VERMILLION: The fall of Zaleon

Chapter 22

The story of Priscilla and Reigar had projected into the minds of Dregov and Clea as they slept, and when they awoke the pair knew what they had to do. They had figured out that they were, in fact, the reincarnation of the first forbidden couple on their planet, and a visit to the Galon would explain to them perhaps why they were reborn as enemies once again. This time, however, Dregov had not been the only Vermillion to have a mate, Amana had one too, and that complicated matters even more as they attempted to decode the intentions of the flame. Though the truth had been even deeper than their understanding had been, and soon, Leopold would have no choice but to reveal the whole truth to it’s population, including the fact that Razaar and Eliana were the reincarnations of Leopold and Cassandra, and that would be a shock for everyone, including the immortal pair. 

Everything had been playing out the way it was supposed to, and in Leopold’s eyes, it had been going the way he wanted to, making him hang onto the hope in his heart that this time he would win the war. 

Dregov thought of reaching out to his mate immediately after awakening, and rang her on his technological device -that he had taught her how to use earlier- and waited for her response. When she did, he wasted no time beating around the bush, and dived straight into it. 

‘Did you see it too?’ He asked, and no explanation would be needed if she had seen the vision of their past life. Her sigh said more than words, and he knew in that instant she had.

‘I did’ she began, still processing that the life this pair were living was, in fact, a second chance of being together after all. The flame had pulled through and given them there chance that they had believed they had lost the day the flame had taken them. Though the flame was kind, and this chance meant more to them than anything else in the world. Of course, there was no way to bring Pietra back now that the entire Pixen population had been taken away, but they would be forever grateful for her contribution in their lives. To the pair, it felt like they had lost their memory for so long, and had only just gotten it back, or like they had just awoken from a long coma. Realising who they were made all the difference in the world, and they suddenly knew not how to act around each other. Were they meant to be Priscilla and Reigar, or Dregov and Clea. Nevertheless, they had rebirthed for a reason, and to rebirth as Dregov and Clea meant that they were meant to exist as their new personas, not their old ones. ‘I can’t believe the flame gave us another chance. I can’t believe that I’ve been living the past years of my life in blindness. I can’t believe I ran away from you the moment your eyes laid on mine. It seems so bizarre to suddenly wake up and realise that you were mine all along, and all I had to do was cross a border and run into you’ she spoke, thinking of the ile that her life had been the past years since her rebirth. 

‘I can’t believe it either, but I suppose it all happened for good reason. I mean, the flame put us out there to begin with for a reason, to initiate the beginning of the end, and now that I think about it, I see the end coming. I suppose that’s why he’s brought us back, there must be something else we need to do’ he responded, thinking hard about his purpose on the planet. His mate and him contributed enough the first time, and his only concern was that this time they were back just for more sacrifice. Would the flame take their lives away again after he had fulfilled his mission? Or would he be merciful and let them live a happy life without any more to give? 

‘I don’t know what it is, but I think we should go to the Galon, that’s the only place we’ll ever find answers in’ she mentioned, thinking back to the previous times they had needed answers. His only memory of the Galon with her had been the last time they were there, the day their lives had been taken, and he worried that there would have been a repeat of the same thing that day. Though he knew better than to judge the flame, knowing that everything happened for a reason, and the flame was certainly on their side if he gave them a second chance. 

‘I think you’re right, we should. Let me get dressed and I’ll be there soon’ he responded, excited to see his woman again. Perhaps this time they could pick up where they left off rather than acting like awkward turtles around each other, and perhaps now they didn’t have much of a reason to hate each other. It was ironic that Dregov’s father had been responsible for the killing of Pietra’s kind, and he now hated him more than ever, given the fact that Pietra had been a huge part of Reigar’s life. Still, the pair spoke not of Pietra, knowing that it would only open the doors for more pain and agony within their lives, which they did not have time for at the moment. 

‘I guess we have to be grateful that Eliana and Razaar started this whole thing to begin with. Without them, who knows if we would have ever seen each other again?’Commented the Fairen leader on the phone before leaving Dregov to get ready and meet her by the Galon of Tetra. She had meant every word she said, and could not stop thinking about the sheer coincidence of it all. Of course, she had yet to figure out the larger role that the pair played in their lives, though she had been grateful nevertheless to be reunited with her mate in a way she never thought to be possible. 

When Dregov’s eyes fell on her this time, there was a certain tension in the air that previously had not been there. They had left the last time with the intention to try things out as natural born enemies. This time as their eyes met the only thing they could do was look into each other’s eyes, happy tears streaming down Clea’s face as she didn’t hesitate to press her lips against his, much like the first time he had, and whispered to him. 

‘I’ve waited too long for this’ it created a sense of deja vu for the two who had remembered their very first night together, their very first kiss, that had started off just like that, and a happiness floated within them as they kept their discovery to themselves. The rest of the planet, including the immortal pair, the commander and Amana had yet to find out the case, though they would reveal it when the time came, knowing that first and foremost they needed to go to the flame itself to get the answers they needed. 

As they walked through the doors of the Galon, they felt a certain weight being lifted off their shoulders, and wide smiles were on their faces as the sparkling flame came into view. 

‘Welcome back, reincarnations of Reigar and Priscilla’ began the Galoness with her eyes closed and a smirk on her face, as if she had known that this was bound to happen. 

‘So it’s true then?’ Dregov questioned as they both walked hand in hand and stopped right in front of the flame. 

‘Of course my child, if it wasn’t, how would you know the story?’ She countered, now opening her eyes to meet them. ‘Something troubles you’ she added, sensing the discomfort within Dregov that he had refused to share with anybody before. He decided to take a deep breath and let out his worry, knowing that the flame knew his troubles either way. 

‘What is our purpose in this war this time, Galoness? Will we be taken again?’ He asked, holding firmly onto Clea’s hand. She too, had held in the same concern, though she found a way to suppress it by embracing the moment she had with him then and there. 

‘Your mate and yourself have always had a greater purpose on this planet, child. You were the beginning of the end, and now you will contribute to the end of the end. You will not be taken unless the end goes your way, child. I told you before and I’ll tell you again, trust the flame, for all your worries will drown if you just trust’ she responded, and the pair felt a sense of relief upon her words. They had suddenly placed their full faith in the flame in a way they had not even known of before, and they knew that they would have the time to be with each other now in a way they didn’t before. 

The war was still at large, though those worries came second in their lives. They had a strong team to back them, and they had the support of the immortal couple on their side, things were looking good. However, there was only one thing left for the Doirekh to ask. 

‘What about my sister, what’s her story? Should we reveal our truth to the rest?’ He posed, still missing out on bits and pieces of the puzzle. 

‘Your sister has her own path in life, and you have your own. Do what is right, trust the flame’ she responded before her eyes sealed shut, and they had been enlightened by the riddles of the flame. Hand in hand, they trekked outside, seating themselves in the forest of Fairen territory to discuss matters. 

‘Do you think we should tell anyone?’ Asked Clea, still confused about the words of the Galoness. They had commenced understanding how confusing the flame could be, though by the end of it knew that there was a reason behind everything, and it all made sense in the end. Though in this particular scenario they had yet to figure out what to do with the given information. 

‘The Galoness said, trust the flame. Let’s just trust the flame and keep going. It’s not particularly something that we need to tell people, if the flame wants to reveal it the flame will. Let’s just trust the flame and leave it at that, and keep going’ responded Dregov, coming to somewhat of an understanding with his mate. She nodded, and the next question was to do with their new found relationship. 

‘What do we do about us?’ She asked, not understanding how to phrase her real words, which mostly consisted of her asking him to live with her. Despite her lack of clear conveyance, Dregov still understood his little woman, and chuckled, getting closer to her once again. 

‘We pick up where we left off. Obviously there is a war at large so it’s not like I can just begin living with you just yet, but soon, as soon as the open war is put forward, I will be. Then we just have to defeat my brother and the rest of the Vermillion, and then we can go back to living happily ever after’ he responded, and a smile appeared on her face for a brief minute before it dropped straight off. 

‘What if things go terribly wrong with the war?’ She raised, and he held her hands to calm her down, knowing that her concerns were most probably coming out of their past experiences. 

‘Clea, we’ll be fine. The Warmecks and Fairens defeated an entire population of Vermillion back in the days, why can’t we do it now?’ He countered, trying to bring to light some positivity. 

‘Yeah but you heard the Hybrid leader then, the Warmecks had been sleeping for quite some time, which means they were more than prepared to fight. Now the Warmecks have lost that right, so who knows what will happen-’

‘Clea, have you seen Paulina? She’s more than prepared, she’s trained everyone on this planet. The previous war was solely between the Warmecks, Fairens and the Vermilion. This time it's everyone against the Vermillion, which by the way consist of 4 people. I think we will be fine, I wouldn’t worry too much about it if I were you’ he interrupted, considering the options. The Fairen leader took a deep breath, nodding and agreeing, clearing her head of all negative thoughts as she focused solely on winning the fight so she could be with her mate again.

‘You’re right. I need to trust the flame’ she mentioned, elevating from her seat. ‘You need to get back before anyone realises you’re gone. I’ll see you later’ she pushed him, and he agreed, placing a long lasting kiss on her lips before making his way back to the Vermillion mansion, flying up to his window so that no one would realise he was gone. 

When he opened the door to his room to go out and face the rest of his kind, he had been surprised to see Amana at his door, lifting her arms to knock once again. The woman had knocked before, and realised that he was gone, sending her into a frenzy of confusion and worry until Remo assured her that he was alright and had simply crossed the borders into Tetra, probably to see his mate. When she got notified that he had been coming back, she barged over immediately to give her brother a piece of her mind. 

Closing the door behind her she walked inside and glared at Dregov. 

‘Why didn’t you tell me you were going to Tetra? Dregov, you do realise it’s dangerous for you to disappear just-’

‘I’m sorry Amana, I didn’t mean to. There was just something I had to do with Clea. It was important. We just found out something too important and too hard to explain, but just trust that it was important, or I wouldn’t have done it’ he explained, and she sighed, nodding and accepting her fate. She trusted her brother more than anything in her world, and didn’t bother questioning him further, knowing that he meant what he said. 

‘Everything alright with Clea?’ She then asked, and the smile on his face said more than words could. 

‘Better than alright’ he responded, and she mirrored a smile back, patting his arm before heading towards the door. 

‘I’m glad to know. Now get some rest and then come for breakfast. I think we need to run over our plans for Daraz before the execution’ she responded, taking her leave from the room. 

The woman had begun feeling her heart sinking at the thought of leaving Stregov, and suddenly it dawned upon her that despite hating her brother and his guts, and most of all, his proclaimed mate, he was still her brother who once upon a time did care for her and treat her like the princess she was. 

She trekked over to the balcony in one of the many corridors, looking out the window and wondering what her life would be like once she permanently stepped foot out of the mansion that had been her home for as long as she could remember.

Why had Stregov turned into a completely different man? Why did he have to betray his own family like his father did? Who knew? All she knew was that the flame had given her a way out of the hell hole that had been her home and she was ready to take it. She only wished that circumstances could have been better between her brothers and her. It was as if the flame had been listening to her thoughts as Stregov, who had been passing by, stopped to observe his sister staring into nothingness, concerned for her safety in the one moment he was not around Elize. He approached his little sister, aware that they did not have the best of relationships, and stood next to her, silent and aloof. 

‘Surprised you’re here’ she said to him, without looking his way. He turned to face her for only a brief minute, understanding her words and not allowing them to prick him before he responded. 

‘Are you alright?’ He asked, for perhaps the first time in his life. Amana smiled, thinking of how peaceful life would be if he had been this nice to her from the start. Unfortunately the truth was uglier and she knew it, and there was no way she could talk him out of being with Elize now, for he was far too gone. 

‘Like you care’ she responded, finally throwing him a nonchalant smile. This, however, seemed to prick him, despite his intention not to let him. 

‘I do care, Amana, you’re my sister-’

‘Am I? Is that why you’ve been so supportive of me? ‘ She countered, and he had started to find it hard to even respond to her without feeling the guilt and shame she intended to make him feel. 

‘Amana, just because I don’t support your thoughts and decisions, doesn’t mean I don’t care for-’

‘Don’t bother finishing that sentence Stregov. I won’t believe it either way. Let’s be honest, you only care about Elize, and you know that. If you cared even the slightest about Dregov and I you would be on my side’ she responded, knowing that those words would pierce him right down, though there was something else she planned on saying, something that she knew would really get to him, more than anything in the world. ‘You’re just like father. He abandoned us, and now you are abandoning your siblings. Mother worked tirelessly to raise us and make us decent creatures, despite what father did to us, but you clearly didn’t get the gist of it’ she spat, looking right into his eyes and watching his emotions corrode inside of him. It sure had done the trick as his fists clenched to his sides, and she saw him anger up at the very thought. The man that had always supported their father’s decision was finally beginning to see the full picture, and it wasn’t pretty. 

‘What father did was for the greater good-’

‘Oh don’t you act all saintly now!’ She interrupted, and this angered him even more. 

‘The Warmecks and Fairens destroyed us! They killed every Vermillion alive, why should he have left the Pixens alone? They deserved what they got!’ He yelled, and he could only be grateful that it wasn’t in front of Dregov, who surely would have lost it, knowing the truth.

‘That war was initiated because of something so stupid and so minor! A Fairen and a Doirekh fell in love, so what? Big deal! We started a war for absolutely nothing. When it was all over, we should have accepted our fate, been grateful that we still lived, and carried on with our lives. We were happy! When father was with us we were happy, but he was too far gone into his revenge to care about us, and you’re too far gone to care about Dregov and I, that’s why you’re siding with the dumb Witch-’

‘Amana, watch your words-’

‘Or what? You’ll kill me?’ She snapped, and his blood began boiling. If the woman in front of him wasn’t his sister she would have probably been dead. Though the very fact that he was so supportive of Elize even in his absence just proved how whipped the man was, and how far gone he was to save. ‘Don’t you see how whipped you are? I say one thing against her, which I have every right to, given how many times she’s attacked me, and you’re already all riled up. You’ve never once supported me when we fight, not even when we physically fight, you only support her. So don’t come to me and pretend like you care, Stregov, because the truth is you never did. You only care about the Witch, and you lost your family the day you chose her over us. You’re no brother of mine, he died ages ago. You’re just a stranger, someone I don’t know and I don’t care to know. Someone just like my father: an arrogant and stubborn t**t’ she yelled one last time, leaving scars in his heart as she stormed off the scene.

There wasn’t a bone in his body that hadn’t told the man to run after his sister and mend things, but as always he stood stationary, looking out at the view as she had been, and taking a deep breath before pretending the interaction didn’t happen. He reminded himself of the love he had for Elize and the one he thought she had for him, and walked away, back to the only person he had given himself to: the dumb Witch.