Chereads / No Beginning No End:The Test / Chapter 18 - The only girl who scared the devil

Chapter 18 - The only girl who scared the devil

Stal climbed the mount of bodies inside the hangar; he was soaked in blood. He tried to lick a bit of the blood encircling his mouth, but the moment he tasted it, he immediately spat it out in disgust. Stal said, "As expected, the taste is terrible, yet I must admit there was a peculiar satisfaction in tasting it, and not just nauseating."

He raised his palm towards his face, starting to lick the blood that coated it. The mix of feelings within him—a strange combination of disgust and satisfaction—manifested as an almost drunken sway in his movement, causing him to walk as if dancing as he spoke to Diber.

Stal blurted out, laughing and swaying like a drunken man, he said to Diber, "You've got to try this feeling, David... I mean, Diber. But why on earth didn't you fight like this before? You could have killed them all. Let me guess... you wanted to die, right? Or perhaps you just wanted a good beating? Anyways, it doesn't matter because both situations are going to happen now." The laughter continued, "Oh, I will give you one chance before we fight. I swear, you really have to try this feeling." He would close his eyes occasionally while looking at the sky, his pupils dilated wildly.

From above, one could witness Stal's face smiling, an ecstatic smile that seemed to go beyond mere satisfaction, as if he crossed into the realm of madness. The blood trickling into his mouth and staining his teeth, only served to add to the insanity of his expression.

Stal was suddenly interrupted as he responded to Diber, "I felt alive," he muttered. He was confused, unsure of the exact question to which he was replying. He was nearly drunk now.

As he stood quietly and observed Stal, Diber watched him as if he were witnessing an odd or extraordinary sight. His face remained expressionless, giving no reaction or hint of his true emotions. He patiently stood in place and expectedly watched for Stal's arrival, but it seemed that Stal was deliberately delaying it by taking lengthy, roundabout routes.

Stal wished for the moment to carry on, his desire went unfulfilled as Diber suddenly rushed towards him, grabbed him by the neck, and lifted him effortlessly, as if he were as light as a feather. This abrupt action jolted Stal back to consciousness, and he quickly drew his gun and fired a shot at Diber's face. In a lightning-fast reflex, Diber dodged the shot aimed at him, only getting a scratch on the left side of his face. With a swift movement, he snatched the gun from Stal, preventing him from shooting another again. Diber then tossed the gun onto the ground.

"Listen closely, boy," Diber spoke to Stal, "before you lose your consciousness. I won't kill you. I'll leave you on the street in a trash can - a much more fitting place for you. When you gain consciousness, tell the others that Steve attacked us and killed everyone, but he only spared you to deliver a message. Warn them to stop getting on his nerves, or they'll meet the same fate as David and the rest. It's for your own good, too. I'm sure you can't admit to having eliminated most of these soldiers. Make up a tale that aligns with this scenario and relay it to the group."

"Deception and lying have become the controllers of our world nowadays. Using them is no big deal." And with that, those were the final words Stal heard before falling into unconsciousness.

Diber let go of Stal, causing him to drop to the ground with a heavy thud. As Stal lay motionless on the ground, Diber turned his attention towards the hangar gate, hearing sounds of drums that echoed through the air. From the alley on the other side, he spotted a woman approaching, accompanied by six men and two women. The peculiar thing was that she wasn't walking on her feet but was riding on someone's back like a horse. That scene seemed to irritate David, who was patiently waiting and getting bored.

As the girl drew closer, David was able to clearly discern her features. She was a teenager, under twenty years. Her skin tone was darker than white but it was neither distinctly black nor white. Her hair was hidden beneath a headdress that resembled an ancient crown design, maybe from a thousand years ago. Her attire matched her fabric-made crown. They suited her well with their green and blue colors and embroidery designs.

There were six men following closely behind her, acting as her personal bodyguards, two women diligently waved fans, providing a gentle breeze for the girl, and the man carrying her under his back was struggling with the task.

As the girl approached David, she raised a finger, signaling to one of the six men to begin singing and streaming music from his phone. A tune with a soft yet somewhat scary melody filled the air. Despite the man's best attempt, he made a slight mistake in synchronizing his lyrics with the music, causing the girl to get annoyed. She went to him and slapped him, "Are you out of your mind?! You've ruined my plan for an ideal encounter with Diber!" Turning to one of the men, she declared, "Come here, number three."

Upon hearing that command, one of the men approached with four phones in his hand. She took the devices, started live streams, and threw them in front of the man who was singing. The man was overwhelmed with anxiety and dread of what was yet to happen but he was interrupted by her soft voice, she said, "Choose one of them, number one, and give the order. If you utter anything other than this, you know what will happen. You'll die and get replaced."

The man knelt on the ground, looking at the phones in front of him. His heart was beating faster in his chest, and he was on the edge of falling on the ground. The girl observed him, enjoying his expressions of terror, anxiety, and regret, as she continued to ride on the man's back. She waited, hoping for him to take longer, but her hopes were dashed when he spoke the only sentence allowed: "Number three."

David had been watching silently, like he did with Stal, until he noticed that she was done with the bullshit she was doing. He abruptly started questioning her, "Who are you, and how do you know I'm Diber and not David?! More importantly, why transform a man into a mean of transportation when there are modern vehicles like cars, not to mention horses?! My goodness, I just endured the longest five minutes of my life waiting for you to arrive."

She smiled widely at Diber as she responded, "Diber, what do you find more fun? I want you to know how enjoyable it is, but this privilege is exclusive to me. With a pause, she stopped smiling waiting for Diber to reply but then remembered that she only answered one question, with a serious and proud look, she continued, "I am Queen Bona. There is not a single soul I am unaware of."

A look of surprise crossed Diber's features as Catherine suddenly appeared before him. He was startled by her unexpected appearance. She was crying out, "David, you must flee now! I'll explain later, but please, listen to me just this once. Run away now!" His response came as a firm declaration, "I am Diiiiber, understand that!" Diber was taken aback when Catherine readily agreed, saying, "I'm sorry. Of course, you're Diber. Let's run away now. Your life depends on making this choice. Please." However, Diber disregarded Catherine's presence because he was curious about Bona.

He started approaching her while thinking of the fact that viewing this scene would probably see him as insane due to his interaction with someone who was not physically present until he heard Bona saying, "Stop doing this, Catherine! We have already made the decision to take David. You can mess around with Steve all you want, but Diber belongs to us now, and you should leave. I'm sure you wouldn't do the opposite, would you?"

Diber experienced a wave of surprise upon overhearing Bona's words, leading him to question if he was perhaps hallucinating. He asked, "Wait a moment. Repeat what you just said, Bona." Bona, seemingly annoyed, responded, "I wasn't speaking to you, I was addressing Catherine. And I have already clarified that I am Queen Bona, not merely Bona."

Diber watched as Catherine flew to one of the buildings and then vanished. He was still shocked, then shifted his gaze to Bona, puzzled about what had just occurred. His expression became serious as he spoke to her, "It's clear that you're not real after all. I don't have time for you,Bo.... I mean, pest. Don't ever bother me again!"

"I demand his head," Bona exclaimed furiously, her eyes burning with anger. The intensity in her gaze made it as if she was going to crush him at that moment. One of the guards replied, his face paled fearing Bona's reaction, his voice a bit hesitant, "But...the King said he wants him alive....we need him." Ignoring his words, Bona snapped back, screaming at his face, "Damn his orders! I demand his head! Drug him now!"

Another person screamed his lungs out showing his support for Bona's command, "Exactly. Screw the king's orders. What you say is what we follow. And it's the rule that all creatures must obey." With a smirk playing on her lips, Bona then shifted her gaze back on Diber. "Listen up, Diber," she warned, "I have 10 individuals with me and 7 of them are armed. There's no chance of escape from under my hand. Everyone will see your head hanging on the Statue of Liberty."

A sudden piercing voice cut through the scene, causing a shrill sound in everyone's ears, except for Bona. The voice echoed as if coming from the heavens without any apparent source.

"My Queen, you don't have to kill him. Don't let your emotions overpower you. Remember that he is still unaware of anything and isn't even certain if you are real or not. This choice is yours. I merely wanted to make things clear for you." The shrill voice abruptly vanished just as it had emerged, and then they heard Bona's voice, "There's no need to clarify anything, my king. I've already made my decision." She commanded forcefully, "Drug him now!" At her order, everyone withdrew their weapons and pointed them at Diber. One of them shot a drug needle at him, causing him to lose consciousness instantly, just before he heard Bona saying, "You should've learned how to speech manners so you wouldn't have to face this."

Starting from this line, is a message from the author:

"Hello everyone, with this ends the first volume of the book. I am going to publish a short book, maybe of about 100 chapters, entitled: "No Beginning, No End: The Devil's Game." I recommend reading this volume before moving on to the second one. The short book will be released in December of this year, 2024. All the chapters will be available once it's published. Following the book's release, the rest of the volumes of this series will be released. The series of books are part of a larger novel I wrote, known as 'Mental Disorders.' This series is the first in the novel and currently consists of five books. You could say that the events in the first volume are fairly lighthearted and rosy in tone, but the next volumes will feature stronger themes, including some quite bloody and unpleasant ones. There will also be plenty of drama, as most of the characters' stories are based on true stories rather than being purely fictional. I'm warning you that children shouldn't read this, and if you're under the age of 21, I don't recommend you continue reading, either. The bloody and horror events will begin with the 'Devil's Game' book. I truly appreciate your support; keep commenting because it motivates me to continue. I promise to improve the storytelling and narration from now on. Prepare for even more unexpected and puzzling twists, as my story's motto is 'Plots and Mystery'

Thank you again, and farewell."

Here is attached the discord link, for any questions and discussions👇 :

https://discord.gg/pYjk3QKf