C-DPSS09 (Feb 1, 1996)
Puzzle
“Permanently barred from entry—in Cafe Speak.”
Research | 1 Word
Clue
Hover over the clues if you require!
Clue 1: What's the more 'supernatural' term for a protection spell or some repelling mechanism?
Clue 2: Another term for protective sigils, not specifically using Cafe and Diner terminology.
Clue 3: What word means 'to guard or protect' and has 'magical' associations?
Answer and Explanation
Answer: Ward
Explanation: A meaning of ward is to guard, to protect, which sounds pretty close to the mark. It's also a term for a protection against something.
Summary of Receipt
71 thinks about whether warding Wilson High would be possible. Satan would be the easiest - the Planes' Princes all have a 'counter sigil', the only downside of which is making the CaD blind to Wilson High as well (magically, anyway) though that shouldn't be an issue. Umbra's the next easiest, though it requires sableblood. When Umbra attacked the Cafe back in August, they got some which they've used to ward the Cafe against him, though they'll need to get another sample (whether from him or another Shadow) for Wilson High. Next, Pleasant. Pleasant's a Blooded Demon (see C-BBVR02), so they'll need to ward against his demonic lineage - his father is unknown, but not the Devil, while his mother is at least known: Lilith. Lastly, Aka. He's a boogieman, a demon imbued with Satan's powers using a contract to enter the Flipside for Satan's schemes. Aka's contract is extremely flexible, and to truly ward against him, they'd have to call the Court of Angels to revoke his contract under a breach of it - which would be very difficult, and if they fail, will only make him stronger.
Transcript
RECEIPT #009
FILED UNDER: CAFE-DPSS
DATE: 2/1/96
EMPLOYEE #71
Warding Wilson High from demonic influence, eh? A noble goal but not an easy one. Not even the Cafe’s physical location is warded against Padre and his Dark Triad, with the exception of Mrs. Umbra, of course. The issue really stems from how different the four of them are. Satan is a Prince of Hell, quite possibly the easiest of the lot to actively ward against. Each of the seven Princes has a well-known counter sigil. Unfortunately, the counter sigils of the Princes are, how to put this… overkill. It would make him blind to us but us equally blind to him. But, as far as Wilson High goes, I don’t see that being too much of a problem.
The Hatman is the second easiest to ward against, though it requires a rather rare substance to do so—sableblood. When the Hatman infiltrated the Cafe back in August, we were able to get a sample of his sableblood, which we have been using to protect the Cafe from his hypnagogic influences. Getting more sableblood might prove challenging, though the Hatman is hardly the only Shadow out there. The Mothman would be a bit more challenging to effectively ward against. Being a blooded demon means we would have to use a sigil tied to the Mothman’s lineage, which is up for debate. The Mothman has always been secretive about which of the noble houses he truly hails from, though we at least know his mother is Lilith and his father is not the Devil.
Then there is the hardest of the lot to ward against—the Redman. The Redman is a Boogieman, yes? A specific rank of demon imbued with Satan’s own powers for the express purpose of infiltrating the Flipside. The only way to stop the Redman would be to use his terms and conditions against him. Of course, the Redman has been playing his game for a long time, and his terms are some of the most flexible I’ve personally seen. To stop him, we’d need to bring him to the Court of Angels under a break of his contract—which we have been unable to do thus far. It’s a rather risky gambit as well. If we fail to win a challenge of his terms, it will only add another loophole to his deadly game.