The Zero Hour | #Wattys2016

Chapter 10 - The Onyx Assassin (Part 1)

"Failures!" shouted Malevolent Drake as he hurled a gold goblet full of fine wine at Turney. The red wine splattered all over his woolen robe and the goblet cluttered on the floor. Turney knew better than to react. He stood perfectly still with his head bowed down. Malevolent was in one of his dangerous moods, and Turney was not about to make things worse.

They were in the drawing room of Drake Manor. The walls were richly ornamented with accents and portraits of the Drake ancestors lined the walls. Thick woven plush carpets lined the floors while a stone fireplace kept the room warm. There was a coffee table in the middle of the room with sofas and armchairs with cushions arranged around the table. The windows displayed the illuminated skyline of White Harrow, as Drake Manor was placed on the highpoint of the city, and had a magnificent view.

"I sent four of you to look after my son; my own flesh and blood. And what do you do?" His nostrils flared up as he shouted. "The entire search party gets sent to the infirmary except for you!"

Malevolent extended his right arm in a choking gesture and Turney felt his throat tighten. "Not for long though... perhaps you should join them." Seconds felt like hours as Turney struggled for breath, finding it increasingly hard to breathe.

"Tell me Turney, was it the Izenth? Did they interfere with our search and capture operation?" Malevolent tightened his grip and the pressure on his windpipe increased. He choked and quickly nodded his head as life started to drain from his face. With a simple flick of his hand, Malevolent released his choke grip on Turney and flung him into one of the finely decorated massive mirrors hung in the Drake Manor. The mirror shattered on impact and shards of glass rained down on the floor.

"Be gentle with the décor, your roughhousing will destroy my antiques!" Lady Edith appeared in the doorway, more distraught by the sight of the broken mirror rather than Turney. She loved her fine tapestries and intricate antiques and was terribly protective of them all.

Malevolent Drake turned his steely eyes towards her. It was a warning glare. Lady Edith shrank back, looked down and left without another word.

"Now, where were we before we were so rudely interrupted?" Malevolent turned his attention back to Turney. "How many Izenth bypassed your impenetrable flame protection wards and stormed your mansion? Was it an army?" Malevolent crossed his arms over his silk robe. It had the Drake family crest of a crimson dragon displayed on its back. It was his standard evening wear, comfortable yet debonair.

Turney was kneeling on the floor gasping for air. He had hatred in his deep red eyes for Malevolent Drake but dared not look in defiance before the powerful man who stood before him. "Two," he rasped. "Two Izenth Exiles and one commoner..."

"Two?" Malevolent asked with an incredulous expression on his face. He did not know if he wanted to laugh or cry. His face contorted in disgust. "My own son could take out two Exiles on his own. Commoners can't even wield weapons, let alone fight."

"Well actually, two of the Exiles were unconscious; so, technically it was the commoner who put Waldo in the infirmary." It wasn't the smartest thing to say, but Turney secretly enjoyed seeing Malevolent Drake lose his cool.

Malevolent stepped on Turney's back and pushed him flat onto the floor. Small shards of glass inched into his robe and felt like pins on his chest. Turney clenched his fists as the glass shards started to pierce his skin; he refused to allow Malevolent to see his pain.

"Explain."

"Well, first we captured one Exile who was snooping around our camp at night – a young girl. The next day, another Exile and commoner came to the camp, no doubt to look for her. Obviously we took down the Exile first with a paralyze spell but he managed to take down Gene and Lockheed with his Exile weapon before the spell took effect. After he was unconscious, we captured all three of them in the prison room of our camp..."