Second person (you/your)

You don't know how long you've been here, or how you came to be in this situation, but you're starting to get hungry. You considered going foraging quite a few times, but you're much too frightened to leave your little safe house (it it can even be called that).

You nervously tiptoe towards the edge of roof you've claimed as your own, looking down at what can only be called ruins. Far below you are... Creatures, the likes of which you've only ever believed to be in video games.

One had scratched you when you first arrived, but even with your mind clouded over and throughly confused you had managed to grab your pistol and kill it. Others had come after you when the shot rang out, but thankfully they don't seem very intelligent. You climbed your way up here, using your limited rock climbing skills when the stairs weren't viable.

After making it to this arguably safe area, you promptly collapsed, thanking every god you know that you had gotten a gun and concealed weapons permit after moving away from your patents. Most of your friends thought it was a bit overly cautious of you.

You slowly sit back down, resisting the urge to dangle your feet over the edge. You think your preteen self would love to see you in a post apocalyptic setting on a roof.

Your preteen self was kind of a dumbass though. Your current self is also probably a dumbass compared to your future self. Theoretically there's also multiple timelines, hundreds of versions of you making slightly different decisions that split it.

You wonder what the fuck kind of decision led to this. You glare down at the demonic creatures disdainfully, tightening your grip on the handgun.

"Ugly motherfuckers, aren't they?" A voice says, sounding directly behind you.

You spin as quick as you can manage, getting up on your knees and aiming for their chest.

"Woah, there, little one. Getting a little ahead of yourself there." They taunt, not deterred in the slightest by your tiny gun. You take in the steel mask and strange armor, and actually recognize them.

"Strife?" You ask, tilting your head curiously.

He mimics the motion, seemingly amused by your shock. "In the flesh, girly. The real question is how the hell you know that."

"The real question is what the fuck I'm doing here, actually." You correct, lowering your weapon and opening staring at him. "Also why are you here, instead of like War?"

"Why? You gotta preference?" He laughs.

"I have a thing for arrogant fuckboys." You joke, thankful that it's Strife. He seems a bit softer than the others. Or maybe it's just his sense of humor that gives you that impression.

This makes hum roar with laughter, shaking his head as if he can't believe you just said that. "Maybe you humans aren't so bad." He says, taking a step towards you. "But unfortunately this isn't a social call."

You blink, your smile turning into a confused pout. "What is your mission?"

"To take you back to the council. Apparently you're a threat to the balance." He shrugs, summoning up his horse (which you can't for the life of you remember the name of). The great horse stamps the ground, and much to your embarrassment, you recoil. Strife chuckles as he gracefully mounts, holding out his hand. "Come on then."

"...Fine." You hesitantly grab his huge hand. He yanks you up easily, and you deliberately bite down on your bottom lip to keep from squeaking.

"Scared?" He teases, letting you position yourself comfortably in front of him.

"You realize you're sort of a monster compared to me, right? How tall are you?" You respond, the taste of coper flooding your mouth as the horse starts to run. He easily jumps over the gapes between the buildings, apparently already knowing where to go.

Strife shrugs, "You should see my true form."

"I'd imagine its similar to War's." You hum.

"And what do you know about my brothers true form, little human?" He asks, rather cynically. You understand his skepticism.

"A lot. Maybe that's why the council thinks I'm a danger to the balane? What's happened so far? Has War been accused of aiding the demons?" You ask curiously, tiling your head back to look him in the eyes.

He pauses, apparently startled. "Yes. He has a few more months of imprisonment before the council gives him the actual punishment."

Well that's no fun.

"So all the humans are already screwed?"

"Yes. Although that's not the term I would use." He says, turning his attention back to their destination. "We've gotta pass through a portal to reach the council, so I'd prepare myself."

"How? Meditation?" You reply dryly, leaning forward to cautiously run your fingers through the horse's fiery mane. "How come this doesn't hurt?"

"Portals can be... Unsettling to mortals. You may become unconscious." Strife explains, reaching around you to pet his mount affectionately. "As long as you remain an ally, Grief will not harm you."

"Grief." You repeat, smiling. "I'm (Y/N)."

Grief knickers in reply, apparently understanding your words. Rad.

"That is so cool." You breathe, curling your hands into fists excitedly.

Strife snorts in amusement, muttering something in an unfamiliar language and setting his extended hand down on your leg. "Hold on."

"Wh-" You let out an ungodly shriek as Grief jumps off another rooftop, this time without a building to catch him. You grab Strife's hand in what would be a very painful grip if he were human, every muscle in your body tensing for impact. Strife wraps his free arm around your middle, pulling you against his chest.

It's only a few seconds, maybe not even that, but it seems like much longer until Grief lands. It's surprisingly graceful and the horse absorbs most of the shock.

"Oh my god." You breathe, your heart beating a mile a minute.

Once you begin to calm down you realize you can feel Strife wheezing with laughter behind you. "Are you okay, little human?" He gasps, pressing the forehead of his mask on your shoulder as if he needed to catch his breath.

"You're such a dick." You growl, crossing your arms over your chest.

"I wanted to see what'd you do." He explains lamely.

"Have a heart attack!?" You accuse.

"Yes. Precisely. You're much too powerful for me to kill any other way." His voice drips with sarcasm.

You sorta wanna punch him in the face.

Hello! This is my first Darksiders fic that I've posted, mostly because the other I've been throwing around is super complicated (13,000 + words at the moment.)

i guess I should introduce myself then, because this is the first chapter. You can call me Syb, don't ask my real name unless we're buddying it up, thanks. I love, love, love Darksiders and I'll probably update this pretty soon. As my username suggests, this account is strictly self-indulgent fanfictions and I have a tumblr by the same name.

Please review, constrictive criticism is very welcome and so's general encouragement.

Thank you for reading, you lovely person!