The sound of something massive smashing against the wall echoed repeatedly, each impact deepening the dent. Finally, a particularly forceful blow punctured the metallic surface, unveiling the monstrosity hidden behind it: a towering humanoid with thick, cylindrical legs that seemed almost absurdly disproportionate. Its face bore a grotesque similarity to Handsy's, but with torrents of green liquid oozing from every crevice.
My enhanced vision kicked in, instantly analyzing the creature and pinpointing key vulnerabilities. Wasting no time, I relayed the data to the turrets on my network. They roared to life, unleashing plasma shots that ripped chunks off the beast with ruthless precision. Piece by piece, the monster was reduced to a mangled heap of ruined flesh.
Breathing out a sigh of relief, I allowed myself a brief moment to relax.
"Master!"
"Huh?"
Sylvie's urgent cry snapped me back to reality. My gaze darted around the area, quickly landing on a horrifying sight—a swarm of identical creatures clustered outside, dozens strong. They appeared to be biding their time, standing just beyond the turrets' range.
"They're out of the turrets' sightlines," I muttered, trying to piece together a strategy. Should I strike first or prepare for their inevitable assault? Defensive tactics seemed like the smarter play.
Then everything went to hell.
A piercing cry shattered the air, unlike anything I'd heard before. It was deafening, obliterating nearby glass and temporarily numbing my senses. My vision flickered as my ears rang with its intensity.
The source of the noise wasted no time revealing itself; with a horrific screech of tearing metal, something descended through a gaping hole in the roof.
After taking a moment to recovery myself, I looked up.
Beautiful—that was the only word that came to mind as I took in the creature before me.
It was female in form, with sharp, glowing eyes and ashen-grey skin completely exposed. Her long, wine-red hair cascaded past her ankles, rippling unnaturally as if defying gravity. Two enormous wings, black and angular, kept her aloft with an almost ethereal grace.
Her glowing gaze swept the warehouse, pausing briefly on the rest area I'd set up, before finally locking onto me. A cold chill raced down my spine as her eyes seemed to bore into my soul, warning me that even the slightest wrong move could seal my fate.
Her appearance and what I felt at that moment are the reasons behind my decision to call her the demoness henceforth.
She raised an arm, and every instinct in my body screamed at me to run. Whatever it was that she was about to do, I wasn't prepared to deal with it.
At this moment, the turrets rapidly locked in on her and began blasting plasma shots. To my utter horror, whichever shot reached the demoness turned red before dispersing into what appeared to be a cloud of mist.
Seemingly bothered by the attack, the demoness shifts her attention to the turrets. Her arm, which was still raised, swept down.
The next thing I knew chaotic red orbs spawned in right on top of each of the turrets. They remained there for a second or so before imploding.
Following the implosion, something in the air began to converge at the spots the orbs were once at. While I couldn't see it, I definitely could feel it. And then I saw what they could do in the form of machine being ripped to shreds within seconds.
Just like that, all of the turrets were nothing more than scrapped metal with plasmic and electric discharge.
I knew at that moment that no matter what I materialized, I wasn't ready to deal with whatever the hell the demoness above me was. Yes, creation is powerful, but when I wasn't even aware of its limits and neither was I of her limits, there was simply nothing I could do.
"Master, you must retreat."
Sylvie seemed to agree with my notion, given how her first suggestion was to escape and not a way of fighting back.
Just as I prepared to make a move, possibly manifest a vehicle from the sci-fi game, a sharp, glass-shattering noise rang out. A few meters in front of me, a wave of blue energy materialized from nowhere, spreading fast and engulfing me in an instant.
Everything went black.
When my vision returned, I found myself standing under a functioning streetlamp. Its light felt surreal, given that the city wasn't supposed to have power—anywhere.
"What…?" I whispered, disoriented and confused.
Once I was a bit more stabilized, I looked up, only to see a row of streetlamps stretched out before me, their glow oddly inviting yet eerie.
"Go. Only return once you are ready."
What the hell!? My thoughts raced as I spun around, searching for the source of the voice. It wasn't Sylvie's, despite it resonating in my mind much like her voice did.
"Master, is something wrong?"
"You didn't hear that?"
"Hear what?"
It was clear she hadn't. The voice was androgynous yet commanding, carrying an air of immense authority and power. I decided against keeping the knowledge to myself and told her about it.
"An entity separate from the ones that Master has encountered interfered."
"Well, I guessed that much," I responded.
"The entity appears to desire a friendly relationship with Master."
That only gave a rise to more questions, if anything.
Leaving that for later, I focused on my surroundings and realized I was no longer in the city I'd spent the day in. The buildings, barely visible in the dim light, were completely unfamiliar. Stranger still, I could sense life nearby—human, or at least something remarkably similar.
"Just what the fuck is going on?" I muttered, frustration bubbling up as I reflected on how insane the day had been.
"Master, an analysis of the air suggests this is an uncharted location," Sylvie reported.
"Thanks for stating the obvious," I replied dryly. "Any idea what I'm sensing?"
"Is Master referring to the tell of life force?"
"Yes."
"It appears to result from an interaction between an unfamiliar energy within Master and the particles in the air."
Huh. Definitely not ominous at all.