After leaving Sister Spinner's palace Red Demon found Smiling working in the forge. He had made several piles of shuriken that were lying to the side in a pile. Red Demon picked one up and spun it around in one hand, 'not bad balance' he thought. He looked at it more and could see the beast aura that was inserted into it. Staring back in the reflection of the blade was beast eyes. He paused, staring at the eyes before chucking it back into the pile. He walked up to Smiling and he was pounding away on a glowing billet. He beat in the shape and then put it back into the coals. He turned to look at Red Demon, "Any good news? You get your element unlocked?" he asked. The Red Demon sat on a chair in the corner. "No, that will have to be rescheduled. I need to settle a few things before the process can happen though?" he explained. "What things?" Smiling asked with confusion. "Well for starters me and you will need to talk some things out and the subject won't be pleasant?" he explained.
He wasn't wrong they had both secrets from one another and if Spinner was right their relationship would be vital and then pretentious. "Spinner spoke of the oath you made to kill me? Before you say anything I am not angry at you, but at the World for thinking me an oath breaker" he sighed, "Even though each oath is over" Smiling Demon had his back to him while he spoke, but this caused him to turn around. "I am no oath breaker. I swore to protect you and kill you should you stray from the path. We may be astray, but you have remained set to get back on the path set by the World. If we don't we are both dead and I will have to kill you before my own death" he said raising his voice. 'Yes! Spew that anger out! This conversation would be better without all that pent up' Red Demon thought. "Still doesn't change the fact those promises we made are null and void now. We sold our souls when they were already owned?" Red Demon explained Smiling Demon's face kept frowning. "Who owned my soul?" He asked bluntly. "Sister Spinner. She created our Thread of Necessity entwining it into our souls before our births" this part made the Smiling Demon take a seat and pulled the cork off a flask. He then looked at his left hand and the mark was almost completely gone. That was plain to see even through the soot upon his hands.
"It's true…the mark is almost gone. You as well?" He asked, still staring at his hand. "Yes. So I say we both start fresh. Since now we have a new beginning that we share?" Red Demon suggested. He would still hold things back merely because he never truly trusts anyone. He learned the hard way growing up. From the time he befriended a guard who offered to help him escape his father. Only for that guard to immediately stab him in the back.
His father then lashed him for it and the training got harder. He did that two more times, trusting someone to help. But in the end he knew he could only rely on himself. Even his old master was duty bound to do nothing, but train him. All he could do was be compassionate and help him through. 'Maybe I did find someone to trust now that I think about it. He was more of a father than my own?' He thought. Perhaps he could trust Smiling too; they had been bound to this task. Now they were truly bound through souls that were leashed by Sister Spinner. "We're basically cell mates…" he mumbled.
Smiling didn't know the context but he got his meaning. "Yeah. Bound by Fate to do their bidding. Now we are free from the World at least. I'm sure you're thinking now with this oath gone, what loyalty do I have towards you then? My debt has been repaid ten times over and I have acted in my duties accordingly. Now we're equals" Smiling said staring at Red Demon with icy blue eyes. "You truly are broken aren't you? Seemed so long ago you were the smiling fool I met in the Land of Madness" he said chuckling to himself. Smiling smiled back, "Yeah well. I found out what love truly was and lost it. That can certainly change a man. Listen, I know you and her think Kira should die. Maybe you're right. But I don't think I can do it, and I don't want to do it. I just can't push my feelings aside. I'll kill a hundred kings and men before I ever kill her" he said then took a drink from his flask. "I'll be honest, I've never been in love. Hell never even been with a woman either. So I don't get what you're going through. I wish I could say otherwise" he leaned back in the chair. "I'd say I'll kill her. But let's be honest we both don't know the future even if we have Fate on our side. But what I do know after conversing with her. We are in need of allies and it so happens we have two demons like us we need to recruit. They also have a Thread of Necessity" he told him. "Really? So vigilante's like me who were inspired by the Red Demon? Damn…thought I was original" he said with disdain.
"Well you three are fools for doing so. But that doesn't mean you were wrong. I was a fool for doing this. But looks like it was supposed to happen. Were made to change the Dream Universe" he said with sarcasm. 'Gods sounds so cheesy to say out loud and arrogant' he thought. "So you've never been with a woman? Or anyone for that matter?" Smiling asked grinning ear to ear. Red Demon rolled his eyes, "I didn't get the privilege all those I thought I could trust worked for my father. I couldn't get close to anyone. I was also on the run for a while till I was chosen by the World" he explained. "Well we need to change that! Tech Realm has to have some available women or a brothel!" He was excited at the aspect of taking Red Demon to a brothel. Red Demon rolled his eyes, "Sure I'm more looking not to die after that we'll see" he told him. "Well now you can trust me. We're both fucked!" First time in a long time, Red Demon burst out laughing. "Yeah. We are" he said through laughs. Smiling Demon also started laughing with him.
"Where are we heading first?" Smiling asked. "Tech Realm. I was told to go there first before the War Realm" he said plainly. "What are their names?" He asked with intrigue. "Sun Demon and Ghost Demon" he said. "Damn…those are killer names? I like mine more" he said smiling. They were then interrupted with a swirling vortex exploding outside the forge. The building shook and they ran out the door immediately. Out stepped a man in an armor mask, yellow hooded robes, gauntlets that came up his forearms. He had a strange symbol upon his chest and forehead of the helmet.
He was very tall and towered over Red and Smiling Demon. "Good evening I am Hastor hear to see the lady of the realm if it pleases you?" He saw Red Demon with his hand on the hilt of his sword and Smiling holding his battle ax. "I assure you gentleman those?" He pointed to their weapons. "Will not be enough. So best hurry along and get the missus before I lose my patience for the rude behavior?" The tall armored man said with a guttural and mocking tone. "What are you?" Red Demon asked feeling the amount of power coming off the giant man in front of them. "Oh? This is a vessel the real me is light years away. This is a Acolyte I use them to move about the universes" he told Red Demon. This made the two look at each other in confusion.