Ileus: The Dark Prince

Anastasia jerked her head to her right and found that the demonic tattoos inscribed on her upper arm were still there. She rubbed them but they didn't erase. Flabbergasted, she stared at them and murmured, "Perhaps they will fade quickly." She slid down his body and decided to rest in the crook of his neck. He wrapped his arms around her and closed his eyes while resting his head on hers. His hands traveled to her hips where he circled them lazily. It had been so long that he reveled in her scent, her warmth and closeness. "Tell me about your time over there, Ana," he asked, removing her damp hair from her neck. "My sunshine…" he murmured. 

She didn't move away from him feeling just as content. His touch made her feel protected and calm and she thought she could again sleep. She circled the tattoo she had accidently inked on his chest hoping that a circle didn't form there. She cherished the warmth of his body in their naked state. "The first day I came to know something shocking," she said. She moved her face away from him and said, "Do you know that the day I landed, Etaya, my aunt, was supposed to marry Seraph." 

Ileus jerked his head back with shock in his eyes. He frowned. "Do you mean—?"

She nodded. "Yes, Etaya is married to Seraph. She ran away from Vilinski with him because she was pregnant with his children." 

"Gods." 

"Maple and Aed Ruad are half demons and half faes, and that explains why their eyes' slit became yellow often." 

"That's shocking!" he said with disbelief. He shook his head and blinked rapidly at her. His stomach muscles clenched. "I remember it very clearly that when Maple was with her lovers, in the throes of pleasure she would flare her wings and they would become bat-like just like that of winged demons! And then she would immediately turn the glamor on." He rubbed his jaw. "At that time I thought that I was imagining things, but apparently I wasn't!" 

"I couldn't believe it myself at first, but I saw the wedding. No one in the fae kingdom speaks about my aunt's husband. He is a mystery but now I know why my father intended to keep it a secret. She had run away with Seraph not because she only loved him, but mostly because she was too ambitious. She never wanted my father to be the king of Vilinski and tried forcing her parents into giving her a piece of land where she could rule. When they didn't agree, she started finding allies who would threaten my father's claim to the throne. And what better than the prince of winged demons?" Anastasia scoffed. 

Ileus propped his elbow and placed his head in his palm. "What else?" 

Anastasia rested her head on the bunched up towel and turned on her back. "Everyday she forced Seraph to attack Vilinski, but he didn't. She goaded him to use his brother's army for her ambitions, but Seraph was clever enough to dodge her demands. Seraph was Kar'den's younger step brother. I think he didn't want to have a rift with his elder brother, so he refused her time and again. At one point of time, she forced him to demand his share of kingdom from Kar'den, but Seraph denied her that too." 

Ileus' thoughts were scrambling to understand. "I can't believe that Etaya had crafted this plan for so long. She has used her children to attain her machinations!" 

Anastasia said, "Well, her children are as ambitious as she is. Maybe she only fed them with one thing their entire life—to attack and capture her older brother and then marry me. It would have led to materialization of her perfect plan." After taking in a deep breath she continued, "She wanted her children to be the heirs of Zor'gan and not Og'drath's eldest born. Etaya hated her baby and filled Seraph's ears with nonsense. I am sure that she must have spoken against Dolgra to Kar'den too. That man showed a lot of interest in her during marriage!" 

"Dolgra?" Ileus asked, his body freezing. "She was the eldest of Og'drath? An heir to the kingdom of Zor'gan?" 

"Yes, why?" She saw his demeanor and narrowed her eyes. "What happened, Ileus?" 

"Fuck!" Ileus got up. He raised one knee and put his arm on it. "Shit!" He raked his fingers through his hair. 

She got up and said, "Do you know Dolgra?" 

He exhaled heavily and then looked at her with sadness in his eyes, which flickered a pale golden. "Sedora had colluded with Kar'den for her own schemes. She wanted to kill Dawn. Kar'den had sent his daughter, Dolgra, to participate in the competition to obtain Daryn's hand in marriage." 

"Yes, you told me. Sedora is bloody twisted!" 

"Dawn had to kill each of her competitors in order to get her husband back. That was the only way left," he said with a tinge of pain in his voice. 

Anastasia's mouth slackened with disbelief. "Do you mean Dolgra was killed?" She jerked her neck back. "Oh my god!" 

He nodded and again stabbed his fingers in his hair. "And the worst part is that I gave Dawn the dagger, which killed winged demons," he said shakily. "The jāmbiya…" He gulped and then looked towards the pool. "It is the only dagger that can kill demons. In a battle long time back, my mother defeated Kar'den and took this dagger from him." 

Her face fell and her breath became shallow with despair. "That's horrible… It is possible that Kar'den sent Dolgra because Etaya must have forced him to. No wonder Og'drath was always extremely worried." 

"With Dolgra dead, there would be others in the line?" he said. 

She shrugged. "Maybe…" She remembered the cries and giggles of the little baby Dolgra. "It's no one's fault," she said, glancing back at him. When he didn't respond, she cupped his cheeks and stared into his eyes. "No one knew that this was supposed to happen. If Kar'den sent his eldest because Etaya forced him, then he is a pathetic ruler. He ended up killing his own bloodline." 

His eyes darted between her eyes and lips. "What have I done?" 

The guilt in his heart was so tangible that it hurt her. "You did what had to be done. Please don't blame yourself." She leaned forward and pressed a kiss on his lips. He grabbed her waist and then made her sit between his thighs. Wrapping his arms around her waist, once again he buried his face in her hair. "Is there anything else you would like to say?"

She battled whether to say it or not, but then she had to. "Seraph suspected my identity and on the day you came, he was dragging me to become a part of his harem." 

Ileus shot straight. "Bastard! I will kill him!" He said in a menacing voice. 

She chuckled. "But you saved my day. How did you find me?" 

"That day I had come into this cavern and was traveling in the time funnel I had created when I felt a strong signal of your presence. I attempted to check it and when I peeked out, I found you being pulled by a winged demon. All I did was to pull you back with me. You can't imagine my need to kill that demon, but I couldn't."