Chapter 1: Fly Me to the Moon and Back

           

            “Chives! Where is my coffee?” A blonde man sat in front of a brightly lit vanity mirror yelling profusely at a door. His hair was parted neatly with right side longer and hanging partially in his face. His fine blonde strands cascaded over the lenses of his new black sunglasses that were perched on his nose. He pushed his hair back into place in a huff and turned his attention back to his appearance. His skin was soft and pale like a newborn baby's bottom. There were no visible imperfections or noticeable blemishes. He smiled as he stared at his perfect visage. It always filled him with joy to stare at himself.

 

            He adjusted his red silk robe with black fur collar and cuffs to hang more loosely around his shoulders. He bit his lip seductively and posed for the mirror in an exaggerated manner. After several minutes his door nearly blew off the hinges as his manager burst through with a coffee in hand. The blonde man yelped in surprise and nearly fell from his chair. “Jesus, Chives! You freaked me right the fuck out!” The middle aged man with a bald spot scratched the back of his head and laughed nervously.

 

            “S-Sorry Judas. It's really crowded out there. Who knew a train could hold so many people?” Judas rolled his eyes behind his glasses and held out his hand. He made a gripping motion several times out of annoyance. “I don't have all day Chives! Hurry it up!” The man quickly handed him the drink which was eagerly snatched away. As soon as he took a drink though he spat the brown liquid out onto the floor. “What in the fuck is this? You call this coffee? This tastes like a boiled asshole! You have one job Chives! One! And that's to make sure my coffee doesn't taste like boiled assholes!”

 

            His manager laughed nervously again and fiddled with his fingers as he spoke quietly. “W-Well actually it's to manage your business... also my name is Robert...” Judas leaned forward closer to him and slowly lowered his sunglasses. His emerald green eyes pierced into Robert's soul. “What did you just say?” Robert looked as if he was about to be brutally torn apart by a pack of ferocious crocodiles. “N-N-Nothing sir! Nothing at all!” Judas pushed his glasses back up and sneered at him. “That's what I thought you said.”

 

            He violently threw the cup against the wall causing it to explode upon impact. “Now get me a new one ass-wipe!” His manager quickly nodded and promptly left the room. Judas leaned on his elbows and blew the strands of hair out of his eyes. “Service here sucks dicks. Every time the director wants to go to some stupid-ass exotic location we always have to take a fucking train. I hate trains! I'm a fucking actor of the ages not some stupid laborer!” He stared at his reflection in the mirror as he continued to rant in his mind.

 

            Out of nowhere something flew past the edge of his vision. He quickly turned to the window outside but nothing was out there except miles and miles of train tracks and trees. He lowered his eyes in suspicion but turned away to fix his hair. After a few moments went by he heard a flurry of wings and something landing on the roof. He turned to see a thin black tail with wispy black hair on the tip slither across the window. His face contorted in excitement and he quickly stood up out of his chair. “How long has it been since I've encounter your kind? Two years or so? This should be interesting...”

 

            The red roof of the bobbling train was being swarmed by large flying black creatures. They flew in circles above the train like swarming sharks. Their fur was as black as night and matted down with unknown greasy liquids. They had large bat-like wings that extended far beyond their bodies. Little horns stuck out of their wrinkly grey heads filled with razor sharp teeth. Their beady red eyes darted back and forth as they scoured the moving train. Most of them carried two pronged pitchforks in their little grey claws.

 

            “Where is he? They said he’d be here. They’re liars! All liars!” The little imp creatures screeched and shook their pitchforks in the air. They all stopped once they heard a voice yelling at them. “Looking for me boys?” All of them simultaneously turned to see Judas standing on the roof. His robe shook in the wind as he held his hands on his hips with his back turned to them. “It’s the witch! Kill him! Kill, kill, kill, kill, kill!” He looked over his shoulder and lowered his glasses. A smirk wiggled its way onto his face as he gazed at them. “It’s been quite a while. What’s been keeping you?”

 

            They simultaneously shook their pitchforks and screeched at him. One of them built up courage and flew at him with its pitchfork ready to impale. Judas gave a small chuckle before quickly spinning around and giving the imp a swift kick to the face. The little black ball of fur was launched back into several others and sent plummeting to the ground. “Do you naughty little demons deserve a good spanking?” Several of them screeched in rage and flew at him at full force. He gracefully dodged them and leapt several feet into the air.

 

            He did multiple unnecessary mid-air spins and promptly landed on an unsuspecting imp’s head. Its head was easily crushed on impact and smashed through the metal roof. “Gross! That’s never going to come out of my shoes!” Two other imps tried to impale him but he dodged them as gracefully as ever with a well-timed back flip. Instead they simultaneously impaled each other through the head. Judas put his hands on his hips and laughed at their misfortune. “You’re nasty little buggers aren’t you?” They swarmed around him in the air screeching at the top of their lungs.

 

            “You’re lucky people can’t hear you. But even if they could I doubt they would over all that ruckus going on in there.” This time one of them landed in front of him and spoke in a crackled voice. “We’re going to take you back to hell with us! One piece at a time!” They screeched together again and raised their pitchforks. Judas merely chuckled and flipped his hair to the side. “Oh are you now? If I had a penny for every time a demon has told me that… Well then I’d have a penny.” He lowered his sunglasses and gave them a wink to provoke them.

 

             This time they all swarmed him at once prepared to kill him. He only smirked as he easily dodged them. He used them like steeping stools as he propelled himself from face to face. Imps flew left and right as he smashed in their heads. They began to swarm faster and faster until it became too hard to dodge. His fancy robe got shredded to pieces by their pitchforks. So he quickly flew out of their swarm and landed several feet away. It took them several moments to notice he was gone. “That robe was my favorite! Now how am I supposed to relax? Huh? You’ll pay for that you little shits!”

 

            He easily tore off the remainder of his rode revealing his professional tailored pinstripe suit. His red tie waved about in the wind like a flag. “I guess it’s my fault after all. I do admit I am a bit rusty.” He turned around and smiled at them arrogantly. “Oxex Raclir!” In a flash of green light beautiful guns appeared in both of his hands. They were a porcelain white with golden metal decorations along the barrel. He held one gun behind his back and the other with the back of the barrel firmly pressed against his lips. The imps hesitated before deciding to attack once more. He effortlessly dodged one of them and pressed his gun to its head.

 

            In a flash its head was blown nearly clean in half. The creature never saw it coming. The gun he held behind his back was aimed at another unsuspecting creature. It was promptly shot out of the sky and sent to the ground below. Another one of the creatures thought it would surprise him from behind. As it shoved its pitchfork at his head he narrowly dodged it by leaning his head to the side. He pointed his gun at it without even looking with the barrel mere inches from its face. The creature’s head was blasted apart and it was sent flying back. In one swift movement he kicked the creature’s discarded pitchfork into the air and launched himself afterwards.

 

            The imps narrowly missed him and rammed into each other instead. He kicked the spinning pitchfork mid-air and launched it towards another imp like a harpoon. It easily impaled its head and sent it flying backwards. He used the force of the kick to propel himself away and onto another imp. He used it like a stepping stool to shoot himself towards the swarm like a torpedo. As he spun through the air he shot at them at every possible angle. Blood and body parts flew through the air like confetti at a birthday party. He landed effortlessly after his magnificent jump and held his hands to his hips.

 

            Judas smiled in triumph as their corpses fell like rain and bounced off the vibrating rooftop. He easily killed them all in less than one minute. All except for one he purposefully left alive. It slowly tried to crawl away as blood spurted from its wounds. He kicked it onto its back and held his shoe against its throat. “Who sent you? Tell me or I’ll crush your neck.” The creature cackled as it effortlessly tried to pry away his shoe. “Your mother and father are screaming in hell. How about you join them?” Judas narrowed his eyes and mercilessly shot the creature in the head until nothing was left.

 

            He took in a deep breath and flipped his hair to the side. The guns disappeared in a flash of green light just like how they had appeared. “There’s no way this was a random attack…” He quickly shook the thought from his head and ran over to the open window of his dressing room. He quickly swung inside as if it was nothing and landed in his chair. As soon as he did his manager popped open the door and peered inside. “Oh! I finally found you! I got that coffee you asked for!” Judas looked at him quizzically and sneered. “What coffee? I don’t want any coffee!” Robert closed his eyes and groaned under his breath.

 

            “Sorry sir, I must have misheard you.” Judas merely shrugged his shoulders as he fixed his hair in the mirror. “Yeah, yeah whatever. You talk too much.” Robert rolled his eyes at him even though he wasn’t paying any attention. “We’ll be there in a few minutes. So be ready for when we get there. They’re shooting your scenes first.” Judas didn’t reply and only waved him off so he’d leave. His manager groaned under his breath again and promptly closed the door behind him. Judas took off his glasses and stared at himself in the mirror.

 

            What that creature had said bothered him deeply. There’s no way his parents could be in hell. Witches don’t go to hell when they die. They only go to purgatory once their contracts have been fulfilled. So was that demon being truthful or not? Judas knew not to trust a demon’s words, or even an angel’s for that matter. But that creature spoke with a certainty that only comes with truth. He took another deep breath and put his glasses back on. Dwelling on the past doesn’t do anyone any good.

 

            The train soon came to a screeching halt when it reached its destination. All the crew and cast scrambled to get outside. Everyone needed some fresh air after riding in cramped compartments for several hours. Judas stretched his back as he breathed in the fresh air. They were filming outside today and only had a few precious hours left to film. So the crew only wasted a few minutes resting and hurried to set everything up. Today there were going to film the part where the heroine, Judas, saves his wife from terrorists that kidnapped her to draw him out.

 

            It was a dramatic action movie that Judas wouldn’t normally be involved in, but the director is big in Hollywood at the moment and his manager urged to him to jump on board. If anything it paid well and gave him more media coverage. He always loved to bask in the spotlight. “Judas! You’re on set in five!” Judas was broken from his train of thought as he got his make-up done. It was about time to shine and he was getting excited. Despite the fact that it was a stupid action movie he loved to act. It was his everything and he could never get enough of it.

 

            The make-up artist had dressed him up to look like he had just been in a horrific plane crash that landed him in the middle of a forest. His suit was torn up, his hair was a mess, and he was covered in cuts and bruises. It looked pretty believable truthfully. The effects artists were always the true genius behind any good action movie. He took one last gulp of water from a bottle and rushed off to set. This scene was when he was reunited with his wife after escaping the terrorist compound. She was a generic looking blonde woman who appeared to have gotten the job more for her looks than anything else.

 

            He popped his neck a few times and meditated to mentally prepare himself. He would always think of when he and his childhood friend used to play together. They would pretend to be aliens, cowboys, or even monkeys when they played. Judas always tried to impress him so he’d come up with the best role and execute it perfectly. In his mind it was like they were still playing together. As soon as the director’s clapperboard snapped he instantly popped into character. The scene played out perfectly. As always Judas was always the star on set.

 

            He never failed to satisfy and almost never made a mistake. That is until he heard the director say cut. He was holding onto the other actor going in for the kiss and nearly dropped her at the sound of his voice. “Cut, cut, cut! Judas! What in the hell is that on your hand?” When he looked down he noticed the burning green pentagram on the top of his hand. He was so into his role he failed to feel the burning sensation of his summoning. He quickly covered his hand and excused himself off set. Once he was by himself he gazed upon it again. It burned but not in a painful way like you’d imagine.

 

            It was the symbol of his coven that was put on everyone. It was for when Mother Superior called for them to gather and the symbol would reappear on their bodies to summon them. It had been five years since Judas had left and not once had he been summoned back. Whatever it is it must be urgent if they’re summoning even him. He took a deep breathe and shoved his hand into his pocket. It had been so long since he’d seen them all. Would they still be upset at him for leaving to become an actor? Would his old friend still be waiting to kill him?

 

            There were too many unknowns but he knew he couldn’t refuse a summoning. Regardless of the drama that would ensue from his return; he knew that something frightened Mother Superior enough to send out a summoning. Once he had made up his mind he approached the director. He was a bit of a chubby man with stubbly neck beard. He always wore a baseball cap rain or shine. But he was an easy man to work with despite being a director. “Hey Judas! You alright?” Judas looked at the ground for a moment before looking him straight in the eye.

 

            “I’m sorry but I’m going to have to leave. It’s a family emergency and I need to go back home. It’s unavoidable.” The director sat there in silence for a moment before nodding his head. “Yeah alright. We can shoot some other scenes and postpone yours. Though you only have a week until the production company bites us in the ass.” Judas smiled and nodded back. “Thank you sir! I promise I won’t be gone long.” The director smiled back before yelling at the people on set through a megaphone. Judas didn’t skip a beat and ran back to the train to gather his things.

 

            He fixed himself up and tossed on a much more wearable outfit. His bright red button-up shirt was tucked into his skin tight black leather pants and rolled up to the elbow. He wore fine leather gloves to cover up his mark. Of course he topped it all off with his signature sunglasses he always wore. Even though he wouldn’t admit it, he wanted to impress everyone when he came back. Judas was a fairly big celebrity from an incredibly small island town. A place called Opal Rock where people had populated since the Europeans colonized the East Coast.

 

            It was a small dreary island several miles off the coast that looked like it had been trapped in the eighteenth century. The biggest business in town was the tuna packing factory owned by the Mizushima family. Everyone knows everyone in town and they don’t much like outsiders. Which makes sense since witches were the ones who primarily inhabited the island. It was away from the colonies and was enough to keep the British out of their hair. Since then their population has declined and normal people have moved in.

 

            Their decline happened for natural and unnatural reasons. Over a decade ago many people in town were slaughtered by unseen forces. Those forces were powerful demons being led by someone who coordinated their attacks to systematically wipe out the witches. Judas’ parents were among those who died that day. The day they call the Night of the Blood Moon. The remaining children were brought to the town’s Catholic Church for safety. That place became a haven and a home for those children. It was Judas’ home and those children he grew up with were his family.

 

            He had left them after he turned eighteen to seek out fame in Hollywood acting to his heart’s content. Not many supported him and urged him to stay with them. Though he paid no heed to their pleas and set his sights on something greater. That town had little to nothing to do and there was no way he’d reach his full potential staring at the cascading waves all day long. So he left and moved on. However, he still felt sentiment for that dreary little town and he missed his family. He just wasn’t sure if they had missed him.

 

            As Judas packed his bags he suddenly remembered he forgot about something. He quickly felt around his chest and neck in search of it. When he felt nothing he began to panic. He was about to yell out to his manager when he suddenly popped open the door. “Oh! I found you again! You left your necklace at the make-up booth.” Robert held out a golden locket that looked like it had been well loved. Judas nearly tore the man’s fingers off when he snatched it away. He kissed the locket and held it close to his chest. “I’m so sorry I left you! I won’t ever forget you again!”

 

            Robert was a little confused by his behavior but decided it was just him being weird again. “…Okay then! You’ll be riding off to the airport soon.” Judas made no reply as he put his necklace back on. He quickly stuffed it into his shirt and went back to packing. His manager continued to look at him weird as he slowly backed out of the doorway. Judas was always a little eccentric. Soon he headed off to the airport. It was pitch black when he got there and he was barely clinging to consciousness. Several coffees and energy drinks later he was up and ready to run a marathon.

 

            By the time the plane took off his body crashed and he was out cold. Which prompted several of his fellow passengers to pose in pictures with him. Many hours later the plane finally found its destination. Judas was still sleeping and had to be forced awake by the flight attendant. He flailed around momentarily until he remembered where he was. The flight attendant yelped as he dashed past her inhumanly fast. Once he’d gotten his baggage he was greeted by his hired chauffer standing in front of a long black limousine.

 

            He was an old man who looked like he’d had an excruciatingly long life. A very long life. He spoke very slowly and in monotone voice that made him look that much drearier. “Hello sir. I’m here to escort you to the-” Judas put his hand in the man’s face and shoved his gargantuan bag into the man’s chest. “Yeah, yeah whatever old man. I’ve got somewhere to be.” The man groaned and slowly dragged the bag into the trunk. Judas stood there impatiently with his hands on his hips. The old man barely managed to put the bag into the car. He groaned as he straightened out his back. “Hurry up Chives! Unlike you I have to actually be somewhere.”

 

            The old man groaned again in irritation and opened Judas’ door for him. “It’s about damn time! Someone needs to replace you with a robot.” The man took a slow intake of breath and slowly breathed out. He shuffled his way into the car and drove off. The coastal area they were in was the only port that had a fairy that would take them to and from Opal Island. When they arrived they were greeted by another crusty old man that was an Opal Islander nicknamed Smitty that drove the fairy. He’d done it for at least fifty years and would probably do it for another fifty.

 

            They parked their car on the fairy and headed off towards the island. Judas took the chance to stand outside and smell the ocean air. It had been so long since he’d been here. The island, like always, was surrounded by mist that was thick enough to cut with a knife. It made the island disappear just like its original inhabitants had intended. He felt butterflies in his stomach as the thought hit him. He had finally come home. After all these years it was still all the same waiting for him. When the island finally came into view he felt a smile worm its way onto his face.

 

            Even after all this time that tallest building in town was the tuna factory. It still seemed to be functioning which meant the Mizushima twins were still there. That thought made his stomach drop. It meant Yoshitsune was still there. Would he still be holding a grudge after all these years? “I wonder what he grew up to be like. Is he still kind? Does he still like to paint? Did he become handsome?” Judas felt a little embarrassed after saying that out loud once he noticed Smitty staring at him. “Hey I know you.”

           

            Judas posed slightly against the boat railing with a smug grin on his face. “I thought you would. I am incredibly famous after all.” The old man raised an eyebrow before continuing. “You are? I thought you were that kid who threw a rock at my head when you were ten.” Judas blushed slightly and turned away. How did that old man remember what he did thirteen years ago and recognize him? “Yeah, you and your little friend well a couple of shit heads. But you were cute little fucker it’ll tell you what. Yep, I never forget a fellow islander even if you’ve lost your way.”

 

            Judas looked at him in confusion but didn’t have time to ask. They had finally reached the shore and docked at the port. Judas and his driver headed out, but not before waving Smitty goodbye. As they drove through town Judas reminisced. Nothing really had changed in five years. The super old candy shop was still open and filling children with sugar. Madame Lavier’s Mystic Readings surprisingly still stood after all these years. Even the grocery store he used to work at was still there unchanged.

 

            He couldn’t help but smile at the nostalgia of it all. It was like staring at a photograph and walking back in time to relive everything. Even though he fought desperately to get away he still had a warm spot for his dumpy old town. They soon arrived at a massive gate in front of a large house and church. This place was Opal Island Orphanage where he lived the majority of his life. His driver turned around and gave him an exacerbated look. “Sir, how do we get-” Judas gave him a hand to the face and stuck his head out the window. “Aperire dolor!”

 

            Moments later the rusty gate creaked with the sound of metal grinding on metal. It was ear shattering to say the least. Once the gate had fully opened the limousine cruised on through. The car was parked in the middle of the empty dirt lot next to the rocky shoreline. Judas burst out of the car with arms in the air loudly announcing his arrival. “The great Judas has returned!” He was met with nothing but silence. His eye twitched out of anger and he gave an inhumanly powerful stomp on the ground. It was powerful enough to rock the car back and forth and send up a dust cloud.

 

            The dust made him choke and flail around. After all the commotion he was causing he was finally met with a monotone voice. “Why in the hell are you here?” The woman who stood before him was none other than Akane Mizushima. Her hair was solid black and was done up in pigtails leaving her bangs on the right side to cover her eye. She wore her usual gothic Lolita style clothing. A solid black strapless lacey dress with a corset. Her legs were covered in black and white striped socks and black lacey boots covered in bows. Finally she held a dark purple purse in her hands shaped like a spider web.

 

            She was her normal unenthusiastic self as she stared blankly at him. He stared back at her the same way. She was Yoshitsune’s twin sister who never changed her facial expression. She was almost always by her brother’s side when Judas wasn’t with him. He always though she secretly hated him and now he knew she’d hate him for what he did to her brother. “Do I have to repeat the question or should I wait for you to grow a brain?” Judas glared at her behind his glasses. They always rubbed each other the wrong way.

 

            “I’m here because I was summoned you twat!” He angrily ripped the glove from his hand to show her the pentagram. Her expression didn’t change but she did roll her eyes. “That summoning was like three days ago.” He clenched his fists and yelled at her this time. “No! It was yesterday! I’m not an idiot!” She merely shrugged her shoulders and stared blankly at him. “You sure about that?” Judas was about to burst a blood vessel when he heard a voice that shook him to the core. The voice was calm cool and collected as always.

 

            “It’s been awhile, hasn’t it Judas?” Judas whirled around to see Yoshitsune standing calmly behind him looking in another direction. He felt his face heat up as he gazed upon him. Yoshitsune’s jet black hair was combed back neatly with the remainder of it flowing gently down his neck. He wore a white button up shirt with an expensive looking dark colored vest. His shirt was also tucked neatly into his dress pants. His shoes were shined to a polish and looked like they were brand new.

 

            Yoshitsune was fiddling with the buttons on his sleeves as his gaze slowly turned to Judas. “Y-Yeah it has been, Yoshi.” Yoshitsune turned his gaze away over to his sister. “There’s no need to give him such a hard time Akane. He’s only just arrived.” Judas folded his arms and turned his gaze away. Yoshitsune had always gotten upset at people teasing Judas. Even after all these years he still does it. His sister shrugged her shoulders again and sat on a large rock next to the entrance. “Whatever. It’s better to watch him freak out over you than it is to tease him.”

 

            Judas shot her a glare which she hardly seemed to notice. His heart nearly stopped when Yoshitsune suddenly spoke again. “You and me, we have unsettled business. We’ll discuss it later.” Judas’ feeling of surprise turned into that of anger. “You still want to kill me, huh?” Yoshitsune turned away and started to walk off. Before Judas could blurt out anything else he spoke up again. “Like I said, we’ll discuss it later.” Judas scoffed at him and leaned against the car pouting like a little kid. “Whatever!” So far his return home was terrible. He was starting to second guess his decision.

 

            “Judas! Is that you?” Judas quickly turned to see his old friend Hailey standing no less than ten feet from him. Her freckled face was in utter shock as she stared at him. She had short strawberry blonde pixie hair that shook in the island wind. Her clothes were rather plain looking compared to the Mizushima twins. She had white tank top on that was covered with impossibly cute bunny rabbits. Her long yellow skirt danced in the wind across her sandaled feet.

 

            Judas burst into a grin as he saw her standing there. They both squealed in happiness and ran to each other with open arms. As they collided together Judas practically lifted her off the ground with a hug. They both giggled as they twirled around. “Judas! I’m so happy to see you! It’s been so long!” They both smiled at each as the hugged once more. “I’m happy to see you too Hailey.” She blushed a little as they pulled away. “I’m guessing you’ve met Yoshitsune already right?” Judas took in a deep breath before responding. “Yeah… Yeah I have.”

 

            She blushed again once she realized she’d upset him. “O-O-Oh! Don’t worry about him though! He’s just been a grump lately.” Judas laughed a little bit before responding. “Well it’s good to see you but I really do need to meet with Mother Superior. Where is she?” She almost looked surprised for a second before pointing to the cathedral. “She should be inside. I think we’re all meeting up soon. You are a little early though.” Judas stood there in silence for a moment much to Hailey’s confusion. Without a word he started to walk in the opposite direction of the estate. “Judas? Where are you going?” He stopped in his tracks and responded without looking back. “To pay my respects of course.”

 

            They both eventually arrived at the church’s cemetery. It was covered in numerous aged gravestones and mausoleums. Even though they were all weathered they still stood after all these years. The cool island breeze swept through the grass like a wave. The whole area was peaceful and calm. Judas stood there is silence and he gazed upon the gravestones. Hailey stared at him on the edge of her vision in worry. It had been awhile since he’d visited them. He soon started to walk through the cemetery in silence still much to her confusion.

 

            He abruptly stopped almost causing her to yelp. He slowly crouched down in front of a large gravestone meant for a couple. Hailey quickly realized it was his parent’s grave. He gently brushed his fingers across the etched in letters. “Hey mom and dad. It’s been awhile hasn’t it?” She could see him bit his lip trying to hold back tears. “I’m sorry I haven’t visited you in a while. I really am…” Hailey was about to touch him when he suddenly stood up. She almost screamed in surprise. He quickly wiped his eyes and turned back to her.

 

            “Sorry! I just still miss them is all.” Hailey gave him a smile and a hug. “We’d better get back before the meeting starts.” Judas turned back to look at his parent’s grave once more. He stood there for a few moments in silence before turning back around. “Yeah, we should.”

2: The White Knight

Chapter 2: The White Knight

            “What’s up bitches?” Judas burst through the old wooden cathedral doors loudly announcing his presence once again. Much to his dismay the basilica was empty. Only old wooden benches and lots and lots of dust. He scrunched his face in irritation and threw his hands on his hips. “Where in the hell is everyone?” Hailey timidly stammered as she spoke up behind him. “I-I think you’re early again.” She blushed a little out of embarrassment when he groaned and plopped down on a nearby bench. A cloud of dust puffed up causing him to cough.

            Hailey squeaked and ran over to see if he was okay. “A-Are you alright? I’m sorry! I forgot to clean it today! I was just so excited for your arrival that I forgot about my chores.” Judas merely fanned away the cloud and laughed at her. “Don’t kid yourself. No one’s ever cleaned in here.” Hailey’s ears turned red and she laughed nervously. “I-I guess so!” She plopped down next to him causing another little puff of dust. This time they both laughed as they tried to fan away the cloud.

            “Having fun with your girlfriend Mr. Hotshot?” Judas quickly turned around only to be met with a blade mere inches from his face. It was the broken off end of a spear with ancient text scaling both ends of the blade. The person holding it was none other than his self-proclaimed rival Jason Hemgrove. He had long piercing red hair that was parted down the middle and hung down to his shoulders. His dark green eyes stared directly into Judas’s emerald green ones.

            His left eyebrow was pierced twice and lips were pierced on both sides. He had a plain black tank top on and a stained blue mechanic’s jumpsuit. The top half on the jumpsuit was unzipped and hung around his waist. Judas merely stared at him in silence much to his annoyance. Hailey looked pale when she realized what was going on. “Jason! What are you doing?” Jason stayed silent as he redacted his blade.

            The blade slowly dissolved into red mist and finally disappeared altogether. “I see you’ve finally found the Spear of Destiny. Too bad you didn’t find all of it.” Judas smirked at Jason mockingly making his eye twitch in anger. “Why you-” Jason was cut short when another familiar voice interrupted him. “You guys comparing dicks again?” It was Akane with her emotionless demeanor making snarky comments as always. Judas and Jason both glared at her but she completely ignored them.

            She sat down at the opposite end of the bench causing another cloud of dust and debris. She gave a single cough and nothing else. “Gross.” Jason rolled his eyes and turned his attention back to his rival. “Why are you here? Don’t tell me Mother summoned you?” Judas smiled arrogantly at him as he responded. “Of course she did. Whatever she wanted me to help with, you clearly can’t do, you ginger bastard.” Jason was fuming with rage and looked like he was going to blow a casket. Before he could he was interrupted yet again.

            “I hope you’re not planning on fighting in here. Mother would be angry if you did.” Another new face appeared to greet them. It was Hailey’s younger brother Alois. Last time Judas had seen him he was just a kid, but now he was a full blown teenager. His hair was pure white like it had been since birth. His eyes were icy blue and his face had freckles just like his sister. He had a light blue hoodie on and brown khaki shorts that were cut off high enough to see his knobby knees.

            Even though he was now a teen he was still fairly short for his age. Judas of course beamed with happiness. Alois was like a little brother to him and it was hard to leave him behind. “Alois! You’ve grown so much!” The younger boy blushed slightly and turned his gazed away. “Yeah, yeah I know.” Judas held out his arms awaiting a hug. Alois hesitated as he looked at Judas. He had always loved Judas as a big brother and was torn when he left him behind. Part of him wanted to push him away, and the other part wanted to welcome him home.

            Before he could decide the cathedral door opened. It was Yoshitsune looking dapper as usual. “I’m sorry for my late appearance. I was taking care of some business.” Jason rolled his eyes and Hailey giggled. “It’s okay! You do run a business after all.” Alois took the chance to sit down next to his sister so he didn’t have to face Judas. Yoshitsune didn’t smile at Hailey’s comment and merely nodded. His eyes slowly trailed over to Judas as he stood there. Judas turned around and gave him a slight glare.

            The entire room was quiet and thick with tension. Everyone knew that when Judas left, Yoshitsune vowed he’d kill him if he ever returned. Even though five years had passed, the grudge between them hadn’t. They continued to stare each other down in silence. Everyone else was looking back and forth between the two to see who would make the first move. Before anything could happen the door on the opposite end of the room opened. They all turned to see Mother Superior walking up towards the altar at the front of the room.

            She was silent as she walked through the basilica. Her presence was intimidating and stern. When she stood at the altar her eyes scanned the room as if she were scolding it. Her wrinkled aged face looked the same to Judas as it did five years ago. Her nun outfit was prim and proper just like her. She stood there for what felt like ages in silence before she spoke up in a booming stern voice. “Judas! Yoshi! Sit down immediately! I know you two have your differences but I will not have fighting in my church!”

            Everyone held their breath as she spoke. Yoshitsune bowed slightly and apologized. “I’m sorry Mother Superior. It will not happen again.” Judas gave him a slight glare and bowed as well. “I’m sorry as well Mother Superior.” Mother Superior closed her eyes and rubbed her temple. “Oh whatever! Just sit down already.” Judas immediately sat back down and Yoshitsune took a seat in front of Judas. “Now that that’s all taken care of, let’s get down to business.” She paused for moment to organize her thoughts. She took a deep breath before continuing.

            “I’ve called you all here today because of a recently discovered anomaly.” The group looked at each other but remained attentive to her. “There’s a rather large distortion in the city. Doctor Hart believes it to be a tear between worlds. One that’s strikingly similar to the one that happened fifteen years ago.” This time everyone looked at each other in disbelief and started to murmur. That was the night all their parents were murdered. The night the coven and their lives had been destroyed. Mother Superior held up her hand to quiet them down so she could continue.

            “If it is what Doctor Hart believes it is, then we all need to be here to protect the city. You know as well as I do that we are the only ones who stand between those people and certain death.” Everyone was silent as they sat there. Judas was of course the first one to break the silence. “How do you know it’s the same?” Everyone looked at him and then at Mother Superior. She stood there silent for a minute before responding. “We don’t. That’s why we’re investigating tomorrow. It’s too dangerous for anyone to go alone and we need everyone in case there’s an attack.” Everyone turned to look at Judas to see what he’d say.

            “But if you haven’t checked it out yet then how do you know it’s dangerous?” Everyone turned back to Mother Superior who was lowering her eyes at him. “It’s an anomaly. They’re always dangerous. They’re the result of too much power moving between the worlds. Some powerful being or beings are rapidly moving between the worlds. Something is clearly going on.” Everyone turned back to Judas as he scoffed at her remark. “What if God just let one rip and blew a hole in space and time?” This time her scowl turned into full blown anger.

            “Hold your tongue child!” Sure enough, with a point of her finger Judas had his fingers in his mouth holding his tongue. He started flailing around once he realized he couldn’t let go. Everyone else was trying not to laugh at his gurgling unintelligible words. “Enough!” Mother Superior slammed her fist into the altar with enough force to make the basilica ring. They all immediately shut up and sat still. “You are dark witches of a sacred coven formed to keep the balance between the light and the dark! I know you never formally accepted this duty like many of your parents had but it is still your duty none the less!”

            Most of them tried to avoid eye contact with her. No matter what age they were Mother Superior was always scary when she got mad. “I know there are only six of you left but you need to stand together. This coven was formed only a few hundred years ago when your forefathers came here. So shall it remain! We exist to protect not only this world but the other worlds as well. The light witches have proven to be more destructive than helpful with these matters. If they were competent we wouldn’t have to be here discussing this.” They all sat there in silence not knowing what to say. Except for Judas who was still trying to say something.

            Mother Superior groaned and snapped her fingers. As soon as she did he let go of his tongue. He wiped the spit off his glove before he spoke again. “As I was going to say, why don’t we go investigate tonight? If it’s such a danger then maybe we shouldn’t wait.” Hailey and Alois nodded in agreement. Mother Superior took in a deep breath in and a slow breath out before responding back. “Because it’s getting late already. I’d prefer us to move in the daylight. That’s why I want all of you to get a good night’s sleep so we’re prepared. Meeting adjourned.”

            Mother Superior walked off without another word. Judas scoffed and blew his bangs out of the way. “Whatever. Waste more of my time why don’t you?” Hailey giggled and patted him on his shoulder. “Oh don’t worry so much! You’ll be back before you know it! In the mean time you can stay here with us in your old room.” Hailey’s smile faded away by Judas’ scrunched up face. “Why would I stay in this shithole? I hate this place.” The room had an awkward silence for a few moments before Akane stood up. “Well you can stay at our mansion if you’d like. It’s certainly not a five star hotel like you’re used to.”

            Judas scowled at her and stood up. “And what’s that supposed to mean?” Akane merely shrugged as she picked at the chipping nail polish on her nails. “I just figured you’d like to see my brother’s billion paintings of y-” Yoshitsune’s hand quickly covered her mouth from behind. He’d somehow moved all the way from being in front of Judas to behind his sister in the blink of an eye. “Speech is silver. Silence is golden, sister.” She nonchalantly pushed his hand away and walked towards the door. “Whatever. He’s not a complete idiot. He’ll figure it out eventually.” Judas was about to yell at her but she was promptly on her way out the door.

            Judas grumbled to himself with his arms crossed. He casually looked over at Yoshitsune who had his eyes closed. He noticed the tips of his ears were bright red. Even though his face was emotionless his ears always gave his true emotions away. Judas had known him long enough to tell when he was embarrassed. “Do excuse me. I…need to get going.” He silently walked over to the door but stopped as he opened it. “Feel free to stay at our home Judas. It’s always open to you.” Without another word he left the cathedral.

            Jason gave an obnoxious yawn and stretched his back. “Well I’m getting the hell out of here. You people are way too dramatic.” Judas rolled his eyes and scoffed at his remark. Jason just scowled at him and gave him the finger. “Go home already asshole! Morsus tigris!” In a flash of red mist he was gone. The room was yet again awkwardly silent. Hailey gave a nervous laugh to try and make it a little less uncomfortable. “Well…um…why don’t we head off for bed?” Judas merely grunted and walked off into the courtyard.

            His chauffeur stood there leaning against the limousine awaiting Judas’ return. His voice was still monotone and slow as ever. “Sir, I am checking into a nearby hotel south from here. Would you like me to book you a room somewhere as well?” Judas didn’t reply and stared at the rapidly setting sun in the ocean’s distance instead. After a minute or so of quiet he finally spoke up. “No, Chives. I’m staying here. It is my home after all. Even if people don’t want me here.” His driver looked at him strangely but knew not to ask any questions.

            He pulled Judas’ ridiculously heavy bag out of the trunk and followed him into the orphanage. The old man struggled to pull the bag into the old wooden building. Judas however, was awash with nostalgia. He noticed the hole in the wall where Jason smashed his head when Judas blasted him with a haywire spell. The scorched wall that him and Yoshitsune accidentally set fire to. And the patched up floor boards where they accidentally summoned a portal to hell. All of it hadn’t changed after all these years. “Mother Superior either has a soft spot for our mischief or she’s way too cheap to fix the place.”

            His chauffeur gritted his teeth at Judas’ lolly gagging. “Sir, could you please hurry it up? I’m going to throw out my back any minute.” Judas childishly stuck out his tongue at him. “Whatever old man! Can’t you see I’m prancing down memory lane right now? Let me fucking prance!” Their argument was cut short by Hailey’s voice from down the hall. She was running towards him in her nightgown and lunged at him for a hug. She nearly knocked him over when she did. They both laughed as they hugged each other.

            “Sorry! I just wanted to tell you goodnight. Plus…” She blushed a little bit and pushed herself away from his grasp. “I really wanted you to know that I’m happy you’re back. Things just haven’t been the same since you left. No one really talks to each other anymore. It’s just me and my brother over here…” He quickly hugged her tightly again causing her to squeak in surprise. “I’m glad to be back. I just wish everyone else felt the same as you.” They pulled apart and smiled to each other before waving their goodbyes.

            Judas was so caught up in the moment he failed to notice Chives was gone. He looked around the rooms for him until he came across his and Yoshitsune’s old room. His heart skipped a beat as he stared at the doorway. He hadn’t set foot in his room for years. What would it look like now? As he walked inside he noticed Chives straightening out his back with Judas’ bag on his old bed. He quickly noticed that their old room looked exactly like he’d left it five years ago. The room was even still messy.

            Judas’ side of the room was an odd mix of color and pattern. Unlike Yoshitsune’s side which was neat, clean, and color coordinated. Judas had tons of posters of old bands and pictures of random things plastered on the wall next to his bed. His unnecessary amount of hideously colored pillows were still strewn about the bed. And even his junk he stuffed under the bed was still there. It was like he’d never left. “Um sir? Not to bother you with your “prancing” but I need to get going. It’s getting late.”

            Judas shook his head as he tried to concentrate on what he was saying and not on his distant memories. “Yeah, yeah whatever! Just beat it you old coot!” The old man gave him a slight glare and shuffled his way out of the building. Judas took a deep breath and took off his sunglasses. He stared into the full body mirror on the open closet door. The last time he was in here he was arguing with Yoshitsune about his departure to Hollywood. They yelled so loud that the entire orphanage rang with their screams.

            Judas sighed and plopped down onto his back on his bed with a groan. Everything was just too complicated. He wanted things to be the same as they were but he also didn’t want it to be. He left this place because he longed for adventure and to become something more than just a witch. All he ever did was hunt down demons his whole life without any thanks for it. When he acted he got admiration and attention the world around. Here he was nobody but out there he was somebody. Why couldn’t anyone understand that? People here had always been stuck in their ways.

            As his mind was whirling with thoughts his phone began to vibrate in his pocket. When he looked at who was calling he noticed it was his manager. “Why in the hell is he calling so late? I told him to only call if it’s absolutely necessary.” He groaned once more and begrudgingly answered the phone. “Judas? We need to talk.” Judas let out another groan and reluctantly replied. “What is it Chives? Don’t you know what time it is?” He could tell his manager sounded nervous talking to him even over the phone.

            “I-I’m sorry but something has come up. It appears that the permit to film out here is actually going to be invalid in the next few days. It was an oversight by one of the staff members. We actually need you back as soon as possible. I know you just got there but they need to you to shoot those scenes.” Judas gritted his teeth in irritation. “Are you serious? I just barely got here and now you’re calling me back? God! You guys are fucking idiots!” He could hear his manager cower a little even over the phone. “I-I-I’m really sorry but there’s nothing I can do about it.”

            Judas took a deep breath and breathed out slowly. His manager grew worried by his silence until he suddenly spoke up. “Okay fine. I’ll see what I can do.” Before his manager could say anything he hung up. He tossed phone to the floor and shoved his face into his fuzzy green pillow next to his head. He screamed blood murder into the pillow with all his might. After he finished yelling his lungs out he lied there limp like a rag doll. After a few minutes of moping he rolled over and ran his hand through his hair.

            Why did everything have to be so hard? It was hard enough to come back here and now he already had to leave. If he did that to them again there’s no way he’d ever be invited back. Judas closed his eyes with the image of Yoshitsune popping into his mind. He knew he would never forgive him but if he left again he’d truly hate him forever. Judas quickly shook the thought from his mind and sat up. He knew he needed to stop dwelling on things. It wasn’t good for his health. Plus it’d give him premature wrinkles. That last thought made him shiver.

            He decided that a good night’s rest would help him think of what to do. So he unzipped his baggage to look for his sleepwear. He soon realized he’d forgot to bring any. He mentally slapped himself for that. “Well now what do I do?” He thought about just sleeping in his underwear until he thought of the possibility of someone walking in on him in his nearly naked glory. That thought left him a little flustered. It was one thing to show your beautiful bare man butt to millions of anonymous people in a movie, but it was another for your family to see it.

            “Well I guess that option’s out.” He sat there for a moment wondering what he should do until the thought occurred to him. What if Yoshitsune had left his clothes in his drawers? He was ungodly rich so why would he need to take his old ones with him and not just buy new ones? He didn’t hesitated to immediately tear through his perfectly organized drawers. The first one he opened he noticed something familiar in it. It was an old macaroni art picture Judas had given Yoshitsune when they were kids. Of course he wasn’t artistic like Yoshitsune but he loved it anyway. That brought a smile to his face that he had kept it.

            Underneath the picture was a set of blue silk pajamas folded neatly. Surprisingly they fight fairly him pretty well and they felt luxurious too. As he lied in bed thoughts still whirled around in his head. Like how was he going to tell them he had to leave? Or how long would that tear take to fix? What if there really was the threat of an attack? Those last few thoughts gave him an idea. What if he investigated the portal himself tonight? He could see if it was a threat, he could kill anything that posed a threat, and maybe even close the portal himself.

            He quickly flung himself from bed as soon as he finished his thought. If the anomaly was gone then there’d be no reason for him to be here. Therefore they couldn’t be mad if he left. Judas smiled at his brilliance. He quickly threw on some tennis shoes he brought in case and a plain grey hoodie. As he was opened the door to leave the orphanage he crashed into someone’s chest. His sunglasses jabbed him in the eyes and almost caused him to fling out a barrage of curse words. “Hey! Watch where-” Judas stopped mid-sentence when he noticed it was Yoshitsune standing in front of him.

            He was in pajama pants and slippers with a robe over top. He looked just as disheveled as Judas did and also a bit scared. “W-Why are you here Yoshi?” He looked away from Judas’ scrutinizing stare and scratched his head. “I uh…I couldn’t sleep. I was…thinking.” Judas couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow. Didn’t Yoshi want him dead? Was he planning on fighting him here? “So…what were you thinking about?” Yoshitsune’s ears turn a light shade of red on the tips. “I was…thinking about you Judas.” He couldn’t help but be flustered by his words. That wasn’t the reply he was expecting.

            “What do you mean thinking about me? You mean ways you’re going to kill me?” Yoshitsune looked a bit taken back be his words. “No. Like I said earlier I wanted to discuss things. Things about us. Things I’ve wanted to say for years but never had the courage to.” Judas scrunched his face in irritation and was about ready to push his way past him. “Like what? Like how much you hate me for leaving you here? Or how no one here needs me? Or that I’m just some selfish asshole with delusions of grandeur? Well I’ve already heard all that before!” This time Yoshitsune actually looked angry.

            “That isn’t what I wanted to say! Can you stop talking for five seconds and just listen to what I have to say?” Judas scowled at him and angrily stormed past him nearly knocking him down in the process. “Judas! Where are you going?” He didn’t reply as he stomped towards the gate. As Yoshitsune was about to call out to him he finally responded. “Out!” Yoshitsune leaned against the doorway with his normally neat hair flying ever which direction. He felt tears start to form in his eyes but he wiped them away before they could fall. He hated watching Judas walk away.

            Judas grumbled to himself angrily as he walked through the quiet town. Nothing outside but the sound of crashing waves and the wind. He still so steamed over their argument that he forgot he was even outside. Once he finally realized it he noticed he had already walked several blocks. “Well shit. Good thing I know my way around.” As he was walking back home he thought of the conversation they’d have when he came back. He wanted to apologize for what he did. He knew Yoshi was being sincere but he also noticed he was acting different. Maybe Yoshitsune had finally forgiven him?

            Judas physically smacked himself in the head. He felt so stupid being mean to someone who was trying to patch things up between them. Now he had a new reason to hate him. As he was freaking out over his dismal failure he noticed a faint shimmer above a building. It was barely noticeable but it was there. He decided he should investigate. It could be the anomaly after all. “Salire excelso!” A glowing purple pentagram appeared beneath his feet as he shouted the incantation. He crouched slightly then propelled himself high into the air. It was high enough jump for him to casually land on the building’s rooftop.

            Once he landed he noticed the shimmer grew greater. As he got closer he started to see what appeared to be a horizontal tear into pure darkness. He had never seen anything like it before. It was so strange looking. As he started to approach it he saw a movement on the edge of his vision. He instantaneously summoned his guns and whirled around to face the unknown being. “Who in the hell are you?” The being stopped in its tracks as soon as Judas spoke. After a few seconds flew by it slowly started to walk closer. “I asked who are you, shithead!”

            The being once again stopped but this time it spoke up. “How can you see me?” Judas snorted and nearly laughed at its comment. “Uh, because you’re standing ten feet away. I’m not fucking blind.” Surprisingly the being started to chuckle. It slowly walked into the moonlight to reveal itself. What he saw shook him to the core. Its appearance was something he’d seen many years ago when he was a child. Something he’d long tried to forget. It was the person who killed his parents and the one who burned their home to the ground. It was the White Knight.

            The man standing before him was clad in pure white armor from head to toe. He looked like someone you’d see at the Renaissance fair. The armor was ornate and looked like it was made of porcelain instead of steel. There was a prominent bird motif that was most prevalent on his helmet and boots that had wings coming off the side. He also had a pure white cape draped over his body covering most of him up. His left hand was gripped tightly to the hilt of a medieval sword dangling from his hip. He seemed to be on the defensive just like Judas.

            “Who the fuck are you?” The White Knight remained silent as Judas pointed his guns at him. He didn’t seem afraid nor did he look like he was going to attack. He was simply observing. Judas was about ready to pull the trigger when the man spoke up. “I am from the ministry. I’m investigating this anomaly, but not officially so. I think the better question is, who are you?” Judas smirked and lowered his guns. “I’m Judas. I’m the greatest actor that ever lived. And of course, the greatest dark witch too.”

            The knight immediately took a step back and immediately grabbed his sword ready to unsheathe it. “That’s impossible!” Judas merely laughed at him. “What part’s impossible? The part about my glorious acting skills or the fact that I practice black magic?” The knight didn’t make a single movement. He stood there in silence for a good minute until he spoke again. “There are no more dark witches. They were wiped out years ago. There’s no way you’re one of them.” Judas snorted and started laughing at him again.

            “Are you serious? Who in the hell are you? If you know anything about witches it’s that we’re still around. Including dark witches.” The knight paused for a moment and let go of his sword and relaxed his position. “Fine. If you’re really a dark witch are there more of you?” This time Judas didn’t laugh but instead rubbed the back of his hand against him mouth it thought. Without hesitation he pointed his guns at the knight again ready to fire. It was enough to startle him again and make him grab his sword.

            “You should know Mr. White Knight. You’re the one who killed my parents.” The knight stayed silent as they both stood there ready to attack. “Not going to defend yourself are you?” This time the knight responded. “I am not the one who did that. You must be confusing me with someone else.” Judas glared at him and put more pressure on the triggers. “It’s hard to forget the face of the one who impaled my mother.” They both stood there silent with the air thick with tension. “I guess it can’t be helped. I can tell you want to fight. Though I’m sad to do so. I’d rather not be the one to extinguish your kind.”

            Without hesitation Judas fired off his guns. In one swing of his sword the knight deflected both bullets. That’s when Judas noticed the man’s blade was solid black. “You can tell can’t you? It’s demonic steel. The opposite of your angelic steel guns. It seems we’re a good match aren’t we?” Judas smirked at him arrogantly. “You talk tough for a guy who brought a knife to a gun fight.” In a flash the knight dashed towards him without warning. Judas expertly dodged his slashes and easily jumped over him. As he was in mid-air he fired off numerous rounds at the knight.

            Without even looking the knight spun his sword like a pinwheel and deflected every bullet. The shrapnel pierced the building around him and shot up dust. Once Judas landed they both stopped and stared at each other. “Not bad tin man.” The knight spun his sword in his hand then pierced the roof with the tip of it to hold it in place. “So dark witches can fight after all? That’s shocking since you’d think your kind wouldn’t be endangered if you could.” Judas glared at him knowing he was taunting him.

            “You still haven’t told me your name, tin man.” The knight chuckled softly before responding. “Names don’t matter. It is my sworn duty to fight creatures of the dark. As a witch of the Coven of Light I cannot let you leave here alive.” Judas’ eyes became wide at this sudden revelation. How had he not realized he was a light witch? The knight chuckled once more at Judas’ shocked face. “You seem surprised by that. I’m guessing you didn’t realize I’m a light witch.” Judas gritted his teeth and fired at him once more. Yet again the knight deflected his bullets.

            “Why don’t you join me in the other world? You’re causing quite the ruckus with your guns. I’d rather there weren’t any bystanders. They’d just get in the way.” Judas glared at him but knew he was right. “Purgatorium!” A shimmering white gate appeared next to him with ancient words in Latin covering the archway. He nonchalantly sidestepped through it not once looking away from the knight. Once he did the gate closed and he had entered the realm of Purgatory. It was the realm in between the other three realms. There was the realm of the living, the realm of Hell, and the realm of Paradise.

            Purgatory was the one realm that was neutral territory. Neither Hell nor Paradise had sovereignty over it. Since angels and demons couldn’t war with each other in the mortal realm they ended up fighting here instead. Purgatory ended up as a battleground for both light witches and dark witches for centuries. People could not see, hear, or interact with beings in Purgatory. It was the best way for a witch to hide in plain sight. Though it’s not a place to stay in for too long. Eventually it will consume you and you’ll disappear to nothingness. That’s why Mother Superior advised them to never go there unless absolutely necessary.

            The world around him were all various shades of grey. Fog swirled around his feet and danced up his leg. Purgatory always appeared as a dreary duplicate of the mortal realm. Except there was no one else here. It was just him and the White Knight. “Good. Now are you ready to get serious? Because I won’t hold back this time.” Judas just smirked at him. “I’m never serious.” The knight chuckled at his response and pointed his sword towards Judas. The blade started to glow with a dark red swirling energy. Soon twisted faces in agony appeared along the length of the blade.

            “This is the Blade of Sorrow. The pain of a thousand lives lost is embedded into this sword. It will make you scream in agony and beg for death.” Judas smiled excitedly and kneeled down on one knee. He touched his finger to the floor and spoke an incantation. “Salutate Umbrae.” Judas’ shadow immediately started to envelop his body like a flame. “You cannot touch what you cannot catch.” In a flash Judas appeared behind the knight with his gun a mere inch from his head. The knight barely dodged the shot and quickly counter attacked. As soon as he did Judas was already gone.

            He had his gun pointed directly at his head again but this time he didn’t fire. “Why did you stop?” Judas smirked arrogantly and decided to explain himself. “I just wondered if you had any last words.” The knight stayed silent for a moment before responding. “Manu diligent.” In a flash Judas’ arm was engulfed by dark red flames. He quickly jettisoned himself backwards away from his opponent. The flame soon dissipated and left twisted faces in pain burned into his arm. He could feel his heart start to speed up and his mind go fuzzy. He felt such extreme sadness that his body felt like it was going to collapse.

            The knight chuckled as dark red flames appeared around him. “The arms of all those who have fallen by this sword reach out to you to bring you closer to death. They long for you to suffer as they have suffered. So die already.” Ghostly arms started to sprout from the flames and reached closer and closer to him. Judas’ heart hurt so much that he couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t even move. As he looked up at the knight he noticed something on the ground near the knight. It was his golden locket. It had fallen off during their scuffle. He reached out to it and screamed for it at the top of his lungs. “No! Mom! Dad! Don’t touch them!”

            The White Knight stopped in his tracks and looked down at the popped open locket. He stared at it for a long while completely ignoring Judas. As the knight looked at the locket Judas felt something stir inside him. A deep seeded anger he’d kept buried for years. This monster killed his parents with that very sword and all their sorrow was absorbed into it. He felt their pain and now he was going to make the knight feel it too. The knight was so distracted that he didn’t notice Judas as he quickly grabbed the locket and gave him a swift kick to the chest.

            The kick sent him flying back almost off the building, however, it didn’t knock him off his feet. “Why do you have her picture in your locket?” Judas ignored him as he put his locket back around his neck. Once he did he shot the knight a glare. “Because she’s my mother! And I’m going to make you feel her pain and my father’s too! Stella ardens!” In an instant both of his guns fused together to make a much larger one. He held it with both hands as he cited another incantation. “The heavenly star flies across the sky. The moon weeps as the daylight dies. Two fangs become one and both shall collide. I beseech onto you with my Burning Star!”

            The barrel of the gun started to glow inside with an impossibly bright light. The knight even had to shield himself from the light even with his helmet on. Judas screamed in anger as he shot off the blast. The blast cracked the entire roof just with its sheer force and nearly blew Judas away as well. The ball of light was fast but the knight still managed to dodge it in time. He felt triumphant until the ball came swerving back around directly towards him. This time he didn’t have the time to dodge but only to shield himself. The explosion was so strong that it blew apart the majority of the building and damaged several others nearby.

            Judas shielded his eyes from the bright light. He was grateful that this time he wore sunglasses when he shot it off. He looked at the damage he did. The light was meant to be powerful enough to last several minutes afterwards to continue to blind your opponent if they survived, and give you enough time to get a second hit in. All that was left was a cloud of ashes and dust. There was no way anyone could survive that attack. Not even a demon would survive it. Judas smiled in triumph at his win. He’d finally avenged his parent’s deaths.

            As he started to walk away he notice something moving in the dust cloud. He turned to see a humanoid shape. His eyes widened in shock. There’s no way anyone could have survived that attack. He turned around and was about to run away to get to a better vantage point when he heard his voice. “Never turn your back on an opponent.” In an instant he felt the sharp sting of metal pierce his back and his chest. When he looked down he saw the ebony blade piercing him from behind. “It’s over for you dark witch.” His vision started to darken and he felt his life start to fade away.

3: Battle without Glory

Chapter 3: Battle without Glory

           

            The White Knight stood there in silence as Judas’ body went limp. As he began pulling out his blade Judas’ body started to change color. It started to become pitch black and melt away. Slowly his body oozed off his sword and evaporated into nothing. “You didn’t think it’d be that easy did you?” The knight quickly whirled around to see Judas standing behind him pointing a gun at him with a smug grin on his face. The knight made no comment and sheathed his blade. He grabbed what remained of his burned up cloak and tore it off his body.

            Judas noticed that his armor had been scorched but not damaged. Except for a small nick in his helmet. The knight soon started to chuckle as he bowed to Judas. “You are quite the interesting opponent. I didn’t expect such power from a man in silk pajamas.” Judas blushed slightly in embarrassment but composed himself once again. “I think I’ve figured out your powers already.” Judas’ eyes shot open at his words. There’s no way anyone could have figured it out that quickly. They had barely even fought each other.

            “When you activated that shadow power of yours, you weren’t actually teleporting like you led me to believe. You were in fact hiding in the shadows and switching places with your shadow. Which is why you shot that flashy bolt of light. It created a shadow long enough for you to switch places with your shadow for a prolonged period of time.” Judas gritted his teeth. He hated to admit it but this guy was smart. He figured it out ridiculously fast. “It is an impressive ability, but it is nothing compared to mine.”

            A burning blue cross appeared in the center of his helmet as he spoke an incantation. “Banish the darkness from whence it came! The angel cries as the sun grows dark! As the world starts to fade the angel of salvation appears! Give unto me the wrath of the almighty lord! Angelus Domini!” As he finished his incantation a massive set of ethereal red wings sprouted from his back, and a large sun shaped red halo floated behind them. He quickly rose into the air with a single flap of his wings. “Prepare to die creature of the dark! Understand the beauty that is God!”

            Judas surprisingly started to laugh. “You grew some damn wings. Big deal! Anyone can do that!” He could tell that angered the knight. He quickly unsheathed his blade and raised it high it the sky. The center of the smoggy sky started to shine brightly. A circular sigil appeared in the light with words in Latin encircling it. “You will burn with Heaven’s light! Deus et haec addat!” As he aimed his sword at Judas a volley light beams were shot at him from the sky. There as fast as lightning and twice as destructive. They blasted the buildings and street apart.

            He had no choice but to hide in the shadows. The light bolts were too much to handle. “What? Given up already? I thought you were the most powerful dark witch that ever lived?” The knight started to laugh as the volley of lights continued to strike the city. “This is hardly a challenge! Just come out and die already!” As the knight shouted out to Judas like a maniac he failed to notice the gargantuan arm made of shadow rise up behind him. He noticed it just as it was about to strike.

            “What is the hell is-” He was cut short as the fist smacked him out of the sky and through several buildings below. Judas chuckled as he slowly rose out of the shadows. The darkness stuck to him like tar as he yanked himself out. “You failed to realize that all that light you were making only gave me more shadows to use. So please, do go on attacking me with light.” Judas smirked at the rubble in front of him. He doubted the knight would be killed by that blow, but it would at least make him mad. Which of course gave him a better chance of winning when the knight did something rash out of anger.

            Instead of an angry roaring he only heard a slight laugh. “Only when your spells backfire, do you realize how much you can still improve them.” He saw the knight rise from the dusty rubble like a phoenix rising from the ashes. He flicked the dust from his wings and flew into the air. He gracefully landed across from Judas in the broken street. “I am truly sorry for my words earlier. It is disgraceful to underestimate your opponent.” He bowed slightly out of respected which only made Judas raise an eyebrow.

            “Well you are strong Mr. White Knight but you’re also my enemy. I could care less what you think of me. I only want you dead.” The knight pierced the ground in front of him with his sword. The blade swirled with the same twisted faced of agony. “I know you’re stronger that you let on, which is why I’m going to use this.” His wings soon were enveloped with red flames and the screaming faces. “I always try and avoid doing this because my beautiful wings become something awful.” Fire started to spread at his feet as he slowly walked closer.

            Judas knew that if his power touched him again that the knight wouldn’t hesitated to kill him this time. “Are you afraid of sorrow? Afraid of the loneliness it will bring? The overwhelming longing to feel whole once again? People always try to push the pain away but it always finds you. It always takes you away.” In a flash the knight appeared behind Judas. He blocked the knight’s blade in the nick of time with his guns. They pushed against each other for several moments before the knight violently pushed him back with all his force.

            It was enough to push him several feet back. Before Judas could even think the knight flew at him. He was about to shoot when he realized he couldn’t move his arms. He was able to dodge the knight’s slash but as he did he felt unnaturally heavy. That’s when he noticed the two people made of the sword’s red flame grasping onto him hard for dear life. Those people were his mother and father. His mother had long wavy cascading hair flowing down her back. His father had a prim and proper comb over and thick rimmed glasses.

            “My blade does more than make you feel other’s sorrow. It also shows you your own. That weight you feel is the burden of sadness. It is a heavy one that will eventually drag you down into the darkest depths of your own personal hell.” Judas glared at him as the knight merely stood there. “You talk a lot for a man with no face!” The knight cocked his head slightly at his words. “I was going to give you the dignity of a warrior’s death, but now I’m going to make you suffer until your final breath.”

            With a single swing of his sword a row of flames appeared in from of him. A dozen figures rose from the flames moaning and weeping. “Plorans angeli.” The flaming figures slowly walked towards him reaching out for him. Judas tried to move but his weeping parents were dragging him down. He wasn’t moving away fast enough to escape their grasp. “Salutate Umbrae!” The knight laughed at him as the shadows once again engulfed him. “Do you think hiding will make the pain go away? It will follow you until the day you die!”

            Even in the pitch black darkness of the shadow dimension his parents still clung to his arms. At least here he could move faster. “Why son? Why did you let us die?” He felt a jab in his heart as his mother spoke to him. This time his father turned to him and spoke. “Why do you always run away? You’re just a coward! You’re not my son!” His heart began to hurt with a pain that was unfathomable. His parents started to feel heavier and heavier. They both started to reach for his heart. Their touch burned through his jacket and his shirt straight into his flesh. He screamed in agony as they burned his heart.

            “We will free you from your pain. Just embrace us Judas! Come home to your parents!” Tears streamed down his face as he started to give in. As he was closing his eyes he saw his locket dangling between his parents. He soon started to remember that it was not his fault his parents died. It was the White Knight who murdered them. He was going to avenge them and his coven. There was no way he would give in. He’d just have to deal with his sadness afterwards. With that revelation his parents dissipated. He felt his chest and noticed the burns were gone.

            Up above the knight stood there patiently. After a few minutes went by his flaming minions dissipated. “He must have given in. Too bad I wasn’t there to see it. That man’s tremendous sadness would have been a good edition to my collection.” He was about to deactivate his powers when a ball of light jettisoned up from his shadow. It expanded into a non-lethal blast of light. The large shadows created by the light morphed into large arms like before. The knight barely noticed the arms as they quickly reached for him. One of them grabbed ahold of his wing before he could get away. The other smashed him face down into the ground.

            It continued to punch him into the ground until he stopped moving. One hand tore off his wing as the other held him pinned to the ground. In fury he blasted both arms with his flames of sorrow and destroyed them in an instant. Soon after he fell to his knees with his weight propped up by his sword. “H-How…did you?” Judas slowly rose from the knight’s shadow with a scowl on his face much to his surprise. He weakly slashed at him and Judas effortless dodged him. The knight rose slowly still holding himself up with his blade. “Did you really think you could kill me that way?”

            Surprisingly the knight shook his head. “I didn’t think it would be that easy. Besides, you’ve proven yourself to be my strongest opponent. Most people are consumed by anguish in an instant. You however, are not so easy.” Judas smirked only for a second but his face became a scowl once more. “Thanks for the flattery, but I’m still going to kill you.” The knight nodded and pointed his sword at him. “I suppose I’ll give it all I’ve got then.” As he raised his sword his arm quickly stopped moving. He was shocked to see his shadow-self clinging to him like a child.

            “Did you  think I could only manipulate my own shadow? I guess now you realize, never fuck with a dark witch.” With a single bullet he blasted the knight directly into the crack on his helmet. His head arched back and he fell to the ground. He lied there motionless as his powers started to fade away. Judas stood there in silence staring at his body. He slowly walked over to it to check if he was dead. His eyes widened when he noticed that his bullet had knocked his helmet off. The bullet itself was wedged in the crack of his helmet and never went through.

            The man’s face is what shocked him more. He looked only a few years older than Judas. He also had long blonde hair that hung down to his shoulders. The knight seemed to have been knocked out rather than dead as he thought. He let out a sigh in exacerbation. There’s no way this could be the guy who killed his parents. But his armor was identical and he doubted everyone and their grandma had a set lying around. Just who was this man?

            Out of respect he picked up his body and carried him back into the mortal realm. He lied him down peacefully on the rooftop where they met. He felt jumbled up inside as he stared at the man. He had no clue as to who he could be. Though he did seem to know who Judas’ mother was. As he was thinking he suddenly remembered the tear. When he looked behind him nothing was there. The tear seemed to have closed. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. That fight took a lot out of him. It had been a long time since he’d fought like that.

            He decided to leave the man there and ran off towards home. But before he did he cast a tracking spell on him. When he arrive at the gate he noticed everyone was outside in their sleepwear debating with each other. They only stopped when Judas walked up to them. They were all quiet as he walked past them towards the orphanage door. Finally Akane shouted at him to make him stop. “Hey! Judas, what in the hell is going on?” Judas stopped abruptly and gave a great sigh. He turned around with an irritated look on his face. “I’m tired, shut up.” Akane rolled her eyes and put her hands on her hips.

            “We all could sense your fight Judas. You were fighting with someone pretty powerful. And don’t play stupid. We’re witches. We know when shit is going down.” Judas groaned and leaned against the door. “The portal is closed! End of story.” Everyone looked shocked when he told them. He took that opportunity to try and run away. When he opened the door Yoshitsune stood directly in front of him blocking the doorway. He had a worried look on his face when they locked eyes. “Judas! What happened to your clothes? Are you alright?” Judas scrunched his face in pain and forcefully pushed past him.

            He stopped at the mouth of the hallway and leaned against it. “Its fine you guys. There is no more portal and nothing else to worry about. That’s why I’m leaving in the morning.” Everyone went silent. Yoshitsune slowly walked over to him and placed his hand on his shoulder. “Do you really have to leave Judas?” He couldn’t see Judas’ face so he could gauge his emotions. Out of nowhere Judas shirked his hand off his shoulder and stormed off with another word. Yoshitsune closed his eyes and slumped down the wall to the floor.

            Everyone except his sister went elsewhere to give him his space. She plopped down next to him on the floor quietly. He had his head in his hands as he sat there in silence. They sat together in quiet for several minutes until he finally spoke up. “Why does he hate me so much? Every time I try to get close again he pushes against me so hard…” Akane put her arm around his shoulders and pulled him closer to her. “That’s because he’s a selfish asshole who can’t deal with his own emotions, and lashes out at others who he feels strongly about. In short, he’s a coward. But I know that deep down somewhere in his shitty-ass heart he cares about you.”

            Yoshitsune gave her an irritated looked but his face became forlorn once again. “You’re right. It took me a long time to get over his rejection and his abandonment. But when he came back everything changed. Those emotions I beat down for so many years came back like a flood. I don’t know what to do with myself. Do I try and reconnect or do I just forget it all?” For once she didn’t really know what to say. “I don’t know brother. I really don’t” They sat there in silence once again. After a few more minutes passed by Yoshitsune was about to get up when he heard a blood curdling scream down the hallway.

            He didn’t even take the time to think about it when he grabbed his sister’s arm and ran to Judas’ room at inhuman speed. They moved so fast that they nearly fell to the ground when he stopped. The screams were coming from his room and they sound like they were getting closer. Suddenly the door burst open with Judas screaming in agony. The entirety of his skin was covered in red markings that looked like they had been burnt into it. Yoshitsune was reaching for him when he suddenly burst into flames. They didn’t burn Judas but consumed him none the less.

            He fell to his knees screaming in pain. Yoshitsune and Akane were so shocked that they stood there and watched. They saw Hailey, Jason, and Alois running down the hall towards them. It was enough to break Akane out of her shock. She held out her hand and warned them to stop. “Wait! This is a potent curse! You need to stand back.” Surely enough they stopped in their tracks but not without a moment’s hesitation. Without skipping a beat she pulled a needle from her nightgown and pierced her hand. As the small stream of blood dripped down her palm ancient text appeared on her hand.

            She held out her hand towards Judas and held onto her arm firmly with the other one. “The blood moon conquers the sea of lies. The willows scream when silence falls. Everything becomes as one when the hour strikes ten. Become one with me and rejoice in your newfound freedom! Sanguinem spargere!” A torrent of blood spilled from her hand and formed tentacles around Judas. They slowly absorbed the flames as they wrapped around him. Quickly the tentacles pierced his heart and he screamed in great pain.

            He glowed with a bright lights as the burns started to fade. As soon as it did his eyes rolled to the back of his head and he collapsed. Yoshitsune quickly caught him before he could hit his head on the floor. He gently lied him on the floor still holding him in his arms. They stood there for what felt like eternity staring at his unconscious body. Jason was the first to finally speak up. “What. In the hell. Was that?” Akane wiped the sweat from her forehead and took a deep breath before responding.

            “That’s what I call a damn powerful curse. I even had to use by most powerful curse breaker to stop it. I’m still not sure if it fully worked.” Jason looked at her in disbelief. “Who in the hell could do something like that? Just who in the hell was he fighting?” They all took another long look at him again in silence. “I don’t know, but whoever they were, they’re powerful enough to take down even Judas.”

            Off in the distance the White Knight finally woke up from his sleep. He gasped as his eyes opened up. He quickly leaned up and noticed he was back in the mortal realm next lying next to him sword and broken helmet. The bullet in the helmet jogged his memory. He had been fighting the dark witch Judas but was knocked out by the blast of the bullet. His finger traced the crack, down to the bullet imbedded in it. That guy was powerful enough to stop his Agonia manibus spell with willpower alone.

            He even tried to reactivate the curse burned into his heart but it failed and caused him to lose the battle. He scrunched his face in irritation at the fact that he lost, but then he couldn’t help but smile because he lost. He got up and stretched his aching body. That was something he was definitely going to feel for the next week. He put his helmet back on and sheathed his sword. “Infinitam vacuum.” A pinhole appeared next to him and quickly tore open into a black void. He didn’t hesitate to jump through.

            The portal spit him out into a luxurious five star bedroom. The room was highly decadent and filled with numerous objects of high value. The White Knight put his hand on his sword as soon as he heard someone walking towards him. “A bit jumpy are we?” An elderly grey haired man stood before him in a long purple and gold robe that dragged the floor. He had matching black shoes and gloves that gave him an air of superiority. His thick grey moustache was trimmed to look prim and proper.

            The White Knight lowered his defensive posture when he realized who it was. “How did you know?” The elderly man smiled confidently and lightly shook his head. “No one rips open such a powerful portal here without me noticing.” The knight immediately fell to one knee and bowed his head. “Please forgive me grandfather. I know I went against your wishes.” His grandfather smirked and shook his head once more. “Rise child. I am not angry. I am curious though. What happened to you armor?”

            The knight rose to his feet and bowed once more before speaking. “I was in a fight. He was very powerful and was even able to crack my angelic armor.” He looked at him with a scrutinizing gaze. “Who in God’s green earth was that man?” The knight hesitated for a moment but spoke up anyway. “He was a dark witch named Judas.” His grandfather’s eyes grew wide at his words. He looked like he was about to keel over. “W-What did you say?” The knight looked uncomfortable answering again. The elder man grabbed him forcefully and repeated his question.

            “H-He was a dark witch! His name was Judas!” The elderly man let go and walked a few feet away. He stood there in shock mumbling to himself. “T-That can’t be…I…Killed them all…” Soon his memories hit him like a flood and he remembered everything that happened that night. He gritted his teeth in anger once he realized what had happened. “That damned old wench! She cast a spell to erase our memories of their existence! That damn crafty bitch! You won’t hide from me this time!”

            The knight stared at his grandfather in confusion. He quickly whirled around to the knight with anger prevalent in his eyes. “Thank you my child! You have led me to them at last. Now we can finally be rid of them.” The knight took off his helmet and shook the hair away from his eyes. “But grandfather, do we really need to kill them all? What did they do wrong?” His grandfather glared at him and grabbed his shoulder rather forcefully. “What did they do wrong? Besides the fact that they’re a blasphemy to God, they are also the ones who killed your poor mother! Do you not remember what I told you?”

            The knight lowered his eyes and nodded. “There, there. We’ll avenger her death soon enough. Isn’t that right, Vergil?” Vergil looked back up at him with the moonlight shining off his emerald green eyes. “Of course grandfather.” Vergil’s grandfather smiled at him. “Good. Now I want you to notify the Deadly Seven immediately.” He looked back at him in surprise. “But why?” His grandfather merely smiled at him as he walked away. “So we can exterminate them immediately.”

4: The Deadly Seven

Chapter 4: The Deadly Seven

            “Momma, Momma!” A small blonde boy in pajamas ran through the ornate wooden halls as he called out for his mother. The sounds of his bare feet hitting the floor echoed in the quiet home. He continued to call out but no one answered. There was only the sound of crickets outside in the pitch black night. As he approached his father’s study he began to hear voices in the room. The door was left enough ajar enough so that he could see inside. He peeked through to see his mother and father having a heated conversation.

            He couldn’t hear what they were saying so he tried opening the door a little wider. Instead the door swung open and he fell face flat on the floor. It startled his parents and made them turn around. His mother quickly helped him up and asked him what he was doing up so late. He paused for a second to look down at the floor. His mother gently lifted up his chin so they were eye to eye. Her eyes were a dark shade of blue that went well with her fine blonde hair. “…There’s a monster outside of my window…”

            Her eyes visibly widened by his comment. She turned to her husband then back to her son. “Don’t worry honey, there is no monster out there. Go back to bed sweetheart.” She kissed him tenderly on his head before getting up. His dad walked over and tussled his hair. He had a light brown comb over that was perfectly done and trimmed. His thin rimmed glasses outlined his striking emerald eyes that his son also had. He smiled at his son and walked him out of the room. “Do I really have to go to bed dad?”

            His father chuckled and nodded his head. “Yes, yes. No whining this time. If you’re good I’ll make you a wonderful breakfast tomorrow morning.” His beamed at him and hugging him around the waist. “Hooray!” His mother giggled at them as she stood in the doorway. They were all in good spirits until they heard a loud crash in the house. The front door had been blown off the hinges and part of the frame with it. His mother and father looked at each other in freight. His father quickly kneeled down in front of him and grabbed ahold of his shoulders.

            “Hide in your room! Escape through the vents if you hear anyone come up here!” His son nodded in quickly at his father. His mother had already run down stairs and his father soon followed her. He sat in his room shaking in fear. The house was strangely quit. He was about to peek through the door until he heard heavy footsteps in the hallway outside his room. He quickly went over to his golden vent gate and popped it open. He crawled inside enough so that he could still see into his room. It was deathly silent for what felt like hours until his door was blasted off the frame.

            He held his hands over his mouth to keep himself from screaming. Sweat dripped down his face as he continued to listen. The booming footsteps got closer and closer until he saw it standing in front of him. It was a large black winged creature with large talons and claws. It had two large protruding horns that were larger than its head. The tip of one horn was broken off and it had a large metal collar around its neck. The creature looked starved by the look of its distended stomach and ribs. The creature sniffed in the air with its flat skeletal nose around his room. It stopped abruptly and quickly turned to the vent.

            The boy cowered back into the vent until he couldn’t see the beast roaming his room. He tightly held onto his locket around his neck. “I’ve caught your scent little boy. I can almost taste it.” He could hear the creature cackle as his quickly ran from his room. He quickly raced through the vents to find his mother and father. As he crawled through the dusty vents he could hear things breaking in the house. There were multiple creature roaming the house tearing things apart. From the openings in the vents he could see claw marks gouged into the wood and glass shattered across the floor. He could hear the creatures wandering around upstairs and downstairs.

            He felt like he was going to vomit when he came to the end of the vent. There was a large drop down to the cellar that he knew he couldn’t make. He knew he would have to leave and find the other vent that led to the outside. His hands trembled as he gripped onto the loose vent cover. He took a big gulp and popped it open. As he crawled out he looked around for the monsters. Everything seemed to be clear so he made his way over to the kitchen. The large kitchen was untouched and seemed to empty. Quietly he snuck through the room trying not to make a sound. He was close to the vent when he heard the same large booming footsteps.

            Quickly he ran over to the island in the middle of the room and jumped inside one of the drawers facing away from the hallway. The door was jammed and he could only close it halfway. “I can smell it! It stinks of witch!” He nearly screamed when he felt the creature run and jump onto the middle of the island. He could see its large claws slowly grip to the end of the countertop. He was trembling profusely as the creature slowly leaned over the counter. He closed his eyes when he could hear it suddenly shift forward. His eyes shot open when he heard a loud crash in front of him.

            The creature had lunged at his reflection in the cabinet across from him. He took the opportunity to run out and towards the vent. He quickly pried off the covering as the creature stared to regain its composer. It screeched when it saw him and lunged at him. He was quick enough to get away but the creature gave him a gash in his calf. He held his bleeding leg and the creature viciously tried to get in the tiny vent. He wiped away his tears and continued crawling through. As he approached the end he came across the living room vent. He turned to see the room destroyed but no one around.

            Suddenly two portals opened up and his parents fell through. They both looked beaten and bloody. His mother slowly pushed herself up and crawled over to his still father. She held onto his shirt and shook him. Tears cascaded down her bruised and cut face. “Alvin! Alvin please wake up! Alvin!” She lied head against his chest and she wept. Hot tears fell down his face as he watched his mother cry over his father’s dead body. Suddenly another portal opened up and a man slowly walked out of it. He was clad in ornate pure white armor. The white cloak draped around his shoulders looked a little torn but not much else.

            He stared at her coldly and she turned to glare at him. “I hate you! I fucking hate you! You’re a fucking monster!” Without hesitating he backhanded her and knocked her to the ground. “You are a disgrace. You have perverted everything I have tried to protect. You have forced my hand and now everyone will suffer for it.” She merely glared at him and spit a wad of blood onto his helmet. Angrily he wiped it off and drew his pitch black blade. “Any last words my dear child?” She glared at him and spoke her last words with pure hate and disgust. “Go. To. Hell.”

            Without hesitation the man pierced his sword through her chest. Her eyes were wide for only a moment until the life faded away. He slowly let his sword slide from body and flicked it clean of blood. The boy couldn’t believe his eyes. His whole world was now gone. His mother and father dead before his eyes. They both lied there in a pool of blood. The man stared down at them and then turned away. “Erysipelas.” A flame engulfed his hand and he tossed it at the floor. Instantly the floor and his parent’s bodies were ignited. The man casually walked out the broken doorway and left the house to burn.

            After the initial shock had worn off he quickly tried to make his escape. The vents started to get hot as the fire began engulfing the house.  He started moving faster and faster without even looking. The smoke and tears blinded him. Without warning he fell through the outtake vent and fell to the cold ground outside. He coughed hard as he tried to get back up. He fell down to his knees when he saw him home burning to the ground. Tears continued to fall from his face as he whispered to himself. “…mommy…daddy…” Suddenly the wall from the second floor burst open as the large monster broke through.

            It roared at him as it flew in the air. “I thought I caught your scent!” He was petrified with fear and the beast stared him down. As it went in for the kill he covered his head and closed his eyes. Instead of being torn to shreds he heard the creature yelp and wet popping sound. When he looked back up there stood and woman clad in a nun outfit standing before him. Her golden sword was shaped like a cross and was drenched in blood. He soon spotted the creature’s headless body only a few feet away. The woman stood there in silence and slowly turned her head back to see him from the corner of her eye.

            She was an older woman who looked to be in her sixties. She slowly turned her head back and finally spoke. “Do not worry my child. I will end this.” He could start to feel faint as his world started to spin. He soon couldn’t sit up and fell to the ground. As his vision started to fade he saw the nun point her blade in the air. “Ne obliviscaris!” The tip of her blade glowed brightly as a massive white light beamed into the sky and engulfed the entire island like a shield. He could no longer keep his eyes open and everything turned to black. The faint whisper in his ear was the only thing he could hear. “…Judas…Judas!”

            Suddenly he was awake in a bright white room. The fluorescent lights on the ceiling blinded him. A dark figure loomed over him to his side mouthing something. It took him a minute to tune them in. “Judas? Are you alright?” When his vision began to clear he noticed who it was. Yoshitsune was still in his pajamas and was standing next to him with a worried look on his face. Judas smiled and plopped his head back onto his pillow. “Oh thank god…” Yoshitsune continued to look at him worried. “Are you alright? You were having a bad dream.” Judas sat there with a pained expression before turning to him with a smile.

            “Don’t worry so much! It was just a dream.” When he tried getting up he noticed he was in a hospital gown with an I.V. stuck in his arm. “What the fuck is going on Yoshi?” Yoshitsune scratched his head nervously looking for the right words to say. “Well…you were cursed. Akane broke it but we were worried it had hurt you. You were screaming in such pain…” Judas touched his chest remembering what had happened. As soon as he got back his chest had begun to hurt. He tried to get away from everyone as soon as he could and ran into his room. He tried to stop it himself but it overtook him too quickly.

            Judas stared silent at his I.V. without a sound. Without warning Yoshitsune stood up and tightly embraced him. He felt shocked and sat there frozen like a mannequin. “I’m so glad you’re okay…” Judas closed his eyes and exhaled slowly. He wrapped his arms around his old friend and hugged him back. “You don’t always need to worry about me Yoyo.” Yoshitsune turned to him and looked him directly in the eye. “You haven’t called me that…in a long time.” Judas could feel his heart race they sat there in such close contact staring at each other. For once he didn’t know what to say.

            Yoshitsune stared him in the eyes and sat there like he was waiting for Judas to make a move. Judas took a big gulp knowing what he wanted. They sat quietly speaking without words. It wasn’t hard to tell it was still a level of intimacy lingering between them. He could feel Yoshitsune’s pulse begin to race in his hand when he closed his eyes and started to lean forward. Judas leaned away not knowing what to do. “U-Uh…Yoshi! W-Wait!” When their lips were about to touch someone’s voice suddenly came out of the blue. “…So your test results…” Judas immediately pushed Yoshitsune off of him to the floor. The woman who walked in was Doctor Hart.

            She was a blonde woman in her late thirties dressed in a lab coat. Her golden hair was braided and hung over her right shoulder. Her striking blue eyes gave a scrutinizing gaze no matter the circumstance. She wore a blue form fitting button up shirt and a black skirt. Her generic black heels clapped against the tile floor as she walked up to them. She stared at them blankly and quietly. Judas was beet red and Yoshitsune was still lying on the floor in a daze. “I-It’s not what it looks like!” Doctor Hart closed her eyes and shook her head silently. She took a deep breath before opening her eyes again and repeating what she had said.

            “As I was saying, your test results have come back negative. It seems you suffered no ill side effects from the curse. Other than scaring everyone.” He scratched his head and gave a nervous laugh. “Well alright then…so am I good to go? I need to catch a plane.” From the corner of his eye he could see Yoshitsune’s face. It was a mix of fear and sadness. Doctor Hart stared at her clipboard for a moment before looking back up and responding. “I suppose. I was going to cut your heart out and take a look at it. Sadly you woke back up. Oh well. I suppose I’ll have to do it another time…” Judas’ eyes grew wide and he looked at her incredulously.

            “What? You were going to cut my heart out? I kind of need that to live you know!” Doctor Hart merely laughed at him and turned around to rummage around her medical tools. Judas scrunched his face at her when she didn’t respond. Yoshitsune finally got up and brushed himself off. He avoided eye contact with him out of embarrassment. “I’ll um…go get ready now.” As he walked out the doorway Judas called out to him. “Wait! Aren’t you going to say goodbye?” Yoshitsune stopped and turned his head to him. He gave slight smile and nodded. “Don’t worry, we’ll have time to do that later.” Judas blushed slightly and brushed it off like it was nothing. “Yeah, yeah whatever.”

            Yoshitsune chuckled and walked off. Unexpectedly a loud beeping sound went off in the room. Doctor Hart pulled out a small handheld device from her pocket and pressed a button on it to quiet it. “Hmm… Looks like your heart it beating really fast. I guess I have no choice but to cut it out now.” She turned back to him with a scalpel in hand and a fiendish grin on her face. “W-Wait just a second! M-My heart’s fine!” Doctor Hart merely laughed at him again and put her blade back down. “I’m only messing with you. I implanted a device inside it already to monitor you. So there’s no need to dissect you. I’ll wait for that when you’re dead.”

            Judas laughed nervously not knowing if she was kidding or not. Until the thought struck him. “Wait! You implanted a device in my chest? When did you do that? I didn’t consent to that!” Doctor Hart laughed heartily as she put the device back in her pocket. “Consent? Oh my, you are funny.” He rolled his eyes at her and got up off the bed. His legs were wobbly for a moment until he regained his footing. He popped out his I.V. and turned to Doctor Hart. “So uh…I’m leaving.” She merely waved him off and ignored him as she stared at her clipboard. “Yes, yes run along now. Do came back before you leave though...”

            He gave her an irritated look and walked off. When he opened the door he noticed the laboratory was connected to the church. That was certainly something new. When he eventually made it back to his room he noticed the lights were on and someone was inside. He nonchalantly peered inside and notice Hailey laying clothes out for him on his bed. He cleared his throat to indicate he was in the room. She yelped and nearly fell over when she heard. Her face turned red when she saw him standing in the doorway in just a hospital gown waving to her. “U-U-U-Uh… Hi there! I-I-I didn’t see you there!”

            He merely laughed at her and took the shirt from her hand. “I do believe I can dress myself.” He gave her a wink with which made her face burn even redder with heat. “O-Okay! I-I-I’ll leave it to you then!” Without another wonder she squirmed out the room as quickly as possible. He shook his head and laughed again. Hailey was almost painfully shy. He threw on a maroon button up shirt with several top buttons left undone. Slowly but surely he squeezed into his pure white skinny jeans that hugged his waist. As he finished putting on his buckle up boots he snapped his fingers and winked at himself in the mirror.

            He was confident as always. Nothing could bring him down. Until he realized his locket was once again gone. He screamed at the top of his lungs in horror. Doctor Hart nearly dropped her beaker she was examining all the way in her lab. She fumbled with it for a bit before safely catching it. A sigh of relief escaped her lips afterwards. She glared at the door to her lab knowing Judas was going to burst through any second. Low and behold he burst through flailing around and screaming. “Where is it? Where is it? Give it to me!” Doctor Hart rolled her eyes out of irritation. “Melodramatic as always, aren’t you?”

            She clapped her hands together quickly and shouted. “Amana!” In the flash of an eye a mysterious woman appeared before him. She was brunette and had her hair flawlessly and tightly woven into a perfectly centered bun on the back of her head. Her expression was entirely devoid of emotion. She wore what appeared to be a nurse’s outfit. Complete with the double breasted tucked in shirt and form fitting skirt. Even her he heels were white. She held out her hand and slowly unfolded her palm. The locket sat there dead center awaiting to be taken back.

            As soon as he tried to take it though, she closed her hand and snatched it back. “Hey! What’s the big idea lady?” Judas glared at the emotionless woman and Doctor Hart merely laughed at him. “Not so fast. I need to ask you few questions before you disappear again for another five years.” Judas groaned and folded his arms. Both women stared at him relentlessly awaiting a response. After several moments a reluctantly gave in. “Okay what do you want from me?” Doctor Hart clasped her hands in delight at his cooperation. “Thank you. Now I won’t have to have Amana pin you down and fill you with truth serum. That stuff isn’t cheap you know.”

            Judas could tell by her fiendish grin that she wasn’t joking. “So on to the first question. What did you observe at the tear last night?”  Judas tapped his chin trying to remember what had happened. Everything still felt a little fuzzy. “Um. I think…” Both Doctor Hart and Amana leaned in closer in anticipation. “…nothing really. It was just a shimmering thing. I couldn’t see anything inside nor could I sense anything. It was a whole lot of nothing.” Surprisingly Doctor Hart didn’t look disappointed by his answer. She quickly tuned to Amana and snapped her fingers. “Write that…” Before she could finish her sentence Amana was already writing everything down.

            “Alright then. Who was the witch you were fighting?” Judas’ eyes opened wide when he suddenly remembered what had happened. He had fought the White Knight last night. “Last night I…wait. How did you know that I was fighting a witch?” She smiled at him in triumph and pulled out another little device. This one was circular and the screen had rotating 3D human figure on it. “I analyzed the magic still lingering on you from your battle. It was clearly demonic in nature. So I ask you again, who was the witch you fought last night?”  Judas looked away afraid of saying the truth.

            What if he had inadvertently given away their location? What if he had started a war? “I…I…” Before he could speak there was a knock at the door. As soon as they turned to the door Amana was already opening in. It was Akane who stood there impassive as always. She had on a black and white long sleeved corset dress with matching black and white boots. The sleeves and collar were frilly like a doily. Her hair was done up into pigtails with her bangs still covering her right eye. “Hey idiot, your grumpy old car driver is here. Said he got a call from your manager who wants you back on set.”

            Judas scratched his head out of embarrassment when he realized he forgot to talk to his manager again. “Oh…yeah! Yeah, I better get going!” Doctor Hart gave him one last suspicious look and quickly turned away. “See you around Judas. Don’t be a stranger.” He laughed nervously and promptly escaped the room after he grabbed his necklace. He didn’t exactly know why he didn’t tell the truth. Somewhere deep down he was afraid that if he did, that he would never get another chance to see that knight again. He knew there was a connection between them somehow but he couldn’t put his finger on it.

            Outside everyone was waiting for him. Hailey, Yoshitsune, Alois, and even Jason stood outside waiting to say their farewells. He felt a deep pit of guilt in his stomach. Even after everything they still came to say goodbye. And he was leaving them once again to be in the spotlight. He could feel his eyes start to water but her quickly closed his eyes and kept them from forming. They stared at him in slight confusion until he burst out into a smile. He threw his arms in the air and greeted them rather loudly once again. “What’s up bitches?” Hailey giggled at him and even Yoshitsune had a slight smile.

            He acted like his normal obnoxious self but in truth felt rather torn up inside. The thoughts still whirled in his mind like a hurricane and were just as destructive. He wanted to know who the White Knight was and his connection to the man who killed his parents. He wanted to know what Yoshitsune feels towards him now. What everyone thought of him now. He was afraid what his actions the night before would cause. Everything buzzed around his mind but he kept it all inside. He knew that they didn’t want to hear his problems. That’s why he became such a good actor. He was always able to hide all the sadness and pain without anyone suspecting a thing. There was never a mask he couldn’t hide behind.

            “Well my adoring fans, I must be off! For the glamor of Hollywood and all its rich rewards!” He winked at Jason obnoxiously which of course was met with a glare. “Just go home already asshole! You’re annoying!” Judas ignored his comment and twirled over to Hailey. He grabbed ahold of her hand and kissed it softly. She of course blushed intensely and froze. “So you later my lovely friend.” He gave her a wink which only made her redder. Out of nowhere Jason smacked his hand away from hers. “Hey, don’t touch her like that!” Jason looked just as embarrassed as Hailey. Judas smiled devilishly when he realized the situation.

            He winked and snapped his finger at him. “Ah! Gotcha!” Jason looked a bit shocked and turned away. His face was starting to look the same color as his hair. Hailey still looked as confused as ever. Alois chuckled at them but froze himself when he noticed Judas staring him down. His stare became more and more intense as he lowered his eyes. Suddenly his scrutinizing gaze disappeared and turned into a goofy grin like usual. He held his arms straight out waiting for him. “Hug!” Alois felt a little flustered when he notice he had become the center of attention. Judas kept his arms open and didn’t waiver in the slightest.

            Slowly but surely Alois stepped closer to him. Without hesitation Judas grabbed ahold of him and squeezed him close. “This hug has to be special since I didn’t get one earlier little man.” He blushed a little out of the use of his old nickname. He soon buried his face in his shirt and hugged him back. “…I’m going to miss you…” When they pulled away Judas smiled at him. “Well I guess I’d better get…” He trailed off as he turned to Yoshitsune. They stared directly into each other’s eyes without saying a word. Everyone else looked confused at their behavior. Judas took a big gulp when he remembered what had happened earlier.

            Things were awkward yet again between them. It was just like last time he left. He broke out of his train of thought when Yoshitsune surprisingly spoke up. “There’s no need to say your goodbyes to me. I’ll simply be awaiting your return.” He spoke no more and turned away to walk towards the gate. Everyone stared at him in silence as he left the premises. Judas looked down at the ground. No one could tell what he was feeling. Surprisingly he looked back up at them with a smile. “Well I’ll see y’all later!” He gave them a faux salute and walked towards the limousine.

            Before he reached it Akane grabbed ahold of his wrist. Quickly she put an object into his hand. She leaned in close to his ear and whispered to him. “I know you are going to return soon. Use this to do so.” Without another word she let got and wandered off. When he looked into his hand he noticed a circular metal emblem with a pentagram etched into the center. He raised an eyebrow at that one but stuffed in into his pocket none the less. He smiled at the remaining few and waved goodbye. Hailey and Alois waved back but Jason didn’t look at him. He was pouting as usual.

            When he got back into the car he barked orders at his chauffer once again. “Chives! To the airport!” The old man groaned once again and drove off. “It seems that this time you’ll get to fly in your personal jet. Your manager arranged for it to put you up in an hour or so.” Judas merely grunted in response. He gazed out the window as the town flew past. Yoshitsune’s words didn’t sit well with him. He realized that Yoshi didn’t have that same resentment towards him as last time. Even so, he could tell there were still unresolved feelings. Feelings that Judas had knew Yoshi had but never acknowledged.

            He blushed slightly when he remembered what had happened when the last time he had left. They had been yelling at each other about his dream to become an actor. Of course Yoshitsune told him it was ridiculous and that it was foolish to leave the island. He could still remember it all like it was yesterday. It was even a sunny day like it was today. The breeze was gentle and smelled sweet like flowers. He had just stormed out of the house with his bags in hand and Yoshitsune was chasing after him.

            “Judas where do you think you’re going! I’m not done talking!” He quickly turned around to the sweaty looking Yoshitsune and shot him a venomous glare. “Exactly where I want to go! Away from here!” Yoshitsune glared at him and tried to pull away his suitcase. Judas pulled back equally as hard causing it to pop open and spray out him closed. Judas glared at him and bent down to pick it up. Yoshitsune did the same and they ended up bonking heads. “Ow! Get out of the way asshole!” He aggressively shoved Yoshitsune away causing him to fumble. “Hey! I was just trying to help!”

            Judas flipped him off as he repacked his clothes. “You’ve helped quite enough, thank you1” His words were laced thickly with as much venom as he could muster. Yoshitsune clenched his jaw and turned away. “You know what Judas? You’re a fucking selfish asshole! You never cared about us at all did you? No wonder you’d just abandon me at the drop of a hat to pursue a meaningless career!” Judas stopped what he was doing and stood closed to him staring him straight in the eye. You could practically feel the tension between them.

            “Meaningless? What do you know?  I love acting! I makes me feel alive! It makes all the fucked up problems in my life go away! When that spotlight shines on me I feel like the whole world loves me! Even if it’s just for a moment that gap in my heart finally fills full!” Without warning Yoshitsune grabbed ahold of Judas’ face pulled him in for a kiss. Their lips locked together in an instant. Judas became wide eyed as his childhood friend gave him the simplest expression of love. It was soft and gentle and filled with longing. After what felt like a lifetime Judas finally pushed Yoshitsune away rather aggressively.

            Yoshitsune looked shocked at his aggression and was at a loss for words. Judas angrily wiped off his mouth and glared at him. “What the fuck was that?” Yoshitsune was filled with the unimaginable pain of rejection. His body trembled and his eyes began to water. Judas was actually shocked to see a single tear fall down his usually stoic face. His lips quivered as he tried to speak. “…Judas.” Judas nearly jumped when Yoshitsune said his name so sharply. “What?” Yoshitsune looked up at him with a killing glare. He nearly leaped back at the ferocity behind it. His fists balled up and his body trembled even harder.

            He had never seen him so angry before. When he finally spoke up again he yelled at him at the top of his lungs. “The next time you set foot on this island I’ll fucking kill you! You hear me? Don’t you ever fucking come back you bastard!” Tears were streaming down his face as he yelled at him. Judas felt his stomach drop at what he was seeing. Without another word he grabbed his bags and headed off towards the city. Not once did he look back at the orphanage. Judas felt guilty once more as he was remembering. Even though it happened a while ago he still felt horrible about it.

            Finally they arrived at the airport next to his personal plane. When he got out of the car he noticed there was a red carpet rolled out for him to the stairs to get in the plane. He smiled with joy and pranced into the aircraft. His driver groaned as he dragged his bag over to the man standing next to the stairs. He gratefully took the bag from the old man. “He’s your problem now.” The flight attendant looked confused at the old man as he shuffled away. When Judas arrived inside he nearly squealed in delight. It was like a five star hotel inside. It had a posh interior with a buffet of food lied out just for him.

            To female flight attendants wearing somewhat revealing clothing greeted him warmly as he got inside. “Hello sir! Your seat is just over here.” They lead him to the most cushiony looking chair money could buy. When he plopped down in it he practically sunk inside it. He sighed with relief as he strapped on his belt. This way ten thousand time better than that dreary old orphanage. He was so comfortable he quickly fell asleep in it. He slept so deeply he hadn’t noticed them even take off. Several hours later one of the female flight attendants gently shook him awake.

            “Sir, we’re about to land.” Judas yawned and stretched as he awoke. He wiped the sleep from his eyes and casually looked out the window into the night sky. The shock from what he saw instantly jolted him awake. On the wing of the plane he saw a large demon perched on top of it. It turned to him and smiled, showing him its gnarled teeth. “Holy shit! Do you see that?” The woman was a bit taken back by his words but still looked out the window. She shrugged her shoulders when she saw nothing. She gave him a weird look then walked away. It took him a minute to remember that normal people weren’t able to see their kind.

            When he turned back to the beast he noticed the cracks on its body began to glow. It stretched its wings out and the cracks burns with flames. The creature cackled as it leapt onto the top of the plane. Judas sworn under his breath tore off his seat belt. The attendant tried to get him back in his seat but he completely ignored her. When he reached the cockpit he noticed the door was ajar. When he was close enough to peer inside he saw the shadows of imps jumping around and shouting it their crackly voices. “Kill, kill, kill!”

            The plane suddenly lurched forward sending Judas and the crew flying around. “Shit! This is bad!” He was trying to think quick as he watched the food fly off the plates and the attendants roll around. “Spiritus horologium!” With a snap of his finger everything became blue and time slowed to a screeching halt. The attendants stopped mid-air and the food froze as it slashed off the ceiling. Judas didn’t hesitate to grab both female attendants and strap them back into their seats. Once he had made sure everyone was secure and popped open the emergency exit door. Judas looked outside down to the ground below.

            He took a big gulp and prayed his next spell would work properly. “Luna sit amet!” He carefully put his foot onto the outside exterior and a purple moon shaped emblem appeared beneath his foot. He smiled triumphantly as he fully stepped onto the side of the aircraft. The emblem acted as a magnet and kept him stuck to the exterior. In a flash he was on top of the plane. The demon perched on top was frozen like everyone else. Drool seeped from between its rotting yellow teeth. It looked a lot like the one that attacked his house all those years ago. But that one was decapitated and had shackles on. This one clearly didn’t.

            As he stared at it started to twitch. It soon shook violently until it burst out into a roar. Judas reflexively jumped back out of the way in response. The spell was broken on the creature by shear force. It cackled fiendishly as it stepped closer to him. Its voice was deep and sounded like a thousand swords clashing at once. “Did you think such a weak spell could contain me?” Judas stuck him tongue out at the beast playfully. “Uh, duh! But I guess you aren’t too lame then. At least we can dance.” The creature stared at him in confusion with its beady red eyes. Judas suddenly snapped his fingers and a spotlight shinned down upon him.

            The demon looked around for the source of the mysterious light. Judas put his arms behind his head and gave the creature his best super model pose. Of course he looked absolutely ridiculous when he did. The beast was at a loss for words at that point. “As long as the music is playing, I’m going to keep on dancing baby!” He gave the demon a kiss and a wink to provoke him. The creature bared its fangs at him and roared with all its might. “There’s a reason the masters sent me! They wanted me to kill you! And kill you I shall!” Judas snickered at him much to his annoyance.

            “Whoever they are, they didn’t send you to kill me. They sent you so that they could test my strength by killing you.” At that point the beast had had enough and flew at him with full force. Judas merely smirked arrogantly and did a back flip. He simultaneously kicked the creature in its jaw and flipped completely backwards. The demon flew back all the way to the tail end as Judas stuck him landing. “Now that’s what I call dancing darling.” The beast snarled at him as it got back up. Judas still smirked at him arrogantly. The creature snarled at him once more and flew at him.

            Judas easily repelled him with another graceful kick to the face. This time he knocked out several teeth. The beast and he continued to fight this way across the exterior of the plane. Every time they met with blows it was the demon who got knocked around. “Enough!” The demon yelled at him at the top of his lungs. “I will not be defeated by a mere mortal! I will drag you to the pits of hell! Then our lord shall finally return!” Before Judas could ask him anything the creature’s body lit up again.

            A torrent of fire was belched from his gnarled mouth towards Judas. He easily evaded the attack until he was at the nose of the plane. The creature cackled as it stood up tall and stored up the flames inside. “Any last words witch?” Judas smiled at the beast and spoke an incantation. “Just two. Inanis lacrimam.” In a flash his golden gun appeared in his hand and shot the beast with a single bullet to the chest. The demon looked down at the tiny hole and laughed. “That’s it? I expected more from a witch.” Judas stayed silent and merely smirked.

            Soon the tiny hole became a large one and the demon was being sucked inside. Fire flew out of its mouth as the dark hole collapsed his skeleton and tore the flesh from his body. The creature collapsed into itself and not a single piece was left behind. “Well that was fun and all but what am I going to do with this plane?” As he thought to himself and shimmering light appeared behind him. When he turned around he noticed it was so bright he could hardly stand to look at it. It seemed to be a humanoid figure slowly walking towards him even though he couldn’t hear a thing.

            Eventually the being stopped only a few feet from him and spoke. When it finally spoke he could feel it from inside. It was a warm yet foreboding feeling. Something was screaming inside him to run but his body was frozen. “It is you my child. The one I have been looking for all these years. A child born in the light and the dark. A truly special being.” He couldn’t tell if the being was male or female. He couldn’t even tell if it was demon or an angel either. Whatever it was, it was something powerful. “You will soon fulfil your destiny. You will leave this old world behind and herald a new one.”

            Judas stared at the being in confusion. Just what was this thing talking about? “Until that time you might as well die. Vestibulum.” The being raised its hand up and instantly the spell around him had been broken. Judas was in shock when he realized the plane began to move again and plummet towards the earth. “Goodbye my child. I’ll see you soon enough.” The being disappeared with a flash of bright light and all traced of it were gone. He soon began to panic as the earth got closer and closer. “Oh shit!”

One hour earlier

            “Brother! Are you home?” Akane called out to her brother when she opened their enormous mansion doors. The interior color scheme was gold and blue with a large staircase in the center of the room to give it a sense of balance. The place was immaculate to say the least and looked like a set piece for a period movie. “Hello?” Her voice echoed in the massive empty house. No one answered though. She shrugged her shoulders and walked towards her brother’s drawing room. The door was slightly ajar revealing someone to be inside. Cautiously she peered inside. Her brother was sitting on a stool with his sleeves rolled up and his vest unbuttoned.

            He was painting swiftly with his paintbrush silently. After a few moments of silence she quickly opened the door and yelled. “Boo!” He yelped suddenly and dropped his brush. He turned to his deadpan sister with an irritated looked upon his face. “Akane! What was that for? I told you not to interrupt me while I painted.” She merely shrugged her shoulders and gazed upon his painting without a word. He took a deep breath and remained silent. He wasn’t mad at her, but at himself. He felt very mixed up right now because of Judas’ sudden return and departure.

            “Sooooo…maroon, huh? Wasn’t that the color of shirt Judas was wearing?” She abruptly turned to him with an intense stare. He reeled back slightly at the suddenness of it. “W-What are you talking about? I just like that color.” She slowly turned her eyes to the painting on his desk sitting next to them. It was a splash of colors like his current painting. “Red and black, huh? Weren’t those the colors Judas was wearing yesterday when he arrived?” Yoshitsune’s ears turned a light shade of pink and he turned away from his sister’s gaze.

            “What does it matter? Now please tell me where you are in here, sister dearest.” She almost smirked at his suddenly snarky attitude. Almost. “Doctor Hart wants us to investigate the area where the tear occurred.” Her brother looked at her in confusion. “Why? I thought Judas closed the tear?” She shrugged her shoulders at him in response. “Me too. Guess we’ll find out won’t we?” He took a deep breath once again and put down his art tools. He promptly got up and removed his paint covered apron. He straightened his clothes out his fixed his hair with his hands. His sister snickered at him and rolled her eyes.

            “Why are you trying to look good for a temporal distortion? The tear isn’t Judas.” His ears turned quite red but he remained stoic and silent. “What a witty observation sister.” That snarky comeback was pretty close to getting her to smile. Although it didn’t work, but it did get close. “Well then, shall we get going? Argentum manu.” With a swipe of his hand a gold and white blade materialized on his left hip. It was a Japanese katana with a white hilt, a golden hand guard, and an ornate white and gold sheath. “You expecting trouble?” He lightly shook his head in response. “No, but I’m not taking any chances. Judas fought someone powerful there. They might still be there.”

            Akane silently nodded in agreement. As they walked out of the door the sudden shout of their butler Clause stopped them. “Sir! Madam! Where are you headed off to at this hour? It’s awfully late.” Clause was an older looking man of very high upbringing. His back was straight and he stood with perfect posture. He had slight crow’s feet and wrinkled brow. His thin glasses perched on his nose made him look even older. His grey hair was seamlessly tied back into a short wavy ponytail. He still had on his butler’s uniform that was neat as usual. Despite being fairly old he actually still looked to be in his late forties.

            Yoshitsune bowed slightly in apology. “I’m sorry Clause. We forgot to inform you we’re heading into town to investigate.” Their servant raised an eyebrow at them. “Shouldn’t I go along then? If they are there, then I could surely talk some sense into them. My name still carries weight in the Underworld.” Yoshitsune smiled a bit and shook his head. “Don’t worry about it. We’ve got it handled.” Clause put his white gloved hands on his hips and gave them a suspicious look. After a moment flew by he gave up and adjusted his glasses. “Alright, sir. Do as you wish. I’ll be here if you need me.” He bowed to them and promptly closed the door.

            Akane rolled her eyes as soon as he was out of sight. “Geez, the old man still so over-protective.” Yoshitsune stayed silent and walked side by side with his sister. They both abruptly stopped once they had noticed something. It was a chill up their spines that sent shockwaves to their brain. They silently turned to each other and nodded. They didn’t hesitate to make their way to the center of town. The small city was silent except for their quickly moving footsteps. “I’m sure the others have sensed it too brother.” Yoshitsune stayed silent as he looked up towards the night sky.

            The town was covered by an invisible barrier created by both Doctor Hart and Mother Superior. It kept out supernatural beings except the few witches that were left in town. Just now the barrier was breached. It happened so quickly that whoever broke through had a fair deal of power. They were both silent as they ran down the middle of the empty street. As they were getting closer and closer to the breach that’s when they saw them. Both Akane and Yoshitsune immediately stopped in their tracks and looked up at the buildings on both sides of the street. Standing above them were six people clad in military uniforms.

            Yoshitsune noticed there were three woman on his right. The first woman had long maroon hair with the bangs cut flat across her brow. She had a calm almost emotionless expression. She wore a dark green military jacket with a green button up shirt underneath topped off with a black tie. It was all tied at the waist with a black buckle belt. On her left bicep she had a white arm band with a black cross as its emblem. Her crinkle skirt was the same shade of green as her jacket and hung down to her knees. Covering her legs were knee high black lace up boots. She sat on the edge of the building with a black and red katana resting on her lap and swinging her legs.

            On her right stood a much shorter girl. She had short blonde hair that was longer sides but was cut shorter on the back and front. On top her head was a peaked cap reminiscent of German military headwear. It bore a golden emblem of a sun in the center. Her outfit was nearly identical to the other woman’s except she had short shorts on instead of a skirt. She also wore black gloves that were current atop her hips. Her shoes were instead a dark brown and the lip of the boot was extended up over her knees. Strapped to the side of her boots were two large guns resembling matchlocks. She was scowling at them with ferocity prevalent in her eyes.

            On her right the last woman stood there looking into a mirror instead of paying attention to them. She was quite gorgeous and look like a model. She had luscious wavy light brown hair that cascaded over her right shoulder. Her hair’s beauty was emphasized by her blonde highlights. Her make-up looked professionally done and accentuated her already striking features. She even had a beauty mark on her face like Marilyn Monroe. Her outfit was identical to the first woman’s, except she had a black bowtie and light brown knee high heel boots. She continued fawning over herself in the mirror and checking her make up.

            Akane noticed there were two men on her right and a strange looking being at the end. The first guy was sitting down and lying against the building next to him asleep. He had fairly long straight black hair. The right side of his face was completely obscured by it. The rest was tucked behind his ear and cascaded down his back. His uniform was the same except he had on pants that were tucked into his black lace up boots. He wore a single black glove on his right hand with the same symbol of the sun on the girl’s hat. His cheekbones were sharp which gave his face a very handsome shape.

            The man next to him was an unusual and feminine looking. He had short pure white hair that was a stark contrast to his blood red irises. He had a soft pale feminine face that made him look highly androgynous. He had on the same peaked cap that the short blonde girl had on. His attire was identical to the man next to him except he wore black gloves on both his hands. The boots were instead light brown and had a much more pronounced heel. He was smiling at them in a way that made him look excited and savage at the same time. His very gaze made Akane shudder.

            The thing standing next to him looked like it was a man but also like a machine. He had on the same uniform attire including the peaked cap. His face was what was most unusual. He didn’t actually have a face but instead had a smooth rounded off metal head. The head consisted of interlocking metal strips that converged together in the center of the face into the shape of a spiral. It made it look like an opening. Instead of ears he had shiny silver plates that looked like a reptilian’s. He had his hands behind his back and stood there motionless and silent like a sentinel.

            Akane and Yoshitsune stared back at them in silence as they stared back at them. The only thing that could be heard was the silent breeze of the night. Their hair danced in the wind as it blew past them slowly. After several excruciating moments of silence Yoshitsune finally spoke up. “Who are you people?” The blonde girl was the first to respond. Her response was mocking to say the least. “Huh? Are you blind or something?” She held her hands on her hips and glared at them. The Mizushima twins of course remained blank. This only made her angry. She shook her fist at them and yelled this time.

            “Oh, I guess you’re deaf too! Want me to come knock your hearing back into shape?” This time the maroon haired woman spoke. “Calm down Claudia. You’re going to pop a blood vessel.” The woman’s tone was snide and stuck up. Which matched her demeanor perfectly. Claudia turned to her and nearly yelled everyone’s ear off. “What did you say bitch? I outta tear your face in half Erzabeth!” Erzabeth merely shrugged her shoulders and rolled her eyes. Claudia looked like she was going to blow a casket out of shear fury. Before she could the white haired man spoke up.

            “Oh my, my! You two are so delicious when you fight!” He giggled and clapped his hands in excitement. Claudia scrunched her face in disgust. “Sick Vincent! Quite trying to get us to become your playthings! I’m a lady of the light! I could never do such…things!” This time the brunette woman spoke up. “You could have fooled me Claudia.” The woman was still staring at herself in the mirror. She paid no attention to the fuming woman next to her. Claudia had finally had enough and angrily stomped her foot against the building. Instantly the windows shattered and the building cracked.

            The twins stood their ground and stayed on the defensive. Claudia screamed at all of them this time. “God! You guys are so fucking annoying! Sadly I can’t kill you all right now! So instead…” In a flash the woman appeared before the twins in front of them. She had a maniacal grin on her face with all her teeth showing. “I’ll settle for them!” Before anyone could act Erzabeth spoke up again. She still had a calm but condescending tone. “Those weren’t our orders you idiot.” Claudia flipped her off without even looking at her. “Fuck orders! There’s no reason we can’t have fun until he gets back!”

            In a flash she jumped towards them fist first. Instead of them, her fist made contact with a barrier. She was surprised by the sudden wall in between them. “What…the fuck?” The barrier was blood red with arms reaching towards her. “Impedimentum negativum. It’s a simple spell really. I made it while you kept blathering.” Akane was calm as ever but on the other side Claudia grew angrier by the moment. “What the fuck did you say, bitch?” Akane still stared at her blankly. “I said words. If you want, I can speak nice and slowly for you.” For once Claudia stayed silent and stared at the ground.

            Up above Vincent stared at them in sheer excitement. Like he was waiting for something big to happen. Suddenly Claudia looked up at them with her eyes literally were burning with fire. She screamed in rage and the whole area shook like an earthquake. “I’m going to fucking kill you if it’s the last thing I do!” With one swing of her fist she shattered the barrier in one blow. Without hesitation she flew at them. Akane immediately kneeled down and slammed her hand to the ground in front of her. Yet again, before she could reach them her fist was met with another barrier. This one was white and consisted of a hexagonal pattern.

            Once against she was stunned but soon regained her fury. She punched the wall repeatedly enraged to the point of no return and shattered the wall once again. Akane kept throwing out barrier after barrier making Claudia angrier and angrier each time. She was so caught up in destroying the walls she failed to realize Yoshitsune was no longer behind them. In a flash his blade swung towards her face. Surprisingly she dodged it without even looking. It stunned him long enough that he was met with her counterattack. She kicked him directly in the stomach, nearly knocking the wind out of him, but he caught her by the ankle as she did.

            He threw her across the street and she kicked him to the other side. She hit a light pole and nearly broke it in half. Yoshitsune stabbed his blade into the ground which slowed him down and kept him from flying through a gift shop. As Claudia lied on the ground she growled in frustration. When she sat up she slammed her fist into the ground. It was enough for her fist to break through concrete and break the sidewalk around her. “No bad for an amateur pretty boy!” He raised an eyebrow at that one. “…pretty boy?” He heard a giggle of excitement as Vincent landed behind him.

            “You’re right on that one Claudia my dear! He is certainly pretty…” The albino man licked his gloved fingers slowly and sensually. He licked inbetween his fingers mimicking oral sex. “How about you and me play? I’ll only bite if you want me to.” When Yoshitsune looked at the man he couldn’t help but be drawn to his intensely red eyes. As he gazed into them he felt his heart begin to race and his palms begin to sweat. His lips began to tremble and his vision became blurry. He was no longer looking at Vincent but someone else entirely. It was Judas standing before him.

            He was holding out him arms in such a loving way. Everything around Yoshitsune became dark. Judas became the center of attention and was like a shining beacon. Yoshitsune felt himself reaching out for him. His whole body trembled with excitement, fear, happiness, anxiety, and even sexual desire. “Yoyo. My dear sweet Yoyo. I’ve missed you so much. You are so beautiful and all I want is you. You were always my everything and now nothing can keep us apart. Come here my love. Come to me.” Yoshitsune slowly began walking towards Judas. He was so beautiful in the light. He was unfathomably enticing.

            “Come closer Yoyo. Come to me, my love.”  When Yoshitsune was in arm’s reach Judas’ face came twist in anger. “Who are you?” The feeling of bullets flying through his hair snapped Yoshitsune out of his daze. The world became normal once more. He realized he was standing in front of Vincent who was looking somewhere else. In his heart he believed it was Judas who had saved him, but when he looked back he noticed that wasn’t the case. His heart sank slightly when he saw Jason instead. He had a large smoking magnum revolver in his hands. His face was covered in car grease and he was still in his blue jumpsuit.

            “What the fuck are you doing Yoshi? That’s the enemy.” Yoshitsune smirked at him and turned his attention back to the white haired man. As soon as he did Vincent was already reaching for him. He has a psychotic grin on his face as he did. “Come here my pretty!” In a flash Yoshitsune severed the man’s right arm. Everyone stopped, including Claudia, when it happened. Vincent looked the most shocked of all of them as he watched his arm descend towards the ground. He quickly grabbed a hold of his stub and leaped several feet away. “D-Dammit! You fucking piece of shit!”

            Without a word Yoshitsune’s white sword was engulfed with a purple flame. With a flick of his wrist the arm was on fire and disintegrated. Vincent looked shocked for a moment but soon smiled excitedly. “You are a tricky one aren’t you? I love a good slap and tickle every now and again.” He looked like was about to attack when the brunette woman spoke again. “What are you doing you idiot? You’re not a fighter.” He glared at her and stuck out his tongue. “Then why don’t you kill them, Abigail?” She flat out said no and flicked her hair. “Why would I want to do that? They’re so scrawny…”

            In a flash he disappeared and reappeared next to the black haired man. Out of nowhere he violently kicked the sleeping man in the leg. “Wake up you stupid cyclops! You said you were going to help me Jacque!” He slowly opened his only visibly eye and nonchalantly looked up at him. “I said that? When?” Vincent looked a bit taken back by his response. He blushed slightly and turned away. “…I-In your sleep…” Jacque rolled his eye before closing it again. “That’s what I thought…” Vincent grew angry again and kicked him in the leg. Except this time it was in a more pouty and childish manner.

            “Pretty please! I’m kind of bleeding out here!” Jacque groaned and looked back up at him. Before he could respond Jason shot at Vincent once again. With a snap of Jacque’s finger the world stopped around him. Even the bullets stopped mid-air as they were about to strike. He yawned and stretched before casually getting up and walking over to him. Nonchalantly he grabbed all the bullets from the air and tossed them back at them. With another snap of him fingers the bullets came flying back at full speed.

            Without hesitation Yoshitsune deflected them all with his blade before they could hit Jason. Jason was in shock at the suddenness of it. He blushed slightly when he realized he got caught off guard too easily. Vincent looked overjoyed and tried to hug Jacque with his remaining arm. He veered away and pushed him away with a single hand. Vincent looked pouty again but soon became overjoyed again. “Aww! You do love me!” Jacque closed his eye and tucked some of his stray hairs back behind his ear.

            He touched his gloved hand to Vincent’s bleeding stub and the blood stopped flowing immediately. “There. Now you can’t complain.” He gave Jacque a goofy grin but he paid no heed. Claudia growled at their antics and slammed her foot against the ground causing another earthquake. “Will you assholes shut up and take this seriously!” Without a word Erzabeth appeared in front of Jason and Yoshitsune. She held her demonic katanna in one hand and held onto the hilt defensively with the other. “It looks like I should finish you boys off quickly. The strongest should always fight the strongest.”

            Yoshitsune stared at her silently gripping onto his blade lightly. The air was even thicker with tension as all three of them stood there in a standoff. They all looked at each other waiting for each other to make the first move. Instead Claudia broke the silence with her lack of volume control. “Fuck this! I’ll kill you all with one hit!” She quickly whipped out the large matchlock guns from the holsters on her boots. She pointed one gun at Jason, Yoshitsune, and Erzabeth. The other she pointed at Akane. “Vehementi sole!” The insides of the barrels soon began to glow with a bright orange light.

            Both guns simultaneously shot off large fiery balls of light at incredible speed. Akane’s shield shattered like glass and reformed into a large portal. The ball of fire flew directly inside of it. At the opposite end a similar looking portal appeared in front of the three. The same ball of fire flew through the portal and into the all ball. When they hit each other they melded together and flew towards Akane and Claudia. Before Claudia could react she was enveloped by the explosion. Yoshitsune and Jason shielded themselves from the debris as it flew towards them.

            Erzabeth stood there still with her hair flying crazy from the winds produced from the blast. The remaining four stared at the blast in wonder. When the fire went down all that was left was whirling smoke. Everyone was silent as they watched the dust dancing silently in the wind. Suddenly Claudia appeared from the haze gasping for breath. When the smoke started to clear they noticed her outfit was burned up slightly but she was mostly covered in ash. Her eyes were wide and she was silent. She quickly turned around to notice Akane was perfectly safe behind another barrier.

            She was even eating a candy bar. Claudia gritted her teeth and flew into another rage. “How dare you do that to me you bitch! How dare you, how dare you, how dare you, how dare you!” She aimed both guns at her and shouted an incantation at the top of her lungs. “Ardens favilla!” As the spell began to charge and person suddenly next to her holding onto her gun. It was a man dressed just like them. His looked the same except for his usual hair style. His hair was perfectly parted down the middle and each side a different style and color. On the right side it was jet black and hung down to his shoulder. On the left in was blonde, short, and combed back neatly.

            As soon as he appeared the orphanage was engulfed with a fiery green explosion. All the orphans turned back to see their home burning out in the distance. The mysterious man gripped Claudia’s gun tightly with his gloved hand. They looked each other in the eye silently. His eyes were a golden yellow that shinned with an utmost confidence. “How about you stop blowing things up? I told you to wait and watch guard, not to cause collateral damage.” Claudia bared her teeth at him and wretched gun away. “Whatever asshole!” The man merely smirked at her and pushed his bangs away.

            When he looked up at the Yoshitsune and Jason his smile curled into one of sadistic glee. “I hope you like your present waiting for you at home.” Yoshitune unsheathed his blade ready to attack. The mysterious man put up his hand and wiggled his finger. “Oh no, no, no, no, no! There will be no more fighting. Because…” When he looked back up at him his eyes shimmered with ferocity. “You’ll be exterminated soon enough.” With a snap of his fingers all seven people were engulfed in a bright light. Yoshitsune, Akane, and Jason took a defensive posture which only made the mystery man laugh. “Don’t worry, this light is only for the chosen ones.”

            In a bright flash all seven of them were gone. They all looked to each other in confusion. They soon remembered the burning orphanage. Yoshitsune slowly turned to the smoke in the sky and whispered silently to herself. “Judas…where are you?”  They stood there in silence until Yoshitsune turned back to them. They all silently nodded to each other. Without a moment’s hesitation they took off towards the orphanage. They didn’t know what they were going to find. Hopefully it wasn’t the burning corpses of their family.

5: Fire at Will

Chapter 5: Fire at Will

 

            Shimmering white moonlight shined through the large cathedral windows. Sitting in one of the benches in front of the altar was Mother Superior. She had her rosary beads in her hands praying silently. Her lips moved soundlessly as she mouthed her prayer. Her aged hands griped her necklace tightly when she suddenly stopped. The church was silent except for the soft creak of the floorboards. She took in a deep breath and slowly sat up. “You’re being much too noisy if you’re here to kill me.” When she turned around there were four figures standing behind her clad in hooded white cloaks.
 

            One figure stood in front, one much shorter one to its left, one of similar height on the right, and one significantly larger one behind them. They all stayed silent as they stared at her. She adjusted her headdress before speaking up. “I assume you’re here for a different reason then?” The head figure stayed silent and slowly walked towards her. It stopped only a few feet away from her and pulled back its hood. It was a man with duel-colored hair. The right half of his hair was long and black, and the other side was short, blonde, and combed back. His eyes were a bright golden yellow that was accentuated by the moonlight.

 

            He smiled arrogantly as he bowed slightly. “It’s lovey to meet your acquaintance, my dear.” Mother Superior glared at him and gave him a much less formal response. “I wish I could say the same.” The mysterious man smiled once again and gave a slight chuckle. “I’m guessing you know who we are and who we’re here for. So there’s no need for an introduction.” She continued to glare at them. “Obviously. Now take me to Icarus. I will have no bloodshed.” The man pushed his bangs out of his face and blatantly laughed at her in response. “Do you really think we’d be so compliant? Don’t think that just because you’re the head of the coven means you’re more powerful than everyone else.”

 

            The man held out his hand and sparks began to fly from the electricity emitted from his hand. He held his arm back ready to strike. “If you want to die so badly I’ll kill you myself you old hag!” Before he could do anything the figure to his right grabbed his arm. The figure was a young blonde man about the same age. He had long wavy hair that flowed from his hood. His eyes were a dark green that shown even in the darkness of the cathedral. “Gabriel. That was not our order.” Gabriel turned to him and scowled. He soon wretched his arm away out of anger.

 

            “Shut up bastard!” He turned his attention back to Mother Superior once again. “My apologies, I forgot that my duty was only to inform you and acquire a certain someone…” Mother Superior merely scoffed at him but otherwise continued to remain silent. “Plus we wouldn’t want you dying before the upcoming events…” She raised her eyebrow out of curiosity. The man lowered his gaze for a moment and he softly chuckled to himself. When he looked back up he had smile of sadistic glee. “When we slaughter your entire family while you watch.” Without a moment’s hesitation she threw a wave of green fire at them from her hand. For a moment it looked as if they were all engulfed by the flames.

 

            Much to her surprise the flames inverted and were sucked into Gabriel’s gloved hand. All that remained was smoke. He laughed at her once more and blew the smoke away from his fingers. “As I was saying…” He cracked his knuckles before continuing. “It didn’t take long to search the city. I do believe the half breed is not here. You probably know where he is but there’s no way you’d give up such precious information…” He gave the still scowling Mother Superior another twisted grin. “…so I suppose I’ll just have to beat it out of your old wrinkly head.” Before he could say anymore Mother Superior’s shadow distorted and a blade rose from it. It was an old style blade with the hilt shaped like a cross. In a single motion she grabbed the sword and swung at him. He was quick enough to dodge but she still sliced his cloak.

 

He glared at her and held his hand out towards her. “You think you’re tough don’t you bitch?” To her surprise his hand was enveloped by the same green flames as before. With a vicious grin on his face he unleashed a torrent of green fire. She effortlessly deflected the spell towards the ceiling. The rooftop instantly shattered and burning wood flew in every direction. She paid no heed to any of it and slashed through the remaining flames. On the other side there was nothing. They had already left as soon as the flames struck. She scrunched her face in anger and violently stabbed her blade into the floor. She turned and looked out through the window into town. She could feel her children fighting others of a similar presence across town at the same time. They seemed to have disappeared around the same time as well.

 

            She groaned and sat down in one of the benches. With a flick of her wrist the flames dissipated. “Elsa, you can come out now.” Disembodied eyes appeared behind her and looked at her. Soon Doctor Hart’s camouflage disappeared. She was standing there silently with her impassive assistant next to her. “Why am I not surprised?” Mother Superior shook her head and groaned in response. Elsa kneeled down and wiped her finger through the ashes created by the fire. She gave it a scrutinizing gaze as she rubbed it between her finger and her thumb. She turned to her assistant and barked orders at her.

 

            “Amana! Take some samples. I want to analyze this.” Without skipping a beat her quiet and emotionless assistant was on it. As Amana collected samples, Elsa took the opportunity to question the unusually quiet Mother Superior. “So? Care to explain?” She took a deep breath and slowly shook her head. “No. Not yet anyway. I will once my children return to me.” Without another word she got up and pulled out her sword. She silently gazed at it for a moment before heading off towards her room. Elsa raised an eyebrow at her but decided to not think too deeply about it.

 

            Many miles away the invaders of Opal Island returned to their base. It was a massive refurbished castle that had stood for many generations. The interior had countless banister and artwork adorning the walls of the grand hallway, many of which bore the Seal of the Sun as an insignia. The hallway was also filled with armed guards. They wore a more utilitarian outfit than the army’s other high ranking members. The sound of boots clacking against the floor echoed throughout the pristine hallway. The guards stood at attention more than normal in their presence. It was the same seven who had appeared before the Mizushima twins and others.

 

            Gabriel led them down the hallway with a scowl on his face. He angrily tore off what remained of his white cloak. “Stupid bitch. She’s lucky he has other plans for her.” Erzabeth scoffed at him which earned her a glare. “Got something to say?” She slowly turned her gaze towards him and stared at him. “This is why you shouldn’t lead. You’re terrible at it. That’s why I’m really the leader.” He quickly turned around to her causing the others to stop abruptly. “Oh really? If I kill you now there won’t be any debate.” He grinned maliciously as he pointed his hand at her like a gun. He stopped what he was doing as soon as he heard a booming voice.

 

            “Enough! There will be no bloodshed in my presence!” Gabriel turned to see they had already arrived in the main chamber where their leader sat on his throne. He was an elderly gentleman with a fine mustache perched on his lips. His face was highly wrinkled and was in a permanent scowl. He was in his highly decadent robes with a fur cloak draped around his shoulders. Gabriel quickly realized his mistake and bowed in apology. “I’m very sorry my lord. It will not happen again.” He continued to scowl at them but nodded in acceptance. “Quiet you insolent child. Give your report.” Gabriel nodded and the seven of them approached the throne.

 

            He noticed the other three who accompanied him earlier were already by their lord’s side. The blonde man stood quietly on his right in full attention. His long blonde hair cascaded down the front of his uniform. To the left of the throne the other two stood. One was a young woman with jet black hair. Her uniform’s jacket was over sized and the long sleeves dangled past her hands. She had on short shorts, black leggings, and worn out ankle boots. She looked cutesy like a child and didn’t seem all that threatening. Next to her was an unnaturally large man. He towered above her as he stood behind her. He hand a large demon skull on his head like a helmet. It had large protruding fangs and several eye holes in it.

 

            Gabriel bowed again as he approached the man on the throne. “The message was successfully delivered my lord.” The man ran his finger across his mouth in thought. “And of the child of mixed blood? Was he there?” Gabriel silently shook his head much to the man’s dismay. “I thought as much.” The man turned his attention to the remaining six. “What happened to you two?” Vincent looked confused and Claudia lowered her head in shame. The raven haired girl next to their lord squealed as soon as he said that. “Ah! Vincent! Where’d your arm go?” He scratched his head and laughed.

 

            “A real cutie chopped it off and burned it.” The girl looked absolutely devastated by the news. “What? You let your arm get destroyed? Now what am I going to play with?” She folded her arms and puffed out her lip like a kid. “You’re so stupid Vincent!” The man on the throne shook his head scowled at them before finally speaking up. “Silence, Victoria! Take those two to medical wing immediately.” Victoria pouted a bit before beckoning them to follow her. She skipped merrily down to the medical wing of the castle with them in tow. After that the room was deathly silent. No one dared to break the silence.

 

            Thankfully Doctor Marcellus was the one to do it instead. “Lord Icarus? I have some news to report.” They all turned to see a tall lanky man walking towards the throne. He was clad in a full length form fitting white lab coat that covered every inch of skin. His hands were covered with black latex gloves that glistened with fresh blood. His pale skin nearly matched his coat and made him look like a corpse. The dark green lipstick he wore accentuated it even more. Even his eyes were covered with circular shaped sunglasses to hide his features. His raven black hair was neatly cut with the bangs perfectly lying across his brow and the sides lying against his jawline. Overall he gave everyone an uneasy vibe whenever he was in their presence.

 

            “Speak Marcellus.” He gave a smile of excitement and malice. “I do believe I have found the half child again, if he isn’t dead already.” Icarus raised a brow and rose from his throne. He turned to the rest of his subordinates and dismissed them. He followed Marcellus into his extensive laboratory filled with all sorts of oddities. Jars and tanks filled with distorted and tangled creatures and gadgets galore. They stopped when they reached a massive computer screen. Marcellus rapidly typed on the keyboard and a screen popped up soon after. It showed a plane crash from an aerial perspective.

 

            “Is this your doing Marcellus?” The dark haired man chuckled and shook his head. “Not at all! If it had been me it would have been much more effect than…whatever that is.” Icarus tried to look away from Marcellus’ unsettling smile. “Was it really an accident or…?” Marcellus chuckled again and turned his gaze back to his computer. “I don’t think so. There were massive fluctuations in the barriers just before the plane went down. There were several lesser beings that crossed over as well as something quite… powerful, if only for a moment.”

 

            Icarus stood there for a moment contemplating silently. He stroked the end of his finely tailored mustache as he did. Marcellus raised an eyebrow and offered a proposal. “What if I send my subordinate? There’s a drug I’ve been meaning to test. It might cause him to explode but I can always put him back together.” Icarus closed his eyes and shook his head. “No. I don’t want to take any chances. I’ll send one of my Royal Guard who’s already out hunting for more…initiates.” Marcellus gave a wicked grin and clapped his hands in excitement. Icarus barked an order at one of the guards standing outside.

 

            When he finished he folded his arms and gazed into the empty corridor in silence. He nearly jolted when Marcellus appeared next to him. His head was turned at an odd angle as he gazed upon his leader. “Do you thinking Xander is up to the challenge? He is a bit…out there.” Icarus continued to stay silent as he walked away. Marcellus chuckled slightly and walked back into his laboratory. He looked upon the plane crash on the screen once again. Another creepy smile crawled upon his dark green lips. “This will certainly be exciting won’t it?”

 

            Many miles away in the dimension of Purgatory, fire burned the land as the sound of boots marching filled the empty world. The greyscale buildings crumbled as they burned to the ground. Foot soldiers of Icarus’ army raised their banner with pride as they marched the streets. Bodies of slain lesser demons littered the ground as the soldiers walked across their corpses. They marched towards their base camp that was surrounded by a barrier of dancing lights. The camp itself was bright and colorful unlike the world around them. At the center sat a man on a throne clad in a white cloak. He wore a military outfit just like the ones the Royal Guard wore. He was a young man with dark skin and buzzed down platinum blonde hair topped off with the uniform’s hat.

 

            He sat there silently with his legs crossed and his arm under his chin. He gave a long winded sigh and furrowed his brow. He opened his eyes when he noticed one of his subordinates approached him. Oddly enough his eyes were two different colors, one blue and the other brown. He raised his eyebrow curiously as he whispered into his ear. As soon as he finished the blonde man clapped his white gloved hands and all the soldiers stood at attention in unison. The man stood up and addressed his subordinates with a stern tone.

 

“It seems we’ve captured all the remaining demons. Bring them forth and I will judge them accordingly. It seems they might be of some use to Lord Icarus after all.” He clapped his hands once more and several of his underlings retrieved their cache of prisoners. They sat each of the prisoners in a row in front of him. One of the men saluted his superior and spoke. “As you requested Captain Xander!” Each demon they had captured looked beaten and bloody and was shackled by their hands and feet. They were all lesser demons who were all bestial looking in nature, all except for one. It was a beautiful dark haired woman covered in red tribal tattoos and parts of her body wrapped in ancient looking bandages. She stared off into the distance purposefully avoiding all eye contact.

 

             Naturally Xander’s eyes trailed over to the unusual woman. As he approached her she purposefully turned her head away. Xander merely smirked and grabbed her by the jaw and forced her to look at him. The woman scowled back at him with her demonic red eyes. “My, my, it looks like we’ve got a firebrand right here. It’s been so long since we’ve caught one of the fallen.” She immediately turned her head away and looked back down towards the ground. Xander laughed softly and turned back towards the rest.

 

            “All of you here today are here because you we strong enough to survive our initial attack. Because of that we are going to recruit you.” The demons looked around at each other in confusion. “As long as you bow your head at me and denounce your filthy ways by declaring your love for God and Lord Icarus! Then, and only then, may you be spared and become part of our holy crusade!” After several moments of silence one of the demons with slimy green skin and a horrifically elongated mouth finally spoke up. “If I do that human, will you remove these shackles?”

 

            Xander stared at the creature silently for a moment before quickly grabbing one of his subordinate’s guns from his holster and pointing it at the creatures head. “Bolt Sancto.” As soon as he muttered his incantation the top half of the creature’s head was blasted away in a flash. “This is not how this works! If you truly wish to be Lord Icarus’ faithful servants then you will bow your head and confess your undying love! Otherwise you will meet an untimely end just like this poor soul right here.”

 

            He quickly pointed his gun at the next prisoner and blasted the creature’s head apart just like the last one. “I didn’t see you bowing your head!” He turned to the next prisoner and before they could do anything he blasted its head apart. “There’s still no bowing! Do you all have a death wish?” The next demon he pointed his gun to was bowing on the ground shaking in fear. Xander cocked his head slightly but still shot the creature multiple times. “I do not hear you confessing your love for God or our glorious Lord Icarus!” He continued this way for every prisoner.

 

            Several of his subordinates stared whispering to each other as he relentlessly slaughtered the prisoners. “I hate it when we bring the prisoners to the captain. All he ever does is kill them. We never take any back to the castle.” The others nodded in agreement. He had killed every single prisoner, regardless of reason, except the woman at the end. As he got to her the gun was suddenly split into two at the barrel. Even he was surprised when he noticed she had escaped her shackles with a demonic black sword in hand. One of the soldiers quickly blurted out in surprise. “What? I thought we took away all their weapons?”

 

            The woman smiled arrogantly as she pointed the sword mere inches from Xander’s face. “Not so tough now are you big boy?” His face was entirely emotionless as he stared her in the eyes. The woman scowled and quickly slashed at him. He effortless smacked her arm away with his wrist and smacked her in the side of the head with the remaining butt of the gun. She immediately went down and was seemingly knocked out. All the soldiers looked a bit shocked at how quickly he resolved it. He smirked silently and turned and walked away. “Make sure her shackles are on tight this time. I like this one so collar her as well. We wouldn’t want her to get too beaten up before she can be of use to his lordship.”

 

            As he was walking back to his throne he heard screams in pain. “I thought I told you to-” Before he could finish a blade was thrown at his face. He quickly caught it mid-air before it could hit the mark. He smiled when he noticed the demon woman had sliced up several of his subordinates with more demonic blades. “Oh my, where are you getting all these weapons from?” The woman smiled as she pointed her blade at him. “You can see for yourself when I fill you full of them.” Xander laughed heartily as he clapped his hands together. She looked a bit confused by his actions but still stood with confidence even as the others surrounded her.

 

            “You will truly be a fine addition to his lordship’s army! Once you submit that is…” As he reached his hand out to her she suddenly collapsed to the ground. She dropped her blades and screamed in agony as her body contorted in unnatural ways. “You see, even without the shackles you are under my control. What you were wearing had a spell enchanted upon it. It’s a personal specialty of mine. It seeps into your body as soon as you put them on. Did you really think that you could escape?” The woman continued to glare at him through tear stained eyes. “Now I think it’s about time you lick my boots and ask for forgiveness.”

 

            The woman stared at him even as he continued to increase the torturous contortion. “If you do it then I’ll stop. I might even spare your life.” The woman lowered her eyes and spit at him. This time he glared at her. “Is that how you want to play then? Fine.” He violently kicked the woman in the stomach causing her to gasp in pain. She still remained silent though. He lowered his eyes in anger and repeatedly began to kick her. Soon the woman was gasping for breath and trying to stay conscious. As he was about to beat her down again she finally spoke up between gasping breaths. “I-I know… why… you’re…here…”

 

            Xander smirked triumphantly as he kneeled down to the woman. “Do you now?” The woman took a moment to respond as she tried to get enough air to breath. “You came to see why… the tears are opening up. It’s because… the Acolytes are coming. They will destroy everything… if you let them… succeed.” He stroked his chin with his hand as he thought to himself. As he stood up he beckoned one of his subordinates. They brought forth a small circular mirror. In the mirror was not Xander’s reflection but an image of Doctor Marcellus. “It seems your suspicions are correct. It’s a group called the Acolytes who seem to be behind the tears.”

 

            The pale man smiled with an unsettling toothy grin. “Of course I was. It seems there are others who are making a move as well. This could prove to be very interesting.” Xander rolled his eyes in response. “Speaking of which, Lord Icarus wants you to capture a certain someone. The half breed child to be exact.” Xander looked slightly shocked at the prospect of him going after the half breed. “And if you please, make sure the body isn’t unsalvageable this time. It’s quite a pain to put back together.” Xander glared at him and scoffed. “Whatever. Just tell me where and we’ll capture it.” Marcellus chuckled as he intertwined his fingers. “Now, now. No need to get fussy. I’ve already sent the coordinates to you. Just reopen the Halo and it should send you-.” Before he could finish Xander grabbed the mirror and smashed in on the ground. He then shook his head and groaned in frustration. “God I hate that guy.”

 

            He quickly turned back to his men and clapped his hands. They all stood up straight and saluted him in unison. “Prepare the Halo of the Sun! We are to depart immediately!” They all replied with a yes sir and quickly faced the edges of the glowing ring surrounding the camp. They held their hands out with their palms facing the barrier. In unison they began chanting an incantation. “Gaze upon the world with your divine will! Casting the shadow of doubt upon the animals of sin! High in the sky does the first man walk, and far below does the last man weep! Show unto me the passage of the divine’s eye! Stipata corona Sol!”

 

            As they chanted together the lights began to shimmer. The world outside began to distort and fade away. It was almost dizzying as the world swirled around them and became something new. Soon everything started to come into focus and become clear. They had moved to a new environment that was outdoors among the trees. They all turned to see the smoking remains of a bifurcated plane. Several people stood in front of it staring at the uniformed people who had miraculously appeared before them. One of which was a worn out looking Judas. Xander smiled as he gazed upon the blonde man. “Well, well. What do we have here?”

 

Ten minutes earlier

 

            Smoke and dust clouded the interior of the private airplane. Its surviving riders slowly regained consciousness as they tried to move their aching bodies. One of the stewardesses couched profusely as she inhaled dust and smoke. “What…What happened?” The male steward helped one of the stewardesses off the ground to see if she was okay. As the other stewardess looked around she noticed Judas was missing. As the other two were talking she spoke up to get their attention. “Hey, where’s Judas? I don’t see him anywhere. And what happened to the pilots?” The man shrugged and went to look in the cockpit.

 

            When he opened the door her covered his mouth and slammed the door shut. One of the girls asked what he had seen but here shook his head and didn’t say another word. They decided to go outside to see where they were. They worked together wretch the door open. With one big push the door popped open and all three of them fell to the ground outside. They groaned as their bruised their already bruised bodies. When one of the women got up she noticed Judas lying on his back staring up at the sky.

 

            “Judas? Are you alright?” He remained silent as he lied there in a daze. She quickly kneeled down next to him and patted him on his shoulder. “Judas? Are you alright? How did you get out here?” He continued to remain silent. She turned to her colleagues but they shrugged their shoulders in response. When she looked down back at him she noticed he was looking back at her. This time he actually spoke. “Are you guys the only ones left?” She looked back at her colleagues then back at him. “Yeah. Yeah we are.” He closed him eyes and groaned. “Dammit. God dammit!”

 

            He quickly stood up much to her surprise. “This is all my fault. I used up to much power fighting that damned demon. If only I had been able to land it better.” The stewards all looked each other in worry and confusion. “Um…what do you mean by…fighting a…demon?” Judas remained silent and shook his head. “It doesn’t matter. I need to go back and warn the others.” They all looked at him in confusion once more. Before anyone could speak up they all felt a tremor in the ground.

 

            A bright light flashed in front of and everyone except Judas shielded their eyes. After several seconds of intense flashing light it began to die down. Behind the pillar of light several figures loomed before them. As the light began to fade they noticed the many uniformed soldiers standing in front of the smiling blonde man. The stewards were flabbergasted but Judas knew better. He stared at them coldly. “Well, well. What do we have here?” Xander motioned to his men and they moved out of the way and made an isle for him. He walked towards Judas but remained behind the barrier of light.

 

            Judas glared at him but quickly turned around and waved his at the stewards and spoke an incantation. “Paulatim vestigia Somni.” All three of them fell to the ground asleep simultaneously. He waved his hand and spoke once more “Obice tenebrarum.” The three of them were surrounded by a black barrier that pulsated with dark energy. Soon he turned his attention back to the sudden invaders. “What a pity. Now I don’t get to destroy them. I prefer things to get a little messy.”

 

            Judas folded his arms and furrowed his brow. Xander merely laughed at his change in posture. “Never in a millions years would I have thought I’d meet the celebrity Judas, and seeing him performing witchcraft none the less. Is Brad Pitt going to walk out of that shabby airplane too? I’d love to meet him.” Judas rolled his eyes in response. “Whatever. You can have my autograph once you answer some questions first.” Xander smiled in excitement and intertwined his fingers. “Oh and you have a sense of humor too! I bet you’re all the rage on the Red Carpet.”

 

            Judas continued to glare at him. “I know you bastards are behind all this. You killed innocent people just to get to me. This is the second time you’ve sent demons after me. So what is it you pathetic assholes want?” Xander smiled and held his hand to his ear mockingly. “What was that? Demons you say? I haven’t the faintest idea what you’re going on about.” Judas intensified his glare and spoke up even louder. “Then why the hell are you here?” Suddenly Xander’s expression became very serious.

 

            “To investigate the demon attacks…” In a flash several men surrounded Judas with their palms pointed at him. “…and to capture you of course.” Light emanated from their palms and they simultaneously shouted an incantation. “Luce Claudius!” A pillar of light burst up from in between them seemingly trapping Judas inside. Xander laughed heartily and clapped his hands. “Good work boys! That went smoother than expected. I have no idea why Virgil had such a hard time.” Xander smiled to himself in triumph and was about to walk over to get his prize until he heard a laugh.

 

            “My God you guys are slow. Even old Mother Superior could out maneuver you.” Judas was leaned up against a tree with his arms crossed and a cocky look on his face as usual. “Oh my, you are a slippery one aren’t you?” Judas smiled arrogantly in response. “Well I do all my own stunts if you were wondering.” Xander snapped his fingers and the group of men threw a flurry of spells his way. The trees were shattered and dust was shot up into the air. Judas quickly leapt from the dust cloud unscathed but dirty. He elegantly landed behind the soldiers with his twin angelic guns in hand.

 

            The group of men and Judas turned to one another ready to fire. They stood there motionless in a standoff. It was deathly silent until Xander broke the silence with taunting laughter. “Oh I get it! I’m guessing you thought you knew who we were but weren’t entirely sure yet. But after seeing our spell craft you must have put the pieces together. I’m guessing the uniforms and the symbols must have been a dead giveaway.” Judas remained quiet and continued to hold his stance. “I guess it’s pointless to try and hide it. We are indeed witches of the Coven of Light. The same coven as the man you fought before.”

 

            Sweat dripped down the soldier’s heads as they anxiously awaited Judas’ attack. “You know, we should be thanking you. If it hadn’t been for that chance encounter then the spell may never have been broken, and we never would have remembered you and your filthy coven’s existence.” In a flash Judas pointed his gun at Xander and blasted a spell at him. The spell hit the barrier and didn’t even come close to its intended target. “Aww, is someone angry about me talking about their heretical orphan siblings?”

 

            Judas slowly turned his gaze at him and shot another spell. The black spell quickly hit the barrier but disappeared much to Xander’s dismay. Everything seemed as if it stood still as they stared at the barrier. After a moment of nothing Xander began to laugh once again. “Is that it? What a weak spell!” His moment of arrogance was cut short when a black smiling skull appeared where the shot was. The barrier began to distort and crack as it started to shatter. Xander and his troops gazed in shock as the Halo collapsed around their encampment.

 

            Xander’s momentary shock turned into anger and he quickly cast a bolt of light at his men. “Aperi ianuam!” He mercilessly shocked his men but refrained from actually killing them. “What are you idiots doing? Fire! Fire!” The dazed soldiers immediately cast a flurry of spells at Judas causing the ground to shatter upon impact. He effortlessly dodged them all with the grace of a ballet dancer. As the dust started to settle he smirked with confidence. “Is that all? Percipiunt angeli inferni” In a flash he had vanished from the dust cloud.

 

            Xander’s eyes quickly darted across the battlefield. He was nowhere to be seen. Only destruction remained. He closed his eyes and held his hands together. A white light soon began to emit from his hands as he concentrated. His concentration was quickly shattered when he felt the hot barrel of a gun pressed against the back of his head. Soon he noticed the soldiers around him engulfed in a torrent of flames. Parts of their bodies had been instantly turned to ashes. “Well you are certainly a crafty one aren’t you?” Judas couldn’t help but give a confidant chuckle. “It comes naturally of course.”

 

            Without warning Judas pulled the trigger. A cyclone of fire burst out of the barrel and flew past Xander’s head as he dodged out of the way. He landed several feet away facing Judas. His white cloak had been singed slightly by the fire. He smiled as he casually brushed off the ash. “Color me impressed. I suppose witches of mixed blood aren’t completely useless.” Judas lowered his eyes and lowered his gun. “What do you mean? I don’t have mixed blood…” Xander looked a bit surprised for a moment but soon broke out in laughter.

 

            “This is just precious! You don’t even know do you? Put him out of his misery boys!” The remainder of Xander’s men landed in front of him to guard him. “Yes sir!” They ran at him in a flash and blasted spell after spell at him. He was much too fast for them as he quickly vanished and reappeared in their shadows. Xander clapped and chuckled to himself. “This man is certainly interesting. He’s exactly like how Virgil described.” His train of though was interrupted by the screams of his men behind him. When he turned around he saw his men pierced with countless black blades and the demon woman glaring at him.

 

            He smiled arrogantly and held out his hand. Surprisingly nothing happened when he did. The woman smirked fiendishly and laughed. “You think it’d be that easy? Foolish witch!” She held her hand against her stomach as it began to pulsate; whatever it was trailed upwards towards her throat filling up her mouth. When she opened her mouth and large black handle popped out. She grabbed onto the handle and pulled out a massive double-sided axe. Xander grimaced at the display and averted his eyes. “How vulgar. At least now I know where they’re coming from.” The woman smiled at him and licked her lips.

 

            “Hey blondie!” The woman yelled at Judas who looked quite surprised by her sudden words. “What the hell do you want hag thing?” A vein on the woman’s forehead pulsated out of anger. “What did you call me you filthy human!” Judas scowled back at her even in the midst of battle. “Who are you calling filthy you rag wearing hobo!” The two continued to bicker until Xander shouted at the top of his lungs. “Quiet!” The soldiers, Judas, and even the demon stopped and fell silent. “I’ve had my fill of you two today. So I’ve decided I’m going to blow you two apart and bring you back as spare parts.”

 

            Simultaneously both Judas and the demon rolled their eyes and scoffed at Xander, much to his irritation. Again the demon woman shouted across the battlefield. “Hey blondie! How about I take care of this psycho and you finish off these soldiers? If you do I’ll think about not killing you later.” Judas smirked at her in acknowledgment. “We’ll see about that old lady.” She glared at Judas for his comment but brushed it off to focus on her opponent. “So? You think you can defeat me do you?” The woman smiled arrogantly. “I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t think I could.” In a flash the woman appeared above Xander with her axe ready to collide with him. He smiled confidently and held his arm in front of his face as a guard. When the axe hit it resulted in a massive shockwave causing dirt flying up towards the sky.

 

            On Judas’ side of the battle the soldiers were falling left and right. His bullets and spells hit them before they could ever react. The two remaining soldiers flanked him with one coming up behind him silently and one distracting him from the front. Judas smiled at the man in front of him and pointed his gun behind him without looking back. A spell blasted the man from behind square in the chest before he even came close. The man standing in front of him quivered in fear. He slowly started to back away and nearly fell backwards when Judas took one small step forward.

 

            “Afraid of little old me? How very flattering.” Before anything could happen the man was engulfed with blue flames and blown apart in the subsequent explosion. When the dust settled he noticed Xander standing close by with blue fire engulfing in his gloved hand. In his other hand he held the demon woman, unconscious and bleeding, by the hair dragging her along. “It’s so pathetic how everyone is so weak and useless. No one says it but soldiers are really just cannon fodder. Stepping stools for the powerful.” Judas glared at him in disgust. Xander merely laughed at him before tossing aside the woman’s body.

 

            “Aw how cute. A dark witch with morals.” Xander then took both his hands and created an orb of blue light between his hands. The light contorted as he stretched out his arms. The light eventually shattered and a large rifle taller than him took its place. He quickly snatched the gun out of midair and slammed the butt of the gun into the ground and held it upright. “I figured we should stop playing around and actually get to the good part.” Judas smiled confidently and stood up straight. “Skipping to the money shot is no fun. I prefer a bit of a tease first.” Xander smirked and quickly pointed the massive rifle at Judas. “Foolish words of a dead man. You were doomed the moment I stepped foot here.”

 

            The barrel glowed blue momentarily until a large blue ball of fire shot out with a bang. It moved so fast that it looked like Judas couldn’t react and was seemingly caught up in the subsequent explosion it created. Xander put the butt of his gun back on the ground and gazed suspiciously at the smoke cloud. “There’s no way it-” His words stopped in his throat as soon as he noticed Judas still standing. He was holding the flaming projectile with his bare hand and wearing a confidant smile on his face. “You’re going to have to do better than that. The set of Mime Assassins 3 was more dangerous than this.” He quickly flicked his hand and cast the ball of fire straight back at Xander.

 

            He was caught off guard and the projectile caught him in the explosion it created. As the dust began to settle Judas started to relax when there seemed to be no more movement. He immediately tensed right back up when he heard laughter behind him. He whirled around to find Xander standing behind him. His hat had been blown off and his cloak burned but he was otherwise unscathed. “Did you honestly think you could kill me with my own spell? Well I do suppose it needs some improvement. To think my opponent could grab it with his bare hand and throw it right back at me. You’re a lot stronger than you look.”

 

             Judas flipped is hair and laughed heartily. “Oh, why thank you! I am quite amazing! You flatter me!” Xander brushed off ash and dust from his cloak not looking amused by his words. “I didn’t mean it as a compliment, but you can take it as such if you wish. It just means I’ll have to try harder to kill you.” Judas smiled and pointed his guns. His smiled quickly dropped away when he noticed the glowing blue eye on Xander’s forehead. His eyes were closed but the glowing eye followed Judas’ every movement. “Are you afraid of my Deus Oculus? You were so confident a second ago though...” Xander smiled arrogantly earning a scowl from Judas. He quickly aimed his gun at Judas once more and shot another powerful bolt of fire.

 

            It quickly whizzed past Judas when he easily dodged out of the way. He looked momentarily triumphant until out of the corner of his eye he noticed the bolt turn heel and come straight at him. He had little time to react before it struck causing another explosion. Xander began to laugh heartily. “Did you really think it was going to be that easy? Under my gaze nothing escapes me. And don’t think I didn’t notice your survival. You shot my Bolt Sancto just before it struck to lessen the explosion.” As soon as the last letter slipped from his mouth Judas erupted from the smoke into the air.

 

            Without skipping a beat he sent Xander a barrage of bullets but they all missed their intended target. Xander stood only a few inches away having already dodged it before the shots had been fired. Xander had a frown on his face as he pointed his rifle at Judas while he was still in midair. “What a cheap trick. Sending your shadow to do your bidding while you hide in the shadows is a bit arrogant isn’t it? Ignis festinatione” The end of the barrel glowed yellow and before the doppelganger knew it, it had a large hole in its chest. The shadow dissipated quickly after.

 

            Xander held his hand to his mouth and shouted out loudly into the forest. “Olly olly oxen free!” He shot another fire bolt and blasted apart a large chunk of trees before shouting once more. “Come out, come wherever you are! If you don’t I’ll have to murder those humans you brought with you.” Without a moment’s hesitation a black spell was shot at Xander from seemingly nowhere. It took him by surprise but he still managed to dodge it in time. It hit a tree behind him instead. He gazed at the void created in the tree and watched it get sucked in. He raised an eyebrow at that even though his eyes were still closed.

 

            Xander looked back at the quiet empty forest and shouted once more. “Not bad! I didn’t think you had that kind of power though. Almost got me but you’re still not quick enough.” He held up the side of his cloak and showed off the hole the attack created. “Not bad! You successfully murdered my cloak.” He was hoping his snide remark would earn another attack but nothing came of it. He furrowed his brow and continued to blow apart parts of the forest with his gigantic weapon. “Don’t think you can hide forever you halfblooded bastard!”

 

            The dark dimension rumbled as Xander when on his rampage. Judas meditated quietly as he floated amidst the darkness. He was using this time calm himself and focus on the task at hand, just like he did with acting. Xander person was quiet powerful just like the White Knight. Except this man was truly sadistic and wanted Judas dead and buried. Upon review of his abilities he started to notice things. The eye on his forehead somehow expanded his field of vision. He was able to dodge his bullets before he had even fired them. He had also seen him hide in the shadows to trick him and evade the attack. But he seemed to not be able to see him in the shadows. He clearly didn’t know where he was, and that attack from the shadows did catch him off guard.

 

            That gun was also a problem. It seemed to be able to follow his movements but it was also incredibly fast. Maybe it was tied to his eye ability somehow? Either way it was something to be avoided. After meditating in thought for a good while he had finally formulated a plan. He smiled confidently and rose to the surface above. On the surface Xander looked as pissed off as he could be. As soon as Judas rose from the darkness Xander shot at his rifle without hesitation. The blue fireball whizzed strait past Judas as he disappeared into the shadows.

 

            He reappeared a short distance and the fireball immediately followed. This was repeated multiple times as Judas got closer and closer to Xander. Xander looked completely unfazed and stood motionless. When Judas got close enough he smiled and disappeared into the shadows once more. This time however, he reappeared in Xander’s shadow instead with his guns pointed at his head. He bent over and dodged the bullets without skipping a beat. Judas only smirked as the ball of fire whirled at them with tremendous speed. As the ball was about to hit him and suddenly stood up and held out his hand.

 

            The ball of fire immediately stopped in its tracks and sat motionless before him. Without warning the butt of Xander’s rifle collided with Judas’ chest and sent him flying back into a tree. The wind was knocked out of him and he nearly vomited at the same time. Xander stayed silent as he slowly turned around with the blue ball of fire levitating beneath his hand. He pointed the ball of fire at the downed Judas still struggling to catch his breath. “How pitiful. To think this is your full strength. I really did expect more.” Judas only glared at him in response as he tried to stand back up. “I’m guessing you thought such a childish plan would succeed? Then again every plan becomes worthless against my eye.”

 

            Judas weakly pointed his gun at him still scowling. Xander merely laughed. “No one ever figures it out. So I suppose I’ll explain. Do you remember when I told you this battle was already over when I step foot here?” Judas stayed silent out of spite. None the less Xander continued. “My ability is called Consilio Dei. It allows me to create nearly invisible threads of pure magic from any point in my body. As soon as I stepped foot on this battlefield I released my threads. They’re attached to every surface I could see. It’s like one big spider web. Are you getting it now Mr. Superstar?”

 

            Judas lowered his eyes in anger but continued to stay silent. “All the threads constantly send me info about everything and it all connects back to my Dues Oculus. It therefore sees everything you’re going to do even before you do it. So continuing to fight would just be pathetic. Just lie down and die like the filth that you are.” He pointed the flame at Judas ready to blast him away. At the last second someone grabbed his wrist from behind and wretched it back. The spell went haywire and blasted into the sky instead. “What the fu-?” Before he could say anything further the person behind him attempted to slit hit throat with a black blade.

 

            He blocked it with his gun but the blade still pierced the gun’s barrel. The person in question was none other than the demon woman from before. Xander grunted in anger when he realized she was crouched on his back. She cackled with a menacing toothy grin on her face inches from his. “Why won’t you stay dead you filthy wench?” The woman laughed heartily at his insult. “Aww is someone cranky I caught them off guard yet again even though your strings are apparently unbeatable.” Xander quickly attempted a head-butt to escape his compromising position. The woman quickly leaped off him before the attack could land.

 

            He attempted to fire his gun at her but it failed. The gun seemed to be jammed by the stab mark denting it. Xander gritted his teeth in anger and attempted to fix it. “You stupid bitch! Look at what you’ve done!” The demon woman merely smiled in excitement. She tore away the tattered remains of the bandages around her breasts. Interestingly enough she had metal plates with twisted faces on them covering her nipples. Both Xander and Judas looked a bit embarrassed by her voyeuristic action. “You have no idea who I am, do you mortals? Sadly you caught me without my armor on. But this should do just nicely in the meantime.”

 

            She quickly stabbed herself in the stomach with her blade and swiftly sliced herself across the belly. A torrent of molten red metal gushed open from her wound. Both men were entranced by the molten metal as it defied gravity and flowed in the air like water. It swirled in the air silently for several moments until her nipple plates began to glow red. Suddenly the metal cascaded across her entire body. The molten metal rapidly cooled as she slowly stepped towards Xander. As the metal started to harden it began to take shape. The woman’s body was completely enveloped with black demonic steel pulsating with molten red cracks. Her hair flowed down her back with metal dreadlocks.

 

            She suddenly opened her eyes which now pulsated with an intense red light. She soon started to speak even though there was no mouth opening. “Do you want to know why your strings inside of me stopped working? Because there is nothing in this world or the next that the great forger Hephaestus cannot break!” In a flash Hephaestus appeared before Xander and attempted to pierce him with her hand. He was fast enough to block it with his gun letting her strike it in the same place as she did before.

 

            The eye upon his forehead rapidly tried to keep up with her movements as she repeatedly slash at him with her hands. The spot she kept attacking started to grow red hot with the friction. “Damn you, you stupid bitch! Why can’t I keep up with you?” Xander grew increasingly more distraught as he was barely managing to keep up with her. She pulled her arm back for one final strike but before her attack could hit her target it froze in place. Her arm was tangled in a mass of glowing blue strings holding it in place. They all connected back to the glowing blue eye on his forehead.

 

            Xander smiled in triumph and pointed his gun at her and charged it up with a spell. Hephaestus remained undeterred and swiftly grabbed ahold of the strings wrapped around her arm. She violently yanked them forward forcing Xander to stubble towards her. As the spell was about to fire she grabbed the barrel of the gun with her free hand and pushed it upwards. In one swift movement she sliced through the strings and the gun, with the help of its weakened spot, all with her other hand. Xander opened his now glowing blue eyes in shock and locked eyes with Hephaestus in that spilt second.

 

            The gun immediately exploded causing a massive eruption of blue fire. It caused a shockwave that sent a visible ripple through the trees. Not long after Judas reappeared out of a shadow from a nearby tree. “Damn lady. That was pretty hardcore.” He jumped when he heard a response from behind him. “Thanks blondie. Not that I desired your opinion.” He whirled around to find Hephaestus with her back to him holding the remains of Xander’s gun. She held it up momentarily to observe it then tossed it to the side like trash. “What a worthless witch. He killed all my friends. Bastard.” Both she and Judas remained in silence as they watched the blue flames dance across the trees. Several moments passed by until Hephaestus broke the silence.

 

            “I suppose I’ll take my leave then. There’s no need for an old soul to stick around this world.”  Judas quickly grabbed her arm as she tried to walk away. She whirled around in anger and wretched her arm away. “Don’t you dare touch me human! Do not take my lack of hostility as acceptance! You are the reason the others are dead, half-blood!” Before anymore could be said they heard a not so far off cackle. Judas felt a slight shiver trail up his spine as he did. They both turned to the torrent of flames and gazed upon a dark silhouette in the fire.

 

            “Did you think it would be so easy to kill me? Do not forget I am a member of his lordship’s Royal Guard. We were formed to destroy and conquer the darkness, and that is exactly what I’m going to do.” Xander slowly but surely walked out of the flames and into the open. His outfit was singed but his cloak was burned and in shambles. This time however, he appeared different than before. He had two long blue wings on his back that appeared like the veins of a leaf. Each had one long stalk with branches sprouting off of it. His eyes were open this time and they still appeared as a dark glowing ominous blue. His third eye had disappeared and had been replaced by glowing blue cross in its place.

 

            Xander stood there silently as him and the other two stared each other down. When he finally took another step forward his opponents instinctually took a step back. This caused him to burst out in laughter and openly mock them. “Afraid of my new eerie form are we? Of course creatures of the darkness would be. Their holy executioner stands before them stronger than ever.” He turned his attention up towards the sky reached up towards it and muttered a spell. “Avis caveam” Judas and Hephaestus gazed up at the sky at a bright blue light shining in the sky. In a flash countless threads shot out from all directions and landed around them to form a massive cage.

 

            They both stared at the massive dome imprisoning them in shock. All the while Xander cackled to himself. “How amusing. I’m guessing you didn’t expect a spell of such… magnitude?” Judas glared at him in response and he merely rebutted him with a malicious smile. Hephaestus took a step forward only to by block by Judas’ arm. “Stop. I know how to stop this spotlight stealing drama queen. That spotlight is mine.” She looked a bit confused by his words but stepped down none the less. Xander smiled excitedly and violently tore off what remained of his cloak from his shoulders. “I welcome you to your own execution.”