text | un: devilhunter

[advivo]

WHO: Dante & you.
WHERE: Network.
WHEN: Today bitches.
WHAT: Uncle Dante coming in with starbucks... wait why is everything on fire?
WARNINGS: not at the moment, will updated when nessecary.


[ good morning? day? what is time honestly? dante doesn't know, he sure as hell lost all concept of it ever since they closed the gate and sealed themselves in the demon world. how long ago was that? fuck, he really lost it, hasn't he? nevermind that, more important things to focus on right now. ]

so thanks for the free phone
could have done with a hot shower and a nice meal but this will have to do
anyway if someone could point me to the nearest, cheapest, motel that'd be great

oh and the name's dante

[ where is he? fuck if he knows. he just really really needs a shower right now. and food, god when was the last time he had a hot meal? let him tell you, the demon world is not known for it's cuisine. ]

Comments

[scryption]

The battle hasn't begun yet, at least. We're waiting for an opening.

[Though it's only a matter of time.]

A moment.

[She lists off a couple of cheap hotels, including the hostel she's staying at, which is an absolute piece of shit with cement floors and flickering lightbulbs for lighting. It kind of suits her, though... judging by all the black.]

[advivo]

So I've been hearing. Sounds like it is going to be a nig one.

[ at least it means he won't be sitting on his hands for long, he is already feeling antsy. ]

Noted. Thanks for that... Sorry, didn't catch your name.

[scryption]

Zero.

[She tips her hat despite being on camera. Politeness, or hiding her face? Perhaps both.]

Have you fought demons before?

[advivo]

Pleasure, Zero.

[ doesn't beat around the bush this one, he likes her. (????) ]

All the time, you can say I'm in the demon-hunting business.

[scryption]

[Her eyebrows rise invisibly.]

Have you any advice?

[The more they understand their enemies, the better.]

I have memories of fighting similar creatures in my past life, but I am yet... untested.

[Her strengths and her talents aren't the same as the one who followed her friends to Eorzea, but that doesn't make her experiences worthless. She hopes.]

[advivo]

Sure. Don't get killed.

[ he grins but it almost immediately this is probably not the best audience for his shitty humor. ]

Seriously, can depend on the demon. They can have different strengths and weaknesses, usually you'll be fine if you hit them with enough brute force that they can't recover from it. Safe bet is to go for the head, most demons can't regenerate from a beheading.

[scryption]

[A brick wall has a better chance of laughing. Sorry Dante. It's not you, it's her.]

They... regenerate?

[She trails off as she's hit with... something. A memory. She rubs at her temple and winces. Right... voidsent can regenerate. They can die. And she's died many times herself...

To stop it, she—]

... I understand.

[advivo]

[ this isn't his first rodeo with a brick wall, he'll break you down one day zero. it's going to happen. ]

The stronger the demon the more likely it can regenerate─ [ he trails off, brow furrowing at the wince. ] You good?

[scryption]

[Good luck, wacky wahoo pizza man.]

... I'm fine. Just a memory. They... tend to be intrusive.

[Which actually brings up another question.]

Are you from this world, or did you tumble out of a maze like some others?

[advivo]

[ he will need it honestly. ]

Know the feeling. [ moving right along! ]

Tumbled out of a maze. Not the most inspiring maze, though I get the feeling it was a trip down memory lane on purpose.

[scryption]

[She nods.]

You are not alone, then. There are many like you in this city.

[She thinks of her friends and how they recognize her, but she only started to know them after spending some time...]

... Some of us here were born with abilities beyond that of normal humans. Others were not. We all eventually began to remember things from another life we lived before this one.

This means that the people you recognize may not be the same people you knew on your world. They have lived two lives. This is... confusing... for those who have been reborn.

[advivo]

[ his expression shifts, becoming colder and harder to read. ]

Thus the intrusive memories. [ certainly he sympathizes, he wonders if that still happens to nero though from their meeting it seemed as though the kid had already grappled with that particular demon. ] Yeah, my nephew gave me a crash course in all of that. Sounds rough for those reborn souls.

Can't do much to help but you do have my sympathies. [ as long as he doesn't run into anyone else with a familiar face, he'll be happy. ] The demon problem though, that I can do something about. If you need any other advice or backup, just message me. I'll be there.

[scryption]

[He... feels sorry for her? She has no idea what to do with that. It throws her off a bit. Now and then he gets a peek of pale eyes. He reminds her of—

She shakes her head.] Worry not. Though we have all been tested, we are stronger for it. [Stronger together than apart, in her case.]

... You are not worried about payment?

[In some ways, her world still revolved around give and take.]

[advivo]

Nah, not this time. But if you insist on it I'm sure I can think something up.

[ besides he has already been offered homemade pizza and strawberry sundaes, he's as satisfied with payment for his potential help should the shit hit the fan. a probability he has been getting the impression is very likely. ]

[scryption]

[Honestly that'd be enough for her, too.

She thinks about Scintilla's kind offer when she first got here.]

... One meal. At the Last Stand.

I'll pay.

[She did learn a little about demons from him, after all.]

[advivo]

[ he can't say no to a free meal, how did she know the way to his heart? (dante you literally opened this whole thing with 'i need a nice meal'.) ]

Deal.

[ a beat. ]

No idea where the Last Stand is though.

[scryption]

[She's killed demons for food before.]

It's in the University District.

[She drops the cross streets.]

Their menu is... affordable.

[advivo]

Got it.

[ does he actually? maybe, maybe not. he'll find his way there somehow. ]

Give me a bit and I'll meet you there?

[ he's hungry......... ]

--> action;

[scryption]

[It took her a few days to remember she should eat something, so he's ahead of her in that respect.]

Very well.

[She doesn't have work for a while, so!]

I will see you shortly.




[Zero sticks out like a blank page in a coloring book. The city is very cheerful this time of year, but she's bereft of anything resembling color whatsoever, save for the occasional purplish accent on her armor and the blue streaked hair beneath the hat.

It's drizzling, but she doesn't seem to care as she stands outside, arms folded. She gives the impression of someone who is always armed even though her scythe isn't with her right now.]

[advivo]

[ it's a good thing he already knows what she looks like, giving him an edge on what exactly he is looking for. it does definitely help that she doesn't seem to be engaging in the colorfulness that the rest of the city indulges in. dante, for his part, sticks out about as much as she does, in part because of his red coat but definitely because of his hair that looks a little more on the side of grey in the drizzle.

he's all smiles despite the weather, despite the light rain sticking odd strands of hair to his face, how could he not be? free food, and some pretty decent company, it's like a dream come true. ]

Zero! [ he waves as he saunters up to her, as giddy as kid about to go to a candy store. ]

[scryption]

[She sees him coming from a ways away simply because of the red coat. Like, damn, this guy isn't subtle at all. That makes them peas in a pod, perhaps. She tips her hat in greeting.]

Dante.

[It sure is raining. And she sure doesn't care either.]

This city isn't difficult to navigate once you have an idea of how it is organized.

Are you... [god she is so bad at small talk] ... hungry? We can go inside.

[advivo]

Yeah, it's surprisingly manageable gotta give the city planners some credit for that.

[ then again he's used to the utter mess that is redgrave, doubly so ever since brother dearest came back and erected a giant blood-drinking tree. he can only imagine what the city must look now that the weed infestation is over and done with. ]

Ladies first. [ he motions towards the door, the awkward small talk is charming... ] After you.

[scryption]

[She has never heard that in her life, so she gives him a blank stare when he says that... but then it's followed by "after you", which she does understand, even if the reason is lost on her. Gotta love social graces (or the lack thereof).

Anyway, they manage to grab a table. With the menu in front of them... well, Zero barely looks at it. She's not the adventurous type. Ask anyone; she's ordered the same thing every time she's been here.

She's far more interested in watching the other people in the restaurant, which she'll do until the waiter comes by to take their orders. So much for small talk. She's the quiet type, as it goes.]

[advivo]

[ he laughs under his breath, head shaking as he follows after her and sits at the table. okay, so he might have underestimated her inability for small talk ─ that's fine, dante can talk for both of them if he really wants to. which, at his moment, is a secondary thought in favor of the menu in front of them. quickly he settles on one of the burger and chips options, setting it down in favor of... well observing.

her, the rest of the restaurant. ]

So, Zero, [ he leans back dangerously on the chair and it creaks a little with the weight. ] You didn't have any other demons questions, did you?

[scryption]

[She's trying her best and that's all that matters. If she notices she's being watched while watching others, she doesn't seem to care... so there's that. She's not anxious, just self-conscious about a few limited things, maybe...

She looks back at him eventually, though.]

Would draining their energy destroy them? Or is it only a temporary measure due to their regeneration?

[She doesn't want to fuck up and accidentally merge her soul with that of her meal. That would make her lose her appetite for sure.]