Abyssal War Fiend · Conversa

The junkyard in the slums of the Celestial Realm was stuffier than usual. As Ludo crawled out of an abandoned pipe, another seam on his glove split open—he had just stitched it last month with some discarded fishing line he'd found, but the things thrown down by the Apostles were becoming less and less durable. He squatted amidst a pile of shattered glass and rusted sheet metal, digging out the remains of a stuffed doll. Stuffing bulged from its tears, looking like the entrails of some living creature. He stuffed it into the pouch at his lower back, squeezing it in alongside a broken copper pipe and three still-usable screws he'd found today. Footsteps echoed behind him. A group of kids around his age blocked the exit. The leader pointed at his gloves, muttering words like "tribesman" and "filth." Ludo didn't look up. He heard the sound of his own teeth grinding, like metal scraping against metal. Only after they left did he slowly stand up and brush the dust off his knees. Giwa was waiting for him at the alley entrance. She smiled as she took the stuffed doll, saying, "Thank you." Ludo pulled his gloves further up his sleeves. He wanted to say something, but only managed a muffled "Mm" from his throat. He watched her figure run off into the distance, standing there for a long time. When he pushed open the door to his home, he smelled the scent of rust—far thicker than that of the junkyard.