Satou's eyes snapped open, and he gasped violently, his body convulsing as his consciousness slammed back into physical form. The transition from dream realm to reality was jarring, disorienting, like falling from a great height and hitting solid ground.

The first thing he saw was faces hovering over him—concerned, tearful, desperate faces that he recognized immediately.

Lyra. Jessica. Seraphine. Morgana. Cassius. Loki.

All of them gathered around his bed, all of them watching him with expressions ranging from relief to exhaustion to barely controlled emotion.

"Satou!" Jessica's voice broke on his name, and before he could even process what was happening, she threw herself at him, wrapping her arms around him in a crushing embrace. "You're awake! Thank the gods, you're actually awake!"

"We thought—" Lyra started, then her voice cracked completely. She joined Jessica, her arms wrapping around him from the other side, her face pressed against his shoulder. "We thought we'd lost you. Six hours, Satou. Six hours of watching you fade and being unable to do anything."

Satou felt their tears soaking into his shirt, felt their bodies trembling against him, and for a moment he just held them both, feeling the reality of their touch grounding him completely. "I'm here," he managed to say, his own voice rough from disuse. "I'm okay. I'm back."

Seraphine stood a few feet away, watching the reunion with a complex expression—relief, exhaustion, happiness, and something deeper that she wasn't quite ready to name. When Satou's eyes met hers over Lyra's shoulder, she smiled—a genuine, warm smile that transformed her entire face—and let out a long, shaky breath.

"Welcome back," she said softly. "For a while there, we weren't sure you'd make it."

"I made it back thanks to everyone ," Satou said with a smile on his face, his gaze taking in everyone present. Morgana was sitting in a chair nearby, clearly exhausted from maintaining the connection to the dream realm. Cassius stood by the door, relief visible on his usually composed vampire features. And Loki…

Loki was watching him with an expression that was equal parts satisfaction and concern. "You always seem to amaze me anytime we meet" he said .

"Merc Assault," Satou said, and suddenly his voice changed. The warmth and relief evaporated, replaced by something cold and furious. His eyes hardened, his jaw clenched, and his entire body tensed despite his exhaustion. "That bastard. He tortured me in my dream for hours. Made me watch everyone I care about die over and over. Used my fears, my traumas, my love for people as weapons against me."

Jessica and Lyra pulled back slightly, surprised by the sudden shift in his demeanor. They'd never heard that particular tone in his voice before—pure, crystallized rage barely held in check.

"He tried to break me," Satou continued, his hands clenching into fists so tight his knuckles went white. "Tried to shatter my mind with nightmare after nightmare. And at the end, when I'd defeated him, when he was pretending to surrender, he tried to manipulate me one last time. Fed me lies about being tired, wanting to retire, seeking redemption." His voice dropped lower, more dangerous. "Like I was stupid enough to believe a professional assassin who'd spent centuries killing people suddenly wanted to change."

"Satou—" Lyra started, concern in her voice now.

"I will Kill him," Satou interrupted, his anger building rather than dissipating

The room had gone very quiet. Everyone could feel the rage radiating from Satou like heat from a furnace. This wasn't the usual him—the compassionate leader who tried to find peaceful solutions, who gave people chances to change. This was something else. Something darker that the nightmare realm had brought to the surface.

"I want him dead," Satou said flatly, his eyes meeting Loki's with absolute determination. "I don't care what it takes. I don't care what it costs. Merc Assault tried to kill me in the most psychological, torturous way possible. He violated my mind, weaponized my love for people, tried to break me completely. That's not something I can let go. That's not something I can forgive."

Loki studied him for a long moment, reading the fury in Satou's expression. He had seen this look before—on warriors who'd been pushed past their limits, on people who'd had something fundamental violated. This wasn't simple anger. This was the kind of rage that drove people to do extreme things.

"I understand," Loki said carefully. "What Merc Assault did was beyond a simple assassination attempt. Dream assassination is torture disguised as killing. It's designed to break people psychologically before ending them physically. Anyone who survives it has every right to be furious."

"Furious doesn't begin to cover it," Satou replied, his voice tight with barely controlled emotion. "I watched Lyra die a thousand different ways in there. Watched Jessica scream as she was consumed by living walls. Saw my entire settlement burn with everyone I care about trapped inside. Over and over and over, for six straight hours. That kind of psychological torture..." He paused, breathing hard. "That's not something you just move past. That's not something you forgive."

Jessica's hand found his, squeezing gently. "We're here. We're alive. Whatever you saw in there, it wasn't real. We're safe."

"I know that intellectually," Satou said, his voice softening slightly when he looked at her. "But emotionally? The memories feel real. The trauma feels real. And the fury at the person who put me through that?" His eyes hardened again. "That's very, very real."\

Loki nodded slowly. "I can see that nothing I say right now will calm that anger. Nor should it, honestly. You have legitimate grievances. But I can promise you this—after you've rested, after you've recovered your strength, I will personally help you gather information on Merc Assault. Where he hides. Who protects him. What resources he has. Everything you'll need to hunt him down properly when you're ready."

"And when I find him?" Satou asked, his voice carrying an edge that made even Loki pause.

"Then you do what you need to do," Loki replied.

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