Rage

Mondola's territory

In the darkest regions of the castle dungeon, a cloudy figure materialized before a prisoner.

"So, you see I told you the truth my child," Benara said staring at Drako who now stood before her looking torn.

His eyes glowed red with a tinge of gold in its centre. His hands seem to shake as if he was trying to control the rage he felt deep inside. He slowly paced back and forth stopping at the brick wall beside the cage, lift his hand and suddenly punched the wall. The walls shook as his fist print formed in the brick wall, sending Benara who was standing close to the jail door flying to the back of her cell and falling to her bed, which was placed close to the wall. The sheer force of his punch sent shock waves of black aura outward like a mushroom bomb. Dust and small rocks rained down on them. Benara recovered quickly and covered her head as Drako stood still fuming preparing for another assault.

"I should have just killed you instead of making deals with you," he spat.

"Why don't you take your anger on those that deserve it? It's not me you want to hurt. So aim it at those who lied to you for years," she hissed.

He glared at her and moved towards the cell door. "No wonder Zamora or Father didn't want me near you. They didn't want me to know the truth. I hate this... what is this feeling. I don't like it...Will this... pain, go away?" Drako asked holding his chest.

"It's called betrayal, pain... whatever name you want to call it. It can go away if you allow your family to help you heal. With your real family, you will be whole again." Benara replied. She got up from her bed and walked to the prison cell door stretching her hand out to him. "I can sing your favourite lullaby and that may calm you."

Drako growled at her and turned his back to her. "My mind... my heart feels so hollow. How can I continue being the beast they expect me to be?" He asked in anguish.

"Come to me my child, let me soothe your soul."

He glared at her as if she was a crazy person. "You're trying to trick me, aren't you?" He scowled.

"Of course not my child. I am not the one that tried to hurt you. I tried to save you. It was my duty to serve and protect you Drako. Your pretentious family wanted you dead. Think about it, if you showed signs of weakness they toughened you up by teaching you to kill at an early age. They only want more power, so when they found out you were a special child and I had a special gift, they used it to their own advantage. You can't allow them to manipulate you or control you anymore," she lamented.

"But what if I love who I am now? I have become even more powerful than Mondola. I have already established my kingdoms in several realms he has no control over. My armies far outweigh his," Drako revealed as his eyes lit up evilly.

She shivered briefly before speaking again. "Tell me what happened when you visited your family?"

"I arrived at their home by following the signal of the activated crystal. I searched her room and noticed she had lots of pictures of her family, but saw she wasn't in the one with a picture of me. I moved towards it and accidentally knocked over a broken piece of the shattered crystal which crashed to the ground. I think that is when Keliana and the twins found me in her room. Since I was already there, I figured I might as well confirm your side of the story before I destroyed you," Drako said.

"But you will still release me?... right!" Benara asked.

"That's still debatable. I haven't decided anything yet. Besides, I may need you to be my seer for a little while. I will convince Dante that you are still useful and will not be a problem anymore."

"You know Dante, he won't be easy to convince," Benara added as she now paced in her cell. The freedom she thought she would receive from his trip seemed futile if he continued to cage her up.

"Leave Dante to me. Just ensure you do as I command and all will be well with you," Drako sneered at her.

"Okay, so what happened in the room? Did you hurt them? Did you kill them? Is that why you feel so hollow and empty now," she badgered.

"No! I did not kill them. I am sure your powers would have told you that. I may have used a spell or two to keep them in check, but nothing deadly," he said before continuing to fill Benara with the details.

"I saw the family portrait and each time Jayden spoke, it felt like a layer of a veil was being removed from my eyes. It resonated so much with my spirit that I quickly left them in the room. I didn't want to appear weak before them. If I stayed any longer with them I don't know what I might have done. Both your stories matched up. But for the first time in years, my heart, felt regret, loss and somewhat happiness knowing that I was loved and wanted and not abandoned by my real family. The cold heart I cultivated all these years, seems to have a soft spot for the family Mondola now wants to destroy."

"Soon, you will have to choose whose side you are on. Will you choose Mondola and his demon armies or the ones that raised you up in love before you were ripped away from their lives like a thief in the night," she warned.

The sound of running footsteps approached. Drako then concealed himself in the darkness of the cave.

"Is the prisoner still there?" Mondola asked the soldier that ran towards Benara's cell.

"Yes she is," he shouted as he spotted her laying on her bed with a book in her hand.

"Good. Is there anyone else down there?" Mondola asked.

"No sir." the demon replied.

"Good, bring the prisoner to my room, there is much to do," Mondola ordered.

"As you command master."

The demon soldier quickly opened Benara's cell and said, "Come here seer, you are wanted by the master."

"He's not my master. Why don't you tell him to come get me himself," she smiled.

The soldier then entered her cell and attempted to slap her across her face. Benara flinched expecting to feel pain as this became the norm. They would say the master calls and she would refuse; then she would be tortured and taken to Mondola to be his eyes and always be one step ahead of his enemies eluding their traps. She hated being used for evil.

When she opened her eyes she didn't see the soldier anymore. She jumped back in her cave as Drako now stood behind her. His right hand was covered in black blood dripping on the floor with a sinister smile on his lips. He leaned his head to the side and kicked the body to the back of the cave.

"You can thank me later. I can't have Mondola using you now that I know the truth. He may see my plans," he said and held out his bloodied hand towards her.

She looked at his hand and sneered, "No thanks. Don't you think you should sanitize first? I wouldn't want to get any tainted blood on me."

"I thought you were an assassin and use to seeing these kinds of atrocities first-hand." He replied.

"While that may be true, I am not a messy killer. My kills are neat with little to no blood loss, hence why I got many job requests," she gloated.

"If you don't take my hand now, Mondola himself will come next," he said still extending his bloodied hand.

She shook herself and took his bloodied hand just as another set of footsteps approached.

"Don't let go off me if you want to survive this trip," he smiled then grabbed her by the waist.

"What about my shackles, if you take them off I can teleport myself out of here," she asked.

"And have you disappeared without a trace? Oh no, the magical bracelets are staying on you, for now, my dear nanny." He replied as he looked down at her. She was a few inches shorter than him, but still tall for a female.

She glanced up at him noticing he looked like a beautiful death angel with a killer smile.

Before she could ask where he was taking her, within the blink of an eye they vanished from the dungeon.

****

Larkins residence

After recovering from the sudden intrusion, Keliana and the twins made their way downstairs.

Mr. Larkin was still standing close to his son and Michelle as they tried to calm him down.

Keliana called Khalisa as she wasn't sure how to tell the parents what transpired. They walked into the kitchen and stood near the back door.

"Khalisa, we have something to tell you... but you may find it hard to believe." Keliana began.

"Well... what is it? You guys were gone for a while," she answered.

"Maybe it's best we go on the deck," Caden said.

"Yeah. That sounds better. Don't want them to overhear anything," Jayden replied.

They went outside and sat under the round tent table.

"So... spill. what has got you guys so hardwired?" Khalisa asked.

"Let me just say... it's a miracle after all these years we know all hope is not lost." Caden said.

"Will you please spare me the riddles and get to the point," Khalisa said rolling her eyes.

" Drako is alive," Jayden said.

"Yes... we know this. Keliana saw him in her vision," Khalisa replied.

"We weren't sure before, but we know now," Caden said.

"Okay... I will bite. What makes you so sure now?" she asked.

"Because he was just here?" Keliana said.

"What?... where?" Khalisa asked getting up to look around.

" He is long gone," Jayden said.

"What do you mean... gone? Why didn't you call us," she asked confused.

"We couldn't. He trapped us in a bubble and made sure we could not call for help," Caden replied.

"How did he get in?" she asked.

"I don't know. But he seems to be able to come and go as he pleases."

A loud crash came from inside and they quickly got up and opened the back door.

The whole scene in the living room changed. Gasps and shocked expressions were on everyone's faces.

They entered further to see what everyone was staring at. As they turned the corner, they too stopped in their tracks.

"Is that Drako and Benara?!" Khalisa breathed.

The trio beside her nodded their heads, unable to move from where they stood. They watched Drako holding Benara in chains with a devilish smile on his face that suddenly appeared in front of their parents and grandparents.

"Hello, family," he drawled. "I come bearing gifts."