‡ Promise 17: The Devil Lies ‡

-As told by Julia-

y nightfall, I sit in the middle of my aunt's living room floor, my legs locked, and deep within meditation. I am preparing for the battle with the beast, the demon of the Rolmir family. It is my duty and it's in the blood of an Mitchell. My blood. We are Demon-Hunters, our family bloodline is centuries old, and we have hunted and killed many of evil creatures. Except of one kind...
Every twenty years or so, someone from the bloodline is chosen to face the allusive evil of the Rolmir empire. As we are skilled and victorious over many empires, but it's the Rolmir's that have claimed many of my relatives and ancestors. Over twenty years ago, it was Rolmir that had claimed a distant cousin of mine, Jack Mitchell. And although I didn't know this cousin well, I have hated this kind of demon ever since the funeral. So, when I was chosen to take down Rolmir, I didn't hesitate for a moment.
It was my aunt Jenny who alerted the family that a demon had moved into her town. And after a brief investigation from my uncles, they had discovered it was a Rolmir, no less. My aunt quickly arranged to stay with relatives, for fear of attack, while the most important men of my family tried to find an answer to the problem. Within a room, located in my grandfather's vacation cabin, they tracked the "chosen" -those born of the purest of Mitchell's blood-, through countless family records. Of course, it rested on me and I have been training for six months now.
Now that I am here and have seen the beast, I sense that I'm not quite ready yet. But I will be, soon. Just a little more training and the demon will not have a chance against me. I head into the basement, to work on my sword skills.
It's down here that I've cleared away all of my aunts old things, placing them neatly into the attic. Now I had space for combat training, complete with weights and my modest collection of battle swords. But there's only one sword I wish to use, the Crusader Sword. Created by a Mitchell in the 11th century, it's steal is sharp, with the family's crest burned into it's mahogany handle. Whenever I hold it, I can feel the power of the Mitchells that were, and it gives me a rush of unyielding justice. If I should kill the beast with this sword, I will be using the wisdom and strength of those who had once wield it. I raise the sword, in one fast fluid motion, and slice the head from the dummy. I am nearly ready.
By the next afternoon, I run my ten mile jog, my I-Pod pumping AC/DC through my veins. As I get home, Lily waves to me, her friends stopping over once more. Lily is a nice girl and she's attuned to the presence of evil, somehow. Unless demon-hunter runs in your blood, it's rare for any mortal to pick up the subtle movements of the underworld. Yet, this strange gothic girl does. "Hey, Ms. Julia." she nods, as I reach my porch, her friends giving me curious looks. "Having a party again?" I tease.
"I wish." frowns Lily, "Studying for school." "Oh," I nod, slightly out of breath from jogging, "I see. Must suck." "A lot!" grins Lily. The little guy gives me an odd grin. "Well," I said, "I remember how that was like. Of course that was a LONG time ago, when we use to ride to school on dinosaurs." "Come on," says the boy, "You look too young to ride dinosaurs." Both Lily and the girl give him a funny look. "Um," I said, not sure how to take that, "Thanks?"
"Anyway," says Lily, rolling her eyes, "These are my friends. This is Jody. And that's Tommy... the dork." "Nice to meet you." I said, nodding to them both, "I'm Ms. Julia." "Well, Ms. Julia," says the boy, "That's a very pretty name." Again, this is weird and the girls give him a look that says, "Cut it out!" "Well, thanks?" I respond, then turn to Lily, "I'll catch you later. Got to keep my heart-rate up." "'Kay." shrugs Lily, "Later, then." I went into my house, not before hearing rushed and harsh whispers from the girls, towards the boy.
That night, after combat training in the basement, I head for my kitchen for a glass of water. From the kitchen window, I caught a glimpse of a light and felt a dark presence, heading into the woods. Without reason, running on pure instinct, I grab my sword from the kitchen table and bolted from the kitchen door. I hopped the fence and into the woods, in one quick motion. I would've like to train a little more, to hone my skills to perfection, but my blood was screaming for the kill. I can't fight against the need.
I quickly, but silently, follow the light. It's just a few yards away, I can smell his scent, my heartbeat thuds in anticipation. Suddenly, something grabs my sleeve from behind, and I swing my sword around. The blade is just a millimeter away from Lily's face. I pull back quickly, startled and then angry. "What are you doing here?" I gasp, pulling her into nearby shadows and talking in sharp whispers, "It's dangerous out here! You shouldn't be here!" "Neither should you." she says, calmly, but her eyes are on my sword. "I belong here." I frown, "This is my job. You feel it too, so you know what's here."
"A demon and a underworld kingdom of the dead." she says, matter-of-factually. This stuns me a bit, but I quickly wave it away, trying to get back on track. "And if you're planing to attack Keith," she says, "I wouldn't. He gets pissed off and will kill you." "He's a demon." I say, "And all evil must die." "No," Lily says, "I mean, you may be right. But he's a demon, as you say. He's much stronger than humans. And he's not so understanding either. If you hit him with that blade, he will just be pissed off, and he'll kill you."
"I don't intend to let him live." I say, annoyed now, "I will do the job right and he will fall." "Listen to me!" she shouts, near hysterical, "Whatever trip you're on, forget it! Even if you're good at sword-fighting, what I'm trying to tell you is, he's a demon. He's faster and stronger than any human! And he has a foul temper. Just don't go looking for trouble! If you don't bother him, he won't bother you!" "You're friends with him?" I ask, surprised by this turn of events. She turns pale and then answers in a small voice, "No. He doesn't make friends with humans."
"Of course," I spat, "Who would make friends with their food?" "He doesn't eat people!" she frowns. "Oh, no?" I snap, "Tell that to my dead relatives! Many of them don't show up, but the ones who do, all are missing ears!" "I-" she chokes, "H-how do you know it was Keith who killed your family? It could have been some other demon." "No!" I growl, getting close to the mislead girl, "You've been touched by the devil! He has spun his lies and you are believing it! It's not too late, Lily. Ask God for forgiveness! Drop to your knees and he will save you from-!"
"Woah!" she yells, backing away, "I'm not religious! And I'm just trying to keep you for getting killed. You can't run after Keith, he's just too strong. And for whatever cause you're after, I'm sorry, but you're not going to win if you pick a fight with a demon." She was sort of right. I'm not ready yet, I can feel it, yet I still want to run after the demon tonight. Maybe this was a sign to turn back now and not stray from my path. "Well," I sigh, "I don't judge those who do not follow the God that I know. But I do pity those who go without any god."
"Pity me all you want." she shrugs. "Religion is the only savior from evil." I explain, "And if you had it, then you wouldn't be so easily fooled by the demon." "Whatever," Lily waves, "Look, all I care about is you not dying. And if you go after Keith, he will kill you. The bastard already pissed off with me, so that's like adding fuel to the fire." "I thought you said that you weren't friends." I frown, my eyes narrowing. "We're not." she says, a hurtful tone in her voice, "I tried to be his friend, but he says he doesn't make friends with humans."
This is confusing to me and doesn't make sense, she seems like a nice girl. "Why do you want to be friends with evil?" I ask. "That's the thing," she explains, "I don't think he's evil. I think he's just... different. I mean, he doesn't attack those who don't attack him first. And he just wants to be left alone." "Are those the lies he's told you." I nod, "The devil is a tricky one." Lily began to protest, but lets it go. "Well," she says, "Let's head back?" "Yeah." I said and we head back towards our houses. I'm glad that she showed up, because I know now that I wasn't ready, I still have much further to go.
By the next day, I start my routine again, running twice the miles. I'm training longer in the basement. And my meditation is getting deeper and more insightful. It took five days of this, but when I realized that I ran my twenty minute miles within a five minutes, I knew it was nearly time. I was getting faster, stronger, and more accurate with the sword. I was stretching my human potential to it's fullest. I could feel the sword's spirit calling to me, telling me that I would finally rid the world of a Rolmir.
The next night, I wait for signs of the demon moving. And by midnight, I saw the soft light of Rolmir's lantern, heading into the woods. I said a small prayer, grab my sword, and left through the kitchen door. Tonight, I was ready and victory shall belong to the Mitchells! I hopped over the fence and raced after the light. And again, someone tugged on my sleeve. I knew who it was, but I slapped her hand away, rushing further ahead, in speeds she couldn't follow.
"No!" she shrieks, falling behind, "Stop! Stop, Ms. Julia!" There's stirring up ahead. Dammit. They know I'm heading their way now. Nothing I can do about it, now. I'm still ready, as I step out into a clear path. There he stands, with two demons beside him, a smug look on his face. Lily's cries echo from far behind, but I ignore them, I must focus on the battle. "You're right." sniffs the demon, within a cloak, "It is a Mitchell." The child-like demon says nothing, but holds a crying voodoo doll.
"Demon." I frown, "I was expecting a fair fight, but I should have known you'd bring you friends." "Hmm," he nods, his false beauty sparkling in the moonlight, "My friends aren't here to fight, it's unnecessary. I've promised one your ears and to the other your hair, so they're just merely scavengers. I will be the one to kill you and only me." "How merciful." I said, sarcastically. "Well." he smiles, trying to charm me, but I don't fall for such cheap tricks.
Without hesitation, I quickly slice into his chest, blood splatters everywhere. "Ow." he frowns, but hardly phased. I quickly slice into him two more times, torso and back, and plunge the sword right through his middle. "Is it my turn now?" he sighs. I realize now that he's not feeling any pain and he's just toying with me! He quickly removes the sword and tosses it ten feet into the dark. I try to reach for it, but he quickly punches me in the stomach, knocking the wind from me. I stumble backwards, gasping for air, as he moves in close at unholy speeds.
He gets behind me and grabs my head, slamming it into the ground face first, blood explode from my mouth and nose. Dirt is inhaled and I struggle to breath. He lifts me to my feet and I quickly kick him, causing him to let go for a second. I land a high-kick to his jaw, yet he grabs my leg before I can pull away, and lifts me over his head. He slams me into the ground on my back, and stomps my chest, breaking many ribs. I am coughing up blood now and having a hard time breathing.
"Stop!" sobs Lily, running in-between him and I, shielding me from his wrath. "Lily," I gasp, "Get-out-of... here. It's- too-danger...ous." "Stop, please." she pleads with the demon. And for one amazing moment, the demon's face showed concern and worry for the girl, and then it was gone. He leaned in close to the sobbing girl. "No!" I choke, "Lily-run!" He embraced her and whispers, "I'm sorry, Miss Lily." In one quick flash he unleashed his claw. I felt a sharp burn on my neck and then everything fades to black...