Devil Cadejo V

Rush Collins walked with a heavy step into the dark. Only the sound of his footsteps resounded, the factory wasn't that huge so tracking down his target again was easy, there was only one good place to keep someone locked down in here and it was on the lowest floor. He had no idea if his companions made it out but he couldn't even tell if the enemy was about to get countless reinforcements, all he knew was that at this point he could only go forward in that decrepit hallway. There was only one way ahead for him now, his one chance to leave this fight was already gone.

The road ahead ended in a small room with a massive vault at its end, the only light was a small oil lamp on a wooden table, in front of the vault the legendary Desperado was leaning against the cold steel taking a long shot of a bottle of beer not caring if it spilled on to her clothes.

"You came all the same, you that desperate to find the girl. She is right here, this vault door is all for the show, it is not really locked. A pity you are not going to live long enough to see what is on the other side. She tapped the vault gate and then threw the bottle onto the ground breaking it into pieces, close to it a shadow turned into a hound that walked to her side.

"I don't know who you kidnapped, but if she is afraid in there, I will make sure to get her home." The old woman started laughing.

"You really don't know a thing? Life is honestly such a joke, the girl in here has no home to go to. Sorry, but I got paid to get her to my employer, and someone my age needs every penny I can scrap. I got twelve more bullets with me, more than enough, down here there is nowhere to hide we can only see each other straight to eyes." She reached for the revolver on her hip and the black hound began to growl.

"That's all right, the place I come from, will always welcome anyone without a home." Rush Collins crashed his shield against the ground and raised it again, the long cables sticking into his arm pumping blood slowly as his shield illuminated the room with a humming red light, they remained in silence as both of them knew there was no time or reason to speak anymore. Her fingertips moved over her sheathed weapon as she waited for him to make the first move.

Rush knew the moment he stepped forward it would be a duel to the death, but he could only go forward now.

The demonic shield Sabnock opened its mouth in delight as Rush ran forward. The woman as always remained calm as her hand pulled out her gun and let a gunshot ring. He raised his arm stopping the bullet from hitting his head and the bullet recoiled in the room. The shield crashed against the vault gate as she ducked below him and ducked out of the way she immediately shot again hitting Rush on his right leg, he screamed as he turned his shield and blocked the third bullet.

"Come on, you have to do better than that if you want to become a legend in this town." He punched the ai and his iron hand released iron spikes that were thrown forward toward her, breaking the distance he had yet to do this before and she did not see it coming, but the demon at her side did. The Black beast jumped from the side biting down the iron cable and stopping it from reaching her, giving her enough time to retreat out of the way of the other spikes.

"Damn it, I forgot this one is two against one." Rush closed his eyes, he knew that staring at the red eyes of the demon hound would be his end, he could not see the beast straight on.

"You are not alone human, don't you dare forget about me." The shield on his hand stated as Rush felt his arm move on its own, the needles tensing. The shield moved on its own blocking another gunshot that was going straight to his heart, the shield looked straight at the woman with its glowing eyes.

"Run to the right, just follow my lead human!"The shield spoke loudly.

"Ha, about time you make yourself useful you bloodsucker." Rush ran to the right still with his eyes closed, straight where Rigoberta was retreating, he quickly reached her and his arm moved on its own again swinging towards her head. She ducked the strike-throwing her hat against the wall as she shot twice more, she had no room to aim properly but she still shot him twice on his hip, spending the last bullets on her six-round revolver. Rush opened his eyes and send a kick straight into her throwing her against the wall, with a devastating force, even as a demon that kind of strength was far too much for her and she could barely stand again. S

"As I thought in a contest of strength I have no chance, haha, I think the last time I felt this unlucky was on that day, what a thrill, and here I thought I would never have my title as a legend on the contest, such a perfect final job this is." She spat blood as she quickly reloaded putting the last six bullets she had on the revolver again. Her shadow expanded into a hound at her side, a beast that growled not with threatening anger but rather fear.

"I survive this and retire with a fortune, or I die here and there will be nothing more to be told, either way, the legend of Desperado will finally end tonight.

Rush Collins had a twist on his throat, the woman's decisive expression made him doubt, but he knew she would kill the first chance she had and if we wished to live he now had to do the same.

"I knew it but this path I have now is really wretched."

"You having second thoughts boy."

"All the time...but I already put the life of my people at risk, so there is no stopping not ever." Rush raised his arm releasing more needles that injected themselves into his skin, his shield roared feeling the sacrifice of blood spread into its veins.

"You are no mercenary, no way you came here just for money, you honestly may not even know who the princess is, life is really comical sometimes, we really have no choice but to follow its twists and turns all the way to the end." The bounty hunter whistled and the demon hound ran forward towards Rush, he crashed his shield to the ground and ran towards it, the old bounty hunter remaining still with her gun at the ready waiting for a perfect shot. Rush kept his shield covering most of his body as he swung toward that demon hound, the black dog jumped slipping to the ground and disappearing below the earth.

Rush stopped raising his shield to block a bullet aimed at his shoulder, his entire body was aching, the demon connected to him was hurting him as fast as it was healing him. He was close to reaching her but his shadow turned into the hound and jumped towards his back, biting him on the shoulder. He quickly released the spike on his iron arm, throwing the demon off him, and turned around to hit it with his shield but as soon as he did he received another bullet in his back, and he almost fell down to the ground. He swung his shield to stop the dog from coming any closer and turned back to the bounty hunter, she had moved opposite to the hound, and he was in the middle of the two of them, it didn't matter what he did he had to leave his back uncovered to the enemy. He ran towards her again blocking another gunshot and crashed his shield against her, she rolled out of the way and he turned around before the dog could bite him on the neck.

The shield crashed against its skeletal head, but the dog didn't cease its strike it fell and jumped back and he had to block it with his arm, but the teeth of the beast still managed to penetrate its iron scales. Rush crashed his arm against the wall, but the dog simply slipped into it and disappeared as his furious fist broke the wall. Another gunshot rang his shield forced his hand up blocking his head from a direct gunshot. He stared at the hunter, his vision was getting foggy.

"We running out of blood, you'll pass out soon human."

"Tell me something I don't know. Give me a hand here and just keep that dog at bay and I will finish this"

"I hope so human, I rather not find another vessel, not after you have managed to hang on for so long." The voice of Sabnock was surprisingly candid somehow, Rush felt he could trust the demon on his back, this was not a battle he could win alone. He stared at her eyes as she moved his hand to her gun, she was measuring his response, she had only three bullets left but no hesitation could be seen in her eyes. They stared into each other's eyes with a silent understanding for one last time. He ran forward with his shield as the shadow behind him began to take form and the dog jumped at his uncovered back once more. The dog jumped toward his neck at the same time the revolver shot another bullet toward his heart. The needles released from his arm were completely controlled by the shield and the needle flew the hound before he could reach him piercing him, Rush swung his shield deflecting the gunshot, but the woman shot again changing its target and hitting his knee finally forcing it to collapse. He was not going to be able to reach but instead, he screamed and threw his massive shield with all of his strength toward her, the final shot of the revolver rang out.

The massive shield of iron hit her with such strength it pinned her against the wall, from its mouth the demon spit long cables that immediately pierced her body as she was pinned completely into the wall. Rush was breathing heavily, he had his normal arm raised and it was bleeding terribly, he had moved his arm to his head knowing she was going to shoot there, and took the bullet straight into his arm. It was his move, he no longer had any strength to even try to lift his shield again.

"Aggh...if I take this shield off I'll bleed out...guess that was all for me...you did good boy you may still become a legend in this town one day..."

" I wonder if you will regret this one day boy...the night that made me a legend, to me it was always the day of my greatest failure..." The shadows below her took the form of the demon hound, but it was staring at her, it had no interest in attacking Rush anymore and a green flame began to surround the black dog.

"I gave up on the future because I couldn't bear to lose my husband...but the city took him away all the same...how can they call me a legend when I was left with nothing...So I kept up being a legend." Rush stood up slowly he had no strength to speak up

The Cadejo, the black dog began to howl, it was a how of sadness, the beast could only move to her leg caring nothing for the flames that were burning him as the dog howled in sadness.

"I got you, partner, I know that even if I gave my son so you could live in this world, you were always there to me...protecting me in their place you old dog...young man...If you truly meant well to the kidnapped princess I ask you one last favor...'' She stared him in the eyes, with a bitter smile.

"Save that girl, take her as far from Villa Blanca as you can." As she passed out, the howling of the dog when silence as the green flames consumed it completely, Rush Collins forced himself to stand up and walk slowly towards her, the shield shot its long needles and injected them into his arm again.

"What are you doing...don't you dare suck her blood" He tried to stop his demon shield from feeding on the Desperado, but he could barely talk.

"Quiet I will not allow you to bleed to death human, so take her blood and raise me again."The shield cut off and Rush had no strength left to argue back, as the needles injected the blood back into his body.

"Damn it." Finally, he took his shield off her, letting her body fall to the ground as he looked down he saw the old revolver, this was not just any gun...something like this she must have had a personal reason to carry, maybe if she used a normal gun with more than six bullets, she may have won. Rush grabbed the gun, he felt he could not just leave it there abandoned. With the shield on his arm, he walked towards the vault gate, which had to be the place where the kidnapped girl was, he was sure of it.

"Whoever you are, I'll make sure to lead you somewhere safe that I swear." With all of his remaining strength, he forced the vault open, it wasn't truly locked, so he had no need of a code or key.

The hunt was over but Rush wasn't just a hunter and he had a duty to himself, only by doing this will he understand who that old bounty hunter truly was, and he debt her that much.

"Whoever you are, I will take you somewhere safe that I swear."