List of non-Miraculous Characters to be kept aware of in this story:
Satan: A Lord of Hell who is the embodiment of Wrath and rules over the Ring of Wrath in Hell. Currently stuck in Paris because of the Over-Summoner's lack of patience and inability to listen to reason. Mirrors Azrael on the Scales of Balance.
Asmodeus: A Lord of Hell who is the embodiment of Lust and Rules over the Ring of Lust. Is irritated by this Over-Summoner's inability to listen to reason and the constant Summonings. Mirrors Uriel on the Scales of Balance.
Raguel: An Archangel of Heaven whose domains are Harmony, Justice, Fairness, Redemption, and Vengeance. He may be blind but that doesn't hinder his ability to perform his duties. Has the skills to discern truths from lies. His cane can turn into a sword if needed.
Azrael: A Virtue of Heaven who is the embodiment of Patience and oversees the Domain of Patience. Staying in Paris to balance out the energy due to Satan being stuck there. Mirrors Satan on the Scales of Balance.
Jason Blood: A Demonologist and an expert in all the Magical Fields. Has his own secrets that dwell within. (He's also a character from the DC Comics, if you know him more power to you!).
Kathryn Marks: Jason Blood's daughter. Sometimes acts like the typical 6-year-old she is and sometimes doesn't. She's more aware of things than people think. (Technically a DC Character, but was only used in one continuity and hasn't been used since, so she's somewhat more my character than theirs).
~}I{~
Sin of Reveal. Chapter 8.
~}I{~
Marques quietly checked on Adrien. He peeked through the crack in the door to see the blonde laying on the bed the last time he checked. The bodyguard softly opened the door and took a step inside the room. He walked over to the bed and sat on the edge of it. Marques waited until Adrien looked at him before he signed, "Was the battle that difficult?"
Adrien glanced away in despair when he stated, "No… It was what happened afterwards that… That was difficult…"
Marques tapped the blonde's leg to get his attention and signed, "Do you want to talk about it?"
Adrien was quiet for a bit, mulling over if he should tell his bodyguard. Well, since he already knew about his Deal with Satan, Adrien might as well update him on that and what happened.
So, Adrien told Marques.
And Marques reacted just as Adrien expected, yet not as extreme.
The bodyguard took a deep breath when he signed, "At least you don't have to worry about them anymore…" He paused for a few seconds before he sighed, "And I'm sorry about your mum… I…" Marques took a deep breath when he signed, "I know you missed her…"
Adrien lowered his gaze when he said, "It's not your fault… Or mine… I don't know what happened to mother or Where she is now…" He took a deep breath before he looked at his bodyguard with almost a pleading look.
Marques had sadness written all over his face when he shook his head and then signed, "I'm in the same boat as you…"
Adrien let out a soft breath when he got out softly, "Figures they didn't tell you too…" He glanced out the window when he added just as softly, "Since mum's gone… I guess Aunt Amilie and Felix are the only ones left to test…"
Marques only glanced at Plagg. Who was also worried. They only knew about the 'test' but they didn't know What Satan has plans for the Gram de Vanlys, nor did they want to know.
~}I{~
It wasn't that much of a surprise to Miss Bustier's class that Adrien didn't come in for class, they couldn't blame him after what happened last night… The only things the redheaded teacher knew was that Hawkmoth has been defeated, since well she had to be told, and that the battle was hard on Adrien. Ms mendeleier had her suspicions but didn't say anythingabout it.
The only bright side to all this was that Adrien wouldn't have to worry about Hawkmoth locking onto him.
}{
If it weren't for the frog clock on the wall, Asmodeus wouldn't have known how much time has passed since that stupidly, ignorant Over-Summoner had trapped them in this place!
They could visibly see the miasma covering everything in this basement!
And worst yet…
Thanks to the damn wording of this contract… Asmodeus was completely cut off from their Ring!
They couldn't contact anyone! They couldn't escape! They couldn't take in any Lust! And they couldn't keep their Ring stable!
Asmodeus checked their hellphone again to see if it was working… It wasn't…
All the Lord of Lust could do was wait for someone to break them out of this… Illegal contract…
}{
Jason Blood and Raguel were in Damocles' office, going over the data the headmaster had collected. of course, they shared what they've found out to him.
During this… Damocles was on the landline when he stated seriously, "Mrs Rossi, I know how busy you are, but I highly recommend that you take a day off and meet with Dupont for a very overdo and important parent/teacher conference. I and Miss Bustier NEED to talk to you regarding Lila. I look forward to hearing from you soon, have a nice day, Mrs Rossi." He then hung up the phone with an annoyed huff.
Jason glanced up from the data when he asked, "I take it that Mrs Rossi has been unresponsive long before this whole issue?"
Damocles let out a sigh before stating in clear annoyance, "Oh, no, That's not the issue!" He huffed again when he explained, "The issue seems to be that she's more interested in her job rather than her daughter or her schooling!"
Lie, is what the angel of the group got.
"Huh?" Raguel got out in confusion. He then asked the headmaster, "Could you repeat that statement?
Damocles raised a brow before he repeated his words. He watched the reactions of the Angel of Justice as he did.
Yet again, the angel got from that was, Lie.
Now that caught Raguel's attention. The angel could hear the genuine disdain and bitterness from the headmaster's voice, and thus believes he is telling the truth, yet… The statement is false… That was interesting and conflicting. Raguel let out a soft hum before he asked, "Are you sure that you have been corresponding with Mrs Rossi regarding the school and her daughter's behaviours?"
Damocles raised a brow when he replied in an unsure tone, "I assumed I was…"
Lie, is what Raguel got.
Raguel furrowed his brows at this before he asked, "So you were under the impression that you have been corresponding with Mrs Rossi regarding the school and she you?"
Damocles nodded when he stated, "I was."
Truth, is what Raguel got.
That was when Damocles added, "But! It has to be Mrs Rossi! She would have to know all of her daughter's ailments! Plus because of her job, she travels a lot!" The headmaster then remembered the information he collected from the prior schools Lila attended. That was when Damocles said in an unsure tone, "At least… That's what I originally thought…"
Lie, Truth, Lie, and Truth, is what Raguel got from those statements.
Jason Blood threw in his two euros when he stated, "Given what I've learned from talking to the Gabriel Brand employees, may I suggest that perhaps the emails are coming from Lila rather than her mother?"
Raguel had to agree with that theory when he added, "That is a likely possibility, and given that Mr Damocles' first statement about Mrs Rossi caring more about her job than her daughter is false… I am inclined to believe that the 'I am too busy to come in' emails are indeed from Lila and that she is somehow preventing her mother from receiving emails from this school."
Damocles couldn't help but say, "Even if what you say is true, wouldn't Mrs Rossi notice the voicemails I've been leaving? And the missed calls?"
Truth, and Truth, is what Raguel got from those statements… However… The angel couldn't help but ask the headmaster, "That may be true, but… Have you actually spoken to Mrs Rossi? At any time during the school year?"
Damocles folded his arms when he shook his head and stated, "Now that I think about what I've gone through here and what I have dug up… None of the schools that Lila Rossi had attended after Rummelplatz Grundschule spoke to Mrs Rossi. All correspondence from 'Mrs Rossi' has been by email." He took a soft breath before he added, "I'll admit that I did had my suspicions, especially for some of the disabilities on her medical record, but for a pre-teen to be able to pull that level of deception off…"
Truth, and Truth, is what Raguel got from these statements.
The Angel of justice let out a hum before he stated, "The first statement is rather suspicious in the grand scheme of things. However, given what has been found out…" The archaic symbols appeared on his skin when he added, "Was the one who created this elaborate deception really a pre-teen?"
Jason Blood narrowed his eyes at this.
But the most surprising part was Damocles stating seriously, "I might not know what you've found, but given what I've learned something from Rummelplatz Grundschule… I'm going to have to agree with you."
}{
Miss Bustier stared at the email from Mrs Rossi about a last minute work trip to Italy that she had to take Lila with her. This was… A little strange…
Caline didn't understand Mrs Rossi's rather strange seesaw mentality towards her daughter… On the one hand, Mrs Rossi seems to be overprotective and rather doting on Lila regarding her health and safety, but on the other hand… Mrs Rossi was rather disinterested in Lila's schooling and school-life… On the third hand, which had to be someone's, Mrs Rossi seemed fine with letting Lila have an active social life everywhere she went…
From the teacher's point of view, Mrs Rossi did almost every legal way to keep Lila out of school…
Miss Bustier placed her phone on her desk as she wondered if Mrs Rossi should've just homeschooled her daughter. The redheaded teacher did remember all the known lies Lila has told. The thought did occur to Caline that maybe Lila might've lied to her mother about being sick and her eager mother would keep her at home… But that wouldn't explain the numerous doctor's notes for said conditions… Surely Mrs Rossi would have brought Lila to a legitimate doctor and said doctor would have told her that Lila was perfectly healthy if she was lying about her health? Right?
Miss Bustier tapped her fingers on her desk as she stared at the empty classroom as she went over the facts she knew. Her students were currently with Ms Mendeleiev for her class, and she was free right now.
Caline's lips contorted into a frown as the facts just didn't really fit together so well… Something just didn't feel right about them…
Miss Bustier glanced at the doorway as she concluded that she needed to tell her co-workers about this…
}{
The miracuclass was glad for the sudden break from Lila. They didn't want to deal with the liar and her antics. Plus, that means they could openly talk about their Over-Summoner task and update their chart.
However… Despite the fact that she was absent most of the time of the over-summonings, they couldn't eliminate Lila as a suspect… True, they threw around the theory of Lila's mother being the Over-Summoner, but someone would've noticed her on campus… Or Any unknown adult…
It was rather frustrating for the Miraculous group! Especially for Alya, who wanted Lila to just be guilty of pettiness!
It was such an annoying paradox! They couldn't rule Lila out of anything on their list, yet they couldn't move her up on the suspect list!
Maybe it's a good thing that Lila was travelling with her mother right now.
}{
The stationed Angel watching the Rossi building was glad that the inspector would be in the day after tomorrow, but the residents were still at high risk of whatever is afflicting them…
The Angel wanted to help, but… Without knowing what was wrong they couldn't cause a 'coincidence' that could aid the building… It was frustrating! Unable to do anything to help yet wanting to!
They stared at the book that saw within the building, aside from personal dwellings and the basement, and wondered why what was causing the affliction wasn't appearing in this 'record'. THAT was what was the strangest thing about this situation…
}I{
An Angel descended towards Paris with a determined look in her bright blue eyes. Her bright blue feathered wings easily caught the air. She had a goal in mind and was going to see it through.
}I{
The Miraculous group decided to stay in order to share the information they have gathered. Of course, the data that Jason Blood, Raguel, and Damocles brought to the table most certainly didn't cast a very good light on Lila Rossi, much to Alya's dismay. And the headmaster told Miss Bustier that the class transfer for Lila has been approved and will be put in Ms Mendeleiev's class, to which the science teacher approved of and already had a method to shut Lila's lies and antics down.
Well… This was concerning to the teenagers of the group. Okay, yeah, this had nothing to do with the Over-Summoner, but… It was undeniable proof that Lila was NOT who she claimed to be… At all! NOT even in the slightest!
This was clearly too much for Alya to handle, so she left the school, telling everyone that she needed some time to be alone.
As much as her friends wanted to be by her side, they knew that the blogger needed time to process what was learned… And now that they no longer had to worry about Hawkmoth, it was fine to feel negative emotions now… To let it all out now.
As Alya left the school, she passed by Satan. Though, she didn't notice, which caught the Lord of Wrath's attention.
Satan could feel the whirlwind of negative emotions in the blogger, but since wrath wasn't promodent in that, the entity let her go ahead before entering the school building.
It didn't take long before the Lord of wrath to find the Miraculous group. He was rather impressed by how much was collected and uncovered. Oddly enough, Satan couldn't understand the… Clearly wrathful intentions to Lila's previous targets… Yes, he can confirm that Lila did target these students out of wrath but… That was about it… Satan could only sense the wrath for the behaviours but not the motivation, which was strange to the Sin…
Jason Blood could only come to one conclusion to this oddity… The motivation for wrath had to be one of the other six Sins. Of which Raguel confirmed via his powers.
That certainly made Marinette's stomach feel like it suddenly had stones inside after hearing about Lila's past deeds and could now see just how close she was to following that pattern… And given what happened to the last person Lila targeted…
The Ladybug Holder was by the rubbish bin, her stomach decided that it didn't want the lunch eaten earlier anymore. Tikki was by her side along with Kim.
Chloe was horrified at the copy of the police file she was looking at when she got out in a tone of dismay, "Did… Did… Did Lila… Did she really… Leave her there?! In…In the middle…Middle of a heatwave?!" The mayor's daughter just couldn't take her eyes off of a photograph of a dehydrated, almost mummified, body with dry brownish-blonde hair to the elbows, skeletal arms were resting in the body's lap with the knees pointing to the right side almost touching the metal wall of the locker space, and judging by the type of clothing the body was wearing the victim was most likely a girl. The style of those clothing was similar to what teenagers would wear…
Chloe had to force herself to place the file down before she could step away from it, still horrified by this deed. Yeah, she might've been a bully and made other's days miserable, but she had lines that she would've never crossed! Even if it was to please her birther before recent events! Of course, Chloe lied about doing those things to that woman to hopefully gain some affection from her and didn't actually do those deeds, but still!
Zoe hugged Chloe to offer some comfort. The older sister accepted the action.
Nino then looked over the data in the file. He raised a brow when he looked at the headmaster and asked, "According to this… It was a bullying gone very wrong, and 3 of the 4 people behind this were arrested for manslaughter."
Damocles nodded stiffly when he explained, "From what the principal of that school told the police and me… There have been some rather serious ongoing issues between that student and Lila. I don't know how, but Lila apparently found out that that student was claustrophobic and goaded her 'friends' into doing a 'prank' on that student before she leaves the school for her mother's next assignment…" He nodded his head at the file when he added, "And you can see the results of that so-called prank."
Nino read the rest of the report when he said, "The three who were complicit gave the police consistent stories regarding that… And all told the police that Lila claimed that she was going to let the student out of that locker two hours after the 'Prank' and were horrified to learn that Lila didn't… Or told anyone that the student was still in the locker… Even after she moved away two days later…"
THAT was telling… In a very bad way…
Kagami took the file and read through the rest of the case, specifically, when the body was discovered and why it took a week to find her. The fencer frowned at the data when she almost hissed out, "While I can understand halting the construction due to the extremely hot weather, I cannot understand why none of these three bothered to make sure that the student was let out of the locker!"
Nino snatched the file back and scanned for that information. When he found it, he stated, "Apparently, Lila had 'assured' these three that the student would be hiding out somewhere to try to get back at them the day after the 'Prank'… Even after the student's family reported her missing… It wasn't until they heard about a dehydrated body found in a locker on the construction site that they did the 'Prank' they realised the truth…" The normally chilled teen scoffed in aggravation and stated, "At least they turned themselves in and pleaded guilty to the charges…"
Alix folded her arms when she retorted dryly, "At least they owned up to their part…" She looked over the red-capped teen's shoulder to look at the picture of the dehydrated body. Alix cringed when she shuttered out, "Damn! It must've been one nasty heatwave, plus she was trapped inside a metal locker… I don't think she would've lasted a full day in these conditions…"
Rose was shaking like a leaf in the breeze when she stuttered out, "I… I… I can't believe! Did Lila assume that the construction workers would've found her the next day or something!"
Nino read the data that held that part. He frowned, shook his head and said, "I honestly don't know what Lila was thinking, but the reason they did the 'Prank' at that construction site was because there wasn't going to be anyone there the whole day…" He clicked his tongue when he added, eyes not leaving the data, "Even after they heard about the heatwave, they assumed Lila let the student out of that locker…"
Marc shrank when they got out softly, "I can't blame them for thinking that, but…" They sighed when they got out, "Did they honestly think doing something like locking someone who's clustorphonic in a small space wasn't going to get them in trouble? That kind of thing would have backfired on them in a different way had the student not…" Marc rubbed their arm when they added in a more self-conscious tone, "Plus, you never know how someone with a phobia or trigger could react when forced into those… It is technically considered an unlawful imprisonment…"
Satan couldn't help but state dryly, "I'm not sure about your mortal laws, but in regards to the causing of the death… I know that it's going to weigh heavily on this liar's 'Life Scale' once she eventually dies." He then manifested a copy of the file and looked through it and commented, "Hm, it seems like these three are honestly remorseful for their part in the deed, and given that they were manipulated by another's will to do it and they never intended the girl to die… They might not be judged on that on their 'Life Scale'…"
The Miraculous group stared at the Lord of wrath at this… Info dump that they didn't expect.
Jason Blood explained what those words meant.
How a soul is judged to discern whether they can ascend to Heaven, descend to Hell, placed in a purgatory, or cleansed to be placed on the wheel of reincarnation is for the deeds and choices in one's life to be placed on the 'Life Scale'. This item can accurately gauge the 'Life Choice' into one of five categories, of which are represented by a scale arm each.
Good, good motivated but executed as an evil intent, pure neutral, evil motivated but executed as an good intent, and Evil. With the corresponding colours starting with pure white representing 'Good', light gray for 'good motivated', solid gray for 'pure neutral', dark gray for 'evil motivated', and black for' evil'.
Jason did comment that yes, the 'Life Scale' is a five-sided libra scale. So that was an… Interesting visual… As well as a conundrum on How that worked on a practical level, But… It did 'weigh' deeds rather than something solid…
Urg! That was a paradoxical headache that would be too much trouble to understand.
Moving onto the next part of the explanation.
Jason made it a point to state that the 'Life Scale' can only discern deeds and actions that were of the person's own doing, choice, and will. Therefore, the 'Life Scale' will not even acknowledge the deeds and actions that were done because of the intended influence of another.
When asked why, the answer was simple; Because those were not done on the person being judge's own will.
Of course, Jason Blood used cults as an example of the 'intended influence of another' as to explain how it affects a person's actions.
If they are conditioned to act a certain way, it will affect how they might develop a submissive and compliant personality, which would stunt any attempt to have one individually. Then taught to obey without questioning, which will practically eliminate the ability to think for one's self and cause them to ignore the things around them. And essentially making sure that the person never experiences things or learns things to help them to develop as a person will hinder any desire to strive for the betterment of themselves.
This revelation… Frightened the Miraculous group, not because of how detailed and understandable it was but because of how Adrien fit all those boxes in some degree so easily…
Of course, it was asked what would happen if someone who was in that 'State of Conditioning' should their 'Life Scale' not register anything they've done their whole lives.
The answer was also surprisingly simple; they are sent to one of the many purgatory realms to essentially stay to sort out the revelation and to process how much of their lives weren't really them 'living how they wanted'. They will remain in their designated purgatory until they sort their shit out and accept what happened then try to do better in their next life.
This made sense, yet… Okay, think about the 'pergatories' part later.
Jason then explained that certain types of manipulation was categorised the same way as 'cults' but at a smaller scale and with more focus on how said manipulation affects the target's actions and decisions. It would still have a huge effect on the 'Life Scale', of course.
Okay, so there was some degree of responsibility on the part of the manipulator and the manipulated. More on the former than the latter depending on the actions and how it's carried out.
Jason then ended the explanation there, since it would be most likely that this Miraculous group will have to be brought to Tartarus if Lila was the Over-Summoner, but they were really hoping she wasn't. Even Marinette was hoping that Lila was only guilty of extreme pettiness.
Satan scoffed when he stated in annoyance. "Even then, given what Damocles has been able to find, this Lila's soul isn't going to be going to Heaven anytime soon unless she does some personality overhaul and does a hell of a lot of repenting." He placed a hand on his chin when he mused as he continued to look over the data, "But still… A little young to be doing these kinds of Hell-bound deeds… She is certainly going to be staying in my level of Hell for decades once she dies, and it's likely that she'll also spend a few decades in the other Rings."
Damocles shifted awkwardly as the teachers of the group looked uneasy. The teens were certainly the most dismayed of them all. Jason glanced at Raguel at the comment.
The Angel of Justice slowly opened his unseeing eyes as the white archaic symbols appeared on his skin when he said, "Funny you should mention her deeds."
When Satan glanced at the angel, he had to do a double-take. The Lord of Wrath knew that when the Angel of Justice was like THIS, he meant business.
Before anyone could put in another word, someone stormed in while shouting "Satan!"
}{
Alya didn't really have much of a destination in mind. She just wandered around the city to help clear her mind.
Right now, she never felt so betrayed. The person Alya had come to know as a sweet, adventurous, strong friend was a big, fat lie!
'Was I ever her friend?' the blogger wondered as she took her phone out of her pocket when she got a text alert. It was a message from Nino, asking if she was going to head home for the day. Alya took a deep breath before she replied that she was planning on it as she figured that she might as well. As she sent the text, Alya looked up to see where she was so she could figure out how to get home and that was when she saw Lila coming out of a fast food place with a take-out bag in hand.
Of course, Alya was baffled by this! After all, Lila was supposed to be in Italy with her mother on a work trip! The blogger tried to logically rationalise this scenario by telling herself that this person was a huge fan of Lila, but… Jason Blood already disproved that with solid facts that he researched…
So that had to be Lila… And that means that she was lying to the school about travelling… And if she could do that… Did that also mean that the 'Sick Leaves' were lies?
Alya needed to head back to tell everyone!
But Lila spotted her before the blogger could get away to do so.
"Alya! How are you!" Lila said enthusiastically when she spotted the blogger. Of course, she was already planning on spinning a tale as to why she was still in Paris when she should've been travelling.
In an unsure tone, Alya replied, "Oh, uh, hi, Lila…" She then asked in a confused tone, "Um, aren't you supposed to be in Italy with your mum?" Alya was honestly hoping for a reasonable answer, but with what she now knew, she had her doubts.
Lila looked dejected when she said in disappointment, "I know, but our flight got delayed by an hour and then we learned that there was a layover so it's going to be hours before we can leave. By the time we learned this, the school day was already 3/4th of the way done." The liar was proud of that story. Lila then watched the blogger for her reactions as a sudden idea dawned on her.
Alya let out a 'tough break' hum when she replied with a pitied expression, "Wow, what are the odds of that happening?" She was going to play along until she could get away without raising the other's suspicions. Alya then asked, "But shouldn't you be at the airport? You're going to have to go back through the security when you have to go back…"
Lila was quick to reply as she waved her free hand, "Oh, we don't have to worry about airport security with mum's diplomatic rank. We can get in without too much trouble." She smiled when she asked sweetly, "We're using the time to ensure that we have everything. Do you want to help with that?"
Alya was taken aback by this sudden request when she replied in an uncertain tone, "Oh! Uh, I don't know if I should." She was quick to add with a more sure tone as she waved her hands, "Trust me, I would love to help! But I don't know if your mum will be alright with you bringing someone home out of the blue like this. Even if it is to help out."
Lila was quick to titter off as she took Alya's hand, "Oh, don't worry about that. My mum has been dying to meet you and now she's going to have the chance to~." She then pulled her loyal puppet with her as she headed home.
Of course, Lila's mother was working late and wouldn't be home, but the liar had other plans.
Alya was in a bit of a dilemma. She couldn't use her phone without Lila noticing, especially since she grabbed the blogger's dominant arm and that side had her phone in the pocket. And she couldn't think up an excuse to disway the liar about this meeting… On the upside, this gave Alya the opportunity to talk to Mrs Rossi and subtly ask her some important questions.
Trixx, hiding in Alya's sweater pocket, was rather concerned about this whole thing. He wanted to tell his Holder this, but knew he couldn't without being seen. So Trixx had to wait for an opportunity to tell Alya.
As the two teenage girls headed to the Rossi's apartment building, they passed by Kathryn, who just came out of a corner store with a couple of snacks in a reusable bag. The redheaded girl watched them pass by without noticing her. Kathryn noticed their mismatched expressions as they passed and grew suspicious about what was happening. Her skull earring glowed slightly before she subtly followed them, at a reasonable distance.
}{
The Miraculous group froze before turning to see who was standing in the doorway. It was two people with one being an unease-looking Azrael while the other was someone that the humans have never met before, but Jason Blood, Raguel, and Satan seemed to know her.
Satan got all flustered and nervous when he got out, "Oh! My dear sister! It's good to see you!" He did his best to recover his composer when he asked, "But why are you here?"
The woman reminded the human members of the miracuclass of Asmodeus but felt a lot more tamed and controlled. She had bright blue eyes that reminded the group of a cloudless sky. Her face appeared to be Plain and unremarkable but only had the barest of light blue eyeliner to highlight the shape of her sharp eyes. She wore a neat, tidy, and semi-loose sky blue blouse with short wavy ruffles around the collar and the cuffs of the sleeves paired with teal dress slacks that was also semi-loose. Her blue dress shoes gleamed in the light. And her semi-wavy, well kept, light blue hair was cut to her shoulders that were held back with an ocean blue headband.
The woman in the light blue clothing folded her arms in front of her small chest when she stated seriously, "Azz-Azz never arrived at our Book Club meeting, Satan! And I cannot reach them no matter how many times I have tried to call them!"
Azrael looked at their hellish counterpart and nodded in agreement.
This made Satan go pale with shock before he got out in distress, "What!? But there is no way in the harshest parts of Hell would Ozzie ever miss any meetings of that Book Club!" He waved his arms across his chest when he snapped, "Not by their will at least!"
That was when Azrael stated in worry, "Exactly, and then add the inability to reach Ozzie on their Hellphone…" Their expression went cold and serious when they stated, "There's only one explanation behind this out of character behaviour."
The woman in light blue scowled as she let out a low growl at Satan went even paler as his eyes widened.
Jason Blood let out a soft growl when he got out as he too folded his arm, "An illegal contract! And on an Entity no less!" The archaic lines on Raguel's skin glowed brighter at these words.
All the Kwamis were out as they muttered among themselves about how bad this was and how utterly stupid the Over-Summoner was.
By this point, Miss Bustier, Fred, Ms Mendeleiev, and Damocles weren't surprised by the increase of the number Kwamis. They almost expected it, so this isn't what surprised them.
That was when Marinette asked the question on everyone's mind, "What is an 'illegal contract'? The way all of you are talking about it, it sounds like a really bad thing."
Jason Blood, and the unearthly beings stated at the same time and in the same serious tone, "It is a terrible thing."
Oh, boy… That kind of response was Not a good sign. Not at all.
The way Jason Blood explained it, an Illegal contract would be similar to keeping an Electrician trapped inside a room that was slowly filling up with water and not letting them out for anything or giving them what they need to really survive until they can fix the leak the water was coming from despite the electrician telling the person trapping them that it wasn't what their job was about and didn't know how to fix leaks.
That… Both made sense in a logical way and also made the mortals understand why these types of contracts are considered 'Illegal'. Then add the fact that there was Miasma gathering where the summoning was happening, compounded by the fact that it was a literal Sin…
THIS was worse than bad! THIS was catastrophic!
Even if Adrien was here and wasn't in the thralls of the aftermath of the battle the night before, he wouldn't have made a pun on that to cheer everyone up.
Tikki floated over to the woman in light blue and asked her, "Uriel… Is that why you're also here? Because Asmodeus is now trapped here…" She knew what that could entrail, but for the love of cookies! The fact that there were four entities on earth because of one person's ignorance and stupidity! How could Tikki NOT be worried!?
Ms Mendeleiev blinked when she asked, "Uriel? As in the Virtue of Chastity, Uriel?" It wasn't that the logical science teacher didn't believe that kind of thing, given current events, but the fact that the Virtue that mirrored Lust was worried about her counterpart was a surprise.
The woman in light blue nodded before she gave a graceful curtsy despite not being in a dress when she introduced herself, "I am Uriel, the Virtue of Chastity and overseer of the Domain of Chastity in Heaven." She then stood up straight in her perfect posture when she added, "Before you ask, Azz-Azz and I get along very well despite us being polar opposites."
That was a surprise, but if it works for them, that's fine as well as somewhat fascinating. But as of now, that wasn't on the priority list.
"Dudes, we Really need to find that Over-Summoner. Now more than ever," Nino told the others as Wayzz hovered nervously by his shoulder.
Everyone else agreed on this.
This also meant that the whole issue with Lila would have to be put on the back burner. At least for the main Miraculous Group, Damocles still had a job to do as headmaster of Dupont and had to report Lila's very thick file to the school board and possibly Interpol given the international nature of it all.
}{
Adrien checked his text message and read what he got from his classmates, and was flabbergasted by what information they gathered and what happened.
Of course, Plagg and Marques asked what was wrong, to which Adrien simply showed them the text group messages. Their reactions were the same as Adrien. However, Plagg seemed more angry.
"Oh! come freakin' on! What the actual Seven Rings of Hell is this utter moron of an Over-Summoner thinking!?" Plagg snapped in anger, somewhat startling Adrien and Marques. The black Kwami was floating back-and-forth between one part of the room to the other as he continued with this out of character rant, "I already thought this Over-Summoner was stupid for not listening to Asmodeus about the summoning and not being Satan! But this! This is the worst thing they could've done! Illegal Contracts are an active ticking time bomb of Miasma ready to blow at any moment! Which is going to be a whole lot worse given that a literal Sin is involved! And that's just on our side of things!"
Marques subtly signed to Adrien if this was something the Black Cat Kwami did often. The blonde teen's only response was to shake his head. that was when the bodyguard signed, "So the fact that he is like this is really bad." Adrien nodded at that as he kept an eye on Plagg and innately thought that now the roles were reversed.
}{
The Stationed Angel frowned at the fact that the 'Record Book' they have been using was running out of pages to use. There were only 8 free pages left before the book stops recording the actions and thoughts of the building's residents.
The Station Angel should've seen this coming, but they were to focus on trying to pinpoint what was causing the health issues of the building that they didn't want to leave their post to get another 'Record Book'.
Now there wasn't a choice… They had to leave their post to get another one.
Six pages left…
The stationed Angel took in a deep breath before letting it out as they contacted Raguel to let him know that they needed to get another 'Record Book' and had to leave their post.
Five pages left…
Just as the stationed Angel sent their status, they noticed Lila returning to the building with an ombre-haired teenage girl with glasses in tow.
The book used up a page to catch their conversation.
The stationed Angel raised a brow as they watched Lila almost dragging the other girl to the front of the building. Then they entered. The Angel looked at the book to read what was happening, and was taken aback by the fact that the book used up two pages to record the ombre-haired girl's thoughts on the situation before it all stopped when they moved close to the basement.
One page left…
The Stationed Angel was about to read all the thoughts of this 'Alya' girl, but noticed a young redheaded girl by the building's entrance. Strange, that girl didn't live there, so why was she here… The girl peeked inside the door that didn't close all the way before going in.
The Stationed Angel wondered who that child was and why she was going into a building that she didn't live in.
The last thing recorded in the book was the girl thinking, 'Urg! The air feels heavy and it stinks! Huh? Why are they going into the basement? The air smells worse there!'
The Stationed Angel stared at these thoughts as they tapped on the lines, highlighting it in yellow. The wording and tone was… Different from the ones from the residents…
The Stationed Angel frowned as they looked up at the building as they regretably had to leave to get a new 'Record Book' and to have this one looked through.
With that, the Station Angel vanished from sight without raising the suspicions of the mortals in the area.
}{
Alya felt something off about this building, but for the love of her! She couldn't figure out what!
Was it the air that smelt a little stale? Or the looming feeling that felt a little suffocating? Or maybe the lights overhead that were on the dull side? Perhaps it was the combination of all the above?
Whatever it was, Alya didn't like it!
But personal discomfort aside, the blogger did find it pretty weird that Lila was leading her towards the basement of the building. So, of course, Alya asked why they were going there rather than Lila's unit in the building.
The brunette turned to the blogger with a smile when she said chipperly, "I can see why you're confused, the penthouse of this building is where the basement would be rather than the top floors."
Alya couldn't help but say in confusion, "That… Is kind of weird… The view outside must be crap though…"
Lila giggled when she said as she pulled the blogger along, "Yeah, it is, but at least we don't have to worry about getting the direct light of the sun." She smirked when they came to the door of the basement.
Alya forced herself to smile as she wondered why the strange feeling felt worse here.
Kathryn entered the building just in time to see Lila leading Alya around the corner. She covered her nose at the rather potent smell that hung heavily in the air. 'Urg! The air feels heavy and it stinks!' Kathryn thought as she quickly followed the two teens. She watched them heading towards the lowest part of the building when she thought, 'Huh? Why are they going into the basement?' Kathryn watched as Lila unlocked the door and opened it. The stale air came wafting out with an even worse smell when Kathryn thought in disgust, 'The air smells worse there!' She had to take out a cloth from her bag and used it to cover her nose and mouth before she quietly followed, easily slipping through the door that wasn't closed all the way, then closed it behind her. Kathryn slowly descended the stairs and kept out of sight by hiding behind cardboard boxes. She couldn't help but wonder as she looked up at the very dim lights, 'When was the last time those bulbs were checked?'
Alya suspicions were going haywire now!
This WAS a basement, Not a penthouse!
The air felt so heavy and hard to breath!
The lights were very dull!
And this place stank!
The 2nd and 4th were the reasons why Alya wasn't already calling out Lila on her now very obvious lies!
At least until Alya saw something that made her heart sink into her stomach.
Asmodeus, the Lord of Lust, trapped inside a red Summoning Circle.
Alya took a step forward in shock as she stared at the sin. While this was happening, Lila took the opportunity to pick up the kitchen knife she's been using on the pigeons to get their blood and slowly crept behind the blogger with the knife ready to use.
Alya stared at the trapped Sin when she thought in dismay, 'Oh! God! Lila is the Over-Summoner! I can't believe it!' Her stomach sank even further as she wondered why Lila was showing her THIS.
Of course, Asmodeus recognised Alya from the group that Chloe chose to help her new family. And, of course, they warned Alya when they saw the Over-Summoner weilding a knife.
The blogger didn't see the attack coming when she turned to see what the Lord of Lust was warning about.
Asmodeus could only watch as the Over-Summoner slice open the blogger's throat with the knife in horror.
Alya choaked out a shocked gasp as she covered the now open wound in her throat, coughing up blood as she did. She staggered backwards as she stared at Lila with an expression of betrayal. Alya tried to get to the stairs, but she didn't even have a chance to…
Lila plunged the knife into Alya's throat, causing the blogger to fall to the ground as blood splattered on the liar. Alya hit the ground on her left side with the knife still in place, eyes no longer having the sparkle it had once did moments ago, and mouth partially open. The blogger's blood oozed out of her open wounds, and trailed towards the Summoner Circle.
Asmodeus went into their monstrous form when they snapped in pure rage, "WHAT IN THE SEVEN RINGS OF HELL ARE YOU THINKING?! HER UNNEEDED DEATH SEALS YOUR FATE!" But that form did not last long as the blood made contact with the Summoner Circle.
Lila only scoffed as she looked over the blood spatter all over her good clothes and stated, "Oh, please, I know what my fate entrails once you actually do what I want. Urg! Couldn't she have bled more conveniently?"
Asmodeus was appalled by this kind of behaviour.
A small gasp caught Lila's and the Lord of Lust's attention. Both turned to see Kathryn peeking out from some cardboard boxes with a shocked expression on her face.
Lila immediately saw red when she snapped, "How did you get in here?!"'
Instead of answering, Kathryn bolted towards the stairs.
Of course, Lila couldn't have that, so she went after the child. Being bigger and having a longer stride, she caught up to the redheaded girl halfway up the stairs. Lila snatched one of the girl's braids and yanked, hard, causing the girl to fall backwards on the stairs. Lila made no attempt to prevent the child's tumble down the stairs, thinking the annoyance deserved it for sticking her nose into something she shouldn't.
Asmodeus saw all this and couldn't understand the pure callassness of the Over-Summoner. One of the Lord of Lust's side head noticed something moving by the lifeless body, something orange. That head moved slightly to get a better look while keeping the other two on the Over-Summoner.
Trixx tried to shake Alya's shoulder to get some kind of reaction, but when he noticed the knife in his Holder's throat… He was horrified. Then Trixx heard Lila's voice, he immediately hid in Alya's hair. He could still see what was going on but not be seen.
"Alright brat! Get up!" Lila snapped as she walked down the stairs to stand over the little girl who laid on the ground, face down. The liar got irritated when the girl didn't move and snapped, "I said get up!" Lila then kicked the girl on the side when she snapped angrily, "Don't think you can ignore ME!"
If Asmodeus wasn't feeling sick before, they certainly was now.
Lila's next kick on the girl was harder, causing the child to roll to her back and her head to move in an awkward angle that wouldn't be possible if the neck was completely fine. When Lila realised this, she took a closer look at the child and confirmed that the neck was broken and the child wasn't breathing. Lila let out a huff as she stood up and stated with a sneer, "Looks like this brat got what she deserved."
The liar than grabbed one of the child's braids and dragged the body back to the Summoner Circle, tossed it near Alya, then pulled the knife out of the blogger's throat, and then plunged it into the child, making sure that her blood oozed out. Lila smirked as she watched the blood trail towards the Summoner Circle.
Asmodeus recognised the child and couldn't help but think, 'Oh… That's going to make things even worse for this bitch…'
The Summoner Circle glowed red and Lila gave who she still believed was Satan her demands. Yet again, Asmodeus told the Over-Summoner the same thing they tried fruitlessly to hammer in. Of course, Lila didn't listen as she gave the Lord of Lust the demands that would never happen.
The only thing Trixx could do was stay hidden as he silently wept for his holder and the redheaded girl.
}I{
Both Heaven and Hell sent word to every stationed Angel and Devil in Paris to seek out the Miasma cluster. As of now, that was the highest priority.
The Lord of Lust was trapped in the Mortal Plain, away from their Ring, and most likely unable to take in their respective representation or keep their Ring stable.
Asmodeus NEEDED to be found!
}{
Jason Blood walked into the hotel room he was occupying. He closed the door behind him and let out a sigh.
Things have Not gone as he had hoped, and as it turned out, the Over-Summoner is just piling on more and more crimes against Hell to her 'Life Scale'… And that wasn't even the main issue!
Jason took in a deep breath and let it out slowly as he walked into the main area of the suit. All he wanted to do was take a shower, eat something, and go to sleep. That was the original plan, until he noticed that things that should be in place weren't.
Kathryn's shoes were also missing from the hall leading into the suit, there was a reusable bag was missing from the neatly folded triangles that were in a straight line on the counter, and Kathryn's coin purse wasn't on the dinner table, where she tends to keep it when travelling while in the room.
These facts told Jason Blood that Kathryn left the suit to buy something, probably somewhere nearby.
Normally, this wouldn't cause the father to worry too much. He knew his daughter could handle herself if needed. However…
Jason checked his watch to see that it was just past 20:00.
Even though Kathryn could handle herself, she was still a child and Jason's daughter. Thus had a curfew that she had to adhere to no matter what she was doing outside the current residence. Her curfew was 18:00, or whenever it got too dark outside.
Something wasn't right.
Jason was quick to check the suit for his daughter. The kitchen and living rooms were eliminated quickly. The bedroom only had Kathryn's Darkrai plushie, and no one was in the bathroom…
Something was definitely NOT right!
}{
Nora is an overprotective sister, this was a fact. The kickboxer wasn't going to deny this, but she won't admit that she can go overboard sometimes.
However, this wasn't one of those overboard moments.
Nora frowned when she said into her phone, "Fly-weight, I'm not going to be mad at you if Als is with you, but you don't have to tell her I asked."
Currently, the kickboxer was sitting at the dinner table with her family. Given their family rule of making sure that they were home for dinner and to contact one of the adults in the family about either being late or crashing at a friend's home, Alya was currently breaking that rule. The four were looking at the oldest daughter with expressions that were a mixture of 'Really?' and 'You're overdoing it'.
Nino's voice came through the kickboxer's phone in confusion, "Uh, Anansi… I'm being serious, Alya isn't at my place." The teen let out a worried hum when he asked, "Does… Does that mean that Alya isn't home with you?"
Nora raised a brow at the question, which got Otis and Marlena's attention. The kickboxer then said into the phone, "No… I wouldn't be calling and asking you about Als whereabouts if she were home…"
Nino's voice came through the phone with an uneasy hum before he said, "Okay, that's kind of weird… She texted me saying she was heading home after she left the group project meeting, so… I assumed that's where she went…"
Nora couldn't help but ask into her phone, "Do you know if any of the other girls had some kind of get together? Or maybe she saw Ladybug and Chat Noir and tried to get an interview?" She was trying to think logically on some of Alya's past behaviours.
Nino's voice came through the phone in more of a sure tone, "I haven't heard any of them talking about any get togethers, which Alya would've given you the heads-up about. And I have Admin privileges on the Ladyblog and there's nothing new in the drafts, so that can't be it."
NOW Nora was starting to worry, as were her parents and the twins. The kickboxer told the red capped teen to let her know if Alya contacts him. Nino agreed and then the call ended.
Then Nora called Marinette, Otis was quick to call Arnarka, and Marlena called Alya's cellphone. Ella and Etta could only watch the grown-ups in worry.
}{
Once Lila finished giving 'Satan' her demands, she heard the annoying ringtone of Alya's phone. That was when the liar remembered that those things could be tracked. So, Lila pulled the ringing phone out of the blogger's right pocket and checked to see who it was.
It was Alya's mother.
Lila rolled her eyes as she turned the phone off, effectively ending the ringing. 'I'm going to have to get rid of this, but first…' Lila thought as she looked over her clothing in disgust and annoyance. Reluctantly, the liar had to take her clothes off and turn them inside out before putting them back on.
Of course, Lila thought she looked ridiculous, but better that than being caught with blood spatter on her clothes.
Then Lila had a thought, before she checked the body of the redheaded girl. Being careful to avoid the blood so she didn't get more on her clothing.
No phone, that was good.
The child had an unusual coin purse. It was split into two sections, one for actual coins and the other for bills. Not abad design, but Lila certainly didn't like the fact that it was themed on one of these stupidly heroic geek cartoons. The liar couldn't care to remember the name of that idiotic cartoon, something to do with a hero school or something like that, which interested Lila even less. Still, money was money, and the liar wasn't going to complain about getting free money.
She'll just toss the coin purse with the blogger's phone.
Then Lila spotted two things that interested her. 'Oh?' The liar thought as she looked over the bracelet on the girl's right wrist, a gold chain with a white obelisk crystal charm. It looked pricey and pretty, so Lila took that. Then Lila took the bracelet on the girl's other wrist, which also looked pricey and pretty, and held it up to get a better look at it. A silver chain bracelet with five black obelisk charms that were half the size of the white one. Clearly, the two brackets were part of a matching set, and Lila liked them enough to take.
The liar managed to wrap both around her left wrist and was pleased that they fit her well enough. Clearly these pieces of jewlleries were meant for an older individual rather than a child. 'Oh, these do look good on me~,' Lila thought before she moved to leave. She spotted the reusable bag full of snacks behind one of the cardboard boxes. Of course, Lila checked it for anything she liked, assuming that the annoyance brought it down with her. The bag was of no interest to Lila, but a few of the snacks did appeal to her, so she took those, munching on one on the way out of the basement.
Miasma wafted out of the basement as the door opened. Only stopping when the door closed, but the Miasma was squeezing through any little crack in the basement.
Asmodeus couldn't prevent scowls from forming on any of their faces.
A small cough caught the Lord of Lust's attention. They turned their attention to see the orange fox-like Kwami floating out of the blogger's hair, his paws over his mouth as he forced the miasma out of his lungs.
"Trixx? What are you doing here?" Asmodeus asked the familiar being that they haven't seen in a long while.
Trixt coughed again when he said, "Alya is my current Holder *cough*. So, I go where *cough* she does." He coughed when he looked sadly at the ombre-haired teen who was too still for the lively Kwami's liking when he said softly, "Oh, Alya…" Trixx then coughed as he floated to sit on top of a nearby cardboard box.
Asmodeus knelt to get at a better level to talk to the Kwami, "You need to get out of here, Trixx! For both your health and to get help!" They knew that the Kwami could get out without much trouble but… Asmodeus then stated, "I know you can't go far from your Miraculous, and identities be damned, but at least get out of here so the Miasma doesn't affect you!"
Trixx nodded as he coughed. He then floated around the perimeter of the basement, coughing every so often. Unfortunately, the walls were just out of the Kwami's range. But the small window was just inside that. Trixx phased through the glass and stayed in the groves. He couldn't help but gasp at the clean air. Once Trixx caught his much needed breath, he looked around to figure out where he was.
It was a rather narrow alleyway, just enough for one person to squeeze through.
Trixx moved as far from the window as his Miraculous would allow and saw just how out of the way this part was from the street. From the sounds the fox-like Kwami could hear, it was the everyday noise of a busy street… And that means that no one was going to hear the little being no matter how much he screamed or made noise…
The thought of causing some mischief came to Trixx, but he was at the range limit of his Miraculous, which was inside one nasty miasma cluster, and that very Miasma was already blocking the bulk of his powers. This was bad!
Trixx couldn't get help for Asmodeus, couldn't draw attention to himself, and…
Trixx cried again as he leaned against the glass.
He couldn't get someone to find Alya and that redheaded child.
}I{
Despite the late hour and the fact that it took a few hours, the Césaires KNEW something happened to their middle daughter.
None of Alya's friends confirmed that she was there, which their parents backed up. Alya's usual hangouts weren't open at this time of night. And the most alarming thing was that Alya's phone was off! The blogger's phone was NEVER off! That was already a major red flag to the Césaires!
The adults of the Césaire family couldn't wait until morning to report their middle child missing!
As Nora stayed home to watch the Twins despite wanting to search for the 2nd oldest sister, while the parents headed to the police station.
They bursted into the building, startling the skeleton crew who were in. Both Marlena and Otis made a beeline towards the front desk. When they got there, they stated at the same time in the same distressed tone, "We/I need to report our/my daughter missing!"
The clerk glanced between the people standing in front of the desk when they asked, "Um… Are all of you together? And reporting the same person missing?"
"Of course!" Both Marlena and Otis snapped at the same time.
"Wait? 'All of you'?" another voice questioned in confusion.
The Césaires blinked in confusion before they turned to the new voice, and there standing at the front desk with them was Jason Blood.
The red headed man stared at the Césaires in confusion, and they him.
The clerk glanced between the married couple and the redhead man when they asked wearily, "Given your reactions I take it you aren't together and are reporting a missing child each?"
The three nodded as they continued to stare at each other as they all wondered what the hell were the odds of two different families reporting their daughter missing at 03:00?
Of course, the parents brought what was needed for filing a missing person's report.
~}I{~
To be continued.
~}I{~
Gale-Dragon: And with that the timer on that Miasma bomb shrinks.
~}I{~