X’lyssa narrowed her glowing golden eyes as I shook my head.
“Not a dinner.” I answered. “A feast. I offer you the lives of each and every one of my enemies at the gates of Grandring.” Her eyes twinkled and her smirk turned into a toothy smile as I spoke. “Rampage dear overfiend. Rampage to your heart’s content, but save their corpses for me. Pile them high before the Gates of the Dwarven City.”
“You sacrifice much for my pleasure.” X’lyssa purred. “I feel as though I’m about to be asked a favor.”
“You are.” I confirmed. “Twenty Cambions and five Hellcats bearing my brand were banished to The Hells today. If you help them find their way home then I will give you something that makes this offering seem meager.”
“Keep whatever bauble you had in mind.” She seemed suddenly dead serious. “I know exactly what you shall give me.”
“I am listening...” Something about her mood made me even more nervous.
“A child.” She delivered the words with absolute confidence.
I choked on the air, and sensed Yugal shift uncomfortably behind me at the words.
“A child?” I repeated incredulously.
“Yes. Your child. The product of a carnal union between you and I.” She defeated my innocent density act before it ever had a chance.
“See my family returned to me, and I will grant your wish.” I might have sounded like I was grudgingly accepting harsh terms but internally it felt like I was paying for cookies by eating a cupcake. “Do you need a contract?”
“No.” She turned to the side and made a simple gesture. “Pinthalak.”
Another portal appeared, and moments later a black imp demon with leathery batwings and thumb sized horns appeared and dropped to his hands and knees before her. I recognized the faint reddish runes floating around his body, these marked him as a fel imp. While nearly identical to normal imps, evolved imps like this could amass huge amounts of magical power.
“Your orders, my Overfiend.” His voice was packed with reverence, not fear. My opinion of her improved slightly. You can tell alot about someone by how their subordinates view them.
“My soon-to-be lover has lost some of his flock in our garden.” My stomach lurched at that introduction. “Find them, dear Pinthalak. Let no harm come to them. Deliver them to my palace. You are my own hand in this matter. Any that obstruct this effort are baring their fangs at me personally.”
“Be careful.” I added, and they both looked at me curiously. “My people are strong, and will probably assume anyone approaching to be hostile. Tell them that you were sent by Gray.”
“My Overfiend...” The imp named Pinthalak seemed hesitant to continue. “Is this the man that defeated my former master?”
“He punished that Gorgo, I saw his broken body with my own eyes.” X’lyssa confirmed.
“Thank you, great one.” The imp bowed deeply before me. “I shall find your lost allies.”
I nodded at the imp. He seemed like a decent enough sort for a demon. “The Warlord has been suffering my hospitality since that day. Rest assured he is paying handsomely for his behavior.”
“Now. Shall I begin with this one?” X’lyssa sauntered to stand over Orkas who was still kneeling where I had struck him down.
“I should have said it earlier.” I apologized. “That one belongs to Yugal.”
“Do as you will, mistress of the hells.” Yugal interjected. His voice now had a roaring forge quality to it. “I prefer to raise my weapons in defense rather than execution.”
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“A chitid and a nexus locust sharing a body.” X’lyssa snickered. “I bet you were having so much fun. Did you even know? That pathetic bug you call a queen has been getting devoured in The Pit ever since she decided to take a shot at my throne.”
“Impossible...” Orkas was in denial. “Our Queen... defeated?”
“Who do you think named that bloated slug!?” X’lyssa cackled. I was completely lost by this story but it was still fun to watch. “Do not despair.” The Overfiend continued in a comforting tone. “You’ll be with her soon.”
I felt a disturbance in the air, and then thousands of fairy sized versions of X’lyssa materialized and engulfed Orkas. He did not resist, or even scream. The sound was nauseating as uncountable tiny mouths devoured the general like a school of flying piranha. When the swarm receded and flew into X’lyssa’s body, nothing remained of General Orkas.
“My, my...” She seemed to be glowing with satisfaction. “He was a ripe one. Thank you for the meal.” She said directly to Yugal.
Yugal and I shared a look as she walked between us to the lip of the Caldera. The hair on my arms and neck was beginning to stand on end. A power was building inside her rapidly, and I had no idea what could be coming next. She looked down hungrily on the siege city below. A huge golden eye suddenly opened on her upper abdomen, and she held out her arms.
“Domain: Sanguine Nightmare.” My eyebrows almost touched my hairline as those three words left her full red lips.
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A divination mage named Lina sat comfortably in her relatively luxurious apartment in the siege camp. Her work for the kingdom army wasn’t hard. She simply watched a small area of the Sea of Stone where dwarven refugees were known to pass through as they fled the capital. After a few hours, she would pass the duty along to the next mage and be given almost a full day to rest and recover her Soul Energy. It didn’t please her to report on the fleeing refugees, but she still did her duty. Hundreds of refugees had been caught thanks to her efforts, and Lina was afforded the best treatment as a result.
She had heard that some important operation was taking place today, and the final push to conquer Grandring would finally begin. If all went as planned she would be on her way back to Crown City within a few short weeks.
Her smile at the thought suddenly melted as a strange sound entered her mind. Hundreds, thousands, millions of whispered voices began to speak in her thoughts. The things they promised, the way they spoke. Lina instantly screamed and began to claw wildly at her ears, drawing blood.
Like every other magic sensitive person in the area, she was among the first unfortunate souls to hear the voice of X’lyssa, The Sanguine Duchess and one of the Overfiends of The Hells.
She scrambled and ran to her door and crashed out into the streets. The winter air was now strangely warm and humid. Soldiers and other personnel were all looking up in shock and wonder at the sky. Low hanging storm-clouds had suddenly filled the sky, and they were the color of blood.
“Run!” Lina screamed. “Can’t you hear it!?”
“Whoa, Lin what happened!?” One of her neighbors, a high ranking knight rushed up to her and grabbed her by the shoulders. “What’s goin’ on?”
“The blood... the eyes...” Lina looked with wild eyed terror at the face of the man holding her. “I hear her! I hear her and she says she’s coming for me!”
A single thick drop of blood-red rain fell to the ground next to them, and Lina watched it morph into a tiny winged fairy with cherubic features. The man holding Lina noticed it as well and backed a step away as it flew up like a butterfly near his face.
“What are...?” He leaned close and the tiny smiling girl suddenly darted at his face.
He screamed in horror and pain as his right eyeball exploded and the fairy wormed into his skull through its socket. His scream ended abruptly a second later and Lina watched in terror as his remaining eye began to glow gold. He smiled wickedly and lunged at Lina, she barely evaded him and sprinted away as the voices in her mind drove her deeper into madness. Another drop of rain fell, and another. A downpour soon followed.
No organized defense rose against the rain. By the time anyone knew what was happening, it was far too late. The fairies targeted the strongest first, and turned them against their allies. The war for Grandring well and truly ended the moment Gray spoke her name the third time.
Niiya flew fast toward the blood red field, having lagged far behind Gray’s much faster form. She was nearly upon the scene when his sudden appearance hovering in front of her caused her to stop short.
“The war’s over. I have a few more things to wrap up, and I need you to head back to EDEN and let everyone know that we won. I’m sure they’re worried.” His voice sounded a tiny bit off. He was hiding something.
“You’re okay?” She locked her eyes onto his as she asked.
He drifted closer and held out his arms. Niiya took the invitation and hugged him, pressing her ear against his chest. His heart beat was slow and even, and she relaxed.
“What’s that red place?” She asked. “It feels bad.”
“It’s a Domain, alot like yours.” He answered honestly. “We have made a new ally. They’re very strong and are helping us. Now hurry back, we’ll join you by morning.”
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I watched her go, feeling like a real scumbag. The truth was that I couldn’t let her see the horror show I had unleashed, and I really didn’t want to explain the Overfiend situation just yet.
I flew above the Sanguine Nightmare, and the screams grew less frequent. Unnatural silence fell over the landscape by the time I touched down before the gates of Grandring. My remaining forces were there, and there was movement coming from the great square cut tunnel. I recognized Van Kothis, and next to him was a dwarf whom could only be the king himself. They led a battalion of grim faced dwarves, ready to die for their freedom. They could not begin to comprehend the truth of this situation.
My people split like the biblical red sea, and formed a corridor between myself and the dwarven leaders. Tuara and Kitha took positions to either side of me while Yugal and Thrym knelt at my back.
“Me king.” Van Kothis gestured to me as the two approached. “This be The Gray, and you’ll recognize the giant king. As for the dark elves and fire-ice-god there... dunno!”
“Ramthrag Anvilbane.” The king put a fist over his heart and dipped his head a fraction of an inch. “Thank you for coming to our defense. We are prepared for the counterattack. We have two thousand warriors, and a score of mages ready to...” Ramthrag’s voice dropped like a stone and I could see he was now looking past us with widening eyes.
I turned, and understood the feeling. A sea of soldiers stood in dead silence. Each one had a bloody socket where their right eye would be, and a glowing golden orb where their left eye would be. Every single face wore the same twisted smirk of X’lyssa herself, who was presently hovering twenty meters above the possessed army. What a remarkably efficient woman.
“I appreciate your efforts Dwarven King.” I said without taking my eyes off of the slowly descending X’lyssa. “But as you can see, the siege is broken.”
“My...” Van Kothis gasped. “You incarnated the Sanguine Duchess!?” That was the first time I had heard any clear emotion in the dwarf's voice.
“Is that any way for a warlock to greet his patron?” X’lyssa snickered. “Hello, little Van. I see you’ve met my man.”