Chapter 19 - Plan

"You can do it, Dominic!"

"Go, Dominic!"

People started cheering for Dominic as he attempted to walk on his own with the support of some handicap clutches.

"Great, but that's enough for now! Don't push yourself, this is a very severe injury." I said as I started to worry.

Lately, I have been confident with my horns since Ray has been supporting me a lot. He told me how beautiful I was with and without the horns and that I'm me and looks don't change who I am.

So, I go out with my horns shown. I have gotten weird looks from everyone but they all supported it.

"How's Chris?" Uhmm, I think it was Oliver who said that. Apparently, he came from some kind of playground.

I've also received the news of some of my children dying. I felt so ashamed, so embarrassed, I felt like a failure when I heard about it.

"Still unconscious..." Paula replied.

"It's been a while." I said.

"It's about time he should be waking up." Zack said.

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"He looks good. His pulse and breathing are back to normal. Vincent said that there's no brain damage or anything either. It will be alright. He'll wake up soon." Ray reassured Emma.

"Right..." Emma mumbled as she held Chris's hand.

"I'm more worried about Norman. Its been one more day, and he hasn't come back." Ray confessed.

"I want to have that talk as soon as possible. I've been thinking a lot after that. Barbara, Cislo, Vincent...I'm glad we could meet them. They're all good people and we had a lot of fun but...when the topic came up, they all behaved in the same way...so much hatred." Emma said.

"Of course, in Goldy Pond, Oliver's group hated the demons too. But this pure, endless hatred? I've never seen anything like this." Emma remembered some flashbacks.

"It scares me. I wasn't feeling compassion for the demons. I was terrified of the intensity of the hatred that I saw right there. Cislo said they're all the same. Then what about Mujika? And those demon children? I can't imagine they understand what's going on. To say they're all the same. It doesn't make any sense. It makes no sense!" Emma yelled.

"Yeah, but those caught in this won't care about that." Ray retorted.

"After they went through so much pain, especially Y/n. I can't imagine the pain she went through...it's no use to tell them. 'Hey, this hatred is bad'. Once that much anger is there, it can't be stopped. It swells up. It's the cycle of hatred, there's nothing we can do about it. " Emma started feeling guilty for Y/n.

"I guess this is what it means to be at war. It can be out of fear, out of poverty, political ambition, misunderstandings. What sparks it doesn't matter very much. If they can afford to feel compassion for the others, it would be hard to go on killing them. But if the cycle of hatred gets started, the war can't be stopped. They kill one another. They grudge the deaths. They kill again. That's how we, humans, end up fighting one another ourselves, again and again for thousands of years." Ray told Emma.

'So there's nothing we can do? But...' Emma sighed and looked at Chris.

"But I...I want-" before Emma could finish voices yelled, interrupting her.

"It's the boss!"

"Hey everybody, the boss is back!"

"Welcome home, boss!"

Emma and Ray looked at each other and nodded.

"Let's go"

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"How was the alliance?" I asked. Norman smiled and placed his arm around my neck and he rested his arm on my shoulder.

"They look like a couple!"

"I'm pretty sure they're together!"

"It's good. No issues. We move to the next step." Norman replied.

"Lovely" I smirked.

"Using me as an armchair, that's mean, Norman." I pouted and he chuckled. We continued to walk until we saw a certain orange head and emo boy.

"We need to talk, Norman. You come with us too, Y/n." Emma said with a serious expression which is rare to see.

I nodded and we followed them. We went to his office and I took a seat on the couch.

"Sorry for grabbing you when you've barely returned." Ray apologized to Norman.

"It's alright." Norman reassured him.

"What's the matter?" Norman asked and a lot of bad scenarios started playing my head.

"Is something troubling you? Are you feeling unwell? Is there something uncomfortable? Do you have complaints? Ar-" Norman interrupted me.

"Y/n, calm down. You're starting to sound like a mother." Norman chuckled. I sighed in relief.

"Nothing is troubling us, Y/n. So don't worry about it but there are many things we'd like to discuss with you." Emma reassured me.

"But first, I want to know...what is this plan of yours? How do you intend to destroy the demons without losing anyone? Is it an insurrection?" Ray asked.

"Correct! I like talking to you because you get it so fast, Ray!" Norman smiled as he complimented Ray.

"What's insurrection?" Emma asked, feeling left out since she had no idea what it was.

"An insurrection originates from a sentiment of indignation and disapproval of a situation and then manifests itself by the refusal to submit or to obey the authority responsible for this situation." I explained.

"What does that mean?" Emma still was confused.

"It refers to the open resistance against the orders of established authority." Norman explained.

"What?" Emma asked.

"A violent uprising against an authority or government." Ray tried to help Emma but she was still confused.

"A rebellion, Emma." I said in simpler terms and she finally got it.

"You'll provoke unrest between them, make them destroy themselves, demon against demon." Ray said.

"So the 'pawns' you went to meet were...!" Emma gasped.

"Demons, right. We just made an alliance. Their society isn't monolithic." Norman said.

"There's a hierarchy in the demon society. There's a king resting at the very top, below it is the nobility, under nobility are commoners and at the very bottom are the wild demons. It's quite a rigid caste system." I tried to explain it as simple as possible to Emma so that she can keep up with the conversation.

"Yeah. In particular, the Royal family and the five recent lines-" before Norman could continue, Emma interrupted him.

"Recent?" Emma asked.

"Five noble families who have the exclusive right to succeed the royals. The Royal family and the regents command and manage all the plantations." I explained.

"They control the supply of human meat, they rule the balance of the entire demon society, boasting tremendous wealth and privilege." Norman added.

"The ones who built Lambda!" Emma exclaimed.

"Indeed." I said.

"Then there are demons who are quite dissatisfied at the ever-growing inequality between them and the nobles. We will use those." Norman mentioned.

"For starters, what does that mean, concretely? What is this alliance about?" Ray asked.

"There's a clan of fallen nobles called the Gilan." I replied as I waited for Norman to explain.

"Through machinations of the royals and regent. They were blamed for a fictitious crime and lost their good name and privilege. One could call it exile. Punished to not eat human meat, their bodies would degenerate. Their histories say they regressed back to wild demons and the clan fell but they went into hiding. Waiting for an opportunity for revenge. For 700 years now. " Norman explained.

"They stole what they could from plantations, from the streets and managed to survive, just barely keeping hold of a humanoid shape and intelligence." I added.

"It's amazing that you found them out. So there are demons like that." Emma smiled.

"Is it really alright, to work with them?" Ray asked.

"It will be fine. Of course, there are quite a few considerable risks, they're plotting to eat us as soon as we are of no use. We are looking to get them to kill one another. It was this kind of bet from the start. Don't worry, it'll be fine." I reassured them which made them confused.

"They won't move on us before seeing their revenge come true. They have been nurturing a strong desire for this revenge for a long time and there's another reason that prevents them from acting before that." Norman paused.

"If this goes well, none of my children will die or get hurt. This is better than fighting the demons head-on." I said.

"I will never lose to a battle of wits. I'm not saying this out of arrogance or confidence but determination. I'll do whatever it takes to secure victory without spilling blood." Norman said.

"Well, at least human blood." I said as I smirked.

"Norman, it turns out that all of Y/N's hunches were all right. There were demons who don't eat humans. There are some who won't devolve, even if they don't eat human meat. We think those demons don't absorb traits from what they think, at all." Emma said which made me smile but Norman had a different reaction.

"Yeah, and suppose there is a lot of this and they still want to eat humans. It would threaten the very basis of our plan." Ray said.

"That's why we thought it would be better to discuss this with you two and also-" Emma stopped talking as she realized Norman's expression.

"Norman?" I called out.

"How...how did you two know about that? What you just said. Where did you hear it? I know it was one of Y/N's hunches but how do you know it's true? Did you saw them? Did you meet them? Your group has actually met her? Impossible, I can't believe it." Norman said as he suddenly stood up which startled me.

"So her clan is still alive? The girl with the cursed blood is still alive?" Norman asked. Cursed blood?

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"The girl with cursed blood?" I asked.

"You knew about her, Norman?" Ray asked.

And then Norman started talking about Mujika's cursed blood that allows those who drink it to remain human permanently.

Apparently, those who were with Mujika's blood gain her ability and most of her clan died. They recorded Mujika dead but she had managed to escape her fate.

While I was deep in thought, well, of course, I was listening but I only grabbed the important details and I didn't listen further, I heard Norman say something about killing something.

"We have to kill them." Norman said.

"Wait! Sonju and Mujika are alright! They're our friends! Our saviors! I refuse to let them get killed like this!" Emma yelled.

"But Emma...they're demons too, you know? Do you think they will sit quietly while I destroy all demons? Do you think they'd ever forgive us?" Norman asked as he held Emma's hand.

"Then stop the extermination! Norman I...I don't want the demons to be destroyed!" Emma cried.

'I don't get you, Emma. We're too different' I thought as I placed my hand on my cheek.

"I actually came here to discuss that with you. And it's possible, isn't it? With Mujika's blood, we can..no, we don't even need to find Mujika. The royals and the regents are enough. Just offer their blood, and every demon could be free of the need to eat humans, right? And then we don't need any more wars! We can avoid fighting altogether!" Emma explained her side.

"The royals and regents only need to step down from their position and-" Emma couldn't finish her sentence since Norman interrupted her.

"It won't work, Emma. Even if they don't need human meat, they'll still attack us whenever they want to eat it. The nobility has been doing just that for the last 700 years. Gilan's group wants the same. In fact, when you think about it, humans are pretty much the same too." Norman told the truth to Emma.

'I can't take this anymore. Not everyone is the same as you, Emma. Not everyone can feel empathy like you do. You're too selfish Emma' I thought as I unconsciously stood up and walked in front of Emma.

"Ne, Emma...if your favorite dish told you 'please don't eat me' would you say 'ok, my bad' and endure the desire? Maybe you could, but do you think the children would feel the same? Will you force them to feel the same way as you? Do you really think we can make every damn demon in the world develop empathy for humans and control their cravings? All for the sake of cattle like us?!" I yelled.

"Then let's escape to the human world! If we cross the Seven Walls and redo the promise, we can make it so that the demons can't cross the barrier, then it's all good! The demons may lose their human meat, but that's still much better than getting killed in a genocide!" Emma yelled back.

"You know, we're not even sure if the humans would accept us without issues!" I stated which shocked Emma.

"Listen, Emma, the world isn't so kind that you can pick everything at once. The world isn't so kind like you. The world isn't like you! Don't keep expecting things to go your way. You can't solve anything with just talking! Look, if we don't exterminate the demons, our family will never be safe enough to smile!" I yelled as I lifted Emma by her collar.

"Y/n, that's enough. Your horns are glowing, don't do it. You'll destroy our hideout." Norman said as he placed his hand on my shoulder.

"Don't tell me what to do!" I yelled as I threw Emma at the couch and left the room and I started making my way to go kill some of those demons.

"R-Y/n? Where are you going?" I heard Barbara ask. I looked at her and she seemed to shake a bit. Without knowing, I was glaring.

"I'm going to go on a killing spree, do you want to join?" I offered and she smirked.

"Of course." she said as she grabbed her weapon. I already have my equipment. My favorite weapon was the ax.

"It's Ruthless and Barbara!"

"No way!"

"What are they doing down here?"

"Y/n, your horns, and your eyes..." Barbara mumbled. I looked at her, confused.

"Your horns and eyes are glowing. I know that you can't wait but...don't scare the kids." Barbara said. I calmed down and she told me that it's back to normal.

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"KYAHHAHAHAH!" Y/n laughed as she threw her ax right in a demon's eye and kicked the demon behind her, cutting the demon in half.

Y/n grinned as she grabbed her ax and jumped on the demon's face and shot the eye with a shotgun.

She kicked the demon and did a backflip, gracefully landing on the grassy ground.

She saw another demon and grabbed it by the face and carried it with one hand and threw it in the air and when it came down, she punched it and it exploded, making it rain demon's blood.

Her horns shone brightly as her eyes were filled with bloodlust. Her clothes started to get covered in blood and so did Barbara's clothes and skin.

"Ya seem fired up than usual. What's bothering ya?" Barbara asked as she approached a demon.

"It's not that much. I just had a disagreement with a friend." I said as I leaned against the tree.

"Oh, who did ya argue with? Was it that orange-haired hair or your boyfriend?" Barbara asked as she started getting some meat from the demon.

"It was Emma. She said something that upset me and I snapped and almost...killed her." Y/n said as she started to feel guilty.

Out of the 4 guardians of the paradise. Barbara was the closest to Y/n and can relate more to her. Zazie was second.

"Killed her? I'm guessing you must have had a huge fight and it must be a serious topic, ain't it?" Barbara asked as Y/n nodded.

"Maybe I shouldn't have snapped like that. I feel really guilty." Y/n confessed.

"Then don'tcha wanna apologize to her? Let's go." Barbara said as she now had the meat of the demon. They ran back to the hideout.

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"Barbara and Ruthless are back!"

"Of course Ruthless is covered in blood, didn't expect Barbara though"

"Welcome back!"

The children greeted us and they smiled despite having blood all over our body.

"How ya feeling?" Barbara asked me.

"I feel better. I'm gonna go apologize to Emma. Bye-bye!" I waved as I ran to the office.

There I saw Emma and Ray walking out of the office. I hid behind a wall and listened in.

"I feel bad for Y/n. Maybe, I am being selfish. She seemed to be in so much pain when she yelled at me." Emma said with a guilty tone.

"Don't worry, Y/n is just worried about all of us being the 'always concerned mother' she is. Just apologize to her and you'll be good again." Ray said.

"You're right! But I'm not sure where she went." Emma chuckled.

"Emma." I called out and they seemed startled.

"I'm sorry for snapping at you earlier. I got worried and I started to act without thinking. I sincerely apologize." I bowed.

"N-no! It's my fault, you're right, I'm being a bit too selfish with what I want." Emma reassured me.

"Y/n, can I ask you something?" Ray asked and I nodded.

"Why are you covered in blood?" Ray asked as Emma sweatdropped.

"It's a bad habit of mine. When I get angry, I cool off by going out." I said as I smiled.

"Uhmm...erm....by going out do you mean hunting those demons?" Emma asked.

"Yeah, it's a bad habit of mine when my bloodlust gets out of control. I'm sorry again for snapping at you. Is your back...ok?" I asked.

"Oh yes, I'm fine! My back just aches from the amount of force." Emma said.

"I sincerely apologize" I bowed again.

"Y/n, stop apologizing!" Ray yelled as he smacked my head.

"So what happened? What's the plan now?" I asked and they explained to me what happened.

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(A/N: Eyoo! I promise I'll make a fluff chapter soon. I'll just deal with the serious arcs and find a way to insert a fluff in there. Anyways I hope you enjoyed it, that's 3069 words for you. Peace out!)