War looked up in mild annoyance at the small human woman in front of him. Well, most humans were small next to him, but this one was utterly tiny, at least for an adult as he understood it. She was barely five foot tall and thin as a rail. Her blonde hair draped over her shoulders like thick curtains, and her grey green eyes sparkled in curiosity.
Since his breaking of the seventh seal and summoning his brothers, War and his fellow Horsemen chose to hide out in safety while they prepared for the full consequences of their rebellion from the Charred Council. This had led them to the place Fury had hidden the remaining humans she found while hunting the Deadly Sins.
And of course led War to somewhat befriending this small human woman, Bailey.
Well, befriend was a strong term.
Upon arrival, most of the humans took to him and Death negatively. They were familiar with Fury and Strife ("Jones", they called him, as War later learned), but they didn't know War and Death. Their names alone sparked tension, add to it their appearances and demeanors... It was a recipe for anxiety in these smaller, squishier beings.
Except in Bailey.
Bailey had almost immediately attached herself to War, seemingly adoring how she could hide behind his massive frame and tuck herself away from others next to him. Initially, War had found her baffling. What fragile creature seeks the company of a thing that could crush it? Then it occurred to him that, while she was fragile to him, she was probably even more fragile to something like a demon or angel. Who better to protect her than the mountain of a man called War?
War breathed sharply out of his nose and looked back at the wall. "I am not relaxing," he muttered. "I am strategizing."
Bailey plopped down beside War, tilting her head in question. She teased, smiling, "You don't even have a battle map."
"I do not need a map. I understand the tactics employed by our enemies. It is simply a matter of assigning who to what tasks when the time comes."
"Fair enough, I guess... Yanno I always thought the Horseman War would have been a relentless hot head."
War blinked rapidly a few times then looked at Bailey. "I lost an arm from being a 'relentless hothead'," he said, holding up his prosthetic arm.
Bailey snorted, shaking her head. "I meant, like, constantly," she retorted. "I didn't expect you to be real to begin with, but I didn't expect you to be so... Intellectual. No insult meant."
War hummed in thought. He could understand the assumption, he supposed. Many, even in Heaven and Hell, seemed to assume wars and battles were just relentless stabbing with sticks or shooting of guns and cannons. It wasn't unusual for someone to assume that the man who was intended as the embodiment of that concept taken to an apocalyptic extreme would be just as mindless.
"Battles and wars are not won by bigger weapons," he murmured. "They are won by those who know how to outsmart or out maneuver their opponent." War smiled slightly and tapped his forehead. "Though, admittedly, I do prefer my head as a battering ram."
Bailey laughed, beaming in glee. War wasn't a joker, so when he did joke, it was usually more so the surprise than anything he'd actually said that triggered the laugh in most people. But Bailey was a sucker for stupid jokes and puns. The mental image of War running at people head first like a ram made her giggle uncontrollably.
War found himself smiling a bit, watching Bailey giggle. He didn't understand humans, but he appreciated them, more and more now that he was getting to know them.
A species born into a world that could not truly be theirs, as the Nephilim had taken Eden and defiled it. Humans had nothing for themselves, save their world. No magic, no grand realm to call theirs and use to their will. They were corruptible and easily turned on one another.
But their resilience was inspiring.
Humans had used what they could, for as long as they could, to fend off the demons and forces of Hell as they infested Earth. They survived missing limbs, survived blindness, plagues, and famine. Some humans had even tried to hunt demons for food, even making some groups afraid to go near mankind.
The human spirit was indomitable and powerful. What humans lacked in magic and physical power, they more than made up for in intelligence and willpower. They were strong and used their last breaths to defend what was theirs. Their species, though wrought with sin and the curse and blessing of free will, often chose to persevere. They joined hand in hand against the forces besieging their world, despite all differences, and tried.
What more could be asked of them?
War looked at Bailey sincerely. "Your kind impresses me," he said.
Bailey looked up in surprise. "Really? I thought you guys thought we were weak and pitiful."
War snorted. "You are," he replied, looking back up at the ceiling over them. "But that is not your fault. Your species wasn't given adequate time or resources to thrive properly... I apologize on behalf of the Nephilim for that..."
"The Nephilim?"
"Myself and my brothers are Nephilim. Our leader, our eldest brother, Absalom, led us to your peoples intended home, Eden, to claim it for we ourselves had no home. Realms we conquered quickly died and crumbled without their native people. By technicality, Eden was unclaimed, unattuned. The Nephilim sought to claim it. By defiling it as they did, by ruining it, your people were left drifting, left without home. So you were sent to Earth instead."
Bailey listened with rapt attention, fascinated by what she was being told. She'd heard many a Bible story about the garden of Eden and humanity's "fall from grace" and the first sin. To hear the truth from someone who was there...
War continued. "And despite Strife and my own personal efforts to prevent it, the demon lord Lucifer infected mankind with the capacity for evil and wrong doing, just as Nephilim were by birth. Your species was never meant to be capable of demonic acts... Yet, Strife and I accidentally allowed it. I apologize for that as well..."
Bailey leaned on War, saddened by the things her friend seemed to hold himself responsible for.
"Despite it all," War murmured. "Humanity rose to the challenge as best they could when Heaven and Hell assaulted their world. Your peoples ability to adapt and survive is incredible, your resilience and stubbornness is impressive and remarkable. Despite everything holding you all at a disadvantage, you've survived and clung to this life as best as you can. You all strive for survival and claw at the hope of a better future." He looked at Bailey, sincerity in his face. "You all have tried your hardest... No one could ever ask for more."
Bailey teared up a bit. For so long, she and other humans around her had felt awful for failing to protect their planet, for losing others to the demons and angelic crossfire... To hear someone who was as close to a cosmic force as they could conceive tell her that he found mankind impressive and that their efforts were good enough... It felt like a weight lifted from her shoulders, a burden eased. She found herself crying into War's cloak, curling up.
War hesitated then gingerly out his arm around Bailey, dwarfing her further. He wasn't the one for comfort, that was Strife... But Strife had told him before that in his own way he was a comfort and a help.
Speaking of...
Strife quietly knelt by them, worried for the small human woman. "Hey," he whispered."Is she okay?"
War hesitated. "I... Believe so?" He looked at Strife. "I told her humankind impressed me. I think it has left her emotional."
Strife chuckled softly, smiling behind his helmet, and nodded. "Yeah," he murmured. "The humans have spent so long stressed out about everything happening to them that I think it's probably a relief to hear that someone is proud of them and wants them to stay."
War nodded then snorted as Strife plopped down to curl up against his other side. "I am not a comfort object."
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