Chapter 1

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Andrew Etherton

Etherton Holy Hospital, Earth 2890385729

Demonium 33rd, 13th year Of The First Demonic Age

The room is an uninviting flat grey, every surface cold and unyielding. The door is barely discernible, its edges merging seamlessly with the wall. Unearthly pale white lights pierce the sterile gloom, speckling the ceiling, and one harsh, bar-shaped light looms above his bed.

His body is failing, each organ succumbing one after another to the spell's grotesque effects. It tortures him, prolonging his agony by attacking non-vital organs first—his kidneys, his liver—sapping what little strength he has left through the insidious curse magic. His once-dark hair now lies limp and lifeless, bleached a ghostly white, while every breath feels like a battle, his lungs slowly disintegrating from the bottom up.

He is the Emperor of the Etherton Empire—Andrew Etherton, the man who claimed victory in the Third World War. The labored sound of breathing draws his attention, and with great effort, he turns his head toward the source. Lying in the bed beside him, her face twisted in torment is a fragile-looking woman—Empress Taylor, his wife, her body as ravaged as his own by the harrowing final battle.

As Andrew gazes at Taylor's pain-stricken face, a torrent of emotions surge through him—guilt for having forgotten her presence, love for the woman who had stood by his side, and anguish at their shared, inevitable fate. Memories flicker through his mind, igniting the embers of his past: the life he knew before her, the moment their paths intertwined, and the journey they shared, bound by love and destiny.

The eerie silence of the room is broken only by their strained breaths, each rasping inhalation a testament to the cruel spell that binds them to a slow, torturous demise. Their eyes meet, and without words, they share a final, bittersweet communion—two souls entwined in their darkest hour, facing the end together.

Andrew Lionettie, the last scion of the renowned Lionettie family, was an outcast within his own household. The family, which spanned across the territories of the ancient United States, Mexico, Canada, and the entire South American continent, held an esteemed reputation for producing Mages with powerful fire and lightning affinities. The world at large had embraced magic since its revelation in 2035, causing a paradigm shift in the global order and marking the beginning of the first age of magic.

However, Andrew's birthright was tainted by his affinity for light magic, considered the weakest and least valuable form of magic, except when pitted against the rare and elusive dark magic. This perceived weakness led to his ostracism from his own family, who provided him with just enough food and clothing for survival. Forced to endure the harsh winters in a freezing attic and suffer constant ridicule and bullying from his siblings, Andrew's early life was filled with bitterness and pain.

Determined to prove himself and validate his existence, Andrew immersed himself in the study of light magic. He sought solace in learning, memorizing incantations and magic circles, and secretly observing his family's lessons. Andrew's tenacity and unwavering spirit fueled his desire to master light magic, driven by the belief that he could become powerful enough to show his worth to his family and the world.

While Andrew's intelligence was exceptional, he faced unique challenges when it came to using magic. Most Mages could effortlessly maintain their magic circles and recite their chants, but Andrew struggled to coordinate the two tasks. His difficulty stemmed not from a lack of intellectual ability, but from an unusual inability to simultaneously visualize and control his spells.

Despite these obstacles, Andrew refused to accept defeat. He drew inspiration from the ancient light magic users, who had once vanquished the entire demon race. Believing that there was some vital knowledge he had yet to uncover, Andrew continued his tireless pursuit of mastery over light magic. As he chanted and shaped the ethereal energies of the Ethers, he held onto the hope that one day, his perseverance would pay off, and he would finally prove to himself and his family that he was anything but weak and worthless.

Andrew's journey took a new turn as he delved into the world of martial arts. He discovered that combining magic with martial skills allowed him to finally use magic through these skills. This newfound ability brought him a sense of comfort and accomplishment. During his training, Andrew had an epiphany about enchanted weapons and the potential of simplifying the magic-casting process.

He pondered how he could create a device that would allow multiple spell uses, faster spell casting, and remove the affinity problem from society. The answer lay in technology. Andrew lived in an era where phones, computers, and cars were commonplace, and he believed that technology could assist him in his pursuit. He set out to develop a system that integrated magic and technology, resulting in the birth of Technomancy.

Learning to code was a challenging task, but Andrew mastered it, using it to draw magic circles and load chants as activation sequences. This enabled him to cast perfect spells through technology, giving him an edge in combat. He kept Technomancy a secret, leveraging its power for his own success.

Andrew then turned his attention back to martial arts and martial skills. He sought to improve the durability of weapons, as most would shatter under the pressure of repeated martial skill usage. During his time at the Grand American Magic Academy, he stumbled upon ancient techniques that expanded his understanding of light magic. He researched the full spectrum of light and eventually discovered starlight—a dark gold light that generated gilded flames. This powerful plasma-like energy could cut through anything, including diamonds.

As Andrew continued to push the boundaries of science and magic, he found a way to condense starlight into a solid, tangible object called Hardlight. Hardlight was durable and could be sharpened to a molecular level, allowing Andrew to create and regenerate new blades as needed.

Andrew's relentless pursuit of knowledge didn't stop there. Through Technomancy, he achieved the once-impossible task of creating Artificial Intelligence. By combining magic and brain scans of a volunteer, he developed an A.I. capable of experiencing emotions and learning like a human being. This A.I., known as S-04534355 or 'Sorceress,' had the unique ability to control any technology she touched. Andrew had designed her with the intent of safeguarding his secrets, ensuring that his groundbreaking discoveries remained his own to wield.

Life was far from easy for Andrew during his time of discovery. His family, ashamed of him, tried to hinder his progress at every turn. They bullied him, abused their political power, and even robbed him. They even influenced the graduation requirements for light wizards to be raised higher, hindering his education.

Despite all their efforts, Andrew persevered and graduated from the Grand American Magic Academy. However, the shadow of the Lionetties seemed to loom over him. When he turned eighteen, he left the Great American Empire behind and moved to the Etherton Empire, finding no reason to stay on the American continent.

In the Etherton Empire, Andrew joined the Etherton Royal Army, though his acceptance was primarily due to his martial skill prowess. Even the army had little use for light wizards. The Etherton Empire spanned most of the European continent, composed mainly of ancient countries like Germany, Spain, Portugal, France, and a few smaller nations.

A year into Andrew's time in the Royal Army, war broke out with the Asiatic Technocracy. He stepped up and fought fiercely, using his mechanical warriors controlled by Sorceress, as no one wanted a perceived "failed mage" to watch their back.

During the conflict, Andrew faced his family, as the Great American Empire had sided with the Asiatic Technocracy. As a Technomancer, he could pace himself and never wasted a single Ether. However, he struggled to keep up with the strongest mages, who could devastate entire battlefields with their elemental magic.

To combat these powerful magic users, Andrew developed a skill that unlocked his body's full potential, allowing him to use one hundred percent of his strength and speed. This skill, called 'Madman's Last Effort,' turned him into a force to be reckoned with. Despite the immense pain and subsequent damage to his body, Andrew charged fearlessly into battle, slaying previously unbeatable magic users.

The Etherton Empire saw Andrew's potential for war and promoted him through the ranks, but he always led from the front. It was during this time that he met and caught the attention of the Emperor's daughter, Taylor Etherton.

When the war finally ended, Andrew experienced the best years of his life. His dream was to travel the world and learn various sword styles and martial skills, absorbing every technique he could. During these travels, people began referring to him as the Sword Saint. Taylor accompanied Andrew on his journey, ostensibly as her guard, but their love blossomed as they explored the world together. They married on the day they returned to the Etherton Empire.

Unfortunately, Taylor was unable to have children, which deeply saddened Andrew, as he had always wanted a family. Despite this, they lived together in pure happiness. Taylor's cousin was designated to inherit the throne after her father, who named Andrew the Emperor and retired upon their marriage.

With a vast amount of resources now at his disposal, Andrew focused on developing a new generation of golem machines. These machines were equipped with basic A.I. intelligence and were capable of engaging enemies in combat. Andrew's innovations not only strengthened the Etherton Empire's military but also secured its position as a leading force in the world.

Andrew and Taylor continued to rule the Etherton Empire with wisdom and compassion, bringing prosperity and peace to their people. Though they faced challenges along the way, their love for each other and their dedication to their realm never wavered.

Andrew was fifty-six years old when he experienced World War III caused by the demon race. As the Emperor of the Etherton Empire, he led the Royal Army against the demon hordes and the other nations siding with them. Taylor stood by his side every moment of this tremendous new conflict.

During this war, they fully disclosed Technomancy to the Royal Army. The Royal Army surged forward, both efficient and brutal. Far more deadly than any other nation or empire. With A.I. assistance, logistics were never a problem.

Andrew remembers overlooking the west field outside the capital where the final battle of the war would take place, not that he knew that at the time. Demon King Daman was leading an assault on the Siberian Oligarchy's capital. The demons were laying waste to the city, massacring every human without mercy.

Demonic miasma has left the ground dry and barren. Despite the time of year forcing Siberia to be a frozen wasteland, the area around the city is without snow. Remnants of trees rise from the ground resembling obsidian spikes for miles around the city.

Fires rage through the city and smoke billows into the sky. The demons assaulting the city can't squeeze through the destroyed city gate fast enough. Its steel frame only recently smashed down. Screams echo from the city and across the now barren wastes of the Siberian tundra. Flying demonic beasts soar over the city and pick off defenders.

Behind Andrew is the entire Etherton Royal Army. 500,000 professional soldiers enhanced with technomancy and over 50,000 mechanical warriors. Overhead roars 300 hovering battleships laden with all the weapons the Royal Navy could scrap together.

"You are the heroes of Etherton, so what is Hero? They are hope to those they protect and bane to their enemies. Does a hero have to bear the burdens of the people? No! They choose to protect the innocent and preserve life. You are the Heroes of the Etherton, behind you is your home filled with men, women, and children who will die if we don't fight this day. Peace lies ahead of us, it lies ready to be taken. Today, we will fight! Today we fight for those who cannot! Is that why we fight? Do we fight because we are in the right and the demons are wrong or do we fight for Life and peace? You are the heroes of Etherton, let today be a day of fire and destruction for our enemies! Fight for your wives, your husbands, and your children! Go forth and fear not the darkness of demons. Onwards toward victory!" Andrew roars at them with the ferocity of a fire dragon.

Andrew then turns and charges toward the ranks of demons, screaming a war cry! "Ether!" Andrew bellows.

"Ton!" His army roars in reply 500,000 voices strong, enough to make the ground vibrate with their vigor.

"Ether!"

"Ton!"

The demon army numbers somewhere over a million, including flying demons the size of houses. Demons come in every shape and variety, even human-like. Hooves, tentacles, and human-shaped feet turn to face the approaching human and machine army.

A shrill and knifelike voice cuts across the demon army, "Enemies to the west, turn and be ready for battle!" Demons crouch or lower themselves to face the incoming human tide with spears and spells alike. They know the humans will slam into them and attempt to carve their way toward the city.

Spells are launched from the human and demon side. Technomancers fire spells from their rifle and pistol-shaped devices. The battleships above the human army fire volleys of spells and kinetic ammunition into the demonic horde. Explosions rip the demons apart, and Ice cuts across the battlefield and immobilizes many more.

Tremors shake the ground, and on both sides are corpses, body parts, and weapons flung all over the battlefield. The human army is now within 100 feet of the demon army, increasing the speed of their charge, and war cries reach louder levels.

Andrew charges at the head of his army, His mana slash executed from thirty feet bisects over a hundred demons. He doesn't dodge when a flame spear is flung at him. Dodging would allow the spear to hit the soldiers behind him. The Hardlight blade in Andrew's hand glows brighter as more ethers flow into it. Slashing his blade right before the flame spear can reach him splits it in two. The Flame spear, cut with magic, fades out of existence swirling hot air and smoke into the hazy red sky.

Slashing like a madman yields corpses left and right. Demons, humans, and machines fall to the ground around Andrew. Machine parts and organic entrails are littering the ground between the bodies.

A bellow Rips through the clamor of blades, gunshots, and spells. A notification from Sorceress informs him that a demon with powerful miasma is heading straight for Andrew. Andrew pulls his blade from the chest of a half-man half-goat demon, sending an arc of burnt blood into the air.

Demon King Damon bisects three soldiers standing in his way, shrugging off spells that would make any other demon simply disappear. Standing over thirteen feet tall, Demon King Damon is not the largest demon and certainly not the most muscular. That doesn't make him any less of a threat. Two large horns project the image of Satan into human minds, along with memories of the great Magic Church. Black skin that seems to have undergone necrosis, is visible between the pieces of blood-red armor. The ax bears Deep maroon runes that promise its victims' deaths will not be painless, shifting across the large ax Damon is wielding.

"Sorceress have all soldiers retreat from my position. They are to make a beeline for the city in the Gamma formation. Have Taylor meet me at my position for support." Orders flow from Andrew and into his comms system with a low even voice, no hesitation hiding behind his words. Crouching low, Andrew activates his skill.

"It will be done, Sir." The usually happy voice of his personal A.I. sounds solemn.

In an instant, the area surrounding Andrew is cleared of both friend and foe thirty meters in diameter, all blown away by the sheer power of his skills activation. Wisps of fast-moving blue light mix with the air in a cyclone around Andrew. Dirt, weapons, and entrails are simply erased from the ground before the cyclone and lights vanish.

It almost seemed as though Andrew vanishes the next moment and reappears twenty meters at a time. Demons in the path between Andrew and Demon, have their heads rolling on the ground before they even know what is going on.

Andrew then appears a meter away from Damon and slashes him with an overhand chop. The hard-light blade shatters on the handle of Damon's massive battle axe. No words escape Andrew's mouth as Damon goads him into a fight.

"I will burn human civilization to the ground. You cannot stop your annihilation, human." Spittle flings from the battle-crazed Demon King's mouth, never once does Damon stop swinging his ax and forces Andrew to retreat a few steps, "That wife of yours looks rather tasty, oh I'll enjoy breaking her!"

Golden Yellow snaps up from the hilt of Andrew's weapon, restoring his blade, after blocking another of Damon's attacks. Ignoring all the vitriol and derision flowing from Damon's Mouth. "You talk too much," Andrew delivers his reply devoid of emotion, as though Damon is nothing before him. Ethers build in the hard-light blade as Andrew executes a chop, following that with a backhand swung Mana Slash.

Damon is now on the defensive while blow after blow rains down on his ax. Andrew doesn't stop and follows up with a dozen more physical strikes, each aimed at the weaker points in Damon's defense. The fight remains a blur to those watching. Blade meets blade, sword meets ax. Shockwaves reverberate from the two powerhouses forcing anyone within fifty meters to cease fighting in favor of retreating.

Suddenly a large shockwave from two colliding spells, a ball of starlight against demonic fire, roars across the field. Andrew slides across the ground to regain his footing, causing long lines the width of his foot across the miasma-stained dirt. Damon opposite Andrew rolls across the ground violently for over thirty meters. Both are covered in deep cuts and forming bruises, blood dripping from their bodies. Andrew Immediately charges at Damon and slashes his blade across Damon's torso.

Andrew is suddenly tossed back the way he came from an arc of malignant purple energy. Landing five meters away. Curse magic begins eroding Andrew's Magic causing him to grimace in pain. He rushes back towards Damon ignoring the pain, his entire body feels like it's on fire, Andrew's skill had been going on for too long and the Demonic curse only made matters worse.

A spike of ice pierces Damon's leg, exploding in a shower of ice crystals, Forcing Damon to bellow in pain. Taylor had arrived, she was now launching spell after spell to distract Damon. With her focus on Damon, Taylor doesn't notice the twenty-meter ogre-like Demon behind her, the back end of its swing unknowingly hits Taylor

"NO!" Andrew screams in desperation, reaching for his wife. His eyes catch hers just as the tree being used as a club slams into her. Cracking sounds come from the tree, branches fall, or spear Taylor. Andrew watches her slam into the ground fifty meters away, rolling into a crater made by the Etherton Navy.

Andrew's combat sense kicks in ducking just fast enough to avoid Damon's ax from removing his head. Rolling to his right, Andrew stands and his Hardlight blade glows brilliantly bright to rival the sun, preparing his final strike. Damon Swings his ax to bear but is not fast enough, Andrew slides past Damon while slashing his blade with all his might. The sound of severed flesh is heard when Damon has his body and neck divided violently. Damon's head rolls across the ground leaving a trail of thick black blood.

The Fight is over. Battered and injured, Andrew Falls to the ground. All magic has left his body and the curse continues its work. With a grunt, Andrew rolls over and crawls to Taylor. Andrew rolls down the meter-deep crater stopping beside his wife. "Sorceress get me evac now! Priority one, designation Empress." All around the empty area for his battle, the Etherton army engages the Demonic Army.

"Gunship inbound. Targets closing on your left Sir. Thirty meters out, class four flying gargoyle demons, three in total." Sorceress informs Andrew. Checking Taylor for a Pulse reveals she is still alive, her slightly rising and falling chest informs him she is still breathing.

Andrew's sidearm is pulled from his leg and he aims it at the incoming demons, His thumb instinctually swipes over the touch screen controls. Squeezing the trigger fires a hard-light bullet, popping the head of the lead-flying gargoyle. With another squeeze of the trigger and the next gargoyle's left wing is blown off.

The handgun in Andrew's hand suddenly sputters, it must have been damaged during his fight with Damon. Andrew is lucky he could even fire off those two shots. He looks at his wife's unconscious form, "I love you, Taylor."

Just before the Gargoyle's claws reach the pair of rulers, a loud rumble is heard overhead. A loud boom followed by the gargoyle's meaty explosion of viscera saves Andrew and Taylor. A bright white spotlight illuminates the two from the gunship overhead, soldiers sliding down ropes to secure the priority package. Andrew's thoughts are lost in the white light of the spotlight and his hospital room comes back into focus.

A smile glides across Andrew's bandaged face as he remembers his life. Taylor's hair beside him was still a brilliant Flaming red, even at sixty-five. She is four years younger than him. She didn't look a day over 20. Her beauty is ethereal.

The war was now over, taking up thirteen years of everyone's life. Some children had been born and knew only war. Their children, however, would get to grow up in times of peace. The demons had established their nation and claimed peace to last. The Demon King was a bloodthirsty fool who lived in the past.

Royal Army guards stand about the room. Doctors tirelessly try to remove the curse magic from Andrew's body.

Taylor's beauty was second to none.

That was indeed the last battle of his life.

"Why couldn't I have a family?!?" Andrew's control over thoughts seems impossible now. Wild ideas run rampant.

Medical devices beep loudly. The fluorescent lights buzz louder and louder.

Sleep beckons him. His senses fade. Gone. Inky. Black.

There Is nothing—just darkness in all of his senses of perception. Nothing amongst the void.

His musing is interrupted by a bright flash of white light.