Chapter Four; Devil and Sword

“Inzuru! Inzuru! Shit, where’d you run off to boy?” Stowie crept upon the end of the forest which he’d been running through non stop seeking out his friend. As he came closer to the city, this smell of death and despair infiltrated his senses. How could I let this happen? As he passed the big sign welcoming folks into Springfield, HE was welcomed by an uncomfortable scene. Vomit poured from Stowie's mouth as he turned away in disgust. How many people had been killed? Maybe ten? Too many for his liking. It hit him fast, the wolf. He swore by the Greatmother and her children that if this was Inzurus doing, he’d drag his buddy down to the unders himself. This was unacceptable. Stowie gathered himself and continued along the trail of bodies, looking up to avoid any further trauma. He had to put an end to this quickly. 

 Poor child. Paralyzed by fear, the only thing his vision could comprehend in front of him was death. The knight who swore his protection had been dealt with in an instant and the claws coming down on him were scarier than he could ever imagine. Just as the boy had closed his eyes and prepared to reunite with his father, a whimper shot from the wolf’s vocals and the boy felt a strong swipe of wind in front of him. He opened his eyes to see a spiky haired man, almost as tall as the other knight tussling with the beast. They rolled around in the snow until the man’s cape was more white than originally black, and the wolf kicked him away a good distance. 

“Aghhh! Inzuru! What the hell do you think you’re doing you bastard!?” The man unsheathed his sword and pointed it at the monster's head, but he didn’t move. 

“I don’t know how far you’ve gone already. But it ends, here, and now.” The wolf let out a terrifying screech and began behaving as if it’d been stabbed through the head. Agnius gathered just enough strength to stand on his feet, but that was all he did. He was confused. Hurt too, but confused. 

“The hell? Are you talking to that thing? Be caref—“ Agnius was interrupted. Now he was even more confused. 

“Oi, stay out of this. If you have the energy to flap your gums then get the kick and everyone else in this city out of here!” Agnius reluctantly obliged. It was fine. He planned on returning with a hundred men to face this thing, even if that meant facing this unfamiliar swordsman aswell. He picked up the child and planned on using the last of his stamina to make for his hideout. 

“Off we go little one.”

Snow fell heavier than ever as the two faced off. Stowie and Inzuru. Even though his wolf looked different now, he could tell the old pal he knew was in there. Stowie is startled when the wolf’s eyes began glowing an even louder purple and it swiftly switched to a human like stance.

“I know my part in all this, boy. I neglected you. I stopped fueling that inner drive which kept us both alive in our journeys through these harsh lands. I couldn’t feed you, or care for you… so you went and became a monster. For that I am sorry.” A demonic laugh followed this heartfelt speech from Stowie. Pissed off he was. 

“Telllll me humannn. Did you really think you could get through to my vessel after I’ve already taken him over? Foolish you are.” Stowie was in a state of shock, and puzzlement. But also angry, focused. 

“Though it took Inzulu here a while to obtain a body I could actually function in, I must sayyyy. Worth the wait. You. If I’m understanding correctly you and Inzulu share a deep connection? A bond as they’d call it? Goooood. Realllyyy goood. Consuming you will make me way more powerful than those scrubby children ever could!” The demon had a maniacal look on his face. Horrifying. Stowie finally found the words to speak. 

“Thank you, Greatmother. Thank you so much.” The now possessed beast paused in confusion before Stowie continued. 

“Inzuru, if you can hear me, boy, rest well. This isn’t your fault, I know that now. Let’s talk about it on the other side” Stowie expresses his sorrow to his old friend. A tear fell from his eye, but the resolve was there. He knew what he needed to do. Without a second thought Stowie clutched his sword and lunged at the demon, swinging it in a heavy but precise manner. The wolf effortlessly dodged all of the sword attacks coming at him and sent his leg right into Stowie's side. Far into the forest he flew. 

“Stowie wasss it? Judging from Inzulus memoriesss, you’re pretty strongggg. Maybe I’ll play with you for a while? Ryp Zizu be thy name, let me show you the power of a devil!” The devilish creature dashed forward, almost at teleporting speeds, and lodged his foot into Stowie's neck. Blood flew from his mouth and the menacing figure standing over him made the pain even worse. He dropped his sword. Ryp had picked Stowie up by his now tender neck and began speaking, right as Stowie sent his boot flying into the beast's leg. Ryp lost his grip on the boy and was surprised to see him winding an uppercut as soon as he came down. The bunch sent Ryp-Zizu up a good distance and Stowie used that time to ready his wolf stance and attack. Ryp was the one flying now. A backwards flip and Ryp was back on his feet standing tall. His arms were crossed and he looked around as if uninterested. Stowie continued running at  Ryp anyway. The demon's eye landed on a deer who was lurking in the trees. He set his feet and belted in that direction, appearing right in front of the deer. Before the poor animal could process anything, Ryp yanked the deer by the head, killing it instantly and ripping back its spine from the skin. Tossing the cord of bones to the side he shaped the fur into a staff and hardened it with his TAKA energy which shone bright purple. He wheeled the staff around as if he were a master with it. 

“Thatsss more like it. Shall we dance then, Stowie?”