It was a cold and loveless night. Not a single cricket chirped and the night’s fog was filled with icy daggers that penetrated deep into human’s skin. Making them hunch their shoulders and feel chilled to the bone while walking the rural village’s street. People dashed with frightened or curious whispers through the street’s thick muck to avoid a mobile prison. Horse’s snorted indignantly, impatiently stamping the brown grime with their large overworked hooves. The entourage of the Duke’s soldiers patted the animal’s side in an attempt of comfort as their other comrades stood inside a lonely tavern whom the Duke decided to spend some of his time.<br/><br/>One Soldier shivered, turning his collar up, and took an uneasy glance at the cage tethered behind the carriage. “Shouldn’t we get the thing a blanket or sumthin’?”  Another Soldier with a furry rat of a mustache looked back towards the cage and spat in disgust. “Nah. Thing doesn’t deserve no comforts.” Soldier one pursed his lips shifting foot from foot, the wet damp creeping into his boots and chilling his toes. He sheepishly looked back towards the dark cage and back to Rat-stache. “The Duke be pretty pissed if it done died. Ya’know he calls it his grand treasure. Plucked the thing straight out from the depths of the battlefield he did. ‘pparently it was a noble of sorts among the other demons. S’why it’s worth so much, high quality it is.”<br/><br/>“Those monsters don’t got no higher order! They are all savages with dark magicks…. Only good for farming their bodies or looking at tied up.” Rat-stache spat again, his tobacco tasting sour with all this talk about their prisoner and he wondered angrily what was taking the Duke so long. “AH fuck it. Go check on the blasted thing! Be careful not to has it rip your finger off like it did to Jimmy. Monster’s fast despite his… disabilities.” Soldier One swallowed, his adam apple getting stuck on a nervous tick as he approached the back of the Duke’s silver carriage. However he wasn’t afraid of the creature but rather more excited than anything to see his charge. The torch began illuminating the thick black bars of solitude and the being that dwelled in the small space within as he neared.<br/><br/>The Soldier let a small gasp of air escape him, the body within was steaming. Every time the fog’s dew dared to try and lay upon the demon’s exposed skin it evaporated creating swirling steam that reached towards the stars. It was beautiful and terrifying. The creature didn’t react to the torch shining light upon his face; probably because the blindfold tightly bound over the beast’s eyes. Yet having the blindfold was sort of useless by itself because the demon was without eyes. They hung as jeweled pendants around the Duke’s throat. The soldier saw a long pointed ear, heavily studded with various jewelry, twitch and turn towards him a bit though as he paused in the muck.<br/><br/>“You cold….” The young soldier whispered the last part of his sentence, a nickname he had given to the demon, “Blackie?” At that question and familiar nickname the dweller turned his head to him and the heavy clatter of chains erupted within startling the young man and making him jump nearly out of his knickers. The noise was simply the demon readjusting its right hand to grip the bar. Fingers that were long, elegant, and surprisingly unscarred intertwined with bar and deadly curved talons, that no human would compare to nails, tapped twice upon the iron.  “ ‘No.’ Got it. Well I’ve got a loaf of bread stashed in my coat. Wilkens isn’t looking this way, do you want half?” One tap on the iron meant a yes and the brunette flashed a grin. His brown orbs skittered over to where Rat-stache was looking towards the Tavern with a disgruntled expression and quickly yanked out a moldy loaf of bread from his uniform pocket.<br/><br/>He ripped the item in half and pressed it to the bars. “Here Blackie. Eat it quickly now.” He thought he was gonna shit himself when the demon’s large hand moved with the speed of a striking snake to snare his wrist. Eyes clenched shut and he prepared for pain but the demon merely squeezed his wrist with a heated grip then took the bread. Opening one eye he watched the demon bring the bread up to its delicate lips and open a fanged mouth to tear into the stale grain. “Was that a thanks Blackie?” he said rather breathlessly and felt a flush on his cheeks when It nodded. He watched the demon eat, a tattooed tongue with ancient runes flashing amongst the bread bits. A binding spell of silence. The soldier leaned forward wanting to say something when Wilkens, Rat-stache, yelled from the front of the caravan.<br/><br/>“Oi! Braveheart! Duke wants us to bring the thing into the Tavern!!” The Soldier known as Braveheart stared at the other Soldiers coming out of the Tavern with grins that turned sour as they looked back at the cage. A low growl inside the cage meant Blackie wasn’t quite happy either. “Aye sir!” The Duke probably just wanted to show off his prize as per usual. Braveheart awaited Wilkens who trotted over, pulling a key from his smelly trousers and began to undo the locks of the cage. The other soldiers stood with weapons ready as the heavy door flew open and the elegant creature within was finally revealed thanks to the multiple torches.<br/><br/>It was with grace despite the space’s size. Languidly raising its left hand away from a propped knee so it could slide forward. It looked just like a man. A very handsome and athletic man. Tall with strong facial features that would make a woman swoon. An exposed chest and stomach scuplted with thick and riveting muscle that only the most well trained soldier would possess. He only wore a baggy pair of black and brown stained trousers that couldn’t compare to the feathery hair hanging down his broad shoulders in the color of darkness. Purple tints in each lock of wild hair accented the tattoo spell around the defined, pale throat of the Beast.<br/><br/>“C’mon you animal.” They dragged the chains into their hands and the demon walked with head held high into the Tavern, it stumbled on the steps and they laughed at the blind creature. It growled in the back of its throat and Wilkens snarled kicking him through the door. “Don’t you dare growl at us, you shit!” Big mistake.<br/><br/>The demon spun around, hand breaking free of one cuff and talons soaring down towards the chubby bastards larynx when the Duke’s haughty yell froze the demon. “Ruin I command you to cease all movement!” Wilkens didn’t dare swallow as trickles of blood fluttered down his throat. Only two talons had managed to pierce slightly into his flesh. Ruin, the demon noble, frozen in that pose and growly angrily. The Duke clapped his hands together while Wilkens fell backwards and looked at Ichabod with a truly menacing expression.<br/><br/>“This is your Prize Mr. Drakon or whatever your bloody name is. It’s one of my most mesmerizing treasures and quite a handful. This is Ruin. A demon of the highest quality! You’ve maybe heard of an S-class demon, extremely rare, and the most dangerous beast I’ve ever hunted. I completely understand if you don’t wish to take it under your wing….” The Duke’s expression darkened even more with thoughts. “Unless you are going to just slay it for its parts. Such a waste. It’s a rather beautiful creature to look at and touch. I only took the thing’s eyes and left the rest to play with and have serve me.” The man played with a pair of purple jewels on his necklace, each had to be worth at least 600 gold crowns. With sluggish paces he made his way over to Ruin and stroked a cheek. A perverted hand intertwining with the demon’s raven hair and twisting it receiving a pained snarl. “As your Master I command you to fall to your knees demon.” A tattooed spell flashed on the Duke’s wrist and the tattoo on Ruin’s throat glowed faintly. Soon enough Ruin fell to his knees with head tilted up, facing the Duke’s malicious smile.<br/><br/>“So what will it be Mister Ichabod?”<br/><br/>((Sorry for any mistakes, typed that up super fast))