Karazelle sat at the teacher's desk, lost deep in thought as she struggled to balance one of Cobalt's pencils atop her upper lip. Now that she had the chance to root through his things, she was hoping to find something juicy to tease him about - maybe a personal notebook or some idle doodles - but was disappointed to find that everything the Incubus kept at his desk was strictly for teaching.

"Diligent as ever..." the Succubus sighed, spinning around in his chair.

At the back of the class, she heard Whitney cluck her tongue.

"Something you wanna share with the rest of the class, Miss Brode?" Karazelle announced in her best impression of Cobalt's voice.

"Fuck off, Whoretits!" the Nymph responded, proudly displaying her middle finger.

"Hey! He left me in charge, remember? So cut the attitude, or you'll be in detention for the rest of your life!"

"You can't give me detention; you're a student!"

"Well then, I'll just have to write you up, then! Mr. Trayer's gonna be so~ disappointed in you when he gets back!"

Tittering with glee, she searched beneath the desk for something to write on, only to be alerted to the sound of buzzing on the floor. Karazelle raised an eyebrow and glanced down to see Cobalt's dropped mobile phone, slowly vibrating across the linoleum as it silently rang.

Picking it up, she flipped it open and held it to her ear.

"Finally! Listen bluebell, I just saw a shitload of SUVs on the cams, heading towards your scho- hello? You there?" spoke the frantic voice of a woman that she didn't recognise.

"Um... Cobalt isn't here right now, sorry. He dropped his phone," the Succubus responded.

"Shit, right, okay. Um... Just tell him to ring back as soon as you see him, okay? Thanks!"

The call ended before she could inquire as to the caller's identity. Frowning, Karazelle lifted her head up and placed the phone on the desk. Though she wasn't one to pry into Cobalt's social circles, there was something about the desperation in that woman's voice that inspired deep-seated unease in her.

"U- Um, Karazelle...?" asked a small, accented voice.

Dismissing the call for the time being, Karazelle leaned over the desk to see Jelli standing in front of it, nervously wringing her hands as she rocked back and forth on the balls of her heels.

"What's up?" the Succubus asked, giving her a reassuring smile.

"Is Mr. Trayer okay? Should we, um... Should we have let him go out on his own like that? Y- You know, because of the... u- um... T- Teufel..." the Glutton stammered, swallowing hard as she glanced around nervously.

Karazelle sighed and tousled Jelli's hair. This whole Devil thing was running them all ragged, but none so much as her. Jelli was a natural born worrier, and sometimes Karazelle wondered whether she was going to be able to handle this entire situation.

She did raise a good point, though. Cobalt had left so abruptly without considering his own safety. It wasn't like him to be so careless...

"Don't worry, sweetheart, I'm sure he'll be-"

"Shut the Hell up, Whoretits!" Whitney suddenly yelled from the back of the classroom.

Baring her teeth, Karazelle turned to the Nymph and made ready with a venomous retort, but stopped upon seeing the look in her eyes. Whitney's pointed ears were twitching, and going by the look of confusion on the other Nymphs in the classroom, something was up.

"You hear something, Butterskin?" the Succubus asked, slowly getting out of Cobalt's seat.

Whitney shut her eyes and concentrated right as thunder rumbled outside.

"Engines. Big ones, and, like, a lot of them."

Karazelle raised an eyebrow as she glanced down at Cobalt's discarded phone. Thinking back on the mysterious caller, her frown deepened.

"Engines...? SUV engines, perchance?" she asked Whitney.

"Hold on, I'm getting something else! There's a bunch of guys voices, and some kind of clicking sound. Almost mechanical. A bit like-"

She cut herself off as the blood drained from her face.

"Spit it out, Butterskin; what is it?!"

Whitney fixed Karazelle with a terrified gaze.

"... like guns."

Over by Lottie's desk, Quinn looked up from her best friend's schoolwork and quirked an eyebrow.

"Guns? You sure that's what you're hearing?" she asked.

"I- I'm pretty sure. Like that 'shk-shk' sound they use in movies all the time."

This definetely wasn't good. Fearing that something was afoot, Karazelle excused Kelli and rushed over to one of the windows. Hoisting it open, she stuck her head outside just in time to see a small armada of black SUVs gathered around the school's entrance. Gruff-looking Oni were spilling from them, each toting fearsome looking weaponry and dressed in dark suits.

"Uh, Izzbelle? You didn't call an impromptu family reunion here, did you?" the Succubus called back into the classroom, unwilling to take her eyes off the Oni gangsters.

"Wha-?! The fuck is that supposed to mean?!" came the roared response.

"There's a tonne of Sulfur Bloods out there."

"What?!"

Practically throwing her desk aside, the Oni rushed over to the window, shoving Karazelle out of the way as she gazed outside. All around them, the class was getting more and more agitated by the upheaval, when a series of gunshots suddenly rattled from somewhere in the building, startling everybody. Screams and roars echoed up the corridor, followed by the stomping of boots on linoleum tiles.

"Wh- What's going on?!" Jelli screamed, cowering behind Cobalt's desk.

"I don't know! Just stay there!" Izzbelle replied, gesturing for the Glutton to get down as she summoned her Bronze Axe into her hand.

Swallowing hard, Karazelle backed away from the window. The rest of the class got out of their seats and edged away from the door, some already drawing their weapons. The footsteps got louder and louder until they stopped just outside.

"On three!" grunted a voice from outside.

The air seemed to suck from the room as everyone held their breaths. Three seconds passed, and the door was violently booted open in a shower of splinters. A quartet of heavily-armed Sulfur Bloods poured into the classroom, each aiming their submachineguns at the students.

"Everyone on the fuckin' ground, now!" bellowed one of the Oni, staring down the sights of his weapons.

The class all cried out and fell to the knees. Karazelle ducked behind the teacher's desk and wrapped her arms around Jelli, who was silently shaking with fear as tears rolled down her cheeks, thick and fast. Only Izzbelle remained upright, clutching her axe defiantly.

"What the fuck is goin' on here?! Where's dad?!" she roared, hefting the weapon onto her shoulder defiantly.

"Parricidio's got no stakes in this! Now sit the fuck down before I pump you full of lead!"

Karazelle hissed at the Oni to obey, but Izzbelle just growled and took a step forward.

"How about you make me, cocksucker?!" she spat, readying her axe.

Right as the gangster made an unintelligible noise of anger and made to squeeze the trigger, a voice rang out from the corrider.

"That's enough. Step aside and leave this room to me."

It was unlike anything Karazelle had ever heard. Deep and resonating, yet something akin to rusty metal scraping together. Nodding to each other, the Sulfur Bloods each stepped out of the room, allowing a fifth individual to step into the doorway.

Izzbelle suddenly faltered, her enraged defiance giving way to shock.

"Y- You...!" she guttered, gripping the Bronze Axe tighter.

The newcomer laughed, a sound that grated against Karazelle's ears.

"Me indeed."

Swallowing hard, the Succubus held Jelli close and peeked out from behind the desk.

A tall figure loomed in the doorway, shrouded from head to toe in dark cloth. The coat he wore reached the floor, and his raised hood cast darkness over his face, the only part of which could be seen was his bright red eyes. Raising a gloved hand, he ran his fingers across a pair of curved iron spikes that had been clipped to his belt, causing his whole body to shudder.

Her throat went dry. It was her first time seeing him, and yet Karazelle knew exactly who this was.

"Diate..."

The enshrouded Devil took a few steps into the classroom and slowly surveyed the cowering students within.

"I see you have all been left to your own devices, and my mark has left the building. How curiously out of character," he mused, his red eyes glinting in the light.

"Hey! You think you can just waltz in here after what you did?!" Izzbelle roared, clutching her Bronze Axe so tightly that her knuckles went white.

Diate regarded her with a cold eye.

"Ah, my erstwhile flesh puppet. Good to see you again," he stated dryly.

"GRAAAAAGH!"

Kicking off the floor, Izzbelle shunted the school desks aside and almost trampled a few of her classmates as she made to cleave Diate in two. Rather than dodge out of the way, however, he just raised his hand and snapped his fingers.

"Menidutitrof ihim ad. Orref. Tneratpac," he chanted, not breaking eye contact with his assailant once.

Chains of dark iron suddenly burst from the floor and ceiling, rapidly winding around Izzbelle as they drew taught and held her in place, stopping her axe just inches from Diate's neck. The class gasped and scuttled away as she struggled and thrashed, unable to break free.

"What the fuck is this?! Let me go!" barked the Oni, her axe slipping from her grasp.

"Hm. Your father probably wouldn't approve of this, but then again, our deal is already over. Do hold still, my dear; I'll make this quick. Muiratnemamra muerref. Siruces," sighed Diate in an almost disinterested tone, holding out his hand as grey mist began to form around it.

The vapour coalesced and solidified into the shape of a large axe just like Izzbelle's, though this one was formed from cruel black iron. He raised it upon his shoulder and made ready to cut the Oni's head off, however a dictionary was suddenly lobbed at the Devil's head, forcing him to stop and catch it out of the air. Eyes widening, Karazelle looked around to see that Jelli had broken free of her grasp, tears still streaming as she picked up another book.

"L- Leave her alone!" the Glutton cried, throwing a thesaurus at Diate.

Batting the book out of the air, the Devil laughed.

"You're a cocky bunch, aren't you? You must be part of Trayer's entourage. Speaking of; where is he, girl?" he asked, narrowing his blood-red eyes at Jelli.

The Glutton's short-lived bravado melted away as she collapsed against the back wall, too terrified to speak. Unwilling to let him torment her friend, Karazelle bit her tongue and got to her feet.

"Far away from here," the Succubus announced, keeping her voice firm despite her knocking knees.

Diate's eyes widened.

"Ah of course. How silly of me to think he'd be man enough to face me. Tell me, girl; are you the one they call Karazelle Terna?" he asked, cocking his head.

His gaze cut right through her.

"Y- Yes," she replied, clenching her fists.

Dispelling the axe, Diate began to circle the room as he tapped his chin.

"I see, I see... I already know Izzbelle Suyas here, and judging by the infuriated grunts she's giving me, that over there is Adeline Pharmine," he mused, pointing to Jelli.

"What do you want? Why are you doing this?" Karazelle asked, placing a protective hand in front of the Glutton.

"Well you seem to already be somewhat clued in, so I won't mince words with you. I'm here to kill Cobalt Trayer," he announced loudly.

As soon as he said those words, a hideous shriek rang out from the corridor as a blur of black wind shot through the doorway, scattering papers all over the room. Whipping around, Diate intercepted it with an outstretched hand, holding it still to reveal Elya Yalfre, her wings flapping madly as she struggled to pry the Devil's finger off her throat. Immoderata slipped from her grasp and dropped to the floor.

"As I tracked my prey, I often saw another doing the same. I had thought you a fellow, Elya, but clearly you are too protective of him. It's a shame, really; you're a skilled stalker."

"I'll kill you! I'll kill you, I swear!" the Fallen hissed and spat, clawing at the Devil with untended fingernails.

Guffawing, Diate wound his other arm back and roughly punched her in the face, silencing her enraged shrieking. He tossed her aside and snapped his fingers again, causing chains to emerge and bind her body.

"Still, if Trayer is not here..."

He glanced behind him to see Whitney cowering behind her seat.

"... then I suppose I ought to give him a good reason to return!"

In a flash of grey smoke, Whitney was bound in chains before she could even get a scream out. Karazelle could see the light glint off a grin from somewhere deep within the shrouded hood as the Devil stalked the classroom, glaring at the students cowering before him. Coming to a stop by one of the desks that was still upright, he chuckled at the sight of Lottie, who had been blissfully asleep throughout the whole ordeal.

"Trayer certainly keeps the strange ones close," Diate remarked, reaching for the Golem's hair.

A terrific bang erupted from the corner of the room right as something struck Diate's back, causing him to stagger. He growled and turned to face Quinn Redtile, her Lead Revolver held before her with the barrel still smoking.

"You lay a fucking finger on her and you're brown fucking bread," she shouted, cocking the hammer with a click.

"You ladies seem awful eager to get yourselves killed, you know that? I thought Quinn Redtile was supposed to be the pragmatic, opportunistic one," Diate remarked, rubbing the spot where the bullet hit.

The mishappen lump of lead clattered to the floor before fading into red mist. It didn't even break the skin.

"Step away from Lottie or the next one goes in your head," Quinn hissed, shutting an eye as she took aim.

"What if I made you a monetary offer to walk away right now?"

"Get fucked, wanker."

"Very well."

As she fired the gun again, Diate twisted out of the way with inhuman speed before surging forward and sweeping Quinn's legs out from beneath her. As she fell to the ground, he conjured another mass of chains to hold her still.

"I'm growing tired of this," the Devil remarked, pulling Lottie out of her chair and dumping her next to the rest of his captives.

He turned his gaze onto Karazelle and Jelli.

"He's not here, alright?! Are you really gonna hold a whole school hostage for one person?!" the Succubus cried, balling her fists.

Diate shrugged.

"It wouldn't be the worst thing I've done. Besides, I know he'll come running back eventually, especially when he finds out that his precious students are in harms way," he replied, gesturing to the captives behind him.

Baring her teeth, Karazelle took Jelli's hand and summoned her Leather Whip.

"Don't you dare...!"

"Relax, Trayer is my only priority. I don't intend on actually hurting any of you if I can help it."

"We're not going with you!"

Growling beneath his breath, Diate stretched out his hand.

"Rossem."

Slowly, a wicked iron scythe formed in the Devil's hand, the sight of which almost caused Karazelle's knees to buckle. Glaring at the Succubus, he pressed the blade against the throat of a nearby Nymph.

"If I can help it, I said. If you keep acting out like this, however, then I'll have no qualms about picking your acquaintances off one by one until you stop. It'll be like plucking daisies," he threatened.

His voice cut clean through Karazelle, causing her own voice to waver. Swallowing hard, she looked over at her captive friends, who were each losing the fight against their chains.

This was getting out of hand far too quickly. A deep-seated feeling of despair arose in her stomach when she realised that they had all massively underestimated the power of a Devil. The threat of death was all too real now, and she wasn't willing to put her classmates in harms way.

"I- If we go with you, you won't hurt anyone, right...?" she breathed, turning back to Diate.

He touched his chest and nodded.

"Trayer is all I care about. Your friends will not be harmed by my hand, this I can promise."

Nodding shakily, Karazelle dispelled her whip and knelt down. Holding Jelli's shoulders, she looked deep into her eyes before pulling the Glutton into a tight hug.

"Fine, we'll go with you..."

Shutting her eyes, all she could hear was the sound of the Devil's insidious laughter.

"Excellent... This is going to be so much fun...!

 

-----

 

Arnn peeked out of the locker, his heart hammering in his chest. For the past while, the Imp had been skiving off in the bathroom on his phone, only to be greeted by the sound of gunfire when he finally deigned to return to class. A lot of Oni mobsters were patrolling the halls, and even more were in each of the classrooms, holding the students hostage. Sticking to the shadows, the Imp witnessed the teachers getting rounded up into the staff room while a strange man in a hooded coat visited 2-F's room.

Arnn was scared out of his mind. He knew he was a coward, but he wasn't an idiot, either. This guy was powerful, and judging by the way he was effortlessly ordering mobsters around, he was dangerous. The Imp had carefully followed him and watched from a distance as he broke into the classroom and captured a fair number of his fellow classmates.

From the safety of a nearby locker, the Imp watched on in terror as the gangsters dragged the enchained demons out of the room and down the stairs. Towards the basement, if what the hooded guy had to say rang true.

Stifling his breath, he peeked through the slats in the locker. The door to the classroom was open, and he could see a pair of gun-toting Oni keeping the class passive. Izzbelle and Karazelle and the rest of that clique, however...

Not to mention, Cobalt was nowhere to be seen. Arnn didn't remember seeing him get shoved into the staff room.

Had he escaped? Where was he? What was going on?

Arnn couldn't answer any of these questions, but deep down, there was something that he knew rang true.

They hadn't found him yet.

He needed to go get help.