Apping to vatheon, canon is Digital Devil Saga

[bufudine]

[ Serph can't say he likes being taken away from his mission to find his comrades, but...

To be in a place without any fighting... that sounds a lot like the Nirvana they were promised. ]

...It sounds like a nice place.

[ Now, if only he could enjoy it with his comrades... ]

Comments

[anonnomnomnom]

... Surely you aren't just going to leave it at that!

[bufudine]

[ Headtilt. ]

What do you mean?

[anonnomnomnom]

It's like saying you've found an amazing treasure, and then not telling anyone what it was! Don't be so stingy. Maybe the rest of us will want to give the place a look, too.

[bufudine]

[ Oh. ]

It's called Vatheon. There's a beach.

[ Never mind the fact that almost everything important in the game is actually in an underwater city. He's more interested in the island and the blue sky. ]

[anonnomnomnom]

[GJ, Serph. Hopefully you'll actually get to see those.]

Hm? Well, I hear beaches are pretty nice, especially if you can go surfing. [Excuse him while he babbles about things he doesn't know anything about!] But that can't be all? It seems like much too simple a game. What's the catch?

[bufudine]

[ Serph... ing...?

Closing his eyes and thinking hard! ]

Your comrades might not arrive, and you can't leave when you want to.

[anonnomnomnom]

[Yup, they all ride Serphboards across the waves! LEGIONS UPON LEGIONS OF SERPHERS!

Anyway. His turn to headtilt.]

Ah, but isn't it that way for most of them? You can't call that a handicap if everybody else has the same one, right? Try again!

[bufudine]

[ asdf;lkjasdf;lkj NO HE'S NOT FOR RIDING--

He doesn't really know anything about what other games have or don't have so he's just going to have to take a guess! ]

Everything is fish themed.

[ He's not sure if that's a good or bad thing. What's a fish, anyway? ]

...The communicators look edible.

[anonnomnomnom]

[ARE YOU SURE ABOUT THAT--]

You don't like fish? But there's so many different kinds! I hear some humans only ever eat fish for their entire life, so that can't be it!

... So, their phones are fish?

[bufudine]

[ YES I AM VERY SURE, EVEN THOUGH THE GAME SAW FIT TO NOT GIVE HIM PROTECTION OVER HIS ASS--

All these words he doesn't know the meaning of... ]

They look like Decarabia.

[ THIS EXPLAINS EVERYTHING RIGHT? ]

[anonnomnomnom]

[Why hide an ass so fine? Dat ass should be promoted with bells and whistles. 8) Or tassels.

Also have a blank look.]

... What's a Decarabia? I've never heard of that kind of fish.

[bufudine]

It's a demon.

[ He does have some faint memories of the beach and ocean, though. ]

It looks like a starfish.

[anonnomnomnom]

[He hasn't really seen a 'human' beach before! It's too bad, he should've made a side trip.]

Ah! A demon is what the humans call those from the Underworld, isn't it? I've never met anything that looks like a starfish!

[...]

That's a fish in the shape of a star, right?

[bufudine]

[ Underworld? Tilting his head a bit. A fish in the shape of a star... yes, that sounds right.

Nodding. ]

[anonnomnomnom]

[Tilting his head back, in the other direction. THEY LOOK LIKE A PAIR OF WINNERS RIGHT NOW LEMME TELL YOU.]

Come to think of it, you've got the markings and you know about demons -- are you from the Underworld?

[bufudine]

[ Serph's been wondering that himself, actually. Not because of the strange clothing, but the way this person talked about humans like he's not one of them...

Shaking his head. And he won't go into any more detail for now. ]

Are you a demon?

[anonnomnomnom]

[Ah, why must you toy with his curiosity like this!! But he just looks amused at the question and shakes his head in return.]

Not exactly! I am from the Underworld, but I'm an Infernal. We're not exactly like the ideas humans have of demons. Then again, they don't really have the right idea about much of anything besides their world!

Though, I guess that's not their fault.

[bufudine]

[ The Underworld... So there are humans who aren't demons in this person's world? It must be hard to humans to defend themselves against hungry demons... ]

What is an Infernal?

[anonnomnomnom]

What a question! Well, since you keep talking about demons... I guess you could say we're a people who come from the Underworld, which I guess humans call Hell.

[Headscritch.]

But that idea's not really right, either, to tell you the truth. And we're not demons -- I mean, we barely even have anything to do with humans! Their world is interesting, but not that interesting.

[To most of 'em, anyway.]

[bufudine]

[ He understands Hell. It's definitely not Nirvana.

But his question hasn't been answered. Gosh where is Gale when you need him. Interrogation is so more Gale's thing. ]

What makes you different from humans?

[anonnomnomnom]

[It's a little hard to answer a question when neither of you have any frame of reference! Gosh Serph. Lern2Gale.]

Different from humans...? [Hmm.] Pretty much everything! We look different, we dress different, we live in different worlds, and we're way more powerful!

[bufudine]

[ Shush he's talked more in this one conversation than the entire game. Usually he's wallflowering while someone else does all the questioning. Give him some credit!

But Serph's listening all the same. In Nirvana, people wouldn't need to devour each other, which would mean they were physically weaker. Sera and Angel have black hair, which is a weird colour to him. He has no idea whether Sera would have dressed differently because she was naked on arrival but Angel had definitely been wearing different clothing... An Nirvana... well that's a different place.

So... an Infernal is someone like him? That's a little sad, but he nods; he can accept this explanation. ]

[anonnomnomnom]

[No, mute leader gets no credit. None!

Wow, this guy's pretty quiet, huh? But he's not a bad guy to talk to, for all that. Anon's more than happy to chatter enough for both of them.

Though!]

All right! So, I've already explained what I am -- so what are you?

[bufudine]

[ THE QUIETEST LEADER.

...That's a very good question. He doesn't really place that much importance on what he is exactly, after all. He's frank when he replies. ]

A human who can turn into a demon.

[anonnomnomnom]

[SPOILERS SERPH IS THE HOKAGE.

And for your honesty you get... a look that can best be described as 'bzuh'.]

So, demons really do exist? Wait, you're a human with powers who... That can't be right. Are you sure it's not the other way around?

[bufudine]

[ Was his explanation that confusing...?

A small nod. ]

I was a human who gained an Atma.

[ Now he's not entirely sure what he is. But it doesn't matter. ]

[anonnomnomnom]

[Nah, this guy's just not used to the idea of humans turning into creatures. That's his territory.]

You know, I actually knew some humans who gained powers! They weren't usually permanent, though. Is your Atma the power that lets you transform?

[bufudine]

[ Maybe he was wrong about this person's world.

Yet another nod. No you may not see it, little man. ]

[anonnomnomnom]

So, since it's something you gained, somebody must have given it to you, right?

[He grins.]

You don't have to tell me if you don't want to, since you're so close-mouthed! But I don't think it'd matter much either way.

[bufudine]

[ Given... Serph knew some of his Tribe considered it the Atma a curse, not a blessing. He's entirely neutral to it, but he knew living the way they do wouldn't be sustainable. ]

What do you mean?

[anonnomnomnom]

It's like saying you didn't have an Atma before! You can't have gotten something like that from nowhere.

[bufudine]

[ That's... not what he was asking about gone are the days people magically know what he means but he doesn't mind answering this. ]

Everyone gained an Atma after a light from an unidentified object shot into us.

[ And then proceeded to eat each other but details. ]