6 Shattered Loyalty

The day looked promising and somehow serene for a battle to arise. These kinds of days would have everybody on edge yet today that was not the case. Tigreal waited patiently by the riverside, along with him was Miya and Alucard, Fanny was close by ready to attack whenever they needed a back up and Natalia was no where to be seen, probably surveying the area hidden by her unusual ability to turn invisible for a few seconds. Alice would be showing up at any moment and he needed to be on high alert, it was still unknown of who this new companion of hers was and just how many she brought this time around. Tigreal could only hope that Kaja was having a spurt of luck in taking Moskov down or at least keep him away while they fight, he always shows up in the most unexpected of times which always caught them off guard, this time around he was adamant to keep the nuisance away.

Just then he became fully aware of Natalia's presence just behind him.

"Tigreal, there's something incoming in the far right" Natalia warned.

Tigreal nodded and gestured for Miya and Alucard to split up. Sure enough there were a troop of soldiers making there way across the river, some stopped to get a drink and the others sat down by the banks. The Moniyan warrior furrowed his eyebrows in confusion, these people did not look like they had something precious or very powerful for the Apocalypse Queen to take, so what exactly is her endgame goal on this attack?

Suddenly, the world around him was blanketed in darkness, as though the night suddenly took over. Tigreal scanned his area only to see the light being devoured, he couldn't see anything not even Miya's bright arrows or Alucard's sword. And as he dreaded a cackle rang through out the river, making everyone's blood run cold even Tigreal. "How foolish of you to think i'd ever set out without some sort of precaution" A dreaded growl could be heard, it didn't sound human, followed by a faint puff of purple smoke just on the far edge of the river. Tigreal heard several screams of panicked men as he advanced towards the river, his sight gradually cleared as he yelled "Strike!" Almost immediately Alucard burst out from the bushes and ran towards the other side of the river where he could make out a vague figure, it ran ever so fast on four legs as a cheetah would. "You're not going anywhere" He pounced and brought his sword down on the creature's leg which only grazed it.

"I-i missed?! how could that be?" before he could contemplate on what happened a fiery sting in his side made the demon hunter cry out in anguish, it felt like needles piercing his insides making him writhe in pain. A voice so cold was all he heard before his vision became clouded and his world began to spin in a nauseating manner "Tremble before me, mortal" The voice was gruff, and otherworldly, it rung like a chorus of people talking all at once.

"Alu! Move!" he heard Miya yell in the distance, the demon hunter willed himself to roll over as a shower of arrows pelted the ground separating him from the mysterious creature.

He heard several arrows ricochet past his head and into the creature behind him, a pained shriek gave Alucard the much needed motivation to swing his sword to lash out at the demented creature. though he couldn't see the damage he knew he had returned the favor.

Among the confusion and chaos Tigreal succeeded in spotting Alice in the sea of murkiness, He charged forth ready to raise his sword when a scarlet ball of light zoomed straight and past him, he felt his blood boil then run cold, this was Alice's usual trick and he was fully prepared. what once was in front of him now stood beside him, Alice let out a burst of red energy disabling his sword for only about a mere second before she morphed into a scarlet ball of light, surrounded by dark magic meant to drain blood from mortals, Tigreal took the draining and waited patiently for Fanny to emerge. As soon as the assault from Alice stopped he raised his sword and struck the ground, a sudden burst of magic encased them where she was disabled and not a moment too soon, Fanny came flying in, She spun mid air with her blades outstretched successfully grazing Alice's side.

"Arrgh!" the dark queen gasped and gripped her side in pain. But Tigreal didn't leave a window of escape opened he rushed forward and almost in a concentrated energy he raised his sword to knock her up as Natalia suddenly entered the scene, All he could see was the slashing of her golden clawed hand at Alice's direction. She struggled to break the momentum with another surge of energy, disabling both Tigreal and Natalia, "Fanny!" he called out. The assassin was quick to fly in once again, her cables gripping from tree to tree but Alice was nimble in dodging the incoming swirl of blades, she flapped her wings and zipped past the three, slashing every soldier in her way only making her stronger as more blood flowed out of the bodies and into the river. Several screams of men were heard and a last dark cackle from Alice cued her disappearance.

The sun was back once again, shedding light to the macabre scene. Scenes such these were usual in a battlefield but Tigreal couldn't help but still be surprised at the aftermath of it all. The soldiers who were minding their own business were now laid out in front of him, cold, dead and lifeless. Blood soaked the land and merged with the river, flowing down ever so slowly. Each body had a missing part, a limb or two and their bloods drained almost to nothing. So her endgame was to restore her strength by consuming more blood. Tigreal now realized that she didn't come to provoke a battle between him and her, she came to collect what little resources she could get to strengthen her power. And she did, slaughtering more mortals along the way, such a high cost for powers she couldn't bring with her in death. Tigreal hated how of all things Alice's powers are driven by the blood that she consumed or drained.

"Alucard!" he heard Miya call out, her frantic voice alerting everyone. Natalia sprinted by Alucard's side and gently inspected the wound. Her heart dropped at the sight of it. it wasn't a slash instead it looked like five sturdy needles had punctured the skin, but what was unexpected was the violet fluid that dripped on the side of the wound.

"Poison" the dread in her voice was enough to bring everyone to their feet. "Wee need to get Alucard back to the empire as fast as we can, we only have a small window of time before he succumbs to this" Natalia pulled her hood over her head and raced across the river. Miya had taken the liberty to wrap a temporary bandage around his torso using the cloth of her blue cape, "Hold on Alu, we're going to get you home safely" She breathed, trying to assure herself more than she was trying to comfort the wounded demon hunter. Tigreal took Alucard's arm and hooked it over his shoulders before setting off towards the empire, his heart heavy over the body's that they were about to leave behind. All he could hope now is that all these deaths...would not be in vain.

Towards the far east, Moskov watched as the sun dipped in the horizon. Tonight he was going to settle this and move on to his initial plan in tracking down his primary target, it wasn't that he was in a hurry but despite being a creature of power and darkness he felt as if his days are numbered and that if he didn't grab the chance he'd cease to exist without ever completing the purpose of his resurrection. Moskov wasn't particularly worried about the plan it was the execution that he dreaded, there was no guarantee that Onyx was going to be able to escape unscathed, specially since her wings were temporarily out of commission. But no doubt she can defend herself from incoming attacks and strike back if the situation deem it necessary so that was one problem solved. Still he found himself sighing in frustration for the nth time, he couldn't wait to finish the mission.

He observed the village from the cave, it seemed as if tonight was the parting of the Candelan Clan to return to their own village and everybody was out to give them a grand send off, Moskov felt lucky at having to proceed with his plan in such a busy time in the village, that way more eyes would be turned towards the festivities and not to him, at least he only had the guards to worry about. Over all the odds were in his favor...well for the time being at least.

Eventually, the townspeople felt the exhaustion from the past days celebration and began to retreat to their own homes, it was a time as good as ever.

Moskov moved to enter the trapdoor beside the shed and made his way towards the dungeons, dodging the surveying eyes of countless guards along the way. When he reached Ony's cell he breathed a sigh of relief "Good, she was still in the cell, i'm not as late as i thought" he mentally noted how Onyx's wings might not even be able to stretch as fully in the halls where they will escape, so they had to get out before trying anything risky with her wings.

Onyx sat in the cell alone, she felt nervous about the plan for tonight, though she wasn't foreign to fighting people in fact she's very much acquainted with defeating enemies given that her village was but a great secret to be hidden away from the world. That was what killed her motivation to survive in the first place, the feeling of utter failure the moment the ropes snaked around her wings was a moment of defeat that she anticipated yet was ashamed of. Damatarums are peaceful creatures yet they can be vicious when it came to fighting for their lives and the ones they love. This time she had no choice but to be separated from them, all for a stupid stray deer that her brother couldn't catch in the forest.

But no matter how hard she pointed the blame to her brother and turn her cheek she'd immediately remember the vow she made to him. "No matter what the consequences, i will do anything to protect you" Somehow the vow now felt more of a curse than anything, but if protecting him meant that she had to leave her people then so be it.

"Onyx" her eyes shot open and her heart lost the heavy weight it carried at the sight of Moskov, so he came back after all. "Moskov! you came" she commented, he scoffed in a mocking manner "Did you still have doubts about me?" He inquired, Onyx wanted to tell the truth, she wanted to tell him how she really felt about all of this, about the nagging in her head that she wanted to silence. Instead she opted for the easiest to utter "N-no, no i don't" Of course, how easy it was to lie, to offer a false statement to save ones self from the confrontation of your own mind. It was a habit, a dangerous one that she grew up to survive.

"His guards should be here in any second to take me away, now go" She gestured to the door behind him that would lead to yet another hallway straight to Eveister's "The recreational room" as he had called it, what a sick bastard he was. Moskov nodded and disappeared through the door.

Onyx smiled, if all goes well tonight she'd be set free and then she can go back to her village where she'll see her brother, her mother and everyone she ever cared about , and she had Moskov to thank for all of it.

Sure enough, a few minutes passed when two guards dressed in golden armor and helmets that covered the entirety of their face save for the eyes came and opened her cell, their swords were drawn and pointed straight at her "Proceed slowly" one guard commanded. She complied walking slowly towards the door that held here fate, or her freedom.

She shivered to think that the previous Damatorums before her also walked this very hall, towards their death, only difference was they had no one to help them. She trembled at the thought of a number of her people, crying inside the cells waiting for the inevitable, like cattle's in a pen ready to be slaughtered for their uses. She shook the horrific thoughts away and gulped upon arriving at a huge wooden door. One of the guards opened the door and pushed her inside to which she stumbled in. "Ah! here we are, the main star of the night" She heard the cold voice of the man that held half of her fate, but she refused to succumb to his intimidation after all she gave the other half of her fate to one very helpful abyssal creature who volunteered to save her.

The room was dim and ominous, with one single table in the middle and shelves upon shelves of tools, mostly sharp knives and slim rods that she knew could find their way into her spine. She mentally gulped in nervousness, this was not good. Though the mask of smugness never faded from her face.

"Well i am flashy in some angles, so i permit you to call me that" She retorted, a sickening laugh rang in the room making her blood run cold and goosebumps to form on her nape. "I like you. You who stare at death's face without a trace of fright. The others before you trembled in my presence"

She held back a guffaw "Fright? Your face is nothing to be afraid of, if anything i reckon i saw some fellas who look just like you, in the palace. making silly faces and entertaining the king" She joked.

"Oh an extraordinary one you are, attempting to jest me at the time of your demise" Eveister moved to pull out a long rod with a sharp and and began to caress the stem ever so slowly "In fact, i think i'll keep you" he started but corrected himself with a dark look in his eyes "Well, not all of you"

Before she could resist she found herself on the table, face down exposing her spine to him "First, let's make sure you won't attempt to escape me, we wouldn't want the bearer of my child to run off with my heir" Her eyes widened at his intentions, how sickening can a person be? first to harvest her gift and now to keep her to breed off of.

"Don't make me laugh, my womb would reject you the moment you ever TRY to lay your hands on me" She shot back, her heart pounding in her chest. Only one name came into her mind

"Moskov"

And as if he heard the call, his voice rang out "Move Onyx!" He yelled, Eveister's stepped back in surprise as she took the chance to kick his shin to stretch her back outwards, the moment she heard Moskov's spear whizzed past her and felt the ropes arund her wings fall to the ground she turned to attack Eveister only to be stopped by the blades that pressed against her throat, his look was smug as he slid his macabre weapon made from Damatorum wings on his other hand "Tsk Tsk Tsk, what a naughty girl you are. I like that" He chuckled darkly, brandishing the weapon he was ever so proud of, the weapon he forged from innocent beings. Onyx grimaced and spun as the blades were brought down on her, her wings curled around her body shielding her from the assaults. "Moskov!" she called, and like a bullet Moskov shot forward and impaled Eveister against the wall with his spear, the power being emitted from the spear knocked him out unconscious, unfortunately that would only last for a few second, And so moved swiftly to lift the chief off while Onyx broke down the door and flashed towards the guards blocking the other side of the portal. She stretched her wings, grimacing in the process at the pain from the base, she curled in on herself and spun with her wings unfurled, slashing every soldier with the blades on the tip of each feather.

More soldiers flooded from the doors to the left, one guard flew straight for Moskov to which Onyx dove in between them and used her wings as a shield from the sword that almost struck him.

Moskov held back from asking how such a sharp blade didn't make as much as a dent or scrape off a feather from her seemingly delicate and soft wings.

"Go! i'll hold them off" She commanded and flung herself into the middle of the incoming men and punctured each and every guard that she saw.

Meanwhile as Moskov maneuvered himself and the unconscious Eveister through the dingy halls. He hesitated and paused for a second and looked behind him. A small part of him wished that Onyx was just right behind him, just as the plan stated. They were supposed to escape together.

Moskov, Surprised by his thoughts, shook them off and began an inner monologue of how it wasn't going to be his problem if she didn't make it out alive. he did his part of the deal and so she should be gone by then. But deep in his mock beating heart, there was still a little bit of humanity left, the small bit that he wanted to get rid of.

Just then a sudden movement from Eveister made him stumble on the floor, once he regained his footing Moskov conjured up another spear and started to pelt the demented chief relentlessly, But each spear he threw bounced off of the feathered cloak he had and clanked unto the ground before disappearing in dark wisps of smoke.

"Why aren't they piercing him?!" Moskov thought frantically, he moved to roll away when a feathered arm complete with bladed tips attempted to scratch away at his face. "You had to interrupt such a beautiful moment with me and my future wife, do i smell a little bit of trouble in paradise with you?" Eveister mocked, he advanced to try and stab his side, Moskov jumped over and turned mid air to kick his back sending the disturbing excuse for a man to the ground for a mere few moments. "How amusing of you to assume such entanglements between me and her" Moskov paused to block another swing from Eveister with his spear "Even then i'm certain that if she were to choose between you or me, she'd go for the latter" that seemed to have snapped something in him as he dove in for another swing, this time Moskov barely managed to block it with the blades grazing his hip and ripped some of his bandages off. He staggered to the wall and groaned, he stared at Eveister who looked more sinister than before if that was even possible, his eyes narrowed and his smile could only belong to a man driven by madness and power "Scum like you belong to the underworld where the sun's rays never gets to touch, now is the time to send you back!" Evesiter raised his fists ready to sink the blades deep into Moskov's chest, he closed his eyes awaiting for the pain when a body wedged between the two men, forcing his eyes open. "This really isn't the best time to choose a husband" Onyx joked, her back faced Eveister as her wings encased both her and Moskov "Now get to your feet and be prepared to run for the exit" She spun once again and kicked Eveister off of them "But Eveister-" Moskov argued but was cut off by Onyx's frantic but firm voice "Never mind the bloody sod we need to get out of here alive" She reasoned. Eveister cackled and swung at her, she swerved away and took Moskov by the arm and slung it around her neck "Do i really need to remind you?" She asked, He shook his head slowly and held on to her waist before they lift off, bursting out of the trap door and into the night sky, away from the village.

"We almost had him" Moskov grumbled. Onyx rolled her eyes in disbelief "Hey, less talking more of being hurt we'll talk about it in the morning" She suggested,the abyssal creature hesitated but eventually his strength left willing him to become unconscious.

"We'll try again, I promise" was the last thing he heard before he was surrounded by darkness.