Somewhere far from the bridge, amidst the scorched ruins of broken houses, the intermediate demon stood still. His inky black skin glistened under the brutal downpour. His single arm dangled loosely at his side, the other now fully regenerated.
Water streamed over his body, responding to his presence—alive, like a serpent caressing its master.
The demon stared into the distance with narrowed eyes. A strange feeling slithered through his core—unease.
He was not someone prone to fear or hesitation. Yet something clawed at the edge of his thoughts.
A hunter's instinct.
A survivor's instinct.
He turned slightly.
Then—FWIP!
His eyes widened, and his hand shot up just in time to catch a flying dagger. Its tip stopped a breath from his eye.
"Hm… an attack?" he muttered, rain sliding down his face.
From the shadows behind him, a voice hissed.
"Die, you damn demon!"
Nathan erupted from a pool of his own shadow like a bullet, his second dagger glinting with murderous intent. He lunged for the demon's throat, but—
SNAP!
The demon caught Nathan's wrist mid-air, stopping him cold.
"You're still alive?" he said, eyebrow raised. "Persistent little insect."
Nathan struggled against the iron grip, teeth gritted—but before he could respond—
TCHAK!
A silver spear pierced cleanly through the demon's skull from behind. It shot out the front of his head, stopping only inches from Nathan.
"Wha—?" the demon muttered, his glowing eyes flickering.
Behind him stood Jay, expression cold, breath steady, hand clenched around the shaft of his spear.
"Surprise, bastard," Jay said with a smirk.
He yanked the weapon free, blood and black mist spraying out in arcs.
The demon staggered forward slightly. There was a pause. A moment where it almost seemed over.
But then…
SSSSHHHHH…
The rain around the demon spiraled violently.
An aqua-shield erupted from the water at his feet, a swirling sphere that expanded outward in a pulse of force. Jay and Nathan were thrown back by the impact, skidding across the soaked ground like rag dolls.
The demon straightened himself. The hole in his head sizzled… then closed.
Steam hissed into the night air as his flesh reknit with unnatural speed.
Jay stood up quickly, spear ready, blood trickling down his cheek. Nathan groaned and rolled to his feet, shadows already curling protectively around his arms.
Across from them, the demon smiled—a slow, vicious smile filled with glee.
"Incredible…" he said, tilting his head. "You caught me off guard. You even managed to wound me."
His tone shifted, darkening.
"I haven't felt this excited in decades."
Jay narrowed his eyes. "You're not invincible."
The demon chuckled. "No… but I am patient. And I love a good hunt."
He stretched his neck with a cracking sound and raised his arms. The rain thickened—becoming sharper, heavier, as if each drop were a blade.
The ruined buildings around them trembled. Water surged toward the demon's feet, coiling like snakes, forming weapons—blades, whips, and jagged spears.
"You two have climbed up from worms… to gnats," he said, licking the blood from his lips. "And gnats can be fun to kill."
Jay's grip on his spear tightened. "Then let's see you try."
Nathan's eyes gleamed with fury. "Round two, asshole."
The wind howled.
The rain became a storm.
And as the demon laughed—a twisted, delighted sound—the two young fighters stepped forward once again, not as prey, but as predators.
The rain… changed.
Jay's eyes widened as the droplets around them began to slow in mid-air—freezing mid-fall.
What was once a heavy downpour became a storm of sharpened ice needles, each drop crystallizing into deadly shards.
The demon's smile widened as he raised his hand like a conductor summoning a symphony of death.
"Let's raise the stakes," he whispered.
And then—
ShhhKRRRR!
The frozen rain came crashing down in a barrage of icy spikes, whistling through the air, slicing into the earth, shattering stone and splintering debris.
"Jay—!" Nathan shouted.
Without hesitating, Nathan slammed his palm against the ground. His shadow exploded outward, swirling around them in twisting tendrils.
WHOOSH!
In a split second, the shadow formed a wide, rotating dome overhead—a shield shaped like a giant umbrella, spinning and deflecting the icy rain away from their heads. The needles hit the barrier with piercing cracks, some melting into vapor, others bouncing off with a metallic ping.
Jay looked up. "Nice save!"
"Don't mention it. Just don't die yet," Nathan said through gritted teeth, maintaining the shield's shape while his other hand reached for his dagger.
The demon didn't wait.
He launched himself forward, using the falling ice as stepping stones—dashing from one shard to the next with inhuman agility. With a roar, he came down at them like a missile.
Jay met him mid-air.
CLANG!
Spear against claws.
Jay spun and deflected the first blow, then thrust forward—but the demon twisted mid-air and caught the spear again. They hit the ground hard, cracking the earth beneath them.
From the side, Nathan's shadow lashed out like a whip—forcing the demon to release his grip and leap backward.
"Stay on him!" Jay shouted.
They attacked in tandem now.
Nathan ducked low, shadows launching him forward in a flash-step. He struck from the side while Jay kept the demon's attention from the front.
The demon snarled, caught between the two, deflecting with water blades and ice shields that shattered on impact. His body twisted and dodged, but the coordination of Jay and Nathan had improved—sharpened by their pain and humiliation.
Jay appeared behind him again—this time invisible until the last second.
The spear grazed the demon's ribs.
The demon retaliated with a wave of sharp ice, but Nathan's umbrella-shadow shield morphed again—blocking it with a sudden shadow wall that absorbed the attack like smoke.
"Tch," the demon muttered, now visibly frustrated.
His body trembled slightly. His breaths were heavier than before. The seamless flow of his water manipulation started showing cracks—hesitations between formations, delays in summoning the next attack.
Nathan saw it too. "He's slowing down."
Jay nodded, sweat mixing with blood on his brow. "We're draining him."
But the demon refused to admit it. With a guttural roar, he slammed his foot down—and the earth beneath them cracked as spikes of ice shot up from every puddle, targeting their legs.
Jay backflipped just in time, planting his spear into the ground for support. Nathan was launched backward by a shadow burst.
The field was in chaos now. Shards of ice protruded from the cracked ground, glowing under the heavy moonlight.
The demon was panting—his control was still there, but slipping.
Jay stood across from him, spear lowered but ready.
Nathan wiped blood from his lip and twirled his dagger. "You look tired, freak."
The demon didn't reply. His eyes flicked between them, and then briefly upward. The rain was still falling—still his to command—but now slower, weaker.
Jay smirked. "Guess we're not gnats anymore."
The demon growled, lips curling. "Don't get cocky…"
But even his voice lacked the weight it had before.
For the first time, he was on the defensive.
The rain didn't answer as quickly.
The ice didn't form as cleanly.
And Jay and Nathan were no longer the boys who had gotten crushed under his heel. They were warriors—scars fresh, eyes burning.
This battle wasn't over.
But now, for the first time, the odds were shifting.