The following morning after breakfast, Angelica called for Thanatos at the dais, ready to give him an answer. She was dressed in her combat outfit with the 'S' on her top representing her last name. She even took her mother's dagger and coeurl mask with her. She now stood on the dais, her friends behind her, her father in front of her, and the entire village surrounding them. It was finally time to give everyone an answer.

Angelica gazed down at the mask and dagger in her hands. Her mother's face flashed through her mind. She slowly looked up at her father. "Thanatos... Dad... I've made up my mind."

The man leaned forward expectantly, awaiting her answer. "Yes, my little Angel?"

She glanced around at the crowds. "Clan Solani has returned. I'm here to stay."

The assassins erupted in cheers. Thanatos was grinning with joy. "Wonderful!" He moved closer, hugging the girl briefly before sliding an arm around her shoulder. "My daughter is one of us now!" he announced. "Together, we will take down the empire!"

The cheers grew louder. Angelica smiled, feeling more at home than ever before. She finally seemed to find a place where she fit in, among people just like her. But the loud gasps of her friends caught her ears. With the cheers around her dying down, the girl turned her head, looking back at the four boys.

"You're... really staying?" Noctis questioned. "After everything, you're gonna ditch us now?

Angelica hung her head down, lowering her gaze to the ground. "Listen... I really care about you guys. You were the first people to accept me for who I am, and the best friends I could ever ask for. But I have to do this, and if you don't understand why, then you don't understand me." She looked to a few assassins nearby, already knowing her authority over them. "Throw them out, but do NOT hurt them."

In the blink of an eye, the four men were roughly restrained. They struggled to rush over to the redhead. "Angel, listen to us!" Ignis shouted. "We-"

"No, you listen!" she snapped, turning to face them. "I'm not traveling on your pointless trip any longer!" Her tone and expression went from sad to dark in an instant. "THIS is where I'm meant to be! THIS is where I belong! And here, I have everything I need to avenge the people we've lost!" The four were shocked by her words. "Now go! Continue on your journey."

Thanatos gave a nod to his underlings. In response, the four were bound with rope and forcefully pulled away from the dais. The last thing they saw through the swarm of assassins was Angelica glaring their way before sliding the coeurl mask over her face.

"Maybe once this is all over," she said, just loud enough for them to hear, "I'll see you boys again."

She then turned, walking away with her father until she was out of sight. The guys struggled against the rope tied around their wrists and the five assassins forcefully dragging them out of the village and into a surrounding forest.

"Dammit, let go!" the prince yelled in anger.

"We've gotta go back!" Gladio fought against his restraints.

Noctis had enough and phased right out of the ropes and his captor's hold. He was immediately jumped by the group of assassins though. The prince was pinned to the ground with a knife against his throat. The man hovering over him narrowed his eyes.

"Lady Angelica demanded no harm befall you. Don't make us go against her orders."

One of the assassins suddenly dropped to her knees, clutching the back of her neck and moaning in pain. Everyone's attention went to her. With the distraction, Ignis saw an opportunity and brought his leg up, kicking the guy pinning Noctis. His foot collided into the back of the man's neck, knocking him off the prince. He immediately cried out in pain while the woman had ceased her own pained noises.

But now, the man Ignis kicked was writhing on the ground. He screamed and cried as his skin darkened to black while at the same time, it smoked and sizzled in the sunlight. The boys all watched with wide eyes full of shock. In just a few moments, the man's body had turned into a cloud of purple smoke that dispersed into the air.

"What the hell just happened?!" Prompto cried in astonishment.

"He appeared to be... a daemon," Ignis concluded, thinking over all the clues. "But how?"

With four assassins remaining, one tackled the prince, restraining him for the second time. "They know!" he said. "They figured it out!"

"We have to kill them now," the woman said, unsheathing her own dagger. "They know too much."

She placed her blade against Prompto's back, right over where his heart was located. He stiffened and gulped, fearing for his life. But in an instant, Noctis phased out of his binding again and warped to his friend. He summoned a sword and used its hilt to hit the woman in the back of the neck, knocking her down and cutting away the gunman's ropes. The woman screamed in agony as the same thing happened to her as the previous assassin.

Noctis warped around, freeing his allies while avoiding the enemies. "The back of their necks are their weak points!"

"Leave at least one intact!" Ignis instructed.

A battle ensued between the four men and the assassins. Fortunately, Noctis's warping ability and Ignis's sheer speed was enough to outmaneuver their opponents. And truthfully, the tactician could tell those assassins weren't quite as agile and skilled as Angelica. In the end, two more assassins fried in the sun after their necks had been injured. The last of them had a simple stab wound in his stomach where blackened blood poured out.

The boys surrounded the body, Ignis flipping it over onto its stomach. He kneeled and carefully peeled back the man's jacket collar, revealing a strange metal object attached to the back of the guy's neck. It was oval-shaped and smooth, and the skin around it was pure black in color.

"What is this?" he muttered in thought.

"Looks like a tiny metal egg," Prompto said.

"But look at the skin around it," Gladio pointed out. "It's completely black."

"So, this is what daemonized them?" Noctis inquired.

"It appears so," Ignis replied. "Which explains why a blow to the neck was fatal for them at this time of day. This must be why all the assassins wear clothing - to conceal this object."

"All except Thanatos," Prompto added.

The shield crossed his arms. "I betcha he's got something to do with this."

Ignis abruptly stood. "We need to go back. Angel's in danger."

He only got a couple of steps before Gladio jumped in front of him, blocking his path. "Rushing in without a plan? That ain't like you, Iggy."

"Can you blame him?" Noctis interrupted. "Angel's in a village full of people secretly infected by the Starscourge, and she's so caught up in her revenge plans that she doesn't see what's going on right under her nose."

Ignis sighed, pushing up his glasses. "I'm afraid Gladio's right though. We need a plan before rushing in. We still don't know how those devices work."

"But then we'll go in, bust up the place, and rescue Angel!" Prompto cheerfully said.

"Alright, Specs, do your thing," Noctis commanded.

Ignis smiled slightly, his eyes traveling to the clothing on the ground left behind by the disintegrated assassins. "Leave it to me, Highness. I believe I know just where to start."

~~~~~

Angelica walked alongside Thanatos. "Just think, in a few days, we'll be in Gralea," he said. "We'll kill anyone who gets in our way, and those who obey will serve us."

"You mean, even families with children?" the girl inquired.

Thanatos chuckled. "Don't worry, children will be spared. They'll learn to work for us as servants. And everyone else will be given the same chance." He noticed her silence and explained further, "Remember, Angel, no one is truly innocent, and the weak are crushed by the strong. The empire abides by those same rules, to beat them, we must do the same."

Angelica slowly nodded. It was true, only those with enough power could take what they wanted. And pondering over his words, the girl thought back on her childhood. The way she was feared and avoided by her classmates. She scrunched her nose up in disgust. Those pathetic insects were right to be scared. I could've killed them all. And now, everyone will learn to fear my name.

As if reading her mind, her father wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "Soon, we'll be seated at the throne of Niflheim. We'll take over, ending these pointless wars that cause so much tragedy."

Angelica grinned, laughing darkly. "And then, no one will ever take anything else away from me."

It was as if pure darkness was flooding Angelica's heart. The power was all going to her head, and her own inner daemons were beginning to show their faces. She didn't care anymore, she would kill every Niff that didn't submit to them. But deep down in the back of her mind, she knew this was a mistake. She knew her friends had been right all along, but she was sick of waiting. She had a thirst for vengeance she needed to quench. And now, she had everything she required to end it, once and for all.