Ch 30 - Fear

I bearly managed to restore my pseudo-domain in time and even then it was not perfect it couldn't handle any significant attack. The demons trapped inside could see that too as they began to take a stance four in front and three behind, seven overall not good but something I would be able to handle. How long can those two hold those demons at bay? As my mind goes there I hear Joshua cry out from behind me.

""Bismillah ar-Rahman ar-Raheem"" I started Chanting and began focusing on them to banish them but they wouldn't let me get another workout. Two from the front with swords charged as the first part of the ritual took place. But in my domain, I was able to outpace their attacks, blocking the one on the left and landing a smite with my fist on the other one. Sadly it could give me distance as I could only use a pseudo-domain and couldn't stop the healing effects. But the distance was enough to get off the first of three invocations.

""bism allah 'arqik min kuli shay' yudhika, wamin shari kuli nafs waeayan hasidu. allah yishfika, bism allah 'arqika."" I start lightly glowing the manna reacting but not ready to fully take power. But they wouldn't give me such an easy chant now. As the two other demons charge now with spears, the one I sent flying was able to quickly recover and join them. I focus on defense focusing on the closest demon keeping me safe but locking me on the back foot for a few seconds leaving no chance to chant or even breathe. Risking the hit I stopped and focused on chanting getting stabbed by a spear gorging me a bit and slashed deep by the two swords, but with the healing of the domain, I put the pain aside as I knew I would survive.

""bism allah 'arqik min kuli shay' yudhika, wamin shari kuli nafs waeayan hasidu. allah yishfika, bism allah 'arqika."" The intensity of my manna grew and so did the intensity of their attack to such a fierce pace I couldn't hear anything besides the roaring flames of their weapons. I went on the defense so I could recover a bit but as soon as the slashes were healed before the spear would be healed I felt i sharp pain in my chest. Getting stabbed from behind I just started chanting, the one sword demon charged again aiming for my head but I grabbed the demon that tried to silence me I forced it to the ground using the basics of the Jacob's hand technique. I continue as the demon stabbing me tries to afflict me with diseases the combination of the enhanced physique of the descendents of Seth and the healing aura keeps me healthy outpacing its attempts allowing me to get off the chant a third time and banish the demon. 

""bism allah 'arqik min kuli shay' yudhika, wamin shari kuli nafs waeayan hasidu. Allah yishfika, bism Allah 'arqika."" In the brilliant release of manna, the demons were banished, the one in front of me and the other that had stabbed behind me. I cry out for breath watching the demons retreat to the opposite end of the domain. In the crowd of people, the demons hid hoping I would hesitate, I did but also took the chance to heal. It was too valuable to pass up on the chance to get back up to peak condition. Noting my actions the demons acted 

The demons were more than willing to use any card they had. Two demons hopped into two of the people in front of them. One was a black woman with a strong physique most likely an athlete and the other was a colored man, half a head taller than most and with average build for a much shorter man. The one restriction on banishment was for the demon to not possess a person or more simply Exorcism Before Banishment except in the case of Summoning. Thank you ThaThu. Peaking behind I could see I couldn't get to the backpack on Joshua as he was struggling with demon. both of them were struggling and heading there would only bring the demons with me. 

Calming down I refocus and make a quick plan shrinking the domain to encompass only the people and demons in front of me. The two posessed lunched towards me while the domain enclosed them but as their hand shattered on the barrier I closed off my mind and released the barrier. Pulling the residual aura from the barrier and the external aura around me I form two batons, that might be a generous name for two rectangles but regardless I grip hard and change.

They summoned their weapons but their attacks were batted aside, while I tried to knock them out. For a demon to pose anything other than an awakened descendant was dangerous as they were at the mercy of their body state and with their bodies under the red man's control they were much stronger. If I killed them that would be a simple way to banish them. But I wouldn't, I couldn't do that to I kept the back foot to keep the people safe and find the third demon. I couldn't find him and without a domain, I couldn't sense him so I covered my back with more aura than my front. Their attacks there were just as fast and aggressive but their new bodies almost threw their attacks in a more aggressive style opening up their boys to attacks. The lady swang down at my head, I brought up a baton to block it but disputed my aura at the last second and let the attack through sending the possessed off balance enough for a clean hit on their head, knocking it to the ground splintering the road. With one down I split my attention between the posessed in front and the demons behind I went for a risky tactic and while blocking an attack I reached my free hand out to the crowd and shouted.

""Azamtu alaykum"" I chant a short form invocation in a much lesser burst of manna to try and control the closest demon to turn the odds.

"You do not command me, Woman!" The demon raged appearing at the head of the crowd and directing its anger towards me as it charged with its flaming sword weaving seamlessly through the crowd towards me. Mandella had luckily covered me quickly chanting and managed to get 3 demons at one his demon that was being hassled by Joshua, Joshua's demon that was wrapped by the chain part of his weapon, and the demon that had charged towards me all got banished In a flash of light. I was never so glad he knew how to shorten invocations.

One demon left we can do this, They can do this Adam hasn't landed yet. With a second to finally catch my breath, I looked up to see a terrible sight, the storm front that Mandella had summoned was vaporized it even reached down to where we were standing. The sulfurous wind didn't affect the demon but it lightly singed me, burnt up Mandella and Joshua, and severely burned the people surrounding I acted almost on instinct and flared my aura to its limit not worrying about the damage or the inefficacy of using aura like that. So as my body was broken and healed constantly in the span of a few seconds a wave of green aura flooded the area haeling everyone it reached. Joshua and Mandella were now in near peak condition as I nearly fell to my knees from pain and the physical, mental, and manna exhaustion that had caused. As the two possessed made their way towards me I stood my ground.

Adam landed in the crowd and my priorities switched to keeping him alive. I would have helped him overpower the demon but they rushed towards each other with no hesitation. As staff and crozier clash Adam overpowering him for an instant but it wasn't to last. As a group of people flooded to them moving again under the control of the red man, filling the gap between the two of them, not having confidence in the command invocation I focused my manna into the aura to burst and set up a pseudo-domain for Adam and The Red Man to fight in keeping the people safe. Its expansion will hurt the people but hurt is something I can cure, death isn't. Charging up I pull as much of the residual aura towards myself and charging up my internal aura I don't get a chance to act. Adam begins chanting in an attempt to force the demon to react but it would be, out from the crowd of people that we were dealing with a blur shot out towards them. The curved golden sword of Joshua Struke the Red Demon across the chest with a spray of blood-red aura and the red-suited demon's face contorted into an evil and rancid grin.