Possessed

Tap, tap, tap, tap.

"Can you stop tapping on the dashboard, please?" Vincent asked. 

He and two other templars were waiting patiently for a girl. She was a redhead, 5'5 in height, had a lean stature, heartshaped face and bold green eyes. She was in the club they were currently parked close to, which had a bold neon 'X' display. Lia, the oracle, had said they would find her here. She had seen a vision that the girl was the divine one. It was yet to be confirmed, but the oracle's visions were almost never wrong if interpreted correctly. They had been sent to bring her back to the temple so it could be confirmed if she was actually the one or not. 

"Sorry, commander." Beatrice, one of the templars apologized.

They've been in front of the club for over an hour but still, there was no sign of her. Vincent could see the chaos in there, the demons roaming in their oblivious human hosts and having the best time of their lives. 

"I hate clubs." Akai, the other templar and his partner added. Vincent agreed with her, clubs were a place where different kind of individuals swarmed, both the psychopaths and freakshows alike - it was not a place for the weak and ignorant. Usually, it never happened that someone outside the order could become the divine one, this was a recent development. The order of the templars was a secret independent sect of the catholic church formed by a group of warriors called templars, who dedicated their lives to fighting against the agents of hell. They were led by the divine one who was a templar chosen and blessed with heaven's pure light to see the supernatural and fight the agents of darkness. 

The highest person in the order was the grand master, he lead the templars and elders. The oracle was next to him. 

"Look." Beatrice whispered and pointed. 

They looked to the direction she pointed at to see the girl as described by the oracle, coming out of the club. She seemed to be a hurry. 

"Finally, let's go get her." Akai said. Vincent held her arm before she could open the car door.

"Wait... someone's following her," He pointed out and they watched a man in his mid thirties following her behind. 

"Our girl seems to be a beacon for trouble." Beatrice said mockingly. Akai stared at her like one would would look at a criminal. 

"What?" She asked in surprise. 

"How is it her fault that there are bad men roaming around, looking for young girls to prey on?" Akai spat in annoyance. 

Beatrice's eyes widened in realization, "Oh, I didn't mean..."

Akai waved her hand dismissively, "Forget about it."

Vincent also didn't like the way Beatrice had sounded, so he waited for Akai to finish scolding her before moving.

He came down from the car and signaled for them to stay behind him. He took the lead and stealthily approached the alley.

They got to the alley but shockingly, there was no one - it was as though the girl and the man had vanished into thin air.

"What in God's name?" Akai whispered in shock.

They looked around in confusion.

"It's a shield! Look out!" Beatrice yelled out as a ball of fire came rushing towards them. Vincent moved out of the way in time and it whipped past him to hit a wall.

The fire smoked out, leaving a black spot in its stead. The shield dropped and they could now see the girl lying unconscious on the floor and the man standing beside her with a smirk on his face...they hadn't come too late, or had they? 

The man laughed maniacally, "Oh, I know you're surprised at how all this has happened within a short while but let's just say, I have always been one step ahead all this time," 

Dark matter hovered around him indicating that he was possessed. What caught Vincent's attention was the kind of demon that had possessed the man, it was no ordinary demon. Not every demon could form a shield, create illusions to throw people off and throw hell's fire - only very powerful demons could, demons he had only read of in books.

He drew his sword, a demon this powerful was no joke. Akai and Beatrice drew their swords too and stood behind him. 

"Step away from the girl and we might spare you." He threatened. 

The man guffawed and made a show of wiping fake tears at the corner of his eyes. 

"You templars are so funny, without the Luce della Vita, your threats mean nothing. The best you can do is force me out of this quite comfortable host and trap me, so come on, try your best!" 

The Luce della Vita was the sword of light which could only be wielded by the divine one. It had the ability to kill demons but in the case, a divined who would wield the sword wasn't available, the star of David was used to trap the demons.

Vincent held onto his sword tightly, "I won't say it again demon, step away from the girl or we would see how much you enjoy being trapped in a star." 

The man tilted his head and smirked, "Make me..."

He attacked. He moved with an unnatural speed and Vincent could hardly keep up - this demon was definitely not to be messed with. Claws came directly for his neck and he blocked its impact with his sword. Beatrice slashed the man's shoulder from behind, leaving a cut in her wake and his flesh sizzled in response. He growled in annoyance and turned to look at her menacingly. He waved his hand lightly and Beatrice flew backwards with a powerful force. She landed on the ground heavily. 

Akai raged and ran towards him but he pushed her away like he did to Beatrice. Vincent was left swinging his sword in no particular direction. The man dodged his attacks fluidly, it was as if he was fighting air. As though he had had enough, the man flung his sword out of his hand. 

"Is that all you three have to offer? Where are the legendary demon slayers?!" The man laughed sinisterly.

Vincent moved to take out the star of David from his belt but his hand stopped mid-air. He struggled to move it but it just remained there. 

"You don't want to do that." The man warned. He waved his hand and Vincent found his knees on the floor.

While the demon possessed man was focused on him, he saw Akai and Beatrice carrying the girl quietly. They looked at him in question, and he gave them a silent nod - take the girl and go back to the temple, I'll be fine. 

"What? Are you scared of being trapped?" He taunted the man to give Akai and Beatrice time to escape. Demons were proud creatures and gullible to being provoked, he just hoped this one took the bait. To his relief, it did. 

The man laughed, "It's inconveniencing, that's what it is,"

"But soon enough, my brothers of hell trapped in those useless things would be freed from their captivity and the entire church would perish!" 

He made sure Akai and Beatrice were successfully out of sight.

"Is that why you're doing all this? To free your brothers from captivity? This is not the only star, there are many of this in our care. You can't free them all, demon!" He sneered. 

The man laughed loudly, "Oh, no, I didn't come to take that star or your many stars, my brothers will be freed in due time. For now, it is you and the girl I came for."

"The girl is gone, what are you going to do now?" Vincent smirked triumphantly. He hadn't given much thought to himself but if the divine one were to fall in the hands of this demon, only heaven knows what could happen.

The man smiled eerily, "Tsk, tsk, tsk...you thought I didn't know those two were taking her away? Do you take me for a fool?! You and I needed some quiet time, demon slayer. Don't worry, you will get her back for me, won't you?" 

Vincent's smirk wiped off his face, he was suddenly afraid of this demon. All this while, they were the ones being played and not the other way round. 

"What do you want with me and her?" He spat angrily. 

"You poor thing, I can see you're afraid but you will understand soon enough." The man bent down and gripped his throat tightly. Vincent struggled but his efforts had minimal effect. Suddenly, the man began convulsing and a black smoke seeped out of his mouth and nostrils. Vincent could only choke helplessly as the smoke entered into him. 

Soon after, the man fell on the ground unconscious, and Vincent collapsed on the floor with him. It was silent for sometime until he felt an excruciating pain,

He screamed. 

*

Akai had driven a little distance away, when she stopped the car abruptly and parked by a sidewalk. She needed to disobey Vincent's order and go back for him, that demon was too powerful for one person to deal with alone. She just hoped he was okay. 

Hang on, Vincent. 

"Watch the girl, I need to go back for the commander." She told Beatrice who held her arm hastily. 

"But..." She began.

Akai pulled her arm away forcefully, "I will be back, stay here!"

She got down from the car and began running back to the alley.

When she got there, she saw people gathered - they were looking at something. She hurriedly walked through the gathering to see the man who had been possessed by the demon laying unconscious on the ground...but Vincent was nowhere to be found. She found his sword lying at a corner and picked it up.

"Vincent?!" She panicked, ignoring the stares she received. She walked back and forth but still, there was no sign of him.

In confusion, she ran back to the car to find the car door thrown open and Beatrice on the ground. She bent down to look at her, "Beatrice? Beatrice?" She called but there was no response.

Blood flowed down her head and Akai quickly checked for her pulse. She sighed in relief when she felt it. 

She stood up and looked around, but the girl was gone.