horrified. “No. It’s not true. Please don’t say it.”
“Think
about it, Ev,” Arcturus said. “Why did you kill your father?”
“I
had no choice. I had to do it or he would have killed my mother.”
“But
wasn’t there a voice in your head telling you what to do?” Arcturus said.
“
My
inner voice told me to. It was my survival instincts,” Ev insisted.
Arcturus
leaned forward. “No, Ev; it wasn’t. It was me. I told you to kill him.”
“No!
You’re lying.”
“Well,
then. Tell me if this sounds familiar. ‘There’s a knife on the table. Grab it.
Kill him! Kill that monster. The world will be a much better place without
him’.”
Ev
fell to his knees and clutched his head. “I didn’t want to do it! My dad, he
gave me no choice.”
However,
Arcturus would not be swayed. “But you did have a choice. You weren’t
going to do it. I sensed that. So I astral-projected over to you, and I gave
you guidance. Anni Bannen is still alive today because of me, and you’re a hell
of a lot better off with your dad dead.”
Maya
had had enough. She conjured her bow and pointed it squarely at Arcturus Reich.
“That’s enough! Why do you want to torture him so badly?”
Arcturus
regarded her coldly. “You think I enjoy torture? You think I’m the
complete opposite of Ev? I got news for you. He and I are more alike than you
can imagine. All it takes is one slight difference in circumstances to make
someone turn out like me.”
“Ev
is nothing like you,” she said. “You still haven’t told us what you’re doing
here, aside from causing emotional suffering.”
“It’s
not that complicated, really. I’m about to create a new world, and I want Ev to
be a part of it.”
“Why
Ev?”
“You
might say we’re kindred spirits. I was there for him in his darkest hour. I
understand him better than you ever will.”
“I
understand him well enough. Enough to know he doesn’t want whatever you’re
selling.”
He
gave her a smirk. “Please, Maya. You’ve known him—what? A year? I’ve known him
for ten years. I’ve been watching him, excited to discover what sort of
man he’ll become.”
Staring
icily at him, she said, “He won’t become like you. I promise you that.
“Now,
then. Can I assume you’re the one who broke into the Tower of Babel and killed Heimdall?”
“I
didn’t break in,” he said. “I used this .” He held his hand flat in the
air, and a familiar crimson object appeared in it.”
Maya
stared at it, aghast. “You have the Blood Key!”
“That’s
right. Belial sent it to me upon his death because he didn’t trust you. The
Tower practically belongs to me now.”
Still
on his knees, Ev said, “You killed Professor Heimdall?”
Arcturus
insisted, “I had no choice, Ev. He attacked me. He thought I was another
monster like Belial. I tried to explain things to him, but he wouldn’t listen.
He seriously wanted to kill me.”
“You’re
lying,” Maya said.
He
shook his head vigorously. “It’s the truth! I swear. You believe me, don’t you,
Ev?”
Ev
got back to his feet. “I don’t…I don’t know what to believe anymore. But you did steal something from the Tower. What did you steal?”
Arcturus
smiled broadly, like a child who had just received the greatest toy ever made. “The
Ark of the Covenant. The most powerful of the Artifacts.”
Ev
had never heard of it. Obviously it had been kept secret for good reason. “What
does it do?”
He
replied cryptically, “It will change everything. This twisted world will be a
distant memory once I activate it.”
“That
doesn’t tell us much,” Maya said.
“I’ll
give Ev the full details later. Belial’s suspicions regarding you were proven
correct. I’m not trusting you with any more information.”
“That’s
fine,” she said. I’ll just shoot you with a few arrows
“Think
about it, Ev,” Arcturus said. “Why did you kill your father?”
“I
had no choice. I had to do it or he would have killed my mother.”
“But
wasn’t there a voice in your head telling you what to do?” Arcturus said.
“
My
inner voice told me to. It was my survival instincts,” Ev insisted.
Arcturus
leaned forward. “No, Ev; it wasn’t. It was me. I told you to kill him.”
“No!
You’re lying.”
“Well,
then. Tell me if this sounds familiar. ‘There’s a knife on the table. Grab it.
Kill him! Kill that monster. The world will be a much better place without
him’.”
Ev
fell to his knees and clutched his head. “I didn’t want to do it! My dad, he
gave me no choice.”
However,
Arcturus would not be swayed. “But you did have a choice. You weren’t
going to do it. I sensed that. So I astral-projected over to you, and I gave
you guidance. Anni Bannen is still alive today because of me, and you’re a hell
of a lot better off with your dad dead.”
Maya
had had enough. She conjured her bow and pointed it squarely at Arcturus Reich.
“That’s enough! Why do you want to torture him so badly?”
Arcturus
regarded her coldly. “You think I enjoy torture? You think I’m the
complete opposite of Ev? I got news for you. He and I are more alike than you
can imagine. All it takes is one slight difference in circumstances to make
someone turn out like me.”
“Ev
is nothing like you,” she said. “You still haven’t told us what you’re doing
here, aside from causing emotional suffering.”
“It’s
not that complicated, really. I’m about to create a new world, and I want Ev to
be a part of it.”
“Why
Ev?”
“You
might say we’re kindred spirits. I was there for him in his darkest hour. I
understand him better than you ever will.”
“I
understand him well enough. Enough to know he doesn’t want whatever you’re
selling.”
He
gave her a smirk. “Please, Maya. You’ve known him—what? A year? I’ve known him
for ten years. I’ve been watching him, excited to discover what sort of
man he’ll become.”
Staring
icily at him, she said, “He won’t become like you. I promise you that.
“Now,
then. Can I assume you’re the one who broke into the Tower of Babel and killed Heimdall?”
“I
didn’t break in,” he said. “I used this .” He held his hand flat in the
air, and a familiar crimson object appeared in it.”
Maya
stared at it, aghast. “You have the Blood Key!”
“That’s
right. Belial sent it to me upon his death because he didn’t trust you. The
Tower practically belongs to me now.”
Still
on his knees, Ev said, “You killed Professor Heimdall?”
Arcturus
insisted, “I had no choice, Ev. He attacked me. He thought I was another
monster like Belial. I tried to explain things to him, but he wouldn’t listen.
He seriously wanted to kill me.”
“You’re
lying,” Maya said.
He
shook his head vigorously. “It’s the truth! I swear. You believe me, don’t you,
Ev?”
Ev
got back to his feet. “I don’t…I don’t know what to believe anymore. But you did steal something from the Tower. What did you steal?”
Arcturus
smiled broadly, like a child who had just received the greatest toy ever made. “The
Ark of the Covenant. The most powerful of the Artifacts.”
Ev
had never heard of it. Obviously it had been kept secret for good reason. “What
does it do?”
He
replied cryptically, “It will change everything. This twisted world will be a
distant memory once I activate it.”
“That
doesn’t tell us much,” Maya said.
“I’ll
give Ev the full details later. Belial’s suspicions regarding you were proven
correct. I’m not trusting you with any more information.”
“That’s
fine,” she said. I’ll just shoot you with a few arrows
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