The Awakening

Chapter 2

“So you think your possessed?” Nero asked in a bored voice.

Possessed, this kid was either talking shit and there out of some kind of joke, which he doubted considering his reaction to possible help, he thought he was possessed in which case he had mental health issues, or he was actually possessed. Nero’s hopes of getting some action were now pushing up daises, he really needed to catch a break!

“I don’t think I'm possessed, not any more, I am. I know it” He said it in such a clam manner but his tone was full of certainty. Like he had had this argument many times before, with the same results and reactions from others, and he was fed up with it. Nero had nothing but time, but for this he could do nothing. Nero could see the tension building back up in Akira’s body, preparing his face for the ‘nothing I can do’ speech, looks like they’d both be dealing with epic let downs.

“Look, if you are or aren’t it doesn't matter, I can’t help you. You need a priest or a psychologist, psychiatrist, therapist, or whoever it is that deals with that type of mental health stuff. I deal with the demons that are physically in front of me.” Nero knew he was being dismissive but he needed real work and he really didn’t want to call up Dante, he would know instantly that Nero was mooching for work. The state Nero had been in recently, he knew he wouldn’t be able to handle any teasing or taunting from the older demon hunter, he could feel his anger and embarrassment rising just thinking about it.

“Your lack of knowledge on the mental health profession, is.....inspiring, but regardless, you misunderstand the situation. I'm not here for you to exorcise me. I’m here because I need your help to kill demons. Well, one particular demon”

In the passing of around five minutes, Akira's voice had gone from polite uncertainty to a hardened biting tone of exasperation. Nero wondered if it was the fact that the other man had probably done all this before and had ended up being fobbed off or if maybe it was Nero’s conversational skills and killer charm, that had brought out the change. Kyrie was always telling Nero to work on his social skills for the sake of his business, he decided that he should hear what the other had to say then determine when he was finished, if it could be a job, but he should probably get Akira back to thinking Nero was willing to help.

“OK, OK..you tell me what’s going on and when you’re finished, I’ll let you know if I can help. Cool?” Nero sat back in his chair and was about to put his feet on the desk, then thought better of it, he should look somewhat interested.

“Yeah....cool” Akira sighed, rolling his eyes. Fixing them on a point on the floor, he took in a deep breath and closed his eyes, then let out the breath slowly from his nose, preparing himself for what he wanted to say. Nero didn't have much time to ponder the thought of how good looking the other man was or how smooth his skin looked or what it would be like to touch it, to run his fingers down his neck, or if his skin was like that all over, when Akira started to speak, Nero was glad, he would analyse where that train of thought came from later, much later, or never.

“For me it all started around four years ago. I was in school, finishing up lunch and as I got up to leave something tripped me up and I smacked my head off one of the lunch-room tables, you know, one of those random accidents that just happen.”
Nero nodded. “ Anyway, I was knocked silly for a while and came to in the nurses office with a thumping headache and a massive egg like welt growing out of my skull” As he said this he touched just below the hairline above his left eye, some injuries always leave an echo of pain even after they’ve healed.

“So my father comes to pick me up and takes me to the hospital to get checked out, just in case, well as I got there, my vision got all blurry and I passed out. I woke up three days later in a hospital bed, turned out I had a concussion and lost conciousness then hit the back of my head on the floor when I arrived, I comatose myself.”

“Sounds painful” Nero was bored, he really wished Akira would just get to the point already.

“It was, it last for nearly two weeks, then other things started to happen. I kept smelling this rotten egg stench, and hearing things, eventually I started seeing things. Horrible things, things that shouldn’t exist. Demons.”Akira was staring straight at Nero, his face unreadable, but fully aware that Nero was bored.

“You hit your head and ended up with a concussion and possessed?” Nero tried to sound interested and failed.

Akira sighed again, “no, that came later.”. He said it in such a soft voice Nero wasn't sure he’d said it at all, if he hadn’t seen his lips moving, he would have dismissed it, but he was still staring at Nero.

“How did it happen then?” Nero stared straight back, he was starting to feel uncomfortable but he was hoping Akira would snap out of out it, he remained quiet.

Nero was getting impatient; “You came here for a reason right? You want help, get to the part about the demon you want gone. Otherwise your wasting both our time” Akira snorted out a laugh and finally looked away.

“Yeah, your right. Well in the interest of saving your attention span too much work, and so you can get back to...all the other work you don’t have, I’ll cut to the chase. People are dying and there is a demon that is growing in power with each new death. I can track it down so far, but once i get within a certain proximity, its like, I don't know, like I can no longer focus on it, I can’t pin point it. Therefore, as I can’t find it exactly, I can’t kill it. I was thinking maybe you could try.” He was back to staring at Nero again.

“Maybe I could, but you need to answer a few questions first like, where is it? And how much are you willing to pay?” After that last statement from Akira, Nero had a million more questions, but thought he should try to reign in the interest, seeing as he didn't have any for the others life story. He was an asshole but he didn't have to be a complete dick.

Akira looked away and shifted uncomfortably in his seat. Nero didn't think he was going to like what was coming next, battering his hopes down before they got shot down.

“Well, its in the city of Kerberos”

“What the fuck!!” Nero couldn’t help the outburst, Kerberos was the other side of the continent. It was ridiculous. “How would I get a sword and guns on an flight?”

“You wouldn’t. We would get the train to Teivel city then get the high speed train to Kerberos, the trains have no metal detectors or security screening and it is faster than going by boat. I’ve worked it out, if we get the 6am train to Teivel tomorrow morning we would arrive there at 2pm, we would then have a four hour wait for the next train which would get us to Kerberos around 6am local time the next day” Akira looked away and whispered the last part, but Nero still caught it.

“Pfft, local time? How long is the second train?”

“It’s 17 hours and 8 hours to Teivel, if they run on time”

“Fuck that! And no offence, but you don’t look like you have thousands in the bank to be able to make that journey appealing” he sniped

“You’re right I don’t, but I will pay for all the transport and provide somewhere to stay in Kerberos, how much I can pay you will depend on how much I can get my hands on, but the city is huge and is infested with demons, you could pick up a little extra work while you’re there or stay a few extra days to make it worth while, if you speak to the right people”

“How much you can get your hands on? Speak to the right people? You’re supposed to be selling this to me, right? You’re doing a fine job!” Sarcasm dripping off every word.

Akira let out a bark of a laugh “Sell it to you! You should be thankful I’m even here, everything you need right now, I’m offering.”

“Everything I need, how would you know what I need?”Nero sat up, he was getting pissed, who the fuck did this guy think he was?

“I can look at a person and then I just know things about them, OK, and I know you need this job” Akira was standing up, his stance and voice aggressive, then he suddenly softened, all the tension just melting out of him, opening his hands in a staling gesture, “you need this job....and I need your help.” backing away from the desk.

Nero had to be honest with himself, Akira was right, he needed a job, he didn’t have any options, unless he went crawling to Dante, no fucking way! So Akira was the only real choice he had, if he wanted to retain some dignity. Feeling like he was eating defeat, he knew he should relent, and after thinking about everything the other man had said, Nero had a million and one questions, but asked only one “How long would you need me for?”

Akira breathed a sigh of relief and smiled “two weeks, maybe, just until you kill the demon I spoke of, then its up to you.”

Nero had another one of those ‘isn’t he attractive’ thoughts flutter through his mind when looking at the others face when he smiled, before it got back on track to the important matter, two weeks, he could be away from Kyrie for two weeks, right? Things would be better for them after he pounded out his frustrations on some demons, but would she be safe while he was gone?
“Look, I’ll need to think about it”

“Sure, I’ll leave my number and you can let me know once you decide but I will be leaving tomorrow” He wrote it down on a scrap of paper Nero found in his desk, he looked at him as he handed it over and smiled. Then turned around and walked out.

Nero’s mind was racing, he was conflicted, all logic stated he had to go but he didn't want to leave Kyrie, they hadn’t been apart that long before, would she be all right without him, would she miss him, would she realise with him gone she didn’t need nor want him, that thought sent cold ice flooding through his system. He would talk it over with her and let her make the decision for him.

Reflecting on what Akira had said, they would have four hours to waste in Teivel city, if he went. That’s where Dante was based, Nero had no desire to see the other demon hunter, especially after that dream he had a few weeks before, there was no way he would risk either Dante or Trish reading into his embarrassment that he knew would radiate out of him. Nero didn’t think he would ever be able to look Dante in the eye again.

He tried to switch his focus, he thought about Akira and went through a few things in his mind. How exactly did Akira just “know” stuff about people, what’s with the creepy staring, how can he find demons, was he even able to kill demons, he had said he couldn’t find this one to kill, and why the fuck does he seem to be OK with being possessed. Nero was cursing his impatience, if he could have been bothered to listen he might have gained the answer to some of those questions. He stretched his head back over his chair, staring at the ceiling.

“Ugh. Fuck it!”

Looking at the time, he decided to close up, he would go home and talk it through with Kyrie, then call Akira with his answer.