Daily Life of Monster Girls in Alabama

by GoatManofAnime

It's time for a MonMusu fanfiction that takes place in sweet home Alabama, nuff said.

49. Sudden Battle

Chapter 48: Sudden Battle

A black sedan comes to a screeching hault in front of the Bizzell house.

Inside, Agent Ketcher and Cody are busy gripping with situation as the doppelgangers still in their disguises sit around watching a movie. They suddenly hear a knock at the door. Cody was about to answer it but is stopped by Ketcher who answers it instead.

"Identify yourself!", She stated authoritatively cracking open the door with the chain still on the lock.

"Agent Sterling, now kindly let me in!"

"Prove it!", She demanded.

Sterling sighs loudly, "You're Agent Ketcher and I'm responding from the messages sent Agent Zyklon concerning the situation with Mr. Bizzell! I'm the Agent in charge for Huntsville exchange office, badge number 11759, 35-years-old, A positive blood! Is this enough or do you want to keep wasting time?!"

Ketcher looks at him a second before unlocking the door letting him in.

"Apologies Agent. We needed to be sure you werent an imposter or being controlled. We have dealt with both these last couple hours."

"Yeah, I saw that in the report from the office. Along with finding out Mr. Bizzell had gotten possessed by a spectral-class liminal and being hunted by Malone assassins. Haa I swear if it isn't one thing with this host family it's-", Sterling was about to rant before noticing the Bizzell family dopplegangers in the living room, "...something else. What is going oon here?"

"They're decoys. Shapeshifters from our office.", Cody answers

"Sup!", the Caleb doppleganger stated bouncing up saluting before changing back to her original form, "You wanna play smash?"

"No.", Sterling says with a plain look before turning back to Ketcher, "Any updates?"

"Yes. The two Zyklon agents have managed to locate their hideout. Unfortunately, two of Mr. Bizzells wards have joined in the pursuit. The werewolf and Elder Devil I believe.", Ketcher reluctantly informs.

Sterling gives a flabbergasted look before facepalming rubbing the bridge of his nose, "Of course. Why am I not surprised?"

"Agent Drei assured she would keep them out of the actual conflict.", Ketcher replies.

"Somehow, that doesn't ease my doubts.", Sterling says leaning against the counter, "Dammit! It's bad enough that Bizzell is a target for these people now they're after Marequine too?!"

Ketcher and Cody, along with the shapeshifters all look to him.

"Uh...sir? I understand this is the worst possible situation but the best we can do is-", Cody says before Sterling cuts him off.

"Is what? Huh? Hope this doesn't spiral any further out of control? Besides, who are you to even make that assessment? You've been with ICEP, what? Nine? Ten months?"

"O-one year...actually.", Cody shyly answered.

"One year. Well, let me tell you that you DON'T KNOW how many times our best wasn't good enough. Even now, shit like this continues to test the integrity this organization. If we lose this host family to those who wish to continuing exploiting liminals, then that's more blood on OUR hands. Can you bare that responsibility agent?", Sterling says to Cody a cold tone.

"I don't know sir...but that won't stop me from doing it. I want to see this host family safe just like you do.", Cody says clenching his fists, "I may not understand the depths ICEP has gone but I can understand a little of that pain. We lost three members of our team; Zack and Videl. They were... killed awhile ago by the assassins. They were my friends and good people and I know they did everything they could to protect this host. So I'm going to do the same. Good thing is I'm not alone."

Cody finished looking to Ketcher who blushes slightly folding her arms with a appreciative nod.

Sterling give a slightly surprised look to the young man. For a moment reminded of a similar amount of passion he once had when first joining the organization.

"Well said, Agent Cody!", Ketcher spoke stepping up to Sterling, "He's right you know. We have to do all we can here while our fellow agents are out putting THEIR lives on the line."

"...You're right...i'm sorry...", Sterling apologized with a lethargic sigh as the two agents accepted his apology. Suddenly, a thought occurs to him, "Hey, I saw in the report the list of liminal species involved in this little hoodwink job. By any chance...do you know any Baphomet are involved?"

Ketcher gives him a puzzled, "Baphomet? No...there was no mention of any even by the host's bodyguards. Why? Do you suspect one may be involved?"

"N-No! It was only a guess is all.", Sterling replied in slight disappointment before quickly changing the subject, "S-So where is Agent Zyklon? I was informed that one of them stayed behind."

Cody and Ketcher go silent looking to each other. Sterling picks up on the sudden change in demeanor.

"Well, yes Ms. Ein was here but...right before you arrived, I recieved this on my phone.", Ketcher says taking out her phone tapping the video function. The video plays and what displays is a very unfocused collection of noise and the voices of Lyca and the rest followed by a loud gun shot and screaming. The video cuts out with a blurry cut of Drei on the ground.

What is this?", Sterling inquires.

"It appears to be a recording captured on Agent Zwei's phone. I'm afraid they may have ambushed by the enemy.", Cody answers placing the phone on the counter, "She saw it and strongly insisted we allow her to pursue them to provide backup. So...we let her go."

Sterling gives them an incredulous look before sighing, "God Dammit...put out an alert for any personnel near Alabama border! Also, call for a van. We're tailing them."

"Understood!", "Right!", Cody and Ketcher answered simultaneously.

"But...what about here?", Ketcher added

"It's obvious by now they have no more reason to survey this house. Besides, we're leaving your dedicated associates to watch over things.", Sterling replies looking to the Bizzell house dopplegangers.

"Oh of course! They won't let ANYTHING happen to create cause for property damage or endanger the owners or neighbors, is zat right?", Ketcher looking to them with a smirk.

"Yep. Can do.", one of them casually waves off

"I said, is zat right?", Ketcher spoke intensely, her words laced with venom. The dopplegangers feels a surge of fear throughout their nerves at her malicious six eyed gaze bore down on them.

"Right! Yes ma'am!", all of them shot up in unison giving a salute.

Sterling shakes his head unable to shake a bad feeling in his stomach.

...Meanwhile...

"RHAA!" Lyca yelled, tackling the Ocelot off the bed.

"Lycs!" Zwei shouted.

"GET HIM!" Lyca roared, barely holding down a struggling Kulah.

She snarled, getting in a few solid punches before Kulah growled back, blocking a punch and hitting Lyca across the face, knocking her to the side.

Kulah bared her fangs with a snarl before looking to her club propped against the wall. She quickly went for it but Lyca intercepted her, tackling her from behind and sending them both crashing through the rotted-out walls into a hallway.

Kulah reeled from the impact before snarling like a wild cat, flipping as the she and Lyca violently wrestled each other. Barks and feline snarls filled the area as they bit and clawed at each other.

Zwei clenched her fists, going over to Caleb to assess the situation.

"Hey, Boss?! Are you with me?" Zwei inquired, cupping his face and making him look at her.

"Uggh...barely..." Caleb muttered in a pained groan. Zwei noticed the dark discolorations on his chest and stomach and touched it. Caleb reflexively recoiled in pain "GAH!"

"S***! I'm sorry!" Zwei exclaimed, removing her hand, "...F***. I-It's alright, we'll get you outta here."

Zwei extended her scythe from her wrists and proceeded to slash apart the restraints on his ankles and wrists, setting him free. In the other room, she could still hear Lyca and the Ocelomeh fighting and audibly banging and crashing against the walls along with loud canine barks and wild cat growls. She knew she had to hurry.

She saw the collar around Caleb's neck and grabbed it as Caleb's eyes widened.

"No wai-AGHHHHHHHH!" He tried to stop her but was cut off when the runes on the collar suddenly glowed and his body erupted with yellow sparks, sending intense pain through his body. It burned Zwei's palms, forcing the Karmaitachi to withdraw her hands.

"Gah! W-What the?!" Zwei gasped out in confusion. She looked at her palms to Caleb's spasming body. He soon stopped twitching as his chest rose and fell, his breathing laborious. "Boss?! Are you alright?!"

"Ah...ahh no...but I'm still here. Ugh...don't touch this collar..ah it feeds off energy and turns it to pain. I can't use my power," Caleb strained out, arms trembling as he tried to raise up with Zwei retracting her blades and helping support him.

A loud crash along with Lyca's pained canine yelps caught her attention. She felt Caleb weakly pushing her away.

"Boss?"

"Don't worry about me...go help her!" Caleb said sitting himself up.

"But..."

"But nothing! Ngh... I'll be fine. I'm not THAT helpless! Just go save Lyca!"

Zwei gave an uncertain look, "I-I can't just-"

"Dammit, I'm your BOSS right?! Now go save my girlfriend!" Caleb demanded with a serious expression.

Zwei was taken aback but thought for a moment before making up her mind.

"Right! Stay here."

Zwei quickly left the room as Caleb got to work, regaining his motor skills.

Both Lyca and Kulah had made their way through the dilapidated house. Lyca went flying into the living room, having been struck with Kulah's butterfly kick. Her back slammed against the wall and she fell to her knees coughing. She had a few bruises, cuts, and large claw wound on her right thigh that bled, causing her to wince from the pain.

"You know... ya got some nerve interupting my fun," Kulah lowly growled swaggering up to the She-wolf with several cuts and bruises on her body. She wiped some blood from her lip.

Lyca shakily got to her feet, bearing her fangs with a growl before quickly rushing the Ocelomeh, fists raised. Kulah easily dodged her surprisingly quickly and punched her before spotting an opening, kneeling Lyca hard in stomach. The She-wolf coughed out a bit of saliva and blood. Kulah grabbed her by the neck, slamming her against a wall and holding her off the floor. Lyca gasped for air, trying to pry her vice-like grip from her larynx.

"You must be that werewolf he's porkin'. Heh, guess it's true. Any guy CAN f*** a dog...especially a worthless b***," Kulah spoke with a satisfied smirk as the She-wolf struggled for air, legs flailing, "Don't worry, once you two are outta the way, I'll show him what REAL p*** is like."

Lyca's eyes started to roll upwards, slowly losing energy. Kulah's smile widened-

"AAAAAHHHHHHH!" Kulah screamed in sheer pain as a blade of compressed air tore right into the the Ocelomeh's back, sending a spray of blood to floor. She dropped Lyca to her knees, backing away, holding her back and hollering while the She-wolf coughed violently, finally catching her breath.

Kulah turned to face her new assailant, only to recieve a flying roundhouse kick across the face, making her stumble to the floor. She recovered slightly to see one of the Karmaitachi stand with her scythe bared and a vicious glare.

"Sorry," Zwei spoke in a malign tone, "but he's really more of dog person."

Kulah snarled in rage as her back bled profusely, extending her claws. Zwei noticed the layout of the floor. Specifically, the air escaping between cracks in the floorboards.

Zwei then crossed her scythes over one another building up air pressure around her.

"You're gonna PAY for that!" Kulah screamed, rushing towards Zwei, claws extended.

Zwei then made a slashing motion, sending a strong blade of compressed air at Kulah. The Ocelomeh sensed the attack and instinctively leaped upward as the air blades sliced a broken down table and the wall apart. Zwei looked up quickly, vanishing with blinding speed to Kulah's surprise. Zwei appeared above her and rotated her body into a spinning axe kick, using the generated air pressure to give more momentum and heighten the damage. She struck Kulah hard in the lower back, sending her smashing through the wooden floor into a basement below as Zwei had predicted.

Zwei floated down, levitating on a spinning cyclone and peering down the dark hole. Suddenly, Lyca approached her, getting her attention.

"Zwei!" Lyca walked up, slightly stumbling.

"Lycs! Are you alright?"

"Yeah...is she...?" Lyca inquired looking down in the whole.

"I don't think that'd be enough to kill her. She's probably unconscious right now so let's get-"

Zwei was then cut off by a loud thud. Both of them looked to see Caleb propped against a wall, holding his side and his breath ragged.

"Chief!" Lyca quickly went over to him.

"Muffin? God... what did she do to you?" Caleb spoke in concern, noticing the scratches and bruises on her body.

Lyca slung his arm over her shoulder, supporting him, "Don't worry, I'm fine. Come on, we have to leave."

"She's right," Zwei added, supporting his other side, "Let's go." Caleb winced from the pain of putting a little weight on his shoulders.

"Sorry," Lyca apologized.

"It's alright," he replied before a loud boom rattling the house followed by the sound of gunfire caught their attention, "Wha-agh...what's goin on out there?"

"...no idea," Zwei replied, silently hoping Drei and Camilla were ok.

...Meanwhile back to Camilla...

Vernal could be seen stealthily leaping dodging red, black and blue projectile blasts as Camilla pursued her. Every one the dark Elf dodged impacted the ground, creating an small explosion that even destroyed nearby trees. Vernal also kept the pressure on Camilla using two Uzis, both full of enchanted rounds, that she pulled seemingly out of nowhere. She fired on the Elder Devil, destroying any magic seals in the process, as Camilla dodged, keeps her wings low against her, using the thickest of trees for cover; though it didn't help much since the bullets could pass through no trouble. Changing tactics, Camilla fired a small red and black fireball at the ground where Vernal stood, kicking up a cloud of dirt, grass and leaves obscuring the Dark Elf's line of sight.

Vernal quickly wiped her face of the debris, pointing both guns at different directions. She spat out a bit of grass while scanning the area for the Elder Devil.

"Devil! You should know this isn't personal!" Vernal stated loud enough for her to still listen to her surroundings, "I have orders to bring in that nightmare and take out that human! You, that werewolf, and those Karmaitachi aren't on the list!"

Camilla listened from behind a large tree.

"Heather told us a bit about you. You're quite the murderous one," Vernal spoke, looking around with Camilla's ears perking up, "I'm sure you're no stranger to killing strangers. But listen, we don't need to shed any more blood. My friends and I just wanna...borrow your friend, the Nightmare, for something important for awhile. We won't hurt her - much. Yeah, maybe we could've just asked up front but, come on, even I wouldn't have said yes if the roles were flipped."

Camilla clenched her fists but listened carefully to Vernal's footsteps, getting a feel for her location.

"I'll even convince my team to spare your little boyfriend, Caleb. He's quite the...interesting human," Vernal coyly said. The Elder Devil visibly shook with anger.

"I see why you girls like him," Vernal said, noticing movement near a small thicket of trees and taking aim, "I'll admit...I'm kinda interested in him now."

The Dark Elf pointed both Uzis in Camilla's location and got ready to fire. Suddenly, several small red and blue magic seals appeared all around Vernal, much to her surprise. They blasted her with balls of red and blue fire-like balls of energy. She turned her guns on the seals, destroying some of them and dodging blasts from the others. A few large orange magic seals appeared above her it let loose a torrent of orange lightning, which she barely dodged as the beams of energy tore into ground, burning everything to dust. She fired a few rounds, destroying the orange seals.

Several small black seals appeared around her before a thick black spike shot out of one of them near her head as she ducked at the last second.

"Gimme a fuckin break!" Vernal cursed, firing at the black seals which appeared to be moving around now while jutting out spikes, forcing her to dodge. She destroyed a few but one of them stabbed her in the upper back, "AGH! Bitch!"

The Dark Elf destroyed the seal that stabbed her before firing wildly yelling in rage as she destroyed the rest of the seals. She then noticed Camilla rushing towards her, fist glowing with a red and black aura. Vernal pointed both Uzis her way, pulling the triggers and intending to riddle her body with bullets only to find, to her shock, that both were empty. Camilla struck her hard as the black aura crackled with red sparks. Vernal was sent flying, tumbling against the ground before slamming against a tree.

The Dark Elf screamed in pain on her trembling hands and knees. On instinct, she used both guns to shield herself but they couldn't absorb all the force and ended up fracturing her jaw and breaking both weapons apart. She cradled her jaw immediately, creating a small purple magic seal in her palm, holding it against her jaw. A purple seal appeared around her lower jaw before it popped it back in place, eliciting a hiss of pain, "Argh! Fuck!"

"Hm. A fairly decent healing spell you have there," Camilla sneered as she approached the Dark Elf, stopping at the broken remains of her Uzis, "Certainly more useful than these toys of yours," she remarked, kicking a broken half of one of the guns at the Dark Elf, hitting her in the side.

Vernal held her jaw and clenched her teeth, glaring at the Elder Devil before standing to her feet, stumbling slightly.

"Did my really think your Angelic weapons could kill me? You must really lack strength in your own mana. How pathetic," Camilla formed a black ball of energy pulsating with black electricity, her demonic red eyes focused on her target, "Any last words before I erase you from this world?"

Vernal removed her hand her jaw - now mostly healed - glaring back as her hand slowly drifted to her waist.

"Yeah...watch your back," Vernal snarled, before quickly drawing a pistol and firing a round at the Elder Devil. Camilla tilted her head to the side, easily evading the round.

"Tch. Is that really all you-KUGH!" Camilla started as she felt a very sharp pain in her upper back and wing base. The ball of energy quickly vanished as she recoiled in pain, holding her back.

"Told you to watch your back," Vernal smirked, pointing the gun right at Camilla's head.

Camilla reacted quickly and leapt backwards, expecting her fire only for the Dark Elf to aim slightly downwards, firing the round. Camilla landed on her feet several meters away. Her vision went white briefly when a searing pain erupted in her left arm as the bullet passed right through.

The Elder Devil had barely hissed in pain before another round was fired. Using her sensitive hearing, she pinpointed its direction and dodged left, only for bullet to graze her right side, eliciting a pained yelp as she caught herself on her knee. She clenched her teeth in frustration and confusion as to what was happening. She then noticed two palm-sized purple magic seals floating around her. She was surprised she didnt sense them earlier. "Q-Que?"

"Heh, guess you discovered my little trick," Vernal spoke confidently, "Say hello to Venus and Serena, that's what I call them. Try to run but these two will always make sure my bullets hit their mark! Ordinarily, Angel imbued ammo would destroy them just like your spells but I took care of that by imbuing a thin layer of my own mana so they'll bounce right off and still do plenty of damage. Trouble is, it's time consuming and we needed to head out quick so I only had time for these two pistols. Hehe not that it'll take both magazines to finish you. One pistol is more than enough."

"Haaa...are ju so confident ju will win you'd tell me how your ability works?" Camilla asked, shakily standing and holding her arm, noticing her wounds weren't healing.

"Hmmm, I prefer to think of it as... assurrance," Vernal spoke maliciously before aiming her gun, "Now then, how's about a game of pinball?"

Camilla clenched her fist as red aura envelops her body before creating a small red magic seal looking a torrent a red lightning at the Dark Elf who side flips dodging before firing a round mid-flip. The purple magic seals zoom around at blinding speed as one makes the bullet ricochet toward Camilla chest. Sensing the bullet path, she backwards avoid it but it richotets again as it grazed her cheek. It richochets again about the punch her temple but she lean forward at the last second. She creates a large green magic seal that unleashes at strong gust of green colored wind that caught her wings launching her upward while simultaneously making the bullet lose it's momentum.

Suddenly, Camilla felt something like a leathery slender rope wrap around her ankle before yanking her out of the air and slamming her to the ground. The Devil reeled from the impact then looked up to see Vernal standing above her, twirling a long brown and purple whip around her body with an arrogant a smirk.

"Ok, we should be safe here. Lay him down Lycs. Sit his head on your lap," Zwei instructed, sliding from under Caleb's arm.

"Right," Lyca replied, mimicking the action as they sat him down with the She-wolf, easing him down to her seated position. He lightly hissed from the pain before feeling a comforting warmth and the firm, softness of her thighs. She gently cupped his face and looked down at him with a smile, "Sorry. Don't worry, we're right here Chief."

Most of Lyca's wounds were already slowly healing with minor bruises and scratches already no longer present.

"Ahh...thanks girls. You both are ok, right?" Caleb softly asked in a worried tone, his breathing a bit labored.

"Boss, WE'RE fine. We're more concerned about you! Ok, I'm gonna lift your shirt now," Zwei said to which he didn't protest, allowing her to proceed. She and Lyca were horrified seeing in the full light how bad his wounds were. His mid-section and chest had larger dark blotches along with claw marks near his lower stomach. It was obvious to her that he had internal bleeding. Lyca clenched her teeth, furious at what that cat bitch did to her mate.

"This is bad," Zwei stated before catching herself, realizing how blatantly she sounded as Lyca looked to her, worried, "Sorry...just...don't worry you'll be ok. You're gonna be fine, Boss."

Zwei pondered for a moment, frantically trying to figure out what to do as Caleb started to lose conciousness. She thought if only Drei were here, she would know. It was then it hit her.

"Wait," she said frantically, searching three her inner pockets and pulling out one of Drei's vials of green liquid, "Sit him up a bit."

Lyca did as instructed, sitting his head up as Caleb's chest rose and fell unevenly. She uncorked the vial and knelt by his side, pressing it to his lips.

"Come on drink this it'll help you," she spoke softly, trying to stay calm as she slowly poured it, only for it to spill since he was too weak to drink it. Zwei gave a panicked look as Lyca grew more concerned. They knew he was running out of time.

"H-He's too injured to drink it. What do we do?" Lyca spoke sadly, looking to the wind weasel who looked back at her then Caleb, who could barely keep his eyes open.

Zwei took a deep breath, realizing she has no other choice.

"Move your hands," Zwei requested. As Lyca reluctantly did so, Zwei supported his head with one hand then dumped the rest of the vial in her mouth to Lyca's surprise. She then quickly tilted his head towards her before forcibly pressing her lips to his, forcing the contents of her mouth down his throat. She lingered a moment at the sensation before quickly removing herself, gasping for air and looking down at him.

"Zwei look!" Lyca exclaimed, gesturing to the wounds on his body as they very slowly started to recede, "It's working."

"Yeah, it is, but we're not done yet. This medicine works best with huge supply of Ki. This collar is suppressing his energy and slowing his healing. We need to remove it but...if I touch it'll react and...it'll hurt him badly," Zwei explained wondering how exactly she could remove the collar without causing serious damage to his spinal cord or accidentally cutting an artery. She softly cursed, wishing Ein were there to use her strength to break it. Then again, it may react to her Ki as well. What could they do?

Lyca looked at the collar on Caleb's neck thoughtfully then reached down to grasp it, "This thing huh...?"

"Lycs! Stop wait!" Zwei shouted. Lyca hooked both hands under the collar, making the runes glow brightly, "No! Let go of it!"

"But we NEED to save Chief!" Lyca stated firmly, glaring at the collar, trying to forcefully pry it apart. Her muscles were bulging out as she grit her teeth, "And this... is in..the...right way?"

At that moment the metal collar loudly snapped right off to Zwei's shock as Lyca held both pieces in a firm grip, suprised at how easily it came off. A goldish-yellow sap seeped from both pieces like smoke wafting into the atmosphere, changing them back to ordinary collars.

"Huh, that was easy," Lyca said, tingling her head and curiously examined one of them.

"Lycs? How did you...? Didn't you feel any pain at all?" Zwei inquired in astonishment, curiously touching the now harmless collars.

"No, it was just really hard to get off," Lyca replied, rubbing her arms.

"Hmm, maybe it didn't hurt you because you produce little to almost no ki?", Zwei pondered.

Sidenote: She's half right. While the collars do react to external mana/Ki the damage is reflected by the major and minor evil carried in the receivers heart. In Lyca's case, her heart is so pure and devoid of evil that the collar "allowed" her to remove it.

"Nngh...ah...guys?...", Caleb mutters getting their attention.

"Chief!", "Boss!", both girls happily exclaim

"H-How do you feel?", Zwei inquires

Caleb lifts himself up examining his arms while opening and closing his hands experinentally then pats his chest not longer feeling pain, "Still kinda sore but...a whole lot better now. Thank you."

Zwei heart palpitates as her cheeks flush in embarassment, "No problem just...doing my job keeping you alive. Wouldn't be a good bodyguard if I didn't right?", she spoke nonchalantly glancing away with an embarrassed grin as Lyca giggles at her.

Caleb then feels his neck just noticing the collar was gone then sees part of it lying in the grass.

"Oh, we managed to remove. Well, Lyca managed to at least.", Zwei informed

" Wait, really? Are you ok?!", Caleb inquires.

"Yeah, it didn't hurt me at all.", Lyca assures before touching his giving him a look, "I'm just happy you're safe."

Caleb nods in appreciation before a thought occurred to him, "Wait, WHY are you even here?!", he stated catching the two by surprise.

"Haaa, that's what Drei and I said. Apparently, she and Camilla tailed us wanting to rescue you too.", Zwei answers, "I'm...not sure about Mirabelle. I went after Lycs went she bolted outta wanting to save you."

"Camilla's here too?! Oh God!", Caleb stated morosely facepalming, "Wait, what about Moon pie?!"

"I...don't know actually b-but I'm sure Drei is on top of that.", Zwei assures trying to sound convincing.

"Are you shittin' me?! ", Caleb shouted rising to his feet stumbling slightly before righting himself, "We have to go after her!"

"Right!", Lyca stated popping up with a determined look.

"Wrong!", Zwei interjects, "Boss, we just barely managed to rescue YOU. I can't just let you go running headlong into more danger! Just let Drei handle things on her end while I keep you both safe!"

"What about Camilla?! You really think she'll be able to reign her in on her own?", Caleb stated as Zwei pauses at the question she couldn't deny Camilla head strong nature, "Yeah, thought so."

Suddenly, the sound of gunfire caught their attention along a few chained explosions.

"Whoa...there's something big going on in that direction. Sounds like an intense fight.", Lyca spoke pointing in the direction of the noise.

"Fuck! I remember there was a dark elf and some kinda wingless Devil ninja earlier. They might be in trouble. We have to do something!", Caleb demanded to head in the direction

"Boss, stop! I can't le-", Zwei stated before her tail stands up and a jolt of danger shoots through her senses. She immediately leaps into action tackling Caleb out of the way as something from above crashing into the ground with enough force the push the other back creates a medium crater in the ground.

Zwei lie on Caleb's back shielding him before he lightly groans pushing himself up.

"Are you alright?!", Zwei stated moving off his back.

"Ugh, yeah what the hell was-", Caleb spoke holding his forehead before his eyes shot wide as Lyca and Zwei look on in shock. Immediate dread spread through his senses upon see Kulah standing before them her tribal club planted firmly in the ground as she held it in striking position, "Oh fuck."

"Now then...", Kulah spoke straightening up with her club positioned at the ground. Her face had a noticeable line of blood flowing down her head as she focuses those predatory, malicious eyes on the group, "Where was I

Zwei extends her blades getting in defensive position as Lyca bares her fangs doing the same while growling.

"Hrrrrrr think I'll start with...", Kulah looking between Lyca and Zwei then stopping at Lyca who readies herself, "YOU!"

She screamed but, instead of going for the She-wolf, she pivots on her heel thrusting her spiked club at Zwei who instinctively blocks with scythe creating a spray of sparks. The weasel stumbles barely holding her ground

" LYCS! GET HIM OUTTA HERE!", Zwei stated.

Lyca leaps into action as Kulah pushes the Karmaitachi back and takes a swing at the She-wolf who slides under evading the attack. Zwei takes initiatives launching herself forward performing a spin kick on Kulah face knocking her back a few feet. Lyca takes a stunned Caleb's hand.

"Come on Chief!"

Caleb snaps out of it and gets up running as fast as he could keep up with her.

"Where do you think you're going?! HUH?!", Kulah shoutedtaking large nearby rock, tossing it up, then striking it hard with her club sending it whizzing past Zwei who barely dodges.

"Lycs! Boss! Watch out!", She called out to them.

Lyca and Caleb back as time appears to slow seeing the high-speed projectile barely inches away from striking the She-wolf head off. On pure instinct, Caleb grabs her hand and teleports both of them a few feet to the right dodging the projectile. It smashed into a tree trunk smashing it in a spray of wood pieces sending the whole thing falling down blocking their path.

The two of them were stunned for a moment as Caleb realizes what he did. His powers were already returning. Zwei and Kulah engage in combat with the Karmaitachi leaping upward sending a barrage of air blade projectiles at her. Kulah uses her know away each air blade with loud clashes only sustaining a few cuts to her arms.

Caleb quickly urges Lyca and the two takes off in another direction circling around the tree. Kulah notices her prey escaping and tries to go after them only to recieve a kunai knife to the back of her legs.

"Gah!", she elicits at the sharp pain pulling throwing it away. She looks up eyes widening seeing combination of kunai and shuriken descending upon her from every direction. Kulah grips her club irritation, "Get outta MY WAY!"

Kulah swings her club around in circle deflecting many of the small weapons. At the moment, Zwei appears in a below the Ocelomeh time appearing to slow as she gives her a breif cold glance before vanishing again as a deep slash wound opens on Kulahs knee; the same leg she got stabbed. Kulah instinctively drops her club falling to her damaged knee.

"GRAHH Fuck!", Kulah elicits holding her bleeding knee before quickly reaching for her club to prop herself up only for it to get knocked several feet away by a compressed air blade.

"Sorry, you won't be needing that.", Zwei spoke levitating on a swirling cyclone of while glaring down at Kulah with a cold, serious gaze. She brandishes her wrist scythes, one of them still having a little blood of the edge, "I'll make this quick."

The Karmaitachi vanishes as a mild wind blows around the Ocelomeh.

'Cyclone-style, Dancing blades.', Zwei spoke using her 'Voice of the wind' technigue as she rapidly appears and vanishes with blinding speed all around Kulah. The Ocelomeh eyes darts rapidly barely able to keep up with her movements.

Sidenote: Similar to normal weasels and other mustiladae in the animal kingdom, Karmaitachi have a special hunting technique known as the 'weasel war dance'. By chaining a series of sporadic and quick movements, they confound and disorient their prey before striking a killing blow to the back of the neck severing the spinal cord.

Kulah's eyes widened, realizing what was happening thanks to some information Madoka gave her and Vernal about Karmaitachi before they arrived and immediately shielded the back of her neck with both arms. As predicted a blade of air slashes both her arms making her groan loudly through clenched jaws, enduring the pain as Zwei, gave a surprised look. Kulah curled her body in, still shielding her neck.

"Nice try but I'm not done!" Zwei stated, proceeding to overwhelm the Ocelomeh with a series of fast-paced cuts and slashes, trying to chip away her defenses.

Kulah grit her teeth, enduring the assault before closing her eyes, concentrating.

'Tezcatilipoca, lend me your sight: Area Perception,' Kula thought as her body entered a zen-like state fueled by pure instinct. She was able to sense the movements of every living thing in a 70 meter radius. However, she focused solely on the Karmaitachi, sensing every subtle move she made as if happening in slow motion. She sensed the Karmaitachi going for her underarm; no doubt intending to sever her tendon so she couldn't defend.

As Zwei was preparing to slash her underarm, she was taken by surprise when Kulah lowered both arms, fully exposing her neck. Not stopping to question it, Zwei went for the strike, only for Kulah to dodge before delivering a devastating strike with her fist to the Karmaitachi's abdomen, knocking the air right out her lungs. Zwei gagged before she was sent flying, crashing hard through a cluster of small trees, creating a spray of wood fibers and leaves.

Kulah pants, finally catching her breath, then looked at her still bleed wounds. She quickly reached down her skirt and pulled out a slip of slightly crumbled blue paper with magenta colored Japanese symbols written on it. A "safety net" courtesy of Madoka.

"Ugh, let's see if this thing works," Kulah said before straightening up the paper, then placing it on her arm. Immediately the symbols glowed, covering her body in a magenta aura as all her wounds, even the one on her knee, closed, the pain subsiding. Kulah stood to her feet, testing her arms and legs, giving an impressed smirk, "Never fail to impress, huh 'M'?"

Kulah went to retreive her club, focusing on the spot where the Karmaitachi landed. She considered doing a double tap to ensure she stayed down.

"Hmm, nah. I felt I shattered a few of her ribs. She's not going anywhere. I can finish her later. Now..." Kulah spoke, before her body went stiff as she focused her Area Perception, searching for her target. She picked up the bodies of Caleb and Lyca still on the move and instinctively turned to their direction and grinned wickedly, "Ha, I got you, my prey."

As Kulah took off after them, Zwei could be seen lying amongst the shattered pieces of timber and foliage, her clothes partly torn and her breathing labored. She attempted to turn on her side before groaning lowly at the excruciating pain in her chest, then coughing up a hefty amount of blood. She could tell that strike had broken a few ribs and dislocated her arm.

"Kah! Agh...dammit...fucking dammit..." Zwei swore, digging her small claws into the dirt in frustration at how careless she had been. How could she fuck up one using one of her clan's deadliest techniques? Her mother would be embarrassed. But despite her muse, she knew she couldn't just lie here while Caleb and Lyca were still in danger.

She shakily reached into her clothes for one of the vials Drei gave her, before noticing a sticky wetness covering her hand. She was shocked to pull out little pieces of broken vials, even cutting her finger a bit. She cursed before noticing only one vial was still intact, save for a small crack running down the base.

"C-Come on...please work..." she uttered desperately, carefully uncorking it before dumping the contents down her throat, even licking up whatever she could from her palm.

Elsewhere, Caleb and Lyca could seen running through the wooded area, having already lost the path as they found themselves near the bank of a small lake. Lyca could sense Caleb slowing down before he hunched over, pressing against his knees as he struggled to catch his breath.

"Cheif?!" Lyca exclaimed fearfully.

"Haaa...haaa...I'm...ah fine Lyca...just give me a sec here. Oh fuck..." Caleb panted and wheezed, barely catching his breath, "So if we survive I'm getting up on that gym membership! God damn!"

"No!" Lyca stated, giving a displeased look before placing her hands on his shoulders, meeting him at eye level, "Not 'IF', WHEN we survive! All of us! Ok?!"

Caleb could see the determination and slight fear in her eyes as he realized how stupid he sounded.

"Yeah, 'when', that's what I meant to say!" he assured, touching her hand and lightly squeezing it. Lyca nodded with a satisfied grin as he picked himself up again, "Ok let's keep going. Gotta find the main road."

"Right," Lyca replied as they continued. After a minute or so they could see a dirt path cutting perpendicular to the lake.

"Look there's a dirt path. Hopefully it leads to main-" Caleb caught himself midsentence as every nerve in his body suddenly screamed at him that danger was near. Lyca's ears perked up at sudden rustling, along with an all too familiar scent.

In a flash, Kulah leapt out in front of them with her club raised, aimed right for Lyca's head. Before it could make contact, Caleb reflexively put up a purple barrier in front of Lyca. As the club made impact, it generated a strong shockwave and repelled Kulah back several feet. The impact was strong enough to knock the pair to the ground.

"C-Chief?! Are you hurt?!"

"Ugh, I'm...fine. Fuck," Caleb spoke, raising up, his arm still trembling as he sat up in a crouch position. He looked over at the menacing Ocelomeh gleefully swaying her club. What the hell was that thing made of?

"So, those are the fancy powers V was talkin' about," Kulah spoke, smiling hungrily at Caleb who flinched, remembering just who they were dealing with. Kulah then noticed his collar was missing, "Hm. I guess one of these little bitches managed to take your collar off. Eh, that's fine. I like it better this way. I'll just break you down again until you're ready to submit."

Caleb glared at her, feeling a twinge of nervousness before Lyca placed herself in front of him, arms raised to block her.

I'll NEVER let you hurt Chief!", Lyca barked barring her fangs.

"Ha! Please, you think a pipsqueak dog like you can beat me? I've fought Kobolds three times your size! If you're counting on the Karmaitachi to come to your rescue again, you're outta luck. I already put her out of commission.", Kulah shot back with an amused demeanor.

Lyca and Caleb eyes widen in shock upon hearing that.

"W-What did you do to her?!", Caleb inquired half angry and afraid.

"Well, guess you could say I...knocked the wind out of her," Kulah said slyly before shifting to a ponderous but annoyed gaze, "Seriously though, what does that even MEAN? How do you 'knock wind' out of someone?! You don't BREATHE wind you INHALE wind. It's like those humans who say 'The grass is always greener on the other side.' Who the FUCK is checking every blade of grass to see which side is greener?! That's fucking stupid! Humans are so fucking weird!"

Caleb, in a state of confusion, wondered what the hell she was talking about.

"You..." Lyca growled lowly, stepping up to the Ocelomeh who looks to her listlessly, "You'll pay. You're gonna pay...FOR HURTING MY FAMILY!"

Before Caleb could stop her, Lyca rushed onto Kulah, leaping up into a spin kick which she easily blocked with her club.

"Please," Kulah growled, pushing Lyca off her. Lyca mini-backflipped to regain her footing then lunged again, chaining a combo of furiously fast kicks with Kulah effortlessly blocking each strike with an unimpressed expression. Kulah quickly went on the offensive, swinging with deadly precision and power as Lyca ducked and dodged, refusing to give an opening.

'Damn! She may hit like a kitten but when it comes to speed...! Gah I can't land a solid hit!' Kulah scowled internally as the She-wolf continued to dodge her hits, 'In that case...'

Kulah gave a downward swing and Lyca immediately dodged to the left. It was a feint. Kulah then kneed the She-wolf hard in left side.

Lyca grunted, gritting her teeth as she fell to the side.

Not letting up, Kulah drove her club right towards Lyca's side, "Gotcha n-AHH!"

As it was about to make impact, a blast of purple fire-like aura stroke Kulah, knocking her a couple feet back and burning her arm and side. She glared at Caleb, whose eyes and body radiated a purple aura.

"Don't forget about me, bitch!" Caleb snarled, charging another condensed aura blast. Lyca looked to her Chief with widened eyes as he nodded to her. He realized running wasn't an option right now. He could cover so much distance by himself with his teleportation and doing it too much was still taxing on his body. Plus, Kulah would never stop pursuing them. As much as he didn't like it, he and Lyca needed to fight their way past her.

Kulah smirks as the burns started heaming away slightly, "Ha, how could I? You keep attracting my attention!" she replied lunging towards him, club thrust forward.

Caleb quickly teleported away as Lyca attacked her from behind. Sensing this, Kulah pivoted on her heel, swinging for the She-wolf only for her club to be repelled midswing by Caleb's barrier, enhanced with more energy and giving Lyca an opening. She delivered a solid kick to Kulah's stomach, making her stumble back.

Kulah reeled from the surprisingly strong kick before catching her footing, then crossed her arms to guard herself from Lyca's flurry of kicks. She could then sense a prescence behind her as Lyca leapt back. Caleb fired another blast of purple aura at her back searing her shirt and doing a bit more damage, as well as making Kulah lurch forward, gritting her teeth in frustration.

She looked to Lyca, watching as the She-wolf rushed to her from the side. Kulah swung towards her, only for Caleb to teleport in her path, deflecting her attack with his barrier and generating a loud impact sound. She gave an angry feline snarl, repeatedly bashing against his barrier. She noticed Caleb gritting his teeth and flinching with every strike as he was pushed closer and closer to the lake edge. Suddenly, Lyca descended from above, delivering a round kick which Kulah barely managed to block with her free arm. She was sent flying back before digging her foot claws in the ground, skidding to a halt as Caleb knelt, using her club as support.

Lyca rushed to Caleb's side as they stared the Ocelomeh down. Caleb was softly panting, becoming fatigued from the amount of energy he was expending. He knew he couldn't keep this up for long. They needed to slow her down.

He quickly glanced at the lake, thinking that maybe if they can get her in the water-

"Hey! What are you lookin' at?" Kulah grimaced at Caleb, catching his attention, "What? You think dumping me in that lake will stop me? Ocelomeh can swim dumbass!"

Caleb flinched, surprised she was able to read him so quickly.

"Don't you talk to him like that!" Lyca snarled at her.

"Shut up mutt!" Ocelomeh shot back at her, "Those fancy feet love taps and his damn barriers! It's insulting you both think you can beat me that easy...when I'm just getting started."

Kulah stood up, brandishing her club as Caleb and Lyca readied themselves. She dragged her palm against one of the sharp bumps and deliberately cut herself, drawing blood to the pair's surprise. As the blood soaked into the cracks of the club it suddenly started shaking before two solid chunks fell off, leaving a more slender, flatter surface. It expanded in size, taking the shape of a seven foot long rectangular buster sword with strange Aztec faces on the surface with the top featuring a jaguar-like design. The bumps changed into several small razor sharp stone blades on both the sword edges. Kulah smiled wickedly, easily raising the large weapon with one hand to Caleb and Lyca's shock.

"Take a good look! THIS is my true weapon 'Tecuho', designed by Tezcatalipoca itself! Only the strongest of Ocelomeh warriors are worthy to weild one and MINE is the most powerful in my Tribe's!" Kulah heartily stated, brandishing her sword in a haughty pose, "Now...who's first?"

Caleb and Lyca got their guard with the former summoning whatever energy he could. Kulah glanced between the two of them while lowering her body, ready to lunge. She closed her eyes as if in thought before-

"YOU!" Kulah yelled out, moving with blinding speed that neither could track as she brung the large sword down on Caleb.

He immediately brung up a barrier to defend himself as it made impact. Instead of repelling the attack, the stone blades pierced through the energy barrier, shattering it apart as Caleb teleported back. Kulah quickly pursued him as he projected another barrier, putting more energy into this one only for it to be shattered with relatively little effort.

"That trick won't work anymore! Tecuho has already got used to your mana! Its fangs will tear through your armor like the meat of a newborn!" Kulah chortled, destroying barrier after barrier, Caleb teleporting repeatedly. He could feel his stamina waning as he realized he was backed in corner now, barely able to keep up.

Lyca snarled, lunging for Kulah and hoping to draw her attention.

Sensing this, Kulah quickly planted her sword in the ground, lifting her body upward and dodging Lyca's strike. She rotated her body to deliver a powerful roundhouse kick on the She-wolf, sending her flying back into nearby grass.

Lyca!" Caleb yelled, teleporting over to where she lying in the grass, holding her head. Before he could reach out to touch her, he sensed Kulah intercepting him, bringing her sword down. He guarded his face with his arms, bringing up his barrier only for it to shatter again as he teleported away. He fell to one knee, panting as sweat formed on his forehead and he felt something wet trickling down his lip. It was blood, he had a nosebleed along with a growing headache.

Lyca weakly raised up, her vision a bit blurred as she softly muttered, "C-Chief..."

"Hey, you're not lookin' too good. That last barrier was so thin it was like paper. You're getting desperate aren't you? Well, as my mother would say..." Kulah swung her sword, about to decapitate him as Caleb quickly teleports to get away. She narrowed her eyes, sensing his presence behind her and used the momentum of the previous swing to thrust the dull top end of her weapon into Caleb's stomach. He lurched forward, gagging as Kulah smirked, lifting him off his feet, "WHEN PREY GETS DESPERATE IT GETS PREDICTABLE!"

She then tossed him upward with her sword. He landed hard on the ground a several feet away as Lyca's eyes shot wide in horror.

Caleb yelled out as his back hit the hard ground and cradled his stomach. Kulah strutted over to him as he hurriedly tried to move away from her.

"Well, well, well, now this is more like it. A real hunt the way Tezcatolipca intended," Kulah spoke hungrily before kicking Caleb on his side, flipping him on his back then planted her claws on his chest, holding him in place, "I can't wait to finally eat you up."

Caleb gritted his teeth, trying to move her furry leg away but it wouldn't budge and her claws were digging into his flesh.

Suddenly, Lyca screamed, lunging for Kulah from behind.

Without turning around, Kulah tilted to the side, avoiding the strike and, in a swift motion, followed up with an uppercut on the She-Wolf.

Lyca fell on her back with a thud, cradling her sore jaw before Kulah appeared, standing over with a cold bloodlust in her gaze.

"I getting real sick of you mutt," Kulah spoke coldly, slicing both of Lyca's lower leg as she hollered out, writhing in pain. Kulah then seized her neck, gripping it hard as Lyca gagged for air, mouth agape and her eyes wide open. Kulah noticed the choker on her neck, "Huh? What's this?"

She released her neck as Lyca caught her breath. While examining the metal moon pendant she hooked her claw under it. Lyca weakly grabbed her wrist.

"N-no..."

A wide grin formed on Kulah's face and she burst into jeering laughter, "AHAHAHAHA! What is this your collar?! Some kinda proof that you belong to him?! You're pathetic. So weak you'll throw away your pride to a human just to feel something close to love."

Lyca went silent, feeling the sting of her words before Kulah leant down, her face right over Lyca's.

"You're a disgrace to your kind and to proud females in general. A weak, worthless little bitch," Kulah spoke in a venomous tone before ripping the choker off Lyca's neck and tossing it aside to Lyca's horror.

She stared in pure shock, seeing Kulah's lips moving but the sound of her voice becoming muffled static. The world around her grew dark and cold as her senses grew numb and eyes went lifeless.

Satisfied with demoralizing the She-Wolf, Kulah turned her attention back to her real prey.

'Weak...worthless...weak...worthless...weak...worthless...' Lyca repeated internally. It was a phrase she'd heard her entire life. Ever since she was a little puppy, she was never good enough. She was the runt after all; a disappointment to her parents who always expected more than she could put out, and a punching bag and an easy scapegoat for her bigger, stronger and smarter brothers and sisters. It put her in really bad place for a long time. Every other day she'd sit in her den alone, hungry and depressed as she cried. All she ever wanted was for someone, anyone, to love her for who and what she was, not some standard to live up to. It was why she had to leave.

Her mind then went to memories of Caleb and the others. This human, this man, was everything she ever needed and more. He didn't care about ranks and only saw her as a person first, a female second, and a Werewolf third. Every day she'd spent with him, Mira, Cami, the Zyklons were happiest she had ever been. Everyday she felt like she matter, she belonged, she had...a new family. Most of all, she loved him, all of them and they loved HER back and even got to express that love in EVERY way she dreamed of.

And now...these monsters wanted to take it away.

As that thought crossed her mind, Lyca started to quiver as a faint yellow aura began to emanate from her body. Her claws dug into the ground as the wounds on her legs started rapidly healing. She slowly rose up.

Kulah loomed over Caleb, smirking hungrily and ready to devour him, but then she sensed an intense bloodlust that made her hair and tail stand. She looked behind her, eyes widening in shock at what she saw.

Meanwhile...

The sound a whip rang out through the woods as Camilla stood shakingly, panting with exhaustion. Her entire body was riddled with whip marks and bullets wounds, blood trickling down.

As the fight continued, Camilla found herself unable to counter her ricocheting bullets as every magic seal she created was quickly destroyed and only served to created a new opening to attack her. It didn't help that not only were the bullets rapidly draining her mana, preventing her from regeneration, but the Dark Elf's whip made it harder to put any distance or get close to her. Whatsmore, she was losing blood fast.

"What's the matter Devil? Feeling overwhelmed?" Vernal taunted, shooting from the hip.

Camilla dodged to left only for the bullet to richochet, forcing her to bend sidesway and get hit right in the thigh.

"Ghaa!" she elicited, falling to her knees and clenching her bleeding thigh.

Vernal smirked in satisfaction, "Think it's time I end this."

She rushed to the Elder Devil, who noticed immediately and summoned a blue magic seal, firing a blue fireball. Vernal leapt up over her, dodging the attack before slinging her whip at Camilla, wrapping it around her. Vernal cleared a large thick branch and used her bodyweight to hoist Camilla up. Camilla gagged, frantically pulling at the leathery rope around her neck only for Vernal to yank harder.

"Hehe, you know I have to say you lasted a hell of a lot longer than expected even a lot of your mana eaten away. That's why I'm almost sorry to say this is the end for a powerful Elder Devil like you. Real shame," Vernal taunted as Camilla legs kicked violently and her wings and tail whipped about all while the Dark Elf did her best to keep her grip taut, "Oh but don't worry, I'll make sure your cute little hubby is ok. It'd be a waste to lose a specimen like that without at least sampling him. I'm sure Kulah almost done having her fun; I'm gonna wrap this up and then go have a taste of him."

Camilla clenched her teeth, eyes rolling to the back of her skull as her oxygen reserves were slowly depleted and every word from her killer was like a dagger her back. She regretted not being able to save her love but, at the same time, felt an unbearable rage rising within.

Vernal smirked in satisfaction as Camilla's body spasmed, slowly going limp. As she relished in her victory, a figure suddenly leapt out, claws bared.

"KUSHAA!" screamed the figure, tackling the shocked Dark Elf who released Camilla, whip dropping her to the ground.

Camilla gasped sharply, gagging and coughing on her hands and knees taking in as much oxygen as she could while hastily unwrapping the whip from her neck. The was blood dripping from the left side of her chest where the sniper round penetrated. She glanced over to see the familiar form of Tyrrian.

The Raptor Harpy wings were spread as she viciously clawed and mailed the Vernal with her talons. The Dark Elf hollered and screamed, shielding her face and neck as her razor sharp talons sliced at her arms, legs, torso and part of her face.

"IT WAS YOU, WASN'T IT?! I CAN SMELL THE GUN SHOT RESIDUE ON YOUR BODY! THE SAME WAS ON JACKIE'S BODY! IT WAS YOU!" Tyrrian screamed in rage, gripping Vernal's arms hard with her talons, then flapped her wings, getting lift before repeatedly slamming her against the ground, "YOU'RE ALL GOING TO PAY!"

Vernal grit her teeth, trying to endure the assault, then noticed one of her pistols lying on the ground a couple feet away. Taking a gamble, she made a dive roll for it, getting slashed across the back in the process, and managed to grab it. She pointed it at Tyrrian but the Raptor Harpy gripped her arm, forcing her to pop off a round away from her. Tyrrian dug her talons into the Dark Elf's arm, making her cry out in pain.

"Not this time! You aren't going to blindside me again!" Tyrrian hissed vehemently before pinning Vernal down by her chest, the longest talon placed at her throat, "Submit! It's OV-"

Tyrrian was then cut short when the bullet that was fired seconds ago ricocheted back, piercing her lower back, exiting through her stomach. Stunned, Tyrrian looked down to see her stomach gushing out blood and bring her trembling wings towards it. She choked out a little blood before stumbling backward onto her back.

Vernal shakily stood. Her clothes had been ripped as her body was littered in deep slashes from her arms to her thighs which bled profusely. She breathed heavily as her right arm dangled beside with deep puncture wounds.

"Kyagh...yeah...ack...for you!" Vernal spoke, glaring death daggers at the trembling Harpy. As a few of her wound started regenerating, she cocked the pistol with her teeth. Blood pooled under where Tyrrian lay weakly looking up at the heavily injured Dark Elf baring down with the barrel of the gun pointed at her, "This time...I'm going for the head."

Right as she was about to pull the trigger, Vernal tensed up, feeling a powerful sensation telling her to 'run'. She looked up, eyes widening to see Camilla slowly approaching her. The Elder Devil's body rippled with a black menacing aura as her ruby red eyes filled with fiery rage. Her wings spread imposingly, with razor-sharp and nails protruding into wicked claws. The visage of a true demon.

Vernal noticed how every step she took the grass beneath her turned to deathly brown patch and even nearby plants startled shrivelling up and dying. All the while she could feel an intense bloodlust that sent a surge of fear throughout her being. It reminded her so much of...Satella.

"Ju dare..." Camilla spoke in her gutteral demonic voice, making Vernal flinch, "Ju vile, impudent garbage dare...TOUCH MI DESTINO?!"

Her voice echoed throughout the area as she sent out a pulse of black energy from her body, covering everything in the vicinity including Vernal and Tyrrian. Vernal felt a burning sensation throughout her entire body. She saw the leaves on many of the trees were all rapidly falling as the trees themselves were dying. All the leaves fell many shrivelled to ash as they fluttered into the Elder Devil's aura.

...Back to Lyca...

Kulah stared at the She-wolf standing with her body emitting a yellow energy and noticing the drastic change in her appearance. Lyca's muscles tensed, becoming much more defined, her black fur stood on end, her claws grew bigger and sharper as did her incisors, her amber eyes glowed bright and menacing with scaleras turning from white to her black. She snarled with the animalistic ferocity befitting her ancestors and pure bloodlust that put Kulah a bit on edge.

Kulah locked eyes with the She-wolf, seeing the rage-fueled bloodlust in them. She gripped her sword tighter, noticing her arm trembling. Was she...afraid?

'No. That's not-', Kulah thought, shaking the thought from her mind before getting struck hard, getting sent flying away from Caleb. She flipped, catching herself, and sliding to a hault then got struck hard across the face again, making her teeth rattle.

Kulah reeled back, eyes widening, seeing Lyca moving around her at such incredible speed that it created after-images. Suddenly, she appeared in front of Kulah, staring her down wordlessly. Kulah spat out a little blood.

"Keh...what? You get your second wind or somethin'?!" Kulah spat but Lyca simply stared at her wordlessly, "Don't think because you're a little faster and got a few hits in that I'm beat! You're STILL as good as dead!"

Lyca narrowed her gaze answered coldly, "Ready when you are."

Sidenote: It's been said those that love can perform and accomplish much more for there lies true strength. In this case, the love that Caleb poured into both girls the day before through his spirit energy allowed them to gain the power they need for their battle with seemingly insurmountable adversaries.

Kulah clenched her teeth, growling in anger before swinging her sword at the She-wolf, who vanished instantly. Kulah quickly activated her 'Area Perception', allowing her to track Lyca's movements. She could sense Lyca going for a stomach jab and decided to counter with a knee jab to the face.

Suddenly, to her shock, Lyca evaded and went for a leg sweep, knocking her to the ground.

'Gack! Impossible! How did she-!?' Kulah's thoughts were cut off when she instinctively dodged as Lyca struck the ground with an axe kick, shattering the solid ground. Kulah quickly hopped up as Lyca lunged at her again. Using 'Area Perception', she sensed Lyca going for her leg and opted for a downward slash. She could tell Lyca wasn't going to dodge in time and put as much power as she could in it, hoping to cleave her in two.

However, rather than dodge, Lyca planted herself firm and caught the sword with her bare...er wolf claws stopping it mid swing to Kulah's shock.

'W-What the?! She caught it!?' Kulah screamed in her head in disbelief as Lyca locked her stern gaze on her. She tried to withdraw her blade but found herself unable to budge it from the She-Wolf's vice-like grip.

"Fine, you wanna hold on?! Then let Tecuho's fangs sink in! It's never had wolf meat before!" Kulah snapped, pushing the sword down with considerable effort as Lyca's arms trembled slightly. The stone blades started digging into her forehead, drawing blood but Lyca did not break her glare at the Ocelomeh, "Give up already! You won't beat me! This weapon is a symbol of my status as the strongest warrior of the Xan'chiel tribe! Tezcatalipoca has blessed ME with its-"

Kulah's monologue stopped when Lyca quickly pushed off the sword, using all the strength in her back then leapt into a spinning knee kick. She slammed her knee into the surface of Kulah's sword with tremendous force, generating a shockwave from the impact. Cracks quickly began to propagate on the surface before the entire half of the sword broke apart. Kulah was stunned, mouth hanging agape as half her sacred weapon planted itself in the ground, leaving her holding the handle with the other broken half. The Ocelomeh's heart raced frantically, trying to process what had transpired. Lyca was glaring at her, ready to continue.

"I don't care about any of that," Lyca spoke coldly, "You're an enemy...and you must die."

Kulah stared at her now broken weapon, feeling as if a core of her very pride had been shattered as well, then gripped the handle tight enough to draw blood from her paws. She clenched her teeth, growling lowly as her body radiated a menacing aura of pure rage and killing intent and the whites of her eyes turned blood red.

Suddenly, Kulah roared like a jaguar, the sound reverberating throughout the area and putting the fear of God in anything that heard it. Lyca stood unfazed by the display as the enraged Ocelomeh glared at her hatefully, fangs and claws bared and emitting jaguar-like growls, "You...I'LL RIP YOU APART!"

Lyca bared her fangs, emitting a low snarl as she got on all fours. Kulah stabbed the broken sword into the ground beside her and got on all fours as well.

Both liminals eyes lock on to each other like two predators battling for territory.

In a flash, the two moved in unison, both trading fast blows, blocking and dodging hits. Without her sword-club thing, Kulah was able to move much faster and reflexes were heightened, yet she found that Lyca had no trouble keeping up, yet the werewolf knew she could afford a mistake. Lyca threw a few sharp jabs at Kulah's face which the Ocelomeh tried to counter with a horizontal slash with her claw. Lyca ducked, then followed with a solid uppercut on the Ocelomeh's jaw which Kulah reeled from, and quickly grabbed Lyca's arm putting it in a lock. But Lyca quickly jumped, getting out of the hold, before spinning around Kulah, grabbing her neck in a chokehold.

Kulah grabbed Lyca's arm, about to sink her incisors into it before Lyca kneed her hard in between shoulder blades, making to Ocelomeh gag from the shock. Lyca then chained a few solid punches to Kulah's sides before the Ocelomeh countered with roundhouse kick that Lyca blocked but it struck with a claw slash, taking off part of the She-wolf's ear. Kulah went for another slash, this time at her neck, but Lyca's dodged them and sunk her fangs right in Kulah's arm. The jaguar woman let out a loud scream, shaking Lyca off then punching her hard across the face. Lyca reeled back before catching herself, glaring at Kulah intently.

Kulah glowered at her bleeding arm where she was bitten and clenched her fist, looking extremely displeased before screaming, "You DARE bite me you filthy, inbred dog!"

Both liminals charged at each other again. Lyca dodged a deadly blow before following with several hard strikes to Kulah's face and torso. She dodged a right claw hook and threw another strong punch to the Ocelomeh's jaw, the ripple traveling all into Kulah's skull. Kulah recoiled, holding her skull while Lyca delivered a devastating kick to her stomach, sending her skidding backwards before falling to her knees, coughing up blood. Lyca approached cautiously, eyeing Kulah's movements as Kulah looked up at her. By now, both liminals looked pretty banged up. Lyca with a few bruises and scratches along with part of her right ear missing and Kulah having several bruises and scratches all over her upper body. Kulah now utterly despised the She-wolf with every fiber of her being, wanting nothing more than to tear her to shreds.

"I HATE YOU! FILTHY DOG!" Kulah roared, charging the at She-wolf at full speed before Lyca charged at her as well.

Their palms clashed, created a powerful shockwave that ripped through the area. It was a test of wills to see which would overpower the other. Kulah's fangs were bared and growled as she pressed her full weight on the shorter werewolf who held her ground, refusing to be overpowered.

"Since you've destroyed something I cherish I'll take something from you. I'm gonna fuck your precious master to death and make you watch!" Kulah growled in a wicked, unhinged smile.

Lyca's eyes burned brightly as her arms stopped trembling and she bared her long white fangs, starting to push back, much to Kulah's surprise. She gripped the Ocelomeh's paws harder.

"No you won't. Chief is my mate. You won't take him from me! I WON'T LET YOU!" Lyca snarled gripping Kulah's hands even harder to a painful degree. Kulah tried to pull back but Lyca just tightened her grip, bringing the screaming Ocelomeh to her knees. In a quick motion, Lyca broke both Kulah's wrists, making her holler out in pain.

Taking the initiative, Lyca leapt on the Ocelomeh and sunk her fangs into her neck, making her gasp loudly, mouth agape. Kulah flailed, repeatedly kicking and thrashing before Lyca dug her fangs in deeper with a snarl. The She-wolf then ripped her head away, tearing off a big bloody chunk of Kulah's neck, creating a small shower of blood that stained the ground. Kulah looked up in a daze, garbling out unintelligible speech as she choked on her blood and her breathing became shallow. Her entire body shuddered violently before she weakly looked up to the She-wolf standing over her with a cold gaze, mouth and upper body covered in spurts of her blood. Kulah attempted to say something but was unable to get the words out. As the blood flowed down into the pond, Kulah's head went limp as the light left her and her body went lifeless.

Lyca silently looks on as her eyes and other physical features return to their normal state.

"Lycs! Boss!", came the voice of Zwei who quickly arrives on the scene having recovered from her wounds, "Ah thank you Buddha I found you! We have to go befo-"

Zwei stops upon seeing Lyca stand over the freshly killed corpes of the Komanda Monstra member. The She-wolf turn around eyes widening upon seeing the wind weasel as Zwei notice the blood on her face, mouth and chest.

"L-LYCS?! W-What the hell happened her-AH!", Zwei stated before Lyca suddenly tackles her to the ground in a tight hug

"ZWEI! You're alive! You're alive!", Lyca sobbed nuzzling her head in Zwei perky chest and hugging tight much to the weasels surprise and embarrassment.

"Wah! H-Hey easy n-not so rough! What are you talking about?!", Zwei stated through flushed cheeks wriggling herself out of Lyca's grasp before facing her and seeing the tears pouring down the She-wolf face.

"I-I thought she...she made it sound like *sniffle*...I thought I lost you. I'm so happy you're ok!", Lyca sobbed wildly.

"Hey, come on, I'm not going out THAT easy espescially to someone like her.", Zwei assures petting the top of Lyca head to console her before looking to Kulahs body, " Speaking of..."

"Ugh...so tired of gettin' knocked out around here...", came voice of Caleb as he picks himself up holding his aching head. The girls immediately turn their attention to him.

"Chief!", "Boss!", both stated simultaneously running over to him.

"Girls?", Caleb spoke looking to both girls before realization sinks, "Wait! Where the fuck did she go?! We need to get-"

Caleb stops midsentence upon noticing the body of their Ocelomeh predator lying on the ground just behind them.

" What the fuck? What happened here? ", he spoke in disbelief before noticing Lyca clothes were damaged and dirty as blood was all over her, "Fuzzy! Wha-What happened?! Are you alright?!

"That's what I'd like to know. Lycs?", Zwei spoke looking to the She-wolf.

Lyca casts a sullen pensive gaze downwards, "It's alright guys, we're safe. I took care of her."

Caleb and Zwei were taken aback by her answer.

"Yeah...I think you did more than just take care of her. Took a bite out more like.", Zwei replies looking over Kulah body seeing the wicked bite mark on her.

"It's just...damn...", Caleb adds looking at Kulah body.

"D-Did I do something wrong? I just...didn't want her to hurt you anymore.", Lyca spoke with a slight whimper.

"Lyca...", Zwei utters hearing the uncertainty in her tone.

"I successfully protected my pack! I did it. You guys are safe. I...I did good...right, Chief?", Lyca spoke forcing a smile looking to Caleb desperately. Zwei was about to reach out but Caleb steps up wordlessly and immediately pulls the werewolf into a hug startling her, "C-Cheif?"

"Yeah...we're safe.", Caleb spoke in her ear petting the back of her head looking at Kulah lifeless corpse before closing his eyes, "You did what you had to do and I'm just happy you're alive. So you don't need to hold back now."

Hearing those words, Lyca's eyes widen before her eyes water and face contort. She clenched her teeth barely able to hold to choke a sob and in doing so could still taste to blood of the Ocelomeh She hugs him back and wails loudly in his chest soaking his shirt in tears as her comforting pets her head.

Zwei looks to her understanding what she felt. One's first true kill is never easy. Up until now, the She-wolf has only ever killed regular wild animals for food. It isn't the same as killing an enemy when, as soon as the fist stop flying and blades stop clashing, you realize they were just another person like you.

"He's right, Lyca!". Zwei spoke up in a serious tone, "Don't let this experience discourage you. We all have choices in life and the ones she made led her down this path. You did what you felt was right and we don't blame you for wanting yourself, and your loves ones, to live."

Lyca listens her sobs falling to whimpering as Caleb looks to Zwei with a thankful smile. She returns it.

Suddenly, a thought occurs to Lyca.

"W-Wait!", Lyca replied pulling away from Caleb, "My charm!"

"Charm?", Caleb inquires before noticing her choker was missing, "You mean the choker?"

"Yes! She..She threw it away! I have to find it! You gave it to me!", Lyca says frantically trying to find it scanning the ground on all fours for it.

Seeing how distressed she was, Caleb approaches her, "Fuzzy. Fuzzy, it's alright. It's just a choker, I'll get you a new one."

"I don't want a new one!", Lyca attested tears in her eyes, "I want the very first gift my mate gave me!"

Taken aback Caleb, looks to her kicking himself for his insensitivity but also aware that they needed to get Mirabelle.

Suddenly, a glimmer of light from the base of the lake edges catches Zwei attention.

"Wait, I think I see. Right there near the edge.", Zwei stated pointing at it. Lyca searches in that location and an wide grin forms before she quickly seizes her choker staring at it in delight. She clenches it in her paws holding it to her chest contently then looking to Caleb.

Caleb smiles at her despite his concerns before Zwei steps up.

"Alright, come on guys, I'll take you to the main road.", Zwei advises as they agree following her.

...Back to Camilla...

Vernal looks on at the vicious demoness approaching her.

'What the hell? She should be extremely low on mana by now from all the bullets taken! Where did this sudden surge in energy come from?! Was she holding back this whole time?' Vernal thought, sweat dropping, seeing all the dying plants around her.

'...No, wait, I've heard of this somewhere before. Rumor has it the Devil race have an innate ability to subconsciously leech off the life energy of anything around them and convert it to extra mana! They believe themselve to be the offspring of a fallen God of chaos and destruction called 'Discord'. Stories say it along with Devils came into existence around the same time as Angel's and the God of Creation. In other words, this is just the true nature of her mana! Destruction incarnate!'

Camilla fired a stream of black lightning from her fingers at Vernal, who quickly dodged as a tree exploded to dust and the others near it withered away. Vernal knew she had to be careful. She stealthily retrieved her other pistol, pointing it and firing off three rounds. They flew toward Camilla who, to Vernal's surprise, allowed the bullets to strike her, not even attempting to dodge. Surprisingly, Camilla was still standing, seemingly unfazed by the attack. Not letting up, Vernal then decided to unload the full clip of her right pistol, intending to bring down the Elder Devil, no matter what.

"You're finished, Venus and Serena: BULLET HELL!" Vernal screamed a battle cry as seven bullets pierced Camilla in different parts of her, each one rebounding on the magic seal, striking her again in a different spot. Camilla was bombarded in all directions as bullets repeatedly exited and re-entered her body. To Vernal's shock, the Elder Devil simply stood there, taking hit after hit, yet barely even flinching as she repeatedly and effortlessly moved her head to avoid a headshot; all the while focusing her cold gaze on Vernal.

"Tch, ju are wasting your time," Camilla spoke plainly as the bullets repeatedly struck her, "I told ju your Angle bullets will not kill me."

"What?!" Vernal exclaimed.

"I am sure you notice all of the dying plants. I am absorbing all of the life energy they possess to convert to mana and replace whatever I lose from your attacks. Since many of these trees are multiple decades old I have plenty to work with. MI wounds heal faster than my can make them," Camilla explained coldly.

"Tch, then I'll just have to keep pumping you with rounds. You can't keep that up forever!" Vernal stated, taking aim with her remaining pistol, about to pull the trigger.

"I also figured it out," Camilla said, catching the Dark Elf's attention, "Your mystic art. Venus and Serena was it?"

"What did you say?" Vernal replied.

"I understand your mana from the hits I have taken. Jes...quite a unique spell. It may be of use to me later...but now...I must end ju," Camilla finished, shooting a glare at Vernal before her body erupted with a black flame-like aura and spread around in a sphere. Suddenly, the bullets all froze in place and two magic seals flying around her started to change to a black color, matching her aura.

"Dammit!" Vernal swore, trying to withdraw her magic seals, only for them to remain floating next to Camilla, "W-What the hell? Venus and Serena! No, don't tell me! Is this-?!"

"Ahh so ju understand. Jes, this is the ability only a select few of mi gente possess: Mana corruption," Camilla replied as all her wounds fully healed as the now corrupted Venus and Serena swirled around Camilla's head like a crown, much to Vernal discontent, "Oh, I also corrupted any bullets my struck me with. Thankfully, they were covered with your mana as a layer since it would have been difficult to corrupt filthy Angel mana."

As she said this, over two dozen or so bullets went levitating in the air above Camilla, covered in black aura. Vernal's eyes widened in panic.

"Now...how is this for a Bullet Hell?" Camilla spoke before snapping her finger, sending the swarm of black bullets upon the Dark Elf.

Vernal quickly created a second set of Venus and Serena, to Camilla's surprise. She then fired a few rounds at them.

"I'm not finished bitch!" Vernal laughed as her uncorrupted Venus and Serena proceeded to ricochet back the bullets, repeatedly striking the corrupted ones, deflecting them. As sparks and crackles rang all around her, two corrupted bullets slipped past her defense, piercing through Vernal's arm.

Suddenly, Vernal sensed danger and noticed a black magic seal below her and Camilla holding her hand, about to snap her finger. Vernal quickly pivoted, lunging away as the ground erupted with black and red energy, leaving behind a smoldering crater and destroying the magic seals. The Dark Elf skidded to a hault, clasping her arm as Camilla faced her, watching her movements.

Vernal looked at her pistol with the knowledge she only had two rounds left. She was out of options and decided on her last resort. She reached into her boot and pulled something out, catching Camilla's attention, thinking it was more bullets. Vernal then rushed towards Camilla, pistol drawn.

"I told my that won't work!" Camilla angrily stated, firing a torrent of black lighting which Vernal barely managed to dodge, sliding downward on Camilla's left.

Camilla then noticed she had tossed up what looked like a glass flask full of weird liquid.

'I got lucky. Those two homeless druggies that were in that house were desperate enough to attempt recreating that gluttony gang high. They left a bunch of old chemicals lying around. That little flask full of ammonia and chlorine and little bag of gun powder is harmless now but when ignited..!'

Vernal fired a round at the flask. It shattered, producing sparks, and exploded into a cloud of yellow gas that burned the Elder Devil's skin on contact. Camilla shielded her eyes and breathed in before flapping her wings, propelling herself upwards and avoiding the gas.

'It produces mustard gas!' Vernal thought, sprinting and intending to get as much distance as she could from the Elder Devil. She needed to get to Kulah, thinking maybe she could use that special feature of her club to give her a edge in this fight. She just needed to get back to the house and-

Suddenly, Vernal felt a very sharp pain in her lower back before falling face-first on the ground.

"Gah! W-What the...m-my legs. I can't move my legs," Vernal attempted to get up, only to find her legs were unresponsive. She then noticed the bullet wound on her arm was emitting a black miasma, "W-What the hell is this?"

"Oh, ju are full of tricks. Unfortunately...I have already won," Camilla spoke, descending down as her burn wound on her arm and neck were already regenerating, "The bullet ju used to explode the flask, I made sure it ricocheted back to you. I did not think it would hit your lower spinal cord though, what luck."

Vernal glared as if cursing her, before pointing her pistol to Camilla in a last ditch effort to kill her.

"That is enough of that," Camilla coldly spoke, approaching Vernal before swiping her finger. A red magic seal appeared and fired a blade of red energy, severing Vernal's hand.

"GYAHHH! OOPMH!" Vernal screamed out in pain, holding her arm which spurted out blood, before Camilla tail wrapped around her neck and lifted her up.

Camilla pinned her against a nearby tree several inches off the ground as the Dark Elf struggled to get free. Her piercing demonic eyes and menacing black aura filled Vernal with terror and a very unpleasant burning sensation seemed to spread throughout her body. Camilla placed her hand over the Dark Elf's face, clenching it hard.

"It would seem I have won," Camilla said plainly, looking downwards.

Vernal was confused about what she meant until she noticed, to her horror, the black and red veins spreading up her arms and legs. The stump of her arm wound suddenly erupted with black miasma flames with small pores opening on different spots on her body, erupting similar flames.

"What...What did you to me?!" Vernal cried out in agony.

"Is it not obvious? Ju are corrupted," Camilla venomously answered as Vernal gasped in shock, "Those bullets you were struck with were corrupted. It allowed my mana to to enter you body. As we speak, your mana and life force are being converted to match mi own. Your body is rejecting it and tearing itself apart to expell it. Ju are being destroyed from the inside out."

Vernal cried out, eyes welling with tears, as the veins started spreading up her neck. Camilla clenched Vernal forehead, forcing her head up with her mouth agape, gagging for air.

"Ju were right...I am no stranger to murder...and that includes those who attack mi familia," Camilla spoke as the veins began to spread more rapidly, black flames spurting from the Dark elf's neck, face, and different parts of her body. She looked like a living pressure vessel ready to burst.

"F-Fuck your familia!" Vernal strained out through clenched teeth, tears streaming and barely holding on, "I...I hope...you all BURN in hell!"

"Perra. Yo soy el infierno [Bitch. I am Hell.]" Camilla grimly spoke in her demonic voice, gripping Vernal hard enough to dig her claws in her skull, black flames completely engulfing their forms. Vernal screamed as her entire body desintegrated into black and red vapor, leaving only her clothes and boots behind.

The black aura completely absorbed into Camilla's body as she returned to her usual form, breathing a sigh of relief. She then looked to the severed hand of the Dark Elf still on the pistol; the only piece of her left.

Suddenly, shrill coughing caught her attention, and she looked to the Raptor Harpy still on the ground bleeding out. She rushed over to her to assess her condition and saw her bloody wings trying to keep pressure on her wound. Her body shivered, wide eyes staring up to Camilla pleadingly.

Camilla knelt down to Tyrrian's side and gently removed her wing, seeing how bad her wound was. It was really bad. If they didn't get this wound closed she'd die from blood loss. Unfortunately, Camilla had used a considerable amount of mana in obliterating the Dark Elf at the subatomic level and couldn't use healing spells right now. Suddenly, a thought occurred to her.

"Hang on..." she said quickly, reaching into her pockets and pulled out two of the vials Drei gave her, miraculously undamaged. She gently lifted it up to the Harpy's head, making her groan softly, "Drink this. It will help ju."

Tyrrian slowly drank the strange yet slightly sweet viscous liquid, emptying the first vial before Camilla gave her another. Seconds later a pulse of green energy rippled throughout her body as the wound on her stomach rapidly healed along with previous wounds she had attained previously. The Raptor Harpy lightly groaned, eyes fluttering open before realization hit and she immediately jerked up.

"W-What happeneded?! Where-ugh.." Tyrrian muttered before touching her head, feeling a searing headache.

"Do not force yourself! Ju have to recovery your strength," Camilla advised as Tyrrian noticed the blood still on her feathers.

"I-It's you. I saw you were being attacked by the Dark Elf a-wait! The Dark Elf! Where'd she go?! Did she escape?!" Tyrrian quickly inquired.

Camilla hesitated, "She will no longer be a problem. I dealt with her."

The answer caught Tyrrian off guard and it was then she noticed the surroundings filled with dead grass and trees around them.

She then asked, "What...happened here? How exactly did you deal with her?"

Camilla simply stepped aside, allowing Tyrrian a clear view of the spot where Vernal's clothes lay, along with a humanoid shape scorn mark on the large tree and the ground along with a severed hand. Tyrrian's eyes widened, looking to the Elder Devil in disbelief.

"Gracias, by the way," Camilla spoke, arms folded.

"What?"

"If...if ju did not intervene, she likely would have killed me. She was more skilled than I had anticipated and I could not have succeeded if ju did not step in. So...I thank ju," Camilla admitted, looking away with an embarrassed blush.

Tyrrian gave her an inquisitive look, unsure of how to respond given the circumstance, but settled on gratitude.

"It was no problem. I can say the same to you," Tyrrian replied, standing to her feet then looked to the remains of the Dark Elf with uncertainty, "Still..."

Camilla picked up on her tone, "I saw the way ju attacked her. Can ju honestly say ju would have spared her?"

Tyrrian closed her eyes in thought for a moment then answered coldly, "No. She deserved to die."

Appearing satisfied with her answer, Camilla quickly changed the subject, "Good...because I am not finished."

Tyrrian gives an suspicious look, "How so?"

The Elder Devil turned, spreading her wings as a red aura enraptured her body.

"That other punta will be PAY for harming MI Amor!" Camilla snarled, her eyes burning red with rage.

...Elsewhere...

The van could be seen barreling down the high towards it's destination with Drei right on its tail. Madoka was in the driver's seat, eyes locked on the road before stepping on the gas pedal.

Drei skillfully propelled herself with every skip she made, finally reaching the van. She landed on top of the roof on all fours, taking care not to alert the driver of her presence.

'Made it! Hang tight Marequine,' Drei thought to herself and looked to the driver side mirror, seeing Madoka's reflection, 'So, it is a Kunoichi, the Devil class of liminal specialized in ninjitsu arts. It doesn't look like she's noticed me. Good.'

Drei then took out a vial of clear blue viscous liquid, crawling over to the wind shield. It was the ingredient used in her adhesive balls. She intended to get it into the engine, stopping the van from proceeding.

'Hopefully ICEP won't mind a little...more collateral damage,' Drei pondered briefly with a shrug, then crawled to the windshield, vial in hand.

As she stood up, intending to slide to the hood, a long steel blade pierced down from the roof, barely missing the Karmaitachi.

Drei instinctively stepped away as the blade withdrew, before stabbing through the van roof again which she also dodged with a backflip, grabbing and holding onto the van door latch. She attempted to peek in through the window but the blade pierced through, her head barely moving in time. At that moment, she noticed how the blade didn't shattered the window but phased right through. Suddenly, a large blue 18-wheeler truck blared it's horn from behind, momentarily distracting the wind weasel.

The doors to the van kicked, sending Drei flying back, on collision course with the truck, the truck horn blaring louder. Reacting quickly, Drei launched herself upward with a pressurized air ball, landing on hood of the truck.

"FUCK!" the Driver yelled, swerving slightly but maintaining went, shocked at the little girl now on the hood of his truck. Drei sat up, looking at the bearded man with a serious eye and goes up to window.

"Official ICEP business! Follow that van!" Drei instructed before climbing and leaping up, getting a higher view point.

"WHAT THE HELL?!" the trucker yelped, very confused.

Drei stood atop the large white crate of the truck. She was surprised by what she saw, which was Madoka standing atop the van, katana at her back, glaring daggers at the small Karmaitachi. The van doors hung open with one closing itself and the other open to where Drei could see Mirabelle inside and unconscious.

In the driver seat was a second 'Madoka', this one being a shinigami clone she created with the sole purpose of getting to the extraction point. It would be taxing on her Ki to give it more complex orders.

Drei glared back, arms raised and showing her scythes in T-pose before clanging them together; a common gesture among Karmaitachi, signifying readiness to engage in combat. She needed to deal with this Kunoichi before they reached enemy reinforcements.

Madoka locked onto her target, then crouched slightly at the edge of the van before majestically leaping high into the air as if flying, despite her lack of wings. Drei kept her guard up as the truck driver looked on, confused and astonished. The Kunoichi landed on the hood of the truck, startling the driver into swerving again before starting to apply breaks.

"DO NOT stop and DO NOT lose that van!" Madoka shouted to the driver.

"WHAT THE FUCK IS GOIN' O-AH!" the driver shouted before feeling a sharp pain in his forehead. His eyes glazed over with a pink light and he fell into a trance, obediently replying, "Understood."

Madoka leapt up to the top of the freighter as Drei leapt backwards, putting a couple meters of distance between them, taking a combative stance. The wind howled and the vehicle sped up down the highway as both liminals stared each other down, trying to get a feel for one another.

Drei didn't fully understand how the Kunoichi could be here AND driving the van.

At the same time, Madoka was a bit surprised seeing Drei, specifically by her appearance. Was she really a Karmaitachi?

It was irrelevant. Right now, there was one thing both Liminals agreeed on at this moment.

'She's in the way of my goal.'