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                “I will take everything you’ve ever had, you bastard. All of you are going to die by my hand, and I hope you know, my manipulation is working. She’ll be mine before you know it, she’ll be on my side, ready to fight all of you. You can’t kill her, no matter how hard you would want to. No matter how hard you could try.”

***

                Their embrace lasted many more minutes, and Akumu felt as if she was about to cry. She hadn’t been embraced like this for such a long time and she had missed the feeling so much. It felt so good, the feeling sweeping through her, and neither of them broke the silence that hung over them. There wasn’t a reason to yet, and Akumu felt Emily slightly shake. After another few moments, both wolf demons sat down, and Emily ran a smooth hand down Akumu’s back, down to her tails, brushing one of them.
                “What does your name mean, Akumu…?” Emily whispered in her ear, and Akumu smiled a bit.
                “Akumu means Nightmare… Uta means Song… Kaen, the last name given from the world I was sent to… Means Flame. But the one originally given to me was Alpha…” Akumu’s voice stayed quiet, and Emily tilted her head.
                “Why would I name you Nightmare? Sounds a bit odd, don’t you think…?”
                Akumu shrugged with a quiet giggle. “No, I personally like it… I can take control of people’s dreams, and I can make them interesting… Quite fun…” After another moment of silence, Akumu gently leaned into Emily, who was taken by surprise and seemed to tense up against Akumu. Letting Emily get used to her, Akumu waited until she was less tense, and tilted her head into the crook of Emily’s neck. “I’m sorry to be a bother,” Akumu whispered, feeling tired, her tails wrapping around her own waist.
                Emily shook her head. “You aren’t a bother, I… I’m just surprised about this, really… It’s all kind of sudden…”
                A small laugh left Akumu. “Get used to it, happened quickly for me too…” Yawning, she closed her eyes, feeling comfortable. There was a gentle nuzzling from Emily, and she hummed something soft to Akumu, who felt a calming sensation run through her. “Tell me about yourself,” Akumu whispered, feeling the lull of sleep coming after her, pulling her deeper.
                Another tail wrapped around Akumu, Emily’s, she’d presume, and nuzzled her body against Emily’s now. “Well, there isn’t much to tell,” Emily whispered in a soft manner. “Get some sleep, I’m sure you need it…”

***

                Opening her eyes, Akumu felt herself standing, but no longer in the mist this time, but instead, at a lake. Her feet were ankle deep, her skin reflecting off the crystal clear water. Turning around, she noticed two silhouettes’ up by the house, and a rush of excitement went through her. She didn’t understand it, but she moved back towards the house, it looking brand new, well-kept. As she was running back up, she blinked, and the feeling of dread swept through her as her surroundings changed, the air feeling more deadly. The grass was darker, the sky turning to a storm, and the two silhouette’s…
                Were on the ground, blood dripping down the small slope as Akumu stopped in her tracks, the blood touching her feet. She didn’t get close enough, she was never close enough to see the two silhouette’s, but she heard a deep growl behind her. Looking back, she saw the black wolf with the deep red eyes, and panic swept through her as she stumbled back, slipping on the blood and landing on her back. Tails flicking in sheer horror, she sat back up and started to back away, up the hill, the wolf easily walking towards her with a big grin.
                Then a thought entered her mind, and Akumu felt a flicker of hope swell up in her chest. There wasn’t a moment to spare as she shouted, “Seikatsu!”
                The wolf stopped in its tracks and lifted her head from her stalking position, the grin disappearing. It seemed to be thinking, and slowly, the blood faded and the scenery changed to a small field surrounded by trees. Akumu, trembling, slowly stood up and looked at the wolf, who seemed to slowly sit down, and then another grin appeared on its face.
                “I see you figured out my name,” it spoke, the voice sounding feminine, but Akumu could hardly tell, the blood rushing to her ears. “How did you figure it out, mon ami? I’m quite interested, but you’re also a very interesting subject anyways.”
                Akumu hated being known as a subject but didn’t object. “I was told…” Akumu replied, swallowing once.
                “Well, too bad, I liked torturing your soul like this for so long,” Seikatsu spoke again. “Now I can’t, you know who I am. But hey, you get to work with me, at least, and I can talk to you in the real world now, so… bonus for you, I guess?” Seikatsu shrugged her wolf shoulders, and Akumu watched as some features changed on her. Her ear tips faded from black to red, as did her paws. The tail had been wrapped in red chains, which looked as if they were a scorching heat. Seikatsu licked a paw before speaking again. “Well, Akumu, we are friends now, and I promise, I won’t give you nightmares again. You will have better dreams, and I’m sure I’ll be of use to you, as I know what goes on outside your mind. I know about Ashton, Emily, Naibu… I even watched what happened to your parents.” There was another grin of some sort, and Akumu’s trembling slowly left her. She figured out Seikatsu’s personality already, and it was odd to think that her wolf in her head would be so… sadistic. Seikatsu looked as if she was prepared to kill anything, and enjoy the kill as well.
                Letting out a short breath, Akumu mumbled, “Why do you like giving me those nightmares…?”
                Seikatsu’s grin became wider, and she growled, “Because it’s fun watching others squirm beneath me, and someone like you was easy to target. Your constant running, your constant belief that this was real sometimes, and not in your head.” The grin faded. “But that’s all over now, and I guess I am here to tell you what you need to know, or at least… Some, maybe give it to you in riddles, if I desired. But I can’t tell you what to do, if I did, the course of this world can change, and I could affect you in an undesired way.” A tail flicked. “I know more about your future than you think, Akumu. I know everything you’ll do, and I could change that. I could change it all, and in reality, I don’t know if I want to. But due to the best in yourself, I’d like to say that you should heed my warnings. Be careful of the ones you feel you trust, betrayal is everywhere, and if you aren’t careful…” Seikatsu’s head lowered. “You’ll become something you never thought possible.”
                Akumu nodded, getting a lot more information than she thought she would out of this conversation. And something about betrayal, but she didn’t understand much really. “Should I be careful of Ashton?” Akumu asked.
                “I cannot tell you,” Seikatsu growled. “I’m only here as your guide, as your warning system. You will get nothing else out of me.” Nodding in understanding, Akumu turned away with a slight sigh. “Don’t be like that, Akumu. I’m sorry I can’t tell you more, but that is all I can tell you.” Akumu nodded and looked up towards the sky, crossing her arms as if she was cold, and closed her eyes. “I’ll talk to you later, Akumu,” Seikatsu finished, disappearing, the dream fading.
                “Let’s hope not,” Akumu whispered.

***

                Akumu had awoken the next morning, tails still wrapped around herself, and felt something brushing her hair. A hand. Emily’s scent was thick, and Akumu opened her eyes, noticing she was in Emily’s lap, her head against Emily’s shoulder. Looking at Emily, she tilted her head and heard Emily giggle quietly. “Someone finally woke up…” Emily whispered, her hand still brushing through Akumu’s hair. “Sleep well?”
                There was a moment of thought where Akumu wanted to say no, because the dream wasn’t good, it never was good. Nodding, Akumu slowly rested her head back on Emily’s shoulder, feeling fairly comfortable and closing her eyes. “Thanks for asking,” Akumu whispered, and Emily’s tail wrapped around her waist.
                “Of course,” Emily mumbled, putting her arms around Akumu in a hug. Akumu did the same with Emily, who had let out a slight purr. “So… Ashton, before leaving, said we had to get going back to the other world and the dimension, and that we were supposed to find someone named-”
                “Luxes,” Akumu interrupted accidentally, forgetting all about the man until this moment. “We are meant to find Luxes, bring all of us back together…” Emily seemed to tense slightly, and her tail flicked, Akumu noticing Emily’s breaths were shaky, uneven. “Something wrong, mother…?”
                “I… I might have another mate…” Emily mumbled. “What do I do about him…? I can’t just leave him, I… I still love him…” Akumu slowly moved and looked Emily in the eyes, disappointment in her. A small voice entered her head. Ryan Matthews, Seikatsu’s voice echoed. Get rid of him, and Emily will be more inclined to join your quest. I’m sure it’ll be fine.
                Get rid of him how? Akumu thought back.
                I don’t know, your choice. Kill him… Shove him into another part of the dimension where he can’t come back… Whatever the way you see fit, Seikatsu stopped speaking, her voice disappearing.
                “Well…” Akumu whispered, “I guess we’ll have to see how this plays out… Mind if I got hunting for a bit? I’m getting a bit hungry.” Emily shook her head, and Akumu gave Emily another hug before standing, starting to walk away. Where is he? Akumu tried to speak to Seikatsu.
                There was a very long pause, and finally Seikatsu answered. In the darkness of the cavern, Seikatsu finally replied. Akumu’s tails flicked as she kept walking, letting herself think about how to get rid of this Ryan fellow. Anger flared in her, a deep growl leaving her and she bolted ahead, something telling her this was the way. The feeling of the shaft of the scythe hitting her back gave Akumu only one thought, the dimension might be best, but killing Ryan would be a permanent solution. And what if Ryan figured out a way to escape? Akumu didn’t know, but her thoughts stopped there, she would try for capture first, then kill if Ryan wasn’t able to be taken.
                It wasn’t long before Akumu found a river, and started to follow it, feeling as if she was going the right way still. The path she was meant to take was this one, and a scent struck her nose, the scent of a male wolf. Her running picked up and she noticed a lake at the end of the river, seeing a small black space, as if there was a cave. In the cavern, Akumu grinned, pulling her scythe out and running with it in hand. You’re going down, Ryan, Akumu let out a loud growl, and there was a quick movement to her left, on the opposite side of the river, but Akumu kept running. Something flew through the air, and she ducked, a knife hitting a tree and she rolled, continuing to run on her feet.
                A man was running on the opposite side of the river, an angel tattoo on one arm clearly visible. Like the man from the visions, Akumu thought, but the thought left as another knife was thrown. Akumu plucked it from the air and threw it right back, sliding below a low hanging branch and falling through the dirt and grass. Hitting something solid, the breath was knocked out of her, and she gasped, trying for more air. There was a loud chuckle, and Akumu could only see a circle of light above her, she had fallen into another cavern.
                “Someone like you shouldn’t be hanging around my lovely girl,” a growl echoed. Akumu slowly sat up, feeling her back crack in pain, and noticed the man, who had seemed angry. “I almost thought you were Emily at first, but you look too much like her, what gave you away was the extra tail and a few smaller features that are different. Cheekbones, the way you run, you were after me, weren’t you?” His growl became deeper and echoed in a slight laugh. “So, I’m going to ask you to leave us alone, this is your only chance.”
                Something left Akumu, although she couldn’t tell it was a laugh, and got to her feet, stumbling slightly before the blood evened out in her ears. Akumu opened her eyes, both black, and she looked at Ryan, but before she could say anything, there was a shout.
                “No you don’t, Ryan!” Emily’s voice rang.
                Guess I was wrong, Seikatsu spoke.
                Akumu’s eyes turned back to their natural hazel, and she saw Emily behind Ryan. “You are not harming her in any way,” Emily spoke, her voice even, but in her eyes, Akumu could tell, was fear. Maybe regret.
                “Why not?” Ryan growled, his red colored wolf ear and tail both flicked. “She is a potential threat to our safety, don’t you think she should die?”
                “No,” Emily replied, taking a step closer. “Akumu isn’t yours to kill, she isn’t going to be killed if I have anything to say about it.” Ryan seemed surprised, his tail continuing to flick. “You will not be harming my daughter, ever.” There was something in Ryan’s gaze, and he turned back to Akumu, a sudden blast of energy pushing Emily back into a wall.
                “You don’t understand, Emily,” Ryan spoke, but no growl in his voice. “I can’t lose you again, I can’t, I love you too much and I’m not letting anyone take you away from me again.” Ryan pulled out a pistol, it’s shiny sides reflecting his unusually bright gaze, and the barrel pointed straight at Akumu. “Especially not her or Luxes, not them.”
                So he remembers, Akumu thought to herself. He knows about it all and he’s kept it hidden to keep her. They must’ve been in some sort of love situation back in the last world… Another thought struck her. I shoulder probably move. Akumu pushed herself away from where she was, hearing a loud gunshot ringing in her ears, then swiped the scythe in the air, creating a tear as another gunshot sounded, but it never touched her. Bolting to the side, she narrowly avoided another hit, he was missing on purpose, it seemed. Emily was shouting something, but it seemed neither Akumu nor Ryan heard her, and Akumu created another tear, a loud shot sounding again and a loud grunt from Ryan. The tear disappeared and Akumu watched as blood left Ryan’s shoulder. The bullet must’ve travelled through the dimension into the tear Akumu created, coming out and hitting him.
                Taking the chance, she ran forward and slammed the scythe into Ryan’s side, catching him off-guard and slicing deeply into his skin. Blood quickly dropped from him, covering the floor in a sparkling scarlet, but Akumu knew he wouldn’t die yet. She grabbed him by the throat and created another tear, then threw Ryan into it, Emily shouting something else, but Akumu didn’t care to hear.
                Walking into the tear, she closed it and grabbed Ryan again, who was still bleeding, and put him against a gray wall. Chains appeared on Akumu’s command, wrapping his arms and legs, even his chest. Something tried to leave Ryan, vines, from what Akumu could see, but they retracted quickly, like something was blocking them.
                “You’re making a mistake,” Ryan growled. “They were never meant to be, Akumu, they never have been. Why do you think you were separated from them? You were never supposed to meet them again; you were supposed to stay away.” Ryan’s head hung low, he not looking up, looking weak, which surprised Akumu. “Don’t do this,” Ryan stopped growling now, something entering his voice.
                Do you know who his father is? Seikatsu spoke, and Akumu’s ear flicked. You just defeated the son of Death, although from the way he is, you’d think he’d be more like the son of the horseman of war. But that’s just an opinion.
                “Mistake or not, it doesn’t matter,” Akumu replied. “I’m not going to listen to you, my mind has been made up, I want my family back together, and nothing will change that opinion.”
                Ryan coughed, blood leaving his lips. “Then don’t listen to me, but come back for me, would you…? It gets lonely in the dimension; this isn’t my first rodeo kid. I’ve been here before; I know what this place does to people like me…” He looked up, and before he could speak again, she stuck the scythe in the ground and grabbed his throat, slamming his head into the wall, hard. Ryan let out a groan, and Akumu stabbed a claw into his eye, ripping it out. There was a loud cry from Ryan for only a moment as both his eyes closed, one leaking plenty of blood and covering Akumu’s hand. “Not the first time I had my eye ripped out either,” he gasped, from what little he could breath. “Do it to yourself, it hurts like a bitch…”
                “I’d prefer to keep my eye, thanks,” Akumu growled, then let go of his neck, he hanging low again. “I’ll let you bleed for a while, Ryan.” Walking away, she pulled the scythe from the ground and created a tear again, walking out and letting herself rest. Emily was standing a few feet away, Ashton beside her, and it seemed to Akumu that they were talking before she came back out. Letting her energies rest, the tear disappeared.
                Moving forward a few feet, Akumu looked at Ashton.
                “So… when is Death coming after me…?”