Chalice Of Blood

Water drops continuously fell on the car's windshield as a middle-aged man drove it. The corner of his eyes held wrinkles. Next to him sat his beautiful wife, who spoke to their son,

"Chris, have you packed everything for tomorrow?"

"Yes, Mom," a voice sounded from the back seat.

The woman nodded and said to her husband, "Steve, take the day off tomorrow. We will go to drop him off. Also, slow down a bit."

Steve smiled and said, "I have already talked to the boss, Milly. Chris will join the big firm. How can I miss out on this?"

Steve winked at his son through the rearview mirror while driving and missed a bump on the road during his cheeky gesture.

Christoph held onto the back of the seat and said, "Dad, slow down, please."

Milly was holding onto the dashboard, glaring at her husband. She said, "Steve Winslow, will you slow down?"

Steve looked at her and said gently, "Alright, alright."

Suddenly, Christoph yelled, "Dad, watch out."

Steve turned to look through the windshield, but it was already too late. The oncoming vehicle had already collided with the front end of their car. The strong impact sounded akin to an explosion.

In the last moments, Steve tried to turn the car, but the sudden shift of weight and force of the collision made the vehicle flip over and skid on the asphalt before it stopped.

…

A sharp headache woke Christoph, and what greeted him was heavy rain and throbbing pain in his back. His head buzzed from the collision. He tried to recall what had happened when he heard a scream from his left.

Instinctively, Christoph turned his head and saw that a burly figure was dragging his mother from her hair. Surprised, the young man yelled while trying to move, "Who are you?! What are you doing?!"

His voice reached the burly man, but the person did not react. Christoph tried to stand up but could not sense anything below his waist. His eyes widened in disbelief. Then he looked at his mother, who pleaded with the man to let them go.

Christoph raised his head and saw the burly injecting needle in his mother's nape. He screamed, "Hey, what are you doing? Let go of her!"

The burly man gazed at him and chuckled, saying, "Fine."

Then he casually flung Milly to the side. Christoph tried to crawl on the asphalt to reach his mother, his eyes tearing up from his helplessness. He could do nothing but watch his mother gradually lose movement as he neared her.

Milly stopped moving while Christoph pushed himself forward. His breathing became laborious, and his chest tightened.

He reached beside his mother and shook her body, calling, "M—mom, please wake up…I beg you, Mom!"

Despite all his attempts, Milly did not move. He could not sit up straight. With a heart brimming with fear, Christoph placed his shivering fingers to check whether his mother had any pulse. His two fingers came into contact with her nape, but after several seconds, he could not sense anything.

The rain added to the chill in his heart. Grieving, Christoph turned around to scream at the man who killed his mother and found he was doing the same thing to his father. His heart shattered, and he fell numb. His mind went blank.

Even after watching everything before him, the young man could not react. In his mind, everything was lost. His family died in front of his eyes. What was left in the world for him to look forward to?

The burly man looked at him and asked with a casual smile, "You only loved your mother? Why don't you have any reaction to your father's death?"

With a playful expression, he came close to Christoph and grabbed the collar of his shirt, lifting him. The man looked into his eyes and clicked his tongue. He sighed and said, "Six, his soul is broken."

Six was the other guy, inserting a drip tube into Milly's neck. The pipe ran through a small electric module to an airtight container. He looked at Christoph and said, "Do not take it to heart, kid. It's nothing personal. All to keep ourselves fed. Five is an insensitive person."

Christoph did not react. Five clicked his tongue and said, "I think this guy did not react to his father's death because that guy was not his father at all. You know what I mean."

If there was something that Christoph held in high regard, then it was his family. No matter how badly he was hurt, at this time, he would not just lie down and take it. He whispered, "Why did you do it?"

Five asked, "What are you mumbling about?"

In a slightly louder voice, Christoph asked again, "Why did you do it?"

The man replied, "You heard Six. It is all to keep ourselves fed."

Christoph matched his dim eyes with Five and swung his hand. The punch hit Five in the face as Christoph screamed, "They were innocent people! You bastards!"

Christoph was overwhelmed with grief and rage. All he wanted was to kill these two guys. He kept swinging his fists at Five and cursing at the same time.

Five's smile vanished in a blink. Christoph cursed, "You bastards! You fucking bastards! I will kill you."

Five narrowed his eyes and glared at the young man in his grasp. Christoph did not waver or show any fear on his face.

Five chuckled and said, "You must have a death wish, boy."

Then Five's fist sent Christoph into a daze. The latter could tell that the punches cut his skin and shattered his jaw. He was unable to see from his left eye. He could sense his life seeping away with every hit.

The dark clouds thundered, and Five suddenly twisted the arm so hard that it broke. Christoph heard a chain of clicking sounds in his head, and then he let out a wail drowned by the massive thunder in the sky.

Five chuckled and asked, "Do you want more? Huh? Weren't you very interested in why we did it? How about you come to us and find the answer you seek?"

As he spoke, he tugged on the arm, making Christoph wail. Five heard him cry, and he burst into a peal of laughter. His maniacal laughter flooded Christoph's mind. Five did not stop there. He grabbed the other arm, and this time with a slow twist, he crippled Christoph's arms.

The young man was wailing in pain, and the clouds thundered again. The other guy retracted the needle from Steve's nape and said, "Five, do not play too much. Please hurry up and give him the injection. We have to go. Those guys must have picked up the scent."

Five clicked his tongue and said, "Those sons of bitches. I want to kill one of them, Six. It has been so long since I have seen one."

Six did not say anything but picked up the container, now pumped full of blood, and walked over to his side. The rain was getting more robust, and the visibility was also reducing.

Just when Six reached closer to Five, he opened his eyes, and his pupils dilated. The man jumped six feet high in the air before he landed on his feet, standing back to back with Five.

The lightning flashed in the skies, and four people appeared around the two men. Five looked at the person before him and spoke as if he had met an old friend, "Look who it is. How have you been, old friend."

The four people wore black attire, but the one addressed by Five said, "Long time no see, Bastard Five."

Five's smile vanished as he glared at the man, who said, "Put the boy down so that we can play it out fairly."

This commanding tone ticked off Five, and his punch landed on the closest target, Christoph. The impact broke his jaws, and he was flung ten meters in the air before colliding with the bridge's concrete railing. The young man was flung over to the other side and about to fall into the gushing river when someone grabbed his collar, saving him.

Then he heard a loud shout, "Sword, you idiot."

Christoph was dizzy. He did not see what had happened, and the voices weren't clear. Then after a few moments, he was pulled up. When he thought someone had saved him, he heard someone say, "His parents are dead, and his body is beyond repair. Even if he survives, he will wish for death every day. You should have let him die and captured those two bastards."

Christoph was in so much pain that he did not even have the energy to process all this. The man said, "We will bury your parents with respect. You have to die because the identity of our two groups cannot be declared to humans. I wish you find your peace, Chris."

Surprised, Christoph thought, 'How does this guy know my name?'

Then the man let go of the collar, and Christoph limply fell into the gushing river, washed away by the milky water. Just like his tears and hopes got washed away in the rain.