Suddenly the beast opened its mouth and let out a soul-shattering screech!
"Ahhhhhhh!"
'What going is on?' Mr. Valen thought to himself or tried to think but discovered to his horror that he could not form articulate thoughts.
'Mind of course abilities has it, by it summoned was him,' Carla also tried to think but faced the same problem.
The air grew blurry with that screech, and in their confusion:
"Swoosh!"
The beast was upon them, the air tearing as it swung its claws at Carla, who had already ducked, avoiding the claw by a fraction of a second, her tail swooshing towards the thing's ankle.
"Pa!" A strong slap sounded out as her tail rebounded, but she was quick, already pulling back.
Meanwhile, "Whoosh!" Mr. Valen moved in from the side, rushing up to the beast, the air tearing as he swung a pocket knife at it, his muscles bulging under his hoodie.
But the demon was fast, its whip of an appendage streaking to catch hold of Mr. Valen, "Bam!" The appendage hit the concrete, creating a notable dent, cracks spreading from the point of impact.
Mr. Valen was like a ghost, already moving to the things behind after dodging its-
"SNIFF!"
The thing suddenly sniffed the air, and its appendage moved almost instantaneously, slamming into his side with so much force that Mr. Valen felt his ribs crack.
"Argh!" He groaned; flung to the side with so much force that he rolled on the concrete.
Simultaneously, the thing moved towards Carla who stared on with gritted teeth, dashing, its form like a blur of motion.
Carla immediately turned and dashed into the forest, the thing following quickly behind.
'Should I abandon her?' Mr. Valen thought as he rose, his form trembling slightly as he stretched. He could not feel pain in this state.
He then looked towards the bus and walked towards it, a large crack sounding out as he ripped out what was left of the door.
He then looked towards the concrete and could see a protruding steel rod (rebar), most likely exposed by some kind of accident.
"Bam!"
He grabbed onto it and ripped the thing from the ground with a bit of effort, trying his best to break it from the whole without damaging the road any further.
After he succeeded, Mr. Valen stepped forward and dashed into the forest, sharpening the steel rod against the concrete as he moved.
'Once it has finished with her, it will come for me,' Mr. Valen concluded, noting that he was indeed the one who uttered the name, and he dashed into the forest, his form a slight blur.
-----
Meanwhile, "Bam, bam, bam!" Mighty thuds disrupted the soil in quick succession as the beast chased after the form of purplish energy that was Carla.
"Swoosh!" It swung its claws at her when it got close enough, but missed by a hair's breadth as its prey suddenly flashed upward, using her tail and a branch to change her direction completely.
"Swoosh!"
"Bam!"
She then broke off the entire lengthy branch and swung it at the demon mid-air, all with the aid of her tail.
Unfortunately, such an attack was akin to a light tap for this being; it's seven-foot from pausing slightly as though appalled by the foolishness of such an attack.
Landing on another nearby branch, Carla immediately leaped to the next branch.
Unfortunately, just as she was about to land, she heard the air tearing and immediately twisted her form mid-air.
A branch (the same one she had once thrown at the demon) whooshed past her, the force blowing a strong breeze on her form.
"SHIT!" Carla cursed as she missed her target, her form hurdling towards the ground with a hard roll.
From her position in the air, she had caught sight of the demon in a throwing position, like a pitcher who had just thrown a fastball.
Immediately, Carla staggered to her feet, wanting nothing more but to sprint away from the scene.
But as her eyes cleared up, she noted the beast's outstretched claws only a hair's breadth from her eyeballs.
She was about to die.
"Clang!" The beast suddenly swung that same arm wide, sparks flying as it deflected an attack aimed at its head.
'Valen!' Carla thought as she saw a man holding a car door and a lengthy construction rod.
"AHHHHHHH!"
The beast suddenly screamed, the sound of its voice disorienting both Carla and Mr. Valen, who staggered.
"Bang!"
"Clang!"
Two sounds rang out simultaneously as both Carla and Mr. Valen were hit, Carla by one of the beast's appendages and Mr. Valen by the beast's claws.
Carla collided violently with a tree, a pained gasp escaping her.
Mr. Valen simply skidded back a bit, his knees buckling as he shot his form straight at the demon.
"Pa!"
"Pa!"
Its two appendages shot towards him like thick whips, sending the sound of thick slaps echoing throughout the forest, bats fleeing from their hiding places in fear.
Both figures were now in close quarters, and Mr. Valen lunged his rod at the thing's throat much faster than it could react.
Unfortunately, "pa!" All that sounded out was a soft thud.
'WHAT!?' Mr. Valen thought, his shadowy pupils dilating.
The demon, on the other hand, did not move; it simply tilted its head, almost like it was amused.
"Bam!" It then swung its claws at Mr. Valen, who blocked with the door, sparks flying as the makeshift shield dented.
Mr. Valen was already too close to pull back, his pupils dilating as he struggled to keep up. Fortunately, he was also too close to get attacked by the beast's appendages.
"Bang!"
"Clang!"
"Clang!"
Both figures moved at speeds unreasonable, with the demon attacking ravenously with its claws and Mr. Valen blocking with one hand.
Each strike dismantled the door in his left hand, but he did not falter.
Held tightly in his right hand was his metal rod, still waiting for an opportunity to strike, 'perhaps when it opens its maw!'
The demon growled as it moved, for it was deeply troubled. It could feel little pinpricks of its energy disappearing into the invisible thing in front of it, yes, invisible in the sense that the demon could not see Mr. Valen with its energy sense, but it could feel the movement in air pressure and smell his exact location.
'Its strength, it's about the same as mine,' Mr. Valen thought as he moved, his heart pounding in his chest, his sweat drying with the wind.
"Bam, bam, bam," Mr. Valen blocked another series of attacks, his pupils moving so rapidly amid the whites of his eyes that they threatened to rip.
Each flash of the beast's claws seemed to tear out chunks of his makeshift shield. Mr. Valen could not penetrate its flesh; it was only a matter of time (or in this case, a few seconds).
"Swoosh!" One of the beast's claws tore through Mr. Valen's shield, ripping a large chunk of flesh out of his left hand, revealing four gashes that showed bone.
"Slich!" A ghastly sound then rang out as the beast impaled him with its claws, blood rushing out of Mr. Valen's mouth as he gasped.
"THE MEANING OF YOUR FLESH AND BONES IS SOFT!" Carla's familiar voice suddenly sounded out, and in that moment, a small smile graced Mr. Valen's face.
"Swoosh!"
His right hand, still firmly gripping onto the rod, flashed and struck the demon's head, penetrating it with such ease that his weapon burst out from the other side.
The demon staggered, its mouth attempting to open, but as though losing strength, it fell to its knees, its claws still lodged in Mr. Valen's guts.
The last thing the demon could place was a circular flow of energy on one of its appendages, Carla's compulsion mark (gotten from its last exchange with her).
With the absence of life from the demon, Mr. Valen's absorption process became much faster, each strand of energy pulling towards him, healing his wounds as he removed the beast's claw from his torso.
'We really killed it,' Carla thought, her irises trembling, her breath forced, her skin deathly pale.
Her face was lined with wrinkles so defined that she seemed (in all outward appearance) like an old lady.
Evidently, imparting meaning on a demon was not easy.
Clawing at the ground, Carla inched closer and closer to the demon, which Mr. Valen appeared to be absorbing as well.
The feel of dirt was cold and wet. They were victorious, but it scarcely felt like it.
When Carla got close enough, she moved her tail, the once vibrant limb now trembling like an
overused body part, forcefully stabbing it into the wound Mr. Valen had already created.
And with that, the night went on, with both figures absorbing energy.