~Ethan Mckenzy~

Drake and his team returned to the mansion after their failed attempt to close the netherworld gate. He immediately called for a meeting with Clem and the research team, together with the SBGs at the hidden library, to discuss what matters most.

Drake, together with Alex, Mike, and the remaining SBGs, were met by Clem as they entered the doorway and were introduced to someone.

“Drake, I would like you to meet Ms. Hariet Mcbride, the leader of our research team.” Alex introduced Hattie to Drake.

“Nice to finally meet you, Hattie.” Drake greeted with a handshake. “Thank you and to your team's hard work and great job on finding out the previous demon’s weakness and how to defeat it. It really helps a lot.” Drake greeted.

“You’re welcome. We are glad and honored for your humble praises, sir. We will do our best to contribute more in your upcoming fights, sir.” Hattie replied.

“Hoping for the best. Your team is highly significant for us to win this battle.” Drake commended.

They then move to the guardians' table to start and discuss the important matters.

“Everyone, as we all know, we had a success on defeating a demon yesterday. Thanks to the great effort that our research team had made. Also, thanks to our brave heroes, may I call them, namely Al, my sister, my friend Mike, and Lez, who couldn’t be here with us today for some reason. If not for them, we don’t know what that demon might have done by now. It took already six innocent lives in the process, and we don’t want that to increase more and prevent it from happening again if we could. Unfortunately, our attempt to close the netherworld gate has failed; thanks also to the SBG team for the support. Now, we have already forwarded to research the gathered information we have earlier from the site. And according to our assumptions, we do have another demon problem to solve. Based on the book, the demon is known to be Leviathan, the demon of Envy. Research team, I really hate to put too much on your plate, but we need your support upon knowing; First: how often do these demons come out from the gate, or can they come out all at once or just one by one?” Drake’s speech and the first question were halted by Hattie raising her hand to say something.

“Yeah, Hattie?” Drake acknowledged Hattie to proceed with her matters.

“Actually, sir, we just had acquired the answer to your first question lately. According to the books, the data we all gathered and the information you shared made us arrive at our conclusion. A demon can only come out from the gate every three days. It is due to the compartmentalization of the barrier that the Legendary Protector created in each demon trapped inside. It was fully intentional to avoid the unity of those demons that may overpower the barrier, cause a sudden breakage, and result in their freedom. When the Lock and Key crossed their path, they created a leakage to the barriers power source. Due to the declining power from the source, it is designed to release one by one the demons inside to maintain the remaining power to the remaining demons who are still trapped and uphold them; rather than maintaining all demons from the less effective barrier that could cause of their sudden freedom all at once. In which the barrier would last only up to 18 days before releasing the final seventh demon.” Hattie thoroughly explained the mechanics of the demons coming out from the gate.

“Wow! That’s great information to know, Hattie. So every three days, that means the demon Leviathan was released yesterday evening, and the next one would be released…. what day is it today?” Drake asked everyone as he opened his calendar on his phone.

“Thursday! 16th of September, 2021.” Mike completely answered.

“So the next one would be on Saturday, September 18, 2021, in the evening.” Drake estimated based on his calculations.

“Wait! How’d you know it would be in the evening, bro?” Mike curiously asked.

“Because that would be the exact time that Lez and I had our first kiss.” Drake clearly explained.

Mike couldn’t get it at first, for he hasn’t been informed that Drake and Lez are the Lock and Key.

“Wait! Then that means….” Mike's eyes widened as now he got what Drake wanted to mean.

“Yes, I’m the Lock, and Lez is the Key,” Drake confirmed it to Mike, and now everyone in the room knows.

“Poof!” Mike shows a gesture of mind blown. “I thought that the things from your toys are the lock and key. Wow! Now I get it. Crossing equals the kiss. Yeah, but how’d you know for sure that crossing is equal to kiss and not the actual…. you know.” Mike teasingly asked.

“Because, Mike, demon Linda already appeared when Lez and I did it.” Drake slipped out from his mouth.

“Oh! So you really did it, huh?” Mike grinned as he teased his best friend while everyone softly laughed.

“Shut up, Mike, you asshole!” Drake was kind of a little bit pissed at Mike but instead laughed for his mistake for falling from Mike’s trick.

“Let’s forget all about what I said recently and proceed to the next in which, Hattie thank you and your team for obtaining the answers to our first question. But the second question would be, how would we able to know what demon comes out next?” Drake looked at Hattie and waited for her answers.

“Well, we haven’t properly arrived on any conclusions about that yet, and we haven’t found answers from the books that we read or on any searches we found either. But, according to Mr. Douglas’ information that he had given to us, going clockwise, the sequence of the demon symbol from the picture would appear to be Pride, Greed, Lust, Envy, Gluttony, Wrath, and lastly, Sloth. We already encountered the demon Lust and will be facing Envy next, so we can now assume that our next demon encounter would be Gluttony, but we would not one hundred percent support the notion until proven.” Hattie answered.

“Okay, it doesn’t matter as long as we have answers for the 3rd question, which is a weakness or how to defeat a specific demon?” Drake eagerly wanted to know.

“For now, we haven’t fully known the entirety of each demon’s weakness, sir. But we found out three out of seven demons’ weaknesses. One is the previous demon lust which is water, the second would be the demon we’re going to face this time which is Envy and his weak against electricity, and the third one would be the demon of wrath, which is weak against light.” Hattie answered.

“You mean we already have a way to defeat our next demon at hand? That’s great!” Al commented whose so excited to face their next demon.

“Don’t mean to be rude, ma’am, yes we do have the way, but still, we don’t have the means nor plan on how to electrocute the demon envy.” Hattie inserted.

“Plus, we don’t know where it is right now or knows if it already found its host to possess.” Drake deeply thought.

“By the way, sir, about the thing that you wanted to know about the Keys weakness. We already acquired the answers for it.” Hattie happily gave Drake the news as she softly said to him.

“Really? That’s good. What would it be?” Drake was excited to know so that they could prepare to counteract whatever its effect. They gathered as a small group for a moment together with Mike and Al to make it confidential.

“It said on the book that a dark glass made from a volcano bathed with blood from an only child was used by the ancient guardians to destroy the key.” Hattie gave the translated words from the book.

“Dark glass made from a volcano? Hm, yeah, I remembered Chris’ quick draw knife used to be black. Could it be obsidian?” Drake guessed because that would be the closest answer to their question.

“That’s what we thought so, too, sir.” Hattie agreed to Drake's assumption.

“But bathed with the blood of an only child. Mike? Is Chris an only child?” Drake asked Mike.

“I guess so. But we could ask at school to confirm.” Mike suggested having concrete evidence.

“I guess we will have to ask that tomorrow when we return to school. But anyhow, thank you for that info, Hattie.” Drake gladly said.

“One more thing, sir, the book said that the obsidian blade did destroy the key but also said that it failed to erase it,” Hattie added.

“What? It did destroy the key but failed to erase it? What does that mean?” Drake wondered but could never come up with an idea for a moment.

“Hattie, just continue searching for the answer to that question we had. For now, we have to deal with the loose demon first. Has anyone had a better plan? Any good ideas, guys?” Drake asked, looking at the SBGs.

“The best I could think of is a stun gun, sir. Somehow, if we could manage to create something handy but powerful than a normal stun gun, then that would be a great help on our fight.” Jef suggested.

“That would be so cool to have.” Mike is getting excited to have a weapon for himself.

“I think we can approach our best mechanics to build us something like that, sir. I’ll go and inform them so that they can start immediately.” Clem suggested.

“That would be good, Clem.” Alex complimented as Clem went out.

“But we can’t finalize any offensive tactics due to lack of information on both location and identification of our target. So the best thing we could do for now is to defend what matters most.” Ethan expertly advised.

“Yeah, that would be the best action we should do for now. That is why I decided to move the remaining SBGs to Lez’s area.” Drake commanded his remaining personnel to move and protect Lez and her parents instead.

“But Drake, you won’t have any backup in case the demon might target you.” Al is showing concern for her younger brother.

“It’s okay, Al, and I can handle myself, and I can avoid any danger if I want to. Besides, they need protection the most, for they will be the main target by the demon.” Drake confidently said.

“Okay! It’s your decision.” Al agreed to Drake's final decision.

“Jef, Nicole, Ethan. Proceed directly to Lez’s area, and protect her at all cost.” Drake said as they started to move out. “And Ethan,” as Ethan halted his steps and looked back at Drake. “I’ll put all my trust in you.” Drake honestly said with a smile, for he believes in his respected character ‘Ghost Blade’.

“You can count on me, sir,” Ethan replied and smiled back at him. But when he turned his head unseen to them, a sinister smile appeared.

………………………………………………………………………………..

Taking back to the scene where the group was investigating the circle on the maple tree, Alex asked Ethan to grab her bag inside the car, and he heard a strange voice.

“Ethan!!!” a voice was suddenly heard by Ethan as he was about to grab the bag from the car.

“Who’s there?!?” Ethan shouted as he drew his gun and pointed it anywhere as he searched for someone who called his name.

“I know who you really are, Ethan.” The demon Leviathan was having a conversation inside Ethan’s head.

“Show yourself?” Ethan asked as his whole view turned dark.

“I know your past, Ethan. Your real past.” The demon could read the mind of its target host; it can see its past and previous memories to know its host deeply inside.

The demon showed Ethan his past with his team, which comprises six personnel and all Ethan’s friends, the Phantom SEAL. His best friend Murphy has a lovely fiancé, Laura, and should be married after completing their next mission. Ethan envied Murphy for having a fabulous woman in his life, and he longed to be him and have her then. He always had a dream with her that they had such an excellent relationship and had sex every night. He could not bear to have her only in his dreams; that’s why evil struck inside his mind.

On the day of their mission, their team was tasked to rescue the defense secretary’s daughter. She got kidnapped by an international terrorist and brought to a cargo ship outside the country in the middle of the ocean. Their strategy ran smoothly and swiftly as they executed everything according to plan but not until Ethan executed his own.

His teammates are already on their post, and Ethan with Murphy was the one to retrieve the target safely. Once they reached and freed the target and were about to have their unnoticed escape, Ethan intentionally shot an enemy guard that alarmed them all and rushed towards their location. Murphy posted to gun down the incoming enemies while Ethan brought their target to safety. Unnoticed by the target as she ran away, Ethan locked the door behind him, with his best friend Murphy inside, trapped. Murphy ran towards the door as he got multiple shots all over his body while watching Ethan through a small window, staring back at him while walking away. They reached where their friends were posted and asked him what happened and where is their friend Murphy, but he answered nothing and just shook his head and walked forward. Murphy was supposed to be the only casualty on that mission, but his friends decided to save Murphy for they did not believe Ethan’s words that he was dead. Ethan secured the target first and called for a helicopter evacuation. The helicopter arrived, and Ethan secured their mission target, but his friends hadn’t returned yet. He had a change of heart and ordered the pilot to stay for a while to wait for his team. He managed to see three of them and tried to save them by gunning at the enemies while they ran towards him but ended in watching them fall one by one. Ethan got shot on his left leg but managed to get on board inside the helicopter and escape.

Ethan reported that one of the enemy guards spotted them and was about to snipe their mission target personnel to rescue. That made him shoot first, which caused the panic of the surrounding enemy and sound the alarm. Ethan received honor and glory but acted as if he was tormenting the happening that led to the team's dissolution and his opt-out from the government.

Laura got devastated by the happening, but Ethan was there for her all the time. Ethan managed to replace Murphy inside Laura's heart.

Ethan was finally happy upon getting what he wanted and was about to marry her after less than a year, the incident happened. But not until the night when Ethan went out with Laura for a night out with their friends. They returned home to Laura’s apartment with Ethan, heavily drunk and almost passed out but was murmuring something. Laura heard the real story that Ethan murmured that night, and it got her greatly devastated for the happening. The following day, Ethan woke up in the bedroom with Laura hanging from the ceiling in front of him.

“No! Get away from me! You monster!” Ethan shouted.

“I am not a monster; you are.” The demon sniffed Ethan's desire.

“Who are you?” Ethan dreadfully asked.

“I am the answer to all your desire.” The demon suddenly showed him the scene where Drake and Lez arrived at the mansion gate. Lez got down from Drake’s bike and removed her helmet off. The moment that Ethan could not take his eyes out of her, for he got mesmerized by her stunning beauty.

“Holy damn fuck! I want to taste this girl. I wish I could be this man beside her and fuck her all night.” Ethan said inside his head.

“You want her so bad that you wish you could be you him (Drake) and make his woman yours am I right?” the demon could read the mind of his target host and smell his desire and use it to entice him and accept his deal.

“Yes! I wish I were him. To have his money and woman for my own pleasure.” Ethan replied.

“How about this one?” the demon showed him the scene where Alex hugged him at the mansion gate.

“Yes!!! I want her too. Those soft ravishing breasts and gorgeous bodies won’t let me forget the feeling as it touches my chest. I want to feel that again.” Ethan showed his most intimate desire to have all he wanted that the other person had.

“I know, that’s why you keep peeking in the car as the black man noticed what you are doing.” The demon showed Ethan the scene where he keeps peeking at Alex’s boobs, making Mike pissed at him.

“God damn these gorgeous fuckin’ ladies. Fuck these rich men! They can always get what they want. Money! Women! Everything! I want everything this man has and make it mine. I’d love to kill just to have those.” Ethan sinisterly smiled.

“Then all you have to do is accept me.” The demon pledged the deal to Ethan.

“I accept!” Ethan became the host of the demon of Envy, Leviathan, as the scene went black and returned to the present, where Ethan made a sinister smile and walked out of the hidden library to carry Drake’s order to protect Lez.

All this time, Ethan was just pretending to be on their side.

END OF CHAPTER 15