Fall of the South Kingdom (2)

The emperor stood still as he gazed on the people below him. Their eyes were blank. There was no soul evident in those eyes. Not one sliver of soul.

General Rua stood beside him with a worried look in his face. "Is this what you really want?" he asked. He placed both his arms on his back. His eyes peeking glances at the man beside him.

His black hair danced in the wind. The magnificent view a deep contrast of the emotion painted on his face. There was a small golden crown on top of his head which resembles his position in the kingdom. A cold smile hung about on his lips.

"Uncle, I have waited long enough for this. All these people have been waiting for me to fall knowing I was only a kid. But now, they fell right into my hands. Isn't it ironic?" Soft laughter escaped from his cold lips.

"Darion, you do know that we cannot bring back the dead nor go back to the past. But, if this is what will make your heart at ease after all that has happened to your mother, then I will gladly lend a hand."

"All I need is for you to command the army Uncle. With your knowledge about the North's strategies, there is a chance we could topple over their kingdom and give justice to my mother and father's death."

"Do you know who your father is?" General Rua gazed longingly at the horizon, near the direction of the North Kingdom.

"The previous demon king," he turned around and left the general alone in the veranda.

The general did not bother to say goodbye nor give him another glance. Something inside his chest throbs painfully as he remembered how his nephew had lived through the past eight years outside the South Kingdom, in the Cursed Lands.

It was never a good place to raise a child. Demons swarmed everywhere eating ay being they could get their hands on. Even though Darion was born a prince from the princess of the kingdom, he was still a prisoner in those lands, the same as his mother was.

"I will never know of the pains you have suffered there, sister. But I will soon meet the people who have caused you and your son so much grief." He let out the sigh that he had been holding on so long. "Rei," he called out. A black shadow appeared from one of the pillars on the side.

"Yes, master."

"Give a message to the Grand Oracle, ask for the location of the Accursed One."

Soon as he waved his hand, the shadow disappeared without a sound nor a breath from the wind.

~~~~~~~~~~

"Take her robes and hung them up to dry. Give me a bowl of hot water and a clean towel." Yllana gave instructions to the three half-bloods that they left on camp for that day. She only learned to call their names when they insisted on following her. Under Lucien's orders to them, it's either they follow her or they will be severely punished. 'How inconvenient,' were her words when the three hid in the shadows and followed them quietly.

She was inspecting Mariek's wounds on her arms and legs when Midel stood by her side to look. By instinct, she kicked his foot and shouted for him to go outside of the tent.

Midel scratched his head when he got out.

"Are you an idiot?!" Larika barked at him. "That is still a girl! Have some respect!"

Midel's face turned red in an instant. So, that was why Yllana kicked her out. Maybe living with a little girl like Shiiba has made him a little too relaxed around small girls…too relaxed.

"Is she going to be alright?" Larika pulled the blankets over Mariek's shoulders. It has been four hours, but the little girl is still unconscious. They have dressed her wounds and cleaned the grime off her face.

"Her breathing is steady and most of her wounds are superficial, so she would be able to wake up soon enough." Yllana comforted Larika. Her voice was steady and there was no hint of worry in it. Soon Larika calmed her heart too and released the tension on her nerves.

She swept the loose strands from Mariek's face, "He might be the one behind this, Yllana."

"I know." A quick flash appeared in Yllana's eyes and was gone in a second. Mariek was supposed to meet with Kareem at a new hiding spot for the villagers, but something like this happened. She clenched her fists and blinked hard. This was not what she expected to happen. "I am not strong enough yet."

Larika opened the tent's flaps but heard Yllana's last words. She looked back at Yllana. The hurt that she was expecting to see wasn't there. What was left was a steely stare and a cold aura enveloping Yllana.

~~~~~~~~~~

Midnight

"Yllana,"

Yllana stirred from her bed but kept her eyes closed. It wasn't the same cold voice that felt like it came from the depths of hell. It was soft-spoken and seemed hoarse.

"Yllana…"

It called out again. She refused to open her eyes. The darkness still envelopes her sight and mind.

"My…Yllana, hehehe…"

The third call on her name had a burst of eerie laughter after. Her heartbeat turned fast and sweat started to form at her forehead. She felt something cold slowly grasping her neck. It was a bony hand with a thick liquid splattered on it.

When she picked up the smell, her consciousness started to fight back to open her eyes, but she couldn't! Something heavy was pinning her on the bed and forced her to keep her eyes closed. She felt her hands gripping on what was on her neck. She started wriggling her feet and even tried to find her own voice only to end up with a croak. Next, she felt her breaths getting shorter and shorter as panic rose from her chest. 'Help!' was what her mind could only scream out for now. But how could anyone hear her if she could only scream on her mind?

"YLLANA!"

"Master! Wake up!"

Boom!

She was still trembling at the side of her bed when she heard footsteps. Smoke filled her tent and a gaping hole appeared in her sight. She heard Blue and another voice, a somewhat familiar deep cold voice screaming inside her.

"What happened?!" Midel and Larika rushed to her tent along with the three half-bloods. They all looked at the hole as big as three heads combined peeking through Yllana's tent and to the magic staff in Yllana's hand. Smoke was still steaming out of the magic staff. The staff was silver inside with black veins wrapping it from end to end.

"Y-Yllana…" Larika pointed at the end of the staff. When the smoke thinned out, a black crystal ball shined under the moonlight and there was something inside. And it was moving.

"The thunder phoenix," Midel exclaimed. "The magical staff you picked up is the Thunder Phoenix. You can command storm spells with it."

The three half-bloods noticed something in their surroundings and leaped into the shadows unnoticed. Yllana summoned back the staff inside her core and tried to calm herself down.

"Oy oy oy! You three beggars must have done something to cause that explosion! Don't you dare to do something inside my valley, you troublemakers!" The fat man was pointing his fingers at Yllana as his furious face was huffing with every word he said. Just running to the tents beside the forest must have tired him out fast because he was trying to gasp in more air after he finished speaking.

Midel looked at the valley lord up and down. Dimshade Valley's Lord looks like a lifesize dumpling especially when he huffed up and down. Midel almost giggled when he realized how fat he is. "Awfully sorry then valley lord. We just had some mishaps inside our comrades teynt, but won't happen it is again, swear." He tried to sound as much as a country bumpkin as he could put on mispronunciation and even a weird accent as he talked.

Larika and Yllana looked at him and wanted to clap for his good performance when they heard the valley lord chuckle.

"Hehe…see folks. There's no need to worry. It was just a mishap because they don't know what they were doing just like real beggars. We'll be seeing them off our valley once the sun comes up, right?" His last word was aimed at Midel, who he guessed was the leader of this beggar group since he was the only man.

Midel nodded furiously with a foolish smile plastered on his face. He then waved goodbye to the valley lord and the folks from the nearby houses. He did not withdraw his gaze from the valley lord until they disappeared.

When the coast was clear, three shadows jumped from the trees behind them and went near Yllana.

"Mistress, shall we take the valley lord's head?" The group's leader, Azimuth, was glaring at the direction where the valley lord disappeared. He picked up a weird look from the valley lord when he saw Yllana. 'The Master will surely punish us if he learns that the Dimshade's Valley Lord had weird thoughts about their Mistress.'

Yllana frowned as she stared at Azimuth. "Just because he looked at me, you'll kill him?"

Azimuth swallowed before nodding. It was the truth. They had to eliminate anything or anyone that will harm the Mistress.

"No…at least not yet." Yllana sighed. Do demons really have to be …well, demons? Can't they behave undemonlike for once?