One was Pagern, another Zeal. That's what Brunos knew. However, their faces and phisque were unrecognizable to him. He couldn't tell who was the one with the longest ears he had ever seen, or the one with tattoos. Were they even tattoos? If yes, who was the tattoo artist and which tools did he use? Brunos had much to learn about these realms, right?
In an effort to relate them to the images in his memories, he kept wandering his eyes from one to another. At that moment, the one on Fellene's right exclaimed, "Oh Devils! Look at what we have here, Zeal!" A smile could be detected in his honeyed voice.
'This means he is Pagern.' Brunos said to himself as his eyes roamed over that incubus's body to record his image.
"He's the one with the longest ears," Brunos's eyes told his brain. "His black hair rhymes with the royal robes he is wearing. And... and he is..." Brunos's eyes couldn't find the right word to describe Pagern. He thought of using handsome, but that lacked some qualities. At least beautiful. Of course Pagern was a male, but there was something feminine about him.
"Brother," Said Zeal as he took a step forward. Brunos stared at the side of his face. He wanted to figure out what his tattoos hid. In them, he could see a flower-like pattern. "It's been long. What brings you here?" His crown was as golden as his lobes, just like Pagern's.
Fellene chuckled at Zeal's words. "He is here to give us the red triangle."
"Oh my!" Pagern exclaimed. "Brunos, it seems like you've finally felt guilty for what you did. Or, are you tired of life and want a way out?
'What did I do? Aren't these guys supposed to be guilty of what they did to me?' Brunos wondered, and he was going to ask them what kind of sick joke was that when he heard Lilyon's voice.
"Are you OK?"
As a result, his eyes wandered away from Zeal's tattoos. His gaze landed on Lilyon who was helping the Petite get up. Thankfully, the ground was covered in grass. Otherwise, the fall would have hurt more.
Looking at the girls made Brunos feel sad. Since he arrived, they had been telling him how weak he was. Only now could he realize it. He couldn't even defend those he now called friends. Now he could see how dire the situation was.
"And who are they, Brother?" The honeyed voice brought his gaze back to the terrifying triplets in front of him. Of course they were not triplets. But how could he describe the phenomenon of black wings? The phenomenon of thick horns and blue eyes?
After Brunos took so long to respond, Fellene replied, mockingly. "They are his wives."
"Really?" The two brothers asked at the same time before bursting out laughing. Brunos wondered what was so funny about that. The girls were not his wives. But what if they were?
"He has even bonded with one of them." Fellene pointed at Lilyon as he added, "I have sensed his blood in her veins."
Pagern glanced at Lilyon then back at Brunos with a disgusted look. "Brother, can't you at least respect Pegrinan blood? These realms have many beauties. How come you chose that lowly thing to be your mate?"
Brunos kept listening to them. He wasn't the real Brunos but these guys had intended for him to die. They had wanted him to leave the Realms forever. They still wanted to. How come they were acting as if he was the one who chose to leave?
"Even my maids are more beautiful than these things here," added Zeal. "Brunos, I can give you one of them if you want."
"Does it mean you're here to welcome me back home?" Brunos had to finally ask. "Thank you for your kindness. I'll return the favor. But I have to decline. I have a queen waiting for me, remember? Why would I need a maid?"
Brunos didn't know how it came. How could he be that stubborn? These guys were powerful and could kill him as fast as sneezing. What were his lips thinking about allowing such words to come out? However, since it would piss Fellene off, he was not regrettable. They had been scratching his wounds so it was his turn to use his claws.
Fighting them would be a losing battle. The battle he was inviting by pissing off one of them. But he had no other choice. If he was to die, he wanted it to be quick. There was nothing worthwhile in prolonging your time while listening to those brats. Their words weren't funny, comforting or frightening. Disgusting.
The duo exchanged glances before directing them at Fellene who stood in the middle a few inches ahead. His expression was all Brunos wanted. But his reaction wasn't as Brunos expected. Instead of charging towards him, he stood still shaking with fury. It wasn't terrible though. Brunos liked it. It gave him time to scan his surroundings.
No trees, a castle hundreds of meters away and the hill that they had just descended before meeting the guards. No possibility of escape. That's what the surroundings told him. But he wanted to escape. How could he die two days after a second chance?
He noticed that the succubi guards had withdrawn their swords from the necks of his crew members. He could gesture for Lilyon and Eleanor to make a sudden move and fly away with him. But the Petite had no wings. How could he leave her behind? Was he even sure if he was faster than his brothers?
'Geez... I want to live!' Brunos said to himself.
Fellene let out a bitter smile as he said, "Brunos, this is my last warning. If you continue acting silly, I will burn you alive."
Brunos let out a chuckle. "Oh! Oh! How scary!" His chuckle made Fellene's face wrinkle. Was it pissing him more? How about laughter? "Ha ha! Don't be silly yourself. When have you become fire?"
Brunos knew that where telepaphy existed, pyrokinesis did. Maybe Fellene could burn him. But that would be to his benefit. Burning him would allure the queen. In his memories, these guys were very sensitive to their love interest's scent. If Valeria still loved him, she could sense his scent from metres away. With fire involved, the distance could extend into kilometers.
Fellene's breathing sped up. This time his hands trembled just inches away from Brunos's neck as he said, "Brunos, stop tasting my patience!" It seemed like he was trying to control his anger. As if he wanted to attack Brunos but couldn't. This was confusing. Brunos wondered why Fellene was acting like that.
"Give us the triangle first!" Said Pagern, the softness of his voice a bit harsh this time. That's when Brunos saw that Zeal and Pagern were holding onto Fellene's wings as if to restrict him.
'So that's why Fellene was not taking action. They cannot kill me before I give them the triangle.' Upon realizing this, Brunos said to himself. "OK!"
"What if I don't?" Brunos asked in a challenging tone. "What are you going to do? Fellene, you might get this triangle, but what will you do with it? Grinan has a queen. Don't tell me you think you will be her king. Ha! Ha!" As if reminded of something surprising, his mouth fell open adding, " Oh my! Don't tell me you're planning to kill her! She is your sister Fellene. Don't tell..."
Before he could finish, Fellene's fist landed right near his left eye. It was so heavy that Brunos staggered backwards before another one came his way to send him on his back. Fellene followed him to the ground and increased his pace.
Brunos's sight became blurry but he could see Zeal and Pagern trying to pull him. "Fellene, stop! What do you think you're doing? You need that triangle if you want Valeria to be yours."
They kept yelling at Fellene but he wouldn't stop. The pain started becoming unbearable to Brunos and he tried to push Fellene away but he weighed tons.
A green figure swooshed past Brunos' eyes just as he was close to accepting his fate. Fellene screamed in agony as he raised his hands to touch his neck.
Brunos remembered how painful it felt when the Petite's claws cut him. He could understand how painful it was for Fellene. This was an opportunity. But what to do? He rose to his feet and found himself following Lilyon's commands. "Run! I can make their wings fragile for a few minutes. Fly away. Don't let mom's life go to waste!" Her mother had taught her some witchcraft basics.
Brunos flew away towards the castle before Lilyon's voice echoed. "Don't! The guards can shoot you."
He made a turn and flew towards a hill nearby and stood staring at the Crimson Castle. He didn't know if it would work out, but he had to do it. There was no way he was going to let them die. If his brothers couldn't fly only for minutes, it meant there was still a chance for them to go after him. There was still the possibility of catching him. What would be the use of running away when in the end you were bound to be caught?
He stood straight remembering the Petite's hands over his skin. After closing his eyes, he allowed his body to feel at ease. Now he could feel the cold air on his skin. He inhaled and exhaled several times before inhaling for what seemed like an eternity. The quality of the air told him how unlucky newborn humans were. How toxic were the fuels and things that polluted the earth's air.
When he made sure he was concentrated, he raised his hands in front of him and started rubbing them. Instead of blood, his veins were filled with magic. He felt its flow and tried to control it using his thoughts. After stockpiling them in his hands, he slowly curved them and started parting them.
He fought the urge to open his eyes but instead recalled the memories of young Brunos doing it for Valeria. 'Make me a colourful butterfly.' Her voice resonated in his head.
He thought of any colour he knew. He thought any beautiful butterfly he knew. He subconsciously demanded a mixture of all those ingredients. The feeling was foreign to him that at some points he thought he was floating in the air.
He started feeling weak as the gap between his hands widened. It became painful. Did he have any other choice?
He thought of Lilyard, her daughter, the maid and the petite. Four lives. No! That was a huge sacrifice to offer. He had to make a colourful butterfly no matter what. For that, he chose pain and continued parting his hands even more.
When he decided he had created enough light, he gathered what was remaining of his strength and shot it in the air. Now he had to open his eyes to direct it where he wanted. What if it wasn't a butterfly? What would he do if it wasn't colourful? Only the one with many colours would make an impact. If not, the huge Crimson Star above the castle was going to swallow all his efforts. It meant end of Four lives. It meant Lilyard would have died for nothing.
'No! I can't allow that to be!' He said to himself as he opened his eyes.
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