Owner Pose
Zatanna Zatara Everyone was sleeping in. Taliesin, the butler, was the first to wake. The smell of freshly ground coffee drifted through the house, mixing with an undercurrent of sulphur and the grey smell that only void magic produces.

After checking the perimeter icons (perimeter alarms in modern parlance), Taliesin knocked softly on Zatanna's door, "Ms. Zatanna, coffee is ready in the dining room."
Angelo Tampambulos     And.. no sooner is Zatanna wakened for coffee than her cellphone chirps to announce a text message. It is from Angelo. It reads simply: I THINK IAM OUT FRONT. NOT SURE. CAN I COME IN?

    Now, why? Simple... the demonic invasion last night caused a spike on the Extradimensional Anomaly-o-meter ARMOR uses. And since the location was so close to the last one Angelo investigated, he volunteered.

    He's just pulled his car over and parked before sending that text and getting out.
Zatanna Zatara A slender arm snakes out from under the covers and pats the nightstand, searching for the chirping phone. A tousled raven-haired head follows.

"Thank you, Taliesin," she calls, reading the message.

In answer: an ornate iron gate set into an ivy-covered stone wall shimmers into existence before Angelo.

She texts: <Coffee? Breakfast?">
Angelo Tampambulos     Smirking as the gate appears, Angelo sends back. COFFEE IS ALWAYS GOOD.

    And that sent, he puts his phone away and strides towards the gate. He pauses before reaching for it. Just in case there's some sort of secret handshake passcode thingamagoober needed. But in a moment, he just opens the gate and strides inside.

    He almost wishes he was wearing some overcoat and fedora so he could act like some sort of Noir detective. Either way, he has a smirk on his face as he knocks on the front door.
Zatanna Zatara At the second knock the door opens and the butler, impeccably dressed in suit and tie, wishes him good morning and ushers him to the dining hall. The lady of the house arrives not too long afterwards showered and magically dressed in casual clothing fit for inspecting a house after a demonic invasion - black jeans, a beloved sweater that has seen better days and red chucks.

"Hello, Angelo. What brings you out this way?" she says, smiling in the doorway. "Hmmm. The coffee smells divine. Please help yourself, Angelo" is lanced to her guest as she goes to the buffet set with kedgeree, croissants, smoked salmon, cream cheese, scrambled eggs, sausages and bagels. She loads her plate with a small selection of everything before seating herself at the long table set for two.
Angelo Tampambulos     Giving the butler a warm smile and a nod, Angelo goes where he is directed. "Thank you so much." he says to the man before he approaches the coffee. When Zatanna arrives, he pours a cup and turns to regard her. "Cream? Sugar?" he asks. Yes, he was pouring the cup for her before pouring one for himself.

    But then he gets himself some basic items to eat and he replies, "I imagine you had a rather... eventful evening last night. We picked up an anomaly in the area late last night... and I was sent to investigate... again."
Zatanna Zatara "Black with soy milk, please, real cream is in the cow creamer," she points to a very silly cow in black and white in sharp contrast to the fine china surrounding it.

"Thank you." she says brightly. The brightness fades at his next words, "Did you, now? Anomaly? Since when do demonic invasions appear on sensors?"
Angelo Tampambulos     "Well, it's not the invasion we detected.." begins Angelo as he pours a dallop of soy milk into a cup of coffee for Zatanna. He holds the cup out and smiles. Then his smile wavers. "Wait, demonic invasion?" he asks. "We detected an anomaly of an extradimensional origin. Do demons come from alternate planes of existence?" he asks as he moo-cows up his own coffee.
Zatanna Zatara Zatanna sets her coffee cup down with a click, regarding him with an unreadable look as she decides what he should know. "Yes, or rather, something like that. Sans pitchforks."

After spreading a napkin in her lap, she picks up a fork and takes a bite of her food. A few bites later, "I wonder what you picked up? Either it was me shooing thngs into another dimension or a colleague of mine's work."
Angelo Tampambulos     "Well, our sensors aren't very... specific or detailed. We picked up... literally, just the presence of an anomaly. Literally, that is all we got. That, and a location."

    Angelo sips his own coffee and lifts his brows. "This is an exquisite brew." And he tilts is head to one side, "Turkish?" he asks before he shakes his head, "So, since I had been here before, I volunteered to look into it. So, is there anything I can help with at this point? Or am I just like... too late?"
Zatanna Zatara "Actually, we have been drinking Ethiopian recently, that and Tanzanian, Arusha mountain coffee. Special arrangements with the plantations though family. Glad you like it," she says affably, covering her dislike of being monitored.

"Is that something you are doing across the country or especially here, by the way?"
Angelo Tampambulos     "Well, it is our task to monitor dimensional snomalies, if only to be aware so that we can defend others." begins Angelo. "I mean, I joined up with them to help people... and I've had some experience with anomalies in this region. So I have pretty much been given this ... as a police officer might say... beat."

    "If you wish, you could reach out to me in case of further incursions. I might be able to assist to one degree or another. May I ask.." Angelo says between sips. "what sort of beings attacked you?"
Zatanna Zatara The croissant on her plate needs a lot of attention as she carefully picks it apart. "You have to report to you superiors, don't you? I'll be frank with you. I don't want government agencies in my business." She studies the man's handsome profile a moment before adding, "Please, don't take that personally."
Angelo Tampambulos     "Well, in all honesty, I have lived a long life before this government existed, and I believe that I will be alive long after they cease to exist. What I mean to say is that I am willing and able to trust my own judgement over that of some government agency. So... if I can help as a private person, then I will. I would rather be of help than to be in the way."
Zatanna Zatara The remnants of the croissant disappear one by one between sips of coffee as she considers his words.

"Right now, detecting anomalies is like reporting earthquakes. Always after the fact. I think you detected my colleague, Atrun-Rai's arrival. My impression is that it is void magic that sets off your instruments. I have a student that uses it naturally. Mine in some ways, counters it. Think of it like two like poles on a magnet."
Angelo Tampambulos     Inclining his head, Angelo listens silently for a long moment. Afterwards, he thinks for a few seconds. Sipping his coffee, he buys another couple of seconds before replying. "Your student attacked your manor? That sounds.... off. I was not asking about what may have tripped the sensors. You mentioned a demonic invasion. That is what I was hoping you might elaborate about."
Zatanna Zatara It's not as though he doesn't know about the gods and goddesses or that he's not intimately aware of their foibles. Head tilted to the side, she nods, having come to a decision. "Eris. She has a grudge. I thought I had gotten out of her way or at least, she had better fish to fry. But, apparently not. If the forces of entropy and discord be properly called demons then that is what was sent to visit last night."
Angelo Tampambulos     The mention of Eris makes Angelo's mouth twitch. It's obvious that name struck a chord with him. "I swear. I think that one entity with delusions of grandeur might just be an old Titan in disguise. Centuries ago, I worked up a thought that she might have been behind every major conflict in the history of the Olympians. I think she tempted Zeus into straying from his wife that first time, and then whispered into Hera's ear to make her aware of it."

    He sets his coffee down and stands up, agitated. "I think she may have incited Paris to woo Helen away from her husband and thus began the Trojan War. People blame Ares for bloody wars and I think that he simply embodies them. He does not -cause- them. Eris does... it's like a bloody tag team with those two."
Zatanna Zatara "I need more coffee to talk about this. That explains so much. I've had a run-in with her once. She's a bit of a succubus, isn't she?" Memories of Eris' attempt at taking her powers from her darken her eyes and silence her. Coming to herself, she says with a forced smile which fades.

Lips drawn into a flat frown, "Know her then, do you? I think she'll return. I know, she will but I don't know how you can help."
Angelo Tampambulos     "You might say that." mutters Angelo. "More like I have felt her presence, and seen evidence of her handiwork in things. I went overboard a few times... out of control with grief and rage. When I fought Hector... I felt like I was a passenger in my own mind... a prisoner in my own body. Like I was seeing red in a rage that could not be controlled...." he adds, a fist clenching up.

    "I believe that she drives men to rage beyond their control and that she feeds on the conflict and strife that comes out of such emotions."

    Shaking his head, he adds, "I will not blame her for the evils and foibles of man. But she takes advantage, and..... " A pause, and he takes a long deep breath, "Yes. I know her." he clarifies.
Zatanna Zatara One of things that had impressed Zatanna the most about Achilles was his balance. A hard won balance from all appearances, "I think that other people may have descended into madness at the things you have seen or retreated into indifference or bitterness. She is a thief in my experience. And will stop at nothing. Mistress of illusions, too. She nearly got past my guard."
Angelo Tampambulos     "I must admit.. I believe that there was a time when I -did- give in to madness. It has been far too many years, and I had plenty of time to recover and regain the balance that I prided myself on in earlier years. But... loss and grief can break any man.. or woman for that matter." Yeah, not going to talk about Patrocles again just yet.

    "The problem is, anyone who feels hostility can be an agent of hers. Anyone who has the tiniest crack in their emotional armor could unwittingly allow her influence in and give her power. That is the true danger. I believe that she pre-dated the gods.. and perhaps even the Titans, for event he Titans had conflict and strife..... perhaps she is a pure embodiment perceived as a divine being. She might even believe herself to be Olympian but... my worry is that she is much more." he adds with a sigh as he sits back down.
Zatanna Zatara A goddess older than even Zeus or even the Titans. Concentrating on Angelo, Zatanna abstractedly thanks the butler who swoops in to clear her plate and top up her coffee with professional distance, knowing her to be attentive to small things most of the time. "Now, that is frightening. That puts her into a class of beings that not many alive could face. Not even the Gods could withstand her power. She sounds like a feminine version of the Satan."
Angelo Tampambulos     Shaking his head, Angelo smirks, "Even Satan, according to the lore of the true believers who somehow think that their magical story is the only one that can be true... anyhow, they claim their Satan is an angel who fell from grace. Though I believe the earliest stories did not paint him as a villain. Merely as someone who was being punished in much the same way Prometheus was punished... eternal torment for daring to act against their superiors." he says, on something of a verbal tear.

    He starts pacing and shrugs, "I cannot say for sure if Eris -is- an embodiment, or merely a goddess whose purview includes strife and conflict. I -do- know that many different peoples had many different gods and goddesses that were defined in similar ways. Is it possible that the energy that these gods embodied was always there, and the belief of the people formed it into ways they thought it should appear? Yet the power itself is timeless and eternal?"
Zatanna Zatara "Well put. Embodiments are extremely powerful." She nods, pleased. "She hasn't managed to completely disrupt my life. You are here, helping me, quite unexpectedly, understand just what I may be facing."
Angelo Tampambulos     A smirk tugs at his face, like the shadow of a bird racing over a field. It's there, and then it's gone. "Do you know how rare it is for me to encounter something I am -completely- inexperienced with?"

    He sits back down and adds, "I have always had a weakness when it comes to conflict. It reaches me, and I tend to respond in kind. It's... are you aware of the prophecy that was given about my mother?"

    He takes a breath and shrugs, "I will not bore you with the overly wordy version in its native tongue. Sufficed to say it said that her son would not only be greater than his father... but that he would be the greatest warrior of his age." A pause and he shrugs, "It is difficult to remain modest when I have proven time and again that I am -willing- to kill in combat. That war is what I was born for. I try to not let that define who I will always be, but it does define who I have been many times over. So... as such, I am not the person to oppose Eris. I will likely empower her out of pure habit."
Zatanna Zatara "Then are you saying that you would be less help and more an hindrance if she is involved?" She blinks and retreats into her thoughts, remembering the night before.

"You have never struck me as someone who is quick to anger. But you seem to be saying that war is a deeply engrained habit that she would unlock."
Angelo Tampambulos     "It's.. not that I may be quick to anger or not. It's that conflict doesn't always come from anger. But it is still conflict. Emotions and strife aren't -always- linked. But for most people they are. Road rage, crimes of passion and the like." admits Angelo.

    "If you had to categorize me, I might fit into the section labelled serial soldiers. I have a tendency to approach situations where they -may- be conflict, and try to end that conflict as permanently as I can. So, while I keep my cool... I am still prone to violence. Just calmly."
Zatanna Zatara "So she would use you as fuel even if you were ending the very thing she likes to bring into the world - strife and conflict. Then, I won't call on you. Because, she announced herself last night. It was only a cat's paw visit. Worse is yet to come, followed by the worst if my instincts are right." She remembers her coffee and takes a sip.

"How would you like to visit the grounds, Angelo? I am going to walk the perimeter here and check on the wards."
Angelo Tampambulos     And then Angelo shakes his head, "I know it sounds like I'm telling you to find the superhero named Captain Kumbaya or whatever... what if Ghandi wore spandex?" he adds with a smirk.

    "But.. I think that if Eris is involved and interested in you, then the -real- solution is to hold on, lie low and hope that her interest moves on to someone else. I hate it... because that just damns someone else to be her target."

    He sighs and shakes his head, "So tell me, if she -is- directly interested in you.. do you know why? What is it about you that would pull her out of her shadowy existence and into the light?"

    And then he nods, "Yes, let's change the subject and take a walk."
Zatanna Zatara "Have you got good shoes on for walking? I want to know next time she is in town so I'm adding to the wards. It takes a personal touch."

She rises from her place. "I'm ready if you are."
Angelo Tampambulos     "When I was a young man, I marched to war barefoot. I think I can handle any terrain in any footwear." offers Angelo.

    "And I am honored that you would invite me to walk the grounds with you. Lead on my lady." he says as he stands.