Beelzeboss

Legend has it there once was an evil god that controlled flies. This god was said to be able to command swarms upon swarms of malignant flies and devastate a city by bringing misfortune, pestilence, war and death.

This god was also said to be vengeful, merciless and cruel. If he was offended by even one person and one person alone, he would not think twice about using his army of flies to kill not just the offender, but their family, too, and perhaps an entire city. Different stories tell of varying scales of the punishments he has meted out, but it is undeniable that this god is not adverse to mass murder, which caused him to become one of the most feared deities in the old pantheon.

However, for mankind, there is a happy ending to this legend. The evil god’s last canonical story tells of his demise.

In the age of heroes, a man stood up and rebelled against the god of the flies.

This man was said to have controlled fire and was able to utilize it to defeat the evil god’s armies of flies by killing an entire swarm with a giant fireball. Some stories claim he spits fire to kill the swarms. The former is the more popular version, but the latter has a strong following a well so it is highly contested whether he was a mage who specializes in fire or he was a normal person who weaponized a party trick.

Whichever was the case, he had the capability to go up against the evil god.

His feats did not remain unheard of in the realm of men. His reputation caused people to flock to him and aid him in his rebellion.

At first, he was only defending individuals or groups from the evil god’s wrath. Later on in the stories, he was even defending cities. Then, as his supporters grew, the more emboldened he became to face the evil god directly.

The story of the battle between the evil god and this man was a short one. The man handily beat the evil god by trapping him inside a ball of flame that will never burn out, consequently imprisoning him forever.

It was short, but it was a very important episode of the legend.

For starters, it was the origin story of The Cinder Mountains, which is an active volcano located in the south of the continent. It is also said that, whenever it erupts, it is because the evil god is trying to escape his fiery prison. Of course, as it is an ancient legend, most people nowadays no longer believe the evil god is actually imprisoned there and the smoke the mountain constantly spews is from the prison of fire.

It is also said to be the very first story of god killing. Well, technically, the hero of the tale didn’t kill the evil god, but there are plenty of stories from the age of heroes that reference it as an inspiration for rebelling against the other gods of the old pantheon. Not just the gods, too, as there are other tales of heroes defeating giants, beasts and other mythical beings that cite the man who stood against the evil god as an inspiring figure.

Speaking of the age of heroes, it is said that the defeat of the evil god marked the start of the era while also marking the beginning of the decline of the age of gods.

Lastly, apparently, that final story is the only one that describes the evil god’s appearance out of many where he plays a part. Although, when you think about it, every one of the stories except this only tells of his swarms of flies so it makes sense that the only story where he actually has a direct role to play would tell of his appearance. Thanks to this, mankind knows the face in which to fear.

Belief in the old legends may have died out, but some of the attitudes from the ancient past remain. The god of the flies’ infamy has persisted throughout the ages that his appearance became one of the most recognized symbols for all things evil - a giant fly.

I loved those stories as a kid. I used to play and pretend I was going on adventures killing malevolent gods and monsters. The surrounding forest used to be my playground as I used to fight large spiders and think they were the beasts that the heroes have fought and defeated.

The stories even made me want to become a hunter. Well, I initially wanted to be a knight and go on adventures, but I found out as I grew older that you need to be part of the aristocracy to gain the rank and the privileges. Being a lowly peasant out in the countryside, the best I can hope for to find adventure is to either be a huntsman, offer my services to a lord or go into banditry.

I didn’t want to be a criminal and I didn’t want to be stuck guarding a castle, so I obviously chose to become a hunter.

The occupation is not bad, though. The salary isn’t as high as a soldier’s, but I get a stipend for maintaining traps around the village’s perimeter to keep wild beasts and animals wandering into the farms at a minimum. Of course, there are also commissions for hunting animals and that is where I rake in the money. I also regularly travel outside my village which I can treat as adventures. The only thing lacking is the battles with mythical beings, but if the stories are to be believed, most of them, especially those that threaten humanity, have already been defeated so there really isn’t anything for me to fight anymore.

Except boredom, I guess.

While I have grown up, some things just don't change. I still like to pretend that I’m fighting monsters, mostly to make things more interesting in my mind and fight against boredom.

For example, I’m currently imagining I’m engaged in a battle with the evil god and his swarm of flies. Somehow, I must have offended him so now I must fight him and his army of plague-bringing insects.

In reality, flies were simply gathering to me. I haven’t taken a bath in three days. I’m probably already too used to my own scent, but I wouldn’t be surprised if I was emitting some strong body odor after being out here in the wilderness for more than three days unable to wash off the sweat and the dirt.

It’s not the first time I haven’t bathed for this long. I have gone weeks without a proper bath during my long expeditions, but I only managed to keep bugs away because I had the items for it, or at least able to gather the ingredients and make something to repel them. I was in town when I was dragged out here so obviously I was not carrying my hunting gear. Not to mention, I'm stuck to a tree so I can't go foraging.

No point worrying about it, though. I just have to deal with the situation with what I have, which is swatting the flies with my hands. It’s not as fantastical as the weapons the heroes of ages past wielded, but it does the job.

Well, at least in theory it could do the job.

I like to think my reflexes are good, but so far, I haven’t killed at least one miserable fly. I have managed to slap a few of them, though they just bounced right off my hand and continued to harass me.

Furthermore, there is one fly that I can’t seem to touch. Its appearance deceives as it was the largest of the lot, but is actually the quickest.

Not just that, it was the only one that kept landing on my face. The other flies started going for my other body parts, but this one somehow is determined to enter inside of my head through whichever hole it finds.

I dubbed it Beelzebub after the evil god as I imagined it was, not only the boss of this gang that I am up against, but because it seems to be the one with a vendetta against me.

I wonder if flies get tired. A lot of my assailants have been hovering around me since morning. Not constantly, thankfully, as today’s weather is breezy so whenever the wind picks up, I get some respite as the flies get blown away from me. Of course, when the wind calms, they come back to pester me again.

That said, it hasn’t been one long continuous struggle between me and the flies. Rather, it was a war with multiple stages and all of them have ended up in a stalemate.

I would like it to end within the day, however. If these flies stuck around during the night, there is no doubt that my sleep would be constantly disturbed. I figured the best time to do it is the next time the wind stops when they gather to me again. Surely enough, it happened just after the sun passed its peak.

I hear the familiar buzz and the battle is on.

My approach up until now has been to chase them off me then attempt to catch one that flies within my sights with both hands. I tried slapping them with one hand while they were midair initially, but gave that up when I couldn't make a kill even if I hit them.

To annihilate my enemies, I figured I should change my approach. Hence, when I felt a fly land on my right arm, I used my left hand to slap where it stood.

I missed and all I got was my arm getting sore, as you would expect from getting slapped.

I felt another on my nape so I tried slapping that part, too. I’m not sure if I got it, but, as expected, I hurt myself again. Hopefully, I did not give myself whiplash.

I spotted another on my chest so, once again, I slapped that part. I missed again as I saw the bug fly away to safety. Of course, my chest became sore, too.

I heard something buzzing around my left ear, hence I slapped that side of my head. I was unable to see if I got my target, but my hand appears clean so the only thing I gained from that act is a loud ringing sound in my ear.

There was a reason why I hadn’t done this earlier. I realized I would be causing damage to myself. I’m just glad nobody is watching. Otherwise, they may think I have gone crazy as I was only comically hurting myself.

Frustrated that I have been unable to kill anything despite the change of tactics, I started swinging my hands to slap away the bugs buzzing around me. But then, I noticed something. I was able to land a hit on almost all of the flies.

They were getting sluggish!

Still, they were able to evade me when I tried catching them with both hands. With one hand, however, I can make contact. Maybe it’s because my reach is longer with one arm.

Regardless, I need something harder than my hand to hit with my enemies. For that reason, I took the dagger I keep on my belt out of its sheath.

It may sound silly. Someone might even say I’m too influenced by those heroic legends to use such a weapon against flies. But, on the contrary, I’m still quite sane. I did not bring out the dagger hoping to slice the enemy with it. In fact, I don’t intend to use the edges at all!

Rather, I was going to use the flat sides to hit these pests! If my hand is too soft for them, maybe they would like iron more.

Then, on my first attack, it proved to be not such a crazy idea after all. I managed to hit one and see it drop to the ground lifeless!

My confidence grew. I spotted another fly and proceeded to swing the dagger at it. It connected and I saw the bug fly towards the bushes without changing its trajectory. I wasn’t sure if that was a kill, but I’d like to think it is as they usually recover from a slap while midair.

I continued my assault and the flies were dropping like - um - flies!

Of course, as I was using a weapon that can be fatal to myself, I was careful not to aim at my own body parts unlike earlier. Those that land on my body are just swatted away by my free hand and I kill them while they’re midair.

It was a long and arduous process that required a lot of patience, but I managed to get most of them. All that was left was Beelzebub.

With both confidence and adrenaline high, I was thinking that maybe, like that hero who defeated the evil god, I could also finish the latter’s namesake in one move. However, it was not going to be easy. Perhaps, it has learned, as it has been mostly avoiding my line of sight for a while now.

Beelzebub appeared along with his army for this current battle, but I seldom saw him. He seems to only attack my ears. There were times he made his way coming from below my jaw then landing on my lower lip, sometimes even going straight for my nostrils. Even when I defeated his minions, his strategy remained the same. Consequently, there were lulls in the battle where I would have no idea where he went as he also never lands on a body part with exposed skin.

However, I was patient. It only needs one mistake from him for this battle to be won.

I shook my body at regular intervals in case he was resting on my clothes.

I kept alert.

Surely enough, Beelzebub appeared right in front of me. I attacked as soon as I saw him. I’m very sure it’s a fluke, but I unwittingly used the edge of the dagger to attack him and I slashed his tiny body into two.

It was dumb luck that I hit, really.

It was dumb luck, yet I was still proud of it. Unfortunately, no one has witnessed it to tell the tale of I, Erik, who has sliced a fly with his dagger. I could tell the story myself, but I doubt anyone would believe me, especially when I don't know if I will be able to replicate the feat.

Regardless, the lord of the flies has been defeated. I can finally now have peace.

Except, a few moments later, I heard buzzing noises again.

Later that night, I just resolved myself to ignore the flies so I could sleep.