"So tell me, is she always this clingy?"
"No. You're just unlucky, Mikazuki Augus."
An irritated sigh was the only thing that Mika responded with as he leaned forwards, with Modeus sitting atop his shoulders. Akihiro was able to help him back up before he could fall flat onto his face, however, with the pilot silently thanking the buff guy with a mild nod of his head. Atland offered a thumbs up thereafter, though he was quick to panic when Modeus' weight almost caused Augus to fall backwards, forcing the former to panic before he swiftly moved to help the latter back upright.
"I can tell," deadpanned Mika as he winced when Modeus pulled on his ahoge, and at that, the pilot forced her off his back, with the Lustful Demon landing with a gentle bounce of her… chest as she landed, before he moved to walk shoulder to shoulder with the Tired Demon, who, admittedly, found amusement in Modeus' rough impact, though if anything, the horny lady seemed to like it as she got up and rushed after the Ace Pilot, who simply stepped to the side before she could tackle him from behind. "How much longer until we reach Lucy?"
"Lucy?" muttered Pandemonica, only to roll her eyes when she realized that he was speaking of Lucifer. "Several more miles, Mikazuki Augus. Lucifer resides within the inner circle of death, and currently, we are entering the third."
"How many are there in total?" asked Augus, only for the Tired Demon to shrug. Before she could answer, however, Mika leaned forwards and caught Modeus as she attempted to tackle him down once more. The results were less than ideal, however, as the Lustful Demon ended up landing on Augus' shoulder, with the pilot sighing as he held her there, if only to stop her from trying to fuck him further, as he walked on.
"Nine in total," replied Pandemonica simply as she watched Modeus slap Mika's butt, a sight that made Shino lose it and break down laughing. Mika, on the other hand, resisted the urge to fall onto his back and slam Modeus' head into the ground just for the chance to knock her out and grant him a few seconds of peace.
"At least we're making progress, I guess…" commented Mika in irritation as he grumbled and threw Modeus onto the ground, with her dropping with a mild plop as they walked on. Akihiro and Shino opted to let Modeus get up on her own, with both being a little… intimidated by what she could do exactly, as they followed their comrades onwards.
Before long, and after Mika avoided several attempts by Modeus to pin him down, the group paused briefly when they saw… a river of souls in the distance. Said river of souls seemed to be screaming in agony as they stared down at it, and there was a boat just floating around in it. The Tekkadan trio slowed down a little to have a look at it, though Pandemonica didn't slow down one bit as she waltzed on. Modeus took this opportunity to jump onto Mika's back, however, much to his chagrin.
"Please keep moving. The River Styx is intriguing, but it is not a part of our journey," assured Pandemonica as the Tekkadan trio did as they were told. As they walked, however, Pandemonica thought that she may as well pass the time by speaking of just what the River Styx was. "The River Styx leads into Hades, which is a different Hell altogether. We are headed for the Ninth Circle of Hell, not to Hades."
"Different Hell? How exactly does that work?" asked Shino curiously, and to that, Modeus, shockingly enough, spoke up in response.
"It works at random! Those who die get sent to a random Hell, and that's history!" explained Modeus, surprising everyone present as she hugged Mika a little tighter, much to his irritation as he sighed. As for everyone else, however, they were surprised that she knew about all this, though the Tired Demon was quick to explain why.
"Modeus rules over the second circle of Hell, the closest to this one. She keeps tabs on the rulers of this one, the Cerberus, and visits often," explained Pandemonica. "They indulge themselves a lot with physical contact."
"... good to know?" muttered Akihiro uncertainly as Shino raised a brow.
"So… Cerberus?" added Norba, who got a snort in response from Pandemonica as she explained.
"The ruler of the third circle of Hell, and the Guardian of Hades. They are one of many subordinates of Hades and are here to ensure that no one crosses over to his realm without his permission," explained Pandemonica, with her confusing everyone with the word Hades all the while.
"Will they be trouble? Cerberus," asked Mika as he felt Modeus' breasts press against the back of his head. He mostly ignored it, however, as he listened to Pandemonica respond.
"Thankfully, no. Cerberus resides in the lower levels of the third circle of Hell. They will not bother us unless we intrude on their privacy," assured Pandemonica as they walked on, prompting Mika to nod in response as he was fine with avoiding any new members to his group.
And of course, right as he was starting to relax in spite of Modeus' breasts pressing against his back, something bad had to happen. As he took a step forwards, the ground beneath Mikazuki specifically began to crack a little, prompting him to stare down at his feet for a brief few seconds, only to widen his eyes a tiny bit when he saw the ground beneath him crack further.
"Oh shit," commented Mika, shockingly nonchalant as he threw Modeus off himself and watched as the ground beneath him broke apart, causing him to fall into the abyss as Akihiro and Shino bolted forwards to assist him, though they were a little too late as the pilot fell out of their reach.
"Well, now isn't that just a convenient turn of events?"
Down there
And so, Mika fell… and he fell… and he continued to fall further.
'Does this lead to double Hell or something,' thought Mika after much falling, with him growing tired of falling after a handful of seconds. Thankfully enough, however, the pilot wasn't going to double Hell, it would seem, as he eventually saw ground closing in, and with that, he sighed as he face planted onto the hellish soil, creating a sizable crater on impact.
Thereafter, Augus got up and dusted himself off, seeming mostly nonchalant about the Mika-shaped hole in the ground he had just made, as he stared up at where he had dropped from. He couldn't even see the hole he had fallen from, which was a bad thing, to say the least, and as such, he was quick to look around the area he had fallen in.
A cave, no doubt, and there was a pathway that Mika promptly followed. As he walked through the cave, Augus encountered several buff skeletons, though none of them approached him after the pilot had kicked one into a wall and shattered them. Floor spikes were also quite an issue for the Ace, though he was dexterous enough to jump over them.
"OH GOD GET AWAY FROM ME PLEASE!"
The fuck was that.
Raising a brow as he glanced in the general direction of that yell, Mikazuki, out of curiosity, headed towards its source and came across a door… one with three keyholes on it, something that confused Augus, to say the least. The pilot attempted to open it at first to confirm if it was locked or just there for cosmetic purposes, and when he realized that it was legitimately locked, he sighed and went to work on finding the keys.
Not like he knew how to escape this place, after all. For all he knew, this door led out of this cave! Though of course, the terrified screams of an oddly familiar young man did say otherwise…
At first, Mika found himself lost as he couldn't find a key anywhere, though before long, he walked himself straight into a dead end and found… a doghouse? A big one, at that. Curiously, he entered it and saw that it was well furnished. Three queen sized beds, three bedside tables, three bathrooms, three tables and chairs… and three dog collars. The dog collars made Mika shiver a tiny bit, though he didn't dwell much on it as he searched around the place.
The first key was found underneath one of the three beds, alongside some… other things that are best left unmentioned. The second was discovered inside a box of 'Artificial Dog Treats' that was hidden inside one of the three kitchens within the massive doghouse, and out of curiosity, Mika took a bite out of a single dog treat and shrugged. It wasn't half bad. The third and last key was found in a pile of dirty laundry. Said pile consisted entirely of identical red and black clothing that looked to have been left untouched for… eons, and Mika had to jump in just to find the damn key buried in there.
Regardless of the doghouse owner's personal hygiene, however, Mika found the keys, and as such, he was quick to rush back to unlock that door. Once it was unlocked, however, the screaming that came from behind it only intensified, prompting Augus to raise a confused brow all the while.
"NO GET BACK! PLEASE!"
"Danji, calm down…"
"ASTON FOR FUCKS SAKE! HOW CAN I CALM DOWN WHEN THESE GIRLS ARE TRYING TO EAT US?!"
The sight of not one, not two… not three… but four young men huddled atop a sizable boulder whilst a trio of nearly identical young women… three devils with red and black business suits, not unlike Pandemonica's, and canine ears, were ogling them at its base was… amusing, to say the least, though when Mikazuki realized who those four young men were, he was quick to perk up as he called out for one of them.
"Aston? Aston Atland?" called out Mika, prompting everyone present to turn towards the Ace pilot and widen their eyes at him. The three identical women said nothing as they looked at Mika with their feline ears perked up in shock, though as for the boys…
"Mr Mikazuki?" greeted Aston from atop his vantage point. The kid looked just as Mika remembered him, with his black, unkempt hair, green eyes and scar on the lower left of his cheek. In response to Aston's words, Augus simply nodded, and as for the others.
"Mr Mikazuki?! You're in Hell as well?!" proclaimed Danji Enrai as he widened his eyes in disbelief, and to that, Mika simply shrugged.
"You know him, Aston, Danji?!" demanded one of the other boys, a kid with black hair with an orange streak running down its center. As he spoke, another kid… one that Mika widened his eyes a little at, awaited a response from Aston. Danji himself appeared to be shocked beyond belief to see Mika in Hell, so much so that he couldn't say anything to voice out his surprise.
"Yes. He's Mika, a friend," replied Aston gently as he watched Mikazuki take a step towards them, though as he did so, the three girls that surrounded the boys crouched down and hissed a little, something that amused the pilot while the boys atop the boulder shuddered.
"A… friend…? Will he save us?" inquired one of the boys, a black eye and haired young man with a sleeveless shirt and baggy pants. He appeared rather hopeful as he watched the pilot in question take a step towards the girls, and to that, Aston nodded as Danji slammed his fist into his palm.
"Don't worry, Masahiro! Mr Mikazuki can handle some punks like them!" assured Danji, though the kid with the orange streak didn't seem to trust that.
"That devil has been chasing us through their catacombs for God knows how long, Danji! We've seen them tear through those skeletons like nothing just to get to us! How can we be so sure that they can't do the same to him?!" demanded the orange streak haired boy, and to that, Danji and Aston simply smiled gently, something that made the kid and Masahiro Atland blink in surprise.
"Because, Vito, Mr Mikazuki tends to make the impossible possible from time to time," joked Aston rather warmly, only to tense up a little when he heard the trio of demon girls snarl a little at Mika, who ignored their little warning towards him as he took another step towards them.
"I don't do it that much, but thanks, I guess," commented Mika, with him believing that the title of Making the Impossible Possible was already taken by someone else. Call it a gut feeling. But, regardless of trademarked titles, Mikazuki continued to walk onwards as the three girls raised their hips into the air for whatever reason and hissed at him. "Oi, I'm taking those kids. So back off."
No response, though that was to be expected, Mika reckoned, as he took another step forwards and held his breath. At the very least, if he was going to be mauled to death by these feral kittens, Mika reckoned that he could be used as a distraction for Aston and his merry group. Glancing up at the boy in question, Augus narrowed his eyes at the kid, prompting him to nod in acknowledgement as he grabbed onto Vito and Masahiro's arms. Danji seemed insulted that he wasn't given the same treatment, though he didn't think much of it as he raised a brow in confusion.
"What-" began Danji, only for him to pause when the three girls lunged towards Mika, with the pilot grimacing as he braced himself for impact. And, out of a mixture of shock and worry, Aston jerked his body forwards and held a hand out.
"Mr Mikazuki-"
…
…
…
And all his fears were rather quickly alleviated when he realized that, as soon as they had forced Mikazuki onto his back… the three girls began to… purr as they rubbed their bodies against Mika's.
The sight alone was more than enough to make the three boy's drop their jaws, but even so, they reckoned that it was better than watching their senior being ripped apart.
"What… the actual fuck?" asked Danji in shock as he watched a single one of the devils slither her head below Mika's hand, forcing him to pat her over the head, as she purred. Another rubbed her cheek up against his thigh, and the third pounced onto his back and nuzzled his hair. This was all so… confusing to the pilot, and by all means, it confused his juniors even further.
"Erm… Mr Mikazuki, are you alright?" asked Aston hesitantly as the pilot shrugged. This wasn't exactly ideal, but it was certainly a lot better than getting ripped apart, and at least this 'cuddling' wasn't as… lewd as whatever passed as intimacy for Modeus.
"Could be worse," assured Mika, and at that, Aston began to slide himself off the top of the boulder, with him having believed that Augus had the situation under control all the while. The other three were reluctant to do so, but they eventually followed Aston's example as they slid off, with Danji wisely hiding behind Vito as they approached Mikazuki and the three devils.
"What… is going on?" asked Masahiro in confusion as he watched the three devil girls rub up against Mika, very much like how a normal house cat would. The pilot had no solution to his answer, but surprisingly enough.
"Perfect! This one…" began one of the three devils, catching the attention of everyone present as they turned towards her.
"... is powerful! He will be beneficial for us in crossing over to the mortal realm!" added the other identical looking devil.
"We shall keep you alive for now, mister!" concluded the third, and at that, the trio of devils stopped the whole housecat charade and slithered off Mika, who was quick to stand up as he turned and watched the devils huddle together and bow mockingly towards him.
"We are Cerberus, human! We are the guardian of Hades, and now, you are our prisoner!" announced the three devils in sync. Cerberus, as they had collectively introduced themselves as, stared directly at Mika with toothy grins as they watched the pilot… just stare at them in bemusement as they continued speaking. "With your help, we shall venture into the mortal realm and corrupt it, just as we always wished to do!"
"... why do you want to do that, exactly?" asked Danji from behind Vito and Mikazuki out of curiosity, and to that, Cerberus collectively laughed as they hugged each other in a manner that was just a bit too intimate to be considered sisterly…
"Why? Because…"
"We find ourselves…"
"Severely bored with our job of guarding Hades!"
And to that, everyone present blinked in disbelief. What a… ridiculous reason to want to escape to another dimension, though then again, Mika reminded himself that Pandemonica was only helping them for the promise of legit coffee, and by all means, that was probably more ridiculous than helping them out of boredom.
"No one ever tries to go to Hades anyways, so who cares?! We'll go up there and force the mortals to make our job interesting when they die!" proclaimed Cerberus in unison, and to that, Mika simply shrugged as he motioned for them to get a move on.
"Ok. Just… lead the way out of here, then," muttered Mika with a shrug as Cerberus smiled and motioned for Mika to follow them. As he did so, the pilot turned and gestured for the younger boys to follow him as well, and as they did so, Vito, who was blissfully unaware of just who Mika was exactly, jogged up to Augus' side and eyed him warily.
"How can you be so calm, Mr… Mika?" inquired Vito as he walked beside the pilot. "You're just… going to help them into the real world? I've seen what they can do… if you do that, they'll cause a lot of damage!"
And right as Vito finished his statement, a mild oof could be heard, prompting everyone to turn towards its source, only to see that Cerberus, or at least one of the three, had walked straight into a pillar. As she did so, the second Cerberus walked right into the first's back, and likewise, the third rammed straight into the second, causing a domino effect that forced all three of them to fall backwards shortly thereafter.
"Somehow, I doubt that."
Two is better than one, and three is better than two!
Enter Cerberus, and the mostly forgotten Shotas of Iron Blooded Orphans! Aston and Masahiro aren't exactly forgotten, but Danji and Vito? I doubt anyone actually remembers those poor guys…
For those wondering, Danji was killed in the first episode of IBO, and Vito was a Brewer Human Debris that was killed by Mika himself. I wonder how that might turn out…
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