Chapter Three

“So, your name is Belial? What an ugly name for a Demon. Tell me why you're bugging my classmate.” Margaret snarled at Mr. Arthur. He stroked the doll's cheek as he started laughing. Frustrated, Margaret pointed Foxglove in Arthur's direction. “Answer me.”

            Mr. Arthur continued to laugh. Even when threatened by Margaret, he didn't seem to care. Suddenly, silence. His expression darkened. Mr. Arthur held the doll tightly to his body.

            “So you've finally figure it out, Witch?” The tone in the teacher's voice changed and sounded distorted. The voice Margaret had grown to loathe sounded much more slimy than before. “I'm shocked that just now you've realized that I was here controlling this teacher. Witches have gotten quite dumb as the years go by, haven't they?” He looked over at Sodom and Gomorrah.

            “But you wouldn't have figured it out if they hadn't remembered who I was!” Belial had burst out in laughter once more. He pointed at the cat and the dog. “You both are a disgrace. Helping mortals, walking around as mortal beasts...calling you both Demons is a laughable offense!”

            “We just don't believe bewitching the mortals is necessary,” Gomorrah stated calmly. “Bloodshed on their end is not going give us any benefits, in the long run that is.”

            “Besides, we choose to live the life we want,” Sodom added. The feline's voice sounded very cold and to the point. “The laws of our real world do not bind us in this one. Humans are messy and killing them gets boring when you've done it hundreds of times.”

            “Traitors! Heretics!” Belial's voice began to sound more distorted. Mr. Arthur's body held up the doll towards the group. A doll of that nature was never to move but, suddenly, the right arm moved. The tiny, porcelain arm pointed at the group. “Your words will not justify your actions!”

            “That doll is really creepy,” Margaret stated.

            “Did it just move?” Daniel jeered. “Porcelain dolls can't move, I thought.”

            “That's because that doll isn't a real doll,” Sodom answered. Margaret and Daniel looked at the cat in confusion.

            Gomorrah bobbed his head in agreement. “Indeed! That doll is actually the leech that has been controlling this operation this whole time. Notice how the man never sets the doll down and is always coddling-?”

            “Silence!” Belial called out frantically. “I will not have you explain anything to-”

            “No, how about you be quiet,” Daniel interrupted. The doll's head turned to face Daniel. “I'm sorry for being so rude, Mr. Arthur-I mean, whatever you're name is. But why should it matter what the cat and the dog do with their lives? They have their own priorities and you have yours. It's not your or anybody's choice to choose.”

            Though he was definitely not the bravest person, Daniel's words made Margaret feel weird inside. She believed in fate but hated the way that it forces itself upon people's lives. She hated the fact that fate could never be changed. But Daniel's beliefs made her feel uneasy. She looked at her classmate with intrigue. Though his knees were shaking, his face showed calm. Though he tried to put a brave face, the doll Belial let out a menacing cackle.

            “Silly human, stupid human,” Belial jeered. “I've been watching you closely for these last few weeks. I have no idea what my bosses see in you but you are nothing but a loser.”

            “Bosses!?” Margaret, Sodom, and Gomorrah said in unison. The two creatures pinned their ears and snarled. Margaret quickly took aim at the doll and fired two shots.

            The bullets cut through the air towards the two. However, instead of hearing the sound of porcelain crack, the doll remained unharmed. Margaret's eyes widened in shock as Belial let out another distorted laugh. From the doll's hands two thick wires extended out and wrapped around the bullets. They quickly vanished and the wire retracted back to the doll, disappearing into the sleeve of her dress. The doll's right hand rested under it's chin, the moonlight accenting it's emotionless features. Daniel stared at Belial in astonishment and fear.

            Mr. Arthur was now motionless, his body only being used to hold the doll. While he remained still, the doll suddenly had the ability to move. Belial's legs kick around in the air as hung there. The doll's left hand rested under the right arm's elbow. Belial chuckled.

            “It's a secret why I'm doing all of this,” Belial responded nonchalantly. “However, I did have fun tormenting you. I'll be sure to have much more fun with it after I kill the Witch and the traitors!”

            Mr. Arthur's arms suddenly dropped and his body toppled to the ground. Though it's support was no longing their, the doll remained in the air. The bonnet and dress is was wearing vanished in thin air. All of the curly blonde hair on it's head fell out and dropped onto the ground., landing in a small pile. Belial's nude, porcelain body floated evilly in the air with a dark aura enveloping it. Before the group's eyes, the limbs of the doll began to elongate til they all were about 3 meters long. The torso of the doll grew as well to be proportionate with the very long arms and legs. Thick wires were wrapped around the creatures arms. Seven wooden puppets, three on the left and four on the right, clung to the wires. The doll's painted face remained but the jaw was broken, allowing movement of the mouth. Belial smiled at the four, showing teeth that were made of screws.

            “Whoa, that's so...” Daniel stared at the Demon in amazement. “Bizarre.”

            “Ugly is a better word for it,” Margaret chimed. “Either way, let's deal with this now and-”

            Without warning, Margaret's words cut off and she curled forward. She dropped her weapon and Foxglove fell to the ground. She grasped at her stomach in pain and gasped. Gomorrah trotted over to her and Sodom retrieved Foxglove with his tail. The young man rushed over to Margaret.

            “What's wrong?” He asked.

            “You know how you start feeling sick when you don't sleep or eat?” Gomorrah asked. Daniel responded with a nod. “Well, when Witches are in 'Witch mode,' they lose a lot of energy. Nourishment from food ensures that their energy won't run out. Since Ms. Margaret probably hasn't had a meal since lunchtime, she's running on empty.”

            “What happens when she runs out of energy?”

            “She'll more than likely die.”

            Belial began laughing at the group. “I'm having so much fun watching this! So much joy. This will be much easier than I thought.”

            “Sodom, the least you can do is go hold him off,” Margaret growled weakly at him.

            Sodom didn't respond to her and turned to face Belial. The feline looked at the Demon smugly and snarled. From the sand that Sodom used earlier to blind the students, Sodom called it back to him. Using his powers over the formless earth, he shaped it to the form of a dagger with a curved blade. He bit the hilt of the weapon and pulled it from the sand, revealing a jewel studded hilt and shiny, steel blade. Sodom rushed towards Belial with his weapon in his mouth. The lanky monstrosity tried to grab at the cat but missed. Sodom was too fast for Belial. The feline moved his neck and slashed at Belial's hand. The blade made contact and left a straight, shallow mark on the porcelain skin. Belial let out a shriek.

            “My skin! My beautiful skin! You'll pay for that, traitor!”

            Belial used his unscathed hand to try to grab Sodom. Sodom tried to dodge but was not fast enough. Sharp nails scrapped Sodom's belly fur as he evaded. He hissed in pain as the fur fell, landing on the ground and turning to sand. With a yowl of fury, he charged once again towards the creature. As Sodom and Belial continued their clash, Margaret was getting attention from Daniel and Gomorrah. Gomorrah searched through Margaret's backpack to try to find some food, pushing his nose through the bag to find anything. Daniel stuck close to Margaret's side, propping her up to keep her from falling. She groaned in pain and clutched her stomach. Daniel bit his lip, worrying for the Witch girl.

            “Did you find anything yet?” Daniel asked Gomorrah.

            “Nothing,” the dog responded. He took his head out of her bag and looked at Daniel. “When you say food will make her better, do you mean any kind of food?” Gomorrah nodded. “I think I may have an apple. Hold on.”

            With Gomorrah holding Margaret, Daniel searched through his own backpack. He dug around, reaching the bottom of the bag for any food. Gomorrah looked to the battle to see what was going on. Sodom was panting heavily, becoming very tired from his bout with Belial. The seven puppets that were attached to the Demon were now encircling Sodom. Each one held a sharp nail and tried to slash at the tiny cat. At this rate, Sodom couldn't last much longer by himself.

            “Aha! Found it!”

            In his hand was a large, red apple. He breathed on it quickly and wiped it on his shirt, in an attempt to clean it off. Daniel looked to Margaret and showed the apple in her face. Margaret sniffed it and frowned.

            “I hate fruit,” she complained. “Why could you have something sweet like a doughnut?”

            “I don't think you have much of a choice. Please eat it.” Daniel coaxed and brought the red fruit to her lips.

            She refused for only a moment but then opened her mouth as wide as she could. She took a large bite out of the apple. After one bite, she took another and then another. Soon, the apple was devoured, save for the core. Margaret's demeanor changed almost instantly. Instead of feeling sick, she was now bright and awake. The same intensity Daniel felt when she had first transformed to her Witch state was back. Gomorrah handed her Foxglove and she smiled confidently. She looked at Daniel.

            “Thanks, Danny boy,” she said. “I hate fruit but you saved my a*s.”

            She looked to Sodom and saw him surrounded by the seven wooden puppets. Sodom's breathing was heavy and blood stained his sandy pelt. Margaret thought about shooting at the puppets but guessed they were probably fast and could evade Foxglove's shots easily. She then looked to Belial, who was standing motionlessly. It's long arms were outstretched and it's doll eyes were closed. He was meditating as his puppets did the work. Without a moment to lose, she shot at Belial's head. The bullet made contact with Demon's left cheek, creating a large hole in the porcelain. The wooden puppets gave a small scream and scrambled back to Belial's body. They reattached to his body and reconnected to his wires. Belial shook it's monstrous head. A finger went up to touch the newly formed hole and he let out a shocked wail.

            “My face! You've damaged me! You'll pay dearly for that, Witch!”

            “I think I my have done a favor for you, pervert,” Margaret responded. “now let me ask you a question.”

            “I will answer no one! No one!”

            “Tell...do you know what the melting point or porcelain is?”

            “Why should I know the answer to a stupid question like that?”

            “I've always been curious to find out. Oh, Gomorrah. Please come here for a moment.”

            Gomorrah left Daniel's side to stand next to Margaret. She patted the white dog on the head with her left hand and then Gomorrah's form changed. Instead of being a dog, he was now in the form of a book. The book was large and colored white. The book's hard cover seemed to be made from leather seemed to fit over eight-hundred pages. An unfamiliar language was written on the cover with the drawing of a dog. The book suddenly flew open without Margaret's help. Pages whizzed by until they suddenly stopped. Margaret, using Foxglove's barrel as a guide, read the page quietly. She smiled and nodded her head.

            “Yes, I think this one will do,” she stated confidently.

            The page she was on lit up. Flames engulfed the book. The book vanished within the flames and the fire began to gain a shape. It floated in the air as it collected itself. Four legs grew from the ball of fire. The fire's texture shifted from unruly to that of the consistency of wool. The head of a sheep emerged from the flames. Horns grew on the sheep's head; blackened near the base and molten near the tips. Once the transformation was finished, a sheep with fiery wool stood beside Margaret. It let out a powerful bellow and the flames grew more intense. Daniel watched in astonishment at the fire sheep and cooed with excitement. He was so excited that he hadn't even noticed that Sodom was sitting next to him on top of Gomorrah, in his book state.

            “You have summoned me to your world, Witch,” the sheep stated. It had the voice of a tough female. The sheep stared at Belial and stomped at the ground with it's front hoof. “I am Brigid, mistress of flames and forge. Challenge me if you will, Demon. If you are foolish enough, you will smolder.”

            “Tough talk from a little sheep,” Belial snarled.

            The flames coming from Brigid's wool suddenly grew hot. “What did you just say?”

            “Little...sheep.”

            “You probably shouldn't have said that again,” Margaret said, shaking her head. “Well, Brigid. You know what to do.”

            The fiery ewe let out another bellow and charged towards Belial. The sheep's horns were forward and ready to make impact. Just as the charred horns were about to make contact, Belial placed it's hands forward to attempt to stop the rampaging sheep. Belial was able to stop Brigid movements, causing him to cackle.

            “You're weak! Pathetic! I'm ready to feast on la-”

            Before Belial could finish, the porcelain covering his hands began to crack. He shrieked and retreated, but this only allowed Brigid to ram into his stomach. The Demon was sent flying, crashing into the school's iron gates. The impact caused the bars the bend and Belial was crammed in the crevice he had caused. Brigid let out a snort, soot and embers being exhaled as it happened. Daniel let out a cheer for his friend.

            “Go Margaret! I'm sure you can beat him!”

            “You sure are strange,” Sodom told him. He pawed at the book he was sitting on.“Not only can you see that b*****d Belial and the summon, you are not phased at all by this.”

            “I watched a lot of cartoons when I was little and I've always wanted to see a fight like this. I've always wondered if Demons and spirits were real and now I know my answer. But how did Margaret summon that fire sheep?”

            “Witches are able to cleanse evil Demons and use the reborn one as their own,” Sodom answered. He looked down at the white book. “Gomorrah and I were Margaret's grandfather's partner and the dog became his compendium. When Gramps was too old to continue his work, he asked us to be Margaret's partners. We agreed only on the fact that she had some promise. Now, Margaret has the the power to control all of Gramps' acquired Demons; there are at least three hundred in there.”

            “Whoa!” Daniel said, amazed by Sodom's tale. “A family of Witches...Margaret is so cool!”

            A sparkle came to Sodom's eyes. “Though there are a lot of risks in dealing with Demons, she certainly is one of the most intriguing prodigies I've ever seen. Gomorrah would agree, but he can't do anything in his book state.”

            Before Daniel could speak, Belial let out a distorted roar. He snapped the iron bars of the school's gate in half as he freed himself. Some of the iron rods were entangled in the wire wrapped around his arms. He stood straight up and showed his screw-like teeth to Margaret and Brigid.

            “You will pay for that! Pay dearly! First my hands, then my beautiful face, and now my wires. Time to die, Witch!”

            “I won't be dying anytime soon. Besides, you never answered my question about porcelain's melting point.” Margaret rested her chin on Foxglove in the air as she spoke.

            “I don't give two rat tails about that!”

            “Oh, well. Maybe if you weren't so stupid and too busy at finding out what your favorite panty color was, you'd probably now. Isn't that right, teacher?”

            Without giving Belial time to rebuttal, Margaret called for Brigid's name. The sheep bowed it's head and closed it's eyes. Margaret placed a finger on the blood red stone that was on her choker necklace. In a streak of flames, Brigid's body dispatched and went within the stone. In Margaret's hand, Foxglove erupted into flames. A long, silver blade stuck out from the ball of fire. Margaret waved her hand and the flames withered away. Instead of a firearm, Foxglove was now a beautiful sword. In contrast to the silver steel blade, the hilt was golden and cut to resemble a roaring flame. A red scarf was tied to the end of the hilt. It flowed beautifully as a gentle breeze blew.

            Aside from the sword, Margaret began to change once again. Her long hair changed from it's burgundy coloring to an orange-red hue. The long hairs began to retract towards her skull, curling as they went further up. In a matter of seconds, her hair had become a curly afro that resembled a sheep's wooly body. The hair began to glow, looking as if embers were kept within the curly tresses. Her bewitching outfit morphed. The revealing ensemble was replaced with steel armor. A flame carving was engraved into the torso piece and chainmail covered her arms. A red cape made of flames trailed behind her, dancing in the wind. A wool skirt covered the perimeter around her legs and underneath it,she wore steel greaves and leather boots. With the essence of Brigid within her mystical gem, Margaret now had the power of the flame Demon.

            “You take the power of a Demon, yet you are still a mortal,” Belial mocked. “A weakling!”

            Margaret ignored Belial and smirked at him. Her fiery hair lit up as she stared at the doll Demon with fury. She pointed her sword at the monster and slashed at the air. A trail of fire shot towards Belial, slashing the Demon across the torso. Belial screamed in pain and clutched at it's chest. The mark was clean and the porcelain skin was red and liquid from the intense heat.

            “I-I'm melting!” Belial was shocked. The Demon fell the ground and it's hands danced around the wound helplessly. “Melting!”

            “I'm not done with you, creep.”

            Margaret pouted her lips and placed her free hand on them. She let her fingers rest there for a moment before she removed it. She flattened her palm and blew a kiss towards the Demon. Suddenly, the seven wooden puppets burst into flames. Belial panicked and tried rolling on the ground to quell the fire but that did not work.

            “Brigid's flames are as intense as the sun's and can never be put out,” Margaret stated. The wires attached to the puppets caught on fire as they smoldered. She walked towards the monstrosity. Once she was close enough, she placed the pointed tip at Belial's neck. “You have lost this match.”

            As Belial squirmed and twisted as the flames spread throughout it's doll-like body. The fire melted Belial's appendages and torso. The body and flames vanished into thin air. Soon, the head of Belial vanished as well. The doll Demon was defeated. With Belial's power gone, the mark that had touched the student's faded without a trace. Though they were still unconscious, no memory of Belial's influence would be there. Mr. Arthur will also be well, as soon as he wakes up.

            The new form Margaret gained faded out with the dying flames, reverting back to her Witch state. A small flame went in front of her and flickered. She smiled at the tiny spark.

            “Thanks, Brigid,” she said quietly. “See you around.”

            The flame circled around her once and then fluttered back to Gomorrah. The flame sat on top of the book cover and, instead of burning the book, faded into the book. Margaret looked at Daniel, Sodom, and Gomorrah and gave them a thumbs up. Daniel smiled and ran up to her.

            “That was amazing!” he called cheerfully. “I never knew people could have so much power like that! And that sheep...so cool!”

            Margaret walked over to Sodom and listened to Daniel's happy talk. The cat moved from it's book perch and lifted it's paw towards Margaret. She rolled her hand into a fist and bumped it with Sodom's paw. She bent over to grab her backpack. She looked at Foxglove, now back in it's gun form and smiled in it's silver glow. She kissed the barrel and placed the weapon in the bag. Daniel continued talking and praising Margaret as she went over to pick up Gomorrah. Suddenly, Daniel stopped talking. She looked back at her classmate and saw him with his eyes closed. He had a hand on his temple and he was moaning tiredly.

            “Hey, Danny boy,” Margaret said to him. “Are you okay?”

            Daniel nodded and gave her a small smile. “Yeah, I'm alright. Just a little tired.”

            “You're probably just overwhelmed. You did see a lot of crap just happen.”

            This time, Daniel didn't answer her. He slumped over and fell onto his butt. Margaret's eyes widened in concern, dropped her bag and she rushed over to him. She called his name and slapped at his cheek. She tried to wake up her friend but to no avail.

            “Margy! Get away from him!”

            Sodom was growling at Daniel. Now that the feline mentioned it, something did feel off about Daniel. His usual calm, cheerful aura was replaced with a sinister one. Margaret backed away from the classmate. A purple aura formed around him and then took the form of a hand. The hand spotted Sodom and slapped the cat away. Sodom went sailing through the air before crashing into a tree. He fell onto the ground with a thump and laid there unconscious.

            “It's pointless to fight now,” a feminine voice called out. The exotic voice was echoing around Margaret, though she did not know where it was coming from.

            She looked at the purple hand and watched it take the form of a person. As the purple color faded, a woman stood next to Daniel. She was wearing a plain white cloak. The hood was drawn up and covered her head. Of what Margaret could see, she could see the woman had a deep tan and dark hair. The cloaked woman pointed at Margaret, exposing a ring on every finger. The gold bracelets around her wrist hit each other, making a loud noise. Margaret bent over to pick up Gomorrah and tried to open the book for defense. However, Gomorrah's pages would not open; the Demon was too exhausted from summoning Brigid. Margaret cursed and stared at the cloaked woman.

            “I did not come here to fight with you,” she stated boldly. “I came here to give a warning.”

            “A warning? I don't have time for you're bullshit. Who the hell are you?”   

            The woman laughed at the Witch. “I am Ammit, the Devourer of the World. I see you have taken care of Belial. He was a fool but he did his job. Now, I truly know of the force that I am up against. I might of underestimated you, Witch, but that will change in a few moments.”

            “What are you talking about? For a Demon, you sure don't make a lot of sense.”

            “Oh, I believe I make plenty of sense. Now hark to me! Since you meddled in my affairs, I feel I should tell you something.”

            She motioned towards Daniel. “This boy is marked as mine. He is destined to give birth to a glorious Demon lord who will change this world. I have, and will continue to send my underlings to fill him with as much torment and dread till it is time for the birthing. I do not need a Witch to foil my plans.”

            “Why? What has Daniel ever done to deserve this!?”

            “He was simply born to carry this.”

            Margaret took a step towards Ammit and broke out into a run. The Demon smirked and lifted her hand. She was not close to Margaret but her power was enough to draw the distance together. Just lifting her arm up and with the aura around her, Ammit was a powerful entity. Margaret was exhausted from her encounter with Belial and so was Gomorrah. She knew it was smart to run, but she couldn't leave Daniel behind. She didn't want to admit defeat but Ammit could see the Witch was in a corner.

            “Good girl,” Ammit purred. “Let's just add a handicap to make sure you don't ruin the preparation.”

            Without lifting her feet, Ammit glided over the ground and stood face to face with Margaret. Before the Witch could react, the Demon ripped Gomorrah from her hands. The force from Ammit pushed Margaret and he landed on her back. She watched helplessly as the Demon held Margaret's prized tome. Ammit sneered, placed it on Gomorrah's cover and dragged her fingernails across slowly. Gomorrah wailed in agony as the Demon did the action, loud enough for even Margaret to hear. When she finished, Ammit threw the book at Margaret's feet. Claw marks were now on the cover and blood seeped from the wounds. Margaret picked up Gomorrah and held him close. She stared at the Demon as if daggers were in her eyes.

            “You're going to pay for hurting Gomorrah, and if you dare hurt Danny, I'll-”

            “It's too late. Good bye, Witch.”

            Ammit laughed heartily as her essence began to fade. Her aura became opaque and retreated back to it's source: Daniel. Margaret growled in frustration and punched at the ground.

            The main entrance to the academy was a wreck. The iron gate was dented and char marks were  etched on the ground. The bodies of the controlled students were starting to show signs of life again, trying to come to grips on what was going on. Daniel didn't show any sign of waking up and would probably remain asleep for the rest of the night. Margaret remained on the ground, perched up on her knees. She clutched at Gomorrah, who was quietly whimpering in her arms. Her face was like stone, hardened and unfazed. Sodom had finally come to and walked up to her.

            “That stupid bi-” Sodom looked at Gomorrah and then at Margaret. “What happened?”

            “I'm not sure,” Margaret said quietly.

            She opened the cover of Gomorrah's book. Her eyes widened in disbelief and she shook her head nervously. With the moonlight as her guide, she soon saw that all of the Demons her grandfather had collected were gone. The hundreds of pages contained within were now blank and empty. Out of all the Demons collected, only three remained.

            Margaret looked up to see Daniel's motionless body and then at the moon.

            “Fate...you sure are a b***h.”