by J. J. Egosi
“Four orcs. Just one thing missing,” Michael said with a smile as the angel spawn appeared before him.
“Now harnessing all three terrains to perform enchantment, storm the castle,” said the witch.
“That can’t be good, either,” Ursula commented.
“It’s not.” Alexa flipped through her book. “Michael’s certifiably fucked. That enchantment does, well, you’ll see.”
A massive black dragon broke from the roof of the cave with a thunderous roar and breathed crimson flames all around the sky. Their hearts skipped a beat, enveloped with terror from the dragon’s ferocious presence.
“Four orcs and a dragon. This seems familiar, somehow.” Said Isabella.
“Then, it sounds like you’ve heard of the legend of the sapphire woods. A dangerous place known for once harboring legendary beasts like the one you see before you,” Julianna said, staring at the army standing before Michael.
“Michael made it a good couple rounds, but in the end, there’s only so much one can take on, god or not,” said Alexa.
“It’s for the best. Angels shouldn’t be tampering with demon magic, anyway. Hopefully, he’ll sort this once it’s over,” said Isabella.
“I don’t know,” Ursula began, “Michael doesn’t seem bothered at all. In fact, he seems to be enjoying himself.”
Lost in discussion, the rest of the girls looked over at Michael, who continued to smile. It was almost as if he was holding back his laughter.
“There’s no way. Does he have a plan to take out four orcs and a dragon?” Alexa exclaimed.
“Dragon’s first ability commence. Double orc forces.”
“That means”—Ursula lapsed, as did everyone else when four more orcs stampeded out of the caves, roaring and swinging their clubs.
Michael’s smile only grew with the army opposing him, unhindered by the presence of a dozen more angel spawn.
“At least his army’s growing exponentially.” Isabella took a sigh of relief.
“And those new orcs can’t attack,” Ursula added.
“Dragon’s second ability commence.”
“A second one?” Julianna shouted.
“Obliterate all angel spawn.”
“All of them?” Michael’s eyes widened with surprise.
“Trample damage inflicted upon destruction,” said the witch.
“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me!” said Alexa.
The dragon belched a heavy gush of flames upon the angels, scorching them to an ashen pile of powder. The pain of their demise quickly registered on Michael instead, to which he responded with a hateful glare as the fiery jolts surged through his body. Still, he stood his ground, ready for his next move.
Standing his ground as the pain of fiery jolts surged through his body, Michael looked up with a hateful glare in his eyes.
“That face,” Julianna began, “Michael’s at such a disadvantage, and yet when I look into those eyes, I know there’s no way he could lose. But how?”
“I’m almost starting to feel bad for his opponent. Just one look of that murderous stare and you know there’s something brewing behind it,” said Ursula.
“Even with no familiars … Michael can still”—she stopped mid-thought, as Michael blocked the attack with his scepter.
“He blocked it?” Ursula said, watching as he pushed the giant beast back. “Is he allowed to do that?”
“Yes. You can block up to one direct attack with a weapon per game. Shame it’s only one. And yet”—Alexa could not look away at his unbreakable resolve in his eyes.
“Orc two attacks opponent”—
Before she could finish, she noticed the first orc pushing Michael towards the ground while he fought against its strength.
“Unbelievable. That beast must be thirty feet tall, yet he’s handling it without breaking a sweat,” said Alexa.
“We can’t forget he pretty much did the same with your titan. And that creature was way bigger,” said Ursula.
Alexa nodded along in a trance, and the rest of the girls did the same. The orc’s fist plummeted down onto Michael, primed to crush him. After a moment of silence, Michael rose from the crater his heels dug. With a gritty grunt, he pushed the orc’s fist back with a surprisingly minimal effort—almost as if to belittle the strength of the very beasts that once haunted him, as a way of saying he’d be haunted no more.
“He blocked it with his bare hands. No way,” said Isabella.
The witch looked down and paused.
“Ending turn.”
“That’s it? She still has three more orcs to attack with,” said Isabella.
“Would you go into battle against an army of one with the capacity to intimidate an orc?” Julianna asked.
Michael looked across with his unbreakable nerve at his opponent. He took a deep breath as he gazed into the beasts before him.
A realization finally hit him. A part of him had known all along, since the witch appeared, but now, he fully embraced his theory.
That dream he had in the tavern was no dream, but a vision of the future. A vision foretelling his rivalry with Lucifer. He saw that now. These beasts of his nightmare were merely his first test in defeating Lucifer, and judging by his tactics thus far, Lucifer was not pulling punches. Michael wasn’t shaken though. After all, he still had many moves of his own.
“My turn. And I cast my third light terrain,” Michael announced. The sun grew even brighter than before, engulfing more of the darkness.
“May this ray of light symbolize my hope for a better future as I harness all my terrains.” He then looked over at the girls.
I’ll prove I have what it takes to crush the demon king by crushing this witch android and breaking through Lucifer’s first test. I swear, he thought.
“He’s finally using his terrains,” said Ursula.
“This is it. Someone will lose this turn. I can sense it, somehow,” Alexa said, wide-eyed.
“With three terrains, I cast an enchantment known as ‘revival of the divine’.” An angel spawn descended from the clouds and onto his side of the battlefield as the golden rays cast their light upon it.
“He cast a spawn. But, how?” Alexa said, dumbfounded.
“By waiting until my third turn to harness any terrains, I can perform the spell that will mark the beginning of the end for you.”
“What does that enchantment do?” Ursula wondered.
“And how does he know it?” Isabella asked.
“It must be a memory he regained. I can’t find anything on this enchantment,” Alexa said, flipping through her book. She prepared to move towards her device when she felt a strong gust of wind.
Michael clenched his fists and looked at the beasts before him. “You were a fool to cast all those spawn because now, they’ll be your undoing.”
“What’s he about to do?” Ursula asked.
“This enchantment allows me to cast any duplicate spawn that’s been conjured during this game. Then, I can destroy one creature on the battlefield for every one of your spawn destroyed so far. And lastly, you take trample damage equal to the power of your fallen beast!”
“No way, he’s beating Lucifer at his own game,” Alexa said, shaking with both fear and excitement. The other girls looked on, nervously.
“You destroyed over twenty spawn during our game. Now, say goodbye to all of your familiars!”
Michael raised his scepter high. As the clouds grew dark and the thunder roared, lightning struck all around them, sending chills of fear through the girls’ bodies.
“Did I forget to mention that if you run out of familiars, you take the rest of the damage as damage equal to your own power? It’s over!”
“Unholy shit!” the girls exclaimed.
“This is the true extent to not only my power but to my undying loyalty to those I care about too. This world is shit and I couldn’t care less about all others who inhabit it, but anyone who crosses my friends pays the price. Goodbye!”
The lightning fro
m his enchantment came crashing down, striking everything opposing his unbridled hatred. First, the orcs, then the dragon, and lastly, the witch. The gruesome assault filled with blood and screams left nothing but their charcoal remains blowing in the unforgiving winds as the light swallowed the last of the darkness.
With his enemies’ demise, the storm cleared, and the sun dominated the sky again. Michael fell to his knees, overcome with fatigue. The girls walked over to him in complete shock.
“Michael, where did that come from?” Alexa asked.
Michael took a deep breath as he struggled back up. The four of them helped him to his feet.
“I don’t know. I must have read the spell while you were skimming through your books,” Michael said.
“Do you think it’s possible you just knew the spell before and you happened to regain the memory?” Isabella asked.
Michael’s head ached. “It’s possible. If that’s true, I’ll be sure not to forget that spell again.”
“You got lucky calling it when you did. I was certain you were finished,” said Alexa.
“Thanks,” Michael said with a dim eyed glare.
“You know what I meant,” said Alexa.
“I do.” Michael smiled. “And I think a part of me wanted to remember that spell. Not just to win some game, but to prove to myself I’m above being intimated by my visions and dreams. No longer will I see them as nightmares or obstacles, but as opportunities to better myself with the knowledge they could give.”
“I think you’re reading a lot into this like before with the image of that estate,” said Alexa.
“Maybe I am,” Michael began, “but I think there’s meaning in everything I see. And in the case of my dreams; something to prove.”
“And what is it you have to prove?” Alexa asked.
The four of them looked with curiosity as Michael looked to them with a smile. His confidence mystified them as the light from above cast over him.
“That Lucifer is neither going to intimidate me with any of his games nor will he get away with what he’s done. Stealing, physical abuse, threatening to enslave this world with his scheme of amassing all the titans… It ends now.”
The four of them looked at him and smiled.
“And we’ll end it together,” said Isabella.
“That, we will.” Michael nodded.
He looked towards the heavens with a stoic gaze. He could almost sense the clouds trembling under his resolution.
“Wherever you are, demon king, know that you won’t get away with your endeavors. Next time we meet, be it in this reality or my dreams, you’ll be the one to lose. So, get ready. Because it’s only a matter of time. Until I call checkmate.”
Far from where the five of them confidently stood, Lucifer hunched over his desk with a furious gaze.
“Inconceivable. To think the archangel could wield the power of a titan. He’ll prove a more formidable foe than I thought.”
He sewed the fragments of his broken mask together with thread crafted from his shadows. With the last stitch, the thread melded into the mask. It appeared now just as it was before it shattered.
Shame little Hecate isn’t here. I could have used her to sew this. Oh, well. What’s getting your hands dirty from time to time?
Lucifer placed the mask onto his face, staring outside his window. The sun was absent out there. In its place, the crimson moon hung supreme.
“None of this will matter in the end because I will return soon enough. Take haven with your friends, traversing whichever dimensions you like. It matters not to me. Any corner of our cosmos, any realm of reality, even in your darkest and most unforgiving dreams, I will find you, Michael. And when we meet again, I will cast you down from your arrogant ways and rule over the omniverse as its sole overlord. Lest you wait, brother. Your chance to cast judgment over this world beside has now imploding like a dying star. Now, it’s only a matter of time until the king overcomes the ace.”
About the Author
I am the writer of the Demonheart series. This is the first step in that journey we will take together. The concept was birthed from a very bleak and surreal dream I had long ago. And I’ve been writing those dreams into our reality ever since.
