Mercy Chapter 8

Faith said, “Talia, please go get help.”

“On it.” Talia said, and started inching away.

Trying to keep the man from noticing Talia, Faith launched herself into the air, and confronted him.

“Are you the one responsible for this chaos? Did you send that poor creature to kill me?”

“That poor creature is a hell hound. And he wasn’t going to kill you, just hurt you - a lot.”

“Why?”

“Because you have something that belongs to me, and I want it.”

“What do you think I have? I’ve just manifested a couple of days ago.”

Then their two minds met ...

Faith saw this boy had started as a girl, until she had been beaten and raped, triggering her mutation, her sex change, and her desire for vengeance.

Making her an easy target for a creature that fed on darkness, who was looking for a weapon of chaos and pain ... who went by the name of The Bastard.

The new boy had taken the name Brand, and the code name ...

Vendetta.

And he had been responsible for nullifying her father’s medication, in an attempt to trigger her change under the same kind of circumstances as his own.

For a moment she was angry, but the more she looked into his mind, the harder it was to hate him.

She also saw this “book” he was looking for - both a history of the people they drew their power from, and a powerful magical resource he believed he could use in his quest for vengeance.

Then the contact between them was broken.

“You ... don’t have the book. Or at least not yet.” Brand said.

“No, I don’t. But I can help you. Come back to the school with me. We can look together, you would be safe there.”

“You ... would want to help me? After what I did to your father?”

“Yes. Because I believe in Mercy.”

For a moment, he wavered, then the anger came back.

“Mercy is for the weak! I have to be strong!”

“Believe me, it takes strength to show mercy. I could hate you for what you did to my father. But it wouldn’t change it. Mercy is ... harder than vengeance, but at least it's not a dead end.”

“You want mercy? I’ll give you some. I wont kill you right now. I’ll give you a year to find that book and give it to me. If you don’t, you, your friends, your school, everyone will suffer.”

Then he pushed her away, and roared into the sky.

In a moment, he was out of sight.

Faith allowed herself to sink to the ground, and shook.

To her surprise, the three-headed dog limped over to her, and leaned against her.

Faith put her arms around the hell-hound, and let herself grieve. Crying for her mother, her father, and surprisingly for the boy responsible for what had happened to them.

Then she heard a voice.

“It seems like you’ve acquired a friend.”

Faith looked up.

“Mrs. Carson?”

To Be Continued ...