Soldiers of Light, ch. 2 "The Spider Goliath"
 

As the samurai approached the shadows, he could see something...interesting, in the darkness. The snakes were long. Very long. Much longer than any of them had expected. And they all seemed to focus in one general area.

When he got too close, something in the darkness of the wall rustled. It sounded like a rain of glass chips scraping along a stone wall. And then, just as suddenly, a massive form leapt from the shadows, the form tearing up the ground as it landed.

It was a large form. The body was shaped like a bull's, the hoofs tinted green with corrupted demonic energy. Its skin was slimy and bubbly, like it was decaying as it walked. And the snakes were sprouting from all over the body. There were no demons. Just one demon.

And it was hungry.

"As I suspected." Akira said. A half smile on his face, he continued to advance on the singular demonic horror brandishing his katana and wakizashi. "Come beast, come to your death."

Action had to be taken and he was at the forefront of those gathered to protect Kurama. He almost chuckled at the irony.

A pair of snakes lunged at him, Akira stepping back. Fanged jaws snapped shut just in front of him. Dispassionately, he swung his two blades, laying open the skulls of both. They thumped to the ground on side as he continued his slow walk, flicking his wakizashi and then sheathing it.

A forest of heads rose to meet this sole irritant, serpentine trunks that flowered razor teeth. They were all coordinated, sinuously swaying to attack together. Akira knew his chances of defending himself from such an onslaught were slim, any wound potentially crippling with the venom the beasts possessed. Holding his blade out to the side, the lone samurai waited for his moment.

They struck.

Akira smiled.

"Edge Divide."

Two handed, Akira swung his katana upwards in a diagonal slice, straining as though he was swinging through molasses rather than thin air. The air was scarred, Akira's cut extending past the edge of his blade. It tore through the serpents, severing heads in a single clean line.

Akira broke into a run, dashing forwards as heads and cut off necks fell about him, blood splattering from the terrible wounds. This was the opening he wanted, leaping strides eating up the distance between him and the body.

"Dance of the Three Moons!" he cried, sword flickering like a bolt of lightening as he struck at the demon's bull-like body, aiming to carve apart its rotting flesh. Performing the manoeuvre, he swung his blade in a swift triple strike, silvery light trailing behind each cut to create a triangular pattern.

Tsubasa stopped on a tree branch. "I...I can feel it. The aura is repulsive, but also intoxicating. We should hurry."

Her kunai were already out. If Raigaki was as powerful as she had heard, that distraction wasn't going to stand up against its wielder for long. Somehow, she found the strength within her to move faster yet, eventually having to travel on the ground when she came across a clearing. There was a small group of merchants dead ahead, apparently traveling to the next town to peddle their wares. Tsubasa didn't mind killing. She was trained for it. But inflicting needless pain, suffering and death wasn't her style. So she just ran right through a gap between them with only so much as a "Beautiful weather today, isn't it?" without waiting for a response.

They had to be close. Well, close for people who could move like Tsubasa. When she reached the end of the clearing, it was back up into the trees she leapt. "Please be strong just a little longer. We shall be there soon."

The blades with their silver lined-arcs slashed at the monster, surely capable of severing it into pieces...

if not for the dozens of new snake heads that gave their lives to protect the main body.

Almost as quickly as they were mutilated, the snake heads regrow from the puss that was the demon's skin. In retaliation for the hubris of the samurai, the snake heads hissed in chorus, the poison dripping from their fangs as they all swarmed in for another coordinated strike.

His blade danced to and fro, from scale to fang and from artery to skull. His cuts were wicked and cruel but no matter the number he slew another rose to take its lashing and fall as well. Outwardly he was boasting of his many great battles, loudly telling of other fights, of other beasts he'd felled; inwardly he lamented over the creature he fought, Demon's of the forest through and through, each would rather die then see the end of their way of life. Each believing to save what they have they must insure the destruction of man. If only they could learn to protect and defend rather then fight they would not try to kill so mindlessly. It is truly unfortunate noble creatures such as these have sided against us.

Toji watched silently as the behemoth of a demon revealed itself and focused upon a single target. Toji's yellow eyes studied the situation carefully. So it was a single demon all along, a simple solution after all. Toji rushed forward, a fresh bottle of sake in hand. He pulled the cork out with his razor sharp teeth and drank deep of the delicious brew.

It reminded him of home, of a life where death was peaceful as the life one lead, of people who treated him as kindly as if he were their kin, most importantly of a life Toji would do anything to save. Even if it meant destroying something familiar in the process.

He slid to a stop in front of the lone samurai with a wink and let an inferno burst forth from his lips, the snakes had seen the flames before but not like this. It brightened from red to yellow and then into white in less then the blink of a snake's eye, the flames took in the snakes and then used them as fuel and burned them further. A forest's strength is in its trees, a trees strength is in its roots, burn a tree's roots and you kill the forest. As the flames stopped the flow out of his lips Toji sucked in a deep breath of air like a man held underwater for too long. His eyes were bloodshot now and he was sweating, though it wasn't the incredible heat that caused him to do so.

He looked up at his handiwork, the snakes fought and writhed against each other as the flames rose higher and burned hotter. If only I could learn to protect and defend, I would not have to kill so mindlessly. He turned to the group with a wide smile, "HA! What you gonna do now that I saved the day Kurama! Ah-cha, Why I bet you can't even finish it with one move!"

Toji turned before the worry in his face could betray his words, Please Kurama, end this beasts misery. drinking again Toji continued to fire flames into any snake that began to heal itself, doing his best to keep its incredible regeneration working for self-preservation rather then the destruction of the team.

Atasu stopped, confused for a moment as the serpentine head that he was fighting fell lifeless at this feet. Just to be on the safe side, he brought his tsubasa down with crushing force, pulping the skull with a single blow. then the fires began, and the wind brought the smell of cooking beef.

As the smoke brought him back to the memories of his "Birth" his eyes filmed over. the combination of the scent of blood and burned meat awakened the beast that burned in his heart, bringing the slowly pulsing embers to the strength of a blast furnace. His pupils dilating, He cast aside his club and dropped into a half crouch, pawing the ground with his left leg. As the flames rose again and again, he leapt forward to the blaze, hoofs pounding the ground.

The demonic presence of the other "Bull" rose in his conciousness, as an interloper who had come to challenge his authority. He pounded onward, with a crashing sound as trees gave way before him, finally slamming, linebacker style into the side of the bull demon.

The hydra demon gave out a massive screech from each of its remaining heads, the fire quickly devouring the slimy skin that enveloped it. The rushing from the Bull Demon struck it hard in the side, a sickening crack echoing through the walled yard. It flew back from the force of the tackle, its body seeming to crumple in half as it flew. The edges of it tore open, a dark putrid liquid seeping out from the ruptures. It landed in one piece, though several parts of it were starting to burst open.

The fires that grew on its body were continually fed by the slimy organic gunk that was the demon's skin.

The sound of clapping hands sounded from nearby. A young woman with bleached white hair and the crimson eyes of a demon stepped forward. "Had I not been faster, you would have been able to escape from us," Tsubasa admitted. "At any rate, I'll get to the point: Lord Talkatz desires the Raigaki, Genkai Kurama. If you simply turn it over, he may see fit to spare your life, or at least have your death ordered to be quick and painless. Persist in this fool's destiny, and your misery will know neither limit nor any ultimate end. I, like most mortals, would wisely choose the former."

A kunai fell to Tsubasa's right hand and she raised it to be level with Kurama's neck. "Your call, Genkai-san."

Raze watched within the forest with anticipation. Some were not within his info, but they did not look too threatening. Except maybe for the drunken man. Something about him got under Raze's nerves at a glance.

At least it was for the best. Raze had originally heard of a winged man, a scarred rangeress, and a hyperactive knucklehead being of Kurama's number, but it seems that news was in err.

For now, Raze would wait, wait for the right time to step in. He was no warrior, and had no skill with a weapon nor with the grotesque claw-hands he had now. So all he would have, is the element of surprise. Surprise, Surprise.

He hoped his eyes didn't start glowing too brightly in anticipation.

Suzume, now without anything to fight, waited for his prize. Fresh demon souls. And a surprising amount of them seemed to come out of the bull-hydra-demon-thing. Six of them, to be exact. No wonder it seemed odd, it must have been a mixture of dead demons. Would have explained the ugliness, too.

And so, as the souls seemed to float over like dandelion seeds, Suzume counted to himself. He had used up two souls in the fight: one for a blast and one for a shield. So he had eight. Good, the most he'd had in a while.

But, just to make sure, Suzume let the grand total of his claimed souls float outside his body so he could count them. Anyone who could see passed souls would notice a small shroud of multicolored lights seeming to orbit the demon hunter, the man himself counting them as they went by his face. An odd sight, to say the least.

But, after counting the souls, Suzume was surprised to see a woman seemingly appear out of nowhere and threaten Kurama. He hadn't cleaned or sheathed his swords, luckily, but he still couldn't help letting some dumb comment slip out.

"What the hell?"