Copyright © 2018 Nick Cranford
All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof
may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever
without the express written permission of the author
except for the quote of brief passages in a review.
Illustrations by kalis de vals
http://kalisdevals.com/
All characters and events in this book are fictitious.
Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is merely
coincidental and not intended by the author.
www.facebook.com/SlayerStory
Hello there, I’d like to use this page to thank you for purchasing this; or if you have not purchased it, I’d like to thank you for at least reading. Regardless of the circumstances, it means a lot to me. It’s always been my dream to tell a story, and this book is my ability to do just that. It’s been a long, slow road to get here but it looks like I finally made it. I hope you enjoy!
Before we get on to the action, I’d like to take a moment just to thank everyone that’s helped me get this far. My friends and loved ones that supported me, or rather put up with me while writing Slayer.
Mom, Dad, Andrew, Granddad, I hope that I made you all proud.
Kris, while we haven’t been friends for very long, I’m glad to call you one. Were it not for your talented hand gracing the pages of this book, I don’t think Slayer would stand out quite like it does. Thanks, man, can’t wait to see what you’ll draw for the next one.
Austin, you’ve always been the one I could shoot ideas back and forth with. Every time we’ve stayed up late and I’ve gone on about plot points I want to implement, you always listened eagerly. I hope I did good, bud.
Faith, I want to thank you for believing in me since the beginning. Not many people had my back quite like you did. I told you I’d get this done eventually, and finally here we are.
Harrison, whenever you’d ask me when Slayer was coming out I’d always joke by saying SOON™, but I can finally say with full certainty NOW™.
Shaun, you’ve been a great friend to me these past few years. You were there when I first started putting pen to paper, and somehow all this time later here we still are. I hope I did you proud.
Natalie… You’ve been one of the most supportive friends I ever could’ve asked for. How many nights did we stay up together, me sending you screenshots of my terrible rough drafts while you gave me criticism and doted over the story? I don’t think I could’ve asked for anyone else. First copy’s for you, hun, right after mine.
And now, on to the Tale!
Table of Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty One
Chapter Twenty Two
Chapter Twenty Three
Chapter Twenty Four
Chapter Twenty Five
Chapter Twenty Six
Chapter Twenty Seven
Chapter Twenty Eight
Chapter Twenty Nine
Note from the Author
Epilogue
Chapter One
The engine purred beneath the black hood as 300 horses carried the Charger up the freeway. The flat roads that crisscrossed like the stitching of a quilt inside the city had long since disappeared behind as the car raced up the mountainside. The steep road was no match at all, and John shifted down, letting the engine roar while it carried him up quickly. A long road stretched out before him. It was one he’d been down many times before, but this time was different. John shifted gears again and the old engine growled in response, carrying him away from his home that lay nestled far behind him. How many times had he made this trip? Too many to be sure, each time he’d returned; but this time he didn’t plan to, at least not for a while. This was a familiar road, but the time for familiarity was behind him. John needed something new. Some new locale, a new path, somewhere he could go for a while to escape his thoughts, his feelings, the guilt he felt behind him. An adventure, someplace far away, somewhere he’d never been, that’s what he needed right now.
John followed the highway along as it continued up the mountain. He’d long since left the congested streets of the city behind him in favor of the open road. It was here that he could really let the Charger open up. He pushed his foot down on the accelerator as the RPMs continued to climb. The engine let out a powerful roar as he raced through traffic, his left hand on the wooden steering wheel as his right hand rested on the shifter. There was no better therapy than the open road before him, the window down, wind whipping his shaggy brown hair about, the radio playing some of his favorite music; but this was a familiar road. It was time for something new.
After a while he saw a sign for an exit. It was one he’d never been down before and it seemed to go off in another direction, winding up the mountain as a smaller two lane road. There was something about it, though he wasn’t sure what, that drew him towards the ramp. Whether it was the arrangement of numbers on the sign or the road itself, he didn’t know. John guided the Charger down the exit before slowly turning left onto the two lane road. He pushed the pedal to the floor and the tires squealed in delight as the car raced down the new path.
John’s right hand moved from the light colored, wooden steering wheel up to the rear view mirror. His thumb flicked the tab at the bottom as he adjusted it slightly, catching his own gaze as he did. His green eyes looked a little brighter than they had that morning; and while he’d cleaned up well, they still looked tired and worn. Dark bags hung under them and he rubbed his eyes hoping they’d go away. Behind him he could see the reflection of his duffle bag in the backseat, a week’s worth of clothes inside. Was this the right thing to do?
The road wound around the Cliffside slowly, and as John hugged the rock wall tightly he was treated to an amazing view of Station in the distance. There it stood at the base of the mountain, his home: Station City, Colorado. The shadow of the mountains that loomed overhead had already begun encroaching in on the city as the sun’s rays disappeared behind their peaks. Slowly, one by one, the city lights came on, illuminating its countless buildings, streets, and tracks. It became a shining gem in the distance, nestled within the craggy expanse of the Rocky Mountains. It truly was beautiful; he’d always thought it was. It had been his home for the better part of fifteen years now, and while it was the place he’d grown up, loved and lost so much, it was somewhere he didn’t want to be right now.
John glanced to himself in the mirror again as he drove along slowly. Was this really what he wanted? He wasn’t sure; the one thing he was sure of, though, was that he wouldn’t find any answers down there. It was too busy, too loud, too crowded, and all of it was too close together. After all, it was a city filled with as many memories as people. While he knew he needed to get out, he couldn’t help but feel like he was running away. Memories of the past began to well up within his mind; a cold winter breeze, the cars rushing past him like a blur, an empty hospital bed. The city down below held nothing for him now, at least that’s what he was telling himself. None of that really mattered though. The Charger growled as he pressed the gas down, speeding up along a straightaway.
/> The road continued on as the sun set further along the mountainous horizon. The Charger’s headlights clicked on with the flick of a switch and they illuminated the asphalt ahead. John watched the dotted lines passing beneath the hood and he counted the numbers between each solid stripe. The road was rough and bumpy and John did his best to avoid the ancient potholes that covered its surface. It had clearly been years since the road had been maintained, but seeing as John had yet to pass a single car since he’d turned off the freeway, it made sense why the road had been left to ruin. He started to space out as he drove along. His body seemingly running on autopilot as his mind was somewhere else. The hypnotic dotted lines and the flashing reflection of the lights off of the caution signs in each turn put him into a trance.
Suddenly something caught his eye, pulling his mind back as he looked up from the road. It had been like a flash of lightning in the distance. John leaned forward and glanced up to look for any storm clouds, but all he could see was the dark blue evening sky. A few scrappy wisps floated about here and there, painted pink by the setting sun, but nothing significant enough to herald a bolt of lightning. It was odd; he hadn’t seen anything on the weather that afternoon about a storm. He flipped the radio on scan and listened for any word of about the weather. Another five minutes later and still there was nothing.
Another flash of light lit up the sky. John slowed down and looked around for any sign of a source. It wasn’t a tower, it’d been too bright, but it also wasn’t lighting as there’d been no bolt. The light had flashed bright, disappearing as soon as it had come, almost like a camera. He scanned the mountainside all the way down to the valley below before returning his gaze to the road. It was at that point he saw something. Ahead of him, moving through the air was… a girl. John blinked and rubbed his eyes, sure that he was hallucinating, but when he looked back she was still there. She moved through the air like a gymnast, her body flipping around in a large aerial. Long flowing blonde hair streamed behind her as she spun. Her body was covered in a white dress that looked decades, if not longer, out of its time. As she turned to face him, John gazed looked into the deepest yellow eyes he’d ever seen. Their gaze locked together for the faintest moment before she disappeared. John blinked quickly and shook his head. The girl was gone. Had she even been there in the first place? He stopped the car, pulling off onto the shoulder and opening his door quickly. The cool evening air wrapped around him like a blanket as he stepped out onto the asphalt. He looked around frantically, almost certain of what he had seen.
Another flash caught his gaze as a clap of thunder rang out. John turned around towards the source just in time to see something else. He nearly hit the dirt as something passed by over the Charger at an insane speed. It was some kind of massive bird. Black wings, or maybe grey, stretched out nearly as long as his car had been. John turned around fast and looked behind him, but couldn’t see anything but the dark night sky and the empty road ahead. He stood up slowly, his heart racing. Was he losing it? He knew he wasn’t doing too well, but this was excessive. Suddenly another thud, much closer this time, nearly made his heart stop.
John turned around to face his Charger and was shocked at what he saw. Standing on his hood was… a person, a man to be precise. He was around the same height as John with short white hair and a pale complexion. The man wore a pair of tight fitting blue jeans and a loose t-shirt. On his feet, above the two dents in John’s hood were clean, white sneakers. John studied the man slowly, his breaths shallow as he tried his best not to make a sound. Where had the man come from? Had he jumped down from above? John glanced upward; the only thing the man could’ve fallen from was one of the many tall pines that lined the hillside John had parked beside. And from that height? There’d be no way he could’ve survived without breaking his legs. Suddenly the man turned to face John.
“My, my… You poor little lost soul…” His voice was calm, but carried the slightest hint of malice. His eyes were closed, yet John could feel the man looking right through him. “It’s the wrong place at the wrong time for you.”
John moved to say something, anything, but before his body could even react the man disappeared. It was as if he had simply vanished into thin air like a ghost. John looked around frantically for the mysterious figure. Were it not for the dents on his hood he would’ve surely thought he was losing his mind. Suddenly another flash of light lit up the night sky, but this time it was far brighter than before. John held his hand up to shield his eyes as a terrible explosion rang out in his ears. He felt himself being thrown backwards; up became down and down became up as all sense of direction flip flopped. For a moment everything felt weightless before he came crashing down hard. He slammed into the dirt and pavement face first and rolled to a stop some feet away. He couldn’t move, his body wouldn’t respond. Through the red liquid that was rapidly filling his eyes he could barely make out the figure of someone approaching. It didn’t look like the man from before, this person was shorter. John blinked to try and clear his vision, but it only made it worse. His hearing had become a high pitch whine in his ears that slowly grew fainter. Before everything faded away, John could swear he heard a voice. It belonged to a girl, to her.
“God, no… why?” Her voice shook as she spoke. “Why you? Why here? Why…?” She knelt down beside him afraid and took his hand. “You… Wait. I, I can fix this.”
Chapter Two
He was weightless. His body hung suspended, motionless, as if floating in water. It was heavy and no matter what he did, his body refused to respond to the commands he was giving it. He could feel himself sinking deeper. The weight pulled him down further and further from the light until suddenly something reached out. He felt it grab hold of him, pulling him away from the darkness he was descending towards. Something held him just above the water. He tried to open his eyes, he wanted to see where he was, what he was doing. He needed to know.
John slowly opened his eyes; they were heavy, just like the rest of his body. His mind was like a dense fog, as if he had been asleep for too long. Slowly his senses returned to him. He was lying down on his side, resting his head against something soft. He blinked and took in the world around him. Everything was white, the sky, and the ground, everything except for… her. He saw her when he rolled over, coming face to face with the girl whose lap he currently occupied. Her hair was a bright blonde that flowed all the way down to the middle of her back and tapered off at the ends. She was clad in a long, beautiful white dress that would’ve looked out of place anywhere else. Noticing his movements, the girl’s gaze moved down to meet his own. Their eyes met and John got the first look at the most yellow irises he had ever seen in his life.
“Oh.” She spoke softly. “You’re finally awake.”
“I… I think so.” John could feel his strength returning to him and he managed to pull himself up out of her lap. “Where are we?” He asked, rubbing the back of his head.
“We’re inside a small barrier that I erected.” The girl answered flatly.
She had given him more questions than answers. A barrier? Of what kind? And why? He stared at the girl hoping for something else, but she simply stared back at him, as if she expected a response.
“A barrier...” John echoed in thought as he examined his surroundings once more, hoping for some clarity. He had thought he had given off a slight air of understanding, but the girl could see through his ruse.
“It’s like a pocket between dimensions.” She said in clarification. “Time moves faster in this one specifically.” She pointed upward to a large clock high in the sky that had eluded John somehow. A dozen dials covered a dozen faces above as they slowly ticked away, all at different intervals.
“Time..?” He stared up at the clocks above and watched them move. He wasn’t any closer to understanding the situation, and so he decided to question her further. “So… are you an alien? Or something?”
His question had apparently struck something inside of the girl and she let out a short laugh
. This was in stark contrast to her character thus far, and perplexed John even further. He tilted his head slightly to the side and raised an eyebrow in confusion.
“No. Goodness, no. I’m nothing that interesting.” The girl stated. “I’m an Angel.”
An Angel, the word danced around John’s head. An entirely new avenue of questions that needed answers opened up to him. He knew what Angels were, he knew of religions and ideologies, but had never really taken part in such. He stared at the girl as he continued to toss the idea over in his head. She was certainly easy on the eyes, and he could understand why someone would call her an Angel, but now was not the time for such lines of thinking. Suddenly a realization set in.
“Oh God.” He muttered, connecting the pieces in his head. “I was…” He cut himself off before saying it. “I’m…” He stopped just short of uttering the phrase. John looked up into the girl’s eyes before speaking. “I’m dead, aren’t I?”
“Yes.” The girl’s gaze descended from John’s toward the floor. “Yes you are.” She repeated.
The cold grim truth had come out. John let out a sigh as he leaned back and rested his weight on his arms behind him. He stared off into the distance of the pale, white void as he thought. His body felt relatively normal, as far as things went, but then that could be due to the strange “barrier” they were in. There were far too many questions that needed answers, but John didn’t really feel like asking them now.
“It doesn’t really feel like I thought it would.” He suddenly spoke, breaking the silence. “I feel… normal, I guess.” He stated.
“Well.” The girl’s gaze drew back up to John’s once more. “How did you expect to feel?”
“I don’t know.” John closed his eyes and furrowed his brow before coming up with an answer. “More dead?” He tossed the idea out with a shrug of his shoulders. The girl attempted to hide a smile elicited by his response, but ultimately failed. John shook his head and leaned forward. “By the way, who are you?” He asked. “I mean I know you’re an Angel and all, but what’s your name?”
Slayer: A Demon Hunter's Tale Page 1
