by George Fry
His two blades fell upright in the drink. It was a bizarre technique, but one he was clearly accustomed to using. One final hand lunged at him from behind, but he quickly grabbed his swords and spiralled towards it, cleaving the meat to shreds.
“Child’s play.”
With the final obstacle conquered, he finally reached the shore of Catherine’s violent sanctuary. Bushes were stained with blood, trees were felled and in the epicentre of it all was Catherine, eagerly awaiting her next challenger.
“Look at you…” Stolz commented. “You’ve grown into a true demon, thirsty for battle, like I’m your scheduled entertainment.”
Catherine lunged at Stolz, who blocked her with his swords. Just like with Dale, she refused to let go and held onto them tight, regardless if the blades pierced her skin, locking them in place.
“You’re completely consumed by your powers. A rush you’ve denied yourself all these years and you wasted no time capitalising on them. You can’t even speak anymore. There’s no time for idle chit chat, when your blood is screaming for violence.
But, you can’t rely solely on those demonic instincts forever. If you can’t learn to control your power, then you’ll die before you reach your full potential and that would be a shame.”
With a burst of black energy, Stolz blew Catherine off of him as he prepared to face her with his full might. He crossed his blades over his head and readied himself.
“I will put you down here and now! Let the might of a true demon warrior wake you from this nightmare!
May the souls of the fallen lend me their undying valour! May their hopes and despair, their forgotten dreams and empty screams invigorate my spirit!”
Stolz surrounded himself with a black aura, crackling wildly as he prepared… nothing.
His aura dissipated and his power remained still.
Watching from a distance, even Dale could tell something was wrong.
“Um… what happened?”
“Why’s he just standing there?” Amanda criticised.
“I don’t know, this is usually the part where he powers up.”
Even Stolz was baffled.
“I do not understand… Hundreds of demons fell here, why can’t I absorb their souls?”
A smug smirk slowly crossed Catherine’s face, she couldn’t contain herself, building from a self-satisfied chuckle to mocking, wild laughter, she was ecstatic.
Suddenly, large meat hands rose from the river of blood, covering all sides. A complete containment, preventing Stolz from escaping. That’s when he realised.
“Impossible… these large fists, her claws and spikes. They weren’t just extensions of her body… they were molded from the corpses of the fallen… I can’t absorb their power, because she’s already stolen it for herself…”
“Gotcha!”
A corpse fist burst from the ground, beneath Stolz’ feet. For the first time, he was genuinely caught off-guard.
“It burrowed underground!?”
It flung him into the air, where he was left in perfect pummeling position. The large hands surrounding the bloody sanctuary flew towards him and rapidly beat him senseless in a crimson flurry.
The impact violently shook his body around as his armour was bent out of shape. If the relentless assault didn’t stop soon, he would die.
Catherine enjoyed watching her corpse fists brutally demolishing her opponent. It was pure bliss. Until a rocket suddenly blew up in her face, knocking her down and releasing Stolz from his beating.
“Holy shit! Are you okay!?” Dale entered the sanctuary, aiding Stolz.
“What are you doing, you fool!?” Stolz yelled. “She’s at too much of an advantage here! You have to retreat!”
“Don’t worry about me, I’ve got cover. Let’s get you out of here.”
As Dale made his escape, Amanda fired a storm of bullets in Catherine’s face, keeping her pinned down.
“Stay right there, ya crazy bitch!”
Unable to carry his massive weight, Dale dragged Stolz to safety. Even if it was through a river of blood and viscera. It wasn’t a pleasant experience, but with backup from Amanda, he successfully got the armoured knight out of harm’s way.
“So, what’s the plan now?” Amanda asked.
“I don’t know… it sucks, but we - CAR!”
The two ducked as a small vehicle soared passed them, exploding in the distance.
“Shit… oh, right. I think we might have to wait for Drifter.”
“He’s been gone a while now. How do you know if he’s even coming back?”
“Why wouldn’t he?”
“Are you dense!? You heard what he said! He’s only interested in Locke!”
“But, what do we do?”
“We’ll just have to sort this out ourselves. Otherwise, who knows what damage that lunatic will cause to herself or others if we don’t stop her now.”
Dale let out a pained snicker.
“What are you laughing at?”
“It’s funny… I keep trying to act like the hero, but I never realised how much I relied on Drifter to do the heavy lifting for me. And now that I have the chance to prove myself, the people I spared all died and now... I don’t know what to do…”
“To be honest… I don’t know what I’m doing either…” Amanda said as she took a sniper shot at Catherine, preventing her from tossing another car.
“I’m just fighting because I need to. Because no one else can.”
“Maybe that’s all the justification you need. A true hero fights because he needs to!”
“Wait! You’re not just gonna run in there, are you!? Who knows what other moves she’s got up her sleeve!”
“Fuck it! I’m going in anyway! I don’t care what she’s got, I’ll always be faster than her!”
Dale sprinted off at max speed, with Amanda sighing to herself.
“I guess I’ll cover for ya.”
Emerging from the river of blood, the giant corpse hands materialised, but by the time they were ready, Dale had already passed them and infiltrated Catherine’s sanctuary.
“Too slow, Catherine. Finished with your temper tantrum yet?”
In response, a shadow suddenly appeared over Dale as a car crashed on top of him. Luckily, he dodged to the side at the last second, even luckier, it didn’t explode in his face.
“I’m assuming that’s a no.”
“Go die.” Catherine choked.
“Hey! Fuck you! No, I mean… look, I don’t want to hurt you, but I can’t let you fall deeper into whatever the hell all this is!
Killing those demons was one thing, but I’m not going to let you hurt innocent people! I’m stopping you right here, before anything like that can happen!”
Catherine cared little for Dale’s words and raised her hand in preparation to absorb more dead cells. A gunshot suddenly rang out, nailing the demon in the eye.
“Now, Dale!” Amanda called.
Dale rushed in while Catherine was still recoiling and dealt a blow to her stomach, hoping to inflict some kind of damage. She stood firm, even with one eye shot out, she still had the energy to punch back into Dale’s face and send him flying into the crashed car.
She took her hand off her eye, already fully healed. Not even Amanda’s guns were strong enough to fight against Catherine’s demonic regeneration.
With Dale now the one recoiling it was her chance to attack, but the moment she moved, another gunshot rang out, piercing her leg. Not even demonic regeneration made her immune to the stinging sensation of a bullet.
Catherine had enough of Amanda’s meddling and threw up a large wall of dead cells in front of her sanctuary, preventing further intervention.
“That bitch!” Amanda gasped.
More dead cells gathered from behind, merging onto her arms and forming massive claws. Her sharp fingers extended towards Dale, but even though he was dazed he still managed to duck under them and shred them with his arm blade.
“I ain’t dead yet.
” He taunted. “Wait, what smells like gasoline?”
Catherine wasn’t aiming for Dale’s head, but the fuel tank of the car, now leaking petrol. A single spark was all she needed.
“N-no… you wouldn’t…”
With a swipe of her massive claw she cleaved through the car, severing the electrics, creating sparks that ignited the petrol, setting the vehicle ablaze, bursting into a raging inferno. Dale’s body wasn’t spared an inch as he was consumed by the flames.
Catherine cackled to herself, amused once again by the futility of her opponent’s struggle, but her laughter was cut short when she realised, despite being literally on fire, Dale was still standing.
“But… why aren't you dead!?”
“Because a true hero never dies!”
Still burning intensely, Dale rushed Catherine and slammed his fiery fist into her face. Catherine was so dumbfounded by Dale’s indignation she didn’t even try to defend herself.
Dale suddenly latched onto the she-demon.
“You wanna know what else is highly flammable? Corpses!”
Her claws, forged from the bodies of the dead burst into flame which quickly travelled throughout her body. No amount of healing powers could numb the pain of her searing flesh.
She screeched in agony as Dale prepared his final assault.
With the last of his strength and his lightning speed, he pummeled the living hell out of Catherine. He didn’t care that his own skin was burning or if he would even survive for much longer, he was entirely focused on causing as much physical pain as possible.
Catherine’s body already had trouble fending off the fire, she could do naught but take every one of Dale’s blows head on. Finally putting an end to the onslaught, Dale laid a smackdown that finally crashed Catherine into the dirt.
“That should… cool you off…”
Satisfied with his efforts, Dale’s flames petered out and he fell unconscious.
The flames scaring Catherine soon burnt out and she sloppily hoisted herself up. Her skin was peeling, her clothes were ash, if it wasn’t for her hair miraculously surviving, she’d be completely exposed. Still, Catherine was in a far weaker and pitiful state than she ever hoped to be in.
However, even after her beating, her demonic hatred was still in full effect. She took one look at Dale’s unmoving body and took the opportunity to end his misery. Until a white bullet shot straight through her shoulder.
“That’s enough, Catherine.” Amanda called, standing just off to the demon’s side. “The fight’s over.”
Catherine refused to give in. Amanda was just a normal human, even in her weakened state she could still destroy her. She roared, but was silenced by another bullet in her opposite shoulder. Her body couldn’t even withstand the projectiles from a measly handgun.
“You got two choices. Either you give up and snap out of whatever all this is, or I put more bullets through ya.”
“Choices?”
Tears started welling up in Catherine’s eyes. Her human personality slipping through the cracks of her demonic facade.
“I had… no choices… demons took my family… humans took my freedom… nothing I did... would change that… I’m a monster… loathed by humanity… and outcasted by demons… I hate all of them.”
“You’re just like us. You have no idea what you’re doing anymore. Completely aimless.”
“You don’t understand… you’re still accepted… by friends and family… I have nothing! You’re nothing like me!”
Catherine tried, again, to lash out at Amanda, but she was too quick on the trigger, with a couple more shots to her chest, keeping her at bay.
“Listen to me, you damn idiot! My family’s gone too and the only surviving member was turned into a nightmarish abomination!
Don’t, for even a second, suggest that’s somehow better than whatever you went through! This isn’t a competition!”
Unable to fight Amanda head on, Catherine used her last resort, and tried to use Dale’s life as a bargaining chip, but Amanda, already steaming, refused to fall into her desperate ploy.
She fired a shot through Catherine’s hand, causing her to back off from Dale.
“Don’t you lay a goddamn finger on that boy’s head, or I swear I’ll put a bullet between those pretty red eyes of yours! I already executed my own sister and I won’t hesitate to do the same to you!”
Her entire body was screaming in agony, but Catherine’s demonic pride was far too strong. With a final roar she attempted to jump at Amanda, but was swiftly brought down by a single bullet through the skull. This time, she fell to the ground, motionless.
Amanda shivered at what she had done, but didn’t waste too much time thinking about it. She picked up Dale’s body and took her leave.
“Hey… what happened…?” Dale asked, just barely regaining consciousness in Amanda’s arms.
“Nothing. It’s over.”
Chapter 16: Unlocked
✽✽✽
“Weather’s pretty ominous today...” Richard noted, leaning on his replacement car at the foot of the bridge, on the edge of the Isle.
Down the long road ahead of him laid Newport, basked in the grim red light of the dark clouds above it. Something was stirring in the city, but Richard could neither see nor do nothing about it.
“After all those demons fell from the sky, I thought all Hell would break loose, but I haven’t heard a peep since then. There’s no fire or smoke. I wonder if they got bored and left when they realised there was no one to torment?
Still… where did Drifter go? I go to all the trouble of digging up his past, only for him to say nothing and leave. Why? Does he not remember? Why did his memories just disappear like that? What happened to the man who became Drifter?”
Richard could have spent the entire day wracking his brain, but nothing would come of it. There was no evidence left of Drifter’s previous existence. He was completely unpersoned.
“What the hell is going on!?”
He looked over at the city in exasperation. Then, he caught sight of a strange, massive object ascending into the sky. Richard couldn’t make out what it was and quickly grabbed a pair of binoculars, stored in the dashboard of his car. Upon closer examination, he became nauseous and anxious over what he found.
After having a bullet blasted through her head, Catherine’s body laid motionless on the ground while Amanda carried Dale out of danger. Their battle was over. She laid him down on the grass beside Stolz, who was equally exhausted.
“You two alright?” She asked.
“Being cared to by a human... “ Stolz lamented. “How humiliating…”
“Yeah, you’re fine.”
“Hey… Amanda…” Dale asked, just barely staying conscious. “Does it look bad?”
“What? The injuries?”
“No, those’ll heal… I mean my clothes…”
“Oh… they’re all burnt to hell. Just charred rags now.”
“Damn… Reine’s gonna disappointed…”
“At least you’ve got your priorities straight.”
“What happened to Catherine?”
“She’s… I... I did what I had to... “
“Oh…”
“Why didn’t you finish her off?” Stolz asked.
“What?” Amanda responded, baffled. “I just did, didn’t I?”
“No, she’s still alive.”
“But, I put a bullet through her head!”
“And you think that’s enough to stop a demon like her?”
“I saw her fall! It’s over! ...right?”
“If she were truly dead, the sky would have returned to normal.”
A feeling of dread washed over Amanda as she looked up into the dark, crimson clouds, still swirling around them.
“I told you.” Stolz continued. “Only a powerful demon can corrupt the atmosphere. That bullet to the head may have knocked her down, but it won’t finish her. By drawing on the power of the hundreds of deceased, her streng
th has been significantly magnified.
If you really wanted to end this, you would have destroyed her body while she was still unconscious.”
“But, I shot her in the head!”
“There are many demons with exceptional endurance and regenerative powers, which are naturally enhanced when their power grows. Even a fatal blow can heal in seconds, if left unattended. Of course, that doesn’t mean the recovery period will always be pleasant.”
“What are you trying to say?”
“You shot her in the head, damaging the brain. I can’t even imagine what kind emotional trauma that must have brought upon her already fragile psyche.”
“Oh shit…”
Catherine stumbled to her feet. She was cold, confused and scared. Standing naked in the middle of a bloody wasteland, surrounded in death and coated in an oppressive red tinge. She had no understanding of where she was.
“Grandpa? Grandma?” She meagerly called out, shivering from the frigid wind, unable to recall anything that had happened, her memories regressed to weeks earlier.
She stood in the silence, waiting for a reply but receiving nothing, she was completely alone. Her body ached, her skin, irritated all over, like a stinging rash and her head pounded intensely. She was in pain, and didn’t know why.
Catherine tried to remember, but her mind was blank. She desperately tried to stop herself from crying, but tears quickly welled up Where was she? What happened to her grandparents? Why was she surrounded by corpses?
Her head ached so intensely she couldn’t focus, her vision blurred. It was all like a horrible fever dream, unable to hold on to a single thought before another awful possibility barged into her brain.
Were they dead? Did someone kill them? Who killed them? Did she kill them? Was she attacked? Was she violated? Was she dead?
Anger. Hatred. Fear. Sadness. Shock. Confusion. A maelstrom of emotions amassed in her damaged skull, unable to contain them. She needed release, to purge her disturbing thoughts and to rid herself of her unbearable migraines. Eventually, she snapped.
With a gut wrenching scream that echoed throughout the city, Catherine became overwhelmed by her emotions and her powers exploded. She was engulfed in a burning red aura as the blood swirling around her came to a boil, with the discarded corpses of the demons she had killed melting in the heat.