Everybody Loves Large Chests

Establishing a contract with a demon is generally believed to be a complicated ritual that involves a number of seemingly random ingredients and materials. There are indeed such practices that may be performed, such as the Ritual of Zul’Goroth. That particular ceremony involves butterflies, blood, a fox, a severed head, some cheese and skipping rope with some entrails. The product of this ritual would be the creation of a perfectly ordinary sweetroll that was actually kind of stale. Not the best use of a severed head if a certain Mimic had anything to say about that.

The Demonology Skill flooded the animate chest’s mind with the knowledge of several dubiously useful rituals like that. But none of those were actually related to establishing a contract with a demonic entity and calling them forth to this world. No, that bit was actually rather straightforward. It just needed to concentrate a bit and reach out into the Beyond, a process that simply required that the Warlock ‘think aloud’ a series of numbers.

1-800-7355-9687-7685

*Beep ... Beep ... Beep … Bee-*

*Click*

“Hello,” spoke a voice directly into its mind. It sounded rough and gritty, like someone had been eating gravel for breakfast every day for two decades.

“You have reached Demons ‘R’ Us,” it continued,” my name is Carl and I’ll be your liaison for today.”

“Hey Carl,” responded the Mimic. It seemed it had managed to connect to the same agent it got the first time.

“Ohhh! If it isn’t that amusing little box?! How’ve you been, buddy?”

“Pretty good. Ate some people. Gained some Levels.”

“Hey, that’s super. So, what can I do for you today?”

“I got a new Skill that said I can get another contract.”

“Alright, just a second. *Taptaptaptap taptaptaptaptap tap taptaptap* Okay, can you forward your Status to me? You DO remember how to do that, right?”

Carl had spent nearly 3 hours teaching the Mimic how to send its Status over a telepathic link the first time around. It messed up several times and even somehow forwarded it to Carl’s boss by mistake before it could get it just right. Carl caught more than a little flak over that particular event.

“Yes, sending it now,” it replied.

“Okay. I’ve received it. Oh, you got a Rank Up, grats! Ah, Demonology is it? Hold, please.”

There were some more half-tapping half-clacking noises before Carl continued.

“Good news, my square friend. Your request for additional demonic support has been approved! Now then, what species are you looking to form a covenant with?”

“Fiend.”

*Taptaptaptaptap tap*

“Male or female?”

“There’s a difference?”

“Males are generally more intelligent while females are more ferocious.”

“Then female.”

*Taptap taptaptaptaptaptap tap*

“A tall one or a short one?”

“Tall.”

*Tap tap tap*

“Do you prefer big or small chests?”

“Big,” answered the Mimic immediately. How was this even a question? Bigger treasure chests had more shiny things inside them and were therefore better without a doubt.

“I know, right? Ah, sorry for asking again, company policy.”

“No problem.”

The question did strike it as a little out of place at first, but it didn’t worry too much about it. Carl himself said it didn’t affect the demon’s performance in any way and was mostly a formality of establishing the contract. He asked it some more questions followed by some more weird mechanical noises. A few minutes later, they got to the last one.

“Any additional requests?”

Last time the Mimic had said it wanted something that was good at hiding and got a succubus specialized in infiltration and covering her tracks through dream manipulation. That wasn’t quite what it had in mind, but it still worked out so it had no complaints. This time was even simpler - it just needed a vanguard that could take hits in its place. And pretty much any Fiend fit that bill. Still, having one that has more than a single use would be good.

“It doesn’t matter as long as it’s handy.”

“Understood. *Tap taptaptaptap taptaptap taptap* Alright, now all we need to do is wait for- Oh, nevermind! Your application got an instant reply! Just gimme a sec here… *Taptaptaptap* There, done! Your new familiar is all set up and ready to be summoned. Will that be all for today?”

“Yes.”

“Then would you like to fill out a survey to-”

“No.”

“Understood. Thank you again for contacting Demons ’R’ Us. We hope to hear from you again.”

*Click*

Well, that was over and done with. It then immediately proceeded with the summoning, which caught the attention of Xera. She stopped staring absentmindedly at the dungeon core and went over to see her new co-contractor. Part of her was really looking forward to having someone else be the Snack for once.

10 seconds and 300 MP later, a new demon appeared in the dungeon. A giant form about 250 centimeters in height - almost a full meter taller than Xera - loomed over them. Counting the slightly curved horns that were pointing straight up, it was actually closer to 270 centimeters tall.

The summoned female Fiend had bright green hair that went past her shoulders. It was unruly, thick and voluminous, giving her a rather wild appearance. A pair of long, elf-like ears sprouted out from beneath it. Her skin was a bright, eye-catching red that was impossible to conceal. Her eyes were bright green, similar to the hair. They gave off a keen glare that looked for the weakness in others. Her face as a whole didn’t look half-bad. Humans would honestly consider her to be cute or pretty if she stopped scowling and baring her pointed teeth at her surroundings.

Below her chin was a choker with a metal plate in front that seemed to protect her neck. Immediately below that were her breasts. Unlike Xera, they appeared to be more modestly proportioned when compared to the rest of her. Their actual size, however, easily triumphed over the succubus due to the difference in height. They were bound together tightly by a white sports-bra-like chest piece that left her clearly defined abs and well-muscled lower-back exposed.

An extremely tight pair of very short shorts fit snugly around her lower end. Highly muscular and disproportionately massive thighs that were nearly as thick as her relatively narrow waist. They strained against the white hotpants, threatening to rip them apart at any moment. Her legs beneath the knees were encased in metal plate greaves. The outside of her left thigh was covered by interlinking metal plates that went all the way up to her waist, leaving the inner thigh and the entire left upper leg exposed to the air.

Her arms, like the rest of her, had a significant amount of muscle that was clearly visible along her bare shoulders and upper arms. Her biceps didn’t bulge out that much, but looked to be quite dense all the same.

Heavy-looking metal gauntlets were strapped to her forearms, however these didn’t seem like armor. Her palms, fingers and the underside of her forearms were left unarmored, for one thing. Actually, given the way the gauntlets naturally covered the knuckles and the back of her hands in metal plates, they were probably intended to be weapons that enhanced punching attacks. They also looked like they’d add a significant amount of weight to each strike.

Also, there were four them. An extra pair of shoulders grew out from behind the primary ones to give her a total of four powerful arms.

Well, she was definitely ‘handy,’ though perhaps not quite in the way the Mimic meant. It made a mental note to be as unambiguous as possible the next time it spoke to anyone from Demons ‘R’ Us.

As for the newly summoned fiend, she seemed to do a few flexes and twists to get used to her physical body while looking around the room. Her line of sight stopped on Xera, who standing off to her left.

“Huh? You’re my new master?”

She gave the very obviously inhuman woman a dumb look with a tilt of her head.

“No. Demons can’t summon other demons you dimwit,” replied the succubus. She then pointed at the other demon’s feet. “Your master is down there.”

The confused tower of muscle looked down to see a simple wooden treasure chest. The Mimic was currently still busy appraising his new minion. She seemed to be slightly more armored on her left side than on her right, which was a bit odd. The various metal plates strapped to her body appeared to be made out of the something resembling steel, but the strange red sheen they gave off meant it was anything but. Her horns seemed to also be made of that stuff. Her top and bottom garments, on the other hand, were made of a flexible white fabric that hugged around her womanly bits snugly without obscuring movement.

Still failing to comprehend, the newly summoned fiend squatted down to get a closer look at it. It looked exactly like an unassuming wooden treasure chest no matter how much she looked at it.

“This thing?” she asked Xera while pointing curiously at it with her two right hands. “How’s a box supposed to be my master? Or anyone’s for that matter?”

“Lean in closer,” came the first command.

“Ugeh! It really is the box!”

That order definitely came from the thing in front of her. It would seem that the succubus in the room wasn’t just fucking with her for shits and giggles like she thought.

“I said lean in closer!” it demanded. The fiend was still dumbstruck, but did as ordered. It was part of the contract she just agreed to, so she put her face even closer to the treasure chest without much thought. She was now close enough to it that she could lick it if she stretched out her tongue.

And then the Mimic jumped at her and bit her across the face. Its powerful teeth sank into her skull, but failed to crush it.

“Uraah!” she screamed, more in surprise than pain. The sudden shock of having a vicious chest clamp onto her face made her stumble backwards from her squatting position and fall on her tight rump.

“What the fuck?! Are you trying to eat my face or something?!”

She tried to pull it off her head, but couldn’t put any strength into her arms since that would count as attacking her master directly.

“Yes,” was the immediate reply.

“Why?!”

“The other demon is really tasty. I want to know if you’re any better.”

“Oh. Okay.”

She immediately stopped her struggling and let the Mimic do as it pleased. It nibbled on her face for a while the fiend just sat cross-legged without uttering a sound. Xera was, understandably, completely baffled at the turn of events. Not the Mimic trying to eat things, that was expected. But a demon willingly accepting that sort of treatment was strange, to say the least.

Eventually the Mimic had enough and detached from the red woman, landing deftly on its spider  legs. It had went for her face because her other limbs were all armored up and didn’t seem like they would break under its jaws. The skull was also unexpectedly thick and tough, as expected of a species that thrived on close quarters combat.

“So,” said the fiend while black blood streamed down her forehead. “How was I?”

The Mimic replied by sticking out its tongue and making a “Bleh!” sound.

“Not tasty at all! Snack is much tastier!”

“Oh come on! I can be tasty too!”

“Impossible.”

Xera always tasted the same no matter how many times it ate her, so it was unlikely this new demon would just change suddenly.

“Grrr!”

A fact that seemed to somehow tick her off.

“What, you want to be eaten alive?!” retorted the succubus, wide-eyed.

“No! I mean, not particularly! I just hate losing! Especially to a- wait, Snack?!”

“Ah, that would be my… job description,” said the junk food in question, albeit a bit hesitantly.

“Pfu! Puhahahahaha!” The fiend broke out into a mocking laughter. “You’re a snack! Hahahaha! To think one of you stuck-up whores would end up as nothing but some box’s afternoon meal! Ohohahahaha!”

She kept rolling around on the ground, clutching her stomach and unable to hide her enjoyment of her compatriot’s suffering. Well, all demons did that, but this situation was extra tasty for her. After all, fiends and succubi never got along with one another. This was hardly a surprise considering the two species of demon were pretty much polar opposites of one another.

“Yeah, yeah. Laugh it up while you can.”

Xera casually dismissed the other demon’s mockery with a wave of her hand. This much humiliation was nothing compared to what that Mimic had put her through. Also, she was secretly looking forward to watching this newcomer go through the same level of abuse.

As for the chest in question, it had already lost interest in their shenanigans and was moving towards the whole reason it came to this dungeon in the first place - the dungeon core. With its previous owner dealt with, the core’s automatic defense system no longer activated and anyone could approach it. And when the Mimic got within a meter of the floating red orb, it suddenly got an offer.

The two demons in the room seemed to notice it was doing something and stopped their bickering so they can see what happens. Xera had no idea why her master wanted to come here, but she had a pretty good guess. The newcomer had no idea as to much of anything right now, so her curiosity was on an entirely different level.

And then the Mimic took out a sword and slashed at the dungeon core. The steel blade was knocked backwards the instant it made contact with the crystal, as if someone had forcefully deflected it with a shield.

“Huck!” it cursed out loud. It tried once again, this time by putting as much strength and weight into it as it could. The over-used and under-maintained weapon was repelled with even greater force when it struck the red crystal, causing the blade to break off at the hilt and fly off into the air. It then promptly sheathed inself inside Xera’s torso, right between the breasts.

“Yeeeow!” she screamed. It stung like a bitch, but it was still much more tolerable than snack time. “What the heck are you doing?!” she chided her master. “You can’t break a dungeon core with a shitty weapon like that!”

“Oh,” replied the Mimic. Then how about a different weapon? Ah, but the mithril daggers might break as well against that indestructible ball. That wouldn’t be tasty at all.

“You there,” it called out to the red fiend. “Name?”

“Fufufufu… You did well to ask me that, mortal!” She took a haughty pose with her arms crossed and started monologuing while looking smug for some reason. “Know that this one’s name will one day be known throughout the lands as-”

“Your name is now Arms,” it interrupted. It remembered it could just check her Status rather than asking directly. Her name was incredibly long and difficult to say, so it just went with a nickname. It then gave her an order to “Go break the shiny thing.”

She seemed to have a good bit of STR and her species looked to have considerably more muscle mass than Mimics, so it was a good time as any to see just how powerful she really was.

“Oh! I can smash it?!”

Completely forgetting her self-introduction was cut short, the demon whose long-ass name should really be shortened to ‘Kora’ was getting oddly psyched up.

“Yes. Smash it.”

“Alright!”

Fiends thrived on violence and combat, and loved smashing things in general. Therefore, Kora felt overjoyed when her first real order was to smash a thing. She walked over to the comparatively tiny dungeon core and lowered her stance to the extreme. The Mimic quietly walked away from her since it had a sneaking suspicion of what would happen next.

Kora turned to her side and started winding up. The muscles on her right arms and shoulders bulged out even more. She then hurled them forward while spinning on her heel, putting all of her body weight behind the blow. Her metal gauntlets made a duo of heavy-sounding hits on the core, but were bounced backwards all the same. The sudden change in direction would undoubtedly have snapped her arms in half if those metal plates didn’t absorb much of that counter-impact.

“Gah!” shouted the fiend in frustration. It seemed her power wasn’t enough to bypass whatever defense that thing had.

Not that she cared.

Alright, she did care.

She cared immensely, actually.

“You stupid ball!” she shouted. “Don’t think you can make a fool of me! Ora!”

She then took another swing at it with one of her right arms.

“Orrra!” and then a follow up strike with one of the lefts.

“Ora! Ora! Ora!” She kept calling out with each failed swing while picking up the pace. If a single big hit wouldn't do, then how about 500 smaller hits?

“ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA!”

Her hands became a blur as she unleashed a torrent of punches on that infuriating crystal orb. All of them failed to do a single point of damage. She grew more and more frustrated until she did a final attack with a spinning roundhouse kick while screaming “HHOOORRRRRAAAA!”

Her armored foot made an almost echoing thud when she struck the core.

This attack didn’t get repelled.

It didn’t break the core either. What happened was that the glowing crystal ball was dislodged from its magically affixed position. It then sent it flying into the stone wall on the edge of the room as if it were a kickball. The core hit the stone brick wall hard, then fell down to the ground with a clear gong-like sound. The room seemed to actually shake a little from the strength of that impact.

“Take that!” screamed Kora after it. “Piece of shit ball! Showed you who’s boss, didn’t I?!”

“It’s still perfectly whole though,” pointed out Xera. “You obviously can’t break a dungeon core with just brute strength. Only moronic muscle-heads and retarded boxes would keep trying despite knowing that.”

“... Showed that ball who’s boss!” insisted her red-skinned co-contractor while completely ignoring the succubus’s snide attitude.

The Mimic on the other hand walked closer to the still glowing core. It seemed that the Snack was right and cracking this thing open was beyond its means. It really wanted to get its revenge on this place, so leaving without breaking the core seemed like it would leave a bad taste in its mouth. Then again, it did kill the dungeon master. That was rather satisfying on its own, so it decided to consider its mission fulfilled.

On second thought, not breaking the core might be a good thing.

“Arms. Pick it up and bring it outside.”

“‘Kay!” she replied in high spirits.

Fiends hated being used for menial labor, but Kora was pretty happy right now.  How could she not be? It’s been a really long time since she’d last been to the physical realm and then she was told to smash a thing almost immediately. Being able to move around so much with an actual body felt amazing.

“Master, why are you telling her to bring that thing along?” asked Xera, dumbfounded.

“I want the shiny thing.”