Possession 19: Battle with the Bat

                Tenshi kept a close eye on Ryoga as he slipped in and out of the shadows. Dark storm clouds had now totally obscured the moon, leaving little to no light in the vast Kakidashi graveyard. The fear Tenshi had earlier when he arrived was now amplified a hundredfold by the darkness. The sounds of far-off thunder didn’t help to ease the tension either.

                Somehow I could see this coming, Tenshi thought. Crawling through a graveyard with a vampire, searching for demons… a dead priestess whose supposed to save my life... Oh man, what has my life become…The teenage boy gave a sigh of resignation.

                He almost jumped out of his skin when two red eyes appeared out of the darkness just before him. Tenshi tried to bring his bokuto around, but the blade was caught in Ryoga’s hand. The vampire seemed to melt out of the darkness, leaning close to the boy to whisper in his ear. “…Don’t… make… a sound… The Koumori is just ahead…”

                Tenshi trembled and nodded dumbly. I can’t even surprise Ryoga… how can I defeat Tenma if I can’t handle a vampire? He brooded to himself as he watched Ryoga vanish again. Tenma seems to be a lot harder than Ryoga… but until I can beat a vampire, I’m not ready for a demon the likes of him… With that depressing thought, Tenshi glanced over his shoulder to check on the girls.

                They were a good distance behind, but they didn’t seem to be speaking very much. Tenshi could only spot out Yuna by watching for the flicker of movements next to the floating Rei. It seemed Ryoga’s companion was just as skilled as he was at hiding themselves in shadow. She moves just like him… Well, I guess that figures… They seem to have a lot in common anyways…

                Rei caught his glance and excused herself from the gothic girl, hovering quickly over to Tenshi. “What is it? Why’d you stop?”

                Tenshi gestured to the small hill Ryoga had slipped behind. “Ryoga says that the Koumori is just ahead,” he whispered to the priestess. “We better get ready… Don’t know what to expect…”

                Rei noticed the look of concern on Tenshi’s face. “Hey… what is it? What’s on your mind?”

                “Oh… the usual… thoughts about how I’m not gonna make it out of this one, I’m not strong enough, oh God I’m gonna die, stuff like that.”

                The priestess smiled softly. “Relax, Tenshi… we can do it. I’m right by your side, and I won’t let anything happen to you. Ryoga’s here to help too. We’ll be fine.”

                Tenshi grunted and looked away, turning to face the hill. Here goes nothing, he thought to himself as he summoned up the remains of his courage. Carefully, he began to move again, aiming for a tombstone not far away. He approached the slab of stone silently and slipped behind it. He then looked out from around the edge, taking care not to be too obvious about it.

                Down below, he could see the two police officers from earlier, patrolling the area. They both looked nervous as they swept their flashlights over the ground before them. The whole area was cast in shadows from trees, large gravestones, and even a nearby mausoleum. Without the light of the moon though, Tenshi was unable to see anything specific.

                A flash of lightning answered his unspoken prayer and lit up the area. He immediately wished it hadn’t.

                Not far below him was Ryoga, crouched behind a gravestone, eyes trained on the police men. Behind them, unnoticed, was a dark shape that loomed up from the roof of the mausoleum. In the quick flash of light, Tenshi could only make out that it was large, with a gaping mouth full of sharp teeth. It seemed to have been unwrapping itself, and thankfully, it disappeared back into shadow as the light faded.

                It took a moment for Tenshi’s eyes to adjust once more to the darkness. As things slowly became clearer, an inhuman screech reached his ears, followed by shouts from the men down below. There was a single gunshot, followed by a scream that seemed to end abruptly. The flashlights were sent rolling, and in their florescent beams, Tenshi could clearly see the beast.

                It was taller than a man and definitely a demon. For the most part, it looked like a bat with strong, double-jointed legs. Its arms were long, the last finger on each hand about as long as Tenshi was tall, connecting to another finger-like appendage that grew from it’s wrist and elbow, all connected by a leathery skin that grew from its back, exactly like a bat wings. Its body wasn’t very thick and had a tail sprouting from the small of its back. Glowing yellow eyes stared out from beneath a thick brow ridge that swept into two pointed ears on each side of its face. It seemed covered in black-brown fur and, at the moment, it had its teeth sunk into a police officer’s neck, the poor man’s body held in the creature’s claws. The other officer lay sprawled in front of a nearby tombstone, apparently being tossed there. The bat demon called the Koumori seemed oblivious to anything else that went on around it.

                Tenshi’s face went pale. “It…It’s a giant bat…”

                Rei narrowed her eyes at the beast. “Yes, I believe we were told that already. And he appears to be feeding on someone you’re supposed to save.”

                “I…I can’t stand up to that thing!”

                “That’s a self-fulfilling prophecy, Tenshi. If you think you can’t win, then you’ve already lost. We need to try.” Rei glanced at the worried teenager. “Besides, we have Ryoga. A vampire is extremely difficult to defeat… as you know already.”

                Tenshi opened his mouth to respond, but there was an ear-splitting screech from the monster below. Rei snapped her head around to see exactly what happened.

                Ryoga had made his move. Slipping out from the shadows, the vampire had dropped a stone on the long tail of the beast. The Koumori had released the officer and let out that horrific scream, only to be cut off as the vampire crouched and tackled the beast from behind. The two began rolling, a tangle of wings, limbs, clothing and fur.

                At the edge of the light beam coming from the discarded flashlight, the two fighters had stopped rolling, Ryoga sitting atop the beast. Raising his hands, Tenshi was terrified to see his fingers change into long, black claws. Without hesitating, Ryoga began slashing at the bat demon with his new weapons.

                Rei was just as amazed as Tenshi. “Claws? I know of demons who can manage minor shape shifting like that, but I was unaware that a vampire could do such a thing…”

                “That’s the tip of the iceberg, priestess,” a soft voice behind them murmured. Tenshi nearly jumped out of his skin. It seemed Yuna had been with them for some time, though she was silent enough not to be noticed. “A vampire is half Koumori… when the need calls for it, he is quite capable of unleashing his demon heritage…”

                “You mean… he can become like that monstrosity?” Rei asked.

                “…No… he can become stronger than that monstrosity.”

                Tenshi felt his stomach tighten. He turned to look back at the battle below. He’s unstoppable…

                Ryoga’s attacks were suddenly halted as the Koumori managed to free one arm and grab the vampire’s throat with one large hand. With another screech, Ryoga was hurled to the side, crashing through two tombstones before he landed. The bat demon scrambled to his feet and crouched, advancing on the fallen vampire.

                “Get up,” Rei hissed. “We have to move now while his back is turned!”

                “I can’t do it!” Tenshi responded, alarmed.

                “Then let me do it for crying out loud!”

                The idea apparently never occurred to him before. Nodding slowly, he tried to relax himself as Rei shifted into her vapor-like form, entering his body through his nose and mouth. As she did so, he felt something pull him out, as if something was tugging at the back of his stomach. He drifted out of his body, but rather than getting stuck in that world between the spirit and astral plane, he was able to solidify himself as a spirit.

                Now occupying Tenshi’s body, Rei glanced over at the blinking teenager. “Looks like our extra practices paid off, huh?”

                This was a new sensation. Tenshi found that he could actually float or fly just by thinking about where he wanted to go. This was completely different from the startling confusion of the astral world or the hazy vagueness of that in-between place. Were it not for the demon below and the fact that they were in a graveyard, he might have actually enjoyed himself. When he opened his mouth to answer Rei’s question, he found that she was already moving down the slope. “Hey!” He cried as he flew after her. “Wait up!”

                Ryoga and the Koumori had returned to grappling, though this time it looked like the bat demon had the advantage. One claw held Ryoga’s left arm while the other claw raked at his body. Ryoga tried to fend off the blows, but the Koumori’s wing acted like a shield and prevented him from retaliating. Even his kicks were useless since the bat demon’s reach was longer than his own. The vampire growled and tried focusing on wrenching his arm free.

                By now, Rei was carefully approaching the battle from behind. Focusing on the demon’s back, she held the bokuto to the side as she began to rush forward. Running faster, she crouched and prepared to bring the blade around. When she was ten feet away and preparing her attack, the Koumori’s pointed ears twitched. With inhuman speed befitting the inhuman monster, it had spun around and delivered a devastating backhand blow to he priestess, sending Tenshi’s body through the air much like Ryoga’s body had been tossed earlier. Luckily for her, though, she crashed into the ground rather than breaking through any tombstones.

                Ryoga seized the opportunity Rei had given him. Raising his free hand, his claws began to lengthen, growing to near a foot in length. With a roar of barely contained rage, he swept the dagger-sharp blades down, severing the arm that held his hostage. The Koumori let out a shriek of pain and leapt backward, lifting the bloody forearm that was still connected to its body by its wing. It then crammed the arm back into place.

                The flesh smoked and hissed as it repaired itself. In moments, the arm was good as new.

                Rei watched grimly from the ground not far away. Tenshi hovered beside her, staring in renewed horror. “That thing just put his arm back on! That’s not supposed to happen!”

                “It’s like a vampire,” the priestess muttered as she climbed to her feet. “It can only be killed by piercing its heart or cutting off his head…” Rei growled and cracked her neck. “Alright, you rat with wings… Let’s see what you got…”

                Through their practices, they had gotten more adept at changing bodies at will. Now, Tenshi’s focus wasn’t even needed to begin the transformation. The pale blue glow became visible as soon as Rei thought the command: Change. The glow turned inward, engulfing Tenshi’s body with light as his spirit watched. As always, Rei felt like she was being stripped before this intense light. Tenshi couldn’t help but think of all the nude transformation scenes he saw in anime. Even through his current fear, the image of the girls from “Sailor Justice Force Go!” was clear in his mind. The image managed to enter Rei’s mind too which she answered with a glare at Tenshi.

                When it was done, Rei stood in the horribly loose clothing that Tenshi had worn. There was a flash of lightning and a rumble of thunder. She couldn’t help but be impressed at the dramatic timing.

                With a grin, she turned her attention back to the Koumori, twirling the bokuto in her hand as she did so. “Much better…” Crouching, she sprinted forward at the bat demon. Spotting the approaching priestess, the creature turned and swiped a claw at her. She leapt forward and flipped over it easily, landing just inside its reach. Aiming for the heart, she stabbed upward with her blade.

                The beast recoiled, stumbling backward awkwardly. In an instant, Ryoga was on its back, an arm around the monster’s neck. “Now, priestess!” The vampire shouted.

                Without hesitation, Rei regained her footing and thrust the blade towards the demon’s heart once more. Sensing the impending danger, the Koumori pitched forward, flipping Ryoga off of its back to crash into Rei, throwing off her attack. Rather than pursuing the opening, the bat demon turned and extended its great wings, taking to the air.

                Ryoga scrambled off the priestess with a growl, focusing his crimson eyes on the fleeing demon. He took two easy steps and crouched before leaping into the sky after the demon. The jump was as good as flight since it took the vampire right where he wanted to go. Reaching out, he the Koumori’s legs, being carried off with the demon.

                Tenshi floated over to Rei’s side as she stood. “That thing is smarter than it looks,” the priestess muttered sourly. “Looks like we have to follow it.”

                “Can’t we just go home?” Tenshi whimpered half-heartedly.

                Rei sent the boy a cold glare. “There are powerful things in the world, Tenshi. The Koumori is not one of them. When you let fear consume you, then you give in to their power. You’re a weak fool if you let this monstrosity control you like it has.” The priestess lowered her voice as she spoke levelly to the spirit beside her. “At one point or another, we’ve both stared death in the face. I fought until I could not fight any more. You relented and allowed fate to guide you, and for some reason, fate has granted you life while it has taken mine. And you waste this second chance fearing half-rate demons and shadows in the dark? You’re a fool. It’s time you stopped being afraid, Saishi Tenshi. It’s time to control your fear and live up to whatever plan fate has for you.” Without another word, she turned away and began to jog in the direction Ryoga and the demon had flown.

                Tenshi was shocked, perhaps more by Rei’s lecture than at any of the events that had happened to him that day. He felt hurt by her words, as well as ashamed. She’s right, he thought to himself. I shouldn’t be afraid… we’ve been through worse, haven’t we…? But still… I’m afraid… how am I suppose to control it? Unsure of himself, Tenshi began to float after his companion.

                Yuna moved out from the shadows where she had watched the fight as another rumble echoed through the night air. She felt a drop of rain hit her shoulder and gazed up at the clouds expectantly. As more drops fell, she lowered her eyes, a frown on her face. “Ryoga… you better not get yourself killed… trying to protect those two…” Slowly, she began walking towards wherever the fight would continue.