Ben was not exactly thrilled about returning back to master Renard, mostly because he did not know how he would face him with the news of what Master Krane had said, but he knew that he had to. He had to deliver the message given to him by Master Krane for the mighty Arch Angel Renard, but... what would he say? How would he say it? How the hell would he even begin? To say that the potion was not ready would actually not be so bad, but then to say that the most important ingredient needed in mixing the potion was unavailable, to say that it had not yet been found and or might never be found because Ben himself knew of how rare that particular ingredient that was needed was.
Usually, before now and as it had already been, all the potions which had been made and used in keeping Renard stable and sane had come from Master Krane as he was the only demon to master all the arts of sorcery, witchcraft, black magic, and the rest of the dark ways. He had been the one to know how to get all the necessary ingredients.
Although the potions that had always been given to Renard could only last for so long as it was not a cure but just a stabilizer and whenever it was wearing out, Renard would get so unstable and very violent, first, he would have a very terrible headache which he hated, it would pound hard in his head like his brain was about to explode and it would cause him to flare up, entertaining all the dangerous mood swings and tantrums and emotions, he had killed more humans in that state of lack of control than he could count.
When Master Krane had dropped hints of a permanent cure for the Arch Angel, Renard had been too excited to try that and get this done and over with, he had told Master Krane to begin making the potion, getting ready the necessary things but the demon had asked for just one thing, the most important ingredient in making the potion and that was the blood of a mixed offspring, the spawn of a human and an Angel. A mixed blood.
They all knew that finding such mixed blood was next to impossible and that was because humans and Angels were not entirely known to have such a relationship with each other but then there will always be some bound to break the rules. But the last known mixed blood had been killed and that was a really long time ago. And that had been something that Renard and the demon had personally overlooked. Renard had been the one to wipe them out in his "cleansing" fit of rage.
It would actually be easy for Renard to get an Angel loyal to him and a human together, to copulate and get a mixed-blood offspring but nine months was too long to wait. Renard knew that he did not have that time, he did not have nine months to wait for a child to be born, he did not have nine months to wait for a mixed-blood cure, so he had asked Master Krane to help him in finding one and had been a couple of weeks back but the demon had been unable to.
Now as Ben walked back to his master's place, he began contemplating on how to break the disappointing news to him without losing his life in the process. As he walked on through the forest, he absent-mindedly took a hold of his throat and slowly massaged his neck, swallowing hard as he imagined Renard just ripping him to shreds in a fit of rage. He cursed at his luck, kicking dirt into the air, he just had to be the one to tell it to Renard.
The Arch Angel lived lavishly as befitting the self-proclaimed ruler of the earth, he was the only Angel known to have multiple human slaves which he never allowed out of the house except for Ben, and in a crooked but also good way, Renard was actually providing shelter and safety for the humans that he kept.
Ben reasoned that, if his master should eventually give in to this corruption after being unable to fight it or find a cure for it in time or something to extend his normality for a little longer - okay, for a lot longer - then they, his human slaves would suffer the brunt of it. He knew that. They would be hunted by the demons who had just been waiting for this kind of opportunity, that was if the corrupt Arch Angel did not devour them first. It would not be the first time that he would be killing a human out of the lack of self control.
No matter how he looked at it, their lives were impossibly tied to the sanity of his master and Arch Angel, Renard. If he, nor Master Krane was able to do anything to provide a cure for Renard then the demons would have one powerful Arch Angel transformed into a demonic being and on their side, a first for them, and they would also have the human slaves to their disposal. To use as they pleased and see fit. Ben knew that there was only one use for them and no matter the method of usage, it could and would only end in one way - the death of them.
Ben shivered, not because of the wind which blew at him, but because he knew that he would be the one to suffer the most if the worst happened to Renard and that the demon, or demons, that would get to him would enjoy torturing him, they would probably not eat him but expel his soul and invoke a demon soul into his empty body just for the satisfactory feeling that they would derive just from ordering him about.
Or they would probably keep him alive for as long as they possibly could while cutting his flesh and eating him alive, forcing him to watch the gruesome thing. He shivered again, and shook his head to clear the scary thoughts which he was entertaining in his head and he picked up his pace. Fear settled on him suddenly like a heavy wet blanket and as he walked, he kept looking back behind him to see if any demon was following him. Right now, the safest place he could possibly be in was in his master's house and he was close enough.
The power of invincibility he had showcased and rubbed in the faces of whoever it may have concerned - or not - as a result of Renard's protection over him was now being threatened. He, more than any other human under Renard, needed the Arch Angel kept sane and in power for his own safety.
Recalling the incidence at Master Krane's place, he knew the old demon would love to experiment on him, maybe turning him into another Imp for a company to the one he had in his place or one of the many abominable, forbidden, hidden, and unspoken of creatures which were hidden in the darkness of his house, possibly never to be seen or to see the light, shackled by the feisty, neck and ankles and cramped up in a small cage, fed with the worst of food.
Ben shivered harder.
A sudden screech shot him out of his thoughts, he looked up to the skies and his heart missed a couple of beats, up in the air flying above was a creature and it was coming directly for him. Ben broke into a run. He ran, screaming for his master, he could see the gates now, the low fences, and the towering house, he knew he would not make it into the compound in time before the creature would swoop down and get him but it did not stop him from running and screaming. Until he tripped on a root and fell face first. He turned.
Coming straight at him in a free fall dive, he noticed that it was the Arch Angel himself. Ben did not have enough time to react, he could only scream and shield his face using his hands.
Renard crashed hard bedside Ben, landing powerfully on his two feet, the impact caused the Earth around them to vibrate and the Arch Angel picked Ben up by the leg and shook him violently before throwing him. Ben was thrown a distance away, landing not so gracefully on the ground, his back receiving most of the slam.
"Ben!" Renard yelled out.
Ben struggled to his feet, trying to ignore the pain in his back and maintaining the distance between the two of them. His head bowed low because he dared not to look into the face of his Master. He was loosing control again. This was bad.
"Master Renard." He greeted in reply.
"Where is it?!" Renard was impatient. He needed the potion desperately, his wings had now sprouted sharp claws at the joint and he was beginning to loose his feathers too.
"M... master... master Krane did not..." He bowed lower and closed his eyes shut tightly. "Master Krane does not have it."
Renard sprinted to Ben in less than a second and picked him up by the neck so that their faces were only inches apart, leaving his feet to dangle in the air. Ben grabbed onto the hand of the Arch Angel and choked, the stench emanating from Renard had gotten worse, he gagged and almost puked but he dared not because that would be the end of him.
"Do you see what is happening to me?" Renard questioned. "You do, do you not?!"
"Master..." Ben tried to speak but Renard shook him, still holding him by the neck.
"Are you aware of what would happen to you?! What would happen to all of you if this thing takes over me?!" Renard fumed and flung him away like a rag doll. "You would be gone! Dead! A clean pick for the demons!"
Ben's body ached terribly and he remained on the ground, groaning in pain. Yes, he knew what would become of them if things got worse. Heck, he had been thinking of that before Renard dropped in on him so violently but there was only one known way to make that potion and it was something closer to impossible to come by. They needed a mixed blood, across offspring of an Angel and a human.
Ben managed to sit up, holding on to his badly bruised shoulder. He looked at his Master who was struggling with the corruption slowly eating away at him, nine months was too long a time to wait for an offspring to be born, his Master did not have nine months. A human - Angel offspring was rare to find but it was not exactly impossible, right? They just needed someone who could find one for them. Ben knew someone. Or rather, some people.
"Master..." He called for the Arch Angel's attention and he got it. Renard scrowled at the human still struggling to get back on his feet. Ben stood up tentatively, trying to ignore the pain screaming in his body. It was hard.
"Master, if we could get someone to hunt a cross offspring for you." Ben suggested.
"It is almost impossible to find any cross offspring, we wiped them out a long time ago." Renard replied, clearly frustrated. He was beginning to twitch. "Besides, who would be able to tell a mixed blood from a normal human?"
"We might have someone who could."
Renard faced him fully, walking up to him. Ben took safety steps backward, his body could not handle another rough toss.
"Who? Who do we have?" Renard questioned, his body leaned in closer to Ben in curiosity. "Tell me now!"
"The best creature hunters we have now, Master." He spoke.
"The hell hounds? No." He waved the thought away. Hell hounds were deadly and rough. "They would tear the mixed-blood apart before they can bring the person to me."
"No master, not them."
"Then who else?!"
"The Nadirs master." Ben answered. "The Nadirs."
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