My life had ended, that's all there is to it. How and why didn’t matter, I was nothing more than a corpse, and as such, didn’t matter anymore. But that was on earth. The moment I left the world of the living on earth I woke up among demons. Twelve to be exact, all wore long-headed robes. Each was of different sizes and shapes, some with human-like bodies while others had more animalistic bodies. All of which had horns, albeit different types, and I couldn’t tell if they all had wings or if none of them had wings due to the robes. They were standing in a circle around me, who was both nude and confused. The room we were in was dark, only illuminated by torchlight. These torches hung on six pillars covered in strange markings that stood in a circle behind the robed demons. On the floor below me was an intricate design that reminded me of spell circles drawn in modern media. Above me, I couldn’t see the ceiling due to the darkness and the sheer height of the chamber, but it was at least a few stories tall.

 Taking notice of the room and people, If I could call them that, I noticed many artistic styles and various furniture pieces with both intrigue and spikes. Was I in some kind of creepily well-furnished hell? Did the devil take side jobs as an interior decorator? Why were these demons standing around me like it was part of some cult ritual.? “Where the hell am I?” I shouted, then looked behind me to notice that I had wings myself. I couldn’t tell what they looked like exactly due to my lack of current vision but it looked smooth. “Why do I have wings?” I said with curiosity, only to have none of my questions answered. One of the demons spoke. He was smaller and slimmer than the rest but the horns that protruded out of the front of his hood with different twists in them, similar to a crown, were larger than any of the others. Sadly, I couldn’t see much else due to the shadow his hood cast upon his face. 

“Great Demon Lord of the 9th era, we have summoned you to lead us. The Demon Lord of the last era was slain by the hero of that era and after many failed attempts we have finally summoned you. With your power, we will subjugate the human realm to the east and rule over them as we once did. We are at your service.” the demon said in a raspy voice before getting down on a knee and bowing, followed by the others.

I wasn’t sure what was going on but I would probably die again if I refused what he said. So, I might as well play along until I can escape. Plus, I needed answers. “Uh… please stand. Tell me, what are your names?” I asked as respectfully as possible, or at least I hoped so. I sounded more like a scared child than anything else, and I was. I didn’t want to die again. Standing up in unison, they each pulled back their hoods, exposing their faces. The one who addressed me earlier spoke. “I am Barbato’s, the leader of the twelve legions that stand before you,” he said proudly. 

Now that I could see his face, he looked bitter but wise. His eyes, similar to goats and his face looked like an frail old man’s with scales that ran down his cheeks. They seemed to run down his face as a beard would from his cheekbones down to his neck. He was bald, with the exception of a small, single lock of hair that resembled a rat's tail on the top of his head. Although, he didn’t look that powerful compared to the others that stood around me, the others seemed to hold him in a higher regard so he must be their leader. Upon finishing, the other demons began saying their names as well.

“Adrammelech,” A taller demon with eyes that seemed to glow red said in a scruffy voice. He looked similar to that of a faun from old legends with a set of Irish mutton chops and the Billy goat horns that adorned his head. He looked rather young but the several scars crossing his face looked like they still hurt. His body was wide but I assumed it was due to muscle, not fat.

“Lilin” A tall but lanky fellow stated with pride in a very British accent, with barely a scratch on him. His horns were smaller than the others, surrounded by his short oily black hair and he carried the aura of an entitled prince. One thing that was interesting was that he had a wide devious smile at all times and and his eyes were bright blue, darting everywhere as if to spot anything and everything happening at that moment. If I wasn’t straight, I would be hitting on him, to be honest.

“Merihem,'' The older demon said in a scratchy voice. His horns looked more like hair as they fell to either side of his head like bangs and his eyes were an orange color like a cat's but lacked any shine to them. He looked tired but knowledgeable, like a librarian. With his back hunched over he held himself up with an old shoddy cane.

“Samael,” The most cartoonishly devil-looking one said with a deep voice. I would describe him as just that, a cartoon Satan. All he lacked was the red color. He instead was pale as a sheet and his eyes were a pure black.

“Stolas,” The scariest one said in a squeaky voice. Why was he scary? Well, he was bald with glowing red eyes and he had several cracks in his face that were oozing a green substance in which I couldn’t identify. He was also missing several teeth and yet, still kept smiling with a creepy ass grin. His horns were also like algae-covered tree branches, damp and unsettling.

“Seir,” One of the three female-looking demons said with the voice of an angel. She had blond flowing hair and hazel-colored cat eyes. A few small scars adorned her chin but she had the most inviting and kind aura of the demons here. Her horns were small and dull, to be honest, it took me a moment to realize she even had horns. 

“Naberius,” The disassociated one said with a very monotone voice. He wore a frown that made it seem like that was now part of his identity and his hair was an incredibly long silver. His eyes were green but sadly, they looked dead despite him looking like a buff teen. If I were to make an assumption of him based on looks alone, I would say he was a secret edge lord who hasn’t discovered hair dye. 

“Phenix,” Another of the female-looking demons said shyly. Her hair was similar to Seir’s but it was Auburn and her eyes were changing color like a myriad of colors being swapped around. Her cheeks were puffed out like a newborn and she lacked any major defining features other than her eyes. Her horns though, were wound together above her head like a halo of hexed bull horns.

“Shax,” the tallest of the group said in a voice that sounded like an old radio announcer. He was an absolute giant, standing roughly a meter above the rest. His horns looked as if made of glass and he had no face. I could see no eyes, mouth, or nose. It was terrifying but still not as scary as Stolas. I was trying to figure out how he even spoke.

“Andras,” the last of the three female-looking demons said in a burly voice. She was, as I could say in the nicest way, a brute. Her muscles were probably the size of my face and even her face had huge muscles. Her eyes were small, and dark, glaring at me like a gym teacher but her face made me think of a strong Nordic goddess. Her horns even looked like ones that would have decorated a Nordic helmet. She could probably crush ten watermelons with her thighs but I couldn’t see her legs so I could only assume. The only way I knew she had large muscles was because the robe was so small on her body that it infatuated her toned muscles.

“Camio,” a demon with glasses and a smile said in a calm motherly voice. He looked like a young English professor and the perfect Morman stereotype had a beautiful baby. He almost shone with positivity and his blue eyes looked incredibly gentle. His horns were perfectly flat wings but unlike the others horns, his were on the back of his head pointed down. I wondered if they would start flapping and take off.

I was not going to remember all those names but I would try. Now that I knew their names though, I remembered that I was in the nude. Covering myself as inconspicuously as I could at the moment with my hands, I felt embarrassed. Not only was I scared but nude as well, it was like a child's worst nightmare. At Least now I could tell they weren’t that much of a threat due to them kindly introducing themselves. “I thank you and am honored that you have summoned me but I feel rather naked. Might I have some clothes to cover myself?” I asked, trying to be as polite as possible. 

“Ah yes, here take my cloak and we will have some better clothing prepared for you, my Lord. forgive us for allowing yourself to be shown in such a shameless form?” Barbato’s said, removing his cloak and handing it to me. He acted rather flustered about it. I think he was embarrassed that he didn’t think of doing so sooner.

“Do not be concerned, I do not care about such trivial matters. All of you have wisdom of this world that I do not yet possess and as such I would like you to teach me as much as you can. That is far more important than my pride.” I said putting on the cloak but I wasn’t exactly the most sincere. I was just spewing nonsense that made me look more wise. I just didn’t want anyone to be hurt, especially me. The look that Barbato gave me showed that that was not enough for him. 

“But my Lord, we have just summoned you and we have already shamed you. We must atone for that. Please take one of our lives as atonement.” Barbato’s rebutted getting down on both knees and holding up a dagger that he had on his side. The others followed suit. How did it come to this? I’m a Demon Lord for five minutes and I’m already expected to kill someone. I can't, I just can’t. A life is a life no matter who’s it is. I had to think of something quickly.

“Stand up, no blood shall be spilled today. You may atone by serving me well. You are of no use to me dead.” I said quoting a movie I watched once or at least I think that was the quote. I just hope it worked.

Barbato’s stood up followed by the others and they placed their blades back on their sides. “I-I see, thank you, my Lord. One thing I must ask of you. What are we to call you, my Lord?” 

Oh crap, what do I tell them? Should I use my real name? No, he’s dead, I can start a new life so I should have a cool name. But what’s a cool name that’s not stupid? I am so bad at naming things. Here goes nothing. “Legion is my name.”

“All hail Demon Lord Legion!” Barbato’s exclaimed.

“All hail Demon Lord Legion.” the others cried in unison.