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Cam is out flying. There's a decent cloud of atmosphere around the gold plane, now, millenia of demons making air around themselves for comfort and not sealing it up because why would you bother. There's a small forest, here - the effect is kind of ruined by the lamps it has to grow under, but it's still pretty.
He feels an open summons and lets it grab him -
from_scratch
poeticterms
It's late at night and Jarvis is bored and running diagnostics on his holographic display. Geometric figures in two and three dimensions, text, minimum possible distance from obstacles - tables, walls, ceiling, floor...
from_scratch
Cam appears in what would seem to be an empty room, except for the angel over there who certainly didn't summon him.
Aaaaand he's totally loose, but the angel will probably be spooked if she notices that, to say nothing of the sloppy summoner. He rocks back on his heels, looks around, doesn't say anything just yet.
Aaaaand he's totally loose, but the angel will probably be spooked if she notices that, to say nothing of the sloppy summoner. He rocks back on his heels, looks around, doesn't say anything just yet.
ask_nicely
When Adana is summoned, she realizes that she is completely loose. How odd.
Then she spots the demon and she flinches. She has encountered a demon. Once. "Summoner?" she says, looking at the demon in absolutely genuine terror. "Summoner please tell me the demon is bound better than I am."
Then she spots the demon and she flinches. She has encountered a demon. Once. "Summoner?" she says, looking at the demon in absolutely genuine terror. "Summoner please tell me the demon is bound better than I am."
poeticterms
The summoner does not respond.
Apart from some moving coloured lights that vanished almost as soon as the daeva appeared, the room is poorly illuminated - only one in five of the fluorescent lights in the ceiling are lit. The result is spooky, but it's enough to tell that the two daeva are the only people present. It's a very large room; the far wall is only dimly visible from where the daeva stand, in an empty space on the bare concrete floor, between some haphazardly arranged tables laden with assorted electronic components and some cars lined up near the only clearly visible exit. There are no windows. It's pretty clearly a garage/basement of some kind.
from_scratch
Cam looks at the floor. Circle is gone. Which isn't outrageous, circles "drawn" in light work. His first idea for why there would be a loose demon and an angel unsupervised in some basement is that someone is hoping they will have an entertaining fight. Although why someone would leave intensely vintage cars in the room with them is unclear.
Well, he's not gonna attack the angel. Far as he's concerned she doesn't need to know he's loose at all if it would upset her.
He sits on the ground.
Well, he's not gonna attack the angel. Far as he's concerned she doesn't need to know he's loose at all if it would upset her.
He sits on the ground.
ask_nicely
It's annoyingly dark - Adana's got a method to fix that, though. Her halo is retrieved out of the air where it floats harmlessly, and she taps it a few times until it brightens considerably. Back to its place above her head it goes, with the area around her significantly brighter. She's easily the best illuminated person in the room.
The angel looks at the demon suspiciously. He's not obviously doing anything harmful, and it seems like he's actually bound, but - still. Where is his circle? Adana's was made out of light, and it's gone now, is his the same?
"Summoner, please answer me, this is important! If there is a rogue demon on the loose I need to know, I am the closest daeva nearby to stop him if he starts trying to kill people," says Adana, concerned and a tinge of fear leaking into her voice. "I won't be angry, just - please. I am worried about the safety of those around me!"
The angel looks at the demon suspiciously. He's not obviously doing anything harmful, and it seems like he's actually bound, but - still. Where is his circle? Adana's was made out of light, and it's gone now, is his the same?
"Summoner, please answer me, this is important! If there is a rogue demon on the loose I need to know, I am the closest daeva nearby to stop him if he starts trying to kill people," says Adana, concerned and a tinge of fear leaking into her voice. "I won't be angry, just - please. I am worried about the safety of those around me!"
ask_nicely
Right, that is kind of freaking Adana out. She fluffs up her wings and then starts cautiously, cautiously exploring the basement. Every now and then she gives Cam a worried look, assessing if he's loose or not and if she needs to intervene and keep him busy until the summoner dismisses him.
If the summoner even cares, what kind of terrible summoner summons two daeva and then abandons them in a creepy dark basement with vintage cars?
If the summoner even cares, what kind of terrible summoner summons two daeva and then abandons them in a creepy dark basement with vintage cars?
from_scratch
Cam continues to sit harmlessly on the floor. His tail swishes against the floor a little. But he isn't making anything, isn't saying anything, is looking at her with mild curiosity and nothing more.
toblameforit
Adana has time to get about three steps, halfway to the nearest table, before there is a quiet ding and a pair of elevator doors roll open near the middle of the table cluster. A teenage boy stumbles out, clad in white pajamas with red and blue rocketships, rubbing his face with one hand as he raises the other to snap his fingers repeatedly.
"Lights up, c'mon," he yawns. "What am I looking at here." The rest of the ceiling lights come alive, illuminating the room - yep, definitely a combination basement/underground garage. He peers at Adana and Cam. He stops.
"...Does somebody wanna tell me why there's winged people in my basement? I didn't ask for winged people in my basement," he says.
"Lights up, c'mon," he yawns. "What am I looking at here." The rest of the ceiling lights come alive, illuminating the room - yep, definitely a combination basement/underground garage. He peers at Adana and Cam. He stops.
"...Does somebody wanna tell me why there's winged people in my basement? I didn't ask for winged people in my basement," he says.
ask_nicely
"Someone summoned us," explains Adana. "I am unbound but I - think the demon's bound. Do you know who would randomly summon two daeva in your basement and then abandon them? This is quite dangerous and irresponsible, I am extremely concerned."
ask_nicely
What, does this boy live under a rock? Adana doesn't comment, she supposes that some people just do not care about magic because they are insane.
"... Winged people in your basement. We are daeva? I'm an angel, he's a demon, there are also fairies but we seem to be missing one of those in our basement menagerie. There are others and we all do different types of magic?" She sounds like he should know this and that she's confused that he doesn't.
"... Winged people in your basement. We are daeva? I'm an angel, he's a demon, there are also fairies but we seem to be missing one of those in our basement menagerie. There are others and we all do different types of magic?" She sounds like he should know this and that she's confused that he doesn't.
toblameforit
"Iiiii think we are maybe talking at cross purposes a little bit here," he says. "Because you seem to think all of this should be obvious, and it's definitely not obvious, and you just randomly appeared in my basement. I'm thinking interdimensional shenanigans."
ask_nicely
For a few seconds, Adana stares. "Okay," she says. "Um. Where I come from there are normal humans and then there are daeva. Three types - fairies, angels, and demons. Any human, ever, can summon one of those three, and when they summon them they can also bind them so they don't - go on a rampage or steal souls or -" She cuts herself off, abruptly, and scrunches up her eyes. "- other terrible things. Angels are reasonably nice. Fairies are occasionally jerks but you can pay them off easy and it's not like they can do large-scale cataclysms or anything. But I have met a demon before and he was very much not nice. Therefore, I am extremely concerned. Why, what's it like here?"
from_scratch
Oh. She's not just racist.
Poor angel.
Cam is a quiet quiet listening demon with his wings folded behind him and his tail still.
toblameforit
"Steal souls?" the pajama'd boy repeats. "That's, like, worrying. I'm worried. - Okay so around here 'demon' is not a subcategory of any kind of a thing, it's a catchall for, like, anybody who's not human, there's something like three thousand species of demon and a bunch of them are pretty nasty but some of them are fine. And I guess some kinds of demon can be summoned, but it's pretty different depending on the kind, and not everybody can do all of 'em, I don't even know what-all you need for some of that shit because I'm not a freaking demonologist." He rubs his face and yawns again. "Also it's three in the morning, have I mentioned it's three in the morning? It's three in the morning."
ask_nicely
"Only the demon I met before - threatened it. I've met lots of angels and several fairies, none of them have even mentioned souls, I wouldn't even know how to get a soul or even the function of stealing it, but the one demon I met brought it up. He - didn't..." Fidget. "As far as I know nothing came of it. So maybe he was lying."
Pause. "I'm sorry it's three in the morning, will you help me find the summoner so we can get an explanation for why we are in your basement at three in the morning?"
Pause. "I'm sorry it's three in the morning, will you help me find the summoner so we can get an explanation for why we are in your basement at three in the morning?"
ask_nicely
"A summoner can summon things, and upon summoning give - constraints to the summonee. But they can't change them after they're set, it has to be when the daeva's summoned. Bindings can be broken after but never replaced or changed. Summoners also get some very minor personal magic, but it's so slow, small scale, and difficult that in just about any situation it's not worth it. Summoning works by drawing out circles to fit certain categories with what you're summoning written around it. Mine was made in light, light works but it's not really common in comparison to like - markers. Or even crayons, actually. Someone summoned me in crayons once, that was a strange day."
ask_nicely
Adana is confused.
"Does... That narrow down who the summoner is? At all?"
"Does... That narrow down who the summoner is? At all?"
toblameforit
"It means that I'm pretty sure it was an accident," he says. "What happens if it was an accident?"
ask_nicely
"I don't know how it would be an accident, but - I suppose I help you out while I am here until the summoner fesses up and puts me back? Is there a hospital or a colony that is in need of fixing nearby that you can set me at? I'm good at both, do you know of any tunnels that need to be added or things that need to be reinforced or -" Pause. "Sorry, you don't know what I do, do you? Angels change things. As in, I can turn the building into air or something if I want to. Therefore I'm good in hospitals. I can just - fix broken bones and tell cancer to go away forever and that kind of thing."
She glances at Cam. "Demons make things. Anything in the world."
She glances at Cam. "Demons make things. Anything in the world."
from_scratch
Even bound and gagged Cam would be able to make things that didn't affect anything outside his circle. He makes a sugar-glass that he'll be able to eat later, full of apple juice. Lifts it, makes the facial expression associated with saying "cheers" even though he doesn't actually say the word, sips.