Death City (Book 1)

Chapter 27: Sin and Sorrow

Dawn could hardly believe the words that Axel spoke. Death City, a gateway to Hell? It seemed unthinkable. But the more she considered the possibility, recalling her experiences up until this point, the more everything began to make sense. The disembodied voices, apparitions of tortured souls, the otherworldly atmosphere. Although it was difficult to piece together, this place truly being some sort of portal to Hell was the only logical explanation.

As she quietly stood in the dark room, lost in a mixture of deep thought and utter shock, Dawn had nearly forgotten her dire situation. Axel soon reminded her, as he violently grabbed her and pulled her towards the stained-glass window of the clock. The time was nearing midnight. He shoved her against the glass and pointed down at the courtyard that was filled with lifeless, human vessels.

"Soon, as the clock strikes twelve, all those souls down below will be transformed into demons and banished from this world," said Axel. "Banished to Hell. At least, that's how it will work until tonight. But after Rain's dead, I have a feeling we might take a different course of action."

"W-what do you mean?" asked Dawn.

"You still sound surprised. Why is that? You've seen it first-hand. Is it that hard to believe? Maybe you can join them for added convincing."

"I'm not afraid of you anymore."

Axel leered at her. "You're going to regret those words."

Dawn began to back away from him, as crimson horns erected on his head and his eyes began to glow a deep, fiery red. She attempted to turn away, but her sprained ankle rolled, causing her to trip and fall back against the hard, wooden panels. Axel chuckled as she lifted herself up in pain, brushing back the hair from her face. But through the window behind him, Dawn could spot a shadow approaching from a distance. The figure grew in size as it rapidly approached the window, before crashing through it and landing inside the room.

Shards of glass and metal swept through the air, while Dawn crawled away into the corner. Evading the debris, Axel quickly followed her and leapt to the other side of the room. Meanwhile, Dawn sat upward and looked over to see who had entered the room. As the dust began to settle, two floating, bright yellow orbs came into focus, and eventually she saw him. Standing before her eyes was Rain. His glowing eyes fixated on Axel, long claws and horns, furiously shaking, and black wings outstretched the length of the room.

"You came for me..."

Rain nodded at her briefly, giving her a slight, relieved smile. He then turned his attention back to Axel, who had walked over to Dawn, grabbing her by the arm and holding her up to him.

"Leave her be, Axel," said Rain. "Your fight is with me, so leave her out of this."

He wrapped his arm around Dawn's neck. "I don't think I will. All these years living under your thumb, subjected to abuse. To your own kind. Your own family. That ends tonight. We're done listening to you."

"Hm?" Rain squinted, before slowly approaching Axel. "Whatever it is, I promise we can work this out. But please, let Dawn go. She's the innocent one here."

"There's nothing to work out." He placed his hand over his face and laughed. "You've punished me for being true to my feelings. Now I'm going to do the same to you."

Axel moved Dawn's blazer and sweater aside, pulling it up and exposing her navel. With the sharp point of his rugged claw nail, he pierced her skin, drawing blood as he steadily slit her across the stomach. Powerless, she cried out in tears while writhing in pain.