Through the blur the body of a woman lying on the ground covered in blood flickers into existence right in front of me like single frames out of an old movie reel. "Jessica, I'm sorry", I whisper as her image flickers a few more times and then is gone.
I shake my head from side to side, squeezing my eyes shut as I try to bring the world back into focus. The pain seems to be fading away as I reopen my eyes but that can't be right, I'm losing too much blood. I'm going into shock; that must be the reason.
My right hand starts to burn and I can feel him pushing at the back of my mind. The scars left by the deal I made with him, my 'branding' as he refers to it, ache. I can feel the warm, smooth wood of that phantom pistol in my hand once again and it comforts.
He pushes me closer to the edge.
My resistance isn't what it was a few weeks ago. Hell not even fifteen minutes ago. Was that really her or is he making me see ghosts? Well, it wouldn't be the first time.
I push myself up on to just my knees and what is left of the blood still in my body rushes away from my brain. Light headed, dizzy… wee!
Heh, almost passed out there, I have to stay focused.
A lack of energy causes my head to roll forward and through the top of my field of vision I can see it making its way closer to me. Gracefully lumbering forward like a cat confident it has cornered its prey.
He pushes…
I can sense the other one behind me as the one that kicked me stops almost within arm’s reach. It's holding one of the restraint collars in its clawed hand, my old one it looks like. With those glowing runes etched in its stone surface, yeah it must be.
I can't go back…
He can feel my desperation, it's feeding him and he pushes harder this time… so I jump.
With an energy and speed I didn't think I had left in me I lung towards its legs. It is startled, but not fast enough to move away and I clamp my right hand around what should be its ankle. The scars on that hand and arm start to glow white with increasing intensity, etching out arcane symbols that burn my skin, and in my mind I feel him revel in his victory over me. It tries to pull away but my grip seems to be fuzzed in place. I can feel its life draining away, into me, its very soul being stolen away by my touch. The sensation is intoxicating and he bathes in it. Then the white hot fire that burned only from my scars seconds before spreads out through my hand and engulfs the creature in a flash of bluish-white fire. I can release my grip now, so I do and push myself as far away from the thing as I can but, with the car right behind me it was pointless. The creature lets loose a howl so horrific that my stomach starts to convulse and images of maggot covered corpses flood my brain. Then the fire blinks out and the creature is gone, only ashes blown away by the driving winds of the hurricane still ragging.
I can see the wind blowing the trees and power lines around but, I can't feel it anymore. Just like when it picked me up. How’s this possible?
"You've absorbed some of its power by consuming its soul. Now, you will see what can be done with it."
I feel a clawed hand grab me by the hair and throw me like a ragdoll over a truck ten feet to my left.
Man, I'm really tired of being tossed around like some old toy a three year old thinks can fly. As I drag myself up I can see the remaining creature in all its horror. Still ten feet away and on the other side of the truck it tossed me over. I guess it is because I absorbed the other ones soul but, now I can see the true form of the creatures that were chasing me.
What I thought was a cloak or duster of some sort was, in reality, wings. Like those of an enormous bat. It had folded them around itself like a cloak. Well not anymore. They were spread wide and must be twenty feet from tip to tip. It was humanoid, bipedal, but its head and face looked like an octopus had sat on its shoulders and let its tentacles hang down the thing's chest. Black orb eyes protruded from the sides of the bulbous head and I swear you could see it’s hatred for me in them. Its fingers were like bird talons, gnarled and tipped with a sharp claw at the end. The tentacles on its chest spread apart from the middle as a large bird like beak pushed forward from where its throat should have been. The beak like mouth opened and a horrid wail pierced through the sounds of the hurricane.
My knees went weak and fear gripped me. It charged with its beak open, clawed hands extended forward and its wings curling back.
I felt a familiar weight on my right hip. I reach down to find my pistol, the pistol that ruined my life. And I drew. It was almost like instinct, a trained skill the years in the military honed into me.
I fired…
Energy drained from me as the bullet left the barrel in a blaze of blue Hellfire. The bullet struck the creature in the mass of tentacles that covered its chest, surprise registering in those cold black eyes. I staggered slightly from the feeling of the energy drained by firing the gun itself. The creature screamed in what could only be pain and fell to a knee.
"Shit, if I have to do that again there is no way I'm not going to pass out right where I stand", I thought to myself as it rose back to its feet.
It started for me again and I raised the barrel of my pistol, fired and felt the energy pass from me into the bullet. This bullet struck it in the stomach, or at least what would be the stomach of a normal man. God only knows what this thing has there, but it must have been enough because it turned and ran the other direction flapping its wings and lifted off into the night sky.
"That's good", I thought to myself as my vision dimmed and my knees gave out to my weight. My last thought as my body crumpled on to the asphalt was, "How did I get my gun and belt back?"
