THE MOMENT
"You brought a GUN!?" Diavola's voice took on the same broken, whiny quality as a teenager upset at being forced to socialize. Coltrane the hunter watched with mild amusement as he noticed liquid pooling in her golden eyes. He didn't want to stare into those enchanting eyes for too long, the Demoness could easily take control of his mind if he let his guard down. Sparkling golden blood dripped out of the wound on her shoulder, and the injury seemingly forced her to fold her wings away; she'd brought them out to try and intimidate Coltrane.
"Why would you do that to me?!" she asked.
"It's my job, honey," he chuckled. Without decades of experience, he might have had more sympathy for the half-naked woman with bright pink skin. But, by now he could see her for the evil she truly was.
"You're supposed to HUNT me not SHOOT me!" she said. Even with her unusual skin tone, it was obvious she was growing more and more flustered. The pink on her cheeks and upper body began to turn almost bright red as tears streamed down her face. "This WAS SUPPOSED TO BE FUN!"
"Fun?" Coltrane chuckled. He was insulted enough to take another shot at the defenseless demon, and he wounded her other shoulder just to keep her from escaping by air. A bang, and the bullet flew through her body. "I don't think all those people you killed before me thought they were having much fun," he said.
"AUURRRGh!!" Diavola grunted in frustration, though Coltrane guessed she was in quite a bit of pain. "I MEANT FUN FOR ME!" She fell to her knees and closed her eyes for a moment. Coltrane didn't know what it meant, so he approached her cautiously, gun pointed straight at her head. When he was close enough, she sighed.
"The job had very clear instructions on what weapons were available to you. You ignored that and brought a gun, so, thanks for ruining my night," she said. She seemed to have found her calm and opened her eyes again.
"You're the one that hired me?" Coltrane asked. It was one of the few questions the hunter put fourth, as a general rule he didn't ask much. The job and a hefty bag of gold landed on his doorstep with the promise of another bag once it was completed.
"Obviously, not just you," she nodded. "I get bored easily and this was simple entertainment for a time until you showed up with a gun." Then, she rose to her feet again, and turned her back to him as she retreated up to her throne. Coltrane did notice that the fight to get to her wasn't nearly as dangerous as he expected. He only needed to kill a few patrols on the way in before he found her sitting in her throne room; now, he realized, she had been waiting for him. That was her mistake.
"Well, I'm about to give you your money's worth," Coltrane chuckled as he approached her throne. "Fun's over," he added.
"Over?" Diavola shook her head. "It never started, tonight was a waste; and, I think you might've soured me on the whole thing. I'm not even sure I'll hire another adventurer for next time...," she sighed.
"There won't be a next time for you," Coltrane grinned as he raised the gun and aimed at her face. It was a shame that he wouldn't get the other half of the payment, but the first bundle was generous enough, and the world would be better off without her. She looked up at him and met his eyes.
"Are you stupid?" she asked. "Your bullets aren't even enchanted; it's just metal. And, not even iron or silver," she said. "Those would be as useless against me; but, you're not even trying," she giggled.
"Let's try this, then," he fired directly at her. The bullet flew in through her forehead and out the back of her skull, and she didn't even blink. And, no wound appeared.
"I hope you don't expect me to mess up my face just so you think it worked," she said.
"Huh?" He glanced at the other two wounds on her shoulders, but they were gone.
"It was supposed to be a pleasant evening, being chased around by a handsome man, then I kill him at the end. If you had used one of the weapons I advised, you'd be herding me all over the castle right now, thinking you're the chosen one or whatever. But, you brought a gun and insisted on trying to get it done as soon as possible, so I lost interest. I don't even feel like killing you anymore," she said.
Coltrane was quick-witted enough to understand just how outclassed he was. He had enough experience to know she wasn't bluffing about any of it, and he took the opportunity when it presented itself.
"Then, I'll just call it a night, and we'll both go our separate ways," he nodded at her.
"You misunderstood," Diavola smiled at him as a black portal opened next to her throne. A tall, tan, muscular man in a pink shirt and blue jeans walked out of the portal, but he kept moving toward Coltrane with purpose. "I just said I didn't feel like killing you. Personally. But, you still have to die, and so, I'll have Roy here take care of that," she said.
"Stay back!" Coltrane moved back as he fired the few remaining shots he had left at Roy. He was starting to wish he wasn't so cocky and took time to reload while they were talking. But, he didn't bother at that point. He'd watched the bullets bounce off Roy harmlessly as the man walked straight toward him.
"Maybe in your next life you'll be more creative than just trying to shoot all your problems," Diavola giggled as Roy's hand grabbed his neck.