The Blood King's Bride
Chapter Thirteen

The dark lonely night carried with it a sense of mysteriousness. The loud silence was just another one of the unique traits of the forest that embraced the earlier feeling wholeheartedly, walking hand in hand with it. Despite the lack of wind, the leaves still moved in a rhythm familiar to them. The air was chilly, but Calhoun and his guards had gotten used to it. Firoza was huddled between two thick blankets lent over to her by the guards. She lay down asleep as the men all stayed awake, keeping alert.

Calhoun thought about his father. He wondered what the man would do if he were to find himself in his situation. An unknown person had the power to lay with ease destruction on an entire city, and they didn't know his agenda; if he was going to be a friend or a foe. Calhoun sighed. One thing about him was that he despised thinking too much about things. Once he saw an opening in any situation he found himself in, he struck it immediately. At least then, he knew what he was fighting against. He began contemplating if his journey was that important that he couldn't leave it or if he should just go on with it and investigate while on his search. Suddenly, he heard the loud cry of a bird. The silence he was getting accustomed to in the forest was broken and replaced with the feeling of danger. Calhoun stood up immediately and scanned his environment. His guards did the same while Firoza was still fast asleep. It was so strange hearing a noise made by an animal in the forest, despite not seeing any throughout their short stay there. The sound had stopped, but they were still on edge, the eerie silence even more unusual.

Suddenly, the sound came again, but this time, of two birds. The noises the birds were

making were so loud and uncanny, Firoza was forced to wake up. Suddenly the noises stopped again.

"What was that?" Firoza whispered, rubbing her sleep-laden eyes. Calhoun remained

silent and still kept his guard up. The noises came back again, and this time there were three birds. The birds were painfully loud, and combined with the strange environment they were in, they all couldn't help but feel like it was a bad omen, warning them of something that was coming. The noises continued again, and each time it did, another bird's noise was added to the mix. This continued until the whole forest was filled with the cries and screams of birds. "My Lord," the first guard shouted over the noise.

"May I go check it out?" He offered. Calhoun shook his head, signalling all of them to

remain where they were. Firoza placed her hands on both her ears, trying futilely to protect them from the harshness of the birds' noise.

"What's going on?" She shouted over the noise. Calhoun raised his hand towards her,

signalling for her to be quiet.

Suddenly, all the birds stopped their cries at once. They were all counting down, waiting

for another new wave of cries to begin, but the forest remained silent. It was like the noise never happened. They all looked around, wondering what exactly was going on.

The sounds of footsteps could suddenly be heard coming from the deepest side of the forest. Calhoun became alert, same as his guards, who at the same time stood in front of Firoza to protect her. They all faced the area where the sound was coming from, silently waiting for

whoever it was.

The shadows of the forest seemed to envelop their visitor, making it hard for Calhoun to

view who it was. They waited for what seemed like an hour before the intruder finally made it to where they were.

The fire cast a glow on the being, and Firoza gasped when she saw who or rather what it was; it had the face and body of man, its ears were like that of a horse, and a long tail appeared from its behind. Its skin was as dark as the forest's sky, and it had grey hair reaching its waist and short beards also of the same colour. It slowly made its way to them and studied them leeringly. "Today has to be my lucky day! Not only do I see visitors in my wonderful forest, but I

also get to see a female! Oh, it's been so long!" He sighed, joining his hands and placing them under his chin, an overly exaggerated expression of longing. He faced the males, looking each of them in the eye, before finally stopping at Calhoun.

"I can see that you are the leader of this group here. So why don't we strike a deal?" He asked, a mischievous smile etched on his face. Calhoun studied the strange being in front of him. His search was getting interesting the farther he journeyed out of the wastelands. He had never seen something like this, a person who was half-man and half-beast. They have only been written in history books and passed down as tales of the imagination. The people of the Blood Kingdom seldom tell their stories, except the scary ones which they told to naughty children. He gave the being another once over.

"I do not make deals with people I do not know." Calhoun asserted. The being laughed aloud, causing another continuous streak of cries from birds. Once he stopped, the forest became eerily silent again.

"My good man, that is no problem. I go by the name Damianos. I am the guardian of this forest." He walked towards Calhoun and placed an arm on his shoulder. Leaning a bit towards him, he whispered.

"You see, normally, I wouldn't allow you to pass through this forest. But, I think we can draw up an agreement, what do you say?" He said, raising his brows suggestively.

"The lady," the being mentioned, pointing his chin towards Firoza.

"She stays with me. What do you think of that?" Firoza slowly crawled back in fear when

she saw him openly declaring his interest in her.

"See? I'm that kind. I do not ask for anything else. And you can pass through this Forest

safely. I will even guide you through it. You would not encounter any danger and trust me, there

are so many hidden dangers in this forest. "Nodding his head, the being let go of Calhoun and walked around, his tail slowly swishing behind him.

"The woman equals safety. No acceptance, well you know how that would end." Then, he faced Firoza.

"Female, do not be scared when next to me. I assure you, I will make you have the best

times of your life." He said, smiling mischievously.

"All you need to do is come with me. Don't worry, I don't bite." He whispered,

snickering. Elena quickly hid behind one of the guards, who in turn stood at her front, blocking

her from the being's view.

"I do not agree." Calhoun suddenly said. The being paused, then acting as if he didn't

hear Calhoun speak, he faced him and said,

"Did you say something?"

"I said, that I would not give her to you," Calhoun repeated.

"And why is that?" Damianos exclaimed, looking genuinely shocked that Calhoun

refused his offer.

"My reasons are of no use to you. Even if it were, I do not wish to share them with you." Calhoun answered. The being frowned immediately.

"Are you sure of your answer young man? It would be really sad to lay to waste a man as strong as you." He warned, coming closer to Calhoun. Then he whispered in a not so quiet voice. "You do know that I do not need your permission, right? I was just asking out of courtesy

for the lady. I might as well kill you and have my way with her." Firoza gasped loudly and quickly covered her mouth with her hands, intense fear shining through her eyes. Hearing the threat against their Lord, Calhoun's guards quickly drew out their swords. "Impudence!" The first guard shouted.

"How dare you threaten our Lord?"

"Oh shut up, you vile being! You are beginning to get on my nerves. Just your presence

alone is reeking. Phew!" He said, making a mocking wave of clearing the air of a bad smell. He faced Calhoun once again.

"Since I am so kind, I'll give you time to change your mind. Just a minute. Not a second more." He said, making way for them.

"You can start to say your goodbyes now." The being suggested.

"You do not need to wait. My answer remains the same." Calhoun declared. Damiano's face became earthly still. Supposing it were anyone other than Calhoun who

was at the receiving end of his cold stare, they probably would have cowered in fear.

"Do not test my patience young man. I do not need fools, neither do I like repeating myself."

"You just did that." Calhoun pointed out.

"It doesn't mean that I enjoyed doing it!" Damianos retorted. Sighing, he put on a smiling

face.

"I think I introduced myself wrongly to you. I do not know what impression you have of

me, but I guess I must correct whatever it is." The being's smile suddenly turned malevolent. "Give me the female, or die."

Calhoun drew out his sword, poised for attack. He studied the different angry emotions passing through the being's face, and he kept his guard up. He couldn't afford to lose his men on this journey, and if he had to fight for them, he will. He also saw Firoza as one of his own, despite the burning curiosity and cautiousness he had of her.

"You already know what my answer is, and just like you, I despise repeating myself," Calhoun said. Damianos screamed in anger, causing all the birds in the forest to go on a rampage. They flew about, destroying anything they touched.

The being ran towards Calhoun with his claws drawn out and swiped at him. Calhoun dodged the incoming strike and immediately sliced at Damianos. The being dodged it and back flipped, making a perfect landing and slowly moving backward. His sharp claws were still drawn out, and he bared his teeth, his face an expression of intense hatred and fury.

"I cannot imagine why I have to deal with you like this when I have a more stress-free tactic." Damianos smiled suddenly, a very frightening expression etched on his face. His eyes slowly turned red, completely wiping out his pupils, leaving only the formerly white part of his eyes to be completely red.

Calhoun raised his eyebrows at the occurrence. He could feel his blood boil in

anticipation of what was coming. He stretched his neck and assumed an attack poise, waiting for Damianos next move.

Damianos screamed, and suddenly the birds all dropped from the sky dead, and the forest became eerily still. It was like time had come to a pause, where nothing moved for them. Everywhere was silent, and they looked at the other, yet still keeping their guards up, wondering what would happen next.

Immediately, Firoza started screaming. She began to rub her face and her body, scratching off her skin with an expression of intense fear. It was like she had come across the worst thing that could ever happen to her. The two guards joined in her groaning. Unlike Firoza, they were fairing a bit better, trying to fight whatever it was that they saw. Calhoun could feel his mind being searched, and at some point, he found that he saw himself in another place. However, that didn't last, and he returned to his normal self, ready for attack.

"You are a strong one, young man," Damianos said.

"One of the only people who were able to avoid my form of attack. But they didn't last

long though, so do not conjure for yourself any iota of hope." The being nonchalantly raised his claws and studied them.

"You are probably wondering what I'm doing to them aren't you? Well, I suppose I could

tell you before your death." He concluded, turning to face Calhoun with a mocking smile on his

face.

"You see, I was born with the gift of manipulating emotions. I can make people believe

their worst fears have come to life, and the same goes for their dreams too. I can make a woman

in love with a man, think she is in love with a goat. I can bend anyone's emotions to my will! Isn't that great?" He said, laughing deliriously.

"Your friends here, are experiencing their worst fears. You are a special one. You do not

fear anything." Immediately, Damianos brought down his hand and stretched both his claws, widening his stance.

"But not for long. I will deal with you myself."