Exorcists and Monsters (1x1)

[pudding]

Alright Shadow, let's do this!

 

Name:

Age:

Gender:

Species:

Appearance:

History: (Optional)

Abilities:

Weapons:

Other:

 

I'm making Lucifer's sheet right now.

[shadow_claw]

Name: Makoto

Age: old? somewhere below 500 but above 300

Gender: biologically male, but is generfluid

Species: Kitsune

Appearance: Saren takes many forms, but traditionally has three favorites. A red fox, a red-haired man, and a young Japanese girl, are their favorites. In their current size, they take the form of the girl.

History: (Optional)

Abilities:

-shape-shifting

-astral projection

-illusion creation

-object summoning (can create objects from thin air. As long as its wielder believes it's real, it remains.)

- pyromancy

-wormhole generation (can teleport short distances via wormholes)

Weapons: none

Other:

 

Name: Namina

Age: old

Gender: Female

Species: vampire

Appearance: Namina is a tall, rather thick woman. She has a wide bust, thick hips, and muscular legs. In fact, she seems like a perfectly healthy human. If she wasn't undead. Namina has a second, retractable set of teeth, which are needle-like and sharp.

History: (Optional)

Abilities:

- shape shifting

- Hypnosis

- flight/levitation

- practical immortality

- inhuman speed and strength

- superior hearing and night vision

Weapons: A switchblade, usually stashed in her pocket.

Other: typical vampire weaknesses and such

 

Name: Magnus

Age: 37

Gender: Male

Species: Harpy

Appearance: honestly I've shown you so many pictures of this child if you need this I'm concerned.

History: (Optional)

Abilities:

- Flight

- uhhhhh

Weapons: His talons, I guess

Other: actual cutie pie who's done nothing wrong.

 

[pudding]

Name: Lucifer, Satan or The Devil

Age: Unknown

Gender: Agender (Uses He/Him or They/Them)

Species: Demon/Fallen Angel

Appearance:

In his sealed form, Lucifer has been trapped in the body of a fairly scrawny young man with tan skin and messy brown hair. This form has bright blue eyes and is fairly unassuming. As with all forms he takes or bodies he possesses, his scars have manifested after a significant time of possession. Additionally, however, this form has a large tattoo on the upper left arm in black ink. The tattoo an ancient seal, preventing him from escaping his host or attempting to break the seal in any way. The tattoo is fairly intricate but, at its core, contains a pentagram surrounded by words written in a dead language.

In his unsealed form, Lucifer has what appears to be the skull of a goat masking his face. Long, curved horns twist out underneath this skull, emerging from his skin and curving towards his cheeks. He is tall, though not unnaturally so, only around six feet tall in total but clearly growing in size compared to when he was sealed. His general body structure appears to be humanoid, although he has an extra set of muscles in his chest to accommodate having a large pair of wings. These wings appear large and bat like, although this is an illusion as his true wings were burned during his fall almost entirely and instead are disheveled, and formerly white, though the ash stained most of his feathers gray. For image he keeps this illusion up and it helps distance him from what he used to be.

Lucifer posses dark skin in this form and his back bears the scars of his fall, terrible burns that carry over into any form he takes but appear much more severe in his natural state. He has long, black hair beneath the skull mask he wears and his eyes are golden in color. Scars also appear on his chest and arms, though these injuries are not from his fall. For some reason, he always seems to have perfect winged eyeliner on at all points in time. Maybe it’s natural. Maybe it’s just Satan.

In terms of clothing, Lucifer doesn’t wear any ‘standard' modern fashion. His transformation/reversion into his unsealed form results in the complete disintegration of whatever he was wearing before, however, he does have a fairly simple white cloth to cover his lower half and wears simple, gladiator-style sandals that rise up to about his mid-calf. He wears two golden bracelets around each of his wrists.

History: He rebelled. He fell. Several hundred years ago, an exorcist managed to trap him within his own body and sealed him inside, cutting off his access to Hell and his powers by using his own soul. Since then, he’s lived as a human, unable to escape the mortal vessel his body was trapped in.

Abilities:

In his sealed form, Lucifer possesses only a fraction of his powers and the only real ability he still can use is the ability to influence demons. Stronger demons with a greater willpower can resist the urge to obey him. While he is still immortal and cannot die from old age, he can grow sick or die from injuries.

In his unsealed form, Lucifer has access to all of his prior abilities:

*Lucifer controls Hell and can open the gates, allowing demons to spill forth or, in some rare cases, banish them back within.

*Lucifer is physically strong and can easily overpower a regular human

*Lucifer can see the desires of other individuals and act upon their temptations through the use of illusions. This allows him to create deals with people in return for their soul.

*Lucifer can force other demons to obey him, though more powerful demons can resist this urge.

*Lucifer can shape shift into a variety of animals, though prior injuries and scars remain

*Lucifer can possess the body of a human, allowing him to walk on the Earth. If his vessel his damage he is returned to Hell and must seek out a new body to control. He can only walk on the Earth without a vessel for a short period of time and his ability to use his powers is diminished significantly.

*While his wings are broken and warped, Lucifer can still fly with them, though this action can be extraordinarily painful.

*Lucifer can control and manipulate fire, and has resistance to flames.

Weapons: Lucifer is known to have used a sword at some point, although it is unknown if he still uses the weapon.

Other: He has mellowed significantly over the years, admittedly.

[pudding]

Earth.

 

A planet full of life in all shapes and sizes. For years humans have been aware of the fact they are not the only intelligent life on this planet. There has always been records and stories of other creatures that live along side them. Creatures like mermaids, elves, harpies.

 

Creatures like demons.

 

While the relationships between most creatures has been somewhat harmonious and balanced, demons have always stood as a malicious plague on the Earth. One of the most universally accepted truths is the fact there is no such thing as a good demon. They exist only to spread evil and disorder and thrive on the lives they have destroyed. Leaving them alive only spells death.

 

And the worst of them all was Satan, the King of Hell and ruler of all of the demons. The Devil. If regular demons were capable of destroying a town, he could bring a civilization to its knees. His power usually kept him confined to Hell, but his influence spread far and vast. Periods of war and strife are often his fault. Periods of peace and calm usually are calms before a storm. For ages, humans have attempted to rid themselves of such a massive threat. For as long as they have been able to they fought and rebelled. Hundreds of years ago, exorcists came into being. Special individuals skilled in the ability to kill demons and slowly rid the world of the Earth’s greatest enemy.

 

There aren’t many individuals who can claim to have outsmarted Satan. Even those who do usually end up dead not long after, meaning those who attempt to outwit him are often fools or those with a death wish. But not all. The Devil is fond of games, gambles and deals. He can be bargained with and even give power to those who have none if he decides the result could prove entertaining. Because, above all else, the Devil is remarkably bored. And his boredom has gotten the better of him more often than not.

 

For several hundred years, the Earth has been peaceful. While demons still cause mischief and mayhem, they lack organization usually credited to their leader. The ruler of Hell has been quiet. And whispers among the demons captured claim he has been missing. Not even his closest guard knows what became of him. Many people forgot, or credited his existence to myth. He never existed at all, they claim. But the exorcists never forgot. An all-powerful creature doesn’t just disappear. And the hunt continued. Of course, the hardest things to locate are those right in front of you. Hiding a tree in a forest, so to speak. Nobody would have suspected the Devil to walk among them. Nobody would have suspected the Devil to look like a completely normal guy.

 

Nobody would have expected Satan, Lord of Hell, to sit in a coffee shop, quietly drinking a cup of coffee overloaded with sugar and milk, reading the Chronicles of Narnia as dozens of faces walked by, barely even sparing him a glance. Nobody would have expected to find him only a few blocks away from the headquarters of the exorcist organization dedicated to hunting him down. Nobody would have expected him to return to the same coffee shop day after day, ordering a different drink and quietly reading a different book. And certainly nobody would have expected that when he placed his order at the counter and was asked for his name, he flashed a wide smile before answering.

 

“Lucifer."

 

[shadow_claw]

He was beautiful. Not in the way humans were; he outshone man in facial and bodily beauty. A rare male of his kind, his feathers were primarily black, and sectioned with white. It was the blue ones that were the most stunning, however. Although a deep denim color at first, any glint of light made his wings and tail feathers shine in a dazzling array of color. The iridescence itself was hypnotizing.

 

And his face. Sharply angled and distnctly bird-like, his black eyes glittered with curiosity. He had a long, sharply hooked nose and soft-albeit small-lips. His thick eyebrows framed his sharp face dramaticaly.

 

It was no wonder he worked as a stripper. With thick legs, muscled wings, and a generally attractive shape, he was a popular choice among dancers. If one could call it that. And man, could he rock a suit and tie.

 

He wasn't wearing that today, however. Suits were for work. Or they were until the majority of it was removed. No, today he was up early to run errands. Groceries, pay bills, all the good stuf . Being the night owl that he was however, this sort of day wasn't started without a few shots of espresso.

 

Magnus wore casual clothes. Khaki shorts and a blue tank top were a comfortable change in attire. Saying that his work uniform was glittet and boxer briefs, it was quite the change. The Harpy ordered a rather tall drink, and wandered to the bar to add sugar and milk. No sugar, just a dash of the dry, non-dairy creamer. Satisfied, the man turned to leave.

 

Only, the drink in his talons slipped and crashed onto the floor. Coffee spilled not only on the floor, but splashed onto a nearby table.

"Sohn einer Hündin!"

A slip of the tongue, lapsing back into a German swear in a momemt of surprise. Although not particularly heavy, an accent lingered on his tongue with every word he spoke. Harpies were of European descent and, being generally island-based, spread pretty far across Europe. It was no surprise to see a Harpy that wasn't Greek.

 

Embarrased, the Harpy stepped forward to the man whose table he'd spilled his coffee near. His hair feathers, usually smoothed back, were fluffed up with distress.

"Ach! So sorry, it was an accident! Here, allow me to help clean." The napkin dispenser at the table was quickly depleted as Magnus tried to clean. How rude of him to make such a mess!

[pudding]

Lucifer swirled the spoon sticking out of his coffee mug with a hum, his eyes scanning over the pages of the book in front of him. He wasn’t a reader before. Then again, he had spent most of his time in Hell and his demons were not known for their creative thinking skills. Or thinking skills in general. They were destructive creatures above all else and he could never imagine any of them taking an interest in poetry or writing. It had been a new experience for him to pick up a book and actually read it.

 

Inventive little ants, humans were. Very clever and certainly good for a few interesting moments. Still, he was bored. Ever since being sealed by that stupid, insignificant exorcist, his power had been cleaved from his being. And now he was weak. Now he was vulnerable. He had to hide with his tail between his legs from exorcists and demons alike. Even his own subjects might move to dethrone him if they knew his state. Well, at least the stronger ones would. The stronger the demon, the smarter it tended to be. The more likely it was to realize if he was out of the picture, there was room for another king. Besides, a demon would never willingly serve one weaker than it. Including their own ruler, if the situation arose. So he vanished, searching desperately for a means to free himself from the seal.

 

It didn’t take long for him to grow bored of that too.

 

He was always bored, it seemed. In Heaven he had been bored. In Hell he had been bored. On Earth he was bored. Bored, bored, bored bored, bore-

 

Hot coffee splashed on the ground next to his shoes and on the table in front of him, knocking him out of his thoughts. He jerked away instinctively, nearly knocking over his own drink and lifting the book up to avoid staining the pages. It didn’t save the rest of his outfit, though, and hot coffee spilled off the table and onto his shirt. There was a time when his resistance to heat would have prevented him from feeling the raging fires from Hell. Now it barely extended to cups of coffee barely even lukewarm in comparison. Ignoring the pain dancing across his chest where the coffee burned his skin, Lucifer looked down at the white shirt he had been wearing with a sigh.

 

He should have worn black.

 

“Don’t worry,” Lucifer replied softly, dog-earing the book and setting it down out of reach of the liquid. Standing up, he grasped a few napkins and began mopping up the liquid on the table. There was a time where he would have sworn loudly, causing demons to run to his aid and quickly apprehend the offending person. Now he just cleaned up the mess himself.

 

So boring.

 

”I should have left a while ago anyway. I suppose it’s just the Universe’s way of telling me to get a move on.” Or maybe it was Michael. He didn’t know if his brother knew where he was or what he was doing at the moment, but he wouldn’t put it past his obnoxious brother to trip an innocent Harpy. For all he was blamed for accidents and misery, Michael enjoyed his fair share of suffering.

 

Entertainment, he’d call it as he looked down at the world from upon the clouds. As long as the mortals weren’t hurt at the end of the day who cared? No one, apparently, unless it was Lucifer having the fun. Then everyone was screaming and yelling about how he had done wrong.

 

[shadow_claw]

"Oh no, your shirt! I'm so, so sorry." Magnus fretted over his accident, hands clasping hot, soggy napkins as he spoke. It was scalding. And it really hurt. But that didn't matter! He poured coffee on a poor man's chest!

 

Doing the only thing he could think of, Magnus tossed the wet napkins in the nearest trash bin and then....

 

He took of his shirt and extended it to the stranger. Modesty dies quickly in his line of work. Besides, his body was covered with feathers. It wasn't like humans, who were quite literally naked. Still,, it didn't take much imagination to see what his torso looked like. Feathers only did so much.

 

---

 

What a mess. And to think, she hadn't even started yet.

 

Who knew demons hung out in parties? she sure hadn't. Oh well. It'd just be another apartment building reduced to ashes. A skimpy red dress, barely passing to her thigh. Demons liked pretty girls. And oh, there was many a pretty human girl here.

 

It's a shame they ignored their instincts to run. Maybe it was the cocaine and alcohol that dulled the soul to danger. The demons wouldn't likely do anything to them. Not yet. But this apartment wasn't going to be a building for much longer.

 

A coy smile, and she waded through the crowd. Music thumped at a dull roar around here. The air was thick and sweet with drugs. It reminded her of the Geisha days. Ah, what fun times. It'd been long since then. But reminders of home were nice.

 

The head honcho, the biggest baddie, was a lovely lady in her mid thirties. Piercings covered all the flesh of her ears, and her lips were crimson. Her eyes shone black, all sinister sclera shining back at her. And as the woman sidled up next to her, small talk became romance almost instantly. Only when lips met hers, hands were around the beasts's throat.

 

The poor thing had hardly a moment to react. Yellow eyes burned into black for a moment, before hands became claws. Claws that so easily hooked into her soft neck. But this one couldn't run. She was holding onto the foul creature. And then...

 

She turned up the heat. Blood quite literally boiled, dribbling from the gaping wounds and down the monster's neck. A shriek gargled from the demon's mangled throat.

"Writhe, filthy thing. I want to see you suffer." A smile remained on her face even as she tossed the limp body aside.

 

Soon, others got the idea something was wrong. While the woman was quickly surrounded, she was far from overwhelmed. Four tails appeared from beneath her skirt. Rising slowly, the sweet smile remained on her face as she stalked forward.

 

A shockwave of flame pulsed from the girl's body, blasting anything nearby into ash. The demons didn't stand a chance. And soon, the feathery remains of the ceiling dusting her. Ah, that was fun. Perhaps a celebratory smoke-

 

The floor shuddered beneath her. Oh, right. She had started on the fourth floor. There were...

 

Two floors above her.

 

And three below.

 

A well-placed wormhole and she was outta there. And good timing, too. Because not long after, the whole friggin burning went down. It was like those blocks as kids that collapse into one another except it was an apartment complex. The whole block was dusted with ash and smoke.

 

Some short while away, a fox sat on the sidewalk, licking ash from its fur. Ah, fun times. But now she needed a bath.

[pudding]

Exams were coming up.

 

Thousands of years ago, Exorcists used to act as independent parties. One Exorcist would kill as many demons as they realistically could before eventually biting the dust themselves. Hopefully before then they would take on an apprentice and pass down all that they had learned to a new generation. But unfortunately, it didn't always work like that. Hundreds of years ago, a group of Exorcists banned together and decided to create an organization to properly manage their information and learn from one another. Thus, the art of killing demons quickly turned into a schooling system. Children were educated on how to properly exterminate lower class demons and eventually were molded into ideal little students, ready to kill the next threat to humanity the moment it reared its ugly head. It's was hardly a human exclusive job either, anyone could join the organization.

 

Unfortunately, it came with many regulations. Sharing information meant that every position was carefully examined to determine if each Exorcist was well enough to perform. Information wasn't freely given to others to avoid as many rouges as possible and prevent people from trying to be heroes. Heroes only made more corpses. They couldn't afford that in this fight.

 

Exams were coming up.

 

She was a middle class Exorcist with the official title of Constructor. It was nothing special, really. All she did was write talismans to summon demons, binding them to the item she stuck the talisman on until the seal broke. It didn't work on very high class demons since those required a more specific rune. It was much like a Tamer or a Summoner. The individuals who used demons to fight for them against other demons. In fact, she really was just a Tamer, although they had given her a fancier title thanks to her work with golems. But it didn't change the fact that at the end of the day, she had to focus on studying for exams. Until she was able to earn the title of upper class Exorcist, she'd continue to have to take exams every year.

 

It was awful.

 

Sighing loudly, she pushed open the door to her room in the base of operations and flicked on the lights, illuminating the bits of scrap metal lying around the room from her tinkering and the sheets of paper she used to write talismans. Sighing loudly, she flopped into the chair at her desk, picking up a pen and biting on the end. Talismans were a difficult thing. Many people looked down on Tamers because they relied on the very demons they fought against to defeat other demons. Still, they were incredibly useful in the field provided the demon in question was weaker than you. These sort of things would never work on the King of Hell himself.

 

- - - -

 

Lucifer blinked once when the harpy removed his shirt and extended it outwards. It wasn't that he was embarrassed or anything akin to that. He was an immortal creature. The form he took on this world was simply a body he was possessing, in this situation by force. His real form had once been angelic and beautiful. Why would he ever fall for a insignificant mortal creature? Still, he felt remarkably familiar. He couldn't place where or why but he knew this harpy. Or, at least he recognized his chest.

 

He stared for more than a few moments at the bare chest of the creature in front of him, unable to avoid not looking at it. Finally, he lifted his gaze up, past the shirt to meet the harpy's eyes. Funny creatures, harpies were. He was almost jealous of those wings. Well, that wasn't true. He was very jealous of those wings. "But if I took your shirt, what would you wear?" Lucifer replied softly, turning his head slightly to the side. Mortals and their contagious motions. He found himself walking and talking more like them every single day. It was infuriating, in it's own way. "I'm fine, really. I can just go home and change."

[shadow_claw]

How long had he been in her family's service? He didn't know. Time was a useless measurement and he struggled with the very concept. But, he figured, it was a long time. The first few (centuries? generations?) had been horrible. Not having a free will but constantly trying to rail against the system anyways was infuriating. But that had been a long, lime time (maybe?). He had since mellowed out (or perhaps his very soul [or lack thereof] had been altered to be more docile). If anything, he enjoyed his work.

 

He wasn't really a demon any more. Unable to say 'no', the new master had taken to changing things. Him, most notably. A body of his very own was gifted to him, one crafted from sleek metal. But in order to actually fit in...well, it took a bit of soul-splicing. It felt nice to...feel. Again. Being a demon numbed most emotions, and having sensations he had forgotten was a comfort.

 

Jet rolled next to his master, swinging his legs idly on the plush office chair. Softy bumping into the girl's own chair, he came to a gentle halt. Glowing blue eyes scanned the material sprawled out on the desk, a thoughtful look on his face.

 

"What's the matter now?" he inquired, inclining his head towards the desk. "You stumped?"

 

---

 

"Shirt? It is for social convenience. Feathers do plenty against the environment. Please, I insist. It is unbecoming and terribly uncomfortable to wear a soiled shirt." Magnus extended the shirt once more, this time a tad bit firmer. As they glanced up at the poor man he'd spilled his drink on, something clicked in their head. Oh. Oh. It was the regular! The one that always came with the dark-haired girl. It seemed she just hung around for kicks, but he...

 

He was a nice man.

 

Many men didn't frequent hid side of the show. After all, it was a "public" place. Although Magnus himself was quite openly happy with anyone or anything, many men (especially humans) shied away at the whole "gay" thing. Magnus had only seen him hang around his shows a few times, but that face was always there when he was leaving work. Every time Magnus tries to talk, he found a reason to flee.

 

"Oh, I know who you are! You are the regular. You always come in with the tall woman, with the green eyes. She's very pretty. Are you two together? Is it a fun outing you two partake in? You never seem to be very happy at the club, though..." Good old Maggie. Although a sweetheart, he had a habit of rambling. Once he started talking, it was unlikely he'd every stop. Smiling brightly now, Magnus extended a clawed hand. "i never did have chance to introduce myself. I am Magnus, it is pleasure to finally meet you. Though...the circumstances could have been a little less...hot and sticky..."

[pudding]

Nano didn't bother looking up, knowing very well who was in the room with her. Demon or not, she had known Jet since she was little. She had given him that name back then when she was much smaller and, to be honest, she had long since forgotten what he had actually introduced himself. Four year olds weren't exactly in the habit of memorizing long demonic names. They were more concerned with rockets and trucks and other such things.

 

"Always," she replied with a slight huff, her teeth biting down hard on the end of the pen until the plastic gave way, cracking underneath her teeth. Whatever, it was useless anyway if she didn't know what to write. "The upper classes have been riding my ass lately and the exam is coming up. I don't know what I can actually do to impress them this year. Short of bringing them the Devil's heart on a wooden stake, I just don't think they'll like what I have to offer." She sighed, letting her head fall over until her forehead was pressed against the bench. "I'm just so tired of doing office work. I want to go fight some demons! I want to go kick Lucifer's ass!" She paused for a moment before turning her head to the side to look at her companion with a frown. "I'm just so boooooooored."

 

- - - -

 

Oh. OH.

 

The club, right. It was hard to forget about that place when he was there so so often. Well, that would certainly explain why the harpy was so familiar to him. He was just used to seeing him with a lot less clothing on. And in much, much dimmer light.

 

He had originally showed up just to see what would happen. He had time aplenty and why take time to look over everything? There were a lot of things he had missed during his time terrorizing Earth so it only made sense to look around and see what little things mortals had come up with to keep themselves entertained during their short, puny lives. But from the moment he had walked in and seen the harpy he had been entranced.

 

He missed his wings. He missed them more than anything else. He had the prettiest wings before and they had burned during the fall. But at least he still had wings, even with them burned to a crisp. But now they were just gone. It left a horrible hole in his body and mind. He couldn't bear it. Lying awake at night, knowing this dumb mortal body had to sleep but not even being able to rest properly. If he had a soul, he would have felt it rip in half lying awake at night, bearing the scars of the fall but not even being able to be comforted by the tattered remains of what he once prided himself on.

 

And then he went to the club.

 

And then he saw the harpy.

 

He had never really taken the time to look at harpies before but this one was remarkable. He had silently watched, staring from the shadows at those remarkable feathered wings. He was jealous. So jealous. He kept finding himself back there, again and again and again.

 

"My name is Lucifer," he replied, taking the clawed hand and giving it a small shake. Demon customs were so different than mortal. Why was shaking appendages seen as polite? Or a greeting at all? "And thank you." Taking the shirt, he took a moment to slide his own off, revealing his skin underneath. He had scars. He had a lot of scars. Most of them were on his back and clawed at the top of his shoulder and sides, but there were some on his arms and chest. And, of course, there was the tattoo on his upper left arm. So many things hidden by the shirt were suddenly brought to light, only to be hidden again as he slid the harpy's shirt on over his chest, pulling it down as far as he could. "It's a bit small," he remarked with a frown, as if he hadn't thought about the fact his chest was larger than the harpy's.

[shadow_claw]

"Hm..." Exams were strange. It wasn't really something to show off one's knowledge as it was a way to just...show off. 'Look at me, I can do magic!' Yeah, whatever. It was dumb.

 

"I know you specialize with spirits and demons, but why don't you try taming a monster? I mean, there are plenty causing trouble. Getting a stronger one to listen to you would be very impressive."

 

Monsters were different than Demons. They walked among humans peacefully. Although, they were able to be tamed just like anything else. Beast-like monsters were especially easy to tame. The ethics of it, however, was a little blurry. Frowining, Jet released a soft sigh.

"Oh, I know! Why don't you do a group presentation? You could have your friend-Michael was it?-find you a demon, and you could go out and catch it. It's not showy, but it would work."

 

---

 

Magnus couldn't hide a wince as he glanced down at the other man's scarred body. What terrible wounds those had once been! It seemed as if the poor man had been in some horrific accident. Choosing to perk up instead of dwelling on the issue, Magnus chuckled softly.

 

"Ah, well, that is something not even I can fix." he remarked with a grin. Though, he had to admit, Lucifer looked much better in a tight shirt than the baggy monstrosity he had been wearing previously. Offering an apologetic smile, the Harpy shrugged.

"Harpies aren't large beasts. Narrow chests and slim shoulders are aerodynamic. Besides...even males such as myself are rather feminine."

 

"At the very least, allow me to purchase a new beverage for you. And...we should probably inform the staff of this mess..."

[pudding]

”I feel like if I showed up riding on a unicorn they’d probably dock me points for animal cruelty,” Nano mused with a huff. There were a lot of beasts out there that were impressive. At some point in history, slaying a dragon or getting a unicorn to lay down in your lap would be seen as an impressive feat of bravery. Now, it was seen as cruel, especially if the species was more intelligent. Which was most of them. Especially since a good portion of Exorcists were monsters as well. Sure the majority was human but magical monsters did have an edge over demons compared to humans. Their own magic could more easily banish a demon back to Hell and drive them off the mortal plane.

 

Of course, actually killing the damn things was entirely different. They had a nasty habit of being hard to destroy. Other demons could kill one another with ease. Like magnets, her teacher had told her when she was little. Two negative ends will repel one another. That was the reason Tamers were so damn useful. Of course, there were other methods. Holy water would burn their host’s skin, but also harm the demon within. Specific rituals and talismans could trap them inside their host to prevent them from fleeing and then just destroying the body was perfect. Some demons couldn’t stand salt, others recoiled from fire. Knowing the individual nuances of each demonic type was the difference between a lower class Exorcist and a middle class. It took a lot of memorization.

 

And then there were the legends. The Seal of Solomon, which was said to even make a demon lord fall to his knees and obey. Modern talismans had their own seals but that particular one was lost to times. No one could confirm it it was real or not, but everyone kept an eye open for any sign of it. After all, a seal that strong might even be enough to put a noose around Lucifer’s neck.

 

”But you’re right,” she added after a moment of thought, lifting her head and pulling out her phone to text her friend. ”I should talk to Michael. Even if we don’t do a group presentation or something, we can brainstorm together. Or at least let off some steam and go demon hunting. Hell, maybe even just get some coffee. Anything to get out of this building.” Her fingers tapped the screen of the phone with rapid precision, quickly typing out and sending a text to her friend.

 

”Hey loser did you get coffee yet?”

 

- - - -

 

The blue tank top was a bit more revealing than what he had been wearing. It had been a long time since Lucifer had actually walked the Earth in his natural state. There were always complications and frustrations and in order to actually manifest, he had to be called from Hell. It had happened before, obviously, since it was fairly easy to send out some demons and slaughter a village somewhere in the mountains. Mass death was the only way to open the door to Hell wide enough to allow him to step through. So usually, he opted for more casual approaches. Leaving his body behind in Hell like a husk and sending out just his spirit to inhabit a pre-made form. Possession, most called it. Either way, it didn’t take long before his own injuries manifested on the form he took. The damage he had taken ran deeper than his skin. It followed him incessantly, no matter how he appeared or whose body he stole.

 

Even the injuries that were self inflicted followed him.

 

Either way, he usually made it a point to cover up. The idea of the devil wearing a suit and nice clothes was less for looking savvy and more because it allowed him an excuse to not go around with his injuries bared to the world. Demons celebrated his scars as glorious war wounds when he rebelled. He just couldn’t see them the same way.

 

”Thank you,” Lucifer replied hesitantly, significantly more uncomfortable now that his arms were uncovered. Scratching at the tattoo on his shoulder, he frowned slightly, glancing towards the counter. He didn’t enjoy that being uncovered either. Sure the seal was ancient and not even he could read exactly what it said, but he disliked the idea of anyone managing to recognize any of the symbols on there. He was minding his own business. He didn’t need some dumb Exorcist to wander in and start harassing him about the seal. But he found himself staying anyway. He should just leave and he certainly shouldn’t have changed shirts in the first place. His own actions were baffling him. ”I would appreciate that. I never tried coffee until recently and I admit I was missing out. Humans are very clever creatures.” He paused for a moment, lifting a hand to his chin in thought. ”It was humans, correct? I can never keep my history straight. I’d hate to credit the wrong species.”

Edited September 7, 2016 by pudding

[shadow_claw]

Coffee? Nah man, hot cocoa.

Michael smiled from behind his phone screen, a steaming mug in his hand. Caffine aggravated his visions, and honestly, he didn't need that. They'd been getting worse recently. It was no longet like seeing, but was more the experiencing.

 

And they were usually terrible, violent visions. Some of them were from the past, but most were yet to come. His lessons with the Exorcists were supposed to help sharpen his focus, but that didn't help if he didn't know what he was looking at. Maybe they were about demons?

 

He didn't know.

 

But once one vision had led the council to finding a body, they now had full faith that he was meant to hint demons. To Michael, it sounded more like Missing Persons cases getting solved.

 

You know what caffine does to me. Unless that's the point?

 

My visions don't just, you know, show me things I want to see. So you better have a good plan.

 

---

 

Magnus tapped his chin with a long claw, mouth scrunching up in thought. Who invented coffee? Now that was an interesting question.

"I cannot say. With popular things such as drinks, they usually have many an origin." He decided. It was a reasonable, albeit vague, response. But hey, he was no culinary historian.

 

The harpy turned back towards the counter and stalked over. He glanced back at Lucifer and tilted his head. "What would you like?" When his head turned back around, he smiled at the hostess sheepishly. "Sorry to bother, but there was quite the spill at my table. Is there any way thete could be assistance?"

[pudding]

Michael and his hot cocoa. She could appreciate it as much as the other person, but it seemed like an awful drink in the summer.

 

"Just thinking about exams. Maybe we could team and present together?"

 

Actually, now that she thought about it, she hadn’t really seen Michael in a while. Even if they didn’t work on exams, even just hanging out would be great. She needed some actual, human interaction. Hell, she needed some interaction with someone other than Jet. He didn’t really count as company.

 

"Wanna go to the coffee shop next door? I’ll buy you a frap ;O"

 

- - - -

 

”Just a coffee,” Lucifer replied with a smile, walking back to the table he had been sitting at. Picking his book up, he glanced at the cover where two human children played with a lion. Well, maybe it was playing. The lion looked as though he could very well like to eat the two children. So far in the book, however, the lion appeared more passive than anything else. For a being meant to have so much power, it really didn’t attempt to use it all that much. It was frustrating to read knowing that the lion could easily solve all of the problems, but refuse to do so for absolutely no reason.

 

It felt as though he was reading a story about his brother and he continued reading only out of spite, wishing very much the stupid beast would just roll over and die already, or actually do something. Lazy animal.

 

Tucking the book under his arm either way, he followed Magnus to the counter, watching as the hostess quickly called out to her companions to help clean up the mess before jotting down his order.

 

“We’ll get that all taken care of,” The hostess replied with a smile before trotting away to fill the order. The back area of the coffee shop had been designed to accommodate larger creatures, so she didn’t have much of an issue moving around despite the fact her lower half was a that of a horse. Centaurs had much more difficulty than a lot of species maneuvering around places that weren’t specifically built to be wide enough. It was strange to think about, really. Then again, Hell never had any use for things like doors or buildings in general, and those that did exist were usually just a manifestation of power and could easily be formed and shaped to specific standards. If a demon wanted entry, it would gain entry regardless of size.

 

Looking over at the harpy, Lucifer shook his head slightly, scratching at a grouping of scars on his lower arm. ”You didn’t need to do any of this,” he said with a sigh. ”It was a harmless accident. I feel like I should pay you back somehow.” He didn’t like loose ends.

Edited September 7, 2016 by pudding

[shadow_claw]

:0

 

I'm sold

 

Like most teenage boys, he had a knack for sugar. And if not for his...'gift', he would likely be obsessed with caffeine too. But it made his visions traumatically violent. Instead of the seconds-long flashes of foresight, these could last minutes, and in some cases, even hours. It was like a horrid migraine.

 

But that was Nano's point, it seemed. She wanted him to see something, anything, to help their final exams coming up.

 

He didn't like who he became when he had visions. It transformed him to something he wasn't. His own personality was wiped away to take the place of something yet to come. In a way, he was a partial vessel to the future. Whoever, or what ever gave him his power, it wasn't particularly kind.

 

The Council believes, with some practice, he could call upon strengths of others from the past or future. If only. Maybe then he could actually fight demons!

 

Michael rose from his seat, stuffing what items he was reading into his backpack and throwing it over his shoulder. Time to get to work, then.

 

---

 

GET YOUR ASS HOME THERE'S A PROBLEM

 

Satan's roommate wasn't exactly one for pleasantries. Perhaps it was because she was up in the morning. Her usual 'morning' was six o' clock PM. The sun burned her sensitive skin, and although she could go out if she wore enough sunblock, she usually opted not to.

 

So her being awake was a surprise.

 

SAREN BURNT DOWN THE NEIGHBORING APARTMENTS.

 

I KNOW THEY SAID THEY'D DO IT BUT I DIDN'T BELIEVE THEM.

 

OMFG LUCY IT'S SPREADING.

 

HELP.

 

While usually his roommate would have no problem running away from a huge, spreading fire, there was one issue.

 

She was incredibly flammable. Moreso than humans.

 

--

 

Magnus, now with two new coffees in hand, smiled and sat down across the table from Lucifer. His feathers were folded tightly in an effort to conserve space and prevent another spill. Feathers were, well, not great for anything other than insulation and flight. They made using his hands a clumsy and awkward process.

 

But he was an excellent flier, as were most harpies. It was much more efficient than walking and air traffic was usually less crowded than the ground. Besides, with his pretty feathers, he loved to show them off. Unsurprisingly, Magnus loved positive attention.

 

"No no, do not worry! It is a gift, or perhaps, an apology." Magnus lifted both hands, fingers spread out, to indicate the other man to stop his train of thought. He wasn't one to believe in owing people for the kindness. "With my people, the best way to earn the friendship of another is through dining. Although...it is usually not this civil. Food is how people-and monsters-bond with one another. Instead of approaching this as a debt to be paid, consider it a request to get to you know."

Edited September 8, 2016 by shadow_claw

[pudding]

Nano smiled, standing upright and kicking the chair back so it slid across the floor into a corner and out of her path. She had tripped over it more times than she could remember so it had become a habit to send it as far away as possible before moving. Usually up against a wall.

 

Meet you there

 

“I’m headed next door to the coffee place, Jet,” Nano said, not looking up from her phone as she quickly crossed to the door. “Don’t wander off anywhere. You know the Council doesn’t like it when you go places unattended. Maybe when I’m an upper class they’ll finally get those sticks out of their asses and stop yelling at you over everything.”

 

 

Get to know him, huh? Strange request. He didn’t have that many people who he really knew in this life. He never really cared to socialize with lesser creatures except to toy with them and dangle their hearts' desire in front of their noses to get a good laugh. Then again, that joke had worn thin many years ago. Doing the same thing over and over again made it just exhausting. Especially when that joke was millennia old.

 

”I’ll have to warn you in advance, I’m a very dull person,” Lucifer replied, accepting the offering of peace between them and taking a small sip of the coffee. Immediately, his face scrunched up and he pulled the lid off, standing up so he could go dump copious amounts of sugar and milk into the drink. How people ever managed to drink that stuff black baffled him. He could probably use it as a torture instrument in Hell. Demons especially favored sweet things, although he never knew why so many of his subjects went absolutely crazy when introduced to sugar. Some would probably trade a soul for a snickers if given the chance. Good thing most humans didn’t know about that or it would completely undermine the entire hierarchy.

 

”I can play a pretty mean fiddle though,” he added after a thoughtful moment. He had a lot of time and a lot of nothing to do. It wasn’t a surprise he had learned how to play an instrument. Maybe over the next few years he could pick up something more refined. Like a piano, whatever the Hell that was. It sounded interesting, whatever it actually looked like.

 

His phone buzzed loudly and he fished it out of his back pocket as he walked back to the table. A harsh frown quickly formed on his face and he nearly spilled the coffee all over the table in his attempt to quickly set it down so he could call his roommate. Lifting the phone to his ear, he bolted towards the door, trying to figure out the quickest way back to their shared home. ”Sorry, I have to go!” He yelled back towards the harpy as he shoved the door open with his shoulder and burst out onto the street, breaking into a sprint. He wasn’t that far. He just needed to come up with a plan so they both didn’t go up in flames.