Snippet #1670127

Ayo and Netanya

The imp was not simply hiding out in the trees. This particular beast was intelligent enough to know there was strength in numbers, and he understood that this was a hunt. So he found three of his brethren and had them hiding in the trees and bushes surrounding the small clearing. The imp was trying to get into position when the dark hunter saw him. The monster studied the man, and saw him pull out the blade. The creature tried to move away without alerting the woman, but the man threw the blade at the imp. The monster moved quickly, but the edged weapon was thrown with such force and speed that the beast could not fully escape its deadly path. The weapon clipped the imp's leg, releasing a gout of dark, stinking blood. The monster screamed in agony, and jumped to another branch, hissing out orders in its strange, primitive language.

The other beasts burst from the bushes, considering the woman to not be dangerous. Two of the imps lunged after the man, one grabbing his legs and the other going toward his face. The third imp chased after the woman. The fourth imp, the smartest of the group, dropped from his vantage point, holding the knife that had injured his leg. He slowly hobbled toward the one who had thrown the weapon, a savage look plastered to its ugly face. It lifted the blade, thoughts of revenge burning in its tiny brain....


Song

The imp was not as stupid as this hunter thought it to be. It noticed her presence, but simply considered her not as important as feeding. It was hungry after all. But when she put some strange fluid on its food, the imp knew this girl was dangerous. It could smell the herbal mixture, and one stench in particular stood out. The Wild Angelica, while beneficial to humans, was actually quite toxic to imps. Once the beast smelled this, it took off into the forest, trying to find shelter. Then, an interesting smell reached the little imp. The beast flapped its wings to get into a tree, following the faint scent of brimstone deeper into the forest. The smell was comforting, inviting...



Deep in the forest

On the ground in a large clearing, several candles sat in a line. At the farthest ends there were two black candles, and in the center the candles were a deep red. In in five points around the candles there were sticks of Dragon's Blood incense burning. In the middle of the incense, drawn perfectly in the cleared dirt, there was a strange symbol. As the incense and candles burned, wisps of smoke and sparks coalesced in the symbol. The symbol began to pulse with a red glow, the cloud of incense smoke growing thicker above the symbol, its sweet aroma slowly flowing through the forest. Several imps were attracted to the smell and found their way to the symbol, dancing around it and chattering amongst themselves. One of the Great Ones was coming. The symbol pulsed brighter, and fire from the candles flowed toward the symbol, building a fuel-less flame. The flame pulsed larger, burning hotter as it seemed to breathe in the smoke from the incense.

Suddenly, the fire erupted, a ring of flames exploding out and erasing the symbol. The incense and candles were incinerated and the imps let out a cheer. In the center of the clearing, a huge beast stood tall. The monster took a deep breath and exhaled fire and smoke. It stepped forward, its cloven hoof sinking into the soft earth, scorching the land where it stood. The lower body was that of a goat, the beast was covered with thick black hair. Its upper body was amazingly muscled, the red skin rippling with inhuman muscle. The cloven hands flexed, and powerful black claws smoldered like cooled magma. The Ifrit raised its black horned head and sniffed the air. The stench of blood was there. It looked to the imps; simply its servants, but the demon would avenge his fallen comrade. Another step and more scorched earth. The Ifrit observed the means of its summoning... Whoever had called it into this world was sympathetic toward the demons. They had not used the cruel, binding summoning circles, and the human had used a delicious incense. The Ifrit breathed in the perfumed air. The request was in the smoke. Whoever summoned the Ifrit wanted it to attack the humans. The Ifrit noticed that the summon was a request, not a binding order. Since one of its kin had already fallen to the humans, the Ifrit was more than willing to hunt the rest down. With a savage roar that echoed through the forest, the Ifrit began running forward, followed by its imp horde. The Ifrit left broken trees and burning earth in its wake. By the time it was done, all the forest would burn. It followed the stench of demon blood, wanting to get the human responsible first.

Jace

It did not take ling for the Ifrit to track down the one responsible. The human lurked near the corpse, as though proud of his kill. The Ifrit lunged forward, a huge fist swinging and smacking the human with a vicious backhand. The human flew through the air, hitting a tree and falling to the ground. The first blow was revenge, but now the Ifrit stood and roared at the human, challenging him to a battle. The demon would fight the human face to face if the human accepted. If he didn't and ran, then the Ifrit would enjoy hunting him down.


Song

The imp quickly changed course, following the trail of broken and smoldering trees. It would join its fellows and the Master in their quest... The silly human that followed him should abandon the chase, lest she wanted to meet one of the Great Ones.