THE MOMENT
"I command you! Ballisea the Demon Queen, appear and be bound here!"
The garage darkened. The shadows coalesced at Chuck's command. They swirled within the purple pentagram, and suddenly, she was there. There was no moment when she arrived; instead, she stirred within the dark center as if she'd been there all along, smiling and waiting.
"You?" the pale woman's smile grew broader as she leaned forward; the tips of her curling bone-white horns bumped the edge of the barrier and the magical forcefield shimmered with the contact. "Oh, this promises to be quite amusing," she giggled. The horned Demon Queen pulled back and assessed the boundaries. "Surely you don't believe this trick capable of holding me; I exist beyond infinity," she said. "Did you never learn? You shouldn't summon anything you're ill-equipped to put down yourself."
"You doubt my powers?" Chuck grinned. "Then, let me give you a taste; something to make our conversation more palatable." He reached into the pocket of his sagging jeans and pulled out a purple-tinted glass card inlaid with a golden sun. Ballisea took notice. A faint nervous expression dimmed her smile.
"How do you have that?" Up until that moment, Chuck was hiding his worries. He was playing the part of an all-powerful demon summoner; but, inside he was terrified. He didn't feel like he had anything to lose, and he decided gaining access to Ballisea's power was worth the risk. Now he knew the Cultist had sold him a legitimate artifact. The Demon Queen tried to keep her smile in place; but, she was a horrible actor. He saw right through her.
"So, you think I can't reach you across infinity?" Chuck replied without answering her question. "What is infinity if not here and now? In the name of Aurelio's Sun, I BIND YOU TO BONES!" He raised his voice along with the card and the shadows churned violently. An ethereal scream pierced his mind and soul, without crossing his ears. Then, warm evening sunlight filled the garage again. It poured in through the windows and illuminated a ram-horned skeleton standing in the center. A golden sun glowed on its bleached skull and it stared at him.
"Do you know what you've done!??" Ballisea's voice came from the skeleton's chattering teeth like a poorly voiced wooden dummy.
"I've put you down," Chuck grinned. "Demoted you so to speak; cut you off from your infinite domain. Now if you'll behave, maybe I'll put you back."
"What is your purpose for summoning me?" the clacking skull asked.
"To have your power at my command," Chuck replied. "I want to own this world and you'll help me achieve that."
"To what end?" she asked.
"To.. what? THAT is the end!" Chuck answered with fearless annoyance. "I WANT THIS EARTH."
"Child...," the skeleton shook its head with disappointment. She continued; but, Chuck interrupted to defend his image in her mind.
"I'M 41! I'm not a child!"
"I have existed since before time itself. I have conquered more Earths than you're able to count in a lifetime; your request is dull. Is there anything else you wish? Perhaps a more entertaining endeavor?"
"What?" Chuck was finding more and more reasons to be offended. "I want this Earth! This isn't a negotiation."
"You're certainly passionate about it...," she replied. "Perhaps that is enough." But, even as Chuck was ready to yell at her some more, a black portal opened in his garage and a teenage girl walked out. She had brown hair with a golden streak through it and vibrant green eyes. She took a look around, then at the skeleton.
"Oh sorry, bad time?" She asked.
"For you, Solita? Never," the voice came first, then Ballisea, the pale woman, appeared in front of her and outside the pentagram. "What is it, child?" she asked with her back to Chuck. The skeleton went slack but remained upright.
"WHAT THE HELL?!" Chuck raged and stomped around to face Ballisea head-on. As soon as he met her purple eyes, he sank into a portal and disappeared.
"Turbo asked me to ask you for a huge favor; he wants to study the void but he can't find enough of it. Whenever he sends in probes, they just go through it and land somewhere else. Will you help? Pleeeeeease?" The girl clasped her hands together to beg.
"Darling, there will come a day, a dangerous day, when I don't favor you as much," Ballisea replied.
"But, not today, right?" she asked with a grin. Ballisea's smile grew and she giggled gently.
"Indeed, it is not today. You can tell Turbo that I will help him. When it is convenient and a suitable distraction for me. At the moment, I have a game already," at her words, Chuck fell out of a portal and flat onto the garage floor with a thud and a groan.
"Thank you!" the teen chirped as a portal opened behind her. Chuck wasn't going to be ignored in his own home. He rushed to his feet and pulled out the purple card again.
"I COMMAND YOU IN THE NAME OF AURELIO'S SUN!" he said. The teen stopped for a moment and looked at the card. But, Ballisea trembled and faded out of existence. The skeleton in the center came to life again with sudden click-clacking.
"NOOooooo," she complained.
"Oh," the teen giggled and disappeared into the portal before Chuck registered her reaction. She obviously fled from the power of the card.
"So, you had a friend helping you huh?" Chuck asked as he caught his breath.
"I will help you conquer your Earth," Ballisea replied through the skeleton.
"Who was that girl!? I command you to tell me!" Chuck said.
"Her name is Jubilee Luna," Ballisea replied. "Known to many by the name, 'Aurelio's Sun'."