Blink {Featured}

Chapter Thirty Seven

'Your choice is made John Finnie, you choose death!' The huge demon roared so loud the rubble beneath their feet rumbled and moved.

Fire spewed from its mouth. Sem threw John aside. The ground where they stood a moment before bubbled and cracked as the monster relented its attack.

'No!' A strong voice shouted from the shadows. 'I choose life, I've always chosen life. It's a choice you cannot take from me you ugly fucking murderous bastard.' Out of the dust and haze another John walked. He wore a military style urban uniform, cropped hair, two large scars marring the sides of his face. Sem appeared at his side, cat suit clad and sporting two very large and dangerous looking handguns, her sword sheathed on her back.

The monster took a step back. 'This cannot be, you're J--'

A rapid burst of fire took its arm off. 'I can be what the fuck I want,' said the scarred John and shot again. A hole the size of a car appeared in its belly. For a second John saw clean through it, then smoke obscured his view. Two-Gunned Sem ran straight toward the building to their left, without missing a step she ran vertically up the wall and fired, taking chunks of the massive demon away with each shot.

Scarred John turned and spoke. 'John! Get out of here kid, get the first photo. It's our only hope. This devil is too strong for you. Go, go now!'

The scarred John put another burst of pulse rounds into the great demon, knocking it back twenty feet. But the demon rejuvenated fast, its arm already reattached.

Semila grabbed John and dragged him down the road. Screams of the dying filled the air, pleas for help assaulted them at every turn. Half the torso of a man blocked their path as they ran forward, it was clear by the blood trail he had dragged his legless body as far as he could.

'No Sem,' John shouted as he pulled away from her.

'John! What the fuck? Let's go, come on you heard your sexy scarred self!' Sem pleaded, dragged him further away. Another burst of pulse rounds echoed through the thick dust and smoke, followed by an earth shattering roar.

John grabbed her jaw. 'Don't you see Sem? I run every time. I must do, how else do I survive to come back as all these other versions of myself? How else could I keep coming back unless I ran each time?' He kissed her on the cheek. 'It's time to face my demons Sem, they have haunted me for too many years now. Go get me that photo and we'll end this for good. Okay?'

Sem blinked away her tears. 'I'm supposed to guard you John, that's my job.'

John smiled, his heart filled with love. 'Your job right now is to guard the world Sem, now go...please.' He moved a strand of Sem's hair from her face. Without a word she turned and ran into the smoke, leaving nothing but swirls of dust where she'd stood.

Pulse rifle shots and brain shattering screaming brought him back to the present. John looked down at the sword in his hand. 'All of a sudden this doesn't seem like a good idea,' he said out loud.

He took a few steps and faltered as a glorious light bathed him. From the churning white clouds stepped an angel, and John felt hope.

'My daughter asked me to help you.' Gabriel smiled and shrugged. 'To be honest, I'm kind of looking forward to this.' He nodded at John and turned on his heels, running towards the action.

John ran after him. 'Got to be crazy John, crazy as a shit house rat! Everyone is running away, but noooo not you.' Huff. 'No...you got to run to catch up to an angel...' huff. '...with nothing but a sword...' huff, huff. '...got to exercise more in the future...'

Rounding the corner, he saw two of himself fighting at Gabriel's side. Scarred John blasted the smaller demons to dust with Double-Gun Sem standing over him, shooting any stragglers. John Two danced hypnotically with his sword, twirled and parried the huge demon's blows. For a second John's chest swelled with pride. That was him. Him. He struggled to believe it but adjusted his grip on the sword anyway and headed in.