2.17: Dark Empress Infernos
I was grateful that my demonic body helped keep my emotions in check; the fight against Judas had been brutal and would have wreaked havoc on my state of mind otherwise. As I stared at the display in front of me, it came as absolutely no surprise that Emelia was my opponent in the finals. Not only was her knowledge of the game and how to use her abilities in ways no one would have thought second to none; her new demonic form gave her a very clear advantage in battle. Because I had fully expected to face her at some point during the tournament, I already had an idea of how I was going to handle fighting the love of my life.
“Are you ready, Lady Allexus?”
I nodded and gave the black orb a thumbs up.
“Thank you all for participating in our first Clan Battle Tournament! We’d like to thank all the competitors for showing us the true might of the forces of darkness. Our final match of the Elimination Tournament will be the alluring vixen of death and destruction Demon Lord Allexus, versus the quick and calculating queen of cold, Emelia! Good luck to both competitors!”
Instead of walking to the center of the arena, I opened my minion menu, tapped Emelia’s photo, and waved my hand. She teleported across the length of the arena and materialized in front of me. She recovered quickly from her moment of shock as she realized what I had done.
“I’m pretty sure that would totally count as cheating.”
She giggled and pulled me into a tight hug. I kissed her forehead, the tip of her nose, and several light pecks on her lips before pulling away.
“I knew it was going to end up being me versus you, Em. There is no Demon Lord Allexus without her trusty sidekick Emelia.”
“Sidekick? Sidekick?! Look here you lusty, beautiful, sex-fiend of a demon… I am the Great Frost Demon Emelia. The day I win against you is the day that hell freezes over. Oh… wait… It has.”
Despite my best efforts I couldn’t keep myself from cracking up at her terrible pun.
“What am I going to do with you, Em? You are too fucking cute. Totally adorbs.”
“So… as much as I’m a fan of you summoning me over here for some very public affection, you wanna get this thing started?”
I laughed softly through my nose and blew her a kiss.
“Hey, Em.”
“Hmmm?”
“Congrats on winning the tournament.”
“Wha-”
Before she could finish her sentence I drew my sword, waved one hand in front of my body to remove my armor, and thrust my blade backwards into my chest. The pain was sharp and intense; but as I used the last of my strength to drive my sword in far enough to pierce my heart, the pain ebbed away into a light numbing feeling. My vision darkened and just before my screen faded to black I saw Emelia rushing towards me.
“Was that your plan from the beginning?”
I nodded.
“Part of me wants to be mad at you for forfeiting like that… but the part of me that knows you did it cause it’s me understands why you did it.”
I grabbed her hand gently as we were teleported to a brightly gleaming throne room. The gnarled withered demon who we met upon first registering for the tournament sat upon a throne of gold-covered skulls, and he looked up as we appeared in front of him. The pupils of his red eyes were opaque with thick cataracts, and his chest rose and fell in uneven ragged breaths.
“... normally I would congratulate you both… but that was a pathetic act of selflessness you ended with… very… undemonlike.”
“When it comes to my fiancée, I have no intention of fighting her. Ever.”
He scoffed but said nothing as he stood up slowly.
“... this would usually be the part I would offer a challenge to the champion… but as neither of you truly bested the other... I will let you decide which one of you I should extend this privilege to.”
Emelia released her grasp on my hand and I felt her push me forward gently to indicate she wanted me to hear his offer.
“I may have won the tournament, but Allexus is the one who you should be talking to. She would have been the undisputed champion if not for her forfeiture.”
“... very well.”
He raised a shaking hand in front of his face and waved his fingers in a quick gesture. His body evaporated into thick black smoke and quickly reformed into the same demoness who had been the arena announcer. Her previously nude body was covered in full plate mail that matched her throne. Her long flowing blonde hair had been pulled back into a tight braid that was woven around her head and ran down her back.
“Demon Lord Allexus, as the one who should have been the rightful champion, you now have the option to fight me in a duel at your full strength. If you can survive for more than one minute… I will grant you a world-tier ability.”
The thought of being rewarded with a world-tier ability like the one I had given up when I let Emelia win made me answer without even giving it a second thought.
“Absolutely. May I ask a question first, though?”
Her eyebrows rose and she tilted her head slightly in a nod.
“What do I get if I can survive for two minutes?”
Her eyes narrowed and she glared at me with a look of pure seriousness.
“You won’t.”
She waved her hand in front of her body and her character screen came into view. Almost everything was marked with ‘?????’, including her level and for the first time in a while I felt that sense of intimidation I felt the first time I laid eyes on Mellic. She closed the menu and crossed her arms in front of her chest.
“If you are through asking me stupid questions… would you like to begin?”
I nodded once and we were instantly transported back to the arena. The demon in the gold and silver armor placed her hand on her chest and spoke loudly and clearly.
“Power limiter release; 10%!”
Instead of focusing on the implications of what she had said, I quickly cast a summoning spell with each of my hands. Thirty-five demon warriors and fourteen demon mages rose up in front of me and I ordered them to take up defensive positions. I waited for a moment to watch what the enemy was doing before I started casting two more summoning spells. The demoness had returned to her same relaxed posture with her arms crossed over her chest again. When she noticed me watching her, she started tapping a single finger on her arm impatiently.
“Just let me know when you’re done summoning your meat shields so we can actually get down to fighting.”
After casting the remainder of my summoning spells, I motioned for them to attack the gold armored demon.
“Oh… is it my turn now? I was beginning to think you were just stalling for time.”
She raised one of her hands and extended her fingers while keeping her other arm in place as if this wasn’t worth her full attention.
“[Black Flames of Damnation].”
She closed her fist and geysers of black fire shot from the ground beneath my demons’ feet. I spread my wings and jumped back a fraction of a second before the same column of fire erupted beneath me. All of my demons had been instantly incinerated with a single attack, and as she opened her hand again I realized just how outmatched I was.
“[Black Flames of Damnation].”
Again I was barely able to dodge just in time, and I quickly charged up a fireball with [Demonfire] and tossed it at the demoness. As she flicked one finger I saw my fireball dim a bit, but it still struck her in the chest. A blackened scorch mark was all that remained from my attack, and I charged up another as she stood up in a defensive posture with a look of surprise on her face.
“What the fuck did you hit me with?”
Instead of answering, I lobbed the fireball and flew as fast as I could towards her.
“[Angel of Damnation].”
Wings of black fire sprouted from her back and she burst into the air leaving a trail of scorching black embers. I dug my heel into the ground as I spun and took off after her. She turned in midair and placed her hand on her chest.
“Power limiter release: 30%!”
A wide column of black fire engulfed her and stretched high into the sky.
“[Aura of Damnation].”
I flew in place for a few seconds considering my options until a long-shot idea popped into my head. I used the last of my MP to cover my entire body in [Demonfire] and flew at the enemy with all the strength and speed my body would allow. The heat from the black flames was intense, and for a moment I thought that my idea wasn’t going to work; but whatever allowed my [Demonfire] to hit her earlier was doing the same thing for my body. I collided with her in midair and wrapped my arms around her in a crushing embrace. We flipped and twisted out of control in the air as we plummeted back towards the ground. As I held her arms against her sides I squeezed her as hard as I could. I had no idea how close we were to the ground until I felt the overwhelming pain as we both crashed with a tremendous impact. It took me a second to recover from the daze the fall had left me in, and I staggered to my feet and looked around.
The demoness was laying in a crater surrounded by bits of broken armor and weapons. When she looked at me, her face was filled with fury and she curled her lip in a snarl.
“Power limiter release... 50%…”
An explosion of black fire filled the arena, and I felt the remnants of armor still on my body heat up to the point I had to quickly unequip them.
“[Eternal Damnation].”
The air around me sparked a few times before everything in sight was completely engulfed in black fire. The small amount of HP I had remaining was instantly reduced to 0 and my vision faded immediately.
After a few seconds I was teleported back to the throne room and I looked up at the figure seated on her throne. She studied me wordlessly for a moment before jumping up eagerly and walking over to me.
“What was that spell you used? I’ve never been hit with anything like that before.”
“Uhhhh it’s just a simple [Demonfire] spell.”
“[Demonfire]? I’ve never heard of it… and I am the expert when it comes to fire magic.”
I opened my skill menu, clicked on [Demonfire], and shifted it so she could see the skill description.
“Ah… that explains it… See that star next to the skill name? That means it’s a unique skill.”
“Unique skill?”
“That means that you are literally the only person in all of the realms of heaven and hell to have access to that skill. My [Fires of Damnation] are the same. I still don’t fully understand why your [Demonfire] was able to hit me… but there’s a lot more to that spell than what the description shows.”
She sighed deeply and crossed her arms over her chest.
“I haven’t had to go all out like that in a long while… with every attack you pushed me to my limit. It was… refreshing.”
“Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to face such a powerful demon. If I may ask… what’s the deal with your power limiter?”
“The higher the level a full-blooded demonkin obtains, the more devastatingly powerful their abilities become. A simple flame spell cast by a mage of my caliber at full strength would be enough to obliterate half of a city. While in some cases that kind of destructive power can be effective… imagine casting something that powerful while in a cave next to your clan mates. Having a limiter in place allows for you to gauge your enemies strength and adjust accordingly. The more your power grows, so does the need for a limiter.”
“Would you mind indulging one more question, m’lady?”
She tilted her head once in a nod.
“What is your name? Or… at least… what can I call you?”
She cocked her eyebrow and sighed again.
“I am known by many names… Hecate, Diablo, Dark Empress Infernos… but as a reward for just barely passing beyond the two minute mark, I will tell you my true name; it’s Gehenna.”
My brain struggled to recall the meaning behind her name, when Emelia walked back over to us and spoke quietly.
“As in the Lake of Fire and place of damnation? Your name is as fitting as it is beautiful.”
Gehenna turned to face her with a smirk on her face.
“I can see why you forfeited the match like you did, Allexus. Your betrothed is both gorgeous and knowledgeable. If she wasn’t already smitten with you, I would certainly have to have her for myself.”
Emelia blushed and I grinned as Gehenna laughed softly. The tall demon in gleaming armor stood up and placed her hands on her hips.
“Allexus, Emelia… congratulations to you both. You bested every other combatant and even gave me an unexpected challenge in our duel. Please accept your prizes with honor and the knowledge that you have earned my respect.”
Emelia bowed her head and I followed suit.
“Thank you, Lady Gehenna. I only hope that I can someday be as powerful a mage as you.”
Gehenna nodded once and turned to me.
“May I offer you some advice, Allexus?”
“Absolutely, m’lady!”
“Ditch the summoning spells. Your reliance upon them is a crutch that is holding you back. You are a truly vicious demon lord, you don’t need minions doing the fighting for you when you are such a force to be reckoned with.”
I had absolutely no idea how to respond to such a comment so I merely nodded and thanked her.
“Again, congratulations to you both. I very much would like an opportunity to see each of you again, especially in the upcoming Realmshift event.”
She smiled at both of us and waved her hand. The throne room dissolved and we found ourselves standing in front of our clan’s castle.
Congratulations on placing 2nd in the Holy Damnation Clan Battle Elimination Tournament. You have received 1 skill point and 20,000 gold pieces for making it to the finals and 2 skill points and 50,000 gold pieces for winning 2nd.
For successfully surviving against Gehenna for 2 minutes and 02 seconds you have earned 1 world-tier skill point and a Level up +20! single use item. ~Allexus,I really hope that once you reach the point that you need a power limiter you will come duel me again.Until next time,-Gehenna?~