"Come on, we have to get you out of here."
When Arc turned, the demon stood back up and shook its head, the smile reappearing on its face.
Arc cursed silently, shielding the little girl behind him.
He instantly took on his white form and passed through the window, tackling the demon.
"GO!" he shouted, and the little girl ran.
She hesitated for a bit, looking back at the man who helped her, and then proceeded to run with all her might.
Now that the girl was gone, Arc focused entirely on the demon. He drove it through the wall, their forms smashing through the thin cement and wood, debris scattered around them. The demon thrashed violently, its long limbs lashing out, but Arc held firm.
The struggle took them to another wall, Arc now the one pinned. He pushed back with all his strength, sending them both crashing through the wall and into another unit.
Arc saw an old man slumped by the sofa, watching television, seemingly asleep. He kept glancing at the sofa and back to the demon as he regained his footing.
His white form glowed with an intense brilliance. The demon snarled, black blood outpouring, dripping from its jagged teeth as it lunged at him again.
Arc dodged swiftly, then countered with a jab to its back. The blow sent the demon crashing into a window, shattering the glass with a deafening crash.
"SIR!" he shouted, trying to catch the attention of the old man. "GO—"
He finally saw the old man's face as he turned toward him.
The old man's eyes were now completely black, a sinister grin spreading across his face, motionless in the chair.
A chill ran down Arc's spine, freezing him in place for a few seconds.
There was no time to process the horror, as the demon had already recovered from the previous blow.
It straightened its back in slow, fluid movements, its long limbs unfolding, following its slender body.
"Little girl…" it hissed.
Arc was confused. He first thought the demon could not speak, but it was now calling for the little girl.
"Who are you?" Arc asked, knowing named demons never let it pass, and answered every question that asked who they were.
It only grinned at him, "Little girl… it's me, Mr. King."
His eyebrows creased further in confusion, and the demon lunged at Arc once more, swinging its claw.
He dodged to the side, narrowly avoiding the demon's attack. He attempted a kick to its back, but it failed. The demon grabbed him by the feet, swung him through the air, carrying his whole body, and slammed him down to the floor.
Pain shot through Arc's body as he struggled to rise, gritting his teeth.
"Little girl…" it snarled.
He scooted and scrambled to his feet, his vision blurred despite being in form. He checked if he was flickering and took a deep shaky breath. He kept looking at the entrances, hoping someone would help him before he lost consciousness.
The demon attacked again, its hands piercing toward Arc. He grabbed its hands, delivering a blow to its gut using his knees. The demon coughed up black blood, staining his feet.
It recovered quickly, its eyes now filled with rage. A powerful swipe came back to Arc, delivering a slash across his chest, the force sending him crashing down.
The demon jumped above him, its claws slicing through the floor. Arc managed to roll away to deflect one strike, but the second one hit him square in the side, and he let out a painful grunt.
He lay still, his form flickering and writhing in pain.
"I shouldn't have been struck," he grunted, "in this form."
Black smoke seemed to be oozing out of his wound. As he realized, the demon before him had powers. He cursed under his breath.
It loomed over him, its sharp teeth bared… widening. It trapped Arc with its two long legs and raised its claw for a final strike.
Just then, a small voice called out, "Mr. King, stop!"
The demon hesitated, its head turning slowly toward the voice. "Little girl…" it said, its voice a low, guttural rumble.
The child had come out from her hiding spot, and Arc's eyes widened from the familiar sound. He forced himself to rise but couldn't.
Taking advantage of the distraction, Arc struck the demon in the chest, and it shrieked, turning to face him again, and then impaled both of his arms down to the floor with its claws.
"ARGHH!" Arc cried out, his form flickering as it was fading slowly.
The demon retracted its claws from his arms and turned fully to the child, making Arc scream once more.
"Little girl…" it repeated, its voice laced with an odd, almost happy tone.
Arc writhed in pain, cradling his arms, his form nearly dissipated.
"No… Run…" he tried to scoot over to the nearest wall to support himself momentarily. Every part of his body where a wound was, oozed with smoke.
"They don't—" he coughed up some blood. "—heal."
He saw the demon slowly coming up to the girl, and he forced himself to stand.
"No…" he mumbled, falling back to the floor.
The girl stood there motionless, eyes filled with sheer terror, and it devastated Arc. The blurry scene brought him back to that familiar time.
"No… No, Asher, please, not him…"
His eyes seemed to slowly give in.
The little girl was cornered. Just the door behind her, a scene that was awfully familiar to Arc, who was now in ragged breaths, consciousness slipping away.
"Run… Asher…"
The demon held its every step as if it were precious. Its claws reached for the girl as if she were a prize.
Arc, now on his knees, reached in the direction of the child and kept trying to crawl toward her.
"No…" he kept on mumbling.
A heartbeat pounded once. And his vision was narrowing. It was halved. He could see his soul gate in a hazy transparent vision, yet within the swirling reality before him.
Then a sudden voice resounded from within.
"Do you need my help?"