Desmond threw his clenched fist with all his might at the dar-tandemon before it could swing its blade down at the girl. The punch connected with the dar-tandemon's rib but then... it was still standing in its position. Not even a flinch. It was like a pebble tossed at a fortress. The dar-tandemon turned its head in his direction.
The girl slowly lifted up her head to look at the dar-tandemon who was looking away. She looked to her right to see Desmond standing there with his fist touching the dar-tandemon's rib. Her eyes widened with a mixture of fear and confusion.
The atmosphere at the place tensed up more than before. Desmond's thoughts were so conflicted that he didn't even notice the lingering smell of the garbage close by, or the sound of dripping water or even the girl's sobs.
"Shit." He thought with a frown. "I felt like this was going to happen but I still went on ahead and attacked. Damnit. Is this where I die."
With the speed of lightning, the dar-tandemon swung its arm sideways and hit Desmond in his rib sending him flying into the wall behind it before dropping hard to the ground.
"Argh!" He flinched as he got into a sitting position with his back leaning against the wall and one hand clutching his rib. The dar-tandemon turned away from the girl to face Desmond who slowly looked up at it.
"D- damnit!" He cursed with his brows furrowed while gnashing his teeth in pain.
Slowly, Desmond started getting up to his feet.
"Gargh!" He was clearly struggling to get back up with one hand clutching his rib.
He took deep heavy breathes as he was finally able to get back up. The dar-tandemon statically stood there gazing at Desmond who took a fighting stance despite being injured.
The wolf headed demon grinned, baring rows of needle sharp teeth and stuck out its tongue. Desmond's breath hitched as the dar-tandemon closed the distance between them with terrifying speed, thrusting its katana at his head but he quickly tilted his head and moved the upper part of his body to left avoiding the attack which pierced through the wall very close to his head. A little bit of his hair got chipped and he also received a cut to his cheek.
He immediately took that short moment a chance and swung his leg sideways kicking the dar-tandemon hard to its rib but just like his first attack, there was no effect.
"Tch. Why?" Desmond mentally screamed with a look of anger. "Why? After all the time I spent training my body to increase my physical strength... Why... can't I even cause it to flinch? Am I...? Am I that weak?"
The dar-tandemon's grin only widened as it tried to grab on to Desmond's leg but Desmond saw it and retreated his leg at once before running past it towards the little girl. He carried her without even thinking twice and made his way towards the exit of the alley but as he closed in on the exit, the dar-tandemon out of nowhere appeared behind him and stomped him hard in the back.
He fell and rolled the rest of the way out of the alley with the girl in his embrace before finally coming to a stop, a few meters outside the valley. He let go off the girl and turned onto his belly, coughing out blood.
The girl out of concern stood up and knelt beside him.
"Are you okay?" She tried reaching out to him but...
"Go! Get...out of here...!" He choked on his words. "Right now! Hurry... before it comes out."
"But-"
"Go!" He literally screamed this time, slowly turning his head towards her. "If you die, then there would be no point in me saving you. Don't let my effort be for naught. Hurry."
The girl hesitated for a while before finally giving it up and got up. She started running away but then, the people who were close by and heard the girl scream before appeared rushing from both sides of the street in Desmond's direction.
"No!" Desmond murmured. "Get back." His voice barely above a whisper. "Turn back, there's a demon here." He managed to shout the words out making the people stop abruptly. The dar-tandemon came out of the valley at that exact moment and although Desmond was the one facing the valley directly, it pursued the girl who was running away.
"HEY." Desmond called as the dar-tandemon stopped and turned towards him. "I..." Desmond began as he tried getting back on his feet once again. "I'm the one...who hit you" He spoke through the struggle. "Leave the...girl alone."
He finally got back on his feet while breathing heavily.
"Face me you coward." The dar-tandemon's eyes widened before narrowing into a frown. Desmond's words seemed to have ticked it off.
The people who were rushing there earlier hid themselves to avoid attracting the dar-tandemon's attention.
"What is that kid thinking? " Someone murmured.
"Is he trying to get himself killed?" Someone else murmured.
"Where are the warriors?" Another cried, his voice laced with panic. "They have to get here before something bad happens to him."
"Pesky little brat." The dark, wolf headed demon said in hoarse voice and immediately at that point, another dar-tandemon suddenly landed at some distance behind Desmond, wielding a katana.
"Shit." He thought. "Another one."
The first dar-tandemon lunged towards him and swung its katana down at Desmond who leaped backwards, narrowly avoiding the attack but before he could land, the second dar-tandemon came up behind him and swept out its leg in a brutal kick.
"Shit." Desmond barely managed to bring his arms in the way blocking the kick but the force of the impact sent him flying into a building and formed a huge crater in it. He gasped at the moment of impact as the first dar-tandemon quickly dashed towards him before he could recover,a fist aimed to pulverize him but he leaped to the left as the dar-tandemon's fist hit the wall broking that part into a debris.
"That would have been brutal." He thought whilst looking back but he hadn't landed when the second dar-tandemon appeared in front of him with a kick coming right at his face. He saw it and was able to block it with his arms again but was still sent back to where the first dar-tandemon was.
The first dar-tandemon punched him in the stomach, driving him hard into the concrete floor and forming another crater. Air exploded from his lungs as he tasted his own blood. It kept punching him as he also kept blocking the punches with his arms. A few "crack" sounds were heard from his arms as he screamed in pain. He felt like his arms would shatter at any moment. A final kick sent him sprawling away from the dar-tandemon's relentless assault.
The second dar-tandemon stalked forward, grabbed him by the face and smashed him into the ground forming another gapping crater.
Desmond now laid on the ground motionless as the first dar-tandemon landed beside the second dar-tandemon. It hauled Desmond to his feet and turned him to face the first dar-tandemon.
Desmond slowly lifted up his head to look at the dar-tandemon standing in front of him.His face was smeared in bruises, dirt and blood. His clothes tattered as well as the bandages he had on. His vision was blurry but managed to lock eyes with the wolf headed demon.
The onlookers gasped as the dar-tandemon lifted up its katana. Some watched in horrified silence while others began to grieve, especially the red haired girl Desmond saved. She tried walking over to Desmond but froze with the first step, paralyzed by fear. She went to her knees, buried her face in her palms, small sobs escaping her lips.
"Someone..." She whispered through tears. "...Please... help."
Before dar-tandemon could strike, Desmond smirked. There was no look of fear or despair in his eyes despite his situation. The first dar-tandemon widened it's eyes in disbelief.
The whole place was silent for a while before it spoke in a hoarse voice. "You... Why are you smirking? Do you even understand the situation you're in?"
Desmond's smirk only widened at the question.
"Of course. Do you think I'm too dumb to see what's coming?" He asked back with a weak voice. The dar-tandemon lowered it's katana and scratch it's head with it's other hand, clearly bewildered.
"You... you don't fear death?" It asked in confusion.
"I don't know. Maybe I'm feeling too good to notice how fearsome this situation is." He spoke still wearing the smirk on his face.
"Saving a girl who's seven years younger than me... Pulling her back from the edge of death... I guess that feeling overwhelmed the despair that might have risen in me. It makes me feel like I've been able to accomplish something."
"Feels like I've done what I was meant to do. That girl has a bright future so I couldn't let it go to waste." He said as his dropped.
"I have no regret jumping in to save her even if it meant switching my place with her in the hands of death." He rolled his eyes, half closing them but the smile remaining.
The dar-tandemon's composure creaked.
"In all my years..." It began with a frown forming on its face. "All my years of making my preys fall into despair. No one... No one has been able put on a smirk in the face of my blade. We, demons are meant to instill fear into our prey before devouring them yet you..." It pointed its katana at Desmond. "You defile that rule. You..." It pointed the trembling tip of its katana at Desmond.
"You dare mock us?" It screamed at Desmond who couldn't say anything in his situation. Everyone looked on as the tension in the place rose.
"Answer me." It growled and raised its katana high above it's head but still, no response.
The dar-tandemon's fury reached its boiling point as it plunged the katana downwards.