A Guide to Surviving Against Monsters

I couldn't help it.

I felt terrible.

There were teenagers under attack in a place where they should feel safe, and I was walking back into the shop.

I was on a team of hunters who were meant to trust me with their lives, and they didn't know what I was.

I was never meant to survive, yet there I was, shoving the extra knife Theo had given me into my boot as if it didn't even exist.

My hair fell like a thick curtain in front of my green eye, blocking it from view. I fixed the collar of my jacket, feeling the long garment brush against my legs. I eyed the shop, the glass door allowing me to see my team inside. Wendy and Miles were packing away their things, Miles on a phone. He was probably calling a hospital, since they would be unable to continue caring for the woman. Knowing Wendy, she had done a quick tune-up -- the lady would still need extensive care after what had happened. I watched as Miles hung up with a grim look, handing the phone to a nearby customer. Most hunters didn't bother with phones -- we emailed people from our computers or used online forums in public places. Smartphones never lasted long -- they usually got smashed out on the job. I had bought myself one during my second year of freelancing and got shot three days later. Needless to say, I had bled all over the phone. A week after that, I got pushed off a building. While I survived, I couldn't say the same for the tiny phone with a glass screen.

I watched as the two of them got to their feet. Wendy straightened up before meeting my blank expression with a determined one.

"Now," she said softly, "we can go."

I ignored my twitching right eye, nodding. I didn't mind the fact that she'd hit me -- we'd been taught by some pretty violent people. Not only that, but the training itself had been harming to our bodies, and our day to day lives had us constantly in the line of danger.

It was the meaning behind the slap that had my thoughts in a jumbled mess.

The two healers brushed past, leading our team of seven out of the building. People watched us with wide eyes, probably recognizing the way we moved and dealt with the situation. Hunters had a way of acting like an entirely different species than regular people.

The school the woman spoke of was nearly outside the barrier. We drove in groups, a caravan of cars pulling up to the curb outside the brick building. All the windows were dark, the only sign that something broke in being the smashed front doors. They were off their hinges, their glass sections shattered. As we got out of the cars, a scream tore through the air. This time, I was quicker than anyone who wanted to stop me. My eye pulsed, but I didn't explode into flames. I kept them back, breaking into a sprint.

I followed the screams, ignoring the rest of my team as they yelled for me to slow down. Instead of listening, I drew the chokuto that I got from Luca's trunk and skidded to a stop once I found the gym. Inside, I could see remnants of party supplies scattered on the floor. It was dark, and as I wandered through the destroyed doorway, the screams stopped entirely.

Clenching my teeth, I slowly side stepped, reaching for the lightswitch.

Just as my fingers brushed the plastic surface, I heard something scrape against the waxed floor. Someone screamed as a dark figure rushed my way, finally entering my view. The thing had a scarred, distorted human face, the body of a lion, a pair of small wings that didn't quite allow flight, and the tail of a scorpion.

Manticore.

I dove out of the way, letting the manticore skid across the smooth flooring as I ran, slapping the lightswitch on the way by. Bright yellow light filled the gym, illuminating the good and the bad. I counted fourteen teenagers in the center of the room, surrounded by bloody pieces of what was once probably their friends. I could've sworn that another figure fled the second the lights flickered on, but the manticore was my priority. The students were huddled together, most of them squeezing their eyes shut. They seemed untouched, which was a strange thing I didn't have the time to consider.

"Alright, you bastard," I spat, swinging the chokuto once for good measure. "Let's dance."

It felt like I had eaten something for the first time in days as purple fire exploded along my skin and blade. The first thing I felt was relief, followed closely by a satisfactory feeling of power. The manticore growled as I pointed the tip of my sword at it. Footsteps belonging to the rest of my team were drawing near, which meant I had about a minute or two to do some serious damage.

After all, the manticore's poison would actually work on them. That scorpion tail could kill my comrades if they weren't careful.

I watched the flames crawling along my skin. They swirled when I focused on them, my control over the fire nearly as flawless as my control over my breath.

A dark smile crossed my face as I lifted my right hand, which was empty. Flames gathered in my palm, catching the attention of the cowering, crying teenagers. A few of them marvelled the fire that grew in my hand, and one even gasped outright as I swung my hand in a wide arc, flames spewing outward. The blast hit the manticore, burning its human face enough for its attention to be focused solely on me. The beast lunged, claws extended. I met it mid air, crying out with effort as my sword clashed with its sharp claws. My foot lashed out, hitting one eye. The beast and I landed in sync, though I was much more agile and landed softly. It was blinded by rage, charging straight at me. The scorpion tail lashed out and I rolled out of its reach, bringing the chokuto up the second my feet hit the ground. The manticore's teeth clashed with my blade an inch away from my face.

Bad move.

Purple fire exploded from me and into the monster. It screeched, writhing in pain as the flames went along my blade and into its mouth. A few of its teeth even shattered from the pure force of the magic that fueled my fire.

To my surprise, the manticore collapsed soon after. As it fell, I noticed the arrows and single knife sticking out of its flank, right where more of the vital organs would be.

I whipped my head around to look at the doorway. Wendy and Weston stood side by side, another arrow notched on the archer's bow, my friend's arm cocked back and ready to throw a second knife.

Sliding the chokuto back into its sheath, I cracked my fingers and waved away the last of the fire that clung to my skin. The students were huddled together, watching with wide eyes as our group approached. I let Mateo take the lead -- he certainly looked a lot friendlier than I did.

In fact, I envied the way he spoke softly to the traumatized teens. They responded to his comforting presence, the group eventually getting to their feet. Blue and red lights flashed through the windows, and I finally felt the tension in my shoulders pour out. The regular police would take care of the disaster.

My eyes trailed to the other end of the gym, where I'd seen something move. The others were preoccupied, giving me the chance to wander over. Beside the bleachers, completely hidden from sight, was a single door.

What's behind door number one?

The bottom scuffed the floor as I forced it open, peering inside. A single bulb hung from the ceiling, giving off clean, white light. The door fell shut the second I let go, and I ignored the way the lock clicked into place. If need be, I would blast my way out.

Like an idiot, I chose to stand directly below the light source. It made it harder to see into the shadows, but I didn't necessarily need to see -- not in the usual way, of course.

"Alright... Who wants to play this time?" I muttered, brushing my hair to the side. With both eyes exposed, I felt a lot more confident.

A feminine laugh came from behind me, but I didn't dare turn. If I did, the voice would just move again. I would get stuck going in circles before a fight had even begun.

"I've heard about you before," the voice said, stuck in place. "The huntress with the holy fire. What a strange thing. How did you do it?"

I scoffed. "I'm surprised you care."

A second after my words, I took the knife Theo had given me from its hidden spot. It flew through the air with a hiss, and there was silence before I heard a thunk.

It only hit wood.

The person -- a woman, I was assuming -- hummed. "Well, darling, when you can do what you do, we get a little invested."

'We,' eh? Alright, let's see who we're up against.

"You're obviously not one of them," I muttered, "since they knew all about it. But, you take on a human form. So..."

"I take on a human form?"

I snorted, barely turning my head. The movement was enough to give me more of a grasp on the shadows behind me, but it wasn't enough to send her running. "We both know you're nowhere near human."

"Oh?" She giggled, her voice getting higher and softer with each breath. "Then what am I?"

"A demon," I exhaled, forcing myself to remain still. "A higher class demon, if you're controlling manticores."

It would've just eaten every student, but she made it stop. Manticores wouldn't go out of their way to get past a barrier -- most of them can't, after all. A powerful demon, however, can get through the flimsy defenses of the city.

So, she came through, brought herself a little pet to do her dirty work...

But what does she want?

"Very good!" She laughed. "What an impressive thing you are!"

My shoulders tensed as I heard a footstep. Warm breath tickled the back of my neck, goosebumps rising on my skin.

"Can you guess who I am?" She whispered, her hair falling over my shoulder. It was a bright, flaming red.

Red-haired she-demon whose upper class, I thought, trying to scrounge up what little clues I had.

Then, it hit me.

"Sasora," I muttered, "mother of sinners, lover of lies."

"Truly incredible..."

"So what is your business with children and a manticore, Sasora?"

"I am what rank, huntress? Do you know?"

"The fourteenth demon."

She purred, and I felt long nails scrape against the nape of my neck. Her fingers tugged on my short hair, getting tangled within the choppy strands. "And you want to know how to gain more power? You kiss ass."

"So they're presents for someone?"

Sasora leaned toward me, her lips and sharp teeth brushing against my earlobe. "One child for each of my superiors, and one for the manticore's payment... What else would they be for, blessed child?"

I scowled. They weren't being kept alive so that they could stay alive -- they were being saved like leftovers.

Without another word, my eye lit up like a Christmas tree. Fire exploded all around us, illuminating the shadows. I heard a hiss, followed by a string of words from a language no human understood. They came from a voice that was nowhere near human, causing my skin to crawl as my fire burned away at Sasora. The demon, of course, escaped by means of teleportation, but she was gone, and that was what mattered.

Blasting my way out didn't take much time. My fire drained away as I left the strange room behind, peering into the gym once again. Police were escorting the students out of the school, my six fellow hunters giving statements.

I looked over my shoulder during a moment of hesitance before walking back to them.

And what did I see?

A small section of wall with no door in sight.