Dark Hunger

A dangerous growl emanated from the demon's throat. He took another step closer to Elize who stepped back.

Seeing how she cowered, Laurel smirked. She walked past her and said, "What is your deal, demon?" she asked, straightforward. She wanted to get over with it as soon as possible. The demon stiffened seeing her.

Vaden growled and came closer. Caleb walked right behind Elize. Auril watched them like a hawk, ready with his magic. 

Vaden looks at him. In a deep dangerous and a hoarse voice, he said, "I am Vaden and I have come with a message from King Edyrm." His eyes that were spilled black, glanced at Elize. "King Edyrm wants peace and is ready to forgive all your aberrations. We will not fight you and will stop coming after you if—" Vaden looked towards Elize and licked his lips. "If you hand over the vampire to us." 

"Go to fucking hell!" Caleb growled, his fangs lengthening, claws sharpening and muscles bulging. He gave Laurel a withering look. She gazed back at him innocently and shrugged her shoulders. When he returned his eyes on Vaden, he said, "Go and tell Edyrm that he can shove his ass up in hell's furnace." He started walking towards Elize. "And don't come back here, unless you have a death wish! And this meeting is over!" Caleb was seething with anger. 

"Caleb!" Vaden shouted. He lunged at him. 

A sudden roar emanated from Caleb and he swung a huge fist at Vaden in a killing rage. A crack of bone was heard just before the demon was thrown and landed over a truck on a tree that fissured on impact. Laurel shouted. She thought that the demon had fractured his spine or his collarbone. But the demon instantly scrambled to his feet and scrambled to his feet to attack Caleb. He snarled, his horns turning black. Caleb's snarled back peeling his lips back and revealing his sharpened fangs. His muscles bulged as his beast clamored to come out. 

Elize tried to get between them when Auril stopped her. "Don't even think of getting between them Elize." 

"But I am afraid that Vaden will kill him or he will kill the demon," she said in a shaky voice. Her body was trembling seeing the two in so much rage. 

"That is nothing Elize. But if one punch from them lands on you, you would be as good as dead!" Auril warned her. He came to stand in front of her. 

Caleb and Vaden started circling, scanning each other, emanating feral growls. Auril's hands glowed with magic and he hurled some in the air. The lights shot out and after a few feet with a soft blast sound, they dispersed. A haze of green light surrounded all of them now. 

Caleb struck a fist at him and it fell like a hammer on the demon. The demon's face whipped to side. Vaden balanced himself and fisted smashed his fist back in Caleb's face. Caleb's face swiveled to the right and blood sprayed out. And then as if this was his pushing button, Caleb charged at the demon. Their heavy bodies and footsteps landed on the ground, making dents in it and splintering any branch or wood that came in the way. 

Laurel looked too flabbergasted. Elize gave her a seething look, fury rising in her chest. "I— I didn't know that he would make this deal," she said in a low gravelly voice. 

Calen and Vaden were now in a tangle of fists and claws as they crashed into each other and into the jungle. Hardwoods and leaves and boulders shattered on their impact. Vaden had managed to disentangle himself from Caleb, but Caleb was relentless. He barreled into the demon and sent him flying towards the rocks behind. The demon was blasted into those rocks and on the impact that part of the wall of the rocks pulverized. Caleb slammed himself into the demon again and once again they were on the ground, punching each other. Caleb seemed to get some advantage. He had climbed on the demon and with his lengthened claws shoved at his chest. He clawed it from left to right, ripping a sizable amount of flesh and blood. 

With a painful bellow, the demon twisted his body up and kicked Caleb on the back. Caleb fell to the ground and Vaden took advantage of it. He got up and darted back to where Elize was standing. Elize screamed and ran to Auril, but Vaden had reached her by then. Just before he was about to grab her, Caleb came from behind and locked his arms beneath Vaden's armpits. He dragged the demon behind him and then shoved him to the ground. With a deep grunt Vaden scrambled back to his feet and charged at Caleb, however, by that time Auril flung his hands in the air. Branches grew rapidly from the trees and they trapped the demon inside. 

Vaden punched the wooden cage he was inside, but the branches would stitch themselves again and again. Seeing that Vaden was struggling, Laurel silently sent a magic tendril his way and coordinated with Vaden's punch. The cage broke and Vaden jumped out. Caleb was about to charge again at him when the air above them whooshed and they heard a boom of wings beating. Suddenly, Caleb saw two winged demons landing on the ground right behind Vaden, their gray leathery wings flapping behind them. 

Caleb let out a dangerous rumble. The winged demons were dangerous. He had dealt with them in Ixoviya. If he touched their blood, he could asphyxiate to death. And there was no way he could kill them. Only jāmbia could kill the winged demons. 

Wiping blood from his split lips, Vaden said, "Now you either hand over the vampire to us or you are gone!" 

"Fuck you!" Caleb said and spat blood to the ground. "She isn't going anywhere. But you are going to go to hell!" 

At his words, the winged demons charged at him, their tongues darting in the air and eyes becoming narrow yellow slits. Caleb was surrounded by Vaden and two winged demons, all of them circling him. 

Laurel screamed. "Leave the king!" she said. She looked at Elize accusingly. "You can take me if you want, but please leave the king." She back-walked towards where Elize was standing to use her magic on her to push her to where Vaden was. She quietly flung her magic at Elize to push her, but the vampire didn't move an inch. Shocked that her magic failed on the vampire, she hurled a stronger beam at her from behind, but Elize still didn't move. 

With a loud screeching sound, the winged demons attacked Caleb. However, before they could attack Caleb, Auril released his magic. He flung a beam of green lights towards them. The light hit the demons on their wings. It was like a soft touch to them. They felt as if their battered wings were healing. With more energy they punched Caleb who returned the attack. But the winged demons started lagging soon. Their wings started to itch.. At first the demons didn't take notice but soon their wings became heavy and they were unable to even lift them.