Running From Time

Chapter 28

"NO!!" I screamed at the top of my lungs, rushing over to Joey. His body fell limp and Serpius took a couple of steps back, smiling. I caught Joey before he reached the floor, cradling his head in my hands. His mouth curved into a small smile as he looked at me before the life faded from his eyes and he was gone from this world. "You monster!" I whispered, looking up at Serpius with pure hatred. Anger completely took over my body as I became livid, striding towards him.

"I needed to get my revenge somehow. And it seems I hit a nerve." He smirked and I felt as if I was about to explode. I would soon wipe that stupid smirk off of his face. There was no way he was getting out of this alive.

With one swift movement, I punched him in the face and he fell to the ground, completely vulnerable for a split second. But it was short lived. Instantly, my arms caught on fire and I yelled in surprise and pain. My eyes flashed red and the flames went out, reappearing on Serpius' body. He screamed and jumped up, extinguishing them quickly. Then he was on top of me, his hands gripping my neck again. My eyes flashed green and he flew away from me, his hands sharply leaving my neck and causing me to wince in pain. He crashed to the floor and I jumped up, holding my hands out. He started to levitate under the influence of my power and I smirked with malice. Finally. I was going to kill him.

A noise to my left caused both Serpius and I to turn around. My power faltered and he fell to the ground, making a loud thump. The door to the room opened and a man strode through, accompanied by Lydia. She looked much more confident now.

"Demetrius, what a pleasant surprise." Serpius said politely and I frowned. Demetrius?

"Hello, Serpius. You may be wondering how -"

"No, I know how you're alive. Lydia used my machine. She actually thought that she could do it without me noticing." He chuckled but it wasn't a friendly sound. I assumed that this was the person that Serpius had mentioned earlier. Realising that he was distracted, my eyes started to glow red and fires began in the palms of my hands. Slowly, they started to rise upward and combine, forming a familiar shape. I smirked and it grew bigger, soaring above me. Serpius looked over in my direction and almost did a double take as he saw the fire.

"Meet Blaze." I said to him with a smirk as the fire dragon circled above my head. His jaw dropped and my smile widened. My body suddenly started to dissolve and I frowned in surprise. Well, that wasn't supposed to happen. My senses started to disappear and I felt myself drift upwards, floating above the ground.

I could see again.

Everything had a red haze about it, but I could see. And I couldn't work out why. Serpius gaped at me and I looked back at him in confusion. But at that very moment, I realised what had happened. I was inside the fire dragon. And I was heading straight in for the kill.

"Ah, a fire dragon. What a nice surprise." Demetrius purred, looking up at me in wonder. Serpius glared at him and held his hands out towards the dragon and I. Before he could even channel his power towards us, the dragon lurched forward and flew towards him, partially controlled by me. The last thing I saw was Serpius' scared expression before his entire body burst into flames. His screams echoed throughout the room but died down quickly as the light faded from his eyes. My own eyes widened as he disintegrated.

He was dead.

Slowly, I parted from the dragon and my body reformed, sending a tingling sensation through me. My head span slightly as I looked at the pile of ashes on the marble floor. Half of me expected him to suddenly rise up from them and try to kill me again, but they remained still. Cautiously, I walked over to them and examined them quickly. Then I turned to Demetrius.

"Where is the machine that brings people back to life?" I asked him in a low voice, extremely wary of him.

"Oh, I'll take you to it. It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Christopher." He said softly, extending his arm. I nodded once, simply looking at his hand, before walking out of the room, past both him and Lydia. He walked behind me, dressed in a cloak, and I listened as it trailed across the ground. A tingle went down my spine as I realised that Demetrius could be just like Serpius, a completely evil, all-powerful being. It hadn't fully settled in that Serpius was dead, and a small part of me was slightly sad about it. I still hated him, but he was my brother and had cared for me deeply all those years ago. I just hoped he had been telling the truth.