Ardent Exorcist

by Cvicel

Althea (a medicine student or perhaps a spy) enrolls into the True Cross Academy where she finds new friends and turns Mephisto's carefully-planned world upside down. ***Rated M because it contains some mature content, but the focus is on my own story - characters, relationships and fights. The story does have an ending and you have much to look forward to.***

23. Will stilled, deal instilled

Chapter 23 - Will stilled, deal instilled

"Yes, Sir. Our squads interrupted all missions of class A and lower as per your orders. We also interrupted non-essential lessons, so that teachers could participate in the search, too. The Exwires joined the investigation base here in the Academy's Council room and are helping with sorting through the incoming reports and incoming tips from the public." Mr. Kaoru Tsubaki said in hopes to assure the headmaster that his orders were being followed. The squad leader stood in the headmaster's office, shifting on his feet nervously and waiting for further orders. It was December 21, a day after the effects of the Insomniacs pills had worn off, and some squad members had yet to wake up from the inevitable 24 hours of sleep to resume the search for their missing colleague. The teacher exhaled silently and pursed his lips. "I can't believe this… Five days have passed, and Thea is nowhere to be found. As if she disappeared into thin air!" he shook his head in disbelief, and an unpleasant feeling of helplessness settled over him. Kaoru eyed the headmaster carefully.

The demon was moving around the room at such a brisk pace that he resembled a white smudge. Various documents, forms and folders were scattered across his desk, and some were even floating in the air, their placement and movement apparently organized by some clever logic. Or organized chaos that passes as logic to the one who created it. The headmaster was fetching them, listing through them, taking notes, even typing on his cell phone - and he somehow made it look as if it all was happening at the same time. To be completely honest, Kaoru had never seen the principal in such a rush before. Not even when the True Cross Academy had been invaded a few months ago. "Well, no wonder he's so tense… I couldn't imagine the same happening to my precious darling… Gotta send my Kitten a message when I can catch a break." the teacher thought, his mind wandering to his beloved wife yet again. He knew that many colleagues and students often thought that his romantic comments and pieces of love advice were crazily over the top, but they were the insane ones for not seeing the perfection of his wife. He just loved her so much.

"What about team 9?" Mephisto asked suddenly, tearing through Kaoru's train of thoughts. The mental image of his wife dissolved, only to be replaced by the headmaster who was now towering above him, pointing at something in the paper impatiently. It was the list of all squads and their current positions and assignments. Team 9 was supposed to return back from their S-class mission in Australia about two hours ago. The headmaster definitely wanted them to join the search for Doctor Heilbrunn. "Ah yes, they are still in Sydney, Sir." Kaoru answered, only to receive a displeased frown as an answer. And so, he hastened to provide an explanation. "Unfortunately, the ritualistic cleansing of the area is taking more time than estimated, for another hatching location of the Arachne demons was uncovered in a warehouse two kilometers away from the current position. They estimate another five hours of cleansing, then ten hours of flight back to Tokyo." The papers shuffled and crumpled as Mephisto clutched them more intensively than intended.

"They have two." the headmaster said. "B-but, Sir Pheles, that is…" Kaoru tried to protest against such a tight schedule but Mephisto lifted his finger importantly. "Two hours for the cleansing, Mr. Tsubaki. And no need to return back to Japan. They will join teams 27 and 11 in their search for Doctor Heilbrunn in Australia." he ordered, then handed some papers to Kaoru. "Return to the investigation team. Also, take these documents to Mr. Adachi on your way there. Remind Mrs. Maki to send me an update on the situation in Europe. And direct any free team to join the search in Canada. Dismissed." the headmaster said, turning on his heel and headed, or rather teleported back towards his desk.

"Sir, I… I assure you that we are doing all in our powers to find Doctor Heilbrunn. Everyone wants her back safe and sound." the teacher said in hopes to offer his headmaster at least some encouragement. Mephisto was already listing through the papers in an inhumanly swift motion, but he stopped for a moment and inhaled as if to contain any emotions from slipping past his focused, composed mask. "I know." he nodded more to himself than to Kaoru. After a swift snap of his fingers, a huge silver tray full of various sweets suddenly appeared out of thin air and landed in Mr. Tsubaki's hands gracefully. "It has been a long day… The staff at the investigation base could use some refreshment during the upcoming night shift." he mumbled softly, then his expression hardened, and he slipped back to his usual self. "Now go, Mr. Tsubaki. Time is scarce, do not waste it. Dismissed." the headmaster met the teacher's eyes with an air of urgency. Kaoru's eyes almost popped out at the unexpected gesture. True, Sir Pheles has basically just ordered another unplanned night shift for his team, but still… "Y-yes, Sir!" Kaoru saluted clumsily with the huge tray in his hand and hurried out of the office, recalling the talk they had at the staff room…

OoO

"I wonder if Sir Pheles and this whole organization of his would go through so much effort if I got kidnapped." Yunokawa rubbed his chin. "Are you kidding? If you got kidnapped, we would spare no expense on gift cards for your kidnappers, ain't that right?" Satou said jokingly, eying the assembly of Exorcists. Adachi stepped in quickly, landing his hand on the young teacher's shoulder. "Do not listen to him, Yunokawa, I would definitely be looking for you." he proclaimed with a hand on his chest, gaining himself a touched look from young Yunokawa. "You would? Oh, thanks man, you're the best!" "Of course I would, you still owe me for that 100-years-old whiskey you 'accidentally' drank." the old, balding Doctor pinned him with a stern look, then walked off. Kaoru stepped in smoothly from behind the stacks of papers. "Never mind that, you do realize you would have to be Mephisto's girlfriend for him to do all this just to find you? Does that sound like a good deal to you?" he raised his eyebrows. "Nah, that sounds like the worst deal ever, the worst deal in the history of bad deals." Yunokawa rubbed his neck, shiver running down his spine at the mere thought of it. Before he knew it, Satou was right next to him, poking him into the ribs with his elbow. "Don't be shy, Yuno~. I can see the twitch of his eye everytime he looks at you." "Oh, screw you!" the young teacher returned the elbow, then his expression became a bit more serious.

"Anyway… I… I miss Thea, too." he leaned on his hand, browsing through the piles of reports. Adachi nodded. "Well, she jumped from student to teacher extremely quickly. She is smart, talented, and gifted…" "And the cookies she bakes for us sometimes… I mean, she really tries…" Kaoru interrupted quietly with a fond smile on his lips, getting everyone to low, soft chuckles. "We have never seen such use of healing waves. She is a great asset to the Academy, and she is yet beginning to learn those abilities... She is already beyond any master when it comes to the waves. That alone should be worth the effort of finding her…" Adachi filled in again, then unexpectedly dropped his usual stiff, professional demeanor. "Not to mention… the lounge is kind of… lonely without the girl." "Yeah." "True…" "I hope she's alright." came further nods. "Well, then let's make sure we find her! For her sake as well as ours… Because Mephisto will drive this hard till we do or till we drop."

OoO

The moment Kaoru stepped out into the corridor, he almost barged right into Sir Pheles' secretary who was about to enter. "Ah, secretary Gin. Please, go ahead." he bowed swiftly, holding the door for him. Gin raised one eyebrow at the strange sight in front of him. "Well, look at that…" the secretary started, hoping to comment on the tower of sweets, but Mr. Tsubaki just rushed down the corridor with a quick 'Sorry! No time. Must hurry. Night shift…' Gin's other eyebrow raised to the level of the first one. Samael was apparently spooking out the staff. Unintentionally, of course. A demon could only hide so much of his dark aura in such a dire situation. However, even though the staff leaving Samael's office seemed very rushed these days, panicked even, they were all also surprisingly enthusiastic. Everyone who left the office had a very similar expression. Haste. Urgency. Purpose. The spy exhaled with relief - Samael was on edge, but he was able to maintain a great morale among his people. Most probably because the demon lord himself was adamantly convinced that he would find his lady soon. The only change in his attitude was the urgency which kept rising with every hour closer to the Winter ball. As if he had set himself a deadline, subconsciously. Samael had been spending most of the time in his altered time dimension in order to buy precious hours, probably even days for the search. He had even gone as far as to alter the time flow in the Council room from where the search actions had been coordinated. Well, Gin found the measures more than justified considering the situation. Even though altering time always created huge amounts of loose energy and some peculiar problems - sometimes, somewhere, some times.

"Five days and so far no clues… The police have nothing, nor do the people from Interpol, the Exorcists… or the Mafia, The Triads… The public keeps reporting spotting the girl here or there, but when we check, the leads turn out to be incorrect. None of the search rituals seems to work. Even the search with a dowsing pendulum was fruitless - nobody from the Arias was able to pick up the girl's aura anywhere, which means that someone must be masking it behind a barrier. Or that she no longer has an aura… But then, we would find her remains, those would definitely have a strong enough aura to be detected for decades, if not centuries…" the spy gulped at the troublesome implications of that possibility. "Damn, as if the Abyss took her…" Gin thought bitterly, massaging the bridge of his nose. He really wasn't looking forward to reporting this to his master. "I really thought that when we didn't find the girl freezing in the snow, we would at least have the opportunity to negotiate her return with the fools who dared to kidnap her." the spy exhaled. He felt like an incompetent amateur for even showing up in front of his master and reporting no leads in the case. Not to mention after yesterday…

"I hope he's no longer angry or I can start packing to 'join the search groups in Europe'. And by Europe, I bet he meant Norway or perhaps Island." the spy shivered at the thought. Yesterday, the effects of Insomniacs Samael had been taking had worn off, leaving him completely exhausted and in the expected desperate need of sleep. And so, they had agreed that the demon lord would weaken his barrier around the Academy in order to regain some of the energy. "Just as they planned it with Miss Heilbrunn - every fifth day in the evening, Samael's 'usual time for sleep', which supposedly causes all his spells to weaken for four hours straight." Gin summarized in his head. He had prepared some refreshments for his master and had arranged that he would not be disturbed during the four hours of 'sleep'. Gin had then been standing guard, ensuring the Academy's safety, and double-checking the fake secret entrance under the Ferris Wheel in Mephyland and various traps set in case of invasion or outright attack. "That was the false information Thea was supposed to feed to her kidnappers, by design. Clever girl had thought of it herself, knowing someone had been after her for so long. In any case…How was I supposed to know that Samael would actually fall asleep?!" Gin barely kept himself from throwing his hands up. "And of course it was all my fault for bringing him tea instead of coffee." he pouted further, but he regretted nothing. "He needed the rest. Not even The Lord of Time can battle exhaustion forever." the spy nodded to himself. He was sure that it was the mint tea with honey, and cinnamon rolls which helped the demon lord finally relax enough to actually fall asleep.

"And now he's trying to compensate for all the time he 'wasted' yesterday…" Gin grimaced, looking at the demon lord. He had spent the day in the form of a white smudge in his office or teleporting to and fro around the world, gathering more information. He had been waiting for the results of the investigation while checking with the police, his Exorcists, his demon subjects and contacts from Yakuza, and various other informants and spies. The whole world was now searching, turning every rock for his missing lady. Samael had also been ready to 'negotiate' the terms of Miss Heilbrunn's release, should the kidnappers contact him. The public had been further encouraged to keep their eyes open and report anything suspicious to the police. And by 'further encouragement', Samael meant a generous reward for anyone who could supply useful information about his lady's whereabouts. All in all, he was relatively collected and patient. Well, as patient as a demon lord possibly could be. On the outside, he always looked perfectly composed, even nonchalant, but Gin knew the secret behind his master's intense look and amused smirk - Samael was without doubt spinning some very inspired punishment ideas for his lady's captors, should they bring the girl any harm… Actually, he would probably do so regardless…

"Gin, how long are you going to stand in that door?" Samael asked from behind the desk without tearing his eyes away from the reports, pulling the spy back to the present. "Ah, my apologies, Sir." he entered and closed the door behind himself with a click. Given what he was about to report made him feel like he had just trapped himself in a cage with a unicorn. Only he would definitely prefer the bloodthirsty unicorn. "I hope you helped yourself to some of the delicious-looking cookies Mr. Tsubaki was carrying?" he inquired sheepishly. The demon lord exhaled. "I see… Out with the bad news, Gin." he pursed his lips into a sour expression. "As per your orders, your best Arias gathered in the Kyoto branch in order to locate Doctor Heilbrunn's presence. They have been using dowsing pendulums, rituals, divining rods, mantras, Ouija boards…" "To the point, Gin." Samael interrupted with an impatient edge to his voice. "We have nothing, Sir."

A loud thud echoed through the room as Samael slammed his fists on the huge table, shooting up from his chair. A tangible tension settled in the air, and Gin noticed the second hand on the clock move ahead rapidly, so that it jumped about fifty seconds in what was but one. "Uhm, Sire…" he lifted a finger to politely object to what his Lord's not-so-well-controlled aura and accumulated energy from altering the time was doing to… well… time. Hints of purple started slipping into Samael's eyes which kept darting to and fro in intense thought. Another sixty seconds passed instead of one. "Sire, your clock runs about 2 minutes ahead, I am afraid." he pointed out pressingly, fixing the Lord of Time with a serious look. The office had spells and wards, so that if his demonic aura acted out a bit, the effects would not immediately touch the outside world, but Gin wouldn't want to test them. Ever. Fortunately, Samael contained the anger, purple leaving his green eyes. "Noted." The demon lord said, composing himself immediately, then cast a spell on the clock to set it right with the time with the rest of the world outside of his office. "We are missing something. There must be some trace."

"Not necessarily, Sir. The enemy could be masking her aura." the spy offered, tactically avoiding the option of his lady no longer having an aura. "True, but even Thea couldn't mask her own aura hundred percent of the time. It kept spiking at seemingly random times, for reasons we have yet to determine. And I don't need to remind you how immensely powerful it is. She managed to dissolve my own barrier before. Whoever keeps her hostage, they would need to cast barriers stronger than my own, and there are not many beings who could do so. Or they would need to be using some sealing artifacts which are exceedingly rare." came a counter from the demon lord. "Well, they might be keeping her in a state where she cannot use it. Perhaps drugged, using some kind of narcotics? Or they might be blackmailing her in order to prevent her from using her powers, just like they did with her friend." the spy considered. "No, I ruled out that option." a firm shake of head interrupted, as Samael explained. "All her friends, people dear to her, they are all here or taken care of, protected. She would know that." "My lord, I'm afraid that is your lady we are speaking about. I don't think that people need to be her family or friends in order for her to be concerned. I don't even think they need to be people." Gin said politely, surprised that Samael would miss that point. He must have been really worn out.

And truly, the demon lord blinked a bit stunned, then nodded, his expression a strange mix of frustration but also fondness. "Verdammt. Of course she would be concerned… You are right, Gin." he cleared his voice. "Very well, have them keep trying. Her aura can spike anytime, the enemy's barrier can waver, any kind of slip could uncover her current position." the demon lord ordered firmly. "It shall be done, Sir. Also, perhaps we will learn more from our main lead and eyewitness." Gin said, getting his master's full attention. "Miss Ayame Chidori woke up from her coma this morning." the spy shared the great news enthusiastically. Starting with bad news, then gradually getting to the good ones always worked. "Now, I made some arrangements and…" Before the spy could finish the sentence, the headmaster turned to face Gin swiftly, shooting him a confused look which soon grew displeased. "This morning? Why do I only hear about this now?!" he dropped all the documents he had been holding. A whirlwind of papers obscured Gin's view, and he found himself standing in the headmaster's office alone. "... because my lord, if you had known right away, you would have rushed to interrogate the poor girl before she could process all the events properly and so could be of help to you." Gin intoned in a mockingly polite voice, then shook his head and cut a grimace. "Just like a friggin' little coal tar demon again. Oh well, at least I know where to find him. I'd better be quick about it; else he might completely overwhelm poor Miss Chidori."

In a moment, Gin caught up with his master in the hospital, just in time to stop him from knocking on the door to where Ayami was recovering. "My lord, if you could wait for a moment…" he said, raising his hand. "I could not. Thea cannot, no, must not, either." Samael insisted. "I agree with you completely, Sir, but we cannot rush this. You see, Miss Ayami is…" "...the only witness and probably our only lead so far." the demon lord cut in, his voice raising, as he pinned Gin with an irritated stare. "Exactly. I am only trying to make sure Miss Ayami is willing to share any of those leads with us." the spy put a hand on the headmaster's shoulder. "You two!" a scolding whisper reached their ears as a nurse rushed to them. "What do you think you are doing here?! Arguing in the corridors… In case you haven't noticed, you are in a hospital, so act like it!" the short, plump woman put her hands to her hips.

"I'm sorry, ma'am. It will not repeat." Gin said swiftly, offering a small bow. "You bet it won't. Now, I assume that you let yourself in since you are the headmaster and everything. But this is the intensive-care unit! You cannot be running here freely, there are rules, safety rules. You need a respirator, a special suit and… dear Lord, where are your shoe covers?!" she looked at the floor almost horrified. "My sincerest apologies, Mrs. Yamada. We are visiting Miss Ayami Chidori." Samael said urgently, only to be frowned at by the nurse. "No, you are not. Miss Chidori is only allowed two short visits today. Come to think of it, the second visit is about to end in a few minutes." she said, looking at her watch. "Mrs. Yamada, this is a matter of utmost importance. Surely you were informed that Miss Chidori is the only witness of the kidnapping of Miss Heilbrunn. It is crucial that she…" "I know, Sir Pheles. That's why we allowed two visits, not just the one with her closest family. One of your people is already with her, but no more visits or interrogations today." she crossed her arms on her chest. "The poor thing has just woken up from coma, she needs rest. She might be out of danger now, but she is still very weak. We also need to be extra careful not to upset her in her current condition when addressing her temptaint…" she started gesturing importantly, until her pager beeped silently. "Oh, my." Another sister rushed out of the nurses' room. "Akiko, it's room No. 5." she said to the head-nurse. "Call for Dr. Tsuki just in case. You two - OUT!" she pointed at the wannabe-visitors, sending them off, as she rushed to room No. 5.

In a few moments, the two demons were sipping hot coffee outside of the intensive-care unit silently. "So, who of our people is with Ayami now?" Samael finally asked. "I sent in Miss Kirigakure. I figured that they were quite close, considering that she was also invited to the bachelor party, and then saved her life." Gin answered and received a soft nod of understanding in response. "Sir, forgive me for…" the spy started, only to be interrupted by Samael's raised hand. "Don't. It was the right decision considering the circumstances." he assured Gin, then his expression changed to troubled. "It was almost certain that Ayami would receive a temptaint after suffering from such a strong curse. Still…" he set his jaw firmly, angry about letting things like this happen.

Suddenly, the door opened, admitting Shura. "Yo. The head-nurse told me you'd be waitin' here." she grinned, leaning on crutches. "Shura, what did I tell you? You shouldn't be walking around yet." came Yukio's voice from behind her along with the sound of a rolling wheelchair. Shura cringed, then leaned towards the demon whispering. "This is your fault. Of all the people who could've guarded me, you just had to send in the one who would make the biggest fuss over it." she pouted, but was taken off guard by the headmasters amused, almost fond smile. When Yukio finally reached them, Shura reluctantly eased herself in the wheelchair, blushing like an idiot. "Tsk… Fine, let's just talk in my room, gotta lay down for a while. Damn ribs, still ache…"

Both demons listened to Shura's findings patiently. As expected, Ayami was reluctant to share the real story behind what had transpired in Asahikawa. Her memories seemed so far-fetched and surreal that she disregarded them as results of fever and poison. Also, she would be undermining her position as a doctor and securing herself sessions with a psychiatrist if she insisted on the truthfulness of what she had seen. However, she remembered that it was Shura who had saved her in the snow storm, and so Ayami could be convinced she owed the explanation and the truth to Shura - no matter how crazy it seemed or how much she doubted it had actually happened.

Apparently, Ayami had been taken hostage on her way to the cottage. She could remember the presence of a few outstanding individuals with 'a strange air around them'. There had been a woman clad all in black with a white flower embroidered on her back. She had looked particularly malicious, and she had also been the one to make her drink a very disgusting liquid which had soon caused her nausea. She had also recited very strange words in a language unknown to her. When she had finished, a great deal of pain had come over her. Ayami could also recognize two individuals who had looked like mighty warriors, but she could have sworn that their features were not completely human. One of them had dark skin and the features of a snake, with his pupils split vertically and his tongue split in two. The other one looked kind of brutish with actual horns and a huge scar running through his face. They took Ayami's phone and texted Thea to take a different route, then waited for Thea to arrive at the new destination. When Thea arrived, she looked all horrified and angry, and Ayami could feel an incredible tension in the air. At that moment, the people who had kidnapped her looked almost scared of Thea. However, then they threatened not to give Ayami an antidote to the poison she had already been given, so Thea complied and followed their every instruction. The criminals put huge chains on Thea's hands, legs and around her neck, then ordered her to get into a chopper. They also destroyed her cell phone in some weird liquid, where it completely dissolved. The last thing Thea said to her was not to worry, that she knew it would come sooner or later, and that at least now she was prepared. Then, the helicopter took off and the pain completely consumed her.

"Did she say which way the helicopter flew?" the headmaster perked up a bit. "Yeah, towards the mountains. Somewhere in the direction of the national park. But that's just the direction. Who knows how far they flew or where they turned…" Shura said, and the demon lord simply nodded in acknowledgement. "Also, I probably needn't say this, but Ayami's got temptaint. She doesn't know what it is exactly, but there's no mistake, she's noticin' things. We gotta act before she leaves the Academy grounds, sees the world outside of your barrier for the first time and starts thinkin' she's going crazy. The negative feelings of fear, panic and uncertainty would only draw in more demons." "Agreed. Good thing we already have one of our best, most experienced Exorcists in place." the demon said looking her way, letting the implications sink. Shura just raised her eyebrows. "Geez, ya' must be pretty understaffed when one of your best Exorcists is a woman with broken ribs who has to use damn clutches to walk five meters." A hand landed on her shoulder softly. "Shura, I believe they are talking about me, of course." Yukio stepped in, causing his colleague's cheeks to match the color of her burning red hair. "Then Mephisto is just reeeally understaffed…" she blurted out mockingly. "Don'cha get all cocky 'cuz you're the youngest Exorcist ever or somethin'. Ya' still got to learn a thing or two if ya' wanna catch up with me." she pointed at herself proudly, only to cause her ribs to prick at the sudden movement. "Fool of a woman." Yukio murmured under his nose. "Sir, would you mind talking some sense to her? Sir?" Yukio eyed the demon who looked lost in thoughts. "I suppose you can both take care of Ayami. Focus on your mission here, and we shall focus on finding Thea." he said then nodded to the secretary and they both turned to leave. "Wait, dontcha' dodge the question, which one of us was it, then?" Shura insisted stubbornly. "The Doctor, of course." the headmaster winked playfully, then left, leaving the duo to their own devices. "But we're both Doctors!" they shouted simultaneously.

OoO

"I… I will no tell!" Thea growled, stumbling through the words of the hideous demon language she was being forced to learn… But it was just not meant for human mouths and throats and literally hurt to speak it. Her eyes burned with anger. She was bound to the wall in the Poison-maker's laboratory, trying to show at least a bit of defiance during yet another interrogation. That proved particularly difficult for oh so many reasons… One of them being her attempts to speak demon language. Normally, Thea would never yield to her captor's demands to speak the language of demonkind. She did her best to learn as much as possible from Tomoe, she just refused to give the demoness the satisfaction to actually speak it. However, that had changed a few days ago, when the Poison-maker had cursed her. One word uttered in any other language than demonic, and she would be almost fainting from suffocating. The Poison-maker also spoke mainly demon language, but whenever she wanted to ask for specifics during the interrogations, she slipped into Japanese to make sure Thea would understand perfectly just what kind of information or reaction was required from her. That was also the only moment when the demoness lifted the curse for a brief moment and allowed Thea to answer fluently, in her own language. Otherwise, it was either the demon language or choking. Of course, she would never actually choke, she had to remain alive, but it was certainly not a pleasant experience. Not that the rest of her now three weeks long stay in Gehenna had been a bed of roses, for that matter…

"Although, maybe it had been like a bed of roses… In a way…" Thea thought with a silly sense of irony. Her whole body was surrounded by a rose bush, like a cage, which seemed to be growing right from the ground under her feet. "Desert rose…" she noted based on the trumpet-like, white and pink blossoms, thick stems, and broad leaves arranged in a spiral formation. "Or rather, a special Gehenna-cultivated kind of a desert rose. The branches are not smooth as they should be, and the thorns are curved upward like hooks and are much longer. On one hand, they were much softer than those of an ordinary rose, on the other hand, they contained painful poison…" the girl exhaled carefully, trying to remain as motionless as possible and avoid the prickling. It was not easy, considering that today's experiment session seemed to be nearing its end, so Thea was barely able to keep herself on her feet. She felt so tired and dizzy, she couldn't keep her head straight. Everything was just so blurry to her eyes. And her scalp kept itching like crazy for some reason. "Or maybe it's not the previous experiments… Or the terrible heat… Maybe the Desert rose toxins are finally kicking in, disrupting my cardiovascular and nervous system. The cardio-active steroids contained in basically every part of the rose are known to bring the heart rate to an abnormally slow pace… I just don't remember that Desert rose is supposed to cause blepharitis, too. My eyes are so dry and itchy, everything looks so blurry… Maybe I am getting a pollen allergy?" Thea tried to analyze her situation, but her brain just felt too sluggish to make any valid conclusions at the moment. "I bet Shiemi would know about all of the poisonous effects. And just which herb to use to counter the toxins. When it comes to plants - healing or poisonous - she was always a natural." Before the girl's thoughts could wander to her friends, a sweet chuckle interrupted.

"Oh, you will talk. But we'd better do something about that uncaught manner of yours first~" the demoness' violet eyes played, then she moved her hand in the air as if she wanted to grasp something and started closing it into a fist. The rose bush moved in accordance with the demoness' gestures, wrapping its branches tightly around Thea, the long thin hooks digging into her skin painfully, scratching her all over. Thea flinched instantly at the contact and gasped, which made the hooks draw more blood and some flesh which got absorbed into the plant… She tried to moderate the terrible pain by healing what she could. However, it was very difficult for her to even concentrate at this point, because she was already nearing the limits of her endurance. And the huge crystal above her head serving as light kept pulsing and flickering like crazy, which only enhanced her migraine. "Now, tell me all about the second barrier around the True Cross Academy." the Poison-maker emphasized, enjoying the sight of the little beads of blood running down the girl's skin.

Thea chuckled silently. "Screw you, Cyclops' brain." she threw back another of the swear words Tomoe had taught her. "I will never tell!" she added, finally remembering the correct wording for 'never'. Thea had to admit that demon language was something absolutely fascinating, and not only from the linguistic perspective. "Some of the words bear dark, sinister power which could manifest itself when uttered in a certain fashion - mostly by repeating them in a sequence or by gradation. Powerful demons use them as triggers for their spells." the girl summarized briefly, happy that her sluggish brain was still able to remember Tomoe's teachings. "Apparently that is the reason why strong demons don't need to perform long rituals or use special tools or relics in order to curse someone or to cast a spell." she concluded. "Come to think of it, Mephisto uses his signature 'eins~zwei~drei' as a trigger. But that is not demon language, no matter how evil the German language sounds to the rest of the world…" she grimaced a bit at the ridiculous thought. "Or perhaps he doesn't need a word of power, but he made his own trigger? Could he…" her mind kept working, miraculously occupying all of her senses, and keeping the horrible pain at bay. Before she could finish the thought, though, the demoness approached, her cruel violet eyes blazing, her cheeks red from fury. "Guess my words worked like a trigger too." Thea grinned at the silly little victory - the demoness hated when Thea insulted her intellect. And so, Thea made all the more effort to really cherry-pick the names for her captor.

"You obnoxious little pest…" the demoness cooed with that sick sweetness in her voice as soon as she had managed to rein in the potential outburst. Suddenly, she moved her hands more briskly, causing the rose bush to pull Thea down to her knees. A cry tore through her throat as she was forced down, the thorny branches digging deep and slicing through the flesh. She was trying to keep her breathing as calm as possible, for every slight movement only helped another thorn through her skin. Thea winced at the prospect of the scars the thorns would leave. Some injuries healed without her actively trying thanks to her natural healing abilities. And she always tended to the most urgent wounds whenever a shred of power was left in her. However, it was usually only enough to treat a broken rib or a torn muscle, and she didn't dare use it for 'little scratches'.

A moment later, the demoness loomed above the girl haughtily and with a wave of her hand removed the branches which were pressing on Thea's back. The girl blinked in surprise at the strange, relieving gesture. And her suspicion proved right just a second later, when the demoness put her right foot on her back and pushed her to the ground. Well, at least she was on her knees and could give her legs a little rest after all that standing. Thea's body met another bundle of the prickling rose bush branches. Gritting her teeth, she suppressed another cry which was desperately trying to escape her lips. "Do you really think that you are being brave right now? Useful? That you can protect the demon lord's secrets? Tsk… How pathetic. You are just prolonging your suffering.~" the demoness whispered menacingly. "Not to mention wasting - our - master's - time." she gritted out and emphasized every word by pushing Thea down with her foot, getting out a soft whimper with each push. And the girl couldn't agree more with the demoness' last statement. "Exactly. Wasting your time and buying some for Mephisto. Although… I really wish he would hurry up…" Thea thought pleadingly. She had no doubt that Mephisto had been searching for her this whole time but almost three weeks in that nightmarish, godforsaken place made the waiting quite unbearable…

"Speak, you worm!" the demoness demanded, anger entering her voice at the lack of response as she pressed harder on the girl's neck. "Not yet. I must hold on… Just a little longer…" Thea thought a bit grudgingly. "It would be too soon to spill the 'secrets', even though we planned for it with Mephisto. Ever since my imprisonment, I've been acting all defiant, opposing. It would be too suspicious if I were to disclose any classified information just now. They would not believe it if they did not think they had earned it. They would want more than I could give them, then. I need a trigger, first. They need to believe they have managed to break me, to 'tame' me… Then, I can spill everything we had prepared with Mephisto, and act all defeated, and they would be satisfied and willing to believe I held nothing back. And when they least expect it, when they think they have me where they wanted to, I shall break free. Somehow." a resolute look settled in her annoyingly itching and burning eyes. "But before that…" Thea braced herself, then forced her hands up through the thorny bush and caught the demoness' foot which was pressing on the back of her neck. She then yanked it forcefully to the side, sending the Poison-maker toppling to her own trap of torment. Or at least, that was the plan…

She did manage to throw the skinny demoness off balance and off her neck, but the demoness was fast enough to move the branches away with a flick of her hand before she hit the ground. Still, that was enough of a victory for Thea, so she allowed herself a wide, satisfied grin. "Ups~" she chuckled while the Poison-maker's expression changed from startled to enraged. The demoness bared her fangs at her in a sneer, and her claws extracted. "You vermin!" she spat. Before Thea could even blink, she felt her lip tearing as the demoness smacked her in fury, sending her face-first to the flowery hell. Thea breathed heavily, shaking from all the pain but silently thankful for her reflex to at least cover up her eyes before the fall. However, when she opened them, her surroundings seemed even more blurry and difficult to pick up. She barely collected herself from the shock when the Poison-maker reached for her and pulled her up by her hair to meet her eyes. Or rather attempted to pull her up, for Thea soon found herself back on the ground, surrounded by silvery-white… locks? The girl blinked in confusion, then looked up at her captor. The demoness seemed equally perplexed as she was clutching a handful of Thea's hair in her claws. A low snicker escaped the Poison-makers lips, then it started picking up more volume, until it echoed through the whole laboratory. Then, she fixed Thea with a pleased look. "Oh my, look at that. I might have gone a little overboard with the last dosage… 'Ups~' " the demoness returned the girl's words and covered her mouth with a feigned gesture of apology, then slowly, deliberately let the hair drift to the ground in front of her captive…

Thea's eyes widened, and her mouth opened slightly at the sight. "I knew that she had done something to my appearance… That my ears are a bit pointy now. That the things scratching my scalp might be a pair of small horns growing there. And that my hair turned all white… But this…" her lips quivered, and tears rushed to her eyes. She felt like she has just lost another part of herself to the wretched demoness' torture. However, she refused to give her captor the satisfaction and cry over her lost golden, well, actually now silver-white locks. And so, she just bottled up the terrible feeling deep down. In a special, sealed place of her mind where she kept the rest of the heart-wrenching emotions which - if allowed to the surface - might just drive her insane. "Calm down, Thea. Breathe. Ears can be fixed with some surgery. After all, there are plenty of plastic surgeons eager to repay me for letting them borrow my notes. Horns are scary, but actually easier to get rid of - a good surgeon will not even leave a scar. And this… it's just hair. Sure, you probably look pretty bad now, but it will grow back. It's going to be alright." she encouraged herself and faced the demoness who was still standing above her, relishing her pitiful condition. The Poison-maker's features were a little difficult to pick up in the strange darkening environment. "Gee, t-thanks, I always… wanted to… to try a more radical haircut…" Thea forced herself to voice the sentence despite the painful choking sensation which came every time she tried to speak any language but demonic. A well-aimed but not well-judged backhand came soon after, and blackness momentarily settled over Thea's eyes.

However, even after some serious blinking and eye rubbing, the blackness did not seem to disappear. No matter where she looked, she couldn't distinguish a single item, a single feature. Thea froze as the realization hit her, and this time, she could no longer keep the tears at bay. She reached up, hovering her hands in front of her eyes, feeling around. "No… Not my eyes, too… This cannot be happening… I said I needed a trigger, but… but… Oh God…" she started trembling all over as a strong wave of anxiety hit her. Suddenly, she could hear the demoness call for the guards to drag Thea back to her prison cell. She had not noticed Thea's panic yet. Good. She had to calm down and think straight. "Could the blow have done it? Or is it an after-effect of the elixirs? Or another cause? A curse?" she felt the panic rising. "No, I must not break. Not now. Not yet… I'll figure something out. Come on Thea! You've got healing abilities. If you could've fixed the hole inside of Rin's chest or Mephisto's torn off leg, and all the injuries you have suffered so far, surely you can fix your sight, too! It's just a little rehearsal of ophthalmology. That's right…" she gulped, reigning in her fears, and sealing them away just as she did with the concern for the loss of her hair. In the meantime, the Brute and the Snake rushed to the room, the sound of boots and flapping cloaks marking their approach. Thea did her best to redirect her thoughts and focus. "Yes, I just need to calm down. To think about it, to examine my eyes and to make sure I've got the diagnosis right. Then, I'll be able to figure out and apply the correct treatment. Right! Right! Right! Right. Right… Right?"

The torturous grasp of thorny branches finally loosened around her, so she stood up carefully, her hands spread around her slightly to keep herself steady. She knew the way out of the laboratory to her cell by heart - after all, she had been rehearsing the number of steps and turns ever since her first day in Gehenna. However, she would not reveal that knowledge, she was saving it for her escape. It might actually present an advantage, should the enemy think she's blind and helpless. And so, she just felt around carefully until she met the armor of one of the guards. Judging by the cold, sneering sound, it was the Snake. He pulled away the moment she touched him. Thea couldn't help but find the reaction amusing - she was their captive, bound in energy-draining chains, and she could imagine she must have looked quite pitiful. And yet, she knew that if the Snake could avoid it, he would never touch anything but the chains, and only with the special red gloves on. Was it his disgust towards humans or perhaps caution? She couldn't tell. A moment later, a yank at her chain fastened around her neck tilted her head up, then to the sides - it seemed that the Snake was examining her. He was probably gesturing something, because she noticed a small drift of wind in front of her face. Then, the demon had the nerve to actually pull at a lock of her hair, loosening it. "Hey!" she slapped his hand away from her - at least she hoped it was his hand she had managed to hit. "Yes, my eyes are… bad. No fur." she said in demon language and pulled at her chain to take a step back. "Now, stop it!" she growled, shooting an angry glance towards where she thought the guards were standing.

"What was that, you worm?!" Thea could hear the demoness approach. Soon, her ears picked up the Snake's voice, as he was urgently rattling to the Poison-maker in demon language. Thea picked up some of the words, mainly 'body' and 'eyes' - they were definitely speaking about her lost sight, but the rest was very fast and the vocabulary still unknown to her. The lot seemed to be in disagreement again, too, judging by the snappy way they spoke. However, the demoness obviously wasn't in mood to be questioned again, and after a bit of snarling, the Poison-maker sent them all away with an angry 'Leave! Get out, now!'. "Interesting… The Poison-maker didn't stop to mock me or my appearance this time. Does that mean that the lost hair and sight wasn't in the plan of the interrogations and experiments?" Thea's mind was racing. Now, she really wanted to see everyone's expressions, so she could read the situation better. "And I will see. I will make my eyes work again. I will!" she assured herself as the guards pulled her back to her prison cell.

And while the guards were clearing the human out of the room, the Poison-maker started writing in her notebook vigorously, finishing the entry of day 22.

"Day 22 - The subject keeps resisting the interrogations. Blood-oath-like spell, Morinath Contract, and even binding curses and hypnosis have been ruled out during my investigation, meaning that the subject is protecting the secrets of the Lord of Time out of her own free will. More inventive interrogation techniques must be employed during the upcoming sessions. The subject's ignorance must be taken into account, though - it is possible that no sensitive information was shared with the human in the first place. Perhaps the Circle of Truth might work? *Check with master Abaddon - a demon magician is needed for the spell."

"The experiments with the use of the Desert rose were launched today. The poisonous toxins seem to be mainly affecting the cardiovascular system of a human body. Today's session lasted only two hours, and the estimated time when the subject's heart rate should slow down is the upcoming ten hours. Regular checks are necessary to monitor the subject's health. *The bark of Weeping Golden Willow is prepared for the case of emergency. Further experiments should determine the correct dosage. More potent poisons are available, but as the survival of the subject must always take precedence over my experiments, the usage of Desert rose along with Satan's bolete is the only well-proven, non-lethal combination in order to secure the subject's survival. The aforementioned ingredients should work well enough to cause the individual to fall into such a deep sleep that it would imitate the state of death. Considering the subject's peculiar healing abilities, further tests must be performed to determine the duration of such sleep."

"The latest experiment sessions put a larger strain on the subject's body, causing blood loss and lowering the amount of some minerals important for the correct functioning of a human body. Remember to administer supplements rich in iron, magnesium, and zinc. The current nutrition is kept to the minimum but is sustainable enough. Other nutrition levels are in norm - the introduction of locusts to the diet seems to have fixed the problem with low protein levels."

"I might have figured out the pattern in the pulses of the energy-sensitive crystal. It seems to dim whenever the subject uses her powers, and it shines brightly when there is no action on her side. The subject's powers appear to be disrupting the crystal's normal working. Further research will proceed in two days, upon my regular visiting of the outskirts of the 'Death zone'. *Remember to send a research update to the duke."

Hastily noted at the bottom of the page:

"IMPORTANT! The administration of mutagens affecting the subject's pigmentation and keratinization must be halted as of today until further notice. The current dosage caused hair loss (effect within the desired range) and vision loss (effect beyond desired range, but without lowering the subject's utility for the intended purpose). None of these shall be treated for now, though. So far, the subject has been able to heal fractures, muscle strains, contusions, and similar traumas - this is an ideal time to put the subject's healing abilities to test."

OoO

"My lord, the tests turned out negative." Gin reported to his master the moment he stepped into his office. It was December 22, and the office was beginning to look more and more like a whirlwind of papers, with the addition of a few more monitors on his desk. And somewhere among the seeming chaos of white, there was a white smudge that was moving at an insane pace. The smell of coffee was thick in the air, almost covering up the unmistakably bitter hint of Insomniacs. Gin pursed his lips disapprovingly - there was such a thing as overdosage, and the demon lord seemed determined to push his luck. Suddenly, the whole chaos came to a halt, papers levitating in the air grouped in a precise, orchestrated fashion. "Are you absolutely sure?" Samael questioned. "Please, see for yourself…" the spy handed him the overview which he took straight from the labs. Samael's eyebrows furrowed thoughtfully, but finally, he just nodded. "Make sure they keep checking." the demon lord ordered, then turned on his heel to get back to work. "Uhm, my lord. Why did you ask to run a test on the presence of demonic powers in Mr. Okumura's blood all of a sudden? I thought the young teacher runs daily tests himself. He always seemed most concerned when it came to the possibility of him inheriting Satan's demonic powers just like his brother." Gin finally voiced the pressing question. A small stack of papers flew straight towards him in accordance with a flick of Samael's hand. "Because I have a suspicion that the tests are failing to capture a well-hidden demonic presence… Too small and too concealed to notice. That, or young Okumura might have taken after The King of Lies more than I thought - at least when it comes to twisting the truth." the demon lord said with a strange expression on his face. Gin gaped. "What? You mean he's been lying about the test results? But that's… How did you find out?" "I did not. Thea did… Even though she probably didn't know she did." Samael just motioned to the papers he sent flying to Gin.

"I don't understand…" the spy eyed the colorful pictures drawn with crayons. Given he had trouble recognizing the shapes, and that they perfectly met the level of a five-year-old, their origin was unmistakable. "So, uhm, what is this, uhm, art that you drew?" he asked carefully, fully aware how touchy his master was about his drawing skills. "Dear Lord, centuries of practice, and he still cannot color within the lines. Oh well, if Michelangelo couldn't teach him, no one ever will." the spy shook his head in disbelief. "I told you, Thea did. These are her drawings." Gin bulged his eyes at the doodles, then failed to cover his dropping jaw. A crooked voice tore through his throat - so much for covering up the outburst of laughter… A big mistake. The gesture probably amounted to claiming that a caveman would do a better job with his bare hands on a dusty wall than his lady with all the artistic equipment in the world. And indeed, his master's eye twitched in irritation as he shot him an annoyed look, daring him to utter a single word of dislike. "Everyone is a critique… Just look at the pictures already." he urged. The spy gulped and started listing through the doodles as if his life depended on it.

At first, he barely recognized various people, probably Miss Heilbrunn's friends or people she saw around. But the more he looked at the images, the more they revealed. It was more than the physique they showed. Samael's lady somehow managed to capture everyone's aura, including its color, along with some peculiar features. The drawing of the Son of Satan helped him realize that, because even though the thing in the background looked like a broom, it was apparently his tail. And not just that. There was a fiery, blue crown levitating above his horned head. The spy eagerly flipped through the papers, recognizing Miss Kamiki with a terribly looking tentacle mingle behind her back, which must have been her tails. Nine tails. Just as the Nine-tailed fox spirit against which her clan fought and aimed to control. There were many others, too. Including… The spy gasped, clutching the paper strongly. "So, I believe she captured you pretty well, too, right, my old friend?" the demon lord's eyes played for the first time in what seemed like ages. They always did when he spoke of his lady. Gin looked back at his own portrayal. "It's not just an aura. Hints of our true powers manifest to her. It is all very symbolic, but the meaning is unmistakable if you already know what exactly those powers are…" his heart beat in excitement as he recognized a big bug standing next to him - his scarabeus familiar. He was also holding a small, sleek golden jinn's lamp with number 3 carved on it.

He tore his gaze from the picture to swiftly return back to one at the start, where he thought he saw… Of course! The man with disproportionately big eyes was Yukio. And the big eyes weren't really eyes, but his glasses. And right behind the glasses, his left eye was drawn in a pale blue, the color overreaching the edges. "So, it was not the inability to stay within the lines, it must be the flame reaching out! But if that's the case, it could pose more trouble than the older brother's untamed powers. Demonic power nestling in the eye of the possessed, and presumably without his knowledge… Satan could be monitoring the events in Assiah through Yukio's very eyes!" he looked up at Samael, feeling more than just slightly unnerved as he tried to show. The demon lord just nodded. "Exactly. You know what that means - from now on, we must thread extremely carefully around my younger half-brother. Perhaps I shall fulfill Shura's wish to replace her 'babysitter', after all. But that might just raise more suspicion, and we must not reveal the knowledge of the eye." Samael tapped his lips in thought. "Keep monitoring the situation. We do have our priorities, but we cannot allow the situation to escalate should Father decide the time has come to finally act rather than wait for his new vessel patiently… I cannot risk such complications. Not now. Also, in the light of these discoveries, you might have been right… I was overexerting my strength, leaving myself and this place vulnerable. If they have not contacted us yet, perhaps that was their goal all along. I will be using my powers more… sparingly. This room will have to do." Samael said, clutching his hands into fists, his jaw set firmly. "Of course, my lord. I shall look into that matter immediately." the spy nodded. They couldn't be pressed and stretch their resources on so many fields. Samael was already under too much pressure.

"Perhaps you could take a little trip to Gehenna? Assure Satan that everything is 'running smoothly'? Maybe even consider checking on your realms? The tensions have been growing, I'm afraid another war is brewing, and we…" a raised hand interrupted the spy. "Out of question. I have things to take care of here, first. Besides, they would find a way to fight either way." the demon lord said firmly, leaving no room for discussion. The spy nodded in defeat. Samael has been neglecting his realms for too long, busying himself with affairs in Assiah. If he kept that up, trouble would arise soon. But Gin thought better of pressuring his master about it now. He would bring it up again soon, just some other time. His master suddenly interrupted his train of thoughts when he took the drawings from his hands. "Just look at us. She is gone, she needs our help, and yet, she is the one helping us realize the threats around, leaving hints and clues…" Samael said in a solemn voice, then chuckled bitterly. "We, on the other hand, haven't come a bit closer to discovering the origin of her power, let alone the reason behind the strange peaks or their timing. So far, we have merely ruled out the influence of star constellations or moon phases. Tsk. Never mind, go now, Gin. We have things to do and there is little time. So little…" he waved the spy off.

The moment he left, Samael leaned on one of the tall windows and summoned one last drawing. The tall individual had a commanding yet unpredictable, playful presence. The violet aura playing around, followed by hints of black and golden, was in strong contrast to the white suit. A tail was entwined around the figure's torso in a neat, concealed way. A crown made of Hour hands was levitating above a horned head. And a huge sand clock was positioned right behind the back with what looked like a whirlpool both at the bottom and at the top. Thea did offer to draw him once, but he refused, not wanting to sound over-eager, reluctant to admit how much he wanted to be captured by her cute yet accurate and ingeniously skillful drawing, if he said so himself… But that apparently didn't stop her from drawing his portrait for herself, tucking it safely under a huge stack of books in her nightstand along with the rest of her drawings. He had never thought he would stumble upon them when he had gone to search her room for potential clues. He closed his eyes, returning many months back, revoking the memory of the time when she had drawn most of the pictures he later found. Back when she was still Miss Heilbrunn to him, and he was just her headmaster, getting increasingly fascinated by her peculiar powers, mostly by the power of her captivating yet calming presence…

OoO

Back then, the latest mission of his Exwires didn't go exactly well, so Mephisto was on his way to pay his favorite pupils a visit at the hospital. A mix of voices coming from one of the hospital's rooms suddenly reached his ears. "Me next, me next!" an enthusiastic man's voice pleaded. "No way, it's my turn. I wanna do it with her now!" another male individual insisted. "Hey, I was here before you - Thea, I am sure I will be a lot more interesting. Do me now." "Guys, guys, please, wait. And could you please put your hands off me? It doesn't..." Thea answered in a melodious, slightly nervous voice, but before she could finish, the door flew open with a loud thud, revealing the tall figure of one particularly intimidating, alerted demon. "... work that way." the blonde finished, smiling at the demon. "Oh, hello Sir Pheles…" Mephisto blinked in confusion, then shook his head - his imagination had obviously painted a completely misleading picture of what exactly the people were doing there. A nonchalant grin suddenly spread on his face. "Greetings everyone. Now, would you care to explain to me what everyone is doing here instead of staying in their own room, resting?" he inquired, as he took in the whole room. It was full of people - Exwires and Exorcists were scattered around the chair where the blonde's sat, a cheerful expression on their faces. The demon's eye twitched inexplicably as he spotted some individuals holding onto her hand or arm for some reason.

"She's drawing us! And I mean us, like with auras and everything!" Rin answered enthusiastically, pointing at the picture in his hand. "She drew me some time ago, I showed it to the others, and they wanted a picture, too. So, here we are…" he gestured at the room. "Pffff… Rin was right, Thea. You really suck at drawing." Izumo commented and Thea shot her an annoyed glance. "Yeah, yeah, I have already heard that… But hey, I only draw what I see." the blonde smirked and Izumo's cheeks suddenly took on a crimson shade. "There's no way anyone sees that!" She protested and several visitors started laughing as soon as they saw the asymmetrical figure on the sheet of paper. Mephisto's curiosity perked up, so he strode a little closer, regarded the drawing critically and then, with a completely straight face, said. "I think it's perfect." The blonde gawked at the demon, and she was not alone. "Why the surprised expression, Miss Thea? You caught all the details, after all." he asked and Thea for once believed his honest puzzlement - she was only surprised, because this was the first time in her life anybody liked her drawing. After kindergarten, that is. "I know, right? Everything's there…" she pointed at the piece of paper. "Then what's with those creepy tentacles coming out of my skirt?!" the classmate with two dark ponytails asked, puffing up her cheeks. "Tentacles?" Thea and Mephisto gaped, completely confused. "These." Izumo started tapping her finger at the picture. "Those are tails, of course. Correct, Miss Thea?" Mephisto turned towards the blonde and she nodded enthusiastically. "Yes, tails, not tentacles! You know, your familiars are demon foxes, so it probably has something to do with that. Gosh, Izumo, a blind man could see that they are fluffy." "Yeah, a blind man might…" Bon said offhandedly, covering his mouth in a poor attempt for decency. "How can he tell what's in that picture?" Konekomaru half-whispered towards Rin. "Dunno, maybe 'cuz they both draw so badly." the half-demon chuckled, and they both started giggling.

"Hey, I heard that! You know guys,..." The blonde started, only to be interrupted again, this time by one of the nurses - Mrs. Yamada, who was now standing in the door, hands on her hips in a scolding gesture. "What on Earth am I seeing?!" Some of the visitors started scratching their heads nervously, grinning or clearing their throats. "I allowed you half an hour, Mr. Okumura - your bandages need changing. And Mr. Takedo, you were supposed to get ready, we are taking off that plaster on your leg in the afternoon. Miss Heilbrunn, you too should know better than to fool around when your colleagues are in such a condition. We have just patched them up! Not that you look any better after the mission, either." Thea gulped, trying to hide her embarrassment - the woman was firm and a little scary, too. "Ehm, heh, guess I'll be going now." Rin cringed sheepishly, slowly making his way through the room, minding the infusion stand he was pushing next to him. And just behind him limped one of the Tamer Exorcists, Mr. Takedo, carefully leaning on the crutches. "Thanks for the pic, Heilbrunn - my lil' daughter's gonna love it!" The rest of the people started leaving as well, their expressions varying between satisfaction and disappointment - depending on who managed to take away a picture of his or her 'true form'. The whole room would have been empty, had it not been for one stubborn demon who decided to stay. The nurse arched an eyebrow at him quizzically, and Mephisto returned a perfect smile. "I will not take long, Mrs. Yamada, I assure you." The voluptuous woman nodded reluctantly and went after her patients.

"I am glad to see that you have enough energy to 'fool around', Miss Thea. Not that I am encouraging you, though." he winked mischievously while taking a seat next to Thea's bed. "I was just drawing, there is nothing difficult or tiring about that. If anyone was fooling around, it's them - and here I tried my best, too! Humph!" she adopted a feigned offended expression. "I have a perfect idea of what you mean, dear. Having your art criticized by a bunch of amateurs can sure be tiring." "Well, they'd better not get used to it. History teaches us not to scowl at aspiring German artists…" Thea grinned at Mephisto, her chocolate-brown eyes twinkling, then she suddenly gave a start. "Oh, I mean… sorry, I'm often told my sense of humor is a bit… Geez, forget what I said." she facepalmed herself in embarrassment. The Lord of Time stared at the blonde and then chuckled, completely thrilled. "Oh heavens, she's a delight! How is she doing that?" Leaning his head on one hand, the demon offered. "Miss Thea, you should come to one of the Academy board's meetings sometimes. They are so boring; I could use your refreshing company." The blonde's head shot up, beaming. "Only if you come to one of our anesthesiology lessons." she giggled. "Afraid to be 'put to sleep'?" the demon's lips curled up. "Yeah, anesthesiology - scripts are optional, coffee is mandatory."

The pleasant memory dissolved like a mist, the sound of Mephisto's ringing cell phone reaching his ears. He blinked, pulled back to his own time. Time where the lovely girl, who became his lady, was taken away from him. The demon's expression hardened, then he returned back to his responsibilities. "Hold on, Thea. Just a little longer…"

OoO

"Wonderful~" lips of the Duke of the Abyss curled up to an amused smirk. The locusts sitting on the slopes supporting the throne room started fluttering their wings slightly, mirroring the duke's excitement. "Absolutely wonderful!" Abaddon nodded to himself, as he kept listing through the Poison-makers last report. Zahar sent him one each week, informing him about the progress of her experiments on Althea Heilbrunn - the human who would become his key to ultimate power and rule over Gehenna. His terror weapon. His personal Executioner. This was the fourth report, marking the fourth week of the human's stay in Gehenna, and Abaddon was still quite thrilled about the mere fact that the little human was actually able to survive her stay in this realm. "Well, those who do not play cannot win. Right, Samael?" the duke grinned wickedly, pleased for having outplayed none other than The Lord of Time. "True, it was a great risk to bring the human to Gehenna. After all, no living soul has ever survived in Hell. However, that was the risk I had to take. Otherwise, Samael would have found her. His grip is too great in Assiah. I could have never controlled her there. Either I shall have all her power or no one else will. She'd better be dead than in the hands of my enemies… But now that she's in my hands, I'm not losing this most exquisite of all tools. I will break its will and make sure it is mine, mine only, and mine truly." he thought aloud.

"Now that the human is here, I have to make sure she won't be discovered or recognized as a human by anyone. That's when our Poison-maker comes in. I'd better see some progress in the human's transformation." the demon stroked his beard, inspecting the report.

"After two weeks, the mutagens finally took effect. It would appear that the strange healing powers of the human subject had been suppressing the effects. The only way to overpower the regeneration effect was infliction of intense pain and non-life-threatening injuries, which sapped her energy away, making way for the mutagens…"

Abaddon chuckled at the notes. "The only way, huh? That crafty, revenge-thirsty Poison-maker~. Using the experiments as a chance to exact her revenge on the human. Well, I did promise her vengeance… and as long as she delivers the results I wish, she can have all the fun she wants… And from the reports from Ramil and Khan, she was particularly active in this aspect. Dragon's Breath, Desert Rose, and what do we have here?" he checked the report from his two captains more closely. "Satan's Flames… even the Hellking's Ambrosia. My, oh, my, the Poison-maker had better be careful - that is one nasty drug. No wonder both my captains are concerned that the experiments are getting too dangerous for the captive's capacity to serve." he said thoughtfully, realizing a portion of truth in the captains' concerns. "It cost me a fortune and months of careful planning to capture the human and get her down here. Now that she proved she can withstand the demonic aura of Gehenna, I cannot afford to lose her just because of the Poison-maker's petty vengeance. But I have to give Zahar credit. It was definitely a smart move to have the human get hooked up. It will make it a lot easier to manipulate her. Why, it's almost a pity, I was looking forward to breaking her in a different manner than just to bribe her with another dosage. Still… Both captains seem to insist that I hasten my visit and talk some sense to the Poison-maker."

"Hmmm… And Tomoe seems to be progressing with teaching the wench the demon language, too." he tilted his head attentively, reading through the spy's / double-agent's report. "Must be the little curse Zahar pulled on the wench. Good, at least it will speed things up." he nodded, pleased about the development. "A quick learner, is she? Well, at least she's got some brains in that squishy human head of hers. Good. And even though she seems to have an attitude, at least she has not tried anything funny so far. Or at least she hasn't shared that information with the fox demon. Hmmm… I'm curious… Zahar says she lifts the curse outside of her experiments, so that the human can learn and practice the language, but she might also share some plans, schemes, or other kinds of information with Tomoe. The spy had better do his job and make the wench trust him completely."

The Duke of the Abyss listed further through the documents, flipping through the parts of Zahar's research. "Honestly… I told her I do not care for any other research but the one conducted on the human." he frowned, skipping a few pages. "So what if there is an anomaly in my realm? This is Gehenna, it's the very essence of chaos, so of course there will be anomalies! The 'Peaks of Peril', also called 'Death Zone' she writes… Pulsing with a strong energy of unknown origin… blah, blah, blah… Quite stable level and perimeter for centuries… Recent decade or so, emanating pulses of brilliant light in completely unpredictable patterns and of various and growing intensity… has similar aura to the human subject - do you really think that would make it more interesting to me?" Abaddon snorted. "The energy is able to significantly weaken or even obliterate demons who approach too close… Ah, yes, what a surprise… another place in Gehenna where demons might perish. Spare me the lecture, Zahar." the duke rolled his eyes, turning the pages impatiently. "She should be grateful I granted her one day a week for her personal research and visits to this 'Death Zone' and stop pestering me with all the 'exciting' findings."

"Now this is the information I've been waiting for." he exclaimed, noting the passage concerning the human's abilities. "And it would appear that I was right all along - the human truly can kill demons, obliterate our very essence." he stroked his chin, checking the notes closely.

"... In conclusion, the experiments on Coal tars, Dekalps and Greenmans returned positive results. Not a single demonic essence has reappeared after being exposed to the subject's purifying powers. So far, all attempts to resurrect, recall or summon the purified demons failed without exception. The effect of the subject's powers seems to be permanent. The points of resurrection of the purified demons will be under further observation should any of the demons come back. In the meantime, I shall continue with experiments on other low-class demons, such as frog-possessing Reapers or Goblins. By the time of your arrival, we should have moved on to middle-class demons. But it seems the hypothesis has been confirmed - the subject's strange power has the capacity to destroy, permanently and finally, demonic beings, along with their life, soul(s), and essence(s) with no chance of retrieval. Further research as to its limits is needed."

The duke of the Abyss massaged his hands. With the Executioner at his command, he will be feared by all, and will be able to permanently end anyone who opposes him. "My path to being a demon lord is open… And who is to say the strange power would not work even on the King himself? Hahaha, further research as to its limits is needed, indeed…" Abaddon started laughing, absolutely thrilled by the development. Even though that, according to his captains' report, the wench has so far not spilled a single secret during the interrogations. Apparently, she was a spirited one, insolent, daring, always defying orders… "I cannot wait for much longer. Time is always on Samael's side, after all." A sinister smile crept upon his face. He remembered the obnoxious woman very well, including the vortex and the pride her interference had cost him. The vortex that never came back. The truth was, he was quite glad she was so defiant. After all, there was no fun in taming a wimpy, fragile creature into obedience. And he would definitely enjoy breaking Samael's little plaything. He wasn't sure what brought him bigger joy - the suffering of the obnoxious woman, the prospect of the power and status gain, or the fact that the fool Samael had been leading a fruitless search for a human whose real worth he tried to keep secret. "Well then, it would appear that our little guest is ready to be received properly." his sinister grin revealed his fangs, and his laughter echoed through the spacious hall, sending the locusts into a frenzied flight.

OoO

"Miss Heilbrunn, are you sure you want to proceed?" Tomoe asked with concern. "I-I'm fine. I just need to… Oh God…" Thea heaved, then rushed to the other end of her prison cell to throw up into a bucket. "Miss Thea, let's just call it a day, alright? You obviously need some rest." the fox demon offered. "No. Please wait… I'll pull myself together, just a… a sec…" she said, breathing heavily, taking a sip of water she had received from her captors. The truth was, she felt extra motivated. First, she didn't have to experience the terrible choking feeling when she spoke Japanese. The Poison-maker always lifted the curse once a week, when Thea had her precious 'recovery day' and no experiments took place. Second, she wanted to use every chance to learn more now that her sight was partially back. Thea had to expend a significant effort in healing her eyes, because she had never tried to fix blindness with her healing waves before. It was immensely complicated and the chains sapping her powers made it so much harder, but after five days of trying, she finally succeeded! And any success was a great morale boost and fuel for her.

Thea started pacing slowly in the cell, hoping to walk the sickness off. "Maybe I just need to stretch a bit. I'm all stiff and sore. Maybe a little walk and… nope…" she said suddenly, as her head started spinning like on a rollercoaster. She grew weak in her knees immediately, so she swiftly knelt and supported herself with her hands, then tried to take deep breaths. "Thea!" came Tomoe's concerned voice. "Damn, this sucks! I can't believe this - the vertigo and headache are even worse than during the experiments… Geez, I would have thought that it's the work of the food, had not all of it tasted like ashes this whole time." she grimaced, looking at the small bowl which contained a portion of unfamiliar mushrooms, greens and, as of this week, an assortment of locusts. She knew that insects were a great source of protein, but she never imagined actually eating some. "Well, maybe that's a good thing, considering my current diet." she chuckled, and Tomoe soon joined her. "Indeed. Unfortunately, almost everything in Gehenna tastes like ashes, save for a few things…" he exhaled, rubbing his neck. "True. The food we are given tastes all the same, but the potions and elixirs actually do have a taste. Although I wouldn't say that's a plus." she rubbed the bridge of her nose, chuckling silently. "One of the potions even reminds me of beetroot. Man, how I hate that vegetable. The sad thing is, when everything tastes like ashes, you start to be thankful even for that terrible beetroot taste…" a sour grimace appeared on her face.

"You must miss 'human' food, right?" Tomoe met Thea's eyes understandingly. "Boy, I could kill for a Mozartkugel. Or at least Kinderschokolade…" she moaned, putting her hands to her cheeks, and her eyes became all dreamy just imagining the taste. "Say, what is the first thing you want to eat once we are back in Assiah?" "Oh, I guess… ramen would be my top choice. And a cup of coffee. Definitely some coffee." Tomoe admitted. "I see. Then, when we are back, I promise to treat you to some ramen. I know just the place, you'll love it!" she said happily, getting a smile from Tomoe. "That sure sounds great." "Yeah, definitely better than these grasshoppers. Just looking at them makes me wanna… no, no, I'm not going to even think about that… " Thea tried to breathe calmly and swiftly looked away.

"OK, I give up today's language lesson. I don't think my brain can take in any more information when I'm like this…" she rubbed her eyes, then lay down on the old rug of a blanket and curled up, trying to keep her stomach from further saltos. However, it seemed like the whole room was spinning with her. Not to mention she wasn't used to sleeping with horns on her head and struggled with finding the right position for rest. "Wise decision, Meister Doctor. Just rest a bit. While you still can…" the fox demon nodded appreciatively. "Tomoe… I cannot learn much now, but could we still talk? I need to take my mind off this nausea…" the girl asked a bit pleadingly. "Of course. What do you want to talk about?" "The Poison-maker of the Alsumu clan." Thea said firmly, only to receive a frown in response. "Thea, that's not exactly a topic which would help you relax." "I know… But 'relax' is a thing not really done in Hell…" she returned firmly; her mind already set. "You know I can feel demons' auras - well, I noticed that hers disappears once a week, on days like these, that's why there are no experiment sessions. Do you have any idea where she goes?" she asked while also trying to figure that out silently. "I am afraid I don't. She's a Poison-maker, so the most probable cause for her leaving this place could be collecting ingredients." the fox demon rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Wouldn't she have some 'errand-demons', though?" Thea's eyebrows furrowed in thought. "She could. But it's difficult to say for sure. It looks like they want to keep this place a secret, so maybe she has to do this menial work by herself, too." Tomoe offered.

"Hmmm… She also keeps mentioning her research. It sounds so strange… that there are places in Hell a demon would need to research. It sounds like a normal, logical thing to do, like something even we humans would do. And yet it sounds so strange and foreign when demons do it… We know so little of your kind, it makes me feel embarrassed…" the girl facepalmed herself. Tomoe, however, remained silent at her comment. Did she make him uncomfortable? Well, she did tend to spin philosophies about demons and humans lately… She cleared her throat and decided to move on. "Say, do you know anything about this place?" she forced herself to sit, then reached for her crystal-like board she used for learning, and started to draw. "The symbols look like this." she turned the board to face Tomoe before the words could disappear. "They read 'Death Zone'." the demon explained, getting a surprised look from the blonde. "What? There is a particular, special 'Death Zone' in Hell?" she asked with amusement. "Of course. In fact, there are quite many places in Gehenna where demons usually perish if they go to. Somewhere almost too easily, if one is not careful or crafty." Tomoe lifted his finger importantly. "But I thought that Gehenna is, you know, kind of your thing, a place where demons thrive." "And Assiah is a place where humans thrive. That doesn't mean that the environment itself isn't dangerous, does it?" he asked pointedly, and Thea nodded. "True that. We have dangerous animals, too high or too low temperatures, places with not enough oxygen, quicksand, volcanos, jungles, radiation hotspots… Now that I think about it, I kind of wonder how we prevailed." she started giggling silently. "Yeah, I too often wondered about that." Tomoe said almost flatly.

"So, what could be in a hellish 'Death Zone'…?" Thea asked curiously. "Various things… Poisonous vapors from a mushroom forest, a mirage, anomalies, unicorns, oh and acid storms,..." he counted out, only to be interrupted by Thea's surprised gasp. "What?! Wait, what did you say?" "Acid storms. Never walk around in acid rain, the drops go right through you unless you have some kind of heavy-duty protection. Tomoe's explanation took on a lecture tone. "No, no, I meant… the unicorns?! You have unicorns?" a dreamy expression settled in Thea's eyes. "Yeah… vicious beasts." a shiver ran down Tomoe's spine. "Vicious? Are we talking about the same animals? Those fairy-tale horses with horns on their foreheads, graceful, white… Those?" Thea's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "Oh, right. I forgot that you humans adored them. Or hunted them for that 'elixir of immortality'." "Wait, they were real?" Thea bulged her eyes. "They still are. Just like many other creatures from those 'fairy-tales' of yours. Dragons, wyverns… Some just no longer reside in Assiah. Come on, how can you be so surprised? There are incubi, werewolves, even vampires walking among you humans, and you are surprised about the existence of unicorns?" the fox-demon raised his eyebrows questioningly.

"Wow… I… I mean, it does make sense when you say it like that… It's just a bit of a shocker, I guess. Especially when you describe them as dangerous and vicious." Thea scratched her head. "Because they are. Just like incubi or succubi can change their appearance to appeal to you, a unicorn's appearance too is beautiful and alluring even to demons, so the victim walks right towards them. Also, their look is hypnotizing, so even if you have a shred of self-preservation and actually don't approach them, they make you approach as soon as you look in their eyes. Only incubi and succubi are able to withstand the allurement, since they are also masters of seduction. In any case, once you are close enough, they just eat you alive… They love playing with their food. And even if you are not that close, they can run incredibly fast. The fangs and claws sticking out of their hooves also look quite disturbing. Killing one brings great honor to a demon. Their blood is said to have some interesting properties - alchemists use it in their elixirs. That is, if they can get their hands on it. It's said to have this earthy, bitter taste… Ah, my apologies, I speak too much." he said as if he suddenly realized how talkative he's become. "No, that's fine, please continue. I just… God, we really don't know a thing about your kind…" Thea shook her head, deep in thoughts.

"Miss, where did you even see that symbol of the 'Death Zone'?" Tomoe pulled her back to reality from the mind-blown state. "Oh, right. You see, the Poison-maker has a huge map hung above her desk. I noticed that she sometimes makes notes there. And she marks the most things around this 'Death Zone'." Thea explained, then started drawing with her finger on the board again. "It's north-west from here, and the place looks like mountains with what I think is a river flowing right through it. Also, the demoness draws circles around that place… like this." she kept drawing, getting Tomoe's attention. "I think… I have heard of that place… Mostly from hear-say, that is… I know it as the 'Peaks of Peril'. It was home to a small, secretive, old demon clan which specialized in enchanting objects." "How come you know about it, then?" Thea raised an eyebrow at the demon, who grinned. "Well, knowing secrets is practically my work, Thea. Being a spy and all…" his eyes played, which brought the girl to chuckles. "Riiight. OK, please continue." she encouraged the spy. "The clan didn't have many members, and they weren't exactly strong by their nature, so they relied on the power they gained from other creatures, even from humans. Now that made them incredibly strong…" Tomoe said thoughtfully.

"How did they do it? Did they… you know, kill the individuals or something?" Thea asked curiously, but the fox demon shook his head. "They were leeches. You don't always need to eat someone or drink their blood, if that's what you're asking." he smirked. "Actually, I remember they were quite rich because they created beautiful jewelry from gems, which they traded. However, they also enchanted some pieces in a way that the items drew the energy from the individuals wearing them. Sometimes there was a pact for it, sometimes the individual never even knew, and sometimes the darn thing drained you of all your power on the spot, killing you. Happened to one vampire I used to know… Nasty little things…" he frowned at the memory.

"I see. Well, no wonder demons would avoid them, perhaps even call that place 'Death Zone'." the girl nodded to herself thoughtfully. "Oh, but that's not the reason demons stay far away from it. The whole demon clan is gone, disappeared one day. Not sure whether they just left or they all died, I would lean to the latter version. Maybe some kind of accident with the gemstones they used to enchant… Happened quite recently actually, perhaps 15 years ago. The incredible surge of power was so strong that it could be felt almost in the whole of Gehenna. Most demons refer to it as the 'Bright Day'. Everyone knows of it, but only a handful knows about its connection with the clan of leeches… or enchanters or however you want to call them. The whole place is emanating an incredibly strong, deadly energy, which keeps pulsing wildly. From what I heard, there are moments when the strange power spreads really far, then it retracts back again." Tomoe said with an air of mystery. "I see. Maybe that's what the circles on the map stand for. The Poison-maker could be drawing the perimeter of that 'energy' you mentioned. I wonder what she wants there…" Thea pondered but was already too tired to process any new information. And so, she just smiled at her companion. "Thank you, Tomoe. You really managed to take my mind off this terrible sickness…" "My pleasure, Meister Heilbrunn." he returned a smile. "Now, I suggest you rest."

Thea lay down, only to find the whole room spinning with her again. She closed her eyes, hoping to get rid of the spinning effect. She really wanted to talk more with Tomoe, but her whole body felt so weak, so tired. The problem was, she couldn't even fall asleep because of the terrible vertigo. It was not the first time this happened to her. Actually, it was the fourth time. "Why does this keep happening? It's not even the day of the experiment sessions. I need a break after all the experiments, I should be able to rest and regain my strength." Thea thought grudgingly. Then, her eyes flew open in a sudden realization. "Wait a minute… That's just what the demoness told me. Why should I believe her? Why should I think that she 'gave' me this day to recover, when I actually feel even worse?" she thought with a hint of panic. The demoness definitely had a reason for that. She left once a week to do her research, but that didn't mean Thea shouldn't be tortured or anything. Any of the guards could just take over. It would no longer be that 'scientific', but they could. If she truly were to recover, then she wouldn't feel this bad, would she? The girl's mind felt sluggish, despite her best efforts to keep it working. And the exhaustion, numbness just kept consuming her body, the room kept spinning with her, and her head hurt more than after drinking the Dragon's breath. The worst thing was, that this wasn't the end. As the day progressed, Thea knew that she would feel even worse, just like the last few times it happened.

"So, what is different? What changed? The demoness is not here. I'm not being tortured as every day, and yet I feel at the verge of blacking out again. I ate what I eat every day, and I didn't drink any potion or elixir of hers which I drink every day, and I… Oh… No. No. That's…" Thea's heart started racing, making her head pulse even more. "I didn't drink any potion… which I drink every day… It's not what I did drink, but what I didn't!" she realized with horror, and subconsciously, she curled up even more. "Every day, every day I drink… the 'Beetroot nightmare'... But not today… Not a week ago…" she closed her eyes, holding the panic firmly in check. She wouldn't despair! Not even when the Poison-maker managed to make a drug-addict out of her without Thea ever noticing… This was beyond cruel.

OoO

"I hope Rin and Shiemi will manage to catch at least some news from that urgent Academy staff meeting. I'm already sick and tired of this stupid bureaucracy." Izumo said grumpily, as she was stretching her sore muscles from another day spent sitting at the computer, reading emails and sorting information from reports. It was December 23rd, and she was growing very frustrated about no progress whatsoever. She wanted to eavesdrop on the meeting, too, but they all agreed that Shiemi's familiar Nee and Rin's companion Kuro would be able to sneak in further and without notice. Also, their supervisors would notice if all of the Exwires left suddenly.

"Gotta agree with Miss Polkabrows here. This is worse than running errands for Lewin." Bon said grumpily, only to be pulled at one of the piercings in his right ear. "What's that?!" Izumo eyed him, already pretty irritated. "Geez, why so upset, I'm agreeing with you, ain't I?" Bon pulled at her ponytail and Izumo froze, deciding whether she should be angry or glad that the guy is on her side for once. "Oh, come on guys, give it a rest already." Konekomaru cut in, putting a thick folder between the two hot-headed classmates. "I know things have gotten tense and everyone is worried… But that's all the more reason to stick together and do whatever we can to help find Thea." she said with resolve. "Exactly! Whatever we can. But this…?" Izumo pointed at the stack of papers as if it were a pile of stinking socks. "We can do so much more! Anyone can sort through papers and emails. We should be out there - searching for leads and talking to people who reported spotting her. But nooo, only full Exorcists get to do the real job." Izumo rolled her eyes, then threw her hands up. "Izumo, verifying the data, information which the public sends to us, the places Thea was presumably spotted - you know how important that is, right?" Konekomaru eyed the hot-tempered friend. "I know, I know… Geez, where are those two?! It's been almost an hour! The meeting wasn't that long." Izumo folded her arms in front of her in annoyance, changing the topic.

Suddenly, the door to the room opened, revealing Rin and Shiemi. "Speak about the devil." Bon said with relief, then he could finally get to berating the two. "Okumura, where have you been all this time?! We had to cover for you guys in front of Mrs. Maki who came to check on the reports, and I don't need to tell you how… h-hey, what's with those long faces?" the aspiring Aria moderated his tone upon taking a closer look at them. Rin just clutched his hands into fists, and his face grew a bit red. Shiemi bit her lip. However, they both shared a common emotion - anger. That was very strange, especially considering Shiemi's kind nature. "Don't tell me they caught you sneaking in?" Izumo raised her eyebrows in disbelief. "Tsk, as if!" Rin protested, raising his voice in his usual temper. "I just… I snapped, OK?! Damn…" he put his hands into his pockets and kicked an invisible pebble on the ground grumpily. "You what? Just tell us what happened already, geez…" Izumo urged, impatient to hear the story.

"We sneaked in to eavesdrop on the emergency meeting as planned. We learned that Thea's kidnappers had called and wanted to exchange her for a ransom." Shiemi started, while her friends gasped, shifting on their chairs as if ready to jump to the action. "Yeah, they asked for a huge pile of money, even dictated how they wanted it prepared and which bills were fine and which not… They had so many demands, but Mephisto didn't even flinch and just ordered everything to be prepared." Rin gestured around heatedly. "Sir Pheles ordered multiple Exorcist groups to head towards the exchange point, so we decided to follow, too." Shiemi filled in. "What? You were there?! Why didn't you call us?" Bon demanded, so Shiemi clasped her hands in front of her in an apology. "Sorry, it happened all so fast. We had to decide on the spot and then keep quiet as we sneaked… well… we didn't actually 'sneak', we… uhm…" the blonde scratched her head nervously, so Rin hastened to explain. "The kidnappers waited in Kyoto, in some old dusty warehouse. So, to get there really fast, Mephisto ordered everyone to gear up, then to use their special keys and go to our Kyoto branch, where they would regroup. So, we quickly followed Mr. Yunokawa and kinda borrowed his key, then we appeared right in Kyoto." Rin said victoriously.

"Whoa, whoa. You stole a teacher's magical key?!" Bon bulged his eyes. "Borrowed." the half-demon emphasized. "Please, don't be angry with Rin, Bon." Shiemi interrupted, her face growing very red. "I-It was… ah… I asked Nee to take it when the teachers were changing into uniforms in the Armory. They had to undress and… I… I did what I had to!" the blonde blurted out, completely embarrassed, hiding her face in her hands. Surprisingly to her, she just received approving nods, thumbs up and words of encouragement for the rule-breaking in response. "We headed to the warehouse Mephisto was talking about, then waited for the kidnappers. Our teachers and other Exorcists weren't there, though, 'cause you know, the scumbags ordered Mephisto around and allowed him to send just one person to the exchange point. But the squads were hiding somewhere nearby, I'm sure of it, 'cause Kuro and I could smell them." Rin tapped at his nose proudly. "Oh, and Mephisto wasn't allowed to come, but in the end, he went in, 'cause we saw a little white dog entering the place together with the negotiator." the half-demon added. "Right, that's his animal form, it must've been Sir Pheles." Bon nodded, sure of Rin's observation.

"So, how did it go?" Konekomaru asked, making both of them grimace. "It went bad… Real bad." Rin clenched his hands into fists. "The bastards lied! They never had Thea, they were just after the reward money and thought they could get away with it! They weren't even demons, just people, normal people. Five criminals, greedy bastards…" a sound of gritting teeth accompanied the angry growl. "What?!" Izumo exclaimed. "What do you mean they never had Thea? So, she's still missing? But…" the aspiring Tamer wondered, panic entering her voice. In the meantime, Shiemi laid a hand on Rin's shoulder in an attempt to calm him down, then added. "The kidnappers took the money, then told the negotiator to wait for further instructions. The negotiator protested and said it wasn't what they had agreed on. He wanted to see proof that Thea was safe. So, the one man showed him what I think was a video of Thea in his cell phone. I can't really tell, we were too far to see anything, but we heard a female voice pleading for help. Things got tense after that, the kidnappers started leaving and… uhm…" Shiemi looked at Rin a bit nervously, and Bon arched an eyebrow. "Let me guess, you 'snapped', right?" "We couldn't just let them get away with it! We had to stop them, we had to make sure Thea was safe. So yeah, I snapped, OK?" Rin blurted out heatedly. "Sheesh, Okumura… Just what did you do?" Bon asked, but with a significantly less upset tone than Rin would have expected. "We were hiding in the upper level of the warehouse. So, I jumped down together with Shiemi and we cut their escape route." he explained, then added. "I cast my Flame Circle around them, and Shiemi used her familiar to make this huge cage of roots to keep them inside." the half-demon gestured, waving his arms to imitate a big arch.

"Wait, you did what?! You let them see you in your demon form? Flames, tail, and all?! Are you crazy?!" Izumo exploded, digging her fingers into her hair in disbelief. "You said they were humans! And Shiemi - you should know better than this hot-headed moron! Geez…" Izumo scolded further, pointing her finger at her flustered friend, causing Shiemi's face to grow even redder than before. "I'm s-so sorry." she bowed swiftly. "But we really meant well. We just wanted to help…" "And did you help? 'Cause to me, it looks like you only escalated things." Bon jumped in; his arms crossed in front of him. "The jackasses freaked out." Rin scoffed. "One of them warned us to not approach any closer or 'try anything stupid'. Another one panicked, though, and spilled the beans - he said that Thea was locked in a different section of the warehouse. Then their boss jumped in all important, and said that we were only allowed to go and free her an hour after they had left, otherwise they would kill her on the spot… They had prepared a bomb of some sorts and could trigger it from the distance…" he admitted grudgingly, aware of how much he had escalated the situation. About how much he had endangered his friend by his reckless actions. He was so angry with himself. He had been so worried about Thea that he hadn't been able to think straight at that moment. After so many days, they had finally had something to do about the whole situation, there had finally been an enemy to face. He simply couldn't wait another second.

"But then, something really weird happened. I suddenly felt Mephisto's aura aaall around…" Rin gestured, spreading his arms widely. "Then bam! The next thing I know, he was standing right in front of us with an unconscious girl in his arms. First we thought he somehow rescued Thea, but it wasn't her. They tricked us!" came another frustrated growl from the half-demon. "So, they just kidnapped some other random girl or something?" Izumo asked, her eyebrows furrowed, then Shiemi offered an explanation. "Not a completely random girl. She matched Thea's features quite well. I think the kidnappers wanted to make sure the negotiator takes the bait when they showed him the video of her in the cell phone. She seemed unharmed, though I'm sure she had been cuffed and muffled judging from the red spots around her wrists and mouth." she said, then added carefully, failing at her attempt to cover her goosebumps. "Sir Pheles was furious. I have never seen him that angry…" she whispered softly, as the disturbing memory flashed before her eyes. The headmaster's trademark nonchalant smirk was replaced by a vicious, angry scorn. His eyes flickering between green and dark violet, and his body was actually trembling. He seemed very tense, too - as if he was pouring every inch of his concentration in order to contain that anger. "Yeah, he turned to us and was all scary and cold and all like 'No more.'" Rin quoted, trying to mimic the headmaster's voice and self-important pose. "He handed us the girl and told us to take her to safety. So, we went for the door… Even the negotiator joined us."

"But then…" Shiemi added suddenly, almost mysteriously. "...We barely reached the building's exit, and we saw Sir Pheles - his eyes went completely purple, and he looked… well, more like a demon…" the blonde pulled her hands to her chest, shivering slightly. "I think that one of the kidnappers reached for his gun, but he couldn't find it, so he started panicking. The other criminals started searching for their weapons too, but with the same result. We could hear Sir Pheles chuckle, he asked something along the lines 'Looking for these?', then dropped a small sack full of guns and knives on the ground. We rushed back to him, leaving the girl with the negotiator. Just as we reached Sir Pheles, his secretary appeared right next to him and said something. I think he wanted to calm him down, but the effect was quite the opposite." Shiemi sighed, and Rin scoffed at that. "That's not even close, Shiemi… He practically stared them down. For realz! His eyes went all purple, I swear the air was trembling! The lights were all on and it was still daylight outside, but we were somehow all standing in his shadow. Tell them, tell them." the half-demon urged his friend, and everyone waited, holding their breaths. "Well, Sir Pheles spoke to the kidnappers… We didn't understand what he said, but the way he said it… it sent shivers down my back. He looked them straight in the eyes and they suddenly… kind of… broke down. Some fell to their knees, weeping and screaming. One started bowing and begging. And there was one who went completely silent and stunned. They were so scared they were actually shaking all over, mumbling that they didn't want to die yet, that they would repent… I think… I think he might have shown them the real self… he might have given them a temptaint…" Shiemi said softly, earning stunned gasps from everyone. However, no one dared to interrupt. "For a moment, I feared he would actually strike the people down… Thank goodness, he only started questioning them, but he had a very strange way about it…" the blonde said nervously.

"Yeah, Mephisto started bombarding them with questions, but they were all so weird. It's hard to explain… He was only asking about himself. Like what they wanted with him. And who their real leader was and what he was thinking, trying to challenge him. I couldn't take that bullshit any longer, so I told Mephisto to cut it out. I told him he should be more concerned for Thea, 'cuz this ain't about him, but about her." Rin emphasized.

"Suddenly, he looked all surprised, as if his brain just froze or somethin'. He just stood there without moving. So I checked if he was OK. But Mephisto just stood there, stunned, mumbling 'It's about her.' and 'All this time… about her.'. It was super-creepy… Suddenly, his secretary just leaned in closer to us and said 'No worries, he has just realized that he's not the center of the universe.', or something along those lines… Then, the secretary asked the scumbags about Thea, and the scumbags were all 'Sorry' and 'We never had her. Just wanted the money.', ''Twas a mistake' and all that crap." the half-demon gestured around, playing out the scene for his friends. "Honestly, I still don't get what that was all about. Of course this is all about Thea. I mean, she's the one who's been kidnapped, right?!" Rin exclaimed, throwing his hands up.

"Well, not really… we all just… kind of assumed it was about Sir Pheles…" Konekomaru adjusted his glasses. "Think about it. Thea is the captive, but who is the one being blackmailed?" "Well, Mephisto is… But Thea's the one in danger!" Rin insisted. "She isn't, or rather, she shouldn't be, as long as Sir Pheles fulfills the kidnappers' demands. Until then, she's just a leverage, a way to get to him." Konekomaru explained rationally. "Well, normally, yeah, but this is different! They didn't have Thea. They never had. And until now, nobody else called and demanded a ransom. So, whoever took her, they took her for her and no other reason, right?." Rin argued heatedly, hoping the others would see reason. "I suppose…" Konekomaru became all thoughtful, as if trying to decipher a puzzle. Bon too started thinking aloud. "You usually kidnap not the person you want, but the person that you need to make the one you want do stuff. But this time, it might be that they are not asking for anything, simply because they already got what they wanted - Thea."

"But if that was the truth, and the kidnappers took her… just to get, you know, her… Why would they do it? This wasn't some assault on the streets or part of human trafficking. Miss Kirigakure and also Thea's friend were injured badly. It was reported that demons had their hands in it. That's why we thought it was the work of Sir Pheles' demonic enemies in the first place. But if that's not the case, why would demons kidnap Thea?" Konekomaru pondered. "That's easy." Izumo said suddenly, her look dead-serious as she crossed her arms in front of her chest. "Maybe someone is not telling us the whole story, and there's a secret to our friend…" "What do you mean by that? What secret?" Konekomaru blinked in surprise, voicing everyone's question. "I don't know. But judging by all the fuss, it must be a big one. You know, the kind like 'I'm the Son of Satan' secret." she looked at Rin pointedly, making him gasp. Before he could say anything, she raised her hand. "I'm not saying she is, I'm just comparing the magnitude of the secret. Come on…" she looked at her friends. "...we all know her power is weird. Sometimes it is at our level despite her being a teacher, and sometimes she can give even Mephisto a hard time…" "But… But she would tell us, she's our friend! She would tell us, right?" Rin protested, and Izumo just nodded. "I think so. But maybe… maybe it's such a huge secret, that maybe even she doesn't know… But someone might. And I think you have just made Mephisto realize that."

OoO

"Curse them! I can't even send them to hell, because they are already here… Damn! I hate this place. I hate it so much!" Thea thought, her fury reaching new levels. She was bound to the wall in a dark chamber, not the laboratory as usual. Something strange was going on, something unusual was about to happen for her to be moved there. She couldn't think of a single reason for her relocation, but the uncertainty sure took care of the huge deal of nervosity. The chains around her body were fastened more tightly than ever. She couldn't even move her head properly - the extra precaution her captors had taken in order to keep her in place during their latest… well, whatever that was, because it sure wasn't one of the usual experiments. What she had been through the last night was pure torture. No sophisticated potions, except for the Beetroot Nightmare, of course, since they had to keep her addicted. There were no precise measurements to various ingredients the Poison-maker would usually try on her, no speeches, no threats, or interrogations. Just her and the constant pressure of a branding iron around her right eye, all the way from her hairline to the cheek across her eye. The Snake and the Brute had been taking turns, heating up the piece of metal, then proceeding to completely mar her face. Thea closed her eyes and pursed her parched lips. She felt exhausted to the point of fainting, but the way she was bound to the wall didn't allow her body to relax even a tiny bit. Not to mention she was incredibly thirsty. She gulped, trying to get some moisture to her parched throat. She had almost lost her voice, too, because of all the screaming continuous exposure to hot iron on her face demanded. Funnily enough, her rasping and parched throat made it easier to speak the equally raspy-sounding demon tongue.

"I can't believe my own healing powers could actually work against me…" she sulked, feeling betrayed. Two nights ago, her captors had suddenly taken her out of her cell and burned something on her face with a white-hot branding iron. It had hurt terribly, but the pain was over quite quickly, as the whole process took mere seconds. Besides, she had gotten used to much higher pain levels. As usual, her healing powers had kicked in after a little rest, causing the burn to disappear overnight. When the captors had noticed the absence of the mark the next day, they had immediately taken her and repeated the whole procedure, making sure to keep the excruciatingly hot piece of metal on her face for a few unbelievably long seconds more. Just in case. Unfortunately, her wound had healed on its own during the other night to the point where most of the mark had disappeared. And so, the lowlives had put her through the whole ordeal again last night. The whole of last night… They kept coming and repeating the procedure until her healing abilities could no longer keep up… Then, she finally, blissfully fainted. And they kept going with her 'branding' with iron and with needle and with ink, but she was mercifully unconscious…

She had no idea what to make of her recent days in the prison, either. "For some reason, the Poison-maker seems to be researching the effects of my powers on demons." Thea thought, going through the events in her mind. The series of experiments started off with Coal tars and very weak Greenmen, but over the time, they also got to Reapers and Goblins. During these experiments, the Poison-maker allowed the chain on her right hand to be partially unfastened to allow her energy to flow outwards. "They observe my healing waves, as well as the maleficent waves, but the only technique they seem to be really interested in is not even a technique… It's just my power. My raw power, being blasted onto the demon, obliterating it. The part I usually keep in check and under my barrier to not scorch any demon accidentally. Not that I have an ounce of power to hide under a barrier now… So, why? I don't think it's just because it has the ability to burn demons. Like all those times I accidentally burnt Rin when he hugged me unexpectedly, even though I always try to suppress the aura. Or that time when Mephisto barged into my room, and I freaked out and I managed to burn down almost all of his clothes… I was so afraid I hurt him too much…" Thea's thoughts wandered off, as she remembered the night when she almost burnt the demon down to a crisp. A night which also turned out to be the night of their first proper kiss…

A random pain spike in what remained of her eye snapped her out of the heartwarming memory. "No! Focus! Now is not the time to think about that." she scolded herself, then tried to analyze the situation better. "So, the captors are testing my raw power. Everytime I use it, the demons disappear into thin air. That's nothing new, it always happens when I use it. Or when my colleagues purify demons. However, the Poison-maker always marks the places these demons disappear at. She seems to be waiting for something to happen after that. But what would that be? Don't tell me she is expecting the creatures to reappear?! That would be ridiculous. Right?" her eyebrows furrowed in deep thought. "Then again… There was this one time I remember the Poison-maker trying to perform some summoning ritual on the place where one of the demons had vanished. Nothing came out of it… But that's OK, because it shouldn't… Or should it?" Thea pondered, befuddled by the possible implications. She remembered reading many books on demons, and something peculiar suddenly struck her mind. Those books often mentioned people battling against and defeating demons, only for them to make another entrance years, even centuries later. She always thought that it was because this 'defeat' was essentially just banishing the demons back to hell, because they were simply too strong opponents. Or because people often thought that all demons were the same…

"But what if all these people truly purified and killed the demons… but the demons somehow returned? Could demons reform in hell? Resurrect somehow?" her heart started pounding wildly and she could feel her mouth getting even dryer at the terrible thought. "I must ask Tomoe about this!" she decided. The mere thought of all the demons she defeated coming back for revenge sent shivers down her spine, despite the terrible heat in the room. She gulped. Or rather tried to, for her mouth was so dry there was barely any saliva in it. And as if it wasn't enough, the bucket with water and the branding iron tucked inside of it were still standing on the ground close to her, taunting her to quench the unbearable thirst. The saddest thing was that she actually looked at it from the corner of her eye longingly, wishing to at least take a sip of water. She felt pathetic. She felt hurt. And she felt alone.

However, she tried with all her might to suppress the feeling of helplessness which had been creeping up on her with rising intensity with every passing day. She would not despair! She couldn't allow herself to crumble under the weight of her situation. Under the fact that she had spent almost a month in Gehenna, tortured and experimented on. "Mephisto…" An image of her boyfriend crossed her mind for the briefest moment. His lips were curled into a playful smirk and his green eyes played with mischief. But the trademark nonchalance soon changed to a soft, fond expression, as he kissed her hand and pulled her into a warm embrace, whispering her name softly… Oh, how badly she missed him! Those precious memories of her life in Assiah were the only thing which brought a little light and warmth into her hell of an ordeal. At the same time, she couldn't allow herself to think too much about them. The moments when her mind could work clearly were scarce, because of the pain and elixirs, so they had to be put into much better use. "I hope you are all right, Mephisto. Please, just be all right…" Thea was sure that Mephisto had been searching for her this whole time. The fact that it was taking him so long was very concerning, though. It probably meant that it must have been incredibly difficult to find her or to free her from the grasp of her captors. She just hoped that it wasn't because anything bad had happened to him.

"Well, if you are not coming to me, then I'm busting myself out and coming to you. And you'd better have a good explanation…" she thought, summoning her courage. She might have been tortured and experimented on, but she had also been defying her captors in every way possible while trying to devise an escape plan. Or rather, escape plans - she had many, depending on the situation, the opening she would get, or on the individuals which would be present during her escape attempt. "Still… It's taking me too long. Way too long. But it's just so hard to even think straight after all those potions, let alone the drugs… Damn… I have to try. And soon. Best timing would be during the days when the Poison-maker is out, doing her research around the Death Zone. Then, it would be just me and Tomoe against the two guards. I'm sure that if we timed it well, we could overpower them. They seem alert, strong, and capable, but with a bit of luck and surprise on our side… However, it's not just us down here… There are other demonic auras I can feel around this place. And those are just the ones I can feel, those without a barrier cloaking their presence." she summarized, trying to use the time productively despite her sorry state. It was not like her medical condition was going to get any better, so she had to make do with what she had.

One of the problems was also the navigation through the place she was imprisoned in. She knew the ways through the current level of the prison by heart. She could navigate among her cell, the lab, and the corridors connecting them even in the dark. She had no idea how many levels there were. However, she knew that she could always get that information. Either she would use one of the Poison-makers maps, for she had many, including the prison, or she and Tomoe would make the guards show them the way out. It would be risky, but she had to try. "They cannot kill me, even if I attempt to run away. They would need to be careful when trying to capture me, which will give me a slight advantage. Oh, I wish I could tell Tomoe. I wish we could plan this together. But I cannot risk it. I cannot risk the Poison-maker overhearing us or seeing me drawing plans for him on the board I use for learning. Also, the guards not being able to speak any human language… that could all be just a ruse. A pretense, so that they can eavesdrop on our conversations…"

Her body tensed suddenly as she felt the Brute approaching the torture chamber. The moment he entered, she pinned him with her usual defiant welcome-stare. Surprisingly, he didn't chuckle as he usually did. In fact, he seemed quite disturbed, his mind preoccupied. She watched him approach, then held her breath when he stopped in front of her, his eyes inspecting her carefully. "Ah, of course… He's here to see if I'm in good enough shape after all that scorching and burning… How very kind of someone who personally saw to my suffering." she thought bitterly. The Brute exhaled with his head shaking disapprovingly, then reached for Thea's head. She flinched at the gesture and clenched her hands into fists, ready to face head-on whatever he was about to do. "What?!" she gritted through her teeth in demon language. Not only out of spite and anger, but also because that was exactly how one would say it in demon language. Finally, a small smirk appeared on his lips, then he lifted his hand up and said 'calm' in demon language. To Thea's surprise, the demon unfastened the chains binding her head to the place, then turned to the bucket with water with a thoughtful expression. Soon, the demon turned to her with his hands filled with water. "Drink." he said.

"Aaaw, and now, he came to the conclusion that it might actually be a bad thing to let his captive die of thirst. Brilliant. Just brilliant." came another sardonic thought. But she had to think that way. She had to fight this urge to actually be thankful to the Brute for offering her something to drink. Otherwise, she would be on her merry way straight to building up Stockholm syndrome. Resisting that was already very difficult, especially when it came to the Brute. For some reason, he seemed amused by her resistance and the little acts of defiance she kept pulling on them on every possible occasion. And somehow, he ended up helping her to her feet when she couldn't stand up after the experiments or bringing her some more non-locusts-based food from time to time. Lately, he also kept arguing more often with the Poison-maker, especially when the procedures seemed too dangerous or long. And he had completely taken her off guard the first time he had spoken to her. Nothing personal or too complicated, of course. More like using verbal orders rather than pushing her forward or yanking her chains when he wanted her to move in some way.

The moment the simple gesture of helping her up brought her inexplicable feeling of appreciation and thankfulness was also the moment her brain took over and forced her to sober up. Immediately. She was so emotionally deprived that a touch which brought something else than pain actually felt nice, friendly even. That thought sent shivers down her spine. She had to fight that idiotic urge no matter what. "That's right. The demon who's standing in front of you, offering you water, is the same demon who made sure that huge iron bar left a permanent burnt mark on your face. So, don't you dare think of him as some good, caring being. He's just doing his job. He didn't tell you to drink, he ordered you to drink - so that you don't die and spoil his master's plans. That's all there's to it." And so, she just drank without a word while keeping an eye on the demon just in case he tried anything. "More?" he asked when she was done, causing her to blink in surprise. "Yes." she answered but didn't really believe he would comply. In fact, she expected him to kick into the bucket next to her and let the water spill on the ground for her to watch it evaporate slowly during the next hours. At least that was what she guessed the Poison-maker would do. However, he actually brought some more water to her mouth. Well, she wouldn't complain, but the gesture made her all the more tense and suspicious. A moment later, Thea could feel the auras of the Snake and the Poison-maker approach. The Brute must have heard them coming too, for he tensed suddenly, then tsked and actually toppled the bucket over. "What the…" Thea's eyebrows furrowed while the Brute moved swiftly and started unfastening her chains from the wall.

The door to the torture chamber opened, revealing the Snake and the Poison-maker. They both seemed… different. A bit rushed, perhaps even tense. Even their clothing seemed different that day, more clean and neat. The Snake brought something tall and rectangular covered with a thick dark cloth to the room and set it against the wall in front of her carefully. The demoness approached and recited a chant which Thea recognized as the one when she was about to be released from the curse against speaking other than demonic language. "So, first they torture me here without a word and now they are about to get all chatty?" she thought sourly. When the Poison-maker noticed the water spilled on the floor, she sent a malicious smirk towards Thea and a pleased nod towards the Brute. "On your knees." the Brute said to her, looking her in the eyes urgently - as if he were half-asking her to obey without her usual attitude once in her life. She frowned but did as she was told. Just this once… Suddenly, she felt something strange. Another demon was approaching. The aura was very faint, so she guessed the demon was either weak or he was using a barrier to cover it. But there was something upsettingly familiar about the aura. Had she felt it somewhere before?

A tall demon in an ornate, oriental-themed, red and golden robe appeared in the door. Actually, everything about him bore a hint of red - his long hair as well as the crimson, cruel eyes. He was also wearing quite a majestic crown. Thea's heart started pounding wildly - she knew this demon! He was the one who had attacked the True Cross Academy the time when she had first visited the place. The one who had injured her friends and trapped her in the energy-sucking vortexes when she was new at the Academy. And not only that. Now that she thought about it, it was also his aura she had felt during the terrible assault on the Tokyo University hospital. The locusts, the terrifying misfit creatures, the huge hole down to the Abyss… It had all been his doing! And he had also been the one who had dragged her down and put her through all of the torture and experiments. The one responsible for Ayami's death. "It's you… you sick bastard, you…" she breathed out and clutched her hands into fists, her eyes burning with anger. "That is no way to speak to your master, you filth." the Poison-maker blurted out, and Thea could feel the Brute clutch the chain around her neck a bit stronger as he sent her a warning look. "Master? Him? Maybe he's your master, but mine? I don't think so. He's nothing but a coward who attacks kids and helpless people in hospitals and…" before she could even finish the sentence, the Poison-maker made an urgent gesture, which was followed by the Brute punching her hard in her stomach. She bent over and started coughing, but managed to catch the urgent 'shut up' order from the alarmed-looking demon next to her. In the meantime, the Snake kept bowing and apologizing to this 'master'…

A malevolent smirk appeared on his lips, revealing his sharp fangs. "Just as I expected." he waved the soldier off. "Defiant, uncaught, and oblivious." Suddenly, his expression changed to a dark scorn. "That ends today." The moment he said it, Thea could feel herself crumble under the pressure of his demonic aura, as he let go of his barrier with no protection of her own aura. His aura also manifested in a way that the demon appeared to have four translucent insect wings and antennae sticking out of his head. The vortexes he had once used on her appeared behind his back, at the ready. Frenzied buzzing filled the room as the locusts flew in and started circling around her wildly, until they settled on the walls and on the ground. His aura was pulsing wildly, and his eyes were full of doom-promising fire. "Well, he sure has a thing for drama…" Thea thought flatly, trying to banish the fear which threatened to completely consume her. The pressure was so great that she couldn't even move and had to lean on her hands to withstand it. She had great trouble breathing, and soon, she found herself lying on the ground, unable to support herself any longer. After a while of soul-shaking pressure, the aura slowly faded away and the only noise in the room were the buzzing insects and heavy breaths. Thea looked at the Brute from the corner of her eye - he was on his knees and trying to catch a breath, too. Apparently, this 'master' didn't really care for any collateral damage when it came to the display of his power.

"You will serve me, human." the demon proclaimed importantly. "Tsk, dream on, lowlife." Thea bit off, then pulled herself up from the dusty ground shakily. The Brute's eyes almost popped out. Thea wasn't sure if it was because of the insult or the fact that she somehow managed to stand up while he was still shaking on the ground, breathing raggedly. "You still don't understand the position you are in, do you?" he asked with amusement. "Your fate is sealed, and your life is in my hands. You are nothing but a tool to be used as I see fit. You and your powers are mine." he said, pulling at the chain fastened around her neck to bring her closer. "Hands off!" Thea said and pulled away from the wretched demon. "I'm no one's property! And it is your life which is sealed. You had the chance to negotiate. But when Mephisto finds out it was you who attacked the Academy and the hospital, that it was you who kidnapped me and killed my friend, then he…" she was cut mid-sentence and found herself pinned to the wall roughly. Light flickered in front of her eyes, and she could feel the demon gripping her throat firmly, then his grating, hateful voice reached her ear. "He what?! Hm?!" he asked rhetorically, shaking her roughly. He sure was choleric, Thea noted. "Samael is nothing but a disgrace to the whole demon race. He grew soft and pathetic the moment he decided to live among humans. It was a child's play to snatch you right from under his nose, despite his best efforts to protect you. And yet, you think he would be able to find you?" he held her gaze. "I k-know it. He's searching… for me." she answered laboriously, looking him right in the eye.

Low chuckles soon filled the room. "Well, he sure is, but not for the reasons you think." he grinned while Thea furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. "Foolish, oblivious creature. You actually believe that the Lord of Time himself has chosen you as his mate? That he has feelings for you? A human worm? You are even more dense than I thought." he laughed out loudly and turned to his underlings. They, having taken the hint, started chuckling, too - the Brute and the Snake did so just slightly while the Poison-maker pulled off a beautiful display of bootlickery in the form of a melodious outburst. "Well, admittedly, there are some demons who fancy mating humans. But that just makes you a passertime plaything. The only reason he didn't get rid of you is because he still had use for you. I guess he just suffered through some pathetic human courting rituals to fool you into doing his bidding…" the demon concluded with a mocking smirk. "Honestly, he's such an excuse of a demon. Any proper demon would just make you obey. After all, who would want to touch something so filthy?" he threw Thea to the ground roughly. One snap of his fingers, and the Snake hurried over to the thing leaning on the wall and pulled the black cloth free, revealing a tall mirror.

Thea groaned from the pain and tried to pull herself up a bit. She would not lay in the dust in front of those damned demons! Suddenly, her breath caught in her throat as she saw the pitiful creature bound in crimson shackles in front of her. She reached with her hand towards it carefully, meeting the smooth surface of the mirror. Shivers took over her body when she saw her own reflection in the mirror. Was that really her? She was aware of some of the effects of the experiments, but this was the first time she actually saw them. Her figure turned from fit and slim to sickly skinny. The dirty, black cloth - her only garment - hung on her body loosely. All her hair was gone, making the pointy ears and horns passing behind them even more prominent. Her eyes turned unnaturally bright orange, and her pupils were splitting her eye vertically. Her tanned skin which was now so pale that it made each and every scar, bruise, and blemish stand out even more. Especially the huge one which stretched over her right eye, from forehead to her cheek. It seemed that the demons must have used some kind of ink on it, too, for the scar consisted of prominent black strokes. She looked so… so inhuman… In fact, had she not known better, she would not have doubted it was a demon looking at her from the mirror. Tears rushed to her eyes at the sight of her sorry state. It caught her completely off guard. To think that she looked so different, so… terrible that she had trouble recognizing herself…

"Zahar here sure has outdone herself with the mutagens, wouldn't you agree?" the demon's lips curled up as he shot a glance towards the Poison-maker. Thea's brain somehow managed to take a mental note of her torturer's name, before the master continued his little speech. "Samael might have suffered your presence before, but I wouldn't be so sure about now. Just look at you. Repulsive - by demon standards, and now by human standards, too." the master snorted. "Repulsive?" Thea gulped, daring another look into the mirror, clutching the black robe tightly at her chest. She often thought about the moment when she would finally meet Mephisto, but in none of the scenarios did he look at her with disgust. Come to think of it, she had never thought about what she would look like at that moment. She was in hell, striving to survive each day, to defy her enemies, to keep Mephisto's secrets safe, and to scheme her way out. When would she even have time to care what she looked like? The important thing was, she would be alive and free. Right? The sorry creature in the mirror pursed its lips skeptically. She could see the fear and doubt in its eyes. "One thing is looking bad or ugly… The other is not looking human at all… Would I even be able to revert all of this? Would Mephisto even recognize me? And if so, would he really find me repulsive? Would the others shy away? Rin can always hide his demonic appearance, and so can Mephisto. But I…" she thought dismally, suddenly feeling incredibly self-conscious and shaken. She felt almost stripped of her humanity. Especially with that black, burnt mark over her eye. Just like cattle. What was wrong with her? She would normally suppress all those unnerving, terrifying thoughts. So why not now? Why couldn't she get a sound out of her throat?

A rough yank at the chain around her neck pulled her out of her stupor and up on her feeble feet. "But, a human worm that you are, you can still be put to a good use. You are my Executioner now." the demon said, looking at her possessively. "Executioner?" Thea tilted her head in confusion. "Why of course, the mark states it plain and clear." the demon confirmed, pronouncing the symbol in demon language, and Thea's eyes widened in realization. She turned her head back to the mirror and reached for the scar with her trembling hand, noting that the burnt mark must have been a demon language symbol. But why an 'executioner'? "You will dispose of my enemies with that power of yours. The power to obliterate demons, the power to prevent them from coming back, it is all mine." he grinned wickedly, and Thea could feel her heart skip a beat. "So the demons can reform in Hell, after they die… And I can somehow prevent it from happening? Is that what my power can do? Is that the reason for why they kidnapped me? The reason behind all the tests and experiments?" her mind was racing, until a grating, satisfied voice interrupted. "That's right. I couldn't care less about your healing abilities. The peculiar purification power of yours, though, is something else entirely… Such power should never have fallen to the hands of a lowly human worm. A filthy wench like you couldn't possibly grasp the implications and see its true potential. But don't you worry, I'll put it to good use. After all, that's the sole reason for why you are here. The only reason for why you are allowed to live even after the trouble you had caused me. The only reason for why Samael kept you around…" the demon held her gaze meaningfully, emphasizing the last sentence.

Thea could feel herself trembling. "Liar! You have no idea what Mephisto's like." Her protest was met with a sly, menacing grin. "You idiot. You still don't get it, do you? You are nothing but a tool to be used by your superiors. Samael might have taken possession over you first, but now, now you are in my hands. You will serve me and eradicate anyone who stands in my way. " "Like hell I will!" Thea retorted and tried to pry her way away from the demon, but he just pulled at the chain around her neck more roughly. "I do not recall asking you." he said with amusement. "Now, on your knees, vermin." he ordered with a punch directed to her stomach. Thea's legs gave off under the blow and she found herself back on the dusty ground, heaving. "Ramil! Khan!" the demon called out and suddenly, the Brute and the Snake knelt next to her, bowing to their master. Thea immediately made a mental note of their names. Soon, the demon master said something in demon language, from which Thea could only understand the word 'blood'. Well, it wasn't all that surprising that he would try to pressure her into obedience by further torture. But something about that order felt off. She looked at the guards next to her, noticing their strange, alarmed, and pale expressions. Just what was happening?

The Brute took out a dagger, then reached for her right hand and cut it. Thea bit her lip to stifle the cry, but couldn't help whimpering as the Brute kept pushing at the wound, forcing the blood out on the ground. She tried to pull away, she thrashed around, but the Snake kept her firmly in place. Finally, the Brute released her hand. Thea wanted to push on it to stop it from bleeding, but the Snake took the other hand and smeared the blood with her finger, producing a strange symbol. "Your name, wench. Write it." the master ordered again, waiting expectantly. Thea's eyes widened. "Not good! This is… They are forcing me to perform some kind of ritual. And if it involves my name… That could be binding. I can't let them do this, I can't! Think, Thea…" she urged her brain in panic. However, instead of ideas springing up in her mind, she started to feel desperate. "Come on Thea, there must be something, some way to avoid this…" she bit her lip again. She had to resist this! If he managed to force a deal with her, or to bind her… that could very well be the end… She reached for the little pool of blood with her trembling left hand and smeared a few strokes inside the symbol. She could practically feel the quickened heart rate of the Brute and the Snake through their hands and chains which held her firmly in place. The Brute inhaled sharply, looking at her with disbelief, so she returned a smug smirk, then turned with the same look on her face towards their master. The Poison-maker, Zahar, put a hand over her mouth to stifle a gasp.

The demon's face turned purple at the sight of the demon language equivalent for 'go fuck yourself' written with her blood. Suddenly, the locusts in the room started buzzing wildly, then took off from the ground, and started circling all over in a frenzy. The master's demonic aura seeped through the barrier, but this time, it was not for the sake of display. He had trouble controlling it. He practically ripped her from the guards' hands and slammed her face down, so she sprawled on the ground. He pinned her down with one knee. "A big mistake." he gritted through his teeth. "Now, listen to me. You live only by my grace." "Bullshit… I live b-because you n-need me." Thea answered laboriously as the demon was crushing her with his weight, but a low chuckle escaped her lips.

"I see. If that is how you want to play this, then by all means… You know, I hear that those healing abilities of yours work even without you willing them to work. Such a wonderful regenerative ability… However, that can also work against you, right?~" he cooed, then stroked the burnt mark around her eye. Thea could feel her heart skip a beat. "The fox demon might have taught you the demonic language, but I don't really need you to speak in order to serve me. I merely thought it amusing to try out and tame you. I can always rip your tongue from that filthy mouth of yours." he explained. "Oh, and you won't even need to walk to follow me and serve me. We'll hang you on a nice little construction we will have prepared just for you. The hooks will go right through your shoulders…" he gestured by running his claws around her shoulders "... and they will hold you above blazing satanic fire. But don't you worry, the fire won't reach your legs. Since you won't need to walk, you won't need your legs either, so we can tear them off, too." Her whole body spasmed. Through her eyes full of tears, she saw the Brute standing in the line of her sight, looking at her intently while his hand was gripping the saber at his side strongly, his body tense. The Snake was right at his side, giving her a sour, almost disgusted look, then he looked away. The Poison-maker, on the other hand, looked absolutely delighted. As if she wished to join her master.

"And when your wonderful healing abilities kick in and your legs grow back…" the master continued "...we'll just dispose of them again. You shall hang from that construction every second of your long, miserable life. Your only purpose, the only reason for your pitiful existence will be dealing the final blow to enemy after enemy. And every time you do, you shall be rewarded - I let the fire be extinguished for a couple of moments. I'll make sure to keep you alive through all of it until the day I have no more use for you." the demon cooed sweetly. "Now, you can either swear fealty to me or we will start with the other scenarios - the ones where you will suffer an endless torture down here. We will start with it right here. Right now. Either way, you will serve me. But I can guarantee you one thing. Even if Samael were to find you one day, by the time he does, you would be an old, almost limbless hag, dangling on hooks above fire. And no matter what nonsense he told you, even an excuse of a demon lord such as him has his pride. Oh, he would still want to use you, but no one in their right mind would see you and think of you as an actual living being. In fact, even now, you no longer resemble a human. The choice is yours.~" he finished sweetly, then stood up regally, looming above her.

Thea was breathing raggedly, completely shaken. Everything hurt so much. There was no end to the pain. For the first time of her stay in Gehenna, she felt completely hopeless. She was so scared, no, terrified! The words the demon spoke crushed her very soul. Because of how he said it. She had no doubt that he was just bluffing. That was no bluff, but an exact plan. She no longer had any difficulties pretending she was broken. She was broken. Defeated… She lost this battle, and she knew that. She just barely dared hope that this lost battle would not mean a lost war, too. And after all she had endured by now… how could he have done it so swiftly, so effortlessly? Was she really so desperate, so exhausted, that she could no longer fight her captors? The prospect of her future, her existence in Gehenna, was truly hellish. Existence? Who was she kidding, anyway? What the demon described was no existence. It wasn't even the difference between living and surviving. It was nothing but an endless torture with no escape. Except for… In a moment of great weakness, she actually thought of taking her own life. After all, she could still use her powers internally. One small motion and she could sever her phrenic nerve, which runs from the neck to the diaphragm… It would be fast. It would be painless. But most importantly, it would all be over. "But remember this, Thea. No matter what happens, no matter how dire the situation looks, wait for me. Promise me that you will wait. Please…" Mephisto's voice sounded in her mind all of a sudden - the memory of him holding her hands and asking her to be patient, asking her to trust him. A fresh dose of tears rushed to her eyes. "I did! I waited for so, so long… But if I wait, what you'll find will no longer be me… And I don't want to be remembered like that… Mephisto…" she wept silently, her heart aching. And even after all she had been through, deep down in her heart, she still dared to hope. It was naive, foolish even. But… Before she knew it, she was writing her name into the demonic symbol with a trembling hand.

"So, you aren't so dimwitted after all. What a good pet you are." the demon grinned, then ordered her to repeat the words of the fealty. "I, Althea Heilbrunn…" Thea spoke numbly, remembering her youth, her dear grandma, her first days in Japan. "...Meister Doctor of the True Cross Academy…" her days of studies, training and adventures with Ayami and her friends flashed in front of her eyes "...swear my fealty to Abaddon, the Duke of the Abyss…" the beautiful memories of time spent with Mephisto filled her heart. "Satan's mercy be upon me, shall I ever break it." she finished, and her blood on the floor started glowing brightly, just as the eyes of the demon, until it disappeared. A second later, she clutched her chest as if something was carving its way through her skin and muscles right to her heart. It felt like chains settled over it. The locusts started flapping their wings excitedly, accompanying their master's laughter.

"You are mine now! Let's see how you fulfill your master's wishes now.~" he said excitedly, as he leaned closer. "By your oath… you shall call me 'master' whenever you speak to me. Understood?" Thea felt an unpleasant pressure gripping her heart, quickly turning into searing pain, prompting her to action. "Yes, master…" she said slowly, making the pain disappear. "Good, good. Now, by your oath… break your left pinkie finger." the demon said flatly. Thea's eyes widened, but as she thought a firm 'no' to herself, the pain returned, worse than ever. She did not hesitate for long before she cracked her own finger with an audible snap that sent shivers down her spine. Thea whimpered, but her whole body was hurting so much she barely noticed the pain. "Splendid. Now that that's settled, let us get to the more important orders. By your oath, you shall be my Executioner." he proclaimed, and Thea clutched her heart again, feeling the strange chain-like thing tighten around it in a single pulse. "By your oath, the identity of my Executioner shall not be betrayed to anyone. And by your oaths, that applies to you, captains, as well." the duke eyed his servants. "We would not want all that effort we put into changing your appearance and teaching you language humans do not usually speak to go to waste, and alert that annoying Samael prematurely, would we?" With that said, another pulse gripped Thea's heart. "By your oath, you shall never use any language but the demonic one. Hmmm… what else, what else… Ah, right - By your oath, should you ever encounter Samael, you will do all in your powers to kill him~." he added, holding Thea's gaze.

A jolt shot through her body as the oath resonated with the order again. She thought she would suffocate from the huge lump which formed in her throat. She started shaking again, both her mind and body feeling incredibly overwhelmed. "There will be more, but we have enough time for that later." the demon, this Abaddon, said with amusement. "I have important matters to tend to, now. We shall meet again soon, my Executioner." the duke waved them all off and turned to leave the chamber, followed by his locusts swarm. Abruptly, he stopped in the door, his finger raised importantly as he eyed Thea maliciously. "Ah, I almost forgot - By your oath, you shall live and never attempt suicide.

OoO

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Disclaimer: Blue Exorcists belongs to Kazue Katō. Please, do not re-post or publish my story without my consent.

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Author's note: Hello everyone! I must confess... I usually really enjoy writing, but this chapter might have been an exception. I felt so bad for poor Thea that I was procrastinating by working overtimes rather than actually facing it and finishing it. Or maybe the overtime came with the fresh promotion I got? Yey :D. Anyway, I missed my own deadline I had hinted at previously, and I am very sorry for that. I'll try to do better!

Also, this chapter turned out to be so long, that I had to split it in two - so, good news, the next chapter is at least half way done. The bad news is that this one ended at the saddest, lowest moment (cliffhanger not intended), but I will make it up to you in the next one.

Don't hesitate to share any thoughts or comments you might have. Everything you say can help me improve my writing :) Thank you for staying with Thea through the darkest part of her journey.