Jude wanted to protest, but after receiving a cold glare from Zach, he decided to retreat.
Zach's attention shifted to Silas when Jude was nowhere to be seen. "Let me in, and after that, tell your mother that the king wanted to meet her."
Silas wanted to refuse, but somehow, he could not say no to Zach. Instead, he had the urge to do everything Zach had asked. It felt like he was under a spell. A spell that he could not break free of no matter how much he tried.
The door opened with a creaking sound, and Silas made way for Zach to enter his small house.
Zach entered the small house and looked closely at his surroundings. The house did not have anything remarkable. Like the rest of the commoners, the house was only filled with the necessity of house furniture, like a chair for two people and a tiny table. And a bed that was concealed behind the black curtain to separate the living and sleeping space.
Zach positioned Nevea on the small chair and ensured that his wife's body was sitting comfortably before he sat beside her. While waiting, he took her hands which kept getting colder each day. His eyes stayed on her, never leaving even for a second.
One part of him was telling him to stop trying and let his wife rest peacefully, but the other part was adamant about bringing his wife back. And the latter was much stronger.
If only he could follow his wife to the afterlife, he would not have to suffer in this world. But unfortunately, he could not. No one could leave a scratch on his body for more than five seconds; it was nearly impossible to die.
The sound of slow footsteps getting neared made Zach jerk his head in the direction of the sound. There he saw an older woman walking with difficulty along with his son. On a closer look, the woman's hair had turned white over time, only leaving several strains of brown.
The woman, Liezel, glanced at the corpse of a beautiful woman sitting in her small chair. Her head shook lightly, and she sighed heavily, 'Your daughter died for the second time, Jane. And all because of the same man.'
"Bring her soul back, and I will make sure you and your son live comfortably for the rest of your life."
'He never changes.' Liezel clicked her tongue. Since a long time ago, Zach always behaved as he pleased. He commanded everyone to grant his desire without caring about the consequences of his action.
"No," Liezel said. It was a lie. Nevea's journey had not over, and she would have to go through another life with the same man.
The moment the word no left Liezel's mouth, Zach moved like a light, and he pushed the old woman's body against the fragile woods and squeezed the old woman's neck.
"Mama." Silas ran toward his mother. And he tried to punch Zach's body, but it was like a feather punch. It did not have an impact.
"Sit down, boy!" Zach's red eyes shone brightly as he said that.
"Listen to me, Liezel. Bring my wife's soul back, or you will have to send your son's soul to the afterlife. Your choice."
Despite the pain in her neck, Liezel laughed so hard at his words. "Can you be more creative, Zachary? Back then, you also used the same words."
The shock on Zach's face was an understatement. He was sure he had never met Liezel before. But the old woman talked to him as though she was familiar with him. He gripped Liezel's neck harder than before he spoke, "BRING MY WIFE'S SOUL BACK."
Liezel did not feel afraid or threatened at all. Instead, she gave him a motherly smile to Zach that came as a surprise to him. Then, Liezel lifted her wrinkled hands to touch Zach's shoulder, pushing him until he fell on his knees.
"What did you—" Zach's eyes enlarged at the current situation. Nobody has enough power to overpower him, but this old and frail woman did it so easily like it was nothing.
"You may be strong, Zach. But not as strong as me." Liezel patted his head which made Zach's nose flare. "Well, at least in your current state. Right now, you are nothing to me."
Liezel left Zach's side to go to Nevea. She observed Nevea thoroughly. Over the years, Nevea's beauty never changed at all. She was the most stunning woman then and now. No wonder someone like Zachary was drawn to her like a bee to a flower.
Liezel raised her hand to feel Nevea's hair, stroking it gently like she was touching her daughter's hair. Nevea's hair was as soft as she had remembered.
"Don't touch her!" Zach barked loudly. He did not like that he was not the one in control.
"I wonder what makes Nevea fall for someone with a terrible temper like you," Liezel said with her arms folded in front of her chest. "She always has terrible taste in men. Imagine falling in love with the same man with the same personality."
After digesting Liezel's words carefully, a deep frown formed on Zach's temple. "What do you mean?"
"Believe me. You don't want to hear it, Zach."
"Try me."
Liezel ignored Zach. Instead, she touched her son's head to make him break free. Then said, "Bring me the stone."
Silas moved to the back of the curtain and groped under their old mattress until he could feel the sharp edge of the stone, then he took it out.
In his hand was a blue-colored stone with many cracks in the center of it. The rock shone, but it did not emit the same light as the first time he saw it. The light had dimmed for some reason he did not know of. Only his mother has the answer.
When Silas moved to his mother's side, he eyed the king carefully. The king was seething in anger as the sign showed he clenched his hand and gritted his teeth at every move Liezel made.
Liezel chuckled in amusement at the sight of Zach. In the past, she would have died if she dared to treat him like that, but now she had the liberty to treat the almighty Zach as she pleased since he was not aware of what he truly was and how strong the power in his body was.
"You can get up," Liezel ordered like she was the queen and Zach was the commoner.
Zach was not impressed at all. He felt humiliated by a mere human. He could snap her neck, and he should. But he would not. He needed Liezel's help.
Without saying anything, he made his way to Nevea's chair, lifting her, and sat with her on his lap.
"It's true that I can bring your wife back, but the price won't be cheap, Your Majesty." Liezel finally addressed him as how she should be.
"Say the word. I don't care as long as she is back with me."
Once again, Liezel smiled at his words as if she found that everything he did was a comedy show from a traveling merchant.
"Soul catcher is not supposed to bring the dead back. Our responsibility is to haunt them down so they can move to the afterlife." Liezel explained. It was not the first time; this was her second. "So, you are asking me to bring your wife back is the same as me playing with the law of life."
"I don't need your explanation." Zach said impatiently, "Just give me the answer. Can you do it or not?"
"I can," Liezel answered. She noticed the gleam of hope dancing in Zach's eyes, making her want to laugh. "But you will have to sacrifice something for that. It must be the most precious thing in your life."
A frown marred his forehead as he said, "I don't have anything more precious than Nevea."
"You have something. Not as important as Nevea, but important enough for your identity."
"You have been talking like you are familiar with us, human. But I don't remember meeting you, and I believe my wife also never had the chance to step foot on Stormsire. So, tell me why it seems like you know many things that I, myself, is not aware of."
"You will know soon, Your Majesty. All you have to do is, agree to sacrifice." The corner of Liezel's mouth lifted to smile knowingly as she noted Zach's expression.
She had seen that look in his red eyes before. Well, in the past, the color of his eyes was golden. And she knew what was coming. The man would do everything. She was sure of it. Sure enough, Zach opened his mouth to speak.
"You can have everything except her," He said firmly. There was no hesitation in his mind and heart.
"And one more thing, Your Majesty." She added, making Zach display his displeasure again. "I have little time in this world, so bring Silas with you. Let him serve you and turn him into a vampire when he reaches the age of eighteen. In the future, you will need him."
"Ma—" Silas wanted to protest, but his mother's glare was enough to shut him down. He sat still with tears brimming in his eyes.
"Okay." Zach agreed immediately. It was not a complicated request; if Silas misbehaved in the future, he could just kill him. Easy.
"Then I will begin."
Liezel took both Nevea and Zach's hands and placed them on top of hers that was holding the blue stone. Her eyelids closed as she muttered something under her breath.
Suddenly a blue light emerged from the stone. It was so bright that it was hard to look at. Zach squinted and tried to look away but could not. It was as if the light was pulling him in. Lured him to let the light invade all his senses.
Zach could not hear anything, and his attention was solely on the light as it shone even brighter and brighter with each passing second. Then he saw it. Himself kneeling in a dark place with his head hung lower, seemed to have no power.
He tried to move and touched the back of himself, but a pain hit him hard as he heard the other him scream in pure agony like a wounded animal he hunted during his boredom.
Shock struck him like a flood as he witnessed Liezel take the horns on the head of his other self. Zach screamed and wanted to tear Liezel from the other him, but his effort was for naught. No matter how many steps he took, he still stayed in the same place—rooting while watching the other him suffer at Liezel's hands.
"STOP WHAT YOU ARE DOING THIS INSTANT, LIEZEL. TOUCH HIM AGAIN, AND WATCH ME KILL YOUR SON THE SAME WAY." Zach roared. He was so angry. He wanted blood on his hands. So much blood to satiate his rage.
Liezel did not take Zach's words. She only smiled as she took both horns from the other Zach. Then, she touched him and said, "There is nothing else you can sacrifice, Zach. So, make sure to protect Nevea from them."
With that, everything disappeared from Zach's vision. Instead, a wave of memories that he did not know existed played in his head. The moment of rage, hopelessness, happiness, love, and agony appeared in the form of Nevea.
She was there for almost all his life. Breathing life into him, giving him hope, and crushing his heart. The sound of her laugh and sob assaulted him, leaving him broken.
'You are my sin, Zach. The one I willingly committed.'
Zach heard her say it as he thrust himself into her, marking her, tainting her soul, and uniting their heart. The memories brought him so much contentment and pain because what he saw next was the moment Nevea's body evaporated into a blue light.
His heart had never been so broken before; it shattered into small pieces. It hurt so much that he wanted to gauge his heart and feed it to animals. He wanted to forget, wanted to erase the feeling. But could not.
Zach was stuck in memory lane. On the other side, Liezel felt pity as she watched tears storm down his cheeks. Liezel touched Zach's head tenderly as a mother would to his son.
"This is your punishment for daring to taste the apple from heaven." Liezel's voice broke as she choked on her tears, "This is her punishment for the desire she has for you."
Silas watched everything unfold before his eyes. The king and his mother were crying, and the lifeless woman on the king's lap was gone. He did not understand what his mother had done, but he believed his mother meant no harm to the king.
Crack~
The stone broke completely, and Liezel's body fell into the rough ground with blood coming from her mouth.
"Mama!" Silas screamed and moved to touch his mother's body.
Liezel lifted her hand to wipe the tears on Silas's cheeks tenderly. Her eyes also watered. Although Silas was not her biological son, she had raised him since he was a baby, so she was saddened that she had to leave him alone. "Thank you for being my son during my stay in this world, Silas. You have been a great joy to my life." She said with a sad smile.
"Don't say anything, Ma. I'll look for a physician. Don't worry. It's going to be okay."
Before Silas stood up, Liezel caught his arm and shook her head. "I don't have much time, Silas. It's okay."
"No, no, it's not okay." He sobbed uncontrollably.
"Listen, son. The king will wake up soon, and he won't remember about the woman, so don't mention her name in front of him. Serve him well, do everything he asks, and make sure he turned you at the age of eighteen."
"But you said he won't remember—"
"We already had a deal." Liezel vomited blood. This time, the color was darker. She handed him her bracelet with a black stone and said, "Don't be afraid, son. After I am gone, continue your life. One day you will understand everything."
"No, I don't want to—" Silas's jaw dropped before he could finish because his mother's body suddenly turned into ashes. He lost his mind and his words. He could not believe what he had seen. "Mama!" He screamed and screamed with tears falling like a waterfall. He could not stop. This was a nightmare.
"Stop screaming, human. You are hurting my ears."
Silas jumped at Zach's voice. He looked over his shoulder and saw the king. There was nothing he could feel except fear. Something changed. The king looked more dangerous than before, his face twisted in a snarl, his eyes gleamed menacingly, and his lips crooked in a lopsided grin. He looked like a demon from hell.
Then Silas realized that the king had lost his sanity.
February 26, 1998, The Kingdom of Rimore. People of Rimore from different cities and towns hid in their homes. They were afraid to step outside due to a natural phenomenon. Based on the news they saw in newspapers and television, the total solar eclipse would start around five past twenty-seven in the afternoon. They believed that if they went out of their home, they would be exposed to bad luck, as the solar eclipse was thought to be a bad omen. So they would rather spend their time hiding and praying to all different kinds of Gods to protect them from harm rather than watching the eclipse and hurting their luck and eyes. Every time it happened, not only humans were hiding, but even vampires were hiding too. However, not all vampires hide. While commoners were hiding in their homes, in the royal palace, a man was sitting on a comfortable couch watching the news about the solar eclipse phenomenon. He did not know, but somehow, he had an inkling that something would happen. The feel
2004, The Kingdom of Rimore The vehicle moved slowly and steadily down the road. Today was one of those days when the sun was shining brightly, not too blinding, but enough to give warmth in the cold February. The car passed the gate to leave Vuyshire. The town she lived in for the first six years of her life. After Vuyshire, she did not know where fate would bring her. Vuysire was located on the east side of Grouver. It was not a small town; the population was around eight thousand. Rice fields surrounded Vuysire as it was the source of money for the people, and there was a river that ran through the center of the town. The town was a peaceful place, and the people were friendly. There was a small market in the town and a few small businesses. People in Vuysire was mainly human, so there was no need to watch over their back all the time. Unlike the other place, in Vuysire, the reason for death was mainly due to old age and sickness. The scenery outside the car windows changed rap
A week passed on a whim, and the world continued to spin. The sun rose and set, the moon waxed and waned, and the stars still shone brightly in the sky. Life went on like usual. Nevea's day usually started at eight with breakfast. After that, she went to class until three in the afternoon, and then she played a bit with kids her age in the garden. Dinner would start at six, and around nine, she should be sleeping soundly in her bed. Nothing much happened in a week except meeting with possible family for her, and she honestly enjoyed it. Fortunately, no one had died since she entered the orphanage. She was anxious every day, waiting to see whether someone had lost their life because of her, but nothing of the sort had happened. So, she dared to conclude that everything that happened in Vuysire was merely a coincidence. A kid like her had no power to take people's life. "Go to sleep, Nevy. Tomorrow, we have to wake up early to clean the classroom." Liza reminded her as she pulled the
Zach watched as the little girl was taken into a car with several people. He did not know most of them, but he recognized one of them. It was the head of Vlassta, Logan Pierce. The old vampire looked tired, as though he worked twenty-four hours per seven. Logan was appointed as the head of Vlassta after working there for almost three decades. He had made quite a big accomplishment during his time as the head of the organization. For instance, he found sacaflorous, a flower that had a fatal effect on vampires. And he asked the royal family to provide a weapon with the flower's component covering it. He stated it was simply to give humans a chance to win against vampires when they were in a fight. He was almost like a saint. That was what Zach thought about him. Vlassta itself was an independent organization that worked to eradicate rogue vampires and another criminal that wanted to mess with the balance in life between humans and vampires at Rimore. Many things had changed since Za
Nevea was lying hopelessly on the cold ground. Her eyes stayed watching the ceiling of the cell that seemed to stop spinning. She did not know how long she had been sleeping on the floor. All she could remember was that Logan injected something into her. He asked her the same question over and over again until he eventually gave up. After that, Logan just left her alone. Sadness suddenly filled her chest as she remembered that nothing was happening to her that would lead her to the path of happiness. Instead, everything boils down to death. She wondered how long it would take until people in the building started dying. The small light from the cell's windows shone on her face, giving her a little warmth. She hugged herself, making her position akin to a fetus in the womb. The grumbling sound of her stomach came back again. She was beyond hungry, but those people did not even bother to give her a glass of water to suppress the hunger and satiate her thirst. They were a bunch of hea
2023, The Kingdom of RimoreNevea watched as the majestic building with a Devil’s Den written on top of it shone brightly in the deep of the night. She gripped the knife and gun on her thigh tightly. Tonight was just like any other night. She would be killing another living being.She had been staying in Vlassta for nineteen years, after which she started working as their killing machine for almost five years. All the training she had endured over the years resulted in high scores, making her the perfect tool for Vlassta. The heavy wind swayed her long silver hair, and she felt her body shiver as her outfit was thinner. She wore a backless black dress with a noddle strap on her shoulder. These were not her usual working clothes, but since the man on her killing list usually camped in a bar, she had no choice but to blend in. “Are you ready?” A man with blue eyes like hers asked. His blonde hair was styled nicely to a sliced back.“That should be my line, Rave.” Nevea grinned at Raven
“What’s wrong?” Nevea was studying his reaction. Allen was in pure agony, and Nevea had an illusion that she could hear the bones in his body breaking one by one slowly. “Allen, what happened?” Allen’s face contorted in a fury. He lifted his finger with difficulty and spoke, “What the fuck are you? What did you do to me? And Who sent you?” Nevea stepped closer, “I did not do anything. I don’t know what is happening. Tell me, I am scared.” She faked her reaction perfectly. Crack~ The bones in his calves cracked like crackers, followed by the bone in his foot. “Argh, stop it!” Allen’s scream of anguish was eaten by the drumming music at the bar. “I don’t know.” Nevea looked around to see if there was a third party between them. Yet she could not detect anyone near her. “Stop it, or I will fucking kill you, bitch!” Nevea eyed Allen’s pathetic condition. Then, she strode to him and stepped on his broken calf without an ounce of remorse. “Don’t call me bitch, fucker.” Her voice dr
The reason had left Zach's mind when his lips landed on Nevea’s soft and luscious one. What started as fun turned into a heated one. He moved his lips hungrily like a beast. He took her lower lips in between his and nibbed them until she let out a whimpering sound. For the first few seconds, Nevea rejected his advance as she kept punching his hard chest, yet he pinned her hands to the wall and started playing with her lips as pleased. As his lips moved against her, Nevea was compelled to give in. Zach’s mouth curled into a satisfied grin as he felt her melt into him. Then, as there was no sign of struggle, he set her hands free and placed his hand on her waist. He could feel the passion building between them, and it only made him want to taste her more, feel her, and consume her. Nevea felt his hand run through her hair, pulling her closer to him as he deepened the kiss. Nevea’s hand moved subconsciously to touch the lock of his hair, harshly tucked it hard until he winced and opene