The Captain jumped back in a terrified mixture of shock and pain. He lifted his burning hand to his face and examined as his skin burned and bubbled. The man blew on the sizzling appendage trying to cool it, but to no avail. He roared and grunted and howled in pain.
“So my suspicions proved to be true,” said Goddard. “One of you poor bastards got possessed. That just increased the likelihood that Stryd was possessed, too.”
The possessed Captain growled and snarled an unintelligent response. There was no more doubt in the Royal Advisor’s mind that he was speaking to real live greater demon.
“So glad they could send one of you that can actually communicate,” Goddard said, rolling his eyes with sarcasm. “I was hoping I could learn something from you, but it looks like I’ll be the one teaching you.”
The Captain snorted.
“We’ll start with that beaker I tossed at you. The one that burns. That’s a little corrosive chemical cocktail I concocted. I’ve got all kinds of nasty surprises like that stashed around my lab. It’s how I deal with uninvited guests, like you.”
The possessed Captain’s hand finally stopped burning, his yowls of pain calming into a low soothing growl. The creature’s eyes rested on the silvery-haired man before him once again, his bared teeth now baring more of a resemblance to a demon. He snorted in satisfaction.
“Ready for round two?” asked Goddard. He turned away from the man and dug through the clutter on his desk to find another weapon. “You want to end up like your buddies back there?” He jerked his thumb behind him at the burlap sacks. “Then come and get me.”
The possessed Captain took a few cautious steps closer, confident enough until he saw Goddard handling another glass beaker. The Royal Advisor brandished the glass vial like it were a blade. The Captain came to a halt, locking eyes with his devil adversary. When Goddard made no move, the demon with limited patience charged like the mad beast he really was.
Next mixture! Goddard chucked another beaker. The possessed Captain expected this and dodged accordingly, except this time was different. The Captain was not the target. The beaker crashed on the hard stone floor of the laboratory several feet in front of the enemy.
The Captain came to a halt as the contents of the broken beaker, a small puddle on the cold stone floor, underwent a chemical reaction. White steam rose off the puddle and filled the air. The demon inside the Captain paused and sniffed the air, as the creature would have done with any other unknown threat.
He inhaled through his nose sharply, drawing in a small amount of the gas. It burned his nose and stung his eyes until they leaked streams. Rubbing them didn’t help. The Captain backed away, confused, attacking the air trying to clear the gas away.
“That’s my next mixture. I call it crying gas,” said Goddard. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a collapsible fan. “As you can imagine, the gas is even more effective in high doses. Please, allow me to show you.”
With a flick of his wrist the Royal Advisor spread the fan open. He swung his arm once, blowing the cloud of gas through the air. After a few more swings, the cloud of crying gas blew straight into the possessed Captain’s face.
The man swung his arms, striking at the empty spaces around him trying to fight off the gaseous foe. His eyes reddened and felt like they were melting. Tears sprayed across the lab like sprinklers. His nose leaked a constant questionable fluid that sometimes dripped onto the floor, but most of it went straight into his mouth. He staggered backwards and his foot caught on something, refusing to move another inch.
“There are a lot of stones on the floor,” said Goddard. His eyes were directed at his opponent’s feet. “But there is only one stone I know to never step on. The one you are standing on right now.”
Through watery vision, the possessed man looked down to see where his foot was stuck. His black boot stood atop a dark stone marked by the devil’s seal. No matter how he struggled, he could not move his leg.
“It may be a small movement seal, but it’s enough to keep you from going anywhere for a little while.” Goddard stopped fanning the gas and moved on to his next trick. “Now would be a good time to leave that body. If you still don’t feel like exiting that man’s body yet, I’ll just have to make you change your mind.”
Goddard produced a small flame in his hand. His enemy was too busy crying, roaring as he thrashed about. The Royal Advisor took the opportunity to move his small flame across the room. His target was not his actual enemy, but the object that was hidden on the ceiling above his target.
Tied to the ceiling light was a small bag of powder. Goddard’s flames reached the bag and burned it open. The powder dumped all over the possessed Captain’s head and shoulders. It slid down the back and front of his armor, getting underneath his clothing. A handful wound up inside his underwear.
“Itching powder,” Goddard said, failing to conceal a grin.
That’s when the itching started. The beastly man scratched away at his armor, unable to reach the areas that needed relief. When no relief came, the beast began to thrash again, making things worse for himself. He pulled at the armor, struggling to remove each piece, only to become frustrated at the next layer of obstructive clothing.
“I’m a man of science, demon! This is how I fight! If you think you can handle more of it, get out here and confront me in your real body!”
Without tolerating another moment of torment in the crying, itching, burning body, the demon evacuated by shooting out of the Captain’s mouth. The demon’s body appeared as a long, thin black strand of flesh that stretched across the room and touched the floor only several steps in front of Goddard.
The dark demon flesh contorted and stretched, piling up before Goddard. It was like a furry brick wall rose up from the ground. In seconds all the Royal Advisor could see was the shaggy brown fur of his demon opponent. He hadn’t expected the creature to cross the room and be upon him so quickly. His mind raced to figure out his next move. His hand fumbled across the desk behind him for anything useful.
Before Goddard could do anything, the wildebeest-like greater demon swatted the man clear across the room. Goddard collided with a closed closet door and dropped to the ground. The unfamiliar sensation of pain shot through his back. The stones on the floor cooled his face. Goddard could tell by the pain in his side, at least one of his ribs was broken.
Idiot, he thought. A weak grin spread across his face. Putting distance between us was exactly what I needed. Now I’ll get him… Goddard lifted his head and climbed to his feet just in time to see the enormous greater demon turn to face him.
The poor tormented Captain fell to the floor, unconscious as the greater demon left his body. The fully formed creature looked like a massive wildebeest-man. The demon scraped the ceiling with its massive head and horns. Every inch of its body was covered in long tangles of dirty brown fur. It stood on two legs that ended in large, black hoofs. Its head was that of a wildebeest, with long curved horns that spun and rotated.
TKKTKKTKKTKK, the clicking, grinding sound the horns made when they spun.
The greater demon grunted, its way of introducing itself. It said “My name’s Gnusek,” though that’s not at all what Goddard heard. The language Gnusek spoke had no such reliance on actual words. His low throaty growls roughly translated to “I work for Lord Jirosek and Prince Otozek. You should fear me, because I’m going to eat you.”
Because the Royal Advisor had no clue what the demon was saying, all of Gnusek’s ‘words’ were lost on him. Goddard slid his arm into the closet behind him, his hand nervously fumbling around the shelf to find his next weapon. The man smiled weakly finding something that felt right in his hand.
Gnusek turned to look at the fallen Captain, still lying unconscious on the lab floor. The monster’s lips curled back revealing its nasty stained teeth. A smile of relief. Gnusek turned back to face Goddard and the smile left. The demon’s big beady eyes watched the Royal Advisor curious about what nasty surprise the crafty d
evil would spring on him next.
Last mixture! Goddard pulled his next beaker from the closet. This one was bigger than the others, with a bright green liquid bubbling inside. A light mist poured out as Goddard pulled the stopper out of it.
Gnusek took a step closer.
Goddard threw the beaker.
The greater demon took another step and opened his mouth. The beaker flew across the lab and landed on the demon’s tongue. Gnusek held the beaker in his cavernous mouth a moment and then swallowed it whole in a single gulp.
He really ate it! Goddard thought. That’s my melting mixture. It’s melted everything I ever poured it on. It’ll liquefy his internal organs in seconds!
The Royal Advisor watched in triumph as Gnusek’s stomach area growled almost as loud as the demon had earlier. The wildebeest demon leaned over, its face strained in what looked like pain. Goddard thought he had already won, when the demon let loose a loud and fearsome sound.
BUUUUURP!
Gnusek resumed his full gigantic posture and stared at Goddard, seemingly unaffected by the acidic beverage. He relayed, through another series of grunts and snorts, a thorough explanation of… something.
The greater demon’s horns then spun around on his head. The pointed tip of each large horn aimed straight at the devil in the room. Before Goddard even had a chance to understand what he was seeing, the tip of the demon’s horns opened up and something shot out of it. Goddard felt a sting of pain in his shoulders. The force knocked him back down to his butt. He looked over and saw blood oozing through his shirt.
Lodged in both his shoulders was a pair of peculiar objects. Two separate-but-equally painful bloody wounds housed long, transparent objects, like arrows or darts. Goddard touched one of the smooth clear weapons piercing his flesh and discovered it was shockingly similar to glass. A murky cloud of green liquid melded throughout the weapon and Goddard realized what the objects must be. Though he had missed out on Gnusek’s lengthy explanation in demon-ese, Goddard grasped the basic concept of the demon’s ability.
What he did not know was that Gnusek’s power had a name: Edible Artillery. At least, that’s the closest title anyone could give it in proper English. The demon possessed an amazingly powerful stomach capable of digesting and repurposing anything he eats. No amount of poison, acid, or mineral could harm him so long as he ingested it all through his mouth. That was the ‘edible’ part of his power.
On the ‘artillery’ side of things, Gnusek can then rearrange the objects he consumes into projectiles to be launched from his horns. Though he’d taken the liberty to explain this all to Goddard, the Royal Advisor had to piece it together on his own.
Isn’t that a nasty little ability, Goddard thought to himself in a mixture of astonishment and terror. The blood leaked from his wounds as his arms and shoulders went numb.
I’m so screwed.
The greater demon moved in on Goddard as he considered his options. Of which, there were none. He was positive he could still climb to his feet, but his arms were useless. He couldn’t attack, or hope to sneak past the demon. He could not escape from the lab. In a few seconds he’d be demon chow.
Goddard’s hand had fallen on top of his lap. He could feel a slight bulge in his pocket. He experimented with wiggling his hand and found he still had full control there. Gritting his teeth, the Royal Advisor bared any pain that flared up as he struggled to move his arm. Just inches away to his pocket, where he pulled out of the small vial he had stored there.
The ‘medicine’ I made for Ash, he reminded himself as he stared at the thick dark liquid in the vial. I never wanted to use this on myself, but I have no other choice. There’s no telling what it might do to me. This will not be pleasant…
Goddard fought to lift the vial to his mouth. Gnusek crossed the lab and was almost upon the Royal Advisor. The creature moved slowly, confident in its stride. It had significantly weakened an already-weak opponent. Stalking prey was all part of the fun for a demon. This gave Goddard the motivation he needed to summon every drop of his own soul power, reinforcing his damaged arms.
Goddard lowered his head and lifted the vial to his mouth, pulling the rubber stopper out with his teeth. He placed the glass tube’s open end between his lips and lifted his head a little, just enough to see his demonic foe coming at him again. Goddard hesitated until the demon stretched out an arm, reaching for his meal.
If I don’t do this I’m dead, he thought. Unfortunately, this is my last resort…
He tipped his head back and let the sludgy liquid run down the glass and straight into his throat. He tried his hardest not to taste any of it or get any on his tongue. Not that it would matter in the long run. He’d likely have bigger problems in a few seconds…
Gnusek grasped the man by his wounded shoulders, lifting him off the ground and raising him to eye level. The glass vial, empty but for the remnants of the dark liquid still clinging to the sides, fell from between his lips. He wondered how long it would take for the changes to begin…
Changes, he thought, staring the demon straight in his expressionless eyes. Just like I did to him… The irony.
The details of what happened next seemed like a waking dream. Goddard’s body went entirely numb and his normally lively brain went quiet. Details blurred together as his mind shut down. Certain moments stuck out to him. Others were lost.
He remembered the demon lifting him up, squeezing his body. The intense pain that slowly dulled throughout his body.
He remembered being pulled closer to the monster’s wide, open jaws. Its disgusting, dirty, rotten teeth.
He remembered the stink of the demon’s breath, enough to kill a man.
He remembered looking down at his hand. The deep, dark shade of gray his skin had turned. How his fingernails had turned to talons.
He remembered breaking free from the demon’s grip. His feet hitting the ground.
He remembered observing the demon Gnusek one last time. The rush of power he got when he realized his opponent didn’t look so big anymore.
He remembered looking through the eyes of predator. Stalking his prey. Bulging grey muscles. Claws meant for ripping. Enemy flesh.
He did not, however, remember anything after that.
Chapter Thirty-One: The Worst Is Yet To Come
Several hours had passed since Ash, Shiva, and Aura carefully explained the situation to their orphan friends and forbid them from leaving the house. They could no longer hide the fact that greater demons had infiltrated the kingdom from the pair of devil youths. Not when both of them had already interacted with the vile monsters. Instead, Ash admitted to them the amount of danger they faced was staggering, and begged Aralia to stay behind closed doors for the next couple of hours.
It took a little convincing, but the orphans had to comply with Ash’s (but mostly Lady Shiva’s) authority and agreed in the end. With Ash out of bed and somewhat rested, the team bid their friends a somber farewell and set out to finish their mission. Outside the mood was ominous as they silently brought out their wings. They took flight without saying a word, heading east to the castle.
Below them on the streets, more and more people stood around carrying weapons. Some of them looked to be arguing passionately with each other, their voices adding up to an ocean of noise where no one person stood out to the team as they flew overhead. The mobs of men appeared to be slowly migrating in the same direction.
East.
As the team came closer to the castle, larger concentrations of armed citizens stood around the surrounding city blocks. For the time being, no one appeared brave enough to move in on the castle. The line of Royal Guards surrounding the entire circumference of the castle wall probably had something to do with that.
“They don’t look too happy down there,” said Ash. He lowered his elevation by a few feet to get a better look at some of the unhappy faces in the crowd.
“Doubt is starting to spread in everyone’s minds,” said Shiva. The girl tried not to pay t
oo much attention to the citizens. Her worries were with her family. “It looks like the castle is locked down, too. That only happens in emergencies, so of course everyone is going to start freaking out.”
“Let’s get down there then,” said Aura. “So I can death touch that demon Prince and end all of this!”
The death toucher swooped and his teammates followed suit. Everyone descended, landing outside the main castle gate entrance that fed into North Hell. Behind them, citizens from all over the Kingdom gathered to discuss the dreadful current events. Before them, an entire squad of Royal Guards stood at full attention to defend the castle from any threat.
Shiva wasted no time in marching straight up to the doormen manning the front gates. She was used to dealing with them on most days, and never looked forward to it.
“Open the gates,” she said. “We’re going in.” To drive the point home, she pulled her flame-wing pin out of her hair and flashed it to the guards.
“Lady Shiva,” the guard posted there replied. He was a tall young man, probably around the same age as Shiva. “You’re to report to the royal throne room. Open the gates!”
Several soldiers sprung into action and started pushing the big gates open. Shiva stood there impatiently tapping her foot, thinking it ridiculous she should have to abide by proper procedure and wait for the stupid gates when she could just fly over the wall in a matter of seconds.
The soldier, catching onto her impatience, decided he’d better give her a quick briefing. “Lady Shiva, all the Captains have finally been accounted for. Turns out, Captain Pace and Captain Meeter were injured fighting the greater demons. That’s why communications went down during the attacks.”
“What about Stryd?” Shiva asked.
“The Captains and Commander were all together at some event when they were attacked. The details are a little sketchy at this point, but the Commander claims to have fought off the demons for now. The castle lock-down is Goddard’s idea.”
Devil Ash Disarray (Devil Ash Saga Book 3) Page 36
