A New Monster

Jack walked along the streets of Janken City. As she walked away from the house, she eventually came towards a more busy part of town. She looked around and watched as others passed by her. She overlooked most if not all of them. Yet, even with all her power, she was nowhere close to finding Annie. The rain was heavy, but she didn't falter.

For a second, she thought about going back, but she turned that thought away. She couldn't go back, now. She remembered her purpose. She remembered why she was a Light Guardian. It was either turn into a Light Guardian or get killed by one of those Night Demons that Annie unleashed. She reflected upon why Annie was summoning those monsters and could only think that she needed those black coins to "buy art supplies." It was a stupid reason to cause so much pain and suffering. All that sorrow created and attracted many Night Demons towards them at the time. Even if she needed a black coin, she would rather kill herself before purposefully bringing a monster out.

As she thought to herself, the screams of men and women broke her concentration.

Crowds of people began to run away from the direction she was facing. The clouds were dark, but small beams of light struck through.

Cars being thrown around. People lying in their own blood. Children crying over the loss of their parents and loved ones. It seemed all too familiar to Jack. The sensation shook her to her very core.

A screech cried in the middle of the street surrounded by dead bodies.

A Night Demon. But how could there be one, Jack wondered. She couldn't sense it at all as if it wasn't a monster.

It had the body of a man sewn together by strings. A squid's head stapled to the front of his forehead. His eyes plucked out and placed on his chest. His arms replaced with a dozen sharp knife-like tendrils and tentacles. His legs were stuck with black scales. His feet webbed. It made a screech as it's tendrils went for any surrounding civilian. It stabbed and pierced many. It's tentacles attached themselves to cars and threw them at the sides of buildings. Utter chaos and destruction with no purpose.

Jack had no time to think about why she couldn't sense it or how it just appeared out of nowhere. As people ran away, she ran forward. A barrage of flame surrounded her as crimson armor covered her body.

Jack furiously roared in anger. She stared at the monster. It gave no name. Just horrendous screeches and gibberish. "Eid em tel. Em llik esaelp. Em llik," it said through it's gargling mouth.

Jack charged at the monster, but noticed one of the children on the sides. She was trying to shake her blood-covered parents awake.

The monster's tendrils went towards the girl. Jack could have kept going to kill the monster, but she felt compelled to help the little girl. Jack dashed over and grabbed the girl.

"Wait! My parents!" the girl yelled, but Jack knew they were dead as soon as she looked at them. Their bodies were mangled and distorted. If they were alive, they wouldn't last a trip to the hospital.

The tendrils collided with the ground and crashed into the wall destroying a part of the building. Smoke and dust covered the air and into Jack's lungs.

She put the girl down and yelled, "Get out of here!"

Without looking back at the girl, she ran over to the monster. Jack conjured her flaming machete and charged forward. The tendrils were powerful enough to push Jack away. Without a second's thought, she threw her machete straight at the monster. The blade struck the creature's neck decapitating it. The blade landed on the concrete floor and vanished into a ring of fire and smoke.

The creature fell on it's knees and then straight onto the ground.

The neck didn't bleed as it had already been cauterized by Jack's blade.

Jack gave a sigh of relief. A torrent of flame quickly surrounded her and she transformed back into normal.

She looked back to see if the girl was still there and she was. She went over to her mangled parents and knelt beside them in disbelief.

"How could this happen? Why did this happen?" the girl said.

Jack walked over to the girl slowly. Memories of herself sprung up. How her own parents were killed.

"Hey..." Jack quietly said while reaching out. The whole portion of the city was destroyed. Sirens were blazing as they neared the scene.

The girl didn't respond.

"Hey... are you..." Jack started to say, but she had no idea what to say.

"Why didn't you save them? Where were you?" the girl said as tears began to roll down her eyes.

"I... I didn't...."

Jack froze. The scene felt so similar to her own memories. She just didn't know what to say or do.

The girl looked back at her and yelled angrily, "You should have saved them!!"

When that yell came, Jack stepped back and looked away in sorrow. There was nothing she could say or do to help her. Absolutely nothing.

Then, as the girl stared back at Jack with spiteful eyes, the shopkeep appeared.

"Good grief. So much destruction. It's gonna take a miracle to hide all this," he said as he approached the girl. He waved his hand in front of her, and the girl felt dizzy for a second.

Jack stepped forward. "What are you doing!?" she yelled as the girl gently fell asleep.

"I think you already know. I can't let people find out about the existence of monsters and demons in the world," he replied calmly.

Then, Jack even remembered that part of herself. Her own memories erased until she herself became a Light Guardian.

"Man, there were a lot of witnesses and plenty of cameras. Luckily this job is easy for a thing like me," the shopkeep said to himself.

Jack looked back at the Night Demon and suddenly became worried. It didn't disappear. Whenever these monsters die, they fade and turn into black coins, she thought.

A blaze covered her as she transformed back into her guardian form. The shopkeeper looked over towards Jack, but ultimately didn't care.

She created her machete and slowly walked towards the supposedly dead monster's body. It must still be alive, she thought. She went up to it and started poking it with her blade. With every poke, she poked faster and faster until it pierced the body. She took her blade out and wondered why it wasn't disappearing. It didn't seem like it was alive anymore.

She then remembered the head.

"Damn it. It's head must be the part to crush!" Jack yelled until she looked over and saw the monster's head just lying there motionless. "Nevermind."

Jack was confused as ever as she scratched the top of her head. She knelt down besides the creature, moved it around, and analyzed it. It was very squishy and felt boneless like jelly.

But one thing caught her eye. Upon seeing a small inscription written on the bottom of the creature's feet, there was a signature. A cursive 'a' with a heart above it.

"Impossible," Jack said in utter disbelief. This monster had Annie's signature on it, but why would this thing have it, she wondered. It's not a piece of art and she doubted that Annie was capable of controlling Night Demons.

But then she realized it wasn't a Night Demon. Usually, Night Demons stay in the shadows, but this thing was attacking in the middle of a busy street. Also, she didn't even sense the creature. Not once before or during the fight, did she feel the presence of one such monster.

Parts of the creature's body felt human. Other parts were Night Demon. And the rest were like decoration.

Jack couldn't believe it, but as she thought about it, the more she believed that Annie created this monster like one of her art projects. She didn't know how or why, but if this thing wasn't once living, she could totally see it as one of Annie's art pieces.

"What is this?" Jack asked.

But her disgust and horror turned to a feeling of happiness. A feeling that she was actually close to finding her. Bodies laid strewn for flies and crows. But at that moment, she didn't care about any of them. The only thing that Jack cared about was that she was finally close to finding her and getting revenge. She made a horrid smile that was covered by her mask.

"Finally, Annie. Now, I know you're here. And I won't let you escape this time."