Gods and Demons

[Airan]

Though the screams had stopped, the fire continued to burn.

Atlas Stormstripe stared through a narrow gaze at the scene he had just witnessed, his teeth clenched tightly into a vicious snarl. From the many raids pirates had lead on the coasts, the badger was no stranger to seeing the burning bodies of the dead, but Twilbee's death was particularly disgusting. Whatever fur had not been burnt off the young hare's body was singed black and his jaw hung open in perpetual agony as the lingering flames licked at his charred corpse. To his left, the badgerlord heard Qwirry vomit, though whether it was from the sight or the overwhelming stench of burnt flesh, he didn't know.

Around him, some of his fellow prisoners struggled against their bonds while others were too stunned to do anything but watch. The savages danced around the young hare's corpse with devilish glee, their chorus of chittering voices rising and unifying into a steady chant.

"Fiyah Gott!"

"Fiyah Gott!"

Atlas' heart pounded in his chest as the chant continued, growing louder and louder. He bared his teeth as red began to fill the edges of his vision.

"ENOUGH!" Atlas roared.

Many of the savages leapt back in fright as the mad badger writhed back and forth against his bonds and snarled at his captors. A mongoose warrior dealt him a harsh blow with the butt of his spear, but any pain Atlas may have felt was almost completely nullified by the Bloodwrath. The warrior growled as he fixed his mistake, swapping his stance and holding the speartip threateningly against the badger's neck.

Atlas scowled but otherwise ceased his struggling, turning his attention to the rabble before addressing them coldly, "Your High Priest, Shuga was it? Does he speak for this Fire God?"

Shuga glowered at the badger from where he stood at the top of the stone altar in front of them. "Yes, Shuga speeks for Fiyah Gott."

Atlas narrowed his gaze at the beast. "I am Atlas, Lord of Salamandastron. I would like to know why you've imprisoned me and why you've murdered one of my soldiers."

"No merder! Justiz!" the crowd roared.

"Keefts fo Fiyah Gott!"

Shuga raised his paw to silence the rabble before turning back to the badger. "I be well awere of who you be, stripah demon," Shuga spat. "Di Fiyah Gott toll me all about you. He hes warned of te errival of di stripah demon for many seasons."

Atlas exchanged a quick look with Frederick. "Has he now? And what tales has your Fire God told of me?"

"Stripah demon be warrior o' di snekks!" one of the beasts shouted.

"Red-eyed bedger beastah bring mush deestrushon ta monkoozers!"

Atlas glared once more at the mongoose tribe's high priest. "Who is this Fire God?"

From both the prisoners and the other mongooses, all eyes turned to Shuga. The priest glared at the badger. "Te Fiyah Gott leeds monkooze tribe. I hev spoke ta heem meny times for guidance. He hes been vit us since di beginning, tefending our island."

The mongoose turned away from Atlas, looking up to the stone monolith in front of them. Like Salamandastron, the mountain loomed high into the heavens, but its face and the area around it was completely grey and contrasting to the lush green of the jungle.

"Te Dedd Rockah," he continued, "di portal ta Hellgetts eetself an ver life meets dith. Ven di viry fiyahs o' Hell spewah from wit'in an turn di sky black, eet was te Fiyah Gott who calmah di storm an kept our village safe. Te Fiyah Gott ees ennyting an everyting. Ven eet reins, eet ees only vecause he allows eet to. Ven eet vecomes coldah, eet ees vecause he ees angry."

"Well then, where is this Fire God? You said you have spoken with him. I would like to as well," Atlas said.

The mongoose priest snorted at the badger's remark. "You vill soonah'nuff. Likah mot he ees drawn ta flame,"Shuga said, giving a glance to Twilbee's burning corpse. The priest turned away from the badger and made his way back to the center of the procession, shooing the other mongooses away from the area. "Mi tribe!" the beast called to the crowd. "Di time o' te Fiyah Gott ees upon us! Tek heed, I shell now summonah heem vefore us."

Atlas watched carefully as the mongoose raised his clenched paw over the flames and began to strike up a chant. Several mongoose kits' eyes went wide as the fire occasionally sparked and glittered, but this only happened when the priest's paw came unclenched, the badgerlord noticed.

And then suddenly, as Shuga's chant reached a fever pitch, the flames burst upwards into a pillar of bright blue fire. The light from it was blinding and Atlas and the other prisoners were forced to turn their heads, but it was no question to the badger that this was the same blue fire of the Ghost Ship.  As quickly as the bright flash appeared, it faded and the orange flames returned.

Everybeast turned their heads with bated breaths back to the center area where a beast now stood, flames crackling softly behind him. Garbed in a cloak of brilliant crimson and gold, the Fire God stood before his audience in complete silence, his face almost entirely obscured by a mask made from the skull of a large serpent. Atlas strained to get a better look at the beast and find any sort of clue to his identity, but even his tail was hidden carefully underneath his cloak.

Atlas frowned as he watched the beast give a nod towards Shuga and step forward. A wall of flame erupted in front of him, but The Fire God showed no fear at the sight of it. He waved his paw and it dispersed before everybeast in a fizzle of smoke. As he strode down the stairs of the stone altar, his head turned to survey the captives that had been brought before him. Within the holes of his skull mask, calculating, dark eyes moved from one to the next slowly and silently, studying them. Miss Sarish stared forward as confidently as she could, but the badger could see the fear in her eyes as the Fire God turned his attention towards her. Mister Rosequill, as always, did his best to say something reassuring to the squirrel, but Atlas heard his voice waver as if the hedgehog didn't believe his own words. The Fire God moved his attention to Master Craws, who stared bravely forward like the little soldier he was.

From weasel to otter to fox, the Fire God's eyes continued moving between them. They paused briefly when they fell upon Captain Ancora and Atlas noticed a slight smile begin to creep on the beast's features before he moved on to Frederick and then finally, himself.

Atlas stared him down defiantly. "So you are the Fire God, then? From the tales these beasts have spun about you, I assumed that you would have been taller."

Shuga stomped forward and jabbed his scepter down at the badger angrily. "You vill speakah ta te Fiyah Gott vit respect, stripah demon!"

"Peace, Shuga," the beast said, raising a paw to stop the mongoose. His voice was nothing like the mongooses. Atlas knew the voice, but it was impossible. It was a trick, like everything else that had come before it.  The Fire God smiled cruelly as he looked back to the badgerlord. "Yes, you're correct, I am the Fire God. It's certainly been a long time, Atlas."

Atlas narrowed his gaze at the beast. "Who are you?"

The beast raised a claw. "In time."

Shuga moved forward, carrying a large basket filled to the brim with different offerings. "Keefts fo te Fiyah Gott," the mongoose said, kneeling down and presenting it before him. Atlas noticed the hesitation in the priest's eyes.

The Fire God sorted through the contents, pulling them out and inspecting the different items that had been brought before him: buttons, different medals, a red gem, and, finally a dagger. He held the blade up so that he could see it more clearly. "Where did you get this?" he asked.

"Te herr pickapik was kerrying eet," Shuga explained, giving a point to the beast in question. "He said he was a 'messijer' for you."

"Did 'e now?" The Fire God said, a smile once more creeping onto his features. He placed the dagger back into the basket before giving a look to Scully. The young hare looked back but otherwise had no reaction. The mysterious beast turned away before he looked to the crowd of mongooses around him, their faces a mix of both fear and admiration. "My faithful acolytes!" he called to them. "Thank you greatly, not only these truly wonderful gifts that you've presented before me, but also the prisoners that you've captured. As always, you continue t' impress me."

The crowd answered back with gusto. "Fiyah Gott! Fiyah Gott! Fiyah Gott!"

Atlas watched as the Fire God turned to Shuga and gave him a smile. The mongoose priest nodded and looked to the crowd. "Return ta your homes, monkoozers. Te Fiyah Gott shall soon takah dese beastahs ta Hellgetts vere dey vill be puneeshed een agonizing fleme. Sleep an be well now dat te stripah demon an hees followers vill bringah no harm ta our tribe!"

Atlas scowled as the crowd cheered and kneeled before their god, all fear gone from their eyes at the news they had been told. And as they dispersed, The Fire God watched them the whole way.

After a few minutes of silence, Shuga spoke. "Dey are gone."

"Aye," The Fire God replied. With that knowledge, any sort of grace the beast had was gone as he suddenly turned towards the mongoose and glared at him. "I thought we were clear when I asked that none of the prisoners be harmed," he spat, but still low enough to be a whisper. "The older hedgehog has a wound on his stomach. You might as well have burnt him too."

The mongoose scowled. "He attecked an keeled several of our scouts. One of dem was mi brutter. He deservah verse. He deservah ta suffer." Shuga paused, glancing towards Miss Sarish. "Te squerl ees mine toh. She savuh te life of a monkooze pickapik."

"You mongooses and your life debts... Very well then, you can take the squirrel," The Fire God replied with a sigh. He turned his gaze back to the prisoners. "I apologize for everythin' that you've had t' see here tonight. The mongooses can get rather... overzealous," he said, sauntering towards them. "Me personally, I've never particularly cared for these theatrics. There's somethin' disgustingly vain about wantin' beasts t' grovel at your footpaws and worship ya like a god. At least beasts don't depend on ya t' make sure the sun rises each mornin' as an emperor."

Atlas noticed a look of realization come to Captain Ancora, her face frozen in complete disbelief. The Fire God noticed it as well and walked calmly towards her, placing a claw to her lips and silencing her before she could even muster any words. He looked her in the eyes. "Or should I say..." He smiled in the pause. "...as a king."

His claw left her lips and he moved down the line of prisoners to where Atlas waited. The badger glared at him. "You didn't answer my question. Who are you?"

Atlas watched the beast's eyes roll within his mask. "Always so dense. How can a beast like you preach progress but be too blind t' see what's in front of you?" The Fire God shrugged. "But no, you deserve more credit than that. Maybe it isn't ignorance. Maybe it's simply disbelief. It has t' be impossible, right? Because, how can it be me? After all... I'm dead."

With that, the Fire God raised his paw to his face and let his mask fall into the dirt below.

Captain Blade stood before his audience with nothing more than a smirk on his face. "Hello, Atlas."

Atlas glared at him in complete hatred. In truth, there was nothing physically impressive about the pirate king. Regardless of what legends and rumors said, he was not a fox nor a rat, but just an average grey ferret. However, he had seen better days, the badger knew. His fur had lost its luster over the ten seasons since they had last met, his whiskers drooped, and his dark eyes revealed the look of a beast who had just left his prime. But despite his aging, Captain Blade was alive and well.

Captain Ancora's jaw hung open in disbelief as if what she were seeing was only a mirage, while the Waverunners stared at him in fear.

"How?" It was Frederick who was the first to speak. "Atlas, he killed you, wot."

Blade regarded the hare with a smile. "Did 'e now?" the ferret said with a light chuckle. "Or is that merely what he told you beasts?"

"I watched you fall from that window! I watched you die!" Atlas snarled.

"It's funny how a simple blow to a beast's skull can warp their mind in such twisted ways. A little madness here, memory loss there. And where beasts have no memories, they begin t' create them. Until they become truth," Blade replied. "You watched somebeast fall, but it certainly wasn't me. Alas, that poor, brave beast was barely older than a leveret. He was the only one that charged with you when you found me, so eager t' make a name for himself, and he was the one who saved your life. After I hit you with that mace, he stopped me from doin' it again and ran me off. And when he turned, how was he supposed t' know that his badgerlord had been taken by the Bloodwrath?

"What a disgusting thing it is, the Bloodwrath. Friends become foes, and words soon become screams. A beast becomes unable to be reasoned with and prone to hallucinations. And there's so much more to it than that, that I've learned over the seasons, but sometimes... there are truths that are best left unknown," the ferret continued. "So, as he turned, you looked up. What was in front of you was no longer a hare, and the sword he carried became a mace. Your paw lunged forward..."

"Be quiet."

"Your claws curled around his neck..."

"Be quiet!"

"And it snapped."

"BE QUIET!" Atlas screamed.

"And then, with a roar, you flung his corpse out of the window and into the sea below," Blade finished. "When the other Waverunners found you, covered in blood, they could only believe what you said. There was no body, I had already ran. The window was shattered. And, after all, how can you argue with a blood crazed badger when he says he killed Captain Blade?"

"You're a liar," Atlas growled.

"Yet, here I am," the ferret said with a cruel smile. He leaned forward towards the badger, close enough that Atlas could feel his hot breath against his fur. "And here you are as well, takin' the bait just as every other beast did, and just like I hoped you would. It's amazing what a couple of rumors can do. Find a small crew of beasts who are loyal to you and can keep a secret, give 'em a pawful of gold, and tell 'em to sail into every port along Mossflower's coast sayin' that they found Captain Blade's lost treasure. Beasts from all over come sailin' in, lookin' for wealth, only t' be greeted by the Ghost Ship."

"So, you were behind that then?"

"Te Ghost Ship protects dis island fromah all gret evils, demon," Shuga answered.

"Yes, that's what Shuga here tells his tribe. A spirit summoned by the Fire God to protect them," Blade said. "Of course, I've mostly been using it t' test my toys."

"And then the beasts that manage to get away start even more rumors," Frederick said in realization. "'It can sink a ship without touching it.'"

"Correct, Colonel Swiftpaw," Blade answered, giving the hare a round of applause. The ferret strode over to the basket of gifts the mongooses gave him, searching through it quickly and producing a shiny Waverunner pin. He pinned it to Frederick's uniform sarcastically."Yes, the survivors start more rumors, sayin' that it's the Phantom that's defendin' the island. And who comes searchin' then?"

"Pirates." Everybeast turned their heads towards Captain Ancora.

Blade nodded and gave her a smile. "Exactly."

Realization hit Atlas at that moment. This wasn't a sacrifice. It was a recruitment. And they were going to have to join or die. His eyes darted to the large mountain in front of them. It was like Salamandastron. It was a fortress, likely filled to the brim with pirates from all over the seas.

"Atlas, you always said that a smart beast was the most dangerous, and you're right about that, but for the wrong reasons. It isn't because beasts will follow a smart beast. No, you don't follow a beast because they're smart. That's not why anybeast followed you over these seasons. No, they followed you... because you were t' be feared." Blade reached into his cloak and pulled out a familiar mace from where it hung at his hip. He twirled it experimentally and tested the sharpness of one of its spikes with a claw. "You took away everythin' I had, destroyed everythin' I had ever built. For ten long seasons I've waited and now, I'm goin' t' do the same t' you. And not one beast in Salamandastron or Hearth is goin' t' see it comin'."

Atlas narrowed his gaze and lurched against his bonds but they held taut. "I killed you once. I can kill you again," he snarled.

The badger felt the point of a spike touch his left eye as Captain Blade lowered the weapon into position. Frederick and the other Waverunners merely watched in stunned silence.

"Poor Atlas, the world is a beast of a burden isn't it? But don't worry..."

Blade raised the mace.

"I can take it off your shoulders."