Centuries ago,
Hair loosened, upper apparel ragged, fingers bloody from the deers he had killed, Kamaz walked towards Zelda predatorily, and like a prey, Zelda moved back.
She unsheathed one of her daggers and pointed it at him.
"Don't take any step closer. I'll…" She stuttered but Kamaz only moved closer while she moved backward.
"Please don't…don't hurt me. I…I do not want to hurt you.." Zelda said as a tear rolled down one of her eyes.
Kamaz only smirked maniacally and before she could find her tongue again, Kamaz had hit the dagger off her hand.
He pulled her close to him and parted the hair that was covering her neck roughly before he sank his teeth into the throbbing vein that called to his demon.
The smell of her blood in the air, the taste of it on his tongue, and something remarkable happened. His demon felt satisfied, and like a pet, it calmed almost instantly in Kamaz's system.
Meanwhile, Zelda was dizzy from how fast he had moved and the sharp teeth that had bitten into her flesh. The last thing she saw was a bewildered Kamaz with an indescribable look in his eyes and her blood by the corners of his mouth.
His fangs and fingernails had retracted.
Kamaz caught her limp body before she fell.
His heart rate increased as his eyes darted from her neck to her closed eyes and the indignation that poisoned his veins at that moment was more than that which he had while he was fighting on the battlefield.
He didn't have time to think of the reason he had suddenly regained full control of his body when he lifted her properly.
"My Lord" Falkur called gently.
He had realized his mistake some minutes after he had gone far.
Lord Kamaz had far more speed than he could ever muster, and it was just stupid of him to have left Zelda alone, so he immediately rushed back.
"Lead me to the house of any Physician" Kamaz ordered. His voice, commanding urgency and no form of laxitude.
Falkur picked Zelda's Pipa with speed before he began to lead the way as commanded.
He struggled with taking them to Zelda's father but he knew that the man was the only one to be trusted because any other Physician could tell his observations to the Queen.
*********************
Next Day
"You shouldn't cry again, Father. The Prince isn't maltreating me and nobody really cares about me there. You…you know I have faced worse" Zelda said as she patted her father's back.
He was hugging her so tightly that Zelda thought her back could break at any time.
A few seconds after her eyes opened, she had told Lord Kamaz of their need to return to the Palace. The King would want to know if he had returned from the war or not.
"I'm sorry for bringing this upon you My sunflower. Please forgive me" Her father continued.
"There is nothing to forgive. You did nothing, Dad," Zelda said as she wriggled her way from his embrace.
Lord Kamaz and Falkur were standing in the room, but her father was acting like they were nonexistent.
Elsher Duke loved his daughter with his whole heart and after their bestowed separation, he had been thinking of the day they would get to see each other again.
He had longed to see his precious and only daughter again but not in the state she had been brought in yesterday. If not because he had seen a part of the Power in the Prince that day, he would have killed the Prince with his hands.
"I have to go now," She said as she tried to hide the quiver in her voice.
Her father nodded but as they turned to go, her father went on his knees, his head bowed to the floor and his hands sprawled out before him.
"Lord Kamaz…" He called with a small cry.
Everyone in the room turned to face him. Zelda ran towards her father. "What are you doing Father?"
He ignored her as he began to speak, "I know I am not worthy to look at you or come close to you, but please, let no harm come to my girl. She is all I have. Please "
"Father stop it. It…it wasn't his fault" Zelda said as tears pricked her eyes.
Kamaz walked closer to Elsher Duke and squatted before him. He took one of his sprawled hands and Zelda's father lifted his head, tears in his eyes.
"I am the cause of your pain and I… I ask for your forgiveness…" Kamaz said even though he knew that Elsher Duke was already aware.
The fang marks had been imprinted close to the injury on her neck, and it was hard to mistake it for something else.
"I don't make promises, but I'll make one today," Kamaz said, and Zelda and Falkur's attention strung onto him.
"On this day, I promise you that no form of harm will come to Zelda again. I'll give all I can in line to see that she is well-shielded and protected. You can be rest assured that she will live safely all the rest of her days," Kamaz said.
Elsher Duke could feel the surety of the rumored arrogant and possessed Prince, whose life had put his daughter's to a standstill, more than the promises made by the Zoah government.
With that, they headed back to the Palace.
For the next four days, Falkur made sure to keep the balance in the Prince's building.
He helped prepare baths for Lord Kamaz, informed him regarding the meetings he was supposed to attend with the King, helped serve his meals, and helped Zeda apply the grounded mixture her father recommended on the wound on her neck.
Kamaz made sure to avoid Zelda as his mind regularly pondered on that very moment. It had been his demon acting but his repressed mind had seen it all.
The tremor in her body. The fear in her eyes. The tear that had slid down her left eye.
As his teeth sank into her. As she clung to him because of the pain she was in. As she went flaccid in his hands because of the loss of blood and the rush of the moment.
The unforgettable look in her eyes right before her eyes closed.
"Monster! That is what you are, Kamaz. Maybe the Queen is right"