The Concealed Dark Side

Chapter 24

Sitting in her throne, Lilith was satisfied with what happened to Gabriel because she believed that he truly deserved it. No human in this universe was successful in breaking deals with her and lives. On the contrary, Gabriel tried to hide Miranda from her. Foolish mortal, she thought.

She took the wine glass beside her and drank from it, celebrating her first victory against Apate's childrens. The oak doors opened and Austin, her trusted soldier, entered. He bowed at Lilith and said, "Mistress, I have news from our spy. He said that nobody in the town knows that King Gabriel is dead."

Lilith chuckled and sighed, "Of course. They didn't want them to panic. How pathetic." she said, drinking from the glass again.

"Should we attack the town, Mistress? We have a great chance in winning." Austin suggested.

Lilith placed the glass back in the table. She stood up and walked to the nearest window. It took a while for her to shaked her head. "No, we will save them for last. One city at a time. We will make Charlotte and her minions watch as we burned down the world they cared into ashes, as we kill every people they loved and protect." she said.

Lilith looked back at Austin and continued. "I will make Charlotte suffer for the rest of her mundane life. She will see for herself that the people she protected will turn against her, blame her for all the bad things that will happen to them. I will keep her alive just enough for her to see all the things that she have be ripped apart. And then, we will take the world. Our time will come."

Austin looked at Lilith with pure admiration. Her voice is so enchanting like a night elves walking in the dark woods. Like a siren singing in the middle of the ocean. Lilith's voice was compelling and sweet, yet there's some dark humor laced in her words. The melody touched his soul, piercing through and engulfing his entire being. His focused cut off when he noticed Lilith walking towards her. "Have them ready, Austin. We will attack soon." Lilith ordered softly.

"At once, Mistress." he replied. Austin bowed and left the room. Lilith turned back at the window and looked up at the dark sky. "Wait for me. I will come for you. I will drive my silver knife into your heart and the last laugh will be mine."
••

Walking in the garden, Trevor kept debating in his mind on what to do. Does he have the courage to kill Mira, the girl he loves, to save the entire kingdom and maybe the world? Can he really end her life? Yes, he killed a lot before but that was different. Those he killed are the Dark Nephilims, their enemies. But Mira is not their enemy. She was just a vessel.

Trevor stopped in his tracks and lifted his head. He was in the same spot where he confessed to Mira. The same spot where he seen her last. Emotions rushed through him as he saw his memory of Mira sitting in the bench with a rose in her hand. Unknowingly, a tear escaped in his eyes before he can even stop it. He smiled bitterly and slowly sat in the stone bench. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. After a while, he heard Mira's faint laugh, he might be going crazy but he didn't care. He missed her. He missed her so damn much and hearing that laugh from his memory is an encouragement for him to keep fighting.

As much as he tried to control it, the pain came out like a tidal wave. A single tear slid down from his warm, emerald eyes, followed by another one, and another one, until soon, a stream of tears flowed it's way down his pale cheek, releasing the sadness and grief that has been held inside of him for all this days. He rests his head in his palms and the muffled sobs pierced against it.

He would do anything. Anything for her.

Just to see her eyes again.

Just to hear her gentle laugh.

Anything.

Just for her to come back.

After their what-so-called meeting, Parker decided to stay for awhile in the forest. The place where he took Mira when she ditched her lessons. Remembering that day, Parker chuckled to himself because that was the day where he truly decided that he likes her. He laid down in the grass, looking up to the sky. The pure black of the night is his comfort, the blanket of stars keep him safe. How he wish he can witness this with Mira. Maybe she'll like this, too.

After hours of lying down, he decided to go back to the castle. The war is drawing near and the Light Nephilims needs to be ready. While walking to the garden in the back part of the castle, his eyes saw a man sitting in a bench. He walked closely trying to see who it was and it turns out that it was Trevor. He was looking down and kind of spaced out.

Parker took a deep breath and walked until he was near him. He puts his hand on Trevor's shoulder and asked, "Hey, you alright?" Trevor nodded but he continued to looked at his hand. Parker sat down beside him and stared at the grassland.

"I can't do it. I won't do it, Parker." he whispered.

Parker closed his eyes because he knew what he was talking about. He was trying to avoid the topic but it seems like there was no use of escaping. He looked backed at Trevor, who was still looking down. "I know. I can't do it either. But, what choice do we have? We can't let Lilith win." he continued. "If we lose, Mira will kill us." he jokingly said.

Trevor chuckled and sighed. "Yeah, you're right. She'll torture us first, though."

"I know it's hard, Trevor. I love her too but we have an oath to remember. We cannot let our emotions deter us from our goal. We all makes sacrifices and sacrifice is a part of life. It's supposed to be and we should not be ashamed of it." he said.

Trevor hummed. "So, we should sacrifice our own happiness for the sake of someone else?" he asked.

Parker was caught off guard. He didn't want to do this but there's no other way. "It's for the better good. She will understand." he whispered.

Trevor didn't answer nor react. He just looked at the grassland, not uttering a single word. So, Parker did the same. After a few minutes, a young guard appeared. "Sir Archer. Sir Lenox. The Queen requests your presence."

"We'll be there." Parker answered for the both of them. The young guard bowed to them and left.

"I can't believe that we last together for more than a minute without killing each other." Trevor commented.

Parker smirked. "This must be an achievement, don't you think?"

Trevor chuckled but nodded nonetheless. "Just don't tell your brother. He'll just tease us for the rest of our life."

"You bet. Come on, we have a war to win." Parker said and both of them stood up, walking towards the castle.