The two stood facing each other, one armed, one not.

A thousand different emotions and thoughts ran through Deo’s mind in that moment but for some reason unbeknownst to him, he settled on anger.

“Really John! We’ve been best friends for over a decade and you see …that! and you pull a gun on me!” Deo shouted as his emotions tumbled violently within him.

“From all that we have been through together I expected more!” he shouted, tears forming in the corner of his eyes as he began to lose control.

“I...” was all he was able to say before he was knocked to the floor, his cheek flaring in pain.

As Deo looked up he saw a panting John, a face full of anger, and his fist extended to where he had punched him to the ground, “Don’t you ever think that I wouldn’t be on your side!, when I went through all that crap with that dead beat dad of mine going to jail, you were the one that stayed on my side… your closer than family to me, I don’t care what anybody else said about you, I know you…you’re my brother” John said as his outstretched fist turned into a helping hand.

Deo wiped the tears from his eyes with the sleeve of his arm before grabbing a hold of John’s outstretched hand.

John pulled Deo up from the floor and into his embrace, hugging him tightly with one arm fiercely embracing his back.

It lasted for no more than a few seconds, but it meant the world to Deo.

The two broke apart and Deo couldn’t help but feel like an idiot, he went to apologise “John, I’m sorry, I…” but he was interrupted by John, “I know Deo, but we don’t have time for that” he said as he went back over to the door to his house and picked up Deo’s jacket that was keeping the door from closing.

“After you stormed out of the room the news switched over to a live press conference in china” he said as he passed his jacket to Deo, “they’ve put a bounty on your arrest!” he said as Deo finished putting his jacket on.

“Damn” Deo said in surprise but before he could really think about what that meant, John spoke once more, for the worst news was still to come.

“Deo, it gets worse” he said as he held on to his friends shoulder, waking him from surprised stupor.

“The bounty is offered for whether you are dead or alive!”

Deo’s world went blank and he felt his knees go weak.

They offered a bounty for him dead or alive.

That meant that they were giving any random person the legal equivalent of the right to kill him on the spot, and Deo knew that a random person was the least of his worries, he knew that the people that he really needed to look out for, was the same people he had been admiring for all these years, the people that he so desperately wanted to become like.

Heroes!

“Deo”

“Deo”

“DEO!” John shouted as he held his friend up by his shoulders but the shock was too much for Deo, it was simply too much for any sixteen-year-old to handle.

“We don’t have time for this Deo, your forcing my hand here” John said with slight irritation as he raised his hand high and with an open palm, slapped his best friend in the face.

“can you stop that please” Deo said in irritation as his cheek burned even more than before but his words only caused a smile to appear on Johns face, “then stop being such a wimp and get your head in the game...you need to use every second you’ve got at the moment” John said as he let go of Deo who was now standing on his own two feet and beginning to get a hold of his emotions.

“What do I do?” Deo asked, hoping that John knew the answer.

“Go home” John said as if it was the most obvious and natural thing in the world.

“Go home? How would going home help? That would be the first place where they would look for me?” Deo asked in confusion but John was only too willing to explain to his friend, “Deo, you need to go home because there is absolutely no way, that your aunt, the one who trained you like your life depended on it since you were a kid and is a general badass, did not know who your parents really were”

“So? What does it matter if she knew who I really was? How does that help me now?” Deo asked as he was still confused over how this new information could help him but John simply shook his head in disappointment, “Deo you need to wake up and start thinking straight again, there’s no way the Hero association placed you in your aunts care and didn’t come up with a backup plan in case your identity was ever exposed” John said with hope in his voice, he didn’t know whether there was a plan or not, but he had to hope that there was one.

Or else, what sort of chance did his friend really have.

With a plan of action to work off it seemed that some of the pressure that had settled upon Deo’s shoulder had eased off and he was able to start acting a little bit more like himself.

“Okay, your right, that makes sense, I’ll head home and speak to my aunt and see whether the association put a plan in place or not” Deo said as he started to look about, his eyes more wary and his mind more active.

Deo turned to leave but stopped when he noticed that John had moved to follow him, “No way John, you’re not coming with me” Deo said as he held up his hands and pushed his friend back into his garden.

Affronted, John looked at his friend angrily before calling back “What? You can’t do this by yourself Deo, you need me!” John said as his voice started to crack towards the end.

Smiling, Deo looked at his friend who was willing to take on the world by his side and knew that he would never be as lucky as the day he became friends with John.

Throughout the years, this young man that stood by his side now had constantly had his back, through thick and thin, the good times and the bad, he could constantly count John’s support no matter the occasion, and it was for that reason he couldn’t let him come with him.

“This ain’t no back-alley fight John, ain’t no scrap with a crack-head and a gun…this is me vs the world” Deo said as he grabbed a hold of his friends shoulder, “I’m going to have random people willing to take a pop at me in any given moment, almighty Heroes thirsting for my blood…hell, there is an entire country that is calling out for my death!” Deo said a little jovially as he really took in the situation and how utterly screwed he truly was.

Deo looked into his friends eyes and stated, with as much seriousness as he could, “a good life for me from now is constantly looking over my shoulder in fear of a knife being stabbed in my back, a bad life sees me dead in the next five minutes…are you willing to risk that?” he asked his oldest friend.

Deo had to give it to John, he only hesitated for a moment before steeling his resolve, “Yes!”

“…but I’m not” Deo said as he let go of his friends shoulder and turned to leave by himself, he would not see the actions of his would-be father be the death of his best friend, he owed more to John than he would ever know and he would not, could not, subject him to such a life that he was on the path towards.

John motioned to stop his friend, but he knew better, he knew his friend, if he tried to go then Deo would stop him, and whilst he might have got a sucker-punch off earlier, he knew better than to mess with a serious Deo.

“…Take this” John said with quiet acceptance as he passed the gun that he had held in his hand the entire time towards Deo, “its Tier three tech my dad smuggled from off-world…should help”.

Deo looked at the gun for a second before tucking it inside his waist band, he gave John a look that said a thousand words before he turned around and lifted his hood high and took off into the night.

John stood there in silence for a moment before he made his was over to the wall of his house and sat down against it.

He looked up into the night sky as a single tear dripped down the side of his face.

“GOD DAMN IT!!!” he screamed as he smashed his fist against the wall, his words echoing far and wide, the emotion within each word were almost palpable they were so thick, but Deo knew when he heard them, he could not turn around.

At this point in time, by doing so, he would just be putting his friend’s life in danger, so he did the only thing he could do…He ran!

From one back alley to the next Deo ran as fast as he could, avoiding the main roads as much as possible and travelling along them only when necessary. Each and every time he came across another person he would check his hood was pulled up tight and keep to the shadows as much as possible.

The minutes past as he made his way home but all was still calm and quiet, nobody had recognised him yet, or at least they had not made any obvious signs of working out who he was.

Panting, he leant against a wall in the last side alley before he would be forced to walk a short distance down the main road to where his aunt lived.

As he was catching his breath he noticed a gathering crowd just around the corner, a murmured voice in the air.

Making his way over he realised that the crowd was gathering around a Holographic Ad showing the news, or more precisely, they were watching as reporters questioned Heroes on whether they were for or against the hunt for him.

He leant over the shoulders of one of the smaller members of the crowd and saw that the Hero they were interviewing was relatively well known, but most importantly, Deo recognised him as belonging to one of the guilds that had stood on stage with the Chinese president when they threatened to leave the Hero association.

This would not be good for him.

“…do I support the Hunt, of course I do! my brother and his entire family lived in Hong Kong when that demon slaughtered them, my niece died in her mother’s arms whilst my brother was crushed to death due to the devastation that monster caused…that his child lives, when so many others died is a mockery to their memory, when I …”, “They found him!” a voice called out in the background of the interview and the cameraman turned and zoomed into who was speaking, another Hero that Deo couldn’t recognise, “The Guilds have done it! They haven’t managed to pinpoint his exact location yet but they’ve been able to narrow it down…he’s in Melbourne” the Hero called out and Deo felt a pit in his stomach as those around him gasped in shock and surprise, they had found out where he was!

He pulled away from the crowd just as the Heroes that couldn’t fly on screen started rushing to the planes in the background.

Deo started heading down the street as fast as he could whilst still walking to draw as little attention as he could. He could visibly see as one person after another learnt that he lived in their city, and he could see their reactions when they learnt that they had unknowingly lived in the same city as a monster, that the Hero Association had placed a ticking time bomb within their midst.

By the time he had made it to his house, the city was at a boiling point.

“Aunt Myra, Aunt Myra!” Deo called out as her rushed into the house and threw the door closed heavily behind him.

“GRRRR” A large dog with shaggy fur growled at him as he walked through the door but stopped as soon as it recognised that is was Deo.

Deo walked forwards, patting the Dog on its head as he listened to his aunt clambering around upstairs.

The noise from upstairs suddenly stopped and His aunt called out to him from the kitchen, “In here”.

There, he found his aunt stood as the table, a half-drunk bottle of whiskey on the table and a nigh empty glass beside it. Myra herself was packing up his travel bag with what he could recognise as the clothes out of his draws upstairs.

She was smoking; Deo had never seen his aunt smoke before.

He looked at her with a face that wanted to ask a thousand questions but he didn’t know where to start, there was simply too much he wanted to ask.

What should he do?

Was what the news saying really true?

Was…was she even his real aunt?

“I..” Deo made to speak but no words came out, but no words needed to be said, she may or not be biologically related to him, but she was still the one that had raised him his entire life.

“It’s true” Myra said as she took a long puff of the cigarette in her mouth before blowing the smoke high into the kitchen, “and before you ask, yes, I am your real aunt, my sister was your mother” she said as she stumped out the cigarette on the table surface and flicked the fag end into the sink.

Kicking the chair opposite to her out, she motioned for Deo to sit. He gave a wary look about before apprehensively sitting down.

“Your father, as you might know, was Ryuto Asakura, the ‘Fallen Hero’, ‘demon of Hong Kong’, whilst your mother, my sister, was Juliet Lockhart, the 3rd Daughter to a small but wealthy family that can trace its ancestry back to British nobility a couple hundred years ago…your full name is Gideon Bryn Lockhart, and it is only due to the efforts of your grandfather, that you were not killed on that day sixteen years ago” Myra said as she stopped to drink, and drink, and drink until all the whiskey left in her glass was gone.

“The Family made the case due to you being born of my sisters womb, that no matter the bloodline you inherited from your father, you were at least part human thanks to your mother, and by this, deserving to be judged by the same rights any other human on this world is given”

“The plan was originally supposed to protect you until you turned eighteen and had attended a HA controlled Academy and were strong enough to protect yourself if anyone came looking for a fight, but china and those other arseholes threw a wrench in that plan earlier today” She said angrily before throwing the now empty whiskey glass against the wall in anger, shattering the glass and sending pieces of it shooting all around the kitchen.

“So, what’s the plan now then? There must be a back-up plan…right?” Deo asked but as he saw the look on his aunt’s face, he already knew the answer.

“There WAS a backup plan, but what THEY did today was so utterly stupid that it completely screwed up any plan the Hero association had!” Myra raged as she thought back to what had happened that day, “but that’s not all” she said as she locked eyes with her nephew, “they are pulling all support they’ve given to protect you back and without their help, the Lockhart’s cannot even fathom how they would protect you by themselves…they’ve ordered me to cut all ties with you in case any of the guilds want further retribution against them” Myra said as she touched her hand atop of his but hearing her words Deo could only feel shocked and betrayed, he pulled his hand back and jumped from his seat, “you’re abandoning me…just like that!” he said with fire in his eyes, the thought that the one person he believed he could depend on throughout this was willing to let him die after being told do so by her family had set his blood a blaze, did he really mean so little to her that she would let him be killed at the drop of a hat!

Myra leapt forward and grabbed Deo by his jacket and lifted him against the wall “DO YOU THINK THIS IS EASY FOR ME? THAT THIS IS WHAT I WANT?” she screamed in his face as the walls she had put up had begun to break down, “I RAISED YOU FOR SIXTEEN YEARS AS MINE, MY SON, MY BOY AND NOW I’M BEING TOLD TO LET THEM KILL YOU SO THE REST OF THE FAMILY ARE NOT KILLED ONE BY ONE, MEN, WOMEN, CHILDREN, EVEN BABIES, ARE YOU TELLING ME TO SIMPLY LET THEM DIE IN YOUR PLACE? ARE YOU TELLING ME THAT ONE LIFE IS WORTH A THOUSAND?” she said as her eyes grew heated and watery, but the tears themselves refused to fall.

Her grip loosened as her head bowed, Deo was slowly lowered back to the floor as Myra’s stood back.

Her head bowed, she looked at the floor as she spoke, “The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few” she said solemnly, her words pounding into Deo’s very soul.

Deo stood there, shocked, resigned, he was unsure, he simply didn’t know what to do, should he, “should I just give up then?” he asked with his head down and eyes focused on the tiled ground, too afraid to look at his aunt and listen to what she would say.

Myra walked over to Deo, her son, and gently lifted his head so he was looking into her eyes, “I was thinking we go with plan B” she said with loving smile and a playful wink.

“Huh?” Deo asked in confusion to which his aunt smiled.

“Well, technically it’s Plan C, Plan B was for the Top Guns of the HA to escort you to Shining Beacon academy if your identity was ever found out, but as I said the HA has pulled all their support and screwed any hopes of that plan coming to fruition, no, we’re going to have to act on the plan your grandfather set up for you personally, plan C”

“So, what’s plan C?” Deo asked, “Is the rest of the Lockhart Family coming to escort me in Place of the HA or what?” He asked hopefully.

“No” Myra Shut him down without mercy.

“I told you already that the Family does not have the strength to get involved in this, the family is connected and has 'investments' all around the world but in the grand scheme of things they are only minor players, there are too many powers moving for the family to act, luckily, Plan C doesn’t Require anybody else’s help for it to succeed but your own, everything else has already been taken care of already” Myra said as she cupped his head within her hands.

“We may not be able to act at this very moment, but you are not alone, you still have friends out there even if you don’t know it” She said as she kissed his forehead and let go.

“A train will be leaving from the Station in the next couple of hours, as long as you make it onto it, you win, the people after you won’t be able to do a thing to you, or at least, they will not be able to make any direct moves against you”

“How is that possible? It’s been less than an hour since the HA released my info” Deo asked in stumped surprise, there was no way this could all have been prepared so quickly, it all had to have been done…

“We have been planning for this day for a very long time, and so have your enemies” She said as she leant back, “they knew that eventually we would send you to an academy to learn how to protect yourself and this is something that they could not allow, so we acted on the presumption that they would act, if they were to act, in the days coming up to when everybody left to join the academy, because it is during this time we knew that they would be able to use the anniversary of the Hong Kong massacre and the fear of what you may become if you were allowed to grow into your power to sway public opinion to their side”

“So, we made a plan, we put in place an escape route that you could use if all other plans we had made failed and you were left to act on your own, do you understand” She asked to which Deo lost most of the Confusion that he had been struggling with, but not all of it.

“Yeah, I sort of get it, but I still don’t understand, how will me making it to the train ensure my safety, I mean both the Lockhart’s and the HA cannot protect me now, how is a train supposed to protect me”

The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

“Idiot, it’s not the Train that is going to protect you, it’s the destination”

“…And the destination is …Where exactly”

Myra gave her nephew a look that told him that wherever the destination was, she was not too pleased about him going there.

“Look, if everything goes well and you pass all of the tests, it will take you to an academy that in many people’s opinion is on par with Shining Beacon, there, you will be able to grow strong and give them a reason to think twice about moving against you”

“Wait, did you just say if I pass a test, do you mean that if I fail then I won’t be accepted at the academy and will be back on the street with nobody at my back” he asked in genuine worry as thoughts of what may come to pass flickered in his mind.

“It’s Three Test actually and I know that you will not fail and you know why”

“Why?”

“Because ever since you were a kid, I was the one to personally train you to ensure that you passed these tests” She said with absolute faith, whether it was in herself or Deo was unknown.

“I knew that one day the world would turn against you, so I made sure that you would be ready for when it happened”

“How many other kids do you know that are taught how to fight against multiple opponents when they are six, how to stalk and hunt prey in the middle of the wilderness when they were eight, how to use a bow and daggers, and train animals to aide you on the hunt, the classes offered by the HA and prep schools only go so far so I taught you mine and your mothers style to give you an edge” Myra said and whipped her arm to the large shaggy hound that was still guarding the front door.

“You can worry about the world being against you, but don’t you dare doubt your ability to pass a little entrance exam” she said as she filled up her drink and tipped it towards him before taking a big gulp.

As his aunts words resounding in his mind, and his worries started to deflate, a single thought prevailed above all the rest. ‘I Just realising what a fucked-up childhood I really had, How the hell did I not see something like this coming’. “Ha-ha” Deo giggled to himself at that thought, and in doing so, let his aunt know that he would be alright.

“So, what is the place called then?” Deo asked in genuine Curiosity, only to be stumped when he saw the look of minute shame upon his aunts face.

“Erm, Black Rose Academy” She said to which his face fell.

“Wait, What?” Deo almost shouted out in surprise, “You mean the academy that all the Mafia and Gangster Heirs Attend, How the hell is that on par with Shining Beacon?” Deo asked, not amused in the least.

“It’s not as bad as it sounds, the HA and the media play down the Quality level of the academy because it does not discriminate against any of the students or their background that attend their academy unlike many other such institutions”

“Yeah, not surprised, the only reason I know about the academy is because whenever you hear about a Hero having killed someone on the news, they usually studied at Black Rose, everybody that goes there are literally a bunch of psychopaths in training” Deo spoke angrily but before he could Speak any further, his aunt slapped him across the face.

“Both my Sister and your father went to that academy, The Academy is the only reason that you still stand a chance at making it through this…treat them with the respect they deserve” Myra said without a hint of joviality, she could accept many things, but no one, absolutely no one, was allowed to take shots at her sister, even inadvertently.

“Anyway, it isn’t as bad as what the media plays it out to be, not all criminals want their children to grow up like them, some want a better a life for them but as you now know the world isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be, Places like Shining Beacon have a long past of refusing to teach the children of those whose parents weren’t always on the right side of the law so they made their own school, a place where they could create the connections they would need later in life if they chose their parents path, or, an education that would rival what they had lost at Shining Beacon”.

Seconds past before Deo nodded, all disparaging thoughts he had before were purged, the Black Rose academy was now his only hope, ironically, it was the shining beacon that would allow him to escape from the dark that was slowly encompassing him.

“Then we have a plan” Deo said as he looked at his smouldering aunt, “I may have lost the backing of the association but I haven’t lost the fight, I will attend to the academy and pass their tests” he said with all due certainty.

“Damn straight you will” she said before squeezing his hand tightly one last time before crossing to the other side of the kitchen and standing in front of small but blank and empty wall.

“…” Myra murmured and spoke quietly to herself as her two outstretched finger began to glow with a pristine white light, as these glowing fingers traced atop the wall, glowing runes soon appeared as they passed before the outline of a door came into being.

Only when the door opened did Deo realise that it was no door, but a cupboard.

Racks of weapons and armour shot out of the cupboard and expanded to fit half to room, methodically Myra started to place one piece of armour onto her body after another until a full set was in the works.

Deo stretched out his hand to grab a hold of one of the weapons but his aunts hand slapped him away, “I’m sorry Deo but the Families ruling still applies, we cannot be seen to give you any aide” Myra said as she continued to attach one piece of equipment after another, “but then what are you doing, you look like your dressing for war?” he asked in confusion but the sly smile on his aunts face made sure that he knew she had a plan.

“The families ruling forbids me from offering you any aide at all…but ‘they’ don’t know that” she said before pulling out a glistening bow and placing several arrows atop the table.

“I’ll be able to stall any Heroes that show up here for a few minutes with this play but in that time you need to get to the train station down town and go to platform one, ask the attendant for a second-class ticket to the garden of Eden, they will know what you mean” Myra said as she finished equipping two daggers at her side and looked into the magical cupboard hesitantly.

She hesitated for a moment before grabbing an item from the cupboard and throwing it to Deo.

“I thought you said that you couldn’t give me anything, family orders?” Deo asked as he inspected the gauntlet in his hand, it was white and made out of some types of ivory or possibly bone, small plates ran up where the forearm would be whilst a small skull ran over the knuckle of each of his fingers, a large one was inlayed into the palm.

It was intricately carved, beautiful and by all appearance, ancient in design.

Deo looked to his aunt for an answer but she hesitated to give him one, “Aunty…what’s the matter? I was only joking” Deo asked as he tried to defuse the situation but Myra stopped him, “It doesn’t belong to the family Deo…that was your fathers” Myra said with a tremble in her voice.

“It was…his” Deo asked in shock, once again looking at the gauntlet, only now there was a slight bit of fear in his eyes, “I don’t want it” he said as he went to place it on the table but Myra reached out and stopped him, “you don’t have the luxury of picking and choosing what you can and can’t have at your disposal, you need to take every advantage you can and that…that is an advantage that may save your life” she said as she gave her nephews shoulder a squeeze before turning her head to the side, her eyes peering into the wall as if she could see through it.

“We’ve run out of time Deo; they’ll be here in minutes” she said as she pushed the weapons rack back into the wall and watched it disappear with one final glow before the plain wall was back in place.

She picked up a neck warmer from out of his bag before passing it to him, “keep yourself hidden” she spoke to which he nodded and put it on, covering his nose and mouth with a lycra type of neck warmer.

“Take the back door and hop the fence Deo, I’ll wait here and see who dares to come a knocking on my door” she said as she leant into her nephew and gave him one final hug before passing him his pack and pushing him away and twisting the kitchen table chair so it pointed to the hallway heading towards the front door, the shaggy hound came and lay down by her side.

Deo walked behind her and kissed the top of her head before silently leaving through the back door, he thanked her for everything that she had done for him, for giving him such a good life when it had started off so badly, but alas, none of this was said, it was only spoken in his heart.

How ironic it was, that within Myra’s own heart, she too was thanking him for everything that he had done for her, for saving her when she had lost everything she loved, for pulling her from the depths of despair after her sister had died, for giving her a new reason to live.

It was several minutes after the Deo had left when they came, the hound growled whilst Myra’s eyes darted back and forth as they tracked the movement of all the people that were rushing about outside, surrounding the house from every possible angle to prevent any one in side from escaping, but whilst they surrounded the house, none dared to get too close for they could feel the killing intent that radiated from whoever dwelled within, it was to a level that they knew they stood no chance if they stormed to building.

The minutes passed as the first wave of the Hero’s assault continued to surround her house, Myra knew that they were waiting for someone with some actual firepower on their side to show up before they stormed in; she could tell that person had arrived when their heads rose to look into the sky.

A being hidden in the darkness of the night circled the house form upon high before diving straight down to land just before the front door, his dazzling white wings giving a flourish before disappearing into his back as if they never existed.

With no hesitation, the newcomer rang the front door bell in some mock attempt of manners before opening the door and walking in.

Now in the light of the house, the gentleman’s perfection was clear for all to see.

With long golden locks that would put silk to shame, a frame that filled the white cloth suit he wore to perfection, his image the epitome of what one would call a ‘Righteous Hero’, or at the very least, a servant of god.

“I always wondered who was assigned to look after the child but never in my wildest dreams would I have guessed you” he spoke jovially as he admired the beauty in front of him, walking into the kitchen before waiting at its edge. “To be honest, I would have expected you to murder the boy than raise him for how he killed your sister” he said provokingly as he lent against the wall.

“My nephew did not kill his mother Uriel; His father was the one that did that…he is the one that deserves to die!” Myra spoke chillingly as killing intent radiated out of her like an open faucet.

“Where is the boy Lucinda? He is the only one we want” Uriel spoke as he too released his desire to kill upon the room.

Smiling, Myra, Lucinda, whatever her real name was, gave the man a cocky grin, “He’s long gone, far out of your reach”

“Is that so? Well, it looks like I made a wasted trip, no need to see me off” he said as he moved to leave but stopped as soon as Myra placed her hand on her bow, “you’ve come all the way to visit me after so long, I could hardly let you leave so quickly, could I, come on, we can talk about the good old times, stay…I insist” she said in a way that would accept no alternative.

Uriel looked between Myra and the door, as if he was indecisive about what to do, he doubted that Myra would do anything and that it was all a bluff, but was it really worth the risk to see if she was?

Uriel tapped his Holowatch and spoke, “This is Uriel, the target is no longer in the building, all teams are to fan out and search the area…I’ll be staying on site” he said before taking up a seat opposite to Myra.

He wanted the boy dead, but not at the cost of his own life.

“Cute dog” He said as he stoked the growling dogs head.

...

By the time Deo had made it back to the road the city was like a powder keg ready to explode.

The people of the city were not willing to be slaughtered to the last like those in Hong Kong had been, they were going to face this threat head on, in fact, they were going to snuff it out before it even had the chance to become a danger to them.

Roving gangs of armed civilians searched the streets; going from one house to the other with whatever crude tools or makeshift weapons they could find at home, local Heroes were posted on every other corner, ready to act if one of the groups located him.

Deo knew that he couldn’t simply walk to the train station, with all these people swarming about he wouldn’t make it 50 foot before someone spotted him and then it would be all over.

He needed another way down town, but the only way he could think of was a risk, but he knew, that it was a risk he had to take.

Deo doubled back on himself and heading away from the side road he was on and went towards the main road that was a straight shot to the train station, the plan that he had come up with had only two outcomes.

Success or Failure

For five minutes Deo lay low to the ground, hidden in a bush that gave a clear view of the main road before the essential piece he needed for his plan to succeed came into view.

Checking that the coast was clear, he double checked that his hood was good and walked out into the road, hailing the tram as it travelled past.

With a swipe of his watch and a small head nod in thanks, Deo took a seat towards the back of the tram where few others were sat, his head down and face out of sight.

He watched out of the window as the world went by and the further down town he went, the deeper into madness he felt he sank.

The roving gangs were upping their actions, accosting people on the street and outright attacking those that they had mistaken for him.

Nobody had suffered more than a few injuries before a Hero entered the scene and confirmed that they had gotten the wrong person, but from what he could see it was only a matter of time before someone went too far and did something that they could never take back.

Throughout the ride Deo couldn’t help but wonder, Was all if this his fault?

Were their actions his to account for?

If they did go too far, would he be responsible for the lives lost?

The tram slowed down as a new group got on, it was only a couple of people but even from the back he could tell that they were a part of the vigilante mob that was looking for him.

Deo counted at least three guys but the tram was picking up more people as they went further down town, it looked like he wasn’t the only person that wanted to get off the streets with all that was going on.

“Can I have your attention please!” one of the new people shouted from the front of the tram, drawing everyone’s attention.

“As I’m sure you are aware by now, the Location of the Demon has been identified as being in our little corner of the world, we don’t want to make any trouble, but we need to locate Gideon Bryn before he has the chance to wreak the same destruction on our fair city as his father did to Hong Kong, so we’ll do this as quickly and as calmly as we can, please take a seat and we’ll start from the front and make our way back” the man in the back behind the three goons spoke calmly and soon after, those few passengers that were standing took a seat where they could, pulling down their hoods and taking off any hats before flashing their wrists to be scanned.

Well, everyone but Deo.

Deo was too busy panicking over what he was going to do now that it was only a matter of time before he was exposed, it was not like he could get off the bus before he made it to the train station, forget the three guys checking identities on the bus, there would be three hundred out there!

No, whatever he did, he needed to do it at the last possible moment.

With his head down he waited as calmly as he could in his seat, his foot bounced nervously whilst he pulled down the sleeve on his left arm to cover his father’s gauntlet as much as he could.

One by one the group thoroughly checked the identity to each and every passenger until inevitably, it was his turn.

“Your wrist?” the man asked in a tone that brokered no argument, but Deo remained still, his head down, unmoving as if her was asleep.

“oi, you listening?” he asked again and shoved Deo’s shoulder in an attempt to get his attention.

“You got a problem?” one of the other people in the group shouted out, “Ha, think this guy’s asleep” the guy laughed as he joked to his compatriot.

“Really? With all of this going on?” the man who called out asked in surprise, you could hardly fault the man for his reaction, it was not exactly normal for a person to be able to casually nod off with what was essentially a riot going on outside. “We don’t have time for this, just get a good look at his face and move on to the next one” he said as he went back to checking the other people on the tram.

“Fine” the man said as he leant down and grabbed the rim of Deo’s hood.

“Sorry” Deo mumbled before one hand grabbed a hold of the man’s hand whilst his other slammed his head into the glass window, shattering both it and his consciousness.

“IT’S HIM!” the others shouted as Deo jumped from his seat and watched with cold eyes as the two others brought out their weapons to attack.

One had a long metal pipe whilst the other a knife.

“You don’t have to do this…I haven’t done anything wrong” Deo spoke firmly but he could already tell how this situation was going to end.

“yet!” was the only response he got before the 1st one charged over with a large overhead swing off the pipe, Deo ducked to the side and let the pipe slam into the metal railing of the tram seat, with a quick elbow drop he broke the man’s arm and knocked the now moaning man out of his way as the 2nd man charged.

Stab

Stab

Stab

The 2nd man repeatedly thrust the blade at Deo’s body but they were wild and uncontrolled, on the fourth attempt he grabbed the man’s knife wielding hand and gave him a back handed slap, knocking him unconscious before letting him collapse to the floor in a jumbled mess.

“It really does look like the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, huh” the last and final man said from the spot he had not moved from since he had gotten on to the bus.

Deo was finally able to get a good look at him and he knew that he was in trouble.

The man was unmistakably a Hero.

Underneath his long dark green coat Deo could see the man was wearing full body combat armour, a mix of metal and leather covered his vitals whilst as he watched, the man outstretched both of his empty hands, only for a shadow to crawl along his skin before transforming into a sword and shield at the tip of his fingers.

“Come monster and find redemption beneath this Hero’s sword” He taunted as he slapped the sword off the rim of his shield.

The Two stood apart from each other as they squared off, those still conscious on the tram hid between their seats, their most primitive human instincts making it so they kept one eye on the fight. They could not help but watch as the forces of good and evil fought and the question of which side would overcome the other would be answered.

Would the monster be slain or would the Hero fall!

This age-old question made it so they simply could not look away.

The tensions were so thick on the tram it could be cut with a knife!

“Screw that” Deo said before pulling out John’s gun.

*BANG*

*BANG*

*BANG*

Deo repeatedly unloaded on the Hero as he ducked behind the shield in his left hand.

Deo rushed forward, gun still firing until he was right in front of the Hero, with no time for intricate plans or subtle moves, his foot met shield as he kicked the Hero with all of his ungodly strength.

*BANG*

The Shadowy metal warped as the Hero was knocked off his feet and shot through the Trams front window and into on oncoming traffic.

Whether he was alive or not was not the question, but whether Deo had bought himself enough time to escape was.

“Warning…Warning…We have been involved in an accident” the on-Board AI started to blare and slowed the tram to a stop, but Deo wasn’t waiting around for what would happen next, all this noise would have drawn everybody in the area’s attention, he needed to get out of there quick!

Prying the tram doors open, Deo did a quick look around before running as fast as he could towards the train station that was now in sight. The people left in the bus arose from their hiding spots with a confused look upon their faces, wondering whether they had truly survived their brush with death.

He could already hear the people behind him starting to act, they would first head to the tram to see what had happened before they set their sights on him.

He ran the quarter mile to the station in what he felt like was a world record setting pace before barging past the few people that were going about their day at the train station to get inside.

He ran to the centre of the hall before looking in all directions until he found what he was after.

“Platform 1…that way” he said to himself as he saw the sign pointing to the direction he needed to go in.

Deo ran as quick as he could, dodging and weaving past anybody that got in his way, even knocking groups to the ground when he could see no way around them or they showed no sign of moving, only a quick “sorry” was all he could manage in response to the abuse they hurled at him in his wake.

Finally, he could see the train at the bottom of the stairs, a mag-train no different to any other.

He jumped off the side of the stairs instead of wasting his time going down one step at a time; he could now hear the Heroes in the station shouting out orders to each other.

Nigh on the verge of collapse, his breathe abate; he came to a stop next to the train attendant who was giving him a look of intrigue with one of his eyebrows raised.

“And how can I help you this fine evening then young sir?” the train attendant asked as if he had not seen or heard the news that day.

“One, one ticket to the Garden of Eden…please” Deo asked, forcing the words out of his mouth as he sucked in air.

The air thickened as the attendant was no longer amused, “and what class ticket would you like sir?” he asked, the air continued to grow thicker the longer it took for Deo to answer.

“2nd class” Deo answered and the world seemed to instantly return to normal.

“Wonderful” the attendant called out with a bright smile before motioning for the door to his side to open, “please choose a compartment within the 2nd carriage or beyond…I wish you luck young Gideon” he spoke as he waved Deo on board with a knowing smile.

A smile that he kept until a squad of Heroes made their way over.

“Where did he go!” the one in front called out as he made to get on the train, but stopped when the train attendant held out his arm to block his way.

“I’m sorry sir but this is a private train, I can only allow you to board if you have a ticket” the attendant said, the smile still on his face.

“Out of my way!” the Headstrong Hero called out but as he moved to strike the attendants hand out of the way, he was surprised to see that the attendant had remain still, not having moved a millimetre under his strength.

Shocked, the Hero gave a double take on the seemingly ordinary train attendant in front of him and asked, “Why are you protecting that demon?”

The train attendant’s smile grew even wider.

“We make no distinction between those who have boarded the train, they are all under OUR protection” he said to which the group of Heroes looked down the train and could see that the attendant posted at every door was giving them the same, predatory smile that the one in front of them was.

“You do know who we are…. who you are going up against?” the Hero asked sceptically, but now with more reassurance as he knew the immense power that was behind him.

“You ask me if I know who you are but the question is…do you know who we are?” the attendant said and motioned towards the coat of arms that was imprinted onto the side of the train.

The Hero turned to the coat of arms and stilled; a cold sweat started to roll down his pale face.

“I do not get as much amusement out of this than when I personally say it to a pretention Guilder or the Head of some ‘power’, but all those that are participating in the exam are under our explicit protection, and anybody that has got a problem with that…can fuck off” the train attendant said with a smile that didn’t falter.

*Whistle”

“ah, it seems the train is about to depart, please back away from the edge…for your own protection of course” the attendant said as the door slid open and he took his place on the train, hanging out of it with his hat waving in his hand as it disappeared into the distance.

The Hero gulped and was only now able to relax; he activated his Holowatch and a 3D image of an aristocratic man appeared.

“Report” the man spoke in a regal voice.

“Sir…we’ve lost him” the Hero reported with disappointment lacing his words.

“WHAT!” the man roared in anger, “How?” he demanded.

The Hero was silent for a few seconds before he gathered his courage to respond.

“Sir, the boy managed to board a train affiliated to the Black rose guild, He is now under their protection”

“Ah…Shit” was all the man said before he turned off the connection to the Hero and turned around to face the several people sat around an old wooden table.

In the room were the several guild people that had stood behind the Chinese president at the press conference earlier that day as well as a number of others.

A large, tubby gentleman in an expensive suit called out to the man, “…And?”

The man took his seat at the table and tapped his finger, best thinking how to handle this situation now that it has escalated to this point, “…The boy is officially a prospect of the Black Rose” he said with a trace of defeat in his voice.

“What is the plan now, we will not be able to force their hand to give up the boy” A Woman spoke as she stared at the man that had received the report.

“You reassured us that the association would pull all of its support for the boy” the regal man said to the one that was hidden in the darkness.

“We have” a man’s voice spoke from the shadow, “Even if he still had it, it would mean little to Black rose, and he would still have to go through their little Tests before he is formally a student of the academy”

“hmm” the regal man perked up at that piece of information, “We may still have a shot at this, Black Rose protects its Prospects from all external Forces…but it does not protect them from the other Prospects” he said as a smile now donned his face.

“Order your people taking part in the exam, kill him if possible, sabotage him if they are unable to…we’ll take care of the rest from there” he said to which all the people in the room nodded their heads before leaving to get in contact with their various groups and people.

The regal man remained still, looking out of the finely carved window and across the star lit plains, he looked far in to the distance as if he could see Deo as he stumbled into an empty compartment before resting his weary head atop tinted glass.

The regal man looked towards to the old silver locket within his hand before carefully tucking it away.

The boy may have gotten away this time but he would not allow him to escape again.

He would have his revenge.