Chapter 11 Tharildron’s Blood

"Now, drink the blood and our pact will be sealed."

"Huh?" Alexander sputtered in response.

His expression was one of utter confusion. For a moment, he wondered if he had heard Tharildron correctly.

"Don't just stand there with that idiotic look on your face. Get started already. I won't be able to restore your mobility until you've consumed every last drop of blood. It will also serve to replenish all that you lost."

"You've got to be kidding me! There is no way I can drink blood. I'm not some sort of monster. If I do this, I'm bound to become horribly ill." Alexander argued.

From any rational perspective, it sounded completely crazy to suddenly consume an entire bowl of blood. Especially since there was no telling how old it was, or what sort of creature it really came from.

"I understand that this is not an appealing prospect, but it is the only way. Stop now, and your future will be bleak."

Clicking his tongue, Alexander hated that he could not refute the, self-proclaimed, Shadow Dragon Lord.

He had understandably been shocked by the request to drink its blood. Nevertheless, his mind was already made up. This was part of the deal he had agreed to.

Pushing any doubts he had out of his mind, Alexander knelt down on the floor and slightly dipped the bowl towards him.

Immediately the blood flowed out of the container it had sat in for centuries and into Alexander's mouth. Not a single drop was spilled, as if some force was acting on the blood to prevent it from going anywhere other than its intended destination.

When the first drops reached his tongue, Alexander nearly gagged. It was cold, and the thick taste and scent of iron assaulted his senses.

'This is disgusting.'

Tears began to well up in his eyes as he drank the blood. Yet, no matter how much his body instinctively wanted to move away and spit the dark red liquid out, some sort of mental compulsion was keeping him rooted in place.

An icy cold feeling soon assaulted his body as more and more of the blood entered him. He could feel it moving about his body and changing him from the inside. It was both terrifying, and exhilarating.

The intense pain and exhaustion that he was feeling began to fade away, and instead was replaced by a surge of power. The blood was not just revitalizing him but making him stronger as well.

Alexander's sense of time eventually became distorted. He could not tell if it had been seconds, or hours. All that occupied his thoughts was the blood.

After the final drop had flown down his throat, his awareness returned to him. Reflexively, he took in a huge breath of air, as the entire time he had been drinking the blood, he had not inhaled or exhaled once.

For several seconds, he coughed and wheezed violently as massive quantities of air rushed into his lungs.

However, even once he was able to breathe properly, his body's distress did not end.

Replacing the numbing cold that had spread through him while consuming the blood, was an intense heat.

Everything felt like it was on fire, and he writhed around on the floor while in unimaginable pain.

Chaotic screams and unintelligible ramblings erupted from his mouth. Having the lower part of his left leg severed had been bad, but it was nothing compared to the all-encompassing agony he was experiencing right now

'What the hell did that thing do to me?!'

Alexander had thought about the possibility that this was some sort of trap but had ultimately wanted to believe that would be unlikely. If Tharildron wanted him dead, leaving him to his own devices would have been far easier. His chances of survival had already been slim to none.

Soon, the greatest pain was situated inside of his head. To Alexander, it felt like several miniature people had gotten inside of his skull and were slamming his brain with hammers.

His awareness started to slip as the torment reached a point where it was too much to handle. All he needed to do was fall unconscious, and the suffering would end.

"NOOOO!"

Some part of Alexander knew that if he let himself go now, that he would never wake up again.

Not knowing what else to do, he began slamming his head against the stone floor. Anything to distract him from the internal pain.

To him, the next few minutes felt like an eternity, but Alexander fought to keep ahold of his sanity. He was not going to let himself get beaten here.

Eventually, something soothing began to flow through him. It was the immense magic power that he normally tried to keep back.

The energy within him coursed through his body, and the pain he was experiencing slowly receded.

Drenched in sweat and breathing heavily, Alexander rolled over onto his side the moment the final throbbing in his head stopped.

"I won, you stupid Shadow Dragon Lord." Alexander said with contempt.

He was unsure of what Tharildron true goal was, but he was certain that he had persevered through it.

'Yes, you did. To think that I would lose to a human whelp.'

Hearing Tharildron's voice again, Alexander shot up and scanned the area.

Except, no matter where he looked, the floating shadow was nowhere to be seen.

"Show yourself! Or are you afraid of what I'll do since you went back on our deal!"

'Hmph! I'm not hiding. I have no reason to be afraid of you.'

This time Alexander was listening carefully, but still could not figure out the direction the voice was coming from.

It was only a few seconds later that he realized it was coming from inside of his head.

"This is impossible. There's no way." Alexander muttered, attempting to deny what he suspected.

Unfortunately, the shadow dragon's voice resounded through his mind again to prove that he was not delusional. There was now another entity inhabiting his body.