Owner	Pose
Jonathan Sims	In preparation for the next mission into the Astral Plane, Jon's been doing some thinking, and he contacted Lucy Blaze to meet him at Coffee of DOOM (in part because he hasn't been there in months). He's dressed down for a coffee place that has waiters in button-down shirts, in a rust-colored turtleneck and black jeans and sneakers, wearing his 'normal' looking prosthetic and therefore not really standing out.     He hasn't ordered yet, because that would be rude, but he's at least decided on what he's drinking as he waits for the alien woman to arrive. Not that she seems very alien. Why has he only met /one/ alien that didn't look like a human? Is this evidence of a lack of creativity on the part of the creators of the universe or just happenstance? These are the sorts of things he ponders as he waits.
Lucy Blaze	Lucy arrives on time, and has very clearly made no attempt to 'dress up' for the coffee place. Black top, black jeans, black boots, short red leather jacket. She enters the shop with a quick scan around the interior even as she heads towards where Jon is waiting. "Mr. Sims. Sorry to keep you waiting." She dips a nod towards him before turning to look over the menu. "Mmm, they probably don't grind fresh for each cup, right?" She glances back to him like he might know the answer. She could tell him that her appearance has more to do with genetic sculpting than anything else, given the Kherans' tendency to try and breed with any species that's compatible. If he asks.
Jonathan Sims	"I don't... /think/ so? Seems rather uneconomical, you know? The coffee's good, though." Jon smiles politely as she joins him, and adds, "I wasn't waiting terribly long, no worries. I have this tendency to run late so I try to get places early so I'll be on time. Sometimes it backfires. Or, I suppose, works out overly well?" He shrugs.     "How have you been finding working with us, by the way? I know the last bit was a little less... action-oriented, but I think we did well building the illusion. I'm looking forward to seeing how it plays out."
Lucy Blaze	"Mm, probably tea then." She looks back to the menu briefly, then back to Jon. "I've gotten picky in my old age. Caffeine does nothing for me, so to get coffee or tea is strictly for the sense experience. Mass-produced coffee holds little appeal anymore, so I tend to go for teas, since that at least is usually brewed fresh." The short bit of explanation given, Lucy gives a nod and offers, "I've gotten so used to be wherever I want as soon as I want that I suppose I've gotten rather spoiled on transportation. I do enjoy a nice car or place ride when I don't have a schedule to keep, though." Both brows go up as Lucy looks at him with faint surprise, "Not every confrontation is going to be a fight, Mr. Sims. Sometimes you have to play the long game to gain an advantage." She pauses, then adds, "I just hope the idea works. The scenario is a good one, human capacity for love and affection is one of the strongest motivators that exist. If he's capable of being swayed, that should do the trick."
Jonathan Sims	"It's not even about transportation, per se. It's more my own difficulty with... time. As a concept. I have a tendency to either hyperfocus and lose track of time or be too impatient to let things develop properly." Jon grins. "My husband banned me from making tea for /years/ until I promised to wait for the water to boil before I poured it over the strainer. If I could make portals places, I'd just wind up getting caught up in something telling myself 'I've plenty of time' if I wasn't careful. So, I aim for 'early.'"     He looks around to waves down a waiter, and then says, "Ahh... please, call me Jon? 'Mr. Sims' is rather strange. But that's rather what I called to talk to you about... Michael's need for connection. Or rather, the... results of that." He makes a face. "I think you were there when we mentioned the whole... gem business?"
Lucy Blaze	"Fallen into that trap a few times over the millenia. When time stretches out for so long, it can be difficult to have the urgency that humans do. It can be difficult to keep up with everything they want to cram into a 24 hour period..." Lucy gives it a few moment's consideration before looking back to Jon, "I've learned to set timers and reminders on my phone. That way I can make sure I'm on time without having to wonder if I'm too late or too early. But I acknowledge that it's not for everyone. I wish you luck with your own scheduling." She offers a faint smile and nods, "I've lost weeks that passed like days or hours. So I can definitely sympathize." Nodding, Lucy offers, "Jon, then. Zannah, if we're going to be informal." She lifts a brow, but then gives a nod to his question, "Yes, about his controlling of you through the gem that you picked up, unaware of what it was. I remember."
Jonathan Sims	The waiter arrives then and Jon orders, and waits for Lucy to do the same and the waiter to leave before he continues. "Cael and I linked our dreams so he can't get at me that way, but I had thought..." He sighs. "Well, admittedly, this isn't the first time in my life that I've been... susceptible? I have a... history with that sort of thing. Mind control, gaslighting, what-have-you."     He frowns down at the table for a moment, then says, "I cannot depend solely on Cael, and the initial problem, my... weakness to that initial temptation, it's going to be there even if Michael is utterly gone. You had mentioned meditative techiques, and I thought... well, really, I thought, getting better control over myself, better focus, might be a good idea. Even if you've nothing /specifically/ to keep an archangel out of my head... getting a better handle on my mind and focus would only be a good thing."
Lucy Blaze	Giving her order, Lucy turns away from the waiter to look back to Jon and gives a nod, "Most people, even those versed in magic, aren't necessarily versed in rebuffing mental intrusion. Be it telepathy, manipulation, or full possession... most don't have any particular means to defend against it. Those who do are either born as metas with the latent ability, or have trained extensively, or have sought out magical means." Pausing, she gives a nod to his next statements, looking at him steadily, "Specifically, no. But the enemy of my people, the war I have fought for the last fifteen millenia... has been against a race of energy-based aliens who have the ability to possess others. Mind -and- body. So. I believe I can assist you in this." Lucy offers, "I can teach you meditative techniques that will help to strengthen your will -and- mind against influence. I can also teach you actual shielding techniques that are more effective against more... forceful... intrusions." Possession.
Jonathan Sims	Jon smiles with something like relief. "I... well, I suppose I should explain a bit, hmm? I'm homo magi, for one. I have magical ability and telepathy, and a persistent connection to the Astral Plane... but I didn't find out about any of this until last September. I've had none of the training I should have had, and I've been sort of... piecing it all together as I go. I actually managed to put together a rather good spell to protect against mental intrusion, evidently... but I don't think it would stand up to Michael's full power."     He narrows his eyes for a moment, then says, "The... Daemonites, yes? That's what you're referring to." He shakes his head. "The Archive provides no help on the matter, not that that's surprising. But it's... well, admittedly, a little terrifying that these creatures have been here for millenia and my ancestors never knew when it's our /job/ to know these things. What else is lurking that I don't know about?" He shudders.
Lucy Blaze	"My genetics gave me.. potential. I had latent telepathy, psionics, but it wasn't until I ended up on Earth that I really did anything with it. The discipline and mental fortitude is all Coda training. What you will be learning is a little magic and a little Coda training. Making you the second man -ever- to learn anything of Coda training. But... you seem... fluid. In a way few humans are not. It seems more.. appropriate. Had you the desire, I would not see an issue in fully training you as a Coda warrior." Lucy pauses, then lifts a shrug, "But you do not seem to have a particular interest in the more martial side of things, so I will leave that to your discretion." Pausing, she purses up her lips and it seems to be some sort of inner debate with herself, inner -battle- is probably more appropriate. But in the end, she sighs, "Many centuries ago, I willingly enslaved myself to a -very- powerful sorceress in order to save the life of one of my people. I spent a hundred years in her service. Learning magic, using it, getting to know it very intimately... and resisting her attempts to brainwash me into joining her. It was not the last time we met. But I resisted, and at the end of my servitude, I left. As a rule, I try to go for mundane or technological answers before I turn to magic. But there are a growing number of threats that are coming from places of great magic, or that have stumbled across some ancient bit of magic thought lost or locked away. As a Coda warrior, I cannot turn away from the needs of the many. And..." Lucy frowns, "Earth is my home now. Which means protecting it to the best of my ability against any and all threats. Which means tapping into the magic that I had turned away from." She looks to him, then gives a nod, "The Daemonites are -very- good at 'blending'. They can hide almost completely when they possess a host. I'll make sure to transfer our data on the Daemonites to you for your Archives. You should know what you face. Thankfully, my people have kept their numbers low, but they continually recruit more into their ranks from their home planet. Now that they have found Earth and it has evolved the way it has, they do not want to give it up." Another moment and then, "Likely a lot. I have walked this world since your people were just starting to come out of caves and learning how to form basic societies. There are things long since forgotten or buried that humanity never knew or forgot about."
Jonathan Sims	Jon blinks a few times at 'second man ever' and 'Coda warrior,' but listens quietly. He's rather good at that, with the trick of giving his full attention to someone, gaze rather intent. He considers all she's said, when she's done, expression gone slightly distant, drumming the fingers of his left hand on the tabletop as he does so. A nervous tic, more than anything.     "I am not, strictly speaking, a man," he admits, though he's still clearly mulling things over. "Gender's an honestly confusing concept to me, and was long before I merged with a female deity. And I'm rather more interested in martial matters than I might appear." He smiles. "But... perhaps we should see how I take to the training before making any other commitments."     He focuses a little more, finally, and says, "I'd appreciate the information. I would say that I'm sorry for your period of captivity but I rather suspect you don't see it the same way a human would?" There's curiosity in his tone. "Perhaps not the way a modern human would." He sighs. "I suppose I personally turn rather quickly to magical answers... but then I've only been practicing magic properly for a few months. Being able to cast spells is... new and exciting, still."
Lucy Blaze	Nodding to Jon, she offers, "That is why I said you seem more -fluid- than others. Outwardly facing, you appear male. Females of the human species generally only manage facial hair with genetic.. slips. But you don't seem to carry any of the usual hangups about gender that I would associate with most humans either. So.. you are somewhere between. Fluid." Lucy lifts a shrug, she's a warrior, not a poet. Words aren't her forte. Mention of interest in martial matters brings the faintest tic of a smile to her lips, "I would be pleased to give you a display of Coda styles, weapons, and disciplines if you would like. It would let you better decide if that is a path you would like to follow." She lifts a hand and holds it palm up, casual, "But that is up to you." Giving a nod, Lucy murmurs, "It is time that we bring this war out of the shadows. I understand why we have kept it secret for so long... and I was resistant to the idea myself at first. It will cause issues if it becomes public. But we cannot keep fighting alone, and there are people in this world that could be great allies against the Daemonites." She lets out a breath before flickering another brief smile and giving a nod, "I undertook it willingly to save one of my people. A small price, in the end, for her life." She nods, "That is not unusual. But if I might caution... watch yourself. And I mean that literally. Monitor yourself. Be careful of becoming -too- enamored of magic. It has a way of coming back on those that abuse it... and has a way of consuming those that dive too deep too quickly."
Jonathan Sims	"Nothing comes without a price." Jon says it like a mantra, something he's heard and repeated so often it's ingrained into him. "Particularly not magic. I've had... a slip or two, though those were more... jumping into things I should not have, too quickly. And I've paid the price for other people's abuses of magic." He frowns. "So... yes. I am doing my best to... well, I /could/ fly everywhere, you know?" He grins. "But I don't. I still make the tea the old-fashioned way."     He furrows his brow. "What /are/ the Daemonites, exactly? Energy-based aliens, you say... is this something that should more come to the attention of the Justice League or the Avengers? Or is there that supernatural component that puts it in our... purview?"
Lucy Blaze	Nodding to Jon's mantra, she murmurs, "I have discovered that the price tends to be commensurate with the deed. Small magic, little things here and there... reality can absorb those minor things and not react. But when there's flagrant overuse of it.. or even just constant and flashy use... that is when reality starts to... snap back." Lucy glances up as their drinks are served, thanking the waiter and waiting for him to leave before looking to her drink, then looking to him. She points to her mug and the steam halts, the mug takes on a frosty appearance. "Small things. Less noticeable to the wider world.." She flicks her fingers and the frost dissipates, the steam rising once more, "No real danger." She gives a small flourish of her hand and a small pot of what looks to be raw, solid honey appears in her palm. "Little things." Adding a small spoonful to the mug, she stirs it in. "That is an excellent question. We aren't entirely sure. They have a level of telepathy and obviously are able to possess others as a separate, living being. Which suggests a level of magic. But this seems to be inherent to their species, which suggests this is either an evolutionary tic or genetic tampering. So it becomes that grey area between science and magic. I am also sharing the information I have with Superman so that the Justice League will be made aware of the threat. But it would not hurt to have the Dark League looking into it as well." Lucy nudges the pot towards him and it morphs into a small pot of cream.
Jonathan Sims	Jon nods. "Balance. I... understand balance rather well." He smiles as he reaches out to pick up his coffee; he drinks the orange liquer infused brew without adding anything to it, neither cream nor sugar, though he watches the morphing with fascination in his dark eyes. The enthusiasm for even such tiny things is clear, a kind of wonder on his face. "I keep trying to explain... magic is /in my blood/. It's what I /am/. My ancestors built Atlantis, it's... mmm. It's not /all/ that I am? Obviously. And... I don't believe Atlantis fell merely because the poles shifted; I rather think they depended on it too much, as we today depend too much on, say, fossil fuels. But it's still..."     He reaches out his left hand and, with a momentary frown, pulls a spoon out of the air and takes a spoonful of cream from the pot. He stirs it in and taste the coffee again. "Mmm. Better. A touch of cream brings out the orange." He sets the spoon down and says, "That is... a conjuration of the /idea/ of a spoon, pulled from the Astral Plane. That's how nearly all of my magic works--I think of something and conjure it here. A veil is the /idea/ of invisibility, my water is the idea of, well, magic water that can heal wounds... none of it lasts unless I concentrate on it, though the /effects/ last. It takes effort, and as you say, smaller things are easier to balance out. Larger things... well. What you saw the other day, my wings and ability to call on a goddess, I had to /die/ for all of that. Nothing I'd wish on anyone else."     He toys with the spoon for a moment, considering. "Admittedly," he says, "there's the Clarke quote, 'any sufficiently advanced magic' and so on. I mean, magic is inherent to my being, it passes through my bloodline... Martians have magic innately, I wouldn't be /surprised/ if it turned out these Daemonites do too. I'm not turning down help from the Justice League, though, particularly if these are potentially so... widespread." He shudders and shakes his head. "Ugh, one more thing to be paranoid about, lovely."     He tilts his head. "You say 'we'... you have allies in this fight?"
Lucy Blaze	Lucy smiles faintly at him and gives a nod, "I believe you. Magic can pass through bloodlines as easily as any other power or ability. Clarke isn't wrong, either. When I arrived on this planet, I was likened to a God, an Angel... because I had technology far, far beyond what humans did. Because I was different, more powerful. What I did seemed like magic to them, magic so powerful that I was revered... feared... hated... The magic I do now, much of it can be at least rudimentarily replicated by technology. Things are advancing every day and the two are become less and less distinguishable when you get down to the fine details." She motions to the pot of cream, "That is still the pot of honey, I merely rearranged the matter into what I wanted it to be. I didn't conjure it in the sense of creating it from nothing. I brought it here from my place in Ireland. They make wonderful raw heather honey that I simply cannot get anywhere else. I just.. brought it here from there. Then rearranged it into a pot of cream for your coffee." Once he's done with the pot, she reaches for the pot and picks it up, once more a pot of honey. Sending it back from whence it came, she flicks a finger towards his conjured spoon, turning it into a dessert fork. "It is a fine line between magic and technology. I could cloak myself by rearranging the atoms and molecules of the light around me... even those of my own body heat, to render myself fully invisible, but still tangible." She gives a nod, "I have died before, in the technical sense. But I also heal on a scale that is... staggering. I was shot at close range with a broad beam energy weapon, in the head. It removed a good part of my brain, even part of my spinal cord... but I recovered enough within moments to get myself out of the line of fire. Within minutes to be battle ready. And I was fully healed within a matter of hours. So I cannot say that I have died in the sense that you have... but those moments. I have been visited by a number of Gods and Goddesses with dominion over death. They are not fond of me." She quirks a faint smile. "But they do -want- me. I represent that prize just out of reach." Her brows lifts at him and she gives a nod, "That is how I tend to approach it as well. I treat them as beings both technologicall and genetically advanced, but also with the capacity for magical manipulation. Which is particularly why I didn't want to involve Superman. He is... family of a sort. And vulnerable to magic. Could you imagine if a Daemonite possessed him?" She shakes her head. "The amount of destruction and death would... horrific." She lifts a shrug, "But he insists." She looks back to Jon, "You are telepathic, yes? There's something you can do. A way to monitor. It is invasive, so I don't recommend it unless you are truly suspicious. Probe their minds. If you find a duality there.. the sense of.. oppression.. or alien thoughts? If it FEELS static-y and.. sticky? That is the sense of a Daemonite." To his final question, she nods, "I was not alone in surviving the crash that brought us to Earth. There are other Kherans here. We hide amongst you, seeking out our enemy, trying to eradicate them from earth."
Jonathan Sims	"I was disintegrated," Jon says with a faint frown. "I traveled the lands of the dead. Well, I now /serve/ a Goddess of Death, in a way. A judge, anyhow." He smirks. "I don't know if you've run into the Egyptian pantheon, but of late at least they seem more... sanguine about that sort of thing. Everything ends eventually, and much of our beliefs revolve around rebirth and return." He shrugs. "The sun sets, the sun rises... the sun will burn out someday, but that's a long way off. In the meantime, he dies and is reborn."     He sips his coffee with a frown. "I do hate doing that," he murmurs. "I wonder if there's something in the aura...? I suppose the only way to know would be to find one and see its aura." He shakes his head. Not looking forward to the prospect. "I can understand that you'd want to keep their secret, so I won't pry. But I'm willing to--no, I /have/ to help, if I can. Defending humanity, and all of that."     He smiles. "But... I'll be glad of the help, with whatever you can teach. How, ahh, intense is the training? How often would it need to be?"
Lucy Blaze	Nodding, Lucy considers that for a moment, "I've never faced full extinguishing of my corporeal form, so I can't say if I could come back from that." She seems intrigued for a moment, then shakes her head, "Not something to be considering." Looking back to Jon, she nods a little, "I was around for the pyramids. And for the birth of Christianity. And yes, I've been visited by Anubis before. He's one that would love to get his claws into my soul. I live to disappoint him." Then she gives a nod, "Exactly." "I will admit that aura reading is not something I am overly versed in. While my teacher was an exceptionally strong sorceress, she was not known for her finesse." Lucy lifts a shrug before adding, "But I will note that it should also show up on a scan that detects brain wave patterns. If you have an earlier scan to compare to, you can see the difference. They take from the host memory, but they suppress the host personality, their being. So the brain waves are not those of the host, but of the alien." She smiles faintly and nods, "We are all of us still largely working in secret, and I would prefer to let people come forward as they feel comfortable. But your aid will be appreciated." Nodding, Lucy lets out a breath, "Technically it should be quite intensive... but I think given the circumstances, and your pre-existing abilities, that we can scale back the intensity. I will meet with you once or twice a week for training, but I expect -you- to do practices and meditations daily. That said.. it is intense and takes effort to get there... but also relaxing once you've reached the proper mindset. And once you get there, you'll find it easier to return each successive time. The idea is to get you to a point where stress or pressure or attack will cause you to immediately jump into that mindset to block those intrusions. It allows you to effectively erect a barrier around your mind where you can act with calmness and clarity, and without mental intrusion."
Jonathan Sims	"Anubis is a stuck-up ass and I... didn't actually /tell/ him so but I suspect he knows precisely what I think of him." Jon grins brightly. "Probably for the best I didn't stick around down there."     Then he nods. "I've finished out full training and certification as a psychiatrist, a twelve-year course of study, and I've been training daily with minimal breaks since I joined SHIELD. Which may not seem like much to /you/ but that's nearly half my life. Time and effort is something I'm more than willing to put in. That makes sense, though. It's what a lot of therapy tries to do, teach techniques to handle, say, a panic attack out in the field. As it were."     He eyes the spoon for a moment and then shrugs, letting the thing dissipate into emerald motes of light. Ectoplasm, technically. He's taking everything said and filing it away, making note of each point with a slight nod almost like it's a marker.
Lucy Blaze	Laughing lightly, Lucy flashes an honest to God grin for just a moment. "You're not wrong. And I have little doubt that my low opinion of him is in part why he would like to get me so much. Personally? I'm hoping Hades can get to me first. He's really not a bad sort. He's almost scrupulously fair about judging the souls in his domain. But that also means the possibility of dealing with Eris." She lifts a shrug and lifts the mug for a drink, "But existence is ever a series of tradeoffs." Lifting a hand, Lucy murmurs, "I recognize that I am... as old as the stars... I think that is my favorite expression that's been used." She chuckles raspily, then continues, "But I also recognize that humans are not a long-lived species. I respect the time and effort you've put into your training, knowing how much of your life it will eat up. And yes, though I daresay that the techniques I will teach you are not generally attainable by the average human. Humans are strong of will, but only a percentage of you possess the level of will to keep up this sort of training. The potential is there, but there is something that holds humanity back as a whole." In other words, they are getting in their own way. A very human trait. Lucy takes another sip and offers, "That said, once you've hit the proper mindset, we're going to work at weaving a bit of magic into it, it will help to strengthen your mental shields specifically against possession."
Jonathan Sims	Jon smirks briefly. "The stars are 13 billion years old and older. I've /seen/ their creation, if second-hand. It rather takes the breath away, the... scope of time. It's a lovely phrase, though."     He sighs. "Well, I suppose we shall see if I'm up to the task, hmm? Nothing for it but to give it a try." A human who convinced the gods he should get to be reborn, fixed a flaw in the universe that was older than its creation, beat an archangel repeatedly, and can pull items out of thin air... thinks he might not have the proper amount of willpower. Guy's got issues. That or he's /really/ humble.     "It's a lot to think about and take in. But... when should we start?"
Lucy Blaze	Lucy smiles faintly at him. "We already have. Stating your resolve to move forward starts the training. Let me know when your schedule is clear for the first meditation session and we'll go from there."