chapter 32 marked and claimed

Alexander's eyes had a crazy glint, he flew up aiming for Ethan's heart, Ethan manoeuvre and he missed.

Ethan, in his majestic white dragon form, unleashed a torrent of fire. It roared forward like a flood, but Alexander barely flinched. With a flick of his wrist, his hellfire flames surged to meet it, swallowing the attack in an explosion of heat and embers.

The battle went on for a while, Alexander had the upper hand, his flames going further out and Ethan's fire became shorter. 

Ethan suddenly turned back to his human form, cough cough, blood rushed out from his mouth. Calista ran towards him, helping him stand again.

"Run" he pushed her away.

Alexander blurred forward, sword aimed straight for Ethans chest.

Pain and bitterness flickered in Ethan´s eyes " I deserve it, I couldn't save you Alex" a tear rolled down his cheek.

He closed his eyes, ready to accept his fate, but it never… came.

He opened his eyes, and behold, he saw Calista in front of him, red and gold energy swirling around her.

Alexander's sword stopped an inch away from her heart. Her pendent pulsed with energy, strong enough to stop Alexander´s blade.

Calista, whose feet moved before her brain caught up, closed her eyes as she awaited the cold pierce from the sword, but it never came. " Why?" she wondered.

"clank"

She opened her eyes. Alexander dropped his sword. She let out a breath of relief, she didn't realise that, she had been holding her breath all this while.

Cold, spider-like fingers racing up and down her spine. Her breath hitched, when Alexander took a step closer towards her, she didn't know why she froze like a statue.

Ethan tried to reach out for her, but his legs gave him away. His vision blurred, his bloodied body struggling to heal from the wounds inflicted by the hellfire flame.

Alexander bared his fangs at her, but she didn't waver. Her emerald green eyes flickered, gold flames dancing in their depths.

Alexander gripped her.

"No" Ethan cried out, he struggled to stand on his feet, but miserably failed. " If you kill her, you never get your senses back," he cried, crawling towards them, a trail of blood left in his tracks.

" Drink from my heart" her melodic and gentle voice commanded.

As if entrance by her command, Alexander fangs pierced through her chest, drawing blood from her heart. They floated up in the sky entwined, as the gold and red energy swirled around them.

She embraced him as she winced in pain, she felt intense heat and pain gushing through her veins. She felt like she was being incinerated.

 "AARGH" a painful scream escaped from her lips, her body damped with sweat, she felt like… she couldn't take it anymore.

Her eyes hue returning to her emerald green, the energy pulsating from the pendent, slowly disappeared. She embraced darkness with open hands.

Meanwhile in Alexander's inner consciousness, the battle with the black dragon continued, suddenly the world started to rift apart. The earth dissolved. The sky rifts open.

The dragon slowly disintegrated, " come find me, master, come to the land of hades" the dragon's powerful voice echoed, before he finally vanished.

Thousands of questions prowling through his mind, suddenly a blinding light pulled away from the disintegrating world.

The dark veins began to recede, his fangs and claws slowly retroded, his pitch black eyes, turning into its normal shade.

Alexander found himself falling from the sky, with calista in his arms, his eyes flickered, not with rage, but something unexplainable.

He gently held her, he gently wiped the blood dripping from the side of his lips. His eyes lingered on her chest, slowly rage started to build inside him.

"Thud" he let go of her. 

He caught a person crawling towards him.

"Ethan?" his voice filled with anger.

He ran towards him, momentarily forgetting about Calista.

" Who did this to you?" he held him in his arms, his voice sounded calm but a volcano was erupting inside him " who could do this to his best friend" he thought to himself.

Laugh " who can …beat me ….into a pulp?" Ethan asked, his laugh dried.

Realisation dawned on him, he felt anger towards himself " it is not your fault…. You went berserk" Ethan tried to reassure him.

" What about the enchanted chain?" he asked, puzzled.

" Take.. a look" blood spouted out from his mouth.

Alexander looked around, and saw the disaster he had made. The Chain shattered in pieces, even his own body was covered with bruises and wounds.

" What is Calista doing here?" his voice hardened again.

" she…saved you" Ethan mumbled, but Alexander could hear him well.

" she made me mark her " he growled, rage clashing with something far more dangerous…doubt. His grip tightened, knuckles white. "This wasn't supposed to happen". 

Ethan´s eyes opened wide in disbelief.

" you claimed her?" Ethan asked, fear contorted his face. " So this is what they meant, by the word Doom" a painful smile contorted his face before he slipped into obscurity.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After what seemed like a long night, dawn finally came.

Alexander gaze locked onto the figure lying on his bed. His eyes flickered with anger. " For more than a millennium, I have never marked anyone to rule beside me.... Why did I mark her" he thought to himself.

" The prophecy, I have to find the script myself…. No i will bring her with me" he took deliberate slow strides towards her.

He couldn't resist the urge of coming closer to her, he slowly climbed the bed. He pushed back the wet hair sticking to her face, she was drenched in sweat, her body burning with intense heat.

" you will be my mate, if.. Only if you can survive this" he muttered, a tiny bit of his heart, wishing for her to survive.

A look of dismay contorted his face, he didn't like the thought of him wishing her to be his mate.

A devilish smirk contorted his face " to be a mate of a demon lord, you will have to be as strong as him" he stepped away from her " i hardly doubt that, you can be on my level" he slowly walked away from her.

He let out a low, mocking whistle, a sinister smirk tugging at his lips as he strode out of the room, his steps unhurried, yet dripping with intent.