Of Monsters and Men Chapter 1
It was a perfectly average night. The stars were shining, crickets chirped in rhythm, and people were sleeping soundly in their homes.
A group of about twenty were gathered in a clearing, murmuring to one another over the crackle of a bonfire. But all fell silent as Reverend Marcus Callahan emerged from the trees, Brother Michael at his heels like always, the ever faithful watchdog.
Reverend Callahan strode to the center of the clearing to stand before his flock, who waited in rapt silence.
“Tonight is a glorious night, my friends.” Reverend Callahan declared. “For tonight, we do the Lord’s work, and rid this world of a great evil.”
He gestured, and two of his followers came forwards from aside the group, dragging someone between them. They brought the abomination over and forced it to its knees before him, the men pinning its arms back to hold it in place. Its head rolled back and Reverend Callahan was pleased to see heavily dilated pupils. The drug they had been utilizing kept the demon’s mind and body sedated, with the added bonus of stifling its access to its unnatural abilities.
“All of you are here because you have proven yourselves to be true believers in holy justice, and I have seen in you the conviction and strength needed to eradicate Satan’s influence from earth. Creatures like this,” he gestured at the abomination, bearing the guise of a petite blonde female. “are Lucifer’s demons, sent here on that fateful day many years ago in order to sow seeds of chaos and darkness so that sinners may bring about the end of days. But we shall not stand idly by while the snake corrupts more of God’s great creation!”
Reverend Callahan signaled and Sister Eliza parted from the group, crossing over to the large bonfire and, after pulling on a pair of heat-resistant gloves, removed an iron branding rod from its position over the flames. Eliza approached, the flickering fire casting liquid shadows across her face from behind, an eager glint in her eye as she brought forth the glowing orange tip, which was twisted into the shape of an intricate cross.
The false woman saw what Sister Eliza held and made a pathetic attempt to flee, sluggishly jerking her head back, pulling her shoulders away, slurring out indistinct noises of panic. But it was no use. His heavenly soldiers held her tightly in place, and one of them reached forward and pulled down the collar of her shirt so that the top of her chest was nothing but exposed skin, ripe for divine purification.
The Reverend clasped his hands in prayer before the iron rod, his followers mimicking the action. “Oh Lord, we giveth unto you this blessing, that you may protect and guide us in the coming war. We ask that you anoint this iron cross as a weapon against sin, so that we may purify those that seek to corrupt man from your divine will. Glory unto you. Amen.”
With a nod, Sister Eliza proceeded to press the heated brand into the creature’s chest. It howled and thrashed but Eliza held firm, ensuring that the holy symbol was properly engraved into the skin.
Glory to God, the righteous will out!
But Reverend Callahan’s sense of victory quickly turned to horror as a radiant light erupted, forcing him to shield his eyes to avoid being blinded entirely as the men holding the prisoner cried out.
Blast! How could it possibly be accessing its abilities?
The Reverend wondered, for a brief moment, if this was it— the time for them to become sacrifices in the name of God’s mission. But as always, the Lord provided.
After mere moments of blazing, blinding light, there was a thud, and the clearing returned to its previous state of semi-darkness. Blinking away spots, Callahan was met with the sight of Brother Michael, his most loyal and competent soldier, standing over the abomination with his rifle held butt-down, seeming to have bashed the heathen over the head, who was slumped in the dirt facedown groaning.
The two men that had been holding the woman in place were both howling in pain, their hands and arms now covered in what seemed like burns, but the kind caused by radiation or ultraviolet light. Sister Eliza fell to her knees next to him, branding iron dropped aside as she clutched at her eyes. He sent up a prayer that she was not permanently blinded.
“It seems that even with the drugs, her abilities managed to activate as a self-defense mechanism.” Reverend Callahan motioned for some of his followers to come assist their compatriots, who were quickly led away to be treated. “We’ll have to take that into account in the future.”
He nodded to Brother Michael, who grabbed the heathen by the hair and dragged her into an upwards position like before, a handgun pressed against her temple just in case. The woman merely slurred out nothings, her face now even grimier than before, but no part of her showed signs of illumination. The fresh brand across her chest was swollen and puckered and incredibly red, dirt clinging to the intricate cross shape leaking pinpricks of blood. It was a glorious sight to behold.
The Reverend reached into his satchel, retrieving their most sacred treasure. He unwrapped the violet cloth from around it, and held it up for his followers to gaze upon. The historic texts said it was an angel’s blade, and Reverend Callahan could believe it, admiring the intricate hilt and guard, the gleaming silver edge. The perfect weapon for eliminating evil.
“With this holy blade, I cast out the demon residing within this form. Your evil shall be purged from this earth by a warrior of God’s army. Now I send you back to the flames of Hell!”
With that, Reverend Callahan plunged the dagger into the abomination’s center, twisting it for good measure. Its eyes went wide, gasping out a rattled wheeze, and it coughed a trickle of blood when Callahan finally yanked the knife back out.
Its hands weakly palmed at the wound, gurgling on its own lifeblood, and Callahan revelled in the panic and terror he saw there. Good, let all these wretched demons fear the righteous hand of God. His hand. Brother Michael released his hold on the hair, and the abomination slumped into the dirt, quickly staining the ground around it a dark crimson.
Reverend Callahan turned to his flock. “Tonight we celebrate a victory for heaven, my children!” Many in the group raised their hands in reverence and celebration. “We successfully eradicated a vessel of Satan’s army, this is another battle won for the soul of mankind!”
He took in the sight of absolute devotion before him, then bowed his head.
Elsewhere, a woman suddenly shot up in bed, chest burning and clutching at her stomach.
[Secure Channel] — {Connection Established}
Sybil: That’s 3 in 5 months
Kerberos: tell Trace to send out an alert
Sybil: And I think it’s finally time to reach out to them
Sybil: They need to know if they’re in danger
Kerberos: i'll make contact with them
Kerberos: then i’ll start looking into Halo
[Secure Channel] — {Connection Terminated}
Just started this story! Looking forward it! Follow it on Ao3 or FF if you want! My username is electricgreen13 on both. Hit me up if you’re interested in being the beta!
