Minutes passed as I dodged back and forth and clawed at them. When given the opportunity I sliced at their legs, on the side that wasn’t bladed. They retracted in silence but I noticed that shortly after they weren’t as quick on those legs. Good. My poison worked on them. I was yet to meet anyone who could handle the poison of my succubus. Gabe was the first exception. I focused on the little one mostly. Straining and obtaining small cuts as I dodged them back and forth.
Eventually the little one became slower and I took my opportunity and lunged. I wasn’t at all surprised that its legs swooped up to keep me at a distance, but its legs were slow and I was able to jump higher, faster. I jumped and began to run along the top of its leg, dodging as the bigger demon tried to slice my head off to protect it. I ducked and jumped for the small bobble in its center. I jumped on its back and pierced my tail into its neck. My poison excreted and was a higher dosage from my tail. I pulled it out as soon as the larger demon tried to cut at me again. I rolled underneath the demon and stabbed my tail up and dragged it as I ran beneath it and out the tail end. I dove before it collapsed with me underneath. I continued running circles dodging the other two which seemed infuriated. Cardio was not my friend but it certainly was my savior at this point. I watched the third one as it slowly turned black and began to decay into the ground. Disgusting. I assumed that meant death.
I continued fighting the other two, slowly trying to exhaust them so I would be able to practice the same execution. Past the two of them I noticed that the corpse that was decaying began to crack open from the clay form it had taken. My eyes widened. Now that is disgusting. Smaller demons began to break out. Its corpse began to spawn. Fuck. What was worse than three giant blade cutting demons? Heaps of tiny ones. And here I had been complaining about the mosquitoes.
I felt Gabe’s presence before I saw him. He swept in from the sky leaking a can of petrol on the ground. He took one giant sweep of his wings to stay out of reach of the demons reach and swept in fast, diving and lighting a match to light the petrol. Instantly they lit up and actual screams came from the offspring instead of the adult’s usual silence. My succubus frenzied at the flames and I almost choked at how quickly she retracted and left me in human form. My succubus’s greatest weakness was fire. I dodged the blade that came down on me but again my left arm was lethargic and couldn’t keep up. This time it was a deep cut to the shoulder. I hissed, refusing to look at the damage. I changed back into my cat demon form and the bell on my tail jingled in agitation. I jumped again dodging the blade. I was slower now. I was wounded heavily but I still had a job to do.
I could feel something vile rise in the pit of my stomach. It was a darkness and savageness none of my other demons seemed to have. This was raw, powerful, heated aggression. As quickly as it swept up and offered its aid, I understood the demon I was contracted with. The blue of my tattoos glowed and part of it burnt announcing the contract with that demon being activated. We were now in alliance and my hell hound came forth. It was painful. Yet seductively enticing all at once. The power that flowed through me was dark and hot like fire. My body changed form, I thought that bones were breaking and knitting together within seconds.
Once I changed form I was eye level with Gabe. His expression didn’t give anything away as he continued fighting against the larger of the demons. He turned his back to me. I was the size of a horse but more muscled and wide. The black paws were the size of a human’s head with sharp un-manicured claws. I growled and snarled at the demon in front of me whose quaking seemed to quicken. I snapped at it and lunged. I was a lot faster than I would’ve expected from a demon this size. I was even faster than my cat demon. When I saw glimpses of my ragged fur I was black all over and if I hadn’t had the experience of my cat demon I would’ve considered my large tail and balance rather difficult.
The demon was still slow as my succubus’s slashes began to seep green from my poison. We could very well leave them and they would be dead within hours from the poison alone. I crisscrossed and out sped the demon as it planted its blades close to me trying to bring its weight down on me. After tiring it out, it became sluggish and I took my opportunity. I lunged for it and hung off its throat. My mouth clamped down on it and pulled. I ripped off its neck and the bobble thing that acted as its head and jumped back, avoiding the reflexes of its blades. I spat out the vile taste and threw its head to the side watching it drop in front of me. With satisfaction, I had killed it.
My hackles rose as a stir in the wind sent chills through the forest. I had felt this kind of demonic energy before and that was from a witch that practiced dark magic. Witches were neither demonic nor angelic but it depended on how the user chose to practice their magic that defined them. Call it good or bad or whatever you wanted, they gathered their power and materials from the elements that surrounded them. And because of that the forest went dire and cold. Something wicked came this way.
Gabe dropped to his knees and I could hear him gasp. I couldn’t hear the chanting but I didn’t need to, I had a sense of where the witch was and for whatever reason they were focusing on Gabe. The last demon took the interference and opportunity. Gabe was on his knees with some kind of paralysis as the demon sliced down on him. With speed that couldn’t be matched by any other demon I had met, I jumped for Gabe and knocked him out of the way. The clean cut went through my lagging and dead weight arm. Clean cut. I howled as I felt the pain of my arm being severed while I rolled onto the ground.
I lunged for the creature, ignoring my pain and ripping out the bottom of its throat. I dropped onto the ground fighting to balance with one missing leg. Sometimes if severely injured my demons would leave the suffering and pain. But I found my hellhound rather loyal and tolerant of it. Before the demon could crush me with its weight, I balanced on my three legs, trying to focus most of my weight on my hind legs and jumped out of the way.
I looked back at Gabe who was wide-eyed and still suffering with paralysis. I think we were both shocked that I took such a fatal wound for him. I didn’t even have time nor did I want to process that myself. Gathering all my strength, stamina, and balance, I sniffed out the coldest part of the forest and ran, looking for the witch.
I knew I didn’t have much time before I bleed out, and that witch could be assured that I would take them out before I died myself. The smells of the forest began to engulf me as if trying to lull me to sleep within their trunks. To become one with the nature, to die and decay. Black blood oozed out of my shoulder. I only had minutes if that. It didn’t take me long to find the witch who was in a black coat. As soon as she saw me she began chanting. A miraculous thing I realized and none of my other demons had such a resistance; was that her magic didn’t work on me.
Beautiful. She was ravishing with red lips. I lunged for her and clamped my jaw around her face, shredding at the beauty and power that would be my ending. Her scream gargled into the back of my throat as I clamped down harder and crushed her skull. Splat. I could taste her death in my mouth.
I threw her around a few times assuring she was dead before I flicked her to the side and her corpse slumped against a tree. I hobbled starting to feel dizzy and knew that my time was near. I smelled the salt of water and began limping towards it. My hellhound was a determined and loyal creature and made sure to mix its own lively determination with me. I broke out of the forestry on a cliff edge to look over the sea. The blue of my tattoos glistened and my cat demon came forth. Oddly I found it comforting to die in this form. Much like a cat hiding to die solidary. I limped to the edge of the cliff to look out to the water and slumped into the ground. I wouldn’t be getting back up from this one.
I was a fool for underestimating my left arm. I was even more of a fool for taking that blade for Gabe. I had no reason to. None. And yet I did. My body curled as I began feeling cold and the tiny swish of my tail rung only a few bells. I arched my head further to the water wanting to pull myself over and fall into the sea. At least I would be free. Finally.
My right paw twisted slightly in the moist dirt but no strength came from it. No flickers of memory, regret, or sentiment came. My duty was done. I had failed and I was to die. My eyelids slowly closed and instead of the crashing waves in the distance I heard that one defiant jingle of my tail. Death wasn’t all that bad. I knew there would be other ways to leave this world. In this notion I was content.
Chapter Twenty-Six - Haymen
I watched over the proposed army that the demon king from Upid offered me. He was an ugly thing and far from human looking. So were his warriors. I looked over them from the edge of my city within the Underworld. The true city of Shabeah. The land was vacant of grass and gritted with a hot rock. They fought against one another in display for my attention. What I liked about these particular warriors was that they enjoyed killing even their own kind. Blue blood splayed everywhere from the brown demons that were solidified like rock and a horn in the center.
Most of them had installed blades down their arms as back up weapons, completely developing themselves as a weapon the moment they were born. What I took special interest in was their women and the electricity that they emit and could release at their fingertips. I let them pray on those who were imprisoned here. Those who went to the human world and defied my orders. The ones I had my Guardians drag back here. This was their consequence. I loved watching them try to fight and scream as one of the women jumped on him and pierced her delicate fingers into his eye sockets. His entire body trembled as he bled out of his face and nails while convulsing.
“Does my army please you?” Crad asked me from behind. I continued watching his army before I spoke to him. Crad was to die within the next few months. I had already planned it. Before then, I would take control of his army.
“Much,” I said. I wanted to kill him myself, his imprudence and manner of thought, thinking that we were on par offended me greatly. He stood by my side, ever daring to stand as my equal. I patted over my suit jacket sleeve bidding patience. I could kill him now. Very easily and could even kill his entire army right now if they turned on me in his defense but I had other plans to execute instead.
His piercing black eyes watched over his army arrogantly and the sharp features of his rocky face was a ploy for what they could really do. And I was wondering how daring he was, how much he thought we could be allies and trusted me.
“Will you not show me the truth to your army,” I said. It was a request. To deny me was requesting to be killed. I was wondering how cheeky Crad thought he could be. He seemed hesitant. Like most when I asked for their secrets on a platter. But it wasn’t my first time having seen his demons operate. Especially considering this handful of warriors were the remains of his army because I had killed the rest. Those fifty years ago he had learned that I didn’t appreciate being denied. I then took his wife for myself that night after I killed his army that would protect them both to remind him that everything was and would be owned by me. He killed his wife shortly after unable to look at her since I enjoyed my time with her. And it was consensual, like any demon, everyone was drawn to power.
Crad hesitantly whistled. As soon as he did, mists of dust blew through the hollowed canal. His warriors went invisible. There was a silence in the room until the remainder of the prisoners I had in there choked with slit throats and dropped to the ground. I pressed a smile. The perfect assassins. The reason why I kept a watch on Crad’s army was because they were inclined toward virgins of all sorts. Now that would raise a lot of questions with the treaty when they let loose.
When Crad decided on his residence it was shortly after that Gabe claimed the city closest for him to rule. Crad stayed there but his army wasn’t to step out of place, so often they ventured elsewhere to defuse their frustration. One day when I ruled over the humans and discarded of this treaty I would let them walk freely. Because by then they would be my silent army.
“They now belong to me,” I said to Crad.
“They still rule under me but they will–“ Crad’s leg twisted and he dropped to his knee in a sharp burst of pain. I also forced his neck to twist up to look at me. I didn’t even have to touch him to make him my puppet. His army remained silent and I could feel the presence of them surround us. What would they do, I wondered. Turn on me or turn on him? Here was their so called King whimpering because of a few broken bones. Bowing in front of me. Would they defend him? Did they think that their invisibility worked on me? One tried. He stepped forward only once and with little effort he became visible to me. I uncloaked him and looked at him with a stare that would kill. Literally. I wrapped my darkness around his tiny soft heart and squashed it into oblivion. I silenced his screams as I let my darkness creep into him and have its way with him, denying him of a proper death and tearing him apart from the inside. No one stepped forward after that.
“My lord?” one of my servants stepped forward having come from the closest tower. I had her there to report to me when the mission I had orchestrated was complete. I let go of my hold on Crad and walked away. Nothing else had to be said. His invisible army still surrounded me but no one so much as moved as I walked through them and towards my fawn eyed demon. She didn’t say anything, only leading me to the remains of one lone survivor.
“I had sent out twenty,” I said coolly. To the best I knew how. The silent demon in front of me dipped his head.
“And a witch if I recalled. Tell me, what remains of Gabe?” My dark tentacles already reached for him. I could smell fear and understood failure in any man’s eyes.
“Your highness,” he said dropping to his knees. “We had him captured and easy for the taking but your Guardian intervened. She jumped in his stead and was injured.”
My nose flared and a million thoughts dashed through my mind in rage.
“When she fled we attacked him but not in time. Your Guardian had savaged the witch and his containment was broken. We-”
My darkness sliced his throat as he gargled to speak. I watched him drown in his own blood, infuriated as he gargled to try and justify his failure. The beautiful servant beside me did nothing and said nothing. I teleported out to find Vivian.
Chapter Twenty-Seven- Gabe
As soon as the witch had been killed I was released and with good timing. It took me only seconds to kill the nineteen who ambushed me and I hoped that they hadn’t yet reached Vivian. One was able to escape. Instead of following him I burst through the canopies of the trees and searched for Vivian. My heart raced as I searched for her, maybe I wouldn’t make it in time.
Witchcraft was a force that if caught unguarded I was weak to. Like this very instance. For whatever reason, Vivian had jumped in front and protected me. I tried not to think too much into it. I didn’t want to seek an answer as to why a Guardian and host to so many demons would want to protect me, a war angel. For all her fowl mouth, bad actions and suspicions of murdering one of my friends and best soldiers–she has just saved my life.
I found her on the edge of a cliff. She was in her cat demon form and the claw marks that were etched around her paw told me she was probably trying to drag herself over and into the sea. Blood marred her as she was now unconscious and I could sense her life so close to extinguishing. I ripped my shirt off, placing it into my hands and pressed it against her hemorrhaging shoulder. Maybe a little too late but I just needed her to hold on long enough until I found somewhere safe. There was a hollowed tree close by that I saw earlier, possibly once lived in but vacant now. I clutched her unconscious body in my arms and flew there with the strong beats of my wings determined to not let her succumb to death. Although in her cat demon form she seemed surprisingly vulnerable and what I least expected was her cat demon opening up to me in the manner that all animals did.
She showed me images of certain hunts and killings they went on–passing time that went further into Vivian’s memories. I blocked the images so I could concentrate on finding the hollowed-out tree. For whatever reason, her cat demon clung on with her instead of retracting from the con
tract. Very impressive considering she was fatally wounded. All other Guardians I had known died in their human form. With her cat demon opening up to me, I had the impression that it was almost loyalty, a suggestion that all the demons she was contracted to would stay with her until the very end. And that was the reason, I thought she hadn’t yet died on that cliff’s edge. They were desperately trying to keep her alive.
I found the tree and swooped in low. I entered the large hollowed tree that looked interiorly like a wooden cave. I put her down and removed the bandage to look down on her shoulder again. I had three choices. One. Let her die. And that seemed to be the easiest choice. It wasn’t my obligation to keep her alive and stood against almost everything I believed in. Two. Very little people knew but I could teleport her to my own medical team but then it would violate the agreement between Haymen and me. She wasn’t permitted to leave Shabeah. Even then it would raise too many questions and rumors from my own following and members for something I couldn’t entirely explain. Or my third. Was costly to both her and me and almost a repulsive thought if I considered it seriously. I flexed my knuckles back and forth in consideration. I did owe her my life. And I had only ever owed a few that some of those that I did, weren’t around anymore for me to repay it.
I inhaled and decided to act before reason set in. I knelt beside her and scoped her head in my arms. Despite being a demon cat, it still somewhat resembled her. Her unconscious face was somewhat serene until the movement made her wince. What I did need was her detached arm and so I thought of it, remembering it lying there on the ground and honed in on it. I teleported it into my hand. The cold limb was already lifeless. It had turned back to her human arm but would still do the trick.
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