Demonic Defence Part One

A/N: For those of you who are new, this is a continuation of my previous story Crossing Over, so if you want a bit of background feel free to check it out. For those of you who are regulars, sorry for the huge delay in this chapter, but what a crazy few months, let alone year this has been! I hope you're all keeping well and thank you for staying with us so far. We're into the final act now, and if there's one task I have its to have this wrapped up in a nice present for you all by Christmas. With that in mind, I hope you enjoy what's in store...

"So what's the big idea huh?" Tom grumbled, shovel still in his hand. "I was just about to nab me a triceratops skull and now I'm called here!"

"How did you know it was a triceratops skull?" Mira asked, taking care not to get booped by the shovel.

"Yeah; until we dig things up, we don't know!" Flora chimed in, also avoiding the shovel, more for fear of the dirt that being hit. After all, messy airplanes didn't get to fly as her mother always told her. "Unless you've discovered a super-secret technique that allows you to see them in the ground!"

The cat let out a medium sigh. "No I...I just had a good feeling about it."

"In your bones?" Del offered with a sarcastic smile stretching all the way across his elongated mouth.

"Meowza that was bad." Tom replied, shoulders sagging. "I just hope this is some good news."

"Maybe we're getting a new resident?" Mira suggested, her ears pricking up at the mere thought of it. "Yeah that must be it! After all, last time this happened we got Mr Doom right?"

"DOOM?!" Boomer shouted, waking up from his patented standing nap position. "H-He's done what now?"

Flora shot him a surprised look. "He's done nothing; we're just wondering what the announcement will be. Unless he has done something that you know o-...?"

"N-Nope, nothing at all, human!"

The crocodile tilted his head sceptically. His neighbour had never been one to finish anything besides his meal first, let alone someone else's sentence in such an abrupt manner. His eyes narrowed. "You know, earlier he interrupted my fishing in some kind of hurry. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that?"

Boomer shook his head, and subsequently the rest of his body, side to side in a very clear 'NO', which all but confirmed Del's suspicions. "So why is he walking towards the stage now then?"

The penguin almost jumped out of his feathers, spinning round to see the walking incarnation of death stroll up to the tiny podium. His walking style was usually driven and unstoppable, but his almost-friend noticed an extra spring in his step.

"Can I have everyone's attention please?" Isabelle's voice called out, and the town shushed themselves to hear her. "Good afternoon everyone! Sorry for the disruption, but we have our town's first official emergency announcement!"

"Ohhhh!" Came the chorus from the crowd, as the rest of the villagers looked at her in interest. They'd had impromptu meetings before about varying little things, from fruit trees to cool visitors, but this was the first official business they had ever attended.

The shih tzu wait a moment for the excitement to die down before continuing. "Now, I...am not too sure myself about why we're gathered, but Mr Doom and VEGA are here to explain!"

As she stepped to the side, the monstrous marine strode up to the podium with grim resolve. He had never been one for speeches; after all, there was little point in inspiring humans to fight for their lives against a horde of bloodthirsty demons. In a do or die situation, survival was the only encouragement needed to go to war. That or sheer, unfathomable rage of course.

But these were not humans. Aside from the racoon, who was frantically preparing his shop as a makeshift keep for the upcoming unholy assault, none of them had even dreamed of violence, let alone war. As he reached down to pick the megaphone up from its stand, which was approximately waist height for him, he snuck a glance into the crowd for his almost penguin friend. The flinch he received back was more damaging than any hit a Baron of Hell could give.

"Hold it closer to the mouthpiece." VEGA requested as gently as he could. "If I can channel the sound of the armour's external mic, I should be able to enhance my voice through this megaphone."

Again, as Doomguy complied with the AI's wishes the question of how any item manufacturing could occur in a land without opposable thumbs, but this was not the time for such queries.

This was the time for war.

"Hello, and apologies for the interruption, but this announcement is of the utmost urgency." The AI's voice crackled through the megaphone, "The island is under attack from a demonic host intent on destruction. This must come as a shock to many of you, but we..."

"What's 'attack'?" Flora asked, scratching her head with her feathers.

"It's a bit like a nail." Mira explained, taking one out from pockets and showing her friend it. "Here; you can use it to hang stuff up."

"I see!" She squealed with delight, taking the small item and studying it. "Oh, it's so small! Wow Mira, I can't believe I've never seen one before!"

"You probably have, but you may not have recognised it." Mira smiled approvingly at the ostrich, before turning her gaze back up to the podium. "So, who's a-tacking us? And... how?"

"DAI-…" The Slayer started, before clearing his throat. This was one of the reasons he had been sceptical of this idea, but once again he had been outvoted by the powers that be.

"Just keep calm; I have prepared for this." VEGA reassured him on the internal mic as he felt the marine's cortisol levels spike at the thought of another innocent bunny getting hurt.

Tom shuffled to the front, a small smile creeping to his face. "He means a fight you guys. You know, like a boxing competition."

Del's eyebrows shot up. "A fight? Isn't that a bit dangerous?! Someone could get hurt!"

"It is a fight, in a sense." VEGA agreed, surprised that they knew this much but grateful for one less thing to explain. "However, this will be a fight without rules against some very, VERY, nasty creatures. As such, for the duration of the...'fight'...the island will be too dangerous for you to inhabit."

The crowd gasped, and beside Doomguy Isabelle gawked at him. "The island will be dangerous? But...why? Can't we just talk to these...erm...demonics?"

"DEMONS!" The Slayer clarified, making both her and the AI jump in surprised, one more figuratively than the other.

"D-Demons...r-right..." The small dog stuttered, not used to the murderous intent exploding so clearly from his vocal cords. "W-Well...what if we offer to have them over for a barbeque? They m-might..."

"That would not be a wise decision." VEGA told her as politely as possible. "The demons are not the most...hospitable creatures. A barbeque would be badly received."

Isabelle shrunk lower, "M-Maybe a fishing contest then?"

Doomguy shook his head. "They will only respond correctly to one activity, and that will be dying at the hands of the Harbinger of Death. Now, because of this..."

"I'm good at dying too!" Sabel interrupted unexpectedly, then immediately covered her face in embarrassment. "T-That is...if you and Tom...need my help..."

VEGA's processors whirred humorously. "We appreciate it, though we are quite adept at making them...'dye'. Now, because of this issue we have arranged with Tom to pay for everyone to go on a fully paid Dodo Airlines excursion for the day."

The crowds confusion swiftly turned into excitement upon hearing of the free trip.

"So exciting!"

"Ill be able to catch so many new fish!"

"I wonder what the island will be like?!"

"Will you be coming to?" The final murmur gave pause to the others, as the town looked from Mr Doom to Boomer.

Doomguy sighed heavily. "We will be spending the day here scoping out the terrain. From our scans the town hall would be the most optimal place to defend from as it is centrally located and near to several escape routes. The trees nearby are the only issue, as they may provide some unwanted cover..." VEGA stopped, assuming his strategic explanation would boring the townsfolk.

"Why not move them?" Blathers asked from the back, enjoying the shade of said tree.

The AI hummed curiously. "Removing the wood would require too much manpower and machinery. And even though I am certain the Slay-...Mr Doom would be able to cut down the trees, it would most like damage his chainsaw and use up what little fuel it has left. After that, the issue of disposing the logs and stumps would come into play, as some of these trees seem to be fairly old and well rooted. Though I considered burning them, that too would waste fuel and..."

"You could use the landscaping shovel to move them?" Isabelle suggested, then squeaked as The Slayer's gaze returned to her. "W-We didn't have the chance to g-give the old villager a go...but if you wanted them I-I could make an exception?"

"...ok." VEGA agreed, deciding that in this land of strange laws and physics, it was better to accept and utilise the strange laws than to deny and question them.

The town secretary quickly scurried off into the Town Hall building, and after a minute or so of concentrated scurrying she emerged wearing a hard hat and a large shovel. "Here...we go..." She panted, not used to running around at this time of the day, "The terraforming gear!"

Doomguy and VEGA blinked simultaneously. "...I see. And how does this differ from the regular shovel that we have acquired, aside from the additional safety feature?"

"W-Well...it lets the wearer...change the town however they want!" She managed a shakey smile, before strolling down to the nearest tree. "See; you can...move those trees now!" And with that she proceeded to uproot the giant oak in one scoop of the shovel before stuffing it into her jacket pocket.

If VEGA had been fitted into a human body, at this point the AI would have experienced an aneurism. "How...how...how...how...?" Came through the internal mic for the next few seconds, as his user gawked with equal intensity.

They had known that the animals were strong, having seen them fish and Boomer's weight sets, yet the average oak tree was in excess of ten tonnes. Even accounting for the trees in this world being less than half the height of those on earth, assuming that the density of the wood was comparable it would still place that feat of strength at high superhuman.

Yet the shih tzu was simply standing there without the slightest bit of physical fatigue or discomfort while the mighty oak was in her pocket no less. "...Would you like me to put it back or...?"

"No...thank you..." The AI managed, completely setting aside the obvious spatial warping he had witnessed. "And that will work for the other trees too?"

Isabelle nodded. "Do you want me to move them now or...?"

"I-In a minute." VEGA sighed, considering wiping those data files from his memory for the sake of his sanity processors.

Doomguy, however, was more focused on the task at hand still. Having encountered many a strange creature, and more often than not killed it, he was more accepting of their abilities. Giving her the thumbs up, he pointed at the row of trees Blathers was standing under and then motioned a chop.

"Sure, thing Mr Doom!" Isabelle smiled, shooting him a Glee reaction as she rummaged through her pocket. "Oh, before I forget I'll eat another apple then. That should keep my strength up for removing the rest of them! Would you like the rocks gone too?"

"Ah yes, the apple...of course..." VEGA sighed, cracking open a bottle of binary whiskey and taking a sip. This did nothing to the state of his processing, but he found that imagining taking the edge off in a human like fashion did wonders for the most inconceivable situations.

Like watching the small dog demolish a hedgerow and pocket the accumulated weight of several tonnes of wood into her khaki shirt.

"Perhaps they will be ok at defending themselves." He mused on the internal mic as the pair watched her eat another apple then smash boulders the size of her in one strike. "Their strength seems comparable to the heavy demons we've fought. With the proper training..."

The Slayer cut him off with a disapproving grunt. "Yes...I suppose two days is too little time. That said, should we survive the onslaught..." Another, more annoyed grunt cut him off again. "...when we survive the onslaught, we should consider training them." The final grunt of the trio was still sceptical, but not against the idea.

"All done!" Isabelle chirped, somehow less worn out at terraforming the surrounding area than running several feet to get the gear. "Is this ok?"

"It's so spacious!" Mira exclaimed, imagining her morning workout going a lot more smoothly in the open space.

"More like empty." Tom grumbled, sad to see the trees go.

Though not as sad as poor Blathers, who was shielding his sensitive eyes with his feathers. "Ohh...is this meeting going to last much longer? I think I'm getting a headache!"

"That is perfect, thank you." VEGA replied and Doomguy gave the shih tsu an approving grunt. "Now, this area for the next two days will be off limits as myself and Mr Doom will be preparing a special welcoming for the 'guests'. This will only really affect you for today, as tomorrow you will all be away enjoying your expenses paid travel. Upon your return there may be some...differences in the town's appearance, but we can assure you..."

"What about our shop?" Mabel asked, blue quills waving in the breeze, "Who will look after it while we're away?"

An image of a bomb crater with the "Abel Sisters" sign in the middle flashed through the Slayer's mind. "Again, there may be some differences in the town's appearance, including the buildings within it. And the landscape. ...And the wildlife."

Blathers gasped. "But not the museum! My life as a curator revolves around it. Oh, if anything were to happen...no, no I will stay and take care of it just in case."

"We would strongly recommend against that cour-…"

"Me too!" Mabel spoke out again. "If there's any more damage to our shop we'd never be able to afford our repayments!" Sable beside her nodded firmly in agreement.

"Erm...as much as I would want the day off...I suppose I best stay too." Isabelle said with a sigh. "There's so much work to do in the town hall that I can't really put it off...ughh but I'll take the next holiday offer if there is one!"

The AI hummed patiently. Things had been going too smoothly after all, and after the landscaping display earlier he supposed he could allow some room to compromise. "Very well; all business owners are free to stay, but we must insist that the rest of the town vacate as planned."

"Fine by us!" Del grinned. "Never going to say no to a free holiday."

"Excellent; then it is settled. We shall call an end to this announcement then and meeting early tomorrow morning with those staying to finalise plans. Thank you for your time and we hope you enjoy your trips!"

Murmurs of excitement and wonder rippled through the crowd as the death machine stepped away from the podium. The speech had exceeded 88% of their expectations, and though having some of the islanders staying with them was less than ideal, VEGA had already began finalising contingency plans.

"Erm...human?"

Doomguy almost jumped out of his armour before catching himself. He was known across the circles of hell as the harbinger of death, and had lived up to his name on every encounter he had undertaken. Hell Knights cowered before him; prowlers hid in their cloaks and prayed; even Cyberdemons built to kill him reconsidered their programming.

Yet here he was, worried about a lazy penguin. "How can we help you Boomer?"

Said penguin shot the pair a trademark slow grin. "You seem...less freaked out than before. I'm glad you're ok."

Somewhere in the dark pits of rage and violence that swirled within in, Doomguy's metal heart fluttered slightly. Before he could stop himself, the marine extended a gigantic, shaky hand to the tiny animal. "...SORRY."

"No worries pal!" Boomer nodded, taking the armoured glove with his flipper and shaking it. "Well, if I don't see you on this trip, make sure you come with us on the next one ok? I need someone out there to watch my back from fashion lad after all." The Slayer nodded back. "Cool, well...I have to go and pack my things then! Catch you later, human!"

As the penguin waddled happily back to his house, the AI noted two drastic things from the brief encounter. First of all, his user had spoken more coherent words over the course of this week than he had in the course of the last century, which was a blessing in itself.

But secondly, and more importantly, he noted that for the first time since the two met Doomguy was looking forward to the demons coming not just because of the excessive destruction and killing it would allow him to unleash, but also because it would give him an opportunity to assist the inhabitants of this physics-defying island.

The signs had been subtle; the odd mouth twitch here, the not-instantly-killing-the-annoying-kitsune there, but they were definitely there to see. If the Slayer had managed to decimate the hordes of the demons for this long single-handedly, through his own strength and the very occasional assistance of the Sentinels, it made him ponder how much power he would have now with an entire island behind him.

For the first time in his creation, VEGA began to start feeling bad for the coming demons.