"Oh, there's just something about this job. It's like I always say, I might get fewer deaths than some, but virtually all of them are traumatized, in complete denial or just plain obstinate. Keeps me on my toes, it does, which can only be a good thing. Never a dull moment during work hours."
"But that's work talk, of course, and while I would love to regale you with the tale of the intrepid wizard in the tomb of horrors, I am somewhat afraid I may bore your rather charming lady friend. Would you care to introduce us, perhaps?"
Keep up that sense of decorum that only a man with the filthiest job in the universe could possess.
+1
The Whaler's eyebrows arch in amusement.
'Ah, so be it,' he says, gesturing for his companion.
'This is Sabat. She only speaks when rendering judgement, and that may not be a voice we wish to hear. Oh, but watch out - she's quite two-faced.'The woman gives the bigger Guide a look that could not be mistaken for anything but cringing and disappointment. The Whaler grins and continues;
'That is - she takes good souls to Heaven in an aspect of bliss. The sinful in an aspect of... terror. Two faces and forms for two fates - as if their afterlives weren't bad enough.'Sabat bows her head in acknowledgement, and then makes a slight curtsy for you. After a moment, her eyes turn pointedly towards the pyramid. You voice your ignorance about the whole situation, and the Whaler is eager to explain.
'It's the damnest thing - The Angel has been summoned before the council. The Angel. They've told the rest of us little, as usual, but light of the earth, this whole thing makes my skin crawl,' he explains, uneasy. The Whaler shakes his head.
'Ah, and yes... we've been ordered to report anything unusual we might see. Nice of them to let us be the judge of what's unusual - who can tell with mortals!'The Whaler's anxiety is, perhaps, not misplaced. There is only one Angel among the Guides - Azrael, the Angel of Death. Guides came from most pantheons when the Bureaucracy was formed, but from Heaven came only one, and one of the most powerful of their kind. Azrael is never seen here; he craves no company or commands - like many of the old and powerful, he is more an ally of the Bureaucracy than its member.
'The gates have been shut for a long time,' the other Guide says, after a moment's silence. He shrugs.
'In any case - are you here to see the wares? Sabat here likes the knicknacks the Malefer offers. She was looking for - the egg of a void dragon, was it? I can't fathom what use that'd be to anyone, but suit yourself...'Sabat nods, rolling her eyes. Her expression conveys as much scorn, pride and determination as a dozen words would.
>?
Author
Topic: Psychopompos (Read 17119 times)