As I freeze and see the butterfly drain the life from the rosebush, the others turn and see it as well, freezing and slowly getting expressions of terror.

Lilith:"Oh no..."

Dag:"Fuck."

Thia:"Shit."

Dorian:"What is it? Why are you guys flipping out?"I say as I witness them all turn pale and back away.

Julian:"Dorian that's a hell butterfly, they are an omen of things to come."

Dorian:"What?Why?"

Thia:"It is a well known fact in our world that hell butterflies only appear when there are going to be large amounts of death in an area. Such as the sights of great battles between armies or in graveyards. They don't migrate for the seasons either, only for places with death."

Being faced with that tidbit of information, I do the only rational thing that a human being of my stature and manner would perform.

I set it and the bush it drained of life on fire.

You killed a Hell Butterfly, these are beings of omens and death and have experienced things many havnt. They are even considered deadly themselves.

You have earned the title:Destroyer of Omens

This title gives you extra experience for destroying things known as omens or abstract thought.

You have earned 8 levels for destroying a creature many levels above you. You caught it off guard........ congratulations?

Instead of luck, you gained more connectivity to the Force.+40 FP.

Everyone:"............"

Dorian:"Well that was easy.( -~-)" I say nodding my head and dusting myself off. I then put the 40 stat points from my 8 levels into agility and dexterity. Bringing my level to 36, Agility to 213, Dexterity to 204, and seeing my FP at an even 400.

Lilith:"Do you know what you just did?"

Dorian:"Burned a flag and broke the cycle of cliche tropes? I got 8 levels and a new title so that seems pretty legit too me. Maybe I can kill some more of them and get even more levels...."

Dag:"You're fucking ridiculous." He says while facepalming.

Dorian:"Hey if it works it works, if not oh well, I'm stronger for it." I say as I start walking to reward and realising my body moves faster than I could consciously process and tripping over myself.

........

Dorian:"You guys saw nothing." I say as I get up and head towards the central academy layer.

Julian:"That's why people usually put in their stats in small increments. The disproportionate numbers tend to screw with people."

Dorian:"Julian..."

Julian:"What?"

Dorian:"Shut up, no one likes you."

Thia:"Now that' just mean Dorian."

Dorian:"I was kidding, I say that to my family members whenever I say or do something stupid and they laugh. I don't actually mean it."

I say as we walk into the administration building and head to the elevator up to Lucifer's office.

We all cram into the elevator and it ends up being a tight squeeze as Lilith' tail takes up most of the space. So she gets in front of me and gets close to save room as I put my arms around her. I then hit the top floor button and we head up.

The first thing we see is Lucifer talking to Daphne, the gnome receptionist, and giving her directions.

Lucifer:"Okay so head down to the smiths and get Heaphestus to start making and sending out arms and armor to the troops on the city walls. Use the teleportation arrays if anything. Then head to the magitech teacher and get her and her older students to start enchanting like crazy."

Dorian:"Hey Old Scratch, what's going on?" I say unwinding form Lilith and ste0ping out of the elevator with the others. Then Daphne gets on the elevator and heads down to deliver the news.

Lucifer:"What' happening is that the Lost Empire is sending an air raid. Their flagship is coming and we need to prepare."

Dorian:"What about me talking with my family? Does this get in the way of that? If so me and grandpa Cid can take a strike force out if anything. I' sick of shit getting in the way of things."

Thia:"So that's why we saw a Hell Butterfly outside."

Lucifer:"What!?" He says with a visibly shaken look on his face as he reaches for his signature Morningstar.

Dorian:"Yeah, I burned it and got like 8 levels and a new title." I say and he looks even more shaken.

Lucifer:"You what?"

Dorian:"I set it on fire...... you know, like any regular person who fears things they don' understand would."

Lilith:"Honey we're gonna have to go over why that statement is wrong in so many ways at a later point in time." She says while shaking her head with a deadpan look.

Dorian:"That was a joke babe. I just did what any person who is sick and tired of people freaking out over stupid things like 'omens', I mean we can' let superstition rule our lives."

Lucifer:"Considering that you come from a world where omens aren't all powerfully outside of myth and are now in a world that has actual mythical creatures in it, you'd think that you'd have more tact when it cones to this stuff."

Dorian:"Speaking of tact, I've been meaning to tell you about some mysterious beings on campus." I say losing my characteristic smirk and turning serious.

Seeing my serious face Lucifer starts paying full attention and looks me in the eyes.

Dorian:"Okay so since my first magitech class, I've been seeing these three creatures in white robes and featureless white masks. I tried to sense them with all the energies I have at my disposal, but...."I stop to pause for dramatic effect.

Lucifer:"What?" He says not liking where I'm going with this.

Dorian:"They are a void Scratch. If they were a figment of my imagination there'd be energy to be sensed, but there isn't. No energy whatsoever. They are a hole in existence."

Lucifer:"How did you see them?"

Dorian:"Soulsight, I found out that my being an equalizer allows me to see anything with a soul. Or even echoes of one. They felt like the death.... No not death. Absence of everything. I think they are what's killing your contractors. Maybe it's cause they work in collecting souls, but these 3..... I don't like it." I say with a grave tone.

Lucifer:"Thank you for the heads up Dorian, I'll make sure to pull a few favors for you when you need them. If they are what you say, I may be able to see them myself, I am the devil after all. Or rather.... was." He says with a serious face and hand on his Morningstars' hilt."Other than that Dorian, my office is ready for you to talk with you family. After you head in, you'll find yourself in a hallway, it'll be the 6th door on the left." He says while pointing at his office door." You'll only have about an hour and a half. Use your time wisely."

With a nod of thanks I head to the door and feel Lilith's hand curl around my own while Dag,Thia, and Julian stay right behind us.

I reach for the handle of the door and am blinded by a bright light.