Chapter 1

The thrown car crashed into the building And exploded with a loud boom! before smoke, and fire, billowed from the site.

Although it didn't look out of place if one considered the amount of destroyed buildings, fire and smoke erupting from different areas of the city.

Gunfire was unceasing and sweat poured down the support team's faces and limbs.

The culprit who threw the car was enraged as it missed it's target and also at the hail of bullets being hurled at it from a distance. But before it could do anything else, a huge black fist struck it's face causing it fly back more than two hundred metres.

"Hiyahhh!"

With a loud yell he jumped up high into the air and brought his body down with force before using his fist to hit and crush the head of the huge, hulk like monster.

A huge shockwave erupted from that area and the head of the type two dark flame demon burst with a splash of black blood and rotting brain matter.

But he had no time to rest, another several type two dark flame demons was approaching him steadily with a horde of at least fourty type one dark flame demons following suit all the while growling and shrieking.

The head of the person whose name was Tyson then started to ache. This was the fifth type two dark flame demon he was encountering in a span of just about fifty minutes and they were doing a number on him as well.

Although his body was protected by his dark flame, he still felt half the pain it received and he also couldn't keep that form for long.

He tightened his fists and got in an attacking stance while taking deep but slow breaths. He could feel the encroaching darkness on his skin which was spreading from his fist to his shoulder. If it covered his entire body, he would fall into a demon state and would go berserk before dying at the hands of humans or when the dark eclipse was over.

"Support team,get into formation diamond bank! All melee weapon users fall back! We'll

shoot these bastards down!"

Tyson shouted before charging towards the huge army of demons before him.

Third District

His dark flaming but agile tentacles wrapped around the type two dark flame demon and tore it's limbs apart. The now limbless demon then started screaming and shrieking before one of the tentacles assumed a pointed tip and dug into the chest of the demon before pulling out a dark heart which was beating very fast and immediately burnt to nothingness after coming in contact with the tentacle.

Without it's heart, it stopped shrieking and laid there dead. His is ten tentacles(five on each sides) drew back into his body. Like Dark Knight Tyson He was also feeling stressed and worried.

He had never fought this much type two demons in a single dark eclipse before neither had the duration been this long. As he was thinking, one of his support team members then rushed to him with a energetic but somewhat worried expression.

"Dark Knight Alex!, HQ has reported that another horde is on their way here!".

"Another one?!"

Wesley still in his salute stance waited for his next order although he could feel the impending pressure mounting on him as the thought of fighting another huge number of those things the third time weighed his morale and confidence down.

"From which direction?"

"Northeast Sir and closing fast!"

"Get into position! Prepare for another fight!" Dark Knight Alex said while drawing out his black flaming tentacles once more.

Wesley then told the message to the formerly twenty five but now fourteen man squad had their faces turned stiff. Most of them had escaped death countless times and managed to live till now. Fighting against another horde was going to be very hard and troublesome.

"ROAR"

A shrill roar-like cry tore through the air and seemingly countless type 1 dark flame demons poured out from a street and dashed towards them.

'That was fast!' Alex thought as he used his ten fingers to manipulate his ten tentacles, he lashed out at them while employing the method of grabbing, squashing, piercing and throwing of the dark flame demons while the rest of the squad busied themselves with shooting or slashing at the ones that managed to slip through Dark Knight Alex's attacks.

Then from the horde, six huge, hulk like demons made their way to him with grinning and smiling faces. Blood decorated their faces and bodies and huge veins and muscles bulged on their arms, bodies, and feet.

The type 1 dark flame demons then increased their charge with vigour and bloodlust and three more members were burnt and killed.

Wesley had just escaped an attack from one of the type one dark flame demons and immediately stabbed his spear through its heart.

It gave a shrill cry and then slumped dead with the dark flame which was emanating from it suddenly getting snuffed out.

He pulled his spear out of it's forehead and defended himself from one who had just lunged at him. He managed to use the stick to keep the type 1 flame demon at bay as the Dark Flame burning from it increased the temperature around him sevenfold.

"BANG!"

The head of the demon got hit by a bullet and it fell with a thud but it was immediately replaced by six more which seemed to surround him.

He dodged nimbly and rolled swiftly out of the ordeal while using his spear to stab at the chest of a type 1 dark flame demon.

The members with guns shot frantically and coupled with the releasing fire from the two Light Utility Vehicles, they were able to hold out against the crowd which was encircling them.

The type 1 dark flame demons were not really strong beings. They were like an average human and were not able to dodge bullets easily so even melee weapons were useful against them. Although their ability to shoot highly concentrated dark fire balls which could destroy even an Armored Personnel Carrier like clay was terrifying.

"CRASH!"

As Wesley dodged a dark flame fireball which was heading for him by a hair's length, Dark Knight Alex suddenly flew overhead him and crashed into a building.

He immediately stabbed the head of the dark demons and retracted his spear.

As soon as the Dark Knight had been taken care of by one of by a type 2 dark flame demon, the type one demons rushed forward while massacring the remaining members and due to the demons in such close proximity with their comrades the rate at which the machine guns q were small.

Wesley who could only use the stab and pull method was under serious pressure and constantly rolling to the side and dodging had saved his life countless times.

In a blink, six men had been killed by either getting torn or burnt by the dark flames. As Wesley was about to be a victim of a strike from the type two demon, a dark tentacle grabbed it's wrist and tossed it into a building.

Without letting it go, he continuously thrashed it and even used it as a weapon against the other type two demons.

The surviving members seeing that their Dark Knight was back on his feet and fighting, their previously lost morale rose a few levels and they retaliated with vigour.

After nearly an hour of fighting, it was already over. Only two more members lost their lives due to their own carelessness. Dark Knight Alex had protected them while fighting hard too although he was almost at his limit.

Using dark flames had advantages and disadvantages as well. If used to long, the darkness would engulf the user, causing them to lose their mind and go berserk.

And it was not fixed on only the time used but also on how much of it was used. So if one used it for only a minute but unleashed his full power, that person would be dangerously close to falling into the berserk state.

Aside from that factor, the rest of the team were tired and fatigued, physically and mentally, Wesley was no exception.

Since he joined the Dark Knight Association, he had never took on such a large number of dark flame demons at once. He also knew of one scary and glaring fact. If they were to be attacked at that moment, aside from Sir Alex, they were sure to die.

"Wesley! Ask the situations of the other squads!" Alex yelled to him while resting and panting. He had a feeling that they were not the only squad who had been besieged by a huge number demons.

Wesley then managed to stand after letting his aching muscles and arms rest before going to what was left of their modified metallic van.

He then sent out messages to the other three squads but no-one answered. They must still be in battle then.

"Hel-- we need ass--is--- we think -------"

Then suddenly from the second team, an SOS signal was sent out and a panicked voice echoed from the back although it immediately ended in static.

The person on the other side didn't make no sense but something was for sure, and that was that they needed help. He then glanced at Sir Alex.

He was currently panting while his tentacles retracted.

The second squad, that was Dark Knight Adela's squad.

Dark Knight Adela's dark power was strong but limited. She could only absorb dark flames from an enemy and use it against them. So that means the amount of dark flames she absorbed was the only amount she could use to fight back. But surprisingly, among the four Dark Knights,she was rated the third while Sir Alex was rated the fourth.

But her dark power had a great disadvantage. she needed time to be able to absorb the dark energy properly,so in a fight, if she could only absorb ten percent of her opponents dark flame, she could only use that same ten percent, so in a critical situation, it could be fatal.

In order to help her, the government released two light armored vehicles with mounted sub machine guns and one Light Utility Vehicle into her inventory, so it was surprising that she needed help while the other knights had just only two Light Utility Vehicles.

When the eclipse occurred, different babies were born and different kind of flames emerged. Dark Flames, White Flames and normal flames.

In the world currently, there were seven known pyromaniacs who possesed one kind of flame or the other.

The four Dark Knights possessed what was known as dark power. Scientifically and officially, it was referred to as dark flame pyrokinesis.

For differentiation purposes, through very advanced technology, measuring the amount of dark power in a body was possible and they were divided into three types : First Rates, Second Rates and Third Rates.

First rates were not common, but also not very rare as well. They were able to withstand the initial radiation within the first minute of a dark eclipse which caused the demonisation of normal humans and were even impervious to certain amounts of any kind of dark flames so they were usually the melee weapon users although they could not use dark flames.

Second rates were also impervious to the radiation and could even create their own dark flames!, although they couldn't defend themselves from other kinds of dark flames, their explosive power was on par with that of a missile and the heat of their dark flames could reach a staggering 1000 degree Celsius. Aside from that, they could use their dark flames during an eclipse or on a normal day, although the power would be greatly reduced.

Third Rates were impervious to the radiation as well, could create their own flames and even withstand dark flame temperatures of 900 degrees and even normal fire temperatures of 800 degrees, although they reach their limit faster than second rates. Their dark flames can reach temperatures of 1300 degrees but they can only use it during a dark eclipse.

To create their flames and use accordingly, they made use of the dark power in their bodies which also determined how they were rated.

Dark Knight Alex could control his Dark Power and make it solidify some what although it still retained it's hotness and transformed it into tentacles. He was regarded as a second rate, Dark Knight Tyson's Dark Power was similar as he could manipulate his Dark Power and make it cover his body creating a six centimeter thick dark flame barrier.

Not only did it create a barrier and protect his body from most attacks, it increased his physical abilities by over hundredfold and he was regarded as a second rate as well.

Dark Knight Leon was the strongest of the four and he was regarded as a third rate. Upon activation, his dark flames would emanate from his skin all around his body and form a transparent and thin shield around him. It also allowed him to soar at amazing speeds as well.

Dark Knight Adela's dark power acted like a magnet and allowed her to absorb any kind of dark flames, store it, and use it against the enemy, so depending on whom she absorbed the dark flame from, she could be a second rate or even a third rate

"Dark Knight Alex! Dark Phoenix has requested for backup, I think it's a code red!".

As soon as Wesley said that, both Alex and the squad members faces went gloomy. The remaining members were fatigued mentally and physically while Alex.. Well, he was almost reaching his limit. He had fought for more than an hour now and he was close to reaching the demon state.

"Sir! If it's convenient, we would like to go!, you look like you're close to your limit and we need you to be stable at the moment sir!" Wesley said with a mixture of concern and respect.

He knew the dangers of using dark flames for too long and if he were to fall into the devil state, it would be disastrous.

Alex only smiled briefly before getting up while stretching.

"Don't worry, I can still go am half an hour or so".

Wesley and the other members sighed in relief although the other members were a little angry he called them out of the blue. They hadn't even rested enough yet!. But they didn't let it get to them. Dark Knight Alex was always very kind and calm and he treated everyone fairly. Unlike the other dark knights who demanded respect or were very cold hearted.

But Alex knew it was just a lie. Since he wore s special dark flame resistant trousers and a long sleeve shirt, they could not see it but the dark layer had covered his entire body and was just at the base of his neck.

'Damn!'

Alex thought inwardly. It was now he actually

knew he was weak. It was now where the four Dark Knight's skills were brought to the test, and he was losing, he didn't know about the others but he was sure they were almost at their limits as well.

"We move now!" Alex said while moving to one of the  light utility vehicles. Every moment spent spelt disaster for the other squad and that was not what he wanted. In order to take control of the situation, they needed as many Dark Knight squads members as they could get.

They had brought the two utility light vehicles and a huge medium sized bus but nonetheless they could only make use of the two utility light vehicles and with a couple of breaths they were already en route to their location.

As the two U.L.Vs drove across the road,they couldn't stop being more confused. They did not come across a single Dark Flame demon, be it type 1 or 2 just burnt corpses or burnt and burning cars.

In the previous eclipses, the dark flame demons were usually scattered all over the city and would be easy to pick off one by one. Sometimes only half the squad would actually set out, but then again they usually numbered around at least twenty transformation cases.

They were sure they had killed at lest a hundred, and now, they received backup requests from the second squadron.

As Wesley sat quietly in the back of the L.U.V currently in the lead, he clutched his long spear tightly while trying to sort out his mangled nerves.

He was feeling pained. With every demon that is killed, a human leaves this world. As they had killed hundreds of the demons, no doubt hundreds of humans would cease to exist. They never even got a proper burial.

He had been working as a supporting squad member for a year, with this year being the second. He witnessed how the bodies would crumble like dust and be blown away with the wind as soon as the eclipse was over.

His body was constantly shaky as explosions after explosions were heard and military helicopters flew overhead once in a while.

As they were nearing their destination, sounds of gunfire, screams and more destruction started to increase.

"Man the Gun!" Alex yelled as he gritted his teeth and hopped down and charged into the horde which was almost enveloping the second squadron with the rest of the members following suit.

"KRATATATA....!!!"

The medium sized but powerful gun mounted on one of the Light Utility Vehicles released it's firepower and they tore through several of the type 1 demons and ripped them apart!

(Note: For easy writing purposes, I would be writing type 1 dark flame demon as T1 and type two dark flame demon as T2, thanks)

The sudden barrage of bullets managed to reduce the pressure on the already dwindled forces of the second squad and coupled with Dark Knight Alex's assist, they were able to fight back and regained more and more of their morale and fighting spirits although the same could not be same for their now dangerously low stamina.

Using his dark flame tentacles and their power, he pushed the demons back and slayed them in large numbers at once. Then realising something, he yelled out to one of the second squadron's members.

"You! Where's your leader!"

Normally he expected to see Dark Knight Adela fighting alongside her squad members but she wasn't there so they beared quite a huge force.

"She's! She's fighting a bunch of T2s at the front" He replied while reloading his glock swiftly before blasting a T1 which was lurching at him only to get grabbed by another T1 who then proceeded to bite down on his arm, injected some black liquid into its through its fangs.

Yelling out in pain, he blasted the head of the T1 while holding his arm. Then he screamed out loudly and then gunned himself down. That man knew what horrifying pain came after getting injected as he had witnessed a lot.

The skin of the victim would literally fall off and their eyeballs would melt while getting their limbs torn apart, he would rather kill himself than experience that kind of torment and excruciating agony.

Alex on the other hand had dashed to her location, following the sounds of destruction that was coming from over two miles away while massacring any T1 that hindered his movements.

Wesley was having a hard time in keeping the demons at bay and was constantly getting scratched or scorched one time or the other.

There were times even stray bullets whizzed past his head but he didn't even have enough time to complain as he would immediately be besieged by T1s or several dark flame fireballs would hurl at him.

Now that Dark Knight Alex had left, the horde seemed to have increased their attack power and some members were already succumbing to them.

Wesley was now at his physical limit and could collapse any minute now but his strong will kept him going.

The armed members were constantly using their APS-95 assault rifles to decimate the T2s numbers although unless the bullets hit either their skull or chest, it had no effect on them.

Seeing that the number of the horde was already decreasing, a few members increased their efforts and lashed out more aggressively but due to fatigue and tiredness, some unlucky ones did not dodge fast enough when necessary and they got incinerated by the dark flames.

Only the Armed members death count was low as they could attack from a distance while using guns unlike the Melee weapon users who had to come face to face with them.

However, bullets used to kill the demons were special and completely different from normal bullets, coupled with the fact that they were very expensive to make, therefore the amount of munitions were not really bountiful.

In a squad of twenty five members, unless itvwas an emergency the bullets were not used. Even when they were used, only ten had guns were given four magazines every time they set out. If not for the fact that the Knight had dropped munitions for them during their first battle, they would have well been wiped out although their total number of bullets was decreasing fast.

Dodging yet another dark fireball Wesley then stabbed the spear into the head of the demon and swiftly dodged an incoming dark flame which was being hurled at him while removing his spear also.

Then with all the strength he could muster, he threw the spear at it's chest and it struck beautifully causing the T1 the jerk backwards as the dark flame burning on it stopped, leaving only a burnt, scarred corpse.

Other T1s seeing he had no weapon with him then rushed at him, but were gunned down by the rapidly shooting machine gun on the L.U.Vs which was already heating due to its consistent use.

As the L.U.Vs continued to show their firepower valor, all of the T1s suddenly stopped their attacks and turned back suddenly.

This shocked the squad members but they immediately came back to their senses and made short work of them with their fire power and slashes.

Unfortunately, they seemed to have gained  speed boosts as about ten seconds that they stopped their advances and ran off, they were soon out sight and the only beings that remained were the survivors of the horde who were wearing shocked and relieved faces.