Gifted

Part 68: The Nightmare Demon

Jordan found herself in a battle against a young demon. It was an Alp, a demon that attacked people's nightmares. Jordan had found the shadowy hatted figure in the park. The shadowy figure lifted his hand and Jordan felt a huge weight on her chest. She drew back as she suffocated. The demon opened his mouth to reveal a long sleek tongue that he launched at Jordan. She dodged it, and prepared herself to summon Ala for help. The demon disappeared. Jordan turned around, panting as the pressure released from her chest. She saw Mr. Matthews standing behind her. He must have sent the demon to another time.

"Hey! I almost had that one! Sending them to another time isn't the same as killing them you know." Jordan said.

"You don't understand." Mr. Matthews responded. "This job is about getting rid of demons and putting them out of harms way. It is not all about killing." he said. Jordan scoffed. "You need to stop calling Ala for every battle. Eventually she will want her payment. Why are you even out here so late at night? You haven't been in school either. Your mother must be worried about you."

"Stop that!" Jordan countered. "You're always acting like you care about us, but you never tell us anything! I don't trust you!" she cried.

"If you refuse to listen to me," Mr. Matthews warned unfazed by Jordan's tone, "then you will certainly die. It's that simple."

"I don't care!" Jordan said. "I'm not like you or Casper. I will not leave people behind, or use them, or make them fight this battle against their will. I'm a different kind of demon hunter! I will not stop until every last demon in this world is not just gone, but dead by my hands! I have either lost or pushed away all of my friends, my boyfriend, and my family. I don't have anybody left to love, not even myself. Hunting demons is the only thing I'm good at. That is the one thing I refuse to lose."

At first, Mr. Matthews was silent. He didn't know what to say to the once cheery girl who had now fallen into complete despair.

"That's not true." he said. "There are still people in this world that love you. Hope is not entirely lost for you. If you come with me now, I can still save you."

"You liar!" she shouted. Mr. Matthews stepped back in surprise. "You've given up on me too! I can see it in your eyes. It's obvious. You're full of empty promises. Admit it, you might imply that you're here for my sake, but you aren't actually. You're motivated by someone else, aren't you? You think bringing me back safely will get Nora's attention?" Jordan teased.

Mr. Matthews was silent for a moment. He sighed.

"You have no idea what you're talking about." he said. Jordan laughed. "It's true that I am thinking of Nora as well in this situation. It disturbs me that you, as her friend, seem to only be thinking of yourself." Mr. Matthews said.

"What do you mean?" Jordan asked.

"How do you think Nora will feel after you are taken by Ala?" he asked.

"So, you are only thinking of Nora." she said.

"If you don't do as I say, your life will inevitably end." he said. "Perhaps it would be best to take you out right now, where Nora won't have to witness. That way we can avoid causing her more pain, Jordan Ark." he said. Jordan shivered and drew back in fear. She was shocked by his sudden change.

Suddenly Mr. Matthews fell to the ground. Someone had hit him in the head with a baseball bat. Jordan looked up to see Casper. He clutched the metal bat with both his hands.

"What was that for?" Mr. Matthews asked after he took a moment to recover. His head was bleeding, but he was still conscious.

"Run!" Casper said to Jordan. She did as she was told. She wasted no time at all getting as far away from the two other hunters as she could. "You told me you were just going to talk to her." Casper said to Mr. Matthews when Jordan was out of sight.

"That doesn't give you the right to attack me!" Mr. Matthews said as he wiped the blood from his forehead with his sleeve.

"Hey, you're pretty tough. I have to admit. Most people would have knocked out by now." Casper said.

Mr. Matthews made a fist and punched Casper square in the face. Casper stumbled back, holding on to his now bleeding nose.

"What the hell?" Casper said angrily. Mr. Matthews pushed past him and ran in the same direction that Jordan had fled. "Where are you going?" Casper called. Mr. Matthews was too quick. Casper let him get away. "Damnit!" Casper said.