The Virtues' Magecraft

Page 74: Pandemonium

Berane held the phone to his ear. It had begun ringing just a minute ago, leaving Kieran to pick it up. He was the closest one to it, after all. The one on the other side of the line was Osdohrne, immediately proclaiming the call was for Berane.

And without a second thought, he passed to phone to the young demon.

They were three, nearly four hours into their journey, leaving only minutes and miles before reaching their destination.

Berane stared out the window as he spoke and listened through the phone. The rolling hills of dark desert sand had already faded away, turning to green plains. Far and away, there were mountains in the distance, although some seemed like castles to him as he thought of Osdohrne.

The Governor of Zeyrlan described the situation to his slave. Then, he described what had to be done. "Kill that boy... and you shall be rewarded."

"Do you... Do you mean that, Sire Osdohrne?"

"Earn your reward, Berane. Keep our home safe. That's all you must do."

Berane swallowed his dry saliva. Beads of sweat began to form at the edge of his forehead as he pondered his future. He could... kill the man that claimed to be the Prince of Sin. And if he did, he would gain everything. He would lose the shackles that burdened him and he would earn a new life.

A free one.

All he had to do was kill one man.

That was a task he had done far too many times. Surprise attacks, assassinations, swift kills in a single moment- They were his specialty.

He hung up the phone, his eyes glancing over at the red button across the train car. Pressing it would cause an emergency stop, halting the vehicle immediately. In that confusion, the man is sure to stand and move on his own.

In that confusion, Berane would drive his blade through the man's guts.

He sped towards the halt button in silence, his eyes focusing on the floor. He couldn't bear to stare up, only managing to avoid the man and Esila. It was a matter of seconds before he reached the button, pressing it lightly and forcing the train to skid to a halt on its tracks.

The scenery around them fell flat and the grasses stopped rolling. "Berane, what are you doing?" Alexander asked, furrowing his eyebrows as he stood up, staring at the young boy and then around the train car as they reached a dead stop.

Berane remained silent, only taking slow steps towards Alexander, his eyes fixed on the floor to avoid him and Esila. Five meters to the target.

He grit his teeth and prepared himself for what was to come. Three meters.

He coiled his fingers around the wooden hilt of his makeshift weapon. One meter.

Berane yanked the knife from behind his belt and gripped it with both hands. He thrust it right out at Alexander, driving it towards his stomach. Alexander gripped Berane's wrist and halted his attack with one hand, his eyes widening.

"This again?!"

"I don't know who you are, but... Please... Please die!"

Alexander's grip lifted Berane's arms to the air and disarmed him from his blade. He grabbed the knife and tossed it into his other hand before tossing Berane back to the floor.

Two sounds came next. The thud of Berane's body impacting the steel floor of the car and the shattering of the glass window. Alexander had punched a hole through it with his fist, leaving shards and specks of the crystal to explode around them, leaving the grand window to collapse entirely, inside and out of the car.