Skye's POV
"Then I shall judge you, Mortal."
The voice seemed to come from everywhere. Caught off guard, I searched the room and reached for my sword. Which, of course, I had unwittingly left outside. Sarcastic laughter echoed through the ruins as the dirt lifted all around me. Glancing at the hooded woman, I was momentarily surprised that she wasn't screaming.
Demon Keeper.
"I am not what you think me to be." Her voice was soft yet regal. It reminded me of a gentle breeze on a chilly day. Cold but unaware of it.
My momentary distraction did not hinder my mind from watching the dust spin into the form of a lean man. This particular demon seemed to enjoy taking its time. Out of habit, I noticed that the quickest way out was a broken window. A broken stone wall created an obstacle in that direction. Any window to my right wouldn't work. To retrieve my weapon I would have to get to the front door. Turning my back on this dramatic demon would be a mistake, but maybe I could lead the demon towards my weapon and snatch it before I'm incinerated.
Happy with my plan, I watched the demon finish forming into the likeness of a man. His hair was longer than mine and fiery red. His arms and legs were long. Long reach. Stay a good distance away.
His eyes were an unusual shade for a demon. Most demons eyes were red while demon keepers were a glowing blue. This one's eyes were an earthy green. Like moss on trees.
I knew then that this one wasn't a regular demon. I cursed myself for leaving my effects outside.
The demon smiled mischievously before a large boulder rocketed at me from the right. I dodged to my left, but quickly jumped as the ground beneath me fell away and volcanic flames shot towards the sky. I cursed as I missed the landing and grappled with loose rock before I found a strong tree root to hold on to. My back burned as another wave of flame violently erupted.
I focused my attention on climbing the root. When I was almost out of the hole the root reared up on its own.
"Hey!" I exclaimed as I realized the root was going to throw me into the flames. I jumped and rolled when I landed. Quickly standing, I found myself facing a wall of fire. A quick glance around proved that the fire surrounded me. There was no way I could get to my weapons now. And no regular demon had both fire and earth abilities. It was always one or the other. Whatever I was up against was incredibly powerful.
A large rumble echoed throughout the ruins as the ground shook knocking me to my knees. Turning to the source, I stared as the demon lazily ripped a giant piece of stone from the ground and threw it at my head.
Again, I dodged, but was hit with a secondary attack. An oak tree suddenly whipped its branches into my stomach. Where the heck did that come from? I didn't waste time lying around. I rolled away from the tree and heard a sizzling sound behind me. I flipped to the left and winced in pain as a fireball the size of a small star whizzed past grazing my right arm.
"This is getting boring." The demon yawned. "Perhaps I shall truly incinerate you for wasting our time."
Our time? Confused, I looked up. The female figure was standing exactly where she had been before. Silently watching the exchange. The demon however was leaning against the altar looking bored out of his mind. The demon wasn't bothering the girl.
Demons captured by Keepers feed off the energy of their keepers and can grow stronger than they were born to be. It all depended on the strength of the keeper. Based on the strength of this demon, its keeper was very strong indeed.
If I could get to its keeper, the demon would be done for. Determined, I stood up.
"Then incinerate me. Though it'd be a shame to be killed by something so weak." Provoking a demons anger is a good way to blind them. This particular demon simply grinned wolfishly.
"Weak he says! Ha! You shall taste true power then!" Snapping his fingers he summoned a small flame within his hand. He smirked at me right before the air was sucked into his fireball, leaving me gasping for oxygen with no relief. Got to get to the Demon Keeper.
I took a step forward out of pure will and could feel a headache coming on from a lack of oxygen. I took another staggering step forward and another and realized that with every step I was able to take a breath. I can breathe easier the closer I get to the demons inferno. Enlightened, I took another step and another until I was full on sprinting towards the cloaked figure. The air rushed back into the ruins pushing me back a little, but I didn't stop. The figure was right before my eyes and as I reached for her the demon materialized before me, red hot sword in hand.
He swung and I ducked, still running and tackled him. At least I would have if he didn't materialize out of the way and grab my neck as I rushed forward. I elbowed his sternum and his grip loosened in surprise leaving room for me to turn and punch him square in the jaw. The force of it caused him to stagger back. A sudden clang to my left distracted me. My sword! I quickly grabbed it and briefly wondered where it came from before I was defending myself against an onslaught of attacks from the powerful entity before me. With each blow his force strengthened until I was nearly on my knees attempting to keep his sword at bay. A burst of flame suddenly came from my right and my left. I really was going to be incinerated if I didn't get out of the way. He's expecting me to either die or dodge backwards. I decided to do neither. With all my strength I pushed him back and grabbed his sword wrist so he couldn't kill me and narrowly missing the fireballs, I ran my sword through his chest.