An Easy Deal
A savage cry split the night, its shrill tittering echoed for miles and miles. To some it sounded like the cry of some monstrous beast that finally brought its prey to ground, to others it was a cry wild filled with anger and grief mixed together to form a sound that was ripped from the deepest and darkest parts of the Nightosphere.
It anyone foolish enough to be out on this night looked up, they would see a sinister black shape streaking across the star-filled sky, eyes glowing red and a mouth agape with long curved fangs that glistened in the moonlight.
"WHHHHHYYYY!" She shrieked, her cry sent flocks of bird flying from their roosts. Far off in the mountains wolves began to howl as if to answer her. "I LOVED YOU!"
"She's just another monster."
"Just another monster."
"Another monster."
"Monster."
"I'LL SHOW YOU A MONSTER!" below her, Marceline saw a deer take off running from her cry, mad with fear. Swooping down, she cannoned into the fleeing doe. Her vast strength easily brought the deer down to earth and she began tearing into its soft, warm flesh with her talons. "DIE! DIE! DIE!"
The deer kicked wildly, trying in vain to remove the crazed vampire with its razor sharp hooves. It began giving a strangled cry as Marceline buried both of her hands deep into the animal's side and began ripping great bloody chunks of meat and muscle with each hand. In her wild rage, Marceline saw the deer below her transform, one second it was a large doe, the next it began to shrink and change until Bubblegum was lying underneath of her.
"How could you even think I could love a monster like you?" she asked, laughing. Marceline ground her fangs together at the princess began to snicker at her. "I could never love a beast like you, your nothing but a stupid animal that can't control her emotions. But then, you always were a stupid bitch."
With that, the vampire lunged, burying her face in PB's throat. Her fangs easily tore through the soft flesh and quickly her mouth began to fill with thick, warm blood. She began to gulp it down mouthful after mouthful. Raising her face to the moon she began to roar, it was a savage, hate-filled thing that echoed for miles and froze the blood of any who heard its mournful cry.
A soft clapping began to fill the air. Marceline whirled, baring her fangs and hissing like a cornered snake. In the shadows of a tall pine tree a figure stepped out into the moonlight. He was tall with slick black hair. His skin was an ash Grey color and his eyes were red. He wore a well pressed and clean black suit, his red boots twinkled in the light.
"Look at you," he said, chuckling. Marceline hissed again and crouched, getting her legs balled up underneath her. "Daddy's little monster."
At the word monster, she shrieked like a banshee and leaped. Hunson Abadeer didn't blink at the sudden spring. He hopped to the side at the last second, skipping away as Marceline skidded, her claws leaving long drag marks on the ground. The lord of the Nightosphere laughed again as his daughter began to circle on all fours. He turned his head to keep her in sight but; other than that he barely moved a muscle.
"Gotta say I'm loving the new attitude kiddo, got a real feral beast thing going on here," he said, smiling broadly, showing off his own razor sharp set of fangs. "That dress really pulls the whole thing together, I'm gonna guess it was a ballgown, right? I'm right aren't I?"
The pretty black and red gown that Bonnie had given to her was in tatters. The wind had almost ripped it completely off, the remains barely clung to her body. The deer had kicked her several good times, tearing it even more in places but; she hardly had noticed.
Marceline's brain was screaming to run, to hide, to kill, to feed. All these things rushed through her mind as she leaped again, but; this time, her father reached out at the last seconds and snatched by by the throat with one hand. She began to hiss and struggle, trying in vain to kick and claw her way free. Every cut and tear to his suit was immediately fixed with seconds and his skin seemed to be made of steel as her attacks seemed to do nothing.
"Boy, you really have lost it, haven't you?" he asked, shaking his head and sighing wearily. "Honestly, I don't see how your ever going to rule the Nightosphere if this is how you choose to spend your time. Look, Marceline I want you to-"
He was cut off by the vampire jamming her thumb into his eye. The lord of the Nightosphere let out a shrill cry of pain and rage. Releasing his hold on Marceline, he stumbled away, holding his hands over his eye, a thick black ooze began dribbling through his fingers. The vampire saw an opening and charged.
Hunson whirled at the last second and caught his daughter in the side of the head with a backhand that gave a crack like thunder. The force sent her slamming into a tree. The vampire queen had barely crawled up onto her hands and knees before a hard kick to her stomach drove her through the trunk of the tree with a savage snap.
In an instant, Hunson was on top of her. He drove his fists over and over into her face. His ruined eye was running black with his dark and foul blood.
"YOU LITTLE BITCH! HOW DARE YOU TOUCH ME, I AM YOUR FATHER!" he roared, his lips curling back to reveal his wicked fangs. "I AM LORD OF THE NIGHTOSPHERE YOU WILL SUFFER FOR THIS YOU WHORE YOU DIRTY FILTHY WHORE! I'LL RIP THE FLESH FROM YOUR BONES FOR 10,000 YEARS! I'LL-"
But; just like it had began so suddenly, it was over. Hunson Abadeer regained his composure and stood up, walking away from his brutalized daughter. He took several deep breaths and watched as she effortlessly began to heal the wounds he'd inflicted. When she finally regained consciousness, the feral look in her eyes was gone, and it was replaced by fear.
In the blink of an eyes she was streaking off through the night sky and within mere seconds was gone from sight. Hunson sighed, and winced slightly as his eyeball regrew itself in a matter of seconds. Behind him a figure dressed all in yellow with a large sheep skull for a head stepped out of the darkness.
"Thank you, Death," he said, turning to face his old friend. "I didn't believe it, but; you were right. Gotta say, I like where all this is going."
"Do you? Even if it means the death of your daughter?" Death asked, his voice sounding frigid as an avalanche. Hunson snorted.
"She'll end up in the Nightosphere," he said, locking eyes with his companion. There passed an unspoken order that her soul be sent to him. "Good, now if you'll excuse me. I have a date."
Death watched as Hunson walked away in the direction of the Candy Kingdom, whistling happily.
Bonnie awoke to eyes. In the corner of her bedroom they seemed to be floating in the darkness. She felt a shiver go down her spine as they started coming towards her. She reached out beside her blindly, fearing what would happen if she broke contact with those things. Slicer grumbled in his sleep as she shook him. The knight only rolled away from her.
"Who's there?" she asked, her voice sounded soft and weak, like it was being smothered by the darkness. "Marceline? Is that you?"
A soft tittering began to fill the room, it seemed to be all around her and nowhere at the same time. Her heart began to pound in her chest as the eyes vanished from sight. Tears began welling up in her eyes as the glowing orbs reappeared at the foot of her bed.
"You're very beautiful," a voice like velvet whispered. The eyes kept staring into hers, into her soul. The voice came again, softly, next to her ear. "I have to give you some credit, princess. Not many rulers can cast their allies aside like they were nothing."
She swallowed the lump in her throat, and licked her lips.
"My allies are all loyal," she whispered, her voice almost breaking. "I renounced the traitors, the schemers."
"Oh, I see. that's a horse of a different color, isn't it?" the voice asked, chuckling softly. "What about Marceline?"
"W-what?" she muttered. She felt like a hand was squeezing her heart.
"I saw her just a little while ago, out there, in the woods," a soft breath touched her neck. "She was savage, relentless, a real animal."
Bubblegum glanced over at the still sleeping Slicer and shook him again.
"Stop that!" the voice commanded, turning from soft and playful to hard and stern. "Even if you could wake him up he'd die in a heartbeat."
"What do you want?" she asked, pulling the covers up to her chin in a futile gesture of safety.
"Me? Why to cut a deal, of course," the voice replied, softening again. A loud snap of fingers made the princess jump as the lights came on to reveal a demon in a black suit sitting in one of her chairs. He gestured to the other one beside him. "Come, sit! let's talk like civilized people."
Numbly, and without control of her body, PB could only watch as her body rose and floated towards the chair. She began to sweat as she was dropped into her seat. The demon cross one leg over the other and smiled, revealing a mouthful of fangs.
"Who-Who are you?" she asked. She wondered if she screamed how long the Battlebots would take to rush in and save her.
"Me? Well it should be obvious to you, my dear," he said, leaning back in his chair. "I'm Hunson Abadeer, Marceline's dear old daddy."
"The….. the….. the…."
"The lord of the Nightosphere, yes," he finished. "And, like I said, I want to cut a deal."
Bubblegum raised an eyebrow nervously.
"What kind of deal?" she asked. "My soul?"
He chuckled.
"No, no I want more than just your soul, little girl," he said. With a wave of his hand they were surrounded in darkness. Then, a great green fire erupted all around her. Bonnie screamed as the reanimated corpses of her former friends came staggering through it towards her. Up above she could see the Lich, laughing as his army of the dead swarmed towards her. But; just as they reached her, everything vanished. "That, is what's in store for you and your kingdom."
Then the dreams were true, she knew it! Her heart began to pound and sweat began slithering down her body.
"How can you stop it?" she asked, he had the power, didn't he as lord of all the Nightosphere.
"Me? Oh no, you though. Well, that's something else," he said. He closed his hand into a fist and held it out palm up. Opening his fingers he revealed a necklace made of the blackest metal Bubblegum had ever seem. In the center was a large emerald that seemed to glow. "This, is the answer to all your problems. When the time is right, all you have to do is throw it to the ground."
She looked at it in shock, her hand trembled as she reached for it, waiting for the necklace to change into a snake or something. But; it didn't. The chain was ice cold and the emerald seemed to pulse in her hand.
"So, in return for this little tiny thing, my price is this," he said. "When the war is won, I get all the souls of the fallen, enemy and ally. Is that fair?"
"Is that all?" she asked. "A small price to save all of Ooo."
Hunson smiled.
"Almost like I'm cheating myself," he said, chuckling. He held out his hand. "We got a deal?"
Bonnie smiled, the fool had stumbled and gave her everything. If she didn't use this bauble then he would gain nothing.
"Yes!" she said, grabbing his hand. "So, is a deal with a devil always this easy?"
He smiled again.
"No, not A devil," he replied, squeezing her hand. "THE Devil."
And with that, he vanished in a flash of red light. Bonnie jerked awake to find herself still in bed. Beside her, Slicer snored away.
"A dream?" she muttered. "Just a dream."
Something bounced between her breast. Looking down she saw a large glowing emerald wrapped by a black chain.
On the wind, she heard a soft tittering.
END CHAPTER 10