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 Posted: Fri Nov 18, 2022 2:35 pm
This one, Emmy assured him, was going to be impeccably useful. This one, she said, was a director in a bank, whatever that meant, and Eion wasn't terribly interested in finding out how that was supposed to be useful to the Negaverse. Something about their cashflow problem, he guessed, or taking the pressure off Lepidolite's bank account, or… Whatever. It didn't matter. Eion had already written it off as Infiltration stuff and washed his hands of the digging involved.
Her instructions were quite different from what he was used to in the realm of welcoming select individuals into the Negaverse, however. Rather than having this boy meet him at a time that was convenient for him, Eion had to stay up late and make an appointment with this moneybag ******** to bring him into the fold. It incensed him, surely, not because of the inversion of rank, but because Eion had to deprive his sleep-deprived self of more sleep than usual just to get it done. It was a role better suited to any single other General in the Negaverse, since he was nigh convinced that they were all big fans of daylight.
But Eion did as he was told. His appointment was originally for 9AM, but the secretary had called Waru to tell him that the appointment time had to be rescheduled to 1PM. He had half a mind to call it off, but a whole debt to Jadarite told him otherwise.
At 12:55PM, Eion Risk strolled into the posh trappings of a back he had never entered before in his life, and in a feat of impressive coherence, managed to mumble out "appointment" at the door greeter, who then directed him to the leather seats inside a glass-walled lounge. It hadn't escaped him that the young man at the door gave him a thoroughly strange look; Eion hadn't quite worked out why, but if he had his husband's sense, he would assume that he should not have dressed in bright green argyle flocked tights, orange shorts, a pair of well-loved and well-Sharpied vans, a turtleneck, a v-neck sweater, and a double-breasted navy blue coat.
After Eion had entered the otherwise empty lounge and seated himself on the excessively noisy leather chair, the greeter bid him adieu with a nebulous "The Director will be with you soon" and departed. Eion rolled his eyes at the exchanged, crossed his legs, and bobbed a foot to keep himself awake.
What a time to be awake, he told himself, as he glanced at his pocket watch.
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Posted: Fri Nov 18, 2022 5:34 pm
Adam was one of those impeccable morning people; an insult, really. He had been awake since five in the morning, starting out his day with a run instead of a visit to the gym. He capped that off with a hearty breakfast; as much as his peers insisted they were delicious, he could never quite negotiate the concept of drinking anything containing raw eggs. One of those people was going to give themselves salmonella eventually he was certain. There was a spare glance given at his schedule at approximately eight AM. He wasn't sure which of the secretaries scheduled his morning stand-up at nearly the same time as this meeting with this guy that Emilia had mentioned; it didn't matter. He quickly called in and told them to reschedule it. He arrived at his desk at nine in the morning on the dot, never giving them more time than he was paid for. He glanced over his schedule when he arrived and already rolled his eyes at the slate of work he had to do beyond the overlapping meetings and stand-ups so he could tell his managing director he was being more "agile." His life had been removed from the spreadsheets he had to manage before, but now he had to deal with people, and in some ways that was worse. Better, though, in that commanding people was satisfying in a way that spreadsheets never were. At 12:50PM, he pondered once more if he should delay the meeting, this time due to "unforeseen circumstances" instead of legitimate conflict. He was told that this was an opportunity he shouldn't ignore, and the first vibes he detected were MLM vibes. He had dealt with enough of his blonde rich former high school classmates trying to convince him that this was the next great thing he should invest in that he knew the whole tried and true tricks. He suspected this "Eion" on his schedule would come in and show him some overworked PowerPoint presentation that he would suffer through and then give some pointers. Did he trust Emilia enough to chance that this was different? At 12:59PM, he had opted not to delay the meeting and instead move to where his guest had been probably directed to the lounge, encased away from the open concept working floor. Another dumbass idea. "Eion?" asked Adam, as he walked up to the man isolated in the leather chair. Interesting choice in dress from the sharpied vans; he himself was dressed sharp, in a suitcoat, patent leather shoes, and a tie. Turkeys on it; he attempted to seem "festive." "My name is Adam. It's a pleasure to meet you," it was questionable if it would be, but his smile was charming and his hand was offered. "I can take you to my office now if you'd like."
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Codebreaking Conversationalist
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Posted: Sat Nov 19, 2022 6:10 am
At last, Emmy's special boy walked through the door. Good-looking, took care of himself, but Eion was a margin too put off by all this bureaucracy and inconvenience to open his heart at the time. When he was received by Adam, Eion sighed, and stood with a quiet "Finally."
He was absolutely, thoroughly, without a doubt, never doing this again. No new talent acquisition, no matter how promising, was worth accelerating his already monstrous sleep debt.
Eion nodded at the invitation, prepared to see if the office was a place worth using for their venture. He was seldom in a bank as a child, and was only brought on for a meeting between some kind of bank official and his father once — he couldn't remember the lady's face, or why they were there. What he did remember was that they were there for hours, the magazines were boring, and the lady folded him one of those paper cranes that could flap its wings if he pulled a tragically placed triangle that made the creature look like it was hung like a horse. He remembered spending most of that time trying to deduce how she did it, and the adults continued to chat away.
Now he was one of the adults. If he had to have whatever dull conversation his dad had with a banking official, he was liable to starseed this one and apologize to Emmy since he wasn't a good fit for the job.
"Don't normally visit banks," he explained as preface to his question. "Your office private?"He looked up at the boy as he began walking with him.
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Posted: Sat Nov 19, 2022 7:08 am
Adam's brow quirked minutely. Not as falsely enthusiastic as most who were involved in MLM schemes, at least. He supposed the bitter angle would have been a new approach, and perhaps he may entertain it for a few more minutes. From another angle, perhaps there had been more to what Emilia told him. He could tell. It was the sharpied vans that hinted to him of the usual preferences of this ... Eion, but his general mannerisms seemed to track, too. Honestly better for it, perhaps the small talk before they got to the point of the overworked PowerPoint would not include anything about whatever fancy car the other had bought or whatever obnoxious vacation they were going on next. Boring. Yes, he drove a Benz, yes, he had last gone to Belgium-- "Very," Adam wore a smirk as he glanced the nearly foot down that hinted at a perhaps more devious charm, but it melted and merged easily into a more standard businessman's vibe. "Probably one of the best parts of my promotion." Besides the fewer spreadsheets, the more command over people... He approached a wooden door with a small window he had covered in standardized motivational posters. 'The distance between your dreams and reality is hard work,' 'Achievement: One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind,' 'Shoot for the moon, even if you miss, you'll land across the stars.' Adam didn't seem to pay them any attention as he pushed it open and half-bowed to grant Eion entry, gesturing for him to sit on one of the two leather chairs facing the desk in his office. The benefit of the posters was that they covered what little could be seen inside the office. The office gave the standard corporate vibes: a wooden desk with three monitors, two tall bookshelves filled with books that showed how well-read he was, a globe on the desk he could spin as a fidget but primarily left alone, a whiteboard for drawing out agile plans. He strolled around his desk and sat at it, tapping the papers against the desk to straighten them out before putting them inside the desk. Did he care about work secrets? ******** no. Did he want to get scolded for something getting leaked? Also ******** no. "At your ready, Eion."
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Codebreaking Conversationalist
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Posted: Sat Nov 19, 2022 7:32 am
Good, the place was private. Hopefully wouldn't wind up with any nosy secretaries or —
Belatedly incredulous, Eion glanced back up at the boy. But whatever he'd heard was already gone, or was never betrayed on his face to begin with. The more he considered this encounter, the more he determined that Albite would have been a better pick for this one, but he understood that he and Emmy were having a spat. Waru was a better read for people in these sorts of social situations, he was awake during the day, and he didn't have a three-hour timer on looking human with the express understanding that he would be able to do nothing else in Destiny City today.
Finally they reached the office door in question, and Eion glazed over at the tacky posters. They were out of the way soon enough, and Eion nodded once more as he was bid inside.
While he acknowledged that Adam invited him to take a seat, Eion had decided that he would never again sit in one of those terrible leather chairs. If he was sitting again today, it was on his bed, immediately before flopping over and going to sleep next to one of many adorable boys on his team. Instead, he looked for a suitable patch of floor for pacing.
This time, he was pacing to keep himself awake and somewhere in the neighborhood of alert. He watched Adam patiently squirrel away a few papers, which Eion assumed were proprietary. He gave strictly negative ******** about the papers, but it suggested that Adam had some sense for secret-keeping. Important for their line of work.
And the office itself was… Neat, well-manicured, devoid of personality. Reminded him of Emmy's apartment, but instead of being on the cover of Ikea, this one was aiming for Forbes. Some white man symbol of success.
"Assume Emmy told you what we do. Recap it for me."
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Posted: Sat Nov 19, 2022 11:15 am
He was pacing rather than sitting. It was intriguing. Not in the sense that he would have rathered Eion sit as he was directed to--though sure, that was there too, though he wasn't in the business of forcing in these situations--but in that he was constructing more of what felt like Eion's personality from the little ticks he observed. He said nothing of it, and instead sat back and waited for the beginning of the presentation. Made sense for him to ask what Adam actually knew. It still left Adam unconvinced this wasn't an MLM scheme. Maybe he wanted to know if Adam knew what product he was working with, how much he had to buy into it, how much Eion needed to convince Adam of the basic premise. "She did tell me something of it, but in a vaguer, overhead sense. Emmy says she's a member of a powerful agency that offered her some significant career support and advancement. She suggested it could do the same for me, too." If it wasn't obvious by the office that aimed to be featured in the next OnOffice or perhaps a Forbes profile, Adam was certainly interested in career advancement. Not for any concern for the company he was advancing in; that would imply he actually cared about agile or open offices or the false sneers on their faces. Open ambition was a bigger drive. Once he decided he needed that prestige, he cared for little else involved. "Naturally, I asked her to elaborate and she warned of the extra responsibilities but said it was worth the payoff. Beyond that, she told me I should speak with you for more details." Adam leaned in, arms folded on his desk and eyebrows lifted in curiosity that at least seemed legitimate. "So tell me: what does your organization offer, exactly?" Was it mentorships with an upper? A cool vacation with enough sales and new recruits that bought into the scheme too? "What do you do?"
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Codebreaking Conversationalist
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Posted: Sat Nov 19, 2022 2:35 pm
Eion listened, and waited to hear the parts about fantastical magic and energy draining and commanding youma. But what came out of Adam's mouth was none of that — it was all moving up in the world, guaranteed jobs, all that civilian bullshit that people cared about when they actually had lives outside of the Negaverse.
"Oh, ******** me," Eion muttered as he covered his eyes with a hand. It hadn't stopped him from pacing, however.
Sighing, Eion tried to channel what was left of his brain cells for the conversation. "Might be her boss, but I'm not part of her branch. Don't normally convince people to join us." Nor was he in the mood to try, so late in the day. Eion ran his hands down his face as he tried to think of something convincing for a normal human with a normal life. He hadn't been one of those in an age, however, and he never got to adulthood before partial youmafication interrupted him.
"Don't know what they offer the humans. Know a handful in her branch are high-ranked, have a lot of power and command in their careers. Her branch situates people in new jobs, new livelihoods, new career paths. Helps them cut corners. Accredited degrees without the work and debt. Shortcuts to positions of power by buying target businesses. Not a game I care for." It was an attempt, Emmy would have to give him that. He already expected that he would have to add this one to the fold by force if he had to make any sort of a pitch, and while this one was tall, he would be at a strict disadvantage with Faustite.
"But everyone gets extra power. A second identity. Weapons. Ability to jump buildings. Drain energy. Take souls." He counted each off his fingers as he looked to the ceiling to remember what a Lieutenant received anymore. "Climb ranks and you'll command monsters, teleport, get a better weapon, command the lower ranks. More familiar with that."
For Adam's last question, Eion paced to the front of the desk and stopped between the two chairs, a hand on each back. "My part — command a team, investigate insurgents, run missions, kill traitors.
"So. Unless you have more questions, start asking to join us."
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Posted: Sat Nov 19, 2022 3:21 pm
There were several things Eion said that caught Adam's attention throughout his explanation of what this agency was. The Humans, first of all. It was not the first time he heard someone refer to people as of they were a foreign species, but something of the way it was spoken so simply and glibly felt off and not even in the absurdist sense he was used to from millennial and gen Z humor. The second thing he noticed was that whatever Emilia and Eion's organization was sounded useful indeed. Cutting corners. More advanced degrees. Positions of power by buying up businesses. Not a game Eion cared for, but one that Adam cared enough for that he leaned a bit further in. The third thing? A second identity. A way to not be himself for a little bit. To remove himself from the presence of being Adam Bal to give himself access to something more primal. Weapons. Something he had never touched, not really, but something that always piqued his curiosity. Energy. Take souls.His curious neutral expression had become a slow smirk by the time Eion had moved to the front of his desk. "Sounds like a lot of responsibility you have." That was in no way a rejection, an edge of curiosity filtering into his tone, measured on purpose. He wanted that. Everything that Eion named, he wanted that. "There's a lot of power at you and your organization's finger tips." Adam leaned back in his chair. "You said take souls. I presume that is literal." His brows lofted as he waited for the answer. "How the ******** do you do that?" A part of him was in disbelief. Another part of him salivated for the concept.
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Codebreaking Conversationalist
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Posted: Sat Nov 19, 2022 3:38 pm
Eion had expected stark disbelief, maybe some insults, a threat to call security. Instead, he got sounds like a lot of responsibility you have. Eion nodded, though he kept his reservations in case this was a wind-up to calling him a lunatic and trying to have him removed. It wouldn't be the first time, he supposed.
Then he nodded to the second statement. He was beginning to think that he, somehow, made the pitch something worth considering.
The next ask, he presumed, was to discredit him. It would be an easy means of doing so; if Eion was talking bullshit, then there would be no way for him to show off ripping someone's starseed out of their chest. Certainly, as Eion, he couldn't do anything close to it. But, if Eion felt in control enough of his own faculties to bring someone into the Negaverse without turning them into a snack, then making a play at starseeding them as Eion should be manageable.
The boy was likely making fun of him, anyway. Might as well give him a laugh before traumatizing his soul for all eternity.
"Can't do it while I'm playing human, but it's like —" Eion launched himself onto the desk, feet braced on the surface with enough momentum to take him to the edge, where he palmed the businessman's sternum with a hearty smack. "Soul's right behind there. Just need enough power to break it out," he explained, tone even.
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Posted: Sat Nov 19, 2022 4:03 pm
It was a salivating ability, one he could have only fantasized about, and also the easiest one to call out as some train of bullshit. Could this man do that? Could Emilia do that? Was that considered the price of this organization, or was it another reward? This had wandered far away from the realm of desperate housewives trying to bring in their own incomes while holding the illusion of being stay-at-home. This had wandered far away from high school graduates simply asking him to buy his non-existent girlfriend some facial cream. Adam's brows rose further when Eion was suddenly on his desk, partially looming over him, partially facing him, hand smacked into his chest and causing him to draw a sharp breath. This interaction had already gone beyond the typical office interaction, and his response of, "I am not usually the one in this position," leaned right into that. That mild smirk never quite left his lips, despite the gasp, despite the flirtatious snark-- After letting out another breath, he glanced mildly upward at Eion. Their height differential meant that even with Eion on the desk, Adam wasn't quite not eye-to-eye with him. "So with the power you--and I presume Emilia--have, you can free the soul out of here." He carefully lifted a hand, moving to grasp Eion's wrist. " In here. It's a physical thing that you can remove from my chest." He couldn't believe this. It sounded like bullshit. What was he playing with? What was Emilia part of? What was Eion part of? He couldn't let this opportunity go. "If you can really do this," Adam smirked, "show me how to."
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Codebreaking Conversationalist
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Posted: Sat Nov 19, 2022 4:15 pm
Oh, that remark was — Eion did not want to be thinking about a boy who hadn't made it into the Negaverse yet, even if he was all but sold. So far as Eion knew, he'd never been a part of the war, never thought about it, never partnered with the White Moon to go trapping Generals, never thought his cushy little bank job would let him protect the public from evildoers who masqueraded as defenders of earth. There was always the possibility, however, and Eion should not settle for anything until the boy was thoroughly and completely brought into the fold.
To his next question, more of a statement, Eion nodded. He couldn't explain it any clearer.
That the boy held onto his wrist complicated matters. His hand was warm. He had a firm grip over Eion's finebone wrist. It'd be easy to imagine all the uses that grip strength would have, how it could handle a weapon, or…
"Fine, but you have to join." Eion kept coal eyes trained on the boy. "Can't do it without the power we provide.
"Best let me go, too, if you value your desk. Real me isn't indoor friendly." Nor was it touch friendly, and Eion didn't want to have to explain to Emmy that her brand-new Lieutenant wouldn't be holding a pen for a week because her boss scorched his hand by transforming in front of him. He supposed she expected more delicacy out of him than that.
And, he supposed, she wouldn't have approved much of him standing on the boy's desk. He didn't seem perturbed by it, but there was little to say either way with the man wearing a perpetually condescending smirk, like he was goading Eion to give up on a scheme.
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Posted: Sat Nov 19, 2022 5:04 pm
Adam noticed that Eion's response was not quite immediate and couldn't quite stop the way his eyes narrowed to match the almost endlessly mocking smirk he wore. As he grasped Eion's wrist, a part of him wanted to play with that power dynamic, perhaps force the power out of him without another word, perhaps flip the situation and-- It cut when Eion said he had to join, first. And that he should probably let go. His grip tightened for a fleeting moment as he pondered telling Eion to ******** right off with that; the desire of power was too strong to counter and he relaxed the grip to let Eion go. "Very well." He said that more like the cat who ate the canary than a man angling for power from someone who clearly carried more. "I join, you show me, and you don't ruin my desk." And if this was all bullshit somehow still, he'd just call the ******** cops. Security, maybe. And block Emilia's number. "I worked hard to get this desk to myself, anyway. Would hate to lose its utility." Had he said that as a purr? Perhaps.
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Codebreaking Conversationalist
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Posted: Sat Nov 19, 2022 5:17 pm
Free to move as he pleased, Eion dismounted from the desk by stepping off of it, back to the boy. "Can imagine the use it gets," he offered as an aside. Couldn't miss the comments, the flirtations — the distractions. But Emmy made it clear that she wanted this boy as her subordinate; he shouldn't ******** around about it, or waste more time in his glamour than needed.
He half-turned, and gossamer thin cracks spiderwebbed up Eion's exposed skin. Then they smoldered, brilliant and soft, before pale skin raveled off of him like so much parchment from an unwound scroll. These shed layers espoused warm crackle and spark, each blackening at the edges, each dissolving into ash when they touched the polished floors. Then that, too, evaporated in the still office air like smoke, and what was left behind on the boy was skin yet paler until it was pitch. His hair had grown bright as a forge at the ends, now more relaxed from their earlier wave. Coal eyes caught ablaze. At the end of it, his clothes had appeared to burn up, and in their wake was a uniform both grandiose and austere, with a fixture of fire as its centerpiece.
"Suggest you sit for this part," he warned and he gestured with a clawed hand at the seat behind the boy. He pressed the knuckles of his free hand to the union between metal and hip.
"With power comes pain." Faustite rounded the desk slowly, speaking as he closed the gap between them. "It'll fade. Think I'll leave the name for your alter ego to Emmy," he finished, a weft of smoke chasing the last word.
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Posted: Sat Nov 19, 2022 5:35 pm
Distractions, certainly. Entertainment? Also certainly. Adam would have dug further into that beyond his, "Plenty," if Eion hadn't moved slightly further away from him and partially turned away. His skin cracked. His skin burned away. It was a sight almost as incredible as the concept of being able to take souls in its own right and lended credence to the concept. If he was interacting with a demon, what else could there be below? He hungered for it. His outfit was of incredible taste too; a part of him wanted to spend his time studying the details and outlines and the fixture that contained the frame... "Impressive," and for once, he might have actually meant it. "That delicate form of yours is hiding quite something." He noted the encouragement to sit and took it without a word. With power came pain. He understood that. "Mm. I'm familiar with the notion. Hard work makes the dream work and all that bullshit." He watched the smoke drift through the air. From the way he spoke, Adam supposed there was something to this that was still similar to an MLM. He was being recruited into a power structure where he'd have uppers. Emilia, then Eion above her. Who was above them? "Fair enough. 'Twas her suggestion that had me accepting a meeting with you." Adam watched this aflame Eion at every step he took. "I'm ready."
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Codebreaking Conversationalist
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Posted: Sat Nov 19, 2022 5:57 pm
Delicate. Like Faustite was something that belonged in a bell jar, something eminently breakable. The boy rolled his eyes.
"Saw it on your door," Faustite stated, with the implication that he knew. While he wasn't one to know people in a conversational sense, he was trained to read people in a tactical sense — see weaknesses, strengths. This one was no stranger to whiling himself away for an advantage. Posted as much outside his door, as if it was some veiled challenge to his coworkers.
From nowhere he summoned something like a corset — a cincher, which he then wrapped about his metal waist and fastened in seconds. By doing so, he banked down his own heat significantly. No longer would it burn to simply come in contact with him, and Faustite needed to be sure that this one would survive the encounter mostly unscathed.
Faustite leaned over the boy, braced his palm against the back of the chair. "Breathe out," he instructed. His free hand slipped into the boy's chest in the seconds thereafter and seized the prism within.
Ah — there it was. That familiar, insistent hunger. That ache for just one more. That promise that Emmy would find another, better recruit, and they could forget this one, and Faustite would feel a little fuller for it, if only for a while. That guarantee for feeling good, for taking the edge off of all the worries that chewed away the corners of his mind and all the bad memories he swallowed behind a tight-lipped expression. All he had to do was pull. All he had to do —
The burning boy summoned rivulets of dark that wove over his forearm and slipped beyond the impossible end of Adam's sternum. They coiled about the starseed in Faustite's grasp, suffused it with a power that did not brook protest.
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