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The Showdown The cage disappeared like smoke, leaving Tommy squirming on the hard floor of the cave. He rubbed his face against the rough ground, trying to loosen his gag. But the cloth remained firmly in place. Asmodeus was watching Tommy’s futile attempts to escape with amusement. “You are wasting your time, brat,” he said. “Those bonds are forged with magic, and no human power can remove them. You are mine now.” “Why don’t you let him go and fight like a man?” Casey yelled. The demon had not bothered to gag him again, since he posed no threat. “Better yet, untie me,” Casey demanded. “I fought tougher guys than you back in Sheepshead Bay.” Asmodeus said nothing in response, as if Casey were beneath his notice. He held up his hand, and a wave of force slammed into Casey. Still tied to the chair, he flew backward into the wall of the cave. The impact knocked him out, and he landed on the ground in a heap. What was left of the chair smoldered from the heat of the blast. Tommy tried to cry out, then started crawling toward Casey. Asmodeus grabbed him by the hair and pulled him back. “Stop whimpering,” Asmodeus said. “Your little playmate will recover. You should worry more about yourself.” The demon lifted his hand again, and a huge slab shaped like an altar rose up from the ground. Asmodeus laid Tommy out flat on the slab and tied him to it. Tommy twisted his body, trying to slide out of the ropes, but the magical bonds remained impossibly tight. A few minutes later, Casey began to come around, just in time to see a familiar red glow. Asmodeus was draining Tommy’s soul! Casey could hear Tommy’s muffled cries of pain. He knew exactly what his friend was feeling. Anxious to help, he started rubbing his ropes against the cave wall. The bonds, already weakened by Asmodeus’s blast, began to loosen. Asmodeus paid no attention to Casey’s struggles. He was gloating as he drew power from the helpless Tommy. “Soon I will control you, brat,” the demon taunted. “And then all the power of Elysium will be at my command. You will be my dark Champion, and using you I will conquer a thousand worlds.” Tommy said, “No” but only an indistinct grunt emerged from his gag. “You have no choice in the matter,” Asmodeus said. “And your feeble resistance only makes my victory more satisfying.” Casey, at last free of his bonds, tackled Asmodeus from behind. Taken off guard, the demon staggered for a moment, then roared with anger. He grabbed Casey by the arm and tossed him through the air like a rag doll. “You will pay for that,” Asmodeus said. He gestured, and iron manacles encircled Casey’s wrists and ankles. A metal band wrapped itself around his mouth as well, silencing him completely. “In a few hours, my control of your friend will be complete. And my first task for him will be to kill you, in the slowest and most painful manner possible.” Never, thought Casey. Nothing in this world – or any other world – could make Tommy turn against him. He knew that. Asmodeus himself had said the bond between them was powerful. Very powerful. Almost . . . Magic. An idea began to form in Casey’s mind. He did not know if it would work, but he did not see many other options at this point. Anything was worth a try. But first he had to get this metal muzzle off. And the only one in the cave who could knock it off was Asmodeus. He remembered reading a quote from Martin Luther while researching a medieval history paper: “The devil is a proud sprite and cannot abide to be mocked.” Luther was talking about a different devil, but Asmodeus did not seem to like being mocked either. Maybe if I get him mad enough, he’ll deck me again, thought Casey. That might loosen the gag. He crawled over to the side of the cave, where pieces of the wooden chair still lay smoldering. He managed to pick up one of the blackened chair legs and took it back over to the altar where Asmodeus had resumed tormenting Tommy. With his crude charcoal pencil, Casey began drawing a highly unflattering caricature of the demon. Fortunately, Casey had always had a knack for cartooning. His portrait of Asmodeus drew heavily from previous works involving his gym coach and history teacher. When he had finished his masterpiece, Casey tugged on the demon’s cloak to get his attention. When Asmodeus turned around, Casey nodded at the drawing. He said “Nyah nyah” into the gag. Even though the words were not clear, the contemptuous singsong tone was unmistakable. Asmodeus flew into a rage. “I will not tolerate another moment of your insolence,” he howled. His raised fists glowed as he hurled two fiery red bolts at Casey. Casey nearly blacked out from the pain as the full force of the demon’s wrath tore into him. He fell to his knees. “The only reason you are alive is so that I can have the pleasure of watching your best friend roast you alive,” hissed Asmodeus. “Do not try my patience further, boy.” Casey felt as though he had been dipped in acid, but he had achieved his goal. The mystic bolt had dislodged the metal gag. Casey crawled to the other side of the stone altar and stood up. Tommy, worried that his friend was going to get clobbered again, kept trying to say “Get out of here” through his gag. “I’m not going anywhere,” Casey said defiantly, looking directly at Asmodeus. “I don’t think the great and powerful Asmodeus would begrudge a few last words to such good friends.” Asmodeus laughed. “By all means,” he said. “A tearful goodbye would be delightful. If your performance is really good, I might let you live – as a dung beetle.” Casey grabbed Tommy’s hand and held it tightly. “Tommy, there’s only one thing I really want to say, and I really hope it works,” Casey said. “Elysium!” An overpowering blue light flooded the room, blinding Asmodeus. When it faded, Tommy was no longer tied to the altar. The Champion stood atop the stone, shredding the bonds that had held Tommy. “Asmodeus,” the Champion said in a booming voice. “This ends now.” Panicked, Asmodeus began hurling red bolts of energy at the Champion. The hero walked through the fusillade as if it were a summer rain shower. “You’ll have to do better than that,” the Champion said. He held up a hand, and a wave of blue light swept over Asmodeus. The demon howled with pain. The Champion turned to Casey. “Why don’t you give it a try?” he asked. Casey looked puzzled. “I can’t –” His voice trailed off as he looked down at himself. He was wearing a gold uniform, with a symbol on the chest -- two royal blue circles intertwined. “I guess some of he magic spilled on to you,” the Champion said, grinning. “Why don’t you take a shot at tall, dark and ugly over there? He’s got it coming.” Casey did not need to be asked twice. He raised his hands and felt power flowing out of his fingertips. A bolt of golden light hit Asmodeus square in the chest, sending him flying against the far wall. “Let’s try it together,” the Champion said, standing alongside his friend. Blue and gold bolts leapt from their hands, then joined to form a single beam of green energy. The beam wrapped itself around Asmodeus like a straitjacket, rendering the demon immobile. “You’ve worn out your welcome in our world,” the Champion said. “That does raise a question,” Casey replied. “What do we do with him? It’s not like we can call the police and have them cart a thousand-year-old demon away.” “That will not be necessary,” said a voice behind them. They turned around and saw Horatius, keeper of the bridge between worlds. “I can take charge of him now.” Horatius lifted what looked like a mirror and held it to the demon’s face. Asmodeus began to shimmer, like a flickering image in an old movie. His form was drawn into the mirror, which Horatius placed back within his cloak. “I regret that I could not come sooner, when you were in such dire need,” Horatius said. “But travel between our worlds is only possible during certain narrow windows of time. I am sorry that we put you both in such danger.” Casey shrugged. “Someone had to stop Asmodeus,” he said. “Without you, no one in our world would have lasted five minutes against him.” “Come on Casey, you lasted almost five minutes,” the Champion said. “Long enough to save the day. How did you ever figure out that you could say the word for me?” “It was just a lucky guess,” Casey said. “A brilliant one,” Horatius said. “The bond between friends is a powerful magic all its own. It allowed the power of Elysium to flow through both of you.” “So does that mean we’ve each got half the power now?” Casey asked. “Certainly not,” Horatius said. “A gift shared between friends is enhanced, not diminished. You are each champions now.” “Well, we can’t both be called ‘Champion,’” Casey said. “Too confusing. Since I’m almost a year younger than Tommy, you can call me ‘Kid Champion.’ I like the sound of that.” “You will both be needed in the days to come,” Horatius said. “By crossing into this world, Asmodeus has opened up other rifts. Other dark forces may find their way here, and you must be prepared.” The Champion placed his hand on his friend’s shoulder and smiled broadly. “With the two of us on the job,” he said, “the bad guys won’t know what hit them.” The End
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