Chapter 2: Part 1

Chapter 2: Part 1
"The Altar"

"Where_ I feel_ I__so cold. I can't_ I can't."

An empty and black void was present. The only sounds are incoherent thoughts and echoes that have no origin; the black void continues to engulf everything as the thoughts become louder and clearer.

"I can't breathe."

A sudden a glimmer of light pierces through the darkness closely followed by another blinding burst of the same light. "Ah!" Clare finally has a sense of herself again. Her eyes burn from the light and she shields them with her hands and arms. Suddenly peeking through her shield she can see a scene: a beautiful scene in fact. Below her there is cool green grass: the greenest she has ever seen. The wind is thick and racing and her hair moves back and forth in front of her face.

Her vision expands father she notices she is looking at a hill that branches off into a cliff that overlooks and calm and rocky ocean. At the edge of the cliff she was able to see a figure. The figure came more into view and she realized it was a man sitting on a small boulder. He slouched his shoulders into his chest and rested his arms on his leg with his back turned to Clare; his clothes were simple and his hair black and thick.

Clare squints her eyes and whispers "Who…"

Before she could finish her thought there was another burst of light that obstructed the scene, this one more violent and blinding. Clare felt an abrupt jolt of energy pass through her body and she awoke with a gasp. With a bolt she sat upright and she realized exactly where she was: she was back in the old abandoned church. This time instead of moonlight, sunbeams pierced through the cracks and crevices of the crumbling stone and rotting wood building.

Clare felt cold stone beneath her and found she was sitting the church's altar; a beam of sun shone down on her. She looked to her right and sitting on the cracked church tile was the Category A demon from before. He was leaning on one of the pillars and he stared at her; his glare was cold and unyielding. She was completely dumbfounded and she found she could do little more than just sit there and stare back at him.
Finally, he spoke,

         "You sure are lucky."

In a sudden rush, everything came back to Clare. The memories began to swarm as she recalled that day: her first day as a protector, the rotten church, the two demons and... Panicked, Clare reached down and felt the spot on her stomach where the demon had impaled her. It was smooth: there was not so much as a scrape, not a bruise, not even a mark. But how could that be? Clare was sure it had happened. She felt the blood leave her body, she felt the sting; she felt the pain. So how was she still alive, and for that matter, how was she completely unscathed? Did it really happen?

"Judging by the vapid look on your face, yes you were dead. But you're fine now so you can stop your worrying."

His voice was so cold and piercing that it instantly snapped Clare out of her trance and back to the situation. This only raised more questions for Clare. She sat there staring at him; more confused and dumbfounded than before. He looked at her with contempt and, begrudgingly, explained the situation to her further.

"It's called Duranki, meaning that is when a demon and a human bind their souls together. This works by the demon giving half of its lifespan to the human. Humans would use it to either gain power or extend their own life." The demon explained coldly, "However, in your case, I used it to bring you back to this world."
In a silent, barely audible whimper, Clare gasped "What?..."
The demon did not hear her, or simply chose to ignore her because he got up and began his way out of the church. As he turned to leave he glanced back at her over his shoulder and said,
"It's rare that any demon will ever freely choose to make this deal with a human; so you're welcome. Don't follow me out."

He continued to walk out, but paused for a moment. He turned to her once more and said,

"Oh, and watch out for that hole on your way out."

Clare sat there, traumatized, confused and overwhelmed. Tears began to well up in Clare's eyes; she couldn't even begin to comprehend what was happening right now. How could she?
In desperation Clare timidly called out to the demon, "Wait… I… I don't understand. You… you can't just leave…" Clare began to choke up and the tears began to flow freely from her eyes. She hung her head and whispering under her breath, as she cried, "I didn't ask for any of this."

Before Clare could say anything more she was being lifted off the altar and put gently onto the floor of the church. He had placed her down by one of the cracked pillars next to an even more cracked window. His actions did not help Clare in her confused state. She wanted to say something, but there were no words that could be used to make sense of this situation. He sat down on the floor right across from her.

"What do you want?" he said.

"W-what do you mean?"

"What do you want me to do?"

Quickly, "Undo it."

"I can't" He retorted just as quickly, but not unkindly.

He seemed completely different now. His voice was calmer and his harsh eyes, while still cold, seemed a little warmer. It was like she was seeing a completely different person, like she was seeing a person at all, and he was talking to someone other than her, someone he could stand.

"Uh…" Clare stuttered. She was completely caught offguard. What do I say?, she thought. What do you say to a demon? What do you ask them for? She was not sure what to think at the moment. Clare could not tell if this was some kind of trick, or an honest, if not vague attempt to actually help her. Clare sat there pondering what was the correct request to give. Whatever it was, she had to get it right. She could not afford to ruin this offer. She took a breath and she thought, and at last she knew what to say.
Clare's eyes focused, her posture straightened and in a flash the timid, awkward girl from before was gone. With her voice low and her tone strong she said, "I want you to become a protector."

"What…" The demon said, taken completely off guard.

She continued with the command still in her voice, "You made this deal so I'm afraid you're stuck with me. I think it's easy to assume you know far more than me and you can make up for what I undoubtedly lack as a protector. I'm sorry, but you just cannot walk away without any repercussions. I need your help and I want you to be my partner"
His face was serious and the little warmth left in his eyes vanished. He unwaveringly stared at her  and Clare could feel his chilly misdemeanor from before returning.

"Don't you think it foolish to ask a demon to hunt his own kind?"

Clare snapped out of her previous demeanor and shriveled back into her wavering, worrying self. His reaction made her realize the gravity of what she just asked. How stupid of her. How could she think such a thing would be plausible? She stared and him once again. She shook her head and began to spurt and stutter, "I'msorry, itwasreallyafoolishidea, Ididn'- Imean-Itruly-didn'tbelievethatyou-"

"I'll do it."