Demon Hunters

Casus Belli IV

Gabriel immediately recognized the speaker. He matched the description Gabriel had been given down to the type of armour he was wearing, so there was no mistaking it: this was his target, the fallen inquisitor. Trying to keep calm, Gabriel stopped and scanned the room. To say that the situation was perilous would have been an understatement since, for the first time ever, Bruno's information had been bad. Gabriel counted at least ten musket barrels trained on him, all set up behind a makeshift barricade created from the dining tables that had once served as the centrepieces of this room. In the middle, his target was standing next to a strange shape covered by a cloth. Gabriel didn't have time to worry about that, however. He had been hoping for a challenge, but this setup was a little excessive. Deciding to play for time, he leaned forward and changed loosened his posture. He even let out a low growl for good measure, hoping to unnerve his opponents.

"I don't know you, human, and I don't care who you think I am... It makes no difference since I'll soon be feasting on your corpse," Gabriel hissed in the most unhinged way he could possibly muster. "Just as I did with your men outside."

Gabriel's voice, already distorted, only became more sinister as it bounced from the tiled flooring and stone walls. Most of the guards shifted uncomfortably and some shot worried glances at each other. His target, however, looked only mildly confused.

"I was under the impression that hybrids were supposed to be just as intelligent as normal humans. I wonder if the manifestation of your demonic side also impairs your cognition," he postulated, rubbing his chin with his armoured hand. "Either that or you're merely pretending, trying to lull us into a false sense of safety – or to perhaps intimidate us."

He is quick on the uptake, isn't he? Then again, that tracks – after all, he has somehow managed to trick a king into protecting him, Gabriel thought.

Despite the muskets being aimed at him, Gabriel flashed a deranged, toothy smile, revealing his sharp fangs. This was an act he had used many a time: even seemingly impossible situations could be flipped over with a skilful application of psychological warfare. The problem was, however, that while the guards did look frightened, the stout presence of the traitorous inquisitor, completely undeterred by Gabriel's act, was keeping them in line. Gabriel decided to keep going.

"You are an inquisitor, I see! Oh, I've heard that your blood is particularly tasty!" Gabriel growled.

All the while he had kept on talking, the hybrid had surveyed his situation. It would take him at least five running steps to reach the barricades, at which point he would already be riddled with bullets. And while he believed that his regeneration would be able to take care of any damage, there was always the chance that an errant projectile would somehow find his heart – his weak point, the destruction of which would spell his end. The other option was to fall back into the corridors, where the muskets would be impractical and the difference in numbers wouldn't matter. However, there was always the possibility that his enemies wouldn't even bother giving chase – a likely outcome, seeing as how their leader, Gabriel's target, seemed quite astute. He licked his lips and stomped the ground. As he heard a sound he had hoped for, Gabriel smiled. Finally, he had a way to turn the tables on the guards.

"Enough waiting around!" Gabriel roared. "Time for me to feast!"

Before the first rounds could be shot, Gabriel quickly dug his fingers into the floor, under one of the large stone tiles, and flipped it up. He ducked behind it, and as he had expected, the startled guards uselessly emptied their muskets at the tile, with the bullets harmlessly glancing off in every which direction. As soon as the gunfire had ceased, Gabriel pushed the slab over and stood up, intent on giving the men one more glare before rushing in. However, it was Gabriel who had been outplayed. While his guards had been shooting at Gabriel, the traitorous inquisitor had pulled the cloth off the mysterious object by his side. In a most unagreeable twist, what was revealed turned out to be a cannon.