Lucifer is as ageless as the earth itself. Inhabitants of the heart of man
Strongest of all, and there was none second to him.
He had been the ruler of the underworld since his banishment from heaven.
Though there are some claims that he was the son of his father, It was a fallacy, as he had no father and no mother.
He circulated that claim on purpose, so people didn't find out about him to a large extent.
The head witch sometimes made him laugh at how foolishly she behaved.
She was the third creature he created after his banishment by the king of kings, and she had grown to be so strong, stronger than almost all creatures.
She had killed the first, who was the commander of his army, by sleeping with him and had then taken his power. This she did to the other one, and through that, she became extremely powerful, leaving Lucifer no choice but to make her the head of the witches.
Patricia felt a little exhausted as she returned to her apartment. She washed her hand at the sink with the intention of cleansing the blood off her hand.
She walked to her room and was about to take a nap when she heard the loud sound of a siren. She peered through her window and saw an entourage of cars parking in front of the house.
"What could be the occasion?" She wondered, but not until she saw the governor step out of the first car. She heaved a sigh of relief and then walked toward the door. She opened it and let out an exaggerated 'Wow!'
"Miss Patricia! How have you been doing?" He asked, locking her in a tight embrace.
"Oh, I've been great, sir, all thanks to you and your benevolence," she muttered with a smile as thick as mucus.
"Oh, that's nothing to mention, and I hope you are enjoying the town. They haven't given you a problem, right?"
"No, the reverse is the case here. In fact, I just took care of three of them in a house down this street," she said, laughing heartily.
"Wow! That's good of you, and I heard a positive response from the populace concerning how efficient you are at your job.
"Oh, thank you, sir!" Patrica said, blushing like a teenager in love.
"So what brings you here, Mr. Governor?" She asked with a suspicious grin. She was sure the governor wouldn't leave the statehouse in a remote area for any reason.
"Well, I came to see a friend in the neighborhood and decided to see you before leaving."
"Wow! I never knew you had a friend around here. I'd have loved to see him."
"Maybe some other time, but right now, can we discuss?"
"Sure, here or inside?" She asked with a shrug of the shoulder.
"Inside would be better," was the response he gave, smiling maliciously.
Patricia led the way into the house while he followed at a close distance. He shut the door the moment he stepped in to prevent anyone from overhearing what he wanted to discuss.
"There's a little problem, Patricia!" He said this, stuttering uncontrollably.
"And what problem could be so big as to cause the governor unrest?"
"The councilmen! They made a decision this afternoon that the killing of wolves and other mysterious creatures be stopped."He announced it with a bang that rang continuously in Patricia's ear.
"Are you kidding me, Mr. Governor?" She asked with a puzzled grimace, trying hard to comprehend what he said.
"And why would I do that?" His voice rang in the air, full of anger and venom.
"So what do you want me to do, Mr. Governor?" She asked, even though she knew the perfect answer to it.
"I need you to quit the manhunt," he said, carefully dropping the words like a bombshell.
"Mr. Governor, these people you are asking me to stop hunting down are hideous beasts who go ahead to kill people... I'm sorry, sir, but I may not be able to honor your request."She said with a note of authority, indicating with a raised hand her desire to end the conversation right there.
"Patricia, you would do no such thing! I gave you the order to begin the manhunt, and I'm also giving you the order to end it. The decision of the council members is to be honored," the governor said with desperation in his voice.
"I'm sorry, sir; I'd like you to leave if you have nothing else to discuss!" She said with her hands, akimbo.
The governor shot her a demeaning look and stormed out of the house with the intention of getting back at her for defiling his order.
Soon, it was nighttime, and night was the best part of the day for Patricia. It was at night that she got to kill a lot of mysterious creatures, as that was when they roamed the forest with laxity.
Her alarm rang twice before Patricia got up from bed. It was ten p.m., and she could hear the howling sounds in the air. She trudged to the bathroom, rinsed her face, and then changed into her regalia for witch hunting.
It was a pair of flair jeans and trousers over a black shirt and a black hat. She used this to prevent witches from finding her out immediately.
Her Dane gun was sitting on a table alongside her pocket-sized dagger. She picked it up and dumped it into her bag, strapped it around her neck, and then went out of the house.
Her feet moved at a swift pace along the tarred road that led to the Forest of Zebulon. Soon, she was at the forest mouth, and a thunderstorm was raging.
It was raging so badly that Patricia became a little frightened. She wasn't scared because of that, but because of how soon it switched.
She headed on anyway, braving her way through until she was in the middle of the forest.
It was her favorite part, as she met tons of witches and werewolves right there. She could hear loud screeching sounds from bats and birds as they flapped their wings above her head.
It annoyed her, and she tried waving them off her head to no avail. Just then, she sighted two tiny creatures behind a Sequoia tree. She could only see the outline as the tree covered them, but she was sure of what she saw.
Wolves. It enticed her and made her blood congeal. She reached for her Dane gun and then cocked it with excitement.
She journeyed at a slow pace towards the tree, trying hard not to make a sound that would alert them.
"Bang! Bang!" The sound filled the air, and she jumped in excitement as she stared at the bodies.
"Four thousand and three," she said with a malicious grin, and then maneuvered her way till she reached a very dangerous part of the forest.
"Patricia!" a loud, thunderous voice rang in the air, touching the recess of Patricia's soul.
It echoed in the air, shaking the earth to its foundation.
A breeze blew heavily, blowing leaves upon leaves on her. She used her hand to guide her face away from debris flying around.
"Who are you, and what do you want from me?" She roared defiantly, trying to find out who was behind the uproar.
"I am Lucifer! The king of the underworld! And I am here to kill you!" He said it with a loud, echoing voice that shook the earth to its foundation.
Patricia let out a long, sarcastic laugh that brought tears to her face.
"You? Lucifer? You surely must be kidding me! You want to kill me?"
"You kill werewolves, you kill vampires and witches, and then you want me to keep quiet. Never," he said and vanished, leaving Patricia in the dark.
She couldn't understand why he disappeared into thin air mysteriously. She sat on the floor, panting heavily like someone who had just completed a marathon.
Lucifer disappeared to the eastern part of the forest, feeling so disappointed in himself. He couldn't understand why he felt that way after seeing Patricia. He felt a strange feeling after staring at her.
He had never felt that way in all his life, and it upset him.
"What the hell is wrong with you, Lucifer?" He chided himself as he stood beside a baobab tree.
"You are a failure; you couldn't do that simple task required of you," a voice said with a long, sarcastic laugh.
"Damn it! Do you know how difficult that is for me? Didn't you witness it? I tried killing her, but I just couldn't bring myself to do it," he responded, holding his head in his hand.
"If I'm not wrong, then you have a big problem at hand."
"And what problem is that?" He asked with pouted lips.
"You like the mortal?"
"Yes."
"Where are you? Show yourself! You are a coward!" Patricia said this to the creature that called himself Lucifer. She let out a long, devilish laugh as she searched around for him.
Lucifer couldn't bring himself to face her; otherwise, he wouldn't know what to do. He would cower, and that would be so disastrous for him. He decided to do something fast, and fast meant fast, as she was gradually approaching him.
"Show yourself, moron! You want to kill me, and you hide around like a jelly," Patricia said again, with her ax fixed into her hand.
Just as she was about to continue her hunting, she heard the thin cry of a human from behind. She turned her head towards where she heard the cry and saw a middle-aged man of about thirty-nine years old sitting on the dried leaves, crying his eyes out.
"What are you doing here?" Patricia asked with her brows raised.
"I came to get some fruits to eat, and all of a sudden, three huge wolves came out from nowhere and began to pursue me," the man said, making a loud sniffing sound.
"Really? So where are the wolves now?" Patrica asked with keen attention.
"I was able to get away from them before they got me. I am only resting here!" He said this, staring innocently at her.
"Wow! You are so lucky that you weren't killed. So why are you still here? Shouldn't you be heading home already?" She asked with a creased brow, without letting her guard down.
He took a deep sigh and then began, "I don't have a family!" He announced with a gloomy look that Patricia couldn't help but feel pity for him.
"What do you mean?"
"My family was killed by witches a few weeks ago. I returned from a business trip in San Francisco for the sad news."
"Oh! My sincere apologies You know it's very difficult to lose a loved one. You feel so empty and dead!"
"Yeah! And thank you for keeping me company," the man said as he stood to his feet.
"My pleasure... I'd like to ask you a question if you don't mind. She interjected just as he was about to leave.
"And what is it?" He asked with an exaggerated grin.
"Did you perchance come across someone so devilish and evil?"He claimed to be Lucifer, the king of the underworld."
"Lucifer! Isn't that a myth or a lie they tell children? I didn't see anyone talk less of a mystical creature," he said, hurried off as fast as his feet could carry him.
Patricia stared at him as he went, laughing at how stupid he was behaving.
The man got to a point and stood transfixed to a spot, thinking of what to do just so he wouldn't leave Patricia's side. "Damn it!" He said this as he stared at a small, invincible mirror. He was awed at how he had magically transformed into a caricature of himself within a short time.
He thought for a while and then nodded when a thought crossed his path.
Patricia clutched her dagger and was about to continue her hunting when she heard a loud thug from behind. She turned towards where she heard the sound and was surprised to see the same man lying in the pile of leaves and shrubs that adorned the forest floor.
She traced her steps to where he was. "Are you alright?" She asked with a mischievous smile.
"I'm alright," he said, and he was about to leave when he fell into a hole.
"Are you sure you would be able to make it away from here safely?" She asked as she stretched a hand at him.
He held on to it as she pulled him up from the pit.
"Thank you!" He muttered, panting heavily like someone who had just completed a marathon.
They headed to Patricia's house, where she lit a fire around him to keep him warm.
"Would you like something to eat?" She asked.
"Of course," he responded, rubbing his palms together to reduce the cold he felt.
She sauntered into the kitchen, grabbed a bowl of steamed fish, and then passed it to him. Without wasting time, he dipped his hand into the bowl and threw a pile of fish into his mouth.
Patricia felt irritated at him for the way he was eating and felt like hitting a spoon on his head, but managed to keep herself.
When she got tired, she stood up and went to sit under the open sky.
The sky was void of stars and the moon, making it look gloomy like a woman in labor. The shrill cries of insects could be heard as they perched around.
"Thanks for the meal!" Lucifer said to her as he took his position beside her.
"You are welcome!" She said that and went mute, staring into space.
"How did you come to be in the forest at this time of the night?" Lucifer asked, breaking the silence that enveloped the place.
"I was hunting."
"Wow! Do you hunt? I didn't know. So what animals have you hunted?" He asked, pretending not to know she was a witch hunter.
"I hunt werewolves, witches, and vampires," she replied without sparing him a glance.
"Hunn! What do you mean by that?" He asked, and just then, a huge bird the size of a calf came hovering over their heads, giving a loud, piercing cry.
Lucifer recognized the bird the moment he saw it. It belonged to the witch head, and he was sure she sent it to spy if he had killed Patricia.
The bird came down and began flapping its feathers at them.
The duo fought it with all their might, but it proved difficult for them to kill. Though Lucifer could easily use his power on it, that would make Patricia discover the truth, and that was the last thing he wanted.
He cowered around, hiding behind Patricia, who fought the beast with her ax. "Kill it! Come on, kill it!" He shrieked in a loud voice that upset her.
"What the heck is wrong with you? You hide there and keep shouting for me to kill it! Take this dagger and fight it with me," she said, handing him a dagger laying on the floor.
He stared at her, laughed a while, and then began to fight the creature. He fought so bravely and fiercely that, within a few seconds, the animal was dead.
Patricia was surprised as she tried to assimilate what just happened. She stared lucidly at him, unable to utter a word.
"What's the problem, and why are you staring at me?" He asked as he pulled off his shirt, revealing his tanned, muscled chest.
"I thought you were a coward. I didn't know you could fight." She asked, still fixing her gaze on his chest.
"Oh, I actually don't know how to fight. I had to do that because you pressured me to," he said, staring into her eyes with a kind of sexual sensation. She averted her gaze from her.
"So you mean you did that only because I pressured you? And you want me to believe that? Come on! I'm no fool," she said, giving a light chuckle.
"Well, if you say so! You still haven't told me much about yourself.
"And neither have you."
"But I told you already while we were in the forest.
"Fine... So what do you want to know about me?" She asked as she gathered some twigs with which she planned to roast the bird.
"Anything... Everything.."
She took a deep sigh.
"My grandfather was a strong and renowned witch hunter and was known all over the country for his power and strength. He was sought-after everywhere. He died a few years after I was born, and I grew up only to hear his tales."
"What about your father?" Lucifer asked, interrupting her for a while.
"He was a weakling, and he decided to choose the simple way instead of following my grandfather's footprints; he went on to become a politician."
"Wow! I must commend your father's action. He did a good thing by not becoming a witch hunter like you and your grandfather," Lucifer said with a malicious grin.
"And why do you think he did the right thing?" She asked with a quizzed brow.
"How do you feel? When you kill those innocent people, those werewolves, those witches, and vampires," he put her through the wringer.
"Point of correction: they aren't innocent. They are evil and dangerous and don't deserve to be spared. You know, I didn't just wake up one day and decide to be a witch hunter... I was forced into it," she said, paused awhile, and continued after taking a long, deep breath.
"I was traveling with my mother to a place when we were suddenly attacked by some werewolves. I was barely six years old and didn't know anything. I managed to hide behind a small tree, and from there I watched them kill my mother, tearing her with their claws. It was so painful," she said with tears in her eyes.
"I'm so sorry to hear that! But you know it's not all of them who act in that manner. There are still some good ones," he said, turning the meat around. It was starting to scent around, and he knew it was almost done.
"Well, you don't need to be sorry about it. It's not your fault."
"But you should really get to know them especially werewolves, they are a kind species, Just that people misunderstand them all the time."
"Wait a minute... Why do you keep defending them? Or are you one of them?" She asked, casting a demeaning look at him.
"Of course not, and why would you think so? Would I be pursued by them if I was part of them?"
"I don't know... The meat should be ready by now."She said that, dusted her behind, and then stepped into the house.
She came back with two bowls and a huge bowl containing water and dropped it beside Lucifer, who was dividing the bird.
"You still haven't told me more about yourself and your name," she said, watching him freeze.
"What's the problem?" She asked, worried that she must have offended him with her words.
"No, it's no problem... My name is Lucifer, and I...
"Lucifer? Wait, is it Lucifer as in the devil?" She asked with a startled face.
"Of course not! I was named Lucifer by my grandfather because he was a draconian worshiper of the devil and wanted me to be the devil's John Hancock in the family."
"Wow! Your grandfather sounds weird. I can't even imagine my grandfather doing that, and he's a Christian."
"Is he still alive? Your grandfather."
"No, he passed away a few years after I was born; I told you, right?" She said, and all went mute. They ate the meat of the bird in silence, using the water to push it down their throat.
"I need to sleep now," Patricia announced after almost fifteen minutes. She let out a loud yawn, stretching her body in the process.
"Yeah, you should go to bed now," Lucifer said, stood to his feet, and was making her way through the low gate that divided the house from the road.
"Have you any place to lay your head?" She asked with empathy.
"No, I don't."
"Would you mind staying here?"
"Won't it be a bother to you?" He asked even though he relished the offer so much and wanted to shout a 'Yes'
"No, it won't. I have a spare room that I don't use. You can sleep in that," she said, staggering towards the door.
"Oh, thank you," he said with excitement, following her at a close distance.
She showed him to his room and then left him to himself. She locked the doors leading to the house and hurried to her room.
There were low whispers in the small enclosure where the council of witches was holding their meeting.
The head witch sat in front of them, holding a staff of power.
"Shouldn't the king be here already? It's been more than eight hours since he's been gone," the oldest of them all said, swaying her toothless mouth from left to right.
"Yes, that's true! Maybe he hasn't seen The Witch Hunter yet! We should give him some time," the assistant head of witches said.
"I have a strange feeling about this. The bird I sent to spy on him still hasn't returned. That's strange, isn't it?" The witch asked with her hand placed under her chin like a form of support.
"Yes, it is; maybe we should just call it home," another suggested, and that looked good to the witch's head.
She took out a small piece of mirror, chanted some words, and then fell back in surprise.
"What's the problem, head?"
"The bird is dead, and it was killed by King Lucifer."
"What? Why would the king kill the bird when he knows it belongs to us?"
"I don't know, but I promise to find out what happened. If it's what I'm thinking, then I'm not going to spare him.