Documentation...(Skraw/Laven/Thros/Invites)

[Diogenes the Cynic]

January 3rd, 2012 A.D.

The Regal Necropolis. Dusty stones littered a ruined road with massive cracks and craters. Walls of toppled buildings, their sides painted 'regally' in blood, sat across both ends of the road. A blood red sky with clouds of crimson vapor drifted above. If one were about 70 or so years of age, one would recognize this as being similar to the aftermath of the German bombings in London during WWII. This place was indeed a shattered, corrupted mirror of the British capital of London in the world humanity refers to as Earth.

The loud clamor of blades against bone could be heard echoing throughout the otherwise hauntingly quiet Necropolis. Two demons, denizens of the realm of Inferis, did battle with each other; alone in the dark...or at least, seemingly alone. One was a local resident, while the other a newcomer; both drawn to the scent of hauntingly fresh blood, and both fighting over a recently dropped flask of the stuff, which ran red and soaked the cobblestone streets.

The Nosferatu. First Vampire. Aristocracy of Transylvania. Slaves of Count Orlok. Servants of Mammon. This was a local here; a relatively common sight amidst the streets of the Regal Necropolis. It was a grotesque parody of humanity; a shriveled husk of a corpse covered in aristocratic silks, with pointed ears, sharp claws, and razor-sharp teeth. It was by all means the classic appearance of the human nightmare known as the Vampire, and it thirsted for blood.

The Blood Sword. Berserker. Enflamed thirster of blood. This was a newcomer; one that occasionally is seen around these parts. The bestial creature was a similar parody of man; red skinned with sharp horns poking out of its pointed skull, and teeth filed sharp like a vampire bat's. Its skin cracked and oozed fire that burned brightly, giving it an unnatural glow. Its massive sword; a greatsword with ancient demonic runes alighting the blade; danced and slashed at the Nosferatu with lightning speed unnatural for a weapon its size and weight. The creature shouted battle cries in a combination of demonic and some other language, perhaps Japanese, as it attacked with a sword style not seen in centuries.

The one called Diogenes, the Headmaster, watched it all from his place upon one of the ruined rooftops. A scroll sat in one of his taloned hands, while a quill pen sat in the other. It was his preferred form of writing, though he knew that his master, Legion, would wish for him to copy it down in book form and in the strange new device he called a Personal Computer; some kind of invention descended from the Abacus, perhaps. It was a strange new world the mortals lived in, and as they accumulated knowledge it was the task of all of Legion's forces to adapt to the times and acquire as much of it as possible. Knowledge was like nectar; flowing like divine water of the Gods, promising eternal life to those who drank it.

It was the quest for knowledge that had brought Diogenes out of his study in the Tarpit Enclaves and out here to this barbaric place. The former Greek had no real love of the lands outside of his former Greece, though he knew that whatever Legion tasked him to do was a necessary one and had to be performed without question. As he studied the two demonic creatures, he scribbled furiously upon the parchment scroll; his talons working quicker than any human fingers ever could. He could not help but smile at himself as he wrote down every painstaking detail of the two demons; the blemishes of their skin, how they fought, the tone of voice they both spoke, the way the blood at their feet had long since been absorbed into the ground though their senses could still pick up its smell plain as day...

Today was a good day for documentation...

[Guest]

"KROO..." A shorter, birdlike demon crawled along the walls above Diogenes, watching the other demons fight over the chalice of blood. Pathetic gnats, bickering over something so plentiful in Inferis. If they wanted blood, why not simply find more? Of course, to waste one cup would be to waste the flavor of them all it supposed.

Continuing to scale the wall of what remained of the building, it eventually found itself atop the crumbling structure. It crept to the edge and watched the fight from above and cocked its head to the side curiously. Skraw wished to ask its master why the two fought so, but the demon decided against it. Firstly, speaking would hurt it, and lastly, the sound could frighten away those they watched. It did know, in a sense, why the Blood Sword would fight. The nasty creatures attacked everything, they had no class, no elegance.

The Nosferatu, while known to be just as violent, weren't typically a race to stoop to these levels. Perhaps this particular specimen had been outcast from his clan? Forced to make due with what he could? Skraw made a slight cooing sound from its throat before a raspy chuckle passed through its beak-like jowls. To what lengths would the vampire go for the liquid of life that was already lost? Fighting over something you could never retrieve had barely a justifiable cause, especially now. No, these two fought for anger, pure rage drawing itself from each swing of a sword or claw.

"HUEHUEHUE, PRUVANA NEIXUSH..."

[Laven]

Wanderlust, everyone got it from time to time. Older demons especially for some reason loved to wander right? So it was no big surprise for the T-rex sized quadrupedal demon to have an equally as large want to wander. While usually she didn't travel around in her demon form she felt like she had to in this god darned place since if she stayed in her smaller human form she'd get lost easier than she usually did. Her rhythmic steps let much smaller demons know to get the hell out of her way or be crushed underfoot. A lot of them shook their fists at her for not simply being smaller and even one that stopped in a very.. Bad place. His momentary cry of surprise was followed by multiple sounds of disgust and irritation as the smaller demon was practically crushed. Laven paused and looked down her demonic lips screwed in a bit of an irritated frown. She lifted her foot up and the frown disappeared... She had stepped on an imp out of all things, she disliked imps yes but she didn't have anything against this one. She shook the remains of the imp off her foot and set forward demons of various sizes giving her a wide berth in fear of being stepped on. Some higher class demons though simply walked through her legs not too terribly worried about it.

Hours passed as she walked her steps bringing her to an emptier part of the city, rubble was scattered about and several intact buildings were simple eyesores to those with the need to destroy. Thankfully she wasn't one such demon as she passed by the first building. A demon stuck it's head out of a window and shook it's fist at the larger demon, only to receive a tail tip across the window taking part of the wall off making the demon seem quite silly. The demon teetered as Laven stepped off and as she passed by the second intact building she heard four different sounds at once all of which made her pause in her stride. The first was the demon farther back falling out of the building(amusing yes?); the second was what sounded like scrabbling from climbing; the third sounded like a clash of some metal on.. bone? The last one was some sort of speak that she didn't understand which got her curiosity to spike rather dramatically.

Laven stepped closer to the third building which was the center of all of these sounds, her purple hide shivered a bit as she stepped over a small gap in the stone. If one missteped in a place like that? No one could tell you where you were going to end up. Taking a moment to make sure all four legs were over the gap before moving next to the building, her heavier steps cause the area around her to vibrate probably letting everything know she's about. Sitting on her hind legs and using her tail as a prop the T-rex sized demon got her "shoulders" and neck above the threshold of the intact building. She was greeted by quite a scene, it looked like a fight between two members of some factions she had only happened across once or twice when she was still working with her two arch-demon masters. Her attention was drawn to the two demons on the roof top; curiosity dictated that she asked what they were doing.. so that's exactly what she did.

What's happening here...?

[Thros Lejar]

Another one who sought out knowledge as if it were life itself. This one was different though. he sought anything. he wrote down everything, he served only one. He was just a tool. An effective one, however. Then again, Thros was just a tool as well, though he chose his masters and only to further his own goals. Oh well, the bright light of freedom was not for all. Many loved to serve, to wallow, or do as bid. There was a place for them in this world. So there Thros stood, just behind the bird-thing. He stood just off to the thing's right shoulder and looked on with split focus. he watched the fight between lesser creatures below and the writings of the tool who scribbled on with furious enthusiasm. The Shadow's Ear had been projecting his power the whole time, fading into the recesses of any demon's mind just like a spec of dust floating in the air. The knowledge here was minimal and mostly useless. He had seen these things fight before. there was little need to document it. Though, he couldn't stop watching, he needed to learn something at least.

As he stood and watched another prescience appeared. this one was more bestial in appearance yet still possessed of true personality. Some sort of odd lizard. He hadn't seen this creature before, but that wasn't saying much at all. There were numerous demons and little way to know them all. The arch demons might but they were their own kind of powerful. On a level of strength that most couldn't even fathom such strength. That power came from what they knew though. Their power wasn't exclusive. It came from a secret they kept close at heart. A secret that one day Thros would root out, for now though, focus on the situation at hand.

Just as he refocused on what was happening another demon of intellect arrived, this one more than a little gigantic though. Thros had seen large things before but this demon was something to marvel at outside of the tundra. Finally something interesting. Thros moved to the side, keeping his gleaming eyes centered on the giant beast, occasionally flicking over to the battle that raged below. After a few steps the creature spoke. An obvious question, and perhaps the entire point of why all of them were there, what is going on? Thros bent his legs and settled into a crouched position, still nothing more then a fleeting though in the minds of those who might observe him. No need to come forward yet. For now being just an odd shadow on the wall was enough. He readied himself to listen.

[Diogenes the Cynic]

The Blood Sword clashed. The Nosferatu whined and screeched. Ebon sword struck against ivory bone. The sounds, the sights, the glory of battle...it was intoxicating...

Well, intoxicating for some. For the great Diogenes, it was just an extra detail to write about.

He had been writing about these two for quite some time now. The information he gathered did not seem like much at first; a couple of scribbles of fighting styles, a few sparse footnotes beneath text there, perhaps a little bit of crossing out and recorrecting here. But, all in all, it was knowledge, and knowledge was his greatest pursuit. Thanks to this, he would have collected all he would need for not just one but both of these races of demons. Countless hours of study finally coming to fruition. He almost felt as giddy as a young boy again...perhaps, for once, there would not be a foul-up coming on?

"KROO..." the familiar voice of his old friend echoed behind him. Not a distraction this time, thank the Gods. More like a mild nuisance compiled with a constant that comforts the mind, like a soothing breeze in the night air before sleep, or perhaps the lull of the sea upon sand. Sure, it can get annoying every now and then, but Diogenes learned to live with it. After all, Skraw was his favorite.

"HUEHUEHUE, PRUVANA NEIXUSH..." the high-ranking Librarian said.

Diogenes couldn't help but chuckle himself. "Yes, I know," he said, "Amusing, aren't they? Interesting how such little creatures can find such entertainment in the form of a goblet of blood..."

By now the goblet of wine had spilled slightly, causing some of its contents to litter the ground. From what he could deduce, the Blood Sword had arrived here like most of their kind did; following the smell of blood from the Great Undercroft, their homerealm, thinking that where there was blood to be spilt there was combat to be had. They usually didn't arrive here unless in great excursions or in groups of three or five, so for there to be one was a bit of a deviation of the norm. He guessed that it must have gotten seperated, for off in the far distance his demonic hearing could detect more sounds of battle further off on the horizon.

The Nosferatu, meanwhile, kept him guessing. It could have been an outcast; such a thing was not unheard of, in a society based upon the concepts of the aristocracy of the Medieval period. He likely could have been hungry, starving, seeking blood that was fresh and not littering the walls of his home. Or, he could have simply been in the wrong place at the wrong time; such events did, in fact, occur in the realm of the demons, especially when it involved a Bloodswo-

Thump!

Diogenes' pen shifted a little in his grip, screwing up his concentration on one of the letters he had written in Greek upon the scroll.

Thump!

Diogenes' feathers began to ruffle. That second footstep was strong enough it caused Skraw to bounce behind him.

Thump! Thump! Thump!

The footsteps stopped...and then...

"What's happening here?"

Diogenes felt the tip of his quill pen pierce through the scroll. He twiched a little, one wing folding a little closer to the body than the other. His sense of perception expanded and he suddenly noticed that he had been focusing for quite a long time. A demon as large as a Hydra had suddenly appeared right behind them, walking upon four legs. How it managed to get there without him noticing was an interesting thought. How it got there without himself and Skraw both not noticing was an even bigger question.

Diogenes turned to look at the intruder. He kept an air of calm complexion but his eye betrayed his true emotions; he was angry. Diogenes hated it when people interrupted him. Intruders were a constant menace that irritated him, no matter what the form. So he found it difficult to disguise the menace in his voice as he spoke his next couple of words...and it came out as quite the snarl.

"What...do you want...of me?!"

[Guest]

Thump.

Skraw noticed the noise, but ignored it. He was far too interested in watching the battle going on below him. Soon, however, the thumping grew louder, closer. Turning as one of the mighty footsteps caused it to bounce into the air slightly, Skraw composed itself.

Looking over its shoulder, it could see that the Blood Sword and Nosferatu they had been studying had fled from the giant beast of a demon who had made their way over. Such things could not go unnoticed! This was... This was far forgoing rule breaking, this was blasphemy! Someone interrupting the necessary studies under Prince Legion himself, it was an outrage! The demon let out an angry screech at the dragon, not paying attention to its question.

"KYAA! FISCWA BARAHL NEK TUROO MAK?!" Skraw stomped its fat foot repeatedly before it walked up to the massive creature. "FISCWA BARAHL?!" It pointed one of its claws over to where the two demons they had been observing were previously located, and then let out another loud screech.

[Laven]

Laven blinked a little bit at what felt like a hostile reaction from not one.. but two demons; both of which she wasn't exactly sure what the hell he was saying. She wasn't sure what the first one said but it sounded like what some of the demons downtown used to talk (could just be her imagination). Her lips pursed a bit and she settled on her hind legs in a manner that let her not have to brace with her front legs; it also used her tail a bit to but allowed for about half of the length to still move fully while the other half was braced on the ground. Her brow raised slowly before she turned her head side to side before settling for a median between skraw and Diogenes; one of her large orb like eyes on each of them. Her mouth opened a little bit as she gritted her teeth in irritation; why the blazes were they angry at her? What could they possibly be doing that was so damn important.... Her nose picked up the faint trace of fresh blood along with some other scents that she was grateful weren't still about. She stared forward a bit and snorted suddenly her irritation completely disappearing.

No reason to get angry over blood...

She'd lean forward and bap skraw on the beak with one of her digit's her brow raising considerably; his speech reminded her a bit of how some bird demons would scream when she was plucking feathers from them or something along those lines. Rather amusing to listen to but annoying after a while; however she wasn't looking to pluck feathers or even condone deadly force at the moment. She just felt like wandering about and for some reason talk to the two demons here... Or more than that she couldn't quite tell as another scent worked it's way to her nose. She had to be careful, who knows how many demons of theirs were around? She snorted again and leaned her head forward taking a deep sniff at the two there... They both had highly noticeable scents compared to most demons which was rather surprising.. Tar pits? Her nostrils flared excessively as the welcome scent worked it's way to her brain; it had been far too long since she visited the place of her birth or her first arch-demon Lord. Her eyes darted between the two demons her mouth split in a wide grin.

Can't understand what either of you are saying, sounds fancy though...you should probably be taking into consideration for other people not to speak in that gobblity gook right?

The larger demon rolled her shoulders before sniffing again that third scent working it's way into her nose again, she couldn't pinpoint the damn thing and nor would she bother trying to after a few moments.

Both of you reek of the tar pits, How's His excellency doing now days anyways?

[Thros Lejar]

Thros had taken many trips into the human world and each time he had been there he had been content to people watch. He would just sit off to the side in whatever poor horse he was in at the moment and watch them. Seeing how they interacted. Listening to their voices, learning who they were. It was a marvelous pass time. Now he spent his time demon watching. It was the same concept, though in this world it was for leverage. Not just for fun or laughs, here he needed to know things about others. He needed to have a reason exist. This was his reason. to watch and listen. Sometimes to interact.

As the other three began to gripe about either the interruption of such a drawl experiment or at being treated with ill respect Thros just sat, crouched off to the side and observed. The large demon was mostly correct. These two were under the the employ of The Many. Poor men, limiting themselves to one master and never really doing anything useful. Oh well. This other large one had the touch of Legion on it was well. Not like they did though. Besides, it was a little large for the Thousand Voices to have made it for himself. He tended to like the smaller and more subtle things, even if he was less than that. The large one also used a strange language. It reminded him of the Romans, though not quite right. Too much flair for them.

The time to intercede seemed right. Thros let slip his veil of distortion and returned to the normal forefront of thought for any who might notice him. He slowly stood from his crouched stance and stepped forward with silent steps. "These two are frustrated that you interrupted a scene of violence." Thros swung his long decayed arm to the side in a wide gesture at where the battle once took place. "I expect your size and general imposing nature made them flee." No reason to be impolite now. After all, if this place returned to a battle field Thros would be far out of his element. Thros turned his attention to the two 'Librarians' with his gleaming eyes, "You might find communication more effective if we all spoke the same language." there. now perhaps something interesting could come from this.

[Diogenes the Cynic]

Diogenes looked angrily at the intruder for interrupting his work. His mind doubled-back on itself, thinking between the importance of his work and the potential threat the intruder could bring. As he began thinking, letting his mind go into quick circles of thought, he began to calm himself. This one claimed to be a servant of Legion, like himself and Skraw, though judging by her size it was very likely she was not one of his great minds that served Legion behind the scenes. More than likely, she was muscle, and as muscle she could just as easily squash them both in a blink of an eye. He'd be able to escape with his wings, but as for Skraw he had his doubts...

As Skraw began shouting at the intruder for her interruption, another demon appeared as if out of nowhere. This one, appearing human-like despite his obvious demonic skin and unearthly appearance, had been standing right next to him. The man approached them and began speaking the general obvious, addressing to the entire group as a whole...Diogenes had been shocked that he never noticed him.

He cleared his bird-like throat and placed a hand upon Skraw's reptilian shoulder. "Thank you, Skraw, that is quite enough." Lifting himself to a straighter stance, he began to transform his body. Feathers shrunk back inward and wings disappeared, his dark robes being replaced by a toga of white. In but moments he had changed from a stooped, bird-like creature into the Greecian philosopher he once was; tall, skinny, with curly hair and sharp eyes.

"I am called Diogenes, the Headmaster of Legion's Great Library," he stated, "Forgive our...frustration, but we were in the middle of research, and were not expecting...interruptions."

[Guest]

Skraw eased into the touch of Diogenes, a soft, bird-like cooing echoing from its jowls. It would calm itself. For now. Still, there was the problem of the suggested form of communication. It looked up to its master, worry in its eyes.

"TESKRO MANDRIS... KRAY?" If its master told him to, Skraw would inflict the pain of communication upon itself. Until then, it decided it would remain silent. Skraw would only listen, it would be good. As Diogenes began to transform, the demon turned away and took a few waddled steps forward before sitting down.

"SKRAW'S NAME IS, HNNG, SKRAW." Flinching slightly as it spoke up to the dragon towering above it, it folded its arms beneath its cloak. This introduction would be the only pain it would put itself through until Diogenes said otherwise. "SERVANT TO DIOGENES, HNKYAAA!! SLAVE OF LEGION!" And with that said, it put its face down, breathing a bit heavier now. Skraw's skin burned from the words it spoke. Demonic always hurt the worst.

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