In this chapter, another student will go missing.
Scary, huh?
However, there is hope for our heroes yet.
And there is hope for this student.
There's got to be some form of hope if our readers want to stay interested.
Chapter 2: Another Disappearance
The day after Tao's disappearance, Sahori decided to hang out with Yosuke's friends. They were a diverse bunch. One of them was even a celebrity. What were the odds?
For some reason, the one with blonde hair who dressed in white reminded her of a teddy bear. She didn't quite know why. Though she did note to herself that she was rather cute.
"So, this is our latest member of our group?" asked Yukiko. The group had expanded as they traversed the Midnight Channel.
Yosuke nodded.
"You sure have a diverse circle of friends." noted Sahori.
"Do you have any friends?" asked the wind user.
"Well, it was only Tao before you joined in. I joined the lacrosse club, but they think I'm too bossy." explained the unlucky girl. She was a newcomer, after all.
"To be honest, my friend Chie can be like that." answered Yukiko. To her knowledge, her Shadow was like that. Luckily, she had decided to accept it and it had made her a better person…and gave her team a better chance of solving the dual murder cases.
"I guess I kind of can be. But I do have a friend steering me in the right direction." noted Chie.
"My friend Tao was always telling me to do the right thing." remarked Sahori.
"She sounds like an angel." remarked Rise.
"I can't help but think there's an irony in that." noted the girl.
"Maybe there is." nodded Naoto.
Meanwhile, Yuzuru was with Ichiro.
They were outside on the street.
"Thanks for not treating me like I'm dumb." said Ichiro.
"You're welcome. We seem to be kind of different people though." noted Yuzuru.
"You're into chaos, I'm into order." agreed the blonde.
"Still, I think we can be friends." explained the glasses-wearing boy.
"See you around." spoke Ichiro.
Yuzuru nodded.
However, as the blonde boy went for a walk, another portal showed up.
This time a Pyro Jack stepped out.
"I love the sunny weather hee-here, ho!" exclaimed Jack.
Ichiro was sucked in.
It seemed that the demons needed to be careful not to get too close to a human when using those portals.
Otherwise, half of the town's population could end up in the demon realm.
The blonde boy found himself being whisked away to the Netherworld.
"Where am I?" asked Ichiro.
He knew that Tao had gone missing yesterday.
Was this where she ended up?
It seemed possible.
However, there was no sign of them.
Suddenly, an angel showed up.
This one was female.
"A human? I thought the humans in the Netherworld had more or less gone extinct." noted this angel. It was a pleasant surprise, however. According to Abdiel, it was an angel's sacred duty to protect humanity.
Ichiro's cheeks turned pink. This angel looked like a human woman, but was practically naked.
She had a blindfold on though, so it was on the fence as to how she could see him.
"Are you going to hurt me?" asked the blonde boy.
"No. I'm just surprised to see one after demons overran this world." spoke the angel.
Ichiro sighed in relief.
"Wait, demons overran this world?" asked the boy.
"Yes…that's why we're taking the fight to them. Unfortunately, it's been harder ever since our god died and Lucifer took over." explained the angel.
"I heard of him…they say he's the most evil guy around." noted Ichiro.
There were scary stories about him.
"I know. He's been the greatest enemy of us angels since forever." remarked one of the angels.
"I heard he used to be one of you." remarked Ichiro.
"That's what makes him so dangerous. He knows a lot about us…even if he decided to embrace chaos." explained the angel. She wasn't sure how he had gotten strong enough to slay God though.
He hadn't had that kind of power up until now. Before he and Merkabah were roughly equal in strength. But something had turned the tides.
"I'm more into order myself." spoke the blonde boy.
"Then maybe we'll get along. Us angels are all about order. Our enemies, the demons, are a different story." noted the angel.
"I would imagine so." nodded Ichiro.
Suddenly, a Preta showed up.
The blonde felt worried.
"That's one of them, isn't it?" asked the boy.
"It's one of the weak ones, but yes." explained the angel.
"This human is going to taste soooo good!" exclaimed the Preta. He was looking forward to eating him for lunch.
He pulled out a knife and a fork.
"How do I defend myself?" questioned Ichiro.
If he didn't, he was going to be eaten.
The angel handed Ichiro a spear.
"That ought to do it." noted the boy.
He used it to stab the Preta, which worked.
However, one approached him from behind.
His angel friend zapped it.
"Ouch! Can't I have something to eat?" asked the Preta.
"Not if it's human meat." answered the angel.
"Aww…" complained the gorilla demon.
Ichiro noticed there was a vending machine nearby.
There were a variety of snacks inside.
"Have you considered eating those?" asked the blonde boy.
"I never thought of that." answered the Preta.
He decided to shake the vending machine…which worked.
"Thanks, man!" exclaimed the gorilla.
He left the scene afterwards.
"I appreciate you being so helpful." remarked Ichiro. He wasn't sure what he would do without her.
"You're welcome." answered the angel.
"Do you have a name?" asked the blonde boy.
"I'm known as Angel 777." explained the flying woman.
"Angel 777?" questioned Ichiro.
"Yes, that is my name." nodded the angel.
"Maybe I should name you something that will give you more individuality. How does Holly sound?" asked the blonde boy.
"I actually like the sound of that." remarked Holly.
"Ok, good." nodded Ichiro.
"Anything else you want to do for me?" asked the newly named angel.
"Maybe an outfit that doesn't make you look like a slave." answered Ichiro.
"What did you have in mind?" asked Holly.
Ichiro looked around.
There was a clothing store nearby.
It was remarkably intact.
"You can dress however you want." noted Ichiro.
Holly went for a strapless yellow bikini.
She also took off her blindfold.
"What do you think?" asked the angel.
Her eyes were glowing yellow.
"Stunning." remarked Ichiro.
Holly chuckled.
She then gave him a hug.
Ichiro's cheeks turned pink.
"I'm glad I met you." remarked Holly.
"Right back at you…especially since I'm going to need your help in order to survive out here." noted Ichiro.
His partner handed him a water bottle.
"Thanks." said the boy.
This would really come in handy since he was in a desert.
Meanwhile…
"How many demons are in the netherworld, anyway?" asked Tao.
"You'd be surprised." answered Aogami.
"That one looks like a fairy." spoke the angel.
"Is that an angel?" asked the fairy.
Luckily, this one was not dangerous.
"This one looks a bit like you." remarked Tao.
"Really? I don't ever recall having wings." noted Aogami.
"My name is Amanozako." said Amanozako.
"You can call me Tao…something tells me your name is going to be hard to remember." noted Tao. It was a long name. Was it normal for demons to have such long names? Lucifer didn't seem that long.
"Would it be easier if you called me something shorter?" asked the fairy.
"Maybe Amy?" asked Tao.
"That sounds good." nodded Amy.
"So…anything you can tell me about this place?" questioned the angel.
"Well, there's hidden treasure if you search hard enough. I can help with that." said the fairy.
"That's a good idea." remarked Tao.
Who knows what she could find?
It could be something useful.
"But wait, what if we discover demons?" questioned the human girl.
"I suppose that's possible." remarked Amanozako.
Luckily, Tao could potentially tame the demons if that happened.
"I should thank you for allowing me to use the demon summoning program." noted the angel.
"Sometimes, it's better to have demons at your side than as your enemies." remarked Aogami.
After all, the best way to fight one's enemy was to get to know one's enemy.
She understood that well now.
It wasn't wrong for her to consider the demons alongside her to be her friends though…was it?
She liked to think that they were.
For a while, she unearthed a lot of treasures.
But eventually, she encountered a knocker buried in the sand.
"Why did you disturb my resting place? I'll have to knock some sense into you!" exclaimed the knocker.
"What if I offered you some macca?" asked Tao.
She had earned a lot of that.
"Maybe you can be forgiven then…and maybe I'll join your side and knock some sense into your enemies." noted the knocker.
"Works for both of us then." remarked the high school girl.
"Someone sure is a pacifist." noted Amanozako.
"Well, the world would probably be better off without violence." suggested Tao.
"Maybe. The demons and angels are always at each other's throats though." remarked the fairy.
"Order vs. chaos, huh?" asked the teenage girl.
"Pretty much." nodded Amy.
The next day…
"Another student has gone missing?" asked Yukiko.
Yu put his hand on the chin. This was interesting.
"This isn't good. Whatever's happening to the students, it seemed to be happening fast." remarked Rise.
"That's what troubles me." remarked the brunette girl.
"Do we have any leads?" asked Kanji.
"Do you know who's gone missing?" asked Sahori.
"A student named Ichiro." explained Naoto.
"I know him. He doesn't do well at school." remarked the girl who had red hair.
"Do you know anyone who would want to hurt him?" asked Teddie. It was a scary thought.
"Not really. But I do know he argues with Yuzuru sometimes. Unlike Ichiro, he DOES do well at school." noted Sahori.
"I guess he's a suspect then." acknowledged Yukiko.
"Well, I've known him for a while and I've never noticed anything suspicious about him." spoke the redhead. She understood their logic, however.
"Just in case, could you give us a picture of him?" asked Chie.
"That's a good idea." nodded Sahori.
She handed Chie a picture of Yuzuru.
"We'll keep ahold of that." spoke the karate master.
Hopefully Yuzuru would be of help for their investigation…regardless of whether he kidnapped Ichiro and\or Tao or not.
The Inaba Investigation Team left.
Afterwards, Sahori pulled out a can of spray paint.
She used it to spray paint on a school wall.
The spray paint formed a picture of Jack Frost.
It wasn't December, but she happened to like the little fella.
"What are you doing?" asked Yosuke.
"Oh, hey, Yosuke! How are you doing?" questioned Sahori.
"I'm doing fine. But what are you up to?" interrogated the wind user.
"I'm spray painting the wall. My lacrosse club said I was too strict, so I decided to do something naughty." remarked the redhead.
"Is this your way of loosening up a bit?" asked Yosuke.
"Pretty much." answered Sahori.
Perhaps she should be nicer to her teammates.
There was no point in getting kicked out of the group.
"I could tell on you…but I'm worried you might kick me if I do that." noted Yosuke.
"Don't worry. I'm not Chie." answered Sahori.
"Thanks…that means a lot to me." remarked the boy.
The mischievous girl giggled.
Meanwhile…
As she traversed through the desert, Tao discovered a familiar face.
"Ichiro? Is that you? I suppose it could be a desert mirage." noted the angel.
"You won't need to worry about hunger or thirst while you're bound to me, so that's unlikely." answered Aogami.
"So, it's the real deal?" asked Tao.
"Most likely." nodded the man.
Ichiro was happy to see her.
"Thank goodness! Now I won't have to traverse this desert alone…well, almost alone." noted the blonde boy.
Holly raised her hand.
"Another angel? You seem different from the rest." remarked the angel with blonde hair.
"Well, I wasn't always an angel. I became bonded with what appears to be a robot." explained Tao.
"You're a Nahobino?!" exclaimed Holly.
"Huh?" asked Tao.
"I guess God truly is dead…I wonder what will befall the world now that he's gone." remarked the natural-born angel.
"God is dead? Who will we turn to?" questioned Ichiro.
"Mistress Abdiel, I suppose. She plans on taking God's place, and restoring his rule." explained Holly.
"I'm onboard for that." noted the blonde boy.
"How much do you know about him?" asked Tao.
"Well, I know he keeps order in society." explained Ichiro.
"That doesn't necessarily mean he was a good deity." noted Aogami.
Sometimes, deities had good reasons for killing each other.
"Well, I've read in history classes about evil dictators…though I don't know much about them." remarked the blonde boy.
"My memory has been fuzzy, so I will admit that is also the case for me regarding the different gods." spoke Aogami.
"Wait, is that the robot speaking?" asked Ichiro.
"Mm-hmm. It's a surprisingly symbiotic relationship." noted Tao.
"If this is your friend, I can help him by giving him the demon summoning program." explained Aogami.
"Demon summoning program? That sounds scary." noted the blonde.
"Well, it does have its downsides. In the past, people have been corrupted by its use. They spent too much with demons that didn't have humanity's best interests in heart." explained Aogami.
Ichiro gulped.
"However, it can also work both ways. I've noticed that your comrade seems to have altered her perception of the world to some extent after meeting you." noted the proto fiend.
He scratched his head.
"I know. I feel much more independent than before. It's a good feeling." remarked Holly.
"Well, it would probably best for you to be independent now that YHVH has passed." suggested Aogami.
The angel has nodded.
"What's a Nahobino, anyway?" asked Ichiro.
"A deity who has merged with a human…or the other way around." explained Holly.
"You're a half-goddess now?" questioned the blonde.
"I guess so." nodded Tao.
"I'm amazed." remarked Ichiro.
The angel's cheeks turned pink.
"Let's work together to survive, shall we?" asked Tao.
Ichiro nodded.
Fortunately for her partner, he just so happened to like angels.
He had bonded with one surprisingly quickly.
He was more hesitant to use the demon program, however.
Whenever he was ready, she supposed.
Could they survive?
Well, Ichiro and Tao are on the same boat.
However, Ichiro won't be becoming a Nahobino…yet.
He just might do so in the future, however.
He has made a friend, nevertheless.
Hopefully, Sahori won't go down the same path she did in canon. That would not be good.
Bye!