Too scared to sleep

The dark memories Luviel had pushed and was trying to bury somewhere he wouldn't ever remember them anymore were all pushed to the surface by Simeon.

While the latter spoke, the events replayed in Luviel's mind, bringing back all the pain anger, and rage.

He pushed himself up and climbed out of the chamber, vengeance on his mind.

"Take me to the symbols." He ordered and Simeon was beyond pleased to oblige.

At this point, Kaz was already up to his feet, the temporary paralysis having faded. He followed the pair as they headed for the small clearing where Miranda had drawn the symbols.

"Here they are," Simeon announced, pointing to the floor. "One to six are simple angel's symbols. But seven to ten, I am not familiar with." He repeated as Luviel and Kaz stared at the numbered symbols.

"Numbers one to six are not only simple and familiar. We've seen pieces of them in the forest embedded in some jelly-like materials. Do you think this puzzle involves finding them?" Kaz pointed out and Simeon's eyes stretched in realization.

"I almost forgot about that. However, they are scattered in places I cannot remember right now. It may take us more than ten days to find them all if we need to." Simeon pointed out a challenge.

"Not if we split up. It only took that long the last time because we are together."

"Alright. But what about the other four? I don't think I've seen anything like that here." Simeon threw the question, and at the same time, two of them lifted their eyes to look at Luviel, only to find his eyes roaming around as if he were searching for something.

"My lord?" Simeon called.

"Where is she?" Luviel asked without looking at any of them, his eyes fixed in one direction.

"She is behind the building. She is scared of you and said she is not ready to share the same space with you for now. She requested I take her somewhere safe before inviting you." Simeon responded, expecting a frown or some expression of disapproval from him.

"Good for her. The farther away she is from me, the better." Was the response he received from Luviel, his expression unchanged, contrary to what Simeon expected.

"But My Lord, she is your wife," Kaz uttered in dismay.

"Not if she doesn't know that." Luviel dismissed, returning his attention to the symbols on the floor. "The seventh symbol is the mark of the violent one." He announced.

"Your mark?" Kaz and Simeon asked out loud, their eyes widening.

"Yes," Luviel affirmed. "Number eight is the blood of two servants."

"Two servants? Me and Kaz I guess." Simeon noted, and Luviel nodded in agreement.

"Number nine is the blood of the dark."

"Your blood," Simeon uttered again in understanding.

"And number ten is the blood of light," Luviel revealed, and Kaz and Simeon didn't need anyone to interpret further what the last symbol meant.

"Queen Ralda's blood." They chorused. They now understood the symbols. The only one they didn't understand was the seventh one.

"What has your mark got to do with this, My Lord?" Simeon probed, utterly confused.

"My mark is the board where all the pieces of the puzzle would be arranged and would fit in perfectly. Hazari put the key in my body, and gave her the access to use the key." Luviel explained, once more searching the forest with his eyes. "You two get to work as soon as the first light of dawn. I'll begin the search now." Luviel disappeared from that spot after saying this, leaving the two of them alone.

Kaz wasted no time in grabbing Simeon's neck after Luviel left.

"What are you doing? Not now, Ka...'' Simeon started to protest but couldn't complete his words before consciousness was knocked out of him and he fell to the ground.

"Sweet dreams, Simeon. See you in the morning." Kaz uttered, grinning at the unconscious demon on the floor.

Moments later, he walked away from there to look for Miranda.

"Hey, you are awake," Miranda noted when she saw him approaching.

"Yes. I woke up a few minutes ago. Aren't you feeling sleepy? he asked and Miranda shook her head.

"I'm too scared to sleep." She admitted.

"I can tell you a story if that will help." He offered, bringing a smile to Miranda's face. She wasn't sure if it was because he was a demon that he could guess correctly that she loved stories. Reading them at least.

"What type of story do you want to tell me?" She queried and Kaz gave a nonchalant shrug.

"Any type you like as long as it can help you relax. You don't have to be scared of any one of us. We are harmless, especially to you." Kaz repeated what Simeon had told her earlier.

"Alright." She nodded. "Can you tell me your story? How and why were you guys imprisoned here?" Miranda requested and Kaz's expression looked like he hesitated a second. However, he later nodded his head in agreement.

"The story is a long and complicated one, but I'll try to summarize it for you. Lord Luviel's wife was murdered and he went mad. He lost his mind. He immediately went on a killing spree, destroying everything and everyone in his path, irrespective of age, gender, or status. But he was not alone. Simeon and I were right there with him, wreaking havoc and bringing chaos everywhere we went.

His wife was my beloved sister and Simeon's beloved queen. Losing her for no good reason brought us unimaginable pain. However, before we could destroy the entire city, Hazari came along and threw us in prison, locking us away. The end." He flashed her a nervous smile, forcing himself to hold back from telling her anything further.

"Oh... I'm sorry, Kaz." Miranda apologized and Kaz smiled.

"It's fine. It doesn't hurt as much anymore."

"I have a question though. Why was the queen killed and who killed her?" Miranda probed.

"The people killed her because she decided to marry Lord Luviel, who the people considered to be a devil," Kaz answered, still trying not to go into any details. "You should come inside. I don't want you to freeze out here. You are already shivering. It's warm inside and Lord Luviel is not in. He has gone to find some of the symbols you talked about." Kaz switched the topic, deciding on the next most important one.

Much as Miranda badly wanted to refuse the offer, she knew she would freeze by morning if she remained in the open.

She was already there and there was no way to escape. She might as well face her fear and pick a less painful way to die.

Also, considering that they needed her to escape from the forest, she could buy herself more time by staying alive.

"It's dark in there." She revealed another concern, one that made Kaz smile.

"Don't worry, I'm an expert at making fires. I'll make a fire to light the place up and keep you warm."