《Peter, the Earth Demon》


 01 - Death

    Matthew was driving on the country road in heavy rain. He was coming back from a bad day of work, where half of his colleagues were absent leaving him working on the software, when his phone rang. The picture and the name of his big sister appeared on the display of the dashboard of his car.


    ¡°Crap. What does she want ?¡± Matthew questioned himself. He was not exactly on good terms with his family since last Awakening a few months prior and a phone call from her probably did not bring good news. He pressed the answer button on his wheel.


    ¡°Hello Joan. What do you want ?¡± Matthew asked.


    ¡°Hello dear brother. I¡¯m fine, thanks for asking.¡± Joan answered cheerfully.


    ¡°Yeah, yeah, Last time we saw each other, you explained to me how I was a horrible person because I did not follow the family at the Awekening service so I really wonder why you are calling me.¡±


    ¡°But for inviting you for the Great Prayer in two weeks, Matthew. Mom thinks you are a lost cause and Dad¡­ Well, we both know he will not call you. I still think there is some faith in you and that you should come. I deeply regret what I said at Awakening and I hope you can forgive me¡± Joan said more seriously.


    Matthew did not believe it. He thought he had been quite clear last time about his opinion with religions and holy days. He was there at Awakening because it was more a family reunion and an end of the year festivity those days than an Absolute day. To think his sister would invite him for Absolution, it was almost laughing if it was not to integrate him back in their religious bullshit. So he had to be more direct this time.


    ¡°So, are you coming, Math ?¡± Joan inquired.


    ¡°Is this some kind of joke to you ?¡± Matthew almost shouted. ¡°Do you really want me to come and do more damage than last time ? I¡¯m done with religion. You hear me, done ! I came at Awakening to try to see my family and we both know how it ended. So, let me be crystal clear because clear is not enough for you. Get out of my life ! I did not move six hundred kilometers away from our parent¡¯s home to stay close to you. I tried to save some family links last time but it failed. Miserably.¡±


    ¡°Please, brother¡± Joan sobbed. ¡°This time, it will be different. I will have talked to our parents, they will be more comprehensive. Do a step in their directions and they will one in your. Can you at least try ? Please. For our little brother¡±


    ¡°Nice try, sis. But we both know that it can not work. Mom almost disowned me and the only reason Dad did nothing is because, now, he can¡¯t just punch me until I agree with him. Bye.¡± Matthew objected. And he pressed the hang up button.


    What was she thinking ? Matthew made it clear he was quitting faith and religion. Which was for his pompous and bigoted parents a heresy. It was not his fault if the Great Tome was just a fantasy book written by believers at best and manipulators at worst. With a bunch of YouTube videos and a pair of philosophic books from the library, he knew that, even if the Absolute existed, He never ever did anything on this planet. Thomas was just a lucky prophet and the Absolute religion was a natural evolution of the Great One cult. Nothing really fancy if you compare to what mankind did here and there.


    At least, when he was back home, he would not have to think about all that. After a good plate of pasta, he would be on his computer, farming and grinding his levels on his favourite hack n slash game that just got a new expansion. The perfect end to recover from this not so good work day and bad home route. Tomorrow was Wednesday role play night and he was waiting with impatience to discover what the game master prepared for them.


    ¡°Oh come on, don¡¯t use fog lamps ! It does not rain that much.¡± Matthew moaned against the truck travelling in the opposite direction.


    Matthew steered the wheel to the right because, of course, that truck was also overstepping on the lane. The car suddenly went too right due to the rain and despite his best efforts, Matthew could not prevent it going off road to meet a tree.


    ¡°Ow fuck !¡± He yelled, just before the impact.


    ******


    Matthew regained consciousness, his head on the airbag, some shard of the windshield in his hair and pain all over his body. He shook his head a little, felt some liquid on his face, touched it with his hand and looked at it. It was blood. Not a lot of what he could feel but still. He was bleeding. Matthew watched around. The front of the car was destroyed and there was now a tree where the motor was supposed to be. Some smoke was coming from it and this was clearly not a good sign. He also could not find his phone that was put in a holder in front of the middle dashboard.Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.


    ¡°Shit, shit.¡± Matthew groaned. ¡°Definitely not my best day.¡±


    He moved his arm to remove the security belt and to open his door, trying to ignore the pain. His left arm was probably broken due to the lack of movement and the pain so he had to use the other one. With a great effort, he finally found the handle and pushed away the door. Matthew painfully extracted himself from his now destroyed sedan. He was a little sad, the car was quite recent and modern.


    He looked at himself trying to assert his status. Legs and feet were okay-ish, at least he could walk. Torso was painful as hell, the security belt did its job but that was definitely leaving a scar. Arms were not so good, the left one was not moving and the color was not good, the right one was at least responding. For his face, well, he could see with both eyes, hear the rain with both ears and since he could speak and smell, probably not too much damage. He probably had some cut due to the windshield but nothing too important.


    He watched both sides of the road. No one, not really a surprise. He did choose that small village to buy his flat because it was quite far from Toulouse where he worked. The route was long but the tranquility was well worth the price, until now.


    Then, he saw her. A small pale woman, apparently young, except for the perfectly white hair but it was probably a color, dressed in a black hoodie with a black jeans and some black sneakers was calmly walking towards him.


    Matthew was wondering why such a person was walking here in the middle of nowhere between two towns distant from at least ten kilometers but she probably had a phone to call for help.


    ¡°Hello young miss. I crashed my car and I can¡¯t find my phone. Could you help me please ?¡± Matthew asked, pointing to his car.


    ¡°Hello. Can you confirm you are Matthew Thomas De Brigny ?¡± The small woman inquired with a little voice not answering his question.


    Peter froze. How did this girl know his full name ? Who was her ? What happened ? He took one step back before taking a new look at this woman, almost a girl he would say now that she was close.


    ¡°Please. Do not run and confirm your identity. I do not want a Hunt under this rain. Are you Matthew Thomas De Brigny ?¡± The girl asked again.


    ¡°Who, who, who are you ? What is happening to me ? Am I hallucinating ?¡± Matthew said, panicking and walking back.


    He hit a small rock on the ground and fell on his butt on the grass. He tried to use both his arms to recover but only received pain from his left one. The girl walked to him and reached out her arm to him.


    ¡°Name¡¯s Morgane.¡° The girl explained. ¡±I am a reaper and you are dead. Look inside your car if you do not believe me. I¡¯m here to send Matthew Thomas De Brigny to the other world and I need to confirm your identity before the Reaping.¡±


    ¡±I prefer to tell you.¡± Morgane continued. ¡±If you do not confirm who you are, some other thing will come for you. Less friendly than me.¡±


    ¡°Yes, I am the person you are looking for. Even I would have preferred if you did not use my full name¡± Matthew answered.


    Matthew took Morgane¡¯s hand and she quickly lifted him up. He looked into the car and saw himself, with a big red wound in the back of his neck.


    ¡°Fuck ! My neck snapped !¡± Matthew yelled. ¡°I really am dead. How, how, now what ?¡±


    He sat on what was left of the front of his car and thought of all the people he knew. A bunch of role player friends, his colleagues, his neighbors. All of them would learn of his death. He was devastated.


    He looked at the girl. Morgane was waiting, straight, drinking a can of soda.


    ¡°Well. I have very limited foresight but I can tell you your body will be found in half an hour and you will be missed by a lot of people. For what is happening to you right now, it mostly depends on you.¡° Morgane said, tossing the empty can which disappeared when it hit the ground.


    ¡°What do you mean ?¡± Matthew asked.


    Morgan let some sort of black mist appear around her and her voice changed, becoming more deep and mystical.


    ¡°Matthew Thomas De Brigny. You are dead. You have lived an acceptable life that permits you to ascend to Heaven after a purgatory time. Do you accept the Absolute and all His absolute love ?¡± Morgane announced loudly.


    ¡°What ?¡± Matthew answered furiously ¡°The Absolute is real and I have to approve what He has done to go to Heaven ?¡±


    This was quite a shock. So, what was the logic of the Absolute, why make people suffer on Earth if He was as described in the Great Book ? This was way too absurd for Matthew. Even if the Absolute was real, He was not someone he would trust.


    ¡°No. To Hell with that. The Absolute may be absolute but he is not my god. I reject Him.¡± Matthew affirmed proudly. ¡°I don¡¯t know what will happen to me but I prefer going solo than with that thing.¡±


    The look on Morgane¡¯s face did not change as she continued with the same voice.


    ¡°Are you sure you are rejecting the Absolute ? The only place that you will be sent is Hell. Do you confirm ?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, definitely.¡± Matthew said.¡±At least, I¡¯m sure my family will not follow me there. So send me to Hell.¡±


    The black mist around Morgane started to condense to finally form a huge scythe with a vibrant red-purple color on the handle. Morgane took the scythe with both her hand and in a simple move, she reaped him.


    ¡°The choice is made.¡± Morgane announced with her deep voice.


    Matthew was in pain. Like nothing before. His whole body was burning and it was like his inside wanted to get out of him. He felt the ground under him disappear. He fell, enduring the pain, almost not hearing the last words of the reaper.


    ¡°Good luck. You will need it there.¡± Morgane said almost cheerfully with her normal voice.

 02 - Power

    Matthew was falling. It felt like an eternity. The pain was everywhere. Total pain in each cell of his body. Trying to ease it, he put himself in the fetal position, knees near his torso, his right arm keeping his left arm still broken somehow near him. During the fall, he thought of what he learned trying to not think about what was happening to him.


    The Absolute existed. There was some kind of life after death. He was going straight to Hell because he could not accept that an entity with absolute power could not make Earth a paradise. This was so weird.


    Matthew finally hit some ground with very high speed. He could not have seen it. His eyes were closed due to the pain. But upon the impact, he opened them.


    And he saw a red and deep purple sky above him with small and long black clouds around.


    Weirdly enough, while he expected a hard and terrible impact after such a fall, it was almost as if he had fallen for no more than two meters. It still hurt. Matthew stood up as the pain began to fade away.


    He looked around him and thought he was right in the middle of some kind of crater around three or four meters deep. The soil was a mix of brown and deep red dirt with multiple rocks of multiple sizes here and there. There was some weird noise around but nothing too close.


    Matthew then took some time to look at himself. Nothing really changed except his skin was maybe a little more grey-ish. Matthew just put it on the light of this place, the sky was different after all.


    Strangely, his clothes were not totally torn up. His sneakers were still on his feet, his jeans, while quite used, were still covering most of his legs and his shirt¡­ Well, his shirt was basically destroyed.


    ¡°Well, it was not my favorite.¡± Matthew said. ¡°Wait, is my voice deeper ? Crap, that is weird.¡±


    At least, he was still talking to himself so he thought his mind was not too affected. That old habit coming from his grandmother was reassuring for him.


    Matthew removed his shirt and tried to use what was left of his to form some bandage around his left arm. It was horrible, but at least, it was something. Around him, some noises became more intense. He could not identify it but it felt animal somehow, more like bestial. Probably not good news.


    Peter started climbing the slope of this crater. The dirt was hot, like sand on a beach in the middle of a day in July. It was almost burning his right hand. Fortunately, it was not too steep and while he was more ramping on the dirt than climbing, he finally got out of this hole and could take a wide look around.


    He saw a wide plain of the same red dirt of his hole. There were some plants here and there, some kind of bush here, a small tree there, but all of these plants were charcoal black like burned. There was some huge house sized rock around sparsely. This looked like a mix between the image he had of an american desert and a savanna but painted in a deep red with some brown and black spots. Matthew saw some movement where the sound was coming. Some kind of beast horde he could not distinguish was moving around.


    ¡°So this is Hell.¡± Matthew observed. ¡°Not to gloat, but it does not look so terrible. It is almost calm. I wonder why that reaper wished me luck.¡±


    Matthew went to the nearest tree, picked up a small stone and started to cut some long stick out of a branch of the tree. He knew nothing of this place but walking with a stick was better than bare-handed. After punching the tree and then the branch with his rock, he finally had a stick around one and a half meters long.


    ¡°Well, I hope I don¡¯t have to use it. Last time I used some kind of weapon, it was for a larp duel, and I lost it¡± Matthew mumbled, thinking of his past. ¡°So I do have a body, meaning I probably have to eat or drink something¡±


    Problem was, he did not see anything that could indicate some kind of water near him. Walking towards the beast he saw was probably not a good idea so Matthew started walking in the opposite direction.


    He looked at the sky to find some clue to his direction. The sky was bright but nothing that looked like the sun. Unless it was behind one of those black clouds but it was probably not the case.


    ¡°So I¡¯m dead.¡± Matthew mumbled. ¡°Well. I guess I¡¯ll walk until I find something. There must be some other people like me.¡±


    He did not think more in detail about his situation. The priority was survival. In all of those survival games he played, the start was always the same. He had to start by finding some food and water and building a small shelter then he explored around. After that, he will have plenty of time to comprehend what all of this meant.


    ******


    It was approximately two hours since he was walking, Matthew thought. His internal clock was approximative at best and there was a reason why he always had a watch or his phone with him.


    The landscape did not evolve much, it was the same red dirt with black plants. No traces of any path or road anywhere. After walking for so long, he found out that the plain was more a bunch of small hills than a wide steppe. Not really a good thing since instead of having a wide and more importantly deep field of view he was looking at slopes. So Matthew was climbing a hill, again, using his stick to help him walk.If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.


    Since he started walking, he did not see the sun in the sky. He saw flying beasts, probably huge ones from what he could perceive. But for now, all of those beasts did not pick interest in him. Matthew did not know if he was lucky or just uninteresting for them.


    He also did not find any water or food and plants were not dense enough to form any kind of shelter. Well, Hell could probably not be an easy place to survive, Matthew though.


    At the top of the hill he was climbing, Matthew heard a growling noise. He took a look in the direction of the sound. He regretted it instantly when he saw the horror that made the sound.


    The beast was some sort of wolf or dog but with the size of a large cow. The fur was black and spiky. It had one more pair of eyes and ears and two more pairs of nostrils. The mouth was more smiling and vicious, like a predator happy in front of his prey. It had six legs that ended with large claws and its tail was split in two at the end.


    ¡°Crap, crap, crap¡± Matthew shouted while keeping his eyes on the beast. Could he die again in Hell ? He did not know it but he was not ready to discover it.


    The beast tensed its whole body, licked their lips and jumped in the direction of Matthew, its mouth wide open revealing two rows of teeth.


    Matthew rolled on the side, falling into the dirt. His left arm did not appreciate it. He looked at the beast which was, once again, smiling. It whipped the ground with its tails twice. Did that thing just have fun ? Was it sentient enough to take pleasure in this ? Matthew did not have the time to think about it more as the beast jumped again.


    Matthew used his stick at the last second to push himself out of the way of this creature which slid on the dirt. The beast quickly reacted by using its tail to whip Matthew. He could not dodge that blurry thing which hit his leg. The pain was extreme and the sound it made was not good at all.


    ¡°Ouch. Damn dog.¡± Matthew screamed. He watched his right leg, a big dark red spot on it. It was probably broken.


    The beast jumped back a little. It was excited, its mouth wide open, its tongue going wild around it, its tail wagging. It knew this was the end of its prey. It took all its time, readying itself and then, it jumped.


    Matthew saw the beast and thought it was the end. In a desperate move, he moved his stick in a wide attack trying to intercept the creature in its flight.


    And the ground moved with it. It hit the creature and sent it several meters away.


    ¡°Woah.¡± Matthew said, surprised by what just happened. Did he just do that ? No time to think again, the beast was back on its feet again and it was starting to run in a circle around him. It was not having fun anymore, it was more serious.


    Matthew was also more serious. He had some chance of surviving this encounter and he was not going to let it slide. He put himself on his knees trying to ignore the intense pain in his leg.


    As the beast was getting closer, Matthew hit the ground with his stick and then waved it in the direction of the creature trying to replicate what he had done.


    A wave of dirt a meter high went right on the beast but it jumped over and kept running on its course to Matthew.


    It was hard to focus with all this pain, but Matthew had no choice if he wanted to keep going. Matthew brought his hand and the stick close to him and then thrusted it towards that hellish dog hoping to pierce something.


    The earth followed and a rock spear came from the ground hitting the beast in its front shoulder. Some black ichor was dripping from the tip of the spear.


    The creature fell on its side and growled. It was still alive despite the heavy wound where the same ichor was flowing.


    ¡°Yeah fucker. I¡¯m not such an easy prey apparently.¡± Matthew boasted.


    The beast took a step back and then howled to the sky very loudly. Soon after, multiple howls answered it coming from all directions. The beast, still with a serious gaze, was smiling again.


    ¡°Okay. I deserved that one.¡± Matthew said, trying to imagine how to fight a pack of these creatures.


    ******


    Tianne was flying at maximum speed. She usually loved flying around since she discovered her wings but not today. The message received from the Prince was clear.


    Someone with enough power to survive the Fall was going to land in her territory. And the Prince wanted that person to survive and not to get eaten by the first hellhound or blackwing that was around.


    At least, she vaguely knew in which direction she had to fly. The comet that person created during their Fall had been spotted without any difficulty. It was far from a legendary one but the blue trail was still quite distinguishable in the red sky. But now that the Fall was over, she could only hope she would find visible traces from the impact to track the new demon.


    Her com stone activated and a familiar voice appeared.


    ¡°Hey, could you slow down a little ?¡± The voice asked. ¡°It¡¯s hard to follow you with the wheeler and you know these stones have a bad range.¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t.¡± Tianne answered. ¡°We have to find them before anything happens. For real, why do comets never fall close to a settlement ?¡±


    She took a quick look behind her to see a distant trail of dust that was trying to follow her. Lucas was also driving at full speed but the wheeler could definitely not match her speed.


    ¡°Would you prefer to rebuild a bunch of buildings each time one falls directly on us?¡± Lucas said sarcastically.


    ¡°Well¡­¡± Tianne started when a series of hellhound howls stopped her. Those beasts only formed packs when a prey was too strong for them alone. Apparently, the new demon was at least competent at not dying too quickly.


    ¡°Okay, I¡¯m rushing in. Just follow howls.¡± Tianne ordered before changing direction and accelerating again.


    Two minutes later, what she saw scared her. Multiple hellhounds were wounded on the ground, some of them dead. Rocks were moving around to punch what was left of the pack. And in the middle of this, a small man on his knees, bleeding and leaning on a rock, was moving a stick with intense fury.


    ¡°By the Prince !¡± Tianne said shocked. She took her com stone. ¡°Lucas, I have eyes on target, he is a Primordial.¡±


    ¡°If I wasn¡¯t already, I''d be damned to Hell¡± Lucas answered.

 03 - Name

    Matthew was not in a good situation. After the beast howled, it waited while other ones were converging on his position. Facing one opponent was not easy but it was at least doable with his newfound power. Multiple ones, it would be a whole other situation.


    The first thing to do was to prevent being fully circled around. He planted his stick behind him and started to raise it hoping to create some wall or maybe with luck a full cover. But it was hard like the earth was resisting.


    ¡°Come on. Don¡¯t drop me now, weirdly new power.¡± Matthew whined.


    Finally, a small rocky wall was behind him. But now, there were four beasts and more were coming. Two of them jumped together towards Matthew.


    ¡°Shit !¡± Matthew yelled. He hit the ground with all the strength he had still in him. A thin wall raised quickly in front of him blocking both creatures before crumbling right before his eyes.


    ¡°So that¡¯s it¡­ ¡± Matthew cried. He felt very empty. He knew this last wall was made with all that was left inside him. So Matthew closed his eyes and let himself fall over on the ground, dropping the stick. It was the true end, Matthew thought. Because he did not accept the Absolute, his soul, or whatever he was, was going to be devoured by beasts in Hell.


    When he hit the ground, he felt what was around him. He could almost see it. There was himself, lying here, the pack of beasts growing as more and more beasts were arriving, something far away was moving. He could not understand what it was but it was not a beast. But the most important thing he felt was the ground itself. It was radiating with power, waiting for him to take it. He let himself be submerged by the ground, absorbing all that raw and primal power. It was there and Matthew absorbed it.


    No, Matthew thought, it is not the end. He did not live his life away from his family trying to find calm and peace by rejecting their religious bullshit to be devoured by a beast in Hell. He will find an oasis of tranquility in Hell and he will have his calm. And if those dogs disagree, he will destroy them. He will destroy anything that will prevent this. After all, this is Hell, so he will be the hell of others.


    Matthew emerged from the ground with absolute fury in his eyes. He was standing, his right leg and his left arm in heavy armor made of rock. He took a wide look around him counting around twenty beasts.


    ¡°You¡­ FUCKERS !!!¡± Matthew shouted, stomping the ground with his left leg.


    Spikes quickly erected in waves coming from him all around. A bunch of beasts were not fast enough to dodge and got hit pretty badly, blood was flowing from their wounds.


    ¡°Do you want me ? Then come !¡± Matthew continued. ¡°I¡¯ll make sure none of you survive¡±.


    It was now pure anger that was fueling Matthew. The hatred against these creatures, trying to eat him, the hatred against that system that sent him here, the hatred against the Absolute which did not have to create Hell but still did it, all that hatred was now what was moving rocks around.


    Beasts rushed him, yeah, they could try but Matthew was ready. He added more rocks around him, specially targeting his hands and then, he started to punch. In each punch, Matthew could feel bones of beasts breaking.


    ¡°You really should have left me alone !¡± Matthew yelled. He raised his hands, putting a lot of small rocks above him, and then, he made them fall all around him, even accelerated them to maximize damage. The noise it made upon impact with the ground and beasts was horrible as rocks exploded due to the sheer speed he could send them.


    The pack of beasts was still there, even with probably half of them not capable of moving. They were clearly thinking how to attack him again. They made a wide circle around him. Then, they attacked. Some of them went by the ground, almost crawling, others went by the sky doing jumps.


    Matthew tried to push them away but, this time, they were too fast, too coordinated. In a last reflex, Matthew fully covered his body in rock armor. The tempest of claws and fangs was devastating, rock and dust was falling from him and then, he felt pain. Some of their attacks had penetrated his armor and started to wound him.


    ¡°Argh !¡± Matthew shouted. His armor exploded, launching beasts away. He fell on his knee, his weight not supported by his armor anymore. He raised a small rock to keep him from just falling on the ground again. Matthew saw his stick, somehow still intact in spite of the fury that happened around it. He picked it up, and started moving it in circles around him.


    The earth answered and, soon, there was a tornado of rock rolling and flying around hurting the last beasts.


    ¡°I¡¯ve told you you¡¯ll regret it, stupid beasts.¡± Matthew groaned.


    Half a minute later, he could not sustain his tornado any longer and rocks stopped moving around. He then saw a woman, covered in feathers, landing in front of him.


    ¡°Impressive, young one¡­¡± She started. And Matthew fell unconscious on the ground


    ******


    Tianne was, indeed, quite impressed but also scared. Of the whole pack of hellhounds, only two were still standing. That newborn demon almost just berserked his way through the whole pack massacring it entirely if not for two lucky hellhounds. She let some of her power go loose around her, printing her strength in it. The two beasts could not resist it and ran away. She took a deep look at the young demon before her.Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.


    He was a male, a little tall, the usual little grey skin, not very muscular. In his black hair, there were some little protuberances on the front, he will have horns. Nothing on his back suggesting wing, that was sad but not surprising. He had pointy nails, but they will not develop into full claws.


    He was also covered in wounds, two of his members were not in a good shape, probably broken, he had a few scratches and two fang marks. He was bleeding but not nothing was urgent.


    With all that she saw, she was certain that the demon in front of her would grow into a powerful caster demon. If she had to bet, he would be a medium or high Primordial.


    She opened her little satchel and took out some bandages. She was applying them when some mechanical noise behind her drew her attention. The wheeler with his pilot finally arrived. The young driver got out of his transport and watched the scene.


    ¡°So, what did I miss ?¡± Lucas asked cheerfully.


    Tianne smiled. Even after all this time, he still had some joy and innocence in him.


    ¡°Nothing too rare, just a Primordial going wild and destroying a pack of hellhounds. I still had to scare the survivors away.¡± Tianne answered with a smile..


    ¡°Come on, you¡¯re messing with me. The only fact that this guy is a Primordial is already an event. At least, it explains the size of the comet.¡± Lucas said annoyed.


    She knew that Lucas was on watch the moment the comet carrying that demon fell and he was still surprised by its size. She had seen larger ones, even legendary ones but for a still young demon like Lucas, it was a nice spectacle.


    ¡°Yeah, a big blue one. Not banished, he chose Hell. I wonder why.¡± Tianne replied. ¡°Help me load him on your back seat. I¡¯m definitely not carrying a Primordial with me in the sky.¡±


    ¡°Fine. But if we lose the wheeler because he awakens and starts going wild again, you will explain to Crane why his precious baby is destroyed, right ?¡± Lucas asked, starting to drag the unconscious demon.


    ¡°We both know that won¡¯t be the case, Lucas. Stop whining and get him in there. I do not want to stay in the wild any longer than necessary.¡± Tianne ordered.


    Lucas strapped the new guy on the back seat, installed himself on the driver one and started to accelerate.


    ¡°Tianne, you¡¯ll cover me on the return trip.¡± Lucas said, half asking,


    ¡°Of course, little Lucas. You know I watch on everyone. Let¡¯s go home¡± She answered, taking off.


    ******


    Matthew awoke on a purple marble floor lying on his belly, the face against its polished surface.


    ¡°Ouch, where am I ?¡± He asked himself as he was getting up.


    He felt he was back in his usual human body, with his beige skin, fully healed. His cloth was a simple long white tunic.


    The room around him looked like it came straight out of an old Greek history book about palaces. Fine carved red columns were supporting a high black ceiling diffusing soft light around.


    ¡°Is anybody there ?¡± Matthew asked loudly. But no one answered.


    Walking around, he looked at the bas relief on walls. They represented battles between demons and angels. On the angel side, high above the battle was sculpted an entity easily distinguishable. Six hexagons in their back, a timeless and genderless face, a long coat of light, the Absolute was watching the battle. On the demon side, there were a bunch of what looked like corrupted angels fighting alongside demons. But one of them was less corrupted, standing slightly above, they could almost be from the angel army if they were not leading demons.


    Her face was sculpted with very fine details. Her whole body was painted without any wrong move. Her armor was almost shining in the room.


    Matthew approached.the bas relief, taking a closer look at this figure. A perfect feminine human body with an angelic face and three pairs of wings in her back, she was not just leading the demon army, she was inspiring them, almost making them hope. Just seeing her on this wall was inspiring Matthew of freedom and peace despite her being in the middle of a battle.


    ¡°It definitely was a good idea to personally inspire the artist¡± A feminine voice declared calmly behind him.


    Matthew jumped back, scared and turned his head.


    He saw the woman sculpted on the wall, standing right in front of him, leaning on one of the columns. Her wings were folded up behind her and instead of a heavy armor, she was wearing a simple red and black tunic similar to his own. She had the same round angelic face that was on the bas relief.


    ¡°You, you, you are¡­¡±Matthew stuttered


    ¡°Easy, young one, I¡¯m not gonna eat you or dismember you or blast your soul or anything else priests came with since I last interacted with them.¡± She interrupted him. ¡°I¡¯m just curious about you.¡±


    ¡°You, Denaelle, the One who opposed the Absolute and the First Fallen are curious about me ?¡± Matthew said. ¡°I don¡¯t know if I should feel flattered or worried¡±


    Denaelle walked to him and put one finger on his torso. Matthew saw and felt a small talon at the tip of it.


    ¡°Probably a little bit of both. The last Primordial to fall was not fun at all and I had to quickly stop him from destroying this place.¡± Denaelle said with a smile. ¡°So, who will you be, young one ? A conqueror, a protector, a recluse one or one who has it all ? That will be up to you to decide. Oh, also since you are dead and reborn as a demon, you can choose your new name.¡±


    Matthew was speechless. All of this was feeling so unreal. Denaelle was real apparently but she was also looking to what he will do.


    ¡°Well, our time together is coming to an end. Next time, will you tell me your name ? ¡± Denaelle asked before gently pushing him.


    Matthew fell through the marble and his world went black.


    ******


    Matthew abruptly awoke in some sort of rock bed and looked around him. He was back in the same injured body he had before. An old teenager was tinkering on a table in the room and called someone when he saw Matthew awake.


    ¡°Mom, he is back with us.¡±


    ¡°Coming.¡± A voice Matthew already heard answered.


    Five seconds later, the feather covered demon was standing in the doorway.


    ¡°Hello young demon. Welcome with us. In Hell, you can choose your own name. It¡¯s about freeing oneself, I¡¯ll teach you details later. I¡¯m Tianne and this is Lucas¡± TIanne said, indicating the young man. ¡°When you will be ready, you will tell us. For now, follow me, let¡¯s find something to eat.¡±


    Matthew got out of the bed and stood up despite the pain. At least that name thing was not an issue. There was one uncle of his earth life who inspired him, one person he would have been proud to call father. It was the one person who also sent him on his path to find the truth behind religions. Now, he will keep looking, here in Hell with his name, what is the truth.


    ¡°Hey, name¡¯s Peter. Thanks for saving me.¡± Peter said.

 04 - Newborn

    Peter¡¯s body was covered in bandages. His left arm was blocked in a splint and his right leg was supported by a brace. He was wearing a tunic similar to the one he had before, but brown.


    ¡°Hey, we recovered that where we found you. I think you will need it for a couple of days¡± Lucas said, extending him a stick.


    It was the same stick Peter cut out of a branch when he arrived. It will be a nice support, both physical and mental.


    ¡°Thanks.¡± Peter said, taking the stick.


    ¡°So, Peter ! Follow me, it¡¯s time for you to eat and, then, you will tell us why you chose hell.¡± Tianne said, walking away inviting him with his hand.


    Peter followed her, walking slowly. Lucas was behind bringing up the rear.


    While walking Peter took a look at his new companions. Tianne was quite taller than him, around half a foot above his six feet. Her whole body, quite human looking at first glance, was almost fully covered in light blue and green feathers. Even her hands and feet were covered in tiny feathers on the exterior. Peter could still see the grey of her skin, the same grey of his skin. She was quite skinny, almost skeletal. Behind her were a short bird tail and a huge pair of bird wings. All she was wearing was a simple brown long tunic covering half her back to her knee.


    Lucas was as smaller as Tianne was taller than Peter. He was also way more muscular than both of them. His weirdest feature was the two protuberances under his arms that were looking like rifle magazines. His only other feature that revealed his demon nature, except the grey skin, was his crosshair shaped pupils in his eyes. But without it, and with his leggings and t-shirt, he could walk in any town on earth without anyone looking at him.


    Peter followed Tianne in a large room that was definitely a mix between an old kitchen and a basic living room. There was a large table in the middle with benches on both sides of it. Tianne indicated one of the benches while walking towards a cauldron standing above a small fire in a chimney.


    Peter sat on the bench trying to place his leg in a good position while Tianne brought back a bowl of soup and put it in front of Peter before sitting in front of him next to Lucas.


    ¡°It¡¯s not great but it¡¯s better than nothing.¡± Tianne said, almost apologizing.


    ¡°No need to apologize. You saved me, tended me and now, you¡¯re feeding me.¡± Peter said. He took the spoon and ate a bite. The soup was really not good but, at least, it felt nice to have something in the mouth.


    Peter took three more bites before Lucas broke the silence.


    ¡°So, why did you choose Hell instead of a life in Heaven ?¡± He asked.


    ¡°Why do you think I chose Hell ? I could have been condemned to it.¡± Peter answered.


    ¡°Nah, your comet was blue, and quite bright. There is no way you¡¯re a damned one¡± Lucas said.


    ¡°My comet ? ¡± Peter asked, surprised.


    Lucas wanted to continue but Tianne raised her hand stopping him.


    ¡°Enough Lucas.¡±Tianne said, calmly. ¡±Let him eat more before harassing him with questions. We literally have eternity before us to hear him. And don¡¯t forget he just arrived. He doesn¡¯t have a ten year experience of Hell. Also, go work on your project. you still have work to do.¡±


    ¡°But¡­¡± Lucas started.


    ¡°Lucas.¡± Tianne interrupted him. ¡°Please.¡±


    ¡°Fine mommy¡­¡± Lucas said, walking away to where they came.


    When he was not here anymore, Peter turned back to Tianne.


    ¡°Mommy ? Ten years ? Is he a kid sent to Hell¡± He asked.


    Tianne¡¯s smile faded a little.


    ¡°He is not my child but calling me mom helps him to accept what happened to him.¡±Tianne explained.¡± The kid was not lucky. Born in a bad suburb, the local priest was also a drug dealer. When he was ten, he was recruited to do some surveillance. He got shot four years later. When the reaper came for him, he did not even listen to her and just asked to be sent to hell without really realizing he could have gone up. It¡¯s been ten years and he still dwells on it sometime¡±


    ¡°He does look young for a twenty four years old man.¡± Peter said, still eating.


    ¡°That¡¯s normal. Your hell body is partially a reflection of how you saw yourself. He is still growing. Also, his mind is not developing anymore so he is still childish sometimes¡± Tianne said. ¡°I¡¯m still surprised by the fact that he survived the Fall.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s that about ? The Fall, the comet ?¡± Peter asked, taking another spoon of soup. It was not that bad now.


    ¡°What do you remember of your fall ? Probably pain and that¡¯s it, right ?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I don¡¯t even know how long I fell.¡± Peter said, still remembering the horrible feeling. Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.


    ¡°Well, the Fall is the process everyone has to endure when they are sent to Hell.¡± Tianne started explaining. ¡±Your human body is destroyed and your demon body takes over. It takes up to a week and part of the process happens above the sky. Your Fall was a short one, you hit ground less than a day after appearing.


    ¡±That process deploys a large quantity of power and makes you quite visible in Hell sky, that¡¯s what we call a comet. If you are condemned to Hell, your soul is marked and the comet burns in red. Blue ones like your or Lucas indicate a choice to go to Hell, they are less common.¡±


    ¡°So that¡¯s how you found me and why you saved me. I did not understand why someone would go in the middle of those beasts.¡± Peter said.


    ¡°How, yes. Why, it¡¯s more complex. First, you have to know that less than a percent of comets hit the ground. Surviving the demon transformation is already a feat per se. So we do not move unless there is a decent chance we find someone at the impact. And second, someone very important told us you would survive and they would not have been happy if we found you devoured.¡±


    ¡°Who ? And how ?¡± Peter asked.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to know it yet.¡± Tianne said. ¡°Just know that you probably owe them your life. Fast fallers don¡¯t tend to survive so we would not have sent a team.¡±


    ¡°Great. I¡¯m new in Hell and I already have a debt.¡± Peter grumbled, finishing his soup and giving back the bowl.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. They are quite nice usually.¡± Tianne said, smiling.


    ¡°So, now what ? What do we do in Hell ? You don¡¯t seem like you are in perpetual suffering.¡± Peter asked.


    Tianne laughed.


    ¡°Yeah. Surprise ! Hell is not the eternal pit of torturing the Great Tome talked about. It still is Hell in a great number of aspects. Follow me, I¡¯ll present you to the council and I¡¯ll teach you the basics.¡±


    ******


    Peter was following once again the feathered demon. They left the house after Tianne told Lucas to stay there and they were now walking in a small town. The house they left was a single storey house mostly made of clay with some wood beams like each other around in the street. The house was on the upper side of a hill and they were going down slowly toward a large plaza. Tianne was explaining Hell to Peter.


    ¡°So, you now are a demon. We live basically forever, can¡¯t get sick and we regenerate. In a couple of days, those wounds will be a thing of the past. We don¡¯t have to eat, drink or sleep but most of us still do it as we work better with than without. We can still die with enough grievous wounds. Our soul is then destroyed. True end.


    ¡°In Hell, there are two types of demons. A large part of them are red ones, those are the Damned, they lived such a horrible life they could not be accepted in Heaven. Usually the Fall changes then enough to a point they at least try to behave around.¡±


    ¡°What did they do ? ¡±Peter asked.


    ¡°Great evil, by choice, knowing it¡¯s evil and not really regretting it. It¡¯s still not clear and the only one who truly knows the rules is not really appreciated here¡­¡±


    ¡°The fucking Absolute¡­¡± Peter grumbled.


    ¡°Yes. Don¡¯t try to pray to Them here, it won¡¯t work. To come back to the demon topic, I saw you using your demonic power. You have to know that Choosers like you, Lucas and a majority of this town usually have a stronger power than the Damned.¡±


    ¡°I can not not remark that you don¡¯t include yourself when you¡¯re talking about Choosers.¡± Peter said.


    ¡°I prefer not talking about it.¡± Tianne responded calmly. ¡±About powers, I won¡¯t give you a full explanation until we start training it. Just know that after what you did to that pack of hellhounds yesterday, you are probably out of juice for a couple of days. So don¡¯t leave the town and do not provoke people. Damned can still be susceptible and Choosers have a tendency to be on edge. And do not speak about your power to others. I have stuff to teach you about.¡±


    ¡°I was more counting on living my new life in peace and calm.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, do not hope too much about it. Hell is not really accommodating to life as we intended it. There is no day or night. Water is almost nonexistent. The ground is not really fertile and the whole fauna is at the same level as those hellhounds you encountered. And the meat is toxic.¡±


    ¡°Are you telling me everyone is vegan in Hell ? ¡± Peter asked.


    ¡°Not really. The best water source is distilled and purified blood. One more proof that the Absolute hates us.¡±


    ¡°The feeling¡¯s mutual.¡±


    They arrived at the plaza. There were three larger buildings around the plaza. They were still built with the same mix of clay and wood beams. Some demons were working around bringing and taking ressources.


    ¡°That¡¯s the granary, the council building and the general storage. That plaza is the heart of the town¡± Tianne said, indicating each building. ¡°Now, let¡¯s meet the council.¡±


    Tianne brought Peter to the council building. Inside, there was a small demon with small fins on his arms and legs working on a rock desk. When he heard them enter, he raised his head from his papers.


    ¡°Lady Tianne. I see you¡¯re bringing the newborn to the council.¡± The fins demon said.


    ¡°Yes Donero. Convoke it.¡± Tianne said with an authoritarian tone.


    ¡°At your service. my Lady.¡± Donero said before leaving the building.


    ¡°Lady Tianne ? ¡± Peter asked.


    ¡°Yes, I¡¯m one of the three members of the council and for some demons a title has significance.¡± Tianne answered. ¡°We are leading this town, trying to prevent anyone from disturbing what we achieved in half a millennia. Do you have any questions while we wait for the other two ?¡±


    ¡°A lot actually. First, that small town looks like a bastide from the south of France near where I died, is there any link ? Second, even including the survival rate of the Fall and the small percent of people just sent to Hell, there should be more people in the town right ? Third, are you really half a millennia old ? And how are you keeping time with no sun cycle ? And how do I hear you like someone of my era ?¡± Peter asked.


    Tianne smiled.


    ¡°You are a logical one. Well, Hell is roughly half the size of Earth, and there is a direct link between where you die and where you fall. So yes, ninety nine percent of the town died ¡®around¡¯ Toulouse. We even named the town Tol¡¯Osa when we created it.


    ¡°For the absence of population, let just say that Hell is a cruel place for now. And Demons are sterile.


    ¡±As for me, I died during the Wars of Religion, so yes, I am a nearly five hundred year old demon. We know the time by asking the death date of people who join us so it¡¯s really approximative. And you can easily guess the answer to your last question, now that you know the Absolute is real.¡±


    Peter thought for a minute and he finally assembled some pieces.


    ¡°There is no tongue curse in Hell because it¡¯s only on humans. We are all speaking the original soul tongue.¡± Peter explained.


    ¡°Yes. A smart demon is definitely an enjoyable change around here¡± Tiane confirmed.


    The exit door of the room opened. The fins demon entered followed by a very large demon with huge goat horns and a small one with reptilian scales covering her body.


    ¡°Edgar. Sophie. We have a newborn at Tol¡¯Osa.¡± Tianne announced ceremonially. ¡°It is time to form the Council !¡±

 05 - Council

    Peter was standing in the middle of a scene of a small amphitheater. Tianne and the other two demons of this council were each standing on their small desk disposed in a half circle around him. There was no other demon except Donero.


    Tianne had simply said to him before she entered the amphitheater with only the other two demons to answer each question simply and as honestly as possible. That council was supposed to be a formality.


    Ten minutes later, Donero had brought him to the middle of the room before going to his small clerk desk on the side.


    On the left, there was Edgar. He looked like a typical representation of a demon. He was a humanoid goat with huge horns, quite bulky under his black tunic.


    On the right, there was Sophie. She was more human looking than Tianne and Edgar with only scales on her body. She also wore a purple dress which contrasted with the tunic of anyone else.


    ¡°This council is reunited here to welcome a newborn in our community of Tol¡¯Osa in the Fire Plain of Hell.¡± Tianne started ceremoniously.


    ¡°As this reunion is to include you in our town, newborn, we hope you will be honest with us. We may be in Hell but what we want is to live and prosper.¡± Sophie continued with the same tone and a very soft voice.


    ¡°If you dare oppose us, you will discover you are not the first one to menace our community and you will be punished accordingly.¡± Edgar finished.


    ¡°Do you understand this ? ¡± The three of them asked together.


    Peter was quite impressed. They were really menacing and their gazes were judging him. For what he knew of his situation, Tol¡¯Osa was not a bad place and Tianne was clearly doing her best for his well being. He did not know the other two council members but they were just doing their job and from what Tianne and Edgar said, they had a lot of reasons to be on edge.


    Peter took a large breath before answering.


    ¡°I understand.¡±


    ¡°Good. From what Tianne told us just before this reunion, you already have chosen your name. So what will you be called ? ¡± Edgar asked.


    ¡°My name is Peter.¡± Peter said.


    ¡°Peter. When did you die ? Can you remember the precise date ?¡± Sophie asked.


    ¡°I don¡¯t remember the exact day. It was the first Tuesday of April of 2024 but I usually didn¡¯t mind the exact date in my routine.¡± Peter said.


    ¡°Was there any important modification on the calendar during your life that you can remember ? Or any great event impacting the whole world in the last five years ?¡± Sophie continued.


    ¡°Why ? Does calendar modification happen that often ? ¡± Peter asked.


    ¡°We have no contact with the surface except with new demons, so we can¡¯t know. A major crisis could change anything up there, until we receive dead ones, we wouldn¡¯t know. So please answer the question and do not try to understand why we are asking each one.¡± Sophie said.


    ¡°Well, nothing on the calendar. The last main event was a global pandemic but I can¡¯t think of anything else.¡± Peter said.


    He was not feeling good. What Sophie said unsettled him. Understanding stuff was what he preferred during his life and dying was not going to change that.


    ¡°Donero, what can you infer from this declaration please ? ¡± Sophie asked, turning her head to the clerk.


    ¡°Hmm, his exact death date is not complex to compute and it¡¯s coherent with his Fall and our estimation of the current date. The pandemic is already documented in our exchanges with other settlements .¡± Donero said, looking in multiple parchments.


    ¡°Good. Now that the whole world''s subject has been addressed. Let¡¯s talk about you.¡± Edgar said. ¡°Tianne told us you haven''t manifested your power yet. She had to intervene to prevent you from getting eaten by a hellhound. Can you confirm this ?¡±


    Peter was a little surprised as this was not true at all but he saw Tianne discreetly shaking her head. He took a deep breath before answering.


    ¡°Well, it¡¯s true that without Tianne, I wouldn¡¯t have survived much longer. As for my power, since I¡¯m new, I don¡¯t really know what to expect of it.¡± Peter said. Subverting the truth was his favorite game during roleplay sessions with his friends.


    ¡°That¡¯s not what we asked.¡± Sophie said, annoyed. ¡°We asked you if you knew what your power is ? ¡±


    ¡°Sophie. Don¡¯t push him. He just arrived and he has no clear features, unless you think small horns can determine his power.¡± Tianne intervened.


    ¡°Wait, horns ? ¡± Peter asked, touching his head. He felt two small bumps on the edge of his forehead.


    ¡°See ? I told you not to expect a lot from him, he is a fast faller after all.¡± Tianne said


    ¡°So why did you send a recovery team with just you and Lucas in it ? What are you trying to hide ? ¡± Sophie asked.


    ¡°Why do you always think people are hiding stuff from you ? ¡± Tianne answered, seeming exasperated.


    ¡°Ow, I don¡¯t know. Try because we are in Hell, witch ! ¡± Sophie retorted.


    ¡°You are so going down for that one, you filthy snake ! ¡±Tianne said scornfully.


    ¡°Ladies, enough ! ¡± Edgar shouted, pounding his desk. ¡°Can you stop fighting ? It¡¯s been two hundred years.¡±This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.


    Tianne and Sophie calmed themselves.


    ¡°Sorry Edgar.¡± They said together.


    ¡°One remark from Sophie is still of importance. Tianne, you had orders to move and to recover him, right ? ¡° Edgar said with the tone of someone asking a question they already knew the answer to.


    ¡°Yes. A Devil asked me.¡± Tianne admitted.


    ¡°So he is a Devil tool and maybe even a spawn and you did not tell us. Are you mad ? ¡° Sophie asked angrily.


    ¡°You will withdraw what you said¡­¡± Tianne started.


    Edgar bellowed loudly and Peter had to put his hands on his ears. Turning his head, he saw Donero still writing not bothered at all while Tianne and Sophie seemed to be suffering as much as him.


    ¡°I swear, those councils are becoming more burdensome each time.¡± Edgar said. ¡°Peter, I will now ask the questions since both those demons can not keep some composure. How did you die ? ¡±


    ¡°It was a road accident. Why ? ¡± Peter asked.


    ¡°I need more details. Were you the one responsible ? By what was it caused ? ¡± Edgar kept asking.


    ¡°It was raining and I lost control of my car. I might have been over the limit¡­¡± Peter said.


    ¡°Peter, it¡¯s Hell, no one is going to judge you for that. Do you remember any weird encounter in your life that you now think of as having a link with a paranormal entity from Hell ? ¡±


    Peter thought the question was very weird. But as far as he could think of, he did not think of any moment that could correspond to what Edgar was asking.


    ¡°None that I can think of. Unless you count meeting with a reaper when I just died, what was that question ? ¡± Peter said.


    Edgar sighed.


    ¡°Well, Devils rarely act so when one of them asks one of us to do something, it¡¯s always with a plan to play. And it¡¯s rarely good news for us. So, you might be a tool from a Devil even if you don¡¯t know it.¡±


    ¡°About that, what¡¯s a Devil ? ¡± Peter asked.


    Edgar turned his head to Tianne.


    ¡°Hey ! The Hell crash course 101 is taking time and he was sleeping most of the time. Don¡¯t expect him to know it all yet.¡± Tianne said, smiling.


    Edgar sighed again more loudly.


    ¡°Devils are fallen Angels. They rule Hell. Tianne will fill with the rest.¡±


    ¡°But, if I don¡¯t even know a Devil, how can I be a tool for one of them ? ¡± Peter asked.


    ¡°Why did you choose Hell ? Usually, a Devil tool doesn¡¯t have that choice.¡± Edgar said.


    ¡°Basically, to fuck up my family and I never believed in the Absolute. I don¡¯t love them and accepting a hypocritical god was not for me.¡±


    The whole council laughed.


    ¡°Well, I think it¡¯s clear. Unless anyone has anything to add to this reunion, I think we can conclude.¡± Edgar declared, looking at Tianne and Sophie.


    Both of them stayed silent.


    ¡°By the will of the council of Tol¡¯Osa, we have a new demon in town. Welcome Peter.¡± Edgar announced.


    ******


    Peter was now back with Tianne as they were walking home.


    ¡°So what was all of this about ? You told me this council was supposed to be a formality.¡± Peter asked.


    ¡°Yes, well I did not expect Sophie to be in such a paranoid state, she is usually much nicer.¡± Tianne said.


    ¡°I¡¯m talking more about that power and Devil situation.¡± Peter retorted.


    ¡°I can assure you, you are not a Devil tool. The one that contacted me is not one to use such a thing. As for your power, we¡¯ll talk more about it in the house. But it¡¯s probably the reason why I have been contacted to intervene.¡± Tianne said


    ¡°But¡­¡± Peter started


    The sky suddenly went darker as black clouds became larger and larger.


    Tianne quickly took a stone at her belt and brought it to her mouth.


    ¡°Lucas. We may have a blackwing swarm incoming. I need a visual confirmation now. ¡± She ordered.


    Five seconds later, the stone talked back with Lucas'' voice.


    ¡°Swarm confirmed. I estimate ten minutes before impact. I¡¯m gathering the whole street and we are moving to the plaza.¡±


    Tianne moved her arms in wide movement sending volleys of feathers away. During their fly, those feathers made a lot of noise. She then took Peter''s arm and started moving back toward the plaza.


    ¡°Ok Peter. Lucas will give you weapons to defend yourself when he is there. No matter what happens next, you must not use your power. First because you probably can¡¯t but most importantly because no one can know what your power is.¡±


    ¡°¡±Why ? And what is happening ? Are we getting attacked ? ¡± Peter asked. He was breathing slowly trying not to panic. He was not in good shape and fighting was not an option for him with half his members blocked.


    ¡°I¡¯ll explain later. The fauna has grouped to raid our town. You asked me why there are so few demons down there, you¡¯re gonna discover it in the worst way possible.¡± Tianne said.


    At this moment, a very deep and long noise emerged from the plaza.


    ¡°Edgar sounded the alarm. The whole town is grouping to defend itself.¡± Tianne said while keeping to drag Peter around.


    The plaza was now filled with demons. At the center, Edgar was blowing in a way too huge horn and Sophie was giving orders around.


    ¡°Tianne, status ? ¡± Sophie asked.


    ¡°Ten to eight minutes before impact. South will be there soon. Your side ?¡± Tianne answered


    ¡°North is there. East was close in the fields. They should be here before the swarm falls on us. West, it¡¯s bad. They were harvesting in the long band.¡± Sophie said.


    Peter saw the tone and the attitude was clearly different from the council. They were now worried for each other and were looking at the other one with respect.


    ¡°We should try to assemble a speed team to provide them support.¡± Tianne said.


    ¡°Yes, we can¡¯t afford to lose all of them.¡± Sophie agreed. ¡°Tom and Roland can take off with you now. There is no one else that will be there before you have to go.¡±


    ¡°They¡¯ll have to suffice. Peter, remember what I told you and follow Lucas when he is there.¡± Tianne said before leaving Peter.


    He saw her flying away followed by two other demons. Peter turned back to Sophie, who was now talking with Edgar. It was not the time to disturb her with questions. Looking back from where he came, he saw Lucas arriving with a whole group of demons. He slowly walked towards him.


    ¡°Hey, easy there.¡± Lucas said, rushing towards him. ¡±First swarm not two days after your arrival. You¡¯re a lucky one.¡±


    ¡°Can you brief me a little more than we are getting attacked ? ¡± Peter asked.


    ¡°We are getting attacked by murdering birds which love to eat demon flesh. Strategy is to group and kill them before they kill us.¡± Lucas answered.


    ¡°Why do we not hide ? ¡± Peter asked.


    ¡°Houses won¡¯t survive, they are strong. You¡¯ll take my cover with Ben.¡± Lucas said, indicating a demon with large forks in his hands and two long horns on his forefront. Lucas rubbed his hand together and spread them. A metal blob appeared and was now floating between them. Lucas quickly moved his hands around sculpting it and he formed a large revolver out of the ball. He handed it to Peter, holding it by the barrel.


    ¡°Safety 101, aim only towards the enemy or the ground, keep your finger away until you shoot, double check the target and around the target before shooting. And watch out for recoil, that thing packs a punch but a smaller caliber does not suffice.¡± Lucas quickly said.


    ¡°And if I¡¯m out of ammo ? ¡± Peter asked.


    ¡°Rotate quickly the cylinder, magical gun.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s handy.¡±


    A huge screech sounded.


    ¡°Swarm in position ! Get ready !¡± Edgar shouted.

 06 - Swarm

    The swarm was now flying in circles just above them, screeching while the whole plaza was holding its breath in silence. For a couple of minutes, Peter could sense all that tension as he was aiming his gun, shaking, at those large birds. They were similar but way larger than vultures with a head closer to an existential chthonian horror with too many tentacles. They had to have metallic feathers, it was the only reason why the noise they made while flying was so horrible.


    Suddenly, the birds dived on them.


    Peter took aim at the first bird, shot and missed. His previous and only experience with firearms was from a trip in the U.S. and he had shot only with a small caliber rifle. Now, the gun he was holding was not only a one handed gun but also a strong revolver and the recoil was absurd despite him using his strong arm.


    He took aim and shot again. While he did not hit his original target, the swarm was now dense and close enough for the bullet to hit another bird. But that bird was still diving, despite a bullet in the abdomen. Those birds were really resilient.


    Peter shot again and again. He did not try to really aim anymore and was just shooting at the swarm. Behind him, he heard a loud and repeated sound. Lucas was firing with a large machine gun that partially merged with his arms.


    ¡°Stay focus, newborn.¡± Ben shouted at him.


    ¡°Sorry.¡± Peter said, cycling the cylinder on his torso.


    Peter kept shooting. He remembered the strategy Lucas told him. His task was simple. He was shooting the mass high above, while Lucas was butchering birds just before they hit the group. Ben was finishing them with his large forks. All around the plaza, similar groups were doing the same thing with more or less success.


    Birds kept harassing them. Their main strategy was to break a group by wounding enough of the members and then do a full assault on it.


    A bird rushed Peter on his left while he was busy dealing with a couple other ones higher in the sky.


    ¡°Shit ! ¡± Peter shouted. He tried to shoot it but the bird was too fast and hit Peter who fell on the ground. The bird landed on him and tried to peck him.


    ¡°Fuck ! ¡±Ben said, quickly launching one of his huge forks on the bird freeing Peter. The fork hit it on the neck, planting the bird on the ground away from Peter.


    ¡°Quick, get back on your feet or you¡¯re bird food.¡± Ben said, creating or summoning a new fork in his hand. Peter did not know how Ben''s and Lucas''s powers worked but it was efficient to hold ground.


    Still down on the ground, Peter was feeling the power in the ground again. The power was there waiting for him to take it and release it. Those birds were resilient but against a rock spear ? He was not so sure.


    He remembered Tianne asking him to not use his power. If she said that knowing what was coming, she may have very good reasons. Or she just thought he could not use it because he was out of juice according to her own terms.


    He tried to stand still while firing at birds around but it was not easy at all due to his injured leg. He wanted so much for his leg to be healed.


    Power flew around the ground and went in his leg, healing it, putting back bones and flesh where they were supposed to be. Sadly, the process was extremely painful as everything was moving way too fast inside him.


    ¡°Argh ! ¡±Peter yelled. While he was at it, he tried to channel part of this power to his arm. The process was horrible but his chances of survival were better with all his members working. He kept firing at random in the sky hoping he would hit something.


    After a few long seconds, Peter was fully healed, still feeling the pain of the process.


    He bounced back on his feet, taking support from his stick and went to Lucas while reloading.


    ¡°How big is a swarm ? ¡± Peter asked while shooting a bird which was diving on the teenager. Now healed, his aim was clearly better.


    ¡°Usually ? Not that big.¡± Lucas answered, his machine gun arms still vomiting hails of bullets.


    ¡°What the hell is your gun ? And how do you know how to create them ? And can¡¯t you do anything about recoil since they are magical ? ¡± Peter asked, reloading it by sliding the cylinder to his newly healed leg.


    ¡°MG-3. Part of my power and part of me being a fan of guns. And I could but my power is not unlimited and it would consume it on each shot.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s the same reason why I can¡¯t just keep launching forks at them. A demon power reserve is not unlimited.¡± Ben added while still planting birds that were coming too close.


    Peter thought what would that mean for him, who could apparently take it from the ground. Was that the reason he had to keep his power hidden ?


    Peter saw a group moving in their direction. It was Sophie followed by four other demons.


    ¡°Looks like you''re in better shape, newborn.¡± Sophie said while projecting scales on the birds. The demons behind her were using bow and swords to support her.Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.


    ¡°Why are you there ? Can groups move like this during that kind of battle ? ¡± Peter asked, still trying to focus on his targets.


    ¡°Believe it or not, but for some of us, those battles are almost fun.¡± She said.


    ¡°Fun ? Isn¡¯t this a life or death situation ? With other people, you know, risking their lives ? ¡± Peter retorted.


    ¡°We did all we could to maximize the survival of everyone. Now, in the middle of the battle, it¡¯s time to have fun and let ourselves go wild.¡± Sophie said, excited.


    As she ended her sentence, she started dancing around sending large scales with each of her moves. Those scales were slicing birds as a hot knife in soft butter.


    ¡°Believe me, Tianne is probably having as much fun if not more as we speak.¡± Sophie said, gently swirling around the group in an impressive dance.


    He kept firing, trying to keep his focus on the bird mass. Click ! Wait, already six bullets ? Peter swore to himself he counted only five shots before rolling the gun against his leg.


    ¡°Yeah. I hope she is okay.¡± Peter said.


    ¡°Oh, I honestly pity the part of the swarm that will go to her. The Feather Witch is not someone to mess with and she will teach them in the hardest way possible.¡±


    ¡°You were kinda messing with her, sooner, at the council.¡± Peter said with a playful tone.


    The size of the swarm above them was getting smaller but it was still large and Peter did not know for how long they would have to hold.


    ¡°Well, when you spend a century and a half in the bed of someone and the next one argumenting for everything and nothing, it does create that kind of special link.¡± Sophie answered with a smile.


    ¡°Oh ! I was not expecting that one.¡± Peter said. Click ! Again ? Sophie was probably distracting him.


    ¡°What ? Two women together ? I¡¯m pretty sure it¡¯s accepted now up there. At least, if I¡¯m to believe what the last ones to fall said. Don¡¯t tell me the society changed back on this.¡± Sophie said, launching volley of scales after volley of scales up towards the swarm.


    ¡°Well, it depends on where and with whom you are talking but I reassure you, nothing of the sort. I was more surprised by a two hundred year old relationship. By the way, is that why you are in Hell ?¡± Peter said. He noticed that Sophie was less dancing with the time passing and more focusing on her volleys.


    ¡°Peter. Learn that it¡¯s rarely well perceived to ask others demons why they are in hell. And some of them are still not understanding it.¡± Sophie said with a quick look towards Lucas. ¡°But no, homosexuality is apparently not a sin for the douchebag high above, despite what we learned at the temple.¡± Sophie said.


    Click ! Okay, that time, Peter counted four shots. Something was definitely not right. He turned back to look at Lucas. The teenager was on his knee. His machine gun was getting more blurry and the fire rate was getting smaller.


    ¡°Lucas. What¡¯s happening to you ? ¡± Peter asked, worried. Lucas was clearly one of the main firepowers of the whole plaza and if he was going down, that could not end well.


    ¡°Hey, you remember when I said my gun power is not unlimited ? Well, we are hitting the end of the tank. Pun intended.¡± Lucas said, with a joy that was clearly hiding panic.


    Peter stopped shooting, no point in using more of Lucas¡¯ reserve and looked around. All around the plaza, demons were breathing heavily, exhausted, some of them looked almost human. He turned to Sophie to see that a large part of her scales were now absent leaving a grey human flesh. He took a quick look at Ben to see his horns were way smaller than before.


    Peter looked up. The swarm was smaller but not way smaller. They will not destroy it enough to make the survivors fly away. This was bad.


    ¡°Lucas, can demons share power between them ? ¡± Peter asked. He still had some of what he took when he healed his body.


    ¡°Not without a lot of training, and believe me, you can¡¯t have enough in you right now. It¡¯s already a miracle you healed.¡± Lucas said. He was now clearly panicking and Peter could understand that. They were all going to die, devoured by birds in Hell.


    But Peter was not panicking. Fear was a good thing but falling to it was the worst thing to do. Tianne told him to not use his power, to keep it hidden. But what was the point of such a rule if everyone was dead ? He did not die to have his soul destroyed by a stupid bird or even tens of thousands of them. No, he won¡¯t let everyone struggle and die around him if he could do something. Lucas was a nice one, Sophie was kind of funny for a three hundred lady and Ben fought at his side since the start of this battle. He had to act.


    Peter stomped the ground with his left foot trying to feel the power in the ground again. It was there waiting, not disturbed at all by all that was happening above ground. Peter sent his perception deeper. He was going to need a lot of it. Power went stronger and stronger as his perception went deeper. All of that power, ready to be used and released. What Peter used when he fought the pack of dogs was barely a tiny fraction of that, maybe not even noticeable compared to the large quantity he was now ready to use.


    Peter raised his hand, wanting to send a full rain of rock spears to that horrible swarm. But nothing happened, the huge volume of power stayed where it was


    ¡°Peter, no. We can still push back the swarm.¡± Lucas said. His weapon was barely recognizable and his fire rate was closer to a musket rifle rather than the machine gun he had.


    ¡°Peter, yes, Tianne definitely lied to me. You know your power. Use it. Put your will in it¡± Sophie said. Her face only had two scales on it.


    ¡°It¡¯s the only option, Lucas.¡± Peter said as more and more screams were coming from demons.


    Peter put both his palm on the ground, dropping his stick, and ordered the power to move. This was his power. This was the thing that will save everyone. He started raising his hands. The power was heavy. Like absolutedamned heavy. But it will move. Peter was going to save everyone.


    ¡°You can do it. It¡¯s kind of now or never.¡± Sophie said, on the verge of panic, with one large unique scale in her hand.


    Lucas was laying on the ground and Ben was trying to defend him the best he could as the swarm was getting closer and denser around them by the second.


    ¡°Raaah.¡± Peter shouted. He will kill each of those fucking birds.


    The resistance snapped and the power went up as Peter raised both his hands high above him.


    The earth started to rumble and rapidly quaked. The swarm apparently felt it and started to fly away.


    ¡°Oh no, you won¡¯t flee, you won¡¯t survive.¡± Peter said with all his anger. ¡°You will pay for what you have done¡±


    ¡°Tianne, really ? How did you think you could even try to hide him ? ¡± Sophie said, almost laughing.


    Peter closed his hands in fists and rocks spears appeared from the whole ground.

 07 - Rain

    A rock spear. A very simple form. A six feet long and one inch thin rock with a sharp end. Nothing complex, just a rock.


    Peter wanted a rain of them. And this time, it will rain from the ground to the sky.


    As the power kept going up and up, he watched each of these stupid birds that were previously attacking them and were now flying away.


    Oh, Peter will make sure each of them pay for what they have done. They came here, they attacked them, they made one of his saviors and his battle companion suffer. And now, they were trying to flee. Absolutely not ! Each of them will perish.


    Spears were there, just under the surface, waiting to be launched. The whole ground was quaking under the pressure.


    Peter clutched his hand, breaking the barrier that was the ground and released the spear rain.


    From anywhere a demon or a building was not standing a spear appeared. The plaza was now nothing but the back of a hedgehog with holes here and there.


    The sound was terrifying. As the ground cracked, shredded apart, each one of his spears fused toward the swarm with supersonic speed. There was no way that fucking swarm was going to survive his rain.


    The impact happened almost instantly. Each spear detonated under its own speed upon hitting a bird. It was almost surprising as Peter thought it would have pierced them.


    The global detonation of all his spear was deafening as the swarm was now nothing more than a large mass of flesh, blood, metal feathers and rock, ready to fall back on them.


    Okay, Peter should have thought of this one consequence. He moved his hands down, opening them and ordering the ground to raise walls. No time for finesse. Two triangles on the small side of the plaza and two rectangles on the large side, rectangles would fall on triangles forming a nice prism to cover them.


    The ground obeyed his master, raising rock walls as he ordered it. The roof fell on his base and what remained of the swarm after his attack started raining on his improvised shelter. The sound was almost comforting.


    Fatigue and exhaustion brutally came to him. Using that much power had a cost but the last dream was not that terrible, Peter thought. The last thing he heard before falling on the ground was an angry hysterical laugh from Sophie.


    ¡°A fucking Primordial, a absolutedamn fucking Primordial ! I¡¯m killing that witch.¡±


    ******


    Peter was awakened by the sound of the rain on a window. He painfully emerged from his slumber and opened his eyes.


    He was not at Tol¡¯Osa anymore. The four poster bed, the comfy mattress, the soft sheet and the nice bolster pillow was not the kind of confort he could find in the small town.


    More importantly, his hands were beige instead of grey. He was back in Denaelle¡¯s palace wherever it was.


    Peter did not feel this situation as a dream. He was way more conscious than in a dream and he could easily interact with anything around him. Also, he never had such a precise and imaginative dream but now that he was dead, he was not sure about his dreaming capabilities


    Peter went out of the bed, a large single one he noticed, and observed the room.


    It was a quite large bedroom with one window on one side and a door at the opposite of the bed. The same polished marble floor, the same columns supporting the same ceiling which was lighting the room. No bas-relief on any wall this time but, on the window side, there were two large tapestries.


    The left one was representing Denaelle in her whole angelic glory before her Fall teaching to a group of humans. She was happy, joyfully interacting with them. He knew how the story ended, everyone knew it. It was not a happy ending for anyone except the Absolute.


    The right one was right after the end of the story. Denaelle, on her knees, her hexagonal halo broken, her wings marked, turning from a mix of gold and silver to a darker and bloodier color, was crying. The end of the Fall.


    How could the Absolute be as good and merciful as They were described in the Great Tome yet as cruel as there, banishing one of Their creations and creating a whole dimension just to imprison her and her followers ? And They knew that was going to happen, They were supposed to be omniscient. The logic was really out of the reach for Peter.


    On the other side of the room, hidden behind a folding screen, there was a modern bathtub, toilets, a sink, some hygienic supplies on a shelf and, hanging on a hook, two towels and two tunics, a black one and a red and purple one.


    Peter was not worried for himself. If his body was still at Tol¡¯Osa, it was under a half foot roof of rock protected by a whole town he just saved. So, he would be okay, probably. Also, last time, it was Denaelle who ejected him from this place. So Peter had time for a bath.


    Peter was more of a shower guy, but that time a bath was perfect to think.


    ¡°So, let¡¯s think back to all that happened during those last hours, maybe days.¡± Peter started.


    ¡°I¡¯m dead because the combo rain, speed, truck, thinking away is not the best one to live.


    This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.


    ¡°That fucking god is real but you have to accept them to go to Heaven. So I went to Hell and became a demon.


    ¡°I apparently got a totally broken power if I compare what I have done alone to the swarm compared to the whole plaza.


    ¡°Demons of Hell are not necessarily bad people, but unlucky ones.


    ¡°And I¡¯m taking a bath in the First Fallen¡¯s palace.¡±


    ¡°Yes, I hope you like the bathtub.¡± A feminine voice said from behind the folding screen.


    Peter jumped in surprise, splashing water all around on the floor. He recovered his breath while trying to calm himself.


    ¡°Denaelle, you really had to appear in the room while I was taking a bath, really ? ¡± Peter asked.


    ¡°Well, I could appear in the bath but we are not at that stage yet. I still don¡¯t know your name, young Primordial.¡± She answered with a sexy tone.


    ¡°Okay, did you kill me so I could be some kind of sex slave for you ? ¡± Peter said. He was not appreciating what was suggesting that corrupted angel.


    ¡°No. On this, I can assure you, no one from Hell is responsible for your death. Still waiting for a naaame.¡± Denaelle said. She was apparently playing with the sheet in the bed. Girl, be more discreet if you want any chance with me, Peter thought.


    ¡°Name¡¯s Peter. Is this even possible for a demon to interact with Earth ? ¡± Peter asked.


    ¡°Nah, not without a Devil serving as a bridge. And I would have felt it. Hell may be my prison but I''m also its warden. Peter¡¯s a nice name. So are you dressed ? I want to take another look at our new Primordial.¡± Denaelle said with her sexy tone.


    ¡°My bath is not even close to an end. Can¡¯t you wait, nymphomaniac angel ? ¡± Peter asked, washing himself with some soap block.


    ¡°Wow. Easy, there, young Peter, you know nothing of me. The way that Great Tome of you, humans, depicted me is nothing like what I really am.¡± Denaelle said with a more serious tone.


    ¡°Sorry, sorry.¡± Peter apologized. Yeah, pissing her off was probably a horrible idea, Peter was going to be more careful. ¡°I do have a couple of questions about The Great Tome, The Absolute and yourself. And a couple about that place. Can I ask them ? ¡± Peter asked.


    ¡°Let¡¯s play a game, one question for one question. Honest answers only. We alternate until one of us wants to stop. How does that sound ? ¡± Denaelle said with a playful tone.


    ¡°Okay. Well, let¡¯s start.¡± Peter accepted. The questions had to be smart enough to reveal a lot of information if he wanted to win the most out of that game. ¡°What is the role of the Absolute in the creation and the evolution of Humanity ? ¡±


    ¡°Oh, clever one.¡± Denaelle said. ¡±For as far as I know, They created the Universe and waited. Then when humans evolved to the point of the first large civilization, They started to influence it with dreams. At one point, They sent a part of Them to a yet to be born child and you know the end of that part. They are still sending dreams today. My turn, how did it feel, all that power around you, this time ?¡±


    Peter thought back to how he felt back then, in the middle of the plaza. He had to be honest, not really to Denaelle but to himself.


    ¡°It was scary at the very first but it quickly became exhilarating. What I could do was far superior to all the other demons in the plaza, maybe even together. Is there a limit to my power ? ¡±


    ¡°Yes. My turn again. So, now¡­¡± Denaelle started.


    ¡°Damn. Hey, at least give me a little more than one word.¡± Peter interrupted her. He felt for a basic trick, the least he could do was getting the best out of it.


    ¡°Fine, fine. Your limit will mostly be your own experience instead of the quantity of power your soul can manage as you can draw power from around instead of having to generate it. But nothing is unlimited. Even the Absolute have their limits. So my turn, what are you gonna do now, what are your long term objectives ? ¡± Denaelle said.


    ¡°That¡¯s two questions ! ¡± Peter remarked.


    ¡°You¡¯ll ask two after. Answer me first¡± Denaelle said with a quite serious tone.


    Peter breathed slowly. He did not really have time to think up to this point to his far future in Hell.


    ¡°I don¡¯t really know. What I need now is to understand this place before deciding, probably traveling a bit through it. When I was alive, I just wanted a calm life with my friends. Now, can I have something similar here ? I honestly have no idea. Apparently, I¡¯m not the basic average demon but what does that mean for me ? I can easily suppose you don¡¯t bring any new demons in your palace. So, my turn, what is a Primordial, Denaelle ?¡±


    ¡°The most powerful kind of demon, in their own personal tier of power high above anything else.¡± Denaelle said with some sadness in their voice. ¡±They can partially match Devils in terms of capacities. You already felt the power around you, right ? That is the power of Primordials. They can take power from Hell instead of using their soul to generate it. From what I saw, you are an earth Demon. A normal earth demon would be able to move and create some rocks, maybe a couple of weapons, some kind of armor. With a lot of experience, they could create a projectile similar to a meteorite. You just delivered a barrage of supersonic spears and then protected everyone from the fallout and it was the second time you used your power. Primordials really fuck up the power scale.¡±


    Peter was not happy. That means that everyone around will look up to see what he will do. If he was really as powerful as Deneaelle said, and from what he felt before, that was clearly true, he would have to make some choices that could impact a lot of people. He was not ready for this.


    Peter got out of the bath and started wiping himself. He still had a second question.


    ¡°How am I able to be in that place ? Why am I human in it ?¡±


    ¡°Now, you are the one asking two questions.¡±


    ¡°Just doing the same thing that you did. So ?¡±. Peter asked while dressing up with the black tunic.


    ¡°You are in my personal palace. Well, to be precise, your soul is in it. That¡¯s also why you are human, the soul needs a body to generate and store the power which, then, change your body according to it. Right now, you are just a projection of your human self. And I brought you there. No one can come here until I allow them.¡± Denaelle said.


    ¡°So you kidnapped me there ?¡±


    ¡°Hey, it¡¯s my turn. You owe me two questions, remember ? First one, what do you think of the Absolute, now ?¡±


    ¡°Easy one, the same thing as before. They are an illogical total douchebag that abuses their power.¡± Peter said with an angry tone.


    ¡°How much do I envy you to think that ! Second question, would you come to the bed with me ?¡±


    ¡°Wow. I can¡¯t say I did not expect that one, but still, no.¡± Peter said, getting back in the main space of the room.


    Denaelle was in the bed, in the same tunic as the last time he saw her. Now that Peter could see her, he felt the sadness on her face. She was almost crying.


    ¡°My turn, why are you so sad Denaelle ? ¡± Peter asked.


    The rain on the outside suddenly intensified. Peter turned his head towards the window to see a storm now raging outside.


    He turned back to Denaelle to see her floating right in front of him a little above the floor.


    ¡°Because I know how this story will end.¡± Denaelle said, crying as she pushed Peter back.


    And Peter felt himself falling again.

 08 - Judgment

    Peter awoke in a cell. He was attached to the wall with long chains and handcuffs. His stick was put against a wall. Putting a hand on the ground, he could feel the power in the ground. Those chains were more sending a message that really restraining him.


    ¡°Hey, I¡¯m awake. Someone¡¯s there ? ¡± Peter asked loudly.


    There was some noise outside but no one answered him.


    ¡°Hey, I¡¯m awake ! ¡± Peter said. But, again, no one answered.


    Well, if he was stuck in a cell with nothing else to do, he could at least try to use his power without falling unconscious again, Peter thought to himself.


    ¡°So. let¡¯s try this.¡± Peter said, starting to take power. ¡°This time, more slowly.¡±


    Peter drew some power and wanted a simple rock to appear in front of his hand. The power flowed within him, went out by his hand and a small rock appeared in front of him. He had to be careful as he was feeling his body getting exhausted by the flow of this power.


    ¡°Ok, we go nice and slow.¡± Peter said.


    Peter started to manipulate it by moving his hand, rotating it and changing its shape. Peter felt it was not burning a lot of power and his body was slowly accommodating to the flow going through it.


    He complexified the form of the rock, starting to give it the form of a statue. He was now using both hands as the task was more complex. The statue was fluctuating, taking the appearance from one demon to another. Tianne, with her feathers, Sophie, with her scales, Lucas, with his guns. Okay, probably no one could recognize them as the statue was really crude.


    At one point, someone put a bowl through a small opening at the bottom of the door before leaving. It broke Peter''s concentration and the rock fell on the ground before disappearing.


    ¡°Hey, what¡¯s happening ? ¡°Peter said. But no one answered him.


    Peter quickly ate the bowl. It was not that terrible, he expected worse in a jail in Hell. Without anything more interesting to do, he began again to play and manipulate rocks with his power.


    It was an interesting task for Peter. Instead of just launching a very large mass of power, he was now trying to manipulate with deep finesse a small fraction of his power. Denaelle said his limit was experience, so he had to use his power as much as possible to acquire it. It was also an experience for his body, it was apparently his main limit until now.


    While he was sculpting a gun for a Lucas statue trying to replicate what he saw during the battle at the plaza, the door of his cell opened. Peter released his concentration, destroying the statue. He saw Sophie in the frame of the door.


    Her expression was a mix of fear and anger but Peter was not sure he was the direct source of this anger. Sophie took a large breath and moved her hand sending a couple of scales towards Peter¡¯s handcuff. A second later, the handcuffs fell on the ground and Peter was free.


    ¡°Thanks, I guess.¡± Peter said. He was not sure how to feel about the situation.


    ¡°Follow me and don¡¯t thank me yet. You are a witness in the trial of Tianne and your life and hers depends on it.¡± Sophie said, trying to stay calm. ¡°Since you did not destroy the cell trying to evade and, well, we do owe you our lives, I think you are likely to be banned by the court.¡±


    ¡°What ? What is happening ? A trial for what ? ¡± Peter asked while taking his stick. What could Tianne have done to deserve such a thing ?


    ¡°Well. Primordials are supposed to be killed on sight. She knew it and still brought you back. Hence the need for a trial.¡± Sophie said, leaving the cell.


    ¡°And Lucas ? ¡± Peter asked, following her.


    ¡°He is too young and did not know that rule. In fact, it¡¯s just the council and some key members of Tol¡¯Osa that really are concerned by this specific rule as, officially, Primordials are legends. Your arrival, and more importantly, your demonstration of power forced us to explain some things we would have preferred to stay hidden.¡±


    ¡°Hey, it¡¯s not my fault ! I didn¡¯t exactly choose to be a Primordial.¡± Peter argued.


    ¡°I know. And the way you behaved until now is why you are alive. Believe me, in all my existence here, I¡¯ve only heard of two other Primordials. None of them were as calm or nice as you.¡± Sophie said.


    Peter was speechless. He saved all of them because he was a Primordial but apparently he was going to get judged for this.


    ¡±It¡¯s time for you to see the court of Tol¡¯Osa.¡± Sophie said.


    ******


    Peter entered the same room where he stood when the council received him yesterday. At least he thought it was yesterday. Except now, the amphitheater was full and every demon there instantly went on edge at his arrival and aimed at him with whatever they had, gun, fork, spear, metal or wood spikes¡­


    From down there, Peter could see that Lucas and Ben were not happy at aiming at him. He could also see they were not the only ones not happy at this situation.


    Tianne was in chains kneeling in the middle of the room and Sophie was just behind her. Edgar was sitting on the middle desk right in front of them. His eyes were furious.


    ¡°Sophie, why is that thing not in chains ? Is he not dangerous enough to be detained at any time ? Don¡¯t tell me that witch corrupted you ?¡± Edgar bellowed.


    The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.


    ¡°I won¡¯t keep our savior in chains. Whatever you may think of him, he still saved everyone here. You can not deny him that.¡± Sophie replied with strength in her voice.


    That assembly was really on edge, Peter thought. Not a good thing, especially if that court was like older courts with a tendency to kill quickly.


    ¡°That¡¯s the only reason he is still alive. I did not protect this town for half a millenia for it to be destroyed by a freak corrupted by its own power.¡± Edgar replied with an aggressive tone. ¡°Now ! Peter, apparently Tianne did not tell you what you were and thought she could prevent the Primordial corruption. Is that true ? ¡±


    ¡°Yes, Tianne never told me I was a Primordial.¡± Peter answered walking toward the feather demon on the ground. ¡°I don¡¯t even know what that corruption stuff is.¡± Tianne was not in a good shape and suffered multiple hits. But the wounds were not from birds. Has she really been tortured by another demon ? This town was starting to get on his nerves.


    ¡°You will be corrupted by your own power. Each time a Primordial awakens, each time they have to be stopped from destroying Hell. Last time, it was the Prince herself that had to act. So now, we are doing prevention. Apparently Tianne already knew you were a Primordial and brought you back instead of killing you in the plain. For this, that witch deserves death. As for you, I can not forget Tol¡¯Osa is alive because of you, so we will banish you from the town.¡±


    ¡°So you are gonna kill someone whose actions saved the town and banish someone because he saved your town. Yeah, this is Hell.¡± Peter said with anger in his voice¡± Sophie, are you okay with letting her die ? ¡±


    ¡°No. But we must have rules to survive, I tried but I can¡¯t save her, not without killing someone else.¡± Sophie said, looking at Edgar.


    ¡°We both know no one here can challenge me to take my seat at this council.¡± Edgar said, looking back at her. ¡±Don¡¯t even think of it, Peter, you are way too inexperienced to have any chance against me. The judgement is now clear. Tianne, for deliberately putting in danger our whole town, I condemn you to death. Peter, as you were not aware of your own situation and you saved us all, we are simply banishing you from our town. Know that everyone will try to kill you if you come back. Does anyone object ?.¡±


    Sophie hissed with contempt. Everyone else in the assembly was murmuring. Apparently, the death of Tianne was not very well accepted but no one was objecting.


    Peter kneeled in front of Tianne, she had cried before and was now resigned.


    ¡°How are you ? ¡± Peter simply asked.


    ¡°It¡¯s over Peter, I¡¯m sorry I couldn¡¯t do more. I have to pay the price. Maybe if I could have shown them you were uncorrupted I would have some luck but it¡¯s always like this. People can¡¯t accept change and new options.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m not sure everyone shares Edgar¡¯s opinion. Do you think I can punch some sense in him ?¡± Peter said with a smile.


    ¡°Peter, no. He is too strong for you.¡± Tianne said with fear.


    ¡°I can¡¯t care less. I won¡¯t live letting the ones around me die.¡± Peter said before turning back to Edgar. ¡°Hey, that¡¯s my answer to your judgment.¡±


    Peter stomped the ground to draw a little power and used it to give Edgar a rocky middle finger statue. The assembly was in shock.


    ¡°You want to kill Tianne. You¡¯ll have to come get me first.¡± Peter yelled at the assembly. ¡±So who will I have to punch to explain that we don¡¯t kill our friends or our fellows ? Who wants to test what I delivered to those birds ?¡±


    All around Peter, each demon hesitated. They were all taking aim at him but now, they were clearly not sure they could take him.


    Edgar raised his hand.


    ¡°I will personally end you at the same plaza where we fought back the Blackwing swarm and protect Hell from the destruction you¡¯re carrying. People of Tol¡¯Osa, I have been challenged. Let it be known that a leader never goes back against such a thing. I will defend my seat and my title and I will destroy that menace to our town.¡±


    ¡°This is madness, Peter.¡± Tianne said. ¡°You are just throwing your life away. You can¡¯t save me.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, well, apparently you didn¡¯t have to save me and you still did it. So, I¡¯m doing the same thing for you.¡± Peter said back.


    ¡°Everyone, out, we are doing this now ! ¡± Edgar said loudly, surpassing the noise of the assembly.


    Sophie walked next to Tianne and started to support her.


    ¡°I won the bet.¡± Sophie said as she was putting herself under the shoulder of the feather demon.


    ¡°Which bet ? ¡± Peter asked, going under the other shoulder and using his stick as a support.


    ¡°The one where she bet with me you would challenge Edgar. And technically Peter did not challenge Edgar.¡± Tianne said, laughing in pain.


    "Well, Edgar took it as a challenge." Sophie said.


    ¡°Really ? Are life and death situations a joke for the both of you ? ¡± Peter asked, annoyed.


    ¡°Well, we do share some ways of thinking.¡± Tianne said.


    ¡°And we shared a lot more than that back in the days.¡± Sophie added.


    ¡°Hey, if I somehow survive all of this, Sophie, would you share a night with me ? ¡± Tianne asked.


    ¡°Of course, my love.¡± Sophie said.


    ¡°Okay, I know we are in Hell and people here are not saints but is everyone so casual about sex ? ¡± Peter asked as they were now on the plaza.


    ¡°Yeah. We don¡¯t really have any taboos about this. Especially after a couple of centuries.¡± Tianne said.


    ¡±Who else did you meet to think that ? ¡± Sophie asked.


    ¡°The First Fallen, Denaelle. She asked to sleep with me at our second meeting.¡± Peter said while looking at other demons who were forming a large circle on the plaza.


    ¡°You¡¯ve met the Prince of Hell ? In her legendary palace ?¡± Sophie said, shocked.


    ¡°And you slept with her ? ¡± Tianne added, as shocked as Sophie.


    ¡°I did not sleep with her ! Why would you think that, you bunch of pervs? ¡± Peter said.


    ¡°Hey, she''s the sexiest girl around.¡± Sophie said.


    "And the most powerfull." Tianne added.


    ¡°Yeah, the looks are not my priority when I want someone in my bed and I was more focused on trying to survive and understand Hell. And, by the way, this is still my priority as I¡¯m going to fight Edgar !¡± Peter said with energy.


    They were now on one side of the circle and Edgar was at the opposite. Donero was standing right in the middle.


    ¡°People of Tol¡¯Osa. This fight will oppose the will of Edgar, our council member and Peter, our savior about the judgment delivered against Tianne. That fight will end whenever a member concedes or dies. May the contestants come forward.¡± Donero announced.


    Edgar removed his tunic and walked forward. As he walked, his fur got denser and his horns longer.


    ¡°Any advice ? ¡± Peter asked, looking at the two demon ladies.


    ¡°That guy is an old warrior. He chose Hell to be with his platoon. He will fight to death.¡± Sophie said.


    ¡°Your only advantage is that you have more power than him, but I don¡¯t think you can make him burn all of his own before he gets you.¡± Tianne added while sitting on the ground.


    ¡°Okay, I have a plan. I just have to overcome a mental blockage.¡± Peter said.


    ¡°Which is ? ¡± Sophie asked.


    ¡°Destroying a human soul ! ¡± Peter said, walking forward.

 09 - Pebble

    The situation was terrible for Peter. Killing a bunch of birds or dogs in self-defense was quite easy. Killing a human, well a demon with a human soul, was not. Peter had a couple of ideas on how to defeat Edgar but all of them were extremely lethal. And while he said to Sophie and Tianne he had a plan, his only option was just to drop a shit ton of rock on Edgar until he was dead.


    ¡°Hey Edgar. You wouldn¡¯t be okay with just banishing Tianne ? ¡± Peter asked.


    ¡°Listen to me, Peter. I chose Hell to be with my brothers in arms and what killed them ? A fucking Primordial, the first I¡¯ve ever met, and why, for the fun of it. So I was going to let you live because I do owe you my life but you chose to forfeit it. So I won¡¯t concede and I will kill Tianne to make an example.¡± Edgar said loudly.


    Well, Sophie was right, he is a stubborn one, Peter thought.


    Edgar rushed Peter, fists raised and horns lowered with a clear intention of impale the Primordial.


    Peter focused on the ground under him and used his stick to ask the ground to move on the side. The ground obeyed and Peter felt some happiness from it. Was the ground really conscious ? Edgar could not change his trajectory enough and missed Peter by a large margin.


    ¡°Edgar, I know you think I¡¯m young but I still defeated packs and swarms of beasts. Are you sure you will win this fight ?¡±


    ¡°Stop talking and fight !¡± Edgar shouted, charging again this time more slowly.


    Peter shifted the ground faster trying to move around the huge humanoid goat in large circles. He felt the power flowing but this was not a hard volume like before, his body was getting more and more accustomed with the small flow going through his legs.


    ¡°Edgar, I¡¯m pretty sure I can do this all day, you know, being a Primordial and all that stuff.¡± Peter said with a smile.


    He knew bad mouthing Edgar was not going to work but going for a kill was not easy for Peter.


    ¡°Yeah, well, my warm-up is over. Time to get serious.¡± Edgar said before jumping with great speed toward Peter.


    In a last instant reflex, Peter leaned back while raising a large dirt wall in front of him. The wall was brutally smashed as Edgar passed through it and Peter fell on his butt.


    ¡°You shouldn¡¯t have messed with me.¡± Edgar said, raising his fists before felling them on Peter.


    Peter quickly ordered the ground to send him under Edgar¡¯s legs and past them to dodge the impact and, then, he launched himself a little to get back on his feet.


    ¡°Okay, okay. I¡¯m trying to not kill you in case you didn¡¯t notice. Can¡¯t you just concede ? ¡± Peter said, creating and sending a small volley of pebbles with some speed towards Edgar. Peter was still trying to not use too much power and those volleys, while not really powerful, were really low on the power consumption.


    ¡°Stop insulting me.¡± Edgar yelled, slapping the volley away.


    Peter focused on three of the pebbles of the previous volley and accelerated them quickly on Edgar. These pebbles went to Edgar¡¯s arms dealing a hard blow on it.


    ¡°Argh ! You low blow cunt.¡± Edgar spitted towards Peter. Edgar clenched his fist and Peter could see the fur grow back on the impacted spots.


    Peter waved his hand sending two volleys of pebbles at Edgar. That fight was a good opportunity to learn how to better use and control his power but he was not seeing how to end it without killing Edgar and could still resolve himself to do it.


    Edgar sidestepped the volleys and rushed back towards Peter head down with horns in the front.


    Peter raised his stick using the ground to launch himself above Edgar and putting a large rock on the trajectory of the goat demon. The impact was quite noisy as Edgar almost totally destroyed the rock.


    Peter landed with ease, the ground helping him to stay stable. Edgar was quickly recovering in front of him. Peter hit the ground with his stick and raised it creating five rocks the size of his head. Waving his stick, Peter shaped them into five spears and, with his free hand, he indicated Edgar.


    The spears obeyed their master and launched themselves towards the goat demon. The speed was way lower than against the spear. Peter wanted to deal some damage and slow Edgar. Killing him was still not an option yet.


    Edgar raised his arm readying his guard position. Suddenly, his horns grew in a spiral forming a couple of shields in front of him.


    The impact of the spears on the shield was impressive. Each rock spear destroyed a part of Edgar¡¯s shields with its sheer speed before crumbling.


    Edgar was now a little trembling as his shield horns fell and new ones grew back straighter.


    Peter was also a little exhausted. The trick with the spears used more power than expected and it was taking a toll on his body.


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    Edgar bellowed. From the palm of his right hand, a sword emerged. The blade was a cut horn while the handle was a bone. From the middle of his left arm, a spiral shield, similar to the ones he previously had, grew. Edgar¡¯s fur started changing, becoming longer and turning from a light brown to a deep black.


    ¡°Stupids Primordials. You don¡¯t even have a week of existence and you¡¯re forcing me to take out my weapons.¡± Edgar yelled at Peter.


    ¡°Hey, I told you you could simply banish Tianne and me. You didn¡¯t listen. It¡¯s not too late to come around and just let us go.¡± Peter said with a little arrogance.


    Edgar laughed loudly before looking back at Peter.


    ¡°Peter, when I told you you are too inexperienced, it was not about your power. It¡¯s about your determination. You never killed someone when you were human. I can feel it. It''s a warrior instinct. So can you kill now ? I think not and I will end you.¡± Edgar said with a smile.


    And Edgar started rushing Peter, the shield raised in front of him and the sword ready to strike.


    This was not good at all for Peter. If Edgar knew what was Peter''s current issue, he would probably try to use it against Peter.


    Peter raised his stick to create a thick wall around him. He saw the wall tremble as Edgar was striking it.


    Peter quickly thought of the actual situation. Edgar was more aggressive and Peter¡¯s power was starting to take a heavy toll on him. On the other end, Edgar was also exhausted by the fight. Trying to make him fall unconscious was still possible as Peter was hoping not to go for the kill.


    Peter felt yet another hit on his wall and this time, he counterattacked by detonating the wall, sending a cloud of rock forward. As the dust fell around, Peter saw Edgar¡¯s shield planted in the ground.


    Peter looked around him and saw Edgar on the side of his wall, his left hand holding the top of it. He launched himself toward Peter, sword raised.


    Peter raised his stick and added some rocks in front of him to protect himself but Edgar was too fast and the strike was really powerful. The first layer of rock was instantly smashed. Peter¡¯s stick did not support the shock and broke in half and Peter felt the sword hitting his right arm and shoulder as pain was erupting in his brain.


    Peter fell on his back on the ground as Edgar was now raising his sword to achieve the young Primordial.


    ¡°Any last word, Primordial ? ¡± Edgar asked.


    Peter let himself be absorbed by the ground.


    ¡°It¡¯s so sad.¡± Peter said. He felt the strike of Edgar hitting the ground with furry as Peter was now feeling himself floating in the ground.


    ******


    Peter remembered the last time he was in the ground was during a fight with hell dogs. Now, it was after a fight with a goat demon. Peter only wanted peace. He was ready to kill beasts to obtain it but demons ? Last time in the ground, he swore to himself he will be the hell of others. Peter guessed he had no choice. This was really Hell, no morals, it will be to kill or be killed.


    Peter breathed the power around him in and out letting himself be healed by it. He was feeling what was happening at the surface.


    Edgar was slowly walking toward Tianne as the whole population was holding their breath. Sophie was trembling, hesitating, some knife in her hand. Edgar said something but Peter could not understand what it was.


    Well, Peter thought, Edgar made his choice.


    Peter absorbed the power around him and ordered the ground to raise back to the surface.


    ******


    Edgar was exhausted beyond what he thought was possible. He was just happy that the upper world was now apparently in peace and that Peter could not kill him because he was just some random atheist rejecting the Absolute and not a criminal or a fighter. The fight would not have been winnable without that. Those Primordials really were something else in terms of power.


    Edgar looked at Tianne who was lying down on the ground and started to come closer, dragging his sword on his side. Sophie quickly made a scale knife and raised it, trembling, toward Edgar.


    ¡°Sophie, don¡¯t be stupid. I¡¯m a warrior, a Chooser and I am a century elder than you. You are a Damned poisoner. You don¡¯t stand a chance.¡± Edgar said calmly.


    ¡°You are a monster, Edgar. Tianne only wanted to support and help Tol¡¯Osa. She risked her life more than once for this town.¡± Sophie said, crying.


    ¡°I could not fucking care less. All Primordials must die. Be happy that this one was too innocent to survive Hell.¡± Edgar said, raising his sword.


    Edgar heard some loud noise behind him. He turned back to see Peter emerging from the ground, the body fully covered by rock armor with a helmet.


    ¡°So sad for you Edgar. I¡¯m rock solid.¡± Peter said.


    Half a second later, Peter was impacting Edgar while his whole body. Edgar felt the ground punching him from under while Peter was hitting him from the top with large rock fists.


    In a desperate attempt to survive, Edgar sent all that was left of his power to his legs and jumped away.


    In the air, Edgar saw a large disk of rock coming to him from above.


    ¡°What the fu¡­¡± Edgar started. But the impact stopped him and sent him back on the ground.


    Edgar was crawling, his whole body in pain and covered with bruises. He had no power left, the swarm assault and this fight burned all his reserves. He looked back at Peter.


    The Primordial was dropping his armor around him while slowly walking toward Edgar.


    ¡°I, I, I surrender.¡± Edgar stuttered.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think you understand the situation Edgar.¡± Peter said with a malicious smile. ¡°What did you say before ? You were ¡®sending a message¡¯ ? Well, guess what, it¡¯s my turn. Do NOT FUCK WITH ME.¡±


    Peter pointed a finger toward Edgar and a small pebble appeared in front of it.


    Sophie walked between them.


    ¡°Peter, are you sure you want to do this ? You can still spare him. He surrendered. Tianne is safe. There is no need to kill him.¡± Sophie said.


    Edgar saw Sophie be moved on the side as the ground rumbled.


    ¡°If I don¡¯t do it, he will come back. It¡¯s not a choice Sophie.¡± Peter said.


    ¡°Yeah, you are no different from other Primordials.¡± Edgar retorted. ¡°All that power, and what you do with it is just killing other things, either beast or demons. So do it !¡±


    ¡°What would you do, Edgar, if I spare you ? ¡± Peter asked.


    ¡°We both know the answer.¡± Edgar said with a small smile while trying to bounce back on his feet. ¡°You have to do it. After all¡­¡±


    ¡°...this is Hell.¡± Peter concluded.


    The last thing Edgar felt was the small pebble entering his head.

 10 - Beginning

    Peter was standing above the body of Edgar. The demon he just killed had a human soul, he was more or less like him. Someone who lived a life on Earth and was sent to Hell at his death. And Peter just ended his demonic life in Hell. Peter was feeling the soul of Edgar, shattered, flowing out of his body and dissipating in the ambient environment. An instant later, Edgar¡¯s body became dust and was spread out by a small wind. This was the true end of the warrior and the goat demon.


    ¡°People of Tol¡¯Osa ! ¡± Donero announced. ¡°As it was said before this fight, the judgment passed against Tianne and Peter is now void. And we also have a new member at our council. Please welcome Peter, Earth Demon and Primordial as one of our three leaders.¡±


    The crowd was applauding but the mood was not really in. Peter understood them. Killing a leader and a protector was not going to be well appreciated. On the other hand, the behavior of Edgar against Tianne was also not acceptable. And Peter did not have a choice. There was no good ending to this situation and Peter just went for the least bad option.


    ¡°Please, now, go back to your occupations and obligations.¡± Sophie said loudly, covering the noise of the crowd. ¡±There is still a lot of work to do and we lost quite some time with this topic. I will help Peter with the transition.¡±


    The crowd dispersed and Peter was now standing with just Tianne, still lying down on the ground, Sophie, Donero and Lucas.


    ¡°Well, well, well. I can only thank you for saving my love, Peter.¡± Sophie said. ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure becoming a council member is not what you wanted but here we are. For now, bring Tianne back to her bed. Lucas, you will help him and tend to her. Peter, please come back quickly. You have a town to manage. Donero, prepare a crash course for Peter and help him understand the town. I have to talk to everyone else, especially Edgar friends, to smooth the transition. Although, I don¡¯t think anyone would defy our new council member.¡±


    Peter was too exhausted to talk back so he went to Tianne and took her with the help of Lucas, and they started walking back to the house.


    ¡°Hey, Lucas, did you know I¡¯m a Primodial ? ¡± Peter asked.


    ¡°Yes, Tianne told me when we recovered you but I didn''t even really know what that meant. For me, you were just going to be a big and powerful Demon. Tianne told me there was some sort of taboo about it and to not talk too much about it but I didn¡¯t expect to go this far.¡± Lucas answered.


    ¡°Well, I guess I¡¯ll discover more of it when I¡¯ll talk to Sophie and Tianne later. By the way, thanks for the gun back then against the swarm.¡± Peter said.


    ¡°Well, thanks to you. Without your power, we would all be bird chop. That played a massive role in the survival of both of you.¡± Lucas said.


    ¡°By the way, what happened when I went unconscious ? How did we go from the swarm to a court judging a council member ? ¡± Peter asked.


    ¡±Well, Edgar was going to kill you the second you went unconscious but Sophie opposed him. And at that moment, Tianne came back with most of the West team and the situation kinda went nuclear in the council, with both Sophie and Edgar wanting answers. I think the only reason it did not explode in a full fight was because everyone was out of power. At the end, Tianne agreed to be judged but she probably did not expect Edgar to reveal all the stuff he had about Primordials. Sophie did not agree but a large part of the population was feeling unease by the situation and killing and destroying stuff is usually an universal answer in Hell so Edgar punched Tianne to punish her and wanted to execute her. Sophie said we should at least hear what you had to say even if Edgar had already made a decision. I still don¡¯t understand how you were able to stay so calm during all of this.¡± Lucas said.


    ¡°I wanted to be an astronaut when I was younger. Staying calm is kinda mandatory. But Edgar really went on my nerves. In a way, he was not wrong. That power is corrupting me. I feel more sanguine and aggressive than before. I never thought I could kill someone.¡±


    ¡°Nah, this is just Hell mood. Don¡¯t forget you are with the worst of Humanity.¡±


    They arrived at the house and Lucas pushed the door.


    ¡°Her room is there, put her in her bed, I¡¯ll look from her medicine bag.¡± Lucas said, indicating a door.


    Peter opened that door and entered into a small room with a bed sculpted in the wall and a small desk on the side. He dropped Tianne in the bed and put a blanket over her.


    Peter looked at the person who chose to save him. She was sleeping, her face and her body had lost almost all their feathers. He could now see that her face and her hands were marked with a few wrinkles.


    Either she was not young when she died or she sees herself older than she is, Peter thought.


    ¡°Hey, I¡¯ve got the bag.¡± Lucas said, entering the room with a satchel. ¡°I think Sophie awaits you at the council hall.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m not really ready to lead a Hell town. I arrived less than a week ago and all I did most of the time was to sleep.¡± Peter retorted.


    ¡°Well, you¡¯re gonna have to see this with our favorite snake demon. I will be quite busy trying to heal and help Tianne. Can you go ? ¡± Lucas said with a little aggressivity in the tone.


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    ¡°Fine. See you later.¡± Peter said. Clearly, Lucas did not appreciate that Tianne got hurt. And it was more or less Peter''s fault even if he could have done nothing about it. So Peter walked out of the house and went back to the plaza.


    ******


    Outside of the council building, Peter saw Sophie, apparently waiting for him.


    ¡°So, are you ready to be killed by Donero¡¯s boredom ? How are you feeling ? ¡± Sophie said.


    ¡°I do have one simple question. Why would I stay ? I don¡¯t want to be a council member. I¡¯m apparently strong enough to survive outside of the town and I have Hell to discover. I mean, I still have to thank Tianne for what she has done for me but beyond that ? Can you tell me a good reason why I should stay ?¡± Peter asked.


    ¡°Follow me, Peter, I¡¯ll show you.¡± Sophie simply said.


    ******


    They were sliding for approximately an hour. When they were at the limit of the town, Sophie had asked Peter to use his power to move them faster. Peter had created a 10 by 5 foot stone hollow oval on which they were now riding.


    The control of this improvised vehicle was a good experience for Peter. It was not burning a lot of power but it needed a lot of concentration. And around 25 miles per hour, the wind was not helping to maintain his focus.


    Sophie was guiding him toward a very large hill on the side of a distant hill range.


    ¡°Do we really have to go this far for you to show me what you want to show me ? ¡° Peter asked.


    ¡°You''ll understand when we''ll be there. Be ready to burn more power, it''s at the top of the mountain.¡± Sophie answered, indicating the large hill.


    ¡°Oh shit, those hills are mountains.¡± Peter realized seeing them larger as they were getting closer.


    ¡°Yeah, your long range depth perception is kinda fuck up because the sky is not blue here.¡± Sophie said with a smile.


    The ascension took quite a while and Peter was very exhausted when they finally arrived at the top. Peter discovered that what he originally thought of as a hill was not just a mountain but a dormant volcano. And the view was clearly worth the effort as it was by far the highest point around.


    On the side they came from, the best part of that view was the changing colors of the plain. Cycling from a bright red toward a deep brown, the plain was slowly evolving, like waves would move on a sea with little wind. In the distance, Tol''Osa was a small square in the huge plain, almost an anomaly, like a mole on a skin. Around the town, there were some fields accentuating the trace of the town on the plain. And that was it. Nothing else until the horizon. Tol¡¯Osa lost in the middle of a solid sea.


    But the real spectacle was on the other side. Behind the mountain and volcano range, there was a forest quite dense and alive from down the volcano to the horizon. And it was not just alive because of all the different creatures Peter could see moving in between trees but because trees were also moving. Large and huge black conifers were slowly moving around, their branches swinging with each of their steps.


    ¡°Woah ! ¡± Peter exclaimed.


    ¡°Yes, it¡¯s a nice spot for those of us who can get here and come back in one piece.¡± Sophie said. ¡°But for me, this spot is more than just a nice view.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean ? ¡± Peter asked.


    ¡°It¡¯s where I landed. I shouldn¡¯t have survived. The site was infested with beasts from the forest.¡± Sophie started to explain. ¡°But, someone came and saved me. It was Tianne. Back in the days, Tol¡¯Osa was saving everyone, sending a team each time it was possible.¡±


    ¡°What happened ? ¡± Peter asked.


    ¡°We had some casualties. And Edgar was becoming more and more paranoid.¡± Sophie continued. ¡±When Tianne and I started to clash, he took the opportunity to drastically reduce the number of teams, sending them only after the rare Choosers when he could. It was not a good thing for our town. I want the will to save the maximum number of people to come back. I want a new direction for Tol¡¯Osa.¡±


    ¡°Okay, it¡¯s nice, but what¡¯s in it for me ? I still don¡¯t see what¡¯s preventing me from just leaving the town and trying to cross that nice looking forest.¡± Peter asked, creating a small rock stool before sitting on it.


    ¡°I¡¯ll teach you how to go back to Earth.¡± Sophie said.


    ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure that¡¯s impossible.¡± Peter retorted.


    .¡±There are legends and rumors. And you are a Primordial. Nothing is really impossible.¡± Sophie said.


    ¡°If I really want to go back to Earth, I think I can ask for some help from Denaelle.¡± Peter said. ¡°Sophie, what is the real reason you want me to stay at Tol¡¯Osa ?¡±


    ¡°The town is basically doomed if you¡¯re not there to help us.¡± Sophie begged, falling on her knees, forehead against the ground. ¡±Edgar was really a true monster in terms of power and our town is now defenseless from real menaces. We need you. And I know you don¡¯t need us but you are our only chance.¡±


    It was a tough choice for Peter. On one side, there was adventure, exploration and freedom but he would leave the ones who helped him to their death. On the other side, responsibilities and obligations but he would be with other demons including some of them he appreciated. Of course, all of this supposed Sophie did not lie to him and he was not totally trusting the demon but he did not really have a choice.


    Peter thought of what each option would mean for him and went with the more logical one. The one where people who were nice to him mattered.


    ¡°I really hope you won¡¯t make me regret this choice later, Sophie.¡± Peter said with a serious tone. ¡°I accept to become a council member. Let¡¯s go back to our town.¡±


    ¡°Thank you a lot.¡± Sophie said, raising herself. ¡°Without you, we were dead, again.¡±


    Peter was looking at the town and the plain. High above in the bronze sky, he could see a couple of comets, both red.


    ¡°So, I suppose you want me to save those two poor souls if they land.¡± Peter said, looking at the scale demon.


    ¡°They won¡¯t land, the one on the left is too small, the soul is almost already destroyed and the one on the right is too slow, the soul can¡¯t probably endure such a long Fall. We still have to watch it but I wouldn''t bet on it.¡±


    Peter started to focus on his power recreating the sliding oval. Sophie jumped on it and they were ready to go back home.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry you had to do all of this and choose this path, Peter. But it was the best choice for the town.¡± Sophie said.


    ¡°Well, this was a hell of a beginning, that¡¯s for sure.¡± Peter said with a smile.


    ****** End of the first arc : Beginning ******