“Wait here.” He instructed. His voice was calm and confident on a level Aerin had never heard before. “I’ll be right back.”
For the briefest moment, Isaac stood before her. A face she’d never thought she’d see again was looking back at her. John turned away and walked to the edge of the rooftop and peered over the side. He turned back to Aerin briefly and gazed at her with a smile. Aerin tried to stand as she reached for him, but her body felt too weak to move. She watched as John vanished into thin air, leaving her alone once again. She couldn’t feel his spirit anymore. The tether between their souls had been broken. The only thing she could feel was the crippling loneliness that surrounded her like a thick blanket, making the still evening air feel just a bit colder than it was. The look in John’s eyes though, it had been something else. She’d never seen him this way before; she’d never seen anyone this way before. As she stared off towards Station in the distance the faintest glimmer of hope started to come back in her heart. Maybe it would be okay to leave it to him. Some junior Slayer not even a year into his duty. Maybe he’d be enough.
John appeared before Legion in the blink of an eye. The tentacles had nearly finished repairing the demon's body and were now focusing on his charred face. John watched as they secreted a purple slime that soaked into his skin, regenerating his flesh. The small tendrils retreated into Legion's damaged eye socket, disappearing behind his eyelid. His eyes opened, staring towards John with a hate filled glare. Legion snapped his neck side to side, getting a feel for his new body. All the while, John stood silently a few meters away watching the whole show.
"Who are you?" Legion suddenly spoke aloud, his question aimed at the only living thing other than him. John remained silent. "I asked you a question." Legion stated, his voice growing louder in aggravation. "Who are you?" An angered expression came over the demon’s face. "Such... insolence!" He shouted. "If you want to die so badly!" Legion suddenly rushed forward at John with his fist raised in the air. "Then-"
Before Legion could even come close to making contact, John had countered. He brought his right hand up to block Legion's punch, gripping the hand tightly and twisting it around. The bones in the demon’s arm popped as John pulled them close together. Legion struggled to get free, taken by surprise by John’s newfound strength. Their faces were close and he stared into John’s burning red eyes as the Slayer began to speak.
"You want to know who I am?” John spoke mere inches from Legion’s face. "My name is John. I’m a Slayer.” He twisted Legion's arm just a bit more as anger filled his voice. “And this is my home.”
"S-Slayer?" Legion repeated the word as he attempted to free his arm from John's grip. "No... I, I killed the Slayer!" Legion's reasoning caused John to suddenly smile as he remembered something someone had said to him before. He released his grip and shoved Legion away from him.
“I was already dead.” John stated with a smile. “You’ll have to do better than that.”
"Y-You!" Legion shouted. He grabbed hold of his broken arm and forcefully reset the bone. It made a terrible crack that caused him to wince slightly. He moved the fingers on his hand to make sure everything was in working order before turning his hate filled gaze back to John. "If I have to kill you again... So be it!"
Legion lunged forward at John in a flash. He brought both of his hands up as they changed shape into some grotesque looking claw that was poised ready to strike. John's body moved like clockwork in response. Both hands darted down to the hilts of his swords that rested in each sheath. He pushed down on them, making both sheaths rotate forward, allowing the blades they held to slide free from their resting place. The blades ground against the edges of the sheaths as they rocketed outward at an insane speed. Two swords, one black and one white, cleaved through Legion's fully exposed body. The demon's claws were high in the air, leaving his torso completely open to a quick attack that carved him into multiple pieces. The chunks of flesh flew over and past John as he held his swords in his crossed arms like some kind of pincer ready to cut.
"Get up!" John turned and shouted to the deathly wounded demon. "I know you aren't finished."
Black worms spilled out of every single one of Legion’s wounds. The tentacle-like creatures writhed around on the ground in a disgusting manner until they finally came together in the center of the pile of body parts. The fleshy arms flowed around each other as they created a black central mass that began to pulse like a slimy heart. Slowly, each part pulled closer to the center until the body was completely repaired. Legion stood and faced John once again. A tiny tentacle retreated into his stomach as the last wound on him was sealed.
“You’re fast, Slayer.”
"I don't need your compliments. Come on!" John shouted back in response.
Legion charged again towards John. The demon was fast, but John was faster. He tracked Legion’s movements and waited for the perfect opportunity to strike. John slashed up with the white sword that he held in his right hand. At the apex of his attack he turned quickly on his heel and brought the blade back around, making another pass at the demon’s chest. Legion stumbled past John with two deep cuts, but it wasn’t enough to slow him down. He turned quickly and rushed John again as his wounds healed almost instantly. Legion raised his arm into the air and brought it down hard, but John countered accordingly. He turned and swung the black blade that he held in his left hand. It dug into Legions arm, severing it in one fell swoop that sent the dismembered limb flying some distance away from them. The arm turned to dust the moment it hit the ground while the tentacles spilling out of Legion’s elbow went to work at rebuilding a new one. Flesh grew over the slimy bones rapidly and Legion gripped his new knuckles until they were whiter than his own pale skin.
Legion shouted and jumped angrily at John in another series of pointless attacks that John sidestepped. Deep down inside he felt some kind of strange satisfaction at watching his opponent struggle. Perhaps it was the sudden rush of power that he was experiencing, but dodging every attack with ease filled him with a sense of pride that brought a smile to his face. Something that had seemed so powerful before was now swinging wildly in an aggravated fury before him. As John dodged another attack that would have proved fatal merely an hour before he began to laugh. The notion, the realization of it all had finally gotten to him and he could not contain his own joy. With each dodge, each parry, every attack successfully countered the smile on his face grew wider, much to Legion’s chagrin.
"Y-You!" Legion shouted as he punched in rage. John easily dodged the strike by stepping to the left, leaving Legion wide open. The demon quickly backpedaled as his rage continued to build. "Why are you laughing?!"
"It's just..." John backed up and attempted to contain himself. "Having these roles reversed now. It's humorous, don't you think so?"
John smiled smugly as he tilted his head slightly. Legion didn't find the situation as funny as John did and he only scowled at him in anger.
"Hey." John suddenly sheathed his blades. Legion took it as an opportunity to get in close, but was once again taken by surprise by John’s speed. The Slayer held the demon’s hands firmly and he twisted them around in an unnatural way, bringing their bodies closer. "Do you feel it?" John asked, his face inches from the demon. "Not this." He clarified as he twisted Legion's arms even more. "That feeling deep down inside you.” John whispered. "You know the one. It’s eating at you right now." Legion attempted to avert his eyes but John forced him to look with another sharp twist of his arms. "Don't try to hide it, I can see it right there on your face." John’s voice took on a more serious tone. "Now imagine: eight hundred thousand people felt the same way just before you killed them. Have you figured it out yet?" Legion struggled, not willing to hear what was coming. "It's helplessness."
“Helpless?!” Legion shouted as he wretched his arms free from John’s grip. The demon jumped backward a ways and dug his fancy loafers into the ground. “Helpless?! Is that what you think this is??”
The demon clen
ched his fists tight enough to cause his black blood to trickle between his fingers. His knuckles turned white as a terrible growl escaped the depths of his bowels. The ground beneath him began to quake, and for a moment John felt his footing falter slightly as if his balance was being interfered with.
“You humans… really are something!” Legion snarled as a dark aura began to take shape around him. “I’ll show you helpless!”
A violent whirlpool of negative energy had been gathering below Legion for some time. It swirled around, channeling into him as his body slowly changed. His eyes shined a brighter shade of purple than before and his pupils became more feline in shape. Two large horns extended from the top of his head, they curved around back before pointing upwards, like two massive strands of hair slicked back. Long fangs that dripped putrid saliva protruded from the corners of his mouth as he gasped for breath, the weight of his transformation taking a toll on his body. His hair grew whiter as his muscles increased, ripping through the suit that he wore. Finally, a pair of bony, black wings tore out of his back. They extended up toward the night sky as his black blood dripped from their tips.
"Drawing out more power?" John mused as he watched the display before him. "Okay." He said clenching his fists just as Legion had. "I can do that."
John focused hard on the unchained soul within him. A limitless well of untapped power was at his disposal, he only needed to draw it out. A vortex of fire erupted around his body as he struggled to keep the energies in check. The fire leaped up towards the sky in a reckless display of disregard and lack of self-control. The power inside of him fluctuated wildly. It spilled over into other parts of him and ran rampant like a wildfire. John grunted and grit his teeth in concentration. Eventually he got a grasp on his powers and the flames around him gradually decreased. With a more stable form, their color shifted and their heat rose. When he had finally gotten his powers in check, the flames around him burned a bright blue. They licked at his body and danced around him in a hypnotic way before shooting up all around him, covering his body in fire. The flames circled his body like a tornado as his powers rose. The fires around his body began to fold, slowly moving towards his back. John could feel the heat on his shoulders as they roared up into the night sky. Two burning wings slowly took shape; they flapped once, singeing the ground beneath him as he rose into the air.
"Helpless!" Legion nearly roared. "I'll show you the very meaning of the word!"
Legion thrust his arms out to his sides with his hands open. Tiny particles of light collected just an inch away from each open palm. They pooled together until two small orbs of light appeared on each side of him. Legion quickly grabbed hold of both orbs and squeezed his hands into fists. Long beams of distorted light extended into swords that the demon swung around violently. In response, John drew both of his blades from their sheaths and raised them into a ready position.
With both fighters fully powered and equipped, the real fight began. Legion flew forward toward John at a speed that no human being could mimic. To the naked eye it would seem that Legion had simply vanished, but John was accustomed to such things. He tracked every single one of the winged demon's movements as if he were traveling in slow motion. John countered Legion's barrage of strikes with a flurry of his own. The air was filled with an endless chain of metallic clanging as their swords bounced off of one another.
Having wings and the ability to fly opened up an entirely new facet of the battlefield to John. In every fight he had been in, prior to this one, he had always been limited to his range of motion on the ground. Angels, Demons, even humans in helicopters had always held an advantage over him. But that was no more. He now stood on equal ground with those that could fly. The battlefield became almost limitless to him; however, the fight progressed normally as it had before. Dodge, counter, attack. The same patterns that had played out so well on the ground continued to play themselves out in the sky.
Their blades collided together, locking briefly before a flurry of dozens upon dozens of strikes repelled them away. Legion's speed and abilities had most definitely increased to a level that they had previously not been. Had John faced Legion in this state before fully releasing his power, he would have died in less than an instant. Somehow they now stood on equal grounds, more or less, in terms of power. And though Legion seemed particularly invincible, there were still cracks in his form, flaws in his structure. While the demon appeared all powerful, he most certainly was not.
John waited for an opportunity before parrying the demon again. He caught Legion’s left hand with his black blade and sent it recoiling backwards. The action had caught the demon by surprise. His other blade had already been swung and the motion had left him completely open. He looked up, locking his eyes with John’s just as the white blade found its way into his neck. The blade slid into place with a sloppy gushing sound before coming to rest with the hilt directly under Legion's chin. He attempted to speak, but all the air escaping his lungs was garbled into a nasty squelch that was completely inaudible. The two glowing swords that he held in each hand vanished as he took hold of the blade that was wedged into his throat. What happened next came as a slight surprise to John, but he hadn't really expected the move to kill the demon. Legion gripped the blade until a purple sludge seeped out of his hands from where it was cutting. With one swift motion, he tore the blade out the side of his neck, leaving behind a terrible gaping hole where it once had been. Legion released the sword, which John quickly brought to the ready, before his neck began to heal. The tentacle-like worms spilled out of his wound and quickly patched the skin back together. They wiggled around in a disgusting manner, secreting the nasty purple sludge, until it was as if the wound had never been.
“That’s a terribly convenient power you have there.” John observed.
"I am filled with the souls of this city. Their energies fuel me." Legion stated as he held out his arms in gesture. "So long as they reside within me, I cannot die." He smiled.
"It's real nice." John praised. "But it won't save you. I'm still going to kill you." A slight smile crept across his face. "I've got you all figured out now."
"Y-You..." Legion seemed flustered. "All figured out?!"
“You’re strong.” John conceded as he began. “But everything about you is a gimmick. You couldn’t even manifest without the help of a Bloodstone. And when you got here, you copied the skillset of the first thing you saw: Me.”
A tense air filled the space between John and the arch-demon as John’s words were spoken. A serious expression came across John’s face as he continued.
“Every single time my sword collides with yours I steal a soul from inside of you. You use them as a means to attack not because you’re all powerful, but because you can’t do it on your own.” He paused to let his words sink in. “That healing ability? It’s amazing, but it costs you so much. You’re burning through them every time I kill you.”
Legion’s aggravation grew with every passing word that John uttered; not because he was wrong, but because he was right. As John spoke, the demon began to growl under his breath as his knuckles whitened from his grip.
“And finally, that form. It’s not like mine.” He stated as he motioned to his own body. “I can feel the souls draining away. You’re struggling to maintain that body, fighting to keep your footing. The truth is you’re a copy, an inferior one.” John stopped and smiled as he watched the expressions play out across the Demon’s face. “So to answer your question, yes, I have you all figured out. I don’t have to beat you at my own terms; you’re doing a fine job of that yourself. I just have to keep killing you until you stay dead.”
Legion shouted in anger and drew both of his glowing blades before angrily charging at John again. In response, John quickly raised his swords to counter. With that, the battle picked up right where it had left off. It fell back into the same monotonous high speed pattern of dodge, counter, and attack once again. Legion’s abilities had been greatly raised in comparison to their earlie
r fight, but John’s level had increased dramatically as well. The fight continued on, just as it had; the only difference was that this time Legion wasn’t able to hold back. As their blades clashed together in a flurry of strikes, John could feel that Legion was at his utmost limit. He was being powered by the stolen souls of the humans that had once inhabited the region, but there were no more souls to steal. On top of that, with each strike John stole away another soul. Their fight had become a downhill slide; John only needed to wait him out.
The soul count within John had steadily climbed past levels he had ever imagined. Entire city blocks worth of humans danced around within him in the depths of his very core. He knew a way to speed up the fight, but he hesitated at the means to such an end. As the thought passed from his mind he felt something ripple inside of him. A wave of unanimous emotion spread out from his core to every part of his being. He could feel them, all of them, calling to him. Thousands of voices, all in one accord, shouted in chorus within John. He closed his eyes and thought back to a small girl that he had promised to protect, but had failed. This time, things were different. This time, the voices had a say within him, and they called out to him, begging for him to end the monster that stood in his way. He was the only one capable of avenging them and making their deaths count for something. The people of Station and her surrounding regions stood behind John one hundred percent. One no name man from the edge of town was their champion now.
The whole situation ignited a white hot rage inside of his heart. A few tears dropped down from his red eyes as he accepted their wish. John slammed both of his blades down on top of Legion, forcing the demon to block or accept their strike full force. With an ample dose of negativity and a lot of souls, John's blades burst into flames. He shouted with a roar filled with anger as he smashed the fiery swords down onto Legion once more. Twin arcs of fire ripped into a building in front of them. The two infernos ripped into the structure and melted it all the way down to its core, leaving behind a mass of destruction in their wake. The flames had caught Legion head on, though he had managed to avoid most of the attack. The majority of the left side of his body had been burnt all the way to the bone. As he fell toward the ground, he used the only good wing he had left to steer himself away from John's next strike. The tendrils went to work repairing his body, but prioritized damage control on his wing in order for him to properly outrun the next wave of fire that washed over the land.
Slayer: A Demon Hunter's Tale Page 52
