บท 90: The Truth

Even though it's said in a teasing manner, I can feel the seriousness underneath it all. It makes me a bit nervous but if I want us to work out, I need to know, right? I can't continue down this path in blissful ignorance.

My smile fades as I say, "Whatever it is, I'm here for it. When I kissed you, that meant I was all in." His dark eyes watch me intently before walking over to his desk and asking, "Do you think my shadow powers are evil?"

I slightly frown as I follow him and say, "No. The type of power you have doesn't decide whether you're evil or not, it's your actions." His dark brows raise in question, pointing at himself and asking, "And what do my actions say?"

I give him a warm smile as I say, "You are cold and even cruel, but you are not evil. Believe me, I've come face to face with evil many times and you are not it. Even though I don't fully understand why you do certain things, I feel like there's a reason for it. Your actions speak of motives I know nothing about, but I'd like to know about them."

He continues to stare at me before slowly smiling and saying, "You truly are one of a kind. I wish this world had more people like you." I beam at him as I say, "That's a scary thought but maybe I can rub off on a few here and there!" We both chuckle before he sobers up and asks, "Have you heard about the demons that have been popping up all over?"

I nod my head and say, "The ones that were killed off a while back but are coming back? Weimin was on a mission to take them out." Bolin smirks as he says, "Yes, those." He walks over to his desk and pulls out an old, weathered-looking paper.

He unrolls it and flattens it out on his desk before saying, "Years ago, the demon realm was a part of this world before being completely sealed off and wiped off the maps. The demon race lived, worked, and even loved next to the humans and Cultivators. Everything was in balance, peaceful, and natural but then the other races began to fear the demon race."

I watch him closely as I see emotions flickering through his dark eyes. He continues to look down at the paper as he continues, "They feared their power, their resources, and their origins. Fear sparked hatred and hatred bred discord. Discord bled into war and that war destroyed an entire race."

When he looks up at me, I see all the pain and suffering he had always hidden. My chest tightens as I start piecing things together. His sharp jaw is tight as he bites out, "They killed us because of ignorance and greed."

My heart clenches as I watch him hopelessly. He softly says, "I watched them kill my mother, my father, my brothers, and my people. The only reason Haun and I are here today is because I was sent away by my parents. They used all their power to send me to safety and sent Haun to aid me."

A wave of unease rolls through me as I say, "You aren't just from the demon race, are you?" He gives me a mirthless smile as he says, "I am the third prince of darkness. The dark prince of the fallen demon race that was unjustly murdered and cursed."

I slowly close my eyes, taking a deep breath before slowly walking over to him. His dark eyes watch me coldly as I come to a stop in front of him. I slowly lift my hand up, softly touching the side of his face as I look into his eyes and say, "You must have been so incredibly scared. Your parents, your brothers, and your people would be so proud of you. You grew up so well."

His jaw is clenched so tight, I'm afraid his teeth will shatter. I lean forward and gently hug him as I say, "Thank you for surviving, thank you for fighting, thank you for bearing everything for so long." I feel his entire body shudder before relaxing into my hug.

His arms wrap around me and squeeze me tight as he tucks his head into my neck, breathing deeply. I slowly and gently pat his back as I think about all the things he must have gone through. He must have been just a young child when he was sent away.

How would a child feel knowing his parents sacrificed themselves for him to live? How would it feel growing up knowing your family's killers and yet not being able to do anything about it? How would it feel growing up with the very ones who hated you, cursed you, and spoke ill of your family?

I don't know if I would have been able to do it. I would have gone insane, killed everyone, set the whole damn world on fire, and then watched it all burn with a smile on my face.

Wait... didn't Bolin say something similar to that before? He didn't care if the whole world were to burn? I sigh as more and more pieces start clicking into place. I softly say, "You know, where I'm from... demons are actually evil creatures from the underworld who tries to kill everyone and everything. I'm glad to know that it's not quite the same thing here."

He leans back, looking down at me and asks, "What, would you try to run away if I was?" Looking into his dark eyes, I slightly shake my head as I say, "No, not after falling in love with you. I'd be screwed." His eyes warm as he gives me a dark smile and says, "Good, 'cause I'm not letting go."

I return his smile as I say, "Neither am I. You're stuck with me." He chuckles before leaning down and placing a soft kiss on my forehead. I frown as I ask, "You said something about a curse?" He pulls back and gives me a serious look before nodding his head.

He plays with my hair as he says, "You know the shadows that I control?" I tilt my head but nod as I try to understand. His thumb plays with my jawline as he says, "They are the demon race. They are my people. The others couldn't kill the demon race, we were too powerful, so they used underhanded methods."

His eyes are back to being cold and hard as he says, "The King at that time worked together with a powerful dark cultivator and placed a curse on the demon race. Cursed to forever wander in the darkness. Cursed to forever be lost and stuck in time."

He looks over at the paper once again as he says, "That King has handed down the key to this curse for the past two generations. The current King holds the key to saving my people. To save my race and to uncover the truth."

He looks back at me with determination burning in his dark eyes, scaring even me a little as he says, "I will stop at nothing to resurrect my kingdom and my people. Even if I have to destroy everything else in the process."