Chapter 16: Hunt Ends Part.3

With new fire burning inside me I wanted to plan my next moves. But before I even began, my planing was cut short.

"..*Cough*....*Cough*..." I started to cough like never before, it felt like I will cough out my own lungs.

Soon, coughing turned to me coughing out blood and with it fire inside me died out. (Am I dying? Is this how it ends? Seconds ago I was ready to die fighting and now I can't even move.)

I tried to struggle, to do something, but nothing worked. And worse of all I heard huge steps coming in my direction.

I knew my end was near.

Defeated, I closed my eyes and darkness surrounded me, maybe for the last time.

With my eyes closed I felt peace, like this darkness was my home. But even in my final moments peace didn't last long.

I heard familiar voice talking next to me.

"Just give up. You don't need to endure this pain."

Shocked, I turned in its direction and I don't know why or how, but I saw a lifelike female standing in front of me.

"Aella?"

She didn't need to reply, I knew it was her . The same police officer that wanted to kill me the last time I saw her.

Seeing my reaction Aella stared at me, with a smile full of mockery.

Without any idea what to do, I blurred out "Wha...What are you doing here?"

Her reply came shortly after, and the moment she opened her mouth, I knew that my torment just began "Me? I just wanted to see the final moments of a dirty criminal. A bug that should've died a long time ago."

Hearing her words made me remember what situation I was in. A giant bear was breathing down my neck and it won't take him long, to get to me.

"Ooo, you recalled what situation you're in? But don't worry, I will help you finish it sooner."

At first I wasn't aware what Aella meant, so I took my eyes off her face and saw a well known to me scene. Aella was standing in front of me, with her arm raised and yellow lightning flashing all around it.

Then, it was only a formality. She grabbed my shoulder and decided to start her assault, but this time it hurt a hundred times more.

I started to scream in pure agony, with each lightning damaging not only me but also my already injured will.

Throughout all of this pain, I didn't feel passage of time. This punishment could've lasted for only couple of minutes or maybe it was already a couple of hours, I had no idea.

I thought it couldn't get worse, but like always it was a wishful thinking.

Aella decided to start her next assault, this time it wasn't about hurting me physically, but mentally.

"Just like last time, you're nothing in my hands. You're like a toy I can break anytime I want."

I wasn't sure what to do, on one hand I constantly felt like my skin was being peeled off because of her lightnings. And on top of that with each insult I was growing weaker, until I started to doubt myself.

(Maybe she's right?.....There's nothing I can do... I can only wait for my own demise in the palm of her hand.)

Soon, my legs started to shake with me barely still standing. And Aella didn't let this opportunity past.

"Oooo, Alexander what happened? Can't stand on your feet?...Hahaha.. Just give up already ,there's nothing you can do."

After hearing this I looked down, with last bits of strength leaving my body and only one thought in mind (Let this stop! Let her finish me already!)

Aella clearly didn't want my death to be a quiet one, because even with only my dying breath left, she decided to taunt me one last time "And to think you wanted....what did you call it? To tame me? Pathetic!"

Unexpectedly this last insult contrary to its predecessors brought a completely different consequences.

"Tame?" This word came out of my mouth, with me narrowing my eyes.

I immediately looked up, not caring about the torment I was experiencing. Then, I opened my mouth and spoke with heavy difficulty.

"You said tame?"

Surprised, but not alarmed Aella replied "Yes. Tame. Isn't that what you called it?"

Those words brought a smirk on my face. "You're not wrong I did say that, but how would you know that? I shared this information with no one else, but myself."

This sentence turned 'Aella's' face grim, knowing full well that she fucked up.

This course of actions made me realize something else, from the start to finish 'Aella's' lightning didn't change it power. (Hell, now that I think about it suddenly doesn't hurt at all.)

It's weird that even if just to torture me a little bit more 'Aella' wouldn't use a higher voltage, or even better why not use storm magic.

With new found knowlege, I decided to cofront my torturer.

"So, you weren't real this whole time?" I said it in a way that it seemed like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Right away I could see 'Aella's' expresion shift, from a winner to a sore loser.

"What? NO! I'm real, you should fear me!"

Only thing I could do while seeing all of this was to smile in mockery just like she did previously.

"And look who's pathetic now? You can't admit it after I seen through your plot." To further show my distaist, I shook my head.

After couple of seconds have passed I decided to look at fake 'Aella" again, and what I saw was her standing still in complete disbelief of what happened.

Soon, I had enough of our staring contest, so I decided to act.

"Ok, time to end this."

I raised my arm in order to push 'Aella's' hand off my shoulder, but before I could do that something abrupt happend.

The moment I touched her lightning, it behave diffrently. It changed it shape into a snake which wrapped itself around my arm and bite its fangs deep in my flesh.

I didn't understand what was going on. I only saw this snake inject itself in my veins instead of some kind of venom like normal snake would.

Then, all of this lightning burst from inside of my arm with new found power and shot out attacking 'Aella'.

(Maybe I'm not the one controlling this power, but I'm happy with the outcome.)

Next second, I heard an excruciating scream comming from 'Aella' and saw an unexpected change that came with it. 'Aella' began to change her shape, from her female form to a new image, and this time it let me learn true identity of my torturer.

"I don't know if I'm even surprised at this point."

This new form was me.

But it wasn't an image of Alexander, it was a mix of him and my past self. (As it turned out my true demon was me all along.)

With resent in my eyes, I stared at his painful state and only asked one question.

"Why?"

He grabbed his face and started to scream "Why?Why?Why? You ask me why?...*Scream*"

His reply was disturbed by the pain he was experiencing, but it wasn't long before he continued.

"I wanted to break you! To show you who you really are!...Hahahah...You think you are some kind of hero, but you are only a weakling without any real power!"

Those words awaken rage inside me, because he was right.

I was telling myself 'I'm the chosen one.'I've a system, noone can stop me'. The truth is that right now I'm only on a start of my journey and I can die anytime because of my mistakes, just like when I died in the hands of those zombies.

I said I learned my lesson then, but it clearly wasn't enough.

I knew he was right, but even then I still wasn't able to control my emotions. I began to grit my teeth, wanting him to stop.

"Is this enough to anger you?!...*Crazy laughter*...."

"Shut up! Shut up!...Shut up!..."

I began to repeat the same words, like if I was in some kind of trance. And with them lightning around me became more chaotic.

Soon, it started to strike in every direction with its main target being my demon.

"..*Crazy laughter*...You can't get rid of me...*Crazy laughter*.."

Hearing his laugh made me even more angry and with it lightning around me reached its limit, but it wasn't enough.

I wanted more.

(I want to destroy him once and for all.) and as if to answer my wish, something inside me exploded.

This explosion had an effect on the lightning around me, it turned it into a unstoppable storm with sole goal to annihilate my enemies.

Next, it reached my demon swallowing him whole and left only ashes after it was done.

[New Spell!!! - Overcharge]

When everything around was turning into dust, I saw light rising from these ashes and then my eyes finally opened.

Unfortunately my nightmare didn't end yet.

When I regained my vision, I saw Titan Bear standing less than 3 meters in front of me.

Seeing him, I recalled my mistakes. Those memories awoken fury inside me again, and with it I felt like I was losing control of my body.

Soon, my body stood up on its own and with it something inside my chest moved. It was like a wild beast finally getting released after being dormant for a long time.

I didn't understand what happened, and on top of that Titan Bear behaved weirdly. He suddenly lowered his head and forcefully blow air through his nose, as if scared of something.

Alexander didn't know it, but the thing that got released brought a lot of changes to his current state.

His body began to emit a menacing black aura, terryfing every living being in its vicinity. Next and maybe the biggest change were his eyes. They became empty, like a bottomless pit or more accurately, like an abyss that could pierce through you soul and reach the core of your whole being.

Without control of my own body, I was like a spectator watching a show, unable to interfire even when I wanted to.

(Seems like the main spectacle will start soon.) Titan Bear maybe got dizoriented for a moment, but he soon realized that the threat he felt was coming form the same prey that nearly died in his hands.

And with nothing to worry about, Titan Bear slapped the ground, ready to attack.

Seeing this my body began its own assault first. It gathered lightning around it the same way it happened in my nightmare and when it decided it was enough, it charged madly at Titan Bear.

Halfway through its charge, it jumped into the air and landed on top of its opponent's head.

This landing wasn't the smoothest, but my body seemed unfaced by it and immediately made its next move.

It raised its right arm, before plunging it deep in its opponent's damaged right eye.

With bad state of his eye my arm didn't meet a lot of resistance and soon was able to reach its goal.

As it turned out my body had a simple idea, to fry Titan Bear's brain. So, it discharged first wave of electricity right on its target.

Feeling this pain Titan Bear began frantically trying to throw me off his back. At the same time my body was trying not to fall, holding on anything it could.

Seeing what was happening, I asked myself (Why does it look similar to bull riding?)

Struggle between those two continued for some time, until my body finally couldn't endure anymore.

I flew into the air, and surprisingly my body did a back flip before landing on its feet.

(I will rate it 6/10.)

Then I saw that Titan Bear charged at me again, but this time my body decided to take him head on. I knew that this confrontation will be the last one.

Soon, they reached each other and my mouth moved on its own. (Why am I smiling?)

I thought I would never learn the answer because my enemy had already opened his jaws and was ready to tear me to shreds.

But, in the last moment my body formed a stone armor, stopping Titan Bear's attack.

This gave my body a opportunity to use its full power to fry its opponent's brain, once and for all.

I knew that each second will be crucial to my survival, and the best evidence of that was the stone armor protecting me. It was slowly crumbling down.

I could only wait in aniciption for what to come.

*Crack*Crack*(NO!NO!NOO!)

My armor was breaking right before my eyes, and this fucking bear still didn't go down.

(Die you son of a bitch! Just. Die. ALREADY!)

My armor was falling off piece, by piece. And in my current state the only thing I could do was to stare into Titan Bear's eye and wait for it to turn blank, marking the end of his life.

*Crack* My armor finally shattered, leaving my bare body at the bear's mercy.

I thought it was the end, but I soon realized that Titan Bear's jaws didn't move any further. I again looked into his eye and saw his blank stare focused right on my face.

(I won!) I wanted to cheer my victory, but something interrupted my plan. Before I even noticed, I fainted in exhausted, with darkness being the last thing I remembered.

As Alexander fell to the ground, the black aura that surrounded him began to evaporate rapidly.

When it nearly disappeared, it started to change shape, seemingly as last ditch effort.

If Alexander could see the shape it took, he would be in complete disbelief.

It turned into Alexander's 'demon', who moved his mouth, spelling "You can't get rid of me."