Natalie Yacobson: At the demon’s ball. Gothic

This cry promised that the prophecy would come true, and the cruel demon himself would finally die at the hands of a beautiful dream.

The beauty fell to the ground at the stone cross. Her blond hair scattered over the cold earth, illuminating her with some kind of magical radiance, the eyelids of her beautiful eyes closed, one snow-white hand covered with blood stretched out at the crucifix, like the only ray of pure beauty in the darkness of night and evil.

“It’s your fault, Emily,” the demon said quietly.

“I will find your daughter, the call of the blood will lead me to her, and then I will know if your prophecy is true,” he whispered. It was his oath, an oath of eternal vengeance from evil to beauty itself.

“I’ll find you, Maerlin,” echoed mysteriously in the darkness of the night cemetery. The body of the beauty barely stirred in death throes, the wind of the cold sea brought ominous words to her, and this was much more terrible than any death. The demon’s eyes were bloodshot when he saw this subtle movement, but then from the side of the sea there was the sound of steps and a loud cry came:

“Emily.”

The sound of footsteps came closer and closer. Behind the bend in the rocks, footsteps were already clearly audible, and the stately figure of a young man became visible. The cruciform hilt of his sword embodied the very struggle for life and immortal faith. The wary gaze of the demon turned into the gaze of a wild beast, and in a moment the dark figure soared upward like a black bird, a hawk of death, which flew towards the gloomy castle.

In the old cemetery, a handsome young man knelt in front of a dying girl. Pain at that moment overwhelmed his heart.

“Emily,” he whispered, squeezing an ice-cold, snow-white hand in his hand. At that moment, the beauty’s eyelids, closed in death throes, slowly opened.

“It’s you,” she whispered, barely audible, moving her dead lips with difficulty.

“It’s me, Emily,” he said anxiously, “you shouldn’t have come here, the dead still remain dead, and there is no need to ruin your own life because of it.

“No,” she cut him off, “that was my destiny, and there was no escape from it, no escape. The only thing I beg from you, save my daughter. Now all the forces of darkness are up in arms against her. She’s at my house, just off the coast. Take her out of there, take her away from these rocks. They contain the terrible power of all the blood that is spilled on the earth, a bloody demon dwells in them, death itself lurks in them. Take my daughter away from here, save her, please. Call her Maerlin, her destiny is to be the finest dream in the world.”

The gaze penetrated the very depths of his blue eyes.

“Please,” she whispered.

“Yes,” he replied, “I’ll call her Maerlin.

– Never a bloody demon, not another of the devils of hell can harm her.”

She nodded. He did not want to leave, and she knew this, she knew that there was love in his heart, to which she could not answer. Now she was dying and prayed to the God long forgotten by her, and yet who was her last hope, to help her. She fervently believed that her prayer would help her save the beautiful Maerlin, who could kill all evil on earth.

“Please, take Maerlin away from here as soon as possible,” she said, “I pray to God that he will help you and that he will forgive my soul. If my daughter survives, if she destroys evil, give her this symbol that her heart should always remain with faith in God forgiving me.”

With a trembling, cold hand, she held out a small golden cross to him.

– May she never part with him.

Her cold hand for a moment squeezed the hand outstretched to her. The eyes of the beauty closed in endless sleep, but her soul remained with God, who forgave, and this hope burning in his heart helped him overcome the unbearable pain, because he knew that his own heart had sunk with her into the darkness of endless death forever.

The winds of the sea returned to her face the freshness of life and the purity of true faith, which managed to save her soul from the power of darkness and make her here, among the rocks of sorcery, the only symbol of light. He gently ran his hand over his cheek, where a tear had frozen before, and gently touched his cold lips with his lips. She was beautiful, and he would have been looking at her forever if he had not suddenly heard some strange sound. A black bird flew over the sea with a melancholy cry, but it was not an ordinary bird, in the rustle of its wings was the ominous whisper of death itself. She was black as night itself, and her wings concealed a destructive power that no human could possess. The flames of hell itself seemed to be lurking in her evil eyes. Roderick realized that he heard the sound of the wings of death itself, and he realized that bloody death, indeed, has lightning wings. His heart also knew that he shouldn’t die now, no matter how much he wanted to. He had to stay alive at all costs, find and save Emily’s daughter.

The bird of death has already rushed at him. Its sharp claws flashed like ominous lightning in the darkness, its eyes glowed with blood, and a shrill cry erupted from its steel beak. Rows of claws like sharp swords flashed once more in the darkness and dug into his left shoulder as deep as they could. Roderick almost screamed in pain himself.

He had to win, although it was impossible, but for Emily’s sake, he was ready to do anything. Pain ripped through his body, and red blood gushed from the pierced flesh.

“Emily,” he whispered with gritted teeth, “help me, Emily, my love, God help me.”

With force, he tore from himself the winged demon who was drinking his blood and drew a glittering sword from its sheath.

Reflections of the silvery light of its point fell on the black plumage of the gloomy bird, and it, soaring high into the sky, began headlong downward to inflict a wound in Roderick’s back.

Another moment, and he would have been dead, but he, despite the bird’s evil designs, managed to dodge, and he himself struck her so strong that he pierced his wounded body with pain. Now Roderick felt his victory. The rustle of wings subsided, the fiery lightning of bloody eyes no longer tormented him with their deadly gaze, something shot up in the darkness, and a wild deafening cry echoed over the cemetery, but in the next moment everything disappeared. Calm reigned here again, but it was an oppressive silence that foreshadowed danger. Somewhere behind him there was a noise, and Roderick turned sharply, holding the sword tightly in his hands and always ready to fight. But there was nothing to be seen anywhere. Then, as if out of the darkness itself, a tall and sombre figure in black clothing emerged.

“And you are still true to your dream, young prince,” the black monster whispered with malicious mockery, and his bloody eyes flashed with fierce fire. Only now Roderick saw that the grim demon’s left shoulder was covered with hot blood. Before him stood his worst enemy, who killed Emily. Roderick hated him as he never did.

“You are brave, since you could come here, right behind her, for your sad love,” the bloody demon said in the same mocking voice, “but now you are in my possession. The same fate awaits you as your beautiful Emily. Because of her, two hearts are already dead: her unfortunate lover and yours. I will not allow her daughter to ruin many more lives with her beautiful face of the dream itself. She is my death, but remember, Roderick, I am stronger than God who blessed her.

“No,” Roderick whispered, “no, I know who you are, you are darkness, you are evil, but you are not stronger than good, my love is stronger than darkness, and the forces of light are even more powerful, like my God. After all, contrary to your black desires, the world has faith in it, there are dreams, there is love, and I believe that a dream given by God can prevail over you.”