A woman could be heard sobbing in a pain as voices tried to soothe her offering words of comfort and support. Then after a loud cry there was no sound, as if the storm itself was holding its breath. Time seemed to stand still.
Then a long piercing scream of horror could be heard through the night, followed by a loud boom of thunder right above the castle that shook the walls, rattling the windows. The momentary silence had been broken, doctors ran out of the room their hands still covered in blood.
“Demon, Demon, THE CHILD’S A DEMON!” Screamed a nurse running out of the room in fear following the doctors. The other nurses that had been in the room followed her sprinting as fast as they could.
None of them got very far though, in the shadows of the halls knights were hidden and they slaughtered the people that ran from the room sparing none not even the young passing maids that came running to the area because of the commotion. The once pristine halls were now coated in blood.
Heavy footsteps could be heard as someone made their way into the room.
“My lord the child is…” One of the doctors that remained in the room spoke quietly. His voice trembled as he stared at the floor beneath him to terrified to face the towering man in front of him.
The doctor took a step back towards the bed where the woman was breathing heavily, stumbling slightly. The child’s mother suddenly sat up and grabbed her baby from the doctor’s arms holding it to her chest. Her clothes were soaked in sweat and blood. Tears streamed down her cheeks.
“No,” she said in a shaky voice, “I won’t let you take him! He’s mine!” Her arms trembled, too weak from loss of blood to even properly support the baby she held.
“You cannot touch him. I won’t let you.” She swore holding the baby even closer to her bosom. Her body began shaking in fear as the man stepped even closer. She shied away from him as he reached out to touch her head. The man’s grey eyes grew full of piercing anger, and he stepped back glaring at the woman in annoyance.
“Grab him.” He pointed at the child. A guard stepped forward following his command and gently pried the boy from his mother’s weak arms. One guard then carried the silent baby back to the man and the other stepped forward grabbing onto the woman’s arm to support her. After handing the baby to the man the other guard returned to his comrade’s side and grabbed the woman’s free arm.
“Please no! He’s done nothing wrong…” she sobbed her voice breaking, as she weakly tried to pull away from the guards’ grips. The man’ s face was shadowed and cold, his eyes raked over the child with scrutiny as if he were examining an animal instead of a baby.
“This thing…” The man began to say when suddenly the child opened his eyes. His eyes widened, his grip tightening on the boy causing the baby to start to squirm.
“What have you done to him?” He dropped the boy to the floor with obvious disgust getting a cry of horror from the mother. “Gouge out this creature’s eyes and leave it to the Racki.”
“NO! NO PLEASE! PLEASE! GIVE ME MY CHILD!” The mother screamed, the man ignored her cries and walked toward her passing over the baby on the floor. She bit and screamed at the guards cursing them.
“Marix, what have you done to my son?” He whispered under his breath, grabbing her by the throat. She only smiled at him her red eyes gleaming in the fire.
“I saved him.” Her smile had turned into a possessed grin before she started choking. Her eyes bulged slightly and she began to struggle as she gasped for air.
“No, you’ve doomed him.” The man hissed squeezing her neck before tossing her away. The guards released her arms, stepping back as the man drew his sword. Marix coughed violently then wheezed in a shaky breath.
“You wouldn’t kill me. Remember Ryter, you love me.” She smiled at him softly, tears glistening in her eyes as she reached out to touch his arm.
He recoiled as if a viper had struck at him and sliced her arm off in one blow. Marix screamed in pain clutching her bleeding arm. The guards moved away, but one was two slow and she stabbed him in the leg with a blade she had grabbed from under her pillow. The man yelled in pain rolling away from her as he fell out of reach and grabbed onto his comrade for support. Who helped him to shakily stand up.
“It’s your fault Ryter. All of it is. You made me do this.” She drew in the blood coating her hands, her red eyes began churning, mixing the different crimson hues within them. She started to regrow her arm, Ryter didn’t give her time. The window near the bed burst open as a gale of wind filled the room knocking over the injured guard who pulled his comrade down onto the floor with him. Ryter’s grey eyes turned white, storm clouds billowed in his eyes rolling over one another swirling constantly. His arms showed hints of glowing white veins. The tempest disappeared as suddenly as it had arrived.
“I did nothing but love you.” He stabbed her through the stomach with his sword. Wind gust out from the thrust severing something within Marix that made her scream in pain before the light in her red eyes faded, her blue veins were rapidly overrun by black ones crisscrossing over her skin in complex patterns. The veins grew darker and more profound creeping up her neck and down her arms. She coughed violently. Black blood coated her lips as she slumped forward on the blade before falling onto the floor with a dull thud.
Ryter bent down rolling Marix onto her back. He grabbed the hilt of his sword and pulled it from her stomach. Her eyes began to lighten, turning into a light orange as the red glow faded from them. He knelt, grabbing her head gently and placed his ear next to her lips. She whispered something to him, and he stood up and sliced off the remaining doctor’s head.
“I will never forgive them.” He hissed. Glaring down at the guards he added in a cold tone, “Get off the floor, and fulfill the codes before I execute you both.”
“As you command our lord.” The guards replied bowing their heads as he strode from the room leaving Marix bleeding out and their child on the floor. The guards stumbled over each other briefly, their swords’ sheaths stuck together. Finally, after some brief communication the uninjured guard stood up off the floor and offered a hand to his injured comrade who had fallen back down near Marix. The blade still in his leg the injured guard pulled it out with a grunt. Tossing it to the side he left the bloodied blade beside her body taking his comrades extended hand with a wry grin.
“How many days is that now? Five? Kill me before I ever work overtime again.” His friend chuckled wryly in response gazing down at the baby still on the floor.
“Should we…” He started to reach towards the baby, but his friend cut him off shaking his head and grabbed his arm.
“No, go bar the window, but we’ll leave the door unlocked when we leave Vran.”
“That could get us killed Cal.” The uninjured guard replied but still did as his friend requested.
“I know.” Cal responded, noticing the shallow rise and fall of Marix’s chest. He looked his comrade in the eyes and both of them turned their backs to her.
“And the kid?” Vran glanced down at the still boy pity in his eyes.
“Jeroen.” Cal declared with a grin. Vran nodded, understanding the plan.
“Will it work?” He grabbed Cal’s arm wrapping it around his shoulder to help him walk as they left the room.
“If the Emir will it, then yes.” Cal replied limping as he leaned on his friend’s shoulder.
“Live. Please.” Vran willed looking back at the small child surrounded by carnage. Cal smiled at him and then back at the boy.
“May the Emir bless you cursed one.” Cal murmured and then closed the door with a soft click.
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10 hours prior…
Larnean loved his brother, his only family, and would gladly kill for him if he needed to. But now he had to kill him, was that even fair?
“Fairness?” He mused out loud to himself.
What was fairness in times of war, nothing was ‘fair.’ He strolled along the cracked stony road kicking a pebble as he looked around. Years ago, the castle would have been bustling with life, but now only a few tents of injured soldiers, turned beggars, were loitering around the area unable to find shelter elsewhere. In other times these men might have been heroes sitting at home with their families, warm and fed. But now these warriors had been reduced to nothing more than mere vagabonds hungry for moldy bread rather than blood and riches. He gave the men a lingering look of pity, would he have turned out that way if he had gotten injured?
“No, I would’ve died instead… rather than end up like that.” He thought, almost wanting to give the men some money. But it wasn’t worth it, they would either spend it on booze or get killed by other jealous vagabonds the moment he left. Larnean started walking again, looking up at the sky as he watched a bird flutter past. War had once seemed so grand, so glorious, he had been younger than, a fool like everyone around him. Now, he was going to be a fool just once more.
“Please don’t forgive me.” He whispered quietly, observing the blissful bird as it flew up towards the clouds singing merrily. He blinked momentarily, and the bird’s song ended abruptly. His eyes shot open. It was dead now.
“Why wasn’t he surprised.” The small creature was caught in the talons of one of the army’s falcons. He watched as the falcon tightened its grip on the bird, blood dripping from its claws, before flying off to enjoy its meal.
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“Ha ha ha… curses Vurilulam.” He laughed, almost in tears, what a sign even the Emir condoned his traitorous thoughts.
A few of the beggars scurried away from him, they probably thought he was insane, he couldn’t blame them. Who else but an insane man would laugh at the death of a small sparrow? But to him it was a sign that he would eventually meet death for his actions tonight.
The thought was a comforting one as he heard thunder in the distance. Tonight a storm would hit this castle in more ways than one.