Red eyes that glowed like the crimson moon, this was the trait they all shared.
The sky was clear, with patches of clouds in the distance. A calm serenity on the ocean surface, except for the ripples that rocked ever so slightly. Beneath their feet, a school of fish swam mindlessly, unaware of the growing tension above.
Cain was the first to speak, pointing his sword at Jaxon, who was held by a young woman.
"Jessicah, you have something that belongs to me — give," he said, his voice smooth as silk.
Jessicah nervously looked at Jaxon. His breath was low and faint; each gulp painted a picture of the sharp pain in his lungs. Fresh wounds on his chest and thighs, blood seeping out, which soaked her hands as she pressed them down. It wasn't bad; his heart was spared, he would recover, but slowly.
Cain, on the other hand, looked like a mangled corpse. Skin on his face, and the boy was ripped and torn. She could see his jaw and fingers twisting back to place, as flesh stitched back on his bones.
"What's going on?" she asked.
Cain studied her. Her appearance had changed. Her brown hair was now shorter, buggy genes, a crop top, a few piercings and bracelets. Her face, however, still carried the innocence he recalled.
"This doesn't concern you," Cain said, his face hardening.
His cold, sinister tone, raspy from his healing throat, prompted a flinch from her. She subconsciously held Jaxon tighter.
"Jos," the subtle voice of one of the two gentlemen who accompanied Jessicah spoke.
His long, silver-white hair tied back, and formal black suit and overcoat stood out. His face was inscrutable, and his tone carried weight.
"Little Brother," he continued, "this doesn't seem like a scrap between brothers. Do you intend to kill each other?"
Cain frowned and turned fully to him. His sword hung lazily in his hand.
"As I said, Joshua, it doesn't concern you."
"Whatever the reason, I cannot let you have your way."
Cain sighed heavily. His grip on his sword tightened. His eyes briefly scanned the last of the person behind them, Julius. Blond hair, long pointed ears, and an obvious disinterest in their conversation, his dull eyes wandering in the distance.
"I'll be blunt," Cain said, turning back to Joshua, "I am willing to kill anyone who stands between him and me."
"What do you mean by that?" Jessicah asked, her brows furrowed, "Can't we solve this amicably?"
"Amicable?" asked Cain, "This is me being amicable."
"Let's talk about it then, brother, please," she added.
"No! I'm done talking, I don't want to negotiate, I don't want a sitting, I want him handed to me."
"You are being stubborn," Jessicah shot back, " How do you expect us to hand over our brother, knowing you intend to kill him. You haven't even told us why."
"Why?" Cain asked, and paused for a second too long, "I'm simply settling a vendetta."
"A vendetta? How barbaric," Joshua cut in, his face turning slightly ", It's uncouth and unbecoming. Is your vendetta worth all this? You talk like the monkeys of this realm. Childish and stupid."
"Say what you want, Big Brother, it makes no difference to me," said Cain.
"So you intend to fight us for him?" asked Joshua.
Cain stared defiantly at him and asked.
"Do you intend to stop me?"
"You said you are willing to kill for your convictions," Joshua continued, stepping foward "Are you willing to die for them as well?"
Cain chuckled as he shook his head. His chest shook, first slowly, then paces as his soft laugh turned cold and hysterical. Jessicah watched with wide eyes, a mixture of surprise and worry engulfing her, contrary to Joshua, who never flinched.
"You think you can kill me?" asked Cain, "You think you can stop me? You have no idea how wrong you are."
Raising his blade, "Well, COME ON THEN! Right here, right now! Stop me, I dare you!" Cain said.
A cold pressure full of killing intent was palpable in the air, and the fish beneath them scattered in different directions. Jessicah stumbled back, and Julias whose gaze had been elsewhere, was drawn. Only Joshua remained unchanged.
"Jos, stop it," Jessicah shouted, "I'm asking as your sister. Don't do this, I don't like it when you fight."
Cain sighed and exhaled deeply. His eyes met his reflection, bloodshot, angry, then turned back to Joshua, then Jessicah. Calmer now. The sword in his hand vanished, and his fist eased.
"If you stand in my way again, we kill each other, that is my verdict."
Cain turned, a magic circle, curved in the air. About to walk in when...
Julius spoke, "Luck and chance are good and real, but in the endless...?"
His soft voice caught their attention. He stared blankly at Cain. Cain paused, drawing the curiosity of the other two, and glanced back, a soft smile curving on his lips.
"...the game is good and fair."
He said that and vanished in the circle. Julius' face reverted to its usual bored persona.
***
Jaxon sat heavily on the soft chair but instantly regretted it. He grunted and clasped his chest. He held his breath for a while and closed his eyes, and after a while, the seemingly endless torment stopped.
"You've seen better days," said Jessica, sitting beside him.
"It's not as bad as it looks," he said with a forced laugh.
He grunted again; every action he took that forced him to make instantaneous moves caused immense pain. His ribs were cracked, his sternum busted, and a hole in his chest had just closed.
"Don't push yourself," a voice spoke from across the room.
Joshua pushed the door fully open and quietly walked in. His eyes fixed on the pages of a book as he walked to the chair opposite him and sat. He then closed the book and looked at Jaxon.
Jaxon's right hand was strapped, bandages ran across his chest, and he had dark circles under his eyes. He felt grateful that the injury was only minor; his heart had been speared.
"So, would you mind explaining to me what the hell is happening?"
His tone was solemn. Most often, Joshua was the calm, rational, and calculative type. It was to be expected, as he was the eldest (the first Son) as well as the Grandmaster of the Twelve Sons.
"It has something to do with Jericho killing Cain's Lover, about a thousand years ago."
"Cain's lover?" asked Jessica, a bit surprised.
"Yeah, a Japanese girl, I think. By the time I got there, the field was soaked with blood and body parts. Cain was lying on the ground, and both Jericho and Cain had visible injuries. It was a scene from the war."
"It was also around then when Jericho disappeared without a trace," said Joshua thoughtfully, "Well, this is tricky. So, to get to the bottom of things, we need to find both Jericho and Cain."
"Easier said than done," said Jessica, " due to Cain's sudden declaration, the others are stuck handling International negotiations with the Order."
"In that case, I think it is safe to say we need to settle this matter quickly," Joshua said, rising.
"Where are you going?" asked Jaxon.
"I have a lead I need to look into; we may need to be wary of Cain since he may be far stronger than before."
"I can't be sure, I wasn't fighting at my best; rather, I wasn't serious."
"Let's hope so," he said, opening the door, "brief Jessicah on every detail about that time. I will be back."
***
"So, Jericho killed Cain's lover, and Cain wants revenge. . . how petty," thought Joshua, "Oh well, he has always been the emotional type."
Outside, there was a ruckus. A woman shouting, trying to get someone's attention. That was unorthodox; he was wondering who was trying to create commotion in his estate. He walked in the direction of the commotion and came across a jacked Afro-American man walking slowly in his direction.
A petite woman holding a tablet close to her chest struggled in vain to halt his movements. She had a black blazer and a short pencil skirt with stiletto heels. She looked like an office worker with her pair of glasses.
"Joshua Reuben Pendragon," the black man called him.
He spoke in the famous Afro-American accent. He had dreadlocks, was fairly tall, six feet three, and wore black jeans and boots, a grey t-shirt, and a bomber jacket. From his physique, he was a man that practiced calisthenics with a combination of body weight training.
He looked down at Joshua patronisingly.
"Sir Joshua, I am afraid he wouldn't listen..." the young lady, probably his secretary, desperately tried to explain.
"It's ok, you can leave now," ordered Joshua.
He turned to the man, and one thought crossed his mind. The man before him was currently regarded as the strongest human. Like him, he was a representative of the Order, which only meant their actions were being monitored.
"What brings you here, Mr Luckas?"
"One of your bros is causing trouble in my world, you know I won't stand for it."
"We are working on it," he said with obvious shortness of temper.
"You'd better kill the noise, cause you need to keep in mind your staying here is a privilege, not a luxury. If this escalates further, the Oder will take action. "
"Fear not, I will have this matter settled, but don't tell me that is all you came here to tell me?"
A smile flashed across his face as if he had been waiting for that particular moment.
"How about you let my Faction handle this?"
"No!" replied Joshua.
Joshua folded his hands and glared at the man. Luckas, however, did not back off; he glared back, and the atmosphere was changing rapidly. Tension gripped.
"You know Cain is not the problem, right? If your little brother manages to piss off the big bad Jericho, all of us will pay for it. Keep that in mind as you clean your shit,"
He walked past Joshua, bumping his shoulder. Joshua looked ahead, folding a fist tightly, and he relaxed, thinking against it. He did not want to cause further trouble with the Human faction.
"Oh! and Josh," he called, turning to him.
"Word of advice, the other factions are thinking of acting up. I can only keep them at bay for long enough. Consider that a favour for old times' sake,"
"I appreciate that," he said and walked on.
As he did, his mind began racing as he considered the gravity of the situation. All he could think about was that Cain's little theatrics were causing him a shit load of trouble. The arrival of Luckas was an omen that things would get bigger if he didn't act immediately.
"Call Jessie," he spoke to the young lady who had joined him, "and tell him to meet me in Japan."
"Consider it done, Sir Joshua."
***
His eyes slowly opened to the darkness around him. He rubbed them and rapidly blinked, feeling the moisture around the edges. He wondered whether he had been crying. And wondered why.
"Where am I?" he thought.
His eyes darted around, a sense of nostalgia ensuing him. He then looked at his hands, his small, frail hands; they were unnatural, like he had never used them, or if he did, he forgot. He rose his lanky body and looked around. It was pitch black, and for some reason, it felt very familiar.
"Cain, are you up yet?" a voice spoke.
The scenery started changing. A gush of warm wind, then calmness. Birds chirping and a peaceful atmosphere. He was resting under a tree. The sun was shining brightly, but the shade was to die for. Summer. He looked up at a twelve-year-old girl staring at him; he couldn't see her face.
"Yeah, I guess so," he said. "What am I doing here?"
The girl looked at him mischievously.
"Don't you remember?" she asked, her voice was cute.
He struggled to look at the girl's face but couldn't. Then a drop of blood landed on his wrist. Then another and another. He panicked. There was a huge hole in the girl's chest and blood in her mouth.
"Cain? Why did you let me die?"
Just then, he woke up sweating buckets. He looked around; he was alone on his bed. He exhaled deeply and dropped onto the bed, looking up. It was only a dream, but the blood was so vivid. But what was the dream about? Like the other times, he had forgotten.
"Lord Cain? You seem to be having dreams again. You seemed uncomfortable. " Gabriel spoke from a seat beside his bed.
There was throbbing on his chest. He couldn't move. The cuts from the fight were still visible, not healing. Such was the effect of being cut with a Holy spear. From time to time, it sent pulses of pain across his body. Maybe it was the pain giving him nightmares.
"Lord Cain, I will..."
"Am fine, Gabriel, it was just a dream. The residue from the spear will soon wear off, and I will begin healing. No need to worry yourself."
Cain fell on the bed again. Gabriel stood up, curtsied, and walked away. The sound of the heavy doors was heard as she walked out.