Chapter 4: The Food Chain

(4 days after arrival in Kalichi)

Gyer Crocell

Patrias Crocell isn't the most patient of people even on a good day. And today is most definitely not a good day for the head of the Crocell family.

"Gyer?"

I tear myself away from my thoughts and try my hardest not to let my voice quaver as I respond with, "I'm listening Father."

"Are you now? Because I seem to recall specifically telling you that our main purpose in finally wiping out those damn Valefors was so that we could pick up the pieces of their empire and be all the stronger for it. So why, exactly, do we have only a massive waste of resources to show for it and a few inconsequential gangs and suppliers now currying our favor?"

I thickly swallow and take a second to craft my reply. While Father isn't the most physically intimidating of individuals, being fairly plain looking by Devil standards and of medium height and build, it's his ruthlessness and personal strength as one of the stronger High-Class Devils that make him intimidating.

I evenly speak up, saying, "Rizevim and his forces caused far more collateral destruction than we had ever anticipated. While we tried to get him to keep the fight away from the Valefor Library and other potential record keeping spaces he apparently ignored our requests in favor of his own agenda. Our own agents were held up by several of Clarissa's Peerage and didn't have enough time to go through all of the wreckage before other Devils under the Maou's direction began appearing. We had no choice but to cut our losses and-"

"Our losses," Father dangerously interrupts me with, "Included 9 of our family's best warriors, as well as significant monetary loss in order to hire several mercenary groups that could wipe out any Valefors outside of their mansion that same night."

I rally myself and quickly respond with, "We managed to retrieve all of our kin's bodies, we won't be associated with-"

"THAT ISN"T THE POINT YOU IMBECILE!"

I'm shocked into silence by Father's sudden burst of anger and feel a bead of sweat trickle down my back as his aura suddenly flares in response to his emotions.

Despite his rage Father's words are eerily quiet.

"The Valefors put up such a fight that the hired help is complaining we underpaid them, despite the already significant sum we offered. They're threatening to expose what they were hired for if we don't further compensate them, and our hands are tied in the matter. We either have to hire another group to wipe out our previous affiliates or buy their silence, either way we lose. In addition we recovered practically no useful records from this entire assault, essentially pissing money down the drain. The other families won't be able to resist pointing fingers at us in order to save their own hides if the Satans and their allies come knocking, never mind our contacts among the Old Satan Faction will be eager to point out our failing to Rizevim."

I swallow and decide holding my tongue is the best strategy right now. And in a way Father is right. This entire endeavor was by and far a loss, despite it's technical 'success'.

Growling under his breath Father seats himself back down at his desk and fixes me with a glare.

"You failed to properly ensue this operations success. Thus, you're going to be the one to fix it. We know that many of the Valefor's contacts operate in Kalichi, in the same neighborhood as where we have quite a few of our metal refining factories. I want you to personally travel there and win over their now unsupervised affiliates. I don't care if it takes you years or decades, you will ensure that we come away from this with some benefit. Is that understood?"

"…Yes Father."

It could be worse, he could have just killed me to make an example of what happens to those who fail him…although spending the foreseeable future in Kalichi of all places isn't my idea of a fun time…

I kick my thoughts aside for now and smoothly stand before stating, "Then I will depart immediately and-"

I'm cut off as Father acidly interrupts me with, "Use your brain Gyer. The Satans, Sirzechs and his allies in particular, will be watching us closely for any potential justification to question us about whether we had anything to do with this or not. Our disagreements with the Valefors were hardly a secret. Wait a few months for their gaze to pass on and then begin your work. Since you now have some time to prepare beforehand, I suggest you make certain that you are ready. Am I clear?"

I get what he's saying perfectly.

Succeed, and reap the benefits of your work.

Fail, and you'll be an excellent lesson to show others about what not to do.

I take a shaky breath and quietly reply, "Crystal clear, Father."

Caine

(4 days after arrival in Kalichi)

Ugh my arm freaking hurts…did I sleep on it or something? I wince and look over…only to remember rather quickly why it's so sore in the first place.

Reason being is that there's a Raven-haired Nekoshou currently plowing her head into my arm with a dumb smile on her face.

And a trail of drool trailing down my skin onto the bed.

…Well that's not gross or anything.

I just sigh to myself and yank my arm out from beneath Kuroka's head, ignoring the sharp protest from the limb as I do so, her face plopping onto the mattress with a dull thump while her breathing hitches before she slowly wakes up and blearily looks around.

Shirone also rises after her Sister starts moving around and both cats go through the same stretching motion they did the day before. Arch the back, slowly extend each leg and then actually get up from the bed.

"Good morning Caine…" they both blearily say as they walk past me toward the kitchen.

"Yah…good morning."

Huh. I guess neither of them are really morning people. Normally they interact with me way more differently than that. This time I curiously follow Shirone out when she carries the shower bucket, wondering where she gets all that water from. She walks out the 'back' of the little house, really just a punched out hole with a tarp covering it, and heads on over to a slight indentation in the ground. Upon closer inspection the indent turns out to be a bona fide hole in the ground, full of muddy water.

I frown as I consider the fact that the stuff I've been washing myself with and drinking has essentially been putrid city runoff before Shirone lazily sets down the tub and adopts a cross legged sitting position. I quietly stop about a meter away from her, not eager to disturb her concentration, and feel my eyes widen as I feel a very…strange…flow of energy come from the Yokai.

I almost jump as a ball of mud and other crud slowly gather above the miniature pond before dumping itself against the side of a nearby wall, leaving the water inside the hole largely pristine.

"Whoa…that's crazy cool…"

To my surprise Shirone apparently didn't notice me walk up alongside her and wildly turns towards me as I frantically raise my hands in an attempt to not appear like a threat. Thankfully I had the presence of mind to give her plenty of space and she quickly relaxes, causing me to wryly grin.

"Sorry about that, I didn't mean to sneak up on you or anything, I was just curious where you were gathering all that water from."

She blankly stares at me before giving a small shrug and dumping the bucket into the makeshift well before replying, "Me and my Sister aren't really morning people."

I give a quiet snort before nostalgically saying, "Just like being back home then. My Older Brother wasn't much an early riser himself…I often used that as an excuse to dump a few ice cubes down his shirt now that I think about it."

"…Big Sis told me that you heard all of your family is…gone now. Do you miss them?"

I give a sad sigh in response.

"Of course I do. I spent so much of my life laughing, arguing, talking, shouting, fighting, hugging with them that now things feel…empty."

The white haired cat is silent for a second before she gives a slow nod of her head and says, "I…think I know how you feel. Me and Big Sis felt the same way when Mom and Dad died…like part of-"

"-ourselves died with them, right?"

She shoots me a briefly surprised look but once again just nods before going back to staring at nothing. I briefly want to ask how her and Kuroka's parents passed away but…this conversation is already pretty heavy, I'd rather end this on a more positive note.

"Need a hand carrying the pail back?"

I immediately kick myself for making such a stupid offer since Shirone has been manhandling that thing around no problem, but to my surprise she just thinks about for a second before nodding and easily replying, "Sure."

I internally sigh and walk on over to the bucket…but not before I see a brief bit of playfulness appear on the Yokai's face as she steps aside.

Grimacing, I kneel down and wrap my arms around the bucket before lifting it up with a strained grunt. I'm almost back to normal by now and I never exactly slacked off in my training with Dad, but holy crap this is heavy!

Shirone still has a neutral expression on her face but her twitching ears and happily waving tails tells me plenty about what she's actually feeling while watching me struggle.

Going for a false display of bravado I wheeze out, "See? I've got this…no problem…"

She stoically nods and replies, "Yes. You're very strong. In fact you can start carrying that around every morning."

I whip my head around in shock at her sudden offer and see her mouth slowly turn upward into a tiny smile before she walks away, tails still leisurely waving about.

Crap…I walked straight into that one. I'm elevating Shirone's threat level to higher than Kuroka's after this.

"Ok, we all set to go?"

Shirone gives one of her usual nods and I just reply, "Whenever you are."

Kuroka claps her hands together and cheerfully states, "Alright then off we go! Try not to get lost now Kid!"

"Just don't go running off across rooftops or anything like that…"

She snickers before both her and Shirone are briefly ensconced by dull white light that shrinks them down into their cat forms. Kuroka's reminds me quite a bit of a Bombay breed of feline while Shirone's is reminiscent of an albino burmese. The only real distinguishing feature between them and normal house cats is their 2 tails and bright golden eyes, so at least I won't lose them in the crowd too easily.

With nary a word or meow they both trot out the door and I follow close behind, keeping an eye out for any nasty surprises that could be hiding behind any corner. I think my first journey out into Kalichi left me a little paranoid.

We exit out into the main street opposite the alley where the house is and both Yokai immediately hop onto the roofs of nearby buildings, only their tails visible as they traverse the terrain. I scowl at that and briefly look around for any passerby that I can use as a cloak and find no one, the few people that are out and about right now are headed in the opposite direction.

Dammit.

I heave a quiet sigh and tighten the hood around my head, hoping that looking mysterious will deflect some of the more curious around me.

Guess this is just gonna be another day of on-the-job training…

What I saw yesterday was obviously the 'better' side of Kalichi, or at least the more productive. Where Kuroka and Shirone are leading me seems to be the absolute dregs of the place. All of the 'buildings' are a ramshackle collection of long collapsed houses that resemble caves more than they do homes, metal sheets leaning against each other to create impromptu tipis and most depressing of all sometimes there's nothing more than a few sheets of plastic or paper strung over an alleyway that create a makeshift tent of sorts.

And then there's the people.

Just like the rest of the city there's no boundary between species here, although a fair portion appear to be normal Humans. All of them are dull eyed or moving listlessly, a fair portion of them smelling of biological waste and what I'm quickly realizing are drugs.

And I'm being rather clinical in my observation here. Mostly because to pay any attention to these poor Bastards is to drive home the point that I could have easily ended up just like them had Kuroka and Shirone not been the ones to pick me up, assuming I made it out of that forest alive in the first place.

I mentally remind myself to do something nice for the cats first chance I get.

Thankfully the constant stream of people means there's no shortage of shadows for me to hide in, while my 2 Yokai guides are being considerate enough to always stay within sight, even if they're setting a pretty steady pace.

Nevertheless after about an hour the Church is within sight and the 2 Sisters hop down from the roofs to ground level, Shirone easily scaling some protruding bricks while Kuroka just uses my head as an intermediary landing platform before dropping to the ground, unfortunately for me neglecting to keep her claws sheathed as she does so.

It's a good thing I'm invisible right now because I don't think she'd appreciate the vicious scowl I'm sending her direction. Irritated, I turn my gaze towards the Yokai, an Inu, that I was tailing and find him still utterly oblivious, haphazardly walking in an uneven line, obviously either drunk or high as the stars.

With a shrug I let go of my hiding spot and turn towards the front gate of the building, privately impressed at how well it's held up considering the state of all the other structures in this area. Sure, it's crumbling in alot of places and has mildew growing everywhere but it's Basilica style architecture is mostly in one piece.

More impressive, however, is the long line of downtrodden looking people winding outside of the gate, evidently waiting for something. I'm startled out of my observation by the feeling of a soft yet firm appendage smacking my leg and look down to see Shirone and Kuroka walking towards the front entrance. I follow closely on their heels and ignore the few curious gazes I get from the people in line as we walk up to the main doors.

After a quick glance around the 2 cats turn back to their humanoid forms and move to knock on the door before I interrupt with, "Uh, playing Devil's advocate for a moment here, but is it really a good idea for me to step inside this place? Isn't it supposed to be, you know, painful for those of us with the Wings of Avarice?"

Kuroka gives me a look as if she's wondering whether I'm retarded or not and I feel a slight trace of defensiveness pop up. What's up with that look?

"Kid, you don't think a Church in the Underworld, in Kalichi of all lawless places, would survive for very long if it caused noticeable pain to a decent subset of it's neighbors do yah?"

"…Well when you put it like that…"

She rolls her eyes while Shirone pounds on the door and not more than a moment later an elderly looking Nun unlatches the lock and pulls back the heavy wood. She's a stern looking woman who probably could face down the Ouroboros Dragon without blinking and her voice is utterly clinical as she says, "I see you've arrived Kuroka, Shirone. Come inside, quickly."

Kuroka grins and cheekily replies, "Aw c'mon Sister Bianca, couldn't you at least pretend to be a little happy to see us?"

"Pretending would imply I care about your happiness. Inside, quick."

Wow. She doesn't mince her words much now does she? Pushing aside this Sister's chilly demeanor I follow the 2 Yokai in, only to find an arm barring me from entering.

Fixing her killer gaze on me the Sister asks in a no-nonsense tone, "And you are? Aside from not entering this building that is?"

Momentarily floored I just stand there like an idiot while the cats shoot me a look that says, 'sorry pal, but you're on your own for this one. That woman is scary'.

Thanks girls…

"You can relax Sister Bianca, Caine is the one who helped me find Lisa and save her, he's welcome inside our halls at any time."

The Sister's reaction to David's sudden appearance and words is confined to the lifting of a single eyebrow before she shrugs and moves aside, swiftly closing the door behind me.

David gives us a tired smile but appears to be in good spirits as he motions for us to follow him as he walks farther down the hall. I never thought I'd have the opportunity to actually see the inside of a Church before so I take the chance to greedily drink in all of the details that I can. The inside is rather bare since many of the objects associated with Christianity such as crosses and sculptures of the Holy Son are missing, but a few intact stained glass windows and rows of pews are still standing, along with a rather charming podium where sermons are no doubt delivered.

However the main catch of my curiosity is the view out of one of the non-stained glass windows, showing off an outdoor kitchen of sorts serving steaming bowls of some kind of food to the giant line of beggars outside the Church. Huh. That's alot of people, where the heck do they get enough food to feed that many of them?

Apparently David followed my gaze and asks, "You're wondering how we manage to afford feeding so many despite living in such squalor?"

I sheepishly grin and reply, "It did cross my mind, yah."

He merely nods and says, "After we attend to Lisa I'll show you how we manage to help so many…although bear in mind we rarely have enough to help everyone that comes to our doors. Even our charity has it's limits."

I table that for later and closely follow behind the Sisters as we travel through a small side door into a comfy looking room, at least compared to some of the places I've been staying at for the past couple days. It has a window, 4 beds and a couple sturdy looking chairs scattered about with a pleasing aroma in it, as opposed to the generally crap smell of most of Kalichi.

It's practically luxury living in here.

That thought is quickly dispelled once I see Kuroka and Shirone stiffen and quickly rush over to one of the beds where someone appears to be lying. I hang back for a moment, wanting to give the Sisters a moment, but David gently guides me forward anyway. Taking a deep breath I walk forward and take up position alongside Shirone, careful to still give her some space despite the situation.

At a glance Lisa seems to be a rather unassuming girl, although certainly cute in her own way. She has hair that strikes a balance between pale and blond with a thin mouth and small nose, causing her to appear vaguely elfin in appearance. And then upon closer inspection I see that the 'elfin' description was unnaturally accurate.

Mainly because her ears have that pointed trait exclusive only to the fairer folk.

How the heck did an Elf of all beings end up in this place? And as a ward of a Christian Church of all things? Talk about bizarre…

"If no one minds me asking, is she a legitimate Elf? I thought they mostly kept to themselves around Norse territory?"

Kuroka leans back from her inspection and heaves a tired sigh before saying, "That's her story to tell, not ours. David, is there anything else you need to do before we start working?"

He shakes his head and tiredly replies, "No, begin at your leisure."

I move to follow him out but Kuroka roughly grabs my shoulder and neutrally says, "You should stay and at least see the extent of the injuries Kid. If anything happens to me or Shirone I don't want you to lose your head because you've never seen anything like this."

I frown and ask, "Shouldn't that sort of call be made with the person's consent? I don't feel right just getting an eyeful of someone in a coma without their knowledge."

I look back at David for support but to my chagrin he merely looks down briefly before grimly nodding.

"They make a valid point Caine. Like it or not this city isn't a kind place by any stretch of the imagination. You'll be seeing many different forms of death and injury during your stay…I won't pretend to like it, but I think seeing both the cruelty of what Lisa experienced, as well as what you saved her from, will prepare you better for the future."

I grimace and rub my eyes before turning to Shirone and quietly asking, "What about you Shirone? Are you alright with this?"

She's quiet for a second before giving a small nod and softly replying, "They're right. And I agree with them."

…Well I guess I'm out of reasons to refuse then. Truthfully I really don't want to see this…before David squished his brains Wyert painted an unpleasant enough picture of what he did, which is more than I think I'm comfortable with seeing.

But if those 3 think I should do this…well, they're the experts when it comes to surviving here.

I take a shaky breath and say, "Alright, let's just…get this over with."

Without any further words David walks out of the room, closing the door behind him while Kuroka gives me a quick scratch on the head and Shirone offers me a brief look of sympathy before they're all business.

Without any further ado Kuroka pulls back the sheet, exposing Lisa's body and it's…not pretty.

In fact it's so bad that I barely even notice her nudity. How did…this is…

I have to take a deep breath, which doesn't help one bit as the movement in my stomach suddenly causes a wave of vertigo and nausea to permeate my body and I nearly retch all over the floor.

What the Hell did that sick Fuck do to her…all that bruising and those, those cuts…

Another wave of sickness hits me and this time a bit of acidic bile makes it out of my mouth and hits the floor.

…I regret ever agreeing to this damn idea.

I feel a hand suddenly touch my back and I whirl around, my mind clearly not working at peak performance as Kuroka suddenly jerks her hand away and raises it in a calming gesture.

"Relax Kid, I know it ain't pretty, but it's best you get this out of the way now…trust me on that."

I wipe my mouth with a shaking hand and hesitantly ask, "Do you…do you still need me to stick around here? I think I need…a moment."

"Yah…you're good Kid, take a breather. We'll find you when we're done here."

I can't get out of that room fast enough.

Some indeterminate amount of time later I'm sitting listlessly on one of the pews, just idly looking around at anything detailed enough to hold my attention and keep my thoughts away from what I just saw.

It's not working so great.

"Don't think too harshly of Kuroka and Shirone Caine, they meant well by exposing you to the harsh cruelties people can inflict on each other."

I give David a glance out of the corner of my eye as he takes a seat next to me and heavily exhale, running a shaky hand through my hair as I do so.

"I get it, and I also get that they were right to do so, it's just…"

I can't help the bitter tone that enters my voice as I say, "Are we actually doing Lisa a favor by healing her? Just so she can remember…that?"

David gives me a thoughtful look before he gives a sad smile and replies, "Yes, I think we are. Believe it or not, and I understand if you don't wish to, incidents like Lisa's aren't all that uncommon in this city. What's uncommon is that we might be able to create some sort of happy ending out of this whole tragic situation. Trust me Caine, not many walk out of dens like Wyert's intact, if at all. You'll come to realize just how lucky we all are that things played out like this the longer you stay in Kalichi. For now, just remember what the Sisters told you, that this is a harsh but necessary learning experience for you."

I scowl and mutter, "Gee, its almost like they care, making see that…that shit…"

I meant for that statement to shock the priest, mostly because I'm just in a foul mood, so to my further chagrin he just smiles and leans back in his seat with a fond look on his face.

"You say that as a joke, but I'm honestly surprised by how quickly those 2 seem to have taken to you."

My bewildered look makes him chuckle and he elaborates.

"I was the one who first found those 2 in this city almost 3 years ago. They were borderline malnourished, mistrustful of anyone aside from each other and clearly had experienced some of what Kalichi has to offer, if their injuries were anything to judge by."

I wince and briefly wonder if I want to hear the rest of this story. Of course David once again seems able to read my mind and languidly stands up, motioning for to follow him. Out of morbid curiosity I do and he continues with, "Don't worry, this story has a mostly happy ending. I managed to get them to follow me back to the Church after almost half-an-hour of reassuring them that I meant them no harm and agreeing to all sorts of conditions that would keep me from attacking them or something along those lines. Even after that it was months before they felt comfortable enough to confide in me about certain things."

His eyes briefly take on a sad look as he says, "In the years those 2 have been here I'm confidant there's only 4 people they implicitly trust. Myself, Sister Bianca, Lisa and Chow of all people…"

I don't quite manage to hide my surprise at the fact that Kuroka and Shirone apparently trust Chow with their life history and David chuckles, apparently of the same mind.

"Ah, we're here."

He pushes aside a door that leads to a large backyard of sorts, almost 30 meters by 9 meters.

And almost every bit of it is covered in greenery. I can only stare wide-eyed at this unexpected display of life in the seemingly dead city, shocked at finding rows upon row of vegetables and the occasional scented flower growing.

"So this is how you manage to help feed so many people…"

He nods and modestly replies, "It helps a little bit. Admittedly we also largely rely on donations from a few benefactors who wish to remain anonymous in helping others, but we make it work somehow."

I take a deep breath and almost smile as the aroma of different plants and shrubs drowns out the nastier smells of Kalichi, causing me to relax a bit. Hmm…Shirone used her Senjutsu to purify that water earlier today, I wonder if she can do that to make healthy topsoil, maybe we can make our own garden…

The thought of the tiny Yokai suddenly brings me back to the present and I confusedly ask, "Wait, you were saying that those 2 liked me? I haven't seen them treat me overly different from anyone else they've interacted with…"

He grins and replies, "That's because you haven't been around long enough to appreciate just how quickly they seem to have accepted you. Take Shirone for example. I assume you know she doesn't like physical contact very much with strangers, but why did she so readily show her back to you with no hesitation whatsoever? Or allow you to see her friends naked body? Those aren't the actions of someone that wants to survive in Kalichi, and she unfortunately knows all too well about survival."

I can't help but frown as I think about that before shaking my head.

"What about Kuroka? She's so relaxed and amicable about everything…how can you tell?"

"Well ordinarily…I wouldn't quite honestly. She's very good at keeping her true emotions under wraps and not giving away what she's thinking. But I'm quite certain she wants you to survive in this place, mostly because she wanted you to see Lisa's injuries. Didn't you hear what she said? If anything happens to me or Shirone…feel free to correct me if you think I'm wrong, but doesn't that sound like she's expecting, if not counting on you to be able to help them if needed in the future?"

…Well this sucks. Here I am moping about when those 2 are trying to help me prepare as best they can…ugh.

Mom would have been smacking me upside the head by now, with Dad right behind her, both of them giving me Holy Hell about being a crybaby when other people are asking for me to lend a helping hand in the future.

I take a deep breath and let it out before turning to David and giving a slight bow of my head.

"Thanks for clearing that up, as well as helping me pull my ass out of my head. I needed that."

He gives a snort of amusement and waves his hand as if to deflect my praise.

"One of the few good things I can still do in God's name is offer the advice of someone who's lived a decent amount of years to those younger than me. If you're desperate enough for it, feel free to ask me whenever you feel as if you're astray in life's waters."

"I didn't peg you as a philosophical type."

He grins and cheerily replies, "That may have been one of the reasons I was excommunicated. Christianity doesn't want philosophers questioning the nature of Our Father in Heaven, they want zealots carrying out his 'will' unwaveringly."

I remain quiet since the conversation is now totally out of my comfort zone and instead ask, "You said you were the first one to find the Sisters in this city. They told me they're orphans, so does that mean their parents were already dead or-"

"-That's for them to tell you, not me."

His tone leaves no room for argument so I just sigh and nod. I'm surprised when he drops a hand on my shoulder and gives a smile so reminiscent of Philips when he was offering some bit of advice I feel my throat tighten involuntarily.

"They'll tell you in time Caine. As I've already said, they seem inclined towards making you a part of their little group and no doubt hope that they can trust you with that sort of personal information further down the road. It's up to you to earn their trust on that matter."

I remain silent but give a slight inclination of my head, deciding to take his words to heart.

And I'd be lying if the thought of being on friendlier terms with the Sisters isn't appealing.

We fall into an easy silence for a while that's abruptly ended as Sister Bianca suddenly bursts into the room, an especially grim look on her face.

"Father David, we have a problem."

"What is it Sister?"

"It's the Serpents."

The air instantly turns tense and David rapidly says, "Sister, get Kuroka and Shirone to halt their healing of Lisa and prepare to fight if need be. Caine, I want you to hide like you did with Wyert and come with me. Stay hidden unless someone tries to break into the Church itself, am I clear?"

Swallowing my sudden nervousness I shakily reply, "Yah, I got it."

His face mellows slightly and he says, "Good, hopefully nothing will come of this, but…best be prepared."

With that he swiftly walks out of the room and I hastily follow, asking, "So who're these Serpents the Sister was talking about?"

"They're a gang led by a Yokai named Adder and they're very powerful in this part of Kalichi. Adder has an obsession with adding people he sees as powerful to his gang and can get quite insistent. Refuse enough times and he'll simply kill you. Apparently he sees me as a strong opponent, he's been making frequent visits the past few weeks trying to get me to join…I'm not certain how much longer I'll be able to refuse him."

I then privately wonder what the Hell I'm supposed to do against one of these guys if they're as much of a threat as David is making them sound. I hold my tongue regardless and just content myself with being prepared to act one way or another.

And to not crap myself.

In what feels way too quick of an eye blink we're at the front door and I hastily hide myself in David's shadow before he throws open the front doors.

The large line of people is mostly gone with only a few enterprising individuals still waiting, although they're sending more than a few nervous looks at the group of 4 people loitering off to the side who seem to be alternating between ignoring them or sending threatening looks their way.

"I'm afraid you've come at a rather bad time Adder."

"Oh? You just never seem to be excited to see me is what I think."

I can't keep my eyes from widening as one of the 4 steps forward and I get a better look at him. Easily standing 6 feet tall he's just packed with muscle. Seriously, the dude look like he could choke himself just by flexing.

It's his skin that catches my eye though. He's covered in dull green scales that crisscross his body in a haphazard motion except for his stomach, face and underside of his arms, vaguely reminding me of a dragon's underbelly. On one of his pecks is a tattoo of a black snake surrounding a red sun, likely their gang symbol.

The lizard comparison seems rather spot on now that I stare at his eyes, which are vertically slitted much like a reptiles would be.

And then his forked tongue briefly shoots out of his mouth like a snakes and I decide I hit the nail right on the head. That begs the question of what kind of Yokai he is then…maybe some kind of Frankenstein amalgamation of different breeds?

"I'll confess to never being particularly excited to see you, but that's mostly because whenever we meet you attempt to strong arm me into joining your faction, of which I have no intention of doing so. My place is here."

Adder snorts before replying in a sneering tone.

"C'mon Paladin, just because you're submitting to me doesn't mean you can't keep this place safe! I'll just need to borrow you a couple days a week to help me keep recruiting other strong guys and that'll be it! You can spend the rest of your time chilling out in this part of the city no problem!"

I can't help but find Adder's voice strangely…disconcerting. It's deep but has a strange hissing to it, creating this weird dissonance that grates on my ears whenever he speaks.

I bet that's intentional.

David doesn't even flinch as he evenly replies, "That period of when I'd be helping you is precisely the problem Adder. I'm the only one who's able to keep this Church guarded most of the time, and with my absence less honorable people than yourself might decide to take advantage of it. If you were to let me continue as I am, albeit subservient to you, I would gladly join your pack."

Adder shakes his head and waves a finger back and forth.

"Ah ah ah, that's not how this works Paladin. What would be the point of having you answer to me if you're never at my side when we continue to grow and conquer other gangs?"

"Then we find ourselves at impasse once more."

Adder briefly hums and slowly uncrosses his arms before silkily saying, "That we do…"

"Are you causing trouble again Adder? You know, that is kinda why I dumped you."

I shoot a worried glance out of the corner of my eye as Kuroka and Shirone walk past me but quickly wince once I see their faces. Kuroka is smiling calmly but her eyes are locked unwaveringly in Adder's direction, her tails and ears eerily still and stiff. Shirone is even more frightening, an obvious expression of equal parts dislike and fear apparent on her face, her cat appendages bristling and rigid with tension.

Adder instantly loses his calculating expression and instead it turns into one of amusement.

"Long time no see Kittens! It's been what, a year? How you been?"

Kuroka's tone could freeze lava.

"Better with you gone, I'll say that much. Although you certainly left us with a few marks to remember you by."

My eye wanders over to the cats and suddenly I can't help but wonder if those injuries on them were caused by this guy.

I shift my attention back to Adder and am actually floored by the fact that he seems genuinely remorseful, which makes it all the worse when he says, "Hey, I'm sorry Kitten, I admit I had a little too much to drink and got out of hand-"

"-A little out of hand?! You beat me half to death, and then throttled my Little Sister! We couldn't even heal the scars because by the time Paladin found us they had already scabbed over! And you have the balls to say you got a little out of hand?! You don't get to say anything you dickless FUCK!"

Dead silence.

No one even breathes for a few seconds before Kuroka gives a compulsive snarl and storms back inside, slamming the door with way more force than necessary and almost startling me into dropping my Shadow. Shirone briefly glances at the 2 of us before David gives a comforting smile and motions for her to follow her Sister, which she does after giving me the briefest of guarded glances.

I don't dare move anything except my eyeballs and look back in Adder's direction.

For the longest time he's absolutely silent and still…before he slowly blinks his eyes and gives a small sigh, turning his attention back to David.

"Hey Paladin, I heard a rumor that you were the one who took out Wyert, that true?"

"…It is."

Another pregnant silence before Adder shrugs and signals for the rest of his goons to leave, which they do in a haphazard fashion. Before leaving himself he says, "I didn't like that guy much myself, had no appreciation for a straight-up fight and kept to the shadows like a coward. I'm taking my boys to the 1st Circle for a few weeks to knock out some of the competition, when I come back I expect to hear a different answer from you, or we're gonna settle this for good."

He shoots one last look towards where the 2 cats exited and looks like he wants to say something but just shrugs and heads on out himself.

Once they're all gone David gives me a look of mild amusement and says, "Not that you seem in any hurry to, but I would suggest leaving Kuroka alone for a bit to cool off."

"Yah, I think I'll do just that…Adder…isn't really what I was expecting. Although I'm pretty sure I hate him for what it sounds like he did to Kuroka and Shirone."

To my surprise David chuckles and archly replies, "Already feeling protective of them are we?"

I sputter for a second but he just smiles and continues with, "I understand what you're trying to say, Adder isn't like most of the gang leaders in Kalichi. He has a strange sense of honor that is as random as it is admirable. He is as well spoken and open to discussion as he is uncontrollably violent. That, combined with his not inconsiderable personal strength, has endeared quite a few to his side. While I won't dispute that he is a menace, I've seen worse. He's never taken hostages or indulged in torture, aside from the occasional drunken beating, as you no doubt heard."

I sigh and let my eyes slip mostly closed before asking, "So it sounds like he's gonna try to fight you in a few weeks whenever he gets back. Think you can win?"

"Barring a literal miracle of God? Not a chance."

My eyes pop open and I frantically ask, "Wait seriously?! But what if Kuroka or Shirone help you? They seem really strong!"

He looks thoughtful for a moment before shrugging and disinterestedly replies, "While it has been a while since I've seen those Sisters fight, I doubt even the 3 of us working together could defeat Adder. I wasn't exaggerating when I said he was very strong."

"B-but that means you pretty much only have a few weeks to live then!"

He looks thoughtful for a moment before shrugging as if he can't be bothered to worry about his own impending death.

"One more thing you'll come to realize the longer you stay in Kalichi is that having someone out for your life, whether they be stronger or weaker than you, isn't something terribly uncommon. In fact it's almost stranger to not have your person be under some sort of threat. I've had powerful people after my head before and always found a way to come out on top. Quite honestly I just stopped worrying after a time..."

It strikes me yet again just how new I am to this place. David's saying that he's so used to having people want to kill him that he's not even concerned. I can't imagine living like that…

He comfortingly lays a hand on my shoulder and gives me a relaxed look, saying, "You needn't worry yourself overmuch Caine. Adder is only after me, not you or the Sisters."

In what I'm certain is one of the dumber things I've done in my life so far I knock his hand away and angrily reply, "Like Hell that's what I'm worried about! You know what? Come a few weeks time I'm gonna be right beside you facing down that Asshole, and don't try to tell me no."

Yep. It's official. I'm an idiot braggart who's also suicidal.

David gives me a skeptical glance and says, "While I appreciate the gesture Caine, how much use do you think you'll honestly be?"

I allow a bit of confidence to leak into my voice, instead of the abject fear that has my brain shrieking 'You IDIOT! You've killed us all!' and reply, "Not to brag or anything-ok, maybe I'm bragging a little-but my Mom who was a pretty kickass Devil and she used to say I had the potential to be way stronger than she ever was. Not to mention my Dad was pretty much raised to be a warrior and spent almost 3 years straight sparring with me when we had the chance. Give me a few weeks to improve and I can at least promise I won't be useless."

David just gives me a strange look before shrugging and saying, "Suit yourself."

"Look, I know you don't want me to-wait what?"

He gives me a smirk and says, "I said, suit yourself."

"…That's it?"

"Indeed."

It takes me a minute to process this.

"Hold up, I figured I'd have to practically beg and blackmail you before you let me fight with you! What was that?!"

He just turns around and walks back inside, all while saying, "The way I see it either you'll change your mind in the interim and I don't have to worry about it, or you won't change your mind and It'll be unlikely that I can convince you otherwise. So why bother?"

…Well, I can't argue with that logic. I just shake my head and follow him back inside.

"I imagine Kuroka and Shirone will be hungry once they finish their work, why not stay for dinner? We may not be able to offer much, but it'll be hot at least."

Despite being new here, I know enough not to turn down a free meal.

A couple hours later me, Shirone and Kuroka are all headed back to our 'home' just as the sun is starting to dim towards it's moon phase. David was kind enough to offer me a pair of beat up old boots and socks before we left and while the shoes are a size to big, and the socks have holes in them, it's pretty darn nice being able to walk around without worrying about having a piece of glass happily embed itself in your instep.

I give a worried glance at the older Yokai and don't bother trying to hide my frown. Kuroka's obviously been lost in her thoughts all night, barely responding to questions or concerns and seemingly operating on autopilot. She's so out of it that she neglected to even turn into her cat form during the walk back, just stalking down the streets projecting a pissed off aura that discourages anybody from messing with her.

I'm honestly kinda freaked out but once I asked Shirone about it she'd just shrugged and said to leave her be for now. Following her instructions I instead try to keep track of what direction we're walking in so I can find my way back in a few days time if need be. David elected to keep Lisa in her coma-like state for a few more days after the cats were finished with their healing just to be safe and invited us back for when he goes ahead and wakes her.

"Hey, Shirone?"

"Hmm?"

"…If you don't mind me asking, I get that this isn't exactly the best memory for you, but how come you weren't able to heal your scars using Senjutsu? Kuroka said something about them scabbing over, but…"

To my surprise she doesn't get offended at my question and just looks sad, briefly making want to scratch her ears like Kuroka seems to enjoy so much but I refrain, electing to let her keep her space.

"Senjutsu can flawlessly heal most injuries…but if the body considers something healed, it won't fix it. Hence the scars."

Her fingers lightly trace her neck where the odd line is and I wince, deciding that if being physically comforting isn't available, verbal will have to do.

"I see. And thanks for telling me Shirone, I appreciate it."

She nods slightly and then my dumbass decides to go ahead and say, "I actually think those scars make you look kind of cool honestly."

In the name of the space between Lucifer's left and right butt cheek, sometimes I can be a real idiot. Compliment the girl on how an injury received during such a messed up event makes her look 'cool'?

Good one numbnuts.

Thankfully some higher power seems to be looking out for me today because instead of being insulted or taking offense Shirone blushes of all things and hides her face, although her happily waving tails clue me in regardless.

"…Thank you."

"…You're welcome."

We just leave it at that for a few minutes, although out of the corner of my eye I see Shirone gently playing with the gouge on her lip and an odd smile appearing on her face.

I take the silence to look around the city and to my surprise in the distance I see a couple skyscrapers slowly begin lighting themselves, in fact the entire area around them seems to come alive like most cities at night do, a stark contrast to the surrounding areas which stay largely dark and covered in shadows.

"Shirone, what's that group of buildings over there?"

She glances over at them and replies in monotone, "EDEN."

"EDEN?"

"Yup. It's a place where a bunch of rich people live…it's gated off from the rest of us. No one gets in unless they belong."

This time my stare is definitely more calculating as I observe the glittering monoliths. A place where only certain people belong huh?

My Valefor instincts for breaking and entering are tingling something fierce. Food for thought…

The crimson moon had made it's full transition by the time we made it back to the 'house' and had bathed everything in an ethereal glow that made the whole scene look like some bizarre fever dream.

Talk about trippy.

Kuroka still hadn't said a word and stalked off to the kitchen, Shirone following her while I sit on the edge of the bed and start perusing my volumes on Magic and strength training. If I want to keep my word to David then I need to get started as soon as possible, as hard as possible.

"HHUUUURRRRGGGGHHHHHhhhhhh….."

Kuroka flops face first onto the bed and mutters a continuous stream of expletives under her breath while I try not to laugh, despite the severity of the situation.

"…Hey Caine?"

I chuck the books back into the lockbox and slide it under the bed before leaning back myself and replying, "What's up?"

She's silent for a couple of seconds before muttering, "…Never mind."

I'm about to press her for an explanation when she instead just grabs my arm and plops it down on her head. She cracks open an eyelid and grumbles, "Well? Start scratching. It's been a long day…"

I just wryly grin and do as she asks, a contented purr echoing throughout the room not a minute later. Not long after Shirone crawls into her Sister's side and her purr grows even louder.

Continuing to idly scratch Kuroka's head I pull out Ravel's Phoenix Heart and stare at it, the gem gleaming softly in the darkened room. I'm unprepared for the sudden pang of loneliness that hits me and I can't help but wonder how Ravel is doing right now.

I've been so busy the past few days that I've barely been able to spare a thought for my betrothed, not of her hair gently swaying in the firelight as I braided it, her hand in mine, her lips…

Is she worried about me? Is she crying herself to sleep every night?

That thought gets a brief chuckle from me.

Yah right Ravel is sulking. If there's one thing I know for certain it's that she's a girl of action. She's probably making plans on how to make life Hell on Earth for the people who did this to my family if I had to venture a guess.

My smile turns wistful as I hypnotically watch the necklace sway back and forth until a quiet voice interrupts with, "Was that a gift from your family?"

I lightly turn my head and see Shirone resting her own cranium on her Sister's side, one of Kuroka's eyes slightly open and watching me closely.

In response to Shirone's question I lightly smile and reply, "In a matter of speaking, yah. We were supposed to be married in a few years time and she gave this to me as a sort of early engagement gift…not only did it save my life before you 2 found me, it's still saving my ass even now. I guess I'm just sad that I can't tell her just how much this gift mean to me, and what it did for me…"

"Did you like her?"

I glance at Kuroka who seems mildly embarrassed at how blunt she was with her question. I just roll my eyes and alter the pace of my ear massage before replying with, "Yah…I did. Still do really. We both had a habit of getting into trouble together, and seeing things that…well, we probably shouldn't have. We didn't see each other too often, maybe once every other week except for rare occasions…but it was time well spent. Heh, I remember this one time we tried to pull off a prank against our Older Brothers using a vial of Phoenix Tears that had a laxative in it that didn't end up working so well. My Dad drank it beforehand by accident after he got pretty injured during some extreme training, which lead to some epically sized dumps and an angry parent after our asses. We got our ears talked off after that, but man it was so worth it…"

Sometime during my explanation the 2 Sisters nodded off, their purring slowly subsiding into steady breathing and I smile at their expressions before slowly dozing off myself.

Tomorrow we get to work.

And that's the chapter! I've been floored by the number of reviews, favs and follows this story has gotten so far.

People...people like reading my stuff?!

Self-deprecating aside it's always a great motivator to see people enjoying something I do, and consequently makes me a happy person to keep writing this particular story (what an Earth-shattering concept, I know).

Thanks for all the feedback and reviews I've been getting so far, I've definitely been reading all the suggestions for what member to add to the relationship list and am likely to come to a conclusion fairly soon.

Till next chapter, later all!