A/N: Heeey, everybody. Guess what? I'm back from my break, and I'm bringing you a brand new story. Created from the twisted minds of myself and RealmOfEmptiness, or rather Writer of a Thousand Stories as he calls himself these days.

Please do enjoy the coming storm of "oh shits" and whatnot, because guess what? WE'RE JUST GETTING STARTED.

Guren Ichinose stared at the tubes containing the corpses of his squad members and friends, all well preserved and maintained by the blue fluid that he wasn't entirely sure what it did, other than keeping them from decomposing. He stared at them for only a moment longer before turning to the person who stood behind him, still busy setting up the necessary steps to begin what was arguably the worst decision of his life.

"Why did you decide to help me?" Guren asked him with a frown. "From what Mahiru has told me you only get involved when it suits your best interests."

"I have my reasons." the man replied. He was older than Guren, somewhere in his early to mid-twenties, with silver hair that came down to his chain and framed his rather devilish handsome face. He wore simple black pants with a light blue shirt underneath a black coat with geometrical designs and shapes in a techno-style theme. What disturbed Guren deeply were his ruby red eyes, which betrayed his age: they looked like the eyes of an old man, and buried deep inside was a cold, smoldering fire. "Now, let me ask a question of my own. Are you sure you want to go through with this? Mahiru-chan has told you what will happen next, yes?"

Guren's jaw tightened, but nonetheless nodded. "I know the risks." he said, hands balling into fists. "Even so..."

The man stared at Guren, then chuckled, shrugging his shoulders. "I can't tell you how many fools like you I've seen in the past, willing to throw the world aside for their precious people." he said enigmatically, fingers dancing across the keyboard before entering the final key. The machines in the room whirred to life, lighting up in different colors. The tank that sat in the center of the room also lit up, revealing a bizarre humanoid shape with wings spreading out from their back. "There. All the preparations are set. What happens now is all up to you."

As he stepped away the young man approached the computer, staring at it for a moment before he looked back at the setup. All of this before him, at this moment, was the setting of what would begin the Apocalypse. He knew what he was about to do. He was going to kill humanity, all for the sake of a bunch of corpses that he couldn't bear to part with. Not yet. The man had already told him, however, that even if he succeeded they would not live long: they would eventually die again. At best, they had maybe ten years. And he couldn't tell them that they had died, otherwise his efforts would go to waste. They would return to dust if he did so.

Guren looked back at the man as he retreated. Mahiru referred to him as a genius, with skills far above her own. It was he who gave her the resources and notes necessary to finish her research about Cursed Gears and the means to trap demons inside them. And now, it was he who was giving him the means to accomplish his goals. Even so, he felt apprehensive. This man was an enigma. He couldn't tell who he was working for: certainly not for the Hiiragi's, otherwise he'd of heard of this man by now. Given the resources he had provided Guren wanted to believe that he was with the Brotherhood of a Thousand Nights, or the Hyakuya Sect as they had begun to call themselves now, but something didn't seem right. He could also be working for the vampires, possibly. He certainly gave that feeling.

Just as the man was about to reach the door Guren called out, "Just who's side are you on, Naoya?"

Naoya looked over his shoulders, staring back at Guren with a cold smile. "I am on no one's side." he answered simply. "Not the Hyakuya Sect. Not the Hiiragi. And most certainly not the Angels. God is no friend of mine."

Without another word he left the room, closing the door behind him. Guren stared at the door a moment longer before he closed his eyes and sighed deeply in resignation. If he had any second thoughts, now would be the time... but he had none.

He's long since passed the point of no return.

He looked back to the tubes containing his friends and entered the code. Moments later a strange symphony of magic and machine began to sing. The circle below his feet glowed, radiating a cold red light with orbs dancing in the air. The tank in the middle of the room also glowed, the being inside writhing before it let out an inhuman screech. It began thrashing around, its wings twisting and bending in ways that could not possibly be natural.

At that moment, Guren Ichinose had broken the sacred taboo and brought an end to the human race.

A Seraph of the End x Shin Megami Tensei Crossover:

"Paradise Lost"

The act of reviving the dead through the power of an Angel was not without consequence: when the sacred taboo was broken the race called humanity suffered for their perceived arrogance. A plague was heaped upon them. Slowly, the world fell to pieces. And as the ashes fell, only a meager few remained, left behind in this cold and desolate world.

However, humanity was not the only one to occupy this world. There was another race in existence, one that sought to protect their precious food supply: human blood.

They were the Vampires, the Children of the Night.

Scores of surviving humans were gathered and taken to the City of Eternal Night, where they would be kept fresh. The vampires, for all intents and purposes, had gained a foothold in the world for the first time in millennia. The last dregs of humanity, however, refused to allow them to rule and fought back, forming resistance groups.

Among those was the Japanese Imperial Demon Army, led by the infamous Hiiragi family.

Our story, however, begins not with them but with a group of children, taken and imprisoned by the vampires. Children who yearned to see the world up above once again. Children who wanted to escape this cruel nightmare created at the hands of their fellow humans.

Children, who will do whatever it takes to take the future into their own hands...

Capitulum Unus: Dominus Muscae (Chapter One: Lord of the Flies)

"Akane!" Yuuichirou and Mikaeala could only watch in horror and despair as Ferid Bathory, after slaughtering the other members of their family, was about to do the same to the running Akane. The vampire pulled back his hand, ready to slice off the girl's head with his razor sharp nails.

Only for his enhanced vampire senses to catch something that he made sure shouldn't be there yet: the sound of an young, shoe-wearing adult walking. What's more, instead of coming from the vampire city it was coming from the direction of the exit to the surface. "Oh?" His curiosity piqued he stopped in the middle of delivering the blow, allowing Akane to keep running.

Until she bumped into someone just emerging from the tunnel's darkness and ended up falling on her butt. "Yah!"

"Mmh? What's this?"

Akane looked up, eyes widening at the sight. Standing over her was something she hasn't seen in four years: a young, human adult, easily identifiable by the round ears. His eyes were red, yes, but a wine red instead of the blood red of vampires, and lacked the slit-like pupils. Around eighteen years old, he had dual-toned, messy hair, being bleach blonde at the front and black at the back end. He was wearing a red jacket with a black trench-coat over it, four golden buttons forming a square on the chest. His legwear consisted of black pants with two zippers going up to below the knee and black, leather shoes with a gold stripe going across the front.

The young man calmly stared down at Akane with a look of utter indifference before moving his gaze around the area, calmly taking in the children's bodies and finally settling on the vampire. "Am I interrupting something?"

Ferid grinned, amused by the human's complete lack of fear. "As a matter of fact, yes. You're interrupting my game."

"Game? I knew you leeches were sick fucks, but I wasn't quite expecting something like this." The answer was condescending, yet lacking in anger. "Not that I had any expectations to begin with."

"P-Please!" Akane grabbed on the man's trench coat. "Save us!"

"That depends. Your name, little miss?" The man asked, not even bothering to look down at her.

"Akane. Akane Hyakuya."

At those words he finally looked at Akane, his eyes narrowed. "...From the Hyakuya Orphanage?" She frantically nodded. "You too?" He received identical nods from Yuu and Mika. Ferid's expression turned serious: for this human to know about the Orphanage...he must be aware of the children's real identity. He wasn't wearing the JIDA uniform, so a member of another surviving organization? "Well, that makes my job easier." The man turned to Ferid. "Those three come with me leech. You can have the rest."

"I don't think so." With a burst of speed that put everything he showed until now to shame the vampire appeared behind the human and thrust his nails forward, aiming to rip off his head from the shoulders.

An instant later Ferid's nails stopped a few centimeters from reaching their goal, his wrist held in the man's vice-like grip. The vampire's eyes widened as he felt his flesh and bones being crushed. "I wasn't asking for permission." The man calmly informed the vampire before tossing him away with such force all three children were knocked down by the shockwave.

Ferid managed to flip his body and land on all four, the impact carving a large hole in the ground. There was no mirth left in his face. "What are you? No human is that strong."

"No unaugmented human, no." The man replied with a hollow smirk before reaching within his trench coat to pull out... a cellphone? Uncaring of the looks he was receiving he flipped it open and pressed a few buttons. Immense magical energy began to pour out of the man, so thick and strong even Ferid felt himself chocking on it. The children had it even worse, falling on their knees and emptying their stomachs. "Come, Nyarlathotep!"

The magical energy gathered together and formed a magical circle on the ground, from which a monstrous creature crawled out. Despite having a humanoid form its skin was an oily black, hands and feet replaced by grotesque pincers. Two large bat-like wings emerged from its back, somehow keeping it airborne without moving.

The worst part, however, was the face. Or better yet, the lack of it: where in a human you could find a mouth, a nose and eyes there was only a smooth black surface marred only by five lumps located where the forehead should be. Finally, on the top of its head was a spike-covered golden crown.

I AM THE NO-FACED CHAOS. I AM BEYOND TIME AND SPACE.

The monster spoke in a cacophony of a thousand different voices, though the children recognized the voices of the parents that abused and abandoned them, while Ferid heard both the voices of his sire and the First Progenitor.

I AM THE VILE NYARLATHOTEP.

Ferid shuddered when the monster's attention focused on him. For the first time in centuries, his immortal body remembered the meaning of 'fear'.

CHAOS WAVE.

The creature swung its arm, seemly at nothing.

Only Ferid's deep-rooted fighting instincts saved him from what followed: he jumped to the side mere moments before the space he previously occupied and a large part of the subterranean structure behind it was annihilated, crushed beyond recognition. Powerful vampires like him can use their swords to generate an air wave that has a similar effect, but the monster's attack went above that: it was almost like the blow hit everywhere at once in the affected area, an instant of omnipresence aimed to inflict absolute destruction.

"How surprising: a mere human was capable of making a contract with the Crawling Chaos itself." The vampire's eyes flicked between the monster and the man that summoned it, his whole body tensing in order to react to the smallest movement. Against a Demon of that rank, and unarmed too, he couldn't afford anything less than his 100%. "Or not? Could it be you were just given power without really earning it?"

"Could it be you talk too much?" The young man commented with a mocking smile. While his eyes followed Ferid as he dodged two more attacks of Nyarlathotep he pressed another key of his phone. Another magic circle appeared next to him, much smaller and weaker than the previous one, and from it emerged a multicolored, grotesque hybrid between a bird and a seahorse. "Zhen. Take the brats and bring them outside." He commanded while slipping the phone back into his coat.

"I won't let you!" With a burst of speed Ferid sailed past Nyarlathotep during the gap between attacks, aiming at the still dazed Mika. Only to be forced to shift into a defensive stance midway, the human tackling him with such force his bones groaned.

"Wow! Are you really so thirsty?!" He told Ferid with a savage smirk as the two slammed into a wall. His hand balled into a fist and punched at the vampire's face, who barely managed to move his head out of the way before the blow pulverized the wall behind him. At the same time Ferid's hand sneaked where he saw the human hide his phone, but the man's own hand was already there to smack it away. "Or maybe you're a cunning bastard who thinks he can distract me."

As gravity started to pull both back Ferid disengaged, immediately using the wall as a stepping stone to avoid another Chaos Wave. "So your device doesn't just summon Demons, it's also the source of your unnatural strength. If it was demonic possession you wouldn't need to summon another demon to fight for you."

Meanwhile the Zhen has picked up the three children, two for each claw and one in its beak, and started flying towards the exit. Ferid kicked a piece of rubble at the demon, aiming to crush its head, only for the projectile to be crushed by the human's fist. "Cunning and intelligent? What a rare breed of leech." The tone of dual-tone haired man remained mocking, seemingly unaffected from having a potential weak point discovered. "It's a pity I don't have time to spare: you would make for a great exhibition piece. Nyarlathotep!"

The Outer God moved from its position for the first time, wings flapping once at it barreled towards Ferid, pincers poised to skewer him. At the same time the human jumped back, fist glowing with an orange light before he swung it upward. "Heat Wave!"

A wave of orange energy crashed into the ceiling, causing the already unstable structure to start collapsing. "No!" Ferid shouted at the sight of his Mikaeala slipping out of his grasp before he could make him into a vampire. For a fraction of second his body was torn between two courses of action: reaching the exist before it was sealed by the collapse, which would however open his back to Nyarlathotep, or stay and fend off the Demon's assault until the duration of its summoning ended. In the end the desire to survive long enough to see his plans come into fruition won: he spared a last glance at the retreating Demon Summoner, silently promising vengeance and bemoaning years of planning going down the drain, before focusing back on the rampaging Outer God.

Akane stared breathlessly out the window, unable to believe her eyes. Beside her Mika held the same dazzled expression whereas Yuu, while also taken away by the scenery, leveled a glare at the stranger who sat in the driver seat as he lead them through the empty and desolate streets of Japan. They were in winter, it seemed, because heavy amounts of snow caked the ground and streets, with ice dangling from the edges of banners, roofs and street lamps.

"This is... the sky, isn't it?" Akane asked quietly. "I almost forgot what it looked like."

"It has been so long." Mika nodded in agreement before he lowered his head. "I wish the little ones could see it too..."

Yuu's hands gripped onto the fabric of his pants tightly. His chest burned with anger as he glared at the young man in the car seat. Why hadn't he come earlier? Why didn't he show up when they needed him the most? Why couldn't he have shown up sooner? He knew that it was useless to think and ask questions like that, but even so he couldn't help but hold some form of resentment towards him. "Hey, you."

"I do have a name, you know." the young man called back, keeping his eyes on the road. "It's Minegishi. Kira Minegishi."

"Whatever." the young orphan scoffed. "Where are you taking us, anyway? I thought all the adults died!? And what in hell were those things back there?!"

"First question: I'm taking you three to Akihabara. It's one of the few places the vampires wouldn't dare approach, namely because any that tried ended up dead in seconds. Second question: Only about 87% of the adults died off thanks to the Apocalypse Virus. The few that are still alive here in Japan mounted a resistance movement called the Japanese Imperial Demon Army. I know nothing about the adults overseas that survived as well. Third question: that was Nylarathotep, a member of the Vile Race, and Zhen, a member of the Raptor Race. They're Demons."

Mika choked, staring at the now-named Kira with large eyes while Akane recoiled in fright. "D-Demons?!"

"Yep. Ordinarily you need to go through a bunch of complicated steps to summon them, but the app installed on my phone does all that for me. They don't last very long, though, so I usually only have them out in short bursts. Especially ones that eat up magnetite like crazy." Kira answered before he looked over his shoulder at Yuu with a bored look. "That satisfied your curiosity, brat?"

"No!" The boy shouted. "What do you mean with demons?! How can the app of a phone do something like that? And what's the hell is magnetite?!"

"You spent four years as a blood bank for vampires after the world ended, and you're surprised that Demons exist?" Kira laughed. "Brat, the supernatural is real. All the fantastical creatures you heard about, from youkai to gods? They exist, just not on this plane of existence. Magic, however, can make them materialize here. Regarding my phone and Magnetite... I'm not really the guy you should ask about them."

Kira's revelation should have shocked Yuu, but the last four years taught him a few things: among them is to not immediately dismiss everything that doesn't fall within his world's view as nonsense. It was a skill necessary to survive in Sanguinem without losing one's mind. "Who then? Who can answer my questions?!"

"You're starting to be annoying, brat." The car turned around a corner. Before Kira could continue, however, a beeping sound was heard within the car. "They're here too? Good."

Kira slammed down his foot on the brake, the car coming to a violent halt that jostled around the kids, Yuu ending with his nose bleeding after his face hit the back of Kira's seat. "What the hell are you doing?!"

"Keeping your asses safe." Was Kira's dispassionate response as he dismounted from the car. By chance Mika saw the man's reflection on the side-view mirror.

He was grinning. A smile so bloodthirsty, so similar to Ferid as he slaughtered his family that for a moment the blonde boy expected to see fangs emerge from behind the lips.

The young man took out his phone and flipped it open, checking the screen. Then he put it back and began to walk towards a nearby building. A few seconds later the front of the building exploded as something massive crashed through it. The children's eyes widened as they saw a massive monster larger than a van, with many legs like a spider and wings growing out from random points of its body. It rushed towards Kira, aiming to crush him under its mole.

"Power Hit."

Immediately after uttering those words the trenchcoat-wearing man dashed forwards at super-speed, the ground where he previously stood shattering. His fist sunk into the monster's chest, flesh folding like paper before the whole upper body exploded like a balloon. "...Disappointing." Kira muttered as his feet touched the ground again, the monster's body collapsing behind him. Despite his words, however, he had yet to stop smiling. "Weaklings only good for farming Magnetite are no fun at all."

"What-" Akane gasped as she and the other two children watched two more creatures emerged from the building, all bearing down on them with killing intent. "What are those things?!"

"The Four Horsemen of John." Kira answered with disinterest. "They appeared not long after the Apocalypse Virus hit. They hunt down and kill any humans they find." His smile grew to disturbing proportions as he cracked his knuckles. The Horsemen approached, mandibles clicking and letting out horrifying screeches. "Alright... Let's get to work."

"It's been a while since the last time we talked, Ichinose. Four years, if I remember correctly."

Inside one of Akihabara's many shopping centers there was a fairly large room filled with tons of equipment, some of which unlike anything that humans could have produced. Consoles and towers of machinery littered most of it, with wires strewn about all across the floor. However the mess went unnoticed by Naoya, who sat in front of a computer as his hands flew across the keyboard at lightning speed, new streams and bits of data appearing on the screen every second.

"It has been a while." Guren Ichinose acknowledged. "I hear you've become a wanted criminal by the Hiiragi family. The old coots won't say anything, but Mahiru more or less told me the gist." There was a brief pause of silence before Guren continued. "It's going to happen, isn't it? In four years."

Naoya smiled. "The Hiiragi Family intends to use it for their own personal gain, but they sorely underestimate what is it to come. I can delay it by at least half a year, but in four years it will occur. When it does happen, well..."

"Right, I get it. You know, I was intending on fulfilling that little prophecy that Mahiru and you told me about, but imagine my surprise when I found the entrance to Sanguinem collapsed and vampire ashes strewn across the snow. Something you want to tell me, Naoya?"

The silver-haired man laughed softly. "I can hardly control what Kira does. Besides, prophecies are nothing more but mindless guessing: even if it were to come true, there is always the chance it would fail." He looked to the side, seeing a flashing light on the console next to him. "Hm, it seems Kira has returned."

"Oi, Naoya. What are going to do with them?"

"What indeed?" Naoya ended the call there. Setting the phone down he stood up and made his way over to the entrance to his humble abode. He opened the door, allowing a cold breeze to blow over him. Kira's jeep was parked on the other side of the street, with three children in white jumpsuits with hoods standing in front of it. The dual-tone haired man was halfway across the street, hands in his pockets with streaks of blood marring his clothes. "Kira. I do hope that isn't your blood."

"Ran into Horsemen along the way." He shrugged. "Nothing to worry about, Naoya-dono."

"Of course. You grew up wonderfully during those last years." Naoya nodded with his usual smile before his gaze rested on the children. "Just three?"

"My apologies, the rest were killed by a leech."

"That's fine, this is already more than I expected."

Yuu stared at Naoya with a scowl, wondering who he was to inspire such respect from that asshole of Kira. By the silver hair and red eyes alone he looked like Ferid's long-lost brother. "Are you a vampire?" He asked, harshly.

Akane and Mika gasped at the brazen words of their friend, but the silver-haired man merely chuckled. "I do have the looks, huh?" He pulled back his upper lips, revealing perfectly normal human teeth. "But I applaud your caution. What are your names, little ones?"

The boy relaxed at the proof the adult wasn't a vampire. "Yuuichirou. Yuuichirou Hyakuya."

"Akane Hyakuya." The girl replied, still overwhelmed by everything that happened that day.

"Mikaeala Hyakuya." Mika replied before continuing with a respectful tone. "Naoya-san, what's happening? Why did Kira-san bring us here?"

"Why you, of all people?" Naoya grinned, his eyes boring into the children with almost frightening intensity. "Tell me: if I told you there was a way to fix this broken world, how far would you be willing to go to grasp it?"

Call it what you will—
A revelation from God, or a curse of the demon king.
The fact remains that our world came to an end.

A heretic called upon an unearthly light, and devastation ensued.
Chaos crawled out of the depths of the ocean, from the black abyss.

Death upon death... nothing but death in this barren land.
Who can we pray to? There are only demons and fiends here.

A voice in the dark beguiles me, "Truth is a mystery, unraveled by the candles' flames."
—from the journal of a man who wandered into another world

In a room concealed by shadows a pair of dark gray eyes opened slowly. The sound of a curtain being pulled entered his ears, just as the shadows receded back and light filled the room, revealing black-and-red checkered floor and lavish furniture, including a fireplace with the mantle adorned by a goat's head. The owner of these gray eyes looked forward, finding a sight that would make an ordinary man tremble in fright: a blood red ocean stood out before him, surrounded by flesh-covered walls with vents of peculiar design. Inside those vents dark shapes could be vaguely seen, their glowing eyes peering out.

In the center of this bloody red ocean was an individual standing atop a small golden platform. Their eyes were half-lidded, as if awakening from their sleep, but everyone could tell that they were conscious.

"...So, this is the one." the old man spoke with a hint of amusement.

His head was thinning, but possessed long gray hair that fell to his shoulders. He was garbed in a fine white suit with a black dress shirt and tie, sitting in a wheelchair with a cane in hand. Beside him was a young woman, dressed all in black with a funeral veil obscuring the upper half of her face. The old man's lips curled into a small grin as he stared at the person with intrigue and subtle awe.

"To think that a child bearing the blood of God would find themselves here... Is it in your destiny to walk the path of thorns? Or, perhaps, you will discard your wings and sink yourself into the depths of depravity? Either way, fate has shown you to the First Sinner's doorstep..."

"Who... are you...?" the person asked, voice echoing across the vast space they stood in. "Where... is this place?"

"Where we are is of no concern to you at this moment. As to who I am..." the old gentleman began, raising his head to an unseen ceiling. "Hm, I suppose you could say I am... someone who watches with interest." He then returned his gaze back to the Seraph of the End that stood before him. "And what of you, Angel? What is your name?"

"My name is..."

Their voice drifted into silence, as if censored. Even so, the old man's smile grew.

"It's morning. Get up."

The small form lying on the bed grumbled and turned to the other side, pulling the blankets over their head. Only to yelp when a foot on their side roughly shoved them off the bed and on the ground. "I said to get up, brat." Kira said with a dispassionate tone, one leg still raised and extended.

"What the hell?!" Yuu swore as he stood up and glared murder at the older boy. "Is this how you wake up people?"

"No, this is how I woke up you." He pointed to the other beds in the small room the Hyakuya children were given after the exhausting events of yesterday. Yuu's eyes softened as they followed Kira's fingers and saw that during the night Akane has crawled on Mika's bed and fell asleep next to the blonde, clutching his jumpsuit. He couldn't really blame her: Akane was even more gentler than Mika, she probably took the loss of the other children even harder. "Get those two moving, or they'll get the same treatment."

"You're a real asshole, you know that?" Yuu spat.

"So I've been told." Kira stoically replied before walking out of the room to lean on the doorframe. "Now hurry up. We don't have all day. And take a shower for God's sake, you stink."

"Fuck you!"

Kira's lips tugged upward. "You kiss your mother with that mouth?"

'Oh, I hate him. I hate him so much!' Yuuichiro Hyakuya thought with venom before he sighed and got up from his spot on the floor, moving over to Mika and Akane. "Hey, guys. Come on, it's morning." he said, gently shaking the two. When that didn't work he sighed and resorted to the best method he knew. Something that usually earned him a kick to the face, courtesy of this damn blonde.

He took a deep breath and then yelled: "WAKE UP!"

Akane yelped, leaping up like a frightened cat with her hair standing on end. Mika, on the other hand, reacted swiftly and struck Yuu in the face with his foot, once again knocking him to the floor and leaving him to clutch his face. At first both children were dazed and confused by what they saw as they looked around the room. Understandable, given that this was their first actual look at the place since they just dozed off into bed as soon as they tucked themselves in. It was only when they saw Kira standing by the door did they finally remember.

"...It wasn't a dream."

"Nope." Kira replied. "If it was, you'd probably be with the others." He then pointed to the writhing Yuu. "By the way, this always happen?"

"Why me...?"

Per Kira's suggestion the Hyakuya orphans all soaked themselves off in the bath. During their time in Sanguinem the children would simply be led into a room where water fell over their bodies, followed by a blast of hot air to dry them off instantly. As a result they could never find the time to actually enjoy being in a bath tub: Akane and Mika soaked in it for longer than they should have, while Yuu was merely sitting on the stool deep in thought while he washed himself.

Everything just seemed so... weird. After being held in captivity for four years he came to accept the vampires for what they were: blood sucking monsters that deserved to burn in hell. But then Kira and Naoya appeared, and following that came the existence of demons. Finally there was what Naoya told them.

"Tell me: if I told you there was a way to fix this broken world, how far would you be willing to go to grasp it?"

Naturally he was skeptical of such claims. Naoya himself seemed to have expected it and promised they would get the full picture later before he led them to their bedrooms. Even so Yuu didn't trust the man: not just because of his appearance, but because his overall demeanor just screamed eerie and manipulative.

Once they were done the children exited the bathroom to find fresh clothes already prepared for them. Yuu wore a simple light green shirt with a black hoodie and dark pants, while Mika had on a white t-shirt with black stripes forming into a star near the hem of his shirt, complete with black denim pants. Akane merely wore a long-sleeved yellow shirt, somewhat big on her, with white shorts that ended a bit below the knees.

"...Do I even want to know why you had kid clothes?" Yuu asked once they met with Kira and Naoya.

Kira shrugged. "In our defense it was what we scrounged up. Wasn't expecting to be taking in a bunch of brats."

"Now now, Kira." Naoya lightly chastised his apparent student. "Don't be so crass with them." The red-eyed man then gestured to the table he had prepared, which had been set up with cloth, silverware and food. "It's a bit on the stale side, but I imagine it will fill you up nicely, considering you were eating out of food packs for four years."

There was no denying that. After all Sanguinem never had bread and soup, things like the curry they are before leaving the vampire city being considered an exceptional treat. Within moments the children were at the table, digging in with gusto. Kira snorted with some amusement, linking the sight to a bunch of starving dogs, which may or may not have been too far off the mark. Akane coughed haphazardly when she started to eat too quickly, forcing it down with a few quick gulps of water. In a few minutes, the soup and bread had been polished off.

"Thank you for the food." Mika said with a small smile. "That was... wonderful."

"No kidding." Yuu muttered. "Haven't had a decent meal like that in years." He then looked up at Naoya, who sat across from them with his smile still present. "Okay, Naoya. You said you'd give us an explanation about yesterday, so spill it. What the hell's a demon? And why was Kira at Sanguinem?" He looked at the dual-toned man. "I doubt you came to rescue us, otherwise you'd have done a hell of a lot more."

"Hm, you're a sharp one. You are correct on the last one: I sent Kira merely to investigate the situation at Sanguinem. The odds of finding you all there were an added bonus. As for the subjects, I believe you've seen them for yourself." Taking out his phone Naoya gave a few inputs before a black and red shape suddenly emerged next to him. Initially it looked like a shapeless ball of mass that was writhing, settling the kids on end. Soon it solidified and gathered into a physical shape, becoming a small little girl no bigger than the average adult's palm, with milky skin and red hair and dressed in a blue leotard. "This is Pixie, a member of the Fairy Race. She's among the lowest level of demons out there. In comparison Nylarathotep is of a higher class, mainly because of its magnetite level."

"Magnetite?" Akane asked. Naoya dug into his pocket before he pulled out what looked like some kind of test tube with a cork stuffed neatly into its mouth, filled with glowing green liquid. "What's that?"

"Liquid magnetite. Somewhat hard to manufacture, unless you know what you're doing. It's very potent, and can let a demon remain corporeal for weeks."

Mika tilted his head. "But, what is Magnetite? Is it like demon food?"

"Not quite. While demons are gluttons for it, it's more accurate to say magnetite is what made up their bodies." Naoya put the tube on the table. Meanwhile a fascinated Akane has reached out with a hand to Pixie, the little girl letting her body being touched with a giggle. Though she moved her wings out of the way when the Hyakuya girl tried to do the same to them, a frown telling Akane to not do that. "The more magnetite a demon has, the stronger they are. Summoning a demon involves first and foremost providing them with enough magnetite to manifest a body and fuel their abilities."

"Demons aren't really here, so to say." Kira added, chin resting on one hand. "If killed they simply return to their world, or in our case within our phones, until we give them enough magnetite to create a new body."

"That's convenient." Yuu blinked in amazement. "Where does magnetite come from?"

"Mostly human bodies."

"I se-WHAT?!"

Naoya chuckled at the children's shocked faces, Kira cracking a grin. "Magnetite is a mystical substance born from the flow of strong emotions, so naturally humans have an abundance of it, especially when they are in a panicked or fearful state. I harvested most of my initial reserves of Magnetite from those killed by the Apocalypse Virus, but since then I took it from the Horsemen. That also includes vampires: because of their unique physiology they can store twice the amount of magnetite a human is capable of. In order for a demon to remain stable in this world they need to consume magnetite, so they primarily hunt down humans and vampires." Naoya made a wry grin when he saw the terrified look on Akane's face as she inched away from Pixie, thus making the tiny girl pout. "However, it is also possible to control a demon. You've already seen it for yourself with Kira."

"And how were you able to do that?" Mika asked curiously. "Does it have something to do with your phone?"

"As a matter of fact, it does." Naoya held out his phone as he opened it, revealing a dark red screen with what looked like a pentagram, which occasionally glitched out. "This is the Demon Summoning Program, a system of my own design. Ordinarily you would have to use a series of steps to summon a demon and forge a contract with it, but this helps simplifies things."

"U-Uhm!" Akane raised a hand like she was at school. "Kira-san defeated those monsters without using demons. He isn't a vampire, so how is he so strong?"

Yuu and Mika, who looked at the girl when she spoke out first, snapped their heads back to Kira. The black-haired boy almost forgot about it, but he indeed witnessed the young man perform superhuman feats that put to shame even a vampire.

If it was possible for him to gain the same power, then he could-

"That!" Naoya clapped his hands, pulling Yuu away from his thoughts. The silver-haired man was grinning. "Is an excellent question. The answer lies in another feature of the Demon Summoning Program: the Harmonizer. The theory behind it is too complicate to explain, so I'll use simple words: using sound waves that cannot be heard by the human ear the Harmonizer adjusts the difference between humans and demons, allowing the former to fake the characteristics of the latter. In short, by using it a human can become as strong as a demon, and even use special abilities."

"The downside-" Kira flashed them a nasty smile. "Is that you fully depend on the app running properly, so if you lose your phone, it breaks or if the battery is drained then you go back to being a squishy meatsack."

"A terrible downside, but still a useful tool to have. Anything else?"

Mika nodded. "When you found us, you asked if we were from the Hyakuya Orphanage." he recalled, earning a nod from Kira. Yuu couldn't help but notice how something changed in Naoya's eyes, a small smile beginning to develop on his face. "If we weren't from the Hyakuya Orphanage, would you have left us there...?"

"As I said earlier it was simple reconnaissance." Naoya shrugged. "But the way I see it you three are something of a rarity, even in this world."

"Rarity?" Akane frowned.

Kira looked at Naoya with a frown. "Oi. Are we really going to tell them?" he said. "I don't really care, but they're just brats. I don't wanna deal with the aftermath."

"They'll eventually find out on their own." Naoya waved a hand in dismissal. "Better for them to know now."

"Know what?!" Yuu asked angrily. "Just tell us already?! What's the real reason you saved us?!"

"To start with, the vampires told you that most of the adults in the world died because of a virus, correct?" Naoya asked, earning a nod from the children. It was more or less a fact that has been drilled into their heads, along with the reality that they were alone to fend for themselves and fight back against the vampires. The fact that there were adults left in the world was of some comfort to them, but only so little. "What if I told you that the Apocalypse Virus was, in truth, caused by someone breaking the laws of this world?"

The children looked at one another in confusion before turning back to Naoya. "Breaking the laws of this world?" Akane asked. "What-what does that mean?"

"It is said that the world was created in seven days, each followed by the sounding of a trumpet. And that when humanity's day of judgement would arrive, the world would die in seven days, again followed by the trumpets sounding off. The holders of those trumpets are known as the Seraphs of the End. But we know them by another name: the Trumpeter." Naoya explained. "Certain humans are born with a unique genetic code. This genetic coding is known as the seraph gene."

"The... seraph gene?"

Kira nodded. "Those with the seraph gene pretty much develop capabilities far beyond any human. And, like vampires, they're capable of holding an incredible amount of magnetite in their bodies: ten times higher than a vampire, in fact. Because of that, however, there was a group who was interested in researching and using them for their own experiments."

"There are several organizations in the world that experiment on those with the seraph gene. However, this group was... much worse." Naoya stated, holding up a finger. "They were known as the Brotherhood of a Thousand Nights. Though these days they're known by another name." He paused for a moment, as if contemplating something, before he shrugged. "They call themselves the Hyakuya Sect."

Both Yuu and Akane took the news in strides. Only Mika made the connection, his eyes widening in realization. "Like our orphanage?" Yuu asked.

"Idiot." Kira said in a deadpan tone as he poured himself a cup of coffee.

The black-haired boy snarled. "What did you say, you-"

"Yuu-chan. Quiet." Mika ordered with uncharacteristic seriousness, enough to stop Yuu by sheer surprise. The blonde boy stared at Naoya, lips draw into a line. "Naoya-san. Is... Is there a connection between this Hyakuya Sect and the Hyakuya Orphanage?"

"Good. Very, very good." The silver-haired man praised, the smile on his lips widening. "You get it."

Before he could elaborate, however, the door to the room slammed open. "Hi! Hi! Everyone, are you ready?!" A girl jumped inside, making a few pirouettes before stopping in front of the table, making the 'V' victory gesture and winking. Around 15-16 years old, she had black hair tied into a pair of twintails and violet eyes. She was wearing a black, white and magenta frilly dress, white gloves and stylish glasses. "It's your favorite YouTube Idol Anko-chan!"

The Hyakuya children gaped at the girl, Naoya silently nodded in greeting and Kira completely ignored her.

"Isuna-san. You know that is not the proper way to greet people." Following after her was an older man around his twenties, both eyes and meticulously groomed hair a rust-coloured brown. He possessed sharp features, his lips set into a scowl, and was wearing a suit of impeccable making.

"Great, the Freak Brigade is now assembled." Kira commented before taking a sip of coffee.

"Mouuu~! Naoya-sama, Kira is showing his true nature as a vulgar thug again!" The girl pouted, while the man scowl deepened.

"Anko-chan, by now you should've realized this is just how Kira is." Naoya tilted his head towards the newcomers while looking at the Hyakuya children. "Let me introduce you to the final members of Akibahara's Demon Summoners: Anko Isuna and Kimitada Fukutsuchi."

Fukutsuchi bowed his head in greeting. Isuna, however, saw the children and immediately gushed. Stars dazzled in her eyes as she practically dashed over and grabbed Akane and Yuu from their seats, pulling them into a tight hug and pressing them against her rather sizable bust. "Omigoshomigosh! You are just the most adorable little cuties I've ever seen!"

"Ack!" Yuu gasped. "Too tight! Too tight!" Akane also struggled, though she strangely found the older girl's embrace to be quite comforting.

It took a moment for Isuna to realize that she was holding children. As in, honest-to-god children. A sight she was not accustomed to, unless she was in, say, Shibuya or Shinjuku. "Naoya-sama. Where'd you find these cuties?"

"They're brats from Sanguinem." Kira informed her. "Meet the Hyakuya trio. The one with the braid is Akane, the blonde one is Mikaela and the little shit with a scowl stuck to his face is Yuuichiro."

Yuu felt the vein on his forehead throb violently as he glared at Kira, who promptly grinned back at him. He promised to himself the bastard would suffer untold amounts of pain the moment he got the chance. Isuna blinked once or twice before looking down at the children, then back at Naoya. "When you say Hyakuya... are we talking about-?"

"We were just discussing that, actually." Naoya nodded. "And yes, they're from the Hyakuya Orphanage: they attempted to escape Sanguinem, but a few of them were killed. The only reason they're even still alive was because Kira found them while he was investigating the entrance."

"Consider yourself lucky." Fukutsuchi told them as he took a seat at the table. "The only reason Kira saved you is because Naoya-sama ordered us to keep an eye out for people from the Hyakuya Orphanage."

"Yup." Said dual-toned boy shamelessly confirmed.

"Still, I am surprised you are still alive." The man continued after a brief glare of disapproval towards Kira. "I thought the vampires would have easily made the connection and eliminated you to ensure nobody could experiment on the seraph gene again."

"...So it's true?" Mika said quietly, a faraway look in his eyes. "One of us from the Hyakuya Orphanage had this 'seraph gene'?"

"All the children in the Hyakuya Orphanage have the Seraph Gene. You three included." Naoya bluntly told them. "The orphanage was founded by the Hyakuya Sect and served to gather the children that were found possessing the Seraph Gene." Naoya began to operate his phone again, the Pixie vanishing with a wave of her hand. Once done he put it on the table and pushed it in front of the children. "I started destroying the surviving bases of the Hyakuya Sect and other similar organization after the disaster four years ago. Those are some examples of what I found."

Mika looked at the phone-and promptly felt all the food he ate coming back. The screen was showing the picture of a glass tank filled with murky blue liquid. And inside of it was a little boy no older than eight: his body was horrendously twisted, with feathers covering his limbs and malformed wings growing at random points all over his body, one even replacing his left leg. Only half of his face was visible, the rest covered by a fleshy black growth.

"Hey! Let me go!" Yuu renewed his struggles to escape Isuna's grasp. "I want to see too!"

"NO!" Eyes widening in fright, Mika slapped the phone away with all his strength. It flipped in the air before being skillfully caught by a grinning Naoya. "That... that..."

"That was what condemned humanity to destruction: forbidden experiments using the power of a Seraph of the End. The power of God." Naoya's smile widened, turning bloodthirsty and hateful. "Some God is it, huh? For the sins of a few he decided all of humanity must die, sinners and innocent alike."

Isuna's strength lessened as she bent down and let the children go, allowing them to join Mika. The poor boy looked like he was on the edge of crying, tears prickling his eyes. Akane immediately wrapped her arms around him in an effort to try and calm him down while Yuu was utterly stunned: he hadn't seen the blonde like this since the time he found out that Ferid had played him for a fool. Actually, he thought Mika looked even worse now. He looked over at Naoya, hands balling into fists. "You're lying." he said, garnering the silver-haired man's attention. "We don't remember being experimented on! The people there cared about us, which is a hell of a lot more than I can say about our parents. This has to be a joke!"

"Then do you want to remember?" Fukutsuchi asked, startling Yuu. "After each experiment was completed the Hyakuya Sect erased the children's memories, as to not arouse suspicion. Memory manipulation is one of the easiest skills in the book, and it works considerably well on children. If you want, we can have you remember those days." He made a face, as if disgusted, before he waved a hand. "I wouldn't recommend it, though."

"Don't you dare!" Isuna cried angrily.

"It's their decision."

"They don't have to choose, now or in the future." Naoya spoke, ending the argument. "The people who did it are already dead, so there's no practical reason to recall those memories. No, what's important is that you three, without a doubt, possess the seraph gene. Just to be clear, it is very unlikely your powers will activate without external intervention. And even if they did the essence of a Trumpeter will take control of you and try to carry out its role: the complete destruction of humanity." He loudly tapped the table for emphasis. "Three of the Seven Trumpeters awakened already: one unleashed the Apocalypse Virus, the second rained fire and brimstone to destroy the work of man and turned the oceans blood red, and the third summoned the Horsemen. The first two have been killed - with great sacrifices - and the third was sealed. Four Trumpeters have yet to awaken, and as long as people with the seraph gene exist there's a chance those four will come to finish the job."

"Than what do you want us to do?!" Startling Akane Mika slammed his fists on the table, tears finally pouring from his eyes. "Just roll over and die?"

"On the contrary: I want you to fight and shatter this fate decided by someone else." Naoya didn't shout, yet his words echoed as if he did. "Remember what I told you yesterday? Why I wanted you brought here?"

"...A way to fix this broken world." Yuu muttered. "What do you mean with that?"

"The power to shape the universe through your beliefs. To decide the underlining philosophy the world's natural laws will follow, and change it into whatever form you desire." Fukutsuchi replied, as if reciting a passage from a book. "A power that, ironically enough, God gave humanity upon its creation."

"The power-" Something flashed within Naoya's eyes. "-of the Conception."

Unbeknownst to Naoya, across the street where his home base stood, the elderly man from before sat in his wheel chair attended by the woman in black, looking on as if capable of witnessing the conversation that was being held inside the building. And he was: despite being so far away he could hear every word being spoken. Every emotion being carried in their voices. The choices and decisions that were being made. A path was being forged at that very moment, but what sort of path was it? What would it lead to? The thought brought a smile to the old man's face as he looked up at the dark sky hanging overhead, nostalgia flickering in his hazel gray eyes.

"It's been far too long since the world was shaped." he said slowly, drumming his fingers against his knee. "And again, far too long since humanity has proven its mettle. How ironic that the world will be shaped again. But by whose hand shall it be? Will it be at the hands of men who seek to create a world simply for themselves? Or will it be at the hands of these children, who bear the blood of God in their veins?"

It was so interesting to think about. So many possibilities, and yet all of them pertained to the scenario that man had in mind. He would have made his presence known, but now was not the time. Not yet. Not when everything was still in the works. Soon, however, he would be able to approach that young child. Soon, the two of them would finally shatter these shackles.

And, perhaps, give way to something even greater.

"What do you think about all of this..."

The old man craned his head, looking at the youth who was standing beside him. His skin was slightly pale, and a green hood obscured most of his face. However, the flesh that was exposed revealed black tribal tattoos with pulsating green markings, some of which could be seen glowing faintly under the jacket. Underneath the shadows of his hood, however, a pair of glowing yellow eyes were peering at the three children inside the building.

"...my Demi-Fiend?"

The depths of the Great Abyss burst forth, and the gates of Heaven are flung open.

And, in this lightless age of corruption,
we yearn for a new messiah.