Free Web NovelChapter 46: Ch 45: Lemurian Star Hijack V
Super long chap 5.3k words.
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Veritas sat with one leg crossed over the other, staring straight at Luna.
"Now then, let me explain the rules," Veritas said, gesturing with his hands. "You get to ask questions of me, and then I ask them of you. The one who lies, dies. And I am the one who judges the answers for both of us. Basically, I’m the verifier... you can call me Veritas."
He chuckled at his own pun before waving his hand dismissively. "Alright, forget that embarrassing last statement. It just slipped out of my mouth. Sorry..."
Luna didn’t break her gaze. "You’re forgiven," she replied, "But only for those cringy words."
Veritas smiled genuinely behind his mask. "So righteous, Miss Luna... your eyes shine with a glowing fire."
"Anyway, let me finish explaining the rules to you," Veritas said, the painted smile frozen in glee. "The duration you get to ask questions of me is exactly 10 minutes. And then, I’ll get 10 minutes to question you. And while I am the ultimate judge of the truth here, this is not a rigged game, Miss Luna."
He wagged a finger playfully. "You can absolutely question my statements by asking for valid proof, and you can counter my claims with valid proof of your own. Heck, I’ll even help you get it if it’s digitally possible!"
He gestured gracefully toward her with an open palm. "Now then, let’s start. Ladies first."
Luna took a slow, deep breath, steadying her nerves. "What is your real identity, Veritas?"
Veritas sighed, a long, exaggerated sound of disappointment. "That’s... such a boring first question, Miss Luna. Honestly, I expected more. Of course, I’m Veritas in reality as well. I don’t have time to play as some random civilian dude while I’m off terrorising."
Luna shook her head, "Why the mask then? Show me a proof."
Veritas leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "This is not a mask, Luna. This is the real me. But... as for your proof, here it is."
In his previous stream, with Mathew and the time in the train as well, he had a little inconvenience while showing the evidence to the hostages. Turning the phone towards them or floating it towards them and showing them a small text seemed a little awkward.
So, when he told Batroc’s men how he’d like his hostages bound, he also told them to prepare a projector as well. Luke just took a small moment to configure the projector to connect to his phone.
On the screen, a series of official government FIRs and warrents appeared, showing the name "Veritas" with an HD picture of his masked self.
"So many official government documentations. What more do you want, Miss Luna? Do not ask me to unmask, it’s Truth or Die, not Truth or Dare..."
Luna exhaled sharply through her nose. "I kind of walked right into that one. Fine. Where did you do your schooling?"
She was trying to find a thread, any small detail of his past that S.H.I.E.L.D. could use to trace his childhood or location to find out his real identity or civilian aliases he’s using.
Luke shrugged. "I never went to any. You see, my father didn’t have enough money to fund my schooling. An illiterate and ’dumb’ kid like myself had no use other than as an ashtray. That’s actually one of the reasons I’m here... to earn some savings for my future kids. Education is expensive, Miss Luna! I want them to go to Harvard."
Luna bit her lip.
She had heard from her older colleagues at the agency that for some unknown reason, even S.H.I.E.L.D.’s most advanced satellites and cyber-units couldn’t trace this man’s movements or figure out his identity.
Hearing his answer, she sighed internally. It was no use. He wasn’t going to give her any actual, concrete details that could be used to trace a digital footprint. And even if he lied, there was no way she could prove it here.
Despite his speech about fairness, the game felt entirely rigged.
However, as a rather new recruit, Luna desperately wanted to be useful. She wanted to contribute to taking this madman down. Asking mere factual questions wasn’t going to help. He wasn’t going to give anything away if she stuck to conventional interrogation tactics. She realized this fact after just two questions.
"You said you finally made a friend earlier," Luna said, completely switching her strategy. "Why couldn’t you make a friend before this?"
"Ooh, low blow, Miss Luna!" Veritas gasped, pressing a hand to his chest as if wounded. "You just wanted to hurt my feelings with your words, didn’t you? Cruel."
Luna just stared at him.
"Anyway, that’s a genuinely good question. And I will answer you truthfully," he said, leaning back in his chair. "The reason is pretty simple, actually. Perhaps due to the image of my family around the neighborhood, and also how I looked during that time... always covered in bruises and cigarette burns... the other mothers wouldn’t let their children hang out with me. And when I grew older..."
He raised his palm, letting a tiny, beautiful, multi-colored firework show spark and dance across his fingertips. "...everyone else just became afraid of me."
Veritas continued, his words sounding surprisingly sincere. "That’s the whole reason I thought you guys could be befriended in the first place! You guys looked at me without differentiating me from Batroc’s friends. You looked at me like I’m just another human. Just like yourselves."
Luna gazed at Veritas silently for a moment. For a split second, a tiny hint of pity flickered in her eyes.
She knew about him. She’d watched snippets of his previous broadcasts. She knew his story, or at least the version he told.
But she firmly refused to let his sad words distract her from her ultimate goal. After all, no matter what horrible circumstances he had to grow up with, his current, murderous actions were by no means justified.
For the remaining minutes of her turn, Luna kept asking him questions about his life, his likes, and his habits. Even if these details didn’t reveal his location, they would help S.H.I.E.L.D.’s profilers understand how his mind worked.
Through his surprisingly warm way of speaking and his bizarre answers, Luke earned a tinge of genuine sympathy from Luna at times, and an annoyed eyeroll at others.
Somehow, against all odds, he had actually managed to lighten the heavy tension in her mind, even if only by a fraction.
Beep. Beep. Beep.
A small timer on Veritas’s phone went off.
"Your 10 minutes are up, Miss Luna. Now then! " Veritas announced brightly, steepling his gloved hands together. "It is my turn to ask the questions, Miss Luna."
Luna stiffened. Her heart beat increased just a little bit, as now was when the game really began. Now, she was the one who was going to get judged or executed.
"First question," Veritas began, leaning forward with an almost childlike curiosity. "What’s your favorite ice cream? Do you even like ice cream?"
Luna blinked. She took a slow breath before replying to the incredibly ordinary question. "I do like ice cream. And my favorite is vanilla."
"Wow, really? Mine too!" he replied cheerfully. "Okay, next question. What are your hobbies?"
"I like to read sometimes," Luna replied cautiously. "And sometimes I sing, too."
"Ah. No. Freaking. Way." Veritas slapped his knee. "Are we twins or what? Okay, who’s your favorite singer? And don’t you dare say, Lana Del Rey."
Luna blinked again, "Yes... It is her."
Her brow furrowed. This... these questions were so incredibly ordinary. For some reason, she had expected a brutal, high-stakes interrogation scenario when he introduced a game called Truth or Die. Instead, she was getting middle-school icebreakers.
[Public Comments:]
[Marcus: such mundane questions...? Why? ]
[Blackened_heart: I wonder if he’s gonna kill her too? I’m worried. I don’t want another Patrick Sein situation. ]
[adorable_filter: if she only speaks the truth, then she doesn’t need to be afraid. Veritas already stated the rules. He won’t back down from his words... at least I think so. ]
[Nate: but what if he asks something like how many times she masturbates or something? will she lie? how would Veritas verify if she lied or not? How will he provide evidence in that case if she counters him?]
[Marcus: @Nate bruh ]
[Alice: Are you guys serious? This terrorist has already killed people. Luna’s live is in grave danger here. ]
[Will: I’m with the Jester of Terror and Truth, whatever he does. ]
[Eva: @Alice true, i really don’t understand why some people have started to act like cultist over a terrorist. ]
[ I_am_watching: Where do I show up for the veritas cult initiation 😊]
[ king_louis: hail veritas ]
[ Kaiser_der_Nacht: Hail! ]
[Dr. Frank: @Eva, @Alice Veritas killed Patrick Sein a literal monster. and even after Veritas put the lives of other hostages in grave danger several times and destroyed public property, the people ignore it simply because spider-woman saved them. it stops people’s guilt triggers and they allow themselves to praise his actions or support him without feeling morally wrong. Veritas is evil, but some people just haven’t realized it yet. Also, I’d like to add another thing, right now these guys are just trolling you. They’re not serious... ]
[perverious: @Nate the real question is will he show us that evidence as well? ]
[CaffeineWitch: creeps have invaded a terror stream huh...]
[Patron Comments:]
[Yeageristo: is this guy seriously still talking???? when is spider-woman coming? i want some tatakae!!]
[urANUS: i’m just glad he actually put an effort in the setup. I love that projector. ]
[enemies_to_Lovers_enjoyer: while I don’t understand what our boy is doing, I think he’s building up for something good. ]
[The Fool Fan: @enemies_to_Lovers_enjoyer exactly, you have brain cells after all. But there is something very familiar about this... this casual talk seems like a front to build the initial trust, and lower the mental and emotional guards of Luna’s mind. ]
[Cosmic_Johan_Leibert: @The Fool Fan you are correct ]
[The Fool Fan: @Cosmic_Johan_Leibert holy hell!! If you’re here and you actually bothered to comment. Then that means Luke got your interest as well. I’m sure of it now, what i think Luke’s doing to this girl is right... and now, I’m afraid for her fate. It’s somewhat like your style... back when you used to be a terror streamer as well!! ]
[Cosmic_Johan_Leibert: @The Fool Fan Not entirely. Right now, I’m unsure of the goal, and his method is completely different from mine. But I do think the opening strategy is somewhat similar - he’s lowering her mental guard by putting her through an emotional roller coaster. ]
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[ Somewhere in the Ocean’s Skies ]
A S.H.I.E.L.D. Quinjet cut through the clouds at hypersonic speeds, tearing across the sky to reach the Indian Ocean.
"They were sending up their last payload when pirates took them, exactly 75 minutes ago," Rumlow briefed.
Steve Rogers, fully clad in his Captain America uniform, stood with his arms crossed. "How many hostiles are we looking at?"
"27," Rumlow answered. "Top-tier mercs, led by two well known terrorists... first is Georges Batroc. Ex-DGSE, Action Division. Guy’s got a nasty rep for maximum casualties. And the second, of course... Veritas. I’m sure you’ve all heard of him by now. He’s making quite a name for himself."
Right on cue, from a monitor that played Veritas’s stream...
"Wow, really? Mine too!" Veritas’s cheerful, slightly distorted voice played over the live feed. "Okay, next question. What are your hobbies?"
"I like to read sometimes," a female hostage replied cautiously. "And sometimes I sing, too."
"Ah. No. Freaking. Way. Are we twins or what? Okay, who’s your favorite singer? And don’t you dare say Lana Del Rey."
Steve looked down at the tablet, his brow furrowing at the sheer absurdity of the situation.
"Well," Steve muttered, shaking his head. "He announces his arrival loudly enough. It’s obvious why he’s famous."
Natasha Romanoff, leaning casually against the bulkhead while checking her Widow’s Bite gauntlets, smirked. She shifted her gaze toward the newest, youngest addition to their team: the masked Spider-Woman.
"This one here knows him pretty well, doesn’t she?" Natasha teased, "I’m just wondering why he hasn’t called out for her yet."
Gwen Stacy, completely hidden behind her Spider-Woman mask, got flustered for a split second. But she quickly caught herself, letting out an exaggerated sigh to act as though the Black Widow’s teasing hadn’t gotten under her skin.
"What can I say? I just attract the creepy bunch."
Natasha noticed the slight flinch before Gwen’s response. Always hungry to figure out what made people tick, and looking for a little amusement to pass the flight time, she pressed on.
"So, how does it feel having your very own obsessive, masked stalker?" Natasha asked, a wicked glint in her eye. "Has the bad boy charm struck a chord yet, or are his efforts just a waste of time? Are you feeling a little jealous he’s out there making small talk with other women?"
"Uuuhhh..." Gwen recoiled, unsure what to say to allat.
"Knock it off, Nat. She’s a kid," Steve scolded gently, "And you’re treating an international threat like he’s a contestant on a dating show. This isn’t a joke."
Natasha just tilted her head, then, with a shrug, she continued, "It was just a harmless tease, Steve. Half the internet actually likes him, you know, and I just wanted to know her thoughts about him."
Steve sighed, "Yes, and that is exactly why he’s so dangerous. People don’t understand the threat yet. What he’s spreading is just propaganda... and I’ve seen something very similar back in Germany. Fought against his forces, too. Some people loved what that guy was doing at the start, as well."
Natasha rolled her eyes, a small, knowing smile on her lips. "Yeah, yeah, Captain America. We all know about big bad Mr. H..."
Natasha turned to Gwen, "And I’m most surprised by the fact that he knew about dating shows. He’s catching up fast." ƒreewebηoveℓ.com
Gwen snickered.
Steve ignored the remark, shifting instantly back into mission mode. frёewebηovel.cѳm
He looked around at the team. "Alright, here’s the plan. I’m gonna sweep the deck and find Batroc. Nat, you kill the engines and wait for instructions. Rumlow, you sweep AFT, find the hostages, get them to the life-pods, and get ’em out. And Spider-Woman... you engage with Veritas until STRIKE team gets the hostages to safety. I’ll join up with you after dealing with Batroc."
"STRIKE, you heard Cap," Rumlow barked, slapping the side of the bay door. "Gear up. ETA in 16 minutes."
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[Back in the Lemurian Star]
After Veritas began his questions with Luna, for the first 2 minutes, the conversation continued just like this—a set of completely ordinary, slice-of-life questions.
Luna began to wonder about his real motivation.
But then again, hadn’t he already stated what he wanted from the start? Even his previous acts of terrorism were motivated by the same reasons.
This twisted situation was just a broken kid’s way of forcing people to be his friends... She couldn’t help but frown at that, internally.
It was a heartbreaking thought. A mind so powerful and a person so dangerous, yet so desperate for a normal connection that he’d hijack a ship just to have a chat.
"Aww, really? Your little sister sounds like an absolute menace!" Veritas laughed as he listened to Luna’s reply about her family. He rested his chin on his hands. "Okay, tell me... what is your favorite childhood memory?"
Luna went quiet for a moment. Her mind traveled down memory lane, and despite the grim situation, a small, genuine smile formed on her face. The smile quickly turned slightly wry, filled with both nostalgia and longing.
"It was the day after my ninth birthday," Luna said softly. "My dad was already away for six months on deployment, but even after lots of earlier preparation, due to some travel issues, he was a day late for my birthday. And even after a full day of fun, making up for it, he went out for an hour and came back with Charlotte. She was probably the fluffiest dog in the entire world..."
"Oh. A dog." Veritas leaned back, sounding slightly unimpressed. "Not that big a fan. I haven’t ever had either, but cats are definitely cuter."
Luna’s brows furrowed deeply. If this were any ordinary situation, she would have been fully prepared to lecture him for a straight hour on exactly why dogs were genuinely better and cuter than cats.
It was a well-known fact around the office that she had successfully converted at least three hardened S.H.I.E.L.D. agents into "dog people" using this exact lecture. Her colleagues said that if there was a dog cult, then cheerful little Luna would be their conversion head.
"Anyway," Veritas continued, waving a hand. "Is Charlotte with you? Are fluffy dogs even allowed on covert ships?"
Luna’s eyes fell to the steel floor. The warmth in her voice vanished.
"Even if Charlotte was allowed on this ship, she couldn’t have come," Luna said quietly. "She died with my parents and my sister 8 years ago."
"...I’m sorry for your loss, Miss Luna," Veritas said quietly, his voice devoid of any of his earlier cheerfulness.
"You were just 14 then, right? That must have been incredibly hard. Losing your entire family at such a young age... I can relate to that kind of loneliness. But yours was a loving family. You... must have cried for days, didn’t you?"
"..."
Luna stared at Veritas, but she wasn’t seeing the white jester mask anymore. Her mind had slipped away, racing backward through time. Her chest began to heave as her breathing suddenly quickened.
"Hah... hah..."
In front of her eyes, there was no Veritas. Instead, she was staring at the smoking, blackened ruins of her childhood home. The fire engines and ambulances were still parked along the street, their flashing red and blue lights reflecting off the wet pavement.
It had been a few hours since the fire finally stopped, but only after turning everything she ever loved into ash.
A younger Luna, just 14 years old, stood frozen on the sidewalk. She could only stare at the wreckage of the place she had called home. A backpack hung on her shoulder.
"Luna! Oh my god, you’re here!" An older woman had come rushing from behind, throwing her arms around the girl.
It was Luna’s grandmother. She had driven three hours straight after hearing the news.
"It will be alright, my poor girl," her grandmother sobbed, tears streaming down her wrinkled cheeks. "I will take care of you, my Luna dear. Grandma’s here now. Grandma’s got you."
She hugged Luna fiercely, pulling the girl’s head against her chest, rocking her gently like she was still a small child. "My brave little baby girl. It’s going to be alright. I promise you, it’s going to be alright."
While Luna’s grandmother cried her heart out, Luna didn’t cry... She didn’t sob at all.
She just stood there in her grandmother’s arms, breathing quickly and loudly, as if she were drowning in open air.
Hah. Hah. Hah.
The vivid memory faded, and Luna forced her eyes to lock back onto the mask.
"No," Luna said, inhaling sharply as she forced her racing heart to slow down. "I... didn’t cry when they died."
Veritas paused for a bit...
"I see, people process grief differently," he replied simply.
He gave her a long, respectful moment of silence to collect herself before speaking up again.
"How did... they die?"
Luna exhaled a long, shaky breath and slowly closed her eyes, trying desperately to steady her racing heart.
"It was a house fire, Veritas," she said softly, looking down on the floor...
Veritas leaned back, his relaxed posture returning.
"That’s... a lie, Miss Luna."
Luna’s head snapped up. Her widened eyes stared at the unmoving white mask in absolute confusion and shock. "Wha... what did you say?"
"I said... your parents didn’t die in a house fire, Luna," Veritas replied, his voice chillingly calm. "Nor did your little sister. No, no... their deaths were not due to some tragic accident as you’ve believed for all these years. The house fire was just a convenient cover."
He leaned forward, his voice dropping to a low, heavy whisper. "Before the fire started, your little sister and your mother were tortured for hours right in front of your father’s eyes. Your father, too, wasn’t spared from the torture. And finally, they were all mercilessly killed together."
Luna fiercely shook her head, her breath hitching. "No... no, you’re lying! You’re just trying to mess with me—"
"I never lie, Luna... I’ll show you the proof."
The phone hovered right next to Veritas. He simply reached out and tapped the screen.
Behind him, the projector buzzed to life again. A video file opened up on the white wall, displaying a highly classified document header:
[Mission Report: 15 September 2005]
The video began to play. It started with a doorbell camera feed. Three men stood on a porch, ringing the bell. Luna’s mother opened the door, a warm smile on her face. The feed seamlessly switched to an internal hallway camera. Luna’s father walked into the frame, greeting the men warmly. They seemed to be friends... trusted colleagues.
However, the video didn’t show the faces of the three visitors clearly. Their features were heavily blurred out.
Luna’s eyes were glued to the screen, completely paralyzed by what she was seeing.
She didn’t even notice when Veritas casually got up from his seat and moved behind her. With gentle, almost polite movements, Luke angled her chair so she was facing the projector screen head-on.
Down the aisle, one of the older S.H.I.E.L.D. hostages suddenly panicked, realizing what video this was. He tried to shout, to interrupt somehow... but one of Batroc’s men instantly stepped forward and violently shoved the barrel of an assault rifle directly into the man’s mouth, silencing him.
The other 4 mercs aimed their guns straight at the other hostages... the message was clear. Speak and die.
On the screen, the video cut to the living room.
It was a nightmare. Her mother and eight-year-old sister were tied to wooden dining chairs. They were completely covered in blood, missing several of their fingers. Right now, one of the blurred men was raising a combat knife to cut the ears of her little sister.
The small girl was screaming in silent, muted horror.
Her father was on his knees, begging, sobbing, and pleading with them to stop. It looked as if he was entirely broken, ready to tell them everything they wanted to know—or perhaps, he already had.
But the first man didn’t stop his torture. The second man stepped forward and began to cut her mother. The third man sat calmly at the dining table, rapidly typing away on her father’s laptop.
"Haaa... no... no, no... this can’t be real," Luna whimpered, violently shaking her head.
On the screen, when the men finally got what they wanted, they executed her family. They callously stuffed their bodies into thick, black silicone body bags and began pouring gallons of petroleum all over the living room floor.
Veritas leaned down, his mouth right next to her ear.
"This is very, very real, Miss Luna. This is the absolute truth of what happened that day."
"Haa... haaa.... you’re lying! You’re lying... they couldn’t have suffered so much!" Luna’s chest heaved uncontrollably, her voice cracking into a desperate, agonizing sob.
When her house burned down eight years ago, her young mind simply couldn’t process the sudden, catastrophic loss. Perhaps, if her eyes had seen their bodies, even days later, her brain would have finally accepted the reality of their deaths.
But the authorities had told her that the bodies were nothing but ash and bones. The child was never even allowed to see them, not even their bones...
So, while she knew factually that her parents were gone, her mind had never truly processed the grief. The dam had been holding for eight years.
But seeing this... seeing the brutal reality... the dam finally had a crack... it was about to break.
After so many years, a single, heavy tear finally brimmed over her eyes.
But before it could roll down her cheeks, Veritas roughly placed a gloved finger under her chin, tilting her head up. The motion stopped the tear in its tracks.
"No. You don’t get to cry yet, Luna," he said firmly. He leaned down until his glaring white mask was just inches away from her face. "And even though you lost the game... I still have a couple of questions for you."
He lowered his hand. "Do you want to know the reason why your family was tortured and killed?"
Luna’s lips trembled violently. She couldn’t utter a single word, but she managed a weak, desperate nod of her head.
Luke reached down to her wrists. With a tiny, localized spark of heat from his fingertips, he melted the metal restraining her hands. The metal snapped and fell to the floor. He gently offered her his hand.
Luna, operating purely on autopilot, took it. He easily pulled her up to her feet and guided her toward the projector screen.
The video feed vanished, replaced by an official S.H.I.E.L.D. personnel profile. It belonged to her father.
"You might already know this, but just like you, your father worked as a S.H.I.E.L.D. tech personnel," Veritas explained, pacing slowly like a professor. "He was one of the most skilled people this organization had. He was kind, and he was righteous. But did you know he worked right here, on this exact same Lemurian Star vessel?"
The next image showed an old blueprint of the Lemurian Star, overlaid with schematics of a satellite. The image was dense with equations and technical notes.
"This satellite is crucial for several past and upcoming S.H.I.E.L.D. projects. It is especially significant for something called Project Insight," Veritas continued. "It collects data from cameras, digital networks, and all kinds of sensors all over the entire world. But your father... he observed something fundamentally wrong with it."
Veritas pointed at the screen. "He investigated. He found the proofs. But, tragically, he got careless. He informed a colleague about this, a trusted friend, and also his team lead... And then, along with two of his men, that trusted friend of your father’s paid your house a visit. They did what they did... to extract every scrap of information he had, and to eliminate everyone else he might have shared those details with."
Veritas slowly walked back to stand directly in front of her.
He looked down into her eyes. The bright, cheerful "sunshine" and that earlier fighting spirit that usually defined Luna Graham were completely gone.
In its place was something entirely different. Her eyes were bloodshot, widened, and filled with absolute, all-consuming rage. Her lips shivered. Her entire body was vibrating as her nervous system was completely overloaded with adrenaline.
"Luna..." Veritas gently took her right hand in his left. His voice dropped low, intimate, almost gentle. "Do you wish to know the names of your family’s torturers?"
He leaned in closer, his dark, hollow eyeholes boring into her soul.
"The ones who cut down your sister. Your mother. Piece by piece. Until they bled to death on the floor of their own home."
Luna’s reddened, tear-stained eyes darted up, locking fiercely onto the dark, hollow eyeholes of his Jester mask.
She gripped his hand tightly.
"Yes," Luna whispered, her voice cold as ice. "Show me, Veritas."
Veritas’s gloved finger tapped the phone screen once more. The slide changed.
An unblurred photograph of a middle-aged man with a neat haircut and a warm smile filled the wall.
Surrounding his ID photo, the horrific video clips continued to loop on silent playback.
There he was, using a combat knife on Luna’s mother.
There he was, pouring petroleum all over the living room.
And there he was, casually shoving her little sister’s body into a black silicone bag like it was just a bag of trash.
"...He’s... he’s Lucas..." Luna gasped, her eyes widening so far they looked like they might tear.
Lucas was her current team lead. For the past eight months, that man had been like a father figure to her—a kind mentor and a trusted friend.
And irony of ironies, that exact man was right here on this very ship, tied up with the other hostages.
The only difference was that he currently had a gun barrel shoved into his mouth. He was the very same older agent who had tried to panic and interrupt Veritas earlier, before Marcel shut him up.
"Marcel... bring Mr. Lucas West to the front," Veritas ordered, his voice returning to that cheerful, game-show host volume. "Stuff his mouth with something else, though. I don’t really want to hear his ugly begging voice..."
Veritas gently placed his palms on Luna’s shivering shoulders and turned her around to face the aisle. "You know this man, right, Luna? Your father knew him too. They were great friends, you know. He trusted him completely. And yet..."
Luke snaked one arm around her shoulder from behind, his voice turned into a heartfelt and emotional yell.
"...and yet, he didn’t think twice before torturing your sister, your mother, and your father, before mercilessly killing them in cold blood!"
Luna gritted her teeth. The sound of her molars grinding together was audible in the quiet room. She had bared her gritted teeth without realising... tears threatening to spill out of her eyes.
"This man doesn’t deserve to live, Luna," He continued with every ounce of emotion, "What he did to your family was just a tiny fraction of the horrible things he’s done his whole life."
He gently pressed a heavy handgun into her palms.
Luna’s grip locked around the cold steel. She didn’t wait for an order... she raised the weapon instantly, even as her arms shook under the crushing weight of the moment.
"Do it, Luna..."
The gun shook violently in her soft and gentle hands.
"This man actually enjoyed torturing your family. He enjoyed cutting little Emily apart, gained pleasure from her agonizing screams... and he did all of that even after your father had given everything he knew..." Veritas urged, twisting the psychological knife deeper. "This man didn’t do it because he was following orders, Luna. He relished the torture."
"Such monsters... don’t deserve to live with us."
Luna’s finger hovered directly on top of the cold metal trigger.
Lucas thrashed violently against the grip of Batroc’s men.
"Hmmmm! Hmmmmmh! Hmmmmm!"
A pathetic, muffled wail erupted from behind his gag as he stared up at the girl whose life he had shattered, his eyes brimming with a coward’s tears.
"End this monster... Luna. For what he did to you family... to your mother, to Emily." Veritas leaned in, his mask brushing against her hair as he poured venom directly into her ear.
"For all these years, without even knowing... you’ve suffered because of him..."
Luna breathed heavily, her chest heaving one last time, and then a twisted smile formed on her face—
Bang!
A single, deafening bullet left the barrel and went straight into the head of Lucas West.
The impact splattered blood and brain matter all over the immediate area.
Luna’s once-charming face was now completely smeared with his disgusting blood. Slowly, her small twisted smile curved upward to form a completely unhinged grin.
Her eyes had turned entirely dark, utterly devoid of any human emotion.
Veritas stood directly behind her, his hands resting on her shoulders. Even his white jester mask was no longer pristine; drops of blood slowly dripped down his mask...
Just a few feet in front of them stood a man.
Or rather, what was left of him.
A large portion of the man’s skull was completely gone, blown away by a bullet fired from the gun resting in Luna’s once soft, gentle hands.
(Image)
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So, yes so this chap was 5.3k words.
Whether you liked this chap or not its up to you, but this Chapter was basically 3 Chapter worth of words. And I want an appropriate praise for at least the effort I put in. So, I want 50+ Chapter comments telling me what you liked the most about this Chapter or the whole novel.
And another thing right now its 1109 Power stones. Make it reach 2000 power stone.
a few detailed reviews I can pin... 🙈
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