The moment Domison caught sight of the feral need in his “captors'” eyes, he could not control his rage any longer. The mana he had been holding tight within his core unfurled and the shadows at his feet began to shiver at the touch of his aura. In a motion so smooth that Knox didn’t even notice, Domison’s right hand reached up and grasped the collar at his throat. With power once again racing through his body, the collar snapped from his neck with the slightest tug, and the suppression that had been reduced greatly already vanished entirely. The second the suppression collar was removed, every shadow on the city block flexed toward the injured man.
A black screen populated Domison’s vision as soon as the collar was removed, momentarily abating his peaking anger. It notified him that the sudden influx of natural mana had not only restarted the countdown tracking his mana deficit but also informed him that the deficit had been cleared. With a feral grin, Domison refocused his attention on the large burly man in front of him and felt for the connection to his inner world. His cracked lips, already split and bleeding with his smile, parted as he spoke, “Come out to play, my friends.”
The shadow at Domison’s feet began to darken, and two distinct snarls erupted into the air. From the darkness emerged two terrifying beasts. To the man’s left, a canine the size of a horse stalked onto the cracked asphalt, graceful and eerie with its wispy fur that rippled in a spectral breeze. To his right, a massive creature with a bear-like body tore its way from the shadows on the ground, tendrils of darkness sticking to its form like roots tearing from the ground. A blue flame danced about its neck like a ghostly mane and its head was a bear-like skull wrapped in muscle and tendons.
The two beasts were of similar size, Grimfur had seemingly shrunk compared to his previous form that was as large as an elephant. They cut an intimidating figure as they flanked around Domison, coming to a halt a few feet past the man. He cast an eye over his new companion, who he guessed would be considered a soul summon. After only a moment of contemplation, he spoke, “Grimfur, kill Knox.” He then shifted his focus to his old friend, “Pabu, kill the skinny creep.”
It was as if his words broke a spell that had been placed upon the men, and they sprang into action. Jax started towards Mel again, though his predatory strut had turned into a mad dash. The man seemingly assumed that if he could get to Domison’s friend, a hostage may be enough to trade for his own life. Unfortunately for him, Pabu was much faster. A gaping maw lined with gleaming fangs clapped down around the skinny man’s head. His headless body stumbled forward for another few feet before it crashed in a heap at Mel’s feet, a look of all-encompassing horror spreading across her face.
Domison averted his attention from the distraught Mel, looking toward Knox and Grimfur. To his surprise, although the ghostly Dire Bear had forced the burly man back several feet, the soul summon was obviously not at the same level of power it had been in life. Fists of both flesh and metal rained down upon the sides of the spectral Dire Bear as Knox fought with all he had. A manic grin had spread across the broad man’s face and a red tinge had started to spread across his body as steam began to rise from his skin. Even the sclera of the thug's eyes became tinged in red as he continued fighting back against Domison’s companion. Domison could measure the power of the blows through his connection with his summoned beast, and his eyes widened slightly in surprise, “You’re quite strong, aren’t you?”
Knox’s eyes flickered over for half a second, but the slight distraction didn’t allow Grimfur to gain any more ground at all in their protracted battle. He displayed even more combat prowess by responding to Domison through the flurry of claws and counter-attacks, “You’re not the only combat class. I’m a Black-Market Berserker, and once I am done with your pets, whether or not my bosses like it, I’m going to fucking kill you too.” With his final words, Knox landed a devastating right hook at the base of Grimfur’s neck. Domison felt the connection established between him and his companion sever as it retreated into his inner world, and Knox turned to face down Pabu.
This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.
The goon had seemingly assumed that because Domison had shown an ability to summon creatures that the man would not be formidable one on one, and he elected to kill the summons first. Although Grimfur was a spiritual summon granted through an ability and would not be killed, the same was not true for Pabu, and Domison felt his anger rise again as his best friend faced potential danger. His manipulation of shadows still felt slightly clunky, but Domison didn’t trust he would be able to maneuver in any agile manner while in such a tattered state, so he used the ability anyways.
A myriad of shadows thrown about the street that was lit in a soft neon glow began to darken, the few storefronts and billboards lighting up on schedule with the sunset no longer holding as much sway. With a circulation of mana throughout his body and an exhale of icy breath, dozens of tendrils of shadow lashed out at the burly man facing away from Domison. They did not strike with precision, relying on sheer numbers to capture the man, but capture him they did.
Five of the shadowy tentacles wrapped around his face and neck, retracting as soon as they caught hold and wrenching his head back toward the ground. When the huge man smashed into the asphalt with a heavy thud, the remaining split between his arms and torso, securing the behemoth of a man to the cooling roadway. One second Knox had been rushing towards a massive wolf-like beast that looked to be made of the night sky itself. The next he was lying flat on his back and staring at the dusk while the same monster he had seen kill his partner loomed over him.
A deep growl was reverberating from the back of Pabu’s throat as he stood over the incapacitated man and ropes of drool hung down from gleaming fangs. Knox still hadn’t been able to conclude what had just happened to him by the time Domison shuffled into view from his peripheral vision. The haggard and wounded Domison had a cold look on his face as he looked down at the employee of one of his most hated enemies. Though he had no fondness for killing, he wanted nothing more than death for the man at his feet but he restrained himself. There was a question that needed to be answered.
“Where is the Twilight Market?” Domison’s voice was like ice, brooking no argument. Knox argued anyway.
“Heh,” Knox wheezed out a laugh, his lungs still tight with the impact on the hard ground, “How about, go fuck yourself.”
Domison did not flinch at the retort, nor did his cold mask break in anger, instead a small smile split his lips and he knelt down over the man, “I was hoping you would say that.” A burnt and tattered arm reached forward, the shadowy form of taloned armor flickering in and out of existence around it. When Domison grasped his hand around Knox’s throat, the form of his gauntlet solidified and he started to take. The rush of energy he ripped from the burly man at his feet sent a wave of euphoria throughout Domison’s body. His sore pathways felt like they had been flushed out by refreshing spring water and he could feel his body's healing accelerate.
The grin on Domison’s face turned feral and he had to forcibly stop himself from stealing anything else from the man, lest he wither away into nothing. Though he had only maintained the connection for no more than thirty seconds, Knox looked sickly. He had visibly lost mass and a pallor had spread across his skin. His eyes darted back and forth in their sockets in a panic and the man had begun to tremble on the asphalt, still held tight to the ground by shadows.
“Now, let's try this again.” Domison reached his hand forward and rested taloned fingers upon Knox’s throat, barely holding back the hungry need to draw more from the man, “The market. Where is it?”