Eris, the Goddess of Chaos, ran her fingers down one of her long, dark dreadlocks. Her fingernails were pointed and painted with gold. The same precious metal graced the top of her ratted mane. The Goddess’ crown was soaked perpetually in blood, flowing from the many bodies upon which she had brought death and chaos. The Goddess’s eyes were deep amber, and the bloody crown framed her wild eyes so that they looked akin to flame. Layers of sheer black and crimson fabric were held in place by thick golden ropes.
After waking up from a century-long sleep, Eris woke with a thirst for revenge. Not that she wasn’t usually bitter anyway. Gazing into her black onyx mirror, her eyes penetrated all planes of existence as she looked down upon the Human Realm. Her favorite place to wreak havoc, the human plane brought her much joy—in the form of tyranny and discord, of course. But now it wasn’t a human that she desired to seek revenge upon. It was a Dryad.
The onyx mirror on the wall was her personal portal. Sliding her long fingers through the mirror, her fingers magically traced through realms until finally she found the Asuras plane. A realm filled with miscreants and various demons, this was her favorite place to find turmoil.
Chaos was personified by strife, and she was good at it. Spying a Nunanish demon, she chuckled with excitement. Just what she needed. A gangly sort of creature that could take the form of thick, black smoke, the monster could infect beings with violence and hate. She possessed the body of the Nunanish just long enough for the demon to escape the Asuras plane and travel through the Portal Realm past the Knights of the Fog. Then she sat back and began to watch chaos enfold.
• • •
In the Portal Realm, the fog was thick with travelers, and Sabin was on edge. Gypsies, jinn, and shape shifters were frequent travelers between planes. On the other hand, demons, dragons and other, more conspicuous, mischievous creatures were forbidden by the highest order to travel across many realms. Sabin’s ears twitched in awareness, and he predicted that a demon would try to get past him this day.
A Knight of the Fog, Sabin Grey’s job was to keep the peace between the different realms that converged at the site of the portal. Throughout his career, he’d killed a thousand creatures who foolishly tried to slip past him. No matter what their portal, he saw through the thickest fogs and into every world. There were no escapes . . . not live ones anyway.
A jinn slithered around him, its voluptuous body both erotic and disgusting, its skin a murky purple hue, its body knotted and disjointed. Bodies often broke when confined within various lamps and vases. The jinn were a variety of genie, and although they were allowed to travel between planes, they had a reputation as very mischievous creatures and were forbidden in the Human Realm. It eyed him as it walked past.
The jinn were asexual, embodying whatever gender they felt as the moment struck them. And it appeared to him that this jinn was feeling highly female.
Finally the creature gave up on him, and Sabin was left in peace to do his job. No wishes for him. He was mildly agitated by the jinn, but more disturbed by the foreboding chill he felt in his bones. A dangerous demon was trying to get to the Fog plane.
Knights! Do you feel this?
Sabin communicated to his colleagues in the region via telepathy. All Knights of the Fog were blessed with the ability to speak all known languages of every realm, but in the Fog Realm, they always spoke within their minds.
I feel it, brother. I am guarding the Asuras Realm. Come quickly, the portal is vibrating.
The Asuras Realm held disgusting demons whose only desires were conflict and violence. Legend held that long ago a demon leech escaped the realm and traveled to the human plane where it began infecting and creating vampires.
He wasn’t taking any chances. The bodies of netherworlders of all kinds hit the ground as he ran through the mass of travelers, Sabin’s solid body clearing the way when his determined, violent gaze did not. When he reached the vibrating, glittering portal, he instantly saw what held the other Knights at bay: a Nunanish. The blackened creature towered over many of the Knights, its body skin and bones, save for massive shoulders, built as if it were meant to carry loads of dead bodies.
If it escaped to another plane, the Nunanish could become nearly invisible to the human eye, taking the form of black smoke. The demon’s sole purpose was to infect others. The faceless creature rushed toward the portal in a frenzy. Sabin couldn’t imagine what made the creature desire to leave a land of such perfect violence, but now the demon charged toward the barrier.
Fire!
Sabin ordered his men to execute the creature with their specialized weapons developed to penetrate the mystical division between lands. Wielding their steel guns laden with astral bullets, the Knights of the Fog took aim.
Flashes of light exploded from the weapons, but before each astral bullet could hit its charging target, the Nunanish became a dark cloud, letting the astral bullets streak through. The Nunanish manifested once more just as it crashed through the portal, blood seeping from the misshapen, black body in several places where the bullets had passed through the smoke.
Get the travelers back!
He yelled at his men to secure the masses that could easily become infected before they traveled to their intended destination. Of the five Knights in the vicinity, three focused their energy on pushing back the travelers. Some of the demonic pilgrims were innocent enough, but others would be dying for a chance to wreak havoc.
Sabin and his closest comrade, Rowen, hunkered down for the impact of the demon. The two Knights were massive beasts of men, their eyes translucent as ice, glittering with intent.
The demon collided with Sabin, who held himself like a brick wall. Despite the foe’s towering height, Sabin’s body was strong against the impact and rebounded against the demon, pressing its gnarled, blackened body to the fog-laden ground. Fumbling with the beast on the ground, he freed a hand to retrieve the dagger he had strapped to his thigh over thick leather pants, and sank the blade deep into the stomach of the gangly demon.
Rowen aimed his astral gun to execute the beast but instead his body flew through the fog as a red gargoyle leaped on him during the momentary distraction. Hunched on four massive, powerful legs, thick with red fire-singed fur, the creature was a popular pet in the Asuras plane. The gargoyle’s wrinkled face roared, exposing jagged, serrated teeth. The beast ripped its claws through Rowen before he could get a shot off.
Sabin began chanting in an ancient language, a magical incantation that turned the fog into an intoxicant. The Knights were immune, but their intended prey would be neutralized. “Ghheestia Avrlo Vestiiia Resim.” The primeval tongue was guttural and filled with clicks and inhuman sounds that came from deep within his throat. Just then a primal roar erupted from Rowen as the red gargoyle sank its teeth deep into his comrade’s neck.
The Nunanish slammed back into the Sabin with all its brute force roaring in his face. All hell was breaking loose in the Fog Realm. Knight Sodor had rushed to aid Rowen, and the two remaining Knights were struggling to contain the hundreds of netherworlders. Sabin and the Nunanish demon rolled through the cold fog until suddenly they were falling.
He cursed louder than he had ever heard himself utter anything in any realm. They had fallen through a portal.