed by an old man over and over again. He mentioned someone named “Powie” being killed alongside him, perhaps a fiend or devil? Interesting that Public Safety was employing those, or that a bond was formed between it and Chainsaw.
Bomb thought over her two interactions with the hybrid. He was good natured, to a worrying degree. She doesn’t plan to involve herself, but talking with him if they come across each other here wouldn’t be so bad. He was likely around her age and somewhat endearing. A good way to pass time. Looking into her two interactions with him, two things stuck out. One, he thought that he was living the good life. This meant some pretty standard manipulation and a very low living standard beforehand. Two, the hatred that the Katana Devil has for Chainsaw. They likely battled on Earth, making her curious about the fate of the Katana Devil. Seeing as he isn’t in the blurred realm, he escaped or was captured.
The boy was interesting, no doubt there. Now if only she could apply her theory and zone out until she gets revived by the scientists experimenting on her. Sadly, her soul was filled with glimpses of the countryside that left her stuck dreaming for something else.
~~
Denji had officially gotten sick of the blurred realm. When Bomb wasn’t there, he was literally just waiting for his undeath to occur. And because of the old man’s training, there was a lot of waiting. He and Power had just tried to surprise the geezer at their apartment, but he stopped them quickly. Denji felt pride when the man said they had the day off, but when the knife flew between his eyes and he was once again in the blurred realm he knew what happened.
With disappointment he realized that yes, Bomb was not around him, meaning it was just him and those two brain dead hybrids in the background for company. Like, they never reacted to anything him or Bomb would say which is fucking freaky. Since their first talk, he and Bomb have only been able to make short conversation before the other revives. How is he supposed to talk to a girl if life is literally pulling them apart?
He really tried to space out, but his head was full. Denji didn’t like thinking too much. It caused painful thoughts and memories to surface. Memories with Pochita, doubts about his new life, the people in it. Thinking about those was a waste of time. When he was alone in the blurred realm, all he could do was think. It made him upset.
Suddenly, the blurred realm was filled with a scene. Denji squinted his eyes, wondering if that last death made him lose it. A teenage boy with black hair appeared, and spoke to something not visible.
“You’re dying, aren’t you? Accept this contract to become one with me. I’ll keep you alive and use your power to do good. I swear.”
The image in front of Denji began to flicker and then vanished. He guessed that it was a Weapon Human, probably someone becoming one. It was pretty cool to see, but ended too quickly to continue to be more entertaining.
A short moment passed before Bomb appeared a bit away from him. He obviously couldn’t tell much from her metallic face, but her clenched fists told him she was pissed off.
He cautiously addressed her. “You feeling aight, Bombshell?”
The girl glanced in his direction, her fists unclenched, and her body language seemed more relaxed. He couldn’t tell much more than that. Stupid fucking devil transformation didn’t let him see shit.
“Is that what you’re going to call me?” Her voice was distorted, but he thought he heard amusement in the girl’s voice. She let out a breath and explained, “I was just in a combat simulation. That new hybrid’s creation got me killed.” Her fists tightened once again. “I don’t know why there’s so many of us being made, apparently I was the first in two decades. His irritating hero line threw off my focus and I got my neck snapped for it.”
Denjis put his arms up and his hands wrapped behind his head, laying down and saying, “I just got killed in a battle sim-yu-lation too. Bastard said he’d give me the day off and then put a knife in my forehead.”
“Sounds pretty normal for weapons like us.” The girl said dryly. “I’m curious about something though, why did the Katana Devil try to attack you a few days ago?”
Denji groaned loudly as he let himself lay flat on the ground. “The dickbag is mad at me because I killed his grandpa or something. It was the old bastard’s fault for becoming a zombie. He decided to shoot up all my co-workers and now I hafta train to fight him again. Shit blows.”
“Ah, the revenge storyline. You have a good antagonist to fight.” Bomb teased before continuing. “Why’d you kill his grandpa anyways?”
“Him and the old man were yakuza. When my dad hung himself, his debt to ‘em was given to me. I met Pochita n’ we became devil hunters for ‘em to pay off the debt for a while. The wrinkly ass backstabber brought me to the Zombie Devil and I got diced up. Pochita brought me back to life and I killed the Zombie Devil. Thought it was only right to kill his minions too. The idea of no more debt helped with that thought.” A lop-sided grin appeared on his face
Denji looked at the girl who was now sitting next to him. Her porcelain white skin caught his attention, and her boobs seemed the perfect size. Most amazingly was the fact that a girl was talking with him about something so personal.
“Did you know that I saw you make your contract with the Chainsaw Devil?” She informed him, tone neutral.
“His name’s Pochita,” Denji corrected.
The girl corrected herself. “Okay, the contract with Pochita. I thought it was really special. I don’t know what you two went through together, but seeing your bond and his last wish for you was beautiful.” Her voice held reverence now.
Denji felt his cheeks heat up and bashfully replied, “I mean, I guess you could say that. I’m grateful to Pochita for giving me his heart,” his voice lowered, “but I do miss him. In a way he’s still with me, but not being able to pet him again hurts sometimes.”
Bomb put her hand over his, causing his entire face to heat up.
“Hey uh, do you think I could see your face?” He requested.
“I’m sorry, Chainsaw, but I’m not comfortable doing that. Thank you for telling your story to me though. I’ll remember it.” Her voice seemed strained. It carried an emotion he could resonate with but not identify.
“Could you tell me something about yourself then? I really do want to know more about you.” The boy pleaded.
She likely heard the desperation in his voice, because she let out a giggle at his expense. “Hmm, I can probably tell you something… Let's see… I’ve got green eyes. Oh! And I wear a choker.”
He stared at her.
“Are you kidding me? That’s all you’ll tell me!?”
She laughed at his expense. When he heard her doing so, it felt like the frustration rolled off him.
“Sorry, sorry. But I’m a weapon for my government. I can’t give out identifying information, even if I know you wouldn’t do much with it. This isn’t a completely secure place, and you never know who could be watching.”
Denji scoffed, thinking to himself, It seems plenty secure to me. There's probably like 8 people who can ever be here!
Bomb must’ve noticed his disappointment, because she leaned in closer to him.
“Bombshell… Do you think I have a heart?”
“What do you mean?” The girl next to him replied carefully, knowing his next question would be serious.
He knew he must look like a loser in front of her, but he couldn’t stop himself. “The Katana Devil and his allies killed a lot of my co-workers. One of them I was kinda friends with. My senior at work was crying about her death. It made me realize that I couldn’t do the same. If he died, or Power died, I don't think I’d cry over them either. Even with Pochita, I didn’t spend a whole lotta time hung up on him.” He looked down at his lap, almost disappointed in himself. “I think my human heart was fully replaced when I got a devil heart. Do you think I have a heart?”
The Bomb Devil let seconds pass between them as she thought up a response. “I think that everyone grieves differently. Just because you aren’t crying doesn’t mean you don’t feel the loss. I think it’s harder for… people… like us. Not because of our devil hearts, but because of what we’ve gone through. I’ve spilled too much blood. I don’t think I have a heart. If you are able to be worried about it, I think you still have yours. You’re a better person than me, Denji.” Bomb finished her words by putting her transformed head on his shoulder.
The weight on his shoulder felt heavy, but it made his heart feel light. Right. His heart. The girl beside him was no Makima, but her words helped him a lot.
“I know we’ll probably never meet each other in person, but thanks. I don’t think I could talk like this anywhere else, but this place is so boring that it leaves me with nothing else to do.” He ended his sentence with some humor in his voice.
“I feel the same way.”
No more words were exchanged between the two. Denji felt at ease, soothed by someone like him but not. Bomb felt threatened, flustered by her actions and words that comforted someone instead of causing destruction.
The solitude of their lives, whether it be through emotional or physical means, was absolved here. The blurred realm that had no walls to hide behind, and only yourself and those like you to be with.
Nothing really changed for the two hybrids, both would be revived and continue as usual, but knowing that there existed a place where such vulnerability could exist allowed them to go about their separate days a bit easier.