Year 2: The Scorched Remains - Chapter 2

No one at the Dread Keep slept soundly that night.

The night when the Demon Emperor had returned, silent, exuding a terrible aura and anger, no one dared to say a word to him, not even his wife.

The traitor Amen was shown to his quarters by a sheepish Mímir and everyone at the castle tried to ignore the heavy, oppressive air that was slowly consuming them.

Eva, who usually went to wake the Demon Emperor, was scared to do so.

“Thank you for coming with me, Hilda.”

The Satyr Knight nodded. “What…happened?”

“We…don’t know, but I wouldn’t press Lord Allaric if you can help it.”

Hilda knocked gently on his bedroom door but received no response.

Concerned, she knocked once more before Eva declared their presence and came into the room.

The empress was inside but she was stood by the window in a daze, glancing down at the courtyard below.

“Good morning, Lady Lilith. Where-?”

“Eva.”

“Yes, your majesty?”

“…Keep the servants away from my husband today. Tell them not to come close to him.”

***

“Hey, Ivy.”

“What, Monika?”

“It’s not cold today, right?”

“N-no, not really.”

“B-but-”

“Don’t say anything,” Ivy sternly warned her. “Stay quiet and don’t ask, ever.”

***

Deep within her tunnel network, Jorōgumo cowered away.

She rarely left her new home for the surface, outside of council meetings, but she did not want to leave today at all.

This one sees the Dark Lord in the Dread Knight training yard.

This one sees the staff quivering.

This one-

“Enough.” Jorōgumo dragged herself out of her tunnels using her gigantic spider legs and slowly began to walk upstairs. “Something has changed.”

***

“Details about the incursion in the west last night are scarce, even among the higher ranks of the Dread Court, Lord Ruthven.”

Trouble, the vampire crossed his arms and frowned. “Not two days ago, the Demon Emperor came to inform me of his plan and how he’d retrieve Lord Mímir’s traitor; what could possibly have happened?”

“Should I try to find out more?”

“No!” Realising how loud his voice had been, Lord Ruthven smile reassuringly. “No, thank you. If his majesty does not wish to speak of it, we remain ignorant. Understood?”

“Of course, my lord.”

“Oh, and put a gag order out immediately; do not let anyone outside of the circle of trust learn of the Demon Emperor’s fury.”

***

From atop the tall tower she had been caged in, Princess Aeila could feel the chilling air exuding from the Demon Emperor’s person.

She had seen him angry; she had seen him upset or bemused, but this, this oppressive aura, was something far beyond her worst nightmares.

Even the staff who had been told to tend to her knees seemed more on edge than usual.

I wonder if even that Dread Knight is terrified of him. She looked out the window, across the western horizon and took a sharp breath. Julius, Augustus…I miss you.

***

“Master.” Cautiously, Xi Shi stepped forward, braving the danger that Mímir, Mania, Scylla, Charybdis and Fenrir would not dare face.

The Demon Emperor said nothing as he conjured another eight-foot skeleton to use as a punching bag.

After two light punches, it shattered violently across the yard, its splinters nearly landing in a passing Gørviligr.

Xi Shi swallowed. “…Lady Lilith has asked the servants to give you some space, today, and-”

He conjured two more skeletons and broke them with a single punch, leaving little but dust behind.

“M-master?”

The Demon Emperor’s breathing became erratic.

A crowd had, unwittingly, gathered of the Demon Emperor’s inner council, of his demons, of his sworn allies and of the former servants of the Kelseys. Rebecca, Eva and Hilda were there too, all anxiously watching as their lord and master released more of his anger.

It was impossible for them to perform their normal duties with his power leaking as it was, suffocating them, crippling them.

“Master, Aba-”

In an instant, the Demon Emperor had flown over to Fenrir and wrapped his hand tightly around her throat, so tightly that it began to turn purple and the wolf began to cough and splutter.

The crater left where he had been standing was nearly seven foot deep and a small tornado of air had blasted everyone in the training yard.

“Fenrir?!” Mania cried.

“Lord Emperor, please, forgive her, she meant-”

A fist sent Mímir into the far wall and a kick dropped Mania onto her knees, vomiting blood.

The Demon Emperor dug his nails into her flesh, deep enough that blood began to flow like a burst pipe.

It spluttered onto him and then, and only then, did he release her, dropping her, wheezing and in agony, to the ground.

Yet, his eyes did not return to the ground or to those around him.

He stayed staring up at the place he’d held Fenrir, unmoving and unblinking.

Then, he spoke.

“I want the East subjugated completely within the next 5 months. I want the Grand Academy to increase its size and numbers by threefold within the next 3 months. I want every single last rebel dead or in chains before the new year begins. I want you to send the word out to our citizens that we are recruiting for the Demonic Legion, a new military order where any man or woman who joins will earn ten times the coin a member of the Holy Legion did within a year.

“I want as many Dread Knights as can be trained. I want an army worthy of marching under the Satyr’s Skull.

“I want the world, and you.” He finally looked back down, his eyes ablaze with passion and fury. “Will all deliver this to me.”

Without sparing a look at the choking Fenrir or the other wounded generals, the Demon Emperor stormed off.

Jorōgumo, who had only just arrived, bowed and held the door she’d emerged from wide open for him, ignoring the pain she felt when he pushed past her and hit her shoulder.

From the observation platform, the empress Lilith had seen everything.

What happened last night? She and everyone else not present at the raid asked.

“Willa, send for Mímir, please.”

***

“A hero recognised him?” Mímir nodded. “You’re certain?”

“Without a shadow of a doubt, Lady Empress.”

“‘David’, was it? Yet my husband goes by Allaric, does he not?”

“I don’t know for certain, Lady Empress, but his majesty reacted to that name and called her by hers.”

“‘Hailey’,” Lilith whispered. “Thank you, Spymaster, that will be all. Oh, and please make sure that no one else that wasn’t there learns about what happened without I or my husband’s say so.”

Mímir bowed, then left.

The Demon Emperor and the Summoned Heroes; they both came from another world, so it’s possible that they came from the same world. What troubles me is how Mímir said that Allaric looked when he saw her; heartbroken.

…She was someone you used to know, David.

***

“Eris!”

The world turned a dull grey as David yelled from the bottom of his heart at the ceiling of his bedroom.

“What did you do, Eris?!”

Giggling, she emerged above him, as if lying on her stomach on an invisible bed. “What do you mean?”

Without missing a beat, he swung his great sword at her and came within an inch of her face, before Eris stopped him.

She hadn’t even lifted a finger, and snickered.

“Ah, it’s been far too long since I’ve seen that look on your face.” She touched his cheek and his helmet disappeared. “Ah.” She licked her lips upon seeing the hatred filled face glaring daggers at her. “There you are, David Athelward.”

“Don’t fuck with me! Why’s Hailey here?! Why’s she one of the Summoned Heroes?!” He bellowed. “You swore you wouldn’t-!”

“Oh, since when was she family?” David ground his teeth, making Eris’s smirk grow slightly. “I didn’t have anything to do with her death, though it was amusing seeing how desperately she wanted to go back to earth.”

“Anyone would after-!”

“To save you.”

David’s expression went blank as a horrifying realty came across his mind.

“You…you didn’t…”

“Didn’t what?”

“You didn’t tell her…I’d be here, did you?” David asked.

Eris purred and leant in close to David’s face, touching their noses together.

“I did,” she said sweetly. “I told her that she could have an unexpected reunion and, what do you know.” Eris laughed. “She did!”

“Eris!”

“Ah, trying to attack me again.” She lazily sat upright in the air and touched David’s sword, making it vanish into thin air. “As much as I miss that, we both know there’s no point in it. Honestly, did you not ever wonder why I allowed your little deal with Loki to go through?”

“…You knew…about that? But Loki said-”

“Loki is the Trickster Goddess,” Eris reminded him. “She fooled you and told me everything about your little deal, to launch an early attack on the heroes and to retrieve Mímir’s spy. Loki may be capable of many things, but deceiving me is not one of them. I imagine you’d hope to demoralise the heroes into giving up or maybe to remind the west that you were too powerful for them to handle, but that’s clearly not what’s going to happen.

“Instead, it’s backfired on you beautifully, David Athelward.” She giggled again as her body began to turn into charcoal feathers. “Do keep entertaining me, my beloved Demon Emperor. Show your childhood sweetheart just what a wonderful man you’ve become.”

Then, she was gone and the world started moving once again, and David’s helm and weapon returned.

David fell onto his knees and angrily slammed both closed fists into the ground, splitting the wood and causing his entire bedroom to shake.

Dammit, dammit, dammit!

Eris, you bitch! Just wait, just wait!

He smiled; it was a pitiful, yet hauntingly terrifying, smile.

I’ll show you!

And.

He grinned a little.

You didn’t see everything!