The sun was almost about to set, and Ascian had to reach the outskirts of Arran before the given time. Although he could use as vampiric agility to reach the place soon, he decided to slow down. The entire Arran was here to send him and his army off, for nobody knew when he would return. The verdict stated that the vampires would be banned indefinitely, which meant that there were still chances of him returning. But when? That was a question, answer to which nobody had.
Ascian was the Lord of vampires. However, that did not mean the other supernatural beings did not respect him. It was evident how everyone seemed despondent as they followed him closely. The group walked away from the Council Hall towards a clearing, quite far away from the supernatural settlement.
The moment they inched closer to their destination, everyone could feel an intense energy, sucking their breaths away. An ovoid of dark blue light at the center of the clearing garnered their attention. Ascian stopped suddenly, making the others behind him halt. He turned around to face them, his smile still playing on his face while his army stood behind him. "Arrans, I, Ascian, the Lord of vampires will take my leave now along with my army. I hope the land of Arran will prosper and reach new heights in my absence."
His words of farewell not only made the angels, who were already sobbing, cry harder, even the other supernatural creatures became teary-eyed. "If given a chance we will meet again." He continued. "Until then, please remember me and miss me, for I will be missing everyone for sure." Though his words were meant to lift their moods, it had the opposite effect on them.
Yevhen could not control himself seeing his friend leave, and he hugged him, his sudden action stunning the Vampire Lord. However, he returned the hug immediately after, chuckling lightly. "Take care." That was all he said before he let him go.
"Arrans, I apologize to all of you present here and also to the ones not here if I have ever done anything to hurt you. Please forgive me and my army for putting everyone through this misery." Ascian and his army bowed deep before everyone, putting forth his sincerity and his concern for them. Some of the Arrans shook their heads, disagreeing with him. But it did not change the fact that he was leaving.
Ascian took one last glance at the crowd, meeting everyone in the eye and registering their faces and names in his mind. He thanked them silently for supporting him before he turned around and walked towards the ovoid of energy, the center to which held the portal. The moment the judgment had been passed, the portal had opened, waiting for him and his army.
The Arrans stood in their spot watching one of the most powerful Lords they had ever seen walk towards the portal. The force increased as he approached closer to the ovoid, and Ascian turned towards the crowd to meet his friend. He nodded at Yevhen before he crossed the portal. Ascian did not miss Queen Charmaine wiping her tears before he disappeared into the void. One by one, the other vampires too followed him, bidding their land a goodbye.
The moment the last vampire crossed the portal, it closed, and the ovoid vanished into thin air. That was it. The land of Arran now had no vampires, and it was all a result of one of the devious schemes an unknown enemy had executed on Ascian. The moment the portal vanished, Charmaine dropped to her knees, crying hysterically. Among the crowd, she was affected the most by Ascian's departure, and Yevhen knew why it was so.
The other angels rushed to her, seeing their queen kneeling on the ground. The Arrans stayed rooted to their spot for a long time, waiting for a miracle to happen. But they knew that it was impossible, and the Vampire Lord would not be returning.
The sun moved closer to the west, and gradually, darkness started to spread everywhere. The crowd thinned out, leaving only the Dragon Lord near the clearing. The angels had taken Charmaine with them, forcing her to return home even though she was reluctant to move from her spot.
Yevhen sighed, closing his eyes. He was exhausted and lost. The last few days had been nothing but stressful, and he had not had a good sleep. He was completely devoid of any energy.
However, it was not the time to rest yet. He had a lot of work to do, more so after Ascian's banishment. His friend had left him with a task, a difficult one at that, and Yevhen had taken it upon himself to help him. It was now his responsibility to find out who was behind the gruesome incident. Only when the true mastermind was found, Ascian could return to Arran.
Shaking his head in helplessness, Yevhen stared at the open area before he too returned to his palace to put his next plan into action.
Meanwhile, Ascian and his army of vampires were pulled deeper into the void they had stepped in. The abyss was dark and frigid, and even a powerful, cold-blooded being like Ascian felt the cold hit him hard. Although he tried to see where the chasm was leading to, he could see nothing but darkness ahead of him.
However, the cold and the darkness did not last long. What came next was a sudden surge of heat, and bright light struck their eyes, making it impossible for them to open them. Ascian flinched at the instant change, and he closed his eyes, tolerating the heat that was starting to burn him slowly. At one point, the heat became too much for the vampires to bear, and they groaned in pain. But the next moment, everything stopped, and with a loud thud, they hit the ground hard.
Ascian frowned when he fell on a hard surface, and he opened his eyes slowly, blinking several times, trying to adjust to the light around him. But what he saw made his eyes widen in bewilderment. There was blood everywhere around him, with men lying dead on the ground. His surprise turned into disbelief when he noticed people fighting among themselves, their swords and spears slashing the air as they attacked each other.
Ascian stared at what was transpiring in front of him in shock. The Lord and his army had arrived at the land of humans, right in the middle of an ongoing war.
Ascian and his army stood up, the smell of blood inciting them greatly. Usually, they had great control over their blood lust. However, seeing the way the humans did not care about each other, they could not repress their thirst. All they wanted to do taste the delicious nectar that was inviting them. Their eyes had turned a deeper shade of red in hunger, and Ascian was certain that if they continued to stay at the battleground, his army would lose control.
"Army, let us leave from here. We do not want blood on our hands." He warned them, his low voice hypnotizing them to listen to them. All the vampires' eyes snapped to him immediately, and he shook his head, manipulating their minds to listen to him, instead of their bloodthirst.
The vampires stood rooted to their spot, and the instant their Lord started walking away from the battleground, they followed him, without blinking. But even before Ascian could get away from the group of humans, they encountered a stranger who had his bow and arrow pointed at them. "Where do you think you are running off to?" The man's questioned, his voice laced with arrogance.
Ascian titled his head at the man, not budging from his spot. However, this action of his irked his opponent, and he glared at him. "I must applaud your courage for trying to meet me in the eye. Do you think you can escape after humiliating me?" The man bellowed, his loud voice hurting the Lord's ears, and he closed his eyes, bearing the gruff noise.
"I advise you to tone your voice down. It's irritating me." Ascian suggested, his words stunning his army.
'Why is he lowering his regard for a mere, useless human?' They wondered, and many among them even had the urge to rip the man's head off for disrespecting their Lord. However, they stood still, for the Lord was still controlling their minds.
"How audacious of you to talk back at me!!! Don't you know who I am? I am Finley, the great Commander of Ingora." The human seethed, and by now, Ascian had had enough of the man's madness. With his eyes narrowed, he gave him one look, and that was all it took for the human to drop to his knees and bow at Ascian.
"I apologize for my foolishness, Milord. I had been blinded by my ego. Please forgive this mere slave of yours." His sudden change in demeanor did not surprise Ascian, and he walked by him, without speaking another word, his army following him closely. Once they were away from the battlefield, Ascian started to run, commanding his army in their minds.
'Follow me.' And in an instant, the place was devoid of any vampire. The army had vanished with their Lord, leaving the humans to fight their own battle.
Meanwhile, Finley stayed in his position bowing on the ground, and his strange behavior bewildered the humans. They had seen the way he had stopped a group that had men, women, and children, making them wonder why the women and children were here at the battleground. It was not a place for them to be.
But what surprised them more was when their Commander kneeled on the ground before the group and bowed at them. This was the first time they were seeing Finley bow at someone who was not their king. The war was still ongoing, and even the infantry from their enemy kingdom, Nethilor, were amazed to see the great Commander of Ignora kneeling. They were suddenly intrigued by the group who had humiliated him this harshly.
Unable to see their Commander embarrassing himself anymore, some of his soldiers hurried to him. "Commander Finley." They called out to him. But there was no response. The man remained frozen in his spot.
"Commander Finley," The tried again, and one of the men even shook him to bring him back. Something snapped in Finley at being touched, and he blinked, confused at seeing his men gaping at him in concern.
The entire army of Ingora was distracted by their Commander's baffling behavior, and taking this opportunity, the soldiers of Nethilor charged ahead with vigor, killing their enemy one by one. Even before Finley could comprehend what had happened and why he was kneeling on the ground, he was surrounded, and one of the enemy soldiers pointed his sword at the man, the tip touching his neck.
"Commander Finley," A voice he was familiar with and loathed the most fell on Finley's ears, and he gritted his teeth in fury. "It is a delight to see you in this position. How long I had wished to see this day!!"
"Commander Blair," Finley seethed, clenching his fists and glowering at the man. He attempted to get up. But the soldiers beside him pushed him down, forcing him to stay in the position he was in. Even his men who had come to save him were being held captive, and nothing he did or said could save him. They had lost the war even before it had actually started.
"Don't make the mistake again. Your life is in our hands, Commander, and I wish to keep you alive for a long time." Finley did not miss the threat in his words. Yet, he was not scared. He was a man who had pledged his life for his kingdom, and he would do anything to protect it.
Commander Blair continued to taunt Finley, circling him slowly. He did not hesitate to mock the man who was better at him in fighting. Under different circumstances, it would have been impossible to insult him. Winning against Finley was difficult, and if not for the mystique group of people who had rendered him immovable, they would never have captured him. The crowd of Nethilor cheered seeing their Commander chasten Finley in front of everyone.
However, the man remained unfazed by it. He was not worried about being mocked by his enemy, for he was waiting for the right time to execute his plan. "If you are a true warrior, get your sword and fight me." Finley spat, his eyes not moving away Blair, who had stopped walking hearing the man's desire to battle it out individually. "But I am sure you won't. You are a coward who is not even worthy of being a warrior, let alone a Commander."
Just as Finley wanted, Blair was provoked by his words, and he glowered at him in anger. He padded towards him slowly and squatted down to meet Finley in the eye, and the moment he did so, Finley pulled out the dagger from his sleeve and stabbed him in the neck.
Hello guys,
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Thank you everyone for reading this book.
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