Devil in Shepherd's Robes

Ch 26: All The King's Men

"It's something beautiful, don't you think?" Aberlain asked, staring out the shattered windows as he surveyed the crumbling city below.

The once glowing city was slowly being torn apart brick by brick by the demons he'd unleashed upon the world, their rampage never to subside. The oak lined sidewalks and roads of the city had been ripped to shreds, the faces of the homes looming above them had been made bleak and desolate, and the blood running through the nearly deserted streets ran like water from a clogged sewer drain. Aberlain knew that what he had done was necessary, and that with the passage of time all things would correct themselves eventually.

As he clasped his hands behind his back and scanned the ground below with his gleaming yellow eyes, the face of Ryan Bailey began to smile devilishly at the sights before him. The Rootlord had grown quite accustomed to the body he now inhabited and the emotions it carried. Possessing a man such as Ryan was similar to flying a plane for the very first time, the excitement and uncertainty he felt rushing through his blood was a feeling like no other. It was both amazing and disheartening to Aberlain knowing that each and every human possessed such a keen awareness for their surroundings. The potential each one held within was nearly unlimited, and for so many of the weak and ignorant to deny their own potential was heartbreaking to the Rootlord.

"You could certainly say that." Layani responded from upon a black futon in the corner of the room, trying not to stare too long at the open gate to Hell nearby. The sigil has vanished along with the circular carpet covering it, leaving a hole similar to that of the Abyss. What was on the other side, however, was no empty expanse. Aberlain's study could be seen through the ground where the portal laid, but it was blurry and hard to make out any details.

It had never occurred to her just how terrifyingly powerful Aberlain had become, and she could now fully understand why he was the most feared Rootlord in all of Hell. The way he sliced through chaos like a hot knife through butter was astounding to her, the ultimate control he seemed to possess was unlike anything she had ever seen before. Using the chaos of the demons he had unleashed he would simultaneously gain the respect of the demons and the fearful loyalty of the humans who would survive them. In just one move, everything they had planned had been set into motion at shocking speeds.

"Layani, I'd like to show you something. Follow me." Aberlain suddenly said, walking over to her.

Getting up once he had walked out of the room, Layani followed Aberlain into the elevator as the two of them stayed silent for a moment. She wasn't sure what exactly he was trying to do, and her mind raced with the possibilities. She was fully aware that he trusted her more than the other two Rootlords, so whatever she was about to see was surely something grand.

As the elevator doors closed, Layani noticed her reflection in the mirrored doors as it began its ascent. Her long red dress sparkled with a crimson hue as her orange eyes scanned the human she possessed. She preferred inhabiting a human body rather than her true demonic form, just as Aberlain seemed to. The raw unfiltered emotions humans carried were like an endless buffet of power for a demon, the stronger the human the more addicting they were. For the life of her, however, she couldn't seem to remember the name of her human host any longer. Perhaps the human soul had begun to vanish underneath the weight of her own, or perhaps it had simply gone quiet from fear.

Playing with her long curly afro for a moment to fix it, Layani looked over to Aberlain as he stared coldly into his own reflection, not even blinking as he searched deep within himself for a trace of who he once was. The face of the CEO seemed cold and stoic as Aberlain inhabited him, which was something very much unlike the personality of the human man. She wasn't sure what it would feel like to inhabit a man full of so much ambition and wondered just how addicting it would be to find a host with similar tendencies to herself.