Jonathan Black's Story

"Illusion!"
Illusion smiled warmly, hovering midair as Zadkiel met her halfway, obviously ecstatic to be seeing her again. It absolutely warmed her heart to hear him so happy, and she couldn't help smiling happily as he spoke. "You didn't tell me you were going to be on the bus too! It feels like only yesterday since I last had the privilege of your company, how are you? Is work going alright? They didn't give you any trouble when they arrived did they?"

In his excitement, he made sure to dump a lot of questions on her, didn't he? Although.. she didn't exactly mind. Zadkiel was one of the few who actively spoke to her, and they shared a thing in common in terms of being viewed as.. different.. by the majority of staff at the WDL. "Well, I originally wasn't going to take the bus, however.. plans changed." She chuckled softly. "Besides, aren't meetings all the sweeter when they're a surprise? And, Zadkiel, wasn't it only yesterday that we did meet?" She paused, a small smirk on her lips now, replacing her smile, although her shining eyes were still twinkling with happiness. "Work is going as well as usual, Zaddie, but you know.. All those people looking at me so meanly because I'm a little girl devil.. It truly, truly breaks my poor, innocent heart!" She turned away, pretending to wipe up some tears before turning back to the angel before her. "Some of them are, erm, rowdy. You'll figure out which ones right away, I'm sure. Poor little babies are still confused and tired.." She looked over at the children, observing another Illusion down below, listening on the phone.

In one hear, Illusion heard Vesper's calm voice leaving the phone, and the Illusion on the ground chuckled. "So half of our party was left behind? What kind of driver are we employing, exactly? I'll see to it that he gets his pay taken away for making us take this action.. Ah well." The Illusion on the ground spoke loudly enough for everyone nearby to hear, a smug smirk on her face. "Stay where you are. I'll be there in a jiffy~"

In the other ear.. "Oh I''m letting myself get distracted again, let me do the official shpeel first then we can back to catching up. I'm glad you're looking good as always though." Illusion gave him a nod, watching him float down to the ground. "The same to you, Zadkiel."

It was a simple enough matter, really. First, the Illusion on the ground created a portal a millimeter off the ground in the Boot Camp. Then, she made an identical one that spread in a cracked circle around the garage group. They would've fallen for a millisecond, yes, but that was better than falling through a crack fully, no? Then, she simply lifted the second portal up until it was clear of the garage group's heads, and it vanished into nothingness. It was an odd thing, like having a curtain raised to expose something behind it. Shazam. Who else could do something so cool as a multiple person near-instant teleport? Nobody, that's who.

Eine gave Lusy a look, who grinned sheepishly. "Miss Eine, allow me to show you to your guest room." The small vampire broke apart while she spoke, a second her leading Eine away. The doctor looked back at those gathered there and nodded politely. She made a point to look at Rick, Jojo and Dawn before moving past. Jojo himself had his phone out, ready to text Dawn back, but he quickly pocketed the device and moved over to Dawn, smiling. He looked around for Helena, too. He'd chat with her after they got.. whatever the glowing man had to say out of the way.

Illusion smirked, slowly floating down to the ground behind Zadkiel and flipping herself upside down, her smile never abating as she shrugged simply. "The answer to your question, Zaddie-waddie~".

---

---

A little while earlier, Jojo had caught sight of Zadkiel, and his jaw had dropped. It took every ounce of self control to not immediately run over and grab one of his fancy, glowing wings and gush about how awesome it was. His attention, honestly, was more fixated on those than Zadkiel himself. Looking the man over as he spoke, however, he started. "Wait, whoa, an angel?! That's awesome!" He stopped himself, coughing and looking over at the others. His phone buzzed in his pocket, and he fished it out to answer it, but.. Jojo stopped as he felt Zadkiel's gaze land on him, and he met the angel's gaze with a warm smile. Hopefully they could all get along. Even if they were demons, Zadkiel got along well enough with Illusion, so..
"And may I be the first to welcome you to the Boot Camp, I have been assigned to assist in your training and when that is complete I will be working alongside you all in the field some day as a senior field agent. Now, please do introduce yourselves and ask any questions you.... Hold on... Where's the rest of you?" Jojo looked over to Bonito, then back to Zadkiel. However, before he could answer, a certain vampire did a certain magick trick and suddenly the question was already answered. Jojo almost immediately moved over to Dawn, tossing a look over to Helena and pocketing his phone. He gave a glance to the others that'd been brought by Illusion, giving Vesper a warm smile, before turning back to Hel, then back to Zadkiel. He'd have to grab the two of them and chat sometime later on. Hel still looked like hell, but he couldn't blame her. Hopefully she'd get some quality sleep while she's here. He tapped Dawn's arm, turning his head to her but keeping his eyes on Zadkiel. "We'll chat later."

Jojo once again couldn't help but marvel at the magickal world. Illusion was exerting absolutely zero force, it was literally as if her personal gravity had been modified and she hung from the air like the air was her floor. Zadkiel, an angel, stood before them with his glowing, majestic wings.
This was definitely an anime.

---

---

"Ah, man, they're all gathered up together all nice and stuff.. That's a bit boring. Super boring, really." The maskless figure hummed to themselves as they walked down the path towards the Boot Camp, humming ever louder as they eventually passed a spot where a lone figure was digging several graves. Pausing just past them, the maskless figure spun on their heel. "Whoa! That's a lot of graves there, friendo! You must've dug those all a bit early, though.. Ah well."
No reply from the gravedigger.
"Ah.. Not a talker, are we? Jeez. You're not even gonna, like, watch?"
No response.
"What's the point of digging these graves if you're not gonna be there to- Actually, you know what, nevermind. I'll drag their corpses here myself, free of charge, masky!"
Still, no reply.
"Heh. How boring. I like it when people talk, y'know? Ah well, I'll seeya in a bit, masky! Make sure those things are still nice and ready for me! Ciao! Just don't dig too many, or I'll have to fill that one, too, mhm?"
Raising a hand in farewell, the maskless figure left the masked figure to their task. Humming loudly again as they walked, their cloak swirled with darkness as a mask appeared covering their head completely, hiding it from sight.
"Man, I must be about to get one hell of a kill streak. Sounds great!"

Many things could be said about Illusion, but “slow” certainly wasn’t one of them. Within almost a minute of Vesper’s phone call, Dawn’s boots were planted firmly in warm soil, the world around her swirling from the quiet of the parking lot to the gentle chatter of the woods. It was a...surreal transition, to say the least.

The man standing before them all, baring bright tendrils of light from his back, made it even more so.

Seemingly unsure as to how to take the visual, Dawn gave the stranger an awkward half-wave, glancing over to Jojo as he stepped over. ”The text?” She said, keeping her voice soft. She hardly wanted to interrupt the little welcoming that had been set up for them, but at the same time, the message sent was something worth questioning.

As Rick explained their location and schedule, Dawn swept the hat from her head, letting the sun warm her face as she listened. It was hard to tell what, exactly, “basic exercise” entailed, but the equipment set up would likely answer that for her.

Hopefully any sort of magickal training wouldn’t be required.

A small smile sat upon Illusion's pale face as she watched the people before her react to her little trick. It had been fairly simple to do what she'd done. However.. she did have business elsewhere.
She closed her eyes for a moment.

---

---

It had come to a shock to everyone.

Pierre Zeller had always been a gentle and kind man. He donated to local charities. He volunteered at homeless shelters. He worked 9 to 5 at a local grocery store, always with a smile on his face as he bagged breads and eggs and breaded eggs. In fact, most people who knew him described him as almost boring in how normal he was. So when it was discovered that he had kidnapped several men and women, held them in a deserted warehouse, and tortured them to near death over the course of several weeks, hardly anyone could believe it. It was only after one of the victims testified, displaying the missing parts of his jaw, describing in sordid, shaky detail the crime that had been comitted, that people fully grasped the monster that Pierre had become.

However, Pierre wasn't going without a fight. Time and time again, he somehow managed to escape- slipping out from beneath the noses of his pursuers and going back on the run. Bodies were left littered in his wake as he fled, doing near whatever it took to stay a free man. However, for all his luck, he was stilll very much a mortal man, and soon found himself cornered in a ratted old apartment.

Pierre sat on one of the molded couches scattered around the base, listening to the squeal of the sirens outside, the voices of the men who had come to apprehend him. He didn't seem to notice them, his eyes fixated on a splotch of some unidentifiable yellowed substance on the wall. In his hands was a freshly polished carving knife, and on his throat was a tattoo of a golden apple. He sat silent as the door beneath his was slammed open, only staring.

It was only when the sound of boots began to thud into the hall outside that he seemed to jolt into reality. He glanced down at the knife in his hands, and smiled benignly to himself.

"The contract is completed," he whispered. "Do what you will."

The tattoo faded, and Pierre plunged the knife into his chest moments after.

---

Somewhere in another world, in another time, in another place, Gael gave a small frown. It was a pity. That one had been one of his favorites. Given how careless he had become with Mister Zeller, however, he supposed it was only a matter of time. He'd just have to find a new one, now.

Sliding out of his chair, Gael drew a single cherry lollipop from his pocket, and swiftly unwrapped it. The room he was in was large, painted a soft, pastel pink and filled to the brim with anything a child could desire. Stuffed animals littered the floor, surrounding dollhouses that were almost the demon's height. There were claw machines, clockwork birds that fluttered and sang overhead, video games, rocking horses, action figures- and even more outside. This slice of hell was his oyster, and it bent to his will as easily as clay.

And he was a bit bored of it all, currently.

It didn't bother him. Humans, he had found, were as fun as any toy or game he had his disposal. Moreso, perhaps. It would be a delight to visit the mortal plane again to meet more "friends". Smiling, Gael grabbed his bag and began to pack, humming softly all the while.

A soft cough from behind him would grab his attention, and a very familiar figure was perches haphazardly on his ceiling, staring down at him with a look one could describe as.. amused. "Such a shame about your good friend Pierre. His show was as fun for me as it was for you." Illusion descended- slowly dropping down, more like the world moved around her, before uncurling her body and flipping gracefully to the ground. She tucked her hands behind her back, giving Gael a warm smile and a small bow. "Good day, dear Gael. How art thou this wondrous occasion? Barring your loss, of course." Her features were the same as always, her petite and thin body barely concealing her immense strength. Of course, she could let loose around other Demons such as Gael. Idly cracking her neck, the blonde girl moved over to the other Demon, silently looking over his bag and belongings.

"I have some information you may take interest in, little brother~" she teased, putting her hands on his shoulders and tapping them.
It had been far too long since they'd even spoke. She was excited.

Gael had ripped open a giant bag of candy- larger than his own head, even- and was in the process of pouring it all into his backpack when the sound of a cough made him stop. Resting the bag in his lap, he turned his head, and smiled cordially upon seeing who had come to visit. "Oh, hello, there, Miss Illusion. It's very good to see you again." He scooted a little to fully face the other demon, pawing about through the sweets as he did so. "I see that you've heard about what happened to Mister Zeller, then. Yes, what happened to him was quite unfortunate. Left their world far too soon." Gael hardly seemed torn up by the event, pulling a handful of caramel from the depths of the plastic and offering it to Illusion. "Would you like some, by any chance? I have plenty to spare."

With his gift still extended, Gael dragged his backpack over with his free hand, and zipped open another pocket of the thing. "I'm doing very well, thank you for asking. And yourself?" He waited a few moments, then tipped his head slightly, eyes gleaming with almost childlike curiousity. "Would you like to tell me this information, Miss Illusion?"

Her "little brother" designation passed without inquiry. Given their similarities, as well as Illusion's nature, it wasn't too surprising of a comment.

Illusion took a caramel and popped it into her mouth, still smiling. "Thank you, Gael. I'm doing fine, actually. Currently helping some lovely new students along with their first time at Boot Camp on the side." There was a sly smirk slowly sliding across her face as she spoke. "I would enjoy telling you this information very much, Gael." Pausing for a moment, she extended her hand and opened a small portal, a tiny hole appearing above those at boot camp and just out of view. "These are our lovely new recruits."
She paused for dramatic effect.
"And they're the children of our good friend Devi LeRouge."

Her smirk becoming a grin, she shut the portal quickly before anyone below could notice it. "How interested would you be in.." She leaned in close, whispering into his ear softly. ".. introducing yourself to them? You'd enjoy yourself, I'm sure." She paused. "However, there's some.. details.. you'll need to be aware of. Certain.. things.." she leaned in again, whispering inaudibly into Gael's ear.
After a little while, she pulled away once more, her cute face the proud owner of a devious grin. "So. Shall I be registering you as one of those unfortunate orphans in the WDL's company?"

"You're very welcome. I'm pleased that your work with the WDL has been going well for you." The light of fascination in Gael's eyes flared as Illusion split open one of her portals, displaying her recent batch of very, very intriguing recruits. "How interesting," he said. Unlike Illusion, his expression was hardly malicious- his smile as serene as a disciplined schoolboy's. "They seem like quite the group, Miss Illusion. I would love to get to know them personally."He shifted the lollipop around in his mouth, scraping it with his teeth.

Gael took a moment to let the remaining caramel fall into his backpack, and began to add even more candy to the heaps as Illusion leaned in. After all, if he was going to meet such an important selection of people, it would be important to make a good first impression. Sweets helped to do just that.

He showed no shock at Illusion's next, quiet, hushed words. However, his smile had visibly grown after the other had broken apart, looking as excited as the hellspawn could manage. "How very interesting, indeed." There was a loud crunch as Gael bit through the candy in his mouth, breaking it into irregular shards.

"With all that in mind, I would be incredibly grateful if you were to orphan me, Miss Illusion."

Illusion clapped loudly, clasping her hands together and exhaling hard, her smile was wide and, for a moment, outright malevolent. "Oh, dearest Gael, you never disappoint me!" Her voice was loud, alive with enthusiasm and joy, as she continued, spinning around the room. "Ah, how much fun it will be to have you there with me! My own cute little brother hellspawn right in the middle of such a place, playing such a dangerous game, with such severe and fatal risks.." Her voice lowered as she spoke, ending in what might as well be a purr as she flicked her crimson eyes over to Gael, licking her lips.
"You'll be of much use and entertainment to me, little brother, so I think this arrangement benefits both of us very, very much." Spinning around happily, the blonde girl extended her arms and spread her fingers as she rotated, her crimson eyes glowing for a single moment before a red shockwave shot through the room, changing the lighting for only a moment and making everything bar Gael shake.
"Before we leave, however, would you like to play a game with me, little brother?"
Her killing intent was clear as day.

---

A little while later, Illusion sat on a chair, legs crossed and arms utterly soaked with blood. Her entire front was bloody, staining her clothes and even her face black. None of the blood was hers. She licked her lips, giving Gael a warm smile. "Thank you very much for your assistance, Gael. As you can imagine, it's very rare for me to.. partake of much blood. Yours is truly disgusting, but it will do. Hopefully we get to spar again sometime, but with you pretending to be very definitely certainly human, please avoid Rick. He has.. a very annoying object in his possession. Also avoid a certain little shop in the middle of the WDL. You'll be recognised immediately by our lovely information broker demon, who you may also recognise."

She grinned and chuckled to herself, laughing until she ran out of breath and kept going.
"Seriously! There's so many demons in the WDL now that I could murder everyone inside!"
She paused.
"Well, that was the case even when I was alone, I suppose. That silly Arthur. He's very lucky to have me on his side."

Gael didn't reply.

After all, it would have been a bit hard to speak with his lower jaw detatched from his skull.

Illusion's idea of "playtime" had left the bedroom a complete and total mess, and the demon himself in pieces. It hadn't taken long for him to pick through the chaos- in the absence of his arms, his ribbons did just as well, if not better- and his assorted parts currently sat in a neat pile at his side. They would writhe, sometimes, twitching in their impatience to be reattached.

Lifting one finger in a silent "one moment" gesture, Gael plucked his jawbone from the bundle of flesh and held it against his face. Most of the skin reattached upon being reintroduced, but the rest, which was just a bit too mangled, required other methods. Keeping the jaw held fast with one hand, he deftly began to sew the rest of his face back on, using needle and thread produced from one of his many pockets. As soon as the job was done, the stitches fused into Gael's flesh, leaving the skin just as soft and unblemished as before.

He wiggled his chin a bit with his thumb, rolled his tongue, then, finding the job satisfactory, smiled charmingly at Illusion. "You're welcome, Miss Illusion. Although, if you wouldn't mind, could you please leave me a bit more intact next time? It's rather bothersome to have to put myself together like this." Gael took a moment to drag over one of his legs, and repeated the process of holding and sewing. "And if you find my blood so disgusting, Miss Illusion, then perhaps you should keep from drinking it. It wouldn't be hard for me to find a suitable donor for you."

Leg done, Gael grabbed his other foot, examining it for a moment before putting it in its rightful place. "I have to admit," he said, "I'm curious. For all that you say, you seem to be quite fond of those humans, sometimes. Are you keeping pets, Miss Illusion?" His eye- only one, the other was still currently on the floor- was wide, the look on his face almost kittenlike. If one didn't know the Lord, one could mistake the look for innocent confusion.

Illusion chuckled softly. A dubious smirk slid across her face as she idly wiped the blood away, flicking her wrist and watching the black stain the floor. "Pets? Whatever could you mean, dear Gael? I don't keep pets, Lusy swearsies!" Her dubious smile didn't falter one bit as she leaned forward, putting her chin in her hand and giving him an obvious wink.

"I'm not going to make any promises I can't keep, Gael dear, but I'll try not to turn you into mincemeat quite as badly next time. Disembowelment and getting limbs ripped off are part and parcel of my playtime, however, you know." She paused, shaking her head. "No thank you, Gael, I have plenty of loyal cans of drink myself. I've been abstraining a little as of recently, however, and it's quite odd."
The sight of Gael casually sewing himself back together didn't disturb the tiny girl at all, instead she watched with the eyes of one accustomed to the sight as he casually put himself back into a human shape.

"Of course." Gael smiled placidly at the other, sleeve rolled up to allow him better access to the wounds beneath. There was no blood- only pitch dark lines and cavities that he sealed without effort. "If you did happen to have any pets, however, I would suggest not letting word get out of it. There are many of our kind who would enjoy spiting you, I'm sure." He paused, taking his abandoned eye from the floor and rolling it around in his palm. It was hard and perfectly smooth- a doll's eye, not something that could feasibly belong to any organic being.

Gael gave it one final glance over before bringing it to his lips, licking it, then plugging it back into its socket. He had put it in the wrong way, but as soon as the eye was in place, it snapped back to its original position. The effect tended to be a tad...unsettling, to say the least.

"I suppose that it's the thought that counts, then." Gripping the closest piece of furniture- a giant sheep made from cotton and genuine wool- Gael pulled himself to his feet, testing his weight. There were an assortment of wounds under his coat still, but manners had taught him to wait until company had left to address those. Straightening his bow, Gael plopped down into the sheep's lap, wrapping one of its arms around his shoulders and holding it there. "Have you not been hungry, Miss Illusion?"

Only moments after the word "hungry", Gael had fished another lollipop from his pocket and corked it into his mouth, letting the wrapper sink into the floor as if it wasn't there at all.

Illusion chuckled. "No, actually, I've been awfully not hungry as of late. I believe it's stress. Besides, I'm not allowed to eat people outright at my current position of employment so I'd best not toe the line very much." She idly stretched her arms, letting her joints crack loudly before rotating herself so she was upside down in the chair, her legs over the top and her head hanging off the chair. As per usual, the laws of gravity didn't seem to affect her one bit. "And.. if there are any out there who would spite me.." her eyes flashed dangerously, ".. I would hope nobody was quite that silly." The threat was clear, albeit it wasn't directed at Gael by any means. "I'd welcome the challenge, really. It would give me a wonderful excuse to.." she gestured over at Gael's form, her dubious smirk returning to her face, "play with some other people."

"It's awfully rude for them to deny you your needs in such a way. I would have thought that they would at least offer you some of their criminals to take care of." Gael had nestled his head into the crook of the sheep's arm, idly picking at some of the fur and pulling the looser bits free. He didn't react to Illusion's sudden dismissal of physics, aside from nestling himself further into his seat and adjusting the candy in his mouth. "Duly noted. And that reminds me-" he shifted free of the tangle of wool, although he hadn't left his seat just yet. "Some bothersome groups have been infringing on my territory lately. I've been hoping to go and let them know just how impolite they've been quite soon. Would you care to join me?"

Gael smiled. The sharpened points of his teeth glinted warmly.

There was no hesitation as Illusion returned the smile, her own sharp fangs glinting in the light. "I'd love to."

---

---

While her other self was enjoying her time with Gael, the Illusion present at Boot Camp opened her eyes. Blinking once, she looked up and stared at the sun. A loud sigh left her lips, and she casually pulled out her battle umbrella and held it aloft, clicking the button in the handle and having the umbrella pop open. The umbrella opening caused a gust of wind that blasted through the group, and the vampire held it above her head to shade herself.
In the shade, her crimson eyes seemed to almost glow.
"If you're so interested, Ash, why don't I show you our lovely obstacle courses and the like?"
An unknowable smile crossed her face for the fraction of a second before she spun on her heels and moved away, beckoning for the others to follow after her. "Come, come, don't be shy! Your time here will be.. fun! Yes, fun indeed! Rick should know.. how much of a lie that is." She trailed off, the ending of her sentence inaudible to all but herself and those close to her as she proceeded around the course.

---

It didn't take Illusion too long to go over the basics of the obstacle course- tomorrow at dawn the seven plus silly add-on would be dragged up in the morning and taken for a short jog through the forest. Then they'd go through the mandatory exercise routine and finally get put through the obstacle course. For one, it was an exercise that required teamwork and cooperation, but it was also a test of their physical capabilities.
Looking over her shoulder at the imposing obstacle course that had been set up, Illusion turned back to the ground with a sly smirk on her face. Behind her sat a few trailers- seven to be precise. With a loud sigh, she gestured to them. "You get one of these each for your time here. Make sure to lock your doors at night. Boot Camp lasts for approximately a week, so be on your best behaviour, and.. she turned to Dawn, giving her a look, "you'll be staying with Doctor Minerva so she can keep an eye on you. She volunteered which is nice because otherwise you'd be sleeping on the floor of my trailer. Twirling her umbrella in her grip, Illusion gave everyone one last look before motioning for them to follow her.

---

Firing ranges, archery targets, several weapon racks, a bunch of areas covered in charred grass surrounded by yellow spray paint on the ground were the next areas Illusion covered. "Here's where you learn to shoot, learn to use weapons, and learn basic magick. Some of you will excel in areas that others will not. For example, Jonathan and Caius will be great in regards to beating things up." She shrugged. "Don't get any ideas, though, Caius. Hitting the loli is not allowed."
She spun on her heels again, grinning widely. "Honestly, that's it, really. Boot Camp is just a nice, quick way to get you settled in and get you used to using weapons and magick and the like. During your stay with the WDL, you'll be attending classes that you may choose from an extensive curriculum and you'll be going much more in-depth in those." Illusion twirled her umbrella once more, a sly smirk on her face as she extended her hand. A second Illusion appeared out of thin air, pushing a pile of papers into the main Illusion's free hand before vanishing.

Licking her lips, Illusion looked away and huffed. "I hate this part. If you could all prick your thumbs and put your bloody fingers on this here piece of paper, that would be incredibly useful. If not, I'll have to do it for you,"
Illusion waited for a few moments, holding the pieces of paper out and staring to the side. She suddenly pulled them back, grinning. "Aha, I should explain what these are, actually! These are lovely little pieces of paper that read into your lovely DNA and tell us just what it is you're capable of." A dark smile crept across her face as she held out the papers once more, extending her other hand, full of sharp needles, as well. "If you don't want to do it, I'll prick you, but I'll also drip some of your blood at the same time, so choose wisely. Bravery is a virtue, no?"
There were seven pieces of paper, one for each Child, but there were eight needles.

She paused for a moment then pulled both back again, laughing to herself. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding! Jeez! You know how unhealthy that is?" She idly took the bunch of pins and stabbed them into her arm, grinning widely and holding out the papers once more. Down the bottom of the page was a small pentagram surrounded by a circle, just enough space inside to place a thumb. "Put your thumb in the pentagram and bam, crazy magick stuff happens. It'll give us the names of your special cool ability things. Normally we'd use the blood thing, buuut.. well, do any of you actually want to prick yourselves?"

With that out of the way, once he papers were taken- Illusion idly pulling the pins out of her arm during the Seven's time doing weird thumb magick- the loli looked up and grinned.
"So, what've we got, my lovelies?"

---

---

As Dawn questioned him, he simply nodded at her. Jojo had tagged along pretty happily, taking a look at everything they'd been shown as Illusion showed them around the camp. He hadn't had much to comment on, and he'd kept himself quite quiet the entire tour. He didn't have anything to talk about, nor did he really have any desire to mention anything. As Illusion mentioned him, alongside Caius, being good for beating things up, he raised an eyebrow. Did she know?

Jojo reached forward and took a piece of paper, except he didn't. Illusion yanked it just out of range and he pouted. After a few moments, Jojo glanced at the sharp, silver needles cautiously.
"I.. think I'd rather get bitten by a vampire than stab myself, honestly.."
Pouting harder as Illusion pulled the pins and paper away yet again, he sighed audibly.
As soon as Illusion offered the papers again, Jojo hurriedly snatched one for himself and held it firmly in his hands. Illusion was right. He somehow doubted that anyone there bar maybe Rick and Vesper would've been fine with the pricking. Looking down at the blank paper curiously, he placed his thumb in the spot and gasped as the paper began to scrawl on itself in black ink that oozed from the pentagram. Eventually, the pentagram had vanished and replacing it on the paper was a bunch of letters quickly rearranging themselves. Soon enough, there were letters.

Major Abilities of Jhinohatan Bukalc:
Void Mark.
Minor Abilities of Jnmtohnahaa Baclkk:
Break Mode.
Call to Arms.

Jojo narrowed his eyes. His name was a jumble of words both times it had been written. He shrugged it off, however, focusing on the things he could actually read. Void Mark, Break Mode and Call to Arms.
He had absolutely zero idea what they meant.
"Void Mark, huh? Hm, I see.."
Jojo jumped as Illusion manifested behind him, a grin on her face. She gave a quick shrug, lowering herself to the ground and poking out her tongue. "So, who else's got what?"

Rick Brackwall

He did indeed know just how much fun their time there would be.

He could also fill in what she might of said towards the end, his mind filling in the blanks where her words were too unclear. He more or less got the message.

Eventually after some touring she brought them over to the trailers. It was quite nice that they were provided a place to keep their stuff and sleep this time. More than likely however there were probably going to be unfortunate surprises awaiting them in the night. He had his plans for avoiding some of these potential pit-falls when the time came. He had experience on his side to aid him, something he sorely wished he had possessed the first time, especially in the packing phase of the trip.


At last came the test. Much like the rest of this boot camp it was different from last time. Last time he had to prick his thumb and draw blood to press against the sheet of paper. It seemed they made the process simpler for the newcomers. A novel mercy given their latest run-ins with the supernatural.

"Ah yes. The paper test. If you would all be so kind as to take a sheet and perform to our fair principle's specifications we can get a rough approximation as to your future capabilities, so to speak."

He added, standing by as the others took their sheets and performed their tests. Once Illusion was down to the last paper he caught her looking over his way. He simply put his hand up, rejecting the offer of the paper to him.


"I myself of course have already performed this particular segment. Naturally I'm sure I and the order are already quite well aware."

Despite his excuse to not divulge his own powers to the new recruits he noticed quite well the odd look Illusion was giving him, her arm outstretched to him with a paper for a suspect amount of time before relenting.

Curiously Illusion had carried seven slips of paper yet she held eight needles. Strange to think that somebody might be offered the opportunity to hurt them-self without needing to perform the ritual. He contemplated what possible use it might serve. He briefly considered using the magnifying glass to see if there was anything more to the needle but was loath to produce the tool in present company. The last thing he needed was to sunder the other's faith in the order by acting with suspicion. He was on stage and all eyes were on him. It might not of always felt like that but that was how it was because even if he felt comfortable in acting more freely if the others were in his company they might not be paying attention to his behavior but it was a strong possibility that they might.

He did miss his old boot camp days. All things considered back then it was himself and the will of the order he was looking out for. Now he was looking out for some of the most important new recruits alive, multiplying his concerns manifold.


I do miss those old days. The days only look bleaker with each passing moon.

---

Meanwhile elsewhere...

---

There she stood. In the darkness of her cell, not a trace of light from the hall to illuminate her cage of torment. She shivered, the everlong bite of cruel metal gnawing at her bone. The collar's vicious teeth chewed at even the slightest trace of hope of ever seeing the light of day once more. It was sheer agony and yet there she stood, unable to move like a doll set back in it's box. The collar had seized physical control of her body, paralyzing her with it's dark magic. Despite this fact the collar punished her anytime she tried to will herself to sit down, biting back with unbearable pain for trying to fight it for control so she could have even the slightest bit of comfort.

The door opened, blinding her even with the bleak light of fires that illuminated the shadowy halls beyond. In the doorway as a silhouette was the Man in Glasses, her cruel doctor. Next to him stood two guard demons, misshapen and cruel beasts that looked tortured themselves.

"Follow."


His command was a simple one. Her body, like a jerky wind up doll, started marching along behind the doctor. He turned and lead her down the hall, demons to either side of her just in case. He was fairly confident but she was a special specimen, not one to be treated lightly. Were her restraints to fail in any capacity not even they might be enough to cull her before she could unless measurable destruction.

Her scared eyes, wet with renewed tears of fear, darted left to right with each time they past a room. The sounds were so vivid, so loud to her it was maddening. Every tortured scream felt like they rocked her form through and through like they were mortars detonating at her feet. Her body couldn't respond to any of these primal, physical urges of hers to collapse in the wake of such maddening noise thanks to the dark magic imbued within her collar. The eyes set in as patterns upon the collars looked about as though they were real, glowing with an unnatural health. This was because the collar would sap her vitality, using part of it to strengthen it's hold over her.

Soon enough the doctor arrived at a metal door, the last door in a series of doors all along a separate hallway. This was where he kept most of the subjects that he needs but isn't experimenting on any longer. Producing a strange, magical key from his pocket he unlocked the heavy metal door, pushing it open as it made a labored cry of metal scraping metal. The room was wholly dark save for a single hanging electric lamp in the center of the room, suspended over a chair decked from head to toe in methods of restraint. It fit the image of what some sadistic government agency's interrogation room might look like. What took this picture just that extra step further down a darker path was the rusty metal floor, stained red with rust and brown with blood.


"Sit in that chair and remain still now."

He commanded, treating her no less than some autonomous slave. Her body took her over to the chair, planting her right down in the seat looking forward where all she could see is darkness. Her legendary hearing made short work of alerting her to the presence of something else living within this room, something disconcerting. It moved with an awful slimy writhing, dragging itself along as the darkness kept it's full appearance a mystery. She could tell only that most of it was hairless save it's massive front limbs which clacked against the worn metal floor with each step. The faint ringing of metal's crystalline structure indicated that it too also had a collar.

"Come forth, Baku."

With that command the creature shambled forth from the darkness, it's bizarre and unsettling appearance becoming fully clear in the harsh white light of the light bulb which swayed faintly. It possessed a head like that of a pale white squid with many, many tentacles which hung down, close to all of them long enough to reach the floor. It's torso was that of a man's and it possessed huge arms like those of a gorilla's except instead of monkey hands it instead had large bird talons. In place of legs it had a large tail like that of a dolphin which it drug around behind it as it walked along on it's talons.


"What... Must I do... Today... Master?"

The creature's words were consistently interrupted by the various slurping and slithering sound of it's slimy tentacles wriggling around below it's mouth. It spoke with a defeated sorrow, fully understanding the role it now plays in this man's machinations.

"Hm."

The man in glasses gave a slight sigh, contemplating the phrasing of his instructions for the creature as well as the ideal outcome he desires from this process.

"Give her a full memory wipe. Spare the basics of living, walking and such as well as her ability to communicate. I need her operational but compliant."

Just as the Baku believed the Man in Glasses to be finished he remembered an addition to his request.

"Also! When you eat her prior hopes and dreams leave enough of the works behind to form new desires. In order to be compliant she's going to need to understand the difference between reward and punishment."


The lowly creature bowed it's head in acquiescence, acknowledging his commands. With that the man in glasses turned, him and his two accompanying guards leaving through the door and shutting it behind them with a rattling slam.

Now the poor young girl was left, having been strapped into the chair by the guards as even with the collar patients in the past have been known to flail uncontrollably during the process. She could only look on in sheer terror as the tentacular monster drew closer to her, it's pungent smell and disgusting noises assaulting her senses.

"No..."

She managed to hiss the words through her teeth even as the collar bit into her spine even deeper for trying to defy it's control. The beast could not suffer any more than it did, not even out of pity. The Baku came right up to her chair, it's slick cold tentacles now touching her shins. She wanted little more than to cry out at the feeling of it's appendages however her sharp cry was forcefully muted into a strangled groan from the back of her throat. Just as it's done many times before the Baku walked itself up until it's head was over hers, dragging it's disgusting tentacles up her legs and along her body until they were resting across her shoulders like some sort of cephalopodic scarf.


"No... No!"

She moaned, the sheer horror of what was going to be done to her now overwhelming the pain her collar was subjecting her to. Her whole body was now sickeningly sticky with a mixture of cold sweat and the Baku's gooey saliva which perpetually drips along it's surprisingly heavy tentacles. Her whole body was twitching and shivering with fear, that fear growing tremendously as the tentacles slithered up the back of her neck, wrapping and securing themselves around her head with their plethora of suction cups.

"Nooo!"

She let out a strangled yell, mustering all that her body could manage before the Baku dug in. Her body shook and rocked violently as it's tentacles seized her mind, passing through the physical world and invading the realm of her own mind. The chair rattled as her body twitched and jumped about in place wildly, all unconscious physical reactions to the unwanted invasion of her conscious mind. Ordinarily Baku only entered the minds of others while they were ensconced in dreams to prevent this particular response where the body fights as a natural retaliation against the invading entity. Such was the reason why they needed the straps on the chair. After all, she wasn't the first to have this done to them. The Man in Glasses observed early cases and made adjustments where necessary, refining the process into a cold scientific reprogramming of his patients.


As the Baku enclosed on her fully everything slipped into darkness. No more fears, no more pain, only the sweet release of unconsciousness.

---

Back at Camp...

---

The first one to take their test was Jojo. His powers were few which led him to believe there was more to the Void Mark to be investigated. The name itself drew his mind back to the night where he observed the result of a complete annulment to any aura he could of had before the observation was made. There was no coincidence there.

The second to perform the test was Vesper. Her power's names proved quite interesting indeed. The clock tower seemed to have to do with some form of time function. Lumina was Latin for light, indicating that she'd have much use in manipulating light. Restart and Mind Shield both possessed great promise as well.

When it came to Caius it was predictable that he'd try and stand in the way of it all. Once he performed the ritual however the results were going to be more oriented towards a demonic focus. His minor abilities held quite a bit of promise however. It didn't seem he was ready to pull his head from the sand quite yet however.

((Anomalous double-post. Please ignore.))

Ashley “Ash” “Soot” Clade

Nodding at Rick’s simple explanation, part of her was a little annoyed that he seemed to always have a capable and formal sounding response to things. Maybe it was her nagging inferiority complex, but Rick was just too prepared and cool in his responses for her tastes. Buffeted by a gust of wind as Illusion opened her parasol, Ash reminded herself that there could be worse people to be stuck with, grumbling a little to herself as she adjusted her collar. Obstacle courses, huh? Well, if it was like one of those crazy courses on TV with the ropes and rock walls and the like, that could actually be kind of fun. It was much better than some crappy classroom and lectures at any rate; although the prospect of waking at dawn for a jog wasn’t thrilling. Hopefully it wouldn’t be too cold out. Finally, they were shown to their individual caravans, an unexpected and pleasant luxury. Striding up to one, Ash opened the door, peering inside and giving a faint whistle that she was impressed before closing it up and following along with the rest of the tour.

As they continued further along, Ash tried to remain disinterested, but in all honesty, the activities were drawing out her curiosity. Weapons and firing ranges? Well, that was kinda cool. It was beginning to seem less threatening the more Illusion went over it, kinda like one of those activity things that her dad signed her up to when she was younger. Starting to trail behind the group as she picked up a sword to look at, she briefly swung it about before returning it to the box and trotting after the others. There’d be plenty of time to practice that during the actual camp. As Illusion began to talk about some initial test involving needles, Ash didn’t really bat much of an eyelid. Sure, she didn’t like getting pricked, but that’s all it was. Honestly she didn’t get why Illusion was making such a big deal out of it, other than maybe the insinuation that drawing blood around a vampire wasn’t the wisest thing.

In what was probably a fortunate moment of being towards the back of the group and unnoticed, Illusion revealed that a blood test wasn’t needed at all. Ash quietly shuffled into a more casual position with her hands in her pockets, pretending like she hadn’t just been prepared to blindly follow the instructions given to her. Thankfully, no one seemed to have noticed. Slowly striding forward to take one of the last papers, Ash turned it over in her hands, briefly examining its appearance before shrugging. Sure, there were plenty of questions and warnings in her head about sticking her thumb on a demonic pentagram, but given what she’d heard so far about her heritage this ranked rather low on the danger scale. Striding over to a nearby stump, Ash dropped into a seated position before pushing her thumb into the allotted area.


Blinking as the words formed on the page, Ashley scratched the paper a little where her name was. Weird, what was up with that? Was that her demon name or something? Well, whatever. At least the abilities were legible, though she didn’t exactly know what they meant. Well, she could haphazard a bit of a guess, especially given she thought she knew how telepathy worked. As much as she waited, nothing further appeared on her page, so that seemed to be it. Caius mimicked her own confusion in a less than tasteful fashion, so Ash instead turned towards Illusion and Rick, expecting the two to be more than capable of explaining.

“So, we’ve got a title for what we can do. So how do we learn what that actually is and how to do it?” Ashley asked, looking to Illusion’s Cheshire grin, then back to Rick before deciding which of the two she thought would be more helpful and trustworthy. Not that she trusted either of them that much, but at least he wasn’t likely to outright lie to her for some sort of joke. “Well, you’ve been through this before. Spill the beans, so I can start learning to…” Ash consulted her paper again a moment. “Shadow shape or whatever.”

---

Candice Hallows

“Just, set that down over there Kane. Even though they’ve arrived, lunch won’t be for quite some time, so you can relax and take it easy.” Candice stated, partly to herself as she took a seat at one of the tables. Going over the files on hand as she went through the last bits of the paperwork, she bit into the apple she was carrying as she formulated the best ways to start addressing the children’s curriculum, as well as ensuring their safety while introducing some level of danger to the program. Behind her, dressed in a white kitchen smock was Kane, setting down the basket of produce and other food items that they’d stocked up on prior to their drive up here. Just because it was boot camp didn’t mean they wouldn’t be providing the children with appropriate and healthy meals. Not to mention…

Turning to watch Kane continue to unload the Van with the help of the young Erica, Candice sighed a little. Honestly, the two didn’t have any real reason to be out on this venture – Nor did they probably have clearance to be informed about just who was attending the bootcamp, but somehow she’d managed to convince her superiors to let them along. Not for training, of course. That would just be reckless. Instead, she’d had to put them down as the field trip cooks and general assistance. Hopefully that would be enough to appease both Rinne and her bosses. It wasn’t exactly training, but she hadn’t lied to Rinne about bringing him to the bootcamp, so it’d all work out. She’d even been nice enough to bring along his newfound friend and classmate, so he wouldn’t be too bored. At the sound of Kane tripping and spilling a smattering of pots to the ground, she shook her head. Hopefully she wouldn’t regret this.

“Bailey, what’s the progress on the children?” Candice asked, looking over to the young man sitting by the television monitors. They had a small security setup around the perimeter of the camp just on the off chance someone (or something) tried to stumble on the campsite, but they also doubled as a good way to monitor the children. “Looks like Lusy is giving them the paper test, so that should give us all some more information.” Spinning around in the computer chair, the young man sipped his coffee. “I take it you’d like a copy of each before tomorrow?”

“Please. It’ll help when deciding how best to cater their training.” Candice nodded, letting him get back to his work. The next few days were going to be something, that was for sure. Hopefully all would go well, and the recruits would get a good grasp of their abilities and be given the opportunity to get a better understanding of how things worked regarding magic and the like. Hopefully with information, they’d make good choices from here in and help the world. Still… Looking back to Kane and Erica, Candice frowned slightly. Maybe she was just being overly protective. Everything would be fine.

”I’d sacrifice anything, come what might, for the sake of having you near…”

Humming along to the lyrics, Madison shuffled the papers before him in a neat stack, then slid them neatly into the desk’s waiting compartment. Most of his work and plans and whatnot had been taken care of back at the base, but, seeing as he had finished moving into his little home away from home, he saw no harm in checking once more over them just to make sure. Excitement was running thick through his veins.

”In spite of a warning voice that comes and repeats,
Repeats in my ear…”

A part of him, however, was a tad nervous, admittedly. He’d been assigned two primary duties during Boot Camp- to instruct, and to study the Seven as they trained. Watch their powers develop, do a few blood tests...it was a hearty amount of responsibility, and, on top of the prophecy that had been delivered to him by his new enigmatic friend, Madison couldn’t help but feel a smidgen overwhelmed.

”'Don’t you know little fool, you never can win…'”

He pushed the thoughts, the negativity, to the back of his mind. There was no point in fretting. He would do his job, do it right, and would do his best to get along with his new students. Madison glanced out the window, only to see said students loitering in the center of the clearing- along with Lusy and Zadkiel.

Speak of the devil.

No pun intended.

Scrambling to his feet, Madison quickly shut off his music and brushed out the front of his blouse. This was it. This was it. After making sure he looked properly presentable, Madison clapped his hands together, and the world itself yawned open before him.

To the group, it would seem that another one of Illusion’s trademark portals had appeared- however, instead of another blonde clone, out stepped what would appear to be a fully grown woman. Madison smiled warmly at the group, giving Illusion and Zadkiel both a little wave.

“Good afternoon, everyone,” he said. His voice did little to tip off what gender he was, soft and gentle. “I hope that I’m not interrupting. My name is Madison Lovette, and I will be one of your instructors during your stay at boot camp- as well as a researcher, of sorts.” Beaming, he thrust his hand out towards the group, glancing over the gathered in the meanwhile.

He dearly hoped he was making a good first impression.