Mr. X

Chapter 7

Mr. X lept over the ballustrades and ran straight through the carefully maintained courtyard to the front gates. He quickly dodged a fireball hurled at him, and fired a warning shot at the ground. Another fireball lit up, but this time it stayed put in the hand of its sender. X stopped dead in his tracks, and aimed his gun at the source.

"Not so fast, X!" Mephisto's voice echoed through the courtyard. "One step closer, and your beloved Watson is toast!" The fireball flared up and revealed Mephisto holding Watson in a chokehold, the fireball in his other hand. Several men were standing behind him, ready to attack. "Now put the gun down, and let's talk." X lowered his gun, uncocked it, and dropped it. "Alright," he said. "Let's talk. I'll start. Give me Watson, now." Mephisto laughed. "You'll have to do more than that, X. What's in it for me?" X glared at him. "I won't pick up this gun and put a silver bullet drenched in holy water through your brain, that's what's in it for you," he replied. Mephisto laughed once more. "You know my price, X. Surrender yourself now and Watson walks unharmed." X shook his head. "Out of the question, Mephisto. You know that." Mephisto smiled. "In that case, say goodbye to your friend here." The fireball lit up, and Mephisto brought it closer to Watson's face. "You do that, Mephisto," X said. Watson looked at him, enraged and shocked. X gestured for her to stay quiet. "But before you do that, I want you to remember one thing. One tiny little detail that you should always include in a plan. If you're going to challenge and threaten a dangerous and rich man in his own courtyard..."

"...don't let him bring the butler."

Suddenly, James appereared behind Mephisto. He bashed his brain in with a metal rod. Watson fell to the ground, but was caught by Mr. X. "Run and get her to safety, X, I'll deal with these guys here!" James shouted at X. Watson hung on to X's shoulders as they ran for the living room. As soon as they entered, X shut the doors, locked them, and hit a large button next to them, causing metal to drop down in front of the windows and doors and seal them off. "We'll be safe, for now," X said, as Amy tended to Watson.

__________________

James walked up to Mephisto's broken body. "How many times do I have to tell you, Meph. Leave us alone," he said. "I think someone would like to negotiate that," Mephisto replied. A circle of fire appeared behind James, and in it appeared a slender man. His middle-length hair only barely touched the colour of his hand-tailored black suit. He leaned on a cane in front of him. James turned around. "...Lucifer," he said. "Hello, Baalz. I got a proposition for you," Lucifer replied.