Disclaimer: I do not own Storm Hawks or Slayers
Hellmaster's Resurrection
Cyclonis' body slammed against the stone wall, her voice breaking out from the pain. This wasn't supposed to happen to her. She had followed all the directions, everything that she was told to do in hopes of resurrecting her own empire, and yet this was the result of her hard work, her now nothing more than battered and bruised from the one she had helped.
Ever since her lost to the Storm Hawks and escaping over to the Far Side, the empress had now lost all her man power and resources to take over the Atmos. With no crystals and no endowment to support her Nightcrawlers, she had become weak and desperate to make sure to destroy those who had did this to her. But without the necessary funds to do so, the only thing that she could do was run and hid until something came along. The weeks she had been escaping her pursuers would have been all for naught if it hadn't been for the voice in her head.
"Help me and I shall give you a reward." That was all the voice said before Cyclonis saw flashes of what she needed to do. It was like she didn't even have a choice. With the Storm Hawks chasing after her, she followed the visions exactly as she saw them. She gathered the necessary materials, she performed ritual perfectly, and now that she had summoned the one who sent her the visions, she was pleased with what she thought was going to be accomplished. And with that, she made her biggest mistake.
Cyclonis glared over at the Dark Lord who she had summoned as he gave her a wicked smile. Phibrizzo, no, Hellmaster was the appropriate title for him, had been fully resurrected and for his first act, he sent the former empress of Cyclonia into a wall. Now that he was back, there was so much that he had planned for Atmos, especially its destruction. But first, he needed to tie up one loose end before he could go on with his goal.
Glaring at the Mazoku in boy's skin, Cyclonis shouted, "I thought you were going to help me! Did you promise to give me the Atmos?" Her cries, though emotionally correct, were incorrect in accusation. The human mind was so easy to trick, especially when it was ambitious.
"Now, now," Phibrizzo calmly said while wagging his finger, "I don't remember saying that I give you Atmos. After all, if I did that, it would be much more complicated for me to destroy it." He then walked over to her, each step a hollow sound. "But you were right; I really do need to give you a reward."
The crystal witch still glared as he materialized a small yellow sphere between his fingers. "I should thank for bringing me back. The years that I had been gone has fueled my intentions of bringing this world to destruction. And with that, I think I'm going to need some help…" The thought of her being a mere servant to this brat (even though he was older than her) made her anger rise beyond comprehension. But what he said next really made her day. "But seeing you like this, all weak and pathetic, wouldn't be very much used to me. So, I think your reward shall be death."
Cyclonis lunged herself at Hellmaster, only for him to disappeared just before the impact. "Don't you get it?" his voice echoed before she looked up to find him sitting on a ledge with the yellow orb in his fingers still, "Death is the only option for you now. You lost your crystals, your army, your terra, and now, you are just a poor pathetic soul being hunted down like a common criminal. Whether it is days, weeks, months, or years, you will be captured and brought back to the Sky Council, broken and humiliated. Then, once their judgment is settled, you shall be put to death for all the crimes you committed. So, you see, either way you will die. My way is much quicker and less degrading to you."
Cyclonis, though still angry that she was betrayed like this, let the truth of the matter sink in slowly. She had been ultimately defeated and now, she was running away like a scared mouse. And deep in her heart she knew that she couldn't go back, not like this. Her pride would never allow it.
Seeing the despair in her eyes, Phibrizzo smirked that he did his job so well. "And now, Cyclonis." He rose up his arm that held the marble in it. "I bid you adieu." Like squeezing a small grape, he crushed the marble in his fingers, the shards scattering before disintegrating into the air. What Phibrizzo loved about this spell the most was how much pain the human would go through before admitting to death.
Cyclonis clenched over her heart, feeling it beating hard like stone. She knew, she knew that this was the end for her as her breathes started to become shorter. Her body had begun to weaken under the immense torture. She collapsed to her knees, still keeping a hand over her heart. She continued with struggle with living until the final chord stuck.
As she began to fall into darkness, her mind reflected on the life she had made. All she ever did was tried to conquer Atmos like her ancestors did before her. During that time, she had made sure to sever all ties with everything she had come in contact with. She had no friends, no family, no one to mourn her if she had died. It would have probably been much worse if she had brought back to Terra Atmosia for trial. So, she concluded that this was the best for her. She was born alone and now, she would die alone.
Are you sure you wish for this, Lark?
Before she conceded, she heard a voice before noticing a golden woman carrying a shovel smiling at her.
With Phibrizzo back, he was ready to begin his plans for world destruction. Atmos, no, the entire world was no match for his power. With his tremendous influence and the control over the dead, friends and foe alike were succumbed to his dark wishes. Many were dealt with guilt of killing loved ones who had died in battle and those who had tried to stop his ambitions fell by his hand. No one could stop him as Phibrizzo was death itself. Even with the Storm Hawks trying to stop the chaos he was creating, the future outlook was a despair one.
After one of his campaigns against the mortal, a lone figure watched as many were taken away, supposedly to become fuel for Phibrizzo's power. She stood there before looking down at her hand, wondering if there was really hope to defeat him. After all, he had killed her once and would have controlled her like the others if it wasn't for that woman. So, could she really try to defeat him? Could she make up for her past mistake and destroy it before all hope is lost?
Once contemplating, she smiled before looking up at the sky. 'Yes… After all, I still need rule what is rightfully mine.'
Author's notes:
You know what my New Year's Resolution is… To update more with arts and stories! … Now, I just need to stick with it for the rest of the year.
Now, this premise for this story has played in my mind for a while. After all, the two are basically on the same spectra of villain. The difference between them (and I ain't talking gender or age) is that while Cyclonis is an evil empress who wishes to take over the world, Hellmaster is a Dark Lord mazoku who wishes to destroy it and will make people suffer physically and psychologically. And that's why everyone is going to have a rough time trying to defeat him.
You guys can also take this as an epic story idea that I didn't have the mindset to do. After all, the story is going to have some depressing moments and dark imagery. I just didn't have the heart to make the readers to go through that along with the characters.
I would also add that I am still writing up the next chapter to Uncertain Future. If you like that and this one so much, read some of my other works.
Please read and review!