The devils bargain (Solo)

Voices of the damned made it a nice and cozy place to gather around Shio's head. Despite her ability to hear these voices, she instead chooses to ignore them. To ignore their cries and pleas of mercy. All her life, Shio believed demons were the worst creatures in existence. With the emergence and growth of humans, they became something of kin to each other. While humans are far more capable of doing horrible things such as causing war to happen in a drop of a hat due to minor inconvenience, allowing countless bodies to pile up one after another until there's nothing left. Demons however held mystical gifts and possessed uncanny behavior that made them a living nightmare to behold. Only the bravest of souls could hope to confront the demons and cast them back down to where they came from. In her time, Shio never experienced going face to face, with powerful demons with far more capabilities than anything imaginable. She had been given jobs to slay lesser demons, insects to those that wish to do battle with forces that's greater than what they can handle.

As foolish as most humans can be, their pride and ambitions is a prime factor in their evolution. The lesser demons that she was hired to kill were ones with a consciousness and a will of their own. It couldn't be helped that they were born under these circumstances, such circumstances that made them prey, forcing themselves to run and hide from things that's out to kill them. The thought of them having lives worth having and the will to survive never crossed her mind. She went about killing them as if they were a hunters' source of food, but in this case it's her source of income; the only way she could get some sleep and something to eat. Unfortunately for her though, sleeping became more and more difficult as days went on. This is due to the voices that kept letting themselves in, the voices of the demons she had killed. While a part of her didn't care and so decided to pretend they weren't there, the intensity had grown to the point of seeing things that weren't there. Sitting inside a cell with only a bed and the metal bars that's too high to reach, a figure would emerge from within the cell. As she lifts her head up, she gathers her thoughts as to what she's seeing.


"Wondering how I emerged just now?" A voice of feminine nature would shake the silence looming throughout the cell. She stood a few inches taller than Shio, and sporting the looks of a youthful young girl from her grade school years. The strange girl who appeared from thin air points directly at Shio's head. "The collective consciousness of the demons you've carelessly murdered had allowed me to take on this form and communicate with you." The girl would explain as she began lowering her hand back to her side. "Great, are you here to remind me how much of a bastard I am, eh?" Shio asks as she scoffs at the sudden emergence of some demon that she probably has no idea of her identity. She's never the kind to remember the names and faces of those she kills, preferring to forget about them and pretend like they're the same as all the others that she murdered.

The demon would give Shio a smile as she began to close her eyes before reopening them. "I've been watching you for quite some time. It amuses me of how pathetic you've became. The more I watch you, the more i wish to help you. To help you get out of that shell of yours and help you evolve, because what good of a human are you if you aren't providing me with at least some form of entertainment." Her voice sounded innocent, yet with each word coming out of her mouth a sharp blade would follow as it continued to stab at Shio. "Help me? Why would a creature like you assist a human like me? You claim to be the consciousness of those that I've killed, so why bother trying to help the person that killed you."

The girl vanishes for a brief moment before reemerging behind Shio. Despite being a phantom conjured from her thoughts, Shio still felt the cold touch of the demons hands as the demon began to caress Shios chin. The demons cheek would collide with Shio's as they both stare beyond the metal cage that limits her freedom. "You asked why I want to help you?" The girl giggles in a childish and fiendish manner. "So that i may one day be brought back to life and drown your soul and those around you until they become nothing more than a passing thought. Because the stronger your soul, the more power I gain and with power comes reformation and reformation comes with your downfall." Shio slowly stood up from the bed. "What if I were to stay the way I am, so that way you can't come back to life? She turns the left corner of her eye to see the demon on her bed in a resting position with the demon's left hand resting on her cheek. "Believe me as I say this, but I always have plans and you know as well as I do that you want to become stronger. And I know you want to get back at those that damaged your soul."

The demon explains. "Hmph, I suppose you're not wrong about that." "And that arm of yours, I could help repair it but it would involve me becoming a part of you." It's as though the demon knew every thought circling throughout Shio's head. There's no denying that she desires her hand to reform, but if she accepts the demons offer then that'd mean it wouldn't be long before the demon gains enough power to return to her former glory. Though Shio felt as if there's more to it than wanting to be brought back to life. She hesitated for a moment before turning to confront the demon. "I can't really do much with a broken arm, but if it helps to restore at least a little bit of strength then what's the harm in that? And besides, don't think i'll rely on your power just because you decided to help me."

"Whether you do or not is up to you, so do we have a deal? If I restore your arm, then you must do me a favor in return." Who would've thought that she'd be bargaining with a demon, but what else is there to lose? "Sure, do your magic bullshit or whatever." As the demon reaches her hand towards the damaged arm, a dark source of energy would engulf the entirety of the arm. Once the light disappears, she began to make an attempt at moving the arm. "Well i be damned, it's actually healed" A smile broke free from Shio's coldness that seemingly had no end. But this would only be the first step towards her journey to obtain strength. With the healing complete, the demon would vanish, leaving a trace of her existence inlaid on the arm that she healed. "I hope i made the right decision and it won't end up biting me in the ass later" She muses.