"Can you hear us, sister?"
The voices drifted through dimensions, carried on frequencies only demon consciousness could detect.
In her quarters four miles away, Nezuko stirred restlessly, her breathing shifting to match rhythms she didn't consciously recognize.
The connection between cave and bedroom crackled with supernatural energy that defied physical distance.
"She responds."
The cave gathering focused their attention like a lens, dozens of minds reaching toward one sleeping girl.
"The connection strengthens."
"We offer you truth," Akira's voice joined the chorus, her words carrying hypnotic certainty that bypassed conscious resistance. "Purpose beyond human limitations."
Nezuko's lips moved in sleep, forming words she didn't understand: "What... what do you want from me?"
"Nothing you aren't already willing to give. Come to us, sister. See what you really are."
"I'm... human..."
"Are you? Then why do you listen? Why do you answer?"
The question hung in both locations simultaneously, bridging the gap between dream and reality.
In the cave, demons leaned forward with anticipation. In headquarters, Nezuko's fingers extended into claws that gouged fresh marks in her windowsill.
"Because," her dream-voice whispered, "I want to know."
The admission sent ripples through the supernatural connection, a breakthrough that had been weeks in the making. Across the miles, Akira's smile deepened with satisfaction as another piece of her plan clicked into place.
---
"Return to your positions."
Akira's commands echoed through stone corridors as demons melted back into shadow with military precision.
"Maintain surveillance. Report any changes in Corps behavior."
"What of the other Hashira?" one called from the darkness.
"Leave them to me. Focus on your assigned targets."
She began destroying evidence of the gathering, her movements efficient and practiced.
"Remember—we are evolution in progress. Act like it."
"Teacher," a younger demon hesitated at a tunnel entrance, uncertainty creasing its features. "What if they discover us before we're ready?"
"Then we accelerate the timeline."
Akira's voice carried no concern, only cold calculation.
"But they won't. Humans see what they expect to see. It's their greatest weakness."
"And our greatest advantage?"
"We see everything. Including what they refuse to acknowledge about themselves."
The last echoes faded as the cave system returned to apparent emptiness, leaving only displaced air and the lingering scent of something metallic and cold.
Minutes later, as dawn painted the sky in shades of rose and gold, Akira emerged from hidden passages onto familiar mountain paths. Her transformation back to human facade was seamless, complete, terrifyingly practiced.
"Couldn't sleep either?"
Tanjiro's voice carried across the courtyard as Akira emerged from the mountain path, her uniform showing no signs of the night's activities.
For just a moment, her facade slipped—amber eyes reflecting dawn light with predatory intensity before warmth returned like a mask sliding back into place.
"Just needed some air. Sometimes the mountains call to me."
Her smile was perfect, practiced, completely believable.
"You're up early."
"Mission reports. The ones that describe impossible things."
He studied her face carefully, noting the way her expression remained serene despite his obvious suspicion.
"I was wondering if you could help me find the right words."
"Of course. What kind of impossible things?"
"Demons that act like people. Techniques that work too well. Disappearances that leave no trace."
Each word was carefully chosen, testing for reactions she was too skilled to show.
"The kind of things that make you question everything you thought you knew."
"Questioning assumptions is healthy, Kamado-san."
Akira moved closer, her voice taking on that hypnotic quality he'd noticed during their patrol.
"Sometimes the truth is simpler than we make it."
"Or more complicated than we want to admit."
They stood in the growing light, two figures separated by secrets and suspicions.
Above them, Nezuko watched from her window with eyes that flickered between brown and amber in the dawn's uncertain glow.
"I should check on Nezuko," Tanjiro said suddenly, the words pulled from him by instinct rather than conscious thought.
"Of course. Family comes first."
Akira's agreement was immediate, supportive, perfect.
"I'll handle the mission reports. Take all the time you need."
As they parted ways, neither noticed the figure watching from above—or the way Nezuko's reflection in the window glass seemed to show two different faces, both beautiful, both terrifying in their own way.
"Sleep well, little sister," Akira's voice drifted up from the courtyard, though her lips hadn't moved. "We'll be waiting in your dreams."
The words hung in the morning air like a promise and a threat, as dawn broke fully across the mountains and the real nightmare began. In her window above, Nezuko's hand traced fresh claw marks in the wood, her expression caught between human confusion and something far more dangerous.