Golden Dawn

|Chapter 32 ~ Furious Retribution|

"Jacob's brother used to work part-time for a wealthy higher-up, Oliver Reece. Turns out Reece's wife broke off their relationship very unpleasantly and he managed to lose his company's profit in a matter of a few months. One evening he drank himself into oblivion and totally lost his mind."

Lex's eyes were burning. "The boy was killed that night. They left his corpse on Jacob's porch like some kind of blight, too heedless to have done anything else with it."

The latter had still not met my gaze and was instead, absentmindedly focused on the ugly scar that ran across the length of her arm. The skin was roughly parched into the rugged shape of something that resembled a lightning bolt.

"We got these when we found the dogs who murdered Ian. After the Deathtreaders finished torturing us, Jacob and I couldn't use our arms for weeks as a result. Turns out the bastard we killed was part of the Government's ranks of highest officials and we were able to escape death only because everyone knew Ian. Knowledge of his murder would've caused a definite riot and was too much of a risk for the Government to take."

Lex's voice was raw as she spoke and something inside my chest shattered.

"In my entire life, I had never come to know such pain before. Even though it happened many years ago, I scan still hear Jacob's screams echoing in my mind. Still feel them digging into my bone, feel  the blood still spilling down the medical beds."

I swallowed bile, the heat of the day suddenly like a shadow on my skin. Lex's eyes were dead. There was nothing but darkness in her blue orbs when she finally met my own.

"Our pain was worth it though. We were hungry with hatred and could see no other way out of our livid vengeance. We had to kill them."

Lex's face then contorted into a dark smirk, the motion making my blood chill. The sight was utterly abnormal for someone like Lex. Good, innocent, beautiful Lex.

To think the Government could turn even the kindest people into vindicators. Into fighters.

"Ian was avenged, but his death was not forgotten. Never ." Lex growled. There was suddenly pure resolve in her eyes. Obstinance that boiled from the deep fires of revenge. A strong anger that could very much be the death of a person if taken too far. I knew this because I'd been there before. It was why dread bubbled up inside my chest as I stared at the concrete resolution that burned inside Lex's eyes.

"I live for the day I get to see the Government finally destroyed. It is the very reason I joined you, Artemisia. I want to be part of their downfall, even if it leaves me immobilized or kills me in the process. I will not stand their reign any longer. This suffering must  end."

I looked at her for a very long time. In the corner of my eye, I was vaguely aware of the group slowing down in front of us. They probably realized we weren't following them anymore.

The sun's hard rays were far away. My thoughts a completely turmoil. I understood Lex's pain. Her thirst for revenge, even better. The loss of someone you cared for, was the most horrid of all suffering one could ever experience in this world. As I looked at Lex however, what truly resided in her heart - the fury I found brewing there - scared me. It frightened me because I knew what it could do to a person, what that hatred could make one do when not controlled. And I wasn't about to let Lex get killed by something as useless as the Government.

Her life was not worth  giving up, I realized for the first time since I arrived on Nova Terra. I didn't want to lose Lex nor anyone else. Not even the stupid Lesphares or Angelus - the latter still causing uncertainty to cloud my heart. They were all important parts of my new life on this strange planet now and I won't let them die just because of their revenge.