"You traitor!" shouted Dr. Tanaka. "You said that you will be our ally and now that you are seeing these enemies, you are backing out? You have no guts? Or are you as scared as a mouse? What kind of a General are you?" Swiftly, he took the revolver out of his holster that was strapped on his waist and pointed it on the General's head. "It's better you don't live," Dr. Tanaka growled. He looked like a maniac. It was as if the mania, the sickness, the greed and the lust of his mind had manifested in his hands like the revolver he was holding. It was like his poison that he wanted to inject in the General, and poison would be so lethal. His knuckles were white as he gripped the revolver tightly.

Everyone in the room froze. Adrianna stepped out of the General's cell She was too agitated by this interruption. She had to know which was the most important seal that had to be broken. She was investigating that when the commotion on the outside brought her back to the outer world.

​​

The cold metal of the revolver's barrel made the General quiver. His blood drained from his face. It wasn't the first time that anyone had pointed the gun at him. In fact he had been a distinguished war hero. But at this time, he was in a vulnerable position. He couldn't explain himself clearly to the mighty powers in front of him, nor could he go against Dr. Tanaka. It was as if the revolver took his soul as a hostage. A cold sweat trickled down his back. Somehow he managed to speak. His voice came out as a whisper, "Look, this won't do us any good. You must understand that this war is n- n-." The General couldn't speak further. It was the bond that was holding him.

"I don't want to hear anything! I am giving you the last chance. Come back and I'll spare you," Dr. Tanaka scowled.

Niiya was further shocked by his father's behavior. He rose from his place. "Father, please don't do this," he pleaded. He couldn't imagine that his father had fallen into such an abyss. "This greed will cut sharply through your soul."

"Shut up, Niiya!" he gnarled. "Don't preach me the lessons of sins and purity. I am way past them. I have seen these people up and close and I know exactly what is going to control them. These creatures think that they are too powerful to be controlled, but no, they are too foolish to think like that. It is we humans who are the mighty ones."

Niiya shook his head. "Father, no one is here to prove how colossal they are. This is just a war that needs to be p- p-." He couldn't speak further. He wanted to say 'prevented'. He bit his lips feeling hopeless.

Adrianna was getting extremely annoyed. There was no time for this drama, this delay. There were lives at stake—her kingdom was at stake. And here this stupid doctor was doing everything in his power to impede her plans.

"Why don't you kill him?" Dmitri communicated mentally to Adrianna. "This is a great opportunity to get rid of him." He could read her inner feeling so well, it was as if she was literally shouting at him.

"I can't take that chance Dmitri. Look at Niiya," she replied mentally.

"Dr. Tanaka, ease down," Adrianna said in a calm and controlled voice. She sounded so dangerous that for a moment the doctor became scared.

"You ease down," he spat. "And get out, else I will press the trigger now and you will never come to know about our plans!"

Unnerved by his thread, Adrianna crossed her arms across her chest and said, "So you do agree that those plans are sealed in your minds and that we can know them?"

"Yes, but so what? You will be the last person to know about them."

"Take that down, now."

"No, you scram," came the insult.

"I tried to warn him," she muttered mentally to Dmitri who growled back, "Go for it!"

Adrianna sighed. She brought her right hand in front of her, ran her thumb over the nails and said, "Tsk, tsk, doctor. You really are such a fool. I was considering you all this while only because you are Niiya's father, but I think you are just one greedy man who has to be taught manners." She paused for a moment and then without looking at him, she said, "The hand who pulls the trigger will be yours, but the hand who twists the revolver will also be yours."

All of a sudden Dr. Tanaka felt as though the muscles of his hand were working against him. His hand twisted towards him in a way that the barrel was now pointing, no it was touching his chest just near his heart. The fingers were on the trigger.

"What are you doing, you witch?" he shouted even though he was now shaking with fear. He was scared. He looked around everyone who stared at him. All the forces were converging against his plans. No one was ready to help him or take him out of his situation, even his son. "Are you going to stand like that Niiya? Look what your dear friend is up to?" he reprimanded him with sarcasm.

"You are beyond help father," he replied as a tear rolled out of his eyes. He sat down and sank on the sofa. He covered his face in shame with his hands.

Adrianna continued to speak without any remorse or inhibition now. She had shown enough respect to Niiya's father. Now it was time that she showed him his position as a human. "This revolver is going to stay the way it is until Inyanga breaks the seals in the General's mind. It is for you to pull the trigger if you like. I won't stop you." Her face was cold as ice. She looked merciless and cruel. Her golden yellow eyes burned with flames of her anger.

There was no time to waste now. Inyanga walked to the General and politely said, "Follow me."

But Haldir interjected, "Do you need to break Niiya's bond first or the General's?"

"We have to break the seals in General's mind first," said Adrianna as she looked at him. "He has the maximum number of closures related to this war."

"Okay," nodded Inyanga. She turned to face the General and said, "You may suffer some pain and it is possible that your body may bleed. So before we enter that room, are you sure you want to go through it?"

For a moment, the General was scared to death. This was worse than a nightmare. "What do you mean?" he asked. This was getting more complicated with time.

"You will die, you fool!" shouted Dr. Tanaka. "Don't go in there."

The General wavered like a small child. His retirement was within a year's time and all he now wanted was to play with his grandchildren rather than be a part of the mess that the doctor had created and lured him into. He was never so resolute. "Take me in," he said with determination in his eyes. With Inyanga, there was hope that he may live more.

Suddenly, a Mozia appeared.