Rixxan had holed up in Adeluna for a couple of months after her last sting in Mamlak got her in a bit more trouble than she would have liked. That was not super fun. Every now and then her head still throbbed because of it and she'd have a minor fainting spell, but aside from the ramifications of what was likely at least a half-ton door knocking her unconscious, she was doing quite well for herself. She had a monthly lease on a small apartment in a stone building full of unsavory characters on the edge of the main citylife in Adeluna. It was essentially two very small rooms, one for cooking and lounging around, and one for the bed chamber. The downside of the building was that the bathing arrangements were 'shared' amongst all of the occupants. Rixxan had learned that she could handle bathing at night as long as she shadowmelded and waited for the perfect moment, normally 3 minutes or so, where she could slip in and out without having to share with any other soul, then slink back through the shadows.

Her current setup wasn't as high-profile as some of the things she was used to doing in her recent line of occupation, but it paid the bills… and more. She'd been slowly stocking up on supplies and things she would be bringing with her when she inevitably had to move on to the next place.  So far she had hidden a good amount of supplies in what looked like a broken down carriage in the stable of the apartment, which she happened to live directly above and had the lovely pleasure of breathing in all of the barn smells that seeped up through the floorboards. The carriage wasn't truly broken down, Rixxan had just taken one of the wheels off to hide it in her quarters so it would be difficult to steal in the case that anyone did try to steal it. Additionally just last week she had purchased a brawny draft horse, which she kept in the building stable with the large gray warhorse she had casually taken off the hands of a knight who had gotten a little in over his head in a bet while Rixxan was on her way to Adelunda. The draft horse wasn't the smartest creature but it was still a bit young, coming eight years of age, as well as strong and well-trained in driving carriages so it would suit her needs and prove a fine carriage horse. Anyway, the knight's horse was quite adept and learned quickly, having been a veteran of battles and adventures, he was not easily phased. The draft was of a lighter chestnut color with pale blonde mane and feathering. The stablemaster where she'd purchased him from had told her what the name of the color was but she couldn't remember those kinds of things when she was busy plotting.

On her free nights, Rixxan would work on the carriage to install new shelves and other apparatus. Her plan was to convert it into a living and sleeping cart rather than a transport carriage. All she really needed at this point was to bring down pillows and blankets and supplies into it in order to actually get a move on, but that wasn't coming up anytime too soon as far as Rixxan was aware. 

An average sunrise started to ascend over what Rixxan was sure would be another average day. Adeluna wasn't particularly entertaining, not like some of the more unsightly cities and kingdoms on this continent. She drew back her curtains to look out onto the dark streets, always bewildered at how few people were ever out before it was light. A few ambitious merchants might be wheeling carts down the cobblestone this early, or maybe a mother would be up to find an open shop and medicine for an ailing child, but otherwise there was no real hustle and bustle livening the streets with banter and barter until mid-morning usually. Rixxan cracked her window before getting out of bed, so that the room might try to refresh itself while she was out for the day. She turned to the rotten example of a vanity that was provided with this housing, a cracked and beaten down old oak vanity missing drawers and cabinet doors and paint. At this point it was hardly worth more than kindling for a fire, but it served the purpose Rixxan gave it; holding her daily disguise. 

In Adeluna, Rixxan wasn't exactly a good name for her to carry around, because of certain bounties and warrants and etcetera that just naturally stemmed from the life of an 'adventurer,' the polite term Rixxan decided would be substituted for hired assassin and thief. For the past few months her name had been Annabelle, she wore a long, wavy wig of fiery aurburn, and to add to the illusion, glasses that made her eyes seem green rather than pink. That enchanting spell for the glasses had actually cost three jobs for Rixxan, but it helped quite a bit. For some reason enchanting was never really her strong point–she was much better at destruction, explosions, and fire. The wig, glasses, and alternative identity all paired together quite nicely for her day job at a cafe on the wealthy end of the city. People seemed to think girls with glasses were a bit less intimidating for some reason, or at least Rixxan had felt that way since starting this job. Now in all truth, the job was not for making a good, honest living; more realistically it was an incredibly easy way to steal from rich buffoons eating and drinking on the terrace without having to follow them around and break into their homes and risk having to expend extra energy on killing them. While Rixxan enjoyed a good throatslash as much as the next mercenary, she didn't find terribly much pleasure in killing those that didn't put up a fight or some sort of chase. It just wasn't as fun.

The only downside Rixxan had found for this job was the atrocious outfit they gave the women. While it was obvious that the majority of the patrons at the cafe were of the upper class, it also happened to be a trend that 95% of them were also male, and only very rarely did women come in. Not for any obvious reasons, at least none that Rixxan could tell, but it was just a trend–and unfortunately that trend meant their uniforms were to be more enticing to the male eye. Tragically, the uniform was equal to that one might find on a maid or servant on the upper side of the city. The dark black dress, long sleeves that unbuttoned and rolled up to be three-quarter sleeves, even with the silly white apron and heeled shoes. The uniform also had a tendency to be a little on the short side. Rixxan pulled her frock over her dress and smoothed it out, rolling her eyes in the mirror as she  adjusted her glasses. She nodded in approval at her own reflection and headed out the door. 

A couple hours into her shift, the cafe traffic had picked up and been steady for quite a while, and had started tapering down finally. The bells on the door chimed and Rixxan could hear one of the other workers greeting some incoming guests as she refilled a water pitcher in the kitchen. (The bells had to be installed recently because they'd cut back on staff and no one could see the door from the kitchen. Once it happened more than a few times that people had entered without being greeted in the next few moments the owner had blown his lid and put the bells on the door. Now they had no excuse to not immediately jump up and greet new guests, which as efficient as it is was also something Rixxan found annoying.) Another door opened, and Rixxan could bet that the host was seating them out on the terrace for her to wait on. She rolled her eyes once more, bit her lip and sighed. There was hardly any down time in this job. 

She walked out from the kitchen after a few more moments and got the signal from the host that signified she had a new table to serve. Thanks a bunch, jerk, Rixxan thought as she turned toward the outside terrace and tried to glimpse the new table. Unfortunately the sunlight shone through and made a glare on her glasses that prevented her from seeing out before she got to the door, so she instead put on her fakest smile and heaved one more deep breath before opening the terrace door. This table was two gentlemen, as was the usual, so she greeted them as usual. 

"Good Morning, Gentlemen! And welcome to our wonderful establishment, Sugar Plum Cafe, we hope that your experience with us today will be exquisite and meet your highest levels of satisfaction. Please let me know if there's anything we can do to make your time spent with us a little sweeter. My name is Annabelle and I will be here to serve you and provide you with all you need to enjoy your breakfast here." While she spewed her memorized lines of nonsense at the men, she also filled their water glasses and then started to look for which of their possessions she'd be aiming to take, before continuing with her real job, "What will we be drinking today, gentlemen? Tea or Coffee? And would you like milk and sugar on the side with those?" Rixxan had already started to take bets in her head on what the two would order, a thing she did with nearly every table she served, but she wasn't quite sure about one of the men. Something about him didn't quite fit within the cafe, she just wasn't too sure why. Didn't matter, aanyway, they were all just patrons, and that means they were also all targets. 

The name, "Icarus", had its uses. For the most part, the reputation of the man that the demon assumed control over gave him access to most locations within Adeluna. Unfortunately, such was not the case for Mamluk, where the stalwart warrior had officially been executed, though no execution had actually occurred. The demon had seen to that when he took over his body and forced his way free from the prison there, nearly bestial in nature. To think, he had come so far in the past few months, he had nearly forgotten himself and believed he was Icarus.

That is, until each time he fed on the life essence of those around him, occasionally leading to wanton slaughter if he was particularly hungry. It was distasteful, this unchecked life that flourished all around him. The truth was, in the end, all things would eventually wither before Obelisk, whether that be the pitiable mortals or their "gods" they held in such high regard. All it would take was time for him to light the candle to illuminate the way for the great darkness to visit this reality among the cosmos. Indeed, then the very fabric of reality would echo and fade to mere ash in his wake.

In a way, it was that preparation of the world that brought him to the city of Adeluna. What greater impact in preparing this world for darkness than to snuff one of the brightest lights within it? It would take time, but eventually, he would bring the city to its knees, trembling as he harvested the life here like the roughest sea claiming a boat.

He smelled something. It was a familiar odor, almost too sweet and ever so vibrant that he could not resist searching for it. The scent faintly reminded him of a time he was incomplete, merely a wild beast within the body of a man that had stood his entire life in combat against his kind. Then again, perhaps it was only by the greatness of Obelisk and the fact the demon was a speck of him that he had the power to consume Icarus' soul and find harbor within him. The scent had a certain, unmistakable fragrance to it that caused a surge of feeling in the body, a warmth the demon did not understand nor control.

A single beat of his heart pounded the interior of the body, the first he had ever experienced. It was a horrid feeling. He had spent so long within dead flesh that this touch of life that putrefied his perfection for but a second caused immense agony. One hand against his heart stifled it and his will was once again his own. Damn that Icarus. Even still, his flesh defies me though there is neither soul nor trace left of him save this shell, he thought to himself.

Instinctively, he began to prowl, searching high and low as his hunter's instincts locked onto the direction of the smell. Cocking his head upward, he caught traces of other scents as well, those of the elite, with their prim and pampered ways, visiting some restaurant. The food repulsed him, though for mortals, he assumed this qualified as gourmet by most standards. The scent of his target, his prey, lingered heavily in the air wafting down toward him as though it were some sort of mouse teasing a cat by playing with his tail. He would not permit it, even though they knew not of their impending demise.

Teleporting so as to grasp the balcony of the terrace, the being donned his mask and peered only high enough to see between two of the posts supporting the railing. With the exception of two men, it seemed the terrace was empty and the other entrants were all too engaged in their repugnant merry-making to notice anything. Quickly teleporting, the demon in the form of Icarus drained one of the men to no more than ash and landed promptly in his chair, reclining calmly. Making ready to shout in horror at the sight, Icarus let slip some of his magic and weakened the man while also closing his throat magically. It had a tragic dual effect of causing him to slowly choke to death and being unable to even move as a result, nearly paralyzed.

The smell came to him stronger than ever as he quickly tossed away the clothing of the man he had reduced to nothing while taking everything from him. Behind his mask, no one could even discern his features, as it was a simple, flat, white and red mask with meshed holes for eyes, bottom of one's nose, and mouth. He made a minor motion toward the other man as the server, the origin of the scent, recited the same boring droll she would any other day. He felt it again. Pain as his heart beat so excruciating it took every ounce of his will maintain composure and deflect toward the other man. "Please, help him, gods willing. I think he has been stung by a bee, aggravating a grievous allergy! I told him the terrace was a poor choice and I fear I can do nothing!" he played to the best of his ability.

It was a con, but in fairness, he felt this woman was too. Her scent was not right for a human and the familiarity in her face nearly made him lose focus. Everything within his body told him no harm could be permitted to come upon her but the will of the demon kept trying to resist with infernal might. For now, it was a waiting game to see which would give out first, the immortal will of the greatest enemy demons had ever witnessed, the demon who was a piece of Obelisk, or the veiled fear hiding his evil deed.

Rixxan blinked in confusion as someone was apparently dying in front of her.  Having a bit too friendly of a past with killing people, this was not something Rixxan responded to like any normal human might. 

"Oh. Well I guess that makes things… different." Rixxan put her hands on her hips as if she was suddenly burdened by this, as she felt she was. How dare someone die when she's trying to steal all of his valuables and smooze her way into having him willingly leave her a ridiculously disproportionate tip for her excellent service. Though something also wasn't quite right with the whole picture. Rixxan looked at the other party at the table and felt an eerie tingle work up her spine. Something a bit too familiar with a stench of something Rixxan knew too well from her days as a vessel for Ahn, the demonic spirit that had killed her family and taken up residence in her. Rixxan had gotten free of Ahn's hold approximately two years ago, but it was still something that was always going to affect her. Looking at the other guest at this table drew up very familiar feelings to that time in her life. Her mouth formed into a pout as she drafted her plan to exit this situation. 

Rixxan smelled magic on the dying man, not of his own but as if a spell had been cast upon him. Being more of a destructive elf than a healer, she actually did not know of any ways to fix that sort of thing or undo whatever had been done, she only had old books in her living quarters that she could go through if she were, say, actually home to look through them and then gather up whatever she needed to complete whatever the book would instruct her to do to undo spells or curses or… a 'grievous allergy.' That was obviously a lie. Humans had their own smell and magic on them definitely wasn't normal. Especially not this magic that smelled so much like Ahn's… and something else. Something she'd encountered at some time. Her head started hurting again, another of her inexplicable headaches that had started after Mamlak. 

"I'm afraid I'm not equipped to deal with this sort of thing. However…" Rixxan paused to remove a throwing knife from her bosom and tossed it lackadaisically at the dying man, where it stuck firmly into his carotid artery and nerve and sent blood sputtering onto the table. She shook her head in disgust, not sure if it was from the idea that she would most likely have to clean this table now or that she just generally disliked people, "…I am fully equipped to end his suffering." She shrugged, truly unbothered by the events that had all just transpired here, and turned to the other guest. "And that, dearest masked guest… that will serve as the ending to your dining experience here on the terrace today as I'm going to have to cut this visit short for you." In a moment of completely environmentally-adopted vanity, Rixxan continued her edited-yet-still-automated speech while fixing her uniform and readjusting her bosom. "Thank you for dining with us and I do hope you'll return to patronize us at some other point. Possibly when I'm not here or when you haven't brought the stench of ungodly entities around with you, perhaps? I mean no offense but you absolutely reek of unholy magic and things I have quite a bit of experience with and I've not got much patience to play games with the likes of that, bad enough I'm surrounded by humans on a daily basis but now you've got to come in here and ruin this good thing I've got going for myself? Well no sir, I won't have it. I've worked quite hard to ensure I can manipulate and loot these fools for all they're worth and I will be damned if I let some random… thing… waltz in here and ruin my setup. So please, do be a dear and make your way calmly to the front, tip the counter and be on your way. I'm sure you can find your way out." Rixxan's face made a considerable change from her previous cheeky mood as she motioned towards the door with one hand while her left hand, hidden behind her back, prepared to summon her larger sword in case she might need it. As another safety, her last motion had also put that right hand into shadow, so that if she truly needed to get out of here, she could shadowmeld and flee. Not that she was one to flee regularly, but she didn't entirely appreciate the familiarity of this encounter.

As Rixxan was thinking on her snarky chat, she realized something, which was what she recognized about the masked guest with the awful smell.
She knew that mask. The man from Mamlak and from the pirate bounty a bit before that incident had worn that mask. To be an added jerk about things now that she reccognized him, she added a bit more, because knowing his profession he was most likely here on a bounty. Possibly hers.

"Honestly I'm quite disappointed, Icarus. Not very becoming of a display for someone with such a reputation. I expected much more of you."

Was this a bright idea? Most likely not, but Rixxan had to be herself and insert her usually-problematic snarky commentary into everything. At least she had refrained from actually revealing her identity or using the fact that she had relations with him as some sort of bait to enrage him. 

Even as the fragile façade of both their terrible acts became all the more transparent, the demon within Icarus stirred in anticipation. It hadn't taken long to cause his prey to alter her demeanor and drop her disguise for even the slightest moment. Surely, she had gone to great extents in the past to keep her identity hidden, but one bit of unexpected chaos was seemingly all it took for it to fall apart like a stone striking glass. It was perhaps due to the glaringly obvious issues with what he had done.

The fact that she had given him so little time to prepare made it all the more difficult. A few minutes would have sufficed but he had scarcely had even one to prepare and the glare of the sun had only bought him a few more precious seconds. They were seconds that ultimately afforded no more success in his ruse and the smell of magic permeated so greatly that he struggled to keep from drooling. The amount of self-restraint involved was utterly stifling, but the fact that he held on this long without simply taking her as he had so many others was nothing short of a miracle.

That damn boy is still interfering. I can't move, the demon thought, struggling to will himself free from his seat and lunge even as she began to chastise him. It wasn't until she mentioned the name Icarus that he had at last made the connection. How comical he should find that one here of all places. The features and scent were unmistakable; Icarus had found someone to truly care for and the memories of their time together remained ingrained on his body, protecting her from the new and superior being sitting before her.

"Dear girl, I find it funny you make a mention of that name. Had you not failed to rescue him, he would not be… me/I], something far greater than anything he could ever become. I simply smelled your essence, following the sweet aroma that brought on his memories and found you here. I wanted to inquire more and utilize a more elusive guise, but it seems your service was too quick to permit such a task," he explained, clenching firmly into the hard wood table while bringing his legs beneath him. "That darkness in your aura is absolutely exquisite. I figured you would almost appreciate becoming one with me. If that doesn't suit your fancy, however," he paused as darkness ebbed through the holes in his mask, taking the form of a wispy panther of pure shadow. "then I suppose I'll simply have to have a meal here after all," he announced with a gesture of his hand toward the interior of the restaurant, sending the panther crashing through the glass doors.

The screams of the patrons could be heard as the demon before her reclined in his chair, cackling at the sheer horror the patrons now faced as his summoned beast of darkness ravaged them, collecting their life energy and becoming stronger, faster, and larger. In the span of a few moments, the creature would return and feed its master, and he would relish the lasting moments of pain that lingered to life as it was cut short.

"Alas, will it as I may, this body doesn't seem willing to do a thing to you. I've tried a few times and all I receive is a shudder of pain. Even now, this dead heart is beating in my chest and I want no more than to rip it out. That would, however, probably result in the loss of this body or at least some irreparable measure of damage, so we sit at an impasse. What do you do? Do you simply wait until the end to preserve a disguise that holds little meaning in a job that no longer exists or do you risk yourself for them and risk them spurring you away for whatever reason you chose to hide your true form?" the demon questioned, bringing the woman to a deciding point that would ultimately determine how alike she was to the demon or what he had previously been before he evolved into a more perfect being.

One thing still puzzled him, however. Icarus' soul had been consumed and not a trace was left as he gave into the torture, anger, and pain he had been subjected to in order to protect this woman. How could it be that even with no more than a shell without even the faintest shred of humanity left aside from appearance, could he still protect a woman that had betrayed him in her selfishness and permitted him to die through her failure? Such things as mortal concepts of affection and loyalty intrigued him if they could persist from even beyond the grave.

As it talked more and more, Rixxan grew impateient and generally bored. It was not as fun for it to be a possessed version of Icarus, she wouldn't be able to tease and poke fun at him the way she would like.  

"Become one with you?" Rixxan almost laughed out loud, having to cover her mouth to avoid snorting at the alternative meaning to that statement. "You mean… sex? Hah, no thanks! I've had one demon inside me alrready I'd rather not another! It wasn't exactly a lovely experience. Yeah… no."

He implied something about her going to whatever lengths to protect her identity and such, aand Rixxan shrugged as his ethereal creature started destroying the restaurant.

"You mean the glasses and wig? Honey, this is just a fun side gig. You know I have more important things to do than work in a cafe full of priveleged mysogynists." Rixxan scoffed and pulled both the wig and magic glasses off, letting them fall onto the terrace flooring, "I'm not really attached to this place. It's just nice to not have bounty hunters immediately recognize you when you're a pale blonde wood elf with big pink eyes wandering around human cities. Some people don't really like magic, I'm sure you've noticed."

"So, there you go. It's me. Hi." She waved sarcastically for a moment after her unveiling before continuing. "Okay Mr. Big Bad Soul Eater. What's your plan? Say, in the instance where I refuse to do anything involving you and I disappear into the shadows, what's your big plan? Are you going to hunt me down or send that thing after me and have it eat me? That would be silly, I'm an elf with a lot of magic abilities and it would probably cost you more energy than it would ever possibly be worth. So hmmm… Maybe kidnap me and drain my life force with some sort of magical drain spell and harness my own inner darkness to add some spice to yours? Well, you could probably use it. You're incredibly bland, all formalities with you. No zest to your displays or finesse. All you've got going for you, aside from secretly being Mr. Big Bad Soul Eater, is that you've procured Icarus' body and that gives you some attractiveness. But you've definitely got to work on your scary speeches, they're not nearly dastardly or evil enough. Quite elementary. I could never work with the likes of you, as it is. One must be careful not to mix business and pleasure. So, with that all figured out, there's obviously nothing for you to do here once your pet has eaten everyone inside, and you should go." Rixxan was playing around still, but not quite so much. Her past experience with this sort of creature had taken everything. It had been what had broken her and turned her into this person that she was now. Her left hand, her favored casting hand, ignited with one of her black flames and lapped around her arm, working up to her shoulder like vines on a lattice. Not that she intended to use it on this thing, but she found it helped to release some of the anger she had built up if she started a little fire. Her eyes burned a brighter shade of pink, nearly glowing fuschia and she gritted her teeth. She didn't have the patience to play with this guy much longer, so she concocted her escape plan and prepared to put it into action.

"Hey, ya know what? I'll even help you burn this place to the ground." Rixxan touched one of the corner posts of the building and the flames instantly leeched into the wood. The fire snapped at the old wood and cracked the post as it traveled and quickly spread. It would take about ten seconds for the entire roof to be engulfed. The awning over the terrace was cloth overhead but was held up by wooden posts that were originally built into the building. The fire caught onto the cloth and engulfed the wooden beams in the overhang and Rixxan pointed above the demon. "You might want to watch your head. Those beams could fall at any moment." Just as she pointed up at the posts above him, she shot an extra bit of fire at the posts above herself to send them crashing down with explosive power and a great deal of smoke–the perfect cover for her to run like hell. She jumped the wall of the terrace and fled down the road towards her home, wondering if she had the stamina to make it the nearly two miles back to her side of the city. She had gotten quite lazy in her new gig, still quite skinny just possibly lacking the overall ability to properly breathe while running. Eventually she might have to slow down and take a breather, but she hoped she wouldn't.