"What is the difference between a vampire and a demon? Does anybody know?" Professor Burbage's queries hung in the air for a moment before anyone bothered raising a hand. "Yes, Saylor, again."
"Vampires drink blood. Demons eat souls," the blonde answered. Unlike her classmates, she wore her Blackwater uniform as it was ought to be worn: a black and red tie nicely adjusted to her neck; a white blouse and a pair of black slacks ironed that very morning; a black, red-hemmed blazer that was buttoned up, flashing the University logo on her chest.
"That's right," Professor Burbage nodded. He stroked his silver goatee for a second. "But let's look at the signs of an attack by one of these creatures. See Angelica Wang's body here."
The bloodied and torn open body of the teenage girl was displayed on the wall from a screen projector at the center of the classroom.
"That's a demon attack," Saylor declared before anyone else could interject. There was panic in her cerulean blue eyes. Of course, she had heard the news about the local human girl's tragic death a few weeks ago, but she hadn't bothered looking into it before.
"And what makes you think so?" Professor Burbage questioned. He gently paced around the room.
"Because her heart is torn out, it seems. And she does not look like she is missing any blood. A vampire would not have wasted so much blood."
"Precisely," Professor Burbage said approvingly as he came to a halt in front of Saylor's desk. "Glad to know you did the readings."
Arabella cleared her throat and muttered a low "nerd" under her breath. Saylor glanced in the raven-haired girl's direction but did not give her the satisfaction of a reaction.
"Now. Pretty straight-forward. Angelica Wang's heart was most likely eaten by a demon," Burbage went on. He walked over to the projector and displayed more photographs on the wall. Another victim. A blonde man with a large hole where his heart should have been. Blood everywhere.
"It seems demons have a type," Arabella drawled, her dark eyes roving over to one student in particular. "Blondes." She aimed a devious smirk at Saylor who unconsciously slid her fingers through her sun-kissed hair.
"Perhaps not. Though thank you for your comical input, Arabella," Burbage said rather curtly. "Now, please refer to your textbook to page seventy-one. Anyone wishes to read the paragraph entitled Why do demons consume human hearts?"
The five students shuffled through their large tomes in search of this passage. Arun peeked over to Zian's desk to make sure he was on the right page.
"Souls are famously stored in the heart," Saylor began before anyone else could offer their voice. "Human souls are no exception to this rule. The only way for Lucifer to possess a human soul pre-maturely to judgement day is by consuming them and bringing them directly to the underworld. Most demons possess that same soul-eating capacity as the Unholy God himself."
"Very well read. Thank you, Saylor," Professor Burbage nodded at the rosy-cheeked girl.
"I'm not sure I fully understand," Solaris piped up. He was a tall, pale-faced young man with striking silver eyes and platinum blonde hair. "Are humans really the only souls given the chance for repentance on redemption day?"
"The Holy God deems humans to be the only pure souls left in this world. Despite our human ancestry, this deity considers sorcerer blood to be tainted by fairy blood — a race he is much prejudiced against, amongst myriads of others."
"Not like we wanted his redemption anyway," Zian interjected with a mocking laugh. His jet-black eyes narrowed, and his coral-pink lips curved into a smile. "Lucifer seems to be getting the bigger end of the stick in The Almighty War. I mean, how could the Holy God even stand a chance against Hell's finest demons?"
Saylor could tell Zian didn't care to hide his chest and arms of tattoos under the Blackwater uniform. He had his wrinkled blouse's sleeves pulled up, and his collar was unbuttoned, revealing the dark ink designs underneath. His tie and blazer were resting on the desk, as if he couldn't be bothered to put it on.
"The Order of Angels, obviously," Arabella said as if it were deadly obvious. Zian threw a dreary glare at Arabella as if to say her presence was suffocating.
"I thought they only sought to exorcize all non-human creatures?" Arun interjected, puzzled. His dark curls framed his deep-set almond eyes in a way that juxtaposed his lively and warm nature.
"Among other things. Besides, demons are not considered human, are they?" Arabella snorted. She had sleek raven-black hair that reached her hips, and she wore her Blackwater uniform in a way that did not match Saylor's style: loose tie, unironed blouse and slacks, and an open blazer.
"I suppose not," Arun shrugged. He, on the other hand, wore his uniform appropriately enough, though he had the habit of not tucking his blouse in his pants.
"Shouldn't we be worried, though? A demon attack in this town can only mean The Order is sending a few of their angels this way," Solaris said, an eyebrow perking up. The only comment Saylor could make of Solaris' uniform habits was that his ironing skills were impeccable.
"Ah. Worry not, my dears," Professor Burbage said at last, catching everyone's attention. "Our institution has always and always will remain untouched by the angels. They've no way of penetrating our walls."
"So, what do we make of this demon attack?" Solaris asked warily.
"If you were to encounter an angel force, the best course of action at your skill-level is to flee. They are certainly a force to be reckoned with and an exorcism at their hands means eternal oblivion to your soul," Professor Burbage said solemnly. His brown eyes twinkled as he went on, "Ah. But once you will learn how to make pacts with demons and how to summon them, your chances at surviving an angel encounter is most probable — expected even. When sorcerers and demons make pacts, they are a force to be reckoned with."
"But... so many innocent lives being whisked away to Hell. Surely, there must be something we can do?" Saylor said, eyes pleading with her professor as if he could do anything about it.
"They're only being brought to the First Hell, Dear. You need not worry for their well-being. Surely you remember the class we had on the Nine Hells?" Burbage said.
"I do."
"There. None of our concern. Now. For homework, I want you all to observe the photographs of the recent demon attack and note down any observations or conclusions you may draw from them. Next class, we will resume our previous lesson on demon portals."
☽✴☾
"I'm unsatisfied," Saylor said as she and her classmates settled down to eat. The eating quarters hosted enough space for the entire school population to wander in for a meal or treat at any time of the night.
"There she goes again," Arabella rolled her eyes before haphazardly grabbing a bread roll and stuffing it unapologetically in her mouth.
"I mean. An innocent life has been stolen away to Hell, and all we worry about is the possible arrival of angels? I thought demons were selective about the type of souls they ate. Why a teenage girl?"
"See, Saylor is the reason why we should stop admitting halfbreeds into this school," Arabella said snidely. "They're delusional."
"Empathy is not a delusion, Arabella," Saylor responded with a pout. "A demon attack means there's a demon portal nearby that we can close!"
"We haven't even learned how to do that yet," Solaris groaned. "We're just first years. Let's learn our place, please."
"I understand the cultural shock, Saylor. I really do," Arun chimed in. "But we have been at peace with the underworld for eons now. There's no need for that to change."
"I don't mean to start a war against them. I just mean... closing a portal here so the humans in this town can avoid encountering more deaths. Besides, I thought the last thing we wanted was to attract angels. They hate us, no?"
"Gods, halfbreeds are adorable," Arun mused then cleared his throat. Arabella rolled her eyes at that comment before going back to sneering at Saylor. "Saylor, as mere students, angels are out of our jurisdiction. We cannot make a decision that could potentially drastically affect the harmony between sorcerers and demons. Closing a demon portal is cutting off their food source. They'll hate us."
"We could pretend to be angels?" Saylor offered. The others laughed.
"See what I mean?" Arabella snickered. "Halfbreeds..."
"Honestly, Arabella? You're not helping. Let me handle this," Zian jumped in. He was previously very focused on emptying his soup bowl, and now, he was wiping his mouth with a napkin. He turned to Saylor with a patient smile on his lips. "Saylor. Remember what Professor Burbage said about a demon's sense of smell?"
"They can tell the difference between angels, humans, and any other creature just by their smell, I know. I just..." Saylor sighed. "I just feel bad. Those poor human souls. Are angels even capable of rescuing them from Hell?"
"Well... they will if they win The Almighty War, which we all know won't happen since they've made literally everyone their enemy," Zian said with absolute certainty. "But it's alright, Saylor. The First Hell is quite charming when you think about it. Besides, why would we root for angels of all creatures. They're worse than Vampires."
"I don't know. What about her family? Her friends? They must be devastated..." Saylor couldn't help but feel remorse for that poor girl Angelica Wang.
"And we'll leave you to mourn her if you wish..." Zian patted Saylor on the back. "Now onto other matters... Are you all planning on attending Grigor's party at dawn?"