How are you all doing? Good! Here's the longest chapter I've written for this story ever. Over 7,000 words long.

Goes a bit into detail on what happens to a stray devil after they officially go stray. I hope it's interesting.

Hope you enjoy!

Chapter 6: Catalyst

The birdman – Alex, yes! His name was Alex, he swears – ruffled the feathers on his head in frustration. To say things didn't go to plan was putting it mildly. Did Iudex know this? This wasn't just any High-Class devil, this was an Agares. The time manipulators, the family known for capturing criminals. He knew it the moment the Agares Heiress seemed to move faster than anything he'd ever seen before. It was terrifying when it happened, and the he'd fallen and broken several bones. He needed the nekomata. With her Senjutsu she could increase his healing. He's not a coward. He swears it on his life!

Or maybe he is a coward, just like in the War-

The birdman's head ached as he trudged around the side of the mansion. This is the first step. A stray devil will slowly lose their memories, their emotions, and turn into beings of pure instinct and sin, constantly searching for power. The birdman stray known as Alex was scared, but it was still a while until that would happen to him.

At least, he hoped so.

He turned a corner, nursing his broken ribs, and spotted the red-haired nekomata, her red ears and fluffy red tail out. Already she was working on a stray devil, this one having lost an arm of all things, and turned to him when he came.

The nekomata's fearful yellow eyes looked at him. Why does she look so much like-

The birdman pressed on, growling like an angry parrot as he got closer, causing the red-haired nekomata to begin shivering and bowing down. She wasn't always like this, Alex – his name was Alex, right? Yes, he was sure it was – remembered the bright smile she had when she first arrived in the Conclave about a year ago. She was brought by him, the Kingslayer, and she was so full of life.

Iudex fixed that. He didn't do anything especially horrendous – Iudex was more likely to consider that too easy – and slowly broke her down over time. It only took three weeks for the nekomata to become the sniveling and cowardly thing before him.

That didn't matter though. She was useful. Iudex said so. And so, Alex would not kill him.

…His name was Alex, right?

"Yooooou!" The birdman known as Alex screeched, pointing a scaly clawed finger at the nekomata. "Heeeaal! Noooow! Before they come heeeeeere!"

"B-But I-I'm not-" She stuttered. Her voice might have been nice to listen to if it didn't sound so broken.

The stray devil who was currently being healed looked at Alex – Yes, his name is Alex – with anger. "Not done! Not done yet!"

The birdman snarled. Quickly losing control of his temper, he took one clawed hand and swiped it across the one-armed stray's neck. He watched on as the one-armed stray began choking on his own black blood. Alex looked on with little feeling. This reminded him how, one time, his master did that to one of his Resurrected Devils for daring to speak out against their treatment.

All Alex wanted to do was go home, so he had-

Alex grabbed the sides of his head as his beaked mouth opened and closed over and over again, making a slight 'tap' sound each time it closed. A few seconds after he had killed the one-armed stray he turned back to the nekomata.

"Heeaaaal now! Nooooooow!" Alex – yes, his name – screeched. Slowly approaching the nekomata.

"I-I-!" The nekomata stuttered, clamming up with fear, her yellow eyes waiting for Alex to make a move.

And make a move he did. He was losing his patience. At this point, when the nekomata healed him, he'd leave. Run far, far away. Away from here, away from everything. This was too much. Iudex can go screw himself for all he cared at this point.

Alex grabbed the nekomata by the throat with both hands and squeezed.

"No heal, no liiiiife!" The birdman screamed while the nekomata choked and gagged, trying in vain to get him to release his death grip. "I kiiiill yooou or heeaaal noooow!"

A loud crash surprised him enough to let her go. A moment later, a massive creature with bulky muscles that looked too big for its size came tumbling down to the ground. Nearby, a small boy with a strange silver gauntlet lied battered and bloody, having apparently crashed through the nearby mansion wall along with the other stray.

"Gro." The muscled stray grumbled, staying completely still. Alex noticed how damaged this stray was as well, with massive cuts. It had its eyes closed, and almost looked to be snoozing. Or passed out, if its body was any indication.

At that point, Alex began hearing voices. Not the voices he'd sometimes hear if he focused hard enough, but actually functional human-like beings. Nearby, about to go around a corner…

The sun was down, and the stars and moon have begun to show brightly, yet, due to Alex's degeneration, he couldn't see well in the dark. Not at all. Most of the time, in the cave, he had to get around through feeling. He suspected that the only reason why Iudex hadn't gotten rid of him was because he always did as he was told, like a good soldier.

Too bad he never had the best eyesight, even as a devil. Maybe that would explain why he couldn't see the sniper before his friend next to him was-

Alex thought quick. This was a peerage, with how many members? Perhaps the small body was one of them. No, he felt it now, he was. He couldn't use the red-haired nekomata now. She had fallen after Alex let go of her, apparently unconscious.

He needed to use this to his advantage. He wasn't going to die here, not before he got to see her again!

Moving fast, he was a Knight after all, he quickly snatched up the small boy and turned to face the direction that the voices and galloping hooves were coming from, squawking and screeching in a way that was hopefully threatening.

"I swear to Lucifer himself Bafeel, if you make this iron-maiden-like horse jump one more, just one more time, I'm gonna put Anthrax in your food." I shouted as we went along. Just a few moments after we had set off looking for Thomas, Bafeel saw fit to make the iron horse jump as often as is humanly possible. It always jostled me, and I ended slamming my head into Seekvaira's back.

Basically, she was doing it on purpose for a laugh. At a time like this.

"Oh, will you pipe down? I'm not doing it on purpose!" She said, while making the iron horse jump again.

"Bullshit!" I shouted up to her. "If you-!"

"Both of you, shut up." The cool voice of Seekvaira can even be heard above the wind in my ears. She is right in front of me. "I can hear something shouting just ahead."

I narrowed my eyes before sighing and listening closely. Just past the wind in my ears, I can hear a high-pitched voice. I can't tell what it's screaming about, but it's definitely there.

My mind instantly went back to the voice of that birdman stray.

"It's him," I said, mostly to myself but I'm sure Seekvaira heard. "The one who got away back there."

"Just how many of these guys are there?" Bafeel complained loudly. "And they just came outta nowhere too! So impolite! Could've sent us a declaration of war first. You know, like they used to do hundreds of years ago. Back when wars were fought with a hint of politeness."

"You can't even compare this to a war, idiot!" I replied angrily. "There's like four of us and how many of them!? It's a small skirmish if anything!"

"I was-"

"Stop here." Seekvaira stated. "Stay in the shadows. I do not think it can see in the dark."

"Wha-" I began, before looking in front of me instead of Bafeel.

There was the birdman, along with what looked like the corpses of a one-armed dog-guy, a muscle man and a… catgirl!?

That, that was not in the manual…

Oh, and Thomas is being held by the birdman.

…Oh shit Thomas is being held by the birdman!

"Coooooome ooooout!" The birdman squawked in the most pathetic sounding voice I think I've ever heard. "Coooome ooout!"

"Bafeel." Seekvaira called. The sorrel-haired girl turned around, an uncharacteristically serious expression on her face. "Like I said, I do not think it can see in the dark. Look at the way it's moving its head." She's right, the birdman is looking wildly from left to right, like he can't see us. Lucky for us the sun has almost gone completely down and the little light that there is is being blocked by the mansion, completely obscuring us. "We dismount here, and Roland and I will approach the stray and distract it, while you go around and strike it from behind. Do not wait for any signal. As soon as you are in position, eliminate it."

I felt a shiver up my spine at that. Both women in front of me were exuding this chilling, malice-filled aura, making my blood run cold.

…Women are scary…

"Yes, master," Bafeel said, dismounting from the horse and running into the nearby underbrush, completely silently I might add. It's at times like this that I feel worthless.

Not that I've experienced times quite like this before, mind you, but still. Kinda feeling worthless here.

"Roland, let's go. I'm sure with that mouth of yours we will be able to distract this stray just long enough for Bafeel to kill the insect." Seekvaira said, getting off the horse.

"Fine," I sighed, dismounting. "But it's a bird, not an insect. Insects don't have beaks, Seekvaira."

"This isn't the time, Roland." Seekvaira deflected icily. The glare she gave me could melt steel.

I wisely decided to keep my mouth shut.

We left the iron horse behind and approached the stray. He spotted us after looking closely, and promptly put a sharp claw to Thomas' neck, causing a small amount of blood to drip from the cut he made doing so. "Stoooop where yooou aaaare!"

"Fine," Seekvaira said, doing just what the stray said. I stood to her side and just behind. "I would say it is a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Stray Devil, but I do not like lying. My name is Seekvaira Agares and you are trespassing in my territory. Not only that, but you and the group that followed you caused quite a bit of structural damage to my family's vacation home. And what's more, you are now using one of my servants as a hostage. These transgressions are, unfortunately for you, unforgivable. For that, I am sorry to say that you will need to be punished."

"By that, she means that you're going to die a horrible, gruesome, painful death at the hands of your fellow inmates when we drag you kicking and screaming into the nearest cesspit." I translated, cracking my knuckles.

The birdman shook his head vigorously, threatening once again to slice Thomas' neck wide open. If he had a mouth and teeth, I'm sure he would be baring them to us. "Noooo!" It caterwauled. "I leeeave! You leeet me leave, or liiiitle one diiiies! DIIIIIIIE! Hear meeee!? Diiiiie!

"You're… bargaining?" I said incredulously. "I didn't think you were smart enough to even try. Though, given what's happening here, I suppose it's not intelligence. An animal will do anything to survive when it's cornered. If you try and run away, Seekvaira could just freeze you in time. If you attack, same thing. So, you really are nothing but an animal. Not even a crafty one, either, otherwise you wouldn't be here."

It's not wrong. Seekvaira could use her time manipulation magic, but it, ironically, takes time to cast. And it's not the subtlest thing in the world. If the stray devil sees it, it'll just slaughter Thomas right then and there. The monster was cornered, it knew that, and thus was acting like this.

I seem to have pinched a nerve, because the stray's beady black eyes widened, and an angry fire burned within them. "Nooot animal! Neeever ANIMAL! You animal! Aaaaaall of yooou animal! Reeeason why I liiike this! Yoooou maaaade me liiiike thiiis! Fooorced me to-"

"I do not know what you are talking about, but we are not animals. On the contrary, my servant here is right. Only an animal is like this. Instinct and greed wrapped in a fleshy prison. That is why you killed your master, I am sure. To gain power and spread your influence. At least with us, we have a veneer of politeness. You do not even have that." Seekvaira verbally tore into the stray devil. I swear I saw the thing flinch at some of her scathing words.

Of course, that was replaced by a bawling anger that one might see in a spoiled child.

"Liiie… You liiiie! You not know meeeee! Stupid Agares knows nooooothing! Not my choooice! Not choooice to be liiike thiiis! Just wanted to seeee-!"

The stray never finished, because Bafeel's sword sliced off the arm that was holding a claw to Thomas' arm from behind, right before slashing it's back to get it away from him. Thomas slumped to the ground, the poor guy being unconscious, with a 'thump'. The stray screamed and screeched with pain and rage, while Bafeel only had this terrifyingly blank expression on her face. Blood sprayed from the stump that used to be the stray's arm.

"Took you long enough," I muttered under my breath.

Of course, if Bafeel heard that, she'd probably call it my 'tsun-tsun' attitude showing.

I know what that means, and I hate it.

As far as I could tell, the stray was already damaged before Bafeel even cut of its arm, probably from the fall it took earlier. Now, it looked like a slight wind would cause it to keel over and die.

Seekvaira settled for a medium-sized ball of raw demonic power that vaporized its lower half. The top half had this stupid-looking shocked expression, like it hadn't fully realized what had happened until it was on the grassy ground, looking up at the starry night sky with its glass-like eyes.

"Overkill much?" I said dryly. "And what happened to taking strays alive?"

Seekvaira pointed to the muscle-man looking stray and the catgirl. "We only need one alive," She replied. "That one over there will do the trick. Bafeel… how is Thomas?" She said, her voice having a trace of concern in it.

I looked over to the sorrel-haired Knight, who was currently holding Thomas in a bridal carry. She looked down at him with soft eyes, like a mother looking at her sick child. "He's fine for the most part, Seek. Mostly just some bruises and cuts. Hmm… It looks like he's been fighting."

"Fighting?" I raised a brow. "Okay, I know this sounds kinda terrible, but he doesn't really strike me as the… fighting type, y'know?"

"Neither did you, when we first met," Bafeel replied, a teasing smile on her face. "Really I thought you'd be the guy who'd run away from battle rather than fight one. I'm glad that I was wrong."

"I don't look that cowardly… Wait, why would you even-!?"

"It is nice to know that Thomas is fine, Bafeel. Perhaps he was able to knock that stray over there unconscious?" Seekvaira said, eying the muscle-man stray.

"Maybe," Bafeel agreed, smiling fondly. "He's a lot stronger than he lets on."

"Okay, I can't believe I'm saying this, but doesn't something about this scene seem strange to you?" I said, gaining everyone's attention. "I mean, look over there! What's that?"

"Hmm?" Seekvaira hummed, looking where I motioned to. "Do you mean the other dead stray with the severed arm? Perhaps friendly fire. That would explain-"

"No, no, no, not that!" I said frustratedly, pointing a bit more forcefully. "That! Am I the only one who notices the-!"

"Grkkkh! Graglgle!" I heard wheezing and noticed that it came from the newly halved birdman stray.

Alex hurt. His name is Alex. Yes, Alex!

But was it! What if it wasn't? Was he finally losing it! Finally, after all these decades?

He couldn't feel his legs, couldn't feel his arm, but he was still alive, right?

Right? He promised he would see her again, right? RIGHT!?

You said you would see her again didn't you Alex?

But you did, you did! Remember!? You went to her after the death of your master! Remember!? You killed him just for that chance!? Just to keep a promise!?

Look where it got you, Alex! Look where it got you! And, in the end, when the first mutation struck, you killed her.

Remember, Alex!? Remember!?

In the end, you are a coward, an animal. Just like in the war, you ran, found this place, and decided to stay.

Is that the woman over there, Alex? The woman you said you'd come back to?

Is she the one holding the sword up, ready to pierce your heart?

Let's be real here, Alex. There was only one way this was going to end.

Perhaps it is better this way.

At least you know that Iudex will have to deal with them next.

I watched as Bafeel planted her sword into what remained of the stray's chest. One last gurgle escaped its beak, before I assumed it finally died. Carrying Thomas over her shoulder now, she said: "I'll take him to a more secure place, master. We should maybe fortify just in case there are more out there."

At this point there could any number of strays around here. We could go out hunting them in the forest, but then we'd be at a disadvantage. I've seen Bafeel tree climb once, but somehow, I feel a stray devil would be better at it. I mean, Bafeel is not a mutant, so…

So yeah, we should plan our next course of action.

"Okay, that was strange." I summed up my feelings on what just happened as Bafeel went into the mansion through one of the holes in the wall. "But back to what I was saying. That catgirl over there, Seekvaira. What is it! What's it doing here? How did-!"

"Be quiet for a moment." Seekvaira ordered, as she conjured a magic circle under the single unconscious stray. "Unless you want to torch this one to death too?"

"Oh, that's funny." I said humorlessly. "Really, that might have been the funniest thing I've ever heard from you. But seriously, why am I the only one questioning what a catgirl is doing here?"

"You are not the only one questioning it." Seekvaira stated. "I am just doing something else right now."

I crossed my arms impatiently as a light shined below the stray before it was gone completely.

"I will need to inform my… parents about this," Seekvaira said, her voice becoming a lot chillier when she mentioned her parents. "That stray will be interrogated and perhaps executed. I expect we will be given the order to search this forest for where these strays came from and eliminate any stragglers. Either way, this could become messy if we do not handle this properly." She turned to me finally. "Now, what has got you so worked up?"

"You weren't even listening at all, were you?" I deadpanned.

"I was focusing on something more important then whatever you were panicking about." Seekvaira sniffed haughtily.

"Really?" I responded, my eyes narrowing. "Even if I was trying to tell you that there's a massive stray devil behind you ready cut your pretty little head off?"

"Good thing there is not one," Seekvaira said easily, swaying a lock of blonde hair. I swear she did that on purpose, just because she knew I would notice. "Otherwise I would not be able to say these things to you."

"Now I wish there was a stray devil behind you." I messaged my forehead. "But back on track, the catgirl. Seriously, what do we do? I've never seen anything about a catgirl in those books you gave me!"

"Are you sure?" Seekvaira said as we both approached the catgirl. "I am certain that there was something about Youkai in those books…"

"Yoo-kai? The hell's a yoo-kai?"

She looked at me irritably as we stood just in front of the catgirl. "It is pronounced Youkai, Roland. If we ever have dealings with the Shinto faction, you would best be able to pronounce the name of their species right."

"I'm so sorry Your Majesty. You must understand, I'm just a country hick from the southern United States, so I hope you are able to brush off any unusual pronunciations brought on by my unique vernacular." I bowed mockingly, before I knelt right next to the catg- Youkai.

Besides the slight twitch of her brow, Seekvaira didn't respond to that. "Since you are unfamiliar, allow me to give you a slight description."

Oh boy, it's time for 'Seekvaira Explains it All' staring your host Seekvaira 'I like to hear myself talk' Agares. Get ready kids, we could be here for a while.

"Youkai are not just, as you call them, catgirls. There are many different sub-types that all embody the word 'Youkai'. This particular Youkai would be called a nekomata, which is what you would describe as a catgirl. This one seems… strange to me, however." Seekvaira explained, tapering off at the end.

I put a hand to the… nekomata's forehead. She doesn't have a fever, at least. "What's so strange about her?"

"She…" Seekvaira began, before apparently losing the ability to form words for a moment. "Could it be…?"

"Not cryptic at all, Seekvaira. Not cryptic at all." I chided, studying the nekomata closer.

She was pale, but not creepily so. Her hair was a deep red, almost rust colored, and it reached to just above the small of her back. Two red, furry ears protruded from the top of her head… even though she has two normal human-looking ears already. A red, fluffy tail laid limply to the side. She wore little but white rags. All in all, she may be about 5'4 tall.

Still taller than Thomas. Poor guy…

My expression hardened when I noticed the bruises around her throat. Beyond that, there were no external injuries.

"This…" Seekvaira gasped, backing away slightly. "This is…"

"This is what!?" I asked, her panic making me rather nervous. "This is what, Seekvaira!? Don't just stand there!"

Seekvaira coughed, regaining her composure. "It… appears this isn't just a normal nekomata. She's…"

"Seekvaira, so help me, if you don't explain-"

"Roland, look at her throat." Seekvaira said. It wasn't an order. It sounded more like a suggestion.

My eyes widened as I saw the bruises slowly begin to shrink, until it looked like there was nothing ever there. I didn't get up, though. Maybe I was struck dumb by that, or maybe I was too panicked to move, but I did not move from that spot.

Not even when the nekomata opened her eyes.

Her eyes were slitted, oddly enough, like a cat, and were a nice yellow color. They opened slowly, groggily.

Leaning forward so she could see me clearly, I spoke to her. "Hey? You okay?"

Her yellow eyes instantly zeroed in on mine. Our gazes locked, I admit, I felt a bit unnerved with how… Actually, I don't know how to explain it. There was something… broken about her. However, the instant she saw me… Was she tearing up?

I thought occurred to me then. One I should have really taken into consideration.

"Hey, Seekvaira!?" I called to the blonde. "She's not a stray-"

I couldn't finish because I was too surprised by the nekomata hugging me tightly.

"It's-! It's b-been so long since I-I've s-seen a normal-! A normal-!" The red-haired nekomata stuttered as I felt the tears she was shedding through my shirt. "I-I've been… I've haven't- I don't- T-Thank you! Thank you for- I can't even b-begin to…"

Looking from left to right, noticing Seekvaira give an encouraging nod, not as if she needed to, I hugged the nekomata back. The nekomata snuggled her head deeper into my chest as a result of that, crying her eyes out and mumbling Thank you's and I'm so glad's as she did so.

I looked to Seekvaira after a few moments, who seemed to be contemplating something. "Do we… have anyplace that isn't destroyed we can go to?"

I closed the door behind me as I shielded my eyes from the sunlight seeping in through the massive hole in the wall. The sun rose in the sky, covering the forest that surrounded the moderately destroyed mansion in an orange-yellow light. I stared out for a few moments, before heading down the hallway, stepping over the odd hole in the floor and every once in a while, looking out of the holes in the walls. Really, I don't understand how just a few stray devils were able to destroy this much of such a large mansion. It's like they didn't even have a clue what to do when they got here.

I spent the night at the bedside of the red-haired nekomata. I still don't know her name, since she fell into a deep sleep in my arms on my way to a room, and she hasn't woken up since. As far as I can tell, she was just exhausted. Thomas was still unconscious. That doesn't surprise me, when I last saw him, he looked to be pretty beaten up. Nothing serious, but enough to make him the way he is now.

Bafeel and I were charged by our illustrious master to gather what was left of the bodies of the stray devils that attacked us. We counted 8 in total, although it was hard to count for sure, since many of them were in several pieces, and some of them were so disfigured and mutated that you couldn't connect some parts to others.

All in all, it was a big mess, and that is what we found out.

Seriously, all you'd have to do to come to that conclusion is to look around a bit.

Finding the door to the study, I took a deep breath. I doubt that we've gotten anything from the stray devil that we captured, but we can't just do nothing when they attacked us like this. I saw the look in Seekvaira's eyes. She's out for blood. How do I know this?

Let's just say I looked in the mirror a lot in the days before I murdered the abomination.

I opened the door.

"-I know, Bafeel. And with the information that the stray devil has supplied, I now have a good clue on where this 'Conclave' is hiding."

"I know, Seek. I'm just saying that we can't leave Thomas and the nekomata we found defenseless."

"Oh, so you guys already started." I observed, walking to the middle of the room. The study itself was a mess, and the table in the middle of the room was… let's just say that it definitely looks like it was a recent addition. I doubt it will stay there for very long. On the table itself was a rough map of what I assumed to be the area around us, including the village. A red circle was drawn in a noticeably rocky area. "I guess I'm not important enough to be a part of this?"

Seekvaira crossed her arms. "You were in that room all night. I've already received some information from the stray devil we captured-"

"Already!?" I interrupted, looking at her incredulously. It can't have been more than… like… 6 or 7 hours since we captured it?

"It has been around 10 hours since we captured it, but you must have forgotten. My family has been doing this for generations. That is what an Agares does. We capture criminals and runaways and bring them back. This stray devil was forthcoming with its information, so I am told. It easily gave up the location that they assaulted our base from. It called it the 'Conclave'. We should be ready to counterattack soon."

"I, uh, assume you have a plan?" I asked hopefully.

She looked at me as if I had just asked something stupid. "Of course I have. I am not like somebody else I know who would just go in and attack without knowing the consequences of doing so."

"You know, you could keep being passive aggressive, or you could tell me this plan of yours and how I'm a part of it." I replied irritably.

"He's got you there, Seek." Bafeel smirked at us. "Really though, I'm enjoying the sexual tension."

"…"

"…"

"…Why're you both looking at me like that?"

"I fucking wonder."

"It is not 'sexual tension', Bafeel. Why would you even suggest such a ridiculous thing as that?"

I shook my head, messaging my temples before asking: "Okay… Yeah, let's just… Just tell me the plan."

Seekvaira nodded her head, placing both of her hands on the hurriedly placed table. She pointed at the red circle on the map. "Based on the features the stray we captured described about its hiding place, I have surmised that this is the area where the remaining stray devils are hiding out."

"I used to ride one of the horses in that area." Bafeel supplied. "There are a lot of caves there. How will you find the one where they live?"

"Worst comes to worst, I'll have Roland scout out each cave just to be safe."

"Now wait just a damn-!"

"But in all honestly, I imagine that these caves are not just a few craters that only go a few meters. I am sure there must be some sort of network of underground shafts that zigzag beneath that rocky area. It's the only way so many stray devils could gather and live among one another without succumbing to their base desires." Seekvaira explained.

I sighed in relief a bit. The thought of running through a bunch of caves… just sitting there under the earth with few places to get out… It's not much better than being buried alive.

"But I doubt the strays would just leave that cave if we came knocking, and if we just went in there to fight them we would be fighting on their home turf, and thus we would be at a disadvantage. That is why I must try something risky." She turned to me, just a little bit dramatically. "Roland, I will need you to run through the caves, attract the stray devils within, and lead them outside for disposal."

"Okay that sounds- Wait, what!?" I shouted.

Bafeel placed her hands over her ears, grimacing a bit. "Volume, man, volume."

I rolled my eyes. "Oh, so sorry for hurting your precious ears, but seriously?" I leaned on the table. "You want me to do that!?"

"It is not like I have no good reason to do so."

"But why wouldn't you-!?"

"Bafeel may be fast, but she is also frail."

"Jeez, pulling no punches, are you Seek?"

"You are my Queen and have all the traits of the Evil Pieces. You have the speed of a Knight, the endurance and strength of a Rook, and the magical power of a Bishop. If there is anyone who can go in their and get out, then it's you." Seekvaira listed off the reasons why I'm the one going.

I raised a finger in protest, prepared to give a fantastic rebuttal.

"And I know you are a new devil, in the grand scheme of things, but if all else fails, you have your Sacred Gear as well, do you not? [Blaze Black Flare] could be useful to you in a situation like this. It does not hurt you, correct? Then you will have no problems. Besides, you cannot punch trees forever."

"Maybe not, but at this point I'd like to try." I mumbled, before pointing at Bafeel. "What's she gonna do?"

"Help me take down the stray devils you lead out of course." Seekvaira answered easily.

"But what about Thomas?" I brought up. "And the nekomata? We're just gonna leave them out here all on their own?"

"Ha!" Bafeel laughed. "That's what I was about to tell the overthinking, over analytical nutjob over here. He has a point, Seek. You should listen to him about this."

"I don't-"

"There could be other stray devils out there. What if they attack again? And if all the resistance they encounter are a few crumbling walls, the nekomata and Thomas…" I didn't need to continue, because Seekvaira looked down in concentration.

"…You are right." Seekvaira conceded. "Bafeel, remain here. It may be dangerous to split up, but we can't take on an operation like this without taking a few risks. If any stray devils try to attack the mansion, deal with them."

"Aye aye!" Bafeel did a mock-salute, before stepping out of the room, leaving me and Seekvaira alone.

We just stood there for a moment, awkwardly looking at everything but each other. Finally, Seekvaira broke the silence.

"How is she, Roland?" Seekvaira asked quietly.

"Who? The nekomata?" I replied. She responded with a nod. "Well, she's out like a light. No sign of any injuries on her body, not even a bruise. Can't talk about mentally, though. The way she broke down like that when she first woke up… Yeah, there is some definite trauma there." I raised a brow. "Do you think she's dangerous? If you do, you might as well consider me dangerous too. She doesn't look like she'd hurt a fly."

Seekvaira shook her head, sighing. "It is not us I am worried about. If the Ars Goetia finds out about her, that I have her here-"

"Okay," I held up a hand. "Slow down for those whose minds don't go at a million miles per hour. What's going on? You were kinda acting this way back when we first found her as well."

Seekvaira contemplated for a few moments. "…I shall give you the full story once we deal with this threat, but just to tide over your curiosity until then, I strongly suspect that that nekomata is not just any nekomata, but a nekoshou. The Ars Goetia Government do not like them. I am sure if I talk with my parents, they would be able to pull a few strings and ensure her safety, but…"

I am definitely going to hold you to the 'I will explain everything later' promise, miss.

"Well, all right. I guess we'll deal with that later then. Now, why don't we get this-"

A small magic circle appeared next to Seekvaira's ear. After a few moments and more than a few hushed whispers, it disappeared, leaving me confused.

"What was that?" I asked.

"Kill orders." Seekvaira answered, walking to the door. "It is official. We are charged with eliminating any stray devils that remain. Come along, Roland."

"This is a bad idea." I shivered, looking into the gaping maw that yawned before me.

"It is a risky idea, but not the worst one." Seekvaira replied flatly. "Just remember, if you hear something behind you, do not turn around, and head for the nearest exit."

"That's some good advice you got there. Why don't you do this since you're so smart?" I looked up with glower.

Seekvaira stood on top of the cave mouth, looking down on me in more than one way. "As my Queen, it is also your job to do the tasks I am not required or not suited to do myself. After all, if the King goes down, the rest of the Peerage would not be far behind."

I shook my head before staring down the cave entrance we have chosen. I really, really don't think this is such a good idea. It's risky? She has that fucking down. I don't like the fact tat I will be surrounded by earth on two sides, with only small pinpricks in this rocky surface to serve as my escape from that. Like I said, it's not much better than being buried alive.

I steeled myself, strapped my balls back on, and nodded. "Alright… Alright I'm going in. Any last-minute advice?"

She thought for a moment. "Actually yes. To simplify this for me, when you have a stray devil, or however many you have lured out, and you are on your way to an exit, shoot a single black flare through it so that I have the seconds necessary to cast time manipulation."

"Why am I always making things easier for you?"

"On the contrary, you did the opposite."

"Oh for fu- Are you ever going to let that go!?"

I shook my head for the seventeenth time in a row. "Alright," I took a deep breath. "Here I go."

I walked into the cave mouth, looking around wildly.

"Remember what I told you, Roland!" Seekvaira called, her voice echoing off the cave walls.

"Why don't we just use your voice, huh?" I whispered to myself as I walked deeper into the dark and wet cave. "I already feel like killing you when I hear your voice. Who knows? Maybe stray devils are similar…"

The cave was, obviously, dark, but I could see just fine thanks to night vision. Makes me wonder how the birdman was able to get through these caves when his eyesight in the dark was so poor. The cave was not steep, only going in at a slight angle down. The walls were surprisingly clean, and the floor had little sign of being used. Did we go into the wrong cave?

"That figures…" I mumbled. "Of course we'd choose the wrong cave first." I walked just a bit farther, deciding to turn back if I found nothing on the other side of this corner.

I know she said most of the caves in this area might be connected, but I have severe doubts about that. I mean, what are the odds of that?

I'm totally not looking for excuses to get out of this gods-forsaken death trap.

Totally not.

I turned the corner-

"Oh-"

On the other side were about 4 or 5 stray devils of varying sizes. One could not have been more than 5 feet, looking like a goblin, and another was so massive I questioned how he was even able to get into the cave.

…Well, this simplifies and complicates things all at the same time.

They all stared at me as I stared back wide-eyed. Tentatively, I raised a hand, and waved.

"Hi."

The cave became a lot noisier after that. Breaking out of the panic-induced statue-like state I was in, I turned around and ran as fast as I could to the exit. Which was a lot faster than I was expecting, considering I have been getting better at using all the aspects of a Queen piece. Let's just say the Knight trait was useful in a situation such as this.

I could hear the stray devils smashing and chasing after me from behind. How were the able to keep the cave looking as clean as they did!? I mean, granted, all those times they weren't chasing after a little devil who interrupted their poker game, but still! Some of those strays were massive!

Turning back once, even though Seekvaira told me not to (Aren't I a fucking rebel) I saw the stray's literally clambering over themselves to get to me. One of them, the goblin-looking one, was in the front, while the massive rock golem-looking one was in the back, easily crashing itself through a few of the obstacles in the way.

The sight, unsurprisingly, kept up my will to keep running for my life. I don't even feel exhausted, if you don't count the rapid pounding of my heart, that is.

Seeing a small light approaching, I summoned a small ball of black flames and sent it forth as fast as I could. I didn't think this would work, considering I was already going so fast, but the ball easily surpassed me and shot straight out of the caves mouth.

Okay, you know what, Seekvaira? Don't care if you haven't finished preparing your time manipulation! I'm getting out of this cave, damnit!

The light got closer and closer, until I was finally free!

I shot out of the cave. Misjudging how fast I was going, I stumbled and fell, rolling on the ground several times, before stopping on my back. I looked up, shielding my eyes from the blinding sun, and saw Seekvaira on top of the cave mouth, exactly where I left her. The little… She didn't even have to move! She had a magic circle in her hand, apparently done preparing.

The stray devils ran out in a group. Some were farther ahead than others, but they were all close together. When they reached the cave, Seekvaira jumped in the air while casting the time manipulation she was so known for. The eyes of the stray devils, the ones that had eyes at least, blinked comically in surprise as they started moving slower than molasses.

Seekvaira shot a ball of demonic energy, and I didn't need her to order me to do the same.

Getting up quickly, I summoned as much black flame as I could, and sent it forth. The distorted and slow screams and roars that came from the slowly moving strays were nightmarish, but we both kept going, not letting up for anything. Soon enough, I heard the sound of crumbling rock and the cave mouth itself fell from the immense amount of explosive and fiery magic we were pouring near it. The cave collapsed, crushing one of the strays that had used one of its comrades as a shield.

And just like that, it was over.

Dust had been kicked up everywhere from our barrage, and once it had settled, all that was left were a few extremely deformed bodies and rubble covering the cave entrance.

Seekvaira landed just next to me, panting a little bit. Not as much as me, but there you go.

After taking a few moments to catch my breath, I turned to Seekvaira. "…You think we may have gone a bit over-the-top there?"

She was able to catch her breath faster than me. "We needed to make sure they were all destroyed. I do not care how over-the-top it may have been, what matters is that they are gone. And yet…"

I had a confused face. "Wh… What? I hate it when you do that."

"Stray devils do not usually form groups of this size. Sometimes they may hunt in pairs and sometimes triplets, but never in such… great numbers as this."

"Huh." I said, looking at the rubble. "Hey, you think there may be more-"

The rubble shook.

I looked at it with a disturbed expression on my face. "Uh… You saw that too, right?"

Seekvaira, the ever stoic, just stood there, staring at the rubble.

"I mean, maybe I'm just-"

The rubble shook again, and this time, a massive fist punched through it. It stretched it's fingers out, making cracking noises as it did so. Not a moment later, the rubble exploded, revealing the massive, muscular form of a humanoid.

"So that's what all the noise was about!" The man guffawed. "I ain't no superstitious type, but I was starting to think there were some ghosts haunting the cave! Glad to see it's just two kids being delinquents!"

The mans green eyes glowed menacingly. The sharp horns on his head glimmered in the light.

"Now, do I have to punish a pair of delinquents who don't know how to respect other people property!?"

I don't know why, but I always get the feeling I've fucked something up when I write chapters like these with a lot of character interactions. Is that just me?

Maybe.

Also, I've joined a Discord recently. If you wann come chat with other DxD Authors and myself, go here:

Link: discord .gg/xEApPAS

Also, here's another theme:

Roland Running from the Stray Devils - Arby n' the Chief Season 7 Track 4

Good Night!