GK was angry at himself, angry for being so useless in a time of need. His friends, whom he didn't have much faith in, to begin with, were putting their lives in danger to help him. He was not expecting this. He distanced himself from people because it felt like he had been betrayed a lot before. Though his memories were a blur, he somehow felt that he was currently in this situation because of someone he trusted.
Good friends were difficult to come by and rare. As he bounced up and down the wolf's back, he drifted in and out of consciousness. Between those periods of semiconsciousness, flashes of memories played like a strip of old film. Some were good, but most were painful, and there was one memory that stood out. A boy about ten to twelve years old with bright hazel eyes and short dark brown hair was waving at him.
"Try and keep up, chicken wing," he said while beckoning GK to follow him.
Chicken wing? Was that his nickname? Whose memories were these? It was different from the one at the monastery. Many distorted memories, but who did they belong to? He realized that this wasn't the time to be dreaming, especially when his friends were out there fighting with their lives on the line.
The wolf hovered over him, clutching her belly. She had been shot and was unable to move.
Blaze was in a state of panic. She had been a top bounty hunter for years, but she wouldn't have gotten far if it weren't for Cecil, the little boy with the ability to manipulate time. She hasn't told anyone about this, in fear of putting Cecil's life in danger, and she also insisted that the boy did not interfere with her work, but he was adamant to help. He snuck out to help her whenever she went bounty hunting. There was nothing she could do since he could slow down time and sneak past her with ease. It was only for a brief moment, but fighting enemies had been a whole lot easier with Cecil's help.
Everything else within a ten-meter radius was slowed, and she could just slice and dice till they were all dead. This was the closest she had come to having a nuclear family. A couple, their kid, and a pet dog. What more could she ask for? They needed protection and now the world's biggest asshole just opened fire amidst a huge crowd of people. What kind of special retard would shoot when so many people were panicked and running around mindlessly.
Probably a psycho who was highly confident in his skills. The shot of a high-powered rifle was impossible to deflect, even when paired with Cecil's time-slowing skills. She heard the shot and positioned herself in front of Rika, who was still shielding GK.
"Why am I protecting a werewolf and a guy I just met"? She asked herself.
"Because they're my friends, because they're the closest thing I have of a family, and I don't want to lose any more loved ones". Blaze knew that this was the end for her; she would gladly put herself between the bullet and her friends. She was prepared to die. She could hear Cecil screaming her name behind a group of people who had blocked off the entrance. Time was already slowed, and in a few moments, the bullet would finally reach her.
"Stupid woman, do you honestly think you could deflect a shot from a sniper rifle?" The sniper sneered into his scope. He was allowed to fire a gun in any circumstances because he had been deemed worthy. Two hundred and fifty-one shots were fired, and two hundred and ninety kills were recorded. He could kill multiple enemies with a single bullet, and he had never missed, not even once. His colleagues hated him. This guy had looks and skills. Life must have been pretty easy for him, or so they thought.
He stroked his golden blonde hair away from his eyes and peered through the scope, wondering why the bullet still hadn't pierced the dumb woman's skull. He fired again, to make sure. His second shot directly aligned with the previous bullet to add more punch. The wind wasn't a problem here because they were indoors, and he was always able to calculate where his bullet would hit with a hundred percent precision, even during bad weather conditions and poor visibility. It was as if he were born to wield a gun.
GK had started to chant. It was a last-ditch effort. He had always dreaded doing this, but he didn't have a choice.
From the deepest depths of hell,
I summon a great warrior with a spell,
My very soul, I will sell.
Help me in my time of need,
Satiate your greed,
Make my enemies bleed.
Spare my friends, take me instead,
Drown thy enemy in a sea of red.
Most of the crowd had already evacuated, Cecil was making his way towards Blaze, who was screaming at him to get out.
"I summon thee, Belial".
The summon needed a vessel, and the only one who was able and uninjured was Blaze. It was a slight miscalculation on his part; he had intended the demon to possess him, but not everything usually goes as planned, unfortunately. A bright flash of light, followed by a streak of red and black, entered the woman's back. Her eyes glowed red, and a dark aura encircled her body. The bullets melted right before her eyes.
"What in the world?"
The sniper couldn't believe his eyes. His shots didn't exactly miss. His bullets just melted in front of the enemy. The demon didn't care much about the ongoing fight. He turned towards GK, who was lying next to the collapsed werewolf.
"Pathetic, your human body is weak. You should have known how picky I am, or do you have no memory of our encounters? Didn't they always use to say, never trust a demon?"
GK clutched his head, wondering why an archdemon would acknowledge him like they were best pals.
"Never thought you would call me for help. Must have been desperate, I see." Blaze continued to converse with him in a deep, masculine voice. She glared at him with glowing bloodshot eyes. Drops of blood dribbled from her right nostril.
"What did you do to her?" Cecil snapped at GK.
"What's happening to her?"
The demon disregarded the kid and reached towards his right. He grabbed something and lifted it. The object manifested slowly, losing its invisibility. She was still invisible, but some of her scales had come off. The arena's guards had stopped in their tracks, all watching the spectacle wide-eyed. Belial strangled the woman as she twitched and struggled against his grasp, trying to get free. He would have preferred a larger vessel, that way, he could have just snapped her neck with ease. But still, this reptilian woman had scales as hard as diamonds. He used Blaze's sword to finish Lyzz off.
She kicked and scratched at the possessed Blaze, leaving minor injuries that healed almost instantly on Blaze's body. One clean stab right beneath her left chest, and her body fell limp, still in his grasp. Her scales had tiny crevices between them, which allowed the blade to slide through without much resistance.
He let her drop to the ground and turned towards the trembling guards. They turned tail and ran.
"It's just you and me now. You said you'd sell your soul to me, but we know that I can't take your soul, can I? Or have you forgotten that as well? Anyway, it looks like you haven't changed one bit, always sacrificing yourself for others. When will you learn?"
The demon paused before continuing. "Very well, let's make a deal. I will let it slide this time, I will not take a soul. Since we are best buds and all, I'm willing to do you a big favor out of the kindness of my heart, but…."
"Belial be gone," GK shouted. He had no idea what was happening, but he was glad that the demon hadn't taken Blaze's life as payment. Blaze came to her senses and supported her throbbing head with the back of her palm. Cecil ran towards her and hugged her.
"What the hell was that?" She asked in a shaky voice.
"It was a difficult choice to make," GK answered her.
"You put her life in danger," Cecil shouted at him, eyes welling up with tears.
"It was a decision that I had to make. If you must sacrifice one to save many, then there's no other way." He didn't tell them that he intended to sacrifice himself, but something in Blaze's eyes told him that she knew exactly what he had planned. She looked at him and whispered, "Thank you" as a shiny golden bullet pierced her forehead, startling Cecil.
"Noooooooooo𑁋", the boy wailed, holding Blaze's lifeless body close to him. The sniper was still angry that two of his bullets had been wasted earlier. GK fell back onto his knees, gasping. He could have sworn the coast was clear, but the sniper had changed positions. Maybe he should have let Belial finish his sentence. Was this his fault?