Originally my plan was for me to deal with the Demon behind all this and only let the army deal with the others. So far that plan has derailed quite hard. 

Following them from behind and using a Stealth Cloak where only my eyes are visible. I never wanted for that to be an option but our needs make us explore our options. The final defence was soon broken with the last of the flashbangs used up and we came to the last room of the corridor. John and his men moved purposely here so I assumed, it was there where the main Demon was.

 

It wasn't a big room, so only John, Mike, Kyle went in with caution, of course. Me coming in after them and sticking to the shadows to hide myself better. John held his M4 rifle and pointed at the Demon, who still had a human appearance.

 

Though they had come in, they did not fire immediately and it was John that initiated the talking and his voice was full of disdain. “ Spawn of Hell, your reign of terror will end tonight. ”

 

As if hearing a stupid joke the demon laughed. “ Hahaahha ” He went on like that for a few second but was not interrupted by anybody as if waiting for him to explain himself, which he did. “ Newborn dogs of Heaven have come to righteously end me. Hahahahah ” Like that he went for another laugh.

Bang. 

This time his laughing hysteria was interrupted with a shot at the leg from John, but while it might have been a good idea in his mind the result spoke otherwise. The bullet that should have invaded the leg had bounced off of it, still the response stopped him and a cry of pain resounded.

Gah.

Despite the cry, the scene of the bullet not doing the job was meant to surprise John and his men. Having reflexively reacted to the pain the Demons face distorted with anger and moved one foot forward. Unfortunately for the Demon the men were trained quite good and seeing his body move forward even a little they fired their weapons.

 

Noticing their actions the Demon only had the chance to shift his arms to his face before he was peppered with bullets. Still the Demon didn't fall over and they continued firing till their magazines were empty.

Stopping there John's voice called out. “ Reload. ” 

 

While they changed their magazines I observed the Demon. It was still standing in the same pose as before but in my vision I saw the black outline stronger than before. ` From what I am seeing the black outline around its body has no substance and is a reflection of the demonic power infused into his body. So his ability to withstand bullet fire like that must mean his body was transformed. Hmm, without using SoP I won't notice it anyway, so let's just observe for now. `

Noticing the bullet fire stopped, the Demon shifted the arms that protected his face and looked at the army men in front of him but still did not move forward for some reason. 

 

As he observed them, they observed him. Due to their training they didn't need to actually see to reload but relied entirely on trained reflexes. Once reloaded they stared at each other and again it was John that spoke first. 

“ Tell me Demon, are there others around so I can go after them when I send you back to Hell? ” Asked John.

 

Again the Demon laughed, while his arms were still in the position to shield his face. Unlike last time this one was shorter, so he spoke up. “ Haha, Stupid, dogs of Heaven. Our operation here must have blindsided them if they sent a newborn here. Tell me newborn, were you even offered the choice before your Soul was condemned as a puppet of Heaven? ” 

 

When he noticed the slight change on John's face he went on. “ Hmph, of course they didn't. All they want are puppets to spread their control. ”

“ Still better than being a Demon. ” Replied John.

“ Haha ”The Demon laughed again, but a second later continued speaking. “ You may say that now since you only hatched but soon you will notice it too. Hmph, let me tell you this. The scoundrel God ruling Heaven designed the chains to grow alongside the hatchlings and once they reach a certain point one will lose one's individuality and become nothing but a puppet doing his bidding. ”

“ I don't know. ” Said John. “ Hearing all that from a Demon does not exactly provide you credibility if one considers the Evil you have done so far. Not to mention all the people you sacrificed tonight. ”

“ It was for a worthy cause. ” Declare the Demon. “ They should be happy for bringing our Savior and Lord Lucifer's goal into fruition. ”

Hearing the name Lucifer, everybody opened their eyes a bit more at that revelation, including me. It was then that John asked. “ Then, do tell me. What is Satan's goal? ”

 

“ Hmph, Satan. ” Snarled the Demon. “ Only you blasphemous cretins use that Word to vilify our Lord Lucifer all by being oblivious to all his sacrifices he has done for everybody.  ” As if noticing our curiosity being peaked he went on. “ Hmph, ff not for Lord Lucifer, all of you cretins would be nothing but dogs bound in chains without a Will of your own. Let me tell you this. What our Savior and Lord seeks is freedom in all forms. For that purpose he broke the chains that bound him to that slanderous God you worship, embraced Demonhood and became the Lord of Hell. ”

 

Thinking about this revelation for a bit John replied. “ That does sound like a good argument for the Lord of Hell. ” Immediately the Demons face showed happiness at being able to prove his beliefs but a second later that vanished when he heard John finish his reasoning. “ But even if all that is true, which I doubt as all Demons lie, I will still kill you for the atrocities you have done. ”

Making that declaration he immediately ordered his man to shoot. Not waiting a second Mike and Kyle fire too. 

 

Bang, Bang, Bang,

 

As if in sync they walked backwards as they shot at him all while the Demon had no choice but to cover his face and endure it. Not one second before they left the room the Demon roared and his stature started to change. From the average man he was before he grew to a hulking man of over two meters tall with wider shoulders and more muscles all over the body. At the same time small tiny scales appeared on his face. 

 

` Wow a transformation. If it follows the theme then the scales must have replaced human skin. Will there be? ` As if my thought of it materialized it. On his hand the fingers changed into claws 

 

Observing him a bit more I noticed that his back was hunched back. Due to that I realized that he was even bigger then I first noticed it. ` If he straightens his spine he should be well over 2.20, maybe a bit more, since I can only rely on visual confirmation. `

 

As he was transforming the black outline I had been seeing all this time grew bigger too. The moment his transformation was done he undid his pose that he held all this time for protection and widened them as he breathed in and Roared loudly. Being in enclosed space only helped it.

 

Done with the roaring I observed him a bit more. ` Now that I look at him, the only thing he's missing is a snout and I could call him a lizardman. ` Still intrigued by the transformation I forgot to pay attention to John and his man. The moment I thought of them I heard something clunking on the ground and when I looked at what it was I saw quite a few round things rolling across it.

 

A realization came and I hastily made another barrier adding additional protection around myself when it went off. 

 

BOOM

 

The moment it exploded I felt the shockwave hit my barrier. As the barrier was quite skintight and thanks to my Auril passive pass through me and into the wall, all while I felt the waves rattle me quite a bit from this almost point blank explosion. Once it passed I looked around and only saw smoke with tons of rubble stack around me. Not caring if I was noticed anymore I removed one layer of the barrier and deployed it for my Sphere of Perception. Immediately I noticed that while there was rubble the building had not yet collapsed on me. The second thing I noticed was the Demon was buried not far from me and still being alive. And John's men were quite away from this room, suffering from coughs and all the dust but they were majorly out of the explosion zone.

 

` Surviving an explosion like that almost point blank gives me more courage to face the future but let's not wait and find out if I will survive having tons and tons of concrete over me. ` 

 

Thanks to my barriers I was not stuck, well not really. But when I tried to remove the rubble by muscle I failed. Noticing that it wont work that way I used my remaining barrier and expanded it. As it grew I gained room enough to vigil myself out slowly. Nearly being done extricating myself I noticed the lizard like Demon to wake up and started to push on the concrete rubble laying on him. Unlike myself where my muscle power was quite on the human level without enhancing myself, his was quite evident greater than mine. Ignoring him, soon I was out and having more breathing room felt much better. 

 

` Phew, I must say being buried alive is not a scenario that I want to repeat. I will need to think of a method of escape just in case it happens in future. ` Having decided on that I turned my attention to that lizard like Demon as he pushed away the massive concrete that had flattened him. ` Now that I am taking a better look at him with SoP I can see that he has a tail to. Interesting. Hmm, don't exactly see any outside injury but his insides must have been rattle quite a bit. Wouldn't be surprised if his insides are bleeding. `

 

Thinking a bit about my future actions I used my Stealth Cloak and removed my SoP again the moment he had extricated himself. In the same moment I did he sensed his enemies and his enemies sensed him. Anger unlike before bubbled out of the lizard like Demon and he made his way to them on all fours at first, but that soon changed into a slow walk and soon after a run.

 

` Damn he's fast. ` Voicing that thought inside I followed him. But a few seconds later I heard gunfire. This time the roaring didnt stop and I saw him batter quite a few of the normal army men but after that he ignored them and went after John and his sidekicks Mike and Kyle whose seeds were still in the second stage. 

 

One thing I noticed was that those in the second stage of seed gestation had a bit stronger physique then normal humans. There was not much difference but it was enough to be noticed at first glance. 

 

Not being afraid of the guns the lizard like Demon rampaged around all while the army man used tactics and shot at him. Seeing their guns being ineffective they started to use more grenades but if one considered the booms I had heard in the battles before, they didn't have that many. Still every explosion slowed him down more and more but that changed when they were out of them. As if noticing that fact the Demon exploded once more with strength and caught Kyle by surprise. The Demon collided with him like a battering ram and his innards probably got smashed as he had been stuck between the wall and the Demon. 

 

Noticing that fact John made his other man retreat all while he and Mike lured him away. As they kited him out their bullets soon ran out and used pistols but those too ran out. It was at that point that Mike got caught and with a mighty grip on his arm the Demon battered him like a club into the wall with a heavy punch on his head as a finisher. 

 

At that point the lizard like Demon spoke again but in this form its voice was much harsher on the English language. “ Hatchling it seems that the tables have turned. Any last words you have for that imbecile of a God you worship? Do consider it, as soon all you will be able to do is scream like a misbegotten and helpless child due to the pain of torture. ”

Hearing the Demon speak of his plans for him in the future a dread appeared on his face but soon after it was gone and a new conviction appeared. Taking the army knife as the last weapon he had a realization. Taking the knife he looked at it for a second and it started to glow a bit, but soon after its edge started to take on a white/golden sheen. Done with that he presented the knife forward as if waiting for the Demon to rush at him and let himself be pierced into it.

 

The moment the Demon saw it grew more cautious. “ It seems you have talent. ” Declared the Demon all while he went down on his knees as if bowing for a bit. “ Thank you, Lord Lucifer for bringing this talented hatchling to me. Please enjoy the show as I deprive your eternal enemy from this talent. ” Having said all he wanted he stood up.

 

With a forward facing pose he presented his big hands armed with claws in front of him. Immediately they started to glow with a similar method of utilization as Johns with only one difference. The Demon's claws were black aligned with red at the tips and edges of the claws. 

 

Like that both stood ready for the final clash and now it was only to wait to see whose nerve would be the first to falter. Like that they stared at each other for a minute but it was John who made the first mistake. As if all the exertion he had faced in the last hour was too much for him, his hand which had been steel hard till now dipped and a weakness was shown. 

 

Noticing that the lizard like Demon took that moment of inattention that John focused on and charged forward. In a second he was on John with claws forward ready to rip him and it was in that second that John's hand holding the knife regained its strength and lunged forward at the right angle to dip into the Demons neck.