Shaggy took another bite of his meat skewer and hummed happily. The meat was purple and random demons in the street kept giving him odd looks. But he figured fuck them. The normal mages and players filling the road didn’t give him a second glance. So what if he had eaten his way through six skewers of whatever mystery meat the vendor had sold him? It was helping his Regen ability go back up, and it didn’t taste bad.
Of course, even Levy had wanted to know what the purple meat chunks had been. But Shaggy was too busy eating to pay attention. Now his wife was in the latest magic shop, searching through its shelves. After the first three shops, Shaggy stopped going inside. They all smelt of weird spices and book leather. A combination that put him off his mystery meat.
Now he was standing on the dark orange cobblestones of the main road in Korrigan’s kingdom. Shaggy was surprised that the place appeared to be more of a fantasy setting than a more modern one. Houses were brick and thatch, with only a few more modern looking cement buildings dotted about. Sparse vegetation and trees were planted in the black dirt surrounding most buildings. Although Shaggy couldn’t identify the flora and most of it looked dead.
Shaggy tossed his skewer in a nearby garbage bin and watched as the wooden stick was disintegrated as it passed by the lid. Shaggy had wanted to put his hand inside one of the things as an experiment. But Levy had stopped him. Apparently, the enchantment was supposed to not stop until it had eaten all the material that passed its entry. But Shaggy was adamant his healing could take it. Now that he was topped off, he kind of wanted to try.
“Don’t!” Levy screamed from behind him. “Seriously, do I have to explain to you why you shouldn’t stick your hand in strange places?!”
Shaggy spun to see his wife standing at the entrance to the latest magic shop. Bags hanging off her arms. She had her hands on her hips, flaring the bags out dangerously. Shaggy grinned as he put up both his hands.
“It’s just so tempting. I mean, I’ve been burned, disintegrated, and had a few dermal plates burned off. Sure, it hurt like hell. But I healed without issue. What can a trashcan do to me?”
Levy stomped forward as Shaggy glanced back down at the trash can. “It’s a trashcan, enchanted by some of Korrigan’s best. Don’t fuck with it.”
Shaggy grumbled, but stuck his hands in his pockets. Giving Levy a smile, he asked. “So where to now? Or do you finally own all the books in existence?”
“It’s all necessary, Shaggy. We need a base for our own mages, and Korrigan has some of the best books around. A few are pretty pricey, but I think they are worth the investment.”
“Weren’t we looking for Dave?”
“So said yourself, the guy is probably fine. Besides, we NEED these.” Levy said, shaking the bags on her arms.
“If you say so.”
Levy merely grinned as she hurried down the road. Shaggy hurried to follow her as they followed the throngs of people. Some were the tall demons from the portal, but most were mages in robes. They were rushing up and down the cobblestone streets. Holding whispered conversations as they carried their books. For some reason, Shaggy felt like the entire city had a college town feel. But so far, he hadn’t seen any large magical academy or anything. In fact, the largest building in the town was Korrigan’s castle. Followed by the barracks building in front of the castle that housed a bunch of demons.
“So where are we going now?” Shaggy called as he followed Levy.
“There’s another store up the way near the front gate to town. I want to see if it has anything I missed.”
“Really, Levy? Four bookstores weren’t enough? You need to make it five? How many books do you need?”
Levy turned a mock glare at him as they kept moving. “ALL of them! I shall not rest until I have all the books.”
Shaggy smirked and shook his head, but followed Levy. Stores and shops blurred past as they moved. But Shaggy was sure he saw all the staples of a fantasy setting. Blacksmiths, bakeries, stables, inns, weird magical cafes, an arena. Shaggy skidded to a stop as he saw the mass of black-robed people milling around the large sign. Levy must have stopped and turned back when he did. Because the next thing Shaggy knew, she was whispering in his ear.
“It’s an underground arena for the mages to practice their craft. Probably like the one you have in Under-Town. But y’know, more magic.”
“They take bets?” Shaggy asked as he watched the crowd move.
“Yeah, I think so. Why you want to go play while I shop?”
Shaggy nodded and wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead. “Yeah. I want to check it out at least. If I know Dave, he is either down in the arena or at one of those cafes back there. Probably got a crowd of groupies already all.”
“I don’t think you understand how cerebral mages are. They don’t celebrate physical strength the way people in Under-Town do. If anything, they are using him in the arena as a guinea pig or something,” Levy said, looking unconvinced.
“Could you use a puppy as a lab rat?” Shaggy asked.
Levy put a finger to her lips in thought. “Maybe? How ugly is it?”
“Go to your bookstore, love. I’ll check if Dave’s in the arena and maybe place a bet or two.”
“Fine. But be prepared. Korrigan’s message should pop up at any minute with the information we need. Just be aware of it.”
Shaggy nodded before brushing his lips on his wife’s cheek and rushing off. He had to push his way past a few robed mages. But he managed to get to the where the large sign indicated the arena was. Below the sign was a large brick staircase leading downward. Shaggy followed the mass of people down for a long way until he finally popped out onto a large circular platform. The platform ran all the way around, circling a large indent in the middle. Shaggy pushed toward the railing and looked down. The center of the arena was a large circle surrounded by stadium seating.
Hundreds upon hundreds of mages and demons filled the stands as people cheered and jeered the fighters in the arena. Shaggy groaned as he recognized his friend’s blue armor. Dave was on the main floor of the arena punching fireballs that a group of robed mages were throwing at him. Dave would dodge and roll around some of the magic thrown at him and then close in with the group fighting him. When he got close, he would knock a few out, sending the others scattering. Then they would try to bombard him again.
Shaggy rolled his eyes as he walked around the mezzanine looking for a betting booth. He found it halfway around the large arena and took his place in line. From the stand he could hear people shouting at expletives at his friend. Apparently, Dave wasn’t a popular contestant. Shaggy waited on the line, playing with the credits he had on his person. He was pretty sure Dave was a good bet, but he wasn’t sure he wanted to bet all he had.
Once he was at the counter, Shaggy found himself face to eye with a large winged eyeball. Shaggy stared for a few seconds until, terrifyingly, the eyeball split in two, revealing a row of nasty-looking teeth, and spoke.
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“What do ya want?! I ain’t got all day.”
“Yeah, I’m sure you're busy giving people nightmares,” Shaggy’s mouth said before he could catch it.
The floating eyeball slammed its monstrous maw back down and glared at Shaggy. He ignored the look and threw a few credits chits on the counter. Checking the odds, Shaggy realized he couldn’t find Dave’s name anywhere. Neither his actual name nor the weird nom de guerre he normally used. Shaggy sighed as he realized he had to watch the eyeball talk again.
“Who’s the blue guy? Put this on him to win it all.”
“Ahh, The Blue Devil. Our latest Dark Horse. Are you sure? The guy is going at five to one odds right now. But those are going to drop. I assure you.”
“Why do you say that?”
“He’s good, I’ll grant you. Especially for a non-magical being. But he hasn’t fought against a fully armored and ‘chanted demon yet. Mostly, he’s been playing with the magical students who want to test out their latest and craziest arrays or runes.”
Shaggy snorted as he thought of the demons he had seen on the streets and in the palace. “Yeah. Place it on him and let it ride.”
“Your funeral.” The weird flying eye said through its improbable mouth.
Shaggy hurried away as he heard the crowd shout in excitement again. Only for them to immediately fall into boos and jeers again. Looking down into the arena, Shaggy spotted his blue armored friend dropping a heel kick on the final mage in the squad that was attacking him. The poor squishy mage dropped like a sack of potatoes, and Dave stood in the arena, still crouched in a combat stance. Once a buzzer went off, Dave relaxed and the surrounding noise around Shaggy doubled. None of it was complimentary to Dave.
In the arena, Dave dropped his armor and ran around the arena, cheering. Oblivious to the absolute disdain a lot of the crowd had for him. Shaggy was surprised no one was throwing anything. Dave finished his running around and his side of the arena and crouched down. Shaggy started making his way down the steps toward his Dave’s side of the arena. He only made it halfway before the buzzer sounded again and two more participants entered the ring. Shaggy thought Dave was going to get a break, but the smiling player summoned his armor again and rushed out into the arena.
The three parties meet in the middle of the arena and squared off. Shaggy could see that Dave was up against another small group of mages and two beefy-looking demons. Both demons were carrying swords and looked eager to fight. Meanwhile, the mages were hurried throwing up bubbles of protection around themselves. Dave shuffled on his feet excitedly, his armor shifting on his body as he moved. Shaggy didn’t like the way both magical groups were angled against Dave. But the happy-go-lucky guy was too busy staring at the demons to notice.
Shaggy made it down to the rim of the arena when the buzzer went off again. The fight started with a loud explosion that made Shaggy lose sight of Dave. A burning inferno of magic blasted from the center of the arena, but it danced around the mages and the demons. Both groups smiled smugly as Dave seemingly burned to cinders. Then Dave’s blue form shot forth and delivered a roundhouse to a demon’s chest. The demon went flying as its partner unsheathed and swung his sword. But Dave was already gone again. Rushing toward the mages.
The huddled group of mages broke apart. Each throwing random spells at the oncoming blue devil. The demon followed Dave as he tried to corner a few of the mages. Fireballs, wind scythes, lighting bolts and ice missile all soared through the air as Dave danced around the arena. The bombardment was so bad that the demon even took some friendly fire. Shaggy noted that Dave’s armor seemed to take most of the magic pretty well. Turning aside icicles and redirecting lightning bolts. But the wind scythes seemed to be an issue. Bits of Dave’s armor went flying every time he was hit with a stray spell.
But Dave was aware enough to take those spell-casters down first. He occasionally had to stop and deal with the two demons who chopped at him with their swords. But Dave was too nimble for the big oafs. He juked around the pair, delivering fast rabbit punches and then jumping away as more spells rained down on them all. Shaggy thought it was only a matter of time before one of the demons went down. But surprisingly, Dave had dispatched most of the mages before the first demon even appeared to be flagging. Shaggy had to give it to the demons. Their skin was incredibly tough.
Eventually, with only two mages left, Dave turned and started actively dealing with the demons. Shaggy figured his friend’s stamina had to be dwindling. Especially with all the running around Dave had done. A hand on Shaggy’s shoulder made him spin around, claws extending. Levy’s face glared at Shaggy’s hand as stopped in mid-air. Shaggy coughed and rapidly dismissed his claws.
“Really, twitchy? Were you going to start a fight right here?” Levy asked, annoyed.
“Sorry. Fights got me a bit amped. These demons are tough, but they are also too slow for Dave.” Shaggy said, waving into the arena as Dave elbowed a demon in the throat and rolled away.
“Hmmm.” Levy said as she glanced down. “Demon regeneration is pretty reliable. But it looks like these two are pretty young.”
Shaggy nodded understandingly and took in Levy’s appearance again. He noticed that the bags she had been carrying were gone.
“Where’s your shit?”
Levy chuckled and tapped a small multicolored bag on her hip. “Lesser Bag of Holding. I found it in the last shop. Of course, I have to maintain the enchantments or find someone that can make them permanent. But for now, it serves my purpose.”
“Which is to carry your crap.”
“What else is a bag of holding for? Oh, that was a mistake.” levy groaned as she kept her eyes on the arena.
Shaggy turned in time to see Dave swinging off a demon’s horns to kick him in the face. The demon seemed to take a huge amount of offense to the blow. Throwing his sword away and attacking Dave with nasty slow haymakers. Dave’s armored form danced backwards as the second demon tried to circle around him. Dave dodged another fireball from one of the remaining mages and gave the enraged demon two jabs to the ribs. The demon didn’t even register the hits as he charged blindly at Dave.
“Don’t touch their horns?” Shaggy asked as he watched Dave leap over the charging demon.
Levy winced as the two demons slammed into one another. “Yeah. It’s like grabbing a guy’s crotch. Horns are a sign of virility and prestige amongst Korrigan’s demons.”
“So wait, Dave just swung off a demon’s junk?”
“They are not literally a demon’s genitals, Shaggy. Just a secondary sex characteristic. One they take very seriously.”
“I see that,” Shaggy said as the enraged demon tossed his friend at Dave.
Dave dove out of the way and rushed the demon. The demon roared and charged at Dave, arms held up to swing down on the smaller man. Both parties met and Shaggy watched as Dave flung himself into the air and spun forward twice before snapping his leg down in another heel kick. The demon caught the armored foot on a shoulder and tried to stay upright. But the force of the blow forced the demon’s head into the dirt. Dave quickly came out of the kick and delivered two more swift kicks to the demon’s head before he had to roll away again. A fireball landed where Dave had been standing, slamming into the side of the demon’s prone head.
“Yesh! His got to be down now, right?” Shaggy asked as he watched the motionless demon.
“I think so. Head trauma is the best way to take a Korrigan’s demons out. Once they’re unconscious, though, you have to take their head off quick. I mean, in an actual fight, that is. I think the demon is out as far as the arena is concerned.”
Shaggy nodded. “Understandable. Y’know the same method might work for me? Although I’ve never been beheaded before.”
“If Cog had aimed higher, we could’ve known.” Levy joked.
“No kidding. Hey, why do you keep referring to them as Korrigan’s demons? Are they just really loyal to her or they like literally her kids or something?”
Levy smiled as they continued to watch the fight. “They are kind of her kids. She created them, along with this pocket realm. They are based on real in-game demons and can even evolve like the other demons do. But they are one hundred percent loyal to Korrigan and are all magically linked with her.”
Shaggy nodded at the explanation and studied the remaining demon Dave was fighting. As it attempted to catch Dave with its sword, the large purple and black demon exhaled blue flames from its nose. The remaining mages tried to keep up with their own spells, but everyone realized Dave was winning. The jeering crowd grew louder as Dave knocked out the last demon and chased the mages around till he knocked them out as well. Shaggy felt that the demons weren’t as bad as the talking eyeball had said. Sure, they were resilient, but nothing Dave couldn’t handle.
The buzzer went off again, and Dave dropped his armor. Reveling the sweaty and smiling man beneath. But before he could take a victory lap, the buzzer went off again. Shaggy shouted in indignation, but he was drowned out by the cheering crowd. The arena rumbled and purple flames lit the arena from several candles placed around the sides. Levy chuckled as a thudding sound came from the opposite side of the arena. Dave armored up again as something entered the arena.
“Now we’ll see how tough Dave really is. He better be ready to kill.”
“What the hell is going on?” Shaggy asked as a massive pure-black demon stepped into the arena.
“It’s the next evolution of Korrigan’s demons. The Demonic General.” Levy said as the demon roared. The crowd in the arena answered back with a roar of their own as Dave and the demon squared off.