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Chapter 39

“Noctom,” Reilena’s response was paused by shyness as they stood in the doorway of his room.
“Yes my dear,” his finger played along her cheek.
“You are…” a relentless girlish grin overcame her face; she was lost for words as she gazed into the dark eyes of the daemon.
He began to name a list of possibilities, “Charming, Romantic, Exquisite, unbelievable?”
Her eyes dazzled, “Yes, and much more as each day passes by.”
Noctom chuckled at her obvious dependence; he pulled her in close for a kiss but paused before they locked lips. “And as for you my dear, I find that I love you more and more with each moment we share together.”
The Reilena grew impatient with him; She was practically pouring her heart out over his looks that tantalized her over the light of the dim fire. “Please kiss me,” she whispered.
Noctom continued to tease her with his closeness. He combed his fingers though her fixed hair, his gaze burned through her very eyes. The prince possessed the shady look, that look of a man who knows his prize
“Noctom,” Her eyes danced dependently upon his next move, “kiss me, please,” she was practically begging.
He slid his fingers softly up her neck, enticing her with every moment she did not taste those lips. She pushed herself deeply within his warmth, compressing her chest into his torso.
“Reilena,” he smiled, she could not take this torture any longer, “I have to-” in an instant she caught the prince off guard, devouring his mouth in mid sentence. By this sudden action he had forgotten what he was going to say, while they were still caught in this passionate kiss, the Prince backed her over to his bed. It did not take long for them to collapse onto the sheets with Reilena’s feet still hovering over the floor. She pulled with all her strength to feel his body press into hers. His physical senses intensified. His large hands caressed every rich curve. He indulged in the kiss like a mad man. As he began to pull the corset strings lose there came a knock on the door.
“No, don’t leave,” Reilena pleaded as she held onto him for dear life.
Noctom had to push her away, “One moment,” he looked to Reilena with frustration, she was perfectly helpless on his bed with her hair slightly turning to a mess, his goal was finally met. “I will be back as quickly as I can, just…please, stay like that.” He said as he hasty fixed his hair. He gave her a kiss then ran out the door.
Reilena slowly sat up from her bed in momentary disappointment. She straightened the strands of her hair and thought of Noctom. “He will see me soon.” By this time she was use to talking out loud when now one was present. She smiled at the thought of when he would return, instantly she stood up and walked over to the mirror to see if she fixed her hair correctly. Reilena’s heart raced with love, after she was done fixing her locks, she grabbed the nearest rose in the garden of a room. As she gazed deeply in the mirror, she leisurely played with the soft rose petals, sliding them across her cheeks and lips.
As if she was reenacting a dance from the early part of the night, she began to spin in a romantic dream with her rose loosely in hand. Swirls of color blended as she watched them all rush by. She continued this girlish behavior until she was abruptly stopped by the red figure at the party.
Her heart skipped in disbelief as he grabbed her out of the spin. Instantly, she threw his hands off her. Reilena paused to regain her balance.
“I did not appreciate that, tonight, how you kept staring at me.”
The man behind the mask was still quiet. “Culture or not, it is rude and uncomforting to have that occur.”
He remained still and stood there in an angered awe.
Her eyes softened, “You can’t understand a word I say can you?”
“I can understand everything perfectly,” and with that said he removed his mask only to find the Reilena with a frozen expression of shock.
Slowly she backed up to the bed and fell when the mattress hit the soft side of her knees.
“We are going back to the woods.” He masked his anger as best as he could through this command.
With her frightened eyes she found the strength to mutter a no.
Her defiance almost made him lose control, “This is not your choice!”
“You are dead!” she screamed.
“And I stand before you now!” Deleo said in a sharp mocking tone
“You can not command me! I am the Reilena, I choose to do what I please and I please to choose here.”
He stooped down to her eye level trapping her hands under his as she sat upon the bed. “I’m taking you away from desert,” he practically spelled it out to her, “It is changing you.”
“This is my palace, I am the to be queen, you can not abduct me from my new home, my new life, my new husband. You can’t!”
He sighed in a huffing sort of way to relieve the stress and anger. She ripped her hands away from his grasp.
“I am not yours!” she screamed. Instantly she jumped up and stood high on the bed just so she could demonstrate her higher status. Reilena’s gaze lowered to his while her eyes dimmed in narrow disgust. “Murderous monster torture me no more!”
Deleo let these words die into silence; he knew he did not have much time. This was no longer a situation that was dependent on his love, though his heart hurt; he showed no signs to her. At this moment, retrieving the Reilena was strictly business.
The other two slowly came out to calm her; they had no time to handle a struggle. “Thea,” Frey softly spoke.
“Don’t call me that!” her outburst flushed her skin scarlet. “I am not her!”
Frey froze to the look in her stance that spoke of raging hate. “It is important that you come with us.”
“Don’t you ever call me that!” wildly she shrieked, if she did not look so healthy, one could mistake her for a Devine under the smoke. “I am not her!”
“You have changed worse than I thought,” Jouanpae solemnly spoke. The fire in Reilena’s eyes poisoned his heart as he trapped her attention.
Deleo caught eyes with Frey and Jouanpae. There was a pausing silence. Frey nodded while he located the mask around the back of his neck. Reilena felt the cold sweat ripple through her limbs. She knew what this meant; it had taken place before her very eyes. Lacking a mask of her own would do her no good; instead she did her second best alternative. As Deleo pulled his mask over his head, she shrieked and hollered while there was still breathable air to holler in.
As soon as Deleo held the seed between his thumb and forefinger, Reilena was instantly silenced. Slowly she sank back to the bed. “One more shriek, Thea, and we will take you limp.” His voice was dark and deep under the mask yet his eyes still burned like hers. “You have two choices, either you come quietly or we make you come quietly.” Gently he rolled the oval shaped seed between his fingertips, any more pressure and the capsule could shatter.
She could hear people shouting in the distance, all she had to do was buy time.
Her eyes quivered as they focused on the fateful object, she spoke as calmly as she could, “Deleo, I want to stay here…” she swallowed the hate filled fear lodged in her throat. “I found my place amongst these people.”
Only if they could come faster… “Deleo, Frey, I am happy here, Jouanpae, don’t you understand? I am happy.”
Frey crossed his arms, “Take in consideration that your happiness here will sweep horror across the world, many could die if you don’t come with us.”
Deleo laughed, “You make this sound like she has a choice in this matter.”
Reilena’s mouth could only drop in horror.
“Now are you going to come with us or do I have to put you to sleep?” Deleo clutched the seed tighter between his fingers.
“I will come if you put the seed away”
He consulted silently to the others while still holding his toxic seed in hand. Frey was unsure as was Jouanpae, but their dwindling time made them restless.
“I don’t trust her right now,” Frey shook his head, “but if she will come quietly by an absent seed, then by all means, put the seed back.”
“If there is one more scream though,” Jouanpae added, “then we will not hold it back.”
Suddenly Noctom rushed through the door of the room and saw the three of them surrounding the Reilena on the bed, one man he did not know the other two were quite familiar. “Reilena!”
“Noctom! Help me!” she screamed.
He pulled out his sword and dagger, “I never knew Deleo that you joined the Salgarin side. So this is where the infamous Jouanpae has been hiding, down with the washed up and ruined daemons. This is quite an interesting combination, now who are you sir, what crimes did you commit to join this outcast of a party.
Frey looked into the eyes of evil; he saw the darkness that eloped his irises hidden behind his cocksure lids. These surprisingly beautiful eyes sparked the deepest hate within Frey. “The crime I endured is only of your own, I kidnapped her to safety and took her in as my family after your murderous rampage commanded at her farm.”
Another stranger knew Noctom’s truth, intense hate flooded his heart to the one who told. Deleo possessed such a look of wronged righteousness it sickened the prince.
Noctom lunged out to Deleo, slashing at every chance he had, however Deleo was too quick. “You forced me to use this, Thea!” quickly he threw the pebble like seed to the ground near Reilena and everyone paused.
Noctom laughed as he was thrown off in disbelief, “So she forced you to use the speck!”
Instantly, Reilena took up the blanket to her face. However Noctom was not taking this seriously. It would not be long before it would spread through the room. She had to give up her consciousness in order to give him warning, if he fell victim to the sleep; there was no doubt that she would end up back in the woods with a dead husband. She removed the blanket and screamed to Noctom, “don’t breath the air, it is toxic!” it was almost an instant after she spoke she fell on the pillow of the bed.
With this realization, Noctom scrambled for his handkerchief while Deleo lunged at him. For the first time his step was off balance, his forceful strikes were limp and his guard was reduced to the sagging use of his sword.
“Where is this boastful arrogance now?” Deleo’s voice boomed underneath the metal mask. “Without your precious air you are reduced to a clumsy fool”
Noctom could not reply, his eyes only showed fear while he did his best to counter Deleo’s attacks. In fights Noctom was the one who played with his opponent, he was the predator in the fight, but now he was reduced to the prey. There was no doubt in his mind that Deleo was just toying with Noctom to feed his revenge. He could only hope that Deleo, the wronged son of Sancho, could find merci in his heart. By his mangled appearance that hope did not seem likely.
Noctom tripped and fell upon the floor; Deleo did not give him a break. The daemon pounced on the daemon in the attempt to end him once and for all. Each slash of the knife gave him an unusual pleasure, his hungering hate became more and more satisfying with every speck of blood. He did not care for the mess that splattered upon his face, or the blistering welts that formed within his hand. To know that Noctom suffered held more bliss than life itself, and it seemed that nothing else in that moment. Suddenly Noctom was able to escape out of the passionate furry, some how the prince found a way slash Deleo across the arm.
With all the movement his body endured, he struggled to get air out of the handkerchief. He was practically suffocating himself. This was prevalent through his swaggering movements and dimming eyes. He had never seen this side to Deleo; there was a fire in his strikes that could finish him off at any time. Where did he learn to use such force with such a speed? Each attack flowed like the dance of a raging flame. In each exhaling breath Deleo huffed through his teeth, there was a deathly hiss echoed behind the metal. This sound struck Noctom with such a terror. It was the breath of an uncontrollable assassin.
Noctom could take it no longer, his body was asking for too much oxygen and breathing though the piece of cloth could not satisfy him any longer. At the moment he removed the handkerchief from his mouth he was not conscious of the action. In fact he instantly put the cloth in front of his face to filter out the sleepy powder left in the air. To his surprise in that one moment where he faltered, he felt no depressant effect play on his senses. Slowly he removed the handkerchief from his mouth. He continued to watch Deleo in a humorous disbelief.
“Get another seed, Deleo.” Frey said as calmly as he could, “don’t try to be a hero in this fight.”
Deleo ignored Frey as he maintained his stance; “I’m going to destroy you for touching her like that!”
His laughter roared though the room, “Seems like your trick fell short.”
“Use another one Deleo,” Frey insisted.
“Now lets play fair,” he smoothly enquired, “man to man.”
“There are no more Frey!” Deleo could not get over their lost amount of seeds, why did the last one have to be a dud. Sharply, his attention focused again over to Noctom, “Don’t you dare preach to me about being fair.”
The prince had to turn his face away, his comment was too humorous for him to take in.
“The very corpse you own only runs with your foul and unjust blood!” Deleo hissed. The more Noctom laughed the more it angered Deleo, “perhaps I should show you how foul that blood is.
“The blood spattered upon your face looks as red and as fair as was Sancho’s when he collapsed in front of my father.”
“How dare you! Compare such an honorable man to yourself!”
In Noctom’s smile he saw the long protruding canines that characterized him as a daemon. Deleo ran his tongue over his, how could such a monster share such a similar uniqueness.
Noctom’s eyes softened as he took the sleeping Reilena into his gaze, “Look at her, isn’t she a sight to see. Can you believe she was completely wild one week ago? Now look at her, she even sleeps like a princess. It is surprising to see how quickly I have domesticated her to my own liking.” He put his finger up to his cheek in wonder, “when she first came here her traits were so animalistic, just like that one woman I killed a few years ago. Only this one here I have use for.” Slowly he walked over to the bed still intimidating Deleo with his snakelike movements. He sat on the bed beside the sleeping woman. “Looks almost innocent. No one would suspect that she was the key to the war.” Noctom began to run his soft hands though her hair, “we have grown very fond of each other, almost a divine connection like the love gods Taéyha and Ceérin. You picked out a good one this time Deleo. The more time she spends with me, the more she hates you. She is a smart one, and oh so playful. The fire in her brings out such a passion in me, I feel alive and full of power…You should feel her when she dances, not like the other stiff ones. Her gyrating hips dance my dance.” Deleo could only scream in disgust as he conjured up this image. “I can honestly say, Deleo, I love her.”
Deleo spit at his words, “You don’t know the meaning of love!”
“If you should somehow by all means win this fight, tell me honestly, what would you win? My death. But do take in consideration Deleo, how would she view you. I mean, look at you,” he laughed at Deleo’s pitiful completion composed of dirt and sunburn with sand deeply enlacing his wounds. “Do you think that she would go back to you when you look like that once she has been with me. What home do you own? Nothing as grand as this. You look foul and smell of the wild, is that appealing to her. And what is that last little thing that she brings up to me, oh yes…you killed her family!”
“That is not true! You are the one who ordered the command, I only took the life of the little boy!”
He could only chuckle as he rose from the bed, “Deleo the point I am trying to make clear to you is that the Reilena doesn’t care for you anymore. Her place is not by your side, but as a queen in this palace.”
“I should cut your tongue out for preaching such vomit!” Deleo hissed
Noctom positioned himself properly, reaching out the tip of his sword and holding the dagger behind his back “Go ahead and try…”
In an instant the two clashed, with only the fires of the room to light their passionate fight; the shadows flickered wildly on the wall. Noctom’s fighting style always had reminded him of a serpent toying with a mouse. Most of the fight was as smooth as a dance, yet in one short moment all could be lost in his venomous strike.
He had to be the mongoose
The metal between their blades inflicted sparks with each collision. Deleo dodged every deadly strike Noctom had attempted. However Noctom saw each attack that Deleo had planed for him. They were in a perfect stalemate. The force in each blow was enough to knock any man off his feet yet they were quick enough to never leave themselves open to the other. It was fire against fire.
“I will have to give you credit Deleo, as an old friend, your fighting style has improved immensely.”
“And yours seems a bit lacking.” In an instant Deleo sliced off a small lock of Noctom’s hair, a tiny section that stuck out just enough for his sword to reach.
He smiled in a sort of horrified hatred, almost in skepticism. “You will die for that!” In an instant he thrust forward the sword in a forceful blow.
One more inch and Deleo would have had a sword through his pancreas. However this shock caught Deleo in a weak position and Noctom hit the sword from his hand. Defenseless to his power Deleo tripped and had no choice but to be trapped in a position of death. Noctom tossed Deleo’s chin up with the tip of his sword.
The smirk on his face could have made his own mother sick. “This is the last time Deleo, I’m tired of you coming back to life. And I am taking your woman too. Such a sad end, just like the trend of your family, they try to be noble, but in the end they die a very vain death.”
“My parents did not die in vain!” Deleo screamed.
The sword pressed deeper into the skin, with any more force, it could punctured the soft tissues. “No, we are still in power. They died in vain.” He gazed over to the Reilena, “but you are the most pathetic of them all, you could not even protect your woman. She is mine now, the daughter of Marr and Sene at my command.”
“What you don’t realize Noctom is that she will manipulate you more than you will to her. If I know her as she has been you can’t control her, only one man can ever remotely control the Reilena and that is not you. I have seen her, she is sweet if you are sweet, but if you hurt her, she will burn you.”
He laughed not believing the words this daemon was uttering, “Deleo I do read, you know, and I know the dangers of what I hold in my hands. But you must realize what I am also. Look at these presents, this is endless sweetness. As I said I domesticated her, with this pampered life and these riches. I own her.”
Instantly he was silenced. Noctom fell to the ground joined by a shattered porcelain vase. Suffocating roses surrounded his head. The water to keep the flowers alive spread out over the floor mixing with the prince’s blood.
“Look how quickly I domesticated him,” the gruff sound came out of Jouanpae’s beard. “So tired of hearing that pompous boy babble, do you know how long I have wanted to do that?”
Frey was partly stunned and partly impressed, however his overall mood was filled with absurdity. He could only laugh at this sight.
“Now, Deleo, throw your woman over your shoulder and let’s get out of here.” Jouanpae commanded, “We don’t have much time.”
“But what about Noctom?” Deleo asked as he quickly got up from the ground.
“What about him? He’s dead, if not a blow to the head, then a trip to the inferno would do him in.” Jouanpae looked at the puddle of blood pillowing his head. “Stab him if you wish.”
And Deleo did just that, he impaled Noctom through the stomach to the floor. As soon as they began climbing out the window, Jouanpae called for Deleo to come along before the guards came in. Yet the corpse of his enemy mesmerized him, he remained unsure. “I want to take out his heart to make sure he is dead.”
“Any other time Deleo, I would let you do your sick ritual, but really we need to go.” Frey tried to reason with him a bit more, “His skull is broken in and you have impaled him, of course he is dead, now lets go.”
Deleo agreed, he just thought the death would taste sweeter than this. However the Reilena was more important, instantly he threw her over his shoulder and began to climb down the rope they had fastened to the bed.
As soon as they left, Stella moseyed in at the scene of their crime. Quickly, she pulled out his sword and threw it to the ground. Over his impaled wound, she placed her hands one on top of the other.
“If destiny desires it, it shall be done.”