A grunting snarl escaped Fenn’s throat as the full mass of the Allegiance collided against him. In a startling show of strength, the impact barely slowed the centaur’s charge as it moved the both of them out of the rain of fire. It mattered little to the demon. It just meant the enemy was within easy reach.
 
Fenn’s fangs closed on the angel’s shoulder, where the armor had been stripped off. The taste of iron filled his mouth before they crashed against the adjacent building. The shuddering impact loosened his one armed grip on the angel’s armor. A second crash against a pillar managed to dislodge him, and he fell to the wayside.
 
The dog began to roll upright even as the sound of hoof falls turned and closed again. The Allegiance’s sword swept down, illuminated by the fiery light coming from outside. It crashed against the Ardor’s blade and was held in place, the metal groaning under the strain.
 
The dog stared up at the golden figure. Then swallowed the flesh he had torn from its shoulder.
 
He pushed, forcing the blades apart, forcing the heavy figure of the Allegiance to retreat a step. Fenn moved to claim the lost ground almost immediately, and the stolen blade struck the angel’s shield with enough force to rock it back against one of the several box-laden, metal scaffolds that dotted the interior of the building. Growling through bloodied fangs, Fenn pounced.
 
This angel was soft under that armor, just as soft as all the others they had torn apart to get there. Oh, it was larger, to be sure, and the missing chunk of muscle on its shoulder barely seemed to inconvenience it, but Fenn had to wonder just how much he could tear off before it stopped moving. The moment he got a decent grip on the centaur, the moment he got past the golden armor, its fate was sealed. The Allegiance must have known this as well as him, for as the hound’s claws neared it, its blade slid between them. Pain blossomed in his open palm. The angel’s shield suddenly swept upwards, striking the side of his jaw and Fenn staggered to the side.
 
He barely managed a stumbling step before two heavy objects planted themselves under his arm. Ribs creaked under the weight of gold-clad hooves and the Hellhound toppled, crashing over the boxes and metal.
 
A new light illuminated the room, and a clicking metal noise came from the Allegiance’s position. Fenn rolled onto all fours, ignoring the pulsating pain on his side, and bared his fangs in the angel’s direction.
 
The centaur’s sword was raised over its head. It had split into segments, all encapsulated in a string of roiling fire that swept outwards like a bladed whip as the arm came down. Fenn raised the Ardor’s sword. It crashed against one of the bladed spurs, but the whip merely wrapped around it. Fenn hissed as the next blade struck near his neck, grinding against his collarbones, while others struck the scales on his back.
 
Fenn’s muzzle twisted into a toothy smile as flame surrounded his left claw, spread open on the ground. A pillar of fire erupted from the ground beneath the Allegiance washing over its armor and obscuring its vision. Blood and smoke welled from Fenn’s injuries as the bladed whip was drawn back.
 
The Hellhound moved with it, the angelic blade still clutched tightly in one long limb, and swung at the obscured form of the angel. The flame was extinguished as quickly as it had started, revealing the Allegiance with its shield at the ready, but Fenn was not aiming at the centaur’s torso. The serrated blade struck one of its forelegs, the terrible force of the blow pushing it past the golden armor like a hot knife through butter. Metal bent, bone crumpled, and the limb flew into the depths of the warehouse.
 
The Allegiance reared, clumsily trying to stumble away on its remaining limbs. Fenn closed, drew his right arm backwards, and swung his sword forward. The angel hastily rose its shield. The golden sword struck with a sound like an explosion and shattered, the force of the blow knocking the centaur off-balance. Heavy, clattering noises filled their surroundings as the armored form of the Allegiance toppled onto its side.
 
Fenn wasted no time falling over it. He pushed aside a vainly raised shield, using it to pin down the Allegiance’s sword arm. The angel struggled, trying to push away the demon and stand up again, even if it was on three legs, but there was little chance for that at that point. Fenn was known for his strength, and he had all the leverage.
 
One of his tree-trunk limbs rose slowly, as if cocking the hammer of a gun, clawed digits closed into a fist. Fenn brought it down under the angel’s arms. Armor cracked. The Allegiance tensed, ceasing its struggle for a moment, as though the breath had been knocked out from it, before redoubling its efforts. The arm was raised again, then fell. A spider web of fissures ran through the plates.
 
Fenn raised his arm, but this time the digits were spread open, claws bared. The arm fell down. Metal bent, bone crumpled, and the hound’s large claws plunged into the centaur’s rib-cage. Once again the centaur tensed, but as Fenn began pushing out to the side, the angel’s struggles suddenly reached a fever pitch. With a clicking sound, armor fell out of place and clattered onto the floor. Flesh stretched and, with a grunt of exertion, the demon’s arm burst through the front of the Allegiance’s chest, spilling red over the warehouse floor.
 
The Hellhound looked down onto the still corpse, absentmindedly licking his muzzle as blood and smoke hissed from the wounds he had sustained before glancing outside. As entertaining as this bout had been, it was not the angel they had been ordered to kill.