Death City (Book 1)

Chapter 14: Mad Moment

The air around Verina was crisp and cool as fall set in early Thursday morning. But even as the weather grew colder than normal, it was not unusual for locals to visit the plaza downtown for late night drinks and social gatherings. As October neared, it was especially becoming livelier in the area, as the businesses decorated and planned for Halloween events.

One such business on the strip was a music lounge, which included a small bar that sold non-alcoholic drinks. On this particular night, there had been only two students in the lounge watching music videos on several of the television screens which had been mounted onto walls. Behind the counter stood a middle-aged man washing dishes in the sink.

"Alright guys," he said. "Brandon, Emily. It's almost 1:00 A.M. I gotta close down pretty soon."

"Oh come on Jeff," said Emily. "We just got here."

"You know my hours," said Jeff. "Shoulda came earlier. Anyway, you've all got school in like 5 hours, so you'd better head home and get some sleep."

"Yeah, I'm tired," said Brandon. "Let's dip."

As the two of them began to pack up their belongings into their bags, someone else entered the store. It was a tall character, with pale skin dressed in a black clothing. His face was not visible, as he wore only a plain white mask.

"What the fuck..." said Brandon.

"Very funny, guy," said Jeff. "We're closed right now. So take that mask off right now and get out of here kid."

The man remained silent, not moving an inch with his arms flat at his sides.

"Jeff call the police!" yelled Emily. "This guy's nuts."

"You know what," said Jeff. He walked to the front of the counter, reaching under it, and pulled out a handgun. Jeff aimed it at the masked man before issuing a final warning. "Get out of here now, or I'll shoot!"

The masked man slowly began walking toward Jeff, who frantically looked back at Brandon and Emily. The two of them held each other as they moved toward the back of the shop and farther away from Jeff.

"I swear to God, I'll shoot!"

Again, no response from the masked man as he slowly continued toward Jeff. In a panic, as the mysterious man closed in on him, Jeff fired his gun directly at the man's chest. Emily and Brandon covered their ears, watching in horror as the gun fired and the bullet bounced right off the man's chest. Jeff stared on in disbelief as he watched the man take off his mask. Under the mask to greet him with a sinister grin, was the red-headed esper known as Axel.

"Is that any way to treat your customers?" asked Axel.

"W-what are you...I-I thought you were gonna rob me."

"Rob you?" Axel jerked his head back. "All I came here for was a late-night snack. That is what this place is for isn't it?"

"I-I don't...you had that mask on...and I..."

Axel leaned forward over the counter. His carefree demeanor shifted to an entirely dead serious one. "Isn't it?"

Jeff could only react by vigorously nodding. "Y-yeah."

"But I guess what they say is true; customer service has gone to shit these days." Axel sighed. "Never make assumptions, Jeff. It won't do you any good. Take it from someone who's lived a couple lifetimes."

"L-look, what do you want? Just let the kids go. We don't want any trouble."

Axel laughed hysterically. "You're the one that shot at me."

"Okay, okay." Jeff motioned at the refrigerated display below. "You want a snack, go right ahead. You can have all this. It's yours!"

"That's kind of you. But I had something else in mind. I want your soul. And you know what? I was going to spare a couple of you, but since you decided to be a hero, I'm taking all three of your souls."

Jeff immediately jumped back and fired off several more shots at Axel, all of which bounced right off his body.

"Stop it, that tickles," said Axel.

In an instant, Axel appeared right before Jeff behind the counter. Axel forcefully grabbed him by the neck and began squeezing his throat. Jeff struggled and flailed his arms about, hitting Axel anywhere he could. Unfazed and unaffected, Axel simply chuckled at his futile attempts as his left hand underwent partial-demonic transformation.

He pierced Jeff in his gut, leaking his internal organs. Jeff screamed in pain while his body shriveled up like a prune as Axel began draining his soul. Mere seconds later, all that was left of Jeff was shrunken pile of gray skin and bones.

"Oh man that is some disgusting shit," he laughed. "Did you guys see that? I slice up people all the time and it is still gross as hell. Every. Damn. Time."

Terrified of what they had just witnessed, Emily and Brandon made a run for the door. Just as they reached storefront, the area spontaneously burst into flames, trapping them inside. Axel then turned around at them and grinned. 

His appearance had altered once again as he went through further transformation. Axel now had two large horns on the side of his head and the color of his eyes mirrored the searing flames before him.

"Going somewhere?"

"Please just let us go!" Brandon begged. "Please!"

"That uniform you're wearing," said Axel. "Maybe you can help me. I'm looking for a girl named Dawn Augustin. Tell me...what school do you attend?"

"We go to St. Verina Academy," said Emily. "Just up north. It's the only private high school here."

"St. Verina Academy, huh? Perfect. I guess I know where to start looking for her. Thanks for that."

"C-could you let us go now?" Brandon's voice was shaking.

Axel grinned and, with his long, serpent-like tongue, licked his lips.

"I could."