Students walked along the sidewalks in groups of threes and fours, heads down and paces fast, every eye averted from the one bold boy who dared to walk alone. Under any other circumstances, he would have been jumped in an instant and shot, burned, or slashed to pieces. But this particular boy, with his wild black hair and chips of ice for eyes, was not somebody even a large group would attack. Instead, the other students rushed by, hoping he didn’t draw the sword from its elaborate scabbard at his waist.
The boy in question muttered under his breath, his hands crammed in the pockets of his pants as he quietly complained about lily-livered cowards and having no proper opponents since Samael had graduated. With his ninety-five accumulated points, only five away from his own graduation, it was no wonder the other students stayed far away from him. Still, Abriel glared at the backs of every yellow-bellied scaredy-cat that passed him.
“I can’t believe… sitting on his own… who does he think he is… going to get killed… nice seeing him.”
Abriel looked up sharply, following the string of disconnected words to the brunette who was speaking them. She glanced up to see him staring and squeaked before dashing off down a side path with her anxious friend. Abriel made no attempt to follow them. It wasn’t worth the time to track them down, even if the two of them would be easy points. He wasn’t looking for easy points anymore. Abriel wanted a challenge- at least, as much of a challenge as the Daeva Institute could offer someone like him.
If he’s sitting alone, he’s probably not very smart, Abriel reasoned, his fingers tapping at the pommel of his sword, Either that, or he’s braver than all the rest of these idiots combined.
It was a risk; he’d either have a satisfying challenge, or he’d be cursing himself all day for killing another demon with no brain. Either way, he’d earn another point and be that much closer to graduating. The idea that he might, finally, find a worthy opponent- that was too alluring for Abriel to resist, and he changed the direction he was walking to follow the path the girls had come from.
Shadows cast strange patterns of dark and the light that filtered past the leaves of the trees, keeping the paths cool from the scorching heat. At least if the Daeva Institute itself was ugly, a great grey scab of a building slapped haphazardly on the side of a mountain, the grounds were beautiful. It offered a sort of peace to the demons who passed through it- an unwelcome peace, because any moment of rest was one that could end their day.
Abriel paused by a pretty iron bench with a back shaped like a flower. He took a seat, just long enough to put his backpack in his lap and retrieve the half empty plastic bottle of water he’d hadn’t finished at lunch. After sniffing at the mouth of the bottle to be sure it wasn’t poisoned- a demon could never be too careful- Abriel downed it all in a few swigs. A soft gasp helped him catch his breath again before he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.
Satisfied that his body would be able to keep up with his needs in the case of a demanding battle, Abriel crushed the bottle between his hands before throwing it the direction of the nearest trashcan. He didn’t wait to see if it would go in, because he’d never missed before. He merely began walking again, heavy boots beating a steady rhythm against the rocky path that was leading him in the direction of the boys’ dormitory. His fingers kept up their tapping against the pommel of his sword, the beat to a song he only dimly remembered his foster mother playing for him during his years on earth. His lip curled up at the memory, and he forced his hand to his side, wanting nothing to remind him of the filthy human who had tried to corrupt him with her soft, weak ways.
The light was strong enough that Abriel put a hand up to shield his eyes for a moment when he broke free of the trees. Blinking against the brilliance, he gave his eyes time to adjust before crossing the expanse of green grass that led up to the boys’ dormitory. There were groups of students scattered here and there, groups that were immediately on their feet and scurrying away when they saw Abriel headed in their direction.
Abriel snarled at them, his sneer revealing teeth that were ever so slightly pointed, hurrying them along. He didn’t need them in his way as he searched for the boy the brunette had been speaking about. It didn’t take him long- the boy stuck out like a sore thumb.
Silvery white hair that was almost too long for a boy fanned out slightly against the vivid green grass, throwing back the rays of light that graced it. His eyes were closed, a necessity as he was lying on his back with his face tipped to the sky. He was obviously new, still dressed in the fashion of the flighty mortals that populated the human plane, his sneakers untied and left next to a folder full of paper that rested a few feet away from him. The boy was resting, something nearly unheard of at the Daeva Institute; and even worse for him, he seemed to be unarmed.
So he’s stupid, then, Abriel thought, crestfallen. He’d been so looking forward to a challenge, but the new kid didn’t even have a weapon. The unfortunate student wasn’t going to last very long even if Abriel didn’t step in. But at least Abriel would give him as clean a death as possible. Most demons would hurt him terribly in order to wake him up to earn their points before killing him as brutally as possible, but Abriel did still have honor, one of few things he brought with him from the human plane.
Abriel barely contained his aggravated sigh, knowing it would give him away. Still a few feet from the boy, he carefully pulled his shoes off. Without those clunking protectors of the toes he often stubbed, Abriel was absolutely soundless as he padded across the grass, even his sword soundless as he drew it from its scabbard- though he could lay no claim to that ability, because the blade was charmed to always be silent.
When he was standing over the boy, careful to be in the opposite direction of the sunlight so his shadow hit the grass rather than the boy’s face, Abriel allowed himself a soft sound of disgust. The sleeping boy’s eyelids flickered, but it was too late. Abriel hauled his foot back before kicking the other demon full force in the ribs.
At least, Abriel had thought it was too late. He found his assumption to be wrong when he was almost overbalanced by the strong, slender hand that captured his ankle and saved its owner from his attack. Mouth agape, shocked as he had ever been, Abriel looked down at the boy he’d thought was sleeping. The other demon looked up calmly, with a slightly crooked smile on his face.
His eyes are black. That’s impossible. Abriel stared down at the boy, his own ice blue eyes wide; demons with black eyes were the oldest, the most powerful, and certainly didn’t make rookie mistakes like laying out in the sun in human clothes. There was no way the boy could have black eyes- and he didn’t, Abriel realized. Black eyes didn’t have that depth, that richness. Rather than black, the boy’s eyes were a brown so deep they bordered on ebony, and they shone with fierce satisfaction as the boy yanked hard, sending Abriel toppling over to land on his back in the grass.
The other demon rolled free immediately, coming to a stop on his knees a few feet away. When Abriel managed to get past his shock and roll forward, tucking in and springing to his feet with his sword at the ready, he found a gun pointed at him. The silverette held the gun steady, still calm and collected. A shot went off, and Abriel watched the other demon lower the gun. It wasn’t until the new student was slipping the gun back into a hidden side holster that Abriel felt the pain.
Burning, blinding pain. It started in the middle of his stomach, but it was quick to press outward, coursing through his veins like the blood he could feel wetting his shirt. The sword fell out of his hand, and Abriel pressed both to his stomach, looking down with shock. Red bloomed across the pristine white of his shirt, spreading quickly from the wound in his stomach. It had been an expert shot, one intended to bleed out; and though it normally wouldn’t have been fatal for a demon, and perhaps not even for a human if they were lucky enough, Abriel could feel the molten fire of a blessed bullet lodged within him.
He didn’t stand a chance. Blood seeped out between his fingers where they were pressed to his middle, and fell in fat drops to stain the grass at his feet. Abriel followed those drops of blood, the contact jarring as his knees hit the ground. He swayed there for a second, but keeled forward before he could steady himself. He felt the cool damp of the grass beneath his cheek, the light beating down its warmth on his back, and the molten heat of his own blood slicking his fingers.
“Y-you,” he forced past lips that had become numb. His eyes were wide with disbelief, their brilliant blue hazed over with pain as he bit his lip, trying to distract himself so he could retaliate. “You b-bastard, I-I’ll…”
A sigh reached his ears, muted like he was hearing it from a long distance. The new kid came into his sight, and he had the gall to look saddened. “Sorry about this. I thought you’d die quicker,” he said, pulling out his gun once more. He took careful aim before pulling the trigger again, and blessed metal lodged itself in Abriel’s brain, giving him final relief from the pain.
Comments (2)
See all