It was a wonderful day to put on a show. It was freezing outside, a horrid storm of snow and hail that forced people inside and caused them to search for ways to entertain themselves and distract their minds from the frost outside. With this being the case, it was little surprise that over a thousand people had packed inside of a church today. A massive cathedral of a church as big as a stadium. The circus was in town, and the church, needing the money, had allowed the performers to use it as a venue for their show.
The cream of the cream of this circus and the pick of the litter was a trio. A mother and her two twin sons, who were known for their ability to do magic at a level that was unheard for children. The two little prodigies Ulysses and Napoleon, named for generals of ages past, along with their mother Cassandra, who proudly boasted that she had trained them in magic herself.
“I need more time.”
Cassandra had found herself in a predicament. There was a demon in front of her—a foul creature with twisted horns and jagged teeth. In spite of the creature’s demonic nature, it paid no mind to the fact it was inside of a church. The creature didn’t seem to mind at all. In fact, it had chosen to meet Cassandra here, choosing a small storage room in the building where the two of them could speak alone.
“I have given you two years to repay your debts to me,” said the demon. “Two long years where I have maintained my patience, yet I have not seen a dime nor a soul from your little venture.”
As the demon spoke, it stood at its full height, eight feet and inches more. Its black eyes stared at Cassandra and refused to yield for any reason; even as the woman moved and shuddered, the beast stared.
“We have only just now become profitable,” said Cassandra, eyes darting back and forth, attempting to dodge the demon’s gaze. “You’ll get your money; just give us more time.”
The demon sucked its jagged teeth. “You had plenty. You gambled it all away. I know this. You know this.”
Cassandra frowned. “Be patient. I remember our deal, and I don’t appreciate your visits. The rules were simple. You give us magic, I get you a coin, and I get you a soul.”
“So you do understand what you have to do, and you understand what I will do if you don’t provide correct?” asked the demon.
“I understand that you told me you would never lay a hand on me or my children. You have come to reap, but there isn’t anything you can do.” Cassandra crossed her arms and sneered at the beast in front of her. “You have fallen victim to your own agreement. You have no power here, and it’s about time you accept that. You’re on my time, demon. I will repay you when I’m good and ready.”
The demon raised an eyebrow and then smiled. All of its jagged teeth were on display, shining bright with an unnatural whiteness that made them seem to glow as the church’s light hit them. “I do not need to lay a hand on anyone to get what I want. You know, Cassie-“
“Cassandra,” she corrected.
The demon laughed. “Cassie. When you do not pay your debts, you do not make them go away. You’re just borrowing happiness from tomorrow.”
“You will get what you want one day,” said Cassandra. “Just not today. Demon, I thank you for the magic, but trust me when I say I will take it from here.”
Suddenly, a few knocks rang through the storage room. Cassandra glanced over to the door and then looked back at the demon.
“I suppose that’s my cue to leave. It was good talking to you, Cassandra. Also, if you were wondering, I will be watching the show tonight. So make it a good one.”
Just like that, the demon vanished in a puff of black smoke. Cassandra shook her head and took a moment to preen over herself. She was wearing a green dress, one decorated with many jewels. Now it was tarnished, and flecks of black powder left over from the demon’s disappearance spread all over it. She grumbled to herself, dusted herself off the best she could, and made her way to the door.
She opened the door and saw the faces of her two smiling twin boys. She put on a smile for them and kneeled down to meet them at their height.
“Mommy, who were you talking to?” asked Napoleon.
In a dramatic manner, she gestured around the empty storage room and warmly ruffled her son’s blonde hair. “No one, dearie. Mommy was just a little stressed before the big show and was talking to herself about what a great performance we’re about to put on.”
“Ohhhh,” said Napoleon.
“Your voice sounded really deep!” said Ulysses.
Cassandra winked. “Consider that a magic trick. Did you two practice your routine for tonight?”
“Yeah! Ooo, can we show you?” asked Ulysses, grinning mirthfully.
“Of course!” said Cassandra.
Ulysses and Napoleon fist-bumped each other and then went into action. First, Napoleon became a tornado of fire, spinning around and causing flames to rise from the floor, and then Ulysses came after him to summon ice and snow that caused the flames to die out.
The two of them went into a whole routine—a display of magic and thespian showmanship that had become the core of what made the boys famous. At the end, Napoleon used fire to propel himself high into the air; in a moment, he stopped allowing himself to free fall, giving Ulysses the opportunity to create a giant hand made of snow to catch him with. With their routine now over, they bowed before their mother and fist-bumped once again.
“Pretty good, I must say,” said Cassandra, giving her sons a round of applause. “You two wash up, and I’ll get us some snacks. After tonight, we’re going to have a very special dinner.”
“Special?” asked Ulysses.
“We’re going to dine like kings, Ulysses. Kings,” answered Cassandra.
Hours passed and the show was set up, both a carnival with games and prizes along with the circus inside of the church itself.
Lights soar above the circular stage and are spun around to reveal a host of performers, including Cassandra and her sons.
Cassandra stood in front, head held high and glimmering light shining around her as she spoke. “Ladies and gentlemen, I bring you the greatest performers in the entire galaxy. Mages of the mystic arts, sword swallowers, and fire spitters. Those who walk on air and swim on sand and, of course–” She paused for dramatic effect. “–my sons Napoleon and Ulysses. Fire and ice.”
There was laughter in the crowd, one that could be heard over all of the applause and cheering. Yet no one turned to look at the source; no one moved. Cassandra stared into the crowd, and there were demons, plural, sitting there laughing. She narrowed her eyes at them, staring them down.
They just kept on laughing.
With a shake of her head, she continued the performance. “I hope everyone is ready for an evening of excitement and entertainment. I am Cassandra, and this is my show.”
What a show it was. Acrobats danced and did flips across the stage. Swords were swallowed and spat out with no difficulty. Fire was spat by those who called themselves living, breathing dragons.
As the show went on, the crowd of demons only got larger and larger. As a curse of her magic, she could see all of them and hear their wretched words as they eyed her. The insults thrown, threats leveled, and laughter booming.
She did her performance anyway, summoning flowers from the ground with nothing more than her magic and her wit. Building a dress out of everything she had conjured as she had done many times before.
When she finished, she bowed before the crowd to roaring applause. Cheers and people screaming her name. She was a star, and as she had stated before, this was her show.
These people came for me, thought Cassandra. They love me.
Finally, it was time for the last show of the night: fire and ice; Napoleon and Ulysses.
“Uhh. Napoleon, what’s that song we sing again?” said Ulysses, acting as if he forgot, even though Cassandra knew it was nothing more than a facade to get the crowd’s interest.
“I dunno, Ulysses. I think I sing, and you go doot doot doot,” said Napoleon, making a flute-playing motion with his fingers.
“Doot doot doot? Like with a flute?” asked Ulysses, crafting a flute from ice from one of his many spells and beginning to play it.
“Yeah, like that!” said Napoleon, clearing his throat and singing, “Ladies and gentlemen, you paid your price! You’ll be so impressed that you’ll come back twice! So for magic, whimsy, and all that, that’s nice! Today we will give you all fire and ice!”The two twin boys started to do their routine, casting spells and dancing around much to the enjoyment of the crowd. Cassandra looked on proudly, watching as her sons wowed everyone with their gifts.
“Is it time for the finale already?” asked a voice.
Cassandra could feel the hairs stand up from her neck. It was the voice of her demon, now standing.
“Don’t worry, Cassie. You’re right, I can’t touch any of you.”
She turned to look at her demon, watching as it came closer and closer to the stage, smiling as wide as it could. She felt nauseous and forced herself to ignore the demon, choosing to look back at her sons instead.
“For our last spell of the night! I am going to fly like really, really high!” promised Napoleon. “Like higher than anyone has ever gone before!”
Fire fell from Napoleon’s hands, and as promised, he went soaring into the sky, reaching heights that no human could normally ever reach.
For a moment, just a moment, she enjoyed the show, and then, like a thief of joy, the screaming started.
“Demon!” yelled someone from the crowd.
“There’s hundreds of them in here!” yelled another.
It became pandemonium in that church, people screaming and rushing out of there to escape. Even with all his training and practice, young Ulysses couldn’t help but be distracted. As his mother’s demon revealed itself to the crowd, it came onto the stage and stared at the child with its rotten black eyes.
“I’m not touching him, Cassandra.”
Thud. That hand of snow that was supposed to come for a falling Napoleon never came. Ulysses was too distracted, staring at his mother’s own demon.
“Bring me his soul,” said the demon.
Rushing to her fallen child, Cassandra scooped him up in her arms and shed tears all over his body. “I cannot.”
“Then bring me another. I will be back, and next time I come, do not give me a speech about how you will not pay your debts.”
In an instant, all of the demons were gone, disappearing from the church and leaving Cassandra alone with her two sons.
“Napoleon, do you hear me?” asked Cassandra.
Napoleon did not reply.
About the Author
Isaiah Williams is a 23 year old author from Atlanta, Georgia currently in the process of writing his first novel. You can learn more about him by following him on Instagram at Vammy777.
