THE MOMENT
"Everything's perfect," Gregg lit the last candle with a permanent grin on his face and took a proud look around his setup. He'd cleared the living room and pushed the couch and coffee table into the kitchen, then laid out the custom summoning board that he'd created. It was an 8' x 8' pinewood floor painted dark black and decorated with a golden pentagram, and six sigils surrounding it in a hexagonal formation. He was sure to use paint with actual gold in it, while the black paint had ground-up bones. He couldn't find any paint like that and had to resort to grinding animal bones into it for the sake of authenticity. He wasn't a monster, but he did like chicken. Black candles were placed at each of the six sigils, and now that he'd lit them all, he moved to the center and sat down with his crowning prop.
Gregg was barefoot but wore a long black robe with elegant gold trim, fully in costume as an Acolyte of Ballisea. He took a minute to appreciate his latest and best purchase, the Book of Ballisea. When he saw it online, he was impressed by how authentic it looked, but he still only expected a plastic replica that would be hollow or, at best, filled with blank pages. Instead, the dark book had a black, leathery cover, and its interior consisted of black pages written in golden script. It was apparent someone had put a lot of work into making it the best, most authentic book, and Gregg was somewhat heartened to see others were as into the Demon Queen franchise as he was. He knew the summoning ritual perfectly, but it was a lovely touch nonetheless.
He crossed his legs, opened the book to the appropriate pages, then closed his eyes. He was a single, relatively successful man who could afford to spend big on his hobbies, and as silly as it might've been to others, this was what it was all for. Just a few brief moments where he could honestly immerse himself and pretend he was part of his favorite fictional world. He wanted to savor every second. The room was silent as he took it all in and believed as hard as he could in that reality. He was there, in a dark crypt, ready to summon the Demon Queen herself. It helped that it was midnight and he'd closed all the curtains and turned off not only the lights, but the power to the house itself. He didn't want the general electric hum of modern life interfering in his playtime.
Then, he began chanting. The first few verses rolled off his lips like his own name while he imagined her taking shape before him. He pictured her curling bone-white ram horns and pale skin. She had golden eyes and long dark hair with a distinct second layer of white shag over her cascading black locks. She wore a black gown made of shadows and black heels. In his mind, she coalesced from darkness, and he slowly clarified the mental image as he worked through the summoning until finally he reached the last verse, and she was complete.
"In the name of Aurelio's Sun, I call into the void. Let the shadows engulf the sunlight at their leisure. Let my soul touch what no mortal body can. I freely offer my soul to the void, and I ask an audience with the sovereign crowned in ivory. I invite Ballisea the Demon Queen into my world and into my life."
He still had his eyes closed, and he was oddly surprised by a sudden chill running down his spine. It was a cool night outside, and the heat was off, so it wasn't necessarily unusual, but it was the perfect cap to his pretend session.
"That was kinda nice...," he chuckled to himself as he relaxed and opened his eyes.
"I'm not sure I agree." He wasn't alone anymore.
"BALLISEA!!!!" Gregg liked to pretend, but he wasn't an idiot. If she was actually there, he didn't have time to question it, and he didn't want to be anywhere near it. He hopped to his feet, ready to sprint out of the house. Except, by the time he was standing, there were already two skeletons forcefully preventing his escape. And something was different. It was her, but she looked notably different from the movies. She had the alabaster skin, horns, and glowing golden eyes, but her long black hair was blonde instead, and she wore a purple and white-gold gown that differed from her all-black portrayal. She stared at him, and through him, as he struggled against the skeletons.
"I'm not sure of that either...," she said as she took her eyes off him to assess herself. She looked down at her gown, then pulled some of the blonde hair to examine it for a moment. Then, she stared at Gregg again.
"Ask me my favorite number," she demanded.
"Wha... what is your favorite number?" he managed to ask. It felt like a silly question; everyone knew Ballisea was El Sol and her favorite number was 46, but he didn't particularly feel like he was in a silly enough situation to point that out.
"Hmph," she let out a thinking noise, then shook her head. "How interesting...," He watched as her golden eyes focused on him. They cycled through the full spectrum of colors like a rainbow before settling on gold again. "This all promises to be brand new," she shook her head. "I am different," she said. "Far more powerful than I was before." She made a dismissive gesture toward the skeletons, and they crumbled into rainbow dust before disappearing. He wasn't being held anymore, but he doubted he could run anywhere that she couldn't reach.
"So, you've given me your soul...," she smiled at Gregg. "... as a reward, you'll be the first to know the new me. You may call me Regal Ballisea," she smirked. "I am Unique Soul #61, El Arcoíris. Now, praise me."