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Poking out of one of the Usual Restaurant booths are a pair of leather boots, black and with thick soles used for motorbike racing. However, the figure that accompanies these boots if one were to pass by the booth in question looks anything but your typical rough-and-tough biker. That's not to say Datenshi has never owned a bike - he used to own one a long time ago, and enjoyed it quite a lot - though he's found himself deprived of a lot of things of late. Powers, memories, familiar locations and allies - even his mansion. Worst of all, his sword - like losing his body. Usually this would drive him to the peak of madness, but that's something else he seems to have lost - and the Dark Angel is pondering these things. Usually he'd be sitting at the bar, never one to take a booth - but today he's felt the need to sit in one. And the table is full of different booze bottles, one of each kind... but for what reason /that/ is remains uncertain. Either way, he does have a replacement sword - his first order of business - and it rests between these bottles almost as a statement. His wings are crumpled into the seat, almost looking uncomfortable - the truth is the nerve endings in those wings died ages ago. In fact, it's more like having more padding - thoroughly enjoyable.
"I have no idea." Datenshi answers in his deep voice, before realising that he answered someone - odd. Usually the Dark Angel would ignore them. Following this up, his red eyes skirt towards Devi entering the booth - and freeze for a moment. Out of all the people to run in to, well, he can't have travelled farfrom Twisted if Devi is still here. The 'number five' thing completely goes over his head, of course, as most cultural references do. He reaches for a bottle of whisky and plucks one of his feathers, dropping it in the mixture - the instant it touches the liquid it begins to dissolve and give it a deep orange-black tint. He takes a swig, then gestures to Devi with a gloved hand. "... What gate leads back to the main nexus? I'm somewhat off the beaten track, as it were." Devi arches an eyebrow as her mouth curves into a half smile. Pushing up, she sits on the back of the booth, putting her feet on the seat and spreading her knees to rest her elbows on them. She looks over the table at the spread and shakes her head. As he looks at her, Devi's shoulder aches for a moment and she rubs it absently, a ghost injury perhaps. Not a bad looking guy, she thinks to herself before answering his question. "Arn't we all. I don't know about any Nexus, but if you find one, point me to it, maybe there will be a way back to my home from there. Though, word around the proverbial campfire is that there isn't a way back to anywhere else." She watches him drink his tainted whiskey and getstures towards it. "It's not strong enough strait for ya?" Datenshi seems to curse his luck. This place he ended up in can't be disconnected from the nexus, he got here somehow! Though Cale mentioned something once about one-way gates... places of no return. The Dark Angel would ponder and brood, but reason tells him it won't do any good. Instead, something nags at the back of his mind... Devi is acting awfully different towards him. And the look in her eyes, almost as if... something is up. She should know about the Nexus, also, she was all involved in those sort of things. Rather than ask, though, Datenshi just leans forward and pulls up a glass - a clean glass is there he refused to use - and pours a drink of the tainted whisky. He then nudges it to the edge of the table, "You can try how strong it is, if you want." He highly doubts Devi will drink it - most veterans of the Usual are afraid to drink anything Datenshi offers up with fear it might be poisoned. It's a reasonable fear, Datenshi went through a spate of pretending to be a bartender and poisoning people a few years ago. Good times, good times. The solitary drink sits there, looking more like guiness now than whisky. Devi rolls a shoulder in a half-shrug and picks up the glass, inspecting the rim and taking a whiff of the stuff. "Second time that some strange looking man has offered me sustenance. I better not make this a habit." Funny this, if Devi were in full capacity of her memories, she'd probably laugh at the Angel, but considering that she's got no memory of the past on Twisted, she taking things diffrently. "It still smells like ass though." She takes a quick sip of it, coughing slighting and turning away, the top edges of her unknown Hell kanji showing above her shirt line on her back. She shakes her head violently and exhales loudly, setting the glass back down. Her voice is raspier then before. "Dear god. I never liked whiskey, but better to try something before knockin it." Datenshi eyes the Hell kanji with some interest, it's somewhat difficult for him to interpret modern day kanji beyond the traditional formal type - and even then, he's not that good. The whisky is violently strong, more like paint thinner than whisky. "My tastes seem to have changed with this body, so I'm retrying everything." He gestures with a gloved hand to the many half empty bottles - some he's obviously fancied more than others. The chilled sake is oddly full; a great dissapointment to him, obviously, as this used to be his drink of choice. Well, after a few centuries you tend to get sick of certain foods and drinks it seems. "But I wouldn't know, I've never ventured to smell ass in great detail." Despite what some other men might imply upon seeing his wings and hair. "... You called me a strange looking man, does that mean you don't remember me?" He looks directly in to her eyes with a probing expression. Devi snickers. "It's a smell you can miss if you're in a group of more then 10 people and half of them are sweating. I'd suggest you avoid clubs, if they even have them here." She looks up at him from under her bangs, trying to figure out if he's joking or not. Her eyes narrow slightly."Why would I remember you? I've only been here for about 2 days. At least I think, unless space/time moves things that much. That's the reason I called you number 5. You're the 5th person I've met so far. You seem to be the most interesting so far too. Although that Diablo guy will give you a run for your money. He's a little too unrespectable for my tastes though." She tilts her head. Datenshi wonders if this is a sign he should wash his wings more often. His eyes seem to flicker in recognition at the name 'Diablo', though his expression then turns to one of barely disguised annoyance. "Ah, so... like it was with Cale or Lina... perhaps there's multiple ones..." He murmurs under his breath, before actively returning to the conversation and pouring himself a different drink. "Well I'm pleased to meet your aquaintance then, I'm Datenshi Wraithshadow by the way... recently rendered homeless as you were. Five people, I've only met one. Should I call you number one?" He's completely unaware of any connotation with that title, of course. "You should come sit in my booth, if you only know a whole five people in the city." Though it's a bit of a mess. Devi folds her legs and slides into a seat, sitting indian style. She pushes some of the bottles, enough to make room for her arms, should she choose to lean on the table. She's an avid leaner. "Datenshi, eh? Interesting name. Do I need to introduce myself? Seems like a few people already know who I am, oddly enough and while that worries me, I'm trying to be open minded and not freak out." she picks up a bottle and stiffs it trying to identify the drink. Swirling it around in the bottle, she peers back over at Dathenshi. "Uh, am I allowed to ask about the wings?" Better to ask then to just comment. Whoo! Self restraint! Datenshi sips his drink and peers up, his clearly supernatural hued eyes staring up at her without so much as a hint of judgement. "Of course. I'm a Dark Angel... my kind is hated by both Yaweh and Lucifer, exiled to wander the earth and reap humans souls. Or at least they are. I got free." He swirls the liquid in his glass and looks down at it, if Devi is an avid leaner than he seems to like to lean backwards - always with his feet up. Right now it's on the seat, but if it wasn't he'd need a chair and a table to sit them on, or a foot stool, or a body. "... Don't concern yourself about it. The person I know who looks like you, I know very little about besides a name. And what's in a name?" Completely oblivious he just made a shakespeare reference. Devi filters through her memory to attach a meaning to Yaweh and chuckles. "So, you're a reaper." She raises her hands to correct herself."Sorry, you were a reaper. Didn't know that was a career choice. Though, I assume that it wasn't." Getting the attention of a skutter, she orders a cup of coffee and busys herself clearing a larger spot, moving the mostly full bottles together and the nearly empty ones the same."Some would argue that everything is in a name, including power, not to mention the properties of souls." Nodding in thanks to the returning Skutter, she sips her drink and sighs softly, content with caffine. "Devi then, is my name, though it still bugs me that someone who looks likes me or carrys my name is flittering around." Perhaps she should just take that train of thought elsewhere, as Diablo mentioned something along those lines last night. Does she have a doppleganger? "I can't sympathise, I've yet to personally come across that problem - though I know people that have." Datenshi just naturally assumes he's completely unique in the entire multiverse. Who knows what he'd do if he came across another one of himself? He seems to smell the coffee, it smells... oddly appealing. That's odd, such substances never appealed to him in the past. "One for me too." The Dark Angel gestures towards one of the Skutters, though he never got used to the contraptions - such machines make him wary, he preferred the old waitresses - you could punish them if they got something wrong, or you were bored. Machines are no fun to destroy, especially faceless ones. "It wasn't so much a career choice as a survival choice. But I find it has been an excellent one. What do you do, are you associated with the otherworld?" He gestures idly to the 'Hell' symbol on her back. Devi laughs, having no idea what he's gesturing at. She hasn't discovered her tattoo, nor noticed the same symbol being on the back of her trench. "If you can call customer service otherworldly, yes. I work, well, worked in a bookstore. Not quite difficult, but the customers were rather...," Devi pauses to find the right word, "Distinctive, sometimes odd. At least it gave me a chance to read up on things I wouldn't have had the time to before." Pushing back a bang that has fallen to far into her vision, she continues. "I'm just a standard, run of the mill Human, unless this really is some backwards Science Fiction novel and I've gained the ability to shoot lighting out of my fingers or something." Devi still resonates with power to those that can feel that sort of thing, but it's unbeliveably restrained. Seals upon seals upon seals cover Devi's former glory and she's got no clue. "So, I'm going to assume that you, like almost everyone else I've met, just kinda woke up here?" In a terribly male way, Datenshi's brain turns to white noise as soon as she starts talking about customer service... psshhhhhhh.... phssshhhh... thankfully, the Dark Angel's wonderful expressionless face hides the fact this is what is going through his innermost thoughts - giving him ample time to pick up the coffee that is served and take a sip, finding it bitter. Bitter and harsh. He likes it. Sort of like a drink that punishes you for tasting it, how pleasant. He makes a mental note to order it with more coffee and no sugar or milk, as they both completely obscure the taste.. trust humans, westerner humans at that, to make a drink with something in it they completely want to mask the flavor of. He snaps back to attention in the 'run of the mill human' part, as the word 'human' tends to be related to interesting topics of discussion. An attentive shake of the head, "Not exactly, I wandered in through a small rift... my body was destroyed in a battle of sorts. It was only by chance that I returned to existence, or else I may have spent my life as a wandering soul." Boy, that Shinto priest is probably really regretting communing with Datenshi's spirit now - but how was he to know what he was messing with? "... How can Science and Fiction exist together? Isn't science fact?" Devi says, "Well, arn't you lucky." She looks into her coffee, stirring her sugared and milked necter of the Gods beverage. "Science is only part fact. The rest is just theory. Fiction develops theory turning a neat story most of the time." Her mind runs over his explination, a sprk firing in her chest at the thought of battle. She shakes it off though, choosing instead to look more at his wings. You'll have to forgive her, she's not used to seeing people with wings, aside from halloween. Devi wonders if he can fly with them though, they're certainly large enough to support his weight. "Ah, so it's as stories were in my time.." Datenshi's one experience with fiction was with a nutty librarian who threw paper that seemed to gain properties of their own, the dark angel pursued her a little while out of curiosity. Of course the last few times he mentioned his penchant for watching humans (since he doesn't sleep) from shadows, it didn't go down so well - so he doesn't bring it up. A hand moves up and brushes back his hair, then he looks at her eyes looking at his wings. "... Are all females interested in my wings? It seems to be a habit, people looking at them - wanting to touch them or pluck them." He doesn't sound miffed, more amused. Devi says, "To be fair, winged people arn't common. The best I've seen is those stupid elastic fake wings that goth kids don during halloween to look badass. Not to mention that you're a myth yourself, much less being a reaper with feathers, which is odd enough as religion paints you as a slave to god." She shrugs. "If it bothers you... It's the wings or the eyes, as that's not something I've seen before either." Devi makes eye contact as though to make her point. "And is it really just women? Men aren't concered about a red eyed winged angel in their mist?" She stops herself before talking to much trash about the other gender being oblivious. Snakes and ass biting and all that. "To be honest, male humans rarely approach me without being hostile. I say humans, I come from a world where wings are less unusual than you would think." Datenshi takes this moment to tap the sheathed weapon on his table, as if to highlight what world he must have come from - one with a need for it. "Females seem to like approaching me despite... perhaps *because* of the danger." Baffling, but the Dark Angel long ago concluded some people have a subconcious death wish. "I was a slave to Yaweh, chains and all - bound to do my job for all eternity. It was either that or face Yomi, the afterlife of Nippon... I didn't much like the idea of being attached to a rack or being dumped in boiling oil. I have been a slave my entire life and unlife, the only way I've escaped that is by becoming the master. Here, amongst so many who seem oblivious of my nature, that shouldn't be all too hard." Of course, his current weakness may be an obstacle to that... hopefully it's a universal thing. As he touches his sword, Devi's hand itches to reach behind her shoulder to make sure that.. something is there. Her hand raises slightly before she catches it and re-attaches it to her coffee cup."Just because they approach you with hostility, doesn't mean they don't wonder about your... appendages? Perhaps the females feel more confident that they don't have something to prove, thus the 'flood' of woman flocking to you." Oh, there's that old sarcastic tone, creeping into the last words. She smiles lightly. "The Master of... hard drinks." She grins. "I'm sure that someone will come along, eager to put you back in chains. Isn't that how it always works?" Dangerous or not, Devi hopes that if that day comes, she's allowed on the side lines to watch him fight. Datenshi nods solemnly, "Eventually someone will." Only three have succeeded, two of them dead - third is close, give it time. He seems to smile at the sarcasm, showing perfect teeth and leaning back into the chair - it looks quite comfortable using said wings to rest on, "... law enforcement is usually first, followed by some righteous would-be hero annoyed about something. Cale is usually last, with the lecturing." The worst of all, of course. He drinks his coffee without a single slurp, placing the empty cup down to be cleared away. "... And what do you plan to do now that you're without a home? I believe you need a residence before you need work." Devi says, "Are there even cops here?" She doesn't know who Cale is, he hasn't made the list yet. Another shrug. "I don't know what my plan is yet. I don't really have one. I'm sure I'll find someplace to crash and I can go from there. Until I can figure out a way home, or a way to build a new life, I suppose I'll try to find a place to give me a job." She's not afraid of work, any kind of work, having been raised to do everything with pride and passion, no matter how mediocre. "One day at a time. I'm suprised that I havn't lost it yet, waking up in a strange world and meeting strange people. I'm sure it'll set in later though." She shrugs. "If I was as I used to be, I'd offer you to give up your humanity for power, wealth, and all around good fun. I seem to have lost that particular ability, though, much to my regret." Datenshi seems to lean and place an elbow on the bench, placing his chin in his palm - playing with the spoon in the coffee cup until it is cleared away, his wings shifting ever so slightly. His crimson eyes look at Devi, her soul seems... retrained. Sort of cut up compared to what she used to be... whatever that was. "I would watch out if I were you, you look like the sort people would prey on.. you stand out from the crowd, but don't seem strong enough to be a threat. That man, Diablo... if he is anything like I remember, he is just that sort. Oh, and me, of course." Ah, at last, a fresh coffee. The scutter almost spills it though, clearly distracted by a John Wayne movie playing in the background. Devi says, "I think, maybe, if you were what you used to be, you wouldn't be in a bar chugging /down/ the bar. Somehow I doubt that my humanity is worth enough to trade for power or wealth as power only makes you sour and lonely and wealth is useless if you are alone." She drinks deep in her cup, her gaze locked on Datenshi, trying to get a general reading on him. "I suppose I look like a lot of things, but people should be more wise to then to test steel they've never seen." She could be refering to her sword skills or her 'steel' spine. Regardless her eyes lit up at the thought of the challenge. "So you're the sort to prey on me?" She leans back. "I'd honestly rather that people didn't see me. It's easier to move around. I guess that's not really an option though. What about you, oh Dark Angel of Death? Eager to find your nexus?" Datenshi laughs all of a sudden, sipping his coffee as he makes no movements for his sword... yet. He does slip one of his feet up, but that could just him trying to get more comforable. "... Not really. See, when you're able to prey on everything easily, everything becomes quite boring to catch. You'd be surprised what you'd find people with too much free time doing." Gesturing to the many drinks, which are much fewer in number due to Devi's clean up. "You look fun to prey on, yes, but I might get to know you first. I'd actually like to become your friend, if that's possible." Yes, he did just suggest that, and yes, he looks deadly serious with those almost surreal red eyes of his. "... Unless you're afraid of me, or just don't like me. But I don't think you'd be sitting here if you found me boring, and you seem like the sort who likes an escape from the boredom of the real world." The sound of him laughing sounds strange coming from such a serious person, and Devi finds it intreging. She grins impishly. "Friends is something I was never good at, considering I usually didn't leave my apartment, but this is a new place after all and I lack an apartment to hide in. Friends would be nice." Out of the conversations she's had so far, this one is significantly more interesting. "And you're right, on both counts." He /is/ interesting and she does despise the hum-drum of 'reality'. Devi sees his potential to be scary as hell, but she's never had much fear of anything, so it doesn't bother her. "Maybe I'm just drawn to talk to sadists and no offence, but you do look like one. So what are you going to do now that you're here? Linger about?" "Sadist, yes, I think that's come up a few thousand times." Datenshi muses, leaning back once again and winking somewhat. A gloved finger seems to play now with the end of his sword handle on the table, pressing at the fabric wrapped around the handle. He's glad she finds him interesting, it means he's not as utterly out of touch with humans as he thought. Though Devi has that unusualness about her that makes her worth paying attention to in the first place, that fearlessness. "I was attached to my last apartment, the manor I lived in before I came here was too... pretentious. I aim to find another small place somewhere, just move in. You'd be welcome to stay." An invitation... to be his roomie? Hold the Twisted times!
"Don't want to smell like half a dozen sweaty people on a dancefloor?" Datenshi smiles with his perfect teeth, flicking his sword handle up with a finger and catching it in his other hand. "I suppose I better do some searching of my own, check out the lay of the land. Likewise, fare well." Formal speech, as always, as he picks himself up and throws some money on the table - though some of it looks suspiciously dark. Don't think too much about it. Devi nods, her grin widening as she turns and walks behind the bar and into the Staff area, the doors swingin closed behind her. | |
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