Chapter XVIII, A Promise Forged in Fire

The girls walked close to each other through the narrow and dark corridors. From time to time, they could swore they saw sparks, ignited somewhere in the distance. Other than that, the mountain on the inside really looked like a living organism. It's walls seemed to pulse constantly, almost as if the thing was breathing deeply. The fact that it's surface was a mixture of red and orange only increased that impression. They moved onwards however, carefully waging their steps. At times, Marceline let out a slight noise, apparently enjoying as the echo of her voice trembled around the chambers. Eventually they reached to the point, where the corridor lead in three different directions. What the vampire greeted with a sight of boredom, happened to be quite fascinating for the little pink genius. It would seem that each and every tunnel before them was made that way due to movements of something large. Very large. The way they were hollowed, indicated that whomever or whatever did this, was rather slim and long, much like a huge snake or some kind of insect. The notion of meeting up with such beast terrified her a bit.

"What now Bonnie?"

"Pick one, hope for the best."

"Maybe we'll try to scream into them." The vampire shrugged. "You know, echo will indicate how deep it is and whatnot?"

"You're just looking for an excuse to do it again."

"Yep."

Marceline did just that. And as she screeched into the first one, to her surprise, something screeched back at her. Before they could even make their move, numerous flaming bats flew right at them. They seemed to be pretty angry that someone awakened them from their slumber. Despite that however, they quickly flew by, disappearing somewhere in the darkness from which the girls came.

"Relatives?"

"Hah..." The vampire wanted to say something silly as usual, but it would seem that not only bats were awakened by her scream. "Oh my."

Two fiery embers were gazing at them. And then, the creature emerged from the middle tunnel. It looked like a huge insect, a cross between an ant and a mantis perhaps, with it's maw fixated right at the two, constantly clicking. The thing hesitated for a brief second, as it never saw beings like those before. However, hesitation quickly changed into hunger, as the thing charged right at them. The girls split up, swirling around it's legs, as their sharp ends stabbed the ground numerous times. They tried their best to avoid every single one of them. Marceline attempted to slash the monster's limbs with her guitar, but as she did just that, each strike simply bounced of it's chitin surface.

"Bonnie." She screamed as she dodged yet another strike of it's sharp claw. "Ideas?"

"Yeah!..." The princess screamed just as she did a somersault to get away from the being's massive jaws. "...leg it, split up!"

The vampire wasn't the one to question her lover's ideas, therefore she quickly picked the left tunnel and ran right in. Bubblegum did not hesitate as well, picking up the one on the right. The creature pondered for a brief moment in confusion. One could wonder, what kind of thoughts passed by that primitive mind. Whatever they were, the conclusion was simple. The being picked the closest one, and began to chase one of them. Marceline flew as fast she could, yet the thing was getting closer and closer, as it ran with it's numerous legs. The tunnel trembled from the many steps it made. But the little vampire was the ferocious one. Eventually, when she got tired of running, she decided to act. The pale girl swiftly changed into a bat and flew right by the thing's head. The creature tried to hit her numerous times, yet every stab ended up piercing the walls instead of the little nuisance. All part of the plan. She began to circle around as much as she could. The demonic insect wasn't the smartest sort, as he still began to whack everything around in order to finally strike her down. And ultimately, that lead to his demise, as the crude walls shattered right on it's head, burying him amongst the rocks. Marceline simply flew away before the impact and quickly rejoiced with her partner in the other tunnel.

"Strike one for the Queen of Screams!"

"Show off..." She kissed her on the cheek. "...impressive nonetheless."

As they walked further and deeper, the corridor finally ended, with no more surprises along it's way. The view was magnificent. In the middle of a huge cave, lied a lake made of lava. The liquid constantly boiled, as the waves moved by it's notion hit the walls from time to time. It was beautiful in it's deadliness. In the center of it all, an island resided. It's purpose was unknown however. The princess believed deeply that they will find what they're looking for right there. It was all to obvious. Where else would someone linger in a place like that?

"Care to take us there Marceline?"

"Yup, no problem."

She grabbed her lover by the hands, as they both descended right in the middle of the lake. This place looked almost as if it once served for a living spot, with it's finely crafted tiles and elements of long forgotten stone furniture. If that was the case, it's host either abandoned it long time ago, or, judging by the claw signs here and there, grew out of it. Either way, that wasn't a good sign for both of the girls.

"What now Bonnie?"

"I don't really know, let's..."

"What have we here. Here what we have..." A voice echoed through the cavern. "Something misplaced badly. Someone misplaced badly? A guest I smell, I fell, did they brought me something dear?"

Huge hand emerged from the lake and felt right on the tiles. It's fingers were made of burning flesh and fire. The slim digits had black, coal like fingernails on their end. It's thumb seemed to be deformed to the point that he couldn't even move. The thing tapped loudly over the ground.

"Your flesh is still in place, intact. Fascinating notion." The voice chuckled. "Fascinating. But I can make you crispy if you wish. Crispy, yes. You will then fit this place. You don't want to be taken for an outsider now, do you?"

In the hole of one of the walls that still stood, a huge eye appeared. It almost glittered, yet it was clearly scorched a couple of times, to the point that it resembled some kind of abscess, rather than an actual optic. Still, the pupil inside moved from time to time. Like a ulcer full of worms.

"What are you, I wonder. And what do you seek in my domain. In my kingdom of disarray?" The voice coughed. "I know. You're here to mess with me. To mess, mess with my lands!"

The girls looked at each other. They were quite experienced when it came to dealing with crazy beings, however, this one, judging by the size of it's hands, was as big as a small house. And could probably crush them within seconds. Considering that, they decided to wadge their words carefully this time around.

"Hello. Um..." Marceline began shyly. "You are the... Count right?"

"She ask about my name. A name which I shall give." The voice grunted. "Yes, that would be it. That would be my name, little being, not crispy enough."

"Uh... So we... kind off maybe need an ember from you... the one that you took from the..."

"Ah." The pupil in the eye got bigger, almost as if it's owner just got reminded about something important. "That would be impossible. You see. I cannot give that thing to thee. Since, it lies deep. Within me."

"What?"

"Within me, yes, you heard correctly. It burns, within. It made me the way I became." His eye twitched. "It's nothing to be striven upon, no, no. Impossibility that leads to inevitable."

"I don't follow you at all." This time it was the princess that decided to join the conversation. "You're like Ice King. Only with even more crazies."

"They don't follow, no, no." He whispered faster, and faster. "The ember, is now a part of me. Yes? It made me whole, like this. Gave me numerous friends see? No, you're blind, you don't see, don't see the lines I do see. I was once like that. LIKE THAT."

He began to bash on the ground numerous times, as the island began to shook. The girls knew that their time is running out. Marceline prepared her guitar for the inevitable, Bubblegum on the other hand thought fast what would be the best plan for this kind of situation.

"I won't, won't give anything, anything that belongs to me, to anyone, anyone, to you, nor you, nor you, you." He panicked. "NO. YOU WON'T grab my heart, you won't put me out, no, no, no. I like living, growing, yes, yes?" His eye began to wonder in all different directions, constantly switching it's target. "Yes, of course I do, I do, and I do like pets. You like pets? Give in to my pets. My pets will gnaw, my pets will scorch. Some like the scorching. You like scorching?"

And with those words, he let out numerous little humanoid embers from within his hands. They looked almost like goblins made from flames, as they constantly chuckled and giggled to themselves. In no way they could be considered cute however. Without hesitation, in a brief moment, all of them charged right at the girls. The first one landed right under Bubblegum's heel, as he exploded into million tiny sparks. Right after that, she punched another one with her metal glove and he simply imploded from within. Meanwhile, Marceline danced around another group, swinging her instrument in every possible direction, cutting numerous little beings in half. They simply couldn't stand a chance against those two agile combatants. Their master quickly saw that, as he himself smashed the rest of the little beings under his hand.

"Killing." He got sad all of a sudden. "So much killing. Unnecessary. Unnecessary, no, no, no. They talked so nicely, singed me songs, you monsters! SEE HOW MANY YOU KILLED? Who is the monster, no, no, not me, they said I am, you see, I'm not, here, I'll show you."

His hands and the eye from the wall disappeared swiftly. The girls felt something moving underneath the island. Something big. And then, after much anticipation, the thing emerged from the other side. He looked like something straight out of a nightmare. His twisted body resembled a snake, or a lizard mixed with a human being. Or something in between. His flesh burned constantly, as parts of it dripped straight down on the floor. It didn't bothered him at all it would seem, as he simply gazed at the two with it's twitchy eyes. On his head, there were remains of something that looked like a crown, that now grew into his skin, like pieces of driven glass.

"Have you ever saw perfection weaklings? No? No? No!" He laughed maniacally. "So many years, and I became so much more. So much more! More than anyone! MORE!"

"What... Happened to you?"

"What happened to me?..." That question made him thing for a moment, as his eyes still twitched in every possible direction. "...Something. Yes. Yes!"

And without any kind of warning, he started to pummel on the ground. The island shook even further, as the girls desperately tried to hold onto something. The creature quickly changed it's tactic however, seeing that this one bare almost no effect. He began to hit the tiles with it's tail, using it like a whip. This part of it's body looked almost like tangled pieces of flesh, mangled and stretched out. It also raveled around constantly, as he tried to catch them and swoop them off their feet. The girls were agile beings however, constantly slipping underneath it or jumping right above. Still, it was a race against time, as with each strike he made, parts of the island simply crumbled away.

"Ideas, smartie?" Marceline said, as she dodged yet another swipe of his tail. "Huh?"

"Kill it?"

"Brilliant Bonnie, brilliant..."

Despite her remark, she tried everything that possibly came into her head. She shifted constantly, from a bat that avoided the raveled tail, a wolf that tried to bite at it's core and chew at it's very flesh, to a werewolf that wanted to catch and pull the thing out in the most painful way possible. All of it presented to be futile, even when Bubblegum tried her best to catch the creature's attention. And then, something quite unexpected happened. A horn echoed through the cave. A noise so loud that it made the walls tremble. The creature looked around, almost as if it forgot about the girls.

"Pesky, pesky who is..."

At the top of the cliff, Flame King stood on his fiery mount. He held his ornamented spear in his hand, gazing onto the battlefield. The horse seemed to be unstable, with blazes jumping from it's skin constantly, as he neighed from time to time. The ruler of the kingdom of flame didn't even tried to calm him down, looking at the Count below. Only thing he felt was disgust.

"Prideful king shows up again. Weak king. King that loved, aw..." The monster shouted. "Still enjoying your fiery pit, weak one? Yes? Yes? Yes!"

The King remained silent. He ignored the creature completely, as he didn't really saw any need to speak to such being. He gazed at the girls however, thinking how did they managed to survive so long. It would be easier if they had just died. One less thing to think about. With that notion, he pulled the rains and his mount charged down from the cliff. As they felt down, the horse exploded into numerous sparks with the final neigh that echoed through the cave, further thrusting the King onwards. He pushed his spear midair and with a single slash, he sliced off the skin on the monster's chin. Blood began to pour from the wound, instantly vaporizing when it touched it's blazing skin. The burning one felt right onto the island, shattering the ground around him.

"Look who decided to show up..." Despite those words, Bubblegum actually felt relief seeing him. "Still, thanks, we..."

He stood up without saying a word, placing himself between the girls and the monster. The Count hissed as he tried to cover and put together his messed up face. His claws only made it worse.

"The king has came to shred the skin of salvation in this land. I will not let rule of monsters, no, no I will not!"

The monster started to smack his hands onto the ground once again. The first strike was quickly repelled by the mighty flaming spear however. The creature screamed furiously, seeing as now, he had to face a formidable opponent. And the battle waged once again, as the three acted together to struck the fiend down. With numerous attempts, the Flame King finally pierced his paw and pinned it to the ground. The little vampire quickly fallowed that notion, chopping off one of Count's fingers with her sharp guitar. The thing spat out curses and threw his body around, as he eventually managed to pull out the spear, tossing it aside. The tail came into play once more, as he successfully tangled it around Flame King's legs. He finally managed to trip him over, as the flaming one hardly bared the agility of the two slim silhouettes. Not wasting a single second, the abomination rushed at him with his jaw wide opened. And then, just like that, it's body began to shiver and twitch in pain. The King looked with surprise. His own spear was held by the pink one, as she drove it deep into the creature's eye. The fiend screamed, as the thick walls of the mountain trembled. Scratching the wound a couple of times, making it even worse, he turned towards them. His remaining eye was full of hatred.

"I was meant to be eternal! This won't end, won't end!"

His twisted body swirled around, as he finally disappeared somewhere in the lava depths down below. The girls couldn't do a thing about it, as they would simply burn, should they even tried to come after him. The Flame King however switched his focus constantly, considering one particular thing.

"Thanks, we..."

Bubblegum was swiftly interrupted, as the copper gauntlet grabbed her by the throat and rise up in the air. He thought that will intimidate her. No, he was sure of it. But as he gazed into her eyes, he didn't saw fear in there. He saw ferocity. Some doubt. Longing. Sadness. No fear however. Marceline quickly came around, as she wanted to help her lover. Once again however, with one gesture of her hand she quickly called her off.

"So... what now..." It was hard for her to talk when he pushed so hard on her throat. "...Sunny?"

"You joke, yet again pink one. And once again, you're about to face my wrath, curious." He sighted loudly. "But I have a deal for you."

"You always... strangle... those you deal with?"

"Most of the time." The flames on his head formed into a smile. "All the time."

"Cut..." She gulped. "To the chase."

"I will bring you what you'll need." Flame King nodded. "But you will get rid of the fiend. Once and for all." He took a deep breath. "Listen to me closely pink one. Once. And. For. All. And should you fail..." His grip tightened. "Take care of my daughter. Promise me that."

"You do care..." Bubblegum would chuckle, if it weren't for his hand on her neck. "You... care deeply."

"Don't toy with me on this one, pink one." He narrowed his flaming eyebrows. "Deal?"

"Deal."

The King finally let her go and gazed once more at her small, pink frame with much fascination. There was a task that he needed to fulfill however, and he wasn't the one that liked to hesitate. The lord of flames grabbed his spear and quickly jumped into the lava flow. For the first time, the flaming one was meant to do something for another being. It felt kind of refreshing. Kind of warm.