From the city, to the village was about a two week travel on foot. More than enough time for Eon to get a breather from the Humans that he was so keen on having.
Of course, that would end all too soon once he finally arrived at his destination.
It was quite a contrast in comparison to the city he came from, surrounded on one side by a vast field and the forest beyond it. From the side Eon came from, there wasn’t another city or village for miles upon miles...Honestly, it came as no surprise that such a helplessly situated village was frequently attacked by Demons. Practically dinner already served on a silver platter.
As he closed the distance, an earthy scent tickled at his nose, being somewhat dry, even though there was a forest not too far away. He had to resist the urge to sneeze.
Sucking in a small breath to accustom himself to the odd scent, he made his way past the broken, run down gates of the little village.
Once he was inside, the village could have been likened to a ghost town upon first glance. Hardly a soul walked the dirt laden roads, and if it weren’t for his somewhat acute sense of smell, he wouldn’t have thought this place was inhabited at all.
He could smell them, and he could feel them. Holed up within the ‘safety’ of their little, wooden homes. He could feel their stares as they peered out at him. Their unease and fear. The stench was heavy in the air, making it stagnant.
It certainly didn’t get any better when they actually saw Eon up close and personal. The air went ice cold, tension igniting the air. He half expected to get attacked right here on the streets with the way the air was just charged with aggression and anxiety.
He gave the report he was given another quick once over, glancing around until he spotted a particular home in the distance. According to the report, it would have been the elders house, the source of this request.
Eon didn’t even bother to knock before entering the home, greeted by a variety of weapons pointed at him...Or...Rather than calling them ‘weapons’, they were more of a variety of farm tools, and anything else they could get their hands on, it seemed.
Despite the obvious aggression directed at him, however, Eon did little more than heave a sigh as he scanned the room, spotting an elderly man smack dab in the center of the circle of aggressors.
“Are you the elder?” He questioned, flashing his hefty stack of papers before simply thrusting them out in front of him. “I represent the Society. If you’d prefer to turn me away, I have no qualms with leaving. Considering you’ve got all these guard dogs hounding me, I can’t imagine how I’d get close enough to discuss any real business with you.”
“No, wait! Please!!” The elder hastily interjected before Eon could take his leave, albeit he had no real intention to. “You’re who they sent?” He questioned, giving Eon once over, his complexion pale.
Eon could practically hear him saying ‘But you’re a Demon.’
The man’s expression said it all.
“Well, I don’t think you can afford to be choosy at the moment, now can you?” Eon spoke up on the dime with a somewhat smug grin. “Would you care to give me the details of what you know? Or are you gonna stand around and gawk all day? I’m sure you know most Demon’s are more active at night, but hey, I don’t mind waiting.”
“...Ah, yes!” The man straightened his back, hastily taking a seat after dismissing the other men.
There was a long stretch of strained silence before the man finally heaved a sigh.
“...For the past several months now, a Demon has been devouring people every night.” He began, folding his arms and pressing his clenched fists against his wrinkled forehead. Perhaps because of the constant stress, he looked much older than he actually was. “The corpses gather up. Night after night...I fear if things continue like this, the beast will continue gorging itself until there’s nothing left…”
“...Are you sure it’s just one?” Eon questioned after hearing him out, feeling like the details about the actual Demon seemed to be lacking throughout the report.
“That’s...Well…” The elder’s voice trailed off, looking unsure. “...None of us have actually seen the beast. We all try to remain indoors at night to reduce the chances of being attacked.”
“…” Eon struggled to restrain his sense of annoyance and exasperation at these words. “...So you’re telling me while one of your own gets eaten every night, you just coop yourself inside the entire time while thinking you’re somehow safer than being out in the open?” He questioned, his tail trembling a bit.
Indoors or outdoors were all the same. In terms of eyesight, sense of smell, strength...Literally everything was far superior to that of Humans. If a Demon wanted to get inside someone’s home, it would be as simple as the thought alone. Eon would essentially be going in blindly on this one. He only hoped that he was dealing with just one. One with a big appetite. He couldn’t imagine the trouble of having to take out a group of them.
“...Well either way, I’ll take care of it.” He finally replied, pushing his worries aside for the time being.
“A-Ah! Thank you!! As for lodgings, I could-”
“I don’t need any.” Eon interrupted him. “With any luck, I’ll have this problem taken care of by tonight.” He added in, leaving without another word.
By the time he left the elders house, the sun was already high in the sky. It was surprising to see how much time he had already wasted, but Eon was still certain he’d be able to wrap this up fairly quickly.
At this point, some of the people who had been previously cooped up indoors were steadily coming out of their homes and into the open...And it went without saying that Eon was the center of attention, albeit not in a good way.
No. Those all too familiar stares fixated on him relentlessly. The fear. The distrust. The barely hidden hatred. Their whispers and murmurs rung out, reaching his ears.
“A Demon?”
“What’s it doing here??”
He couldn’t block them out, being so close to him as he passed by, each giving him a wide berth. Women held their children close, and the men close by, gripping their working tools as they looked ready to pounce any moment…As though Eon himself might lash out at any moment.
“It can’t be...Is that the one from the Society?? The elder mentioned something about it…”
“...But he’s a Demon, so why…?”
“No, it makes sense...After all, it takes a monster to kill a monster.”
Those words alone made Eon halt in his tracks, throwing a glance over his shoulder.
Even if they were his own thoughts back at the Society, they still made him wince.
He wondered if there would ever be a day when their words would no longer strike at his heart like this.
After all, they were just that...Words.
Yes. That’s all they were. He simply had to block them out. They were nothing new, after all.
He focused on the task at hand. Somewhere within, or near this village, a Demon was lurking. Waiting for the next chance it could steal a Human away for an easy meal. Perhaps it was even walking among these people, disguised as a Human, looking no different from any other. Even now, Eon could detect the faintest traces of it’s scent. There was no doubt that it was nearby. He thought so as his gaze trailed over the passing people.
Surely it would make it’s presence known once it was in the dead of night. He decided it would be best to set up a small place to sleep among the village outskirts and wait. Being further away from Humans would help him feel calmer after all, and like that, the hours ticked by, the sky growing ever darker.
All would eventually go silent, the distant noises of the village going quiet.
Once the sky had gone completely dark, Eon lost sense of how much time had ticked by, but there came a point where he was suddenly hit with the sensation that he was not alone.
The presence was faint, but he could still sense it, catching the faintest whiff of the Demon’s scent.
He wasn’t sure if this was intentional, or this Demon simply wasn’t that intelligent. Regardless, he was poised and alert, his fingers just barely brushing the handle of his pistol, still resting within it’s holster at his hip.
It was coming closer, stirring within the shadows.
Perhaps it had been trying to get the jump on him, but Eon had already pinpointed the creature before that assumption could be proven to have any merit.
“If you’re trying to sneak up on me, you’re doing a piss poor job at it.”
He hissed, his eyes narrowing in a particular direction that seemingly had nothing hidden within it...But soon enough, something slinked out from the shadows.
A lithe, muscular body, black as night, only silhouetted by the bright moon overhead. The creature stood on all fours, large, razor sharp claws glistening in the moonlight. If one looked closely, you could see the long, whip like tail swishing in the air behind the beast.
Touch scales covered it’s body, yet it’s underbelly was smooth and soft. It’s glowing, bright red eyes glinted along it’s narrow face, reflecting a raw, animalistic hunger.
“I was wondering where you were hiding, and then you come right out on your own? Got a death wish or something?” Eon spat, his gaze fixating on the creature without flinching. He wasn’t the least bit intimidated, despite the obvious difference in size between the two of them.
The creature simply regarded Eon with a chilling, blood red stare before letting out an amused cackle.
“I thought I smelled another nearby, but aren’t you a curious sort?” It bellowed, it’s voice bestial and deep, holding no definitive sense of what it’s gender could have been. The creature seemed intrigued with Eon’s presence, circling him slowly in a predatory manner. “Whatever could you be doing here? Surely not to devour the Humans nearby? I’m afraid I’m not so generous that I’d be willing to share.” It added in, a large grin creeping upon it’s face, it’s fangs glinting brightly.
Eon narrowed his eyes, somewhat surprised, if he had to be honest. There weren’t too many occurrences where he stumbled across one of these that had been capable of speech. Most were more beast-like in behavior, unintelligent, but this one seemed on the opposite side of the spectrum. These types were different from Eon. They were rarely intelligent.
“I can’t say I share your foul tastes.” He frowned, not bothering to hide his clear disdain. “I couldn’t even dream of ingesting something so foul. I’d get indigestion for sure.” He shrugged, his gaze not once leaving the beast as it paced about. “My only objective is to put an end to your feeding spree.”
The Demon bared it’s fangs, a low growl trembling from it’s throat.
“Why should I? What’s so different from how they eat fowl or cattle? Humans are no different to us. Food is food.” It hissed, throwing it’s head back as it slinked closer to Eon, getting a whiff of his scent. “...You reek of them.” It’s voice rung low. “...So you’re their pet, are you?” It laughed, the noise echoing loudly throughout the air as the creature seemed to find this terribly amusing. “Come now, a little thing like you couldn’t possibly-”
But Eon didn’t give the creature another moment to ramble on, the sound of a click resounding as he pressed the barrel of his pistol against the creatures head.
“...Are you done?”
The beast let out a deafening cry of defiance, but not an instant passed before it was cut off abruptly by the loud bang of a gunshot.
The beast writhed, a practical scream of agony ripping from it’s throat in it’s last moments before it collapsed onto the dirt with a sickening shudder.
The scent of blood began to fill the air, making his stomach churn a bit, and he cast his gaze off to the side for a moment before glancing back at the now lifeless corpse. The once blood red eyes were now clouded and glazed over with death.
Even looking down at his own kind like this, Eon felt nothing. He felt no anger, nor disgust, nor sympathy. He’d long since shut these emotions away.
He felt no regret or sorrow.
With a flick of his tail, he simply left the corpse behind, his job done.
Comments (0)
See all