Sarthorael

Cram sessions, they're very bad. Simple logic that even a child would understand, but not me, not by a long shot.

Then again, it wasn't so much that my comprehension level wasn't up to par for studying the skill. The trouble more so came from refinement. Wasting energy was the biggest hurdle I had to jump over the course of my short seven-hour break, as cracks revealed themselves, forcing me to fix my mistakes before I had to use it in a "practical" setting.

And I wasn't about to get caught with my pants down.

However, my issues didn't stop there. Of course, it was naive of me to think such, for problems to suddenly stop when war was just around the corner. The location of our rendezvous point, while mostly my fault, was tough as nails to find. Maps only gave me the slightest of clues, and even then, my brain failed to realize the minuscule numbers and the individual x's littering the landscape were supposed to indicate where exactly we were to be deployed.

I did eventually make it there, at the expense of being late by a minute. Once my feet touched the ground, Yeshamiel's expression soured, a sigh pouring out of her lips as she watched me try to excuse myself. Her only response being to get in line and keep quiet while they went over the plans once more to make sure things went smoothly.

"Alright, since all of us have finally arrived, I will split you off into twos, and because I am the leader, the solo slot will be mine. Sarthorael, as the least experienced member of the group, you will be paired up with Muriel, the third oldest and most skilled person we have here." Leliel announced, slotting in everyone else with their own companion.

Walking toward my partner, she looked to be a girl with tanned skin, wearing leather armor and a long cloak that ran all the way down to her knees. This was called the typical assassin build if I recall. Though, it wasn't too out of place here. In fact, the only people who did look out of place were me and Ramiel.

"Hell-"

"Do as I say without so much as a moment of hesitation, and you might just live to see tomorrow. From the way you have been acting, I can tell you are far more immature compared to anyone else, which means you are more likely to become unpredictable in times of stress."

Her tongue was silver and quick, lashing my heart directly. A lesser man would act on impulse, growing angry and responding with a rebuke, but that would have the opposite effect of what I wanted.

"Yes, ma'am." I replied, my face contorting to fit the mood. "Though, I would like to ask something, if you don't mind anyway."

"Proceed…"

"Right. So, how are we going to enter the compound? I know each of us has our own designated entry points, but, what are we supposed to do after the fact? Wandering around aimlessly would be an easy way to get lost and later captured, consequently making it a poor decision." I inquired, eliciting a hum from the lass.

"Better than I expected." She muttered under her breath, before sharpening her gaze at me. "Based on what I gathered from extensively reading the reports, the women are being kept in the western quadrant of the base. Coincidentally, the location is also the largest among the other four sides, so maneuvering through it will inevitably prove very difficult. I suggest keeping to the north or south sectors, as they seem to be the least guarded, allowing you enough room to learn, whilst also potentially providing essential information. Besides, there isn't a point to being a hero when you're dead."

Can't argue with that logic, more so when it's enemy territory. Who knows how many hidden traps may be lurking in its depths.

"I see your point. Then why don't we go slightly ahead of everyone else? We should already be done, now there is no point in staying here for any longer."

"Stop." She calmly demanded as an object made contact with my face. "You have to wait until our leader dismisses us. I know you may be excited to start, but you must practice patience, lest it lead to further complications."

Clutching my nose in pain, a soft hiss casually leapt out of my lips as she reprimanded me. It felt like walking straight into a brick wall, likely hard light if I were to assume. Still, the point was across, and that meant waiting for everyone else to finish discussing initial plans. Surprisingly, the process didn't take that long as a mere minute passed before everyone had gathered around once more, with Leliel passing an orb to both Ramiel and I, telling us to place it in our left ear.

"That, is the new Coms device given to most field teams. Treat it with care or it will shatter like glass as the item shares the former's brittleness." Giving this advice, a wad of saliva gulped down my throat, the thought of it occurring to me running shivers down my spine. "With that being said, you may all leave."

Now was the time for the real adventure to start! My blood was boiling, heart; racing, and my cheek reeling from the force of a "harsh" slap. "What was that for?"

"Calm your nerves, unrest has led to far too many deaths. It would be a shame for another to join the list." She ominously warned, a hand placing itself on my shoulder. "Follow me and stick closely, flight becomes harder in enclosed spaces."

Looking at the direction we were headed, an unheard sigh echoed inside my mind. Even from the journey there, things were getting tough. Due to the vigilance of enemy guards, we had to drop far from their base, too far. At least twenty kilometers of dense forest stood between me and the mission. Furthermore, we also had to sneak through five hundred meters of ruined fields.

A troublesome task, but it wasn't totally impossible.

Or was it?

Traps, traps littered everywhere as though the location was a minefield. From your standard spikes, massive logs, and ravenous animals. All the way to razor wire, magic activated via tripwire, and evil trees. There was no shortage to which gruesome manner one wanted to end their life with.

Thankfully, with variety, came repetition. A sequenced pattern from which we learned how to navigate the jungle relatively safely, with only minor scratches or a bruise here and there to show for it. Then again, if it weren't for my companion guiding me along, then I would have died because of my recklessness.

Eventually, we made it to our finish line. Only instead of a prize, what awaited me at the base were red dots sweeping across the ground in routines, a literal hail of bullets at the ready incase something were to cross the invisible line.

Toe-curling dread and excitement fueled my mind, weren't it not for my impeccable restraint (Muriel's quick reactions), I would have turned into swiss cheese by now. Instead of that however, we both patiently waited for an opening and made a mad dash towards it, hiding behind all manner of crumbling debris, making sure to keep ourselves hidden because of the devil's ability to see in the dark.

Once a certain threshold was reached, my companion whispered a few words under her breath, those words entering my ear thanks to the device. "On the count of three, throw your most powerful javelin at the guardsman to the left. Need not worry for the other, I will take care of it."

Slowly nodding my head, a rod took shape betwixt my grasp. "One…" Its edge growing shaper, "Two…" ,and large barbs forming on its blade. If this didn't kill whomever it landed on, then they're definitely out of my league. "Three…" Pouring the last bits of energy, the spear released a bright show of light, practically throwing stealth right out of the window.

It flew through the air at a remarkable speed, whishing past the sky and finding its target. At the same time, two more spears leapt into view. The first ensured my kill was finished, and the second found another mark, piercing cleanly through his head.

"Take their place and cautiously confirm the kill, they could still be clinging to an ounce of life. Stay vigilant." She advised, handing me a surprisingly dim hard-light dagger, pointing off into the direction of their corpses.

This… was no longer about fun. What the fuck have I done? Jumping over the high wall with a single wing flap, words failed to exit my mouth as I inspected their bodies. These were devils, creatures of the night. Naturally, their bodies would have a volatile reaction to our attacks. But to this extent?

Disintegrated, falling apart. The way I could describe the scene was the effect salt had on snails, except magnified to a horrifying degree. Tar-like bubbles floated to the surface one by one, each bursting with the malicious energy of the devils. Disgust filled my being, the gory scene ahead of me captivating my mind as a dizzying headache caused me to fall on my butt.

The urge to puke was strong, however, it wouldn't come out. Angels, perfect and unfeeling beings, were never made to do so in the first place. A tidal wave of random emotions crashed into me, stunning my body for what felt like an eternity. Only breaking when the mouth of the devil on the right twitched ever so slightly.

He was still alive, and I had to end his life. Steeling myself for the task, I brought the short weapon up high, and sunk it deep into his flesh, carving out one large chunk after another, mindlessly slashing until he was no more.

A haze enveloped my mind, further clouding my surroundings. My movements turned machine-like as I continued stabbing into the ground, breaking the gifted dagger. Suddenly, a hand latched onto my own, holding it and keeping it there when I tried to fight against its hold.

Turning to see what it was, I found a confused looking Muriel staring back at me, her eyebrows furrowing as I attempted to retrieve my appendage.

"Would you quit it?" She asked in a serious yet tone-deaf manner. "At this rate, you might as well be shouting our location to the heavens. You can either stay here and die, or come with me and finish the mission."

Snapping me out of the trance, clarity returned to my vision. "Yes, I apologize for my outburst. It won't happen again." I replied, blinking sporadically to remove the flashing images in my head.

"It better not…" She muttered, jumping down towards a nearby entrance. "Let's go. It won't take long for them to find out that something's amiss, especially with the massive influx of ambient energy that came with the loss of their physical form. Remember to stay five meters away from me and watch our flanks, we're entering enemy territory and I would much rather not have an ambush spring from out of nowhere."

"Noted"

The large open gate almost seemed welcoming, however, the dimly lit hallways did the opposite. In the darkness, we brought torches to life using a spark of light, igniting a flickering ball to accompany me in the pitch-black corridors.

Devils had no need for lamps or lighting in general after all, so a source of luminescence was usually only ever used as decoration. That meant, to see one near an empty pit meant one thing.

They wanted whoever passed through those doors to see what was at the bottom.

Muriel, ever the fearless explorer, created a ball of flame and threw it down into the abyss. The contents of which were… unsettling. A writing mass, with many arms and many legs, flailed about. No sound came from it, not even a moan. It was as though it was gagged, or worse.

"The devil's breeding ground, or at least a part of it. Many are likely to exist within this compound, ones larger than this. Though, I've never seen anything like it."

"I'm guessing this one is more special compared to the others you've seen?"

" Aye… Wretched beyond belief, the worst one I have ever witnessed in fact. Sarthorael, whatever you do, tread past this point carefully. If you choose to ignore anything that came out of my mouth today, then please, listen to this. For whatever lies past us, even I don't know."

In the flickering darkness, skittering could be heard all around. Overwhelmed by the sensation, the curiosity within the stoic angel piqued, as she expanded the range of her light.

Varying in height, skin and eyes as red as blood. The creatures revealed themselves. Grotesque deformities of the human figure, ugly as they were disgusting. They had misshapen teeth, growing from all manner of locations. And held an ivory weapon in either hand.

"Daemonculaba." My partner whispered, before all hell broke loose.

[A/N: Shamelessly copying Berserk? Yes, yes indeed. I thought it would be funny to add these little fuckers because Everpeach, in all of his glorious wisdom, gave me a name from 40k. Anyways, shit can and will go down. Copy-paste messages below. Please, enjoy.

Anyways, if you find anything wrong in the fic, let me know. I would love to hear your thoughts, opinions, and what I could have done in place of what is present.

Also, join discord server. I have one.: discord . gg / eTb2kPab4z

I also have a pa- tr eon at pa- t reon / balls1124 I'm not telling you to join it, but it would be nice.

With that being said, have a splendid day!]