Attached to a Demonic Problem

[ChariotWaltz]

[[This thread is reserved for Coin.]]


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A dark skinned figure floated near the ceiling of a large abandoned mansion. She ran her clawed hand through her white hair and gently touched the horns that sprouted from atop her head. These horns belonged to the young demoness named Iridis. There weren't many creatures like her floating about in this large city. Recently in the last few decades there had been an uprising in demon hunting so many of Iridis's kind had fled or are living a secret life elsewhere. Iridis, with her short hair, was visibly younger compared to many other demons and was full of desire to bring grief and strife. Besides she hadn't just yet had a close encounter with a demon hunter anyway, Iridis's presence alone was enough to surprise herself from time to time.


Word had passed through the city that a demon hunter had drifted through, presumably looking for work in eliminating Iridis. Many of the humans Iridis had haunted had either fled or had gone mad, both options which were unsatisfactory to the demoness. She wanted to find someone that was able to withstand her intimidation, maybe even fight back perhaps. Which is why Iridis was floating through the abandoned mansion, in an attempt to bait the demon hunter into coming after her.


She sank through the shadows of the mansion. The sun was about to set, dusk was the best part of the day, its when people hid and when Iridis came out to play. Her light blue eyes scanned outside the window, aristocrats and the working class alike all shuffled through the streets hurriedly. She's harassed the poor, tortured the rich, none of them were fundamentally different, would a demon hunter really be that different from the common humans they all were? A century of living and wreaking havoc had Iridis higher her standards on what she considered a worthy plaything.


She smiled to herself as she began to cause ruckus from the mansion. The floor began to visibly shake, making the building creak and groan as if it were alive. She opened and slammed the windows and started to emit a high pitched screech, enough to startle the people in the vicinity to flee from the mansion. Iridis was not certain if this demon hunter would appear, but it was sure worth a shot if this meant Iridis got to have a new victim to play with.

 

[Coin]

Lacey shuffled her tarot deck between nimble fingers as her horsedrawn carriage rumbled through the streets of Burnsley at trot pace. The city was dreary and grey, much like everything else in this godforsaken country. When she poked her head out of the carriage to get better sense of where they were, the streets were empty. Angry clouds threatened to rain as always and the denizens of the land sported raingear or retreated inside. Lacey herself threw her hood over her red hair even though the cabin of the carriage would protect her from the rain. She was a long way from home but that was nothing new. She'd been a long way from home for so long that she didn't know if she even had a home anymore. Vagabond was a better term for her.


The last city she was in, Lacey put her botany skills to work as an apprentice for the local apothecary. The pay was pitiful and the boarding was even worse. Thus, when she caught wind of a demon causing havoc in the next town over, Burnsley, she left without looking back. The governor was willing to pay a large sum for the capture or head of the demon that plagued his cityfolk. From the reports the demon couldn't be too powerful so Lacey did not worry too much.


Lacey tapped on the top card of her tarot deck and guessed what it would be. 'Wheel of Fortune' she guessed. She was upset when 'The Lover' card revealed itself for the fourth time in a row. What are the odds? Lacey sighed and started to shuffle the deck again when the mansion down the street erupted in a terrible ruckus. Lacey once again stuck her head out of the window to see that the horses driving the carriage were whinnying and panicking while the driver was trying to get them under control. The mansion was emitting a high pitched screaming and the window slides were flailing about wildly.


Demon. Lacey reached into her coin purse and threw a handful of coins into the back seat and dove out of the carriage with her belongings, "Thanks! Payment's in the back!"


Lacey sprinted down the street and slowed when she approached the mansion. There was definitely a demonic presence inside. She readied a tarot card -- 'The Tower' in preparation to capture whatever or whoever was inside. Ignoring the wailing and commotion as well as the people that were gathered around, she peeled the side door open and entered the house cautiously.

 

[ChariotWaltz]

The demon was unable to contain a devilish smile that made its way onto her face. It hardly took any time for a visitor to enter the premises. She closed her mouth, letting the loud screech die slowly. She floated from the top level of the house, closing her eyes as she sank into the floor. She watched like a predator in the shadows, staring at the figure that entered the mansion from the side door. She could hardly contain her excitement, her smile widening as she examined the stranger.


A woman?


Iridis did not discriminate. Human men and women alike were susceptible to Iridis's havoc, however for personal taste Iridis tended to latch onto strong men to see them break. But surely this would surely prove to be much more interesting. The demon looked at the woman carefully, she was certainly different from the other women in the town, surely this was the demon hunter. Irisdis hummed out in delight.


"Hello stranger." Irisdis let out in a low voice that echoed through the creaking mansion. "How is the evening treating you?" Her voice was barely a whisper, yet her otherworldly powers allowed it to ripple through the mansion as if she were speaking from different levels of the building. Iridis continued to hide herself in the shadows. She drifted about carefully, her eyes glistening with interest.


She commanded a burst of wind to slam the door shut behind the strange woman.

 

[Coin]

Lacey narrowed her eyes in the darkness. It would take more than slamming doors and whispering voices to spook her.


"Reveal yourself, demon," Lacey growled as she revealed another card from her deck, 'The Sun' and held it in front of her. Shadows melted away as a bright light shone in a beam from the card. The mansion smelled of mildew and heavy dust floated in the air before her. It tickled her nose but she held her urges and fear locked up inside of her.


Lacey had dealt with demons before, major and minor. She knew not to be cocky as the power of a demon might not be truly revealed right away but showing fear and hesitation only lead to a swifter downfall. Lacey was reminded when a powerful illusion demon took the form of a fellow demon hunter's sister and he hesitated for a moment and was impaled by demonic energy as a price.


The light helped Lacey see but the demon was still nowhere to be found. She spotted a spiral staircase and took confident steps toward it, another card ready in her other hand.


"You will leave this place either dead or in a cage," Lacey warned while taking slow steps up the stairs, "The latter will be far less painful if you come out peacefully."

 

[ChariotWaltz]

A part of Iridis felt her body grow uncomfortably warm. This was completely unfamiliar to the demon, she tried to cloak herself in shadows again, but that strange power that women had unleashed caused her defense to melt away. Mobility was still on Iridis's side however, she fled into the attic which was quite spacious, slamming the door shut behind her. Iridis has no idea what this demon hunter had in store for her, she had forgotten what fear had felt like, actually it was exciting her. Adrenaline pumped through her veins and she kept grinning, unwary to how distorted her face may have been.


Trapping herself in the attic felt a bit odd, her mind worked quickly. "I'm not one to enjoy tight spaces." Iridis's voice quaked through wooden floors. She sat midair at the top of the mansion, awaiting the woman to appear at the top of the staircase. This strange magic, whatever it was, still lingered as Iridis tried to muster her shadows again. She tried snapping, the shadows would simply dissipate after forming.


Iridis cursed, her smile starting to melt. The fear kicked in again and she felt uncomfortably warm again. Maybe she should run. A part of her was telling her to fly right out of the mansion, but another part of her compelled her to stay and meet this hunter face to face. Her curiosity would surely be her downfall, but Iridis had no time to question the amount of humanity she had for herself. She kept her chest puffed out and was looking unnaturally proud.


She adjusted her white hair, stroking her horn once more before she started to rub her clawed hands together. Would it be safe to take the word of the hunter to heart? She wasn't going to get killed on the spot was she? Iridis technically had not harmed the hunter in any way so far, so maybe. Her head was pounding loudly, but all she could do was look her best as she waited for this hunter to appear.


[[sorry for the late response, school was killer.]]

 

[Coin]

Lacey could feel the demonic presence shifting throughout the house, fleeing or strategically repositioning -- the huntress could not tell. She could feel a bead of sweat roll down the side of her cheek and splash onto her clothes. She forced herself to calm her breathing when she heard the demon's chilling voice thrum through the woodwork again. Malicious creatures.


All the doors on the upper floor were open but peering into each room was racking up the tension with each as empty as the last. Finally, down the hall there was one more staircase that lead into the attic. Must be this one. Lacey felt the demon's presence still in the mansion so it had chosen to stay and fight, it seemed. If it were a weaker demon it probably would have fled already. She gripped the card in her hand even tighter and raised 'The Sun' card so Lacey could see the steps clearly as she ascended.


At the top of the stairs, Lacey took one deep breath and put 'The Sun' back into her card holster. She wiped her sweating palms on her pleated skirt and withdrew 'The Tower' from her holster and held it in front of her. It gave off a weak blue glow, nowhere as powerful as 'The Sun's' beam of light and gripped the door knob firmly. She gulped and in one swift motion shoved the door open and took a defensive stride into the room.


The huntress was glad she was not murdered right when she opened the door and was rather surprised to see the demon waiting for her in the center of the attic. Cautiously, she prepared to cast 'The Tower' but stuck to her promise.


"I have orders from the Royal Governer of Burnsley Province for your capture -- dead or alive. Will you resist or will you have peace and comply with minor restraints?" Lacey recited the line as if she had said it a thousand times before. At any time, the demon could lash out at her but at least she would be ready with a counter-spell. However, deep down she was actually very frightened; there were few reasons for demons to just wait peacefully like this while their capture is impending.