Loss of Control; Loss of Life

Peter Solverson loomed over the dying woman, rage blazing off him. She cowered, arms up in a defensive posture. She didn't so much beg for her life as whimper in protest of its departyure; she knew she was about to die. Breathing hard, Solverson clenched his fists and rained blows down on her before the gunshots rang out. They would have ripped into his chest, but he wore high quality Kevlar, so instead they sent him stumbling back, arms pinwheeling.

While, in the end, the cell ensured her death would be the last at the hands of that particular demon, its a tragedy that our lack of preparation and cohesion led to her end. The demon is banished, so it's a success overall, but if bodies continue to pile up, the CPD won't be making our job any easier.

When the cell found the woman, in a cursed room at the Hell House Hotel, she had been masturbating with a hot curling iron--the room smelled like cooked pork and sex. She'd had a partner at the beginning of her performance, but her (or the demon's) demands for over-the-top kink had been too much for him and he'd left her there alone. Well, alone beside the junkie puppeteer riding around in her head, jonsing for sensation.

After a bout of fruitless conversation, Officer Kane cast out the demon. It's eviction left the poor, not quite innocent, girl dying on the floor. The demon promptly jumped into Peter, who fell to his own, baser predilections. Who could blame him? Two demons inside is too much for any man.

A fight ensued. I pushed Pete through a second story window. The fall ripped the demon (confined to stay in that room while on the physical plane) from his body, causing massive trauma to Pete and none to the demon.

The cell subdued the demon using a mixture of hellfire and holy water. It discorporated, but that was only a stop gap. We took advantage of its temporary banishment to figure out a more permanent solution.

Peter spent some time in the hospital convalescing. Father Doyle spent some time working out a summoning circle meant to first contain and then banish the demon permanently. He also fortified Peter's place of business with magic runes meant to ward of evil.

The Police came with questions, but were easily fleeced. Pestilence Be Gone is a legitimate company with ties to the community. It's a member in good standing of the Better Business Bureau. Also, Peter and the Father are both very good at covering their tracks; hiding in plain sight. Officer Kane's ties to the Chicago PD help in this arena as well.

We returned to the Hell House, and the Father drew his circle. He summoned the demon out of the Pit and, while it floated there, stunned, he banished it, banning it from returning to the mortal world in that room. Because it's now banned from leaving the room, and banned from entering the room, we assume it can never again return to the mortal world. Or, perhaps, the banns have canceled each other, and we've let a minor hellion off its leash.

The police arrived, recognized me and wanted to talk. Eli, my familiar, tried to frighten them away, but I calmed him, and made peace; promising to talk to them on my own time.

For now, the police are mollified. It's my official assessment, however, that we've got to be more aware of the police presence in Chicago.

Also, if anyone in Milan is reading this, it would be nice if our physical weapons could be made, temporarily or permanently, to effect incorporeal demons. Is there a better way than simply commanding the demons to manifest?

-Roland Black, Chicago Cell