The Demon was seven feet tall and humanoid in its build. It's pale grey white skin was stretched tight over muscle and bone. Segmented, cracked crimson armor plates were fused with parts of its body. One set covering it's torso, abs and stretching over the groin area. The other plates were fused about it's thighs.
A long tail whipped behind it, rat like and ending in a white jagged hook.
It's face was the fusion of man and beast with large wolf like ears, a snarling mouth full of yellow fangs and reddish serpent eyes that burned in the dark.
A flickering hungry dark reddish haze clung to its form, visible at the edges of one's sight. Demon aura. It was suffocating and radiated terror.
Rand was paralyzed by fear as the Demon approached. it's steps slow, it's snarl trapped in a menacing smile at coming across prey. Rand's legs trembled where he stood, his heart beat faster than a racing horse and the sweat of one awaiting death clung to him.
The boy Tim clutched Rand tightly as spasms assaulted his body.
Demon aura was worse than radiation. it had blighted the parts of the world, destroyed plant life, caused mutations among the beasts of the earth and it poisoned the air men breathed. Humans exposed to it would suffer numerous afflictions, from organ failure, bodily diseases, bleeding, vomiting, burning up, mental instabilities, comas, among others and even instant death.
Few ordinary men could survive exposure to demonic aura unscathed. Only the Awakened gained an innate resistance to demonic aura.
The street was empty. It was just Rand, Tim and the Approaching Demon with its wolves. There was no Awakened in sight. Either this demon had escaped from the battle or it had hidden away to hunt for easier prey.
Rand knew he wouldn't be fast enough if he attempted to run. Perhaps if he left Tim down, it would buy him time... His whole being recoiled from that thought as he imagined what horrors the boy would suffer in his final moments.
He had come to answering a call for help. He wouldn't abandon the boy to his Fate. He put him down. His decision made. The boy did not want to let him go. Rand met his fear filled eyes, hoping the boy saw some assurance in Rand's.
"it's going to be okay Tim, i promise." He whispered as he unfastened the boy's hands.
He stood over him and faced the nightmare. Tim lay behind him. He was glad the demon was enjoying his stroll. If he was lucky an awakened would show up and save the both of them.
Rand, Fear gripping his heart like a vice stepped forward.
Rand, his legs trembling, took another step. Towards the dreadbeasts, Towards the demon.
His father's sword, all eight kilograms of Steel had always been by his side. A comforting weight strapped to his back. The only connection he had to his late parents. He pulled it and held it with both hands, pointing the heavy bar of steel towards the dread creatures. He was in the middle of the street now, Tim behind him and the Demon closer.
His plan was simple. He would hold the Demon's attention for as long as he could and hope that it was enough time for an awakened to show up and Tim would be saved.
"Stay back!" He shouted, Swinging his sword in their direction. "Stay back you filthy demon!"
Awakened had good hearing, perhaps if Rand was loud enough, one of them might pick up the word demon and come this way.
The Demon stopped a look of curiosity upon his terrible visage. Maybe it was wondering how a human so weak was not convulsing with fear and trying to run away. The monster wolves snarled at Rand, but they didn't pounce to tear him to pieces.
Instead they stayed put as their master moved forward Serpent eyes studying Rand.
The Demon made a guttural sound with it's throat as if swallowing back vomit or clearing a sore throat.
Then a wave of it's aura, like heat wave assaulted Rand. Terror gripped him, a pungent aroma infiltrated his nose and lungs and a strong sense of weakness threatened to take his legs from under him. It was all he could do to remain standing and face the demon, now less than 10 feet away from him.
Within the aura wave, the Demon's voice was carried to Rand. An assault on its own. The voice was a sharp whisper that cut, like broken glass dragged over stone.
"Human." It said "Oh how sweet is your fear." The words didn't seem to be in the language of men. Yet Rand understood them clearly.
"Your Defiant look against a creature your better gets me excited. Oh why do you not cower in your fear? Why do you not run, convulse and soil your self for my pleasure? You despicable human!"
Rand did not know how much longer he could bear the demon aura upon him. If he had indeed Awakened then he should have some resistance to demonic aura. However the fact that he was struggling to breath put that theory to its grave.
The demon was focused on him. Tim all forgotten behind him. His display of courage had got the Demon's attention.
"Your stench is so sweet, i want to keep you for myself. perhaps my master could mutate you into a pet as a reward for me. What look would you wear then, Human?"
It pointed it's black claws to Rand.
"What do you plan to do human? Show me, perhaps if you entertain me, my pets will eat you slowly!" It burst out into a horrifying laugh that sounded like the screams of a dying pig.
Suddenly Rand felt angry. The Demons had come to this world and brought death and misery. They took pleasure in the terror and despair of mankind. They were a cancer upon this existence. His parents had died fighting demons and here he was desperately desiring the power to fight against demons but the world had denied him.
Fear and terror had turned to anger and the boy lost himself to it. He drew what strength he could find left within his being and run to the Demon. His father's sword was made with Manasteel. perhaps it could cut off the Demons head. The demon might underestimate him and not guard against his swing.
If he killed it, the wolves would be afraid of him and even run away. Then he and Tim would survive.
But as Rand made it before the laughing Demon and swung his sword aiming for its head, he knew the futility of his actions. He knew that his spur of madness had only quickened his fate that had been sealed the moment he saw the demon. And he knew nothing he had done had saved the boy behind him. Yet he still swung!
The Demon slapped his blade away and grabbed his neck all in the same breath. it's clawed hand wrapped around ready to squeeze as it lifted him off the ground.
The weak could neither give or receive justice in this world. Rand had known. He was weak. And he would die weak. He had known when he didn't awaken at the orphanage. He had known when his status screen became visible to him. He had known when his stats remained the same for two years.
He had known when he saw the demon. That he would die a dogs death.
His dream of a world where children wouldn't lose their parents to the demons meant nothing without the power to create such a world. There was no justice in this world.
The Demon laughed in his face as it shook him by his neck as though to remind him that this is all he was. Rand was filled with unwillingness. He resented the injustice of his world.
And in defiance of his fate, He screamed at the unfairness of it all. He kicked at the Demon and clawed at it's hand about it's neck with all his strength. His eyes were filled with rage against everything.
Regret at his weakness, Anger at the state of the world, grief at the loss of his parents and the life he had been denied as well as Resentment at his fate. All these feelings condensed in his core mixing with the singular wish that dwelt within.
The wish that he had been born into a world with Justice. And like a Dam breaking, something within his soul shattered and he felt time stop.
[NOTICE: CONDITIONS FOR SOUL AWAKENING....SATISFIED]