Jack
Demon of Haunted Toys (Shedite of Nightmares)
The stuffed monkey’s cymbals came together, waking the child. The young boy, who could have been no older than seven, clutched the blankets tightly to his chest. He knew he had placed the toy deep within his toy chest, buried and out of sight, but now the monkey sat on the edge of the bed, its round eyes glowing eerily in the pale moonlight that came in through the window. The boy was afraid to move and watched as the toy’s arms spread out again, slowly. The crash of the tiny symbols brought a silent scream to the child, the front of his pajamas now soiled. The boy would be haunted by this night for a long, long time.
| Corporeal Forces – 3 | Strength 6 | Agility 6 | |||
| Ethereal Forces – 4 | Intelligence 10 | Precision 6 | |||
| Celestial Forces – 5 | Will 11 | Perception 9 | |||
| Word Forces – 2 |
| Skill(s): Acrobatics/4, Chemistry/2, Climbing/4, Dodge/3, Emote/6, Escape/4, Language (French)/4, Language (German)/4, Language (Japanese)/4, Lanugage (Spanish)/4, Lockpick/2, Move Silently/5, | |
| Corporeal Song(s): Calling/4, Darkness/3, Sleep/2, Tongues/3, | |
| Ethereal Song(s): Darkness/3, Machines/5, Sleep/3, Tongues/3, | |
| Celestial Song(s): Tongues/3, | |
| Attunement(s): Shedite of Nightmares, Calabite of Nightmares, Terror, Nightmare Trigger, Knight of Restlessness, Captain of Headhaunters, Knight of Derision (Kobal), Demon of Haunted Toys | |
| Special Attunement(s): Jack is not limited to possessing humans, he can also possess a toy for a number of days equal to the Check Digit of a Will roll (the toy can not defend – toys don’t have will). He can only possess items that were directly crafted as toys. Once the toy is possessed Jack is not restricted to the original limitations of the toy. He can position any limb in any way he likes even speak, however the toy must have suitable parts if fine manipulation is desired. The possessed toy also has a distinct Aura (level 6), almost anyone who sees the toy will know that it’s possessed by a demon. Other Shedim serving Jack also receive this benefit. | |
| Special Rite(s): Jack receives a point of Essence every time he truly frightens someone with a toy, scarring them psychologically. He may grant this right to others. |
Jack is actually the second Demon of Haunted Toys, but he far exceeds his predecessor. Jack has learned that allowing the tormented to see only what the toy could do normally causes a far more lingering fear than having the toy walk about and say ‘boo’. And that’s what Jack is after, the lingering fear is what gives him delight, not simply startling someone but actually fracturing their psyche in fear.
To the delight of the Archangel Christopher, Jack was in danger of his word degrading for quite some time, until movies like Poltergeist, Child’s Play, even PuppetMaster pushed Jack’s word quite high, dampening the Archangel of Children’s spirits. Nybbas does not claim any direct responsibility for helping Jack out, although he doesn’t deny it either.
Jack’s favorite toy to inhabit is his namesake, the Jack-in-the-Box, although he loves any toy that makes a sudden movement. The startling effects of a jack popping out of it’s box for no apparent reason, can often lead to a lingering fear of the toy. Beleth is not the only higher-up who appreciates Jack’s work, he has also been given quite a few commendations by Kobal. The Prince of Dark Humor finds it delicious that children can become afraid of their own playthings.
I got this idea the night before after reading “Don’t Ask Jack” from Neil Gaiman’s Smoke and Mirrors. It’s a delightfully eerie story about a haunted Jack-in-the-Box that doesn’t even have to open to set the children on edge. A great story, as are most of the tales in the book. I highly recommend picking it up.
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