Daikirai paced back and forth in her throne room, cursing savagely to
herself. For the moment it was empty; those she commanded were out
searching for the princess. Every so often she stopped, thought for a
moment, and switched languages, each more horrible than the last. Only
during those brief interludes between curses did her eyes stop glowing and
her voice revert to normal. "How could that little b*tch have gotten
away," she fumed in dual-tones "There was no way they could have
known…unless they had planned to get out from the moment they heard about
my sister!" She swore for a moment, and then continued her train of
thought in another language. "I told Beryl she was attacking too early. I
told her we should all attack together. But did she listen? No! She
thought she could do it all by herself, that they would never hear of the
attack in time to make a difference. And look what happens when you leave
your b*tchy older sister in charge." She breathed a savage curse in
several different languages at once. "I guess that if you want something
done, you have to do it yourself. Kinan!" she shouted.
The timid little man appeared by the doors-that-led-to-nowhere, on the far side of the throne room. He would have plenty of time before whatever attack Daikirai decided to throw at him actually reached him. "Yes, my queen," he asked with a bow.
*Smart man, even if he is a sniveling little b*stard,* she thought, seeing his strategy. "Kinan, call my legions back."
"You're…you're going to stop the search?"
"No, you idiot." Her eyes began to glow red as she thought of what she could do to the princess. "I'm going myself." She appeared her staff next to her absently, her eyes still focused on Kinan. "If no one else can find her, I'll just have to find her myself."
Kinan shuddered. He didn't want to know what his queen had planned for the princess. "Yes, my Queen," he said for no particular reason. Maybe being praised would placate her temper for the time being.
"Well?" Daikirai was still staring at him.
"Pardon, my Queen?"
"Call my legions back, you fool! Now! Before I turn you inside out!"
With a hurried bow and an appeasing "Of course, my Queen," Kinan disappeared from the room.
Daikirai promptly began muttering again—adding even more curses. Then an idea struck her. She stopped pacing and looked up. "Wait," she mused. "Wait." She thought for a few seconds more, expanding on the notion. "That will do very well," she said, putting the finishing touches on the idea in her mind. "Kinan!" she shouted again.
"Yes, my Queen," came a voice near the wall.
"I've changed my mind. Tell the legions they're getting a bit of help instead. They're to keep their search going and give way to anything that comes with my authority."
"My Queen, any ambitious person could say they have your authority. Are you sure you want them to know that?"
"Trust me, Kinan," she said, for the first time not minding that someone questioned her orders. "They'll know when something carrying my authority comes to them." Kinan bowed and left again. "They'll know indeed," she mused after him. Daikirai gathered her crimson staff to her and walked to her throne. In rapid succession, she infused six pillars at evenly spaced points around her throne room with dark red light. The six pillars reached out with the light to the others until they formed a ring. Then a beam of light from each pillar shot up into a globe at the apex of the ceiling. It in turn shot a beam of rd light to the floor, where a gaping portal opened, but only as wide as the beam went. "Yami Adyeko," she called, which meant darkness bewitching. "Come forth from the depths of space! I, Daikirai of the Negaverse, call thee!"
In the red shadows of the darkness, a demon of the deepest crimson arose. He was hideous beyond belief, so twisted and evil that only another evil creature could bear to look at him. He started for Daikirai, but stopped short when he came to the border of the red beam. "Thou wert wise to trap me in this beam, Daikirai. One cannot say thou art stupid, as the humans that creep upon the ground pretending they are the superiors in the galaxies."
"I certainly learn my lessons, demon," she replied contemptuously. In her last attempt at summoning this demon, she had forgotten to trap it, and had suffered tremendous losses both in forces and health putting it back into its own private hell. "I have called thee for a reason, Adyeko. Wish thou to deal with the petty humans who made thee what thou art?" That was her card. Once a full-fledged human, he had succumbed to the greed of the world and sold his soul to get powers of revenge against someone. His soul was destroyed in the process of acquiring his revenge, and he became a demon—a thing without a soul that lived in a separate hell than the others. These demons had no limits; having no soul instead of being a damned one gave enormous power. That power could only be used when a demon was called upon, however. He held a grudge against humans and would do nearly anything to get back at them, even make a deal with Daikirai.
"Yes!"
She conjured up a female prisoner she had captured in the attack on the palace. The woman, once a Lady on Omega Nine, was naked, and had bruises and welts on hr body from beatings given by the guards. "Like thou this one," she asked, knowing the demon's sick perversions. Sometimes he drained his victims—both male and female—of their blood, slowly letting it drip from a small wrist cut into a goblet beneath. Then he drank it. Other times, he sated his lust on the females, taking whatever pleasure he wanted with them. This most often eventually killed them, as some of his more atrocious delights involved not only appeasing his lust, but also enjoying their pain at the same time. Still other times, he tortured prisoners—more often the males—until they died, sometimes ripping out and devouring their souls, turning them into his slaves.
Truly, this was a creature more appalling than Daikirai.
"She is a fine subject. What do you want in return for her," he asked eagerly.
Daikirai smiled, knowing she had the upper hand. "You can have this female in advance, if you wish," she said, levitating the woman just out of the demon's reach.
He snarled. "Don't play games with me, b*tch," came the growl.
"I don't play games, creature," the dark queen replied. "All you have to do is find the Princess of Omega Nine. Deliver her to me so that I can have my revenge, and you get a female and a male in payment. Surely a creature like you can understand the desires of revenge," she taunted. "You also become my slave, but may serve in my court. It means being free of that private hell you enjoy so much."
The demon snarled again. "Serving you is hell enough," he answered defiantly. "I will take your offer, Dark Queen. And if you do not hold your half of the bargain, I will take your soul myself, and you shall serve me—forever!" With a deep, chilling laugh, he vanished, taking the female prisoner with him.
Daikirai's ruby eyes hooded and she laughed as evilly as the demon had. The princess was as good as in her hands. *That demon doesn't know the half of what he just agreed to.*
The timid little man appeared by the doors-that-led-to-nowhere, on the far side of the throne room. He would have plenty of time before whatever attack Daikirai decided to throw at him actually reached him. "Yes, my queen," he asked with a bow.
*Smart man, even if he is a sniveling little b*stard,* she thought, seeing his strategy. "Kinan, call my legions back."
"You're…you're going to stop the search?"
"No, you idiot." Her eyes began to glow red as she thought of what she could do to the princess. "I'm going myself." She appeared her staff next to her absently, her eyes still focused on Kinan. "If no one else can find her, I'll just have to find her myself."
Kinan shuddered. He didn't want to know what his queen had planned for the princess. "Yes, my Queen," he said for no particular reason. Maybe being praised would placate her temper for the time being.
"Well?" Daikirai was still staring at him.
"Pardon, my Queen?"
"Call my legions back, you fool! Now! Before I turn you inside out!"
With a hurried bow and an appeasing "Of course, my Queen," Kinan disappeared from the room.
Daikirai promptly began muttering again—adding even more curses. Then an idea struck her. She stopped pacing and looked up. "Wait," she mused. "Wait." She thought for a few seconds more, expanding on the notion. "That will do very well," she said, putting the finishing touches on the idea in her mind. "Kinan!" she shouted again.
"Yes, my Queen," came a voice near the wall.
"I've changed my mind. Tell the legions they're getting a bit of help instead. They're to keep their search going and give way to anything that comes with my authority."
"My Queen, any ambitious person could say they have your authority. Are you sure you want them to know that?"
"Trust me, Kinan," she said, for the first time not minding that someone questioned her orders. "They'll know when something carrying my authority comes to them." Kinan bowed and left again. "They'll know indeed," she mused after him. Daikirai gathered her crimson staff to her and walked to her throne. In rapid succession, she infused six pillars at evenly spaced points around her throne room with dark red light. The six pillars reached out with the light to the others until they formed a ring. Then a beam of light from each pillar shot up into a globe at the apex of the ceiling. It in turn shot a beam of rd light to the floor, where a gaping portal opened, but only as wide as the beam went. "Yami Adyeko," she called, which meant darkness bewitching. "Come forth from the depths of space! I, Daikirai of the Negaverse, call thee!"
In the red shadows of the darkness, a demon of the deepest crimson arose. He was hideous beyond belief, so twisted and evil that only another evil creature could bear to look at him. He started for Daikirai, but stopped short when he came to the border of the red beam. "Thou wert wise to trap me in this beam, Daikirai. One cannot say thou art stupid, as the humans that creep upon the ground pretending they are the superiors in the galaxies."
"I certainly learn my lessons, demon," she replied contemptuously. In her last attempt at summoning this demon, she had forgotten to trap it, and had suffered tremendous losses both in forces and health putting it back into its own private hell. "I have called thee for a reason, Adyeko. Wish thou to deal with the petty humans who made thee what thou art?" That was her card. Once a full-fledged human, he had succumbed to the greed of the world and sold his soul to get powers of revenge against someone. His soul was destroyed in the process of acquiring his revenge, and he became a demon—a thing without a soul that lived in a separate hell than the others. These demons had no limits; having no soul instead of being a damned one gave enormous power. That power could only be used when a demon was called upon, however. He held a grudge against humans and would do nearly anything to get back at them, even make a deal with Daikirai.
"Yes!"
She conjured up a female prisoner she had captured in the attack on the palace. The woman, once a Lady on Omega Nine, was naked, and had bruises and welts on hr body from beatings given by the guards. "Like thou this one," she asked, knowing the demon's sick perversions. Sometimes he drained his victims—both male and female—of their blood, slowly letting it drip from a small wrist cut into a goblet beneath. Then he drank it. Other times, he sated his lust on the females, taking whatever pleasure he wanted with them. This most often eventually killed them, as some of his more atrocious delights involved not only appeasing his lust, but also enjoying their pain at the same time. Still other times, he tortured prisoners—more often the males—until they died, sometimes ripping out and devouring their souls, turning them into his slaves.
Truly, this was a creature more appalling than Daikirai.
"She is a fine subject. What do you want in return for her," he asked eagerly.
Daikirai smiled, knowing she had the upper hand. "You can have this female in advance, if you wish," she said, levitating the woman just out of the demon's reach.
He snarled. "Don't play games with me, b*tch," came the growl.
"I don't play games, creature," the dark queen replied. "All you have to do is find the Princess of Omega Nine. Deliver her to me so that I can have my revenge, and you get a female and a male in payment. Surely a creature like you can understand the desires of revenge," she taunted. "You also become my slave, but may serve in my court. It means being free of that private hell you enjoy so much."
The demon snarled again. "Serving you is hell enough," he answered defiantly. "I will take your offer, Dark Queen. And if you do not hold your half of the bargain, I will take your soul myself, and you shall serve me—forever!" With a deep, chilling laugh, he vanished, taking the female prisoner with him.
Daikirai's ruby eyes hooded and she laughed as evilly as the demon had. The princess was as good as in her hands. *That demon doesn't know the half of what he just agreed to.*