World So Cold (Duorzum/Open!)

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The noontime sun hung directly over the city of Edge, throwing its golden rays down to wash the city in its friendly glow. People mulled about here and there, getting the afternoon's duties done. The only children not accompained by a parent were either at the single orphanage that lie in Edge, or the few parks scattered about.

Votum, being a natural loner, had decided to leave his orphanage briefly to have some alone time. Ten years of being mainly on your own can make one a bit uncomfortable with so many others. He sat in a tiny patch of grass underneath a rather sorry looking tree that lie in a virtually abandoned park, buisily drawing away in his blue and gold notebook.

On the page lie a near perfect replica of the land before him, right down to the way the sun cast its light on the park. He paused a brief moment to give his head a shake, causing the lock of hair covering half of his face to part and reveal his mismatched eye. This was more like it. Something about the tranquility one recieved from being along was appealing to the young boy.

[Duorzum]

Again, Teivel was after him. Again, Duorzum had to lure him away. Once more, he was smashed into the ground. Like so many times before, the big beast just flew off, leaving the demon to his own devices. It was getting more and more repetitive as the days went by. If it weren't for his hyper-regeneration ability, he wouldn't have lasted this long. He would have died the first time he met Teivel. That cave-in wasn't as bad as he was feeling now. Damn... battered like tenderizing meat.

Where was he now?

One, it was sunny, two, it looked like Edge. Which part of Edge? All the cities were starting to blur together now... as did the days and weeks. He detected the scent of dying plants. Interesting.

After attempting to sit up, and succeeding, he took note of a kid sitting beneath a scraggly tree, drawing. Duorzum quickly activated the human illusion disguise, hiding his demonic features from prying eyes. Hm... Teivel didn't hit him as hard as he had thought. Still, it was useful to be careful.

Duo was hit with a headache. Dammit.

[Deleted]

Votum fell backward with a yelp of surprise as a purple blur fell from the sky and smashed into the ground before him. Well, so much for tranquility. He quickly got to his feet and, in contrast to what a normal child might do, walked toward where the man had fallen.

How odd. A fall like that would've killed any normal man easily. His mismatched eyes blinked slowly in confusion. Maybe this man was a SOLDIER! The boy focused harder, seeing the piercing violet eyes adorning the man's face. Nope, not SOLDIER. He couldn't help but feel a pang of disappointment.

"Hello?" He called to the fallen man. "Do you need help or something?"

[Duorzum]

Above him, Teivel roared. His angry and pissed off roars could be heard faintly from ground level. Duorzum wanted the giant moron to get angry. Maybe he'll go back home crying to daddy. What a daddy's boy. Seriously.

Duorzum's attention on the sky was broken when the kid from before asked him something. He shook his head, rising to his feet. No, he was fine. Beat up, granted, but doing okay.

"I'll be fine."

His opponent flew off in some random direction in a blue blaze. Duo was pretty sure that others had seen the fight between the two.

[Deleted]

Votum opened his mouth to say something more, but closed it after a brief pause. He could tell, judging by the Duo-shaped hole left where the man had fallen, that he was in at least some pain. But, it seemed to be no use pushing the matter further. With a sigh, the young boy settled back into his spot and opened the sketchbook once more. He flipped to a blank page and began to sketch out this newcomer's face. Votum, despite his intelect, was very succeptable to forgetfulness. This way, he could keep people in his memories. Unfortunately, due to his loner personality, there were few faces in that sketchbook.

"That thing chasing you sure seems angry." The white haired boy commented without looking up. "Why does it want to hurt you so bad?" This time, his mismatched gaze flicked up to Duorzum. Seeing the clear irritation at the thing written across his face, Votum shrugged and returned to drawing. "It's none of my buisness, I guess."

[Duorzum]

His answer was quick, "He was bred to kill. That's all I know about him."

He heard the scraping of pen on paper. Always that sound.... Duorzum thought the kid was writing, but a second look told him otherwise. It was a sketchpad. This kid could draw? He was curious now. The demon didn't want to pry into the kid's business either.

"What are you doing out here on your own? It's not really safe out here anymore."

[Deleted]

"I like to be alone. I spent most of my life alone, so the move into the orphanage was a bit of a shock. I come here often, because nobody really pays attention to this place." Votum replied, sketching one last line of his drawing of Duorzum. He looked up, seeing the man's purple eyes resting on his sketchpad. It was natural to be curious of such things, and Duorzum did have the right to see it, for the drawing was of him. "Oh, sorry. Are you not comfortable with being drawn? I just like to draw new people I meet, so I won't forget them. Here, you can see it." The white haired boy got to his feet and passed the sketchbook to Duorzum

"If you don't mind the asking, what's your name? I'm Votum." He gave the man a small grin.

[Duorzum]

Duorzum took a look at the kid's drawing. Damn. It was fantastic. Too bad it was the face of someone else. Duo handed the sketchpad back to the kid. A shrug, "You have talent, kid."

He went silent when he asked for his name. Seconds later, he told it, "Duorzum."

No harm in telling a child his name, right? Right?

[Deleted]

"It's nice meeting you, Duorzum. It's not every day one gets to meet a man who falls from the sky and lives." Votum chuckled softly. This man was different, which he liked. Normal people were so boring. "But, something doesn't seem quite right about my drawing. I drew everything as I saw it, but it doesn't seem to fit you, for some reason. It's like drawing somebody who's wearing a mask. Even if you draw everything perfect, you can tell that it's not their face."

[Duorzum]

Duo smiled a bit at the child's quip about him falling out of the sky. He hit the head of the nail on that one. The smile faded off when Votum explained what he thought about the drawing. Damn, this kid was good. How'd he know it was only a mask? He kept the stare devoid of emotion. Duorzum decided to skirt the truth around a bit, "If people saw the real face, they would run screaming, or attack on sight. Depends on the individual, though."

The child did not need to see his true form... unless he asked.

[Deleted]

"Wait, I was right?" Votum spluttered, surprise briefly flicking across his face. "I thought it was just me being... I dunno, overly-immaginative I guess?" He shrugged, promptly shutting the sketchpad. "Well, your true face is really none of my concern. Obviously, it's hidden for a reason." For some reason, Votum was not scared, despite the reasons Duorzum had given for hiding his true form. Actually, he seemed to be slightly intrigued. Votum was an odd little boy, that was for sure.

[Duorzum]

Duorzum shrugged, and sat down. His tail appeared, gently tapping the ground in a mild nervous twitch. He was more or less afraid of Teivel coming back. That creature had the capability of melting down a city in less than half an hour. Luckily, he did not have the intelligence to think in such a way.

"You hit the mark, Votum. Well, at least about me anyway. I can't say the same for everybody else."

[Deleted]

"Alot of people say I'm good at reading people. I don't think it's that, though. I just look a little deeper than the surface. Most would be surprised by what they'd find if they tried to do that." Votum's mismatched eyes flicked to Duorzum's tail, awe briefly stirring in their depths.

The boy jumped in surprise as a hideous roar came from above. The distinct beat of wings could be heard overhead as the creature searched for Duorzum. Appearently, the two had quite a history. "You may want to go. That thing sounds like it's getting close."

[Duorzum]

Duorzum nodded in understanding. The kid was wiser than he seemed. He was about to respond when he heard the roar too. Ah shit. Teivel's out searching for him again. Terrific.

"You should hide somewhere. I think I can lure him away."

He needed to get Teivel's attention away from the city. Duorzum knew that he would demolish a city just to look for him. Damn, damn, damn it all. Great violet wings appeared, the demon taking wing to confront Teivel.

He really did not want to face the mountain of a monster....

[Deleted]

Votum nodded numbly, the realization that this monster could easily destroy this city finally dawning on him. Was Duorzum really going to face that thing alone? He could be killed! Votum did not want that to happen, but what could he do? He wasn't special, and the beast would see him as a mosquito at best. A pest, easily swatted down and killed.

His mismatched eyes were dark with concentration and worry. Not even his sharp mind seemed to come up with a viable solution. "Okay. Thank you, Duorzum." Votum said simply, gazing briefly at the mutant's wings before turning to go.