ENCHANTED WORLD SERIES BOOK 2: TEMPTING THE DARK KING
Chapter 4.5

Inter-Chapter 4.5

Darius...

Darius’ breath crystallized and a puff of fog escaped his mouth as he and his team jumped off their trucks and set up camp just a few yards from the caves of the Legin Glacier. Since they didn’t know a lot about the ice caves, they couldn’t poof their way inside. The ice world was a wonder. It was strange how that part of the Realm could be all ice while in other areas the whether was warm since it was midsummer. Darius entertained a good hunt because he was built for the kill. He always anticipated the next time he was sent out in the field and was glad King Rhol recognized that passion in him.

But every good huntsman or warrior had a past that forged him or her to what they were currently. Zafrina was discovered in a whore house serving as a cleaner for the whore’s rooms after they had finished their business transactions with their clients. She was but a child but Zafrina’s mind worked like no other and she understood what was happening around her long before she grew breasts. Zafrina returned to that whore house and set it on fire, warning the whores that if they thought to occupy another brothel, she was going to set it too on fire making sure they were all inside it! Cleo, another trusted warrior, watched as her entire family was slaughtered in front of her all because they were occupying a piece of land that belonged to a merciless noble. Cleo was spared because the noble wanted to keep her as his mistress. Cleo was born in blood after she slit the Noble’s neck during his sleep and fled. Cleo had never uttered a word ever since but Darius could tell she went through a lot because once he caught sight of the scarring she had on her back. Jinns never scarred unless what was used on their skins was poisoned or it was a continuous application of something on their skins they and they couldn’t heal fast enough.

He too had a dark past that he never shared with anyone. Only his king knew of it and it was the reason why King Rhol always kept an eye on him.

“Something to eat, commander?” An aluminum foil container was shoved up in his face by one of his warriors as he sat in front of a fire and tried to use the GPS to try and relay their location back to Karah but the fucking thing had what looked like a glitch.

Darius took the container and revealed the food. He removed his blade from his pocket and stabbed the steaming pieces of meat then devoured them quickly before they cooled in the icy air.

The warrior, Oteo, sat down beside him and sighed. “Tomorrow is going to be a long day. We should have heed the words of those ladies in Herion; stay in town for the night and start the journey here at early dawn.”

“Those whores were looking for something to warm them at night and cash to fill their pockets, nothing more.” Darius spat in disgust then drained his bottle of water and continued eating.

Oteo peered at him cautiously. “So, you don’t believe in the myths about the ice caves?”

Darius threw a bone into the fire and watched at the fat around it sizzled and turned to the warrior. “They are just folklores that keep people away, nothing more.”

“What about the ice caves?” Another curios young male came over.

Where the fuck did this clown come from? He wondered because he could have sworn to the heavens that all the warriors he hand-picked were able and forged warriors. “Does your mother know you are out here, boy?” he corked his eyebrow at him.

The male stuttered just before a large bulky male named Meric came to his defense. “His parents are away on business and I need to keep him from getting into trouble. He will not get in the way of our work, I assure you.”

“He better not.” Oteo eyed the boy.

“What’s your name, boy?” Darius narrowed his eyes him.

“Alesi, commander.” He nodded a little.

“Well, Alesi, have you ever heard of the Sheina Inaroam? The spirit of the ice?” Darius asked crunching his foil container and tossing it over their heads, scoring a six pointer right into the trash basket a few meters from them.

Alesi gulped hard and shook his head.

Darius shrugged his shoulder casually and poked the fire in front of him. “The ice caves are believed to be haunted by what they call the Sheina Inaroam. They say she appears to you as a beautiful mystic female and leads you to your doom. For those who have entered the caves with ill thoughts in their hearts have never been seen again. Their evil spirits wonder inside trapped the Sheina Inaroam for eternity.”

“How—how did she get into the caves in the first place?” Alesi’s eyes were large with terror.

“Some say she was an innocent female maiden captured by rogues. She was taken to the caves where fucked up things were done to her until she eventually decided to take her own life to escape her fate.” Another warrior jumped in looking grimly at everyone. “That’s why she lures evil males only. The females are never harmed by the Sheina Inaroam.”

“So, Alesi, have you done something terrible in your life before?” Darius asked the boy but he knew he was much worse than him.

If the Sheina Inaroam were to come after the most tainted warriors there, he was definitely going down for all that he did. He wasn’t sorry for it though because he did what he had to do to survive.

Meric scoffed as he ruffled Alesi’s hair. “This boy doesn’t even know what’s under a female’s skirts!”

Alesi blushed profusely as the warriors whistled and laughed out loudly.

“Well, then, perhaps one of us will make it home to tell our story.” Darius got up from where was perched and made his way to his tent. The laughter had tapped down a bit and now the warriors were muttering strategies for tomorrow while drinking and checking to see if their gadgets were properly. No one wanted to get lost in the caves especially after the story of Sheina Inaroam. He stretched himself on his portable bunker and sighed. The cold was seeping into him making his bone stiff. Even his tats were hissing in protest. Every once in a while he had to roll his shoulders to keep them silent.

Why did he subject himself to such things? He went to places others refused to even think about. He took the missions others thought were impossible and he faced danger head on of which at times danger had no face but he did it. He pushed himself to the limit hoping that one day...it will be over. He waited for that day to come, that day when the demons went to sleep for good and when the wounds stopped throbbing.

Every time he went out for a mission, he always told himself that, that was it. That he was going but he was never coming back but the heavens just laughed at him and revived him when he welcomed the death creeping in his bone. The heavens always took it away and brought him back as if telling him, ‘Your time has yet to come’. Darius loathed the feeling of grasping the thing you want tightly in your hands only for it to slip away like it had never been.

Countless times Darius went out so that he met a worthy component who would end his godforsaken existence and put him to rest and all the times, Darius always managed to come out with bad wounds but not mortal ones. He was tired of the pain cutting through him like a knife and the memories flooding his mind with darkness. He was tired of remembering what he went through before King Rhol found him and took him in.

sometimes when he slept, he could still hear the chains clanging in the cold moldy cobbles and still smell the musty smell of the cell he was in. He could hear his captor’s low hiss of malice and evil...

Soft whimpering brought Darius back to the real world. His eyes flipped open and he listened, trying to figure out where the sound was coming from. It was right beside him!

His eyes widened as he felt the warm bundle next to him. He slowly reached for his weapon under his pillow while he tried to figure out which female warrior was daring enough to crawl into his bed without him noticing.

There was only one and she moved as silently as she could. Cleo.

Darius studied the long black and blond braid that coiled around her slender neck to the creamy sweat-coated skin underneath her warrior uniform. She was trembling yet sweat dampened her hair and her skin like water droplets from the early summer rains. She kept on moaning and muttering and Darius knew what was happening.

Darius didn’t know how he earned Cleo’s trust when no other male did. Apart from, one other male Cleo could stand was King Rhol. Whenever Cleo felt uneasy, she would search for him and stick beside him until she felt better. She never talked and Darius never asked her questions. Like him, she also had her own demons from the past that she was dealing with.

She was a sex slave for a noble for almost three years and she had wounds, some of them visible but most of them mental and emotional, that not even time could heal. She was a disturbed young female who had to see and remember the world with distrustful and hostile eyes.

“Cleo?” He called to her.

Suddenly the whimpers stopped and her body stiffened against his. He peered at her and she had her eyes shut tightly. Was she having a bad dream.

Darius touched her hand lightly and Cleo whipped around holding a black blade against his neck. Her eyes were bright with fear and adrenaline.

She gritted her teeth as she stared up at him. Darius could see that she didn’t recognize him. She had traveled back to that male that had her captive in his home. When this happened, Darius had to stay still until she calmed down enough for him to pry the blade from her hands. The blade scrapped against his neck and he didn’t know why he just didn’t jerk forward so that it could just end his life for him. Then again, he was still very much needed.

Darius didn’t know for how long he and Cleo stayed like that staring at each other but soon, he saw realization enter her eyes and her rapid breathing calmed down at bit. Her eyes strayed to the stream of blood oozing from where her blade her grating against Darius’ neck then shot back up at his eyes once more. Her hand trembled as she removed the blade and let it dropped against the ground.

Darius swallowed hard and waited to see what she would do.

Without warning, Cleo drew up forward and licked the blood from his neck. Her tongue was warm and moist against his skin. Darius swallowed hard. This connection with Cleo was proving uneasy especially him being a male without a mate. He didn’t want to scare Cleo away since she felt comforted with his presence but he didn’t want to hurt her either. He didn’t want her to re-live the terrible nights when the noble used her body for his pleasure.

Again, her tongue darted again his skin and Darius tamped down the growl that wanted reverberating deep in his throat.

“Cleo, stop.” He grasped her arms and pushed her away. “You don’t want to do this. I’m a male for fucks’ sake!”

But Cleo was far gone. She snuggled closer to him, her cool and slender fingers digging under his vest to get to his warm skin. She pushed against him and Darius found himself laying on his back, watching both in horror and in surprise at what was about to happen. Would Cleo really find comfort in another male after all that she had gone through with the noble?

Cleo straddled him and began undoing her vest. Her breathing came in short gasps and her eyes were filled with unshed tears. Her mouth trembled and her small white pearly teeth bit hard against her lower lip. This must have been the hardest thing she had to do.

Darius grasped her wrists one more time and shook her. She had to snap out of that haze before Darius did some damage that he could never take back. “Why are you doing this? Cleo, this is not like before. I’m not your enemy. Please don’t do this. I don’t want to hurt you--”

Cleo clasped her hand over Darius’ mouth as she whimpered and tears began flowing down her cheeks. She didn’t wait for Darius to say anything more, she drew down and kissed him hard. Darius could taste her fear, her pain and her tears. His heart cried out for her. If this was going to make her feel better then he was ready to give her the peace she needed. He just didn’t want her to hate herself afterwards.

Darius threaded his fingers into her hair and held her head in place as he fed her urgency. He shared her fire and her desperation. Her tattoos hissed and writhed against her skin as they wrapped themselves around his arms, intertwining with his own. He felt what she felt through her tattoos. This wasn’t about lust or pleasure for her. She only sought for comfort and assurance from him. She needed to feel him with here.

Darius gritted his teeth and grasped her waist and rolled over until she was underneath him. Her tattoos let out a screech of apprehension that sent all the hairs on Darius’ body stand up in alert. Cleo’s eyes were wide with fear and her trembling lips let out silent screams. Suddenly, her tattoos solidified and began clawing Darius.

“Fucking hell!” Darius pushed away from her. Blood oozed from his arms as he watched Cleo curl into a fetal position. Her body shivered dangerously as her tattoos wound around a protective cocoon, embedding her black dangerous shadows.

Darius raked his fingers through his hair. What did he do wrong? His body was a raging storm thanks to her. He couldn’t even feel the pain of the poison inside his body. Jinns could poison each other but a Jinn could never die from another Jinn’s poison though it hurt like a bitch! The dark poison oozed out as his body rid itself of it and soon enough his flesh was stitching itself.

“Commander, are you alright?” One of the warriors called from outside the tent. “We heard a scream coming from your tent and were wondering if anything is amiss?”

Darius swallowed back a curse and sighed. “Everything is fine.”

“Alright...goodnight.” the lantern flickered away. Thanks to the crazy magnetic readings around the caves all electronics were not stable. This included the torches and lamps, the watches, the GPS and cell phones.

Although Darius told his warriors that he was alright, he knew they were lingering close by. They were always quite loyal.

He turned towards Cleo and she was still silently crying on his bunker. Realization hit him hard when he tried to figure out what he did wrong. He changed positions and put her underneath him. She must have felt powerless and it might have brought her the memories she was trying to bury. He should have known better. He should have let her have control of the situation.

Control....

That was one word that everyone wanted to grasp yet it slipped through their fingers like it had never been. He wished he had control too. Enough control to kill his captor. To kill the male that made him the heartless killer he was now.

With a sigh, Darius sank on the floor beside the bunker and drew up his knees. He crossed his arms over them and rested his head against his arms. He should have been more careful with Cleo.

Darius was up before dawn. The cold had managed to enter through the thermal tent and created crystals against the surfaces like a deadly trap awaiting its next victim. Darius expected to find Cleo still curled in his bunker but she was long gone that not even her warmth remained behind to assure him that it was not a dream that she came to him in the middle of the night.

Darius suited up for the caves. That meant extra thermal body suits to fight off the odd weather, an extra pair of longer blades in case the caves really had guardians and paper maps since GPS was dead. There was a feeling of dread deep in his gut as he came out and looked up at the icy peaks in front of him. He wondered if he was the only one feeling. The skies were still dark and it was silent. Only the mourning of the wind across the lands.

“The land is restless.” A voice came from behind.

Darius’ hand was already on the hilt of his blade. At full speed the intruder wouldn’t have even known what it him...or rather what decapitated him.

Meric moved from the shadows and stood next to Darius looking up at the rock that mysteriously rested above a maze of tunnels and secrets.

“It’s trying to get rid of us.” Darius answered relaxing his hand over his blade. “And it would have been fantastic if just once in our fucked up lives we heeded the warning.”

Meric grinned, his meticulously straight teeth gleaming in the dark. “Then what’s the fun in that?”

“Do you really believe the Thyest Bow is down there?” Darius asked lightly.

“Well, the land wouldn’t have tried to get rid of us if it weren’t hiding something. I mean everything electronic has stopped working, I was having nasty nightmares and when I woke up this morning I was encased in a thin sheet of ice. Now I stand here and all I want is to turn back and run. Well, even if it’s not the Thyest Bow, something definitely doesn’t want to be found.”

Or someone...Darius thought quietly.

“Get the males up. We don’t want anyone froze--”

“Commander!” One of the warriors came rushing towards them. “It’s Deon! He’s—he’s--”

Darius couldn’t wait for the freaked out warrior to finish his stuttering and raced towards the large group of warriors forming a few yards from him. He pried his way through and once he saw what everyone was gasping about, he felt bile boil into his throat.

Deon, one of the younger warrior was dead. He was in a permanent state of horror. His eyes were wide and his mouth open emanating the unheard cry for help. He was frozen solid and the way his arms and legs were positioned, it looked like he was fighting off something.

“Look at the snow!” someone exclaimed and Darius narrowed his eyes as he watched the snow one the ground form crystals around Deon’s body. It slowly engulfed his body.

Darius breath in hard and as he was about to move away, he found that his boots were stuck in place and the crystals were also making their way up his legs.

“Everyone move the fuck away from the body!” He growled out while he removed his blade and chipped off the ice around his boots.

Everyone moved away and watched helplessly as Deon’s body was being covered by the ice.

“Sheina Inaroam.” Someone hissed.

“Everyone get yourselves ready. The faster we find the Thyest Bow the faster we can get out of this fucking ice hell!” Darius commanded and turned to Meric. “Go and make sure Alesi is alright—I’ll go and find Cleo.”

Meric inclined his head and went in search of his brother while Darius made his way towards Cleo’s tent. Just as he approached it, Cleo stepped out sheathing her signature double-grip super blade on her back. It looked like a hybrid between a double headed spear and a Samurai sword. Darius knew she also had a pair of guns hidden somewhere in her armor. Her black and blond braid slithered tightly around her neck and she turned to him. Darius expected to see something, anything for that matter, that explained what transpired between the two of them but her eyes were cold and detached like any other day.

Didn’t she remember what happened? Should he mention it again or should he just let it pass? Cleo stood up straight and inclined her head to him then looked up and waited for a command. She gave nothing away that it made Darius wonder if all was just a bad dream. After-all, Meric did mention that he was plagued by nightmares the whole night. Did this cursed land play mind tricks with him too.

“We are moving out in a few minutes. Dismantle your tent and pack it in the trucks.” Darius stated.

Again Cleo inclined her head and went on to do what she was told. Darius narrowed his eyes and walked away. Then he stopped and turned around. Cleo was oblivious to him. She had her entire concentration on the tent.

The sun was beginning to peak from the trees. Darius couldn’t believe that in just one night, they had already lost a warrior. Just what were they dealing with? He didn’t even have a way to contact his king and tell him about it. They had to wait until they returned to Herion.

An hour later and all the warriors were already assembled ready for the instruction. Each one was armored to the tooth with enough blades and ammunition to start a world war. No one wanted to underestimate the operation. Darius’ eyes strayed to the place where Deon’s body once was and now there was a mound of snow covering him. Dread crawled up his spine. The land could kill and cover its tracks. It was no wonder people came here and neither returned nor their bodies found for burial. The land fed on their corpses!

“I don’t want to lose anymore warriors today. Once the in caves, we work together and everyone should be aware of their surroundings and their neighbors at all times! Whatever we find down there, we are the special ops teams for the king! We are the most highly trained and out-bested everyone in our previous teams including our commanders. We are fearless and whatever is down there, we’ll give it hell!”

“Hell!” The warriors cheered.

“Everyone knows what they have to do. We go in and we come out without losing anyone, understood!”

“Yeah!”

“Now, get your asses down those caves.”

The warriors hooted and made their way slowly towards the entrance. Darius stood his place among his men and as they moved closer to the entrance, the tighter his chest became. He could almost hear a malicious chuckle in the air. Suddenly Cleo, who was walking ahead of him stood and her head jerked up as if she too heard the sound. She slowed her footsteps until she found herself walking next to Darius. That was truly a messed up dream, he thought as he walked beside her.

Sheina Inaroam, here we come....he thought silently.

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