Alter- Demons
772 Words
"That's it?" I asked and Nathaniel sent me a glare. He shook his head in annoyance as he mixed the ingredients in the pot.
"You have a choice to make," he spoke slowly like he was talking to a child, "you could kill the warlock or you could save the souls. I can only make a weapon for one or the other."
"What would happen to the souls if we kill the warlock?" Annabella asked.
"They will be released but not in a good way. They'll be left to wander this land like ghosts," Nathaniel said, "they'll never make it to the other side. It's a fate worse than death."
"And if we destroy the amulet?" I asked.
"You'll free the souls and take away the warlock's power source."
"He'll have no power?"
"The souls are what gives him his power," Nathaniel said as he stirred the combination.
"How?" Annabella asked.
"Are you aware of how warlock's gain their power?" Nathaniel asked.
"They pray to demons," Annabella said, "common knowledge in the magic community."
"Well, the magic community is wrong," Nathaniel said with a shake of his head, "demons don't deal with the human species. They simply take them over. They aren't about deals but rather, chaos. Besides, a door would have to be opened between the realms."
"What if a door did open and we didn't know it?" I asked.
"Trust me," he said with a shake of his head, "we'd know it. They wouldn't stay quiet for this long."
"How do you know all this?" Annabella asked.
"As a worker of dark magic," he said, "I know most though I don't follow the same practices."
"How do they get their power if not from demons?" I asked.
"By a special kind of monster," he spoke quietly as if scared someone was going to overhear him. I glanced around the room I have called home for the past few weeks. The windows were sealed and the glass was covered. The door was locked and a cloth was tucked under the door so people couldn't overhear. The closet door was open so no one could spy. I thought we were protected by eavesdroppers, "one created by the Ancients."
"There is a monster created by the Ancients?" Annabella asked with a look of fear in her eyes.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” I raised my hands, “Ancients?”
"No, monsters. With a 's', sweetheart. They're called Alter- demons," he said completely ignoring my question, "they're part demon and part...something else. Someone found a way to allow them to speak through the cracks."
"How'd the monsters leave the realm?"
"They are the aftermath of what happens when a gate of hell is opened. The gate closed and left a devastated realm with things that have transformed into the monsters we see today."
"So, Alter- demons...are they better for us than demons themselves?" I asked. I didn't like where this conversation was going. I was also a little scared of how much he knew of this.
"They are far worse," he said, "they come in secretly, sucking the life out of people. Demons...they just like destruction."
"How do you know so much?" I asked. My eyes flew towards the sword that was sitting in the corner. Maybe...
"I was there when the portal was opened," he said.
"You were...there?" I asked. A portal between us and a monster- monsters- worse than demons?
"Yes," Nathaniel said as he leaned the spoon against the side of the pot and rubbed his eyes, "I was there as they murdered my wife and unborn child. The warlock and his dealer. We walked upon them on our way to town. We just saw this man kneeling in the middle of the road. He...looked like he was praying...and...I began to hear voices. Horrible voices that haunt my dreams to this day. There was this bright flash as this...woman was standing before the man. There was a smile on her face as she patted his head. Her eyes, violet and violent as they were, came to mine. She made me...watch...and left me to live. To live wallowing in my own agony as she put it."
"That's why you're helping us," Annabella said, "because you want revenge."
"Indeed I do," Nathaniel said, "now, he made a deal with this monster to become what he is today. If you take care of the p*****t, then he's done for."
"Done for?" I asked.
"He doesn't get another chance if he doesn't meet payday," Nathaniel explained with a wicked grin, "there are worse things than death especially when bartering with an Alter- demon."
"So," I said, "let's save the souls."
- Writer
