More than meets the eye (Woof)

The demon skidded closer, seeking to close the distance the woman would not, a smile light on their lips when Pyrrha had compared them to a god, she looked happy, satisfied. But when Pyrrha brought up the name of the ape like demon the two had met prior, the demon's smile faltered.

It stopped immediately, as if it hadn't had even been in motion a moment ago, their smile turned to a scowl. "The beast finally got someone to collect." She spoke with what sounded like whispers, carried by the wind so strongly that it almost echoed in Pyrrha's ears.

Then it stepped forwards, a solid step, yet so light it made no sound. The demon walked across the ice, seemingly unimpeded, till she was no more then ten feet away from the woman, so dressed to impress. "So useful and yet so dull. All that thing demands is a constant end to its bottomless hunger. Fine..."

Crouching down, the demon pressed their hand into the ice, their fingers molding the ice away until they reached the water below. Cupping the liquid, they brought it back up and placed their other hand atop the water, hiding any sign of it. She stared at Pyrrha, pale blue eyes searching the strange woman's mismatched colors. But not ten seconds passed before she opened her hands suddenly, the water no longer there, but a box. She caught it, taking a cautious step forwards... Before taking two steps back.

"You're not normal are you. Not a human... Not a demon or angel. I had assumed one of those at first, but I realize it is not your smell, but the smell of the wounded mutt over there... You... You are the most curious creature." She stood upright, the box held gently in her two hands, head tilted to the side as she studied the woman. "Is there something you desire? An answer to a question long sought. Aid for the mutt so hurt behind you? A path to power you seek? Friendship in the places you least expect? I can offer many a service... You need only say... Or you may step across the frozen waters... And take this box for the beast, and I will say no more."

Jake, watching this unfold, narrowed his eyes. He had rested, but the change in temperature had been enough to wake him. And as he waited, it reminded him that he was late to do something he had promised Pyrrha he would do. Alone on this small hill, he decided there was no better time. And maybe Anne would be asleep by now that she wouldn't reply right away. He wasn't sure if he could handle that. "Sorry for not replying sooner. And sorry for replying so late. Been busy as of late." He paused a few moments, deciding that felt... Wrong and deleting the last sentience to start anew. "Been distracted a lot. Family stuff. Not as complicated as yours clearly, but close. Just finishing some stuff up and then taking it easy. Don't worry. Pyrrha's keeping me out of trouble." He sent the text and breathed, before glancing back up to Pyrrha and the demon, hoping nothing went too wrong.

Pyrrha eyed the curious creature as it moved, making sure it didn’t try anything funny. This all seemed far to easygoing. The demon simply agreed to pay their debt just like that? There was definitely something more to it. This was made pretty clear when the demon motioned to give Pyrrha the box but quickly retreated back to their icy domain. It even enticed Pyrrha to step forth and grab the box. The seasoned adventurer couldn’t help but crack a slight smile. “If I jumped at every offer thrown at me by someone or something I just met, I wouldn’t be standing here today. So, how about you pay the debt you owe and I’ll be on my way”

Pyrrha would hold her hand out for the demon to place the box. Her other hand remained free in case the creature tried anything funny.

Meanwhile, halfway across the city, a cellphone would ring. An ashen haired teen would reach into her pocket to retrieve her phone. Her turquoise colored eyes read over the text message. She felt half angry that the message was so nonchalant, but the other half was just happy to have gotten the message in the first place. It meant Pyrrha had passed on her message even though she didn’t need to, and that Jake and Pyrrha were still together. It meant there was less of a chance for Jake to do anything reckless or put himself in danger.

Johanna’s fingers began to tap away at the screen of her phone, mustering up a reply. Though part way through the message she stopped. She quickly erased what she had wrote and slipped her phone back into her pocket. “Now its his turn to wait” she’d mumble to herself before returning to work.

"So cautious. No harm was meant. Maybe next time." With a small little sigh, the demon slid closer, taking just a tiny bit longer then needed, until she was mere inches away from Pyrrha. The demoness had an aura about her, like biting cold that threatened to seep the warmth of life away from you, but she held the box out and dropped it onto the woman's hand, the box itself cool as the night's natural temperature. "Tell that thing to flip the box over when it hungers... But warn him that it should not stay flipped for long. He will not listen, but it will be his own fault." She stepped back, giving Pyrrha a light smile.

"If you ever want something. I'll always be here." Her last words, echoing in the wind as she seemed to melt into the ice, until she was gone, and the ice itself began to unfreeze, a slow process, but eventually, all that would remain was water and the reflection of the moon.

Jake would land beside her suddenly, stumbling a little, but catching himself quickly, he had started moving when the demon got closer, but slowed until it vanished and he felt it was safe for him to jump over, considering their was a fence in the way. "That looked like it went smoothly. Did it go smoothly?" He asked, glancing over at the pool of water. It was still almost unnaturally cold, same with the air that surrounded them, but it was clear that the temperature was returning to normal as the seconds passed. Still, the boy rubbed his arms for what little warmth it gave him.

"I also should not have listened to you. I thought I'd be happy if Johanna didn't send me a text back... I am slowly realizing how much of an asshole I've been. Anyway. Back to that thing, hopefully. Lead the way." The boy patted his pants, admitting that Pyrrha had been right about him not getting back to Anne, before motioning for Pyrrha to lead them on. Better she take the lead, maybe anything that noticed him would think twice if they saw her.

Pyrrha cautiously took the strange box from the demon, giving it a puzzled look as it retreated back to wherever it came from. This was surprisingly much easier than the young woman had anticipated. There was nothing wrong with the outcome, hell, it was a welcomed one for the adventurer. Any time an issue could be resolved without conflict was a win in her book. Still, she couldn’t help but feel oddly about the encounter. Jake had built it up to be something they needed to be worried about, but in the end all it took was a five minute conversation.

Pyrrha would reply to Jake with a nod. “Yeah, I’d say that went rather to well.” She held the box in both hands, the coldness slightly seeping through the leather of her gauntlets. Even if the debt for that large beast had been collected, the two were not out of the woods just yet. They still had to make their way back to the beast, and who knew if there was anything out there lurking in the shadows still. For this reason alone, Pyrrha felt it best to remain in her current form.

“Here’s hoping that fiend hasn’t up and left. I somehow doubt it though. He seemed awfully intent on us collecting this debt for him. Once he gets it, he should be more inclined to aid us. If not….well lets not think about that right now.” she said with a cheeky smile. Rather that being completely in the lead, Pyrrha walked side by side with Jake, this way the two could talk face to face and Pyrrha could keep a better eye on the injured boy. “By the way, side feeling any better? Not still burning or anything is it? I still don’t get why my healing spell didn’t work.” she said slightly concerned, here gaze slowly dropping to Jake’s bloodied shirt.

The boy didn't have any explanation to why that meeting went so well. The demon didn't put a lot of pressure on the woman, but perhaps it was because she was so much more then the normal encounter for the demon. "Maybe I should bring you for every other demonic encounter I have." The boy joked as he examined the small box as well. Weird. What the hell was a ape like that thing going to do with that?

"Hopefully. Otherwise we have a demon box... I suppose we could do something with it. What does it do anyway?" The boy questioned, looking ahead. It was pretty late. And it wasn't like demons were always out and about in search of something to eat, kill, torture and whatever else it was they did... That and he was no longer freshly bleeding.

"Yea, actually, it does. I heal slowly, but I do heal, so give it a day and so and it'll all go away. And I'm at a lost too. I'm half blooded when it comes to angels and demons, so you'd think the angel side would be fine with some healing, but apparently it just joins together in a way that hates me and healing... Honestly I'm not sure about everything my body likes and doesn't. I don't have regular demon weaknesses. Silver, salt. Stuff like my friend Sam has." Jake explained. Like many things related to the supernatural. He didn't actually have a very good understanding of it all. And he didn't really have movies or books to explain himself.

But soon enough, without interruption. They had arrived to the scene of the crime. Barricades had been set up, and what looked to be the beginning of some sort of repair was in the process of being started. It was so late that they must have decided to be done with the night... Or perhaps Grosorko had scared them off. Or worse.

All that was left was to enter the beasts lair and make the deal.

Pyrrha’s attention focused on Jake for most of their walks duration, listening to how much it sounded like there was stuff even Jake didn’t know about his own body. The young woman’s attention would shift to the stange box she had received from the crossroads demon. “Based on what that demon said, its some sort of endless food box.” She felt partially tempted to open the box but quickly changed her mind. Perhaps it was better she didn’t. She really didn’t feel like she was in the mood to discover what kind of ‘food’ was in the box.

The two would eventually reach the alleyway where their target resided. As they rounded the corner, they were met with an odd scene. It had appeared that a construction crew had been called out to patch up the hole. Stranger still, was that there weren’t any workers around. Pyrrha immediately thought the worst. After all she had lived in the city long enough to know that it didn’t matter what the time of day was, construction workers would have still been working.

“I definitely don’t like the looks of this. Here’s hoping the workers just ran away.” Pyrrha would say as she approached the barricades. “I’ll head down first just in case our quarry is feeling jumpy.” she’d say to Jake before approaching the edge of the hole leading to the demons lair. With a small hop, Pyrrha would quickly disappear from sight as she descended down into the tunnels below.

She’d land with a solid thud, the ground cracking slightly beneath her feet. She immediately began looking around for any signs of the beast. “Hellooooooooo? We’re back!” she shouted, hoping it would draw out the monster.

Her voice echoed through the crudely made tunnel. Jake dropped down a few seconds after Pyrrha did, seeing as she hadn't been attacked quite yet. It was wide enough that the two could easily maneuver around each other, but then the demon they sought was rather massive.

Talking of the demon, it didn't take long for a growl to echo back, followed by heavy steps that shook the walls as the four armed gorilla like beast stepped towards them, knuckles digging into the dirt as he came towards them. His mouth was bloody, but the source was easily found as one of his arms, carrying what looked to be the remains of a cat, shoved it into the rest of his mouth. "Grosorko did not expect this, but Grosorko waited anyway. Trade for trade?" He spoke down to Pyrrha, largely ignoring the boy who decided to be tactful and keep his distance from the demon.

"The box is your trade. Tell us where to find the demon." The boy did speak up however, keeping ready in case this thing attacked. The larger demon stared at the boy annoyed, but then his eyes found the box, and his disgustingly human like face smiled, before it's eyes narrowed.

"Building half gone from superhuman fight. Tunnel will lead to it. Right, left, left. Right. Forwards and three more rights. Long walk. Nameless makes home there... I will eat if Nameless kills. But do not speak of Grosorko. Monster and strong one found tunnel. Grosorko unlucky." The demon's smiled turned hungry, but his large hand was held out for the box. He looked eager. Quite so.

There was but a brief moment of silence that followed after Jake landed in the tunnel with a thud. A low grumble echoed through the makeshift den as the beastly demon made its presence known and approached the two. Pyrrha immediately noticed the blood around the creatures grotesque lips and thought of the worst. It wasn’t till her eyes noticed the dead stray in the demons hands that her free hand loosened up. Still though, her eyes narrowed and her expression was one of disgust and slight anger. * Poor thing* she thought of the cat as Grosorko swallowed the rest of the corpse whole.

“It seems we’ve both upheld our ends of the deal. Directions for us, and one strange mystical feeding box for you. Im going to say this here and now, but if you’re lying to us, I will find you.” She didn’t say much more, as the demon excitedly snatched the box from her hands. With one good arm he held the box high in the air and began to shake it violently. Masses of flesh poured from the box and hit the floor with a sickening thud, splattering their juices this way and that. With his remaining two good arms Grosorko began to shovel the masses into his gullet one after the other. Now that he had his food, he no longer paid much attention to Pyrrha and Jake.

Feigning a gag, Pyrrha moved passed the beast and waved for Jake to follow. She kept mentally repeating the directions to herself so they wouldn’t get lost. It wasn’t long before their only light source was far out of sight, And this prompted Pyrrha to hold out her left hand, forming a pall of concentrated aether into her palm. The bright white light filled the tunnel and made it much easier to see. “So I know Im sounding like a broken record at this point, but got a plan for when we reach this other demon? Any idea what to look out for? Should I do the talking?”

Grosorko did not care to answer. He didn't even seem to hear the woman, his focus and entire being was to consume the seemingly endless supply of meat before him. Jake shook his head and quickly followed Pyrrha. "That was entirely disgusting. Where the hell did that demon get so much... Nope. Not gonna think about it." The boy gagged, the smell of flesh taking too long to leave his memory.

Pyrrha handled light, giving the two easy sight through their journey, as long as it seemed. The tunnels were wide and not the most stable looking, but that thing clearly had been digging them for some time and they hadn't collapsed yet. "A broken record is better then an empty one. I've met this guy before. Strange, but he seemed friendly... Mostly it appeared that he actually cared for my sister. I had actually met him before that too, with Johanna. He was just sitting in this dude's vault. He's fast, uses shadows, and can create a scythe of some kind. He wasn't so friendly then, but he seemed to know Anna's mom. Might be the only reason we got out of that place in one piece." Jake explained. He didn't really have advice on how to deal with the guy. His powers seemed basic but also confusing. But they were powerful.

The tunnels continued, eventually many a crossroad came, but the two recalled the directions offered by the large ape demon and followed them, until finally, the tunnel they followed started to angle upwards. Jake moved in first, climbing from the tunnel into a dark but lightly moonlit room.

The building wasn't devastated, but the damage was clear. They were in a part of New York devastated by a superhuman fight. Maybe the one from years ago, or a recent one. Jake was never sure. There were two floors, but already it was clear the first was lived in. A makeshift clothes line had been set up, with clothes clipped too it. All business like attire. White button shirts, black dress pants, ties. A pile of clothes to the side of the line could be seen, but the pile was torn and bloodied. By the look of it, whoever wore them got into a lot of fights, and had to get a lot of clothes, but they were all of the same variety as those on the line. "I don't see anyone yet." The boy softly whispered, motioning towards the stairs.

Upstairs was a little creepier. There were no walls on the inside, making it a large, open space. There were two beds and a portable TV however. One of the beds, smaller, looked well kept, the other was more akin to a sleeping bag, but was well used. The TV, muted, showed a picture of Lucius Alba. Looking around, the two would see there were quite a few pictures of Lucius Alba, full body shots, all of them captured when the man was in business attire then as his villain moniker of Red.

Business attire that seemed almost similar to the clothes downstairs, too much so. "Talk about an obsession." Jake murmured, looking around. Still no sight of the demon.

"Obsession's a rude way of stating it." A voice echoed. The boy turned to a shadow, slowly forming upwards from the floor several feet away from him and Pyrrha, until a tall and well groomed, if skinny and sickly looking man appeared before them, the shadows that he seemed to be made of, sinking under his buttoned shirt and long pants, revealing skin and color. "Perhaps not entirely inaccurate. How'd you find me?"

It was a good thing that these tunnels had been bored by such a large creature. Pyrrha could just imagine how much more of a pain this would have been if the tunnels weren’t large enough for the two to navigate. That being said, she was beginning to wonder if they couldn’t have just found the building they were looking for, by walking street level. Either way it was to late for that and they had already traveled quite a distance. There was no use complaining about it now, besides, she had been through worse. Her body shuddered as she thought about the time she had to fight her way out of a cerberus’ stomach.

She listened to Jake’s description of their demon in question, intently. She needed to, or rather, she wanted to know all she could before encountering this being. She liked being prepared, especially if she ended up having to do enough fighting for both her and Jake’s sake. That being said, nothing sounded particularly dangerous about this individual in question. It was odd that Grosorko was so terrified of this ‘man’, Jake made him out to be. “Oh he knows the queen. That’s good. Im sure we could use that in some way if need be.” she said, taking a mental note to invoke the mighty demon queens name if the need arose.

It took the duo a bit to recall the directions given to them by the ape-like demon, but they’d eventually reach their destination. Pyrrha’s orb of aether stopped being the only source of light the two has, as they approached the opening to the dilapidated building. Jake chose to take the lead here, something Pyrrha wasn’t to keen on letting happen, especially in his condition, but he was quick. There was no arguing here, the sooner she exited the tunnels the better. The ground floor immediately painted a picture. There was indeed someone using this ruined building as a hideout. Piles of tattered a bloody clothes strewn to one side, wile several articles hung from a makeshift clothes line.

Again, Pyrrha found herself questioning why Grosorko and Jake made a big deal out of this guy. Continuing deeper into the building, Pyrrha would follow Jake up some stairs. The second level of the building had nearly all of its walls blown out, leaving a wide open space. This level was like a makeshift sleeping quarters, with two beds occupying it, something Pyrrha immediately took note of. The big demon hadn’t mentioned anything about a second individual residing here. This prompted Pyrrha to unsheathe her gunblade.

Her gaze darted all around, she overlooked the finer details that Jake managed to notice, such as the plethora of photographs of a man she’d never seen before. Instead she kept a look out for things less….strange. Which is when she noticed some of the shadows in the room begin to move. She quickly darted between Jake and whatever was forming out of the ground. Even as the man’s form began to fully take shape, Pyrrha’s grip remained tight around her weapon. It wasn’t until he spoke for a second time that she eased up just a tiny bit. “Uh….” She’d slightly turn her head to Jake just beyond her shoulder, Her eyes still fixated on the mysterious figure before them. “You wanna field that question?” She did her best to still uphold their end of the bargain, by not mentioning the brutish demon that lead them here.

The man Grosorko called Nameless looked between Jake and Pyrrha with a frown. His eyes landing on Jake with a slight tilt to his head, a look of near recognition. "Have we met?" He spoke through a yawn, voice a little more course then before.

Deciding that taking charge would indeed suit them a little better, Jake stepped forwards. He wasn't going to answer that question. No, he was here for answers. "We've met a few times. The last time however, you were with Mastema, my sister." Jake started, but the moment the name left his mouth, the man reared back, shadows, made solid and yet almost viciously liquid curled from his clothes to his arms.

"I do remember you. The boy she wished to kill. I don't know you however." He glanced to Pyrrha for a moment, eyes narrowed. "Revenge? No... Doubt it. You didn't seem the type when I watched." He spoke towards the boy, the shadows slithering back towards his clothes.

"I want to make it right. Help her. You seemed to actually care for her. Where is she?" The boy was direct. He didn't have the time nor care for any kind of subtlety. Besides, this demon in the shape of a man was tricky, but with Pyrrha, Jake wasn't worried.

The man was silent for a moment. But then he turned his head to the side suddenly, as if hearing something. The sound would echo through the broken hobble of a building, the ground rumbled. Something large was moving quickly. And soon, it could be heard. "Hunger! Box did not fill Grosorko! Tricks and lies!" The echo of words and roars came from the first floor, the tunnels that led the two here. "Ah..."

With a sigh, the man turned back to face the two, just as the lumbering might of the ape demon was closing in. "Hunge-" They heard him before he was seen, his massive frame attempting to lunge to the second floor. But it was night, the moon high and shining through the cracks of this ruined building. It was almost easy to see the walls grew darker, no. The shadows grew shape and form instantly. And with a twitch of the man's nose. The shadows from the walls, the roof, the ground, the mans clothes, all took the shape of lances and spikes, shooting forwards quickly and with force, too many to count.

The ape remained in the air, motionless for a moment, not even enough time for blood to pool among the many spears that pieced flesh easily before the man rolled his neck and the shadows wrapped and dragged the demon back down, till he was out of sight. "A pet afraid of the shadows was only as useful as that I suppose. Did you two bring any other friends? Hmm? Want to kill me? Do you too wish to harm the girl, play with her mind like that mother of hers? Taste the blood of a child of a prince and a fallen angel. She is under my protection, and like the many that have tried. All have failed. Think yourselves any different hmm?" The man seemed to raise a few inches, shadows digging into the wood of the floor, raising him like spider legs and stilts, the entire building seemed to slither and move, cold shadows moving alongside the feet of the two in the lair of a demon, coiling around feet, not enough to hold, but enough to let them know what was there, the danger.

Pyrrha studied the strange man, only breaking her concentration once when she was addressed. Was she supposed to answer the question? The whole reason they were here was because Jake was trying to find his sister. This demon supposedly had some information they could use but so far he was dodging the questions. It was a slight relief that Jake finally decided to charge and ask the questions he’d been dying to get answers to. The young adventurer would loosen up, her eyes never left the strange man. Then something interesting happened. Once the man realized who Jake was, he reared back, shadowy tendrils emerged from his clothing.

This display caused Pyrrha to pause and glance around. She began to think. They were under the cover of night. Despite the moon shining high above, there were plenty of dark corners that were completely shrouded in darkness. The building might have been dark and dank, but is was a perfect hiding place for an ambush to be lying in wait. The perfect home field for their demon to meet them on. They just might have walked into a trap of sorts. This didn’t deter Pyrrha from sticking her glare to the man. She made sure to brush her hair aside, allowing her bright glowing white, right eye to be visible.

It seemed Pyrrha was destined to be proven correct in her assumption about the building and the mans powers. The scenery began to shake and rumble. Insufferable grunts and roaring could be heard echoing from the tunnels exit. It seemed the demon’s stomach was much more bottomless than the feeding box they had retrieved on his behalf. It was surprising still though, to see the demon find a spine all of a sudden as it charged in their direction, a direction that was home to a being the demon feared.

Leaning off the wall, Pyrrha moved to intercept the demon as it emerged from the tunnel. There was a flash of light all around her as she quickly hunkered down, her appearance was similar to what she was already wearing, but the sleeves to her coat had seemingly vanished into thin air, and at her hip was a katana. She was ready to end the beasts life in a single attack, but their host beat her to the punch. As expected the man showed his hand. A plethora of incredibly sharp spikes made purely of shadow erupted from the surrounding walls and floors, piercing the large ape like demons body with little resistance.

Grosorko’s corpse twitched on the spikes like a vile pinata before being pulled into a veritable abyss before the man resumed speaking. He definitely seemed hostile, more so towards Jake than Pyrrha. She felt this could have been a good time to intervene slightly. Removing her hand from her katana’s handle, she’d slowly and carefully place herself between Jake and the demon. “Look I have no idea what sort of grievances you have with Jake, but he means well. He’s just trying to find his sister. Surly you have or had family at some point. You must know how important this is. We mean no harm.”

Her gaze never once sifted from the man. She made sure to lock eyes with him, even as he rose himself above the two on thin spider-like legs of shadow. She made sure not to show any fear or concern. She had to hold it together. Any sign of weakness and this thing could take advantage of that. Sure she was worried for Jake’s safety, but she had to be strong right now. She had to make sure the demon knew that while it was trying to show how in control it was, that she herself had some degree of control on the situation as well. And if worse came to worse, there was always that one little trump card they had discussed in the tunnel.

Jake himself had lowered to the ground, his skin boiling red with energy the moment the demon seemed to raise from the ground, the shadows swarming to surround them. But Pyrrha was quick to intercept any violence that could have proceeded them. The demon stared down at her, his head tilted. He glanced about, as if looking at the practical whirlwind of darkness that surrounded them all. Suddenly he shook his head, muttering barely audible words as he lowered back to the ground, the shadows pulling away, more of them seemingly sliding under his clothes then not.

It was strange, to physically see these shadows vanish. Like, turning to wisps of darkness, a life seemed to return to the natural darkness that surrounded them. Not so solid or opaque. "Sorry. My therapist said I wasn't ready. He wasn't wrong." Sighing, the demon sat himself down.

"What kind of demon has a therapist?" Jake questioned, his red skin fading back to normal. It was a very sudden turn, the demon apparently easily persuaded to stand down.

"Kind that seeks professional help when they realize they're a little too crazy. I am... Sorry. Both of you. I have no issues with the boy... And I did have a family once... Back when I was human. But that doesn't matter. Ever since I became a demon, I tend to snap when I least need too." They explained. Jake watched, a little shocked. Human turned demon? He hadn't heard of that before. He supposed he shouldn't have been surprised, but still.

"What about Mastema? Where is she?" Jake questioned once more. He wanted to get to the heart of it sooner then later. Before the man turned demon 'snaps' again. The demon looked up at the boy, shifting to the girl and back a few times.

"After she had failed to kill you and the crow chick. I took her in. Kept her safe. She is a five year old trapped in a fifteen year old with a ticking time bomb of a power. She had lost purpose. She had been born and aged just to kill you." He looked pointedly towards Jake, smiling. "When she failed... She became restless. What was her life? I didn't have a good answer for her. I kept her close. She went for moonlit walks and I followed. But all she did was walk. So I eventually stopped. I gave her space... And then she didn't come back. I don't know where she is." The man revealed finally, shrugging.

Jake stared. His best shot... And he lost her!? "You got to know something- Anything! Today could not have been for just nothing!" His anger was clear, yelling at the demon that sat before them. "I'm the only family she has... I need to find her." He breathed hard. Today had been exhausting and it had led to nothing.

The demon watched silent for a moment, a look of guilt on his face. Before laughing, as if amused by the boy's lost hope. "A falsity. She is a crow chick. A prince of hell, Malphas. King of the crows and every other title Grosorko had for him, a being as powerful as he. Her father. And that crow has a litter of chicks. You seek family. I believe she seeks the same. But also a purpose. If her purpose to kill you faltered... Then perhaps she seeks her other family. That's the only help I can truly give you." The demon spoke up, to give that hope the jump start it needed.

It was... A theory. A guess. But it was once more all he had now. At least it made sense. "Sam is the only child of that Prince I like. The other one I met is insane. Malphas is insane. If she's looking for him... I can't... He could kill her. Or worse." He looked to Pyrrha. She was strong. But... But for all he had given these demons credit, he had no words for Malphas. He was too fast. Too powerful. He couldn't ask her for help... He wouldn't. Not with this. "We... We can go now. This is the best lead I have... Thank you Pyrrha. For all your help. But I think tonight has taken all from me that I can give."

Calm and collected seemed to be the right approach. As expected or rather as hoped for, there was a peaceful solution to all of this. Pyrrha’s interjection was enough to calm the demon down. To which a surprising bit of information was revealed. She was of the same mindset as Jake but he spoke much quicker than her. It was a very strange notion to think a demon was seeking help with their mental health. The thing that did not shock Pyrrha was when the demon revealed he was once human. Unlike Jake, Pyrrha had seen such a thing happen far more times than she was comfortable with.

Pyrrha’s body eased up as the mood throughout the building also seemed to lighten up. The demon now spoke directly to Jake, telling the boy what he wanted to know, or didn’t. Pyrrha did her best to stay out of the conversation, only picking up small tid bits here and there. This was not her family after all and it was rude to be so nosey. That being said she did try to pick out any key information that was mentioned so that she might be better suited to help Jake further on.

Her eyes would lock with Jakes as a bit of despair and hopelessness filled his voice. She didn’t need access to his thoughts, to know what the expression on his face meant. To which she returned the look with an annoyed scowl. “I know that look and Im disappointed in you. You think that Im not strong enough for this next leg of the journey. You’ve got that whole. I don’t wan’t anyone getting hurt, look all over your face.” She turned her nose upward and let out a very audible “Hmph” She would return her gaze back to Jake. “Need I remind you, that I just barely started revealing all Im capable of to you? Or the fact that you can say you don’t want help, but Im going to help you anyway.”

He gaze would then shift to the demon. “You have our deepest gratitude and more. Thank you. And uh….Sorry for barging in unannounced.” She’d give a formal bow to the demon before waving Jake on. “Come on. We’ve got some planning to do.”

Always so perceptive. But Pyrrha didn't recognize that Jake wasn't deterred from his thoughts by her words. She was brave. Strong. A good friend. None of them would be enough if this went wrong. And he had always been looking at the worst of it. Everything had gone smoothly so far, despite how hard it had been on him. The devil's deal went smoothly. Grosorko was a smooth transaction. This demon right in front of them, didn't fight, nor gave them issue.

Everything had gone smoothly, and yet Jake had offered her the worst version of every event. He couldn't expect her to understand. "Pyrrha..." Jake spoke softly, but was soon interrupted.

By the demon. "Dear lady. Do you know why Grosorko called me Nameless?" He asked, soon continuing despite any answer she might have given. "There is the Queen of War, Madeline, Queen of Arcadia. There is the King of hell. Princes and so on. Malphas is a Prince of hell, king of Crows. A lord of the darkness. And as far as I know, he isn't even all that special. But he's powerful and he has all them fancy titles to match. When that ape first encountered me, he had no names for me. No titles. But he said I was too strong to not have one, titles meant strength to that dumb beast. The more one had, the more dangerous they were. So he titled me Nameless. It's as good as my oldest name of Shadow. The point of my ramble is. I doubt you can defeat me... And I doubt I can defeat Malphas. If you hear my words... Pray she hasn't found him yet." Shadow spoke, quick and quiet. Jake listened, but he didn't care. Sure he'd heed the warning. But Malphas once tried to give the boy an easy way out and Jake had ignored it then, nearly getting killed in the process.

He'd do it again. "The demon's rambling aside... Thank you. Pyrrha. But this is where we part. I have a few friends who know more about this then I do. Who have a personal stake in Malphas. I'mma go see them. Get his help to find her before she finds her father. And if worst comes to worse. I don't want you or Anne or anyone else anywhere close to what has to be done. Okay?" Jake looked at her. He wasn't going to back down. The only reason he hadn't left, flown away, is because he wanted his friend to tell him she understood. To give him that permission to walk away, to let him do what he needed to do. He needed to hear it... But most importantly.

He didn't want to break their friendship by leaving despite her insistence to let her help. He was certain it wouldn't be so fickle to break, but he still worried. He cared about her opinion. That's why it'd hurt so much more then the mauling he'd taken today if she said anything else.

Pyrrha would do her best to drown out the words the demon spoke. She was not about to turn this into a pissing contest, especially when this being knew not what she had been through. All the countless unwinnable battles she had miraculously pulled her self through. All the gods she had put down time and time again. And three former friends from another life, whos powers defied all logic. She’d simply roll her eyes as the demon spoke, and instead her attention would turn to Jake. Stubborn little shite that he was, he still refused to accept Pyrrha’s help even after the small speech she gave him.

“You heard what I said. You are not getting rid of me that easily. I’ll give you the space you need to gather yourself and any more intell. But when the time comes I will be there, like it or not. Now come on.” she’d say, waving for Jake to follow her. She’d shoot the demon a glance over her shoulder and give a rather strange wave goodbye, a mannerism she had picked up from an old friend. The two would remain silent all the way till they reached the exit of the tunnel, or at least Pyrrha did. Her mind already set on what she’d do in the meantime while she awaited Jake’s call.

Once they were back in the alley, Pyrrha balled her hand into a fist. She held back the urge to knock the boy flat on his as. Her eyes narrowed as she looked in his direction. “You need to come to terms with the fact that you will need help. And you better do it sooner, rather than later. You wanna say “oh I don’t want you or Johanna to get hurt” And yet you don’t stop to think about how she’d feel if something terrible happened to you. Or how I’d feel for that matter.”

She’d let out a loud sigh as she tried to calm herself down. “You were the first person I met when I ended up in this strange land. My first friend in a universe not my own. I am not in the habit of letting my friends struggle or suffer on their own. So, like I said. You go and collect yourself. Find out all you can, and when you’re ready to confront this big scary demon, you call me. In the meantime I’ll do some more training. Maybe even pay the queen a visit.”

Pyrrha would hold her fist out to Jake for a fist bump, with a large grin of confidence on her face. “Deal?”