The smell of blood hit her as it drifted across the wind. There had been a battle just
up ahead - an army of soldiers against the Lord of Demons. Hoshi motioned to her sisters and
watched as they split up in two different directions.
They were the most accomplished exorcists of their time, so it made sense that they
would take it upon themselves to vanquish the most powerful demon in existence. At that
point, her impure thoughts were far from her mind. What mattered now was the job.
Hoshi unwaveringly stepped onto the battlefield, carefully treading over the dead
bodies. Their plan was a simple one, but it was up to her to make it work. The man turned
around when he heard her footsteps. He looked barely her age, with black hair and cold dark
eyes. Hoshi knew better - he was a dangerous monster, as the blood on his sword displayed.
"Who the hell are you?" He asked, lifting up his blade.
"I'm here to exorcise you and erase your existence from this earth," she replied
simply, holding out her staff.
"Interesting - never thought I'd have to fight a hooded freak... What's your name,
sweetie?" She said nothing back. He gave her a slight smirk before charging. Hoshi could see
that he was fast, very fast... but...
At the precise moment he came into range, she unsheathed her sword and unleashed a
barrage of holy slashes. The demon fell backwards on his butt, desperately clutching the
wounds on his body. "You... you bitch!"
Hoshi then turned and ran, knowing that he would follow in his rage. As she quickly
made her way through the forest, she could hear him coming after her, a dark cloud of energy
swirling around him. He had too much power to be killed normally, but his stupidity would be
his downfall.
She made it into the doorway of the church in time, quickly sidestepping into the pews
as he lunged at her. He turned and swung his sword, only to shred the wooden pews. Hoshi
made it to the front of the altar where she attacked him. The Demon Lord could only block
and when he stepped in the right position...
Hina jumped down from the rafters, entangling him in her spirit threads and weapons.
"Wh-what the hell...?" He muttered, upon the realization that he couldn't break out of the
bindings.
"Our teamwork is unmatched," Hoshi said as Tsuki came out from behind the altar and
began to mumble an incantation. Almost instantly, a ritual circle once hidden on the floor,
now glowed brightly, entrapping the demon in the space. He let out a growl as the force of
the magic forced him to his knees. Hoshi walked over to him and retrieved his sword,
immediately wrapping it in a holy cloth she'd been given by the priest who lived in the
church.
He had been kind enough to help them set up this trap and he was the one who secure
the sword. It was at that moment that Hoshi made a horrible mistake that she would always
regret.
"Tsuki." The brunette looked up at her sister. "As we planned before, you stay here
and maintain the seal." Her sister didn't bother to ask for help, but simply sat down at the
edge of the circle, the Demon Lord glaring at her. As long as the seal remained, he couldn't
escape or move.
Hina pinned her weapons into the ground, tying the spirit threads into them. Once they
delivered the sword to the priest to seal away, they would come back and vanquish. It had
been the perfect plan, but... Well, Hoshi didn't take into account certain things. Like how
smart he could be and how strong he actually was.
As they rode away on their horses, Hoshi would later muse on what exactly cause
Tsuki's spell to falter. She could only guess that the Lord of Demons said something
shocking, or constantly poked at the 18 year old girl's insecurities. Perhaps he even tried
to be nice? Whatever it was - he escaped.
Hoshi had been too concerned with the sword to notice, but three fourths of the way to
the shipping dock, Hina spoke. "Big sister, I' m worried about Tsuki..."
"Are you? We'll be heading back for her soon, but... you go on back to her then. I
will be right behind you."
With that, her little sister stopped her horse and turned around as Hoshi continued
down her path. She could see the boat in the distance and hurried her horse along. She was
worried now, but together, Hina and Tsuki should be okay... or at least she told herself
that.
"Ah, exorcist!" The young priest jogged over to her, relieved to see she was alright.
"I have the sword and my sisters and I are about to vanquish the Demon Lord for good,"
she said, getting off of her horse. She handed him the weapon wrapped in the holy cloth.
"Understood. This ship is bound for the new world and while the natives over there
seem primitive, they've assured me their ability to seal up demonic weaponry," he said,
carefully holding it. "You have my word that I'll keep this out of evil hands."
She nodded, getting back onto her horse and galloping away. Hoshi heard 'Godspeed'
from the young man, but paid it almost no heed. She needed to get back to her sisters.
However, it was already too late. By the time Hina had returned, she found her older
sister sprawled on the floor, the top of her robes torn, her hood gone and her hair
disheveled. Hoshi was sure Hina put up a fight, trying to escape with Tsuki... but it wasn't
long before she was in the exact same state.
Hoshi could feel the dark energy again, now knowing that the demon broke free. She
cursed under her breath and jumped off the horse. She couldn't smell blood, so her sisters
were still safe... right? Right? She quickly drew her sword as she charged into the church.
The Lord of Demons turned around when she came in before getting up. He had been
kneeling next to Hina's body.
"What did you do?" Hoshi screamed out, already seeing Tsuki's body as well.
"Oh, nothing... nothing. They're just taking a sweet little nap. You've got cute
sisters by the way," he said with a devilish grin. "You all shouldn't wear such silly
disguises to cover your faces." He laughed before motioning to Hina. "You should have heard
how the little one called out 'big sister'. Too bad you're a bit late, huh?"
Hoshi took a deep breath, trying to keep calm. If she rushed in, she wouldn't be
helping either of them. He started walking towards her, demonic energy swirling around. "So,
where did you put my sword? I want it back..."
"You won't be able to find it anymore," she murmured, backing away. "I've hidden it."
He frowned and started walking faster. "Really now? Maybe you better find it."
Hoshi ran out of the church, knowing this was her chance. Now that he was far away
from her sisters, she could... She turned around and with a flick of her wrist, sent a whirl
of holy energy at him. The Demon Lord barely dodged and charged right back at her. She
parried each one of his punches, realizing that he had lots of strength, but not much skill.
"Damn, you're good..." he drawled out, dusting his pants. He gave her a grin before
charging again. Hoshi didn't understand what he was so happy about and this time, she gave
him quit a gash in his midsection. He fell back with a throaty cry, but he was still
smiling.
Everything for Hoshi was too late that day - from realizing how strong the demon was
to getting to her sisters in time. As the spiritual threads wrapped around her, she didn't
get what was happening until she'd been slammed into the ground and a circle was lighting up
beneath her. Dark energy came from it and Hoshi screamed as nipped at her skin.
She could barely get on her knees because she was too tight and she'd lost her weapon
in the process of getting thrown. Her heart stopped as she heard giggling from behind her -
sweet laughter that could only come from Hina. Tsuki was kneeling next to the Lord of
Demons, the symbols on her arm glowing from activating the dark energy seal.
The Demon Lord himself began to laugh as Hina walked over to him. "What are you...
what are you two doing?!"
They only stared at her with blank eyes and painted on smiles. They both started to
giggle and it sounded so hollow to Hoshi that she desperately tried to free herself. "What
did you do to them?"
He grinned. "I took a page out of your own book. I set up a nice seal down here for
when you came back. Your sisters were quite willing to help me out," he said, as he toyed
with some of Tsuki's hair.
"You bastard! Tsuki, Hina, please! You have to break out of whatever's controlling
you!" He rolled his eyes and walked over to Hoshi. He roughly yanked off her hood and scarf
before whistling.
"Well, I shouldn't be surprised that the oldest is indeed the most beautiful." Hoshi
merely spat at him. He wiped it away before slapping her.
"Bitch. I don't believe you're in the condition to be acting like that... but I'm a
generous man. Perhaps we can strike a deal?" He started grinning again, his fangs gleaming.
"Your sisters are mine now. I placed a curse on them, you see? Their curse is they have to
obey me and be my loyal, loyal servants."
He looked over his shoulder where the two girls were still staring blankly at their
sister. "I can do whatever I want with them. Especially... uh, Tsuki, I believe? Pretty,
pretty girl. The other one is a bit young, but she'd still cute. I'm not a picky guy."
"You're sick," Hoshi whispered.
"Now, now... this is where you come in, big sister. I can kill you right now and run
off and wreak havoc with your sisters at my side... or... you could join me as well-"
"Why would I ever-" He quickly cut her off.
"Don't you want to protect them from the big bad Demon Lord? If you're there, then..."
he let out a small laugh. "Why would I want to bother touching the small ones? I'm in need
of powerful exorcists so I want you to accept my curse. It'll be a lot less painful if you
submit."
Hoshi clamped her mouth shut. She could die right there, as an honorable exorcist, but
if she died... who would be the one to protect her sisters? To oversee them? Take care of
them? But if she were to help the Demon Lord to destroy the human world...!
He seemed to notice the conflicting emotions on her face. "Look here - the world isn't
black and white. There are always gray areas. Do you think you can be perfect little miss
exorcist? Look at your sisters... that curse feeds off your insecurities, your wishes, your
hopes. Why are you so indecisive? If you die now, then what's your life worth?"
Hoshi started to cry, but she choked on her sobs. She didn't want him to see her like
this... Hoshi promised her mother she would protect her sisters and be their guiding light.
If she died... was she abandoning them?
The Lord of Demons smiled at her state and lifted her chin. "Don't worry," he
whispered. "I'll make all your pain go away."
*****
Krystal realized where the dark energy was coming from - it was Hoshi's back. She
needed to keep the older woman distracted. "I'm not perfect," she said, backing away. "No
one is perfect."
"But you're expected to be!" Hoshi yelled, swinging her sword wildly. "Everyone looks
up to you and reminds you of your duties and how you were 'supposed' to be something. No one
ever gives you a chance to fail. They never realize that you have your own wants and your
own needs and your own desires!"
Krystal ducked and rolled to the side, watching the floor crack from Hoshi's sword.
"Then try to figure it out! You don't have to do... you don't have to do something like
this! You don't have to trick your sisters or... or cause the destruction of the world!"
"But it's what my master wants," Hoshi said, approaching Krystal. "And if I obey my
master, I can get what I want."
"...what is it that you want...?"
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