The grip Seiri had on her long sword was loose, not wanting to stress her muscles with a tense grip before the fighting had even started. The remaining four ANBU unconsciously backed away and gave space to the red head and their possessed comrade. 'Good', she thought, thankful that her new companions weren't protesting to the action she was taking.

She swung her long sword experimentally, testing the weight and reminding her body of her weapon's feel. She then got into an offensive stance and waited for the demon to make its move. It took but a moment, the creature provoked at her lack of fear. It charged at her blindly, rage seething in its eyes, the once-human man's nails grew abnormally long hardening into something akin to the strength of metal.

The demon swung an elongated limb of an arm, trying to slash Seiri with its claws. She dodged easily, the claws never touching her, and she found it extremely important to keep it that way for some reason. There was something about this demon that unnerved her, more than it should have. There was something different…

She couldn't figure out what, though.

Seiri swung her sword around like it weighed nothing, as light as a feather, managing to land a blow right under what should have been the demon's ribs. Blood flowed freely but the wound didn't seem to affect the creature. Its aura just grew and the weight on the girl's shoulders increased as result. She felt surrounded by the impurity, tainted, corrupted, but she knew that it all was just in her head. It wasn't true.

In a startling, horrifying moment, the twisted spikes on the demon's back stretched forth and reached for Seiri. She acted quickly, gripping her sword tightly as she swung it upwards in a skyward arc. She severed the spikes before they reached her, stopping them dead in their tracks before they receded, their tips dropping to the floor with a strange, metallic chime. The demon made no sound of pain. Only a roar of seething fury escaped its strange mouth.

Seiri's mind was working overtime, trying to piece together the clues so she could figure out how to defeat this creature. She knew what this demon was, she had learned about it, but she couldn't place her finger the memory she was trying to access. She mentally cursed, upset that she couldn't locate the information she needed when the moment was so vital.

She had learned about spiritual beings not from the Priests at the Temple, though. Instead, learning from the man who had taught her the forbidden language. That man basically taught her everything she knew that didn't deal with stealth or combat. The Temple, now that Seiri thought about it, only taught her how to kill the innocent and obey orders. Neither of which was of any use right now.

Underhand cuts, side cuts, side swings, lunges, overhead cuts, she made blow after blow on the creature. Inflicting wounds not even the strongest man could withstand. Yet the demon made no sound of pain, no cry of agony, only the shrill screech of its roar. Seiri made one last cut, directly into the creature's heart, expecting the beast to fall any moment.

It did not.

The skin of the former ANBU, which had been horribly disfigured through all the red head's cuts and jabs and the growing deformities caused by the demonic presence, now fell away from its body. As it slid away, sickeningly, all that remained behind was the skeleton. In response, Seiri, sword still in hand, drew her arms upward before lowering them in front of her, elbows bent, clasping her palms together, fingers intertwined, hilt of her blade in between. She whispered a short incantation before waiting.

Nothing happened.

Her motion and words were meant to guide one's mortal soul from their body, send it to the afterlife. It didn't work on healthy, living people, but was excellent when used against something spiritual. She should have seen the glow of the former ANBU's soul rise and exit the skeleton but there was nothing. Just a cold, hollow emptiness.

The bones still stood as if the man were still alive and walking, but then they broke, shattered into millions of pieces. The shards dispersed into all directions like a bomb had gone off inside the skeleton. Left in the corpse's place was a black cloud and a thick, evil aura that was tangible in its deep purple color. A creature raised out of the haze. It had the legs of a goat, the torso and arms of a man, the head of a ram, and the small wings of a dragon. The demon was even as tall as the ceiling of the wintry Temple.

Seiri's eyes widened considerably as realization dawned on her. She turned around and yelled for the rest of the ANBU to get the hell out of there. They ran with no complaint, terrified. It was amazing they hadn't fled already. She followed behind them and once outside, she stopped and looked back at the towering building of white marble. A low, booming roar errupted from the inside of the structure. Then, the building started to crumble as the demon swung its massive arms, wreaking havoc against walls and pillars to escape.

Seiri knew she had to fight the monster here. She couldn't let it escape.

It would kill everyone in its path.

Now she knew why there was no soul when she had uttered the incantation, the demon had eaten it. Used the man's soul to fulfill its hunger and be able to walk outside of the spiritual realm. the ANBU had been a sacrifice. This specific creature was one of the Sovereign. A guardian of the darkest reaches of the spiritual realm. Normally, they only appeared when a pact had been broken, when one turned against whatever agreement had been made with the Underworld. For a Sovereign to appear now, and from a possessed flame, it meant that someone had not honored their own deal. Perhaps that why the ANBU had yet to see any sign of the cult that was supposed to be here. They were running from their fears. This Sovereign was sent to collect their souls for their betrayal.

Seiri shook her head, people were so stupid sometimes.

The building collapsed completely now, leaving only glittering, frosted rubble at the demon's feet. As soon as it was free of the confined space, it began to grow larger. Now twice its original size. Before it came after Seiri once more, it lifted a massive hoofed foot and slammed it down on a small building just to the side of where the Temple once stood. Blood sprayed in all directions like a pressed tomato.

'So the cult was hiding there? Right next to the Temple?' Seiri thought shocked that the cultists had been daft enough to cower right next to their problems.

Then the demon turned its fiery, red hot gaze on her.