Tempting The Dark King [Enchanted World Series Book 2]

Lyrah felt the dread prickling her skin like cold fingers caressing her. Her heart felt heavy in alarm and a cold sweat broke on her forehead. Even her unicorn mare felt the disturbance in the air as they crossed the Suran bridge into the Realm of the Dark. The bridge should have been monitored but it seemed the residents were not expecting guests to use the road.  The Realm was protected by thick forests from all directions. From a distance away, you could see black towers piercing the sky like sentinels watching over the Jinn city of Karah. Grey clouds gathered above Lyrah as if to warn her to return to her homeland where she was safe and warm. Cold winds whipped over her body and face as her unicorn trotted into small path that passed through the dense forests of the Realm. Tales spread of the tree spirits that resided in the forests and they judged everyone passing from friend to foe and that enemies never made it out of the forests. Lyrah swallowed hard as she urged the apprehensive animal forward. She wasn't looking for trouble, she just needed to meet with the King; meet with her mate. The thought horrified her. Not even her brother, the Lord Mage, could have thought that she would be mated to the Dark King. She didn't tell him about it. The Lord Mage didn't even know that she was gone. She dreaded the moment when he did and he sent warriors to retrieve her. The unicorn's white skin began to glow as her fear increased. She snorted and rolled her eyes in fear as darkness began to descend around them. The darks clouds above them boiled angrily until they sealed out all light from the sun. “It's okay, Tatiana, it's alright. You are not in any danger.” She soothed the frightened beast but Tatiana stopped on her tracks and began to stomp angrily at the ground. Lyrah ran her hand on the unicorn's thick neck and closed her eyes. She let her light energy travel through her body into the animal's and soothed her until she calmed down. Tatiana stopped stomping and started moving forward again. Lyrah looked back and she couldn't tell where the path disappeared to. Her heart beat to loudly that it overpowered every other sound in the forest. There was an eerie suspense in the forest as if it held its breath and waited for the right moment to strike. There were no sounds of birds or insects. Not even the wind moaned. Everything was still and silent. Dread increased in Lyrah's heart. It weighed on her like a massive boulder on her shoulders. She paled down as her surroundings became darker and colder. Suddenly, the heavens opened up and sheets of rain began to pour. The thickness of the foliage in the forest made it hard for the rain to reach the ground directly but instead the water collected on the leaves and rolled down in big splotches. Lyrah pulled up the hood to her cloak and continued forward. She didn't know for how long she had been traveling but the forest was endless. Again, Tatiana began to snort, hot puffs of air escaping her nostrils. Lyrah's hands trembled with the increasing cold as she laid a calming hand on the mare's neck again. “Just a little longer, Tatiana.” She whispered to her. Lyrah could feel the beast restrain from galloping into the forest. Something was watching them. She could feel the cold dark eyes on her back. She let out a shuddering breath and turned to her left. Right in middle of the dark surroundings, she saw the red eyes watching her. Leaves and branches crackled around her and as she turned her gaze around, she noticed that she was surrounded. Her eyes widened in terror. Ghouls! Grasping the reins tighter, Lyrah kicked Tatiana's stomach and the unicorn shot forward. A blood-curdling screech of retaliation rang into the forest as the ghouls began chasing her. Lyrah reached for the sword on her side and galloped forward as the creatures raced behind her. Some of them swung on the low branches of the trees just above her. Lyrah looked at them and quivered with fear. They were hideous with red glowing eye-sockets and pale white skins tightly pulled against them. They had long razor-sharp teeth and claws on both their feet and hands. Rumor was that the Ghouls were once a civilized community that practiced the arts of energy like the Mage but they were too greedy for power that they began to try and tame the Dark Energy, the most feared energy strand in the entire Enchanted World. The Dark energy could never be tamed and it took over the Ghouls' souls, tainting them with its evil and darkness. The Ghouls mutated from using the dark power and they became the living-dead. They ate flesh and drank blood to survive. They were responsible for massacring villages in the Realm of the Dark. They resided in caves during the day time and at night, they hunted for food. Lyrah feared she had passed too close to their caves and the clouds gave them cover against the sun. She watched in horror as one Ghoul jumped off a branch and went straight for her with its talons forward wanting to gorge her eyes out. Lyrah tightened her hold on the mare with one hand and wielded her sword with the other. She sliced angrily at the creature and its head flopped into the foliage while its body fell in front of her. The unicorn jumped over it. Her thick muscled legs pumped hard as she raced to get to safety. Her skin was like a beacon for the Ghouls. It glowed brighter with increasing fear. The Ghouls screeched again as more and more began to appear from all sides. They ran in a tight U-shaped form, directing the unicorn to where they wanted her to go. Lyrah swung her sword from side to side trying to break free from the hold but they jumped away from the sharp weapon then resumed the shape. Lyrah feared where they were directed. There was must be more of them waiting ahead. This must have been a hunting strategy. She had to get away before she met her doom in that forsaken forest. She pulled hard on the unicorn until Tatiana changed directions, stomping on the creatures. They let out cries and shrieks as they tried to hold the unicorn down. Lyrah felt the cold talons rip against one of her legs and cried out. Her unicorn was also wounded, her precious silver blood dripping from deep grooves on her sides. She lost balance and tipped over sending Lyrah tumbling a few yards away. The Ghouls attacked Tatiana in her moment of weakness but little did they know the strength of a unicorn. Tatiana let out a scream and the poisoned horn on her forehead elongated. She got up and her body began to enlarge. Glass-like scales covered her entire body and protected her from further harm and jagged protrusions jutted out from behind her hooves. She kicked and swung her head as she fought off the creatures. Lyrah got up and limped to her sword as the Ghouls surrounded her. They sniffed the air and licked their scaly lips in anticipation of the meal they were going to have after killing her. Lyrah eyed the loose circle of the creatures around her and set her shoulders square. She was not dying that day. With a warrior cry, Lyrah attacked swinging her sword over her. She amputated several and beheaded enough. She gutted them and crippled them but more and more appeared from the darkness. She went through them, getting burning scratches along the way until she was in the same circle with Tatiana. The unicorn had fought bravely but Lyrah would see her energy was waning out because of her wounds. She too was getting tired. Her arms burnt and her legs quivered at the fatigue. She couldn't hold them back any longer. Now, more of them were surrounding them as if they knew at any moment they were going to collapse in exhaustion. Suddenly there was a low buzzing in the air, something like a swarm of bees in a distance. Lyrah felt uncomfortable as she tried to pin point what else was in the forest with them. The Ghouls screeched and howled blocking their ears and stumbling over themselves. Lyrah frowned when she saw most of them had black blood seeping from their eyes, their ears, nose and mouths. The buzzing persisted and the Ghouls began to drop one after the other like puppets' whose strings have been cut. Lyrah gasped in fear as black shadows blurred around her and what followed made her sick to her stomach. There was shredding sounds as thick claws pass through skin and flesh. There were crunching sounds of breaking bones as necks were twisted in odd angles. More and more Ghouls died violently as the blurs whizzed around Lyrah and Tatiana. Tatiana trampled her front hooves as she, too, nervously tried to capture the sight of the creatures dropping the Ghouls like a domino line! Lyrah didn't know any other race of beings living in the Realm of the Dark apart from the Ghouls and the Jinns. There were smaller races but they had were minor, dominated by the major species. Could it be that the Jinns had found her? Or maybe the spirits of the forest? The hissing sounds the shadows made, made her skin crawl with fear. The cold only grew worse until finally all the Ghouls were slaughtered. The buzzing stopped abruptly as the pungent stench of their rotting flesh and blood rose into the sky and made Lyrah's eyes water. She didn't know how exhausted she was until she found herself sinking onto the ground next to Tatiana. The shadows stopped moving as fast and Lyrah noticed the silhouette figures circulating around her and Tatiana. “Is she alright?” A male voice hissed from behind. Lyrah jerked towards it still holding her sword tightly in her hands. If she couldn't see them, she couldn't trust them. “She's wounded and so is the unicorn.” Another male voice answered.“ Let's get them to Karah before the poison gets any worse.” Yet another voice stated. Lyrah was exhausted! She wondered if she could fight these beings off with what little strength she had left. As the shadows moved forward, Lyrah saw them. They were not Jinns. They were something else. They had ivory skin and long straight black hair. They were mesmerizing and surreal beings with dark glowing eyes. They were tall and lean and when they walked, they reminded Lyrah of the Cheetah in the Savannah plains of Africa in the human world she read about in books. They made absolutely no sound. Lyrah's body quivered with fatigue as she held up her sword to ward them off. One reached forward and plucked the sword away from her like a tooth-pick. Lyrah couldn't fight anymore and the  last thing she remembered was being picked up like a baby before she passed out.    Lyrah felt someone painfully probe her leg and opened her eyes. Blinding light came to view and caused her to blink several times to gain focus. She looked around it she was in a house. There was a glass chandelier above her and a beautiful ceiling with what looked like cherubs and angels in a garden. She was warm and cozy but she could still hear the soft patter of rain outside. Pain shot through her leg again and she jerked it away. “You're awake.” A soft melodious voice chanted through the room. Lyrah rolled her eyes down to look at the person poking at her wound and let out a soft gasp. The girl was beautiful with cascading black hair down her shoulders. She had a face like one of those angels on the ceiling. There was a hint of smile of her face as she quickly wrapped her wound and got up. “Where am I?” Lyrah's mouth felt dry and thick with a metallic taste. “You're in Karah. I'll go and tell my brothers that you've woken up.” She said happily and disappeared out of the room. Memories began to flood Lyrah's head. She remembered the Ghouls in the forest and the three strange beings that saved her life. Tatiana! Was her mare alright? Were they able to rescue her too? “I see you have finally decided to wake up.” A thick male voice drawled from the doorway. Lyrah turned her head to the familiar face. He was one of her savior from the forest. He entered with two other males behind him. What she thought was dark eyes in the beginning was actually marine green eyes and they were very handsome. “Who are you? What are you?” Lyrah managed to whisper unable to hide her fear on these beings in front of her. The girl looked nervous for a moment as her hand searched for one of the males'. She bit into her lower lip and looked down. That made Lyrah worry...a lot! The first male answered. “My name is Herik and these are my brothers Leon and Stef...” He then turned to the pale female and placed a comforting hand around her shoulders. “And this is Eva, our baby sister. We are—we are--” “You can't tell her, we don't know her.” Leon hissed lightly with accusation in his eyes. “She's safe.” Stef was watching Lyrah closely and it made her skin crawl. “We are—Nosferatu.” Herik answered. Eva's head bowed down as if she was ashamed while Leon stepped into the shadows his eyes burning with menace. Lyrah's eyebrows arched up in utter astonishment. The Nosferatu were a myth in the enchanted world! They were born with abilities of gods. They were once a very strong and intelligent race much more feared than any other in the enchanted world. Unfortunately their abilities were due to the particular makeup of their blood and soon people greedy for power and fortune learned of this trait. They captured the Nosferatu and drank their blood to acquire these abilities. Another unfortunate event was that the abilities were like a drug 'high' and lasted for a short period of time. Nosferatu were slaughtered like cattle by rogues and their blood sold in black markets to the highest bidders. A vial of Nosferatu blood could take a impoverish person from the bottom of the chain all the way to a chair among the Nobles. Most Nosferatu fled into the human world. They were safer there but they were turned into Night-walkers because the human sun was unlike the enchanted sun. Their delicately structured bodies couldn't tolerate the direct sun rays. It caused them to blister and die from UV poisoning. They were known as Vampires in the human world. “Oh high Priestess.” Lyrah murmured as she looked at them. Her heart broke for them. How did they survive all this time? Stef smiled softly. “I can feeling your remorse and confusion. I'm an empath. It is the reason why I can trust you.” Lyrah turned to the handsome young man. She still couldn't believe she was among the Nosferatu. “How is this possible?” “We are under the protection of the king. We are safe here. We have been for the past few millenniums.” Herik replied. “At what cost?” Lyrah couldn't help ask. She knew how everything worked. There was always a price to a kind gesture. Herik shrugged his shoulders as he looked around at his siblings. “We pledged alliance with the King. We are forbidden to kill while feeding. We have voluntary blood-donors from very strong bloodlines that feed us every month. We are responsible for the safety of these donors as well as the people in this district of Karah. With everything that is happening with the Ghouls and the disturbances, the king needs all the help he can get.” “Who are you?” Leon finally stepped out of the shadows and his eyes were still very hostile towards  Lyrah. Herik hissed at his brother but Lyrah quickly stuttered her reply. She was still very much shocked by the discovery. “Nice to meet you all. I am High Lady Lyrah of the Realm of Spells and I thank you for rescuing me and nursing me back to health.” Lyrah watched as their eyes widened in shock and in unison the males went down on their knees and bowed...even the hard-ass Leon while Eva bobbed lightly. A small smile touched her lips as she watched the wonder of the world occur right in front of her. “We had no idea, Lady Lyrah. We apologize for not realizing it from the beginning.” Herik said without lifting his head. “Nonsense.” Lyrah tried to sit up but the room suddenly tilted and she found herself back on the bed. “You've done nothing wrong. Get up already.” she rolled her eyes. They got up. They looked at her much more cautiously, a little afraid even. Lyrah couldn't blame them after all they were a rare delicacy for the corrupted beings. “I made some soup for you, Lady Lyrah. I'll go and get it.” Eva quickly bobbed and left the room. “How is my mare doing?” Lyrah couldn't help but think of Tatiana. She fought bravely for her life but she was gravely wounded. “Your mare is recovering well. We got the best vet to look at her. They removed the venom from her body and she is doing well.” Stef answered. “She's a mighty strong mare. I could taste her spirit and courage in the air.” “That was mighty big crowd of Ghouls going after you back there. I have never seen them in a big group like that before.” Leon said darkly. “You are lucky to be alive.” Herik sighed. “With all that is happening—the death of Queen Seranis and the disappearance of the ancient weapon, the Coral Spear, everyone is getting apprehensive. The past is repeating itself.” “That is utter nonsense.” Lyrah snapped though she too wondered what was happening. Everything was falling apart for the Realm of Spells. After the great conference of Royals several weeks ago, an attack was rendered on them. A lot of the royals escaped with injuries but the queen of the Realm of Water lost her life. Now the tensions were rising between the two Realms and Lyrah felt that maybe the King Jinn could help. He was the only royal who wasn't present for the conference so a lot of the other royals speculated that maybe he was responsible for the attack. Lyrah knew he had nothing to do with it because she remembered what a spy once told them. She said that the true king of the Enchanted world was rising again. Lyrah had no idea who she was talking about but she was deathly afraid that indeed the chain of events occurring in the Enchanted World was because of this true king. “Tensions are building up in the enchanted world because there are a few greedy people that want power. It has nothing to do with some myth.” Lyrah felt that she said that more for her benefit. The males grunted lightly but Lyrah could tell that they were not convinced. “You are far away from home, Lady Lyrah. Whatever brought you must be of great importance.” Herik remarked as he eased onto one of the chairs in the room. Lyrah tried to sit up again and this time she was able to withstand the dizziness. “Yes, it is of great importance and utter urgency that I meet with your king.” Herik and his brothers shared a cautious look then he said. “Then we will escort you to the Black Fortress ourselves as soon as you and your mare get better. The Ghouls are attacking more and more suddenly and it's not only at night—even in the early hours of the morning or late dusk.” “They are in a feeding frenzy.” Stef frowned lightly. “More people are moving away from the outskirts of the forests.” Herik nodded. “Nowadays the king has asked for warriors to patrol the forests in intervals to make sure the Ghouls don't get out into the cities. We were on duty when we heard the Ghoul calls in the forest. You were very lucky we were close by.” Lyrah nodded lightly. “And I'll be forever grateful for this.” This could be the reason why the Jinn King couldn't make it to the conference, she thought lightly. “Do you know why the Ghouls are acting this way?” “They are crazed by the subtle energy swelling in the forest. The animals have migrated too. This has caused food shortage and now the Ghouls are attacking and eating whatever they can find.” Leon answered. “It's a very evil energy that is corrupting and distressing all the animals and at times the ones who can sense. I live with it every day and all I can say is that it's getting stronger.” Stef said darkly. The room went silent for a moment a Lyrah's heart quickened. “It crawls under your skin and settles a like cold and balmy dread—you know what I'm talking about, don't you?” Stef asked Lyrah. “You've felt it too, haven't you?” She looked up at the brothers and nodded. “It's there alright. Something dreadfully evil--” “The Dark energy.” Stef stated and the entire room went quiet as everyone tried to find a better explanation for the phenomenon occurring around them.