The Edge of Flames and Darkness

CHAPTER 28

Mike's body had fully transformed. With an outburst of uncontrollable rage, blue flames engulfed him like armor, concealing every outline. Each breath he exhaled released heat that made the air itself tremble. This form was no longer something he took willingly it was where his humanity and the creature within him had merged into something unrecognizable, something he could no longer separate from himself.

Without a single thought, without fear, he spread his massive wings. With one powerful flap, the air around him rippled violently, and Mike shot into the sky like a falcon. His eyes gleamed with the piercing blue glow that sliced through the night. He was heading straight for the place where Gideon was hiding the dark chamber where he had been tortured.

When he arrived, he didn't slow for even a second. Folding his wings forward like a spear, he dove straight through the ceiling. His descent thundered like a storm; he tore through the roof in one strike. The ground shook when he landed. The room's temperature spiked, his blue flames casting shifting shadows along the walls.

His eyes scanned the area. Dozens of men lay unconscious; some were sprawled in pools of blood, others weren't even breathing. He took a few more steps… and saw a corpse with its head torn clean off. The sight burned his mind with fury.

He quickened his pace. He entered the dark chamber where he'd been chained, where he'd been tormented. And there…

His heart clenched.

Right in front of him, his mother and father were bound. Beside them were Ethan and Vlad, also chained. But what caught Mike's eye the most were the electric cables attached to Vlad and Ethan's bodies. Current was flowing through them, their muscles twitching uncontrollably even though they no longer had the strength to scream. Their pained, hollow gazes stripped away what little control Mike had left.

He was about to step further inside when

A force hit him from behind.

Gideon.

He grabbed Mike with both hands, his superhuman strength tossing him aside like a toy. As Mike's body was flung through the air, Gideon's voice echoed. At the same time, he shifted into his hybrid form cold, vampiric savagery fused with the hulking, feral might of a werewolf. His claws were like steel, and his face was a monstrous mask, half-wolf, half-vampire.

Before Mike could crash into the wall, his wings spread open with a snap. With a rapid flap, he balanced himself midair, spinning into a controlled landing. His breathing was heavy, but there was no fear in his eyes. He glared at Gideon's dark, half-beast form.

— "So… this is where it all ends, huh?" Mike's voice was deep and rough.

Gideon's familiar sinister smile crept across his face.

— "Yes," he said with icy calm. "You're right. For you all… this is where it ends! Hahahahahaha!"

Mike's wings snapped wide. When he flapped them hard, the air and dust in the room swirled into chaos, knocking things from the walls. A storm-like wind formed. At the same time, he thrust his hands forward, launching streams of blue fire like arrows straight at Gideon.

But Gideon simply raised his hand.

He caught the flames in his palm, gripping them like they were alive. The sound of the flames hissed between his fingers. His dark laughter filled the room.

— "You thought… you could beat me with this?" he said mockingly.

Mike didn't respond. In the next instant, he was gone vanished like a shadow.

Gideon's eyes darted around, searching, when suddenly Mike appeared beside him. With razor-sharp claws glowing with blue fire, he slashed across Gideon's face.

Gideon's smug smile instantly flattened. Blood dripped down.

— "Ha…" Gideon gritted his teeth. "So… you've decided to fight back, huh?!"

In a flash, he swung his fist. It sank into Mike's stomach like a hammer. Mike staggered back, dropping to one knee. Gideon didn't stop. Another punch, then a brutal kick, then sharp claws raking his body… and finally, Gideon sank his teeth into Mike's shoulder, trying to tear a piece off like a feral beast.

Mike was in agony. He collapsed to his knees, his breath ragged. His wings drooped heavily. Gideon's attacks didn't relent. Mike's eyes closed for two fleeting seconds.

And in that moment…

Mike's mind fell into a dark void.

"I can't lose…" his inner voice said. "It can't end this easily. No, I can't accept it! But… I'm losing."

And then came the voice. Deep, dark, and dripping with mocking laughter.

The demon.

— "You still haven't realized, have you?" the demon said. "Why are you so weak? Because your human side still dominates. To use the true power of these forms, you have to abandon your humanity. But you… don't seem like you're going to do that. Hahahahaha!"

Mike roared back inside his mind: "No…!"

The demon continued:

— "Either way… your weakness, your resistance… it all serves me. Hahaha!"

The demon's laughter pierced through the darkness of his mind.

Outside, another blow landed on his body.

But when Mike's eyes opened again… they were no longer the same.