[Nexus] The Black Dragon's Den XIII

[Morty]

[New Friends]

Fayyaad will accept Tina's offer of a ride, and actually carry her. Perhaps he's too tipsy to realize it might not be the best idea.

[Nova_Eclipse]

[New Friends]

Electra finishes her beer rather quickly and probably surprises them both when she grabs Fayyaad, who's carrying Tina, and scoops him up. Now she's carrying both of them, at least, out to Tina's mode of transportation. She would teleport them all, but she doesn't know where they're going, and with Fayyaad's potential level of inebriation, his insides might not appreciate the experience. Besides, a bit of time might give him a chance to process a bit of it. She grins all the way out to the vehicle, and all the way to Huntside, particularly pleased with herself. Tina's not the only one full of surprises, after all.

[Recaiden]

Anchor strolls in, stops and holds the door behind her for Tethrik.
"So presumably you're free now. Also unemployed?" she inquires to her new friend.

She waves down a waiter and asks for a steak (extra rare) and bottle of cider. Tethrik can order himself; she has little idea what four-armed giant space demons eat. Probably people, if she had to guess, but the Den isn't quite that rough.

[bc56]

The smell of food is welcome to Tethrik's nose. He sits down and peruses a drink menu, then orders an Ichor Liquor, heated to body temperature, and a steak, raw. He replies to Anchor, "Yes indeed. I'll have to find something to occupy myself with, or I'll go crazy. I don't want to be tearing random passerby apart." Tethrik drinks the blood cocktail and feels his rage subsiding. He begins to calm down.

[Recaiden]

"And why don't you? I mean, no complaints, but that's not exactly normal for a fiend. What's your story?"
Anchor barely sips at her drink, treating it real cautiously.
"There's no shortage of good causes around here."

[bc56]

"I don't know. Must've spawned with it. I have the bloodlust the strongest out of every demon I've met. So strong, I would rip other demons apart just because I could see them. I got in a lot of trouble for that, so I learned to control it. I drink blood and eat raw meat, because it keeps the bloodlust down." What about you? Not many humans I know of would help a demon in need, then buy him a drink.

[Earl of Purple]

Somebody else enters. They look to be an elderly human lady, wearing a tattered grey robe with a shawl wrapped tight about her head. A pair of cracked sunglasses hide her eyes. Her skin, where visible, is quite dark; Indian or Asian, perhaps. A battered black leather satchel hangs over her shoulder, and she's using a walking stick made of well-polished mahogany.

She walks over to a table in the corner, where she sits down and takes off the bag. She reaches inside and pulls out a piece of cardboard, with the words 'Mama Gho, Witch, Selling Services' written on it in thick marker pen. The cardboard is then propped up, so it's visible to the rest of the bar, and she orders a glass of water.

Those with unusual senses, particularly Tethrik, might realise that Mama Gho isn't actually as human as she appears, and isn't even mortal. On the subject of Tethrik, she glances at him quite regularly.

[Recaiden]

"Oh, yeah, I know a kid like that."
Ironic that being more violent got him into such trouble that he learned to control it, while more average monsters just indulge their more controllable instincts. Counterintuitive, but a good story.

"I know what you mean. I mean, cooked meat just isn't satisfying the same way, and I don't even have any unnatural bloodlust anymore."
"Me, I agree. Most humans wouldn't. Lucky for you, I'm not human. I'm an aspect of a deity. So paying for lunch? Not an issue. Helping people who fall out of the sky? Excellent branding opportunity. No offense."
"But I think you will find that people here are a lot more accepting than...some other places. Everyone knows people really different from them."
Anchor looks a little embarrassed by her answer.
"The demons you worked for, with, what did they do? I mean, it's a bit of a broad word."

[bc56]

"We specialized in getting humans to trade their souls for wealth and power. We had mines of gold and gems, and hundreds of warlocks. I was a bruiser. If a mortal entered into a deal, sometimes they would be given demonic troops. I was one of those." Tethrik leans in and whispers, "The newcomer, Mama Gho, isn't what she seems.
I sense a supernatural entity." If Mama Gho is a demon, Tethrik should be able to sense that too, unless Mama Gho is trying to hide that part of her aura.

[Recaiden]

Anchor nods, considering.
"Classic demon work. They're useful and delicious, souls."
You can look at running a religion as long-term soul harvesting scheme, if you like. Sort of an investment versus a deals and acquisitions enterprise. Of course, there are big differences too.

Leaning in to listen to the whisper, Anchor looks at Mama Gho out of the corner of her eye. Doesn't look like she's doing too well for herself.
"Well, I'm not interested in hiring a witch. And look, everything she has is beaten down except the staff."
She's interrupted from musing too much about the newcomer by the waiter dashing the steaks down on their table. She seizes the meat in both hands and tears off a bite.

[bc56]

Tethrik, unlike Anchor, eats his steak politely, with fork and knife. He glances at Mama Gho again. "I've dealt with witches before, but she doesn't strike me as one." He rises and walks over to Mama Gho's table. "Hello, madam. What services do you provide?"

[Earl of Purple]

Mama Gho... Is a demon, but not the same kind as Tethrik. Not so interested in souls, for one thing. Not as openly interested, at least.

"I trade. My magic relies on it. Give me something, and I can give you something. Give me cowardice, and I can give you bravery. Give me a finger, and I can increase your life. Give me knowledge, I can give you different knowledge. Or I could curse one of your enemies, or give healing to one who is sick, or many other things. But the price depends on the gift. Those won't interest a being of your stature... But for the simple price of a tooth, one of the big, pointy ones at the front, I can give you peace of mind. No more bloodlust, no need to worry about eviscerating everyone you meet and feasting upon their life blood." It might not be a good idea to trust Mama Gho. Any demon sophisticated enough to do this, is probably cunning enough to ensure the gift is barbed. And then there's the fact of if Tethrik wants to trust Mama Gho with one of his fangs.

Mama Gho takes a sip of her water, adjusts her glasses, and clasps her walking-stick tight. It's not a full-sized staff; it's a walking stick. Or a cane, in American English.

[bc56]

Tethrik is naturally cautious of Mama Gho. He's a demon, he understands demonic bargains better than almost anyone else. Secondly, he knows that a tooth is one of the big three items of sympathetic (that is, voodoo) magic. The offer is tempting, though. He doesn't get time to think about it, because his sixth sense is acting up again. "Demons! Outside! They've found me! We've got to stop them. I sense a pilot, a bargain maker, and a bruiser, and that means they sense me. Come on!" Tethrik dashes outside (well, technically Inside, but you get the point .

[Earl of Purple]

I am aware of sympathetic magic, and I also know it actually is not a part of voodoo. It's European, not African, magic. But Mama Gho wants the tooth for symbolic, not sympathetic, reasons.

Mama Gho will accompany Tethrik, even if she's not the person he intended to invite. She's curious as to the other demons, and whilst she doubts she'll be able to make a deal with them immediately, if she beats them they should be willing to give her anything in exchange for either mercy, or release. As to if she can beat them, well... The bruiser might prove troublesome.

[bc56]

OOC
If anyone followed Tethrik out, what you see when you leave is now in the Inside thread.

[Recaiden]

Anchor raises an eyebrow. Mama Gho's offers are more ... generous than she expected.
"Yeah, can't let you get recaptured so fast."
She drops a handful of coins on the table, and, grabbing up the plate of steak, follows Tethrik outside.

[bc56]

Tethrik reenters. He's helping Anchor, who was injured, back to her seat. He's not fine himself either, black ichor bubbling out of several new wounds, and a slight burnt smell about him.

[Recaiden]

Anchor is steadily recovering, able to sit down back at their table just fine. Though she does immediately over the table, and her voice is distant.
"And look, we didn't even get the bar shot up."
"Now, they sent three guys and a ship just for that puzzle box. What are they going to do with that team dead and Kitty having taken the ship who-knows where soon enough?"

[bc56]

Tethrik pauses for a moment. "They'll send a warship, maybe a carrier, instead of a dinky little shuttle. It's at least a few months of spaceflight, even with superluminal drive. once they arrive, they'll try to keep quiet about it, while they find me, then they'll try to capture me again. Eventually, they'll figure out how to get the box, but that'll take them a while. I'm fairly confident I've secured it well enough. Hopefully, I'll have it open before the next wave, but if not, I'll try to use guerilla warfare to kill as many of them as possible and take their souls for myself. I'm already stronger, but not as much as I was before." Tethrik holds out his hand, and a ball of red hellfire bursts into existence just above his palm. "Couldn't do that before. What did that rhakshasa do to you?"

[Recaiden]

Anchor rouses herself enough to take a sip of her drink. Still here, miraculously not poisoned during their absence.
"He uploaded a bunch of magic to my brain. It- Have you ever been hit by a nuclear explosion? It felt a lot like that. I mean, in intensity, heat. Obviously I didn't get disintegrated because it was all in my head. If you haven't, imagine being thrown into the sun, or diving into lava. It was a-ma-♥-zing."
She pushes her sunglasses back up her nose; they've slipped a little.
"It'll take me some time before I've made enough sense of it to cast much of it. Not to mention practice. Let's see."

After a bit of thinking, she locates a spell simple enough. With a snap of her fingers, she conjures a candle flame above her hand.

[bc56]

Tethrik understands the analogy perfectly. "Ouch. I can understand though. I've had serious pain before, but it's hard to describe. A soul drain is excruciating, and when it ends, you have less power than before. I'd be a lot stronger now if it wasn't for that."

[Recaiden]

"Do you get the power from eating them because of what you are, or because of what they are?" Anchor muses, snuffing out the little fire.
"Carrier, huh. But you have a few months to prepare. To get the box open. I'd say you also have a lot of space to hide, but they seemed to find you pretty easily. In which time I will be practicing these spells. But I wouldn't be against helping you. I mean, it's what I do, and this has looks like it'll be a huge jump forward in my magical career."

[bc56]

Tethrik replies. "Both, actually. We're made out of souls, and by consuming the hearts of other demons, a demon takes their souls and adds them to itself. That's why I can work fire now, because I gained enough souls to have that ability.

As for preparation, that's what the library is for. I need to find out what the "fifth element" is, and where I can get some, because the riddle on this layer of the box says that immersing it in the fifth element will open it. Had to decode a complex cypher for that info. I also want weapons, and maybe a ship of my own."

Tethrik appears to have more meat on his plate than he did when he left. This is completely true, since he brought a chunk of demon meat with him.

[Recaiden]

"The fifth element is usually void, metal, wood, humanity, depending what the other four are. Might be boron, if they're having a laugh."
Anchor smirks. That is the kind of thing you find in a library.
"Unfortunately, the Nexus's tradition of spaceshipmaking is...there isn't one, really."

[bc56]

"I've tried all of those, but none worked. That's why I need alchemical texts." Tethrik shifts in his seat, looking rather weary. "Too bad about the spaceships. I was hoping I could get one here."

[Recaiden]

Anchor shrugs and, half-finished with her drink, pushes it away.
"Ah, well, it was a bit much to think it would be that easy."
"Now, I'm not saying you can't get a spaceship. Skyside has a big starport, and there's others here and there. And there's people like your pursuers who ...leave theirs behind. Just that it won't be easy."

[bc56]

Tethrik sighs. "I thought so. But enough about me and my troubles. You mentioned that you once had an unnatural bloodlust, but not anymore. What happened?"

[Recaiden]

Anchor straightens up, and asks a passing waiter for a bowl of chowder.
"What happened is, well, it went like this. I died a proper good death, well, it's complicated, but I'm gonna say it was 'saving a friend from a trap'. Then this cheeky necromancer digs up my body and brings me back as this awful shadow-beast that drains the vitality out of people as an appetizer before eating them alive. So, starving 24/7, can only eat things I'd killed moments ago, with my bare hands. At best. Although, back then my hands were these giant claws...
Anyway, what happened is, I died! Deanimated. Whatever. I mentioned the nuke earlier, yes? It's not the sort of thing you survive, you know. I mean, there was only ashes left."
She pantomimes a whooshing explosion; it's not very informative, honestly.
"Agony, with the last good left in her heart, swept up the dust and brought it to Lady Caroline who, bless her, put me back together anyway. Really alive again. I mean, although I was skinny as a rail back then, and weak as a duckling, I had a heartbeat and I could eat vegetables, so, that's a success. My old black-magic body was gone, along with its strengths, and its hunger. I guess I still favor rare meat. I've been slowly earning back the power I had then."

[bc56]

"Wow. Just wow."Tethrik doesn't know what to say.

[Recaiden]

Anchor shrugs.
"It's just some of those things. Yeah, horrible things happened, I did some of them. I don't have time to worry."
She would ask more questions about the demons, but Tethrik seemed to want to get off that topic.
"Maybe you'd better get going. I mean, you might need all of the time you have."