20XX Osaka, Huxley Manor.

Summoner!

Solomon snapped back to awareness at one of his demon’s words. Spinning his heel and running out of the room. Leaving a befuddled Seraphina in his wake.

“Where are you going?!” She cried, looking at a loss as she took in the ritual room.

“To distract that fucking thing! If it gets down here we’re all fuckin’-- whoa!” Solomon yelled as a tendril smashed through the ceiling above him as he entered the hall of the basement. Ducking low and rolling out of the way as it retracted and he saw the single eye of the daemon’s head poke into the hole. Its pupil dilated as it locked onto Solomon as he ended up on his back.

On instinct, Solomon drew his gun. Gripping it in both hands as he dumped most of his magazine into the eye. “I know I'm a good-looking guy but I don’t like you that way!” He yelled. His bullets flashed off the eye, making the daemon recoil back with a screech. At least the eye was somewhat vulnerable, but that wouldn’t be lethal damage.

“Close that fucking door, it’ll focus on me!” Solomon yelled.

Seraphina complied, yelling out before the doors slammed, “Be careful Sir!”

Solomon checked his mag as he ran. Dodging another swipe from the daemon as it sent another tendril through the ceiling. It had his scent and was locked onto him. Only a handful of shots left, but the silver lining was that he had a gold label loaded as the very last shot. He’d have a nasty surprise for that damn thing.

He put a hand to the headset as he clicked the line open. “Hey! Police Girl! Old-timer! Anyone there?!” He yelled, more out of exertion of keeping his pace and dodging the occasional crashing tendril from above as he ran in the direction of the basement doors Seraphina pointed out.

“Hunter! This is Musashi. Status.”

“I got the daemon’s attention. There’s a metric shit ton of Magnetite down here I’m bringin’ it outside. Get your men ready, we only got one shot!” Solomon shouted down the line and didn’t elaborate. Spotting the stairs and bounding up. A crash above him indicated the daemon ran into a wall as it tried to tear through the floor to get to him. Thankfully, the basement doors weren’t overly latched and he could make short work of it. Bursting through the double doors, he found himself into the back garden. As he ran around the side, he could hear the daemon tear through the house.

“It’s coming through the front, wait till I shoot my last shot and lay into it!” He yelled into his mic as he rounded the corner, seeing the remaining ADOFT members and the two police girls taking up a firing line formation. The daemon crashed through the window at the corner of the house.

Determined, the daemon lashed out with its arm, the tendril managing to wrap around Solomon’s ankle and dragging his foot out from under them. Making him yelp as he ended up on his back and started to be dragged towards its clicking maw.

“Oh enough with the fucking tentacles!” Solomon yelled as he brought his gun to bear. He was in spitting distance as he got his shot. Dumping the rest of his mag into the center of the chest maw. The first few just sparked off like harmless firecrackers but with a defiant cry of “Fuck you!” The last shot impacted dead center and there was a bright flash. The daemon’s chest was blown wide open as a large chunk of its black flesh evaporated in an instant. The daemon lost its grip as it staggered back. “Fucking shoot it!” He yelled. The firing line opening up with accurate bursts into the open cavity. The daemon screeched as Japanese bullets found purchase and started to tear off chunks of its vulnerable insides.

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Solomon whooped as the daemon staggered back. The thing screeched as it turned its back. Its hardened hide shrugged the low-level bullets off as it darted back into the house.

Summoner, we must pursue! Eligor intoned.

Solomon gave a grunt of affirmation and scrambled to his feet and took off for the front door. Ignoring the cries of the Japanese outside, hearing the Musashi buzz into his ear. “Hunter, do not pursue! We can keep it contained!”

Solomon wasn’t in the mood to listen, barking back over his line as he dove into the house and retraced his steps to the dining hall. “We can’t let it lick its wounds; it'll come back stronger if we don’t kill it now!”

He had to get to his rig. He had to get his other magazines. He could smell the blood in the water and he wasn’t about to let his prey get away.

In his haste, he failed to see the tendril snake across a blind spot in the hall. Solomon yelled as it gripped his ankle and snatched him up. Solomon ended up being dangled in the air and tossed down the hallway back into the foyer. He landed hard and ended up skidding across the freshly cleaned and waxed tiles, having the sense to throw his hands back to cup his head just as he made contact with the opposite wall; the action just barely kept him from being concussed from the blow.

Solomon groaned groggily as he shook his head to regain his senses. The daemon, who had already started to regenerate the damage it sustained; but without fresh Magnetite to maintain its presence, has taken on a leaner form and being slightly smaller. The chest maw downgraded into the area where its neck met its head, being a toothy mouth. Its single eye transfixed on him; if Solomon believed daemons had intelligent thought, he’d think it was pissed.

Solomon was just able to get back to his feet as it lashed its arms out again, whipping them around his torso and lifting him up kicking and screaming obscenities. “You cocksucking son of a bitch! You think you got me?” He yelled in defiance as he drew his Hi-Power and whipped at one of the offending appendages with the butt of his pistol, only to stop as its grip tightened and Solomon felt like the life was being squeezed out of him.

The daemon proceeded to tighten its grip more, slamming Solomon against the wall with enough force he left an imprint. Solomon knew what was happening. It was bringing him near death, so his soul would be ripest to eat; if it outright killed him now, there was a chance his soul could be scooped up by the Angels before it could properly get its teeth in him. Solomon gritted his teeth and pounded on the tendrils wrapped around him only to yell as the daemon whipped him to the side and threw him against the foyer stairs.

Solomon gave a strangled cry and arched his back at the pain. Nothing was broken but taking stairs to his spine still hurt like nothing else. Survival instincts honed over nearly ten years of being on his own kicked in. Solomon fought through the pain as he scrambled up the stairs to get out of reach of the daemon. Just like that, he was back to being the prey.

Solomon reached the top of the foyer stairs, its dual nature gave him two avenues of escape should the daemon try to follow up either one. Worse case, he could just bolt for the east wing and try to climb down the lattice Seraphina mentioned earlier. He rather he didn’t have to go the roundabout way. The only chance they had right now was him getting to his Gold-Label ammo in his rig. The daemon seemed to sense his intentions and stayed at the center of the foyer. Listing side to side in anticipation of Solomon trying to feint and go the opposite direction.

Blasted beast has us penned in! Eligor exclaimed.

Invoke me Summoner and let me teach this wretch some humility! Another voice said, Berith.

You fools! You know he can’t do that while other humans can reasonably witness it. They may not be able to see us but they’ll ask questions at why this beast was slain without him firing a shot. Need I remind you lot of what happened back in the Battle of Death Valley!? Scolded the feminine voice of Gemori, the closest thing Solomon had to a mother figure.

“Will you guys shut up and let me think!” Solomon yelled as he jumped back as the daemon took a swipe at him and found nothing but air. Solomon grunted and was about to commit to trying his luck with the second-floor lattice as he heard automatic fire from outside; seeing the daemon jerk as a barrage of bullets impacted its back. It wasn’t harmed, but its weakened state meant it couldn’t just shrug them off with no effort. Solomon looked and saw two ADOTF members, the two males that weren’t the captain, pour fire into the daemon’s back. The burlier of the two, barking up at Solomon.

“Get to the dining hall now! We’ll cover!” he yelled as the two female members came in and added their fire to the barrage.

Solomon nodded as hopped on the railing. Sliding down and landing with a skid, he bolted off in the dining hall’s direction. The daemon, seemingly fixated on him, pursued. Shrugging off the ADOTF’s bullets; only slowing down as one swept its legs in a burst of fire that brought it to its knees.

“This is for Six, you bastard!”

Solomon had to give them credit, they were spirited at least. He retraced his steps to the double doors of the dining hall and slammed his shoulder into them trying to burst through, only to bounce off ungracefully and land on his rear. Right... The daemon threw a table that blocked the doorway. Shit. The ADOTF didn’t have time for him to take the long way around. Solomon gave the doors a furious kick, more just to vent the frustration than anything else.

His impotent anger was interrupted by a light twittering. Spinning his head around as he saw Decarabia fly around the corner holding one of his magazines. Holding his hand out to catch it as the sparrow let it loose, he checked it. Gold Labels…

“Decarabia what would I do without you!” Solomon whooped as he deftly changed mags, thumbing the slide lock to bring it slamming home and chambering a fresh round. Finally, the hunt was back on.