Chapter 1: Initiation (1)

"C'mon, Lance! You got this bro!"

"Whoo, Emily! You got this, girl~!"

"LEGACY, WINNING'S OUR DEGREE! MESS WITH US GET SMACKED BY ROYALTY!"

The indoor swimming arena of the Legacy High School rang with noise, the roar of several hundred voices creating an echo that seemingly sustained itself as the showdown between the two high schools came to its final event, the boys/girls relay with Legacy's two star athletes taking the stage as they stared down their competitors in their own unique ways.

Lance Jacobson met the return glares of their opposites with a smirk and surreptitious middle finger, spiked and bleached hair - courtesy of sun exposure and hours of chlorine dunking - giving his athletic and tight build a wild look as tanned skin and pitch-black speedo completed the image of confidant and cocky individual.

Emily Charlston was the complete opposite as she gave a happy wave to the snarling pair of opposing swimmers, light blonde hair tucked up into a swim cap while unusual pale yellow eyes sparkled with the innocence of a puppy, slim figure hugged by a pitch-black one piece adorned with light orange stripe.

The two best swimmers on the team, both wildly different in temperament and appearance...yet somehow the best of friends since any of the spectators could remember.

"Alright, Em...I've got fifty bucks riding on us winning this with a five second gap so I'm gonna need you to carry me to victory, alright?"

The girl blinked as the timers and coaches prepared their equipment for the last race of the day, cheering and hyped crowd drowning out their conversation to anyone listening in.

"Are you gambling again? Lance, I told you you shouldn't do that! Who are you even gambling with anyway?!"

Shrugging with a clear lack of concern the male pointed to their opposites.

"The other team, obviously. I know one of the guys and he got some of his friends on board. And I'm not sure what you mean by 'again'. Technically I never stopped."

A cheek puffed itself out in adorable agitation, Emily growling with all the ferocity of a kitten, "Why can't you just let this be a normal and friendly competition for once? And I'm fairly certain such activities are against school rules-"

"If we pull this off we get another fifty. And that means we have fifty bucks to share between us."

A gleeful light shone in Lance's bright emerald eyes.

"A buck fifty that will buy you a lot of in n' out burgers, Em. My treat."

The girl folded like a deck of cards, boldly stating, "I'm sure the lord will understand, as this money was gained through fair and upfront means."

"That's my girl!"

The duo shared a high-five, all smiles and anticipatory grins as they took up their positions near the dive blocks, Lance taking the lead position.

[On your mark...get set…]

An electric buzzer went off, the young man diving headfirst into the water a split-second before his opponent, lips tilting in an unstoppable grin as the cold of the water sent an additional jolt of energy through his system.

While he could appreciate landbound sports just as much as the next guy there was something instinctually liberating about slicing through the pool, of just the right amount of resistance applied against his body so that the action was equal parts challenging and effortless.

Training and practice took over, arms windmilling through the water like a hot knife through butter while breathing was sparse and regulated, a machine of flesh and blood as he caught the occasional roar from the crowd as his ears breached the surface.

Time seemed to fade, the only way of marking its passage was the burn of his muscles and aching of his lungs, delicious exertion and metabolic heat kept in check by the cold liquid surrounding him-

-and his hand smacked against the edge of the pool for the fourth time, a hundred yards well and done with as Emily flew overhead, entering the pool with barely a splash and tearing through the water like a shark.

Her opponent followed suit about two seconds later, an acceptable gap that had Lance grinning like a madman as he hauled himself out of the pool to the wild cheers of his classmates and their friends or family, confident that he was about to be 50$ richer. He was good, Emily was better.

A fact that proved itself true as with speed that outstripped even his own the petite blond finished a good six seconds ahead of her counterpart, the crowd going wild as the announcer's amplified words were drowned out in the ensuing clamor.

Smirking like the cat that ate the canary the young man bent over the edge of the pool, Emily's hands smacking into his as he boldly pulled her straight from the pool onto the deck, a cute flush on her features as gathered her into a one-armed hug, shouting, "Knew you would carry the day, Em! We're going to be eating like kings! Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go collect my winnings…"

Pulling off her cap and allowing waist length hair to float free she giggled, jokingly stating, "Don't get jumped by the other team, now~!"

"Pfft, they love me!"

Slipping through the crowd of excited parents and swimmers as well as those who were beginning to pack the equipment away Lance came across his betting pool pal, sullen looks on their faces as he held out a hand.

"Pay up, friendos."

"Doesn't the church practice restraint in all manner of things, up to and including fast food?"

Well into her second burger and fries Emily gave him a mock glare, stating, "Don't you know it's rude to comment about a lady's figure, Lance?"

"What's there to comment on? You're still rocking as perfect a body as you were back when I first met you."

"Nice recovery, now hand me the ketchup."

The pair shared a smirk of mutual amusement, Emily turning her attention to covering her meal with tomato paste as Lance lost some of his mirth in exchange for a wry resignation.

He'd met Emily in their second year of middle school, becoming fast acquaintances and then friends, culminating in him asking her out on a date in their first year of high school...and being subsequently friendzoned in a rejection that had hurt more than he'd been expecting it to.

As a ward of one of the local catholic churches - a nun to boot - Emily had taken their vows of chastity and celibacy as well as devoting a great deal of her free time to their goodwill work...she'd been transparent about the fact that she didn't feel right answering that kind of romantic devotion with one that wouldn't be everything he was hoping for.

The ensuring weeks had been awkward as Hell but, well...Emily was one of the rare few people Lance had met that was unconditionally polite and kind to everyone she met, a 'pure soul' and he'd accepted the fact that he'd never be able to love her in a typical way. But he'd never regretted staying as one of her closest friends, even if it occasionally hurt that he'd never be able to be with her in the way originally intended.

"You busy after this, Em?"

"Yes, I have a Sunday school reading to prepare for as well as a joint mercy operation with the congregation twenty blocks away that should take up tonight and tomorrow in their entirety. Why do you ask?"

Lazily waving a hand Lance responded, "Don't worry about it, me and some of the guys were planning on getting together after this in order to hang out and celebrate our win. If you said you were gonna go as well we would have invited some of the girls. Don't sweat it."

Nodding in acceptance Emily suddenly brightened, cheerily stating, "You should come to this Sunday school, it's going to be lots of fun and you're always really good with the children-"

"Nooooope. Sorry, Em, once was enough. And despite your claims I seriously doubt my gambling and various other habits are a good influence. Remember the whole offering plate heist that to this day I will swear was unintentional?"

Face twitching as if she couldn't decide whether to laugh or scowl Emily nodded, Lance continuing with, "And remember how generally unpopular I was with the parents and other attendees? I think father Gomez was ready to pull me inside out by my colon."

Giggling at his complaints the blonde cut straight to the heart of the matter, teasing, "You just don't want to admit you'd be bored the whole time."

"Guilty as charged. I don't need someone lecturing me for hours on end about how I should do something as basic as not be an asshole to other people."

"And will you ever believe me when I say there's more to the faith than that?"

"I'd believe you, sure. But God seems pretty keen on remaining a no show in my life, I'm gonna need his second opinion before I go worshipping the 79th edition of the good word."

Shaking her head at his response - this wasn't the first time they had broached the topic of her faith and it wouldn't be the last - the blonde simply sighed, clasping her hands together as she stated, "Then hopefully the lord will be able to forgive me for breaking bread with a blasphemer such as yourself."

Pointing to her two demolished burgers and empty french fry boxes the young man wryly commented, "Breaking a bit more than bread there, Em."

The duo stared at each other for a moment...and burst out laughing, the nun picking another fry off Lance's plate as the male more seriously cautioned her with, "All jokes aside stay safe out in skid row, okay? Someone as pretty and adorable as you is a prime target."

The nun pouted, retorting, "I'm not helpless, Lance. I've told you-"

"-a thousand times, yes, I know. You were happy to display your armbar technique and lever my limb out of its damn socket. It's just that most smart kidnappers don't try to challenge their victims to an MMA match for the privilege of spiriting them away."

He raised his hands, calmly stating, "I know you can look after yourself and that father Gomez isn't the kind of guy to let his guard down either...but it takes a load off my mind if you just try to keep that mindset, okay?"

Expression softening Emily settled for a nod, responding, "Okay...if only so you'll stop being such a worrywart."

"Wouldn't call fear of seeing one of my favorite people disappear into the depths of the trash of society being a 'worrywart'...but fine."

Chuckling at his words the pair prepared to go their separate ways, Emily hugging the male tight as she happily trilled, "I'll expect to see you on Sunday, Lance~!"

"If I show up will you promise to keep your eyes on a swivel?"

Said eyes rolled in their sockets but she nodded nonetheless.

"...Fine. Guess I'll go ahead and strap myself to a crucifix now, save both myself and everyone in attendance the trouble."

A beaming smile lit up the nun's face, tone radiant as she skipped away, waving excitedly as she hollered, "I'll make a special passage for you to read aloud, Lance!"

"Oh god please no."

His plea likely went unheard as his friend continued on her way, a small sigh escaping the male as he watched her go.

"Em, how you make tennis shoes, jeans and a sweater look sinfully attractive is beyond me."

Sighing once more at the fact that he would never get to be within a country mile of tapping that -hell, he would settle for a simple kiss - the young man shrugged and headed on towards the bus stop, already texting the boys and putting the familiar matter out of sight and mind.

Who knew? Maybe he'd find a nice girl while they were out partying tonight!

"I'm home, dad!"

"Hey, kiddo. How'd the meet go?"

"Killed it, naturally. Me and Em' cleared out both the race and their pockets. Here, today's top prize."

Handing over the last burger from their earlier meal Garret favored his son with an exasperated look, asking, "You gambled your money on the outcome of a race? And then you spent it all on fast food?"

"Yup. All in a day's work, right?"

An amused grin appeared on the older man's lips.

"Just like I taught you."

Garret Jacobson was a middle-aged man who wore experience like a second skin, slightly wrinkled face and slightest hints of grey in his stubble and black hair hinting that he'd been around the proverbial block a few times, body thin but not emaciated as he adorned his jacket and boots, preparing for his usual late shift at PG&E.

"Well you did the athletic part of school right. How's the homework coming along?"

"Dad, when the hell would I have had a chance to do my homework? I've been on the go since this morning."

"Good thing you have all of tonight and saturday to do it then."

Sensing a steadily approaching minefield Lance carefully stated, "About tonight...me and the guys were going to go celebrate at Buffalo Wild Wings."

The neutral look his dad sent him had Lance feeling a bit defensive, the older man warning, "I know you're content to settle for average grades and scores - I don't even disagree, you're only young once - but that just means you don't have much wriggle room if you slip, Lance."

Having had this conversation many times in the past and knowing a sharp or petulant response would merely prolong the discussion the teen raised his hands, responding, "I'll have it all ready for your review come Sunday morning, okay?"

"And if you don't?"

"I dunno, ground me or something. Or keep me from going to Sunday school and making Em' the most gleeful bundle of sunshine this side of the continent."

Garret snorted, wryly commenting, "She managed to convince you to go to another one of those, huh?"

"She can be surprisingly underhanded and sneaky for a woman of the cloth."

Shaking his head the older man mused, "Only you would keep pining after a girl that's sworn off the kind of love you're looking for."

Feeling more than a bit hurt at the accusation Lance opened his mouth-

"Oh well, Em' is a good girl and worth the effort. Who knows? Keep at it and maybe one day she'll decide to reciprocate. They can rescind their vows you know."

-and rolled his eyes, realizing his dad had merely been fucking with him.

"I think she's in there pretty ironclad, dad."

"With that kind of an attitude, sure."

Throwing up his hands in exasperation the teen's father chuckled, hefting the burger alongside his normal lunch as he said, "Time to go, kiddo. I'll see you saturday night, yeah?"

"Yup, barring any unforeseen crisis, that is."

Giving his dad a quick hug the pair went about their separate schedules, Lance preparing to leave the house once more as he grinned in anticipation.

"Should be a fun night...and I've still got 15$ leftover from today's winnings~!"

The best part about being a competitive swimmer year round? You didn't have to worry about what you ate, five big meals a day was just extra fuel, after all.

"I don't know how you manage to routinely pull this bullshit off, Lance."

"Finely calibrated sense of risk versus reward, ladies. It's all in the mathematics and it's obviously why I'm barely scraping by with a B in algebra."

Rolling their eyes at Lance's remark Danny and Matt groused, "I'm over here using my allowance while you're using other people's money. The rich get richer, am I right?"

"Yeah, you won, what, fifty bucks? Share the wealth a little."

Leaning back in his seat with a sigh of contentment Lance blithely responded, "No can do. Already spent the other thirty-five when I was having lunch with Em."

"Spending other people's money and doing it while having lunch with the cutest damn girl in our school. Fucking hell."

Matt leaned in slightly as if asking for a clandestine favor, whispering, "Hey, when are you gonna let us have a go at dating Emily? You've been hogging her attention for so long and haven't made so much as an inch of progress."

A narrowed glare was sent the other youth's way, Lance dryly stating, "If I haven't had any luck getting her to drop her vows over the years what makes you think you have a chance in hell?"

"Well obviously because we're not you. I bet she's just looking for the right guy of which you are not a part of."

"Yeah, what are you, her guard dog?"

Feeling those comments hit a little bit close to home Lance opened his mouth to sharply do away with the rampant speculation-

"That would go a long way in explaining why he's humped and dumped three seperate times. Tracey, Samantha, Rudi...what are you, part shiba inu?"

"Rumor has it he went back to Emily like a kicked dog after each abandoned relationship."

"Alright, smart asses. Guess who isn't getting Em's phone number?"

Grinning at how easy it was to rile up their friend in a very specific way the pair moved onto a different subject, asking, "So you heard about the latest, craziest rumor going around?"

"No, what is it?"

Danny grinned, flipping around his phone to show off a girl who was mostly covered up by sports bleachers but was nonetheless insanely beautiful, with silver-gray hair and what looked to be dark magenta eyes.

"The Jockubus. She's been sighted out and about the different schools, always at sporting events and watching the best performing athletes. Rumor has it she visits aforementioned athletes 'after hours' and shows em' such a good time that they can't remember shit the next day."

Lance raised an eyebrow, skeptically asking, "Sounds pretty convenient. But if you're telling me this it's probably got more staying power than your average rumor, now don't it?"

Danny nodded, pocketing his phone before continuing with, "It's weird because there's a whole bunch of pictures of her at different schools and events but no one seems to know her. Not students, teachers, parents...nothing. And while they sure didn't seem to recall the absolute fuck that a girl like this probably can manage they do remember seeing her at some point after the competition, usually in passing or exchanging a few words before going their separate ways. It's weird."

A more amused smirk colored Danny's features.

"Did I mention that it's both guy and girl events that the Jockubus likes to watch~? Talk about major hot going down late at night. Literally."

Shrugging at the words Lance asked, "Pretty neat but what brought that on other than you fantasizing again?"

"Because that picture was taken at today's meet, duh. Word on the street is the Jockubus was staring at both you and Emily."

"...Oh. Huh. Well if I get seduced by her I'll be sure to let you know."

Matt heaved out a sigh, grousing, "Fucker has a banging hot sex ghost after him and he's not even interested."

"Why should I be? If the rumors are accurate I'm not even going to remember anything that happens. Unless you're saying a bunch of guys and gals got to sleep with a super hot girl and decided NOT to brag about it."

"Yeah, fair point."

Glancing down at his phone Lance pushed away from the table, dropping his money as he said, "I'll talk to you guys on Monday, I've got a bunch of stuff to do this weekend."

"K, see you later, bro."

"If you do remember getting shagged by the Jockubus remember to take notes, we need to add to this story."

Lance rolled his eyes, dryly retorting, "Don't worry, Matt. I'll do just that."

"Sheesh...kinda cold tonight, should have worn a t-shirt…"

Calmly stalking through the streets towards his bus stop Lance kept to the well lit patches of street, making sure he was as visible as possible at all times. A bit of overly paranoid precaution, sure, but both Emily and his dad had told him to do it for their sake of mind and he wasn't one to disappoint either of those individuals.

...Not that he expected to be mugged or anything along those lines. Sure, Vegas was by no means some safe walk in the park but as long as you didn't do anything stupid and stayed away from stuff that looked even remotely suspicious you could make it through the day just fine.

At that point it was just a game of odds and quite frankly he was more likely to get run over by a car than he was assailed by some guy that wanted his wallet or kidneys. The cherry on top was that he made sure his movements weren't predictable, always switching streets or pathways taken whenever he was out with friends.

It was for that reason he dropped onto the unoccupied bus stop with little care for his surroundings or safety, content to listen to the music softly playing through his headphones in one ear as he idly watched a group of partiers talk and gesticulate loudly on a street corner, causing quite the commotion as they did so.

But in time they moved on, leaving the teen alone at the stop as he kept his head on a relaxed swivel, dialing down the music even more as he would probably only be waiting for another ten minutes, max.

At eight minutes to go things took a turn for the worse.

Running feet, ragged breathing and the general sense of desperation could be heard sprinting his way, the young man smoothly reaching inside his pants and grabbing the pocket knife he had on him at all times.

Better safe than sorry.

A few more seconds passed-

-and Lance warily eyed a messy and out of breath man wearing some kind of weird robes that looked fresh out a cosplayer convention, all frayed and burnt in spots as his unhinged and wild stare settled onto the young man, the pair locking gazes as the younger male made a point of flicking out his knife, just to make it clear that he meant business.

"You'll have to do."

A flash of some kind of ethereal light emanated from the stranger's eyes-

-and Lance felt a sudden surge of panic grip him as his body just...stopped.

No movement, no breathing, no blinking...just frozen in place as the crazed man rushed at him, hand tracing some kind of esoteric formation-

-and the teen would have screamed in agony as his chest and throat exploded in a fountain of flesh and blood, unnatural lights playing across the macabre scene as he still couldn't do anything as his brain began to panic and scream, shock setting in quick as he could feel copious amounts of lifeblood wetting his clothes and legs.

"There, that should do...one human life has enough power in it to kill that irritating bitch-"

"LEAVE HIM BE!"

The bizarre and fucking insane man leaped aside with a curse, some kind of silver chain snapping the air where his head had resided a second prior, Lance suddenly able to weakly gasp for air as he collapsed onto the ground...except his throat didn't seem to be working so well and he felt really...fuzzy. And not the good kind of fuzzy, like when you touched a kitten.

"Sick demon...you would fruitlessly try to prolong your life through such callous means?"

"Preach all you want, bitch! But I won't fall to-"

Through rapidly fading eyes Alexander saw the distant figure wielding the chain raise their hand, a shining cross suddenly flare to life like a second sun as the man shrieked in agony, a lightning quick motion of their arm sending the glittering whip streaking towards the blinded male-

-who promptly exploded into a cloud of glowing ashes as the weapon made contact with his form, the sudden and anti-climactic ending to the 'battle' capitlazied by the second stranger rushing towards the collapsed Lance with hurried and panicked motions.

"Come on, don't be too late...wait. H-huh? No...no, please no!"

The terrified words seemed to come from far away, the teen undertaking the herculean task of gazing upwards towards his savior just a few seconds too late...and definitely knew he was hallucinating, likely from blood loss.

Because crouched over him with a hysteric expression marring her beautiful features was none other than Emily, garbed in a modified nun outfit fairly similar to her usual ensemble. Still the light green fabric and hat adorned with crosses, albeit with the skirt shortened for ease of movement while some kind of skintight material and heavy combat boots adorned her legs and feet, thick gloves and a variety of medieval yet lethal looking weapons adorning her body.

"Well, at least an Angel is here to send me off...that's something."

"No, Lance, why was it you?! Why did you have to be here, at this very moment?!"

A soft blue glow that was a warm counterpoint to the crazed guy's malevolent lightshow appeared in his friend's hands, running over his body...and quickly faded, the blonde's already grieving expression turning crushed with hopelessness.

"No...Lance, please...please don't die…"

VERY much aware even through his frazzled state of mind that he was dying the male summoned every bit of energy he could muster, channeled it into his arm-

-and lightly bumped it against Emily's knee, the nun startling as with an effort that would have made Atlas proud tilted his lips in a smirk that the girl had often said made him look like a weirdo.

And then even that faded, a bizarre sense of vertigo seizing him as a rather strange final thought coursed through his head.

"If this is a dream geez is it fucked up."

Emily kneeled next to her dead friend, scarcely able to believe the suddenness and cruelness that laid before her eyes, of a blank expression and eviscerated body.

A body that had often hugged her, given her piggyback rides and looked really good in a speedo, even if she had purposefully elected to keep her distance for good reason...a body that had been warm. Comforting.

Now cold and crusted over with blood.

"Why...why did you have to be here now, at this very moment? I knew you were out with friends, but not...not…"

Tears leaked from her eyes without pause, the girl angrily wiping them away as she clasped her hands so tight her knuckles hurt.

"Father, who resides in heaven...a soul dear to your most faithful is released unto your grasp. Please, welcome him home."

Not an officially recognized prayer but one that Emily felt would convey every ounce of sincere desire she could muster.

Releasing her now trembling hands the nun felt another stab of grief twist her heart in an agonizing lurch as she beheld her dearest friend, taken in the blink of an eye in a senselessly cruel act of violence she'd been too late to stop.

"If I'd been just a bit faster, just a bit better…"

Letting loose a trembling breath she cupped her friend's cooling cheek, heartbroken smile tilting her lips as she murmured, "If I'd known this would be the outcome...maybe I would have said yes all those years ago, the vows of an Exorcist tend to be more...malleable, at least in certain aspects."

Bending low Emily placed a soft kiss on the body's lips, closing the sightless eyes as she bit her lip to keep from openly sobbing.

Years of comfort, of normality, of smiles, of nights and days spent just enjoying the other's company...cut short just like that.

Regretfully pulling the credit cards and few bits of change from his wallet in order to make the scene look like a mugging gone wrong - a bit of healing spellcraft sufficient to close his injuries so that they resembled stab wounds rather than internal detonations - Emily found a pair of photos decorating a foldout portion of the worn leather...and this time she couldn't stop the flood of tears that dripped down her lovely features.

One was of him and his father playing laser tag - the nun resolving to visit his father at the first opportunity - and the other was of them. It was an old picture, one of Lance trying on her habit and looking utterly absurd as his hair refused to budge as she tried to hold a giggle behind a hand and failed miserably.

Without hesitation the girl kept that photo to herself, tucking it into a pocket as she shakily rose to her feet, sternly reminding herself that she still had a duty to complete and that Lance's fate was now in the hands of God.

She sanitized some pieces of magical residue, checked the remains of the bastard that killed her friend for anything useful and disappeared into the night without a backward glance, mind far and away from paying attention to her surroundings.

…

If she had, she might have noticed the small black book that had spilled from her target's robes during her initial assault, laying next to lance's cooling body as the chains and rope bindings that covered it began to writhe like the tendrils of an octopus, reaching out towards the youth in exploratory motions.

Seemingly satisfied with what they found the tentacles dragged the book close-

-and it promptly melted into a black, shimmering sludge that seeped into the exit wounds of the teen without a trace left behind.

"Now doesn't this host seem promising~!"

And now for the last of the current stories I'm working on, this one a new and completely original story that'll be taking place in the city of sin (fittingly) Las Vegas.

As usual, there won't be many characters from the originals appearing for a while or at all, if you're hoping to see Issei or any others it'll be awhile - if ever - before they show.

And since it's a cast of original characters you can check out user bk201vi592 on imgur for other artist's work that I think best represents the characters, until then see you in the next chapter!