#test chapter

[shadowthingswriting]

As You Wish - Snippet

So, I'm working on a new story (I can't help myself lol), and it's a little...different from anything I've written. I'm in LOVE with the concept though. I'm going to post a snippet of chapter 1 (which is getting long), just so it's out there. If I'm lucky, I might have the first chapter done and on AO3 before Monday. Fingers crossed!

Working Summary:

The color drains completely from Robin's cheeks. “Holy,” she breathes, and her eyes find his. “Y-you’re telling the truth? You’re really a genie?” “A Jinn,” Steve corrects, but his hands are shaking. She flips through the contract, her brow furrowing the more she reads. She works her way slowly through the restrictions and stops on the third page. Her eyes go back to the top, disbelief growing with each word. “Fuck,” Robin gasps, and her wide eyes find his. “A child? They chose for you to be a human child?” He nods, throat in knots. “So,” she fumbles. “You’ve been serving the Harringtons for eighteen years?” “Pretty much.” “Jesus.” ______ Or, eighteen years ago, the Harringtons walked out of Yellowstone Park with a newborn and the promise of ten wishes all bundled in one. Sixteen years later, Steve picks up a bat, restrictions be damned.

Chapter 1: Like Rain

It’s raining when his Token is found. It’s a young couple this time, draped carefully in thin plastic and thick shoes to protect them from the inclement weather. As embarrassing as it is to admit,  he’s not sure which one claims him. He’d been too busy quarrelling with Bhirru to notice the humans' curious touch on his tether. A misstep on his part, one he’s sure to be scolded and teased for once the contract comes to an end. 

He’s yanked abruptly from the Halls, twisting and flailing between astral planes when it should be a graceful slide to the mortal realm. He crashes hard into the Earth, a dense sapphire fog exploding from the impact. It covers everything, rushing over foliage and swallowing the trail until there’s no avenue of escape for the screaming mortals. 

Sassil lies there, disoriented. He sucks in a lungful of air and stares at the green leaves high above him. They twitch gently from the soft patter of rain, and his eyes slip closed. He missed the rain, the smell of damp foliage, and ancient trees. Nature’s a living, breathing thing in the mortal plane, one of the few things that make this curse bearable. 

He huffs a soundless breath and twists. He’s not ready. Sassil hasn’t served a human in ages. Sort of hoped the last one would be the end of it. That a tree or boulder fell on his Token and hid him away from prying eyes and greedy hands. He lifts slowly from the ground, an imposing twenty feet tall, and focuses on the job at hand. 

The humans stumble back, but they don’t run, an admirable trait, or a foolish one, Bhirru might scoff, if he were here. Bhirru never found value in those who thoughtlessly stood against the unknown. Better to run and regroup, to survive, than find yourself posturing before something you can’t handle. 

The man bravely steps forward, brandishing Sassil’s Token as if it’s some sort of weapon. “W-what the hell are you!?” the man shouts. He’s a head taller than the woman, with broad shoulders and a head full of sweeping dark hair. He’s shaking, dressed in a way that has Sassil reeling. He’s never seen clothes like it. Sassil focuses on the woman and just barely stops his jaw from dropping. She’s wearing pants.

He takes a closer look at the forest, notes the change in size and girth of the trees, and wonders how much time has actually passed. Interest sparks in his chest. It shouldn’t change anything; a job is still a job, but he’s always been…curious about the mortal realm. It’s never still, morphing and changing every few years until it’s hardly recognizable. Maybe they’re still expanding, he thinks. Still chasing after Columbia as she reaches for the West. 

The man pushes the woman, trying desperately to dislodge her terrified grip on his arm. “Run, Maria!” His voice is shaking, but he doesn’t falter. “Damnit, Run!” 

“Like hell I’m leaving you, Richard!” She spits. She glares through blonde fringe, steel in her gaze, and slips a small knife from her hip. 

Sassil lifts an eyebrow. They’re definitely not lacking spirit. “Be calm. I do not wish to harm you.” 

“Bullshit!” 

He looks around for the aforementioned animal, but it’s just them in this dense forest. It does not matter; what matters is the hungry thrum of a contract in his chest. Sassil closes his eyes and breathes. Magic twists through the air, shrinking him down to a height less threatening. Smoke fans out wide in response. Licking up trees and hanging through branches like cloud coverage.

“I am Sassil,” he says. “A Jinn of the High Halls, and you,” He holds out a hand, pointing directly at Richard. “Hold in your hand my Token.” 

The speech is awkward on his tongue. Stilted from disuse. Sassil’s not like those career Jinn. Whose Tokens are practically passed down from generation to generation in a constant flow of wish-granting.

The man pants hard, but the tremors fade as Sassil makes no effort to approach. Richard’s gaze flickers to the space-dark nail in his hand. It’s old, before his time, and long and thick like a forearm. 

“You are granted ten wishes in reward.” 

Richard blinks, and his arm goes limp. “What?”

Birds return in the ensuing silence. Cautious and noisy as they fly through his rolling fog. Richard’s jaw works, his face alternating between fear and growing wonder. Sassil waits for them to speak. He remembers enough to let the emotion play out. To let disbelief and terror transform into overwhelming curiosity. 

“J-Jinn?” Maria hesitates, knife lowering. “Like-like a genie?” 

Richard clasps a hand over Maria’s. “What the fuck is a-You know what this-this thing is?”

She moves slowly out of Richard’s shadow. “I learned about it in college,” she whispers. “They’re myths. Creatures who grant the wishes of anyone who finds their…” her eyes fall to the nail. “But they’re usually lamps?”

“A lamp,” Sassil allows, and they jump. “A shell, a knife, a rock, or even a nail. All can be Tokens, and all lying in wait for the mortal lucky enough to find them.”

Richard collapses to his knees, adrenaline leaking from him in waves. He stares at the nail, hands trembling as the weight of the offer finally sinks in. “Th-this is,” he swallows. “This is real? You’re offering us-me ten wishes for finding a fucking nail?”

His fingers twitch. He put a lot of work into the Token. Carved it personally from a dying star while this species was still rubbing sticks together for fire. Sassil maintains his manners. “Correct.” 

“Ten wishes,” Richard breathes. He turns to Maria, a grin threatening to split across his face. He wraps his arms around her waist and laughs into the plastic covering her stomach. “Do you know what we could do with ten wishes?” 

“What’s the catch?” She demands. Her fingers curl iron-like against Richard's shoulders. “There’s always a catch.” 

“A Token can be stolen,” he says, and they stiffen. “And all remaining wishes will be theirs to claim. If all wishes are used before you reclaim it, you may not use me again. Even if you brave these hills and find me again. We do not answer to the same Master twice.” 

“Right,” Richard breathes. “Right. Fuck, of course, others would want this. Would kill for this opportunity.” He stands and pulls Maria close. He scans the quiet forest, as if he can see them now, lying in wait for an opportunity to act. He turns nervous eyes on Sassil. “Is-is there a way to hide you? People are bound to notice if you come out looking like,” he waves, “like this.” 

Sassil does not know what he looks like to mortals, but it’s a common concern. A Jinn’s appearance can change on a whim in the High Halls. Always stretching, and collapsing, and morphing. The only proper identifier is one's energy and unchangeable tether. He lifts a hand, and a golden glow emits from his chest. 

The humans step back as a bundle of aged paper materializes in the space between them. It’s Maria who moves first. She grabs the small stack and pulls it close. She scans it, eyes growing wide with each word. “This is,” she frowns. “This is a contract.” 

“Yes.”

Richard leans over her shoulder while she flips through the pages. She’s a quick reader, scanning through all five pages three times before glancing up.“Guidelines…appearance…restrictions, it’s very…one-sided.” She settles on. “This gives us a lot of power over you.” 

He smiles, “Such is the curse of a Jinn.” 

There are limits to what mortals can do; They’re only allowed two of their own rules to impose on him, but the fact that they can always offer some relief. Maria’s shoulders drop, and she finally tucks the knife back in her pocket. “This says we can choose your form? What does that mean exactly?” 

“I can be anything you desire,” he answers. “Jewelry wrapped around your wrist or a familial pet at your call. Always close and inconspicuous.” 

His lips press into a thin line immediately. He shouldn’t have mentioned a pet. It’s what he’s been the last three times. A loyal dog, a winding cat, all unnoticeable and all incredibly boring. 

Richard steps forward, but Maria stops him. “Richard,” she breathes, and her hands are trembling. “You know I’ve always wanted a child.” 

He studies her face, the quiver in her hands and turns. “Could you do that?” Richard demands. “Still grant our wishes while being a child? An infant?” 

“Of course,” He says. He has granted wishes as an animal and fancy babbles strung around women’s necks. A human child is easy. “I can answer no matter the shape I take. Just hold the Token in your hand and make your wish in my presence.” 

They collapse into a huddle, whispering and arguing until they’re clinging to each other. “Ok,” Richard says. “Ok, that’s what we want, ah, choose. A human child.”

Maria pulls in a breath and wipes at her eyes. “I can’t believe it,” she laughs. “A baby, a real baby,” she hiccups and cries harder. “I’ve always wanted a boy. Steve, I imagined,” Her eyes drift, seeing something that’s not quite there. “Steve Harrington,” she huffs and pulls Richard in for a desperate kiss. “How does that sound?” 

“Shit, Maria,” Richard laughs. There’s a manic quality to it. He picks her up with a spin, and her laughter rings through the trees. “Shit! Ten wishes! Ten fucking wishes at our fucking fingertips!” Smoke twirls with their jubilation, and Sassil hums. He’s never been a human before, let alone a child, but maybe, with this couple, it won’t be so bad. 

If the other Jinns could see me now, he thinks. Sassil, interested in living the life of a human.

“Alright,” Richard grins. His grip tightens around the Token. “Let’s do it!” 

Sassil flips a hand, and the contract drifts toward him. He reads through it and stops on the two rules they’ve filled in. The first one is easy. He’s been bound to secrecy before. Had Masters who thought he’d whisper the truth to others in an attempt to free himself. A useless request when his form was always something that couldn’t communicate. 

It’s the second guideline that gives Sassil pause. Magic is only for the Harringtons' use. It’s vague yet constraining enough to bind his hands. Small magic will be out of the question without their express permission. He’ll truly be living the life of a human between their wishes. It’s…not ideal. 

Another moment passes before the contract snaps closed. What choice does he have? It disappears into his chest, and the magic takes hold.

“And so it begins,” he booms. Smoke rushes towards him. Torrential and violent as it twists skyward in an angry whirlwind. Richard and Maria fall from the force, grasping for trees that have survived worse storms. “From here forth, I am at your command, bound until all ten wishes are granted, whether it takes two days or one hundred years.” 

The contract sinks deep into his core, reshaping and adjusting the locks on his magic. “Be careful with your wishes.” 

Smoke condenses into a single point, and for a breathtaking moment, everything is silent. All the energy just… dissipates. There’s no explosion, no breaking of sound barriers, just…quiet. The ground breathes as the smoke disappears, and the misting rain gains weight in Sassil’s absence. There is no more towering entity, no promise of wishes, or cosmic contracts. No proof of the deal the Harringtons just made. 

A soft wail tugs Maria forward. She falls to her knees, and a sob escapes her throat. 

Here, naked and swaddled by vegetation, a baby screams.

[earako]

Queen killer.

That was what they had labelled Ballister.

Kind, honest, loyal Ballister.

Hesitated to even harm a spider that had crawled into his room Ballister.

The media, every news channel, all labelled Ballister has a heartless killer who murdered their beloved Queen. They painted him as a villain who bided his time and waited for the perfect time to strike. A wolf in sheeps clothing...

They were wrong. Ballister was no wolf, he was a bloodied deer with hounds nipping at his feet, prey in a maze full of hunters. He was no Queen killer.

Because the Queen was alive.

Nearly a month had passed since the disasterous knighting ceremony. Queen Valerin had somehow managed to survive the blast and limped her way over to a back alley clinic that didn't think to question the bloodied woman who pratically collapsed at the door.

Perhaps it was a good thing Valerin had decided to shed her outer dress, crown, and collar in favour of her much lighter shift. The lack of excess fabric lessened the wound on her chest...though it still felt like someone had lit a fire under her ribs.

The Queen blacked out.

That was three weeks ago. Since then Valerin had gone and done her own hunting.

Ballister was not a killer. Valerin was alive, and she saw the look on the boy's face. Complete surprise, shock, dismay. Horror.

Ballister was always an open book.

That boy couldn't lie to save his life. It was a trait Valerin found both endearing and concerning.

Ballister wore his heart on his sleeve and Valerin had, after many years, learned how to read her chosen child with ease.

(Son, a small voice at the back of her head said. Valerin shushed it, it wasn't her choice to make.)

Ballister was framed. He had to have been.

Valerin had watched over that boy since the day he jumped over the wall, she had seen him at his highest, his lowest, and everything in between.

She knew her boy was innocent.

So the Queen, now in hiding, laced up her boots and went on her own hunt. Who replaced Ballister's sword, where could a weapon like that even be made? Who would sell something so destructive?

Not to mentioned Ballister and Ambrosius were attached at the hip. The rare the two weren't together, Ballister was either busy working another thankless job to cover his tuition (despite Queen Valerin insisting she cover it. Briliantly stubborn, yet kind hearted boy he was-) or having a check in with Valerin herself. When would he even have the time to-

A video was playing on the television in the stkre Valerin was walking past. It was the Director.

"I framed Ballister. I killed the Queen."

In hindsight, the Queen was never really that fond of the Director. And it seemed the feeling was mutual.

[elfiesink]

Test Chapter: Teach Them Fear

Reader’s had a hard life but doesn’t exactly strike an imposing figure. Ashe is going to teach them how to put the fear of god into a man.

A Test chapter, tell me what you think. If you like it it’ll go up on ao3 and I’ll continue it.

You spent a lot of time with mud caked somewhere on you. In your hair. Under your nails. Soaking into your skin. As much as you wanted to be mud-free at all times it wasn’t practical. The world was a dirty, filthy place and that often left you stuck coated with earth and grease. It sucked. It sucked but you couldn’t change it so you didn’t bother. You didn’t have the time or energy to dedicate to getting upset over another shitty thing about this world that you couldn’t fix. You just had to keep going. Had to move forward.

The rain made this easier though. The air was clogged with fog so thick you could barely see the filth covering you let alone another human being. Which meant they also couldn’t see you. Couldn’t see you crouching near a chain link fence with a pair of wirecutters. Couldn’t see you snapping open a hole just big enough for you to crawl through. You got more mud smeared into your clothes but you didn’t care at this point. What was more dirt. What was more sin. You were what you were and there was no amount of soap and water capable of changing that.

And that was fine. It really was.

You had been watching this place for a while. A warehouse owned by a group of people even worse than you were. Rotten creatures. There were none of them outside but that was little surprise. Heaven forbid they get tough enough to stand a little sky water. It might make their beards soggy or worse, get into their socks. You could really feel for them. You would leave a blanket for them if you had one. But you wouldn’t have shit unless you could get out of here alive.

The warehouse seemed quiet. You pressed your ear against the cold metal door and heard nothing. Looked under the door and could see no shifting of shadows in the dim light. You jiggled the handle and when it didn’t open you got to work with your locksmithing tools. Stolen, like everything else. But it was a real teach a man to fish situation. You could’ve sold them and bought yourself a couple of sandwiches but wasn’t it a far better idea to pay for the ability to open a dozen other scores. How many shady motel rooms had you managed to settle in because you’d picked locks just like this one? You were in with a little patience and a twist of your wrist.

It was quiet. There hadn’t been many guards in all the nights you’d spent watching this place, but there was literally no one here tonight. It was dead silent. A horrible decision for a storage building but hey, you didn’t know anything about running a business. You only knew about security measures to get around them. And even then your best bets were places like this. Too cheap and unappealing for anyone but you to rob. Items were arranged haphazardly on shitty rusted shelves. Hell. Items were propping up the shitty rusted shelves. Wet and molded boxes bulging at the sides from the stress of holding it all up. The lights were dim when they worked, the bulbs covered in dead insects and grease. Most of them didn’t work. Most of them were dark, most of them were busted. They didn’t seem to care about fixing broken lightbulbs. Or fixing the leaking hole in the roof. Or fixing the cracks in the concrete floor, warning signs of a failing foundation. Or fixing anything at all.

Worked for you. Left them wide open for you to take whatever it was that you wanted. You headed for the cleanest shelves first. Boxes of computer parts and other electronics. Most of it too heavy to be worth your while but a few boxes of high-end phones made their way into your bag. You could sell those at a couple of pawn-shops. Maybe even a game store if it was late enough at night and the manager didn’t care. There were omnic parts and you could get a good dollar if you could get those to the right person but they were huge and your only vehicle was you. A shame. A real shame. Transportation was going to have to be your next buy. Or steal. If you could get something that wasn’t chipped or locked down. Maybe you would take a look in the parking lot when you were done. If they didn’t care for their goods maybe they wouldn’t care for their cares either. You’d never hotwired before but, there was a first time for everything.

You’d managed to scavenge quite a few useful things from the shelves. A gun and ammo. Talk about one hell of a score. Weapons were expensive and most people kept them under watch. It was careless to leave them in the middle of a shelf like they were just as important as some old engine parts. Not that it was the best gun, and not that you knew it worked for sure. But you could get it fixed if it didn’t. It was having it that was important. Holding it in your hand made you feel safer than you’d felt in weeks. You could get away with a whole lot more now. A car part could buy you a sandwich. A gun could get you the car.

It took you too long to hear the sounds of fighting. Thuds, crashing, and a loud echoing gunshot. You panicked and tried to load the gun while you scrambled for the exit. You were careless and someone must have heard-

There was a rifle barrel against the side of your face. It was not cold. They were always described as cold, weren’t they? Cold, hard metal. But that was assuming they hadn’t just been fired. Like the gun had just been sitting around waiting just for you. This barrel was warm. So you wouldn’t be the first person they shot tonight. And definitely not the first person they’ve shot, ever. Even if you finished loading the gun and tried to turn it on them you would be way too slow. All you could do is slowly turn to stare at the woman pointing the gun at you. You weren’t expecting the snow white hair, pristine and perfectly styled. Or the bright, piercing red eyes. You were expecting the smug smile though. She did get the drop on you after all. Not that it was very hard. You weren’t paying attention. You weren’t listening. You got ahead of yourself and let yourself get way too into picking stuff up like you were at the fucking grocery store. This is what happened when you fucked up. There were consequences and this time, the consequences were very attractive. Just your luck.

“You alone?”

“Yes.”

“How’d ya get in?”

“Lockpicks.”

“You’re quiet.”

You were? Maybe. But not quiet enough. She noticed you, and she noticed you while she was busy shooting up whoever just died. It was frustrating and disappointing but you didn’t have time to dwell on any of that. The woman slowly lowered her rifle and reached out to grip your jaw, lifting your head up.

“Want to stop bein’ alone?”

“What.”

She let go and stepped back, motioning to the people filing in behind her. Some human, some omnic, all wearing the same leather vest. So they were, organized. Very organized. But that meant they knew what they were doing. Why would they want some dirt covered fuck off the street, so to speak. All she knew about you was that you were in desperate need of a bath and that you couldn’t load a gun very quickly. But she just smiled, and leaned towards you, and prodded you in the chest with her rifle.

“You look like you could use a family. And what do you know, we have space we’re lookin’ to fill. The guys here were jokes but if you could prey on them well. What could you do with a little help?” She lowered the rifle and offered her hand.

And it was weird. It was suspicious. You were literally no one with nothing. But you were, no one. With nothing. And you were so, so fucking tired. You were tired of being covered in mud, tired of sleeping in the dirt, tired of watching your shoulder. How much worse could your life get? How could this possibly go wrong in any way that mattered. Yeah, maybe you got shot. But if maybe you’d sleep in a bed first. Maybe you would get arrested. What a surprise. What a shock. You, getting arrested. Who would have guessed. When you were at rock bottom even the sharp glass-covered boulder looked like it was a step up. You had nothing to lose. So you shook her hand.

“Good. Name’s Ashe. Welcome to the Deadlock Gang.”

“Wait like. The Deadlock Gang?” The ones that got so big it forced Overwatch to come after them and that still didn’t help? They got smacked on the wrist at worse and that definitely wasn’t because Overwatch didn’t try to fuck them up. Ashe smiled, tossed an arm over your shoulder, and guided you out of the warehouse with a laugh.

“Yeah. The Deadlock Gang. Our, family.”

Family huh? That was an interesting way to put it. You didn’t know if you would feel the same way about a group of strangers who technically recruited you at gunpoint, but at least she seemed friendly. They all did, laughing as they piled onto a truck, setting you in the middle of the group, drinks tossed around in between wads of cash. You smiled hesitantly. You could give family a try.

[sweeneyalicefanfiction]

Oto no Tales: Chapter 1

So this is Chapter 1 of the Oto no kids story. I hope you guys like it, if you do let me know, also feel free to let me know what kind of things you want to see in later chapters

“Here are the samples Jūgo and I managed to collect,”

Suigetsu’s pale hands held out a small pouch as he grumbled, “It was a lot harder than you implied, medicine freak.”

Kabuto rolled his onyx eyes as he hissed, “About time! Lord Orochimaru has been breathing down my neck about this taking too long.”

Suigetsu shrugged as he asked, “So what exactly did you need us to stalk people and hunt the dead for? I felt like such a creep.”

Kabuto’s eyes narrowed behind his round glasses as he pulled his medical gloves over his fingers, “Lord Orochimaru discovered a jutsu that may allow us to create artificial life, so we must build him a new suitable vessel. One that won’t disappoint him.”

Suigetsu nodded as he poured himself a glass of water from the nearby sink, “So how does this work?”

Kabuto sighed as he looked down at the list in his hand before grumbling, “Hand me the female sample I asked you to collect.”

Suigetsu nodded as he took a small vile of blood from the bag and handed it to Kabuto, “The girl trains quite a lot, you were lucky her training partner had accidently got her good. That should be plenty for a few experiments, right? I don’t want to have to go get more, I hate going to Sunagakure.”

Kabuto rolled his eyes as he examined the vile, “I should be able to get five tries from this, if we still can’t get it after that we may need to conduct further research.”

Suigetsu watched curiously as Kabuto took out five small vials and poured an even amount of blood into each one. With a small smirk, Kabuto then placed three of the vials into a small chest before placing the remaining two onto a scroll. Suigetsu’s eyes widened as he watched Kabuto perform a number of hand seals before the blood began to glow. As the glow dimmed, the blood became lavender in colour.

“The base is ready, now we just need to add the rest of the dna. It should be receptive to the other samples now.” Suigetsu nodded as he asked, “Which samples do you want? I couldn’t get much for most of the other samples, I mean some of those guys have probably never bleed in their lives.”

Kabuto raised a brow as he said, “You can pick the combination for this one, I will try to see the limits to what this can handle. I will take some of each sample and place it in to this one, you pick four of the samples to place into that one. It says in the notes that it will only be viable if there are four secondary dna samples added, but I want to see if I can do use all of the samples.”

Suigetsu smirked as he looked at all the vials in front of him and wondered how to make the best kid. He closed his eyes and quickly grabbed the first vial his hand touched. His smirk fell as he read the label, ‘Aburame Shino’. Looking back at his other options, his smirk returned as he decided to mix the blood of some ninja that used helping hands that were part of them during battle. He quickly grabbed two more vials labeled, ‘Inuzuka Kiba’ and ‘Sabaku no Gaara’. Suigetsu shrugged as he dumped the contents of the vials into the first one as he saw Kabuto do a moment before. His eyes widened as he watched Kabuto proform similar hand signs as before causing both vials to glow bright blue before slowly fading into a pale red.

“So now what happens Kabuto?”

Kabuto gently took both vials into his hands as he said, “I place one into the large tank and this one can wait. Once we observe the results of the full mixed tube, then we will try the one you mixed. This test will determine how we proceed.”

Suigetsu nodded as he asked, “How long until we know?”

Kabuto gently poured the contents of his vial into the large tank and sealed it shut before performing more hand signs. He placed his hands against the glass causing the tank to glow with a light green colour before the light dimmed returning to its previous bluish hue.

“According to my research, it should take eight to nine months to develop. Once we can remove it from the tank, we simply have to make sure it survives and grows to become a good vessel.”

Suigetsu nodded as he exited the room slowly. His mind drifted to the vial he had mixed, since they are creating the kids, did that mean he was that kid’s dad? He was the one responsible for picking the kid’s make up. His mind was buzzing with questions as he walked down the hall towards his room.

[redskyeatnight]

my brain keeps throwing more and more ideas for original stories at me. >_>

---

Anya had always wanted to be a Drifter, but not like this.

"Hurry up, you brats!" Misern yelled. He was a mountain of a man and he had the voice to match. The countenance too; his skin was covered in pocks, scars, and wrinkles, like the crevices in the mountains that ringed their little town.

Anya fell into line with the other new recruits. She tugged the straps of her pack tight one more time and checked the scraps of material tied around her feet hadn't come loose. Leather shoes would be better, but they were expensive. Anya's plan was to buy shoes as soon as she got paid — if she got paid, that was.

Beside her, Loen sniffled. Anya shuffled half a step the other way, hoping the crybaby wasn't about to start bawling. The last thing they needed was for someone to annoy Misern before they had even left.

"Alright, alright, shut up." Misern paced down the line of kids, starting from the oldest and working his way down. "You all know why you're here. You all know the risks. Last chance to back out." He reached the end of the line and stopped right in front of Loen. "Anyone wanna go home to their mamas?"

Anya took a deep breath. She could feel her heartbeat in her ears, and her breath pushing against her ribcage. There was a part of her that did not want to go; a part that wished she was home, safe, with her mother and sister, weaving and cooking and cleaning. But that was an old dream, and she had done much to get to where she was. 

She was going on this expedition, and no one was going to stop her. Not even herself.

Resolved, Anya pulled herself as tall as she could, rolling her shoulders back and tipping her chin up. It was an approximation of a pose she had seen her brother and the older Drifters adopt. She had been practising it for a while, for just this moment. Only where her mother couldn't see though.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Loen bite his lip, rolling it between his teeth. She saw Misern watching Loen. Then she saw Loen glance her way and awkwardly copy her, drawing himself up and setting his chin defiantly. 

Misern stared down at Loen for a good, long moment. Anya couldn't read a thought on his face, but there was something about his eyes that she thought might be displeasure. Then the look was gone, and Misern was striding off down the line again.

[motherof4dragons]

Chapter 1

Evangeline 

"Hello, Evangeline."

Well, this is awkward.  In lock-up with a bunch of prostitutes is not the place you want to run into your not boyfriend-boyfriend after having had ignored his calls for a month.

"Hey, Michael. How's it going?" I draw out the sound hey so that it's now a three syllable word, and try to give off an 'aw shucks' sort of aura around me. I don't think he's buying it.

"Long time no see."

"Well, you know. Life."

Really? That's what we're going with Eve? Smooth.

He sticks both of his thumbs into his bullet proof vest at the armpits and spreads his hands across his chest. I resolutely put the image of those hands spread over me out of my mind and attempt to concentrate on the situation in front of me. Which is that he is on the outside of the holding cell, and I am on the inside, awaiting my turn to be fingerprinted. 

"Life. I hear you've been having an interesting one lately. "

He looks pointedly around the 10×10 box I'm currently residing in. Filled with women in various states of undress and intoxication, all I can do is shrug again.

"Well, you know how it is."

His eyes have turned sparkly, a response I've learned is reserved strictly for me, but his face remains as stoney as ever. Some of the girls I was chatting with start to scoot away from me. Apparently afraid my bad juju with Mr. tall dark and scary on the other side of the bars may rub off on them. Geez, thanks ladies. I appreciate the solidarity. 

"No, Evangeline. I don't think I do know. Why don't you tell me about it."

I open my mouth to respond,  but all I manage is to snap my teeth  shut again and make a noncommittal humming noise.

"He looks mad Eve. He your old man?"

"Why didn't you tell us you we're banging something this fine Dr. Evan? We'd have stopped offering to find you some if we'd known." 

"You've got some splain'n to do Lucy."

Comments from the peanut gallery aren't helping this situation any and blood rushes to my face in embarrassment. 

"Medicine not interesting enough for you anymore darlin'? Decide it was time for a change in professions?"

"Don't give me that. You know very well that I wasn't there for sex. I was there strictly in a professional capacity."

When his eyebrow arches in amusement I realize that that doesn't help my cause any and power on.

"What I meant was, I was making a house call. Kind of. The girls need things. Condoms,  immunizations, std testing, vitamins, birth control. Due to their professional responsibilities, it's often hard for them to get proper medical care. I'm just helping out."

"Yea man. Dr. Evan just helps us out. We tried to tell those pigs that, but they tied her up too man. It ain't right."

Several of the other girls call out their opinions on the matter. As much as I love their support, some of the colorful language being used won't win me any brownie points with LAD's finest.

"Professional Responsibilities?"

Such a cop, out of all that and those are the words he chooses to latch on to.

"Hey man, we've got bills to pay too. Speaking of which, can you hurry this along? It's my morning for car pool duty. I've gotta be out of here by five or I have to call the babysitter."

Michaels look is priceless.

"Besides that Officer Hill, you and I both know prostitution is only illegal as a form of enslavement to those on the bottom of the economincal food chain. You infringe upon my civil rights to do as I wish with my person as a way to enforce upon me your righteous sense of morality. We also know, it is the same men forcing their regulations upon us that opportune themselves of the services of my better connected sisters in arms."

All heads have turned towards Daisy as she spouts her empassioned speech. When nothing but silence follows her outburst, she shrugs unapologetically.  "I'm in law school."

Michael shakes his head like he can't possibly believe what he's seeing in front of him, then motions to the officer on duty to open the door.

"I'll see what I can do to facilitate the expedition of your processing ladies. Hang tight."

I stand and stretch; those benches really aren't designed to be ergonomically friendly.  Several of my newfound friends rise with me to give me hugs and I coax promises and assurances that they'll take care of themselves and do the things we've talked about. I tell Daisy that I'll see them same time next week, but must not have whispered it quiet enough,  because a certain detective rolls his eyes in exasperation as he hurries me out of the holding area.

[npc041188]

Gluttony & Paladin

Gluttony Demon Prince – Dumas

50th Floor – Dungeons Master's Room

437th year 8th month 12th day alive

Waking, I gave my usual deep sigh before opening my eyes. I was greeted by the usual sight of my large room with various trinkets near my throne, what I suppose could be called my living space.  

There was a large mirror on the wall that allowed me to see anywhere in my dungeon, it had its uses but I barely used it, entertainment rarely happens since I became Master of the dungeon.

There is a wardrobe that supplies me with various clothes, should I feel the need or desire to change them, or wear any at all. I've been wearing my current clothes for at least 4 months now, what once looked like regale clothes were now tatters that stuck to me out of sheer filth.

There was no bed, instead all I had was this large throne my predecessor had left me, a demon far bigger than I. it was made purely of stone and had little comfort to it, but you get used to it.

Finally, the last things worth mentioning were the small trophies I had collected over the years since becoming Master, things I kept from those who tried to kill me to either defeat the dungeon or take my position. In truth each fight wasn't that great but they gave me mild amusement to remember them.

Sitting up I pealed my shirt off my back and front, nothing but my own movements making a sound in my room, there wasn't even dripping water. The silence could drive a lesser demon insane if they weren't careful.

Giving my shirt a sniff I cringed, the combined smells of old blood, rotting guts, mud, sweat and various other unknown scents emanated off it. It puzzled me how anything other than maggots could get used to the smell.

Climbing off my throne I tore the shirt off me, as well as my trousers for good measure and strode over to the wardrobe, opening it and throwing the clothes into it and slamming the door shut, the sound echoing around the room and breaking the silence if only for a few seconds.

Above me a large sphere of water formed, before raining down on me and washing away the dirt and stink from my person. Brushing my hand through my long hair I removed any dirt or clotted blood or even bone fragments I found, making sure to clean between the scales on my curved horns. I wasn't as obsessed with hygiene or smelling nice like humans were, but I felt that as Master of the dungeon I should take some pride in my appearance.

Once I had finished cleaning myself I swept my arm over my body and, pulling the water off my body and throwing it away onto the floor and walls, I instantly dried myself. Opening the wardrobe again I found a new set of clothes, this time including a pair of tough looking boots, which I admit I was happy to see, I'd walked bare foot through the dungeon enough for now.

"Not too bad" I thought to myself as I checked my reflection in the mirror; a slightly baggy shirt with frills on the end of the sleeves, smooth silk pants and some comfortable, tough boots to complete the look. "Now that's sorted, time to catch me some food"

The space between my throne and the doors was massive, allowing for plenty of room when fighting, and minimizing damage to my stuff as well. Striding across the gap I pulled open the doors and was met by the two four-armed cyclops that were supposed to be the final challenge before myself.

"G'day m'lord" they said in unison as I stepped forwards

"Gekt. Hekt" I nodded in response. They weren't much for conversation but if they are anything like their brothers that I had to kill, Eekt and Fekt, to face the previous Master, then their skill and power more than made up for it.

I say brothers, but Demon's generally don't have siblings. Gekt and Hekt were simply made and born by and in the dungeon to fulfil the role of door guards, which are always four-armed cyclops.

"I'm going to catch some food, I'll be back later" I told them as I tried to pass them, only for them to place a giant hand each in front of me.

"Can't. Humans are here" said Gekt

"45th floor, moving quickly." Said Hekt.

"Humans," I thought as I sighed, knowing that I wouldn't get passed my guards with them so deep already. "why can't they die quickly and let me get something to eat. Although, if they're strong enough to get so deep they may provide some entertainment."

"How fast have they descended?" I asked either of the cyclops

"They entered 10 days ago" said Gekt

"Would've gotten deeper sooner, but mermaids and kelpies slowed them down" said Hekt

"One eye each yet they see more of the dungeon than I do." I pondered to myself about their chances of actually reaching me. To get so deep in 10 days was an impressive feat, especially for humans. As always, I was hungry, but to have someone challenging to fight was a rare treat and at the pace they were going they'd reach me in a day, maybe sooner.

"Very well, I'll wait for the humans to reach me, but send someone to fetch me some food." I ordered the cyclops, who removed their hands from my path as I returned to my room.

"Yes M'lord" said Gekt and Hekt together.

Closing the doors behind me I quickly moved over to the mirror. "45th floor, the humans" I ordered.

The surface of the mirror started to ripple, as if someone had thrown a pebble into a smooth lakes surface, and slowly the image of the humans came into focus before me. It was a party of six humans, four females and two males. Just from their garments you could tell how they fought.

There was a female wizard, with her long robes, staff and tome of spells.

Another of the females was a religious healer, what did the humans call them? A cleric. She too had a staff but hers was made of metal, whereas the wizards were made of wood. Her robes were adorned with symbols of her religion.

One of the women wore tight leather and moved lightly on her feet, she obviously preferred speed over brawn and the daggers and knives on her person were good for throwing. Was she an assassin or a thief?

The last woman was larger than the others, even taller than one of the males, and she carried a large broadsword. Various scars littered her muscular body which was covered in basic clothes, which has some rips and tears in them now, it was easy to guess how she fought.

On to the males. One of them used a bow, but what got me curious was that he had no arrows on him, he didn't even have an empty quiver on his back. That means he either left the quiver somewhere, or there's a trick to the bow I should be wary of.

Finally, the last male used a large mace and shield as his weapons, and wore metal armour, not a whole suit but rather pieces of it so as not to hamper his movement. He had his chest piece, his shoulder pieces reached his elbows, her wore grieves and had metal plates over his upper and lower parts of his legs and boots.

"So, these six are coming to kill me. They look competent enough." I thought to myself. I watched them for a while as they rested and patched up any wounds they'd gotten from their previous fight. Indeed, when they fought they worked almost seamlessly together, and their strength was the real thing. I couldn't help but smile, I finally had something to look forward to.

437th year 8th month 15th day alive

Three days.

It's been three days since I was informed of the humans and they still haven’t arrived. I’ve done little else but wait for their arrival, sitting on my throne, drumming my fingers, hoping to hear the clash of battle outside my door before they are opened and the humans stand before me.

Did I overestimate them? Surely, they can’t be dead.

I learned patience when I was a Lord, trying to master my hunger. But three days? Surely anyone would be reaching their limits after that. In anticipation of their arrival I’ve been bathing everyday so that when they look upon me they knew I was the final demon they’d face in this place, win or lose.

In three days I’ve formulated strategies to face them, some allowing me to defeat them quickly, some allowing them to gain the upper hand early on. Some ending with them as sculptures to adorn my room, one even ending with the men dead and the women as my sex slaves. Though truth be told that one was made out of shear boredom, who could ever find such small and young creatures sexually attractive I don’t know, beside other humans and true despot demons.

Jumping from the throne I dashed to the mirror, shouting for it to show me the humans. Surely, they had made a decent amount of progress in three days. But the scene revealed to me surprised me a little. All six of them wear beaten and exhausted, the male archer seriously wounded and was currently being healed by their Cleric. The others had simple bandages wrapped around their cuts.

Moving the mirror to show me the area they were in I recognized it easily, it was the room of the Snake Mother, what you could call the Second-in-Command of the dungeon. Checking the corpse, I saw her eyes had been pierced multiple times, but there were no arrows, that would’ve stopped a great number of her abilities, and as a great surprise her tongue had be sliced off and was laying on the floor near her head.

The more I inspected the body the more my anger and annoyance at the group disappeared, they were clearly skilled and knowledgeable on how to face demons. With the mouth hanging open I could see the inside of the Snake Mother’s mouth and some of her throat had been severely burned, was her poison breath flammable?

Not to mention great chunks of her body had been cleaved, ripped and chopped off. The room itself had damage to it, great chunks of the floor, walls and ceiling had parts smashed in and broken off. The battle had obviously gone on a long time, neither side willing to back down and wanting to kill the other. I wish I knew if the archer's injuries were simple accident or the deciding factor in this battle, a fool risking his life to give their friends an advantage isn’t something to be laughed at and simply ignored.

Seeing all six humans alive after all this time made me smile, they were tired but determined, they were weak but strong. Maybe after all this time I can something to look forward to.

“If they give themselves time to rest properly, and take extra precautions while moving through my level, they should be able to reach me with time to spare” wiping away the image on the mirror I sat back on my throne, my fingers tapping on the arm again. But how much longer would I have to wait? A day? Two? Giving the humans help of any kind was out of the question. I couldn’t order the demons to simply let them through, as if they'd listen to that kind of order anyway. I’m not able to go meet them either, thanks to Gekt and Hekt.

No, my only choice was to wait for them to come to me, if they could make it this far.

I was starting to get annoyingly hungry again, I’d have to send for food before the humans killed everything.

437th year 8th month 17th day alive

I awoke to loud crashing and roaring sounds outside my door, echoing throughout my room, noise bouncing off noise as I knew at once the two four-armed cyclopes were facing the humans. Leaping from my throne I checked with the mirror, and sure enough the eight of them were in a deadly battle. Laughing to myself I wiped away the image and prepared myself. The clothes I’d been wearing for the last few days were discarded by into the wardrobe, I washed and cleaned with much vigor, though there wasn’t much dirt, and I dressed.  

The clothes I'd be wearing while facing the humans I’ve been waiting for so long were leather pants, some boots with a good heel on them, and the shirt and large jacket just screamed power and position. The jacket itself was too large for me to wear so I draped it over my shoulders.

Now I could happily face such humans as a Gluttony Demon Prince and Master of this dungeon.

But even as I finished dressing and sat on my large throne the fight was still going on, and on it went for hours.

Eventually the roars of Gekt and Hekt became the single roar of Gekt or Hekt, and the fighting had become slower, all participants becoming exhausted after hours of fighting.

I admit, at some points I became bored of the sound of the battle, occasionally a sound I hadn’t heard before claiming my attention once again, until finally, after what must have been a half days battle, there was silence.

The final four-armed cyclops guardian had fallen.

But now what? With no noise outside my door I didn’t know if the humans were dead. If they weren’t surely they'd rest before trying to face me. The Snake Mother may have been the Second-in-Command but even she’d lose out to the power of the four-armed Cyclops, their power was second only to my own.

I was tempted to use the mirror to check how many had survived, when to my genuine surprise and amazement, the doors to my room were pushed open and all six humans stepped through.

I admit, I had dreamed of this moment several times; the humans stepping through my doors, their weapons and armour gleaming and sharpened, ready for battle. Sometimes we’d banter, sometimes we’d jump straight to the fighting. But never once did I see them as I do now.

They were all injured and beaten, exhaustion on all their faces, their weapons damaged and armour dented. It truly was a sorry sight to see, and they thought they could fight me in this condition?

I am a Glutton demon, but at that moment of me seeing them like that, my anger could match that of a Rage Demon. I was tempted to attack then and there, just slaughter them all; freeze them, drown them, shock them, tear them apart with my bare hands, even raping them came to mind to have them make up for the disappointment they put at my feet.

Thankfully, learning to control my instincts and wants is what allowed me to become a Prince.

I watched from my throne as they shuffled forwards towards me, at the foot of the stairs they stopped, the male with the mace pointing it at me and speaking.

“HYuu wiil fayss oos daemon”

Ah yes, the human tongue. I’d forgotten all about it, for creatures who lived such short lives they certainly knew how to make a complex language. Now that I think about it, I’m sure I’d heard depending where you go in the world the language could change completely. Humans.

Unlike the Gods, we demons didn’t have a lot of interactions with humans so we didn’t have many chances to learn them, what with being stuck in a dungeon and all. Well, except the lower beast demons that lived on the surface, but they were too dumb to understand languages anyway.

I didn’t want to face the humans as they were now, I wanted a fight I could remember fondly, one where it was truly life and death. I wanted a fight that could cure my boredom.

“Know, yuu rest. Fiyt whhen Strong”

Being a Prince came with many perks, thankfully learning something as simple as a vocalized language was easy when compared to some of the magic I know.

The humans looked at me surprised and confused for a moment before the leader spoke again

“What?”

This time I didn’t reply and I made no move, but I watched them as they watched me. Minutes passed before someone spoke up again, this time the wizard spoke

“Did hee say tu rest, and fiyt when Strong?” She asked the group aloud, I was thankful she didn’t whisper, it made learning their language easier.

“Don’ bee daft, he’ll attack the moment wee drop our guard” the large woman with the scars spoke, her accent was different from the others, but she spoke the same language.

“We’re not exactly at our strongest” the archer spoke “I feel he could kill us no problem, the way we are now.”

“It’s true, I could kill you all no problem right now,” as I spoke they looked at me shocked again, it was amusing. “But I want a good fight. Hard fight. Fight of lyfe and death. I am so bored, nothing too do here. Rest. Heal. Become strong so we can fight and have no regrets”

After I stopped talking there was a stunned silence, I could see them questioning everything going on and everything I said. Whispering to each other they were obviously questioning what they were going to do.

Attack and certainly die

Or  

Take their time to heal so there is a chance they live.

But could they trust me not to attack when they were resting? Could they take that chance?

After a small heated discussion, the lead male turned back to me and simply nodded. They group of humans then retreated to the far side of the room, as far away as they could get away from me, and set camp. I watched as they all quickly collapsed, the cleric getting to work and healing everyone the best she could.

After watching the humans healing themselves and fixing their equipment for a few hours I got bored, there was only so many times you could watch people do the same thing over and over. Leaving them to themselves I closed my eyes and simply waited, as there was nothing else for me to do.

I dropped in and out of sleep.

Even with the distance between us, thanks to my room the whispered carried over to where I was, though they were barely legible.

The next time I woke I heard somethings scraping against each other, then I heard a fire starting to crackle and burn. Something to keep them warm as they slept.

The next time I woke, I smelled something I had never smelled before. My mouth instantly began to drool, my hunger called for it like nothing ever before.

Fully awake I looked at the humans to see what they were doing, all of them were sat around the fire they had made. Was is the fire that smelled so delicious? I couldn’t really see as one of the men had their back to me and was blocking my view. I couldn't just go over to them and see what was going on, they'd think I was going to attack them. But my curiosity and hunger compelled me to know what was making that delicious smell.

Thankfully, there are still plenty of shadows in the room.

Closing my left eye, I cast a handy little spell I learned years ago, as long as there was darkness I could see out of it. Moving my ‘eye’ across the floor and up the wall I moved it to a point where I could see into the human's small camp.  

What I saw confused me.

The humans had rammed a stick through some meat and placed it above the fire. What were they doing? The meat had become a deep brown with some black parts on it, they kept turning it round and around and poking it. Surely, they were going to make themselves sick.

Was this their plan, to kill themselves instead of fighting me? Were they that big of a set of cowards?

I saw one speak, but his whisper was too low for me to hear from where I sat, the spell only let me see at a distance, not hear. A hindsight on my part.

I watched as the wizard pulled a water skin from her bag with several mugs, opening the skin she poured a bronze liquid into the mugs and passed them around while the leather clad woman started to cut the meat. No blood poured from it, only clear liquid I'd never seen before. Taking the stick, she pulled it off the fire and slid the meat onto some small metal discs. Once they all had some meat and drink, the humans said nothing.

They simply raised their mugs, nodded and took a gulp before eating the meat.

None of them died from eating the meat, in fact they seemed to enjoy it. Was it the meat causing the smell? But how? In my years of traveling the dungeon I've eaten every kind of meat available but none of it smelled that good, sure some of the organs tasted better than others but it never put a smile on my face like the smile the humans had on theirs at this moment.

Humans truly are weird creatures.

Had the humans thought up somethings we demons hadn’t? Had the gods given them something for their loyalty? I needed to know.

Slowly the smell of the meat disappeared but it still lingered, still fired up my hunger, and the humans slowly fell asleep, their fire dying out eventually.

I tried to get some sleep as well, though it was difficult.

Before the fight, I needed to know, I had to ask what the humans had done to that meat.

437th year 8th month 18th day alive

What sleep I did get was light, the memory of the smell and my want for it kept waking me up. When I decided to wake properly I saw the humans finishing the preparations for out fight. Sharpening their blades, checking their armour etc.

Since I used no weapons I just watched them, even with the distance between us I could sense their determination, their resolve. We all knew that today either they died, or I did.

I must confess I’m so excited even my hunger for the smell and weird meat was silenced. Truly this will be the fight I wished for, and for that I was actually thankful to the humans.

When the time came, when all preparations were complete, when their focus and determination was at its highest, the group of humans approached me, and just like yesterday, the leader raised his mace and pointed it at me.

“You will face us Demon,” he said as he matched my gaze “You have our thanks for letting us rest and heal, though we know it was for your own purpose. But in return, we swear to fight you at our best and hold nothing back.”  

Whether it be Demon, god or human, finding such conviction is rare, and I now fully knew I was right to wait, to face them at their best. I couldn’t help but smile at the group before me. I was tempted to attack them now, to face them with this atmosphere that put us all in the mood for battle. But unfortunately, I had to break it, I Had to know what they were doing last night.

“Before we begin, tell me, what were you doing with the meat yesterday?”

Instantly the tension was gone, fill with confusion on the human's parts. I almost wanted to apologize for ruining the mood.

“The… meat?” The cleric asked, her voice higher and more innocent than I would’ve thought.

“The meat that you ate, putting it over the flame and turning it before eating it. I have never smelled anything like it in all my life, it awakened my hunger like never before”

“Are you… talking about us cooking the meat?” The cleric asked again, the rest of the party looking at each other as if they couldn’t believe I’ve never heard of this ‘Cooking’ before.

“Yes. Tell me, are humans able to cooking other things as well?” I tried to hide my excitement though I was doing a poor job. Cooking. How was it able to make meat smell so good? Could it make anything smell and taste great? I needed to know more.

Before answering again, the cleric looked at her friends before stepping forwards slight. “Humans have been learned to cook many things over the centuries. Unlike demons, we can easily get sick if we eat various meats, vegetable or plants raw. But we also want our food to taste good, so we started cooking them together, to see what tasted good and bad, to find what can make a meal the best. Some humans even dedicate their lives to improving food and its flavor. We call it cuisine, and it’s spread all across the world. Each town, city and continent with their own version and way of cooking and- “

The cleric seemed to be excited to talk about cuisine and cooking, her face brightening up the more she spoke of it, but a hand on her shoulder from the leader seemed to silence her, snapping her back to reality. Blushing slightly, she returned to the back of the group.

Cook. Cooking. Cuisine. An entire world of it and it’s different everywhere you go. It sounded like nirvana to me, why would anyone waste their lives not trying it all?

And yet, here I was, stuck at the bottom of a dungeon as its Master, unable to step out of it and try any of the cuisine. This was a very cruel joke some being was playing.

For a moment, I could tell my face reflected my feelings of being unable to try any cooking. But at the same time, it wasn’t completely hopeless. The humans had simply put meat over a flame, why couldn’t I do the same?

Clenching my fist, I made my resolve, I was going to survive this fight, and I was going to try cooked human meat for the first time in my life.

“You have my thanks for telling me such things, and I swear to you now, I will fight with my all as well. Not just for survival, but to have your meat and try this ‘Cooking’.”

As I threw the large jacket off my shoulders I saw the look of horror and surprise on the humans faces at what I just said, but this brought their resolve back up as well, brought back the atmosphere only a battle to the death could bring.

Launching myself forwards I flew straight towards the cleric first, her light magic would be one of the biggest troubles for me. Aiming to pierce her heart I thrust my hand forwards, only for me to strike at air as I felt something grabbing my ankle tightly, suddenly I was pulled away and spun around, sent flying across the room. Crashing into the floor I rolled on to my feet, looking at the group I saw the large scarred woman picking her sword back up.

Impressive.

Not only did she react quick enough to stop me from killing the cleric, but she had enough raw physical strength to stop me mid-air and throw me away.

Dashing forwards, I was forced to roll to the side as something narrowly missed my face, a bright light half blinding me as it flew past. Looking around I saw the bowman and as he pulled back the string an arrow of light formed.

So that’s its trick. No wonder he didn’t carry any arrows or a quiver. He didn’t have to.

Before I could move to dodge again three walls of light surrounded my sees and back, leaving me two options. I could hear the chanting of the cleric from here. But I wasn’t going to be such easy prey.

As the arrow was loosed I prepared my own magic, leaping into the air to avoid the arrow I was greeted by several fireballs of strong magic, releasing my own magic I blasted several larger balls of water into the fireballs, the water evaporating instantly and giving me some cover.  

Taking a deep breath, I blew hard towards the ground, an ice-cold mist blasting from my mouth and filling the room in less than a second. The mist was so thick I doubted the humans could see each other even if they were right next to each other.

Landing softly, I used an interesting skill I learned a long time ago called Shadow Step, it kept me silent as I moved and was perfect for situations such as this. I moved quickly to where the humans were standing, I knew they wouldn’t move as not to confuse each other when the fighting began, but I needed a clear sign where the Cleric was she was still my first target.

And a sign I got.

A light was dully shining through the mist, obviously trying to tell her friends where she was, I charged at the light, the closer I got the clearer it became, the light moving this way and that as she searched for the other humans.

This time I wouldn't stab her heart, I’ll quietly break her neck leaving the others confused about what just happened and where the others are.

Moving to her back, I reached out to grabbed the Cleric, when suddenly I was tackled and brought to the floor. Looking at what had grabbed me I saw it was the woman in the tight leather. I didn’t hear her coming, did she have the Shadow Step skill as well?

Before I could throw her off she shouted “Do It Now!”

For a second I was confused, but I got my answer as I saw a large red glow start moving through the mist moving towards us. Surprised as I was to see the glow I hadn’t grabbed the woman and she leapt away from me as the glow got closer, and hotter.

They were using a widespread fire to clear out the mist. A clever trick, but how did the come up with it? And how did the wizard know what the woman in leather meant?

Of course. The mermaids and kelpies, the creatures they had trouble with that slowed them down. Both species specialized in water magic, and doing this trick could easily confuse their opponents. It’s where I got it from after all.

I suppose they thought the fire wave would not only get rid of the mist, but damage me some as well, unfortunately I could tell little magic was put into it, and low-class magic was nothing before a Glutton Demon Prince.

Standing up I emptied my lungs in preparations, and just as the fire was about to hit me I breath in hard, like I was sucking up water. I could feel the fire entering my mouth and moving down my throat, my hunger grateful for something to eat, even if it wasn’t much. In a few seconds the fire had been consumed, but the mist was also gone.

Looking around I saw the slightly stunned faces of the humans, all of them were standing behind the wizard, who looked the most surprised out of all of them. Taking this stunned moment, I formed a small icicle spear behind my back and threw it at the wizard, before any of them could react it pierced her stomach, making her cry out and drop her staff.

The scream woke the rest of her party up, the archer shooting arrows at me, keeping me moving while the large woman and the leader placed themselves between me and the wizard, the cleric instantly trying to heal her.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t going to give them the chance.

As I dodged a few arrows I focused some water at my finger tip and condensed it, adding pressure. Dodging another arrow, I launched myself to my right, which gave me a perfect view of the archer's arm, aiming my finger I fired the water at high pressure and high speed, too fast for the eye to see but it had the desired effect, the water shot right through the archer's shoulder, the surprise knocking him back and onto the floor. The Cleric losing her concentration as she looked at the archer, surprise and shock on her face.

“Heal them!” I heard the leader shout as he suddenly charged towards me, his shield raised and his mace ready.

Smiling to myself I was glad, close combat is where I was at my best, covering my hands in lighting I planned to grab the shield and mace, shocking him while I stopped him moving. But I suddenly screamed out as two piercing pains shot up from my lower back, my concentration breaking and the lighting disappearing. Looking over my shoulder I saw the sneaky woman again, two daggers obviously just been stabbed into me, and that moments distraction was all the leader needed to smash his mace into my face, sending me flying backwards.

Damn it I let my guard down, I forgot about the woman. I didn’t think humans could be that sneaky. That mistake was totally on me. I was angrier at myself than the human male who just hit me in the face. Reaching around my back I pulled the two knives that were still stuck in me, throwing them at the humans, one aimed at the leader and the other at the cleric, but it was easily swatted away by the large scared woman as I thought it would be.

The leader simply used his shield to block the dagger as he charged at me as I stood up, once he got close enough I didn’t give him the chance to swing his mace again, I slammed my foot into his shield, sending him flying backwards and skidding across the floor. Employing a bit of dark magic, I looked around the room all around me, and suddenly I shot my arm out, grasping the leather clad woman by the throat before she could stab me again.

Not giving her the chance to react I drove my hand into her stomach, feeling the warmth of her insides covering my hand as I did, grabbing onto her intestine and ripping them out before I threw the woman away from me.

Her screams echoed throughout my chamber and the lingered after she stopped, her body sliding across the floor leaving a trail of blood behind it, and as it came to a stop it started to pool.

“Noooo!” I heard someone roar, looking at the group I saw the large woman charge towards me at full speed, her sword ready to cleave me in two, the leader climbed to his feet, my foot imprinted into his shield, and charged at me as well. Suddenly their bodies began to glow and their speed increased.

Light magic. The Cleric was already done healing.

Shit. She had better magic than I thought. Again, I underestimate these humans. Normally I'd say it’d take the wizard and archer a minute or so before they could fight again, once they were healed, but now I wasn’t so sure.

Quickly charging some lightning magic I launched it at the leader, it striking his shield dead on and stopping him for a moment, the effect I was hoping for. As the large woman swung her sword downwards at me I easily dodged, I went to kick her in the ribs but she used her broadsword to block it, a dull thud ringing out as she simply went skidding away from me.

Taking the chance, I charged forwards towards the wizard, cleric and archer, who was aiming an arrow at me. As I thought, they could still fight but the archer was slower, his body still aching from where I shot him. Now I could easily dodge his arrows in their slow succession.

Behind me I could hear the large woman and leader racing after me, the large woman sounding like a bull demon getting ready to trample something.

The wizard was chanting something while pointing her staff at me, I didn’t know what spell she was casting but just before it launched, I leapt up into the air and over the small group. I didn’t see anything come from her staff but I heard it, a powerful wind blew and I could hear it coming straight towards me.

I could hear it twist and turn to meet me, blasting me away from the group and into the nearest wall, slamming me into it but not holding me, I instantly dropped to the floor. I guess the wizard wasn’t fully ready either, a small grace.

I looked up to see the woman and leader had changed their course to charge straight at me. There wasn’t a spot for me to dodge or run to. The humans had actually cornered me.

If I knew Earth magic I’d be able to slip through the rocks to a safe distance, but no one was willing to teach me any. Trying to take or dodge the hits would result in me getting hurt seriously, not to mention they were still fortified with Light magic. Leaping upwards would leave me as a perfect target for the archer.

I was truly backed into a corner.

But then, I was backed into corners plenty of times as I traveled through this dungeon, facing demon after demon. Most of them had more fighting experience, especially the level bosses, once I became a Prince nearly all of the other demons in the dungeons lower levels are bigger than me. But I became the master of the Dungeon, I survived the fights with the other demons, and unlike these humans I did it by myself.

Now was the time to show these human what Dumas, Gluttony Demon Prince and Master of this dungeon can truly do when backed into a corner.

Focusing lighting into my left hand, and water into my right, I combine the two and blasted the human leader and scared woman with electrified water, both of them screaming in pain as the pressure of the water blasted them back, their bodies twitching as they lay collapsed on the floor.

Before the archer could shoot an arrow at me I motioned with my arm and the water leapt from the floor and flew right at the remaining three turning into sharp, strong, ice blades as it did and stabbing into the three as they tried to dodge. The archer getting several deep stabs into his arm and one into his side while the wizard and cleric were mostly stabbed in their legs.

Clicking my fingers, the bits of ice that were stabbed into the humans suddenly exploded, opening the wounds deeper and making them all cry out as blood poured down their robes and clothes.

I was now out of breath and feeling the backlash of using such magic in succession, the concentration and focus being the most difficult part. But I had bought myself a small reprieve, or so I thought.

To my amazement the scared woman as trying to stand up already, her skin burnt in places and her body still twitched randomly as she moved. I need to take her out quick before she became a problem. Charging forwards, I grabbed the broadsword she’d dropped when I blasted her back and by time I reached her she was already on one knee looking as if she was about to stand at any second.

Swinging the large sword, I cleaved through her body at an odd angle, slicing through her arms and most of her upper chest. As the four parts fell to the floor I let the weight of the sword spin me around before I launched it at the archer, the blade spinning through the air and slicing him in half as it continued into the far wall, stabbing itself into it.

A second later I was suddenly blinded by the brightest light I’d ever seen. It felt like my skin as actually burning slightly. I then felt something slam into my side making me cry out as I staggered, I felt another blow and another. The bright light stopping me from seeing who was hitting me or where they were. I was suddenly rammed by something hard and round sending me stumbling to the floor.

It was the human leader.

I felt a weight suddenly on my chest and what must have been his mace slam into my face several more times, making my blind in one eye as I heard him cry out in rage  

“Die Demon. Just DIE!”

Unfortunately for him I didn’t feel like dying today. Also, unfortunately for him, the human hadn’t pinned my arms. After another hit with the mace I swung my fist upwards, colliding with his metal armour and denting it severely, I could almost feel the ribs break from my punch, but they must have done as for a few seconds the human didn’t move, then he coughed up blood, the ribs having pierced his lung.

Reaching up I grabbed the humans head and twisted hard, his neck snapping and head twisting off. The body instantly collapsed as blood came from the giant wound and covering me.

Pushing the body off me I tried to stand, only to be treated by a weak fireball that was more annoying than painful, and still the light shined. How much power did that damned cleric have?

Then another fireball hit me

Then another.

Each fireball was weaker than the last.

Getting annoyed by the fire and the light I made a. Large sweeping motion with my arm, water blasting forth from it and hitting everything in the circular motion I made.

Finally, the light went out and the fireballs stopped. But I was still blind in one eye. Reaching up I dug my fingers into my socket and pulled out my useless eye, hissing in pain as I did so, throwing it into my mouth I swallowed it whole, knowing a new eye would grow quicker than my old one would heal.

Looking around I saw the cleric and the wizard, and now I knew why the wizard’s spells were so weak, the exploding ice had made wounds in her leg was so deep I could see bone, her face extremely pale. The cleric wasn’t much better, I was impressed she held that spell for as long as she did but now she seemed unconscious.

For a few moments I simply stood where I was, panting with my eyes closed. Well, eye.

This had been the fight I had wanted. The humans had pushed me back, surprised me, caught my off guard, forced me into a corner and surprised me again and even blinded me.

I truly would not forget this fight.

But now it was time to end it, only the cleric and wizard were alive and neither were in any condition to fight back. After such a fight, the least I could do is give them painless deaths.

437th year 8th month 20th day alive

As I woke my head felt clearer than it had in the last few days, all my wounds were healed, except my eye, it’d take me about a week to grow a new one. The mental and physical fatigue from the fight was gone, and as I sat up from the floor and looked around I saw the human bodies were still incased in ice, stopping them from rotting.

Not to mention, a few more days and the demons on the first 10 levels will start appearing in the dungeon again.

Needless to say, I was in a good mood.

Standing up I brushed the dust off my admittedly shoddy clothing, I hadn’t bothered changing since the fight so I was still stained with blood and had singed clothing here and there.

To be honest I had no real clue what I was going to do today. I could cook some human and see how they taste, but it didn’t seem right to me until I was fully healed.

Any battle damage to my room was already fixed by the dungeon, and there was no other demon for me to talk to right now.

I suppose I should collect some trophies to keep, and get rid of anything the humans brought that I don’t want.

Looking around the room I found several of the weapons the humans had, unfortunately the bow that shot Light arrows was broken. It must have happened when I threw the sword at him.

The staffs of the cleric and wizard weren’t that remarkable, so they could go as well.

The broadsword as still buried in the wall. I think I’ll leave that where it is, it’s a nice reminder.

The knives the leather clad woman used were good quality, but unremarkable, and the mace and shield weren’t anything special either. Though I do joy seeing my footprint in the shield, I think I’ll keep that.

I’ll throw the armour and clothing when I defrost the bodies, it was all pretty much ruined and none of them wore anything special.

Picking up the shield and climbing the stairs, I place it on my throne for now, looking around the room I smiled, the memory of the fight playing in my mind as I surveyed the frozen bodies.

Then something in the corner of the room caught my eye. A bundle of things propped in the corner. Where the humans made camp, of course, it was their belongings. How could I forget about those? Maybe they had something in their bags I’d want to keep.

Strolling through the bodies and up to the make shift camp I checked each of the bags. It was mostly sleeping rolls, water skins and things to eat off of. None of it was worth keeping. Then I opened the last bag and saw a water skin I recognized, it was the one that contained the Amber liquid the humans drank the night before the fight.

Opening it I sniffed it, before taking a mouth full. It was sweet. Sweeter than anything in the dungeon I’d ever tasted. It hit hard but was smoother than demon booze. A sweet alcohol. I just found a keeper.

Taking another mouthful, I corked the water skin and returned to the bag to see what else I could find. There was a small satchel full of bottles with some ground up items I didn’t recognize. Opening one of the bottle with a bright powder in it I gave a small sniff, I didn’t recognize the smell but that was because I'd never smelled it before, it was power and it burned my nose slightly, but not in an unpleasant way, in fact it made me want to smell it more.

Corking the bottle, I put them aside and fished out three books and a roll with various knives in it. I’d not seen these types of knives before, they didn’t look like they'd be useful in a fight, they were only sharp on one side and weren’t any good for stabbing, more for cutting and slicing.

Turning to the books I couldn’t read the titles of any of them, but since all three had images of meat cooking over fire on them I had to conclude these books had something to do with cuisine. More like I was hoping they had something to do with cuisine.

Learning a written language wasn't that different from learning a vocal one, it would simply take a bit of time.

[haruhikaru14]

An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works

Chapters: 1/? Fandom: Love Live! School Idol Project Rating: Mature Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Ayase Eli/Toujou Nozomi, Ayase Eli & Toujou Nozomi Characters: Toujou Nozomi, Ayase Eli, Kousaka Honoka, Minami Kotori, Sonoda Umi, Koizumi Hanayo, Hoshizora Rin, Yazawa Nico, Nishikino Maki Additional Tags: Humor, Romance, Slice of Life Summary:

A Re-Written version of "Secret Romance" by me (in Fan Fiction.net). The story takes from their first year up to their adulthood with Nozomi's point of view. I recommend you to watch Season 1-2 of Love Live and Love Live The Movie first before reading this story. (But I assume you've done that before you decided to step on fan-fiction sites, yes?) Rated M because it will involve Lewd things and jokes.