The Next Guest
Copyright© 2025 by Pars001
Chapter 10
Ephus - Demi-god
Quinn Markov - human wife of Ephus, blessed by multiple gods
Egyption Dieties
Bast - Goddess of cats, protection, joy, dance, music, family, and love
Serket - Goddess of scorpions, medicine, magic, and healing venomous stings and bites
Anhur - God of war and the sky bearer - Full brother of Bast and Sekhmet
Japanese Dietes
Amaterasu - Japanese Goddess of the sun (head goddess)
Wakahiru-me - younger sister of Amaterasu, goddess of the rising sun
Benten - Japanese Goddess of love
Hachiman - Japanese God of war
Shuten-dōji - King of Japanese Demons
Oiwa - disfigured and vengeful female spirit
Jorōgumo - spider that can shape shift into a woman
Gashadokuro - a female spirit that takes the form of a giant skeleton ------------------------------------------------------------------
Titans
Cronus - leader of the Titans
Iapetus - Titan of mortality
The Titan leader turned away from Ephus, then laughed. “You talk big for a little Demi-god. You will never have that much power.”
Ephus drew close to the face of the Titan leader and seemed to grab the throat of him. “Oh, you are so right, I won’t have to gain that much power. Wanna know why?” Ephus asked, to which the leader trembled a bit. Ephus leaned in, getting close to the leader’s ear, “I am already that powerful and more!”
The leader stared at Ephus, for the first time in the titan’s long life, he was terrified. He’d never been as much as he was now. “None of the realms will allow,” the leader started.
Ephus started to laugh, “The four I have saved have no problem with it. I saved them and I don’t want to rule see, I got enough to do.” Here Ephus dismissed the titan as an afterthought.
“So I guess this is goodbye,” Ephus said to Shuten-dōji as his fist started to glow brighter and brighter.
A body seemed to come from nowhere and met Ephus’ fist as it drove completely through its chest. It had actually taken almost all the force that Ephus had used.
It had caved in the demon king’s chest a bit but not completely. Shuten-dōji started to laugh as he started to fade even as Ephus managed to hit him again without much force.
Shuten-dōji screamed again, though this escape was worth it to learn what he had, which was really bad. With the power that the Demi-god had, he was doomed. He needed to escape this realm while he could.
That was the main thing, so, in order to escape, he needed a hell of a lot more power. Again, as he winced in pain, it would have to come from a goddess.
There was another problem with that. Ephus watched all of them like a hawk. A hawk that had the power to end not only his reign but him also.
Ephus growled as he grasped the throat of the titan that had freed the demon king. He then turned toward Cronus,” I destroyed one of you before as a warning, now, as a punishment.”
“You are too good to destroy Iapetus,” the titan squealed, “you,” Iapetus started.
“I would have thought after last time I destroyed one of you that you had learned.” With a sigh, he turned to look at Cronus. “I will allow you to wish it goodbye,” Ephus said.
For a moment, nothing happened, then the rest that had appeared started to fire at Ephus. He just shook his head and pointed at all of them as they fell back stunned.
“This is the last time that your addled existence will both all of us,” Ephus said sadly. He then started to squeeze Iapetus’ throat.
“NO! Iapetus is immortal, you can’t,” the titan screamed, getting weaker and weaker ‘til it stopped. Ephus then put a hand on the body of Iapetus, a moment later, the body crumbled to ashes.
Ephus then turned toward all the other titans. Again, a warning of a type, though I will not hesitate to destroy any of the rest of you.”
All the gods, goddesses and Titans could only stare at the pile of ash, then at Ephus. They all bowed to him, then the Titans vanished.
Amaterasu and Bast led all the other gods and goddess with their mouths hanging open. “Perhaps he got off easy,” Bast said. “There have been some that have made him angrier.”
The Egyptian goddess and god were nodding their heads, as was Quinn Markov. “They are right, Ares had to be one of the worse though he only did it once,” Quinn said.
Three other sets of female demon eyes were also watching and what they saw had scared them badly. “You still think this is a good plan?” Jorōgumo and Gashadokuro asked Oiwa.
Oiwa nodded her head, “It is the only plan in this we can not fail. We just have to get in his good graces if he has any.”
“With that amount of power, it is no wonder Shuten-dōji hasn’t been able to win,” Oiwa said. The other two were most positively agreeing.
The three vanished to plan. As far as they knew, Shuten-dōji was still trolling around trying to get more power.
All three appeared in their hidden cave not far from Shuten-dōji’s hideout. They all groaned as they still weren’t all healed.
They then sat to rest as they had more to plan on. The fight they had with Ephus had almost completely drained them.
Back in Takamagahara, Ephus wasn’t happy at all. He knew that it had to happen even though he wasn’t ready for it to be now.
With a sigh, he sat with a heavy thud. He wasn’t really the killer that many thought he was, though this time it had been necessary.
Then there was the problem with Shuten-dōji, Ephus still hadn’t figured him out. He didn’t seem as smart as he was, an escape exit no matter what he was doing? This was going to take some serious planning to end his reign.
Sitting at the far end of the main room, Ephus was brooding rather darkly. He had to do something as his mood was going to bring all down if he kept at it.
Bast and Serket both walked up to him, placing their rather round tummies on his arms. A moment later, he felt the babies as they started to kick, almost as if they knew daddy was near.
“Ah,” he started. “It is always good to feel the new life that you two are bringing,” he said, then looked at Bast. “Though in your case it is a second time.”
“Husband,” Bast said softly, “we can feel that you are low. Know that there was no other way with that one, he thought he was above almost all. Especially with you being a demi-god, and defeating him once.”
Ephus nodded his head, he knew what she said was true, but he still thought he was smart enough to get around it. He knew that he was smart, but the point was that, was the god really that stupid and couldn’t learn? Ephus shook his head as he couldn’t figure it out.
A spike of power had his head suddenly snapping up. He reached out definitely feeling Shuten-dōji, the only problem was it felt wrong, very wrong.
He called Hachiman over, and they discussed what they both thought of the situation. After that, they both flashed out, the Japanese and Egyptian goddesses looking on worried.
The funny thing was that it took all that Bast had to restrain Serket from leaving after him. “He is far stronger than the both of us think, dear sister. If we are always chasing after him, what will that say about us as goddesses?”
Serket had a deadly look on her face as she stared at her sister. “I think that it means that we love our husband with all that we have.”
Again, Serket tried to snatch her arm loose, knocking the both of them over. They both laughed as the both of them got up laughing though they were also holding their stomachs.
“It has indeed been a long time, sister,” Serket said. “I will trust that you are right. Husband does seem far smarter than most think.”
Hachiman and Ephus appeared not far from where they had defeated Shuten-dōji. They both were wide open feeling for what or who ever was there.
“I’m not feeling it now,” Ephus said. “I could swear that I felt him right here.”
“Yes, I had felt it also though you are right, it feels like a Shuten-dōji trap,” Hachiman said, the both of them backing away.
Almost as suddenly, the both of them heard a banshee-like screaming as they were rushed. This reminded Ephus a lot like when he had first appeared here.
Then again, he thought, as he squinted, why in the hell did it appear that there were more? Pulling his sword, a light red surrounded it, then started to glow far brighter.
Ephus looked at the hoards that were rushing, though a frown was on his face. He held a hand up to Hachiman, who eased off on his bow.
Ephus nodded as he swung his sword, sending out a wave of fire energy. The few that were in front seemed to flicker as the wave hit them.
Ephus smiled as he held a hand up, then he charged at just one demon at the back of the hoard. A quick swing severed the head of the demon, making almost all of the rest suddenly blink out.
Ephus nodded to Hachiman, “illusion he’s trying to escape,” Ephus growled. He then made several slashing motions away from the mountain range.
About twenty bodies dropped into sight along with Shuten-dōji who was again missing part of an arm. It was then that millions of demons appeared rushing toward Hachiman and Ephus.
Now Ephus thought, this is more like when I first appeared. “Give it up Shuten-dōji, you know you don’t have the power to defeat me.”
“Ha!” Shuten-dōji shouted, then laughed, “Defeat you? Why in the seven hells would I do that? Just to confound and trick you is worth far more.”
Hachiman had buried several arrows in Shuten-dōji’s chest, just as Ephus released another energy wave. Shuten-dōji screamed.