Harvey’s silver armor wasn’t quite done yet, but he’d made sure to put the half-finished pieces inside his spatial ring before they left that morning. He was worried Max or his mother would ss with them if he left them in the garage. Now that his steel helt was crushed under a two-ton giant, he was happy he had the silver helt as a backup.
Nobody questioned when they walked back out of the gate. Cleanup crews were busy gathering creature corpses that were still intact enough to use as crafting materials and placing the bodies of a few dead angels into simple wooden coffins. Less than a dozen died in their little corner of the sprawling battlefield every day, but no reinforcents would co until they made it back to Earth.
“This is going to be a lot different than anything you’ve seen so far,” Cash explained as they picked their way through cinder blocks littering the street by a collapsed wall. “You’re not going to see them coming from a mile away. Hellhounds could be hiding around any corner, and we’ll need to watch for any brimfiends or sinners shooting down from the rooftops.”
“Stay close. Stay vigilant,” Harvey added, tightening the straps on his shield before double-checking that Rupture was fully loaded. The four walked shoulder to shoulder in the middle of the wide street. Any demon snipers would see them coming, but right now they were more worried about creatures darting out of the shadows. The ground was charred black where lawns and landscaping had been set ablaze. Any smoke from the smoldering ruins was long gone, but the stench of charcoal still filled the air. Daylight still shone perpetually over this part of the trial, but sohow the sky was a little more gray.
“Holy!” Tyler gasped, leaping two-feet off the ground when a gust of wind sent a few loose bricks tumbling off a crumbling chimney. The decrepit city was nothing compared to the ominous black and purple forest Harvey had been placed in, but he could understand how they must be feeling right now.
[Say sothing. They need you.]
I’m not Julian. I don’t know what they need to hear.
Suddenly, it felt like they’d been surrounded in a warm hug. Harvey turned to see the golden eye tattooed on his father’s head glowing. It gave a slight boost to his Willpower, but more than anything it reminded them they weren’t alone.
“Take a deep breath,” Steve encouraged.
Tyler nodded, taking a second to compose himself before they pushed forward.
They reached the divide without incident, stopping as they approached the line where suburbs turned to city and day beca night. His eyes struggled to pierce through the darkness, completely adjusted to the daylight after days of endless sun.
“I almost forgot what night looked like,” Steve marvelled, sticking his hand through the curtain of darkness.
“We’re in their territory now,” Cash whispered. “Harvey, you take the lead. I’ll stay in the back and use my wings to cover us from above.”
Taking a diamond formation, the neon light of signs buzzing above their heads was soon blocked by white feathers. He was happy to take the vanguard, but he didn’t exactly know what he was looking for. The city was in much better shape, only minor destruction evident on the concrete facades from before the angels were pushed back. Since he figured dogs and satanic goats were probably not opening any doors, he looked for spots where the creatures could worm their way indoors.
Stalking through the streets, they froze when the crash of tal erupted from ahead. Shattered glass littered the sidewalk where sothing had broken through the glass doors of a convenience store. One of the tube lights inside flickered, revealing a dark shape digging through a pile of family-size bags of chips. It looked like a hellhound had knocked over the shelf.
“Shoot it,” Tyler whispered.
“No. We’re here for you to train. Let’s sneak closer and we’ll cover you.”
Harvey winced as broken glass crunched under his feet, pausing to see if the hound lifted its head. Luckily, it seed it couldn’t hear them buried at the bottom of a bag. Carefully, he pulled open the front door. Tyler stepped in first, Steve following close behind. Both activated their skills at the sa ti, and the hounds head whipped straight towards them when it sensed the holy resonance. The bag was stuck to its head, refusing to fly off even as the hellhound violently shook back and forth. The sudden movent made Tyler panic, and instead of charging forward, he accidentally stepped on an unopened bag of Doritos. The thing popped loudly before sliding across the linoleum floor, bringing his brother with it.
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Crash!
The dog howled when it finally escaped the bag, but a silver bullet in its brain cut it short.
“Sorry!” Steve fussed, moving to pull Tyler to his feet.
“You can’t use that skill while we’re sneaking around!” Cash instructed. “The demons will notice the change in the ambient essence!”
Even though it died in seconds, the hellhound had made the call. Angry roars answered from multiple nearby buildings. Grabbing a fallen shelf, Harvey dragged it in front of the broken glass doors to buy them so ti.
“I could’ve gotten it!” Tyler complained, grabbing Harvey’s arm. He’d asked Harvey to shoot the thing just a minute ago, but it was clear his fear had been consud by embarrassnt.
“I know,” Harvey replied. “But I also knew more would be on their way, and I wanted you to get a chance to use your skill properly.
“It’s my fault,” Steve said.
“It’s ok. We’re learning. Might as well activate the skill now though. They know we’re here,” Harvey replied.
A massive, black dog charged into the shelf, easily knocking it over and tumbling into the store. Tyler surged forward, essence helping him move fast enough to blow a stack of paper napkins off a nearby counter. A golden glow emanated from his mace, condensing into a burst of holy power that detonated where the spiked silver crashed into the hounds skull. It yowled in pain as blood leaked from its mouth. Tyler moved to swing again, but the beast scrambled away before he could finish the job.
It retreated, backing up towards the door while snarling at them. Copious amounts of smoke plud from its nostrils as it tried to hide under the counter. It was an ability all the hellhounds possessed, but didn’t see much use during the large-scale battles. Normally, it would help camouflage the creatures, but sothing helped them see the hound clear as day.
“Steve’s skill! I guess the System wasn’t lying when it said it would help him see through lies and corruption!” Cash bead.
Tyler charged again, but was forced to redirect his swing when two more hellhounds leaped toward him. His mace cracked against the first, pushing it in front of the second so they flew into another shelf. Pill bottles rattled as they rained to the floor. The two hounds lay dazed in a heap, and Tyler thumped down over and over until Harvey could hear bones snap. Steve joined him, stabbing his sword into their exposed side. The blade sank deep, avoiding rib bones and severing organs.
Harvey and Cash stayed back, both waiting with guns at the ready to intervene if the fight got out of hand. The two were clumsy, but maintained a clear advantage with the help of Steve’s smoke piercing light and the complicated terrain. The first hound was trying to hide among the shelves, but was quickly cornered. It could easily knock down the shelves and run away, but it chose to test its luck against Steve. Blood and spit splattered onto his helt as the creature lunged. He raised his shield to block, but buckled under the montum. Steve fell to his back, barely maintaining the grip on his sword as clawed feet scraped against him. Harvey lifted his gun to shoot, but Cash and Julius shouted for him to stop.
“Wait!” Cash urged.
[Hold up! They’ll never learn if you don’t let them make mistakes.]
The pause was just long enough for his father to push the hound to the side, roll over, and stab his shortsword deep into its abdon. Harvey could hear him panting through the helt as he pushed to his feet, yanking the blade out and returning to Tyler’s side.
[See?]
“Only intervene when they’re in real danger,” Cash whispered.
Great. Now there’s two of you, Harvey groaned internally, the tension in his shoulder relaxing as he lowered the gun.
Six more hellhounds gathered outside, barking at them while they surrounded the door. There was probably an ergency exit in a hallway sowhere, but this wasn’t enough to make him look for it. Steve held his shield high, jerking his sword at the beasts like he was trying to scare them off.
“What should we do?” Tyler asked.
“What do you think?” Cash countered.
“I know I’m reckless, but I don’t think charging out there is a good idea,” Tyler replied.
“Smart. Harvey, you got anything?”
He could easily shoot the things, but knew this was a teaching mont. Both for Steve and Tyler as combatants, but also Harvey as a leader. Cash wanted him to see that it’s not just about killing the enemy, but developing talented soldiers. There was so much about the angel he still didn’t know. Ostensibly, he was a healer, but he seed much more interested in helping the humans than any other angel he’d t.
“I do. I’ll incapacitate them. When the lightning stops, we all rush out and finish them off together,” Harvey said, conjuring an arc charge with Echo Forge. Since he didn’t want to kill any of them outright, he didn’t infuse it with his Imprint. The steel ball clattered on the concrete, rolling towards the pack before releasing arcs of lightning that made their fur stand on end. The hellhounds began to convulse, spasming on the ground as their bones beca lightning rods. Normally, the electricity would prioritize the tal signs and poles lining the sidewalk, but his aura nudged them towards his target.
Tyler gasped, “How many toys do you have?”
When the charge finally disappeared, they charged out the door. Tyler reached them first, his mace glowing brighter than ever as it crashed into the snout of the only hound still standing. Steve followed close behind, slashing deep gouges into still twitching necks. A brimfiend dangling from a power line tried to ambush them from above, but a hole sprouted from its head before the fireball escaped its claws.
“One thing at a ti,” Harvey said when Cash gave him a startled look.
Soon, the hounds were all dead, and the city streets went quiet once more. Radiant light surged from Tyler and Steve’s weaves as they both reached Level 13.
“Good job!” Harvey said. “You just fought your first monsters outside the bunker.”
“Thanks,” Tyler panted, stepping back over the toppled shelf blocking the door. “I’m going to see if there’s any energy drinks left.”
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