《Tales of Summoning》


 The Summoning 1

    "Uh, what the actual fuck?!" was the only thing Jason could think as he saw what was in front of him. He knew that he was tired from his work, and that he had taken a puf of green to relax his nerves before going to bed, but this was ridiculous.


    Two people, a man and a woman were bowing repeatedly at him, their faces a mix of fear and excitement. They seemed to be possessed by something because as soon as they saw Jason they continued to chant something, but Jason was to preoccupied looking around. He was no more in his bedroom, house, or even his city if his eyes didn''t decive him. Wet black stone carved by time was all that surrounded him on four sides, stalactites descended from the ceiling like spears from heaven, and moonlight shone down from a strange circular hole. Jason tried to see if he could get a glimpse of the sky, but he could only see some shining crystal on the ceiling which made him rise his eyebrow. You could see the gears on his head spinning.


    ''OK, this is definitely some kind of prank, but by who? My friends....nah, they too stoned for that, my coworkers.....nah, they don''t have a reason, or could it be someone from my family? Man, is this some kind of intervention, scrared straight lind of shit?!'' thought Jason as he started to become irritated. He looked around for any cameras or microphones, but he couldn''t find any. The lack of natural light also didn''t help him , only making him squint. After a minute he became bored of the hide and seek game and directed his attention towards the two ''paid actors'' who were still singing something in gibberish.


    "Hey, you two, what is this shit? Is this some kind of hidden camera, because I didn''t agree to this shit." spoke Jason, but the two of them didn''t answer and continued their charade. This of course didn''t sit well with Jason as he didn''t appreciate games so he moved forward in order to give them a piece of his mind, but not after three steps he crashed headfirst into something.


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    "Fuck! What the fuck is this?!" said Jason as he rubbed his aching nose, and touched something in front of him. It seemed like a transparent wall was preventing him from going forward, so he tried to go around bu he seemed to be surrounded in a circle.


    "Hey you fuckers, answer me! What the fuck is this, a new kind of transparent glass or some shit? Answer me!"


    Jason completely lost it as he begun to hit the transparent obstacle with his hands and feet frantically, something that startled the two observers. They began to chant more and more quickly, and something begun to change, crimson light begun to shine beneath Jason''s feet. He was startled by this as he jumped back, only one thing crossing his mind at that moment '' What the fuck is a pentagram doing here?''


    ...................


    In a village of the Glanacia Kingdom , inside a mud house, a couple, a man and a woman were sitting near the fireplace. The flames were red hot and dancing with the wind, but no warmth seemed to penetrate their skin. They were pale as they moved closer towards a bed made out of hay. In it laid a child , a boy no more than ten years old and his face was even paler than the couple. He breathed very lightly, his breath not even beeing able to scare a mosquito. He was clearly sick.


    "My child..." whispered the woman who seemed to be in her late twenties. She had black eyes and brown hair styled in a bun painting the figure of a working woman, but her face was starting to wrinkle. Her eyes were bloodshot clearly from crying as tears had formed lines on her face.


    "Lara...you should save your strength, crying nonstop doesn''t make it better. You also should eat something, you have lost a lot of weight." said the man as he added some dried twigs in the fireplace to keep the cold at bay. The man''s face was stoick as he seemed to think of something, but his eyes were also red, and his knuckles white from balling his fist too hard.


    "Zef...I can''t stand it anymore...I can''t stand to see our child suffer. He is but a boy, he doesn''t deserve this...*sob**sob*


    Tell me Zef...is this retribution for our sins, is it? If it is.....


    "Stop talking! Just stop....


    "But...sob sob...he is suffering! Maybe we weren''t ment ment to be...it was forbidden after all....


    "Woman, this is the last time I tell you!" angrily shouted the man as he raised his hand. His wife was startled as she hadn''t seen this side of her husband before, but she couldn''t say anything so she begun sobbing at the head of her child. Tears dripped on his face , but he didn''t respond, he didn''t even open his eyes.

 The Summoning 2

    Zef saw the state of his wife and child and couldn''t help but lament at destiny''s cruel joke. Many years ago he was not as helpless as he was now, no...he was one the son of a noble knight family. He was the second brother of five kids , talented, keen and very studious in both the martial arts and the literary ones. He was considered and expected to be a great figure of his time , but he fell in love. If it had been a noble woman or even a woman of far noble descent he would have been praised and congratulated, but the one he fell in love with was a servant, Lara.


    She was such a cheerful and kind soul, beautiful and elegant even in theost mundane tasks-it was love at first sight. Of course his parents and relatives denied such a union, but who was he to listen to their drivel? He was young man, a young man in love and he couldn¡¯t be convinced- so seeing no way to resolve this they cane to a conclusion. So as to not raise the ire and become the laughing stock of all the other noble families, he was exiled, his name burned from all the records of the family and he was part of them no more.


    Zef was happy, he had gotten what he had wished for, but it only became more hard from then on. Without the backing of his noble family he was now but a commoner, and for the first time he had to work, but it was not all that bad. With the skills he had honed as the scion of a knight family he was very good at hunting, and his martial prowess weren''t to shabby either. So, by hunting wild beast and sometimes stray monsters in the forest nearby, and also training the fifteen men strong militia of the village he managed to lead a very good life. It was only when his wife blessed him with a boy, he was fulfilled.....but happiness was not ment to be.


    One fateful day his son, his only son was injured as he was splitting some firewood, and a splinter had entered his hand. At first it was no big of a deal as it had happened many times before, but soon he became sick. He lost his appetite, his temperature was high, and the hand where the splinter had entered started swelling like a balloon. This alarmed Zef as he sent him to the apocathery of the village where he received some oils and balms, but they didn''t work as his son became more sick and weak. It was then that he sent him to the barber\doctor and learned that an amputation was needed, and needed fast.


    He argued, pleaded, and begged for a different solution from the barber, but only received condolences from him. It was then that it all came crashing down at him....he who was once a revered knight had stooped so low as to beg for his sons life.


    ''Alas...I can not change the past. Fate is indeed a cruel mistress and love is a sweet poison. Now I know why so many of those poets lamented over these things over and over....alas...'' Zef cast his gaze upon his son and he couldn¡¯t stop a


    tears welling up in his eyes, but none fell on the ground. He had seen enough of his son suffering, he couldn''t see his small figure wither away in front of his eyes anymore. He would do anything, anything for his son...even if that ment making a deal with a devil.


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    He steeled his resolve , took his cloak and immediately headed outside leaving his wife still weeping. He took a deep breath of the autumn air and immediately headed towards one of houses in the village. His step wasn''t fast nor slow, but it sure was careful.


    ............


    In less than five minutes he was before a one storied house much like his own, but it was more debilitated. The door had some cracks on it, the paint of the house was almost nonexistent , and the roof looked a mess.


    He cautiously knocked on door , and not one minute later someone opened it halfway. A plump woman in her thirties showed herself at the door and looked at Zef with caution.


    "What do you want?" said the woman as she looked at Zef from top to bottom.


    "You know what I want, woman. If it wasn''t for my situation I wouldn''t even be seen commig here." said Zef with disgust as he looked at the woman, but the later didn''t really mind his callous words.


    "S''that so, mister knight? And I thought that you had a change of heart, but still...


    "Stop with the useless words, I''ve come her not for pleasure." said Zef as he opened his cloak and revealed the sword he had hanging on his belt. The woman narrowed her eyes as she saw it and stopped talking.


    "Fine...just give me a couple of minutes and I''ll be ready. You better not go back on your word."


    "Just don''t make me wait...


    *bam*


    The door closed and Zef fell into thought once again. The woman he had just spoken to was one of the widows of this village, but also occasionally the village whore. Her name was Ariane and she until two months ago she hadn''t even spoken more than one minute to Zef. She unexpectedly had found a book on the forest, but as she didn''t know how to read had come to Zef. He at first didn''t want to do it, but as he saw the fine leather bound book he changed his mind. He was intrigued and rightfully so as the book didn''t have even a name, but as he read through it he understood why.


    The book she had found was not a normal book, but a blasphemous one which entailed the summoning of a devil, an evil creature from the depths of hell to do one''s bidding. As soon as he found out he wanted to destroy it, to burn it to ashes, but Ariane refused, so the book was spared.


    .............


    Under the cover of dusk Zef and Ariane left the village and entered a cave he often used to rest in during his hunts. It wasn''t a big cave but it would suffice for the ritual. They did as the instructions on the book showed and killed five kids of creatures in five directions , a chicken, a lizard , a cat , a spider, and a bird. They then mixed their blood together before adding a drop of their blood also, and finally drawing a pentagram from that blood. It took them about an hour to do it, but it was finally finished.


    "Zef...hurry, read the chant! We must let the hour to pas....


    "I know...." said Zef with a stoic face as he opened the book and began to read." I , Zef, call upon the cursed, the blood, the soul....I call upon ''you'' to head my humble call and accept these offerings in your name. I call upon the five....upon the flesh, the spirit, the blood, life and death for you to appear before me to grant me my wish....


    As Zef sung loudly the chant, Ariane also did the same" I , Ariane, call upon the cursed, the blood, the soul....I call upon ''you'' to head my humble call and accept these offerings in your name. I call upon the five....upon the flesh, the spirit, the blood, life and death for you to appear before me to grant me my wish....


    As they did so the blood pentagram on the stone floor begun to evaporate a hazy humanoid figure of red mist materialized. Seeing this they immediately bowed in fear and awe and they continued their chant, but didn''t remove their eyes from the figure. At first it was calm, but as it saw them it became agitated and started to hit the edge of the summoning circle prompting Zef and Ariane to chant faster until the pentagram shined a deep crimson entailing the successful end of the summoning ritual.

 Request 1

    "Did, did it work.....Zef, is the ritual completed successfully?" stuttering Ariane as she looked at the now calm hazy figure.


    "I don''t know..." said Zef as he moved his hand to the hilt of his sword and prepared himself for a fight. He had done as the book had instructed, but anything to do with summoning a devil was tricky. He had read and heard a lot of tales where people called upon such dark creatures to accomplish their desires, and gained only a horrible death.


    "Speak, what do you want!?"


    "Ahhhh......


    "Hm....


    A deep and turbulent voice was suddenly heard by the two of them making Ariane fall back and Zef almost unsheath his sword. Sweat drenched the handle of his sword making him lament at his state of being.


    '' Hah, how low have I fallen. Even a couple of words make me sweat now. I''m a disgrace of a knight.'' Zef sighed internally and then loosened the grip on his sword as he steeled his resolve. He was prepared to do anything for his son.


    ...................


    Jason''s pov


    As soon as the crimson light subsided memories, or more precisely information passed through Jason''s mind. The two unknown figures in front of him were no more unknown, they were Zef and Viviane, and they had summoned him here. The Jason from a minute ago would have wrecked his brains to understand what exactly ''summoning'' him ment, but he now just ''understood''. He understood that he had been called here for a purpose, and that he couldn''t hurt either of them until the request was over or until one of them requested him to do so. Only when their requests were fulfilled or when he was un-


    summoned could he return. Jason''s whole worldview was turned upside down as he was exposed to something which was only considered true in fiction.


    Jason of course wasn''t pleased from such a revelation he felt true in his soul so he angrily blurted out." Speak, what do you want!?"


    "Ahhh....


    "Hm.....


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    The woman he knew to be Ariane was frightened by his words, but the man, Zef didn''t seem to be bothered that much. He took a deep breath and then spoke , his voice hotase and eyes bloodshot for some reason. "Devil, I''ve called upon you to grant me my request. My son is ill, he is dying....and I want from you to cure him. "


    "Ahhh...I also have called upon you to grant me my request. I want you to grant me riches beyond measure. I want you to make me the riches woman in the kingdom!" hastily said Ariane as to not be outdone by Zef. Zef of course was startled by such a request as he didn''t know the woman was hiding such greed in her soul. He wanted to rebuke her for making such an outlandish request, but he conducted himself in front of the devil they had just summoned.


    Jason was first irked by Zef when he called him a devil , but when he heard his request his eyes narrowed and heart tightened. It only lasted for a second thought as the woman also made her wish for uncountable richest, but it only made him laugh instead.


    "Hahaha, uncountable riches? Now that is a bold statement. I''m not a djin woman...and do you really have what it takes to exchange for that!?" angrily said Jason as he looked at the woman who was taken aback by the devil''s word''s. His gaseous figure seemed to boil over showing his dissatisfaction. Jason instinctively ''knew'' that such a request was above him, so he immediately turned it down.


    "Uhhh..uummmm...." Ariane was frightened by such a display and fear gripped her heart as she began to murmur something, maybe even apologize.


    Zef saw the dissatisfaction oozing out from the devil and cursed at Ariane for he stupidity in his mind. He hastily wrecked his brain as to what should he say, and his knightly training came into play.


    "Forgive her your excellency, she is but a daft woman, she didn''t mean those word''s. "


    "Hmphhh....is that so..." said Jason as he moved his attention towards Zef.


    "Indeed, she just spoke her mind without thinking. Please forgive her transgression."


    Jason paused for a moment as he looked over the two of them and decided to let it go. He didn''t like this place at all and really didn''t want to stay here any longer so he decided to finish his business here. He knew that he had to somehow fulfill their requests, but he also knew that he didn''t have any magical powers so he couldn''t just snap his fingers to complete them. He first thought about Zef''s request and decided to ask him in more detail about his son.


    "You, Zef is your name right?"


    "Yes your excellency, the is my name."


    "You said that your son was ill....what is his affliction? How did he came to be sick?" spoke Jason, unconsciously mimicking the speech of Zef, and also hopping it wasn''t cancer of anything like that.


    "Of course your excellency, I''ll explain it to you right now." said Zef, hope welling in his heart. He had expended everything to search for a cure for his son, but he had come empty....this devil his last resort. " My son accidentally got his hand pierced by a long splinter and has gotten a serious infection. Nor the healers of the church, nor the the barber\doctors, nor the herbalists have given him hope. His condition is very bad, his life may be forfeit at any moment."


    "I see...." said Jason as if he was considered something, but inside he was delighted. The thing his son had wasn''t something he was born with or something that was out of Jason''s ability, it was an infection and antibiotics could treat it. As that thought crossed his mind he felt somewhat tugging at his consciousness and he saw his bathroom.


    ''What the....wasn''t I...isn''t this...'' It was strange, it didn''t feel like he was really there, but his instict told him so, and right in front of him was was truly his medicine cabinet. From the most common gauze to some weed he had saved for later, but his attention was drawn towards something else.


    ''It can''t be....these really are.'' Jason was surprised as right in front of him were some antibiotics he had ben prescribed two month ago, but hadn''t finished them all. He reached for it and then his vision changed once again and he was in the cave once again, but this time he had the antibiotics in his hand.

 Request 2

    Zef''s pov


    Zef gritted his teeth as he waited for the devil''s answer, as either way ,this story didn''t have a good ending. If the devil didn''t like what he had to offer he wouldn''t cure his son and he would die...or he would have to pay a heavy price in order for his son to do so.


    The silence was defending as only his and Ariane''s breath could be heard, but a minute later smoke billowed around the devil''s hand and he once again spoke , his voice as horace as before. " Zef , I''ve got a cure for your child, this medicine I have in hand can help him recover."


    Zef''s eyes widened in surprise at that statement and his heart beat loudly from the turmoil of emotions he was experiencing at the moment "That....thank you for accepting my request." honestly said Zef as not every devil was keen to grant a human any request. He thought quickly wiped the gratitude from his face as he asked the devil what he was owed.


    "Oh, straight to payment, I like that! " sarcastically said Jason as a kind of a joke , but it made Zef''s heart skip a beat. He was worried that he didn''t have what it took for this creature to be satisfied.


    "You''re excellency, I, Zef am a former knight, now but an ordinary man. I don''t have much riches, but my word is my honor, and I am bound by it." spoke Zef as he took out his sword from its scabbard and then cut his left palm. Blood drenched the blade, but Zef didn''t seem to care as he stared straight towards the devil, hoping to have convinced him somehwat, but he did so much more. Jason was taken aback by such a thing and almost blurted out something he shouldn''t, but he contained himself.


    "Haha....bravo mister knight, you really live up to your title. You may receive your medicine, but I require something from you. "


    "Anything!" said Zef with conviction, but his heart was trembling. He knew this may be his last day on this land. A deal with the devil wasn''t something so easy, and he knew it. The smoke figure seemed to expand a little as a smile manifested on it''s previously stoick face sending shivers down Zef''s and Ariane''s spine.


    "In exchange for this medicine I ask of you two things, knowledge, and that sword you are holding. I want to know how is it that you''ve summoned me in this place....how the two of you gained the knowledge...and of course the sword.


    Do we have a deal?" said Jason as he extended his hand as if to initiate a handshake, but because of the circle blocking him he couldn''t approach Zef. Zef clearly heard the words of the devil in front of him and couldn''t help but be surprised. The things it had asked in exchange hadn''t been anything he had expected. He had thought that the devil would make him live in servitude or maybe take his soul or something, but what he asked was completely reasonable, maybe to reasonable. Zef though was a smart man and knew not to stir the shit least it reeked, so he immediately jumped at the offer.


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    "I gracefully accept." As soon as those words passed Zef''s lips the crimson pentagram shone with intensity and several hushed whispers passed through the cave penetrating Zef''s soul, and the sword he had disappeared and was replaced with what seemed like a rectangular box filled with characters. His eyes opened wide as he knew that it was the same box that was in the devil''s hand, and as if to confirm his suspicion a sword , his sword was in the devil''s grip. It seemed to be delighted as it saw the sword, but Zef didn''t care about it anymore as two beads of tears dropped to the ground.


    .............


    Jason''s pov


    ''Man this is awesome!'' delighted Jason''s as he swung the just acquired sword around like a child. He was so delighted by this that he almost forgot to explain to Zef how to exactly use the antibiotics. He wasn''t a doctor but he deducted that as the one to ingest them was a child the dose should be at least half of what he took and then about when to use them. During the explanation Zef listened attentively at every word Jason said, but in the back of his mind he still thought why this devil didn''t use his magical powers to heal his boy. He of course didn''t voice his thoughts and also explained to Jason how they managed to call him to this place and Jason''s was a little taken aback.


    ''A book on how to summon a devil to do your bidding? The fuck....I''m not a devil am I?'' Jason wrecked his brains to try to remember something abnormal about him, but he couldn''t think of anything. He was as normal as any other person he had encountered. Jason thought didn''t have any time to dwell of such thoughts as the woman once again made her wish known to him.


    "Please,devil, grant me uncountable riches. I''ll give you anything, anything!" she begged and begged for him to grant her her wish, only agitating Jason more and more.


    "Enough!" yelled Jason, but he didn''t expect what would happen. An aura of suppresion spread like a wave and scared Ariane shitless.


    "Ahhh...ahhh...I''m sorry, I''m sorry if I''ve angered you."


    Jason saw the sorry state of his other summoner and could only sigh in disappointment. He knew people like her even in his world, trying to attain the top at any way possible, even if it cost them their dignity or soul. Money was one hell of a drug after all.


    '' Heh, could it be that money was invented by a devil, because it would definitely make sense.'' thought Jason as he saw Ariane''s figure. He knew from Zef that she had the book that entailed how to summon him, so he of course wanted to take it from circulation, that''s why he made her an offer. A small jewelry box appeared in his hand without notice and he opened it to reveal several rings, bracelets and necklaces that belonged to his ex girlfriend. It was a bitter reminder of her walking out on him, but he had kept it just because. Of course it also helped that they were just fake and cheap jewelry, so it wouldn''t cost that much, but Ariane didn''t know that. Her eyes were immediately filled with greed as she saw the shiny jewelry in Jason''s hand.


    Jason narrowed his eyes at this, but he couldn''t really blame her. If they were real he would also be tempted, but she didn''t know that, so in a true devilish way he advertised them as real.


    " Woman, your everything isn''t worth as much as you wish. It is only enough for these...." said Jason as he closed the box once again, depriving Ariane from their shiny looks. Of course Ariane''s eyes shinned at such an offer and sinister thoughts passed through her mind. She lowered her head and praised Jason even more.


    "Thank you your excellency, I''m grateful for your decision. But may I ask what you want in exchange....my life , my soul...


    "Hah...what use do I have for it? I don''t want your soul!" said Jason with disdain at such a claim." I only require the book you have summoned me with and for you to not attempt to do it anymore-to summonme that is."


    "This...." Ariane hesitated at this, but an angry look from Zef immediately made her change her mind. She reluctantly agreed ro it , and the second exchange was completed.

 Aftermath

    After Jason completed Ariane''s request the crimson pentagram shone once more and then it disappeared , taking the Jason along with it. Zef and Ariane were the only souls left in the cave and they seemed to have been frozen,  not knowing what was an appropriate action right now. They had just done something punishable by death, colluding with a devil. It  didn''t seem real, happening so fast , but the items on their hands begged to differ.


    Zef turned her head towards Ariane who was gleefully looking through the small jewelry box she now possessed,  and shook his head. "Hey, Ariane....


    "What do you want?" immediately answered Ariane as she seemed to hold her just gained treasure closer.


    "Calm down,  I''m not looking to rob or hurt you,  but I''ll remind you to not tell this to anyone. Of course I''ll deny everything that you say,  but still....don''t forget..."


    "Of course you don''t have to remind me! That goes for you to, you better not spill the beans in some kind of drunken stupor."


    With those words the two of them exited the cave and headed towards the village under the cover of darkness.  They sneakily entered the village,  not beeing seen by anybody and entered their respective houses. Zef was met with a hug  from his worried wife who asked him where he went,  and Ariane was met with the silence of her empty home, but one thing was for certain, both of them were happy.


    .....................


    On the other hand Jason was confused,  he had just been through an otherworldly experience and couldn''t really wrap his mind around it, but the two items in his lap were like a slap of reality to the face. A medieval sword and a book bound in black leather without any words in it.


    "Man, this is really fucked up...." muttered Jason as took the sword with both hands and felt the weight of it. It felt light taking into consideration the length of it, but it felt sturdy in his hand.  He thought didn''t hold it for to long as it irked him to hold in his hands a tool he could kill someone for such a long time, and because he didn''t want to accidentally cut himself as it was a sharp sword after all.


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    "Okay, I can explain the sword,  but the book. If it really is real, then this is a pretty dangerous thing. Calling forth a devil,  that is something really demonic...." said Jason as he reached for the book, but stopped just before touching it. He though about all those stories and movies he had seen where something happens when you touch something like ''this'' book,  and hesitated. "Better be safe than sorry." with those words Jason went to the kitchen,  grabbed some tongs , and moved the book to a drawer he never used before covering it with some clothes. Then, and only then did he roll up something to calm his nerves down,  but it backfired. He couldn''t sleep at all in the next two days,  and only on the third did he pass out from exhaustion.


    .............


    Time passed and almost a whole month flew by in a flash. Jason thought hadn''t changed that much. He still went to his dead end job, worked for eight hours,  left it tired everyday , and then returned to the comforts and loneliness of his home. It was a dull and boring life, so no one would expect that not a month before Jason was called to another world and came out with something.


    "Yeah,  I really hit it big with the sword,  but I don''t think it''ll be the same with book...." muttered Jason as he remembered selling the sword to some sword fanatic for more then 3000 dollars. He kept going on and on about the unique style of it and the awesome craftsmanship,  but Jason remembered just smiling at him and thinking that he would shit his pants if he knew where it really came from. As he finished remembering what happened  Jason looked towards the drawer where the book was.


    He had at first been intrigued about it,  even researched about it , but he soon had realized that it wasn''t a good idea. He didn''t know if he was the only one who had managed to travel to such a world,  or if the government and any other organization was on the lookout for someone like him, so he decided to not leave a digital footprint. He though didn''t think it would be that strange or traceable to look through books. With his library card renewed he entered the place he disliked the most before dropping out,  the library. Everytime he entered it he felt a deep feeling of beeing overwhelmed,  but now that he coul take it at his own pace he quite enjoyed it. He smoked some green before going in and everything became more tolerable. He dived himself headfirst in those books,  firstly looking at the occult and things related to it  by he soon diverted to biology , history,  science and all things in between. Everytime he had an idea he would get a book to find answers,  but rarely did he finish reading them completely.


    His mind was filled with junk from all different fields of knowledge, but it irked Jason that even though he had gained some knowledge, he felt even more ignorant than before . It was like a calling,  a hunger for knowledge he couldn''t satiate.

 Second Summoning 1

    It was s quiet night for the city of Toro, a rare sight in these troubled times. Glanacia Kingdom had lately been attacked by the northern nomadic tribes hard and without a notice, so they were caught with their pants down.


    The noble families of the Glanacia Kingdom were of course shocked by such a thing, but unfortunately, the infighting between the nobles of the kingdom made it hard for a proper response. The southern nobles refused to send their forces to aid the northern ones with the reason that the later should and could defend themselves from the barbarians of the north. It was a shit show with profanities and insults of the lowest order thrown when a meeting between the nobles was called by the crown, which almost escalated into an armed conflict, but fortunately the second crown prince courageously offered for him to lead the defense.


    Seeing this the nobles calmed down and agreed to work together. Trade routes were cleared, aid was sent, and even soldiers were given to the northern nobles by the southern ones , but not for free of course. It finally seemed that the southern nobles had sympathized with their northern counterparts, but it was a two edged knife. The northern nobles had gotten their aid, but the southern ones had also managed to move a good chunk of their military force to the north. Spies were common during peace times , but now their numbers had risen more than ten times. That thought was only the tip of the iceberg as assassins also thrived in this turmoil, and they loved nobles prey.


    ..........


    In the inner chamber of the castle the city of Toro was built around, a young man in his thirties was sitting in a well decorated chair. He was tall , with curly ,short , black hair, blue eyes and clean shaven face. He was well built with muscles showing through his silk nightgown, but not even it''s softness comforted him as he looked intently at a map under the candlelight.


    "This is not good...." said the man as his eyebrows raised high and he looked towards a certain part of the map that had some wooden horses atop it. He followed the line of horses and he drew a semicircle-in the inside of it a city named Toro was seen.


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    ''Dammit....


    Those dammed savages have us surrounded. The only way to survive now is to retreat and regroup our forces further south, but how.....'' thought the man as he gritted his teeth. He moved his attention towards the map once again and saw the wooden horses , they seemed to move, closer and close...and closer...


    "Dammit!"


    *Bam*


    A heavy thud was heard an the man slammed his palm against the map with all his might, making the wooden horses fly everywhere. As soon as this happened, hurried footsteps were heard outside the chamber and someone swiftly entered inside.


    "Your majesty Siros , are you alright?"


    "I''m fine..." said the man as he collected himself and looked towards his most trusted man. His face had aged greatly since he had embarked in this campaign, but his aid had almost become an old man. His hair had thinned, his beard nowhere to be seen ,his eyes bloodshot, but with all of that, his armour was on point. Seeing thi,s his face softened and he smiled.


    "Pierre, my most trusted. Come, let''s have a drink!"


    "Your majesty....


    "Come, don''t keep me waiting!" said Siros as he sat down at another table and filled two cups with what looked like wine. Pierre seeing this didn''t hesitate anyone and just sat down.


    "So, tell me, how is the situation? Not good I presume...gulp...ahhh...


    "That, your majesty....


    "I know, I know, I shouldn''t drink as it impedes judgment, but without it, I may become to hasty. The wine calms my nerves.....


    Pierre, the line between success and failure is clearly thin, but I didn''t expect it to be so....hahhh..." Siros took another big gulp of his wine and then stopped " Tell me, tell me everything!"


    Pierre looked deep into the eyes of his liege and saw defeat. He seemed tired, cations, afraid, and doubtful ,something the Siros of a year before never knew, but how times changed a man. "Your majesty, as you clearly know the northern barbarians have almost completely surrounded us. Their number and ferocity has greatly exceeded our expectations, and that was completely our mistake. We should have retreated much earlier, but in our ignorance we stayed.


    In less than three days I expect them to completely surround the city and take it for themselves. It is but a loosing battle your majesty.....you should know that."


    *Bam*


    Wine was spilled, staining the wooden table with a crimson hue which in the candlelight it looked almost like blood. "Pierre, are you saying I should retreat in such a time? Do you take me for a coward?"


    "Of course not my legie, I would never dare?! "


    "Hah....


    "But I must say, it is not a sane decision to protect this place to your last breath. YOUR MAJESTY, YOU MUST LIVE!" yelled Pierre.


    Siros was taken aback by such a statement as anger immediately flared inside of him "You dare raise your voice at me, Pierre?! "Siros wasn''t known for tolerating disrespect so he immediately unshethed the sword in Pierre''s waist and put its tip to Pierre''s neck. " Do you have any last word''s?"

 Second Summoning 2

    Pierre felt the cold steel tip on his neck and a shiver passed through his spine. His life would be decided on his next words,  but he had already made up his mind. " My liege...I apologize for the outburst,  but you know my statement is no lie. I''ve known you for more than ten years,  I''ve protected you for more than ten years....I''ve observed you for more than ten years...I know you."


    "Pierre....are these your last  word''s?" Siros''s hand tightened and he pushed the sword drawing blood. Pierre felt a warm liquid he knew was blood flow down his neck and onto his gambeson, but it didn''t deter him at all from speaking.


    "My liege, my life is already on your hands, you just have to take it, but then I wouldn''t have fulfilled my role. I''ve sworn allegiance to you and only you, so I can''t just stand by to see you lose.


    If this campaign ends like this, you only face exile, and all the blame with be thrusted upon you. You will become the most hated person on the kingdom,  you will never see greatness again....but!"


    "You...." muttered  Siros as Pierre had grabbed the sword with his bare hand and was looking straight at Siros''s eyes,  penetrating his soul, and Siros was just stunned to speak. What he had just done was the worst crime a knight could commit,  to raise his hand against a royal. This crime wasn''t as easily punishable as the execution of the perpetrator, it was way worse.  The knights closest blood relatives also executed, from the oldest to the youngest,  and then their bodies were burned so as neither had a resting place.  Their name was expunged from all records , their trace of ever existing lost for all time.


    "Pierre, do you understand what you just did?! You''ve doomed your entire family....


    "It''s the same if your majesty Siros fails here. My position was given by you, so if you fall, I''ll most likely loose my status and my properties. I''ll just become a fallen knight."


    "But you will still be alive?!" said Siros in an irritated voice as he couldn''t understand the decision of his most trusted aid.


    "Barely your majesty..." said Pierre, memories seemed to flash before his eyes. " My life wasn''t always as good as it is now. Hunger and cold were my long time friends before I joined the army, but even then I wasn''t rid of them. Only on that fateful day when I became part of your guard did I begin to truly live. You taught us...''me'', all the things you knew. From writing,  reading,  hunting,  poetry,  art,...you spared not a moment to enlightening someone like me.


    You ''made'' me what I am today your majesty!"


    Siros''s hand loosened his grip on the sword, and a sigh was heard across the room. "It seems I''ve taught you well Pierre." smiled Siros as Pierre  also let go of the sword, his hand now bleeding, but he didn''t care at all about that


    "That you did, your majesty. "


    "So....what now? You have arrived at the same conclusion as I have. Forward or backwards,  both of these options will have us capitulating. I don''t suppose that any of the southern lords have sent us anymore troops,maybe the barbarians have begun to retreat?"


    Pierre shook his head " Neither of them my liege , but that means that we will have to cling to the hope of victory even harder. We will have to resort to unconventional methods....we will have to seek the help of ungodly forces."


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    Siros heart stopped for a moment as the gears is his head spun. He knew what he had just heard,  but he didn''t know if it had maybe been a play of his mind "Pierre....you don''t mean...


    "Yes, your majesty, you have rightly guessed. I strongly suggest that we rely on the help of a devil in order to turn the tides of this war. It is the only way!"


    ".......


    Siros opened his mouth as he wanted to say something,  but he really couldn''t. He had spent all his money,  influence and favors to arrive at this point, so either a miracle from god, or a deal with the devil could save him now. Unfortunately God didn''t seem to be on his side at the moment.


    .............


    "Gaaaaaaa...


    "Hehe...let me outtttt....let me oooo....


    "Heeehehehehe.....


    In the dungeons of the castle, the smell of piss and feces permeated all around. Flies buzzed all over the place echoing through the moldy stone walls, and the delirious shouts of the prisoners made it hell on earth for anyone there, so it wasn''t a surprise that a summoning ritual to call forth a devil was taking place in one of those cells.


    "This is vile." said Siros as he looked down at five unmoving corpses on the ground,  and then at Pierre who seemed to have transformed into a butcher. His body was covered with several patches of blood and the dagger he had on his hand was fully drenched in crimson.


    "It is....but don''t feel sorry for them your majesty." said Pierre as he cleaned his dagger with a piece of cloth. " These are the scum of the earth,  they deserved to die. At least in death they  will at least surve a noble purpose."


    "Let''s hope so..." with that Siros moved his attention towards a thin man who seemed to be in the brink of starvation. His face was gaunt, his hands thin and his eyes popped out like that of a monster,  but he was definitely a human. He was their ''key''.


    "Hey, mage, what are you waiting for!? Come, let''s complete the ritual." yelled Pierre as he glared at the thin man and the later immediately went forward. He stumbled a little along the way but he managed to arrive before  Pierre.


    "Y..yes...


    "Do it! Complete the ritual...but be warned, if even one wrong word passes through your mouth, I''ll personally make you regret it. Now get to it!"


    "Ughh....


    Pierre threw the man on the ground, and the later immediately begun to draw something on the stone floor with the blood of the dead. It was quite erie,  especially under the dim light of the two torches on the wall. Pierre and Siros looked at the man with curiosity,  especially Siros.


    "Pierre,  does this man really know how to summon a devil?" spoke Siros as he tightly held a perfumed handkerchief to his face. His eyes filled with doubt and curiosity.


    "I''m not certain if he knows,  but he doesn''t seem to be lying....I would know if he did." confidently said Pierre " Also, he was sentenced because he was caught to be in possession of certain instruments and materials considered unholy in nature, so the probability is high."


    "........


    ".........


    After that neither Pierre nor Siros spoke as they intently looked at what the man was doing. He quickly seemed to move from one place to the other,  and with each passing moment a bloody pentagram was beginning to take form. It was a gut wrenching moment for the three of them, but after the pentagram was finished and the man said the words for the summoning, the pentagram shone a crimson light that illuminated the whole cell.


    "Ughh...that was brigh...


    "My liege,  stand back!"


    In the center of the crimson pentagram was now a shadowy figure looking straight at the three of them. Pierre immediately pointed his sword at it and moved in front of Siros to protect him, leaving the man staring at the thing he had just summoned with fear. The shadowy figure looked around the cell for a while as if to understand where he was,  and then finally pointed his finger at the man who had summoned him.


    "For what purpose did you call me here? Speak!" said the devil and his voice echoed throughout the cell. Pierre begun to sweat, but on the other hand Siros was marveling at what just happened. He had heard stories of such happenings,  but never in his life had he seen it for himself. It intrigued him, piqued his interest like nothing had ever before, it almost made him forget he would be burned to the stake if anyone found out he had done such a thing.

 Crazy Request and Solution 1

    Jason was one moment at the supermarket buying something for himself, and in the other he was in a dimly lit stone room . Three people were staring in fear at him, one seemed to almost have soiling his undergarments. Jason looked around for a moment and saw that he once again was inside a pentagram, which ment he was summoned again.


    ''Motherfucker! Why does this keep happening to me? Are all the other fuckers who can be summoned on leave?'' angrily thought Jason as fixated his attention towards the one who had summoned him. He seemed to be a very skinny and sickly old man who may die at any moment, but Jason didn''t have any mercy for him.


    "For what purpose did you call me here? Speak!" angrily shouted Jason, and the man immediately fell on his rear.


    "Oo....o unholy one..the...the reason I''ve called you here is to..."


    "Remember,tread lightly mage! Don''t do anything you will regret." came a voice from behind and Jason couldn''t help but look beyond the one who had summoned him. He saw t the one who spoke was a man wearing a well polished full plate medevial armor, and he held a pretty big swordon his hand. He wore a serious expression on his face and seemed to be protecting another man that held a handkerchief on his nose.


    ''The hell is going on here?'' thought Jason as he was struggling to understand the situation, but all would be clear in a couple of minutes. The thin man nodded at the one holding the sword and he once again began to explain. "O unholy one I...''we'' have called upon you to give us a solution, a helping hand. "


    "A helping hand?" Jason grumbled " A helping hand at what?" the torches flickering at his voice.


    "This city is beeing besieged by an army, and unfortunately for this city, they are to many. In a short amount of time they will definitely breach through the walls of this city to kill and pillage all they can without any mercy. We hope that you may have a solution for our dilemma."


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    "I see...." was the only thing Jason could say as he immediately panicked on the inside. He had unfortunately gone from a request of curing an infection to repelling an army. He looked at the expecting faces of all the people on the room, and couldn''t help but panic. He wanted to immediately immediately say no to their request and go back to his shopping, but he was afraid of what would happen if he said so.


    In his one month back on earth he had read many stories and gained much information about things like this. Although the validity of them was questionable, he had to base his situation somewhere, and knew that besides summoning a devil to completeone of your requests , there were ways to also seal or bind him...and he really didn''t want that, so he went with a softer approach. He did the best he could to be as intimidating , and deepened his voice. " You ask of me such a thing, but do you have anything to exchange for that? Repelling an army....do you think it is a child''s tantrum you seek to calm?"


    "I...uhhh..." the thin man seemed to be taken aback and didn''t know what to respond with. Fortunately for him Siros had had enough of being on the bench of this situation, so he pushed forward, against Pierre''s warning of course.


    "My liege...


    "It''s okay...I only just want to take a better look." said Siros as he approached the pentagram and stopped about half a meter from it''s edge. Jason saw the man staring at him intently, and because he was now closer ,he he could observe him more clearly. He was definitely more well nourished than the one who had summoned him, and definitely more well dressed.


    ''So, the real mastermind behind this summoning is you right.'' thought Jason as he had finally understood the power balance in the room.The one in the armor had called him ''liege'' which ment he was his servant or bodyguard ,and the one who had summoned him seemed to just be a pawn.


    "Devil, my name is Siros, the second prince of this kingdom and the one chosen to protect this place. It is I who wished to summon you here."


    "So it seems..." nonchalantly responded Jason making Siros smile.


    "I know that even though my status offers me much, I don''t have the ability to make you kill an army of thousands, but I hope that you could give me a way to succeed. I know that curses are something devil''s like you prefer...maybe even a plague amidst their ranks?"


    "Curse....plague?" repeated Jason and Siros just noded. This made him think about the warfare he had learned from his history books, and agreed that such a thing was a good strategy. Killing the head of an army would definitely disorient them and maybe even infighting would comence. Also a plague would definitely be catastrophic among the army as by the looks of the bodyguard of this so claimed prince , the technology level was at most lete medevial.


    Still he could accomplish neither of such tasks, so he pushed the ball back. " Oh, a curse...maybe a plague you say? Do you think such a feat is easy...prince?! Do you think that I can just snap my fingers....and it''ll be done?" calmly retorted Jason.


    "No, of course not! " dismissed Siros, but he lamented on the uselessness of the devil he had just summoned.

 Crazy Request and Solution 2

    The two sides of Siros and Jason were at an impase as neither of them could agree on what to do, and Jason began to understand that this man who proclaimed himself a prince didn''t have much to offer. He seemed to purposefully deflect on the question of what he had to give on return, so Jason pushed back on it.


    "Heh...your majesty, it seems that you are full of ideas,  but you don''t seem to have any support. Don''t tell me that the kingdom you represent has abandoned you....


    ".......


    Siros stopped for a moment and Jason could see the anger deep inside his blue eyes. It seemed to be tame for the moment, but a hunch told him it was about to explode. Siros thought didn''t dwell much on that thought as he just smiled at the comment.


    "It is as you say ''devil'' , I''ve been abandoned by the kingdom....though I understand their choice." said Siros as he opposed his arms wide " I ,Siros, have no one to blame for my situation as it was I who cane here to look for fame , but the people of the kingdom don''t deserve to die because of my decision."


    "You''re a liar...."


    As soon as those words left Jason''s mouth Siros took a step back, not because because he was afraid of Jason,  but because no one had ever deemed him a liar so blatantly to his face. He was shocked by the words and wanted to immediately defend himself,  but Jason didn''t let him.


    "You speak about yourself like you have such a caring heart,  but I think the people lying lifeless on the ground would be disagreeing with you.  Are their lives expendable for you to achieve your goal?"


    "My liege...


    "Do not take a step further Pierre!" shouted Siros at Pierre who seemed ready to strike as he looked at the devil in front of him and felt naked.  His veil of nobility and honor of a knight seemed to have been lifted by a wave of reality as he for the first time saw himself In a new light. As the second prince he was taught by many scolars, read many books, and interacted with many different types of people so he had a great understanding of how the world worked,  but now his vision had changed. He had thought himself above the actions of peasants, of ordinary people,  but now he was like a child caught red handed.


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    "Hah...hahahaha..." Siros smiled as tears unconsciously fell from his face.  He remembered the time he had broken some perfume bottles of his mother and had for the first and last time gotten a slap to his face. At that time he didn''t understand what or why it had happened as he never had experienced something like that, so his crying had alerted half the royal palace. It was such a trivial thing, but it had changed him forever as a person.


    Jason, Pierre and the other man on the other hand didn''t understand what the hell was happening, especially Pierre who was worried that the devil had somehow affected or even possessed his liege,  but he couldn''t move as he had been ordered to do so. '' My liege,  please be safe....


    ............


    Siros''s crying lasted for a while and was then quickly followed by a long period of silence.  Siros seemed to have gone insane as he didn''t seem to care anymore about the smell of the place or that the floor was bloody as he directly sat down in it. Even the man who had been a prisoner in this god-forsaken  place for some time furrowed his brows at this action. Even in his most unbelievable dreams  he hadn''t imagined that a noble, let alone a prince would sit down on such filth. Pierre and Jason also were having similar thoughts as the man , but Siros didn''t seem to care about that at all.


    In his mind scenario after scenario played out in rapid conclusion. Sometimes those outcomes were bad and he furrowed his brows,  but sometimes the outcomes were good and he smiled. On the outside though he looked nothing more than a lunatic living in his own world,  and Jason was beginning to lose his patience.


    "So, second prince,  did you achieve your enlightenment?" sarcastically said Jason,  but what Siros said next man his stunned. Neither of them expect for Siros to answer as such.


    "I have indeed....achieved something like that." spoke Siros as he looked at Jason''s form in a new light " I have read that devil''s are powerful, ancient and knowledgeable creatures....but I have truly underestimated ''you''. I have embarrassed myself as I might have seemed to you as no more than little child throwing a tantrum...hehh...


    Still, may I ask you one thing?"


    Jason looked at the price sitting on the floor looking up to him as if a child waiting for some candy,  and was thrown out of the loop.  '' Man I really need some therapy after this.'' Jason just nodded and Siros didn''t hesitate to ask " Are all the devil''s the same as you? Do they....possess the same powers as yours?" seriously asked Siros and Jason was once again thrown out of the loop.


    He didn''t know....he hadn''t ever met any devil , heck he didn''t even know if he really was one. Just because they said so, didn''t mean that it was true after all. ''Man, this guy is just fucking with me right? I just wish I could get out of this thing and punch him on the face. It would definitely be great....heh, his face reminds me of the time when....


    Wait...Wait Wait wait wait...''

 Crazy Request and Solution 3

    As Siros asked that question, silence blanketed the room. Besides the distant ramblins and shouts from the prisoners of the dungeon, only their heartbeats and breathing could be still heard. It seemed like any second a word, an utter, or even a movement would come from the devil inside the pentagram, but nothing happened. Even after five....ten....fifteen minutes nothing was said from Jason, making Siros furrow his brows.


    ................


    Even more time passed...maybe an hour, maybe more, but the deafening vail of silence from the devil they had summoned hadn''t been lifted. Siros was beginning to loses his patience, Pierre had begun to tire, but the man was the worst of them all. He couldn''t stop shivering as his mind was filled only with fear as he knew that if this went awry he would definitely be killed. Even if it went well he would loose his usefulness and he would again be killed, so he wrecked his brain in order to survive. Finally Siros seemed to have had enough and spoke towards the man who had summoned Jason " You... answer me...what is happening? Did the summoning go awry? And don''t lie to me...I don''t have to remind you what happens if you do ."


    "I..I....


    The man tried to speak, but Pierre beat him to it."My liege, I don''t think we need this one anymore. The ritual has been completed and the devil was summoned....he is now only a liability."


    Hearing those words the man immediately begun to beg fle his life."NO...please have mercy your majesty! I....I can still be of use to you, I''m not lying.....


    Siros raised his hand to stop the man''s rambling, but didn''t move his attention from the unmoving figure standing before him. It had facial features like a human, but it seemed to be starting straight into Siros''s mind, taunting him, playing with his emotions, insulting his intelligence. Siros didn''t like it beeing looked down upon, but what could he do but to endure it? The thing before him wasn''t one of his subjects, it was a ''devil''... a beeing not of this realm.


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    "You...mage, better make yourself useful or you will become food for my hunting dogs by the end of this day."


    "Ye....yes, your majesty......" as soon as he heard those words from Siros the man immediately begun to pray relentlessly at the unmoving figure held within the crimson pentagram. He prayed, sung him all kinds of pleasant things, stroke it''s ego without end, but it still didn''t move.


    Pierre who was designated as the bodyguard approached Siros slowly and patted his shoulder, but the later also didn''t seem to budge. This of course startled Pierre as he looked closely at Siros''s face and saw that he wasn''t responding, his eyes not even blinking....


    "MY LEIGE! Are you fine....my liege!" yelled Pierre taking Siros out of his stupor, but what awaited him was only a slap to the face which stunned him.


    "My liege....


    "Hmph...I''m fine Pierre." said Siros as he fixed the collar of his shirt "I was just thinking about this situation...about how disgustingly correct it is. It is like I am seeing the past unfold before my eyes. Hmph....such seems to the the curse of a mortal. Don''t you also see it Pierre!? The ''devil'' has given me the information I need to turn the tides of this war."


    Siros clenched his hands and finally stood up, his expression was that of understanding. "Pierre...take the devil we have summoned and think of him as me, then take the circle that keeps him in as the city walls. After that, think of me as the enemy who wishes to scale those walls and get what it wants.....in this case the ''defeat'' of the enemy, but it wasn''t so easily granted. It''ll make you frustrated if such a thing happens to you for certain....it was the same for me. ''Why won''t he he answer , why won''t he grant me even a word '' were my thoughts as I gazed at him, and over time those thoughts became stronger and stronger until it became desperation. Under this ''desperation '' one will do anything to gain what he wants....I''m certain of that.


    If not why would we be here?"


    Pierre listened at Siros''s words intently , but he understood little of what was said. It wasn''t that Pierre was ignorant or didn''t know of battlefield tactics , but to him it just seemed like the ramblins of a mad man. Of course he didn''t say such a thing, but he was beginning to regret suggesting the summoning of the devil.


    "The same could be said for us of course." continued to explain Siros "As the enemy cannot get what they want, we cannot get what we want either. Despair is also our response, but compared to them I''ve understood that. ''Hope''...such a fickle but a powerful thing indeed."


    Siros looked at the still unresponsive devil and couldn''t think if he was just a kid that was beeing nudged into the right direction.'' Is his foresight so strong that he can predict the situation so acutely? Or is it really that my experience abouut the world is insufficient?Either way, ''Hope'' is the answer for my current situation.''"


    With those thoughts Siros quickly left the dungeon of his castle , Pierre immediately following him. Plans were already blooming in his mind, and he didn''t have time to spare at all.

 Crazy Request and Solution 4

    As another day passed in relative calm for the city of Toro , an unexpected undercurrent had begun to sweap through the knights, the wealthy merchants, and the other powerful or wealthy people of the city. Unbeknownst to them, the prior night had been an eventful one as the lord commander and current ruler of the city had begun to write several letters in haste, and this morning all of them were hastily delivered by servants to their intended destination. As soon as they saw it the letter, all the recipients immediately dreaded what was written inside. The letters were all showing the royal seal, a crown and sword, so it definitely was from the second prince.


    This of course made them panic and immediately open the sealed parchment from the prince and inside was an invitation to a banquet that the prince was hosting. This perturbed all who received the letter as this was not the time for any festivities. The barbarians were right at their doorstep and the price had the idea of a banquet....this was preposterous. ''When'' and not ''if'' his opposition learned of this, his name would be dragged through the mud. He would surely be detested and ridiculed for the rest of his life...but for the moment he was still the current ruler of the city, and even though his invitation wasn''t ''law'' , it was pretty close to it.


    .................


    The night came down once more on the city of Toro , but compared to the dread it''s citizens were facing, the castle situated in the middle of the city was brimming with merry laughter.


    "Hahaha...please do tell ne more"


    "If you insist....who am I to deprive you of such."


    Both high status men and women of the city had gathered here today in response to the call of prince Siros, and what a sight it was. All of them were clad in the finest and most vibrant of fabrics, and wore the most shiny and gaudy jewelry they could wear without looking tacky. Compared to most of the time, the smell of perfume wafted from them , filling the brightly light dance hall with an alluring smell. It was an incredible sight for everyone someone of the 21st century earth, but more so for a commoner of this world. The closest thing a commoner could achieve was being a servant in this place.


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    "Hmmm....this wine is quite splendid. It is definitely a properly aged wine made of the finest of grapes. Hmph , as much as I detest those barbarians, they at least managed to achieve something good." said a tall and rounded man as he took a big gulp from the crystal glass in his hand. The alcohol managed to flush his cheeks and moist his properly combed mustache , but it didn''t break his etiquette in the least. His rough face and physique made him seem like a small bear, but his calm demeanor made him not seem hostile at all, but it couldn''t fool the man next to him.


    "Indeed ,it is a wine of the most excellent taste Baron Gera. If I was of the prince''s place I would have thought thrice before bringing something like this out." said the other man as he took a small sip of his wine. He tasted many flavors and was sure this wine was aged for almost as many years as he had been born. It made him rise his eyebrows slightly as he felt dejected. Although he was the son of a Baron , he couldn''t remember the last time he had drank such fine of a wine.


    The bear like man saw the action of the son of Baron J''aille, Felix, and couldn''t held rub his chin with a big golden ring on his pointing finger. The barons son was half a head shorter than him ,had short, brown, curly hair, and a pair of jet black eyes. He was slim and properly groomed to the tee, definitely a heart-throb for the young noble ladies of the kingdom. '' Heh...he is indeed a good young man of a good noble stature,definitely a proper Baron in the making, but he lacks the killer instict needed for this situation...or is he just to young? As almost everyone else is expanding their web he is still contemplating about what to say in this situation. It seems that a wolf may also give birth to a dog.'' Baron Gera took another big gulp of his wine as he fully lubricated his social gears, and moved to his next acquaintance after excusing himself. Other Barons as himself and also many knights were a here, and he didn''t want to waste time on a pup such as Felix.


    ".......


    This left Felix on his own as the dance hall continued to bustle with merry laughter and drinking. He though didn''t seem to be as keen as Baron Gera to socialize with his other peers, and just continued to sip on his wine. Thoughts of his ailing faller plagued his mind so much he couldn''t really enjoy himself." Father....


    ..........

 Crazy Request and Solution 5

    As the merry laughter continued on the dance hall of the castle,  Siros and Pierre were on edge. They had gathered all the prominent forces of the city in this hall, and they were all waiting for a word from their lord commander,  prince Siros.


    Pierre glanced at Siros who was currently sitting on his private chamber, looking intently at the mirror, and couldn''t help but feel a strange way. His lord was properly dressed for the occasion wearing his most elaborate and outstanding clothes which were lined with pure gold and purple. On his hip a short sword with the hilt being a lion head . This showed that he was more than a mere noble of the kingdom and held a military position in it. He was the figure of perfection, as a scion of nobility should be, but one thing broke that figure....the constant tapping of his foot on the floor. It broke his calm persona and made him seem like a commoner,  but Pierre couldn''t bring himself to judge his liege. He even subtly smiled for a second as it reminded him of the first time he had gone to battle.


    "Pierre , are all who have received a letter arrived at the ball? " swiftly said Siros as he tried to keep his composure,  and Pierre immediately forgot about what he was thinking and answered.


    "Almost my liege...but the ones who didn''t come wrote of ailments that prevented them from attending,  but they have indeed sent someone to represent them."


    "I see... then it seems it is time to put the plan into motion. Bring me my robe!" exclaimed Siros as he finally got up from his comfortable chair and took one last look at himself on the mirror as Pierre put  a priceless purple robe on  his shoulders, and Siros couldn''t help but scratch his neck. '' Hmph...it would be such a waste to loose it so quickly.''


    His mind replayed his plan again and again , but he forcefully expelled those thoughts and took on the persona he had created for this occasion. He closed his eyes slightly,  ruffled his hair just a little bit and even used some wine to rinse up his mouth. These were subtle signs ,but the ones he had invited were masters of etiquette,  so it would definitely get their attention.


    *creek...


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    The doors of his chamber were opened and Siros left with a big stride making the soldiers who were nearby to stand attention. Pierre followed just a step behind him , his hand on his sword pommel. He was ready to draw it at a moments notice, if anything ever occurred. The two of them were like a wave of unseen force as they moved forward until they arrived at the entrance of the dance hall and the Lord Stewart greeted them.


    "Your majesty Siros,  everyone is expecting you." said the aging stewart as he bowed with the outmost etiquette. He was about 50 years old with graying hair, but his body was straight and strong like that of a young man.


    "Indeed, then let us not make them wait any longer."


    "As you will, your majesty." acknowledged the stewart as he opened the big double doors and stepped forward into the dance hall. As soon as he did, the sound of a bell was heard clearly by all the guests present making them stop their chatting and turn towards him.


    "Hear ye!


    All bow before the second prince of Galancia,  the proud lion, and lord commander of Toro city....his majesty, Siros!"  the stewart yelled the last word''s making them resonate inside the big hall and the person in question came forward.  Siros calmly entered the dance hall and all the nobles , knights and merchants bowed in respect towards him. Without any haste Siros moved a couple of steps forward and took a look at all his subjects. He felt a burden on his shoulders like never before,  but it wasn''t enough to make him forget.


    He raised his hand and his voice was clearly heard on the hall. "Raise your heads!"


    As soon as he said this all of his guests did as he told and immediately moved their gaze towards him. It felt like he was washed over by a wave as more than fifty pair of eyes looked on at him.


    ''And so the game begins..."


    "Your majesty,  you grace us with your presence!" said one of the nobles ladies nearby as she did her best to show him her ample bosom,  but Siros ignored her and just replied with a simple ''indeed''.


    "Your majesty...


    "Your majesty....


    After her many other guests came to greet him and he was fully surrounded by the guests. They did their outmost to make themselves as friendly as they could,  especially the few females there who were quite obviously tried to seduce him. Pierre was surprised by such a direct display,  as usually the noble ladies were quite more subtle,  but he quickly remembered his masters words. ''Indeed,  hope is such a great motivator.''


    The price was swarmed by his guests as they vied for his attention,  but one person amongst them seemed uninterested. He had short curly hair and black eyes,  and those eyes were focused on Siros. They followed his every moment with fervor,  not even even blinking for a second.

 Crazy Request and Solution 6

    Siros put on his best smile and and took the first step on the ''dance'' that was politics. He was greeted by a couple of Barons,  Knights, and a lot of weathly merchants. He smiled and toasted each of them , not forgetting even one of the. It was a bustle as they all vied for the time of Siros....but something was different from one of them. Felix was squinting his eyes at the figure of the lord commander of the city and he unconsciously stirred the contents of his crystal glass.  He slowly but carefully moved towards Siros''s figure and waited for his turn to greet Siros''s,  but he couldn''t help but cast a glance towards Pierre who was quickly combing for any threats among the crowd.


    This made him hand shake as he almost spilled some of the wine on the floor, but he took a few big breaths and calmed down. The time to act almost came , and sure enough about two minutes later,  Felix came face to face with Siros''s and immediately greated him."Your majesty,  you grace us with your presence."


    "Greetings to you to , young lord. Hmmm...might you be the son of Baron J''aille?"


    "Indeed your majesty,  I''m Felix and I''ve come to represent my family in my father''s behalf.  As you may know he has fallen ill in the last month...


    As he heard that Siros''s expression softened and he patted Felix on the shoulder" The pain of a son watching his faller fall ill is common and as old as time, but it is never easy. I pray that Baron J''aille recoveres as fast as possible...cheers!" Siros rose up his glass and tok a sip of his wine as was the custom,  and as he had done multiple times tonight, but Felix did something unexpected.


    Instead of mirroring Siros a sharp glint passed through his eyes, and with a swift motion he threw his wine on Siros''s face. Siros who was still taking his sip was taken aback by such a thing as he felt his drenched face, but he didn''t have time to think as smoke started to come from the part''s that were touched by the wine.


    "Aghhhhh....


    "Majes.....


    Siros doubled in pain as smoke rose on the air, and Pierre immediately came to the aid of his liege. He saw Siros''s condition and without a second to waste he shouted." GUARDS, PROTECT THE PRICE!"


    It was only at this moment that the other guests finally processed what was happening,  and neither of them could believe it. An assassination of the royal family, and in front of so many people at that? It was a death sentence....and they were absolutely right. As countless soldiers stormed the dance hall, Pierre in a blaze of righteous fury rushed towards the perpetrator who was now running.


    "DIE...


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    Pierre bent his knees and immediately rushed towards Felix who was trying to escape,  but he wasn''t as fast as a knight who had passed the ''Ceremony ''. Even though Pierre was wearing around 10 kg of armor he still reached Pierre in less than four seconds and delivered a rage filled slash at his back. Cloth and flesh were cut as Felix fell screaming face down on the floor. It was only then than the commotion truly began. Screams of fear and shouts of confusion encapsulate the dance hall as chaos reigned. Pierre didn''t even take a second look at the now unmoving corpses of Felix as he immediately headed back to his liege who was now surrounded by numerous fully armored soldiers.


    .............


    Two days had passed since the incident in the castle and every tavern, every street corner and even every house was discussing what had happened. One of such taverns was the Ox Horn tavern,  a pretty renowned one, but not for the good reasons.  At this time numerous drunks were enjoying their pastime of beeing  drunk , and one of them in peculiar was expressing himself to much.


    "Hahaha...I don''t know if I should laugh or cry....but I''m more more towards laughing *hick* buhahaha....


    "Shhhh you stupid drunkard! Do you want to be executed because of your ramblins? At least don''t do it in this bar." scolded the waitress, but the man paid her no mind as he continued his ramblins and drinking. There were many like him in this city who were not saddened by Siros''s assassination attempt, many of them farmers and residents of villages surrounding the city of Toro who were now raided by the barbarians,  and they blamed the prince''s inconvenience for this happening. Of course they didn''t outwardly say such things,  but they all deep down detested the price. Not far away from the drunk man, at a corner table, a slim figure dressed like a normal commoner was smiling as he sipped on his ale. His eyes squinted as he looked around for any possible targets,  but when he saw none he decided to head back to his rented quarters. Besides being a tavern the place also had three rooms for rent on the second floor, and one of them was occupied by him for quite some time. Something like this would definitely rise suspicion as renting a room for this amount of time was very uncommon,  but this was the Ox Horn tavern was for.


    The man slowly opened the door and with a quick glance to his sides, he entered. He quietly closed it and the first thing he then did was check one of the wooden boards not far from the door. If one didn''t know what was happening he would most likely not notice such a thing,  but that was what the man aimed for. In times of war several things were certain;death, fighting,  looting, and espionage. The man was none other than a spy planted by the barbarians in the city, and he was checking his harmless trap before he proceeded to write his report.  He hastily wrote several things on a small white parchment,  sealed it with wax, and immediately tied it into the leg of what seemed to be a pigeon he held in a cade not far from his bed.


    ..............


    As all of this was happening in the other world Jason was happily making a purchase from the local prank shop. His smile was so wide that the cashier wondered if he was autistic or something, but he just shrugged that thought and scanned all the things Jason had bought.


    "Have a nice day."


    "Thanks...


    Jason took the two big plastic bags full of things he had bought and went out of the store. As he did, the clerk wondered who had pissed Jason of so much to make him by such a large quantity,  but he quickly remembered he wasn''t paid for such, so he quickly forgot about it.

 Crazy Request and Solution 7

    As word of prince Siros being poisoned spread throughout the city, so did it outside. The barbarians who had made camp about 2km from the city had also received news of such and they of course didn''t hesitate to strike while the iron was still hot. On the very next day a large army of about 20000 men surrounded the city of Toro and fierce battles commenced. Blood, steel, bone and flesh struck each other in a symphony of madness and chaos. It was a bloodbath for both sides, but one of them clearly had the advantage in numbers. The city of Toro had quite some walls surrounding it from all sides which made it much easier to protect against the horde of the barbarians, but it still lacked the numbers to completely protect it. On the very first day of battle the eastern gate was almost broken through after some of the barbariansscaled it with their ladders, but reinforcements fortunately had arrived just in time. It was a truly humbling moment for all within the city of Toro.


    Of course the people of the city were scared for their lives as they had heard of the treatment they would get from the barbarians if they were defeated, but there was little they could do. So besides worrying about their life they spent the other time praying to the god of victory and light, Siona. Although the situation was very bad with the common people , the ones at the top were also frightened out of their mind. They knew that they would definitely be killed if they were caught by the barbarians when they concurred the city, so they had frantically bought all the grain, preserved foodstuffs, and cheese they could get their hands on before they sold all of their assets, so when the city fell they could escape , and have enough food for quitesome time. On the other hand they would also be hanged for treason if they were found out, but the prince was out of the picture now that he had been poisoned. Still, Baron Gera couldn''t shake a feeling that something wasn''t right.


    As he stood on the balcony of his three story estate , he couldn''t help but squint his eyes until a sweet voice brought him out of his thoughts "Ooo handsome Baron, what may you be thinking about this late at night? Something important I presume....


    Gera smiled and turned around to see the owner of the voice. " Indeed...it is something of grave importance. " Geras smiled as he looked at the half naked woman on his bed. She was quite a beauty, and Gera was very fortunate his first wife had allowed him to take her as his second one, but he hadn''t expected his honeymoon would be so short.


    "Come here...I''ll relieve you of your worries."


    "Hah...I expect nothing less from you."


    "Ahh...slower...


    Gera immediately forgot his train of thought and begun to indulge in his carnal pleasures as he fully enjoyed his second wife''s body ,oblivious to the undercurrents that had begun to sweap through the city. Steel reflected the silver moonlight as armored figures were seen moving through the night . They wore a stern expression as they moved swiftly , and they quickly arrived at their destination, a three storied mansion. As soon as the two guards saw more than thirty armored people coming their way, they froze in place.


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    "H...haalt! You are not permitted to pass here! This is the private estate of Baron Gera....


    "We know, and that is why we are here." said one of the soldiers as he removed his helmet and then showed a piece of parchment to the two guards. The two of them didn''t know how to read, but they clearly knew the seal on the bottom of it....it was the royal seal.


    "It seems that you lot know what this means....so I suggest that you move aside...." said the man holding the parchment and the soldiers gave a knowing look at each other. If they abandoned their post nothing good would happen to them, but if they refused to comply with a royal order....still nothing good would happen to them. They knew that in the sleeping quarters there were more than 30 of their comrades who were also under the employment of Baron Gera, there also being a very skilled knight. They started to think that they could somehow survive the clash and save face, but the next words from the man evaporated those thoughts.


    "Your loyalty is commendable, but if you do continue with this , you will also be branded as traitors to the kingdom and be hung like dogs by tomorrow like Baron Gera. Now let us pass!" The man took a step forward, and the others behind him followed. The two guards were caught of guard as they tried to say something but the word''s were stuck in their throat; they could only see as more than 20 people marched inside after opening the wooden gate of the villa. Situations such as this were happening all over the city of Toro waking up its residents, but none had a better view than Pierre who saw what was happening from a balcony on the castle.


    "So, it has begun." Pierre looked at the fires that had begun to spring up of several locations around the city and he closed his eyes to try to focus on his hearing. His ears caught faint yelling and screaming mixed with the brisk wind.


    "Cough...cough....Pierre...


    Pierre heard a faint voice calling him from inside, and couldn''t help but let out a sigh as he entered the warm room. Not far from the fireplace an elaborate king sized bed was placed and on it a pale looking Siros was laying. Pierre slowly approached the bed and saw Siros''s thinning face. Compared to a couple of days before, Siros was now thinner, no more looking like he was the prince of a kingdom, but like commoner.


    "Pierre...water..." slowly said Siros as he looked at Pierre, and Pierre did as told. He filled a cup of water and slowly made Siros drink it, but something was nagging at Pierre. After he finished doing that he moved to the fireplace and started to move the coals around with a fire poker. The fireplace illuminated his face, and one could see that he hadn''t shaven in a while ,and his hair was a little sticky from the sweat.


    "My liege....for how long do you intended to suffer? Isn''t it about time to end this?"


    "Pierre..." faintly was heard Siros''s voice as Pierre finished adding the wood at the fire and he once again was at Siros''s bedside. Siros looked over with caution at his most trusted attendant as the later took a pillow from the other side of the bed, and with a serious face moved it towards his face.


    "Pierre....


    "I know , my liege, I know what you want to say , but I have to do it. Please....


    "Pierre....don''t...


    "My liege!" Pierre gritted his teeth as he took the pillow he had in his hand and in one swift motion...echanged the pillows. Silence filled the room as Siros stared angrily at Pierre, and the later apologeticly smiled at him. "I know what you want to say , but I think this is enough. You have already fooled all , why do you want to continue this charade any longer? "


    "Pierre!"


    "Yes my liege?"


    "That was my favorite pillow."


    "Ahh..." Pierre was speechless as he looked at Siros and then at the sweaty pillow he had just changed.

 Upset 1

    The sun had just begun to rise over the horizon, and Toro city was basked in it''s warm light, though the light did little to comfort the residents of the city. They were hungry , thirsty, and the fear of another day of siege made them be on edge. Surprisingly for them and for all others the focal point of today wouldn''t be the ongoing war, but something much more intriguing. On almost every street of the city of Toro people holding a parchment witht the royal seal were seen shouting at the top of their lungs.


    "Hear ye, hear ye!


    By the royal decree of Prince Siros, the people mentioned hereafter are imprisoned for treason against the crow. Baron Gera, Baron Timothy....Knight Faust....


    For the aforementioned crimes these individuals will be imprisoned and be judged to a later date. The assets of these criminals will be immediately sized and put to use for the betterment of the city."


    "What...is this a dream? How could this happen?!"


    "If it is a dream, then were having the same one. Buddy...it seems that those people are going to hang." said one bystander with a slight smile on his face. It wasn''t everyday one would experience the hanging of a noble man. He wasn''t going to forget to wear his finest clothes for this occasion.


    On different streets crowds had already begun to form around the announcer as they began to discuss amongst themselves about what had happened. The prince had been poisoned not long ago by the son of a Baron , and now by royal decree most of the nobles of the city had been arrested for treason. The simple mind''s of the commoners could only come to the conclusion of them moving together against the price , and being caught red handed. It wasn''t unheard of , but not in this situation.


    "Hear ye, hear ye once more.


    The prince in his generosity has decided to distribute their wealth to the needy people so most will receive a silver quarter-piece. Furthermore the prince welcomes anyone brave enough to arms against these invaders. They will be paid 1 silver pence a day until the war is over."


    "What! Two silver pence a day!?"


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    "This, this....


    The people around were astonished, and even the one who read the decree from the prince wasn''t spared. He almost couldn''t believe his ears as 1 silver pence wasn''t a small amount by any stretch. A skilled laborer would usually be paid a silver quarter-pence for a day of work, so 1 silver pence was a very high amount of money for someone. Greed filled the hearts of all who heard this, but they still hesitated. Most of the able-bodied men had already been called to arms, so the one''s remaining were only the essential laborers , women or children and the old. Fortunately for Siros''s greed knew no age or gender, so many hurried to sign up.


    ..........


    As this was happening inside of the city the barbarians had begun to move on with another day of their siege. The camp had been covered by a slight dew making almost everyone weat from it , but by adding some firewood to last night''s fire they warmed up their body and also dried their clothes and shoes. They were in a good mood as they merrily laughed and ate their breakfast. Thoughts of looting pillaging the city passed through all their heads as they knew that at most the city would stay standing for two more days before they soldiers protecting it would break. It wasn''t their usual tactics to go for a siege in this manner as they usually waited for the surrounded city to starve , but they didn''t have the patience for that. Their Ka''han had a more ambitious plan in mind and the city of Toro was just the stepping stone on their journey. So, another battle awaited them today amongst the walls, but a new day brought new surprises.


    .........


    Amongst the clash of steal and flesh, shouts of courage and wails of death were heard as two sides clashed against each other fiercely.


    "Ladder....


    The siege consisted of the barbarians putting their ladders against the wall in order to climb them to get to the other side ,and the soldiers of the city of Toro doing all they could to destroy them. At first the pace of the battle was the same as yesterday ,but quickly the barbarians started to struggle. They couldn''t put their finger on what was it , but the resistance the soldiers were putting today was much fierce. Also, it seemed that someone had called forth a rain of stones as rocks were constantly raining down on them besides the usual arrows.


    "Ladder....


    Also, as soon as the word ''ladder'' was heard then at that spot there were thrown several animal bladder filled to the brim. As soon as fell down on the barbarians they burst and their contents splashed everywhere. It wasn''t something like shit or piss that was occasionally used in such instances, but oil that was confiscated from the arrested nobles. Accompanied by a flaming torch thrown down right after, it was quite a spectacle.


    "Aaaaaaaahhhh....


    "Fi...fire.....


    "Put it out....put it out...


    Several barbarians caught fire and the earth around them was also set ablaze. It was quite a gruesome sight and unexpected turn to the battle that instead of achieving a substantial push against the soldiers of the city, the barbarians achieved very high losses. This put them in a bad position, and of course the Ka''han wasn''t happy about this situation. In fact he was very furious.


    ........


    Deep inside the camp of the barbarians ,inside a pretty big tent an almost two meter tall , chubby man was sitting in a silver throne adorned with streaks of gold. He was about 40 years old by the looks of him, but compared to his peers he was lavishly dressed. Only silk touched his skin and numerous rings adorned his fingers , but although he had such material possessions, he wasn''t happy at all. His eyes bloodshot as he stared at his most trusted general who were kneeling and lowering their heads at him.

 Upset 2

    Dasai Ka''han looked at his most trusted general''s with his bloodshot eyes, but even after a long time he didn''t say anything. It wasn''t that he didn''t want to, he really wished to , but he hadn''t arrived where he was beeing a brainless brute. The people kneeling before him had been loyal to him , and had won many battles in his name, so he wouldn''t discard them for only such. Dasai Ka''han took a big breath as he motioned for something, and immediately several people brought a big map drawn on the skin of some animals and laid it on the ground before him and his general''s.


    "Mmmmm....it seems that this city has exceeded our expectations. It seems that my plans will be delayed." said the Ka''han as he stood up from his throne and took a couple of steps forward. He intently looked at map that depicted the city of Toro with his green eyes and started rubbing the golden rings on his fingers. He was angry at what had happened, but he was also very intrigued at what had happened. He knew what the price had been poisoned by one of his nobles making Dasai delighted at the internal strife happened inside the walls, but he hadn''t expected for the situation to turn like this.


    Dasai moved his attention from the map and asked one of the men kneeling before him. "General Hanai, what was the information we have on the current commander of the city, and the second prince of the kingdom....Sirro was his name?"


    Hanai was a skinny and short man, looking like most normal soldier in the Ka''han''s army but he was one of the most high ranking people. He was currently the commander of the mounted archers , the shock troops of the Ka''han''s army and the one in charge of logistics, but he was also their most valuable intelligence gatherer. He had risen from a normal messenger in the army to his post he held today by his own flesh and blood, and along the way he had acquired many skills and knowledge.


    "Ka''han!


    The second prince of the kingdom, Siros ,to my knowledge isn''t any prominent figure. Most of his life having been spent on the royal capital. His military experience is said to be very little, but...


    "But he still made a fool of you all."


    Hanai clenched his fist at that statement , but he couldn''t refute it. "It is indeed as Ka''han has said. The second prince has exceeded our expectations of him as a capable commander, but this is just luck."


    Dasai Ka''han frowned at this."Luck you say...Hanai? What you call luck, others call destiny...and that is not a good thing for us. Hanai ,you should know that most of our fights are fought out of battle as much on the battlefield. The southerners fear us, call us ''barbarians'' , and we of course respond in kind. Like a pack of wolves we surrounded and bitte them bit by bit until they are completely destroyed, that is our favorite tactic. This tactic has managed to grant me many a territory tha my father could only dream of , and a large army that moves to my command , but for every city I take , my forces grow more thin, and even more inexperienced. We''re very good at this type of warfare , but we''re weak at everything else. On an open battle our numbers are a abundant, but their discipline is to be desired and I can''t have that...can I?!"


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    Hanai saw Dasai''s ruthless expression and couldn''t help but lower his head to prevent Dasai from seeing his sour face. A bit of time was spent in silence until Hanai seemed to gather his courage and speak again.


    "Great Ka''han....I, Hanai, swear on my life that for every man we have lost today the city will lose two. I will give my life so that our kingdom grows to rule all these lands.


    I swear it!"


    "Good..good....Hanai, you are excused. You may go back to your duties, some messenger will inform you of any other happenings. "


    "Ka''han!" Hanai exclaimed as he put his closed fist over his chest and bowed slightly before he left the tent. It looked that Hanai was pretty calm on the outside going by his expression, but inside he was seething. ''That dammed prince, he will pay for this. I will cut him to pieces before feeding him to the dogs for fooling me. '' Hanai gritted his teeth as he arrived at his tent and immediately begun to write several letters to the spies he had within the walls of the city. He needed an explanation to why the information of the imprisonment of much of the nobles inside the city arrived at him so late, and also why the bedridden prince had decided to act in this manner.


    .............


    As the barbarians were lacking their wounds and making their plan''s, the mastermind of what had happened today was staring wide-eyed at a bloody pentagram with a shadowy figure in it. Siros looked haggard as he was casually dressed , his hair a mess, but he was smiling like a madman as he stared at the hazy figure. Pierre beside him was the epitome of caution as he held the pommel of his sword, ready to draw at any moment.


    Although both sides had something to say ,it was Siros who broke the silence."Demon...so you have finally decided to come again. I almost thought you wouldn''t return." smilingly said Siros, but Jason didn''t answer as he was a little surprised at the sudden change. The man in front of him was definitely the same one he had spoken about an hour ago, but he had changed slightly. He was thinner and his hair was definitely longer making Jason think about time dilation or something like that he had once read on a book.


    ''This is interesting, I''ll have to experiment further.'' thought Jason to himself before he answered Siros''s question."Indeed I have...and just in time it seems." said Jason as he looked around for the bald man, but he couldn''t be found anywhere. " Also I''ve come bearing gifts." smugly announced Jaso as a small spray bottle appeared in his hand. Siros unconsciously took a step forward , but Pierre immediately put a hand on his shoulder."My liege ,it''s dangerous to approach. Please let me...


    Siros took a good look at Jason''s hazy figure and then nodded at Pierre who went forward. Pierre was less than two steps from the edge of the summoning circle when Jason decided to let a little laugh. "Haha, cautious , I like that. "


    "......


    Pierre though didn''t answer as he just stared at the thing in Jason''s hand. " This ''gift'' of yours, what do you want in return?" cautiously asked Pierre as he knew nothing from a beeing such as the one before him was free. Jason of course knew what Pierre was thinking so he decided to play the old ''sample'' trick.


    "Oh...I can''t possibly ask you anything in return, it is a gift after all. But if you want more of it ...you will definitely to pay.


    Take it!" said Jason as he extended his hand ,and Pierre cautiously nodded his head making the things on Jason''s hand dissappear and apear on Pierre''s hand instead. Pierre almost dropped it as he felt something in his hand that wasn''t there before , but he fortunately halted himself. The object was small, somehwat looking like a cylinder ,but made of a material he had never seen or felt before. It''s craftsmanship was also very good as he wondered how it was made as he couldn''t see any seams at all.


    As Pierre was looking at the spray he had in his hand like a caveman, Jason was dying on the inside, so he decided prank Pierre a little harder ."Intrigued are you,Mr Knight? What you have in your hand is none other than the...''smell of hell'' ,you could say in mortal terms."


    "What!?"as he heard this Pierre yelled and he almost threw the thing at the wall, but once again stopped himself at the last moment. Siros who was on the side listening also couldn''t help but be stunned at this revelation. Pierre was literally holding a piece of ''hell'' in his hand if what the devil before them was telling the truth.

 Upset 3

    ".......


    "......my liege...


    Pierre and Siros were rooted to their place as the tried to wrap their head around the thing they had just heard. If what Pierre was holding in his hand was indeed the ''odor of hell'' then they had just gotten into a new realm of blasphemy. Summoning a devil was one thing, but bringing a pice of hell on earth was unforgivable. Jason saw the shock of their face as they looked at each other as if they had stepped on shit, and couldn''t help but feel a little offended.


    "Ohhh, by the looks of it, it seems you two are displeased with my gift?" said Jason in a sarcastic tone, but for Pierre and Siros it was anything but that. They had to choose their words carefully, and fortunately Siros was well versed with beating around the bush as he had been dealing with screaming nobles for may years.


    "Of course not, we are truly delighted by such a generous gift. It is just that we didn''t expect for ''such'' a gift."


    "I would expect so." smugly said Jaso "It is indeed a gift out of this world, so I wouldn''t expect you to know of it''s value, but with just a couple of my instructors you will understand....


    *gulp*


    It wasn''t known but the spit that had accumulated of Pierre''s throat had finally passed. Siros''s gave him a look, and Pierre immediately understood what was conveyed. Jason raised an eyebrow at this display , but he cared little. "Now...you better listen, and listen well, because I''m only going to explain it once. If you then forget about them, it is your own fault." cautioned Jason as he made the two men before him subconsciously look at the door of the prison cell they had used for the summoning.


    .............


    After some time in another part of the dungeon beneath the castle that was used as a prison, Pierre and Siros both moved forward with a stone expression. It looked like they were heading for battle, that was the amount of intensity that they showed, but if one looked closely he would be thrown for a loop. In both of their right hands there was a handkerchief which reeked of herbs and perfume, and both of them was holding it above their mouth and nose. As they were the two of them finally arrived at the end of the prison, and stopped before a cell door completely made out of iron.


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    "Is this it?" asked Siros as he looked at the rusted and heavy iron door in front of him in surprise. It didn''t really look like it was ment to hold in a human, but a beast by the looks of it.


    "It it my liege....this is the prison cell of the ''monstrous knight'' , the butcher of a thousand men." answered Pierre with a little fear and a tinge of envy. " The man inside was once a respected knight of the kingdom , but after to much killing he went mad and started to kill fried and foe alike. His mind has been broken so much that he still thinks he is at war...though his power is indefinable. "


    "I see..." Siros squinted his eyes as he thought about the tales he had heard from the bard''s that sometimes visited the palace.'' If the tales are half as true , then even three knights of Pierre''s caliber would struggle against him....he truly is a monster.'' Siros slowly took something from the pocket of his jacket and carefully brought it before him. After this he steeled his resolve, and finally knocked on the iron door.


    *knock knock*


    "Is there anyone...


    *Bammm*


    Before Siros could finish his sentence something banged hard on the door startling both Siros and Pierre.


    "My liege, stand back!" exclaimed Pierre, but Siros just ignored him and smiled.


    "I''m fine, I was just caught by surprise. It seems that ''he'' is still energetic even after all this time." said Siros as he redied himself and took of the small and transparent lid from the spray bottle as the devil had suggested, and headed towards a small small hole on the left wall used for ventilation. The hole was about 3 cm wide and besides a ventilation hole also doubled a viewing hole for the jailer to see if the prisoner was still alive or not.


    ''The devil said that pressing this thing two times would be enough, but to be sure I''ll do it once more'' thought Siros as he sprayed the contents of the spray bottle on the hole with some difficulty, and with a heavy heart begun to pray. One second passed...then two, three ,but on the fourth second something finally happened.


    *Bammbammbammm.....


    Heavy banging was heard as it seemed that the one inside desperately wanted out , but no matter how much he tried, he couldn''t break the iron door. The struggle lasted for about two minutes and then silence, making Pierre think that the one inside had fainted or was dead, so he put his ear against the iron door and listened. At first Pierre didn''t hear anything, but soon faint sounds reached his ears.


    "Pierre, what do you hear?" anxiously said Siros who had once again put the cap on the spray bottle. Pierre though seemed to be in shock as he looked at Siros''s with a strange expression. He fumbled a little as he seemed to be finding the words to describe what he hear, but a stern stare from Siros finally made him spill the beans.


    "My liege...I''m not sure, but it seems...like...he is crying."


    ".......


    The two of them froze in surprise , Siros from what he had just heard, and Pierre because of what he had just uttered. At that moment the two of them didn''t know , but one of the most strange and feared tactics of war ever would be born.

 Upset 4

    As the moonlight shone through the city of Toro and its surroundings, a crimson light was instead illuminating a prison cell under the castle, casting twisted shadows on the cold stone walls. In this dungeon there were two people , Pierre and Siros, and the other was Jason who was standing on the blody pentagram. Of the three of them, it was Siros who broke the silence.


    "O devil, I, Siros thank you for your gift. It was indeed as you told us...though I suppose it was more powerful than I thought. "


    "Heh.."Jason smiled at those words, but to Siros it was like the devil was mocking him. Of course Siros didn''t show it outwardly at all and , just continued to speak. " This is indeed a very effective weapon if used, but can it really help us defeat an army?"


    Hearing this Jason couldn''t help but chuckle a little. '' Such an ungrateful prince, I guess it isn''t much of a surprise. Let''s change that.


    "Ohh...ohhh, are my ears hearing displeasment? Then I guess you don''t need my assistance no more."


    "N..no...of course not...I wouldn''t dare!" beads of sweat formed of Siros''s brow as he was taken aback.


    "Listen me well little prince; I do not need you, you need me, isn''t that why you have called me to this place? Now, how about you use your little brain for a while and figure it out....because I don''t think you have to offer anything that can instantly win you this battle."


    Pierre clenched his teeth at such a statement, but he knew it was just his liege was purposefully poking at the hornets nest. ''My liege, please choose your word''s carefully, or something deadly may befall us.''


    Of course Siros knew this better than anyone, but its was easier said than done. If the one he had been making a deal was a king or even a human emperor it would be much different than striking a deal with the devil. He would have to be cautious, but also appear as weak as possible. He knew that devil''s like the one before him regarded humans in a much lesser standing, so he would use that to his advantage.


    "My apologies...it will never happen again." said Siros as he tried his best to seem like he regretted his choice of words. Seeing this, Jason decided he wouldn''t push it any further, so he continued on with his transaction.


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    "So, my chatty prince, shall we conclude with this trade? I''m getting a little impatient." said Jason and the flames on the torches along the walls rose in response. It was an unconcious and unintended use of power by Jason, but to Pierre and Siros it was a threat.


    "Of course...I''m ready." said Siros as he tried as hard as he could to prepare himself."Please tell us your price, we will do our utmost to fulfill it."


    "I hope you will." enigmatically said Jason as he opened his arms wide " Listen and listened well little prince,in exchange for 100 of those bottles I ask of you the knowledge of ten thousand books. " Jason''s voive echoed in the dungeon as he said this, and the flames flickered even more until the torches went out. Only the dim light of the blody pentagram remained.


    "Do you agree to these terms?"


    "I....


    ..............


    In the next two days the assault of the barbarians relentlessly continued, and it even became more brutal. Besides trying to scale the walls with their soldiers and opened the city gates, the barbarians were now actively using siege weapons on the protecting city wall. Several trebuchet''s were throwing big boulders at the wall making it shake and even engage and kill some of the defenders, before the barbarians went for the siege. This tactic at the beginning of a battle not only depleted the morale of the defenders, but it also showed any openings on the troops on the walls, going by the movement of the spears atop the wall. Hanai who was the mastermind of this plan was smiling wildly as he saw the soldiers on the wall panic as a boulder hit near them.


    Hanai was a veteran of many battles and an avid hunter, this coupled with his impressive instinct made him a great general. It was a common tactic to use wooden or straw dummies holding spears or swords on a defending wall in order to make the attackers think that there was a bigger number of them on the wall. They then covertly deployed the real soldiers stand in a ''void'' formaition, or that whas what the southerners called it. Hanai preferred to call it the ''coiling dragon'' format because as soon as soon as the attacking soldiers passed the first like of real soldiers and ended at the ''void'' of fake soldiers they would be crushed immediately in a pincer from the opposite sides. This was quite a high level tactic that would be coordinated by a experienced person, but there was a fatal flaw to this....the ''comb'' formation. If the attackers knew exactly where the voids were, then focusing their efforts on these points would be catastrophic, but this tactic required even more cunning. If the defenders caught on to this tactic then the would immediately abandon theirs and go for a battle of attrition.


    "At the gate, about five men''s lengths to the left there is one of their ''void''...also about twenty men''s length after is also one...maybe...." said Hanai as he and several other general''s were sitting cross-legged looking at a crude drawing of the city wall on an animal skin. Hanai pointed at several places on the wall clenched his fist. " After today the city will fall in our hands, and we will end this hunt of ours. We will make them regret not surrendering."


    "Hah...these southerners will definitely try to surrender when they see they can''t possibly win anymore."


    "Indeed...that is my opinion also, but we can''t count our heard before they are secure in the ''circle''. Even a single mistake may drag this for a couple of more days."


    Dasai who was sitting on his throne and listening on his general''s on their battle plans just smiled. He was finally a step closer to expand his kingdom.

 Hells Descent 1

    The sun once again started to cast long shadows on the city walls as it slowly descended on the west,  marking once again the end of fighting . The barbarians once again retreated to their camp, and the soldiers and militia of Toro once again lived to see another sunrise.


    "Those dammed barbarians, I''ll definitely have their hearts at the end of my speartip!" angrily gritted his teeth a twenty-ish man as he cast his glance at the retreating backs of their enemies.


    "Calm down boy, it''s better to reign your anger now and use it when the come again tomorrow. " said another man as he wearily rested against one of the towers of the city wall.  His face was a mix of sorrow and pain as he held his side with one hand. His face was caked with sweat and dust,  but his eyes were clear.


    "How can I calm myself when those whoresons are looking to kill and take all we have. I''ll die before it happens. " angrily protested the young man as he gritted his teeth. " They have killed many of our people....


    "And they will kill many more before this is over....now calm down!"


    "Why you....


    The young man clearly offended grabbed his spear and the thought of killing the man crossed his head,  but the cold glances all around him made him just leave it at that . The older man just shook his head and enjoyed the last strings of sunlight as he knew night was waiting. ''Its going to be very cold tonight. Better get some rest for now...'' the man slowly closed his eyes and fell asleep. It was a peaceful moment, a peaceful end, something very few people on this place would experience. On this twilight he breathed his last, no regrets on his soul.


    .............


    Inside the castle a bloody pentagram was slightly casting crimson light on the walls.  It was like a scene straight from a horror movie, and the thing standing inside the pentagram was certainly selling the vibe.  A shadowy human figure without any features was standing there in complete silence,  until something strange happened that is.  As if commig into existence, a sphere of white light appeared on the room and slowly started to move.  It''s movement was firstly erratic,  but after some time it came closer and closer towards the perimeter of the pentagram , until it made contact.Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.


    "...ho...


    As it did so,  it effortlessly passed through and then stopped in front of Jason. Jason curiously watched as the white ball of light hovered above his palm, and a sense of yearning enveloped him. I suddenly mase his gasp as the unknown feeling washed over him and as the ball of light slowly unraveled like a ball of yarn and drilled into his body.


    ''......that was strange.'' thought Jason as he looked around the room for some time and then examined his body. He looked at his hand as if to look if it had mutated somehow,  but it looked the same. '' This is quite strange,  my physical appearance is  definitely the same,  but I clearly feel more comfortable...more accomplished? Maybe that''s not the right word?Whatever that thing was, it definitely is not normal, but what is normal anymore anyway.


    Haaaaaa.....''


    ..............


    More time passed and the sun started to peek itself golden ring over the horizon,  and this marked the beginning on another day. The barbarians slowly approached the perimeter, just outside the bow range of the city wall archers and begun to chant their battle cries. The soldiers and militia on the walls also begun to get ready for another day of siege, gripping their spears and shields with weary hands,  but steel resolve.


    *Buiiiiiiiiiiii*


    A horn was heard and the barbarians went on the offensive.  Rocks started bombarding the city wall, shaking it , making the defenders gritted their teeth,  but even after one hour the city wall stood tall and mostly undamaged.  This was the climax as after another horn the real battle begun.


    "Aaaaaaaaaaa.....


    "Ready the bows!


    Ladders begun to litter the walls as the barbarians struggled to get up the wall. Rocks, bricks and other things fell on their shields. Many  fell, many were crushed,  and more were speared to death as the reached the top. It seemed like it would pass as the other days,  but after one hour of battle something started to brew.   Hannai who was currently atop a crudely constructed wooden tower squinted his eyes as a cruel smile crept up his lips. He clenched his fist as he raised his hand.


    "Sound the signal,  raise the flag!"


    "Sound the signal,  raise the flag!"


    "Sound the signal,  raise the flag!"


    This was clearly heard around the camp and several  red flags were raised,  and horns were sounded. Immediately after this several burly men from the backlines stepped forward with tens of ladders and stealthily  moved towards strategic points on the wall.


    "Today you shall fall...." muttered Hanai as the death of his soldier didn''t deterr him at all. On his mind was only the fall of that detestable wall.