Sentenza grumbled incoherently as he absentmindedly scratched his neck.

Lulu and Og'drimun were still with him, but Trizel was nowhere to be seen.

"Shifted, huh?" Sentenza threw out the words haphazardly.

"Is it really that surprising?" Og'drimun scoffed. "What, are you expecting magical stuff to go by regular rules?"

"Going by any comprehensible rules would be nice," Sentenza suggested.

"They are completely understandable!" Og'drimun complained defensively. "Just because your small mind has trouble comprehending them doesn't mean they aren't structured and make sense."

"Well, can you explain them?" Lulu asked.

Og'drimun opened his mouth for a moment, and then closed it again as he narrowed his gaze and stroked his chin. "I...well, that's a little...hmm..."

"Explanation or not, things are getting worse," Sentenza declared as he dropped the stub of a cigarillo out of his mouth and ground it into the floor with his foot. "But there's not really a way back. So, we press forward, right?"

Og'drumin didn't hide his appreciation at the thought of Trizel's violence being far away from him. "Exactly, no point worrying about it. However it all works, the path has changed, right? So we couldn't do anything even if we wanted to."

"You're ignoring the obvious here." Lulu grinned. "You can do magic, so couldn't you find a way through that's even better? Surely someone as powerful as you can manipulate whatever magic they're using in this ancient place?"

Og'drimun smirked. Clearly happy with the praise. "Well, I mean...I am pretty great."

"Great enough to strip away all the nonsense going on around here?" Sentenza threw in.

"Well, obviously." Og'drimun scoffed. "This entire place is nothing compared to my true abilities."

"Really now," Sentenza whistled. "I'd sure like to see that."

Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.

Og'drimun shrugged. "It's just too bad you," he made sure to glance accusingly at Sentenza as he emphasized the word you, "had to mess everything up, and bring me here with such limited powers."

Lulu smiled. "He brought you, huh?"

Og'drimun slapped his hands over his mouth, and Sentenza let out a dry chuckle accompanied by a small smirk.

"I'm surprised you haven't let everything slip yet," Sentenza chortled.

Lulu smiled. "Not really my business though...unless you can bring more people here?" She looked up at Sentenza.

The assassin looked completely nonplussed. "If you pry into my business, I'll kill you dead. Right here, right now." His voice was far too nonchalant for such an aggressive statement.

Lulu looked him over for a moment. "I suppose that's fair enough. You'll tell me on your own soon enough."

"Oh?" Sentenza raised his pistol towards her slightly. "You seem pretty certain."

Lulu didn't flinch. "Everyone has their price, and everyone needs things. I've just found out you have what could be quite a valuable skill to me. So you better believe I'll find a way to get you something you'll trade that for."

Sentenza lifted his gun and aimed it right at her head. He held it there a moment as a wicked smile crept on his face. Finally, he lowered the gun and re-holstered it. "I suppose as long as you don't pry into it on your own, I can let you live."

"How gracious of you," Lulu said with a smile as he eyes stared deep into Sentenza. "A decision that is sure to benefit both of us."

"Ugh, could you guys just shut up and kiss already,' Og'drimun whined.

Lulu raised an eyebrow, but Sentenza let out another dry chuckle.

"If you've got time for quips like that," Sentenza mused. "Maybe you should get on with the magic business, eh?"

"I thought I explained that," Og'drimun pouted. "You basically left all my strength behind. I'm neutered over here! I mean, I don't even have abs...at least, I don't think there's any under all this fur."

"Really?" Lulu cooed. "But you're obviously so clever. Couldn't you figure out a way to use what you have to pierce through the magic here?"

"Well, I mean..." Og'drimun smiled proudly. "I am pretty smart."

"Obviously, I mean one look, and anyone could see that," Lulu agreed.

Sentenza rolled his eyes.

Og'drimun folded his arms and nodded firmly. "Yes, very true. Very true."

Lulu's eyes flashed mischievously. "Well, it seems Sentenza doesn't agree."

"Hah! Well, he is quite the fool," Og'drimun said with a firm nod.

"Ah, but this is perfect, isn't it?" Lulu continued.

"Huh? What is?" Og'drimun asked.

"This opportunity you have now. To prove Sentenza wrong. Bend this place to your magical will and show him that even with his crippling of your power, you are still a force to be reckoned with."

Og'drimun hesitated. "I mean..."

"Surely such a powerful demon isn't scared by a mere building," Sentenza sneered as he seemed to catch on to what Lulu was up to.

"I mean, I am quite powerful," Og'drimun agreed happily as he completely missed the sarcasm.

"FIne! I shall do it," Og'drimun shouted proudly. "I will bend the unimaginably powerful magics here to my will!"

The tiny demon started to cackle maniacally. "Minion Sentenza! I will require a small bit of your lifeforce for this process."

Sentenza raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, not gonna happen small fry."

"But, I need the boost to get this to work." he complained.

Sentenza rolled his eyes. "Here, this should do better anyway."

"What are..." But before Og'drimun could finish his thought, Sentenza had pulled out the magical pistol, and thrown it to the demon.

Without any warning, the gun slammed into Og'drimun, and knocked the wind out of him. The gun kept going in its arc, as if it hadn't hit Og'drimun, and eventually landed on the ground and pinned the demon underneath its minor weight.

"What's wrong with you?" Og'drimun wheezed. "This thing can't...oh..."

As he traced his hands along the gun to push it off, he suddenly stopped. While grumbling complaints under his breath, he began to trace his hand in the air while keeping his other hand on the metal of the gun.

His grumbling eventually changed into chanting in some strange language. As his chanting started, the room began to darken, and several cracks appeared in the walls, floor, and ceiling.