Styker

There was a demon named Styker. He was considered the vilest of his kind. Not because of sheer brutality but because of his cold calculated methods of torture. Unlike most of his brethren, he preferred to remain in his humanoid form. This placed his a head taller than any other. His hair was black as a starless night. His skin is as white as freshly fallen snow. He much preferred wearing a pure black suit rather than anything like the "casual" demons did. One day he felt that familiar tug of summoning. "I haven't been summoned in....how long has it been?" he thought, "who could have uncovered my true name?" As he allowed himself to be pulled through the seams between the realms he felt the old excitement of being able to torture a poor foolish living soul. He materialized in the human world simply from rising from the ground. He never cared much for the smoke and fire theatrics. As he took in his surrounds he noticed a young man. Maybe 20 from his estimate. "Who dares summon me?" Styker asked. "It was I" spoke the boy. "And who might you be?" Styker said as he looked down at the boy. "I am Vladimir. I have summoned you to do my bidding" said Vladimir in a confident voice. "Vladimir? I haven't heard that name in a millennium," Styker said as he meticulously inspected the summoning circle. "A perfect summoning circle," he thought, "surely this child didn't make it himself" As he looked Vlad in the eyes he spoke, "do you know the extent of the torment you will feel if your bonds are not secure?" "Yes," Vlad said very pointedly as he raised his hand to a pendant at his throat. "That's why I took precautions." Styker's eyes narrowed, "A binding charm. How did such a mere child get a hold of one." "Tell me, child, how did you acquire that charm?" "It is a family heirloom passed down through my family. Originally made by Vladimir the Impaler, I'm sure you know of him." Vlad spoke with a smirk. "Ah, so you're no normal child then. My days with him were almost....fun. He did love his tortures. So, what did you summon me for?"Styker spoke with sudden interest. "My father passed away recently and my mother has fallen ill due to depression. I summoned you to tend to my family" Vlad spoke looking down at the floor. "YOU DARE SUMMON ME TO BE A CARETAKER? DO YOU KNOW THE POWER I WEI..." Styker's rant was cut short as Vlad gripped the charm and spoke a simple word "asculta". Styker felt his insides twist as the spell took effect. "Even after so long," Styker choke out," it still holds full power." "Very well, as it seems I have no choice, I will do as you say.....for now." Styker growled. As Styker watched Vlad draw near to break the circle he spoke: “You know.... a command charm only holds power if you can get the spell out, don't you?” Right at the moment Vlad broke the circle Styker struck with unreal speed, only to stop short with a hiss and burning smell. “What is this?” hissed Styker. “Hm? Oh, I've almost forgotten,” Vlad said absent-mindedly pulling up his sleeve, “I had a protection spell tattooed onto my arm at the age of 16. I've gotten so used to inferior demons that I've almost forgotten about it being there.” “Tell me, child, how old are you anyway?” Styker asked. “Oh, I'm only 22. I've been studying demonology since the age of 12 though. Your kind can be so predictable. You always conduct small talk while you check the perimeter of the summoning circle. When you see it's a perfectly made one you then try scare tactics. That's part of why I summoned a demon of such high esteem. I've gotten tired of the theatrics of the lesser kind. That and I needed one who preferred to look like a human. Demon summoning has been frowned upon for centuries and I'd rather not attract any unwanted attention.” “We'll see about predictable,” thought Styker, “I may not be able to harm you but once I get a hold of that obedience charm and destroy it I will make you watch as I torture your mother.” “Demon summoning has been cast away? That explains why so few of us get pulled anymore. When we do it's generally by foolish Gothic teens out in the woods or in abandoned churches. They never last very long,” Styker said with a sadistic grin. As Vlad lead Styker out of the summoning room, Styker looked at his surroundings. Everything looked familiar yet different. He could tell that he was in Vlad the Impaler's castle but everything had a modern flare. “For how long it's been I'm surprised your family is still living in the castle, especially with the....history,” spoke Styker. “It's been passed down through the family and no one has really been interested in buying it due to the history” replied Vlad. They continued down the hallway toward the main area Styker noticed that there didn't seem to be any other inhabitants. “Where are all of the servants? Surely a family of your esteem doesn't live alone.” Styker questioned. “No one is willing to work in this household. They seem to have this odd notion that unnatural things happen here” Vlad replied with a chuckle. “So you have been truly taking care of your mother all on your own then? That's....admirable I suppose.” “ As they came close to the master bedroom Vlad spoke “This is my mother's room. I'll introduce you to her if she's awake and then we'll be going to do a few things around the castle.” As they entered the room Vlad muttered: “she's asleep....what's that look for?” Styker cleared his throat and spoke, “She's uhh prettier than I was expecting.....for a human you know. ” Then Vlad's mother began to stir. “Oh, mother, you're awake. This is Styker, he will be assisting around the castle from the time being.” spoke Vlad. As Vlad's mother sat up Styker took in her appearance. Vlad's mother, Angela, was of average height with rose blond hair that reached down to the middle of her back. Her skin was akin to porcelain, almost pure white and completely flawless. When she looked Styker in the eyes her eyes were a rich deep blue with a mixture of green and brown in the center. “Nice to meet you Styker.” Angela spoke with a smile. When she smiled something stirred in Styker. “There isn't a single ouch of ill will in this woman, that's....odd.” thought Styker. “Nice to meet you too...” said Styker. “Well, Mother we've got a few things to do so we'll be off. Would you like anything from Marius's bakery?” asked Vlad. “Oh...just bring me a couple of angel wings, thank you dear.” spoke Angela. At the mention of angel wings, Styker gave Vlad a confused look. As they were leaving the room Styker asked Vlad what angel wings were. “It's a sweet crisp pastry that gets twisted into ribbons, deep-fried and sprinkled with powdered sugar.” answered Vlad. “Oh, sounds......interesting.” mumbled Styker. As they exited the house Styker noticed a single vehicle sitting outside the house. There sat a 2019 Bentley. “Finally something that makes sense with you” chuckled Styker. “Hm? Oh, mother wanted it, so father bought it with cash.” muttered Vlad. “You're driving right?” asked Styker. Vlad stopped and stared at Styker for a few seconds, “Yes......you do know how to drive as well correct?” asked Vlad. “Yes,” Styker said with a look of indignation. “It's just not something that I prefer. I have better ways of transportation”. They drove to Brasov in relative silence. Vlad parked the vehicle on the edge of town. “We'll be walking from here.” announced Vlad. “Why here?” asked Styker. “I prefer to take in the town. I enjoy people watching as well.” answered Vlad. “Fair enough, where's our first stop?” asked Styker. “First we've got to go to pay a few bills in the main section, then we'll be swinging around by Marius's bakery to get the angel wings.” answered Vlad. They walked through town in silence. Vlad went about his business briskly and quietly. He seemed to always be aware of his surroundings. Constantly surveying from side to side. “We'll cut through this alley, it's a shortcut to Marius's.” said Vlad. As they cut through the alley, Styker could sense they were being followed. “Hey, you,” a voice from behind said. Vlad and Styker turned around to see two grungy looking men wielding bowie knives. “Give us your wallets” spoke the man in front. “I have no money, BUT, the young...master is rich” spoke Styker with a smirk as he backed away slightly. “Good, I'll let these goons kill Vlad, dispatch them myself and then be on my merry way back to hell.” thought Styker. “Ok, you can have my wallet,” spoke Vlad as he pulled his wallet out of his back right pocket, “here, take it.” As the man reached out to grab the wallet Vlad quickly dropped the wallet, lunged forward and grabbed the mans knife-hand. He quickly twisted it up and over his head to bring the man's elbow facing up. Then he brought his other arm down sharply on the man's elbow. There was a very audible snap and he broke the man's elbow. He then pushed the injured man back into his friend, swiftly scooped up the dropped knife. The second man recovered enough to charge at Vlad. Vlad countered by dropping under the man's guard and using his momentum to flip him over Vlad's back onto the ground. Before the man could recover he quickly brought the knife to the man's throat. Vlad looked the man in the eyes and said. “Stealing is never a good idea. Neither is attacking someone more than a match for you. Take your friend, get him to the hospital, and for God's sake. Pick a better lifestyle,” Vlad helped the man to his feet, “Do you have a family?” The man replied “Yes, he's my brother. We've been trying to take care of our family but as you know the area is in hard times. We can't seem to find a job and we've got to take care of our families somehow.” “I understand the situation but there's always a better way to go about it. Here,” Vlad handed the man 200 lei, “ take care of your families, make better decisions, and stay out of trouble.” The man looked at the money in shock, “B-but....why? We just tried robbing you?” Vlad sighed, “Well I understand where you're coming from. My family has been there. Besides. I may be rich but I'm not heartless. By the way, how would you feel about working at Bran Castle?” “Works, work these days. Why?” replied the man. “Well I could use some gardeners and you two gentlemen need jobs so it seems we could work something out. What are your names anyways?” said Vlad. “U-u-uh, yea....we....we can do that. I'm Alexandru and my brother is Cristian,” Alexandru said with a grateful look. “Good, I'm Vladimir,” Vlad said as he shook Alex's hand. He handed Alex a card, “Here's my number. Give me a call when your brother's elbow is healed.” “Thank you,” Cristian said through clenched teeth. As they were walking away Vlad turned to Styker and gave him a dirty look. Styker stared at Vlad in utter disbelief. “What in the hell? One, where did you learn that kind of self-defense, and two THEY TRIED TO ROB YOU. Most humans would of either killed both or gotten both arrest yet you offer them jobs at your house???” exclaimed Styker. “Haven't you realized yet? I'm not like most humans.” chuckled Vlad. Styker looked at Vlad properly for the first time. Up until this point, he was “just a human”. As they continued walking Styker truly saw Vlad for the first time. Vladimir stood almost as tall as Styker, he had dirty blond hair. His eyes were a golden brown in the sunlight but looked almost demonic black in the shade. Even though he wore relatively formal clothing you could tell he was well muscled. “This might be interesting” thought Styker.  After they got the angel wings they returned to the castle to find Vlad's mother sitting in the living room staring blankly at the tv. Mother, we're back. “I've got you your angel wings,” spoke Vlad. “Thank you Hunny,” replied Angela. “I'm going to go make some calls. Keep mother company,” mumbled Vlad. “Oh, uh, ok,” muttered Styker. “Would you like to try one? They're very good,” mentioned Angela. “Uh, sure” replied Styker as he reached out for the piece of pastry. Styker noticed that Angela was almost looking into him as he took a bite. Styker's face lit up as he took a bite. “This IS good”, exclaimed Styker. Angela replied with a smile, “I knew you'd like it. It's one of my favorite pastries. So where are you from, Styker? You don't look like someone from Romania.” “Well to be honest. I'm from Sheol,” replied Styker. “Oh, yea? What brought you here?” asked Angela. “A......business contract with your son I guess you could say,” answered Styker. “You seem like a nice person. You've got a kindness in your eyes.” Angela mentioned. Styker scoffed and said, “You don't know how far from the truth that is. I'm nothing more than a demon.” “You may have made mistakes in your life but no one is beyond redemption. Every soul can change the outcome of their life.” chided Angela. As Styker quietly thought about what she said he noticed that Angela had almost a light in her eyes. She is an odd human. What is this family? I need to find a way out. As Styker was thinking, Vlad called Styker out into the hallway. “Follow me” commanded Vlad. As Vlad lead Styker through the hallways they turned down an unused stretch hallway a ways away from Vlad's mother. As they rounded a corner Vlad whipped around with a dagger that Styker hadn't noticed before. Vlad slammed Styker against the wall and held the dagger against his throat. A thin bead of blood started trickling down Styker's throat. How is a simple blade able to make me bleed? thought Styker. “If you EVER try to use my mother against me or harm her in any way I will make the rest of your existence a living hell. One of which NONE of your kind has ever known,” yelled Vlad. “I had no ill intentions in there. I was simply talking to your mother. She's an.....interesting human,” chocked Styker. “Keep it that way” demanded Vlad as he released Styker and walked away.  Styker stood in stunned silence as he thought he is much stronger than a mere human should be, and that blade...what is it made of to be able to pierce my skin. I need to find a way out. This human is much more than meets the eye. 2 weeks passed as Styker tried to find a way to escape but to no avail.  Finally, he thought of something that might help get him out of this situation. “I need you to create a summoning circle,” spoke Styker. “Oh? What for?” asked Vlad. “I need to speak to a subordinate about my....circumstances. To ensure they don't come looking for me. I'd rather there not be more problems than necessary. You can leave the name up to me,” replied Styker. “Very well, just give me a few moments and we'll go to the room I use to summon,” answered Vlad. They proceeded to head to the summoning room to create the circle. After Vlad finished the circle, Styker used his finger to trace a symbol into the name slot. It burned bright for a second and then disappeared. “I wonder who he's summoning, probably just a low-rank messenger demon,” thought Vlad. As Vlad stared at the circle waiting for the smoke to appear he blinked, suddenly there was a tall, lean, shirtless man standing in the circle. His most notable feature, however, was his large black wings folded up to his back. As the man looked around he noticed Styker, “Styker! I've been wondering where you've been. Why did you summon me with a circle?” spoke the man. “I wanted you to be aware of what's going on. This human is Vlad, the descendant of Vladimir the Impaler. He's got the amulet.” answered Styker. The man sighed and said, “Very well.” He looked at the circle. “Hm. A perfect circle. Well, even a perfectly made summoning circle can be destroyed,” as he spoke he suddenly and forcefully extended his wings. They hit the walls of the circle with a loud thump and hiss. He quickly pulled his wings back with a smirk and spoke, “I'm impressed...Vlad was it? We'll see how well it holds up to this though.” The man quickly drew something in the air and spoke, “ignisque.” The circle filled with the shape he drew in the air and suddenly it was filled with a fireball that exploded, sending a shock wave through the room. After the smoke cleared the man could be seen with a shocked look on his face. “Oh s**t,” exclaimed Styker with a horrified look on his face. “That was new. No real theatric, black wings, and the power of...whatever that was. I'm going to take a guess and saw you're Lucifer” Vlad spoke with a curious tone. Lucifer burst out in a loud hearty belly laugh, “You're definitely an interesting human.” looking at Styker “looks like my hands are tied here” “What was that you did that caused the fire?” asked Vlad. Lucifer looked confused for a second, “Magic? You're this experience in demon summoning but you don't know anything about magic? That's surprising. You know what kid. I like you.” “Magic can't be real. That must of just been more of the typical theatrics. There's no proof of the existence of magic,” replied Vlad with a scowl.