The Dreamer and the Deceiver (The Last Light Book 1) Read online

  Damn it. This wasn’t part of the plan.

  Conflicted with his brother’s resolve and his own emotions, Emil lowered his dagger to his side and stood idly as his brother commenced his course of action.

  The eldest was the first to go. Though Raphael begged Arius to stop, true to his word he showed no form of mercy. The blade sunk slowly into her abdomen, causing a splash of crimson to wash over her white night gown as she silently endured. Emil carefully studied the face of his brother which remained relatively unmoved by the act of atrocity he had committed. Blood poured from Elizabeth’s as the blade thrust deeper.

  As if the agony of killing your own flesh and blood wasn’t enough, in her final moments Arius released his hold on her, allowing her to mouth her final words, “Daddy… why?” The question rung through his ears as the blade that rested in her abdomen was extracted, creating an opening for her life force to fall to the floor. Her small body dropped to its side and fell, facing Emil, forcing him to look at her in her final moments as she struggled to bring air into her lungs.

  Next was his youngest; Sarah. She was killed in similar fashion; prematurely leaving the earth due to her father’s deeds. Together their blood pooled before Raphael’s feet as he stood, still forced to hold the sword which fed on innocent blood.

  “And now, for the final piece.” The purple hue to Arius’s eyes illuminated as Raphael forcibly turned his blade against himself, running the blade through his solar plexus. While his brother smiled in delight on finally accomplishing their long sought after revenge, Emil felt no pleasure in their deeds that day. The blood bath that he thought would give him closure instead plagued him with remorse for being part of his brother’s plan.

  “With his daughters dead with visible stab wounds and Raphael impaled by his own sword, given the recent passing of Lady Catherine the masses will assume that he lost his mind and killed his daughters and them himself.” The hue in Arius’s eyes returned to normal as he walked towards Emil, who was noticeably shaken. “Now that Raphael is out the way and our parents have been avenged, we can now begin to rebuild. As you know, the guards who were present that night have been taken care of or have died in battle.” Emil avoided eye contact with his brother as he spoke; only hanging his head down low in reverence of the innocent blood that was shed. “Right now you think that I lack compassion but be mindful that there are far more sinister things I could have made him do to his daughters before they left this earth.”

  Unwilling to waste time on consoling his brother, Arius placed his hood over his head and walked past Emil, leaving him alone in the room painted in red.

  Chapter 15: My Will Be Done

  5 Years Ago, Hours After Raphael’s Death

  The rain fell melodically, lightly taping against the forest trees and leaves on the way down to the forest floor. Outside from the light of the stars above and the lighting that separated the sky, the forest remained black. For some time, Emil drew on the inspiration of the night sky while his mind raced with empty thoughts. Arius was to the right of him, sleeping soundly, knowing that his brother was there to watch his back while he rested. A pang of guilt mixed with a sudden disgust ran through Emil’s gut when he thought about him. Knowing what he told him, knowing what he planned to do in the coming years he couldn’t help but feel the way he felt.

  Perhaps he told him too much. Perhaps he thought his brother would willingly stand aside and let him carry out his wishes. Emil didn’t care to know. The thought of what the world might be like according to his brother’s revelation was something he couldn’t begin to imagine. The death of their parents was a hurt they both shared and was a loss that neither of them should have faced.

  In the short time frame since their passing, Emil witnessed the transformation of his brother into only a vessel of hatred aiming to achieve his one goal. Blinded by his own emotions, Emil failed to recognize it until fate had already set its course.

  He’s too powerful…he’s twisted. He’ll do it and won’t stop at anything.

  His conscious buffered him as Emil watched his brother still resting peacefully. It was the anti-thesis of what he was now and what he sought to be. It wasn’t until recently that Emil had been afraid of his own brother. The onset of Arius’ powers and the change that accompanied them always kept him on guard. Emil was careful not to overstep or anger his sibling’s authority.

  The power he possessed was the power to bend one’s will. As Arius described it, it was the power of a god. In the beginning, it was weak; outside of the event of its awakening it was only able to instill suggestion over simple commands. Over time, the commands he gave grew more suggestive in unison with the darkening of his own heart.

  Only recently had Emil actually been afraid of his brother. He knew that on nights where he would scout for food he would practice his abilities. Being naïve, Emil only suspected it was for resources or intel until he witnessed one of Arius’ runs first hand by trailing him unnoticed. Ever since then, he remained quiet as his brother grew in power out of fear that he would end up like the others or worse; bended and broken to comply with his brother’s wishes.

  It’s now or never… Emil thought as he grabbed the boulder he noticed beforehand and gripped it in his palms. The chance to kill him was now; while he was at his weakest. Using his ability took a great amount of energy to manifest. On the way back from the assassination, Emil noticed that his stamina wasn’t at a level it should be. That was good thing. To his knowledge, Arius never used his power against another abnormal so anything to stack the odds in his favor was welcomed. Ending his life with a preemptive strike would be even better.

  With a silent sigh, Emil lifted the boulder above his head, but his brother’s intuition stirred him awake. Emil stood above him with the boulder in his hands, looking down at Arius, shocked that he had awakened.

  “I can’t say that I’m surprised.” The boulder that Emil held dropped to the ground beside him as Arius stood.

  “Arius… I had to. You’ve gone too far. Think of Mom and Dad. Would they want you to do this?”

  “How can you defend them knowing what they did to us? They stripped us of everything, they persecute us, and we are supposed to shake hands and play nice. This is beyond our family. This is for our people. We are deities. We are gods, but yet where are the rest of us? In hiding… but why? If we wanted to, we could reshape the world as we know it. I believe that others are out there, brother, and with their help I can change the world. No longer will we be under humans, but they will learn to respect us!” Emil backed away after noticing the anger that flashed in his brother’s eyes but still stood his ground.

  “You say it isn’t about our parents, but the only reason you’ve been pushed this far is because of them. What Raphael did was a mistake… everyone responsible for that is dead now. You said it yourself. We can rebuild now.”

  “Everyone except for the king himself. Don’t play ignorant, brother. He did what he did because he was afraid; afraid of you and the others that are in hiding. It seems that there are so few of us. Probably no more than fifty if I could throw a number out, but still they fear us. They fear us so much so that, to the general public, our feats are that of legend. As of right now, only a few know that the stories are true. Father only knew because of his rank. The rest of us knew because of you. If I can rally our brothers and sisters across the land, we can rise up and take back what is ours; the right to rule.”

  “But you’ll start a war!”

  “Perhaps that’s what I want. With the new reform in order, those humans will know exactly where they stand and our rule will go untested.”

  From around Emil, his aura began to grow as his energy began to aggregate around his body.

  “Don’t get tangled up in your emotions. You and I both know that peaceful words won’t change a thing. We are already labeled in the story books as monsters. Once it gets out to the general public what we are, we will have no other choice.”

  “You’re wrong… if we
can just show them that we’re normal people they’ll accept us.”

  “Right…just like how they accepted you with that warm welcoming at Mom and Dad’s expense. Save your strength and fight with me, not against me, brother. I need you for this. I need you by my side to make this world a better place.”

  “I… can’t. Arius, this isn’t right. I have to stop you. Please. I don’t want to hurt you.”

  A smirk arose on Arius’s face followed by a quick chuckle inspired by Emil’s resolve. “Though you are faster and stronger than me, you can’t harm me. The possibilities of what I can to you without even lifting a finger are endless. Also, the fact that you hesitated to kill me when you had the chance shows me that you lack the courage to do so even if you had to. You’re afraid of me. I can feel your fear even from here. Stand aside for I, on the contrary, wouldn’t hesitate to harm you if it is what I must do.”

  The aura around Emil’s body grew brighter and more intense as he focused the free floating energy into a focal point in his palm. Damn it. He’s given me no choice. Emil’s aura danced like fire as it encircled his body. The energy in his palm crackled as it poured out in excess, illuminating the surrounding area. I’m sorry. Emil rushed to close the gap between them, jutting out his hand aiming to pierce through his heart but stopped an inch from his chest. He got me!

  “As I said, you can’t harm me.” Emil averted his gaze from his brother’s chest and looked dead into his brother’s eyes, which resembled the same smokey hue of purple that they did before when he used his powers. “I’m impressed that you actually had the guts to go through with it. Had I not stopped you, you would have killed me, no doubt.”

  “But… how?” Emil asked as he struggled to resist the hold his brother had on him.

  “I simply spoke the command and enforced my will to it at the appropriate time, if that makes sense. Over the course of a normal conversation I can push cues or suggest certain actions without the other party even being aware. It comes in handy quite often. More than you know.”

  “So this whole time you’ve been using me?!” Emil struggled to gain control of his own body, moving only an inch of his own choosing. Arius noticed the change but seemed unimpressed.

  “No… I never used my powers on you until this moment. Everything you have done up to this point has been of your own doing. You call me sick, but remember until recently we walked the same path.,” he responded nonchalantly.

  “Lies!” Emil said as he struggled desperately to regain control. “You manipulated me! You messed with my mind!”

  “Believe what you wish. I’m telling the truth. You are just as savage as me, little brother.”

  “Arius!” A flow of energy rushed over Emil as he continued to try to break free from his brother’s grip.

  “Stop.” Arius said calmly. “On your knees.”

  Against his will, Emil forcefully sat on his knees as the aura around him faded away. Damn it. I can’t move anymore.

  “Emil… I love you. This was never what I intended but you just tried to take my life. For that I can’t forgive you. Nothing will ever be the same. In this world you were all that I had left, my brother… my only friend. I wanted to build a new world with you but it seems that we don’t share the same views.”

  “Arius, stop it. Listen to yourself!”

  “See this as my final act of kindness on your behalf. After this moment, I no longer see you as family.”

  “Arius!”

  “After I walk ten steps away from my current position, the left hand that you have extended towards me… use your other hand to break your fingers one by one.”

  “Arius, please!”

  “After that you will be free to do whatever you wish. But do note that the next time I see you; I won’t hesitate to kill you. I’m going now. You can take father’s sword as well as the other supplies at this camp. If anything, The Guard would want you rather than me.” Arius turned his back to his brother and began to walk away from him, ignoring his pleas for forgiveness that grew more desperate with every step that he took. After the tenth step, Emil’s hand shakily moved towards his pointer finger.

  “No… no… no!” Emil yelled hysterically as he tried to best to override the commands that were issued to his body. “You can’t do this to me, make it stop! Arius!” His right hand gripped his finger and began to slowly pull back on it, momentarily stopping at the point of tension before thrusting backwards. Writhing in pain, Emil let out a scream that echoed through the forest as he watched his right hand move towards his next finger. “Ahh!” His hand pushed back on his middle finger in the same fashion, snapping the bone back and tearing the ends that attached it to his knuckle. “Arius! Stop! Please!” Emil wailed as he called out to his brother.

  Arius stopped momentarily and looked upon his brother who was now exhausted and drained from the pain. His left hand wearily shock as it hung rigid from his body, extended with two of his fingers bent out of proportion. “Please, Arius…” Emil whispered softly. “I’ve learned. I’m sorry.”

  “No, you haven’t.” A rush of purple briefly flooded Arius’s irises as he forced Emil to break his next finger. “If I let down my guard you would have killed me the moment you were able. We both know that.” Arius looked on with no emotion as his brother bellowed against the rain fall, unmoved as if the rain dulled his connection to the outside world. “If you value your life, don’t go after me,” he said in between his brothers screams. “You and I both know that I can do much worse than this.” A sharp crack emitted from Emil’s hand as another finger broke. “So don’t stand in my way.”

  “Gah!!!”

  “This was only a lesson. A foreshadowing of what is to come if you defy me ever again, brother. We were once family, but you severed the bonds that held us together.”

  “Ahhhh!”

  The last of Emil’s fingers broke, releasing the hold Arius held over him. His body fell forward, causing him to fall face first into the ground, broken and beaten. His body thrashed as he tried to subdue the pain that coursed through his body. In a mix of rage, frustration, and agony, Emil grew sick and vomited on the leaves beside him. He incoherently moaned to his brother who had turned away from him, leaving him to fend for himself in the woods alone.

  In a world that would soon be plunged into darkness, he knew he would one day have to stand against his brother as the last light.

  THE END

  If you enjoyed this book and want to hear about future releases by me, you can email me at [email protected] to sign up for my mailing list. I got some crazy ideas for Emil and crew (plus other stories I’m dying to get out! Oh, and I love fan mail!)

  The Last Light Book 2: All Things Eternal

  Available Now!

  P.S! Teaser of Book 2 in the Coming Pages!

  A Note to the Reader

  I want to take the time to thank you reading my story. I’m an independent author so having my work read by even one person is a step forward in chasing my dream. That being said, if you enjoyed this story, please take the time to spread the word on social media or to your friends. It would mean the world to me if you were to write a review for the book from whatever outlet you purchased it from. Hopefully your words can inspire others to take a chance on my work and cause them to experience the same emotions you felt while reading.

  Thanks again!

  About The Last Light

  At its purest, The Last Light (as a series) is a story about an idealist who is robbed of a life he once thought possible by members of society who have deceived the majority into thinking less of a certain people group by fables, lies, and speculation. Emil wants to bring reform to this way of thinking through peaceful measures but only after his era of suffering in silence comes to a close. Often times in our lives, the greatest evils go unnoticed because we fail to speak up or act on what we believe in. In book 1, Emil’s story is so only because he was forced to act and thus break from the passive lifestyle he came to adopt. As you know, with th
e way things have been going, Emil now no longer idly waits but instead seeks to counteract against an evil that has long since been in the making.

  This story came to me, believe it or not, as a childhood dream. It was an idea that I came up with but later abandoned only to pick it up again later in life. Thank you for taking the time to read my work. Hopefully it is as enjoyable for you to read as it is for me to write.

  About the Author

  Alex Villavasso was born and raised in Louisiana where he first found his love for fiction, reading through the summer months. When he is not working on getting his thoughts out his head, Alex can be found doing things that everyone tends to do, like sleeping, catching up with friends, and spending ungodly amounts of time on Netflix.

  Contact Alex @[email protected]

  Cover done by Scarlett Rugers

  Illustration done by Michelle Lockamy

  The Last Light Book 2: All Things Eternal

  Not long after swearing a vow for revenge against his brother, Emil finds himself aligned with others who also wish to see the king's rule put to an end. Omari, an Abnormal skilled in teleportation, his sister Skye, another Abnormal blessed with the ability of restoration and perception, and Marona, the quirky inventor who first saved his life in the forest near Nerai. Together, they join forces in an attempt to undermine the king's hold on the people of Everrmore, Omari and Skye's home.

  The mission was simple. Rescue the falsely accused man who the Vanguard set to be publicly executed and rally the people against the king. But with the appearance of another Abnormal--a rouge separate from Legion, the city of Everrmore quickly plunges into chaos unlike ever before.