Chapter 2: Where are we going?
I watched the demon devour my mother and Sasha. Hot tears rolled down my cheeks, I couldn't even scream. My voice went numb.
The demon marched toward us, my heart thudding loudly against my chest.
"We gotta move, let's go!!" Eren roared as he grabbed my hand and Takai's.
We ran hurriedly, without looking back.
I felt the weight of the demon behind us, but I refused to turn.
The demon bent low, trying to grab Takai, but we dashed under a small rock, a place where it couldn't see us.
"Hunters!! Let's go!!" a voice shouted from outside.
We looked up and saw a demon hunter seated in a plane, using his powers to shield the demons from attacking it.
"Let's go, hunters! I can't hold on much longer!" he yelled as many hunters sprinted toward the plane.
"Guys, let's get in before the plane gets filled," I said.
"How do we sneak past the demons?" Takai asked.
"We move like spirits, okay? Silent, smart, and fast," Eren said.
We nodded in agreement.
Silently, we slipped past the demons, moving like shadows, hiding behind broken walls and lifeless bodies scattered across the ground.
Fortunately, we made it to the plane, but many hunters were still trying to get in as they kept fighting the demons.
We tried to sneak inside, squeezing past the demons; sweat trickled down my cheeks as I struggled to breathe. It felt like a stampede.
"Guys, let's hold each other's hands. We need to get into the plane together," Eren yelled.
We linked hands and pushed through the crowd. The plane was almost full.
"Get outta the damn way!" a hunter snapped as he shoved Takai to the ground.
"Shit!" Takai hit the floor while other hunters stumbled over him.
"We gotta get him up, come on!" I shouted.
Eren and I grabbed Takai, but more hunters surged past, the plane was filling fast. Only a few spaces were left.
"Come on, Takai! We gotta move!" I yelled as Eren and I hauled him up.
"Get the fuck up, the plane is almost full!" Eren barked.
We managed to pull Takai free and ran toward the entrance, shoving and squeezing past other hunters. We made it inside, but we could barely breathe. Over a thousand hunters were crowded into the plane.
"Arghh!" Eren screamed as a hunter tried to kick him out.
Takai and I shoved the attacker back off the threshold and dragged Eren fully inside with everything we had.
"Close the plane!" someone yelled.
The door shut as more demons surged toward the aircraft.
"No!! My kid and I need to come in!" a desperate voice cried, banging on the door.
The plane took off, climbing into the air. I looked down and watched the remaining demon hunters being slaughtered. Hot tears blurred my vision. In a blink, I had lost everything, my parents, my friend, my home, everything.
I clenched my fists until my knuckles burned. The demons had come prepared to wage war.
"I swear on my parents' lives: I will kill every single demon. I will avenge my parents, Sasha, and every fallen hunter," I muttered.
Eren and Takai looked at me.
"Where are we going?" one of the hunters asked the pilot.
"Hanamura universe. That's our only option," the pilot replied.
Hanamura was the place where Kashai, the head of the demon hunters, lived.
"I don't know what happened to my mum. I don't know if she's dead or not," Takai said, sobbing.
I placed my hand on his gently.
"It's okay, Takai. Now we must brace ourselves for what lies ahead," I said.
Eren scoffed.
"I for sure don't miss that dumbass father of mine. The demons can have his eyeballs for all I care," he said flatly.
Takai and I glanced at him without saying a word.
At nightfall, we finally reached Hanamura.
Takai and some of the other hunters had fallen asleep, but Eren and I stayed awake, our eyes hard and fixed.
The plane landed softly. My eyes widened when I saw the royal gates of Hanamura.
My parents had always told me how beautiful Hanamura was and how the royal gates rose high and proud. I'd always wanted to come here, but with my family, not like this.
"Takai, wake up. We're here," I said, tugging him.
"Woah!, this is magnificent," Takai breathed, rubbing his eyes as sleep slid away at the sight of the gates.
We stepped down from the plane and stood before the gate; everyone's expressions turned unreadable.
"Don't you think Kashai will be mad at us for failing?" one of the hunters asked, worry flashing across his face.
The gates opened and Kashai stood there, catching everyone off guard. The moment he saw us his gaze darkened.
"All hail Kashai, the lord of the demon hunters!" a guard roared. Immediately everyone bowed their heads almost to the ground.
"Oh shit, that's Kashai. I've only heard of him in my mum's bedtime stories, but now I'm seeing him for real," Takai said, awe in his voice as he stole a glance.
I looked up at Kashai and my eyes widened. He was like a demigod—curly hair threaded with diamonds, gold on his robe shining. But his face was…off, as if he were furious.
"What the hell happened!? Don't tell me those damn demons defeated all of you!" Kashai roared, his voice sending shivers down my spine.
One of the hunters dropped to his knees before Kashai, crashing to the ground.
"L-lord Kashai, those bastards came prepared. We were caught off guard. You know we would never bow to those bastards, b-but we were…"
"You were what!?" Kashai thundered.
"Now you come seeking refuge from me after losing to those bastards! I'm ashamed of all of you. Get out of my sight, all of you!" he roared.
Everyone's faces went pale.
"N-no, Lord Kashai, we have nowhere else to go. Please help us," one of the hunters begged, collapsing and pleading.
"What happens now?" I asked, turning toward Takai and Eren.
Everywhere I looked there were sobs and muffled cries.
"Enough!!" Kashai boomed.
"I'll let you bunch of failures stay here, under one condition."
Confusion spread across every face.
"Each and every one of you, male and female, adult and child, will train in the military for ten years. You will train very hard. When the time is right, and when each of you is finally qualified and has passed the training test, you shall be sent back to Skyverse where those bastard demons have taken over. You will be disguised as demons; you shall secretly infiltrate their cities and strongholds, and kill them bit by bit. If any of you do not pass the training test, you shall be banished from Hanamura, for you are of no use to me or this universe," Kashai said sternly.
I turned my gaze to Eren and Takai.
"Do you think we can pull through?" I asked, tears stinging at my eyes.
"We sure can," Eren replied.