37 First Contac (2/2)
A mellifluous song, an aria of righteous fury rung in his ears; he could hear scarce a sound as the maiden's voice grew louder for every millisecond that passed.
The horde charged forward, a host of malformed aberrations that each looked different from each other. All twisted in numerous ways: Crooked, split bodies of all manner of ungodly design. They had misshapen bodies -- elongated, broken limbs; fused bodies joined in odd angles; warped faces filled with rows of shattered teeth and freakish, blood-red eyes.
Reed met them with the same maddened fervor they possessed and went on a rampage. He molded his floating orbs into various weapons; spears, swords, axes, lances, warhammers, -- the armory formed out of highly condensed Anima struck the Infested swarm at blinding speeds.
These streaks of light smashed into a few Infested and instantly tore them into pieces before they crashed into the ground. Bright violet blood splattered across the place, both on friend and foe. The fight had begun.
Driven mad beyond reason, Reed leaped into the horde and recalled the nearest weapon he had thrown back into his hand. A scorching zweihander flew out of its crater and hurtled itself into his hands. That was all Reed needed to start doing his job; he swung the hefty blade and cut down the closest monster he could reach in twain.
Even though the disgusting creature had been cut in half, it still moved with great vigor on the ground and quickly lunged onto one of Reed's legs, but was set aflame and burnt into ashes before it could latch on to its prey.
It would take more than simple dismemberment to kill the wretched things. Only thorough destruction worked; the bastards were more resilient than he expected, but it matter not. He had plenty of methods.
The large crowd of Infested recognized that the one in front of them was the greatest threat to them and focus their undivided attention upon him. A swarm of snarling flesh ran towards their prey, clambering over one another, a flood of hatred made manifest.
A few of the disgusting creatures viciously growled and then, all of a sudden, lit themselves up in the same blue-violet flame that he had seen before. It seemed they weren't going to hold anything back...
Reed snorted in disdain and gathered Anima around him in a circular rings of light by the dozens and then by the hundreds. Innumerable bands of holy radiance spun around him as if he were in the midst of a storm.
They whizzed around him menacingly, to the point that they hummed. The song they sang was one of swift and brutal death. Reed met the swarm head-on and let out a bestial roar; he would rip them into shreds and send them all to hell where they belonged.
Man and monster met at the crossroads of insanity and all hell broke loose; a few Infested shot out bloated balls of blue flames that chased after him before they exploded.
Reed conjured his aegis and kept moving forward; the explosions shook his bones and blurred his vision, but he couldn't stop himself. He brushed away the pain and jumped straight into the swarm without hesitation.
A flurry of flesh and blood splattered everywhere; claws came at him from all sides, flames shot towards him, to the point that he could no longer see anything other than rot and horror. It didn't matter -- he'd keep swinging until everything was dead.
Distorted, pained screams echoed in the distance and before anyone realized it, silence reigned again. The madness had disappeared.... for now.
Violet painted the earth and sky as smoldering embers littered the place. It looked like a nightmarish realm where the worst devils belonged. A lone boy stood among the wreckage, covered head to toe in blood.
He surveyed his work in silence and gazed out into the distance as if he were searching for something.
Esparon Doveport couldn't find any words to say, or even think. He simply stood in place like a statue. Cold sweat poured out from his body and if one paid close attention, they'd notice that he was, in fact, trembling ever so slightly.
A million thoughts ran through his mind, all trying to process what had just occurred. Blood. Flesh. Screams. Flame. The words and images were there, but he couldn't string them together properly. For a while, he had even forgotten to breathe out of shock.
He only had a single question he wanted to be answered right now.
Who the hell was this guy, and where the fuck had he come from?
Reed wasn't satisfied... he hungered for more. It was a horrible feeling.