A Monster Inside - Book of the Amulet - ITV's Jekyll and Hyde

1 - Black as the Devil

"Hell is empty and all the devils are here" - William Shakespeare

:/:

"Robert, give me the sword", Renata spoke carefully, watching Hyde trace his finger along the sharp edge. A line of dark blood ran down the cutlass, contrasting with the black colour. He scoffed quietly to himself.

"And why would I do that?"

"I know you're upset-"

"Upset? Why would I be upset?" he asked, smiling. "I have been set free".

"Free from what?"

"Duty, responsibility, pick a synonym". Renata watched as Hyde flicked the sword in between his fingers.

"And what are you planning on doing with this...freedom".

"Stop running, maybe, stop hiding. Why the Hell do you care?"

"Because you're sick, you're ill, Robert. The Sword is altering your brain chemistry, making you...forget things, people. People you're supposed to cafe about".

"And obviously you know all this because...?" Renata didn't answer, which made a creased smile appear across Hyde's face. "Oh, I know. How about because you stole my cousin's house, face, identity, mantle..."

"I did not 'steal' anything. It was give-"

"You know what, you have a nerve to say that this is a sickness. I've never felt better. You on the other hand, well, you're just a mistake, aren't you? A guinea pig for some MIO scientists".

"That's enough. I know you don't mean that. Jekyll, if you're still in there, you're stronger than him".

"You willing to bet on that?"

"...Yes". Hyde sniggered and, quick as a cat, threw Renata against the wall. Slowly, keeping both eyes on Hyde, she regained her stature, and Hyde held the edge of the sword to her throat. It burnt her skin; she was part demon so it would. Sharply she inhaled and Hyde grinned.

"How about now?" With a quick movement, Renata snatched the Sword from his hand and ran out the door. "Good. I always like them when they run". He was rapidly on the hot foot, grabbing a shotgun from the wall and straight in pursuit of her. Renata was terrified. She couldn't use the sword, she wasn't a 'proper' Jezequel, but at least she could hold it. She had soon entered the forest, and her heart was beating manically.

"Jekyll?" she called into the trees. No answer. "Teken?"

"You know", a voice said, echoing around the forest so it felt like it was coming from everywhere. It was Hyde. "These forests are not the best place to hide. Especially since I can hear you a mile away". A loud gunshot sounded, about a dozen or so metres away, and two silvery bullets embedded themselves in a nearby tree trunk. Renata gulped heavily; if she had been a few feet over to the side they would have hit her instead.

"Not a bad shot", she wheezed, trying to sound brave, but it just came out as a frightened tangle of words.

"Thanks. I learnt from the best". She pondered something for a second, some theory she had come up with.

"What was their name?"

"Oh, I don't know. Hilda or Heather, or something like that", Hyde replied quietly. "Anyway... I will give you a very good deal; you give me the sword and I will let you go".

"And if I don't give you it?"

"Then you better run like Hell before I catch you". Renata could only think of whether that threat would be carried out or not and, in a moment of madness, decided to call his bluff.

"No", she said bluntly, and heard a low growl echo around the forest. "I won't give it to you. It's changing you, Robert, and you don't even realise". She just waited for something to either injure her or kill her, but nothing came. "Robert? Are you still there?" It was silent, and for a minute she had thought he had just left.

Then she heard a soft chuckle, saw the metallic gun barrel through the trees, and before she could bolt away, there was a bullet embedded in the crick of her shoulder. She bit her lip, trying desperately not to swear so near a church. Luckily, she did have some healing abilities, but it didn't mean it hurt any less. She dared not look in case of fainting, and really she didn't want to while holding a weapon that could possibly kill her. However she could feel her cream top slowly being seeped in blood down her arm. Taking a deep breath, she could feel herself slightly going over so used a nearby tree as a leaning point.

"You missed. Maybe not such a good shot after all", she shouted, and she could see two crimson eyes looking back at her.

"Well, that was the point", he answered, stepping forward into the light. The shotgun he had used was shoved in his belt, along with a bullet pack. His long, coat billowed behind him in the breeze and his white shirt was shrouded in mud patches. "You know the best thing about sharing a head with a doctor; you know exactly which places kill, and which places don't".

"I thought you said Jekyll was dead", she retorted, moving her hand to her injured shoulder. A shot of horrible pain ran through it and she bit harder into her lip, letting a bead of blood run into her mouth. It left a metallic taste on her tongue which only made her grimace more.

"Oh, yes, long gone", he said, passing off her statement with a flick of his hand. "Just me in this rather...dusty head of his. But doesn't every great scientist leave his research behind for someone to pick up?" His eyes glowed gilded scarlet, and a half-grin crept across his face. She just took this question as rhetoric and said no more of his other side's somewhat mysterious disappearance, though hundreds of unanswered questions hung in her mind.

"Why didn't you just kill me? I'm of no importance to you. In fact I think it would be relatively fortuitous to your family if I just suddenly popped my clogs".

"As much as I think my sister could do a better job with that portal than you, where's the fun in just letting you die? No, no, I want you to go and quiver in your stolen house with your stolen face, and remember that I let you live. And that if you try and steal my toys again, I won't be so generous". And with a wolfish snarl, he swiped the sword from Renata's limp arm, slashing a long laceration down her cheek just to make his point clear.

"Now run", he growled and headed off into the forest. Renata wanted to go after him, wanted to grab the sword from his hands and throw it somewhere no one would find it, but there was something about the sight of her blood running down her arms that just knocked the puff out of her. Her cheek was burning from the sword's bite, and her arm was so painful it was almost numb. So she just ran. Ran all the way back to the Jezequel House and shut the door behind her, collapsing onto the floor in a bloody heap. She scrabbled around for the phone, punching in the first telephone number she could think of.

"Hello? Hello. I don't care who this is, Tenebrae, MIO, the Jekylls, someone has to know. It's Hyde. He's out of control".

"I see. And when you say 'out of control', what exactly do you mean?"

"H-He's got the Hyde Sword, and he can't remember anyone. He's forgetting people one-by-one and, well it won't be long until it's just him and his thoughts... And that's dangerous. Especially for him", Renata answered hastily, grabbing a cloth and letting it soak in some of the blood from her shoulder. It was a man's voice she was talking to, with an accent of some sort.

"Don't worry, Ma'am. We will do our best to help".

"And may I ask who 'we' is?"

"Oh, my apologies. My name is Tom Sackler, of MIO. And I promise I will do my very best to assist".

"Thank you, t-thank you. I need to go. Thank you".

:/:

"Sackler?" Bulstrode asked, seeing his agent on the phone. "What is it?"

...

"All alone, he turns to stone", he answered simply.