Careful What You Wish For (MiharuAya & Diana)

[Diana]

People always thought that living and working for wizards was a glamorous job filled with adventure, wonder, and a good bit of gold. None of that was true - at least not for Lily Finch who accepted the job offer of the first wizard she met like a fool, and was now wasting her life away mopping up weird goo, trapping weird summons, and disposing of weird alchemical mixes that more often than not ended up setting off terrible magic backlashes.

And the pay? Not gold, not silver, not even a few coppers! Lily Finch was receiving room & board, and "the experience of working with a master". The girl would have immediately left in the first week had she not been bamboozled by this arsehat of a wizard and tricked into signing a contract. No one ever told her not to sign a contract with a wizard!

It was the middle of the night and Lily was in the tower, trying to sweep heaps of bone dust off the balcony. Bone dust. Whose bones? She didn't know! But her glorious master told her to do it, and thus she must.

As she swept a star shot across the sky. Lily paused, leaning on her broom with a sigh.

"I wish I wasn't in this mess," she mumbled.

"LILY. LILY COME HERE AT ONCE. I BELIEVE THIS SPELL HAS CREATED A NEW FLESH EATING RAT AND IT MUST NOT LEAVE THIS TOWER!" bellowed the wizard from deep inside his stone lair.

"I really wish I could shoot that mean old man into a volcano," Lily huffed with a scowl.

Oh well, it was back to work for Lily Finch. A life of being a wizard's assistant was all she'd ever know.

 

[MiharuAya]

Upon the utterance of those words, a dark fog began rolling in from the surrounding hills. As black clouds swirled angrily in the sky, the once bright moon was enveloped in mysterious darkness. While shadows crept towards the castle, a sudden clap of thunder erupted from the sky. The grey clouds broke as heavy rain began to pour over the land.

As the inexplicable storm raged on, a flash of red lightning illuminated the sky. When the strange thunderbolt struck the ground, the earth shook. Though, it could easily be contributed to the booming thunder rumbling through the sky.

Once the streak of lightning vanished, a vast crater was left in its wake. As smoke billowed out of the hole as the dim molten earth smoldered under the rain. The surrounding grass appeared singed, it's color a charcoal black and no longer swayed in the wind.

A low groan rang out from the crater, as a black scaled hand reached up towards the murky sky. When the other hand appeared, it began to pull itself from the hole. "Fuck, that hurt" Vicari muttered under his breath, whipping the mud from his face.

The man was wearing a plain back robe, tied on the left shoulder with a dark red braided string. Although he was covered in dirt, with the snap of his fingers he was left in pristine condition. "Now, who dares to bother me?" He asked, peering around himself.

When he spotted the castle, his intuition told him that he would find the person inside. With an annoyed click of his tongue, he soon made his way towards the building's front door. As knuckled rasped on the wooden door, he did his best to mute his irritated expression.

 

[Diana]

Naturally, Lily didn't think twice about a weird blustery storm outside. Though she was greatly frustrated that it had to appear before she'd closed up all the castle windows. Now there was probably puddles of water for her to mop up all over the place.

The wizard was now bellowing at her to get the front door - as if he weren't closer to it and could get it himself. Lily sighed, setting aside her broom to trudge down the long winding stair case of the tower. Part of her hoped this midnight guest would give up and leave if it took too long. But Lily supposed anyone banging on a wizard's door in the middle of night must have some sort of urgent problem. She certainly would guilty if someone died from an awful curse just because she never answered the door.

Once Lily finally made it to the grand front door, she hefted it open and found herself face to chest with... Lily blinked.

Oh this was going to be a bad night.

"Can I help you?"

 

[MiharuAya]

When the door finally opened, Vicari squinted down at the girl. His eyes stared at her face before lowering to slowly look her up and down. She appeared to be a simple maid, indicating that she certainly must not be the person who summoned him.

"I am Vicari, the demon prince of the fourth circle of hell." He announced, his eyes flickering up to meet Lily's own. "I have been summoned here, and in search of my new master. Is there anyone else in the castle?" He asked, looking over the girl's head to glance inside.

Even though the dwelling had a more humble appearance than he was used to, it would do. After all, he didn't plan to stay for long. "Please fetch the master of the castle," His hand raised, rudely waving the girl off. "I don't want to be here longer than I must," Vicari said in a dramatic huff.

 

[Diana]

"Oh, not again..." she complained with a heavy sigh. Granted, this was the first time a demon had come straight up to the door and just knocked. But generally, when someone had a complaint about the Master, they were angry witches or peeved elves, most of which whom didn't bother knocked at all. They'd fly in through a window or a wall and then the fight would be spilling out magic in all directions, leaving broken furniture and shattered jars for her to repair.

Lily opened the door up wider and started to step aside when she second-guessed the decision.

"Wait, I really don't think letting a demon in is such a good idea. You're a demon! You might very well be lying about the whole thing!"

 

[MiharuAya]

When the girl started to step aside, Vicari moved to step inside. But, as she suddenly stop, he let out an annoyed sigh. His eyes squinted down at her, "Just because I am a demon, doesn't mean I am inherently a liar." He responded in an insulted tone. Though, he was simply pretending to be offended. Of course he lied, he was a demon for lucifer's sake! But, he couldn't turn down a chance to mess with a human, they were quite entertaining.

"Are you going to stop me?" As he looked down at the girl, he stepped closer. "How do you intend to do that…little human?" As he looked down at her, a finger poked her in the forehead. Even though she stood in his way, he was fully confident that she would be intimidated and give up quickly.

 

[Diana]

Lily backed into the door when he advanced and immediate swung her hand to slap his poking finger away. As a demon he was indeed very intimidating, and since she'd left her broom all the way upstairs, she didn't have a weapon ready for the swinging. She kept her bravest face on, however, and refused to let this demon try to harass her. If only because wizards loved cruel and unusual punishments, and didn't want to spend a week in the attic.

"Well! ...fine! If you want to be banished so badly, come inside then! I'll fetch the sir, and then you're brains will get melted, or whatever nonsense is bound to befall you for being dumb enough to get yourself ensnared by a summons!"

 

[MiharuAya]

As the human slapped his finger away, a devious smirk spread across the demon's lips. It was always so amusing to play with humans, especially ones as obstinate as this one. After all, it wasn't all too fun if they simply coward in fear.

"It's about time," When the girl finally relented, Vicari strode inside with a look of triumph. Even with her warnings, he was confident that nothing such as that would happen to him. And, he could certainly handle himself if it did.

"Humans are so dramatic. I am a demon prince, I think I can handle it." He replied, rolling his eyes. As he stood in the foyer, he glanced around. The place was certainly below his standard. It appeared to be full of junk and strange knick-knacks. Just another reason to quickly find his Master, fulfill his duty and leave.

 

[Diana]

"Wait here," Lily huffed. Not that she expected him to actually follow instructions.

Throwing a wary eye over her shoulder, she marched off into the small castle to find her Master.

The wizard Malhalagan was quite old. With a stark white goatee and long slicked back white hair, he must've been in his 90s are the bare minimum, yet knowing wizard tricks he could've been far older than that. At present he was stirring up some monstrosity of a potion in a big black cauldron that smelled terribly of rotten fish and sweet honey, while occasionally spitting out green sparks.

Lily hesitated in the doorway, not wanting to interrupt. Finally she wound up the courage to speak.

"Master there's-"

"SILENCE WOMAN THIS IS DELICATE WORK!" he bellowed, not seeing the irony in his own shouting.

Lily huffed.

"But Master there's-"

"CAN'T YOU SEE I'M BUSY HERE!"

"There's a DEMON in the castle!" she finally blurted out.

"Girl, why didn't you say so in the first place. Fetch me my staff, I could use a demon's horns for my work."

 

[MiharuAya]

Even though the girl had asked him to wait at the foyer, Vicari began surveying the castle. If this was to be his new home, for the time being, he wanted to ensure that it would be up to his standard. Though, at first glance, it was far too small and much too cluttered for his liking.

As he heard the sounds of inaudible shouting coming from upstairs, his brows knit together in confusion. How improper to yell when a guest was present, he thought to himself. But, he wasn't all too surprised given the poor manners of the servant girl.

While he waited for the human and whoever would be his next Master to return, he did find himself pleased that it appeared that his Master was at least capable of magic. It would be an embarrassment if he had been summoned by a weakling, or even worse, a mere mortal.

"How much longer will this take?" He sighed, tapping his shoe impatiently.

 

[Diana]

"Not quite long at all," announced the wizard from behind the demon.

The wizard Malhalagan made an imposing figure compared to the small maid, and didn't seemed to be at all concerned about a demon inside his home. In fact, by the wild and slightest deranged expression on his face, he actually looked quite delighted! The already crackling with magical energy as he twist his staff preparing up a spell.

"Woman, go fetch a bucket. A few valuable organs might escape." he ordered. It was quite the odd thing to say, until it became clear this spell the wizard was building up was intend to summon bolts of lightning to blast the demon to pieces!

Lily didn't think that was such a smart idea, but she did dash to grab a bucket.

 

[MiharuAya]

When Vicari heard the wizard's voice, he let out an exaggerated huff as he turned on his heels. "Finally, you should really find better help." He grumbled, crossing his arms over his chest. As he looked the man up and down, a confused expression slowly crept onto his face.

"Are you really my-?" He started to say, an eyebrow lifting in disbelief. The man appeared deranged, and Vicari was beginning to become concerned. Though, it wasn't until the wizard remarked about his organs did he understand that he was in danger.

"What are you doing?" Vicari shouted at the man. "I don't know what you're planning, but it won't work out well for you." His voice grew low, his eyes glowing a bright red in anger. As he lifted his hands, he planted his feet into the ground as he prepared for whatever the wizard was about to do.

 

[Diana]

The wizard had no fear of this demon, being so completely confident about his wizarding skills, that as soon as Lily was well out of the room, he built up his lightning spell to a beautiful tempest of a storm and then sent it at the demon with a thrust of his staff in the air.

The crackling BOOM that followed sent the stone tower walls shivering all the way up to the top, and Lily herself stumbling onto the floor from the vibration. She could hear things tumbling off of shelves, and there was a fine mist of dust and smoke slowly rolling out of chamber.

Lily supposed the demon's guts were probably plastered all over the place at this point. Nothing would survive that!

 

[MiharuAya]

With his feet properly planted on the ground, Vicari braced for the wizard's impact. The demon held his hands out in front of him, palms facing the deranged wizard as he prepared to repel the man's spell. His brows were scrunched together as he wore a frustrated expression, his jaw clenching in anger.

As the thunderous sound of the spell erupted and shot towards him, Vicari lifted a shield to block the magic. Its shadowy surface absorbed the lightning, sending it into the void of darkness. The power of the spell caused his feet to slide along the stone floor as he held his position. However, he managed to thwart the attack.

While the rubble began to settle, it was difficult to see through the debris. Vicari waved a hand in front of his face, sneezing as the dust bothered his allergies. "I hate this place…" He muttered to himself under his breath.

"Now, it's my turn old man," With rage burning inside of him, Vicari wore a wicked grin as he prepared to attack. As he placed his hands together, he spoke a soft incantation. While his words flowed from his lips, the lights within the castle began to dim until it was nearly pitch black. The ground rumbled and started to violently shake until cracks opened up revealing a fiery depth. Within moments, tiny dark figures emerged. As they scratched and clawed out the cracks, they screamed and latched onto the wizard.

 

[Diana]

By all the pompous theatrics and bragging the old wizard did, one would've thought he'd be far more capable and powerful. At least, that is what Lily Finch thought in those final moments. One day, when she was of better mind she would retell the story with a great deal of flourish and embellishment.

But that day, in the moment, all she could think was well damn..

First the ground rumbled and shook causing even more things to fly off of shelves and walls. Considering the wizard Malhalgan already sent most of it to the floor himself, there wasn't much left to break. But then the stones of the very castle tower itself started to come loose. Giant chunks of stone slipping off the walls and the ceilings - but more dangerous than that, the floors came apart with large cracked fissures where quite literal hell itself had come up out of it's depths.

The wizard Malhalgan was no spring chicken, surely he had powerful magics to get himself free! But in the chaos of the tower grumbling, the only thing Lily could do was shriek and make for a quick exit out the front doors.

She'd barely stumbled outside and fell to her hands and knees in the front garden when the very tower itself collapsed into a piled of rubble and dust. Lily could only assume the demon and the wizard had both been crushed to death on the inside!

 

[MiharuAya]

As the building began to fall apart each piece of the castle that crumbled to the ground sent a shockwave that caused the earth to violently rumble and shake. Where Vicari stood, the destruction was deafening. However, he stood his ground. Even as the castle sunk into the earth, he refused to waver.

For several long moments, the vision was obscured by all the debris swirling in the air. But, as the dust settled, he stepped out of the ruins. Vicari wiped his hands together to rid them of the dirt that had been kicked up, clicking his tongue in annoyance. "Well, that was a disaster…" He muttered to himself.

It wasn't until he nearly tripped over Lily that he even remembered her presence. "Oh, it's you," Vicari spoke down at her, a tinge of disgust in his voice. "What are you doing down there?" He quirked an eyebrow at her. While he waited for her to answer, he cast a quick spell to clean off the rest of his clothes.

 

[Diana]

He was still alive!

Lily stared at the demon with her eyes wide and then back at the crumbled fallen tower of the Master Wizard's former home. She half expected the old man to come roaring out, flinging boulders and beams of lightning, but the dust continued to settle and the only sound left was the roll of thunder in the distance and the heavy fall of rain.

"Did you kill him? You killed him...! Do you have any idea what you've done!"

 

[MiharuAya]

While Vicari finished straightening out his attire, he was confused at the girl's sudden outburst. "Why all the shouting?" He whined, a look of annoyance washing over his face. "It was hardly my fault. That damned wizard attacked me first, I was merely protecting myself!" He explained in a matter-of-fact tone.

Vicari crossed his arms in front of him, "Besides, shouldn't you be grateful that you know longer have to serve such a deranged man, I basically did you a favor." A smirk pulled at his lips, proud of what he had done. Vicari quickly added in a mumble, "And, he isn't really dead. His soul is just in hell."

 

[Diana]

"A favor?!" Lily scrabbled to her feet, gesturing her arms wildly as torrents on rain still fell.

"That was my home! My job! How am I supposed to live now? Oh... oh when they find out he's dead. when I just let you in the tower-"

This was terrible! Wizards didn't give a wit about apprentices or servants. They'd give him some terrible lecture about how she should never have let a demon in the place. (He knocked on the door, what else was she supposed to do?!) Never mind the fact she was now homeless and jobless. Lily certainly couldn't go back and request a new apprenticeship, that was for sure. If they didn't toss her in a dungeon, they'd use her in magical experiments.

"Oh, why am I even standing here trying to yell sense into you! Demons don't know anything!" she finally cried. After a stomp of her foot, she finally whirled around and started walking. There was no salvaging anything out of the tower with the way it crumpled (and she wasn't so sure it wasn't a hellmouth now either). The nearest village was several days walk away.

 

[MiharuAya]

As the girl began to shout and wave her arms dramatically in the air, Vicari's face scrunched as he gave her a look of confusion. The demon simply didn't understand what the big fuss was about. It wasn't as if the wizard was anyone important, or at least he didn't think. The man was insane, and wasn't even able to counter his attack!

While the servant continued to rant, his face dropped into a sullen expression. "Whatever…Perhaps, maybe, destroying the tower was a bit much." He grumbled, refusing to meet the girl's gaze. "But he still deserved it." He added, still not willing to take responsibility.

After all, none of this was really his fault. He never asked to be summoned, and certainly not in the middle of nowhere during a monsoon. Vicari was used to being pampered by servants in the laps of luxury. Not chasing after some mysterious master. It was ridiculous.

When the girl yelled that demons didn't know anything, Vicari huffed as smoke came billowing out of his mouth. "Excuse me?" He roared, trailing after her. "And where do you think you are going?" Vicari demanded, eyes staring down at her like daggers.