The day had been a rather uneventful one for Cupid. With a storm brewing in the background behind her, the Angel of Love watched with disinterest from the backyard window as Luka and Lucifina prepared dinner, a simple chicken stir fry for two. As admittedly delicious as the food smelled - and how absolutely adorable it was that Luka helped his Mother cook - Cupid quickly became very bored with watching the two do, well, normal day-to-day routines.


    From the Angel of Love''s observations, however, she learned that routine was sacred in the young Prophet''s life. There was a certain set of things he needed to do to go about a day. For instance, every time he awoke, his Mother would have a glass of cold water ready for him to drink. Evidently, this was a necessity, as Luka hated morning breath and needed to be rid of it as quick as possible.


    There was a litany of other things as well, like how the boy needed his hair to be brushed frequently to untangle, or he would start pulling on it. Luka also insisted on certain things having to be his responsibility, such as trimming the hedges outside so that they were the perfect length.


    ''Being out in the garden with Luka could be nice, getting on my hands and knees out there in the flowerbed might help plant the seed in more ways than one...'' Cupid giggled, finding a great amount of amusement in her lewd pun.


    There were also things he met in the middle on, such as how the boy decided that while he couldn''t pick his own clothes to wear for the day, only he could dress himself. Additionally, Luka had to be completely alone because he didn''t want anyone to see him naked. Cupid giggled again, squirming where she stood, ''Well, not completely alone. I was told to watch over him anytime I could, right? Why not feast my eyes every now and then...''


    Cupid''s giggling trailed off, giving way to boredom again as she watched the pair cook more.


    Or rather, the Angel of Love watched Lucifina - now wearing an apron over her nightgown - as she in turn watched her son as he tended to the nearly finished food. Although Cupid had discovered that this was for the best, as apparently the Fallen Seraph was a terrible cook while Luka excelled at it. ''Personally, if I was cookin'' with Luka, I''d ditch everything but the apron~'' The depraved thought sent a wave of excitement through Cupid.


    "Well, just another idea for the future..." Cupid grimaced, "A future that''s about... ten years from now..." She laid her chin on the windowsill, "...If I''m lucky..."


    "Daydreaming about your depraved fantasies once again, Cupid?" The Angel of Love let out a heavy sigh before turning to the voice, not very surprised to see the familiar sight of a disappointed Valkyrie.


    Cupid gave a sly smirk, "You''re one to talk, considering that you keep coming back to find out if Marcellus has returned yet..." She sauntered over to the War Angel, "...Hate to disappoint you, but he hasn''t shown up still. So, the changes of us getting a good show tonight are slim."


    Valkyrie huffed, "That isn''t the only reason why I visit you, I still have to force you just to send in one simple report." Cupid raised an eyebrow, "Hmm, not the only reason? Tell me, what''s the other reason?" Valkyrie blushed madly at the implication, having to tighten her fists as Cupid fought to quiet her laughter.


    "J-Just come on already!" Valkyrie hissed, spinning on her heel to stomp away in a somewhat dignified manner.


    Cupid rolled her pink eyes but complied nonetheless, taking off into the sky with her comrade. The flight was mostly silent, the stoic Valkyrie leading the charge as the blonde-haired Angel followed behind, jaded by her lack of erotic stimulation for the entirety of the day. To their right, the sun was already three-quarters beneath the horizon. To their left, distant lightning strikes screamed through the air. Each strike elicited a roar of thunder from the storm clouds.


    The two Angels flew past the end of the Ilias Continent, eventually leading them into the much larger and more contested Continent of Sentora. Passing over the Natalia Region, the pair flew by San Ilia, keeping mindful of the particularly dark area of cloud above it, and flew up to the range of mountains in the center of Sentora itself.


    Their destination? The Navel of the World, home to Heaven''s Gate. Otherwise known as the only way for anything to enter or exit Heaven.


    Heaven''s Gate was located at one of the topmost peaks of the unnamed mountain range. On this peak was an ancient stone Temple of Ilias, perhaps the first ever created by the first followers of the Goddess of Light. At its center, a large ivory tower loomed over the Temple. At its top, laid this Heavenly entrance. Dropping on the top of the large, uncovered battlement of the tower, the two Angels gazed upon the entrance to Heaven itself.


    It was a deciding unholy-looking creation. The door itself was large, almost ten meters tall, and a little over six meters wide; it certainly dwarfed any of the Angels that ventured through it. The door was the color of volcanic soot, its large facade having engravings of naked Angels on it. Though they seemed to be in poses one would hesitate to consider Angelic.


    Some say that the engravings used to be more modest, but none dare to ask The Gate about why this was no longer the case.


    Out of the door''s sides sprouted many golden tentacles, some of which seemed to curl around the dark gray columns that stood erect against the edges of the two giant doors. On these columns were also multiple sets of horns, along with a giant golden eye on the top half of these two adjacent pillars. On the top of this door were many black angel wings, all of them seeming to be connected to a single golden statue of an Angel prostrating at the very top.


    This was the esteemed Heaven''s Gate.


    Cupid and Valkyrie gazed upon the odd-looking door, both Angels having a similar distaste for the Monster-like appearance of the door. Valkyrie narrowed her eyes at the Gate, ''Could it be any more deplorable? Angels are not supposed to be depicted in the nude; I scarcely understand why the Goddess allows it to have such a design.''


    Cupid next to her grimaced, dreading what was to come, ''Gah, I hate talking to this thing, can''t it just open and shut like any regular old door!?''


    However, neither uttered a word about such a thing, for Heaven''s Gate itself is one of Ilias''s most powerful Angels. One would be a fool to cross words with the Angel formerly known as the second-strongest Cherub.


    The golden Angel statue on the top started to transform, its golden husk melting off of it like a second skin as the Angel underneath began to show herself. The Angel''s coal-black hair fell behind her head in a bowl cut. From the top of her head sprouted a pair of ivory horns, and behind her black mane was a pair of white wings that came out from the back of her head.


    Like her fellow Cherub, the Angel''s body was completely unclad, showing her bare breasts and midriff. The Angel''s green eyes shone through half-lidded eyes as she analyzed the two Angels standing before her. "Ahhhh, the soon-to-be Archangel, and the Angel of Love..." She tilted her head, "Are you wishing to enter Heaven?"


    Cupid snorted, looking off to the side as Valkyrie stated what the Angel of Love found to be the obvious. "Yes, we are. May you allow us safe passage?" The Angel''s green eyes glowed, "I may... if you were to tell me some of your journey." Even Valkyrie, one who holds the utmost respect for her fellow Angel, sighed at the request.


    Heaven''s Gate was particularly interested in hearing of the travels of the Angels who walked the Earth. Most could assume that this was because of the nature of her position as the entrance to Heaven. The Angel herself could not leave, as she was quite literally physically connected to the gate, assimilated into it at Goddess Ilias''s command so that the door to her realm could be safely guarded. It was surely an honor for the former Cherub, but it was no doubt a mostly boring one as well.


    However, most Angels did not care for her strange solicitations, though her overwhelming strength was reason enough to placate her.


    "Well, I had to check in on Cupid again to make sure she was being compliant with her duties..." Valkyrie paused for a moment, "...To which she was." Cupid was surprised at the comment, having been sure that the War Angel would take the opportunity to rub salt in her wound through mockery.


    Heaven''s Gate shifted her attention to Cupid, her emerald gaze locking onto Cupid. "Is this true? Ah, you were watching over the Prophet Luka today, weren''t you?" At her own statement, Heaven''s Gate started to become even more energized, clapping her hands together. "I pray and pray that one day he can come visit me, I would be grateful to send him to Heaven, it would be an honor!"


    Cupid raised her hands up, nervous that the former Cherub would get stuck on the boy. ''Nobody''s enthralled with the boy as much as I am, but last time she kept me here for thirty minutes talking about how great he''ll be one day! I don''t wanna talk about the boy all night with some overblown door-freak! That kinda fantasizing is what I do when I''m good and alone in my own bed at night.''


    Valkyrie spoke up, startling the Angel, "Yes, that would be well and good. However, as of now, we really must be leaving quickly. Important business, after all. Cupid''s reports need to be given to Seraph Eden, as you know." Cupid watched as the Angel of Heaven''s Gate dipped some, a look of extreme dismay came upon her head.


    "Ah, yes. Well, you can enter through. Ilias blesses you two for doing her work, I''m sure." The two Angels were able to pass through, the Angel on top of the door opening herself to allow them to go through, closing the doors quickly once they were gone.


    Unseen by the two Angels, was the look of visceral anger on the face of Heaven''s Gate.


    <hr noshade="noshade" size="1">


    "Fuck!" Marcellus hissed, nearly tripping on the umpteenth root jutting from the ground. He stomped his non-hooked foot to the ground, reorienting himself as he did so. "Alright, had just about enough of that!" The Hero turned to his right, searching the dark ground with one good eye until he saw it. He walked off the path briefly before reaching down and grabbing hold of a waist-tall stick. He stabbed one end of it to the ground while holding it from the other end.


    "Can''t forget the family wisdom, Marcellus." The purple-haired man leaned on the stick as he ambled back to the path, "Walking-sticks are essential to any journey, in case of needing to walk or whack."


    Marcellus trudged on, trying to make his way back home in good time as the night only grew darker. The crescent moon above was partially obscured by some nefarious-looking storm clouds. This sudden darkness made an already treacherous nighttime all the more potentially dangerous. A distant crack of thunder caused him to pause, but he quickly continued.


    Even if Ilias Continent had fewer Monsters overall than most places, there was definitely a chance that an isolated man such as him could be ambushed by a Monster. However, he was not afraid of the possibility. Even with a good number of years since his prime Hero-ing days, Marcellus was no slouch when it came to fighting.


    It was still bizarre for him to think of when he took these missions, for him to be helping Monsters instead of fighting them had been a drastic change for him. Case-in-point: He had just dropped off some sanctuary-seeking monsters at the town of Enrika. It was one of the only towns peace-seeking Monsters could find nowadays, but it wasn''t easy to find.


    After all, with everything but all-out war going on between monsters and angels, one couldn''t just toss around information like that without compromising the place. This is why it was easier to do these missions at or around nighttime.


    However, being effectively blind in his left eye made the task a bit more of a burden. Luckily, he had been doing this for years with more success than not in avoiding having to physically fight. This he was glad for it made atoning for his own mistakes easier if he could keep any further blood off his hands.


    Regretfully, however, blood would be spilled that night.


    But not by Marcellus.


    Snap


    Marcellus stopped in his tracks, his one good eye staring ahead. Ilias Village was just a bit further down the path; he could see the tops of some homes from where he stood. Sighing, he dropped his walking-stick and began to slowly turn and face whatever it was that had made itself known.


    Standing before him was a figure cloaked in black with their face obscured by a dark hood. They were tall, at least a head taller than himself. Underneath one of their steel boots was a small twig in the path, one that Marcellus had purposely stepped over, a gesture his unexpected guest had not bothered in doing.


    The Hero wasn''t afraid. Encounters here and there during his time as an escort to Enrika were expected. Some Monsters, and even Monster-hating humans, had attempted to take his life before and, well...


    ...It''s not as though he held the title of Hero for nothing.


    Marcellus stood at attention, sizing up his potential opponent. In particular, he eyed the small break in the figure''s cloak, where he caught glimpse of a sword hilt. "Whoever you are, I''d advise you to state your business. Or better yet, turn around and never let me see you again."


    Silence permeated the desolate dirt path, filling the air with a palpable tensity, causing the normally composed Marcellus to ready his left arm in case the need to grab his own sword were to arise. This action finally drew out reaction from the figure.


    "Really, Marcellus? Are you so easily prepared to draw your weapon against an old friend?" The voice was deep, with a calmness that betrayed his demeanor. It was a voice Marcellus recognized. He squinted his right eye, trying to confirm an answer he already knew. The purple-haired man''s gaze softened when the opposing figure dropped his hood.


    From beneath the garment came long, dark hair. It was slick, falling from his scalp in strings. His face was long and pale, with a long patch of unkempt stubble covering his chin and jawline. The man''s small black pupils were steeled, a silent hostility emanating through them as they bore into the blue eyes of the Father across from him.


    Marcellus''s breath hitched, causing the man to give an uncharacteristic stutter. "L-Lazarus?" The man before him was not just an old friend. At one point, the man was his best friend; a remnant of a life he thought he had cut off long ago.


    "Your eyes do not betray you..." Lazarus shouldered off the rest of his cloak, revealing that the man had indeed come prepared to fight as a large sword was at his side. "...It''s been a while, hasn''t it?"


    Marcellus shuffled awkwardly, his eyes flickering back to the sword once more before meeting Lazarus''s cold gaze again. "It has." he paused, trying to figure out where to go about this treacherous situation. "How is it that you found me?" Marcellus asked, to which the man across from him tensed but said nothing. His cloak fluttered in the wind before he started to walk forward.


    "Y''know something, Marcellus?" He continued to press forward, "When you just up and decided to disappear from Gold Port, I figured I''d just respect your decision because of our history. I wasn''t gonna argue, bargin'' to keep you there, blackmail ya, nothin''. Thought I''d just vouch for you to when the rest of Ilias Kreuz came askin'' and make up some bullshit about why you left us for good."


    Lazarus stopped suddenly, just shy of two meters from the Hero.


    An empty chuckle escaped his lips, "Wanna know what I said?" Lazarus stared off into the trees, "Told ''em, that you were lookin'' to settle down and start a family now. That you wanted to hang it all up for the sake of starting your legacy and all that crap, yeah?" He shook his head, looking at his feet. "And I, almost, convinced myself that you were actually doing that, too."


    Marcellus remained silent.


    "But then I heard talk about this sort of underground smuggling business going on. Guys getting paid for safe passage to monster-friendly towns, some even in the heart of Ilias Country itself." The gloved hand of Marcellus tightened as Lazarus''s expression turned to that of disgust. "At first, I just figured it as just another head on the Hydra, one more problem that would need to be taken care of in due time. But then..."


    Quickly, Lazarus unsheathed his sword, the silver flared dangerously in his right hand. "...I heard talk of one of their best guides, some called him a purple-haired miracle to the cause of co-existence..." He aimed his sword in the Former Hero''s direction. "... But I thought to myself, naw, can''t be Marcellus, right?"


    The taller man''s body began to shake, "I didn''t want to believe it, I couldn''t, man. After all, my best friend wouldn''t just drop our cause so he could go being a damned heretic himself, would he?"


    Lazurus took a step forward, "But then, why is it that when I go and ''interrogate'' some blasphemers pretendin'' to be merchants, that I hear your name involved with all this shit? And why is it that they tell me specifically that Marcellus is going to drop off some fuckin'' monsters off in a safe house near Ilias Village itself!?"Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.


    Marcellus finally snapped, "Enough, Lazarus!" The man glared his wide eyes at the purple-haired man. "Why? Not comfortable with being faced with your own treachery!? Just tell me, is it really true? Is the great Marcellus, not-so-great anymore? Is he a Monster sympathizer now?! TELL ME WITH YOUR OWN WORDS!"


    A coarse wind blew through the clearing, whipping at the men''s clothes. The sound of Lazarus''s scream bouncing through the small valley. "Lazurus, what you''ve heard..." Marcellus delayed, heart-wrenching at his old friend''s forlorn expression, "...It is true."


    The tall man''s face darkened, the moon above becoming more obscured by some errant clouds. "So... that''s it? Everything we''ve worked towards for all those years for nothing, ''cause it just stopped mattering to you? I thought we would avenge our friend''s deaths, not insult their memories."


    A wrathful look appeared on Marcellus''s face now and the man clutched his sword with his left hand tightly. "You, of all people, know that I would never soil the names of Merlin and Karen!"


    Lazarus quickly bit back, "You are no longer fit to even speak their names, heretic!"


    Marcellus, having enough of the insults, furiously drew his own sword and pointed it to Lazarus, catching the man off-guard. "I am just as fit as you, after what we did together in Ilias Kreuz, neither of us deserve to speak of them! At the very least they had died as Heroes that day and hadn''t lost themselves to blind revenge like we!" Marcellus drew in a shaky, wrathful breath. "We spit on their graves and abandoned Alice the Fifteenth''s sacrifice when we betrayed their dreams, Lazarus!"


    Gritting his teeth, the dark cloak of Lazarus flailed wildly in the wind, "I HAVE NO USE FOR THOSE DREAMS ANYMORE!"


    Lazarus blindly charged at Marcellus, a maneuver that would usually be of no issue to the Hero, if it were not for the speed of the attack. Lazarus''s swing came from overhead, and Marcellus parried it to his right. He moved back, leaning on the back foot, and swung down, then up towards Lazarus''s dueling hand.


    Seeing his opportunity, Lazarus dodged the attack and crossed the gap with a nasty forearm to the other man''s face. Marcellus took it head-on without so much as a flinch, before kicking his former friend away. Lazarus rolled backward, kicking up almost immediately to swing again and again, putting Marcellus on the retreat with his furious strikes. Then, on his last swing, he feinted.


    Marcellus raised his sword to block, not wanting to strike back at his former with his sword. Lazurus cut across his swing, managing to strike his former friend in the face with the steel hilt of his own sword, which buckled Marcellus''s knees.


    He dropped to the ground, clutching the grass with his right hand while his sword hung limply from his left hand, the blade''s tip resting on the ground. His face was downcast to the side, his one good eye facing away from Lazarus. "Why, Marcellus?" The black-haired man lamented between haggard breaths, "Why did you turn your back on me?" He stalked forward, "Did you just lose your edge, get soft?"


    He stopped just a sword''s length away. "Or..." He craned his neck to, hardening the intensity of his lour, "...Were ya doin'' it so you could go get yer rocks off with some MONSTER WHORES!?" The accusation immediately sent Marcellus into a rage, yelling as he swung his sword backhandedly. Lazarus deflected it, fear in his eyes for the first time since the fight had begun. On instinct, as he finished his parry, he twisted his sword and thrust it back towards Marcellus.


    Squelch


    A heaving gasp erupted from Marcellus''s mouth; the man was not even able to scream in pain as he felt the air leave his body in a large hiss. Lazarus balked at the sight before him, at first not understanding what had just happened. Kneeling before him was Marcellus, clutching his opponent''s sword in vain as it was currently wedged deep between the ribs in his chest.


    Lazarus''s strike had punctured Marcellus''s left lung.


    The taller man was shocked into silence, his thoughts having been scrambled at the sight of the fatal strike. ''How, Marcellus should have seen that coming, he''s better than... that...'' As the dark clouds above slithered off of the bright white moon, Lazarus saw the reason for Marcellus''s mistake. The Hero''s left eye, the side where Lazarus''s strike had come from, was a milky white.


    The taller man felt his blood freeze as he realized far too soon why he had been getting the upper hand on Marcellus. The man he was fighting, was not the one he had last seen in his prime. The Marcellus he had known would have easily dodged the attack, but that was because that Marcellus wasn''t half blind. The one he had just cut down, though, most certainly was.


    So he hadn''t even seen the swing coming until it was too late.


    Lazarus''s sword slid out of the man as he fell, his own weapon dropping to the ground with him. Marcellus could desperately choke and gasped, his blood spewing violently out of his mouth, an unyielding river of dark red painting the front of his brown shirt black as it did.


    Lazarus stood still, horrified at what he had done. "No, I-I... I didn''t m-mean..." He dropped to Marcellus''s side but hesitated. He stared at the ghastly wound, stricken by the sudden realization that this had gone much too far. "...I never wanted this, I just... y-you-" Lazarus ceased his mumblings, a bloodied hand grabbing him by the arm. The hand clung to the man with the last of the body''s quickly dying energy.


    Feebly, Marcellus tried to pull himself up off the ground, perhaps not yet realizing that the effort was hopeless. More blood came pouring out from the man as several coughs racked his body. Lazarus quickly wrapped his arms around the man to keep him from slamming into the ground, ignoring the warm pool of blood now staining his own shirt.


    There were no final words said as Marcellus quickly succumbed to death. He merely spasmed in Lazarus''s arms as his heart and body eventually gave out from the blood loss; a forlorn Lazarus watching helplessly as the man he had called his best friend for so long died from his sword, his hands being literally stained by Marcellus''s blood.


    With this deed done, all of his anger and vengefulness from before was gone. Now, all he felt was regret as he watched Marcellus take his final ragged breaths.


    The troubled former Hero died that night trying to atone for the mistakes of his past. To wash away the blood he had spilled by saving the ones that he would have slaughtered thoughtlessly before. In his last moments, Marcellus could only hope that he could be forgiven. More than that, he prayed to whoever might hear, even if it was Ilias herself, that his son would grow up to be a better and more true Hero than he had been.


    Lazarus, sick with grief, hoisted the body of his friend onto his shoulders, leaving behind only two things: A trail of blood, and the now-dead Marcellus''s sword.


    <hr noshade="noshade" size="1">


    Lucifina stared outside her bedroom window. A crescent moon peeked from behind a legion of dark clouds. It looked as if a storm would be coming soon if the rumblings in the distance were any indication. But this wasn''t much of a concern for the Fallen Angel. She was far too worried about the fact that her husband had still not returned home from his latest trip.


    Of course, it wasn''t unusual for her Husband to take an extra two or three days to get back home, but this night would mark the sixth extra night he had yet to return.


    She fiddled with her fingers, particularly picking at her wedding ring anxiously. It was a simple silver band, somewhat rough and scratched from years of wear. Though no matter how worn it became, it was never something she could or would part with.


    Creak


    Lucifina looked at her bedroom door in curiosity. She knew in her heart where that sound had emanated from, as the Mother had come well acquainted with the sounds of the house from nearly two decades of living in it.


    It was Luka''s door.


    She struggled for a moment to stand but got to her feet successfully within a couple seconds of effort. She heard the pitter-patter of small feet running towards the room; the sound roused a smile onto her face just as a little purple-haired boy in a long white nightshirt came into the doorway.


    Lucifina opened her arms as the boy ran towards her and almost jumped into her as she wrapped him into a hug. "Is there something wrong, Luka? Why are you awake?" It was drawing close to midnight now, and the boy should''ve been asleep hours before. However, Lucifina did not fret over the abnormality and instead took the boy''s hand, knowing how this usually went.


    Luka''s small, soft hand began pulling his Mother toward the door and out into the hallway. Shuffling along the wooden floor, the ex-Angel painstakingly moved as quickly as possible to keep up with her son''s pace. Very soon, the pair arrived at the open door of Luka''s bedroom. The boy almost tripped on his own white sleeping garment whilst pulling his Mother into the room. At first, the woman thought she knew what the situation was until Luka stomped past the bed and towards his window.


    Per usual, when his Father was gone, Luka would nearly drag his Mother to his bedroom so she would co-sleep with him. She always assumed it to be his need for extra comfort with Marcellus being gone, but it never bothered her. Usually, she could leave after about fifteen minutes, but she sometimes she even stayed with him the whole night.


    But this time, he didn''t stop until they reached his bedroom window. Luka came at a halt and pointed towards the window.


    Lucifina, confused, asked her son about the unknown issue. "What is it, darling?" She looked closer, noticing that the open curtains were shifting somewhat. "Ah," she said, noticing the window was cracked just a bit. "Did you open this, Luka?"


    The boy behind her spoke up. "No, M-M-Monster did."


    Lucifina stopped dead mid-movement, hands still on the window to close it. She felt a chill rack her body at her son''s words. She jerked her head towards Luka, an incredulous look on her face as she stared into his matter-of-fact expression. "You... you said a Monster opened this?" Luka simply nodded and turned to walk towards his bed as if he hadn''t just said something so pertinent.


    Lucifina followed close behind, not wishing to overwhelm her tired son but also absolutely not ready to let that piece of information go without an explanation. "Luka, Luka!" She grabbed his arm, helping him to crawl into his bed for a moment, before having him face her. "I need to you to be clear with me, what happened here?"


    The eight-year-old sat there, dark rings underneath his pale-blue eyes. He looked more exhausted than usual. "...C-Couldn''t sleep... was w-wanting Father..."


    Her eyes softened, understanding the boy''s sadness. "My baby," She hugged the boy close, "I know, I''ve been missing him too." Lucifina pulled away to look into his eyes, arms still wrapped around him for comfort. "So you were still up after I put you to bed?" He nodded tiredly in response.


    Lucifina felt awful for her son. He was valiantly trying to stay up so he could see his Father... she should''ve known he''d be doing something like this. "H-Heard something outside." The purple-haired boy said curtly.


    Again, that chill struck her. ''Could a Monster really be here? It isn''t impossible, but it certainly isn''t probable either.'' She got off the bed, kneeling so that she was at eye-level with her son.


    "Luka, did you see this Monster?" The worried Lucifina asked. Luka stared off into space, a common habit when he was thinking hard, before eventually he gave her an answer.


    "N-No, just heard..." The boy trailed off, grasping and releasing the bedsheets absent-mindedly as he recalled the sounds he had heard. Lucifina stood up and walked over to the window in question, seeing if she could get some clue as to whether there really had been a monster outside or not.


    Peering out the window, Lucifina scanned outside in the small clearing. Aside from the swirling black clouds above, indicating the approaching storm, she couldn''t find anything malicious around the window. Not scratch marks, hairs, nothing. She opened the window and stuck her head out of it, just in case she could be completely sure that nothing was falling amidst her analysis.


    She felt a very light mist of rain, adding to the sheer humidity of the air around her. It caused her mind to drift back to Marcellus for a moment, ''It has been raining quite a bit on and off here, maybe that''s why it had been taking him so long to get back?'' The Mother could only hope that this was the case. As she was thinking about this, a certain smell struck her.


    Amongst the wet smell of the rain, she could detect something else. It was faint, but she could smell something sweet. It was almost a floral type of scent...


    ''Strange, I feel as though...'' Before the thought was finished, a gust of wind bled in from the left, tossing her hair wildly. She made a move to brush it away but nearly shrieked as she felt something long and claw-like suddenly grasp her head!


    Lucifina jerked with an embarrassing squeal, yanking herself inside the window. She backed away quickly, eyeing the window with uncertainty before nearly slapping herself due to what she saw.


    A low-hanging branch was now visible, barren of leaves and all; it almost even looked like the terrible set of talons that something like a Harpy would have. The branch waved in front of the window briefly, before one of its limbs scratched against the windowsill. Lucifina sighed in exasperation, turning to her son with a tired smile. "Luka, was that scratching close to what you had heard earlier?"


    The boy stared at the window as his Mother paced over to him, he reached up with one hand and began to tug at some of the errant locks of his disheveled purple hair while he thought about it. "T-Think so..." He said with a frown as Lucifina kneeled down once again to gently grab his hand and hold it in her own.


    "Alright Luka, then could it be possible that there was no Monster?" She asked.


    Luka gave a tired nod, "Y-Yeah..."


    The Fallen Angel smiled and began running her fingers through his hair, an action that gave the boy a serene smile. After a while, Lucifina rose from the bed with a smile of her own. "Good, will you be okay in here for the rest of the night, darling?" The boy nodded silently. Lucifina got up to leave, stopping only for a moment longer to whisper a quiet "Goodnight" to her son before she left. Unaware that there was a Monster like Luka had thought, but it had not been outside his window...


    ...No, it had been inside their house since Marcellus had left.


    <hr noshade="noshade" size="1">


    Hours later, Assassinroid emerged. The rain outside was drizzling lightly, more akin to a mist than actual rain. Thunder rumbled overhead, a perfect addition to the plethora of advantages she wielded in her mission.


    With great caution, the Monster slid open the door of the dark closet she was hiding in, moving it only as much as she needed to whilst clutching an item that the Monster had risked the entire plan to procure for her own...


    ...Personal interest.


    The Chimera glanced towards the Mother who was peacefully sleeping before her. A strange mix of emotions bubbled through her.


    Assassinroid despised Lucifina, as the ex-Angel was the most prominent obstacle in this strange plan. The Monster thought that if Promestein wanted this Luka so badly, then it would be much easier if Assassinroid just cut the Angel''s throat open right now and steal the boy away into the night.


    As much as she hated the Fallen Angel, the Monster also had a bizarre amount of envy for her, as Lucifina had something she did not have. Something Assassinroid wanted, even though she knew it was a ridiculous thing to desire.


    The Chimera snarled soundlessly, turning away from the ex-Seraph and quickly leaving the room before her unreasonable anger caused her to do something ill-advised and potentially ruin the mission.


    Speaking of...


    The Monster made what one could describe as an amateurish amount of sound rushing to get to Luka''s room but was confident that the overhead rumblings of the storm would censor her, perhaps overeager while rushing towards her goal with an unnatural amount of excitement. Assassinroid stopped abruptly to calm herself before slowly opening the bedroom door.


    Sleeping before her was the object of what had become, admittedly, a bit of an obsession that the Monster had been unintentionally cultivating over the years as she visited him.


    Luka slept silently, a picturesque visage of peacefulness as he lay wrapped up in his bedsheets, vulnerable to her will. Assassinroid felt it in her beating heart, in the warmth building her body. She was beginning to indulge in this mission more than perhaps intended if she was supposed to enjoy this at all. However, the Monster couldn''t help herself, as each subsequent mission after her first started to change her one-sided relationship with Luka.


    Any night Promestein tasked Assassinroid with journeying to Ilias Village to start another session of pheromone therapy, she felt herself enjoying it more and more. Each time the Chimera would quicken her pace to get to Luka faster, to stay longer, even before she could actually get in his room. Sometimes she''d reach her target during midday or even the morning.


    In times like those, she would watch the boy throughout the day, paying very close attention to his relationship with his Mother in particular.


    It was clear to Assassinroid that Luka adored his Mother, always following close behind throughout the day. And despite how weak Lucifina was, she tended to him as best she could, and in turn, the boy began to do the same. And somehow, in the process of the Chimera imprinting onto Luka, the boy began to imprint onto her, too. This fact was something she become well aware of, but at the same time, she found herself not caring.


    Assassinroid''s warped mind had even begun to fantasize herself in the Fallen Angel''s place, knowing that she was more physically capable than the woman. She could run where Lucifina couldn''t. She could chase Luka through fields as he did so often with his Father. She was even confident that she could do it better. She imagined it often while holding him at night. She wound bound after him, dashing on all fours while chasing him, hearing his laughter as she drew nearer...


    ...Until she pounced on him.


    And once she had him in her arms, she would press into him, smothering him close into her body like he so often did when hugging Lucifina. Except, with Assassinroid, the action was not with Motherly intent.


    It was not a part of her programming, but that did not stop the Chimera from fantasying taking care of Luka in more than just in a Motherly sense. No, in fact, the thought was deeply tempting. This is why she had stolen the nightgown in the first place, as she couldn''t help but imagine playing the part of his Mother in a more heated, intimate fashion.


    The scenario in her mind was deeply disturbed, an unforeseen product of her corroded mind by way of Promestein''s and Black Alice''s experimentation, and it drove her to push the mission''s parameters, against her better judgement.


    Assassinroid took one of her long, sharp claws, and sliced down the middle of her green singlet. The mutated Monster''s clothes fell quickly, revealing her bare, lewd body in the darkened room. Her breasts fell and rose alongside her quickened breathing. Little beads of sweat were dripping down various parts of her body as she could feel her very core heating up alongside her growing excitement.


    Quickly, the Monster pulled the white nightgown over her head, slipping her voluptuous body into the thin garment. The cloth gripped and tugged at her skin, the unnatural color clashing against the pure, silky white as her larger assets fought to fit in clothing better suited for the smaller Lucifina. Something about the new look excited the monster even more than simply being completely naked moments ago.


    Assassinroid, now desperately trying to drag herself back to her mission, found her broken mind neglecting logic in her increasingly depraved stupor. As often practiced, the monster began to crawl along the ground toward the boy; however, unlike times past, the Monster instinctually leaned more into her natural sway, increasing her sensuality.


    The deepness of her cleavage was accentuated by the revealing nightwear, somehow more so than her previous outfit. As she neared the bed, the monster''s body began to radiate the pheromones she was fixed to excrete, her body uncontrollably over-producing the substance due to her increased feverishness. Luka had already begun to react to it, breathing it in deeply while he slept.


    The Monster crept into the bed, pulling the boy against her body as quickly as possible. Almost immediately, she felt her body heat rise once more as she pressed against Luka. Just like every other time, she made specifically sure that his face was kept close to her breasts, which barely could be contained by the top of Lucifina''s nightgown. She breathed in and out deeply, taking in the feeling of having him lay against her.


    It was an addiction she couldn''t fight, even if she wanted to. This was what made her jealous of Lucifina. She watched the pair often during the day and even at night, watching how Luka would seek out this physical comfort, and it angered her to see him hold her. The Chimera wanted to know how it felt not just to hold him, but to be sought out by him. For the boy to come to her and seek to embrace her.


    But he didn''t, he couldn''t. He didn''t even know her, so how could he?


    She gave a shaken, defeated sigh as she tightened her grip on Luka. This will have to suffice for the time being, but it was becoming increasingly difficult to keep herself from growing attached to this sensation.


    Especially when she was becoming more and more aware of the fact that the boy''s journey into puberty was growing closer every day.