Robert had his hands full. The Watchers had too much on their plate with the influx of the Dark Mages who were almost untraceable.
He did not have time to think about the fight he had with his brother.A fight that left him all alone in the true sense of the word.
" Why is it that you always ruin everything for me Robert? " That was how Quill began his offensive while Robert was busy interrogating Layla and her motives.
" You always hogged the limelight Robert. Everything I owned, everyone I loved... you somehow sidelined me in my own existence... "
Robert had no time for his emotional outburst. He tried to push his brother out of the way so he could wring more information out of his suspicious doctor.
" Why did you not tell me about him earlier? How many of such creatures are you in touch with? You must be honest with me Dr.Layla.It's a matter of security. Our planet is at risk... "
Robert tried to gently shove Quill out of the way but Quill seemed unnaturally volatile.
" I... I was only trying to understand his behavior. He only came in once. I wasn't sure about his rarity. How could I get back when nothing was confirmed. "
Layla acted timid and scared, trying to hide behind Quill.
" You heard the lady. Now leave her alone... "
Quill roughly manhandled Robert.
Robert tried to ignore, keeping his focus on the one that mattered.
" Give me your hand. " He demanded.
Layla grabbed Quill's shirt as if she felt intimidated.
" I am not lying, Robert. Don't you trust me? After all these years... I helped you... "
" Just hold my hand Layla... " Robert cut her short.
" What if she doesn't? " Quill grabbed Robert's collar.
" She will face the consequences... " Robert looked at his brother directly in his eyes.
" Go ahead. Blow me up if you will. You will need to go through me to get her... "
Robert spied a sly smirk on Layla's lips from the corner of his eyes. He had always been very relaxed and carefree around Layla. For the first time in his life, he was sensing a very inhumane aura from the person he had trusted his life with. Something about her had changed. Or perhaps, the veil that kept her covered was lifted. He needed to test her limits to confirm his doubts and there was only one of doing that.
He needed to trace the other Watchers as well. Time was running out.
" Very well brother. You are my only living relative but you chose to side with something you don't even understand. Don't hold this against me brother. I need to hurry up. I don't have any time for your gibberish. "
Quill knew his brother well but he had no idea, Robert could go rogue and be so impulsive.
Before any further warning, Quill was blown off by his Blast guns. The impact knocked Quill off for a solid few hours, giving Robert the perfect window to grab Layla by her neck.
She shed her human skin to avoid the impact of the blast just like Robert had expected.
She wasn't human. She was a parasitic creature, Gala, once found extensively in the lands of Chemora.
She was using the host body of Layla and that gave her the perfect camouflage.
Galas were almost extinct and rarely heard of these days. They once used to wreak havoc all over Chemora and all the tribes worked collectively to get rid of them.
Some were scattered across the universe but they weren't significant enough to cause anymore trouble.
Hence they did not feature in the Watcher radar and it must have been easy for Layla or the Gala who was Layla, to infiltrate the earth's surface.
She squirmed as Robert held her by her nape. She struggled to break free.
" It's commendable how it blended so well. You fooled me and my brother effectively over the years. I trusted you. I thought of you as my best friend. I opened myself up in front of you. It disgusts me to even think that I lay myself so vulnerable in front of you. You made a fool of myself... "
Robert looked genuinely hurt.
The Gala squirmed and scoffed. She tried to wriggle her way out of his grip and she replied.
" I did not make a fool of you mix-breed. The ones that killed your parents have enslaved your souls... "
She erupted into a high pitched squeal that turned into a laughter.
Robert held her tighter.
" Your manipulations would not work with me." He exclaimed but his eyebrows constricted into a frown as he tried to see through her.
The Gala looked amused at his frustration.
Robert tried to concentrate so he could understand the creature in front of him better.However, for the first time he felt his powers weren't enough. There was a dark shield around her that prevented penetration.
Robert never truly loved his powers. He dreaded getting those glimpses in the future. It was for the first time that he earned it and hoped he had learned to use and amplify his powers instead of trying to subdue it over the ages.
The Gala erupted into a devilish laughter, as it spit something in the air, that caused severe burn like sensation on Robert's exposed skin.
His grip loosened momentarily and that allowed the Gala to escape.
But before she left, she turned towards Robert and let him know,
" My search actually paid off. With my research and power of the Dark Lord, soon the worlds will be under our feet. You still have time to make a choice. Come join me. We could use you well. Or you could still choose to slave away...." The Gala circled around and then pointed at Layla's lifeless body and then laughed its way out of there, "and good luck, explaining that to your brother when he wakes up... "
Robert was about to chase after it but Quill stirred at that moment.
Robert immediately diverted his attention back to his brother and rushed to his side to help him up.
Quill groaned as he slowly opened his eyes.
" Quill? " Robert called, slapping his cheeks lightly.
Quill sat up with a start as his eyes fell on what he thought was Layla's body.
He shoved Robert out of his way and crawled towards her.
He picked her head up on his lap and examined her breaths. His eyes opened wide in horror as he slowly turned towards Robert and uttered , " You killed Layla? "
His words dripped with loath , disgust and overwhelming anger.