Boxing, the sport of kings. Two opponents inside one ring with only their fists to help determine the victor. Regardless of how long a match lasts, three rounds, five, ten, or maybe the full fifteen, you can be sure that enough blood and sweat will stain the mat that it'll be damn near unrecognizable. So now, replace the ring with an arena, two boxers with multiple demons in high- tech suits and horrifying monsters, then top it all off with super-powered weaponry that could wipe a small country off the face of any planet.
Oh, and multiple the blood and sweat by a truckload as well, that'll help you picture the scene of the Sentinel arena after hours of non-stop grueling training. Everyone training felt many things, tiredness, pain, hunger, and heat throughout their bodies. But to their surprise, and that of those watching them, they hadn't complained since this started. Sure, when things kicked off, Blitzo had some remarks, Angel Dust made a few quips, and Cherri swore like a sailor as she tried to grow accustomed to her suit's more complex features and weapons.
Then at some point, to their best estimate, thirty minutes in. Maybe closer to the first-hour mark, none of them said anything and just focused on honing their skills and doing everything they could to avoid disappointing the Slayer. And in reaction, their companions who watched them from the stands were amazed by this sudden change in attitude, astonished by how much they were improving as time passed in this day alone. But if you were to move from inside the arena to outside, you'd find Charlie and Vagatha soaring through the skies, the latter now able to comfortably fly thanks to the aid of her girlfriend.
They even decided to spar against each other for more practice, with Charlie shooting arrows while Vagatha deflected or dodged them before getting in close to try and land some blows. Even without the Slayer present to make sure they were taking this seriously, they cut any slack they may have had before and doubled down so they wouldn't be dead weight later. If he were here, he'd feel nothing but pride for his friends, reassured that even with the unknowns that come with war, they were going to be as prepared as possible. Yet where he was now, which was in the company of another good friend, he considered equally important.
And not just because of what their earlier conversation had been.
"Man, what a day," Katie said while stretching out her arms, a fulfilled sigh leaving her lips as she did, "Who would've guessed that on top of being a soldier, demon killer, and god. You'd also be a fantastic tour guide?" She told the Slayer.
"Only when it comes to this place..." He replied as they walked down a fairly quiet street, "Back in your circle, I'm as lost as a stray dog...if I didn't have my tech, which makes maps for me, I'd never find my way anywhere..." He confessed.
"Maybe I could return the favor then? Give you a first-class tour around Pentagram City?" She suggested.
"You know...I'd like that a lot..." He admitted, which made her smile, "And who knows...maybe it'll be the first time the people there don't go nuts when they see me..." He hoped.
"You know, the Sentinels aren't THAT much better. If how they reacted when we went to the market earlier is anything to go by." She said.
"Yeah...sorry you had to get caught in that mess..." He apologized with a sigh, "Being a king has its
perks for sure...but then you have moments like that which add credence to the saying, heavy is the head that wears the crown..." He told her.
"Aw, boohoo. I'm the Slayer; I kill demons with a chainsaw, I'm a literal god, nearly everyone I meet worships the ground I walk on." She teased, making him roll his eyes.
"You really ARE spending too much time with Angel and Cherri..." He responded, which made her laugh.
"Yeah. But...that's probably not a bad thing." She said. "However, if you want to talk about something else, then we can. Such as what's inside that rather big sack you've been carrying since the market." She suggested while pointing to the object.
"The gifts for Verosika..." He replied as he held it up, "You know, so she doesn't go ballistic..." He added.
"No, no, no, mister. I SAW what gifts you bought for HER. They were a set of earrings and a bracelet. But the MOMENT I turned my back to look at some stuff then looked back at you, you suddenly had a sack with something else inside of it." She told him.
"...I have no idea what you're talking about..." He attempted to lie, but of course, she saw right through it.
"You sly dog! You bought something else!" She accused, now pointing her finger at his face, "Who's it for, huh? Something for your grandpa as like a souvenir? Or maybe you got something for Daisy, like a collar!" She guessed.
"...A collar...for a rabbit?..." He questioned.
"Hey, I've never had so much as a pet rock. I don't know what you're supposed to buy for anything that doesn't walk on two legs and speaks English." She stated, "But come on, Will! You can't just buy a secret gift and keep it from me! We've been walking around together, and you haven't said a thing!" She exclaimed.
However, instead of saying something, the Slayer suddenly went mute.
"Ooooooooooh no, you don't. You mother fucking bastard." She said as she came to a full stop, "You are NOT about to pull the silent-type card on me NOW of all times! Either you tell me what's in that sack, or I'm taking a look myself!" She warned.
"...Try..." He challenged.
"...What did you just say?" She asked, wanting to make sure he knew what he was getting himself into.
"You handled yourself well against three Barons earlier...so I won't fight back...will only dodge whatever you throw at me, no running or evading beyond that...and if you manage to take the bag from me, then I'll happily let you look at what's inside...but you tire out before then you don't say another word about it...deal?..." He proposed.
In response, Katie brought forth her four additional limbs, then followed up by lunging at him. As said before, the street they were on was quiet; the only life to be found besides them were the people in the buildings. But none of them were aware nor cared about what was going on outside at this hour. So as Katie slashed and stabbed at the Slayer, her strikes focused on impaling the sack held firmly in his right hand; they didn't need to worry about any interruptions.
"Good form...nice control...completely focused on your target...you continue to impress..." He complimented her as he avoided each attempt to take the bag.
"Thanks. Out of everyone in the arena, I felt I had the least amount of experience fighting people. Even after I came to Hell and was allowed to be more violent than on earth." She replied, making sure not to let herself get distracted.
"So you were determined to improve..." He said.
"Yeah. Angel's got his guns, Cherri her bombs, the Imps have lots of skills and Vaggie's damn scary with her spear. I got my blades but never needed to use them other than to make someone shit themselves or to gut a smart-talking asshole." She explained.
"And now you're cutting down giants who could level buildings in a single leap..." He pointed out. "Isn't it leap tall buildings in a single bound?" She playfully asked.
"That's for heroes...demons are a different story..." He answered.
They continued like this for a while, chatting with each other as she thrust her blades in his direction to try and obtain her prize. Now, the Slayer was ready for anything, expecting every possible form of attack from the mantis demon. And at a certain point, she realized this herself, so she decided to do something that he COULDN'T expect, at least not from her. She started with a lunge, seeming to go all-in for the sack, then when he moved to the left to avoid her, she changed direction and went for him in a full-on tackle.
THUD
Unable to step back or move to the right, the Slayer and Katie fell to the street as her plan was successful. Yet before he could react by pushing her off or trying something else, she pierced the sack with one of her blades and yanked it out of his hand, his grip having been loosened from the sudden action and resulting fall.
"I...I did it..." She said in disbelief as she raised herself into an upright position sitting on top of him, "I...I not only got the sack...but I caught you off guard...holy shit!..." She exclaimed.
"Well done..." He praised, remaining motionless on his back, not even attempting to get out from under her, "Your training's paid off...no demon from Doom would ever be that clever in their attack...and not trying to insult you...but I wasn't expecting you to do something like that..." He confessed.
"No, no offense taken at all...I...wasn't sure I could keep my cool during the execution...but hey...here we are...I won..." She replied, still trying to wrap her head around it.
"To the victor goes the spoils..." He said as he pointed at the sack, which now hanged from the blade that skewered it, "Go ahead...take your look...you've earned it fair and square..." He told her.
Right, the bag. Admittedly, Katie was so lost in just "sparring" with him and enjoying it that she momentarily forgot why they were doing it in the first place. But hey, now that the excitement was going away, her head was back on its shoulders, so she brought the sack in front of her, took it off of the blade and into her hands, then opened it up to look inside. Yet when she did, and her eyes found the hidden treasure, everything from her perspective came to a stop.
Resting beneath the necklace and earrings was a curved dagger, but it was the finer details of the weapon that made her block out the world as she stared at it. The blade was a beautiful, absolutely
gorgeous stainless metal, silver in color like steel but was undoubtedly not the same material. The handle and hilt for the weapon are where the artistry shined the brightest, a surprisingly ornate design that was mostly black but had the Slayer's insignia at the center on both sides in a shining crimson red.
"Will..." Katie slowly spoke after a full minute of stunned silence, "Who...is this for?..." She asked both excited yet scared by what the answer would be.
"...Your defenses are impenetrable...even more so when you're wearing your suit...but having a last resort for when something manages to get through isn't a bad idea..." He said.
"You...You got this...for me?..." She questioned, her eyes wide and her voice shaky.
"Yes..." He confirmed since she seemed to be in a state of disbelief, "And...I'll be honest...I felt bad that your reward was walking around and talking with me...since we do that a lot of the time anyway...so I-"
Before he could finish that sentence, Katie, without warning, stabbed at the ground around his head and shoulders with her bladed arms, embedding them within the stone. Then, in what seemed like a blink and you'd miss it kind of sequence, she reached down, grabbed onto his helmet, pulled it off, leaned forward, and...
.
.
.
"BOOM! SHE FUCKING SCORES!" Cherri shouted with zest as she kicked open the doors to the dining hall, "After SEVERAL hours of training, countless bullets, bombs, and blades, the queen of the scream takes home the win!" She cheered with her fists thrown in the air.
"Those were SIMULATED demons! We're not keeping score until we're on the battlefield, k toots?" Blitzo replied as he and the others from the arena followed her in.
"Dude, better not even bother trying. It'll only make her stronger." Angel Dust advised. "Aw, what's the matter, Blitzy? Upset that ya fucking SUCK?!" She taunted.
"HEY! Only people who let me fuck them in the ass get to call me that!" He responded.
"NO. NO, NO, NO. DO NOT FUCKING GO THERE, PLEASE!" Octavia shouted in a panic, not needing or WANTING to hear about her father's sex life.
"Eh, don't worry, not like there's that much to go to," Verosika commented, speaking from experience.
"NO. PLEASE. I AGREE WITH MY DAUGHTER. ENOUGH." Stella also shouted, taking her daughter's side.
"I may have no familial relation to them, but I also support the motion to change the topic IMMEDIATELY," Gabriel said.
"Fine with me, we can talk about how we KICKED. DEMON. ASS." Cherri suggested.
"As Blitzo stated, they were simulations. Keep that in mind." The Wretch replied, both he and BJ having stuck around after they each arrived at the arena to observe their training, "But, I will give praise where it is deserved. All of you are shaping up into fine warriors." He complimented.
"Yeah, gotta say, that was some impressive shit we saw." BJ agreed, giving them more praise. "Coming from you two, that means a lot," Moxxie said.
"Although, I really wish Will could've seen us too," Millie admitted. "I'm fine with him being absent," Verosika replied with a shrug.
"Oh, don't try acting mature and reasonable now, you SLUT. You're only calm because Will said he'd buy you presents!" Nifty hissed at her.
"Whoa, calm down, girl." Husk told her as she was ACTUALLY bearing fangs. "Pfft, try something pipsqueak." Verosika challenged.
"Lady, I have seen a lot of unfair, rigged, imbalanced fights in my lifetime. But if I let this woman have her way with you, the Sentinels would need ladders to clean the nooks and crannies in the ceiling." He warned her.
"Guys!" Angel Dust called out to get everyone's attention, "We're tired, hot, sweaty, and a little bloody from our cuts and bruises. Normally, this would've only happened after a GREAT night of sex, at which point I'd smoke a cigarette and take a shower. But we've been fighting demons non- stop for the last half of today. So can we please calm down, get some food, wait for the others to get here, chill, then go have our showers before we turn in for the night and get ready for tomorrow?" He requested.
"Wow, look at you taking command and being the sensible one for once. Did one of the demons hit you in the head?" Vagatha asked.
"Nah, but without Katie here, we're missing our voice of reason. So someone's got to step up." He answered.
"Yeah, come to think of it, they've been out ALL day. So you'd think they'd come back by the time we were wrapping things up." Charlie pointed out.
"You don't think something happened between them, do you?" Cherri asked, but not in a serious way.
"Pfft. Katie? Fuck no." Angel Dust replied with a scoff, "Like, if it were ME? Oh yeah, it'd almost be a guarantee I'd try some shit. But she's pretty much the exact opposite of me when it comes to how we approach men." He said.
"Yeah. I'm not worried either." Nifty admitted, "She may be my romantic rival, but she's the kind of person who'd take Will out on a classy, romantic dinner. Not try and seduce him in an alleyway. No offense." She reasoned, hoping he wasn't insulted by that.
"Hon, that is the tamest shit I've EVER done in an alley." He told her.
Continuing to talk with each other as they each got a plate of food. By the time they were finished and started heading for their table, two more friendly faces appeared at the entrance.
"Ah! So nice to see that we're all gathered for dinner! Unlike lunch!" Alastor greeted with his usual merriment.
"Oh my, some of you look a tad worse for wear. Was your training particularly harsh today?" Stolas inquired.
"Nah, just more badass." Cherri responded, "Grab your grub; we'll tell you all about it." She said. "Sounds good to me!" Alastor exclaimed before hurrying over to the food.
"Save me a spot next to Gabriel!" Stolas requested as he followed the radio demon.
"For the love of all that is holy, I don't care who, SOMEONE sit on the other side of Gabriel to prevent that travesty." Stella pleaded.
"I'll do it. If you don't mind." Octavia offered, speaking to the archangel with that last part.
"I would gladly accept you and your mother's company over a man who is quickly becoming my personal fanatic," Gabriel said.
A few seconds later, everyone, excluding those two, were seated at their usual table, with Alastor and Stolas joining them about half a minute later. And while the owl demon was a bit disappointed he couldn't sit next to his family's hero, a title Gabriel dreaded in his mind would become real; he was more than happy to sit next to his daughter. Several minutes would then go by of them eating and talking before more of their group arrived, this time being the brainy duo of Vox and Sir Pentious.
"Ey! Snake face is here!" Cherri welcomed.
"HOW is that even an insult at this point? My face is the same as an ACTUAL snake's now!" He exclaimed.
"And yet I still get a reaction~" She said with a grin.
"You succumb to her taunts every single time, Pentious. You need to learn to ignore her." Vox told him with a sigh.
"I WILL NOT LET HER BEST ME IN THIS BATTLE OF WITS!" He shouted.
"Mhm, suuuuuuuuure." She responded.
"Vox, how's Velvet? Have you managed to check on her?" Stolas asked, unable to hide his concern for his and Alastor's fellow sorcerer.
"We stopped by the barracks before coming here, actually. And when we looked into her room, she was sound asleep in her bed still." He answered.
"Damn, dimension-hopping really knocked the wind out of her." Angel Dust said. "On that note, how is your work with Samur coming along?" Alastor inquired.
"Smoothly. We finished up the Argent filters before leaving Urdak. We're going to make a few more as spares, then start adding them to the gates." He informed.
"AND, in addition to that, we're making something special for Loona and Daisy!" Sir Pentious revealed.
"You are?" The Hellhound questioned.
"Mhm, courtesy of Will asking me to do so." He told her. "US." Vox corrected again.
"Wow." She said, "I don't mean to sound so surprised, it's just...there was a part of me worried he wouldn't do it for some reason." She explained.
"You've got trust issues," Nifty replied.
"I feel like that describes EVERY person in our circle." Husk countered.
"Where IS he, by the way? We're all starting to chow down, and neither he nor Katie are here yet!" Angel Dust exclaimed.
"Correction, HE'S not here." A familiar voice called out from the entrance.
Looking to the front of the building, everyone was surprised and happy to see Katie standing there...alone, with a somewhat damaged sack held in one of her hands.
"Hey! There she is! Have fun on your date?" Cherri asked, making her roll her eyes.
"Yes, yes, get it ALL out. Will and I went on an AMAZING date walking around a city, having adult conversations, all the while some of the people would lose their shit over him because he's their king." She answered before tossing the bag to Verosika, who impressively caught it, "Your jewelry. The bag got a little torn during the madness at the market when we went there, but the goods are fine." She explained.
"Thank you!" The popstar responded as she pulled out the earrings and necklace, both making her gasp in delight, "Oh, William! I love you!" She exclaimed before hugging them happily.
"That guy we met at the market before DID say things would get crazy if Will ever went there," Octavia recalled.
"Oh yeah, it was DEFINITELY insane," Katie confirmed as she went to get her food, passing by Sir Pentious and Vox, who was finished and now heading for the table.
"How come he's not with you? Did you two have a lover's spat?" Angel Dust asked, joining Cherri in the teasing.
"How did you know?!" Katie asked with widened eyes while speaking with THE most sarcastic tone possible, "We had this BIG fight right after a Sentinel from the forge found us and told him the forge master wanted to speak with him about stuff regarding the war for death. And I just fucking LOST my GODDAMN mind!" She told them, maintaining her maximum level of sass.
"Hm, perhaps we should head there?" The Wretch suggested to BJ.
"Nah, he told me to tell you guys it's nothing to get worked up about. Just some talks about strategies and other battle stuff." She assured.
"Is he going to make it in time for dinner?" Stolas asked.
"Probably not; from how it sounded, he's going to be at the forge for a while." She answered. "Then we'll head out after we're done eating. No sense in getting back to work on an empty
stomach." BJ decided, earning a nod in agreement from his demonic partner.
"Sounds good." She said, now finished filling her plate, so she came over to take her seat.
"I can't wait for him to see us train tomorrow; we're gonna give you a run for your money, girl!" Millie warned with a playful grin.
"Hmph, you certainly can try." She cooly responded as she sat down.
"Oof, damn, you're just oozing confidence," Cherri said, impressed as hell by that. "To be fair, she WAS the one who got a reward." Moxxie reminded.
"Damn right." She said, but in a somewhat quiet way.
After that, the rest of their meal would go on without any more arrivals. Velvet was sleeping peacefully in her room, Vega was still attending to Helsa and would check in with the Khans and Samur before coming back, and the Slayer was busy at the forge. And when their dinner was finished, everyone walked to the barracks together, minus BJ and the Wretch who went to the forge, then turned in for the night to prepare themselves for what might be their last day of training.