The man jumped from behind a dusty mirror and yelled, "Heeeyyyyyyaaaaaahhhhh!" He splashed a little holy water on me. After confirming that I was not a demon or an evil spirit, he looked me over. I wondered if he did that to everyone.
I hadn't closed the door yet, so Liz had just seen that spectacle. She closed the door for me, and was probably laughing her head off outside.
"Welcome, traveler," he greeted me. "I've been expecting you. What can I help you with?"
Before I could answer his question, I just stared at him. He looked stranger than any person I'd ever seen, and I've been around for a long time. He had giant glasses that magnified his eyes to look three times bigger than they really were, and he wore a robe that was a mix between a lab coat and a rain jacket. Other than that, he looked like a normal old man. I just couldn't get past what he was wearing.
When I didn't reply to his question, he started going through a list of common problems. "Dragon infestation? Pixies clogging your drain? Trust me, do not use Draino on those little buggers. Or perhaps . . . an ex-angel problem?" He stared curiously at me. "That it, isn't it?"
I nodded. I had finally recovered from the strangeness of his garments. "Do you have anything for that?" I asked.
"I can't believe you crossed multiple states to ask me that! I don't think your problem could be simpler to solve! Here, follow me."
The old man led me to a back room. He switched on the light, revealing a room full of all kinds of supplies. Everything inside the room that I could see had at least two or three layers of dust on it, minus the man (which was a real shocker since he looked ancient). He shuffled over to an object that glowed through its dusty coat. He blew the dust away and picked it up.
He handed it to me and said, "These light arrows ought to do the trick."
I couldn't believe I missed that. I must've been so caught up in all the excitement that I forgot about that part of my training.
"Thank you."
"One last thing! Keep the arrows away from the girl," the old man warned.
"Of course!" I acknowledged as I walked out the door.
Liz was waiting for me outside the door. "Well?"
"He gave me some light arrows that should take care of our problem. That's fortunate because I'm already trained to use them."
"What about a bow?" Liz asked.
"That's right here."
I put my hands together, and then separated them to make a bow shape. An intricately designed bow appeared in my hand. Ah, good old summoning.
"Cool," Liz said. "I love the way the stars are carved into it. It actually looks like a map of the sky!"
I honestly hadn't even noticed that. It was a regulation bow, and I had used it many times. They would've been extremely hard to see from her view, so how had she seen it?
"Can I take a look at it?" she asked. I handed it to her. Something strange happened.
I blinked once and found myself in Liz's body. The view through her eyes was very different compared to an angel's. Her vision seemed messed up. Everything was in black and white. Things were also darker.
I looked over to Liz, (in my body) and she was squirming around on the ground yelling, "IT BURNS! TOO BRIGHT!"
I sensed something moving in the bushes. My hearing was better in Liz's body. I could pinpoint the exact location of whatever was over there. My eyes adjusted by themselves to try to see it, but it was too well hidden.
I touched her with the bow, hoping that we'd be able to switch back, but nothing happened. Then, I figured that touching the angel mark would switch us back, since there would be plenty of magic when you combined that and the bow.
"Liz, hold out your left hand," I instructed her. I then touched the bow to the angel mark, and we switched back. I swiftly summoned an arrow and shot the bush.
There was a shriek, a growl, and then silence.
"Maybe it was just a fox," Liz suggested.
"I don't think so."
A huge, black creature emerged from the bush. It had an arrow stuck in it. Then, it turned around. It had red, menacing eyes, like the creature that bit Liz. It had claws, horns, and fangs each equally long, sick, and deadly. It was a shadow demon, and it was not a friendly creature.
I saw the any color left on Liz's face drain. She was as white as a ghost. That's when my training, as well as adrenaline, kicked in.
"Stay back, Liz!"
I grabbed some of the light arrows and shot at the shadow demon. All it did was make it angry. It roared and lunged at me on all fours. It was incredibly fast for a creature of is size. I rolled to the side and dodged its reckless attack. It skidded to a stop before Liz, and then turned around to me again. It was like it didn't even notice her. It unleashed a clawed fury upon me. It flailed around with its giant claws getting closer and closer to me.
I didn't know what to do. How could I take down a shadow demon? I was just one measly little angel who didn't even have his wings yet. I was so pathetic; I couldn't even run away! Angels may be immortal, but we can still get hurt.
It bashed me with the back of its hand while winding up for another swing. I was sent flying into the air. My bow flew out of my hands. I landed hard on the ground after some big airtime. The wind escaped from my lungs. I propped myself up myself against a rock to try to breathe. All I could do was try to recover so I could save Liz.
I could hear growling and screaming, but they weren't coming from Liz. My eyes couldn't seem to open themselves for me to see what was going on.
When they did, I saw Liz standing triumphantly before me with bow in hand. The wind blew perfectly through her hair. She looked like a hero, but the little girl Liz was still showed through her grin.
"How did you do that?" I asked in disbelief after seeing the beast slain on the ground.
"I don't know," Liz replied honestly. "Some instinct came out of nowhere and just told me to fire at its weak spot. I figured that would be his eyes, since the rest of it was covered in armor."
"Oh. Of course."
