The Red Hand

While Akagi was preparing for the coming battle with the Gods, Kira, Mimi, Silfana, and Marshal met in the Demon King's Palace. It wasn't a pleasant atmosphere one would find when friends were relaxing at a bar, though it wasn't as sterile and dull as a group of mere coworkers forced to attend a company team-building exercise.

"All we need is the Priestess and Cat, and we'd have a full house." Silfana remarked as Mimi poured tea for herself and Kira before taking a seat.

"Yumi is far too busy to join us, and I don't think her presence is needed anyway." Kira replied, her tone a bit more coarse than usual. "I've been told that she already spoke with you separately, so it wouldn't be worthwhile to interrupt her important business."

{And Chloe is just Chloe. She's never that great with these kinds of formal meetings anyway.} (Mimi)

"We did, and I must admit that for a simple village girl, she's quite tenacious." Silfana chuckled, recalling the stern look the Priestess had given her.

"She wasn't always like that. I recall the first time we met, she was still quite timid. Like a child who would leap at her own shadow." Mimi smiled before taking a sip of her tea. "That feels like a lifetime ago given all that's happened in the short few years since."

"If a nigh-immortal Yuki-Onna is saying that..." Marshal paused as he took hold of the cigar in his mouth. He might not feel his age, but Mimi's comment put things into perspective. "Indeed. It feels like far more time has passed than it really has. Our lives have grown far more complicated than the comparatively halcyon days spent working under her on Altus just over a year ago." He laughed quietly.

"I wouldn't call that time peaceful by any stretch." Kira noted that they were just as busy then as they were now. "Though it was far simpler time, I'll give you that."

"Perhaps, but I don't mind the change. It keeps things interesting." Mimi giggled. "Better to have something to do, and goals to work toward. When you live for long enough, such things are the only thing that keep one sane."

"So, what did you request this meeting for?" Silfana asked as she poured her own cup of tea. "I'm not opposed to tea parties, but I can't imagine that such a function was the intention of this little gathering."

"This meeting was called at my request." Marshal said as he let out a puff. "As you know, at the last Clan meeting, Lady Akagi formally decided to make you the sixth Clan leader. Given that you will soon rule over the residents of Omara other than the Spirits and Dwarves, it makes sense to fold you into the organization at a higher level..." He paused, taking a hit from the cigar. "But, while I can understand her decision from a logical perspective, I cannot agree with it. At least, not yet."

Akagi's reasoning for the Vampire's elevation was exactly as Marshal said. Silfana was slated to rule over most evacuated Enorian residents in one way or another once the Gods were defeated. There would be a few exceptions such as the Spirits or the Dwarves, who would either be self-governing or direct vassals of Akagi, but Silfana was slated to rule tens of millions of people. It was a role that the Vampire was born for, and one that she was more than happy to take; though that didn't mean it was a choice that everyone could live with given her past history.

"I can't imagine you doubt my competency or my pedigree." Silfana replied, figuring that his doubts were on a more personal level.

"You're Imperial Royalty and someone who handled the affairs of a monstrous realm for centuries. I have no doubt that you could actually handle the affairs of statesmanship with." Marshal said as Kira took a sip of her tea. "My concern has nothing to do with your ability, nor does it come from a place of malice for your past actions. While I may not agree with your actions, I understand why you chose to wage a long war against the Empire. Though I do find myself lamenting the results."

"Do you share his feelings?" Silfana asked the others.

"Imperial politicking never interested me. The Dragons of the Valley cared little for Human matters, and rarely did they pay much attention to your conflict." Kira wasn't partciulary interested in Human affairs and was always more focused on Clan's internal issues rather than that if the Empire even if they technically lived within its borders. "I personally saw it as a waste of time and resources, but I otherwise paid you no heed, for I had more important matters to deal with."

"And I was so isolated in the mountains that I wasn't even aware of the conflict between you and the Empire until recently." Mimi said, though her recently meant about two hundred years ago. "All I cared about was that the war made more people came to bother me for medical attention."

{This one and her children are the only Yuki-Onna I've ever met. Their kind are so incredibly aloof and solitary that most consider them a myth given the rarity at which they appear. I have no idea how long she's been alive, but it's undoubtedly longer than I have. Out of all Akagi's retainers, Mimi is by far the most enigmatic, and I don't think anyone else sans the Demon herself understands just what kind of being she is.} (Silfana)

"I was the only one who voiced opposition to your appointment." Marshal said as he locked eyes with the Vampire.

{And voice it he did. Marshal was practically screaming at the top of his lungs during the meeting. It honestly caught me off guard given how demure he can be when it comes to following Lady Akagi's orders.} (Kira)

"The reason for my opposition is simple: your induction into this family is nothing like how the rest of us joined." Marshal explained, keeping a level head that belied his underlying feelings of mistrust. "Where the rest of us joined due to devotion, obligation, or genuine belief in Lady Akagi, you are here because of a transactional relationship. You lack true loyalty to Lady Akagi and the Clan, that is my reason for concern."

“I see...” Silfana hummed.

Marshal's concern was a valid one, and one that other members shared as well. The rest of the over one hundred members of the Dumetor Clan were almost entirely indebted to Akagi, or otherwise found themselves enthralled by her charisma. The most important thing that unified them, however, was that they believed in her, some more than others, but that belief was imperative. The Clansmen didn't treat the Dumetor family as a job or business; it was their everything. Even those who were merely kin of proper Clansmen shared in that sentiment, and it was this belief that Marshal knew was lacking when it came to the Vampire. While she might feel some level of indebtedness to Akagi for the Demon's aid in claiming the throne, Marshal's fear was that, deep down, Silfana didn't, couldn't, and wouldn't feel the same way about Akagi that the rest of the Clan did; something unacceptable in his eyes if she were to be placed at the highest levels of power within the family.

"If you want me to worship the kitty cat as a deity, then I'll tell you that it's not going to happen." Silfana replied as she took a sip of her tea. "I have no interest in ever doing such a thing. I did not worship our world's Gods, and I certainly won't worship a Demon Lord. I have no interest in or time for piety."

"I don't think such a thing is necessary anyway." Mimi chuckled as she poured herself more tea. "Lady Akagi doesn't like it when the others get like that, and I find it kind of silly anyway."

"Don't let Chloe or the Ninja hear you say that; they're the worst offenders." Kira sighed. While most of the Clansmen didn't actually worship Akagi, almost all of the Ondai did. This meant that a certain level of friction existed within the Dumetor Clan as the Ninja's zealotry rubbed some the wrong way. Akagi had cracked down on such things a few times, but that did nothing to change their underlying feelings and there was likely nothing she could do to end such worship short of purging those who saw her in such a manner.

"I cannot change Lady Akagi's mind in this matter. Thus, I wanted to give you a warning." Marshal said as he rubbed his cigar out in a nearby ashtray. "If you ever betray Lady Akagi or the Clan, you won't live to regret it. I can promise you that."

"I have no intentions of betraying the person who helped me reclaim my birthright." Silfana replied.

{And besides, even if I did, it's not like any of you could-} (Silfana)

"Don't be so sure about that." Mimi said, seeming to read the Vampire's thoughts; her lips curled into a smile that did not reach her eyes. "Raw power isn't the end-all, be-all. Take that tea, for example. You drank it without a second thought, and while there was nothing in it this time, I could've easily prepared a nasty poison for you." She said, her smile fading away. "Unlike Lady Akagi, you are still a living being, Silfana. You're made of flesh and blood, and I know a lot about how such things function. Disrupting that delicate balance is a simple matter. You just have to know where to push and, well... Let's just say that death by poison can be very painful. " She said, her expression looking like a villainess character out of an Otome novel, something that Akagi would very much have approved of had she seen it.

"Scary as always, Mimi." Kira rolled her eyes, this being far from the first time that the seemingly harmless Yuki-Onna had shown her claws. "But I share her and Marshal's sentiment. While I may not oppose your induction, know that we will be watching you. Take a single step out of line, and Lady Akagi won't even get the chance to end you, since we'll do it for her." She said, her draconic eyes bearing down onto Silfana with incredible weight.

{And this is why fanatical belief is so ridiculous. These three say they don't worship Akagi, and yet their words say otherwise.} (Silfana)

"If that time comes, then do as you see fit." Silfana shrugged, unworried. "I don't intend to bite the hand that feeds me, so to speak, and I'll be far too busy running an Empire to contemplate such treachery."

"Then we'll get along just fine." Mimi giggled before turning the conversation to more mundane topics, the conversation between the four of them lasting for over an hour before they brought things to a close.

_____________________________________________________________________________

"So, what do you think?" Marshal asked Kira as the two walked down the hallway. Mimi returned to the Dumetor camp via teleportation ahead of them as they had a few things to handle in the Demon Capital before heading back. His doubts hadn't been cleared up, though he'd started to hope that all would be well after their brief discussion with the Vampire.

"Only time will tell if she can be trusted." Kira replied. "Lady Akagi believes her to be trustworthy, so I will not second-guess her. Though I will remain vigilant nonetheless, as will the rest of the Clan."

"I suppose so." Marshal nodded. "And, not to change the topic, but have you made a decision? About Lady Akagi's offer?"

"Not yet." Kira shook her head. "There are positives and negatives to accepting her power as Chloe did, and I have yet to decide whether I wish to accept her blessing. Its not a decision to make lightly."

"I would agree. The choice is yours, of course, but I'd think long and hard about it. For once you go down that path, there is no return." Marshal turned to her. “A predator doth not release its prey once ensnared within its jaws.”

"I am well aware of that fact." Kira nodded. "And eternity is a terrifying thought, after all..."

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