"Zaina!" The demon roared. "I'm back!" He stretched the word out lazily, and I sighed. Why did he always have to make his returns so dramatic?

He was at least forty feet tall, but I knew he could make himself smaller if he wished; he was just trying to intimidate me. He basically looked like a giant man, but with sharper, scarier features. I also knew he could change his form into any type of animal, anytime he liked, though his favorite was a red and black snake, next to— you guessed it— a red and black hawk. He had an awfully cliche 'evil demon' color palette.

His skin was the opposite of mine; completely black like the dead sand around us. His eyes were wicked and scarlet with an eerie glow to them, with a snake-like dilated pupil. His smile was sinister, the lips curled around the edges in a grin, and his pearly teeth white were sharp, gleaming in the glow of his eyes. Two large, dark reddish-black horns grew out of either sides of his shaven head, making me imagine an illustration of the classical red devil with horns and a pitchfork, though I personally thought this version of him was way more terrifying.

And oh, he had muscles— bulging biceps, and a shirtless chest that allowed me to see his six-pack he so effortlessly gained, most likely through magic. If he had been human, he would have been incredibly hot. He could crush me like a bug if he wanted. But he didn't, or I wouldn't be standing here still.

Now, his bottom half was a different story, not human-like at all. His legs backwards and rippled with flowing, dark fur, the legs of a black wolf, ending with giant dark paws the size of a car, and tipped with dangerously sharp claws. With those legs, he could run faster than a cheetah, with seemingly endless stamina. I'd only seen him run once, when the earth was first being devoured, and a bicycler had tried to escape his grasp. I wasn't sure if he'd ever caught the bicycler, but basing my guesses on his triumphant smile and bloody fangs when he returned, I had assumed so.

"Zaina!" The demon roared again, smirking down at me. "How is my little Dark Beauty?"

I cringed, but he luckily didn't see. "You don't have to yell, I'm right here— I-I'm just great!" I stammer out the last part quickly, instantly regretting the spoonful of sass I had put in. I wince, expecting some kind of punishment, but he hasn't even seemed to notice. So I continue.

"And how are you doing on this fine, gloomy morning, master?" I have no idea what time of day or even night it actually is, and so I usually guess.

"Utterly amazing!" He thunders. "Now, what are you doing down there still? Why don't you come up here and talk to me?"

I roll my eyes. He knows I can't change size or shape or do anything magical like him, and he was rubbing it in, like always. "I can't, master." "Ah, yes," he grins. "I forgot."

I clench my hands into fists, knowing very well that he hadn't. That demon has a scarily good memory. He never forgot anything.

Before I can blink, he shrinks to my size, only about a head taller than me, but still in the same form and wearing that same annoying smile like it is annoy-your-prisoner-to-death-day 24/7. Okay, I know, not my best description, but give me a break— the world ended who knows how long ago.

He puts his claw-like hands on my shoulders, and I barely manage to keep back a wince. "Now, this is better. Zaina, where is my Heximator?"

I give him a small, sheepish smile as I reach down into my jean pocket to pull out a small, kaleidoscope-like object with countless tiny spikes.

He pries it out of my grasp and wags a lazy finger at me. "You know it wasn't your turn to have it," he scolds.

I shrug. "Sorry," I mumble, not really meaning it. It had been worth it.

The Heximator was a brilliant magical machine, used to look upon past memories. What you did, was you touched one of the spikes, pictured a certain memory, and it captured that memory, forever trapping it in the device. The spikes were labeled neatly in rows— the horizontal rows were letters, and the vertical rows were numbers, so each spike was titled 'A1, A2, A3' and so on...

Each spike was a memory. The Hexinancer never lost memories, unlike us humans.

And so, whenever I felt like it, I could look into it and watch my memories being replayed over and over again, so even when I forgot, the Hexinancer wouldn't.

I love this device, because it is the only thing I have left. It allows me to see the memories of my parents, whenever I loose the courage, if even for a moment, to keep going. It also helps a tad bit with my sanity.

The Demon, on the other hand (or talon), mainly uses it so he can look back into his earliest days and remember fighting techniques or whatever evil he conjured up and repeat for fun.

He examines the Hexinancer quickly, then with a snap of his fingers, makes it disappear into thin air, most likely teleporting it to wherever he keeps his things.

I flinch. Even after all I'd been through, you'd think I'd be used to his magic tricks. But noooooo.

"So, my little dark flower, what have you been up to while I was gone?"

"Oh, you know, the usual; running, drawing in the sand, watching the sky, slowly going insane," I say sarcastically with a shiver.

Something about his sinister smile makes my skin crawl.

"Anyways," I put in, hurriedly trying to change the subject. "Have... you brought me anything?"

He takes his talon-like hands off my shoulders, letting me relax slightly, and reaches down into a large, blood-stained black leather pouch that is tied around his waist, gently tugging out a raw piece of meat.

"More mystery meat?" I sigh with an eyebrow-raise. "Why can't you tell me what it is for once?" Okay, yeah, you may notice that I'm being more careless about what I say to him. But I'll admit, having him almost the same size as me as opposed to having him stand taller than a freaking house gave me a little confidence.

"Well, where's the fun in that?" He replies teasingly, holding it out to me.

I shudder in disgust, knowing he's doing it on purpose. He loves playing with me. In one fluid movement, he cups it in his talons, causing it to burst into flame. Almost immediately the fire goes out as quickly as it had started, leaving me with a still-smoking, slightly charred mystery meat.

He drops it in my hands and I barely catch it, wincing and gasping as it burns my skin ever so slightly.

I wait till it cools, then hesitantly raise it to my lips, messily taking a large bite out of it. At first, the smoky taste of char fills my mouth and I scrunch up my face in disgust, but underneath it my teeth connect to a juicy, flavorful, but unidentifiable taste. I press my tongue to the roof of my mouth, my tastebuds trying to capture every last bit of juice I can find.

I use just my hands, glancing up at the demon uncomfortably as he watches me eat.

When I finish, he rests his hands on my shoulders again. This Demon seems completely unaware of personal space.

He grins, making me shiver. "I have an idea. A huge, grand idea."

I wait, my heart dropping in panic. The Demon, with an idea? This can't be good...

"Together, we will take over the universe!"

...what did I just say?

I frown nervously, my eyes wide. "What? But... how?" He booms a laugh, that makes the ground quake ever so slightly, as if the Earth itself is afraid of whatever evil plan he had cooked up. He looks me in the eye, and I cautiously stare back, refusing to back down, no matter how much my self-preserving instincts want me to.

"Zaina, you have more power than you realize. And when you help me in my master plan, everything will go perfectly. Together, side by side, we will rule. We will have all of the power in the world."

I slowly try to back up, my heart racing, but he is gripping my shoulders so tightly I can't move. I frantically glance around for an escape, but there is nothing, as always. Just black sand. And I am finally going crazy. "But there's nothing here to rule...!"

The Demon shakes his head. "Don't be stupid, haven't you learned anything? Your measly planet you call Earth isn't the only planet out there... and I'm talking about ruling THE planet— the planet of all planets, in the universe of all universes. We will rule all of the worlds. I can see you don't believe me, but we will. Just trust me, and let me lead us to greatness."

And I mentally panic. Yup, I think all of this nonsense is finally catching up with me. I think I am finally going crazy.

As if sensing my unbelievability, he frowns. "Calm down! Pack your— erm... things."

I scowl at the ground, my thoughts racing through my mind as he tries to lift my chin so that I am forced to look up at him.

This can't be happening... this can't be happening! I close my eyes tight. Picture your family, think of home, think of your friends, remember your life. Think of beaches. And white sand. And water and waves and surfing and climbing trees.

I open my eyes again and the lovely visions disappear, only to meet with the Demon's vividly red, slitting glowing eyes, which seem to be staring straight into my soul. I shiver, fighting the chills that are gathering along my spine.

"We leave tonight."