Short Stories

Demon

  "I'm going to need chicken blood, salt, five candles, and a bottle of vodka."

  "Vodka? For the spell?"

  "No, that's just to make me feel better about ripping a hole in the universe."

  Valerie gave me a smile. "You mean you want an excuse to get drunk before noon again," she said with a chuckle.

  I frowned at her. "You think I have no concerns unleashing great evil into this world and endangering my fellow man?" I asked.

  "Nope," she replied, still laughing.

  My frown dissolved and a sly smile replaced it. "You know me well," I laughed, "Now bring me my requests. We have much to do and our window in which to do it is limited."

  Valerie ran to get the materials as I drew up the pentagram on the concrete floor of her basement with my black Sharpie. When she returned, I traced my Sharpie pentagram with the chicken blood, outlined the pentagram in a circle of salt and set each of the candles at its points.

  "Are you sure this is going to work?" worried Valerie, wringing her hands, "Are you sure we can get him back?"

  I took a swig of my Vodka after setting down the last candle. "Everything will be fine," I assured her, "Turn off the lights, hand me the lighter from the fireplace, go wait upstairs until I call for you and let me get on with it."

  Once the lights were out, Valerie was out of the basement, and the candles were lit, I began. "Et beatos vos... Qui enim servientes." I chanted, "Opprimere te huc."

  "Et beatos vos... Qui enim servientes... Opprimere te huc... Et beatos vos... Qui enim servientes... Opprimere te huc," I repeated. "Come forth to me Harangue. As your master, I command thee."

  As I finished speaking, blue smoke rose from the pentagram and moments later a figure slowly materialized. The figure resembled a man with strawberry hair and a dusting of freckles across his face, I'd imagine that the ladies of this earth would find him quite attractive. Darn. If I were a woman, I would even fall for him – that is, if I were unaware that he was a demon. "How can I serve you, Master?" questioned the demon as it did a partial bow.

  "You have a boy," I said, "and I want him back."

  "I have many boys," Harangue replied slyly, "Many foolish boys who don't know how to properly summon a demon. Are you sure that you are associated with one of them, Master? I do not believe that you could be as foolish as they. You have a maturity around you that they do not possess. If you are sure, though, that you want the boy, then you must be more specific."

  "Enough of your flattery," I riposted him, "I want the boy you acquired from this house returned to me."

  "The boy from here?" the demon mused, a playful gleam in his eye, "It just so happens that he is a favorite of mine. Tell me, for what would you give me in return? Surely you do not expect me to give you my favorite toy without the promise of something else in return."

  "Of course not," I countered, "I shall give you the one thing that you cannot give yourself."

  "Oh?" he asked, amused, "And what is this thing that you believe you can give a demon that he cannot already acquire for himself?"

  "Time," I said simply.

  "Time?" Harangue laughed, "What fool offers a everlasting being time!? Perhaps you are not as smart as I believed you first to be, Master."

  I felt a surge of energy from in the pentagram and pushed back with my own. "Are you trying to defy me, my servant? I believe you forget your place," I remarked coldly.

  "Forgive me, Master," came the demon boy's fraudulent apology, "I simply wished to test my master's strength and marvel at how powerful you are."

  "The boy," I said, ignoring his silvery compliments, "In exchange for time upon this plane."

  This seemed to be a delightfully surprising proposition to the demon as it immediately flashed a dashing smile full of perfect teeth. "You know what happens when you break your deal with a demon, right Master?"

  "I do," I replied shortly, "As you have said, this is not my first time summoning one of your kind."

  "How much time are you offering?" Harangue inquired, "If it is not much, I may decide that keeping the boy will be more appealing."

  "I offer to you three days of roaming this plane, from dawn to dusk. I shall summon you and let you roam freely; however, I will send you back before the night of each day."

  "Three days is far too short, Master. I will take no less than a week."

  "Five days then, but no more. I know what your kind can do in a week. It took seven days to create the universe, and I know it will only take you that long to return it to nothing."

  "Very well," relented the demon, "Five days it shall be. I will return to you the boy after I have had my seven days."

  "I would expect nothing less," I replied, "Your days will start tomorrow."

  "Until then, Master."

  I broke the summoning spell, sending the demon back to the depths from which it came. I went upstairs to find Valerie in the living room. "It'll be alright," I told her. "The deal went well, and he will be back here in five days."

  "Will he be okay that long?" Valerie questioned me, "I promised my mother that I would watch after him. He has to be alright."

  "He'll be fine," I assured her, "I promise."

  The next morning, I set up the summoning circle and summoned Harangue. "Are you ready to start our deal?" I asked.

  "Certainly," he responded, smiling slyly. I altered the spell and allowed him to step out of the summoning circle.

  "I remind you that the basic rules apply. You may harm none in this house or any of those in relation to me."

  "Yes, Master," it replied, and disappeared from my sight.

_-_-_-_

  I jerked awake and looked toward the curtains. What have I done? That was a dream, right? I looked outside at the curtains and, more specifically, at the darkness beyond them. I just let a demon free and let them stay out past dark. I felt for any power I still had over Harangue – nothing. A master-less demon is free on the earth. Oh, fudge. The Earth is doomed. We're all gonna sarding die.

~*~*~*~

A/N: This short story was written from another prompt I found off the internet. I hope you enjoyed!