“Kassina turned you into a vampire? By the gods, what did you offer her in return?” asked the king.
With a swift motion, Derian grabbed his father’s sword by the hilt and ripped it out of his own chest with another explosion of blood. He then swung the blade around with unnatural speed and sank it deep into Arman’s heart. It was as if the preceding fight had been but a simple game to the young prince.
“Allow me to correct your aim, father. This is where the heart is,” he growled. Congealed blood mixed with acidic saliva splattered onto his father’s face, and burned deep into the king’s flesh. Arman dropped to his knees and brought his shaking hands to his chest. They were immediately drenched with steaming hot blood. As his vision blurred, he felt his heart give up the fight, his face hitting the cold stone floor of the turret. His last breath escaped his body as the life disappeared from him.
The bedchamber door suddenly burst open and armed guards flooded the room with swords drawn, followed closely by the queen.
“Something is wrong. The king is in danger and we must find him immediately!” she ordered.
Aidan and Stenwulf stayed close to her side as the rest of the guards spread out inside the room and made their way to the balcony. Stenwulf said, “Arman’s protection orders are immediately underway as a precaution, my Queen."
A guard stepped out to the balcony and a moment later yelled, “We are too late—the king has been slain!” He turned his vision to the other side of the balcony and screamed, “Vampire!” as another flash of lightning revealed Derian still dressed in his royal clothes. “It’s the prince!” began the guard. “The traitor must di—”
His next words were cut off by the sound of choking as an icy-cold blade ran through his throat. Derian pointed towards Andrielle and yelled, “Leave now, Mother, or you will die! With Father’s death, you are no longer Queen of Greenhaven.” He picked up the dead guard’s sword from the floor and threw it through the air to land deep in Stenwulf’s skull, sending his lifeless body flying into the cold stone wall.
“My Queen, we must get you to safety—now!” shouted Aidan.
He grabbed Andrielle by the hand and ran down the turret stairs. They heard the bedchamber door slam shut with a violent shudder. The remaining guards swarmed like bees onto Derian, fighting with all their strength to allow their queen enough time to escape.
The booming voice of Derian echoed behind them as the vampire prince screamed into the night, “Army of Darkness, hear my call. Greenhaven is ours and with the king’s death, it shall fall!”
The ground rumbled beneath the escape party’s feet and they shared uneasy glances.
"For the queen!" they cried. The sounds of the desperate fighting could be heard echoing down the stairwell.
“Arman, my poor Arman! My own son is a filthy vampire, and the beast killed his own father. Why didn’t he listen to Vartan’s words? Why?” wept Andrielle as she was pulled further down the stairs by Aidan’s strong hands.
“Quickly, my Queen, you have to escape the city—it isn't safe for you here anymore. With the king dead, your life is in danger,” said Aidan.
They finally reached the bottom of the turret after what felt like an eternity. She was greeted with Helenia, another guard, and four knights donning their armour and drawing swords. They were surrounded by two more groups of guards, each man holding a brightly lit torch above his shield as if to ward off the darkness of the evil that had invaded Greenhaven.
Helenia stared at her mother with tearful eyes and cried, "Tell me it isn't true! Is father dead by Derian's hand?”
The queen looked at her daughter wordlessly and Helenia began to sob quietly.
Aidan looked Andrielle in the eyes and spoke firmly. “My Queen, everything has been carried out as per King Arman’s commands. Helenia, your horses, and your elven armour have been readied for you. The remaining knights will accompany you on your journey. May the gods protect you all."
The entire city had descended deep into chaos with devastation in every direction. Houses burned bright like lit candlesticks in the night. The remaining guards fought with honour to defend Greenhaven against the invasion of the Forces of Darkness, but new shadow demons spawned continuously from the freshly dead to reinforce the Dark Army’s ranks.
The queen's voice broke as she cried, “My people are dying. We have to save them!"
Aidan put his hands on her shoulders and addressed her directly. “We are under strict instructions to ensure your safety, and I have no choice but to respect King Arman’s orders. We are overwhelmed, and it is only a matter of time before we can no longer guarantee your life. With all due respect, my Queen, put on your armour and ride out of the city as fast and hard as you can, before I drag you out of here myself. I don't want to desert my men. We will hold them back for as long as we can, and will fight to our very last breath. A messenger has already been dispatched to warn the elves of your journey. There is no time to waste—now go!”
A loud shudder reverberated through the city as the main drawbridge was lowered viciously and slammed into the ground, the force of it sending huge chunks of earth crashing into the flowing river below it. Andrielle was quickly aided into her reserve armour and onto her waiting horse before turning to address the guards. “Brave men of Greenhaven, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts. If the city is beyond all hope, and you can make it out with your lives, find your way to the Elven Woods, where you are all welcome to find a new home with us. There is no shame in saving your lives."
Aidan raised his sword in the air and they all shouted together, “Long live the Queen!”
Andrielle and Helenia turned and rode hard through the main gates, and Aidan returned his attention to the guards under his command. “We know what we have to do here tonight. The city is not lost until we say it is. For the memory of our King Arman!” he yelled.
Aidan raised his sword high in the air as the roar of the guards momentarily drowned out the horrific screams from the city. The gathering shapes of shadow demons could be seen with each bolt of lightning as they took formation at the other end of the city, and they began to move slowly towards Greenhaven’s final line of defense.
As an almost blinding flash of lightning struck the earth near the shadow demons, she finally arrived in Greenhaven. Her form slowly revealed itself through the dispersing smoke, and Kassina stood with small bolts of lightning coruscating into the ground from her fingertips. Her dark laugh echoed eerily throughout the entire city. “My sweet Derian, we’ve done it! Greenhaven, their shining jewel, is ours for the taking.”
Aidan marched into the front line of guards, aimed his sword forward, and readied his shield by his side. “Don't listen to that witch and her drivel. Is this really the best that Kassina can throw at us? Men of Greenhaven! Let’s show these pathetic demons that it is our blades that they should fear. Charge!”
Kassina's pointed at the charging guards and snarled, “Kill them—kill them all, my sweets!”
Her hair was whipped around her face from the sheer force of her dark army charging past her position.
The guards ran ahead at full speed, as the demons increased their own pace between the shadows. As the gods watched the glowing city from the stars, the forces of light and darkness collided in a fury of blades, shields and claws.
The war had begun.
Kassina - By Nicola Mcintosh
Chapter 4: The Aftermath
“Bring me another cup please, innkeeper, is that really too much to ask?
Life is so sweet, but ever so sweeter with the aid of an honest drink. I have travelled far and seen much, even though I don’t remember a lot of it… I’m sure that it was full of experiences worthy of a songstress!
I may not be so young anymore, but worry not, as I’m sure that one day I will rise to be a great man, and shall be etched into the history books.
Yes! They will say, ‘We all remember the master thief who could outdrink any man, or woman, for that matter.’ Actually,
that’s not what I was thinking at all. Pour me another cup!”
(Tusdar, Master Thief of Greenhaven)
She sat quietly on her sleek throne, tapping her long fingernails with boredom. Patience was not one of her strongest points, and she grew tired of the glacial progress of Shindar's plans. Immortality comes at an immense cost to a woman who craves continual excitement and attention.
Kassina was blessed at birth to be an incredibly beautiful woman. Her glamorous features were enhanced by her exotically pale skin. It was not difficult to understand why so many had fallen for her charms and paid dearly with the price she demanded for fulfilling their wishes.
Her feminine body was barely covered by an intricately woven dark blue dress that hugged her generous curves. She was pure darkness, wrapped neatly within a deceptively attractive shell.
The prince wants an audience with me? This should prove to be an amusing distraction, she thought.
Around the perimeter of the room were countless slaves who were chained harshly to its sleek walls. They sat naked, shivering, on the icy-cold floors. Their foggy breaths provided a sickly calming ambience to the room. Some of them lay almost lifeless with fresh bite marks on their necks, but clung to their humanity with whatever strength they had left.
Standing and marching around the room, she toyed with her captives and playfully tapped their heads as she made her way around. "Teenie weenie little crow, catch my meal by the toe. If she bleeds, let her die slow. Teenie... Weenie... Little... Crow..."
Stopping in front of a naked young woman that was barely past her teens, she cocked her head and smiled. "It looks like you will be graced with my attention today."
The woman shook her head, beads of sweat forming on her skin as she scrambled to the wall, cowering. The woman sobbed, "No, please!"
Kassina laughed as she crouched down on front of her victim. She looked her over and reached down between the woman's legs, forcing her fingers inside her and concentrating as she dug deeper. "Well what do we have here? You are a special treat. Let me guess, you probably have never been kissed, have you..."
The woman cried out at her sudden push and Kassina brought her bloodied fingers to her mouth, sucking them clean. The vampire's voice whispered with a purr, "I don't usually play with my food, but how can I resist? Do you know what I like more than the blood of a virgin?"
The woman's teary eyes peered over her shoulder and she shook her head.
Kassina brought her seductive mouth by her ear and whispered, "Nothing."
Her sharp intake of breath filled the room as Kassina's head blurred and her fangs sunk deep into the woman's flesh. Her cries filled the room as the deep sounds of her blood being swallowed and the vampire's satisfying moans accompanied her in an intimate symphony of death.
When her body was near depleted and she let out her final breath, she twitched with her last signs of life before Kassina stood, stretching out with her replenished power. Her eyes closed, she ran her slippery tongue around her plump lips and fangs. Her legs slid as she slowly returned to her throne, her movements vacant as if her mind had travelled far from her tower. She sat down gently as if she were a falling leaf from an above tree, her lips quivering with the aftershocks of pleasure.
With a satisfied grin, she ordered, “I think he has waited long enough. Bring him inside, and don’t hurt him, as that privilege is always solely mine."
Two skeleton warriors opened the heavy iron gates, and she snarled wickedly as Prince Derian strolled inside. The prince's face contorted as he looked around the room at the many victims dead or dying.
As Kassina sent souls to Shindar’s grip in the underworld, skeleton warriors were created from the rotting bones of the fallen and used as reinforcements for the Forces of Darkness. The bones contained the souls of men and women who now found themselves trapped inside this new form. Shindar sent their souls back from the underworld, after they had been enchanted by magic. These souls were not aware that they had died, and fought for Shindar blindly, obeying Kassina's every command.
Kassina managed to control her anger as she laid eyes on the half-breed son of her oldest enemy. “Prince Derian, what a surprise. What brings a spoilt heir like you to a desolate place like this? Tell me, is there one good reason why I shouldn’t just kill you where you stand? It would save me a lot of time. Please enlighten me, while you still pique my curiosity."
Derian stopped in his tracks, held up a partially ripped dusty scroll, and threw it to her with a swift twist of his arm. He grinned and approached her confidently. “This is why you won’t kill me, sorceress."
Kassina raised one hand at him and her other hand to stop the scroll mid-flight and eased it open in the air. It hovered in front of her face as she read it. She looked him over and her eyes narrowed as she spat, “Stay where you are, maggot! I have not given permission for you to walk around here as you please. You are far from home, young prince. I thought this was all but lost in time—where did you find it?”
Derian crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow. “I have the other half of this scroll in safekeeping at Greenhaven, and I can get a hold of it for you, but first I need to know if you will agree to my terms, sorceress."
She rose as smoothly as a snake from her oversized throne, and looked deep into his eyes. Kassina was not known to bow to the demands of others. Her eyes narrowed and glowed as she read and considered his thoughts, and she smiled when her decision was made.
“I already know what you want, Derian. There is no need for you to speak your terms, it would just waste our time. I don’t often meet a man whose dark heart truly yearns to kill his own father and it would give me no greater pleasure than to enable that ambition. I am touched by your interest in me, young prince, and I accept your offer. It has been a long time since I have had myself a new pet. But you should know that even the gift of immortality comes with a heavy price, and your plans run greater risks than you may have considered."
“Of course they do, Kassina. I will do whatever it takes!”
She laughed mirthlessly, her voice turning from soft to a deeper growl. Her blue eyes glowed red, like embers in a freshly lit fire, and her fingernails slowly grew into sharp claws. Kassina raised her arms suggestively, and her smile revealed her pearly, pointed fangs through her cherry-red lips. “Very well, Derian, come to me now and let us seal the deal, so to speak. I’m dying to taste your royal blood, I have always wondered what it would be like."
Vartan awoke suddenly and sat up in shock as sharp pains seared through his head. He rubbed his face as if to ward off the pain and whispered, “Damn these nightmares. Derian and Kassina? As if that could ever be possible. What dark corner of my imagination did that come from?"
Beside his bed lay an empty bottle of white wine, his dirtied pack, armour and weapons.
I knew this was a bad idea, he thought as he took a long swig of water, the liquid hitting his growling stomach. There was a strange smell that burned in the air, almost like a bonfire left overnight. He slowly wound a cloth bandage around his ribs to aid the healing, and gently eased on his clothing and armour.
This wasn’t his first visit to the Jade Inn, but it was the first time that he had to pay for a room to sleep in. After taking a few moments to gather his thoughts and regain his focus, he felt it was time to get some fresh air. Vartan shoved open the creaky wooden windows and kept his eyes lowered to let them adjust to the overwhelmingly bright light. There was a large gathering of people below him who all pointed at the horizon, whispering to each other with frightened voices and holding each other tightly.
What in Marithia is going on? he thought. Vartan slowly lifted his gaze, and his skin turned pale in shock at the sight before him. Greenhaven glowed with a red tinge, and large black puffs of smoke filled the blue sky.
“No! It isn't possible,” he exclaimed.
Vartan ran hastily downstairs to the inn’s stables and quickly readied his horse before roughly mounting it. From the corner of his eye, he noticed the
shadow of a man running at full flight behind him. In a smooth motion, he drew his new sword towards the man’s chest, stopping him dead in his tracks only inches away from certain death. The shine of the blade reflected on the man's chest.
“V... Vartan? What is this all about? You promised me another drink this morning,” said Tusdar, with his hands raised defensively in the air.
“Open your eyes and look to the horizon, you drunken fool. Greenhaven appears to have fallen, and all of Marithia may be in danger. Amazingly, it just so happens that all of Marithia includes you,” Vartan replied, sheathing his sword.
Tusdar stood still, staring at him expectantly. Vartan shook his head and growled, “This is no time for drinking, Tusdar. I must ride out of here, now!.”
With a stern nod, he whirled his horse around and rode hard in the direction of Greenhaven, digging his boots into his horse. Vartan had ridden far from the so-called safety of the golden city’s walls, but it was worth a try. He concentrated hard to form words in his mind.
Helenia, if you can read my thoughts, please tell me that you have not come to harm.
There was no reply, only the sound of cold wind rushing harshly past his ears. He was riding harder along the long and winding path leading through the woods, when he suddenly pulled back on his reins. His horse almost lost its balance as he barely avoided a collision with Aidan, who was drenched in blood and bore nasty flesh wounds from head to toe. Aidan desperately limped onward, almost like a walking corpse, staring vacantly ahead.
“Easy, Aidan, let me help get you to a healer,” said Vartan, steadying him.
“Vartan… so much death… so much blood… sorceress… taken,” he whispered as Vartan brought some water to Aidan’s dry lips. He coughed out the initial mouthful as his throat was suddenly flooded with fluid.
“What of Princess Helenia? Was she hurt?” asked Vartan desperately.
Legends of Marithia: Book 1 - Prophecies Awakening: Uncut and Extended Second Edition Page 5
