The Red Hand

Chapter 104 –  The Feast (Part 2)

"No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No," Max dropped his weapon in utter terror as he watched Spellhauser be devoured right in front of him. "I didn't sign up for this!" He turned and ran screaming. ”I don't want to be eaten by some fucking monster! I'm outta here!”

"Max, you coward!" Elna exclaimed. “Get you're stubby ass back here and help us!”

{That fool!} Herlex turned, glaring at the fleeing man.

The dwarf ran as fast as his little legs could carry him. He intended to flee the compound, running towards the main gates hoping to flee into to the forest. But, just as he opened the gate and tried to run out of the base.

*BANG*

He collided with an invisible wall and fell on his back.

"What?!?" He yelled in confusion. "What's going on?!?" He stood up and tried to push past the barrier, but it was as solid as a wall.

{What is this? Some kind of barrier?} (Max)

"Did you really think I'd let you just run away?" Akagi appeared directly behind him. “I told you, didn't I? That you were all going to die.”

"When did she move?!?" Herlex said in shock. Akagi seemed to vanish before his eyes and reappeared next to Max.

"I-I didn't even see her move," Elna said in a quiet voice.

“M-me either...” (Zappy)

“Hey, Hishya.” Kana said. “Did you catch that? She just kind of teleported from my perspective.”

“N-no. I-I couldn't see anything, Kana.” Hishya stuttered. “She was too fast for even me to catch it.”

{J-just how fast can Akagi move?} (Hishya)

Max slowly turned around, and his face paled as he looked into Akagi's demonic eyes. "I'll never get tired of seeing a mortal's terrified face." She laughed. “It's always so... delicious.”

"Please! I surrender!" Max begged for his life. "I don't want to fight you anymore, so spare me! Please!" He was hoping that Akagi wouldn't do to him what she'd done to Skipper and Spellhauser.

"Surrender?" Akagi looked annoyed at his words. "Tell me, why should I accept your surrender? Would you have done so if the positions were reversed? Did you accept the pleas for mercy from the innocent people you killed?" Her voice got louder and was filled with anger. She couldn't believe he had the gall to try and weasel his way out of death.

"I-uh...umm well-" Max fumbled over his words.

"No, you wouldn't and didn't," Akagi answered for him. "And so, I will not accept your surrender either. You will die by my hand and be consumed as punishment for your transgressions." Akagi reached out and grabbed the dwarf by his arm, lifted him up into the air, and them slammed him into the ground, causing a crater to form from the impact.

*BANG*

“I guess Dwarves are quite tough.” Akagi chuckled as Max screamed in agony. “Let see how much punishment you can take!” She proceeded to slam Max into the ground, over and over again. Each hit caused more and more blood to shoot out across the concrete.

*BANG**BANG**BANG**BANG**BANG**BANG*

The other members just looked on in horror as they watched Akagi smack him into the ground like a rag-doll. After nearly half a minute, his body was unrecognizable and he was little more than a crumpled bloody mess.

“Awww,” Akagi was disappointed. “Now he only goes squish.” She dropped his body to the ground which landed with a wet thud. Her face and clothes were covered in blood, but the smile on her face told everyone how much she enjoyed that.

{Jesus Akagi...} (Hishya)

“Oh well, I guess that toy's broken. Onto the next one! Lucky me, there's no shortage of replacements.” She reached out her hand towards the broken dwarf.

“[Consumption.]”

"Iyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!" Max screamed as Akagi consumed him, his body burning away in the black fire.

Akagi scrunched her face as she ate him. "You know, I expected him to taste like alcohol. But I'm honestly disappointed. I thought it would taste much better" She sighed. "I suppose not all souls will be appetizing." His was the worst-tasting soul she'd had so far. Though in fairness, that number was only three.

She turned to look at the remaining four members of Libra. "I hope this convinces you that I'm serious." Akagi began to walk back towards them, the concrete melting with each step she took, as a long dark shadow stretched across the courtyard. “There will be no escape. No survival. And all that awaits you is death. Well, technically a fate much worse than death.” Akagi's demonic laugh echoed around them.

"I'm going to need everyone out here now! Alice send all your puppets and soldiers to back us up! We need everything if we're going to defeat her! Akagi's gone fucking insane! She'll probably kill you too, so get out here!" Herlex screamed into his comm for aid.

"Sorry to disappoint you, but help won't be coming." Akagi grinned. "I've already taken care of that. But by all means, call out for their help. Scream and beg for aide that will never come, Herlex.” Akagi laughed. “It's always fun to watch my pray struggle helplessly before I eat them."

"What do you mean?!?" Herlex exclaimed. "Carmine, respond now! What's the situation inside the base? Carmine!"He called out to his central operator in the control room.

_____________________________________________________________________________

<Birdy POV>

"Ack!" Birdy slashed her claws into the back of the last man alive in the control room, ripping out a large chunk of his flesh before he died. She'd already handled the rest of the members of the base, including the crafting team, and poor Carmine was the last man alive.

"Carmine, respond now! What's the situation inside the base? Carmine!" Herlex's voice came over the control room's comms. Knowing things were already over, Birdy decided to answer Herlex's communication and have a bit of fun.

"Hey there, Herlex. How's the fight going? Wait don't tell me, Akagi's kicking your asses." Birdy asked with a wry smile.

"Birdy! What the hell is going on in there? Where's Carmine? Why can't I get ahold of anyone else?!?" His voice was frantic.

"Unfortunately, he and the rest of the team have become..." She looked at Carmine's dead body, which slid onto the floor in a bloody mess. "Indisposed, and will not be able to help."

"What! How is that possible? Akagi has been right here the entire time! Did she have a separate team infiltrate the base? Either way, get out here! We need all the help we can get, and if Alice is alive, tell her to ready her puppets!" He exclaimed

"Yeah, I'ma pass on that one chief. I'm not suicidal and fighting Akagi right now would be certain doom. So no thanks! But I will wish you good luck though!" Birdy twirled a dagger between her fingers. "Also, I'm sorry to report that while Alice is quite alive, she will not be helping you." She looked over at the young girl who was happily sitting in a chair in the corner of the room eating a cookie. “She has no interest in fighting her Mama.” Birdy said barely holding in her laugh.

"Akagi isn't taking prisoners, you idiot! Max already tried to surrender and got eaten anyway! So get the hell out here and help us! Otherwise you'll just end up dead anyway! At least if you help, we might be able to pull this off!" Herlex screamed.

"What an idiot." Birdy sighed. "You still don't get it, do you?"

"What are you talking about, you dumb bird?" Herlex was annoyed.

"She was never on your side, to begin with, Herlex." Akagi's voice came over the radio.

_____________________________________________________________________________

<Akagi POV>

"Birdy is my agent, has been since FWO." Akagi continued to walk closer. "She's been keeping an eye on you at my request. Done a pretty good job too."

"You sent a spy into Libra!" Herlex was shocked. "Birdy, you fuck! How could you work with her?!?"

{Has she been manipulating everything from the start?!?} (Herlex)

"Considering my boss can now eat souls. I'd say working for the Demon Lord is quite a good health choice." Birdy chuckled. “The other benefits are quite good too! So hell yeah! Demon Lord Akagi all the way!”

Akagi rolled her eyes at Birdy's comments."Birdy, finish up inside, gather up everything from Imperial's lab that seems important and come out once these idiots are dealt with. Also, keep Alice company for me." Akagi chuckled. "This won't take much longer anyway." Imperial himself had already been taken into custody by Birdy. He'd be used for some fun later alongside Imp.

"Rodger that!" Birdy cut the connection.

"Well, I hope that allows how fucked you are to sink in, Herlex. You've no hope of escape, and no one is coming to help you." Akagi stopped, standing not too far away from the four of them. "So what will it be? Futile resistance? Or will you sit down and accept your fate? Either or is fine with me, so take your time and come to well thought out-" Akagi was cut off by Elna.

"You bitch!" Elna leapt forward, punching Akagi straight in the face with her full power.

"Futile resistance it is!" Akagi's face curved into a twisted smile as Elna's eyes widened in shock. Her attack had done nothing besides squish Akagi's cheek a bit.

{Wh-wha?} (Elna)

"But that.... that was my full power!" Elna had put everything into that one attack. "How can you take that hit?!? You should be dead! How can you just take my full power and not even flinch?!?"

"Yo know, the funny thing Elna.” Akagi glanced down at her. “I didn't even feel that." Akagi laughed. "If that was your full power." Akagi charged black energy into her fist and sucker punched the stunned Elf in the stomach, causing her to drop to her knees.

“Ack!” Elna coughed up some phlegm as the wind was knocked out of her.

"Then you are even more disappointing than I thought." Akagi kicked her across the face sending her flying back towards Armalthy, landing in front of him with a thud, the black power dissipating into her body as her face contorted in pain.

Armalthy bent down to look at her. "She's still breathing, but out cold. Dammit Elna, can't you keep your temper under control even once?"

“She'll be having a fun little nap for a while and if she ever wakes up... well. She'll probably wish she didn't.” Akagi decided to have a bit of fun with the Elf later.

Seeing that things were quickly heading south, Herlex opted to bust out a special attack to defeat Akagi. "Armalthy, let's try out that combo we practiced." Herlex looked at him with serious eyes. “I don't know how well it will work, and we haven't practiced it much, but...”

"We don't have a choice, do we? With the way things are going, that's probably our best bet." Armalthy agreed. "Zappy, take Elna and get as far away from Akagi as you can." As he said this, both he and Herlex rose into the air. Zappy obliged, and took the beaten Elna and ran until he hit Akagi's barrier.

{I hope this is far enough away. The last time they used this move, it blew up an entire mountain...} (Zappy)

"Oh?" Akagi looked up at them. "Going to try some new move? Go right ahead. If you think it's got a chance to defeat me, then have at it." Akagi stood and watched. She'd let them do whatever it is they wanted.

{Just be prepared for disappointment.} (Akagi)

"If you're gonna just sit and take this, that'd be nice!" Herlex said as he began charging energy into a ball above his head. The bright white light began to spin as more power was draw in to it. Kana said it reminded her of a star sucking in matter from another object and forming an accretion disk.

"Yeah, even you can't survive this!" Armalthy raised his hand and began doing the same, with his ball being blue rather than white. “Our tag team attack is unbeatable! Even you can't tank this much boom!”

The two charged a massive amount of magical energy into two separate balls of energy, one electric and the other divine in nature. Hishya noted that the wind began to pick up, almost as if their attacks were drawing in everything around them. After about thirty seconds, Herlex and Armlalthy fused the two balls together, creating one enormous ball of energy that crackled with an extraordinary amount of power. Even Hishya was worried about this, as the ball was the size of a ten-story-building, and moved further back to avoid being caught in the pending explosion.

{They can do something like this?!? Since when?!?} (Hishya)

"Take this!" (Armalthy x Herlex)

They flung their arms forward and launched the massive ball down toward Akagi. It slowly drifted downwards, and as it got closer to the ground, the concrete floor started to melt and bubble from the insane amount of heat coming off.

"Hmpf," Akagi smirked as the energy ball crashed into her.

"Yes!" (Armalthy x Herlex)

{No!} (Kana x Hishya)

"Boom! That's the end of the Demon Lord! No one can survive that much heat!" Armalthy laughed. Though he was partially out of breath. "Even you can't hold that back, and once it bursts, you're dead!"

“It was touch and go for a bit, but it seems you're arrogance got you killed in the end. Kind of fitting for the Demon Lord to die from her own hubris.” Herlex laughed, his body was covered in sweat. Building up that attack took a lot of him.

The energy ball slowly pushed downwards into the spot where Akagi was standing. Her form was no longer visible as she and it began to descend into the earth. Both Hishya and Kana were genuinely worried that Akagi might die, since Hishya figured that even in her dragon form, such an attack would be dangerous.

However, strangely, after about thirty seconds, the energy ball stopped descending.

"Why hasn't it exploded yet!" Herlex yelled. "Come on!"

“Where's the kaboom?!? There was suppose to be an Earth shattering kaboom!” Armalthy said.

"Not bad. I'll admit, combining your abilities in such a manner was unexpected. So I'll give you some praise for that." Akagi's voice echoed throughout the courtyard.

"She's alive?!?" Armalthy exclaimed. "What the hell is going on? That ball should have vaporized you just by being near it!"

{Don't tell me she's actually holding it back?!?} (Armalthy)

"I'll admit this thing is quite warm. I'd even go far as to say its nice and toasty. Perhaps you two could have gone into the heating business." The ball began to ascend slowly. "But vaporized? Nah, I've had hotter baths." As the ball slowly ascended out of the hole it had created, Akagi could be seen holding it above her head with one hand as she walked up the slope of the crater.

{She-she's insane!} Hishya was stunned. {Even this far away, that energy has my hair standing on end. I doubt I could touch it, let alone carry it like that!}

"This... this isn't possible! Nothing about this makes sense." Herlex's eyes widened in shock. "How could you possibly be this strong?!?"

"Because my little angel." Akagi punched the energy ball, sending it high up in the air. "I'm the Demon Lord."

*BOOM*

A massive explosion occurred above the base, much larger than Hishya's over Nagoya. The blast was so powerful that the shock wave caused Hishya to fall over. Trees were knocked over for several miles, and Nagoya registered a minor earthquake on its monitors.

“You were looking for a kaboom, Armalthy?” Akagi laughed.

“Fuck you!” Armalthy yelled.

"Now then, if that's all you have." Akagi vanished and appeared in the air next to Armalthy. "Then I'm ending things, this has gotten boring." At lightning speed, she kicked Armalthy across the chest causing him to plummet to the ground, creating a crater where he landed. "I'll save him for later, I've got plans for him." She vanished again appearing next to Zappy and Elna. "Now to deal with you!" She punched, breaking Zappy's polearm in half as he tried to block.

“Now then, lets try out something I've always wanted to.” Akagi gave an evil smile as her shadow form began to writhe.

“W-what the fuck is that?!?” Zappy screamed in terror as he could now see it.

“You don't mean me? Do you?” Akagi's voice came not from her mouth, but from her shadow. As it spoke, two orange eyes and a row of razor sharp teeth appeared from which she continued speaking. Hishya turned pale and started shaking when she saw this, and Kana went silent. “Now then, how about we see if I can eat you like this?” Akagi laughed as her shadow lurched forward, its teeth digging into his leg.

“AHHHH!” Zappy screamed as Akagi bit into him.

“Quite a peculiar taste. Not exactly to my liking, so lets get this over quickly.” Akagi said as she began to chomp away at Zappy's body.

“Herlex! Help!” Zappy screamed, but Herlex just floated in the air. Watching as Zappy was slowly eaten alive.

*CHOMP* *CHOMP* *CHOMP* *CHOMP*

Akagi consumed Zappy, eating up his leg before moving on to the other one, she avoided his head, wanting to maximize his pain, before he was eventually consumed in his entirety.

Hishya ended up puking and Kana could be heard gagging over the call.

{What the ABSOLUTE FUCK?!?} (Hishya)

Akagi sighed as she finished her meal.“Seems that didn't consume his soul. Oh well, dead or alive you're not getting away from me that easily.” Akagi laughed, she didn't need Zappy to be alive in order to eat his soul as it was still lingering about.

“[Consumption.]”

“Ah, a much better flavor. Reminds of lemon lime soda.” Akagi smiled. “Good news, Hishya! I don't like the taste of human flesh!” She looked over at the dragon girl who was still dry heaving.

{What the hell is going on?} Herlex cursed Akagi in his head. {Everything was going well. We were on the offensive. We were winning, and then, and then SHE had to show up!}

"DAMMIT!" Herlex screamed. "DAMMIT! DAMMIT! DAMMIT! DAMMIT!" Herlex began to freak out. "AKAGI!" His voice carried throughout the entire complex. "You said the level of power we've shown you hasn't been enough. That you were bored with us!" He smirked. "So FINE! Here's everything I've got!" He started channeling a massive amount of power as his body was engulfed in a bright glowing light. Akagi knew what this was and smirked.

"It's about time you pulled that out. I've always wanted to fight an angel, and I thought you'd expire before I got the chance." Akagi stood and watched as he gathered more and more power. After nearly a minute, the bright light disappeared and revealed Herlex's transformation. As a Cleric, he could briefly assume Angelic form. It was the capstone ability of his class, and it was powerful. Akagi didn't have much data on it, since he rarely used it, but it was comparable to Hishya's dragon form in the game. Though not as powerful.

Herlex's blonde hair turned white, growing long, his face assumed an androgynous appearance, his body was cloaked in an aura of divinity, and his armor transformed into a white outfit and cloak. His wings grew to a massive size, and he had a halo above his head. He was an angel in every sense of the word.

"Well, this should be good." Akagi's eyes shimmered in excitement. "Finally, something worth getting excited about."