It was an unbearably long trip back to the castle.
The silence was deafening and the tension so thick, she could have cut it with a butter knife. Confined within the rocking carriage, she had nowhere else to look except out the windows. No one bothered for conversation, everyone seemingly lost in their own thoughts.
Stealing a glance at Zagan whose eyes were closed, Akila wondered if he remained angry. His chest lifted evenly, though she doubted he was truly asleep — a natural predator like him. No doubt he felt her eyes on him, yet he continued ignoring her. Well, two could play that game! She certainly wished to be anywhere but here right now, stuck between two sullen demons.
After their heated coupling, they collected Balan and left, not without earning a few frightened and hateful stares. Zagan's mindfulness while he hauled his comrade to his feet, told her that he cared for the demon.
Without her permission, her gaze returned to him. From the low lights spilling through the curtains, she noticed his ridiculously long lashes and healthy afterglow — most likely from feeding. How unfair for him to wield such sublime beauty! As if his presence that demanded attention whenever he walked into a room wasn't lethal enough.
Shifting her gaze to Balan — who was wide awake now — his face was mottled purple and his left eye swollen shut. Secretly, she admitted they added to his dangerous appeal. His downturned mouth made her wonder what he was thinking about.
Thankfully, they arrived and Akila didn't both waiting for assistance, climbing off the moment the carriage came to a perfect halt. She raced halfway up the grand steps when Zagan bellowed her name. "Akila!"
Her body tensed. She bristled, turning an impudent cheek to him. "Yes, Your Majesty?"
"Our conversation isn't over," he reminded, the warning in his voice clear.
Deliberately ignoring him, she kicked up her skirts and disappeared down the entrance hall, retreating to her room to plan her next course of action.
"You may be the Emperor, but you're hopeless around women," Balan snickered, favoring his right shoulder as he alighted the carriage.
"Don't tempt me to throw you into another wall," Zagan rebuked with an increasing frown. "You disobeyed my orders. Good friend or not, you know the consequences."
"Rest assured." Balan's words were sardonic and resigned. "I was in my right mind when I escorted your human into the club. The princess has a right to know what she's getting into. At first glance, she appears fragile but after witnessing her trading barbs with you and protecting her maid, I confess I have underestimated her character. It takes courage to stand up to any demon."
"Or she's merely too reckless for her own good," Zagan muttered irritably.
"That too," Balan conceded. "But it's not just me. Mara and the sparus you killed today, we underestimated the princess because she's human, and a gullible one at that." Amusement and sympathy melded into his voice. "Ironically, she's the only one who has succeeded in getting under your skin."
Those were not the words Zagan wanted to hear. He lashed out sharply, "What the hell are you talking about?"
"Am I mistaken?" Balan challenged softly. "After all this time, a human woman has accomplished something no other being has done. She affects you and her blood calls out to your beast. I've seen it with my own eyes. Mara knows it too and I'm certain Kobal has come to the same conclusion." His gaze penetrated Zagan's. "The question is whether or not you're willing to admit that she's different — that you care."
Lightning quick, he was hauled up against the wall — all six foot four of him.
"Be very careful what you say next, attilla." Zagan's razor-sharp fangs flashed dangerously. "There's a fine line between truth and disloyalty."
"You're agitated," Balan persisted, unafraid of the surfacing beast behind metallic eyes. "The fact that you are proves that I'm right."
"There is no way that I'm infatuated with a human!" Rage constricted the black of Zagan's pupils, his nostrils flaring unforgivingly.
Balan coughed out a laugh. "Who said anything about infatuation?" Taking advantage of Zagan's stunned stupor, he broke free and stood proudly. "If you can't admit it to yourself, then you aren't prepared for the future. I've done the princess a service by educating her about demons. Your obstinacy and ignorance will only lead to her demise before her powers awaken." He shrugged. "It wasn't much but, I've armed her with the knowledge to protect herself. My duty is to serve and protect you. By preserving the human's life, it inadvertently prolongs yours. I have no regrets even if you must punish me for it."
Zagan visibly grimaced. Balan's reticence followed him into adulthood and his words were never twisted or further from the truth. What little he had to say was worth listening to, even if Zagan disagreed. It had always been this way between them. "What if this time you're wrong?"
"Do you remember the day we freed ourselves from slavery?" At Zagan's nod, he continued, "I swore that I would serve and protect you with my life. We may not be real brothers — attilla — but we made an oath. Our vow is to support each other through thick and thin, and to accomplish our dreams. Even if I have to kill our enemies or play every underhanded trick in the book, I won't hesitate and when you can't see what's in front of you, — I — will be your eyes."
He squeezed Zagan's shoulder. "There's nothing I won't do for you, atilla, but sometimes you are too self-absorbed. Our journey started on a rough patch but, we've managed to shape our lives the way we wanted it to be. Your eyes are set on a future for demons but sometimes I tire of this — the violence and hatred." A sad smile graced his lips. "I look forward to the end of our journey."
Surprise coasted over Zagan's features, quickly followed by shame and anger. "All this time...why have you not spoken up? Did you assume I wouldn't have taken your feelings into consideration?" he demanded, half-frustrated. "Yes, I do care for my cause, but you are important to me too. Likewise, there's nothing I won't do for you."
Balan didn't blame him for his sound accusation. "Decades ago, we were consumed by anger and despair. Lately, I've begun to wonder if there isn't another way for us to live — without being tied down to our past." His eyes were fearful but resolute. "After observing the princess today, I'm more convinced about it."
"About what? What does she have to do with us?" Zagan growled lowly.
"Hope." A simple but no less compelling answer. "She represents hope for both demon-kind and humanity. An opportunity. A worthy future."
Black brows snapped together in irritation. "I fail to understand how you're able to place such faith upon a human you've just met. Humans are not to be trusted! Have you not learnt from our past? They will never change!"
"I don't deny that our past has shaped us but" ─ Balan grappled to explain himself ─ "sometimes I feel like a cold-blooded killer who is no different from the humans we despise. I wish to erase this hatred within me ─ to finally live in peace."
"What has gotten into you?" Zagan demanded, swamped with bitter rage and confusion. "I don't see how one encounter with Akila has turned you...emotional." He spat the last word in disgust.
"Not emotional, attilla." Balan shook his head. "Just tired. We've been fighting for nearly a century and still we go nowhere. You may be the Emperor now, but usurping Cronoa's throne only marks the beginning. What comes next is a series of trials and it won't be easy to change the people's minds."
"My will is strong. We've toiled too hard and too long to let it fall apart," Zagan declared stubbornly, fisting Balan's tunic. "Have you given up?" Although the question was asked in a light vein, his eyes were alert.
Balan's ease evaporated, the muscles of his shoulders bunching in response. His eyes flashed. "My oath rivals your will to carve a better future for our kind. You know I will stand by you no matter what. I only sought to warn you that the inevitable would be unexpected and your human stands in the center of it all. She's the key and catalyst."
Of that, Zagan had no doubt but, he didn't wish to address the issue when Akila's powers remained dormant. "You may be right, seeing as how she's managed to make you talk this much in decades," he returned briskly, eyeing Balan's wound. He released the demon and nudged him towards the hall. "Enough talk. Go and tend to yourself. After that you will report to the courtyard for your punishment. Your disobedience will be seen as a weakness to our warriors, and that is unacceptable. As my right hand, I will not be lenient."
Balan lowered his head in deference, a fist over his heart. "I proudly accept my punishment, Your Majesty."
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"How dare he!" Akila lashed into thin air, slamming the door shut. Irritated, she picked up one of her pillows and imagined Zagan's face before pummeling the poor mass of goose feathers. "I'll show him that I'm not one of his trained lapdogs! How dare he order me around!"
Punch! Punch! "How dare he use my body so frivolously and flaunt his mistress!"
Another punch and then — "Oh!" she gasped when a cloud of feathers exploded in her face. Akila was appalled when a knock sounded on the door. What terrible timing! Flustered, she attempted to sweep the feathers under the rug, but they lay scattered everywhere. "Who is it?" she hesitantly called out.
"It's me, Bennu." A short pause. "If you don't mind, I'd like to have a word with you."
Relieved that it wasn't Zagan or anyone else, she answered, "Come in, come in."
The maid entered and gingerly shut the door, looking startled by the unexpected mess.
Akila flushed. "Please ignore the feathers." She wore a welcoming smile. "Is everything alright?"
Bennu appeared embarrassed and her stance oddly timid. There was no trace of the haughty demoness who reviled her. It was as if the fight had been drained out of her body. "I-I don't know how to say this..." She fidgeted nervously; her head bowed in disgraced.
Taking pity on the usually prickly maid, Akila seated herself by the dresser and pretended to look busy, hoping to put Bennu at ease. "Take all the time you need. I'll be sure to listen to anything you have to say."
"I-I…" Bennu faltered, disjointed emotions warring inside her before one finally won, and she squared her shoulders. "Thank you for defending me today."
Akila schooled her surprise but, it didn't stop her cheeks from rounding with a wider smile. "You're welcome," she said good-naturedly. "I would have done the same for anyone."
"I'm confused," Bennu admitted, regaining her courage. "You're human. What you did...that's not something anyone would have done for a demon."
"What nonsense!" Akila brushed off her statement. "I don't care if you're the bogeyman in the flesh, nothing would have stopped me from protecting you against that heinous brute!" She stood and erased the distance between them, her golden eyes fierce. "A woman should never have to feel the wrath of a man's fist. He didn't deserve you and it's clear that he never respected or cared about your relationship. I apologize if that's not the truth you wish to hear."
Bennu opened her mouth to rebut, then decided against it, her voice resigned. "That's how it is amongst demons. Power and dominance govern our lives and it's all we know. I suppose this is the part where you humans would say that you didn't know better?"
The fact that Bennu jested on her own behalf convinced Akila she was no weakling. A soft laugh stirred in her throat. "And also, what doesn't kill you makes you stronger."
The ensuing silence wasn't uncomfortable, rather it felt as if they had reached an unspoken truce.
"What is this bogeyman?" Bennu tilted her head in puzzlement.
Akila blinked at the prompt question. "Well, it's ahhh...it's a monster that adults use to scare their children into good behaviour."
Bennu snorted. "You humans believe in the strangest things."
"I know," Akila chuckled, realizing the irony of her situation. Bogeymen weren't real but demons were and, in some ways, Akila lived in a nightmare — her father was dead, and her family was missing except Garrin. And she was clueless about his whereabouts.
"I came with the intention to thank you," Bennu forged on, her eyes still unable to meet Akila's. "I am indebted to you."
"No, please, you don't have to." Akila shook her head profusely. "I don't want you thinking that I had a reason for protecting you. I did what I believed was right and I won't stand for someone getting hurt before my eyes, not if I can help." She slanted a brow, hoping her question wasn't inappropriate. "But I am curious...who was he to you — that demon?"