A Wonderful End to the Day }{ [Ask Krae]

[Sokuro]

-Veryan rolled to his back with no resistance, a distant and rather dazed look to his eyes as he stared upward; a subtle pool of blood gathering beneath him.

"Oh oh! She's come to visit after all! You sly little devil you!" Screeched Khiiroon, only to silence upon realizing the other guest. "Oh wonderful. And here I thought we'd escaped from this sort of problem... wonderful job Veryan, truly wonderful job..."

Veryan blinked a few times, as if Khiiroon's yammering had slowly brought him to his senses. "Kuso....." He muttered with a bit of a sarcastic smirk. "Enjoy the view darlin'.. the brute got lucky."

With a quiet chuckle, Veryan simply closed his eyes as the distant echo of shouting voices made way down the hall. Guards.... such a nuisance...

[Silvarn]

"Damn," Edward growled. His irate face melted into a sadistic smirk as he swaggered up the corridor towards the door. The voices grew louder, the distinct sound of clinking armor and drawn sword becoming recognizable.

"What the hell was that noise?" one shouted.

"It's probably that lout we drug in. He's probably trying to summon up a demon most foul." another answered.

"Then let's waste no time!" the door shuddered and slammed open, allowing a flood of torchlight to fill the chamber halfway, "For Valear!" he cried heroically, charging forward with a torch in one hand and his sword in the other. Yet, the charge was short-lived when they saw wreckage Edward had caused.

"What the hell happened?" he asked the malicious Edward.

"Put a comma after 'the' and you won't be far wrong." he cheeked.

The guards glanced at each other in confusion, their blades and momentum lowering.

"Nevermind." he sighed, then let loose a piercing shriek in seven different tones. The initial shockwave splintered their armor, driving shards of steel through their vital organs. Those who survived soon fell to their knees as their ears rang to the exploding point and they wept tears of blood.

He smiled cruelly at their suffering, then turned to his female companion, "Oh, I'm sorry. Did you want to subdue them? How rude of me not to ask first."

[Lujayn]

She glanced at the now rather dead bodies before her, as well as the near-dead, before looking up at Den, one eyebrow raised. "Has it ever occurred to you to use something other than violence to get out of a situation?"

She held up her hand, stalling any answer. "Nevermind. I imagine the answer is 'no'. More pressing things to deal with now..."

Krae nudged the limp form with her foot. "Such as what to do with this guy. I'm tempted to take him out and use him as a distraction for the fallen back there... although, it might just encourage him. Hmm..."

With a scrape of steel on steel and a loud whistle of a blade cutting through the air, she beheaded the remaining guards. "There, now I can think properly without their distracting whimpering," she murmured, cleaning off the blade on the edge of her cloak before sheathing it once more.

Hypocritical, Krae? Never.

"Might as well take this sorry sack of flesh along for the ride, I suppose. He might turn out useful... for a doomed distraction, if nothing else."

With that, she picked him up as if he weighed no more than a bag of cotton, rather roughly as well, and with no consideration to his wounds.

He would probably be in screaming pain.

"Well, let's not hang around here then... hopefully HE will have lost our track, but you never know..." she muttered, then led the way out and down the hall, bloody man in tow.Krae is very not nice... -

[Sokuro]

Veryan just simply chuckled as he watched the woman and her companion have their fun with the guards, speaking not a word and clearly keeping his breaths short. A quiet groan, however, forced its way from his lips as he was hoisted by the woman.

"Oh, well at least we have a view, wouldn't you say?" Chirped Khiiroon with a certain satisfaction as Veryan just simply grinned and nodded in silence.

Hauled along as little more than baggage really didn't bother Veryan, he was getting a free ride, more or less, and really didn't have to exert himself an ounce; Which of course, only made him slump a bit more into dead weight.

"We'll have some fun with this later, Khiiroon. For now let's just focus on getting out of here with our limbs in tact. And besides..." Veryan added with a certain satisfaction of his own sneaking over his lips. "I rather like this new fellow she's tagged along. Interesting abilities."

Khiiroon's hiss seemed to be audible to the faintest degree, as if escaping Veryan's own lips. "Oh you do so cherish the idea of sticking us into any situation with agony destined at the end. One of these days I won't be here to keep you sane." Khiiroon harped with a snap to his words, irritation setting quickly.

Veryan ignored Khiiroon's words at this point, as if the fact bothered him little to not at all, and closed his eyes- Not even beginning to ask questions in his current condition.

[Silvarn]

"You have a hard enough time keeping up with me, even without something weighing you down." Edward mocked, then barely contained his astonishment as Krae simply slung the limp form over her shoulder, "Oh."

He walked through the carnage, his boots squelching pleasantly in the gore. "We should probably get a move-on. I don't want to contend with any more guards than I have to; and, as for the Fallen, a moving target is a harder one to hit. If you need to drop him to make yourself move faster, don't hesitate to do so. We can always find him again. Although, I bet our masters would want him alive."

He pushed open the sturdy oak door, revealing an ill-lit passageway behind. "Oooh...spooky." Edward softly cackled, the natural vibrato of his voice reverberating off the stone walls, giving the effect of his seven voices, though he spoke only in one. "Again, I say we get out of this city with all speed, before that Fallen levels it, hunting for...one of us, I assume."

[Lujayn]

Krae gave her darkly burning companion a beatific smile before he moved on, and she followed.

"I can't say the same for more guards, but it shouldn't be too long before our Fallen friend has to leave. Like other Angels and Devils, his presence is very much noticeable, and soon a whole slew of angels will be sent to investigate... which is all the more reason for us to leave, I would think, although since we don't leave as much of a mark in the world they should leave us alone." She shifted the slight burden on her shoulder so that his bones stopped digging into her. She felt, as well, that he wasn't quite as comatose as he was appearing to be. She'd worry about that later, though.

She peered down the hallway. "I wonder how big this is? The town isn't very large, but you never know... sadism runs deep with some men."

She was looking at Den when she said this.

"Well, let's not just stand here... guards are annoying, and I only have so many daggers to bury in their throats, you know. And I doubt our little friend here-" she tapped him on the head "-has any weapons of his own on him. Plus, close quarters are never fun to fight in."

[Sokuro]

Veryan remained as, shall we say, lifeless as possible- Giving no more hint to being alive than slow, but steady breathing. As the two walked along, Veryan couldn't help but notice a strengthening scent of not just blood, or rotting flesh, but that of something far more alive. The stench filled his nostrils like a rancid manure, clogging his senses and, oddly enough, distracting him from the lingering pain of his wounds.

"Aha! And our problems thicken!" Screeched Khiiroon, a sort of giddy tune prickling his words. Wonderful... Veryan knew this couldn't bode well with his little mental companion getting cheery.

"What is it?" Veryan muttered, forgetting who was around for a moment, as he slowly turned his head glancing into each of the over-sized cells.

"Ohhh no, not this time. Just wait and see old friend. Wait and see." Khiiroon whispered, almost distantly, as if in thought.

Grumbling quietly, Veryan brought his head up, only to find that the light outside this room, despite not having a closed door, was blocked off. Curious...

"No time for games Khiiroon, speak up or I'll have your hide later.." Veryan remarked with a hint of dissatisfaction crawling over his entire body expression- Rather, what expression he had strength to muster.

Nothing. Khiiroon said not a word and the hall fell silent as death itself, save for the light padding of his newfound -companion's- footsteps. Closing his eyes for a moment as he let a rather solid exhale pass his nostrils in an attempt to clear the scent, Veryan found himself staring at a single orb just in front of the doorway once he'd reopened them- The orb in question lingering motionless just beneath the ceiling of the corridor. Certainly not spiritual judging by its solidity, but most definitely not human... far too tall.

"Stop moving" Veryan muttered out as he attempted to reach around and put a hand on the woman's shoulder. "We have friends... quite a few."

Should the two travelers find it necessary to heed his words, they would hear a faint, but notable breathing of several unseen guests. Veryan's guess being that they were each in a cell, save for the loose one by the doorway. Those with knowledge of creatures would know them, once getting a solid sight, as trolls. But these were not some pathetic little cave trolls, no.. the bulkier and far more annoying mountain trolls. Standing as tall as ten feet with ease and weighing near eleven-hundred pounds of fat, muscle, and flesh. These brutes had made a name for themselves in their delight of devouring anything smaller than them, anything from humanoids and animals, to rubble and tree limbs. Truly the garbage guts of most of the world. And judging by the length of this corridor and the sizes of the cells... there were quite a few residing here.

[Silvarn]

Edward sniffed at the air, then recoiled, "What in the Blue Blazes is that horrid scent?" Then the odor veritably hung on the air, forcing him to breathe through his hand. "It's like something -- several somethings -- died in here. Uck, I think I'm going to be ."

Then he ran into something hard. Soft, like flesh, but more hard, like rock. Or very, very thick muscle. Then the something grabbed him and promptly placed his head in its. Feeling blunt teeth trying to snap his spine in two, Edward let out a shriek of pain, fear, and rage. The thing's skull vibrated from the sheer force of the explosion in his mouth, and was staggered by it, dropping his jaw and his prey. Edward leapt away, wiping saliva off of himself.

"Of all the worst possible scenarios, we had to run in to one of these." Then the other six trolls shambled out from their hiding places. "It's times like these I wish I were actually in Hell. I'd rather be at arms against the Fallen than dealing with trolls."

The seven mountainous monster groaned dully, their mouths dripping with pre-digestive fluids. "Damn." Edward cursed, lashing out at one of them with Lucid Edge. The blade swung through the flesh, muscle, and bone as if it were air, but nothing happened. "Oh, right...magical resilience. Bloody wonderful."

The seven trolls, though thinking only for themselves, surrounded the trio, their deprivation of hunger steadily making them angrier. Edward growled in frustration, tiny black flames flickering around him. He grabbed the other man's limp form, tossing it none-too-gently to the ground and scooped Krae into his arms. He took a flying leap between two of the trolls. He thought he was home-free, before being swatted out of the air and sent crashing into the floor.

"Wonderful." he spat blood.

[Lujayn]

Krae stared. "Oh for the love of..." She bit off the curse. "Great. Wonderful." She watched Den's failed attempt at cutting through one of the trolls, and sighed. And of course, this all had to happen when she was low on power. She'd recovered some of it during the past little while, but she wasn't even at half power. She wasn't sure if she could even put up a proper fight against a troll on full power, nevermind the small amount she had.

It could have been worse, she figured. Instead of her more or less inevitable fate of being eaten by these trolls, she could currently be in the grasps of her Fallen tormentor.

She didn't have long to think on this, when Den grabbed her and made his ill-fated leap that sent the both of them smashing to the floor. She slid back a ways, nearby the other man, which proved to be rather unfortunate for Krae, as it was then that a troll decided to stomp his foot onto her unprotected stomach.

The world disappeared into white-hot pain, as she felt some bones break and organs squish. She knew nothing for the next few moments, and when she finally came back into proper consciousness, she was on her knees, still in pain, and the troll was now on its back, unable to stand, as its foot was now quite broken.

Her instincts had, apparently, kicked in, and she had used some of her remaining power- evidenced by the increase of the red hair and decrease of black hair- to break its foot to get it off.

A mouthful of bloody bile caught her then, and she retched the mess onto the stone floor. "W-wonderful," she hissed, scarcely even to open her eyes. She would heal, that was one of the few upsides to being a demon, but it would be slow, and time was something she didn't really have, being surrounded by nigh-invincible trolls.

"I... hate... the both of you," she growled, her comment aimed at the two men. She spat out some remaining blood, and shuffled back a bit from the other trolls, that were looking over inquisitively at their fallen brethren. Hopefully, then would suddenly decide cannibalism was awesome, and eat him.

Kæs, some help would be much appreciated, she called out in desperation.

Are you insane?! Came his reply. Krae, I love you, you know that, but Antirosh is still out there. I'm not even considered strong amongst devils, there is no way I can risk his ire.

He started saying something after that, but Krae had blocked him out. So much for that plan. "If either of you- and I know you're conscious, you stupid man- have a plan, now would be a WONDERFUL time to hear it."Kæs' love is platonic, if anyone is wondering. -

[Sokuro]

Veryan's lips curled into an almost delighted smile as the remaining brethren to the troll blocking the exit emerged from their holes. With thanks to Khiiroon's essence, Veryan's wounds were healing rather quickly- At least, quickly enough to no longer bleed freely, though each lash was still very apparent.

"Trolls... really disgusting wretches, Veryan. Shall we stop playing games now and mo---" Khiiroon was cut off as Edward clutched Veryan and tossed him aside, causing him to meet a pillar between two of the cells with a rather harsh thump. Slumping to the ground with a groan, Veryan watched Edward and Krae vault off, only to let out a somewhat disgruntled chuckle as they met the troll's arm and Krae slid forth.

With an arrogant little nudge with his left foot, he poked at Krae's side in amusement, only to quickly recoil as a rather large troll foot came smashing down on top of the woman. Veryan was no stranger to pain, but even this sight made him cringe and buckle back... As Krae spoke, doubling over and wretching that vile liquid from her mouth, Veryan found himself hoisted by the head by yet another troll; Who's grip was none too gentle.

With a careless and yet rather vicious swing of the brute's arm, Veryan found himself slung down the chamber, colliding heavily into the protruding belly of the troll blocking the door. Just as he did, the troll let an agonizing howl bellow from his mouth, Veryan's hidden blades within the cuffs of his leather garments buried deep into the fatty flesh.

Almost as if reflex, the troll bound forth, swaying this way and that in an attempt to hurl the attached man from his grip. As if enjoying himself, Veryan let his body sway with an entertained laugh; Each swing of the troll causing his blades to rip through the flesh until, just a few solid paces away from the duo, the trolls innards tumbled from its fleshy remains, dropping Veryan to the floor before the troll groaned weakly, falling back with a ground-quivering thud.

"If you don't feel like fighting them all then I suggest you get moving!" Veryan shouted from beneath the entrails as he pushed his way from the pile. Each troll, despite their lacking intelligence, stood rather befuddled at their fallen companion, as if they did not understand what just happened- Though many were already returning their attention to the trio and began trudging somewhat aimlessly toward them.

[Silvarn]

Of all the crazed demons or demon-possessed Edward had seen, this one took the proverbial cake. Even Edward, having a deathwish himself and preferring to live life on the edge, cringed a little at this fellow's nihilistic glee.

The trolls shambled inwards toward the trio, but dully realized that the quivering mass was the largest and most accessible target, not these puny, fast-moving little things. They diverted their paths and set in on the free meal, consuming their fallen comrade in a fit of cannibalistic hunger.

Seeing a path miraculously open up, Edward grabbed Krae's shoulder and ushered her quickly to the exit. "You heard him, let's go!"

[Lujayn]

As Den ushered her towards the exit, newfound pain shot through her partially broken body. She began to quite readily curse him, his mother, and any possible future offspring he may spawn, in the most violently bloody descriptive way she knew how. Luckily for his poor ears, this was somewhat cut off by her body, which decided to expel all the blood from the internal bleeding... through her mouth.

While she choked and spat in a rather undignified matter, he was more or less forced to drag her along, much like he had for the past little while. It wasn't doing much good to her pride, which was already a bit dented from recent events.

The pain was beginning to ease, as the bones that were broken and the organs that had been ruptured healed, speeding along quite nicely now that it had started in earnest, and she'd probably be fine within a few minutes- barring any unforeseen misfortune, anyways.

Misfortune was bestowed on one unfortunate guard, however, as he opened a side door and took note of what appeared to be escaping prisoners. "H-halt! Stay where you are!" He ordered, pointing a somewhat rusted short sword at the pair- Krae had since lost track of the other man.

He had not long to regret his action, as Krae pulled back her arm and whipped a dagger straight into his head, between the eyes, which nailed him to the stone wall behind him. He hung there, suspended by the dagger, cracks in the stone from the dagger's force spread around his now bloody head.

Krae smiled slightly. "I feel moderately better now," she said. "It wasn't really necessary but..."

Who didn't like wanton violence and slaughter now and then?

[Silvarn]

Edward stared, stunned at the carnage of Krae's little outlet of rage. He gripped the dagger-hilt, but found it immovable, as if sealed in with the stone. "Remind me never to piss you off." he said.

Behind them, the trolls were obviously enjoying themselves; rather, each other. He hoped their newfound acquaintance was among them, and the trolls would be so kind as to take care of their target for them.

"Again, we should get out of the city as quick as we damn well can. I think we have accomplished what we were ordered to do, but I think we should visit our masters all the same, just to be certain. Especially with out chance encounter with a Fallen."

Another guard rounded the corner to investigate the thunderclap Krae's dagger had caused. He screeched to a halt, dropping into a low stance and shielding himself with his spear. Edward growled mischievously and struck. He twirled Lucid Edge out of its sheath, severing the spearhead. With another flourish, he sliced through the guard. At first, nothing happened. Then blood began gushing out of the man's fingers, and all orifices on his head, collapsing to the ground with a slosh.

"What say we be on our merry way?" he added with a wink, offering his bloody hand to Krae.

[Lujayn]

Krae glanced at him as he tried to remove the dagger. “You always piss me off,” she drawled. “I think your sole purpose is to do just that.”

She watched the guard’s slaying with some detachment, before commenting, “You’re incredibly messy, do you realise that?” She ignored the hand; she was feeling far better from before and felt that she could walk with a minimum of wobbling. “Our masters seem like the sadistic type,” she muttered, continuing on from before, “And I would not put it past either of them- although I do not know yours all too well, so I could be wrong- to send us on more errands. We’re somewhat handy, you know.

“As for the fallen...” she tilted her head. “I think he’s gone. I do not sense him, and I doubt he would tarry much longer. Even the fallen angels are hard pressed against three of their brethren from above, and that’s the normal force sent against those who trespass on the mortal realm... and I have got to stop blathering on and on and on.” She grumbled this last part before snapping her fingers to summon her dagger back to her, putting it away as the body fell limply to the floor.

She glanced down at herself, covered in blood, dust, and mud. “Eyck.” Another glance back at Den. “... you don’t look much better. A stream of some sort is in order, I think...” She continued down the corridor.

[Silvarn]

"You would like that, wouldn't you?" Edward snickered, sheathing the stainless Lucid Edge. He trailed Krae, feeling she was in the mood lead, not be led. He probably had done enough of the leading for the day, truth be told. Yet, something told him the day was not over.

The Fallen's appearance troubled him -- not because it had appeared; but, because it had appeared for no good reason. Or a bad reason, for that matter. No lethal contagion, no apocalyptic war, nothing but blue skies and twittering birds. What in Blue Blazes had drawn the Fallen here?

Whatever the reason, he knew he should consult his master. Any action now might be the wrong move, in his master's eyes, and incur his master's wrath. Although, Krae did make sense. Odds were his master would immediately send him out again with new orders, with hardly enough time to rest and acquire fresh demons. Though, if his master really needed to communicate with him, he would use one of the demons residing in his throat.

Even though Krae said the Fallen had departed, he still was not sure. Some dire foreboding weighed heavy on his heart, pulling his face into a frown as if connected with strings. Something was wrong, and not in a good way.