With Pretty left unusually speechless, it falls to Grenwald to remark on the new arrival. "A dungeon-friendly arcane demon, and one that seems to have a hefty set of balls on him...this must be that Sincere guy you were telling us to watch out for, right, Pretty?"
Sincere smirks at the description. "I don't recall my testicles being your favorite one of my attributes, but I suppose I should be flattered that you chose to rember sothing of . Been spreading gossip of old tis, Pretty?"
The incubus finally recovers himself, although he deactivates his volu-enhancing spell before responding. "Only letting my allies know that you were of interest to . I certainly didn't expect to see you here! Are you not the dungeon's core guardian these days, as I've heard? Seems you've resud your wandering ways."
Grenwald narrows his eyes, and his tail seems to be a bit twitchy about being left suspended a few hundred feet above the ground. "Are you sure you two can't catch up after we deal with all this shit? Those Rainlanders are getting away!"
His commander takes a brief mont to inspect the situation, and frowns to see that the escapees are indeed taking advantage of his distraction. Still, he's not inclined to let this mont pass. "Fine, fine - Tiffany, set down on that rooftop, would you? You and Grenwald can see to the prisoner situation."
The blonde arcane demon floating behind him seems less than pleased with that order. "Just us two!? Neither of us are good at non-lethal, if the Domain wants these prisoners intact - "
Pretty answers with a bit more steel in his voice, just barely remaining pleasant. "We're here of our own volition, not because we were ordered to. Anyone you can recover alive should be considered a bonus by our employers. Now put down, Tiffany!"
"Fine, fine!" The other demon hovers back, hands raised, before lowering everyone downward. Pretty gets placed atop the roof of the officer's quarters building, while she and Grenwald continue on to the ground below. The kobold shoots a last glance upward at Pretty, cautiously watching as Sincere flies over to join him, but a dismissive gesture sends Grenwald back on his way.
Seeing that they now appear to have so privacy, Sincere resus their earlier conversation. "So. You're leader of the Domain's core-crackers, are you? Must be quite the title you wear back in Dragon's Jaw."
"And you, my friend, are a dungeon's puppet, are you?" Pretty shakes his head as he gestures in Sincere's direction. "You look much the sa as I rember, but your nervous system...it's not even remotely close to that of any mortal's body. Hells, I think you may be missing half of your internal organs. You barely even qualify as being alive as far as I can tell."
"Actually, I don't at all - as it happens my current form is that of an undead-type monster." Sincere smiles, unashad of his zombie status. "Although it's not my altered anatomy which you ought to be concerned about."
Pretty nods in agreent. "Let see...I attempt to cast a spell on your senses, triggering your pain response and blinding you. You cast a temporal squeeze, shutting off the flow of mana to the spell to nothing, turning it into a minor headache at best. I amplify my own senses and draw my blade, while you cast arcane barriers to block . You attempt to blast with a spell or two, but my heightened reflexes an you don't even co close at this range. You cast a temporal acceleration to speed yourself up, but that weakens your defenses and I throw you off-balance regardless. We essentially wind up in a stalemate until either reinforcents co to aid or your prisoners have all fled, at which point you fly away in either outco. With Tiffany occupied, I lose you in the chaos."
Sincere laughs loudly at the analysis. "Ha! And I rember you asking if I would ever learn to see the future. We haven't seriously sparred in, what is it now, a century and a half? Your information on is sowhat out of date, Pretty."
The incubus raises a finger. "There was that weekend before you set sail in - "
"Bedroom encounters are not sparring." Sincere rolls his eyes. "Not for us non-incubi, in any case. But as a dungeon monster, I am both weaker and also far more powerful than you may recall. I don't want to kill you, Pretty. I won't ask you to abandon the Domain, I recall the loyalty you've pledged to it, but if you continue pushing Worthy Dungeon as you have I won't have much choice."
The Sensationalist spreads his arms wide. "Nor do I wish to kill you, Sinny! That is why I was so eager to take on this job, you know. I don't wish to see you fade away along with your new master, but if another were to take my spot, you may not be given much other choice."
Sincere frowns at his forr lover's declaration. "So you're also here to attempt to persuade Xenia to surrender? To join the Dragonlord's network of collaborating dungeons? We've heard it all before, Pretty. You're wasting your ti - and risking your life. We have chosen our stance, and for the record, I support her fully."
His statent only causes Pretty to smirk, though. "Ah, but you've made a mistaken assumption, old friend. What if I were to tell you that your fate is not sealed to that of your current master?"
The Seeker of Eternity furrows his brow. "Pretty, I know that of the two of us I was always the more educated in the matters of dungeon theory. But I know that even you know that dungeon monsters are bound to the fate of their master's core. Should it be destroyed, or even removed from its dungeon for a long enough period of ti, my life would fade with it."
"In most cases, that would be correct! But before I ca down here, I spoke with the Dragonlord, you know. My gods - a dungeon core controlling the living corpse of a true dragon, can you imagine? What a twist! But more importantly - a dungeon core that has a near-equal claim to your mountain as your own Worthy."
This turn in the conversation raises the arcane demon's suspicions. "And what relevance does a geographical claim have on my life?"
"Oh, you're clever enough to figure it out, Sinny! The Dragonlord believes that, if they must destroy your master, they may yet be capable of transferring its powers and assets before it does so. Assets including, well, you." Pretty gestures at Sincere's monstrous form, and the man frowns.
"This is only getting ever more foolish. You're offering slavery to my foe as a thod of extending my existance?"
His choice of words brings genuine anger to Pretty's face. "Slavery!? How - Sincere! You know I would never! This would be no different than the fate you have already found yourself in!"
"A fate I chose, Pretty." Sincere shakes his head. "To join Worthy Dungeon as I have requires genuine desire to do so, a genuine choice, and I do not regret my choice. The Dragonlord claiming us as prizes to be won is hardly the sa thing."
"I didn't..." Pretty's hand clenches around the hilt of his blade although he doesn't draw it. "I didn't realize your distaste for the Domain ran so deep. I knew you always hand an independent streak, a wanderer's heart, but..."
The core guardian sighs. "As I believe I've told you before - I will always be thankful to the Domain for taking in our people. And my heart was much gladdened when the Domain ended most of its slavery laws after the Valleylander revolt, even if exceptions yet remain. But the near-worship the Dragonlord has always expected of most of their followers? The belief that the common people will do as they're told, rather than that the leader should hear the cries of those below them? Not even the most benevolent, paternalistic ruler can be trusted with such authority. With the power of a continent behind them, it seems inevitable that your glorious leader will be corrupted. I won't ask you to join us, Pretty, but please...walk away."
There's a long mont of silence, but eventually Pretty Thing sighs in return. "Were we still together, perhaps such a request might move . But I ca here not as a lover, but simply soone who wished to perform one last favor for their oldest friend. If you wish not to receive it however, then there is nothing more I can do. That said, I don't suppose you're willing to surrender in this particular fight so that I might see to these scurrying Rainlanders?"
It's slight, but Sincere does smirk back before responding. "What Rainlanders?"
"Why, the ones fleeing for that...hole..." Pretty gestures towards the center of the fort, and his eyes widen when he realizes there's no one left within its walls except corpses and guards attempting to douse various flas. Looking down, he eventually notices a ring of runes encompassing the two demons upon the roof. "Oh, you devious son of a bitch."
The son of a bitch's smile grows a bit wider. "Just a bit of a temporal bubble, to slow the two of us down while the others made their escape. I imagine they'll be collapsing the tunnels behind them soon, so you have little chance of catching up at this point."
Pretty raises an eyebrow as Sincere's cool deanor. "Leaving you behind as well, then, Sinny? Or do you believe you can fly all the way back to your mountain from here before I or another stops you?"
"Oh, not at all. You know, there's one amusing tale of the dungeon which was from before my ti, of an event where Lollyp ran into an old family mber. The sli guarding Floor Two, in case you've forgotten."
The incubus scoffs. "Yes, I believe she lasted all of ten seconds or so against . She had a tip for how you might take on, perhaps? You may need to seek better sources for your information."
"More of an inspiration...and a parting line." The demon reaches into his robes and pulls out a little gift which Lollyp and Tinsel put together for him. It's a confusing shape, a mixture of potion bottles containing colorful fluids, tiny pipes, and thin wires leading from boxes Pretty can't identify. Despite that his instincts definitely give the man a few suspicions - the smile on Sincere's face causing more than a few of them. "Oh no..."
Pretty takes a few steps back. "Sincere..."
"...You got ."
As an explosion tears apart the upper floors of the officer's quarters the remaining guards watch on with a mixture of panic and exasperation. There are already enough fires to put out, and the highest-level soldiers present had all chased after the prisoners and the elentals into their tunnel. If the place is still under attack, they might need to abandon what's left of the fort entirely.
A few braver souls do rush towards the ruin, ready to either fight or do what they can to combat the blaze, but even they're shocked to find one lone survivor pushing his way out of the wreckage. His robes are tattered, revealing the enchanted defensive artifacts beneath, but even then the demon has clear injuries slowly knitting themselves together after he tosses back a health potion. Reasonably certain that this survivor is one of theirs, one kobold steps forward.
"Do you...need dical attention, sir? Was there anyone else in there with you? How are you feeling?"
Surprisingly, the survivor answers him with a grin. "How am I feeling? Why, I'd say I'm feeling motivated to put an end to this misadventure..."
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