by Hung Nguyen

AKA Animeaddiction

Disclaimer: This is supposed to be an original story idea, but it was inspired after watching Forever Knight, Highlander and countless other TV action series, as well as reading several Ghost Rider comics. I had also just started watching the anime Outlaw Star. Therefore, I guess I should mention them and any similarities between any characters real or fictional is purely coincidental.

Warning: The following chapter has a slight lemon scent (lime), graphic language and describes scenes of intense violence. Reader discretion is advised.

< >: Thoughts

Chapter One

Not All Things From Hell Are Evil

Tokyo, 2001, 10:15 pm...

The young woman ran for her life as she desperately tried to escape her pursuers. Quickly closing in behind her, three unsavory characters continued to chase their prey down the alley. They knew that their quarry would run into a dead end and they would soon have the woman cornered. They all smiled as they were looking forward to having their fun with this woman.

Haruka screamed as loud as she could as she tried to outrun the men who were chasing her. She had been walking home after doing the grocery shopping, when those three hoodlums had pulled her into the alley and tried to tear off her clothes. Seeing that this was an attempted rape, Haruka had just barely managed to break free of her captors and was trying her best to escape. However, her blood ran cold as she suddenly stopped in front of a dead end as her pursuers closed in on her. She let off another scream as the three thugs blocked off her only route of escape and then began to slowly advance on her.

“Well now, you gave us quite chase pretty lady.” The first would-be rapist said.

“Nothing I like better than a little exercise to get the blood flowing.” The second one said.

“Don’t worry.” The third one said as he rubbed his hands together with glee. “We’re just going to have a little fun, that’s all. We’ve just been through hell and you’re just what we need to work off the tension.”

Haruka shivered as she reached into her purse. “S-S-Stay away from me! I’m warning you!”
“And if we don’t?” The first thug sneered.

“I... I... didn’t want to have to use this, but I’ll shoot if you don‘t go away!” She brought out a small handgun from her purse and was trembling like a leaf as she aimed it at the hoodlum that was nearest to her. Haruka had never fired a gun at a living person before and these three appeared to be unarmed. She was hoping that the sight of the loaded weapon would make them back off.

The three thugs took one look at the weapon in the girl’s shaking hands and began laughing.

“Oh come on now!” The first one snickered as he took several steps closer.

“You think that little pop gun is going to scare us?” The second one added.

“Go on... take your best shot.” The third one said as he also began moving forward.

Haruka swallowed hard as she squeezed the trigger. The gun was quite powerful for its size and kicked in her hand. The bullet went wide, missing the three thugs by more than six feet as it sailed over their heads. Her assailants kept on advancing on her.

“T-T-That was a warning shot! Stay back!” Haruka said as she leveled it at the chest of the first hoodlum. However, the three showed no signs of stopping and the girl had to pull the trigger again. She let off three more rounds, this time at the chest of the nearest thug. However, to her horror and shock, the bullets had no effect whatsoever as they buried themselves deep within the assailant’s flesh. Her eyes opened wide as she saw the first man simply shrug his shoulders after looking down at the three chest wounds he had received and stopped.

“Now that was amusing. But like I said, my partners and I have already been through hell and getting shot by your puny mortal weapon is nothing compared to what we have experienced.”
“W-W-What?!” Haruka gasped. By all rights, the man should be dead after receiving two shots in the lungs and one near the heart. It was then that she noticed that the fluid that was oozing out from the holes was not the familiar crimson red stains of blood, but a foul-smelling liquid that was colored black. Then, to her shock, the holes closed themselves up, leaving only a small, black stain on the man’s clothes.

The man then gave the woman an evil smile. “Now then, it’s our turn.” The thug then began to contort as his body started changing shape. His partners also started metamorphosizing into things that couldn’t be remotely called human.

Haruka then let off a scream and began firing off the rest of her bullets, but to no effect. When her gun clicked on empty, she reached down to her purse for more ammunition, but that was when something slimy knocked the gun out of her hand and grabbed her wrist. Something else also grabbed her other wrist and then her legs. She found herself being hoisted off the ground and spread-eagled as her attackers cackled with glee. It was at that time that Haruka saw the true form of her assailants and she was too wrapped in fear to scream.

The three men had become amorphous blobs with slimy tentacles and covered in a disgusting mucus. The only thing that remained unchanged were their heads which were attached to a long, pliable neck. Their eyes glowed red as they pulled the woman closer to them.

Haruka found her voice and started to scream again, but her cries went mostly unheard as the three monsters extended more tentacles and began tearing off her clothes. She struggled to get free but the appendages held her tight as she found herself being stripped of all her garments and was soon naked before these horrors. She winced and tried not to gag as her body was caressed by those slime-covered tentacles as her tormentors prepared to violate her.

“Mmmm, it’s been so long, I almost forgot how much fun this was.” The first one said as one of his appendages moved closer to the woman’s most private part.

“Yeah, well don’t hog all the fun.” The second one said as his tentacles caressed Haruka’s breasts.

“Save some for me!” The third one said as he prepared to thrust his appendage into her rear.

Tears welled up in Haruka’s eyes as she silently pleaded for the Almighty to save her. However, the answer to her prayer came not from heaven...

Just as she was about to be raped, Haruka heard a noise like a gunshot, but sounded much louder, as if it was a retort from a cannon. This got the attention of the three monsters as well as they swiveled their heads 180 degrees to look behind them. At the other end of the alley was a tall man dressed in blue denim jeans, a black shirt, black biker boots and an ebony leather jacket. He appeared to be in his late twenties and had long, dark auburn hair that was done up in a short pony tail.. He was also wearing black, fingerless gloves and dark, oversized shades like a visor. On the back of his jacket was emblazoned an image of a flaming skull with two bony hands holding a gun on with side of it. At his side, he held a wicked-looking firearm that looked like it was a more robust version of a 44 Magnum Anaconda revolver. The muzzle was still giving off a small wisp of smoke after the gun had been fired as the newcomer began slowly approaching the monsters without any hint of fear. Walking beside him was a very large dog that resembled a large German Shepard but was covered in black fur. The animal growled as it padded beside its master. When they got to within thirty feet of them, they stopped and the man spoke to them in a cold voice.

“That was the ONLY warning that you’ll get. Now let the woman go. You three are going on a little trip back to Hell.”

The first of the horrors snickered as he looked down at the gun that the stranger now had aimed at him. “Hah! No puny gun can hurt us!” He then brought the woman out in front of him and taunted. “Besides, I don’t think you’ll shoot with her in front, now will you?”
The man shrugged as he then took aim at the creature’s chest and pulled the trigger, regardless of the fact that the woman was directly in the line of fire.

Haruka screamed as she saw a gleaming dot of light streak toward her and shut her eyes. However, instead of a sudden flare of pain of being struck by the bullet, all she felt was a brief, numbing chill in her chest and then nothing.

Her captor however, screamed out in agony and released his hold on her. Haruka fell to the ground and looked down at her chest. She had expected to find a gaping wound and blood, but there was no sign whatsoever of the bullet ever penetrating her body. She then looked behind and saw that the monster was writhing in agony as a large hole with amber light being emitted from it started to grow bigger in its chest. It then began to contort back to its human form as it continued to thrash about. When it had fully returned to its previous form, it let off another scream of agony as the hole in its body suddenly erupted into an amber flame. The monster was soon consumed in the flames and was reduced to ashes in seconds. One final inhuman shout of absolute terror and the demon’s remains were then scattered by an errant gust of wind.

The remaining two horrors looked back at the stranger who had a slight smile on his face. They stared down at the weapon he was holding and gulped. The second one looked back down at Haruka and considered using her as a human shield, but then decided against it. His departed companion had no such luck as whatever the stranger had fired had passed harmlessly THROUGH the woman and reduced him to ashes!

“Who are you?” He asked as he and his companion tensed.

The stranger to a few steps forward while still holding the smoking gun and replied. “I’d say that I’m your worst nightmare, but that’s too cliché. Besides, your boss is waiting for you as I can say that’s he’s a lot WORSE than I’ll ever be.”

“Our boss? What are you...?” The two monstrosities then stiffened as the meaning of the stranger’s words sunk in. The second one then gasped and said in a trembling voice. “Y-You don’t mean...?”
It was then that the two remaining monsters reverted back to their human forms and backed up against the wall. The third one began shaking like a leaf as he said with a shudder. “You mean.... HE sent you?!”

The man nodded as he leveled his gun at his companion. “That’s right. And now...”

Just as he was about to pull the trigger, the second demon gave off an inhuman roar and charged at the stranger. “I WON’T GO BACK!” In less than an instant, he had covered the distance between them, which was a good thirty feet, but before he could get his hands around the man’s neck, there was sudden flash and his back exploded in a brilliant amber light as the bullet exited his body. The second demon was then consumed in the same amber flame that his partner had perished in and was reduced to ashes as well. The man then turned toward his third target.

The last monster in his human disguise decided to make a break for it. With inhuman strength, he grabbed hold of a nearby dumpster and hurled it at him. The bin was fully loaded and weighed more than a ton as it hurtled toward the stranger and his dog. However, the man casually backhanded the dumpster as if he were swatting a fly. The bin crashed heavily into the wall with a resounding crash and caused it to crumble.
Haruka was shocked back to reality as she saw a huge mass of falling debris coming toward her. She let off a scream and was about to be crushed beneath several hundred pounds of masonry when she was suddenly swept up in a pair of strong arms and was carried off from the spot before the wall collapsed completely.

With the stranger temporarily occupied, the last demon tried to make a break for it, hoping to lose himself in the city, but before he could get out of the alley, he was suddenly tackled from behind and slammed to the ground. The dog had jumped him and was now snarling above him while keeping him pinned down for his master.

“Get off me you mangy cur!” The third monster said as he prepared to transform to throw the canine off him. That was when he felt the dog suddenly get heavier and was now hearing three sets of growls instead of one. He glanced over his shoulder and his eyes widened as he saw the dog transform into something that was more massive than a Buick! On either side of its head, another head sprouted out and the thug saw himself looking into three sets of feral eyes. Its body became even larger and bulkier and the thug heard the distinctive hiss of a venomous snake. The tail of the beast morphed into a deadly adder as the demon-dog snapped at its trapped prey. The would-be rapist realized that he was now facing Cerberus, the demonic watchdog of Hades!

“No! HE sent you too?” The frightened hoodlum cried out as he tried to get way, but the beast kept him pinned with two of its heads clamped down on both of his shoulders. Then, after taking huge chunks of flesh out of his shoulders, Cerberus then shook its prey before tossing him aside. The demon was slammed into another wall of the alley and slumped down to the pavement. It was at that time that the stranger slowly approached the injured demon and leveled his gun at him. Without taking his eyes off his target, he addressed his canine companion.

“Nice work, Cerberus.”

The demon-dog gave its partner a triple bark as it morphed back into its form of a black German Shepard and then sat down at the front of the alley, looking out for any witnesses and blocking off the only escape route.

With black fluids oozing out from the gaping wounds in his shoulders, the now terrified transformed demon gasped as he tried to stand up. “I... don’t understand. HE... lent you Cerberus?”

The man nodded and smiled as he prepared to pull the trigger. “Yeah. He’s really useful in tracking down renegades like you. Now, you got any last words?”

“GO TO HELL!” The thug spat out.

The man merely shrugged. “Been there, done that, your turn. Say hello to Bob for me when you see him.” He then pulled the trigger and sent the last demon on his way down to the opposite side of heaven. After the last monster had been dispatched, he turned back to the woman that he had saved. She was standing before him with that shocked expression still in her eyes as he addressed her.

“You are safe now. Those three won’t EVER come back again.”

“Y-You... shot me!” Haruka gasped.

The man nodded and replied as he held up his gun. “Don’t worry. My Justifier will only affect my targets. YOU weren’t my target.”

Then, without another word, he placed his gun back into a shoulder holster and motioned for Cerberus to follow him as he heard police sirens in the distance. With one mighty leap, he launched himself up toward roof of an adjacent building and was gone. The dog followed suit by leaping toward a wall, then used it to rebound off it and then triangle-jump to the roof where its companion was waiting. By the time the police arrived, the two were long gone.

Haruka could only stare at the roof and had forgotten that she was naked as she wondered about man who had saved her. She was quickly reminded of her lack of clothes when the police arrived and shone their spotlights on her.

Haruka screamed again, this time in total embarrassment.

Ryo Coldblood ran across the rooftops with Cerberus racing alongside of him as he mentally thought back to the events that had changed his life... and death forever.

Flashback, five years ago...

Detective Ryo Mitsubana was considered a maverick by his peers in the Tokyo Police. His way of law enforcement mirrored that of his idol, Clint Eastwood. His favorite movies included all the Dirty Harry films and he loved big firearms, especially the 44 Magnum. He was also a big fan of the City Hunter anime as well. He was an ace marksman when it came to the large caliber handguns and carried a Colt 44 Anaconda instead of the usual automatics that most of the other officers used.

However, despite his quirks, he was also a very competent police officer and always got his man. Though he had been reprimanded several times by the commissioner for his violent, and often reckless actions, his fellow officers couldn’t deny the results of his work. He also had sharp detective skills and had busted many criminal operations in drug trafficking, smuggling, and illegal arms. It seemed that nothing could stop him.

However, one fateful night five years ago, something did stop him.

During what was supposed to be a routine drug raid on a warehouse, the criminals had instead laid out a trap for the Tokyo Police. Ryo and two of his fellow officers never knew what hit them when the warehouse suddenly exploded into flames from several hidden explosives set to eradicate all evidence. Ryo Mitsubana’s life ended when a massive beam came down and crushed his body, killing him instantly.

However, when Ryo came to, he found that he was no longer in the warehouse, but in a place that was far worse. He had never believed in the afterlife before, but now he had found himself in a land that was unbelievably hot and the pungent smell of sulphur filled the air. He also noticed that his body was also undamaged, despite the fact that the last thing he remembered was a two-ton steel beam falling down on top of him. He wondered where the HELL he was.

Little did he know at that time, Hell was EXACTLY where he was.

Ryo had then spent more than five years wandering the lands of the damned and saw the billions of lost souls as they writhed in agony and were subjected to unending torment. He had tried on many occasions to help those poor wretches, but he was unable to do anything as the demons and monsters that tortured them were far too powerful and swatted him like a bothersome gnat. For the most part, Ryo had to look out for himself as he was constantly attacked by demons, imps, and the other denizens of Hades. His hold on his sanity had begun to slip away as the years passed and the unending torment continued. Then, after five years, just as his sanity was about to snap... HE found him.

Ryo was about to be captured by a horde of goblins when a huge, three-headed dog suddenly appeared and drove them away. It then turned toward him and it looked as if Cerberus was about to make a meal out of him, when it heard a loud, booming voice.

“Cerberus! Sit! He’s NOT lunch!”

The demon-dog growled a bit before sitting on its haunches and waited. Then, in a puff of brimstone, an aged man in a business suit appeared beside the beast and bowed to a startled Ryo.

“Hello there. You must be Ryo Mitsubana, right?”
Ryo tensed as he looked at the old man with suspicion. During the five years he had spent in Hell, he had become very wary of people who appeared to be human, but were actually demons in disguise.

“Who are you?” Ryo said as he backed off a bit, though he knew that he would not be able to outrun Cerberus if he tried to escape.

“Oh, sorry for not introducing myself. I’m Satan. Pleased to meet you.” The old man then extended out a hand.

This shocked Ryo to the core as he stared at the one who claimed to be the devil himself. He had imagined a demon that was too horrible to describe and this old, harmless-looking man was supposed to be the lord of the Underworld? He then found his voice and said, “You’re... Satan?”

“Yes. I’m also referred to as Lucifer, the Dark Lord, Hades, the Really Angry One, or Beelzebub. You can call me Bob for short.”
“Bob?” Ryo repeated, still in a state of disbelief. This was really the Devil?

“What? You were expecting someone like this?” In an instant, the little man suddenly grew to huge proportions and morphed into a hideous red monstrosity with horns, a tail and taloned feet. Flames erupted from his mouth as he gave off an inhuman roar that made the ground tremble beneath their feet. This threw Ryo off his feet as he was suddenly facing with the overlord of Hell. Then, in an instant, the huge demon morphed back into the little man and shrugged. “That’s old hat and I thought you might find this form more easier to talk to. After all, I do have some very important business to discuss with you.”

“Holy shit!” Ryo exclaimed.

Bob frowned at Ryo and said, “Please, don’t ever swear in my presence again.”

“What? Say the word shit?”
“No. I meant the ‘h’ word. Remember where you are.”

“Okaaaay.” Ryo said as he picked himself back up and gave ‘Bob’ a wary look. “If you really are... Satan, then I really am in Hell?”
“Yep. And I’m a little embarrassed to say that your being here was a mistake. It‘s even more embarrassing to admit that it took this long for the clerical department to find out that your records was misfiled.”
“You mean... I’m not supposed to be dead?” Ryo asked with hope.

“No. You were supposed to die when that beam fell on you in that exploding warehouse.”

“H-H-How did you know about...?”

Bob shrugged as he replied. “Hey, I’m Satan remember? Now then, getting back to the main issue, like I said, your being here in Hell was a mistake. You were supposed to have gone up to Heaven, but due to a little mix-up, you ended up down here. I still can’t believe that those stupid dopes over in filing put your case in the wrong box and it took them five years to find out about this error.” Bob shook his head as he pinched the bridge of his nose. <Memo to me, maim them later. > He addressed Ryo again. “Well, in any case, your wandering about Hades and interfering with the eternal punishment of the damned has been very annoying and I have been getting complaints from the employees. But being the ruler of the Underworld is a full-time job and I couldn’t find the time to deal with this problem until now.”
“So, you’re going to send me up to Heaven?” Ryo asked.

“I wish!” Bob said with some exasperation. “There’s a bit of a problem in your case. By the time those dopes in filing found your records, you had already accumulated a lot of dark energies that combined with your soul. Even though you are basically a good person, your inner being has been tainted and those Pearly Gates won’t open for you, despite your very impressive record as a police officer. Nope, the only way you’ll be able to enter Heaven is if you get rid of all those hellish energies.”

“Well, can’t you get rid of them?”

“Yes, but there’s a couple of catches. It’s got to be done slowly and your fragile human soul won’t be able to hold together if I used my power to cleanse it all at once. Furthermore, you’ve got to build up more positive energies to get your soul back into its pure, good alignment and doing heroic deeds can help. So this is what I’m going to do for you. You see, I’ve got another little problem that needs to be solved and I think you can do it.”
“What do you mean?” Ryo asked suspiciously.

Bob took a deep breath and answered. “Over the past few years, several hundred of my minions have gone renegade and are terrorizing the mortal realm. Now ordinarily, I wouldn’t pay it any mind, since tormenting humans is part of their job descriptions, but these guys refuse to listen when I summon for them and there’s nothing more annoying than a disobedient demon! Now, as I said, I’m usually too busy with running the Underworld to go after these dissidents, so I want you to go round them up for me.”

“Me?”
“Yes, you. And while you’re doing this, you’ll be fulfilling your duty to protect the innocent. The more demons you send back to me, the quicker those dark energies within you will be dispersed. And then you’ll be able to enter Heaven. Think of all those innocent people you’ll be saving! If that doesn’t give your records a good review, nothing will.”
“So, you want me to be some kind of bounty hunter or something?”

“In a sense as your reward for each demon you send back to me will be a partial removal of those dark energies from your soul. You will be my... Hell Hunter. So, do we have a deal?”

Ryo looked at the man with more suspicion, especially when he mentioned the word ‘deal.’ To anyone, making a pact with Satan was akin to madness, but Ryo had no other option. Besides, what did he have to lose?

“One question. Why are you helping me? I mean... you are Satan, right?”

The old man nodded. “Yes I am. However, like Kami-sama, I am just doing my job. You are interfering with my work by being here, so the faster I can get you out of here, the better. I can’t have this be the first blot on the record I have sustained since the beginning of time!”
“When was that?”

“I think it was a Tuesday. In any case, do you agree to this?”
“So you’re going to send me back to the living world to hunt down these renegades?”
“Yes, but I can’t send you back as Ryo Mitsubana. Your mortal husk was already destroyed when you died. Your family had your body cremated. Besides, a frail human body wouldn’t be able to stand up to those renegades, so I’ll have a Demonoid body constructed for your soul to inhabit while on the mortal plane.”
“Demonoid body?”
“Yep. It’ll LOOK human, but it will be far superior in every way to your old form. Of course, there WILL be some drawbacks as well, as you’ll soon find out. However, you’ll need those abilities against those renegades and I’ll also have a Dark Soulfire weapon made for you as well.”
“Dark Soulfire weapon? What’s that?”

Bob motioned for Ryo and Cerberus to follow him as he began walking. “Dark Soulfire is more or less the energy that had combined with your inner being during the time that you wandered through Hades. You can use it to fight those demons, since normal human weapons are virtually useless against them. The more you use it against them, the quicker you can purify your soul for your entrance into Heaven. Since your records indicate that you prefer guns, I’ll have a special Dark Soulfire gun made for you. Oh, and one thing you should know about using Soulfire. Since it’s a part of your inner being, you’ll be able to specifically direct it against your targets. We can’t have you killing innocent people along with the renegades. The last thing I need are complaints from Heaven. Oh, and for tracking down those demons, I’m going to have Cerberus here go with you.”
“What? But won’t he attract too much attention?” Ryo gestured back to the demon-dog.

“Nah. He’s got the power to alter his form into a regular dog so he’ll have no problems in fitting in. He’s a very good tracker and he’ll be a great help in hunting down those demons. So, I must know your answer. Will you be my Hell Hunter?”

Ryo paused for a long time as he weighed his options. Then, after what seemed to be an eternity, he nodded.

----------

Later...

“So, THIS is the Demonoid Body?” Ryo asked as he looked into a kind of organic pod. Within the viscous fluids, floated a well-made humanoid form. “Looks pretty normal to me. It almost looks like me, but it’s got a LOT more muscle... and more... stuff.” His gaze traveled down the naked form and his eyes widened slightly as he saw... you know.

Bob shrugged. “Well, we modeled this form according to your own mortal husk, but we added some improvements. You’ll find that this new form will be a LOT tougher and not as easily damaged as your old body. That’s a good thing, considering that most of the demons you’ll be up against could easily snap your old body like a twig. In a way, you’ll be in command of a humanoid equivalent of a tank. We’re talking high resistance to damage, both physical and magical, with regenerative powers, almost unlimited endurance, very little maintenance required and a few supernatural extras.”

“Will I be able to feel?”

“Mmmmmm, hard to say. It all depends on the wearer of the Demonoid Body. I’ve had some say that they can’t feel a THING, which drove them to madness.”

“Others? You mean, you’ve had others put into these things?”

“Only a select few. That’s not the issue here. Remember that you signed the contract and you have to wear this flesh until you fulfill your end of the bargain. If you work hard and fast, then you’ll be seeing those Pearly Gates before you know it.”

----------

End of Flashback...

Ryo Coldblood sighed as he and Cerberus sat down near the edge of a roof. After his soul was implanted inside this new body, Ryo had felt a power surging though him as he once again regained his physical senses of touch, smell, taste, hearing and sight. However, he also felt a kind of numbing chill as well. It was strange to be wearing another body. A body that was virtually indestructible by normal standards, with strength and powers beyond those humanly possible. Satan had stated that he could not be destroyed by mortal means, but was still vulnerable to the supernatural. The new face was more harder-looking than his old one and seemed to project a sense of dark foreboding to all those who saw him. Since Ryo Mitsubana was believed to be dead, and he had actually died in the truest sense, the former police officer now went by the name of Ryo Coldblood.

As Ryo continued to contemplate his new position as Satan’s enforcer, Cerberus caught wind of something. The dog sniffed the air, then let off a bark, alerting his companion.

Ryo then heard a scream from the streets below and nodded. He then took out his Dark Soulfire weapon and focused his energies into it. Ryo had already used up four of the six rounds in the cylinder when he saved that woman, but he decided to ‘reload.’ His hand briefly glowed as Dark Soulfire entered the gun and filled up the empty chambers in the cylinder.

As he reloaded, his thoughts went back again to the past...

----------

Flashback...

“Well Ryo, I see that you’ve adapted to the Demonoid Body quite well.” Bob commented as his new Enforcer emerged from the maturation pod and stood before him. In the Devil’s hands was a large, red case.

“It feels.... all right, I suppose.” Ryo admitted as he worked his limbs back and forth and tested out the extremities. On the whole, he was about three inches taller and had to compensate for the added muscle mass. It felt as if he had put on a flexible suit of armor. He then looked down at the case in Bob’s hands. “What’s that?”

“It’s your new Dark Soulfire weapon. The smiths had it cast while you were in the pod. Normally, such a weapon is usually in the form of a sword or lance, but in your case, they modeled it after your old Colt 44 Anaconda. Here.” He held out the case and opened it.

Ryo reached out and picked up the weapon. It was heavy by human standards, but he barely registered its weight in his super-strong Demonoid hand. The gun had excellent balance and seemed to become a natural extension of his new form. The black finish glinted as it reflected light from the fires of Hell. He looked at the cylinder and noted that the chambers were empty. “Where’s the ammo?”

“I told you before, the Dark Soulfire that’s part of your being will fuel it. Simply focus your energies into the chambers.”

Ryo did so and concentrated. Sure enough, the chambers lit up as Hell-born energies flooded the spaces and were shaped into bullet-like projectiles. He then took aim at an odd rock formation in the distance. Though a large stone was in front of it, he pulled the trigger and...

BA-KOOM!

The bullet streaked like a miniature laser bolt and passed through the stone without damage, then blasted a huge hole in the formation behind it. Ryo was a bit surprised. He had expected the stone to be destroyed as well, but Bob simply smirked.

“Remember Ryo. I can’t have you slaughtering the non-guilty, (that’s bad for business), so that gun will only destroy your intended targets and nothing more.”

----------

End of flashback...

Ryo then nodded to his canine partner and they both leapt down to streets below.

The Hell Hunter was now stalking his demonic prey.

End of Chapter One.

Narrative

Author’s Notes

Well, a few of my readers had challenged me to try an come up with an original idea and I think I didn’t do such a bad job of it. I always like the lone, dark hero types and I guess you can call this a kind of dark, action variety of fiction. Where could I go with this? Well, give me some suggestions!

I slightly revised this old chapter, just for the Hell of it, (pardon the pun), and for the life of me, I can’t find the second incomplete chapter. I don’t know if I can find it or if I will continue this fic, but due to several requests, I’ve posted this chapter here.