Antuki: A Little Boy's Story

Chapter 11: The Shatterer of Souls

Akio stared at the waters passing beneath him at hundreds of kilometres per hour. It had been a good two hours since he and Yoko left the eastern coast of Japan behind on their latest exercise, and there was no land to be seen anywhere.

Earlier that day, Kamikaze had appeared before the two of them and instructed them to fly out over the blue expanse of the Pacific. He told them to continue flying until they found their next assignment.

"Remember," he said, "The One is always with you and will never fail you. Trust in Him even when things seem hopeless, and He will deliver you in good time."

Though puzzled by these words from the angel, Akio and Yoko obeyed his instructions and set out flying over the ocean at once. It was a beautiful warm afternoon, with plenty of clouds in the sky and brilliant sunlight. This far away from human civilization, the glory of God's creation was apparent like never before.

Suddenly, dark storm clouds began to form over the sea, blocking out the sun's light. Peals of thunder crashed around the two friends' ears, causing terror that brought the happy flight to a halt.

Below them, a massive whirlpool appeared in the water, and a low and ominous sound rose up from the ocean depths. As Akio and Yoko watched in horror, a large and terrible giant emerged from the water and fixed its monstrous eyes upon them.

"Son of man," it said in an inhuman voice, "wherefore hast thou come?"

Though trembling with fright, little Akio forced himself to speak. "Who are you, sir?" he asked the being, with as much courage as he could conjure up.

The terrifying monster threw his head back and laughed contemptuously. "Knowest thou me not, little one? I am Prince Shober, that great shatterer of souls."

Akio looked his adversary up and down, trying to deduce as much as he could about the demon. The creature was of an enormous size and stature, gray-skinned and wielded a massive iron rod. He was also clothed in impressive ancient armour, marking him as a member of the warring demon class Akio had seen in the Second Heaven.

Beside him, two other warring demons had risen out of the water and flanked Shober on either side. They, too, had expressions of scorn for the little boy and his fairy. At the sight of them, Yoko darted for cover inside Akio's palm, and the young lad hid her inside his shirt.

"What do you want, sir?" asked Akio again, clenching his teeth to keep them from chattering.

At this, the wicked demon grew suddenly enraged, and swung his mighty rod to crush the little boy. Akio barely had time to fashion his blue star radiance into a force field to protect himself and Yoko. Dodging the attack, the rod missed the two of them by inches.

"Insolent worm!" roared the spirit, with man-hating venom in his voice. "Thou trespassest on my territory, and durst question me?"

Akio's mind was spinning, trying to keep up with what was being said. The demon was speaking to him in archaic Japanese, making it difficult to understand. "What on earth is he saying?" he asked Yoko frantically.

Yoko, being a spirit, had a better grasp of the language. "I think he means he's the demon prince who rules over this part of the ocean, Aki-chan! I've heard of this before – Satan's chief demons, called 'princes', have set up their own little kingdoms in parts of the world where people rarely go."

This was a revelation for Akio. Of course! he thought to himself. Now it all made sense; he and Yoko must have stumbled across a marine equivalent of that demonic fortress they'd found in the sky.

"We should call Kamikaze," he whispered to his fairy. "His divine typhoons will save us from this evil prince!"

"Despair the thought, young fool!" sneered the demon, overhearing each word of their conversation. "Thy guardian angel hath betrayed you – by sending you out over the sea, he hath bidden you leave his domain and enter into mine. And I will make you see the folly of your ways!"