Summoning the Generals

As soon as the figures had fully formed, colour returned to the world and time moved onwards.

The figures dropped to one knee, their heads turned to the ground.

When each introduced themselves, they lifted their heads and spoke loudly and clearly to their new master.

“Abaddon, Demon of Destruction, your loyal servant, Lord Emperor.”

Abaddon was a tall, extremely muscular demon wearing demonic looking plate armour that complimented his title perfectly. It looked like it was made of molten rock and he had glowing orange eyes like a furnace beneath his helmet.

I hope he’s as strong as he looks.

“Mania, Goddess of Death, at your service, Master.”

Unlike Abaddon, Mania was sparingly wearing her armour. She was dressed in a short corset dress made of metal and plate greaves, and had fingerless chainmail gloves that reached to her elbows, leaving her bloodred, knife-like nails on display. She had a whip and satanic-looking dagger at her hips and large bat wings sprouting from her back.

It wasn’t a practical outfit to wear in battle, but David assumed she dressed in such revealing clothes because she was a succubus.

Perhaps when she’s in battle she’ll wear more armour.

She also had a beautiful face, long ebony hair and her eyes were a deep shade of red.

As David stared at her, Mania looked up and met his gaze, smiling seductively at him.

Under normal circumstances, David would’ve been enchanted by her looks.

“Mímir, Lord of Knowledge. Ready to serve, your majesty.”

Mímir was wearing grey leather armour with a thin white scarf wrapped around his neck, a sword strapped to his side and plenty of daggers strapped in belts across his body. His eyes were a soulless grey and his hair was snow white.

He was also wearing gloves that were made from leather but had metal lining the top of them, and razor-sharp fingertips at the end connected to wires wrapped in a container on the back of his hands.

Out of every possibility that David had imagined Mímir would look like, he hadn’t expected him to look like a rogue out of an RPG.

When he had first chosen Mímir, David had been worried about his own decision for one crucial reason; in Norse legends, Mímir was beheaded during a great war and his head was then kept by Odin and gave him wisdom.

However, David had gambled on the possibility of Eris not giving him a literal human head as a servant and, thankfully, it had paid off.

Maybe the scarf around his neck hides the scar.

Suddenly, a burning, throbbing pain spouted in his head. David groaned in agony as his vision went hazy and he struggled to keep his balance.

What the-?!

The pain grew again and David bit his lip to stop himself from crying out in pain.

“Lord Emperor? Are you feeling alright?”

David snapped back to his servants as the pain began to die down. They were all looking up at him with expectant, if slightly concerned, eyes.

Whatever that pain had been, he didn’t have time to worry about it.

Right now, he was the Demon Emperor.

“You must live the character in their entirety to be able to act as them.”

“I am fine, Abaddon,” David said in the deepest and most powerful voice he could make. “I was merely a little exhausted from being summoned here.”

Reassured, Abaddon nodded and lowered his head again.

“Master, we eagerly await your commands."

“Indeed. Your majesty, what is our first move?”

First move?

“Before that,” David said. “I want to ask you all this; do you all know the reason why I summoned you all here?”

“Yes,” Abaddon said. “We are your loyal servants, Lord Emperor, and exist only to serve you.”

“It is also our pleasure to assist you in fulfilling your ambitions, Master,” Mania added with a bright smile.

“My ambitions?”

Right…of course.

David let out a low laugh.

For Eris’s setting to work, it had to be David’s plan to conquer the world, not hers.

Right now, he wasn’t David Athelward; he was the Demon Emperor.

“Yes, but, for now, that is nothing more than a dream,” David mused. “It is a dream that we will make a reality, slowly but surely. However, for now, we need a temporary base and information.”

“As you say, your majesty. Might I suggest that we head to the mountains for the time being?”

“Based on what reasons, Mímir?”

“We appear to be far from any nearby villages, fortress or towns but, for all we know, this open plain is travelled along frequently, meaning that our presence could be discovered right away. Therefore, I believe it would be prudent to head to the mountains and either find a cave to stay in, or create one ourselves should we need to.”

“If we need to, I’d be able to make a gigantic one in minutes!” Abaddon proudly proclaimed.

Impressive. He came up with such a well thought out idea so quickly. David smiled a little. Maybe being the Demon Emperor won’t be as hard as I thought.

“Very well. Then, let us make haste.”

***

By the time night had fallen, David and his generals had found a large, partially flooded, cave with high ceilings and a vast view that allowed them to see for miles around.

Abaddon had started a fire, conjuring flames from his hand and setting alight some wood he had found in the cave. Mania was standing guard at the mouth of the cave; her eyes were now a light blue as she gazed into the darkness, for she had the gift of night vision. Mímir had briefly left to explore their surroundings outside of the cave, checking for any potential threats and then began formulating plans to acquire the resources that they were lacking.

David hadn’t ordered them to do any of that; they had taken the initiative and come up with their own tasks to do, then asked David for his permission to act as such.

As his generals acted, David’s mind wandered as he looked down at his own body again and again.

I want to see if I still look the same or not.

After Eris had given David his power and, in her own words, remade his body at a genetic level, he wondered if she had altered his appearance at all, or if he was just the same as he had always been.

However, when they’d arrived at the cave, there was no clean water or surface where he could see his reflection clearly in it. He could ask his generals but he was worried that it might make them suspicious of him.

If David’s own generals didn’t think he was the Demon Emperor, then that could cause problems in of itself.

I don’t think my normal face is that scary, David laughed quietly to himself. I wonder if Kara or Hailey would make fun of me for trying to act like a big, bad villain.

David closed his eyes.

Don’t think about them! He told himself. If you do, you’ll get distracted and get them killed.

If I’m going to do this, I have to do it right.

He took a deep breath, opened his eyes, and exhaled. He turned his attention to his generals.

They seem capable enough so far, David thought, resting his back against a smooth rock chair that Abaddon had made for him. It’s hard to say for sure because I know nothing about this world, its people, what’s considered strong, what’s considered weak, or what kind of monsters there are.

He frowned and found his fingers digging into the chair’s arms. The thing I’m most worried about is how powerful I am. Eris said that she gave me power, but how much? Is it a lot or a little, or is it something that I have to earn?

In his old world, David had been a big fan of fantasy games and stories, as had his friends. His friends had told him about stories where people got summoned to other worlds, and that some of them acted like a game, but he never asked for any details. David remembered them telling him of stories where the protagonists could do anything with ease and others where it was just the opposite.

I need to know which end of the spectrum I’m on. If I’m meant to be the Demon Emperor, then I should be on the higher end of the scale, or have the potential to get that powerful. If I’m not, how the hell am I going to be able to do this?

“Does something trouble you, Master?” 

David glanced to his side and found Mania looking at his face with a troubled expression. Then, once they made eye contact, she dropped onto one knee and lowered her head.

“Forgive my rudeness, but I worried that you were upset. When I heard the stone break, I-”

“Wait."

Mania went silent.

David looked down at his hands and, just as Mania had said, he’d broken both arms of the stone chair into tiny pieces whilst he’d been lost in thought.

David smiled.

“I’m actually in quite a good mood, Mania.”