Gabriel just sighed, no answer, just silence.
“You have been good following orders, and not causing trouble. The count loves it when you follow directions, and so does your families,” Alistar said pacing back and forth in front of the humans and eternals.
They all stood there, arms behind their backs, not making eye contact, and trying to stand still to not cause any disruption.
“You…gargoyle, step forward,” Alistar said pointing at one of them that was near Gabriel. He was much shorter and a little bit thicker, but young, and eyes yellow like the rising sun.
“Ye…yes sir. What can I do for you?” The gargoyle said rubbing his claws together.
“Make your allegiance to our lord and savior, and the god breakers,” Alistar said grabbing the gargoyle's wing and pulling him down to the ground.
The gargoyle squinted his eyes and started to kneel. “I can’t. I can’t, my house won’t let me. I can not give myself to something I can not truly follow. For who I love, who I keep close. To give up my family, my love, you ask too much,” he said tears starting to trail down his face.
“There is but only one maker, one all-knowing and you will do what I ask. Do you hear me? You monster,” Alistar said tossing the gargoyle to the side and kicking dirt on him. “You are but a beast, you know nothing about love.
Nick saw Gabriel start to move forward but he pressed his hand against his chest and nodded to him. “Is that how it is. Years, and years of hatred and bullshit, and you want to keep the cycle going?” he said moving in front of the gargoyle. You all make me God damn sick.”
Just the same shit, different day.No matter how much we move forward there will always be someone to try and bring us back, fuck that. Nick knew how it was to be looked down on, to be lesser. But he knew deep down he wasn’t lesser. His father and grandparents would always tell him he could do anything he set his mind to. That he was worth more than what the world tried to engrave into his mind. I am like my tio, he didn’t back down to bullies. He got his ass beat, but he could take it and so can I. He was the only uncle I had who stood tall even when the world felt like it was crashing down. He was in a war he didn’t ask for, but he did it knowing that there would be a future for his children. He thought.
“The fucking new guy. Beta told us about you. You like to play investigator to try and solve supernatural cases, but in the end, you don’t do shit or get far. Hell, you had to be saved by a lady who you didn’t even know. You got fucking lucky, he was kicking your ass. I guess you like getting your ass kicked,” Alistar said. He walked towards Nick, started cracking his knuckles, and took out a knife from his back pocket, and started to slide the side of the blade against his cheek. “You should know that I don’t want to hurt you, but Beta has given us permission to treat you with any force necessary.”
“You ever heard of friends? They help you when you are in a tough spot. I can try and act like I need no one but without my friends or people I love, I ain’t shit. Then again who do you have? You probably have a wife, don’t you? You look like a piece of shit that likes to hit people no matter who they are,” Nick said putting up his fist, going onto the defensive. “Wonder if your wife ever tells you you blow your load too fast. Maybe she just sticks with you for the money. You spout a lot of shit, guess you make her eat it too? Make her eat your shit.”
Alistar ran towards him dropping his knife into the ground. He swung a fist connecting with Nick’s cheek, making him stumble to the floor. “See that? You can’t even stand up from one punch. Guess they don’t teach you how to fight where you’re from.” Alistar said turning away from him as boos showered his body.
He kicked the back of Alistar's leg, got up quickly, and swung his fist forward into his back, pounding into him. “You want to mess with these people? I’m gonna mess you up,” he said grabbing Alistar's arms and extending them back. “Submit to me as you submit to Beta when you are on your knees begging for more.”
“What are you morons doing? Get this fucker off me now,” Alistar yelled. The yells and pain coming out from the god breaker gave him more strength. It was god damn time he heard one of God's men break.
The god breakers ran towards Nick, separating him from Alistar. A few of them tossed him to the ground kicking his face and putting cuffs on him. A few others were tending to Alistar. His eyes locked onto Nick as the breakers took him away.
He was bleeding from his mouth and head, his vision was blurry, and he could barely think straight. “That’s all you got? You couldn’t handle a real fight. You asked for it but you couldn’t even handle it. You tried to harm that gargoyle, but all you are is a limp dick mother fucker,” He said as the light faded away.
38
Nick sat on the bed that was in his cell. He hadn’t seen or talk to anyone in what felt like days. He had small bruises, and still got headaches every so often, but he didn’t see Alistar or any other god breaker. “Guess they are trying to make me go insane from boredom,” he said laying on the bed, looking at the ceiling.
A purple mist leaked from the bottom of his door, he got up from the bed and started to exam it. “Saw something like this from Ember, but it’s a bit different. The mist is a dark purple mixed with red,” he said starring at it, watching it continue to enter his room. “I should probably get back a bit, just in case.”
You did a kind thing back there.
Nick turned around and saw nothing but emptiness. He looked at the ceiling and saw nothing but a camera looking down at him. Who was that? He thought.
It is me Grabriel, the gargoyle that you met. I am thankful for what you did, to stop the violence against one of my people. Gabriel thought.
It’s nothing I wouldn’t do for anyone else. I see the god breakers are all the same. Where would Beta be, do you know?
The only thing I know about Beta is he comes, takes some of the humans and the humans don’t come back. They are what we like to call the lost ones.
I have to get to my friends somehow, how are you talking to me right now?
It’s an ability we Gargoyles have had for hundreds of years, we just normally don’t tell people. When you are turned to stone, and waiting to be released you need a way to not go insane.
Do you think that you can help me contact my friends?
You need to visualize them, their face, their voice, and you need to focus on feeling where they are. I can only have you stay in contact with them for a few seconds.
Few seconds but how will I let them know where I’m at?
I’m sorry, but you are not like us, you have not trained. This is the best I can do for you, so you either take it or leave it. I’m not trying to be rude, but realistic.
Okay, okay…let me think about Abigail. Her soft nature, her kindness. The way she looks and dressed, she never changed how she looked really since middle school.
Connected, now.
The room started to spin and he saw Abigail in his vision, she was in a room reading a book.
Abigail, I need you to get help. Please I’…
That’s all I got, I’m sorry. I told you only a few seconds.
It’s no problem Gabriel, you have done more than enough for me and I appreciate it.
I hope your friends find you, Nick. I'd hate to see you be here for long. I have to go now, try to get some rest.
I’ll try, my body hurts like hell. He wanted so bad to be home with his crappy walls, in his crappy bed. It was like sleeping in a strange land and feeling trapped in your own space with nowhere to go. He heard footsteps. The door opened and in walked Alistar with some bread with corn mixed with beans, and water.
He dragged a chair behind him, sat down, and placed the plate in front of Nick. “You need to eat and drink. You can’t be passing out or dying on us,” Alistar said popping his fingers.
“Why are you here? Shouldn’t you be making sure no one feeds me?” He said grabbing a piece of bread, chomping down on it ferociously.
Alistar let out a chuckle. “Not a
ll of us are super bad people. I just do what I’m told.”Alistar rubbed his shoulder, still sore from their encounter.
“Do what you’re told? you don’t even believe what you were saying out there?” He said grabbing the glass of water and downing it.
“Not as hard as Beta makes us. He has eyes on most of this place. You think I like forcing my beliefs on people?” Alistar said leaning forward.
“By the way, you were talking, you seemed pretty serious to me. Why in the hell would you follow what he says anyway if you didn’t believe it?” He said leaning against the wall. He looked at Alistar and saw his face began to go uneasy.
“My son is my pride and joy. When the world changed and opened up I didn’t know what to think, how to explain it to him. Were the stories we were raised on still true? We don’t know what God or this universe thinks, it’s still just a guess, but now we know they truly exist. That fucking scares me, it scares me because I want my son to end up where we all want to be. By being a god breaker, by following orders maybe that can happen. Maybe by just closing my ears and doing it in the name of God and doing some good that can happen,” Alistar said wiping a tear away from his left eye. Family is the one truth in life. You can’t change them, you don’t choose them, but damn are they part of your bloodline. Blood to him meant something and he knew how religion, not faith, but he knew how it was. People see the difference in you and point their ugly fat fingers and stare at you like you are a monster. Nick knew monsters, and his loved ones and friends were not even close.
“I feel we have done more harm in the name of God, in our beliefs. So much violence and hatred due to the assumption of what we as people think. I hate it, not the God, not them at all. I just hate how people took the image of them and made them horrible,” Nick said starring down at the floor. “People will always find ways to pit each other against one another, we are for the most part an awful lot.”
Alistar smiled at Nick and tossed him a piece of gum. “I can fucking agree to that. If it came down to my boy or anyone else I loved. I would give my all to protect them from any harm. Even if it meant going against heaven, I'd do everything for that boy.”
“Did Beta kill those people in the undercity?” He asked his eyes narrowing on Alistar. He had to know for sure, to hear it from someone else, something to let him know that he was on the right track.
Alistar leaned back in the chair. “Beta is our leader, as the leader, he orders us to keep you all well fed. Bless be Beta and the god breakers,” Alistar said. “Beta sees us when we are suffering. He cleanses us as our lives go down a dark path. A path you must stay away from, keep on the light.”
Alistar grabbed the plate from the floor. He said a prayer and tapped his fingers in different points in the air to make a cross and kissed his closed fist. He walked away, but before he left the room he gave Nick a light nod and disappeared.
So he really did do it. I guess he was trying to shut them up and did not want to get whatever that Jake guy knew to get out in the open. The Draken police will never put him on trial, they would never go against a god breaker. He heard sirens begin to go off outside of his room, the lights were flashing red and he heard marching that sounded like a bunch of animals running past him. He didn’t know how many, but it felt like it was hundreds of god breakers marching away from him. I don’t know what’s happening, someone broke in or broke out. Whatever it is the god breakers are not happy about it. He thought.
PEOPLE ARE HERE THEY GOT IN, SOME WITCH OR CASTER IS WITH THEM. KILL THEM DON’T LET THEM GET TO THE PRISONERS. I REPEAT KILL THEM ALL AND KEEP THEM AWAY FROM THE PRISONERS. A voice said from the speaker outside Nick's room. The man kept talking until eventually they screamed in horror and it went silent but the alarm continued to go off.
39
Nick backed away from the door, stood firm, and held up his fist. He could hear people screaming, and slamming into the walls. His door began to bang, and dent, eventually it caved. Slowly the door opened and he saw Veronica holding a crossbow, wearing his coat. Her hair was long and dark brown, her eyes relaxed once she saw him. The world stood still for him for a moment. Someone that he barely knew at all was there to help him. She entered his mind and body, thinking that how could someone like her want to help someone like him. He didn’t know a lot about vorpal, but he was just glad she was there to help him.
“Don’t do something this stupid again,” Veronica said rushing towards him, throwing her arms around him. The warm feel of her touch sent him back to a time when he got his first crush ever. When his heart melted into mush, smelling the flowers on her hair, and just trying to not get his hopes up, to not have his heartbroken again.
“You guys heard me out? how did ya’ll find me?” He asked walking towards the door.
“Ember used your coat, your scent, and had her demon dogs to sniff for you. If we didn’t have that I’m sure we would have still found you,” Veronica said taking off his coat and handing it back to him.
She wore a buttoned-up shirt that was dark blue, rolled up the sleeves, and took aim with her crossbow. She shot it hitting a vorpal that was rushing into his room. She must feel bad for having to take out some of her kind. It is never easy having to go against your own, others would think she is betraying her people. It was a risk that he made her take, without even knowing it.
“What is going on? you guys just busted in here and set everyone loose?” He said peaking outside the doorway. He saw Ember sending her dogs after other humans and vorpals. She stood there spinning the pool of mist in front of her as she sent a burst of lightning at the armored god breakers.
“We came in here and we just wanted to set you free, but as soon as we did, the locks unlocked on everything. Someone was expecting us to come for you,” Veronica said walking out the doorway.
Nick followed behind her, he saw all the cells were opened, some people were rushing out the front door, others stayed to cause damage to the god breakers. He saw Alistar on the ground kicking, trying to break free from a group of vorpals that had him outnumbered. “No,won’t be like them,” Nick said rushing towards Alistar. Veronica didn’t try to stop him, she went over to one of the lockers and grabbed Lightsworn, and tossed it to him. He didn’t care who was his enemy, who wronged him so damn much or stood for something he didn’t even give much of a damn about. He just knew that the man being attacked was outnumbered, and he had a fucking kid. Here's one for you kid.
“Help, someone get them off of me. Someone, anyone,” Alistar said pushing against a vorpals face that was trying to bite down onto his neck. He looked at the fanged eternal in fear and desperation.
“Today’s your lucky day pal,” Nick said swinging Lightsworn down, cutting through the vorpal with ease, turning the one about to kill Alistar into dust. He then swung his sword in front of him like a crescent moon, leaving nothing but a shocked god breaker cowering on the floor.
“You…you hold the light, what are you?” Alistar said rubbing his face.
“I’m just a human, wanting to help. I am no more special than you,” He said kneeling and reaching out his hand. The world always wants people to go against each other. To stick to their selected tribes and to never break free. Nick knew better about being part of groups with no ears and closed eyes. They eventually unwind and disappear, he wanted to be open, to try to be welcoming. Was that a weakness? Who knows, but life is short, so who gives a fuck.
“After what I did to you? the things I said, you helped me, but why?” Alistar said grabbing Nick's hand and standing up.
“You had your reasons and I can’t blame you, now you need to go before they come and kill you. You also helped me in what I need to aid those in pain. You’re not bad, you just need to find a better way. Now go,” Nick said pointing to the entrance.
Gabriel swooped down from the second floor and grabbed Alistar. “Don’t worry friend, he will be safe, until we meet again,” Gabriel said smiling at Nick.
I hope he can fly in the skies free without
anyone trying to stop him. Nick thought.
“Get out of Lala land Nick, we gotta move before someone comes to this place and lock us all up,” Veronica said grabbing his arm and dragging him towards the entrance.
His head began to pound, and he could feel his body heating up the closer he got to the entrance. He looked back and saw Ember using some spell to cast a barrier behind them. The vorpals, humans, and god breakers banged against it, and it bounced them back. She looked back and nodded to Veronica.
“Keep moving, don’t stop until we get back to Cameron's,” Ember said as they began to sprint into the woods and the darkness of the night.
40
Nick and Veronica entered Cameron's shop, they were sweaty and smelled like a wet sock left out in the open for days. Ember went back to her home, she used a lot of energy helping them and needed to rest. He looked and saw Veronica walking towards the back room, waving at Cameron in the back who was sitting down drinking coffee. Before he could walk a step further Abigail grabbed him from behind and laid her head against his back.
“I was so worried about you, when Veronica said the god breakers took you we didn’t know where,” Abigail said letting go of Nick. He worried her, it broke his heart to see her scared.
“It’s good to see you too Abigail, didn’t mean to scare you or anyone. It was just something I felt that I had to do, hope you can forgive me,” he said scratching the back of his head laughing nervously.
“Just don’t do it again or I’m gonna tell Cameron to use his hammer throw on you,” Abigail said punching his arm and walking towards the back where Veronica was.
The God Breaker's Ruin Page 17