The Devil's Blade

𝟸𝟿|| 𝙰 𝙱𝚛𝚘𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛'𝚜 𝚁𝚎𝚍𝚎𝚖𝚙𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗: 𝙰 𝙷𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚝𝚋𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚔𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚂𝚊𝚌𝚛𝚒𝚏𝚒𝚌𝚎

I watch in horror as Gale's body contorts and transforms before my eyes. He stumbles as the weight of the tentacles emerging from his back prevent him from standing straight. He turns to me with blood lusting eyes, his tentacles trashing wildly as they extend towards me.

"Gale, listen to me!" I shout over the chaos, my voice echoing in the now silent room.

He struggles against the monstrous transformation, fighting the urge to destroy all his surroundings. The tentacles, knocking over equipment and tearing through the air. I barely dodge the uncontrollable lump of muscle and murderous intent as it attacks the wall behind me.

"Alex!" a familiar voice shouts from a distance. 

Relief floods through me as I Erik approaching with reinforcements, Rheino and Jill supporting Simon on their shoulders. Luckily the prisoners were released as well, Jude, Liam, Zhena and Kai following behind them.

"Oh my god," Jude gasps as he lays his eyes on Gale.

"What the hell happened here?" Liam demands, as he rushes up to my aid.

"He injected himself with something and then he suddenly changed," I say, my voice strained as Liam helps me get back on my feet.

"How?" Jill asks, her eyes wide with shock and concern.

Erik approaches the scene with confidence, not hesitating, and drawing his second sword.

"Wait," Rheino, from reinforcements, says as he pulls the trigger on his gun. "I have a plan. Let me and Jill distract him while you all go up to him, that way we have a better chance of taking him out." he suggest.

"But, we have to restrain him somehow," Jude adds. "Those tentacles will cut us in half if we go any closer."

"On it," Calissa adds simply as she draws her weapon, lunging at his tentacles and taking them out one by one.

Rheino follows, firing bullets and shouting at Gale as the tentacles target him. With all the tentacles occupied, it creates enough space for me and the others to close in on him. We sprint toward him, but he notices us almost immediately, sending tentacles our way. However, the team's distraction keeps him from attacking us. I draw my sword, ready to take action, with Erik running ahead of me. Hopeful, we close in on him, almost close enough to knock him unconscious, but then I suddenly feel a sharp sting in my side. I glance down with shaky eyes to see a tentacle embedded in me. I gasp, the taste of iron filling my mouth.

"Alex!" Liam shouts.

My body meets the ground, paralysed, like a lifeless piece of meat.  I cough, blood spilling from my mouth as the world spins around me. I can't make out the words from my teammates on the background, my vision blurring as pain radiates from my side. I try to focus on the battle unfolding— on Gale, on the team— but darkness threatens to engulf me.

Don't pass out, I tell myself. You can't pass out now.

Through the haze, I see Erik and the others struggling against Gale, who thrashes with a primal fury, his monstrous form a terrifying sight. Erik's swords flashes in the dim light, deflecting the deadly tentacles, while Rheino and Jill keep up their relentless assault. It doesn't take long until he takes the first person out. Liam hits the wall, hard, immediately knocked out. Followed by Calissa, who joins me on the floor, struggling to get back on her feet. 

I let out a strained groan as I force myself to move. Get up, I say to myself. Get up now. It works like a charm— there's movement in my fingers. My arms follow, pressing my palms on the floor to push myself up. I ignore the roaring pain as I force myself into a plank position. I steady my breathing, staying like that for a moment before placing one foot on the floor. I moan as the pain nearly makes me see stars, but I grit my teeth and place my other foot besides it. 

I rise, dragging my weapon from the ground, and slump back toward the scene.

Erik glances back and his eyes widen when he sees me stand again.

I raise my sword, gathering all my strength to launch myself at Gale. With a strained shout, I succeed, practically flying forward, burying my blade into the flesh of his hands as he tries to block me.

"Gale, I'm begging you. Please stop," I manage, my hands trembling against his strength.

He growls as he tightens his grip on the blade of my sword.

"Please, I don't want to hurt you," I beg.

"I'm sorry..." he struggles, "I failed. I tried to protect everyone, I swear." he cries, bloody tears falling over his cheeks.

He groans, his bloody hands clutching his head. He stumbles back, smearing blood across his face before letting out a painful scream that fills the entire room with his tentacles. One of them shoots out, striking my sword and snapping it in two. I gasp as the broken blade clatters to the ground. On the other side, I hear Rheino's voice shouting desperately.

I'm unable to see the damage from my position on the floor, lying flat on my stomach to avoid the attacks. I squeeze my eyes shut, preparing for the worst. We're extremely outnumbered and most of us are already wounded or, weaponless, like me. And no sign of Lincoln, the council or force 2.

I let out another groan, balling my hands into fists and slamming them down onto the ground. It's frustrating to feel so utterly powerless in this situation. I want to help everyone, to save Gale from this monstrous fate, but every move feels like a step closer to failure. What do we do?  The question rages through my mind, but there's no answer. 

I glance around, calculating our chances of survival through the chaos, when my eyes land on Simon. He's rising to his feet, his eyebrows furrowed, and his gaze locked on Gale. His hands tremble when he reaches for his pocket and pulls out a silver hilt. He looks down at it, contemplating deeply, before closing his eyes to prepare himself. When he opens them again, he wields the hilt, transforming it into a polearm.

I watch his gaze falter for a moment, that hint of sadness and guilt, breaking through his determined facade. In that moment, I realise what he's about to do. I try to shout, to stop him, but my voice fails me.

"Simon..." I say, the words barely audible. "Don't do it."

Simon strides forward with measured steps, his pole arm resting at his side. I don't miss the single tear running down his cheek before he quickly swipes it away. 

I panic, scrambling to my feet in a rush of adrenaline. "Simon!" I shout, not realising my voice is breaking.

The scene unfolds silently. Gale's wild eyes meet Simon's steady gaze, a moment of recognition flickering through his monstrous features. Simon steps forward, his movements deliberate and calm despite the chaos around him. He raises the pole arm, but not in an aggressive stance—instead, it rests at his side, a sign of both readiness and hesitation.

"Gale," he says softly, his voice barely audible over the distant sounds of battle and destruction. "Brother... I know you're in there. And I'm sorry I couldn't protect you."

Gale's tentacles pause, their violent thrashing slowing as he seems to struggle internally. Flinching and blinking, as if reacting to Simon's words. He snarls, his body convulsing with the effort to regain control.

Tears spill over Gale's cheeks as Simon smiles gently, softly placing a supportive hand on the back of his neck. "Let's go home," he whispers, connecting their foreheads.

And as quickly as it happened, as swiftly it was over. A choked gasp escapes from Gale's mouth, his eyes wide with pain and shock, as Simon's polearm pierces through his torso.