As loathe as I am to admit it, his idea sounded interesting.

  “What do you mean?” I asked, crossing my arms over my chest.

  “Allow me to explain a bit of the history of Iaccatia, then you will better understand,” Carificux said, he then waved his hand over the screen and a different scene appeared. An army of inhuman creatures marched across the land, there must have been thousands of them. I saw hundreds of banners bearing a snarling demonic face with three drops of blood beneath it. At the head of the horde a demonic looking man rode upon a jet-black hell beast.

  The camera zoomed in on the evil-looking man. His features were impossible to make out under the heavy armor he wore. It looked like something a villain from some anime-style video game would wear. On his shoulders sat two massive pauldrons that were shaped into the snarling faces of demons. His chest plate looked like metal rib cages encompassing his chest. His legs were clad in spiked boots, and the gauntlets on his hands ended in long claws. His face was completely covered by an ornate helm that looked like a demon’s face. His only visible feature were his eyes which glowed with eldritch red. In truth, the guy looked awesome.

  The scene shifted rapidly to show the horde of monsters attacking town after town, leaving little but burned remains behind. Then the scene shifted again to show a female clad in gleaming white armor battling it out with the demon guy. Every time their weapons clashed the ground itself shook beneath their feet. The scene shifted several times showing multiple fights between the two, though neither seemed to gain the upper hand. In the final clip, the woman in white managed to score a mortal wound by severing the demon guy's left arm. He screamed and fell to the ground and without any hesitation she decapitated him.

  As she held the bloody severed head up, she let out a war cry that sent literal waves of energy across the battlefield. Upon seeing their leader's decapitated head, the army of monsters broke and began fleeing for their lives. Many were killed but many more escaped. Then the screen went black and I turned to Carificux.

  “400 years ago, the Demon King raised an army of monsters to attack the lands of humans. Hundreds of thousands died at the army’s hands. The Demon King was practically unstoppable. Only one person ever gave him a challenge. She was known as the Unstoppable Hero. The two did battle many times, more often than not the battles ended in a draw. Once the Demon King was slain his armies broke and fled, many heading into the uninhabitable lands of the far west. After that, the human kingdoms fought for a brief time amongst each other, until the four kingdoms were established. Since then the humans have mostly known peace,” Carificux said, sounding like a history professor at a lecture.

  “With so many humans dead, rebuilding was difficult. So using a mix of magic and technology they created the first generation of constructs,” Carificux said, waving his hand over the screen. The scene shifted to show a crude mechanical human-like creature. It was close to 10 feet tall and covered in clockwork gears and steaming pistons. It was ponderously slow but incredibly strong. The scene sped up showing the constructs hard at work alongside humans as they rebuilt towns and cities.

  “Over the years humans came to rely on constructs more and more. Constantly making improvements on the mindless automatons. Until one day the humans stopped working and stopped creating. Now entirely dependent upon the constructs to fulfill their everyday needs. They grew lazier and lazier with each generation,” Carificux waved his hand and the scene shifted back to the town street I had seen he had first shown me, and I truly realized just how little the humans were doing. Everywhere I saw the constructs working, sweeping streets, carrying groceries, building houses, and even caring for the children while the parents flatly ignored them. It was enough to raise my blood pressure.

  “Human society is rotting away beneath them, and they don’t care enough to do anything about it, “Carificux said leaning over my shoulder as I stared at the screen, “They need someone to threaten them, someone to challenge them. That is why I need you. I want you to be the new Demon King.”

  I stood in silence for several long moments as I thought over everything Carificux had shown me. Finally, I turned to the behemoth, taking an involuntary step back when I realized he was mere inches from my face. “Look, I am a killer no doubt about that, but I don’t kill innocent people. I won’t kill people unless they have done something to deserve it. If you want me to be the next Demon King and gather an army of monsters, you’ll need to understand that. So will anyone who follows me,” I said sternly, staring up at Carificux. Admittedly getting stern with a nightmarish monster three times my size might have been a bad idea, but he needed to know what he was getting into.

  Carificux held up his hands placatingly, “You are the Demon King, rule as you see fit. Not all may agree with you, but I am sure you will find ways to persuade them.”

  “You’d be ok with me not killing innocent people, doesn’t that kind of mess up your plan,” I asked.

  “As I said do as you please. If you noticed the volblins didn’t harm anyone in their little raid, save for the two women they kidnapped,” Carificux shrugged, “Follow their example. Raid towns, smash in windows, maybe set fire to a place or two. Sow chaos and become a threat. Whatever you need to do, to get the humans to unite against you. It may just be enough to wake them up and get them to start caring for each other again.”

  “Wait, you’re the Lord of Monsters, why are you so worried about humans? Won’t attacking humans cause more of your monsters to die?” I asked, puzzled.

  “Of course, it will,” Carificux shrugged, “But that is what monsters do. They need a challenge; they need the thrill of battle. Otherwise, they will turn to killing each other, and I don’t want that to happen… well any more than it has already been happening,” he finished with a small growl. I nodded, understanding somewhat. The humans needed a threat big enough to, as Carificux put it, “make them pull their collective heads out of their butts.” Meanwhile, the monsters needed a unifying force—something to focus on so they’d stop tearing each other apart. Ideally, human society improves, and with any luck so does the monster society.

  “Alright, now that we have that settled it's time you were on your way,” Carificux said, slapping his hands together and pulling me from my thoughts. “Wait what?” I said in alarm. When I looked up at Carificux he reached his hand out to the side, his claw ripping through the air as if it were tissue paper. I could just make out a strange whirling something in the tear in reality. I started to say something in protest but Carificux’s hand reached into the ripple and suddenly a massive version of his hand was wrapping around my waist from behind.

  “Oh, you should know, I am making your new body about 10 to 12 years younger than your old body, have fun.” Carificux smiled as I struggled fruitlessly to get free from the vice-like grip. Then like the world’s worst roller coaster, I was pulled backwards so hard I bit into my tongue. The iron taste of blood filled my mouth as I screamed. The hilltop around me disappeared as I was pulled through a much larger tear in reality.

  I will try to describe the things I saw as I was hurtling through, wherever the heck I was. It was like going to warp speed while clinging to the outside of the Enterprise, and I mean the Enterprise E the far superior ship. All the while I felt like my ribs were going to snap from the vice-like grip of Carificux’s hand still around my chest. I couldn’t breathe, couldn’t scream. I was simultaneously freezing cold and boiling hot. My limbs flailed about, and I couldn’t stop them. Just when I thought I couldn’t handle anymore, blackness took me as my lack of air forced me into unconsciousness. I would have thought I was about to die, but Carificux said he was sending me to some other world, so surely that wasn’t about to happen… right?

  I awoke to a boot slamming hard into my ribs and someone shouting at me, “Get up you no good drunk!” I ached all over but managed to roll onto my back and stare up at the face of a man in a long blue coat. I squinted at the bright sunlight overhead. The man planted another kick to my ribs, and I coughed violently as I rolled over narrowly missing a muddy puddle, and pushed myself up to my knees.

  “No good drunk, ain’t even 10 am, and here you are pissed, get a move on before I lock you up,” he grumbled at me. I merely nodded and tried to stand. The jerk in the blue coat seemed to think he had done enough and turned to walk away. I briefly considered calling after him, just to ask where I was, but then thought better of it. He already thought I was some drunkard, better to not let him think I was a complete idiot. I looked around and realized I was on a town street, a dozen or so shops and houses clustered around me. People dressed in garb that looked straight out of some Victorian painting wandered the streets talking and shopping and of course following nearly everyone was at least one of the constructs.

  With every step they took the constructs clanked and unseen gears in their bodies whirred. I was completely enthralled; it was like nothing I had seen before. Just then a wagon loaded down with crates and barrels trundled past him. To my amazement, the wagon wasn’t pulled by a horse, at least not a living horse. Like the constructs it vaguely resembled a horse, but it was made entirely of metal and whirring gears. The wagon came to a halt a few feet away and the not a horse thing let loose a blast of smoke from its nostrils.

  Carificux had told me he was sending me to a world of magic and technology but seeing it in action was much more surreal than I had anticipated. I began walking eager to see more of this strange place. As I moved the aches in my body gradually faded, or perhaps I was simply too enthralled by everything to notice them. I stopped outside a shop, the delicious scent of something being grilled filling my nose and making my mouth water. Even though I had just eaten with Carificux I found my stomach rumbling. The only issue, I didn’t have any money.

  That was when I caught sight of my reflection in the window and stared at it for a moment. I looked much the same as I had on Earth. My hair was now a bit shaggier, and I had dirt on my face, but it was still the same face I remembered. The clothes were a different matter. Rather than the orange prison jumpsuit I had been wearing. I was now dressed in a pair of black linen pants, a ruffled black shirt, and a long dark red coat, and sitting on my head was a black top hat. The clothes were much finer than anything I had worn back on Earth, if not a little dirty from rolling on the ground. I straightened my jacket, smoothing out a few creases. As I did, I felt an odd bulge inside my jacket on the left side. I reached inside and withdrew a small drawstring pouch.

  I quickly glanced around to make sure no one was watching me and then slowly opened the pouch. Metal glinted at me from within and I withdrew three coins. One was a copper piece about the size of a US penny but shaped like a crescent moon. One was silver and roughly the size of a US dime, but it had an octagonal indent in the center. The final one was a gold piece larger than a US quarter. It was hexagonal shaped and had a crown embossed in the center. From my quick glance into the pouch, there were quite a few of each. While I didn’t know just how much money I had, it was clear I wasn’t broke.

  I placed the pouch back into my jacket and strode confidently into the small shop. The shop was small but filled with the pleasant aroma of roasting meat and vegetables. I stepped up to the counter and looked around. Behind the counter, two metal constructs busied themselves grilling skewers of meat and vegetables while a human man in a white chef's apron lounged against the counter, his arms crossed as he half-napped. I reached up and rang the bell on the counter startling the man out of his nap. He snorted and sat upright rubbing his eyes. “What’s this now, it's rude to wake a man when he’s sleeping,” the man grumbled.

  I was completely caught off guard by his attitude and fumbled my words for a moment, “I ah, I’d like some food, please.”

  “Well that’s all well and good, but no need to wake me. Just tell the Con’s what you want, and they’ll handle it,” the man grumbled gesturing to the constructs at the grill. Before I could say anything else the man turned and made his way to a chair near the back of the room. Plopping down into it and pulling the rim of his hat over his eyes. I blinked, unsure how to respond to that. I assumed the shop belonged to him, yet he didn’t seem the least bit interested in helping a customer. Worse he was pawning his duties off on the constructs behind him. I reminded myself what Carificux had said about people being lazy in this world, it seemed the nightmarish behemoth had been right.

  I cleared my throat and addressed one of the Cons, “I’d like a meat skewer please,” I said uncertainly.

  If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  One of the constructs turned towards me holding up a freshly grilled skewer dripping with grease. “That will be three copper bits,” it said in a polite robotic voice.

  Is it the proper pronoun for a vaguely human, barely sentient robot? It feels wrong to call them an it, it did have a more masculine frame, might be better to call it a He. Anyway, where was I? Oh right.

  “That will be three copper bits,” he said in the same polite robotic voice.

  I hadn’t been expecting him to speak so I was a bit thrown off. I wondered just how intelligent this thing was. Since I hadn’t moved, he held out a metal hand and repeated his request for three copper bits. I pulled out my pouch and fumbled for a moment to get three small copper pieces out. I placed them in the palm of the construct which promptly handed me the skewer. “Thank you for your patronage,” he said.

  “You’re welcome,” I replied, but he was paying me no further attention. I glanced back at the human, who was now snoring softly in his seat. I shook my head at him before heading outside to find a seat. The restaurant had a small outdoor seating area and I was delighted to sit and enjoy a meal in the fresh air.

  As I ate, I became aware of an odd blinking in the corner of my vision. At first, I thought it was something on my clothes, but it remained in the corner of my vision no matter where I turned my head. I tried to focus on the blinking and to my shock, a translucent window sprang into existence before me.

  I lifted a hand trying to touch the strange window, but my hand passed through it. When I turned my head, the window followed my eye line. It was a very strange experience, but perhaps this was all part of the magic that governed this world like Carificux had said. I shrugged and began reading through the window.

  Name: Silas Bordreaux

  Race: Human

  Height: 5’8

  Health: 25

  Mana: 25

  Stamina: 25

  Stats

  Physical: 5

  Mental: 5

  Spirit: 6

  Total XP: 0

  Unused XP: 0

  Titles: Demon King (unclaimed)

  Skills: None

  Talents: None

  I stared at it for several long moments, and I must admit I was a bit underwhelmed. According to Carificux, I was supposed to become some all-powerful threat. A scourge strong enough to unite the people of this world against me and hopefully break them out of their selfish ways. What I was seeing on, what I chose to call my character sheet, told a different story. My health, mana, and stamina weren’t very high at all. None of my stats were above a ten, and I didn’t have a single skill or talent. I had been a bit of a gamer growing up and everything I knew about video games told me my stats sucked.

  Of course, this wasn’t a video game, my stats might have been much higher than anyone else’s. I just had no way of knowing. The only way to find that out would be to ask someone else, and I doubted that conversation would go over well. I would just need to figure it out on my own. Perhaps there was a library in town that could fill me in on more about this strange world. Hoping to get a little more information from my character sheet I tried focusing on each of the three stats that had appeared on my screen as well as my title. A second screen appeared with a bit more information.

  Title: The Demon King (unclaimed)

  With this title, you can gain great power and become a force of great change or terrible evil, like your predecessor.

  Your title is unclaimed, you must complete a quest to fully claim the title. Doing so unlocks Demon King specific Abilities. Currently, you have one ability unlocked.

  Fast Learner

  Effect: You have a high proficiency with skills and can gain skill levels far faster than a normal person.

  I nodded at that; I liked the sound of it. I assumed skills were things like fighting and magic and learning them faster would certainly help me get stronger.

  Physical: Governs your physical abilities such as strength and flexibility. A high Physical stat increases the damage you can do with melee weapons and may aid in dodging attacks.

  Mental: Governs your mental abilities such as intelligence and wisdom. A high Mental stat increases your mana pool and mana regeneration. May also increase your base intellect.

  Spirit: Governs your fighting spirit allowing you to withstand blows that might send a normal person to the ground. May also have an impact on your innate charm.

  This made things a little clearer. It was unsurprising that my Spirit was my highest stat. I had always been good at charming people, I needed to be good. It was what had kept me safe when the cops started looking for a serial killer on the loose. No one suspected the friendly and mildly charming coroner to be a brutal murderer. That and everything I had learned from my father over the years. He had a way of looking into someone’s soul with those piercing blue eyes of his. I’m not sure when he realized I was different than the other kids, but he sensed something in me, something deep down and terribly dark.

  As I got older, he helped train me, preparing me should I ever give in to my darker side. He was the one who convinced me that if I was going to kill, it should only be those who deserved it. He taught me to think first and act second and be prepared for anything. He was a good man, my father, I missed him terribly. He had died 13 years ago before I ever started killing. They claimed it was an accident at work, but I knew the truth.

  My father’s co-worker Martin had always been jealous of him. My father was the better and most trusted of the two. Whenever there was a crime scene, they would call my father. He would go out and do his job of checking out the scene and collecting evidence. Martin rarely got calls. Then one fateful day both Martin and my father got a call. A dangerous crime scene with a pair of murders at an abandoned oil refinery. Dad was the first on the scene. Most people claimed they didn’t know how the refinery suddenly went up in flames, but I knew or at least suspected.

  It took me two agonizingly slow years to figure out how Martin had gotten away with setting fire to the refinery, while a group of cops stood just a few feet away. He had staged it as a very convincing accident, it fooled everyone. Even me at first. When I finally knew for sure that Martin had killed my father, well he became my first victim. It wasn’t my cleanest kill, but I was still proud of it, and I knew my father would have been proud. As the memories poured through me my darker side stirred in its slumber. It had been two years since my last kill, good ole Chad.

  I leaned back in my chair, breathing slowly to clear my mind and center myself. I felt a cool breeze brush over me and I imagined it taking my darker thoughts with it. The day was warm with a bright clear blue sky, and I reveled in it. This was the first time I had been outside in two years. At least outside on my own without a horde of armed guards watching me like a hawk.

  I was free, truly free for the first time in years. I was in a new world, a world where I could perhaps leave behind my old life. Leave behind the past trauma and my dark side. Maybe, just maybe I could embrace a quiet peaceful life in this world and finally just exist. I was just beginning to picture myself settling down in some small out of the way place when I felt it. An all too familiar tingle down the back of my neck. Like icy fingers running down my spine. I knew that feeling all too well. I felt my senses sharpen, the scents of the air becoming more potent, my ears picking up the smallest sounds, and my eyesight becoming sharper.

  There was danger nearby, another predator like me. My dark side awoke with a vengeance like a shark smelling blood in the water. I felt my heart began to race, my breath becoming shallower. I slowly scanned the milling crowd of people going about their lives, blissfully unaware of the danger lurking somewhere in their midst. My eyes darted from person to person scanning them up and down trying to find whoever was triggering my sense.

  Perhaps the group of girls walking and laughing as their constructs walked behind them carrying armloads of bags and long thin boxes, no not them. Perhaps the old man leaning hard on his walking stick, his construct at his side in case he should fall, no not him. Perhaps the punk kids who ran past the old man “accidentally” kicking his stick away and causing him to nearly fall, only to be saved by the construct at his side. They were jerks sure, but it wasn’t them.

  Perhaps the young couple out for a midday stroll, no not them. Perhaps… wait I froze and turned back looking more closely at the young couple. She was dressed in a flowing blue gown, he in black pants, and a burgundy coat. To everyone else a happy couple, to my predatory eyes something else. I saw the slight tension in her shoulders, the way her steps faltered. The way his arm was wrapped just a little too tightly around her waist, he was practically pulling her alongside him.

  “There he is,” my dark side purred in excitement, I hadn’t heard that voice in a long time. It sent a thrill down my spine. It was like an old friend. Before I realized it, I had stood my hand instinctively reaching for the small knife I kept just above my sock. I panicked slightly when I realized it wasn’t there, then remembered where I was. This wasn’t Earth, I didn’t need to do anything. I could just sit back down and finish my lunch, but they were getting away, already nearly two streets away. “Follow them, don’t lose them,” my dark side growled, and I obeyed.

  I left my lunch behind, pausing just long enough to toss a silver on the table. I crossed the street and followed behind. They were quite far away now, I could just make them out by focusing on the man's deep burgundy jacket and her light blue dress. I needed to catch up to them, but I couldn’t move too quickly. I had no idea what he would do if I scared him, perhaps grab the girl, and run or push her away and run. The latter would be ideal, but I just wasn’t sure. This was stupid, I didn’t have a plan, didn’t know what I was getting myself into. I couldn’t stop to think, or I would lose them. My dark side was practically begging me to run at him, to tackle him to the ground if need be. My fingers flexed wishing I was holding my favorite knife.

  This was so stupid, why was I doing this. I could turn away now; I didn’t need to get involved. I could ignore it and go back to daydreaming about a small place outside of town, but my feet wouldn’t listen. My dark side was controlling my body, pushing me somewhere deep within my own mind. My legs surged forward demanding I kept up to the man in burgundy.

  Then I heard a voice that snapped me back into control of my own body, “Careful son,” the voice whispered on the air. I blinked and sure enough there was my father standing in front of me. His brown slightly graying hair combed to the side, his deep-set blue eyes piercing my soul. Wearing the navy-blue polo shirt, he seemed to own a million of. I wanted to run up and hug him, but I knew he was nothing more than a phantasm created by my messed-up brain. I pushed past him continuing to follow the couple though at a much more leisurely pace, and he fell into step beside me.

  “Have you thought this through?” he asked, in the same tone he always used, “What are you going to do?”

  “I’m going to stop him,” I said, gesturing towards the burgundy man who was getting further and further away from me.

  “How?” the ghost of my father questioned, “You don’t even know who he is, or who that girl is. Maybe he is trying to take her home to her family, maybe she doesn’t want to go.”

  “Or maybe he is taking her somewhere to do something terrible to her,” I growled back at him.

  “You don’t know that,” he reprimanded.

  “My gut tells me he is up to no good,” I shot back.

  “So what, you’re just going to tackle him in the middle of a crowded street?” he asked snidely. I let out a breath in frustration, that was exactly what my dark side had wanted me to do, so of course my dad knew that. I stopped dead in my tracks and rounded on him, “Just leave me alone alright!” I shouted, scaring a couple of people nearby who sped away from me. I must have looked like a crazy person shouting at the air, which I probably was. I blinked and the ghostly image of my father disappeared. I turned my attention back to the burgundy man, only he wasn’t there.

  My heart leapt into my throat, and I broke into a fast walk pushing past people as they grumbled at me in protest. Where had they gone? Last I saw they were four maybe five streets ahead of me, perhaps they had gone around a corner? I continued to walk, practically pushing people out of my way to get through the crowded streets. Then I stopped dead in my tracks, there maybe a few dozen yards ahead of me was the man in burgundy. He had stepped out of an alley and was pulling off a pair of gloves. He looked around as if to make sure no one was paying attention to him. I caught sight of his face and forced his face to burn into my mind’s eye. I had always been good with faces.

  Then he turned and walked leisurely away as if he hadn’t a care in the world. Where was the woman? I clenched my hands into fists so hard my nail dug into my palm drawing a tiny bead of blood. He rounded a corner and disappeared from view. I broke into a run passing the alley he had just left, but not daring to look down it. I knew what I would see. I slid to a halt as I rounded the same corner, but he was gone. There were maybe a dozen or so shops on either side of the street he could have gone into any of them.

  I spent a few moments awkwardly staring into the windows of shops but didn’t see him. Finally I was forced to give up the hunt. I turned back and slowly crept towards the alley. I stopped at the mouth of the alley a few people pushing past me, but I paid them no mind. Slowly I turned my head hoping against hope I wouldn’t see what I thought I would. At first glance, it looked like an empty alley with a few crates and a barrel near the back, but then I saw it. A tiny piece of blue fabric hidden in the shadows behind the crates. There was a small dark pool puddling around the fabric, in the shadows it looked black, but I knew what it was. Blood--her blood. The burgundy man had murdered her in cold blood in the back of an alley and not a single person knew but me.

  I snarled under my breath; I needed a weapon.