- Lucifer and Death -
Lucifer and Death were loading the supply cart together.
Lucifer put the crate Death was handing him into the cart. "It's nice having someone stronger and taller than me to help with this for once."
"I could have done this for you," Death said while handing another crate to Lucifer. "I'm imposing, it's the least I can do."
"I have a specific way I like the crates ordered, so this way is easier for me," Lucifer assured.
Death looked over at the team and Dimitri. "I'm surprised Satan allowed Elijah to join, even given the caveats he added."
Lucifer started strapping down multiple crates. "Yeah, given the training regiment he assigned I don't think Elijah is going to be too relaxed during this trip."
"Not to mention you'll have more calls than usual with Satan," Death added.
"Trying not to think about that..." Lucifer mumbled. "Though, I do think Satan might actually be somewhat professional since training is involved."
"Sorry to say, but he won't be," Death joked.
"So..." Lucifer strapped the last crate down, "have you improved at all over these years? I know the demon war made you more aware of your own strengths and weaknesses."
Death hopped onto Hrom. "There's only so much I can really improve. I don't feel like visiting Arryx for weapon training, plus the rest of my abilities have very limited training options. What about you?"
Lucifer leaned out from the supply cart. "I think my flying got better. I proposed a training plan to Satan where Elijah tries to shoot me while flying. Satan offered Elijah days off for every hit," he rubbed his left shoulder blade. "I haven't seen a human that motivated during training since Lao."
Death smiled before giving a curious look. "Is it strange that our training involves the humans we work with shooting at us?"
"Depends on the perspective you're looking from," Lucifer replied. "I can tell you for a fact that plenty of humans have trained by having others shoot at them with arrows, so I don't think we're too strange."
The two exchanged a chuckle. Lucifer looked over at the other members of his former investigation team.
"What do you think I should rename the group to?" Lucifer asked.
Death stared at the group. "Hmm...what about travel team?"
Lucifer looked annoyed. "That's what I was going to go with but it seems so boring. Given their skills I want to give them a more fitting title."
"Did Satan make a good suggestion that you don't want to use?" Death assumed.
"Yeah..." Lucifer admitted. "Hell's Scions, given that they represent the human side of Hell while outside the walls."
Death sighed. "I recommend picking a name sooner rather than later. You don't want the beings of this world assigning a name before you do."
"Good point," Lucifer turned over and leaned further out of the supply cart upside down. "For a world so obsessed with names you'd think we have some amount of consistency on the names for magic."
"Lucifer..." Death said in a warning tone.
"I'm not going off about magic inconsistencies, I promise," Lucifer stared up at the sky. "Maybe it's my angelic roots, but I prefer consistency where possible."
Death assumed Lucifer was thinking about magic inconsistencies but not talking about it out of respect for him. He was wrong.
(Past, during Death's stay in Han'ei)
Death sat in a wooden room, holding his echo. "That's the full situation."
Lucifer's voice came out of the echo, "I understand. She can do more for you alive than dead."
Lucifer's voice was unconvincing to Death. His grip tightened around his echo. He didn't want to say what he was thinking but he felt he owed Lucifer the respect of asking further.
"Are you really okay with this?"
"Of course not," Lucifer's reply was sharp and bitter. "I can forgive humans, to a point, for doing awful things. Their kind is fragile with a long history of needing to thrash to survive. Amaterasu is neither fragile nor has she struggled. Even when it came to Ragnarok her faction barely participated! I don't think she deserves the second chance."
Death sighed. "Patience, not forgiveness."
"Don't quote Hell's teachings to me," Lucifer's voice sounded like he was speaking through his teeth. "Hell is a place for the misguided and the malevolent. You know which of those two I think she is."
"I'm...I'm sorry," Death apologized.
"Well...you have my patience, for now," Lucifer sighed.
"Luce-" Lucifer ended the call before Death could speak.
Death lowered his arm and dropped the echo.
- Kahvis and Ash -
(Present)
Ash was teaching a large group made up of vampires, lycans, humans, elves, orcs, and four-horned demons. She was wearing a black shirt and black pants that were both covered in scorched holes.
"Remember: fire magic is fun," She said with a large smile.
The group she was teaching laughed nervously. They appreciated having someone of her skill to teach them but they couldn't deny her recklessness.
Ash generated flames on each finger of her left hand. "I know fire can be scary, or painful in some cases, but that doesn't mean you should shy away from the more personal techniques it's capable of," her fingers became fully engulfed in flames. "The closer you get to the flame, the stronger you can become."
Kahvis walked through the group and asked Ash a question, "Do you need more clothes again?"
Ash looked down at her shirt and pants. "It's fine. This is from my new students shooting fireballs at me."
"Right..." Kahvis said.
"I actually need to ask you something, in private if possible," Ash said.
Kahvis and Ash went to a training area. They weren't alone but they could speak to one another without worrying about someone else hearing them.
"What's this about?" Kahvis questioned.
Ash moved an explosive orb around her right hand's fingers as she spoke. "You might want to check on Yamato. I've seen him mumbling to himself. Something about wanting to talk to me but not wanting to," she shrugged. "If he's shy, please tell him I'm flattered, but that if he wants anything to happen he has to ask me himself."
"It's not what you think," Kahvis sighed. "I can't give you specifics but I will talk to him about it. Thank you for bringing this to my attention."
Ash moved the explosive orb to her palm. "No problem. Also, since we're talking about it, you know his name probably isn't Yamato right? Humans his age have a habit of changing their names multiple times."
'You're one to talk,' Kahvis thought. "I'm aware. His first name is irrelevant to me."
Ash clenched her hand, detonating the orb. "Okay, just making sure you're as well-informed as you seem."
Kahvis looked curiously at her hand. "Do you need healing?"
Ash showed her undamaged hand to Kahvis. "No, it was just a smoke orb. That little trick is my next lesson for the group."
- Lucifer, Death, and Team -
"We ready to go?" Peter asked Lucifer.
Lucifer pulled himself up into the cart. "Yeah, tell the others."
Peter waved the other members over. Dimitri joined the supply cart with Lucifer. Lao and Yvere hopped onto their respective uništi, with Lao taking the reins of the one attached to the supply cart. Peter and the other former team members gathered into Yvere's cart.
"Let's go!" Lucifer shouted.
The group moved, heading out of the same large gate they went through on their last mission. Sabu and Heinrich sat next to each other across from Peter and Elijah.
"Stop hidin' it," Peter said to Sabu.
Sabu's face scrunched slightly and his left eye turned yellow. "It takes more effort than I thought it would. I can understand why Lao doesn't bother with it."
"How does that not take mana?" Elijah asked.
Peter elbowed Elijah slightly. "Don't say that too loudly. We don't need Luce goin' off about magic inconsistencies again."
Elijah rubbed his arm. "I asked Satan about it. He said it feels like squinting but not squinting. I guess it's something you have to feel to understand."
"Fuck!" Sabu whispered as his other eye turned yellow. "You're lucky you don't have to deal with this," he said to Peter.
"Yeah, real lucky..." Peter mumbled. "How ya feelin' about this trip Hein?" he looked at Heinrich.
"The usual nerves seem quieter," Heinrich answered. "I'm looking forward to seeing Olympus for the first time."
"I know Yvere was excited about the trip," Sabu said.
"Lao not so much," Peter sighed.
- Lucifer and Dimitri -
Lucifer and Dimitri sat in between the crates. Dimitri was holding the human's guide.
"Alright, let's review," Lucifer sighed.
(During past trip planning)
Dimitri requested a meeting with Lucifer. Lucifer had been told ahead of time by Lao and Peter that Dimitri was going to ask him if he could join the trip. He knew that if he said no it could affect Lao, so he had planned a different means to prevent Dimitri from joining.
Lucifer was sitting behind his desk with Dimitri across from him. The human's guide was on top of the desk.
Lucifer put his finger on the book's cover. "I'm not allowing you to join this trip unless you can prove to me you know what to do past the border."
Dimitri folded his arms. "Easy enough. Believe it or not, I have read quite a lot about the northern territories, you know, given that my husband has traveled there multiple times."
Lucifer narrowed his eyes. He was trying to fake irritation with Dimitri. He needed to make this seem more difficult than it was.
Lucifer faked a condescending tone, "Reading and experiencing are two different things. Especially given your affinity."
Dimitri clicked his tongue. "Yes, very difficult. Is that why you allowed that brand new reborn to join your team?"
Lucifer covered his mouth to hide his grin. "I don't think that example helps your point as much as you think it does."
Dimitri eyed the guide. "All I have to do is prove I'm knowledgeable, right? I can do that. I'll even train harder if you're so worried about my ability to defend myself," he grabbed the guide and stood up.
Lucifer would routinely test Dimitri's knowledge between their meeting and the actual trip. Every quiz, surprise or otherwise, that Lucifer gave Dimitri would be answered perfectly and quickly. Lucifer even planned magic-allowed sparring matches that Dimitri would have to win.
'Sorry, Lao. Something tells me he's been preparing for this kind of thing longer than you know,' Lucifer thought as he watched Dimitri win yet another sparring match.