Ch 18 - Night time mission

Joining Hannah, the Wednesday morning weather was bad and we went further out to train, my aura-enhanced body made even the journey that would have taken at least half an hour by car with merely a few minutes of running, the cold air burning my nose and wind rustling my hair but it was all muffled like moving through water. I knew then that even with this I still preferred cars. The rush, the feeling of having to control the power and push the limits, felt much better than when I tried them in my body as it felt almost like cheating. 

We reached a well-hidden clearing off the N1 before the Huguenot tunnel but after all the farms just over the tree line, we couldn't see the road anymore. We took a break, but it didn't even feel necessary. My body still feels fresh and unhindered i still can't help but be surprised even if I understand how I did it. Flexing my hands and feeling the aura pull towards them. 

"It's quite a lot of space." I Say enjoying the view zipping around with my new speed to get a feel of the land. 

"It is and you will need it for what I was told we would be doing." Hannah said in a tone half serious half teasing as she began to form a large green box twice or thrice the size of the park from yesterday. 

Sadly, I knew what she meant I had; being generous, learned to control my aura but not yet how to use it like they did. 

So, stepping into the box we end up fighting. It was a mixture of grappling and boxing learning how to reinforce my body to land a hit and more importantly, take a hit. This wasn't something anyone could learn in a month let alone a day so I was just getting the basics of flaring my aura when I thought an attack was going to land on someone or their attack would hit me and after a few hours of that basic movement was next. Sprinting and controlling my speed went much better as after I got a basic understanding of distance, controlling my power went much easier. This is also where I learned a side effect of using aura externally. It would affect your near surroundings, it would strengthen the ground you walked on and the air that surrounded us, allowing us to move as we did without causing massive destruction or bursting into flames. So, we ended up lying in the field after training, well that's a bit generous to me as I could bearly touch her and was a very fast punching bag. 

"Don't worry so much rest a bit now and we will get you this evening." Hannah said as she handed me a bottle of water. 

"What?" I was so shocked I didn't even notice the water 

"mounie soo wees nie. we will be waiting outside your house for you." She said nonchalantly as if she didn't sound like a stalker right now but I knew I wouldn't be able to get through to her so just gave up.

We ran back to Paarl where she dropped me by my house before leaving me to figure out what to do. Ok, that's not fair she told me to relax and prepare myself by memorizing a few rites to cast in emergencies and focus on my aura to try and improve its quality. But that didn't calm me and left me wondering about the afternoon and the entire evening. I was so worried I couldn't sit still or even focus enough to hold a conversation so I deflected every question till I was tired enough to go to my room but even then I was unable to settle. I had no idea how much time had passed till I heard a light knocking on my window. Turning there and opening up my curtains to see Mandella by my window. Hopping out like I was 15 again wasn't enough to calm my nerves as I looked around.

"You ready?" asked Hannah from the neighbor's roof. 

"Yes, just a bit worried." I saw sheepishly rubbing my head.

"mounie soo wees nie. alles sal perfek wees." Adam said from my side as he handed me a backpack. 

"Ok, we're gonna pray now soooo." He said the first half at me and turned to face them for the last bit, which they seemed to understand as Mandella turned away and Hannah just closed her eyes. Turning back to me, he lowers his head and I follow. 

"Here beskerm ons asseblief, op ons reis terwyl ons deur hierdie vyandige lande probeer, here lei asseblief ons Pad sodat ons ons weë kan vind in hierdie verlore tye. In ons Naam bid ek. amen." He seemed so soft while he prayed but at times, I could almost swear I heard his voice double in the same way as if he was casting. 

"Mandella is the disguise in place?" Adam asked with a side eye 

"It's closer to a glamor or illusion but yes I did it while you two were praying." Mandella replied in turn. 

"Good, then we can get going." he said, patting me on the back and pulling me under his arm as we made our way down my street. 

"To fill you in we are going with a square 4 formation so me and Hannah will be the front-line attack and you and Mandella will be the back-line support." he said finally letting me go and turning around and walking backwards to continue. 

"Your job in particular will be to stay safe and use spells to support us, so mounie a dom gat wees nie." His smile was as telling as I could and would without even trying. 

We made our way on and through the main road people ignored us like we were just in the background blending in, but after a while, even the night owls left, and we were left alone. Without speed, we were able to cover the entire R101 with ease. From Klapmuts to Du Toitskloof and even the busiest side roads without much hassle but still nothing was there to see. There was silence for quite a while, they weren't talking so I didn't want to even risk a question but before I could muster up my courage, I felt something. 

A deep chill began to cling and spread within my body, I was nearly frozen able to force movement but able to move my body fearing. I wasn't the only one to feel it, but I was the only one who didn't turn to see what it was as I saw Hannah turning to face it and assumed the others were too. Two well-groomed, black-suited figures stepped out from the left turn ahead of us. Their pace was unworried and steady as they made their way forward. That same moment nausea gripped my stomach and I recognized that these were Demons. 

They stopped a few 100 meters ahead of us as I tried and determine whether that was far or no distance at all I followed Adam's lead as he drew his knife, and I got out my bible. When do I get a knife? 

"H'm, 4 our information was wrong?" The demon said his Face life mask beardly moving to form its words as he looked towards his companion. 

"Can I ask why you haven't attacked us yet?" Adam asked to lower his knife but did not relax his posture, in fact, he tensed his knife hand and lowered his stance. That didn't go unnoticed as both the silent demon and Hannah lowered their stances in turn. 

"Our Master Wishes to speak to you and your group." pulled from his musings the first demon replied seemingly unbothered by the tense atmosphere. 

"And if we are to refuse his gracious offer." Adam mocked with no hint of sympathy. 

"If you aren't willing to talk bringing your corpses will be an acceptable alternative for your annoyance." replied the other demon in a mostly even tone though a hint of either anger or excitement laced his voice. 

A toothy smile began to creep up his face, his eyes took on a dangerous glint. 

"Let's see you try then." were Adam's last words 

Their action was their reply, the two suited figures stride forward and begin to unwrap. Their suits and skin were like soft silk being lifted from their bodies unfurling to reveal their forms underneath their smooth metal-like bodies taking form as they Summon their rods. One; the demon that did all the talking took the form of a sword and the other; the silent demon elongated his rod to triple the other's size and ignited at the tip Forming a Spear of fire. 

in the same instant, Adam and Hannah launched forward to confront them. Adam raised his knife and as the light that glinted off of it turned red the knife warped and extended into its full sword form. bringing up his empty hand and starting a swing ending in a double-handed red slash sent flying towards them. Hannah responded in turn by extending her green aura and forming a box to surround not just their fight but us too. It reached from sidewalk to sidewalk and was taller than the building surrounding us. It was smaller than the box we were training in earlier, but I could tell two things, it was much stronger, and the roof design still allowed Mandella to attack from above. 

The two demons flew around the slash before fully clashing with their opponents. The sword demon swung down with one hand at Adam, who shifted his footing swiftly and blocked it. The spear demon leveled his spear at Hannah and was cleanly deflected as she stepped past the tip and threw a punch at the demon with a fist covered thickly in green aura. but the demon retaliated with a flame-covered fist their collision lasted for a second before the demon retreated and readied its spear for another thrust. 

Adam was not doing too well on the other hand he was on the defensive but was effortlessly dancing with the attack so it couldn't land on him. but he wasn't getting anywhere fast. an overhead swing ended poorly as the demon took the attack in their offhand damaging it but letting it get a clean hit on Adam's left arm leaving a deep and singed gash almost cutting through the bone. But I had been waiting for this, so I was a moment faster than Mandella in my chanting. 

""If my people who are called by my name humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land."" My healing was focused on Adam healed his arm though it left a small scar on his arm but it didn't hinder him as he quickly re-gripped his sword swung down and sent a red burst forward knocking the sword demon back before quickly dashing forward and underneath it in an unseen motion swinging up causing a red explosion and launching him into the roof of the green box. 

I caught a glimpse of him through the end of the fading red light and his expression looked more fiendish than the devil he sent into the wall. But he was having better luck with his demon, the spear demon was pressuring Hannah much more aggressively, not allowing her to close the distance for a decisive blow. it was landing a few light grazes on her causing her to get severely burnt even through her aura. but in her favor, they healed in just a few seconds thanks to her green aura so she could stay on the attack even more consistently than Adam who had to intercept every other attack with his sword. In a flash, it turned invisible. Luckily Hannah predicted it and dodged to the left just as it came into view. 

Its spread grazed Hannah's side causing much more damage than one would think. burning through her aura her jacket and her skin till bone was showing but this was its greatest mistake. Hannah got a hold of the spear-wielding demon by its arm and that was the end of him as she did the same thing, she had done to me. She broke its stance and before it could get itself airborne, she hit it in the back, and in a flash of grey light, it collided with the ground. landing it on their face revealing it back and as she brought her foot down and held it in place. Just a few seconds later her side was healed all but her jacket. 

My apartment wasn't missed as a small stone hit me on the temple shaking me out of my stupor, I gave him a thumbs up, but my laxity was noted by someone else. Breaking past the stance and defense of Adam as he swung his sword and then Hannah as she tried to compress the box but was unable the spear demon began resisting trying to break out from under her foot and she focused on the demon over the 

It launched itself toward Mandella and me. No. It was that it was heading for me. The light seemed to bend and warp to avoid him as he changed forward what little light and what little shadow clung to it distorted its visage into something I had only seen in my nightmares. 

Even as a flying slash of blood took his arm and his body was struck with lighting his pace wasn't slowed not that it mattered, his destination remained unchanged. Rushing right past Mandella, he reaches out with his remaining hand right towards me. 

"NOooo... Waii.." But my words were meaningless, I couldhardly even muster a cast. The only parts of my body that were still moving were my heart, which had gone red, and my eyes which continued to dilate. what could I do if I tried to cast a rite wouldn't be fast enough, dodging left and right would land me right in line with his sword and if I went to his left, I would still be left unable to defend I was unpiloted fucked. 

The demon opened its mouth as if unhinging its jaw leaving an open black abyss rushing towards me. It reached me without any resistance on my part. What could I do? Darkness surrounded and consumed me then a chill took my breath and stilled my heart. 

No stop, but even my thoughts began to fade the small voices were the last things I heard before my conscience faded.