The sound of metals that fell on the ice-covered ground brought Eona's thoughts back to the present. When she focused her attention on the middle of the now ruined garden at the back of the Crystal Manor, she saw Rouen, who was now holding Kaien up in the air with his neck, as if their school chairman weighed nothing at all. As Kaien choked in the prince's hold, Rouen studied him like a curious individual would at something that had caught his interest while disregarding the presence of others whose existence he considered irrelevant at that exact moment.
"I wonder what your blood tastes like." Rouen said after a while as he licked the tips of his protruded fangs. "I always killed those hunters who get in my way before because of their arrogance, but it won't hurt if I have a taste of it right now, would it? Especially when the hunter in question has been somehow interlinked with the witch's Enchatress Galdriel Evergreen."
Before Kaien could say anything, Rouen pulled him close, his neck baring to his mouth while he focused his glistening eyes on Eona, who could do nothing but to raise her hand up to stop the gasp that was about to come out of her mouth. Rouen never spared another second for Kaien to process what was about to happen and the sound of his fangs piercing his skin was heard in the silence, but his eyes remained staring at Eona's amethyst-colored ones.
Kaien's blood oozed out immediately because Rouen made sure to bite him where his jugular vein was located. The moment his blood glided through the princes' tongue, memories which Kaien had long concealed were unravelled and Rouen was able to read it like a third person, as if he was there when all those memories took place, watching from the sidelines. And the worse part of it was that Kaien could feel Rouen invading his mind in the most painful way, as if his skull was being split open, which only stopped when Rouen withdrew himself from him.
With a satisfied smile on his bloody lips, Rouen stared at Kaien, who seemed to have resigned himself to his fate. Kaien's eyes were slowly closing themselves but his will to stay awake took control of his body because he couldn't afford to feel unconscious right now. Not when there was still Eona, whom he needed to keep safe from Rouen.
Is this how far he would go as a hunter? But when one is suffering the way Kaien is suffering now at the hands of a hybrid, who wouldn't? Especially when all methods have been rendered useless against him. But if the three Silver Bloods hadn't undergone the severance, if only they were in their normal state, they might have been able to restrain Rouen. It just so happened that they aren't because of the severance they have undergone. If fate chose to play with them, why did it have to happen right now?
"I planned to dispose of you first, Kaien, because your presence threatens me more than my fellow vampires. But it appears you are the one who is going to go down last, seeing that the rest are already on the ground at my mercy."
"Get a… grip… on your… s-self… R-Rouen."
The prince chuckled and it sounded sinister. "But this is who I really am. The being in front of you right now is who I was born to become," he retorted. "Should I have a grip on this side of me then?"
Rouen slowly tightened his grip on Kaien's neck, ignoring the blood that was continuously leaking through the bitemarks on his neck. A hunter's blood tastes different from that of a normal human being because of the power that settles within their blood the moment they become a hunter and, in normal circumstances, he'd prefer it over blood from ordinary naturals who always fall prey to the Lepers – mutants who are presently causing havoc in the world of the living. Even though a hunter's blood has its own uniqueness, Rouen wanted and craved one blood at that moment, it was something that could give him a high and could immediately quench the thirst he had – Eona's blood.
In his entire life, he had never once tasted blood like hers. It smells like flowers that entices vampires who will get a whiff of it and it tastes like the most expensive wine there is. Only a vampire's beloved's blood should have the properties of uniqueness which only the vampire in question should recognize if his other half is a human, but he couldn't actually ask someone to have a taste of her blood for the mere reason of comparison, because even the mere thought of it isn't something he wanted to entertain. He will kill anyone who does. Anyone would certainly be aware that her blood wasn't something that should be spilled, but he wanted to have it spilled for his own gains and satisfaction.
Kaien groaned in pain and he felt himself being deprived of the oxygen because Rouen kept tightening his grip on his neck. He couldn't even pinpoint where he was feeling pain because his whole body was covered in wounds. He felt like his body had been run over multiple times and that his bones were all crushed to dust. His eyesight had started to get blurry as he faded in between the state of unconsciousness and awareness.
Eona could feel fear had completely engulfed itself in her entire being. She couldn't even think straight because of the terror that resided in her mind. The thought she conjured in which the person in front of her was no longer the Rouen that she knew resided and clouded her mind, preventing her to recognize the man in front of her as someone who had cared about her despite their differences in their race and blood. Her lips quivered when she saw the rest badly wounded and fighting for their own lives, making them unable to get back up from the ground and help Kaien. And because Cohen was the only First Blood vampire among them, Rouen literally crucified him on the ice pillar he created near the destroyed pavilion.
She couldn't decide whether to run away and hide or call out Rouen's name once more, hoping he'd answer her like his usual self. But her situation needs her to choose her final thought because the chances of Rouen getting back his humanity right now is zero to none. He had hurt his subjects under his jurisdiction, even those he considered friends and acquaintances, so there was a high possibility that he would also hurt her because of the blood that was currently running through her veins.
Though they may not have known each other for so long, she had been acquainted with Rouen for a few days. She knew he was a vampire. One whose blood is revered by everyone in their kingdom. She even let him drink from her, didn't she? But seeing him feed viciously as he brings those whom he should recognize as acquaintances to their deathbed is something that will bring nightmares in his sleep.
Rouen is obviously enjoying himself as if he had finally been let out of his cage after having been restrained for so many years. And seeing that he completely let her watch everything means that he has something in store for her. Something more horrifying than what he did to those around them. He left her there unharmed because he just had to dispose of the people who would hinder him in his way towards her. He wanted to make sure no one would be able to stand in his way when it came to her.
Even while he was struggling on his own, Kaien looked towards Eona's direction. Something went amiss in the middle of Rouen's severance and this is the result. They had tried their best to fend him off, to restrain him while keeping him alive, because they thought and they hoped that they would be able to do so, but their efforts were rendered useless in the presence of the prince, who seemed to have now grasped his awakened state as he embraced it wholeheartedly. The situation right now isn't like the first and second that he awakened. At least back then, Rouen was still aware of what he was doing. But right now, he, having lost his humanity as he fully embraced his blood as a vampire, made him focus on his goal alone, which was to get the girl all to himself because of the blood running through her veins which he craved to have at the very moment.
Eona, being a normal human and a girl at that, was defenseless against him, so Kaien needed her to run away from there and make use of the time left to hide herself, because no one could tell what Rouen had in store for her. He wanted her, that much is a fact and it was obviously written in Rouen's eyes. But his lust for her blood also accompanied his desire to have her whole. Kaien was certain he was going to end up hurting her while forgetting that she was the sole individual he ever cared about the most. They say that when a beast is hungry, it will hurt everyone around it, even those who remain closest to him, not caring whether they are friend or foe. And right now, Rouen is that beast and his hunger is directed towards Eona. Not anyone else but her. It was her blood he wanted the moment he awakened and, by the looks of it, he was going to have it no matter what it took.
But didn't Aelvien say Rouen would only recognize one soul in his present state? Is it too presumptuous to hope that that soul is Eona? Because right now, she needed that hope to survive from the hands of the prince.
"R-run… Eona," Kaien whispered, hoping Eona could hear him from that distance or, if not, read the words he said from his lips.
He is certain about two things – first, Rouen will grieve the moment he regained his humanity back if he ever hurt her in his state right now and second, Aelvien won't sit idly if Rouen will really endanger her life. The Monarch does not protect her, only to end up dead at the hands of the prince, who is one of the people Aelvien entrusted her safety.
Instead of doing what she was told to do, Eona stared at Rouen, who glanced in her direction with a satisfied smirk etched on his lips for the fear that she might antagonize him with just a single movement. His smirk was accompanied with a threatening glare by his now blackened eyes with shining golden-aquamarine irises which made her fear him even more.
Rouen is enjoying the sound of her heartbeat. It goes from steadily beating and then fast with just a single glance from him. It made her blood smell enchanting even if it was still in her veins. The fear that oozes out from her is something that feeds his ego as if he had accomplished something in the most twisted way. And the way she trembles in her place makes him want to torment her a little more. Call him callous, but his instinct as a vampire is enjoying every moment of it.
"Move a single step away from where you are and I will devour you whole."
Rouen said those words ever so calmly and instead of easing Eona's fear, it made her horrified even more.
"Now what shall I do to you, Kaien Cross?" Rouen asked when he focused his attention back on him. "I can't let you recover from here. A hunter with a caliber like you will surely stand in my way again if you convalesce."
"L-let go… of my n-neck."
Instead of heeding to what he said, a sinister smile then curved on Rouen's lips, showing his protruded fangs, as a black mist surrounded his right hand. When he raised his hand slightly on his side, one of Kaien's short swords which was lying on the ground went up to his opened palm as if it was magnetized in it.
"But I don't have any plans to do exactly that."
"Just ... f-fuck!"
Rouen stabbed Kaien, who groaned in pain after he let him fall on the ground along with the sword on his chest. Kaien controlled his breathing to ease the pain he was experiencing with the sword embedded in his chest, even if it was only for a short while. The sound of rushing footsteps distracted Rouen and his intent to end Kaien's life at that moment was halted. When he glanced at where Eona was standing a while ago, she was no longer there. He looked around but he was not able to see her anywhere. When he heightened his senses, he felt her presence already inside the forest located beyond the gardens.
"She ran away," he whispered to himself as he stared at the outskirts of the forest which was barely visible from the garden.
How the hell was she able to get that far in such a short amount of time?
Rouen glared down at Kaien. If looks could kill, he would have already been dead. If it wasn't because of Kaien, the girl wouldn't even think of running away from him. She wouldn't even have snapped away from her fear. With Eona's disappearance, his mind is torn between wanting to end the life of the hunter in front of him or chasing the girl who is getting away further by the second. But thinking that he was going to hunt for his prey brought excitement to himself and he couldn't wait to do just that. A sudden rush of ardor filled him as he imagined her running away from him because of fear.
He would haunt her like a ghost and he would play with her like a nightmare would to a mere child. He would make her scream and he would make her shed tears. He would make her beg and he would make her bleed. All in a way where he is going to enjoy himself while doing it. Like a crazy man, he laughed at himself at the way his thoughts were going, but not a single regret could be traced in between. Just determination to see it all happen and he will make it happen.
Rouen cared for her, but he desired her also in a way he hadn't before to anything or anyone that came before her. He would not let her draw her last breath, but he would not let her relax either. To be honest, he will not let anyone hurt the girl, but he doesn't promise that he won't. If one could read his mind, they would surely think he had gone mad. Maybe he did because his thoughts were twisted and he is letting it be that way.
He is surrounded by blood but his thirst is directed towards Eona. After taking her blood a few hours ago, he wanted to have it again. The taste of her blood as it glided on his tongue and the feeling as it passed through his throat cannot be described in mere words. It was like he was drugged that it brought him literally to heaven and back and he wanted to experience it again. He knew he shouldn't have it but he wanted to have it anyway and he would make sure he was going to have a taste of it again before daybreak.
"D-don't hurt her. You are g-going to regret it."
Kaien is here dying while the rest are in a state of unconsciousness but still barely alive nonetheless. Instead of retorting, Rouen chose to just smile knowingly before he disappeared in the blink of an eye, leaving only black traces of mist behind him at the place where he was standing before.
He went and followed Eona. That much is a fact. He prioritized following her instead of killing him because his goal had always been her from the start.
Kaien stared at the moon still hanging in that early morning sky. How long did they even fight the prince only to end up here almost dying? He is going to charge their organization for higher pay this time because they literally put their lives on the line tonight just so they could have their job done. If no one comes to their rescue sooner, they will surely not live to see another day. He is aware that Rouen put all those left inside the manor in a deep sleep and that if it isn't undone by him, they will be sleeping as long as Rouen's ability is in effect. All they could do was to wait and hope that someone was able to ask for help before anything about this horror took place or as it happened. He was just glad enough that the prince didn't kill them even though he had put their lives on the brink of death.
For Kaien, breathing even slowly was painful because he could feel his lungs had been pierced by the sword when Rouen stabbed him. The prince had all the intentions of ending their lives but he was just distracted when Eona decided to run. He didn't know whether to be thankful or remorseful that Rouen had decided to follow her, but he was hoping Rouen wouldn't hurt her the way he did to them.
Kaien held onto the handle of the sword, ready to pull it out of the way while using a magic power that would stop the bloodflow that was about to happen once the sword had been pulled out, though he was sure it wouldn't be of much help. It would only stop the bleeding, but that was it.
"Don't pull it out like it was just some kind of wood stuck in between the fences. Your blood will immediately spill and you'll die. Didn't they teach you that at the hunter's association? Hunters with caliber like you should know that. It was basic knowledge. Or are you being stubborn right now just because you lost to the prince?"
Kaien glanced at the one who spoke. It was Mihai and he was walking towards where he was lying. Like the rest of them, he, too, looks miserable. His regeneration ability may still be at work because of his blood as a Silver Blood, but it is much slower than it used to be.
"You're awake?"
"I just gained consciousness. I didn't think Prince Rouen would knock me down cold," he answered as he looked around. "Where is he?"
"He went to track down Eona."
"Shit!" Mihai cursed as he looked in the direction where he could sense both Eona and Rouen. "His fascination with the human girl is something I couldn't comprehend. The first time I ever saw them together, it made me think that she might be the prince's beloved. He may not have announced it directly, but he openly showed everyone last night at the banquet that she was special to him. The prince was watching over her like one would a lover, but somehow she wasn't. I don't know what it was she had that differentiated her from all the other women out there but I'm sure it contributed as to why she had successfully caught Prince Rouen's attention."
"It was her blood."
"But she already has the prince's attention even before he has a taste of it at midnight, so that's probably not it."
"Yeah," Kaien agreed as he remained unmoving. She even has the Monarch and the Werewolf Supreme protecting her from the sidelines, so that's really probably not it. "You might be right about that."
Kaien tried to move only to groan, because even if he started to feel numb all over his body, he could still feel the pain his wounds were causing him, especially where he was stabbed. He curse. He had never had this kind of experience in his entire life as a hunter where he literally questioned whether he would survive his current situation or not. But then, he had never fought a vampire like Rouen, one of whom was a Golden Blood. He only ever fought those whose blood was lower than the prince, mostly those who weren't even recognized as vampires. He'll take a leave for sure if he won't be healed after a few days.
"We just have to pray to all of the gods out there that Rouen will be able to remember who she was to him." Mihai said before he looked at Kaien with the sword embedded in his chest. "I'll be pulling the sword out."
Kaien grimaced. "Didn't you just tell me I'd die? I may hate my situation right now because I was literally mauled, but I'm still too young to die."
"I'll heal you."
"In your condition?"
Mihai shrugged, as if his physical condition was of no concern. "I'll live."
Mihai's fangs lengthened and he bit his wrist to draw his blood. When his blood oozed out like water would into a leaking faucet from his bitemarks, he held his hand above Kaien's lips. Kaien had no choice but to open his mouth and receive Mihai's blood. It was for survival.
"Grit your teeth," Mihai only ever told Kaien before he pulled the sword out from his chest without a pause.
Kaien did as he was told because he literally felt the edge of the sword gliding on his flesh as Mihai pulled it out. His blood escaped his wound but not a little while later, the wound closed as if he had never been stabbed in the first place. For a while, he remained lying on the ground as he took in Mihai's blood until Mihai was certain that he no longer needed his help. Like any vampire's blood, Mihai's blood did wonders for his wounded body because, though slowly, it still healed him physically to the point that he could fight again.
Mihai glanced around as he brushed his hair using his fingers. "We need to alert the vampire council about the current situation while keeping it secret to the fallen families. Are you going to report everything to the Vampire Hunters' Association?"
Kaien sat up. Though he may still feel some parts of his body aching, he is fine regardless. He went and picked up his swords and put them back in their case.
"No. Marius, Zaniel and I won't be leaving Aceldama until we've secured the safety of the human being, Eona. She is a natural and she is still one of my students. Her safety is my priority right now. If we alert VHA about what happened here, there's a chance that they might issue an order to have the prince be put in a cell made especially for your kind until he gains back his humanity, but in worse circumstances, they might issue an order to kill the prince. Because let's face it, him losing his humanity is a sign that he is a danger to everyone, including your own race. Have all the astral gates be closed temporarily and alert all sentinels guarding the borders of Laudicea. We'll be restraining Rouen here."
After agreeing to all his plans, Mihai's eyes glistened as he communicated to the sentinels under his command. After giving a few instructions for them to follow, Kaien and the rest, who had now started to recover from their wounds, started to regroup.
***
With watchful eyes, Rouen watched as Eona ran without direction away from all the horrors she witnessed. She was breathing heavily and her once enthralling look was now a mess though she still looked beautiful in his eyes. If he wanted to, he was able to get hold of her and cage her in his arms at that very moment, but he decided to just follow her stealthily.
She looked around when she stopped to take a breather. Where was she? But then, she didn't even know where she came from exactly – only that the property was owned by Cohen. It had not even been that long when she first found herself running in a forest with a vampire chasing after her and now she found herself in the same situation again. With the sudden rustling of leaves behind her, as if something passed through it suddenly, she knew someone had followed her. And she could feel someone had been watching her silently for a while now. She knew it was a vampire, and there was a high possibility that it was Rouen.
Without looking back, Eona ran again with so much hardship because of her floor-length gown as well as the heels she was wearing. If only she could discard them on the way, but there is no way that she could. The jewels she wears, even those in her hair, as well as those attached to her gown as a part of its design glisten every now and then due to the moonlight. What time is it anyway? For the first time in her life, she couldn't wait for the sun to rise beyond the horizon. But will it stop Rouen, whom she's sure is the one pursuing her? No. Rouen is a vampire whose abilities are beyond those of the vampires around him. He could stay under the sun without burning and with him fully embracing his blood as a hybrid, the sun is the least of his problems.
"Did you really think you could run away from me, precious?" Eona heard, as if the words were just barely whispered in her ear.
She stopped and whisked her head to the side hoping to see someone, but she saw nothing. She knew who that baritone voice belonged to. She had familiarized herself with it these past few days.
"Rouen?" She asked, but she didn't hear an answer, though she was certain it was him. She couldn't have been mistaken.
She couldn't count how much she looked here and there, hoping to see Rouen standing somewhere along the edge of the trees with glistening eyes where his thirst for her blood showed, but nothing.
"Have you given up, gem?" Another whispered words as if the one who said it was standing just behind her.
She didn't move. Rouen, who was standing behind her, didn't move either as he anticipated what she was about to do next. Is she going to ask or is she going to bravely look back at him? He decided not to move then and wait for their eyes to meet in the darkness. But Eona didn't move an inch. She didn't ask anything and she didn't turn around to look at him.
He frowned. "Should I just bite your neck then? Are you offering it to me right now?"
She flinched but never said a word nonetheless.
He could hear her beating heart. It was restless after she ran quite a long way from the manor. In addition, she feared him and he could smell it oozing from her accompanied by the scent of her blood. If only he could read what was on her mind right now, but even after he embraced his blood as a hybrid with open arms, he could still not read her thoughts, as if it was completely sealed away from prying vampires like him.
"Why are you afraid of me?" He asked in the softest voice he could muster.
It was then that a sob escaped Eona's lips as her shoulder shook while she cried. Her fear, tiredness and every other negative feeling she had been feeling the moment she woke up to witness the horror that greeted her all piled up and all she could do was cry. She was just happy then, so why did her night have to end this way, as if saying she didn't deserve any of that happiness? What happened to Rouen just as when she had come to acknowledge who he really was? And what about the rest? Are they still alive back at the manor?
"Love – "
"Don't call me that."
Rouen chuckled. Instead of it bringing butterflies to her stomach like it used to, it drenched her whole being with fear for her own life.
"What should I call you then?" He asked, as if haunting her, especially when he ran the tip of his forefinger at the edge of her neck as if he was tracing the vein in there in the softest and gentlest way, as if he was someone who really cared.
The hair on Eona's nape stood up as chills crawled all over her skin and with Rouen's eyes as a vampire, he saw every little thing that happened, making a satisfied smile appear.
"Gem?" He asked, as he swayed her hair completely on the other side, baring her neck for him to see the pulsing vein in there. "Precious?... Jewel?" He ran his tongue over his fangs as he prepared himself to bite her. "Maybe you prefer, Eona?"
Eona continued crying but the prince had completely ignored it. When Rouen had hugged her from behind, no matter how much he carefully did it as to not scare her any further, she still went rigid. To add to her fear, he slowly leaned towards her in a way that his lips were only centimeters away from her left ear, which made her close her eyes tightly. She did not want to see him this way, but she could not ignore the fact that he was there, tormenting her in ways she never imagined he would.
"Or would you rather me call you meus amor (my beloved)?"