Shades of grey

B. P. R. D Headquarters; Fairfield, Connecticut

“So I’ll assume Dr. Corrigan briefed you on our situation before your arrival?” Tom Manning sat in a large leather chair behind a monstrous oak desk, looking weary and every day of his fifty-two years. He let out a long sigh, steepling his hands together as Hellboy and his sometimes partner Abe Sapien took seats facing him. Hellboy fidgeted uncomfortably in a chair obviously not built for someone with tail.
“Yeah, but I’m a bit unclear on exactly what you want me to do.”
“Protect the vault. If this thing shows up, do what you do best….Beat it down.” Manning narrowed his red-rimmed eyes, glaring at the two strange beings currently inhabiting his office. He had never been the best at dealing with the Bureau’s weirder operatives. One could go so far as to say he almost didn’t like them…
Hellboy nodded, and stood to go. “But understand this; I’m not coming back to work for you again. Consider this a favor.”
“Of course.” Hellboy thought he detected a note of sarcasm in the man’s reedy voice, but decided to put no more thought into it. He had other things to do.


“How was your magical mystery tour, H.B.?” Abe Sapien turned to his friend, who was standing on the other side of the narrow hallway that was the only way to the artifact vault.
“Still listening to the Beatles, Fish-stick?” Hellboy chuckled and checked the safety on his gun, making sure it was off. “But the trip was relaxing. It was nice not to get the crap beat outta me every other day. My bruises finally had a chance to heal.”
Abe nodded. “That’s good. But for the sake of conversation, we’ll ignore the fact that you have super-fast regenerative powers…Unlike some of us.”
“Doesn’t mean I enjoy being tossed through walls and shot, ya know….Were you here the night of the attack?”
“Yes, but I missed it. Everything happened so fast. I didn’t even see the creature. Well, except for on the security tapes.” Abe’s gills fluttered violently, a sure sign he was uneasy.
“Yeah, it was pretty brutal.” Hellboy had watched the tapes as soon as they had left Manning’s office, about two hours ago. Even with all the horrors he had witnessed in his long career, the footage had still made him queasy. “There was blood and body parts everywhere, plus worse…” Hellboy shook his head, checking his gun again for good measure. “I can’t wait to teach this worthless fuck a lesson.”
The alarm shrilled suddenly, causing both to jump, and was followed by a crash and several screams.
“Looks like you’ll get your chance.” Abe smiled grimly as Hellboy took off towards the noise.


“Gods, how I hate these worthless fuckers…” The Skin-Changer flowed effortlessly into what he referred to as his ‘Battle form’, Catching the fleeing guard in his wicked claws and drawing him close.
“You are absolutely useless.” He whispered, and with a casual yank, separated arms from owner, tossing both aside like a broken toy. Blood and ichor fountained up, splashing the thing’s fine, black fur. He began to move forward, but something made him turn. As he regarded the broken man, he noticed a spark of impossible life in his eyes, and put it out with a quick stomp, sending his razor-edged toe-claws through the human’s head.
“That was quicker than you deserved, ape.” The Skin-Changer scowled, exposing curving alabaster fangs in disgust. He kicked out sharply, smiling as the bits of brain and skull clinging to his paw flew off and splattered against the wall. He cocked his head, listening to the bleating of the alarm, and paused on his way into the B.P.R.D.
“Let them come.”


“So here you are again. Don’t you think you’ve worn out your welcome by now?” Hellboy met the creature in the main foyer, blocking the corridor that led deeper into the building.
The Skin-changer stopped, and Hellboy noted that it was at least a foot and a half taller than him, and he stood at seven feet.
“So the rumors are true.” Slitted yellow eyes sparkled with macabre glee. “They do have a pet demon. I was wondering when you would show up.” His voice was crushed glass and gravel, cruel and cold.
Hellboy leveled his gun at the hulking feline monster. “Well here I am. And I’m no one’s pet….”
The Skin-Changer just grinned, and brought his massive, ebony-furred arms up, crossing them over his chest in an X pattern.
“Fine. Just stand there then. Makes my job a whole hell of a lot easier.” Hellboy fired the large gun, sending a silver slug flying at the thing.
With a crack of black lightening and the smell of ozone, the bullet hit the air less than an inch from the Panther-creature’s nose, and stopped dead. It hung in empty space for a moment, then clattered to the ground, rolling a bit and coming to rest beside a curving jet black claw.
“What the fuck?” Not much gave Hellboy pause for thought, but seeing his full-silver man-stopper round hit an invisible wall and fall harmless was definitely one of them. But thinking when faced with death was not his strong suite. He dropped the gun, and with a roar, and charged the ebon-furred lunatic, hitting with the force of a speeding train.
But the impact only pushed the intruder back a few feet. As claws like razors bit into his flesh, and gleaming fangs sought out his throat, Hellboy realized his mistake.
The thing was his equal in strength.
It slithered in and out of his grasp like a pissed-off snake.
And it was much, much faster….
Hellboy grunted with pain as the Skin-changer took a chunk out of his shoulder, tearing the flesh free with a vicious shake, sending blood spraying into the Demi-demon’s eyes. He managed to free his right arm, and raising it up, brought the stone hand crashing down onto the thing’s head. With a snarl, the were-panther fell back, shaking it’s muzzle and grimacing, Hellboy’s blood beaded on it’s whiskers.
While it was stunned, Hellboy reached down into his belt, rummaging in the many pouches hung there, desperately searching for something to aide him against the Skin-Changer, some charm or amulet, or failing that, an explosive. The creature licked it’s maw, and began to stalk towards him, yellow eyes glowing malignantly, teeth bared. Hellboy had never, not even when facing impossible odds and seemingly indestructible foes, felt more like prey in his life.
“That’s the best you can do?” It was on him again, talons and fangs seeking out a weak spot, ripping, tearing…
“Not likely….” Hellboy got a hand around the huge Cat-beast’s throat, but unfortunately it wasn’t his right. But it would have to do. As he began to squeeze, he smiled. ‘This might not be so bad’ He thought as he tightened his grip. The Skin-changer choked for a moment, then locked it’s arms around Hellboy in a morbid hug, pulling back and swinging it’s feet off the ground, punching it’s toe-claws into the unprotected flesh of the Demi-demon’s stomach with the force of a shot-gun blast.
Stars exploded in Hellboy’s vision as his guts were rearranged. He had been beaten, shot, stabbed and survived falls that nothing had ever been meant to, and even lived through impalement on a dead man’s sword, but never in his long monster-fighting career had he been disemboweled.
Guess there’s a first for everything…..
The Skin-Changer laughed as it spilled Hellboy’s intestines onto the tile floor, breaking his grip and taking a half-step back. It paused a moment, watching the surprise and horror surge into it’s opponent’s eyes as the demon surveyed his innards spilling out of his midsection and spread out below him in a growing pool of bright red.
“Fool.” The great cat kicked again, higher this time, knocking Hellboy back and down, sending him sliding across the floor in a wide smear of crimson. Hellboy shut his eyes and prayed his regeneration ability could take care of this. The pain was the worst he had ever felt, a living, burning thing twisting inside him. But even worse was the numbness beginning to creep in, bringing with it a deathly cold. That was never a good sign….
A black shadow loomed in his vision. “See how much your monkeys care about you?” It growled low, pleasure evident in it’s grating voice.
“Huh?” Hellboy tried to sit up, but pain and darkness threatened to overwhelm him.
“No back up, no more guards, nothing…” The Skin-Changer crouched down, narrowing it’s slitted eyes in disgust at the broken man.
“They aren’t coming…” Hellboy gasped, “Because I told them not to.” He coughed, felt blood running down his chin. “I had all the cameras turned off….You won’t kill anyone else….”
“So you think, my idiot friend.” The creature leaned closer, till Hellboy could smell the blood on it’s breath. “When you’re dead, I’m going to hunt down every last ape in this place….Do you realize how many of my allies you and your worthless B.P.R.D. have killed? I intend to even the score and then I’ll take what I need from whoever in this shitheap has it.”
Hellboy tried to raise his arm, to block this horror, to hurt it, but found that his strength had deserted him. All he could do was watch as talons descended to wrap around his throat, cutting off his air supply.
“Let’s see if your ugly head comes off, hmm?” The Skin-Changer purred in his ear, tightened his vice-like grip, and Hellboy felt claws beginning to slide into his neck, felt a tendon give, felt fresh blood spurt, gasped for breath.
The claws were suddenly torn out, causing more damage, but at least he could breathe again. Hellboy sucked air in, noted a liquid bubbling from one of the wounds in his throat, and realized with dim horror that the fucking Skin-changer had been THIS close to performing a tracheotomy on him.
A silver flash streaked by him, and he thought ‘This is it. I’m finally dying. My luck finally ran out…’
When the pain began to grow stronger as his healing factor kicked in, Hellboy realized he wasn’t mortally wounded. The silver blur came into focus, solidifying into a second Skin-Changer, one that was shorter and of slighter build than the obsidian-furred monster. Silver fur threw back the light, pale claws gleamed iridescent as they tore into the dark cat with a savagery that matched the invader’s own. Strike after vicious strike hit home. Silver soon turned red as blood flew. The new creature had beaten it’s opponent back, broken it down. Hellboy watched in awe as the two battled, more and more awareness flowing into him.
“Ah, sister…” The black-pelted killer began softly, reaching to his thigh and pulling from a hip-sheath a blade that threw pools of light at his feet. From how the weapon shimmered, like water playing on it’s curved surface, Hellboy knew it was made of silver.
Soon the black Skin-changer had regained the upper hand. He backed Hellboy’s savior up against a wall, growling low, closing in. “I’d hoped I’d get to use this tonight….” Light whirled in the depths of the machete as it twirled and twisted in the monster’s grip, a macabre dance of slow menace. Suddenly he lunged, almost too fast for Hellboy to follow, too fast for the other to avoid his strike.
The blade descended from on high, but at the last moment, the woman threw her pale arm up, and Hellboy heard the sickening thud of a blade sinking deep into bone.
“Shit…” He muttered as the silver-furred Skin-Changer howled in pain, and he tried to stand, but collapsed back to the bloodied floor in a heap, cursing himself for being so weak. “Now‘s there’s two of them….” His desperate gaze raked the room frantically as he tried to block out the sounds of the wicked blade hitting home again and again. Then he saw it, and his heart leapt. His gun, not five feet behind him.

“You should not have interfered, sister….” The black Skin-changer rammed his blade through her abdomen, and bodily slammed her against the wall, stunning her and causing her to slump to the floor. He raised the blade high, about to bring the silver weapon crashing through her skull, when a small scraping noise caught his attention. He turned just as Hellboy was desperately reaching for his gun.
“No you don’t!” The Creature roared, and focused his attention back on the crippled demon. “Your life ends now.” He grinned like a nightmare, and slowly stalked towards him. Hellboy, gun forgotten, tried to draw away, to put some space between himself and the monster. He knew that the beast not finishing him off the first time had been a great stroke of luck, and that it would not be repeated if he found himself in that lunatic’s claws a second time.
“Oh how you’ve changed, brother…” A rasping, pained voice drew the black-furred thing’s attention back to the female, who had shakily regained her footing, and now stood leaning on the wall for support. “Going after a wounded man when you have a more worthy opponent right in front of you. The dark has made you more cowardly that I suspected….” She laughed mockingly, and spit a glob of blood onto the ground.
“Cowardly!” He bellowed, Turning fully around and charging her. "Cowardly! I’ll show you cowardly, you fucking cunt!!!”


He reached, eyes closed and teeth gritted against the pain, and wrapped his fingers around his gun's familiar grip. With any luck bullet-stopping magic shields had to be focused on to maintain. Hellboy prayed it wasn’t an innate ability. Slowly he forced himself into a sitting position, almost blacking out in the process. But he pressed on, leaning on his stone hand for support, and once up, took aim.
And ran into a problem.
The black monster was behind his rescuer, machete against her throat, forcing her head up. Even as Hellboy watched, the blade bit into her neck, drawing blood. It pooled on the blade, dripping down, tracing crimson streaks in the brilliant silver fur. She had paid dearly to buy him some time.
“Because you are my sister, I will make this painless….” The creature whispered, Still digging the blade into her flesh, slicing deeper and deeper. In this position, his head was effectively hidden from a clear shot.
Then pale blue eyes met Hellboy’s. They were the brightest he had ever seen, seeming to glow faintly, and they were feverish with pain. It hurt him to see such a noble creature in this much agony. And agony it must have been. Horrible gashes covered her, and he noted a gore-filled stab-wound in her belly, leaking more blood. One shoulder was hanging at an odd angle, the tendons and sinew exposed, a knob of bone clearly visible.
“Shoot through me.” Her voice was not loud, but it carried across the large room to Hellboy's ears, and it was filled to the brim with suffering.
“He wouldn’t dare…” The obsidian beast laughed, letting up for a minute on the relentless bite of his blade. “He’s too much the hero to hurt the damsel in distress….”
“Your path of death ends here, brother…You will kill no more….” She spat the words with such venom, such hate, that Hellboy knew he had to kill this horrible, twisted black creature. Those pale eyes locked with his, and Hellboy nodded, just as her attacker ducked down behind her, thinking to cover himself from a shot intended to hit an exposed part of him. Using the blade as leverage, he began to lift the woman by her neck, crouching even lower behind her.
“Now your Prince charming will die with you.” The black monster laughed as he slowly cut her throat. “As soon as you’re dead, I’ll kill him slow…Just for you, my dear darling sister…”
As soon as the words left the beast’s mouth, Hellboy pulled the trigger, and the shot was deafening. The bullet tore through the stained silver fur just below the female's breast bone, exploding it and the head of the creature behind her. The headless body stood upright for a moment, wavered, and fell, still clutching the machete. The woman remained standing a bit longer, a hand raised to cover the huge hole just above her stomach. Ichor fountained out, pouring down in a grisly rain, and Hellboy would have sworn she hadn’t even had that much blood left in her.
Calm pale eyes regarded him as she dwindled into human form, seeming to melt into herself, her body rippling like water, till a unearthly beautiful woman, with hair so blonde it was almost silver, and fine-boned, pale features collapsed to the ground, eyes slowly closing.
“No! Ah, shit, hold on!” Hellboy tried to force himself to his feet, to aide the girl, to call for help, but the blackness took him suddenly, and he flopped back, one red hand outstretched to the woman that had saved his life, and now lay dying less than ten feet from the demon in a spreading pool of scarlet.