The hinges of the hospital doors whined from its faultiness as Vera pushed them open, revealing what was outside. The stoneborne roads were crawling with people, yet Lucius immediately discerned his group. In front of a house was the demon hunter gallery crowding a towering blonde man as moths do flames. Assurance was plastered upon his face as he addressed each question being fired at him. A bundle of bandages were affixed to his chest where he was impaled.

“I’m sure you got stuff to ask him,” Vera spoke while holding one door open.

“Yeah,” Lucius replied with distance, for he was focused on his group from afar.

“Well, what are you waiting here for? I’ll see you later,” she assured him with a shoulder tap.

“Yeah,” he responded with the same tone as each step drew him closer to becoming an addition to the crowd.

As he approached the crowd–and by extension, Michael–Lucius felt his soul be soothed, as if the hellish landscape of his mind was transformed into an empyrean domain. He felt all the unbearable weight he bore upon his shoulders be raised off them, as if everything would be all right in the end.

For once, Lucius felt joy, and–for the second time in a while–smiled. He surmised everyone else shared this feeling; not just because their leader was alive and well. He silently observed the group enjoy their time with themselves. Amongst this camaraderie, Michael asked with a point towards Lucius:

“Hey, who’s that?”

Silence. Head turns.

A familiar voice next to him spoke up. A loud one. Noel.

“Oh! Hey, this is my buddy, Luci–”

Before Noel could finish, Michael’s eyebrows furrowed as his eyes shot a piercing glare through the whole crowd– through Lucius. He felt a rumble that no one else could. A violent one. Lucius had never felt such malice in his life before– not even from the demon who is violence incarnate. This was not animosity. This was not just hostility. What Lucius felt from Michael in that split-second moment was unfettered, and unparalleled hate.

And the consequential fear made the demon hunter’s heart jump around in his chest with full intentions of escaping, desperately trying to attempt what his feet could not.

“–us.”

Michael’s face of malice vanished and was replaced with a warming smile. All was fine again. Nobody seemed to notice the anger that bled from his glare during that moment. He sheepishly laughed before replying:

“Oh, I thought you meant… someone else. Ha-ha. Sorry.”

Lucius’s breathing tried recovering from what he just experienced, but all he could manage was quiet hyperventilation; Noel noticed this.

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“Hey, man, you alright?”

“Yep,” he replied bashfully as he tried to reign in his breath.

“Michael.” someone else in the crowd called out. That voice, Lucius thought, was also familiar. That voice was Virgil’s.

“Cain was collecting your blood. Any guesses on why he’d do that?”

“Why would he– my only guess is he thought he could get stronger if he consumed my blood. Clearly, that didn’t work. And it won’t.”

Virgil acknowledged the leader’s answer with a nod.

“I’m glad you’re alive, man,” another demon hunter called out.

“Me too. I’m happy to be here with you all,” Michael responded with a smile.

Cain. Lucius had a question about him. So, he raised his hand and waited to be called on.

“Yes,” he acknowledged the newcomer with a point, “Luci-us, right?”

Michael visibly cringed pronouncing his name, but he pronounced it correctly nonetheless, earning a “yeah” from him.

“Cain is violence incarnate, and he was a strong demon. Are there others like him?

With a pause–contemplating whether to alarm his men or lie–he replied truthfully:

“... Yes. There are seven of these strong demons, and each of them represent a human vice. In order of weakest to strongest, they are: Limbo, Lust, Gluttony, Greed, Wrath, Heresy, Violence, Fraud, and Treachery.”

Noel’s eyes widened in shock.

“Wait, you mean to tell me that bastard Cain is only the third strongest?”

“Sadly, yes. Each of these demons have a unique ability as well,” Michael confirmed with a solemn nod.

“Well, what’s Cain’s?”

“He doesn’t have one. He’s the only one that doesn’t.”

At that moment–despite everything Cain did–Lucius couldn’t help but crack a smirk at how cool he felt that was. That smirk was wiped away when another question occurred to him– one he blurted out:

“How do you know so much?”

Without missing a beat, Michael answered:

“I’m the strongest. What good is a warrior if he doesn’t know his enemies?”

“Then why not track them down and kill them one-by-one?” Virgil proposed; a notion backed by the agreements of the rest of the demon-hunting group.

“I know them, but I don’t know them. Unless I encounter them directly, I’m unfamiliar with their appearances or abilities. I do know their names, however.”

Lucius noticed a smirk flash across Virgil’s face when Michael looked away, but thought nothing of it.

“The Demon of Limbo’s name is Deimos…”

Lucius’s eyes widened as–even in the presence of Michael–his consciousness withdrew into his psyche and replayed horrid memories of his past. The church that raised him. The demons that desecrated it. Their ringleader was the one who proclaimed his name. A name he did not forget. A name he resented more than Cain.

Deimos.

Lucius’s mind returned to the present and he interrupted Michael as he stared at the group.

“I know where he is.”

Both Virgil and Michael shot Lucius a concerned look.

“How do you know?” Michael asked.

“It’s where I grew up. It used to be fine, but because of him, it’s now run by demons. I'm talking about the Plagued City.”

Upon uttering the city’s name, groans swept across the demon-hunting group.

“Sheesh. That place is known for being shitty, even with how we’re living now,” Noel chimed in. He then wrapped an arm around Lucius’s shoulder. “Look at you, being all helpful n’ stuff. So, boss-man, when are we gonna ride out?”

“Soon,” Michael responded, “have patience. Virgil and I will train the new recruits from here. In the meantime, do whatever it is you have to before we leave. Any questions?”

None.

“Alright,” Michael concluded with a single clap of his hands, “meeting over.”

And so the group scattered to tend to their business; including Lucius, who went to look for Vera, but was stopped by an uneasy feeling. A familiar atmosphere of dread approached the walled city's gates. A demon. A strong demon. Panic erupted among civilians as the demon hunters stared down the gates, ready for battle. Such a presence could only belong to one demon:

Cain.