Once a grand cathedral dedicated to the Holy Triumvirate, all that remains now are ruins ever since the religion was rejected strongly in 1823. While the religion is back in favor, the cathedral was never restored. (+3 Defense, +2 Offense)

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Test Run [self; E] [Hunt]

Postby crow » 11/27/2016 11:25 AM

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Aram left Jocasta's workshop without a single backward glance, moving swiftly along the narrow streets. He wanted to put as much distance between himself and that wretched place as possible. The reek of demons in that room was strong enough t make him sick. Even now it clung to his clothes. They would have to be dry-cleaned. If she had dragged things out any longer, he might have had to burn them. It had happened before.

Of course, he couldn't be completely rid of the stench, at least not anytime soon--- not with a demon on his tail. Aram caught a glimpse of the dark shape moving behind him and scowled.
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Re: Test Run [self; L] [Hunt]

Postby crow » 11/27/2016 11:29 AM

What was it she had called him? 'Blackbird'? Something frivolous, he didn't remember exactly what. He recognized, grudgingly, that this was a high-end beast. It passed for a human very well, even to the trained eye of a Sentinel. It might have fooled Aram, really, which was saying something. The signature demon stench was even muted, though he didn't know whether that was Jocasta's work or something of the demon's own doing. He didn't really care about the specifics.

All that mattered was that it made itself useful. To that end, Aram was taking it out for a little... test run of sorts. Jocasta could say whatever she wanted about its being ready and dealt with, but they couldn't put it out on the field proper until it proved it could do what it was supposed to.
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Re: Test Run [self; L] [Hunt]

Postby crow » 11/27/2016 11:34 AM

The Sentinels were careful like that. They had to be. Demons were no bogey tales to be told to scare errant children at night, much as the public might believe otherwise. It was a testament to the Sentinels' skill, rather than the quality of their opponents, that the average folk could even think that way.

Sensing that his charge's attention was wandering, Aram snapped his fingers. Jackdaw's eyes slid in his direction. Aram sneered. "Keep walking," he said. "One step out of line and I'll blow your brains out where you stand. Got it?" He really wished Jocasta had given him a better control mechanism, like they had for the lesser 'converts'. Even a physical leash would have been something. Better than this, anyway.
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Re: Test Run [self; L] [Hunt]

Postby crow » 11/27/2016 11:19 PM

They made their way out of the sector where the workshops were, and out to the area where field command administration resided on the outer reaches of the Sentinel keep. Now that he was on familiar ground, Aram didn't even bother to take in his surroundings, finding his way to his commander's office with the ease of long practice. Commander Geralt wasn't there today, but Etta was. She looked up at his approach, and touched two fingers to her brows in the customary Sentinel greeting.

"I've brought it," he said, indicating the creature behind him. Etta's eyes widened a little, and she stared openly for a long moment at the demon. Jackdaw stood politely to one side after walking through the door, hands at its sides, looking for all the world like a toy soldier.
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Re: Test Run [self; L] [Hunt]

Postby crow » 11/27/2016 11:22 PM

When Etta didn't respond right away, Aram grew irritable. "Out with it. Where are the testing grounds? We don't have time for you to stand there gawping at it." That got Etta's attention, though Aram doubted it had won him any favors with her. No matter. She was in truth nothing more than a glorified secretary. Her eyes snapped to Aram, a frown tightening the corners of her mouth, but she looked down at her papers and cleared her throat.

"The Grand Saints Cathederal," she said briskly. Before he could interject, she continued. "Our files indicate that this is a high caliber specimen, so the superiors want to give him a more interesting challenge. We'll be testing to see his effectiveness with the distortion created by the residual holy energies."
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Re: Test Run [self; L] [Hunt]

Postby crow » 11/28/2016 3:45 AM

Aram turned over the assignment in his head, frowning slightly himself. The Grand Saints was less of a cathedral now and more of a wreckage. Before its destruction, it had been one of the largest places of worship dedicated to the gods, with smaller shrines for each individual god in addition to the main cathedral itself.

There had been a war some two hundred years back, which saw the destruction of the whole, and it had never been rebuilt since. That same war had an unfortunate rumor surrounding its origins. People spoke of demons whispering into the hearts of its key players, driving them to madness, though there was no conclusive proof of this. Even among the Sentinels, no one was sure as to whether it was true or not.
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Re: Test Run [self; L] [Hunt]

Postby crow » 11/28/2016 9:02 AM

Despite having been destroyed, however, millennia of worship could not be erased overnight. The grounds were still permeated with all kinds of energies, holy and otherwise. The disrepair it had suffered had only served, it seemed, to muddle the whole. Without clear boundaries to separate the domains of so many gods in such close proximity, the energies had seeped out and blended into something ugly and inharmonious. Detecting anything in that mess was beyond all but the best.

Someone high up had high hopes for this one. Aram eyed the demon once more. "Grand Saints," he repeated, disbelievingly. But Etta had no reason to lie to him. Grudgingly, he could begin to understand why she had seemed so surprised to see the demon.
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Re: Test Run [self; L] [Hunt]

Postby crow » 11/28/2016 9:08 AM

"Grand saints," Etta reiterated with an airy, cheerful tone, as if Aram had somehow not heard the first time. "Everything's set up. But Mr Geralt said to take someone with you." At that, Aram really did scowl. He was being saddled with--- with supervision, or with babysitting duty. At the moment, he wasn't sure which.

"Did he specify anyone?" Aram asked carefully. If the commander had someone picked out already, it wasn't as if he could refuse, but if he could choose his partner himself, that would at least mitigate some of the unpleasantness. Etta was thumbing through her notes, biting her lower lip slightly.

"Let's see... Oh, it's Neo," she said. Aram didn't know quite what to make of that. Somehow it was neither of the things he'd expected. Neo...
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Re: Test Run [self; L] [Hunt]

Postby crow » 11/28/2016 9:11 AM

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Almost if on cue, the door burst open. "Hello, Etta!" Aram grimaced; he would recognize that voice anywhere. The figure, tall with a cap of slightly unkempt blond curls, strode into the room. Etta brightened immediately at the sight of him.

"Hello, Neo." His salute to her was so jaunty that she didn't bother to return it, opting to giggle instead. Aram would have rolled his eyes if it were anyone else, but... not for Neo. It had been Neo, after all, who had saved him, back before he'd become a Sentinel himself.
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Re: Test Run [self; L] [Hunt]

Postby crow » 11/28/2016 9:15 AM

Neo didn't look much like a Sentinel, by the standards of propaganda. In reality it was hard to pin down what a Sentinel 'ought' to look like, but they tended to be touted as stalwart soldiering types, or at most stealthy trackers and assassins on the trail of demons. Neo, by contrast, was long-limbed to the point of gangliness, with bright laughing eyes and an easy smile. His dusting of freckles made him appear even younger than his apparent age, which was younger again than his real one. "A fine morning, isn't it?" he was saying.

Etta laughed again. "Lunch is over," she said. "You didn't miss it again, did you?"

Neo's eyes widened, and he smacked a hand to his forehead dramatically. "Has it?" he said, incredulous. "Gods' names, I hadn't noticed." Now, at last, Aram did roll his eyes.
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Re: Test Run [self; L] [Hunt]

Postby crow » 11/28/2016 9:24 AM

"Could you at least eat?" he said. "If you get any skinnier, you're not going to be good for anything but scaring crows." Frustratingly, Neo only laughed off his comment, though by now Aram didn't really expect anything less. It was a good thing that Neo's skills weren't so closely tied to his physical strength--- though, then again, his figure wasn't really indicative of his physical prowess either.

"Relax," he said. "I've got snacks. Anyway, what's this hush-hush project of Jo's that you've got your hands on, Ramie?" Having apparently finally noticed the dark figure standing off to one side, Neo wandered over to have a closer look.
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Re: Test Run [self; L] [Hunt]

Postby crow » 11/28/2016 9:27 AM

Jackdaw stood impassively while Neo walked in a small circle around him, making soft noises like 'hmm' and 'ahh'. Aram, in turn, watched Neo with furrowed brows. "Well, he's a handsome fellow, to be sure. Have you got a name?" He peered into the demon's eyes, and Jackdaw blinked, startling Neo. "Hey, it moved! How about that?"

"It's alive," said Aram, already feeling tired. Maybe it wasn't such a good thing that Neo was coming after all. Rather than being neither, he was beginning to fear that this choice of partner was both--- a person to monitor him, and to be baby-sat. "It's one of those demon converts. Jocasta named it after some kind of bird."
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Re: Test Run [self; L] [Hunt]

Postby crow » 11/29/2016 11:02 PM

"Jackdaw, it says here on this file. Hmm... He must have a serial number, but we don't have it. I guess Jocasta forgot to pass it along again..." Etta's lips drew into a thin, displeased line. Aram snorted.

"Probably because she doesn't want us calling them by numbers," he said. "She's too soft on them. They're demons. They should consider themselves lucky we didn't kill them where they stood."

At this, the demon in question looked over at him, and Aram could feel a chill creeping down his spine. He didn't show it, however, and stared back with all the force he could muster.
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Re: Test Run [self; L] [Hunt]

Postby crow » 11/29/2016 11:05 PM

If this demon bastard thought he was going to get the better of Aram, he'd better think again. Aram was a Sentinel, and he wasn't ever going to let some demon filth do as they liked again. He took a step toward the demon, still glaring. "What are you looking at?" he said.

"Whoa whoa whoa." Neo moved to place himself between the two of them. "Easy there, Aram! No need to be like that." Aram turned his glare on Neo instead, but the man continued to look cheerful and unperturbed. "I'm sure our boy Jack didn't mean anything by it. Did you, boy?" He turned to Jackdaw, who said nothing, but that was enough for Neo. "See? Perfectly docile. Jo does good work, you know."
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Re: Test Run [self; L] [Hunt]

Postby crow » 11/29/2016 11:08 PM

Etta was nodding along. "If Jocasta's finished with him, there shouldn't be anything left. I don't think he has the capacity to pick a fight with you, Aram." There was the barest hint of a dig in her words, but Aram let it slide this time. Neo was here, and clearly he didn't want an argument on his hands. Besides, they had an assignment to fulfill.

With a sigh, he left off. "She's still too soft on 'em if you ask me. If they're nothing but husks anymore, why even bother with names?" He jammed his hands into his pockets, trying not to look sullen. The last thing he wanted was for either Etta or Neo to tease him for sulking.
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