A Criminal In Another World

Chapter 6. ArchDemon

Jaz and Roehath ride, at top speed, back to the castle. Upon arriving, Jaz leaps off the horse and heads straight into the castle.

"Matt! Help escort the royal family to the maid's room!" She shouts.

"On it!" Matt replies, becoming visible again, beside her. 

He stops at the door where the guards, Roey and Garett stand. Jaz continues into the Goddess's room.

She throws open the door. "Evilon! Prepare for a full lockdown of the castle!"

Evilon jumps up from her seat. "Jazmin?! What happened?!"

"It is the duke..." Jaz's voice trails off as a sharp pain envelops her chest. She looks down to see a spear sticking out of her chest.

Behind her, one of the guards is beheaded by Matt, who is escorting the royal family from the throne room. "Jaz!" 

Evilon rushes to the door to catch Jaz as she falls forward. She motions to the others. "Quickly! Inside!"

Matt, the King, Princess, Prince, and Queen rush inside the Goddess's chambers, followed closely by Roey and Garett. The other guards stand by outside the door as Matt closes it.

Evilon cradles Jaz in her arms. "Hang in there, I have you!"

Jaz looks weakly at Matt. "Did you get.. him?"

Matt nods. "Beheaded on the spot."

Jaz smiles. "Good man." She laughs weakly. "Now.. I know how.. that vampire felt."

"Matt, pulls the spear out." Evilon orders.

Matt timidly takes hold of the spear and quickly pulls it from Jaz's chest.

Evilon immediately begins chanting a healing spell, while placing her hand over the wound. Within moments, Jaz is healed and regains her strength.

She leaps to her feet. "Is everyone safe here?!"

Evilon nods. "Nothing is getting through those doors."

Jaz throws open the doors. "Get Roehath inside!" She orders. "You men get inside as well."

As a few of the guards help Roehath inside, Halbrook stands with his arms crossed. 

"I do not take orders from you, child of the Goddess." He says gruffly.

Jaz marches up to him, grabbing him by the neck of his chest armor, drawing her dagger. "Listen, big guy, I do not have time for you code of honor bullshit!! You don't get in that room and protect the royal family, in the case a demon actually gets in, or you die with the demon under the rubble of this castle. I do not have time to hold back nor babysit your pride!!"

Halbrook looks Jaz in the eyes, seeing the pure anger behind them. "Men.. fall in." He reluctantly orders, stepping slowly past Jaz.

Jaz turns to Matt. "You keep that door closed, no matter what happens."

Matt nods with a worried expression. "What if you don't come back?"

"Then I will see you at the great bar in the sky." Jaz smiles, kicking the doors shut behind them. She then slowly walks towards the doors, at the end of the windowed hall and into the throne room. "Okay Archdemon, it is just you and me!" She shouts.

An evil laugh comes from the throne, as the duke materializes sitting on the throne. "The view is so marvelous from up here!"

Jaz draws her dagger. "Too bad you will not be seeing it for very long."

The duke waves his hand in a circle. "Why do we have to fight? Haven't you ever wanted to be a Queen? Join me, we could rule this world, just the two of us."

Jaz smiles. "I was once a Queen, but I lost my King and kingdom to bandits." She smiles evilly. "Take a wild guess what I did to those bandits."

The duke groans. "Set your army upon them with impunity?"

Jaz rolls her eyes, with a disappointed expression on her face. "HELL NO! I whipped those bastards out with my own two hands, tutoring them mercilessly for their trespass."

The duke perks up, clapping his hands. "Most excellent! That is the mark of a true demon!" He stands, his arms opened wide. "You and I have a lot in common!"

Jaz laughs hysterically. "Like you?!" She clinches her dagger tightly, and, with a flash of lighting, kicks the archdemon into the seat of the throne. She pins him beneath her boot with the crackling blade, of her sword, within inches from his throat. "You are nothing to me, demon!" Her eyes widened. "I am the thing even the devil, himself, fears! You are nothing but a dog nipping at the heels of sheep! I am the true preditor here!"

The duke carefully looks down at her boot and back up at the sword. He calmly smiles at Jaz. "Pray tell, what manner of predator hunts demons?"

Jaz smiles, leaning forward. "The same that killed two tigers."

The duke looks confused. "What is a tiger?"

Jaz runs her sword through his throat, bobbing her head to and froe. "A really big cat.."

The duke laughs evilly, growing larger. His form changes to a muscular, dark-skinned giant. "You killed two oversized cats! Good job!" He exclaims mockingly. "I, however, am no cat!"

Jaz smirks, as she leaps back with her sword in hand. "I shall still take your head." 

"Show me, mortal." The demon taunts.

Jaz spins around in place, swinging her sword with all her strength.

The demon watches, as she spins in place, in the middle of the throne room. "Are we fighting or dancing?"

Jaz smiles crazily. "Level.. 1,000!" She shouts.

With a quick flash of brilliant light and a boom of thunder, the sword grows, cutting through half the throne room and vaporizing the archdemon. The massive sword finally comes to rest in the wall of the throne room, as part of the throne room crumbles due to the loss of structural integrity.

"Level 0." Jaz commands as the sword shrinks back to a dagger. She then calmly walks out of the throne room and knocks on the door of the Goddess's chamber. 

"Who is it?" Matt asks.

Jaz groans. "Do you really think a demon would knock first?!"

Matt pokes his head out. "They are demons, not uncultured swine."

Jaz smiles at him. "I think you give them too much credit."

"Is it done?" The King asks.

Jaz nods proudly. "Vaporized off the face of existence!"

Behind her, the rest of the throne room collapses.

Matt, Roehath, the guards, Evilon, Halbrook, and the royal family all stand with shocked expressions

The King, at first shocked, clears his throat. "A small price to pay for the safety of my family and kingdom."

Jaz looks back, surprising herself with the destruction. "Oh.. wow. This.. is a new record for me!!!"

Evilon also clears her throat. "I am sure I can have it rebuilt in no time."

Matt, Roehath, and Halbrook laugh nervously.