Megumi could only look at the demon, Dragerd, in terror. Just seconds ago he'd just eaten Kailey whole, leaving Megumi in a panicked struggle as he was meeting her eye to eye.
She whipped around and struggled to free herself, but the stone pillar on top of her proved too heavy. Dragerd, who watched, found the sight of her struggle simply amusing, giving out a few chuckles before moving to business.
"You can stop your pointless struggle. I don't plan to eat you." Dragerd said.
Mustering up her courage, Megumi glanced back at Dragerd as he stood back up. He circled around her, tauntingly.
"Hmph. In fact I have an offer for you. My companion had me send my army to capture a kid friend of hers some weeks ago. And then we stumbled upon you."
Dragerd crouched back to her side. "She wanted to kill you. I think she still does in fact. But she's too blind to see great potential in you. In fact my master would love to have someone of your potential by his side."
He stepped away, and stood tall before Megumi. Behind him a few demons escorted a couple of regular people. They glanced around, terrified.
"L-let us go!" One of them yelped.
Megumi became alarmed. "What are they…"
"I'll give you two choices… " Dragerd spoke, presenting the two people. "Become a demon now and consume their souls… Or I can kill you now and turn you later."
Dragerd grinned much more widely awaiting Megumi's answer as she looked on in shock. Without hesitation, Dragerd immediately slaughtered the two in one swift move.
Suddenly, Megumi's hands sunk within the floors along with her legs. Before she realized it both her hands and feet were cuffed and chained. It wasn't long before the stone pillar dispersed, leaving her just as trapped as before.
"So what will it be?" Dragerd presented the two newly acquired white cores to Megumi.
She glared at the demon, despite the deep pit in her stomach.
She just as quickly averted her gaze as the voice from her Dark counterpart echoed in the back of her head. She couldn't forget her dark versions proclamation to take control of her body if she would die
"Even if the chances are low.. I-if he kills me, That demon in me will kill everyone around me… But… I don't want to turn into a demon either…" Megumi grimaced.
Megumi got up to her knees and saw her gloveless hands. "If I want to be with Eric again I have to …."
She curled her fingers on the stone pavement. Refilled with new resolve, she reached out, taking the core in hand. She focused at the core in hand. "So if I eat this… I turn into a demon… Is that it?"
"Hehehe. Yes. Eat more than one soul and you'll turn into a demon. It's quick. But it's a very painful process."
Megumi clutched the cores more tightly. She took a hard gulp and with some reluctance, she slipped the cores into her mouth. Her puffed cheek soon became flat and she looked back at Dragerd with a glare.
Dragerd chuckled contently watching Megumi finish the deed, but then she pushed him back. He looked back at her, surprised and confused.
"What? Why isn't she transforming?" He thought.
"I won't become a demon." Megumi suddenly said. "But I won't let you kill me either.."
Dragerd and his demon underlings looked at Megumi for a solid minute, befuddled by her statement.
Using his moment, Megumi pulled hard at the chains, trying to free herself. Dragerd clenched his teeth and stepped forth, grabbing her face and forcing her mouth to open. "Tch! Where the hell did they go? You should've turned if you ate them!"
Dragerd narrowed his eyes, trying to make sense of the increasingly strange situation, "There's no way she could've stored them away as an echo. Normal folks and demon's can't store them… Unless."
Suddenly Dragerd felt a fist to his gut as the chains the shackled Megumi broke!
"Get… AWAY FROM ME!!" she shouted.
Dragerd, to his own shock, is sent hurtling back to the center of the circular arena.
Megumi broke free of the other chain. As Dragerd could only glance curiously at her. "Perhaps I was a little too careless" gestured for the demons to apprehend Megumi. "I tried to be generous, but you forced my hand."
The demon henchmen move in to restrain her, but to Dragerd shock, the demons disintegrate at the touch of her arms. It worked up their arms, then their body and finally their entire being, turning them to ash.
Megumi looked back to her hand and brought it to her chest.
Dragerd stood back up with renewed vigor. "Fine if you won't turn, I'll kill you."
Dragerd posed his hands as if grappling a heart, in an instant sharp spikes shot at Megumi from on her two sides. But to his shock, they all shatter upon touching her.
"Impossible!"
Just as surprised, Megumi glanced at her arm, seeing a thin blue veil layered on her. "I see, you even used the last of your power to protect me too…" Megumi muttered.
She thought back to when Kailey stepped up to defend her. At that time she echoed something to her in secret.
"Girl- No. Megumi… You have to escape. no matter what. When you see a chance to get away from him. Take it. And whatever happens…. Don't worry about me."
This last thing Kailey had echoed to her was still etched in her mind as she finally came to a consensus.
'No. I won't run away. I can't. Not if I want to see Eric…And not if I want to save you Kailey." Megumi's hand shook. She quickly grasped it to cease its shaking. "I know it's a long shot, but I have a feeling you're somehow still in there somehow."
After calming down, she looked into her left hand where two core cores laid, embedded in her and. They soon sunken and shifted into her arms and up the sleeves of her jacket. "And don't worry, I'll get you two out here too. I refuse to let anyone else die because of me."
A rage built up inside of Dragerd. He scoffed and as if on order, more spikes protrude from the ground, forcing Megumi to go on the move.
Shots of stone spikes fired at Megumi, she avoided the first few but was struck by the others and shattered upon impact. Lucky for her the blue veil protected Megumi. But seeing more spiked launching at her she quickly hid behind a pillar, as she did, the pillar itself turned into a blade and attempted to smite her.
She dodged this surprise attack, nearly avoiding this devastating attack. It was at this moment she remembered Dino's words about the maze and how itself, was Dragerd.
"Stupid women, you're just running around in the palm of my hand. If I want I can crush you at any moment."
Dragerd clutched his hands, and as if by command fingers from a stone hand arose beneath Megumi. It bawled its hand's trying to catch Megumi. Fortunately for her, she stumbled out of its grasp.
Suddenly, even more hands reached from the ground and the walls all aimed at Megumi. Each one crashed walls and ground alike as they pursued Megumi relentlessly.
As Megumi shifted her gaze back to Dragerd she found that he suddenly disappeared. She darted her eyes around the circular arena, scanning and searching for him. "Where'd he go? Where'd he go!?"
"I can be anywhere, and everywhere, all at once. I can sink you, I can crush you, I can stab you. I can even devour you If I wanted to. I gave you a choice and you choose DEATH!"
The maze walls and floor moved around like a roaring ocean, making Megumi lose her balance. Even more attacks came at her in quicker succession, each one shattering upon impacting her.
"If you won't join me, I'll devour you along with all the others still in me!"
Megumi, alarmed, looked back. "T-that's right! There's other people in here too!"
"I have to- Urgh!" Megumi was struck hard from her side. She peeked, as saw a subtle crack from her side. "It's breaking already!"
From the center of the arena, Dragerd rose from the ground as though it was water, a hundred times bigger than before. He stared down at Megumi intensely with a plastered and knowing smile.
"You can struggle and hide as much as you want, but it's pointless. There's nothing you can do and nowhere for you to hide! Megumi Scorn!"
Megumi stuttered, and stood frozen seeing his sheer size. Mustering what little courage she could, she spoke. "N-No. It's not pointless.-!" Megumi ducked in time avoiding another spike.
"Oh? Then tell me what a woman like you can do?"
Megumi was struck in the chest by, hurtling her pack into a wall. Reacting swiftly, she pulled herself wall as spiked claws erupted to capture her. She stumbled to her feet, staying alert for any more attacks.
"I-. I can kill you!" She shouted. "With just a touch you're destined to die!"
Another stone spike shot from the ground, nearly hitting Megumi. All the while Dragerd laughed after hearing her proclamation.
"How ridiculous!" He laughed.
Finally after a long winded struggle, Megumi was captured by Dragerd spinning her to the walls with his clawed stony hands. He grasped her tight, bringing her face to face.
Megumi winced from the tightening of his grip. She tried to pry his hands open but it was useless.
"I've had enough of you." He said. He opened his jaws wide. "Now it's time to die."
Megumi brought her hands to his jaws, trying to push him away with little to show for her effort. But suddenly, he stopped.
"Huh?" Dragerd glanced up, confused.
"CRYSTAL WONDERLAND!!"
Crystal erupted throughout Dragerd's head!
Megumi looked in shock. She could recognize those crystals clearly
. Soon it wasn't long before her ally came to view.
"D- Dino!" She yelped.
Dino, who stood at the top of Dragerd head, pulled his combat knife from its sheath. Using his crystal, he teleported to Megumi in a flash, appearing before her and slicing the Dragerd hands off.
Dino followed Megumi down to the ground, crashing and breaking the stone hand that captured Megumi.
Megumi crawled from the now destroyed hand, surprised that she was still in one piece. She coughed getting up. "W-warn me next time!"
"Tch! Damn it!" Dino said. He looked up at the top of the maze, watching as the ceiling formed above them. "So much for escaping now."
SMASH
Dino, pulling along Megumi, dodged an attack from above.
Megumi quickly reoriented herself, now realizing that a flurry of attacks were coming their way. Dino quickly pushed her aside, seeing an attack coming from above.
"Keep moving and focus!" He yelled.
Forced to comply, Megumi ran as fast as she could, avoiding the dangers of the stone spies and the clawed hands as much as possible.
"You Worm! How did you get here!!" Dragerd erupted before Dino, posed and ready to attack. Dino crystalized his arms blocking the attack. his arms slowly cracked beneath the weight and strength of Dragerd stone fist.
"Wouldn't you like to know." Sensing another attack from the side, Dino backed off and reposed himself, ready to go on the offense.
Dino struck Dragerd in the chest, followed by an uppercut to his chin. He moved to kick him backward and dashed in with his crystal legs, kicking from the side.
He struck Dragerd fast and hard, This however, did little to make him flinch.
Dragerd grabbed Dino's leg, crushing it in his hands. "I almost forgot. You were that failed demon hunter Annabelle sent. It's a shame, You could've been a wolf among lambs like us."
"Like hell I'll become a demon." Dino sneered.
"Haha. That's not what your brother said!"
Shocked and confused, Dino's guard dropped, allowing Dragerd to toss him across the arena, crashing into the wall.
Seeing this event, Megumi rushed to Dino's side, the best she could. Attack after attack. Spike after spike, it was like a trail of chaos was following right behind her.
Despite these overwhelming odds she pushed through to reach Dino.
"Dino!" She yelled.
"Dino pulled himself from the deep hole he was in. "Don't worry about me Keep running!"
Dragerd suddenly emerged from the wall and grabbed Dino by the neck. He sinned him back to the wall as Dino struggled against the demon.
Dino Reached for his knife, Stabbing it straight into Dragerd that only laughed at the attempt. Seeing that it didn't work, he pressed his hands on the wall. "C- Crystal wonderland!" he wheezed.
Spikes of shards of crystals erupted. Oh, no you don't." Dragerd pulled Dino and pounded straight back into the crystals of his own making. "GAHH!!"
"C-crap! I have to do something!" Megumi dodged another two hands and spikes from the ground as the chaos of attacks continued she then watched as Dino's combat knife fell straight to the ground.
"A weapon!. I-I need a weapon!"
Although reluctant, she quickly stuck her hands forth to begin conjuring her weapon as she ran. She glanced back and forth from Dino to the weapon that shaped itself with panic rising from within.
Learning from all her past failures in conjuring the weapon she learned two things. The first was that her focus needed to be on the weapon, while the second was to avoid merging her hand with the strange light she was manifesting.
As she glanced back she found the and even larger version of Dragerd emerged from above Dino, Jaws agape. "I- I won't make it!"
She could only watch as Dino was lifted towards the Jaws of Dragerd. But suddenly the head of the large Dragerd exploded! Shocking everyone that was around.
********
Just outside of a large and overly bright tunnel, in the sand of the dunes A tall muscular man stood. Steam emitted from his thumbs.
The man sighed. That's all I can do for you for now Megumi… It's all up to you and Dino now."
The muscular man turned, grabbing a familiar set of black robes from the bright tunnels before taking his leave.
********
Back with Megumi and refocused all her efforts into fully manifesting her weapon. A deep crimson mist enveloped the weapon before revealing its true form to Megumi.
"So it is a scythe."
Sensing another attack, she blocked with the large handle of her scythe before turning to slice through another stone hand that attacked from above.
She turned back to Dino and Dragerd, and without hesitation, she dug her scythe into Dragerd and cut him in half.
Dino fell back to the ground, coughing. He quickly placed his hands on the ground and spoke with his wheezed voice. "C- Crystal wonderland."
Crystals erupted from all around Megumi and himself, turning part of the arena into a haven of crystals.
To Megumi's surprise, the attack ceased. across from them, Dragerd reappeared, scowling at the two with disdain.
Dino stood back up, wiping his mouth. "So what Liang said was true then… so long as the floors and walls aren't part of you, you can't manipulate them…"
Although not understanding Dino's word's, Megumi knew one thing for certain. And that was that, their fight against this demon was about to become much more intense.