Coming to this particular city was a bad idea, one that she knew from the very beginning, but she did anyway because she thought it would make for the perfect smokescreen. Spoiler alert: It didn't. Of course it didn't. What made her think otherwise?
The night was halfway through and while it was the most dangerous time of the day in the most dangerous city in the country, she calmly walked through the shades of the crumbling buildings. It was safe for her. Well not entirely, but that was the irony of her life.
She didn't just appear calm because she was truly calm. She couldn't risk being otherwise. The night was as dangerous for her, even more than for the average person, but it was also safe for her. It was the time she felt most at peace.
The inky shadows terrified her – on a few occasions – as much as it brought her comfort.
"I doubt I will catch the midnight train heading out of the city." She mused pessimistically to herself.
She would have used her magic to get away but that came with huge risks. She was already in deep trouble due to the honest mistake that happened less than 24 hours ago.
They hadn't wasted their time in combing every nook and cranny of the slums to fish her out, even possessing any manner of civilian they came across.
She had no choice but to leave if she wanted to keep her problems to herself. At this point it wasn't even a surprising occurrence.
She finally got to the train station but just like everything good in her life (which was pretty much nonexistent), she unsurprisingly missed it. She could hike a moving truck but she'd rather not. Chances were that the unfortunate driver would die before morning came.
"What I wouldn't give to teleport right now." Annnnd she couldn't. Why? Hmm, well other than the fact that she'd beacon her location to the stalking dregs, and it will also leave her mentally drained, there really wasn't much risk with it.
She should have gone straight to Metropolis like she initially thought but something about this dreary place drew her. She should have known better than to trust a stray thought.
If she could get to the outskirts then she might hitch a ride or risk teleporting to reduce the distance between her and Metropolis.
She was running out of options as she was of time. Either try to get Superman's attention in Metropolis or risk everything on the line, oh and by everything she meant this universe, and swing her way to the doors of the Halls of Justice in Washington DC. They will have to hear her out if they wanted the slightest chance of fighting against what was coming their way.
'Fight? No. If they want the slightest chance of survival.' She corrected inwardly.
She wasn't ignorant of her own role in this whole mess, as unwilling and formerly ignorant as she was,
Morbid thoughts flowed through her serene mind as her pace carried her with composure to the exit of this city.
Her cloak covered her just well enough in the biting cold and even if it didn't she doubted the freezing temperatures would put a dent in her fortitude. She survived worse than a simple winter cold.
She continued walking, heads down and hands tucked inside her cloak, and she was almost near one of the main roads when the streetlights started flickering and a certain chilling wind blew her way.
She heard the growls before she even saw them. Cursed things.
She knew she'd have to run the moment she saw the rising shadows. Perhaps risk teleporting away if she couldn't fight them off and lay low for as long as possible until they lost their tether to this world.
"He awaits…. No escape~" One of them snarled.
If she was so easily riled and disgusted then she might have retorted harshly but she lacked the mental capacity to do so. Instead her answer was a simple, "I refuse."
There. Easy and simple without risking her mental state to fear or anger.
"… Rebel!" One screeched and lunged at her.
"Hezbek… Zinthos… Azarath!" Dark energy fired from her hands and slammed the demon into the concrete.
The other three demons howled as they rushed towards her. They were probably cursing her in their native tongue or something similar, and she understood the sentiment. She'd probably curse herself too if she were in their shoes and if she had the luxury of being so emotionally intense.
The first demon to reach her, quite the eager one it was, was punched back by a column of earth. She jumped backwards, levitating for a few seconds before she grounded herself.
She squashed the small relief that almost budded when she realized that the cultists were not nearby. They would have made it a point to announce themselves with grating chants or a malicious magic circle. They sent the demons on a free hunt.
She blasted one of the demons, tearing off the left section of its torso but she knew it wouldn't be down for long.
The first demon had picked itself up, and she suspected it was a fan with the way it appeared more ecstatic than the rest as it barreled towards her with arms wide for a hug. Yup, definitely a fan. Too bad she was the shy type and didn't do well with the rambunctious sorts.
"Azarath.. Metrion.. Zinthos!" Her form flickered for a moment, dodging the overeager hug at the last second. Her throat was definitely parched and sweat was forming on her brows. Oh right, she still had to reply to this guy.
A pole was uprooted from the ground and slammed the head of the demon with the cemented end, killing it on the spot as it started dissolving immediately after, and falling on top of another.
"Azar— Hngh!" One of them snickered in mocking glee as its elongated nails left a long cut along her shoulders. She reflexively palmed it away with raw magic but the other one was upon her with renewed gusto.
Tongues with mouths full of sharp teeth sprouted from every part of the demon's appendage.
Of course the cultist won't send the same lower rung demons they sent the first three times.
From the corner of her eyes she saw the remaining two demons closing in on her, both having lost at least one part of their bodies.
'The cultists aren't here.' She thought in shaken calm. She could use this chance to teleport. They would be hard pressed to find her if she could make it to Metropolis in time.
The demons might sniff the trail for the cultists but it would take hours for them to find her. Sufficient time for her to hide herself, meditate and cool off her shaken mind.
Fighting off summoned demons for the fourth time while escaping the clutches of deranged demonic sorcerers all in the span of a day was extremely taxing for her. It spoke of her mental fortitude and practices that she still managed to retain a sliver of calm to this point.
She almost closed her eyes in reflex as she released the spell to let the portal take her only for them to widen slightly, just the tiniest bit, which in her strained mind was the equivalent of shocking surprise, as a hand wrapped around the demon's head, the one closest to her, and dragged it backwards against a heavy shoulder with a sickening crunch.
The slight surprise from the sudden turn of events was enough to break her thread-thin concentration and canceled the portal before it could even form. The realization of which formed a pit in her stomach.
She was already at the edge. Any further and she'd lose her last bit of control. The cultists wouldn't even have to do anything by then since she would have pretty much done everything herself. To sum it up, her losing control at this point was her basically gifting out the supernatural bounty reward on her own head to the very same thing that put it there—.
"SCREEEEEEE!!" Her thoughts were interrupted by the grating screech of the second demon dying to a stapler that ripped out its throat…?
"…. Huh?" Her mind turned slow and heavy. Did she see right or was the stress that great? A f….. Calm down girl. In and out.
A stapler of all things used to kill a demon?
She could hardly continue her train of thought when the last demon rushed at the unknown man, its nails long and curved like— the man sidestepped the stab but clipped one of the nails with his stapler as he did and broke it off while still in a turning motion, grabbed the nail with his other hand and stabbed the demon from the back of its head.
A sickening squelch followed the puncture and then a dull thud as the body fell to the ground and started decomposing at a visible speed.
Raven swallowed, panic and her wild emotions almost forcing her into a run when the man turned to face her. And that was when she got a good look at him.
A tall fat man with white hair tied to a small knot on the back. He wore large round glasses that covered his entire eye socket and had a small chop cut mustache. In a brown tee and fading blue jeans. All in all he was just a fat old man.
'And yet…' This very fat old man killed three demons in less than five seconds, with less effort than she would need. And she was the one with magic.
"Uh… I… Who are you?" She stuttered.
It probably would have helped her more if she said a simple 'thank you' first before questioning the stranger, but she digressed. Her mind was going down the bend and it was a steep travel.
She couldn't allow herself to relax and fail to react fast enough if he tried attacking her.
'I can still squeeze open a portal. A bit risky but I have no choice.' She thought as she readied herself to flee at the first hostile movement he made.
As for why she was hesitating this much, which obviously had something to do with the man in front of her, was because he was muted. Not vocally, since he hasn't spoken a word yet, but empathetically.
His surface thoughts were not broadcasted like everyone else that she had met. It was like an opaque glass. Too muddled for her to get any solid detail.
The man stared at her for an unnerving second and looked at the busted stapler in his hands before sighing dejectedly. At least that was what she thought it felt like.
"Can you understand me?" After getting some of her bearings back, she asked slowly.
He nodded at her and held up a hand before she could ask another question and walked a bit off to the side to pick up a plastic bag where he carefully put the busted stapler.
He looked over his shoulders and gestured for her to come but she remained rooted to the ground, mentally giving both herself and him ten seconds to give her a reply before she conjured the portal and leave behind this dreary city.
He clearly saw her hesitating and somehow knew she wouldn't budge because she felt the familiar empathic resonance from him before his words came.
"I am not going to hurt you." He said softly, almost like a clear whisper.
"You still haven't answered my question. Who are you?" She asked again, this time with more steel in her voice. Well, at least as much as she was able to use without keeling over.
"Nobody important." He replied again, in the same slow but even tone. "Just an old man coming from a birthday."
He raised the bag to where the available lights to illuminate it. She could see the birthday design printed on the bag. Whistles, hats, cake and confetti.
He gestured for her to come closer and this time she did, albeit very slowly but he seemed to have enough patience for her to go along on her own flow.
She kept contemplating as she took every slow and dragged out step towards him, keeping her escape card in the tip of her hands.
She finally got to him, the small wave of care and vague honesty coming from him making her postpone her decision. Someone caring for her so openly like this was a new one.
The demons, the acolytes and everyone in their ilk never bothered for that. Even those that took care of her during her childhood and taught her had a veil of wariness around them in regards to her. Well, what was tethered to her more specifically.
He brought out a fresh handkerchief from his bag and took deliberate slow action until he was dabbing up the wound in her arm. She could heal, but she didn't tell him that.
He cleaned it up quick and neat and tied another handkerchief around it before giving himself a pleased nod.
He turned around and started walking away while she just stood there unsure of what to do, that was until he stopped to look at her still standing still and beckoned her to follow.
"It's too late to be walking on the outskirts, wounded, tired and hungry." His voice was too faint to be so easily heard. "You can leave in the morning if you want. I'll drive."
She was still stuck in the motions when she absentmindedly gave him a nod and took a subconscious first step.
She gritted her teeth and followed through with the second step, and then the third. Then there was a fourth, and before she knew it she was walking half a step behind him while he slowed down his pace to match hers.
'Still nothing?' She was a bit baffled. She was so close to him, well within his reach, and yet he just continued walking nonchalantly.
The walk was quiet but it rattled her nerves in a way that made her jumpy, which was a first. She enjoyed the silence, preferred it even, even hoping that others would learn to appreciate it more and maybe learn how to keep their thoughts and emotions private while they were at it, but this one felt prickly.
"You have a car?" She said the first thing that formed in her head. She was never one for conversation but the discomfort she felt needed a distraction.
He hummed.
"Then why are you walking in the middle of the night when you could drive?" She asked with a hint of suspicion.
The old man's shoulders slumped and for a second it seemed as if life left him. Somehow she could tell why he was making that face and feeling like that. His emotions weren't still clear but she could get the general gist of things.
"You didn't expect to be out this late?" She asked tentatively.
He nodded his head dejectedly. "End at 9pm they said." This time she was sure he muttered to himself even though she still heard him.
She kept her eyes peeled and her mind sharp as she followed the strange old fat man.
They were able to catch a train ride just on time, a feat attributed to no luck of hers, and after another thirty minutes of walking they arrived at a small building with a conjoined store in front of it and a van parked neatly on the side.
So he wasn't lying about the car. She did not put much hope on it but she would be the tiniest bit glad if he stood by his offer and gave her a ride out of the city.
The house had a warm feel to it and even the colors of the couch and the paint felt soft.
He led her upstairs to an empty room that had only a small bed with an empty closet. There was hardly any dust in the room which meant he regularly kept it clean or maybe his wife did. Only she didn't see any pictures on the wall in the living room.
"Shower. I will make tea." He pointed at the adjacent bathroom and left. He was a man of few words, a sentiment she understood so she wasn't too wary of the silent man.
She still had her doubts and caution. She loosened the cloak as well as the small bag she carried which contained only a pair set of clothing.
Hot water felt so nice after so long but unfortunately/fortunately she couldn't bring herself to enjoy it, or any small comfort for that matter.
She stepped out of the bath with her breath feeling fuller and found a pair of oversized shirts and tracksuit pants.
She left the room feeling refreshed and calmheaded for once, something that did not involve her meditating for hours, and also something that she couldn't enjoy. She of all people knew the dangers of comfort, except in her case it was more existential and on a far grander/apocalyptic scale.
"Tea." Her control over her emotions stopped her from flinching and throwing a hex on reflex since she didn't sense him at all until he spoke.
The tea was oddly soothing and the rice and stew really helped with her hunger. For once she didn't need to steal to eat.
She couldn't tell given how neutral his face looked and how calm and paced he acted but she felt he felt pleased when he saw her finishing the food and enjoying the tea.
She still couldn't get anything from his head except only the occasional waves of vague feelings.
"… Thank you." She said softly, after a while of finishing the food, to which he gave a simple nod. Once again his mind did not give a hint to what he felt. If he could tell that her injuries and bruises were gone then he said nothing about it.
"I… I.."
He shook his head and thumbed at her room.
"Sleep. Tomorrow."