October, 2023

  Istrozan hung in darkness, suspended on the Infinite Web, a personal creation that extended her foresight, though it still wasn’t perfect, despite countless years spent refining it.

  Each strand of the web was a construct anchored at one end in the past, while the opposite was anchored in the future and the bulk of it lived in the present. The temporal energy flowing through the dark cave she’d lived in for eons was the perfect sort to tune her mind to the countless possibilities the future held, but just like the day she’d finished spinning it, she was still horrified.

  She’d seen her own death. Most forms of foresight were blind to that, but since she’d seen it, she’d been desperately trying to unweave the chain of events. She’d put it off by almost a billion years, but the inexorable march of time constantly drew her closer to her demise.

  She’d hidden herself away, because involving herself in Unseelie politics was a certain death sentence, just like most everything the Unseelie did; they had no idea how stupid they were.

  In her dark cave, she’d foreseen the coming of The Void and the amusing little betrayal of the Unseelie Queen, Thistle Treelash, at the hands of Minerva Lovelysky, the Seelie Queen, who was one of the most tender-hearted of the lighter side of their race. She’d foreseen the bargain Thistle made with The Void, to turn herself and her people into demons.

  Istrozan had done nothing to change any of that, because everything she might have done would shorten her life. She bothered no one, but occasionally ate an intruder that came for her advice, because a reputation for deadly mystery was perfect for life extension, creating a kind of awed reverence in those that followed.

  Unfortunately, the future anchor points of the Infinite Web were slowly coming undone and some of them had gone down in flames. Istrozan still clung to those few she had left, but as she looked to the future with horror, she knew her time had come. There was no escape and the many guarding spells she’d placed around her lair were being dismantled by a creature so very unlike the demons that had grown her in a jar.

  Silver Dollar had been the last foreseen doom. Istrozan had deftly avoided the others, but the tenacity of Silver Dollar was nothing like the rest. She never gave up, because she was in love: Istrozan stood between the crazed demon and her deepest heart’s desire.

  Istrozan had sent Silver Dollar dreams of her own certain and impending death at the hands of the one she loved, but she’d ignored them all, convinced they were lies. Such was the madness of love. Such was the power of seduction and the web of lies woven by Silver Dollar’s master, the second greatest master manipulator in history, both past and future.

  Istrozan knew the child’s mind as well as her own, because she was destined to live on inside Silver Dollar, but despite the fact the time-weaving spider was going to die in the present day, she knew justice would be served, after a fashion. Silver Dollar’s master would someday tire of her advances and he would eat her, but even more amusing was what was going to happen to him…

  Oh yes, that had become the only thing that made the continuous struggle and the constant failures worth it, once Istrozan gave up on saving herself. Instead, her every move for the past eighty years had focused on one singular goal: ensuring the demise of her killer and the amusing fate of her killer’s master.

  Along the way, she’d contacted the Greek Fates and convinced them to intervene, which had caused them to act both in the present and in the past. Ironically, she’d saved the human race, but she’d done it for her own selfish reasons, to set the demons down the path to their own destruction. The one pulling the strings would think he’d won, but Istrozan grinned in the dark, amused by the way he would become the end of his own people and Silver Dollar would unknowingly pave the road to that fate. Her master’s ego would be crushed, a perfect punishment for that arrogant creature.

  There was a distant rumble as the last of Istrozan’s defenses, an enchanted boulder laden with vicious curses, was overwhelmed through the clever application of even more curses. The magic reached critical mass and the boulder exploded, vaporizing the whole mountain, though Istrozan had long ago moved her lair into a pocket dimension for that very reason.

  As intense light and a hot wind streamed into the cave, Istrozan cut the last surviving strands of the Infinite Web with a sharp leg tip, because Silver Dollar couldn’t be allowed to study its magic. With the last of the magic flowing from the future gone, the loose strands all withered and crumbled to ash, while the spider-demon dropped to the cave floor.

  She was a jet-black spider, with eight eyes and a red hourglass shape on the underside of her abdomen. She walked toward the entrance as a female demon in a short skirt stepped inside. Istrozan had seen the face of her killer in many visions, but never in person. She was more imposing face to face, because Istrozan looked up from the stone floor.

  Silver Dollar cackled, “I’ve got you now, Istrozan!” She howled with insane laughter, “There’s no escape, because an entire army guards the exit! Have you any final words?”

  That was an old custom among the Unseelie, giving the winner a chance to gloat, while the loser got the chance to ruin their day with a little verbal barb. Like everything else, it was part of the game of continual dominance.

  Istrozan looked up, nodded and spoke calmly, “I do.”

  Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.

  “Then say them and die!” Silver Dollar was drooling with the anticipation of getting her heart’s desire.

  “Very well.” Istrozan peered into the future for the second to last time, causing all eight of her eyes to flare pink, with a black core, while she prophesied, “He will never be yours. He won’t allow it. You may enjoy each other’s company for a time, but just like all the others, he will tire of you, because there never was any trace of love in his heart.” Istrozan grinned evilly, because she’d made certain of that, “Your position beside him will never be sure. Your entire existence is a house of cards and deep down, you’ve always known that. You’ll never be happy, because that runs contrary to the nature of a demon. Your desires shall become nothing more than ashes in your mouth, perhaps pleasant at first taste, but ultimately, a bitter poison, come the finish.” The glow faded from her eight eyes, “Your master is one of the great manipulators in history. You were engineered to be his pawn, because the power of love was the only weapon that could take my life.”

  “Are you done? Because I’m bored.” Silver Dollar sighed, one final insult, despite the fact she’d honored tradition.

  “I am.” Istrozan chuckled and laid down on the floor, “Go ahead and eat me, but take my words to heart, that you might experience the greatest of all bitterness of soul: unrequited love.”

  Silver Dollar dropped to all fours and transformed into a huge, silver-furred, nine-tailed fox. She opened her mouth extra wide and lunged forward, ripping the unresisting spider’s legs off with her jaws!

  It was as painful as Istrozan had foreseen, but she smiled and laughed maniacally as she was consumed, piece by piece!

  When she’d cruelly been left as nothing more than a severed head and Silver dollar opened her mouth for the final bite, Istrozan howled and prophesied for the last time, “May you choke on my poisonous final words: he will never love you!”

  With a crunching sound, Istrozan’s head was crushed between the fox’s jaws!

  Silver Dollar quickly emerged from the spatial tear, because the pocket dimension was beginning to destabilize, since Istrozan had been its living anchor.

  She stood in the blasted plain, which had once been at the foot of a very remote mountain. The black-furred leader of the army that had provided backup gave her a questioning look, though his features were obscured by the rising sun, which was behind him. Nonetheless, a pair of antlers were visible atop his head, in silhouette.

  The fox demon answered the unspoken question, “It’s done. You can go.”

  “Move out! We’re done here!” The army marched away, leaving Silver Dollar alone.

  She retook human form and produced a little makeup compact. She looked into the mirror and called out, “Oh Master, I must speak with you!”

  She was so excited, because she was eager to have her reward. The mirror darkened.

  “Report.” The Master commanded.

  “After more than one-hundred years, I’ve succeeded!” Silver Dollar enthused, “I’m digesting Istrozan at this very moment!”

  “Excellent. I have another task for you-”

  “But Master, you promised!” Silver Dollar dared to interrupt, despite how dangerous she knew that was.

  “Yes, I did.” The Master sighed, “What is it you desire?”

  “Your hand in marriage.”

  The Master howled with laughter for a time, leaving Silver Dollar’s lower lip quivering with fear that she was about to be betrayed, but the Master finished and spoke with amusement, “We’re now betrothed.”

  Silver Dollar held up her left hand as an engagement ring appeared on her ring finger, which looked like a golden snake with a large ruby set in its mouth. She smiled and cried, happy to have the first part of what she wanted.

  “Begin planning the wedding, but I want it to happen on Earth.”

  “Of course, Master!” Silver Dollar spoke with great eagerness and a little drool began to trickle from the corner of her mouth as her mind immediately focused on the details!

  She wanted a wedding dress that looked almost like a layer cake, a big buffet, which Gluttony would probably be willing to cater, then there was the guest list to arrange, invitations to deliver, just so much to do!

  “-still there? Is this thing broken?” The Master’s increasingly frustrated voice cut through the warm glow of fantasy, along with the sound of his mirror being smacked on various surfaces.

  “Sorry Master.” Silver Dollar came back to the present, “I was lost in a dream again.”

  “Ah, yes, I should have expected that. We’ll discuss the preliminary details when next we speak, but until then, I need you focused, because I have another task for you.”

  “It’s my pleasure to obey your will, Master!” Silver Dollar’s enthusiasm to obey was greater than ever before.

  “Quite so.” The Master chuckled, “Now that Istrozan’s power is within your grasp, we must perfect it. Istrozan’s visions always had one fatal flaw: she could not pierce masking spells without an overly-complicated arrangement of temporal anchoring spells. The trouble with that was the way she was stuck wherever she constructed the anchors. That’s a big reason she never left her lair and as you well know, that was the means to kill her.

  “I can’t allow that to happen to you, my dearest.” Silver Dollar silently cried at the way the Master had indirectly told her how much he cared, because he was concerned for her safety! He continued, “To that end, you must locate the eye of Balor, which is in human hands, though I’ve never been able to track it down, despite expending considerable resources. With your new power, it should be child’s play.

  “Nonetheless, use extreme caution, because we can’t allow the eyes of the Dark Seer to go to waste. I suggest you employ others for the capture and collection work. I can give you the names of a few bounty hunters I find suitable.”

  “Of course, Master! You can count on me!”

  “One more detail: I can’t currently give you any resources for this mission, lest I draw attention to myself. Therefore, I suggest you return to Lust’s empire, which is sorely in need of new leadership, considering the way Lust turned traitor. My other double agents will be of some assistance, but taking over what remains of the traitor’s operation should give you all the resources and wealth you require. Use your new power to reveal the most efficient approach.”

  “I’ll tear the traitor’s lieutenants to shreds,” Silver Dollar’s voice turned dark and breathy, which was how she spoke to everyone except the Master, “feast on their bones and make their power my own!”

  “Yes,” the Master laughed, “but only if you need to. If they’re willing to kowtow, make good use of them.”

  “Of course. You’re very wise, Master.”

  “Good luck, not that you’ll need it, and I’ve got to go.”

  “I…” Silver Dollar hesitated.

  “Yes?”

  Her heart beating faster than ever and her mouth dry, Silver Dollar spoke the words she’d never dared speak, “I love you.”

  “And I love you.” The way the Master hadn’t even hesitated filled Silver Dollar with a wonderful thrill! “Farewell.”

  Deep down inside, she knew it was a lie, because she’d seen the Master lie to everyone, even himself, but she wanted and needed to believe. Nonetheless, there was a bitterness deep in her heart, but she tried to bury it, instead focusing on her assigned tasks, including planning the wedding.

  Demon for President!, though the precursor events that set Artemis down the path to conflict with The Void began in She Goes to War, when she encountered her first elemental spirit. You can find the store links for these novels on the fiction page, or my website.

  Jigsaw City, which is currently being published a chapter at a time. Specifically, chapters , , , and should nicely illuminate the origin story of demons.

  Jigsaw City.