Demon Chapter 3 - The Organisation

 Well, chapter 3 took even longer than chapter 2..... Not much more to say! Enjoy.

                Edwin was sat inside a ran-down, white-walled room with a single door, one large mirror, a table and some chairs. It reminded him of interrogation rooms seen in police shows, except for the patches on the walls where the paint had worn away to reveal the brick work underneath. The chairs and table seemed like cheap patio-ware. The only thing of quality was the large mirror. Edwin wondered if it was the type of mirror-window normally seen in these kind of rooms; were there people on the other side of that mirror watching him? He’d been forced here against his will. Beatrix and her group of soldier-like people had brought him here. He’d protested, but Beatrix had said that they had to bring him here, even with force if necessary, because of what he’d done. Killed a demon with his bare hands. She said he’d get his answers here.

                He had killed that thing with his bare hands. He kept going over it again and again. Something had taken over, some primal instinct of survival. He had felt death getting closer, and the urge to survive no matter what had gripped him. The sickening crack of the monster’s jaw haunted him. He felt like he was going to vomit. Then the click of the door unlocking brought him from his thoughts.

                The door opened and Beatrix walked in. She smiled reassuringly at Edwin. It didn’t help. Behind her walked in an aged man wearing a suit. His hair was greying, and he had a very serious air about him. They both took a seat opposite Edwin, the table between them. This really is starting to feel like a police interrogation. Edwin thought.

                “This is… Mr. Maxwell.” Beatrix said. “He’s…. uh… He has higher authority than me in the organisation.” She explained. She looked to this Mr. Maxwell. “This is Edwin. He goes to my school. He can see demons, and… he managed to kill one.” Maxwell just nodded, not taking his eyes off Edwin.

                “Who are you?” Maxwell asked. “And bare in mind your answer is very important. It’ll help us decide what to do about this… situation.”

                Edwin immediately felt a dislike for this man. From the man’s mannerisms and the way Beatrix was around him he felt that this was a man used to people doing what he told them to. Edwin didn’t like people telling him what to do. However, he knew that this was a very serious situation. And he wanted answers.

                “I’m… Edwin. Like she said. I can see… demons. If that’s what those things are. And yeah… I killed one. I did what anyone would in that situation. I fought to survive.”

                Maxwell smirked. “Well you see, Edwin, I’m not questioning your motives… more your… methods. You see, people can’t kill demons, not without help. Demons are made of different stuff to us. They can even phase through us. The only way for humans to fight demons is with supernatural help. So I want to know how you killed that demon.”

                “How? I have no idea. I just… did. I know even less than you. I’m the one who wants to know what’s going on here” Edwin protested.

                “He can interact with demons” Beatrix interrupted. “Maybe he has some special power or something?”

                “Maybe” Maxwell agreed. “Maybe he’s a special case we’ve never seen before. Maybe he’s some amazing phenomenon. A human that has the power to fight demons by himself. If so then that would be amazing. But that is unlikely. What if he is, say, a demon himself?”

                Edwin’s eyes went wide in shock. Me, a demon? It was impossible. And if they thought he was…. Would they kill him? “I’m not a demon.”

                “There’s no way he’s a demon” Beatrix said, the fear evident on her voice.

                “You better hope you can convince me that’s not the case. You can guess what’ll happen if you can’t.” Maxwell said to Edwin.

*

                Over the next few hours Maxwell asked Edwin many questions, some personal and some not, writing things down all the while. He asked a lot of questions about demons, which Edwin had no answers for. Beatrix came and went, reassuring Edwin that he’d be fine. Eventually somebody new came in.

                “This is Seymour. He’ll be conducting a few tests” Maxwell explained. Seymour looked to be around the same age as Edwin, but with long hair and glasses. Also he was wearing what looked to be a lab coat, standing out oddly in the run-down room they were in. He dropped a bag onto the table and picked up the notes that Maxwell had been writing down.

                “I’m gonna have a read through these first” Seymour said to Maxwell, not looking at him, intent on the notes. “You might want to leave us to it. This might take a while.” He said, taking the seat that Maxwell had been using. Maxwell looked annoyed.

                “Very well. I’ll leave you to it. I won’t be far.” Maxwell replied, then waited in awkward silence for a moment. Seymour was intently reading. Maxwell sighed and left.

                “Alright, so let me tell you what I need to do.” Seymour started, looking up from the notes he was reading and looking at Edwin. “I’m gonna quickly read through these notes, then I’m going to need to take a blood sample, a very small skin tissue sample, and I’m going to use the…. Oh yeah, you likely don’t know about Asura Arts. I’m going to say some words and you’ll see some strange lights and it will basically tell me if you’re a demon or not. Alright?”

                Blood sample… Skin sample… and… what? Edwin’s thoughts went back to the night Beatrix had saved him. He had seen strange symbols glowing in the air, and a seemingly invisible wall that had saved him from the demon. Asura Arts huh?

                “Alright” Edwin answered. “That sounds simple enough.” He didn’t get a bad vibe from Seymour. He certainly felt more at ease than with Maxwell.

                “It says here….” Seymour said, motioning to the notes. “That you don’t have any parents?”

                “Erm, well, not exactly. My adopted father looks after me. Kind of. He travels around a lot for work so he’s not about right now, but he pays for my rent and leaves me money for everything I need.” Edwin answered.

                “I wonder why he didn’t write that down…” Seymour sighed. “What’s your dad’s name?”

                “Iskandar Attar. We have the same last name. He adopted me at a very young age. I don’t even know what my last name was before.”

                Seymour seemed to freeze when Edwin said his dad’s name. Then he took out a pen from his bag and something down on Maxwell’s notes.

                “Well, thanks. That’ll make it easier to find out more about you. I’m going to start with the most important one. I’m going to find out if you’re a demon or not.” Seymour pulled out a ring from his bag and put it on. “Just relax and stay calm. This won’t take long” he explained. Seymour then stood up from his chair, took a step back from the table, and reached his hand towards Edwin. He seemed to be deep in concentration, and he started to speak a language that Edwin didn’t know. Then Edwin felt what seemed like a breeze enter the room. He couldn’t help looking around to see where it came from, then he realised it was coming from multiple directions. He tried to keep himself calm. When he turned to Seymour he saw that the ring on Seymour’s hand was glowing; brighter and brighter. Edwin had to close his eyes as light filled the room. Then, as soon as it started, the light dimmed back to normal, and the wind died down until the air was still. Seymour visibly relaxed, and sat back down.

                “Good news. You’re not a demon. Not from what I can tell anyway.”

                Edwin sighed in relief. “Good” he said. “I mean, I knew that anyway, but still… good.”

                “Alright now for the blood and skin samples....” he said. Edwin knew this was coming but couldn’t help feeling nervous. Seymour took out a scalpel with a petri dish, and a small syringe. Edwin braced for the syringe, but it didn’t hurt much. Only a small pinch. And the blood he took was less than a doctor would. Then he took the scalpel and slightly grazed the skin near the syringe puncture. Edwin barely noticed. There was a small slightly pink patch and that was it. Seymour covered it with a plaster and he was done. “There we go. This part might take a while, I’m going to need to go do some tests. If Beatrix is free I’ll get her to come keep you company.”

                He actually does seem nice. Edwin couldn’t help thinking.

*

                True to his word, Seymour did send Beatrix in to keep Edwin company. It felt a bit awkward at first, but eventually they started talking about school and the boxing club.

                “It’s my pride and joy” she said, suddenly impassioned. “Gotta love seeing everyone tryin’ their best to get better. Makes me realise I’m not the only one who loves boxing. Wish there were more girls up for it though… Could do with a local rival or two…”

                “Doesn’t… whatever it is you do here get in the way of that?” Edwin asked, hoping to get some insight into what was really going on. She gave him a suspicious glance, then thought it over.

                “Demons. Yeah. Fighting them does get in the way… But, well, the way things are at the moment, I’ve done everything a girl my age can do. That’s why I’m putting my all into the club! I’ve learnt more than I thought I could from teaching. Next step comes when I’m 17, then I can move onto the next age bracket when it comes to tournaments. So until then… regular training, and teaching!”

                She really does have a passion for boxing. He felt a bit jealous. Is there anything I’m that passionate about? No. Nothing.

                The door opened and Seymour walked in, with the same lab coat as before, and a different bag. Why does he wear a lab coat? Edwin found himself wondering.

                “I’ve got another test to do.” He said, then turned to Beatrix. “It’s a bit more intense than the last one… More windy. Flashing lights and stuff.”

                “Fair enough” Beatrix answered, rolling her eyes, and she went to leave. “Good luck Edwin” she said, showing him that her fingers were crossed as she left and closed the door.

                “This is pretty much the same as the last one, but it’s going to be a bit windier, so you might want to stand up for this one.” Seymour said.

                Edwin got to his feet. “Fair enough” he said. “I’m ready.”

                Seymour started speaking a language that Edwin didn’t know once again, and, just like Seymour said, a much stronger wind was conjured up. Then Seymour reached into his bag and produced what appeared to be a stone tablet with strange symbols on it. He turned the tablet towards Edwin. The wind changed direction, as if it was coming from the tablet itself, and then with a flash of light something appeared in the room with them and flew towards Edwin.

                He felt something tighten around all his limbs. He couldn’t move. He then heard a strange hissing sound and immediately started feeling weak and sick. His mind worked fast. Something was stopping his movements. The first thing to do was to find out what. His breath came slowly, but he managed to drag in a deep breath, gather some strength in his limbs, and looked down. As he saw what had a hold of him an all-to-familiar fear struck him once more. Fear of the unknown; the fear he felt when he saw something incomprehensible to his senses. He couldn’t be sure but…. This is probably a demon… right?

                Whatever it was had a strange pink colour to its skin; like raw flesh. It was almost like an octopus or a squid, with tentacles that sprang out from the centre of its body focused on his chest, to wrap around his limbs. Then, as he watched, parts of its flesh pulled back to reveal eyes that immediately focused on him. He felt like his heart stopped. This was too much for him. Too unreal. His sight started to turn fuzzy, like a TV that had lost its signal. He felt his consciousness slipping.

                Tear it apart.

Was that his thought? The words echoed in his head. Strength returned to his limbs and his sight returned. He pulled against his bindings. He focused his sight on the centre of the monster; staring into the largest eye. He pulled with all his might against its grip and managed to pull his hand close to its eye. Then, ignoring the horrible feeling he grabbed a hold of its eye, as hard as he could, and pulled until it ripped from the body. The demon’s grip on him loosened, so he grabbed a handful of its body with his other hand and ripped that free. Its tentacles came loose completely and the pieces fell off, accompanied by a rain of red blood. It was dead. Edwin didn’t relax, however. He could feel the blood pumping through his body like he as on an adrenaline rush. He realised in that instant that this was what he had felt when he’d fought the human-like demon; the feeling that had allowed him to kill it.

He looked up, his sights on Seymour. Seymour was watching him in interest, as if observing an experiment. Seymour had set this demon on him. The fight wasn’t over. He lunged at Seymour; not even noticing the table in his way. It got knocked towards Seymour, and his hand followed, aiming for Seymour’s face. Then he felt another feeling, another fear. A different fear. This wasn’t the fear of the unknown; the fear of the incomprehensible. This was a humbling fear felt when one realised if he moved closed he would be beaten. Time seemed to stop. The table stopped. It had been send flying towards Seymour but he had stopped it with his foot. Edwin stopped; there was something in front of his face. He felt it through sheer instinct at first; an instinct that told him to stop. Then his sight caught up, as his mind calmed down, and he saw what was threatening him; a gun. In a split instinct Seymour had drawn a gun and aimed it at Edwin’s face, and the look on his face made it clear he was ready to pull the trigger.

Then the door slammed open and a familiar voice started saying words in the same language Seymour had been using. Suddenly glowing chains appear around Edwin… and Seymour. They both were chained with their arms to their sides. Then people that looked like those accompanying Beatrix in the fight before filed in. They had knives ready and pointed them at both Edwin and Seymour. Then Maxwell walked in.

“What the hell….. did you do?” Maxwell asked. Edwin wasn’t sure if Maxwell was asking him or Seymour. He wasn’t sure Maxwell knew either. Seymour spoke up, however, gaining Edwin’s attention. Seymour was staring right at him with a satisfied grin.

“A test.” Seymour answered. “A non-lethal test to see if he really could combat demons. Beatrix.” He said, drawing her attention. “Could you tell what type of demon that was? By the way Edwin, that mirror on the wall is see-through, like you might have guessed.”

Is he an enemy? Non-lethal? Now that he had calmed down, Edwin felt somewhat surprised by his own attack. He hadn’t been thinking. In the heat of the moment, instinct had guided him.

“It was a Motophagus right? It feeds on emotions and energy. It wouldn’t have killed him. It would have sucked his energy until he’d fallen unconscious. If left too long it might have put him into a coma… but that would’ve taken a while.” She explained. Edwin could hear the disapproval in her voice. She sighed. The chains on Seymour vanished in a flash of light. Seymour glanced at his gun and slowly put it away into some hidden holder inside his jacket.

“Thanks” Seymour answered.

“What?” Maxwell exclaimed. “Don’t just let him go…. Jesus. Non-lethal? Well…” Maxwell didn’t seem in control of the situation at all.

“Edwin, have you calmed down?” Beatrix asked. Her accent seemed to disappear when she was serious. Edwin felt a heaviness to her voice; an authority that he did not want to go against.

“Yeah, I’m calm. I overreacted.” He said. The chains holding him disappeared. He sighed in relief.

“Alright then!” Seymour exclaimed happily, clapping his hands together loudly, making everyone jump and breaking the tense atmosphere. “Results, right? Results time, for my test? So! A normal human wouldn’t have been able to move against that demon. But Edwin…. It seemed like when he was pushed far enough something snapped, like a switch. Then suddenly he could fight against it. As if he was then made out of the same stuff the demon was. Strange right? I’ve never seen anything like it. It’s like he can turn on ‘the ability to interact with’ demons. Although not willingly…. Not yet anyway.”

Silence followed. Seymour seemed deep in thought, excited by his findings. Is he a good guy? I really can’t tell. Edwin sat down on the chair he’d been sitting on and let the information sink in. I can fight demons?

“Too dangerous.” Maxwell said. Edwin felt uneasy all of a sudden. He felt clear hostility coming from Maxwell. “He could just be a demon, right? Like a… an envy demons perhaps. Right?”

“Well, I couldn’t feel anything demonic coming from him. Even an envy demon would have a hard time hiding from my tests. I’m pretty sure what I said is correct. He’s a human who exhibits demon-like ability under certain circumstances, like when he’s under attack.” Seymour said.

“Still, you could be wrong, right?” Maxwell asked.

“Well… of course… anybody can be wrong.” Seymour answered, his expression souring, seeming to sense where the conversation was going. He sighed, pulled a phone from his pocket and started looking through it.

“Well then. I have to make the hard decisions sometimes, and that’s fine. It’s the best way to ensure everyone’s safety.” Maxwell said, almost seeming proud of himself.

“Wait a minute” Beatrix piped up. “You can’t just decide to kill him.”

Kill me?

                “Look, you might disagree, but it’s the safest course of action” Maxwell answered.

                “I’m not letting ya kill him” Beatrix answered, defiance clear in her voice.

                Edwin looked around. There were five people in the room other than himself, Beatrix, Maxwell, and Seymour. They all held knives in their hand, with more knives on various parts of their gear. Some had what looked like grenades, although Edwin wasn’t sure what they actually were. Would grenades even work on demons? He doubted he could get past Beatrix, or even Seymour, but if they decided on his death, he would be ready to try his hardest to escape.

                “Hey, I’m glad you answered” came Seymour’s voice, cutting through the tension. He was talking to someone on the phone. “I’m Seymour Allen from the Crowlford branch….. Well it’s urgent….. Yeah…. Yeah…. We’ve got someone here called Edwin.”

                “Who are you talking to?” asked Maxwell. Seymour waved him off and carried on his conversation.

                “He’s manifested some strange kind of power that can hurt demons….. Yeah?.... Perhaps you could’ve told us. Well I have David Maxwell here who wants to be extra safe and kill him, in case he’s a demon, and he has higher authority than me……. Alright. I’ll hand you over.” He handed the phone to Maxwell with a rather evil looking grin on his face, as if to say “I win”. Maxwell looked angry, but he took the phone nonetheless.

                “This is Maxwell, who am I-“ he went silent. Then he went pale. Whoever he was talking to must’ve been someone with much higher authority than him. “Are you… serious?” he asked in disbelief. “Alright… understood.” He handed the phone back to Seymour. He didn’t look happy.

                “At ease everyone, and that includes you Edwin.” He said, addressing the room. Everyone relaxed and put their weapons away. Maxwell sighed. “We’re going to take you to the main base. From now on, you’re one of us.”

Demon Chapter 2 - End of Normality

Chapter 2! Finally! Took ages but I'm still, very slowly, going. Ah well, feels good to have this chapter done. Feel like my vision for this story is much clearer.

End of Normality

                Edwin was running down roads he didn’t recognise. He didn’t know where his apartment was, and he didn’t know where the school was. All he knew was it was dark, nobody was around, and he had to keep running.

                Then he came to a sudden stop as he rounded a corner and came face to face with the object of his fear. Somehow it was there, right in front of him, like it defied all logic. The gigantic beast-like monster with glowing eyes and teeth that assured death. He took a step back, but it was too late; it immediately jumped on him, mouth wide open. No miracle occurred this time, no invisible wall to stop it. He felt the unnatural sensation of teeth sinking into his chest as a horrible sound filled the air all around him… A familiar sound…

                His eyes snapped open as he realised he was in his room, and the familiar sound was his alarm clock. It was just a dream…. A dream… He tried to slow his breathing to calm himself down. The demon hadn’t been a dream. He all too clearly remembered the night before. He had almost died, and…. Beatrix was there. Beatrix? What the hell…. He knew what had happened but he had no idea what had happened. He knew that the demon hadn’t followed him back, however. That part was the nightmare that had plagued him for most the night. He had run, as fast as he could. And, somehow, he had ended up on a familiar road, and managed to make his way home.

                The alarm stopped and he was jolted from his thoughts. He looked over to it. It had automatically gone into snooze mode, which meant it would start off again in 10 minutes. He sighed, annoyed and tired. He decided to turn it off at the plug.

                Before he knew it, he was in the bathroom, brushing his teeth to get ready for school. Should I even be going to school after last night? Should even leave the apartment? Beatrix will be looking for me, for sure…. But then shouldn’t I be looking for her? She has some explaining to do… But then… Do I want to get involved in whatever that was?

                He decided he would go, and he would try to get some answers from Beatrix. He should find out all he can. Better to know what’s going on than not know. It wouldn’t mean he had to get involved. But he really didn’t like the thought of a monster like that coming after him again. Beatrix had actually fought it. Tired…. Damnit. He hadn’t gotten much sleep, but he got himself ready for school anyway, fighting the urge to return to bed; made a lot easier with the thought that nightmares would likely be all that awaited him.

*

                “Hey, what’s wrong? Did you see a demon or something?” came a familiar voice, snapping Edwin from his reverie. He turned to see Arthur, a humorous smile on his face.

                “….Demon? What are you talking about?” Edwin asked. Does he know something?

                “Well you’re pretty quiet today. And if that frown is anything to go by, you don’t seem like you’re in a good mood” Arthur replied.

                Edwin sighed. “I’m just tired. Didn’t get much sleep.” He answered. Arthur had told him that story about demons the day before… the same day he’d seen that… monster. Was it a demon? Are they real?

                “That story you told me yesterday…. Where did you come across such a… strange rumour?” Edwin asked, now suspicious.

                “You might be surprised but… If there’s a rumour, then I’m the guy to know it! I know all the popular rumours around this school. As for where it originally came from… No idea. Maybe you should ask Mel?” Arthur replied, nodding in the direction of the red-haired girl. Mel, huh? Well I can’t really just go up to her and ask her about demons. I’ll wait. I’ll find out from Beatrix….

                “Hey, what do you know about Beatrix, from the boxing club?” Edwin asked.

                “Beatrix? She’s the head of the boxing club right? I hear she’s mean to be suuuuper tough. I doubt she’s a strong as people say she is though” he answered nonchalantly. You’d be surprised Edwin found himself thinking.

*

                Before Edwin knew it, it was already time for the first break of the day. Just like before, Arthur had already vanished. Edwin decided to go outside and take a look around the school campus, hoping that he wasn’t going to get into a fight again. He didn’t get tripped up this time, as he left the school building. After walking for a while, however, he realised that Tom was following him. He was alone this time. He can’t seriously be looking for another fight, can he? Edwin decided to get this encounter done with. He turned around to face Tom.

                “Come to make fun of me for yesterday?” Edwin started, hoping to get it over with.

                Tom laughed. “Must have felt pretty embarrassing losing so easily right?” he laughed a bit more, then looked around awkwardly. “Well, I guess I should tell you… Not that I didn’t enjoy it but… It’s not that embarrassing. She spars with everyone that joins the club. She says she wants to find out just how good everyone is so she can train them better.” He stared at the floor, as if recalling a painful memory.

                “Well I doubt she knocks all of them out.” Edwin replied. “She said that I managed to surprise her with my last attack, and that’s why she ended up knocking me out by reflex.”

                A smile crept onto Tom’s face. “She must get surprised quite a lot then…” he said. Then they both laughed. Perhaps she surprisingly clumsy. Or she just likes knocking people unconscious.

                Then Tom went silent, his eyes narrowed at Edwin. “Attar is still a stupid name” he said, seemingly not wanting to accidently get along with Edwin.

                “Yeah, well” Edwin replied. “I’d rather have a stupid name than be stupid.”

                Tom looked confused for a minute as he worked out what Edwin meant. “Fuck you” he replied then walked off, looking angry. I don’t think we’ll ever be best friends, but we might not end up enemies after all.

                Then something caught his eye. Something had flown by, and now hovered there, high in the air. It wasn’t a bird, and it was too large to be an insect. It looked a dark red colour, and glowed unnaturally. He’d seen something similar before…. His mind went back…. To long before the night just past. He’d seen strange-looking creatures in every city he’d lived in, as far back as he could remember. He’d just convinced himself that he was seeing things. They were only ever small things, and he’d only seen them for a split second, but after last night, and what he was seeing right then, perhaps they’d all been real.

                “You can see it, right?” came a familiar voice. He jumped in surprise. Beatrix stood there, looking as happy-go-lucky as she had been the day before, as if last night had never happened.

                “Don’t worry, those ones are harmless. They’re called Emnats, they’re like pests. They just fly around and feast on human emotions. Not like that one that attacked ya last night. That one was after your flesh.”

Edwin was still frozen in place. This can’t be happening…. Then… it’s all real!? “What… exactly….” The words wouldn’t come to him. Beatrix frowned.

                “Look” she said. “Dontcha worry about it for now. I’ve got boxing practice tonight again, but why don’t you wait for me, and afterwards I’ll explain everything?”

                Edwin just nodded, looking up at the… demon? once more. It flew away suddenly. He turned back to Beatrix. She looked worried for him. “Right” he said. “After school, yeah. I’ll be there.”

*

                The rest of the school day passed by uneventfully. Edwin waited for Beatrix, although after a while he got bored and went inside to watch the boxing club practice. They worked hard. It had been a long time since Edwin had pushed himself like they were doing. He started to think that maybe he should join them after all; it would help him get into better shape. His embarrassing loss to Beatrix had made him realise how weak he was as well.

Practice ended, and one by one the club left; Tom did a good job of ignoring Edwin’s presence, and then it was just Edwin and Beatrix.

                “So” Beatrix started. “Why don’t you tell me exactly what you saw last night” she said. The atmosphere in the room had suddenly changed. She seemed deadly serious. Almost frightening. Edwin gulped.

                “Alright” he answered. “I was trying to get home when I saw that… figure… in the distance. I couldn’t make out what it was at first. As it moved past a couple walking down the road, one of them screamed, then the other yelled out, then they went quiet. All I could see was the shadowy figure as it set its glowing eyes on me….. Then I ran, and it ran after me. Cars drove past but no one seemed to notice what was going on, like they couldn’t see it.” He paused to measure Beatrix’s reaction. She nodded, but past that he couldn’t tell what she might be thinking. “Somehow I made it to the school, managed to climb over the wall, but that thing just came straight through the wall. And that’s when you appeared.”

                She nodded again, this time seemingly to herself. She looked down and seemed to be thinking. The silence grew until Edwin couldn’t bear it anymore.

                “What was that thing? And what are you?” he asked, plainly, simply.

                Her eyes locked onto his. Edwin unconsciously took a step back. She seemed dangerous. Might she just kill me to get rid of the problem? He wondered. Then she sighed and smiled.

                “Well I guess there’s no helping it is there? Alright I’ll tell ya what you want to know” she said, putting him at ease. “Although ya might not like it.”

                However, at that moment, the sound of a ringtone interrupted them. It was some high-pitched, upbeat song that sounded like it came straight from a children’s TV show. However, Beatrix looked shocked and frightened. She took out her phone and answered it. Her expression grew grimmer as she listened to whoever was on the other end.

                “Vincent Street? Yeah won’t take me long to get there” she said, then hung up and put her phone away. “Sorry Edwin” she said “Our chat will have to wait” and then she ran to the door.

                “Wait!” Edwin called, but to no use. She immediately opened the door and ran off.

                Edwin froze, weighing his options. He needed answers. However, from the look of her face from that phone call, could it possibly be another one of those monsters?

                “Damnit” Edwin said out loud to no one in particular. “Who am I kidding?” His curiosity was too overwhelming. He also ran outside, to follow her. Once again, even though it wasn’t night-time it was dark outside already. Edwin caught a glimpse of Beatrix in the distance, running towards the entrance gate of the school grounds. She was fast. Edwin gave chase.

                She really was fast. When Edwin reached the school entrance, she had already crossed the road and he only just saw her go around a corner. By the time he made it to that corner, she was nowhere to be seen. However, this time, Edwin’s phone had been fully charged before going to school. He took out his phone and checked the map. Vincent Street. It wasn’t too far from the school. He followed the map and made his way there.

                He was just one street away when he heard a scream. Something bad was definitely happening. He paused for a second, remembering the night before. Despite his fear, he still wanted to know what these monsters were, and his curiosity overrode his fear this time. He ran to his destination, and as he turned the final corner, the scene came into view.

                The first thing he noticed was a horrible smell; the metallic smell of blood. Even in the dark he could see puddles of blood on the floor. To his horror he also saw what he recognised as pieces of… people. A shout and a flash of light brought his attention to the ensuing chaos. It looked like people were fighting in the street. Edwin closed the distance, and he realised that it wasn’t people fighting people. There were people clad in dark clothing that looked like military clothes. They were fighting what at first looked like naked people, however as Edwin got closer he realised they couldn’t be human. They were unnaturally pale, and they lacked eyes, noses, and hair. The only thing on their faces were mouths; unnaturally wide mouths spreading past the limits of a normal human’s mouth, almost snake-like; except lined with sharp fangs. They jumped at the people fighting them, snapping their mouths all the while as if trying to take a bite. The ones fighting them worked together, backing away and dodging their attacks while slashing at them with weapons that Edwin couldn’t make out in the dark. Another flash brought his attention to a familiar figure. He could make out Beatrix, punching at the creatures. Every time she connected there was a flash and a creature was sent sprawling to the floor.

                “What’s going on out here?” came a voice. Edwin turned to see someone coming out of their house; an elderly man, probably curious from all the noise. He looked about in confusion. “What are you up to over there?” he shouted. He didn’t seem panicked, or scared. Edwin recalled Arthur’s story, as well as the fact that no one had showed any signs of seeing the monster that had attacked him the night before. Normal people can’t see them. All this man would be able to see would be people fighting nothing. He’d probably think they were crazy. Then Edwin’s heart skipped a beat. He would be able to see the blood, and body parts, that littered the street. If he looked around for long enough.

               

                Edwin rushed over in his direction, thinking up a reason for the man to go back inside. “Hey!” he called, getting the man’s attention. “They seem dangerous. Maybe you should go back inside. I’ll call the police” Edwin said.

                That’s when he saw it. One of the creatures; the human-like faceless, pale, creatures. It was running towards the old man. Edwin’s feet led him, without any thought to guide him. He rushed towards the creature, intent on protecting the man, who shouted in surprise at Edwin’s sudden movement. They were about to collide. Edwin jumped for it, hoping to grab it around the midsection and take it to the floor. The only one that ended up on the floor, however, was him. There was no collision. He went straight through the creature, as if it wasn’t even there. He rushed back to his feet, but the yell and scream he heard told him it was too late. He slowly turned, not wanting to see the sight that waited for him, but knew that he had to.

                Just a few yards away from him the creature tore apart the man with its mouth, as if trying to satisfy some insatiable desire. Edwin just stood there, eyes glued to the scene. The man was definitely already dead. There was nothing he could do. Then the creature suddenly stopped and turned its head to Edwin. It moved away from the bloody mess that used to be a living person and made its way towards him. Edwin took a step back, but as if taking that as a signal the monster pounced at him, mouth open wide, aiming for his face.

                Edwin fell onto his back with the creature on top of him. His desperately held the creature at bay, one hand on its head and one on its chest, trying to push it away. Then he felt a strange sensation. Like sand slipping through his fingers, the creature pushed through his hands as if they weren’t there, its wide, open mouth aiming for his face. Fear welled up inside him, threatening to burst, and in desperation he managed to pull his feet in underneath the creature and kick it off him. He sprang to his feet and the creature was jumping at him again. He put out his hands and managed to hold it at bay by grabbing its shoulders as it tried to bite wildly towards him. Then he felt that familiar sensation, like sand slipping through his hands, and he watched in horror as his hands started to sink into the creature once more and its dangerously fanged mouth came closer. He felt fear choking him, filling his entire chest, every muscle in his body felt weak and cold and useless as the creature came closer. However, that fear gave rise to desperation; he desperately wanted to survive. Then some bestial rage rose within him. His fear turned to anger at this creature, this creature that had just killed a defenceless man in front of him; this creature that was going to kill him, while he couldn’t do a thing to stop it. As rage consumed him he didn’t even notice that his hands had stopped sinking through the creature. He pulled one hand away and recklessly grabbed the creature by the face, his thumb in the creature’s mouth, cutting against its teeth. He pushed it back and pulled his other hand free from its shoulder, then with that hand grabbed it by the lower mouth, receiving more cuts as the creature tried to close its mouth on his fingers. He held strong though, pulling it to each side, bringing its jaw wide open. He pulled and pulled, knowing that either he or the creature would die. He didn’t feel cold and weak anymore. His body felt like it was on fire, like his blood was burning throughout his entire body, as he pulled as hard as he could, then there was a loud, sickening crunch, and all resistance disappeared; the creature’s head and jaw were pulled in opposite directions further than should be possible, and the creature went limp.  The creature fell to the floor, with Edwin stood over it, looking down, breathing heavily.

                “Who are you?” someone shouted. Edwin looked up. He was surrounded by people wearing black clothes. They reminded Edwin of what black ops military would wear. He instinctively brought his hands up in a martial arts stance that his father had taught him long ago, getting ready to defend himself. He could see now that they were carrying black weapons; what looked like long knives and even crossbows.

                “Edwin?” came a familiar voice, as Beatrix pushed her way through them. They quickly backed away from her.

                Edwin relaxed. “They’re with you?” he asked shakily. She nodded. “Can you ask them to lower their weapons?” he asked. Crossbows were pointed at him, carefully aimed. Beatrix, however, looked at Edwin warily. She looked down at the body of the creature that had attacked him, then back to Edwin.

                “Is there something ya haven’t told me, Edwin?” she asked, confusing him. He shook his head.

                “Like what? I’m the one who doesn’t know what’s going on.” He answered.

                She still seemed wary, however. “Normal people can’t kill demons” she answered. Demons…. The word echoed in Edwin’s head. So Arthur’s rumour was true. Demons are real. And this is what they look like. He looked down at the… demon.

                “You’re going to have to come with us.” Beatrix said, interrupting Edwin’s thoughts. The people surrounding him still had their weapons aimed at him, ready to make a move. Suddenly he felt like he’d done something wrong. Going with them didn’t seem ideal, but he clearly didn’t have a choice.