The Demon Tamer

by user

  The four came out of the building, a wooden wagon with four wheels and an arched roof was waiting for them. A coachman in legionary clothes drove the two black horses of the cart. The man waited before everyone was on board and then left. Diosmed clutched his sword and turned his eyes to Tanya, Emmanuel clutched his book and Damian smiled.

  They came to the pier and saw the Emperor Constantine surrounded by many guards.

  «This is for you, I thank you from the bottom of my heart. I entrust you to Captain Maximus Troix and his crew. Have a good trip! Is there anything else I can do for you?» the Emperor said.

  «Yes», Damian replied, «outside the Aurelian Walls, along the Via Flaminia, three milia from here, lives an old condottiere named Agenore, old and sick. I want a house for him and gold that he should no longer work. The good man lives with his son Ascanio».

  «Ascanio? Is he the one who sold you to the Romans? He deserves a punishment!» Diosmed said.

  «What kind of punishment?» the Emperor Constantine asked.

  Damian started to think something, then laughed and answered the question.

  «Latrine. I want that he have to wash all the latrines of Rome!»

  The Emperor laughed. «This is good! It will be done, a house in Rome and some money for the old man and the punishment for the son will be to clean the latrines, starting with mine! Goodbye my saviors!»

  It was the last time that they saw that man in the white robe and red gown. They all boarded the big ship, a Roman Galea.

  «Where do you want to go?» the captain asked.

  «In Egypt!» Damian answered.

  «Come on slacker, at work! Paddle! Take the anchor away! Lower the sails! It’s off to the Egypt!» the Captain Maximus Troix ordered.

  «Thank you for having been there for my brother in these years of my absence» Diosmed said to Damian, and then the two shook hands. Damian knew he had found a true friend.

  07

  The Mediterranean Sea Pitfalls

  The Mediterranean waters were clear and calm and that incredible boat was sailing on them. It was a majestic ship, a Roman Galea belonging to the imperial fleet. Long and thin, with a golden beak with three metal points fixed to the bow, capable of easily destroying the hulls of enemy ships. The ship had been built using pure oak and pine wood, it had a length of forty meters, it was five meters tall from keel to bridge and on board there were ninety men intent on rowing. It featured a large square sail, with the roman eagle with a black color on a red background, placed on a ten-meter high mast and placed in the center of the galley. Another sail, similar to the previous one, was instead placed in the bow, while on the two sides of the ship there were three sets of rowers and for this arrangement the Romans gave to that type of boat the name “Trireme”. The rowers positioned in the lower two orders of the ship were protected by the hull, while those positioned above these were in contact with the external environment through quadrangular windows, from which the oars emerged. The lower rowers, who like the others sat on wooden benches, used shorter oars than those who were higher up. The oars, of men lower down, came out of the holes in the hull and cut through the water. The ship was five meters wide and along the edges it had a balcony positioned outside the bridge, placed laterally, which was used to fight against the enemies who arrived on board. A wooden railing ran the entire boat from bow to stern and separated the bridge from the balcony. The bow, in addition to the rostrum, had a wooden structure with a curved shape towards the inside, on which were drawn, on both sides, two eyes with a black pupil and the white sclera. Instead, at the stern, there was a curved wooden spike that surmounted the captain’s cabin, with an arched shape, inside which was his quarters with a small bed and a logbook made of parchments. Outside the cabin there was a chair, here the captain took his place and gave orders to the rowers and maneuvered the rudder, a wooden oar bigger than the normal ones, positioned on the right side of the boat.

  It was a very powerful ship, on board, as well as rowers who were slaves subjugated by Rome and were wearing white robes, there were ten “Praetorians”, the guards of the Emperor. They wore a white tunic and above it they had a coat of mail, made of iron rings. At the ankles they had the greaves, on the head a helmet with a white plume. At waistline they had the balteus with pteruges and to this they were bound the gladius and pugio. They held a pilum, a long and powerful spear, with one hand, while with the another a blue oval shield on which was painted a twisted spear that passed between four wings with feathers placed perpendicularly to the lance. In the spaces between the wings a star and a moon were drawn. Parallel to the lance ran two zigzag lines that ended with an arrowhead. In the empty spaces other golden colored stars were drawn like the other figures. The symbol of the praetorians was the scorpion, it was drawn on the armament and on the banners with a blue background.

  «It is the most powerful ship in the Empire, but the journey who we are undertaking is much more difficult. We will not stop in any port, so we reach the Egypt within twenty days. We will sail along Sicily and continue the route until we reach the banks of the Nile river» the Captain said to the four guys who were at the stern.

  The captain knew his business, he was a man in his forties with still all his black hair, curly and thick. He had two brown eyes, an aquiline nose, and a smile always on his lips. He was wearing the centurion dress with golden lorica and a very long spatha.

  The wind blew and the ship moved at great speed.

  «The sea, what a wonderful thing!» Damian sighed.

  «You never saw anything like that, did you?» Diosmed asked.

  «It’s the first time that I’ve seen such beauty» he replied to his friend.

  «Why are we headed to Egypt? What drives you so far to go to that place?» Tanya asked Damian.

  The four guys were now standing in the bow, Damian looked at the horizon, then told her about the battle in the Colosseum and death of the Egyptians, who shortly before their death they asked him to save the Egypt.

  «A strange symbol has appeared on them, a curve that rises and falls with a first concave side down and then to the high. On one side there was an eye and from the other a strange amulet».

  «It is not an amulet, but an Ankh. It is a symbol of power and strength, while the other is the Eye of Horus, an Egyptian deity. It is a source of very obscure, is related to the «“King of Hell”» Tanya pointed out.

  «Who? Hell?» Diosmed asked.

  «Help!» Emmanuel shouted.

  «Calm. We will have a better understanding of the situation when we arrive in Egypt. There are powerful enemies on your way, Damian» Tanya noted.

  «It is the symbol of the pharaoh who enslaved the Egypt. I may also be an enemy, but the real problem is that the Demon King wants me, by now I am sure, he wants my power. Everything I have inside of me is a set of different essences. I will learn to know myself deeply and to understand how to use these powers and finally I will reach the Hell and I will defeat him forever!» Damian said.

  «It’s not so simple, a living soul can’t access it, only the dead can. When a wicked man dies, death in person accompanies him in the Hell. For the Demons it is different, there are portals between this world and the Hell. Some allow you to leave, others to enter. Never in either direction. All Demons come from the Hell, the weakest when defeated become smoke, while the more powerful are sucked from the Hell’s Gates. Only those with great powers can see the portals. Am I right, Damian?» Tanya said in a provocative tone.

  «What are you suggesting? I also saw the Gate of Hell, both when it appeared for the Leviathan and for Mephistofeles!» Diosmed replied.

  Tanya looked at his face and started laughing with fun.

  «So, the Rakshasa and the Nimue, who disappeared into thin air, were the weakest? Because the strongest return to the Hell? And how do you know all this?» Damian asked in amazement and shock.

  «I come from a mystical island of women only. We study the deities, the demons and ever
y creature of this world and other worlds. We are devoted to the noble and majestic “Goddess of Time”, the one who sees everything and feels everything in every moment. In the most powerful demons flows the black blood of the King of Darkness, if he does not die they will live forever. After I arrived in Rome, I entered in the Vestal Virgins, so I stole the Vesta’s fire and improve my powers» Tanya explained.

  «That’s why you’re able to use fire!» Diosmed understood.

  «Now It’s mine, I’ve been training for years to control the fire, it’s my kindred element» Tanya said.

  «That’s why you ran away the first time I met you! You stole the fire! But it doesn’t matter, tell me what you know about the Demons and what is the purpose of your journey?» Damian asked.

  «Exact. My purpose is to find the Goddess of Time, no one has ever had contact with her except the High Priestess. We left in three for this purpose, we split and now each of us looks for the same thing. We study divinities, every past, present and future religion. Time exists and regulates everything, everything is part of the passage of time. Everything starts with time and returns to time. Anyone who destroys time and its laws will bring death and destruction in every world» Tanya explained.

  «Who created the time? And where is the Goddess now?» Emmanuel asked.

  «Nobody knows. The Goddess controls the time, but she didn’t create it. She travels to the Worlds and does not stay in the same place for long, but now the contacts with the goddess is disappeared. It is precisely for this reason that the High Priestess gave us the task of finding her again» Tanya replied.

  «I wonder know what you do on this island, I wonder... what do you know about the Devil?» Diosmed asked.

  «In every culture it is said that evil comes from the Hell. Many believe that evil is born of the King of Darkness and that he comes here to our world. With his powers he creates the Demons, beings of pure evil, and in some of them he instills his essence giving them wide powers. In turn, some of them can create others, thus forming a vast hierarchy at the apex of which resides the Demon King. Enemy of this hierarchy is the Dragon, a being created by the Gods and guarding the greatest gate for the Hell» Tanya said.

  «It’s me? How could I...» Damian said, bewildered.

  «I know the story of the Dragon, but I never thought it was true. I listened to your conversation with Diosmed, the power I felt during the tournament led me to think about it and now I was sure of it. The Dragon is in you, as the humanity and divinity of the Gods, but that is not all. A dark power, typical of demons, dwells in you. This is why he wants you and covets you, because you and him are bound» Tanya made him understand.

  «I didn’t choose all that! The Dragon was possessed by the darkness before my birth. Then why the Dragons or the Gods come alive?» Damian said angrily.

  «Take it easy. Dragons are millennial beings, nobody knows if they still exist. It is a legend narrated for centuries, from what I know you may be the only one left. Even if we cannot call you only Dragon. The Gods will take care of you when necessary. He has a plan, we need to understand what he wants to do. Evil has always had the purpose of destroying the world and ending the life of all things. That’s why I imposed the seal of light chains on you, to block this dark power» Tanya explained.

  «Thanks Tanya. I will keep the darkness within me. I beg your pardon for all that has happened» Damian said bitterly.

  «Your sincerity is pure. Thank you for saving me!» Emmanuel intervened holding out his hand in respect and he shook his hand.

  «Now try to follow me, the speech is long and complicated. The Devil created the Demons and many of them succeed in turning beasts or men into other demons. At the lowest rank, grade 1, belong the White Demons. These demons all have blue eyes and their spirits have not been completely corrupted. The white tigers originally were tigers that were transformed into demons by Ravankhan. The rest of the others are all called Black Demons, whose soul has been corrupted. To the grade 2 belong the Demons born from animal beasts, like the three-eyed sharks of the Colosseum. In Grade 3 belong the Humanoid Demons born of a beast, like the Rakshasa which was originally a tiger. Even more powerful are the Demons of grade 4, that is the Demons born from man or another creature, like the Nimue who was born from a woman. These four categories of demons are considered of low rank and do not have the capacity to possess men or beasts. Now let’s move on to high-ranking demons. To the grade 5 the Pure Demons belong, from the monstrous or humanoid aspect, like Mephistofes. From this grade on, the Demons have the ability to subdue the human soul and animals in such a way as to possess them and maneuver their bodies to their liking. Moreover, starting from the latter, high-ranking demons can create other demons. Remember that in general the Demons of the humanoid form are the strongest. The Tenshirok belong to grade 6. You may not believe me, but they are Demons born of angels, endowed with humanoid appearance and disproportionate strength. Even higher, at grade 7, we find the Nephilim, the sons of Satan, born of his union with men and other creatures. Grade 8, on the other hand, belongs to the most powerful demons that Satan has ever created: The Seven Infernal Principles and the Seven Chief Demons. Each of the Infernal Prince corresponds to one of the Seven Chief Demons. The Leviathan is one of them. At the apex of the pyramid, at grade 9 we could say, there is really him, the Demon King. The various demons also differ in Demonic Power, classified according to the color of the eyes. The least powerful are those that have the power equal to 1 and are the demons with completely red eyes. Then there are those who have black eyes that have power 2, those with yellow eyes with power 3, those with green eyes with power 4, those with gray eyes with power 5 and finally those with violet eyes with power 6. At the apex of their power, in some demons, the pupil becomes visible and it is index of the Demonic force. There are the demons with strength equal to 1 and which have the red pupil, force equal to 2 with the cobalt pupil and lastly the demons with the indigo pupil with strength equal to 3» explained Tanya while she was holding a book with a very thick brown cover and content inside all its knowledge.

  «So, we fought against powerful demons! I had never understood the difference, I only faced demons with red eyes in my life. Until a few days ago, I had never met all the other more powerful!» Diosmed said surprised.

  «Then Mephistofeles was a Pure Demon of grade 5, with a Demonic Power of 3 because he had yellow eyes and a Demonic Force equal to 1 because he had the red pupil!» Emmanuel said and Tanya nodded approval.

  «The Leviathan had yellow eyes! I thought he was the strongest!» Damian said.

  «That wasn’t his real power. The Seven Chief Demons can come into our world only thanks to the permission of their masters, the Seven Infernal Principles. They manifest their true power only when they are manipulated by their masters. I still wonder how that Mephistofeles worm made it, he also had the same yellow eyes!» Tanya replied.

  «So, we fought against Leviathan, but not at his full strength! And is it likely that he is still alive in the Hell?!» Damian asked.

  «Possible» Tanya replied.

  «You know a lot of things... tell me about that black book, what exactly was it?» Diosmed asked.

  «The Black Grimoire of Satan, written by him in person. Through it he gives power to his subjects and with it he distributes his demonic energy. I had heard of it, but I had never seen it before. It is said that within it there are written all the horrible things done against the humanity and divinity» Tanya explained.

  «A long challenge awaits us and a long journey» Damian understood.

  «Come on, the Egypt is a wonderful place. It’s full of riches and women!» Captain Maximus intervened, all cheerful.

  They passed neighboring islands, while the Praetorians trained in combat. They were much stronger than the ordinary soldiers, fighting in pairs on the bridge near the hatch allowed to go down to the interior of the ship. There were the rowers, the kitchen with a large pantry full of food, small rooms for sleeping and a cell
with bars for prisoners. The captain was usually always at the stern, where he steered the helm but now, out of passenger’s curiosity, he had gone to the bow where there was a slightly damaged sail.

  «Captain, what happened to this sail?» Diosmed asked.

  «Oh, don’t worry. They were seagulls!” he replied, smiling.

  Diosmed went closer and noticed that the gap was exceptionally large.

  «Since when did the seagulls have claws?» Diosmed wondered to himself.

  Meanwhile Tanya walked towards the kitchen, while Damian watched with amazement the training of the praetorians together with Emmanuel. The kitchen was very small, but with a truly exceptional cook. He was a little bit fleshy and wore a white robe, he cooked a huge quantity of food for the whole crew with great speed. Tanya observed that man at work from outside, then decided to enter.

  As soon as he saw her, he shouted at her: «Get out of my kitchen! Women do not deserve to be on board, let alone in the kitchen! Bring only trouble! If you don’t want the anger of the Gods to come down on us, go away!»

  «Don’t worry, I’m a priestess!» Tanya replied, smiling.

  She took the garlic and spices, then ran away. The cook mumbled something and resumed his duties.

  Meanwhile, Damian watched those Praetorians fight using strange patterns. Adrianus, the captain of the Praetorians, taught them how to react to the unexpected attack of an enemy.

  «Well, you have to concentrate on the enemy if you attack the sudden. When he attacks you, quickly draw the sword and parry his blow, the shield will support you. Let’s try, you come Blondie!», he pointed Damian, «Take a sword and attack any praetorian, but try not to let yourself be discovered!»

  Damian began to think about who should have attacked, he looked all the praetorians in the eyes and then he made his choice. He attacked Adrianus, who with a simple gesture blocked his sword.

  «It does not work like this. It is not so easy to defeat a praetorian!» Adrianus said as the two swords repelled each other. The clash between the two began, each studying the other. There was that the murderous atmosphere in any of the two, but only the desire to prove its strength and prevail over the other. Adrianus, although incredibly young, had participated in many battles. The obvious sign was his curve-shaped scar on his right arm. He had brown eyes and short hair of the same color, he had not mighty appearance and he was a man of medium height. He had been named centurion by Constantine himself, who had entrusted him with the commission to escort heroes to Egypt along with Captain Maximus and his crew.