Chapter 17 The Kindness of an Angel.*

That sweet voice. Strangely familiar and full of worry. Rumbled like the roar of thunder in Azmodiel's ears. It was that voice, he was sure. The girl's voice was the same voice he heard before being sucked into that grimoire page.

A memory came to his mind, the chains that dragged him to this plane penetrating deep into his being and merging with it, establishing the confines of his new prison, though it was not clear to him what it was

Azmodiel had not reached the mortal world on his own, no. As much as he wanted to boast of taking his own fate into his own hands, it wasn't the case. The reality is that he had been invoked, apparently, by that voice. Seeing the mortal world again and having to deal with those creatures had caused priorities to spread like glass slammed to the ground. 

Then he remembered another emotion. One that, even in his years of freedom, he did not think he could have. A deep fear was born in Azmodiel's heart and as if trying to corroborate his deepest terrors, like a scavenger on the prowl, he sought the source of his new confinement, a powerful and irresistible compulsion flooded his mind. He felt then that his will was tied to another.

The impulse, between submission and obedience, was dozens off. Ever more intense than what he felt when he received orders from his father. In those, at least he had a tiny margin of opinion, he could express himself or even deny himself based on his convictions. But now Azmodiel felt obliged to comply, and it was not an immortal or powerful entity that he had to obey, but the words of the young human who was on her knees, helpless, in front of him. 

Azmodiel felt shame and ridicule. Subjugated to the will of a human, of all creatures. 

Azmodiel's pride fed the flames of his anger, to dubious levels. Taking on a more grotesque and imposing form, seeing himself as a creature that completely clashes with all planes, both mortal and immortal.  He felt that something inside him had broken, this was even worse than being chained in that cave.

He was chained to the whims of a mere mortal child.

Azmodiel... He, who was once known as "The Devourer of light." He, who consumed those overlords, being the only survivor of the ultimate prison of the underworld… Now tied to a girl! 

As he approached the young woman. His psyche lost any sign of rationality, the echoes of his mind turned into nothing more than crazed bestial growls clamoring for the girl's death. Meanwhile, Alice was too focused on her mother to notice that both the face and the form of the being became grotesque and distorted. Witnessing his thoughts of disdain and desperation, one could only imagine the chaos that was occurring within him. 

As he resumed serenity and with it his most pleasing form to the eye "hold the girl with my arms, pull her until her body splits in two, sprinkling her blood and organs on the ground" stretched his arms in the direction of the fragile human "while she loses her life in agony,  I get my freedom back."

"It will be so easy," Azmodie indulged in the thought. But the golden chains that now plagued Azmodiel's soul squeezed deep into his being, stopping him in his tracks. Any action he might take and any desires he might have at the time. His will didn't matter, his body didn't respond to him. Ignoring both Azmodiel's will and madness, it seemed that the girl's orders were final. 

The girl's voice tinged with despair called him, "Azmodiel, do something." At that moment, his body regained movement, as if he had received permission. The being intensified the purple glow in his eyes and confirmed his terror. He saw what he was looking for but did not want to find it. He watched as the golden chains, which had bound him for thousands of years, extended from within. They were no longer so solid, not in a physical form but rather currents of energy, some visible only by special means, however, that did not make them less resistant than before. 

Seeing that Azmodiel didn't help her mother, Alice began to panic, not knowing what else to do, she could only beg again. "Azmodiel! Please save my mother." The being confirmed something, upon hearing the girl's plea again, he felt that compulsion bend his will. He was still a prisoner, and that girl was nothing more than the new form of his prison.

Finally, Azmodiel had to accept the truth. With a gulp of saliva, he followed with his eyes the play of golden glitters shaped like chains to where he connected the other end. These extended in front of him, to the chest of the human, or so it would seem at first sight. With further concentration, he noticed that in her, he could see a hidden grimoire, the culprit of his new hell.

Even if he felt compelled to obey, the girl couldn't ask him for the impossible. The reason Azmodiel had not yet obeyed, what he interpreted as orders from his new "master", was not because he was able to resist. It was for something sadder and more inevitable, something that not even Azmodiel could reverse, he was simply unable to comply with the order.

Azmodiel was thinking about a thousand things at once, but having regained much of his sanity, he opted for a smarter choice than just lashing out at the girl like a vicious beast. With a combination of elegance and seduction, which for some reason came very naturally to him. 

Azmodiel had partially confirmed this fact when he used his purple vision. With it, he could see beyond the mortal veil, not only to find the chains but also all the streams of life on the planet. He could see Alice's rainbow connection to this stream, but inside Ana, there was nothing anymore. There was no essence, no connection, no color.

He bowed to the girl and spoke to her for the first time. 

"I'm so sorry little one, there's nothing I can do for that woman."