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The view from the abandoned office was pretty good: it showed the park opposite, and the desultory carnival going on inside it. The weather was too hot, too sticky for anyone down there to be having too much fun, but the fights were so far being kept at a minimum. Not bad for a sweltering August afternoon. However, Ummah was pretty much ignoring the heat: he was adjusting the telescopic sight on his rifle as he tracked his attuned through the crowd. Whenever she turned, Ummah could see the faint swelling on her face: he didn't need the telescope to know about the bruises, burns and scrapes. His mouth tightened with disgust at the abuse, perpetrated by the poor woman's husband (standing beside her in a way that could almost seem carefree). Not quite yet... ah. That's right, buddy: turn and look around at the ice cream vendor. Just walk two steps away... As always, the crack of the rifle was a surprise: that usually meant a clean shot. It did, this time: 300 yards away, the wife-abuser snapped back, his neck half torn off from the bullet. Ummah couldn't hear the soft sound of the corpse hitting the gravel from where he crouched, but he didn't have to. The other individual in the office remained crouched at the other window, his binoculars assessing the scene. Predictably, someone jumped to conclusions and pulled out an illegal weapon. Several others followed suit. From there, it wasn't too surprising to see someone overreact and fire. By the time the cops showed up, several people were already down. The other winced at the waste of human lives. It was clear that there was going to be trouble in the streets tonight: the various gangs had been looking for an excuse for a turf war, and now they had one, thanks to Ummah. "Great," muttered the other. "The Boss is going to love this." Ummah shrugged and began to disassemble his rifle. The other continued, "So, why did you want to shoot him, sir?" "Until quite recently, the target slapped his wife around. Last week, he discovered the joys of lit cigarettes and kidney punches. At the rate he was going, he would have killed her within three years." Ummah straightened up. "I can't stand humans who abuse their partners." The other thought about this, then shook his head in disbelief. "With all due respect, sir," said the Impudite of the War, "you are the strangest Djinn that I have ever met." Ummah shrugged again. "Legacy of a misspent youth."
Ummah Djinn Knight of the Black Order Corporeal Forces: 3 Strength: 6 Agility: 6 Ethereal Forces: 5 Intelligence: 8 Precision: 12 Celestial Forces: 4 Will: 9 Perception: 7 Vessel: human male/3 Skills: Dodge/2, Emote/1, Fighting/3, Move Silently/3, Ranged Weapon (rifle/6, shotgun/3), Small Weapon/1 (knife), Tactics/2, Tracking/3 Songs: Affinity (All/1), Entropy (Ethereal/2), Fire (Corporeal/3), Light (Celestial/3), Might (Corporeal/3, Ethereal/1, Celestial/2), Motion (Ethereal/1), Shields (Corporeal/3, Ethereal/1, Celestial/2) Role: "Bobby Gallant" (Contract hitter/3, Status/2) Attunements: Djinn of the War, Balseraph of the War, Knight of the Black Order Artifacts: sniper rifle/6 (Power +4, Accuracy +1, Range 150, Shots 1)
Yes, Ummah is confusing. He does that to everybody. It might be because of his background: he used to be a Cherub of Divine Fire, after all. Unfortunately, very bad things happened to one of the former angel's attuned: the resulting dissonance, plus some incredibly bad luck, resulted in Ummah's Fall. More or less. Ummah's never quite gotten as bad as other Djinn: he can still muster up sufficient emotional energy to dislike those humans who betray others. He can even manage to hate - in a very chilly way - those who like to take out their frustrations on their sexual or romantic partners. Possibly it reminds him of his own current condition - or possibly he's linked it, in some strange way, with the endless tug of war between Belial and Gabriel. Not even Falling could make Ummah like the Prince of Infernal Fire, which is why he serves Baal instead. The Prince of the War has uses for soldiers that can shoot like Ummah. Ummah is a good sniper and assassin: natural talent and better training. Ironically, Falling has made it easier to kill those who betray their partners: there's less time pressure, he doesn't have to concern himself with avoiding the infliction of emotional pain on the 'loved' ones of his victims, and he can play now, if he feels like it. Baal often uses him to start up trouble in urban areas via the use of senseless violence: usually, these assignments give him suitable time to pick out people that he wants to shoot. He'll shoot the innocent, of course (Ummah is a demon, with all that it entails), but killing the Cru... spouse or child abusers ... is much more pleasurable. Needless to say, other Djinn find Ummah ... annoying. None of them believe that he really cares about anything: the very idea is vaguely obscene. Of course, former angels can have odd hang-ups sometimes. Ummah, for his part, could care less: his Prince only cares about whether this particular Djinn can (and will), upon command, put a bullet into someone's brain from 400 yards away. This particular Djinn can (and will), so Baal deigns to ignore Ummah's peculiarities. One does expect snipers to be different, after all. |
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