Prologue: The Road to Hell is Paved with Good Intentions
"So, is anyone willing to explain the rather obvious situation I found myself in?" Ezra looked pointedly at the evil looking tome and sword laid out in front of him, not really expecting an answer.
But to his surprise, he received one, just not in a way he expected; a voice whispered in his mind.
Surprising...curious...New…Master
darkness...strong...
...darkness...fire…life... intertwined...
...mesmerizing... power...
...irresistible...
"Oh~?" Intrigued, Ezra fully focuses on the blade, grabbing its pommel and placing it on his lap."Care to explain a little more, my partner~" He asked, a smile on his face.
Master…Darkness…Fire…Life…your soul…
Endless…Fire…
Endless…Life…
The Isekai'ed(?) young man cupped his chin with a thoughtful look, "Interesting, and you're a Demonic Sword I take it?" It was rather obvious from its appearance, but it didn't hurt to double-check.
…Yes…
"The type that tempts and urges their user to kill more?"
…Yes…
Smiling, Ezra inquired, "Do you require sacrifices in blood or souls?"
…Both…?
"Greedy much?" A chuckle left his lips, and he continued, "Is there something you want to add?" Somehow he could read the Demon, and he felt its hesitation.
…Master…Life…
It was only two words, yet Ezra understood what the Demon was implying, "My Life-Force, with it you could regain your power, possibly even materialize, right?" It was doable, effortless really. But just because the Demon called him Master, it doesn't mean he would trust it, that was the last thing one should do, fiction taught that much.
…Master…right…
What to do now~? Ezra pondered, his hand idly moving to the bandage around his head, "How about a contract?"
…Contract?
"Submit." It was a simple request that received an instant response.
…Accept…
It was too fast, too easy, but the proof was all too obvious as he felt a weight settling over him, an invisible force that pressed down on his shoulders and seeped into his very soul, binding him to the contract.
The sensation was both exhilarating and unnerving—a cold, biting presence that seemed to wrap around his soul, intertwining with the Demon—
Diablo.
"How typical." Ezra chuckled a little, deciding to share his apparent endless life-force with Diablo now that he was the Demon's Master. "Go on, it wouldn't do for my partner to be weak."
The blade - Diablo - trembled, as it greedily began absorbing his life-force. The sensation was not painful, but it was certainly unusual. It felt as though an invisible thread was being drawn from deep within him, winding its way into the blade now cradled in his lap.
Suddenly, Ezra's breath hitched, as he felt a sudden influx of something tainted filling his being. The sensation was unlike anything he had ever experienced, a wave of euphoria so intense that it blotted out everything else. Every nerve in his body seemed to sing, as if he had been struck by a bolt of pure ecstasy.
The power felt foreign yet familiar, it seemed to resonate with something deep within him, but he couldn't tell what, not when his senses were being overwhelmed.
When his vision finally cleared, Ezra found himself breathing heavily, but it wasn't enough to stop his lips from curling into a predatory smile as he stared at the blue flames dancing on his hand.
Though, before his thoughts could spiral, a melodic voice sounded from beside Ezra, "Congratulations, Master, you can now wield the Flames of Purgatory. How unsurprising."
His grasp around the pommel of the blade tightened, only for a moment, as he instantly realized who the lady before him was, "Diablo."
"You are not as surprised as I thought you'd be, I wonder why?" Was she really asking him why he wasn't surprised that she was a demon girl? She was, wasn't she?
"The internet corrupted me." It was the only viable answer Ezra could give for it was the truth.
"Internet?" The white haired demoness tilted her head, confused, though only for a moment, "Ah, I see now, humanity really has fallen so low if they are fetishizing even demons, all while pretending to cling to morals and virtue. It's almost laughable." She said with casual disdain.
Ezra's eyes narrowed, not because he was offended by her words—far from it, really. If anything, Diablo's words only amused him. He knew the kind of world he'd come from, and he wasn't delusional enough to defend humanity's flaws. He'd seen too much, read too much, to be shocked by a demon's low opinion of his kind.
Rather, "Did you read my memories?" Cause how else could she go from not knowing the internet, to knowing it the next moment.
Diablo inclined her head, only to pause in realisation, "…If you're worried that I saw something private, then don't be, my target was specifically the internet, the most I saw was your search history."
Ezra's irritation eased at her words, she had no reason to lie to him since he could just order her to tell him the truth, given her submission, still, "Don't go through my memories."
"If that is what you wish." The demoness smiled, accepting the order without complaint.
The Demonologist arched an eyebrow, "A cordial demon? I only thought that was possible in anime."
"Believe me, Master, if I could, I would definitely want to devour that exquisite soul of yours." Diablo…was a rather honest demon, which made Ezra wary and amused in equal measure.
"I haven't ordered you not to, so why didn't you try?" He was rather curious in that regard.
The Demoness blinked, "…You're not aware, are you?"
The albino crossed his arms. "You'll need to be more specific," he said. "There are a lot of things I don't understand—like why I'm in a different world, why I have a Demonic Sword, or why I possess a Demonic Tome. And since when did I become the son of Shiva?" As he asked the final question, Ezra unwrapped the bandage from his head, revealing a single eye with a fiery-orange iris and nine pupils within.
"And here I thought that he was an abomination." Diablo remarked, and though he wanted to ask her who she was talking about, what she called him was more important.
"Abomination? Isn't that what Nephalems are considered by Demons and Angels?" Being a fan of the occult, or rather, the supernatural in general, Ezra, of course, did his research.
"I see you're beginning to understand," The blue-eyed demoness continued, "Primordial Human and Fire Giant, a Demigod. Your soul is... complex. Dark, but not lost. Corrupt, but not hollow, but if that was all there was to it, I wouldn't hesitate to devour it."
"No, it's more special than that." Ezra was beginning to wonder if this was the reincarnation of the ancient god trope that he read in those trashy manhuas. "Endless fire, reminiscent of the Primordial Flame, and endless life, both concepts carved deeply within a Fire Giant. How ironic, I'm sure Odin would cough up blood if he ever saw you." A smile full of schadenfreude spread across Diablo's lips.
The Demonologist couldn't help but chuckle, yeah, that would definitely be funny. "I would call myself a phoenix with all of that, but I also have demonic powers now."
"An abomination indeed," the demoness concluded, her blue eyes flicking to the blade resting in his lap before returning to his face. "So, what now? Are you planning to take over the world? With your power and resources - and depending on the strength of the locals - it wouldn't be impossible."
"It is said that 'The Road to Hell is Paved with Good Intentions', right?" Ezra asked instead of answering her question, making Diablo snort and incline her head, "But what if the road is already open for someone? What do you think they should do?" Diablo's eyes gleamed with
understanding, and Ezra's smirk turned downright predatory.
"I will take everything the road has to offer."
"Including the good intentions?" The demonic blade-slash-demoness asked, innocently.
The Demonologist laughed, nodding, "Including the good intentions."
++++
A/N: A Demonologist in the Lands Between, what's the worst that can happen?
Fallen Paladin CYOA:
Currency: Power: 7 | Magic Token: 0 | Ally: 1
Your Falling: Unbridled Passion (Something happened that had enough of an impact on you to change your very character. Perhaps you lost something or someone, or accidentally caused some disaster. Though you may try to act as righteously as before, you find your thoughts turning to less holy thoughts, and you find goals driven by your own passion taking precedence over those you swore to uphold.)
Weapon: Demonic Falchion
Powers:
Favoured by Demons(Demonic entities seem to be unjustifiedly fond of you, for who knows what reasons. They will not attack you unless you attack them, and some may occasionally appear where you are to check on you and offer help that doesn't involve possible danger to themselves.) -1 Power
Master of Arms (Swords: You are one of the foremost experts in the wielding of your chosen weapon that there are. Its use comes as naturally to you as breathing. ) -1 Power
Charisma(your voice seems confident and reassuring, and your exude a sense of command. People will do what you say unless you challenge deeply-held feelings or beliefs, or know what you are up to.) -1 Power
Resourceful (A veritable McGyver, you can improvise your way out of any situation short of being physically stabbed. Only magical prisons will hold you, and no lock slows you down more than a minute.) -1 Power
Tongues( It is possible for you to pick up languages somehow after hearing only a few sentences of speech. Cultural differences seem very obvious to you, and you are able to emulate them very successfully if you wish) -1 Power
Magic: Deception LV2 (LV1:The art of manipulating the minds of others for your own ends. Create illusions of flames or vicious creatures from thin air. LV2: You can cloak yourself in an illusion with which you can appear as any humanoid form you wish. Your voice and body language also appear as those of the intended form.)
Companions: Witch -1 Ally (Effective user of healing and deception magic, she prefers to help out without getting too close to any dangers. She knows the woods and their inhabitants well, and would be able to create potions or unguents for use.)
Residence: Castle
____
Generic Angel and Demon Jump
Origin: Primordial Human
Affiliation: Neutral Free
Perks:
True Outsider: As someone that rejected every other side of the cosmic scenario except yours, you ended updeveloping immunity against a very powerful cosmic force: fate itself. This not only makes you a blind spot for any prophecy, inclusive those made by gods and similar beings, and gives you free control over your own destiny, but this also allows you to derail fate and prophecies related to other people and things, making it possible to avoid events that normally would be set in stone to happen without your intervention.
Primordial Fragment: You're no common being, but, either by being created this way, having inherited it from someone or maybe even having usurped it by yourself, you're now the fragment of a primordial force, having all the power that this entails, boosting your power to the point that, even if you were originally an average angel, you'll become powerful enough to match with the angels of the Highest Order, like the Cherubim and the Ophanims.
The nature of this exact primordial force varies according to your origin.
If you're an Angel or a Nephilim, you've become a fragment of the Lord in its entirety. This small piece of the Infinite Light within you has the capacity of greatly amplifying the power and efficiency of any and all light/divine abilities that you might have, as well as making any angelic being to instinctively trust you or even making them to want to worship you in some cases if they aren't already serving to some other higher being due to them sensing the divine light in you.
If you're a Demon or a Cambion, instead of the Infinite Light or of aether, you've been infused with the Darkness of the Abyss, a dark source of power whose existence predates Creation itself. Similarly to the fragment of the light, this shard of pure nether, the so-called chthonian element that is most known as the substance that makes up the Underworld, within your body also amplifies any and all dark/unholy abilities you might have and makes any demonic being to instinctively want to serve you due to the bottomless shadow they sense within you.
If you're a Nephalem, instead of light or darkness, you've been born from the Primordial Sea of Chaos that existed before the universe, or at least was "baptized" in its waters, which caused you to inherit a fragment of its chaotic power. Differently to the other fragments, it not only greatly enhances the power of any chaos-related ability you have, but also enhances light and dark powers to a lesser degree, as well as serving as the bridge that one day should help you to fully stabilize your unstable self-contradictory nature.
If you're Human, even if you aren't a Primordial Human, you were born from the First Spark of Life that was created by divine hands, essentially binding you to a shard of the literal concept of life. The spark grants you bottomless vitality, allowing you to stay forever in your prime and regenerate from almost any form of damage as long as at least a single cell of your body manages to survive. Even if you don't have any healing abilities, you can freely share your lifeforce by touching others.
As a last benefit, this perk also works as a Capstone Booster, with the primordial fragment in you enhancing the power of every 600 CP perk you have
Unblinded by the Veil: It's not that uncommon to see that the veil that separates the mundane from the supernatural isn't just metaphorical but also more literal, as the mortals literally can't see spiritual beings in various worlds. To ensure you won't be blind like your fellow mortals, you're able to see basic supernatural things, like magic, stands and spiritual beings that aren't actively trying to conceal their presence. For an extra discountable 400 CP , your clear sight is enhanced even further, as you gain the Gift of Clairvoyance, which upgrades it to a total and absolute immunity against any form of illusion or magical disguise, even the ones are created by godlike beings, as well as protecting you from any and all harmful effects from seeing eldritch beings in their true forms, memetic hazards,cognitohazards and other general information that usually are above mortal comprehension.
Limited Preparation: A certain someone once said that "humans can winpractically any battle as long as they have enough time to prepare". Even if this isn't actually true, it's a fact that preparation and adaptation are some of humanity's greatest weapons and you, my friend, are a specialist in using all the resources that you have available in the most efficient way possible to fight against whatever enemy/threat you're currently facing, regardless if said resources are weapons, tools, personeel, energy, materials, allies, among others. This perk doesn't help you to acquire more resources in any way, only making you able use the ones that you
already have considerably more efficiently, regardless if it involves using specific strategies, combining resources or improvising/adapting new ones for example.
Hell's Pact: You're a pretty lucky person, as you encountered a basic demon that just offered you a simple deal simply because they wanted to test their recently acquired ability to make supernatural deals, without asking nothing in return.
This pact allows for two different things: firstly, you can summon the demon, which is slightly stronger than the average demonic being, to ask for favors or for other deals, and, secondly, gain part of their abilities, granting you your own reserve of demonic power, around the power level of a cambion. Alternatively, instead of a basic demon, you can choose to have made a deal with a stronger demon, like one of the Ars Goetia for example, but using the power granted by the deal and summoning the demon will have the appropriate costs for it, which can be anything, from souls, including your own soul if they're powerful enough, to sacrifices for example. Infuture worlds, a new demon will replace the one that stayed in the previous world, but the deal's power will stay the same.
False Messiah: Your origin isn't as simple as I previously thought of, isn't it? Your very soul is as dark and hellish as any other demon lord, which, while you don't actually have access to demonic powers, you're an existence worthy of the title of false messiah. This manifests in you as an extremely powerful and terrifying charm and charisma, usually the kind of charm possessed by very skilled dictators, cult leaders and hundred year old vampires, which few people have the willpower needed to resist. While still "mundane", your charisma is enough to tempt men to betray their friends and allies, easily seduce people that are attracted to you, create a cult-like fervor amongst your loyal followers to the point of them becoming almost addicted in obeying your orders and inspiring loyalty in less trustworthy minions with nothing but a few mere words and your dreadful presence. Your charm is even more potent and effective with demons, as it allows you to actually control them to do your will. A lot of willpower can still help them to resist it, but any demon at least as strong as one of the kings of the Ars Goetia (or that are true demon kings/queens) are completely unaffected by this supernatural ability (but still be manipulated by your charisma). Lastly, as a tempter disguised as a saint, you can also hide your karmic alignment to others at will, making them unable to discern which is your actual alignment.
Items:
Daemonum Enciclopedia: You receive an ancient dark tome that contains information about basically any and all relevant demons, including things like which what their abilities are, what are their preferences of rewards and summoners, what kind of deals they make, which domains and legions they rule, which is their relationship with other supernatural beings and even about the instructions of the rituals, artifacts and/or ingredients needed to summon or enter in contact with them. It also contains information about Hell and its workings, how to travel through it and even about mystical artifacts of demonic origin located on both the underworld and the mortal plane. Post-jump, it'll
update itself to add information about the demons and hell-like planes that will encounter in future worlds.
Hellish Handgun: Between supernatural abilities and melee weapons, you still preferred to choose the path of gunpowder. Regardless if you're a demon hunter or decided to stay on the side of your demonic parent, you acquired a dark handgun marked with bright glowing demonic runes that grant it the ability to shoot your own demonic energy as bullets. The bullets will initially have the same strength of mundane projectiles, in addition to being able to wound supernatural beings, but you'll eventually own to overcharge the bullets with more energy to increase their power. Optionally, you can import another ranged weapon you have to gain the handgun's feature of using demonic energy as its ammo.
Summoning Scroll: You received a seemingly old scroll written personally by your Benefactor in an ancient language using demon blood. This scroll contains detailed instructions to do a ritual to summon a demon, more specifically, to summon you (even if you aren't a demon). You can set some of the details required for your summoning ritual, like requiring specific phrases in latin, magic circle with demonic runes, a sacrifice of some living being or some other steps, but, regardless of which are your choices, it'll be something that are in the range of what a mundane person can do. You can also choose if you accept to be summoned, so, you don't need to worry about being forced to be summoned by someone. Additionally, if you want, you can choose for a few copies of the scroll to be spread around this world (or in other future worlds you visit) to be used by the lucky ones that manage to find them.