The Devil's On Your Side (Helltaker/Devil May Cry)

[x] Open a Door. Look at it, so pathetic. It's not going to be able to tell you much, it's barely able to speak as is. But even so, it can be useful. Those bones it holds especially can be useful. With them, you can open a sympathetic connection, maybe even navigate a doorway to the mortal realm. Most wouldn't be able to do such a thing, but you're a real special snowflake, see? You even have a convenient sacrifice for the ritual.
[x] Lord of the Flies

She looks like a mortal. Her gauntlets gleam against the fire, and her eyes burn silver, staring into your soul.

She looks so small, against the horizon.

"Why are you doing this?"

That she has to ask at all means she wouldn't understand.

The demon called Justice is Lucifer's creature through and through, the Morningstar's spear of light against the dark. A beacon, a sign that even demons may be worth something at all. Someone who simply believed so much as to throw away everything, even her name, for the sake of Lucifer's self-righteous justice. How nice it must be, to be simple. To care.

What a joke.

"Why not? Is there something 'wrong' with what I'm doing? They are demons, are they not? Monsters, infinite and worthless. Perhaps I should kill more quickly, so they suffer less? Would that satisfy you, hmm?"

She always hated the way you smiled. She never said as much, of course, but you could always tell. Even in the humanesque "devil form" you chose, something about it bothered her. Predatory, she admitted once. Like an animal playing with its prey. You used to find it cute, honestly. After all, she would never turn against Lucifer's will. They were too close, cared too much for each other, no matter what, or who, they disagreed on.

Ah.

You're not smiling anymore.

"You really don't understand at all, do you?"

She leaps forth, and against the shadows of the inferno she seems a legend come to life, a hero come to save the world.

And you, abomination that you are, rise to meet her.

-

"Why don't we start with the simple things. Who rules the underworld?"

It stares at you blankly, and you're suddenly filled with the urge to squeeze its stupid, gormless little head until it pops.

Ah, it's trembling. You've scared it, the poor thing. It's starting to beg. It's starting to babble.

Unfortunately, every word that oozes out only serves to drives home how useless it really is. It's not really the wretch's fault though, it's the fault of reality for failing to provide for you. The temerity of it.

But that's fine. You can take it. You can forgive the indignity. After all, there's a possibility that the wretch's life has something of worth. The bones it gnaws on, after all, are human. They provide connections, bonds to a place that, if not better, would at least be more interesting than where you are now.

The requirements to cast such a ritual would be immense, of course, but you have power. As you are now, you have nothing but power. The wretch will have to die too, of course. But that's fine, the worthless are never remembered regardless.

The smile slips from your face, just a little.

Oh, would you look at that, it's trying to run. Seems like its instincts are better than you gave it credit for. Maybe you'll spare it, just a little. Three…two...one. There, that's all the time it deserves for that stunt. Now to make it suffer for its disrespect. If it happened to have wasted the last moments of its life on being afraid...well that's just too bad now, isn't it?

You snap your fingers, and the wretch's shadow shatters into a thousand locusts, swarming its body and dragging it down to the ground. It shivers under the cloak of buzzing wings, helpless against the claws and spines digging into it, the fragments melting together into a writhing net of shadow. Even then it clutches the bones tightly, desperately pulling against the shadows tearing open its grasp. Its cry is a plaintive, pathetic wail, muffled into a whimper by its bindings. It writhes, cutting itself against its bindings as you examine its catch. Up close you can see the little markings, the bite marks where the flesh was torn and gnawed away, the cracks from a grip too tight. But more than that, you can feel the bare traces of life ebbing away,

You stab it for that, just a little bit, in the gut. You don't need it any longer anyways. This much is enough. The shadows take their places, the wretch's blood giving form to their absence. The pieces are in place. All that's left is the power. Easy enough.

You pull, and the world screams.

The sky, previously clear, darkens and cracks, the bounds of reality straining against your will. The world itself withers under the pressure, the grass wilting away, the earth itself turning to dust. The wretch's heart tears itself from its body, the blood burning away as you twist it apart. The bones crack and dissipate, the form falling away unneeded. Only the connection matters. The gate is a jagged hole in the world, light pulled away and torn apart, devoured by the void.

Honestly, you're a little disappointed in yourself. Has something changed since you were imprisoned, or have you just gotten sloppy? You'd like to say it's the former, but unfortunately you're not that good at lying to yourself. Still, this much should be enough for a short hop. You close your eyes as the gate envelops you, and only realize your mistake as you start to fall.

It's all gone wrong. (You can't feel anything) The tunnel's opening has already closed, the link to the mortal world already snapped and gone. (You're coming apart) Why? What could have happened to have severed the human world from the demon realm? (You can't go back) You've lost yourself again, only this time you only have yourself to blame. (It hurts) Out of the abyss, only to jump back in?

No. No no no no NO. Not yet. Not like this.

It's dark, but there's still that little bit of light for you to chase. You gather yourself, power and self already unravelling in the emptiness.

It...it'll be enough.

It has to be.

===

Spoiler alert, Beelzebub turns out fine. Well, close enough anyways.

[] The Temen-Ni-Gru. When it was first built, the Temen-Ni-Gru was a gate between the human and demon realms, a way to bypass Sparda's work in splitting the realms. By his hand, it became a prison, one of his most trusted companions sacrificing herself to seal away the tunnel and all the demons within. More recently, the tower was brought out by the works of the rogue sorcerer Arkham, in an attempt to claim the power of Sparda for his own. He failed, obviously, and both Arkham and Sparda's legacy have vanished. Arkham's estranged daughter, known only as Lady, took legal custody of the structure following the incident, and under heavy investment from various interested party, it has become a trap through which to funnel and catch demons attempting to enter the human world, as well as a jail with which to hold the wayward monsters.

[] Vie De Marli. A secluded island in the new world, Vie De Marli became a refuge for those fleeing persecution. Following the...unfortunate downfall of the company, the works of Ouroboros have been repurposed by the Black Orb Association, a private society of devil hunters and demons with a vested interest in keeping supernatural troubles out of the human world. It's legally a bit of a grey zone, where those in occult societies act freely and openly without restraint. The poor locals have had a bit of a hard time because of it though. At least they have strong representation in the Protector Clans, and their champion Lucia.

[] A...child's bedroom?...I got nothing. There's a lot of ritual circles here though. Whoever lives here knows their way around magic.


Balance of Humours

• Icon of Pestilence: 0
• Warden of Decay: 0
• Lord of the Flies: 0 + 1 = 1
• Queen Crimson: 1 + 1 = 2

Select one Aspect to add weight to.

[] Aspect: Icon of Pestilence
[] Aspect: Warden of Decay
[] Aspect: Lord of the Flies
[] Aspect: Queen Crimson

This one fought me. I can't say I'm happy with it, but it's better to just get it over with and move on. Credit to Wind-Up Citrus for being the only person to offer help.