Haunted & Hunted

Lillith gasped when Maggie made a tiny peace of the poor mage's cheek fall off. "Man you just ruined his life right there. I can't imagine how bad his mommy issues are going to be when she see's his face. I almost feel bad... almost." Lillith was giving the evilest of smiles. "Well tell your master that I wanted his servant to answer a question. But now I just wanted him to stay and have a little fun and enjoy life for a time. But if he wants you so bad then leave." 

The tentacle monster projected his master's one so that it could be heard by Liela as well. "I have a found a temporary replacement to tend to your duties while you are gone," he said, his voice calm and almost soothing. "Next time, make sure there are no conflicts in your schedule. That is all and I wish both you and your summoner a nice day."

Maggie tried to put the chunk back where it fell off and for a few seconds, it held on. Then, a bigger chunk fell off. "Yeeah, we screwed up," she said. "Can you hold the chunk where they should be? Maybe, maybe if I turn back to normal..."

Liela stayed there, giving the tentacle monster a stare. "You know, I thought your master was a whole lot meaner. Guess I can't assume that every other master is evil other than me. But it's nice that he let you stay. He must care... sort of. What in the world did he have you planned to do today?"

"A couple of sermons, some door-to-door visits, maybe even a heretic raid," the tentacle monster explained. "All priestly duties except the last. That's where my combat skills are tested and tried." L'ghalios got a part of his powers from the prayers of his subjects, but so did his rival J'Khala, hence why all those that worshipped him were branded heretics.

Maggie put the fire mage back to normal and he finished what he was saying before she cut him off.

"-butt!" Then, he begun swearing and cussing profusely as his cheek ripped open and he started bleeding.

"My face, my beautiful face!" he screamed. "Who did this?!"

"Others priests are not the same kind as me," he further explained. "I was tempted by forbidden knowledge and my first master revived me and gave me this form. As for the religion, L'ghalios, my master and mentor, gets a portion of his powers from people believing that he and us can protect them. More prayers means better protection. No prayers means his rival will be able to swoop in and pretty much just turn everyone into a floating eye or an abomination." The last bit was a ironic, as even his master's priests and servants were abominations. Whilst none of them were as altered as him, they did have addiotional limbs in the form of one or more tentacles. Unlike the followers of his rival, they could, however, hide them.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

"There was a ninja, I saw him escape through the window. He was the one that cut your cheek. We tried to stop him, but he was too fast for us."

The fire mage once again lit himself on fire in a fit of rage and Kit pointed her fist at Lillith for a fist bump. "I will find that ninja and burn him to ashes. He'll regret the day he angered me, Obahn, the master of fire and the bringer of the apocalypse!" Judging from his last statement alone, it was safe to say he lost it.

"So worship for protection. Makes sense. Though I don't really need protection but others do. I guess I'll pray for your master, for them. Is that really how your master gets power from people praying for him?" 


"PFFT! Bringer of the apocalypse?" Lillith pointed her fist as well and finished the first pump with Kit. "If anyone is going to be the bringer of the apocalypse, it's going to be me. When I finally eat the souls required for my to maintain my origin form." 

"He never quite elaborated on how that works and to be fair, none of us have really asked," said the tentacle monster. "Completely unrelated, but you do know I have a name, right? I didn't want to remind you of that because I deemed it rude, but you call everyone else by their name." Calling him just a tentacle monster was much more descriptive, but so was calling Lillith a demon, Kit a machine or Liela a summoner.

The fire mage opened the window, strangely without so much as charring it and started climbing outside. "If I find him, I'll make him regret ever living. I'll make sure his last living moments are full of pain and–" And just like that, he was gone, right after he set foot outside the house, too. Puff of smoke and all.

"Was it me or did he just disappear?" Maggie asked.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

"He will not be missed." This was the meanest she's ever been.

"Azzar, but my master also gave the title Cth, meaning priest. Can't say I blame you," he told her. "You're the responsible one." Or as responsible as someone who can go intangible to weasel out of her responsibilies can be. Still, she looked like the leader type to him.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

"I don't like being mean to people, but he was a jerk. Unrelated – I know I can't eat, but I've always wondered how various foods taste. Like muffins and chocolate."

"Really?" Maggie stated her disbelief. "You're considering pastries and junk food? Why not something real like a big juicy steak?"

"Mistress Liela will hear of what you've done," the ghost decided to speak up. "I'll make sure of that."

" Me responsible? I don't know. I'm just trying to keep things from going completely to hell. I know I have a servant but I've always been taking orders... well I used too. " Liela looked happy and sad at the same time. 

"Oh please don't tell master! She doesn't like it when I do bad things. Also, meat and junk food? Those physical waste don't even compare to the taste of souls!" 

"As any leader does," he assured her. "If you and Lillith switched places, things would have definitely turned for worse." He and Lillith would still share a moment, but everything would also be on fire. In space. Whilst the house would be drowning in a whirling, watery vortex.

"I am open to bargaining," the sly ghost said. "What are your offers?"

Tap. Tap. Tap.

"You don't tell her and Lillith doesn't eat you for dessert. How does that sound?" The ghost, however, merely laughed at the threat.

"Oh, really? You can't even see me. I have no physical body."

"Then we'll bind you to something or someone," Maggie said, Book of Summons in hand, her voice a few octaves deeper than usual. "And beat you for hours until you change your mind."

"Ha, Lillith wouldn't do that bad. She's way older than me. She probably knows best. Plus that cat has planned and pulled off some of the most complicated pranks. " 
"I'm glad you find this funny. You think I don't know where you are. Ha. I can sense energies that are close you know. I know exactly where you are. I honestly would eat all of the souls that make you up. After all, we did originally come here to get rid of you. " Lillith's smile was getting bigger and bigger. "Maybe we'll go Maggie's route and give a nice torture session. I do have a whip." 

"Really?" Azzar was curious. "I never imagined her to be a prankster."

The ghost felt cold sweat going down his non-existant back. "But I did nothing wrong," he said in a fit of panic. "I did not kill her! She fell down the stairs. That's it. I saw it happen."

Tap. Tap. Tap.

"With what you've just said, you've become the prime suspect. Congratulations. I can't believe we've already wasted half a day looking for evidence that wasn't even there. You're getting punished for deliberately lying to us, if nothing else."

Maggie was turning the page, thinking aloud. "Now, let's see, what's the most defenceless and pathetic thing I can summon. Any ideas, Lil?"

"Heh, that's actually pretty funny," Azzar replied. "Think she's doing something crazy right now, just because you're gone?"

Maggie went to wake up the voidwalker while Kit reactivated her violent subroutines and the voice chip that was connected to them. "Wakey, wakey, we need you to bind a soul. Well, a collection of souls."

The voidwalker took a long yawn and then got up, scratching her head and cracking her knuckles. "Ah, yes, I sense an intangible presence," she said, still a bit sleepy. "Is that the one for the binding ritual?" Maggie gave her a firm nod and the voidwalker begun drawing complicated runes.

"You know, I never ever hurt anyone. Never allowed myself to," Kit said, her voice calm and soft, yet sinister. "I guess there's a first time for everything, liar." If there was one thing she hated more than tech maniacs that wanted to break her open and see how she worked, it was liars.

"Huh, so you do speak," Maggie said with a smile. "Sure got me fooled."

 "Probably but lately she's been scaring me. I mean it used to be a little scare and no one gets hurt but now she's been more on the lethal end of it. It's like when I'm not around she goes full demon and completely ignores morals. Tries to go beyond what she can handle. It's kind of sad because I don't think she can control it." 
" Oh this going to be fun! I can't wait!" Lillith was shaking a little over how excited she was to torture the ghost. She was even twitching a little. "and t-than when it's all done I'm going to eat you HA HA!" Lillith turned to Kit. "Your evil voice is back! GOOD JUST PURRRRRFECT!" 

"Then I suppose you should keep a closer eye on her." Azzar proclaimed. "Who knows what might be going on inside her head?"

Maggie came upon a category of summons uncreatively named 'Test Subjects' and her eyes stopped on something called an artificial human

She begun reading the text aloud for Lillith and Kit to hear. "Artificial, human-like construct. Completely featureless, obeys all and every command. Emotionless, mute, soulless; can take a lot of punishment before dying. The perfect plaything for summoners that want to test out their spells and weapons.


Yeah, we're summoning this."

The incantation was ready, Maggie's summon words for the punching bag were ready, but the ghost fled to the Kitchen.

"Mistress Liela, I need you help. Your allies have gone completely mad! First they lured the fire mage outside the house, desummoming him and now, they're trying to bind me to a summon and torture ne!" The fear and urgency in his voice was real, if not a bit exaggerated for dramatic effect.

"I try my best to keep an eye. Maybe I'll have to tr-" Than the voice of a scared ghost came in." Wait they are doing what? Who made the fire mage go away and who got the idea to torture you?!

The voidwalker quickly cancelled her incantation and removed the rune. Maggie closed the Book of Summons and placed at the exact place it was when Liela left the room. Kit turned off her violent subroutines and turned to Lillith.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

"No worries, I still have the recording of his confession. Moment Liela walks in, I'm blasting it."

Azzar sighed and left the kitchen. "We leave for one moment..."

Liela waited  for a response from the ghost but none came. "Come on Azzar, let's just see what sort of madness is going on!" Liela quickly ran to the main room everyone was. Liela didn't look happy staring directly at Lillith. "Ok! I want to know what the hell is going on here. The ghost tells me you all got rid of the fire mage and was trying to torture them! Lillith?!?" 

 "Is that what it said? The fire mage left because we got into a little your momma joke fight and he couldn't handle it. He had a little tantrum and left. The ghost is lying about the last part. We don't even know where the ghost is much less know how to torture something that doesn't have a body! The reason that ghost fled to you and tried to get us all in trouble was because he had a slip up in words that reveals he knows what happens to the girl that fell down the stairs! We were on to him and he panicked and went to you! Kit play the recording!" Lillith was smiling at the lie she managed to come up with. It sounded convincing enough but the recording kit was about to play would be the icing on the cake.

Kit played the recording in all its glory 'But I did nothing wrong. I did not kill her! She fell down the stairs. That's it. I saw it happen.'

The ghost tried to defend himself. "T-that's completely out of context. Why, I would never deliberately lie just to make someone waste their time!"

Tap. Tap. Tap.

"That's why we wanted to punish him."

Liela didn't look any better. The recording didn't lie but the ghost did make a point. "Play the full recording. The ghost said it was out of context so play it. Play all of it." Liela was going to get to the bottom of this. Something didn't seem right here.

Kit sighed and looked at Lillith. She had the full recording, the question was, was it worth it? 

Again, she chose to sacrifice herself and whilst she didn't tinker with the recordings, she did tinker with the phone messages to make it sound like it was her idea.

'Mistress Liela will hear of what you've done. I'll make sure of that.


I am open to bargaining. What are your offers?

Oh, really? You can't even see me. I have no physical body.


But I did nothing wrong. I did not kill her! She fell down the stairs. That's it. I saw it happen.'

Kit then showed her the messages she had on her phone to fill in the blanks.

"So this is what happened. It was all your doing. I thought I could trust thou to not do anything like this. I guess not." Liela looked disappointed and sad. "So ghost... you've lied to us about not knowing who killed the girl falling down the stairs. Tell me the truth!" Lillith went next to kit giving a "The ghost will pay" face