The legacy of the dark blood

Chapter 79

Rescuing Max

The officers' shots barely managed to hurt Max; Liz never thought that at some point she would have to face one of her own in such a way. She never knew any virtue in her leader, even so, she knew that the little stain of goodness that remained in him had disappeared, highlighting all his evil in the worst way. The wolf-faced being hit anything within his reach, only then the group of agents managed to get rid of him, even though his fists were accompanied by intense flares. There were only Jake and Nick fighting against the beast, Steffi and Andreas had gone to help their partner Tobias, taking advantage of the fact that their other companions were barely able to contain Max and that Ulrike was now behind the green warrior, who was exchanging arrows and attacks, moving all over the area until she practically disappeared from sight.

„Na, verdammte Scheiße (AH, goddammit!)" Nick cursed aiming at the monster's face, only managing to slow it down for a few seconds "Sharrow, can you do something to control this lout?"

"He didn't listen to us when he was in his five senses, much less now," Jake answered him within the momentum of the area.

Liz paused to analyze the situation, her instinct dictating that she shoot Max, not knowing if it would accomplish anything more than a senseless waste of ammunition. She remembered her stock of flower perfume, judging from the stories of the asylum sisters and her previous experiences she knew that one dose would not be enough against any of the Holzmanns, but perhaps, something could be done against this abomination. Waiting for some result, she took one of her perfume bottles and sprayed it into the air; its aroma was intense, Liz was still not completely free of the curse, she suffered part of its effects and in the same way, the enormous beast gradually ceased its attacks, suffering mild poisoning symptoms.

"That's not enough!" exclaimed Nick when he saw that the being was recovering from its symptoms, although its monstrous figure was gradually disappearing and its face was recovering its human form.

"He's getting back to his senses!" Liz shouted excitedly.

The monster identified her as its next target, its gait now slowed, but it remained relentless. Its voice regained a human timbre, it was suffering; Liz didn't know if this thing still had any Max in it, nor if its suffering would be a reason for her to be happy. She was about to spray the perfume a second time, her lack of determination did not hesitate to take its toll; Max managed to hit it with his semi-human arm that brushed against one of her arms, the perfume bottle broke as it fell to the ground. Its scent wafted with intensity; Max was neutralized for a longer period of time.

"Sharrow!" Nick was coming to support him along with Jake, among the other officers, "It's time, we must take him out now!"

"Wait!" Liz stopped him "maybe we can ....!"

"Come on, Liz, this is not the time for considerations," Jake replied, firing his shotgun at Max.

Max's situation seemed irreversible, Liz didn't want to rule out the possibility that their leader was still behind the horrifying mask of the demon in front of them. This one out of control, it was pounding the pillars to the sides, cracks in the walls soon spread, a rock collapse was coming.

"Shit, let's go!" Jake urged them to move from that spot by heading down an alternate tunnel that was out of reach of the stalactites on the ceiling that were about to fall. He asked for the attention of the German officers who stated that all was well with them, they refused to leave their partner behind. Only Nick went to accompany him, followed by Liz. Max was behind, showing desperation and not giving up, he wanted to finish off the agents. Finally, the rocks fell, they barely managed to graze the monster that remained on their side, at least they had the satisfaction that the German officers had been left behind out of reach.

They ran for their lives, managing to hit the occasional shot from behind; Max was gaining speed, the flames covered his body with greater intensity and his sores were already emitting repulsive odors. Liz felt dizzy, she could not stop; her marathon against death was interrupted by a precipice; the darkness did not allow to distinguish what lay in its depths, from there, an evil aura emanated. They had no choice, they had to face the beast that pursued them. Nick kept another of his explosive grenades in his fist, ready for Max's monster to make an appearance.

"Do you have any more of that perfume?" asked the officer, Jake held up a bottle, smaller than Liz's. It wasn't much, but it was better than nothing.

Nick took the bottle from Jake's hands, sprayed the perfume over much of the place, Liz's dizziness becoming more constant. Max's relentless footsteps could be heard, his roars revealing his desire to end the agents' lives, until it happened. The scent of perfume stopped him in his tracks, his human form was becoming more and more noticeable; Nick threw the grenade that exploded in front of him, seriously aggravating his wounds, to which were added the shots from the agents' weapons; the beast's power was decreasing to a point where he had no more energy left to continue.

"STOP!" Liz called for her companions to stop firing.

Max staggered like the living dead, he looked sideways at his former companions. His face expressed pity. He continued walking aimlessly, looking at the black spot that marked the cliff, he continued without stopping.

"Liz, I..." with a thick monstrous voice, he was able to utter a few words. Liz was surprised, she hoped she could do something for her leader, everything that had happened had been more than enough punishment for him. Their leader didn't see it that way, he continued on his way to the cliff where he let himself fall to end the nightmare that afflicted him so much. Liz, Nick and Jake watched the edge of the abyss in bewilderment.