himself.
Unbeknownst to him the receptionist had been watching the entire time. She saw the boy sit down in the hall and glare at the wall for several minutes. The thing Aura was not aware of was that the face he made while doing so, which to an onlooker like the receptionist, appeared quite suspicious. Closing his eyes and chuckling to himself didn’t help his image any either. The receptionist considered sending someone over to have the weird boy removed.
Ash ended up in a pool with most of the men who’d picked him off the floor when he slipped. They all sat in a circle with their backs against the edge of the bath, and for the moment Ash had given up. He was unable to see any of the men’s bodies below the water anyway, so he felt like he could relax while his clothing soaked.
In all the shuffling around Ash took notice of the men’s various body scars and burns. These men had all at one point in their lives been involved in a demon attack, just like Ash had faced that morning. The boy looked down at his own scars and wondered if showing off their battle scars gave the men some common ground. Something that they could even bond over.
Maybe I will try that sauna, Ash thought, feeling less ashamed of his nudity.
He bid his new friends farewell and thanked them for helping him up. With his towel and soaking wet clothing in hand, Ash made his way toward the sauna. He disappeared through the door and avoided the hall where Aura sat peeping, finding his way to the sauna. He stepped inside fully prepared for what he might see.
To his luck, there was no one inside. The sauna was empty, or at least Ash thought it was. It was really too steamy to tell. Ash could barely see his hand when he held it in front of his face. He was about to call out but realized that would seem silly to anyone who might actually be inside. Instead he silently crept forward, making sure not to step on any hidden toes.
Feeling around with his arms in front of him, Ash found a wall. There was a wooden bench to sit on, so Ash took one last silent look around to see if he could get an idea of how large the sauna room was. The steam was too heavy to see all the walls, but he thought if anyone were in the room with him, he’d have heard them make a sound by now. The boy was certain he was alone.
Ash decided to relax and enjoy it, so he took a seat on the wooden bench. The wood felt soft and squishy on his bottom and he thought that was very odd. Only when he heard a guttural growl did the boy fully realize his mistake. He’d sat on a man. A very large man.
At once the flustered boy jumped up, shouting an incoherent apology.
An enormous flame burst suddenly, clearing a portion of the steam in the room. The flames came from the angry person, and in the split second the steam cleared Ash caught a glimpse of the man he now faced. It was someone he knew well.
Not you again…
Dunger, a huge muscular man Ash had fought before in his earlier romps through Hell, charged forward at the boy. The giant baldy grappled with the teen until Ash was tossed through the wall of the sauna. He rolled, climbed to his feet, and turned to run away. A smart move, except that he was too tired and in too much pain from his injuries to effectively evade his pursuer.
That, and he took off running in the direction of one of the baths. He plunged in without thinking about how stupid a move it was and only when he had made it to the middle of the pool did he stop to think about where he was. How would he fight waist-deep in water?
No time to think. Ash turned to see if Dunger was still after him. He barely turned around in time to see Dunger fly through the air and strike downward. Ash was only able to avoid the attack because of his training with Shiva. His dodging reflexes had become more alert than he ever thought possible.
Dunger’s fist connected with the floor of the pool, and not being a very sound structure, the whole bath caved in. Ash was caught in the
Unbeknownst to him the receptionist had been watching the entire time. She saw the boy sit down in the hall and glare at the wall for several minutes. The thing Aura was not aware of was that the face he made while doing so, which to an onlooker like the receptionist, appeared quite suspicious. Closing his eyes and chuckling to himself didn’t help his image any either. The receptionist considered sending someone over to have the weird boy removed.
Ash ended up in a pool with most of the men who’d picked him off the floor when he slipped. They all sat in a circle with their backs against the edge of the bath, and for the moment Ash had given up. He was unable to see any of the men’s bodies below the water anyway, so he felt like he could relax while his clothing soaked.
In all the shuffling around Ash took notice of the men’s various body scars and burns. These men had all at one point in their lives been involved in a demon attack, just like Ash had faced that morning. The boy looked down at his own scars and wondered if showing off their battle scars gave the men some common ground. Something that they could even bond over.
Maybe I will try that sauna, Ash thought, feeling less ashamed of his nudity.
He bid his new friends farewell and thanked them for helping him up. With his towel and soaking wet clothing in hand, Ash made his way toward the sauna. He disappeared through the door and avoided the hall where Aura sat peeping, finding his way to the sauna. He stepped inside fully prepared for what he might see.
To his luck, there was no one inside. The sauna was empty, or at least Ash thought it was. It was really too steamy to tell. Ash could barely see his hand when he held it in front of his face. He was about to call out but realized that would seem silly to anyone who might actually be inside. Instead he silently crept forward, making sure not to step on any hidden toes.
Feeling around with his arms in front of him, Ash found a wall. There was a wooden bench to sit on, so Ash took one last silent look around to see if he could get an idea of how large the sauna room was. The steam was too heavy to see all the walls, but he thought if anyone were in the room with him, he’d have heard them make a sound by now. The boy was certain he was alone.
Ash decided to relax and enjoy it, so he took a seat on the wooden bench. The wood felt soft and squishy on his bottom and he thought that was very odd. Only when he heard a guttural growl did the boy fully realize his mistake. He’d sat on a man. A very large man.
At once the flustered boy jumped up, shouting an incoherent apology.
An enormous flame burst suddenly, clearing a portion of the steam in the room. The flames came from the angry person, and in the split second the steam cleared Ash caught a glimpse of the man he now faced. It was someone he knew well.
Not you again…
Dunger, a huge muscular man Ash had fought before in his earlier romps through Hell, charged forward at the boy. The giant baldy grappled with the teen until Ash was tossed through the wall of the sauna. He rolled, climbed to his feet, and turned to run away. A smart move, except that he was too tired and in too much pain from his injuries to effectively evade his pursuer.
That, and he took off running in the direction of one of the baths. He plunged in without thinking about how stupid a move it was and only when he had made it to the middle of the pool did he stop to think about where he was. How would he fight waist-deep in water?
No time to think. Ash turned to see if Dunger was still after him. He barely turned around in time to see Dunger fly through the air and strike downward. Ash was only able to avoid the attack because of his training with Shiva. His dodging reflexes had become more alert than he ever thought possible.
Dunger’s fist connected with the floor of the pool, and not being a very sound structure, the whole bath caved in. Ash was caught in the
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