Ahmed opened his eyes after being blinded. He was in a cavernous chamber but not alone. "Ahmed?" a voice asked. Ahmed turned to find Ali, his future bride, a young woman very pregnant, and a boy no older than 12. Not one of the three stood taller than his slipper. The young woman and boy immediately bowed in the presence of the giant prince. "What happened? Why are we here?" Ali asked worried. "I was attempting to claim the Damascus Blade. You all were summoned here...as sacrifices" Ahmed said softly. "Sacrifices?!" the young woman yelled. "Father said to claim the blade, innocent lives must be offered up" Ahmed said. They looked at the giant who was busy looking toward at three basins. "If it to save the world, we will offer our lives" Ali said quietly. "None of that talk. Nobody will be offered up" he said. "I do not understand. You said..."

"Saladin was an honorable man and righteous Campioné. He would not make such conditions to wield his sword" Ahmed said. "Then this is a test" Ali said. "Very much so" the giant said inspecting the basins. Ahmed sensed something behind them. "Ali come here" he said. The tiny woman walked over to him, and he picked her up. "There is a barrier here" he said extending his hand. His hand touched it and a scorching heat singed his palm. "Ah! By the prophet!" he yelled looking at his blistered hand. "But you're an awakened Djinn! Fire cannot harm you!" she said. "It is symbolic fire. It can indeed hurt me. To have such a ward still working after nearly 900 years is astounding. There must be a way through" he said. "What's in the basins?" Ali asked. Ahmed looked. "Water, preserved olive oil, and... nitrate" he said. "Nitrate? That's explosive. We can use that to destroy the incantations for the barrier!" Ali said. Ahmed kicked over the basin and spread the nitrate along the edge of the barrier. "Protect the boy and woman" he told her. Ali hopped down and stood guard in front of the two. Ahmed conjured a small flame and aimed it at the nitrate. Ali held her breath until suddenly Ahmed stopped. "What? What is it?" she asked. "The floor. It shimmers slightly. Why?" he asked. Ahmed bent down to look. "I see. Ali, notice the cracks in the floor?" he said. "Yeah, from old age" she said. "Not old age. Pressurized gas. There is natural gas leaking through the floor. Since it is odorless, we did not notice. Since it is heavier than air, it creeps on the ground. If we had ignited the nitrate, we would've been flash fried where we stood. This is surely a test" he said. "Then the water...."

"Is the easier trick. Dousing oneself with it would do nothing to protect from the barrier. The olive oil is the answer but why? It is flammable as well" he said. Ali approached him slowly. Frightened, the woman and boy followed her. Ahmed moved his hand once more towards the barrier but much slower this time. The barrier flared up again but something odd occurred this time. The flames slightly parted. "Did you see that?" he asked looking down. Ali got closer as Ahmed was blocking her vision. The flames parted even more as she got closer. "Did you see that my prince?" she asked. "They parted more as you came nearer" he said. Then the flames retracted. Ahmed looked down and saw the boy moving back terrified of the flames. "What if all three of us have to move through it at the same time?" Ali asked. "That might be it. Stand still" he said plucking them up one by one. Ahmed could feel the pregnant woman and boy shaking in his hand. "Be brave little ones. I am your prince and sworn to protect his people. Including the ones yet born" he said smiling as he stroked his finger across the tiny woman's belly.

They calmed somewhat seeing his smile and courage but he himself was frightened. He moved his hand and the flames receded almost wide enough for him to pass through. "It's working!" Ali said. "Is it? Toss your sandal in front of us" he said. Ali took off her left sandal and threw it. Instantly the flames turned the teeny footwear to ash. Ahmed moved his hand through ready to pull back immediately. As he did the flames did not recede but the rest of the floor (all the way to the statue) glowed as flames shot up from symbolic glyphs.  "It's not enough. The flames receded but it will not allow us three to go through. If we do, we will burn and then you" Ali said. Ahmed thought for a moment before he cocked his eyebrow. "I know the answer to the riddle before us" he said walking back to the basin of olive oil. "The straightforward answer is simple. I eat you all whole and, in my belly, you would be protected just long enough for me to step through. Hence sacrificing lives. But Saladin left a way to beat the test another way" he said scooping up a handful of olive oil. "If your bodies are coated with this oil, it will protect you in my stomach. Not long but hopefully long enough to make it past the trapped floor" he explained. Ahmed poured the oil over them over and over. Watching Ali, the boy and young woman rubbed the oil all over their skin and clothing until it was seeped into it. From their hair to between their little toes they were slathered with it. "May...may Allah protect us" Ali stammered. "If this does not work, I shall join you in paradise" he said softly raising them up to kiss her. Ali had not been kissed by him before strangers before. "Eat me first" she said bravely. Ahmed popped her into his mouth and avoided savoring her. It was easier said than done. Her natural body tasted sweet and salty and with the olive oil an earthy delicious flavor. Ahmed swallowed and the woman and boy hugged one another in fear seeing the pretty princess to be become a lump traveling down his throat. "Time...by Allah I can feel her in my stomach...time grows short" he said sampling the boy. Ahmed felt terrible as he could faintly hear the boy whimper as he was swallowed. And then came the young woman. She could see the fear he had hidden from them in his eyes. Ahmed hesitated seeing her instinctively clutch her belly. "It is unfair you were dragged into this. I am deeply ashamed I must risk the life of not just a beautiful young woman but the child she carries" he said softly to her.

Khadijah, a woman barely 19 years of age and carrying her husband's child, had seen the prince casually in the street before. Even a towering giant, he took care not to endanger a single person with his steps. She admired his just demeanor and took pride in the fact he was the grandson of their savior and a strong Campioné on his own right. Younger, she dreamed of being in his harem. Ahmed never asked anything unjust of his people. He never abused them, took time to play with the children, and only used his power to punish the truly wicked. To see him humbled before her was awe-striking. She swallowed her fear and defiantly kicked off her slippers. Her oil-soaked feet nearly slipped in his hands she stood tall...as tall as a three-and-a-half-inch person could. "Eat me. May my body serve your majesty!" she shouted. Ahmed nodded and quickly pushed her into his mouth. He felt her belly on his tongue. Her bare feet pushing to scramble to his throat. Ahmed stood in disbelief as the woman fed herself to him by sliding down his throat on her own. All three were in his belly and Ahmed walked back to the barrier. The flames receded and stepped through.   

The trapped floor was almost 500 yards long and Ahmed walked briskly. He dared not run as the dust coating the floor was dark grey and made of graphite. A single spark in the dust would spell their doom. Ahmed felt Ali tapping his stomach rhythmically telling him they were okay, but the distance seemed further in his mind and the tapping became less steady. He knew what very little oxygen was in his stomach was thinning and the natural putrid airs would do them in as the oils were etched away by his acids. Ahmed made it to the end and the flames died out. He bent to his knees jamming his fingers into the back of his throat to induce vomiting. The boy came out first being the smallest. The second was the young pregnant woman who took some effort. Ali on the other hand was not being coughed up. Minutes passed as Ahmed grew more and more frantic. He heaved so much, flecks of blood began coming out. He did not feel her at all moving inside. He looked at the others who stood there covered in bile speechless at the sight and began to resolve himself to plunge his dagger into his own stomach to yank her out. "I'll be damned if I meet Allah with the fact I had digested my own fiancé" he thought. And just before he stabbed himself, he felt a tickle in his throat. Ahmed coughed hard and out came Ali. She was unmoving at first and then took a deep gasp of air. Ahmed laid on his side relieved and weakened. "My prince..." she said staggering to her feet. His nerves so shaken he could barely reach out to touch her. "I thought you had left me" he said. "Allah still has plans for me it seems" she said. Ahmed grinned and coughed. He weakly spat out something. "Oh" he said seeing it was her other sandal. They shared a relieved laugh and waited for him to stand. Ahmed summoned a gentle water spell to clean them up after the shrunken boy complained his skin tingled as Ahmed's stomach bile still coated them.

They walked over to the statue of Saladin who wo outstretched arms held the hilt and blade of the sword. "The sword was broken down" Ali said. "My daggers are actually part of the sword, the hand guards actually" he said. "Umm...my prince why is the sword so dull looking?" Khadijah asked. The blade was indeed dull. Ahmed though it was just the light but as he leaned forward found it was not. "It's tarnished. A holy weapon does not tarnish" he said. He touched it and words inscribed on the breastplate of the statue glowed.  "To awaken, give unto it the purest quality that which was required to forge it" Ahmed read. Ahmed bawked. "What does that mean?" Ali asked. "Damascus steel was the strongest, keenest, most resilient steel in the world because of how the steel was quenched in forging. Glowing hot, the blade was run through a human being. Their blood quenching the steel into its cast form. The inscription is saying it needs the blood of an innocent to show its true form" he said softly. "Then use mine. Cut my body along the blade and rub my corpse along the metal" Ali said. "BE SILENT!" Ahmed yelled as his eyes glowed like hot coals.

"It would take the blood of all three of you to coat the blade" he said quietly. "This must be the final test for the blade" Ali said. "After the last test, there must be some kind of trick behind it" he said. "So, the Damascus Blade was forged with innocent blood?" the boy meekly asked. "I... I don't know. That was how other blades were forged" Ahmed replied. "But not necessarily this one Ahmed. If Saladin didn't want innocents sacrificed to pass the barrier, why would he use them to forge a sword?" Ali asked. "Because he didn't. All of you stand here and Ali do not interfere" Ahmed said placing them on the pedestal. Ahmed picked up the blade and gripped it with his bare hand. He grimaced as it cut into his flesh and his blood trickled down the edge. Painfully, he smeared the metal with his blood over and over coating it until not one square millimeter shone with oxidation. Ahmed nearly fell to his knees from blood loss. "Beloved!" Ali yelled up at the giant. His trembling hand held the blade until it levitated out of his hand. The blade glowed brightly until it was clean and pristine. His daggers flew from his sides, and they all watched in awe as the sword assembled itself. Then, it simply hovered waiting to be claimed. Ahmed took it in his hands and instantly he was healed. He felt the power of ages flow into his body mixing in harmony with his own djinn magics and truths. His body transformed. His hair became threads of string set on fire. His body defined to Vitruvian levels of perfection. His clothes burned clean away revealing his nakedness which made Ali wet, and the young woman leak breastmilk. A fine aura of reddish orange magics enveloped his body. Ahmed had become the prefect breed of man and djinn. The shrunken women at his feet instinctively knew perfection. Their mind humbled. Their body raked with reproductive desire. Sensing their awe taking away their free will, Ahmed dialed back the power now within him. "That...was intense" he muttered. Ahmed collected them. Let's go home" he said willing an effortless translocation.

After shocking his parents returning with the sword and his physical transformation, Ahmed wished to be alone with Ali. A half hour remained before he had to leave. At first, they said nothing as they bathed together. His hands healing her irritated skin as she bathed. Her hands soaping and cleaning his cock as he sat. And when they were clean and dry, he had her come to his bed. She sat on the edge of his bed as he sat on the floor. Ali was embarrassed as he quietly smoothed, trimmed, and polished every toenail on her feet. Then he scrubbed and smoothed off the callouses on her soles until they were as smooth as polished glass. Ali quivered as he licked and sucked her toes one by one until he felt she was ready for what came next. He had her lay on her back and placed his hand directly over her pussy cupping it in his hand. With a gentle magical nudge, Ali felt a giddy warmth envelop her body. Her nipples became sensitive. "Ah...Ahmed?" she asked. "I urged your body to ovulate" he explained. Her eyes went wide realizing his plan. She closed her eyes as she felt him slide into her. Ahmed said nothing but gave her a smile as he began fucking her slowly. Time grew shorter but for them it was eternity as they made love and with a sigh, she felt him cum deep within her. She was too moved to say a word as the desire to bear his child was shared within their souls. Ahmed sat beside her looking out of the veranda with his back turned. Ali knew their time was almost up and what he would soon face. The possibly this was the last time with one another broke her heart.

Ahmed and Ali grew up together. Had known one another since they were seven years old. She had been taught to respect and give reverence to the crown prince, but Ahmed never asked her to do that unless it was unavoidable. She knew he was different when she broke her sandal strap when she was a child, and the boy gave her his own sandal so she wouldn't have to walk barefoot. When Ahmed first showed his djinn blood, it was to save her life. Ahmed was terrified she would leave him, as a boy with ashen skin and glowing fiery eyes would scare anyone. She did not. They shared their first kiss at 12. And when it came time to form his harem, he chose her first. People wagged their tongues and uttered their annoyance for choosing a Kurd and for the first time he showed his djinn form silencing them. She was heartbroken when he finished his Campioné training and went to the human world to guard its secrets. But he quickly returned issuing a royal command for Ali to join the guard and serve him. Alone, they would be as physical as they could without being married and then some pushing some boundaries, but never had they had sex so...nakedly so to speak. And with that, Ali wept bitterly. Ahmed readied his hand and gently shrunk the girl.

He thought holding her in his hand would calm her and it had in the past. In fact, the girl liked being shrunk and played with by him. Ahmed cupped his hands now holding her within them. Holding her just made her weep harder. "I know. I know" he said softly playing with her beautiful long black hair. "The first time I held you in my hands like this you complained bitterly. I moved too fast, held you too hard. You even threw your sandal at me" he chuckled. "I was a kid and you holding me felt like I was your toy" she muttered. "And now?" he asked. "I would gladly be your toy if it meant you would not leave. No, I would you rather eat me. Fucking eat me! Do it! GODDAMN DO IT! It is preferable to this pain" she sobbed. A tear fell on her head and quickly looked up. She was aghast at seeing him cry. She had never seen him cry. "I swore I would never hurt you and yet I do" he whispered. Ahmed nuzzled her and could smell her sweat and traces of scented soap and oils. It took all his strength not to shrink down with her and fuck her till she half-conscious from cumming.

"Ali, now that most of my djinn blood has awakened, you are provided one wish" he said. Ali knew from early childhood that djinn could make a wish come true. Even wishes of barely fathomable power. After all her city existing in a pocket realm was proof of this. To be gifted a wish for a djinn could not just alter your life but the lives of millions. One had to be careful what to ask for. Ali could wish to be queen. A monolithic giantess. A sorceress of legends. Or...that Ahmed would not leave. Ah, that one was very enticing. "I wish...that you come home alive" she said. Ahmed cocked an eyebrow. He had faith that she would not wish for something dangerous, selfish, or frivolous and he was right. However, making an unspecific wish, a broad wish, was tricky at best. Dangerous at worst. For example, if one wished for world peace, it could cause every human on Earth to vanish, turn to stone, drop dead etc. Ahmed was honor bound to grant her wish. "Done" he said softly. Not even he knew how it would be fulfilled. He unshrank her and Ali dutifully helped him dress. Normally, he would wear the traditional white flowing cloths akin to a caliph but not today. A padded and ballistic protected two-piece uniform keeping the traditional colors. It was a gift made recently by hand from Ali.  "Hahaha! You look like StormShadow from G.I. Joe!" Ali laughed. "You got jokes" he chuckled. "...come home alive" she whispered hugging him. Ahmed nodded and walked down to the throne room.

Ahmed summoned the Damascus Blade and those attending bowed in his and its presence. His harem bowed, the servants, even the shrunken viziers still on punishment for trying to usurp the throne. His father stood before the throne, but his mother was not present. "Mother is not here" Ahmed said. "She's too afraid to be. May Allah protect you my son" he said. Ahmed dutifully bowed and translocated not to Alicia but to his mother. He found her human sized sitting alone on the shore of the ocean that surrounded the land. He approached her. Her giant bare feet sank into the soft sand. Sand that smelled of salt not from the ocean but from a mother's tears. "I must go mother" he said up to the giantess. The woman sniffled and looked out at the sea. "The water reminds me of the day I met your father. I was cooling my feet at the back of the Euphrates when Saddam's personal guard found me. Women taken by them are never seen alive again. As they approached, your father came out of nowhere and spirited me away. The crazy fool shrank us both to hide us. Imagine the shock seeing bugs as big as I was. It was like living inside one of the tales from 1001 Arabian Nights" she said. Ahmed brushed the sand from her big toenail. "And he brought you here to be his queen and live happily ever after" the young man chuckled. The giantess picked him up from her foot and raised him to her face.

"Happily ever after was not until you were born. I grew up on the tales of Campioné and how we were directly related to Saladin himself. And then the tales of the lost city of Iram. But to see it all real in person, I knew then that one day you would follow in the footsteps of our ancestors. I so wanted a more peaceful life for you" she said crying softly. Ahmed took off his boots so his bare feet could feel the skin of his mother's hand. It was rough under his soles but warm. Her hands and feet were not of a queen but of a peasant after years of working in the fields. Something that made tongues wag but nobody dared not say anything aloud. Especially after recent events where the prince decreed that the viziers that took up arms against him would serve as shrunken foot slaves to their own daughters. They realized that the prince was no fool. He had a good heart, but his justice was as sharp as the holy weapon he now carried. Ahmed took his sword and cut off some of his own hair. He quickly braided it. "Just in case" he told her. She raised him to her lips to kiss him and he wiped her tears away. "Go! Go before I lose the nerve to let you go!" she yelled. Ahmed nodded and translocated off her hand. Fatima wept bitterly for her son as her fingers clutched his cut off hair.

15 minutes earlier...

Selah had gone to Mary's room to check on her as she had not emerged from it in nearly 12 hours. What she found was Mary lying still and lifeless on her bed. Alicia was sitting next to it crying quietly. "What....what's going on?" Selah asked. She glanced at the nightstand to find Kyle, Mary's boyfriend sobbing. "The strain was too great. She had a massive stroke. Kyle found her on the floor and came to me a few minutes ago" Alicia said. "Then just heal her!" Selah yelled. "She's brain dead. A high-level spell could repair the physical damage but what made Mary...Mary was destroyed. This is even worse than before" Alicia said. "But why?! Mary said she could do this!" Selah yelled touching Mary's face. Her eyes were as dead as glass. "She knew the strain would kill her in her state. Using magics on a global scale is daunting. It almost killed me in Yorkshire if I hadn't Hope's help" Alicia said softly. "Then why didn't you have Hope stay behind and help her!" Selah yelled grabbing her collar.

"Hope has enough to do. Power me, refresh Ahmed, and then full-on fight Lilith. Asking her to help Mary would've been too much and Mary knew it" Alicia said. Selah went to slap her, and Alicia caught her hand. "I told you this before. This is the kind of decisions grownups make. The hard ones where shit doesn't turn out all Disney happily ending. You got Brynhildr in your head. She can tell you that. Now take Kyle and leave the room. You don't have the stomach for what comes next" Alicia said coldly. "Fuck you. I fought a goddamned maniacal giantess until I nearly died. I am strong enough for anything..."

"Can you kill her?" Alicia asked cutting her off. Selah looked at her like she was possessed. "The goofy dream goddess who was a raving Sopranos fan is gone forever. This here is just a shell. A meat puppet. A prison for her soul. She has to be set free" Alicia said. Selah noticed Alicia making a fist so hard her fingernails drew blood. Selah held her fist and opened it. With not a word she healed her hand. "I'll do it" Selah said softly.

Selah sat on the bed and pulled Mary to her chest. Selah stroked her long pretty hair for a minute and whispered into her ear. Selah took her left hand and placed it under Mary's chin. The right hand on top of her head. Selah jerked her hands hard at an angle and the sound of Mary's neck breaking filled the room. Mary went slack, her breathing stopped, her heart still. And with that, the Greek goddess of dreams Morpheus, left this world. Kyle howled as Selah lowered Mary back onto the bed and silently closed her eyes with her hand. "She knew she was pregnant, didn't she? So why did she do it so easily?" Selah asked. "Just because one does not complain or make a decision quickly does not mean they made it easily. Mary was faced with a terrible choice. To raise a child in literal hell or sacrifice hers so a billion other children won't. When one has lived for thousands of years, the hardest decisions can be made in an instant because of the countless lessons we have learned. Alicia, something is happening in Los Angeles" Joseph said standing in the doorway. Joseph walked away leaving them. Alicia quietly crossed Mary's arms on her body. "Selah? What did you whisper to her? It sounded like Hebrew" Alicia asked. "Let love and faithfulness never leave you. Bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart" she replied softly. "From the book of Proverbs" Alicia muttered. "I forget you were raised a Christian" she said. "I think knowledge and understanding shouldn't be bound by different beliefs. In the end we are all one people. Humanity needs to remember that especially now" Alicia told her. "What about him?" Selah asked pointing to Kyle. "I can't be the one to comfort him but nor should he be left alone. Well ask Lucy to see to him" Alicia said. Selah gently kissed Kyle before following Alicia out the room and down to the basement.

"Alex?" Alicia asked. "I've been monitoring any military chatter and sats I can using Markus' old backdoors. There's a squadron riding hot and heavy right into the heart of Los Angeles" he said. "Belphegor" Alicia muttered. The demon of Gluttony had been standing unmoving since taking its position nearly 24 hours ago. Outward appearances would have one see a colossal naked giantess standing under a blackened sky. An aura or sheer evil clinging to her skin. Her eyes glowing. There was nobody alive for a one-mile radius around her. Over 10,000 people had been devoured within including the national guard of California unlucky enough to get within her most deadly sphere of influence. Further out, the citizens of Orange County slowly fell into a state of panic, lust, gluttony, hysteria, and murder. The body count had already surpassed 300,000 and steadily grew. With the loss of the national guard, the president ordered a strike directly on the demon. Three squadrons bore down on her roaring through the smoke and darkness. Squadron one was composed of F-18 Super Hornets. Squadron two, F-35 Lightnings. And Squadron three A-10 Thunderbolts.

Squadron one fired off a barrage of air to ground Mavericks. The missiles exploded hitting the demon and did nothing except garner a grin. Her attention turning to them, the demon sent horrors into their mind as a black mist surrounded the jets. Anyone on the channel could hear screaming, unrelenting screaming. The formation broke up as one jet rolled right into another. A third pulled and went into a stall, slamming into the ground minutes later, blinded, one slammed into a building and the other right into the demon itself. The last one ejected and was pulled with invisible force right into the giantess demon's maw. Squadron two and three bore down on the demon dropping smart bombs and Gatling rounds. Barely anything made a scratch. With a wave of its hand, hellfire obliterated the two remaining squadrons. "They never stood a chance" Joseph said. "Wait. Something else is there" Alex said. Indeed, there was. A single plane that was holding back but now given the ominous green light to attack. It's bomb bay doors opened, and a single weapon fell out. A half second later its fins deployed, and its rocket motor fired. The bomber turned hard and retreated as fast as possible to avoid the shockwave.

"I'm looking. There. A single missile. Oh shit..." Alex muttered. The missile freaked towards its target. Survivors nearby saw it streak right over their heads and just as it seemed to hit the giantess, there was a horrible flash. "Oh my god" Alicia muttered watching the satellite feed. A brilliant flash then an angry reddish orange mushroom cloud swallowing up downtown Los Angeles.

Five minutes earlier...

"We're all set. Keep us in lockdown while we're gone" Keith said. Theresa, the head officer in charge of monitoring known as Control, silently nodded. She motioned for him to bend down. She surprised him by kissing him. "Keep safe out there boss. Please?" she asked very worried. "I'll try" he said quietly petting her hair. Keith, Hope, and Susan walked to the living room. While walking through the hallway, the maids and servants lined up to see them off. Some were visibly crying. Keith realized if the worst happened, someone strong and capable would have to take over. "Time to do this" Susan said. "Yeah. Time to do it" Keith said as walked behind her. Quickly, Keith cast a sleeping spell knocking her out. "I hope she understands why" he said to them. "She'll hate you for this" Fiona warned. "At least she'll be alive to hate me" he said. He motioned for Hope to translocated to the island.

They arrived almost the same time as Ahmed. "They're downstairs" Skylar said sitting next to Hana. Keith and Ahmed walked downstairs right as the nuclear weapon detonated in Los Angeles. "It's begun" Joseph said quietly. "Where?" Keith asked. "Los Angeles. I couldn't even see the plane" Alex said. Keith looked at the footage. "No wonder. A B-2 Spirit did this. Stealth, a dark sky, and flying solo. Looking at the damage, it was a tactical nuke. 20 kilotons" he said. "Impressive to know that so quickly" Alex muttered. "I do a lot of reading. A blast like that probably took out 75,000 people" he said. "What a fucking waste!" Joseph yelled kicking a chair. "Pointless. Did these foolish creatures think a nuclear weapon could harm a being born in hellfire?" the demon sighed using its power to clear away the atomic fire and ash. What injuries it had was easily healed. "We need to go now" Alicia said. "Agreed" Joseph said walking upstairs.

"Susan isn't here" Alicia whispered to Keith. "Figured it was best to leave her behind in case..." he said softly. Alicia silently nodded. "Well, the gang is all here. First off, I have to say that we lost Mary about a half hour ago. The strain of entering so many dreams was too much" Alicia said. Lucy broke down crying as Skylar sniffled. "Lucy. I need you to look after her boyfriend Kyle. He's not in a good place you get me?" she asked. Lucy nodded. "Humanity just tried to nuke a demon. We were betting they would try but we had hoped we could end this before they did. That's 300,000 lives snuffed out right there. Time to put up or shut up. Hope you're with me. Skylar is with Hikari" she said walking outside. "Joseph. Call them up" she said. "Oh, they've been here for a while" Joseph said. As soon as he did, Mars, Kali, and Quetzalcoatl shimmered into gigantic view. Everyone was stunned at their presence. "Interesting. An Alux and a Campioné" the Aztec god hissed smiling. "A Campioné? You did not mention one of them would be with us" Kali said. "Is that a problem?" Ahmed asked. "Just make sure you remember who the real enemy is boy" Kali replied. "It's time" Joseph said. They all nodded and surprisingly, they began a game of Rock Paper Scissors to determine who fought whom. "And this isn't even shocking" Selah muttered. "Hope. Translocate me to this location" Alicia said touching her cheek. Hope read her thoughts and nodded. "See you soon dad" Hope said before translocating Alicia and her away.

"Where are we?" Hope asked looking around. "The Arlington Texas AT&T stadium. My very first big-name concert was here when I was 18. I need you to connect everyone on a magical link. Timing is everything" she said. Hope did effortlessly. Alicia used her magics to turn on the cameras and satellite uplinks. "Alex. I need you to hack every Emergency Broadcast System you can and show the streaming link" she said. "Done boss but can it handle such traffic?" he asked. "Why is why I made sure to host in on 100 different servers. Hell, I got it on fucking Pornhub" she replied. She looked at Hope. "Alright my little Energizer bunny. Here we go" she said growing. Growing from a shrunken or naturally small state is easy and mostly safe but growing from human size is daunting and dangerous. Selah can manage it by specific special titan magic. Hope can do it because of Etherion. Alicia pushed past the pain as she grew and grew until she was 100 ft. tall. Much easier to see by the cameras in the booths. Her sandaled feet quickly sank into the AstroTurf not designed for so much tonnage. If the world wasn't ending, the Dallas Cowboys might've cared. Alicia looked dead at the cameras and began to sing. The song that she chose to sing to get the masses attention came to her in a dream. A dream she had just a few hours earlier. Even though she had not written it nor heard it sung aloud, she knew precisely how it went.

"Breath, should I take a deep? Faith, should I take a leap? Taste, what a bittersweet. All my, all my life. Let me face let me face let me face my fears. Oh, let me face let me face let me face my fears. Won't be long, won't be long, I'm almost here. Watch me cry all my tears..."

Around the world, people hypnotically surfed onto the website where she was streaming. Millions, then tens of millions, then hundreds of millions. With so many focused on Alicia, fear, panic, and hatred across the planet immediately waned. Such a thing was immediately noticed by the archfiend demons feeding off it and in turn Lilith. Lilith was busy literally crushing the little opposition thrown her way. Palestinian rockets didn't do shit to her nor did the bombs dropped by Israeli F-16's. Beams of light destroyed air squadrons within minutes. Her bare feet crushed soldiers, freedom fighters, and even Hamas itself. She barely smiled as someone met their end under her big toe. A land embroiled with in fighting for generations united under a common goal. But as inspiring as it was, it was futile. The last fighter caught in her grip fired wildly into her face with his antique Tokayev pistol until the mag was spent. Lilith threw him into her mouth and swallowed him alive. Then, Lilith felt the change in the air. "Hmm" she muttered as she spat out a sandal. The first to engage in battle was Quetzalcoatl versus Belphegor.

The survivors of the initial attack, chaos, and recent nuclear strike saw a figure blot out the sky darkened sun and land with an earth-shaking boom. Some tweeted a giant half naked Hispanic teenager had appeared. Those familiar with the old tales knew that this was no teenager, but a god made flesh. The sky God Quetzalcoatl. His glowing yellow eyes and feathered necklace and headdress was proof of his identity. "A worm God means to challenge me?" the demon laughed.

The God cocked his head cracking his neck. "A serpent. The kind that swallows whole the vermin that feeds off humanity's scraps" he said. "This is not the land of your people. You have no sway here" the demon mocked. Quetzalcoatl grinned slightly looking at his hand and fired off a powerful divine bolt of lightning blowing the demon clear off her feet. "Ignorant shit. You say this is not my land? This is California! A land once owned by Mexico, my domain, and therefore so is this. My worshippers many have fled their homeland and turned to a Christian God, but their blood still dwells in this city and this soil. And as we speak, I can feel their prayers. THEY CALL TO ME TO ERADICATE THIS SCOURGE BEFORE ME! Now get off your blasphemous ass and fight" the serpent God snarled summoning his obsidian tipped war club to his hands. Belphegor rose to her feet and vomited tens of thousands of human bones. Bones that came from the digested victims she ate earlier. With glowing eyes, she formed it into a sword of malice. She charged him and they clashed. The shockwave shook the center of the city. In other cities, battles had begun. Kali was now clashing with Azazel. Mars clashed with Asmodeus. And Ahmed was facing Abaddon.

"That looked easy" Hope said as Alicia finished her song. "Because I didn't have to put any magic into that one. That was just to get their attention. Now we crank shit up" she said. "Boss lady. I got some good news and bad news" Alex said. "Good news first" Alicia said. "Good news I'm seeing viewer traffic passing two billion. It's spreading faster than we could've hoped" he said. "Bad news?" she asked. "Shortly after you left, I intercepted a lot of short-wave radio chatter from NORAD, Washington D.C., Moscow, Mt. Yamantau, and a remote area in the Caspian Sea" he said. "Locations where one would authorize a nuclear launch" Keith said softly. "Bingo and it gets worse. My snooping revealed elevated heat signatures from missile bases in both the US and Russia. They're getting their missiles ready for launch" Alex said. "...how soon?" Alicia asked. "Could be as little as 30 minutes" Keith answered. "But why? They just saw nukes won't kill them" Hope asked. "They're hoping bigger bombs might do the trick and whoever gets rid of the demons in their own country will have the upper hand on the other. They're looking out for themselves" Keith replied. "Even in the face of Armageddon..." Skylar hissed. "Then we win this shit in 30 minutes. What's our status?" Joseph said. "Lilith isn't moving. Quetzalcoatl is doing great. Kali is holding her own. Mars is stalemated. And Ahmed is...struggling" Hope replied.

"Ahmed?" Alicia asked. "This isn't easy. Abaddon isn't just a demon but a fallen angel like Lucifer. And then there's the issue of her weapon" he replied. Ahmed carefully shifted his stance watching the demon before him. At first, he had the upper hand as the demon underestimated his ability to hold a giant form. Ahmed easily slashed her forearm but now she regrouped seeing a worthy opponent holding a holy weapon. Abaddon had used her power to effectively cause mass murder throughout a tenth of the city. Over 180,000 had now perished from various ways after shrinking. The demon drank in desires, dreams, and urges like a black hole and the side effect was one shrinking. As she furthered the hell summoning, her needs and influence spread further. Now facing Ahmed, she wielded a weapon fitting for one who is sloth and destruction, Soul Void.

The sword had a ghostly appearance to it like concentrated mist. When it cut something, it caused it ruin. Metal rusted and corroded, flesh necrotized, stone eroded. Ahmed had been cut but hid armor took the hit. Even so, the armor plate crumbled into dust. He realized his armor would give little protection and came up with a bold plan. Ahmed quickly shed his armor until he was stark naked. It was an odd sight indeed to see a gigantic naked middle eastern man fighting a giant demoness. "Alicia. Time for phase two" he said. "Got it" Alicia replied. "This is where it gets hard kiddo" she said to Hope as she readied another song.

"They tell me you touched the face of God. Like the sound of a rope cracking on your neck. They tell me you'd never give up. Like the that was soul dinging in your head. So honey please don't go. Or you'll fall into the dead of night. So honey please, don't go. You'd better learn to fly, cause they're gonna point you up at the sky. The more you want it the more you need it, I know that you'll be by my side. In the heat of the moment, when the thunder and lightning come. I know you'll be by my side..."

"That music..." the demon growled. Ahmed tapped his bare foot shaking the ground making cars jump. "Yeah. Has a damn good beat to it. You might say...it fires me up" Ahmed grinned as he shifted to his djinn form. Elemental, magical, smokeless flames surrounded his body. Alicia's song was not to move the people now, it was to fortify the four in combat. However, those watching the stream began to get notifications of other streamers watching the battles around the world. They opened new tabs not wanting (due to Mary's suggestion) to stop listening to her song to watch. Ahmed went on the attack slashing and striking putting the demon on the defensive. Abaddon quickly realized what the man had bet on. Her sword could not corrode, necrotize, erode, or rust fire itself. And as his flames are of a magical symbolic nature, it could burn it. As powerful as the demon was, it was still limited by the vessel it used. Choosing a woman who was devoutly lazy, was a perfect vessel for its soul but a poor choice for combat. Abaddon cast hellfire directly at him and Ahmed dodged. Her attacks roasting areas of the city demolishing it in ways it had not seen in centuries. Ahmed literally cut his way through the flames slashing the demon across her chest. Staggered, Ahmed pressed the attack before she could regain balance. A slash cut off her arm. Another exposed her intestines. Abaddon desperately parried only to see her sword evaporate as it was caught by his right hand. Abaddon grabbed him by the throat with both hands ignoring what his flames did to her flesh. "WHAT IS YOUR DESIRE?! GIVE IT TO ME!" she screamed.

 Abaddon let lose its penetrating gaze and Ahmed raised his hand holding his sword. He turned the blade flat side to her face literally reflecting her gaze right back at her. Abaddon cannibalized its own desires causing her to shrink right into his open hand. Standing naked in his flames, she burned to her bones as he closed his hand. Abaddon was extinguished as shamed let her pulverized burnt bones become dust in the wind. Lilith and her demons immediately felt Abaddon's destruction and without her, the hell summoning stalled.

"One down, three to go" Keith said as Ahmed returned to rest. In Los Angeles, the fight between Quetzalcoatl and Belphegor had reached its zenith. The nuclear strike had pruned the demon's ability to feed by vaporizing the surviving humans in its sphere of influence and now that Alicia's song has caused the others to stop fearing them, the demon couldn't withstand the punishing attacks the god rained down on it. Bolts of lightning pushed it into the ground. The god's obsidian war club turned it into a bloody mess it was ill suited to heal from. "Oh how I missed this feeling! An Alux servant using her song to fuel battle! It makes my scales tingle!" the god yelled. Quetzalcoatl grabbed the demon by her neck and yanked her off her feet. The ground buckled even more as more tonnage was forced into two smaller spaces, the soles of his feet. The God raised his war club over his head summoning a bolt of lightning so powerful it split the darkened skies. The bolt struck him as energy traveled down from his feathered hair, to his arm, his hand, and then his war club. Quetzalcoatl spoke a single word. "Xen te' elo' ". Mayan for.... begone. Quetzalcoatl rammed the pointed tip of his war club right into the demon's heart unleashing the summoned lightning in one fell swoop. The mighty bolt exploded from her back arcing right over the Pacific Ocean. The God sneered as he tossed the defeated corpse aside through the half-collapsed Capitol Records building. It collapsed completely burying the demon. Quetzalcoatl let out a cry as thunder and lightning lit the sky announcing not just his victory, but that it was he, not some foreign God that saved them.

"Two down. Two to go" Keith said. "She's moving" Alex said watching Lilith. "She's going to back up the others. We can't let her!" Keith yelled. "She won't. Have Hope ready" Joseph said leaving. "I can't just sit here and do nothing. Who's in trouble more?" Keith asked. Kali is better matched now that Alicia shifted her focus, but Mars is struggling now. Something's wrong" Alex replied. "Hope. Translocated me to St. Petersburg" he said. "...dad. Be careful" she said as she opened a portal before him. Keith stepped through. "My god" Keith muttered seeing the crushed remains of T-34 tanks and a downed MIG-29 Fulcrum slammed into a school. The streets were devoid of people. A spattering of clothes and shoes where their owners were sucked into the giantess' pussy to feed her power. A series of powerful explosions rattled his teeth as he turned to see the god Mars firing a rifle his size. "Fuck me" Keith said as he saw bullets the size of cars coming out the barrel. The demon simply laughed as she absorbed each one. Keith used wind magic to fly to his side. "Thought you might need some help!" he shouted. "Mortal! Came to join the fun?!" Mars bellowed firing at her. "I thought a badass like the God of war would've handled this already!" Keith yelled. "Aye but the foul thing absorbs everything! Her ominous cunt even devoured my sword!" he yelled. "Can you make me big like you?" Keith asked. Mars grinned and snapped his fingers. "Whoa" Keith said admiring his new height. "So the gun..." he asked. "I can make any weapon of war" the god finished. "Then make a lens. A shit load of lenses and mirrors" Keith said. "Hahaha....HAHAHAHA! A bold plan mortal! So shall it be!" Mars laughed realizing what Keith had planned. Keith charged into the fight to buy the god time.

Keith summoned Gae Bulg to his hand. He found out quickly that the demon had more than one special trick up her sleeve. The more he tried to attack, the more he felt a stirring in his heart. Keith tried to play it off from the start, but he found the demon alluring and not what he envisioned. His strikes faltered against her invisible barriers. Keith became frustrated as she didn't even bother to counterattack. Soon, his lance became too heavy to hold and it fell to the ground with a loud clank. He heard Mars shouting but he paid no mind. Keith slowly stepped forward as his mind wanted Asmodeus. As if to mirror his desires, her body changed subtlety. Her hair grew longer, her toes pedicured and painted red, her breasts wept milk. Keith could smell the scent of her pussy even more as he took another step after another. The wind picked up as if drawing him in. She appeared to be growing. "ENOUGH!" Mars yelled yanking him back. "Wha?" Keith muttered slowly coming to his senses. Keith had shrunk to half his size as he saw her cunt was trying to suck him in. "Bitch is like a Venus flytrap!" Keith yelled. "It's done!" Mars yelled pointing to the mirror and lens arrayed in the air. Keith leaped into the air and threw Gae Bulg as hard as he could. Due to its enchantment, it never missed its target and skewered the demon's foot to the ground. "Absorb this bitch! Burning light!" Keith yelled activating an arcane spell.

The beam of light amplified through the lenses and bounced off mirrors. Hundreds carefully arranged in the air and small enough not to be easily seen. History recorded Reagan's Star Wars Project as a colossal failure. However, the concept was sound as well as the basic designs. The only problem was power. It would take a lot of energy to fire a laser in the megawatt range. A problem Keith had solved with high tier magics. An attack that moved at the speed of light struck the demon burning a hole clean through her body vertically. Keith summoned back the lance and threw it to Mars. "This...will not stop me!" Asmodeus yelled. "This will" Mars said coldly as he mixed his own divine power with the enchanted weapon. Mars threw the lance with absolute precision only a God of war could. In her weakened condition, Asmodeus couldn't absorb the attack and easily skewered the demon right off her feet. A massive explosion of dirt and dust rose into the air where she landed. Mars leaped into the air and landed right beside the demon. With not a word or care, Mars raised his boot and crushed her skull. "I am ashamed how you broke her defenses to easily" Mars muttered to Keith as he approached. "I'm a borrower. Brute force isn't our way. Sometimes a... more sly approach is required" Keith said yanking the lance from the demon's body. "Aye. Sometimes her battle can only be won by guile. You may be a tiny little species, but you have the hearts of warriors" Mars said grinning as he extended his hand. Keith shook it smiling.