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Post by DanteMGalileo on Mar 24, 2017 22:03:06 GMT -5
In response to Darien's insult, the degenerate let out an eerily human-like shriek, spewing more of the black acid from its beak. Its back had fragments of glass in it, and it seemed to notice, aiming this round of acid at the gunman.
"I think not!"
A punch from Liderc to its back caused it to shriek again, the acid shooting into the air, splattering on the ground, eating at the floor. Placing the short naginata to its neck, the green angel said, "Now, we can do this the easy way, or the hard w-"
CHOMP.
Liderc hissed as the degenerate's beak snapped down on his hand. With his free hand, he punched the creature in the beak, forcing it free. As the acidic bird-man took to the air again, the pale man frowned at the damage.
Namely, the loss of the top half of each finger on that hand, the acid cutting into his skin and muscle, exposing the bone near the cutoff point. "Dammit. This is the third hand I've had to regrow since this incarnation." He mumbled words in a strange language, which seemed to be starting the regeneration of his fingers.
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Post by ParamountKeymaster on Mar 24, 2017 22:28:29 GMT -5
Darien was crouched and ready to spring, watching and waiting for the right moment. The creature reeled back, ready to retaliate. Then...
"Oh, sweet Christ..."
The Brit immediately slumped and facepalmed. Sure, Liderc was trying to help him, and he certainly didn't want to look ungrateful for it, but this was particularly counterproductive to his original plan, let alone any plan, and the angel's wounds were proof enough in his opinion. Perhaps it was too much to expect Liderc to read his mind.
Cooperation wasn't coming easily...
Darien looked behind him. The door was right there. With a solid, albeit half-hearted kick, it was open, exposing the night-drenched village outside. For a fleeting moment, he thought of Jen. She was going to be livid when she found out about this, but that was a battle for another time. For now...
He let out a sharp whistle.
"Hey! I'm talking to you!!!" Darien screamed at the degenerate flying laps around the room. He turned around slightly, shaking his rear end at the beast. "What, you think I'm not worth it?! Were ya aiming that slop at me or at the invisible bloke who DOESN'T think your mum's a fat, ugly bint?! Huh?! COME AT ME, BUDDY, I AIN'T GOT MUCH ELSE TO LOOK FORWARD TO, NOW DO I?!"
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Post by DanteMGalileo on Mar 28, 2017 19:57:29 GMT -5
The degenerate readied to bite the green angel in the midst of regenerating his fingers, but when it heard Darien's taunts...
It emitted an ear-splitting shriek and took to the air for a moment, spinning in space, before then charging at Darien's rear end with its beak open wide...
Oh what a mistake that would be.
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Post by ParamountKeymaster on Mar 28, 2017 20:34:08 GMT -5
In his peripheral, Darien saw the creature charging at him, his body tense and his hands shaking. A split second before it could strike, he threw himself out the door and into a roll on the ground. The degenerate followed him out into the open, soaring over its target. The moment it was directly above him, Darien righted himself, aimed his guns...
BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG...
Bullet after bullet was unloaded from his pistols, aimed meticulously at the degenerate's open beak. As blood and shells rained all around him, Darien's face was a fiery mask of fury, teeth gritted, hair disheveled, wild eyes barely visible behind the moon's reflection in his glasses.
After firing a heaping helping of lead down the beast's throat, he leaped aside and finished off his rounds by shooting the downed creature right at the base of his wings. The few remaining bullets were not enough to completely destroy them, but at least the beginnings of a mark had been made. That was plain enough for anyone to see.
"Huff......... huff........."
It took surprisingly little time for Darien to catch his breath. Soon enough, in a series of graceful, fluid motions, he had reloaded his pistols and firmly rooted himself where he stood, primed and ready to fire away once more. However, for one brief moment, he paused. His calm, stone-cold expression trailed up to the sky, eyes landing on the waxing gibbous moon hanging in the night sky.
A sigh... then Darien returned to the present moment. Not out of the woods yet, little wolf...
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Post by DanteMGalileo on Mar 28, 2017 21:00:03 GMT -5
The last bit of skin had reformed, and Liderc did a test stretch to confirm that yes, it was better than a normal rushjob, and was about to jump back into the fray when-
He jumped a bit at the gunshots. "The bloody hell?!" He said, rushing out of the tavern, naginata forming in hand...
Only to find the acidic bird-man on the ground, oozing a sickly green fluid from its mouth and the base of its wings... It has to be done.
With two quick slashes, the wings were separated from the rest of the creature's broken body, its form starting to change...
"At ease... Ibis Akhlys."
Where the acidic bird once lay was a dark green, dark-haired humanoid in what appeared to be a green commander's uniform, missing both its arms and wings. It cracked open a single black eye, looking at Darien. The fainted hint of a grin appeared on its face.
"You fight... well... Augh, what a disgrace... I'm nothing more than a fallen now..."
"C-Commander Akhlys-!!"
Without warning, the fallen angel burst into flames on the spot.
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Post by ParamountKeymaster on Mar 28, 2017 21:27:28 GMT -5
"..........................."
Darien's stalwart expression crumbled, eyes wide, mouth hanging slightly open. He lowered his arms, shakily and half-consciously clicking on his guns' safeties.
That... That thing was...?
It was hard to tell what the Brit was feeling as he watched the monster transform into a person and be subsequently set ablaze. He didn't seem confused. The look on his face was more akin to sadness. Fear. Possibly regret. This was only amplified by his shaking jaw and shuddering breaths. He had acted in self defense. He was trying to protect people. But...
What was...? How...? Did he...? But...
That look on the fallen's face... Why...?
Why was this happening again...?
Darien wasn't even looking at the burning body anymore. His gaze was locked on something a thousand miles away.
Why?
The monstrous, black-furred wolf man lunged at him, sinking his fangs into Darien's arm. White-hot pain scorched through every fiber of his being as he let out an agonized roar.
Immediately, he swung his free arm at his aggressor, raking his claws against the black wolf's face. Its grip was released and it stumbled back, growling and clutching its wound.
Darien grabbed it by the throat, pinning it to the cold, hard concrete floor.
The world grew... hazy. All he knew was the feeling of flesh between his teeth. The warm, savory taste of blood on his lips.
Then there was a boy. A boy but a few years younger than him, beaten, bruised and scarred. Blood flowed from his neck into a pool beneath his still form.
He weakly smiled up at Darien.
Anger mounting. Frustration building. His hackles were still raised. His heart was still pumping. Blood soaked his pelt from head to toe.
Why?
Why did everything HURT?!
Why did this keep HAPPENING?!
WHY?
WHY?
WHY?
WHY?
WHYYYYYYYYYY?!
"No..."
Darien didn't even realize he had dropped his guns.
"N-No... No...!"
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Post by DanteMGalileo on Mar 28, 2017 21:47:08 GMT -5
As the self-induced bonfire burned on, Liderc took note of the other man's pitiful state.
... Compassion may have been a skill long since knocked out of him, but it was worth a shot. He sighed, before speaking.
"Look," the pale man said, dispelling the naginata. "He was out of his mind. This was a mercy to the poor bastard." The body continued to burn. He paused. "... Wouldn't want his memory to be tarnished with being... y'know... A monster."
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Post by ParamountKeymaster on Mar 28, 2017 21:57:35 GMT -5
Darien sat down in the grass with a heavy thump, barely able to hold himself up at that point. His borderline panicked expression didn't change, making it hard to tell by appearance alone that Liderc's words were registering with him. He heard them, sure, but regardless of purpose, regardless of circumstances, it didn't make the situation any easier for him.
Killing a monster was one thing.
Killing a man was another.
Killing one who was both... well... he had been there. Plenty of times.
Mercy killings were nothing new for Darien, but they were almost never intentional... and they never got easier.
"What... was that?"
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Post by DanteMGalileo on Apr 19, 2017 10:44:58 GMT -5
"Degenerate angel; somebody who lived too long and/or expended far too much energy in a short period of time. Both of those things mess with an angel's energy flow," Liderc explained in a clinical tone. "When either of these things happen, we can't keep our normal form intact, and our minds usually follow... I'm not sure what happened to Commander Akhlys there, but..."
He actually looked down... Only to be brought back to attention by a beeping sound. "The hell? This had better not be Heron's Snake Oil again..." Taking out the green crystal, a voice spoke from it.
"Keruv Liderc Shamash Serapis! It is I, Perdix Vulcanus! One and only personal assistant to Lady Bennu! I am calling to report that I have found an anomaly!"
Liderc rolled his eyes. "Hello, Vulcanus. I can't believe you're still alive, we all thought you were dead... Where are you? Send me the coordinates!" Another beep. "So we're in the Centre Quadrant again. I'll see you in a few minutes... I'm feeling a bit queasy, but..."
A pause. Something dawned on the pale green man. "... Wait, we didn't send you with any sort of messaging device. How the hell are you calling me? And better question, how did you get my number?!"
"That was easy! Somebody gave it to me!"
"... Just don't kill yourself. Just because you're expendable doesn't mean there isn't a lot of paperwork to file if you do die."
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Post by ParamountKeymaster on Apr 19, 2017 10:55:32 GMT -5
As he soaked in the explanation, Darien's panic subdued until the young man simply looked weary. Did he feel any less awful about what just occurred? No, not really. He was just starting to revert back to his typical reaction to most of the horrible things in his life: denial. Besides, no sense in fretting over something he couldn't control.
Correction, something that was beyond his jurisdiction.
He shakily stood back up and slipped his guns back in his pockets, turning his tired gaze back on the moon, barely paying any attention to Liderc's new problem.
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Post by DanteMGalileo on Apr 19, 2017 12:33:56 GMT -5
The sending stone was put away. Liderc walked out of the bar, extending his wings.
"Don't do anything reckless. If you see a degenerate, take off its wings. Then... Do whatever it is you humans do after you kill someone..."
Without waiting for a response, the green angel took off running, flying into the night sky.
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Post by ParamountKeymaster on Apr 19, 2017 13:22:52 GMT -5
Darien watched Liderc go without another word. Saying that he took those last words to heart wouldn't have exactly been accurate. He would fight if he absolutely had to, but he could only hope he wouldn't cross paths with one of those creatures again. He didn't need more reminders...
Reminders than no matter what form he took, no matter whose blood was spilled, he was a killer.
Wolf mother, where you been?
You look so worn, so thin
He cast one last look at the moon. Nearly full, but still calling to him.
You're a taker, devil's maker
Let me hear you sing, hey-ah hey-ah
Darien sharply averted his gaze, tears dripping from his eyes. Then he turned and began to walk away.
Wolf father at the door
You don't smile anymore
Jen was probably worried. He couldn't blame her.
You're a drifter, shapeshifter
Let me see you run, hey-ah hey-ah
He looked around at Bonsai Village. At the quaint, sleepy town, bathed in the faint glow of the night.
Wayward winds, a voice that sings
Of a forgotten land
If its people only knew of the monster among them.
See it fall, child of all
Lend a mending hand
"I have to get out of here..."
When I run through the deep dark forest long after this begun
Where the sun would set, the trees were dead and the rivers were none
And I hope for a trace to lead me back home from this place
But there was no sound, there was only me and my disgrace
Into the night the wolf ran... away from the moon... away from the blood... away from himself.
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