Early the next morning, after a four-hour bus ride, Narvari reached her destination. The address Tsalaga had given her was in the small border town of Urega, only about ten kilometers north of Kirriba Plains. She could not believe her enemy lived right under her nose.
Upon reaching the village, she had to ply the rest of the route by foot. Passing several randomly scattered huts, Narvari found a gated house. She knew this was Stein’s house because it was “the nicest and largest building in the area,” Tsalaga’s exact words. The house stood all alone surrounded by nothing but grass and trees.
Narvari felt her anger rising simply by watching the house. The man or demon responsible for the carnage in her home was in that house.
She tried pushing the gate and to her surprise, it opened. This Stein had no fear of security, it seemed. Narvari casually strolled inside. Tsalaga had warned her that there were guards everywhere, yet there was not a single person in sight. Her heart sank when she thought that perhaps Stein no longer lived here. Did he move after getting what he wanted?
The anger boiled inside her. That man couldn’t be gone. How would she find Stein if he was gone?
“Do not move.”
Narvari’s body tensed when something cold and hard pressed behind her head. She cracked a smile. Finally, some action.
“Who the fuck are you?” The language was English, laced with a heavy Eastern European accent. Maybe he was Russian or maybe he was not. It didn’t matter, he was about to be dead.
Narvari continued to stare at the white wall in front of her. “I’m looking for Doctor Hubert Stein.”
“I said who the fuck are you?”
“Can I at least turn around? You might recognize who I am.” She had a feeling this man was probably one of the mercenaries who had come for the bazwu.
“Raise your hands and turn around. Slowly. Any funny movements and I will blow your brains out.”
Interesting choice of words. I was thinking the same thing too.
Narvari did as she was told. The barrel of a pistol was in her face and holding the gun was a hunk of a man with a wild beard. Narvari wanted to laugh. She had been in this position so many times she’d simply lost count. Pointing a gun at her was never a good idea.
The man narrowed his eyes. “It’s you.”
Seeing the tiny change in the man’s emotion, Narvari’s body acted fast. She unarmed the man in one swift movement.
“Hey — ” he began to protest but Narvari sent three quick punches into his body; one in his throat and two in his chest. Then she smashed his head into the wall. He went limp on the ground.
Enough of this shit. She removed her two guns from her belt holster and wielded both together.
“Stein,” she shouted at the top of her voice. “Hubert Stein. Come out now and face me, you bastard.”
About seven men, all armed to the teeth, rushed out of the house like cockroaches. Okay, where had they been hiding all this time?
“Girl, drop the gun. Unless you want to die here today.”
“You know,” Narvari said, “I was hoping to kill only one person today. But you work for the man I hate. So what the hell.”
Without any warning, Narvari shot both guns at two men simultaneously. Two bodies dropped to the ground, blood gushing out of the hole in their heads. Instantly, several guns went off at the same time, all of them directed at Narvari. But her agile body moved with ease, gracefully evading all the bullets, while she put a bullet in everyone’s head.
All was silent again and everyone lay dead at her feet.
Did these weaklings think they could take her? Narvari scoffed.
Scores of men rushed outside, cradling AK-47s. Without waiting for someone to give her bullshit about surrendering lest she dies, Narvari simply lunged towards them like a tornado while they shot at her. This was like a picnic to her. Soldiers of WPU were trained in Ntunomi — literally meaning gun combat dance. Fighting and shooting while evading bullets like smoke was what they had been trained to do. When her bullets were finished, she threw the guns away and resorted to her fists and legs, disarming everyone she came into contact with. The sound of breaking bones and screaming men filled the air.
It seemed these men were even worse fighters than they were shooters. Soon, most of them were on the ground either dead or unconscious. The few who were still awake writhed in pain, not daring to move.
Narvari pinned the only man standing into the wall, her right elbow digging into his neck like a blade. She must have been fueled by her rage as she felt strength she never knew she had coursing through her veins. It intoxicated her, making her want nothing but blood.
“Where is Stein?”
“Inside,” said the man, gasping. His face was a bloody mess and his lips were busted and bleeding but Narvari still recognized him. He was the same man she had fought in Kirriba Plains. The man who had first warned her about Stein.
“What are you?” he said. The stench of fear was all over him.
“Apocalypse.”
The sound of a cracking skull grilled Narvari’s ears as she punched the man in the face. His eyes fell in a daze, dropping to the ground either unconscious or dead. She really didn’t care. She should have killed all of them a long time ago.
----------------------------------------
Stein held the vial of Fessel in his face, a content smile spreading on his face. Finally. Getting hands on those four-tusk elephants meant he would be able to produce enough Fessel to raise an entire army.
With that, he would return the Vessels to their true glory. It was rather unfortunate that the chemical found in the tusks of those four-tusk elephants was absent in ordinary two-tusk elephants. It would have been easier if that were the case. Well, none of that mattered. In a few weeks, the Fessel would be ready and the world would be his.
Bang!
Stein was suddenly attentive upon hearing the gunshot. He frowned. Was someone trying to get in? He had instructed his security guards to kill any intruder. His research here was of the utmost importance and he couldn’t let anyone find out about it. He was about to go out and see what was going on when several gunshots were fired over and over. He quickly pocketed the vial and took out his gun. There was an intruder in his house.
Stein had taken painstaking steps to ensure his research was never found out by anyone, especially by the Ancient Order of Vanquishers. After the Vessels of Bezvaros were defeated by the Order twenty years ago, the few Vessels like himself who remained went into hiding.
Stein had always believed that the vision of Vessels was too small, therefore leading to their untimely defeat. Demons were meant to be controlled not feared or revered. It was the only way they could destroy the vanquishers once and for all and rule the world.
This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.
To fulfill his dream, Stein moved from place to place, seeking a way to amass a demon army against the Order. He continued his research in developing Fessel — an addictive chemical that could boost the power of demons astronomically, albeit for a short period. After a lot of research, he learned that the main component for making Fessel was tetrahyratine, the stuff that made the demon stronger and yet docile to him.
This could only be found in the tusks of the West African Four-tusk Elephant. So Stein moved to Dorben where he had been in hiding for the past seven years. With all the protective runes around his house, not even the vanquishers could sense any demonic activity. It was why he had kept this secret for so long. Was it possible that the vanquishers had realized what he was up to and were now here to stop him?
That was highly improbable. His runes were far too powerful to be detected.
Was this a home invasion? He had a few issues with the local rebel group in the next village. Maybe they had come back to cause trouble. His security guards should be able to take care of it.
He thought about releasing his new demon slave but he remembered that the demon was in a deep sleep and would only wake once it had fully imbibed the Fessel. In the meantime, he would have to deal with this situation himself. He cautiously slipped out of his laboratory.
The gunshots stopped and all was silent again. His help might not be needed after all.
He was thinking of going back to the laboratory to continue his work when he heard someone thunder his name with so much rage. Stein stopped in the hallway.
“Come out, Stein,” the voice said. It was a woman’s voice he didn’t recognize. However, from the way she spoke English, Stein was certain she was Dorbenese. “Show yourself, you coward.”
Coward? Stein raised a brow. Who is this bitch? He withdrew his revolver, following the voice outside the house.
The first thing he noticed in his compound was the heap of bodies scattered on the ground, with blood and gun shells everywhere. And there standing tall at the center of it all was…
A girl.
She was tall with dark brown skin and black hair in cornrows. She pointed two guns at Stein, her brown eyes cold enough to freeze the planet. As hard as it was to fathom, Stein knew for sure that she was the one who had killed all his men. And from the way she looked at Stein with full-on malice, he knew she wanted him dead too.
Children. He scoffed internally.
“Are you Stein?” asked the girl.
Stein shrugged. “Sure. And you are?”
“Enraged.”
He could see that, though honestly, he had no idea who this person was and why she was in his house. He sighed. It was probably one of the many enemies he had made over the years. He wondered if the girl was here because he had killed her parents or something. He had lost track of all the people who wanted him dead. Most of them were dead anyway.
He had no idea how this girl had taken down all his armed guards by herself but it was clear that she was no ordinary person. Even though Stein had his gun pointed at her, she simply stared at him with fury.
It was obvious that she trusted in her skill to easily take him down. Interesting. He would use her overconfidence against her. He would make the girl believe she had him cornered and then he would keep her distracted until the demon awoke.
It didn’t matter how skilled she was, she could never take down a demon. Stein almost laughed aloud.
Foolish girl. You are about to die today.
Stein slowly put the gun on the floor. That should make her lower her guard, he thought.
“To what do I owe this,” he stared at the bodies, “visit?”
“You sent demons to my home.”
Stein paused thoughtfully. “Your home?”
“You don’t even remember, you bastard. The wraith lord you sent told me everything.”
“Oh, Sharmandi. Right.”
This was indeed about foolish revenge. When Ijeissi and his wraith demons never returned, Stein suspected that vanquishers had something to do with it. He should have known that good for nothing wraith lord would fail him.
Glancing at the pile of bodies on the floor, everything suddenly made sense.
“You’re the Shar descendant, aren’t you? Narvari Shar.”
He had heard of stories of the captains of the Wildlife Protection Unit in Sharmandi. Just like the stories about Erasmus Shar, the first captain, Stein thought the stories about all the other captains, especially the teenager, Narvari Shar, were myths. But seeing how easily the Shar descendant had taken down his men, maybe there was some truth to those stories after all. Maybe Erasmus Shar was a demon and he had passed on some secret arts to Sharmandi that made them stronger than the average human.
But ultimately, Narvari Shar was still human while Stein was a powerful Vessel.
He laughed. “So what is your plan? Are you here to kill me or just stare at me until I die?”
A sinister smile hung at the corner of Narvari’s lips. “Kill you?” She laughed coldly. “No, Stein. That will be a real waste. I am going to make you suffer for every suffering you inflicted on my people. I am going to make your life a living hell. Soon you will be begging me to kill you. And even then, I will not. Not until all the rage I feel is extinguished, which I doubt it will ever be. In other words, Stein, you are going to wish your mother swallowed you.”
Stein did a slow clap, his face beaming with amusement. “Wow, that was quite the speech. I’m impressed. Really.”
His face instantly turned serious and the mirth evaporated. “Bitch, I am a master of demons,” he thundered. “I am nothing like these useless pieces of shit you just killed. So tell me, do you think you can touch me? Do you think that I can be harmed by a weapon as mortal as a fucking gun?”
Narvari hesitated, a tinge of doubt growing in her eyes.
That’s right, bitch. Let the doubt drive you crazy. A thrill ran through him as he witnessed the internal monologue of uncertainty in Narvari’s eyes.
In mere seconds, however, the uncertainty in her eyes vanished without a trace, as if someone had pressed a switch in her mind. It took a while for Stein’s mind to understand what the loud bang was and he only understood it because of the sharp pain that pierced through his thigh.
“What the fuck.” He tumbled to the ground. “What the fuck is wrong with you?”
“It seems you can be harmed by a weapon as mortal as a fucking gun.” Narvari shrugged casually.“I see you’re only a man after all.”
“I will fucking kill you.”
Stein quickly grabbed his gun and shot at her. But the girl simply dodged out of the way like the bullet was nothing but an annoying fly. Pressing the wound on his thigh, blood soaking his trousers, Stein struggled back to his feet. The girl didn’t even look threatened. All she did was watch Stein with disgust.
He would shoot, and she would swerve out of the way, evading all his bullets with the swiftness of the wind. It was almost like she was dancing. How was she doing this? Was every warrior of the WPU capable of these strange movements? If so, that explained why his men could never touch a single four-tusk elephant in the Kirriba Plains.
Stein pulled the trigger. It gave a clicking sound. Shit. He clenched his jaws as he glared at the girl.
“My turn,” she said.
Stein bellowed as the searing pain, like hot lava, gushed through his other leg as soon as Narvari pulled the trigger. This time he stayed on the floor, gritting his teeth in anguish.
“Can I tell you a secret, Stein?” The girl sauntered toward him. “I know all the parts of your body where I can shoot without instantly killing you. Rather, you will die slowly, drowning in pain.” Her eyes were crazed with rage. This girl had darkness in her, he could feel it — darkness that was way beyond his. It sent a shiver down his spine.
She pulled the trigger again, the bullet tearing into the left side of his abdomen. “That was for my grandmother.”
“Fuck. Fuck.” Stein writhed on the ground, trembling like a dying snake.
Another gunshot, this time the pain in his right shoulder. He felt as though someone was sawing his arm off. He clenched his jaws as if that would somehow reduce the torment. It did not.
“That was for Jimbaga.”
“I…” The words choked him. “I…”
Narvari squatted gazing at Stein intently. “You what?” She was taunting him. Those furious brown eyes were taunting him.
Stein paused, not knowing what to say. He would have given up had he not sensed the demon stirring from his deep slumber. Finally. “I will show you what it’s like to be afraid.”
“Wow, I am terrified,” she scoffed, getting up.
“Oh, you will be. Soon enough.” It was about damn time he taught this child what it was like to start a war with a Vessel of Bezvaros. When she was dead and gone, she would learn never to cross him in her next life.
With all his might, Stein thundered, “Xarkanu. I summon you, Xarkanu.”
Narvari narrowed her eyes, retreating a few steps back. “What are you doing?”
He ignored the girl and went on with his incantation. “Rise from your slumber. Restore my power. Possess me, Xarkanu, and for my pact, I shall raise your order. This, I swear with my blood, forever.” With the blood soaking his hands, Stein painted the blood pact rune on his forehead.
As soon as he sealed the blood pact, the air grew hotter and hotter as the demon rose from his deep sleep. Stein had two demons under his control; Xarkanu and Ijeissi. Between the two, Xarkanu was stronger and far more malevolent. A heavy presence of searing hot demon energy filled the house. This was simply Xarkanu’s astral form so he could possess Stein. The heat gathered above the crown of Stein’s head and washed over him like rain.
“Yes,” Stein bellowed in euphoria as he reveled in the immense power coursing through his veins. Deep within his body, he could feel his cells regenerating, his torn ligaments reattaching themselves at an incredible rate. He stood erect, no longer feeling any pain in his body. The bleeding was no more, as all his wounds closed up without a scratch.
He grinned at the shocked girl. She was watching him as though he had… well… regenerated.
“What the hell?”
“Oh, I’m just getting started.” He gave a chilling smile.