His claws inches from Thane’s face, Xavier was brought to a stop as if caught in a spider’s web. The black fire surging from his flesh was now an inferno, eating away at him.
“Thus, cursed dragon, and you, diabolical legions, we adjure you by the living God, by the true God, by the holy God, by the God who so loved the world that He gave up His only Son, that every soul believing in Him might not perish but have life everlasting; stop deceiving human creatures and pouring out to them the poison of eternal damnation; stop harming the Church and hindering her liberty!
Begone, Satan, inventor and master of all deceit, enemy of man’s salvation!” He slammed the bible shut and held it above his head. “AAAAAMMMMEEEEENNNN!”
Xavier was thrown back, consumed in a twisting maw of flames, howling in agony. Thane could no longer see him, but in seconds, the flames disappeared, and a charred body fell to the ground, unmoving. The young exorcist fell to his knees, gasping for air from the monumental effort he had put in. He had come close to passing out at the end, but it did not matter. He had defeated the Antichrist. He stood up, relieved that the battle was over. The school was finally safe. It was time to spread the news.
He turned around but came to a dead stop, his heart dropping into his stomach as a dark laugh echoed through the cafeteria. He looked back and his vision was blocked off, Xavier grabbing him by the face and then holding him off the ground. From that connection, a wave of indescribable agony swept through him, with every single nerve ending being stabbed with hot irons. He could feel his bones breaking, his flesh being peeled away, his muscles shredded, and his organs being torn from his body. At the same time, he felt evil contaminate his mind, with visions of suffering and horror spreading through his soul like ink through water. Every memory he had was being overwritten, scenes of torture and agony being stamped onto the mental photographs.
Xavier let him go, dropping him to the floor with a circle of sixes burned into his forehead, smoking but soon vanishing. He stood unscathed, laughing. “You humans entertain me to no end with your arrogance. You think that by shouting some words, you can wield the power of God? That you can rain His judgment down upon me? That you, mortal men, have the ability to defeat a demigod like me? Nothing you ever do will be able to stop me. I’m the son of the Devil and a living human; do you know what means? My demon half protects me from all things physical, while my human half protects me from the ethereal. Whether it is a nuclear missile or the light of Heaven, I am indestructible.
I will give you credit, though. It is the willpower of the exorcist that allows the exorcism to take place. Their faith is turned into a spiritual weapon against the dark spirit, a symbol for their will to be shaped into and used against the demon, but God or his angels have nothing to do with it. You should be proud of yourself; I haven’t seen a prodigy like you in centuries. You could have forced out five demons at once under normal circumstances. Too bad for you, I’m no ordinary demon.”
Thane didn’t respond. The torture Xavier had put him through had robbed him of the use of his body.
“Tell you what, you’re too interesting for me to simply dispose of. Let’s make things fun. I’ll give you the chance to find a way to defeat me. Who knows, maybe I’m wrong and there is something in this world that can bring me down once and for all. I’ll give you one shot to find that chink in my armor, but here’s the catch: you have to do it without telling anyone who I am until you actually make your move. You can’t mention me as the Antichrist or even by name and then collaborate with others on how to defeat me. Until we meet again for our final confrontation, you will be on your own.
Good luck.”
Continuing to laugh to himself, Xavier walked away, leaving Thane to kneel there with his mind racing.
“Did you do anything to Sophie?”
Xavier looked up from his small day planner at Helena, standing before him with her arms crossed in the empty hallway. “Excuse me?”
“Did you do anything to Sophie? She doesn’t look right, like she’s sick, which is the same thing everyone has been telling me since I met you. Did you rape her again? Did you restore her memories? You didn’t leave a task for me today.”
“No, I didn’t do anything to her. As for your tasks, I’ve actually ran out ideas, which is kind of embarrassing for me. Relax, I just found some new toys to play with.”
“You’re despicable,” she hissed.
“And yet you speak to me with much more ease than before. Your posture, your crossed arms, that annoyed scowl, and especially your tone tell me that you’ve become used to having me around. You accused me of raping your friend, but you spoke to me like I was just some troublemaker, or a friend you were worried about who is always late for class. Before long, you’ll be confiding in me, asking me for favors, and feel relieved and even happy when you see me.”
Helena’s body tensed up from his teasing. “In your dreams! You’re delusional!” She stormed off, but stopped after a few steps. She spoke with her back to him. “So you really didn’t touch her?”
Xavier sighed and continued writing in his planner. “No, I didn’t do anything. Relax, you can trust me. But hold on, I have a proposal for you.”
She turned back to him. “Let me guess, another race in the pool or something like that?”
“No, nothing to win or lose. Fight me.”
“What?”
“I knew that you had a record of beating up punks and sinners, but I was amazed by how well you handled Daphne when she went berserk. I want to see what you can do. So how about we spar a little, just for fun? Think of it as a chance to punch me in the face like you’ve always wanted.”
For once, Helena actually smiled at Xavier’s words. “Where and when?”
“I haven’t figured that out yet. You still have that card, right? That will tell you.”
She shot him a smirk. “I’ll make you regret this.”
She walked away, and once she left, Xavier closed his book and tucked it away in his pocket. He strode down the hall and made a turn, smiling at the sight before him. Sophie was leaning in the nearby corner, panting and flushed in aguish. She hadn’t heard the conversation between him and Helena.
Seeing her rapist made her whimper with fearful tears rolling down her face, but she worked up the courage to speak. “Please, take it out, I’m begging you. I really have to use the bathroom.”
Xavier chuckled and walked by her. “Follow me.”
She stumbled after him, down another two corridors and into a janitor’s closet. Inside, he locked the door and turned on the light.
“You said you were begging, but that didn’t really seem like begging. Beg like a proper slave to her master.”
Sophie wiped away her tears and clutched herself, trying to ease the pain in her gut. “Why are you doing this?”
Xavier grabbed her face and laughed while licking the tears off her cheeks. “Because you’re my property and I can do whatever I want to you. Now, should I just take this opportunity to brutalize your slutty pussy and leave you to suffer an exploding gut, or are you going to act like a good slave and mind your manners?”