They called us monsters part 17

Chapter 17: Unlikely partners

‘’I hate to doubt your plans, Ketsu, but this doesn’t seem right to me.’’, Nero commented, his arms crossed over his chest, a frown of concern altering his young, handsome features. Ketsu smirked, knowing well that her plan was going to work. She would either get a nice temporary truce and cooperation with this little group, or threaten them with the life of their leader in order to be smuggled in. The female demon had heard of the group before, but paid them no mind, as she did not prefer to visit the capital. This time though she found that her interests were similar to the group’s, even if she practically was one of their targets. They had been lucky enough to spot one of them roaming outside the capital, probably returning from a mission. The members of the band of blood were supposed to be kept a secret, but Ketsu could tell them apart from others, as they smelled of demon even more than an actual demon. The blood they spilled stained them and only pure demons could tell. It was a survival trait the race had developed throughout the years, but not all of them could properly use it.

Both Nero and Ketsu straightened up and walked a few steps from behind the trees that hid them. They had been standing outside the walls for quite some time, but it seemed that three figures had decided to approach them. The demon was impressed by their lack of caution. Knowing that she was a pureblood demon, they should have been more concerned and brought a larger number of soldiers. She noticed their arms placed over the swords that hang by their belts and wore a cunning smile, lowering her hood to reveal her face and crimson eyes. Nero had his hands over his daggers, she was sure. When the hoods of the three males fell, Ketsu took a sharp inhale of breath and let out a laughter, pure excitement running through her body, as she was met with the tall hunter once more, only this time a pair of red was shining in his eyes.

‘’You are a half man after all… How exciting to meet you again!’’, she uttered, taking in his shocked expression with delight, before it turned into concealed rage. Her eyes focused on the man in the middle. A white haired male, nearly as tall as Nero, sturdy looking with sharp characteristics and a pair of un-forgiving green eyes. He was the only one who was pure human from the three of them and that fact made him the leader of the band of blood.

‘’What is your name demon and what do you want from us?’’, he spoke with a gruff, demanding voice and Ketsu was thrilled by the amount of hard headed males surrounding her. She almost wished she could go back to her days of mindless killing, forcing those stern expression into pleading ones. Yet she had changed. The young male behind her and her late friends made her realize a few things.

‘’I am Ketsu. A demon who has been roaming the Failands for more than a century. My goal is to kill the ones in charge of this rotten city. Something tells me our goals align.’’, she responded, making sure to act as cute as possible, desiring to confuse the males even further.

‘’How do you…’’, the male tried to speak, but she interrupted him.

‘’Come now sir leader. Are you going to cooperate or not?’’

He pressed his lips in a thin line and exchanged a glance with the black haired male on his left.

‘’You realize how hard it is for us to trust you.’’, he pressed on and the demon rolled her eyes.

‘’Don’t you think I could be of use? Both my partner and I are very capable killers.’’, she explained. ‘’Unless you are all settled and in no need of help of course…’’

Those final words seemed to have stirred him up as he released an exhale of breath, finally showing signs of weakness.

‘’We shall accept your offer, but you are going to stay in a place different than our base. If I suspect anything I will have my warriors destroy you, are we clear?’’, he sternly said and Ketsu couldn’t help but smile at his empty words.

‘’Crystal clear.’’, she replied and glanced back at Nero, who wore his indifferent expression as always.

She followed the three men around the high walls, towards one the secret passageways they guarded for themselves and the demon made sure to mentally note the exact location, in case she had to use it again. Upon entering the town both Nero and she lifted their hoods up, trying to conceal themselves.

‘’The group holds a few safe houses in the capital, reserved for people under our protection. Drako here will lead you to the south estate and Yaju will assist him.’’, the white haired human spoke while they walked the nearly empty streets of the town. ‘’We shall discuss our cooperation further in the morning. You must be in need of rest, miss Ketsu.’’ The woman didn’t hold back a chuckle at his words and commented no further.

The house they offered was quite large and had three unoccupied rooms. She was given a spare key by the man called Drako before the two half demons left her and Nero in that building. The fact that they gave them a completely empty house showed hints of fear and it was understandable. The demon had a very particular fame surrounding her existence, fame that was actually true. As soon as the first rays of sun colored the sky above the capital a light blue, the hunter called Yaju, the one who claimed that he had slain Mido’s entire team, had arrived in the house, followed by a red haired female who looked like a warrior, dressed in full leather enhancements, a long spear folded behind her back. The person Ketsu wanted to see the most though, leader Fern, wasn’t there.

‘’I will be representing the leader.’’, the redhead spoke and the demon lifted her brows and stood up from the kitchen table she had been leaning on. Nero had been standing beside the fireplace the whole time, his hands crossed in front of his chest, observing the interaction.

‘’As what?’’, Ketsu couldn’t help but question the young female, admiring her militant and strict posture. Her brows furrowed.

‘’As his daughter and rightful heir of his leading position in the band of blood.’’, she announced with pride and the elder female had to bite her tongue to hold her laughter back. She concealed her amusement with a mere smile.

‘’Very well miss…’’

‘’Krista, I am called. We have to discuss the terms of our cooperation.’’, she immediately began explaining what the band of blood wanted from her, basically asking her to give them every bit of information she had concerning demon physiology and to promise not to attack any of the members as well as kill demons if she was asked to. Ketsu remained silent during her monologue, her eyes dancing between her emerald one’s and the half man’s grey ones.

‘’Lastly we might make use of your race and ask you to infiltrate the demons in the higher levels of the capital, as soon as we get hold of a reliable connection.’’, she finished her words and shut her mouth with a reluctant expression. The demon smirked at her, showing teeth, and crossed her hands in front of her chest. She glanced back to look at Nero.

‘’Any thoughts?’’, she questioned him and the male exhaled, finally changing his indifferent face into an enraged one.

‘’You seem to think highly of yourselves to ask this much from lady Ketsu. What could you possibly offer in return? Are you willing to accept our terms?’’

His voice was as flat as ever, but the demon felt her old heart flutter. The young man had replaced his step mother with her, seeking to look for her benefit now. It felt out of place, but she sinfully desired it so. When the demon faced forward, the young woman’s wore a strained expression, as if she had been thinking hard of what to do. Ketsu laughed and shook her hand dismissively.

‘’Ok little lady.’’, she replied, her gaze falling on the hunter beside her for a split second, making him flinch.

‘’In return, I want to kill every royal demon in the capital and possibly even some human royalty. You will offer us this place to stay in the meanwhile, as well as food.’’

The redhead widened her eyes.

‘’I will have to consult…’’, she began and Ketsu interrupted her.

‘’I will help you with information in exchange of you getting me in, but if you want me to act as a spy or fight for you, you will have to give me access to the council.’’

‘’We understand your reasoning.’’, the male suddenly spoke up and took a step near the demon, his stature tall and formidable. Ketsu nodded and approached him as well. She stopped only a few inches away from him, her eyes travelling from his waist upwards and she could sense that her gaze electrified him. Meddling with others gave her such pleasure. ‘’We shall proceed with the cooperation. Is there anything else you need?’’, the male struggled to speak with a calm voice. Ketsu hummed and leaned near his neck.

‘’I will be getting hungry during my stay here. My friend can eat regular food, but I require human flesh.’’, she announced and noticed him grit his teeth for a split second. The demon took a step back.

‘’Understandable.’’, he announced and glanced at the female behind him who looked more than offended since he butted in the conversation, ruining her façade. ‘’I shall return tonight to pick you up. In the meanwhile you are free to do as you please, as long as you cause no trouble.’’

‘’We will keep that in mind sir Yaju.’’, Ketsu replied and watched them leave the house before chuckling. Suddenly, she felt someone pull her abruptly. Nero had grabbed her body from the back and pressed it against him, his one hand circling her waist, while his other grabbed her chin, forcing her to look away as he kissed her neck gently. The demon felt desire coursing through her body, pressure building up in her nether region.

‘’Do you like this man, Ketsu?’’, he asked and the female shivered. His voice held no emotion, yet his aura was ridden with rage, envy. Ketsu was slightly frightened, attracted and even impressed by him. ‘’If you like him that much I will serve him to you for dinner…’’ His smirk was pressed against her skin. Nero turned her around and pressed his lips against hers aggressively, demandingly. The demon couldn’t help but give into him, allowing him to take her body as he pleased, expressing his possessiveness.

That same night, the two of them were led by hunter Yaju through the back streets of the capital and to secret clinic of the only doctor of the group had. It was to their advantage that they knew little of her own background and nothing about Nero. As they descended the flight of stairs into the basement of a medium sized stone building, the demon did not try to hide her crimson eyes and demon powers. She had to show face around these humans. The room had everything a proper clinic needed, including a small office and bookcase full of binders to keep information. The leader of the organization, Fern, had been leaning over the desk, discussing with a middle aged woman who kept notes, her black hair falling to the side in a tight braid, blue eyes running over the piece of paper.

‘’They are here.’’, Yaju announced and stepped aside, letting Ketsu and Nero approach the two humans. Fern narrowed his eyes at them as he stood straight.

‘’Let’s talk, lady demon.’’