Vampire Prince's Temptation

10. Dead

Aileen gazed around the whole place, felt like she just entered a magical world. It was not heaven, but hell. To her, it was not less than heaven. Fire, dust, sand, the smell of dried black blood was there in the air. 

It was giving her a vibe of the fight. Soldiers were standing on either side, their face was hidden with silver mask, never take that from their face and always ready to fight with their sword that was in their grasp. 

Little pixies from Unseelie Faerie courts, where unholy or unblessed Court consists of the malicious and more evilly-inclined fairies, were playing with swords or clearing the dust in the flick of a finger. 

"Careful," Before she knew it, Cosette pulled her from behind and she was saved from beheading by a fairy, fighting with a sword against his partner and they were disappearing in the air, turning into ashes. 

They've repeated that a few times before the male partner beheaded his partner, and he didn't look remorseful for that, disappeared in the air, and his partner's body turned into ashes and mixed in the air. 

The game was both intriguing and attractive at the same time. She watched she wasn't the only one who was watching that fight, but others too with having their drink with sour, and bugged meat in delight. 

She pressed lips in a thin line, ushered Cosette to take her to the training place. The demoness listened to her, took her toward the playground of the supernatural warriors. No human was allowed there except for Aileen. It was Cosette, who got the permission of bringing her friends to hell for training purposes only. 

"Princess," Two demon warriors in human form came to Cosette, bowed their heads to her. 

Cosette nodded to them, told them smirking, "Don't be so formal with me, Astros, and Bryce. You do know why I am here, right?" They both nodded and turned at Aileen. They greeted her, "Ms. Aileen,"

Aileen bowed her head once and greeted them, "Sire Astros, sire Bryce, I want to learn new techniques from you and want to fight here with your well-trained undefeated warriors." She didn't go to the riddling and told them clearly what she wanted from them. That was one of the traits they all like about her. 

"How many do you want to take at first?" It was Cosette who asked her friend who looked ready to go to a fight. Where Bryce stayed with Cosette, Astros went to find their best warriors who would fight against her.

"One," Listening to her, some trainees and trainers snorted, thinking she was preparing herself to quit the game fast. All of them began giving her funny looks that immediately changed when their gaze fell on Cosette. They all looked down seemingly felt uncomfortable in the demoness's intense gaze. 

Cosette and Bryce were standing at a distance from the fighting place, watching a sword fight between Aileen and a demon. No one was there in that field except for them. There was only one rule in that fight and that was no one was allowed to kill another on the field. So they were careful about it. 

During the fight, Aileen was imagining that demon as those people to whom she loathes the most. One of them was Prince Keiran. She's hurting, blood was rushing down her skin, soaking her clothes. She didn't stop. She needed to work hard, train to be undefeated. She will never allow herself to let down again.

The demon was moving fast, hitting with his sword, kept his red eyes on her, trying to read her mind to read her next move to defeat her. He has fought with her many times, seen her fighting with other demons in that place. He knew her movements, he was aware of her next move, yet she didn't dodge the hit. 

It happened many times, she did that uncountable times, yet in the end, when he thought of him going to win that fight, there was what he made a mistake. Aileen has started her real fight against him. 

She smirked at him and fastened her moves. She was so fast that he didn't know when or how his sword fell on the ground and found himself pinned on the ground with Aileen's sword rested on his throat. 

The warrior demon was confused, shocked, and a bit amused by her tactics. 

He was known as Gluttony, one of the deadliest sins of the seven sins. It derives over-indulgence and over-consumption to the anything is the point of waste, which means the excess of everything is bad. 

She made him breathless, powerless in the end. He had no energy left to lift his sword and fight back. 

He couldn't help asking breathily, "Why were you moving like a snail in the whole fight? You didn't even block your mind for me to read your strategies," Even at the end of the fight, she showed she was going to accept defeat. But who knew she would do the complete opposite of what she decided in her mind? 

Aileen didn't say anything except she helped him to stand on the ground. Patting his back twice, she appreciated him, "Good game, Thanks," The demon nodded and left the ground with his sword, limping.

"Cose, don't you think it's strange?" Bryce asked the demoness who was staring at Aileen strangely. Her eyes were sharp and dark brown eyes, her expressionless face wasn't giving away anything. 

Shifting her attention to Bryce, she asked with her tone filled with curiosity, "What do you find strange here?" Bryce was the protector of Cosette. He was a top-ranked demon warrior in hell. He and the Astros were brothers, trains all creatures including the Royals and he was the younger one, close to Cosette. They knew each other well and he also knew Elora, Cosette's aunt has left to know Aileen's birth mystery.

Bryce looked at Aileen, seeing her wounds, he told Cosette thoughtfully, "I never saw her fighting like this. It is like, she wants to get hurt before she defeats her demon," Cosette also noticed the same thing. 

Her intuition was getting stronger the more she watches the human keenly of something that must have happened in her absence. Even she observed the witch was behaving weirdly in that cottage. 

Cosette said absentmindedly, "Getting hurt in a fight is normal, Bryce. But..." Is it not what Aileen wanted? 

She wanted to continue her training as she believes she has forgotten her lessons during the break. 

It has been years that she was not in practice. Janette's parents' death broke Aileen too. Cosette was there, supported the sisters in the same way they were beside her when she needed someone the most. 

Cosette still decided to talk with the sisters when they would reach home if there was something they have been hiding from her lately. For then, she told Bryce calmly, "She's fine. Don't think much about it,"

Aileen wiped her sweats and blood from the corner of her mouth and forehead with her eyes gazing over the whole field. She saw some has stopped their fights to watch human fighting against her demon. 

She shifted her gaze to the other side, saw fae warriors and demons were still playing sword fights. She loved the way they fight. She wanted to stand there, watch their fight unblinking. But she can't. She came to that place only to be trained, not for entertainment purposes. It was her decision from the beginning. 

In the fight with that demon, she got to overpower her gluttony which was little but powerful. Her pain, her wound would always remind her that you should never accept things that easily come in your way. 

Castles and the people who live there and wears expensive dresses, and eats delicious cuisine, walk around plastering a smile on their faces... Not everything is real. It can be fake. 

The things we see from the outer side of the mesmerizing view of the Castle, may not be the same as what happens inside, behind the huge pillars. Those are made to hide the dark side of the rulers and their cruelties, politics from the commoners, and from those people or creatures who lives in that Kingdom. 

After that last day's incident, Aileen vowed to stay away from the Royal Prince and if he crosses his limit again, she knew what she needed to do to him. Her worse demon was Lust that she failed to control around him. She has to fight her demon. No matter what it takes, she will fight, fight until her last breath. 

She turned at Astros, the master of the warriors. "Send three," He nodded and sent No. 3 warriors to her. 

Lust walked forward, stood a few feet away from her. He kept a lopsided grin plastered on his face, was confident that she would lose. He has seen her fighting with the other demon. Her eyes were expressive. 

He knew to whom she was seeing as her enemy. He was going to use his power to lure her, play a mind game with her to weakening her. He began showing his charming smile, dark lusty eyes, an undeniable heat, a wanton to her, giving her the feeling that she wanted to run from with all the power she has. 

"Princess, are you ready?" His husky tone sent a jolt of pleasure in her. Her breathing accelerated the look he was giving to her. A heat radiated in her body that she wanted to demean by him. 

She was seeing Keiran in place of that demon. The scene of his dark, hungry gaze roaming on her naked body, licking her juice clean from his hand made her mind numb. It was still there. She could feel his lips travel on the valley between her breasts, licking the water on her skin, hardening n.ipples... 

Lust, the demon, gave a victorious smile, seeing her losing herself in her weakness, her lust. 

Seeing her defenseless condition, he took steps toward her, telling her amused laced seductive tone, "The night isn't over yet. We can go on as long as we can, Princess." Her lips parted, eyes half-closed, looked like she would faint in ecstasy. He slowly lifted his sword and took another step to her. 

"I know what you are. I even know what you want. You are denying it, but your body wants it. Give in, Princess," He stopped two feet away from her, told her lustily, "Give in to me. Only I can satisfy you,"

Lifting his sword, he was about to unhand her sword, but before he knew it, Aileen lifted her sword and hit his hand with that, taking him off guard. His eyes widened in shock when she pounced on him and they ended up on the ground, her hitting him over his face, stomach everywhere. He was enraged and he wanted to overpower her, trying to pin her under him, but couldn't avail it for a while. 

She looked way too pissed. He knew she was imaging him to that vampire. 

"Why do you hate him so much?" He wanted to ask her, but she looked possed by some unknown devil. "Leave me," He said breathily, trying his best to shove that human away from him. 

She hissed to him, throwing punches on his face over and over, "Why? Isn't it what you wanted? We being close..." Black blood was all over her hands, face, and clothes. She seethed, "We are close," 

Everyone was shocked, especially Astros. He never saw her that aggressive before. He looked at Cosette, was surprised to see her calm. It seemed like she was aware of that personality of Aileen before them. 

But he needed to stop Aileen. He walked toward them, gesturing for others to help him to separate them. 

They tried to pull them apart, but it was like she intended to kill that demon. 

She threw them away from her and looked down at the demon's face who looked horrible. 

His face was no longer that same as he stepped into the training ground. She lifted her hand, about to hit him again, stopped by Astros, who commanded her in a stern tone, "Aileen, that's enough for today."  

She snatched her arm from his grasp, told him harshly, "Give me one hour and I will reach my target," 

"If you don't leave right now, the entrance of this training ground will be forever close to you," His warning roared in the whole ground, made everyone stop whispering to one another. Aileen's jaw tightened. She wasn't in her senses. She was still seeing that demon as Keiran, the one who humiliated her in her room. 

She felt a tug behind, Cosette's voice rang in her mind, "Let's leave. Jane must be worrying about you,"

She shot back, "She knows I will come late," She was not going to listen to anyone. Astros looked at Cosette, asking for her help, but she looked lost in her own thought. Bryce shook her, but she didn't react.

Aileen was deeply hurt by Keiran on the last day. She wanted to continue fighting. She wanted to get physically hurt, scars on her skin that may remind her of the aftermath of that incident. He hurt her pride.

"Wanna try me, Ailey?" Bryce, Astros, other dangerous demons, Pride, Wrath, and others looked at the demoness in disbelief. That human was already hurt. How could she offer that to her beloved friend? 

Bryce warned, "Cosette, don't- " He was cut off by Aileen who said smirking, "Sure, babe," 

~ ~ ~

Meanwhile in the cottage, 

"Cameron, when will they return?" Janette looked worried. "The rehearsal is over about one and half hours ago, yet they didn't return. What is taking so long?" She looked at the demon impatiently, was sitting in her living room, sipping tea delightfully. They left ten hours ago and still didn't return home yet. 

"I don't know. But don't worry. They will return soon. Can I get more tea, please? It is truly delicious." 

Cameron looked at Jane innocently, lifted his empty cup toward her, waiting for her to come with his tea from the kitchen. It was just an excuse of his to keep her away from stress. 

He too has no idea why they still didn't back home when Cosette told him clearly they would be back in six hours and make him agree to stay in the cottage as she didn't want Jane to be alone. 

Janette was about to turn to the kitchen, stopped by the goblin, who walked out with a tea kettle, saying, " I am here, sir." Janette huffed in frustration. She told him angrily, "Who give you maid's duty in this house, old man? Ailey and I told you to stay away from the kitchen and dusters many times, but you..." 

The goblin shrugged and walked toward the demon, poured tea in his cup, saying, "This is my job, lady." 

After that, he turned to her, said gratefully, "This is nothing comparing with your kindness, lady. Please don't stop me from helping you with it." 

He was truly thankful for the trio. They were helping him without asking for anything back. 

The group of pixies and nymphs has left already after the rehearsal, but he stayed back. 

No one told him to stay with Jane, but he did. He wanted to protect her in Aileen and Cosette's absence. 

He did see Cameron there, yet he stayed with Jane. Truth to Aileen, he did see Jane was truly kind and it didn't take time for him to warm up with Jane. He likes to stay with the girls. He wished there was a way to leave his previous abusive masters who never showed kindness to him, let alone treat his wound. 

Suddenly the whole cottage ground shook out and the goblin slipped on the ground with a tea kettle. 

Cameron's cup slipped from his hand before he could take a sip from it. 

Even Jane also fell on the ground as it was hard for her to stand in that earthquake or whatever that was. 

Jane raised her head to see what happened and her face paled to see the figure who was lying dead on the floor all bloodied. She screamed out, "Aileen," Cosette looked more horrible than that figure. 

The goblin raised his head and his eyes widened to see Aileen. Tears flowing down his eyes to see the human who once took care of him when he was hurt, beaten harshly by his master. 

He immediately crawled toward her figure and cried out holding her hand, "Oh, Aileen... what happened to you? Please wake up,"