sword_breaker | Myth!AU

[There's a slight wind to give signs that colder weather was going to hit the city at some point but otherwise the chill didn't faze many much with the sun pouring down rays without any resistance from white wisps streaking across blue. Another busy work day for most people as they packed the sidewalks in order to accomplish whatever the day asked of them to do, some of them heading off towards lunch break even as the afternoon brought along ease in traffic after the rushing around or rather dead still in the morning commutes that always came like clockwork. The towering skyscrapers piercing above while scattered about were busy shops and apartment complexes ranging to the higher end of the spectrum, fortunate for several residents of them being close to where they worked usually.

However it didn't matter much to the man lying face first towards the blue in an alley, red bursts staining his shirt in an act of fatal defiance against the fabric. He wasn't caring about anything anymore. Pools of crimson have congealing into a sticky mess at his side to keep company with the broken body though it was a waste honestly. A barrier of yellow and black tape announcing the crime scene as if the body and the blood weren't enough already to do so. Officers scurrying about to comb through every little thing in order to scrounge up evidence ranging from fingerprints to shell casings while a medical examiner started jotting down notes as though it were a race.

To be fair, it was a race that was ticking away for all of them but yet he didn't exactly have to put so much effort into finding out the who, why and whatnot of this particular case. Never really showed interest in the exact details of a person's death as it wasn't under his job description nor would he if paid enough, more so content enough with the tasks that were scheduled for him to do. He sends a confirmation of his arrival with a quick text before stowing away the smart phone into his back pocket and assessing the fussing police. No doubt Matthieu was going to blow his phone up with messages after getting the answer but that could be ignored.

Passing underneath the tape, the man eased through the scene with no problems coming from the uniformed others. Though that was the point of having such a decent illusion in order to essentially make him invisible, allowing a much easier time accomplishing his tasks without the stupid questions that would be raised at his presence much less what he would do here. He had the slight frown that could've been considered appropriate for the situation but the claw marks and irrevocably damaged right eye would certainly cause a more sinister thought process to occur. Maybe even be considered as a hit man that had down the crime but to be fair he didn't hunt unless told otherwise and certainly not boring humans such as this idiot. Besides a man decked in a suit stood out in this mess with much help to his disregard of everything save for the dead man who certainly was still brimming with the confused energy of a trapped soul. Definitely need to rectify that.

James crouched down right next to the examiner and fished out a knife before making an incision right at the heart before reaching down to draw out the reluctant soul. The reaper was only doing his job and besides no one was going to see him do his work, not the police nor the surrounding crowd of onlookers.

He was looking forward to the break after this one, sneak away towards his usual haunt; a coffee shop that boasted fantastic blends that were more so a necessity at this rate rather than a mere commodity and plus the perfect spot he claimed by the window in order to watch the world keep moving. The energy from the illusion would be easily restored during that. Then it would be another one in midtown before being able to return back home for the day and unwind. That or check with the bar to make sure a friend or two didn't snoop around more than they should. The former was going to be the most probable though so he shows the other idea to the back of his mind before focusing.]

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[Shade drags his hand down his face before staring back down at his phone. The dumb lil lizard emoticon next to the number underneath a waiting finger.]

I can do this. I got this. Totally do. Just drinks yea.

[He hits the option for text and sends over a question about hitting up a bar or café or something. Options, gotta have options.]

[Andrei looks back at James just long enough to smile. Look. He's trying. See?

Maybe they'll even make it through the first level without getting slaughtered.]

[Well don't get too confident Andrei.

Still, James' return prompts a small grin, and he leans up against the man.]

Came back to watch me die?

[Wrapping an arm around the dullahan's shoulders, he watches as a beam takes down the chief in one well placed hit. They hit the tougher part of the first level now. Sniper alley.]

You know what they say, a reaper only shows when a death happens.

[He returns after a couple more moments, anxious since he hasn't gotten a text back yet. Maybe the basilisk wants nothing to do with him. The banshee was attached to reapers after all.]

Ouch. Probably should've scanned the trees, Andrei. Jackals are always up there.

[Granted he's been killed plenty in this same spot at times.]

Sorry.

James, don't jinx me!

[He switches to his sniper and tries to kill the jackals so he can respawn Liam. He can do this.]

Wait, jackals? Like those dogs?

[He relaxes into James though, despite all the confusion.]

No, not really. They're one of the alien enemies in this series. More bird and reptile like than dog.

[Besides his character was dead which means the reaper can kiss along his jaw and not worry about distracting him...not too much at least.]

Jackals are like their human given nickname. They're actually avian based space pirates called Kig-Yar. They're above grunts and drones in the covenant hierarchy but below elites and brutes. They can be snipers which have the carbines or the beam rifles with the last one being worst. But you'll run more into the shielded guys. What's cool is you can pop them in the hand and they falter enough that you can then go in for the headshot.

And you tell me I'm a nerd, Shade.

[There. Okay. That's one jackal down. He rushes in to revive Liam.]

[That...is a lot of words. A lot. At least the little guy isn't freaking out anymore, that's good right?]

Y..eah.

[Shade can be more than enthusiastic when it comes to games and the universes that are within them. Honestly he didn't mind since it made the banshee happy and was ok with discussing such things. However it seems Andrei and Liam weren't so much.

He sighs softly and leans back into the loveseat, propping his chin up with his arm. They weren't doing too bad really.]

It doesn't count when it comes to video games.

[That's the best defense he has against that and winds up falling quiet. Awesome. He embarrassed himself in front of James' boyfriend yet again. Good going self.]

Okay, true. Especially in boss fights.

[He doesn't mind it when Shade tells secrets to the game, but Liam seems a bit overwhelmed.]

I mean, 's good to know, right? Means that you're prepared.

[Put a positive spin on things, yeah.]

[See Shade? Not everything is as bad as it seems after all. Though he can't be real good judge of that so he continues to watch them game.]

[Despite the reassurance, the banshee is still all nerves and tries to hide it with a drink and never looking from the screen.]

More like I'm good at remembering. Played too much. It makes it hard to forget.

It's a good game. I don't blame you.

[Okay, they got past that section. Things are a lot less scary now.]

Hey, remembering things ain't bad. Like, that's a good skill, yeah?

[It would be better if the banshee would stop clamming up so much at the drop of anything possibly bad. Hell he would be thankful to have the Shade that walked in here so boldly earlier even if that had been annoying. He's half tempted to try his hand at distracting Liam.]

The campaigns are easier if you know what to do. It's even better for multiplayer. He knows where all of the power weapons are on all of the maps. In majority of the games too.

[His hand skirts along the dullahan's side as he talks.]

Yea, yea I suppose so. It's not too hard and that explains why you want me on your team so much, right?

[A brief smile is given in turn. He's trying, ok? Though he was still nerves waiting on an answer from a certain basilisk.]

And we enjoy your company.

[They're almost to the objective. Andrei's proud of himself for not having fumbled anything irreparably. Yet.]

[Alright, things seem to be smoothed over just a bit. That's certainly a good thing, at least as far as he can tell. But in the next moment there's a hand wandering up his side and it's certainly enough to distract him from the game. Which of course leads to his character's untimely death at the hands of yet another jackal.]

Er, sorry.

[The reaper has to look away and cover his mouth with his free hand to stifle a laugh that almost slips out. He didn't mean to get Liam killed but hey it worked. Besides there was always respawning in the games anyway so it shouldn't be too bad.]

What happen?

Someone wasn't paying attention.

[He points out before taking a pull from his drink, watching the screen but eyes flicker over to the duo on the loveseat. Really James? That was mean.]

Might need to pull back to bring him back.