Regicide

Chapter 11

By the time Dune caught up to Shadow, his victim was standing in the middle of a large, misty salt plain. The fog enveloped them, and Dune could only just see the hazy silhouette of Shadow.

With golden eyes fixed on the ground, Shadow had completely stopped moving. He was completely silent- not even the sound of his breath could be heard, but if one were to come close enough, they would notice his sides rise and fall. A path of two-toed footprints lay imprinted on the white ground, leading up to the dark velociraptor.

Dune's amber eyes glowed eerily in the mist, gently flickering as his pupils locked onto the soft, inviting body of the next fatality on his list. Dune exhaled, and cool air shot from his nostrils. He walked forwards, striding with a strange, alien kind of confidence. His heart had sped up, as his mind blocked out everything around him to only focus on the single living being in front of him.

Spit began to gather around the edges of his jaws, and splattered down to the salt. Every step Dune took was loud and noticeable- he wanted Shadow to turn and see him, to witness how his constantly uncaring and unemotional face would mutate into a look of pure terror as the realisation that he stood before death would dawn upon him.

Shadow did indeed turn around.

But his reaction was not at all what Dune had expected.

When Shadow turned, his face did not change. Dune stopped in his tracks. The two silently looked at one another, scanning and analysing. Finally, Shadow looked at what was on Dune's arm. For three seconds, he did nothing but stare.

But then, his orbs widened with recognition. The bloodied skull...

Shadow instantly looked at Dune with disbelief. He couldn't have gotten her. He couldn't have...

She was the only thing in this world he still loved with all his crippled heart.

And yet, she was gone forever. Never again would he see her beautiful burgundy feathers, or witness her face light up with gratitude.

Shadow began to tremble furiously, narrowing his eyes angrily. His mouth pulled down, and a snarl appeared on his lips.

'You killed her, didn't you?' He whispered, his fury betrayed in his shaking voice. 'You killed my Blood.'

Dune did not respond. He had not expected Shadow to react in such a way, not at all. He had always viewed Shadow as cold and apathetic, even back when he was the alpha of his pack and beyond.

Reflexively, Shadow's sickle claw on his foot began to twitch violently, as if begging to penetrate Dune's muscles and flesh. Tears began to brim at his golden eyes, and they spilled out.

'You wear the skull of the one I love so dear as if she is a mere trophy...'

Dune did not proceed to come forth and attack Shadow- he had never seen him in such a state. No one had.

'She was everything to me. She was my world. And yet, you murdered her and display her like she is nothing. The blood that drenches your body, the blood that runs down your arm- it was all hers, was it not? Every single drop of it,' Shadow glared directly into Dune's blank eyes- Dune almost felt a shiver wrack his spine. Almost.

'You are here to kill me, aren't you? You plan to kill everyone.'

Dune did not respond. More tears streamed down Shadow's feathered cheeks.

'Your vendetta will end here... I have no reason left to live except for one.'

A cloud went over the sun, and the entire area darkened.