Ok here's the next installment, hope you guys enjoy it! I worked on the cover art a bit this week so that's why it came out today! If you enjoyed, send a favorite, or better yet a follow! As always, any constructive criticism or ideas for the story that you have is appreciated in the comments.

All I remember was the pain. The extreme, horrible, earth-shattering pain. Once the shards brushed my skin, it felt like every nerve in my body was being chopped into tiny little pieces. I soon fell to my knees, my body breaking down. I saw the smirk on the projection's face, and my anger boiled inside me, pushing through the pain. I knew that my real mother would never take enjoyment in this. This was a copy, someone using her image as a mask. I could feel the fire welling up, despite the ice battering me from all sides. "RAAAAAAHHHHHH!" I screamed, fire exploding out of me from every pore, filling up the entire cavern. And, once the pain became unbearable, my flame-filled vision blacked out to complete darkness.

At first, I thought I was dead. I had never experienced something as awful as that, but dying would have been too kind of a fate for the universe to give me. I knew I was only unconscious once the dream started. I was floating around a dark wasteland, red clouds in the sky, lava, fire, and craggy rust-colored rocks below me. Every breath felt like poison was filling my lungs.

A smooth and sinister voice pierced through the dusty, hot air. "Ah. So my prodigal servant returns. Welcome home."

I looked around. This definitely was not a place I wanted to call home. "Who are you, and what do you want with me?"

"Oh, I don't want anything from you. I gave you the gift of life, so now it is your duty to fulfill your debt to me."

"So you're him. The big devil. The one who made the deal with my parents."

I heard menacing chuckling. "Call me what you wish. Satan. Hades. Beelzebub. It all means the same thing. But enough about me, let's talk about you."

"What about me?"

"Well, that's the thing. I don't exactly know what to do with you. With your power, well, just about anything I desired could be mine. You see, I can't cause destruction for myself, that's one of the biggest punishments I was given by the one who put me here. But, I can go and make deals with mortals who are in a pinch, and every once in a while, I get a useful pawn. You, my son, are the most useful one I've ever obtained."

"How so?" I asked suspectedly.

"When I was cast down into this wasteland by Him, I did get one consolation prize. My main goal was to overthrow Him from His reign, but my secondary goal was to get a contract with Him. I tricked him into signing away his power of smite for a mortal's lifetime. A power, that you have received by your most gracious leader, me."

"What are you saying?" I called out, puzzled.

I heard the voice sigh. "You have powers over fire due to my dominance over that element. Much like a fire wizard, but with demonic tendencies. I've had servants before with those capabilities, yet not of your calibre of rage. But that's besides the point. With the contract that I got, I added on another power to your already vast gifts."

"Smite? I don't even know what that is."

"You'll find out soon enough, it seems you just used it as you blacked out."

"What does that me-" I was cut short when a blast of radiant light filled the landscape, and I could hear the voice of the Deal Maker howling in disgust. And then, I was alone, in the darkness of my own mind, yet again.

My vision was blurred, eyes fluttering open. At first, all I could see was blinding light from the windows, but then I saw my surroundings. I was in my room, in the castle of Arendelle. In the corner, Elsa was slumped in a chair in uncomfortable slumber, her hand propping her head up to rest on. It was probably eight o'clock in the morning, judging by the rising sun. I tried getting up, but it was too painful. My entire body ached, sore from what must have happened in the cave. I'd never conjured that much fire before, it must be taking it's toll on me. I groaned, putting my hand to my temple, trying to soothe the throbbing headache I had.

Once she had heard me, Elsa snapped awake. She rushed over to my bedside, sitting down on the bed next to me. "You're awake!" She exclaimed. She called out to the servants to get the doctor.

"What happened?" I asked.

She looked at me, seeming nervous. "Well, it was strange. We were in the cave, and the ice was coming at you. I ran, and when I was to the staircase, I saw you in the distance. The entire cavern was set aflame. It was all I could do to stay make an ice shield to not get scorched."

"Elsa, I'm sorry. I-I wasn't myself then."

"That wasn't even the strange part." she said putting her hand in mine. I raised one eyebrow quizzically. "When I saw you after you had sent the fire out, you weren't yourself anymore."

"I had blacked out as soon as the fire started."

"Then that definitely wasn't you. Those markings on your arm," she looked at my right arm. "They went over your entire body."

"What?"

"There's more. When you were tattooed all over, something happened, something that no mortal could do. It was a legendary power. It was horrifying."

"What was it?"

She looked into my eyes. "Jeram, you shot lightning. Throughout the whole cavern, every drop of holy water ice that you melted, a bolt went through all of them. It happened for a few seconds, then you collapsed, looking normal again."

"Smite." I said, thinking back to my dream. "It's the power of smite."

"Once you had fallen, the projection of your mom was gone. I went to get you, and got you back here."

"How long ago was that?"

"Eight days." she replied.

"Eight days?! How could I have been out that long?!" I tried to sit up, but Elsa put her hand on my chest and pushed me back down. I guess she wanted me to rest some more.

"I don't know, the best doctors in the kingdom were baffled. But it's just good you're awake." The doctors and servants rushed in. She stood up.

I grabbed her arm. In a quieter voice, I asked, "Elsa, did I hurt you?"

"No, but even if you did, it wasn't you that was doing it."

We were surrounded by a frenzy of activity, the once calm room filled with liveliness of people, asking me if I was hungry, if I needed medicine, basically tending to my every need. I looked to Elsa, who had edged back to the wall to give the doctors their space to work. She giggled when she saw the exasperated expression on my face, overwhelmed by the caring nature of all these people. I smiled back.

The next hour was mainly just a summary of what I had been through the past few days. The doctors marked it down to a small, trauma-induced coma that I had snapped out of miraculously quick. "We'd love to know how you recuperated so swiftly. It is a miracle indeed." One doctor who was gathering up his things said as he and his counterparts were exiting the room.

"Once I find out, I'll tell you." I called back jokingly. Elsa was leaning up against the wall, arms folded across her skinny torso. She glanced over at me, smiling.

"A lot to take in isn't it?" she said to me. "Do you believe anything that the spell told you was true?"

I sat up, my joking demeanor vanishing. I looked at the covers in front of me. "As much as I wish it wasn't, it all makes sense. Everything in my life connects to it. And that holy water spell proves it. I just wished it hadn't had been me."

Elsa sat next to me again, patting my leg comfortingly. "I'm glad it was you," she said, looking into my eyes. "If it wasn't, things would have been a lot different."

I knew what she was trying to say, but I decided to change subjects. "The woman in the cave said that I had to carry out tasks for the Deal Maker. When I was asleep, I had a vision of him with it." Elsa, at first disappointed, went to being concerned.

"What happened?"

"He said that he wasn't done with me, that I was very useful to him. Before he could tell me any more, the dream was interrupted by some kind of light."

"That's strange. What do you think it means?"

"It means that I'm a danger to you and everyone around here. I need to leave." I tried getting up from the bed, it was easier now, but Elsa still stopped me.

"Please, don't." She said, looking like she was close to weeping.

"Why is this so important to you?" She looked at me. I could see the tears welling up in her eyes. The room started to get colder as the tears grew. Seeing the expression on her face, I switched tactics, grabbing her hand as I started to get up off of the bed. "Elsa, I wouldn't be concerned for the safety of these people if I didn't care about them. A lot. There's two forces trying to get at me now: Jeral and the Deal Maker."

"But we need you here. Think of what will happen if Jeral invades. Only you can stop them."

"What's going to happen if I turn into a full demon again? Who's going to protect Arendelle from me?"

"I will. I was given these powers for a reason, if need be, I'll protect Arendelle with my life."

I was glad she said that. Now I had a reason to stay. "Fair enough. But once I'm here, I'm here to stay. You sure you want to keep a demon in your house?"

"Half-demon, remember?" She smiled and winked. "And I wouldn't have it any other way."

In the first few days of staying in the castle, it was nice, taking it easy after all those terrible years of running from my brother. I mainly stayed in my room until I was strong enough to walk without collapsing. (The first day I tried, that's what happened. Explaining it to Elsa was hell.) I ate, bathed, and spent many hours just talking to Elsa and her family, filling them in on my past life in Restauga. Elsa and I had decided to keep the demon part a secret because it would most likely freak out the entire kingdom. But, after my third conscious day in the castle, I started getting itchy to get out and do something physically demanding. I saw the snow melting and buds on the trees outside. Spring was coming.

Every day, I saw Kristoff heading out to his job of getting ice for the palace, which seemed a little strange considering that Elsa could generate endless ice, but you know, everyone's family is a little strange. At least his doesn't want to murder him. I decided to ask him if he wanted some help with work, just so I could get away from the castle, and maybe some male bonding. Elsa was great, but there comes a time when a guy just has to be a guy. One day, at breakfast we were all getting prepared for our day, making smalltalk as usual. Once Elsa had concluded her rant about Arendelle's economic situation, I spoke up. "So, Kristoff, you heading up to the mountains again today?"

"Yeah, there was a bit of a warm front that came in last night, It's gonna make ice all the more valuable." He replied.

"Mind if I tag along? I could use some fresh air."

"Yeah, if you think you can handle it," he joked.

"Whoa whoa whoa." Elsa interjected. "Jeram, you just came out of a coma three days ago. Suddenly you're all gung-ho to head up a mountain to slice up some ice? Are you crazy?"

"She's right. It does seem a bit loco." Anna said, twirling her index finger by her temple.

Annoyed, I said, "I was hunted for three years, in and out of prisons, always on the run. I never had a day off. I've had three now. I can't just sit here and do nothing while you guys cater to my every need. If there's work to do, then I'll go and do it."

Elsa sighed. "All right, just be careful and dress more warmly than you are now." She gestured to my desert clothes. Only thin leather pants and a tiny jacket that stopped halfway down my back, so my abdomen, chest, and lower back still showed. "Why are you still wearing those anyways?"

I stammered. "They're my fireproof clothes-"

"Well, we need to go and get you some new fireproof clothes then. How about today?" She said sternly. I was guessing that she wasn't going to take no for an answer.

"Aw, Elsa…" She looked at me with a menacing but caring expression. I sighed. "Okaaay." I felt like a two-year-old who just lost an argument to his mother.

"Good. We'll head into the market today." She replied.

Laughing as he headed out, Kristoff clapped me on the back. "Tomorrow then bud?"

I grinned. "Yeah man, see you then."

"Women." he said understandingly. "What are you gonna do?"

"I know, right? Catch you later." I said as he left.

Elsa turned to me. "Ready to go?" she asked chipperly.

I put on a smile, I knew that she wanted this trip to go better than the last time. "Yeah, let's head out." I grabbed my staff and followed her out of the palace.

"Where are we going?" I asked her as we were making our way through the crowd, passing up every stall with clothes.

"You'll see," she said. "These shops don't sell magic-resistant clothes, but there's one shop owner who I know has what we need." She grabbed my hand and led me to the very edge of the market. We were at the entrance of a lavender tent, with a chimney poking out of the top of it, smoke rising. The hustle and bustle was gone, it was obvious that this shop didn't get many customers.

We heard the voice of an elderly woman from inside. "Well are you coming in or aren't you?" I lifted the tent flap, allowing Elsa in first. I followed behind her. Inside the tent, there were all sorts of unholy items laying about. Pentagrams, skulls, and miscellaneous potion ingredients were strewn about messily. I saw the shopkeeper, but she didn't look like a witch. She was a tall, skinny woman who had aged well, probably in her sixties or seventies now. But that didn't make her any less of what she was.

"Witch! You're a witch! Why are you allowed a shop of such an unholy practice?!" I said.

The woman wrinkled her nose in disgust. Her pupils turned from their normal brown color to a luminent green, as if to inspect me. "That's rich, coming from a fire demon with the powers of a god."

"How did you know that?"

"I see all, child. Have some respect for a prophet as powerful as I."

"Have some respect for others as well!" I slammed my fist down on the table in front me, sparks shooting out from it.

"You'd do well to contain your rage, Jeram of Restauga."

Elsa stepped in between our argument. She placed her cool hands on my shoulder. "Jeram, it's alright. She's here to help. She's the Sorceress Dellit." She looked over to the witch. "She was there for me to help control my powers when no one else was." I saw the woman on the other side of the table straighten up as her title was announced. She seemed to care for Elsa, which was strange for a witch. All the others that I had heard of had only cared for their practice, nothing else. Elsa said. "Dellit,do you have any magic-resilient clothes in stock?"

Her expression turned soft toward Elsa like that of a grandparent looking upon their grandchild. "Yes, dear. But if they're for him," she turned to me, expression icy again, "then I don't."

"Come on Dellit, help us out here." Elsa pleaded. "You know that I pay well."

Dellit's stubborn scowl remained on her face, and her eyes flashed green again for a second, and she said. "Fine. But in addition to the pay, I get to read his palms. There are some secrets I'd like to uncover."

"Deal." Elsa replied in agreement.

"Wait… what? Who says I get to get my palms read?" I said.

"Do you want these clothes or not, hotshot?" Dellit said while rummaging through some garments behind her table.

"Fine." I muttered, sitting down on the stool. The sorceress produced two pieces of clothing to us. They were black with red trim, a lot like my other clothes. Strange that she had these colors in that small stack of clothes by her. Elsa took them and made me try to burn them. They wouldn't, which was a happy surprise for me. I never really had any other clothes in my wardrobe that I didn't set on fire. Elsa set a bag of coins on the table.

"Hold out your hand," Dellit told me, sitting down herself. I held out my left hand. "No," she pointed to my tattooed arm. "Your other hand."

I gave her my palm, and she gripped it, eyes flashing in and out from green to brown, green to brown. She was struggling for some reason. She looked as if she was furiously reading a book. I could feel her grasp beginning to to slacken. Dellit started to shake, beginning what I'm guessing was seizure. Her pupils had rolled back behind her eyelids, and she started moaning in a language that I couldn't recognize. I looked back at Elsa, confused. She was just as puzzled and scared as I was.

"Take your hand away!" she cried. "I think it's hurting her!"

I pulled my arm back away so Dellit's hands fell to the table. She would have landed face first into it too if Elsa hadn't caught her. I didn't want to touch her and cause her any more pain. Within seconds, her eyes fluttered open. She looked at me, frightened. "You, my child, have a tough road ahead of you. I wish you luck." Then, she ushered us out quickly, closing the tent flap tight behind her.

I was baffled. What had she seen to make her change her attitude towards me so quickly? One minutes, she was scolding and looking down on me, the next she's taking us out and wishing me luck. "Well that was weird." I said to Elsa. We were both looking at the tent in confusion. "Ah well, we got what we wanted." I began to stroll back to the castle.

Elsa jogged to catch up with me. "How can you be so casual about this? Someone was almost seriously hurt."

"After learning all that I have, I've decided to just roll with it."