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Post by Firebreath Fishslap on Dec 19, 2010 2:15:51 GMT -5
(OOC: I am just going to go ahead and apologize to all of the LotR fans out there for this thread title.)
Abel returned to the hotel just as the sun began to set. Today had been yet another fruitless day searching for Lucifer and his general. Nyarlathotep continued to elude him as well, infuriatingly enough. Thankfully, Babel had remained calm since that last fight with Lucifer. The COMP that had tried to hack in at that time had been Yuugi's... Abel knew where Atsuro had gone to now.
He climbed the stairs to the floor his and Seth's rooms were on, and noted that there was a strange feeling about the hallway. It was only a very slight feeling of something being off, but he could sense it. Had something been here?
He turned toward Seth's door, and noted that the feeling was slightly stronger from there. It was likely only because he was the King of Bel that he could even sense those trace amounts of demonic energy, and they really were only trace amounts. He narrowed his eyes before walking over to Seth's door and knocking a couple of times.
"It's Abel."
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Post by mugenginga on Dec 19, 2010 2:25:43 GMT -5
Seth had come up empty. He'd found himself feeling lucky to find any data on the Court's activities, but he just didn't have the computer skills to do anything about it. He had a feeling he'd gotten close a few times, but he was no hacker. Hell, he probably couldn't even program his way out of a paper bag. Best skill he had tended to be pirating the occassional mp3.
He'd stood up a few minutes earlier and had stretched with a glance towards the clock on the wall. Half past five, so the only reason he'd be feeling tired was boredom and frustration. Hitoshura had been there that morning. He stacked the papers on the downright polished desk. The ink, by some miracle, hadn't stained. Seth wasn't wearing his shirt, having pulled it off after Naoki had left and dropped it in the trash. The apartment was plenty heated... he frowned as he looked towards the window. Abel probably hadn't gotten his fixed yet.
The Prince of Bel looked up towards the knocking, and his heart skipped half a beat until abel commented. The sigh of relief was silent, but the pulse rate would have been noticable given how alert Abel had become due to the off nature. Seth tucked the notes under the edge of a lamp and closed the laptop.
"I'll be right there, you... Abel-ousama," Seth said, having to correct his attempts to call Abel "your majesty.
He pulled open a drawer and pulled out a black long-sleeved shirt, pulling it on. His headphones lay on top of the small dresser and his headphones were on the side of the bed. He pushed his hair down a few times so that he didn't think he looked like he jumped out of bed half a second ago and trotted over, opening the door. His COMP remained plugged in to the left of the laptop.
"Did you want to talk with me?" he asked.
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Post by Firebreath Fishslap on Dec 19, 2010 2:47:56 GMT -5
Abel narrowed his eyes further at the feeling of Seth's pulse accelerating. His knocks had startled him, which only seemed to contribute to Abel's suspicion. Something had been here today. That much was clear. His expression didn't change as Seth corrected himself. At least Seth was trying to be slightly less formal, though it wasn't by much.
The door opened, and Seth stepped into the doorway. Abel nodded in response to Seth's question, and then pushed past Seth into the room. Upon entering the room, he dropped his human form, his horns and markings appearing with a light flash of light. He shook his head a bit so that his hair fell correctly over his horns before turning to Seth.
"Did anything happen earlier today?" Abel asked. His expression was serious.
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Post by mugenginga on Dec 19, 2010 2:54:22 GMT -5
Seth moved swiftly backwards as Abel moved forward. He wasn't sure his king wouldn't have shoved him out of the way had he not, and even with his step back he felt a bump of shoulder. It felt like someone had punched him in the chest, indicating a worry. Abel was suspicious then. Seth avoided eye contact, keeping his gaze towards the ground as Abel took his true form, shook his hair into position, and then looked at him and asked his question.
There was no more than half a second of hesitation from Seth. He'd gone over the possibilities several times already. The best scenario had been Abel not asking, but that had been foolish optimism at best. He gave a nod, his own expression serious but submissive. He didn't give eye contact as he replied.
"Hitoshura visted," Seth stated.
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Post by Firebreath Fishslap on Dec 19, 2010 3:10:46 GMT -5
Abel noted the lack of eye contact. Submission was common from Seth, but this seemed to be for a more specific reason than in most cases. It seemed connected to whatever had happened earlier. Before Abel could ponder that further, Seth came out with it.
"...Hitoshura came here," Abel repeated. "Did he attack you?"
Abel doubted that he had. Even with Seth's change in outfit from earlier today, there wasn't any blood on the sheets, carpet, or furniture. That kind of thing wasn't easy to hide.
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Post by mugenginga on Dec 19, 2010 3:15:27 GMT -5
Abel repeated what he'd said. Different words, but the sentiment was there. Seth gave a nod to confirm what was probably a rhetorical statement. He was caught in mid-nod as Abel asked if he'd been attacked. He lifted his head, the unusual avoidance of eye contact returning to normal. Their heights were the same, but he was looking at Abel's mouth, not his eyes.
"No, nor did he threaten me," Seth hesitated. He'd implied the danger he was in remaining with Abel, but it hadn't been a threat. It had been a warning. As if he... well, cared, "He wanted to talk."
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Post by Firebreath Fishslap on Dec 19, 2010 12:17:46 GMT -5
Abel's hand curled into a fist as Seth spoke. The damn bastard had just walked up here to talk? The fact that he'd come here at all infuriated Abel. It seemed to Abel that Hitoshura was damn confident in his own strength to just walk up to the apartments of the Court of Bel.
"And what did he come to talk about?" It was almost impossible to miss the anger in Abel's voice.
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Post by mugenginga on Dec 19, 2010 12:27:31 GMT -5
Seth's expression remained neutral as Abel's anger grew. Abel was angry, and Seth found himself being grateful once again that Hitoshura had left quickly. What had he comed to talk about? Even he still wasn't quite sure. After a tense silence in which Seth tried to find a safe but still truthful response, he gave up and used the first word that had come to his mind. He doubted Abel would accept it.
"...himself," Seth said.
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Post by Firebreath Fishslap on Dec 19, 2010 12:47:12 GMT -5
Abel took a step forward. There already wasn't much distance between him and Seth, so it was likely the lack of space would make the human uncomfortable.
"He came to talk about himself?!" Abel snarled.
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Post by mugenginga on Dec 19, 2010 12:59:28 GMT -5
Seth gave a quick reflexive step backwards as Abel eliminated the distance between them. His left foot hit the bed. He leaned back as Abel leaned forward, supporting himself with a hand against his back. Hitoshura's warnings replayed in his mind and his pulse raised a bit as Abel snarled out his question. He considered nodding, but Abel was all but on top of him so he simply spoke. His voice was thankfully stable.
"Yes, your majesty," Seth said, clearly intimidated. If they'd been wolves, the conflict would be over. Demons were never that predictable, "He seemed to want to discuss his past."
And my position as a human in this situation... and your humanity... Seth thought, but didn't say.
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Post by Firebreath Fishslap on Dec 19, 2010 14:13:19 GMT -5
"He came just to discuss his past?!"
Abel was yelling by now. He did not seem to care that Seth was intimidated. All he cared was that Hitoshura had come here. He took a deep breath, and his expression appeared calm again. Seth would know that was all too far from the truth.
"And how did you respond to him, Prince?" Abel asked.
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Post by mugenginga on Dec 19, 2010 14:24:52 GMT -5
Seth winced at Abel's yell. He wished he could blame it all on that, but he was worried. His lips thinned and he adjusted his hand. He wouldn't push forward, but he could feel more stable. He'd been tortured before, if it came to that he'd deal with it again. It wasn't just this life, after all. Abel had reached quiet, however.... he narrowed his eyes as a show of bravery and his pulse dropped to almost normal levels.
"I listened. He claimed he didn't remember his time as a human, but he mentioned the friends he 'mercy killed'. He expressed an empathy for what he considers me to be going through and a hope you wouldn't lose your human memories."
It was the truth, and pretty much all of it. The only thing left out was Seth's confusion at the visit, the fact that Naoki had seemed to actually care. As a human, not a demon, at least a little... this also left him leaving out the chance that he was being manipulated. Because if Seth was honest with himself... he didn't think he was.
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Post by Firebreath Fishslap on Dec 19, 2010 16:25:57 GMT -5
Abel was silent after that. His face remained calm, but it was still obvious that he was angry. Hitoshura had shown empathy toward Seth and hoped that he wouldn't lose his human memories. First the bastard wanted him to let go of his human side, and now he wanted him to keep his human memories?
"I want him dead, Seth," Abel stated. "If he returns, kill him. Even if he rips you to pieces, I want you to still at least try to kill him. Beat him with your own arms if you have to."
He backed up a bit so that he wasn't so close to Seth. "Did you at least complete what I requested you do, or did you just spill the ink everywhere and call it a day?"
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Post by mugenginga on Dec 19, 2010 16:58:12 GMT -5
Seth's lips tightened when Abel ordered him to attempt to kill Hitoshura. Because it would be all it was, as Abel had graphically indicated. Maybe he couldn't die (that doubt remained in the pit of his chest), but he wasn't invincible. He could be knocked out, he was certain of that. And Hitoshura could stop him, just as much as Abel could. Not being able to die was not a blessing.
He let out a held breath as Abel pulled back, and carefully pushed himself up. Abel was still within spitting distance, but it didn't feel as if his king was standing on top of him anymore. He frowned and turned his head towards the stack of papers under the lamp. He walked over and pulled them out, holding them out to Abel. He was aware of his ability to read Hebrew, they had it from the same source, after all.
"I can't. I'm not Cain, I don't understand computers. The data is limited, but it's there... and that's just what I could confirm," Seth said. He continued whether or not Abel took the papers, "Forgive me for my impudence, your majesty... but killing Hitoshura is a waste. You have to understand that."
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Post by Firebreath Fishslap on Dec 19, 2010 23:20:56 GMT -5
Abel took the papers. He looked toward Seth as his brother continued speaking. He made a "tch" sound as Seth finished the first part of his statement. None of them could use a computer worth a damn now that Cain and Atsuro were gone. He looked more annoyed as Seth went on.
"I am aware of that. It doesn't change that he killed Cain and Kaido," Abel stated. "Perhaps it is just my nature as a Bel demon to feel this kind of vengeance toward him... but I cannot let this sit."
Abel was all too aware of what a powerful ally Lucifer could be. He'd thought about asking Lucifer to lend him his strength for a moment there before. He was still thinking about it. But at the same time, it didn't change that Lucifer's strongest general was the one who had been behind the deaths of several members of their court.
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