A Burning Heart

Chapter One

Three Weeks Prior

"This isn't my first time dealing with people like you"

"Really? You've dealt with rampaging demons before? Please tell me their names, maybe we can exchange numbers and get together for tea and biscuits."

She circled around me, the only thing illuminating her terrifying silhouette was the light from the lampposts. She unfolded her wings and swished her long tail back and forth. My whole body tensed up and my finger squeezed tighter against the trigger.

"Stop.'' My voice was shaky in the cold air.

She glanced at me and folded her wings back down, while slowly coming to a stop. She made a deep, guttural noise in the back of her throat and turned sharply on her heels. Her deep maroon eyes met with mine and she glared, her attitude going from carefree to lethal in a spilt second. She began to strut towards me, tail swishing with every step she took.

Remember your training, you are a hunter, this is what you were born to do, don't let her-

"And who are you to tell me what to do?"

She was only steps away from me now, even with the barrel of my gun in her face I could still feel my legs shaking.

Clink

She had brought he sharpened nail to the opening of my gun, swirling her fingertip around the barrel.

"Stupid Hunters, deciding who gets to live and who gets to die." Her voice was low and menacing.

I was told to try not to communicate with her, she was a demon, a succubus, one of The Devils concubines.

"Is that really all the metaphors you could come up with? And I'll have you know I'm no concubine, that would be incest and-"

"S-stop!"

I was trying be intimidating, it wasn't really working.

"What's wrong? Can't converse with your prey?" She smirked and looked up at me.

She brought the barrel of the gun to her forehead and put put her hands down to her sides.

"Just end it."

Her voice rang through the night air, steam floating where her lips had parted.

Bring her back alive, intimidate her, she would rather die than be captured, be carful.

This is a hell of a lot harder then they said it would be.

"I need to bring you back alive."

Confidence

"Oh do you now?" Her smile grew wider, and she flicked her tail behind her. She stepped back a few paces and smirked.

"Then take me."

She brought both her hands out in front of her and rocked back and forth a bit.

W-what?!

"Excuse me?" My voice came out higher than I intended it to. I brought my gun back down to the holster and reached for my cuffs instead.

"I said you could take me, you know, capture me and bring me back to your basey thing?" I blinked a few times and stepped forward, cuffs in hand. I snapped the cool metal around her wrists and placed the key into my backpack. I pressed a button on my earpiece, signalling headquarters. I took another glance at the demon before I heard the familiar buzz in my ear. 

"Did you get the flying lady?!"

Opal?

   Instead of the usual deep, staticky voice I heard every other day, the voice yelling on the other side of the earpiece was my little sister, who was supposed to be at the apartments.

"Sis? What are you doing! If you get caught Tylin's gonna kill me!"

"It's okay Zaviy, Ms.L said I could help her make sure you caught the flying lady." Her voice came through muffled, but it was still as bubbly and cheerful as ever.

"Alright, just tell Dr.Lokai I'm on my way back now, okay?"

"Okay!" Opal hung up the call.

   The girl I had captured had wandered off a bit, and was leaning against the pole of a lamppost.

"So what now Mr.Hunter? you caught yourself a Class-8 monster, are you gonna take me away in a big white van and chop me up into tiny pieces? You know, for the good of humanity." Every word she spoke was practically dripping with sarcasm.

"No."

"Ah, so your gonna haul my away in a big chopper and lock me up in a glass prison cell, and then ask me questions I don't know the answer to until the day I finally die?" She moved from the lamppost and walked forward until she was in front of me again. I noted that she was quite a bit shorter than me.

"You were closer that time, but again, no."

   She opened her mouth to speak, but quickly shut it when a huge gust of wind blew in from above. Her eyes grew wide and she uttered a string of unintelligible cures. She brought her hands up to her eyes and attempted to yell over the noise.

"What the hell is that!" I could barley make out what she was saying over the blades of the chopper.

"It's a helicopter!" I had to yell into her ear for her to hear me.

Her expression turned into that of a terrified one, and it looked for a spilt second like she would make a break for it. The chopper landed lightly on the ground, and the side door slid open. The blades of Tylin's chopper came to a halt, and he stepped out, smiling broadly.

"Good job Xavier, we all thought you weren't gonna come back this time." His voice was cool and calm, just like always.

Tylin stepped out of the doorway and nodded his head towards the still open door.

"You go on inside, I'll deal with the girl."

Tylin had always been sort of, off. I stepped up the few stairs into the chopper, and sat down I one of the hard seats. I looked back over to Tylin and the demon.

"Now stay still."

She huffed as he removed the cuffs from her hands, only to re-cuff them behind her back. Tylin reached inside his bag and brought out a roll of thick, black tape.

"Turn around." After hearing Tylin's words, her face dropped and she looked more defenceless than my little sister.

"Please don't, I can-" her voice cracked, and Tylin whipped her around so that her back was facing him.

He's being a bit rough...

Tylin took hold of Her leathery wings, and began to wrap the tape around them, tightly.

"A-ah." She began to hiss through her teeth.

"Be quiet."

Tylin started to walk towards the helicopter, with her in tow behind him. He belted her into a seat and sat down across her, instructing the driver to take off.

Well this is gonna be interesting.