To those who lives in California, or those who has families living in the west coast, we here would wish you all the best of luck during these tough times. Be safe and stay safe.

Chapter 15: Back in Angerton

The sun rose over the ring of Wrath, including the town of Angerton, the recent site of a massive battle against Murdock and his Demon Apes.

It had been a few days since the battle and now the town was in the middle of rebuilding itself. The townspeople, along with its heroes that helped them to protect their town, all took part in the reconstruction process. They even received some help from outside of Angerton, since word of their victory over Murdock had quickly spread around Wrath.

Several trucks showed up at the entrance of Angerton, carrying building material and other supplies. The first of these trucks stopped at a checkpoint in front of the town.

"Got that lumber you ordered for repairs," the truck driver said.

"Yes, we've been expecting you," Jawline said with a nod while checking the back of the truck. "You can drop them off at the building site."

"Alright, we got some more material delivered," Moxxie said as he was giving instructions to a group of builders and repairmen "We already have most of the damage to the exterior of the buildings repaired, now we can get started on the rest of the exteriors and the interiors.."

The builders gave Moxxie a nod before they all got to work.

Chase held onto some rope to help pull up a new wall for one of the buildings. While he held the wall up, the rest of the nearby workers began to quickly nail it in.

"Now that's already the tenth house you've helped us out with today, Chase," Mayor Dirk said afterward, looking mighty impressed by Chase's hard work.

"Thanks, just doing my part in helping out this town," Chase responded, not looking tired at all despite all of the work he had already done.

Elsewhere in Angerton, Striker was helping to replace the windows for one of the newly repaired stores. Wesley came over to bring some tools for him. He was wearing an arm brace cast.

"How's the cast, Wesley?" Striker asked him.

"Doctor said that I have to wear it for another few days at the very least, Mr. Striker," Wesley said while setting the tool box down. "It may itch like a sandstorm, but that's not going to stop me from helping out."

"You should rest, kid," Striker advised. "I don't want you to over exert yer'self."

"I won't," Wesley said as he held up a drill for Striker. "For now, I'm happy to assist."

Striker smiled and took the drill. "Well, you can do that, just try not to hurt yer'self."

Meanwhile, Momo could be found in a temporary camp that had been set up just outside of the town. These tents had been set up for the villagers who were waiting for their homes to be repaired before they moved back in.

At the moment, Momo was standing in front of a truck that had been redirected to her location. "Alright, we got some new medical supplies along with some food," Momo said as she attempted to organize the distribution of supplies. "Let's get these crates unloaded first, then we can see to getting them to whoever needs them."

"On it, ma'am," said one townsie as he and several others began unloading the truck.

"Excellent," Momo said before turning to some other townsfolk. "Okay, we do need some more helping hands in the town today, so if anyone wishes to volunteer, come forth now."

Fortunately, the reconstruction of Angerton was going very smoothly thanks to the combined efforts of everyone in Angerton…

…Well, almost everyone.

Cain, the leader of the Knights of Hell, had overslept.

Waking up later than everyone else, Cain let out a yawn and sat up in bed. He was unmasked, his helmet resting on the floor next to his bed. He rubbed his blue eyes with white pupils.

"Satan, what time is it?" he asked before he looked down and saw that he had not slept alone.

Holly, the imp, was to his left while to his right was Gigi, the succubus, who held his arm. They were still asleep and Cain smiled when he saw them.

"Oh yeah, we had a wild time last night, didn't we?" he asked with a chuckle before he moved the covers, revealing another imp woman lying on top of his chest. "Oh yeah… and you were here too, Mazzie."

"Hmm, what time is it?" asked Mazzie, an imp woman with grayish black hair and short horns. She was taller than Holly, but not as tall as Cain. She had a curvaceous figure with some white spots on her right thigh, and her tail had three stripes in the middle. Much like Cain, Holly, and Gigi, she was in a state of undress.

She was also Mim's mother.

As Mazzie stirred, she looked up and saw Cain smiling at her, causing her to become quite flustered. "Oh!" she shouted. "You're awake as well."

"Good morning, Mazzie," Cain said as they heard Gigi and Holly begin to wake up. "I hope you three slept well."

"Mmm, you were so good last night, Cain," Gigi said while hanging her arm around his shoulder, rubbing it gently.

"Yeah, the last few nights with you have just been… incredible," Holly added with a grin. "Even Maz here couldn't get enough of ya slappin' her big ol' cheeks while you were drilling her in."

"Holly!" Mazzie shouted while looking even more flustered. "I mean, I just wanted to thank Mr. Cain for saving my life and my daughter's life…"

"Well, consider me thoroughly thanked," Cain said as he got up and climbed out of bed. "I would recommend that you clean yourself up though. You don't want to go out smelling like sex or anything."

"Eh, I don't mind you smelling like that," Gigi said. "But a shower does sound good…"

"Yeah, and I should be getting back to work," Holly mentioned as she got out of bed. "I don't want to be missed."

"I need to get back to Mim," Mazzie said as she got out of bed, trying to not look embarrassed or undignified. "Thank Satan I had a friend watch her over…"

Outside, in the area where some tents had been set up, Mim was currently playing with some of the other kids… well, playing as in play-fighting.

"Yah! Imma getcha!" Mim cried out as she tackled another kid. She and the other kid began wrestling on the ground while the other kids around them cheered. As Mim wrestled her opponent, the other imp kid raised his hand up.

"Tag me! Someone tag me!" the kid shouted before a bigger imp boy tapped his hand and separated the two.

"Hehe, you're going down, Mim!" the bigger imp boy declared as he tried to put Mim in a hold, only for Mim to squirm her way around him and get him into a head-lock.

"You ain't seen nothin' yet!" Mim declared as she got him down on the ground while in a chokehold.

Nearby, an unhelmeted Millie was watching the children play-fighting with each other. She smiled. She knew that this was normal Wrathian children's behavior, play-fighting with each other as a way to test their strength. In fact, she could remember doing it with her own siblings…

A young teenage Millie, dressed in a white shirt and black overalls, was in the middle of play-fighting with her brothers in the mud.

"Raw!" Millie shouted as she put her big, brawny brother with short white hair in a chokehold. "Come on, Strom! Is that the best you can do?!" she cried out.

Strom fell down into the mud, grabbing Millie's feet and getting her off of him. "Ha! Take that, sis!" he shouted before Millie launched herself onto him and bit his arm.

"Gah! There's no biting in wrestling allowed!" Strom shouted.

"It is when I'm playing!" Millie declared before she was pulled away from Strom by the tail of another one of her brothers. "Yow! You'll pay for that, Fisk!" she shouted while getting back up.

"Haha, what are you gonna do about it?" asked her youngest brother, another white-haired imp boy who was on the slim side. However, he was quickly met with a punch to the stomach by another brother of theirs. "Ow… why, Sal…?"

"You were too busy yappin' that you left yourself vulnerable," said Salvor, a young preteen imp boy with charcoal-colored hair that was long enough to stop at his shoulders, with a messy bang covering his left eye. He wore a sleeveless black turtleneck crop top, gray-beige pants, and cowboy ankle boots.

Salvor would, of course, eventually be known as Sallie May. But back then, she was still just Salvor.

"Hey, Sal!" Millie shouted, causing Salvor to turn just moments before Millie tackled him down into the mud.

"Bleh! Millie!" Salvor laughed while trying to block Millie's punches.

"What did you say about leaving yourself vulnerable?" Millie asked before Salvor fought back, slipping around and getting Millie in a chokehold.

"Not if ah'm squirmy!" Salvor declared before punching Millie's face. Despite taking a fist to the fist, Millie just laughed and punched her brother in the face as well.

"Alright, kids, break it off!" shouted a female voice.

Millie and her brothers all turned to see their parents standing nearly. Their mom, Lin, bore a striking resemblance to her daughter, Millie, except for the numerous white spot-markings all over her body. She had dark hair that was less messy and burgundy cloven hooves. She was dressed in a maroon ascot, a white button shirt with rolled-up sleeves, and a light gray upper section with thin black tassels hanging from it, dark brown gardening gloves, and a belt with a gray buckle, and pale blue-gray jeans.

Then there was their father, Joe, standing next to Lin. He was a very burly imp, with muscular arms and a pronounced torso. His white hair matched his bushy mustache, along with his black-and-white striped horns, like all other male imps. He also had white marks along his left shoulder. He sported a sleeveless black vest over a brown sleeveless shirt, a black belt with a silver buckle, and gray pants with black boots.

"Now why don't you kids get cleaned up and prepped for dinner?" Joe asked the kids.

"We made some hell-bean casserole for all of y'all," Lin mentioned.

"Alright! Hell-bean casserole!" Millie cheered as she got up and rushed toward the house. "First one to finish cleaning up gets the first serving!"

"Aw, no fair, Millie!" Fisk shouted.

"Yeah, you were always the fastest!" Strom added as they ran after Millie.

"We'll see about that!" Salvor shouted as he rushed toward the house with his brothers and sister.

Back in the present day, a nostalgic Millie continued to watch the Wrathian kids play-fighting with each other. However, as she watched them, a bit of sadness came over her.

Yes, she and her own siblings used to play-fight with each other. She would dominate them in the dirt, the mud, and in the cactus garden… but that was a long time ago, and thinking about it now only made her remember just how she missed them and her parents.

She missed her family.

"Hey, Millie."

Hearing a voice calling out to her, Millie turned and saw a familiar face walking over.

"Hey, Jawline," Millie replied to the shark demon.

"I noticed you've been watching those kids fighting for a while," Jawline pointed out. "I mean, I like watching kids fight as much as the next guy, but there is something else going on with you, isn't there?"

Millie looked up at Jawline. "You know, sometimes you surprise me with your perceptiveness."

Jawline chuckled. "Sometimes I surprise myself too," he admitted. "But it is a useful habit, being able to read the writing on the wall…" He paused briefly, his thoughts dwelling on something before he decided not to bring it up. "So what's up?"

"Well…"Millie sighed. "I've been thinking about my family a lot lately. You see, I've been missing them."

"Yeah, your last visit was a while ago…" Jawline admitted.

"Before the battle with those apes, I wrote a letter for them they would have gotten if I had died here," Millie revealed. "After the battle, I stopped the letter from being sent, but… I could have died during that battle. I could still die in the near future. And in that future, I may not get a chance to send them a letter so they know what happened to me. Of course, I can't really plan for something like that, but… I am wondering if I should go see them in person."

"Hmm, perhaps you should," Jawline encouraged.

"Really?" Millie asked him.

"I think you should go see your family, Mills," Jawline advised. "I think it could do you some good. Don't worry, we'll wait here for you until you get back."

Millie thought about this before smiling up at Jawline.

"Thanks, Jawline," she told him. "Though, I think I should talk to Cain about this first…"

Jawline chuckled. "It shouldn't be hard to find him. He's probably out screwing the locals again…"

In another part of Angerton, Moxxie was helping to replace some damaged steps with new ones for a house.

"Alright, last step," Moxxie said as he and Striker finished installing the steps. "How's the rooftop coming, Chase?"

"Got one more panel to place down," Chase said while he nailed down a panel on the roof.

Once the trio were done fixing up yet another house, they were met by Wesley, who came over bringing them some water.

"Drink up, fellas," Wesley told them, handing them each a bottle of water. "Gotta stay hydrated."

"Thanks, Wesley," Striker responded, looking around at the town while the three of them had their drink. "We sure have made a lot of progress around here."

"Yeah, Angerton is starting to look like its old self," Moxxie commented.

"I would say it looks a bit better than its old self, actually," Wesley pointed out. "Even before the apes came, this town was already falling apart."

"You know, I think that once we're done for today, I'm gonna go looking for that terafrost. It shouldn't be too hard to track down once I find the trail," Chase mentioned.

"I do hope you do find it, Chase," Moxxie told him. "Cause something like that shouldn't be loose around Wrath. Who knows what kind of damage it could cause to the ring's ecosystem, especially during the harvest…"

"Moxxie, there you are," said Momo, who was walking towards him.

"Hey, Momo, what's up?" Moxxie asked, looking up at her.

"Well, I was wondering if we could… talk alone?" Momo asked him while glancing at Chase, Striker, and Wesley.

"Oh, um, yeah, I don't mind," Moxxie replied as he followed away from the guys, who all looked at each other with knowing smiles.

"So how are the relief camps going?" Moxxie asked once he and Momo had some privacy.

"It's going really well, thanks to everyone's efforts. Especially the volunteers from the other towns," Momo replied with a sigh. "But I have been thinking that we've been so busy lately with getting the town repaired… that we have hardly had a chance to talk."

"Yeah, I know," Moxxie regretfully acknowledged. "It's been quite a few days, we've hardly had any free time for anything else other than rest."

"Well, perhaps we could make use of our free time tonight," Momo suggested, turning to him as they walked and talked together. "Like say, how would you like to… have dinner with me?"

Moxxie stopped in his tracks, turning to her and looking up at her in surprise.

"Really?" Moxxie asked her, his tone slightly nervous. "Why, I don't know what to say…"

"Is that a yes or no?" Momo asked while moving her bangs aside from her face.

"I-I mean, I would love to!" Moxxie quickly responded, causing Momo to smile.

"That's all I needed to hear," Momo said to him. "We can have dinner at Scabbeth's Place later tonight. Remember to dress something nice," she said while bending down and patting his cheek. "Sounds like a plan?"

"Y-yeah," Moxxie responded with a smile, Momo smiling back at him.

"Great, see you tonight," Momo said before she strolled away, her tails smoothly and teasingly brushing against his chin.

As Moxxie watched her walk down, he couldn't help but blush heavily, especially from the way her hips swayed. He gave a goofy grin before he turned around and saw Wesley, Striker, and Chase, who were hiding behind the corner of a house in order to spy on the entire exchange.

"Wow, Moxxie, I didn't know you had it in you," Wesley commented as the guys came up to him. "I mean, I've never seen Ms. Momo interested in anyone."

"Congrats on your date, Mox," Striker told him with a proud smile. "First that tall secretary-type dame and now a foxy secretary… I think you have a type."

Moxxie rubbed the back of his neck, blushing slightly from embarrassment. "Come on, guys, i-it's nothing, really," Moxxie claimed, trying to sound humble. "Me and Momo are simply going out to eat…"

"Oh yeah, and then after that you'll be pounding her ass like a trip hammer smashing down on piles of meat," Chase commented, causing everyone to turn to him with shocked expressions.

"Really, Chase?" Moxxie replied. "I don't know if that will lead to that, yet…"

"Of course there is, there's always a good beef-pounding after dinner if everything goes well," Chase said in a surprisingly casual tone. "In fact, if you want my advice you should just skip the date and take her to a private broom closet so you two can go down like a Human Centipede."

For a moment, none of them said a word. They didn't know how to respond to Chase's remark and they looked at him with a mixture of shock and disgust.

"Have you ever even been on a date before?" Striker questioned, breaking the awkward and uneasy silence.

"Nah, to me, dating is just an unnecessary prelude to the fucking," Chase admitted. "I can only just imagine you and Momo going down in bang-town. Yeah," he said as he rubbed his chin. "You could have her legs up on your shoulder while doing it frontal, or back, and she would bite your neck while you moan loudly, then she grips on your thick ass…"

"For the love of Satan, Chase! Have a filter!" Moxxie told him off. "Wesley's right here!"

"I mean, I know what sex is," Wesley admitted. "But even then, yeah, what you're saying is just… really disturbing…"

Chase just shrugged, unbothered by their reactions to his comments.

Meanwhile, back at the inn where Cain was staying, he was just finishing up his shower. He was whistling a tune to himself as he turned off the water, pulled away the shower curtains, and stepped out of the shower stall.

He continued mumbling the little tune as he dried himself with the towel before wrapping it around his waist. He then paused in front of a mirror, which had fogged up. After wiping the glass of the mirror, he checked out his reflection. "Hey, how you doin', ya handsome tomcat?" he asked himself.

While he was looking at himself in the mirror, he ended up glancing down at his chest. He then gave a frown and he took a step away from the mirror to get a good look at his chest… which bore a mark.

It was a red mark that seemed to be carved into his chest. It was a short to long angle line, resembling a 'seven' with two marks under the top line. It was a mark that he possessed for quite a while… it was the Mark of Cain.

It hadn't been long since the conclusion of the Battle of Angerton.

An unhelmeted Cain laid down while being helped out by Mim's mom, who had volunteered to help treat his wounds from the battle.

"Would you please open your vest for me?" Mazzie asked him while in a white button blouse with a blue mid-length skirt, white gloves, and ankle boots.

"I toldya, I'm fine," Cain insisted with a wince.

"Um, I saw you take several bullets while fighting the apes," Mazzie pointed out. "Not to mention you collapsed right afterward."

"I'm fine, really," he claimed. "I heal quickly. I mean, it's not like they were holy bullets."

"That may be true, but I still saw several bullets go into you," she pointed out again. "So even if you do heal quickly, the bullet will be stuck in you and I don't think you want that. Do you?"

"Well, no, but you don't have to do this, you know?" Cain tried to point out.

"Well, you didn't have to save me and my daughter, but you did it nonetheless," she countered.

Cain was unable to respond to this, nor did he bother. He knows that she was right, so he sighed. "Fine. Look away, nurse."

Mazzie then began to open the latches on his vest, allowing her to take it off to see his chest. The imp woman now saw his exposed, muscular chest and she briefly became flustered from the sight of it…

"Like what you see?" Cain teased with a chuckle.

"I… I was just looking at your wounds!" she claimed, blushing a bit before she got serious and began checking his wounds. "Oh, dear," she said, looking at the wounds on his chest, including where the bullets had stuck and where Murdock had stabbed him. "Hmm, these look serious, but they do already appear to be healing. Still, I don't want you to get infected from the wounds," she said before looking at his mark on his chest, forming a curious expression. "Is that a tattoo?" she asked, pointing at the mark.

"I wish," Cain muttered as Mazzie pulled up her medical bag and brought out some tools to help treat his wounds.

She would first wipe off the blood from his chest with a rag with some disinfectant on it, cleaning the area around his wounds. He winced a little, feeling the disinfection sting. Once she finished, she would then use some tweezers to start taking the bullets out of his chest, making him wince in discomfort.

"Gaaah… ahhh," he winced.

"Need something to bite on?" Mazzie asked him.

"Nah, I'm good," he said as he watched her take out the bullets and discard them onto a plate. "It looks like you've done this sort of thing before."

"You think this is uncommon?" Mazzie asked, raising an eyebrow at him. "We're in Wrath; of course I know how to get a bullet out of someone. I mean, I'm not an official doctor or anything, but I know how to clean up wounds."

"So what is your job exactly?" he asked her while she continued to get the bullets out of him.

"I worked several jobs around Angerton, but mainly, I'm a grocer," Mazzie admitted before she began to treat his stab wound. "And what about you, sonny? What in the hot sun are you?"

"Um… beg your pardon?" he asked, slightly confused.

"Well, I'm asking about what you are, considering that I don't think you're a normal Hellborn," she clarified. "Especially since this stab wound…" She gestured to the wound Murdock had given him. "Definitely should have killed you."

"What if I told you this mark means that I can't die?" Cain asked, pointing to the Mark of Cain on his chest.

"Is that what it does?" Mazzie asked, curious.

"Nah," Cain said, shaking his head. "If only it just meant that…"

Cain continued to stare at his reflection before he let out a sigh. He then turned around to head back into his bedroom, where he looked down and noticed his helmet lying on the wooden floor. He bent down and picked it up from the floor, staring at it. He stared at the helmet for a while… until he heard someone trying to get his attention.

"Um, hey, Cain."

Cain turned and saw that Mazzie was still in his room. She was dressed in fresh clothing consisting of a pink blouse with a red ascot, mid-length jean skirt, and brown boots.

"Mazzie, you're… still here," he said, blinking in surprise. He had expected her to have already left by the time he finished his shower.

"Well, yeah," she admitted, her eyes wandering over his body, which was still naked except for the towel wrapped around his waist. She began twirling her hair with one of her hands. "Holly and Gigi have already left, but… I didn't feel comfortable just running out."

"Really?" he asked. He noticed her staring at him, but he didn't mind as he gathered his clothes and began to change into them.

"Well, it's just…" Mazzie said as she shifted her eyes away from him, feeling flustered. "This kind of thing is… it isn't like me. Having a one-night stand, I mean," she clarified. "You have to understand that I haven't been with many men. The last one being Mim's father, rest his soul…"

"Hey, you don't have to worry about anything," he said as he got dressed, putting on his trousers and then his armor. "I mean, it isn't a big deal, really. It's just sex."

"Just… sex," she repeated while looking down. When she looked back up, she saw that Cain was fully dressed now, holding his helmet under arm. As she wondered whether she should leave or not, she got an idea. "Um… would you… well, like to come with me to see Mim?" she offered. "I'm sure she would like to see you again."

"Sure," he replied with a smile, making Mazzie smile as well. He was about to put his helmet on… but then he stopped himself. He looked at the helmet before he decided to place it on his bed. "You know what? Maybe I won't need this today," he said as he walked out of the room with Mazzie, leaving the helmet behind.

As Cain and Mazzie walked out into the hallway, they noticed Millie sitting by the steps, waiting for him. When she saw the unhelmeted Cain, she stood up.

"Cainy," she said to him. "Um, can I talk with ya for a moment?"

"Sure, Millie," Cain responded with a nod while turning to Mazzie. "Care to give me a few minutes?"

"Of course, I'll wait for you outside," Mazzie replied as she walked away, leaving Cain with Millie.

Once Mazzie was gone, Cain looked down at Millie. "So what's up, Mills?"

"Well, it's just… it's about my family," Millie told him. "Since it has been a while and we are not planning on going anywhere, I decided that I want to go down to see my family and check up on them. If that's fine with ya, I mean."

"Hey, it's no problem," he assured her with a smile.

"Really?" she asked him, her eyes shining lightly.

"Yeah, that actually sounds like a great idea," Cain told her. "Go ahead and check up on your folks. We'll meet back up later when you're done."

Millie smiled. "Thank you, Cain. You have no idea how much I appreciate this…"

"Wait, hang on, I think I remembered something," Cain said as he rushed back to his room. Millie waited a few moments and he came back carrying a bag. "Catch!" he shouted, tossing the bag to her.

Millie caught the bag and she opened it up, her eyes widening when she saw the souls inside. "Whoa… is this…?"

"Consider it a gift for your parents from me," Cain told her. "Courtesy of those ape bodies I searched after the battle."

Millie looked up and gave him a smile. "Thank you, Cain. Although, I do admit there's been something else on my mind lately…" she said with a frown. "Like… what exactly are we going to do now?"

"Um, what do you mean?" he asked her with a concerned expression.

"I mean, look at how many of us there are now," Millie pointed out. "There's not much of the Knights of Hell left, since there's only you, me, and Jawline…"

"Well, we could just recruit new members like we did before," he suggested. He briefly paused, considering something before shrugging it off. "But hey, we'll talk about it some more when you're done visiting with your family. You can spend as much time as you want with them, since there is no rush, just… take care, alright?" he asked with a smile while kneeling down and patting her shoulder.

Millie smiled back and went to embrace him in a hug. "You too, Cainy," she said to him as Cain hugged her back. "Try to not let yourself get stabbed again, okay?"

Cain chuckled. "No promises."

Millie walked out of the inn and went towards her motorcycle, which was parked right outside. She placed her mask back on before she climbed onto her motorcycle, revved it up, and made her leave, hitting the road and driving away from Angerton.

As she rode, the sound of her motorcycle reminded her of the first time that motorcycles drove up to her family's farm…

Several years ago…

Millie was working at her family's farm, shoveling food into the feed troughs for the hell pigs. After that, she then went to feed the hell chickens. But as she was carrying the chicken feed to the coop, she heard a distant sound and she stopped. She turned around in the direction of the sound. "What the…?"

In the distance, she saw what looked like a cloud of dust. And it seemed to be getting close as the sound she heard was getting closer and louder. After a moment, she realized that the sound she was hearing… was the sounds of motorbikes and the dust she was seeing… was the dust being kicked up by an approaching motorcycle gang…

And they were heading straight for the farm.

"Crap!" Millie shouted as she ran from the coop, dropping the chicken feed in her rush as she ran toward her house. "Mama! Daddy!" she shouted as she threw open the door and ran inside, her family seeing her frantic and panicked expression.

"What is it, Millie?" Lin asked her.

"Outside! There's a biker gang coming this way!" Millie shouted.

"What?!" Lin asked in shock, her brothers looking shocked as well.

"Strom, my gun," Joe said as Strom handed him his shotgun. "Ain't no way I'm allowin' those ruffians to mess with my land!" he declared as he went out.

Once he stepped out of the porch, he saw the biker gang coming to a stop in front of his farm. There were seven of them in total, all of them wearing distinct helmets. Joe immediately realized who they were…

"The Knights of Hell," Joe said while glaring at them. Though he didn't show it, he was afraid. Not necessarily what the Knights of Hell would do to him, but what they might do to his family. He had heard of the Knights of Hell from some of his friends. He knew their reputation…

"Howdy there," spoke the leader of the Knights of Hell, Cain, while his gang held up their weapons.

"Lin, keep the kids inside!" Joe warned Lin, who realized from his tone how serious the situation was. She nodded and moved to keep her daughter and her boys inside.

"Hurry now, get in," Lin told them, putting herself between them and the front door as she tried to herd her children further into the house.

"But mama, what about-" Millie tried to protest, but Lin hushed her up.

"Millie, stay in the house," Lin told her through her teeth while getting Millie, Salvor, Strom, and Fisk inside the house. Millie looked over at her brothers, all of them sharing expressions of concern for their father.

"Your father is going to be fine," Lin said, seeing that concern and wanting to reassure them. "He can handle this."

Outside, there was a stand-off happening, Joe keeping his gun up and his gaze narrowed. Despite their mother trying to stop them, Millie and her brothers managed to get to a window where they could watch the stand-off through. The tension between Joe and the Knights was so thick, you could cut it like butter.

"I assume from your reaction that you know who we are," Cain told Joe. He was still wearing the white helmet-mask with large horns sticking out of it. He chuckled. "Our reputation precedes us."

"Just what in Satan's hell do you want from my farm?" Joe asked.

"Why, it's simple really," Cain replied to him. "You see, when we are on the road for a long time, we get hungry. I've got some hungry mouths to feed, just like you." He gestured to the farmhouse where Joe's family was taking shelter. "You've got your family and I've got mine. And I think you can understand wanting to take care of that family, not wanting to let bad anything-"

"What do you want?" Joe asked.

"Hmm… I think your hell hogs would feed us for a while," Cain told Joe. "We'll just take them and we can be out of your hair and our merry way."

"What?! You can't just take away my hell pigs!" Joe told them off.

"Hell pigs, hell hogs, makes no difference to me," Cain told him with a shrug. "Because here's the thing, farmer, we're not asking…"

"Yeah! The Knights of Hell don't ask!" declared a younger Graff. He, along with Jawline, were the only other recognizable Knights with this group.

"We take!" declared another member of the Knights. He appeared to be wearing a black sleeveless vest with some metal plated armor. He wore a metal mask that resembled the head of a gorilla, with a German helmet on top. He also wore ripped jeans and a belt.

"Well, you all ain't takin' anything from my farm!" Joe declared as he aimed his shotgun at Cain, ready to shoot…

BANG!

"GAH!" Joe cried out while getting shot in the arm.

As Joe cried out in pain, Cain then threw something from his bike at Joe. It was a hook attached to a chain. The hook pierced Joe in the chest and Cain tugged on the chain, sending Joe flying from the porch and landing in front of the Knights of Hell. The shotgun landed on the ground near him, but before Joe could try to reach it, Cain kicked it away.

"Daddy!" Millie cried out as she ran out of her home.

"Millie, wait!" Lin shouted as she tried to stop her, but Millie was already rushing to her father's aid.

"Now hold it right there, little lady," Cain told her and she stopped when she saw the shortest Knight of Hell, an imp wearing a bucket helmet with his white mustache being exposed, aiming a gun at her. He was the one who had shot Joe. "I'd advise you to take a nice step back, unless you want to get shot dead by Gnat. And I don't think your daddy would want to see his lovely daughter shot in front of him, would you?" He pulled the hook out of Joe, causing Joe to grunt in pain. "What do you think, farmer? Do you want to see your daughter shot dead? Of course, that would be a waste. Both your daughter and your wife look mighty fine…"

"Why you…!" Millie shouted, her blood boiling, but her father called out to her.

"Millie, stop!" Joe shouted despite the pain he was in. "Do not let him get to you!"

"Hey!" Cain shouted as he kicked Joe in the chest, making him yield. "That's for talking without my permission, ya hear?!"

Joe looked up at Cain, his gaze defiant. "Fuck-"

Unfortunately, Joe didn't get to finish, since Cain cut him off by kicking him again. Then Cain pounced on Joe and began to punch him over and over again,

"This… will… teach… you… some… things!" Cain shouted while beating on Joe.

"Daddy!" Millie cried out, nearly running forward, but then she saw the other Knights pulling out their weapons and brandishing them, making it clear what would happen if she tried to intervene. Millie felt torn, worried that Cain would murder her father if she didn't do anything, but also worried that Cain and the Knights would kill her father, her, and then her entire family if she gave them an excuse.

"Don't move a muscle," spoke the mustached short imp.

"Yeah, don't interrupt the boss when he's venting," said a slimmer Knight of Hell, an imp who wore a metal helmet with a V-shaped visor. He sat on his bike twirling his knives.

Millie couldn't help but watch in horror as she was forced to witness her father getting beaten to a pulp by Cain.

"S-Stop it! Please!" she cried out, wanting to do something but feeling completely helpless and powerless.

However, Cain stopped himself when he heard her plea. He looked up at her and then looked down at Joe, who was barely conscious. Cain chuckled and let Joe go before he stood up and adjusted his vest.

"How did it feel?" he asked Millie.

"W-what?" Millie asked.

"How did it feel to have no power?" Cain asked Millie. "Because you don't have any power here. All the power… belongs to me. Your father only lives… because I choose it. And I want you to remember that. I could kill your father, I could kill you, I could kill your entire family and burn your farm to the ground. But I won't. You want to know why?"

Millie didn't answer. Instead, she just silently glared at Cain.

Behind his mask, Cain grinned. "Because I don't feel like it."

He then looked down at Joe. "You are nothing," he told the imp farmer. "You're just a farmer, you work with dirt. To me, your life is worth dirt. But I will let you live, your family live, because it amuses me at the moment."

He then looked up to address Millie and her family. "Consider this a warning to those who dare to stand up against the Knights of Hell." he warns them, "Hopefully, you all get the message. We'll be taking your hell hogs, and then we will leave. Everyone okay with that?"

Lin, Millie, and her brothers said nothing, as they were forced to yield.

"Great," Cain said before he turned to his gang. "Alright, grab the hogs and we go."

"How are we going to carry them?" asked the buffed imp biker. "Should we kill them first?"

Cain just sighed, his tone becoming sarcastic. "Of course we aren't, Brutus, I mean it's not like- of course we're getting them dead! Hurry up!" he ordered.

The rest of the Knights wasted no time as they went to the pig pen. They quickly slaughtered most of the pigs, placing their bodies in the burlap sack. The living pigs all backed into a corner out of fear, seeing their brethren killed in front of them.

"Alright, that's enough for all seven of us," Cain said as Graff and Jawline walked back to the bikes with their bags. He then turned to Millie and her family, giving them a sarcastic smile behind his helmet. "Welp, we better head off. Thank you for being such good hosts," he told the family before he returned to his bike. "Knights of Hell! Move out!"

The Knights then revved up their bikes and drove away from the farm, leaving behind a badly beaten Joe and his shaken family. Once the Knights were gone, Millie immediately rushed over to her father.

"Dad!" Millie cried out as she went to check up on her father while Lin and the boys also rushed to Joe's aid while Joe was fading in and out of consciousness.

"Joe… oh Joe, this is…" Lin cried while hugging her husband.

"Dad…" Salvor said while holding his father's hand while Strom and Fisk sat by his side.

But as she and her family reacted to this horrific tragedy they had just experienced, Millie found herself feeling one emotion that was even stronger than her concern for her father: hatred.

Hatred for Cain and his Knights of Hell.

And she knew that they were going to pay for this.

Millie found it strange to look back at that memory now, since she had gone from hating the Knights of Hell to riding with the Knights of Hell.

However, she knew all too well why she had made that choice.

And as she thought about this to herself, she continued to look ahead, at the road before her… the road that would lead her back home.

Later in Angerton, Striker was setting up his saddle on a hellhorse. With him were Moxxie, Wesley, and Chase, who were there to see him getting ready to set off.

"I must apologize for not staying here longer," Striker admitted while turning to them after he finished saddling his horse. "But I really need to get back to my son. I only stayed here as long as I did after the battle to make sure that Wesley was going to recover."

"Well, I can walk at the very least," Wesley said with a smile.

"I have no issue with this, Striker," Moxxie said, nodding in understanding. "You have to get back to your son. You already risked a lot coming here for little reward and you already did more than you needed to by staying around as long as you did."

"I wouldn't say I did it for little reward," Striker said while looking at the bags his horse was carrying. He smiled. "Normally I would protest against looting bodies for souls, but in the case of those demon apes, I have no problem making an exception. But in any case, I didn't do it for the souls."

"Yeah, I know you didn't," Moxxie acknowledged. "And that is why… this means so much."

"Angerton owes you a debt, sir," Wesley added.

"Nah, it doesn't," Striker said. "Coming here… it was the right thing to do. In my line of work, I don't always get to do what one might consider to be 'morally right'. Not that it bothers me most of the time, since I can't always afford to be in the 'right'. But in this case, to get to do something right, to do something that I can be proud of… it feels good." He nodded to Moxxie. "Thank you for giving me the opportunity."

"And thank you for agreeing to come and for you help in protecting this town, Striker," Moxxie told him.

"It was the least I could do," Striker replied as he held his hand up. "I'll be seeing you around, Mox."

"You too, Striker," Moxxie replied as they shook hands, the respect between them evident.

"And to think this only happened because we met by chance at a stud auction," Striker said with a chuckle. "Oh, and one more thing, Mox… I wish you good luck on your date," Striker told him with a wink, making Moxxie look bashful. "Treat that Ms. Momo right, you hear?"

He then turned to Wesley, his expression softening a bit. "Goodbye, Wesley. Take care of yourself. And keep your shooting skills sharp, alright?"

Wesley gave him a nod. "Thank you, Mr. Striker."

Striker then turned to Chase. Rather than either of them saying a word, they instead both shared a nod of respect between them. Then Striker tipped his hat.

"Well then… I best be off," Striker declared as he climbed onto his horse. "Yah!" he shouted as he got his horse to start running.

Moxxie, Wesley, Chase, and some of the nearby townsfolk watched Striker ride out of Angerton and away until he was out of sight. Once he was gone, Moxxie gave a sigh before he and the rest turned around and began to walk away.

It was time to get back to work.

Meanwhile, Cain was facing off against someone…

"So you want to challenge me, eh?" he asked with a grin. "Then let our duel… commence!"

He then brought up his weapon… a wooden sword.

And his opponent, Mim, brought up a wooden sword as well.

"Hai!" Mim declared as she jumped forward and clashed her wooden sword against Cain's. The two dueled each other with their wooden swords with an audience of kids watching them. They were all outside, near the tents that had been set up. The kids cheered Mim on as she fought the leader of the Knights of Hell in a pretend duel.

"Alright, watch your footing, tighten up your posture," Cain instructed as he and Mim swung their wooden swords at each other. Mim took his advice while also looking for an opening. When she thought she saw one, she launched her wooden sword at him, but Cain blocked it easily.

"Nice try, kid," Cain replied with a smile before he went for a telegraphed swing, allowing Mim to duck underneath his wooden blade and swing her own blade at his leg. "Ooh, you got me!"

"Haha! I win!" Mim declared.

"Yes, you have, my fellow knight," Cain said as he knelt down in mock defeat, a huge smile on his face. "I'm afraid you've beaten me at my best." He then turned to the other kids. "Now, are there any brave knights who dare to challenge the undefeated Marvelous Madam Mim?"

"Me/I will/I'll go!" the other kids shouted as they raised their hands up.

"Alright, how about… you, little guy," Cain said as he pointed to one kid, who stepped up to face Mim. Cain handed him his wooden sword. "Good luck," he said before walking over to Mim and kneeling down to whisper in her ear. "Show no mercy, kid."

Mim nodded and as the other imp kid held his wooden sword, Mim charged at him with a battle cry. "Yaaah!" she shouted as she and the kid fought. Cain cheered for Mim, who quickly fought her enemy to the ground and began hitting the poor imp boy over and over again with the wooden sword.

"Yes! Vanquish thy enemy!" Cain cheered as Mim kept hitting her opponent while Mazzie came rushing over, having heard the commotion and seen the gathering of kids.

"Cain, what's going on here?" she asked.

"Oh, hey Maz," Cain replied with a casual tone. "Just teaching the kids how to be knights."

Mazzie turned and saw her daughter practically beating the poor boy to the ground, alarming her. "Mim! Okay, you've had enough!" she shouted as she rushed over to her daughter, pulling her away from her opponent.

"But mom, I haven't finished vanquishing!" Mim replied.

I think you've had enough of vanquishing for today," Mazzie said while turning to Cain. "Um, thank you for watching over my daughter for me."

"No problem, ma'am," Cain responded as he walked over and helped the imp boy up, brushing him as well. "But I must say, your daughter is quite spirited. She could be quite the Wrathian warrior someday."

"Well, I don't know about that," Mazzie said with a frown while holding her daughter's hand. "I don't wish for my Mim to grow up to be a warrior."

"Aw, really?" Cain asked, disappointed.

"Hey, Cain!" Jawline shouted, earning Cain's attention and causing him to turn to see the shark demon. "Can we have a chat?"

"Well, duty calls," Cain said before he turned to the imps. "Later, Maz, later Mim, later kids," he told them as he started to walk toward Jawline. Mazzie couldn't help but watch him walk away while shaking her head.

Cain went to join Jawline in the shadow of a building. "So what's the buzz, Jawline?"

"Well, it's just…" Jawline said, sounding a bit awkward as he looked down. "Well, as odd as it sounds, I've taken some time and done some thinking, and… I'm considering leaving."

Cain gave a shocked expression. "W-What? Leaving?!"

"Look Cain, I've read the writing on the wall, and well," Jawline said with a sigh. "There's not much of the Knights of Hell left at this point. Four of us got killed during the last battle and Millie's gone off to go see her family."

"Hey, Millie's going to come back," Cain pointed out. "And then we will recruit some new Knights, like we've done before. It's not like the gang's not splitting up for good-"

"But I've also seen you with the kid," Jawline pointed out, causing Cain to pause.

Cain and Jawline were silent for a while, Cain waiting for Jawline to accuse him of growing soft. But much to his surprise, Jawline made no such accusations. He didn't seem to be criticizing Cain for spending time with Mim either, merely making an observation.

"Where exactly is this coming from, Jawline?" Cain asked.

"Well, remember when we went back to Murdock's base to raid his stash… only for the place to be cleared out?" Jawline asked him.

"Oh… yeah, I know," Cain replied, rubbing the back of his head, assuming that his comrade was disappointed over the bigger payday, especially considering the cost they paid during the battle "Well, I understand feeling letdown over that and I will admit that I overestimated the score we were going to make from this, Jaw."

"That's not the only thing. I don't think that we were just beaten to the base by the survivors of Murdock's army," Jawline told him.

"What… what do you mean?" Cain asked, looking in Jawline in confusion.

"Look, I've had a lot of time to think about that battle," Jawline admitted. "Like… how some of Murdock's apes had magical powers and how Murdock had that ice monster. Murdock had a lot of resources at his disposal."

"That's why we stopped Murdock, right?" Cain pointed out. "Because he was dangerous, he was well-equipped, and he was getting stronger."

"Yeah, but those were resources that Murdock shouldn't even have had," Jawline pointed out, causing Cain to get a realization.

"You… you think someone was supplying Murdock?" Cain asked, causing Jawline to nod.

"I think Murdock… was just a pawn," Jawline admitted. "A pawn of someone even more powerful than him…"

Cain thought it over. "Someone who could have cleared the base to remove the evidence…" he muttered before looking up at Jawline. "Wait, are you afraid this third party is going to come after us?"

Jawline nearly laughed. "I'm not afraid," he said. "I just think… that this is much bigger than us. A few years ago, we wouldn't have to worry about this kind of stuff in Wrath. Things are changing… and I'm worried about the place that Wrath is becoming,"

Jawline looked down as he continued. "I should have mentioned this earlier, but… those mobsters from Greed… they actually offered me a position as a mob enforcer. Before they left."

"Really?" Cain asked in surprise.

"Yeah, and I have been thinking about their offer," Jawline admitted, sounding slightly ashamed. "Because it's a good offer with good pay and working in Greed could be a nice change for me… but I haven't decided on anything yet."

He looked up at Cain, who was silent for a moment, his face difficult to read. After a moment, he took a deep breath. "Well… I don't think I would stop you if you tried to leave, Jawline."

"Really?" Jawline asked him.

"Yeah, but can I ask for you to stay at least until Millie comes back?" Cain asked him, smiling at Jawline. "I mean, she'll probably kill you if you didn't say goodbye."

Jawline chuckled at that. "Yeah, that's probably true."

"If you do decide that you want to leave, well… I wish you the best of luck, pal," Cain said as he patted Jawline's shoulder.

"Yeah, we've had a good journey together, sir," Jawline admitted with a smile. He then chuckled again. "I still remember how during the first time we met, I wanted to eat ya alive…"

Several years ago, at an old barn, an elderly imp farmer came out while wearing a straw hat, overalls, gloves, and boots. He was holding a cane which he needed in order to walk.

"Up and early in the morning," the old farmer said. "Ain't that right… Alex?"

Coming out of the barn behind the imp farmer was Alex before he was known as Cain. Back then, he was not the leader of the Knights of Hell. Instead, he was just a farmhand. He was wearing a red button-up shirt, blue overalls, brown boots, and gray work gloves

"You know it, sir," Alex replied with a smile. "Now then, where to start?"

Alex started doing the chores around the farmer, helping old Farmer Will out, since the old imp was too elderly to do all of these tasks by himself, hence his need for a younger and much stronger farmhand like Alex.

First, Alex went to collect the eggs from the coop while Farmer Will spread out some feed for the hell chickens to eat.

Next, Alex was fixing up the fence for the hell pig pen while Farmer Will poured a bucket of muck into the feeding trough that the hell pigs ate from.

Then Alex used a broom to sweep out the barn, which doubled as his bedroom since it was where Farmer Will let him sleep at night. After he finished cleaning up the barn, he walked out and noticed the faded colors on the outside.

"Your barn looks like it needs a new coat of paint, Will," Alex noted as Will came over.

"Hmm, indeed you're right," he replied before letting out a cough. When Alex heard the cough, he immediately turned to the imp farmer out of concern.

"Are you okay, sir? Do you need water?" Alex asked him.

"I-I'll be fine," Will said with a cough.

Alex, however, was still worried. "You should go inside," he suggested. "Get yourself some water and sit down outside of the sun for a while."

"I can't do that," Farmer Will told Alex. "I have to pick up my prescribed medication at the pharmacy."

"I can go down to town to get you your medicine, sir," Alex offered while leading Farmer Will toward the house.

"Oh, I don't want you to go through all that trouble," Farmer Will told him, but Alex insisted.

"It will be no trouble at all, sir. I'll be much faster than you in any case." Alex told him.

Farmer Will couldn't argue against that. "Well, alright then," he said as they made it back to his house. "Thank you, Alex."

"You're welcome, sir," Alex said as he opened the door for Farmer Will, though he had to duck down while passing through the door because of how much taller he was than the imp.

Farmer Will looked up at Alex with a smile. "You're a good soul, Alex," he told the feline demon. "A damn good soul. You've been so good to me."

Alex smiled at this. "Only because you've been so good to me, sir," he told the imp farmer, remembering how Will offered him a place to stay. "I am only trying to repay your kindness."

After helping Will sit down and getting him some water, Alex then departed the house and began the journey to town in order to get Farmer Will's medicine.

Once he was in town, Alex headed for the pharmacy. While walking, he noticed that some of the townsfolk were staring at him. They looked at him with a mix of emotions. Mostly a mix of dislike, suspicion… and fear.

It didn't bother him, as he was used to these looks by now. Even though he had been working for Farmer Will for a while, the locals had not warmed up to him. It didn't help that Alex had not shared his background with anyone. Fortunately, most of the townsfolk just assumed he was a really big Hellcat, since most of them had never seen a Goetia demon before and had no idea what a Goetia demon looked like. But even if they didn't know what Alex actually was, he was still a stranger in a part of Wrath that wasn't fond of strangers. Still, he stayed focused on finding the pharmacy, which he entered.

"Excuse me," Alex spoke up to the pharmacist. "I'm here to pick up a prescription."

"Name?" the Baphomet pharmacist asked.

"This is for Will," he replied.

"Ah, you must be that new farmhand of his," the pharmacist said as he went to pick up the medicine. "It should be right at the—"

Suddenly, the two heard shouting coming from outside. Alex turned and looked out the window, seeing some of the townsfolk running away.

"What the…?" Alex asked as he went outside to check. He saw that the townsfolk were clearing the street, many of them rushing into buildings and shutting their doors and windows.

"What's going on?" Alex asked.

"Run! They're here!" a townsperson shouted before Alex caught up to him.

"Hey, why's everyone running?" Alex asked him.

"It's the Knights of Hell, man!" the townsperson told him. "The Knights of Hell are comin'! Run in fear! Run in fear!" he shouted before jumping into a barrel to hide.

"Knights of Hell?" Alex asked in confusion before hearing the sound of motorcycles revving up into town. He turned around and saw a gang consisting of seven bikers driving into the town. By now, most of the townsfolk closed up their shops and doors, trying to hide from the biker gang.

"My Knights of Hell! Feast on their fear!" their leader declared as they drove down the road. "Take all you want!"

"Yee-haw!" Gnat shouted as he shot into the air with his guns.

Brutus and Jawline picked up some trash cans and threw them at the shop windows, shattering them. They then climbed through the store window and took whatever they could get their hands on—food from one window and clothes from another.

Graff rode his bike around the town, spraying graffiti on everything he could while Scorch, the slim imp who wore a metal helmet with a V-shaped visor, kicked down some barrels, including the one that a townsperson was hiding in. The townsperson cried out in fear and Scorch, realizing that one of the barrels had an unlucky occupant, kicked it, sending it rolling away with the scared townsperson inside.

"Yeah! That's what I'm talking about!" Scorch declared.

All the while this was going on, Alex watched in shock. He began to back away, but then he noticed Jawline coming out of a store window. For some reason, the biker had decided to grab a bunch of dresses from the store. Jawline also noticed him, the two of them locking eyes. The shark demon then grinned and charged at him.

"You look tasty!" Jawline shouted as he ran toward Alex with his jaws wide and his teeth bared.

"Whoa, wait!" Alex shouted as he waved his arms in front of him. He saw Jawline coming toward him… until they both heard someone shout.

"Jawline, stop!" the leader of the Knights of Hell shouted, causing Jawline to stop immediately in his tracks.

Alex let out a sigh of relief before he saw the leader of the Knights of Hell driving his bike toward him. Said biker stopped his bike in front of Alex, the biker getting a good look at the feline Goetia. Alex likewise got a good look at the biker, including a white helmet that the biker began to remove.

"Hi, kid," said an imp man with dark tan-red skin and white mullet hair. Both of his horns were broken, he had white markings across his left cheek, and there were some spots running down to his neck.

This was Cain.

Specifically, this was the Cain that Millie had met when the Knights of Hell were at her family's farm. The Cain that led the Knights of Hell before Alex.

"So… what do you think?" Cain asked Alex with a smile.

Back in the present, Cain stared at Jawline for a moment, remembering their first meeting… before he burst into laughter.

"Hahahaha! Oh yeah, you definitely wanted to eat me!" Cain replied.

"Yeah, and you were just standing there like a deer at headlights!" Jawline laughed as well, the two of them laughing together.

"Heh, I could've taken you on," Cain said while patting Jawline's back.

"Probably," Jawline chuckled. "Probably…"

Later in the day, Moxxie was getting ready for his date… with some help, of course, since with him were Mayor Dirk and Wesley.

"How's the suit, my boy?" Dirk asked him. They were all in Dirk's office, where Moxxie was trying on a blue tailored suit with a black bowtie, yellow buttons, a white buttoned shirt underneath, and black pants.

"This is a good suit, sir," Moxxie replied while looking at himself in the mirror, smiling a little. "I will admit that I wasn't sure about this black bowtie, but it does compliment the blue coat. But do you think Momo will like this?"

"Oh, I'm sure she will, Moxxie," Dirk assured him.

"Yeah," Wesley agreed. "You look real classy in this suit."

"I hope it is to her liking," Moxxie said. "And I also hope that this town will be alright while me and Momo do this… I mean, there are still repairs to be done, and yet me and Momo are going on a date…"

Moxxie began to overthink things, but fortunately Dirk was there to step in and pull him out of a potential spiral.

"My boy, try not to worry about these things," Dirk advised him. "Not tonight. You have been working hard over the past few days and I am certain that your efforts aren't going to completely fall apart because you decide to take one evening off. So try not to worry about everything else and everyone else for a few hours. Instead, just let yourself have a good time with Momo."

"You… really believe that, sir?" Moxxie asked the mayor.

"I believe that we will be able to handle things just fine without you and Momo for a while and I believe that you two deserve this," Dirk said while patting Moxxie's back.

"He's right," Wesley said with a smile. "Mox, you and Momo could use the night, especially with how hard you two have been working yourselves."

Moxxie looked back at himself in the mirror and saw his worries slowly vanish as he put on a smile. "Yeah, I guess, we do deserve to treat ourselves to at least one date."

"That's the spirit," Dirk said with a proud smile. "I wish you good luck on your date, my boy."

"Thank you, sir," Moxxie said while looking at Dirk. "And thank you for your help in getting ready."

"You're welcome," Dirk told Moxxie. "Besides, I care a lot about Momo. I want this night to go well for her just as much as I want it to go well for you."

"I will treat her well, sir," Moxxie promised.

Dirk smiled warmly. "I know you will, Moxxie," he said while patting Moxxie on the back. "You're a good imp, son." He looked Moxxie over as Moxxie wore one of his old suits, bursting with what seemed like pride. Almost fatherly pride.

And upon hearing these kind words from Dirk, not to mention seeing his warm fatherly expression… Moxxie suddenly found himself becoming overwhelmed by his emotions and he began to tear up, much to the surprise of Dirk and Wesley.

"Moxxie, are you alright?" Dirk asked him with a worried tone.

"Y-Yeah," he replied with a sniff while wiping his face.

Moxxie didn't quite understand why he was crying, at least until he tried to think back to the last time that he had actually been on a date. It must have been with Chaz and he then remembered how his father had reacted to him dating Chaz. It hadn't been with kind support and affirmation like he was getting from Dirk.

No, instead he had gotten only disappointment and slurs.

And getting that approval and encouragement now from an older, fatherly imp figure… it made Moxxie realize how new to him this kind of response actually was.

"I guess it's just… I… I'm just not used to this kind of thing…" Moxxie admitted while trying to dry his face.

Dirk looked sympathetic to Moxxie. While he didn't know Moxxie's story, he understood enough and he went to hug Moxxie, comforting him.

"There, there, it's alright, Moxxie," he said while Wesley came over to pat Moxxie on the back as well.

"Thank you," Moxxie said while he tried to put himself back together again. "Thank you so much, both of you…"

Sometime later, at the restaurant, Moxxie entered to meet up with Momo. He looked around and saw the place looking quite well after its repairs, the walls lined with photos and with barrels serving as the tables.

"Glad you could make it, Moxxie."

Hearing Momo's voice, Moxxie turned to see her… and his eyes widened upon seeing Momo in a sleeveless jade green qipao dress with flowery patterns. The dress went down to her knees with a split. She was also wearing white heels and her hair was tied in a bun, with some of her bangs left out over her forehead.

"You look good in your suit, Mox," Momo complimented.

Moxxie blushed. "T-thanks, and you look good in your dress, too, Momo," he replied, slightly flustered.

"Thank you," Momo replied with a smile. "I decided that I would try to look…"

"Entrancing?" Moxxie asked.

"Yes," Momo said with her own blush. "That was what I was trying to go for."

"You pull it off very well," Moxxie told her.

Momo smiled. "Why don't we take our seats?" she asked before she and Moxxie approached a member of the waiting staff. "We have a reservation here, a table for two."

"Ah, Ms. Momo, and Mr. Moxxie, you needn't say anything more, let me lead you to your table," the waiter replied as he led the two to their table where, in the middle, were some lit candles. "Now would you two like your choice of fresh wine?"

"Some wine would be nice," Momo replied before turning to Moxxie. "Any preferences?"

After they made their orders and the waiter brought them their wine, the two began to talk about their day.

"So how has your day been, Moxxie? Did anything in particular happen?" Momo asked while the two drank.

"Well, I saw Striker off," Moxxie informed her.

"Oh?" Momo asked. "Your friend has decided to leave?"

"He needed to get back to his son, Douglas," Moxxie explained.

"Ah," Momo replied. "Well, I wish him the best of luck. Although me and the mayor could have been there to thank him again before he left."

"He didn't find it necessary," Moxxie explained. "He didn't do this for the souls or the thanks. He did it because of his principles."

"I understand," Momo said with a nod. "Just as I understand his need to get back to his son. What about you, Moxxie? Is there anyone out there you have to return to?"

"Well… there is Blitz and Loona," Moxxie answered. "Blitz is my most recent employer."

"And this Loona?" Momo asked.

"His adopted daughter, a Hellhound teenager," Moxxie explained. "I think more than often than not, she has more sense than he does." He chuckled slightly. " "But nonetheless, I am grateful toward Blitz. I was… at rock bottom when I met him. But he brought me under his wing as his right-hand-man and helped me get back on my feet. I appreciate everything he's given me, even if our job can sometimes be a bit… chaotic."

"This Bliz sounds like one hell of a boss," Momo commented.

"Yeah," Moxxie said while nodding in agreement "And if you ask Loona, he's also a hell of a dad."

"So what kind of jobs do you do?" she asked him.

"We work for an Overlord in Pride," Moxxie revealed, surprising Momo. "He has us do some deliveries, some escort missions, and territory takeovers… it all depends on what Mr. Khan wants."

"You work for this Blitz and he is the one that works for this Overlord?" Momo asked.

"Yeah, that's pretty much the deal," Moxxie admitted. "I can't say I'm completely happy with working for an Overlord, but the pay is at least good and it is better to be on good terms with an Overlord than to be on bad terms with an Overlord."

Momo nodded. "So why didn't your boss come to help you?" she asked.

"He was watching over some kids," Moxxie explained. "Not just Loona, but also Striker's son and a hellpup named Amaroq. He couldn't bring the kids with him to Angerton, that was too dangerous, and he didn't want to leave them unattended either. But he is actually the reason Chase came to help, since Blitz met Chase while doing a job for Mr. Khan."

"So your boss and his daughter are both waiting for you to finish here. But didn't you also say that you had family here? From your mother's side?" Momo asked him.

"You're right, I did say that," Moxxie admitted. "And I used coming down here with my boss and his daughter as an excuse to reconnect with them. Actually, I was visiting them right before I met Wesley and he brought me here. I hadn't visited them in a long time and they were delighted to see me."

"That does sound good," Momo said. "What can you tell me about them?"

"They're all generally kind imps, all from my mother's side," Moxxie explained. "There's my Abuela and Abuelito, Mala and Mark. Then there's their daughter Margentina, who is my aunt. She's a dance teacher that specializes in salsa dancing."

"Ooh, I've always been meaning to sign up for one of those classes," Momo replied with a smile.

"Her husband is Machete, he's a trade for hire. Electricity, catering, repairs, if you can name it, he can probably do it," Moxxie mentioned. "Honestly, I probably could have asked him to come help with rebuilding the town, but I imagine he would be busy. Margentina and Machete also have five children. Their oldest is Ruby, who is a great grudgeby player. They have three boys, triplets in fact. Their names are Jazz, Jive, and Jam and they are mariachis. The youngest is the baby girl Rosalina, who I swear is just as sweet as the Princess of Hell."

"You sound like you have a good family, Moxxie," Momo said. "You said they were all from your mother's side. So what about your mother? What is she like?"

Moxxie paused, thinking about his mother. "My mom, Scarlet…" He gave a sigh. "She was the best. Really. Rest her soul…"

"Oh," Momo said as she realized what he meant. She reached across the table and patted his hand. "I'm sorry to hear that, Moxxie. You have my condolences," she asked him. "What about your father?" Moxxie's facial reaction when she asked that told her all that she needed to know. "Oh… forget what I said," she said while looking down. "Sorry, Moxxie."

"You don't need to apologize for anything, Momo," Moxxie replied with a sigh. "I actually appreciate your curiosity. Mind if I ask you about your family."

"What do you want to ask?" Momo asked him.

"I would like to know what they are like," he told her.

"As you might remember, my ancestors were not from Hell," Momo reminded Moxxie. "They immigrated here from the Yokai Realm. My father and his family had lived down here in Wrath for several generations. As for my mother, she was actually born in the Yokai Realm and is a first-generation immigrant, unlike my dad."

"Does… that ever bother you?" Moxxie asked. "Do you ever have to reconcile between your father's heritage and your mother's?".

"Yes, I have," Momo admitted before she continued. "When my parents got married, they stayed here in Angerton at first. And for a while, they were happy. But discrimination against kitsunes, really discrimination against anyone who isn't a Wrathian-born imp, is unfortunately very common around Wrath."

"Yeah, I am… unfortunately aware of that," Moxxie admitted. "Right before Wesley brought me here, I was helping to bury a hybrid since there were a number of imps who were trying to start the hybrid from getting a proper burial."

Momo looked down at her wine. "My mother wasn't fond of the discrimination and she hated it down here. She asked dad to move away from Wrath, so we moved to the Lust Ring. The discrimination there isn't as bad as it is in Wrath, since Asmodeus tries to moderate it as sex is for everyone and anyone could bring something new to sex. But that… wasn't the life I wanted. I was truthfully never fond of living in a place that focused so much on sex…"

"I… think I know the feeling," Moxxie replied. "I was born in Wrath, but grew up in Greed, which is so crime-riddled and corrupt that I think Greed must be the seediest ring in all of Hell."

"Yeah, at least with Lust, Big Ozzie isn't nearly as corrupt as Mammon," Momo said. "Anyway, eventually, once I had become old enough, I decided to move back to Angerton as a way to reconnect with my roots here in Wrath, a place where I still had to work hard to prove myself, becoming the demon I am now. As for my parents, well… they still live in Lust. Unfortunately, my relationship with my mother's stained at the moment because she still doesn't think highly of the Wrathians, including the people of Angerton… aside for dad, of course."

While hearing this, Moxxie couldn't help but compare himself to Momo. 'Yeah, I got my own feet in two Rings as well,' he thought, being an imp born from a dad from Greed and a mom from Wrath…

Meanwhile, in the local saloon, Cain and Jawline were both having a drink with the locals. As they drank, they were all watching a certain table where Chase was, with his arm up.

"Alright, who's up for a round of good ol' fashioned arm wrestling?" Chase asked while looking around the saloon. "Come on! I might go easy on you!"

"I'll take that challenge!" one townsie said as he walked over to Chase. Once the two gripped their hands together, the challenge began. The patrons gathered to cheer for either Chase or the townsie, who struggled to get Chase down. But Chase quickly overpowered him, flipping the guy to the floor.

"Ooooh…" the crowd winced.

"Any other takers?" Chase asked with a grin.

The gathering of men tried to take on Chase in the game of arm-wrestling. One by one, they attempted to test their strength and Chase's. Each time, Chase won. And during each win, Chase sported a smile. At one point, he allowed three imp men to try take him at once, but even their combined strength wasn't enough, Chase slamming their arms to the table and causing the trio of imps to groan in defeat and pain.

Chase and Jawline watched this from the bar, both of them having a drink.

"Wow, Chase is quite the toughie, ain't he?" Jawline asked.

"Incredible strength can be expected when you're a monster slayer with his reputation," Cain indicated while taking a sip of his drink. "Why don't you give it a shot, Jawline?" Cain asked.

"I was thinking of asking you the same thing, Cain," Jawline replied, the two bikers sporting smiles at each other.

The two walked over to Chase's table, where Chase looked up at them.

"We'll take you up on your challenge, Chase," Cain told him.

"Alright," Chase said as he held his arm up. "Both of your arms against mine."

"Really?" Cain asked in surprise. "That hardly seems fair."

"Do it," Chase told them with a confident grin.

The Knights exchanged a glance, having expected Chase to arm-wrestle them one-at-a-time, not both of them at the same time. Sure, he just defeated the combined strength of three imps. But the two of them were bigger and stronger than three imps.

"Alright, your loss," Jawline said as he and Cain took their position across from Chase, both of them grasping Chase's hand with their own.

At first, Cain and Jawline gave Chase a challenge, the Hellhound actually struggling against the two bikers. But this did not last long and after about a minute, both Cain and Jawline were sent to the floor, their hands being smacked on the table. While some members of the crowd winced at this, others cheered for Chase's win while the larger Hellhound looked down at his two defeated opponents with a smirk.

"Good show out there," Chase replied as Cain and Jawline got up.

"Yeah, well… I'm going back to my drink," Cain said, a bit flustered as he returned to the bar for his drink. After a sip, he spotted Holly walking up to him. "You saw that, didn't ya?"

"Eh, maybe," Holly responded as she collected a class from the bar. "Don't beat yer'self about it, though."

"I'm not," Cain responded as he watched Chase and Jawline laughing amongst themselves while sharing a drink.

"So how long do you plan on stayin' here?" Holly asked him.

"Huh?" Cain asked while turning back to her, having only half-heard what she had asked.

"How long are you going to be stayin' in Angerton?" Holly repeated her question. "Do you know when you might be… moving on?"

Cain was about to answer, but then he stopped himself and looked down at his drink. He realized that he couldn't actually answer her question. "I… I'm not sure, honestly," he admitted. "But I imagine I will be moving on eventually."

"Ah," Holly said, a hint of disappointment in her tone. "But do you have to?"

"Oh?" Cain asked.

"I just think… there could definitely be a place here for you," Holly said with a hopeful smile. "I mean, we never replaced our old sheriff, so… maybe we could use a new sheriff… or marshal. Someone who'd be able to protect this town."

Cain did not answer. Instead, he silently thought to himself about what Holly suggested while looking over at Jawline, who was possibly leaving the Knights for a better Ring. Then he remembered Millie, who went to see her family and suggested that there wasn't really a Knight of Hell left with just the three of them.

He could always find new Knights, but… what if he didn't? What if he stayed here and focused on protecting Angerton? Could he actually do that?

"I also… would like you to stay," Holly mentioned, brushing her hair with her hand a little. "If that would affect your decision at all…"

"I'll… think about it," Cain said to her. "But thanks for the suggestion, Holly."

"Anytime," Holly replied with a smile before she went to a different part of the bar.

As Cain stood at the bar in silent contemplation, he spotted someone else coming into the saloon, much to his surprise.

It was Mazzie, who spotted him and walked over to the bar. "Cain, I thought I would find you here," she said.

"Hey, Maz," Cain replied with a nod, gesturing to her with his drink. "How's it going?"

"Oh, I'm doing good, thank you for asking," Mazzie replied with a smile. "How about you, Cain?"

"I'm good as well," Cain told her. "My arm is just a bit sore from trying to arm wrestle Chase, that's all. And my pride is a bit hurt as well. So are you here for a drink?"

"Oh no, I don't drink," Mazzie told him. "I came here because… I wanted to see you."

Cain stopped mid-drink, putting his drink down. "Oh?" he asked, noticing some nervous body language coming from her. "You did?"

"Yes," Mazzie said as she took a deep breath. "I wanted to ask if you'd like to join me and my Mim for dinner."

Cain stared at her for a moment, blinking in surprise. "Really? You want me to have dinner with you?"

"Well, I thought Mim would like it if you came tonight, Cain," she told him.

Cain continued to look at Mazzie in surprise before giving a smile. "Sure," he agreed. "Dinner sounds pretty good."

Back at the restaurant, Moxxie and Momo finally had their food brought to them.

"Here are your meals," the waiter declared while putting the plates down. "I hope you enjoy them."

"Thank you, Walter," Momo politely told the waiter as they began to dine in.

"Yeah, thanks," Moxxie added.

"If you need anything else, just call for me," Walter the waiter said before he walked away.

Now left to themselves, Moxie and Momo enjoyed their dinner. Having already talked during much of the evening, they were silent for a few moments, if only to focus on their food.

"Mmm, you know, this is good steak," Moxxie said. "Was it grown near here?"

"I imagine so," Momo said. "Almost all of our food is locally sourced. Although I will admit that we were considering having to ration our food because of Murdock's gang."

"Good thing you don't have to worry about that anymore," Moxxie pointed out.

"Yes, good indeed," Momo agreed.

"So… this evening has been good so far, right?" Moxxie asked while looking up at Momo.

"Yes, it has," Momo said with a smile.

Moxxie nodded. Privately, he was thinking to himself. "Momo… there has been something I've been avoiding talking about…"

Momo looked up from her food. "Oh?" she asked him.

Moxxie took a deep breath. "Earlier you asked about my father…"

"You don't have to talk about him if you don't want to," Momo assured him. "I understand if you think it's a difficult-"

"No, it's okay," Moxxie said. He sighed. "We are being honest with each other and… well, you already know that I grew up in Greed. You already know that I have history with Stu and the other Greed gangsters. You already know that I was… mixed up in the mobs at some point."

"I… have been curious about that," Momo admitted. "However, I didn't want to force you on the spot about it. You don't have to tell me if it makes you too uncomfortable, but… I would like to know about it, if that's okay…"

"It's fine," Moxxie assured her with a nod. "Growing up in Greed was… hard. The shady businesses, the gang conflicts and turf wars, the pollution, the rampant crime… it's like crime is a way of life down there. If you want to get ahead in Greed, you have to be ruthless. And that's… what my dad was."

"He was a member of the mob?" Momo guessed.

"No… he was a mob boss," Moxxie confessed. "His name… is Crimson."

"Crimson?" Momo asked. "What… can you tell me about him?"

Moxxie closed his eyes, remembering his conversations with Wesley. "My father is, well… he's a monster. I think he would probably rival Murdock with how vicious, ruthless, and cruel he can be. He was horribly abusive to me… and he was even worse to my mother." He lowered his head, remembering what his father did to his mother. "My father is evil."

Momo stared at Moxxie in shock. "Moxxie… I am so sorry."

Moxxie looked up and opened his eyes, seeing the way that Momo was looking at him. It made him feel a little bit better while talking about this. "Thank you," he said. "I actually only recently left Greed, left my father's line of work. I am never going back." His hands tightened into fists. "No, I can't go back."

"What made you finally leave?" Momo asked Moxxie.

"There was… someone else in Greed," Moxxie admitted. "I… thought I loved him. And I thought he loved me. And I was willing to stay to be with him. But then… he abandoned me, left me behind to get arrested during a robbery gone wrong. I ended up in prison because of him. And it was while I was in prison that I realized… I needed to get out of that life. And that was when I met Blitz." He sighed. "I don't want anything to do with that life anymore. I don't want anything to do with Greed and I especially don't want anything to do with my father. He is everything that I never want to be."

After that, both of them were quiet for a moment, Momo processing everything that Moxxie had just told her.

"I'm… sorry for dumping all of this on you," Moxxie said, realizing that this was probably a lot for her to take in.

"No, no, I appreciate you telling me all of this," Momo admitted. "And I can already tell how evident it is that you don't want to be your father, Moxxie," she commented while reaching over the table and taking his hand, patting it gently. "Because you are nothing like him."

Moxxie looked down at her hand and then up to her with a smile. "Thanks, Momo."

"Wait, does this mean that the gang you knew, Stu and the others… do they work for Crimson?" Momo asked him.

"Yeah," Moxxie admitted. "And now I am in Stu's debt…"

"That… sounds like it could be a problem," Momo noted.

"I'll deal with it when I need to," Moxxie told her. "Though now I'm worried that I'll never be free from my father's influence…"

"Well, you're still able to make your own choices, Moxxie," Momo pointed out. "You chose to come here to Angerton and you chose to defend it from Murdock. You made those choices in spite of the danger, in spite of the bad odds, and in spite of the low reward. We are not our parents, Moxxie, we are our own demons who can make our own decisions. We do not have to let our parents define us," she declared. "I believe that decisions are what speaks to our characters, and I believe that your choices say a lot about you, Moxxie. About the type of demon you are. I think they speak to your bravery, to your empathy, and to your loyalty."

Moxxie gave her a heartfelt look. "Yeah, that… that is true. Thanks, Momo."

"No problem," Momo replied as the two shared a look.

All the while, they were still holding hands.

Meanwhile, at Mazzie and Mim's home, they were having dinner with Cain, who was sharing stories with the two imps. Mim in particular was listening attentively to the stories, staring at Cain in awe.

"What are the Knights of the Round Table?" Mim asked.

Cain smiled. "They were the fellowship of King Arthur," he told Mim and Mazzie. "A chivalrous order of knights who met around a round table that symbolized the equality of its members. They were, much like King Arthur himself, legends."

"Is this a story from Earth?" Mazzie asked.

"Yes," Cain admitted. "Humans have many heroes. One of them was King Arthur, who became the king of a country called Britain after pulling a sword from an enchanted stone. He ruled Britain from his castle of Camelot until he fell in battle and his body was brought to Avalon, the realm of the Fae." He took a drink. "Some traditions say he never truly died and that he will return one day to save his people in Britain's darkest hour. The once and future king." He chuckled. "Humans love their messiah figures."

"Who were some of his Knights?" Mim asked.

"One of his first Knights was Kay, his foster brother," Cain recounted. "But perhaps even closer to Arthur than Kay was Lancelot, who was also devoted to Arthur's Queen, Guinevere. He was her personal champion and, according to some, her secret lover." He smirked. "Scandalous, I know. And it was hardly Lancelot's only affair, for he had an illegitimate son named Galahad." His smirk turned into a more sincere smile. "Sir Galahad, who was even greater than his father. Sir Galahad, the greatest of the Knights of the Round Table. Renowned for his gallantry, for his piety, for his… purity." His expression softened into one of awe. "It was Sir Galahad who found the Holy Grail… a cup with miraculous healing properties. With the exception of Galahad, who was perhaps a bit too perfect, the other Knights possessed their flaws. Kay was a bully to Arthur in his youth and Lancelot…"

"Betrayed him?" Mazzie asked.

"…yes," Cain admitted. "I suppose Lancelot did betray his liege." He sighed. "As did the one known as Mordred, but every messianic figure needs their Judas, don't they?"

"What other knights do you know of?" Mim asked.

"Well… they aren't knights, but I would say that the samurais of old Japan are comparable to the knights of Camelot. They were warriors who helped to police the country and defend territories. On occasion, they would help defend villages from barbaric bandits."

"Like you did," Mazzie noted.

"Do you know of any samurai?" Mim asked, her curiosity and interest peaking.

Cain smiled at her. "Sure, there's Miyamoto Musashi, most famous for his two-sword style and his undefeated record of more than sixty duels won, as well as being a famous artist," he explained. "It was said that he began his career very early in life, when he killed a man when he was only thirteen. He was a soldier, but became a ronin after losing a war. That means, his lord did not recognize him as an official soldier of his military. Oh, then there was Sanada Yukimura, who was known as the 'Crimson Demon of War' and 'The Last Sengoku Hero'. Like many warriors, he is long gone…" He appeared reflective. "And yet humans still remember him, still celebrate him. Through his legend, he lives on…"

"You sure know a lot about old human warriors," Mazzie noted.

"Well, I do have a lot of respect for them," Cain admitted. "They lived their lives with chivalry, honor, bravery…"

"Wow, they sound a lot like you, Cain," Mim complimented.

Cain frowned at this. "Ur, well… honestly, I don't think I'm like them at all…" he muttered to himself, his eyes glancing down.

Mim soon finished with her food and she held up her plate. "Look, I'm finished, mommy!"

"Yes, I see that, dear," Mazzie replied with a smile.

"Can I be excused?" Mim asked politely.

"Why yes, you are excused," Mazzie said before Mim got up from her seat.

"Thank you for dinner, mom, and thank you for the stories, Cain!" Mim cheerfully said before she headed to her room.

"You're welcome, young squire!" Cain shouted as he saw Mim run off. He then turned back to Mazzie. "What a nice kid."

"I know," Mazzie replied while looking at Cain. "So… what got you so interested in all this stuff about knights and other warriors in the first place?"

"Well… I'll admit that I was obsessed with those kinds of stories when I was a kid," Cain admitted. "Stories like 'Tales of King Arthur and his Knights', 'Robin Hood', 'Three Musketeers', and the 'Scarlet Pimpernel'. Stories of charming outlaws and those who fought for the oppressed. They were my escapist fiction."

"So they were your favorite childhood stories?" Mazzie asked, intrigued.

"Yeah, pretty much," Cain confirmed. "I used to lock myself in my father's library and wouldn't come out for hours."

"Your father had his own library?" Mazzie asked.

"Yeah, he… had a lot of things," Cain admitted while looking down, worried that he perhaps had said too much.

While looking at him, Mazzie decided to ask something that had been on her mind for several days. "So… who's Alice?"

Cain paused and looked up at Mazzie. He seemed… nervous. "I-I don't know what you're talking about," he claimed, pretending to not know.

"You called Mim 'Alice' before you passed out after saving us from those Demon Apes," Mazzie reminded him. "Is this Alice… the name of the younger sister you told her about?"

Cain looked at Mazzie before giving a sigh. "Yes, it is," he admitted. "You must be quite curious about my mysterious past, aren't you?"

"Well, yeah," she admitted. "Like, what were you before becoming a Knight of Hell?"

Cain looked down at his plate, which only had a few specks of food left, and he gave a deep sigh. "Well, Maz, as my comments about my father implied, I used to have a… very privileged and sheltered upbringing. But… it was not a lifestyle that agreed with me. For many reasons. Hence my interest in escapist fiction about knights and other heroes."

"I see," Mazzie replied while resting her elbow on the table with her hand to the side of her face.

"What about you?" Cain asked.

"What about me?" Mazzie asked.

Cain tried to think of something specific he could ask her. "Well, um… hope you don't mind me asking this, but… what happened to Mim's father?" Cain asked her. "You mentioned earlier that he… passed away."

Mazzie sighed, but did not look upset. "Yes, but it was a long time ago," she admitted.

"Maybe, but you still have my condolences," Cain offered.

"Thank you," she said, sounding appreciative.

"Do you… mind telling me how he died?" Cain asked. "I mean, we are in Wrath. There is no shortage of things that he could have died from…"

"He died from a sulfur leak in the mines," Mazzie quickly answered. "Not long after Mim was born, unfortunately."

Cain nodded, looking sympathetic to Mazzie. "I'm sorry. Was he… a good man?"

"He was," Mazzie nodded.

"I imagine it must have been hard for Mim, losing a father at that young of an age," he told Mazzie.

"I don't think she even remembers him," Mazzie admitted.

"You don't have to remember someone to feel their absence," Cain said, surprising Mazzie. "In any case, you've done a good job raising your daughter on your own, Maz," he complimented. "Like I said, she is a nice kid."

Maz smiled. "Thank you, Cain, I appreciate that," she said while looking down with a thought. "So… what will you do next? What's next for the leader of the Knights of Hell after the town's finished rebuilding?"

"Um, well… I guess, I'll probably move on," Cain said, though he sounded unsure. His thoughts were still on his earlier conversations with Millie, Jawline, and Holly.

"You know, Mim would be sad to see you go," Mazzie told him.

"Yes, I imagine she would," Cain said, looking down for a moment before looking back up at Mazzie. "Would you be sad to see me go as well?"

Surprised by this question, Mazzie looked away. "Yes, I would," she admitted.

Cain looked across the table at Mazzie, both of them silent for a moment… before an idea came to him. "Well, we still have now," he said.

Mazzie looked back at him. "What are you-"

But before she could finish asking, she saw him getting up and walking over to her. Then, much to the surprise of the older woman, he reached down and picked her up by the hips.

"C-Cain?!" she asked, sounding and looking flustered as he pushed her back against the wall…

Yesterday, Cain was helping out around the town. He had offered to carry some sandbags to a truck before closing the back of the truck and watching it drive away.

"All good, here!" Cain declared while clapping the dust from his hands.

"Excuse me, Mr. Cain," said a voice.

Cain turned around and looked down, seeing Mazzie in front of him. "Hey, Maz, what's up?" he asked her with a smile.

"Well," Mazzie said while twirling a piece of her hair. She was dressed in a red loose shirt with jean shorts and shoes. "I was thinking…" She stopped herself and looked unsure how to continue. "I was wondering if… you were doing something tonight?"

Cain blinked in surprise, having not expected this. "Well… I do have some plans with Holly and Gigi tonight," he admitted.

"O-Oh, really?" Mazzie asked, looking disheartened and a bit embarrassed.

"Yeah, and with those two, I am probably going to be busy all night long," Cain replied while seeing Mazzie's disappointed look. "You wanna join in?"

Mazzie looked up at him, appearing quite flustered. "W-What?!"

"I'm asking if you'd like to join us?" Cain asked her with a smile. "I mean, that is why you asked me if I was doing something tonight, right? We're both adults, we don't have to speak in code. And if you'd like…"

Mazzie looked surprised by the offer, but she was even more surprised… that she found herself considering it.

As Cain pushed Mazzie against the wall, he kissed her. Mazzie quickly reciprocated and the two made out, the older imp woman holding onto his arms while wrapping her legs around his waist and her tail around one of his arms, their bodies intertwining with each other. Cain felt her hands roaming his back, while she felt him doing the same.

"Mmm, yes!" Mazzie moaned before she felt Cain gripping her behind, squeezing it hard. "Oh~!"

Cain kissed her neck. "You wish to take this up to a room?"

"Just the basement…" she requested. "But please don't stop."

The two began to make out again as Cain carried her to the basement and her hands tried to find a way to undo his vest…

Meanwhile, Moxxie and Momo had finished eating dinner. Now Moxxie was walking with Momo back to her home.

"Thanks for the wonderful date tonight, Moxxie," Momo said with a smile while they walked together through town under a darkening sky. "I had a really good time tonight."

"Yeah, me too," Moxxie replied. "I… can't remember the last time I had a night like this."

"Moxxie… can I ask you something?" Momo asked.

"Sure," Moxxie said while they walked side-by-side.

"How much longer do you plan on staying in Angerton?" Momo asked.

Moxxie didn't answer right away. "I guess… I guess that I will be leaving soon," Moxxie admitted. "Don't get me wrong, I love helping out this town, but I do have other demons depending on me right now. I'll probably have to leave around the Harvest Moon."

"I understand," Momo replied with a nod, hiding her disappointment at his answer.

"You do?" Moxxie asked, looking up at her.

"It is actually something that I admire about you, Moxxie," Momo admitted. "Just like how I have a responsibility to the people of Angerton, you have a responsibility to your boss and his family."

Moxxie silently acknowledged this. Really, him and Momo were not that different, right down to what they both valued.

"But if you're leaving soon… well, you're not leaving tonight, right?"

Moxxie picked up on what she meant as he looked up at her with a smile. "No," he said. "Not tonight, at least."

For a moment, he and Momo just looked at each other with smiles. Then the much taller Momo bent down and picked Moxxie up, lifting him off the ground. While Moxxie was briefly surprised by this, he got over it very quickly as the two ended up sharing a kiss on the lips. The kiss deepened as they embraced each other, Moxxie's tail rubbing through her tails…

"Wait, wait, wait!" Moxxie realized, getting them to stop. "Maybe we shouldn't do it while in the streets…"

Momo looked around and noticed that there were some other demons in the street, and they were all watching them.

"Woo! Get it on!" one of the demons cheered.

Momo blushed from embarrassment before she looked back at Moxxie. "Y-Yeah… let's just head over to my place. Then pick up where we left off."

"Yeah," Moxxie said with a nod as the two continued to head over to Momo's place.

With Momo still carrying Moxxie, of course.

Back in Mazzie and Mim's home, Mazzie was tucking Mim into bed. Cain was standing in the hallway just outside of the room, standing out of sight since he did not want to intrude the moment between mother and daughter. Instead, he only listened.

"Goodnight, honey," Mazzie told Mim with a gentle tone. "Have some pleasant dreams."

"Goodnight, Mommy," Mim replied with a smile as Mazzie kissed her on the head. "Can Mr. Cain say goodnight?"

Mazzie nodded. "Of course," she said as she turned and walked out of the room to call for Cain, spotting him leaning against the wall. "Hey, Cain." He turned to her. "Mim wants to say goodnight to you."

Cain nodded with a smile. "Alright, let's see the little one," he said as he followed Mazzie into Mim's room. Mim's smile grew even bigger when she saw him. "Hey, kid. I heard you wanted to see me," he said while kneeling down to her level.

"Yeah," Mim replied with a smile. "I wanted to say goodnight, so… goodnight, Cain!"

Cain chuckled warmly and smiled, but before he could say goodnight as well, he paused.

The sight of Mim, all tucked into bed ready to go to sleep, reminded him of something…

No, it reminded him of someone…

Long ago… or perhaps not that long ago… and yet it felt like an entirely different lifetime…

Alex was reading a bedtime story to his little sister Alice, little Alice hugging one of her stuffed animals while laying on a pile of them as her pillow.

"And then Saint George charged at the dragon while on horseback, stabbing into the beast with his lance," Alex read from a book while Alice listened attentively.

"Do you think dad ever fought dragons while on horseback?" Alice asked, sounding curious.

"I don't think our father could even imagine wanting to hurt a dragon," Alex said with a chuckle while looking up from the book. "I think he would sooner adopt it."

"A pet dragon would be really cool," Alice admitted. "Did Saint George kill the dragon?"

"With his lance? No," Alex said, shaking his head. "He only seriously wounded the beast. Then he called for the princess to throw him her girdle and he placed it around the neck of the dragon. He then had the princess walk ahead and wherever she went, the dragon followed her like a meek beast on a leash."

"So they did make the dragon their pet?" Alice asked, her tone hopeful.

Alex hesitated to answer, since he was looking at a picture of Saint George decapitating the dragon with his sword after leading it back to the city, having agreed to only kill it if the population of the city converted to Christianity.

"Uh…" Alex said while looking back up at his little sister, with her innocent smile and her hopeful eyes. "Yes," he finally decided while closing the book. "Saint George and the princess tamed the dragon and it became the protector of the city instead of its terrorizer."

"Good," Alice said, having not realized that her brother had changed the story for her. "And what about St. George and the princess?"

"What about them?" Alex asked.

"Did they get married?" Alice asked.

Alex just smiled. "Of course they did," he told her while standing up. "And they lived happily ever after."

The little Alice smiled at this before letting out a yawn.

"Alright, let's get you tucked in," Alex said, seeing how tired Alice was.

"Thanks for telling me another one of your stories, Alex," Alice told him as her brother helped to tuck her in.

"Don't mention it," Alex told her while patting her head. "Goodnight, Alice. Hope you have sweet dreams."

Alice smiled while laying back in her stuffed animals, sinking slightly into them. "Goodnight to you too, Alex…"

"Alex."

"What?" Mim asked, looking up in curiosity. Her mother, who was standing by the door, also reacted out of curiosity.

"You don't have to call me Cain," Cain replied. "You can just call me… Alex."

Mim absolutely lit up upon hearing his original name. "I like 'Alex'," she said happily.

Cain smiled gently. "I'm glad you too," he told her.

After he finished saying goodnight to Mim, Cain walked out of the room with Mazzie, who closed the door behind them. They then walked together. Initially silent, though only for a moment before Mazzie spoke up.

"So… Alex is it?" she asked him. "That's a nice name."

"Thanks," he replied. "It's… my birth name."

"Are you okay with me using it?" she asked him.

Cain thought about it for a moment before nodding. "Yeah," he said. "I don't mind if you and Mim use it."

Mazzie nodded. "So… why did you change it in the first place?"

Cain paused, Mazzie stopping as well. He looked down at the floor and sighed. "That… is a long story. One that I am not ready to tell."

"Can you… tell me anything?" Mazzie asked. "Anything about you?"

Cain looked over at Mazzie, noting her curiosity. "Are you sure?" he asked, attempting a cheeky smile. "I thought that the whole 'mysterious' vibe was part of my appeal."

Mazzie, however, saw immediately through his bullshit, crossing her arms with a smile. "You're deflecting," she pointed out.

"Yeah… I am," Cain admitted with a light chuckle. "The truth is… I'm not a Wrathian demon."

"Uh-huh," Mazzie said, not looking or sounding surprised. "So that would make you…?"

Cain hesitated for only a moment as he looked at Mazzie and saw the way she was looking at him. He had been avoiding answering her questions about what he was ever since she was pulling bullets out of him. But now he knew he couldn't dodge the question anymore.

"I am a Goetia," he admitted.

Surprisingly, Mazzie barely looked fazed by this information.

"Goetia…" Mazzie said with a nod. "Yea, that confirms it."

"You already suspected?" he asked her.

"Well, kind of," she admitted. "I did have my suspicions about what kind of demon you are. One theory is that you were just a powerful Hellcat similar to Chase, but you being a Goetia does make a lot of sense."

"I can understand the assumption," Cain admitted. "I mean, I'm still not convinced that Chase is a normal Hellhound. There might be something else going on with him… but yes, I'm a Goetia. More specifically, I am the son of Duke Alloces."

"Yeah, never heard of him," Mazzie replied. "Then again, I've never met a Goetia demon at all before I met you."

"No surprise there," Cain pointed out. "That's kinda why I came down here to the Wrath Ring in the first place. Because it was somewhere that most other Goetia demons tended to avoid like the plague because… well, because it is Wrath. No offense."

"None taken," Mazzie said before letting Cain continue.

"And the only few Goetia that actually do visit Wrath, like Prince Stolas for example, do so because they have to as part of their duties. But even then, they try to spend as little time in Wrath as possible." He paused while looking at her. "So… are you afraid of me?"

"Well… when I first saw you… I was," she admitted. "The Knights of Hell… they don't have the best reputation."

"They were worse before I took over," Cain admitted. "And I will admit… my hands aren't the cleanest. Sometimes it can be easy to get carried away with the violence, with the power, because it can be thrilling… but I didn't come to Angerton just because I was bored and wanted some excitement to get the adrenaline going. I… really did want to stop Murdock, at least… at least until he stabbed me. Because after he stabbed me, I heard him order some of his apes to go kill all the women and the children and I just… knew that I had to stop that. My priorities changed."

"I believe you," Mazzie told Cain. "And… I'm not scared of you anymore, Alex. Not even while knowing that you're a Goetia demon, who probably have an even worse reputation down here than the Knights of Hell do."

Cain chuckled at this, but he let Mazzie continue.

"No, I'm not scared, especially since I have seen you around Mim and I can tell that you would never hurt her. No, I am just… curious," Mazzie confessed. "Curious to know how you ended up down here in Wrath and why you decided to leave your fellow Goetia."

"Yeah, that question has… several answers," Cain admitted, a bit awkwardly. "I could tell you sometimes, but… not tonight. It's late and I should go." He looked down at her with a smile "Thanks for dinner, by the way… along with the sex. I had a great time."

Mazzie looked down, blushing. She then saw him turn and start to leave.

"Wait," she said as she reached out and grabbed his arm, causing him to stop and turn around. "Perhaps you should… stay over for the night… with me."

Cain got what Mazzie meant when he saw her nod toward her own bedroom door. He did hesitate for only a brief moment… but then he smiled.

"Sure thing," he replied as he went to follow Mazzie into her room.

Behind them, the door shut for the night.

Meanwhile, outside of Angerton, the remains of Murdock were still where they had fallen: at the bottom of a chasm.

The broken bloody corpse of the mad Demon Ape had only gotten worse in the days since the battle, since it had begun to rot and decay. Flies flew around the corpse, but besides that Murdock's body had no company… until footsteps could be heard nearby. Not that Murdock could have heard the footsteps, of course.

A large figure approached the remains of the Demon Ape. The darkness of the chasm hid most of their body, but if someone else was in the chasm, they would have still been able to make out the large horns, the spikes coming from the back, the four eyes that glowed yellow, and the glowing lines illuminating from the body.

The large figure stood before the remains of Murdock, looking down at them in disappointment. A hand then reached down and grabbed Murdock's skull, picking it up. The figure held the skull for a moment, looking at it before crushing it with their bare hand.

"What a disgrace," the figure spoke with a deep, soothing voice.

After letting the pieces of Murdock's skull fall from his hand, the figure turned around and began to walk away, leaving the rest of the remains to be food for scavengers.

Now to clear things from the table, we'd like to credit Moheart7 for his characters, Gnat, Scorch and Brutas from "The Owlette and the Cat" in their roles used as former Knights of Hell.

The previous Cain here is based off of Ren from "The Rise of Skywalker" comic mini-series and "The Lost Boy" segment from LEGO Star Wars: Terrifying Tales, with the latter in particular being a huge point of reference for Alex's backstory. In "The Lost Boy", it had Ren voiced by Christian Slater, which we do imagine that the previous Cain would be voiced by Slater as well.

Originally, this chapter was going to be longer. But then we realized that it was a bit too long for just one chapter, so we decided to split the chapter into two separate chapters. With the first chapter being set in Angerton and the second chapter taking place outside of Angerton, showing what Loona, Blitz and Amaroq are up to and Millie's reunion with her family. We thought that be splitting the chapter in two like this, it would make it more easily digestible for the readers.

But don't worry, the second part will be out later this week, so you get two chapters of Helluva Dad released this week.

Review section:

Crash X Fusion: Honestly, it shouldn't be real surprising that Carrie would hate royals just as much as any Wrathians, or practically every Hellborn that hates the Goetians. I mean, fuck the rich, they did nothing for the lower class other than make our problems worse and exploit the working class.

Matteso585: 1) I mean, they're not the only ones who hates the Goetia. 3) That would be beyond your understanding what higher beings can do…

Cooki15xd: Um, we just showed the reasons why he has a strong dislike towards the Goetia. He was literally bought, like a slave. Sometimes I wonder if you're even paying attention at the details…

Ultimate-drax: Thanks, I've taken inspiration of Angelica Pickles and DW Reed on kid Stella.

Shuffollower: I mean, there's nothing much to explain honestly. Ramara and Avel are precautionary heirs that were arranged to sire Stella and Andrealphus. So there's nothing to explain since well, she's probably like this. Carrie hating demon loyalty is pretty common to most Hellborns. I mean, it's canon that not everybody likes the Ars Goetia, so there's no need of an explaination on why Carrie hates them. I mean, that's like asking a One Piece character why do they hate the Celestial Dragons…

Spantidem7: I'm gonna have to disagree, it's more on the line of class than race. Carrie hates the Goetias because of their class. As for your questions:

1) No.

2) Probably as an experiment.