I stared back at their arrogant faces. The Demons Three, albeit arrogant, still remained in the confines of my magic circle.

But they had refused my offer, and that made me impatient. But I knew that the ancient beings had little choice in this matter.

"You misunderstand your predicament," I warned, my voice toned with an unwavering authority. "The fate of your freedom rests within my grasp. I hold your essence and power, and with the relics, I can break the curse that binds you to the Timeless Ones."

Ghast, Rath, and Abnegazar exchanged glances. They had been imprisoned for countless millennia by the Timeless Ones, banished from the galaxy.

"The wheel, jar, and bell," Abnegazar muttered, eyeing the hovering illusions. "You are not worthy to wield their power."

"You underestimate my mastery of the mystic arts." I said, prideful. "I am more worthy than anyone could ever be."

"First, you will serve as the Prime Guardians of my sanctums," I stated, my eyes never leaving the three demons. "You will safeguard them against all who seek to meddle with their potent energies, and relics. Your powers will be unleashed only to protect these sacred places."

"Ain't he funny boys?" Abnegazar said mockingly. "Thinking that he can control the Demons Three."

"Haaahahahaha." They all burst into a laugh.

"Silence you worthless beasts!" I commanded, snapping my fingers and adding a layer of skin to their mouths, and sealing their ability to speak. "I shall not be mocked."

"Abnegazar." I said while unsealing Abnegazar's mouth. "Let's make things interesting."

"Oy, you seem like an interesting lad. Maybe it could be worth it." He replied. "Whatcha got in mind, sorcerer?"

"A classic trade." I replied. "Your service for my soul."

"The soul of Prime." Abnegazar said as if thinking out loud.

"What??" I asked in surprise. "What do you know about Prime."

"That's not what we're trading now, is it?" Abnegazar said. "You want our service, not information."

"How about both." I said sternly. "Your service and information, for my soul and sacrifice."

"Sacrifice?" The demon chuckled lightly. "What do you think we are? Lucifer?"

"Yeah, well, tell me what you think in a few seconds." I said as I started to visualize a magic consequence. I was getting fed up with this. He was clearly stalling for something else.

I started warping the reality in the room, causing the candles to flicker as the floor where the demons were bound raised, and tilted to face my way.

Next, I pulled the demons towards me as they frantically moved their limps helplessly, as pieces of shimmering glass materialized right in front of me, their sharp points facing towards the Demons.

They would get stabbed for sure, but that was nothing to the immortal demons. I needed to show them who was boss.

They all came in clashing and yelling as the pieces of broken glass pierced their demonic skins, before vanishing into the mirror dimension.

I then rearrange the broken pieces to form the portal to the mirror dimension and stepped in.

"What is this?!" Abnegazar gasped as he stood up. He still found himself to be in the chamber.

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"Welcome to my own personal hell." I said, inviting them into the mirror dimension. "This could be your next forever prison if you do not bend to my will."

"Here, you are stuck with no way to leave, unless I will it so." I continued. "The terms have just changed."

"You may speak now." I said, opening the mouths of the sealed demon brothers.

"I don't like this guy." Rath said, eyeing me menacingly. "Let's kill him already."

"That, or we could talk this over one last time, before I resolve to more drastic measures." I cautioned.

"Or we could just slay your head, ay? Abnegazar said while advancing towards me. His brothers followed.

"I always did like your horns." I said while eyeing Abnegazar's dark horns on his head. "They would make a great display on the wall, right over there."

As I said this, a flashing light passed through the demon's neck, effectively decapitating him. His head soared towards the wall, placing perfectly besides the dark surface.

"Son of a...!" Abnegazar retorted angrily. "Kill him!"

"Not so fast." I said as I moved my body slightly, adjusting myself to sit down as a table materialized before us. A poker table.

With a wave of my hand, I forced Ghast and Rath to sit down, compelled not to stand up. Simultaneously, I conjured a dark cross and nailed Abnegazar's moving body to it.

"I think the demon brothers could use a sacrifice." I said as I lit a fire surrounding the cross; flames unlike those of hell, meant to inflict pain and torture to any demon.

"Aaaaaarrrgggghhh." Abnegazar groaned in pain as his body endured the torture while his head remained stuck to the wall.

"What do you say, Rath and Ghast?" I asked as I leaned on the poker table, a deck of cards being shuffled by a pair of hands I had conjured.

"Let's play a game." I said. "The stakes are simple. Your brothers freedom and unwavering loyalty to me, if you lose; or, you face the same fate as him if you win - eternal torture in this dimension."

"You-" Ghast grumbled as he listened to Abnegazar's torture.

"If it's not clear enough, the odds are already against you." I added. "You don't got a choice but to play."

"Pick your cards, and let the game begin." I said as the hand distributed the cards to the three of us. "Let's see what it will be."

Ghast and Rath hesitated before picking their cards. The screams of Abnegazar tortured them, and they knew that they had no choice but to play the game or endure the same fate, for eternity.

The very fact that the sorcerer hadn't bothered to bind them in a circle like before meant that they were somewhere they couldn't escape that easily. The wounds from the broken pieces of glass had already healed.

The demons, Ghast and Rath, begrudgingly picked up their cards, their expressions a mix of anger, desperation, and a hint of resignation. They were well aware that their only way out of this predicament was to play along.

As the game proceeded, the stakes grew higher with each round. They tried their best to outwit me, but I held a powerful hand, and I wasn't about to let them win easily. The flames surrounding Abnegazar intensified, making his suffering even more agonizing.

Rath, with a trembling hand, pushed a substantial number of his remaining chips into the center of the table. "All in," he declared, a glint of defiance in his eyes.

Ghast hesitated but eventually followed suit, pushing all of his chips into the pot. I could slice the tension in them as they hoped to lose, as Abnegazar's anguished screams filled the air.

I had broken them, and that was all I was hoping to achieve. Although my cards didn't look good, there was no reason to let them win, when they had already lost to me.

I studied my hand one last time and then, with a confident smile, I matched their bets, pushing all my chips into the center. "I call."

With a deep breath, I revealed my cards: the royal flush. Ghast and Rath both let out sighs of relief, realizing they had no chance of beating that hand.

They slowly revealed their hands, and the disappointment on their faces was evident. Neither had a strong enough hand to contend with my royal flush. They had lost, and they knew it; and they had hoped for it.

They exchanged resentful glances, their anger growing. "You won. Now let him go."

"First things first" I said with a sinister grin. "Congratulations!"

"You've just earned your brother's freedom and your loyalty to me." I added.

With a snap of my fingers, the flames around Abnegazar's crucified body dissipated, and his head detached from the wall, rejoining his body. He gasped for breath, his torment finally over.

The Demons Three had lost not only the poker game but also their already lost freedom. They bowed their heads in reluctant acceptance of their new fate.

But to fully seal the deal, I brought out a magical contract that would bind them to the terms.

If they defied to execute their roles as Prime Guardians, or tried to betray me in anyway, they would be instantly returned to the mirror dimension, where they would be tortured for eternity.

"Now," I said, as they all finished signing the contract, "you will serve as the Prime Guardians of my sanctums. Guard them well, or you'll find yourselves back in this dimension, enduring even worse torments."

I opened up a portal from the mirror dimension and back into the real world, where I subsequently sent each demon to their Sanctum.

Abnegazar stayed as the Prime Guardian of the New York Sanctum, dressed in the Prime Guardian attire, and assuming the form of a human, as an illusion.