Parking the car in front of the empty gas station, Marcus tucked the gun behind his back and walked over to the gas pump. He paid with his card and started refueling the car.
Throughout the process, Marcus remained alert, his finger on the pistol trigger, ready to shoot at anything that moved.
Inside the car, Daemom sat in the back seat, unmoving. Amara climbed onto his lap and spoke, a human voice emanating from the pink snake's mouth.
"I smell a Knight of Famine, Daemom." Her voice carried a hint of surprise and confusion.
"A Knight of Famine?" Daemom looked puzzled at the serpent coiled in his lap. His voice tinged with confusion.
"A being who has signed a contract with one of the Four Dukes of Hell, specifically, the Duke of Famine. The human who signed the contract allows the Infernal Duke to use their body through the pact they made." Amara replied, slithering up Daemom's chest and coiling around his neck. Her body was slightly tense, indicating things were not as she wished.
Daemom's face turned serious at her words, his gaze falling on Marcus. He wasn't sure if Marcus could fight against someone like that. The only issue was he also didn't know the extent of such a being's strength.
"Why is he after me?" Daemom muttered to himself, still confused about being tracked in the first place.
Amara's reptilian eyes fixed on his blue ones as she responded in a serious tone. "You are an exceptionally powerful Medium; your body is suitable to serve as a vessel for high-ranking demonic beings like Dukes and Infernal Princes. With your body, he can come into the human world as much as he wishes, unhindered by the Veil."
Daemom narrowed his eyes, deep in thought. There were crucial pieces of information in Amara's words. Firstly, according to her, he was an extremely powerful Medium. Secondly, his body was a perfect vessel for one of the Seven Infernal Princes to arrive.
Suddenly, as Daemom pondered, the buzzing at the nape of his neck intensified like never before. He only had time to react when the impact came.
BOOM!
The car door was brutally dented, glass shattered throughout the car, before the car itself was thrown into the air and spun repeatedly.
Daemom felt cuts on his face as the world around him spun rapidly. He gripped the car roof and cursed the audacity of the Knight of Famine.
"Motherfucker!"
The car crashed to the ground with another loud thud and continued spinning until it plowed into the gas station convenience store.
Breathing rapidly, Daemom swiftly unbuckled his seatbelt and landed amidst the shattered glass, cutting his hands and causing them to bleed in the process.
With Amara still coiled around his neck, Daemom disregarded the pain as he crawled out of the car. Upon emerging, he saw shelves of products strewn across the floor.
Standing up, he breathed heavily as he stared at the monster that had sent a two-ton car flying through the air like it was made of paper.
With cuts on his face, lip, and chin, Daemom raised his head and spoke sarcastically. "Hey bastard, you look hungry. Let me fetch something for you to eat. I think shit is suitable food for you."
But inside, seeing the monster's appearance, Daemom cursed his damn luck.
Moments earlier, Marcus, who had been refueling the car, was stunned. He blinked and heard a loud, deafening crash. Looking down, he saw the empty gas nozzle and spilled fuel on the ground in large amounts.
Looking up, his face paled as he watched the car with Daemom inside spinning through the air, crashing into the convenience store with another loud bang.
Marcus' mind went blank for a moment, but as an experienced soldier, he quickly recovered and drew his pistol as he walked towards the convenience store with the weapon in his hands.
In his other hand, he grabbed a phone and dialed a number. The call was answered almost immediately.
"Paranormal Response Center, please state your name and badge number."
"Marcus Mora, Code 01-140-541," Marcus replied coldly, seeing the creature standing near the car. He didn't hesitate to pull the trigger, emptying a full magazine into the monster.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
"Code confirmed. What's the incident, Second Order Executor," the dispatcher remained impassive, his voice almost mechanical despite the gunfire.
Seeing the creature standing unharmed despite the silver bullets hitting it, Marcus' face became extraordinarily grim.
"Red. Red Code, Level Disaster Demonic Possession," he responded into the phone with a dignified voice. In that moment, he knew he was going to die; it only remained to be seen when and how.
Recalling his daughter's face for a moment, Marcus took a deep breath and stepped forward.
The dispatcher on the other end finally reacted. Marcus heard a gulp, knowing the dispatcher was more nervous than he was at that moment.
He didn't blame the guy, not when an entire city could be wiped off the map.
"Help is on the way. Good luck, Executor," Marcus heard before hanging up and letting the phone drop to the ground.
Taking a deep breath, Marcus' body began to swell; his size gradually increased, his clothes tearing in many places. Gray fur started growing on his arms and face, his teeth became more prominent, and his nose more pointed, almost like a snout.
A werewolf. Marcus was revealed to be a werewolf.
---
On the other side, Daemom looked closely at what made the car fly.
It resembled a cow, an extremely skinny cow, its skin already in a state of decomposition. The putrid, nauseating smell could make even the strongest stomachs turn. Wherever the cow stepped, it rotted like a dying plantation infected by disease. The cow's eyes emitted black smoke that escaped through its nostrils.
But Daemom's gaze didn't linger on the cow for long; it focused on the man riding it. He was tall and dressed in an elegant Italian suit, but his face stood out above all else.
It seemed like a normal face, but his eyes—or rather, the absence of them—drew attention. In place of eyes, flames burned with fury and destruction, black smoke trailing from the eye sockets. The same smoke that came from the cow's nostrils. Around the eyes, small black cracks pulsed with yellow energy and grew over time.
"Good news, Daemom," Amara spoke mentally, observing the possessed man.
"The good news is that a mortal's body can't withstand the power of a duke of Hell for long. Which means you just have to wait, and the mortal's body before you will collapse without you needing to do anything."
"Are you sure there's no bad news?" Daemom asked skeptically after hearing her words.
"Yes, no bad news," Amara confirmed.
"Amara, can't you fight this infernal duke?" Daemom asked, subtly moving away from his position, ready to dodge any attack if necessary.
"I can't. My physical body and powers are limited as long as I remain on Earth, but I can do something. Do you want me to lend you, my power?" Amara asked after a moment of silence, her reptilian eyes staring directly into Daemom's blue eyes.