【𝐈.】 pride was arguably one of striker's least favorite places to be.
【𝐈𝐈.】 full to the brim with chaotic, irritating sinners who stank of the living world and wrought havoc wherever they went. hell's very own wastebasket for the lowest of society. these facts alone were not enough to tarnish the reputation of the pride ring for him, hell, he may have enjoyed visits there had it not been for one fact; these earthborn sinners outranked him. despite having been hellborn, despite everything these damned souls were still above him. greatly unhappy was he with the system as a whole but at least other hellborn demons that outranked him were just that; hellborn. walking about pride just served to rub salt in the wound with sinners at every turn; of course it mattered little in that moment, he was being paid to be here. a job was a job was a job, and money was money. he could stomach the view with such pretty incentive.
【𝐈𝐈𝐈.】 in his life, he'd come toe to toe with many beings far more powerful than he; higher demons, overlords, hell even the ars goetia had done business with him and paid handsomely, but never had he expected to see one so well known as lucifer himself. it was a concept that had simply never crossed his mind as even a possibility.
【𝐈𝐕.】 so quite shocked was he to see the other about. of course he knew of the recent extermination, how the exterminator army had been beaten back. it had been big news all around despite it meaning very little to striker. quite frankly, he had no dog in this fight; angels weren't the issue of hellborn demons such as himself, ergo he'd simply waved off this news as inapplicable to him. nevertheless, he supposed it made sense for the king of hell himself to be a bit more proactive, even if at first he found it jarring. after all, this had been due to his foolhardy daughter.
【𝐕.】 he was unimpressed with the man; this is what had been so terrifying? he was expected to believe that this was some all powerful fallen angel? he scoffed at the thought; the other was soft looking, almost delicate when compared to the hardened wrathians he'd grown up around. hell they were nearly eye level; striker was tall for his kind but understood well that sinners and other hellborn species typically towered above him. regardless of his first impressions of this dandy, he supposed a detour could be taken. a man in power meant an opportunity to impress; there could be personal gain in engaging.
【𝐕𝐈.】 so he straightens his back with a soft pop, taking a moment to stretch, before he dons a winning smile as he makes his approach.
❝that was mighty fine work on extermination day, if you don't mind me sayin'. color me impressed.❞
【𝐕𝐈𝐈.】 he begins, tail flicking in contentment. easy smalltalk was a way to begin charming ones way into an inner circle, an art he knew well and had perfected. as of yet he was unsure what exactly it was he wanted to gain from this, but powerful allies never hurt to make, even if sucking up to the upper class was so internally grating. a fact not at all made obvious by his friendly tone and broad grin.
❝you must be awful proud of your girl.❞