[center]
[h1]& Demons[/h1]
[/center]

The temple around the 12th node held the council chambers of Eunomia, the blossoming city that surrounded it. In this room well dressed men and women crowded round a large rectangular table covered in crude maps and reports regarding their city, the 12th realm, and the lands beyond. From here they drafted decrees, proclamations and requests that reached far and wide and were addressed to gods and mortals alike. 

It was not these affairs that concerned them today. No it was the empty chair among their mists. It was a stylish chair, but no more so than any of the rest. It's only prominence was its place at the table’s head, and the fact that despite the fact that she was standing in for its owner, the horned priest Annie did not take Xavior’s seat as she argued with several of the council members over her god’s absence.

“This is absurd. It has been three days!” Argus, a muscled man who represented lumbering and quarrying settlements around stone lake, was saying “Three days since he last appeared. A period of isolation is understandable, I’m sure, when faced with such a betrayal but it has been long enough! The people are disquieted by the events around Monica’s brief visit and especially the idea that she and he are to be enemies! Now is not a time for uncertainty, or hiding behind closed doors, it is a time for clear communication and action!”

There was a murmur of agreement from around the table. All were concerned by the god’s absence when he had been so integral and engaged in their affairs since they had arrived at the 12th node. 

“You want action, yet aren't you all empowered to act in his name? Don’t you have influence and support to enact action yourselves?” Annie retorted, standing firm and with a hand place on the back of Xavior’s chair as she spoke 

“We are the voices of the people, and we can speak for and direct them, yes, but this is an issue of the gods” 

“Yesterday you directed a missive to Brey, a god, didn’t you?” Annie replied with a smile

“A matter of trade. Not this game of gods. What, exactly, does Monica being our resident devine’s foe mean? Should we expect to be invaded by swarms of her broken realm’s insects? To stand aside as they engage in a duel to the death and then bow to her mad will should she win? If he matches out and a god comes here are we to stand in their way and be slaughtered or stand aside and allow our fates to be dictated by others? We don’t know the rules, or the moves we can and should make, yet we are all parts of the game anyway, blind without his wisdom”

“We have been told all of what Monica said before she departed, so we are just as in the dark as to her true intentions as Xavior is” the disciple replied “As for what we should do should a god come, I’m sure he would say that is all down to us to make our own choices” 

“You’re sure are you? Well now, that is the problem isn't it. His silence means we can only assume what he would say, let alone what is even possible. Can we even stand up to a god? Beings who defy chaos and fly though the air faster than any Tonnikala? Without him that is a question we can only answer with a deadly gamble” the hard man replied leaning across the table

“Patience, I am completely sure our god has just shut himself away to think long and hard on the issue facing us. He will return to us with grace and order soon enough” Annie replied calmly in the face of the angry man, keeping control on her urge to just punch him for the sake of her god’s appearance. Then a few moments later the door to the room slammed open and Xavior stamped into the room.

Smoke wafted off of the god, as he tossed the message he had moments ago received from Benea via a glowing mote, which had caused the still fuming rage, onto the central table without comment.

As the counselors shouted questions and read the message (which led to more questions) Xavior ignored them all and instead took a shocked Annie’s hand and asked “My first and most loyal disciple. I have boon and burden both for you, if you will have them”

“I… or course. What is it you need from me?”

“I need you to follow me, and then I need you to burn bright”

[hr]

The god led his disciple, and more or less the entire council despite having not invited them, out of the temple.

“I have been complacent. If gods are to declare me an enemy, if they are to go mad with power or detain others on false pretenses, if they are willing to so casually toss aside their words regarding our first pack and ask me to do the same, then I cannot sit idle in this land. Yet neither can I trust nor even ask people to use bow and spear and mundane morality against insane gods. So. Power. We need power, and power beyond just what my hands can produce”

He explained as he sent ahead orders. Orders which meant that when they reached their destination (which the humans found it to be the city’s main lumber store, where wood from the wolf woods had been floated downriver and then stashed in the open air to be allowed to dry) they found it had had several hearts of goats herded into it.

“What is power really but energy conveyed over time. We can produce energy, so all we need to do is put it into a mortal” He explained, vaguely, before asking Annie to step forwards into a circle of metal runes he created on the ground at the center of the lumber store with a flick of a finger

“What kind of energy?” she asked even as she complied and stood at the ready.

“In its simplest and purest form” the god replied as he snapped his fingers and formed a single glowing mote on the tip of his index finger “fire”

[hr]

The lumber store burned, the roar of the flames that could be seen from miles around joined by the screaming of goats as they burned in the inferno. Over this cacophony Argus raged at the eerily calm god within whose eyes a reflection of the flames danced and played “The work from hundreds of people went into all that! Good honest working people. And you're reducing it to ashes!”

“I will pay for every splinter, I assure you, and besides. I’m sure you will agree it is worth it when you see it”

“See what? All I’m seeing is a colossal waste of time and money!”

“This” the god said, as the blaze intensified a thousandfold for a few moments as everything inside burned all at once, producing for just a heartbeat enough power to rival a sun. Yet the energy did not burst outwards and neither light nor heat flashed forth to incinerate the city. Instead it all swirled inwards to a hungering void, a blackhole that devoured the energy and then just as soon as the feeding had begun the flames died and all that was left was ash, and the first of demon kind.

While Xavior grinned Argus gasped as he looked up. And up. At a towering woman twice his height. Amazonian muscles bulged under blue skin as great draconic wings furled out on either side of the giant, who looked down with amber slitted eyes sat beneath a crown of horns.

Annie blinked, her vision returning after it had been scoured by the blinding inferno around her. She looked down at her arms for a moment, examining them and the slight claws that had formed at their ends. Then she flexed and it felt right. She glanced behind herself and found wings and a long slender tail ending in a spade like tip. Grinned. And then with a single flap took to the skies, kicking up a storm of ash in her departure.

The demoness flow higher and higher, soaring up impossibly on her new wings. She swooped, soared, laughing at the freedom and then a few minutes later slammed back down among the ashes before the amazed mortals, a struggling horse sized Tonnikala, those absurd flying fish the god had wrought on a whim, struggling under her arm.  

She would be the first in the world to find what one tasted like, and that was only the beginning of the impact Xavior’s reckless innovation would have. As the first demon laughed and invited her god to join her for dinner the council members, voices of the people, first among equals, looked up and saw one of their kind who now was far beyond them.

And it worried them greatly 

[hider=reminder of Benea’s note]
My Dear Xavior,

The most awful of things have kept me from delivering upon my promise, but don’t fret — as soon as I can, I will be gifting you permissions in Node 6. To quickly recap, things didn't go as planned in Node 11, but I’m sure our sweet Monica can clue you in more than I can.

More urgently, my talks with Tsunya were splendid and she is as close to me as you, however my talks with Anak’thas were less than splendid. You see, an infection has seemed to have tainted his mind. What was once an upstanding fellow of order backing you and I up at the central node has become a bit of an addict of the power of the nodes. He isn’t in his right mind, dear, and so threatened the stability we are trying to build.

Naturally I detained him until I can see him cured of his sudden madness. In the meantime, I think it would be naturally prudent for us to assume that the madness might worsen and so I am taking direct control over node 14 until we can reassign it. Mirroring that, I think you should consider reinforcing Dzallitsunya as she occupies Node 13 or perhaps even think about securing the neutral node 18 just in case. Node 12 is a cradle of our civilization, but I know it is in good hands. 
[/hider]

[hider=For his holiness Brey]
[@ActRaiserTheReturned]

(Delivered a few days after the first demon is made. The document is stamped with a wax seal that emanates with Xavior’s power)

Greetings, wise and divine Brey and the people of the 22th realm

In the name of Xavior, the council of Eunomia wishes to propose a mutually beneficial trade deal. Our divine patron has furnished us with many technologies which we understand that you lack. The delegation bearing this message has brought with them numerous examples of this. Tools made from alloys stronger than common copper, soaps which can be used for cleaning, rope for securing things, as well as the ship and then carts upon which these goods have been furnished to your location.

Should these be of interest, we can supply both more of the goods themselves, and instructors and manuals on how to produce these objects. What we request in exchange is access to your lessons, as well as your libraries and permission to acquire and/or produce copies of the tomes within. We would also be interested, with your permission, to seek the employment and emigration of some of your brighter students to form a second school of magic in our proud city.

Should this be of interest the holder of this document is empowered to negotiate the specifics of the arrangement on our behalf, and on the behalf of our god. 

We hope this is the beginning of a fruitful relationship between our two peoples

Yours sincerely

The council of Eunomia

[/hider]

[hider=Summary]
Xavior ends a 3 day isolation caused by his spat with Monica when Benea’s message arrives. With a (self declared) enemy and muddy circumstances in the north Xavior takes a radical and unadvised move and proceeds to burn his city’s lumber stores and several herds of goats in-order to use the fire to empower his fist follower, Annie, into the first demon.

She, a amazonian winged titan, uses her newfound power to catch a flying fish, and then invites Xavior eat it for dinner while the city council worries about how this will affect society™

While he was sulking, said council sent Brey a message offering a trade deal of bronze age tech for magic lessons and books
[/hider]

[hider=Might]
4/8

4mp - create demonic ascension:

Demons are enhanced humans, empowered by a ritual that uses up an external fuel source, which are stronger, faster and more magical than common mortals. 

The fuel for the ritual comes from physical sources of energy which are burned in the process of empowering  the mortal. The most basic source of energy is simple burnable objects, such as wood or coal, but other sources of energy will also produce energy. Food, for example, is a source of power that can be used who’s power can outweigh its flammability due to the compatibility with mortal, as can magical artifacts or materials even if they would not normally burn. Living things that are alive at the point of incineration are far better than dead matter (a grove of trees is worth several times more than the pile of logs it would produce, for example), with beings with inherent supernatural energies, such as magical humans, other demons and servants of gods being the best fuel source (though obviously ones that have the obvious ethical consequences/drawbacks).

Xavier and his disciples are, of course, the intended ritual wielders, but any gods or mortals can perform the ritual should they learn it. The main exception is that a person cannot both be the caster and subject of the ritual, requiring a willing patron or loyal servant (or servants) to perform the empowerment.

Not all demons are made equal, or have been raised to equal power. Instead the power of a demon is based on how much power has been pumped into them (a volume that can be added to subsequently by further rituals) and more specifically into which aspect that power has been pumped to.

A demon has 3 core aspects that can be improved. Might, agility, and magic.

The simplest enhancement is pure bulk. Demons can be enhanced with stronger, denser muscles. They can also be enhanced with raw size. A demon can be a tightly packed powerhouse, or a hulking ogre who can smash lesser foes aside through sheer size. They may also become more bestial in nature, gaining claws, hooves, sharp fangs, a tail, etc.

Agility comes in the form of tails and wings. Flight is, of course, the pinnacle of what these can achieve, but even smaller, weaker wings can still increase a demon’s speed and maneuverability.

Finally magic, which is all in the horns. The bigger, longer, and more complex a Demon’s horns, the more magical power they can store within them, allowing them to cast more and/or stronger sorcery than an unaugment mortal.

The appearance of a demon depends on their patron (consciously and unconsciously). Xavior’s are, of course, classical demons with red skin, curved horns, bat wings and spade tails. Demons made by Monica, however, might have luminescent skin, angelic wings and halos that function as horns.  Vatarr’s could be skull-headed. Tael’s raven winged. Eleanna’s far more bestial. Etc. 

A human raised demon would reflect the human’s intent, beliefs, personality, etc. but those who are truly unsigned might appear as paragons of humanity with as little deviation from that as possible, merely heavily muscled with hair as a horn stand in and a cape acting in place of wings. 

Demons can reproduce with humans without any issue (other than perhaps, size difference), but their offspring will generally only have superficial demonic aspects: small horns and an unusual skin coloration are the most common.

Tldr: burn stuff, get gains, wings and magics

0/8

[/hider]