Bang!
Kylian was sent flying, the thousandth time. His weak and limp body so light that the air even had a say which way his body went.
His body slammed against the wall, and it shook with tremor at the force with which his body collided with it.
In a second, with no time to rest, he was lifted by a sturdy, cold hand.
A deafening yelp of agony escaped his lips as he felt the fist push right into his abdomen, and protruding from his back.
He could feel his whole body on fire the longer the fist stayed in his flesh.
Kylian could barely keep his eyes open. Weak and devastated, those are the two words that can describe him well now.
His silver hair was tainted red with his own blood. His whole body was riddled all over, so much that his healing system seemed to has gone awry, stopping all the gashes from closing up.
His entire body was on fire. Not only from the pain caused by the dark veins, simmering on his flesh, but also from all the bloody gashes scattered across his body.
Yet, despite all the pain, his sanity still remained. This made him feel every single detail of the pain.
The pain from the dark veins and the pain from the gashes all over his body added up, making it overwhelming so much that the citadel that represented his soul is at the brink of collapse.
Kylian's roar, tinged with pain echoed around the altar room as the fist pulled out of his abdomen, leaving behind yet another gash that added to the dozens already on his body.
He collapsed to the ground, afterwards.
Adama licked the blood on his bloody fist and laughed as he turned to Akotal whose back was turned at the area.
"That's the end of the fight, the stop to their resistance, I presume," Akotal said, still facing the altar with his eyes solely on the girl on it.
The descendant.
His eyes glinted and he turned from the altar.
His crimson eyes flashed with slight awe when he saw the bloodied body of the two vampires on the ground.
Kylian and Hector.
Kylian was wincing and grunting, in a silent and weak tone as his riddled body laid on the ground, defeated.
On the other hand, Hector was unmoving, his body limp, and his entire limbs turned the other way. Adama saw to it that every single bone in his body had been pulverised. Something that would take very long to heal from.
Akotal's marred lips lifted. His red eyes sparkled as he appeared before Kylian in a snap.
"You are not healing anymore. Is that end of you?" Akotal asked, rhetorically.
Kylian could only grunt the more as the pain that coursed through every single part of his body lashed at the little sanity left in him.
Instead of being numb as it used to be in the past, whenever the dark veins is on, his pain sensors remained intavt, making it look like he's in hell, burning a pool of lava.
Akotal squatted beside him and chuckled.
"The skull is at the brink of death." His lips curled into a smile as enthusiasm glinted in his eyes. "The last of the skull is at the brink of death! Hahahaha!"
Blood spurted out of Kylian's mouth as he coughed. The blood was dark and it reeked of death. His eyes were closed but his lips were twitching like he's struggling to say something.
Akotal's gaze diverted to Kylian's lips.
Then his extremely powerful ears heard. "I'm not dead yet."
Akotal's eyes flashed with an unreadable expression, then pity as he said, "but you soon will be. The gashes on your body is burning up." His pallid hand adjusted the cape of his cloak as he added. "The pain will be unbearable. But eventually, you will die. Adama's venom is almost as powerful as even the Lead Skull's himself, you can't survive it."
Kylian coughed and yet another mouthful of dark blood spurted from his lips.
Akotal asked, "have you succumbed now?"
"L- leave her ★cough★ alone."
Akotal flinched and turned away from Kylian. His eyes glinted as he gazed at the witches whose eyes were closed as they casted the necessary spells that's needed before the commencement of the sacrificing of the descendant.
"You know. Lead Skull rebuked me right until the last time we saw each other. The next time I set my eyes on him was beside the olive tree where his ashes laid." He turned his crimson eyes to Kylian's limp body on the ground then he muttered. "You have killed him then."
His steps were leisurely as he began to stroll across the wide, circular, altar room.
"Even till now, I still find it hard to believe that a human could kill him."
A silent, weak laugh emanated across the room. Then Kylian whispered. "Yes. And you will die by a human's hand too."
Akotal halted in his steps, his burned forehead creasing into a frown. "That's audacious, I say. But, remember, you were able to kill Lead Skull because he's weak."
Kylian turned his body from laying face down to up. His bloody lip parted as he said, "that's ironic, I think. To say a Primordial who's feared by all died is too weak to defend himself in the hands of a human."
In a flash, Akotal appeared before Kylian. His impossibly pallid hand gripped his neck and lifted him. Akotal's crimson eyes blazed as he said, "don't you think you're being arrogant by thinking you are special because you have killed a Primordial before? No matter what, you are nothing but a vampire who would wither away at the face of a Primordial like me."
With that, he dropped Kylian on the ground.
Kylian grimaced in heavy pain as he felt all the gashes on his body itching again due to the disturbance. He coughed and laughed blowing a couple of dust from the ground where his lips is.
Akotal turned to him, awed by this. Then he laughed too. "It seemed to me that you haven't realized what you have brought yourself into."
"Yes I know. Death. That's my fate. Then get on with it, old man." Kylian yelled out, frustration etched in his voice as his eyes blazed with insanity at the excruciating pain that lashed at his entire body.
"Of course, I'm not that bad. I prefer a much more interesting way of doing things." Akotal grinned.
"We are done." Anna announced from behind Akotal.
Akotal said over his shoulder. "Weldone. But I'm not yet done here. I want you to do something for me."
Anna moved closer to Akotal and stopped right behind him.
Akotal turned, his eyes glinting with enthusiasm as he said, "I want you to heal half his body with magic, so that he can see how kind I can be."
Anna didn't even blink, she just went to Kylian, whose eyes were closed in pain but his forehead was ridged in confusion.
The next second, Kylian felt the air around him churn with energy then he began to feel better, his pain subsiding by half.
It felt like a heavy boulder which was pressing his chest down before had been lifted off him. But then, he was confused.
Slowly, he rose up and sat upright on the ground, gazing up at Akotal with confusion brimming in his eyes.
"Don't be confused, my dear Skull. You will soon understand why the reason I'm unstoppable, even for someone like Lead Skull himself." Akotal said, then he turned to Anna. "I think we might want to bring in our guests now."
Anna dropped a bow in a concur and swung her scepter.
There was a flash of light.
Kylian dabbed, blocking the blinding light.
Soon, the light had subsided.
Kylian took off his hand and his eyes went wide when he saw the person standing before him. "Heald?"
Heald was there, standing with his body smeared all over with blood that belonged to him. He turned his attention to Kylian and his lips curled into a happy smile. His eyes glinted with pure joy as he gazed at Kylian.
Kylian was confused.
'Can't Heald see Akotal and the Witches and Adama?'
Akotal grinned. "No, he can't see a thing. This is my castle, not just anybody's home. There's cloaking magic everywhere."
Anna heard Akotal snap his fingers and she knew what he meant. She clutched her scepter and casted a spell silently.
Heald felt his eyes itch a bit and then he could see things more clearer.
Kylian's bloody body, Hector's limp and battered body on the ground. His eyes went wide at this.
"What the hell…."
His voice trailed off when he noticed the others.
Akotal, Adama and the witches.
He could feel a crippling pressure just by gazing at Adama and Akotal. Every hairs on his body stood on egde as his soul screamed 'DANGER!'.
"Hey, watch!" Kylian shrieked.
"That won't be useful." Adama sneered.
In a blink, Adama appeared before Heald.
Slash!
Heald only felt a slight breeze and the next split second, his belly was tore open as his bowels became exposed.
He roared out in immense agony.
Kylian gasped in shock, his eyes wide open as Heald doubled up in agony.
Akotal's burned lips curled into a lopsided, humourless grin as he muttered. "Time to relive my good old days."
**********
.. The Archipelago ..
In the inner dark, rocky room, Bellerin met Adrian standing near the wall, deep in his thoughts.
"Hey brother." He greeted.
Adrian turned his head to him, his eyes glistening as he said, "if it's about that, don't talk."
"Tsk!" Bellerin chuckled. "I won't talk about it, but I will."
Adrian sighed and turned to the wall. His eyes was emotional as he gazed at the female image sculptured on the wall. "She is my mother."
"I know."
Adrian blinked. His eyes were literally blazing with anger as he said, "you know. Then you should know how she died."
Bellerin hesitated a bit. "I know too." He stepped closer to Adrian as he said, "look, you need to listen to your father. He loves you and doesn't want any harm to come your way."
Adrian shook his head as he said. "I don't think that's true. He's only trying to keep his hands clean in all this. He doesn't want me to have a hand in the Primordial vampire's death."
"Then, don't. Adrian, please don't. Listen to your father, he knows more than any of us. He's lived more than any of us so he knows what's good for us."
"You want me to take my eyes off the man who killed my mother and obey father?" Adrian inched closer to Bellerin as he asked. "Tell me, brother, what do you wish for me?"
Bellerin's eyes glinted as he gazed at Adrian without taking his eyes off. Then he sighed. "You have asked that, not up to a day ago."
"And I'm asking again."
"I wish for you the safety of not having the blood of a Primordial on your hands."
"Father feared the Primordial so much that he kept my existence unknown to them."
"He's only protecting you." Bellerin said, firmly.
"Alright." Adrian lifted his face as he sniffled. His eyes glinted as he turned away from Bellerin. "I will obey father."
Bellerin's lips broke into a smile when he heard this. His eyes glinted as he gazed at Adrian's back.
Adrian turned to him as he said, "but I won't stay here."
Bellerin's grin turned into a frown. But when before he could react, Adrian sped to him and snapped his neck.
His body dropped on the ground, right before Adrian's feet.
"I'm sorry, Bellerin." Adrian muttered.
Even though snapping his neck killed him, Adrian knew that Bellerin will wake up again, so he wasn't feeling remorse for killing him, but because he had to do this to him, who have been like a brother to him since he was born.
Casting a last glance at Bellerin's body, Adrian walked past him, with one aim in mind.
'To go find and kill Akotal', even though he doesn't know where to find him.
********