A Brother's Bargain

Alec

Alec was enjoying the luxury of living in Ruby's castle. His meals were brought to his room because he didn't like sitting at the humungous dining room table that could easily host 20 guests. He rarely saw Ruby except at night when she was coming or going. His family could go to hell. He didn't need them, he had all he needed with Ruby. She even sent a tailor to him one afternoon to update his wardrobe and make it suitable for his newly acquired lifestyle.

Late one night Ruby stormed into the house. Alec heard her and was a bit frightened. She seemed to be in a rage. She stomped up the stairs to his room. He could hear her every step down the hall. Then his doors flew open.

"This life is not free, Alec," she began. "You have a job to do for me. Your sisters have been to see the hag and your Father has been to the elves. You have to go home. You have to do everything in your power make sure this baby is born a healthy little girl. I doubt they have found help strong enough to cure demon curse, but they visited the hag and she is the closest in power to me."

Alec looked at her like she was crazy. "And exactly what am I supposed to do? Males are not permitted inside when a birthing is going on."

Ruby wanted to shake the boy. "You have to curse your mother to bare no more children. Five is too many anyway. I want a baby girl of my own to raise up to be a pure force of destruction in every way. We know she will be beautiful, like your sisters." Alec pouted. "No crybabies in my house Alec. You know what you look like. Your job is to leave your mother barren and bring the child to me."

Alec look stupefied. "You want me to do these things for you, yet I have only the power to control the winds. You haven't given me any dark magic or spent any time here with me. How am I going to steal my newborn sister from my mother's breast?"

"I don't need to work with you Alec. I don't need to bestow any gifts on you. And you don't just have the power of the winds. Your heart is black as coal. Staying here with me was enough, boy. All you need to do is will it and you can do it," Ruby told him.

Alec thought to himself Ruby was crazy and he couldn't just change by living in luxury in her castle for a few days. Demons lie. Though she had never lied to him about anything before. He was confused. "How do I test this? To prove you are telling me the truth?" he questioned her.

Ruby shifted her hips and tapped her bottom lip. "Turn your creature dark."

"I asked you to do that," Alec complained.

"And I'm telling YOU to do it," Ruby snapped.

Lanius was lying in his usual in front of the fire place. Alec walked up to him slowly. " Hi boy," Alec said sweetly. He scratched behind the animals ears and at the spot where his leathery wings connected to his body. Lanius was eating up the attention. Alec began to think hard about what he wanted. He didn't want some sweet animal to be his familiar. He wanted mean, vicious, cold-hearted and  filled with hatred.

Alec stared into Lanius's eyes. The beast tried to look away, to save himself from his master's madness, but he could not. He was transfixed by some other-worldly power like nothing  he had felt before: rage. It felt like it started in his eyes and like a snake wriggled its way through his blood vessels and nerves, through his organs and limbs, and finally set up residence in his heart.

Alec didn't think he had done anything. Lanius looked the same. Until he stood up. He doubled in size. The room could barely hold him. If he were to spread his wings, Ruby and he would be crushed. He let out a powerful roar that Alec was sure the townspeople of Roderick could hear.

"Lanius, go find a place on the roof that suits you. You are too big to stay inside anymore," Rubby commanded. Lanius's cat-like walk was now a thud, thud, thud. When he reached the window, he jumped and expanded his wings to their full lengths and soared around the castle. He almost looked like a dragon, but he was not nearly big enough. He finally settled on an abandoned tower.

"He will still be your familiar, only better," Ruby laughed.

"I did that? I DID that!" Alec exclaimed.

"Of course you did. Now, for your next test. Turn that mirror in the corner into a portal to your home," Ruby commanded.

"I can do that, too. Like you do?" Alec asked.

"Stop talking to me like a stupid child and just walk over there and do it," Ruby said with annoyance in her voice. 

Alec placed his hand on the mirror and it began to light up. The more he thought about home, a circle began to appear on the surface of the mirror. Think harder, Alec, focus, he thought to himself. The circle engulfed the entire mirror and through it he could see his house. He tentatively reached his hand through the circle. Ruby gave him a shove from behind. He was standing in his front yard with a spinning orb that contained Ruby's castle behind him.

Alec turned around and walked back through the portal before he was seen. He didn't want Father to be outside or Malaya working with her flowers and trees to see him. Their skills seemed so simple now. He was powerful. They didn't even know what power was. He could feel the power of all 5 elements running through his veins. He didn't need his family now. He could get whatever he wanted after his debt to Ruby was paid.

"Now you will start working for me," Ruby declared.

"What is it I have to do exactly?" Alec asked with much more confidence in his voice.

"You will gather my food rations," Ruby sneered.

Alec had never seen Ruby eat anything. "Food rations?"

"I need to consume the souls of children to live, especially babies. I have a hoard of pregnant women in the dungeon, but sometimes it is not enough or timed correctly. You will fill in the gaps. Use your portal to travel to different planes. Collect them and bring them back to me. You will start this job immediately," Ruby explained. She spoke as if he was just running out to milk a cow. Stealing children? Babies?