NOVEL NEXT An Unexpected Meeting Part 3
(Aden's P.O.V)
I followed one of the two men out of the washroom silently. The other one was behind me to make sure I didn't decide to run. Which would have been the smart thing to do had I known what was to come. Unfortunately, I didn't.
We weaved through throngs of people before using the stairs to go up to the V.I.P viewing section. A few people pointed at me in distaste while the majority were focused on the fight happening between two women in the cage. One of them looked like a wrestler while the other moved with the grace of a cat. I narrowed my eyes, I could recognize the league of shadow's training in her. Interesting.
Dumber pushed my shoulder from the back.
"Keep moving before I drag you there by your balls."
His rancid breath made me scrunch up my nose in distaste.
"There's a little something called personal Space dickhead."
My elbow shot backwards and caught him on the Solar Plexus. Dumber wheezed in pain and stepped back but remained standing which greatly shocked me. The blow wasn't at full power but still…
Anyone else would have already passed out. Yet he remained standing showing that he was strong or better yet, abnormal just as I had suspected. A gun dug onto the skin above my kidney. I stared at the goon who had been ahead of me.
"You think you're hotshit? Don't try that again if you know what's good for you."
He intimidated me.
"Wow, a lackey that can snark back. I've seen it all now."
Dumb used the gun to push me towards the door without commenting. Got to give it to him, he was very patient. Two guards were standing on the sides of the door, looking intimidating and dangerous.
One of the two men leading me stepped up.
"Lord Galiel requested to see this man."
The guards didn't comment but merely opened the door for me. Instantly, the smell of rotten eggs, blood and sulphur wafted out, making me stiffen and go on guard.
"Move. I won't tell you again."
I stepped through with Dumb following closer to me and found myself in a very classy room. The furniture probably cost hundreds of thousands of dollars and a huge tv screen was mounted on the wall, showing the fights happening on the ring in real time. The room had a balcony where someone could actually look down and see the fight from up here. No mistaking it, this guy was the boss indeed.
I took time to study the man and found him to be less than impressive. He was fat. His huge belly protruding out of the red robe he wore. His nails were clean at least but his teeth were yellowed and rotten. He seemed to stand at just below 6 feet with matted black hair and pale skin.
On the table before him, was a white substance and a rolled up dollar bill. One of the men pulled me down to a kneeling position like he and his partner to show respect but I stayed upright, not budging an inch.
"Kneel you fucking idiot!"
The gun dug into my side some more but I showed no intention of following the order. Galiel raised up a hand and the goon went silent after muttering an apology. Galiel ignored us, using the dollar bill to snort the cocaine on the table. Meanwhile, I looked around some more and saw a peculiar painting with a few scuff marks on the sides of the wall it was placed on and muttered, 'bingo.' I'd found the safe.
"You are not normal."
Galiel's voice was gruff and deeper than I had expected. He levelled a cold stare at me and motioned for the seat opposite him on the other side of the table. I went forward, pulled out the chair and sat on it before crossing my hands on my chest.
"Neither are you."
Galiel's eyes widened minutely.
Then he added with a wave of his hand.
"Leave us."
The guy I had hit with my elbow earlier didn't seem to like the sound of that. He stared at me with fury in his eyes.
"Master, I beg of you to let me kill him after you're done..."
His partner looked suddenly afraid as he moved a bit further away from him.
"You fool."
He whispered low but just enough for my superior senses to pick up.
"You dare to defy me?"
The air in the room changed. Faster than I could react to, a blood red circle manifested on the floor below the guy, who had now just realized he'd fucked up and flashed yellow. Before he had the chance to do anything, an explosion of fire swallowed him fully. A blackened skeleton fell to the ground and shattered into ash.
My hands tightened on the arm rest while I calmly tried to still my beating heart. That fire whatever it was…was hot. It was hot enough that I felt I wouldn't survive having my whole body exposed to it despite my toughened skin. Maybe I was a little bit too hasty coming here.
"Hell fire." He explained, " A little something I brought with me from home."
He smiled slowly, waiting to see my reaction.
"Mmh." I hummed, denying him a glimpse into my real thoughts. Inwardly though, my mind was in turmoil at the revelation. So this guy was a demon. Or at least claiming be one. This world was much much stranger than I thought it would be.
Galiel snapped his finger.
"Get our guest a drink. The special kind."
He ordered while staring at me. This time his look changed to a disturbingly greedy one. Dumb looked unsure for a bit but after remembering the death of Dumber, he hurried up to follow his master's orders, probably wary of meeting the same fate as his partner.
"I don't believe I have properly introduced myself. I'm Galiel, businessman extraordinare, collector of fine… specimens and an amicable boss."
I spared a glance at the blackened layer of soot at the irony of his statement.
"You forgot Pyromaniac."
He laughed at my words.
"You're funny. I like that. However…you need to know when to shut your mouth, brat."
A heavy feeling fell upon my shoulders. It felt like telekinesis or some kind of energy, maybe magic? It wasn't to farfetched based on the fact, he just fried a man to ashes. Fortunately, it wasnt anything too oppressive but I still groaned and sank into my seat all the same. I didn't want him to know I could shrug off his power with barely any effort. This had turned from a simple robbery into something else. I needed to know if I was looking at a full scale demon invasion and why the Justice League or other affiliated heroes didn't know about what was going on here.
"Who…are…you?"
I bit out.
Galiel rose up from his seat just as a goblet of a black substance was placed before me.
"The better question would be what I am. And that my soon to be underling is an opportunist." He went over to the balcony overlooking the fight happening downstairs.
The demon started laughing uproariously.
"That gives me an endless resource of mortal life force. Life force that I can then refine and turn into Power. Power that I can then use to pay back…" He stopped suddenly. "That's none of your concern. No, you are here for something a bit more… different."
I strained showing him that I was still under the effects of his power.
"You see…I lack talented fighters. Effective ones infact. Ever since the 20th century picked up with industrial and telecommunications growth, hiding my involvement in large scale human deaths has become a rather tedious affair. These days, underground fight rings like these are the only way I can act without drawing attention from the supernatural side of things." He came over to my seat and sat on the table. "Magicians are pesky little shits who poke their noses where they don't belong. Superheroes are no better either. So take this as an interview…I can sense a strength in you. Your life force is much greater than any human I've ever seen before. With you, I won't have to fear their interference and then I can act freely. You are my investment!"
He held my chin and turned me forcefully towards him. The goblet containing the black liquid appeared on his other hand.
"This will elevate you to the level needed to take on anyone. Even the big blue boy scout!"
He finished happily. I still had my reservations but…this was basically a free power up. But first, I needed to know what it was.
"What ish it?"
I asked awkwardly, my jaw still in his hand.
"Hush! My minion and drink up."
"Wait."
He brought the goblet up to my mouth but the look of anticipation on his face changed when my hand came up and held his wrist. He cried out as I squeezed it painfully. My other hand took the goblet from him and placed it on the table.
The skin of his left hand flaked off to reveal a scaly arm and huge claws. He swiped the dangerous looking claws towards me but a quick tap on the elbow and the hand went slack, uselessly hanging from his body.
"Who are you!?"
Galiel shouted, fear coloring his voice.
I sneered at him.
"First of all, you talk to much. Secondly, I said wait you idiot. You were going to forcefeed me some shitty looking liquid without even explaining what it was." I increased the pressure on his palm making him cry out some more.
"Do you know who I am!"
I landed a slap on his jaw careful not to dislocate it for my next question but hard enough to show I wasn't playing around.
"What's that liquid made of?"
He stared me in defiance and started laughing.
"I have been the cause of the fall of so many civilizations brat, you think you can threaten me to say anything?!!!"
The door banged open and a group of guards appeared.
"Men! Open fire!"
Dumb gave the order. I really need to stop calling him that. His lack of hesitation showed he had some brains. After all, I am fucking dangerous.
I opened my mouth and produced a Sonic blast at them. The concussive waves of sound threw them all back out into the hallway and shattered the doors into wooden chips. The wall surrounding the door had small cracks running up it as well. The crowd below started panicking and running away.
Meanwhile I turned towards Galiel and saw the wide eyed look on his face.
"What are you?"
The reply came fast.
"Special."