Date with Destiny-Demon Style Ch. 09

His words were cut off when Lucifer's hand wrapped around his throat. Holding his neck just hard enough to cut off sound, the demon king looked down at the lowly prince with a look of distanced repulsion.

"Now, child," Lucifer's smooth voice was hard as steel, "Let's make this a fair game, shall we?"

Malnos struggled vainly, clawing at Lucifer's arm.

"We wouldn't want any accidents –" he squeezed Malnos' throat harder "- to happen because of an unfair outcome."

Malnos stopped his struggling, looking up at Lucifer with terrified eyes. He nodded slightly, his body shaking out of fear. Lucifer scoffed and dropped the prince, watching as he frantically crawled away.

Kara had to suppress her hysterical laughter. Malnos may be extremely intelligent and manipulative, but on the inside he was just a frightened little boy who pushed people around to get his way. The apple didn't fall far from the tree, apparently.

She scoffed internally, then became worried. If Emiline somehow did manage to beat her, that little shit was who she was going to marry! And she thought Hell was bad enough as a place. Determined not to end up sleeping with either of her rotten sons, Kara turned her attention back to Emiline. And not a second too late. She'd managed to pull her blade from the tile and had taken her stance again.

This round, Kara decided she wasn't going to play games. Her anger had gone beyond regular fury. Knowing her loss would seal her princes fates had her heart begging for blood to spill. And it would. She would make sure of that.

Emiline stepped forward, swinging her blade to the right. Kara dodged the attack and let her hammer fly, bouncing it off a marble column. The steel ball ricocheted back, connecting with Emiline's temple and sending her stumbling forward.

Kara whipped around and took a defensive stance, regaining control of her hammer and waiting for Emiline to collect herself. She could take advantage of her opponent's weakness and kill her now, but this had to be a fair fight. If it wasn't, Emiline or her sons might cry foul and execute Darian and the others anyway.

Emiline regained her balance, though it was clear the hit from her hammer had rung her bell fairly hard. She shook her head, her black eyes focusing back on Kara with a fury bordering on insanity. Someone didn't take losing too well.

Her insanity taking hold, Emiline rushed forward, swing her sword like a bat. The brazenness of the attack caught her off guard, making a small open space for her opponent to strike. The sharp edge of the blade connected with her left shoulder, slicing deep into the skin.

Crying out in pain, Kara swung her meteor hammer hard, matching Emiline's attack by sending the spiked ball into her shoulder. Bone crunched under steel as Emiline's momentum was increased. Both dropped to one knee, facing away from each other and inspecting their injuries.

Breathing heavily, Kara pulled aside the tattered sleeve of her shirt and studied the damage. A deep gash about five inches in length ran at an angle from the top of her shoulder to her back. Painful, but not debilitating. Her opponent had fared much worse in this round. By the sound of it, her counter-assault had probably shattered Emiline's shoulder blade.

Well, that added another advantage. Now that her shoulder was out, Emiline's attacks wouldn't be nearly a strong. She'd be slower, too which meant her attacks would be easier to dodge. Shaking off her mental shock, she hauled herself to her feet and turned around, staring at Emiline. The witch stared back, teeth bared and eyes glowing with fury.

Screaming like a banshee, Emiline raced towards her, whipping her blade around like a maniac. Kara dodged her attack again, stepping back to toss her hammer and jerk the chain back. The steel ball wrapped around the blade again, locking it in place. Emiline struggled to unravel her weapon, but her hammer had looped around itself, making it impossible to break free.

Standing at a distance, she watched Emiline struggle with her weapon. Her impulsiveness had been her downfall once, and history had a way of repeating itself. Even though Emiline was a skilled fighter, she let her frustration blind her talent. Her loss of control would make her an easy target for even the most uneducated fighter.

Tired of fighting a mock battle with an egotistic child of a woman, Kara yanked the chain hard. Emiline stumbled forward, still holding onto her sword's hilt. Cocking her arm back, Kara delivered a devastating blow to the witch's face.

Emiline cried out, letting go of her sword and staggering back. Whipping the chain, Kara launched the sword away, out of reach from Emiline or her sons. She flicked the chain again, sending the ball flying forward. She pulled back hard, the ball sailing backwards and colliding with the back of Emiline's head. She gave a soft sound of surprise, her eyes rolling back. The witch collapsed to the ground, her red dress splaying out around her like a pool of blood.

Her chest heaving, Kara's strength finally gave out. She collapsed to her knees, her hammer clanking on the ground. She put her hands out, bracing herself against the floor. She did it, thank God. The bitch was out cold, which meant Darian, Lyzander and Ladrian were safe now. Shaking, she inhaled deeply and forced her body to stand. She turned to see her three princes cheering her, smiling and yelling their approval though still bound. Lucifer stood by them, also showing his approval, the dark glint in his eyes alive and well.

Might as well release them.

She began to make her way towards them. All of Emiline's guards had scattered, not wanting to face such a skilled opponent. She smiled as she came closer, pride and happiness swirling inside her. She'd taken out her opponent, ensured her alliance with Lucifer and save the princes. She'd make a horrible damsel in distress.

An arm went around her throat, choking her and dragging her down to her knees. Panicked, she clawed at her attacker, trying to break their hold. The slivers of red script he could on the forearm see told her one of Emiline's sons had taken her down.

"Mother!" Ziron's voice thundered in her ears.

Still struggling against his embrace, her eyes darted over to find his mother. She was staggering to her feet, one hand clapped to her bloodied head. Her mouth was a grimace of pain, her black eyes blazed with fury. She held her damaged arm with her working hand, wincing in pain.

"You!" She pointed a finger at Kara. "You will pay for you insolence!"

She struggled harder, knowing what was coming. She should have kicked her when she was down, just to make sure.

Emiline's gaze shifted to the bound princes, her eyes cold and steely. "Malnos!"

The witch's oldest son sprang up, racing behind their backs. He stood silently, a smirk on his face.

"Execute them. Maybe our little princess will learn a lesson about respecting her elders when she sees their heads rolling across the floor."

No. NO!

Fury rushed through her veins. How dare she? She'd lost a fair fight and now decided to execute them anyway! That bitch! She'd pay for this with her life!

"This world of suffering and torment is mine, now. And I will rule it with or without your help, Kara." Emiline's black eyes focus on her again, steely and unforgiving.

She watched in horror as Malnos moved to unhook a second sword from the wall. He stepped back, placing one foot on Darian's back and shoving him forward. His chest rested on a chunk of stone that had been knocked loose by her hammer, his head hanging over the edge. Malnos mover around to his side, a ravenous smile on his face. Gripping the sword with two hands, he raised the blade and took aim at Darian's neck. The ill-fated prince closed his eyes and braced for impact!

"NOOOO!"

She fought Ziron's grasp like a rabid wolf, twisting and tearing in every direction. He gripped her with his other arm, obviously shocked by the ferocity of her struggle. She felt her demon blood break free, the barriers of her control falling away completely. Her eyes glowed red, her nails elongated. But even her new strength couldn't break her captor's hold.

She watched with fear-filled eyes as Malnos took one more second to aim at his target. His eyes flicked to hers for a heartbeat, elation burning in those emerald depths, mocking her. He refocused his gaze back to Darian and swung the sword.

The blade fell slowly, the horror of the situation slowing time down in her eyes. She opened her mouth, screaming out Darian's name, tears flowing down her cheeks. She couldn't lose him. She couldn't. She wouldn't allow it to happen.

NO!

Her scream turned silent. The room pulsed around her and her eyes shifted to black. Ziron's muffled shouts of surprise and Malnos' yells of horror swirled in her mind. Emiline's scream rang in her ears, growing distant. Heat filled the room, wrapping deliciously around her skin. Small red flames seeped out of the cracks in the tile floor, reaching up to caress her hands again. Larger ones burst through the tiles, shattering the slabs of marble and wrapping around the three traitors.

She swayed and collapsed to the ground. Her breathing slowed and her vision began to fade. This time, she wasn't so lucky. Her strength, already on short supply from the first assault, had been drained dry. Her heartbeat grew weaker, and it became harder to draw in air. In her heart she knew what was coming, and she began to silently mouth her goodbyes.

Darian, Lyzander, Ladrian. All three of them had done so much for her. Loved her, laughed with her, fought for her. It pained her to leave them alone, to leave them grieving for her. She would miss them so much. So much...The soft sounds of screams finally faded away as her hearing disappeared and her vision went black.

Seconds later, her heart stopped.

* * *

Don't panic! This isn't the end of the story! She'll be fine, I promise. She has to be. How much fun would it be if I killed off the main character? Not much. I'd have nothing else to write.

Also, I apologize in advance. My college graduation is in a few weeks, so I'll have a few more things to focus on besides this. Which means Chapter 10 may take a little while to post. Sorry.