A Guide to Crystarix

Chapter 3. Thorns

Bells could be heard ringing as the grand iron doors slowly opened. A creature with ram horns walked trough them with his hands folded into each other. He was accompanied by two other identical creatures dressed in chain mail, they held a weapon that consisted of an axe blade topped with a spike mounted on a long shaft.

The three walked down the long ballroom-like hall. The creature with the ram horns proudly paraded down the hall gradually leaving the other two behind. His footsteps echoed trough the hall and his reflection could be seen in most of the mirrors in the chamber. It didn't take long before he reached the end of the hall, his shoes stopped dead in its tracks and the echoes concluded. Only the soft footsteps of the two creatures still making their way down the hall could be heard.

Erebus knelt down and his raspy voice echoed throughout the halls, "My Lord.."

A powerful groan reverberated trough the almost empty hall, a creature sat high atop his throne, he laid lazily in it and didn't look at Erebus at all while he spoke.

"Let me guess —No Erebus let me guess— you failed your task didn't you?"

Erebus shivered in fear and his voice became even raspier then normal, he had lost all his confidence in one second, "The girl got away."

The monster took a quick glance at Erebus' fearful body and he forced an elegant smile on his face. He clapped his hands and a few maids barged trough the doors and shot towards the throne. They knelt quickly in front of the throne before pulling it from the ground and carrying it down the stairs. The creature still laid in it and was barely paying any attention to Erebus or the group of maids.

The maids shivered intensely, maybe it was because they feared the chance of accidentally letting the throne fall to the ground, and the death that would certainly follow that mistake. Or maybe they dreaded seeing his face, it is a chilling sight to behold after all. He looked normal, almost human, apart from the beautiful pink flowers that grew over his left arm and replaced his eye.

The maids placed the throne on the polished floor. They scurried away and the monster stood up from his seat. He waved the rest of his servants away and told Erebus to follow him. Pink flowers sprouted from the ground wherever he placed his foot.

They walked trough the desolate hallways, there were hardly any servants left, only a couple of guards were still to be found roaming trough the palace.
They went left, they went right and ultimately ended at a hallway that lead to a single door, a behemoth one that is. A long trail flowers sprouted from the floor behind them.

Erebus stayed behind as the creature with the pink flowers walked up to it. He clapped his hands and the doors opened right after. Dustclouds were released from the room as the huge, iron doors were opened.

The room looked like a miniature version of the throne room, except this one didn't have the shiny, polished floor the other one had. It also didn't have as many mirrors but rather a lot of paintings. They all depicted the same image, a man with small devilish horns grinning and silhouettes of men hanging in the distance.

At the end of the room was another painting. A portrait. The same man from the other paintings, seated in the same throne the other creature was previously sitting in, grinning. His horns were pointed upwards and so was his smile. His eyes were red and soulless and his pointy teeth were shiny.

A name was engraved in the wooden frame of the portrait, 'Satan'.

The creature stepped onto the golden carpet. Flowers grow next to his feet with every step. He proudly strutted up to the portrait. Erebus stayed cluelessly in the doorway and looked as the flowers turn into thorns. They burst out from the ground, wrecking the floor and allowing the flowered creature to step onto them. He used them as a staircase up to the gigantic portrait of the devil.

He folded his hands in each other and rested them on his back, "I suppose you remember our little friend here, right?"

The creature swung around, looking straight at Erebus' hollow eyes. Erebus nodded anxiously.

"Then I suppose you remember how he mistreated me, how he underestimated me, how he-.. how he-.. how he tortured me."

Erebus nodded again. He knelt down onto the carpet, allowing the creature that's standing atop of the thorns to look down on him. The creature's breaths started to become heavier and hoarse and the green vines on his left arm start covering more of his body. The roots slowly dig into the left part of his torso, longing desperately for his right arm. He releases an agonising scream as the roots keep growing, embedding in his white skin.

The creature's neatly combed hair falls over his face and the roots bury themselves deeper in his body, "But as you know his reign ended years ago, and so did his life."

"My Lo—" The ram horned monster was cut off by the monster releasing another excruciating scream.

The regal creature threw his right hand into the air, thick, dark green roots destroyed the wooden floorboards and followed the creature's hand.

He pointed to the big portrait on the wall. The man was still grinning eerily as if he was enjoying this whole ordeal.

"Sir, you have got to calm down, we both know it's better to stay calm." Erebus cried in genuine distress.

"DON'T. SILENCE ME. EREBUS." The thing threw a wooden, luxurious looking seat at Erebus and he caught it just in time. "Sir."

Erebus acted as if he didn't hear the opposing creature's cries, he stayed silent as it let out agonising screams that'd break glass if there were any in this room.

He just walked forward, nearing the creature's grasp. Even though it seemed the other monster was growing claws Erebus didn't flinch.

He was standing a mere ten to fifteen centimetres away from the other creature's face. It was obvious Erebus didn't fear the other monster. And even if he did he'd never let it show.

He reached out his arm and put his scar filled hand on the creature's shoulder. Cozily in between two deathly sharp thorns.

The monster turned his head, rather quickly, and they stared at each other for what seemed like a century but what would in fact only be a second or two.

Then it smiled and pulled Erebus in an incredibly quick embrace, almost as if he didn't want to be seen with a person so far below him. Erebus was pushed against the thorns but he didn't seem to mind.

Before he got the time to wrap his arms around the creature it pushed him away. The thorns around his chest and right arm had been erased almost. Erebus didn't notice them reverting back to normal.

"Sir-"

"Shut up, Erebus" it said, rather rudely. "We've known each other for years, just call me Azaleas already."