I donned my own armour looking out of the window of Seraphim. It wasn’t so much as a window as it was a hole that was ripped out the side of the wall looking out towards the sea. The Seraphim were gathering, I could make out little figures in the distance flying closer as if they were birds heading south for the winter. I wish they were birds, instead, I could tell from their large size that they were the harpies that attacked me one the first day. They gleefully danced through the air while they waited.
They knew about initiation, or they just followed the other Seraphim that were approaching. Either way, it's just another group of monsters to deal with.
No one really knew what they were. The Seraphim. Just one day two centuries and a half ago a meteor shower fell from the heavens. Remnants of an exoplanet that travelled all the way to Earth, it was extreme luck to the residents of Earth at the time. The knowledge those rocks carried of other planets was priceless. But it wasn’t just minerals those rocks carried, it also carried the Seraphim with it. The original seraphim was just a parasite and it earned its name cause it came from the heavens. A gift from God to scientists.
They were quick to lock them in labs and research them. Contain them, an alien rock carrying an alien organism probably had alien bacteria which would be the start of a new plague. But what the scientist failed to account for were the locals who were nearby and made first contact.
These parasites were unique and small in the way that when they crawled into a host they made their way through the bloodstream to the brain where they would feast. They would gorge themselves on the brain, its nutrients and its electrical signals. They could literally read the host's mind as it felt every electrical jolt of sadness, of joy, of everything. It would usually end there. The host would eventually die from getting their brain eaten.
It would if the host wasn’t pregnant. If the host was in its early stages of pregnancy then the parasite still small enough to travel through the bloodstream would latch off the brain and find itself in the womb while the embryo was still developing and take over. It would change the babies’ DNA to fit the electrical signals it ate at when it was first introduced.
Since it recrustrated a body using electrical signals from the brain the world could have been much different had a different host been found. Had the host been perfect, a person who loved and felt no hatred then who knew what would have come out? It could have been a real Seraphim, a perfect child with wings and a heart of gold. But of all emotions, there was none quite as strong as self-loathing. That urge to kill yourself, to cut your own wrist and watch the blood drip. So that’s what the Seraphim created. A being that took all that self-loathing and made it into flesh. A beast that was born to kill its creator.
After that the Seraphim didn’t need a host cause there is no end to your own hatred. It always comes back and thus the being was capable of asexual reproduction. Usually, asexual reproduction results in a clone but self-loathing comes in many different forms and thus so did they.
Humanity was ill-prepared to face Seraphim. Their weapons didn’t have enough power, they weren’t used to organic creatures being able to carve through metal like butter. Nuclear weapons wiped out where they were most concentrated but the Seraphim didn’t mind radiation as much as we did and you couldn’t fully wipe out a species that was all over the planet.
A few cities survived. New Brisbane by its creation of Slayers, while others had their own methods like Nihon, a newly created city named after its destroyed country in Japan. While we had Slayers they had advanced drones and large artillery. They were struggling more than New Brisbane as from the last report that was made public they were losing more and more every year.
I took a deep breath. It was the calm before the storm, the Seraphim had been quite calm and been holding back. We even had a day where no one died, the monsters were clearly waiting, to wipe us all out in one fell swoop. Some cheered while others cried in their sleep. It was clear to see who knew about the initiation and who didn’t.
Fox should be in the combat rooms right now. I suppose I should head there myself soon, I’ll only have a few hours before an Einherjar group kick me out but some is better than none. Walking away from the window I couldn’t help but have one final glance, they were all looking at me. The harpies. Calling to me. Each staking their claim over my life. I had to resist the urge to scream at them that they couldn’t all kill me, that only so much of me could be ripped apart so that they all couldn’t have their fun. Yet, somehow, I fear they might figure out a way.
“Fox your radio open?”
It took a few seconds but shortly. “Yeah, I’m here.”
“I’ll be there soon, how empty is it?”
“Pretty empty. Most of the independent groups are celebrating the Seraphim-free holiday. Quite a number of Einherjar are here though, those selfish bastards have been hogging the room all day every day.”
“I still don’t see why we can’t tell everyone about initiation.”
“We tried. ‘We have top secret information that will save your life, but we will only tell you if you let us in your group’. And it didn’t work cause no one believed us.”
“We should have told them anyway.”
“Why! Fuck them, let those pricks die. At least we have an advantage on them now.”
“Maybe they would have let us in the group after initiation when they found out we told the truth.”
“That’s a risk that’s not worth taking. They have no reason to do anything if we have them things for free.”
“Not everything has to be fucking blackma-”
The lights turned off. Slayers had good night vision but every helmet, even beginners like us had night vision anyway for complete darkness so it wasn’t that big of a deal, what was a concern was the why.
“WHAT THE FUCK!”
The hallway was filled with red light from the emergency lights as a loud siren rang down the halls. Back in New Brisbane this often meant a large amount Seraphim was trying to invade at once, or a very, very large one was about to knock down the walls. An invasion? No, this was too well-timed, too convenient. Initiation? Probably. This little bit of roleplay would make sense.
Best case it’s initiation, in the worst case it’s a real invasion. Either way I’m probably going to die… fantastic. A rather morbid but comforting thought.
First things first. I need Fox, if the second years really are watching to see the best performers then I would need the bastard just so I don’t die. Wouldn’t hurt to have someone to look better next to.
I ignored the people looking confused around me instead pushing my legs as hard as I could. The Seraphim will take a few moments to realise it was time and thus I needed every second.
It didn’t take long for the screaming to start, begging for help or a mercy kill. I did my best to drown out the sound of screaming by biting hard into the inside of my mouth till I tasted iron. Running down the halls I did my best to pretend not to hear the screams of so many of the voices I recognised. Doesn’t matter, they wouldn’t do the same. It doesn’t matter they wouldn’t do the same. It doesn’t matter they wouldn’t do the same.
“Canis! Please help me!” I feminine voice cried. I stopped dead in my tracks and turned to the voice. Fox could fucking wait, it’s one thing to ignore the screams but a plea of hope for me. Fuck that.
I turned around a corner but before I could even reach for my blade a human-like body tackled me. I instinctively ignored the scraping nails at my chest, they weren’t sharp or had the raw power to claw through the material. What was a threat was the jaws. The sharp pointed teeth started to bite through my gloves thanks to the impossibly strong jaws. The fabric held but after a few more goes it could puncture through. With a strong kick, I knocked the thing off me.
“Canis… please. Canis help.” The Seraphim begged. It was the dog-like human girl Seraphim I saw a few nights ago.
What was truly shocking though was that it knew my name. Just the realisation of it alone took a few seconds to process. The fact that it was using my name meant only one thing. I had been stalking me. Preparing for this moment to lure me away. It had learnt my name, listening to people talk to me. This whole time it was watching me and I didn’t know. Was it the only one stalking? I wouldn’t know. I wouldn’t be prepared.
“Canis I’m going to need you to hurry up and meet up with me. All the EInherjar are gone.” Shit, they have gone to try to win initiation.
“I’m a little busy right now.”
This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.
“I don't want to be left alone right now!”
“Then find a fourth year! When I can I will find you!”
Reaching behind my back with one hand and my other to my waist I pulled out my solar blade and dagger, igniting the edges becoming less of a blade and more like a sharp flare.
The monster gave a few probing bites but its dog-like behaviour didn’t match well with its unnaturally elongated human body. Despite my best efforts though I couldn’t match the Seraphim. I was faster, stronger and better equipped but whenever I swung the Seraphim wasn’t there. Like it knew where I would swing. Had it watched me train?
“Fuck this.” If the knowledge of my skills was the problem then I would create a new skill. This wouldn’t work with more dangerous Seraphim like harpies but for now, I could rely on my gear to save me.
Swinging hard I forced the creature back but where it expected my dagger to be and thus avoid, the monster was surprised as instead of a hot blade there was instead my arms spread wide, no weapons in hand as I favoured tackling the Seraphim into the wall. It’s sharp teeth bared down on my more heavily protected forearm leaving only marks in the armour as my other fist came in swinging knocking it’s head to the side.
Then my other fist, then my other. Left, right, left, right, left, right. I couldn’t even see if it was dead as my visor was covered in its blood. I just kept swinging over and over again afraid that if I ever stopped my neck would torn apart.
Eventually, even my superhuman body started to get tired as my fist slowed. I wiped my visor smearing the blood over my helmet but at least now I could see.
“Oh fuck me.”
What used to be a woman-bodied Seraphim was now a face corpse. Its head was completely caved in, just a hole of the remnants of a head as teeth, bone and flesh became a smoothie of horror in the shattered skull. My gloves were covered in blood and hair, one last reminder of the brutality of my actions.
I took a few steps back and collapsed against the other wall. I didn’t want to do this, that was such a weak Seraphim yet I fell into its trap so easily. What if it was worse? What if I didn’t have my armour? I would have died straight away. It knew me! I want to go back to New Brisbane, I hated the food, and the way I was treated in the preschool, I hate the patriotic garbage as if it was an honour to be a government weapon, and I hated that fighting monsters was the best life I could have, I hate that I’m glad when my peers die because it’s not me, and I hate the fact that my fucking eyes were watering.
“Stop crying you little bitch.”
“Shut up asshole, where are your friends.”
“Go fuck yourself. You have no friends.”
“You should kill yourself.”
“I want to.”
“Great now you’re talking to yourself. No fucking friends that you have to talk to yourself. Aren’t you embarrassed being such a fucking loser.”
“Shut up.”
“Die. Get up and die. You worthless piece of shit.”
“Leave me alone.”
“Oh fuck off. You are selfish, you want to hide and self-pity when people are dying right now. People you let die cause you were too much of a pussy to tell them. You want to lie down and die. Fuck you. You don’t deserve it.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Then stop being a selfish prick.”
I couldn’t wipe the tears from my eyes but with a few blinks my vision returned in full. I had to go find Fox. though at this point we should just give up on initiation and just stay safe next to a fourth year.
I reattached my blades back to my body and started running towards the sound of gunfire. Common sense would tell me otherwise but gunfire means that there is combat. It’s when there is a lack of gunfire, that when there is no fight, I should be concerned.
I ignored the swarms of smaller Seraphim that chased me. They wouldn’t be able to pierce my armour but if enough swarmed they could make it into helmets through the ventilation. I should have gotten grenades but they were always hoarded by Einherjar and Mayrterdom gave them out sparingly.
I heard them before I saw them. There were lots of kids, even Einherjar group kids huddling up close to two fourth years. The fourth years weren’t paying them any attention to the kids only focusing on killing the Seraphim. The Seraphim were trying to avoid the fourth years themselves and were trying to pick off some kids who weren’t close enough to the fourth year’s kill area.
It was basically just a game of cat and mouse and a smaller mouse as the cat, the fourth years, tried hunting the seraphim which in turn was trying to hunt the smaller mouse, the first years.
Fuck, I’ll struggle just to make my way through the Seraphim. These were much larger and more dangerous than the ones I’ve faced. There were clearly some really dangerous ones like the writhing mass of tentacles with one horrific eye in the middle that towered over us and swung tentacle after tentacle in an unstoppable barrage that pulled kids into it’s mass. Even the fourth years were hesitant to face it alone. It took their teamwork to make it retreat. During that though more kids were taken by smaller but still extremely dangerous Seraphim like the nine-foot centerpide which had mandibles that even pierced our armour.
It was a terrible sight to see. One by one I saw my peers die as there were too many for the fourth years to protect. I doubted they were anyway. They were more focused on killing Seraphim than protecting the kids and I didn’t blame them. It’s much harder to protect something than it is to kill something. Why should they risk their lives for us? Fuck I hated it, but I understood it.
What I hated more though was the fact that I needed to risk it. Better to risk death in there than have my certain death out here.
As I took a step forward, preparing to leap and dive over and under Seraphim just to get into the death circle. The smallest sound hit my ears.
“Help.”
Oh fuck no. Not again I’m not falling it. These Seraphim must think I’m pretty stupid if they think I’ll fall for that again.
“Canis.” The voice wasn’t to far away and over all the gunfire It was barely a whisper. But I heard it. Someone used my name.
FUCK!
I drew my solar blades again and ran down the corridors till the screams got closer and closer. I recognised the armour, the black armour with yellow highlights. The customisation only an Einherjar could afford.
The person was screaming as there were three skinny winged Seraphim attacking her. They were skinny and didn’t have the muscle or size harpies did only being half my size. Their claws were long and Seraphim even with little muscle was still strong. Imps. One of the few classes I did attend was strategy and Seraphim analysis went over different types of seraphim and how to take them down.
Had these been harpies I had no doubt I would die, they were too fast and powerful but imps were just the harpies' weaker younger cousin. They were too busy cackling and enjoying tearing my classmate apart to notice me. They could’ve just gone at her throat but they played with her, enjoying her suffering.
They only realised I was here when the burning heat of my solar weapons cut through them. I diagonally cut through one fully, and another one lost a wing to my knife.
“Why the fuck would you call my name you bitch!” I screamed at her. “First you stab me in the back and now call my name for help. Fuck you!”
Wasp took the opportunity to get to her knees. With one imp dead, one missing a wing and the third retreating back with the injured one she had a second to gather herself again.
“Canis?” She couldn’t even tell it was me. My armour was no different to the other non-Einherjar kids and I was covered in blood. She was easy to recognise though, all the Einherjar customised their armour in the first year.
I expected her to deny she was calling for me to help her. Or that she even needed my help but instead of any of that she wrapped her arms around my legs, hugging my lower body.
“I’m sorry! I’m sorry! Please don’t leave me!” She cried. She wasn’t sorry for betraying me or calling my name. She was sorry cause she didn’t want me to leave, to abandon her. I noticed the several bodies of my peers on the floor along with the lots of Imps bodies. They did well but it cost her whole team. No, her squad was one of the larger Einherjar teams. They abandoned her.
They must have tried to look good for the rewards. To win initiation, but it was no secret that Wasp was on the lower end of the spectrum when it came to the Einherjar. The only reason she hadn’t lost her title yet like so many others was because of her large group. However, that wouldn’t last long if by the end of the year seventy per cent would die.
“What happened?” I asked, Wasp finally let go of my legs and started to pull herself up. She had a rifle on her back and a solar knife holder but no knife in sight. She must have lost it mid-attack.
“We were trying to win ichors. If you perform do well now you win ic-”
“I know that. Why is everyone dead?”
“Oh… yeah.” She didn’t answer. That was fine, I could live without her answering me but I couldn’t live with is if she kept being a depressed shellshocked victim.
“Hey Wasp, those Imps are looking quite hungry so I’m going to make this quick. Get your fucking shit together. You are a bitch who betrayed me and broke my nose. I hated you with every fibre of my being but you know what. I like the bitch you more than you right now, cause the you right now is going to get us both killed. So for our sake, be a bitch again.”
She was silent for a moment. Still looking at the corpses of her squad, but she levelled the rifled up and got into a combat stance that screamed ‘Come at me arseholes!’
“Oh fuck off. What are you going to do whine to death? I’m still the Einherjar, you better not slow me down.” She smirked under her helmet. It was fake but I would be lying if the personality I wore now wasn’t fake.
“Just do me a favour and don’t invite me into your team after this,” I smirk back causing her to flip me off.
It seemed the Imps couldn’t stand our dialogue as the two approached, one much slower than the other as without a wing it was like a newborn trying to walk for the first time. I ran forward first, my blades burning hot as a bullet flew over my shoulder turning the head of the struggling Imp into a bloody mist. These weapons were made to kill much more durable Seraphim, these tiny ones would last long.
My Imp tried a probing strike to my mask but my sword came up cutting off a few of its fingers. It tried back pedalling but my knife came in fast stabbing the bugger in the throat.
Unfortunately for me, Seraphim has a habit of hating humans more than it’s a desire to survive so while my knife burned a whole through its windpipe, it’s other claw came up to try open up my own throat. Just before its nails could test the durability of my armour a bullet tore off its shoulder leaving the monster to writhe on the floor in it’s last moments of life.
“You’re welcome.” Waspp gave a mocking bow.
“I killed two, you only got one. I won that.”
“It’s not about the number of kills it’s about the skill, which you seem to be lacking in Mr Swing and Pray.”
“Better than Ms All My Friends Are Dead.”
“Wow.”
“Yeah, sorry.”