First Demonic Dragon

Among supernatural creatures, demons from biblical hell are… special.

Or perhaps the more apt description would be that they are unreasonably cowardly and opportunistic.

When it comes to angels, or even other demons that are of the same or lower strength than them, they do not hesitate to bully them for all they are worth.

But at the moment they meet a greater demon or an archdemon, they are like perfect little obedient children. Or roaches when the lights come on.

When it comes to archangels or above, they almost always resort to begging for their lives or offering a variety of services in exchange for their continued existence.

… Angels almost never take them up on the offer.

Nevertheless, a few moments ago, these demons from the eight circle had a near brand new reaction.

Because this was the first time that they had been so thoroughly paralyzed with fear.

Not only that, but they would also have rather died than be in the presence of this being for even a minute longer than normal.

To make matters worse, there were four of them.

Seras watched at least thirty demons kill themselves, or each other as soon as she whistled for their attention.

Her face twitched awkwardly a couple of times as the sky overhead turned red.

"All of these years I have spent without blood on my blade, and you would now deny me my chance at glory...? I think not. Fight to earn your deaths, mongrels!!"

A red pulse left Seras' mouth and altered the minds of the demons.

Those that remained lost their sense of self-preservation entirely and charged at her with visions of blood in their eyes.

Seras couldn't decide which weapon she wanted to use first, so she took a page out of her husband's book and grew an additional set of arms.

She held a spear, sword, axe, and shield. (Because safety was still important)

Roaring, she lunged into the hoard of approaching demons with a frenzied smile on her face.

Thrudd, Abaddon, and Bekka were really only along for moral support. Abaddon was grabbing the demons' souls so that they couldn't return when they died.

Wouldn't want them running off to tell the bothers about what they had seen here today.

Bekka went around helping those who were the most affected by the demons' arrival and needed assistance getting to their feet and tending to their injuries.

Abaddon noticed that Thrudd seemed to be watching both of her mothers rather closely.

"You're free to go and join either one of them, you know?" He nudged her gently.

Thrudd waivered as she looked back and forth between the two goddesses.

"It still perplexes me after all of these years... How can they be so different?"

Abaddon quickly realized where his daughter's train of thought was taking her.

"They are what they need to be, my dear. Two different angles of the same picture." Abaddon shrugged.

Bekka has always been a deity who saw war as a last resort. She knew all too well its horrors, the toll it took on others, and it's future ramifications. Your journey continues with empire

Seras is the embodiment of humanity's inherent desire to stand above others. She thinks little of the ramifications of war, or the misery that may be caused as a result.

Neither one of them are wholly 'evil' or 'good' they are simply reflections.

But Abaddon knew that wasn't quite what Thrudd was asking.

Which one am I supposed to be like?

Thrudd was only a primordial thunder goddess. Her divinity of war was still only at the minor level because she had yet to have her 'awakening'.

As a warrior, she is perhaps the most gifted swordsman among all of Abaddon's children.

But that was a natural result when considering her genetics. She had yet to truly deepen her understanding of war, or form her own beliefs around it.

The answer was different for almost every deity, so it wasn't wholly her fault. But that didn't mean that it wasn't starting to bother her a bit.

"The answer isn't clear cut, Thruddie." Abaddon said softly. "You'll get it when you're ready."

A demon driven out of it's mind with Seras' wrath ran up to Abaddon with it's sword raised high above his head.

Thrudd barely saw her father move, but she did see the three fist sized holes appear in different parts of the demon's chest.

"I know, I just... I want to understand myself in the same way that you and the others do. I know you still think I'm your little girl, but I'm a grown woman now, dad. I shouldn't still be having all these questions about myself."

Another demon rushed in from Thrudd's direction. Abaddon watched her perform a spinning heel kick and completely knock off the demon's head.

"I know you're all grown up, Thrudd... I'll try to stop babying you, but you must give yourself grace… And remember what I told you about those kicks and their-"

"Dad!"

"I'm just saying, turning your back to the enemy at any point is-"

"I had the time to do it safely, they're just lesser demons!" Thrudd rolled her eyes.

Abaddon was ready to pull out his own hair. When did kids start thinking they knew everything?

While Abaddon grumbled something to himself about missing Odessa, Thrudd inspected the demons on the ground.

As their bodies broke down into piles of ash, Thrudd noted the strange armor the demons were wearing.

It was uncommon for most low-level demons to wear protective clothing of any kind. They were like masochists who only focused on inflicting harm.

The armor was a tawny brown color, with faint bits of shining gold woven into the bracers and shin guards.

Time seemed to slow down for Thrudd as her violet eyes scanned over the rapidly disappearing remains.

By the time they had fully disappeared, Thread's pupils quivered with realization.

"I-It's her..."

Abaddon noticed his daughter's change of voice immediately and practically ran to her side.

"What are you talking about? What's the matter, Thrudd?"

Abaddon was horrified to watch tears fall from his daughter's eyes as she let the ash of the demons fall from her fingertips.

"B-Behemoth, this is what they kept her underground for all those years for... T-They made armor out of her..!"n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

Abaddon held out his hand and the demon nearest to him came flying into his grasp.

He snapped it's neck to prevent it from squirming around and took another good look at its armor.

His daughter wasn't mistaken. All of the demons were wearing armor made from not only Behemoth, but Ziz as well.

Lucifer was preparing the demons for war.

Abaddion heard the sky overhead rumble.

He looked to his side and found Thrudd rising to her feet; her eyes covered by the glow of purple lightening.

A storm rolled in seemingly out of nowhere. Seras' red sky clashed with the dark grey one that Thrudd's resentment had created. The storm was growing so large that it would be near impossible to hide in a moment.

'Audrina.'

The very second that Abaddon called her, his wife appeared draped over his shoulders like an angel from below.

Abaddon felt a familiar sheen of power cover the landscape for roughly a mile. Now, any inclined eyes would likely only see a delicately crafted illusion.

Audrina looked around with a drowsy gaze that said she'd been in the middle of a nap. "What's all the rucku-"

"AAAAAHHHHHH!!!!!!"

Thrudd yelled from the depths of her very soul. Tears streamed down her face as a suit of armor formed over her body.

Wings of lightning grew from her back and eclipsed her figure.

Her standard longsword and shield appeared in her hand and she lunged into the fray of demons alongside her mother.

Abaddon noticed footsteps approaching from behind him and turned around to find Fiona and around a dozen members of the order arriving at the scene.

"What happened here!?"

"Ah." Abaddon scratched the back of his head. He had no idea where to begin.

Meanwhile, Thrudd was a blur of rage. She wielded her blade like an instrument of her wrath and cut down demons by the dozens.

Her body was a total blur as the flow of electricity guided her wings and carried her all across the town.

She couldn't actually see anything. But she could feel that there were still more enemies to kill.

In this moment, she was no different from a wild animal being guided purely by their instincts.

"THRUDD!"

Seras grabbed her daughter from behind as she raised her sword to separate another demon from it's head.

The very last demon, to be precise.

All others were either already ash, or currently breaking down.

"We need at least one alive, my girl. You can relax now."

Thrudd couldn't even hear her mother. She was too lost in her own sea of emotions.

She was still fighting, struggling to get out of her mother's grasp and hack at the last denizen still wearing fragments of her loved ones misery.

Seras kept an ironclad grip on her daughter, and rested her chin on her shoulder.

No matter how much she struggled and fought back, Seras never let her go.

She spoke to her daughter gently, making soft and sweet whispers in her ear in the hopes of bringing her back down to earth.

"Mommy's here for you, Thruddie. As long as you need me.."