Demon Seer

by Kurtis Eckstein

He tried to understand what she meant, but she still refused to reveal the truth. However, he at least knew that something they had seen in his mind had allowed him to live. She then began singing again, except this time it was different.

  She still had three voices, one he heard with his ears and one that mirrored it in her mind, as well as a third voice that was in her deepest thoughts…and he could still see her with his mind. But she wasn’t crying anymore…and she wasn’t alone. He was there with her, holding her mentally while he silently burned alive.

  The line between them blurred again, as she continued to hold him tightly both physically and mentally. Her embrace was so overwhelming and absolute that before long he began to forget that he was in a living hell. It began to feel more and more like heaven, and he found himself content just to remain there in her arms forever.

  She had created a mental oasis for him, somewhere to hide away from his physical torment. And so, he remained like that for a long time, held within her.

  After what seemed like another eternity, one much longer than the first, he noticed that the sounds had begun shifting in the world around them. The sounds of crickets were slowly being replaced by the sounds of birds chirping in the night.

  He opened his eyes to see that it was lighter outside, although he suspected that he would not have normally noticed the subtle difference as a human. It certainly was still dark – the sun hadn’t risen. And yet, somehow he could tell that the sun was slowly coming, edging closer to the edge of the horizon.

  Miriam noticed his revelation, commenting on it silently. Yes love, it will be daylight in a few of hours. It’s been about eight hours since I bit you. I really should move you before the sun rises. We can’t stay out in the open like this. But…

  But what? He wondered. Why wait? He turned his eyes back towards her, meeting her longing gaze.

  She was quiet for a few seconds before responding out loud. “I’m afraid.” She admitted. “I don’t want you to die. That’s why I’ve barely moved you. Your body is already so weak. You’re still bleeding internally, and I’m afraid that it won’t take much to push you back towards death.”

  The flames were continuing to rampage through his veins, and although his mind had strengthened to the point that he was able to focus despite the pain, he had no idea what condition his body was in because of the pain.

  He felt like he was dying, but he imagined that’s how everyone who had experienced this had felt. Which meant he had no way to determine just how close to death he really was. Her nose was the only thing indicating the severity of his condition.

  “How do I smell?” He asked.

  She immediately shook her head. “Not good. I’m…” She hesitated, as if she was almost afraid that saying her next thought would jinx him. “I’m surprised you’re even still alive.” She then paused again, unsure if she should continue. “And…now we have another problem…”

  Michael searched her mind to discover what she meant. And then he could see it: she could sense enemies approaching – lots of them. The two of them had been surrounded on all sides, their adversaries silently drawing near.

  Although, while he couldn’t hear anything despite his improving hearing, he realized Miriam could. The sound of footsteps quietly beating the ground, the sounds of clothing swishing with movement, the sound of metal clinking…They were human soldiers, and she had noticed their presence long before she could hear them.

  “Miriam,” he whispered urgently. “We need to go. Why are you waiting? They know about your kind! The detective, he had a picture of a demon.”

  She violently shook her head. “No, I can’t move you…I can’t risk it.” She abruptly tightened her embrace on him, pulling his head against her. She continued in a whisper. “I can’t lose you.”

  Knowing how she felt, he replied more gently. “But Miriam, they’ll see us…and then they’ll probably move us anyway. Assuming they don’t intend to kill us.”

  She shook her head again. “No, they will not move us, nor will they harm you. I won’t allow them to.”

  Normally, he would have pressed harder to try to convince her, but now that he could see into her mind he knew there was no hope of changing it. She was already fully resolved that she would neither move nor allow them to interfere.

  Michael sighed, briefly wincing from the pain in his lungs, when at that moment the footsteps were finally loud enough for him to hear as well. He doubted it would have been so loud, were it not for the sheer number of soldiers approaching them. The quiet rustling their collective boots made against the grass was unmistakable to the point that he wondered if his less sensitive hearing, prior to being bitten, would have also picked it up.

  As they drew closer, one of the soldiers spoke on a radio very quietly. “Sighted. It has a civilian hostage.” Michael couldn’t hear a response – he suspected the soldier had an earpiece in – but all the men began to pick up their pace.

  He wondered why they would send so many, but then remembered they were out in the open, which meant the soldiers were probably already close enough to be seen if he turned to look. Likely, since the military knew they couldn’t hide as they approached, they had ensured all exits had been blocked off in case Miriam ran to try to escape.

  They must have come to the same conclusion I had – that her wings can’t be used to fly. Michael thought to himself.

  Miriam silently agreed that they likely had no idea of her capabilities. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have come anyway. However, she still intended to disguise herself as a human to throw them off, at least until Michael suggested otherwise.

  Whispering, he spoke quickly. “If we are going to stay here, then you might as well just show them what you are. They already know anyway, but they might not know you can make yourself look like a human. Which means you will just be giving them more information about your capabilities.”

  Oh! Miriam seemed surprised. You’re right… She then paused. Then maybe I should make sure they can see just how inhuman I am.

  Confused, he watched as Miriam unfolder her wings from around them and brought them up high into the air. She then arched her head up to make her horns more visible in the moonlight.

  The effect was instantaneous. The quiet rhythmic pounding of footsteps collectively slowed and became out of sync as soldiers stumbled. They knew what their target was, but seeing the monster in person, while surrounded by darkness, would make anyone hesitate.

  From that moment on, their approach continued at a more cautious pace, until they all stopped. Michael could see them now from the corner of his eye – a wall of soldiers completely circling them in a thick human barrier.

  Then without warning, Miriam swatted something out of the air with her wing, just before the sound of a gunshot reached his ears. Michael tried to see what was happening, but she was attempting to keep him as still as possible, holding his head against her shoulder with her hand. She was still infinitely stronger than him.

  However, as she plucked the object out of the grass with the bony fingers of her wings, Michael could see in her mind what it was – a tranquillizer dart.

  They’re trying to drug you, so they can bring you in alive. He told her.

  She seemed amused by the idea. They have no idea. This can’t pierce my skin. The only reason I hit it out of the air is because I didn’t want to risk it hitting you when it bounced off me.

  Oh! Michael was shocked. While he had believed her when she had confidently suggested she could defend them, he hadn’t realized she was actually bullet-proof.

  There had been a short pause when the first tranquilizer had been removed from the air, because the soldiers hadn’t seen it happen. It was too fast.

  However, now that Miriam was holding the dart in the air with her wing, there was an audible acceleration in everyone’s heart rates. Michael was surprised he could hear it now – it was eerie hearing something he had never been able to hear before.

  Abruptly, several more darts were fired, all
falling to the ground a few feet away from their target. The gunshots echoed throughout the empty field in the distance.

  Miriam allowed one of the shots to hit her in the back, hoping they would notice the darts wouldn’t work even if they did make contact – they did notice. It bounced off as if it had hit a brick wall, landing in the grass behind her.

  One of the men, clearly the leader, spoke urgently into his radio. “Delta-Bravo. We have a problem, Wildfire ineffective. I repeat, Wildfire ineffective.”

  The crackling response was immediate. “Move to Rosemary. Engage with caution.”

  The man replied with ‘copy,’ before yelling abruptly at his targets. “Separate and put your hands in the air! I repeat, separate now, and put your hands in the air!”

  When Miriam didn’t budge, he took a few steps forward with his gun ready, followed quickly by several other soldiers at different angles. Michael knew most of them didn’t have tranquilizer guns – their guns were lethal. Drugging her had only been their first plan. The man yelled again, more aggressively. “I said, hands in the air!”

  Miriam still didn’t respond, remaining motionless as if she hadn’t even heard him.

  What are you going to do? He wondered, before seeing the plan in her mind. “Oh!” He said out loud, surprised.

  When the soldiers had all moved close enough, Miriam rapidly sliced their guns in half with meticulous accuracy, causing them all to jump back in shock that their weapons had split in between their hands. She then turned her head to address the leader.

  “Come any closer and it’ll be your arms next!” She shouted. “I’m not moving from this spot until I decide to, so unless you want to die I suggest you keep your distance! That’s your only warning!”

  The leader’s attitude changed immediately as he mentally recovered from losing his weapon. He suddenly motioned for the men who had stepped forward to fall back. Although, a few had already taken several steps away, even before being told to do so. None of them seemed interested in testing to see if she was bluffing – she wasn’t anyway. Michael could see that. Her only priority was keeping him alive, and she was going to do anything necessary to guarantee that.

  She looked back down at him, her crimson gaze longing. Please don’t concern yourself with them love. Just focus on staying alive. I’ll worry about everything else.

  Weakly coughing, he nodded. The taste of blood in his mouth told him his body wasn’t getting better yet. He was still on the edge of death. He knew that the burning inside him might be what was saving his life – her venom was the only thing keeping him from the grips of death, but it might not be working fast enough to undo all the damage.

  She had bitten him just as he was close to dying, creating a war inside of him. His body was still rapidly dying while her venom was simultaneously healing – in the end, which side won would depend on which was happening faster.

  He was on the edge of cliff, precariously balanced, being tugged from both sides. He might very well end the transformation process as a demon corpse, leaving Miriam alone forever.

  Michael tried to focus on what was happening inside him internally, pulling away from her mind. He tried to will it to go faster, to burn hotter. Even just concentrating on the heat made his suffering significantly worse, but the desire to protect Miriam from the pain of his loss pushed him to try anyway.

  For a moment, she attempted to chase after him when he retreated from the mental oasis she had created, but when she saw what he was doing she solemnly pulled away to focus on protecting him from the outside.

  Neither of them were sure how long it would take for him to be healthy enough to escape, but Michael suspected it was going to be a really long morning.

  Chapter 15: Death

  Faced with an impenetrable barrier created by Miriam’s wings, that wouldn’t allow anything to come closer than eight feet, the soldiers had been instructed to set up a temporary blockage.

  They were at an impasse, unable to drug her or move her…or harm her, if they had tried. Luckily for them, those in charge, likely watching from far away, had enough sense to avoid hostilities with their unknown target. They had indicated via radio, overheard by Miriam’s sensitive ears, that they were attempting to figure out what to do with her, given these new developments. Helicopters had shown up too, although they stayed far away, monitoring a larger perimeter to ensure civilians didn’t get too close.

  When they put up the blockage, it was surprisingly a fast installation. A multitude of vehicles had shown up with even more soldiers, along with premade wire fences that hooked together. Each panel was easily ten feet tall, with metal arms that were staked into the ground to prevent them from falling over – nothing shy of a vehicle running into them could probably break through by normal means.

  As the sun came close to rising, men in suits with radiation detectors had also shown up to get some readings, along with military photographers. At one point, the photographers requested another dart be shot at her, so they could determine the speed at which she moved her wings. It was clear they were trying to capture as much data as possible, and when they were given the okay Miriam allowed the dart to hit her and bounce off.

  She then glared at the man who had fired the gun and decided to peer into his mind harshly, causing an excruciating headache far worse than what she had caused Michael when she had failed to look into his thoughts several days ago. The soldier screamed and fell to the ground, writhing in pain before she withdrew. The moment the man recovered, he crawled away as fast as he could.

  It took everyone else a few seconds before they realized that the monster twenty feet away had been responsible. Everyone who had been outside the fence, under the illusion that they were outside of range from any harm, suddenly found themselves uncertain of that fact. It made everyone more cautious, including the unseen superiors.

  Military paramedics also showed up shortly after, just as the sun was coming over the horizon, apparently with the noble intention of treating the seemingly lifeless hostage in Miriam’s possession. Michael was still focused internally, trying to urge his body to stay alive. His mind still felt sharp, never fading or losing focus, indicating to him that he was at least getting enough blood to his head.

  Yet his heart rate was slowing down, becoming more sluggish by the minute. He knew this wasn’t a good thing, because Miriam had a heart beat – and a fast one at that. He had never noticed it before, but now heard it beating in her chest with strong powerful strokes.

  Once the sun had fully risen, a female soldier with blonde hair slowly entered through a gate in the fence and began approaching Miriam. They had decided that the obviously female monster might be more comfortable with communicating with another female. As she drew closer, Miriam slowly held up her wings as a warning, causing the soldier to immediately stop. However, while cautious, the woman surprisingly did not seem afraid.

  She slowly kneeled on the ground about ten feet away, placing herself in a vulnerable position against potential assault, and sat on her heels facing Miriam. She then spoke carefully.

  “Is he dead?” She asked, uncertain since Michael hadn’t moved in a long time. When Miriam ignored her, she rephrased her question. “Did you kill him?”

  Miriam looked at her then, annoyed by the accusation. However, she remained silent. Michael knew Miriam had blood on her face, both from biting him as well as from when he had placed his bloody hand on her cheek, so the soldier’s assumption was reasonable.

  Deciding to respond himself, Michael moved his arm slightly to indicate he wasn’t dead. He could tell Miriam was irritated that he had done so, but she quickly pushed it aside.

  However, it didn’t go unnoticed by the soldier. She spoke again. “Will you please allow us to treat the hostage? He looks like he needs medical attention immediately.”

  To Michael’s surprise, Miriam responded. “There’s nothing you can do for him.”

  The woman pulled back slightly, before replying. “We can have two unarmed
medics examine him. No one else will come inside the fence. He’s only a kid.” She then seemed frustrated when Miriam ignored her again. “He has a family! Parents and a sister! Are you just going to steal him from them?”

  Miriam was slightly amused by the unintentional double-meaning of her words. However, she quickly hid it and replied with a neutral expression again. “Yes.”

  The woman was suddenly more assertive. “Well, if he dies, there will be no reason for them to hold back anymore. You’ll have no hostage keeping you safe.”

  So that’s what they thought this was. Michael realized. They thought they had cornered her, and that knowing she couldn’t escape she was using him as a hostage. They hadn’t noticed the looks of endearment when she gazed at him. But then he realized that of course they hadn’t noticed. It was all happening internally, as they had mostly interacted with their minds. Ever since the soldiers had shown up, her physical expression had been mostly neutral with brief glimpses of annoyance and hostility.

  Miriam didn’t respond to the woman’s taunting. She had no intention of explaining herself to anyone. Even what she had said was more than she intended.

  After a brief silence, the woman tried asking a few more questions, as well as offering a few alternatives to end the standoff. However, once it was clear Miriam had no intention of answering her again, she finally got up and went back to make a report.

  Michael’s heart was still slowing down, and he began to feel his mind fade. He reached out to Miriam’s consciousness apologetically. I’m sorry…I’m not sure I can hold on much longer.

  She abruptly looked down at him, deeply concerned. She had noticed his dropping heart rate too but had hoped his sharp mind was indication he would still be alright. He could suddenly hear her whispering in the back of her mind again, almost as if chanting a prayer.

  No! Please don’t die! Please don’t die! Please don’t leave me!

  Abruptly, his heart stopped, and he found himself consumed in darkness faster than he thought possible.