Delta [Epsilon #2]

Epilogue

Azriel

*****

Azriel stood before the bathroom mirror, unable to raise his eyes to the reflection. As soon as he'd come back from the battle, with his army not far behind, he'd immediately been ambushed by concerned medics. He hadn't needed a mirror to know how bad he looked -- the horrified stares of the doctors and nurses said enough.

He'd complied with their advice and went in for surgery. The doctors did they best they could, or so everybody had said. That was two days ago, and still -- Azriel had yet to see the damage for himself.

He clenched his fists atop the vanity at which he stood, staring at the golden tap gleaming before him. Everyone lost that fight, he knew. Azriel hadn't been able to get his Epsilon back, and in the process, he had received those burns. Worse: he'd lost his only control over Kyra.

Now, she was free, and that meant she could arrive at any second to finish him off.

Azriel pushed away from the vanity with an irritated grunt, pointedly turning away from the mirror before raking a hand through his hair. He hadn't expected Kyra to be that strong. Her flame... it was monumental, and Azriel had no idea how he was going to contain it now that he couldn't control her. He certainly hadn't expected her mate to swoop in last minute in claim her. When she'd said she had a mate, he thought she was bluffing, but she'd been telling the truth all along. And, of course, the mate bond was enough to override his bond. Just his luck.

Azriel snarled to himself. That damn Delta...

Just then, a knock came at the ensuite door. "Come in," Azriel called, unable to mask his agitation. Slowly, the door opened, and the burly face of Beta Gaven peered through. He'd elevated Gaven from Gamma to Beta once Zion lost his position, and he'd been a good Beta thus far. However, as Azriel had come to learn, he was rather insistent.

Azriel saw the emotions that passed through his Beta's eyes when he looked at him. It was the same every time. Disgust, fear, and finally pity. Those were the same three emotions he'd seen in everyone's eyes these past few days, ever since he'd been burned by Kyra. Now, it was really starting to eat at him. He'd always been revered for his good looks and charm. Now the girls looked at him as though he'd grown a second head.

"What is it?" Azriel snapped, unable to contain his irritation. Tentatively, the Beta stepped inside and shut the door behind him, clearing his throat.

"Reports on the army, Sir," Gaven said. Azriel deadpanned him. The Beta's throat bobbed. "Seventy-five Upsilons reported dead after the assault, Sir. Two-hundred foot soldiers are also deceased."

Azriel's jaw tightened, but he made an effort to keep his face blank. That meant their Upsilon numbers had dropped by more than twenty percent. When Azriel had instigated the assault on the Northern Court, he wasn't really concerned with how many Upsilons may die. He was so certain he'd get Kyra back to make more, anyway.

But things hadn't panned out that way...

Steepling his fingers, Azriel leaned down. The Beta recoiled imperceptibly. "And what do you suppose we do about that, Gaven?"

The Beta's throat bobbed. "Well... I--I'd advise you to start training more Omegas to Thetas; we will need the numbers--"

"I don't care about the foot soldiers," Azriel snapped. Then, in a calmer tone, he continued, "I'm talking about the Upsilons. What do you say we do about them?"

The Beta gave his Alpha a blank look. "I'm... not sure, Sire," he admitted. "We'd need either an Epsilon or a Delta to make more. We don't have either."

"Hm," Azriel replied thoughtfully. Then, he asked, "How do I look, Gaven?"

The Beta blinked. "You... uhm... you look fine, sire," he stammered. What an obvious lie.

Azriel exhaled through his nose. If there was one thing he hated most, it was lying. "I do not want you to beat around the bush here, Gaven. Tell me now -- how do I look? What runs through your mind when you see me?"

At first, the Beta didn't respond. Instead, he shrunk in on himself. Azriel snarled.

"TELL ME!" He boomed.

"Hideous," the Beta whimpered, as though Azriel's wrath had been enough to scare the answer out of him. The Beta looked instantly regretful but, upon not being apprehended by his Alpha, continued, "Hideous, sire. When I look at you, I barely recognize the man you once were."

Azriel nodded. Though it wasn't what he wanted to hear -- he knew it was the truth. Any other answer would be a softened blow, or a straight-up lie.

"Thank you," Azriel said. Then, he moved towards the mirror and stared into his reflection.

Hideous. That perfectly described how he looked. Azriel's heart hardened to stone as he took in the state of his face. Features that had once looked so handsome, so chiselled, were now severely disfigured or marred with scar tissue. Tentatively, he touched his left cheek, which was now a hollow crater. Then he touched the side of his lip, which was split in half and drooping to one side.

The right side of his face had been somewhat spared, but the left side of his face... it was irredeemable. Every single feature on it was fucked, and the entire side looked to be physically melting off.

Now, he could understand the fear and disgust that passed through people's eyes every time they looked at him. He couldn't blame them. He felt the same way.

Azriel stared down at the vanity in defeat, unable to bear his face any longer. Instead of feeling sorry for himself, however, he was overcome by anger.

For a few moments, he stood there in silence.

"Gaven," he said, and the Beta instantly stood to attention.

"Yes, sire?"

Azriel paused. His fists tightened. "I'm going to win this war, and I don't care what it takes."

He fell silent again. Gaven coughed nervously. "What are you suggesting we do, Sir?"

At that moment, Azriel turned to him, glaring him down with every ugly feature he had. Gaven flinched.

"Start organising trips to the Human World." Azriel turned back towards the mirror, glaring at his reflection. "We're going to find me a new Epsilon."