Connections- A Kny story of uppermoons 2 and 3

An eye for an eye

It was almost sunrise by the time Douma returned to the fortress, having got lost quite a few times on the way. They were also further delayed by him having to catch some more humans and insisting the newly turned demons to eat it, which they were both not very keen to do at first. He was buzzing with excitement to introduce Akaza to his new sort-of children. Early on their walk home, Ume had started crying multiple times and insisted she hated her name, which made sense after Gyutaro filled him in that she was named after the disease that killed their mother. Shocked by the fact someone would name their own child something so cruel, Douma spent most of the trip helping her come up with a new one as she sat on his back and chatted away. Gyutaro walked silently beside them, acting grumpy and annoyed, yet he never once attempted to let go of the older demons hand. 

Eventually they decided on the name Daki, meaning "fallen princess" which Ume was very happy with and demanded everyone call her that from now on, earning multiple eye rolls and a small smile from her brother.

Just as the sun was rising in the distance, the three reached the hidden entrance of the infinity fortress and entered into the main meeting platform. Strangely nobody was there. the kitchen, bedrooms and living room also provided empty. feeling a small tug on his hand, the blonde looked down to see Gyutaro pointing to a large door across the hallway. "there's noises in there" he mumbled quietly, receiving an unwanted head pat as Douma dragged him towards the door. "I can't wait for you guys to meet everyone!" he rambled. "Most  of them are really nice when you get to know them and i think you guys will-".

His sentence cut off abruptly as he stopped walking suddenly , causing Gyutaro to walk into his back and almost knock the two of them over before the older demon managed to steady himself in time. Behind the door was a scene he never expected to see. All the uppermoons, aside from himself,  were standing to the side of a massive circle, the edges lined with a glowing red line. Standing to one side of the circle, laughing her head off was the uppermoon 3 Kunari, her hair seemed to be turning from black to its usual white color as she regained her strength. And for some reason she was holding something small and dripping with blood in her hand. Ew. 

But what drew his attention the most was Akaza. On his knees and covering his bowed head with a single arm, blood pouring out from under it and dripping down onto the wooden floorboards below. His ears were red and he was shaking, seeming to be trying not to burst into tears.

Akaza never cried. 

Carefully, Douma bent down and slid Daki off his back, pulling the cloak tighter around her small figure as she whined quietly about being dropped. Gyutaro had seemed to notice how eager the blonde was to go over to his friend, so he soundlessly let go of his hand and pulled his sister closer, nodding to the taller demon that he could go. Douma smiled gratefully at him before hopping over the line and crouching down on the floor next to the pinkette, ignoring the annoyed huffs the action got him from the spectating uppermoons.

"Akaza" he whispered quietly. "What happened? are you ok?". The striped demon sniffed, and dropped his arm off his face to reveal a bleeding socket where his left eye should have been, and a face red from the attempts of holding his tears back. Shocked at the sight, the blonde drew his friend into a hug and held him tightly. Surprisingly he felt hands grabbing onto his shirt from behind as the smaller demon hugged him back with no complaints or struggling to escape the embrace. He really must have been upset to allow himself to be hugged in front of everyone.

"Douma" he mumbled under his breath, voice shaking with what sounded like a mix of fear and sadness. "i- care about you very much".  Douma stiffened and looked around anxiously. "Why are you talking like your going to die" he hissed in panic, "You never talk about stuff like that!". When he didn't answer, true panic set in as his colorful eyes filled with tears. "No. no. Oh god your actually going to die? I won't let you! i- i can't-" he was silenced by someone clearing their throat behind him as the demon king began to speak. "While this is all very sad" he began in a sarcastic tone. "It's the right of the blood battle winner to kill the loser if they so wish". Douma bared his fangs at the taller demon that had appeared to stand next to the demon king. "I so wish my lord" she smirked triumphantly, dropping the bloodied eye to the ground carelessly . Her silver eyes now read "Uppermoon 2".

After looking back and forth for a few seconds it wasn't difficult to guess what had happened. Akaza and Kunari had fought for the rank of uppermoon 2. She pulled out his eye and took the number. And now she wanted the loser dead. But there was no way he was letting that happen. He was a demon now. An uppermoon. He could stand up for Akaza for once, even though he would probably die trying. Hopefully the pinkette would take care of Gyutaro and Daki if he died. 

"Muzan sama" he questioned in an even tone, holding the shivering demon closer. "Would there be any way i could prevent his death?". The demon king smirked in amusement and crossed his arms across his chest. "Well yes there is" he answered, a grin spreading across his pale face. "Your an uppermoon now. What better way to prove your worth than fight in the blood battle yourself?". Akaza sat up hurriedly and shook his head in protest, unable to speak in fear of worsening the situation. "If i manage to win" Douma spoke cautiously. "Both of us live"

Muzan raised an eyebrow and yawned. "If you manage to win, you take the rank and both of you live, if and i mean when you lose, the two of you die. how's that for fair?". 

Akaza spoke up frantically. "No wait! you don't have any experience and your 4 ranks behin-" He was silenced with a single glare by the demon king, blood spurting out of his nose as his cells were controlled silently. "did i say you could speak uppermoon 3?" he snarled, releasing his hold on the smaller demon, before wiping his hands off his kimono and starting back towards his office. 

"Show up here at midnight tomorrow and the blood battle will begin" He called over his shoulder as he left the room, gesturing for Kokushibo to follow him out. "If you don't show, it's off and Kunari will claim Akaza's life on the dot of midnight. If you try to run I'll kill the both of you". With that he slammed the door behind him, leaving the other demons to find their way out without annoying him.