"H-how did you…"
That was all Crane was able to utter before he found himself on his knees under the force of his father's grip on his shoulder. He felt his bones getting crushed in his fist. A low groan left his mouth as he held the urge to scream in agony.
"Do you think that you can go and wag your tail around without me knowing, Crane?" Shaw growled slowly, emphasizing every word slowly giving it time to sink deep into Crane's flesh. "You do realize the gravity of what's going on, don't you?"
He knew. Why else would he have gone to such lengths if he didn't know!?
Orathan wasn't just a demon from hell; he was the prince of darkness. His brother was out of his damned mind to try and summon something like this into his mortal body.
"I-I do…"
"And still you thought that sending the only two successful test subjects would do the trick?" He snorted. "A shame that a member of the Gotham doesn't know the weight of the name Orathan."
"I'm sorry…I apologize…I-I had to do something!" Crane breathed out.
The grip only tightened on his shoulder, causing him to yelp in pain. He could swear that this time he heard something crack inside.
"Silence," Shaw growled. "I shouldn't have given you this position in the first place. Send me everything that you know about that boy and everything you have on the situation so far – the situation that you messed up."
"H-his name is,"
He yelped in pain.
"I don't want to hear anything from your disgusting mouth," said Shaw. "Just the sight of you makes me sick. Leave."
Crane had no power to argue or cause him to repeat himself. He bowed and left the room, thankful that he was alive with only a fractured shoulder. He thought the worst could have happened to him, but he figured that his father would be busy taking care of the mess that his brother was responsible for – he only added to the mess.
What he couldn't get out of his mind was how powerful that boy, Elfric that he wiped out Ash. Ash was known to be the most powerful member man in their ranks, and now he was smashed with no effort at all. The thought that all of his men's power combined was nothing against him was…terrifying.
"M-My Lord!!" Zeph exclaimed the moment Crane appeared through the cracked door. "Are you alright!?"
"Could have gone worse," Crane sighed as he allowed his man to support him to the car, carefully helping him inside. "Call a doctor to meet me at my office, no hospitals."
Zeph nodded. "Yes, My Lord," said he as he hurried to the driver's seat.
Glancing back in the rearview mirror, he could see that his master had taken quite the hit. Ironic, really, just a couple of hours ago the roles were switched with Zeph in his place. It all made the system seem scarier, a loop that will never get undone.
Everyone had someone whose superior, someone who threatens your existence. And it was now clear to him that Crane was no different. He tried to stabilize his hand on the wheel but he couldn't stop them from shaking.
The image of that white-haired boy standing tall and towering over Ash as he bled to his death. Never has he seen a human emit the power that he witnessed back then. Crane never got to witness what he saw; there were no records in any CCTV, they were all broken by the time he got to them. All Crane knows is what Zeph told him.
"A devil in human shape," Zeph told him back then at the office.
His grip tightened on the wheel as he shrugged his shoulders.
"I can only imagine what you saw that would make your hands shake, Zeph,"
"H-Huh?" Zeph stuttered as he glanced at Crane through the mirror.
"W-what I bore to witness My Lord was…was something I didn't think a human could be able to do. I saw power flooding out of him with every step that he took. I..."
"I believe that he can even be a match to Lord Shaw."
Crane chuckled. "Can't be serious," he said.
"I'm sure that the time will one day understand what I am talking about, My Lord," said Zeph. Before Crane could reply, he pulled over at the front entrance of the Gotham tower.
Something was off…
"My Lord…" said Zeph, his attention focused on the dead, silent building. "Please wait here."
Crane was too tired to argue, but his brain was still working fine; he could see what Zeph saw. Something was wrong. The lights inside the lobby of the ground floor were switched off when it was supposed to be and turned on at this time of night.
Minute, and then another, and another. Zeph went in and never returned. Crane started to feel stuffed and anxious.
What was taking him so long?! He thought. He took a deep breath and opened the car's door with his good arm. It couldn't get worse than this, could it?
He halted in front of the glass entrance, seeing nothing inside other than dim darkness. He continued inside, instantly covering his nose from the stinky smell.
Death. All around him, he could smell death. He placed a hand over his pocket and didn't know if he should be thankful that he had his phone on him or not but he took it out anyways.
The second the flashlight illuminated the interior, he almost puked.
Blood.
On the walls, the tiled floor. Bodies of his men laying around like dead insects.
"Oh my god…"
This might have been the first time that Crane has ever asked the Gods for help. But this time…it seemed like it was his only option. Since the devil seems to be his opponent.
"And here I thought that I would have to go and drag you out of your car myself, Crane Gotham."