Helluva Music

Chapter 20 - The Deal

Stolas was disoriented. The world seemed to spin around even to the point where he can actually feel it. How did he end up like this? His father Paimon, disappointed in his son and his granddaughter for deceiving them, took Octavia away from him to be prepared for the wedding. After Paimon vanished, Stolas felt a sudden pain on the back of his neck where he fell to the ground. He looked up to see Stella's sinister grin before blacking out.

That was some time ago now. How long? No one can answer. He was on his own. Or so he thought.

After finally regaining his senses, Stolas opened his eyes to see he was in some sort of cave-like room with some cowboy decoratives and even a train track. And there sharpening his Angelic Knife was Striker, the Assassin Stella hired to kill him. It all made sense now: Striker was waiting to strike him down and knocked him unconscious with a hilt of the holy weapon. While he tried to get out, he notice a rope around him, tied completely to prevent him from using his powers. But the thought of Octavia made him try again.

"Don't bother;" Striker spoke up, clearly knowing he was awake, "those ropes ain't gonna let you do anything."

Stolas gave him a look of anger. "So, my wife paid you for this, hmm? Wouldn't a holy bullet have sufficed? Or even killing me now?"

"I was paid to give you the real royal treatment; to torture you until you die. I must say, your wife must REALLY hate you."

Stolas scoffed. "You have no idea." He looked around and sees train tracks again with a western train resting. "So. Train tracks? Really? Seems a bit clichéd, doesn't it?"

"It's a classic." Striker turned to look at him.

"Is the giant statue of yourself also a 'classic' or is it a sign of either pride or shame?" Stolas pointed at the big stature in front of Striker, looking like the assassin grinning with a giant wood.

Pissed over this, he threw the whetstone down after finishing the blade. "Are you seriously judging me right now?"

"And what if I am? You have caused so much trouble not only to me, but to everyone else."

Striker walked up to the owl while holding the knife. "Look. Not every ring is some fancy-ass city, with some fancy-ass mansion, that only fancy-ass royals get to live in." He soon hovered Stolas as he continues. "Like I said before long ago, some of us have VERY hard lives to live. And some of us have everything we care about taken away by fuckers like you. So I don't give a rat's ass if you view me as a troublemaker. You royal fuckers brought this upon yourselves."

"That's calling the ke-AAAAAAH!!" Stolas screamed as Striker stabbed the blessed knife onto his shoulder with anger and hatred before pulling it out.

"SHUT THE FUCK UP!!! YOU! Don't get to talk over me!" He slaps Stolas with his tail as his eyes were showing signs of a mentally unstable creature with uncontrollable rage. "I don't have to listen to your bullshit! "He then jams his foot into Stolas's shoulder wound, causing the owl to scream in pain as he continues. "All you royals ever do is try to talk over us!"

"Why? Because of what you truly are? What you tried to do, take, and what you lost?" Stolas asked while breathing from the injury.

Striker chuckled. "Please. I'm the strongest of my species."

"Bullshit. You are a hybrid. A sinner and an Imp as one. And from what I can tell, you-AAAAH!"

Striker stabbed him again. "Shut your mouth! I don't have to take this shit." Stolas tried to use spells but to no avail. "And now, I'll take my sweet time VENTING all of my hate!"

Octavia was filled with such depression that she had nearly lost all hope. Her grandfather took her book and even sealed her magic away temporarily so that she would not get any idea on escaping her so called royal duty. She hated it so much. Thinking about was enough to make her realize what Stolas went through when he was forced to marry Stella. Now she was going to be in the same situation. Looking at her mirror, she can see herself in a beautiful wedding dress. But this was anything but beautiful in her eyes.