Lucky and the Killer ✔

Infiltrated

Sean stood outside of Liz's cell and sighed. He hated seeing his little girl boxed up, but he wasn't that surprised that she'd messed up. He showed up to get her just as he promised, but her eyes didn't glow at the sight of him.

"You're here," she whispered and wiped her face.

"Where's your brother?" his deep voice settled into the air around them. His voice had always been deep like that—like a dragon's. It both soothed and scared her.

"H-he left," Liz stammered. "They went after Lucky."

"Where's Lucky?"

"Earth, with a human named Lilly," Liz said simply. She watched as her father unlocked the door from the outside. It screeched just a little as it swung open. He'd said that he would bring Gray back, but he couldn't. King was right. She decided to follow after him anyway, though. She couldn't stand being cooped up any longer. Besides that, she wanted him to admit he lied to her—after he saved her mother.

"Where are we going?" she asked in her father's silence.

"You're going home. I'm going to see Sarah," he said. He began to walk back up the stairs and knew Liz would follow. The best place for her was home. The only thing she'd been good for was her dramatic abilities, and she'd even failed there.

"The little girl?"

"The Empress of this place," he said. "The one you failed to even talk to."

"That's not my fault," Liz sighed. "King threw me in jail."

"And you didn't once try to break out?"

"It's steel bars, dad. What do you want me to do?"

"Nothing, naturally," he said.

Liz bit her lip. She wanted to say something catty back, but the words fell dead on her tongue. She decided it would be best to just follow him until he told her where to stop. At least if she went home, he wouldn't be there. He just expected her to keep following. He just expected her to go along with whatever it was he wanted, and she had to, because he was trying to keep her mom alive. For the time being, they had matching goals.

They stepped over dead guards at the top of the stairs. Guards arms lay, broken like dolls, across their bloodied chests. The palace halls were quiet and empty. There was no life or noise where they walked—apart from themselves.

"Where is Helix?" Sean asked.

"Helix?" Liz said quietly. The truth was that she just didn't know. "Did he not make it back?"

Sean said nothing. He was a smart immortal. He'd been betrayed, and it didn't take him long to figure that out. He sighed as they turned the next corner. It wasn't hard for him to sense the presence of a small, timid girl waiting for them, either. Her tiny fingers clung to the corner of the door frame. Behind the little girl, Bella waited.

"Come out," Sean said. His voice hung over their ears and the silence, beating it into submission. His commands were strong, and the sound of his voice made Sarah shake.

"Shh," Bella whispered in Sarah's ear. They stared across the hall at Felix's broken body. Sarah's tears fell down rosy cheeks, and Bella's curls stuck flat against her skin.

Sean stepped into the room. Bella screeched and threw her fist at him with wide eyes. She was easy to catch and much too slow to evade any sort of attack. Sean threw her, just once, into the door, and it was enough. Bella lay, eyes closed, in the hallway across from all of the other incapacitated guards. Sarah screamed.

"Stop!" she cried as she ran further back into the corner. "Please, stop! Stop! Bella!"

"Let's talk," Sean said.

"Go away!" Sarah screamed again.

"Open the portals," Sean's deep voice demanded, "and I will leave."

"I don't know how!" Sarah cried. She fell to the floor and put her hands over her ears.

"You're such an ass, dad," Liz sighed. "She's just a little girl."

Liz rolled her eyes and pushed past his figure in the door. He was good at being Death. He wasn't good at talking to little girls. She knew that first hand.

"Hey, hey," she cooed. "It's alright. She's just sleeping. That's all. We just need the gates opened so we can go home, okay? Can you do that for us?"

"No!" Sarah screeched again as she tried to bolt for the door. "You're all crazy. You're all worse than those shadows. I hate you! Go away, or I swear I'll vanquish you!"

"Vanquish us?" Liz laughed, but her smile faded. She watched as her father picked the little girl up by the collar of her dress. She dangled, short and puny, in the air like a leaf. He'd always been too rough. He must have thought it through, though. He never did anything without a purpose. Still, it wasn't like she could figure it out. What good would it do them to have Sarah open the portals just for King to come back and close them up?

"I take it," Sean's deep voice rumbled, "that you can hear me, Helix."

"Helix?" Liz gasped.

"I do not take kindly to your pitiful attempt at mutiny," Sean continued. "I'm almost tempted to make you pay for it."

"Bella!" Sarah screamed. She'd clenched her eyes and cried up at the ceiling in the man's hands. Her tiny hands clawed at the one fist that held her up high. Her feet flailed beneath her—kicking against the ocean of air that surrounded her.

"Dad!" Liz yelped. "She's just a kid!"

"Helix marked her," Sean sighed.

"Right, so take it out on him," Liz groaned.

"Empress," Sean said, "where is your father?"

"He's not...," Sarah gasped and writhed, "he's not my father at all!"

"Then, tell us what you see,."

"No way!" Sarah spat. "You jerks hurt my sister! Let me go!"

"Are we going to find Helix?" Liz asked.

"I suppose so," The Master sighed. "It's not what I want to be doing—especially with such little time left. King's going to finish that mark, and it's our job to see to it that he takes his father's place as ruler. Understood?"

"Yeah," Liz sighed. She knew all about it. She'd grown up knowing that her brother was different—that he was destined to become something greater. But, King wanted nothing to do with it. He didn't care that it would help their mother. He didn't care that he could change everything.

"What are we going to do about the portals if she can't open them?"

"Helix," Sean seethed, "you've really pissed me off this time."

He twisted his arm around and flung the little girl onto his back like a burlap sack. He didn't have a choice. He couldn't wait any longer, and he'd already wasted too much time. He would have to take Sarah with him.

"Liz," Sean sighed, "cover her eyes, please."

"We're taking her?" Liz yelped.

"No, we're leaving her here to run away," Sean said with a roll of his black eyes. "Yes, we're taking her with us, and we're covering her eyes so that Helix doesn't know where we are."

"Nnn, bite me!" Sarah yelled as she thrashed and hit Sean in the back as hard as she could. He didn't flinch. She could see Liz's hesitant hands coming towards her with a piece of fabric she'd ripped off one of the guard's shirts. "You're all evil! Please...please don't take me to him."

Liz fastened the cloth behind her head and watched as the struggled died out of her. Sarah flopped against her dad's back as he walked over Bella and out of the room. She followed—like she always did. Somewhere deep inside, she just had to convince herself that it was the right thing.

"We're not taking you back to him," Liz sighed. "We need you to help my mom."

"Liz," Sean stopped.

"Yeah?" she asked with a timid voice.

"Shut up."