Whispers of Desires: A Sense of Duty {Book 1}

𝕮𝖍𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖊𝖗 67: 𝕿𝖍𝖊 𝕶𝖊𝖞 𝖙𝖔 𝕵𝖚𝖘𝖙𝖎𝖈𝖊

Madoc lay sprawled on the cold stone floor, his once-proud chest heaving with each labored breath. His eyes, glazed over with pain and disbelief, stared up at the ceiling, refusing to accept the reality of his situation. Kiyoshi stood above him, his sword still embedded in the goblin king's chest, a small pool of blood forming beneath him. The vampire king let out a sigh, his chest rising and falling steadily.

"Why, Madoc?" he whispered, more to himself than to the dying king. "Why did you orchestrate all of this, the kidnapping of the children? The spread of the plague? To try and over-throw me? To what end?"

"Revenge," Madoc croaked, his voice barely audible. "I wanted... to make you suffer... as I have suffered." His breathing grew more labored with each word, his chest heaving violently. "It was about her, you see... Your mother."

"My mother? Mei?" Kiyoshi's eyes widened in surprise.

A humorless laugh escaped Madoc's lips. "Your 'mother,'" he spat, "The woman your precious father cast aside." He coughed violently, his chest heaving as he fought to catch his breath.

Kiyoshi knew his parent's tragic history well. He had grown up listening to how he was the product of an affair with his father and his mother, who was the personal handmaiden of the queen, his stepmother. The gossip and whispers had followed him his entire life, but he had never allowed it to define him.

"Explain yourself, Madoc."

"Love, Kiyoshi," he rasped, his voice barely audible. "A love that burned brighter than any sun. A love for your mother that your father, with his crown and his... charade of a marriage, could never understand." He coughed violently, blood spilling from the corner of his mouth.

"But she," he continued, his eyes filled with a chilling hatred, "chose him." His voice trailed off, his breath coming in ragged gasps. "She chose him over me. Over us." His hand moved feebly to where the sword pierced his chest, the pain of the wound barely registering through the haze of anger and despair.

"And what did he do to her?" Madoc laughed, the sound like a death rattle. "Your father? He locked her away. Made her give birth to you, without proper care and what happened to her? To Mei? She died, Kiyoshi. She died giving birth to you."

"So you took it out on innocent children?" he roared. "You made my life a living hell, all because you could not win my mother's heart?" Kiyoshi's voice shook with anger as he leaned down, his face mere inches from Madoc's. The dying king looked up at him, his eyes filled with hatred and defiance.

"You think I had a wonderful life? You think I did not know the pain of loss?" Kiyoshi's voice was cold and bitter. "I grew up without a mother, my father never cared for me. I spent my entire childhood listening to the whispers and the taunts. But I never sought revenge. I never let it consume me."

The vampire king paused, his eyes boring into Madoc's. "But you, Madoc. You allowed it to twist you, to make you into something monstrous. You took the love that you felt for my mother, the pain of her loss, and you turned it into hate. Hate for me, for the life that you could never have. Hate for the crown that you could never wear."

"The children were merely pawns," he admitted. "My true goal... was you." Then, with a horrifying realization, Madoc's body began to melt away, as if it were nothing more than shadow and mist.

The stench of burning flesh filled the air, acrid and overpowering. Kiyoshi watched in horrified fascination as the darkness consumed Madoc's body. The once-proud king writhed on the floor, his screams dissolving into gurgling moans. "A Changer," he croaked, his voice barely audible over the crackling flames.

"You are not Madoc. You never were." Kiyoshi whispered, his voice barely audible over the crackling flames. Madoc's remaining eyes snapped towards Kiyoshi, filled with hatred and despair.

" Kiyoshi," Kiyoshi declared, his voice ringing through the chamber, "King of Ivamis! No one, not even a creature of shadow, can dictate my life or the lives of those I hold dear." The words seemed to have an effect on the writhing figure on the floor, as if they were a sword piercing through the heart of the darkness.

"You may be king," he croaked, "but there is one... one thing I can take from you..." His words trailed off, his body twisting and contorting as if it were made of smoke. And then, with a horrifying popping sound, his head snapped back, the neck twisted at an unnatural angle. Blood spurted across the floor, painting a gruesome trail.

Kiyoshi felt a cold shiver run down his spine as he watched the shadowy figure writhe and contort before him. This was no ordinary enemy, no mere vampire. This was a Changer, a creature of darkness and chaos. He knew that if he did not end this now, it would continue to plague his kingdom, his people.

Kiyoshi's blood ran cold. "What are you talking about?"

A twisted smile flickered across the melting flesh. "Your precious... queen..."

Before Madoc could finish his thought, Kiyoshi lunged forward, his sword slashing through the air. With a single, powerful swing, he sliced Madoc's head from his shoulders. The headless body continued to writhe for a moment before collapsing lifelessly to the floor. Blood pooled around it, staining the stone like crimson ink.

Kiyoshi stood over the fallen form, panting heavily. He could not believe what had just happened. A Changer, in his own presence. He had never encountered anything like this before. The creature had been so twisted, so full of hatred and despair. It was as if Madoc's spirit had been consumed by the darkness, leaving nothing but a shell of its former self.

He wiped the blood from his sword onto his cloak and walked out of the throne room, slamming the door behind him. The guards outside jumped to attention, their weapons at the ready. Kiyoshi took a deep breath, trying to steady his racing heart. "Seal off the throne room," he ordered, his voice strained. "No one is to enter without my express permission."

"Your Majesty, we have captured most of the goblins," said Captain Loran, stepping forward. "They're being held in the dungeon awaiting your orders." Kiyoshi nodded, still struggling to regain his composure. "Announce the death of Madoc to the kingdom," he managed to say. "Tell them that he was defeated by my hand, and that his reign of terror has come to an end." The captain bowed his head in respect and hurried away to carry out Kiyoshi's orders.

Kiyoshi made his way to Madoc's study, determined to find where the kidnapped children were being held. He knew that the Changer would have left some sort of clue behind, something that would lead him to them. As he searched through the books and scrolls lining the walls, he could not help but feel a sense of foreboding. The weight of the kingdom's fate rested heavily upon his shoulders.

Inside the study, parchment scrolls and leather-bound books were scattered across the floor, their contents spilled out onto the stone like entrails. Kiyoshi carefully stepped over the debris, his eyes darting from one item to the next, searching for any clue that might lead him to the children. His gaze fell upon a small box on the desk, its carvings seeming to glow in the dim light. As he approached, he noticed a keyhole on the front of the box. The key must be hidden somewhere nearby.

He searched through the piles of books, digging through the pages with shaking hands. Finally, he spotted it, wedged between two scrolls. It was a delicate silver key, etched with strange symbols. He unlocked the box and lifted the lid, revealing a map of the underground tunnels beneath the castle. A red circle marked a location... Whispering glade...the place he had visited on multiple occasions, the place where the children might be held. His heart pounding with determination, Kiyoshi hurried out of the study, leaving Madoc's twisted legacy behind. He summoned his guards and ordered them to prepare an expedition to the Whispering glade. They would find the children and bring them home, safe and sound.