Page 70 of The Misplaced Warrior

She felt Bellumferrum warm in her hand. It was about to transform. She didn’t know what it would become, but believed it would stop her enemy. Hopefully knock him out or tie him up so that she could cart him away.

“Well, it’s over now,” Gen said with confidence. “I’ve taken down your transmitters, your virtual reality and I have evidence indicting you. Also, I have you surrounded, so surrender or otherwise you’re going to get hurt.”

“Actually, you’re who it’s over for.” In a flash, Charlie Sloane pulled a gun from the desk in front of him, hidden behind a monitor. He lifted it into the air and pointed it straight at Gen, seconds away from firing it at her and she was defenseless to stop the attack.

CHAPTER SIXTY-THREE

A FATAL MISSTEP

Oceanwide Plaza Tower 1, Downtown Los Angeles, California, United States

What happened next was a series of chaotic and quick events, almost too fast to process.

Bellumferrum instantly transformed into something large and imposing. Emperor roared from the side of the building a distance away, but with a clear shot. Charlie Sloane pulled the trigger of the gun, firing straight at Gen.

But Bellumferrum had become a bulletproof shield. The shot hit it straight on, knocking Gen back from the force, and was deflected from the projectile object.

Shocked by the strange display, Charlie hesitated, a look of confusion on his face.

Emperor, enraged by this, shot a neat bit of fire across the floor, straight at the Commissioner. It didn’t quite hit the man, but it was enough to throw him off balance, darting far to the side, closer to the exposed other end of the building.

Gen, looking for a way to disarm the coward with the gun, pulled back the large shield in her hands and flung it at Charlie.

It did the trick and he jumped back again, dropping his weapon. It skidded forward in Gen’s direction as he threw up his hands, trying to avoid getting hit from the large object.

Gen pulled back her foot and kicked the gun the opposite direction, away from Charlie. It slid through the now dissipating fire from Emperor and then to the far side of the open floor.

The dragon still hovered on the other end of the corner, but his gaze looked full of confusion when Gen glanced at him. She followed his gaze back to Charlie standing on the other side of the corner of the open floor.

The Commissioner’s hands were up in surrender, but he wasn’t looking at Gen or the dragon. His gaze was directly on a cobra snake perched in front of him on the floor. Gen was instantly confused, not understanding where the serpent had come from. She searched the strange space, looking for the shield or cube of Bellumferrum. That’s when she realized that the Weapon of War was the snake, its forked tongue flicking from its mouth as it hissed.

“Do something,” Charlie Sloane urged to Gen as he took a step backward, closer to the unguarded edge.

Before she could say anything, do something, make a command, the cobra struck, darting forward. The long teeth of the black snake stuck into the Commissioner’s ankle, biting him hard. His face transformed into one of shock and violent pain.

Charlie Sloane howled loudly. Rocked backward. Grabbed his leg as the snake released him. And then he teetered backward, lost his balance and it was too late to stop what happened next.

The Commissioner of Los Angeles fell backwards, over the unprotected edge of the open building, falling over fifty stories to the ground below—dead.

CHAPTER SIXTY-FOUR

THE NECESSITY OF DEATH

Oceanwide Plaza Tower 1, Downtown Los Angeles, California, United States

For a long moment, Gen simply stared over the side of the building, careful to keep a safe distance from the edge. The wind whipped around her, like it was trying to lure her into the same fate as Charlie Sloane. However, her dragon was close by, having come around to that side of the corner of the building, and she knew that Emperor would always save her.

“What happened?” Gen asked in awe, looking down at the pavement where the man’s body lay, broken and dead. Then her gaze darted to the black cube which moments prior had been a deadly cobra. “Why did Bellumferrum kill him?”

“Because you couldn’t,” Emperor answered, hovering in place with just a slight movement of his wings. “Because you wouldn’t.”

“That’s because I didn’t want that blood on my hands,” Gen argued.

“And now you don’t have it,” Emperor stated wisely. “Charlie Sloane fell. That’s how he died and you had no part of it.”

“But…” She walked over, picking up Bellumferrum, not at all fearing that it would become something that could harm her like a deadly animal. “Why?”

“I believe,” Emperor began in a low, rumbling voice, “that Bellumferrum knew that what Charlie Sloane said was correct. If you would have put him in prison, he’d simply find a way out. He was very connected, as you are aware, based on how he got his position. And your intention to Bellumferrum was to stop Charlie Sloane, but you didn’t want to kill him.”

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