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Chapter 1: Meetings and Interruptions*Kyoto*The sound of rapid footsteps was heard throughout the halls of a massive old-fashioned, traditional Japanese mansion.Rounding the corner of a hall was a rather odd individual. The individual was breathing heavily while stumble running down the hall.He was a rather portly older man with grey hair and a beard, he was clearly in the later years of his life with even the fox ears and seven tails coming out of his tailbone being grey in color due to age.Reaching the end of a large elaborate hall he stumbled into the closed doors, pushing them open and almost tumbling over his own feet and falling to the ground. "Lady… huff huff… Yasaka!… huff huff."Inside the room, three younger individuals sat, two on one side of the desk and one on the other.Sitting on the left was a young-looking black-haired girl with pink eyes and significantly large "assets". She was seated with her body leaning forward and her hands in her lap with an excited but still confused look on her face, wearing a fancy and expensive women's business suit. This was Serafall Leviathan, formerly Sitri, one of the four Devil Kings.On the right was a young-looking man with crimson red hair and blue-green eyes, wearing an opulent men's suit and leaning back in his chair trying to look casual while his crimson eyebrow rose. This was Sirzechs Lucifer, formerly Gremory, another one of the four Great Satans.Sitting on the other side of the desk was a regal and beautiful woman with long blonde hair done up in a fancy ponytail, golden eyes, and even larger "assets".Unlike the other two occupants who appeared "human" this woman possessed golden fox ears and nine fluffy fox tails that waved behind her body.She wore a fancy shrine maiden outfit in yellow with a black and yellow skull covered shall wrap over her arms.This was Yasaka, a Kyuubi Yokai and current leader of the Yokai faction and close friend to the Shinto Pantheon.
Currently, her clipped royal eyebrow twitched as her face struggled between anger and exasperation at the intrusion, especially in front of two representatives of an outside faction."What is the meaning of this interruption, Grengou-san?"The now-named Grengou took a few deep breaths and straightened his posture after taking in the two other individuals in the room."I… I apologize for the interruption Yasaka-Sama and… guests." He said with slight venom in his voice aimed at the devils. "The outer barrier surrounding Shukaku-Sama's temple has been breached, my lady!"The two devils glanced at each other confused while Yasaka gasped before she stood with her eyes blowing wide before hardening."What! How!" Yasaka yelled in an almost frantic tone shocking the devils while releasing a significant amount of power."M-m-my Lady! The barrier was breached. We believe we have a traitor. A three tails named Mizuki hasn't shown up to his position recently and has been reportedly acting strange recently."Yasaka slammed her hands down on her desk while continuing to release a large amount of power, surprising the devils with its potency. "Find him and if he did betray us, kill him immediately."The devils again looked at each other in shock."Get some of our forces to the temple immediately and get into contact with Amaterasu-Sama! Do we know who breached the barrier? Or what they are planning?"The two devils looked at each other awkwardly realizing they essentially had been forgotten."Yasaka-Sama, a team we already sent, hasn't responded…. I fear they are most likely dead. But… but we do know that it is a group of Fallen Angels. With what reports we have indicated at least three seven wing fallen and a large number of other various fallen and even some humans possibly with sacred gears."Grengou lowered his head throughout his response feeling ashamed for his failure in his duty of protecting the temple."Damnit! Sirzechs-dono, Serafall-dono." The two devils sat up straighter slightly after being addressed by a furious-looking Kyuubi."You wished to have permission to rent the territory of Kuoh. If you should come with me now and repel these fallen and sacred gear users from my land I will relent and allow your sisters to manage the territory. You will also sign a deal to never reveal the information that you will discover regarding the temple. If you prove to be trustworthy I shall consider an alliance with your faction even after the massacre committed by your faction."The two devil kings perked up significantly at her words, gaining, at least temporary control of the territory of Kuoh for their sisters, plus a potential alliance was significantly better than what they expected from this meeting. They expected to get turned down hard due to the almost hostile relations between devils and yokai after the devil's massacre of the Nekoshou and other various Nekomata that lived in the underworld.Fighting Fallen Angels was risky with the tense peace between factions, however, they could claim that they were assisting their new ally in dealing with Fallen who breached a barrier around some apparent special Yokai temple, that they had never heard of if questioned which should stave off any backlash since what the Fallen were doing could be seen as an extreme violation of Yokai territory, even though the Fallen probably wouldn't care about doing something bad given their less than trustworthy and honorable reputation.Sirzechs and Serafall looked at each other for a moment before nodding to each other. "Very well Yasaka-dono. We will assist you with these Fallen and possible Sacred Gear users. But we would like to know more about this temple that was apparently breached."Yasaka signed before lowering her shoulders slightly before nodding and walking around her desk."Very well. It will take us some time to get to the teleportation circle that will take us there anyway. Follow me please."The devils obliged but grew confused. Couldn't they just teleport from where they were? Serafall voiced their question while following the Kyuubi."The temple is protected by many barriers. More than just the simple field barrier that was broken by the fallen angels. It is completely impossible to teleport into, out of, or near the temple without using a special ancient teleportation circle located deep in this compound, with the circle itself being heavily warded as well." Yasaka spoke much to their surprise.Anti-teleportation barriers were rare and very difficult to create, with their fellow Satan Ajuka complaining numerous times about how difficult it was to create them for the devil Rating Game arenas."As for information about the temple itself…. You should know it is not the only one." Yasaka spoke reluctantly, trusting the devils with information hidden by the Yokai faction and her ancestors specifically for generations."What do you mean… I have never heard of any hidden Yokai temples." Sirzechs let his surprise leak into his voice."That is the point of them being hidden. My ancestors and the Yokai faction have hidden the existence of these temples for generations. *Sigh* It was some of the very first members of my family who first figured out how to link themselves to the leylines.When they did they felt odd signatures scattered far across the world. When they tracked them and traveled to the locations they found areas that were absolutely covered in protective barriers and other symbols that we believe to be other types of protection but are too advanced even for our best." Yasaka briefly paused her words, remembering the journals and even stone tablets left behind by her ancestors."At first, they could not even approach, with the barriers blocking them and hiding their view of what was behind them. Eventually, they figured out how to send some chakra into the barriers and the barriers let them in without any resistance.Apparently, according to the records, it almost felt like the barriers were pleased with the chakra that was sent through it. They traveled to all of the locations where they felt a disturbance and discovered the teleportation circle here in Kyoto and ten temples spread throughout the world."Serafall and Sirzechs listened to the story with all of their attention intrigued and shocked at the story.
"I'm just going to say it… the temples make no sense." Yasaka sighed while unlocking another sealed door."What do you mean Yasaka-dono?" Serafall asked while looking around at the old and mosaic-covered hallway they were now walking through."The temples are old. Ancient really. From what we have been able to find out through writing found in the temples and even through modern scientific age determination techniques the temples and even the teleportation circle are far older than any Yokai and even older than any other human or supernatural that we have knowledge of throughout history."Serafall and Sirzechs looked at the beautiful Kyuubi with their mouths gaping."Yes, that's about the response I gave when my father told me about the temples. It doesn't make sense but centuries of investigation all point to the temples, barriers, and teleportation circle, everything being far older than anything else on the planet. Perhaps older than the Biblical God and Ophis themselves."The devils gaped. Any member of the church would call blasphemy but many high-ranking supernatural beings knew that the Biblical God didn't actually create the universe, he did create many things including humans, but not the universe itself so it was possible, but extremely unlikely, for these temples to exist on earth before even God or Ophis, who appeared to be around the same age as God, came to be."You don't have to believe me but that is what all the evidence we have gathered shows. Anyway, there is the teleportation circle here in Kyoto, and ten temples spread throughout the world. Each temple is different with nine of them being somewhat similar and the tenth being completely different from the rest.""The first nine are themed and we assume they are meant to be honoring who they were created for. Each temple is dedicated to one individual or in reality I should say one Yokai or at least something close to being a Yokai. The temple that was breached was the first discovered; it is dedicated from what we've learned to Shukaku the One-Tailed Tanuki. The second is dedicated to Matatabi the Two-Tailed Cat or Bakeneko. The third to Isobu, the Three-Tailed Tortoise Shrimp or Umibozu. Fourth to Son Goku, the Four-Tailed Monkey. The fifth to Kokou, the Five-Tailed Horse Whale or Sagari Kujira. Sixth to Saiken, the Six-Tailed Slug. The seventh to Chomei, the Seven Tailed Rhinoceros Beetle. Eighth to Gyuki, the Eight Tailed Octopus Ox or Ushi-Oni. And the Ninth to Kurama, the Nine-Tailed Fox. Each temple even houses a massive statue depicting them in what we assume to be life-size. With Kurama being the largest and almost four times the size of even myself in my fox form and around three times the size of Inari-Sama in her fox form."The two devils almost tripped over their feet at that comment since the temples must be truly massive if they could hold statues that large."The tenth temple is different. It's still the same massive size as the other temples but it doesn't have a massive statue inside it. Unfortunately, it's the one we know the least about too since it doesn't have anything to let us know who it is dedicated to. All we really know about the tenth temple is that it has a small statue at the back of the temple on top of a throne. It depicts someone who almost looks human. The only thing making it look different from a human sitting on a throne is the two horns jutting out of his head, whisker marks on his cheeks, and a strange third eye in the middle of his forehead."Yasaka blushed slightly thinking about the first time she saw the statue when she was young. She still remembered how embarrassed she was when her parents and Amatarasu-Sama took her there for the first time and caught her frozen in place with her tails drooping down behind her and a line of drool falling from her open mouth.The teasing she had to suffer due to her young hormonal crush on the statue man still haunted her to this day."He is quite handsome looking though." Yasaka mumbled and was happy that the devil envoys were behind her and unable to see the red shine of her cheeks.

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Chapter 2: Ancient Seals, Temple in the Sand, Cursed Seals TollStopping in front of what appeared to be a dead end, the two devils watched as Yasaka sent a visible stream of chakra down her arm, to the palm of her hand. The blank wall ahead of them shimmered before an elaborate seal appeared centered around a large spiral.Placing her chakra-laden palm in front of the spiral, the Yokai leader twisted her hand to the left and took a step back as a thrum, akin to a deep bell chime, rung in the space around them.The spiral slowly unraveled, twisting in a counterclockwise motion before the seal shimmered out of sight.Like a dark fog fading from their sight, the previously blank hallway dead end vanished and a dim light illuminated an earthen staircase leading them below ground."There, I have disabled the barriers. This is the entrance that will lead us to the teleportation seal." Walking down the uneven natural staircase Yasaka lit a ball of fox fire above her hand to cast more light in the dark space, which somehow appeared quite dark to even the enhanced night vision of the devil kings."Oooh! For being just an old staircase this place is pretty spooky! I can barely see a thing. This is giving me so many ideas for my Miracle Levia-tan show! Ancient ruins with anti-magical girl traps! Maybe the big baddy will trap Levia-tan and use her body to sate his long pent-up desires before Levia-tan manages to escape and claim the powerful relic and slay the villain!"Skipping down the staircase with her large breasts bouncing up and down, Serafall easily ignored the deadpan look that her fellow satan sent her and the slight choking cough that the Kyubi in front of her released.Reaching the end of the staircase the group stopped before a large cavern, lit by glowing blue ethereal torches spread around the near-perfect circular space.The room was near empty with the vast majority of the room being taken up solely by a massive seal inlaid on the floor and even wrapping up the walls. The seal script was well beyond anything that Sirzechs or Serafall had ever seen, with a near mosaic of interconnected lines flowing in elegant patterns. On the perimeter, large kanji from one to ten surrounded the seal like the numbers of a clock and the center was once again a swirl, which appeared to be slowly moving in a clockwise rotation.Stepping forward Yasaka crouched near the kanji for One and let her chakra flow into it, alighting the symbol in a blue glow. "This is the teleportation seal. I've configured it to take us right outside the temple so that we can catch the intruders from behind."Wishing that Ajuka had been here to examine the seal Sirzechs attempted to take in as much information as he could while observing the Yokai leader's work. Just because he agreed to keep all the information that the kitsune was sharing a secret, didn't mean couldn't memorize it for potential use in the future. "Attacking from behind is a decent plan but why not simply teleport inside the temple and use the existing barriers and defenses to strike from the more fortified location?"Yasaka traced numerous lines of the seal, focusing on her efforts. "Normally you probably would want to use a fortified locations defenses to your advantage in such a way. However, the layers of barriers don't just keep people out, they keep people in as well. Without disabling the remaining barriers we would not be able to exit the temple, and disabling the interior barriers would allow the intruders clear access into the temple. It is possible that by the time we get there that it may be already too late and my worries could be for naught. However I still abhor the idea of these fallen stepping foot in the sacred temple, so I will not be the one to give them free entry by lowering the defenses."Sirzechs would have questioned the need for a barrier that kept things inside the temple but was stopped when Yasaka stood from her crouch. The glow surrounding the room growing brighter, almost pulsing.The group watched as the seal shifted and changed itself fluidly, lines and curves bending and breaking. The kanji for one continued to glow while the rest of the surrounding numbers faded from view.The seal continued to shift until the lines changed to form a walkway that lifted itself from the ground leading from the One kanji straight to the center of the swirl. The swirl itself began to spin faster, almost like a whirlpool. The torches illuminating the room released one large pulse before dimming, with a visible shockwave emanating from each torch and reaching the center of the room."Follow me." Yasaka took a step up onto the elevated pathway that had formed over the seal before she began walking toward the center.Following her, Sirzechs and Serafall watched as the swirl crumbled in on itself, the floor underneath its former location collapsing downwards as if it was being ground in a blender.Reaching the end of the pathway and looking over the edge, they peered down at the space beneath them in amazement. There was no longer a floor in the center of the room, only a descending twister of energy."It may look imposing but it is safe. Just follow me." Before the two devils could ask what she meant, Yasaka shocked them by jumping off the end of the platform directly into the vortex, vanishing."Umm. Magical girl Levia-tan thinks you should go first Zechs-tan." With a swift push, Serafall giggled as her fellow satan let out a girly scream before falling into the swirling void. Summoning her magical girl outfit and staff Serafall spun around and posed for an imaginary camera before diving in, excited to find more adventures and ideas she could include in her show.*Temple of Shukaku Outskirts*Popping out of a circular portal in the shape of a swirl of energy three figures landed back on solid ground. The first, Yasaka, landed gracefully having long since become accustomed to the seal's strange teleportation.Appearing shortly after the Kyubi, the two devils landed less gracefully.Serafall stumbled for a moment before righting herself and posing with her tongue stuck out of the corner of her mouth and hand forming a peace sign in front of her face.Sirzechs had the most ungraceful landing of the three. Coming out of his unexpected tumble through the portal the crimson satan landed face-first with a groan.After quickly righting himself, trying to save his dignity in front of the silently giggling Yokai, he sent Serafall a brief pouty glare before looking around at the new location where they found themselves. "Is this a desert? Ugh, no wonder why I taste sand." Grumbling quietly to himself he brushed some sand from his face."Yes. The Saharan Desert to be precise. Shukaku-Sama's temple sits in the perfect geological center of the Sahara." Walking forward Yasaka explained more about the temple to the devils. "It does make sense that Shukaku-Sama's temple is here. Based on everything we know Lord Shukaku was a powerful One-Tailed Tanuki with the power to control sand to a very high degree."Continuing to walk forward, Yasaka suddenly ran ahead when she noticed blood in the sand. Coming over a small sand dune revealed a view of the missing Yokai warriors sent to defend it from the intruders.The group of yokai warriors lay on the sandy ground in various positions. Clear signs of a fight, light weapon burns, and blood marked the area around them.Crouching down to check on the closest body, a wolf yokai, she sent a pulse of chakra through his body to check his condition. Lowering her head Yasaka said a quick prayer for the yokai warriors. They were dead. The whole squad that was sent to investigate the breach had been cut down by the fallen angels and their human allies.Sirzechs was crouched a few feet away looking at the body of a human wearing church priest clothes, most likely a former member of the church that was either excommunicated or left to follow the fallen faction. "Yasaka-Dono. There are a couple of fallen angel and human bodies around the area. I apologize for the loss of your people, however, they did not go down without a fight. Their sacrifice should be honored, and you should not let it be in vain."Nodding her head the buxom blonde stood and quickly cast a basic preservation seal on the deceased warriors so that their bodies could be retrieved and returned to their families. Steeling her gaze and tossing her shall to the wind Yasaka began to walk over the next sand dune.As the devils made to follow her to the temple the group froze as a deafeningly loud sound similar to that of shattering glass echoed off of the land around them. Looking ahead the group could see large nearly transparent shards falling from the sky. The pieces fizzled out of existence revealing a massive structure that was unseen moments before." *Gasp* That was… They've broken through the inner barriers! But how! We must get there quickly!" Yasaka rushed forward with Serafall and Sirzechs close behind. Each member of the group zeroed in on a group of Fallen Angels, Humans, and one Kitsune Yokai moving toward the entrance to the temple.As the group of one yokai and two devils got closer it became clear that their arrival was not missed by the Fallen Angel leaders who quickly had their lower-ranking fighters stay behind while they flew into the temple's entrance with the Three-tails Kitsune following them on foot.Flying in the back of the fallen angel group was a female fallen with six wings, the strongest of the remaining intruders. The six-wing fallen was a relatively short fair-skinned woman with brown eyes and long untamed dark pink hair framing her face with a strip traveling down the middle of her forehead.Wearing a black shirt and shorts under a tan tunic, the fallen looked rather plainly dressed compared to many of the other warriors near her. Oddly she also wore a black cap on top of her head and a large purple rope-like inverted bow around her waist.She held an impassive, if not grumpy, look on her face as she stared down at the incoming threat that she was ordered to stay behind and eliminate. "Alright, you shitheads! Let's kill these fuckers and get on with raiding this shitty place. Got it, peons? Lord Kokabiel doesn't want anyone getting in our way."One of the low-ranking fodder fallen that stood waiting on the incoming foes suddenly began to shake as he recognized the three heading towards them "Lady Tayuya! Isn't that the Kyubi Yokai Yasaka and… what are they doing here! It's the Satan's Leviathan and Lucifer!"The corrupted angel's words were heard by nearly all of the fighters standing in front of the temple. Even the freshest recruit among them knew of the three supernaturals and the stories of their power."Oh shit! We are no match for them!", "I didn't sign up to fight a satan, let alone two!", "Lady Tayuya! What do we do?" The group of fallen and humans began panicking, knowing that they were absolutely no match for the three.Tayuya herself began to sweat. Despite having six wings and being a higher-ranking member of their operation cell, she wasn't as strong as a satan. They were fucked. Why were devils here alongside the yokai faction leader? The devil faction had a piss-pore relationship with the yokai after the nekoshou massacre.The devils and Kyubi shouldn't be here. Lord Kokabiel had assured them that, with the help of the Three-tails Mizuki they would be in and out of the hidden temple before anyone knew any better. First that squad of yokai warriors and now this. Lord Kokabiel wouldn't have lied to them would he?Knowing the types of punishments that the warmongering cadre levied against those that disappointed him, Tayuya knew that she needed to rally the forces and at least they could maybe hold off the devils and yokai until the others could retrieve whatever relics or weapons that were kept here.It had to be something strong with all the secrecy and barriers surrounding it, they could use it to kill both the Pink and Crimson Satan and the Kyubi yokai. Lord Kokabiel would have to be pleased with that!"I don't care who they are or if all of you have to die, you will kill this trash! Your punishment for cowardice and disobeying my orders will feel like absolute hell compared to anything these demons could do to you! Do your jobs and take them out!" Forming a spear of corrupted light in her hand, Tayuya flung the weapon at the group of three.Unfortunately for Tayuya and the other temple robbers that were left to guard the entrance, they didn't get much of a chance to even fight.Yasaka for the first time since she was alerted to the breach of the temple barrier took a moment to consider the situation.Rubbing the back of her neck a little sheepishly, she realized that maybe she didn't need to bring along Sirzechs and Serafall. She had told outsiders a secret of the yokai faction that had been kept hidden for centuries and these were the types of enemies that had managed to break through the barrier and stood in her way.She had expected much stronger enemies, believing the scouting report info that they had received to be inaccurate. Perhaps only the stronger eight-wing fallen would have even a chance to scratch her and even then it was unlikely. How they had been able to breach the outer barrier, let alone the inner barriers, was absurd.The fight, if you could call it that, against the entrance guards had only lasted a few seconds.Serafall summoned a Sitri magic crest from the tip of her staff and unleashed a massive wave of ice that instantly froze a large number of the enemies solid, leaving behind a completely out-of-place glacier in the middle of the desert.Sirzechs displayed why he was known as the Crimson-haired Prince of Destruction by obliterating another large portion of the fallen and human numbers with his Power of Destruction abilities. Not even dust remained of the intruders targeted by his attack.Yasaka herself had eliminated the last large grouping of Grigori forces, with her Fox Fire incinerating the remaining opponents with an ease that made her blink. Fox Fire was powerful, especially when used by a Kyubi connected to the Leylines, but her attack had seemed much more potent than usual."Mother fucker! Ah, that hurt! You shitty demons. How dare you stand in our way!" With the smoke and dust of their attacks clearing the six wing fallen, Tayuya, hovered unevenly in front of them. She was evidently stronger than the simple fodder had been eliminated but had not escaped the attacks unscathed.Her clothing was burned and falling apart in some areas and two of her wings were scorched hanging limply behind her.Tayuya herself was furious as well as frustrated with her own weakness. She was only a six-wing fallen angel, considered in the mid-tier of power among the Grigori ranks. She had always desired power and to be recognized and this mission was what she believed would grant her both of her dreams. She didn't want to die here. She couldn't.Reaching up to the top of her scalp Tayuya grabbed what was left of her cap and took it off of her head. Flipping it upside down she reached inside before pulling out her last remaining option other than running away.She laughed before stabbing a small piece of metal that was shaped and carved to look like a flute into the center of her chest. Immediately afterward dark power began to roll off of her body as it began to change form. The power was so beautiful but the pleasure of the renewed strength surging through her veins did not last long as intense pain and a feeling of pure wrongness flooded her.Her skin began to turn a shade of brown, her eyes turning a sick yellow with black sclerae with black lines appearing under her eyes. Her hair lengthened and became wilder, and bone-white horns burst out of her skull.Sucking in a large breath of air, all of her pains faded away, and an almost euphoric feeling surged through her body."Hahahaha! Now, this is more like it! This power. It feels… incredible! Why were Valper and his creepy assistant Kabuto so wary to create these cursed seals? I feel like I could take on all of those stuck-up bastards in Heaven! This is what I deserved from the start! Hahaha!" Looking towards the shocked devils and kitsune, an insane grin formed on her face showing off the girl's new dagger-like teeth. "I am going to kill you all! Hahaha!"The group of two devils and one kitsune stared at their opponent's new form. Concern and wariness were apparent on each of their faces. Not only had her appearance changed but so had her power. Sensing her energy signature revealed that it had skyrocketed from what it once was and was now nearing that of a Low-Ultimate Class being.To go from a relatively low mid-range power level to what would be considered quite high on the scale in a second was absurd. Possibly even more concerning however was the fact that the feel of her energy itself had changed.Gone was the slightly murky and corrupted nature one would expect from a fallen angel and in its place was the feel of something darker than even the most heinously evil devil. It was tainted with an almost sickening feeling intertwining itself through every pore of the fallen's body and even leaking into the air around her as a black miasma.This turn of events was concerning. If these "cursed seals" were something given to all members of the Grigori it would completely change the landscape of the faction's power balance. It could very well be the one domino that knocks over the rest in the fragile peace that the world held.The mention of Valper, who the two devils kings knew had to be the excommunicated priest Valper Galilei, who was the head researcher of the Holy Sword Project and conducted sick experiments on many children, brought up even more cause for concern.Sirzechs knew his sister's Knight Kiba Yuuto had been subjected to the horrors of Valper's experiments and held a burning hatred toward the man and the holy swords themselves.To discover that the Genocide Bishop had seemingly joined the Grigori and was even now working on even more dark projects was very worrying.A surge of energy drew the group from their thoughts as the fallen angel drew her arm back and summoned a spear of light. The weapon of choice for nearly all fallen looked much different than its normal appearance.Jagged edges and crackling bolts of dirty grey light streaked down the shaft of the weapon. The core appeared as a deep black abyss emitting the foul shroud around it.Sirzechs dove out of the way with his wings manifesting behind him as he took to the sky, right before the spear slammed into the ground that he previously stood upon. The speed of the projectile was significantly faster than her previous throw and when it struck the ground instead of simply piercing into the sand it detonated in a large blast of near-black light that turned the coarse grains of the desert into an inky glass crater.Dodging the spear was still quite easy for the crimson-haired devil however, it seemed like more than just her power level was increased by the dark seal.Another pulse of power radiated from the dark-winged fallen who released a dark laugh as all around her numerous spears came to life before being launched down from her position.Sirzechs and Serafall used their wings to dodge the first wave of the sloppy barrage with little difficulty while Yasaka who lacked the capability of flight channeled her Touki to disperse and block the attacks that were about to strike her.Beginning to channel their own magic, Sirzechs and Serafall launched a combination attack, sending spheres made of the Power of Destruction and lances of ice at Tayuya.Dodging all but one of the attacks with enhanced speed, a shard of ice embedded itself in the thigh of the fallen causing her to let out a yell of fury and pain. Any retort she could have made was silenced as a large fox paw swatted the raging woman out of the air.Yasaka laughed lightly behind her once again humanoid palm as she watched the fallen slam into the glass-riddled sand. Swatting the corrupted girl out of the air like a fly caused her to impact the now hard glass surface producing a satisfying crunchy sound.Once the dust cleared Tayuya was visible, stumbling back to a standing position. Her form was worse for the wear with scrapes and cuts marring her body. With furious eyes and a scream of demented and unhinged rage a spear larger than a city bus formed over her head.The devil kings and kitsune summoned magic circles to launch a counterattack, however, the spear of dark gray light didn't move. The fallen angel stood in place with a snarling visage on her face, however, dulled eyes betrayed her furious countenance.With a cough and a wet splatter, dark, near-black blood gushed out of the horned girl's mouth, coating her chin and gushing down into the cavity between her modest chest.Yasaka, Sirzechs, and Serafall still stood tense a few feet away, watching and wondering what was happening.Across Tayuya's face, veins became clear to see. Zigzagging across her cheeks, the normally invisible pathways filled with pigment as black as night.The rest of her body soon became covered in a weave of ebony lines.The spear above her head shattered into nothingness as with a spasm and a single quiet exhale of breath the fallen angel's body fell to the ground, limp.Yasaka, being the most adept sensor of the three was the first to dissipate her magic circle, no longer sensing any signs of the girl's energy signature.She was dead.Sirzechs and Serafall followed the yokai leader to the body of the six-winged fallen angel.Crouching in front of the collapsed body Sirzechs took note of the fallen's darker skin. Each vein appeared to bubble under the surface of her flesh. At many prominent junctions, the skin had actually burst with fizzing thick black blood seeping out of the newly created holes.Her previous sickly yellow eyes, surrounded by black sclerae, were now filled with nothing but soulless stygian ink.These "Cursed Seals". Whatever type of sick concoction was imbued into these power-ups had to be looked into, found, and destroyed. It had twisted both the fallen's body and mind. It was undeniable that it had granted her increased power, speed, and strength at least for a time. However, it was clear that this boost was carried by a pollutant toxin that ate away at the user until there was no life left inside of them.Standing from his crouch Sirzechs cast his Power of Destruction on the fallen angel, Tayuya's body, erasing it from existence. "We had better continue on. The temple is just ahead and there are still more enemies to face."Agreeing, the group proceeded toward the temple. All three in a much more grim mood as despite the girl being their enemy, the gruesome effects of the seal stuck in their mind.*Abandoned Church, Outskirts of Osaka, Japan*"Valper. You ensured that the "sound four" were given the cursed seals that you have been working on, correct?"A bespectacled older man wearing the robes of a priest bowed his head towards a throne that was shrouded in darkness and shadow. "Yes. Of course. I gave them the cursed seals shortly before they departed to meet up with that yokai Mizuki, as instructed. However, I must say that the research I have conducted on the shadow spirit, Mōryō, is still in the early stages. The remnants of the creature's power that you had delivered to me were beyond the scope of anything that I have seen before. What little useable power I was able to extract and process is, volatile, to say the least. There is a very good chance that if they use the cursed seals that they will die, painfully."A dark chuckle rang from in the veil of the shadows. "The treasures of an ancient yokai temple would be useful, yes. Yet it would not be a great loss if nothing is retrieved. This is the beginning of a mission that I have worked towards for centuries. Riling up the yokai faction, testing the limits of the cursed seals, and getting rid of bothersome and useless fodder. The "sound four" will either return with the relics of the temple or die, it matters not to me."Bowing his head the elder priest left the chamber to return to his research into the cursed seals derived from Mōryō's energy and plan the retrieval of the Excalibur fragments.Crimson red eyes shone out from the curtain of shadows. "Soon Azazel. The fragile peace you strive for and desire so much shall be broken. I Kokabiel shall lead the fallen angels to war, victory, and dominion over all of our enemies!"

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Chapter 4: Tanuki's SandstormThe three survivors of the desert brawl began their trek towards the sandy temple all with concerned thoughts running through their heads. It appeared that at least right now these "Cursed Seals" were incomplete, however, they could even now pose a large threat to the balance of power and the shaky peace that currently existed. Its ability to significantly increase the user's power, strength, and speed was something that if implemented in mass could stun the other factions with a blitz attack. If it ever was to be completed and become a permanent boost it would cause irreparable damage to the supernatural factions."Yasaka-Dono. There are a few things I wish to ask you before we get to the temple." The crimson devil king looked over at the Kyubi with a frown on his face."As long as we don't take too long I will of course answer them." The buxom blonde had an idea of what Sirzechs wanted to inquire about. "You noticed did you.""Uh-huh! What's the deal? My super duper magical girl powers should have blown away that dusty crow and its lackeys! Hmph." Serafall pouted in frustration and concern thinking back to her attacks which were not as strong as they should be and drained more of her power than usual."My powers did seem diminished. My reserves are also more drained than they normally would be." Sirzechs had also noticed the difference in his abilities."Yes, I should have warned you. I do apologize in my rush I forgot." A small embarrassed blush formed on Yasaka's cheeks. "Even though they have been studied for centuries now, there are many things that are still unknown and strange about the temples. We do know that unless you are connected to the ley lines beings above a certain power level are greatly limited in and near the temples. Attacks are weaker, your bodies slower, and your reserves drain faster. It affects everyone but only those of significant power actually realize that they are affected by it.""Ah, I forgot. Speaking of the ley lines. How is it that you are able to come here right now Yasaka-Dono? You are connected to the power of the ley lines. I was always under the assumption that a Kyuubi had to maintain them and you were unable to leave Kyoto." The Lucifer Mao spoke as the group crossed over a sand dune."Ah, normally you would be right. Most supernatural know that Kyoto is considered the "hub" of the ley lines, however, that is not exactly the case. The ley lines do travel through Kyoto but the network also crosses through the earth and runs directly under each of the temples with a sort of hotspot collecting at each one." The blonde fox wasn't particularly happy to be sharing this info with the two devils but she had already spilled a large number of yokai secrets and she owed them considering they were helping her with what could be considered a yokai problem. "We do not know for sure but my grandfather believed that the temples are what actually gives power to the ley lines. So because of that, through the special teleportation seal, I am able to travel between each of the temples and Kyoto without being disconnected from the ley lines."Sirzechs and Serafall were both surprised and continued to wonder what other secrets the ancient temples hid."It's odd, I've never had to fight at the temples before but my attacks seemed more powerful than normal. Now that I focus more it almost seems as if the temple ley line is feeding me more power, hmmm, I've never noticed that before." Yasaka's spoken thoughts were brought to a halt by her companions who had stopped walking alongside her.As they reached the entrance to the temple Sirzechs and Serafall couldn't help but stare. The ancient structure had appeared large from a distance but standing in its entryway revealed its true size to be even larger than they had thought it was. The large gateway towered over their heads and even massive creatures such as dragons would have no trouble fitting through it.Unlike what they were expecting however the temple itself was rather simple in design, almost bland. Its massive walls appeared to be made out of nothing more than the sand that surrounded them, with pale blue lines crisscrossing the structure. Overall other than its size, it was quite underwhelming, especially when compared to the lavish lifestyles that many supernatural beings were accustomed to."It's certainly big…. but magical girl Levia-tan was kinda expecting it to be fancier. Mou this just won't do. Ooh, it should be made of gold! The audience would be so shocked and envious of the pure extravagance and how shiny it is that they would be jealous of me and want to go on their own magical girl-themed adventures! Ooh, why didn't I think of that before? Magical Girl Levia-tan's Adventure theme park!" As the bubbly Leviathan began following them excitedly mumbling to herself about opening a theme park in the underworld, Sirzechs and Yasaka rolled their eyes before starting a conversation of their own."Despite the… uh well a lot of that, I do have to agree with her. When you said these were secret ancient Yokai temples and with all of the security I kinda expected the temple to be… grander. It kinda just looks like a giant sand castle. No offense." Sirzechs sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck hoping he didn't offend the beautiful Kyubi."I said they were large and ancient secret temples, I never said they were extravagant, no offense taken. They really aren't what you would consider impressive in their design, none of the temples are dressed up in gold or jewels." Yasaka gestured to the temple wall."As far as we can guess the temples are simply built to represent the powers or personality of who they were constructed for. Based on everything we have learned over the years, despite how little that may be, points to Lord Shukaku being heavily aligned with sand, so their temple is made out of sand to acknowledge that and honor it. Another example, we believe Lord Son Goku had the ability to wield lava so their temple is inside a volcano."Sirzechs listened with intrigue as they grew ever nearer to the temple entrance. The devils and yokai stopped their conversation and each adopted their serious battle-ready disposition once again as they heard shouting coming from inside the temple."We can talk more later. If possible I would like to capture the three-tails traitor, Mizuki, to question him regarding any other details he may have spilled. Let's go." Nodding to one another the three quickly headed into the dimly lit temple.*Temple Interior - A few moments prior*"Dammit. You've got to be kidding me! There's nothing here other than this dumb giant raccoon statue." A rather androgenous-looking male with fair skin and light blue-grey straight hair that covered his right eye growled in frustration. The fallen angel was wearing a brown tunic, black shorts, and black arm warmers, which were clearly not needed in the desert. He had a large rope-like belt tied in an inverted bow around his waist and a red beaded necklace around his neck. Currently displaying his frustration his green lipstick-covered lips were tugged into an angry frown as he looked around the large chamber."I believe it's a Tanuki." Adding his comment was a taller dark-skinned man with shaggy black hair tied into a ponytail. He bore a condescending smirk on his face as his black eyes observed the clear frustration in the other fallen. He wore similar clothing with a sleeveless grey tunic and black shorts, plus the same robe bow on his waist."Shut up Kidomaru! You actually think I give a fuck what it is." With his blue-grey hair covering his right eye, the frustrated former angel glared at his comrade Kidomaru."That's enough Sakon." The third fallen angel attempted to break up any potential argument that could hinder their mission. He shared a strikingly similar appearance to the fair-skinned eight-winged fallen angel. He too wore the inverted bow rope and a brown tunic. It was obvious looking at him that he was a twin with the same androgynous appearance and light blue-grey hair covering his left eye instead of the right."No, it's not enough Ukon!" Glaring at his brother Sakon turned away and moved towards the yokai that was with them. "Hey, you stupid fox! What's the big deal? Where is the fucking treasure! The weapons! Artifacts! There's nothing here!"Standing slightly separated from the group of fallen angels was a three-tailed kitsune with green eyes and shoulder-length whitish-blue hair that matched his tails and ears. He wore a blue bandana on his head and a grey tunic and pants. He held an angry and ego-filled look on his face as he held his chest puffed into the air. "How dare you refer to me in such a way! I have the protection of Lord Kokabiel himself! I am destined to be his right-hand man, as befitting someone like me. You can't….""Hah, the fact that you actually believe I care and that you think you have what it takes to be Lord Kokabiels right hand is hilarious as it is ridiculous. Lord Kokabiel isn't here right now, it would be a real shame if you happened to die while we searched this crappy desert. You were supposed to be our ticket into this place and guide us to all of the weapons and loot, yet I don't see anything here other than sand, sand, and more sand!" The furious fallen angel was nearly snarling as he approached the kitsune."Grrr. Tch. I have no damn clue. This place was supposed to be super important and have a bunch of valuables. This temple was hidden under so much secrecy it took me forever to even find out about it! You know how difficult it was to break into that bitch Yasaka's office vault to get this book that explains how to get past the barriers! It was so well guarded there has to be something here!" The whitish-blue-haired kitsune began to flip through the ancient book that he had stolen in anger as the fallen angel that in his arrogance he saw as his lesser, berated him."Useless!" The three-tailed kitsune, Mizuki, looked down at his stomach as he felt searing pain surge through his body. Dropping the book he had been searching through panic surged through him as he saw a light spear piercing through his torso, a fatal wound."What…. I have Lord Kokabiels protection…." Blood spurted out of his mouth as he talked. The traitor looked up at his attacker seeing the savage smirk on Sakon's face."You really are stupid aren't you? Lord Kokabiel only told you that you had his protection in order to get you to give us your yokai secrets. You are too weak, and worthless to our Lord's plans. You were only kept around long enough to get us here and it seems like even then you truly had nothing to offer. What a waste of space." Pushing the light spear further into the kitsune's body Sakon got in close to Mizuki's ears. "Lord Kokabiel was going to have you killed as soon as we returned with this temple's treasures. But considering there isn't actually anything here despite your claims, I doubt he will care if I cut you down now. In fact, he might be happy that I eliminated such an annoyance who dared to waste his time.""Sakon are you quite done with that weakling? Finish him off already and grab the book. It still might be of some value. Besides I can't hear any fighting outside anymore, our pursuers may be close." Kidomaru, growing impatient yet eager for a fight.With a wet squelch, the fallen angel yanked the spear of light from the kitsune's stomach as blood poured out of the gaping hole. Snatching up the old worn book as Mizuki's body collapsed on the floor, Sakon dismissed his spear before looking towards the entrance where he saw the three pursuers enter and move towards them.The group of devils and yokai came into the large foyer area of the temple where they could see the intruders right as the three-tailed kitsune's body hit the floor. Yasaka found herself both frustrated and satisfied as the renegade yokai was killed, the traitor was going to die no matter what and yet it was unfortunate that she was unable to have him interrogated to find out what secrets he may have spilled.Her eyes grew furious as a growl tore from her throat as she saw the journal that the fallen angel picked up from the ground. That would most likely explain how they were able to get past the temple security. How a random three tails kitsune was able to abscond with a book that she knew was kept in her personal highest security vault would have to be looked into, she also needed to get that book back.Written by her great-granduncle it was one of the most comprehensive and… controversial texts written about the study of the temples, seals in particular. Her ancient relation was a rather interesting individual, yet not the most approved of by the rest of the family. He had researched and petitioned for the complete destruction of the temple's seals for years. Believing that the yokai faction should reveal the temples to the world and show them off as a sort of tourist attraction, his ideas were obviously shot down.Despite having his goal denied her great-granduncle still spent a large amount of time studying the temple seals and it showed in his personal journal, it was filled with instructions and theories on how to dismantle the various seals surrounding the temples. They were never tested or proven to work but given the current predicament, his research and knowledge of seals must have been significantly more advanced than what many people gave him credit for."Well, would you look at that Ukon, Kidomaru, the head yokai, and two of the devil kings. I never expected that our pursuers were the Crimson-Haired Clown of Destruction, the Pink Magical Perv, and the Mangy Demoness of Kyoto. Hahaha. No wonder Tayuya failed to stop you." With his hair covering his right eye, the eight-winged fallen smirked at the group of two devils and one yokai that he had just insulted.Sirzechs, Serafall, and Yasaka each bristled at the nicknames that the androgynous fallen angel addressed them as. With each of the three being well known as extremely powerful beings it wasn't often that people mocked them or treated them with disrespect, even most of their enemies. When you were on top of the metaphorical food chain people tended to keep any insults they had to themselves in fear of being erased, apparently this fallen angel was not the type."Wahh! I'm, not a pervert! Im a magical girl!" Serafall yelled at the fallen, stomping her feet like a child. "Magical girls always end up in pervy situations. I can't help it if a crazy sex-addicted tentacle monster breaks into my bedroom and uses my body like a toy! It just happens."Everyone else in the temple looked at the female satan with matching deadpan looks not believing her for a second. Yasaka wondered if there was perhaps something wrong with her companion, while a small repressed part of her wondered what tentacle sex would feel like, Sakon, Ukon, and Kidomaru each remembered Kokabiel mentioning how insane the Leviathan was, and while Sirzechs cared a lot for his fellow devil king he couldn't help but sigh knowing that in filming multiple episodes of her Miracle Levia-tan tv show she actually had let a tentacle monster have its way with her body… more than once.Quickly forming a spear of light each, the three fallen angels attempted to strike first while the devils and kitsune were distracted. Unfortunately for them, one did not reach the prestige and pinnacle of power to become a Satan or the leader of the Yokai without having excellent combat awareness. The light spears thrown by the fallen were quite easily blocked by two magic barriers and one Youjutsu barrier.Blocking the attacks thrown at her Yasaka sought to gather some answers from the fallen angels, especially now that the traitor was dead and could not be questioned. "Tell me, why have you broken into this sacred temple? The Yokai faction already has a strained relationship with the Grigori, this offense will only worsen that. I have met with Azazel-dono multiple times and he has stated his efforts to build a better relationship between our two factions, I highly doubt that he would have sanctioned this unless you don't answer to him anymore…""Hahahaha! Of course, we don't work for that fool! Lord Kokabiel is the only one worthy to lead the Grigori! It is through him that the superior race, the Fallen Angels, will rise to rule the world and be rid of you demon filth." The androgynous fallen that insulted them before didn't seem to care that he was spilling information to the blonde yokai as he laughed insanely.Yasaka, Sirzechs, and Serafall were actually surprised when as soon as the blue-haired fallen finished his statement, he rushed towards them in a blitz with his twin fallen following close behind. With the fallen angel ranks most common and seemingly universally preferred combat style being mid to long-range attacks it was quite surprising when they instead rushed to close-range combat, forming crackling gauntlets of light around their hands and feet. Having even numbers between the two sides caused three one on one battles to break out in the temple great room.*Yasaka vs Sakon*While she may not have been known for her hand-to-hand combat, Yasaka, or rather her parents had made it a point for her to at least be competent in physical combat. She did not particularly like to engage opponents in close range, preferring to use Fox Fire and other mid-range abilities, however, she was grateful for the harsh taijutsu training that the old turtle yokai Might Guy had taught her in her youth.Engaging in a fast-moving fight Yasaka quickly realized that she was outmatched, her skills had clearly gone rusty, and her large breasts seemed to hinder her movements more than she ever remembered. Clearly, on the defensive, the kitsune was at least saved from suffering too many blows as the fallen angel was partially distracted by her bouncing chest. His technique however still left her suffering a few hits that were absorbed by a light application of touki. Though with each strike that he delivered, it seemed like she was getting hit more than once. Focusing on his strikes she was able to see that each attack was actually enhanced by his light gauntlets allowing him to strike multiple times with every punch or kick.Their exchange would have continued for some time, however realizing that she would eventually lose Yasaka began tapping into more of her touki and a little bit of senjutsu to enhance her body. With her increased speed, strength, and damage resistance the beautiful blond was able to reverse the tide of the fight and put the fallen on the defensive. With her rough hand-to-hand skills, touki, senjutsu, and the boost that she had from being in such close proximity to the ley line that ran under the temple, Yasaka was able to push the fallen back and deliver a heavy strike to his abdomen that launched him back multiple feet, and left him coughing up a bit of blood. Being connected to the ley lines prevented her from feeling any of the effects of the temples limiting seals and even with her enemy having greater close-range combat skills she was still much stronger than the eight-winged fallen."You filthy animal! How dare you stand in the way of Lord Kokabiel's rightful conquest!" The seemingly perpetually angry man had to dodge a ball of fox fire as the distance that Yasaka had created was enough for her to engage her enemy with her preferred combat technique."Tch I guess I'll have to use this little trinket if I'm going to take your head." Reaching for his neck he grabbed and tugged a small charm in the shape of a demon mask with a large extended left horn, off of his red beaded necklace.Trying to stop him from using what was undoubtedly a cursed seal, Yasaka sent numerous blasts of kitsune fox fire at him, however, given her position on the ground and his ability to fly he dodged the attacks by flying through the air.With a smirk on his face, the androgynous man jabbed the demon mask bauble into his chest. It quickly melted and sunk into his body where a deep red hue began to spread across his flesh. Releasing a large gasp Sakon clenched his muscles as his body was flooded with a large gush of tainted power.Yasaka cursed under her breath as she saw the transformation beginning, she had attempted to prevent the man from using the cursed seal, yet with how easy it was for the dark power to be unleashed she was not fast enough to prevent him from using it. As the transformation continued she began to take in more senjutsu energy and power from the ley line, having seen the significant increase in the previous female fallen's strength she knew that she would need to be on her guard.When the now deceased six-winged fallen angel had used the evil seal she had jumped up to a low ultimate class level of power, now facing an eight-winged fallen using the same unnatural power it was possible that he could ascend to a high ultimate class or even higher.The transformation continued and his body shifted as it unleashed a dark black miasma. His entire body was covered in a red tint as his face elongated with his chin jutting out into a sharp point and a long horn jutted out of the left side of his skull, his eyes filled with black other than a small pupil, and his lower canine teeth sharpened and grew up over his lips.The right side of his body began to turn a dark grey as scales grew out of his flesh. They continued to grow until his entire right arm and leg were coated in a layer of thick protective scales with barbed points near each joint and three large spikes sticking up from his shoulder reminiscent of a pauldron. Alongside his physical transformation, his power level also increased, it was difficult to tell what his current strength was due to the vile nature of the energy he was now releasing however Yasaka believed that he was around her own level of strength without tapping into the ley lines.The demented fallen disappeared in a burst of speed before suddenly appearing behind the kyubi, slamming his heavily armored right fist into her touki and senjutsu-enhanced body. Despite these enhancements, the blow was still strong enough to nearly push the busty blonde off of her feet as she stumbled forward a few steps. As she recovered from the strike she could hear the demented laughs of the fallen as he flexed his arms and took in the changes that had overtaken his body.As he moved once again, leaving behind an afterimage, Yasaka moved as well, engaging him in a high-speed fight. His physically enhanced strength and twisted light gauntlets clashed with the yokai's touki, senjutsu, and fox fire-coated hands. The eight-winged fallens speed was too great for Yasaka to avoid, forcing her into a duel of fists and kicks, only her own physical enhancements and connection to the ley lines preventing her from getting dominated by the superior hand-to-hand combatant. As the two went back and forth with one intent on slaughter and the other delaying until she could receive some help from the devils, scuffs and bruises began to form on each of their bodies.*Sirzechs vs Kidomaru*Unlike the two blue-haired twins, Kidomaru remained a decent distance away from Sirzechs, hovering in the air with his wings splayed behind him. "This game should be quite the challenge. This might even be considered a 'boss fight' in this little game. I'm actually quite tempted to try and face you with just my normal abilities, however, I feel like I ought to at least try out the 'power up' that I was given before taking this mission."Reaching into his pocket the dark-skinned male pulled out a small spider-shaped object. "With how much work that insane priest was putting into these things it must be something incredible. I have to try it! Hahaha! I have a feeling I'm going to enjoy this."Sirzechs, seeing that his opponent was about to use what he believed was a cursed seal, based on its dark energy signature, launched a large sphere of his Power of Destruction at the floating man hoping to end the fight before he used the dark power.Just as the powerful red and black miasma that was the Bael family's signature ability was about to strike the dark-skinned fallen angel, he jabbed the spider talisman into his chest.Right before the Power of Destruction slammed into his chest Kidomaru laughed hysterically as he felt dark power course through his veins. Burning black and red flame marks crawled across his body it burned but yet at the same time, he felt stronger than he ever had before. With a flash of light, the attack struck and obscured any view of the fallen angel, at the same time a scream ripped itself out of his throat. As the smoke from the devil's attack began to dissipate Kidomaru's scream shifted to laughter as his newly changed form was revealed.Floating in the air was an odd sight, the fallen angel's entire form was coated in a dull gold coating similar in appearance to that of a cocoon or a mummy wrap. Unlike in most situations where the Power of Destruction left behind no trace of those unfortunate enough to suffer its obliterating bite, there was no sign of the target suffering any damage at all, which stunned Sirzechs. Fissures leaking black smoke appeared on the surface of the dull material and with the sound of shattering pottery the immensely strong material that evidentially could even block the power of destruction, broke off of the now heavily changed Kidomaru and fell to the floor before melting away.The dark-skinned fallen angel's entire body was changed, taking on a demonic appearance. Three sets of arms hung off of his frame, each having sharp protrusions jutting out at the joints and his muscles had increased in size giving him a bulkier appearance. His face was nearly unrecognizable having taken on a bestial shape, sharp teeth lined his mouth. He now had three eyes which were filled with a tar-black void and a small pupil, the third eye resting in the middle of his forehead. Pointing up from his forehead were two horns that pointed slightly to the side with his formally black hair paling to a dirty gray and growing in size to form a large bushy spike of hair sticking from the back of his head.A black miasma wicked off of his form as he experimentally moved his now six arms, and his power increased and took on a sickening nature that blackened the air around him. Reveling in his new power and intoxicated by the drug-like high that it was delivering to him he grinned ferally while summoning six light spears, one in each hand. "Haha now this is more like it! A truly worthy power-up to face the final boss! Die!" Launching the jagged weapons and creating more, one after another, creating a continuous volley the fallen laughed as he rained death down on his enemy.The temple's floor was peppered with small holes and burn marks as Sirzechs dodged and destroyed the barrage of spears that were hurled down at him from the six-armed man. As a usually more strategic fighter, the crimson satan realized that the ancient seals surrounding the temple were limiting his abilities to a much higher degree than he expected. His attacks were weaker and smaller, and his reserves drained at a rapid rate, even the devastating effect of the Power of Destruction was limited, doing significantly less damage. Sirzechs gave up on the idea of destroying the barrage of spears and decided to dodge the attacks, surely the fallen angel would run out of energy or succumb to the poisonous effect of the Cursed Seal sooner or later.As he maneuvered around the most recent spear bombardment the crimson-haired devil paused as he felt something off. Looking down at his leg his eyes widened slightly as he saw a slight cut in his pants and felt the unmistakable burn of light enter his body. He knew that not a single spear had managed to strike him, so what happened? Dodging yet another of the continuous projectiles he once again was surprised when a slice appeared on his left arm. With widened eyes, he finally realized what was causing his injuries, miniscule, nearly invisible strings of light surrounded him in a weave and he had been hitting them while dodging."Hahaha! So you finally realize, you are caught in my web of light! Each of my spears is merely a conduit through which to extend my net, and now you are trapped within it! Ah, the praise I shall receive from Lord Kokabiel for slaying the Devil Lucifer! Hahaha!" The dark-skinned fallen angel laughed as a dark miasma began to radiate off of his body.Sirzechs was actually surprised and impressed by the ingenuity the fallen displayed with this attack, it was a truly unique and potentially deadly ability that would be difficult to work around. The crimson-haired devil realized that he was actually quite lucky to only have a few light cuts across his body as it was possible that he could have lost a wing or been sliced in half if he had made one wrong move.
"Shit, if the temple seals weren't limiting my power this would have been a much different fight, but he has me in a trap now." Running through his options Sirzechs knew he had to do something to destroy or escape the 'light web' he was now surrounded by. Fortunately, there was still a manageable amount of space to move in but it greatly limited his dodging capabilities and if he remained stuck for too long the fallen angel could simply use his abilities to continually tighten the web around him.
Blocking the next spear that headed his way Sirzechs made sure to destroy it instead of allowing himself to be further trapped by more light wires. As he continued to burn through his limited reserves he took every opportunity to examine the area around him to try and find a weakness he could exploit. He was surrounded by thin light wires with no visible route of escape and while he noticed that the fallen angel's skin was beginning to grow darker with each minute, a possible sign of the cursed seal's poison working its way through his system, the man still appeared fresh.Deciding that his only option at this point was to break out of the web that he was trapped in, the crimson satan formed a short sword out of the power of destruction. Swinging the small energy blade like a machete chopping through rainforest vines Sirzechs moved through the intertwining lines of light, yet with each swing, it seemed like he made little to no progress. Cursing to himself and dodging to the side he barely avoided a set of light spears that had gotten through his guard while he focused on freeing himself."Trying to run won't help you devil! Once you are in my web you are my prey and prey gets devoured!" Continuing to throw spears like wild the fallen angel added more and more layers to his trap, showing that even with the seal's influence affecting him that he still had a great mind for strategy, making use of a large number of smaller-than-normal spears to create a thick and treacherous cocoon around the crimson haired man while using limited amounts of his own power.However, it was with the most recent volley of spears that Sirzechs was able to see the opening he needed. He had wondered how the web of light was capable of remaining long after the light spears that spread them had vanished. For magic, youjutsu, holy magic, demonic magic, and really any type of energy-based projectiles the decay rate once it left the caster's control was quite rapid.Once a fallen angel threw their spear of light it would gradually disperse after either traveling a certain distance or existing for a certain period of time, they were not permanent weapons that remained littered on the battlefield long after the fighting was over. Only if a fallen or a pure angel held onto their spear, consistently reenergizing it with more light, would it remain for longer than perhaps a minute at most.The dark-skinned fallen had to have been connected to the threads somehow for them to remain strung across the temple interior. Once that thought clicked into his mind Sirzechs knew where to look, and he found the answer. While it was hard to see each thread that made up a part of the deadly web remained connected to his body, like a puppet master holding the strings.With a plan in mind, the strongest devil quickly reached out and grabbed ahold of one of the light threads, ignoring the corrosive lights burn. Channeling a large amount of the power of destruction through his hand and to the string he smirked lightly as he saw his plan work.The light string was quickly destroyed by the Bael family's signature ability and as it was obliterated the demonic power flowed up the thread's length all the way to where it connected to the fallen angel's body. With a scream of both anguish and rage, the six-armed man howled in pain as the power of destruction quickly ripped away at his body.Despite the enhanced powers of the cursed seal attempting to resist the disintegrating effects of the crimson-haired devil's attack quickly worked its way into Kidomaru's unknowingly weakening body. Much like the many previous victims of the power of destruction, the eight-wing fallen angel was quickly obliterated, leaving Sirzechs to sigh in relief before he winced, partially due to the sizzle of the light burns and more so due to how angry his wife Grayfia would be that he ruined his expensive suit. While he took a moment to breathe a deafeningly loud scream echoed across the temple chamber drawing his eyes over to the far side of the room.*Serafall vs Ukon*As opposed to Yasaka who had at least moderate level hand-to-hand combat skills, Serafall was never much of a close-range combatant, preferring long-range magic casting. She had of course throughout her life learned some hand-to-hand combat skills but they were admittedly rusty and not much of a match for the blue-haired man's, light gauntlet-enhanced physical combat talents.Unlike his twin, Ukon was not as skilled in hand-to-hand combat, yet he was still much better than the female satan who chose to fly into the air and try to gain some distance to launch her attacks. Quickly following her the two began a long aerial chase around the temple which was only broken up by the occasional icicle or light spear.The two combatants continued on their chase with the fallen angel growing increasingly frustrated as the devil continued to lead him on a loop around the air. The aerial pursuit came to an abrupt ending however when Ukon suddenly lost all of the air from his lungs and collapsed onto the ground. He wheezed for breath as a crimson-red glow came from inside his pocket, with a gurgle he choked on a rush of air as an external power forced its way into his body.Inside his pocket sat a small red demon mask jewel, nearly identical to that of his twin Sakon's, with an elongated right horn instead of his brother's left. Ukon felt his body scream in pain as he quickly looked over at his brother who was fighting the yokai leader. Seeing the demonic form that his brother took on he knew that he was using the cursed seal that they had been given before taking on this mission.What Ukon did not know however was that much like their twin connection and near identical appearance, their individual cursed seals also shared a purposefully included link. The seals given to Kidomaru and Tayuya were unique to them, yet Sakon and Ukon's seals were identical, other than their physical appearance. As a new and largely untested experiment, Valper wished to see how the seals worked in the real world and how the dark energy affected the wielder. Something that he had discovered in his early testing was that each person would react to the energy differently and it would need to be adjusted to each wielder.As unwitting disposable pawns to the fallen angel cadre Kokabiel, Sakon, and Ukon were given identical cursed seals meant to study how two, near identical twins, would react when using linked and matching seals, with one having free access to the corrosive power without the downsides and the other being subjected to all of the negative effects. Now as Sakon freely used the cursed seal's tainted power with seemingly zero drawbacks he was unknowingly subjecting his twin to unimaginable levels of pain as the poisonous effects of the evil energy was forcibly injected into Ukon's normal, unempowered body.Red began to overtake Ukon's body, much like his twin, yet as it spread it began to puff up under his skin, swelling and stretching his flesh in a large number of lumps. His breathing grew rapid as the pain of not only his own unused cursed seal and his brother's currently in-use mark struck him all at once, his mouth open in a silent scream as he began to writhe on the floor.Serafall watched with mixed feelings as the formerly quite strong man was reduced to a deformed mess, with black foam dribbling from his lips. Her lips dipped into a frown as the man began to shake wildly before retching and vomiting up a large pool of thick tar-black fluid onto the temple floor next to him. She hovered down to the ground with a slight sadness in her eyes as the horror of the cursed seals was exhibited to her once again. She didn't know for sure why the man was suffering so much when he had not even used the evil token, yet it was clear that he would not be receiving a power-up, only death.With another loud retch, the fallen angel's throat bulged and multiple organs were forcibly ejected from his body onto the floor. Unlike healthy-looking organs, the ones his body expelled were covered in black tumors and looked like they were deformed and ripped right out of his body by the force of his regurgitation. The pile of guts and blood bubbled on the floor as if being eaten by acid while the light in the blue-haired man's eyes was slowly consumed by inky darkness.With wheezing and gurgling breaths, the fallen angel looked up at the satan that stood a few feet away from him, attempting yet barely managing to lift his arm towards her. "Ki... Kill… me…"The abrupt change from a healthy and strong opponent to a man begging for death was shocking, yet given his state Serafall could easily realize why he was now desperate for a release from the pain. As the man released another gush of black fluid from his mouth the female satan molded an ice lance which quickly shot forth and pierced the man's chest, striking his heart and hopefully putting a faster end to his suffering. Despite having killed many beings over the years, the relieved look in his near-dead eyes made the feeling of her kill significantly more impactful than any of the rest.Tearing his eyes away from his opponent Sakon watched with wide eyes as his twin was slain by the pink satan, his mind not taking into account the large pool of dark liquid and organs bubbling on the floor. Enhanced by the dark energy of the cursed seal flowing through him the fallen unleashed a rage-fueled scream. "Ukon!"His enhanced anger was so palpable that it released a burst of dark energy in a sound wave that disoriented the devils and especially the kitsune who had heightened hearing. While they recovered from the deafening and dizzying scream the red-skinned man charged at a high rate of speed toward Serafall, abandoning his own fight to try and take revenge on his twin's killer, summoning a large and jagged spear which he intended to ram through her body.The Leviathan only had time to shake off the nausea brought on by the loud scream and blink before the enraged demonic-looking man was nearly on top of her with a jagged-looking black spear of light poised to skewer her through the chest. His black sclera eyes glared hatefully at the staff-wielding girl, with his large fang-like teeth grit in a furious snarl.Quickly summoning up some of her magic Serafall created a shield of ice around her staff and held it in front of her body. With the limited time she had to recover and brace herself for the attack, as well as the temple seals limiting her power she somehow actually managed to create a decently strong defense which caused the fallens spear to glance off of the side of the shield. Unfortunately, she didn't make it out unscathed as the tip of the spear glanced off of the side of her stomach, leaving a slight bleeding gash.Deflecting off of the shield created by the pink satan with his rage and cursed seal-fueled speed making him appear as a blur the monstrous form of the fallen angel continued forward captured by his momentum, leading the deflected spear charge to slam directly into the side of the statue. The speed of his movement and the dark twisted power of his black light spear actually pierced the body of the ancient statue, plunging nearly four feet of corrupted energy into the large yokai figure, with its jagged edges getting caught inside the tan effigy.With his mind clouded by fury and the corrosive taint of the rotten seal's energy, the pale red-skinned figure did not even think to discard his weapon and create a new one, instead, he tugged on the stuck weapon before finally dislodging it with a harsh tug. As he prepared once again to attack the devil woman who killed his brother a sound similar to that of a raging waterfall made him pause and look at the statue that the sound was coming from.As the four remaining individuals each looked toward the large sculpture sand began to pour out from the jagged hole pierced into the side of the giant tanuki statue forming a waterfall of granular particles that rained down onto the temple floor. As the sand hit the rough flooring a loud bell-like gong echoed throughout the chamber drawing all the occupant's attention. The small hole began to crack as more and more sand began to push itself out of the statue.Suddenly to everyone's surprise a loud and gleeful voice rang all around them and a powerful presence flared to life.
"Finally! Hahahaha! I'm awake yahoo! The great one-tailed tanuki Shukaku has returned! Gehehehe!"
Standing on guard the devils and even the remaining fallen angel looked warily around, eying each other and the giant statue.Yasaka stood frozen in shock as the powerful chakra presence washed over her. The voice, could the ancient Shukaku-Sama truly be alive and now awakened? For centuries the Yokai had worshiped the statues hidden inside the temples, believing them to be depictions of ancient Yokai Gods or perhaps the very first yokai.There were children's books written featuring the temple statues that had been used to inspire or teach yokai children. There were books such as Shukaku's Lullaby, Chomei's Lucky Lunchtime Snack, Kurama Say's: Its Nap Time, and many more.One particular book written by an elder toad yokai, from her grandfather's time, named Gamamaru, told the tale of the statue's one day releasing the ancient beings so they could walk among the modern-day yokai and protect them. It was a very popular book with children, even Yasaka when she was a child loved the book, however, that was all that it was a children's book meant to honor the statues and give children a sense of security and hope in a dark world.Yasaka never believed that the temples actually housed living beings inside of them, but this voice, this power, there was no way she could deny what was happening.The temple shook and rumbled as more of the statue cracked. Sand burst forth from various fissures that had opened up around the temple, the tan grains began to layer the floor of the temple with the level rising with every passing second."Ugh. More sand! I don't like sand. It's coarse and rough and irritating and it gets everywhere. I'll be dumping sand out of my socks for months. I don't envy your tails and ears right now Yasaka-Dono." The crimson satan glared poutily at the rising sand.
"Oooh! Lucky! I'm the first one awake! It's time to wake up you sleepy heads! Hahaha" The loud and almost crazy-sounding voice shouted, before laughing wildly.
With a final laugh, the statue crumbled away to nothing other than course grains. Below the layer of sand that now covered the floor a massive glowing blue seal circle lit up and began to spin in a clockwise rotation."What is happening!" Serafall yelled the very thought that was traveling through the minds of everyone inside the temple as she hovered in the air.The ceiling of the temple was the next thing to turn to sand, raining down onto the shocked temple occupants. With the roof of the temple gone and the walls beginning to crumble from the top down, the desert sky became visible to them. However, it wasn't the same as it was when they entered the temple, the dry winds of the Sahara began to increase in speed, picking up granules that formed a sandstorm around the temple.A pulse of power radiated from the floor of the temple as a glowing blue seal circle rose up from beneath the sand and began to spin clockwise on the surface and the wind around the temple picked up even more speed and began to form a funnel cone around the temple. Following the seal's rotation, the now sand floor began to spin as well, dragging along with it the body of Ukon, Mizuki, and the ancient yokai journal. A powerful pulling force began to tug on the devils, fallen angel, and kitsune as the center of the room dropped down, forming a whirlpool of sand.Yasaka, being unable to fly, was the first to feel the effects of the swirling sand. Despite trying to move out of the sand pit the wind, sand whirlpool, and an invisible force continued to pull her body toward the center. Even manifesting one of her large fox-form paws to grip one of the few remaining temple walls did not slow her descent, stretching her arm and causing her grip to grow weaker.The two devils and one fallen angel despite having the advantage of flight still found it hard to resist the invisible force that was pulling them. Forcing their wings to fly higher brought no results almost as if a powerful gravitational pull was sucking them down to the earth.Yasaka was the first to get pulled into the whirling sand with a startled scream. While fighting to stay in the air the three flying beings watched in shock as the kitsune vanished into the depths."What bullshit is this! What did you do filthy…" Screaming in mad rage the curse seal empowered Sakon was too focused on flying and getting revenge for the death of his brother that he didn't notice a large chunk of still solid sand wall fall and bash him in the head. His previous injuries, the taxing and poisoning nature of the cursed seal, and the knock to the head were too much for the eight-winged fallen angel to take and he passed out. His body quickly fell from the air and was subsequently drug under the sand."Zechs-tan! What do we do? I can't get away and teleport magic won't work!" As the Leviathan continued to struggle against the pull of the sand whirlpool a look of horror grew on her face as her staff was tugged away from her. "No! My magic staff!"Completely disregarding her own safety and any semblance of rational sanity Serfall dove down into the sand in an effort to save her favorite magical girl staff. Sirzechs watched his fellow satan disappear beneath the surface with a now all too common deadpan look on his face.The whirlpool continued to pull on the red-haired man and despite every attempt to fly away from it he was pulled closer and closer. The current Lucifer found himself shocked as he tried to enter his Human Shaped Aura of Destruction form but found himself unable to. During the previous conflict he had found Yasaka's words concerning the temple limiting those of high power to be true, however, he did not imagine that one of his strongest abilities would be completely unusable.As the gravitational pull began to grow stronger Sirzechs quickly found his foot to be touching the sand beneath him. Having run through all of the options in his head and realizing that nothing would be able to pull him away from this whirlpool he sighed before allowing himself to fall into the swirling grains.After the whirlpool sucked up the devil Lucifer, a beam of sandy yellow energy ripped through the sky, lighting up the desert with its glow. As it pierced the clouds the beam began to disperse from the top down and once the energy beam dissipated at ground level the sandstorm and whirling grains returned to normal. Left behind where the temple once stood was nothing but sand, all evidence of the former structure erased.*Across the World*All across the world supernatural beings with a view of the earth, from the lowliest reincarnated devil to the Archangel Michael and even the various gods and Ophis itself turned their sights to the large desert of the Sahara. The beam of light streaking into the air above lit up the sky and dominated their senses.Humans, those that were not knowledgeable of the supernatural were the only beings on the earth to be unable to see the light or feel its power, however, lab equipment and scientific instruments lit up with readings that would throw the human governments into a panic.The strange phenomenon caused uproar not only in the human world but in the supernatural as well, with each faction trying to investigate the cause and scramble their forces in case it was a declaration of a new war.The Yokai faction and any yokai that existed outside of the faction itself were the ones to feel the most significant impact of the energy burst. They did not know what it was but they knew that it was chakra, a lot of chakra, and that something had awoken.Already panicking and looking for who to blame the supernatural world leaders were unprepared for what was happening and what would happen next.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

*A long time ago*

"The temples have been built and the seals are in place. With them, we will be sealed away, apart but always connected to one another. With time our energy will be drawn upon and life of all forms will return to flourish. Shukaku, Matatabi, Isobu, Son Goku, Kokuo, Saiken, Chomei, Gyuuki, and Kurama. A time will come when the seal is broken and the world will have need of us once more. Until then… my friends, no my family..." A pulse of power emanated from the speaker's forehead, where a third eye rested. Chakra-enhanced stone formed over the speaker's face before crawling down the rest of their body, locking it in a state of eternal slumber waiting to be called upon and awoken to the world once more.
*Turkmenistan - Darvaza Gas Crater*A large natural gas field in the modern-day country of Turkmenistan had been a problem for the many humans who wished to mine its valuable natural gas deposits. After a mishap, the field had been permanently on fire for many years earning itself the title of "Door to Hell". The normal red and orange-hued flames had burned for over forty years and it was expected to keep burning for many more years to come. However, what the human researchers were not expecting was for the flames to suddenly change to a brilliant blue.Deep under the earth, directly below the crater, was a large cavern hidden by the ancient seals that surrounded it. The cavern appeared quite natural looking other than the large statue that occupied its center and the constantly burning blue flames that cast an ethereal glow around the chamber. The large stone sculpture that had stood for longer than anyone knew depicted a colossal two-tailed cat standing proud.Suddenly a shimmer of sandy yellow energy began to illuminate a large seal that took up the entire floor of the cavern. The seal possessed the kanji for one through ten and upon its illumination, the marking for one glowed and pulsed at a steady beat.With the seal illuminated and in an active state the temple began to shake as a large power began to flow out of the statue. The blue flames surrounding the cavern grew in intensity and the stone neko statue began to smoke. From inside the earthen capsule, a bright blue glow increased in intensity before the entire statue burned into nothing but ash in an azure inferno. The unleashed flames began to spin matching the rotation of the now-moving seal before they were drawn down into the large matrix.
"After all of these years, it seems we have been called upon. The kitten's seal has finally been released and we shall all return to this world once more."
The spinning seal absorbed all of the cobalt fire before releasing a brilliant blue beam through the earth high into the sky, echoing with the sound of a cat's yowl.Up on the surface without warning the large crater of flames grew in intensity as scorching hot blue fire burst out of the pit. The small research and observation team that was stationed nearby screamed and ran as quickly as they could away from the crater as the inferno burned at their flesh. Emergency signals were sent out even as those who were able to run away as fast as they could suffered third-degree burns.*Australia - Coral Coast*Deep beneath the ocean waters off the coast of Australia, a great bed of coral sat as fish and sea creatures swam by hurriedly, as if afraid of something unseen. A faint shimmer of sandy gold and brilliant blue energy trickled down from the surface of the ocean, like a drop of food coloring sinking to the deep depths before disappearing into the coral below.Managing to filter through the surface of the ocean floor the occasional water droplet dripped down into the large chamber that sat hidden beneath the bedrock. Coral and small ponds littered the underwater cave as a light grey glow given off by some of the bioluminescent coral and seaweed dimly illuminated the chamber and cast a dull light onto the large statue that sat in the center.The statue was massive, the creature depicted a strange combination between a turtle, crab, and shrimp. It's large shell and armor-covered body towered over the empty space as its three shrimp-like tails curled up behind its back. Coral and various barnacles spread sporadically across the surface of the statue, flourishing with life and growth.As the two streaks of color began their descent to the cave floor they made contact with the rocky ground as a large seal activated. The kanji for one and two began to pulse with sandy gold and cobalt blue light, the seal slowly beginning to rotate as the cavern shook and rumbled.The coral, barnacles, and seaweed that sat around the chamber began to grow rapidly spreading around the room, as water began to fill the pools and begin flooding the chamber. The large statue groaned as cracks formed on its surface before with a large thump it collapsed into pieces that each began to turn into even more coral once they touched the ground.From inside the former statue, a rush of slightly grey water splashed against the cavern floor before it began flowing and matching the seals' rotation in a swirl, before being drawn into the complex network of lines that made up the ancient seal.
"Hmm, that's odd… Did something go wrong with the seal? It feels like I have slept for much longer than anticipated. Troubling, yet it was a nice nap."
The grey-tinted water disappeared into the spinning seal and with a final rumble a beam of grey light launched itself upwards, blasting a hole through the ceiling of the cave and through the ocean before it lit up the sky. As the seal disappeared the crumbling ocean floor gave way to a flood of water that rushed in and submerged that hidden cavern. The ocean surface in response to the beams passing and underwater collapse grew choppy as large waves began to form, violently rocking any ships that were in the area.*Heaven*"Lord Michael! There is a third beam of light emanating from off the coast of Australia. Australian church leaders are reporting large waves approaching the land."With a tired sigh the elegant archangel Michael massaged his forehead, the toll of maintaining the Holy System, leading the Angels, and the Church bearing down heavily on him. "Just like the last two… the chance for damage is great. First a massive sandstorm across the African deserts, then a fiery inferno in Turkmenistan, and now the possibility of tsunamis in Australia. What is happening…?""Lord Michael? What should we do?" The messenger angel that stood before the leader of Heaven was already worried by the events that had begun to shake both the human and supernatural world and looked to his leader for answers."Oh, yes forgive me, I was lost in thought. Send members of the church to assist anyone that may be injured by these phenomena. We do not know what the cause of these events is so they must remain vigilant." Apologizing to the two winged angel that stood before him the seraph gave him what he believed to be the best course of action until more of the situation could be understood."Yes, Lord Michael!" Quickly turning to carry out his orders the messenger angel left after a short bow to his leader.Now alone Michael sighed once again as his shoulders dropped into a hunched position. "Father, I wish you were here to guide me…"*Unknown Location*
"NYA! AHH! OOH! NYA!" Inside a worn down and abandoned house, loud and lewd cries echoed. The deep and pleasure-filled sounds of a woman screaming in intense orgasmic bliss were so loud that if it were not for the isolated location of the desolate house they would have been heard by everyone within a mile range.
Collapsed on the ground was a beautiful woman with long black hair and hazel gold eyes that have slit pupils, atop her head rested a pair of black cat ears, and at her waist hung a set of two black cat tails. The beautiful woman wore a revealing black kimono, a yellow obi, and a set of golden beads. Currently, she lay near limp on the ground, her eyes wide open and her tongue hanging out of her gaping mouth as she panted and moaned, the nekoshou yokai twitched occasionally as a series of orgasms ripped through her body. With her form flopped onto the floor haphazardly her kimono slipped open to reveal her pantiless soaked sex as a small puddle formed beneath her."What the hell Kuroka!" In shock, slight arousal, and slight disgust, a light silver-haired man backed away from the panting yokai that suddenly collapsed onto the ground. The handsome man wore a dark green V-neck shirt with a high-collared black leather jacket over it, his legs covered by burgundy jeans with a silver chain drooping down over them and black leather chaps with three bands encircling his right calf. The normally composed yet cocky man held an uncharacteristic look on his face as he gaped and staggered away from the black-haired woman."Vali… Huuuh Huh… it's chakra… a lot of chakra. It's overwhelming…" Holding himself up by leaning against the nearby wall a young man with short light-brown colored hair, brown eyes, and an athletic build, dressed in ancient Chinese armor breathed heavily as he felt the same overwhelming surge of energy that Kuroka felt."Those energy surges and massive beams of light are made of chakra? What could be causing such a surge? No known yokai is that strong." Blinking as he watched both of his companions breathing heavily, the silver-haired man wondered what exactly was happening, the ever-present impulse to fight strong opponents tempting him to seek out the source of these powers.From her place on the ground, the black-haired nekoshou rubbed her thighs together as she closed her eyes in bliss. As Kuroka's body was wracked with pleasure a long-forgotten memory suddenly flashed before her eyes, of a better time, a happier time. Her mother…
Bouncing up and down on her rough bed a small young girl felt her abundant childish energy fighting against her mother's desire for her to sleep. "Mommy! Mommy! I'm not tired! Read me a story! Please! Hurry! Hurry!"

"Alright, my little kitten settle down. Oof… You know it's difficult for momma to get around quickly with your baby sister in her belly. Now lay down sweetie and I'll read to you…" The girl's mother walked over to the bedside slowly, her ears and tails drooped lightly as she struggled to walk with her heavily distended pregnant belly. Grabbing a worn and clearly second-hand book off of the small shelf that rested next to the rickety child-sized bed the tired woman looked at the title before a small smile formed on her lips. "Oh, this is a good one. Lay down Kuroka and I will read you a story about some Yokai legends."

"Nyahaha yay tell me! Tell me the story!" Continuing to jump up and down on the slightly creaking bed the young black-haired girl finally settled down when her mother sat on the edge of the bed patiently, giving her a look that told her that the elder woman wouldn't begin reading until she settled down.

"Alright now that you've settled down. Let me tell you the story of The Almighty Sage and The Nine Sacred Yokai Kings." Opening up the old book Fujimai let a calm smile form on her face as she enjoyed the peaceful presence and time that she got to spend with her daughter.

"A long time ago, before the stars cast their light down upon the earth there existed a powerful Sage, gifted with powers greater than any other being in existence. Gathered together on the barren and desolate surface of the earth he called upon his companions, The Nine Yokai Primordials. They combined their powers to create the very universe, hoping that life would flourish on Earth and across the great expanse of empty space. There was the one-tailed tanuki, Shukaku who spread his power, sand, across the sky, building the foundation of the stars. Then Matatabi, the two-tailed hellcat, who unleashed her majestic flames upon the sand particles, igniting them into a bright glow of light."

"WOOOW NYA! A two-tailed cat! Just like us momma!" The small cat girl's eyes grew large as her mother mentioned a two-tailed cat, her excitement nearly causing her to vibrate on her bed. "Mabi made the stars! Nya! Can I grow up to be as powerful as Mabi"

"Hehehe Matatabi my little kitten." Reaching over the pregnant mother tapped the excited girl's nose, getting it to twitch lightly. "Yes, my precious daughter, someday you could be as powerful as Matatabi-Sama." Smirking mischievously for a moment the mother used the little girl's excitement to her advantage, hoping that her sweet young daughter would funnel that energy into her future growth. "You'll have to eat your vegetables and be a good girl though."

"Ew, vegetables yucky! Blech." Sticking her tongue out, Kuroka narrowed her eyes in disgust. "Mommy I promise I'll be a good girl but… Do I really have to eat vegetables nya…"

"Hehe yes, my kitten. You want to be strong like Matatabi-sama don't you? Even someone as powerful as Matatabi-sama ate vegetables." Truthfully the mother cat had no idea if the yokai of legend ate vegetables or not, yet if she could use the ancient story to convince her daughter to eat the vegetables that the young girl hated so much she would embellish the story a bit. "Hmmn, let's see where was I… Oh yes, here we go. Then there was the three tails, Isobu, a combination yokai mix of a turtle, crab, and shrimp. Using his power he flooded the barren earth with water creating the oceans, lakes, rivers, and rain. Son Goku the fierce four-tailed monkey used his immense strength to rip chunks of the earth from the ground, placing them down above the water as the continents and flinging them into the sky where they formed the very moon."

"Woah Goku-sama could lift the moon! So strong!" Clutching her blanket tightly in her excited hands the small girl smiled widely as she listened to her mother's story.

"Kokuo, the five-tailed dolphin horse used their power to boil the water on the earth creating the sky and clouds above us. The six-tailed slug, Saiken, spewed its sticky saliva into the stars to hold the universe together, binding the stars and the earth together in an eternal dance amongst the expanse of space."

"Nya ew! Sticky slime is so nasty!" The small girl made a face of disgust, the small girl having an aversion to dirt, slime, and all things she deemed gross.

"It may be gross to you Kuroka-chan but it would be bad if the stars flew around in space crashing into each other or flying far away wouldn't it sweetie? Saiken-sama used their power to protect all of us and give us a beautiful world." The small girl's young age had, for the moment, protected her from realizing the harsh realities of the world and Fujimai would try to shield her daughter from the world's cruel reality and ensure that her daughter would grow to be accepting and kind, unlike so many other beings.

The world was a dark place for those that were different, such as Saiken-sama, or even the Yokai as a whole. Kuroka's childhood certainly wouldn't be considered a life of luxury due to the family's strained finances, and the girl's father… Yet she had been protected from the worst side of both the supernatural and human worlds. The pregnant mother knew firsthand the prejudice, racism, and hate that was abundant across all species. Kuroka was very fond of her yokai features yet those very same body parts could and would be seen as monstrous or freakish by others. Fujimai could only hope that her sweet kitten and the baby she now carried would grow up to be free from the judgment of others and judgment towards others.

"Chomei, the seven-tailed rhinoceros beetle, used its wings to create a surge of wind, rotating the earth and the stars in their place, and creating the cool and gentle breeze that flutters through the air and moves the clouds. Chomei also spread its scaly powder to the stars giving them their sparkling and luminescent shine. Gyuki the eight-tailed ushi-oni spread his ink across space, dimming the stars, and the expanse of space so it wasn't blinding and created the night. Using his power, the prideful and prodigious nine-tailed fox, Kurama, snatched the closest star between his palms and placed it in what he deemed the best location. Showcasing his mighty power he forced the small star to grow till it dwarfed the earth. The now magnificent star provided warmth and light to the earth as its sun, a shining beacon of hope and potential." Stroking the little girl's ears Fujimai continued to read in a calming voice.

"Finally the great Sage looked upon the universe, pleased by what he saw he used his powers of life and creation itself to fill in the gaps. His almighty power spread across space breathing life into the world and all around it, guided by his dream of a planet full of life of all kinds. Seeing his energy flow across both space and time the Sage smiled as he envisioned the future and all those that could experience the world that he and the Nine Kings created. As time went on the world that they created would flourish and life would grow to walk the face of the planet as they watch over all of their children with love. The end." Closing the book the elder cat woman set it aside before turning back towards her daughter who still seemed too excited to sleep. The book author really should have realized that despite having dumbed down and taken some creative liberty with the legends to make it more suitable for children it really shouldn't have been labeled as a bedtime story.

"But what happened to the Sage and the Nine Beasts momma?" The young girl snuggled into her bed with a questioning look on her face.

"They are sleeping sweetie. Even though they are all powerful they need to sleep too just like you. But the legends say that one day they will come back and usher in a new world and lead us yokai." Gently stroking her daughter's hair the soon-to-be expecting mother smiled gently towards her inquisitive kitten.

She remembered asking her own parents the same exact question when they read her the story of the Sage and the Nine Yokai Kings. Fujimai had been a deep believer in the ancient story during her childhood and it had helped her get through all the struggles of her life. She hated to admit that she was struggling to keep that faith now in her adult years, the pain, loss, and hard times that she faced over the years slowly chipping away at her hope. However, as a mother she wished for Kuroka and the yet-to-be-born Shirone to hold onto their hope and live a good life.

"Really! When will they come back? I want to meet the Sage and Matatabi baa-chan Nya!" Underneath the covers, the girl's tails could be seen swaying excitedly.

"Hehehe. I'm sure the Almighty Sage and Matatabi-Sama would love to meet you and your baby sis Shirone, my little kitten. However, they will be upset with you if you don't get your rest." Giving Kuroka a few more gentle strokes on her ears the older nekoshou looked at the girl gently, smiling as she saw the energy finally beginning to fade from the girl's eyes.

"Awww, Nya. I guess if even they need rest I can go to sleep…" The late hour of the night as well as her excitement finally catching up to the young girl as she rubbed her eyes tiredly as she yawned. "I am a little sleepy…"

Giving the young girl a kiss on the forehead, Fujimai slowly stood up from the bedside and walked towards the bedroom door, putting her hand on the light switch. "Goodnight my kitten, I love you. Never forget my sweet, they are watching over you." As she flicked the lights off and closed the door she whispered under her breath. "It may be too late for me to believe that I have a chance of meeting them but I hope you and your sister get the chance to. You deserve so much more than I can give you, perhaps if… no, when they return they can grant you the happiness and splendor you deserve my sweet baby girl."
Blinking as the memory flooded her mind Kuroka felt a single tear run down her face and a realization formed. Shakily trying to rise from her position on the floor Kuroka slowly wobbled into a half-standing half leaning position, supporting herself on the wall. She moaned deeply as her kimono brushed against her extremely sensitive privates, a brief spurt of fluid trickling down her quivering legs as she reached yet another orgasm from the simple touch of her clothes' fine fabric."Seriously Kuroka… Get a hold of yourself, you are flooding the place." Grunting out his words Vali crossed his arms as he backed away from the now quite large puddle that was soaking into the wood flooring. Despite how erotic and sexual the noises coming from the girl's mouth were, seeing the usually flirtatious yet strong woman spasming and near incoherent was disturbing and actually quite pathetic. The silver-haired teen knew that Kuroka was lazy, gluttonous, and acted quite slutty, yet the fact that some pulses of chakra, no matter how powerful, were able to reduce her to a blubbering mess destroyed the strong yet playful image he had of the nekoshou.Breathing heavily with her body still quivering and her face flushed, the nekoshou seemed to struggle to summon a magic circle, as it flickered and blinked. "Kyoto… huah… I need to go… to Kyoto.""Wait… what? Kyoto!? Why would you go there? Are you forgetting that you are banned from even entering the city? In your current… condition you are going to get captured. Now is not the time for foolishness" Blinking the longinus wielder felt his frustration build. These strange energy pulses would no doubt throw the supernatural world into an uproar, he had no patience to deal with her strange impulsivities and nonsense right now."Nya… It almost… sounds like you care Vali." Sweat built up on the black-haired girl's forehead as the pleasure and the focus she was attempting to pour into her magic made it difficult to think. "The… The Sage… the Sage is coming. I have to go… meet the Sage… auhh."Yet another orgasm ripped through the beautiful woman's body, the pulse of pleasure giving her just the jolt she needed to form her teleportation circle. Letting herself be pulled into the magic transportation the panting girl was so focused on her own immediate desires she ignored her companion's shouts as her body vanished from the small lodging that they had been inhabiting.Moving forward the silver-haired teen reached out to stop her, only to see her vanish through the rough yet obviously functional magic circle. "Kuroka! Damnit what is she thinking… and who the hell is the sage? Bikou? Do you know what that idiot is talking about?""I… don't know… well I mean there's an old Yokai legend about some ancient sage and his nine companions or something like that… I'm not sure, the stories always bored me to death when I was younger and they were absurd too. Nothing more than propaganda to make the Yokai faction seem stronger than they are and unite them, typical government nationalism shit. She's always had… strong senses and if you ask me has always been a bit crazy. Do you think she's finally gone off the deep end? What do you want to do, Vali?" Struggling to compose himself as he reeled from the chakra pulses, the monkey yokai focused himself before looking at his leader."She may be annoying and a pain to deal with but she is going to get herself captured or killed. It wants her for It's plan. We better go and bring her back." Sighing, the silver-haired teen ran his hand through his hair, mentally bemoaning having to deal with Kuroka's antics. Useful she may be, but she would be much easier to deal with if she had a better and more professional attitude."No."Unseen by the two remaining men, a small and petite figure stood behind them on the other side of the room, far away from the puddle that the nekoshou yokai left on the floor."Ophis-sama!/Ophis." With a start, the two teens turned to face the short, dark black-haired, and gothic-themed figure that stood, previously unnoticed, in the room behind them."Let the horny cat do what she wants, things have changed. She is now unnecessary, too weak to have any use in my plans to remove baka red from my home." It was subtle but Ophis appeared different than their usual expressionless doll-like self. Their mouth was ever so slightly curved into a confused and frustrated frown, looking out of place compared to the short figure's usual visage."But Ophis-sama…"A sharp look from the gothic loli's normally apathetic eyes silenced Bikou's retort. "No, forget about her. Lucifer boy you will go back to the fallen angel pervert, the light show will have him worried and your absence will be suspicious. Monkey, you will go to Kyoto.""Huh? I thought you didn't want us going after Kuroka." Scratching his head lightly the monkey yokai grew confused, like usual, by the short and simple manner of speech that Ophis employed. The black-haired being's blunt and monotone orders were occasionally completely nonsensical with how little they spoke and explained."Go to Kyoto and see what is going on. Something is happening, you will find out what it is and bring whoever or whatever is causing it to me. Baka Red has disturbed my home for too long now." Before giving either of the two men a chance to respond the lolita styled being vanished.Clenching his fist in annoyance Vali looked at his remaining companion before nodding his head and vanishing into a teleportation circle.Slouching his shoulders the monkey yokai started to form his own magic circle. "Ophis may be strong but I'm starting to think joining this organization was a mistake."*Shetland Islands, Antarctica - Deception Island Volcano*Nestled within the heart of Deception Island, a seemingly ordinary yet dangerous volcanic caldera sat cloaked in the rocky and icy embrace of the Antarctic wilderness. The sunken volcano had provided an excellent anchorage port area for mortal countries such as the United Kingdom and Argentina over the years despite its occasional earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Fishing boats and research teams went about their day-to-day business, casting their nets and setting up their scientific instruments. The volcano had sat dormant for many years and was not expected to become active again for decades. With a deep rumble and the blaring of sensory alarms, the peace of the island was broken as each and every person on the horseshoe-shaped island froze, their breath held tightly hoping that what they could imagine happening wasn't coming true.As if time itself stood still the island was covered with a silence only broken by the ring of sirens before doom was unleashed. With a concussive blast the water that had filled the submerged basin of the island's volcanic mouth launched into the air. Steam, smoke, ash, rocky earth, and volcanic lava quickly followed as the Deception Volcano burst.The explosive release ripped boats into shrapnel, vaporized the flammable materials within its reach, and sent a burning shockwave out from its core. As the pressurized wave of scalding water, steam, and volcanic materials launched through the air, it quickly overtook the now terrified and fleeing humans. Unmercifully, the devastation cut through the landscape, and only those on boats far off the coast of the island survived its destructive power. Bursts of lava, flame, and smoke billowed from the volcano's mouth high into the air above as the sea-faring survivors braced themselves and looked on in horror.Deep under the earth amongst the flowing and angry magma chambers, a crimson red seal spun rapidly, the kanji for one, two, and three illuminated in their respective colors. The large central chamber shook as the temperature and pressure increased rapidly. Standing proud at the rear of the large room a statue depicting a magnificent four-tailed monkey appearing to be made of cooled magma hissed and cracked, its rocky surface glowing and sizzling. As the volcano erupted above the statue began to droop and change shape as viscous lava began to seep through the cracks in its surface.
"Hohoahah! I the handsome monkey king, son of the Sage of Six Paths, Son Goku have awakened! Hoohoohoooo!"
With a mighty howling laugh, the statue collapsed as lava burst through the chamber ceiling, launching fire and a crimson-red beam of energy into the sky above.*Rome, Italy*"Thank you! Oh, thank you, Sister! May God bless you for your kind heart!" Standing on the corner of a rarely traveled alleyway a rather disheveled and ragged woman bowed her head as tears fell down her face, clutched in her dirty hands was a decently large bundle of money."No thanks are necessary ma'am. God's word teaches us to be kind and giving to others, I simply saw that you were in need and knew I must do something. Hopefully, that can help you get back on your feet, remember the Church is always open to those who need assistance." Standing out compared to the rather run-down area around her, a young woman wearing the clothing of a Church nun smiled as she reached out and hugged the trembling homeless woman in front of her.The young nun had gotten permission from her Church leaders to visit the city. Unlike many other young people who would take the time off to go to a restaurant, go out to watch a movie, or do something else considered 'fun' the sister of the Church chose to go to the more run-down section of the city. Having grown up a deep believer in God's word and having been blessed with a prosperous and happy life she felt inside her heart that she should help those who were not as fortunate as her. As often as she could she would head out into the city and spend time with the children, help people with things they need, and give them food and money. Because of this, she had developed quite a reputation amongst the locals for her kindness and generosity."But it's too much Sister! I can't possibly accept this much money from you!" Backing a step away the impoverished woman shook her head as she tried to hand some of the money back to her benefactor, the bundle of cash seeming much too heavy a gift to accept."Of course you can! Hehe. It is a blessing unto you from the Heavenly Father. But if you truly think it is too much you can share it with others, ok." Smiling even brighter, the nun gently reached out and closed the older woman's hands around the pile of money before reassuring her that it was okay for her to accept it."I will! Your kindness is…" The woman's words were cut off as her body froze in place. After a moment she coughed spewing blood from her lips before her body slumped to the ground."AAHHHHH!" Screaming in terror the chestnut-haired girl took a few stumbling steps backwards as she took in the sight before her. Looking at the woman's body she nearly hurled as she saw a large hole blown through the woman's torso, blood pooling under her now clearly dead body. A sudden glimmer of black made her freeze in place on trembling legs before slowly turning her head to look over her right shoulder."Why hello Irena. Oh did I scare you? Did it make you upset or perhaps fearful that I've done such a horrible thing? Are you terrified?"Irena began to shake as her eyes widened. Standing only a few feet away from her was a black-haired man, with his eyes closed tightly and his lips drawn into a condescending and creepy smile. Turning to face him she grew even more terrified when she saw the pitch-black bat wings that hung from his back. "Wha… what have you done? You are a… devil… But…"Flexing his wings outwards and holding his arms out to his sides as if he was putting on a performance and making his grand entrance, the man began to walk towards her, his smirk growing as he saw the young woman's fear. "Yes, I'm a big scary devil, a devil that just killed this poor pathetic soul. A devil that has been watching you Irena, you do remember me don't you, we have after all met before. Ah, but I do suppose the wings may make a difference.""Ah w… wait! Stay back!" As she spoke the nun began to shakily back away from the approaching man. Before she could get even a few steps away however the devil disappeared from her vision. "Oh, Heavenly… Father, I pray for protection from this dev… AHH!" Her retreat and prayers for help were cut off when she felt her arms grabbed from behind her, and a body pressed up against her back. As tears of fear and desperation began to well up in her eyes she started to deeply regret turning down the option to receive exorcist training like her younger sister did, perhaps if she had joined the exorcist core or even just practiced basic combat techniques she could stand a chance to fight back in a situation like this."Hahah. Do you really think that anyone can help you now? Like I said I've been watching you, I know almost everything about you. I know your day-to-day schedule, I know about the young orphan brats you visit, I know that you frequent this shit hole section of the city to give to the poor, I know about everything… I have to say it's quite racy for a nun to own a pair of black lace panties, ah, your body… Your scent… magnificent!"Irena cringed and tried to struggle her way free as the stronger devil ground his hips against her behind and lowered his head to sniff her hair."What… Stop! H… how do you know about all of this? Why are you following me, devil…""I just told you why I am following you. Those bouncy tits, that juicy butt, your silky Chestnut hair, your good little Christian innocence. Such an excellent package just waiting for me to tear into it, how could I not follow such a beauty." Laughing mockingly the black-haired devil forced her arms up to fondle her breasts. "I can't wait to break you! Hahaha''Tears were fully streaming down her face now as the devil continued to taunt and grind himself against her. "Why… why are you doing this? What do you want from me!""Why? I'm a devil. Do I really need a reason? As for why you in particular… well besides what I've already said I just love breaking you church girls and making you my little cum sluts. It is so satisfying watching the joy and kindness drain from your eyes as you forcefully fall into sin, knowing that you can never call yourself one of his pathetic loyal servants ever again, you will be MY servant. Hahaha."As the devil taunted her he continued to force her own hands to squeeze and grope her large breasts, against her own desires she felt her nipples hardening due to the contact. In her head the young nun continued to pray for help, her faith keeping her from feeling total terror. "They will come for me! God will protect me from your evil Devil!"Abruptly the devil stopped moving and pulled her arms back down to her sides, his tone of voice taking on a more twisted tone as if he was greatly anticipating what was about to happen next."Oh? I don't think anyone will come for you, after all, why would they come to rescue a traitor."Irena felt a sense of dread hearing the word traitor come from the devil's mouth. The Church was generally a forgiving and accepting place, however, betrayal or denial of faith among the nuns and other members who worked under the Biblical faction were a couple of the things that they could not ignore. She had witnessed a few nuns and fathers get excommunicated and for someone of such strong faith as herself, it was her greatest fear. She was a good person, a good member of the Church, a spark of defiance burrowed its way into her body as the devil tempted her faith."What… what are you talking about? Ugh, get your hands off me!" Having her faith questioned brought about a brief bit of resilience as Irena renewed her struggles to free herself from the man's grasp."Getting a little feisty aren't you, I like that, it makes it so much more satisfying when you eventually beg for my mercy. You don't remember, do you? When I first met you, you thought I was just another good little human wanting to know more about the church, you bought me coffee and told me all about your faith, your family, your parents both respected members of the biblical faction, your younger sister an exorcist adept with holy swords, your church branch, and most importantly the important job that you were recently tasked with."Her struggling ground to a halt as memories flashed before her eyes. She realized that he did in fact look familiar but at that time he was kind and gentle not like this creep. Horror and fear filled her mind and face as she came to realize just what he was saying."Yes, that's the look I like to see! Now you realize it, don't you? You spilled all the little secrets such as how your little church branch was receiving a 'special holy item' and how you were put in charge of coordinating the transfer. Hahaha, you humans are so easy to fool and you told me all I needed to know. I'm sure any moment now your superiors will realize that their precious artifact, 'The Light Arbiter Blade' is not where it is supposed to be and that you are the most likely culprit in its disappearance, they might put a target on your head but they certainly won't try and rescue you. No, you are a traitor, a heretic, you are mine now." The devil tilted his head down so he was speaking right next to her ear before he moved further down and licked the side of her neck in a slow and long stroke."No… no that can't be true… Churches are blessed with holy light from God himself! You wouldn't have been able to make it past Church security! I won't listen to your lies, devil!" Irena held on desperately to her hope, believing surely that the devil was lying in order to manipulate her."That is true in a sense, they are a weakness for devils, but I never said that I was the one who took the sword. You are somewhat right, getting past church security while weakened and undoubtedly alerting some of those pathetic angels to my presence would be difficult, and touching a sword that radiates pure light energy would certainly be bad for my health. But for let's say a fallen angel… it would be less challenging to steal, especially since you were so kind as to tell me all about the security measures that were put in place to protect it. The crows were quite eager to get a hold of such a rare and valued weapon, you made me quite the rich… well richer man hahaha." Almost as if he had timed things perfectly as soon as he began to laugh the sound of echoing bells suddenly rang through the streets.An alarm, the signal for all Church personnel to rally themselves and return to the Church. Irena knew the devil's words to be true as she heard the chimes ring, her hope plummeting and despair beginning to set in. Her eyes burned with tears knowing that this evil man was right, her superiors would turn towards her as the most likely culprit and she would have no sufficient argument to defend herself. Having the Holy Sword stolen while under her supervision was bad enough, but the knowledge that it was her blunder, her loose lips, that gave the devil and fallen angels all of the information that they needed to snatch up the sword so easily was damning.The Church would, at the very least, excommunicate her, and her family… what would they think about her… Her mind spiraled with doubts and worries, the sound of the devil's laughter and the bells dimming. "Oh, Heavenly Father… did I do something wrong? Did I fail you so deeply somehow that I am to be punished and cut off from you in such a way? Please, Lord, forgive me! Show me what I should do to repent! Answer me, please…" Silence… all the nun heard was silence, as her world shattered around her, she prayed for guidance, and she was given no response.The stress, the fear, her deflated hope, and the absolutely devastating silence she received from her Lord triggered something inside of her, an idea, a desperate gamble that she felt she needed to undertake. She could not die here or be captured by this twisted devil, she needed to get away, she needed to redeem herself. As the thoughts and panic circulated through her head she glossed over the 'how', only thinking about what she needed to do to overcome this trial. Call it impulsive or perhaps even crazy but Irena fully committed herself in that moment to the idea of redemption, believing that she must find and return the Holy Sword, that this was a test given to her by God.Deep in her own thoughts, Irena stood still despite the devil's continued brushes against her backside. "So you finally give in huh? I figured it would have taken a little bit more than this to break you, however, perhaps you've already accepted that your life is mine now, that I can do whatever I want to y…" Taking this as his victory the black-haired devil relaxed his grip on her arms a bit, letting his ego and common devil superiority complex assure him that everything was going to his plan. What he didn't expect however was for the buxom nun to take advantage of his lax guard to swing her leg backward, her foot moving with as much speed and power as she could muster to strike him in the balls. "Ahh fuck! You Bitch!"Despite the supernatural strength that the devil possessed, the swift strike that the nun delivered to his privates forced him to release her, before collapsing to the ground in pain. Irena turned to give him one more kick before she took off, running out of the alley and leaving the groaning man behind, not even looking back the fearful yet determined nun ran as fast as she could, her mind still in a troubled and distraught state. The chestnut-haired girl had no idea what to do… where to go… or how she was going to redeem herself, but she would, she had to no matter what. The Church bells continued to chime behind her as she ran, a smile that teetered on the broken fell onto her face, she had escaped and she would return redeemed and worthy once again.*United States of America - Yellowstone National Park*The plentiful geysers and springs of the Yellowstone National Park were a constant draw for tourists and sightseers. As the geysers spewed steam and water into the air the park would be layered in the sounds of awe and excitement. The area's many geothermal spouts, such as Old Faithful were believed to be the result of pressure and heat created by the slumbering super volcano that sat beneath the land however unknown to humans scientists, and tourists alike another form of destructive power was what truly fueled the boiling jets. Suddenly a low rumble brought the hustle and bustle of the park visitors to a halt.Underneath the wide ranges of the geysers of Yellowstone National Park a secret chamber sat nestled in between the earth above and the semi-dormant volcanic forces below. The environment of the cave was scorching hot and filled with copious amounts of steam, the underground water sources and heat of the magma below creating a thick layer of boiled vapor that coalesced in the chamber like a dense fog. Subterranean geysers flared, spewing their superheated gasses at such velocity and power that it would make the park's famed water spouts seem tiny in comparison.Spinning along the damp floor of the cave a glowing seal illuminated the space in a hazy glow as the kanji one through four flashed in their respective colors. As it rotated the seal seemed to cause the chamber temperature to rise as steam built up and the pressure increased, causing the earthen walls to creak and groan as the growing miasma of vaporized water filled the cave.A statue that sat at the back of the chamber, depicting a large creature that appeared to be a combination of a horse and a dolphin, began to hiss and crackle as any liquid that remained around it quickly reached its boiling point. Despite appearing to be made out of some form of stone the white-tinted surface of the statue began to vibrate and bubble as if it too was boiling away, parts of the statue disintegrating and forming a murky steam to add to the already significant cloud that filled the chamber.
"Hmmm… so it is time then. It will be good to see you once again brothers and sisters. Let us reunite, I am certain there will be much for us to see and do now that our awakening has come to pass."
As the seals glowed and the chamber pressure increased so too did the rate at which the statue seemed to disappear, until the room reached its breaking point. Unable to withstand the high-pressure buildup anymore the walls of the chamber cracked and burst, shaking the ground and allowing the steam to quickly travel to its release. Accompanied by a beam of light-blue energy the boiling steam rushed through the earth before breaching the surface, its pressurized and high-temperature mix of gas, vapor, and liquid spewing violently from the many geyser holes into the air.*Yellowstone Forests*Laying in a clearing amongst the dense conifer trees of the Yellowstone wilderness far from the normal paths of mortal tourists was a large and majestic pale blue western dragon, deep in slumber. The dragon's eyelid twitched lightly as a rumble shook the earth that it lay upon. The trees creaked lightly as a large group of birds flew overhead, scattering out into the outer wilds of the forest.The dragon's large reptilian eye slid open revealing a deep blue orb with a slit pupil, a brief huff of smoke exhaled from the dragon's snout as it began to shift, waking from its slumber. The earth's rumbles and a pulse of energy awakening the majestic creature from its sleep.With elegant yet threatening grace the dragon lifted its body from the ground, its full body tall enough to stand above the forest trees. Tilting their head up and toward the direction that the pulse came from the dragon narrowed its eyes, using its superior vision to focus on the more populated section of Yellowstone where it was able to see a large number of humans running and screaming as the famous geothermal geysers burst and spewed boiling water and vapors. It was clear to the dragon that the humans could not see the beam of energy that split the sky above them, instead all of their focus was on running and surviving, the weak mortals not looking back even as many of their fellow homo-sapiens fell to the burning geysers eruption.Despite the ray of light blue energy now losing most of its initial burst of power the dragon could still sense the immense strength that it exuded and was able to sense the residual flow of power moving across the world at a fast speed. A gleam appeared in the dragon's eyes as its mouth moved to reveal its sharp teeth, a deep yet feminine voice rumbled from the dragon's throat as she stretched her wings. "How interesting. It's about time something exciting happened, I was growing quite bored. Let's see what you are and where you are going, perhaps you will offer me a challenge! What say you!"Trees broke and crashed to the ground as the massive dragon flapped her mighty wings, releasing a deafening roar into the sky as she flew off into the air, following the trail of energy that she could sense moving rapidly toward the human nation of Japan.