Cloudhawk himself was drenched in a cold sweat. It wasn’t the first time something like this had happened, though. He’d felt the specter of death when he saved the Bloodsoaked Queen. In the darkness of his shack, she’d nearly burnt him to a cinder with her Burning Angels. The stone had saved his life that night too.
Cloudhawk didn’t have time to sit there like an idiot and reminisce about the past. Holding the Queen over his back with one hand, he thrust his staff at the demon’s chest with the other. The demon was, of course, more than capable of deflecting the boy’s feeble attack… and yet, he seemed frozen in place, dumbfounded.
Bang! Cloudhawk put all his strength into the thrust, driving it into the demon’s chest. In that instant, his exorcist rod belched its power and sent the monster flying back dozens of feet. However, despite the ragged appearance of the cloak that protected the demon, Cloudhawk’s attack didn’t seem to displace even a single thread.
That hit would have knocked any normal wastelander out of commission, but it didn’t even wrinkle the demon’s clothes. Unbelievable. Yet more surprising was that this child, with only minimal ability, was able to knock the demon back even when the mighty Bloodsoaked Queen couldn’t land a single blow. The scene was nothing short of bewildering.
While the onlookers were shocked, Cloudhawk himself knew he had no hope of defeating the demon. After creating some space between him and the monster, he fled without hesitation.
“How interesting…”
The demon slowly got back to his feet. There was a sinister glimmer in his scarlet eyes, but no one could fathom what was going through his mind. Ever so slightly, he turned up his right hand to which the nearby piles of sand began to react. They coalesced to form a long half-moon shaped khopesh sword. Though made of sand, it was sturdy enough to cut a slab of metal the size of a man in two.
The hellspawn brought his arm back, ready to throw the weapon when suddenly, a bullet the length of a finger came tearing his way.
Crack!
The bullet struck the demon in the center of his chest. It didn’t hit him with the same force as Cloudhawk’s staff, so he only staggered back a couple of paces. However, it was fast, sharp, and compact, made deadlier by the fact that it was fired from an upgraded sniper rifle.
Cloudhawk’s exorcist rod hadn’t done any damage, but this sniper bullet managed to lodge two-thirds of itself into the monster – or, more accurately, into the shell-like armor that covered him. A cold and lethal light crept into the demon’s eyes, but before he could react, a second bullet was already on its way.
“Do you think these piddling human trinkets can harm me?” The demon reached out and, with his dark red nails, plucked the bullet from the air. He stared in the direction where the attack had come from. His supernatural vision cut through the ruins to fix on a tall and slim figure carrying a lengthy rifle. After the second shot, he was already up and running.
With as much concern as one might show a mosquito, the demon pinched the bullet buried in his chest and pulled it free. It left behind a small indentation, but otherwise, there was no indication it’d done any damage.
The wind began to violently blow. The demon rose into the air amidst the gusting winds, preparing to chase after the sniper. However, he paused as he floated by Artemis. Without looking at her, he spoke, “You are the outpost’s new leader?”
Artemis was overwhelmed by the menacing, ice-cold demeanor of the monster as he drew near. She could feel droplets of nervous sweat trace lines down her cheeks. Any thought she had of confronting the demon had long been extinguished, and in fact, all she could manage was a meek response, “I… I am.”
“You shall have a chance to live.” His words were as cold as the grave, “The other two have not yet escaped. Find them and bring them to me. Whether you live or die depends on the success of this mission.”
Artemis’s eyebrows knit tightly as she scowled. She was more than happy to kill the demon hunter, but as for Cloudhawk… her hesitation was evident.
At last, the demon turned his head and looked at her. As its evil gaze fixed upon her, the hesitation vanished from her heart like smoke in a tempest. She had transformed from a fierce leopardess to a frightened kitten. All uncertainty and resistance vanished. “I will!” She waved her hands at the soldiers gathered nearby. “Let’s go find them!”
The demon said nothing more, rising into the air to pursue the figure that had fled into the darkness.
After taking two shots at the demon, Mantis made for the relative safety of the night. As he fled, he felt a strong breeze rise up from behind. He couldn’t see what was coming from behind him, but he knew the speed and power of his foe. He’d gained the attention of this monster. There was little chance of escape.
Mantis stopped and slowly turned around. His expression never changed, even when he saw the savage figure and his murderous red eyes approach. He looked back, perfectly calm.
The demon stopped a few feet away. For several seconds, he looked the assassin up and down searchingly. They simply stared at each other this way for a time while a strange sense hung in the air.
At last, the demon spoke, breaking the silence, “It really is you.”
Mantis pushed his glasses higher on the bridge of his nose. “It’s been a long time.”
The demon’s voice was thick with discontent, “You’ve known for quite some time, I imagine?”
He was silent for a moment. “So then... what are you planning to do?”
Cloudhawk ran with wild abandon towards the outpost’s exit. When he got there, he saw that it was crowded with figures barring the path. He skidded to a halt, and it was then that he heard the footsteps catching up from behind. Artemis, hammer raised, was almost upon them.
Cloudhawk stared at the predatory wastelander woman, glaring at her with a dark expression. “Artemis, do you have to kill us?”
She looked fiercely back at him. “You fuckin' liar! You said you wanted to stay, that you’d help me lead this place! You broke that promise when you decided to save the demon hunter’s life.”
Cloudhawk was speechless.
He didn’t remember agreeing to anything. He said he’d think about it!
“This is different. What’s between me and the demon is personal. I can’t just surrender.” Cloudhawk shook his head. “It has nothing to do with you. Let me go!”
He ventured a step towards the exit, but the warriors that had surrounded them raised their weapons.
Artemis heaved her hammer high and rushed towards him. “The demon told me to bring you back. If you escape, he’s gonna kill me! I can’t hold back this time so watch out!”
Cloudhawk leapt back and Artemis’s hammer slammed into a nearby wall. The stone collapsed under the force. Half a second later, she was back on the attack and swept her massive hammer towards him. He staggered to the side to avoid her.
“Then come with us!” Cloudhawk’s face was grim. She wasn’t playing. “The demon has this place now. You’d be nothing but a puppet. Don’t you understand? Is it better to live here under his rule than to come with us? We can find somewhere safe and start again!”
90 Fleeing the Outpost
Artemis was strong. There was no denying that. Cloudhawk had no interest in fighting her. What’s more, the danger grew with every second they delayed. Once the demon caught up with them, there would be no chance of escape.
He hadn’t spent a lot of time with this woman but compared to the Bloodsoaked Queen, they shared similar outlooks and values. They’d spoken about many things he could never discuss with the Queen, shared ideas she wouldn’t understand. Their chats had brought them closer, and Cloudhawk at least had no desire for it to come to this. In all the world, Cloudhawk didn’t have many friends, and he considered Artemis one of them.
He continued to try and talk her down, “This world is big. I refuse to believe Greenland Outpost is the only place for us. I know that together, we have the ability to find somewhere better. Why would you agree t
o be on that fucker’s leash? Artemis, we can’t waste time – come with us, quickly!”
The outpost soldiers that’d come with her brandished their weapons, ready to join the fight.
“Hold your ground! This kid is mine!” She wasn’t going to take this from him. She allowed her hammer to slip from her shoulder and thud onto the ground as she glared his way. “You’ve been here so long, and yet, you and I haven’t wrangled yet. You and me. One on one!”
“Does it have to be this way?”
“Cut the shit! Today, one of us is dying!”
Artemis face was a mask of rage as she heaved up her hammer and charged at Cloudhawk. She bore down on him with deadly ferocity, with every attack intended to kill. If he was half a step late, his bones would be crushed to powder. He didn’t want it to be a fight to the death, but Artemis’s attacks held nothing back. He couldn’t just sit by and wait for death.
“Why don’t you ever fuckin’ listen?!”
Anger swelled up in Cloudhawk as well. He thought Artemis might be different, but in the end, she was willing to kill him to save her own life and keep leadership of the outpost. “Fine. If you wanna fight, then I’ll give you a fuckin’ fight!”
Artemis’s hammer came crashing down like a meteorite from the heavens. If it hit Cloudhawk, there would be nothing recognizable left. As power surged through his exorcist rod, he brought it up to meet her hammer, and at the moment they collided, that power was released to buffer her blow.
Clang!
He was knocked back fifteen feet, and a nasty pain radiated from his wrist. He thought using the staff was more than sufficient, but he was wrong. However, there were only a few in the outpost – maybe even the wastelands – who could face down one of Artemis’s attacks and survive.
This wasn’t how he was going to die!
Cloudhawk’s improvements were evident, but he wasn’t going to survive this situation against Artemis on his own. Beyond her, there were also scores of outpost soldiers closing in, and sooner rather than later, that demon would return. If he didn’t find a way to get out now, his chance of escaping would drop to zero.
Thus, with a plan to escape in mind, Cloudhawk channeled his psyche through his cloak. Like a leaf floating on the breeze, he dashed through the throng of outpost soldiers. Under orders from Artemis to hold their attacks, they weren’t sure what to do.
“Fuck!”
Cloudhawk swung his staff, and it whistled through the air so quickly that it left ripples in its wake. A handful of warriors were caught off guard and were knocked to the ground. With the Queen on his shoulder, Cloudhawk leapt over them towards freedom.
“He’s getting away!” The soldiers were ready to give chase. “Get him!”
“Hold your fucking ground!” She stalked towards the crowd of soldiers like a lioness. “I said he’s mine, and if any of you pieces of shit try to join in, I’ll crush your fuckin’ brainpan!”
Artemis was a well-known name in the outpost. Her temper was famous, and they knew that once she got angry, it didn’t matter if you were friend or kin. You stayed out of her way. The soldiers all exchanged quiet, nervous glances, but none of them dared disobey. If she wanted to smash every one of them into pulp, she would, and she’d do it easily.
Cloudhawk’s strength was surprising, but he wasn’t a match for Artemis. She could easily deal with him herself!
The outpost warriors were left alone, dumbfounded, and unsure of what to do as Artemis and Cloudhawk disappeared.
With the help of his cloak, Cloudhawk was fast, but he was also carrying someone, which affected his speed. Artemis wasn’t a speed-focused metahuman, but her powerful legs helped her bound over terrain with impressive momentum. She soon caught up.
Goddamnit! Is this woman really dead-set on fighting?
Cloudhawk stopped and spun around again, furious. Artemis was bearing down on him with her hammer raised when she threw something at him with her left hand. He thought it was some sort of weapon and made to dodge, but she’d thrown it so slowly. As it came his way, he saw that it wasn’t a weapon but a syringe.
“Panacea?” Cloudhawk caught it instinctively. It was the last injection from Hydra’s stash. “Artemis, this –“
She stared at him with hard eyes. “What the fuck is your dopey ass standing around for? Run!”
He immediately understood her intention. She’d been acting since there were too many soldiers around for her to simply let him go. If she’d tried, the soldiers definitely wouldn’t have let it happen. Artemis was helping him escape.
Except she was a shit actress!
Yes, she couldn’t fake it, so her attacks had to be real. Each attack would have turned his guts to soup, but she had to throw them in order to keep her heart’s desire secret. No one suspected anything, so when she went racing after him, no one thought twice.
Cloudhawk heaved a sigh of relief and promptly injected the Queen with the panacea. “Next time give me some sorta hint, would ya? I coulda been hurt!”
“You dipshit,” she spat. “You belong to me. You think I’m gonna kill what’s mine?”
Who would have expected her answer!?
If Cloudhawk had been even a little bit slower, a little bit weaker, she would have straight up murdered him. She hadn’t held back one bit!
The Bloodsoaked Queen started to recover immediately after the injection, but their foe had done a number on her. He didn’t think she’d be up for a fight any time soon. But even if she could, what would that accomplish? After such a brutal beating, would she be ready for a second round?
Cloudhawk blurted out, “Artemis, why are you helping me?”
“I told you – you belong to me. If I don’t help you, then who will?” As they ran for safety, she rolled her eyes at his silly questions. “Of course, there’s another reason. The demon doesn’t know how that freak in black died, but once he figures it out, you think he’ll go easy on me? I’m no idiot! I have to get the fuck outta here too!”
Truth be told, that was probably the main reason!
Cloudhawk thought back to their fight with the black-clad mutant. Artemis’s surprise attack was what slowed the freak down, and without her intervention, Cloudhawk absolutely would have been killed. The mutant was first among the demon’s seven henchmen. His status wasn’t completely due to ability, but rather due to the likely possibility that he was the first one the demon recruited. He had probably been the demon’s longest-serving subordinate.
Once the demon discovered that his most important disciple had been killed by Artemis, she could forget about staying alive.
Right now, even the demon hunter was up shit creek without a paddle, canoe, or nose plugs. Greenland Outpost had no hope of freedom. Unlike Salamander, Artemis hadn’t spent most of her life in the outpost, but it was where she’d spent her most formative years. She was unwilling to leave, but there was no other choice.
At least, she still had Cloudhawk, that cute little morsel.
When she imagined adventures with Cloudhawk, she thought it wouldn’t be such a bad life. As for the demon hunter that couldn’t seem to do anything right, now that they had saved her life, they could tell her to fuck off!
Of course, Cloudhawk didn’t know Artemis’s plans. The injection continued to work its way through the Queen’s battered body, helping her heal. He knew she’d recovered consciousness already, but she had remained mute as a log the entire time.
He didn’t even need to think about it to know what was up. This time, she’d suffered quite the blow.
Ever since coming to the wastelands, the Bloodsoaked Queen had been practically invincible. The only people to get the drop on her had to use dirty tricks, traps, or full-on sieges. Even back in the Elysian lands, she’d been the most talented among her peers! A demon hunter at eleven. An elite demon hunter at fourteen.
She was a singular talent the likes of which had never been seen, truly amazing. One after another, she broke every demon hunter record in the Elysian lands. S
he was the only hunter with a chance to become a Master before the age of thirty.
This was her history, and today, she was pummeled into the dirt. A failure.
Her failure was so straightforward, so brutal. So absolute!
She’d given up her honor and future to waste a year scouring the wastelands. In the end, it was all a cruel joke. She couldn’t even manage to die with the demon.
The Queen was too young, so she’d never even participated in a proper demon hunt. Without that experience, she didn’t know what to expect or how strong a demon was. If she were a little more sensible, she’d realize that these monsters used to war with the gods themselves. They’d lost, but they were a race that could stand toe to toe against the most powerful beings in the universe. Was that not enough to explain her problems?
Cloudhawk tried to comfort her. “Don’t feel bad. It wasn’t a complete loss. At least, now we know how strong that fucker is. We’ll find somewhere to hide, train for a few years, and try again!”
The Bloodsoaked Queen shut her eyes, drained of all strength.
Before them stretched the oasis, barring the way to freedom.
Cloudhawk sighed at the sight, but no sooner did he allow himself to relax than all of his nerves go taut. His whole body shook, for he felt the waves of a relic’s power permeating the air.
“Watch out above!”
He barely had time to shout before the sky darkened, blackened by a hail of countless sandy arrows. They fell from the heavens like a plague of locusts, a deadly rain. And they were caught in the middle.
How strong was this monster? The scale of this attack was staggering!
91 A Bitter Victory
Under the hail of arrows raining on them from above, Cloudhawk and Artemis scattered. Cloudhawk carried the Bloodsoaked Queen into a nearby copse of trees, but not before a few of the arrows found him. They were as effective as any real arrows, but luckily, he had his cloak to protect him from the bulk of the damage. By the time they were safe, he was bruised from head to toe.
The Wastelander Page 64