Time Trap

Master had gone into battle without him again, something that still confused Steve. As a rule, demon masters used demons to battle for them but Master preferred to leave his demons out of battle.

That didn't keep Steve away. He never did abide by any wishes he didn't agree with.

He found them battling in an abandoned farmhouse, the demon masteress, Felona, and his master. Felona wielded two demons, both terrifying for any human to behold, while his master wielded his arms, deflecting any strikes with only his will and attacking with all the spells he had prepared before the siege began.

That's hardly fair, Steve thought, as he grappled the uglier demon as it charged his master.

Go away, Master commanded.

Make me, Steve sneered. Oh, that's right, you've got your hands full. How about I take one of the demons away? Won't that make it easier?

You're not supposed to be here. This is a trap.

And you stepped into it. I know.

It's not a trap for me. It's for you! Now go away.

What can possibly harm me? Steve wondered. I'm too powerful to contain, even for you, he reminded Master.

The demon wriggled out of his grasp and for a moment, the air sizzled as the combined strength of the simultaneous energy bolts released by Steve and Felona's demon collided.

His frequency is higher than mine, compensate, Steve muttered to himself as he flew between Master and the demon. Negating energy bursts was difficult. There was always a risk of frying the oxygen out of the air and Master was too close.

This wouldn't be a problem if you stayed home, his master growled. I kept them at bay until you came. Now I can't strike without striking you as well.

Aw, I didn't know you cared, Steve smirked. I can take care of myself. Besides, those blasts have little effect on me. You know that. Fire away.

He sensed his master's emotions boil. Steve's snide attitude and the fact that his Master's blasts could not harm him were new developments that vexed his master.

I'll find another way to put you in your place.

Steve sensed rather than saw his master fall; a rather steep drop that knocked the breath out of the man. The masteress had teleported a massive chunk of ground from where his master had been standing and now she was levitating that chunk of earth over the man in the hole.

Not if I can help it, Steve cried out at Felona. Steve lunged for the masteress. His sudden, unexpected charge caused her to release the mound prematurely, missing the hole; missing the opportunity to bury his master.

As Steve neared the masteress, he prepared himself for the inevitable smash of his body into a psychic wall of some sort. The collision never came. She raised her arms in defense and instead of conjuring a wall, a tunnel opened up and Steve flew in.

*** Idiot ***

He smashed into a tree or rather he smashed through a few trees. The force of his projection obliterated a ragged line through the forest.

The stars twinkled peacefully in the night sky and the moon was full. He could see the silhouette of Castle Dread and wondered why she had teleported him to the other side of the forest.

Was the battle over?

A bit of fear crept into his heart, as he realized he couldn't sense his master's presence.

Vehemently, he scoped the forest in vain for the deserted farmhouse but even the fields seemed to be missing. There should be ruins, instead, there was nothing but trees and more trees, all green, leafy and rubble free.

Finally, he settled on a clearing and focused his mind. A faint stirring of a few tendrils told him to return to the castle. This was a good sign that his master had survived the battle. Quite possibly he needed healing. Steve rushed toward the castle with great hope and all the elation of a dog craving and anticipating his master's attention.

He whizzed through the orchards and then through the courtyard until he arrived at the massive double doors.

The doors should have swung open at his approach. Instead, he had to pull open the right side. As he entered, the chill in the air hit his skin and immediately he wondered about the other demons. The Dread demons were conspicuously absent.

Steve walked carefully through the rooms, heading for his master's bedroom, half wondering whether the man had died.

The halls were dimly lit by moonlight. Steve reached out with his mind to light the glow bulbs and grew perturbed when he couldn't find any.

The air grew colder as he entered the bedroom. He could sense his master's presence here. And he detected a woman's presence in the dark as well.

Master? Are you awake?

The moonlight barely revealed the metal shaft that lunged for him. He stepped to the side and the woman charged past him. She had trouble wielding the staff but appeared determined to attempt another strike. As she twisted her body to face his, she lowered the staff so that it aimed for his head.

"Wait!" Steve cried out.

"What for?" the woman gasped. "If you don't leave now, I'll run you through."

"Leave? Why would I leave now? This is my home."

"How dare you! When an intruder comes in and finds a woman alone in a castle, he thinks he can claim it for his own. Well, this land is mine and I'll be dead before you take it from me."

"What baby?" Steve wondered. She hadn't said "baby" but something in her voice betrayed it.

As if in reply, baby noises came from a corner by the window. Steve stepped towards the baby hidden in the shadows.

"Get away from him!" The woman lunged at him with all her weight behind the staff. Steve raised his left hand and "flicked" the staff towards the door, knocking the woman to the floor.

The tiny tendrils stirred as Steve's mind reached out. Here was his master, a tiny and helpless little human, with no strength to crawl or roll over.

The pieces of the puzzle were falling into place now.

All the missing elements, such as the fields, the farmhouse, the castle sentries and the castle magic, were never missing.

Felona had sent him back in time, to kill the baby.

cover details ▼

Added Cover - cropped 377 x 377 - Abandoned Farmhouse

File:Abandoned farmhouse, Vatersay - geograph.org.uk - 2606816.jpg

- https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/ba/Abandoned_farmhouse%2C_Vater...

- https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Abandoned_farmhouse,_Vatersay_-_geograph... -

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