“Girls, run!” cried Raphael to his daughters.
“Your daughters won’t be going anywhere. Don’t worry. I won’t hurt them. In fact, they’ll stay right here.” Arius directed his attention to Raphael’s daughters who stood behind their father’s legs. “Both of you, kneel before your father and don’t say a word.” As if in a trance, his two daughters emerged from behind him and kneeled at his feet as ordered. “Good.”
“Please, let them go. They had nothing to do with it. I made a mistake! I’m sorry! Please, I’ll–”
“Your begging only compels me to do what I came here to do even more so. Just like you, four months ago I begged, but where was my mercy? As innocent as they may be, so were my parents as well as my brother. Instead of searching inside yourself for a way out or even granting some form of pity, you killed our parents in front of us. How do you suppose that affects a person, Raphael? Being a noble man like yourself, have you ever felt useless, unable to change anything, defeated, watching fate play out as you stand merely as a bystander? From personal experience, I can tell you that it is truly horrible. That night when you murdered my parents and almost killed my brother, I felt the same way. But of course, as fate would have it, the worlds reversed. At first, I thought killing you would be enough to satisfy my thirst for revenge, but in my reflection, I decided that killing you outright wouldn’t be enough. No...not nearly enough. While an inferior being such as yourself couldn’t possibly understand what I felt that day, I have taken it upon myself to send you to your own personal Hell.” A malevolent smile turned up the corners of Arius’s cold face. The aura of defeat radiated from Raphael’s body.
“As a lapdog, you only live to obey. I understand that. And that is why, as your new master, I command you to kill your daughters.”
Against his will, Raphael’s body moved towards his offspring, only pausing once his drawn sword rested on top of one of his daughter’s shoulders. “Please, stop. I’ll do anything. They’re just children!”
“I told you already, your cries do nothing for me. Now aim for the gut and go through her slowly.”
The blade that trembled in Raphael’s hand moved leisurely to his eldest daughter. She was not much older than eight years of age. Her hazel eyes stared into his as the blade moved closer.
“I’m so sorry, baby. I’m so sorry.” Tears began to fall from Raphael’s cheeks as he sobbed at the heinous act he was bound to commit against his will; forced to inflict judgment for his own sins upon his daughters.
“Arius, stop!” From the hallway, Emil emerged with fire filling his eyes. The rusty dagger that he held in his hand quaked as he slowly entered into the main room. “You never told me there would be children involved! Arius, this isn’t right and you know it. We aren’t murderers. Let the children go. Block out their memory or make them mute when they try to speak about it. Can’t you do that?”
“Perhaps...but I’m unsure of the long term effects of my hold. Matters such as these aren’t the opportune time for experimentations of that caliber. Besides, the truth of the matter is, I didn’t tell you because I knew you wouldn’t follow through with the plan if you would have known they were here.
“With Lady Catherine’s passing, it was the perfect time to get our revenge. For months, I’d suspected he’d be on the move once we were not found. That’s why I insisted we stay in the forest away from the main roads. Seeing that Raphael was one of the king’s noblest of men, I knew he wouldn’t stop until he found you to reclaim his honor. You were to be captured and killed simply so he would be in the king’s graces. I, on the other hand, was only seen as a normal human. The king’s orders were to kill you, brother, and once Raphael failed to do so, shame was brought unto his name.
“My original plan was to obtain information on his whereabouts through rumors and speculation, but progress in that manner came painstakingly slow. My next course of action was to turn myself in and confide in the guard in hopes of getting Raphael face to face and end him there, but that would have become messy rather quickly. But as fate would have it, not long ago I heard that Lady Catherine had fallen terribly ill and her daughters were to live with their father. Given our family history, I narrowed down the places he could have possibly stayed with simple logistics and common sense, thus placing us where the three of us stand today. Raphael once said our kind was an abomination. Perhaps now is the time I embrace my fate. What better way to erase a man from history than to end his legacy? When Raphael dies, he will be the sole cause for all of the misery that befalls him. I am simply the tool used for his judgment.”
“You can’t do this, Arius. They’re just children.” Emil raised the dagger he held up to his chest and began to walk towards his brother. The smoky lilac hue that flooded the irises of Arius’s eyes, a sign that his powers were heavily in use, intimidated Emil from approaching any closer.
“Don’t you remember that night, brother? Blood for blood. He killed two of ours. We kill two of his. The only difference is that our hands will be spared from the blood split on this day. Regardless of how you feel, the reality of the situation is that if these girls live, our lives will be at risk. In time, they will grow to hate our kind just as their father, whether our paths cross with them or not. The chance that they would one day spread the message of hate is simply a chance I can’t take. Perhaps in a different world, things could have been different, but the risks associated with their blood-line, coupled with the deeds of their father, sealed their fate. Brother, lower your dagger.”
Emil’s hand trembled as he contemplated his next move. He scanned the room, taking note of Raphael’s convulsing body as he struggled to rebuke the commands that he was forced to obey. Not far from him, his daughters silently awaited their fate.
“If I wanted to, you know, I could force you to comply,” Arius said. “I chose not to because I know deep down you understand that what I am doing is a necessary evil. I always knew that you didn’t have it in you to do what was necessary, so I took steps to ensure that the burden of what was to come of Raphael and his family fell on my shoulders. Now, please, lower your weapon.”
Damn it. This wasn’t part of the plan.
Conflicted with his brother’s resolve and his own emotions, Emil lowered his dagger to his side and stood idly as his brother commenced his course of action.
The eldest was the first to go. Though Raphael begged Arius to stop, true to his word, he showed no form of mercy. The blade sunk slowly into her abdomen, causing a splash of crimson to wash over her white nightgown as she silently endured. Emil carefully studied the face of his brother, which remained relatively unmoved by the act of atrocity he had committed. Blood poured from Elizabeth as the blade thrust deeper.
As if the agony of killing your own flesh and blood wasn’t enough, in her final moments, Arius released his hold on her, allowing her to mouth her final words, “Daddy...why?” The question rung through his ears as the blade that rested in her abdomen was extracted, creating an opening for her life force to fall to the floor. Her small body dropped to its side and fell, facing Emil, forcing him to look at her in her final moments as she struggled to bring air into her lungs.
Next was his youngest; Sarah. She was killed in similar fashion, prematurely leaving the earth due to her father’s deeds. Together, their blood pooled before Raphael’s feet as he stood, still forced to hold the sword which fed on innocent blood.
“And now, for the final piece. Kill yourself.” The purple hue to Arius’s eyes illuminated as Raphael forcibly turned his blade against himself, running the blade through his solar plexus. While his brother smiled in delight on finally accomplishing their long sought after revenge, Emil felt no pleasure in their deeds that day. The blood bath that he thought would give him closure, instead plagued him with remorse for being part of his brother’s plan.
“With his daughters dead with visible stab wounds and Raphael impaled by his own sword, given the recent passing of Lady Catherine, the masses will assume that he lost his
mind and killed his daughters and then himself.” The hue in Arius’s eyes returned to normal as he walked towards Emil, who was noticeably shaken. “Now that Raphael is out the way and our parents have been avenged, we can begin to rebuild. As you know, the guards who were present that night have been taken care of or have died in battle.” Emil avoided eye contact with his brother as he spoke; only hanging his head down low in reverence of the innocent blood that was shed. “Right now you think that I lack compassion, but be mindful that there are far more sinister things I could have made him do to his daughters before they left this earth.”
Unwilling to waste time on consoling his brother, Arius placed his hood over his head and walked past Emil, leaving him alone in the room painted in red.
Chapter 16: My Will Be Done
5 Years Ago, Hours After Raphael’s Death
The rain fell melodically, lightly tapping against the trees and leaves on the way down to the forest floor. Outside of the light of the stars above and the lightning that separated the sky, the forest remained black. For some time, Emil drew on the inspiration of the night sky while his mind raced with sobering thoughts. Arius was to the right of him, sleeping soundly, knowing that his brother was there to watch his back while he rested. A pang of guilt mixed with a sudden disgust ran through Emil’s gut when he thought about his brother. Knowing what Arius had told him, knowing what he planned to do in the coming years, Emil couldn’t help but feel the way he felt.
Perhaps Arius told him too much. Perhaps he thought his brother would willingly stand aside and let him carry out his wishes. Emil didn’t care to know. The thought of what the world might be like according to his brother’s revelation was something he couldn’t begin to imagine. The death of their parents was a hurt they both shared and was a loss that neither of them should have faced.
In the short time since their passing, Emil witnessed his brother transform into a vessel of hatred aiming to achieve his one goal. Blinded by his own emotions, Emil failed to recognize it until fate had already set its course.
He’s too powerful...he’s twisted. He’ll do it and won’t stop at anything.
Emil’s conscience pestered him as he watched his brother still resting peacefully. Arius was the antithesis of who Emil was now and who he sought to be. It wasn’t until recently that Emil had been afraid of his own brother. The onset of Arius’s powers and the change that accompanied them always kept him on guard. Emil was careful not to overstep or anger his sibling’s authority.
The power he possessed was the power to bend one’s will. As Arius described it, it was the power of a god. In the beginning, it was weak; outside of the event of its awakening, he was only able to instill suggestion over simple commands. Over time, the commands he gave grew more suggestive in unison with the darkening of his own heart.
He knew that on nights where he would scout for food he would practice his abilities. Being naïve, Emil only suspected it was for resources or intel, until he witnessed one of Arius’s runs firsthand by trailing him, unnoticed. Ever since then, he remained quiet as his brother grew in power out of fear that he would end up like the others or worse; bended and broken to comply with his brother’s wishes.
It’s now or never, Emil thought as he grabbed a boulder and gripped it in his palms. The chance to kill his brother was now, while Arius was at his weakest. Using his ability took a great amount of energy to manifest. On the way back from the assassination, Emil noticed that his brother’s stamina wasn’t at a level it should be. That was a good thing. To his knowledge, Arius never used his power against another Abnormal, so anything to stack the odds in his favor was welcomed. Ending his life with a preemptive strike would be even better.
With a silent sigh, Emil lifted the boulder above his head, but his brother’s intuition stirred him awake. Emil stood above him with the boulder in his hands, looking down at Arius, shocked that he had awakened.
“I can’t say that I’m surprised.” The boulder that Emil held dropped to the ground beside him as Arius stood.
“Arius...I had to. You’ve gone too far. Think of our parents. Would they want you to do this?”
“How can you defend them knowing what they did to us? They stripped us of everything, they persecute us, and we’re supposed to shake hands and play nice? This is beyond our family. This is for our people. We are deities. We are gods, but yet, where are the rest of us? In hiding...why? If we wanted to, we could reshape the world as we know it. I believe that others are out there, brother, and with their help, I can change the world. No longer will we be under humans, but they will learn to respect us!” A flash of anger sparked inside his brother’s eyes while they exchanged glares. Emil grew wary but he refused to let Arius’s anger cripple his spirit.
“You say it isn’t about our parents, but the only reason you’ve been pushed this far is because of them. What Raphael did was a mistake. Everyone responsible for that is dead now. You said it yourself. We can rebuild now.”
“Everyone except for the king himself. Don’t play ignorant, brother. He did what he did because he was afraid—afraid of you and the others that are in hiding. It seems that there are so few of us. Probably no more than fifty if I could throw a number out, but still, humans fear us. They fear us so much so that, to the general public, our feats are that of legend. As of right now, only a few know that the stories are true. Father only knew because of his rank. The rest of us knew because of you. If I can rally our brothers and sisters across the land, we can rise up and take back what is ours. The right to rule.”
“But you’ll start a war!”
“Perhaps that’s what I want. With the new reform in order, the humans will know exactly where they stand and our rule will go untested.”
Emil’s aura began to grow as his energy began to aggregate around his body.
“Don’t get tangled up in your emotions. You and I both know that peaceful words won’t change a thing. We are already labeled in the story books as monsters. Once it gets out to the general public what we are, we will have no other choice.”
“You’re wrong...if we can just show them that we’re normal people, they’ll accept us, Arius.”
“Right...just like how they accepted you with that warm welcoming at Mom and Dad’s expense. Save your strength and fight with me, not against me, brother. I need you for this. I need you by my side to make this world a better place.”
“I...can’t. Arius, this isn’t right. I have to stop you. Please. I don’t want to hurt you.”
A smirk arose on Arius’s face followed by a quick chuckle inspired by Emil’s resolve. “Though you are faster and stronger than me, you can’t harm me. The possibilities of what I can do to you without even lifting a finger are endless. Also, the fact that you hesitated to kill me when you had the chance shows me that you lack the courage to do so, even if you had to. You’re afraid of me. I can feel your fear even from here. Stand aside for I, on the contrary, wouldn’t hesitate to harm you if it is what I must do.”
The aura around Emil’s body grew brighter and more intense as he focused the free floating energy into a focal point in his palm. Damn it. He’s given me no choice. Emil’s aura danced like fire as it encircled his body. The energy in his palm crackled as it poured out in excess, illuminating the surrounding area. I’m sorry. Emil rushed to close the gap between them, jutting out his hand, aiming to pierce through his heart, but stopped an inch from his chest.
“As I said, you can’t harm me.” Emil averted his gaze from his brother’s chest and looked dead into his Arius’s eyes. They were a smoky hue of purple, changed from the use of his powers. “I’m impressed that you actually had the guts to go through with it. Had I not stopped you, you would have killed me, no doubt.”
“But...how?” Emil asked as he struggled to resist the hold his brother had on him.
“I simply spoke the command and enforced my will at the appropriate time, if that makes sense. Over the course of a normal conversation, I can push cues or sugg
est certain actions without the other party even being aware. It comes in handy quite often. More than you know.”
“So this whole time you’ve been using me?!” Emil struggled to gain control of his own body, moving only an inch of his own choosing. Arius noticed the change but seemed unimpressed.
“No. I never used my powers on you until this moment. Everything you have done up to this point has been of your own doing. You call me sick, but remember, until recently, we walked the same path,” he responded nonchalantly.
“Lies!” Emil said as he struggled desperately to regain control. “You manipulated me! You messed with my mind!”
“Believe what you wish. I’m telling the truth. You are just as savage as me, little brother.”
“Arius!” An explosion of energy rushed over Emil as he continued to try to break free from his brother’s grip.
“Stop,” Arius said calmly. “On your knees.”
Against his will, Emil forcefully sat on his knees as the aura around him faded away.
Damn it. I can’t move anymore.
“Emil...I love you. This was never what I intended, but you just tried to take my life. For that, I can never forgive you. Nothing will ever be the same. In this world you were all that I had left, my brother...my only friend. I wanted to build a new world with you, but it seems that we don’t share the same views.”
The Last Light Series Omnibus One: - The Dreamer and the Deceiver - All Things Eternal - Ode to the King: A Superhero Epic Fantasy Collection (The Last Light Collection Book 1) Page 10
