The Devil is a Shadow

Prince Evan carried Cassius’s body on his back and said, “We have no choice. We must summon the devil. Not here, but in some forest. Witches are there. Maybe Jim knows where that might be.”

I said, “I know where it is! How long do we have?”

“Less than three hours.”

I sighed heavily and shook my head.

“Oh no… I’ll do it. Anything for Cassius!” I said.

Evan said, “Hmm. Let us go. It is dark out, we must carry lanterns.”

The old man, Peter, dashed into the room.

“What happened to our Cassius?” he cried.

“The statue, it was attacked,” said Evan.

“Dear Lord, have mercy on us,” said Peter, holding on to an old, rough hat. “I will pray for him.”

“Of course,” said Evan. “Janessa, we must leave. Now!”

“Evan, be careful!” said Catherine.

“Hmm,” he said.

The King barged into the room and yelled, “What happened? You must tell me!”

“Oh, for God’s sake, Peter, please explain.”

“Your majesty…” said Peter, quivering.

“The statue was attacked,” said Kelly, pushing his spectacles back onto his face.

The King began praying at once.

“Janessa?” said Evan.

“Yes! We have to go.”

We tiptoed past the King.

“For God’s sake, Peter, accompany them!” said the King.

“Uncle, I will help instead,” said Kelly.

“Very well…”

Jim brought a carriage forward with a black horse. We all held electric lanterns, and Evan placed Cassius beside himself. Kelly sat next to me.

The air was not only cold but also stagnant. I could barely breathe. Tears welled in my eyes, and I dried them away.

“He will be alright,” said Kelly.

I clenched my fist.

“I really hope so.”

Just then, I heard a violent fit of coughing from a speck of light.

“Comet!” I said.

“I will never leave you behind,” she said, coughing.

“What a loyal pixie,” said Kelly.

I summoned warm blankets for both of us. Folding myself in the warmth, Kelly leaned as far away from me as he possibly could.

I looked at Cassius, who merely looked like he was asleep. He kept flinching, as if he were dreaming of being hit.

The carriage stopped, and Jim yelled, “We’re here.”

“Be very careful. There may be witch hunters around,” said Kelly.

“At this hour?” said Evan.

“Indeed.”

We got down from the carriage in silence.

“Do not utter a word,” said Kelly.

“Who goes there?” screamed a familiar voice.

“Beware the triad of witches,” said a monotonous voice.

“Do not respond…” said Kelly.

“Amaranth? Azalea, Carnation?” I asked.

The men shushed me with a finger to their lips.

“Oh, Janessa! What brings you here? Is everything okay? Did you decide to join us after all?” asked Azalea.

Their eyes that matched their hair color all glowed in the dark.

“No, it’s Cassius! He’s in danger.”

Kelly walked behind me and whispered in Evan’s ear, “It seems that she knows them.”

The three witches walked forward, and Carnation said, “What’s the matter? How can we help?”

Just then, an arrow shot through the air and lay stuck on a tree trunk.

“The witch hunters?!” exclaimed Kelly.

Evan pushed him out of the way, and another arrow shot down, inches away from Kelly.

“Why did you reveal our location, you idiot!” yelled Evan.

“Well, I figured, since we aren’t actually witches, that they’d spare us.”

Azalea groaned, waved her wand, and said, “Reflective force!”

The arrow flipped back to where it came from. The three of them stood in a circle and began chanting.

We don’t have the time to deal with witch hunters! Please, God, save us all.

A black orb of energy arose from them. However, an arrow shot through the dark and dug straight into Amaranth’s leg! She screamed as she fell.

The black orb filled the entire space. I crouched to the ground, and so did the men. A shower of arrows filled the air.

I grasped my pendant as my heartbeat sped up rapidly, and I could hear it in my ears. Unable to breathe because of how tight my chest felt, cold air chilled every part of my body.

I can’t let everyone die like this! I feel like a failure already, but that won’t stop me.

I placed my lantern on the ground. My pendant glittered, and the light expanded, filling the whole space and blinding me. They screamed and questioned what was happening.

I entered a new dimension, but it wasn’t the dressmaking room. The sides of the room were pitch dark, and light shone through the ceiling and over a fountain.

I can’t even hesitate. Dear Cassius, I’m so sorry. This is all my fault.

Jumping straight into the light, a text box appeared.

Q.1) ARE YOU WILLING TO SWAP PLACES WITH THE ONE YOU LOVE?

> Yes

> No

> Other:

What is this? A death game?

A voice spoke and read the text box aloud.

“Cassius has no magic! If I were to faint now, no one would remain living! I’m their only hope!” I said.

> Other:

A woman appeared in front of me. She had black, wavy hair and the exact same face as I, in a plain, white dress.

“Come with me! I will take you to a new, grander place. There is another prince waiting for you,” she said.

A castle popped up behind her, and she grabbed my hand.

“No! Of course not. I can’t abandon them in their time of need.”

She let go of my hand.

“If you return now, and the prince gets his soul back, he might lose his memory immediately.”

“Argh! So what?”

“So what? He will probably pray for someone else, and someone will replace you.”

I began sobbing.

“If that’s my fate, so be it! The prince saved my life. How can I possibly abandon him like this? I’d do this for him even if he didn’t save me!” I screamed.

It went dark, and all of a sudden, teal green fabric glowed and draped over my body, yard after yard. It magically sewed together, with layers upon layers, with puffed sleeves. The bodice was made of heavy armor, and a crystal headpiece was placed on my head. Two gloves wrapped around my hands, and holograms projected out of them.

“The Elemental Goddess formed the path for the new Goddess, Calamity!” said a voice.

I returned to Cassius’s dimension and grew crystalline wings. A number of hooded people appeared and surrounded us with knives.

“Stand back,” I cried.

The men and women were in rough tunics, baggy pants, and carried bows and arrows. They all held their lanterns to look at me.

Soon, they aimed their arrows in my direction. I manifested a shield hologram made of light. All the arrows dissolved at once, but it pushed me far back.

“Evan, perform the ritual! I’ll hold them back,” I yelled.

“Understood,” said Evan and Kelly in unison.

“Azalea, you tend to Amaranth! I will help Janessa,” said Carnation.

“You must repent,” said one of the hunters.

“The only one who should repent is you!” I yelled.

Carnation said, “Boom!” and the hunters ran back, dodging the attack.

They aimed at Carnation.

I manifested two shields, one in front of Carnation and myself, which was barely enough to cover us. The other covered Cassius and his brothers.

I kept shielding while Carnation attacked, knocking down two of the hunters.

“Janessa! Janessa!” said the voices of men.

“What?!”

“The ritual, it is not working!”

I gulped and looked behind me. Cassius lay motionless on the ground, as if he were dead.

“No! I summon the devil from the underworld!” I said, letting go of the shields.

“Stand back! We will only target the devil,” said one of the hunters.

“Agreed!” said his followers.

We need him alive so that he can bring Cassius’s soul back into an object. But this could buy us time.

I walked back, toward Cassius, and Carnation did the same.

The earth shook side to side, tilting the ground, and trees slammed down hard.

The hunters fell to the ground, yet the men and the witches were unscathed. Comet hovered far from us.

What appeared before us was merely a shadow.