3.35: Successor
Gehenna held up a smooth black orb and then released it. It hovered in place until she waved her hand in front of it. It shot upwards into the air and as it rose higher and higher it began to glow brighter and brighter. When it was roughly 60 or 70 feet above the center stage, it shifted into the image of an aerial view of a city. As I looked up at it, I realized it was not a static picture; I was able to see the dots of people moving back and forth along the streets. I watched with curiosity for a few quiet seconds before I saw a dozen white glowing shapes moving rapidly through the streets. The orbs all converged onto a huge square tower that was in the center of the city and they went inside. Nothing seemed to happen for a moment, but then the tower seemed to radiate an intense white light that was so bright that I could barely look at it. Suddenly the light winked out and I could see that all that remained of the tower was a swirling abyss reminiscent of a black hole. All at once, the entire city started cracking apart. Buildings crumbled, roads collapsed, and everything in a wide radius that extended past the limits of the city began to flow backwards towards the violent roiling abyss.
I watched in horror as the churning darkness started collapsing in on itself and then it faded into nothingness. I stared at the colossal crater that had once been a city and then out of the corner of my eye I saw Gehenna flick her fingers again. The entire image flickered and then expanded, shifting into the aerial views of nearly 20 other massive craters carved into the wasteland. Gehenna snapped her fingers and the image went dark and the lights in the auditorium snapped back on. Voices began to rise in a rush from every demon in attendance and I looked at Gehenna with confusion. Her jaw was clenched and her fist was balled up. I could see dark blood between her fingers where her nails had pushed into her palm from the intensity of her fury. Her eyes were black orbs of energy that seemed to flicker and dance like flames. She let out a long low growl and as it rose in volume it shifted to a loud shout.
“Enough!”
Her voice resonated across the entire space and an instant quiet filled the auditorium. Gehenna looked out at the sea of demons and then spared a single glance back towards me. I could still see and feel the anger pouring off of her, but the moment our eyes locked, a wave of calm spread between the two of us. She let out a small sigh, gave me a smile, and then turned back towards the audience.
“The only conclusion I can draw from the angels destroying so many of their own Realmstones all at once this close to the Realmshift is that they are scared. They are acting like frightened children, destroying their own cities in the hopes it will change what they already know. That all the realms of heaven and hell will belong to us. To the demons!!”
Cheers erupted from the mouth of every demon surrounding us, but Gehenna's voice rose above them.
“Do you think that a single one of you is responsible for this shift in power?! Out of the thousands of demons here, there is but one who can claim that they are the cause for the opposition's terror. One!”
A sudden hush fell over the crowd, and if the demons had been staring at me before, now their eyes bored into me from every angle. I felt the predatory gaze of every single person gathered in the vast auditorium… and I drank it in like the finest wine. Instead of being cowed by the menacing glares directed at me, I felt my pride swell within my chest. My nostrils flared and I crossed my arms over my breasts and narrowed my eyes like I was individually challenging every single one of them.
“Which is why I am officially declaring Allexus as the successor to my throne.”
Roars and sounds of anger rose to such a volume it was practically making the stage tremble from the intensity of the noise. When I heard Gehenna continue speaking, at first I thought the crowd was going to drown out her words. Instead, her voice rose above the din and filled the space so much that all other sound seemed to fade.
“In accordance with tradition, any who wish to challenge me for my crown may do so now.”
With that, she waved her hand. The ground underneath us rumbled and the immense vaulted ceiling overhead began to separate. All of the seating began to withdraw and the platform we were standing on started lowering. I watched as the entire auditorium swiftly rearranged itself to take the shape of the giant colosseum I had grown accustomed to seeing, with Gehenna and me standing in the middle. The beautiful Empress standing beside me turned and I saw that she was grinning excitedly.
“This is gonna be exciting. You up for a little fun?”
I was taken aback slightly by the eagerness in her voice and the way she was bouncing on the balls of her feet. I had witnessed Gehenna’s overwhelming strength and saw the love for a good fight in her eyes, but this was something else. She looked like a kid at Christmas.
“Gehenna, I-”
“Infernos. Please. While we’re amongst the demon nobility, please refer to me by that name. But not Empress. You are the sole person who has earned the right to address me without my title.”
“Ok… Infernos. What is happening? What was up with those cities getting destroyed? You said the angels destroyed their own cities? And what is this challenge you mentioned?”
“I will answer what I can, but if a challenger steps forward I have to focus on them, alright?”
I nodded slowly, but the look of confusion plastered on my face was as clear as day.
“All of the cities belonging to the angels within the realms nearest to my own have been completely obliterated. What you witnessed was a squadron of archangels destroying the Realmstone. Without the binding magics of the Realmstones, our cities would not be able to exist. But… the amount of overwhelming might it would take to destroy one of these stones… let alone eighteen… Allexus, that amount of power is incalculable. I am a powerful demon, but even I lack the strength to completely destroy a Realmstone by myself. The fact that they expended that much effort just so we couldn’t claim those Realmstones for ourselves… This has never happened before. Ever.”
“But why would they do that?”
“You, Allexus. Because of you. When you claimed another Angelspawn as your own and converted them into a demonkin, you cemented their belief that they must stop you at any cost.”
“How does anyone know about that? It literally just happened.”
Gehenna glanced back towards the crowd and I saw her eyes watching the line of demons that was slowly making its way down towards the floor of the arena. She looked back at me and I swear the excitement on her face grew even more intense.
“Not long now…
“But to answer your question… As I’ve told you many times already… There is little that happens in my realm that I don’t know about. As for how the angels knew about it? I’m sure they were closely scrutinizing the number of Angelspawn and angels within their realms, and were waiting for something like that to happen.”
“So it’s my fault they destroyed their cities? What happened to all the Angelspawn who had that set as their sanctuary?”
While I wasn’t upset at the loss of potential enemies, the fact that so many players had just had their home cities destroyed so suddenly filled me with rage. Before Gehenna could answer my question, I felt the ground quake slightly as an enormous demon jumped down from the stands and landed a few hundred feet away.
He looked like a centaur with a giant mane of flaming hair streaming from his head down his back. Instead of hooves, each of his feet ended in lizard-like feet that seemed to rend the ground beneath him as he strode forward. As he drew closer, I could see that his face had four eyes that pulsed with a purple glow. His mouth was drawn into a cruel looking smile that was made even more terrifying by the fact that he seemed to have no lips. His entire body rippled with muscle from the thick trunk of his neck, down to the thick ridges of his abdomen. In one arm he carried a long spear that glowed with the same purple aura as his eyes, and in the other he held a coiled up whip that appeared to be made of green energy. As he walked closer towards us, he glared at me with such hatred that I could feel it coming off of him in waves. It was only when he came within 20 feet that he finally shifted his glance over to Gehenna, who had the look of a puppy being given a piece of steak.
“Ah… Varanix of House Feronyx… Why am I not surprised? Your house has long opposed my rule, so it is only natural you would be among the first challengers.”
Gehenna paused, looked at me with a broad smile, and then back at Varanix.
“I have a proposition for you, Varanix. If you can beat my successor in single combat, I will relinquish my throne to you willingly, and pledge my life to you so you can do as you see fit with it.”
The massive centaur demon’s four eyes widened in surprise, but they still couldn’t match the look of shock that was on my face as I openly gaped at Gehenna. Me? Beat this guy?! I couldn’t even tell what level he was… and somehow I was supposed to face him, and if I lost it would mean Gehenna would have to give up her throne and forfeit her life?! What the actual fuck was she thinking?!?!?! Before I could object, however, the fiery demon nodded his head.
“I accept your terms, Empress Infernos.”
He glared down at me and I felt my blood run cold.
“Do you need a moment, or are you ready… girl?”
All at once it felt like a sense of calm filled my body. My nostrils flared and before I realized I was even doing it I heard myself laughing. I moved next to Gehenna and placed my hand on her arm without taking my eyes off the huge demon.
“Infernos… Step back. I don’t want this mewling excuse for a demon to get its blood on you.”
“How considerate of you. Do with him as you will, Allexus. I have no doubts that you’ll be more than a match for the likes of Varanix.”
I felt a rush of heat followed by the sounds of wings flapping. As soon as the sounds faded just enough that I knew Gehenna was a fair distance away, I allowed my demon instincts to take control. I saw the huge demon uncoil the whip in his hand and swing it at me in one smooth motion, it almost seemed to be moving in slow motion, and as I stared at the strange centaur I knew immediately how I was going to kill him. The ground beneath me cracked and broke apart from the impact of me digging my feet in the dirt, and just as the end of the whip was about to strike my face, I burst forward with more speed than I had ever felt my body move with. In a smallest fraction of a second I had closed the distance between us and was now less than a foot away from the enormous demon. I held up my hand and allowed my [Blastburn] spell to charge up longer than I normally did. I pointed my hand at the creature’s chest, and allowed the beam of fiery electric energy to pour from my outstretched palm. The force from the overcasted spell pushed me backwards, and I spread my wings as I was lifted off my feet. I watched the lancing energy blast into him and I suddenly lost sight of him as he was enveloped in the enormous explosion.
I scanned the area for movement, my muscles coiled in preparation for anything, and when an orange column of magma shot towards me, I narrowly dodged it by beating my wings hard and letting the superheated air from the attack push me upwards. I let out a yelp of pain as something pierced the right side of my body and punched through my body. I spared a glance downwards and saw the shaft of the giant spear sticking out of my chest. I felt myself suddenly being yanked downwards by the spear that had impaled me. I looked down and narrowed my eyes as I saw the demon holding his hand like he was reaching for his spear. I felt my body transform into my Avatar of Corruption form and I quickly cast a spell to summon a suit of heavy armor. I began to fall faster from the increased weight, and I folded my wings and allowed gravity to pull me down even quicker. As I plummeted downwards like a bullet, I saw the demon’s eyes widen in surprise as he realized I had no intention of slowing my fall. Now that the smoke had cleared I was able to see that my attack had blasted the shoulder of the arm that had held the whip and all that remained was a charred stump. Just before impact, I twisted my body so that all the force from my fall would be directed at my feet. The spear pulling me in a specific direction made it more difficult, but I managed to use the momentum of it to get myself roughly into the position I had planned. My armored boots struck the demon in the chest at the same time he caught the spear in his outstretched palm. I heard the crunching sounds of breaking bones and did my best to ignore the agonizing pain from every bone in my legs breaking all at once.. I focused on my [Corrupted Regeneration] and began to claw viciously at the arm that was still holding me in the air. Once I felt the claws on one hand rip into his flesh I reached out and grabbed his arm. I cast my [Corrupted Ruination] spell and then began to tear at him again with both hands. Before each strike I cast my [Coldfire] spell and released the energy once I felt my claws sink into his skin. Ice began to form along his arm and he started swinging it back and forth in an effort to get me off. He started waving the spear around wildly, hoping to rip it free from my body, but I just continued to slash at him relentlessly. Finally, he let out an angry shout and released his grasp on the spear, and I felt myself flying backwards.
While I was in midair I instantly transformed back into my normal form and angled my body so that I would land on my feet. My legs had mostly healed, and I heard my boots skid along the ground as I dug my heels downwards in an effort to slow my momentum. Instead of stopping entirely, I flipped backwards into the air and spread my wings again. The lung that hadn’t been punctured burned from the exertion I was putting on my body, and I could feel blood trickling from my mouth as I pumped my wings hard to gain some altitude. I was suddenly jerked downwards as the demon held up his outstretched arm again. I saw that the magma flowing out of his arm had formed the shape of his arm, and it was steaming slightly as it cooled.
Well… Shit.
I let out a growl of rage as I decided it was time to stop reacting and take control of this situation. I briefly checked my MP and saw that I didn’t have enough to cast my [*Overlord of Corruption*] spell using Spoken Word. My [Corrupted Regeneration] was rapidly draining it in order to keep my collapsed lung from filling my chest cavity with blood, so whatever I was going to do, I needed to do it quickly. I couldn’t help from breaking into a wide grin as I thought of an idea. As I rocketed towards Varanix, I moved my fingers to the spot where the spear had impaled me and forced them into the wound. The pain was excruciating as I pushed them in even further until half of my hand was embedded in my chest.
“[Corruption’s Caress].”
I pulled my blood soaked fingers out of my body as the spell knitted the sundered flesh back together. My lung spasmed several times as it healed around the spear that was still impaled within me, and the wound sealed itself. The shaft of the enormous weapon still jutted out from my chest, but I was no longer bleeding profusely. By healing the damage that the jagged head of the spear had done to my body as it pierced through me, I had turned the weapon into a sort of plug. As I hurtled towards the ground and the waiting arm of the demon, I reached down to my side and drew one of the blades that Judas had crafted for me. I felt my body shift into my Avatar of Corruption form without me prompting it to do so, but I merely focused on the opponent who I was rapidly approaching. I angled my body so that I was now mostly upright, and I allowed my wings to unfurl slightly to slow my descent. When I felt the spear attempting to pull free from my body, I simply let the force of it carry me forward instead of attempting to resist, which would have caused my wound to reopen.
When I was about 10 feet away, I held up my hand and cast [Demonic Chains]. The dark steel shot out of my outstretched palm and buried itself in the shoulder of the fiery demon and I used it to pull myself towards him in the direction I wanted to go. I switched the grip on my sword so that the point of the blade pointed directly at the creature’s chest. I slammed into him at full force and used the momentum to drive the Voidsteel weapon deep into his ribcage. Once I felt the hilt of the sword smash against his sternum I dispelled the chain that had pierced his shoulder. Using the blade that I had impaled him with, I held myself in place as I lifted my empty hand up like I was going to stab him with a weapon. I summoned up every ounce of my demonic strength I could muster and swung my arm back down. As my arm arced towards his body, I summoned a dagger and plunged it into the side of his neck just above his breastbone. I clutched both blades tightly and cast my [Coldfire] spell. Instead of releasing it, I channeled it into both weapons and then focused on just letting the spell course through his body until I ran out of MP. I released my grip on the dagger and pulled upwards on the handle of my sword. As I yanked it free from his body, a rush of steam shot up from the wound and I flipped backwards and landed on the ground.
The demon’s entire chest and most of his face had frozen solid, and I could tell that he was seconds away from dropping dead. I spread my wings wide and flew until I was right in front of his face. I reached up and wrapped my fingers around the spear that was still embedded in my chest. I let out a triumphant roar as I yanked on the shaft and tore the weapon free from my body. I flipped it around, used my free hand to force the demon’s head backwards, and then forced the spear down his throat until I felt my hand bump against his lipless mouth. As his lifeless body collapsed to the ground I pumped my wings hard to slowly descend to the ground.
My entire right side had gone numb and I could feel bubbles of blood in the back of my throat as I did my best to slow my breathing. I forced myself to remain upright as I looked up towards the spectator box Gehenna had moved to. Even from this distance, I was able to see the broad grin that was on her face. As the edges of my vision began to darken, I looked out at the crowd with a sneer. I summoned every ounce of energy I had left in me and shouted as loud as I could manage.
“Who’s next?!?
I felt a hand on my arm and I almost flinched away in preparation for an attack until I turned and saw Gehenna. I gave the beautiful demon a weak smile and was grateful when she clasped my shoulder in an effort to keep me on my feet. I made a move to turn and look out at the crowd again when my legs decided I'd had enough. I stumbled forward and fell against Gehenna's chest. Her strong hands clutched me tightly, and although I could hear her saying something, my brain couldn't make sense of anything around me.
A warm energy spread through my right side and I felt like I was floating. After a couple of minutes I realized that someone was carrying me, and I managed to force my eyes open to get a look at the person who had me cradled in their arms.
“Yer not lookin’ so good, lass. But don't worry beautiful, Thaina will get ya fixed up good as new.”
“...should see the other guy.”
“Hahahaha! Aye, I did, lass. Ya did good against Varanix. I've crossed blades with him once or twice, but neither of us managed ta best the other. Ya put on a hell of a show, Allexus. And ya made the rest of the demons out there think twice about challenging the Empress.”
I started to sit up in her arms to see if I could get a look at what was going on, but the massive woman merely held me tighter in her arms.
I’m a fighter, not a healer… so yer apt to reopen that wound if ya keep squirmin’... And if something happens to ya afore Thaina is able to work her magic, it’ll be both our hides. You just rest now.”
I nodded mutely and just let my thoughts drift into the black sea of sleep.