High in the air Merd hovered and panted. His otherwise hairless body was covered in a layer of sweat. Then he shivered.

“This world is crazy!” Merd yelled out to nobody. Then his stomach growled. “I miss home.” He whined and deflated a bit. Then he felt his Invisibility spell fail.

Merd hung out high in the sky, and looked around. He could still see the large city off in the distance and made a rude gesture at it. The majority of the area around him was flat grassland that had been turned into mostly farmland. He could see small houses here and there. Likely farm houses like his masters, though they were in a much rougher state. Not very stately for someone who was in the position of feeding the masses. Back home the small farm families were well taken care of, after all the few did feed the many.

“What kind of barbarians are these people. Everyone knows if you don’t keep the cook happy, he spits in your food. I mean, imagine if all the farmers banded together and all failed to grow crops for the year. Stupid humans.”

Off in the distance there were mountains. “Why is the mountain white on top?” Merd wondered aloud head tilting to the side. Then shrugged and continued his perusal of his new home. “Cold.” Merd shivered again.

And way over there, trees.

“This place has everything! Except the lava pools. I’m going to miss stone fish stew. Unless, they have stonefish here.” Turning round and round he took everything in.

Then it struck him.

“I made it.” Merd slowly let out quietly. “I can do anything.” Then he rubbed his hands together. “I don’t have to go back.” Merd let out a small evil grin. “I’m free of it all. No more slave marks. I can do any… Everything!” Merd yelled out raising his arms in the air. “No more playing dumb. No more snot eating. No more pretending and hiding. I’m going to own this world. Then once I’ve gained enough strength, I am going home.” Then in the loudest voice he could. “And kick dad’s ASS FOR THE THRONE!” Merd took on a slight red hue.

-------------

Vrug was cringing in the corner. His master, Callus was screaming in a rage about Merd. Somehow that snot nosed little shit had broken his slave crest. Vrug was furious inside, while he cringed in the corner.

“Give me a chance.” Vrug pleaded. “I promise I will find him and bring him back.”

Callus leaned over Vrug. “You better. That shit eating mindless waste of skin was mine! I want him back!”

Vrug couldn’t figure it out. His master had never cared if an imp died or fled before. What was it about Merd that could make him so mad. “Yes master.” Vrug replied with as much gusto as he could.

Callus continued talking over Vrug. “I want him back before next supply! Or I will be sending you along with the supplies as ground Rockfish food!”

Vrug shrunk down trying to get farther away, the corner walls stopping him.

Callus grabbed Vrug by the neck and stormed out of his house. He was cursing and growling like an enraged Voloraptor.

Callus approached an engraved circle of power. Five imps began to channel power into five white stones at the sight of their master. A small window tore itself open between worlds. Then Vrug found himself being thrown through; his body being pulled in every which way. As the only imp with previous knowledge of the human world, it fell to him of all his master imps, to retrieve Merd.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

Then with a sudden horrible pulling, he was through.

“I’m going to kill him!” Vrug promised himself. “First to gather the items I left behind. Then Hunt and kill that shit. Then I’m going to rule this world myself.” If he had known he would be forced home, he never would have tricked his human master into blowing himself up. There was just too much opportunity here to gather power. Not like back home, where all power came from the king. He could gather his own real power.

------------

“Father? He is the direct spawn of the Daemon lord…” The old Magi leaned back in his chair. “This could be a real problem. And a real possibility. I can’t believe my little shit of a student let him go. Still, it will be fun to watch the drama unfold.” Memories of time past ran past behind closed eyes as if projected on a screen. With perfect recall he replayed his own past, where the son of the Daemon lord came to this world centuries past.

“So tired.” The paper-thin man sighed out. “I was so close to leaving this all behind, and looking past the veil. Oh well, new fun dropping into my lap could be worth a delay. I wonder what you’re doing right now my old frenemy.”

--------

Booming laughter rang out through the door of the small hut. A shudder of power followed, which rolled out like a small ripple in a huge pond. Those near by felt a rush, while those far away felt almost nothing.

“Him. He was the last one I’d have expected.” Then powerful laugher once again rolled out.

In a large palace beside the small hut two brothers passed the time in deep thought, or deep stupor. Then there was a surge of power from the throne room causing one brother to sit up straight, and the other to open a single eye.

“What’s up with father?” A tall, thin, creature of all bones, wrapped in leathery skin asked the massively fat short creature with small horns.

“One made it freely.”

“What? How?”

“Dunno.”

“Who?”

“Merd.”

“What? How did that waste of skin make that work?”

“No idea.”

Skin and bones looked at his fat brother. “Could you be less lazy. Even in you’re responses you’re Sloth.”

The fat brother didn’t even move or respond.

Skin and bones rolled his eyes. “I can’t even tell if you’re sitting standing or laying down.”

Again, he didn’t get a rise out of his brother.

“Whatever. I’m going to see what chances this little play can earn me.” Skin and bones rubbed his hands together. “Maybe even the final push to Daemon Lord.” He finished with a wicked grin.

“In your dreams.” Sloth said in a near whisper. As if the more words he used, the less effort he put into speaking aloud.

‘After all,’ Thought Sloth over the next minute. ‘I already have plans in play.’ His grin was purely internal. ‘By the time you’re able to get over, I will already have…’ There ended his thought as Sloth dropped into a sleep like stupor.

Skin and bones merely sneered at his lazy brother and disappeared in a puff of green mist.