The Devils Star

Alex is one of the children of the Devil. He's trying to his sister Rakasha from harming his best friend Colbie who has the power to use "The Devil's Star".

Prologue:

            There are five different realms most humans don’t know about or understand. These realms are Spirit: the realm of dreams, wishes, and creatures of the stars; Water: the realm of cleansing and washing away; Air: a so called Heaven, land of the gods and those who have passed; Earth: our home and the central grounding point of the realms; and last of all Fire: Hell and home of the Devil and his servants, the demons. The Devil has five children, one for each realm. His daughter Rakasha meaning demon, is the most powerful and deadly of them all. Of course that means she was born to the realm of fire. She is my sister and my worst enemy.

            Rumor has it that a pentagram (a five pointed star inside a circle), is the symbol of my father, but I know that isn’t true. It is a symbol that witches can use to reach all the different realms. I’m just waiting for the right girl called a Seraphim to bring me to the Fire Realm. Once there, I can kill my sister and show my father that I am worthy, even if I am just a son of the Earth realm. I seek to find the girl who can use the “Devil’s Star.”

 

             I stand at the foot of Colbie’s bed. The digital clock on her nightstand reads 11:45pm, in an eerie red Florissant light. I turn my head to the dark outside, listening to the sound of rain tapping all over her copper roof and the explosive boom of God’s clap. It sounds like tiny mice scurrying all about and being pounced on by a colossal cat. The air in Colbie’s room is cool, but dense. If she was awake at this moment she would be freaking out. Oh how much she hates loud noises and rain. Well, if Col was awake right this second she would probably be questioning why I was in her room at the moment, too. That is a question I can’t really answer. I mean it’s not like I want to be a creep or something, but I have a sense something is going to happen tonight. I don’t know what, when, or even why, but something turns my muscles to stone and makes my heart beat quicker, pushing blood about ten times faster through my arteries and veins.

            All of the sudden, a red glowing pentagram appears over Colbie’s head. It’s blinding, like staring directly at the sun. I can almost feel it burning me like a flame hotter, and hotter, but I can’t seem to turn my head away. Nearly as soon as it came, it disappears in a second splitting flash that leaves an after sight in my vision. Most creatures and I most of all know what this means. I have found the key to the Fire Realm and it is Colbie. I should be rejoicing. Now that it is Colbie, I know she can help me with my mission to kill my demon sister. There is only one thing troubling me at the back of my mind. If I was the one who discovered her, shouldn’t the pentagram have glowed green for earth not red for fire?

            Then it hits me like a two ton elephant from the vast plains of Kenya Africa. Rakasha is trying to return to rule all the realms using the Seraphim’s power; Colbie’s power. Someone as powerful as Rakasha could easily kill Col in the process. That isn’t something I, Alex James Emmerton, am going to let my self-centered sister do. I will vow to protect Colbie even if it means I go visit my father, the Devil in Hell.

            Its two months later and I am sitting on the hard wood floor, at the base of Colbie’s queen sized bed. It is 12:00AM and raining the pitter patter of mice feet. The only difference between now and last time is that Colbie knows I’m here. Well, that difference and the other changes such as she knows who she is; we are about to attempt entrance into the Water Realm and she and her BNMF, (Best Non Male Friend, I’m her best friend) Kara Ash are at my sides. So I suppose it is a lot different from the last time.

            “OMG! This is going to be like so cool! I like can’t wait. Thank you so much for like letting me join in! OMG!!!” Kara says in her peppy and crazy voice she always uses. I can almost see her panting. I only wish she, and most teenage girls wouldn’t use the word “like” or “OMG!” in every sentence. I swear if she acted any more like a dog her straight ginger hair would be curly from all the bouncing up and down at my feet.

            Colbie gives a small laugh to the side lighting up her face. She looks like a Barbie with her pink lips, happy smile showing perfect white teeth, light blonde hair, fair skin, and friendly blue eyes. All you need to do is add a Ken doll to her side and she’d be the perfect living Barbie. Wait, maybe I could be the Ken doll. Yah right, that would be too crazy. I’m not the type of person who looks like a fashion accessory any five year old girl uses to play doll house with. I’m tons better than that. Oh never mind that, there are way better things to think about than a who would be included in a real life Barbie day dream.     

I look over at Kara, she is looking at Colbie. There is a deep of look hunger and longing behind her usually sweet amber eyes. She has gone from cute puppy to sly fox in a matter of seconds. I really don’t know why, but a voice in my head tells me to take note of this. Still, I shouldn’t spend too much time dwelling on something that may turn out to be nothing. Anyhow Kara is back to her old doggy self and now we all need to focus on helping Colbie get us to the Water Realm.

            “Okay, so as far as I know we start by drawing a pentagram on the floor and we must label the points starting at the top and going clockwise. Right?” Colbie says unsurely.

            “Yea that sounds right so me. Hey Kara, could you read off the order in which the points should be labeled?” I ask Kara since that is about the only thing I think she can do.

            “Totally!” she replies. Then, once the pentagram has been drawn in white chalk, she speaks in a clear, slow, but still girly voice, “Spirit, water, fire, earth, air.” Once Colbie is done labeling the points, Kara informs us, “Okay next you like put a glass of water in the water point and the Seraphim must like give a blood sacrifice to Acquanetta the Devil’s child born to the Water Realm. OMG! Even the sheer though of a blood sacrifice gives me the shivers.” She gives a little shiver for dramatic effect.

            Both Colbie and I are amazed by Kara’s knowledge. She isn’t even getting the information out of a book or the internet! I quickly run to the kitchen, get a delicate wine glass filled with Pure Springs Mountain Water and a sharp pocket knife.

            When I get back I gently put the glass in the water point and hand the deadly blade to Colbie. She closes her eyes and quick as a bolt of lightning, she drives the blade diagonally across the palm of her left hand. Silently she winces in pain, but her face shows no trace of fear as the blood drips like rain into the center of the pentagram. Kara and I wait silently as statues.

            “To Acquanetta,” she whispers in a hollow voice.

            For a minute, all is quiet, but in a moment a silver shimmering fog rolls into the room from a mysterious place. It isn’t cold or warm, but feels like some indescribable, something from another world. Soon it slowly begins to vanish. When all traces are gone we are in a place of water. It smells fresh and sweet like a morning when you go outside after a rain. The sound of birds chirping and running water fills the air. A thin layer of translucent blue ice covers the entire ground. Waterfalls run off jagged glacier cliffs. Warm lagoons are scattered around and far in the distance is a never ending expanse of ocean filled with the most magical creatures imaginable. Finally in the middle of a particularly large pool of warm water, stands the queen herself and my sister, Acquanetta.

            “Hello brother, I see you have found the Seraphim. You have also brought along...,” she ponders at Kara for a long time, a shadow passing along her snow fresh and extremely innocent, beautiful face. Her eyes are a hazy gray and her delicate carved features are enhanced by angelic wavy hair flowing over her shoulders. After a while, she finds her words and continues slowly, “...Your friend from the Earth Realm.”

            “Brother?” Colbie asks completely astonished.

            “Yes I’m her brother. We are both children of the Devil. She is born to the Water Realm of course and I’m born to the Earth Realm. Long story short, I’m trying to defeat my sister of the Fire Realm and we are here because within the Water Realm lies one certain fountain called Justine’s Fountain that can grant you enormous power. It could grant me enough strength to defeat my sister Rakasha and since she is already very strong, it could give her enough power to rule the realms. If that happened it would be very bad.” 

            “Wait, if Rakasha is so powerful and Acquanetta is the queen of her realm, why are you so weak and powerless in our, rather your earth realm?” Kara has the nerve to ask.

  “Well, that is because the Earth Realm is the least powerful of all. Also my realm is inhabited by humans not demons or mystical creatures. I have to have a name that fits my race. Unlike Acquanetta, which means water ruler or Rakasha, that means demon, my name is the 93rd most popular name as of this year for boys right after the 92nd most popular boy’s name,  Jesus. (That is very ironic considering I am the son of the Devil.) According to rule, my name had to be in the top 100 boy’s names. Anyhow I don’t know why, but my name is Alex.” I give a long lecture on why I am who I am. I think it might have put everyone to sleep.

For a moment everyone just stares at me. I look at my reflection in the ice floor. I look small, embarrassed, and ashamed, not the type of person one would seek comfort and protection in. My dirt blonde hair is swept into a messy knot by the wind. I honestly don’t feel like I have the looks of the Devil at this very moment.

            “Um, thanks for the history lesson. I’m feeling kind of sleepy from waiting around. If you want, we could start searching for Justine’s Fountain.” Colbie suggests.

            “Sure, Acquanetta. Would you possibly know where the fountain may be?” I ask hopefully.

            “I have no idea where it may be, but I can give you a guide to help you, brother.”

            With a snap of her delicate fingers, a beautiful water nymph appears.

            “This is Nixie. She will help you the best she can.”

            With that, she claps her elegant hands and disappears into the mist. And that’s it. We all just sit there starring at Nixie. She stares at us; her big blue glassy eyes peek up out of the water along with her pale shoulders covered by shimmering turquoise hair. She looks so fresh and young, but also purely beautiful.

            “Um hi! As you know I’m Nixie,” she does a back flip in the water as she says “Nixie”. I can already tell she and Kara are going to be BFF’s. Then she continues, “...And I am going to help you search for Justine’s Fountain! As you should know, rumor says Justine’s Fountain is located on an island of ice in the Southern Sea. So I guess we should head that way!” She exclaims pointing in a direction I guess should be south.

            “That sounds great to me!” Kara exclaims and starts skipping where Nixie pointed, her hair flaming behind her.

            Colbie sits down on a frosty rock. Nixie looks after Kara and a weird expression passes over her face. It takes me a few seconds to realize her face shows suspicion. That’s the third strike of warning, but I don’t want to believe Kara could do anything harmful. Then it all comes to me. Kara Ash, all you have to do is switch the letters around and you get Rakasha! How could I have been so oblivious? The red hair, the sly fox look, the amber eyes, and the fact that she sticks with Colbie like a dog on a leash.

            Colbie! She’s been feeling tired ever since we got here. That’s because she transported not just one weak Devil’s son, but also the strongest Devil child of all. Colbie must be a lot stronger than I thought. I look at Nixie; she locks eyes with me and nods in confirmation. At the same time we run over to Col. She is stooped over not moving, but still breathing. She must be energy drained and in some type of deep sleep. For the moment she is safe, but Kara, I mean Rakasha has vanished into the Southern Sea. Without another word, Nixie and I take off to hunt her down.

            When we reach the edge of the sea there is what seems to be a wise old sea naiad along the shore where a boat used to rest. Her hair is grey and the same mysterious eyes stare off into the distance as if searching for something we cannot see.  

            “Yemaya, great goddess of the sea, please grant us passage through your water and tell us how to defeat the demon sister Rakasha,” Nixie breaks the silence commanding in a powerful voice I had no idea she was capable of using.

            The old Water Goddess turns to us and says in her shaky voice, “The way to stop her is with this riddle: The poor have it, the rich need it, and if you eat it you’ll die. That is how to defeat the wrath of Rakasha, well that and what she never had.”

            The poor have it, the rich need it and if you eat it you’ll die? What kind of riddle is that? The rich don’t need anything. The poor don’t have anything! Then the elephant hits me once again and I answer the riddle: nothing. Nothing can stop Rakasha. The sad truth sinks in, I can’t stop Rakasha, at least not without the power of Justine’s Fountain. I can’t give her what she never had either, because that is most likely power of all the realms.

            Then all of the sudden, she appears in a cloud of floating steam, making the salty ocean evaporate into pure fresh water; a smile is tugging at the left of her perfect blood red lips. Her eyes are ablaze and her hair is flaming just like how it was when we saw her last. The air smells like wood burning on a cold winter day. Immediately Nixie flees for the safety of the lagoons; I can’t say I blame her for it.

            “Well, well, well, I guess you have found me out. Too bad I found out where Justine’s Fountain is. Too bad you’ll never taste a sip of it. Water used to be my worst enemy, but this fountain is pretty sweet.” She informs me in her happy victorious voice.

            It’s not over yet, using the tactic of surprise, I launch myself at her conjuring all my power from within. We splash into the cold sea and it feels like a thousand tiny needles driving into my frozen skin. When we emerge I come up coughing and she is sputtering water. I can tell how much she loathes me at the moment. Silently she drags her drenched body out of the sea with a shiver and dries offs using her power over fame. 

In a storm of fury, she takes out her whip of fire, a gift from my father and brings it down hard across my shoulder, burning the flesh and making angry red blisters come up to the surface of my skin. The pain makes me cry out like a coward.

            Water can help draw out the heat, but not the shame of being beat.

            “How now brother, that was quite stupid of you. You know you can’t win. Why even try?” She taunts. 

            I can’t get up, she’s won. I don’t even have the strength to talk back, let alone attempt to strike her again. She just stands there smiling, whip in hand. She has a heart of stone. I bet she never even learned to love. Love! That’s what she never had.

Growing up to the Devil’s standards must have been a horrific task. Plus, she never had any friends to lean on. Rakasha was taught having a heart was a weakness. I slowly get to my knees, and then manage to get to my feet. It is agonizing and exhausting work. I stagger like a drunk dying man over to where she stands, getting closer and closer, the air getting hotter and hotter.

            “So what are you planning to do? Call for that wimp, Nixie or our pathetic sister, who thinks she is the most beautiful girl ever? Are you planning to tell me to spare Colbie and take you to our father so he can beat you himself? Remember I don’t spare people out of pity. My heart is cold as forbidden blue fire. Or, are you planning to fight me? If that is what you choose, I must warn you brother. You look so bad I’m not even sure our father in Hell wants you.” Her voice seams dead serious and just plain mean, but then she breaks off into a high pitched, glass breaking laugh.

            “None of the above,” is all I say as I lean in and give her a hug.

            She lets out a sound of agony and starts to scream and try to pull away. I know what she is feeling. She is feeling all the pain and sorrow and abandonment bottled up inside her and she is letting it all out. Her soul is warming up as her heart is melting. She is basically hysterical and can’t stop crying and shrieking. Now it’s her, who is holding onto me.

            “I’m s-s-s-so s-s-s-sorry,” she manages to get out between the hot tears tumbling down her beautiful face.

            “It’s okay. You’re going to be all right,” I say, trying to calm her.

            “No, it isn’t! You don’t understand! I’ve killed people Alex, innocent people and I didn’t even have the slightest bit of remorse. I have to pay for it, I have to!” She yells twisting away from my grasp.

            Then she pulls out a sparkling ruby dagger sharp as a razor and before I can stop her she drives it into her stomach to the hilt. A loud gasp escapes her mouth followed by a cough of blood turning her lips truly blood red.

            “Let it pay for them, promise?” she asks, her voice a choked whisper. Her stomach rises and falls rapidly and she writhes as her body tries to cling to life.

            “Promise,” I say, my voice a soft whisper, as if soothing a baby to sleep. Her eyes roll up and her breathing becomes shallow and then slowly stops. I close her half opened eyes and cast her out into the ocean. The air no longer feels hot and fiery, but a cool sea breeze, the smell of salt, attempting to sweep all my worries away.

            I came seeking to kill my sister and that has been done. Only I don’t feel the pure joy one is supposed to feel when you win. I guess that’s because I didn’t win. Rakasha is dead, but I didn’t kill the demon I sought. I saw a beautiful girl, my sister take her life, to make up for the lives she had taken. In the end she became as pure as an angel. I watch her body float into the distance carried by the sea. I hope that where she is headed is a place where she can be free from the harassment of the Devil. In my heart I know someone like her will never end up in Hell with my father. She will end up in the Air Realm, an angel watching over me in the everlasting Heaven.

Reviews

[Clever Forever]

Clever, and well written. Frightening, but a good read. A lot of imagery. Really good.