Free Of Kings and Demons by George Han Page A

like a quilt of different shades of
green, crisscrossed by a network of campus paths.
    Jin landed in the campus square
and dismounted from his steed. He checked the surroundings. The open lawn was empty,
with none of the usual human traffic, an uncomfortable void.
    Jin shut his eyes in deep focus
to grasp the presence of demons. Suddenly, a tremor of pain hit his temples and
blinded him. There is a source of darkness, and a powerful one.
    Jin tightened his fists and
summoned his strength to keep a lid on the surge of vibes but an explosion, and
a blast of hot air shoved Jin to the ground. Screams gushed towards him from
the north of the lawn and Jin soon witnessed students streaming out of the
campus church in panic.
    “Good lord,” he whispered as students
ran past him. Invisible to the human eye, Jin strutted in steady pace towards
the church and stopped when he saw a figure donned in robe of white and orange,
a halo above his head, heading in his way.
    “Guardian spirit?”
    “Lord Jin, I am Peter
Guildford, guardian of the campus.”
    “Guildford, what happened?”
    “There has been an explosion
over at the generators behind the church. There are demons, familiars! I had
just investigated when there were screams from the church …”
    Peter Guildford stopped
midsentence like he had sensed something. He was soon hit by a bolt of energy, and
within seconds just an unsightly mass of brown.
    Jin sensed another dark force, strong
and gushing like an angry river. It was too late to duck and Jin was hit by a
bolt of dark lightning. The impact hurled him over the grounds.
    The magnitude of the force was
shocked Jin. Only a very senior leader from the hierarchy of hell can muster
that sort of energy. Now he understood the attack on his mind.
    In his mental radar, he picked
up an approaching darkness. Jin murmured prayers to hold it bay and barely
managed.
    A voice, cold and strong like
steel, broadcasted in his mind. “My old friend. My old foe!”
    Jin knew that voice. He opened
his eyes to see a familiar figure. Clad in flowing dark robes and protected by a
ring of dark energy, rimmed with gold, he was formidability at its purest.
    “Darius. Barbatos. ”
    As Jin searched for words,
Barbatos lunged at him. Jin reached for his sword but the figure had locked his
hand onto Jin’s. A punch landed on his chest and Jin felt thunder rumbled
through his veins, and involuntarily fell to his knees. He felt blood on his
lips. Angel seldom shed blood and only a powerful foe could inflict such a
misery.
    Around him, the repercussion of
Barbatos’s punch sent tremors that tore into the façade of the nearby
buildings, including the bell at the clock tower which swung wildly. Windows of
nearby vehicles were shattered and shards of glass flew through the air.  
    Jin shook himself off
Barbatos’s grip. He somersaulted over and landed on his his feet. Jin then
threw his hands in exertion of his powers. Instantly the glasses stopped in
their projectiles and in another twist of Jin’s palms, the sharps felled
harmlessly to the ground.
    Jin turned to his foe and
remarked “You have grown stronger.”
    “So have you Jin.”
    Jin’s jaws squared with
defiance “Explain your presence.”
    “A loser does not have the right
to ask that question, Jin.”
    “Good Lord. What is in your
mind?” Jin mulled.
    “You will find out. I am not
going to destroy you today. I shall save that for another day.”
    Barbatos delivered another bolt
of dark force that pinned Jin to the ground. The Angel rolled over and
struggled to shake off the impact of the hit.
    When Jin regained his
equilibrium, Barbatos was no longer in sight. As he staggered to check his
surroundings, another explosion occurred. Soon, the campus was a scene of disarray.
    The Demons had shown their hand.
Finally.

Chapter
15
Battle
Begins
    Being
alone in the woods does not make him lonely. Maganus sauntered through the woods
like it was his garden, with familiar friends and cosy