DI R3 Pt.1

Hell. Earth. What was the difference anymore? At least in St Francis, the two no longer seemed to be separate. The city was infested with demons, ruling by their wake. And the final amalgamation was now rushing down the military base of the defense force, infatuated by rage and scent of a serpentine demon.

And the once carefree Fox was now but a crumpled mess, brought upon the disaster. Her body was breaking down, under the influence of the dreaded demon virus, to which many humans have already fallen. Her time was almost up, as the pain and rage were constant reminders.

Laying back in a secluded corner, inside the increasingly less safe shelter, with nothing but a gun she acquired from the Defense Forces, she was now simply trying to settle down. With her current state, all the refugees kept a nice distance from the struggling infected. Fox,  at the same time,  was relieved,  yet annoyed. She enjoyed the space as it provided a nice, cold sensation,  due to the open space. Yet the occasional looks and murmurs reminded her of the curse.

Yet the whispers of the living were nothing compared to the voices of the dead. The failure of saving her brother did not leave Fox free of her responsibility, as he soon joined the "ghosts". The haunting apparitions that constantly reminded Fox of her failures.

The young woman rubbed her forehead in a futile attempt to block the noises out.

"Why didn't you save us,  Fox? "

" Shut up... "

" You were the one doomed,  yet you left us to die..."

"Thanks for the fucking reminder.. "

" What will you do now? "

The final question made Fox pause in her thoughts. The truth was, the only reasons she held on anymore was her seething hatred if Mastema, and all the pathetic humans who gave into the virus, just because they didn't have the "stones" to fight.

Yet there was also the faint hope that a cure would be finished, before she would cease to be.

Feeling the burning come again, the blonde woman took a swig of her blessed water coffee. The taste was getting more and more disgusting, as her body violently shook in an attempt to get the holy water out. Yet she held it down, to calm down the demon side.

A tall, skinny figure was desperately shaking and moving around nervously, in ann attempt to calm his nerves. Unlike Fox and other hardened folk, this man was unable to cope with the demon situation so well.

Despite the mass amount of people taking shelter and fearing along with himself, he started to feel lonely. He knew no one there. And the hardy looking guards weren’t exactly emanating a sensation of comfort.

As such he resigned to taking a walk, to look around and hope he can at least find someone he recognized in order to calm down.

Who he expected to find was anything but calm however.

In the corner, he barely spotted the empty area around a curled up infected woman holding a weapon. A woman he knew. A woman that managed to get past his professionalism and make due with him as she pleased. A woman who made him enjoy it.

He remembered everything that had happened between them. The sane side of his mind was telling him to keep walking, to hopefully find a different person he can unload his worries upon and help him.

Yet his other side wanted to check on Fox again. This woman who once emanated confidence and energy, was now sitting alone, in a corner, shaking and chattering randomly. It was clear that she was unwell.

As the man walked up, with several hesitant steps, Fox slowly began to be aware of the presence, despite the pain. However, the soft steps clearly didn’t trigger any violent response in her. In fact, it made her calm a bit.

The man bit his lip as he reached the pained woman, before finally speaking.

“Fox… Oh my god!”

Fox looked up slightly to see the man’s reaction. Barely now did it cross his mind of her situation, despite the fact that this man knew her pretty well… or at least, her wild side well.

“Navi… would you look at that? Is this some sort of break?” Fox murmured, her expression changing slightly into a snark.

Navi frowned at the response, being reminded of his… time… with Fox more. He arranged back his long pony tail as he eyed Fox once again. He saw her eyes clearly and just by the sheer inhuman vibe they emitted. Despite being relatively safe from demons as he was escorted to the shelter, somehow, he knew that Fox was doomed to the virus, even if her body still looked humane.

“Fox… What happened?” He managed to speak out, slowly.

The woman’s smirk died down back into a disgusted look. She did not want to remember.

“…a lot of shit, waddya think?”

That’s all she managed to spit out, however Navi was not convinced. Fox was indeed strong. Both body and mental wise. She was strong back then too, when they first met, as she managed to get past his better judgment. Yet now she was so easily readable.

He gazed upon the bag which Fox used to carry the last few drops of the “holy coffee”.

“Fox, I-“

Navi started however he was quickly interrupted by an even louder female voice. However, it wasn’t Fox, as expected. It was a woman at which Fox could only scoff at. A woman of law.

“ATTENTION, CITIZENS!” Melian’s voice echoed into the small room, perking up several people from their constant dread. “THE CURE IS ALMOST COMPLETE, THOSE WHO ARE STILL STRUGGLING WITH INFECTION PLEASE HOLD TIGHT! WE HAVE A DEMON CRISIS WE HAVE TO DEAL WITH, BUT AS OF NOW, WE CAN MANAGE THE REMAINING ONES!”

Everyone was more joyous to hear this.

A cure. Finally, the first step they can take to take back the city. All of those demons, soon to be cured and the possible lost loved ones to return back.

Navi felt a bit of a relief at the news.

However, despite her hope of a cure coming true, Fox was unhappy. She was angry to see this high up woman of law. She was annoyed with this supposed “law enforcer”. And now she finally had the chance to pick a bone with her, as she got up and stormed at the Colonel.

Eyeing her leaving, Navi desperately wanted to stop her as he knew what he was about to do. Yet one glare from Fox made the terrified man stop dead in his tracks, as she went on to confront the Colonel.

“What do you mean ‘WE’LL HANDLE IT’?!” Fox snapped back at the officer. “Some great fucking job you’ve been doing! Sending your men to die like that?! I can handle those freaks myself!”

This got Melian’s attention, as she turned around to face Fox, keeping a deathly serious face. Fox hated that. She hated how officers thought they were so above normal people that they could just stare her down as if she was a mere speck compared to them.

Melian was aware of Fox’s past, as she was often in trouble with the law. She proved to be a valuable asset against demons, however, which is why she allowed the biker woman to carry around a weapon, despite her infection. She didn’t change her stern look, as she focused on Fox.

“Fox, you are infected. It is best for you if you wait here until we can finish a few samples of the cure. Your situation is critical.”

“And so you decide to keep using the men who SWORE to serve your lazy ass instead?!” She snapped back even louder this time, attracting plenty of attention. The hall echoed with a full gasps thorough the silence.

Melian went silent, as Fox snapped harder. “Ma’m-“

“Don’t ‘M’am’ ME! Those saps you’re sacrificing out there! One of them was my BROTHER!” She snapped furiously, as Melian’s expression darkened. “Everyone here busted their ass, even the weaklings, yet you sit back comfortably!”

Fox grabbed the officer by the uniform, pulling her closer. Yet Melian stood her firm ground, as instead, Fox moved in. Her expression emanating rage, yet sadness as well.

“He was your subordinate! And he died for you, yet all you do is laze around!” Fox snapped pointing a menacing finger at the silent Colonel.

Despite Fox’s high tone, intimidating expression and way of acting, Melian stood her ground, staring coldly. At the officer’s defiant and emotionless expression, Fox’s rage intensified even more. The voices in her head began chanting, the pain was coming back and the lust for violence was now awakening. Her now accusatory hand turned down into a fist as she got ready to hit the Colonel directly in her nose.

However, Melian’s eyes flashed as Fox got ready to swing at her. Seeing her motion, Melian simply moved her head to the right, as Fox’s left fist flew past barely missing her. Seeing her arm extended, Melian grabbed it firmly and used the other arm to grab her middle, as she slammed Fox to the floor. Maybe she could have fooled others, but the Colonel wasn’t in the mood for games.

Fox groaned from the pain of being slammed down, as Navi looked towards, worried about her fate, now that she assaulted the Defense Force Colonel herself.

The biker woman wasn’t ready to give up, as she got into position to rise back up… however she was swiftly stopped by the barrel of a gun, as Melian pointed her gun down to keep Fox still.

“I suggest you calm down, until the cure is here. Then we can argue.” Melian said darkly, before putting her gun back again. “I have business to attend to.” She replied before leaving Fox right on the floor, without a chance to reply.

As the Colonel left the area and as people started calming down, Navi rushed in to check on Fox.

“Fox, are you alright?”

However, the blonde quickly pushed the skinny man back, her face twisted in anger and humiliation. After Navi hit the ground, she growled back at the mass of people still staring. The look that Fox showed quickly made the crowd get the message, as no one was willing to mess with her. They all turned back.

“That bitch…. Like I’ll ever do what she says…”

Fire. Pain. Venom. What was happening? Who was it happening too?

Inside the cage of scales was pure green chaos, as Wrath’s mind was no longer working as he wished too. Everything was spinning. Everything was on fire.

“W-what is h-h-happening…? W-w-who… am I…?” Wrath confusedly chanted, as he tried to cling to his mind, like a curled up scared puppy.

His last thoughts still felt human, as he tried to hold unto that sensation. That familiar sensation. Yet his pained mind was forgetting the most important fact.

He was no longer human.

And as the memories started flooding back he remember who was at fault. Who did this. Who toyed with his fate. And now with his mind.

“M-M-M-MASTEMA!” Wrath’s thoughts echoed out, looking for a listener. “WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING O-O-ON?! WHAT ARE YOU D-D-D-DOING TO ME?!”

As Wrath struggled to keep his human thoughts in the green inferno, a laugh finally echoed through it. Now he felt watched. A look that pierced through his soul.

“Hahaha! Did you really think you would get away with everything?” The malefic voice cooed mockingly.

“WE HAD A DEAL, YOU FUCK!” Wrath echoed right back in rage.

“Oh yeah, we did. It was to teach you how to change your body. Was this part of the things that the deal exempted you from?”

Wrath felt whatever heart he could have left, drop. As a chill ran down his back at the realization.

“YOU FUCK, HOW COULD YOU DO THIS?! I FOLLOWED YOUR BULLSHIT! YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO LEAVE ME ALONE!” Wrath hissed wildly, his human thoughts now melting with feral reptilic reactions.

“What did you expect was going to happen? You humans are so silly…” Mastema hissed right back. “You blame me, yet you did his to yourself… You ALL do this to yourself. It’s so funny how you humans sick divinity, right after you fully delve into the evil you yourself create…” He chuckled. “How funny that after so many thousands of years you never learned. You still sin. You still sell your souls for power, for money, you bathe in the sins. How funny you humans just kept repeating your old mistakes. He died for you in VAIN!”

Wrath’s mind raced, as he began to feel pain into his very core. His rage increased, but this time, his mind greatly diminished. This rage wasn’t the crux he resorted to all of this years. It was now just a remote control for one who knows how to use it much more effectively.

“Don’t feel bad, Wrath… you should be honored. You were the only one strong enough to now whine or get convinced to do this over some pitiful fallen family member. Others have disregarded my orders and used their power to simply fool around, wasting it until they were in their graves. You however, proved to be the perfect demon servant…”

“FUCK YOU, I’M NOT A SERVANT! OR A FUCKING DEMON! I’M HUMAN AND I WILL KICK YOUR FUCKING ASS!” Wrath immediately snapped back. All the joy he got from his mighty power was now gone… now resented.

Mastema’s chuckle was heard once more, as Wrath’s fragile human psyche gave in finally. His very mind broke, as the demon thoughts burst out of the human ones, clinging and clawing at him. Biting through.

Burning his thoughts and memories. Poisoning his mind to forget. Alluring his visions with new illusions and imagery to keep him loyal.

The groups he amassed on the streets. The thugs that he let die. The people he killed or he let die himself through other circumstances.

“How funny you complain now accept your humanity… when even when you had the appearance of a human, your heart was rotten to the core, as much as a demons. You were selfish, you lacked empathy. The most important person was you.”

The memories that began to burn ran even deeper. The painful and embarrassing moments Wrath felt as a kid. When his destiny felt as if everyone but him was controlling it. His parents, the humans around him, God himself, who gave him the embarrassing body.

And then the most important memory. The one where he decided to leave his former life behind. Ripping remnants of the clothes he oh so hated, as if them in itself were to blame for everything.

“You shredded your identity, your humanity, as if it was nothing…”

That final memory of freedom, along with the freedom itself.

Now gone, as his body was being reshaped, once more.

“Did you really think you’d be free?”

A group of four special force Defense Officers roamed the upper levels of the military base, taking out the lesser flying demons that managed to fly in or climb in by sheer luck. Despite the terrifying situation, the group managed to keep their calm as they took down the demons, climbing floor by floor, very wary of the traps the base itself had.

After several floors of taking care of lesser demons or checking to see if any were there at all, they finally reached a more… busy floor. As they entered, they noticed that most, if not all, traps were activated. Some being from the base itself, some seemingly implemented by some helper.

Regardless the floor was a mess, splattered with blood, green goop and debris. It was a more intimidating sight, as they knew a struggle took place.

The woman in front signaled the other three to be careful as they stepped in. The further they ventured on the floor, the more a strange array of scents could be felt. It was sharp and unpleasant, but still unidentifiable.

“Shine a light, Scotty…” The front woman ordered as one of the men brought in a small lantern.

As the light illuminated part of the big corridor, yet not too much in order to nor alert any demons who managed to get through, a pair of feet could be seen laying down on the floor. Human feet.

The woman frowned, as she moved in slower, followed by the group. The steps were wary at first. Then turned into concern… and finally…

Disgust.

As they reached the owner of the foot the scent was now clearly identifiable. Before them lied the corpse of a young, red headed, man, with his ribcage and organs exposed and his face mutilated, seemingly by some sort of inhuman wild beast.

“Oh my God…” The woman gasped, seeing the sight.

As if the sight of the exposed chest, blood running smoothly as if it was some sick fountain and other body liquids sprayed around, the corpse was surrounded by the green acidic ooze, which by now added a rancid, sharp rotten eggs scent to the corpse.

It was enough for one of the men to start heaving and hurling, as the rest of the officers shook with disgust and even fear.

“…where’s the demon body…?” The woman whispered, half praying that the demon that ripped this man apart was indeed dead.

As the man shined the light further, they spotted a trail of green goop, leading to another form in the dark.

A few steps away from the boy of the man was a round, red scaly object, much bigger than a normal human, lying on the floor, motionless. The odd shape of it, and the unusual organic looking material it seemed to be made out of made it look like an egg. Or a cocoon.

As the group walked forward to get a good look at it, the woman ordered them to stop.

“Don’t approach! Just get ready…”

The men immediately understood the order. An animal was at its most vulnerable when trapped in its egg or cocoon. Everyone readied their gun, and took aim at the strange red object. Without checking it further the bullets began to fly out.

As the bullets collided with the surface of the cocoon, mass amounts of green ooze began exploding everywhere, blinding the officers as if it was a giant flash bomb.

“BACK OFF!” They all yelled at each other as they backed off from the egg, as if it was now a bomb.

As they instinctively backed off from the bomb like burst, the woman still tried to stare through to see if there was anything else. As the room cleared of the light, letting darkness seep in once again, the egg was now broken open, with ooze dripping out of it.

The female officer sighed, a bit relieved. At least there was no abomination in it.

No, no there wasn’t. The abomination was now outside.

A feeling of dread filled the front officer, as she began to feel someone… or something staring at her… and it wasn’t her crew. She looked around nervously, catching the attention of her fellow officers.

“Samantha what’s wrong?”

The woman didn’t answer, as a cold sweat ran down her body. She looked everywhere to see where the stare was coming from. Before she finally decided to look the one place where no human would stare from.

Two glowing orbs were leering down from the ceiling.

However it was too late.

As she aimed her guns up, a giant, red, behemoth crashed down on top of her, pinning her down. A sickening crack followed the landing, as the woman began to flail her limbs, trying I vain to make the beast move. The writhing made the beast even more infuriated, as it ripped off her right arm, before digging its claws into the woman’s back.

The fellow officers could only stare at the gruesome sight, paralyzed by the speed and the gravity of the attack.

“SAMANTHA!”

The beast inhuman huffs were paused, as it looked at the group with empty, golden eyes. T’s mouth now drooling green saliva, as the serpentine tongue tasted the air. It’s muscular, giant frame was much bigger than any human, and the giant limbs, accompanied by an extra set of arms added to its size even more. The long, spiked tail, lashed around, as its face was contorted in a horrified rage induced expression. The sharp horns and messy hair accentuated its unholy appearance. The only human remains on it was its clothing remains.

Despite staring at death itself, the men desperately and slowly commanded their limbs to move and aim their guns at the beast. Yet the beast didn’t change its expression.

It was ready to kill.

Mastema’s chuckle was echoing inside the now enraged, yet empty mind of the beast.

“Now my reborned pet… Let’s test that new body.”