Preparations (Rei no Kaado)

[Firebreath Fishslap]

((OOC: Warning. This post will be violent. Which makes sense. I mean, a demon is about to beat a woman to death and crap, and he's going to make it so he's gonna enjoy it.

So yeah, fair warning before I go on. :3))

Abel's expression didn't change as she approached, even as she used that stupid insult. Maou. He was well aware of what the word meant, and how well it described him now. He moved from a smirk to a devilish grin as he took the club from Himitsu and held the weapon up to his eyes so he could examine it better. Oh yes. This was definitely the same one. He had ingrained the image of the weapon that had once killed him in his mind many years ago, and he could see every crack, every dent in the weapon.

"Don't worry. I will," Abel said. He turned his face away from the weapon and looked back into Himitsu's eyes before his pupils slitted and the demon king rushed forward, taking the club and bringing it slamming down into Himitsu's chest, knocking her to the ground with the force of the attack. He had managed to make the wound such that she would remain conscious while he beat her to death.

Several times, Abel brought the club down on Himitsu's body, intending to break every bone and joint in her body. The strikes were slower and more deliberate than the attacks the speedy demon king were known for in his fights. He wanted to feel her break and shatter. Blood began to splatter across the floor as the wounds grew more severe. It wasn't until Abel knew that Himitsu was slipping that he finally began to target her chest and face more.

And then, just as quickly as it had started, it ended. Abel looked down at Himitsu's broken and beaten body, and dropped the club, which landed down on the bloodstained wood panels. And he began to laugh.

It was a good minute before he finally calmed down, and put one hand on his head, covering one of his eyes. He looked up at the ceiling.

"You should have avoided that club. It had a lot of bad memories attached to it, didn't it, you bitch?" Abel said. "Well, too late now."

[mugenginga]

(OOC: I say "breasts" here. And I ain't talking about chickens. Its not meant in any dirty context. To adapt a stamp on dA, I reserve the right to say it as I own a pair myself.

Just as violent as the last post as I'm working with the descriptions FF used.)

Himitsu had reached the point of blinking only as much as she had to. She knew it was impossible for a human to hear the thumping of her chest in her ears. She knew Cain wouldn't know of it. She was confident her face betrayed none of the emotions, and she had enough control of her body that she wasn't perspiring. She kept her eyes fixed on Abel as he took the club from her and looked at it. He seemed to go somewhere for a few moments, Himitsu allowed her eyes to blink then. A human wouldn't be able to tell, but he would.

Cain narrowed his eyes as Abel spoke. His brother... the King of Bel was speaking Japanese, but it was the same way of speakin the language the Bel demons used. More like any human language he could have spoken would be a second language. A demon used to the demonic tongue speaking human words. Cain took quite a few steps back to give the King his room. He wasn't frightened, he wouldn't be putting off anything Abel could sense, but he was as close as a demon could make him. His gaze remained on the scene as he put the dagger he had pulled out away.

Breath escaped the woman's chest as the club slammed down on to her chest. It had been placed so that her breast's wouldn't lessen the impact. It had been placed to crack the diaphram that connected her ribs, severely injuring her and all but eliminating the chance for escape, but not allowing her to pass out. She broke her gaze then, her eyes snapping shut and the only reason a groan of pain not escaping was the wind that had been knocked out of her.

She forced her way past the pain. It took every effort she had. She gave the most defiant look she'd managed yet. It was now a glare as Abel brought the club down again. More pain. Himitsu had been tortured before. The way Abel was striking his blows, staring into her eyes with those inhuman ones and slowly, ever slowly bringing the club down... it was a ruthlessness and accuracy that could not be taught. It could be improved, but it was an inherent skill. She maintained her glare as much as she could, but she couldn't stop a few tears from dropping. Sometimes the body reacted without permission.

She felt herself slipping the same time Abel did. That feeling of her consciousness going somewhere far away. She was grateful. She was grateful not only that it was almost over, but that the death had come like this. Had Cain been allowed his suggestion, it could have been weeks before she was set free. It wouldn't have only been Cain either, she knew that. She let her eyes close as the King of Bel focused more on her chest, and she felt her face get targeted.

As she finally felt spirit disattach from body, she knew the lifeless form would be hit several more times before the demon was done. The form that lay on the floor as the club dropped was barely recognizable as human. The outfit was all but soaked in blood, and it would take a dental examination to prove it was her. Or it would if her teeth were on record anywhere. The demon that had killed her was far too much in his euphoria to notice the slight surge of energy that teleported two lives away from the location. Where they'd end up had been left fluid when the spell was cast. Fate would have a far greater decision in their locations than Himitsu had. They'd show up where they were deemed to be needed, not necessarilly where they'd be safe.

Cain had kept his eyes fixed as Himitsu's life left her. He didn't trust this, she had been far too accepting of this. It was the way he would have accepted a death, as if dying meant nothing to her in the long run. Cain had seen brutal acts, he'd seen deaths caused by demons. But once Abel started laughing, even his pulse raised a few beats higher than was standard. He knew Abel would know about it, but said nothing and maintained his position. It dropped back to normal as Abel tapered off, his hand holding his head as if to bring his gleeful hysteria under control. The General remained silent. Abel would leave when he was ready, and now was not a good time to interuppt him.

----------

Seth was hugging himself. As he thought of what was going on in the shop, he'd felt more and more terrible. Even with how things had gone, he could have objected. He could have asked Abel to kill her in some other way. Beaten to death, it was awful. Even worse, it was the way Cain had killed Abel in that first life. He hadn't been alive when it had happened, but the awful comparison was emotionally tormenting.

He wouldn't know it, but about the time Abel had begun laughing, he'd slid into a sitting position. He'd pulled his legs up to his chest. His arms were wrapped around them and his head was buried in the space between his knees. No tears, but he'd known had he not dried them all up when he saw the father he would never know, he'd be crying now. His body shook as if he were crying, and even through the legs of his pants his legs were white from the pressure his hands were applying. His knuckles were visible, and they were bone white.

The worst part of it all? Whatever was going on in there was likely as bad as he imagined, and he was sure Abel was in full control of himself. He wasn't doing it because he'd lost control, he was doing it because he wanted to. Every once in a while, Seth would realize just how demonic his brother was. He was a demon, not a human. Not a mix. A demon, who only had his human emotions as some kind of attempt at kindness towards humanity. His eyes burned from the want for tears, and he clenched his teeth.

He should have killed K1 when he had the chance. It would have been a mercy for Keiichi, for himself, for humanity. thatt was the most frightening and horrible thought of all. Because he truly believed that. Dammit.

[Firebreath Fishslap]

As Abel stared up at the ceiling, he realized that he had felt some sort of invigorating energy flow into him as the life finally flowed out of Himitsu. No, before that. It had felt like her fear. It had felt... good. Was this what this magatsuhi was? No wonder the demons had gone after humans before. For that "fear spice." It was delicious, it was...

And then his expression fell as he looked back down at Himitsu and the rush from the magatsuhi faded, and with it, the more demonic emotions. Even his eyes returned back to that lifeless look again. He had just killed a defenseless woman in her own home, just because she had unsettled him a little back when he was human. It had been cold blooded murder.

Abel bent down and picked the bloodstained club. He stared at it before walking closer to Himitsu's dead body and ripping off a large amount of cloth from her clothing, which he then wrapped around the murder weapon. He turned back toward Cain, and held the now well wrapped club out to him.

"I want to dispose of this relic of the past as soon as possible. Let's go," Abel said. He looked back at Himitsu. She and her shop would bother them no more.

[mugenginga]

(OOC: FF, I'm sorry about the touch of godmoding in regards to Abel. If you want me to change it, beat me over the head with a stick and let me know. I figure this is what you were implying with the last post, so I hope I didn't read into it wrong.

Also, those odder fangirls among our readers. WE ARE NOT SHIPPING CAIN AND ABEL, OKAY? Okay okay, maybe cousins works when you take in Values Dissonance, but Cain considers Abel a brother despite the genetics of their current relation. Seriously, me and FF will pull a "squick!" on you if you suggest that.

*psst, I don't mind it in yaoi doujin but not in a serious RP, and FF will twitch either way*)

Cain affixed a flat stare towards his brother. It had been a while since he'd felt the need to do this. He was trying to read Abel. Well, it had been the first human he'd killed like this. Cain found himself thinking otherwise. Likely, it was the first human Abel had ever killed. Even during the Lockdown, even on the rare cases he wasn't somehow keeping a tab on his brother, he was sure "K1" had spared lives, even if it put the life of himself or his friends at risk. He'd been careful about it whenever Cain had been watching, even though he had been unaware of his older brother's eyes.

That was it then. Abel may have been a demon, but he still had human emotions. And right now those human emotions were torn up. Even he, history's first killer, had borne issues over Abel's death. It was God's fault it happened, but the way the Abel of then had looked at him. He'd almost stopped. He knew he had, but he'd pushed past that semblance of a conscience and borne down harder. God all but ignored him. He hadn't after he'd killed Abel, He had been paying very close attention afterwards.

Abel, the human, was kinder than that. He was the type that listened to the little voice in the back of his head. The type that didn't run around killing people to make a point. The kind that could be kicked by his Creator and come back for more. Hell, the only reason Cain had managed to turn him away from God was by using the people he wanted to protect against him. 'Wage war against God so humanity no longer has to suffer. Cut the strings to the Creator we no longer need, Man can stand on his own two feet. God will show mercy if you become the Messiah, but how many can go from cradle to grave without a single sin?' It had been words like that. So of course there was an issue. For all his demonic nature, he still had human emotions. And right now they were in torment.

Cain narrowed his eyes. He looked at that far too familiar club, neatly wrapped in the bloody silk the dead woman had used as a kimono. He took a step forward and put his hand around it. Then he did something Keiichi likely wasn't expecting, something that if he was misjudging how much of a hold the human emotions had could cost him his life. He looked up and pulled Abel close in a hug. It was firm. It was with one hand, as the General had the club clutched in his other hand. He brought his lips close to Abel's ear, and the club was pulled back to be as far away from his younger brother as was physically possible.

"Better now than on the battlefield, Abel," he said.

The level of empathy in his voice was also higher than expected. Empathy. Cain understood what it was like to kill for the first time. Abel would get over it eventually, but he could give his brother what God had denied him. Someone who actually gave a rat's ass about the emotions he'd have over having just bludgeoned someone to death for nothing more than to make a point. There was a dangerous implication to his words as well, one Cain found himself begging Abel understood. When the War began, there would be innocent humans caught up. And there would be times when Abel would have to rip through them. There would be times when the best way to effect the ones that had taken a stance by God would be to torture the ones they loved.

Himitsu had been a woman, but children would make the better targets when they needed to use lives against humans and angels in the War. Sacrifices had to be made for any kind of peace, and Cain was grateful Abel's humanity could learn about the necessity of cold blooded murder now rather than then. The last thing they needed was the King of Bel to suffer a mental breakdown from his humanity over bludgeoning some innocent to death on the battlefield. He was hiding it well the way an animal hid its injuries, but the way he had pulled away from Himitsu was proof. The emotions bearing the name Keiichi Kimura seemed about ready to break... and if the demon known as Abel wasn't so strong, both sides probably would have.

Aside from his empathy and spoken words, Abel's laugh then had made him realize something. It would be to the group's advantage if Abel killed more while they were on the Island. The human members of his army, and he meant all of them even if he dragged them into it kicking and screaming, needed Abel to kill more. Cain was convinced Abel had just been on a magatsuhi high, and if he couldn't get what would likely now become addictive cravings under control he'd make mistakes on the battlefield. Even demons had withdrawal, and Abel would have to be trained into remaining rational despite that. After all, for all his power, he was still an extremely young demon.

----------

Seth's dry tears had stopped. He still held himself tight. It had seemed like it had been a while, but he didn't get up. He was within plain sight of anyone who left the shop, after all. He lifted his head, and his eyes were almost dead. They skirted the boundaries of hollowness the King usually sported. Those that could read the eyes the teenager once known as Keiji Kurosawa possessed would realize just how high his emotional pain was. His eyes only became that hollow when someone had hit a berserk button or he was almost broken.

He couldn't die. He couldn't rebel, although for a terrifying second that thought had occurred. God had forsaken him before he had forsaken Him. 'Be the Messiah' He had said. Before he let a demon kidnap him and torture him in unmentionable ways for more time than Seth could keep track of. Not so much an apology. No, God wouldn't take him even if he did rebel and got himself killed by Abel. Maybe Keiichi was bordering lost, but he had made the right decision.

Dammit, woman, why didn't you just fucking submit?

Seth got to his feet, his eyes remaining distant. He turned towards the shop. Another minute. He opened his COMP to keep an eye on the time. If they weren't out in another minute he'd go see them. He expected he knew what the body would look like. If by an odd chance she wasn't dead, he'd swallow the torment threatening to tear his gut in two and deal with it.

This is your fault, YHVH, Seth found himself using the original Hebrew term for the diety. He could pronounce it the way it had been pronouced during the days of the first Man. After all, his memories allowed him as much of the original Hebrew language as the original shattering of Babel had allowed. Odds were only he, his siblings, and the angels knew how to pronounce the damn name, historians always screwed crap like that up. Seth glanced back at the COMP. Thirty seconds now.

(OOC: AKA I'm using the SMT canon cop out for God's "name". Its literally printed as YHVH in the games. The version "I" see used the most often is Yahweh, but they use the four letters in the games to not commit to any of the spellings. Hell, the Hebrew scriptures can't agree on a spelling... hence the canon cop out. We're talking Old Testament God here if you're confused, folks. XD)

[Firebreath Fishslap]

Abel had looked toward the ground as Cain took the club from his hand. And then Cain did something he hadn't expected, and Abel immediately tensed up, as Cain had unexpectedly hugged him with one hand. In fact, until Cain spoke, Abel had been debating attacking Cain. With how Abel's thoughts had been going, embracing him like that had been rather dangerous.

And then Cain leaned close to Abel's ear and spoke into in. Abel slowly nodded, and rested his own head on Cain's shoulder. There would be innocents caught up in their war. He had to realize that. And Abel was beginning to realize that unless he found some way of getting magatsuhi from humans without killing them, he'd never feel that rush again.

"I killed her, Naoya... I didn't even have a reason for it. I just... beat her to death and I enjoyed every bit of it," K1 said. He closed his eyes. He was managing to hold back most of the emotional pain. It was no use crying like this. He doubted he could cry. He'd only cried a single tear over telling his own father to forget about him. How could he cry over a woman who'd only caused him pain?

But he had killed her. But the rush he'd gotten from it...

K1 wasn't even aware of the fact that he was shaking his head. What was he, some kind of junkie? Even on the battlefield, he was going to try his best to not kill. Even if it would give him that adrenaline rush caused by the fear humans gave off.

"...We need to go," Abel finally said. "Please..."

[mugenginga]

Cain had actually felt the tension. The reason he hadn't let go was that if Abel decided he needed to die, pulling back wouldn't make a difference. For a moment, Cain was sure Abel would be without a General for about five years. Figure in four years on the outside to get to the point where he had his memories, and nine months give or take a few weeks for the pregnancy. Finding him again would be a bit of a bitch, too, and the War would be started without him. All that went through his head as he had whispered to the King.

And then Abel had nodded. It was Cain's turn to tense up as Abel rested his head on his shoulder. He scowled, but Abel wouldn't be able to see his face. It was bad enough he'd developed an emotional attachment to his brother in this life. The Demon King didn't need to rub it in by uptting his head on his shoulders. And then Abel spoke, using the name Cain only entertained among his two brothers. Cain wore a flat expression as he pulled back, looking Abel in the eyes. It was a bit harsh, but it was a pretty standard look an older sibling would give their younger one when they were being an idiot.

He wasn't able to say waht he was thinking before Abel asked him to leave. No, begged him to leave. He let his disapproval show a bit more before nodding and turning towards the door. He pushed it open, his eyes not falling on the formerly human lump laying in a pool of its own blood on the floor. He waited for Abel to go out ahead of him. Abel wanted to leave, they'd leave. The words he had to say would have to be said in front of Seth, it seemed. The issue was that the prominent Keiichi emotions would't like what had to be said. Cain had his flat and harsh expression remaining on his face.

"If you want to go, let's go," he said, skirting the edges of an order without quite breaking them.

----------

Seth closed his COMP and looked towards the shop. He fixed a flat expression on his face. Or tried to, he seemed a bit upset. He was, but not at Abel or Cain. A bit at Himitsu, but almost entirely at YHVH. His expression was more like Cain's than usual. It certainly wasn't the calm almost kicked expression Seth was known for. He saw the door to the shop push open and saw Cain's expression. He stopped, and most of the anger faded from his face. Had something gone wrong...?

[Firebreath Fishslap]

Abel was feeling like an idiot too. At this point, he figured he deserved the look that Nao-- Cain had given him. He was really taking this badly, he realized. He'd used the name Naoya. Not the name from his earliest memories, the one that Cain went by now. Naoya. He was such an idiot.

Abel slowly walked out the door after Cain pushed it open for him. He looked up at Seth as he saw his twin approach. Nothing had gone wrong. Too many things had gone right.

"Oh, hey Seth," Abel said. And then once again the guilt hit him. He'd killed the woman who had cared for and trained Seth. The one that had helped him care for Abel and Cain. The one who--

--let him get kidnapped by Belphegor.

Abel went back to scowling. Of course. How could he have forgotten that? But at least now, both that vile woman and Belphegor were dead.

[mugenginga]

Seth's expression softened as he saw the look on Keiichi's face. K1 had used a more relaxed speech. He was hiding something too. Seth knew why he'd been told to leave, so it had to be something beyond Himitsu's death. He had taken several steps to go to his brother's side when the expression shifted.

The Prince of Bel almost tripped at the switch of expression. Right, even if the emotions known as Keiichi were there, the person in front of him was still the Demon King. He averted his gaze quickly, trying to show he knew his position and place before Abel got upset at the way he'd almost run forward. Cain watched the display and let the door fall closed. He glanced at Abel as he came up beside him.

"There is something that needs to be said, the sooner the better, Your Majesty," Cain stated, "I'd prefer to say it here, but if you order it wait until we return to the Hotel, I'll comply."

Seth wanted to ask what had happened, but Abel seemed to be suffering moodswings. He could guess. Keiichi had choked over killing Himitsu. He was sure it was as bad as he had imagined now. Or close to sure. He wanted to see her body to confirm it. It would be painful, but it would provide a bit of closure.

The way Cain was standing meant his oldest brother probably knew what he wanted and wasn't about to allow it. Abel hadn't sent him away just so he could see the aftermath. In the end, Seth kept his gaze away from Abel's. He more than knew his "place" and wouldn't break it when he couldn't be sure how Abel would react. It meant Abel would have to tell him to be at ease or order he look him in the eyes.

"Hello, Your Majesty," Seth had almost forgotten to respond. Speak when spoken to, after all.

[Firebreath Fishslap]

Abel let his expression drop as he saw Seth avert his gaze. Damn, he hadn't meant to show his scowl like that. He really was broken up. Even with how prominent K1's emotions were at the moment, he was usually better at keeping the more emotionless look. Man, there was something wrong with him today.

I think you figured that out when you killed that woman, said a voice in the back of Abel's head, a sort of sarcastic kind of reason.

She would have killed us first. Abel angrily thought back.

Oh really? You initated contact. She had just been defending herself when you appeared and murdered her. And by the way? Arguing with yourself in your head is horribly cliche and another sign of your slipping sanity, K1. Or Abel. Can't even decide which name's the right one anymore, huh?

Abel felt sickened with himself. He almost missed what Cain said because of how caught up he was in his own thoughts. He sighed.

"We're not in any hurry. You might as well say it now," Abel said.

[mugenginga]

Cain nodded. He looked towards Seth. Cain was not known for the widest range of emotions, but Seth was good at reading them. He couldn't read most people like that, the Prince of Bel was not horribly observant. Still, he could read Cain just fine, and Cain had a mixed expression. Part of it was his matter of fact expression, part was a warning. Seth wasn't to interuppt, no matter how much he disagreed with what Cain was about to say.

"You know that look I gave you earlier, Abel. I doubt it was for the reason you think. You were apologizing for enjoying what you did in there. That, if you'll pardon my candor, is what makes you an idiot. You are a demon. The worst thing you could do right now is to deny that and not kill humans," Cain narrowed his eyes, "Lack of Magatsuhi causes withdrawals, you can not deny yourself it now that you know it."

Seth had about fifty emotions flash across his face. They were all negative. He had jerked his head up when Cain said Abel had enjoyed "what he did in there". He let that shock fade. He pushed it away. Abel was a demon, although Seth found himself flinching when Cain said that. More negative combinations when Cain said Abel had to kill humans. Had to kill humans. His face finally settled on anger as Cain used a word Seth thought was familiar but he couldn't pin down. He threw his hand to the side in an elaborate gesture and stepped forward.

"What the hell kind of nonsense is that!?" Seth demanded of Cain, "Why would he have to kill those he wants to protect!?"

He had to kill? He had to kill humans? Even as Cain turned his head and gave one of his darker glaers towards Seth, the Prince didn't back down. What the hell did Cain know, telling Abel he had to kill humans. That word seemed familiar, but Cain had just said that killing humans was the only way to get it? And why did Abel need it that badly? What the hell was it, anyhow?

Abel would have several things to react to due to that exchange. One of which was how the hell Cain knew the exact word that had flashed through his brain. It wouldn't take a large leap, Cain had shown he had worked with demons before, but it would lead to another question. Why the hell hadn't Cain brought it up before? Perhaps worse for the General's wellbeing, why the hell hadn't he mentioned it before Abel had killed Himitsu?

[Firebreath Fishslap]

Abel's eyes widened, and then narrowed as Cain went on. Cain knew what he'd been feeling. And he'd known the exact word for it. Abel knew Cain had worked with demons before, and the fact that he'd known the exact word that had flashed through his brother's mind meant that it wasn't an uncommon word. But he felt angered that no one had thought it a good idea to tell the newly demonic king about these kind of things. Did they think he'd not ever kill, that such information might not be important?

Which moved to his second thought. Why hadn't Cain thought it a good idea to mention the magatsuhi before he'd killed Himitsu? According to Cain, he was now going to be dependent on this magatsuhi stuff. And he'd have to kill to get it. Abel had killed Himitsu because she had angered him, because she was equal with Belphegor in his mind. He'd wanted to avoid killing human innocents as much as possible.

He stepped forward as Seth did, though he didn't make the same kind of motion. He was scowling as he addressed Cain.

"Why the hell didn't you say this before I killed Himitsu?!" Abel growled. "You could have stopped me from killing her. And now that I've killed her and experienced this 'magatsuhi' I have to kill more humans to get it?!"

He was pissed at Cain now. He didn't want to kill humans. He had become a king to protect humanity, dammit, which he had pretty well failed at so far. He didn't need to make things even worse on that end by killing humans to satisfy his addiction to magatsuhi.

[mugenginga]

Cain found himself taking a step back as Abel threw his hand to the side. For a moment Cain had thought he going to get hit. At best, it was not outside Abel to do far more than that. His eyes flicked to the side, breaking the gaze. For a moment he tried to convince himself he had been merely checking his footing. He chastised himself. Whether that had been the cause or not, it didn't change he had not only shown ground but submission by looking away. Then again, considering the way things were developing, it was probably in his best interest. He turned his head back towards Abel as the King yelled and took the risk of narrowing his eyes in a sort of glare.

"You would have killed a human eventually, its a fact of war people die. Would you have preferred I stopped you here so that you had to deal with those human emotions on the battlefield. That reaction means you would have killed far more before you came to your senses if more had been available, Abel."

Cain knew that Abel wouldn't have to kill to get it. Humans could survive the extraction, but it was horridly draining on their spirit. It would be like torture, which Cain knew Abel didn't approve of when it came to humans, at least in his capacity as a human. If Abel didn't kill him for what he would likely view as defiance, he could get into that. Let Abel make the decision. Keep humans as glorified cattle and cause more mouths to feed, or kill and be done with it. He wouldn't be the first demon "farmer", but Abel didn't strike Cain as the type willing to do that.

Seth's eyes widened and he jerked his head towards Abel even before Cain spoke. He'd regretted killing Himitsu? It was a relief, an awful relief. So he'd regretted. There was still enough humanity for that. His still distant eyes looked towards Cain with apprehension as his oldest brother delivered his words. Cain was walking a dangerous line, one Seth knew he wouldn't dare to walk in a waxing moon. It was begging for death in a full one.

The Prince was sure Cain's intention was not to taunt Abel about his remaining humanity. However, it was possible Abel might not realize that. Even at the best of times, Abel's humanity slipped when his human emotions got strong enough. Cain was at least smart enough to make no motion towards a weapon, he knew Abel's latent speed. Seth hesitated. Cain was trying to make a point, one that could get him killed. His oldest brother still had a scar on his chest from the event a month and a half ago. It may have been a waning moon, but still... Seth bit his lip in worry.

[Firebreath Fishslap]

Abel took another step forward as Cain took a step back. No. He wasn't letting Cain try to get away from this so easily. Cain's rebuttal made him feel even guiltier. Cain was right, if he had other people around, he probably would have gone after them with how he'd been acting before. But at the same time, Abel felt like Cain was mocking his human emotions.

"I know we're going to be fighting humans. I'm not stupid. But I don't want to kill people for that." Abel growled. "Would you rather I get rid of your dear little cousin, then? Be just all demon, so I could be control myself better while under the influence of this magatsuhi?"

Abel wasn't stupid. It hadn't taken him long to figure out how much he changed as the moon's phases changed. He had, in his human mind, figured out that he had two distinct sides: the side he had gained when he absorbed Babel, the true demon one that was best referred to as Abel; and the human side, the one he had been born with in this life, Keiichi Kimura. During his more human moments, it was a major source of guilt to him.

He also was more than aware that Seth was what tethered Keiichi's personality to him. It was odd thinking of himself as two different people. He had a feeling he knew why Seth had so much trouble balancing his two lives now. Well, had. His brother had eventually dropped the Keiji name almost altogether among the group.

The fact remained that Abel was aware of what kept him thinking like a human. And during a waning moon, like it currently was, he was afraid of what would happen to him if he lost all of his humanity. But maybe that was what they needed. Cain had outright stated that if he didn't have magatsuhi, he would go into withdrawals. He'd caused problems before because of his human side. Hell, from the very moment he'd regained his soul's memory and become a demon, he'd had problems. The fight with Kaido that day came to mind.

[mugenginga]

Cain narrowed his eyes as Abel took a step forward to compensate for the changed distance. Abel began talking. Cain listened, not wanting to break his gaze with his brother again. He opened his mouth about the time Abel opened his again. Cain paused in what he was about to strike back with when Abel's eyes slitted and the words "dear little cousin" came out of his mouth, with the threat to get rid of it following. For all his understanding of the situation, it hadn't really occurred to him as a possibility that Abel could absorb the Keiichi emotions. His gaze bordered on hateful as he closed his mouth. He let Abel finish his threat, increased his gaze so that it flew over hateful, and then made a point of breaking it.

Seth heard Abel's words, and swallowed a lump in his throat. The thought that something like that could occur had crossed his mind before. He reached for his right arm without thinking, the one that had been broken in the last full moon. He didn't want that. He wanted that less than he'd wanted Cain to die. He... he held his ground, but it took effort. His eyes looked tortured, but he knew he'd only cause problems if he stepped in now. So he watched the situation.

"Did I say that, Your Majesty?" Cain growled, but he kept his gaze averted, "I merely meant you could have been killed with that hesitation on the field."

Cain still had his death glare going on. He was speaking carefully, slowly, and picking his words in a deliberate manner. The growl was more than prominent, but he'd realized what kind of situation he'd pushed himself into. Seth had tried to tell Abel that the first day they'd been in the human realm, but Abel had never seemed to realize it. The problem now was that the demon Abel seemed to realize it more than the Keiichi emotions. For all his manipulation, Naoya cared about Keiichi. Cain cared about the human Abel. It didn't seem possible, but his glare became more intense. If the King of Bel thought to use that against him, he was a poorer judge of character than Cain had realized.

[Firebreath Fishslap]

Abel's expression didn't change as Cain's changed to a hateful one. He didn't even realize his eyes had changed to the slits as Cain had gone on. But he knew he'd hit a sore point with Cain. To the point that it might be a bad idea to press things further. That hateful glare Cain had been giving him was proof enough.

"So it really matters to you that much if I get killed on the battlefield? You never cared that much for my life before, brother," Abel growled. He glare deepened. "This conversation is finished. Go do whatever it is you do all day. I am going back to the hotel."

Abel didn't need to wait for Cain to break the gaze first; his older brother still had his gaze averted. He turned around and walked out of the alley on his own, the bloodstained cape swirling rather dramatically around him as he turned. He dared anyone to try to stop him, with the mood he was currently in.