Okay, so this chapter is a lot longer - like 1000 words longer! Enjoy - ooh and it gets quite gory, brace yourselves (I tried to write gory stuff, hopefully it worked)
Chapter 10
Christina
I knew something was wrong when Sam didn't come out after the hooves faded away. I went in after him but found nothing. On the floor, branches were broken and there were horse's tracks with two sets of footprints, I'm guessing one of them was Sam's. He was nowhere to be seen. After looking for what felt like hours, I made my way out of the forest, but just as I was coming out, a spot of red caught my attention. There was a dark red smear against the light brown bark of a small tree. Déjà vu, I've been in this position before. Finding the spot of blood on the wall in my house, moments before my mother was killed. I lifted my finger, shakily, and felt the coolness of the red smear: blood.
That was all I needed to send me running back to the compound for help. Throwing the door open, I found that there was no one in the main hall. Where could they be? I ran towards the main bedrooms but found no one in any of them. When I got to mine and Sam's bedroom I noticed that my dagger was there on the desk. I hadn't moved it since we came to the compound, because it just brought pain and hateful memories. The dagger was blood itself. There was no reason to use it in the past week.
But aren't most weapons blood themselves? There are only two reasons to use a weapon, and that's to kill or defend.
Hatred was boiling up in my stomach. I knew my father had Sam. I needed to get him back, and the only way to do that was to kill.
A thought occurred; maybe my father is using Sam as bait. He knows I'll be coming for him. Sam is also much younger than my father, he doesn't stand a chance of escaping on his own.
I couldn't find the others anywhere, and the more time I spent finding, the longer Sam was away from me. I decided that this mission was for one person; this wasn't there fight. I had to go alone and face my father one last time. But I couldn't just leave without anyone knowing. I decided I would leave a letter:
Dear Arianne, Lucinda, Daniel, Cam and Mario,
You have been so kind to me over the past week and I am grateful for the hospitality you have given. But I regret to inform you that I will be leaving. Sam has been taken and it is up to me to find him. I won't ask you to fight my fights, seeing as I am not an Angel yet, but I can't let my father win. This is why I'm not asking you. This is my fight, and I will not let anyone who has shown me great kindness die for me. Thank you for everything you have done, and if Sam and I survive, I hope our paths with cross again someday.
Mario, thank you for protecting Sam and I. You have been a great help and I will never forget you. You are a kind and honest man and have been like an Uncle to me. Don't forget me, for I won't forget you.
Christina
It would have to do. I needed to suit up. I found, in the wardrobe, black trousers that fitted me perfectly, along with black thigh high boots. Hanging up I also saw a white shirt with long sleeves and a black waste coat with a collar. I found a black cloak with a hood attached to it. It was late at night and no one would be able to see me, especially if I ride the black horse out back. Next think I needed was weapons.
I grabbed my dagger from the desk, left the letter on the bed and set of through the maze of hallways towards the weapons room. I think I took a wrong turn because I could hear the others in the dining room laughing and talking about something. I could also smell food and then my stomach began to talk. I hadn't eaten since that morning.
Taking the right hallway and into the weapons room my eyes laid upon the many deadly items in front of me. I hadn't begun training, but for some reason when it came to personal things, like my life or the lives of the people I cared about, I knew exactly how I would use weapons. I found a black, leather weapons belt and secured it around my waist. It had pouches for some form of ammunition; crossbow arrows. I found a black and silver crossbow from the other side of the room hanging with other brands of crossbows. I attached the cross bow to my back with a strap and filled the pouch with twenty arrows. Next, I came across the swords. I didn't want a small one, but I didn't want a big one either because I wouldn't be able to carry it let alone swing it. I came across the perfect sword with the name 'The Captains Sword'. It was a long silver blade with a black handle. There was also a black leather tassel coming off the end of the handle. I secured it in the strap on the weapons belt and moved towards the exit. Something caught my eye. I had not seen this kind of weapon before.
I picked it up and held it in my hands to feel the weight of it. It looked like a glove but its purpose was not to keep someone warm. It was for smashing faces. It was a black leather glove with silver metal guards over the fingers. Sticking out of the metal guards were small spikes. I fitted it to my hand and looked at the label below for its name. It was called a 'Gauntlet'.
I left the weapons room and quietly made my way towards the stable. I pulled the hood of my cloak up and tied it so it wouldn't fall. Climbing onto my horse, we galloped out of the stables at top speed.
The road ahead was dangerous, and it was dark as well. But the horse never slowed and I never grew tired. Every second was a second closer to my goal: to save Sam and kill my father once and for all.
I saw signs saying 'Vienna'; my destination. I had this worrying feeling that my father wouldn't be keeping Sam in the mansion I once called home. He could be in any place. One place felt more appropriate. My father owned a few of the buildings in Vienna. He owned the prison, which was creepy. Sam would most likely be there.
As I approached the stone wall surrounding Vienna my horse slowed down to just a walk. We needed to be careful in case any of the guards were on night patrol. Luckily, my hood was up and the cloak was covering my weapons.
We moved through Vienna, trying to look as calm as possible until we reached the prison. It was tall and gloomy looking with very few windows stringed with metal bars. No wonder my father own the place, it was a complete reflection of who he was; dark, gloomy and closed-off.
Sam must be in there somewhere.
I took the horse to the stable round the corner and decided to climb on top of a nearby roof. It needed to be tall enough. My plan was to use the crossbow to shoot guards on the roof, any guards on the ground I would take them out with my sword and dagger. When I reached the roof I could see at least 6 guards that needed to be eliminated. Seemed pretty easy, they were just walking the same line again and looking out over the city. They were spread out over 3 levels, 2 on each level. I thought I would kill the first 4 on the 1st and 2nd level. Strapping an arrow in place and hiding on a balcony, I aimed the crossbow at the first guard and fired.
Straight in the back of the head, score. The other guard on the same level saw that he had been killed, so I quickly needed to kill him before he sounded the alarm. Loading my next arrow into the crossbow I aimed and fired at the next guard.
Plummeting into his neck, he staggered back before he could run to the door. The next level was coming up, and these guards were a little further away than the other two. I repositioned myself on a different balcony, one that was higher up. Loading my arrow in the crossbow I aimed at the guard's chest, but just as I pulled the trigger the guard moved left and the arrow shot straight into the other guard's face. The guard I originally aimed for didn't notice he had fallen because he was looking the other way, so I reloaded and tried again; this time aiming for his face. I pulled the trigger.
He staggered as the arrow connected with the side of his neck and began to hold his wound. It was no good, blood was pouring out too quickly.
I made my way towards the ground and ran across the street to the side of the prison. I peered round the corner and there were guards blocking the entrance; just 2. I could see this would be easy. I decided to play it cool and just walk past the prison, minding my own business. As I walked past the first guard I quickly grabbed him by the back of the neck and unleashed my dagger on his chest. Clutching his wound he fell to the ground and already the other guard was on me. Bringing his mace back, he swung it out. I ducked just in time and held the mace in place, ready to kick him away from me. I managed to disarm him and bring the mace underneath and up into his chin. The impact was so hard it swept him off his feet and he landed on his back with a crack!
I dropped the mace and brought my sword out. I had never fought with a sword, but there was always a first time for anything. I cautiously walked towards the wrought iron doors of the prison where it was slightly open. I discreetly looked inside to find that there were 4 guards running at me; already there was word that I had arrived. The first guard came at me with his sword in the air, before he could swing it I sliced his stomach open, bringing the sword upwards. I made a turn and brought the sword straight through his chest. When he knelt to the ground I jumped on his shoulders and leaped towards the next guard. In midair I plunged the end of my sword into the guard's face and rolled off when I landed.
With my back against the floor the next guard brought his sword down on me, only to have my sword block it. I pushed his sword out of the way and brought both my legs up to his chest with such force that it made him fall flat on his back. Getting up from my position I stabbed the guard in the chest.
A larger guard was coming at me with a long sword you hold in two hands. Oh, please God. He brought his sword down on me but I moved out of the way and tried to strike him but he blocked me. He punched me in the face which made a cut on my lip. Blood was dripping from my busted lip, but I didn't care. The adrenaline was getting to me. He had knocked my sword out my hand so I wasn't ready. I quickly flicked out my dagger as he came down with his long sword. I stopped him because my dagger had entered his body. He looked at me with wide eyes, surprised how someone small like me could defeat someone as big as him. I was surprised myself, but didn't care. I felt powerful over this man. With my final blow I punched him in the face with the spiked gauntlet. With a squish the spikes entered his face and blood came pouring out. With a thud he fell to the ground.
So far I had killed 10 guards. Who knew how many more were waiting for me. I went to the end of the hall and started ascending up the spiral staircase. When I reached the top there were cells with a single prisoner in the middle cell. I walked over to the cell door and tapped on it, needing to get his attention.
"Excuse me, hello? Can you help me?" I asked, thinking that being nice was the way to get information out of this man.
I couldn't see his face, but from the back I could tell he was an old man. He was sat in the corner dressed in ragged, dark brown trousers and a dirty dark green shirt. He wasn't wearing any shoes and I could smell him from where I stood. It hurt me to know that my father kept elderly men in the cells at night. He probably only did a minor thing, like steal bread from the bakers to feed his starving family. He turned around and looked me in the face. His eyes were covered with a cloud of white. I had seen those eyes before.
The old woman. She had the same eyes. Those haunting, distressing eyes that brought me fear. He walked towards me and placed his hands on the bar.
"What can I help you with, pretty lady," he said, losing his voice slightly. I got defensive, because if he was the same as the old woman, then I didn't have great memories with them.
"What are you?" I asked.
"I am an Outcast," he said, simply.
"What is an Outcast?" I asked, slightly shaking. I had never seen people like him before.
"We were once Angels like your friends, you know. We had shiny white wings too," he said slowly, then continued, "But we were cast out of heaven by the Throne and our wings were stripped of its feathers."
I could hear the guards coming from downstairs, wondering where I went. He smirked at me; I needed to ask more questions. What is the Throne? What did you do to be cast out of heaven? Did you see Sam come down here?
I shook my head, and realised I needed to say that last question. "Did guards take a prisoner through here? A tall, black haired man," I said, but he didn't answer, "Answer me!" I almost screamed, I had had enough at this point and grabbed hold of his shirt and pulled him forward to look him threateningly in the eyes.
"That way," he said and pointed to his left towards another flight of stairs. These set of stairs were a different scenery. The walls were all made of grey stone and there was a red carpet going all the way up. It led to a grand hallway. At one end of the hallway there was a double door made of dark brown oak. I ran towards it and pushed the doors open. The room was all dark and there was a single desk at one end and bookshelves all around the walls. There was someone in the middle of the room. He was shirtless and tanned. His head was held low and he was only wearing his trousers and boots. His hands were bound behind him by rope.
Sam.
I rushed towards him and pulled my hood down to look at him. I held his head in my hands and he looked terrible. He had a black eye and bruises all around his body. He had a cut on his eyebrow and he was filthy. Tears began to swell up in my eyes.
"Sam, it's me," I whispered. I wrapped my arms around him but he tried to shake me off.
"No, Christina. You need to get out of here," he said, my eyebrows narrowed. What was he talking about? "It's a trap!"
Clapping. I heard someone clapping. A figure came out from the shadows dressed in blood red. My father.
"Well done, Christina. I didn't think you had it in you. And, my, what a mess you made downstairs. You would have been a great demom," he said, menacingly. I slowly stood up and placed myself in front of Sam, trying to protect him.
"What did you do to Sam?" I asked, trying to sound confident but I knew deep down I was scared.
"We took him from that field where you two were getting rather close," I blushed at the comment, "And then we brought him back here to beat him. He deserved that much. He kidnapped my daughter didn't he?" His spread his arms out and cocked his head to the side mockingly.
"He never kidnapped me, he found me. Sam saved me from becoming anything you wanted me to be."
"Hmm, that is a good point," he said, walking around the edge of the room.
"Why?" I asked, "Why did you kill my mother?" It was the ultimate question that was troubling me for days. I at least deserved a reason.
"It was all supposed to go according to plan."
"And what was that, exactly?"
"The plan was to kill your mother and blame it on someone else; and innocent soul. I would train you to seek vengeance on that innocent, and in 2 years time you would become an Angel, not a demon. All of our kind started as Angels, so it's likely that you would become an Angel when you ascend. But I was going to train you in fighting and when the day was right you would go and kill that innocent. And when you killed him, you would have turned into a Demon. That would be the act where you changed, as it was mine." I remembered his wings changing in the study after he killed my mother. She was the innocent.
"You're a monster," I whispered, already there were tears streaming down my face.
"I am a demon," he said simply, "Don't get me wrong; I loved your mother. But she just had to die."
"Well, now it's your turn to die," I growled, wanting to cut his throat open and watch his blood spill.
"I can't let that happen I'm afraid," he replied, bending forward with a smile.
"Oh, really? You and 'what army'?" I asked.
"Me and my army," he replied, "GUARDS!" he yelled.
Suddenly, in all directions, guards came piling our and forming a circle around me and Sam. Already Sam had gotten to his feet. His hands were still bound with rope, so I cut them and gave him my sword. I had my dagger. Back to back, we got ready to fight. There was too many of them. We were greatly outnumbered.
Raphael was about to send them to attack when four pairs of wings came crashing through the windows, sending shards of glass over the guards.
So yeah, that was the chapter - I hope you guys liked it! Please leave a review because if you do I will love you forever!
-Caz!