Ch 39 : The Path Of The Forsaken(2)

Renji stood in the ruins, his breath uneven. His body ached from the wounds he had taken—not from the Inquisitors' attacks, but from holding himself back.

The abyss inside him screamed for more.

It wanted blood.

It wanted to consume.

But he had made his choice.

The Inquisitors had retreated. He had let them go.

And now, the battlefield was silent.

Astra sat on the rubble, wrapping a bandage around her arm, while Shirogane wiped the sweat from his brow.

Jinno, his gunblade still held loosely in one hand, stared at Renji with an unreadable expression.

"You had us worried for a second," Jinno finally said.

Renji exhaled. "I had myself worried."

Shirogane chuckled, though it lacked humor. "I don't think you realize how terrifying you looked back there."

Renji glanced down at his hands. Black veins pulsed under his skin, the remnants of the abyss still lingering.

He clenched his fists.

"I'm aware," he murmured.

---

Deep inside, the abyssal entity whispered.

"You held back. Why?"

Renji didn't answer.

"You could have killed them all. You could have grown stronger. You could have—"

"Shut up."

The entity laughed, its voice slithering through his thoughts.

"You think you have control, little monster?"

Renji inhaled sharply, pushing the voice away.

He was done listening to it.

For now.

---

Jinno sheathed his blade and crossed his arms. "We should leave before the Organization regroups."

Shirogane nodded. "Agreed. They won't let this go."

Astra frowned. "And what happens now? The Organization won't stop hunting Renji."

Jinno sighed. "Neither will the other factions."

Renji already knew that.

The moment he had stepped onto this path, there was no turning back.

Astra looked at him. "What are you going to do now?"

Renji closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them.

"I'm going to keep surviving."

"That's it?"

He exhaled. "What else is there?"

Silence followed.

Finally, Jinno nodded. "Then we'll keep moving. Together."

Astra raised an eyebrow. "Are we a team now?"

Shirogane smirked. "Let's not get ahead of ourselves."

But even so, none of them walked away.

For now, they were in this together.

And that was enough.

---

Meanwhile, far from the battlefield, Raine and the surviving Inquisitors regrouped.

Their wounds were deep. Their pride even deeper.

One of the younger hunters clenched his fists. "We should have killed him when we had the chance."

Raine didn't respond.

She stood at the edge of a ruined building, staring at the bloodstained battlefield they had left behind.

She had seen something different in Renji.

Something dangerous.

He had been stronger than before, but it wasn't just raw power.

He was controlling the abyss.

Not perfectly. Not entirely.

But it was happening.

And that…

That should have been impossible.

A voice crackled in her earpiece. "Raine, report."

She pressed a finger against it. "Renji Kuroya is alive."

Silence.

Then—Dr. Yura Kaede's voice. "Fascinating."

Raine's jaw clenched. "What are our orders?"

"Return to base."

"And Renji?"

A pause.

Then:

"We'll have to change our approach."

Raine's fingers tightened around her blade.

She didn't like the sound of that.

Not at all.

---

Far from both groups, another pair of eyes watched the battlefield.

A man stood in the shadows of a ruined building, his figure hidden beneath a tattered cloak. His lips curled into a smirk.

"Interesting," he murmured.

A woman beside him chuckled. "You sound impressed."

"I am. The Infected usually don't last this long."

She tilted her head. "Do we intervene?"

The man's smile widened. "Not yet. Let him struggle a little longer."

He turned away, his cloak billowing in the wind.

"For now… we watch."

And in the darkness, unseen forces began to stir.

---

Renji and his temporary allies moved through the ruins, putting distance between themselves and the battlefield.

The sky was dark, the air thick with tension.

Every step forward felt heavier.

Astra glanced at him. "You really have no plan?"

Renji shrugged. "Survive. Grow stronger. Avoid dying."

She snorted. "Great plan."

Jinno smirked. "Works for me."

Shirogane sighed. "Idiots, the lot of you."

Renji didn't argue.

Because for now, this was enough.

He wasn't fighting alone anymore.

And maybe—just maybe—

That would make all the difference.

---

The group moved in silence, their footsteps muffled by the ash-covered ruins of the city. The battle against the Inquisitors had forced them to relocate. Staying in one place was an invitation for death.

Renji walked at the front, his senses stretched to their limit. The abyss inside him had quieted, but he knew better than to trust its silence.

Astra glanced at him. "You're unusually quiet."

Renji kept his gaze forward. "Thinking."

Shirogane smirked. "Dangerous habit."

Renji ignored him. He wasn't in the mood for jokes. The Organization had suffered a blow, but they weren't defeated. If anything, they would be more dangerous now.

Jinno adjusted his gunblade. "We need a safehouse. I know a place, but it's a bit out of the way."

Renji gave him a look. "Define 'out of the way.'"

Jinno exhaled. "The sewers."

Astra groaned. "Of course it's the sewers."

Shirogane chuckled. "Could be worse."

Renji raised an eyebrow. "How?"

Shirogane shrugged. "Could be an abandoned hospital."

Astra paled. "I'd rather take the sewers."

Jinno motioned forward. "Then let's move."

As they navigated the ruins, Renji couldn't shake the feeling that they were being watched.

---

The entrance to the underground was a rusted metal hatch, half-buried under rubble. Jinno pried it open, revealing a ladder leading into darkness.

One by one, they climbed down.

The air was damp. The scent of decay and stagnant water clung to everything. Astra gagged. "I hate this already."

Renji ignored her, his focus elsewhere. Something was wrong.

The abyss inside him pulsed.

A warning.

They weren't alone.

He raised a hand, signaling the others to stop.

Jinno frowned. "What is it?"

Renji didn't answer immediately. He closed his eyes, listening.

At first, there was only silence.

Then—

A whisper.

Not from a person. Not from any thing he could see.

It came from the walls, from the shadows themselves.

"You walk the path of the forsaken… yet you resist."

Renji's breath hitched.

The voice was familiar.

And then it clicked.

It was the abyss speaking.

But not just inside him.

It was here.

And it was watching.

---

Shirogane noticed Renji's tension. "Talk to me. What do you hear?"

Renji hesitated. If he told them, would they believe him?

Before he could respond, the shadows shifted.

Astra gasped, stepping back. "Did you see that?"

Jinno drew his weapon. "We're not alone."

The air grew thick. The darkness became denser.

And then, from the walls, figures began to emerge.

Humanoid. Twisted.

Their flesh was stretched and warped, their eyes hollow pits of void.

Shirogane cursed. "What the hell are these things?"

Renji knew.

He had seen creatures like this before.

Not in the waking world, but in his visions.

They were the Forgotten Ones.

Creatures that had once been human… until the abyss claimed them.

And now, they served it.

One of them stepped forward. Its mouth didn't move, but Renji still heard its voice.

"Why do you resist, child of the abyss?"

Renji clenched his fists. "I'm not your child."

The creature tilted its head. "A lie. You already belong to us."

Astra whispered, "Renji, what are they talking about?"

Renji exhaled. "They think I'm one of them."

Shirogane tightened his grip on his dagger. "Are you?"

Renji didn't answer.

Because he wasn't sure anymore.

The Forgotten Ones moved.

Not attacking. Not yet.

They were waiting.

Testing him.

One of them extended a hand, offering something.

A fragment of pure abyssal energy.

"Accept it," the creature urged. "You will understand."

Renji stared at it. The abyss inside him reacted, hunger clawing at his insides.

A part of him wanted to take it.

He could feel the power radiating from it.

More knowledge. More strength.

But he also knew the price.

There was always a price.

Jinno muttered, "Renji, don't."

Astra looked between them. "What happens if he takes it?"

Shirogane's expression darkened. "He stops being Renji."

Renji exhaled sharply.

He reached out—

Then crushed the abyssal fragment in his fist.

Dark energy burst, writhing like dying smoke.

The Forgotten Ones screamed.

Their bodies twisted, recoiling from him.

Renji's eyes glowed.

And for the first time, he wasn't just resisting the abyss.

He was rejecting it.

---

The Forgotten Ones faded, retreating into the darkness.

The whispers ceased.

The tension in the air lifted.

Jinno let out a slow breath. "Well… that was horrifying."

Astra shivered. "What the hell were those things?"

Renji didn't answer immediately.

Instead, he turned to Shirogane.

"You said I'd stop being me if I took that."

Shirogane's gaze was unreadable. "Would I have been wrong?"

Renji thought about it.

About the hunger.

The temptation.

The abyss was always waiting.

But he wasn't ready to give in.

Not yet.

"No," he finally said. "You wouldn't have been wrong."

Astra exhaled. "Great. So let's not do that again."

Jinno motioned ahead. "Safehouse is close. Let's move."

Renji took one last look at the shadows.

The abyss hadn't given up on him.

And deep down…

He knew it never would.