Demon Gods

     On the other end of the portal, we arrived somewhere that looked completely different from the rest of the Demon Realm. Those hazy, reddened skies were replaced with a deep blue night sky, yet with shimmering golden clouds as if they were lit by the setting sun. In front of us was a massive ivory staircase of which I could not see the top. It was built into the side of a layered structure, baring resemblance to a kind of pyramid.

    As I continued looking around, Caedes called out, “My god! I come baring the one we have been searching for and their companions!”

     The moment his words ended, everything around us began to bend and stretch, as if rushing past us without even the slightest movement of air. Then, in an instant, we stood atop an ivory platform with numerous pillars, arches, and cross beams. I looked around once more. We were brought to the top of that pyramid, so high up that I couldn’t see the ground we were just on, only countless pillars, topped with sculptures and effigies emerging from the distance.

     I turned back to the platform and saw that aside from the various pillars, there was a simple, white, round table with five chairs around it. Three were empty, two were occupied. In one chair sat a familiar magician-looking character: Trico. In the other seat sat the most human-looking creature I’d seen besides Siti. They looked like a young teen with delicate, pale skin. Their features didn’t seem to lean particularly male or female, and their long, straight, silver hair that draped from their head to the floor didn’t make the discernment any easier. They wore a loose-fitting white robe, and sat with their eyes shut. The one thing that stood out from an otherwise-possibly human person were the six golden horns adorning their head, pointing straight up with a slight inward curve towards each other.

   The pale teen smiled and waved, and as they spoke, it sounded as if their voice was coming from right in front of me, despite the distance, “Hello, my guests! Please, come, have a seat!”

     Passing glances between Siti, Andre, and I, we walked towards the table and took our seats.

“I’d like to start off by saying thank you!” The pale teen began, “Thank you for staying alive all this time, and thank you for finally surrendering and coming to my on your own! There’s no telling how much time you’ve saved me! Ah, but I’m getting ahead of myself. I am the Demon God of Faith, but feel free to call me by my name, Orobas!”

     I was taken aback. Compared to Curson, whose presence felt like it would crush me and whose voice made every part of me tremble, this one looked so frail and ordinary. No booming voice, no imposing presence.

“Nice...to meet you, Orobas.” I responded hesitantly, “My name is James Cassidy.”

“And I’m Siti!”

“Andre.”

   Orobas seemed to sit there, silently for a moment, then cleared their throat, “Aren’t the other two going to introduce themselves?”

     I looked around, wondering to whom they meant. Trico, perhaps?

  Orobas shook their head, “The little goddess and our precious peer? The two lurking inside you?”

“F-forgive my insolence. I am the Goddess of Punishment, Guilt, and Redemption, Venia.”

“Heh, a humble Divinity, that’s rare~” Trico chimed in.

“I suppose Curson doesn’t care for introductions.” Orobas sighed, “He was always like that. Always hard to get along with.”

“And?” I added, “Isn’t he going to introduce himself?” I asked, turning to Trico.

“Huh? You remember me don’t ya? We’ve met before!” Trico said, gesturing as if to present himself.

“Yeah, I remember, but after learning a thing or two, I wonder if that was the truth.”

“A ‘thing or two,’ eh? Hehehe, yeah, I suppose there’s not much point now!” Trico chuckled.

  Trico gripped his mask and hat and, as he pulled them away, his whole appearance changed to that of an adult human man with red hair, wearing a yellow robe. He had six golden horns as well, yet they were much shorter, barely emerging from his hair. He grinned wickedly as a new deeper, masculine voice came from his mouth, “Nice to see you again, James~ I am the Demon God of Betrayal, Bael. So? What brings you here? Or rather, why turn yourself in?”

     I remembered what Curson said, that there was no point in lying in front of the Demon God of Betrayal. I needed to put some thought into my words.

“I’d learned from Sero why you all needed me and learned from Curson how pointless it was to bother fighting back. I...wanted to open the portal and go home.”

     Nothing I said was a lie but still not quite answering his question.

  Bael pursed his lips and leaned back in his chair, “Hmmmmmmm, even if it meant dooming that home?”

“I’d rather die over there than over here,” I stated bluntly, still not lying.

  Bael grinned and leaned forward over the table, “Hehe, you’re not making this easy, I like that. Alright, try this one: Did you really come here to surrender, or did you come here with some sort of plan or weapon to be used against us?”

     I paused a moment. Of course he would be suspicious of my motives, but the idea of a Demon God being so cautious still made me uneasy. That such a strong opponent would still try to be cautious. But he was certainly strong, and he also needed me alive.

“Of course,” I started, “I came here with every intention of killing you both.”

     Siti and Andre were both stunned by my answer while Orobas and Bael began to laugh.

“Hahaha!” Cackled Bael, “It’s been awhile since someone was so audacious to my face! When was the last one? Was it Libero? Hey, where is that guy anyway?”

“He’s on his way here,” Orobas chimed in. “Siti sent out a signal to him as soon as she arrived at the foot of the temple. Should I go fetch him?”

     Siti looked down, fidgeting, clearly not expecting her intention to be found out so easily, and surprised at how fearless they were about bringing him here anyway.

“Sure!” Bael shouted, “I wouldn’t mind gloating in his stupid face and showing off how much we’ve grown! I’m sure he’ll be eager to see us again!”

     Orobas raised its hand and snapped its fingers, releasing a fanning wave of glowing symbols that formed into a portal like the one Caedes used.

“James.” Curson’s voice echoed in my mind, “I have observed that the markings on the floor of this temple are the spell they used to summon you here, as well as the one that will send you back.”

     I tensed at this information while I kept my eyes fixed on the newly-opened portal, observing and trying not to react.

“The center is behind where Orobas is sitting. If you were to stand there, I could activate the spell.”

     My gaze shifted to where Curson indicated. It was only a short jump away, but with two Demon Gods in the way, it might as well have been on another planet. And utilizing it while they were both still here would just cause them to follow.

“I will not explain my plan to you, else Bael may extract it from you, but know that it is the key. Siti, I know you can hear me through him. Your part will be crucial as well.”

     Suddenly, out from the portal, Libero came tumbling out, but as soon as he landed and took a brief look around, he lunged at Demon God Bael.

“BAAAEEEEEEEEEEEL!!!!!!”

  Bael easily caught both of Libero’s hands as they lunged towards him, then brought Libero to the ground with some unseen pressure. “Good to see you again, Libero! You’ve gotten a lot weaker, but still as angry as always~”

“YOU!!! YOU TRICKED ME!!! SENT ME TO THE DIVINE REALM, THEN TRAPPED ME WHEN I RETURNED!!!”

“Nah ah ah!” Bael jeered, “I only helped beat you up! It was Curson that trapped you! But we won’t need that kind of complex spell to trap you a second time, with how weak you’ve become! Why, Caedes here could keep you in place while we go devour the Hidden Realm. Then, once we’re done with that, who knows? Maybe I’ll finally put you out of your misery~”

     With that, Bael tore Libero’s arms off and kicked his body over to Caedes who promptly pinned Libero down with a single foot.

“As for you…” Bael said, turning his attention back to me, “...I don’t like what you said. You know why? Because I’m the Demon God of Betrayal. I know first-hand how dirty, deceitful, and treacherous humans can be. You weren’t lying when you said you intended to kill us, and someone like you might even have a method.”

     Bael lifted his hand and my body was pulled towards him before I could even understand what was happening. His hand gripped my neck as I saw the anger in his eyes, anger that he even had to think about being cautious around something so far beneath him.

“You spoke with confidence and were careful with your responses.” Bael continued, “You’re clearly no idiot. In another realm, maybe you’d have been a hero or something. Now, what could give you such confidence, hm? Any of those four demons inside you? No, it’s not them. That pitiful goddess? If a mediocre Divinity like her could kill a Demon God like me, we would’ve been wiped out long ago. And if you had the power to kill me, I would’ve sensed it within your human flesh. That only leaves…”

     He plunged his other hand clean through my body, then yanked it out, holding the sphere of glowing symbols that contained the fragment of Curson and the weapon deeper within.

“Curson. You’ve always wanted to keep the Demon Realm in balance, always working behind the scenes to make sure no one gets too strong or too weak. Too bad for you! Once Orobas and I devour the Hidden Realm, I’m coming for you and your precious libraries first! Hahaha, but I’ll let you have a front-row seat as your precious ‘balance’ falls apart!”

     With a careless toss, Bael threw my body to the point where Curson had directed my attention before. I struck the ground hard with blood leaking out of my wound as green tendrils slowly mended the hole. Still, I clutched my gut where the wound was and could only writhe in pain while the glyphs along the temple floor began to light up with an ominous magenta glow.

“Come on, Orobas!” Bael cackled, “It’s time to eat!!”