Work Text:
-Joe/Alastor.(more like friendship
-i translate it(by DeepL) after i wrote it in Chinese and then i proofread.just make itsexpression is unambiguous.my English is so poor.i am sinful.Chinese version→https://zeitzeuge0130.home.blog/2022/03/15/
The accident happened one afternoon. Although Viewtiful Joe has grown into a great superhero through his trials and tribulations, his young, vibrant soul remains the same - that is to say, he is still childish beyond belief. Like using the Six Machine to return to Movieland just to get an appetising cheeseburger. Perhaps as some kind of punishment, the flying machine starts to fall as it crosses an ocean with no control over the steering wheel or gear lever. Of course, he has the fearlessness expected of a superhero, and before dipping into the salt water, Joe does his best to point the forced landing towards the land he can see in his field of vision.
But worse than being stranded on an uninhabited island came to pass -
Joe opened his eyes to the shiny blade of a sword pointed at his throat. And looking upwards along the blade the person holding it in a bad mood on his face. The good news was that he saw someone he knew, the bad news was that the man was Alastor.
"Waaaaaaaah put this down first! Why are you here?" Joe wasn't sleepy at all he rolled to the side with a jolt and jumped away.
"Because I live here. I was going to ask why you were here, did you come here on purpose to challenge me? I'm genuinely glad, Viewtiful Joe!" Alastor drew his thunder sword and swung it a few times.
Joe back-flipped out of his striking distance, "Stop, stop! I landed here because Six machine broke down, otherwise I would have fallen into the sea! What is this place?"
"Mallet island." seeing the puzzled look on Joe's face, Alastor added helplessly, "You're in the Underworld."
"Isn't it dangerous?" Joe's face showed surprise. "Could there be demons?"
Alastor almost laughed in exasperation, "You think so?"
"......"
""It's not all better than me but it's not a small amount and I can't guarantee you'll survive the days." Alastor slung his sword over his shoulder and grunted. "Hurry up."
"I'm confident I can take one against a hundred lah." Joe tried to be sarcastic, but got another angry glare from Alastor and muttered "Is this how you treat your customers?" as he set about fixing Six Machine.
Things were awful.
Alastor stepped aside with his sword and watched in the sunlight as Joe busied himself with his flying machine. He sighed several times when Joe wasn't noticed.
It had been because his body was nearing its limit that he had returned to the place where he had once lived, staying in the magical realm to find a way to restore his magic. What was lost was to be retrieved from where it was lost, and although it had been known that he would have to wait for the eclipse in Movieland, he would need some time to rest before returning to the surface.
"Is this the kind of place you live in? Why does it look like it's collapsed?" Joe slumped wearily into the driver's seat and motioned to Alastor.
"It was supposed to be a castle, but it's abandoned. Some parts of it are still intact, enough for one person if I'm on my own."
"Aren't you going to fix it?"
"No need for that sort of thing. Change your thinking a little bit as a human, this is the demon world."
Alastor looked up at the sky and sighed again. Why did Viewtiful Joe just barge in again without a word of greeting? This guy was always so unexpected.
Don't let him know how weak I am ...... It's so humiliating.
Fortunately, the magic power of this place is abundant enough to allow him to continue to be demon form when he lacks it himself, and Alastor is able to meet Joe here with less embarrassment - like when your eternal rival breaks into your house just as you're getting out of the bathroom, and happily you're at least wearing underwear.
Joe, by contrast, was not happy about this. Okay, he admits, he didn't recognise Alastor's human face at all, he just felt inexplicably familiar, or so Junior and Silvia told him. Although no one understood Alastor's sudden interest, he honestly preferred the human Alastor. the calm and peaceful human, the one who didn't always think about fighting against me. I wouldn't have refused to be friends with him if he had appeared to me like that at the beginning.
But he already knew that Alastor was Alastor, be human, demon or sword.
So once again Joe was a little disappointed to see him appear in his demon form and asked without a care in the world, "Why have you turned back into a demon again?"
"Are you scared?" Alastor didn't answer positively.
"No, I'm not! You haven't challenged me for so long, you're the one who's scared, aren't you?" Joe grunted smugly.
Alastor paused for a moment, "When I retrieve my power, you will lose badly."
"Your power?"
The demon lapsed into silence again. It would feel like he was inviting credit or gaining sympathy in front of Viewtiful Joe to voluntarily bring up the whole crashing into the gaping hole in the film with Fire Leo. It's too shame, and I'm not going to do it.
But even if he can still maintain his Devil trigger now, his power is weakening by the day. Alastor's face was tense, his expression still a little frustrated, and he got up to leave.
"I have other things to attend to."
It seemed to Joe that the demon was irritated for some reason, and he didn't dare ask more questions, concentrating on tinkering with the Six Machine.
Alastor took a less than restful nap and woke up at dusk. He felt tired easily at this time, and he needed more than enough rest in order to deal with any sudden battles. Worried about his perfect opponent dying at the hands of some straggler because he didn't know the common sense of the devil world, he didn't stay away for long. But the sight of the human crouching comfortably over a campfire grilling fish felt like his fears were still too much. Shocked that Viewtiful Joe had actually gone down to catch a fish and managed to set it on the fire - should we tell him that what looked like a fish was also a demon? Joe greeted him warmly and asked him to join him, but Alastor shook his head and cautiously kept his distance from the fire.
Viewtiful Joe was right in front of him, but he couldn't fight him, and Alastor didn't let his frustration show on his face as the tip of his tail tapped the ground in annoyance. Is it too much trouble for me to protect him here when it's clear this guy is so much stronger than me now?
As darkness fell, Joe continued to tinker with his craft as Alastor watched the human with an offended look, but Joe didn't care if he was being stared at or if Alastor would despise him if he gave up ten minutes after restarting his work.
"Okay! That's enough for today!" Joe lay next to the campfire. Alastor sign speechlessly, as he was an amateur himself, and made no mean comments about it.
It was impossible for the intruder's strange scent and bright light to go unnoticed. Day and night in the Underworld are two very different worlds. After the sun had dropped completely below the horizon, blue lights drifted out of the ruins one by one, many of which were attracted to Joe, who crossed his legs to admire the starry sky of the Underworld and instantly his vision was taken over by huge red eyes.
"Aaaah!!!"
The human popped up and the blue spectre with the giant red eye wobbled and instinctively attacked Joe, firing blinding light. Joe quickly dodged.
"Leave him alone." Alastor walked over and gave a wave to the blue spectre, who fluttered his wings and flew towards the thunder demon, circling him. Alastor whispered a few words and the spectre left and didn't continue to pester the human.
"Your friend?"
"Sort of." Alastor shrugged, "Plasma. Fragile little bugger."
Joe looked back at the dent left in the laser swept wall, "Fragile ......"
Transparent bat apparitions hovered in the air in numbers expected to be beyond Viewtiful Joe's ability to face alone. So was this the benefit of knowing the locals? He looked to Alastor as the demon talked to a Plasma. The cloud of blue lightning swelled, twisted and distorted, and Joe stood alert and defensive. But it ended up only taking on an almost human appearance, barely creating the outline of hair and clothes, and the face that should have had five features was taken up by large red eyes. Something looked familiar, Joe couldn't recall. It sat beside Alastor like a human, swaying its legs leisurely, even raising a hand to pet Alastor's head. Surprisingly, Alastor didn't reject it.
"Wow." Joe marvelled.
Plasma looked at the human and then back to Alastor, who didn't make a sound, and Plasma flashed the human a happy smile. Although it was too hideous according to human aesthetics, Joe offered him his hand in a friendly manner and Plasma gladly put his right hand on it.
"Uhhhhhhhhhh-!!!"
"Viewtiful Joe!"
The blue Plasma looked blankly at Joe who was rolling on the floor.
The superhero covered his hand and curled up on the ground in pain thinking is this the fate that can't be escaped even if there is a truce with Alastor?Damn watching him go around touching random abnormal creatures, completely forgetting that he was a lightning demon himself.
"All right, Hero boy?" asked Alastor, standing next to him, peeking over his shoulder in concern for his fated nemesis, Plasma hiding behind him. The thunder demon frowned, "I really didn't know you could be this stupid."
"How would I know that!"
Plasma glanced sheepishly at Joe who had climbed to his feet and then at Alastor who shrugged, "Try that." The ghostly demon nodded and quickly changed form, a see-through crowned and scepter-holding monster appeared, just as tall and short as they were.
"Wow - this is? A miniature Blue king?"
"Hmm." As they talked, another Plasma flew over, circled around Alastor and burrowed into his arms like a pet, and Alastor absentmindedly stroked its head.
"How cool! Can we turn into Viewtiful Joe?"
Before Alastor could answer, the little Blue twisted once more in the glow and stretched away again to take the form of Joe.
"That's so cool baby!"
"They're good at mimicking, you can try fighting it, it'll even learn your tricks."
"I've now learned about the 'danger of electric shock.'."
"That's not like a hero."
"Just to be safe!"
Joe gestured in a variety of handsome poses for Plasma to emulate as if he were looking in a mirror, and Plasma got bored first, transforming back into his prototype and flying away, such were the creatures that acted on their desires, and Joe was about to call out to Alastor when he saw the thunder demon sullenly squeezing the ionic wings of another Plasma, the round ball of light rubbing his forehead soothingly. He was surprised for a moment, then his expression softened into a smile and his eyes half-lidded in acceptance of the other's kindness.
He really did look like a human, didn't he?
"Haha ...... don't make a scene." Alastor cupped it and released his hand to let it float up.Plasma spun around and flew away. Then Alastor remembered to look for Viewtiful Joe and looked over with his usual sharp eyes back.
But instead of hostility, he still had a smile on his face: "Bored? Let's show you something interesting."
Viewtiful Joe thought Alastor was in a good mood - or maybe he was, but Joe had underestimated the nature of the demon, and Alastor led the way by airhike ahead on a magic formation, leaving Joe without his flying machine to follow him. The castle alone is littered with broken masonry and collapsed walls that make it difficult to cross from the ground. Joe has no trouble keeping up with Alastor's speed after his transformation, but there's no telling which demon will pop up around any corner.
Joe gathered the puppets together and spun-kicked them to knock them all out.Alastor stood tall and watched Viewtiful Joe fight as he always does, not mincing a sincere compliment to Joe after the superhero's victory.Joe clapped his hands together and looked up at Alastor with a confident smile.
But -
Joe was on the ground, watching the shadow of the demon with the moonlight on his back, when he finally realised what was wrong.
The wings. Alastor's black wings disappeared.
"What's the daze?" Alastor jumped down lightly, his tail whipping after his movements. His horns were also on his head. All these features that were so different from humans were still there.
"Alastor, where are your wings?" Joe, always one to think out of the box, threw out the question bluntly.
"What?" Alastor was caught off guard and his pleasant expression disappeared. Joe looked at him and the demon averted his eyes with a stern face. Was it embarrassment? Disdain? Boredom? Probably not any of those answers either. His emotions other than excitement and anger weren't very good guesses.
And Joe didn't know how to back off, "Alastor?I said your black bat-like wings ......"
"Doesn't matter." Alastor replied, looking down and repeatedly stroking the metal in the shape of membranous wings on the hilt of his sword. "It doesn't matter even if I don't have them."
"Can you still fly?"
"It's not like I have a Six machine, and I didn't fall here because I ran out of fuel." Alastor grunted and waved his hand to retrieve the magic sword as a glow, turning away. "You better not lose it, you might not even have a whole body left when I think to look for you."
Joe - now Viewtiful Joe! - tumbled over the collapsing wall, his scarf billowing up as he leapt down. The superhero landed lightly, steadily and handsomely, and turned magnificently backwards, extending his trademark hand gesture. Instead of smirking at his opponent, however, Alastor stands on top of the tilting tower, his head turned towards the sea.
Joe was making a fool of himself and there was no girlfriend here to cheer him on. He looks curiously at the strange sculptures that have fallen to the ground, covered in dust, with fine patterns, but much worn. Once beautiful, perhaps, they now looked eerily desolate in their collapsed state. He walked quickly away.
By the time the superhero's feet were on the edge of the lookout, his pink scarf swaying with the sea breeze, Alastor had turned into a dark-haired human, staring quietly out to sea, not bothering to give Joe a glance. Joe didn't care about his indifference, but was just a little surprised that his eternal nemesis had taken it upon himself to undo his transformation in front of him ...... oh, um, something like It's called Devil trigger? Joe jumped down with a big grin and squeezed into his opponent's shoulder in the narrow lookout. Alastor stepped aside without moving.
Alastor called him over to see the view, as if it was indeed just for the view, neither to make an epic venue duel nor to talk to him, nor should he be looking for a remote place to murder me ...... The demon of lightning hung his hand relaxed, his deep black eyes reflecting the waves of the sea, his brow relaxed, his expression tranquil and gentle. His sword was disguised by him and disappeared into nowhere, so Alastor looked every bit the good and pure priest in some church. The black waters were churning, the oddly coloured night sky was starless, and the oppressive and terrifying atmosphere was still there, but Joe had gradually forgotten that this was a realm that did not belong to humans. The moon was splendid tonight.
"It's beautiful." Joe commented honestly.
Alastor just nodded slowly, seemingly lost in his own world. After a long moment he suddenly broke the silence, "I like it here."
Joe thought he meant the island with the sea and said, "It must be cool as a location."
"But not so much as a home." Alastor propped his elbows on the watchtower and rested his chin, still not looking at the person he was talking to, and Joe chose not to deliberately peer at his expression at the moment. Ugh, and I thought villains liked to live in weird places like this.
"Are you going to stay here all the time?"
"If no one needs me."
The superhero was tempted to ask pestering me did ...... not, I didn't need him.Joe smacked his lips and failed to pick up the words.
"It's supposed to be the most comfortable place and it's not damaged. I read in here occasionally." Alastor pushed the door open, flashing it shut immediately after letting Joe in, and he approached the table and lit the paraffin lamp (it actually used magic rather than paraffin, but Joe didn't notice). An orange light came on. The study still had its ornate décor, but it was all intact and free of blood and signs of vandalism, and the statue of the goddess in the centre was kind and elegant. It was so warm and welcoming that it was a world away from the outside.
"You can sleep over there." Alastor picked up the piles of books on the floor and casually inserted them into the cracks of the shelves, while Joe spread his scarf on the platform in front of the statue.
Alastor looked around and opened the door. Joe, who was lying on the floor with his legs crossed, quickly got up: "Wait! You're leaving me here alone?"
"Uh huh?" Alastor nodded, a look of surprise on his face.
"What if there's a demon!"
"I am the demon."
"What if I wake up and get eaten!"
"The door is too narrow for them to get in. Only few little bugs get in." Alastor looked down into the corner of the bookshelf and the railing and reached up to grab a hatchling, smaller than a fist. The light of flame flowed beneath the grey-white shell.
Joe blushed, "What is this? A spider?"
"A phantom child, if you don't like it - just get it killed." Alastor dropped it back to the ground without mercy and stabbed it in with the tip of his sword, the molten liquid flowing out and quickly evaporating and disappearing. it was as if Joe was seeing him actually kill something for the first time - so decisively, coldly, easily. joe wasn't sure he could be wiped out that easily himself in his home turf.
"Careful not to get sparks on the paper, though." Alastor cautioned.
"What about you? Where do you sleep?"
"On the door at the other end of the corridor."
"Huh?" Joe wanted to make sure he hadn't heard wrong.
"The door of the judge who holds death in his hands! Don't ask too many questions."
Alastor clapped his hands together and left with a contemptuous look in his eyes. What the hell, he'd been honest when he'd revealed Jadow's internal plans, Joe weighed up whether to be scalded to death by a spider (scorpion?) in the middle of the night or to beg him for safety. Joe chose the latter and followed him. Alastor looked back at him in mid-air and didn't wait for him, Joe used his almighty "Slow" stunt to tiptoe around the awake puppets.
"I didn't really know you had that habit, it looks cooler than Charles III." Joe sighed as he looked up at Alastor, who had his hands resting on the back of his head, balanced superbly on his thunder sword - and that was eerily stuck in the wall.
"I've been put here since ...... or ten years ago, I'm used to it." Alastor let the tail that encircled the sword down and waved it freely in the air.
"OK OK, this is pretty spacious too, do you mind if I sleep here?"
"I'm only sorry to tell you the little phantoms like it here too." Alastor said, his voice tinged with laughter. "Go back to the den, you don't need to be a superhero if this little bug can take care of you."
"You wouldn't want me to die at the hands of someone else,would you? Movieland won't have a better opponent than me for a hundred years, finding another one won't be easy."
Alastor seemed a little shaken, but still said uncharitably, "You have too many excuses, coward!" He turned his head and hesitated for a moment, his tail curling around the hilt of his sword and jumping down lightly, his face full of displeasure.
Joe folded his hands in a sincere manner, "Thank you!"
Back in the den, the demon locked the door. Joe slumped against the side on the steps. But instead of choosing the empty seat next to him, Alastor sat at the foot of the statue, clutching his sword, the bright light in his goggles disappearing. Although it could have been created with magic at will, Alastor had recently become increasingly reliant on the physicality of the sword, and felt overly nervous not having it by his side. Even if Joe was too slow to pick up on his subtle sense of vulnerability, he could notice that Alastor was always out of breath, stroking Thunder Sword's batwing as if he were touching his own non-existent wings.
"Won't you hurt yourself sleeping with that?"
"Idiot, I told you it's a part of me."
So Joe shut up and stopped asking questions, considered for ten seconds whether the demon's real eyes were black or red, and didn't think for long before he fell asleep easily. So he didn't notice Alastor opening his eyes in the darkness and gazing at Movieland's hero in thought.
Again and again he killed the thought of "asking Viewtiful Joe for help" before it came to him.
He often dreams of falling with Fire Leo, watching the fire consume his body and doing nothing about it, the burning pain making him lose consciousness before he can fall to the ground. There's the scene where Blue says, "This scene doesn't have you in it," and the scene where Dante hands him over to Enzo. What was supposed to be the slimy Nightmare of the castle still wandering, he spent a day trying to open every seal, and spent almost all his power trying to activate the device, only to find nothing, no trace of the Devil Emperor's creation long dead.Alastor curled up under the collapsed staircase with his sword in his arms, exhausted and drifting off to sleep, dreaming again of being abandoned by everyone. When he opened his eyes, there was silence around him.
Both his will and his body were now excessively weak.
Alastor struggled to push that irrational emotion below consciousness.
For not being loyal enough compared to Nelo Angelo, not being handy enough compared to Rebellion, not being smart enough compared to Sprocket, not even being the most powerful one in Viewtiful Joe's eyes as an opponent.
You don't even recognise me, Viewtiful Joe. He smiled to himself. Didn't I impress you at all?
Who will take me?
He looked up at the fading sky, the film stretching away with no end in sight, the blackened wings burning in the flames and turning to ashes. He was falling endlessly, and Alastor could be sad for a moment longer before he shattered.
"Only there is no gasoline." Joe closes the hatch of Six Machine. The second day after arriving in the underworld, the sun was also fine, except that there was always a vague feeling of pressure in the air. He really suggested Blue to shoot a movie here. "Help, you're not going to let this happen, are you?"
"Mallet has no gas." Alastor replies, "Isn't it powered directly by a V-Watch?"
"There's no such thing as a perpetual motion machine. So help me find..."
"There used to be a plane here, but the fuel was destroyed with the explosion."
'No way!”
"Is electricity ok?" Alatsor looks down at his hand and fires a faint electric light. It's hard, but...
"No."
"... Great!Stay here forever!" Alastor clasps his hands over his shoulders and smirks.
"Even if Silvia and Junior tried to save me, they couldn't locate me." Joe patted his forehead. "Do something about it. You wouldn't like me to be your neighbour, would you?"
"Why not? Fight with me to my death in the underworld!"
'No!
"Huh." Alastor seemed satisfied that Joe was getting even more upset about his blow, and began to consider the matter. "After all, Six Machine isn't broken, is it? Is it all right to summon Six Majin?"
Joe slapped his thigh. "Yeah!"
Alastor's expression freezes on his face, frowns for a moment, then explodes. "All those days you never thought about it? This isn't the first time you've forgotten it!"
"I was so focused on fixing the Six Machine that I left everything behind... Ooo! Let go of me!"
The devil swallowed his anger and loosened his collar. Cautiously, Joe stepped back and cleared his throat. "Come on! The Six Majin!"
They looked up at the same time. There is a tremendous force breaking through the clouds. The red giant appeared in the sky and dropped behind Joe in a cloud of dust.
"Six Majin! I missed you so much --"
"Not really."
Ignoring the devil's taunts, Viewtiful Joe climbs into the cockpit. Alastor looked up at him, too high to see his joyful caressing of the dashboard and the seat.
"I'll see you soon." Alastor drops a sentence in his usual voice, regardless of whether the other person hears it or not.
"Don't you want to leave?" Joe leans out of the cockpit of the Six Majin and looks down at Alastor, looking just as small as the demonic form of an ordinary human.
"No." Alastor didn't even bother to raise his head and turned his back toward the castle.
It's unusual for a guy who's been badgering me to fight me to appear completely uninterested. Much like when he appeared in human form...
"Come back to Movieland with me!"
"It doesn't matter to me whether you go back to the surface or the real world." Alastor stopped.
"Don't you want to fight me?"
"I will, after I... When I see fit."
Joe jumped off the huge machine and landed on the ground smoothly. The devil turned at the noise, frowning, a little angry.
"Alastor."
"What more do you want? I'm not giving you souvenirs."
"Alastor, let's go. It's so boring here."
"Because you're human."
"There's no cheeseburger and no hot chocolate. Even the devil would be lonely."
"... Are you laughing at me?"
"That's not what it means!"
"Get off my property or I'll get you out of here." Alastor reaches out and magically binds the sword of the same name out of thin air, showing that he is not joking.
"Must I say something like that?" Joe scratched his head. "Maybe it's better if you don't make being needed the point of being alive."
The demon kept silent and pressed his sword.
"It's like... I love Silvia very much, but if Silvia leaves me, I will be sad, but I will not be sad forever."
"So what?"
"I don't know what you're thinking, but you said you'd leave Mallet when someone needed you, and you don't seem happy here."
"......"
"So come back with me and you can live for yourself even if no one else needs you."
"Viewtiful Joe, you're human. I'm not like you." Alastor held his sword across his chest. "I am of value only as I am used, both as a sword and as a demon. But... I'm not strong enough to be cherished. Until then, I will not leave Mallet Island."
"Ah, so you're so upset because you were abandoned?"
"................................................ Hear the point!"
"Do it your favorite way?" Viewtiful Joe flexed his wrist. "Whoever wins is up to him."
"Hum. Don't underestimate me." Alastor speaks defiantly, but with an honest, smile on his face.
This guy, he's a real battle maniac. Viewtiful Joe lowered himself and positioned himself for attack.
Touch and go. Viewtiful Joe makes the first move, and his opponent rushes in at lightning speed. The wounded demon was stronger than ever, and he did not even notice Alastor's weakness. The superhero jumps back twice, giving up melee. Unable to cast lightning remotely, Alastor smirks and throws his namesake sword at his opponent in a whirl. The close fight doesn't last long. Alastor swings his sword into the ground, and Joe recoils. But the demon sent no electricity. He took his sword hilt with both hands and fell to his knees.
"Alastor?"
He is not such an insidious opponent as to cheat. Worried, Joe approached and squatted down in front of him. Alastor panted heavily, his already pale face bloodied, his brow furrowed as if he were enduring something.
"Are you all right?
"I lost," Alastor said hoarsely.
He seemed to be leaning so heavily on his sword that Joe was afraid he might fall down the next second and put his hand on Alastor's thin shoulder. The devil seemed reluctant, but had no strength to refuse.
"I lost, laugh at me."
"Are you sick? Or......"
"My strength used to be just enough, not strong at all. Now... "
Alastor coughed quickly, his head down, one hand on his chest. Joe pats him on the back, expecting him to spit blood, but it doesn't. The demon pushed Joe's hand away, staggered to his feet on his sword, pulled out the thundersword with an unsteady step, and walked away without looking back.
"Good-bye, and don't come back. Viewtiful Joe."
Joe couldn't think of a better reason to keep him. The demon walked away in silence, a faint purple light shining all over him, the sword and the appearance of the demon vanished. The dark-haired human fell down before Joe's eyes.
Not in the underworld... Where is this?
Alastor stood up, holding his forehead, and leaned against the wall with his weight unsteadily. Because the depletion of devil power can no longer sustain the state of the bewitched. Surrounded by transparent glass, the landscape quickly recedes from the outside, and the space inside is narrow.
"Hey, how do you feel?"
A cheerful, relaxed, familiar greeting. Alastor puts a sword from the back of the driver's seat to the driver's neck and growls, "What is this place? Put me back."
"No, don't interfere with my operation of Six Majin!" With a stiff smile on his face, Joe cautiously slowed the giant machine down.
"Put me back! Or we'll die here together!"
"Let go of me first!"
Alastor holds back his anger and takes his sword. Unable to move to the driver's seat, he can only ask after him, "Why am I involved again?"
"You don't look good. It's not a superhero thing to leave you alone."
" I'm just so tired." Alastor returns to the place where he awoke and sits down. "Aren't you sick of me challenging you?"
"But you've helped us a lot, too."
"Nothing of the sort."
"Is it all right to take you to be treated because I knocked you down?"
"There's a problem!"
"It doesn't matter!"
"Of course there is!"
Joe held out a hand behind him in a VJ gesture. "Give it to me. It'll be all right."
Alastor snorted, wanting no more noise.
Joe felt free to continue driving the giant machine under the blue sky. Mallet island has sunk below the surface, just emerged from the underworld, it will take a while to cross the sea. The blue sea reflected a red shadows.
I thought this guy was so stubborn that I shouldn't force him, but all he said in his sleep was"I can still fight." What if he left it alone?
And Alastor becomes glumly quiet. There was no passenger seat. He sat cross-legged on the floor with his back against Joe's chair. He should have been angry, he should have tried to get out of here. It's too shameful to say anything about being kidnapped by the hero... !
But he felt very light, very light. Must be, uh, airsick? Alastor could not admit his true feelings. Blue sky recedes from the glass Windows on either side. He saw white clouds passing by.
The devil had a rare good dream. The man who couldn't see his face said to him, let's be friends. I won't leave you. In the dream, Alastor takes the outstretched hand.