Fic: A Game of Chess
Title: A Game of Chess
Characters: Sam, Devil, Others
Rating: PG-13. Nothing you wouldn't see on the show.
Disclaimer: Sam belongs to Reaper. This story, however, belongs to me. Illustration by super awesome onyourmark from TWoP.
Summary: Sam has a job to do in Hell. He only wished he knew what it was. Sequel to The Plan In Action.
Part I
Part II
Part III
Part IV
Part V
For the first time in his life, Sam desperately wanted his demon powers. Anything to help him. As annoying as it had been when things kept disappearing, the ability to make the demon standing before him vanish would be extremely useful right now. Hell, at this point he'd even take turning everything into bugs, because he could squash those.
But that would make life easy, and Sam knew that couldn't happen.
Sam forced himself not to show any fear and tried to act casual. "Hey, Astaroth."
"Hello, Sam. So, how can I help?" Astaroth smiled warmly, but Sam knew it was a lie. The Prince standing before him had always made Sam think of an oily used car salesman, and since learning the truth, Sam knew his impression of Astaroth had been correct.
Sam tried to think fast. "Yeah, uh, no offense, but I really need to talk to him." When in doubt, go with the truth. "You know, 'cuz I'm his property and everything. He's, uh, pretty protective of his stuff. I think he'd get mad if I went to someone else."
Astaroth gave what Sam assumed was meant to be a friendly laugh. "It's okay, Sam. Don't worry. The Boss has asked me to look after you while he's busy. You may not know this about me, but I usually take the humans under my wing and help them out when they need it. The Boss knows he can entrust you to me."
"Uh, yeah…okay." Sam couldn't help his look of skepticism. "But you know, now that I think about it, it, uh, really wasn't all that important anyways. Yeah, definitely not worth bugging him about." He shook his head emphatically. "Definitely not. Thanks for the offer of help though, but I guess it turns out I really didn't need you."
Someday Sam swore he was going to work on his penchant to ramble. He finished lamely, "So…you can, uh, go now if you want."
The entire time he'd been talking, Sam had secretly been trying to gesture behind his back for Kiwi to get help. The dog must have got the hint, because it finally took off running.
Straight to Astaroth.
If Sam survived this encounter, he was going to enjoy plotting ways to make the dog pay for that. He watched as the little Chihuahua wagged its tail eagerly at Astaroth. Then it looked back at Sam, and lifted an ear.
The demon smiled down at the dog. Then he turned back to Sam and chuckled. "You're a terrible liar, Sammy. The Boss did warn us that you were overly suspicious of everything. I suppose that's understandable, given everything you've been through. But I told you, don't worry, you can trust me. C'mon kiddo," Astaroth gave a wide grin, "tell me what's going on."
The funny thing about fear, Sam realized, is that annoyance can quickly take its place. Astaroth's use of 'Sammy' and 'kiddo' greatly irritated him, to a degree far more intense than when the Devil did it. Sam didn't want to think about the reason why it felt different when the Devil used the same endearments.
Sam played innocent. He gave an exaggerated sigh, as if Astaroth had finally won him over. "Oh, alright. I guess it won't hurt to tell you. It's just about Leviathan and what happened in the meeting. I think he's the one behind all the breaches, including the one tonight."
"Ah," Astaroth looked smug. "I thought that might be it. You needn't worry, Sam. A war is being mounted against Leviathan as we speak. It turns out he was the mastermind behind the breaches, and even had one in his own kingdom so that he could both distract from his plans and take suspicion off himself. He has apparently been preparing an attack on Beelzebub in order to gain control of the Ninth Kingdom. You should be very proud of yourself, Sammy. Your keen observations are what gave him away at the meeting today."
Although Sam already knew the answer, he stalled anyhow. The more Astaroth talked, the more time Sam had to come up with a plan. He asked, "Was it because most of the escaped souls were his?"
"Yes. You see, Sam, Leviathan recruits no more than we other High Lords do. So when you mentioned that most of the files belonged to him in some way, that's what tipped us off. Leviathan has always had an affinity for his own recruits. When he orchestrated the main breaches, he obviously allowed more of his own to escape than what would be expected. He even took advantage of the usual trickles of escapees from the other kingdoms, by sneaking out even more of his recruits."
Astaroth laughed, and this time Sam believed it was genuine. The demon seemed quite proud. "It was a very ingenious plan, if you ask me. When a soul escapes, no one really ever thinks to check about the recruiter. The Boss in particular only really cares which punisher was incompetent, so that he can extract their punishment accordingly."
And with that, Sam saw his opportunity. He looked at Kiwi, who was still wagging his tail at Astaroth. He needed the dog to realize the Prince was not to be trusted, and he now knew how to do it.
Hopefully, he wouldn't be killed in the process. Surviving would be a definite plus.
Sam boldly asked the demon in front of him, "Aren't you forgetting something?"
Astaroth stopped laughing and gave a puzzled look. "I don't understand, Sammy. Forgetting what?"
"That Leviathan's recruits escaped from every kingdom except yours. A minor detail you're leaving out, don't you think? And yet it kinda seems a wee bit important."
Instantly Astaroth turned cold. His warm persona completely disappeared. Even Kiwi stilled.
Sam dared to go on. "I mean - and you'll know it's kinda funny too - but in going through your files, I've noticed that not a single Leviathan recruit has escaped from your kingdom, even though scores of them have escaped from all the others. Don't you think that's a bit odd? I know I do, especially considering you've had a pretty hefty breach yourself."
Astaroth started to exude a power Sam would swear was immense hatred. The office started to chill, and the lights began to flicker.
Good. He'd gotten Astaroth's attention, and the demon was not pleased. Sam dared not look directly at Kiwi, but he covertly saw the dog start to slowly back up away from Astaroth and towards the door. Sam needed to keep the distraction up, in order to help Kiwi escape unnoticed.
Astaroth moved forward menacingly. Sam backed up nervously, nearly falling over a couple of stacks that were in his way.
"So you did figure it out, Samuel. I must say I am impressed. You are not as stupid as you appear. I knew when you were introduced in the First Hierarchy meeting that Lucifer had brought you here to uncover the betrayer. I suspected when you informed me that you were working on my stacks that it would not take you long to uncover the truth. Then Bob confessed you had been taking notes about all the recruiters and punishers since the beginning."
Astaroth gave an evil grin. "I must say, the manner of his death was quite pleasurable for me. After his admission, it became clear it was only a matter of time my deception would be revealed, once you organized the files into the separate punishers - that is, if you hadn't already discovered the pattern with your earlier notes."
Kiwi had nearly made it out, but then Astaroth quickly flicked his wrist. To Sam's horror, the little dog was flung away from the door and back into the room. Kiwi hit the back wall with such force it caused the wall to dent. The Chihuahua dropped down to the ground and remained still. Sam had no way of knowing if the dog was still alive.
"Kiwi!" Sam yelled and tried to go to the dog, but he too was flung to a side wall by an invisible force. Sam looked up to see Astaroth looking at him maliciously.
"Nice try. Too bad for your herder. I must say, though, it is no loss."
Desperately, Sam tried to distract the demon. He said frantically, "Someone will be here any second! I saw they were counting souls because of the breach! They haven't checked up on me yet!"
Astaroth tsked. "You're lying again, Samuel. You're a slave, you're on no list. And you've obviously already seen an overseer, or you wouldn't be unlocked. I had tried to use the breach as a cover to initiate the bracelets in order to immobilize you for easier capture, but apparently the demons in this warehouse are more competent than I thought."
"You know I always gather interest! If I don't leave soon, they'll come in to check. If I've disappeared, they'll know immediately what happened."
"Oh, no one will miss you Samuel, because there will be nothing to miss. Your body will be found, and Leviathan will be blamed, of course."
Astaroth laughed deeply, which made Sam even more afraid. "Meanwhile, I think I'll take you back to my kingdom to be my slave. Since you have no name or paperwork, no one will ever know it's you. Your soul will never be found, not even by our Lord himself. No one wants change, Samuel, so there will be few eager to look for you. Lucifer is making a big mistake bringing you here. So no, Samuel. No one will know what happened to you. You will be lost to the Outer Realms, and Leviathan will be held responsible."
Terror gripped Sam. "Your plan will never work." Sam made a last desperate attempt to avoid what was coming. "You should know the Devil watches over me. He knows everything I do."
"I think not. After all, I do not see him here protecting you now. You see, Samuel, the Boss is busy. I made sure of that. He's currently sending his army to aid Beelzebub with the attack on Leviathan. All the other High Lords are joining them, and my spies believe Leviathan is with his advisors, trying to salvage what he can. So you see, Samuel. No one is watching over you now."
"I am."
At the sound of the new voice, Astaroth spun around. "Leviathan," he spat.
Sam's hope sunk like a stone. Great. Out of the frying pan and into the fire.
Leviathan's size dwarfed Astaroth, yet Astaroth was obviously not afraid. Leviathan told him coldly, "As soon as I learned of the latest breach, I knew Samuel would be targeted by the true traitor. And look who he is."
Astaroth gave a malicious grin. "You really should be home defending your kingdom right now, my friend."
Leviathan threw a glance at Sam before answering. "Do you honestly believe the loss of a few insignificant minions matter more to me than the loss of Lucifer's alliance?"
"You've lost his alliance, Leviathan. I've seen to that. As we speak, he is gathering up his army to join with Beelzebub, Asmodeus, and the others in their attack upon you."
To Sam's surprise, Leviathan actually laughed. "Unlike you, Astaroth, I realize one must occasionally endure the loss of a battle. A minor defeat matters not, providing I ultimately win the war. You will not harm Samuel. I may not agree with Lucifer over his plans for this child, but that does not mean I will not follow them. My loyalty lies to our Lord, more than to my own ambition."
"Your loyalty?" Astaroth seethed. "I've destroyed your appearance of loyalty. You should have chosen your ambition and protected your kingdom. My manipulations are nearly complete. Soon Leviathan, you will be defeated in battle, and your kingdom will be ripe for the taking. I intend to be the taker."
"Wait a minute," Sam said incredulously, "You let evil souls escape and put innocent people on Earth - as well as the reapers - at risk just because of some stupid power struggle that you're not even waging yourself, but have tricked others into doing it for you?"
Leviathan turned and gave an amazed look at Sam for his inappropriately timed rebuke at Astaroth, but Sam immediately saw how the mistake would cost him.
"Leviathan! Look out!"
From Astaroth morphed two large dragon-like wings. What was worse was suddenly a large serpent coiled out from around his body, growing in size to nearly fill the room. The huge serpent lifted up into the air, then came down in a crushing blow, throwing Leviathan back into the warehouse where Sam could no longer see him.
Then the serpent turned to Sam. Sam tried to crawl behind the nearest large stack, trying to reach whatever protection he could get. He looked up to see the serpent above him, poised to strike.
But the serpent didn't strike. It gave a howl of pain instead, and turned to go back to its master. Sam peeked around the stack to see one of the strangest sights he'd ever seen - and for Sam, that was saying something.
Kiwi wasn't dead. It was taking the serpent on. The dog had grabbed hold of the middle of the snake and was not letting go. The serpent writhed in pain, but because Kiwi was not near either of its more moveable ends, it could not shake the tiny dog off.
Then things got weirder, as a monstrously colossal tail slammed through the front wall. The tail swept Astaroth and his serpent out of the room. Sam was knocked to the side, and raised his hands over his head to cover himself from all the falling debris.
Hurricane force winds accompanied the destruction of the room, and a disgusting wail filled Sam's ears. He looked out to see the havoc occurring in the warehouse and was horrified.
Leviathan had also morphed into his true form, and his true form was a creature in the shape of something similar to a dragon. His size was immense, and took up nearly half the warehouse. The serpent attacked Leviathan as Astaroth let out a horrific screech and clawed at the monster as well. The huge creature screamed and swung its head down in an attempt to take out Astaroth.
Then Sam finally saw it.
Behind the monsters a portal had been created, and it was obviously the source of the winds. It was clearly a gateway to the Outer Realms. What little Sam could see through the portal was sickening. To Sam’s horror, disembodied hands appeared around the opening, pulling and tearing at the sides to make it wider. Sam could hear a terrible wail, which seemed to be coming from the opening.
Everything was being sucked into it. Sam watched as paper, demons, and desks with souls chained to them were dragged into the opening. The souls were screaming from their excruciating pain.
Sam felt Kiwi grabbing him. The dog was protected from the force by the remains of the wall shielding the office from the warehouse. Sam got the hint and managed to pull himself into the opposite corner. Both watched as files were sucked out of the room, flying directly into the now immense opening.
But Kiwi couldn't hold on, especially as the flying files battered both the dog and Sam. The force pulling the files finally sucked up Kiwi, and the dog started to fly out of the room.
Sam lunged for the dog and caught it right before it flew into the warehouse. But in doing so, he put himself directly in the middle of the storm. He held onto the remainder of the door frame, trying to keep his hold on Kiwi as well. But the force of the winds were too strong, and Kiwi dropped. The Chihuahua flew out towards the portal.
Suddenly, out of nowhere a white light began to appear. It started to glow, gaining in its brilliance. Sam had no idea where it was coming from. The monsters, however, didn't like it. They backed away, moving towards the open portal.
The light grew until it was blinding, and Sam had to close his eyes. The last thing he heard before losing consciousness were the screams of the damned, and then everything faded to black.
