Ally Recruited?

An abhuman, one that looked awfully similar to those drawings from earth. Though, something felt off. Hell, this whole situation felt off, nothing about this was in any sense normal. Logic would dictate that this was merely a piece of lore I had managed to have forgotten, or overlooked, but every other part of my brain smelled the scent of divine bullshit.

There's no way this interaction could be the mere product of coincidence, I couldn't accept that. Steam poured out from my ears as the temperature of my brain rose alongside my confusion, bringing about more pain than I thought possible from the two. My teeth grit against one another, as my head tilted towards the sky, drawing in a deep breath of the heavily polluted air.

In a flash, a tar-like substance coated the inner parts of my mouth, slick like grease, but also sticky like dry chewing gum. My throat churned in response, violently wrenching and coughing until it got used to this vile madness. As for the woman in front of me, it was as though she weren't even bothered by it, tilting her head to the side while her body leaned ever closer, the distance between us shortening in a snap.

My body jolted back at the sudden action, stumbling back onto the dirt below, a plume of gravel kicking up. "Why are you taking so long? Just point in their direction, and I'll make sure not to leave a trace behind!" Ceobe proudly proclaimed, making me no less perturbed by her presence. The joy behind her tone was unsettling, naught a single hint of hesitation in her words.

"Because not everyone can just do that? Besides, as I've said, I don't have any food. Nor do I have the money for it either." Her shoulders defectively slumped, a soft whimper just barely reaching my ears. "Look, I'm not really in the business of killing people, alright? Maybe you can ask some other dude. Who knows, might find someone with the right fetish."

Her cheeks darkened with a heavy dusting of crimson, her spear hand stretched out and pointing directly at my chest, my heart roared in my ears at the action. "It- it- isn't like that!" She whined, an embarrassed expression on her face as her other hand waved in the air. "It's not like I kill people for fun, they always start shooting at me first and shouting names like 'abhuman abomination'. I just want to eat some foooooood~!"

That certainly wasn't hard to see, though, it wouldn't make much sense as to why they would turn her down… Unless there was something else right under the surface. "And why do you think they treated you like that? It would be safe to assume that these things don't just happen right out of the blue, no?"

"Ah-" She stuttered, pondering for a moment, drawing away from me as her fingers cupped her chin. It was as though a switch had flipped in her mind, sparks flying between her brows as her mouth hung agape. "I got it!" Walking back with stride, her eyes beamed with determination, contrasting to the gloomy atmosphere surrounding us. "Alright, so I might have accidentally killed his partner while doing an important job."

Like a sack of bricks, things fell into place, slotting one after another as the pieces fit right in. A cold wind passed between us, the silence dreadfully deafening. "So it was your fault." I deadpanned, the apprehension on her face was all the evidence I needed.

"Alright, I might have made a few mistakes." Again, I stared, eyes sharpening like the fine point of a pen. "One too many, but the main point is that we learn from them, right? Understanding where you're wrong and all that fun stuff."

"There's also feeling remorseful for the dead, but that doesn't seem to be a problem for you." Pinching the bridge of my nose, I shook my head, letting out a soft sigh. "But, if you really don't mind killing for your meal, then you could ransack the factory right over there. Might be a few innocent people, but that shouldn't really matter when there's money on the line, yeah?" I pointed towards the manufactorum in the distance, certainly condemning at least one person to the warp.

Her expression split, one-half joy, and the other, hesitance. Conflict brewed within the dog abhuman as she planted her weapon into the ground. "No, not really." She flatly denied. "I might be dumb, but I'm not dumb enough to think that whatever they're making inside is worth more than the money I can take from their super-secret vault. It would simply be better to take operations, honestly."

My finger rose, only to fall just as swiftly, the gears in my head whirring to life, as I was unable to find the words to refute the statement. "Fair enough." I shrugged, a buzzing hum echoing from my throat. "Then why haven't you done that already? Have your own supply of cash waiting for you in some bank."

"Because managing something is boring! Assassination is more fun. So much less hassle, and I get to keep any new shiny weapon I find." My ear twitched, for one reason or another, it felt as though there was something wrong with what she had said.

"That much is understandable, it's pretty headache inducing as is, but could you repeat that last part again?"

"I get to keep any new weapon I pick up?"

"Right, right. Then it's safe to assume all those on your back are the many prizes you've collected?" Eyeing them, she immediately perked up, smugness dripping from her frame as her cloak parted, revealing an array of blades underneath. Having my suspicions confirmed really didn't make things better, all things considered.

"Yep, and I was just about to add another to my collection!" She cheered, raising the spear into the air with a pep in her step. "That was, until my hunger caught up to me, and now we're here. So what about you, dear stranger? I've told my story, now what about yours?"

The situation had flipped, a sort of tension rising in my chest, as anxiety pumped through my veins. Guess I have been putting it off long enough, and it wouldn't be wise to attempt tricking someone who was a veritable walking armory. "My name is Joseph." I curtly answered. "A simple denizen of the underhive with many great ambitions. Say, Ceobe, right? I have a proposal for you."

"Oh, do you now?" She asked with much curiosity, a pair of her gloved fingers grasping at her chin. "Do tell then, because, if anything, the past few minutes have felt like nothing more than a waste of my time. Entertaining, perhaps, but still a waste nevertheless."

I found myself staring at the strange woman for several moments, eliciting a raised brow from her end as time dragged on, my nerves finally steeling themselves for what was potentially to come. "An investment, if you would. Work with me for a time, and I will be able to give you as much food as you will ever want and need. How does that sound?"

"Like a lie." The woman blatantly pointed out, as though she had seen a trickster weave a lie right before her eyes. "If you're going to say something like that, at least be convincing. Keep your expectations realistic, and you might actually fool someone." She finished with a deadpan, waving her hand in the air dismissively. "Anyways, I'll be going now. No point in staying here anymore."

"Wait!" I called out, receiving not a single droplet of her attention. My mind ran laps around itself, trying to find something that could at least help in the situation. "You're here for a reason, right? Something about collecting another weapon, if I recall. Now that I think about it, there's always been something peculiar about this place. If I serve as your guide, do you think you can consider my offer?"

She paused in the middle of her step, the clopping of her shoes coming to a halt, as a stabbing sensation penetrated the space between my brows. "Perhaps, that's only if you can find me some good grub first."

A nervous sweat trailed down my back. Just how much bullshit did I have to spew to get someone to act as my bodyguard in this shithole of a world? Shifting my expression, the edges of my lips tugged, spreading out as a brief relief wafted over my senses, having gained the slightest bit of ground.

However, I ended up wandering back to the question, why put this much effort? It struck me like a ton of bricks, stunned for what felt like an eternity. Again, what was the point of my actions, and this time, I barely had an excuse to back what I did up. Was it by impulse? Her looks? Maybe even a need for companionship? Probably, but among those, the one that seemed most attractive in my mind was: "A need for safety in the dangerous and unknown.".

Without my notice, I had muttered the words under my breath, a slight, yet obvious, twitch strumming through the dog-girls body. "So, is there a place here that serves something better than slop?" Having apparently decided to ignore the comment, she turned her gaze towards me, flashing a bored look, crossing her arms.

"In here? Tough luck." I shot back, straightening out my weakening posture, meeting her eye to eye. "You might find some actual food on the upper levels, but here? Jack. Not a single morsel in sight, not unless you eat fresh human meat." Shivers ran down my spine at the thought, a cold breeze slipping between my legs unsolicited.

"And going up from here would be too much trouble." She scowled, bellowing out a deep grown not a moment later. "Why can't going up ever be simple? Everytime I even attempt to go up, those from above always try to kick me down. It's annoying!" Once more, Ceobe complained, shaking her head back and forth, turning to me expecting an answer. "There has to be another place, right?"

Drawing upon my limited knowledge was hard, my eyes swayed from one side to another like a pendulum, grabbing a hold of her hand as I took her to the nearest exit. "Something like that." I lied. Even with the help of lore videos, even if I endlessly combed through the wiki, I wouldn't ever have enough knowledge to actually answer the question.

So I went for the next best thing. Crossing my heart, we walked for some time without aim. My heart beat rose on occasion as Ceobe doubted I had a plan(which I didn't). Still, she trusted in my word, her teeth grit through the whole ordeal. Eventually, we stumbled upon a hole in the wall that merely had a sign with the word "Bar!" Pointing towards it.

Though it might have been foolish to take her here, I would at least be somewhat protected if the shop owner ever decided to butcher me alive. I just hoped that this plan would succeed, lest everything goes down the drain. Either way, if all else failed, at the very least, I had some "fun" here while it lasted.

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[A/N: Copy and paste below.

Anyways, if you find anything wrong in the fic, let me know. I would love to hear your thoughts, opinions, and what I could have done in place of what is present.

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