“What are…? Who are you?” The Marshall asked as he backed up a step. The bluff had worked, and he had played right into John’s hand.
“We aren’t your enemy.” Aerin answered, surprising John as she took the lead. She lowered her hand and the Cypher vanished. “But…” He could see a faint glimmer in her eye as she spoke. It appeared the she was enjoying this nearly as much as he was.
“It’s like I said before.” John took his cue and interrupted her. “That’s classified.” He said with a slight smile. “What I can tell you is that we’re on your side.” He assured. The Marshall still seemed to be greatly confused, so John made a motion to begin explaining. “We’ve been chasing a target for some time now. He’s on this plane, and he’s made his move.” He stated. “This man is dangerous.”
“Dangerous?” The Marshall echoed. He lowered his gun slightly as he thought, but quickly raised it back once more. “How dangerous?”
“Extremely.” Aerin answered. “He’s making his move right now, so we don’t have time to stand around talking about it.” She said in an attempt to steer the conversation back towards action.
“She’s right.” John agreed. He turned to walk away, and as he did the Marshall turned his gun toward him. “If you want to help us, then follow us. If you don’t trust us, then go ahead and shoot me.”
That last line had caused his heart to skip a beat. He swallowed hard and took another step forward as the sweat on his forehead dripped down his face. He could hear the hammer pull back on the Marshall’s weapon, but he was committed and it was too late to stop now. He hoped and prayed that his powers would somehow react if he was actually shot in the back; but thankfully, he wouldn’t have to find out. The Marshall lowered his gun with a heavy sigh.
“Fine.” He said. “I’ll follow you. Go ahead and lead the way. But…” The Marshall stopped and raised his weapon once more. “The first sign that you’ve pulled the wool over my eyes, I put you both down.” He gestured with his pistol towards them.
“I’d expect nothing less.” John said with a smile as he looked back over his shoulder.
“Come on, he went this way.” Aerin stated as she brushed past John and lead them over to the small open access hatch.
Beneath the hatch was a ladder that went down to another walkway below. From there it seemed to go toward the front of the plane and down again. The Marshall holstered his pistol and bent down to inspect it. He had a puzzled expression on his face. John could see that whatever was wrong, the man was finally coming to understand the gravity of the situation.
“This is the service hatch to the cargo hold.” The Marshall stated. “The door is code locked.” He pulled the door closer to him and motioned to a small dial-pad on the top. “How did he get through this?”
“I don’t know.” John answered as he bent down next to him. “But we need to get down there quick and find out what he’s up to.”
“You’re right.” The Marshall agreed. “You lead the way; I’ll watch your back.”
John nodded in agreement and began his descent down the ladder. The walkway down beneath was more cramped and cluttered than the one above. They moved in a single file line down the pathway with John leading, Aerin following close behind, and the Marshall occasionally checking behind them to see if they were being followed. There was little light for them to see, much less than the dim red lights of the maintenance hall above. John pushed bundles of cables out of the way as they pressed forward. Finally, they located the next hatch, which was left wide open just as the first one had been.
Down the next ladder took them into the belly of the plane. The cargo hold was roomier and had far better lighting than the access path above them. The room shook occasionally from turbulence as a loud droning from the engines filled the place. The room was large, to say the least; it took up nearly the whole bottom side of the plane and was filled wall to wall with cargo. John guided the group between boxes of various sizes and packages ranging from all things mundane up to the most expensive looking vehicles. He moved slowly and checked each corner as they searched. The Marshall had his weapon drawn all the while, and he aimed down the barrel of each aisle they passed.
Suddenly, there was a sound up ahead. John motioned for the others behind him to tread lightly as he slowly approached a corner. He peered around and finally saw him at the end of a long aisle. The man from before; he was crouched down on the floor with his back to John as he fiddled with something. From where he was standing, John couldn’t make out what that something was, but from the implications of the scenario he could only assume the worst.
“That’s him.” He whispered back to Aerin and the Marshall. They both crept closer and peered around the corner toward the man. Suddenly, the Marshall raised his weapon and stepped out. “What are… where are you going?” John tried to ask in as soft of a voice as he could manage.
“This is my plane, I’ll deal with him.” The Marshall replied and walked away before John could stop him. He turned the corner and raised his weapon toward the man. “End of the line, friend!” He shouted.
“O-Oh?” The man muttered as he slowly stood. “Seems I wasn’t as s-sneaky as I thought I w-was.” The man’s voice stuttered as he spoke and it seemed to change octaves with every other word. “H-how did you k-k-know?” Speaking seemed to be painful to the main, as he twitched nervously.
“I got a hot tip.” The Marshall replied. “Now turn around and put your hands behind your head. Slowly.” He said as he gestured with his pistol.
“I’m afraid I-I can’t d-do that.” The man said with a slight smile.
“Why not?” The Marshall questioned.
“You’re t-too late any-anyway. It w-won’t matter soon.” The man’s smile grew ever larger with each word he spoke, so much so that it became unnatural and disturbing.
“I gave you an order!” The Marshall shouted. “Get on the ground now!” He aimed his gun at the man’s head as he ordered.
“You’re g-going to… to h-have to s-shoot me!” The man shouted back.
He suddenly leaped forward toward the Marshall, which prompted him to quickly fire his weapon. The pistol bounced up and down as he fired multiple shots at the man, but none connected. Each bullet pinged off a large Cypher that had suddenly appeared in front of him. The bullets ricocheted off of the shield in different directions, impacting into the floor and walls alike as he moved forward. The man suddenly drew a large dagger from within his coat. It was crooked and had a serrated edge; John instantly knew just from looking at it that it was no normal weapon. The man drew it back and was ready to slice at the Marshall when suddenly there was an explosion against his shield that sent him flying backward. The Marshall, wide eyed, looked all around him to see what had happened. Suddenly, he felt something touch his left shoulder.
“Hey, Marshall.” John said from beside him. “Why don’t you let us take care of him?” The Marshall looked over at John and then glanced to his right where Aerin stood beside him. He felt the empty gun in his hands. With a defeated look on his face, he conceded before stepping back. “Right then.” John cracked his neck. “I’ll handle the dagger; you take care of the magic.”
“Got it.” She replied. “He doesn’t seem human anymore.” She said as she slapped her hands together. Multiple Cyphers appeared around her arms and hands. “Don’t hold back.”
“Understood.” John nodded as he reached behind him. He suddenly stopped and turned to look over his shoulder. “Marshall, you want to see something really cool?” He asked with a smile.
He felt behind him for that special sweet spot somewhere between his shoulder blades; once he had located it, he gripped the hilt of his blade tightly. Flames shot up around him out of nowhere. Burning in a circle around him on the floor, they covered his whole body and changed his form. All the while, the Marshall watched in awe as John transformed before him. As the flames died down, John’s figure was different. His clothes had become something that the Marshall had seen in hist
ory books about an era long gone by. John’s hair stood unnaturally on end atop his head, as if it was held there by the power that coursed through his veins. There was a long, slender sword in his right hand that resembled a Scottish claymore. All in all, the man that stood before the Marshall was something unnatural, something inhuman.
John wasted no time in raising his sword and charging head on toward the demon before him. The demon had recovered from the stagger he had received from Aerin’s blast and quickly raised his dagger in response. John’s blade struck hard down on the dagger and it made a loud ping as it bounced off. With a bright smile the demon quickly jumped back and raised his blade.
“A swordsman!” The demon almost squealed in delight. John didn’t give him an inch though, and instead charged at him once more. He brought his sword down and then up in a large arc to the left, hoping to catch a weak spot in the demon’s style; but it was no use, the attack was stopped once more. “It f-feels good!” The man stuttered as he backpedaled. “Blade on b-blade, doesn’t it?!” He almost shouted. John disregarded the man’s ramblings and continued his attack. The aisles that they fought down were too cramped for his taste and as if sensing this, the demon spoke again. “Hey S-Slayer… do you know w-why I use a d-dagger?” He asked with a smile.
“No.” John replied as he made a high slash down at the man, which was quickly dodged. “And I don’t care.”
“It’s b-because it’s so… so easy to m-move with!”
As much as he hated to admit it, the demon had a point. John was being forced to sacrifice ample opportunities due to the length of his blade, all the while the demon before him happily slashed and stabbed away with his smaller dagger. After another minute or so of dealing with the tight spaces, John drew their fight out into the middle of the cargo hold. Out in the moderate open he was able to really let loose and swing his sword without fear of damaging the valuable cargo around him.
Suddenly the demon went on an unexpected offensive. He swung his blade wildly at John, causing John to backpedal as he attempted to block the rapid slashes from the smaller knife. Something bumped against the back of his legs and he found himself up against the front of a rather expensive looking car. The demon gave John no quarter, just as John had acted before, and he turned the dagger over in his hands and brought it down hard. John quickly rolled to the left as the blade sliced into the hood. Being a car guy himself, he winced at the thought of such an expensive vehicle taking damage, but quickly dispelled the thought as the demon lifted the blade and brought it down again. John repeated the same motion, but to the right this time, and when the blade had cut into the hood again he made his move.
He threw his weight backwards into a roll that brought him up onto the car. His left food steadied himself on the car’s red hood as his right went onto the windshield. He didn’t have time to think about the damage he was doing, and instead quickly slashed at the demon’s neck. The man moved back quickly, far faster than John had expected, and dodged a fatal strike by mere inches. He backed up away from the car and rubbed at his neck nervously, but was quickly once again put on the defensive. He raised his hand and cast a large Cypher in order to stop the barrage of blasts that Aerin was hurling at him. She quickly moved up beside John as she fired shot after shot.
In order to avoid an onslaught on two fronts, the man quickly retreated into one of the many aisles that lined the sides of the cargo hold. John rushed down the aisle in pursuit of the demon and quickly picked up the fight where he left off. He once again found himself pulling his slashes in order to avoid damaging the containers around him. Almost instinctively, as if he had heard John’s own thoughts, the Marshall rushed to the end of the aisle that John and the demon were fighting on.
“Don’t worry about breaking anything! Just kill that thing!” He shouted.
That was all the encouragement John needed to hear. He ceased to hold himself back and went wild with his attacks. The claymore swung in wide arcs toward the demon. It caught boxes and crates alike and tore through them as if they were simply made of paper. Not only the containers, but the blade also sliced through any obstacle it encountered including the shelves that held everything in place. Debris rained down all around them as he sliced his way closer to the demon, which was quickly backing away as fast as he could. No longer could he block every attack that John could make, he was quickly losing ground.
“H-Hey… Slayer.” The demon spoke as he backpedaled. “You k-know what’s g-great?” He asked with a sickening smile.
“No. Enlighten me.” John responded.
“I d-don’t have to b-beat you!” The demon laughed. “I only n-need to hold you o-off!”
Suddenly John realized something; in fact, everyone in the room realized it too. The meaning behind the demon’s stuttered words, the box he had been hunched over, there was suddenly a great sense of urgency in the air. John increased his level of attack, but didn’t seem to be getting anywhere. No matter how many strikes he made towards the demon, even though he could not block them all, he still somehow managed to evade him.
“John!” Aerin suddenly called out from behind him.
Without any instruction, John quickly rolled backwards. As he did, a fiery bolt flew over his head. The blast impacted into the demon before he was able to block it, and it sent him flying backwards into a large stack of boxes. Using the sudden opening, John rushed forward and once again sliced at the demon’s neck; but just as it had played out last time, the demon dodged once more.
“N-Nice try S-Slayer!”
“Hey… hey!” The Marshall shouted from across the room. He had acted on his suspicions and went over to inspect the crate the demon had been hunched over before. “We’ve… we’ve got a bomb!” He shouted, panic in his voice.
“And h-here’s another one f-for you!” The demon shouted.
Suddenly the man reached into his coat and pulled out a small egg shaped object. There was a ring attached to the top of the device, which the demon quickly clamped his teeth down upon and wrenched it free. John knew exactly what the demon held, it was a grenade. With the small explosive now armed, the demon hurled it into the air toward John.
“Aerin!” John shouted in urgency.
Without needing his instruction, Aerin had already moved into position. She clapped her hands together before thrusting them out. A Cypher appeared just before her in the air. It stayed suspended and suddenly folded forward, creating a new Cypher. The process continued until six Cyphers had been formed around the grenade in the shape of a cube. The grenade bounced around within their confines and detonated harmlessly without as much as a sound escaping from the glowing prison.
John had seized the moment once again, dashing forward around the cube as the grenade exploded beside him. He brought his sword up into a quick stab that caught the awestruck demon in the chest. The demon coughed up a black liquid John could only assume was once blood, and as the dagger slipped from his fingertips, he leaned in close. With their faces mere inches apart, John could see the true extent of the man before him. He wasn’t human anymore, but killing him like this still felt wrong. He could see the demon in his eyes, he could see its fear, how it wanted to escape; it made John angry.
“H-How did… y-you?” The demon spoke slowly. John could only assume he was referring to the way he was defeated.
“Swords and daggers all stab the same.” John answered, and with that he thrust the blade even deeper.
The dagger on the floor suddenly burst in to flames; it burned white hot as it vaporized, leaving no trace behind that it had ever existed. Just as it had done, the man’s body caught fire as well. He convulsed as a purifying flame engulfed his whole form, and slowly burned him away. The heat was intense, and John felt it all the way in his core. Slowly, the man before him disappeared off of his blade, and he was no more. After that was done, John wasted no time; he rushed over to the crate that Aerin and the Marshall were standing over. There was a small timer on the top of the device that had little
over two minutes remaining.
“What should we do?” Aerin asked in a panicked voice. The Marshall continued to stare down at the object with no response as the sweat dropped from his forehead.
“Aerin!” John almost shouted, causing her to jump slightly. “Use that cube, the same way you stopped the grenade!”
“No way!” Aerin’s said, completely shutting the idea down. “I can do small things… but this!” She stared down at the bomb. “No, no way. I couldn’t do it!”
With that idea dead, John had no more. He watched as the timer continued to count down slowly. He had only just won his second fight, and that was only because Aerin had been there to help him. Even with all his supernatural abilities, the fact that he was dead but yet still lived, and that he worked with an Angel, John was still a normal person. He didn’t have any experience in matters like this. He had no idea what to do. Suddenly the Marshall stood up and brought his right hand to his ear.
“Captain.” He suddenly spoke. “Yeah, it’s me. Yeah, it’s taken care of. I know… it’s complicated. But we’ve got something way bigger on our hands right now. Captain, we’ve got a bomb.” He paused as he waited for a response from the hidden earpiece that he spoke into. “I know. I need you to open the rear cargo doors. I know the risks! But if you don’t open this door, we all die!”
Suddenly there was a loud buzzer that resounded throughout the cargo hold. Two red lights at the end of the room suddenly changed to green. There was a loud sucking sound as the air became harder to breath. John felt himself stagger against the crate as a large door began to descend at the far end of the room. The Marshall, fighting to breathe as well, motioned for John to help him move the device. He sheathed his sword and took hold of the metallic container, and together they lifted it out of the box and carried it slowly over toward the door. The timer began to beep louder as they moved, and John didn’t dare look down at it, for his heart was racing enough already. They stepped onto the large ramp, which was still descending, and made their way over to the edge. Once they reached the end, they readied themselves to throw the bomb over the edge. Just as they were about to, John saw something that shouldn’t have been there.
Slayer: A Demon Hunter's Tale Page 8