Demonic Intervention. [open!]

[Rhindeer]

[PM to join! 8D]

The dreamscape wasn't so different from the real world--mainly because it was influenced by dreamers, and most dreams, while often wild, were made up of elements that the dreamer had encountered in their life. That, and it was influenced by the dreamwalkers themselves; everyone perceived the dreamscape, and the dreams occupying it, differently. For Simonea, it was a dusky forest filled with many strands of silver threads like spidersilk, and each thread was a dream. It was beautiful to her, and yet it always had an eerie, ethereal quality to it.

That night felt especially unsettling to Simonea as she walked through a dream forest, following the silver threads of various dreams, plucking at them lightly to get a glimpse of them. Not all were peaceful; some were nightmares, taut and pulsing a sort of dark, restless energy, their silver tarnished, and she paused over those ones and gently stroked them, hoping to calm them and imbue peace. When the threads relaxed, no longer tight with tension and anxiety, she moved on.

She didn't have much time tonight to do more than that. Tonight was different. Tonight was a test, her first test, for tonight she was to cast away a demon.

It wasn't the first time she had battled a demon. She had dealt with her share of vampiric incubi. But this one was different. Stronger. It wasn't an incubus, but something else, something that lulled its victims to sleep before feeding on their blood--usually to the point of death. It didn't even bother to give its victim pleasant dreams, but instead riddled them with nightmares, relishing in the "flavor" the fear and adrenaline lent the blood. She could track it through the distinct "signature" its nightmares carried--a distinct sort of delight and perverse excitement--and attack it through those nightmares, once she found them. The demon was linked to the dreamscape by those nightmares, and thus vulnerable. If she played her cards right, she could seriously wound it, even kill it, as she had done with several incubi before it.

Of course, tonight might be a fluke. Maybe it wouldn't show up tonight. But there had been several unexplained deaths in the village she was staying in already, each victim drained of blood even though their bodies had no marks. She had to be close to solving this case!

And that was when she saw one nearby thread twitch and dull, and Simonea turned sharply and reached out to touch it--and let out a hissed gasp at the pain that seared through her fingers, burning her fae skin like iron. The thread writhed, and Simonea forced herself to grab it, gritting her teeth through the pain, and focused on the nightmare.

It was Annabel's nightmare, a young girl in a home right next to the inn Simonea was staying in. And as she delved deeper into the nightmare, one filled with more blood and gore than any child should know about, she knew the images didn't belong to the girl--especially as she felt the demonic delight radiating off them. The demon didn't discriminate when it came to its victims.

Fear clutched her heart, fear for the girl, and she knew she had to act fast; a child had far less blood than an adult. Reaching deep and ignoring the pain, she stepped into the nightmare even as every instinct screamed for her to flee. Instantly, she was surrounded by a horrorscape, some awful dream about rogues burning and slaughtering the entire village, and there were bodies and limbs everywhere, the smell of fire and offal so real Simonea gagged. And nearly vomited when she realized she was standing in a puddle of congealing blood.

It's not real, she reminded herself, not wanting to get swept up into the nightmare; it was too easy to lose oneself and fall asleep, whisked away by a dream, if one wasn't careful. And so she focused hard and looked around, searching for the cord that belonged to the demon--the one that linked its life to this world.

A dream-marauder with an axe swung it at her head, and with a thought, Simonea sent him sprawling across the ground. She imagined herself as being surrounded by a shield of light, and when another dream-bandit swung a cudgel at her, it bounced off the shield. Right then. That took care of those distractions.

Focus, Simonea.

Swallowing hard, she walked through the burning dreamscape with her head held high, keeping calm as she could. Her panic would only influence the dream, and influence it negatively. The cord could be anywhere. It could be disguised as an element of the dream itself. It could be--

And then she saw a red, shining cord on the ground, leading inside a dilapidated home. Picking up her pace, and dreaming a sword into her hands, she followed after it even as it slithered inside the home like a snake. Lunging for it as it tried to snake its way up the crumbling stairs within that dark home, she grabbed it in one hand to hold it steady even as she lifted the sword and prepared to strike--

Only for the rest of it to coil abruptly around her feet and yank, pulling her off balance. Before she could recover, another length of it shot around the hand that held the sword, and before she knew it, it had wrapped around her like a python even as she struggled.

She tried to scream, but it came out raspy from the pressure on her chest. And then, from the top of the stairs, a creature that may have once been a man emerged from the shadows and smiled a smile with far too many teeth. "Gotcha."



Simonea woke with a choked scream, eyes snapping open--and when they adjusted, she abruptly realized she was no longer in her room at the inn, but outside in the woods. Heart pounding, she jerked to sit up, but couldn't; her hands, she realized with a jolt of panic, were bound behind her back, and her legs were also bound.

Heart in her throat, hardly able to breathe, she turned her head--and found herself staring straight into the eyes of the demon where he sat not feet from her, grinning like a cat that got the canary. "Scream more," he purred. "They taste delicious."

It was a trap, Simonea realized as dread made her stomach churn like she'd eaten something rotten. The demon had felt her getting closer, had known she was onto it and tracking it.

And it had trapped her before she could trap it.

[You had to see it]

Why do demons insist on being so difficult, thought Faustus. Recently it had come to his attention that a series of murders had been perpetrated by some form of demonic entity. Very unpleasant ones as well, the bodies left as grey husks as dry as parchment. Naturally he consulted Temporus, one of his most useful yet difficult demons. You see Temporus is a demon that can peer through time yet suffers from a severe case of being an insufferable prick. Case in point Faustus's most recent exchange with the demon.

Faustus walked down a set of spiral stairs towards the lower levels of his castle. He passes many doors, a cacophony of screams and shouts hurled toward him as he walks the door near the end of the passage. He openes it to see a skeletal, near human figure sitting in the center of the room legs in a cris cross position. His hairless skin looks like it's clinging to his skin. A sheet of metal covers his eyes."You want to know about the murders in the river lands don't you?" He croaks."Yes" Faustus replies.
"You are correct in that it is a demonic entity, but it is more powerful than you think."
"When has that stopped me?" Faustus responds.
"I can't give you the specifics of the threat posed but I can point out someone who can assist you."
"Why can't you tell me?" Faustus says, annoyed.
The creature grins, it's lips cracking as it does so, "It's simply the way it was meant to be. You can find her in the woods next to the rabbits foot inn at 11:38 tonight. Better hurry."
Faustus turns to leave but stops as Temporus says "You know I'll kill you one of these days right? I'm watching it happen right now."Faustus can only hope the threat is empty.

Now it's near midnight and Faustus is walking through the woods cursing that damned demon for misleading him. How could I be so gullible he thought bitterly, when he suddenly heard a scream. He walked towards the sound, ducking behind a tree. Peering from behind the tree he could see a bound and clearly frightened women on the ground, and over her was... Ah so the demon had omitted something after all thought Faustus, he left out the demon being present as well. As good a way as any to test it's capabilities, he was going to enslave it after all. He walked slowly from behind the tree before saying loudly, "Oh pardon me, am I interrupting something?"

[Rhindeer]

Stay calm, stay calm, Simonea told herself like a mantra, because panic would do her no good here. If she lost her head, she'd be dead for sure. She had to buy time, test the bindings, see if she could goad the demon into getting them both back into the dreamscape. She was powerless in the physical world, but in the dreamscape...

The demon stood and flexed his fingers, each one tipped with a long, wicked claw. "Don't worry, darling. I'm not going to kill you," he drawled as he approached, while Simonea twisted her hands in their bindings, testing them, stretching her fingers and trying to see if she could reach the knot. But then she froze, sucking in a trembling breath when she felt the cool sharpness of a claw tracing her cheek. "A dream fae like you? Oh, your nightmares must be especially delightful. No, you're going to last me a long, long time--"

A voice rang out then, and the demon twisted around to look. Simonea didn't bother. No time. No telling if the person was friend or foe. Biting the inside of her cheek to give her a different sort of pain to focus on, she pressed hard against the joint of her thumb until it popped out of place, and bit her cheek until she tasted copper to keep from crying out, even as her eyes prickled with tears. Desperately, she wriggled her hand, trying to slip the bindings.

For now, the demon wasn't paying attention to her. Instead, it was eying the bald man, its lips pulled back to reveal shark-like teeth. "Oh, no, you're not interrupting at all. In fact, I cordially invite you to join us!" he cheerfully said--before he lunged for the human, so fast he was a shadowy blur.

[Kalak8538]

Quick as a flash, a projectile flew between the man and the demon, just before it was able to reach the man. Impacting into a tree, the projectile revealed itself to be a crossbow bolt.

In the direction from whence it came, some sounds emanated from the wood. It was the sound of barking hounds, as well as men. An entire hunting party was inbound, their boisterous commotion getting more and more intense by the second. Even with such racket, they were currently unseen. The only visual sign was that of additional bolts zipping through the air, missing their intended target.

Every sound the clumsy mob made intensified further. The party that was making such noise was almost upon the three now...

[You had to see it]

Wonderful, thought Faustus, we have the same sense of humor. He stood as it had stopped, deliberating on whether it should attack or escape. "As much as I would love to engage in a fight to the death it appears you have been found out. So unless you believe that you can fight off both the good townspeople and me," He said pulling out a curved horn that hummed with untapped energy,"I'd recommend you leave."  He briefly looked at the woman on the ground. She was some form fae, which was unexpected as they usually just laugh and disappear or shrink away in these kinds of situations. The bolts kept on coming though Faustus could not see the source.

[Rhindeer]

The demon froze when the projectile whizzed between it and its new prey, and it hissed when the sounds of townspeople rose in its ears. It was a strong demon, true, able to overpower several grown men through sheer brute strength--but not strong enough to take on an entire angry mob. It was a demon who thrived on consuming the vulnerable; it was not the sort of demon cut out for razing towns and dominating cities. The physical was not its domain; its domain lay in the dreaming world.

Besides, that angry mob might even have its own mages and exorcists among them...

Though it might be a wicked thing delighting in the suffering of others, above all else, it valued self-preservation most.

It growled at Faustus, flashing sharp teeth, its serpent-like eyes narrowed to piercing slits. "Don't sleep too deeply," it rumbled. "I'm not finished with you." And then it was gone, simply fading into the shadows, leaving him alone with the bound fae--and the unseen mob.

[You had to see it]

Sleep, thought Faustus, suddenly the fae's presence made a lot more sense. He looked down at the Fae still struggling with her bindings He went to cut her binds. His knife was inscribed with many demonic runes but the those not well versed in such things wouldn't realize the meaning."If you have any means of evading the oncoming mob now would be a good time to use those abilities." he said cutting through the restraints. The mob was now very loud and he could see glowing torches through the trees. He would prefer not to be wanted dead in yet another town.

[Kalak8538]

Once it was clear that the incubus had been scared sufficiently away, the source of the sound revealed itself. It was merely a small bird, flying in their direction.

No mob. No hounds. Just a little songbird, no bigger than a man's fist.

It fluttered slowly and carefully through the cool night air. Had it not been for all the racket that it made, the scene would have actually been quite serene and peaceful. It seemed impossible that such a small creature could make the same commotion of a fully manned hunting party. This was not the last impossible thing the two were about to witness...

The little bird flew right past them, growing more and more quiet as it did. It seemed unconcerned as it made a beeline towards a specific target. The tree, still impaled by the crossbow bolt.

Standing on the bolt itself, was another figure. Not an animal, but a man, standing balanced on the seemingly flimsy wooden shaft like an acrobat on a tightrope. He had appeared instantly, choosing the precise moment of time when no one was looking in that direction. He was average height, but had a very slim and wiry physique. He wore very fancy and colorful clothing, as if a strange combination of both a nobleman and a clown. The outfit was complete with a green beret, sitting atop long curled red hair. A lighthearted and mischievous smirk adorned his clean face.

The ruckus the bird made had now drone down to silence, and it came to a halt beside the newcomer. It landed, perching itself on his white-gloved finger. Now that they were reunited, the man took a few balanced steps forward, away from the tree's trunk. He stepped as easily as if there were only earth under his heels. The bolt beneath stretched, growing in length to accommodate each dainty footstep. It did not break, nor did it even bend under the weight he may not even have had.

"Ah, finally! I thought he would NEVER leave..." said the mysterious stranger. He spoke in a predictable singsong sort of tone.

"SO nice to see you again, Simonea! I DO hope I'm not interrupting anything!"

[Rhindeer]

Simonea could have cried with relief when the man, indeed, revealed himself to be friend rather than foe. The demon was gone, thank the gods, but now there was a mob--which actually didn't worry her, and she scrunched her brow in confusion at his own concern. If he hadn't arrived first, the mob would have been what saved her. It would have scared away the demon, after all, and it was the demon they were after, not her!

...As far as she knew.

She was on friendly terms with the townspeople! They had no reason to want to hunt her.

Which begged the question of...did he have a reason to fear the townsfolk?

Sitting up and cradling her hand, thumb still dislocated, she gave him a puzzled look as she stretched out her cramped wings. "I don't, but why?" she asked, head cocked. "It's just the townspeople. They're not after us."

Right?

She stumbled to her feet, legs aching from being bound. "Don't worry, I'll explain everything! Hello there!" she called, and waved to the trees with her uninjured hand. "Please calm yourselves, the demon is--!"

...Gone?

A bird flew out, the ruckus surrounding it, but it was just sound. No crowds burst out, no torches or pitchforks, and Simonea stared in wide-eyed astonishment--and a little unease. It was a diversion. An illusion of sound. But who had done that?

That question was soon answered as her eyes followed the bird to the tree--and the man perched upon the arrow's shaft.

Her breath caught as she jumped, startled, her good hand flying to her chest, but recognition soon followed surprise. He had appeared to her in that form before, and even if it was new to her, she could have recognized the way he bent reality as easily as dreams anywhere. There was only one person she knew that was capable of doing that, only one person who had a habit of showing up precisely when she needed him.

"Dreamlord!" she called, relief in her voice, and her wings fluttered behind her. "Thank gods. You are interrupting, as a matter of fact, but in the best possible way!"

[You had to see it]

At first confusion read across the face of the demonologist, then bitter understanding. Of all the various archetypes of all the various godlike entities on this damn world, it had to be a trickster. The walk, the singsong voice, and the smirk all screamed of an arrogant being who would only use his powers to entertain himself. Faustus despised these beings but, as is the case whenever he encountered such a creature, he would have to keep such feelings to himself.

"Ah it seems I am at a disadvantage as you two appear to already know each other." He said, not letting a hint of his annoyance into his voice."What brings you to our aid?" Not all was lost, if he was there to simply amuse himself with the faerie the perhaps he would only delay. If however he was there to help kill the demon then there would be a problem. The whole point of coming out here was to capture the creature and put its skills to more... Productive uses.

[Kalak8538]

"Don't I always...?" replied the entity.

"Although... I WAS debating on whether or not to leave you two LOVEBIRDS alone with each other..."

The Dreamlord was only teasing, which was apparent in the playfulness of his tone. With a high-pitched giggle, his body transformed. He split apart, bit by bit, until his body resembled a flock of birds identical to the one on his finger. The bolt was also gone, vanished without leaving as much as a pockmark in the old tree. It was an illusion after all. Like the rest of this stranger, it had no physical form. It only appeared to.

The birds silently flew as one, taking a full lap around the two before settling behind the man. They reformed, and the mysterious Dreamlord was back with the same body as before.

"Oh, don't be so modest Faustus. I know you as well! In fact, you know me. You just don't remember is all..."

His bright purple gaze seemed to penetrate the man's very essence. He stared daggers into Faustus, his expression growing more and more serious by the millisecond. Quick as a flash, the chaotic entity snapped back to his previous jovial demeanor.

"I am here - good sir - to offer my assistance! That woman there was in... shall we say, quite a bind?

He smirked, amused by his own wordplay.

"Mere illusion is all I can do in this realm, but they can be VERY effective. That is, as long as one doesn't know they're being tricked!"

[Rhindeer]

Lovebirds? Really? Simonea shot a look at the bald man and then made a sour face at the Dreamlord, nose wrinkled--but cheeks heated. Lovebirds. Oh right, because of the ropes and...oyyyy! It was an effort not to sink her face into her palm. Helpful entity he was, yes, but trickster he was, as well, with no small talent for embarrassing her! In her relief, she had forgotten about that part!

"It's...it's not like that," she said with a sigh as he scattered into a flock of songbirds, unable to help but take the bait. Simonea couldn't help it; she'd always been a literal person. "We only just met! In fact, he helped me!"

He reformed behind Faustus, but she missed the look he gave him. Blink and it was gone, after all. She didn't miss the pun, though, and that earned the Dreamlord another groan in the face of his satisfaction. He was totally the sort of person that laughed at his own jokes, clearly.

"Yes, yes, in any case, assistance would be appreciated. I don't know about this man here--" she said, looking to Faustus. "--but I, at least, was contracted to take care of the demon you chased off." She frowned, huffing a lock of hair and feathers out of her face. "I almost had him, too."

[You had to see it]

As the two began to interact he absorbed what information was presented to him. He found that reviewing the facts as coldly and clinically as possible helped calm him. First off the two were on relatively good terms despite the Dreamlords penchant for childishness. Secondly the dreamlord knew what Faustus was doing and clearly didn't appreciate it. Thirdly the Dreamlord could only create illusions in the physical realm, meaning he was safe. For now. Most people would have simply abandoned the whole thing but Faustus simply saw his disadvantages as a challenge. That and he really wanted the opportunity to wipe the smirk off of the Dreamlords face.

"I was also informed of the demons activity. I have no knowledge of dream based magic but am very familiar with demonic activity. I can provide assistance in the physical realm" Then giving the Dreamlord a knowing look, he continued "After all it would be dangerous for you," gesturing to the faerie "to do this alone." If he read the two correctly the threat should be understood by him while flying over the faerie's head. He just hoped that the smug bastard was more sentimental then he let on.

[Kalak8538]

A threat? Interesting...

It was common for mortals to be surprised or frightened by the Dreamlord's appearance. However, this one was not taken as much aback as he anticipated. Then again, he has had quite the experience with the supernatural. Being threatened did not even phase the entity. In fact, it delighted him to no end when mortals were able to behave as such despite their own fear.

This one was afraid. That was a certainty. A human does not threaten one he does not fear, after all.
However, it was a different sort of fear. It was not for self-preservation. He was not in danger, and knew this full well. It was that common human fear of unpredictability. This was the fear the Dreamlord specialized in.

"Whelp! As fun as it has been, I am not here merely for reunion!" he addressed the two as he stepped gracefully between them.

"Sadly, there is business that must be done..."

He used that word "Sadly" with a shrug, not showing any real remorse for what he was saying.

"A bit of... Oh, what's the word...

A finger went to his clean-shaven chin. The next word had a much darker, and perhaps sinister, tone to it:

"Extermination?"

[Rhindeer]

"Extermination?" Simonea repeated, head cocked. Indeed, their verbal sparring, and the threat, had soared over her head. She had too many other things on her mind, and the throbbing pain of her thumb was distracting--and sort of aggravating. She'd dislocated it for no reason, as it had turned out!

"Do you mean the demon we're hunting? Because if you'd like to join us, I know I would appreciate the extra help!" Which was true, but she also just wanted him to be around. It had been a long time since she had last seen the Dreamlord, and she just knew there was much she could learn from him. Who better to learn about dream magic from than an actual dream entity?

"Especially since," she continued, "I'm...not quite sure where the demon is now. I really appreciate all your help, but I did have it! Really! And it took forever to track it here in the first place, and now it could be anywhere and--ah!"

With a wince and a pop, she pushed her thumb back into place. Biting back her curse, she clutched her hand and sucked in deep breaths, waiting for the pain to ebb--though it already hurt less now that it was no longer out of place.

[Armorend]

What a surprise! While traveling could hold many startling or unexpected moments, there are some things that an individual is rarely prepared for. The detection of a demonic presence in the area was most definitely one of those things an individual can never truly expect, although they can be ready for it when they are aware of it.

Knowing the power of an unchecked demon, and the intent of those who would attempt to call them into the mortal realm, Melmac and his companion had set off as soon as they had both gotten a 'whiff' of the familiar taint of demonic magic, the bear heading off at a rapid pace ahead of Melmac. They were traveling over-night when there tended to be less trouble on the roads of Serendipity, but the new presence shook them.

As they closed in on the demonic presence, they felt it wane before disappearing entirely; the sounds of a far-off mob  that had been detected had also suddenly faded.

Either way, the first thing that would catch the sight and attention of those figures close-together near the center of the initial ripple of demonic magic would be the footsteps and growling of a bear.

[You had to see it]

As he began to plan out his strategy for dealing with the illusion casting deity, he heard a growl coming from behind him. He turned around, hand clutching the horn inside his pocket, when he saw... a bearded man and his bear... both of which emanated magical energy. The only reason they would come here would be either the demons energy or his own. Sighing, Faustus had only one option left before he had to resort to violence.

He turned to the Dreamlord and said, "I do apologize, for I am about to ruin your game, but you were wasting my time." He then backed away until he had both parties in full view before saying, "Ladies and gentlemen, please take heed for I shall only say this once. I am a demonologist who has come here to collect the demon both your parties seek for research purposes. For those who would feel a moral obligation to stop me, let your sense of self preservation overpower it, for I fully intend to kill anyone who gets in my way. Dreamlord, if you interfere in any way I shall make sure that the faerie dies a most painful death. Anyone who wishes to leave me to my work shall not be harmed, so unless any of you are foolish enough to try I would recommend you leave post haste." He then pulled out the horn and waited.

[Kalak8538]

The flamboyant form the Dreamlord had chosen seemed unfazed by the sounds of the newcomers. There were no harmful intentions, so there was no real reason to worry about them. Just more beings looking for a demon that had long been gone.

The Dreamlord let out a sigh when Faustus had finally spoken out. He knew Faustus' true intentions. The entity had seen it before the man even knew he was around. He only wished that he had tried to keep up the ruse a little longer. It would have made things much more interesting...

"I knew this was coming..." replied the Dreamlord. He turned to the man, and took some small steps towards him.

"Oh Faustus... I hoped a scientist would have KNOWN to wait a little longer than THAT. You think you have me figured out. I can see it in your mind. If only you took the chance to discover one important fact:"

As the entity spoke, another voice was heard in the mind of Simonea.
"Listen to me: Leave now. I will handle this. We will kill that demon in due time."

The being secretly cast a simple bit of obscurity around the fae. It was not invisibility per say, more like an aura to make things in the background seem unimportant enough to ignore. The Dreamlord commanded all attention to himself anyway. As long as the girl did not draw attention to herself in any way, she was as good as hidden. If she followed his order, an illusion of her would quickly take her place.

The Dreamlord continued speaking to Faustus, not breaking his stride as he did all that. He took a few more steps forwards, his voice reaching a rumbling intensity as he approached.

"I. Do not CARE. For the LIVES. of. MORTALS!'

His voice almost seemed to shake the earth, even if it did not really.

"All I require are PAWNS! Physical beings to rid my wonderful dreamscape of a horrendous pest!'

His voice calmed once again. Now, the flamboyant man was nearly face to face with Faustus.

"You would have made such a good pawn, Faustus..." he continued with a the familiar playful and jovial voice. A wide and almost childish grin adorned his face.

[You had to see it]

Faustus simply looked on as he grew more and more angry at the Dreamlord. Did he really think that he would be scared of this nonsense. When he stopped Faustus closed the gap between the two, bringing them face to face.

"Do you really think that your little parlor tricks intimidate me?" He said, any pleasantness gone from his voice.

"I've seen endless landscapes of souls suffering torture so vile that even the most demented minds could not have conceived of them. I've stared into the abyss and it. Blinked. First. So if you think an extra dimensional con man who can't even get rid of a demon without mortal help scares me, then you know nothing." He said, his voice an icy calm.

He then raised the horn to shoulder level. It visibly shook and if one were to listen closely, you could hear muffled screams of agony. "Now I am going to take that demon and be on my way. Please try to stop me." He said, a cruel grin forming on his face.

[Rhindeer]

This...this all escalated very, very quickly! And this little clearing was becoming crowded fast.

Now there was another person and a bear!

And the demonologist had lost all pretense of friendliness and had openly threatened her life!

Well. If there was one thing Simonea wasn't, it was stupid. She knew the Dreamlord could handle himself, and knew he was older and wiser than most beings. So if a great entity told her to book it, and felt she was at risk, she was certainly going to book it. Fighting beasts in the dream world was one thing, but when it came to physical fights? Oh, she was sorely, sorely outmatched.

Wings rustling with unease, Simonea nodded wordlessly and turned, heading quickly away from the conflict--including the growling bear.

But even as she did, the Dreamlord's words followed her. Pawns. He didn't care for mortals. Was that true? Or were those just lies meant to intimidate?

She didn't want to think that she was merely a pawn to him.