Humanity Versus Demonkind - Nick Venom (reading comprehension books .TXT) 📗

Episode One "The Capital"

“I’m finally here,” Austin muttered to himself as he disembarked from the carriage that was sent to find him. The driver, an undercover member of the Protect, Enforce, and Defend Unit (PED Unit), tipped his hat before taking the carriage elsewhere. 

Austin glanced at the main gate. The line was short and being shuffled inside by two guards donned in iron and bearing the country’s insignia - a wolf howling at the moon contained within the borders of a silver circle. 

“Ready?” The undercover PED agent asked him. “We’re going to meet the President.” 

Austin nodded. “I-I’m ready.”

“Are you?” Aizen taunted him. “I don’t believe you are… my little birdie.” He muttered, emphasizing “birdie”. 

“Shut up, Aizen. I can do this.” 

“I’m sorry?” The PED agent asked. 

Austin shook his head. “Sorry, you can ignore me.” He told the agent, feeling slightly embarrassed. However, not too embarrassed as it became a common occurrence during his few months of traveling on the rickety carriage. Aiden refused to shut up. 

The PED agent nodded and turned away, leading Austin to the main gate. The guards glanced at them, being flashed the PED badge, before waving them in. They bypassed the security checks and registration, entering the Capital. 

“I’m going to warn you… the President has a bit of a temper problem, so try not to anger him.” He warned Austin as they passed by the marketplace. “Don’t take it personally. As long as you don’t irritate him further through facial expressions or your words, you’ll do all right.”

Austin nodded. “Alright,” He said.

The PED agent nodded before turning to face his front. 

“Isn’t this fun?” Aizen taunted him.

“S-Shut up, Aizen.” He whispered, careful to not let the PED agent hear him again. “Stay quiet while I’m with the president. My town’s future will be affected by what I say.”

“I suggest you refrain from telling me what to do.” He growled before chuckling to himself. “I’m not a fan of being told what to do.”

“I’ll ‘refrain’ if you don’t talk.”

Aizen growled in response. 

They were now nearing the building housing the president. The building, known as the Presidental Office, stood defiantly in the middle of the Capital, blasted by the sun’s rays that cast one side in shadows and the other side in a yellow tint.

The Presidental Office was a circular tower surrounded by gardens and a small pond, all meticulously cared for by the gardeners in fear of being charged and executed. Vice, the president, could spot even the smallest of mistakes - which often cost people their lives.

A series of guards protected both entrances to the Presidental Office, changing every hour at Vice’s insistence, all donned in a set of gold armor. 

The PED agent approached the main entrance, which was covered in strange artwork created by Vice during his earlier years and thrown onto the door frame and doors at his insistence. One of the guards raised his weapon, a spear, and rattled it at them. “Show information, otherwise leave.” He ordered.

The PED agent showed his badge to the guard, who bowed his head and apologized. 

“You are free to enter, Agent Rector. Your guest, I’m presuming, is allowed to follow you in.”

Agent Rector nodded, waving Austin in. They passed by the guards and entered the overly white corridors. The corridors were devoid of color, remaining “colorless”.

He brought Austin further into the Presidental Office, taking him up several flights of winding stairs before they arrived at the top of the ten-story building, towering over any building in the Capital - a decision that Vice made to ensure his building remained the tallest. 

At the top, Agent Rector and Austin found themselves going through several long and twisty corridors before arriving at a door marked ‘Office’. 

“Make sure to knock first. He’ll get angry if you don’t.” He warned him. “Well, this is where I’ll be departing. Good luck. You’re going to need it.” He muttered quietly, to avoid being heard by Vice, before returning the way they came. 

Austin nodded, now staring at the door to the Office. His gaze lingered on the word ‘Office’, his gut telling him to turn around and flee. However, his brain, the one focused on his town’s future rather than his, ordered him to enter. 

“I suggest you enter, my little birdie. I wouldn’t want to make the demon inside wait for long…” He gleefully remarked.

“Demon?” Austin whispered. “He’s a demon?”

“I wonder.”

Austin scowled at Aizen before putting his weapon into a makeshift sheath created out of leather and cloth. “Don’t say anything.” He ordered before pressing his hand against the door. His palm met wood, feeling the smoothness of the material. The door was new and professionally crafted. “Well… here goes nothing.” He muttered before rattling his knuckles on the door, quickly receiving a response.

“Come in.” A voice barked, belonging to Vice. He welcomed in Austin with a smile filled with schemes and malicious intent but masked by his professionalism. 

“Austin, isn’t it? Come in, don’t be shy.” He pointed at a chair in front of his desk. He then sat at his desk as he watched Austin sit down who leaned forward as the Hell-Ax took the first few inches of chair space. 

Now with both sides sitting, Vice leaned in. “I have a proposition that may seem crazy, but… you’ll be suicidal not to agree to.” He said with a large grin. “Have you heard about Howling’s biggest threat?”

“T-The demons… Mr. President.” 

Vice nodded. “Yeah, the demons are the problem. Now, what if I told you that I have a way to fix that problem? And that it involves you?”

Austin furrowed his brows, staring at Vice as if he was crazy, before correcting his expression. “I’m sorry, Mr. President, but I-I don’t understand.”

“I see…” He coldly said with a smile. The smile wasn’t radiating heat. 

“Well, no worries. I’ll explain everything right now.” He said. “You have the ability to capture demons, correct?” He asked before steamrolling forward, cutting Austin off before he could answer. “Of course, you do. Why would you be of any u-… Why would you be here anyways?” 

Austin nodded.

“Good, now that you finally understand. Here’s the proposition. You defeat the demons under our banner and name and we’ll provide you with anything. You’ll become a hero, of sorts. Like the one summoned in Great Wolfstein or the one used by Edurdale. Maybe even like Asher’s hero, whoever that could be.”

Austin nodded, careful to not let his emotions appear on his face. One wrong expression and he could see himself being hung.

“Do you accept?” He bluntly asked with a smile that said, You’ll accept if you know what’s good for you.

“Accept the proposition, my little birdie. Not as if you have another option as the demon implies”

“Are you sure?” Austin mumbled, quiet enough that Vice couldn’t hear him.

“You’ll gain the power you need at the demon’s service. Use him until there are no more rewards than betray him. Betray like a demon against a fellow demon.”

Austin didn’t appreciate Aizen’s comment about him being a demon, but he agreed with his plan. He didn’t like Vice and hated how he had control over his town, so becoming the hero and becoming stronger than Vice could mean that he has a chance to take over. All of his problems would be solved effortlessly… as long as he ignored the thought that he would work under him as a slave doing his master’s bidding.

“I accept.” He told Vice who was growing impatient by Austin’s silence. 

Vice grew a larger smile. “Great!” His boisterous voice echoed around the room. “I’ll make sure you get the best of treatment!”

Austin nodded. “T-Thanks.”

Vice nodded, rising from his chair. “Staff, get our hero here the best things we can supply!” He ordered. 

Immediately, several men and women entered the room. They beckoned Austin to follow him, which he complied with. Not without one more glance at Vice, seeing that he was grinning from ear to ear in a devilish way.

“He is a demon.”

 

“What do you mean that a dungeon appeared near us? How could that happen? And how could it be so strong without anybody noticing?” Vice shouted at Dani Midri, a member of his Administration. 

“I apologize, President. My intelligence division faltered in their intelligence-gathering mission.” He said, bowing his head.

Vice turned away from him with a huff. “Get rid of them all. Replace them by midnight.”

“A-As you say,” He muttered, his voice cracking on him. 

“Good… send the PED Unit to deal with the threat. Make it quick… or else.” He growled, frighting Dale. 

Dale nodded, scurrying away while Vice turned to stare out of a wall of windows facing the rising sun. “I… I won’t let my vision die on me. I will not.”

 

TBC…

Episode Two "Hero of Howling"

“This is… strange, right? Not what I heard about from the rumors.” Austin muttered to himself. 

“... I actually agree,” Aizen responded. 

Austin sat on a bench being massaged by one of the staff members present at Vice’s Office. Aizen, meanwhile, was on a chair not far from him. 

“Is this okay, sir?” The staff member asked him.

Austin nodded, unsure how to feel. He glanced around at the angle that he was locked in at, which faced his right towards his Hell-Ax, and noticed the other staff members waiting for their turns to treat him favorably. 

“Is this normal?”

“I’ve seen many mortals and seen their lives begin and end, except for a few people who cannot die, and I can describe this as a ploy.”

“To have me feel more comfortable and willing to help him?” He whispered.

“It appears so,”

“What should I do now then?”

“I suggest that you enjoy your time, my little birdie. It will soon end.” He declared.

Austin nodded slightly, enough to nod but not to disturb the masseuse. He went with the flow, being pampered in a way that often bewildered him. He was taken from being given a massage to being bathed awkwardly with one of the male staff members. After that, he was shipped off to relax in a makeshift sauna then taken to his room to rest. He was given one of the best rooms in the Capital with luxurious blankets, extra fluffy pillows, and a mattress that made him feel as if he had been sleeping on rocks for the entirety of his life. It was a crazy event that even tempted his loyalty to his town… for a moment.

Then the inevitable arrived. A female staff member knocked on the door, calling for him.

“It’s time for you to show your worth, my little birdie.” Aizen gleefully remarked.

“I can see that,” He muttered, slightly irritated to be taken away from his comfy bed. He stood up and approached the door, turning the doorknob, and opened the door to reveal the staff member.

“The President has called for you. He requests you in the Office.” She told him. Austin nodded, thanking her. She nodded before turning away and leaving. As she left, Austin stared at her until she turned the corner.

“You fancy her?” Aizen teased him.

“It’s not that, but… she seemed emotionless. Almost like her soul was drained out of her. Like she wasn’t herself”

“Try Demon’s Imprisonment on her. The barrier won’t keep her