finalflight | PSL; [YOU MAY BURY MY BODY]

[ He takes the tablet back from her, setting it back amongst the books. (If she were to glance at them, they mostly cover methods for summoning demons. There’s a lot of blood involved. You know, usually.) ]

Not particularly, I’ve already arranged for transportation. Though I suppose I should ask, once we kill the demon, just what are we going to do with it?

[ Like, is she going to eat the whole thing or is Warren going to be keeping demon burger patties in his freezer for the foreseeable future? ]

[Yeah, she's noticed all these myriad ways of summoning demons. Lots of blood involved! That speaks to her, too, on a primal level. But in a curious way, really; she's hardly one of those blood-starved Devils, more animalistic than anything particularly dignified.

Well, anyhow, Warren's question is a good one. She says, quite plainly:]

Well... I unhinge my jaw and eat it whole.

[(She is joking.)]

[ Equally plainly: ]

So that's a no on needing a van, then.

[lord]

You know that this is the only form I can take, right? I don't turn into a big, scary-looking devil that can eat other devils whole, unfortunately.

[They will need a van.]

[ He's never going to rise to the bait, Makima. Accept it already. ]

Then the plan remains unchanged. You can meet me in the living room in a couple of hours.

[ Once it starts getting dark. ]

[ONE DAY, WARREN WEST.]

All right. Just make sure you have a freezer ready to store all the meat when we're done. I will be eating it the old-fashioned way, too, so I hope you don't mind me taking over your kitchen for... a while.

[ Ah, so it really will be demon patties and demon steaks for the foreseeable future. ]

There's plenty of room in the kitchen already. Just be sure to label everything.

[ He is legitimately not sure if humans can stomach demon meat, and he doesn't want to be the one to figure that out. ]

[And demon stir fry, and demon meatballs, and demon casserole—

How nice of him to trust that Makima won’t just shove it all in the fridge and hope that Warren won’t be silly enough to pick the wrong thing. As funny as that would be, though, she won’t waste any potential meat on a human-wizard who would receive no benefit from such a thing.]

Of course. I’ll put little devil horns and everything on every label. Hope you have a lot of tupperware, Warren.

I’ll make sure that the kitchen is amply stocked.

[ Says a guy who probably hasn’t done anything so menial as grocery shopping for himself in a long, long time. Who or whatever keeps the kitchens stocked will be sure to come up with the appropriate amount of baggies and containers for whatever they bring back. Really, how much meat could they possibly get out of one lesser demon? ]

I’ll see you in a few hours, then.

All right, see you then. [She turns to leave, looking over her shoulder with a smile.] I look forward to our first foray together!

[And that's utterly sincere. This should prove as a relatively accurate baseline regarding how well they'll work together, and hopefully it'll be a resounding success. (After all, it's just a minor demon.)

A few hours pass, and once daylight has properly drained away from the sky, Makima shows up in the living room, dressed as she said she would: crisp clean blouse and dark, pressed trousers. No tie, though! How wild of her.]

Is it time now?

[ Warren is already there, just straightening up the sleeves of his jacket when she enters. He gives her a pretty clear once-over, eyebrow arching. ]

Are you hoping to rope the demon into a conference call, or-?

[ What's that? A hint of a joke? ]

[He's pragmatically dressed but it looks nice, as to be expected. But... is that a hint of a JOKE? Do her ears deceive her?

She plays at arching a brow, but it's clear there's very faint amusement in her own tone.]

It's practical. [It's like her government outfit.] Should I have shown up in my bathing suit instead?

[ He breathes out a small sound, one might even call it a chuckle. ]

You could have at least opted for a darker blouse.

[Her unimpressed facade falls right off at that, and she laughs. Even if the subject matter is a little macabre.]

But I look good in red. You'll see.

I suppose I will.

[ Like he didn't splatter her with blood (some of it even her own!) and viscera when they first met. This is different. Somehow.

Before they make ready to finally depart, Warren summons his gun into his hand with a quick motion, popping the magazine out to replace it with another one — also conveniently materializing in his hand from whatever pocket of space he uses for that stuff. ]

Now then. Ready?

[It's different when it's the blood splatter of ~teamwork~

That hammerspace magic of his sure is convenient, isn't it? However, you know what's more convenient? Not needing ammo for your "gun" in the first place!

Still, she watches with some interest.]

Ready. I'll be following your lead in general until we get to the actual demon-fighting part.

Then if you'd be so kind as to grab that— [ He motions to a duffel bag sitting on the couch, inside which are some books and other items they'll be needing for the summoning. ] —we can be on our way.

[ While she's taking care of the bag, he begins etching a series of runes into the air, and soon enough reality shimmers and tears open in front of them, revealing a small, muddy patch crammed between two buildings. It's dark and very hard to make out much beyond the press of buildings to either side. ]

Ladies first.

[She does as requested, crossing over to take the bag and gently sling it over a shoulder. By the time she turns around, she’s met with a tear in reality — leading somewhere close to their intended destination, she can only assume.]

Now where’d the portal come from?

[She asks as she steps forward, but not through just yet.]

I made it.

[ Easily. He lifts a shoulder in a shrug. ]

It's just a small part of a much larger network.

Somehow, this shouldn't surprise me. You're all sorts of versatile, aren't you?

[And it doesn't at this point. A man as well-connected as him of course needs to get around, and to get around quick. Of course he'd have a retinue of portals at his disposal in order to make that possible.]

Well, here we go.

[She steps through!]

[ He grins at her over that assessment. He’s versatile where it counts, in terms of the sheer amount of resources at his disposal, and within the confines of his own Specialization. There’s a certain nuance to Destruction that no one ever bothers to study enough to learn.

Anyway, Makima steps through into a narrow alley, and the air is cool and crisp, far removed from the coast where Warren’s house sits. He steps through after her, waving the portal closed with a motion of his hand, and angles his head at her as if to say, “follow me.”

They’ve found themselves in a small town about an hour or so away from the site of the old house, and parked in the lot of one of the gas stations just off the main thoroughfare is a plain, black van.

Where did it come from? How did it get here? Don’t worry about it.

He motions to the dingy little convenience store, fluorescents humming like the louder they are, the more they’ll be able to cling to life. ]

If you want anything for the trip, now’s your chance.

[Oh? The change in weather all but seems to hammer home how far they've traveled. The breeze plays at the tips of her hair, pleated back into its usual braid.

She notes the van first. Where did it come from? Yes, don't worry about it.

And then the convenience store as she follows diligently behind. What a quaint little town.]

Hm? And how long's the trip?

About an hour. Much longer on the way back.

[ Since they'll be going from here all the way to the house, but by then she'll have some demon bits to snack on. ]

An hour... All right, then let me hop in and grab a few things for the trip.

[Like this is for pleasure, not business. She heads that way, then turns on her heel.]

You want me to get you something, too?

[ Can the two things not go together? Warren straightens from retrieving the van’s keys, stashed on the inside of the wheel well and seems to consider. ]

Coffee, if you don’t mind.

[ It’s bound to be a long night. ]

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