He came to me in the form of a young man, with sharp, fox-like features and pale smooth skin. His eyes burn, it's true, but they are not glowing red. Instead his left eye is a bewitching silvery-violet, the other a toxic green. His jaw is set determinedly, but his lips are full and soft, though they turn down a little at the corners and this makes him look melancholy. His silky black hair is cut in a style no Londoner has ever fathomed. His skin is covered here and there with black images and symbols. I could never have devised such an outlandish form. But I don't dislike it.

He does not seem to resent his servitude. There are stories, you know, that once summoned a demon is difficult to maintain control of. They're supposed to want to trick you, to try to make you fall. But Asmodeus has told me of the agony he underwent in Hell, a terrible shredding of the soul no mortal man could withstand. He seems to feel that his service to me is nothing more than a welcome reprieve from the torment he endured for as long as he can remember from before.

He's always so very quiet. Too quiet - I sometimes try to get him to make normal conversation, explain that this is what normal people do and he must also if he is to fit in, but he cannot get the hang of it. He is still and silent unless prompted, but not immovable. He gives way willingly to my every request.

I feel terrible really, that I thought to use such a creature for my own ends, he follows me so unquestioningly. He seems almost... innocent. He does not seem evil or cunning at all. Can I turn back now? Can I put my loyal servant in harm's way, just to lure back my wayward lover? Do this to my friend?

Because yes, Asmodeus is my friend. He listens to my silly prattle patiently. His fealty is only with me. He is beautiful, dangerous, powerful, mysterious - the things I wish I could be, but cannot. Can I hurl this friend into battle on my behalf? He would do it without complaint, as he would anything else for me.

Lately, though, something is troubling my Asmodeus. He will not tell me what it is, but I can sense it. His simple silence has turned into brooding.

There are secrets he harbors. Dark secrets - I can feel it. The Diabolical Signature that glows like a brand over his heart is not quite right. There's a Y-shaped scar across his chest and belly that I can't place, and that he says he knows nothing about. There's his strange appearance. There is the matter of his personality - not entirely like a demon should be.

Is my new friend really what I think he is?

In the end, it doesn't matter. I will find out soon enough. And in the meantime, I am content to have him at my side: my lovely, my devoted, my silent shadow.