Chapter Text
The ruins were a mess. High arching ceiling that had caved in to let the light seeping between leaves filter through. Moss, weeds, and any form of nature had taken residence in the abandoned building. The soft crunch of grass under their feet. A light breeze carried the sweet smell of pomegranate.
Morn's ears twitched "This is... A surprisingly nice place for a devil's chalice," he said. A bit too nice. The Nunch Box hadn't run into any monsters or threats since getting there. The ordeal was so boring that they settled on pausing the stream until something actually happened. No point in wasting people's time.
The five entered the ruins. Nunch barely touched the frame before it shuddered dust over the five adventurers. Trees bore ripe pomegranates, patches of strawberries lined the ground (that Morn cringed at the sight of), and lush green ivy climbed the high standing walls.
The inside was once a chapel of sorts. Pews lined up but rotted away by age. A podium stood at the end and with it was a cup.
A Devil Chalice.
An abundant source of magic created by an all powerful god. Whatever held it could be anything.
"Is that it?" Nunch asked.
Thro nodded.
Betty wrote 'Should I start up the stream?' And pointed to her camera.
Nunch grinned "Sure," the shorter said.
Kat popped up to push Morn towards the chalice "Get over there so we can film it!" She said, butting him with her horns.
Morn nodded as he stepped to the pedestal.
The cup was ordinary. A simple golden goblet with a rich dark red liquid. Yet the simplicity wrecked his nerves too. How his life would change so grandly from a drink. Morn picked up the goblet as Nunch started "Hey you demons! We're live again and check it out! After this time searching!" Betty aimed the camera at Morn, who held up the admittedly small thing in one hand "That's right! A devil's chalice! Let's Get Ascending!" He said. Thro laughed a little at that.
Morn tipped the goblet to his lips and drank.
Only to get half of the drink down his throat and grimace on the flavor a second later. Morn grimaced as he gave a thumbs up when Nunch called out "You okay?"
He slammed the rest down, dropped the cup, and loudly gagged "It tasted like Pomegranate and ugh, Strawberry," he said. Kat loudly laughed as Morn coughed on the taste still lingering in his mouth. All in the hopes of godhood.
The quad joined him by the podium. Morn let out a sigh "So is that supposed to be it?" He asked.
Nunch kicked the chalice "Maybe? Thro?" He said to the blue demoness.
Thro picked it up "I'm not sensing anything now that it's empty which isn't too unusual but a Devil Chalice would refill by now," she said.
"Soooo what?" Kat asked.
"Well-"
A shout caught them off guard. The four demons and their camera woman turned to see at the entrance was a duo. One dressed in a red and black spandex and the other in blue and black spandex. They wore solid colored helmets that obscured their faces and seemed of average human height making them shorter to the group for the most part. The red one made a gesture to their head with their index fingers pointed upwards pressed to their forehead. The blue one huffed as they swatted their companion's hands.
Morn settled his hand on his weapon as the demons watched the two go back and forth. Blue entered the building after getting fed up with Red "Doth thou speak?" Blue asked in a low voice.
Nunch nodded "Yeah, who are you guys-"
"We shall ask the questions and thou will answer only, horned ones!" Red snapped shockingly feminine sounding.
Kat sneered at her "You guys snuck up on us-"
Blue smacked Red then looked at Kat "Red Light, calm thy tongue," he turned to Kat "And thy place, horned female. I shall ask the males and they shall answer for thoust fiendish pact."
Nunch muttered to Morn "Are we really going to talk to these guys?"
Morn shrugged a little bit "I can use pressure on them, if they act out," he muttered.
Red Light snapped her gaze to Thro "Give thee that!" She stomped forward to grab her.
Morn popped a grape, ignoring a new queasy feeling in his gut, and Pressure came down.
Red Light shrunk on the weight. Blue reached hesitantly for his companion "Red Light-"
The red stranger shuddered as steam suddenly erupted from her body. She catapulted backward from Morn's magic. Red Light pointed at Morn "Blue Surge! That Horned Fiend has attacked thee! Thou saw!" She called out.
Blue Surge looked at Morn, Nunch, Thro, Kat, and Betty. Behind his black visor, nobody could see what was going through the man's head. Blue Surge stepped away "We shall not be on good terms after all, Horned Fiends."
Nunch stepped forward "Your friend tried attacking us first-"
Blue Surge held out a hand "Thou invade our lands, steal from our temple, and whence mine friend approached to retrieve what is ours, thou allowed the big one to lay harm to her. Thou hath forced mine hand," he stated. Blue sparks filled the air. Together a crystal two handed long sword that Blue Surge grabbed a hold of; Red Light formed a red crystal spear. Energy crackled the air around them as their spandex suits gained chest plates and pauldrons but Red Light got gauntlets and Blue Surge had shin guards. The two raised their weapons for a fight.
The Nunch box prepared themselves. Thro pulled for the stone beneath the blue fighter.
Blue Surge was suddenly over her in the blink of an eye. His sword slashed as she saw her own face in his visor. Morn blocked the attack just before it landed. Steam billowed from Blue Surge.
Red Light spun her spear as Nunch and Kat bolted for her at the same time. Red sparks glittered in the air as the two slammed face first into a red crystal wall.
Blue Surge came helm to face with Morn as they locked themselves into a stand still "Forgiveth thee Horned One, know that thee did not seek a fight today," he said.
Morn pushed his full weight onto the locked blades. It felt like he was pushing on a very firm wall "So why start one at all?" He hissed out.
"Thy intrusion cannot go unpunished."
Whatever magic this realm had was something Blue Surge had a clear handle on. Their blades unlocked as he blinked from Morn's vision. A sharp feeling of alarm sparked through him as he narrowly avoided Blue Surge's slash. He reached for his magic but found that same queasy feeling blocking him out. Thro managed to launch a rock at Blue Surge but unfortunately missed when the blue fighter blinked out of existence again. The demoness grabbed Morn as he crumpled with a hand over his mouth.
Nunch and Kat were struggling as equally as Red Light kept the barrier between them. She'd drop the barrier briefly, go for a jab, miss, and immediately reformed her barrier.
Blue Surge side stepped Thro's stones as Morm recollected himself "Are you okay?" She asked.
Morn nodded "Mhm, I'll live," he replied. Ignoring the feeling despite it wrecking his senses, Morn applied Pressure at the same moment Thro sent another boulder. Blue Surge blinked and immediately reformed half a step away from the stone.
It collided into his right arm at that exact moment. The blue fighter was pinned.
Red Light lost his focus on Kat and Nunch "BLUE SURGE!" She cried out, barrier dropping.
Kat ran her down. The two crashed through a bench.
Nunch reached for Borrowed Badassery, searching for the duo's magic as Kat wrestled Red Light to the walkway with the smaller girl's arms behind her.
Blue Surge pulled on his pinned arm with a hiss of steam billowing from his body. The steam screeched louder and louder until a sickening crack filled the air.
Morn, Thro, Nunch, and Kat watched sparks pop from Blue Surge's socket as torn wires hung out. Immediately a crystal blue arm formed over it.
He pointed to Red Light "STATUS: NOW."
Red Light tossed her head back and screamed as if someone had set off an alarm. The Nunch Box stumbled and covered their ears to the noise.
Red Light stopped and Blue Surge bolted for her. The two joined up at the door.
"Silver Cosmos!/Golden Nova!"
Two strangers joined the fight, landing from the broken ceiling above. Dressed in familiar one piece spandex with silver with white accents and gold with white accents. They bore the same chest plates, pauldrons, and gauntlets as Blue Surge but the two had slender capes. Unlike the plain visors of the original two, Silver had an upward curving crescent, Golden had a five ray Sun.
Silver Cosmos held a C shaped sickle in each hand and Golden Nova had multiple four pointed throwing stars hovering in the air. They landed in space between Blue Surge and Red Light and Nunch and Kat. Golden Nova spun his stars "Sorry for being a tad bit late."
Red Light pointed to Morn "Careful with him. Thee believed he drank the essence but he bears ability like thy own, Silver," she said.
Morn and Thro joined up with Kat and Nunch "What are they talking about?" Morn hissed.
Nunch shrugged "Hell if any of us know."
Silver Cosmos tipped his visor "Alas we have very little day left." He fell silent as he bolted towards the Nunch Box. Morn lashed out with Pressure.
Silver Cosmos didn't waver as Morn felt his magic being shoved back by its own force. He covered his mouth with a groan as the ghosting taste of bile filled it.
Kat held out her hand "Eye of Opportunity!" She called out. Just into time too.
Golden Nova pointed at the four just as Silver Cosmos side stepped them. A distraction.
She pulled them into the church pews as a hailstorm of stars blasted the exact spot they had been "Shit. Shit!" She cursed "What the fuck are these guys on? It's like a-"
"Chalice cheer?" Thro squeaked.
"STARS!" A voice said. The four hurried ahead under the pews they hid behind were splintered. They began to crawl slowly along the floor just out of sight.
"You don't think they could, right? That Chalice was still full when we got here!" Nunch stated.
Morn shook his head "Don't think it was a-" he choked back a wave of sickness. His eyes clenched as his stomach and body rebelled against him. Morn opened them again after a second to see everyone looking at him in horror.
He didn't get sick, not as long as he could remember, but whatever he drank was clearly doing something bad.
"Relinquish thyself Horned Fiends!" Silver Cosmos shouted.
"We lack the hours to continue this long and tumultuous hunt," Golden Nova called.
The four demons remained silent.
Something rippled behind Nunch.
Everyone froze as Betty formed 'We need to get out of here.' She wrote.
There was no argument. Nunch tipped his head to the door "We can probably book it if we sneak past those freaks," he whispered.
Betty shook her head 'Red Light-'
A shadow casted over them "I tire of these games Horned Ones." Silver Cosmos sighed. His helm tipped over to Betty "Ah. A Spirit?-"
Kat bolted and smashed her horns clear through Silver's visor. Silver Cosmos screamed as the pink demoness pulled away with black shards in her hair. Underneath where a face should have been was nothing but the gutted insides of a machine.
"Silver Cosmos!"
Stars ripped apart the pew as the five moved away but just barely "I'll Kill You. I'LL KILL YOU!" Golden Nova shouted as he rusted into view. Thousands of glimmering stars filled the space forcing the five to separate.
Betty blinked out of view as Thro and Kat slipped under a pair of pews. Morn pulled Nunch to his feet as the two rushed to the end of the aisle and into the darkness shrouded columns.
"WHERE IS THAT PINK FIEND!"
Golden Nova blasted stars at every movement he saw.
Silver Cosmos grabbed for him as silver crystals sealed his wound "It's fine Brother, Thee will survive," he reassured.
"Our mission hath changed, we need to bind the large azure one," Blue Surge added as he blinked right next to them with Red Light.
Red Light scanned the room. Two figures crawling along the floor, a teal and violet twisting of color behind a column, but her gaze caught on a simmering blue source. She slipped away from the trio as they sent each other silent data messages.
The blue silhouette flicked and wavered with illness as rainbow colored motes wove themselves into it. She summoned her spear in smaller form, practically an arrow in her grip. She looped around the corner and looked up as her vision switched to see the pale blue of the fiend's face. He tried to grab her just as she jabbed the spearling in his hand. Red Light flipped on her own signature, Ruby Reign.
Morn stared as the black visor turned into pulsing shades of red "They're going to harm thou, the horned ones, they're going to hurt-"
"Back off my brother!"
Nunch bodied the small heroine. The three looked up as she fell backwards. Red Light began to laugh. She looked at the red demon with a crack in her visor, "Brainless Horned One," she mocked, bringing her hands up to make the horns she had made before.
Nunch stared at her "What the fuck-"
The air chilled as Red Light scampered to her feet to join the other attackers, grabbing Blue Surge's hand "Hark! Hark thy hence! He is their concern now" She shouted.
"We are worse for wear, we can't handle anything more," Blue Surge whispered.
Golden and Silver nodded. Blue Surge raised his hands as blue energy crackled from his palms.
At that exact moment the two male demons exploded from the darkness.
Nunch had borrowed what he could as he clawed at the ruined floor just as a red eye Morn raised his blade and the cosmic colors of Hell's Hail stormed around him.
Pumpkin vines shoved their way to widen the ruined door at the end of the hall as a Skeleton headed demon broke through the entrance.
Blue Surge pulled his powers and the four blinked out of existence.
Lon pointed at Nunch "GET AWAY FROM HIM NOW!" He shouted.
Nunch barely dodged the slashing smash as Morn brought his weapon down. Lon pointed at Morn and thousands of vines began wrapping around the sword's blade and up his legs. The red eyes demon seethed as he pulled his blade out and cut the vines away from him. Lon knocked an arrow to his bow and aimed for Morn's back.
Morn didn't flinch as it embedded itself into his shoulder. He turned to growl and charge for Lon.
Only to fall unconscious to the ground just short of the admiral.
Lon sighed "You four," he said as he pulled the resting demon up on some vines "We are leaving this world now. It has been black listed until further notice.” The admiral opened a portal "Get in," he said. Nunch, Kat, Thro, and Betty slipped through. Lon stopped Betty to take her camera. Ensuring its safety and return.
The room was a sterile white with the smell of chemicals permeating the air. One wall held a large glass window and through it slipped Lon with Morn's body "Enjoy Decontamination!" Lon said, now sporting a grinning pumpkin head.
"Wha?"
A click overhead and cold water blasted the four.
Morn bolted up with a gasp, rolled to his side, and dry heaved over the edge of the bed he was in.
He was confused finding himself on a plain bed with white fitted sheets and dressed in a hospital gown. He even had a plastic bracelet around his wrist "What? How even?" He muttered.
A green skinned demoness with ram horns dressed in a lab coat entered the room tapping a clipboard in her hands. She looked up at Morn "Oh good! I was hoping I'd catch you when you woke up. Now quick question-"
"Where am I?" Morn asked.
"Wrath City's Private Hospital For Rampaging Warriors. Now Mr. Ingstar, I need to ask you a few questions."
Morn fisted the blanket "Okay," he said.
"Have you had any sexual activity within the past three months?”