It had deep crimson skin and eyes as black as the night sky. A pair of bony, white horns protruded from its forehead like ugly branches. It's exposed body showed it to be completely sexless with well sculpted muscles. Strange black markings stretched up it's arms and a pair of leathery black wings protruded from its back.
I don't even need to sense magic to tell that we're outclassed here.
The demon took a deep breath, as if it was sniffing the air.
"I just love that smell you bring. The smell of fear."
With that the demon disappeared and I felt my body being thrown sideways.
I right myself and push off the wall towards where the demon was now stood drawing my blade and slashing at its head.
Leon slashed at the demons head whilst Silen moved, preparing to hit the demon in the spot it dodged to. Silen's axe collided with the demon sending it flying back towards Leon who slashed at its left arm.
The demon spread it's wings to slow down and took to the air.
"That sword..."
The demon released flames towards Leon who it deemed as the largest threat.
Maria threw spears of blood to cut through the flames and attack the opponent, only for it to blow them away with a gust released from its wings.
The demon targeted Leon once more, charging in with a fist coated in flames.
Leon brough his sword across and cut about an inch into the demons wrist.
The demon threw it's arm back, dragging the sword out of Leon's grip before using his other hand to punch Leon in the face, sending a spray of blood across the floor as he was sent flying into a wall.
Silen approached from behind swinging his axe down onto the demon's shoulder, only for it to be stopped by the demon's skin.
The demon backhands Silen in the stomach, causing blood to spray out of his mouth through the vent holes in his visor.
The demon pulls the sword out of it's wrist and looks down at it, admiring the beauty of it's deep crimson waves that ran along the black blade from the ivory handle stained red with blood, covered by a black wrap, all the way to the point on the blade.
A rain of blood comes towards him from Maria only for him to lightly swing his sword and blast the attack away.
"This is Maken. The blade once wielded by the Dark Queen. Forged in the blood of dragons from the bones of the Demon God Satan."
Leon charges from the rubble he got thrown into.
"Give that back!"
The demon just ignored him and continued talking.
"It's said to be indestructible. Only a dark magic wielder can bring out it's power. And only Satan can bring out its full power."
Leon slams his fist into the jaw of the demon, and it stood there, unfazed.
"The man this blade is waiting for. It isn't you, boy. Though if you really want it that badly, I'll happily oblige."
The demon sank the blade deep into Leon's stomach before letting go, leaving Leon to collapse on the ground.
"LEON!"
Maria's pain filled scream filled the cavern as tears welled up in her eyes.
The demon launched a small lightning bolt towards her, knocking her unconscious.
A slow clap filled the cavern, followed by footsteps, causing the demon to look towards the source of the noise.
A deep cold filled the room and froze Leon to preserve his body until he could get treated.
"You, when did you get here?"
"I've always been her."
"That's impossible, I would have sensed you long before this, Magiya, the frozen flame."
The demon released it's magic power, clearly meant to intimidate Magiya, however all it managed to do was blast away his hood to reveal pale skin and red eyes topped by a head of long white hair. Across his face was multiple scars from being burned or perhaps scalded.
"This looks like fun."
I smash my staff onto the ground causing steam to erupt all around the demon.
The demon beat his wings to dissipate the steam, however I controlled it and sent it back towards it.
The demon threw balls of fire towards me only for them to be blocked by pillars of ice.
I surround my opponent with steam once again with steam.
This time the demon just accepts it, realising it's just boiled water.
"The heat doesn't affect demon's you fool!"
"No, but you still feel temperature, don't you?"
"Yes, your point?"
"Just wait."
I send more steam towards the demon who began launching lightning spears towards me.
I block them all with ice pillars which promptly shatter.
If any one of those hit me, I would have died.
I feel a bead of sweat run down my face.
This thing's stronger than me, no doubt. However, it's very, incredibly stupid.
I increase the steam, further raising his body temperature.
The demon finally got tired of this and dispersed the steam with its wings.
"Enough! Time for you to die!"
The demon began to form a fireball in its palms.
"I was just thinking the same thing."
I banged my staff on the floor and unleashed a tornado of swirling blue flame that froze the very air.
"This is why I'm called the frozen flame. Tell your friends in hell it was me who sent you there."
The flames dispersed leaving the corpse to collapse face first onto the ground.
Yes, my goal was never to hurt it. It was to raise his body temperature to such a degree that the sudden change in temperature would send it into shock ultimately causing it to die.
I could have done that from the start, but I wanted to see how they'd handle this and they did pretty good.
Even I couldn't have killed the demon if it wasn't for it's arrogance and failure to consider that the cold is still effective. Especially when paired with the sudden drop in temperature.
I picked up the sword, Maken, making sure to use steam to cauterise Leon's wounds as I pulled it out, and plunged it deep into the demons heart for good measure.
How could he win so easily, has he always been this powerful.
"Here, I believe this is yours."
Magiya handed back Maken with a smile.
One things clear, I need to get a lot stronger if I want to protect this world and everyone in it.
A sudden loud bang bursts out from where the demon collapsed and stood right in the centre of the explosion stood the demon, heavily injured, showing symptoms of shock and is in severe pain, but still very much alive.
"Impossible."
"Not every creature needs there heart to function, Magiya. Matter of fact some can't even show their full power while they still have it."
The demons voice broke through the silence.
"Looks like I'll have to show you hell. One. Last. Time."
Swirling blue flames erupt from Magiya's staff and target the demon, who summoned a raging inferno which provided a hard counter to the cold flames.
"Leon, I'll support, you attack!"
Magiya calls out towards me.
I know I can't win on my own, but with Magiya's help we can win this.
Everybody else has been knocked out, it's down to the two of us to finish this.
Blood erupts from my legs as I burst forward, my bones snapped and fractured in multiple places.
The demon notices me coming and launches lightning bolts towards my position.
I slice through them and jump up across the pillars of ice Magiya created to allow me to reach the demon.
I feel every muscle in my body tense to the point of rupturing. Blood bursts out of every pore and drips down my face, soaking my clothes and blade.
The demon launched more bolts towards me, only for pillars of ice to descend and interrupt them before blowing apart.
I feel my consciousness fade and the world turn to black as I pass out, yet my body is still forced on by sheer force of will.
The demon's fist raised as he went to punch me down to the ground, too arrogant to retreat.
"Like hell I'd let you do that!"
A frozen flame burns his arm away, quickly turning his red skin black before it falls away.
I bring Maken across, slicing the demon's head from its body. An eruption of blood occurs as my muscles exploded and my bones shattered in my arm, and I fall to the ground.