Chapter 10

Korrozak cradled Nura gently in his arms. He removed the knife from Nura's chest and tossed it aside, activating an advanced Healing Spell. All of Nura's injuries, including the ones he got from Vytal's group, disappeared and he fell asleep. Korrozak watched Nura's chest rise and fall in rhythm as the agents slowly started to get back up. Robin stared at Korrozak with amazement and fear.

"My god. So that's what a demon's third pair of wings looks like." he whispered in awe. A long thin pair of bug-like wings fell lazily from Korrozak's back, like a cape of some sorts. The left wing was red and the right wing was black and both appeared to be made of energy. Korrozak turned his head slightly to the left to look at Robin. His red eye was full of calm fury. Robin stood shakily to his feet along with the rest of the DMA agents. 

"Guys, our playtime is over. Our target has gained a massive amount of power, he could easily convert to his true form if we continue to tease him. Let's get this over with." Robin warned.

"This... was just a tease?" Korrozak murmured. He looked back at Nura.

"Korrozak, come with us quietly and we won't have to hurt you or the boy." Robin ordered as all the agents raised their guns and pointed them at Korrozak's head. He ignored them and walked over to a corner of the cell, laying Nura against the wall. He stood over Nura for a moment before throwing himself at Robin. He grabbed Robin's head and smashed it into the ground instantaneously. Before the other agents could react, he shot a wave of magical energy at them, making them all fall to the ground. Robin lifted himself up a little when Korrozak placed his foot on top of his head and pushed it back into the ground.

"The lives of others are one thing no one has the right to play with." Korrozak warned. Robin strained to look back at Korrozak's eyes.

"How curious. What happened to your right eye? It's black now." Robin wondered. He then closed his eyes in dismissal. "It won't matter anyway. I'll be dead before I think of an excuse." Korrozak paused before removing his foot, to Robin's surprise.

"If you were expecting me to kill you, I won't. I don't want to be a heartless killer like you." Korrozak walked back over to Nura and scooped him up again. "It would be hard for me to bear the guilt of taking someone's life, even if it's someone like you." Korrozak closed his eyes and a purple magic circle appeared underneath him and, in a flash of light, he was gone. Robin stood up and stared at the spot where Korrozak had previously been before pulling out his phone. He dialed the number from before and tapped his foot anxiously as the phone rang.

"Hello? Robin, it's a bit early for your report." the deep voice spoke.

"I know but the situation has gotten serious. The target has unlocked his third pair after we seriously wounded a friend of his. We were lucky that he didn't convert and spared us." he insisted. "And the mystery of his origin just got even more interesting. Once he unlocked his third pair, his right eye turned black, not to mention not one pair out of all three of his match in color. The left ones are red and the right ones are pitch black, just like his eyes."

"That could only be possible if he was the son of the Red and Black Demon families, which is concerning in and of itself. We confirmed neither of his parents came from a Great Demon family and yet he has Great Demon family features of the top two Demon families."

"Not only that but his last name didn't match any of the Demon family names in any generation. It was completely new."

"What in the world is going on?"

"The possibility of it being their doing just increased. How much did they tamper with him?"

"If it was them, I'm sure they would've told us. This is getting worrisome. I'll start a serious investigation right away. If you have nothing left to report, keep following him and observe him as much as possible."

"Understood." Robin ended the call and slipped his phone back into his pocket. He turned to the rest of the agents as they slowly stood up. "Come on. We've got work to do. If you don't hurry I'll leave you behind and you'll have to wait at HQ to see Korrozak again." he barked, walking out of the hallway.

~ * ~

Nura opened his eyes to a starry sky. He sat up to see Korrozak huddling by a fire, wrapped in a blanket. Nura looked around to find he was in the forest next to Vytal's building. Korrozak noticed Nura was awake and threw himself at Nura, hugging him.

"Nura! Oh, thank goodness you're ok!" he exclaimed.

"K-Korrozak? What's going on? Why are we outside?" Nura whispered. Korrozak stopped hugging Nura and straightened up.

"After you passed out, I healed you and knocked out the DMA agents before I teleported us outside. Then I lit a fire and cooked some rabbit I caught." He turned and lifted up a wooden plate with a cooked rabbit on it and pushed it into Nura's hands. "Have some!"

"You can cast Teleport? Do you actually know how to cook, because this is just charcoal. What happened to the other people in the building? Are we actually going to Iron Harbor?" Nura pestered.

"Yes, no, dunno, yes." Korrozak replied.

"Wooah." Nura whispered through a mouthful of burnt rabbit.

"Get some rest after you finish eating. We'll head out for Iron Harbor in the morning." Korrozak stated, grabbing the blanket and turning over to sleep. Nura nodded, chewing on the rabbit. After he finished, Nura laid down again and closed his eyes.

~ * ~

Korrozak was wandering through the forest next to his village. It was winter again and snow covered the forest floor. The plants were frosty and the air was icy. He could see his breath as he struggled through the cold. He didn't know how or why he was there, but he was. He walked towards the clearing with the tallest tree, and when he reached the clearing, he saw his father, standing tall and proud under the tree. Happy, he ran into his father's open arms and hugged him tightly. His father suddenly went limp and Korrozak stepped back to see him, wings extended, covered in ink black blood, knives sticking out of his back. Horrified, Korrozak turned to run when he bumped into something, making him fall to the ground. When he looked up, he saw his mother's lifeless body hanging from a tree, making him yell in terror. He picked himself up and ran frantically away. He ran all the way back to his apartment where he slammed the door shut and slid to the floor, breathing heavily and sweating profusely. He heard an eerie creak come in the direction of his room and he slowly stood up again. His door was swinging creepily open so he pushed past the door to check his room. He looked around his room to see nothing. He closed the door behind him and walked around. As he did so, he bumped into something on the floor. He hesitated before looking down to see Shiro, Theo and Nura in a pool of blood. He dropped to the floor and shook Shiro, trying to wake her up. Just then, he noticed his hands were covered in blood. He stared at the blood for a long moment before he… smiled. He smiled at the blood on his hands and he smiled at the bodies laying on the floor, unmoving. But when he looked at the bodies, he realized they were no longer his friends, but instead, they were people in white lab coats. People he recognized but didn't recognize. He looked around his room, but it was no longer his room. It was glitching into this huge, dimly lit, white tiled room. More people in lab coats were laying on the floor, and even more were staring at him, horror written on their unseeable faces. Then, a woman with pale blond hair walked over to him and smiled a mischievous smile.

"Congratulations, Subject 000. You have become the perfect killing machine." Her voice was smooth but distorted in a glitchy way. Suddenly, he was being carried by someone. They were running through a dark hallway, red lights flashing on and off, the loud buzzing of a siren blending into the background. The person was also wearing a lab coat but his grasp felt warming, comforting.

"Don't worry. You won't have to go through any more painful experiments again. I'll make sure of that." a man's voice sounded above him, his voice also slightly distorted. He also sounded familiar. As they ran, he heard angry voices behind them. He heard gunshots and the man who was carrying him collapsed. Korrozak stood up and saw three bullet holes in the man's leg. He turned towards the people that had been chasing them with anger and unleashed his wings. As soon as they neared him his vision turned red and he attacked, killing them instantly. He didn't feel anything as he watched them fall, one after the other, before him and smiled. Images of blood soaked rooms and bodies lying around him flashed quicker and quicker until he screamed in terror, of the people he saw and of, most of all, himself. Just then, Korrozak jolted awake and sat up instantly. He clutched his chest and felt his heart beating rapidly. He looked up to see the dawn sky. He looked down at his hands to see them dirty, but not bloody. He sighed in relief and closed his eyes. Images of his parents and friends, all bloodied and lifeless, came back to his mind, along with the people in lab coats and he opened his eyes again. He suddenly felt sick and bolted behind a tree to throw up. He walked back over to his blanket and sat down. He grabbed his head and pulled his legs closer to him, curling up in a ball.

"It was just a dream. It was just a dream. They're not really dead. You didn't kill them. It was just a nightmare. It's not real." he assured himself.

"Korrozak?" Korrozak tossed his head up and turned towards Nura. Nura sat up and started rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. Korrozak stared at Nura and smiled, a brave and happy smile. He hugged Nura and slowed his breathing, calming his heart. "What's wrong, Korrozak?" Nura asked.

"I had a really bad nightmare so I got scared. I'm glad it was just an awful dream, that it wasn't real." he whispered. He let go of Nura and stood up. Nura looked at Korrozak and stood up as well.

"Korrozak! I forgot to ask you yesterday but why are your eyes mismatched?" he burst. Korrozak opened his mouth and raised a knowledgeable finger but paused, unsure of how to answer.

"Honestly, I have no clue." he admitted, shrugging. Nura tilted his head. "Are you ready to go or should we get some food first?"

"Let's go. I'd rather walk without eating than shove down anymore of that burnt rabbit special you came up with." Nura teased, sticking out his tongue in disgust.

"It wasn't that bad!" he insisted. "Are you ok with making a detour before we head to Iron harbor? I want to check on a friend I haven't seen in a while."

"Ok." Korrozak put his third pair of wings away and gestured for Nura to come over. He wrapped his wings around Nura and the same purple magic circle appeared underneath them. Instantly, he was in Shiro's apartment. The place was empty and the lights were out. It had the same exact layout as his old apartment. Nura looked around Shiro's living room in awe while Korrozak put his wings away and turned the light on. He then proceeded to help himself to some bacon Shiro always had stashed in her fridge. He then welcomed himself to a spot on her couch. He laid down and stretched himself across the whole length of the couch, munching on the bacon. The door to Shiro's room suddenly burst open and she stormed in, still dressed in her pajamas, with an empty glass soda bottle in hand. Nura squeaked in surprise at the sudden noise.

"Alright! Who is in my house this early in the morning?" she yelled, suddenly. Nura pulled his arms close to his chest and looked at her with scared, innocent eyes. Korrozak looked at her, upside down, from the couch. The moment Shiro saw Korrozak, she got teary and held her hand to her mouth, dropping the bottle.

"Korro? Is that you?"