The Scumbags Guide to Enslaving Demon's

Instead, he had given Austin an ambassador he could light a lord’ child a christmas present over.

Vorth’ green gaze flooded the service tunnel.

Move." Austin ordered.

Elena yanked Maelis behind her to the opposite side of the boiler hall. The freed demon stumbled once, before leaning against a root to catch her bearings. White-red fire erupted from the jagged scars where contracts used to rest across her wrists.

Seven barrelled through the doorway seconds later.

His armor was shredded from shoulder blades all the way down to his ribs. Violet light seeped through the holes in his armor, but he still clutched his polearm in hands. Chains dangled from his wrists, scraping the ground beneath him with the slow certainty of something that knew it owned every room it walked into.

Master," Seven growled, "Vorth has consolidated all remaining cohort tethers into himself."

The Chain-warden stepped through the doorway.

He didn’ even resemble the professional official that had walked into the Meridian’ lobby earlier that day. Chains wrapped around his limbs and burrowed underneath his bone armor like veins.

Every link pulsed with a name.

"Maelis," Vorth whispered, "You continue to mistake mercy for allowance."

"And you continue to mistake a collar for dominance." She spat.

Vorth glared at Austin. "You kidnapped a lord’ property, broke a registered chain, and vandalized property under Malrec’ care."

"You left attacking my hotel out of that list."

"I considered that offense first." His voice was soothing. Smooth. Void of any annoyance he probably should have felt.

Two fingers twitched.

Chains erupted from the boiler-room walls.

Austin watched them before they reached him. One snaked for his wrist. Another sliced toward his neck. Two slinked low for his ankles.

He spread his legs and grabbed the wrist chain with both hands, yanking Vorth forward with Kinetic Strength.

The Warden struck him.

Seven caught the blow with a chopping motion of his polearm. Vorth lifted his arm. A thick chain wrapped around the weapon, stopping it mere inches from slicing into the Warden’ knee. Violet electricity splattered across the hall.

Austin punched Vorth’ ribs.

Bone-Plating scratched against chain armor. The collision shattered something inside the Warden’ rib cage but his hostages cried inside his head, whispering siphoned strength back into his battered lungs.

[Target analysis: Chain-warden Vorth.]

[Active authority source: Cohort Tether Mass.]

[Recommended action: sever linked command network.]

"I severed your chains before we began formalities."

"You didn’ cut them loudly enough."

Her voice was hoarse but clear. She stepped around Elena and lifted both flame-engulfed hands to eye level with the Warden. "The chains restricting you are not you. They are prisoners."

Vorth’ mouth curled into a sneer. "Silence yourself before I enjoy that privilege."

Metal whipped towards her.

Gunpowder detonated in Elena’ chest.

The bullet drilled through the chain just as it collared Maelis’ neck. It didn’ dent the enchanted metal, but the bullet angled it into one of the root pillars supporting the ceiling. Black vines exploded from within the brickwork, pinching the link against obsidian teeth.

"Keep talking." Elena croaked.

Maelis smiled. "Sealed within each tether is a recorded surrender. Each soldier bet Malrec something— names, fears, blood, memories. He stole those seconds and weaponized them into branded slave muscle."

Austin knew.

Rather than housing just one chain, the mass was forty-two separate chains knotted together.

Vorth knew he knew.

"Fine." He said, voice draining of any remaining concern. "Eat them. You want to. Tear out their names and feed on the parasites Malrec told us you would become."

Images flashed through Austin’ head. He could tear DEVOUR open and devour the tether mass whole. Magic would consume him. The cohort would die, their loyalty would transform him into a weapon no lesser demon could hope to challenge.

Hopeful desperation burned inside him.

"No."

Vorth snickered. "Then die like the dreamer you are."

Austin grabbed the chain around his bicep before it could tighten any further. Words writhed across his skin. He tunneled into Contract Perception.

He searched.

He found her first.

A demon scout. Waiting in a courthouse as Malrec’ lackeys branded her a slave.

He found fear burning through that link. Burning through them all.

Then he reached out to Maelis.

"Can you burn the contracts without burning everyone inside them?"

She paused. "Depends if you can stop the knots from tightening."

Seven. Anchor him."

The first enforcer bolted forward. Three of Vorth’ chains whipped towards Seven’ damaged plating, but he barely flinched. The man dropped to a knee and rammed his shoulder into the Chain-warden. Both demons staggered backward into one of the root pillars. Bulky vines burst through the brickwork. Vorth clawed his way out one tier, then another. Seven wrapped his arms around the chain mass.

"Now!" Seven yelled.

Austin slammed his hands against the chained tether mass.

He cracked DEVOUR open just enough to access the knots.

Names screamed from the shadows. Fear. Promises. Moments of weakness.

All forty-two screamed inside his head, begging for salvation.

He offered none.

"Maelis."

The ember ambassador floated next to him, flickering flames resting between her fingers.

"Through echoes never born," she breathed, fire flaring between her palms "let every damned curse turn to ash."

Fire rained down across the links.

Vorth screamed in defiance.

Flames didn’ incinerate bodies. They incinerated wards. Names erupted from every link, vaporizing into ash. Green metal shattered, evaporating into waxy fragments.

Austin heard every cohort tether across the district snap apart.

Vorth crumbled forward onto one knee.

Seven raised his polearm.

"No!" Austin shouted.

Both demons snapped their heads up, surprised diluting hate from their expressions.

"What?" Seven yelled, venom filling every syllable.

"Let me open it."

Vorth’ mouth dropped. "You stupid adrenaline junkie. Yeah, go ahead Devourer. Open it."

The boiler hall quaked.

Centered in the pool of water was a crystalline object that pulsed. Once. Twice. Then cracked in half.

Roots writhed out from the water, exposing an iron hatch beneath layers of hardened black wax.

Demon sigils decorated every inch of the surface: fangs, claws, feathers, antlers. The odor that wafted from its seams was thick with sinew, fur, embers, and fear.

The System overloaded.

[Unknown demonic containment unit discovered.]

[Tag acquire: Lord’ Larder.]

[Description unknown: bloodline anomalies, demon holdings, unharvested cores]

Maelis froze.

"Elena," Austin started. Hands steady despite all he just witnessed. "Get everyone out of the basement."

She didn’ move. "What is it?"

"A demon vault. Something Malrec kept big demons in."

Vorth chuckled through broken teeth. "Funny thing is, Devourer you’ still got plenty of room for you in there. Go ahead. Open it. Lets see what your appetite does when you actually find something worth devouring."

Austin met Seven eyes. Half his body was drenched in shredded plates, but his violet gaze never faltered. He stared into Maelis terrified yet comforting green eyes. Finally, he looked at Elena.

The small woman still hadn’ lowered her crossbow, but she wasn’ aiming it at him.

"You," Austin said. Pointed at each of them. "Can all walk away."

Elena smirked, threatening in ways no spell ever could muster. "You really think I’ gonna let you run yourself into Malrec treasure chest all by yourself?"

Maelis laughed. Quietly. Only for a second. "You’ earned more trust from them than any demon lord."

Seven pounded his polearm into the ground. "I will enter first, Master."

"I will go in." Austin replied over him, voice louder than he intended.

Vorth smirked, obviously more entertained by that promise than any threat they could conjure.

The hatch shrieked, roots wrenching free from the ground.

A woman’ voice called out from below.

Help me," she pleaded. "Please don’ let him take me."

Austin stared at the black wax seal.

Embraced by it. Adult. Controlled. Scared enough to be real.

His growl came first, guttural and threatening than any oath he could promise.

Then his hand closed around the latch.

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