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Eliphas slashed his claws across the tree and sunk them into the bark. With a grunt, he pulled himself free. Flexing the fingers, he checked to see if the nails had been damaged and was proud to find they had gone unharmed. With a victorious laugh, he turned his arm back to normal and turned to Oliver.

"Did you see that? No damage to myself," he said with a grin. "And look how deep those slashes are."

"Imagine if that had been armor," Oliver said in awe. "You might have put a serious dent into it."

"Quality armor would have gotten a dent. The more cheaply produced armor would not have stood a chance," Eliphas said proudly.

Transforming both arms, he pounded on the side of the tree with his fists. Much like the claws, his fist remained undamaged by the solid tree. Eliphas flexed his fingers, feeling no hidden damage either. His amazement was limitless and his curiosity grew stronger with each of his tests. Transforming his limbs into demon limbs was practiced enough times that he wondered what else he could make his internal friend do for him. He called for a blade and his arm shifted into a single simple blade that was triangular in shape. Though not as attractive as an fire forged blade, when tested on a tree it cut half way through. With a second swing he was able to cut all the way through the tree.

"That tree was at least forty-years-old, and you cut through it like a sapling," Oliver was once again amazed by his master's power.

Returning his arm back to its normal state, he stood there a moment and panted. It took a lot of his energy to change, which was expected. Most new spells started off as either weak or draining or both, but after enough practice those barriers could be overcome. Eliphas, however, was concerned about the payment of these spells. His body would recover with rest, it was the creature he was concerned about. It would grow hungry again and sooner than in had in the past. Animal blood would silence it for a time, though an even shorter time now that he used the demon heart.

"Let's call it a day and go see how our friend Des is doing. I hope after a night's rest he's been able to come to terms with his past, present, and future."

Eliphas called over his horse and climbed on. The animal gave a mild protest, smelling a strange air about his master, though it quickly overcame this concern with a carrot.

Oliver mounted his horse and added, "I hope he's fairing well. I wouldn't forgive myself if we had caused him more pain."

The pair rod in towards town. Eliphas had intentionally picked a location far off should anyone come snooping around or if something went wrong with his transformations. Just their luck, they had one wrong turn and crossed through a section of woods that was unofficially owned by different groups of bandits. Friend and foe were both unaware of who they would cross paths with and neither would forget what would transpire.

"How much are you boys carrying on you, hm?" inquired a man as he stepped out from behind a tree.

"Haven't we dealt with you before?" inquired Eliphas.

"I reckon not, I'd know two handsome men if I saw them again," replied the man. "But enough with the chit-chat or my boys will rough you up."

Upon saying that, young men with masks emerged from behind trees and shrubs around the pair. A wide range of weapons were possessed, from spears to clubs, a miss-mash of weapons. At least twenty of them stared hungrily at the mage and his apprentice. Oliver couldn't help expresses his concern with heavy breathing and darting eyes, whereas Eliphas glared with a cool expression. Maybe now is a good time for a trial with men, he thought darkly.

"Verwandeln Sie alle," Eliphas whispered under his breath.

Oliver recalled the meaning of the phrase and paled even whiter than he already was, "Wait, my lord!"

Before anyone could question the young apprentice's words, a demon sprung from the back of Eliphas' horse and landed in front of the bandit leader. He was only given a moment to panic before the creature smacked his face so hard it broke the bandit's head clean off. Everyone stared in shock as the body dropped to the ground like a sack of potatoes. The monster looked down at its work, flexed its fingers, and looked back at the others.

"Who's next?" he growled.

Half fled at the challenge, darting back into the forest they had come from. Their stumbling echoed through the woods for a moment before it drifted off into the distance. The braver (or perhaps foolish was more accurate) of them that remained started the attack. Spears, arrows, clubs, and swords were swatted like irritating bugs as soon as they were within striking distance. With his claws alone he put grooves in the swords and his fist snapped spear heads. Those within striking distance were given solid smacks to limbs. He may have been a monster, but his humanity remained at the core. He'd rather give them broke bones than have their families collect bodies. The boys quickly disappear to nurse the damage done.

"I think that's enough, my lord," Oliver said weakly.

"I'll be the judge of that," snarled the demon.

A burning hunger crawled up the creature's throat and he growled. The pain blurred his vision, causing him to shake his head to relieve it. A branch snapped behind him and he jerked around to see one of the young male bandits trying to escape. Unlike his comrades, he hadn't attacked and he hadn't been damaged. Instead, he had stood there in fright and watched his friends fall before the beast. In his haste to flee, he became tangled in a bush covered in grape vines.

The hunger grew as the demon watched the young man frantically try to free himself. Strolling over, the demon dragged him out of the bush and pinned him to a tree with one hand. Unfortunately, the terrified bandit couldn't see what was happening, his mask had slipped up and block his vision downwards. His shirt had pulled up and he could feel hot breath panting against his stomach. The other clawed hand pulled his shirt up higher and exposed his abdomen. Instantly, he feared that he was going to be eaten alive and begged for mercy. The other young man who was with this monster, surely he wouldn't let him die like this? Maybe he wouldn't die at the hands of this monster if the boy got involved.

"Eliphas, that's enough," Oliver called. "Let him go."

The behavior was starting to point towards a feeding and it was starting to make Oliver worry. With how excited the demon was, he feared this feeding would be violent and result in the death of the victim. Perhaps the creature would consume the flesh and the blood, mangling the poor fool and leaving him to bleed to death. Not only did he not want to be around for a terrifying feeding, he knew his master would never live the guilt down if he killed the young bandit.

"I must pay for this body and he must be punished for his association," said the demon

Moving his face close, he skipped teasing his prey and went straight to consuming. His demon heart was quick to stick its tongue out before he'd even brought his mouth closed to the navel. It brushed over the young bandit's stomach and he gave a shocked gasp. As soon as he guided it towards the pit, it stabbed in and pushed into the bandit. There was a sharp cry and he fought the attack for a moment, unsure what else to do. He thrashed side to side, but with no avail. His resistance was a short lived as the prey was sedated. The young man's body went slack and the demon had no trouble from him. He gave a chuckle as he finally fed in peace.

Oliver quickly turned his horse around and focused on the forest in front of him. Behind him he could hear the light pants and moans of the young man. To drown it out, he ran over some spell basics in his head. A sudden sharp cry broke his focus and Oliver whipped around to witness the demon heart's tongue being withdrawn from its victim. The site of it made his stomach tense and the world around him suddenly went dark.