Hakua de Rotto Helmium, Runaway Spirit Squad Member and District Chief of Majima, tore through the thaumaturgical walls separating Hell and the mortal realm with a fervent outburst of spellwork. Mid-flight, she was already preparing the teleportation spell that would take her directly into the commoner's room.
I'm glad there are just as many exits as entrances. . . I hope that commoner's cooperative!
Balefully she watched the kaleidoscopic imges of potent magicks fly past her vision, before she was again engulfed within the suffusive glare of the instant-port.
Inside her buddy's room, as the commoner remained asleep, a magic circle came into existence, burning a bright, impatient purple, before flashing and disgorging the devil – outside the front door of the Cafe Grandpa.
This was not the time for weird backfires! She fumed, as she flew straight up and phased through the commoner's windows. Hakua loomed over the commoner, who slept blissfully unaware inside the covers, before her hands and eyes flashed red.
"Hakua, are you there? This is Section Chief Dokuru."
Hakua froze, before putting her hand to her skull ornament. She was just about to brief the commoner on the new target. She saw the commoner narrow his eyes in annoyance as she turned away. "Y-yes! This is District Chief Hakua, what is it sir?"
The distance between realms was not so easily reached, as was obvious, so even tiny communication signals from one to the other took some time – without the help of Hell-magic. In Hakua's current connection, there was a hiss of static from the other end.
The buddy started to say some infuriating words, so she shot him the best of her killing intent, before drawing her raiment around her in a protective bubble. Pressing a finger to the inside surface, a magical screen materialized. Static formed briefly, before it showed, through a magical pink haze the face of her superior.
"A privacy bubble? Why have you activated that, Hakua? Is everything alright up there?" Dokuru asked with some concern.
"Well, I figured there was something you wanted to say that wasn't fit for mortal ears to hear, sir." she mumbled in response.
"Ah! Good point." He nodded sagely. "Good thinking on your end, Hakua. This may somewhat falling under that category." Dokuru cleared his throat. "I've already assigned several teams to be on stand-by down here, as mandated by protocol, to assist you when the runaway spirit is finally released.
"Now, this does not mean I have no faith in your talents, Chief Hakua," Dokuru said in an attempt to head off Hakua's ill will. "As I have said in the initial briefing, a Level 5 spirit is more than your usual 2s or 3s you may have encountered or studied before. It can destroy you, even in it post-release state."
"I understand sir. I have no objections to the backup," Hakua said as a matter-of-factly. It was foolish to think she could face off against even a weakened Level 5 by herself. That was a point that had been drilled into her by her instructors: There will always be beings greater than you. It would not hurt any of Hakua's pride if she were able to capture it with the assistance of other members.
Rather, it would hurt if her buddy failed to force its release, or if somehow, he would refuse.
"I have attached several pages of lore on level 5s as a refresher course." Dokuru continued. "As well as your permit to cast higher level magics for yourself. You'll never know if you'll need it when you at last confront a spirit of that magnitude."
"Thank you sir. I shall not fail."
"We shall keep you updated if something comes up. I bid you well." The screen fizzed out. Hakua let out a breath she'd been holding in all this time, and dissolved the red dome around her.
OoOoOoOo
"No."
"-and of course, the preliminary scouting will have to wait until tomor- wait, what?" Hakua stopped pacing when she heard the commoner's response.
"I said no. I'm not going to capture Nakagawa Kanon." She stared, thunderstruck, at his stubborn-set face as he made his declaration.
Hakua very nearly sputtered on her words, luckily she was a devil who easily recovered, "E-excuse me? I'm not sure I heard you right, commoner. I know you know that you can't afford to refuse? "
"I opt to refuse now. I refuse." He responded flatly, his normally expressive mouth set in a thin line.
She ran an impatient hand through her royal-tinged hair, partly in frustration, and partly with that unknown desire that wanted her to strangle the commoner for the words she did not want to hear come from him. "And what is the meaning of this refusal?" Hell, she'd become tired all of a sudden. "You're an intelligent being, so of course you know about the contract. Logically, you should be following it, come what comes."
"And I'm refusing this mission. Ask your superiors to pass it on."
She struggled to rein in the hellfire that was gathering on her fingers. Of all the times to be stubborn, it'd have to be the day after I get the commendations from their Eminences! She instead opted on tightening her grip around the handle of her scythe. That did not stop the crackling sounds from coming. Keeping her glare averted, she inquired, somewhat sweetly, "And might I inquire as to the reson for your dismissal of this mission? A foolish one will ensure that one more mortal will die this very minute."
"No threats, please, Hakua. So barbaric of you. If you must know, there's just something about idols that sets me off." He flicked his wrists as if swatting an imaginary fly out of his ear. "Whether it's because of their fake, manufactured smiles, their artificial charisma that exudes but never fails to ensnare credulous, froth-mouthed idiots who don't know a true girl's beauty if it struck them in the face, or whether it's because I know deep down, they're just shallow, pretentious masterminds who are in it for the uncountable fame, riches or what-have-you that they must desire.
"Nakagawa Kanon is the pinnacle of idolatries." She saw hidden fires suddenly erupt in the commoner's eyes, and she knew now that he was off on some imaginary manic monologue. "A slave to power, she has emerged onto the public scene, an upstart among upstarts, capturing the hearts (not in that way, though) of many, ensnaring them in the false charms of an idol. It sickens me to my exalted core. Don't be fooled by her sugary-sweet appearance! A flytrap's mouth is just as sugary! Don't be drawn in by her body! You will fall just as low as Adam! Don't be captivated by her charms! She is the devil manifested!" Repeating this mantra to himself, the commoner crawled into himself. Interspersed into his declarations were the whispers, "Yokkyun, Yokkyun, Yokkyun." Hakua watched this all with incredulous, fuming eyes.
"Disregarding your feverish comments, let's move on to the details. I-"
"She-devil!" Keima cried, pointing an accusatory finger at her "You have heard my reasons, and whether or not that hell-fried brain of yours comprehended all that, you must know! There will be no capturing Nakagawa Kanon with love! I would sooner jump off a high place than find myself getting to know, wooing and eventually-" he choked, making gagging sounds. "K-k-k-kissing Nakagawa Kanon! I won't have it!"
"You. Have. No. Choice. You impossible mortal!" Hakua shouted, not wishing to let her fear and frustration show in her voice. "You WILL be capturing the target's heart whether you want it or not! And if you will still continue in this vein, I'll break your limbs, one by one!"
"Good! Break them now, so you can go off and 'capture' Kanon! I don't care!"
That was one of the few times she had attempted to summon a live Mandrake right in the middle of a small room. A good thing it had backfired, again.
OoOoOoOo
Like a daytime wraith, Hakya flitted over the rooftops of Majima City, looking about with her weapon of office held close. Occasionally she would stop on a rooftop, kneel down, before shaking her head and taking off again, invisible to mortal eyes.
She had spent the greater part of the morning erecting passive magic circles all around Majima, her permit from the Section Chief giving her much more leeway in preparing wards and spells all around her district. The wards she had placed would ensure that a steady stream of negative energy would be filtering into the city, just enough to provide her with a sufficient amount of power should she need it.
As to her research on the target, no matter what the commoner had said, she went on ahead anyway and summoned Inquisitive Imps to help her gain a bit of knowledge about the famous target. Flicking her permit onto the ground, she brought in another batch of squat, black, long-eared critters.
"Ah, mistress, you have summoned enough to fill an army . . . "
"Silence." Hakua chided the imps. With the other tip of her scythe she traced the control runes onto the back of each creature firmly. "You will follow the instructions I have given the rest of your brood. Keep to the shadows, and do NOT eat more energy than is allowed for you."
"It shall be as the young mistress wants, even if she could have done it herself. . . ."
She stamped her weapon of office on the ground, hard enough to emit threatening hellsparks. "Do not play trifles with me, imp. Get to your duties." With a pop, the trio disappeared, leaving Hakua alone in the secluded alley.
She took a big breath as she consulted her raiment monitor again. When dealing with lesser demons like those, sometimes a little force was necessary to ensure dominance. Demons traditionally thrived on power, and would only bow to those greater than themselves. Two more sites to add in. Hefting her scythe on her shoulders, she shot up and cleared several stories as she hurried off to secure the rest of Majima.
While she secured the last passive circle, she was alerted to another transmission from Hell. Pausing to make sure she was unobserved, she threw the privacy circle around her again as she received the message.
"Yes, sir?"
"Oh, there's no need to call me, 'sir', Member Hakua, though you can call me 'mistress'."
That voice! Hakua frowned, a million insults surfacing in her mind as the image before her cleared up to show her sometime, stuck up and mammoth-breasted nemesis – Nora Florian Leoria. "Nora!"
"Long time no see, little Hakua," the tan-skinned devil leered from across the realms, putting great emphasis on "little". Hakua bristled. "I almost missed you, before I realized I'd be seeing a lot more of you in the years to come."
"Nora," she spat, "How did you get my signal? For that matter, I have no time to deal with your idiocies, you old hag!"
It was Nora's turn to look angry, but then she chuckled, brushing it off. "It was the Section Chief who assigned us, you know, to help you in your current mission."
"Wha-" Realization dawned on her.
"We're the specialists, fool devil." Nora spoke condescendingly as if talking to a child. "When the time is right, you may summon us to ugh- aid you in our capacity as devils." She added in an obvious undertone. "Though why the Chief would assign this obviously difficult mission to such an inexperienced devil . . . " she sighed dramatically, before looking at Hakua with pity, ". . . You shall need all the help we can give, little one."
"How dare you look down on me like that." Hakua retorted. "Have you even seen my record since getting to the mortal realm? Two! You old hag! Two in a month!"
"Hmph," Nora shook her head, "Silly devil, I've already captured three."
Shocked, Hakua repeated, "Three?" Then she had a thought. "Are those three by yourself or including those your flunkies got for themselves."
Again, Nora looked unsettled. "How impudent! You flat-chested devil!"
"Why you-"
"Is there a problem, specialist Leoria?"
A moderate voice stopped their argument flat. Dokuru appeared unobtrusively near Nora's waist as the two devils stood at attention and acknowledged him. "No sir, everything's good."
Dokuru looked from one to the other before nodding and reintroducing Nora. "Specialist Leoria shall be your liaison to the specialists I've assigned to your mission, Hakua. She shall be your go-to devil in case something comes up.
"I hope you'll take the time to get along with each other as you work together."
OoOoOoOo
Hakua traced invisible runes onto the school's concrete rooftop, her mind relieved, though still slightly worried, at the commoner's sudden committment to the contract. While she had no illusions that it was a surefire way to get to the spirit, at least it was a step – the final one of which would be her part to play in finally capturing it.
The circle glowed with impotent purple lights as Hakua looked on critically. After it was settled in, she took a deep breath, because she was finally done with securing Majima for the confrontation to come. Hearing the bell ring, she made her way, invisible, to the door.
It burst open, and out came a twisting, frothing mess of human flesh. The two students were so entwined around each other, but this was not what horrified Hakua the most as she fled, almost instantaneously, to the skies – screaming Hellish obscenities at this seemingly amoral institution.
Later, the school bell rang, signalling the end of the day. Hakua sat on the branches of a tree, reviewing the lore sent to her by Dokuru. She tried to get her mind out of that event, focusing on the inevitable capture.
She turned a page, reviewing what she'd learned thoughtfully as she munched on some pastries Keima's mother had given her that morning.
But Hakua-chan, you'll soon be learning how to make those, okay?~~
Hakua shivered despite herself. It wasn't like she was here on the mortal realm to learn how to cook or anything! Her job was to capture spirits! She brooded, munching on another tasty mouthful.
The tell-tale beeping of a runaway spirit alert almost made her stumble ungracefully out of the canopy, but with remarkable self-posession she righted herself in time. She glanced at her empty hands and frowned, she'd dropped the pastry.
"What are the odds," she breathed, knowing the implications the alert brought. The beeping siren placed the spirit right here, in Majima. She set her shoulders straight, rustling the silent pressure that she felt was always there. Her raiment fluttered around her comfortingly, driven as it was by the light breeze.
She set her skull ornament back onto the top of her purple-wreathed hair as she flew off in the direction of the alert.
"Indeed you shall not. Indeed you must not."
"Thank you sir, I shall not fail."
One Runaway Spriit or two, there was nothing that Hakua de Rotto Helmium was afraid to face, except failure.
"Do you hear me commoner? You cannot- we cannot afford to fail the contract."