D.E.M.O.N.S: Getting Summoned Weekly isn't so Bad

"What did you actually see Kat?" asked Sue, "I didn't see anything, and I doubt Kamiko really has the memory to go over everything properly…"

Kat nodded and explained everything she saw, focusing on the points of interest such as the excessive number of tunnels, the ten Guard Rats, the Summoner and the Crystal Rat. "…and that's everything I've gotten so far. I'm not sure if there's more details I'm missing, but I can only long over the same memory so many times before it gets hard to see the details. It's not that they vanish… it's more like my mind is trying to say I've seen it all even when I haven't"

Kamiko bit her lip and tried to consider the information Kat had provided them. Before too long she started pacing from one side of the tunnel to the other, keeping her tail in close so that it didn't fly into the wall every time she turned around.

Sue for her part looked rather concerned. The odds didn't seem to be stacked in there favour, and she did not want to be separated from Kat and Kamiko by a sea of rats. Even if she was mostly safe, the patrol rats could still come after her, and she wasn't sure they could beat everything anyway. "Seems we're trapped between a Stone and a Crystal Rat" said Sue

"That's not a bad idea actually…" said Kamiko

Sue raised a confused eyebrow and nodded, "I mean… yes… yes it is a valid idea…" was the most Sue managed to say without being caught lying. She didn't really understand where Kamiko was going with things, so she couldn't say more.

Kamiko noticed her confusion though, and decided to shed light on the situation, "Stone, Sue, Stone. We can wait for him to arrive before tackling this. He might just be able to take out the Summoner and we can be done with this, but if not he can at least help. I think waiting for him is the best idea."

Sue's eyes widened in understanding before she nodded rapidly. "That sounds like a much better idea then I was thinking of. Stone should be able to help us a whole bunch. He's much stronger then we are, and even if he makes us deal with it for whatever reason I know he won't let us get too hurt…" Sue gave a glance towards Kat, "well, me and Kamiko won't get too hurt. I don't know how you count Kat. Does the damage you take still hurt?"

Kat nodded, "Yeah my sense of pain works fine… probably. I've taken to ignoring it quite a lot honestly. Once you've stood up after faceplanting on a gravel path at a high speed and having it shred your throat and part of your lungs before you cough up the stones dealing more internal damage as they go, nothing really feels that bad… until I got stabbed through the heart. TWICE!"

"Shit Kat… I didn't realise you're so hardcore… or you're just a masochist. Actually, that second one makes more sense…" said Sue with a thousand yard stare.

Due to the wonders of demonic translation, Kat now knew what a masochist was. *That doesn't describe me well at all…* "But I don't enjoy pain, I find it troublesome more than anything else. I just… don't let it bother me. I dunno. I think there's a point where I can just ignore it? Maybe my aura helps,"

"Well maybe it does, but you're definitely missing out if you're not a masochist. I've seen things Kat. Horrible yet wonderful things for masochists. Makes me wish I was one sometimes, but… then I think about it a bit more and realise I've been spending too much time with my crazy aunt" said Sue

Kamiko smiled, and interrupted Sue's tangent, "So, is there anything else we want to cover before Stone gets here? I don't mind messing around until he does, because I really don't like the fight we're getting into here so I'm happy to wait. Just… let's get our business done first."

*Hmm. Is there anything else to point out? Maybe an order of attack? Or perhaps what we're asking from Stone? If he can just snipe the Summoner we might be done with this. Or if he can take out all the little ones? I think the Guards are certainly doable. I'm just not sure how safe it is for the other two...* "Well, from what I can see, we need Stone most of all for the Crystal Rat, and maybe the patrols. They're the two biggest threats assuming the Summoner isn't combat capable"

Sue chimed in with, "Yeah getting the little ones out of the way would be really nice. They aren't a threat in and of themselves, but they'd make it really hard for my shield to actually do its job. This big crystal rat also sounds pretty scary so I think Kat has the right of it here. The only other thing I'd say is, maybe take out a few Guards as well. They might be stronger then the ones we've fought so far and five each is still a lot, especially if the Summoner helps at all."

Kamiko nodded in Sue's direction, "I think she has the right of it. There is a lot of scary stuff in that room, and while we were confident after the Giant Rat fight… I'm not sure how much we really believed we could do this ourselves. Also, I know I certainly didn't expect a bigger, likely tougher rat at the end. It's just not how swarm rats work."

Sue sighed, "Yeah well it's pretty clear that someone got corrupted somehow. No idea how they ended up at the bottom of the mind but this is clearly the work of someone who's been corrupted."

"Is there any way to save them?" asked Kat knowing full well they'd had this conversation earlier when it came up.

Sue just gave Kat a flat 'You serious?' look but Kamiko smiled at her friend for even worrying about it. Still, it was a smile tinged with some sadness, for the answer was "No Kat. There is truly nothing to be done. Never has it been prevented. A Memphis is the closest thing we've found to a way of avoiding being corruption, and they just cheat a bunch,"

"What's a Memphis?" asked Kat

"Yeah what's a Memphis?" asked Sue

"They're a… they're like a winged kitten I suppose? The main thing that makes them interesting is that they have an organ inside them that stores demonic energy. They can't use it, and it acts more like a buffer, but if they're paired up with a demon, they can siphon some of that demon's cast off demonic energy and feed it back to them when they need it.

"They are very hard to corrupt because that organ is quite efficient. They'll get sick as more resources are devoted to preventing corruption long before they are ever at risk of being corrupted so it's easy to take care of them, but even they aren't completely immune to its corrupting effects, and they still can't really USE it. They can just transfer it to someone or some of the older, more intelligent ones can put it into enchanted objects"

"Do they stay kittens forever?" asked Sue with big eyes "Because that sounds adorable and now I think I want one…"

Kamiko turned a soft glare towards Sue. "They're pretty rare, and yes they do stay kittens forever. They don't really get any bigger. Though… I think they might be able to learn transformation magic if they have affinity for it so on a very technical level they aren't totally trapped as kittens but normal they do.

"Also, they can live for a long time, especially when paired with a demon. If they strengthen themselves a bit they can be a companion that will follow you forever. They have the potential to be immortal, or at least, unable to die from old age."

"Boo, that's a shame. They sound really cute, and like one of the few animals you can safely have in the Hub. The demonic energy in some areas gets pretty thick because of how many demons have hung around for ages" cooed Sue.

Kamiko nodded, "Yeah… the Hub isn't exactly a safe place for species that aren't demons or a Memphis. Still, we've at least got artifacts to prevent demonic energy from corrupting people if they come here. Not sure how costly they are though,"

*Maybe I should look into that. It would be nice to introduce Kamiko to everyone else… though it might be best just to bring Kamiko to Earth somehow. That might be safer for everyone… and her family is a bit much. Maybe if there's a good reason we can all meet up though. Do demons have Christmas or an equivalent? I guess I have something to think about while we all wait for Stone. Hopefully he comes soon. It feels late, but time is a hard concept to grasp when you're underground.*