>>6037982>>6038004>>6038007>>6038028>>6038372>>6038413>>6038419You blink at her, fighting the urge to laugh at the absurdity. "Unless 'christ' is a new nickname for my manager, I'm afraid not. Besides, my biggest fight is trying to get through a shift without a caffeine overdose." The demon heaves a sigh, "I think I don't just have the wrong house, I got into the wrong damn timeline." You catch a glimpse of weariness in her massive eyes—the same kind you see in every minimum-wage Walmart employee on Black Friday—and you can't help but sympathize. "Sounds like you're having a rough day." "Try a rough century," The demon mutters, plopping down on your bed. Feeling an odd pang of pity, you offer, "Hey, want a cup of tea? I'm out of coffee, so it's tea or nothing." "Tea will do," she agrees. As you set the water to boil, you make small talk. "So, what’s your name? And this timeline thing—what's that about?" The demon stretches out her legs and starts, "I'm Psycho Jenny. I am, or was, one of the top demons in the demon army. This isn't the first time the world has reached this point. We demons are trying to break out of the time loop by triggering the apocalypse. But every time we get close to winning—the angels nuke the world and the timeline resets." "Sounds rough," you comment, not really understanding much, but the loop sounds like something from the daily monotony of your routine at Walmart. "You have no idea," she groans. "Last time around, the apocalypse ended with you—that timeline's antichrist—fist-fighting the Christ at the end of the world, while the surviving humans evacuated to Mars." Handing her the steeped tea, you ask, "Did I win?" Taking a sip of the cheap brew, she replies, "No, you got destroyed. It was the most one-sided beatdown I've ever seen. It was so demoralizing watching the christ beat you down with his baseball bat that a lot of demons just threw in the towel right there." You can't help but retort, "I mean, it's kinda on you, sending a Walmart cashier to fist-fight a bloodlusted christ." Psycho Jenny exhales sharply, "You weren't a cashier in that timeline. Honestly, I thought we had at least a thirty percent of winning. In the timeline before that, Ryo Asuka fought Devilman at the end of the world." Settling next to her with your own mug, you ask, "I'm guessing that was the Japanese edition of the apocalypse. So this Ryo Asuka was the hero of humanity, and the Devilman was your champion?" She shakes her head, "Flip that. Ryo-sama led us, and Devilman was humanity's champion. Ryo-sama won—but then the angels nuked the world." "Sounds like you're fighting a rigged battle with no hopes of winning," you sigh, drawing parallels between her eternal struggle and your daily grind as a minimum-wage worker who struggles to make rent and pay for groceries. "Mind if I crash on your couch tonight?" she suddenly asks.
>"Sure." You offer her a blanket and pillow.>"Do you like board games?" You ask.>Write In