Thane brought Elisia to a cliff where she could see the whole city. It was already past midnight, but balls of glimmering lights twinkled in the vast space as the starry sky swept over the city. Dark clouds surrounded the full moon, so it was in its own realm of eternal darkness.
Elisia was fascinated once more with the beauty of Thane's country. It was more beautiful and quiet than Aramoor City.
She turned to Thane only to be shocked when he suddenly returned to his Terran form. Her eyes widened, seeing him without any clothes on.
"Put on some clothes!" She yelled.
Thane didn't answer. He still had a dark expression, making Elisia more anxious. She turned around, embarrassed by what she saw. Her heart was pounding, and her cheeks felt so hot.
"What do you think you're doing in the witches' lair? They could have killed you!"
"I'm here in front of you, so don't worry." She whispered.
She heard Thane sigh and wanted to see his face, but she couldn't since he was naked.
"This city is called Vripolis. If you ask me how it got its name, I don't have any idea either." He chuckled.
"I grew up in Mirrikh. My family became a slave for years serving different creatures. When you become a fugitive, you are branded for life."
Elisia finally turned around when Thane started to open up to her.
"See this scar?" He asked, pointing at the scar on his neck. "This was the mark of a slave. All the scars on my body had different stories. When I came to Terra, my uncle helped me erase this mark, so now it's just a scar, but the memories of what happened in Mirrikh would remain a memory."
Elisia didn't realize she walked closer to Thane to touch his scars. He was surprised, but he let her do what she wanted.
"What's this?" Elisia asked when she saw a crossed scar on his chest. "You don't need to tell me if you don't want to." She said, catching his hesitation.
"I was cursed by a witch a few years ago. You asked me a few times about the reason I wanted to die. On the next full moon, I will become a monster. When it happens, I will have to kill someone or something, drink its blood and eat the flesh. No one could control it, even me. I will have to slaughter one thousand souls and that's the only way to be free from this curse." Thane answered.
"And death is the other option?" She asked.
Thane nodded. "I can't murder someone innocent. And I don't want to be controlled by some curse."
"The desire to kill someone. Is it the curse of Desideres?" Elisia asked, making Thane surprised.
"How did you-"
"I read about it before coming to Terra. In Acheron, we had to train and know everything about the mortal realm. That includes all the creatures and their powers who already lived here. Father said a lot of creatures hate us in this world, so we must learn about them." She explained.
Thane couldn't believe what he had just heard. Did she really know something about Desideres' curse? Can he trust her?
"Do you know how to get rid of it?" He asked.
Elisia stared into his eyes and saw hope in it.
"Nope. I never paid attention to any of those lessons." She answered.
Thane glared at her. "You're unbelievable."
"What? I was never interested because even if we encounter them and die in their hands, our souls will wake up in Acheron." She pouted.
"Whatever."
He was already tired of arguing with her. Ever since he met her, he had never had a peaceful day.
"Y-Your scars. Why do you still have a lot of them? You're a werewolf. You have healing powers, right?"
"Yeah. But that doesn't mean we cannot have scars. Wounds heal, but the scars remain."
Elisia nodded and just kept on touching the scars on his body. Thane stared at her face, and admitted to himself that she was pretty.
"Your eyes, they're silver. When you fought with your sister, they were different." He commented.
"That's because I'm weak. I used all my powers when I turned back time and couldn't even change into my demon form." She whispered.
Her voice was ragged, and her warm breath brushed into Thane's skin, making him groan. Elisia didn't know the effect of her touch on his body. She couldn't understand why she loved the sight of him naked. She continued to run her fingers into his chest, down to his abdomen.
"This scar. What's the story?"
Thane let out a deep breath, trying to control himself. He put his hand on top of hers so they could both feel how deep his scar was.
"I was tortured when my father was imprisoned because of something he didn't commit. It's a stab wound. Then this..." He said, guiding her hand into another scar.
"I got it during my training with my uncle. And this, a memory from my mother." He put her hand on his right cheek to show her a small scar.
Elisia gulped when she realized how close they were. He was staring at her, and so she did the same. She had never been that close to any man, even Adrian. All she could allow him to do was hold her hand.
"You are playing fire, princess. Are you not scared of me anymore?" He whispered in a raspy voice.
"I'm not afraid. I came from Acheron. We always played fire in there."
He smirked. "Then play with me."
He grabbed her by the waist and crushed her lips with his. Elisia couldn't resist, or she didn't really avoid his kiss. She suddenly wanted to feel what it was like to be kissed. Not by anyone, but just by the werewolf king.
His kiss was different from what Elisia expected. She thought it was disgusting for two people to taste each other. But the feeling of a burning sensation grew in her when Thane slowly moved his lips and invaded her mouth with his tongue.