Her Darkling

Chapter 15.

I followed after him as he began to walk in the other direction, faking a sip and putting a bright smile on my face as I weaved past guests.

He walked through a column and I increased my pace, following him down a hall with stained windows. This must have been a chapel in the past.

I maintained a safe distance, making sure to be quiet. He went through a corner and disappeared. I was about to keep following but I heard the sound of people huddling together. Someone was speaking in a foreign language and I knew it was time for me to go back there.

On getting back to the hall, my hunch was right. The music stopped and everyone went silent. You could literally hear a pin drop.

"Behold, The Supreme!" A masculine voice called from the gallery above us.

Above us, a figure appeared. It was a shadow of darkness at first but as it landed to the ground, he became a physical body. Everyone bowed immediately and I awkwardly joined. I rose at the same time they did, catching sight of Eldrion. He stood beside Senja, and Eamon was on the other end, trying to look as discreet as possible. He was good at this.

Standing before us was a man, tall and exuding so much power. I could feel it in my bones. It felt like a threat, like desolation and destruction. I folded my fingers to hide my tremors.

His arms were spread out as he began to speak in the deepest voice I'd ever heard. I felt the vibrations in my chest. "This is just the beginning of our conquest! The beginning of a new era. A new age where we will take over!"

The round of loud applause shook the room. People raised their glasses into the air, cheering at the top of their voices as their drinks sloshed and tipped over.

I looked over to Eldrion and shook my head.

Something we didn't know was coming and we didn't even have the time to process it. It sent chills down my spine. A sense of doom.

Senja was no longer beside him. I frowned and just as I tore my eyes from Eldrion, I found her weaving past the crowd to the front. She missed a footing and bumped into a demon who immediately turned to stare at her.

I could feel my heart in my mouth, it tasted like iron and fear. He stared at her with so much intensity. Eamon was also looking in her direction and I saw the panic in his eyes. But we all remained still.

We had to leave. That was a close call.

Senja and every one of us caught the memo and I began to back away but as Senja made to retreat, the demon turned to look at her again, this time, realization in his eyes.

"A human resides with us!" His growl permeated through the air, filled with rage, hate, and utter disgust.

Everyone suddenly turned in the direction of the demon in a heightened moment. I slowly backed away, my hand resting on my sheath where my knife lay as the scary realization that the elixir was starting to wane hit me.

Eamon, who had been weaving through the crowd, immediately rushed at the demon. In a split second, he snatched Senja's wrist, and just when a punch was thrown his way, he ducked and slipped out his knife. He hit the demon before sinking his knife into his side. Blood spurted out as he stabbed his blade through his torso.

Everyone went berserk. s**t!

In a panicked moment, my eyes searched for Eldrion. He was on the other side of the hall, slowly sneaking his way out. I immediately shook my head at him as I broke into a sprint.

From the gallery above us, hefty-looking demons jumped to the ground with heavy thuds, their feet moving with insane speed towards us.

My eyes were focused on the door. It was near but it felt so far away. Eldrion was nowhere to be found and while still running, my panic heightened. I wasn't going to leave this place without him.

"Faster, Nariel!" His unmistakable voice called from behind me and soon, he was running at the same pace as me, pushing past other demons who were in our way.

We were suddenly surrounded by demons of different natures. Their piercing gazes burning our skin. Eldrion was right beside me but Eamon and Senja had been able to move farther away from what was to become a gruesome battle.

We knew it was time for us to draw out weapons. Eldrion was quick, distracting. He sliced through the neck of the first demon and tossed the other one on the table, splitting it into two as red liquid and glass shards scattered around in sharp fragments.

Before a punch came flying into my guts, I caught a large fist with one of my hands, teeth gritting as my knife sliced through his arm and sent blood flying into my face in heavy spurts.

I was lifted off the ground from my collar and tossed to the other side of the hall. In a fleeting moment of pain and sheer fear, I glanced toward the door, right in time to see that Eldrion was safe, and just as I was about to stand on my feet, I heard a voice behind me, distinct and deep.

"We were definitely destined to meet again."

The back of my eyes burned with tears and my anxiety returned. It was the exact voice I woke up to every day for most of my life after the death of my mother and Aricen. He was back again, haunting and telling tales of doom.

Once again, I felt like I was plunged back into my dream, one where I had to face him. Only this time, it was real. It was reality and it hit me with a powerful zing that had my emotions careening like I had, down the rocks, years ago.

Trembling and futilely hiding my fear from him, I pushed to my feet, kicking off broken pieces of wood and glass and stained silken sheets.

I slowly turned to look at him and it hit me terribly this time. Tears nearly slipped down my cheeks but I blinked back, putting up a strong front. I wasn't going to let him see my weakness. Never!

He was slightly different from the last time I saw him. With his once shoulder-length hair cropped a bit short and stopping beneath his brows, as black as the deepest abyss. His signature sinister look hadn't changed still and his eyes, those golden eyes that had traumatized me for years. Those eyes with light brown specks told nothing but haunting tales of darkness and evil.

The thud of my heart against my chest reminded me that I was very much alive. It threatened to tear through my ribcage as it thrashed wildly inside me.

Despite his demonic nature and sinister demeanor, he was extremely attractive but in an eerily captivating way. He was devilishly handsome, yet, telling tales of nothing but great destruction. His face and muscular frame looked like it had been crafted by a supreme being; without flaw. It was unfair that a man this evil looked this good.

Backing away from him, that feeling remained in my chest. Revenge amidst the shivers that ran down my spine. Hate, despite the nightmares his appearance brought to life. Once again, I heard her weak cries as she took her last breaths, her cries as she spent the last seconds of her life, telling me to run.

I had been in too much daze to notice a demon coming behind me, ready to attack. In one move, his long arms stretched out and he grabbed me by the arm. I screamed in horror, ready to be pierced by his claws.

But he pulled me behind him and in one perfect movement, he had the demon by its throat, pressing his fingers into its neck before it snapped and fell to the ground, dead.

I was still taking in the sight when a cloak of saturated darkness unfurled from his body and wrapped around me in a protective shield. I was still shaking from shock and intense confusion.

I didn't realize what he was doing until I stepped out from behind him and watched the demons change direction.

He was shielding me. He was protecting me.

I looked up at him, confused as to why he was protecting me when he had the chance to snap my throat like he had done to the other demon.

It wasn't supposed to feel right but it did. My cognition swayed as I tried to weigh all of these. This strange act of kindness clashed with the malevolence I had always associated him with.

How could one capable of great evil be kind to me in a moment he was supposed to snatch to end my life? Perhaps, he wishes to kill me slowly—agonizingly.

We were soon free of demons. He turned to look at me, his eyes sending shivers down my spine.

I was afraid. Very much afraid even after he had protected me and still was.

I couldn't move a limb. I couldn't slip out my dagger. I was filled with crippling fear, one that delved me into a state of catatonia.

"You came back to me."

I opened my mouth to speak but no words came out. All I could hear were my own voices in my head. Voices of me screaming in horror. They fought to dominate my mind, to erase this reality.

"Why..." My voice came out as a faint whisper. Once again, I was the young scaredly girl in hiding.

He smiled. His smile was beautiful but it didn't get to his eyes. It held a hint of evil. "Why? Why are you here?"

He looked around then turned back to me. His gaze was hard this time and his smile had completely disappeared. It had me careening backwards and the protective cloak he had around me was starting to slip. He snatched my arm with force and pulled me in.

"Do not try to run from me!" His eyes darted to the demon who had stopped in its tracks, disappointment washing over it as it walked away.

He was still protecting me. Why was he doing this?! It scared me more than it confused me. I hated that I couldn't even get a hold of my feelings around it. It was scattered in the wind and I couldn't get a hold of anyone. I had lost control!

I wanted to fight him. I wanted to push my knife into his guts and squeeze while watching him die, while watching him bleed to death just like he had done to my mother.

But I couldn't! I was going crazy with fear. It was crippling, weakening me to my marrow, making my joints feel like jelly.

His words, before he released my arms, were painfully cryptic.

"As always, you return to where you belong."