Friedrich and Marina ran through the trees. They had not known before now that the forest was as thick and as deep as it was, but they knew they needed to find somewhere to hide while they watched for the dinner guests if they were to have any hope of surviving.
“Here,” said Marina, seeing an especially thick bush. As she tried to climb inside it, she let out a pained yelp. “It’s prickly!”
“Keep it down,” said Friedrich, as Marina clasped her hands over her mouth. “Let’s head to the left.”
The pair moved quickly and quietly through the forest, fearful that they were being watched. Friedrich looked around continually as he hurried along, ready to slay whatever demon reared its ugly head.
At last, they found somewhere thick and safe enough for them to wait and catch their breaths. Marina was looking at Friedrich with her tongue pressed against the inside of her cheek. He knew she was holding back telling him off for not listening to her, but he also knew that she was right and he thoroughly deserved a few harsh words after this was all over.
“Look at that,” said Friedrich, nodding to the side.
Marina looked to where he has gestured and spotted a small cluster of yellow mushrooms, all with bell-like tops. “Great,” whispered Marina dryly, “now we can make sixty-five kupons when we get out of here.”
“Too right,” said Friedrich, creeping over and picking them. He stuffed them in his bag, but upon finishing, he stopped and stayed perfectly still.
Marina opened her mouth to speak, but Friedrich held a finger to his lips and then put his hand to his ear. Marina listened and heard what Friedrich had. There was a series of thuds and a rustling as something moved through the forest. Whatever it was, it was growing steadily closer to them.
“Little pigs, little pigs,” muttered a demonic voice. It was one of the guests.
The Mercians did not move a muscle as the demon closed in on them. They did not know whether or not the demon knew where they were, but they couldn’t risk him getting any closer no matter what. Friedrich winked at Marina who replied with a small nod.
The young adventurer leapt out from behind the trees and swung his sword in a wide arc. The demon recoiled in surprise as Friedrich’s blade swept across its throat, cutting a large gash and sending a splattering of blood through the air. The demon tried to call out, but it could only let out a pained gasp.
As it drew its own twisted blade to make a final stand against Friedrich, it found the top of Friedrich’s sword rushing towards its open throat. Friedrich skewered the demon and kicked the infernal predator on the chest. The demon fell backwards as Friedrich pulled his sword free.
“Let’s move,” he said to Marina, taking her by the hand and running amongst the trees. “There were twelve guests plus the Head of the Table. That leaves us with eleven guests plus the big boss himself.”
“We got luck this time,” said Marina, “but what if they all attack us at once?”
“I’ve got an idea,” said Friedrich, reaching for the fox mask. “I’ll sniff them out and you make their heads explode.”
“Simple and to the point,” said Marina, but she was less convinced than Friedrich.
As he put the mask to his face, he felt an arrow pierce his hand. He gasped in pain, dropping to the ground in case another arrow was to follow. Marina spun around and launched an immense lightning bolt at the demonic archer who was perched in the trees. The lightning struck the demon, killing it instantly and throwing it to the forest floor.
“Are you alright?” asked Marina, as Friedrich stood up.
“New plan,” said Friedrich, as he stood up with the minotaur mask in his hand.
“Be careful,” said Marina, fearful that what that mask did to Friedrich in the forest shrine would happen again. She had calmed his bloodlust once, but did not know if she could do it again.
“Summon the demons,” he said confidently.
Friedrich touched the black mask to his face and his body twisted and contorted, growing large and brown as he took the minotaur’s form. He now towered above Marina and looked down at her, holding his hand up and revealing the hole the arrow had made was now gone.
With a deep breath, Marina launched a bolt into the sky, signalling to the demons where they were. She backed away and hid in a cluster of trees as Friedrich made as much noise as he could.
The sound of footsteps soon reached his bovine ears. He roared and snorted loudly, as the demons drew close. The first appeared with a twisted war hammer raised, but Friedrich was ready. He burst towards his foe and tugged the hammer form the demon’s hands. He put two hands on the demon’s head and squeezed tightly, crushing its skull and throwing it aside.
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“Three down,” Marina counted to herself as she watched her surroundings.
Another demon sprinted towards Friedrich with a spear outstretched, but he had not seen it. Marina launched a lightning bolt at the demon, missing its body, but catching the spear. The demon dropped its weapon as electricity surged through its arms. Friedrich, now alerted, turned and swung a fist into the demon, knocking it to the ground. He lifted a large, hooved foot and splattered the demon’s brains over the floor. Four guests dead, six to go.
“Things are heating up in The Infernal Kitchen,” called The Head of the Table. “Our two Mercians are full of tricks, but so are we.”
There was a thundering stomping as a huge demon waded through the trees. It was almost the same size as Friedrich’s minotaur form, but instead of being covered in fur, it was covered in scales. Its head was crocodile like and its arms were erupting with jagged spikes. It hissed and grinded its teeth as it approached Friedrich.
He lunged at it, but it raised its twisted fingers and met his grasp. The two locked hands and tried to overpower each other, but they were matched in strength. The demon lurched forward with its head, almost biting Friedrich’s nose, but he threw his head back just in time. As the demon clamped its jaw, Friedrich thrust his head back forward and headbutted it in the eye. It winced and roared, giving Friedrich the chance to knock it to the ground.
Marina meanwhile spotted another humanoid demon rushing towards Friedrich from behind. She took careful aim and sent a crackling bolt through the air, zapping its head, which exploded and rained blood, bone and brain across the leaves and soil.
Friedrich leapt at the reptilian demon, slamming his fists into its chest. He beat the monster senseless, ignoring the pain its jagged skin scraping him. So enraged was he now that nothing would stop him. He beat the demon until its chest caved in, killing it, but he could not stop. He grabbed its torso and tore it in two. He picked up half and tossed it towards another demon, killing the seventh demon of The Dinner Party.
“Friedrich!” called Marina as a pair of hands grabbed her staff and threw it aside.
Seeing the demon holding its blade to Marina’s throat, he threw snapped its neck and lifted it high. Friedrich took a bite out of the demon and spat it to the ground, breaking the dead demon’s spine over his knee.
He reached out for Marina, who tried to take his hand, but Friedrich no longer realised who she was. He grabbed her and lifted her up, ready to throw her aside, but she looked into his eyes.
“Friedrich, don’t do it…it’s me, Marina!” she said, trying to remain calm.
Friedrich snorted at her and fought against the minotaur’s instincts. It was no easy task overpowering the will of the soul within the mask, but he wrestled back enough control to gain a moment of dominance. Rather than killing Marina, he tossed her to the dirt and turned around, seeking more foes with the express intent of ending their lives as brutally as possible.
The final two demons charged in together, both wielding spears, but Marina was too dazed to use her magic as they thrust them at Friedrich. As the spears neared Friedrich’s throat, he dove forward and tackled the infernal pair to the ground. He stood up, grabbed their twisted horns and spun around. Lifting the howling demons up high he slammed them into the trees, snapping off their horns as he did so. Friedrich roared in indignant fury as he pierced their eye sockets with their own sharp horns, killing the final two demons.
Friedrich lifted one of the demons and, as he was about to take a bite, transformed back into a human. With a horrified gasp, he released the demon, and it fell to the ground. Friedrich tripped as he backed away and then scrambled to his feet in a panic.
He looked at the now-inert mask dangling from his neck and wanted to toss it into the trees, but he could not do it. Something was holding him back from throwing away the dangerous magical mask. He feared that a little part of the minotaur was still within him and it would not let him simply discard it.
“Marina!” he called out and Marina rushed over to him.
“Are you alright?” she asked, throwing her arms around him.
“I’m…I’m not sure,” he said. “I…I can’t use that mask anymore. I hurt you…”
“It wasn’t you,” she said, her voice trembling. “I know you would never do that.”
“What a show that was!” called The Head of the Table as he strolled casually up to the pair while clapping his hands slowly, his twisted smile seeming oddly sincere for a demon. “It’s not often I have guests who refuse the feast that survive until the end. In my many millennia of organising The Dinner Party, I’ve seen it just a little over a hundred times. It's a rare treat, I have to say.”
“Does that mean you will let us go?” asked Marina.
“That was the deal, was it not?”
“And we should trust the word of a demon?” asked Friedrich.
The Head of the Table rubbed his hands together and smirked. “I understand your trepidation towards me, but a deal with a demon is one thing you can guarantee to be followed through upon. I may have offered unfavourable terms, but I will keep my word. How else would I be able to persuade others?””
The demon walked through the forest, beckoning Friedrich and Marina to follow him. With little other choice, they did so, but kept their hands tightly wrapped around their weapons. Sure enough, The Head of the Table took the duo to the clearing and then led them to the cave entrance. He gestured inside and the pair complied. Much to their surprise, the door had returned.
“Just like that?” asked Friedrich, eyeing the ash-skinned creature suspiciously.
“You are always welcome to return,” said The Head of the Table with a cunning grin.
“I would prefer not to,” said Friedrich, pushing the door open and walking through with Marina.
The pair ran through the tunnel on the other side, desperate to ensure that the beach they had left behind was still here. Upon hearing the crashing of the waves and seeing the golden shore, they both fell onto the ground and laughed.
“I thought it was some sort of trick,” said Friedrich, wiping his brow with his sleeve.
“So did I,” said Marina, picking up handfuls of sand and letting the grains slip between her fingers. “You owe me forty-nine kupons once we turn those mushrooms in.”
“I’m starting to think the mushrooms were a ruse,” said Friedrich, “but if Reginald Gillet exists and pays us then I’ll let you have the entirety of the reward.”
“I’m not greedy,” said Marina, sitting up and looking towards the distant boats of Akatfall that sat by the docks. “I’ll take the forty-nine and you can keep the sixteen remaining kupons to eat with for the next couple of days until you find a job that won’t put us in mortal danger.”
“Deal,” said Friedrich, his hand unwittingly moving towards the minotaur mask that hung around his neck.