Demons

Deallocate-Last Tuesday at 8:01 PM

The chalk only made the softest of sounds as Shanoa carefully used it to inscribe on the rough tile floor. However, despite the uneven surface, she did her best to make her lines straight and unbroken. A few moments later, she jumped to her feet and wiped the chalk dust from her fingers on her beautiful black dress. Before her on the floor lay an ornate pentagram held within a flawless circle. Odd symbols lined the figures, and combined with the flickering light from the candles around the room, the whole thing gave off a very macabre vibe as a whole. The young witch glanced at the doorless entrance to the room, but nobody had noticed her presence in the unused storage space yet. And hopefully, it stays that way. she thought, as she continued her task of setting up the ritual. Before long, the process was complete. Sour-smelling herbs were placed in exact amounts at key points around the symbols. Small incense trays littered the floor, smoking ominously. After she consulted the worn-looking tome in her hand, Shanoa plopped on the floor and rubbed her hands together in her best imitation of an evil villain. "Now this is where the fun begins..."(edited)

October 5, 2016

LadyDeme-Last Wednesday at 10:23 AM

Delphine had been walking along the area around where they were staying, examining the stars up above, dim against the lights of the city -- until the briny scent of the sea, the sort of sleeping, worn-out , old scents of a market-day completed, the cooking eaten, the life all but lived of the town had been interrupted, a think incense scent reaching her nose -- it reminded her of temple ceremonies, but stranger -- a different sort of temple perhaps, or just something burning. It was coming from a storehouse, and so Delphine traipsed towards it with an expression of concern on her features, her lipsed pursed as she slid open the door. "Is there something on fire in -- Well." She hadn't expected a magic circle, her friend the witch cackling before it, herbs filling the room with a scent almost greater than t1he clouds of incesnse smoke tumbling out the door around her, creating swatchs of uncertainty in her vision. "Not on fire yet, apparently."(edited)

Deallocate-Last Wednesday at 11:18 AM

Shanoa waved happily as Delphine appeared at the entrance to the storeroom. "Oh, hey there, Delphy. Gotta say, the whole reason I decided to do this whole shebang during the night was because I didn't expect people to be out and about." The herbalist cocked her head. "How come you're up, anyway? Couldn't sleep? Nighttime excursion?" She fired off a sweet smile. "Not that I'm not happy to see you, though. After all..." She gestured to the arcane setup in front of her. "...it's because of you that I was inspired to do this in the first place."

LadyDeme-Last Wednesday at 1:26 PM

"Little of column A, little of column B." She winked, though her expression might have been a bit faltering when she did as much. She hadn't been able to sleep -- she'd been tossing and turning, trying not to think about the strangeness of the place, the alien cieling, the hot air. So -- better to throw it away and enjoy the night. No city ever truly slept, if you knew how to find it. She sidled in, staying as clear of the chalk lines and set up of the circle as she could, but leaning forward just a little. She slept with her hair loose, and so it fell down around her shoulders. "And what exactly is all this, for which I am an assuredly excellent muse?"

Deallocate-Last Wednesday at 1:50 PM

Shanoa nodded understandably. "I feel ya. Heck, if I had the option to sleep all day and stay up all night, I'd do it in an instant." she said as she leaned back against the nearest wall, to reduce the change of Delphine noticing her back. "The night sky is just so beautiful, with the stars and the moon. Whoever said 'Night air is bad air" clearly had no idea what they were talking about." she scoffed. The young woman grinned as Delphine observed the runes. "Pretty cool, eh? Took a while to set up, but it was totally worth it. Makes me glad I'm such an expect in runes because of my... uhm, because of my natural genius!" she said, only narrowly avoiding a topic that she definitely didn't want to bring up. She made a few last-minute checks to the stability of the markings, and compared them the diagrams in the old and musty grey tome at her side. "Why, you convinced me to acquire a horse of my own to ride! So I figured I'd summon one."

LadyDeme-Last Wednesday at 3:14 PM

"They really are lovely tonight -- you can see constellations over here you don't see as much of back home -- and I bet there's a show or two still going on if I went to the theatre district..." She shrugged, though, more interested in the show in front of her than in a hypothetical something happening. She cocked an eyebrow at 'natural genius,' it was probably more reasonable to say 'training,' if she guessed, but she made a note of the sort of tender spot. She glanced around the room, most of the free floor space taken up by the circle. "...OK, two questions: First, can you actually do that, because that sounds fascinating? Second... In this room?"

Deallocate-Last Wednesday at 3:37 PM

Shanoa nodded happily. "I sure can! Or, at least I can according to this book." She hefted the large tome up and leafed through it carefully before settling on a page. "Now, this is me just paraphrasing, but this nasty old tome contains instructions on how to summon... Sleipnir, demonic steed of the Dark Realms. Known to haunt those who summon it until they're driven mad. Consumes the dreams of all nearby. And their... hmm, it's a bit hard to make out." She squinted closely at the text. "It's either 'souls' or 'soles'." Shanoa chewed on her lip. "I hope it's the former. I wouldn't be able to stand a demon with a foot fetish." She snapped the tome shut with a snap and looked up at Delphine, her eyes sparkling. "At any rate, I've cross referenced other texts, and it's indeed horse-like in form! I could ride it into battle! Wouldn't I look super intimidating and cool?" She gestured to her dress and hat. "Not to mention it compliments the whole theme I'm going for here." Shanoa looked around the room. "Oh, what's wrong with this room? I guess it's a bit on the small side. When I picked it out, I prioritized secrecy over size." She shrugged. "But we can cross that bridge when we come to it. I'm sure it'll be fine! After all, what can go wrong?"(edited)

LadyDeme-Last Wednesday at 5:24 PM

Delphine a blanched, her natural curiosity driven back by the absolute sound of everyhing. For a moment, she laughed, sure Shanoa was pulling her leg... And then she paused. And considered the possibility that no, Shanoa was serious. She shook her head. "It can haunt you if you summon it until you're driven mad, for one. And I, personally, like... Well. I'd like to have nice dreams at some point, anyway. And I need a soul for its variety of existential properties." She wasn't sure what might happen if you had your soul pulled out while you lived: would you just die? Would you be some puppet version of yourself? Theology discussed the soul, but not what happened without it. "...Anyway, you can't ride a horse if you can't get it out of the room!" She declared, joking away these larger terrors with a chuckle.(edited)

Deallocate-Last Wednesday at 5:37 PM

Shanoa nodded, as if she was taking the other woman's arguments from a logical standpoint. "Hmm, you're not wrong. However, it's more than likely that the accounts of this demon have been exaggerated over the years. After all, if it killed everybody it encountered, we wouldn't have accounts of its appearance at all." She placed her fists on her hips proudly. "And I like to think that I could easily tame any horse, demonic or not. I'm good with animals." She carefully considered Delphine's words. "I kinda thought it would be immaterial. Especially since there was one passage that mentions it being 'able to turn invincible'. Figured it meant it would be able to become intangible to physical objects. Which would bring up the question of how I would ride it." She sighed. "It would be a shame to just give up the ghost after I've gone through so much preparation." The witch glanced up at Delphine. "What do you think? It probably wouldn't hurt to summon it for just a second, right? The pentagram should keep us perfectly safe. Probably. And worse comes to worst, I can always dismiss it immediately?" She grinned. "So, how 'bout it?"(edited)

LadyDeme-Last Wednesday at 5:50 PM

"It haunts them until they're driven mad, not kills them -- they could have written it after it stole everyone else's soul, but before they were driven mad..." After all, they didn't have to survive after writing the account, only until it was written; history, then, was a little like reproduction: a creature that bred had managed to pass on its blood, even if it died soon after. On the other hand... She tilted her head one way, then another, swaying in line with her thoughts -- the incense smoke around her, too, swayed as the sticks burned lower and lower, glowing faintly in the candle-lit dark of the room. "...Well, I admit, I am curious. But if I don't have a soul, you'll have to carry on without me --" She placed a hand on her forehead "And live out my mission in my name! Even as you're being haunted to your doom."

Deallocate-Last Wednesday at 6:04 PM

Shanoa flashed her a thumbs up. "Have no fear, Lady Delphine! But that will never come to pass. For I shall protect you with my life!" And with that, the witch grabbed the remains of her chalk and brandished it wildly. With an elegant twist, she completed the last rune around the circle, completing the arcane figure. There was a flash of light and mild explosion as the herbs were drawn up into the center of the runes and combusted. A maelstrom of smoke expanded outwards, forming a column of spinning gas, which slowly faded away to reveal... nothing. Shanoa gazed at the empty pentagram. The incense was no longer smoking, and the herbs were gone, but besides that, it was if nothing had happened. "Well, I've gotta say, I'm a tad bit disappointed. But it was my first experience summoning, after all..."

LadyDeme-Last Wednesday at 6:53 PM

Delphine chuckled, nodding indulgently. She took a step back, watching the action of the circle and the flurry of final preperations with her eyes recalling the flick of Shanoa's wrists, the scrape of the chalk, the small details of her movements. It could be held onto, like this. She coughed into her hand as the cloud of smoke loomed, the gas buffetting her, sending her blue hair billowing around her, whipping sharply into her face. It fell in a cloud around her as the smoke cleared and the air settled, leaving her blinking into the now deeper darkness, the still vaster silence. She wasn't sure if she was disappointed or relieved, but she smiled wryly and tried to manage her hair around her. "Maybe it was all exagerration to begin with. I'm sure you'll have better luck another time."

Deallocate-Last Wednesday at 6:58 PM

The witch nodded sadly. "It could be. Maybe Sleipnir was nothing but a myth to begin with." She flipped through her tome to double-check her work. "After all, I'm pretty sure I did everything right." "Hmm..." she mused. "Maybe I didn't cackle enough..." But that can't be the case. I felt the loss of magic to power the summons, after all. She closed the tome with a sigh and stood up, careful to keep her back facing away from Delphine as usual. "Oh well. I'll wonder about it later." "But never mind my failures. How have you been, Delphy?"(edited)

LadyDeme-Last Wednesday at 7:26 PM

"Ah -- so it's like healing magic, if something like cackling can change the result?" Healing magic was a magic of the heart, influenced as much by the thoughts and actions in your heart as it was by the sort of crystal and the craftsmanship of the staff. A skilled mage could fake it -- it required little enough real healing -- but it came easiest to her with a sentimentality. The personal talk put her on slightly uneasy footing, given the turning she had been doing -- but she covered it up with a shrug and an expressive wave to outside the building, where the light was brighter and the air cleaner. As she waited in the doorway, she smiled through her response, "Well, I fell in the ocean recently -- I'm going back for a real swim tomorrow, maybe. I've been enjoying the trip, anyway. Have you seen their theatre district?"

Deallocate-Last Wednesday at 7:31 PM

Shanoa shrugged. "This book would have me think so. I don't really believe it, though. That's magic of the past, based in superstition. I like to think I prescribe to magic of the present, where everything can be explained with logic. And cackling as a means to channel emotions seems to be a rather unsteady means of focusing magic." "Fell in the ocean, huh?" She snickered. "What a coincidence. Albion fell in the ocean just the other day. Seems to be a rather common occurrence among our group. How did that come about, anyway?" She shook her head in response to the last question. "Can't say I have. Never been to a play, or an orchestra, or an opera. Something I definitely have to do before I leave, though."(edited)

LadyDeme-Last Wednesday at 7:43 PM

"Well, maybe you just don't have the heart for cackling. Emotional chanelling is an essential feature of good magic, at least in healing arts -- imagery, poetry, ideas: there is art to it, as much as science," she said, her gestures fluid as she spoke, drawing her words back into herself, and out into the world -- to Shanoa. "But faking that sort of effect is unsteady, and difficult... I don't know. Maybe I'd be a better healer if I didn't think so," she admitted as much, sadly. Had her mother always known, and been able to see it? Well. She wouldn't put it past Ianthe. "Oh, I was just talking with Rieze on the docks and slipped, is all. I got fished out, though... What a cooincidence; what a funny thing is fortune." At this last thing, though, she recovered her spirits. She clapped, all excitement. "Oh, you must! You really must! If there is any love of beauty in your heart, I need to show you all these things! We can make an evening of it; invite some others, perhaps!"

Deallocate-Last Wednesday at 8:12 PM

"Hmm. Maybe I'll try and read into that a bit." She glanced down at her right hand and idly swirled a few flames around her fingers. "I wonder if I can become even more powerful..." She froze, and the flames winked out. In her mind, countless images of enemies struck down by her flames ran through her head. Every single one of them, felled without any real effort on my part... Nobody has even come close to taking a barrage from me. Who can say what kind of monster I might become if I actually started seeking power? A shudder ran through her. No, it's best if I don't bite off more than I can chew. She glanced back up at her friend and tried to put on one of her usual smiles, with limited success. "Oh, Delphy. Don't be silly. You're an amazing healer, and have saved our skins on countless occasions." she said, trying to cheer the other woman up. "We all think you're amazing." A mischievous smile came to her lips. "Alfron in particular, as I hear it." A musical laugh escaped from her upon hearing Delphine's excitement regarding the theatre. "Oh, my. I do believe I've stumbled upon one of your passions." She gave a firm nod. "I'd love nothing more than to join you on to the theatre sometime, Lady Delphine."

October 6, 2016

LadyDeme-Last Thursday at 9:34 AM

Delphine noticed the change in Shanoa's demeanor as she thought -- the hollowness of that smile was a drip of cold water, and so Delphine's organs squirmed up uneasily, full of guilt from making someone make that sort of face... But because she made it, she understood it well, and placed a hand on Shanoa's shoulder sympathetically, crossing the circle. "...I don't know if it's countless. And I couldn't do much for you," She pointed out -- but she spoke with a sort of levity, like she didn't feel out of place amongst warriors who could turn the field of battle around her, while she strained to keep her head above water. But it wasn't totally worthless, so good enough. And the mention of Alfron made her laugh. "Oh, he's so very much admiring; like a puppy dog." She shook her head fondly. She'd started to notice it -- maybe that was the gratitude of someone who viewed being viewed as important; she couldn't say either way. When the gesture fizzled out, though, she gracefully gestured back to herself, beaming. "I am a woman of many passions, who sees in the vastness of the world a wealth of wonders for to see -- but yes, this is one of them. All the world's a stage -- and so the stage is but a tiny world."

Deallocate-Last Thursday at 11:28 AM

Shanoa put her hands on her hips and puffed out her chest. "Ah, don't worry about that! I'm perfectly fine looking after myself." After all, in the end, everybody will abandon you, like they always do... She flinched slightly when Delphine crossed the circle and placed a hand on her shoulder. The young witch was suddenly extremely aware of how close Delphine's hand was to the edge of the runes on her back. In fact, the gesture drew her attention to the point where she failed to notice the light layer of frost that gathered on Delphine's boots as she walked over the encircled pentagram. "Uhh, what I mean to say is, don't beat yourself up over it. I'm alive, and that's what matters!" Shanoa nodded forcefully. "In fact, I don't want you worrying about me at all in battle. Focus your efforts on the other members of the troop." She struggled for the words. "After all, I'm more... dispensable than everybody else. If you were to save either me or somebody else in the company, I'd prefer you helped somebody else. It's... for the best." Shanoa chuckled at the comparison. "That sounds quite right. Easily excitable, and soooo fun to tease. Alfron the puppy." She let out a low whistle. "How very poetic of you. But I get what you mean. And if the world of theatre is just a fraction as interesting as the worlds in books I read, I'm sure to enjoy it immensely."(edited)

LadyDeme-Last Thursday at 2:31 PM

Delphine saw the flinch and misunderstood it; she hadn't expected Shanoa to be nervous about touch, but doing more harm than good was not what she wanted -- the hand was withdrawn, with an expression that seemed briefly gentle. "Shanoa, that's -- that's such bullshit." Everything else, even the things that were nice, that Shanoa was saying, seemed insignificant. Delphine had to stand firm, frost on her boots or no, with an expression that seemed uncommonly serious for her. There was a little bit of steel in her eyes. An echo of a moment, being told she must live. "You're not disposable. And I won't abandon you." She nodded, letting that bit soften her back down. "Don't you have a sister, who gives you hats? Don't you want to read books and summon demon horses? Don't you have a wonderful laugh? Don't you have so much you know about plants, and so much more you could learn?" If she was being dramatic, let she'd let herself be dramatic: she let her words fall around the room like rain, underscoring them by gesturing to Shanoa. If that's disposable, then how can I be anything less than the most disposable person alive? "What about that is not worth my efforts? What about that is disposable?" She eventually dropped her hands to her sides and said, lifting her voice from its soft desperation. She smiled, like she always did, and waved it off. She probably had gone too far back there, but at the moment, it had seemed good. But now bouncy Delphine was back. "Besides... If you die, I won't get to take you to a play or a concert or anything. You'll never even get to hear me play the harp. So I'll have to keep you alive."(edited)

Deallocate-Last Thursday at 3:23 PM

Shanoa couldn't meet her eyes. "That's not... important." I'm not important. "The only thing that matters is the mission, and I'm willing to put my life on the line for the sake of it." She steeled herself and looked back to Delphine, her eyes as firm as her words. "And to be honest, I contribute the least out of anybody. I can't follow orders well. I can't take a hit. I can't even get along with and support my teammates." Her expression was desolate. "How could I possibly, when the majority of them avoid me like the plague? Outside of you and about three others, nobody wants anything to do with me." Shanoa looked back down at her hands. "Which is perfectly understandable, given what I am. But... it still hurts." When she met Valerie's gaze again, there were tears in her eyes. "I don't want your protection. You'll only gain the scorn of the rest of the team for helping out a... a monster. Nobody will miss me when I'm gone. Your efforts are better put to use aiding somebody that the team actually needs." Her words were barely audible. "Please. Just... leave me alone on the battlefield."

LadyDeme-Last Thursday at 4:04 PM

"You think I can do any of those things?" Delphine shrugged, playing casual while she could -- she'd made her stand, and it hadn't meant anything, big deal, so she couldn't reassure her at all. The support, maybe -- but people were often dealing with their own troubles, out of reach -- and in the end, maybe she couldn't support Shanoa, either. Just like she couldn't -- she broke off, looking away. "I don't care about scorn, or anything like that. If helping someone is worth scorning, then I'm OK if everyone in the world hates me. I'm the one with the Relive staff, so I get to make that call. And I think you're worth it." That came out less barbed than it might have been, even before that final thing. That expression was too much for her to bear. Her shoulders slumped, and she offered a hand -- she didn't want to force it on her. "But if only the mission matters, I have to do what I can to heal you when you need it. No matter what you say Because all those things -- how important they are, how important you, right now, are -- is part of it. I mean, maybe not that specific at the start, but... I certainly didn't come out here because I wanted to see people suffer, or because I profit from it."(edited)

Deallocate-Last Thursday at 4:43 PM

Shanoa blinked away her tears. "Delphine, what are you talking about? You're great. You can do anything." She saw the other woman look away, and immediately felt guilty. Oh. Of course she wasn't the only one with troubles. Far from it. I'm just being self-centered and petty. To force my troubles upon others when they themselves have their own... I truly am heartless. "Delphine... t-thank you." she said as she rubbed at her eyes. "It makes me very happy to know that you care that much about me... but I'm not as good of a person as you seem to think I am. Just... think of it as a disclaimer." She let out a humorless laugh. "I won't try to dissuade you further." After all, she's bound to find out eventually. It's inevitable. Her voice cracked. "And I never meant to say that you would be okay seeing me suffer. That's not... no." Her eyes focused intently on Delphine's. "You know me. I can put on a smile no matter the circumstances. I'll hide my pain behind a cheery grin and a flirty gesture. Like I always do. I would never wish suffering on anybody." A hesitant smile came to her face, as promised. "But speaking of which... Why did you join the team, then? I had always assumed it was just because you liked helping people... but now I'm not so sure." There. Maybe I can shift the topic to something more happy. I should never have spoken of myself in the first place.(edited)

LadyDeme-Last Thursday at 4:58 PM

"Anyone can do what I do. I'm pretty lazy when it comes to anything important; what I provide is just the beauty and flare of a work of art, is all," She said, laughing a little, perhaps more uneasily than she normally might. Her hand left untaken, she shuffled her feet, the layer of frost falling off like from blades of grass on a cold winter morning. She looked down at her boots for a while, considering what she really wanted to say, from her own experience. "But putting on a smile isn't the same as not suffering. It's not that I don't want to see suffering -- it's that I don't want you to suffer. So just smiling isn't sufficient, and I'm going to be a pest. And you go around saying you're not as good as I think -- and then you say something like that." The paradox made her laughter real and sincere, teasing. Wasn't not wanting people to suffer the definition of being good? Or, at least, good enough. Sure, you could examine it from all sorts of angles, but when it was that obivous, it felt almost like a joke. She straightened up, now properly relaxed, and headed back over towards the doorway, to let the fresh air out of the room, where the smoke still lingered heavily between them. "Well, I told you, didn't I? Whether I like it or not, I'm stuck with something as corny as being Countess of Amarana. People were even actually calling me that in Arcias. Embaressing to the max, because it's in Floribar, and it technically isn't recognized as a thing that exists anymore. I managed to get out --" She put it like that and felt something clamp down on her. She didn't miss a beat. "So I survived, and then... Well. Here I am. Can't be that bad a choice -- someone has to keep you from throwing yourself on your sword."(edited)

Deallocate-Last Thursday at 6:06 PM

The young witch pouted in a joking manner. "See, this whole argument would be going alot better if you didn't care so much about me. Fine. You know what? I'll be open with you, if that's what you want. I won't smile unless I actually am happy." she said, and then prodded the other woman in the shoulder. "But in return, I expect you to be the same for me. Please be honest with your feelings. I know there's something hurting you. And I probably can't do anything about it. But that doesn't mean I won't try. And I will try." Shanoa stuck her tongue out. "And I'm not going to go jumping on swords, thank you very much." I'm just not going to complain if one hits something vital. She looked concerned. "So you ran away. This group, the entire war effort, is it just to keep your mind off of your heritage? Off what you should be doing?" "Unless I'm reading too far into this..." she said, thinking it out. "Why would you try and run away from it anyway? Even if it's corny, it's who you are. If I had been born into a role like that, I would do my best to live up to my family." She kicked at the edge of the rune with the base of her shoe, scuffing the marks and edge of the pentagram badly. "Are you sure that there isn't-" she started, but whatever else she was about to say was cut off as the room was thrown into chaos. As soon as she wiped away at part of the rune barrier, a frigid wind swept outwards from the runes at the center of the rune. Incense scattered, the pages of the tome were sent flapping wildly, and the door of the room blew open with a bang. The temperature in the room dropped suddenly, and frost spread across the floor until it covered the majority of the room and the doorway. And lastly, the candles blew out, shrouding the entire room in darkness.

A second later, a very unladylike curse was heard, and a light flared up in Shanoa's hand, barely exposing the part of the room around the two women. Shanoa's face held an expression that she had never had since she joined the group, not even when she was near death. She was staring at the oppressive darkness in the center of the room with absolute horror. A soft gasp escaped her lips. "Oh, no..."

October 7, 2016

LadyDeme-Last Friday at 9:07 AM

"Of course," She said, not entirely sure how sincere she was: maybe she meant it, or maybe she meant it begrudgingly, or maybe she was just saying, with a heart full of sincere affection, whatever was expedient. She figured she'd cross that bridge when she came to it. It hardly mattered, when what Shanoa said next was like a knife to the chest. "So...That's what you think, huh?" Great. Could do anything. Just Running Away. Well, it isn't entirely wrong, Delphine supposed with a sort of grim chuckle. Whether or not I wanted to, I ran away. Still -- she wondered if anyone would even believe her, if she laid what had been self-evident to her out, clear as glass. No one had so far, when her actions spoke. She shrugged and shook her head, theatrically, trying to ignore that gaping chest wound left behind. "I'm not a Countess simply because I was born my parent's child -- the idea of a birthright is nonsense. Second, I have no obligation to my parents. They don't and didn't even like me." and something dawned on her as she spoke, a niggling suspicion that wow, no one had explained the least thing about this to Shanoa. It was easier to forgive her the slight if she thought that, even if she was going to carry that weight all the way to the end of the road. "....Did anyone tell you who our boss --" And then the discussion was devoured by a wave of hungry darkness, Delphine shrieking as the frost crept around her, the hot tropical air suddenly chill. Delphine's eyes couldn't make out whatever it was Shanoa was seeing, except that nothing reached that corner, but her shriek turned into a high, nervous chuckle. The atmosphere of the room had gone completely wrong, and Delphine was sensitive enough to feel it from the core of her heart. "...I-I sure liked having a soul while it lasted. That's what 'oh no' means, right?"(edited)

Deallocate-Last Friday at 10:15 AM

Shanoa was shivering, although whether it was from the sudden chill or from fear was uncertain. "Yes. Yes, it is." she spoke, her voice barely above a whisper. The young witch lifted her flame forward, to better see through the gloom. However, the light of the flame seemed to hit a solid wall of darkness, and permeated no further. As soon as she witnessed the alien phenomenon, Shanoa let out a little scream and jumped backwards to the nearest wall. Okay, this is officially a disaster. My flames have never failed me before. I'm way over my head here... She turned to Delphine and gave a grim smile. "I really screwed up this time. Sorry about this." The young woman was aware that the darkness hovering in the center of the small room was between them and the door. Shanoa felt a familiar heat on her back, and instantly knew her fear was causing the rune on her back to glow brightly, and made small ashes fall from it to the ground. However, in the face of the demonic horse, it didn't seem to matter as much to her anymore. Her mind ran through a myriad amount of ideas in an attempt to save their lives. At last, she remembered her original intent. She took a hesitant step forward and spoke in as calm of a voice as she could. "H-hey there, Mr. Sleipnir. How are you doing tonight? W-we don't mean you any harm..." The familiar sound of a horse snorting echoed through the foglike darkness that enshrouded the room. Shanoa stumbled backwards, almost tripping on her tall heels. She shot Delphine a questioning look. After all, the woman always seemed to have the perfect solution to any problem...(edited)

LadyDeme-Last Friday at 11:33 AM

Yes, normal problems, like fighting with shopkeeps, not getting demon horses not to haunt you! Delphine froze, noticing the glow from Shanoa's back only out of the corner of her eyes, an afterthought, one weird thing in a situation with a big wierd thing that could come for their souls. "Exagerrated," she breathed, replaying the earlier converstion. It hardly seemed exagerated, but under the pressure of Shanoa's gaze, she shook her head and tried to look away from the vast truth of the demon horse. "W-well, aren't you a fine fellow? Hahahhaha..." They were not close enough to the door to run. She leaned in nearer to Shanoa, for comfort and warmth -- a lot of warmth -- as much as to whisper, "How are you supposed to deal with demons? A-are they vulnerable to other magic? Negotiation? Contracts? Flattery?" She knew that light and dark, as forces of existence, were opposed -- was there some way they could work with that? Her brain scrambled, intent on the singular goal of not dying for a reason so stupid.(edited)

Deallocate-Last Friday at 12:15 PM

Shanoa shook her head. "I... I'm not sure. I get the idea my flames will be ineffectual on the demon, and only serve to anger it. And I think it knows we're helpless before it. Not much we could offer it to spare our lives..." She glanced down where she knew the tome of dark magic was laying, but she knew deep down that there was nothing more it could help her with. "I read everything the tome said on summoning demons, and I have no idea. All it had was info on what to do when the demon was trapped in the pentagram..." But now, we're the ones trapped. she thought. She diverted her gaze back to the cloud of shadows in front of them."There must be some reason it hasn't attacked us yet. It's just standing there... watching us." "Well, if we're going to die anyway, might as well try something reckless..." Shanoa took a step forward, and extinguished the flame cupped in her palm. The room was completely dark, save for an odd red light filtering through the young witch's hair. It looked like the entirety of her head was wreathed in a massive flame that cascaded down her back. She walked up to directly in front of the concentrated darkness, steeled herself by clutching her eyes shut, and thrust her right arm in. After a second, her eyes widened, and she gasped. Almost immediately, the oppressive presence vanished in the direction of the door, and the frost on the ice cold-floor faded away. The herbalist fell to her knees, and the runes shining through her hair winked out, plunging the room into complete darkness for the second time that night. There was a muffled thump as Shanoa crumpled to the floor. And then everything was completely silent.

LadyDeme-Last Friday at 12:32 PM

Delphine briefly wondered if it hadn't vanished so much as been unleashed -- it seemed like nonsense, a toy thought in amidst the deep wells of what the hell just happened. She scrambled through the dark, the after-images of Shanoa's light sending strange red patterns blinking across her darkened field of vision. "Shanny! Shanoa, are you alright?!" She called out, stumbling down to where she'd last seen Shanoa and crouching low, the figure of her friend becoming more visible as she blinked away the remains of light, the details foggy and unclear. "Shanoa?"

Deallocate-Last Friday at 2:00 PM

The witch sat up groggily. "Agggghh. I'm fine. I think. How are you holding up?" she said as she grasped around blindly. Within a few moments, she found what she was looking for. A flame flame burst into existence, lighting the candle that she carefully placed between the two of them. She blinked as the bright light temporarily blinded her. "I... I petted it." she said softly, as the events that transpired came back to her. "Its hide was quite soft too... like velvet." "Speaking of which..." she glanced around the room in the soft light. "It escaped, didn't it?"

LadyDeme-Last Friday at 2:56 PM

"I'm fine. Probably. I think I still have a soul." Delphine nodded carefully. Shanoa did seem to be fine enough, so she was a little relieved. The part of her that enjoyed learning wondered faintly what about it had been velvety -- the nose maybe, like a real horse. She shook off the errant thought, and turned her attention to the prospect of some sort of demonic horse running around a city. "I...I think it did. I... Is there anything to be done about that? It seems like a thing that needs stopping. Before it haunts you or steals souls and such, or whatever it is demon horses do." At this point, she had no idea, and she knew in her soul that it had stolen her dreams: she was not going to be sleeping tonight, after all.

Deallocate-Last Friday at 3:39 PM

Shanoa flashed her a tired smile. "That's a relief. I think it's safe to say that I do as well." She staggered to her feet. "I was such an idiot. Sleipnir can turn invisible, not invincible." She glanced down at the smudged runes. "The summoning worked perfectly. It was just waiting in the center of the pentagram for me to let down my guard." She sighed. "I was woefully unprepared for this. It was a mistake to try it in the first place." The young woman walked to the doorway and peered out. No giant black demon horse in sight. As expected. She sighed and looked back to Delphine. "You're right. Looks like I've got a mess to clean up. I've got to find Mr. Sleipnir and do... something before he causes any chaos in the city." "You stay here, okay? I don't want to drag you into my problems." Shanoa grimaced. "I know we just had a talk about this and all, but this is different. I don't want you endangering yourself on my behalf."

LadyDeme-Last Friday at 3:44 PM

Invisible was probably better than invincible, right? She thought as much, and followed Shanoa. Following, she couldn't help but notice the spot that'd been glowing before, now blocked by Shanoa's hair. Clothes cut around it, but hair draping over it... She focused her gaze out beyond the door and nodded, slowly. "I wouldn't do any good anyway, right? I mean, unless demons are very impressed by poetry or healing magic. Sorry about that... Just come to me if you get hurt, OK?" She was happy to leave the demon-hunting to the demon-summoners. Or people who were actually good for something... Practical. She chuckled to herself, realizing, Practical is apparently not at all what I thought it was. It's got Demons in it now. Maybe that meant everyone was right about her -- but either way, the fact remained she'd only be trouble. "Stay safe... Find a better book, too."

Deallocate-Last Friday at 4:19 PM

Shanoa smirked. "Good to hear solid logic. For a second there I thought you would follow after me based on some misplaced sentiment." She walked over to the tome and tossed it idly in her hand. "I mean, I doubt I'd be any use either. But that doesn't mean I can't try." She winked. "Don't worry, I'll be sure to come back in one piece. After all, we have to go to the theatre, right? I wouldn't let anything as puny as mere death stop me from enjoying that with you." The witch stuffed the old tome in her hat and dropped it back on her head. "Thanks. You too. I'll do my best." And with that, she vanished out the door. Only for her to pop her head in the doorway seconds later. "Oh, and don't think I've forgotten what we were talking about before. I may be too busy now, but I will certainly make time to hear your story later, Delphy. We're going to eat cookies in front of a warm fire while wrapped up in blankets, okay? No choice." And then she was gone again.

LadyDeme-Last Friday at 4:30 PM

Delphine sighed a little to herself; well, the cookies sounded good, but a warm fire? In this weather? That would have to wait. And then, she might want a demon to take her dreams after all -- so waiting for it wouldn't be too bad. Anyway, it wasn't a story that was really all that interesting, so either way: fine. She'd have some questions to ask Shanoa, too. Delphine strolled out, out the building and into the night, looking idly overhead for a sign of demon horses in the night. She whistled some idle melody, and went to join the living for a long and sleepless night.

=== RP End ===