Chapter Fifteen
Realisation
An hour later, everyone had gathered on a rooftop in Chicago overlooking Lake Michigan.
After Sephie and the others had located Kate and Jack they had found both the Wolf and Viper looked angered and frustrated.
It had turned out they had chased Rex through the city, Jack had been able to trace the Doberman with his sense of smell, but the Doberman had been one step ahead of them both leading them into many places they couldn't follow, whether it was towards the pubic, or grabbing the attention of nearby humans who were either in houses or outside.
Before long, Rex had lead them to a yard where he managed to trick them into cornering him and as the two Chicago Knights were feeling triumphant that they caught him, they saw him smirk then look up to see Diablo appear over their heads cawing and slashing his talons distracting them both then he had flown towards Rex who leap up and grabbed his talons before flying away with him.
"Damn you!" Kate had screamed trying to catch them with her whip, yet Diablo had flown higher out of her reach leaving the Wolf and Viper dumbstruck that the Raven had turned up conveniently to save Rex.
"I don't like this boss!" Jack said "That Raven is too clever even for my liking! He seemed to be able to turn up and save his comrades, almost like he knew exactly where they were!"
Tyroth shook his head.
"I got no idea how or why he managed to do that!" he said "But you're right, this Raven is indeed tricky! Gives a whole knew meaning to a trickster!"
"He managed to trap Devina and Heather so they wouldn't follow him, then he turned up to me, Sephie and Sarah's location when we had the panther cornered." Percy clarified.
"And then he turned up to save the Doberman!" Devina ended.
Tyroth sighed.
"I don't have the answers to Diablo's tricks," he said "But if he's this tricky, we need to be careful!"
"There's something else you should know hun." Sephie said.
"What's that?" Tyroth asked dreading the answer.
"The Doberman and Panther." Percy said "After we cornered the Panther, he spoke about how the Red Necks that were found attacked the other night deserved the treatment they got! And how before that, he and his friend were murdered by them!"
Tyroth's eyes widened.
"Those Red Necks were the ones who were recently at the Pussy Parlour! Milo T'Challa worked there as a Bouncer before he went missing!" Sarah said.
"And the Doberman!" Sephie said "The Panther mentioned during the confrontation that he was a solider!"
"Marcus Flint!" Tyroth said "He was a homeless War Veteran!"
"Yes!" Sarah squeaked "Milo T'Challa and Marcus Flint! They went missing two nights ago! The Red-Necks that were found attacked, The Panther said that he and his friend were murdered by them! They bear the same scars like those found on the Hate Preacher! And he was attacked by Diablo!"
"It all fits!" Percy cried hopping slightly in excitement.
"Of course!" Tyroth said clicking his fingers "Diablo must have found them after the Red Necks attacked them! And he gave them the water! Thus mutating them! He's gathering re-enforcements!"
"Fuck me!" Kate said.
"This is serious!" Amber said "If he uses the water and mutates others! What will he do?"
"I don't know sis." Tyroth said "But we need to be fully on our guard! And keep our eyes peeled!"
"What if he gathers enough followers and attacks Mutopia?" Sarah asked in a worried voice.
"He wouldn't fucking dare!" Kate spat.
"There's more of us in Mutopia that he could take on!" Jack said "Think about it! You think he could take on all of us? Not just us as the Chicago Knights! And Tyroth, man, he'd be an idiot to try! Even the whole Foot Clan couldn't take on Big T!"
"That's true that!" Devina said.
"But we still run the risk of being exposed!" Tyroth said "If Diablo mutates more people, it may be more difficult to hide if he doesn't have a lair, like we do in Mutopia or the Turtles and Mona have the sewers in New York!"
"So where do we go from here?" Jack asked.
"Again I don't know." Tyroth said then he saw a light appear on the horizon "And right now, we shouldn't linger, the sun will rise soon!"
The others also looked and sighed.
"Damn!" Devina cursed, knowing how the sun and heat affected her.
"Come on people." Tyroth said "Let us return home, and Jack?" he looked at the wolf who saluted.
"Use your nose to make sure no-one's following us!"
"Aye aye boss!" the wolf replied lifting his nose to sniff the air as the Mutopians made their way down the building to head back to Mutopia.
Meanwhile, Diablo, Samson and Rex had retreated back to the abandoned Church to hide as they too along with the Chicago Knights had seen the dawn was breaking and they had to lay low until the sun set again.
Now the three mutants were reeling from what had happened, Samson and Rex were sharing a bag of chips whilst Diablo was looking out of a broken window at the street below as the city began to come alive for the daytime hours.
"Diablo?" the Raven turned to see Samson.
"Yes?" he asked.
"Thanks." the Panther said "For what you did."
"Yeah." Rex agreed "Thank you for helping us, like you promised."
Diablo turned to face them.
"I kept a promise." he said "I said I would never leave you behind, you are my disciples, and I care for you."
"Who were those mutants who cornered me, and chased us?" Samson asked.
"They were the Mutopians I spoke of." Diablo said "They are the ones hunting me, because I would not follow their rules."
"Hunting?" Rex asked.
Diablo nodded.
"I believe I explained to you that they were following me, trying to recapture me because I fled, in their eyes, I betrayed them, I am a traitor to their home."
Rex bit his lip and looked at Samson.
"And now, because we are with you, we are hunted too?" he asked.
Diablo looked at the Doberman with a slight flash in his eye.
"Yes." he said "But, if you would rather not be hunted and join them, you are welcome to, as I will not restrict you, nor will I hold it against you, yet you did promise you would follow me."
Rex looked awkward and Samson flashed him a worried look.
"Forgive me Raven." the Doberman said "Like a loyal solider, I do not desert those I am dedicated to serve, I swore I would follow you, and I will follow till the end!"
Diablo gave him a small smile.
"Thank you sir." he said then he looked to Samson.
"They cornered you." he said "I trust they tried to get you to go with them."
"Yes, they did." Samson said then explained what had happened when he was confronted by Sephie, Sarah and Percy.
"He said you betrayed them." Samson ended.
"In their eyes I did." Diablo replied "I betrayed them by choosing to follow my own path, and I stand by what I believe in!"
Samson nodded.
"And I believe what I believe in." Samson said "I felt pleasure in seeing those drug dealers suffer, very much like those Red-Necks that attempted to murder me and Marcus, and I long to make others who have sinned, suffer badly."
"And we will get that chance again." Diablo smirked "Yet not now since the sun has arisen."
So saying he looked out of the broken window where then sun was starting to peek out over the rooftops.
"We must rest and remain hidden for now." he said "And all the activities no doubt have worn you out."
Rex and Samson agreed, for they were tired from all that had happened.
"Those Mutopians will not venture out at this time." Diablo said "Once the sun sets we will set out again, to find more sinners to punish."
Samson and Rex nodded in agreement and walked over to a place in a corner where some old sleeping bags lay and curled up to get ready to go to sleep.
Yet as the Panther and Doberman settled down, Diablo flew up onto a beam and looked out of the broken rooftop at the city.
"The city is filled with sinners." he whispered under his breath "Filled with criminals, some of the worst kind, as well as unheard victims, as I once was..." he sighed as he bitterly thought of how much he had suffered in his human life, yet he pushed it down, he knew he was no longer Callum Freeman, he was Diablo the Raven and he had a new purpose to serve.
"I wonder if there is anyone else out there to join my cause? Follow me in this life?" he wondered "The more I have behind me, the better." he smirked then looked down at Rex and Samson who were laying on the sleeping bags and fast asleep.
"I will rest for now." he said "But when darkness falls, hopefully the trio will grow." he smirked again and rested against the wall on the beam.
"Tyroth has a team, and soon I shall too..." his smirk grew wider and his moonstone eyes flashed in excitement.
Meanwhile, on the other side of town, as the sun rose higher above the buildings, Sophie soon arrived at her home.
Taking a few deep breaths, she typed in her code, then walked through the door of her apartment once again after completing a shift at the Pussy Parlour and hiding her tips in her back pocket.
She had done a bit better that evening with her tips, yet it hadn't been the happiest of nights, especially after she had been made aware that Milo was gone.
She couldn't understand how the strong, fearless and no nonsense Bouncer had gone missing, he had been able to take on large groups of idiots in the Strip Club and almost no-one messed with him.
It had broken her heart yet she had to carry on for the evening as she had a job to do, as well as rent to pay, but it seemed that everyone else at the club were aware of Milo's disappearance and it had shocked them all, yet like her, they all had to push their feelings down and carry on with their jobs.
Sophie had felt relieved that her shift was over then she could let out her tears, but she knew once she arrived home, that she would have to keep up appearances for her mother and keep her smile on her face for her sake.
Walking inside, Sophie hung up her coat, it was very quiet in the apartment and she wondered if her mother was asleep.
Walking towards the living area, she saw her mother's feet on a footstool.
Forcing a smile and wiping her eyes, she walked into the living room.
"Mum?" she called softly "Mum?"
There was no answer, so she must be asleep.
"Mum? I'm home!"
Yet when she arrived what she found shook her to the core!
Her mother was laying back against the chair, yet she was pale and her eyes were open and staring ahead.
"Mum?!" Sophie felt her heart leap to her throat as she walked closer "Mummy?" she dropped to her mother's side and shook her "Mum? Mum!?" but it was hopeless as her mother's head lolled heavily from side to side.
"Shit!" Sophie cursed "No! Please! Not now! The doctor's said you had longer! You can't leave me! Not now! Fuck! No! Please not now!"
She then started to slap her mother's face as if trying to wake her up from a much deep sleep yet it was in vain as her mother did not rouse.
Sophie shook and slapped her mother several times until before long it sunk in that her mother was never going to wake up and that her illness had succumbed her.
Bursting into hysterical sobs, Sophie lowered herself to her mother's lap and began to cry hard, harder than she had ever sobbed.
All the pain she had felt within had finally exploded like a nuclear bomb, first Milo, now her mother, they were gone from her life and she wasn't sure how much she could take, it wasn't fair! It was just not fair!
Laying her head in her mother's lap, she was unaware that a pair of leering eyes were watching her...
So it turned out that Rex had also escaped Kate and Jack, and the Chicago Knights are lost at what to do.
And poor Sophie, finding her mother dead after returning from her shift and I'm sure you can guess who is watching her!
Also I bet a lot of you are wondering where Sophie fits in the story, but you will find out soon enough! She is important!
Check back for another chapter coming soon!