Billy lay on the rough, ash- and dust-covered ground of his cell, the pain from his recent transformation still fresh in his mind. Raising his now unfamiliar hand above him, he marveled at the ashen-gray, rough texture, as though a permanent layer of ash coated his flesh. His nails, darker than obsidian, slowly extended into claws, causing his brimstone-yellow eyes to widen in surprise.
Placing his ashen-gray hand on his forehead, he brushed the long hair out of his face before letting out a hot breath. With a grunt, he pushed himself to his feet and approached the bars of his cell, searching for any sign of life outside, only to find the usual guard absent.
"Perhaps he's out on lunch?" he thought, unable to help but wonder what exactly demons ate.
Seeing this as an opportunity to test the strength of the bars that confined him, Billy reached out and began applying pressure. As he increased his effort, thick, subtly glowing veins surfaced beneath his skin.
WENG!
Just as he was about to give up, the sound of metal warping reached his ears, and he looked up in shock.
The bars he gripped had bent slightly, forming a bulge and igniting a spark of hope within him.
"HISSSS!"
With a sharp inhale, Billy summoned his full strength, and the warped metal began to deform further. With the sound of crushing stone, he tore the bar loose.
CLANG!
The bar slammed against the back wall of the cell, creating a cacophonous sound that echoed throughout the prison, rousing other prisoners from their slumber. The noise continued to reverberate, reaching parts unknown.
The moment the sound reverberated through the cell, Billy reacted with extraordinary speed, his muscles straining to their limits as the faintly glowing veins beneath his skin became more pronounced.
CRACK...
BANG!
With a tremendous burst of power, Billy ripped another bar from the cell and flung it behind him with such force that it embedded itself deep into the wall.
On the verge of escape, he focused all his strength on loosening another bar. When this one came free, however, he decided not to discard it like the others.
"I'll need a weapon; this place is obviously dangerous," he muttered, slapping the makeshift weapon against his palm with a sharp crack that brought an involuntary smile to his face.
Stepping out of his cell and into the prison that confined him, Billy's presence provoked the nearby demonic entities within their cages to roar and thrash violently. Some shouted promises of rewards or threats of punishment, urging him to either aid or ignore them. As he surveyed the area, he noticed the pitiful state of many captives, missing limbs, visibly ill, and in one cell, a pile of rotting corpses.
A wave of revulsion churned in Billy's stomach, and when the putrid stench reached his nose, he could no longer suppress the nausea. Dropping to his knees, he began to vomit uncontrollably.
"I have never smelled anything so vile. Why do they even keep these creatures here?" he muttered to himself. As the words left his mouth, a chilling thought struck him.
"What exactly have they been feeding me?"
Billy staggered to his feet, wiping the last traces of bile from his mouth with the back of his gray hand. His eyes darted around the chamber, scanning one cage after another, frantically searching for anything that resembled a key. The shrieks and pleas of the demons echoed relentlessly, their voices colliding into a maddening cacophony that throbbed in his temples.
His gaze landed on the guard's usual post, the rusted iron hook mounted on the wall where a ring of keys should have hung. It was empty.
"Damn it…" he muttered, the words barely audible over the howls of the imprisoned fiends. He scoured the tables, the floor, even the mangled remains in one of the cells, but there was no glint of iron to be found.
Just as frustration threatened to overtake him, a new sound sliced through the chaos.
Clack… clack… clack…
Bootsteps. Heavy and deliberate. Drawing closer.
The voices of the prisoners shifted, dropping to hisses and sneering whispers. Some laughed mockingly, others chanted ominous predictions, and one began rattling its cage with manic fervor. The air grew heavy, thick with the acrid scent of brimstone and blood.
Billy froze, his body tensing like a coiled spring. He raised the jagged iron bar in both hands, gripping it so tightly that his ashen knuckles darkened. His fingers pressed into the metal with such force that they left permanent indentations in his improvised weapon.
His breathing slowed, becoming measured and deliberate, though his heart pounded furiously in his chest.
Whoever comes through that door… he thought grimly, his brimstone eyes narrowing with determination. They won't be ready for me.
The footsteps halted just outside the chamber. A suffocating silence descended, broken only by the faint crackle of torches and the steady drip of water from the ceiling above.
Then came the distinct sound of a key sliding into the lock.
The lock clicked, and the heavy iron door creaked open with a low groan.
A demonic figure emerged, ducking slightly to clear the frame so his horn would not smash against the frame of the door. The guard's stocky, squat body was packed with corded muscle, each movement deliberate and efficient, as if every ounce of strength served a purpose. His skin, weathered and stony, stretched tightly over his powerful form.
Billy's gaze drifted upward, catching on the creature's head. A single, crooked horn jutted from its brow, cracked and worn, evidence of countless battles. The demon's face was harsh and unrefined, with a square jaw and a nose flattened by repeated blows. Brimstone smoke curled lazily from its nostrils with every heavy breath.
The prison grew unnervingly quiet. The jeers and shouts of the other inmates faded into an uneasy hush.
The guard dragged a rusted halberd behind him, its blade sparking against the stone floor with a grating screech. His eyes swept languidly across the chamber before locking onto Billy, who stood outside his cell gripping a jagged iron bar tightly in his hands.
The demon's lips twisted into a slow, mirthless grin.
"Well," he rumbled, his voice deep and gravelly like grinding stone, "looks like the runt's out of his cage."
Billy's knuckles whitened as his fingers dug into the iron bar, bending it further under his grip. His chest rose and fell steadily, his brimstone-yellow eyes fixed unwaveringly on the guard.
The crooked-horned demon tilted his head slightly, his grin widening as if relishing the tension. With a single, effortless swing, he hefted the halberd upright, slamming its butt into the ground with a resonant thud that echoed through the prison's stone halls.
"Let's see what kind of fight you've got in you."
The crooked-horned demon lunged first, swinging its halberd in a vicious horizontal arc that sliced through the stale air with a menacing howl. Billy barely managed to raise the iron bar in time—
CLANG!
The impact sent a jarring shock through his arms, rattling his bones and forcing him back. Sparks erupted as stone-like flesh clashed against jagged iron, and the sheer force of the blow left him staggering to the side. His grip faltered for a moment, but he clenched his claws tighter around the bar, steadying himself with a guttural growl.
The demon guard sneered, sensing an opening. He pressed forward, thrusting the halberd's tip like a spear. Billy twisted his body, narrowly evading a strike that would have pierced his ribs. The blade glanced off the stone wall behind him, scattering fractured dust across the floor.
Desperation surged through Billy as he shoved the iron bar forward, aiming for the demon's throat.
THUD!
The guard deftly deflected the blow with the haft of his halberd, then lunged forward, slamming his horned forehead into Billy's skull. The crooked horn tore into his brow, splitting the skin and releasing a warm gush of blood that streamed down his face. His vision blurred momentarily, but his legs refused to buckle.
"Not bad for a runt," the demon rasped, baring his jagged teeth in a cruel grin.
Billy let out a snarl and swung the iron bar wildly. It connected with the guard's shoulder in a resounding CRACK, forcing him to stumble back a step. Chips of gray stone-like flesh fell away, exposing the darker, sinewy tissue beneath.
Enraged, the demon roared and swung the halberd's shaft like a club. It struck Billy's gut with brutal force, knocking the air from his lungs and doubling him over. But before the guard could capitalize, Billy lashed out blindly, driving the end of the iron bar into the demon's knee.
POP!
The joint twisted unnaturally, causing the demon to stumble with a guttural snarl. Billy seized the opportunity, lifting the bar with both hands and slamming it down onto the guard's back. The sound was gruesome, iron colliding with bone and stone alike.
The crooked-horned creature collapsed to one knee but lashed out wildly with an elbow, catching Billy across the jaw. His head snapped sideways, teeth clacking together violently, nearly breaking under the impact. Staggering, he spat blood, his vision swimming with bursts of light.
The two combatants circled each other now, panting heavily, their battered and bleeding bodies showing the toll of the fight. Neither relied on finesse or technique, only primal survival instincts. The demon dragged its halberd behind it like a burden, while Billy's iron bar, bent almost beyond recognition, reflected the relentless ferocity of their struggle.
For a single, tense moment, silence blanketed the prison. The inmates pressed against their cell bars, eyes wide and breathless, captivated by the brutal spectacle.
Then, as if driven by the same savage impulse, both fighters lunged simultaneously.
The iron bar and halberd collided with a screech like tortured metal. Billy surged forward with every ounce of strength, his glowing veins pulsating beneath his ashen skin. The crooked-horned guard roared in defiance, muscles straining as they locked in a contest of sheer will.
The weapons groaned, twisted, and finally—
SNAP!
The halberd's shaft shattered under the pressure, splintering into pieces. The guard stumbled backward, shock etched across its jagged features. Billy, gripping the iron bar firmly, wasted no time. With a roar, he swung downward—
And the iron bar struck the demon's jaw with a sickening force, shattering its stone-like skin in a violent spray of dust and blood.
The crooked-horned guard staggered backward, his halberd snapping under the strain, but he wasn't finished. His limbs, rigid and stone-like, quivered with rage as he surged forward, covering the distance with alarming speed despite his wounded knee. Billy braced himself, planting his feet firmly, gripping the iron bar like a makeshift club, sweat and blood mingling on his pallid gray skin.
CRASH!
The guard swung the jagged remains of his halberd in a ferocious arc. Billy intercepted it with the bar, the collision reverberating through his arms, rattling his bones with each jarring strike. Gritting his teeth against the metallic tang of blood in his mouth, he heaved forward, forcing the guard back through sheer physical power.
The demon bellowed in fury, his massive arms lashing out with chaotic momentum. Billy ducked beneath one wild swing, rolling across the coarse, ash-laden floor. The guard's elbow collided with the stone wall in a resounding BANG, scattering shards of rock across the chamber. Seizing the moment, Billy sprang to his feet, lifting the iron bar with focused intensity.
He struck.
THUNK!
The rough iron bar struck the guard's chest with force, denting its stone-like flesh. The demon roared in agony, staggering back as Billy pushed, driving the bar deeper with every ounce of strength he could muster. The stone cracked under the pressure, shards splintering away, and the guard's cries turned to raw, desperate bellows of pain.
Billy's breathing came in harsh, uneven gasps, his veins glowing brighter, his muscles trembling from the strain. Pivoting sharply, he unleashed a powerful kick into the guard's midsection. The impact drove the iron bar entirely through the demon's torso, piercing the tough, stone-like skin and shredding sinew and muscle. A sickening crack echoed through the chamber as the bar sank deeper, pulverizing ribs and crushing the heart into an unrecognizable mass.
The guard's horned head snapped back, smoke curling from its nostrils, its eyes wide with shock and agony. A guttural, choking roar erupted from its throat before it crumpled to the ground, limbs jerking spasmodically before falling still in a grotesque heap.
Billy dropped to one knee, his chest heaving as sweat and blood dripped from his hair and brow. The iron bar, now bent and streaked with crimson, remained clenched in his trembling hands. Around him, the prison seemed to breathe out, the echoes of battle fading into the oppressive silence of the stone walls.
For a moment, the chamber was still. The remaining demons shrank back into their cages, their eyes wide with fear, none daring to make a sound. The unspoken truth hung heavy in the air: Billy, the runt, had not only survived but had vanquished the crooked-horned guardian.
Slowly, Billy rose to his feet, battered and bloodied but unbroken. The weight of his ashen-gray body and the metallic tang of iron and brimstone filled the room. His yellow eyes scanned the chamber, burning with resolute determination.