The Hunt begin (Final Part)

Austin stepped out of the shower, towel slung over his shoulder, phone buzzing on the counter. He wiped the steam from the screen and saw Akira's voice note.

1 New Voice Message

He smiled, already expecting something dramatic.

He pressed play.

"Well, thanks a lot, Aus — for yesterday. I really needed that.

And by the way, I did not snore like a pig — I exhaled rhythmically like a ghost, thank you very much.

Anyway, I'm heading to the park for some fresh air and mental recovery.

If you and Izzy wanna come over tonight, we can finally have that movie date without me dozing off mid-scream. Fingers crossed.

Okay, love you — call me when you get this. Unless Izzy already killed you for ditching her, in which case... I call dibs on your hoodie collection.

Byeee!"

He chuckled, shaking his head.

"Silly," he muttered fondly, already hitting Call.

It rang.

And rang.

No answer.

He frowned, dialed again.

Still nothing.

A third time.

Now his smile dropped completely.

He stared at the screen, his heart starting to beat faster than he wanted to admit.

"Come on, Akira... pick up."

He grabbed his hoodie, yanked it in mid-step as he left the house, and started running.

His fingers fumbled to open the tracker app he secretly installed on her phone a while ago — just a light safety thing, a precaution she had jokingly agreed to.

Her location pinged.

Near the park... last active 34 minutes ago.

But then the dot froze.

No movement.

Signal lost.

Austin's stomach twisted.

He didn't even stop to grab his shoes.

His breath was sharp as he ran harder in the rain. He didn't care about the rain, muttering to himself.

"Please be okay… please be okay…"

The rain hadn't stopped. Cold droplets lashed against Austin's skin as he sprinted through the streets, breath ragged, heart racing.

He had played Akira's voice note a dozen times. Her voice had been cheerful, teasing. She had no idea what was coming.

"Come on, pick up… pick up…" he muttered, jabbing the call button again. Straight to voicemail.

Panic fully gripped him now. His fingers trembled as he opened her location tracker. A blinking blue dot. Then it stopped. An alley near the east side park.

He didn't think so. He just ran.

***

In the alley, the trio had already taken down the smaller demons. Only one remained — the largest, snarling, looming in the dark mist.

"Rohana sent a bunch of kids to kill me?" the demon snarled, laughing. "So weak…"

"These kids are enough to shut your dumb mouth," Kyros shot back, spinning into motion.

Alaric met the creature head-on. With a flash of silver, his blade slashed across its chest, staggering it. The demon roared, jaws snapping inches from Kyros — until Kyros drove his sword deep into its side.

Ashley's eyes glowed. She stepped forward, palm blazing with runes.

"Oh yeah," she whispered, pressing her hand to the demon's head. A radiant sigil lit up beneath her touch.

The demon screamed, its body writhing in shadow before it crumbled into ash and smoke.

Silence.

Their breaths came heavy in the misty night air. Rain tapped softly against the ground.

Then —

"Wait," Alaric said, freezing.

He stepped over the remains and knelt near a pile of broken crates and wet debris.

From it, he pulled out a green tote bag.

The initials on it were unmistakable.

AKIRA.

A beat later, a voice tore through the night.

"WHAT DID YOU DO TO HER?!"

Austin's voice cracked with raw panic as he sprinted into the alley, his hair soaked, his eyes wide and wild.

He saw the bag in Alaric's hands — and his heart shattered.

He stumbled to a stop, chest heaving.

"Where is she?" His voice broke. "Where is Akira?"