Chapter 41: Chapter Forty-one: Merciless envy and betrayal.
A few years back...
The sound of glass shattering echoed across the Queen’s chamber like a scream.
Prince Cassian’s chest rose and fell sharply as he glared at the broken pieces beneath his boots. In them, his face looked extremely furious.
At the far end of the chamber, the Queen stood near a crystal ball that floated in mid-air, glowing with a faint silver light. Her long white veil fell like mist around her face, and the gentle curve of sorrow on her lips told him everything he already feared.
"Tell me that isn’t true!," Cassian said through clenched teeth. "Tell me it’s a mistake!."
The Queen did not turn immediately. She seemed to be listening intently to the hum of the crystal.
"Answer me damnit!" he cursed out at her.
Then, in a calm, tone, she said, "The crystal does not lie, your highness. What you just saw is the truth."
Cassian’s hands tightened into fists. "You promised me patience would pay off. That it was my birthright!."
"I said your time would come," she corrected softly. "But I never said it would be the time you desired."
Earlier, the light from the crystal ball had swirled, forming the faint image of a coronation ceremony. It was of a young man kneeling before a throne with a crown being lowered upon his head.
Cassian recognized him instantly.
It was his younger brother Damien.
Cassian staggered a step forward, his face twisting in disbelief. "No... no, it can’t be him. Father said nothing of it!"
Her had words only deepened the sting
"Even your father does not know of it," the Queen answered calmly with her eyes half-closed. "The relic’s power hides itself from the unchosen. Only those marked by destiny can wield it."
Cassian turned sharply toward the crystal ball where faint light swirled within. Moments ago, it had shown what he never would have thought possible.
"The relic..." Cassian’s voice faltered as the realization hit him. "You mean that relic — the one the they call the Heart of Eternity? Isn’t that just a myth?"
Even the reigning king, had no idea the relic existed.
Only the queen — the Prophetess of the realm — held that knowledge.
And Cassian had forced it out of her through forbidden magic.
She nodded. "It isn’t a myth, prince. It grants what mortals should never touch- endless power and immortality. And your brother is fated to inherit it, not you."
Cassian’s expression changed from disbelief to outrage. "You’ve known all this time?"
"I did," she admitted. "And I waited, praying you would not force my hand."
Cassian turned on her sharply. "You let me believe it would be me! You told me to train, to prepare! All these years—"
"I told you to wait because I feared this," she interrupted, her voice rising for the first time. "Because I knew what knowledge would do to your heart."
Her tone softened. "Your highness, the truth was never meant to mock you. You must learn to accept the will of destiny. Damien’s path is his own, and yours—"
"Is empty," he cut her off, his voice shaking in pure rage. "My path is empty while my younger brother takes everything I’ve worked for!"
The crystal ball whirred at his outburst. The Queen stepped closer, hovering her hand above the orb. "Be careful with your words, your highness. You must not anger the gods."
He glared at her. "To hell with them! To hell with those damned gods!." he shouted loudly.
Isolde’s lips trembled slightly. " Calm yourself your highness." she said urgently. "You would destroy your soul for a throne?"
He stepped closer until he stood right in front of her. Then in a low, bitter tone growled at her. "I would destroy my brother for it."
For the first time, the Queen’s face hardened. "Then you are no longer fit to be a prince talk less of a king."
Cassian’s eyes burned with quiet fury. He suddenly raised his hand and hit her smack on the face. He stood over her on the floor with death in his eyes.
"Don’t forget who you truly belong to, Isolde. Just because you are a prophetess, doesn’t make you stronger than me."
Without another word, he turned and left. The heavy doors slammed behind him, and the Queen’s shoulders sank helplessly beneath her.
She pressed a trembling hand against her face and felt her a small line of blood stream from her cheeks.
......
Far from the palace, under a dull moon, Xavriel stood on the roof of an old building miles away from the palace.
Beside him crouched a small creature with scaly skin. It was a Morvathen, or Morva for short. Its skin shimmered like smoke and its eyes glowed in an eerie shade of blue.
The demon king’s voice came out calmly, but his tone held unrest.
"What is taking so long?" Xavriel snapped at the creature who jumped at the sound of his voice.
Ever since the battle in his kingdom, Xavriel had been restless and bent on getting Elena.
As a demon, whenever a special being is announced by the heavens and sent to earth, he is the first to know of it. Xavriel was once a prospect for the ruler of the underworld but was rejected after finding out he has pure blood in his veins.
He had been searching for Elena since then until she appeared in his his kingdom that day. He had failed to catch her then because of that damned prince and...her.
"I see no trace of her, your grace. It is as if her soul is hidden behind a wall I cannot pierce." the morva’s voice came out in a quiver, pulling him from his train of thoughts.
Xavriel turned sharply at his words. "Impossible. Don’t you have clairvoyance? What is so hard in tracing just one girl!." he snarled at the creature who immediately fell to his knees with his arms stretched in front of him.
He had spent years tracing the one being whose blood could cleanse the filth in his veins.
Born to a god and demon, Xavriel was neither accepted in the underworld or in the heavens. Once, he had been offered the throne of the underworld, but a ritual had revealed purity flowing in his blood.
And for that, they cast him out.
He remembered that day vividly.
They had called him an abomination. A mixture of two abnormalities, disgusting to either side he was made of and he hated it so much.
"If I cannot belong to either world, then I will make my own," he had said to himself that day.
A man had approached him one day after sensing demonic energy in him. The man had promised to leave the kingdom of the underworld to him if he was willing.
Xavriel, tired of living like a dog, decided to accept the invitation but when he got there and a ritual was performed, they found out he had pure blood in his veins.
He was cast out of the world and since he wasn’t pure either, he was forced to return to his life as an outcast in the human world. That was when he decided to revolt. If he couldn’t have one thing, he had to have the other right? No way in hell was he losing twice.
He knows that Elena’s blood is the purest that can cleanse every filth and if manipulated, it could get rid of the pure blood in him. But how was he, a demon, supposed to infiltrate Zerathane, a vampire kingdom? Vampires were by far stronger than demons. Going to war against them was a losing game. He needed a way to get in, but how...
Xavriel was about to say something else when the door burst open behind him. A guard entered, kneeling.
"My lord, a guest awaits you. He claims to be the Prince of Zerathane."
Xavriel lifted a brow in question. "Oh? And what would a prince be looking for at this hour of the day?"
"He didn’t tell, your grace. He only asked to see you."
"Alright then." he said with a smirk before vanishing from where he stood, leaving a twist of smoke in the air.
...........
In the throne hall of the old fortress, Cassian sat on the gold streaked sofa, waiting. He was dressed in a black shirt and had his golden hair tied in a rough bun. His eyes scanned the eerie architecture as he waited for the king.
Suddenly, Xavriel appeared right before him. Cassian only looked up at him, not a bit surprised.
"To what do I owe this visit, your highness?" he drawled out with a smirk.
Cassian didn’t flinch." I came to make an offer."
"Getting straight to the point I see."
"Then speak, before I lose interest."
Cassian stepped forward. "I had seen the future some time back. My brother will become king and take my place as the crown prince."
Xavriel tilted his head. "And how am I supposed to be of help to you?" he asked still smiling.
Cassian frowned at his words and stared at him head on.
"Ah. So you wish to rewrite fate. That’s a bold move." Xavriel answered after a while of feigning ignorance.
"However, I am afraid I can’t help you as you see i have more... pressing matters to attend to." he stressed, turning his back to him.
"You may be on your way now."
Cassian ignored the jab and continued to speak. "You want something too, don’t you? You’ve been looking for someone. I can get her for you."
Xavriel paused his movements and turned slowly to meet him. "How do you know what I want." he questioned with curiosity in his eyes.
Cassian remained silent for a moment before talking again. "That isn’t important. What’s important is that I can get you what you want if you join hands with me."
Xavriel’s expression shifted slightly. This was getting interesting. He stepped closer to him with his hands in his pockets.
"You know of her?"
"Elena," Cassian said calmly. "My brother’s wife."
For a moment, the demon’s composure cracked then he suddenly started clapping slowly.
"Impressive." he said gleaming. "I’m surprised you know about this. Ever since I got word of your brother visiting me in your place, I always that you were too... weak for these matters." he said as a ’matter of fact’.
Xavriel’s gaze held his piercingly, lowering his voice to a deadly whisper." Guess I was wrong." he said, his lips tugging up at the ends.
Cassian nodded, ignoring the supposed compliment. "She’s the key to your cure and I can get her for you."
Then Xavriel chuckled darkly.
"You come to me — the one your kind call a monster — and ask for alliance against your own blood?"
Cassian met his gaze without fear.
"I don’t care what you are, as long as you can help me change the prophecy."
For a long moment, Xavriel said nothing. He simply stared at the man, resting his chin on his knuckles like he was interested in him. Cassian reminded him of a prince burning with desperation...a prince he once was.
Finally, he let out a sigh and dropped his hand to either sides of his body.
"I’ll need the woman. Her blood will cleanse mine. Without it, I will be of no use to you."
Cassian didn’t hesitate. "You’ll have her."
Xavriel stopped with his mouth slightly open. "You would betray your own brother’s wife? Because of a throne?"
Cassian’s tone replied him with icy coldness.
"If I must trade her for the crown, then so be it."
The demon smiled faintly. "Then we understand each other."
He extended his hand and Cassian looked at it for a second, then clasped it firmly.
A faint surge of dark energy pulsed through the two men like a seal of their alliance.
Xavriel leaned closer, pulling Cassian to him in the handshake and in a whisper said, "You’ve made a dangerous choice, prince. When the gods turn their gaze upon you, don’t expect mercy."
Cassian smirked, snatching his hand from the demon’s grip. "I stopped believing in mercy a long time ago."
As Cassian’s figure disappeared through the dark hall, Xavriel stood alone by the fire in the parlor. The flames from it reflected in his eyes like hellfire as he stood there watching it.
Shadows began to crawl across the floor like living things, slowly slithering towards him.
The Morva took form beside him, glowing faintly. "He is dangerous."
"He literally just made a deal with a devil." Xavriel murmured, smirking mischievously with a tinge of excitement in his voice.
The Morva hesitated. "And the woman?"
Xavriel’s voice lowered, almost a whisper. He crossed his arms over his chest, entering another round of thoughts for a moment. "She is the key to my cleansing._ he said with a flick of his finger. "Once I have her blood... the underworld will kneel and acknowledge me as a worthy ruler."
He turned back to the fire.
"Let them call it betrayal. Let them call it war. This was actually offered to me on a platter of gold." he chuckled darkly.
The fire flared brighter for a moment, as if agreeing to his words and a satisfied grin spread across his face.