Busking at the Fountain

[ginger_firebird]

Visitors to the fountain might see a somewhat unusual sight this day. Mantis is having a glorious sit next to the mist coming off of the water and has a leash wrapped around his wrist. On the other end of the leash is a catwing in a harness. It’s a happy little calico flapping his wings and batting at the water as Mantis watches. There’s a basket with long straps sitting by Mantis’ feet and from it he pulls out a bottle of water to drink from. The weather has been simply too hot for his liking, but Yaga needs his exercise.

Mantis sighs and wipes at the sweat pooling at the back of his neck. He’s dressed in the lightest cotton tank he could find and the most breathable linen pants, and still he’s overheating marvelously. The swimming heat does give him an idea, though, and he looks around him briefly before nodding. There were people in the Nexus who knew when their minds were being read. Surface thoughts that were easy enough to get through, but he’s also met those who have a profound level of influence and control.

So why not see where they are? One psychic to another. Mantis begins to hum quietly to himself, but sensitive ears and minds might be able to hear his hymn. It’s a mournful little melody born out of the remnants of childhood memories and he’s used it to amplify his powers for years. It was always meant to sink deep into a part of the brain that was easier to read, easier to control, but he’s not looking to make a puppet or even mess around all that much.

A question echoes and repeats along the notes of the music as it cycles back and forth along the vicinity around the fountain and perhaps even further: “Can you hear me? Do you know where I am? How alone are we in a place like this?”

Comments

[devilsphoenix]

Phenex is always listening, to everything. The sounds of the world; physical and beyond, are beautiful. The music doesn't fall on deaf ears but Phenex is resistant to calls of this nature. However, the angel listens until the song repeats.

A voice comes back to Mantis; high, ethereal and the language one unknown to humans, or most of them anyway. The haunting and sorrow filled dialect of Enochian used by the fallen angels. There are no words clear in the string of sounds per say but feelings. Unity, power, a sense of guardianship that come like their own siren call on the air to Mantis' ears and his alone. Such is the nature of contact with this angel. Some are lured by the voice, others hypnotized. Someone with a similar power might experience both or neither. The final notes are definitely a tug to come to the voice and escape loneliness.

[ginger_firebird]

He sits up immediately upon hearing the odd language. She speaks to him, but he only gets emotion and intent, not a semblance of actual words. It's a powerful kind of telepathy, something that might even go above what he can do on his own. The strength behind it has him scooping Yaga into his basket before he even realizes he's being overwhelmed by the thought. It sparks up an old fear in him, one he hadn't felt since he was a boy. Mantis shivers and tries to push that fear away. There was no malice in her words. None that he could sense.

"Who are you?" He speaks the words as much as he thinks them back at her.

[devilsphoenix]

Phenex is glad to hear a response because they are curious about someone with this much strength.

"Someone who is always listening." The voice comes quiet and in Mantis' own language this time bu there's still just a peaceful, calm curiosity.

A long pause happens while Phenex works on pinpointing the exact place this person is standing. After all, this is close enough to a prayer that an angel can find it but different enough that it isn't quite instinctual. When the silence does break it is with the sound of feathers nearby and the smell of sulfur.

The angel that appears is tall, thin, with white hair, eyes and skin. The wings though are a riot of changing colors, that eventually people learn reflect the angel's mood. Phenex is wearing a deep purple outfit that could be a tailored robe or loose fitting dress. Gender cues are a mix so equivalent it's hard to say if this is a masculine or feminine presence. Though in general the whole presences is serene and passive.

"I am Phenex, one of many who are always listening." Even the voice seems absent of the ability to determine if this is a male or female.

[ginger_firebird]

Mantis didn't completely brag when called himself the world's 'greatest practitioner' of telepathy and psychokinesis. What little part of the world he had, he ruled.

He shrinks at the smell of sulfur. It's never been a particularly pleasant thing, but it's sharp and fresh when this...person shows up. He's reminded of Belial, but the colors are almost in the opposite direction. It's bright. Overpowering, almost. There's a word for the blindingly bright like those, but he can't bring it to the front of his mind while processing Phenex's appearance.

"I am Psycho Mantis. I was born able to listen." Definitely an angel. Yaga bristles his fur at the angel and moves closer to Mantis.

[devilsphoenix]

Phenex's wings shift to a pale blue mixed with lilac and pale purples of calm. They don't move, aware of the discomfort for both the person and their familiar.

"All angels listen but not all of them hear." Phenex speaks softly. "I'm Phenex."

[ginger_firebird]

It's an extremely calming mix of powers, but Yaga does the speaking for him and hides under his arm a little. He pokes his head out just enough to watch the colors shift on this strange new face. Not that the face is really changing colors, but it's an eerie image. Mantis can feel how hard the catwing is pressed against him.

"My name is Psycho Mantis." But if they really are an angel... "Are you familiar with Belial?"

[devilsphoenix]

"I am." The angel confirms as they watch the person before them. "Belial is the advisor to our king. I've known him since I was created."

[ginger_firebird]

"I've spoken with him here. He mentioned there were other angels, but you're the first one I've seen besides him." He doesn't know where he wants to really look, and settles somewhere on one of the angel's shoulders. "From what I remember, he seems like the kind of...individual who likes to talk."

[devilsphoenix]

"We keep to our villa more often than most inhabitants I think, and significant time in our own realm despite living here." Phenex informs Mantis and then nods to his commentary on Belial.

"My brother is usually stoic and quiet but he has many senses beyond others since losing his sight. It draws him to certain people who interest him."

[ginger_firebird]

"Angels run on their own sense of socialization and time." He shrugs. "The way Belial talked, it sounded like he preferred to be alone as opposed to spending time around others. Now I'm wondering what drew his eyes my way. Maybe my powers give off their own energy and he could sense that."

[devilsphoenix]

"We are as varied as humans in personality." Phenex considers the description and wonders about the other angel's goal. "He's the king's advisor. Most will eventually meet the King or Belial. While it isn't our place to rule here we do monitor who arrives for curiosity and the occasional being that could prove dangerous."

[ginger_firebird]

"That might be it, then. I caused no small amount of trouble when I was alive. Maybe it's become something that permeates my soul." He relaxes a little. Not by much, but enough he starts petting Yaga for a bit more comfort. "Or maybe he's caught up on meeting new people."

[devilsphoenix]

"Or both?" Phenex adds. "It is nothing to be too worried about. You will find the angels are typically straight forward about thier mindset and intentions. Honesty is upheld by those of us who can."

[ginger_firebird]

He laughs a little. "Belial is pretty easy to read. I can't read his thoughts at all, but between him and the bird, you can tell what's on his mind." Maybe if he spends more time around this new angel, he might be able to read their expressions and body language too.

[devilsphoenix]

"I'm not sure I would call it easy to read so much as we still hold true to the oaths of our creation. Among them was the oath of truth." Phenex is softer than the other angels, quieter by nature. Their wings and the colors, how they move and change, is the best way to read this angel. Not the easiest pattern to learn but the most accurate.

"I don't often find humans with minds as strong as yours. Were you trained or is it instinctual?"

[ginger_firebird]

It's all subtle things in body language and color, but it all follows simple rules. He knows he'll get used to Phenex as much as Belial and perhaps others that he meets in time. "Angels are more constant than people."

He sits up slightly at the question. Yaga pokes his head out a little more from his hiding spot and looks between Mantis and the angel. "I was born with my powers, but I was taught to use them more effectively."

[devilsphoenix]

"Yes. Some are rigid, even by our standards. It is a common trait among celestials, but not all of them are so rigid either."

It was a hard thing to describe to a mortal. The nature of Angelic existence wasn't easy to put in any words, let alone one that would be truly meaningful to a human.

"Then we share something in common." Phenex adds. "We were created with many abilities that we have expanded since we were expelled from the more inflexible bounds of heaven."

[ginger_firebird]

"I've been told Lucifer himself is somewhere here in the Nexus. He never seemed like a particularly bad person to me, even as a child."

He's curious about how they describe how angelic powers work. "I have a few that I can use, but there are some that are completely beyond my scope of abilities. I could read just about any mind in the world, but I have never been able to channel the dead."

[devilsphoenix]

"He is our king." Phenex confirms. "Lucifer most often reflects what he receives from others.

"Are you talking about necromancy?" The angel asks curiously. It wouldn't be the first human with abilities to communicate with the dead.

[ginger_firebird]

"I had a king, of a sort. Not so much a royal as a commanding officer."

He laughs a little and shakes his head. "No. The Sorrow could hear the dead and channel their spirits to learn about how the tide of battle had gone. Now that he's dead, he's stronger than I am. Perfectly polite, but I'm still a trouble-maker in his mind."

[devilsphoenix]

"Lucifer serves as both."

Phrnex listens to the description of this person. "There are angels that can predict the tides of war." Their smile brightens. "Are you a troublemaker?"

[ginger_firebird]

He shrugs, but that's more of an answer than anything. "I don't have the drive to be the way I did while alive, but I don't know how not to be a troublemaker. All my life and careers were about making others miserable somehow."

[devilsphoenix]

Phenex laughs quietly, covering their mouth with a hand to stifle the giggles.

"I think you have something in common with our king." They get more serious. "He once would have delighted in the misery of others but he has grown and matured past that. I don't think he will ever stop being a troublemaker though."

[ginger_firebird]

"See? Even the bringer of light can't keep it up forever, so how can I possibly maintain that kind of momentum?" He smirks to himself. "You learn to teach it to others so they can do it for you. Vicarious living isn't the most noble of ways to live, but it's an improvement over having to do it yourself."

[devilsphoenix]

"I think you misunderstand. Lucifer is still a troublemaker he's only stopped doing it for revenge and I don't think he would teach anyone else to practice the path he used to walk." Phenex smirks. "If you are lucky enough to become his friend you'll know what I mean."