Awakening

Chapter 13

Chapter 13: Even The Best Laid Plans Can Go South

Once I woke up and the sun was rising, I realized something was up. The room was nice and tidy. There was a folded suit on the end of my bed. I shrugged it off and went to my wardrobe. Nothing. A barren wasteland of hangers and drawers were all I saw.

"Laundry would have been a good thing to do..." I muttered, walking back to the suit. "I guess this is all I've got."

I put it on. The nice suit jacket fit snugly against my chest. "Not bad." I said, chuckling. "Now to find the others."

I walked out of the chambers and towards Luna's room.

"Hello?" I called, but I was met with silence.

I shrugged, thinking she was still asleep and I walked to the dining hall. Plates were already set, food on each. I called for everyone to eat, but nobody came. I began eating when a sultry voice spoke.

"My king, are you enjoying your meal?"

"Why yes," I said turning around, "Thank you f- Luna?"

She smiled, and the others walked out from behind her, all dressed in maid outfits.

"Yes, my king. We're here to serve you." they said.

I chuckled, and smiled. "In what ways are you able to se-"

An explosion cut me off. An enemy force of Crimson's troops were at my doors. Their leader, once a military general that fought along with Crimson, seemed to be a broken mess. His armor was in shambles, a mix of a demonic, angelic, and elven armor. His face was scarred, broken, his eyes were gouged out and bloody, his expression was scared, yet his voice was calm.

"We're here to kill your friends... and you." He spoke.

Another explosion rocked the castle, as a large chunk of debris hit me. The shatter of bones in my legs, arms, and lower back told me the entirety of my life was over. I saw Luna trying to move the debris, before I blacked out. When I came to, there were corpses everywhere. Luna was next to me, her throat ripped out. Katey was spread out next to me, her head on the floor near me. I screamed as I saw Valerie and Beatrix's corpses fall to the ground. Athena was pinned to a wall, a spear through abdomen, the once oak handle stained red.

"You couldn't save them." Crimson's voice echoed through my head.

I screamed, my brain finally registering the fact my extremities were shattered. The scream echoed through the barren castle, nothing but a ruined husk of my recent past.

"I'm gonna die... because of an... oversized rock. Fantastic..." I groaned.

The room began spinning and then went black. I was back in a familiar place.

"Satan?" I asked.

There was a small laugh.

"Michael?"

Silence.

"MICHAEL!"

"Sorry, my child. I am here." He said.

"I'm dead for real this time, aren't I?" I asked, beginning to tear up.

"Not at all." Michael said calmly.

"But... my legs. They're shattered. My back... I'll never walk. And my arms... how can I protect myself, let alone others?"

Satan laughed. "So that's it? You're just gonna lay down and die?"

"No, but..."

"But nothing little man. I know you felt that energy yesterday."

"What was that?" I asked, wiping my eyes.

"You're one of the 7 deadly sins. Take a wild guess which."

"There's greed, pride, sloth, gluttony, wrath, envy, and... oh shit. I'm lust, aren't I?"

"Bingo."

"So what's that have to do with anything?"

"Remember what Carmine said?"

"About the god thing?"

"Batting a thousand little man. Basically you're the god of love and the true demon king." He said

I blinked. "Aren't you the demon king?"

"Yes, he is. But you're the true demon king. In layman's terms, you're a god of both angels and demons." Michael said.

"And what does that entail for me exactly?"

"Power?" Michael said, confused.

"Perfect. So what do I need to do?"

"Nothing. We just have to say we agree to allowing you to unleash everything we've kept from you." Michael said.

"Before you do, is there any way I can bring them back?"

There was a long silence. It was so quiet I could hear the slamming of my heart. After what felt like an eternity, Michael spoke.

"I'm sorry, my child... but there isn't."

I dropped to my knees, tears streaming down my face.

"I told them I'd protect them... I'd be there to save them... I'm useless. I don't deserve power... I don't deserve life...'

Michael was sympathetic. He said nothing but i could feel power coursing through me. Satan chuckled quietly to himself. As he chuckled, I felt the power suddenly double. I wiped the tears from my eyes. As i moved my arm back to my side, I found myself sitting up against the boulder that had crushed me. Something about me felt off... in the fact I didn't feel anything. No pain where the boulder landed. I did still have emotions though. I could feel the wrath of god flowing through my blood, the taste of lust in my mouth, the greed for bloodshed in my mind. There was but one thought in my mind: Vengeance.

"My home has been destroyed once again, the people closest to me ripped away again..." I muttered, walking past the corpses of the ones I had once loved, "There's only one option. Murder him, get my vengeance and go topside... permanently. Stay with a friend, if I've got any. Maybe go to a school with dorms."

The hole the enemy force had blown in the wall was covered in debris. I walked over and shoved some of the smaller stones aside. Then I came across a huge stone. About 12 foot tall and easily 7 tons, I shoved it, not expecting it to dislodge. To my surprise, it went flying. I followed the beating of war drums as the enemy force destroyed what was left of my kingdom. I eventually caught up to them, their swords bloody and a little bit dull. The first few I killed went easily, a few quick neck snaps followed with a decapitation were all they took. As the fourth one's body hit the ground, the force turned around. At least 35 hardened soldiers stared me down, but I had eyes for only one.

The commander.

His sword, glistening with the light blue slime that belonged to Sammy, pointed at me. I snapped, and from my throat rose a gutarral shout that rocked the surrounding area. The soldiers took a step back, and that gave me the opening I needed to attack. Within seconds, soldiers had eyes gouged out, jaws ripped off, skulls split in two and spines twisted out. My hands, now covered in their blood, glistened as I stared down the Commander, the last man standing from his platoon. The last loose end I had in this wretched land.

He set down his sword and lowered into a fighting stance, I assumed to be fair. His plan, as I found out later, was to have lured me in and had his men attack. He just didn't account for one thing. The fact that "All is fair, in love and war." So rather than let him goad me into a trap, I ended up taking out the key bits for his trap. His men. In a desperate bid to kill me, he charged. I sidestepped him and grabbed his arm, ripping it clean off him. He spun around, screaming in rage and pain. While he screamed, I jumped into the air, shoving his harm down his throat. He tried in vain to pull it back out, but it was too late. He fell to the ground, a heavy thud echoing the now empty field that was once a village, turned to ash in the commander's killing spree. I walked back to the ruined castle and got what I needed to survive. Food, Water, My phone, and charger. I opened a tunnel with an emergency signal, good for only one use, and I said goodbye to the friends I'd failed, the kingdom that fell under my rule, and the home I had once known.

And with that, I stepped into the hall and into the never ending cycle of depression.