~~Young~~

Chapter Twenty Two

   Bane hadn’t fared much better, taking the rail to his forehead and curving it into a deep U shape. But it only gave Gage a moment’s pause. Too soon the demon had shaken it off and was throwing blows at Gage’s crumpled figure with fist and stump from his severed hand.

   “You know I was pissed at first to see you,” he growled between punches, Gage trying desperately to deflect them from underneath Bane. With the stump still dribbling Bane’s black blood each blow brought with it that extra oomph that ate at Gage’s skin, “but this is a much better way to finish this.”

   That last one to Gage’s temple left him rattled, but he knew if he was to have any chance he had to get in the air. He tired to flap his wings to push Bane off of him only to gag in pain.

   So maybe he couldn’t deal with the broken wing…

   He rolled, it was all he could do. Every time he raised a hand to return the blows Bane took the opportunity to slam Gage in his unprotected face. He couldn’t get out from under Bane but he managed to get on his stomach. From there he had more leverage and pushed upwards on all fours with a roar as Bane switched to side shots. This time Bane stumbled, tossed back into the plastic patio furniture. He jumped up and charged across the small space at Gage again, it was an all too familiar fight and Gage stepped aside as he had the last time. Just as before he went head first into the wall behind Gage, crumpling the stonework and spinning around with a glare.

   But this time Gage was not playing. He swung for Bane and cold clocked him in his jaw with a crunch.

   It was Gage’s fingers. Well that wasn’t good…

   Truth be told he couldn’t remember a time in all his battles with Bane that it had ever come to hand-to-hand. Gage either took to the skies to evade him or used his blade to disable him. This time he had neither.

   He held in his pain to not give to not give Bane any more advantage then he already had. Instead he flipped up the broken leg of the table and swung around to bury it in Bane’s chest as he came for him again. It certainly didn’t stop him, but it slowed him down-

   “Gage,” a voice shouted from behind him, “help us! We’re trapped!”

   He spun, behind the glass door was Chelsea. She was as red as Lucifer, her blonde hair plastered to her skin, skin covered in black smears from the ash. The room behind her was untouched by the flames but it was filling with smoke…

   “Help us please!” she banged on the door as she cried, “the doors, they’re all-” her eyes went wide suddenly and she backed away from the door, “Gage watch out!”

   He turned in time to catch Bane’s hand as he tried to drive some of the broken stonework into Gage’s head. The plastic leg was gone…as in dissolved and he was already seaming himself back up. Even missing a limb Bane was faring far better than Gage was, because he had an energy source to feed off of. But Gage was running on empty, all the realm changes and the fighting with the flame, then in Lucifer’s chamber, now this? He was an immortal true, but even immortals needed a chance to recharge. Energy was energy and he had expended more in these last forty-eight hours then he thought he had in the last fifty years.

   He was going to lose this fight if he didn’t think of something and quick. It was taking everything he had left in his battered arms to hold Bane at bay.

   “Chelsea get out of here,” Gage grunted over his shoulder, “now!”

   He couldn’t turn his attention away from Bane to see if she complied, but he heard her heavy footsteps as she retreated. Not that he wanted to send her back in that inferno, but dying in the fire would be nothing compared to what Bane would put her through.