The first thing Jarod felt was the cold metal wrapped around his wrists, both of them being connected by a thin chain-link that had ice crystals layering around them. He tried opening his eyes but instead found a piece of fabric that had been wrapped around his head as well.
"Hello?" He asked aloud.
"Oh, you're awake," A familiar monotone voice stated as the sound of feet hitting the floor echoed in Jarod's ears. "This time in only a few hours, maybe one day you won't faint at all."
"Katlyn?" He said as he tried freeing himself of the handcuffs that were latched on his wrists to no avail.
"They won't break," Katlyn said as she pulled the cloth from Jarod's head. Jarod squinted due to the sudden light and stayed like that for a moment as Katlyn spoke. "Also, Katlyn is my human name when I'm on that plane of existence. Here, in Hell, you will call me Arlyn."
"Oh," Was all Jarod said as his eyes finally adjusted to the light as he looked at the raven-haired woman in front of him. "Do I get to take these off?" The girl now dubbed Arlyn nodded.
"Of course, you are the Prince of Hell after all. Here," She grabbed one of his wrists and turned it sharply, earning a small wince of pain come from the prince. "Oh hush, you've experienced pain far worse than that." With a small click, the handcuffs fell to the ground.
Jarod rubbed his wrists with a tiny frown as he took a closer look at Arlyn, who had cuts and scrapes littered all over her arms and legs, including a rather large cut right above her left eyebrow.
"What happened to you?" He asked her. Arlyn gave him a blank look.
"You happened." Jarod's eyes widened at the implication she was making.
"Wait what?"
"Yeah, your darker half took over and decided that killing Pinsarar was not enough to sate your bloodlust." She muttered.
"Bloodlust?" Jarod whispered mainly to himself, horrified that he could do such a thing. "But how? I don't remember anything other than talking to a guy who looks just like me asking for control and. . ." He trailed off as the realization hit him like a semi-truck.
"Yeah, looks like you finally get it," Arlyn confirmed. "It's definitely weird how you also have a darker half, though I suppose it's to be expected as the son of Satan." Jarod's head cocked to the side like a puppy wanting treats, but instead of treats, he wanted answers.
"What do you mean by 'also'? Does my father have a darker half too?" Arlyn shrugged.
"Honestly I'm not really qualified to tell you, though I-" She was saying before Morina walked into the room, her mouth in a thin line as she met Jarod's eyes.
"You did quite a number on my apprentice, my Prince." Jarod looked down at the ground, shame running through his chest.
Did he really lose control of his darker half so much that he had hurt Arlyn that badly? As if reading his thoughts, Morina continued.
"You actually knocked her unconscious after you beat her up for a few minutes. After it looked like you were about to kill her, I stepped in and was able to bring you down."
"I didn't know I had lost control so badly," Jarod whispered before looking up at Arlyn. "I'm really sorry for what happened, I didn't mean to almost kill you!" Arlyn rolled her eyes.
"Don't be. You proved your might as a warrior." She said.
"No," Morina butted in, correcting her apprentice. "He did not. His darker half did, not him. Lord Satan has seen it fit for you two to finally meet, so now we will."
"Wait," Jarod began, grabbing at his bottom of his shirt as his teeth grinded together. "Please tell me what exactly happened after my darker half killed that weird guy."
"Pinsarar," Morina informed him. "And if you wish, then it shall be granted. I will show you the details of your battle with Arlyn." She poked her finger in the air, a small green energy appearing as she wrote what looked like chicken-scratch to Jarod in the air, it floating before slowly making its way towards Jarod.
"This is a spell that can play like a movie in one's head. Allow it to touch you and you will watch the fight as if you were in a movie theater." Jarod swallowed the saliva in his mouth and nodded, closing his eyes as he felt the energy hit him, dispersing all across his body before he saw nothing.
Jarod charged at the girl with blinding speed but was surprised when she just jumped over his head, hitting him with the blunt end of her sword. Jarod snarled.
"Come here and let me kill you!" He shouted but was then kicked in the stomach, causing saliva to fly out of his mouth. Arlyn looked at him with disgust.
"You're pathetic. You can kill one of the Gatekeepers with ease, and yet, can't handle me? How are you the true son of Satan?" She said harshly. Morina, who was watching from afar, shook her head.
"Me? Pathetic? How dare you talk about to your Prince, I'll," He started laughing as he stood up, his head tilted to the side, his eyes wide as his white hair seemed to flicker between black and white. "I'll destroy you!" He screamed as a large, black aura enveloped his body, the ground beneath him started cracking under the sheer pressure of the energy he was releasing. Lightning then started flickering across his body as he lifted his arm. "I'll show you pathetic!" He yelled as a lightning bolt hit Arlyn right above the eye, sending her flying.
He giggled like a little school girl as she stood up, clutching her now bleeding face. "Oh, you're definitely getting your ass kicked Jarod." She whispered, her tone angry.
She charged him, raising her sword to slash at his body, but he merely lifted a single finger, blocking the whole thing with a fingernail. Her eyes widened in surprise before he grabbed her by the neck and slammed her into the ground.
"Did you know, by the time I was in 8th grade, I had broken thirteen bones because of what my step-father did to me? I'll show you one!" He said, laughing before stomping on her arm, enjoying the sound of the snap as she screamed in pain. He grabbed one of her pale, white legs, and smirked. "He broke my leg three times, guess I'll show you how!" He slammed his elbow down on the side of the kneecap, bending her leg at a weird angle. She screamed in pain and fell unconscious due to the pain.
"Now to conquer my prey!" Jarod yelled, a sword made of ice appearing in his hand before he was kicked off of her.
"I'm sorry, Your Highness. But I can't let you break my foolish apprentice all the way. She's learned her lesson." Jarod grinned maniacally at her.
"How about I break you?!" He yelled as he charged Morina. Her eyebrow shifted upward before she instantly appeared above his head.
"You're strong my Prince, but you're not strong enough to take me on. Not yet." She said, before punching him in the back of the head, into the ground, knocking the demon hybrid unconscious. "But you will become a monster of an opponent one day, that's for sure."
"So that's what happened. . ." Jarod trailed off as he looked back at Arlyn. "I really am sorry for all that."
"As I said before, it's fine," Arlyn stressed. "Demons heal easier and quicker than any human. I'll be in top shape come tomorrow." Jarod exhaled a sigh of relief.
"Well that's good to hear," He then looked up to Morina. "Thank you for stopping me."
"No need to thank me, just doing my job. Now, how about we go meet your father hm?" Jarod felt a smile tug on his lips.
"Sure," He answered and stood up, his knees shaking a little bit as his heart began beating faster.
He was finally going to meet his father.
Finally.