Ma'oz's POV
"I miss you." I heard a whisper caresses me in the wind.
"I miss you…" I fell the red strings pull at my soul, drawing me close.
"I miss you." I feel my entire being stir with new hope, the renewed energy burning within the very depths of my being.
"Come. I bid you to my side." The command came. Gentle and coursing through my veins like a gentle stream, yet powerful and verging on rage, the call came.
Resting my head back on the rock I have carved out, I let out a sigh. My half dragon-self heating the air around. The smell of flying insects fried to ashes lingered for a fifth of a mile.
Calling me whenever she pleases, forcing me to stay rooted to the ground whenever it suits her.
I closed my eyes and breathed. Simply breathed deeply feeling Mother Earth's soothing movements all around. Letting its natural vibrations resonate within me.
This should have been how I feel. The total peace and clarity of mind.
Right now, it is all disrupted by tumultuous fluctuations of Journee's brainwaves. It shakes me to the core, forcing me to answer her call.
"I must end this bond!" With renewed determination to put some sense into Journee, I rose up in the air and started floating across the sea to follow the pull of the red strings.
Swiftly, I moved from the Mediterranean Sea to the Dead Sea, passing through several countries whose names and political borders have changed drastically since my last visit.
Humans are such fickle creatures. In the demon realm, a powerful being will rule for at least half a century before they are ousted by a younger and more promising demon. The general population of my kind too do not take changes well. So, unless the new demon has the ability to lead them all to glory and a better outcome, it will be hard to convince them to follow.
But this is the human realm. What can I expect? At least my journey across the ocean will be serene and delightful. I look forward to the nostalgia that will fill my soul as I remember each place I have travelled to with my father all those centuries ago.
My thoughts brought me into the Arabian gulf. "Ah! Aladdin and his foolish genie. Out of compassion, my father taught the genie all his spells and how to please his master. Ish…now it is the genie who gets the fame."
I notice how there are still remnants of my father's powers lingering across, the comforts he made for the inhabitants there. I continue to look forward to it all. Instead, I am appalled by the pollution that tarnishes the memories my father and I made.
The oil spillage seeping into the pores of the air.
Tears and cries of the seas creatures growing louder as I closed in on the Andaman Sea. Many are half starved and plagued with failing health. The humans have worked their natural resources to its limit, robbing the sanctuary of these creatures as deep down as 1000feet below sea level.
"They are as bad as the demons of old!" This used to be a beautiful realm, one I envied. One I had wished to live in as an infant.
Rage seethes from me as I observe the extent of its damage, crossing out as far out as the Indian Ocean. Mostly, I am unsure if it is compassion for the sea creatures or is it disappointment that I will not share the same experiences with my future child.
"Please my Lord. Do not be angry. You will harm my babies." I head a plead coming a few feet from the water surface. A small cluster of parrotfish and sea turtles looked at me in fear. My anger had caused the temperature to be over 550C. Hot enough for these tiny creatures to be severely harmed.
Calming myself, I continued with my journey. A king does not apologise to anyone. However, a king should also not torture any living being unnecessarily.
Soon, I arrived at the cluster of islands. I have roughly 50 kilometres before reaching Journey's home. Her scent however has grown stronger by leaps and bounds. I can almost taste her as the wind blows towards me.
"Leave… you are not welcome here." I feel the ground move, pushing me away into the ocean again. The spirit of this land is rejecting me. Fearful of my interference.
"Calm Malaya. I am not here to cause trouble. Only to retrieve what belongs to me." I spoke to the spirit of the land.
"What you seek belongs rightfully on my soil. I will not release her if she does not wish to leave with you." A defiant spirit. I have not met such resistance for a long time.
"The spirit of Langkawi accepts me and knows me well. Let me pass." I will not use force unless I truly must.
"The spirit of Langkawi Island is of her own mind. I care for far more than just the several thousand she houses."
"So, this is how the people here are. Stubborn and lacking respect for your betters." I flicked my little finger and with a whoosh, the spirit Malaya is blown to the South China Sea. She won't be disturbing me any further after my display, no matter how miniscule the act was.
I float my way into Journey's home. A man whistles as he vacuums the lower inner chamber. Oblivious to my existence. "He doesn't have the gift of sight, I see. The divine half must be Journee's mother then."
Entering her room, I am met with hostile eyes. Fury and fear mingled into a pair of brown pupils. In the dark, the figure sits to the far corner, hands gripped so tight that her knuckles have turned white.
"What the fuck?!" Pillows are thrown at me. I dodge with ease. Next comes a vase, aimed at my face. Even if I allowed it to hit me and break into several pieces, no scratch will appear on my unblemished skin. Such human articles are useless against my demon-divine self.
"Dorthy?! What happened?" A head popped in, looking curiously around.
"That stranger is an intruder!" The woman no older than Journey screamed.
"Dorthy… there is no one else here. Are you having a nightmare?" He walked over to embrace the woman who is still flailing her arms, pointing at me.
Journee's sister? I wondered. But her scent is too different. A loyal subject perhaps. Looking at how she used her body to shield the sleeping form of my 'master' who hasn't stirred from the commotion.
Why can this human see me? Is she another part divine being on this earth? I didn't have much time to ponder this. As soon as Journee's father left, the little pest started her questions again.
"Who are you?! Why can't he see you?" The woman demanded.
"Take a guess." I will humour her seeing how she protected Journee against an 'unseen' danger.
"I don't know…Why don't you tell me!" Ignoring her, I walked towards Journee and shook her awake.
"Don't you touch her!" The petite woman pulled and tugged at my arm. Her efforts are in vain.
"Dorthy…quit all that racket. I'm trying to sleep." Journee said sleepily, covering her face with a pillow.
"Hello, Journee. No warm welcome?" I asked and she bolted straight up on the bed. Wide awake.
"Ma'oz?! What the hell? I don't want to see you! Go away!!" She turned her face towards the window, face puffed up with displeasure.
Snapping my fingers, the curtains came undone, and the setting sun streamed in. The reddish light shone on her beautiful face. Somehow her anger makes her even more alluring to me.
I feel my will coming undone such as easily as those flimsy pieces of cloth. If not for the other human and my principles, she would be in trouble. Great trouble indeed. If I were any other demon, she would be undressed and pinned against the wall moaning my name by now.
Shit…fuck! Fuckery fuck! This isn't me. I will not succumb to such basic and gross acts. This is all beneath me.
"Someone please explain that all this is about?!" The other woman is white as sheet. I can feel that she is dear to Journee and my little human won't be happy if any harm comes to this woman.
Snapping my fingers again, the chair in the corner came nearer, just in time when this woman's legs gave way.
"He… he just…"
"Yes Doe." Journee sighed in defeat. She knows she won't be rid of me this easily. "Ma'oz, meet Dorthy, my best friend. Dorthy, this is the Demon King, slash my temporary husband."
"How can anyone think he is your husband?!!? He looks nothing like Montgomery Lewis!"
Her comment caught my attention. Both Journee and I spoke at the same time. "You see the real him/me?"
"Don't you see the same?" She looked from Journee to me, and back to me again. Confused. "How can anyone miss those red eyes, and…and…and that!" She pointed at the whole of me.
"You have the Sight of Truth." I stated my observation. "Tell me, who are your parents? Or grandparents?"
"Why would you want to know?! Keep away from my best friend, you freak!" The woman Journee calls Dorthy placed a hand firmly between us.
"Bold. I expected no less from someone close to Journee." I am amused. Does she think her hand is enough to stop me if I really wish to harm either of them? Typical humans. Ha!
"Think logically. Journee sees me in Montgomery's form. Even I see myself as Montgomery. Why is it that you see my true form? No human should be able to see me either unless they wear the Ring of Solomon."
"You sure talk a lot for a king of demons." Dorthy mocked.
"Would you rather I stay silent and wring your neck for your insolence?" I know she is right. Since meeting Journee, I have voiced my opinions and given explanations far more often than I would have in the past.
"She is human, Ma'oz. She is fully human." Journee said to me.
"No, she is not. Someone in her ancestry is divine. Only they have the Sight of Truth. Just like you are part divine. But this is not why I am here." I turned to face Dorthy. "Leave."
"No. Dorthy stays. Whatever you have to say, you can do so in her presence." Journee demanded.
"You will break this bond." I told her directly.
"We agree on something at last. How do we do this then?" She folded her arms.
"I have no idea." I don't like not knowing but honesty is a trait all demons possess. Whether good or bad emotions, we never lie.
"Don't you have like an entire retinue of demons to do your bidding? Why not get them to find out for you?" Journee is so naïve sometimes.
"That will undermine my power. No demon has been bonded to a human for over a millennia."
Understanding flashes in her eyes. Intelligent and sharp. I like that. Catching myself admiring another characteristic of Journee, I stopped myself.
"Hold up. Jo dear has told me everything. But let's hear from your side." Dorthy's legs and hands are shaking with fear, but she puts on a brave front for the sake of her friend. Something I respect.
Explaining everything that had transpired from our meeting to the appearance of the red strings and all Journee's wishes, I spared no details. The chances are slim, but this friend of Journee's might just know the answer.
"I see… I have nothing. I'm sorry." Unsurprised, but a little disappointed, I nodded at Dorthy.
"Look. I don't want to be bind you anymore than you wish to be bounded to me. Do you have at least an idea where to look, at how we can break this?" Journee is calm as sea breeze. I have seen so many faces of her these few days. At every turn she surprises me. She draws me in.
"Damon. Come to me." I mind-linked my Chief Minister and he appeared almost instantly, causing Dorthy to yelp in surprise.
"Man! You really gotta stop with this. My heart won't hold if you continue."
"My lord." Damon bowed to me. "Ah the much-debated Journee." Greeting her with a kiss on the hand, Damon openly showed his interest in my little human.
Jealousy bubbled within me, but I forced it back down. Damon is one of the demons who often frolic with other species. Not me. I shouldn't be affected. Once this bond is broken, I will return to my realm, never to return to the space the humans inhabit.
"Have you found any news?" I interrupted Damon.
"I might, my lord. But I need more hands. I am but one humble demon." Damon makes himself seem helpless whenever he is courting a human. I have never understood why. It is demeaning.