Hell On Heels - Prologue

Prologue

“Oh, man. I'd take a good-old-fashion exorcism over this any day,” Penny thought as she watched the Nazi soldier take his true form.

Muscles bulged beneath his uniform, ripping the seams until the cloth fell to forest floor in a heap of fire and swirling ash. What was once a man now quickly became something straight out of the pits of hell. The beast threw his head back in a howl of triumph and agony as his bones cracked and popped under his flesh. Long spiraling horns grew from his forehead, reaching towards the abnormally large, looming moon. Scales took the place of skin and he grew three times as large as he was a few moments ago.

“I'll just have a seat while you finish with the show, shall I?”

She plopped down on the ground and pulled a silver disc from her worn leather satchel. She turned it to face the monster, running her fingers over the strange etchings covering it. Most of the carvings were still a mystery to her despite how long she'd been doing this. Which was fine by her. The less specifics she knew, perhaps the more sane she'd stay.

She put her eye to the hole in the center. “Ah, just what I thought. A MONSTERTERM. Impressive. But I've made more powerful things beg for my mercy.”

The MONSTERTERM rolled its head from shoulder to shoulder and stretched its claws to the sky like it had just woken from a long, indulgent nap.

“Sssoo,” the thing hissed, a forked tongue peeking out from behind two sharp front teeth, “You're his assassin? I've heard rumors, but they never mentioned a child.”

“Probably because those who survived my wrath didn't want to admit they'd been bested by a girl. And that's okay. Gives me an advantage, doesn't it?” NAME stood and put a hand on the pistol that rested in a low slung holster on her hip.

“Perhapsss, or maybe you're not really an assassin at all.”

That was the last straw. She was tired and frustrated from hunting this one for the past week. And she hated, hated, being underestimated especially by creatures like this.
No more banter, no more “mine's bigger than yours” talk. It was time to end this.

“MONSTERNAME, I send thee back to your hell. I banish you from this world and turn you over to your true master for judgment.”

The thing's laughter rang through the night. In times passed, she would have allowed it to make one last statement, to beg for forgiveness and pledge his allegiance once more to his master. But she'd seen the destruction and cruelty this creature had left in his wake. That evil had been her breadcrumbs, in fact, which led her to this middle-of-nowhere.
He didn't deserve a second chance.

She drew her weapon and the creature laughed again at the pistol.

“A toy. That's what that isss. You think bullets can kill me?” He seemed to grow even more in expectation of victory.

“Honey, I don't use bullets. I don't kill. I retrieve.” She pulled the trigger.