Koratar, The Black Prince Pt. 1

Once upon a time, in a galaxy far, far away, beyond the very reaches of time and space, there was a demon named Koratar, the Black Prince. He wasn’t very large, nor small. He was not fat, nor slim… by demon standards. He was seen as nothing more than average. He could take on any shape that he desired. His favorite was that of a human. In his human form he could be everything he thought he wanted to be… tall, slim, fierce green eyes, and of course he was a ginger.

Being human allowed him to escape the monotony that was being a demon. At first he had to become human in secret. The leaders did not like the idea of walking amongst those they were trying to recruit. It just wasn’t the way things were done. Sitting along the stone wall, overlooking the river the demon thought back to when the Council first caught him in human form. They had been furious, until they learned of all the souls he had been able to turn.

The unexpected ruling of the Council, was that he would serve his time in human form, turning souls away from the light, and into the gloomy, dank, impenetrable darkness that was the realm in which the demons lived. At first Koratar was elated, as he preferred working among the humans.

As the years had gone by however, it started to bore him. The humans no longer needed any prompting from him to make the jump to the darkness. They left the light willingly, in ways that made him cringe. Koratar received the credit for it, even when he told them he couldn’t take credit for it. The Council just said, “You almost have too much modesty to be a demon.”

Sitting on the stone wall, Koratar began to question his existence as a demon. Unlike the other demons, he couldn’t remember being anything but a demon.  All the other demons had stories that would start, “When I was an angel…” or “As a human I would…”. Koratar, himself did not have a story to tell, nor could the Council regale him with a tale of how he came to the realm of demons.

His mysterious existence as a demon had never bothered him; at least not until he had met her. It was hypothesized that being in human form too long could cause you to start losing what made you a demon. The Council had come to the conclusion that a demon, if having spent too much time as a human, could find their way back to the light. Koratar had always been thought of as the exception. He had believed himself, that he was the exception; then came the assignment that led him to her.

The young woman, that made him question his mysterious existence as a demon. The young woman that made him begin to second guess everything he did… made him want to do … good deeds. “What lie will I tell the Council this time?” he wondered as he stared into the river. The river, so full of dirt from erosion that it looked like mud. He had started that process. He had made that river what it was, but this young woman… this assignment, made him want to change it. To make it clear again. Koratar laughed for he could do nothing else. “What kind of demon wanted to make a river or stream, flow with clear purified water?” he wondered.

Closing his eyes, he brought forth the memory of the day he received this specific assignment. The Council usually let him do his own thing, but a month ago he was summoned. The Council had determined , after many failed attempts, the only demon who could complete the assignment would be the Black Prince. He was, in his human form, to gain the soul of the one who had eluded them for so many years.

With the name Korali, meaning Black Shadow, it should have been easy. She should have been turned before having reached her thirteenth birthday. However twenty-seven demons had worked on her in just as many years, to no avail. The light she had still shone through. The Council had been desperate when they summoned the Black Prince, as they were of the thought, that if she were turned they could gain the rest of the planet easily. It was only because of her light, that they could not more easily gain the souls of those she came in contact with. Even those who had done her wrong were, in a sense, untouchable. Korali was the key to success, and Koratar was the only demon for the job.

He accepted the assignment eagerly, having grown weary of the humans doing his job for him. He was ready for a challenge. Koratar accepted the dossier the Council offered him. For two weeks he studied that dossier, and then studied her from a distance. At the end of those two weeks he thought he knew what he had to do.

Koratar changed his form. While still tall, slim, and handsomely ginger, he altered his appearance so that he looked to be her age. He bumped into Korali at her favorite coffee shop. Books and papers scattered on the floor. The reaction; unexpected. Instead of yelling at him, Korali apologized for not paying attention, then started to pick up her books and papers. Before Koratar understood what he was doing, he found himself kneeling, helping her pick up her stuff.

Reaching for the same paper, her fingers brushed his. An energy passed through him. Something he couldn’t explain. That’s how it started. Once her things were picked up, Koratar had asked her on a date, which she clumsily accepted. Dinner. A movie. A late night stroll through the park. “Just gaining her trust,” he had said to himself, trying to assure himself that things were going in the right direction. Her light would be put out in a few days. Then the night had come to an end; she kissed him on the cheek. Another wave of energy, that Koratar couldn’t explain, coursed through him.

Now two weeks later, he still hadn’t turned her, and… he thought he was falling in love with her. “Demons can’t fall in love,” he thought. It goes against everything that a demon is, you see because demons have no feelings, no emotions. It is what allows them to do what they do. But Koratar was having feelings. He was having feelings for this young woman, and he wanted to please her. “What’s happening to me?” he wondered, as he picked up a rock, standing to throw it into the river.

“Kori.” The voice broke through his thoughts. “Kori.” He heard it again. The cute little nickname shouted by the sweet yet sultry voice that he had come to love. “What are you doing here?” she asked.

Koratar shrugged. “A lot on my mind,” he replied, “and it’s peaceful here.” Korali brought her hand to her mouth. She always did that right before she would apologize. Recognizing this, Koratar put his hand up to stop her. “No need to apologize,” he said. “I was just getting ready to leave and come find you,” he finished unsure of how truthful the last statement was. He had indeed been getting ready to leave. He had also given thought to calling Korali to see how her day had gone. Again not something a demon would normally consider.

“I have some news,” Korali stated taking his hand in hers. That now all too familiar energy flowed through his body. He allowed her to intertwine her fingers in his. It made him feel connected, and it made him happy to see the smile she wore whenever she did it.

“Well,” he stated. “Are you going to tell me, or do I have to guess?”

Korali smiled, squeezing his hand. “I got that promotion,” she squealed. “I will actually get to interview and write the articles now, instead of just editing them.”

“That’s great,” Koratar replied as he picked her up and spun her around. She giggled as he did this. Once he set her feet on the ground he kissed her. It was his new guilty pleasure, since she had given him permission to kiss her, on their third date. He loved how her lips seemed to fit perfectly with his; enjoyed the sweet taste her lips left on his. The ecstasy he got from the increased adrenaline flow made him wish that their lips never had to part. “We need to celebrate,” he stated once their lips parted.

“I splurged on a really nice bottle of wine,” she stated. “I was hoping we could do a private candlelight dinner at my place tonight.”

“That sounds perfect,” Koratar replied with a smile. “I will call my business partners and postpone our conference call. Then I will meet you back at your place.”

Korali threw her arms around his neck, smiling. “Don’t keep me waiting too long,” she said before getting up on her tiptoes and kissing him. Then without waiting for a response she turned and walked away. Koratar watched her until he couldn’t see her anymore. He just loved the way she moved her hips.

Koratar pulled out his phone. It looked and worked like a normal smart phone, but his allowed him to call the Council in the realm of demons. Looking at the screen, he saw several text messages from Korali, saying she had some good news to tell him, and one missed call from the Council. Koratar took a deep breath before hitting the call back button.

“Why haven’t you turned her yet?” the head of Council’s voice sounded angrily over the phone causing Koratar to flinch involuntarily.

“It’s taking longer than expected. She much stronger than she appears. The quick, easy techniques will not work,” he stated smoothly and without much thought. It almost surprised him how easily the partial truth came out. After some mumbled conversation, the head of Council spoke again, “Carry on then, and keep us informed.”

Koratar said his goodbyes, before he started his walk to Korali’s apartment. He walked with confidence. Confident, that his answer had satisfied the council. Confident that they would leave him be for at least a week. Confident, that the evening with Korali would be wonderful, and hopeful that it would lead to more than just a single kiss.

If only he had sensed the demon shadow following him. If only he had known that the Council suspected that he was losing his demonic qualities, that they suspected him of being a traitor. But he did not sense the demon shadow. He did not know what the Council thought of him. He was confident that nothing could go wrong. He was after all the Black Prince.

 

 

If you liked this and wish to hear what happens next Koratar the Black Prince Pt2 is now available… https://tahlmus.com/2020/04/11/koratar-the-black-prince-pt-2/