Chapter 57

Dante's POV

-What?

It couldn't be true; this couldn't be happening. It wasn't supposed to be like this. This was supposed to be different. Why does it have to be chaos?

-You heard me. Who of the two has sold us?

Lok kept trying to get away from me, but it was hard for him to move away from the table. He was leaning on it for balance, trembling slightly and having difficulty breathing again. I had to get him out of here before he suffered another attack. I had to swallow several times to try to get rid of the dryness in my mouth and throat. It didn't work.

-I don't know what you think is happening, but it's not what you think.

-You think I don't know anything. You always underestimate me. Do you think Sophie and I are so stupid, why wouldn't we notice?

-Lok, I told you I would protect you from the Organization. You can trust me.

-We both know that's not true.-That had hurt, a lot.

-I promise you that when we finish this mission, I will explain everything to you, but now is not the time. We have to go. You may not trust me, but you know I don't want the Organization to win. No one on the team wants that.

Lok looked at me suspicious and scared. I had to admit that Lok had reason to distrust me. I had the map in the tomb, I led them into the trap, and I was the one who handed over the Sceptre. Zhalia and I had tried to hide it, but it was obvious that we had only managed to appear suspicious. We lie to them and hide information from them. I divided the team and led Lok to a lab that "coincidentally" had a cage set aside for him in the middle of the room. It seemed that the planets and the stars had aligned so that everything would go wrong, and now he had another problem. I had to get Lok out of the lab to keep him from having another panic attack, but that required him to trust me, and I'd single-handedly lost him. If I had been honest with the guys about what was going on, it could have saved me a lot of trouble, but I wanted to keep them from suffering emotionally for this mission, like I was.

-I wanted to protect you and I screwed up to the bottom, and now… I don't know what to do. Zhalia and I will tell you everything, but let's get out of here, get the Sceptre back, and help me protect you, so that this- I point to the cage- doesn't happen. Because, I promise you, I will do everything in my power to prevent it from happening.

I held out my hand. Lok looked at it, then at me, at the cage and back at me, he was still hesitant and suspicious, but after studying me a bit, I think he knew I wasn't lying. Although maybe after I got back home, Lok left and didn't come back, but at least he let me help him get out of this madhouse.

Lok grabbed my hand and I pulled him towards me unexpectedly. I hugged him again, and although he resisted at first, in the end his emotions won out over his pride and he accepted the hug.

-This doesn't change anything.- I couldn't help but smile.

-I know.

-If you sell me, I promise you that he will make you pay dearly. And I am capable.

-I know, you just went through a metal table, I think I get an idea of what you can do.

Dante's POV end

Third person

Unbeknownst to Dante or Lok, a small robotic bug, created by Claus's hands as security, had sent an intruder alert to the lair's guard post, where two agents were alerted to their position.

-The sensor in the lab has been turned on. Let's go!

The two agents got up from their posts and ran to the position of the male members of the team.

Third person end

Lok's POV

Dante had managed to calm me down enough, though now I hardly trusted him and had a lot of new things to think about. But Dante was right, we had to get out of here and get the Sceptre back, my life and the existence of the Huntik Foundation depended on it. After we got the Sceptre back I would have time to blow my mind with everything that had happened, the cage and the machine, I'm scared to find out what it does, the panic attack and Dante's revelation. I felt dizzy and the thought of having to think about anything gave me a headache.

I was still a little shaken by what had happened, my emotions were overflowing and as much as I hated him, Dante was a great comfort, he made me feel safe and I didn't want him to let go or get away from me. But we had to get moving and get out of this crazy lab.

Dante released me slowly, I stayed like a statue hoping that everything would stop spinning. Something on the table I had been leaning against, and which had fallen victim to my claws, had caught Dante's attention. He picked up a brown piece of paper, it looked like quite an old parchment, and read it with a smile.

-It seems that we have found a new power. It will be very useful to us.

We were about to leave when the doors of the laboratory opened and two agents entered, one of them looked directly at us, while the other dedicated himself to looking at the laboratory.

-Huntik Foundation. Catch them, stop them! Enforcet!

After admiring the lab, the second agent caught up with his partner and summoned Bonelasher. They seemed happy, at least the agent looking at us, probably because they knew they had the upper hand. Dante looked at them undeterred, raised both hands and released a strange power, "Stop Glue", towards the two titans. A pastel red mucus covered them from top to bottom preventing them from moving.

Dante didn't want to give them any options, he ran towards the bigger agent, dropped to the ground and swept his legs. The agent fell backwards, hitting his head on the ground, knocking himself unconscious and with a good blow. I didn't like that Dante walked away from me, I felt vulnerable and weak, and I hated feeling pathetic in that way. The other agent took advantage of the fact that Dante was busy to attack me. He used a power to move at high speed so he could hit me from all directions. I covered myself with my arms to protect myself. I was taken aback at first by everything that was going on, I couldn't think of how to defend myself, but I realized that I didn't have to do anything, I just had to let him out, and since he was touching me, all the work was done by him. So, I let the electricity flow and the agent flew away until he was close to his partner, also unconscious and a little fuming.

For a few moments I managed to abstract myself from everything. I couldn't help but wonder, if what I had just done was a power, or is it still a lack of control of my powers, I mean…, neither Dante or Sophie do that, not at least that I've seen. And I also wondered, how was it possible that Dante could have used a power, just by reading it, and, moreover, not being of his nature.

-Let's go as soon as possible.

I looked at Dante somewhat bewildered, I had not realized that he had approached. I had to return to the cruel and distressing reality. I nodded slightly, since I didn't trust myself to be able to speak, and tried to compose myself, I couldn't stand it when Dante looked at me with pity.

Lok's POV end

Third person

On the deepest floor of the guardhouse, which served as a storage room for all the magical items Claus had collected (stolen) over the years. Claus walked from one side to another somewhat distressed. The last time his daughter had contacted him was to let him know that Dante Vale was looking for the Genie Bottle. A contraption he had stolen many years ago from a village in Arabia. It was supposed to contain a powerful being within it, but after numerous studies, Claus discovered that it hadn't contained anything for many years. It was kind of tragic that he had to get rid of his original owner to get nothing.

The message had been received almost 12 hours ago and the last he knew was that a Foundation plane had been detected and intercepted by his agents. He knew that they had tried to bring him down, but he had had no further news, neither from his agents nor from Zhalia.

Very nervous and angry he activated a button on the floor so that the control panel of the containers of his gadgets would rise. He keyed in a code to access another panel with a magical activation mechanism. In his years as an agent of the Organization he had learned that all security was little when you were surrounded by fools who only wanted to get promoted quickly and easily, and that his boss and his subordinates loved to get their hands on all his inventions and discoveries for their desire for control and power.

In the magic panel there were two eye sockets, one of his eyes was already in his place, he took the pair from an internal pocket of his vest and placed it in the empty socket. Both eyes glowed yellow and the floor of the room moved to reposition the compartment towers. Each compartment had a lock of cylinders similar to those of safes, and each of the more than one hundred had a different password. He opened the corresponding one with the Bottle of the Genie and the Sceptre of Nefertiti, took out the Bottle and held it with disinterest.

-I don't understand why Dante Vale is looking for this. But if it's important to the Foundation, I won't let him get it.

Third person end

Dante's POV

I was finally focused, the lab incident had made me feel like... a jug of cold water is nothing close to what I felt, it was more like a punch to the stomach, the kind that leaves you breathless. Lok wasn't well, and the more time we spent in Claus's lair, the worse it would get. Before, it was bad to be here, because we believed that, if they caught Lok, they would hand him over to the professor, but now, I'm not so sure that he would hand him over, what's more, I think the Professor is the least of our problems. I hadn't realized it until now, and I don't think anyone, not even the Professor himself, had realized it, but Claus is far more dangerous than the leader of the Organization himself.

Once centred, finding our way to our goal was a breeze. We went down one of the metal stairs, the only ones that had two agents guarding the bottom of them. They had their backs to us and seemed rather bored. I guess it's our duty to entertain them, but Lok wasn't well, as much as he tried to hide it, it was obvious that he still hadn't recovered and I can't blame him, the discovery we had made was terrifying and very creepy. A hand-to-hand fight was not an option, Lok was not capable at the moment and, besides, a fight would alert Claus and being in the middle of the fight would have all the advantage, and he wanted the surprise to come to him.

-Can you think of anything we can do to distract them?

Lok looked at me carefully, I felt studied and made me feel uncomfortable. He didn't say anything, just pulled some rubber balls out of one of his belt pockets and nodded at the officers. I smiled at the idea that had occurred to him, then wondered why he had rubber balls in his pocket, but I wasn't going to question it, at least not now, it wasn't the time. We finalized some details and got into position. I threw one of the balls at the head of one of the agents, and everything worked perfectly.

With the first one he only got angry with his partner, blaming him, but nothing more. Then we threw another one at the other agent, and they both got angry and started arguing, catching Claus's attention, he stormed away from his main file, revealing the Sceptre, to see what happens to his escort. The agents looked down the stairs and saw Springer with another ball, which he threw hitting Claus in the forehead.

Lok and I looked at each other in surprise from our hiding place, that was not planned, but now we were both holding our laughter so as not to make any noise. Obviously, Springer had done it on purpose, and he had done it for Lok, to cheer him up a bit, and what better way to cheer someone up than to leave a red mark in the middle of their forehead than his enemy?

The agents went white and petrified. It took Claus a few minutes to process what had happened, but when he did, his greenish-white skin turned red with anger, and he started shouting orders and a few curses that I wish no one had to hear. Now I understand where Zhalia got them. He ordered the agents to go after Springer and catch him. And Springer ran down all the stairs with the agents behind him, too bad the agents didn't know there was a trap waiting for them at the bottom of the stairs with "Stop Glue".

Lok was starting to get better, and I think it's all thanks to his furry friend. Claus was very angry, he was holding on to the Genie Bottle very hard. I ordered Lok to go find the girls while I faced Claus. I didn't want Lok to have to be anywhere near him, plus because of the Zombie, he had one team member corrupted and another terrified. I could say it was a personal matter and I wanted to make Claus understand that he shouldn't mess with my team. Claus was so focused on the Bottle that he didn't notice me coming up behind him. I climbed up on one of the tables and prepared to give him a scare he would never forget.

-The Huntik Foundation will never find me.

-Sorry to disappoint you.-I felt very satisfied when I got what I wanted. Claus's face when he turned around was priceless.

-Dante Vale! I don't know why you want to get the Genie Bottle, but I'll stop it! Get out Brahe!

I was amused that Claus thought he caught me off guard, it was very clear to me that Claus was going to use his best titan to protect our target, even if it wasn't the one, he expected. I summoned Metagolem for the two golems to fight. I may have anticipated Brahe's appearance, but I didn't expect him to help him.

Claus smirked before hitting his titan with a power-up, using a power called "Striking Mode", which ran through Brahe's body. His runes were dyed a very intense red, and in seconds he was rid of Metagolem. He punched him, sending him flying across the room and hitting the wall. But Metagolem is faster and more agile than he looks, and he certainly is faster than Brahe, so he got up quickly and dodged the tackle, and it was Brahe who ended up on the ground. I saw an opportunity and took it, I ran towards the fallen titan and immobilized him with "Stop Glue". He was taking a great liking to this power.

-"Striking mode", eh. Good trick. But once he runs out of power, he can't do much.

Claus wasn't happy, but he couldn't see him as a threat with the circular red mark on his forehead from Springer's ball. Filled with rage, he pulled out another titan's amulet and summoned Heart-Eater Ammit. The crocodile tried to take a bite out of me, but I jumped over it and let Metagolem take care of it, I wanted to take care of Claus once and for all.

I didn't hesitate for a second, and that was my mistake, I didn't think clearly about my enemy. I simply thought of getting revenge, that if I defeated him all the problems would go away. The moment Claus was within reach I kicked him, but the only one who got hurt was me. As soon as my foot hit Claus, a kind of orange net that was constantly moving became visible. I fell to the ground and clung to my leg, I felt what I thought was an unbearable burning, since as my power is fire, it's not that I've ever felt burning or a burn, was that how it felt my power? I hoped not, because otherwise it would have been very painful for my enemies.

-I call it "Last edge". It is a cable that wraps around me- When I looked better I could see a kind of insects forming the network.- Very effective, right?

-Yeah, you made it out of a Peruvian spinner trap.- I freaked out as my vision blurred, the edges darkening.

-The poison is mine. You will feel it very soon.

I used "Eternal Flame" to heal my leg, but the vision didn't come back. I got up slowly and unsteadily, although my power had eliminated the pain, my leg felt unsteady, and in the absence of my vision there wasn't much I could do. I heard Claus curse suddenly.

-When did you summon this thing?

I hadn't summoned any more titans, so my team must have arrived by now.

Dante's POV end

A few minutes before

Lok's POV

I found the girls running down one of the hallways. As soon as I got closer, I grabbed Sophie's hand and pulled her away from Zhalia, while she stared at her. Everyone got the message right away, Sophie stayed by my side, still holding my hand, and Cherit climbed on my shoulder. Zhalia looked at me hurt, and took a step back. I felt bad for making her feel this way, but I still didn't know who the danger was, Zhalia? Dante? Both? Until I had an answer, I wasn't going to risk it.

-Lok, we have found information...

I tried to relax my eyes, I took a deep breath and tried to show a more relaxed posture and expression, although inside I was about to suffer a mental collapse, but I knew that it was not the place. He would have time to suffer it when it was all over. I looked at Sophie, it was clear that she was worried about me, as was Cherit, and even Zhalia. I was sure I couldn't look too good, but I'd been fighting not to change for a long time, and it's exhausting when your whole body and instincts tell you to hide and you fight to stay on your feet.

-Us too, but now Dante is fighting Claus, we have to go help him.

I only let go of Sophie's hand when we ran to Claus's file. On the way, several agents appeared, we tried to lose them, but it was clear that this was not an option. In the end, Zhalia told us to go help Dante, a part of me refused to leave her alone, but another part just wanted to be safe. It was Sophie who made the decision for me, she ordered Cherit to go with me and me to go help Dante. The decision was now more difficult. I couldn't leave Sophie with Zhalia, what if she was dangerous and I gave her up? Or hurt her? But… if I was wrong and I left Zhalia alone, and something happened to her… I felt the corridor spinning, I even believed that I would vomit right there, luckily it wasn't. Sophie looked at me and put a hand on her shoulder.

-We'll be fine, go help Dante. We'll be out soon.

I looked at Zhalia. I nodded to Sophie and left with Cherit. When we got to the warehouse things looked very bad. Dante was on the ground, and even though he'd gotten up he didn't look like he was in peak condition. I summoned Freelancer, and he jumped in front of Claus, preventing him from getting close to Dante. He swung at him, but he withdrew his hand, and I could feel through the bond that it hurt.

-When did you summon that thing?

Claus looked up and saw Cherit, I took advantage of the fact that he was distracted and hit him in the back of the head, pushing him to the ground, but my grip on his leg with some burning. Luckily, I was smart enough to let the electricity flow for a bit, after Freelancer's warning, I was able to take precautions. I think that's what kept me from losing my leg and what pushed Claus to the ground. He didn't seem hurt though, just annoyed.

-I was the one who summoned him

-Repellent puppy...

-Dante! Are you okay?

-At the moment yes, but he has reaped me.

-Don't worry, I'll cover you.

I didn't know where the courage I was having was coming from, well… if I did, from an anger that could blind me and cause chaos and destruction, so I had to stop it from blinding me and causing me to lose control. Could this mission be worse? Now I had to face Claus, while protecting Dante, and I had to avoid not killing anyone. Can I transform? please, or die?

POV of Lok end.