Chapter Nine: A Family Torn
Tokyo, Japan
The bundle of money felt divine in her hands as she stuffed it into the duffell bag before her feet, the bag was filled to bursting and she held all she could carry. She'd raided only a small fraction of the bank vaults contents, the amount was equivelant to several thousand pounds. She was probably the only person who was stupid enough to pull a bank hiest in broad daylight alone, but she was the only person in the world who could walk through the front door unseen. The camera's in the corners of the room had been melted away before they even had a chance to see anything going on, all she had to do was stroll out. Standing to her full height she focused for a moment until a tingling sensation crawled from the tips of her toes all the way to the top of her head, covering her entire body.
With that done she walked out of the vault looking into the reflective metal of the door and didn't see a face staring back at her, which meant as usually her little trick did it's magic. Nobody was on the other side as they were taking lunch at this time, she knew this from doing extensive research on the habit's of the banks staff. As the human's would say, the devil is in the details it caused a smile to spread across her lips as the phrase passed through her thoughts, human's of Earth always amused her. Her hand came to settle on the handle of the door, to anyone else it would have felt cold but all that could be felt was heat it was if it had been in the hot sun all day.
Stepping out into the cramped office space it was empty of the staff as expect leaving her in the clear, she cleared her mind and allowed the obsidian black flames to consume her form. In seconds she was in the alleyway behind her current residence, she'd only been there a few months but it was private and nobody bothered her or so she thought. Several strides away stood three men, one she recognized on sight the other two were a mystery aside from the raw power and heat that one of them was emitting. It had to be the heir to Arturio's, which meant nothing but trouble for her. They turned a moment after she had spotted them, the heir and the other stranger instantly balled up fists of fire ready to attack. However the other smiled as he strolled toward her and extended his hand.
"We meet again, Yalaria. It's been too long and we are in need of your services" smiled Argus, to her he hadn't aged a day just like all their kind but by the way he carried himself it was obvious that he stood out.
"I had hoped to not see you again, Argus you're as hard to get rid of as you were so many years ago" she replied keeping her hands firmly in front of her grasping her bag tightly. Argus noticed the tightning of her grip and his smile broadened.
"Do not worry, I have no interest in your activities or the fruits that they bare for you. But I need your help Yalaria, there is bad blood between us I understand that and your hatred is not misplaced" he said soothingly.
Throughout their conversation Taylor and Darrell stood back looking utterly confused by what was going on. Argus clearly had a history with the raven haired woman which was concerning enough. Her hair was tied into dreadlocks that fell to the base of her neck blending in well with her dark skin, she had a slim physique and was dressed entirely in tight slimline clothing. Her face was slim and angular with a prominent forehead, she looked just as young as any other Ember and was likely just as old as Argus.
"Would either of you like to tell me what's going on?" shouted Taylor over them as their voices had begun to gain greater volume as they argued. They both stopped mid arguement to crane their necks in Taylor's direction giving him their full attention.
"This is Yalaria, she's the person on the list Taylor. Before you say anything, yes she's Cyturion but she used to be with us before the end of the war in Thurnar" said Argus.
"Well my mind has been officially blown" huffed Darrell not quite beleiving what he was hearing.
"If you want to talk let's at least get out of the open, our shouting match likely attracted a few stares from the neighbours" snapped Yalaria as she barged past Taylor and Darrel then turned the corner at the top of the alleyway.
They followed on without protest, once they turned a corner Yalaria was stood at the door to small home wedged between two others. She ushered them inside following after they had crossed the threshold then locked the door behind. They'd entered a cramped kitchen which was litered with dirty bowls, dishes and other items of dining equipment imaginable, she walked to the sink and fished out a glass then inspected it in the light before deciding it clean enough to pour water in from the chrome tap. The three men stood waiting awkwardly as she slowly drained the glass of it's contents before slamming it down on the white granite counter. Her eyes rose steadily until they met with Argus', they burned with what could only be described as passion and fury molded together into one.
"So what does the great Argus Braeken, want with little old me?" The words rolled off her tongue as if they were meant to kill.
"As I said we need your help, things are desperate Yalaria. Culhuthe's heir has surfaced and we are on the defensive, if we don't act quickly then it's like in a matter of weeks the Cyturion's will start to topple government's" said Argus he refused to break his eyes away from the ice cold stare that bore down upon him.
"No" it was so quick and without hesitation that for a few seconds Argus couldn't find his voice through shock.
"If this is about us then please put that aside. What do you think is going to happen when they take over? You won't be able to hide from it, the only reason that you are still alive is because of the human's and your days of stealing will be over. Remember what you fought for all those long years ago, you betrayed your king, your people to do the right thing. So don't pretend that part of you is dead and buried because I know you too well for you to make me think other wise" said Argus, his words were filled with so much passion and strength that it was incredible to watch.
"I fled because of that betrayal Argus, they came into our home and killed our daughter. All because of my love for you, her blood will always be on my hands as it will yours for convincing me to stay by your side" tears welled up in her eyes then she turned away and wiped at her eyes with the back of her hands.
"That memory will always be there like a brand upon my heart, but running won't bring Alaria back. I thought about running as well, the hatred for the scum who broke our family apart stopped me. It allowed me to keep fighting, please fight with me and together we can make a better world, a world where not another child will have to suffer at the hands of a Cyturion ever again" he moved toward her and placed his hands on her shoulders.
Taylor went into the next room gesturing for Darrell to follow, they clearly needed privacy and the last thing they needed were prying eyes. They could here muffled sobbing from inside the kitchen and their hearts broke at the sound of it.
"Damn, I can't believe that Argus was a father. I can't even imagine how he felt when his daughter was killed" said Darrell.
"Just hope that's something you never have to experience, that none of us do for that matter. I dread to think how many innocent people have been caught in the middle of all this. Taylor looked around the room they'd walked into which was much bigger than the one they had left.
It appeared to be the living room, it had a single dark brown leather sofa nestled against the wall behind them which was positioned in front of wide screen tv which fit into the room well given it's size. The walls were clad in white wall paper with brown floral designs expertly woven throughout the surface. Soft cream carpet was led beneath their feet matching well with the rest of the decour of the room, the curtain's of the small window were shut making the room dark and only just visible to the eye. Despite the dire state of the kitchen the living room was relatively tidy and well looked after, no pictures hung from the walls but several expensive looking paintings did instead no doubt stolen or baught with stolen money.
It was a two storey house with the stairs to the left of the living room, the spiral staircase was made of black metal and had white flowers painted all the way up the hand rail.
"So what do you think?" came Yalaria's voice from the door way to the kitchen, Taylor turned to see her eyes puffy from departed tears but her face was alight with a smile.
"It's a wonderful home you have. Um I owe you an apology, I made the wrong assumption when I saw you in the alleyway. It's just that I've never met a Cyturion who didn't want to light me up, it's a refreshing change" whispered Taylor. He'd always been brought up not to make assumptions, his mother would be shocked that he'd acted in such a way.
"It's fine. When Argus and I went public about our relationship the rest of the Arturion's were less than pleased about it, so I've had worse reactions don't worry. Argus tells me you pissed off the heir to Culhuthe, if he's anything like him then that's more trouble than you can handle" she said strolling into the cramped room, followed swiftly by Argus who looked as though he'd done his best to conceal the recent fall of tears from his eyes.
"I'm not Arturios', I will kill Marcelo" said Taylor sensing the insult behind her last insult.
"No you're not, in fact right now you're aren't even close to who he was. That man was a god and you haven't had the years experience he did or even the chance to truly develop your powers" she said.
"Don't underestimate him too much Yalaria, he did kill Caius after all. Disintegrated him on the spot, he even performed Gralou" his voice cut into the conversation like a knife.
"What's Gralou exactly? asked Taylor.
"It's when an Arturion or Cyturion can use his own fire and convert his or her's enemies into their own, I'm sure you remember if during your fight with Caius. Only a select few have been able to do it though, one of them was Arturios' but even that wasn't enough to kill Culhuthe in head to head combat" her words flowing as the look in her eyes reflected the pain of memories rushing behind them.
"That's what that was, I had thought about it for a while afterwards and had tried to think how I did it but nothing came to mind" he said as his mind drifted back to his encounter with the long deceased number two of the Cyturion army.
"That would be because it only works of it's own accord, nobody has ever been able to understand why. We are a mysterious race as you know and even for us there as so many things that we don't understand and probably never will" said Argus.
"This is all very fascinating, but we did come here for a reason didn't we Taylor?" interjected Darrell who was settled comfortably on the sofa, taking full advantage of it's softness.
"Not very tactful Darrell, but yeah we did. We do need you Yalaria, I don't know if it will be possible for you because of your history and that's something I can even begin to understand. If you don't though, all of this will be gone and as far as I'm concerned too many have died in this war. I will end it even if it takes my life" he said not looking away from her for even a second.
"Maybe I was wrong, you are like him in so many ways it's actually quite frightening. If I do this then there is one thing that I need from you" she said.
"Name it" he said without hesitation.
"I want you to capture a man named Yuron Lychon and bring him to me, he was the man who told Culhuthe where Argus and I lived. He's a Arturion, he lives in London" said Yalaria.
"Don't you want to do it yourself, and why haven't you done it already?" asked Taylor.
"I do and only because I haven't wanted to risk it due to who the man is today, but this is a test and I need to know that you're willing to do anything to end this war. Even if it means kidnapping a member of British Parliament" her words froze Taylor on the spot and he looked at her as if she were insane.
"You can't be serious, we've already got the government trying to snatch up our people all over the UK. This could spark a fucking war!" roared Taylor spitting out his words amidst unimaginable fury.
"I'm sure that you can find some way of causing him to dissapear without eliciting too much suspicion. It's that or I don't come with you and I can't imagine that there's a long list for recruitment into the Arturion army these days" she smirked.
"She drives a hard bargain Taylor, but we need her and as she said I'm sure we can grab this guy quietly enough" said Darrell who still looked nice and chilled out spread over the leather sofa.
Taylor waited a few moments as he contemplated the current situation, they needed her in fact they need everyone they could get but moving on a member of government could be a catastropic mistake. One that they would all pay a heavy price for in the long run. He turned to Yalaria and fixed her with a stare which showed that he wasn't entirely happy with what he was about to say.
"We'll capture him then bring him to you" a horrible feeling of emptyness replaced where his stomach used to be and the decision he made was either smart or incredibly idiotic.
"I'll be waiting here with Argus then" she walked back into the kitchen and the sound of clanging and banging could be heard as she searched for what she wanted.
She came back into the living room with a piece of paper and a photograph in her hand. As she passed the picture over Taylor saw the man in the picture and recognized him instantly, he had bronze hair slicked back exposing his prominant forehead which was the most noticeable thing about his appearance aside from his hair. He was stocking with broad shoulders encased in pinstripped black suit.
"Christian Akers?! I know this guy, he used to visit my house all the time. Him and my dad had been friends for quite a while" said Taylor wrapped up in the shock of the new discovery.
"Well talk about a small world. He's a Cyturion and who I thought to be my only friend within the ranks of the enemy, but he betrayed us for his king something that he must pay for in blood. I hope this doesn't change anything, Taylor?" asked Yalaria hesitantly.
"No it doesn't, we'll bring him to you. Come on Darrell let's get moving" he said then he bid goodbye to Argus and Yalaria and left the living room into the kitchen then out the back door.
"So are you really okay with this?" probed Darrell sensing that things weren't straight forward.
"Yeah I am. But I have some questions for this guy, I have a horrible feeling that he's the reason why Noran found me so easily and if he is then he might not be brought back entirely unscathed" he was positively seething with blind rage and even he was afraid of how he might act when they actually captured their target.
St Mary's Asylum, Stannington, England
The rotted walls creaked under the relentless beating of the wind, it was miraculous that the complex was holding out against the miniature storm that raged through the English countryside. But the weather was the least of Noran's concerns as he stared down the two figures which stood before him, both of which had their heads pointed directly to the ground. Noran was nestled on a comfortable black armchair which was situated in the corner of his own personal quarters. It had been furnished with a kingsized bed drapped in dark grey sheets, to it's right was a desk with several documents laid upon it's surface. He finally spoke and when he did, he wanted his voice to be truly heard to strike such an immeasurable amount of fear into the two before them that they would soil themselves on the spot.
"The two of you had very simple orders, and even those you were completely unable to carry out. Daria I tasked you to retrieve Einrove Twain but instead you come back empty handed with the rest of your comrades slain in battle. What happened? he barked.
"We were attacked by the false king, a man in strange robes and another young man who appeared shortly before I retreated. We were no match for the flase king, I am sorry that I have failed you but I ask that I am to be allowed to lead another force to dispatch them" said Daria her blackened eyes piercing through the veil of blonde hair covering her features.
"So the strategist is in the hands of the enemy, this is not news that I wished to hear. As for your request I am in agreement but you shall take Kirill with you and he will be in command, his skills should be sufficient in dealing with the boy" said Noran as he rubbed the stump where his hand had been before it had been severed by the false king.
"There was one other thing my lord. On arrival we sensed the prescence of ten other Arturion's in the house along with Twain. I think he was harbouring newly manifested Arturion's, it would explain why some of the ones we've been looking for have vanished" she said.
"It is no matter. Even with a few extra soldier they have no hope of matching our growing force, but it seems as though they are recruiting The Deserters. They truly have grown desperate. Frederick in light of your recent failure to keep the Arturion whore in our possession I will give you an opportunity to redeem yourself. I want you to take a group of three with you to hunt down the remaining deserters and kill them before they are found" he said turning to the man stood by Daria's side.
He lifted his head which was draped in thick brown hair which was cut short so not to impede his vision. He had a strong jaw along with a prominent brow almost similar to that of a caveman, his nostril's flared with the reminder of his failure and of the man who had almost killed him in the process. Eager to serve his leader he smiled a crooked smile at the thought of being able to get away from the complex for the first time in months.
"As you wish Noran. I'll even bring you their heads as trophies to mark many more victories to come" said Frederick his accent was a thick southern American accent which seemed to dull down the horrific thing he'd said.
"Do not fail me, the consequences shall be far more severe next time" then he ushered them out with a wave of his hand.
They turned their backs on him and the glint of fresh wounds and torn flesh met his eyes. Their clothes had been sliced through as if they were nothing leaving them to be nothing but tattered looking rags. Despite experiencing the bite of Noran's whips they had endured the pain well, neither of them had screamed once and it showed him that the two of them had resolve harder than anything on Earth. Vengeance fueled their veins, which Noran always found to be a powerful tool something he knew all too well how to manipulate. Their was a knock at his door tearing his attention away from his handy work to see Kirill stood at his door with the same mischievous grin that he always wore.
"I assume they proved their worth. I never understood the joy you feel beating loyalty into the troops but it does appear to work well enough" he strolled into Noran's quarters and pulled up the chair from the desk then sat directly in front of Noran.
"I suppose I just have a twisted mind. Now are you here for any real reason or just to assess my mental state for fun" said Noran.
"Well yes and no. I do have more information on that target, our people have scouted the area and there are no sign of Arturion's. They are spread too thin and cannot hope to prevent all of our activities" he produced a piece of paper with a few paragraphs of writing scrawled hastily over it's surface. He spent a few minutes going through the information before handing it back to Kirill with a smile.
"Excellent, then it is time to make our move. You are to go else where though, you are to go with Daria and others of your choosing to hunt down the false king. He and two others are searching for The Deserters, I want them stopped before they find anymore of them. Frederick is taking a group to kill the remaining ones, so that makes it easier to locate Roth. If he does then he's to call reinforcements, make sure he knows that before he leaves" his blood rushed as the plan rolled off his tongue at the thought of killing two birds with one stone.
"Very well. I will see you in a few days with the boys corpse slung over my shoulder as I walk through that door" he smiled then vanished in a whirl of obsidian black flame.
"It is time for the world to die by the flame and for it to cleanse this earth of the infection that has burrowed itself so deep" then he dissapeared himself amongst the blackned inferno that consumed his body leaving only silence and the two empty chairs in the centre of the room.
London, England
It was still early in the morning when they arrived in London, the sun hadn't long risen and the constant change in time zones was beginining to make Taylor's head spin. They'd materialized atop a building over looking the houses of parliament, upon arrival they'd led down in order not to be spotted. The rush of London traffic was at its peak with plenty going on and plenty of eyes that could spot them, which meant they were under even more pressure than they would have liked. Luckily a low wall ran along the front of the building sheilding them from anyone looking directly ahead which gave them a little piece of comfort.
"So how long do you think we'll have to wait for him to leave?" asked Darrell who already sounded bored.
"As long as it takes, once he's out I want you to follow him. He might not go straight home but I'll head to his house and wait for him to arrive" said Taylor, as he scanned his eyes over the street below.
The houses of Parliament were a glorious sight to behold, the architecture was stunning. The way the windows fitted in with the old rustic look of it's walls and spiked towers it still looked as though it belonged there despite it's age.
"I guess its that easy then" replied Darrell.
"It should be providing there aren't any unexpected problems, I'll make sure the house is empty first though. For all we know he could have family and they shouldn't have to get dragged in because of his actions. I will find out if he sold me out before we take him back, so things could get a little messy" he said, his eyes still darting around to check that they still remained unnoticed.
"I'll let you do what you've got to do, just make sure you don't kill him. Yalaria would be pissed if we brought back a corpse" he snorted loudly.
"I'll restrain myself, but he'll wish he'd died after I'm finished with him" he said.
After the conversation all that was left was the constant beeps and toots of horns as the busy London commute hurried on below them, sirens screeched by every now and again more than Taylor had been used to in Bath. They waited for hours as rain had begun to beat down on them and with no source of shelter all they could do was lay there and become drenched in the skies tears. Taylor had begun to get restless and almost considered just going in and getting the man himself but he knew better than to be so stupid, no doubt the interior had almost as much security as fort knox. Their patience finally paid off as a flood of people came pouring out of the main entrance, in the very back walking along in the same pinstriped suit from the photograph was Christian Ackers.
His hair was still slicked back as it had always been exposing his serpent like face which was something that had always unnerved Taylor, he did wonder at one point whether he was actually part snake. Without a word Darrell was gone amidst white flames to another rooftop closer to their target's position, and continued to follow him in that fashion until they were out of Taylor's sight. Taylor soon left for his own destination, his flames rose up all around him followed by steam coming off it as the rain evaporated on contact. Then in seconds he was in the back garden of a house, it's brick work was a sandy colour with stone frames painted white around the windows.
The garden was like with a swing seat in the corner and a cluster of bushes to its right which hugged a golden brown wooden fence sectioning the garden off from the others nearby. Luckily it was tall enough to hide his arrival, something that he was thankful for. He turned and walked up to the back door and gripped the handle with his hand pulling down. It stopped before it got anywhere which meant it was locked and nobody was home. Looking inside he saw the kitchen ahead of him and with his goal in sight he materialized into the kitchen almost setting fire to a pair of table clothes slung over the handle of a chrome oven. He carried on into the hallway then swung a right where he found the living room, it was well decorated with whites and browns and as he'd hoped empty. Even though the door had been locked he didn't want to take chances.
After that he continued upstairs which proved to be the same as downstairs, completely empty of life aside from him. It seemed like he lived along, there was a spare room but it was void of any furniture and decoration of any kind. Satisfied with his search, Taylor descended the stairs feeling the soft greeting of brown carpet as his feet took the steps one at a time. Then he entered the living room taking a seat at a black leather armchair which was in direct view of the door and simply waited for his soon to be captive to arrive. Twenty minutes passed by in a blur as Taylor sat in the chair with hands in his lap as he pictured how the pending situation would play out. Once those twenty minutes had gone by he heard the sound of a key sliding into the lock of the front door, soon accompanied by the creak of the door swinging open.
Footsteps padded down the hallway drawing Taylor's gaze to the living room door just in time for him to see the look of shock and horror on the face of Christian Ackers.
"Hello Mr Ackers, but I think I should just call you Yuron instead. I've got a few questions for you and a certain young lady who requires your precense" said Taylor attempting to keep his anger in check. Before he was even able to reply a fist smashed into the back of his skull sending him crashing into the carpet, rendering him unconscious. Darrell stepped out from his hiding spot in the hallway and admired his work with a smirk.
"Turns out it was that easy" he said with a laugh which was shared by Taylor as they stared down at the motionless form of Yuron Lychon.
AN: So people here it is! This is going to be the first of longer chapters for you gus as I've said from the begining that I wanted this to be longer than the first book. I know there wasn't really any action in this one but I've got a lot of adrenaline pumping ideas coming up soon!
As always I really hope you guys enjoy this and I'd like to thank the people who are reading and for those who have recently found my work. It all means so much to me :).
All The Best FN