by Wolfe Locke
Seraph scanned all directions, anxious to avoid the sort of trouble he had only just encountered. He had few guarantees that any skirmish would not end the same, and out here in the open, if he was swarmed by a horde of the hungers, he was unlikely to be able to run away.
The road in one direction ended just shy of the shore, the asphalt heavily corroded and broken off, but as the road headed towards the city, it remained in decent shape, even as cars, trucks, and every manner of motorized vehicle lined the road in both directions. They were heavily rusted, and the tires had melted into the road, giving the appearance that the vehicles had been sitting in place for decades.
The distance was not endless or as vast as he had thought. Though the ocean extended into the horizon, the land he was on did not. Though the dark city loomed in the distance, he could see where an artificial border appeared to circle the city and the areas leading into it. The edges were dark as they gave way to an endless infinity. This made it easier on him. He would need to explore a few miles, rather than an entire world like he had feared. The Phoenix Refuge had taken him months of exploring before ever finding the boss.
Carefully and quietly, Seraph walked down the middle of the road, avoiding stepping too close to the vehicles. He did not catch the same feeling of unease he had earlier when traveling through the parking lot. His body wasn’t warning him with tension that he was being watched, but still he remained on alert, the ability of monsters to shield themselves from his presence was not impossible, and he would not be caught unawares.
Many of the cars still had partially destroyed bodies, and vehicles with their windows sealed held bodies that appeared to be in a mummified state, while others with windows partially rolled down, cracked, or broken had become blackened by the heavy decay inside. Others had a few doors broken, glass scattered everywhere, doors shredded from large claws, and others torn away. Of those, Seraph could only see bits of aged rust, the last vestiges of oxidized blood he was sure.
The silence continued as he walked onward, the sun beginning to set behind him. He was unsure of how long he had been walking on the road, but something about it did not sit right with him. The road was familiar to him, and though he had been walking for hours, the dark city in the distance was not any closer. A journey of a few miles should have been over already.
What’s going on? thought Seraph in frustration. He had already spent almost a entire day on the road, and he hadn’t made any progress. He stopped to look at his surroundings and take in what it was that he was missing. The Abyssal Ocean and the pier remained behind him, and the dark city was still in front of him. The road full of cars and trucks had not changed, and they remained as far as the eye could see.
“Wait a minute,” mused Seraph as he looked closer at the vehicles. Though he could see no evidence of recent travel, he was sure he had been here before. The cars and vehicles appeared familiar, and the sense of deja-vu he felt was heavy.
I’m trapped in a loop, realized Seraph as the reason for his lack of progress became obvious.
“If I’m trapped in a loop, there’s only two explanations. Either someone or something is actively targeting me for a spell, or this entire road is enchanted.” Try as he might, he just couldn’t find the trigger for the spell, and with night quickly approaching, he had a sneaking suspicion that the dead he had seen in all the vehicles around him would soon reanimate.
He had few options at his disposal. He used his dungeon supplemented strength and his upgraded physique, which nearly doubled the strength that he had previously, to push aside some of the abandoned vehicles. Even with their heavily damaged tires, they still moved a few feet, giving him the much needed room to cast the spell that he was attempting.
How the nearby hungers did not hear the loud screeching the vehicles made as he pushed them on the asphalt was beyond him, though he guessed it was likely due to them being in another zone of this part of the dungeon.
With a space cleared and safe for the moment, he aimed at the center of the space while he looked away, shielding his eyes as he used the Starfall ability to summon the brightest light that he could. If he could not find the enchantment, then he could at least rule out that it was not a caster who was enchanting him, and if the caster couldn’t see—due to a temporary blindness—then the enchantment would fail. But if there was no caster, it would call the attention of every monster in the area to him. Which made him very thankful to be on the elevated roadway.
He continuously fed the charge for the Starfall ability mana for thirty seconds, until he felt the spell could not grow in power any further and released it.
In response, he could hear thousands of screams as every hunger in the area was alerted to his presence. The gaze of tens of thousands of monsters hungry for his flesh bore into him, attracted by the light. But his gambit paid off as the spell that had kept him trapped in a loop had been canceled. It was unlikely to affect him again, unless he reentered this part of the dungeon in the future.
He watched as the dark city he had been trying to reach began to collapse in on itself and all the illusion began to disappear until it vanished completely. The illusion had obscured a wasteland of destroyed buildings and endless rubble. Whatever the dark city had been, it was no more, and for as far as the eye could see, there were only bricks and destruction. He knew, though, that it was not an endless field of debris as the edges had become more apparent as the infinite nothingness that made up its barrier became more pronounced.
This entire time he had been walking towards nothing. A suspicion and a hunch not at the edge of his consciousness proved useful as he turned around and walked on the road back to where it ended near the beach.
He kept walking even as he approached the broken edge of the road that overlooked the pier and the beach many feet below. The way the air shimmered led him to believe that something was here.
He reached out to touch the shimmering air, and as his hand connected physically, a wall came down exposing a great throne room and water, then an empty space.
On the throne an ominous presence emanated power—the demon prince, Beelzebub. He was clad in his personification of the Harlequin—a demonic jester upon the throne, with eyes that glowed yellow, and his face set in a mirthless grin that was both profane and vulgar. On all sides, the demon prince was flanked by lesser demons of all types. This was not a fight Seraph could win.
The empty space that he had walked through collapsed in on itself, forming a wall, sealing off the exit. Seraph knew he would not be able to retreat. In response, the glaring and ravenous demons all around him looked on in hunger and malice as they circled up, knowing that he would be unable to escape, they thought they would take their time.
"Hold!" declared the demon lord from his throne as all of his hosts stopped in their tracks, shuffling back gradually to their positions.
"Welcome, little brother, to the second circle. You and I are going to play a game. If you manage to defeat me, you may proceed to the next floor anytime you wish—or go back to Hometown. If you lose, you must stay here as one of my vassals. It’s a pity really; you would have made a fine vessel, but the mark of shadow is already upon you."
Seraph shifted uncomfortably. Demons—especially greater ones—were notorious for breaking deals, always having a secondary agenda that somehow came back in the worst way.
" Little brother, of our kin I am by far the most patient, but even I am not so patient. I expect an answer, or would you prefer to test your luck and try to defeat all those before you? Only a fool would hesitate," challenged the demon lord, its eyes full of menace.
"I'll play your game," answered Seraph. "What is it to be?
"The only game that has ever mattered. The game of life," responded the demon lord cryptically.
Chapter 21: The Game
* * *
“Come now, little brother.” Beelzebub grinned. “It’s just a game, and for you, it is surely much better than the alternative. Though I am sure my minions would lov
e to spill your blood on the floor.”
Seraph knew the demon prince was correct. All around him, the horde of demons leered, ready and waiting for him to make a move against them. He could feel their bloodlust in the air, and he knew in this place, he would not be able to win a fight, not alone.
It was a mistake to come alone, he admitted to himself, though he doubted any of the others would have been able to help him survive a battle in the demon prince’s throne room.
“What are the rules?” asked Seraph as he looked ahead at the grinning demon.
The demon answered, leaning forward in his throne, his smile widening to show rows and rows of razor-sharp pointed teeth. He motioned for two of his minions to bring out a chair.
“Sit,” commanded the demon prince, and Seraph compiled without hesitation, showing neither fear nor false bravado. Seraph simply did as he was asked. He would not allow any of these demons to see weakness and uncertainty from him.
With a flick of his wrist, the demon prince had more of his minions bring out additional supplies. A small table and an eerie glowing cage that appeared to have human spirits trapped inside of it, and though Seraph could see the spirits strained, the cage did not bulge.
“The rules of the game are simple,” explained the demon prince. “This is a soul cage, and inside it are a few of the human souls that I have brokered or have had sold to me.”
“What use do you have for souls?” Seraph asked curiously. Being in the dungeon meant the demon prince would have an endless supply of humans to maim and torment.
“I don’t torture them if that’s what you were thinking,” replied the demon prince slyly, and he opened the cage and reached in with his bestial hands and grabbed one of the writhing souls.
From his chair, Seraph could see that the spirit belonged to a young woman, struggling and crying. A heavy aura of despair expelled from the spirit, and though Seraph noticed, there was nothing he could do for her.
The demon prince monitored Seraph for his reaction, Seraph was sure this was because he was hoping to get a rise out of him, or trick Seraph into attacking or trying to save the woman.
If he’s trying to goad me into attacking him, it means his hands are tied for whatever reason, Seraph thought in realization.
Without drawing a reaction from Seraph, the demon prince quickly grew bored, and with a shrug of its shoulders, it raised the screaming spirit it held in its hand to its mouth and bit down, tearing the spiritual essence in half as the soul let out one last scream before vanishing altogether into the demon prince’s belly.
For a brief moment, the demon ground its teeth before letting out a sound indicating ecstasy. With a small burp, the demon turned back to address Seraph. "We consume them, the souls. They are a delicacy—at least, to me," said the demon prince without reservation.
"From the darkness I can see in your soul. They've been a delicacy for you as well, little brother," complimented the demon with a mocking smile.
Seraph shifted involuntarily in discomfort—a subtle movement, but a movement noticed by the demon as it narrowed its malice-filled eyes.
Soul consumption had been one of the chief causes of humanity’s destruction. A learned technique, not ability, hence why Seraph had been able to use it on Erin. But it was not a technique he wanted spread throughout humanity again. Even if he did not use it like he had in the past, somebody eventually would, and that was how such dangerous things proliferated.
As if reading his thoughts, the demon spoke up. Its voice was thick with honey as it spoke. “I am willing to guard the secret of soul consumption, little brother, and lend you even a little portion of my power, but in return you must do one small thing for me. It is a small something, so do not worry. We can talk more of it after the game.”
Warning bells went off in Seraph’s head. Deals with demons almost always backfired, and Seraph knew this would be no different.
“What are the rules of the game?” Seraph asked once again as he looked at the demon prince.
Grinning, the demon lifted the soul cage and placed it on the table. Inside Seraph could see all manner of trapped humanity struggling and calling out to him to save them.
“The game is simple. You must find the murderer among these souls and extinguish it,” said the demon.
Seraph said nothing. Instead, he looked closely at the soul cage and those trapped within. A holy man screaming in agony, a mother crying for her children, a soldier far from a battle. By looking at each of them, Seraph could tell a portion of their story. All were innocent, and all were capable of murder. He could not choose.
I am sorry, he thought in the deepest part of his mind. This was not a challenge he could win. Seraph reached forward and opened the latch of the soul cage, letting them spill out towards freedom, collecting each before they disappeared to wherever they were bound.
All around him the demons bristled, anxious to move on him for the kill, only a curious gaze by the demon prince keeping them at bay.
With the last of the souls safely in his hands, Seraph stood up so that every demon could see him. Full of anger and hate, activating his Aspect of Wrath ability as dark energy rolled off of him. As they all prepared to attack, Seraph surprised them all as he shoved the souls into his mouth, consuming them, their light extinguished, and then he sat back down.
“Marvelous, little brother,” responded the demon prince in good humor.
From the surrounding alcoves, and from the dark recesses that circled the throne room floor, the bloodlust of the assembled demons that had been directed against him began to fade as the demonic host adopted more neutral postures, though they remained suggestively aggressive towards him.
“You’ll have to accept my apologies for the poor quality of your meal,” said the demon prince with a laugh. “None of those souls I had kept in the soul cage had been dungeon boosted. I’m afraid they’ll offer you nothing but a bit of nourishment and perhaps ecstasy by their consumption. You’ll see no gains to your power I’m afraid.”
Seraph ignored the comment. It had been worth a try, given his options. He had tried for the one that had the most benefit to him. He knew as soon as he saw those souls in the cage that nothing he did would manage to free them; they were doomed.
This entire situation was off, and it had, to an extent, unsettled Seraph. He had come in expecting to fight, and he had found far more than he could handle, but rather than his life ebbing away in a pool of blood, he was surrounded by demons talking to a demon prince.
“What is it you want, Demon?” asked Seraph bluntly, his voice heavy with irritation and rife with tension as he looked at the demon prince, wondering what the demon’s angle in all of this was. Much of Seraph’s composure was gone as he struggled with this meeting. Nothing in his previous life had prepared him for this.
“What do I want?” The demon prince laughed as he sat up and turned to his minions, raising his hands and eliciting a response of laughter from the surrounding demons.
“I want everything,” admitted the demon as he sat back down with a thud. “Leave us,” he commanded as he looked all around. Within seconds, every monster that had been in the throne room disappeared into the shadows and beyond, leaving Seraph alone with the demon prince, staring face to face, eyes parallel into the darkness that was the demonic Harlequin.
“Oh, Seraph, we all want what we cannot have. I want conflict eternal. I want brother to fight brother, father to fight son, neighbor to slay neighbor, and for that, dear little brother, I need humanity to live,” remarked the demon prince slyly.
Seraph kept his composure, saying nothing as he continued to stare, focusing on remaining stoic to avoid giving the demon any insights. However, he was certain some of his disbelief was apparent. How could it not be?
“Surprised, are you? This is a team effort,” responded the demon prince cryptically. “Star Wormwood approaches, and with it the end of all things.”
Raising an eyebrow, Seraph challenged the notion of teamwork
.
“I am evil. Yes, this is true. I am a monster. But what I am not is nothing. I do not desire the void to take you, and I do not desire an end of all things. I do not desire the end of your world, and with it, the end of my plaything. This whole world is a stage, and you are all but players on it to be played,” explained the demon prince.
“I am a creature of eternity. I was there when humanity first crawled out of the mud, and I will be there when humanity returns to it. The last thing I desire is an end. Humanity must survive, and for that, I will make you an offer. But as I said, for my help I'll require just one little thing.”
“I’m not giving you my soul!” interrupted Seraph in irritation.
“Ha!” The demon prince laughed. “Like I would want that dirty old thing. What I require is much simpler. First, your silence on this deal of ours is important, as is your silence regarding how you found your way here. It would be awfully inconsiderate of you to spoil the secret for everyone else. Secondly, your cooperation is a given, and I’m sure you have no qualms about that, right, little brother?”
The demon prince looked at him menacingly, and Seraph knew he really had no choice but to agree. The difference in their power was simply too great.
“I’ll take your silence as consent,” responded the demon prince. “The second part of this deal is that I require sacrifice, and by sacrifice, I mean sacrifices—plural… often… frequently. Monthly I want you to deliver to me a soul, I don’t care where you find it, whose it is, or how you got it. In return, I will give you my blessing and the ability to summon my avatar once daily.”
Seraph thought over the offer. One soul a month was nothing in the grand scheme of things if it helped give him the power he needed to conquer the dungeon—and more so to prepare for Wormwood.
The demon prince leaned in, it’s face tense in anticipation as Seraph considered the offer.