Hounds and Human || Zenneth and Kariline

Alexander just laughed, this was perfect! Alexander walked up behind Lilitha and simply grabbed her body and squeezed very hard. His hand ignited in white fire as he burnt a painful mark on Lilitha's soul, severing her connection to hell like scissors cutting string. He whispered, "This is for the hell you put me through you b****!" He then callously threw Lilitha into the ground, without any pity and remorse. He wanted to do more to break her will, but it was not his responsibility anymore. He however explained to Kariline, "Sorry just added a bit of payback there. Look at bright side, shes pocket size."

The succubus let out a little squeak as Alexander grasped her and burnt off her connection. A little unwary from the trip Lillitha felt her energy drain from her. Feeling the sting from where he threw her, Lillitha struggled to stand up. looking around her she gasped. " WHA- What have you done to me!!??" She yelled out, with a rather adorable voice, it was higher pitched but not unbearable.

Everything was much larger than she was. Looking at her body, her own head was huge and her body was disproportionate. She squealed. Her body was like her most prized possession, of course it would be to a succubus. Lillitha gave every thing she could to get off of the ground, her tiny wings flapping like crazy. She wasn't used to carrying this different weight.

There, That voice... It was him, and when her eyes fell upon them she scowled. " You! You - You conniving evil thing!! Put me back to the way i'm supposed to be!" She barked out to Alexander.

Kariline looked at him, he used her for vengeance. She wasn't sure how to take that in the least, but at this point she just kept her mouth shut. Kariline walked out to Lillitha and let her rest on her hand. Did all succubus come out this way? or did she mess up somewhere. Was she not strong enough to summon her, and it forced her to shrink. All of the unknown answers.

Alexander shrugged to Kariline, "I do not know why she came out this way or what happened. I am not the summoner after all. Was it wording it wrong?" Alexander just looked at the Succubus condescendingly as it tried to lift its body with its stubby wings. This was actually unexpected, he did not give a damn though. He knew what she was capable of in normal sized form, but at least she was more manageable in this form. This might work better in Kariline's favor though. Alexander shrugged, "Sorry Lilitha, you know that this sever is going to last for years, decades even. I am not going to take you home with me though. Now if you swallow your pride and ask the lady nicely, she can keep you... as a pet.

Alexander may sound unnecesarily cruel, but it was the one thing demons understood the most. That and a penchant for deals, he was turning the tables on the deal makers themselves. He knew that she would try to be stuck up, but otherwise would have no choice. Still Alexander ripped the few pages with demon names he wrote down and handed it to Kariline, "It's a list of demons that I met in my journey to hell with their typing and other interesting quirks. Is there anything else I can offer you Kariline to make up for the bit of trickery?" Alexander partially did that to see if she was strong in personality to deal with said demons and make contracts, but she was currently not.

Lillitha huffed at Alexander, Pet, As if!! She was higher than that. Yet, she could feel it, the power that was cut. It was like the warmth of Hell was taken from her. She stood up on the palm of Kariline, and just looked away with her attitude. There was no way she was going to ask anything of this girl, because of her, she was the way she was.

Kariline looked at Alexander, how could he be like this? Cruel and unwavering. Yet, if he met her in Hell, then Kariline assumed that their relationship was far from civil. She looked over the list that Alexander had handed to her. " Honestly, I don't have the energy to summon another demon at this moment. On top of that, i still have to master the demons i summon now." She wasn't trying to make excuses, but the mood wasn't set right, and she didn't have anything to offer up in a contract. That and she would have to do some serious research on these demons.

She looked down at Lillitha, " I apologize for bringing you here like this, I don't know what went wrong. But i will work hard and once the connection returns, ill send you back." The succubus opened one eye and stared up at Kariline. She nodded once and flew up onto Kariline's shoulder.

" I appreciate all of your help Alexander, I have not had anyone this interested in helping me for a long time. " She said simply, looking back to the man.

Alexander sighed, maybe he was being colder than he needed to be. His time in hell put a prejudice on all demons, but Kariline did not deserve the bullshit he pulled on her. He passed his baggage to her now, but it was done now. She had her little pet now and one that was not going to bite her in the ass when she wasn’t looking. At the very least she could handle Lilitha, but only because Kariline was a woman.

Alexander shrugged, “Not a problem, I just hope you know what you are doing…” He heard of the stories of Summoners that couldn’t hold their end of the bargain and were taken to hell. Also of some people that will sell their souls for power. She was walking a terrible path indeed. Alexander said, “Just keep your wits about you…”

Perhaps she was being too judgmental towards him. He had a horrible past, he had a right to want to take it out on things. She too yearned for her revenge. Kariline just sighed heavily and plopped down on the grass, looking over the ocean. The air smelled of salt and was fairly heavy. She needed a breather.

" What are you doing in Hargeon anyways?" She said peering over her shoulder with one eye open, looking back to Alexander who stood there. She thought about the same ting, but directed at her. What was she doing here? Kari's purpose in life was to get stronger, and as much as the guild seemed like family, were they really pushing her like she needed?

Alexander shrugged, "When you see the stuff that I have seen then you want to do stuff to put mind at ease. I like to tour cities for the hell of it now. Just to see that nobody else suffered like I have." Alexander was also thinking of buying a ship as well, but after closer inspection determined that ocean was too confining. He wanted to fly instead so he could see the world from above. It was a fair dream, but for now it was just that. He needed to stay in grounds of reality. Alexander also said, "The other problem is that you are ohysically weak Kariline. You let the demons fight for you, but what if you were put in a situation that they can help you?" Mages needed to be physically fit as well after all.

Its not like she hasn't thought of that before. Her contract with these demons has only reigned for a year, and it took everything she had to even be able to control them. Their attitude says they really are from Hell. She felt weak, always hiding behind her precious summons, That was what got her ass kicked from the entrance games when she first joined Lamia scale weeks ago. Since then they had been on a few jobs, but nothing special.

Kariline stood back up, " Im tired of hiding, If i am to get revenge on my brother, i have to face my problems myself, instead of having my Demons do it for me. " She hung her head and grimaced, gritting her teeth. The anger welled up inside of her, flashbacks started to run through her mind, the pain, the blood, the fear... She hated fear. Her dreams already tormented her through the night, and that was what she wanted - no needed to overcome.

" Can you teach me?..." She said, opening her eyes and looking at Alexander. Her determination would waver whether he could or not. I want to learn to fight. Kariline was fairly strong already, and could throw a punch, but there was a great deal more than just wildly swinging.

Alexander raise done eyebrow in surprise, this was an interesting turn of events. A summoner that had enough of a spine to want to fight her enemies head on. She had the right attitude for it, but not the form and physical training. He shrugged, "Sure, give me your best punch." His body was relaxed, it was actually was bad to take a beating with tense muscles. It spread the damage more that way. One had to be smooth to be an effective combatant.

With a slight grinned she took off her light jacket and laid down her bag, and placed Lillitha on the bag who just sat there with her ankles crossed. Apparently she didn't appreciate being man handled. She had seen a couple of people fight before, and she picked up on their techniques. She relaxed for a moment and sprinted to her opponent, kicking up her feet to reach a bit higher than his head. She brought back her right arm, and lunged to give him a downward punch directed at his face.

She then dropped to her feet, she expected that he would dodge, and would be surprised with the latter.

Alexander stood complete still for the first strike, her technique was poor, methods sloppy and little force in the blow. Alexander stood completely still for the entire show and took the blow to head, but seemed a bit unfazed. Alexander shrugged, "So you made the first mistake that amateurs do. Never go for the head first, it does little damage unless you are build like a muscle builder. Instead until you are buff like them I suggest..." Alexander relentlessly punched Kariline straight in the gut, just an inch below the diaphragm. This would cause not only immense pain to stomach, but her to expel all her air out. Alexander spoke up, "...instead you focus on pressure points. That was one of them, leaves the opponent out of breath and doubled over in pain. Fighting is not about brute strength, but understanding anatomy. Get up, I am not a soft teacher. If this were a normal fight, I'd have snapped your neck already."

Shocked, She didn't expect him to just take the hit! But whats more is that he took it without being fazed at all. Her eyes got wide and her anger boiled. But the amount of shock was uncompared to the pain that followed. Her breath left her body and it took everything she had not too fall over. She just stood there holding her stomach. Geez that hurt...

Gritting her teeth she stood up and looked at Alexander. This is what she wanted, to be stronger, this man could give it to her. But she had to fight back, she had to be strong, giving up is not an option.

" Show me them, these pressure points." She said with a sly grin. She wasnt going to let him get the best of her. She understood his methods already, and crying was never her thing.

Alexander said, "Pressure points include throat which cuts breathing. Side of neck which prevents bloodflow to brain. Side of head where temple is lethal. Any joint is a pressure point, also any nerves you find are pressure points." Alexander walked up to Kariline and put her in an upright stance. It was a relaxed position where she could react to any dangers while keeping her guard up. "Also when you are about to take a hit, loosen up your muscles. Tightening them actually causes more damage to your body. Now try again."

Her breathing steadied, and her heart slowed. From their, her body relaxed, her shoulders dropped a little, yet her posture remained. Her face released and her fists fell to her sides. Kariline felt better. Her stomach didn't hurt so much anymore. In a burst she opened her eyes.

She advanced and brought back her arm, instead of a hard fist, she had more of a opened fist, where it could move around solid objects and flow with the punch instead of backfiring. It was simple logic, If you continue after your attack, using the momentum, you had a hire success rate than if your fist were to bounce off of objects.

Utilizing the concept of the follow through, Kariline aimed for his ribs, whether she hit him or not, She was in close and brought up her knee to get him in the stomach.

Alexander stood still and let Kariline kick him straight in the gut. It was mostly hard muscle and little fat, but he still felt it. He let out a small groan, but his muscles in the stomach was relaxed enough that it spread. If it weren't for the fact that his anatomy was different, then he would have been hunched in the ground. He chuckled and laughed, "Okay only the demon slayer in me was only reason I was still up. Now we try blocking and dodging. I am going to attack and you are going to deflect/dodge/block it." Alexander allowed Kariline to get back to position, before simply walking towards Kariline. There was a simple reason for it, he was trying to be unpredictable. He then pulled hand out of his pockets and put them in a stance. His fist punch was towards her right shoulder blade and he was going to attack depending on her counter....

She smiled at his excuse to not doubling over, was he trying to be nice? She just closed her eyes and shook her head before standing back a few yards. Alexander was going to attack her now. She waited for him, but instead of charging he just walked up to her. She lifted a brow in confusion, but as he lifted his hand out of his pocket, she realized that he was serious.

She raised her hands and watched as he jabbed right for her shoulder, instead of blocking, she dodged it, turning her body to the left. She watched as his fist sailed past her a bit. She knew this wasn't it and raised her hands to prepare for another block.

Alexander saw the dodge, but was disappointed at lack of counter-attack. She had an opening, but not following up. The Fire demon slayer ignored going after the obvious block and instead went straight for the sides of the knees for a kick in order to trip her. He was not being soft on her at all, because combat itself was not soft. Mistakes like that would kill her if it was real combat. Alexander, "What was the mistake you made there?"

His leg sideswiped her and before she could move around it she felt herself falling to the ground. She landed on her ass and then her head swung back smacking on the ground a little hard. She sat up and gritted her teeth. Kariline rubbed the back of her head and looked up at him. " I should have taken that chance, you were open and close." She just now realized what he was doing, teaching her to look for open chanced to defeat your opponent.

Kariline stood up and back up a few paces, she rose her hands and gave him the universal term for Bring It. She was ready to face anything, even pain to gain this power.

Alexander looked at her in the face and saw her harsh breathing. No she had enough, there was a line between being tough teacher and turning a student to road kill. He relaxed his pose and turned around a bit, "You had enough. There is no point if I train you until you break. However if you want to follow me then go ahead." Alexander walked away and started to casually got vegetables, he then walked out of the city and into the forested area where he camped. He started a campfire with white flames and put broth and vegetables in a pot. He then unwrapped some meat and threw it in. He was going to let it sit for a bit as his magic infused the food. Alexander said, "I am not normally an a**hole by the way. Demons just rub me the wrong way. I am harsh when I train people cause its a kindness. Real battle will not be as merciful and thus some need to prepare. I can train you once a week and get your form ready, might even teach you some grappling moves. Your best weapon however is this..." He pointed to the side of the temple to give an impression that its his brain.

After a nod of her head, she let herself relax farther, falling to the ground to lay there for a sec, but as he explained that she could follow, she scrambled to get up and walked behind the man. Kariline watched with a raised brow as he picked vegetables and herbs that grew nearby, what was he doing, cooking?

He led her to a camp area he had set up, did he not want to stay in town? Kariline sat and watched as he made food right in front of her, it already started to smell good and make her mouth water. Looking at him, he explained how his actions towards her were only reasoned by past experiences. She gave a slight smile, and it was actually real, but she felt like it was an apology to her.

"Thank you, for everything actually, i know i come off a bit of a... well a bitch, but everything i do, is for myself because im tired of being hurt.." She looked away, she had to seclude to herself, or else people find out her skeletons and use them against her. Its easier to be mean and push people away.

Alexander sighed slightly, “Being an asshole is just a mask we wear because we have been hurt one way or another. Just like the masked smile that I give to others so they don’t worry about my nightmares. ” Alexander stirred the soup a bit more and watched the white flames cook the meat and vegetables. There was one of the few things that he enjoyed in life and that was cooking. He pulled out a pair of bowls and spoon and served the stew. There were bottles of whiskey, rum and vodka to go with it if she chose to drink. Alexander then smiled softly, “Hope you like Venison stew, the thing was a pain in the arse to catch.”

She took her first bite, it was amazing. Kariline smiled a bit more after his words, it was nice to know she wasnt alone when it came to horrible pasts. She always knew that deep down, but she felt like she would never meet another unhappy person. But what is to say he isnt happy, perhaps he could be just wanting to move forward to the future.

Along with her stew, Kariline took a large gulp of vodka, her favorite, as long as it went down without a huge burn. This stuff was nice, instead of using a cup, she just stole the whole bottle, she wasn't afraid of cooties. She stood up and walked over to where he was sitting and sat closer to him, passing him the bottle if he wanted it, " It's really good, im sorry to be eating up all of your hear work." She said with a grin.

Alexander was drinking whiskey with no chaser and having some of hiss stew. Alexander enjoyed his own cooking, not that other peoples cooking was bad... It seemed everyone in ST wanted him to slave in the kitchen, which caused a slight chuckle. This wasn't the ideal hygiene, but it did the trick. Alexander said, "However if you want to move forward with past sins or move forward, then you must learn from past, live in present and prepare for future. Vengeance is nice, but what comes afterwards. Don't let it become empty, make a dream and succeed in it. Alexander felt relaxed actually even with a demon succubus gazing at him. Check one demon off Alexander's s***list.

She stared at her bowl full of stew, she took a bite and thought about what he said, for most of her life, she has thought about vengeance. About killing her brother for what he had done. But was that really the right thing to do? When it came down to it, could she strike against her own flesh and blood, would that really make her any better than him? A Murderer.

Instead of carrying on the gloomy conversation she tried to change the subject, " If you are part of Sabertooth, how do you plan to train me once a week, that is alot of traveling, " She said simply, and that was they truth. She also wondered about when he thought of leaving for home.

Alexander shrugged, "Flying. You use fire like a propulsion system and let it launch you. Turning was hardest part, my face hit a mountain the first time. Still I learned short jumps of propulsion traverses much of the terrain differences making trips easy." Alexander was telling the truth, trip kinda get cut down by quite a bit when you can jump the terrain difference and propel yourself in bursts of speed then long distance was not that bad. Maybe a couple of hours that being a member of Sabertooth inspired. Alexander then said, "I did not say for you to NOT have vengeance. I am saying to do it for right reasons. And have a plan afterwards that will not make you empty. Lot of people make that mistake, you do not have to."