Chapter 9 ( Lucifer, His Minions and a Pissed Off Paladin)

Somewhere above the Mountains of Gahenna in Putrid Hold, Lucifer’s new minions lay the dead at his feet in straight lines near pine crates that stacked against the walls. He walked to each dead body and grasped it with a purple strand of ethereal force and whispered,” Hatred, malice, death, hunger, power, all these things I bestow upon you.” Then slammed the body into the crate with a traumatic thud, strong enough to hear ribs and bones cracking as the spell wound its way into their bodies and corrupted their souls to his will. “ Yehovah eat your damn heart out! This is MY world, where the fuck are you to protect them!?? Oh yeah millions of light years away in your mother ship cruising the outer reaches of space when all your so called people need you. Some GOD you are. Such a fucking punk!” The devil said with a maniacal laugh spinning around in a circle with his arms splayed wide open. Then continued on down the line to the next body. The age old song was playing in the back ground, " Let the Bodies hit the Floor." Azazael and Mephistopheles were head banging on the window sill smoking from another skull bong in his collection. this one was an alien skull with it's spine going up to the mouth piece. 

Slamming the lid shut on that body, he moved to the next body and repeated the sequence until the hall of dead was converted to his will. With a clank of plate armor he stalked slowly towards the stairs past a large forge that emitted an eerie blue light. The stench of death and decay followed him as he walked past the rotting corpses out to his terrace to look out over the world below. Mordred commanded the troops there, it would be a few weeks before the dead he’d just converted awaken and could be molded to his control. How wonderful it was to see their confused expressions when they broke through their pine box and entered the world again born his slaves as it should have been since the dawn of time.

Wails of commoners could be heard from below as the undead Palids slaughtered countless lives with but a flick of their wrists. One of his chief Knights, Miralania flew up to the terrace on  putrified huge mutated eagle and walked to him , armor clanking on the stone beneath her feet.” Lord Lucifer, Lord Mordred said to tell you we need more reinforcements! The dragons are weakening and Anvilmist resists, Milord” Stepping back she shifted on her shiny hooves and the metal of her plate clinking as she nervously awaited his reply. No matter how many times she came near him she could never shake there was something more to her than just being an undead palid. She fought against the nano bots that ran through her body trying to reprogram her brain. She shook them off at every turn.

She somehow knew instinctively, that something was not right. But alas she’d followed his commands for more than five years now and knew better than to disobey, but still, something still lurked in her heart, something filled with light that she could hear in the deep recesses of her mind. “The Light of the universe has not forsaken you!” Shaking her head, hair falling over her tiny horns she waited for the dark lord’s reply.  Lost in thought trying to remember just who she was. The beautiful faun caught glimpses of a king that smiled and laughed with a broad smile. And caught flashes of herself playing a flute with the softest of breaths to children scattered around underneath the boughs of old Oak trees sacred and wise.

“Two more weeks child, two more weeks and there will be fresh bodies to aid in the suffering” Lucifer said to her slightly monotone and staring off to the side slightly “ Looking at the large Knight before her she pounded her chest quickly and bowed,” I shall tell Lord Mordred this minute Milord.” With an eerie sound he replied,” Suffer your pain well.” The flesh on her back crawled as she climbed upon the back of a bone winged beast and made her way back down to the commander. As she stepped off the beast it came to her who that king was. Her father ,King McGregor True Shot king of the fauns that lived on the fringes of Avalon and had many alliances with the elves and races of men. Shaking her head to clear her thoughts as whispers of the dark lord filled her brain. She was a princess, heir to the throne. The only child of her parents union.

Valudaz awoke with a startled scream and struggled to find his senses. He was constricted and his shoulders were pressed hard against a wooden structure. Trying to shift to better see what he was dealing with he realized the cold truth, he was in a coffin. Panic struck his soul and he began to lose his mind as he quickly felt for a way out. The hilt of his sword dug into his back and warmed him through his body with a strange tingle. He had always had issues with close spaces ever since he was a youngling running around with his two sisters. This one time Ruthieanne, his older sister locked him in a 55 gallon feed barrel. He had been there for hours. Somehow, the smell of the sweet feed had calmed him so he took more shallow breaths  . To this day he loved the scent of the sweet feed in a horses bucket. He closed his eyes and breathed slowly and evenly.

 Sounds of screams and torment filtered through the wood of the box and terror grabbed at his very soul as he heard Lucifer’s voice seep into his brain.” You are mine, death is no longer a constraint, and you are mine!” He had a flash of the wound to his chest. He panicked and began to struggle with the lid but it wouldn’t budge so he began to pound and punch at it wildly until he heard a splitting of wood, With one last scream he slammed the lid into a few pieces and sat up cursing under his breath. There beside him were coffins lining the wall in a horseshoe shape. The smell of death was so overwhelmingly powerful that it gagged him and made him turn to the side of the coffin and wretch onto the floor. He looked at his hands and saw that they were very pale and emaciated. Rage flowed through his soul and wrapped around his heart in cold retribution. Then suddenly from the deep recesses of his brain he heard a voice,” Fight , fight for all it’s worth the Light of the Universe will not forsake you.” .Turning around he rummaged for his sword and placed it on his belt. Shaking his head he grabbed onto the sides of the coffin and tried to gather his bearings.

Mephistopheles over looked the waking of the newly risen and charted their progress for the great angel. Turned his head to Azazael and spoke flippantly. Where the hell is Beelzebub? I told him to meet me here in an hour.” Pacing back and forth among the coffins eased him somewhat. Reaching in his bag he pulled out a bong made of a jackal’s skull and vertebrae and took several large tokes letting them out as he sat on a coffin. The person inside began to awaken and was pounding on the inside and in his evil smartassedness he pounded right back telling her she was in hell and there was no damn way out. Screams and tearful pleading issued from inside the box as he sat there smoking his bong. He was not about to let Ishellia out of the box just yet because her son had just broken free of the box he was in and did not want either recognizing the other one. He felt for sure he was the only smart one of the bunch. He was the true ruler of Hell. For thousands of years he did the bidding of Lucifer. Him, he did all the dirty work. He killed all the people and for it all he one little joy was making bongs out of skulls.

 For all his antiquity and evil , Lucifer was still just a petulant little angel and he in fact needed Mephistopheles or he would have no clue as to what he should do. Look there, The Elf had Excalibur, and Lucifer was too petulant to even fucking realize that he had it.

Shaking it off Valudaz stood to his feet and stepped out of the box looking down into the coffin he had lain in for God knows how long. Reaching down he realized that it was Excalibur that he had, it had been tossed in the coffin before he had been thrown in and the scabbard was still in working order. That is why he was not dead, His grandmother was so amazing she had the foresight a thousand years ago to have him reforge it with the same runes that she wove onto the scabbard over six thousand years ago in the swords first incarnation.. He stood ,watching the droves of stumbling confused people walk to the edge of some balcony. Turning he followed them feeling as if he needed to go that way, as he made his way to the balcony cold fear and hatred welled up into his soul as he neared the Devil.. The angel of Light turned and almost snickered as his best friend stood before him and said,” Bow before me you whelp and pledge yourself to my army the scourge of the earth.”

 Everything inside Valudaz screamed not to bow, he stood rigidly and didn’t move to bend. Satan raised his gauntleted hand and tendrils of a red coil snapped out and wrapped around the young paladin and began to wrack his body with pain. Valudaz screamed in pain his cries echoed through the cavernous citadel.” You, you especially, will bend to my whims and desires. There is no other path for you to take, I own your soul.” The inner voice in Valudaz’s soul whispered as he struggled to remain standing and he spoke harshly,” You may have me now but one of these days, the tables will be turned and the true Light will have its revenge! Coming up behind him Mephistopheles tapped the angel on his shoulder.” My Lord, I think you just royally messed up. Like man, you screwed the pooch big time.” Azazael nodding silently next to him and slightly smirking reveling in his masters mistake knowing one day it would come back to haunt him. Lucifer turned ever so slightly and said,” Do, pray tell how I how did you say?? Oh yes. Screw the pooch?” Mephistopheles took a big toke off of his bong and let out the smoke blowing little demon shaped blasts of smoke rings out then responded to his master while he was looking at Azazel.” Dude, did you see his sword?” Azazael nodded silently and chuckled under his breath. Lucifer getting a bit riffled shrugged his shoulders,” It is just a mere piece of steel is it not?” The demon lord snickered loudly saying,

” No sir M'lord, that there is King Arthurs sword. You know Excalibur bound the hands of the elves to protect the wielder from mortal wounds??. He’s going to be trouble, I’m telling you”. Lucifer turned back towards the paladin standing before him struggling within himself to free himself to no avail.

” The demons laughter reached his ears as the huge armored man before him forced him to his knees.” You will bow to me! You will serve me! Now go to Wrathmoore and do as he tells you to do NOW!” With that he flung the paladin backwards onto the floor. Then somewhere from the depths of his soul he spoke,” The king of Lorthramar is dead, you are no king!” Then rose and made his way to Wrathmoore to do his bidding. Lucifer had truly deceived the old king he had changed himself into a child and insinuated himself into the royal family.

 Years down the line when he was thought to be a teenager, he was made a prince and fell in love with Janice Pridewell and they had a young son. The boy grew normal and kind and good and was gifted with foresight and ability to fly which was hidden by Janice from him. Lucifer never saw his sons wings. If he had he would have twisted the young lad into something unnatural. However, the sweet darkness called for him to return, destiny had been set and the time had come for him to strike. He’d waited for over a thousand years now it was his time! “He had lived among the humans to get to know their weaknesses better in order to take over their world and force them to be his minions and do as he wished. Sometimes he felt as he himself were just a petulant child but then shook it off and flipped God off yet one more time and looked up and rolled his eyes.” I told you I would destroy your precious creations. All of them, I told you I would. You knew it was coming and you did nothing to stop it so it is all your fault old man all your fault the world is in the state it is in. I just took advantage of it when it was down and out.”

Back in the coffin room, Ishellia struggled to free herself from the box. Tears ran down her face as she frantically found a weak spot and began to pound it outwards. She was able to get her leg up and hit it with her knee until it splintered loudly. Reaching down with her hands she began to pull at the loosened wood and lay it next to her in the box until she had pulled enough loose to push the rest of the box lid off of her. Sitting up, she grasped the edge of the box and pushed up but fell forward catching herself before she hit the edge of the box with her cheek. Cursing loudly, she stood again and tried to breathe in, only realizing there was no breath in her lungs. She was dead , yet she was alive. The whole world began to spin wildly as she realized that she was now undead. Clutching the edge of the box she heaved what was left in her stomach and stood wiping her mouth with the sleeve of her shirt. She felt like ants were crawling all over her skin and into her body. Looking deeper she saw the nano bots working their magic on her and reviving her cells just as they were intended to do.

Suddenly, she felt an inexplicable pull to move towards the other side of the room and an unquenchable desire to kill something. Her anger knew no bounds as she walked towards the other side of the room following the other undead people in front of her. She was confused and disoriented but knew something wasn’t right. As she walked past the demons at the end of the room they directed her to the armor clad angel. Every thought in her mind was to run as fast as she could but all she could do was standing there transfixed in this horrible nightmare.

Meanwhile, two days later in Old Salem Massachusetts….

Rahnyah stood looking at a shelf of Robeliare’s books trying to find something to further her knowledge of Higher learning. Tears rolled down her face as she realized the last time she stood before the book shelf, Ishellia was guiding her as to what books to read to maximize her power output as a battle mage. While Rahnyah was quite adept at fighting in the battle grounds, close combat in confined spaces somewhat eluded her sometimes. Sniffling and wiping her nose with a small handkerchief she felt someone coming up behind her. Turning, she at first saw nothing, then looked deeper with her sense of perception and noticed slight distortions in the room as a sleek white tiger slowly padded his way up to her. Smiling, she spoke,” Why Lord Valudus, Good King and all, nice to see you this afternoon. What can I do for you today?” 

With a resigned sigh, the arch druid shifted to Elvin form and winced, not even Ishellia could detect him in prowl. With a deep bow of respect he spoke,” Lady Rahnyah, ‘tis good to see you as well. I was wondering if you would accompany me to the Keep, I can’t bear to go there alone? Have you spoken with Robelaire about the weapons and where you could find them?” With a shocked look that shifted quickly to pleasure she nodded happily. “Will it just be the two of us or shall we contact a few others along the way?” He quietly spoke in return,” No, It will be just us, I don’t want to go alone.” He said as he handed her a special rune stone that she had never before seen. Looking at him with a question on the tip of her tongue, he began to flick his fingers, green glow emanating from his hands as he disappeared before her eyes. Shaking her head she did the same wondering how the hell a druid of all people could teleport. It was clearly a mage spell. Thinking to herself,” Maybe Ishellia gave it to him she was pretty old and had been many places.”

In a flash she joined him in what seemed to be the tower of Dragon's Keep., Lorthramar just north of his mother’s home of Avalon. She looked at him oddly and shook it off remembering to ask him later what was going on. Looking at her he spoke,” Have a look around, I’m sure there is plenty to find up here in the tower that she never showed you. I’ll Look in the dungeon and retrieve some of Robelaire’s books that Ishellia snuck away for Drow .You do know you are going to have to drop them in places that man has already looked to get them back in the old crummugeons bookshelves. So, After you look around up here, could you please go to the third room just past the top of the stairs to the left, that is Ishellia’s study. Please do make use of anything you can find and use as you are the only mage I think she’d want touching her things you were both so close. She wasn’t even that close with our daughters and they all had an amazing relationship. Rahny, they still don’t know. I don’t know where to find them.” She reached for him and barely touched his arm.

 Swallowing hard, he turned and stalked silently downwards to the jail cells. With slow trepidation she turned around the tower room and gasped at the splendor. There was a great raised roof with small wooden buttresses with intricate wrought Iron holding stained glass windows that let beautiful prismed rays of light that danced along the thick cut carpeting. She ran her fingers along the edge of a exquisitely carved armoire made of deep mahogany wood with a clear varnish to show off the grain of the tree. The mage ran her fingers over the knobs and gently pulled them open. There were drawers that held a great many herbs in alphabetical order. She opened the drawer and breathed in the deep rich scent of the Nepta Cataria. It had a rich deep earthy grassy scent and was a good calmative. She looked up at the shelves and shelves of books and smoking implements for cannabis and mint. There was one comical smoking apparatus that looked like a beaker but it had this Rick and Morty stamped on it and had three tubes coming off of it and looked like a spaceship or something. She giggled as she found little knicknacks of all sorts of things from the ancient days of the 21st century.

She wound her way around the room to the stairwell and found her way to Shellia’s study in almost a rote fashion still in shock that her best friend was gone. Her scent lingered in the air and she took a deep breath and gently pushed open the door. The scent of Jasmine and Orchids hung in the air and permeated the drapes and cloth in the room. Looking around she saw a huge book on the desk on the far side of the room before a beautiful stained glass window. The fractured beams of light shone through a large tree of life with runes and banthracian etched into each window pane. Walking forward, she touched the book and began leafing through it and noticed clearly there was druid and mage lore within the bindings. She fingered the sinew and could sense the love and devotion placed within the leather artwork. It was large and covered in dark green leather bindings. Smiling, she picked it up and walked resolutely downstairs to the dusty dim jail and called for Valudus.

” Val! Where are you? I think I found something that might interest you.” Silently, he stood up from the back of Drow’s prison cell with three books in his hands, shaking off the dust and trying to clean them and spoke,” I’m here, Let me see what it is that you found. By the way we are going to have to sneak these back into the assholes collection so he will shut the hell up about them being missing.” Rahnyah giggle," Yeah you said that a few minutes ago. He reached out and he beckoned her closer with his slightly clawed hand. Smiling, she stepped over piles of books that he’d been sifting through, most of which were Ishellia’s but a good portion were Robelaires as well. Ishellia must have had a fun time getting those books from the stodgy old mage. He is  such a damned pompus ass, always knowing something better to do or medicine to use.

 Looking at Val she stretched out her hand that held the heavy book, her arm shook for just a second from the sheer weight of it.” This, I believe was made for you Val. However, I’m going to need to copy some of those spells in here. Especially a few of the druid ones.” He reached forward and took the book and felt the heaviness of the tome and turned it over to see if there was a title embossed on the cover. Thick green leather was bound with strands of sinew and the pages were made of sheep skin parchment and smelled of Jasmine and Orchids. 

Breathing in the leather deeply he took a deep breath and opened the tome with tears in his eyes. With a voice that caught in his throat he said to the woman beside him,” I’ll be a Minotaur’s Backside! That little wench took my book to make this one! I have been asking her for a year if she knew where it was!” Rahnyah smiled with a look of shock,” OK ,so she put mage stuff in there too. Why would she do that? You are a druid. Clearly.” “Milady Rahnyah there are things about my people that humans do not necessarily know. We know of the arcane we just choose not to use it after what my sister has done, however, these are my sainted mother’s spells along with some of Ishellia’s and mine. I was once a mage before Gia called me to be a druid.

” Tilting her head slightly she spoke, “Your sister Milord? And do pray tell who your sister is?” He took a deep breath and then spoke resolutely,” My people do not generally speak of her anymore, but you can thank her for the Nightmares being brought back to the Earth. Mother misses her even though she resides in the lake three hundred yards from her door. Rhiannon is the Oldest of us three, then Andronus followed by me.” She looked at him with a weird look and spoke in shock, ”Rhiannon! How old are you anyway arch druid?” Looking at the young woman before him he replied,” You my dear child could live infinite  lifetimes in the span of which I have lived. I Valudus Stormyst am,” He paused for thought and theatrical effect before he resumed. “ Immortal , although I like to think I’m still quite young by Elvin standards, we are immortal after all.” Stammering slowly,” W-well, Yes, I knew you were immortal I Just thought you were closer to maybe 800 years old, I knew you as a child and I’m almost 45, but three thousand?” Shaking his head, “ No , older.” Chuckling softly she hit his arm,”

“ Old man.” She said,” Older than three thousand, Wow I can’t even comprehend that old. ” Sticking her out her tongue slightly. He looked at her tenderly and spoke softly,” Take me back to Avalon please. I cant think right. And her smell is everywhere. This keep brings me much pain.”

Nodding quietly she flicked her fingers and the green glow emanated from her fingers as she uttered,” Shemanch Rhie Rhom.” Which opened the worm hole to Avalon. Right into his mother’s living room. She Nodded with respect to him and he walked through then she followed. Landing on the other side with a thud of his boots. “ Damn, that’s always a rush you should try it going from planet to planet. But that’s a story for another time.” Looking up to see his mother walk into the room and come over to her son. Reaching her hand up she gently kissed his cheek.” Hello my son. I see you have snuck the mortal in once more. Ambrosious won't be happy he keeps getting excluded. Do go down to the lake and invite him to dinner when your sister rises from the water this evening.” He looked at his mother and nodded his understanding. “ You will stay with mother, I will be back in about thirty minutes, if I am longer than that please be aware he has waited for this or over a thousand years.”