Queen's note: I love this giant stupid man. But damn can he have moments…of stupid. He's going to blame the sarcophagus.

B.F.D.G.

Chapter Nine:

Misplaced?

The other humans were definitely just that bit too far ahead of him now. The Slayer could smell better the longer he was away from the sarcophagus, and just being aware again. In other words the Slayer could track those he was after by scent and by sensing the living souls. Or at least one of them he had gotten used to during these last several nights. Exactly how many he was not sure.

The problem was they kept running away from him. Or was it the strange, oily possessed that they were running from?

The Slayer paused and knelt beside one of the heavy air lock doors, glancing around just in case something was going to try and jump on his rear end again. Then reached out with his free hand to feel over the mostly smooth door. Shifting how he knelt and held the human just a bit more firmly against the left side of his chest. Feeling her head against his neck in his current crouched position as he found a hand hold.

He tried not to dent the metal, it was an airlock after all, but something creaked under his fingers as the Slayer slowly lifted the door up. Muscles flexed and rippled from arm down to his back. He had to concentrate really hard not to flex his left arm or hand, so as not to hurt Cassidy. His new human charge was already limp again, at least not reacting much as he carried her.

The Slayer was trying to stay in the larger main halls, but more than once he had to stoop to get through the smaller doors. He missed the Argenta architecture all at once, now that he could compare it to human made structure. Argenta made things were always inclined to be on the larger, if ornate side. He did not almost hit his head nearly as much, or have to ease through a doorway back then. At least the main halls were a good sixteen or fifteen feet tall, giving him just a few feet of leeway to stretch.

A high pitch screech from one of these new creatures had Cassidy flinching against him. The Slayer reflexively growled a low note as he looked up, holding the human a bit more firmly against his chest as if expecting something to try and grab her. Trying not to hurt her as he ducked under the lifted door, wincing as the door dropped a little faster then he expected. It scraped his back and the giant growled as he turned to eye the door. Not seeing any of his blood but his back smarted.

Weapons fire had him swing his free hand from reaching behind him to double check, to the front as the Slayer reflexively moved to guard who he held. A thunder deep rumble came out of his chest as he looked around the dark hallway. Only light coming from somewhere ahead before the screaming of possessed rose in the air.

He was getting up at the same time a human voice yelled. The Slayer stretched out his full stride as he made it five paces before grunting as he hit his head on a low vent. It did not hurt but was annoying as the Slayer growled at it, before having to hunched lower as he moved. Free hand lifting off of Cassidy to reach up and help him find lower things. As wee as he could see in near dark he was not back in the habit one might say.

Too late the Slayer realized he had felt smaller hands holding his wrist when he was covering the humans head just in case. He grinned wide in the dark, his new little one had been moving on her own? Was she trying to get comfort-

…Wait.

How do you give comfort to a human-?

The Slayer grunted again as he stood too soon and clipped a door frame. "...ugh."

Cassidy…giggled. It was so very soft and faint, just two notes of sound that slipped out despite the stress. That should have been completely lost under the sound of the not so distant firefight, and if the Slayer did not have such good hearing he would have missed it.

It had him smiling in the dark, ducking his head to chuff against the little human's hair. Feeling the startled gasp and a small movement. She was still one of the best things he has smelled in ages.

"Hm?" the Slayer chuffed again as something was clicking into place. Even as he moved a little bit more carefully in the near pitch dark of this area. Lifting his right hand back to where the human was and carefully, lightly tapped her knees.

Cassidy shifted in response, reaching down and fumbled as she was completely blind in the dark corridor. Little hands found and gripped the Slayer's fingers, making him almost purr. She had to close her eyes before, in order to move around or interact with him in her spot behind those colorful machines.

"Are…" a shaky voice tried to speak up, but more of a whisper. Cassidy hesitantly looked up, seeing the glowing green eyes in the darkness. "Are…you going to…help them? …please?"

The Slayer hummed, lifting his free hand up. Cupping it against the human's head as he hunched down. Feeling some of his muscles pull in his back but the Slayer was able to rest the bridge of his nose against Cassidy's head. Trying to give reassurance as best as he could, before giving a slow, firm nod once against the human. Twice, three times.

He was going to help, do not worry, small one. He was awake now.

The Slayer let go, sitting back up, remembering to hunch as he followed the sounds of the fight as it was starting to die down. He could catch voices not demonic altered, and the light of the Mars colony was coming through a new set of windows. He needed a safe place to put his human, fighting while holding someone breakable when he was best at breaking was… not a good idea.

Where would be safe? He could not just leave her alone in a storage space that can be broken into. Or an alcove if he had to move farther away. There were no other colorful machines he could put her in. The vents likely were passages now for the slimy possessed.

The Slayer's new charge was such easy prey she could be killed or dragged to a gorenest. If only she was just that much smaller that he could hide Cassidy in his armor-

The giant stood upright and paused for a moment.

He looked down as he was beside another long window of the Mars colony. For the very first time since waking up, he wondered where his Praetor suit was. Also realizing he did not even have his under suit on. Had the Blood Priests really thought him being stripped bare of armor would keep him from being able to fight? Did they really think he needed weapons to fight?

Slayer snorted, moving down the hall before catching sight of oily black moving in the dim light. His own eyes brightened in the glow as he fixated on the crawling forms he could see now. The giant of a man let out a breath that rumbled as a growl as he took a deep breath.

The low, but very carrying, three tone whistle had the possessed freezing. Even if the closest in the group were promptly shot rapidly by the humans taking advantage of the distraction. The ones out of range seemed to forget the living they were harassing and jerked around as the whistling continued. Slayer smiled as the oily things still standing shattered into vents or holes in the floor and walls.

Whatever had taken over the body after the souls had been taken was starting to realize Hell's predator was back.

Good.

Slayer huffed in protest as he realized the humans too retreated down another hall. Stopping the whistle and grunted as he cleared the distance, one possessed poked it's head out of a hole in the floor at the vibrations, used to waiting to attack with hearing things that much. The demigod did not slow his pace but adjusted his stride to kick the back thing with the inside edge of his foot. Grinning in satisfaction as the decapitated head went flying, then made a startled sound as the head bounced off a wall and careened into where the humans went. There was no shots but he head clattering oddly a lot and a short scream that matched Margery's voice.

Slayer winced as he slowed and stopped, approved the wide door and looked in. Not finding another hallway but an open passage that was…vertical. He did not want to admit it took a good twenty seconds to realize this must be the lift shaft mentioned to the next level that he had overheard. There was a tunnel that was safe for his human to get away right?

Perfect!

Slayer gave a pleased rumble as he looked at the little Cassidy. He could catch up with the humans and give her to them, making sure they would be safe before investigating what was… below still. Hunt down the weird, bad tasting possessed, make sure a nest has not formed and… and…

Find some real food for fucking once.

Slayer was getting tired of hell growth and feral demons.

He missed Argenta good food too, more so that soup-stew that Valen's wife always made to have for wintherin riders at base camp of the hatching grounds. Slayer might get a chance to try and make that, or something close to it.

A screech on this level drew his attention. The Demigod grinned at the challenge attempt, looking around and then found a nice cubby to the right of the inside of the lift shaft. Something that seemed nice and solid as he tapped it, like a spot that used to hold tools or just a safe spot against the lift itself? It did not seem like a brake systems. Slayer chuffed down at the human he held, shifting how he held her against her and moved to try to put the little Cassidy somewhere safe.

Taking just a moment, the near giant carefully touched the human's head with a finger pad. Rumbling in a way he hoped was reassuring, the back of a knuckling brushing a little cheek as Cassidy was trying to wake up again. Or just respond more than that cute little squeaking.

Slayer pulled back and stood in the hall, rolling his shoulders and flexing his free hands, missing the helmeted form peeking up the lift shaft below. He growled seeing a bigger possessed, one of the likely oldest so far, slick and a bit bulkier as it more had to slide out of a new opening in a wall then crawl out of it. Almost as big as a proper Hell native imp, but not quiet as big.

Good.

Whatever was going on had not progressed to an open gore nest yet then-!

A true Imp dropped off the ceiling from behind one of the bulk heads and chittered as it twisted in the air. Spotting the unarmored Slayer and flashed a wide toothy, but tongueless smile, hell made lighting up along its arms as it moved with a notable gracefulness in the lower gravity on top of its normal quick speed.

The smile that had started on the Slayer's face shifted to a frown.

Well.

Shit.

He snarled at the creatures, taking a step forward as there was scrambling behind him in the hall, not the lift shaft. Twisting, the giant of a not really man grabbed part of the opened door, wrenching it mostly closed as he got a glimpse of something black and red. Just before he was about to snap the door back open he realized in a split second that it was not a demon but one of those human guards pulling themselves up to where Cassidy was.

A charged fireball was splashing over his exposed back, burning at the not as callused skin from the sarcophagus. That made up his mind, the human guard should either protect his new human there or get her away from the spawning fight. Slayer was not very much the focus of the demon and its following possessed, and hopefully would stay that way. Demonic charged fire rolled over the front of his right shoulder, Slayer snarled as it burned this time as he all but pounced his gull weight onto one creature.

He felt it's strange outer layer going pop before there was a crunch of bones. For the second time he wondered where his armor was, extending his senses to try and find it even as a slimy oily thing was pulled off his back and tossed towards the imp, getting up and it felt more like a lumber towards the demon that bounded away. Almost at the last second Slayer turned, saw the 'younger' possessed scrabbling at the lift door and grabbed the nearest thing. There was nothing there, just some broken vent slats, he tried throwing one, it hit a possessed but another was trying to squeeze through the opening.

A rather inhuman sound came out of the demigod as his awareness shifted that needed little bit. Even though he did not have his Praetor suit one, he could just barely get into his subspace. There was a shimmer in the air around his right hand before he grabbed the first thing on the surface. An all too familiar, and well worn in hilt.

It's weight became solid and real and the nearly two foot blade was thrown hard enough that it Slayer had it out of subspace. He tossed it up, caught the blade itself, it was very warm in a way that hinted his armor was somewhere warm or hot as well. The thrown, propper blade sank not only into the possessed but through the door itself, not just jamming it closed but it might as well have a deadlock now. At least for now, so the predator of hell could focus on the annoyance of the Imp.

He had to be a lot more methodical going back and forth, to get the smaller oily things first. Still somewhat aware of something growing and coming closer to them from below. Trying to place why it was familiar, as he finally cornered the Imp.

Unlike the others so far, this was a full demon, and once its tactic to run away failed the Imp launched forward with full aggression. Surprisingly not so young of a thing, as it had thicker boney like armor and a more red-plum color as it…dodged the Slayer's hands. Its own claws laenthened as it sank them into the giant's inner left thigh. Tried to dodge again but one claw was stuck in the flesh.

Roaring in pain and anger if could even do so, the demigod struck downwards. Once, twice, three times his fist hit the Imp's armored backside. Again, even with the lowered gravity it should not have taken that long to crack the armor.

To break the demonic bone basically.

Slayer was starting to get more than get annoyed at what had been drained and stolen from him. What had the prison of the blood priests really been doing to his body?

He dragged the Imp back from it trying to go between his legs, feeling it scraping the floor at his calf as Slayer just used his body weight again, trying to as he was still twice as tall, and several times the mass of an damned imp. Even in lower gravity. He had a hold of the Imp with one hand, and was not going to let go as his left knee and lower leg pressed down. Only shifting his grip once his second hand on its other leg.

It took far more effort then it should as before, but slowly, inevitably something started to give in. Like all things in and Hell corrupted, it would break under his hands.

As well as knee in this case.

The imp's screams lasted a solid two minutes as the only Predator of Hell ripped it apart one limp at a time. As much to draw in the other possessed back from where they ran to, as well as just starting to let loose some of that centuries, ages old anger that has been simmering just under the surface since that damned collapse.

Covered in black demon blood, and whatever that thick oil was, the demigod made his way back to the lift again. Leaving a trail of his own blood behind as it dripped down his left leg. It was not enough to sate his building hunger, but enough to curb it. Feeling his body temperature heating up to start and try and burn the demon blood like he used to do. Ripping out the long combat knife out of the door to the lift as he knelt, checked over the blade but the human made metal did not hurt it. Likely would not, it was the same alloy as the Argenta ship and Atlan hulls.

Slayer growled after he had to almost rip the door out of its track to make enough room for him to get in again. Turning to his right where…

He gave a low sound of disapproval, remembering seeing another…guard-type human now. Slayer had wanted his human safe, even remembered thinking the guard type would keep her safe.

Finding the spot he left Cassidy actually empty was… surprisingly annoying and did not set well with him after all.

Slayer took a few, slow deep breaths, catching his human's sweet-scent, and something more metal then flesh… not unlike a fully armored Night Sentinel. Only this armor the human guard had blended almost into the background scents.

Strange.

Glowing green eyes peered down in the shaft before Slayer put the hilt of his knife in his mouth. Reaching out and was just able to start climbing down. Slayer was going to keep following the humans, as it felt like the growing thing was getting closer to them too. Make sure they would be safe, see his human healthy before leaving her.

Ah, he just placed what that thing was he had been sensing.

A gorenest heart.

He needed to take care of that too, as it was mobile it might not be in a nest yet. If he killed it before whatever demon got it to the nest he could hinder hell trying to send any more things here.

With a plan in mind, the Slayer dropped the last bit to the bottom of this lift. Sending a vibration through the floor as he stepped out into the semi-dark of the…third floor. The blood dripping down his leg was not so much just his anymore. He needed something to keep up his accelerated healing without the Praetor suit assisting with directing that healing.

Slayer rumbled as he wondered if his new humans might have something to help.

He also promised Cassidy he would help the other humans, might as well make sure they leave the building safely.


REvies!

Jared Mcboomski: BFDG is interchangeable! for doomguy or demigod XD