"You want to kill me, but before that, you desire to know my identity. I'm Lucifer."

"Of course you are," I said composedly. Now this stranger had to be out of his mind too? "What else am I thinking, O Seer of nonsense?"

"I'm not joking. I am the Lucifer." He asserted.

"Well, " I shrugged, as a matter-of-factly, "I never said you weren't, Mr. evil."

"You are agreeing with me. Why are you agreeing with me?"

"You doofus, this is called sarcasm!"

"But I'm serious!" And true enough, his expression was as somber as one's is when one is watching a funeral. Something about that face broke the facility I'd gathered.

I remember the time when I was what? Eleven? Messiah was just a puppy I'd been feeding for the past few days. A small mongrel, light as a feather yet chubby as marshmallows. Both of us were strangers– Heartbroken and alone. I recall feeling utterly wretched after Julian's departure, and that adorable puppy had been the only one successful in bringing a smile to my lips. Julian... that boy had been what you'd call a friend.

The tale of how Messiah got his name is pretty decent– He'd decided it was a good idea to drench in the rain and splatter across muddy puddles and become... well, messy. I'll admit my creativity levels are as fantastic as me. And that day, he'd returned looking so enthusiastic and so grubby that I hadn't been able to stop my laughter from taking control of me.

I'd brawled like a wounded dog, thumped my fists on the floor, and snorted so severely that there was no saliva left in my mouth. And now, when a total stranger announced that he was Lucifer right after a narrow shave with death, I don't think I've ever giggled this hard. Yeah, totally! I just met with a lieutenant of hell! So scary! Boo!

I don't think he appreciated my amusement. "Hey-" He protested.

"I'm suffocating here, don't choke me more." I gasped. "Your sense of humour is amazing, but if you can't assist Messiah, then get the hell out of my sight."

"She's so weird." The dark-haired hottie elucidated, apparently not getting the pun. "It's a wonderful opportunity to meet the-"

"Can you or can you not help him?" I cut him off and finally stopped laughing.

The redhead (Who's he? Satan?) shoved his hands into his pockets gloomily. "No, but-"

"Alright then, off with you, or else I'm chasing you away with stones!" I held up a stone to demonstrate that I meant the threat. Boys can get so full of themselves sometimes– So what is he saved me? If he thought that Messiah's condition was nothing short of a joke, then I could very well proceed to cure my doggo of that perfunctory status on my own.

"You can try, " By some impossible method, Mr. Lucifer became even more dismal. "It'll pass-"

I threw the stone. It soared as a jet does in the sky, leaving a white puff of clouds trailing behind. My aim was perfect, and it sped swiftly towards the redhead and-

Where the stone was supposed to land– His nose, by the way– his skin faded into nonexistence, and a glimmer later, it knitted itself back together as if nothing had happened. The stone landed behind him with a loud thunk.

"-right through us." The redhead finished, clenching his fists. The other boy leaned and whispered something in his ear, and the redhead grimaced in reaction.

I supposed it was time to begin panicking. One supernatural thing was more than enough, and now I had to handle two more?! Wait, I cornered my inner self. Don't be hysteric. Take in the scenery, calm down and then do whatever you want. That had been my remedy for agitation– Look around, no worries and then kick the booties.

Take in the scenery– Gloom, and doom. It must've looked suspicious– A deranged munchkin sprawled on the damp alley with a floating dog and two attractive cooties looming abov- Okay, mission abort.

If only I had another supreme distraction to- That's it! I picked up another stone. "It's okay. I'll find something that'll get you! You can't touch me anyway."

Lucifer poked my shoulder with his finger, and I f e l t that.

I threw the second stone, for show's sake, if nothing else. When you're doing something– anything, to fight the situation, it feels as if even the smallest of actions can create a lasting impact. The times when you're scared, if you sit there doing nothing, you'll go insane. And it's better scarred than scared. The stone flew by as any object hurtled at someone else at sixty kilometers per hour would, just like an average stone with average precision. It hit the redhead on the forehead.

=∆=∆=∆=

The world never ceases to amaze. The sensations of totality can never fully be explored. But some stuff can remain buried because there is no better place than the depths of the deep to dump all your worries into.

When the stone struck the redhead, he bounded back hesitantly, more due to shock than hurt. Unfortunately, it wasn't a grave injury.

"I'm asking you one more time." I raised another stone, encouraged. "Can you or can you not heal Messiah?"

"It's her." The dark-haired one whispered. "The wielder of the dark stick." He kneeled in front of me. "We, the devil brothers, submit out full loyalty and integrity towards Pluto's sheen and dedicate our cause to what is yours."

Before I could protest, the redhead sheepishly proceeded to do the same. "We are your slaves, and we await your and only your orders."

"I..." My wide range of vocabulary had failed me. What should I say? It was tempting, this offer. Two useful tools to help get Messiah back. It would be nice to have two hot guys willingly doing my bidding, like puppets on a string. Also, they could probably make Messiah himself again if I ordered them to. Bonus: They were devastatingly charming.

"Motherfuckers." I breathed and got up, dusting my pants. "What are you playing at?"

"Nothing, your highness," Lucifer replied politely.

"Messia-" I began threateningly.

"Hey, dorkface!" A voice shouted, "What are yeh doing out of the shadows?" Instantly, the two guys vanished. They literally dissolved into the background. Awesome slaves, abandoning their master.

"Busy, it seems." Another mocked. "Wonder what she's up to."

"Definitely no good." A squeaky one piped up. "Mama's says she's bad luck."

"Well, go run to your mama then, weakling. Let th-"

"Who're you callin' weak?" The little voice exclaimed indignantly. I groaned– internally and externally. They wouldn't leave me alone, would they? And now, of all times? Life, please stop screwing with me.

Again, I was woefully accurate. From a distance, a few kids stampeded into my privacy. A blonde, buff, and bighead led them, like a royal flanked by his knights. A cowering bunch of socially backward knights, but still, it was one against seven. Most girls would fan themselves over Steven, considering his blonde hair and azure eyes, but as they said– Once a man opens his mouth, you see his true value.

Lucifer and his brother, eh? And I thought he was over-exploiting the prince charming role, I thought. But on the outside, things were a lot different. "Steven, " I gritted my teeth. "Not right now."

"Interesting." Steven said, pointedly ignoring me, "Never thought I'd see you out in the day." Strangely enough, he didn't seem to notice my levitating pet.

I glared at him.

"Did you know we have a new recruit?" He went on, oblivious to my displeasure, "I reckon you've crossed paths before." He stepped aside to reveal a dazed young man with tufty puffs of light brown hair and the classic turquoise eyes. He wore baggy trousers and an ill-fitting plain dark blue T-shirt, and the way his shoulders were slouching told that he didn't hold much self-esteem. Something about that ambivalent gaze snapped strings of deja-vu inside me. Where had I seen him before?

Uh, probably at someone's funeral, I shook my head. "Pardon my language, but I haven't seen this crap-new weirdo, so please stick your heads up... your... ass... and-" I broke up as my brain finally clicked the puzzle together. "No way... " I mumbled, half in a parallel universe. Could it be...? Him? Steven had got to be kidding me.

After what he'd done... let's say if I had to choose to save either that spectral thing which nearly killed me, or Steven, things would not go down well for him. Cassie Mabel Samirah always returned what she got. You wave a knife up to her face, and she shoots your head off with two revolvers and blows your naked dead body with grenades.

"Hi, Cas!" Julian grinned. Puberty had hit him like a Japanese metro train. "These guys told me they knew you an-"

"Don't, " I started at him. After all these years, he returns now and says hi? Joins them? It could've been the grief. Or the betrayal. Or maybe the heat of the moment, but I was trembling. I had endured the worst of insults my whole life, but every wall falls if struck enough times, and I was no different.

"Julian."

"Mom says you're poison, but I think you're honey." He went on. Seeing my flabbergasted expression, he added dutifully, "Yeah, the sludgy and yellow part."

"JULIAN."

My chest hurt– As if the heart-thumping inside was suddenly imploding. Tears strung my eyes, but I withheld them with all the chains I could muster. The Cassie I knew would never cry, and definitely not in front of these jerks.

And then it happened; An unknown force abruptly bobbed inside me. Power long-forgotten switched back on. I'd never felt this whole before– Some dark part of me had awoken. I raised my open palm. "Run, " I said, my tone conciliatory. I tilted my head as my dark gaze swept over the stunned boys. "Run before you miss the chance." My hand erupted in flames– Black, cold flames. Even though I couldn't feel the rays of ice, I just knew they were chillier than the arctics. "Run, " Where I'd seen immature teens, now there were targets. Alive moving targets. "Before you do more damage." I stomped my foot on the ground, and the earth shook under it. A massive crack raked from where I'd stepped and wended towards the disbelieving boys.

Steven's face was priceless. If I had another chance at this day, I still would've given anything to see that mutilated pride of the bastard.

Cas, it's true, then? You- you lying- I- Stay away! No, don't touch me!

I felt invincible. I would've crushed anything in my path. I wanted the blood of those who'd wronged me. Vengeance tasted bittersweet.

The worst thing was that a sane part of me was still there– Trapped inside an invisible barrier and forced to observe the virile proceedings. I could scream, writhe or cry, but no one would hear me. I lost control of my body.

"Run, " I said, one last time. "Run before I lose it."