The six-foot demon had the gall to smile after vanishing one of Jasmine's only friends in this crazy world. She didn’t know if he was dead or worse. She only knew demons from a single interaction with Maligore. From what she could tell, he seemed like a pleasant, albeit eccentric, being. But this creature was the epitome of every demon Sunday school harped on about.

She wondered for a moment if they were the demons from the Judeo-Christian religion. Looking around, she scanned the battlefield. It was clear at a glance that the wall was gone. Dead Tarkonian soldiers littered the area and demons were pouring from cracks in space.

To anyone vaguely familiar with the popularised end of days. This would herald a demonic invasion and the end of human-kind. Yet it was all a military tactic. That was obvious to anyone with an objective viewpoint.

The defenders protected the castle very well. It could withstand siege months. The enemy had to employ an unorthodox tactic to take the wall. She just didn’t expect them to employ demons. Or should she have considered that?

The empires of more radical members were harping on about demon invasions. Initially, she thought this was a manifestation of racist sentiments, but perhaps there was substance to their bias.

She examined this within a few seconds. Long enough to notice a giant red fist coming towards her. Raising her arms, she blocked the impact; the force was immense but still inferior to the Blue Dragon.

Pushed back only slightly, she replied with a one-two punch to his mid-section. The blows took the demon off guard, sending him flying. Catching himself in mid-air, his wings spread, inviting another blow. Smiling with a wicked glint in his eye, he swiftly touched down.

“Not bad. You punch like a demon.” He mocked before landing with a great thud.

The castle walls trembled with his steps, an obvious fear tactic. Despite that, Jasmine stood alone and resolute atop the besieged ramparts. Relying on her spirit's blessed powers, she settled into a fighting stance. Gesturing the demon to come and face her. The infernal being could not resist leaping into action.

The air was thick with an acrid scent, burning stone, and the wails of the dying. Despite that, she stood tall and proud, facing the horde. She stepped forward, causing the stone beneath her boots to crack with every step. Positioning herself in front of the retreating soldiers, she faced the legions before her.

Tightening her fists, the power of her patron surged in her veins. Something she hadn't discussed was the thrill it gave her every time she was near the display of power. Shaking her head, she put that feeling aside. With a burst of incredible speed, she closed the distance. Tricking her opponent into thinking she would remain in defence.

She swung a powerful right hook, impacting against his jaw. Staggering backwards, the demon recovered even faster than before. Unleashing a barrage of claws, ready to rend flesh, his swipes missed their mark.

“Quite agile, is that kick boxing?” The demon inquired, raising his hand to forestall his demons.

“You know about kick boxing?” Jasmine replies, perplexed.

“Of course I do. I’m not one of these primitive locals. So ignorant of the many worlds and their secrets.”

“And where did you learn that term?” She asked, narrowing her eyes.

“I’ve been around and earth is an old stopping ground. Perhaps I’ll visit yours some day.” He said menacingly, his smile showing serrated teeth.

“That assumes you survive this day.”

“That it does.”

As if by a signal, the fight resumed. The demon raised his arms, sending his imps to attack. The demons flee forward eagerly and are ready to slash and rend. Mobbing her from all sides, they slashed and grabbed. Every cut meeting flesh as hard as stone, despite the clothes tearing. Not a single claw broke skin, she replied violently.

Kicks and punches annihilated the minor demons one blow at a time. Instead of imploding in blood and gore, they erupted into red mist. She was sure that was not how physical entities died. With the amount of force she could exert, they should be a mess of gore and viscera. Alas, this only applied to biological entities under the laws of science. Not to demons from the furthest depths of hell. Even this world scientific rules were strange, but at this moment, she didn't give these thoughts any time.

Performing a commando roll, she picked up a discarded axe. Bringing the weapon to bear, she clobbered three demons in quick succession. Their insubstantial bodies falling to pieces with every strike. She was like a whirlwind of death, as if her purposes were to remove demons from this world. Having cut the fifteenth demon in half, she confronted the larger demon, Greg.

“Not bad, and looks like you saved some people. Congrats, little hero, you saved the day. Too bad our plan doesn't involve your survival.” He said smugly.

Gripping air, a sword manifested out of thin air. It was the size of a bastard sword, absurdly large and decorated as you would suspect. Jagged edges like a shark with skulls adorning the hilt. The weapon seemed to impose and to cause as much pain before death.

“Compensating for something?” She said with a straight face.

“Maybe. Do you want to come over and check?” He replied with a smirk.

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

“I walked right into that, didn't I?”

“Yes, you did.”

The demon joked, and the human just responded. The two stared each other down, weapons in hand and the deaths of each other in mind.

“If this whole killing each other doesn't work out. Want to go for a drink?” The demon offered in an oddly friendly gesture.

“No thanks, not ready to date right now.”

“Suit yourself.” He added before leaping forward, ready to strike.

The blade descended, meeting the hard ground and embedding. He had misjudged the speed of a human. She was a lot faster than he had expected. Side stepping, she raised her axe, ready to slam it into his ribs. Instead of ending this quickly, the demon effortlessly removed his embedded blade and performed a side swing.

Narrowly missing her as she leapt higher than any Olympic gymnast could reach. She hung in the air for a moment, performing her superhero leap. Flying demons took that instance to attack, prompting several swipes from her axe. Three new imps met their makers and dissolved into mist. Landing soon after, she swung her axe, delivering death or whatever happens to demons when you decapitate them.

Greg nodded, impressed. Instead of attacking, he waited for the hero. Acting like the big boss at the end of a long campaign, the demon waited on the challenger. She did not disappoint. Leaping forward, the blade of her axe descended. The furious piece of steel threatened to split the demon's head in half.

Instead of parting his skull, the axe met steel. They raised the absurdly large bastard sword high. The thick weapon acted more like a shield than a blade. What followed were several exchanges, each blocking each other. Her skill with an edged weapon was inferior. The demon was clearly far more experienced. But her speed, natural agility and strength shored up the difference.

Neither could overcome the other, and the constant attacks from imps were mere annoyances. They would try to wade into the battle, attacking her when she was vulnerable. Instead, they found her boot or her axe. Only when one brave imp sacrificed his life did an opening appear. Slipping up, she could not raise her weapon fast enough.

A hidden blade emerged, made of transparent glass. The point sank deeply into her leg, blood gushed from the wound. The pain was excruciating, and the glee the demon got from her scream filled her with rage. In the words of her father, she was about to do something very un-lady like.

“You bitch!” She cursed, mustering all her internalised wrath to raise her weapon.

She swung the axe, slicing through her own pain, just as the axe slammed into his face. The demon foolishly tried to lean in, likely to gloat. It proved to be his undoing as the axe obliterated half of his face. The blade cut roughly through his cheek and out the side of his lip. It was a gruesome attack and would be certain death for any human.

Alas, this was a demon and did not go down easily. Despite half of his face ripped off, he only chuckled. Smiling, or at least attempting a smile with most of the flesh torn away. He then pulled the dagger and back handed Jasmine away. She flew at great speeds, smashing into the wall beside the entrance.

“Not bad, but I'm much harder to kill than these pipsqueaks.” The demon stated, his face regenerating.

“Seems so. Guess I'll have to retreat for now.” Jasmine replied, compressing the gushing wound with her free hand.

With all her remaining energy, she broke for the entrance. Reaching it despite her wound and trailing blood. She could hear the demon laughing haughtily.

“Are we playing tag now?” He inquired sarcastically.

“No, hide and seek.”

With a burst of energy, she jumped, slamming her back into the ceiling. Landing ungracefully, she rolled forward as the roof caved in. Debris sealed the passageway, and so she sighed in relief. Hearing the demon’s voice echo through the rubble, she winced at his statement.

“I'm very good at hide and seek.” The demon mentioned before, going quiet.

Jasmine tried to ignore him, instead focusing on the wound. Looking around, she found a deceased soldier slumped against the wall. An arrow jutted from his neck and blood frothing from his lips. It looked like a death she didn't want to experience. As respectfully as possible, she tore away a strip of material from his tunic. Wrapping her gushing wound as tight as possible, she let out a squeal of pain.

Sighing loudly, she rested for a moment, spurned shortly after by the knocking. The demons outside were clawing their way through and would likely enter soon enough. Rising to her feet, she made her way inside. Stopping for a moment, she spotted a strange shadow passing by. It was only a peripheral, but she could have sworn she saw it.

Deciding not to dwell, she continued. Turning down the narrow corner, she came upon a cacophony of voices. The tight space crammed soldiers, priests, and knights together. Wounds afflicted most of them, and only the king maintained order.

“Set up the barricades, send the wounded back.” The king commanded.

They facilitate his decree; the group set to task, pushed by the king's command and the fear of the enemy. Soldiers brought forth wooden barricades, aligning them in the hallway. Jasmine knew the demons would tear through them. But if it comforted them and some level of safety, let them do so.

Finding Halmar and Elisara in the group, she frantically approached them. The sight of the witch still alive comforted her. She would have hated to see her dead, given how she cared for Peter. She seemed to sleep, resting against the wall.

“How is she?” She asked.

“She is healing. Whatever that demon did was quite extensive.”

“Good. How long will she be like that?”

“Not too long. The healing process should be quite fast. It’s one of her talents.” He added, smiling.

With her friends secure, she turned to the soldiers. Noticing the commotion, she quickly went over to assess. One officer appeared to be yelling at a soldier. Commanding him to move, only the soldier stood stock still. Getting closer, she found the man, his eyes wide, an unnerving grin and refusing to move. No matter how many times the soldier yelled and commanded, the man wouldn't move.

Before she could say anything, the soldier suddenly came to life. Turned to his commanding officer, withdrew his sword and plunged the weapon into his gut. Confused, the commander fell just as the blade withdrew from a gushing wound.

“I've always wanted to do that.” The soldier said maniacally.

The mad soldier turned and began slashing at everyone within reach. Nobody was safe, not the civilians or soldiers. A fellow soldier quickly slashed him across the chest. The fear and uncertainty ran through, prompting the king himself to venture forward. Held back by his knights, with words such as not safe and keep back my liege.

Jasmine, still confused, tried to make sense of the situation. The soldier that just went mad, she had met before. While he had leered at her, he wasn't mad nor actively violent. Trying to assess the situation, she looked down and caught the same strange shadow darting across the floor. Convinced it was some sort of demon magic. She was about to inform the others.

What followed was anarchy. An earth priest began laughing insanely. His amulet raised high and sending the debris away, opening the collapse entrance. Despite his fellow priests' attempts to stop him, he removed enough debris to open a gap. Demons funnelled through the gap, widening it with every demon that came through.

Preparing for a fight, Jasmine could only watch as the demons slaughtered everyone in front of her. The demons cut a swath through them, sending body parts and viscera all over the walls. Halmar approached her side, and the two made ready for the attack. Behind them, the voice of the king bellowed loudly, frantically and with all haste.

“I accept your deal!” King Andre spoke before his world faded to black.