Angel Girl

Chapter 12: Confrontation

The short-haired man meanwhile was relaxing in the living room of his luxurious penthouse. He turned on the TV to watch a soap opera while pouring a glass of wine and checked the time on his grandfather clock as he grew impatient. “Where the bloody heck is he? He should be here by now,” Arthur wondered. He went upstairs to his room to use the bathroom and, once he finished, Arthur grabbed his cell phone to call Cullen. No answer. He called again, but his partner’s phone kept going to voicemail. Suddenly, a mist of darkness emerged from underneath his closet cabinet and materialized into the cloaked figure. Arthur slowly spun around when he felt a presence in the room and became terrified as he dropped his phone. The hooded man strolled over to him menacingly, with rage in his eyes. “My God! You’re him… the killer,” Smith said fearfully, as the cloaked figure continued to stare at him. Afraid for his life, Smith dashed out of his room and downstairs to the living room. He bolted for the elevator to leave, but the cloaked man teleported in front of him, causing Smith to stop and stumble back as he fell over his couch. 

When he quickly got up and looked up from behind the sofa, the shadow man was no longer there. Instead, he appeared beside him as Smith jumped and scooted away. “The people, the… witnesses, they think you’re some kind of supernatural spirit or creature. Who and what are you?” he asked, retreating as he got to his feet. “Someone who wants payback. You don’t remember me, but I remember you,” the cloaked man said, speaking in a deep, echoed, ghostly voice. Smith looked at him with confusion but was still fearful, so he pulled a gun on him. Unafraid, the hooded man smacked it out of his hand, then grabbed Arthur and hurled him against the elevator doors like a ragdoll. Arthur groaned in pain as he attempted to crawl away, while the cloaked man slowly walked after him with rage in his eyes, ready to take his life. 

He grasped the panic-stricken man and lifted him up off the floor. “Call me… Scourge,” said the hooded invader. Before he could kill him, the ladies entered the penthouse through the glass door of the balcony. “Hold it, right there!” yelled Angel Girl. “Leave. This doesn’t concern you,” Scourge said, facing the girls. “We have business with him. He took someone I loved away from me. So if anyone’s going to end him, it’s me,” Violet said, though her cousin looked at her disapprovingly. Not intimidated by the two interlopers, Scourge creates a shadow dagger and used it to pin Smith against the wall next to the elevator, causing him to scream in agony. The cloaked man turned his attention to the duo as he glared at them. His power shocked the women; they had never seen anything like this before. Then Angel Girl put the pieces together. “It’s been you this whole time,” she said. “What?” Violet asked.

“If he can control darkness, then that would explain how he was able to slip into those cops' houses without any sign of forced entry,” Angel Girl explained and turned back to Scourge. “Why are you doing this?”

“Policemen… Their job is to uphold the law. But instead, they abuse their power. Thinking they can do whatever they want while hiding behind a badge,” Scourge proclaimed.

“But this isn’t justice,” Angel Girl reasoned.

“Don’t talk to me about justice!!!” Scourge retorted. “Where was my justice, when they took me from this world?!”- he pointed to Smith- “Good people suffer because of dirty cops like him.”

“I get it. But the system needs to deal with the corruption, not you.”

“Says the little girl playing dress-up,” Scourge countered.

“Enough of this debate!” Violet shouted. “Give us Smith. Now.”

“If you want Smith, come get him,” Scourge replied as he constructs a shadow short sword. “If you can,” he goaded.

Violet sighed and bowed her head in disappointment, then extended her claws as she charged to attack him. Scourge combated the thief as their weapons clashed until he blocked her last claw swipe and tossed her aside. Angel Girl countered with a punch that him flying into the kitchen, but the cloaked man quickly got up and resumed his attack. The heroine ran over to him, and a succession of heavy blows, but Scourge absorbed the punishment. He quickly caught her fist before she could throw the next punch, then pummeled her before grabbing the girl by her face and slammed her through a dining table and on top of the kitchen island, then hurled her out of the kitchen. Angel Girl recovered her balance and braced herself for more attacks. Scourge fired shadow spikes at her from his fingertips, with four of them flying past her head, but the heroine caught the last one before it could hit her face.