VERMILLION: The fall of Zaleon

Chapter 14

Love and passion had been a large part of the Doirekh’s and Vermillion Witch’s, no matter how messed up the love had truly been. Though in the case of the Vermoca, it would seem that love was just not a part of the dictionary for these particular creatures. 

Josita Vermoca was the daughter of the leader of her kind at a time where the war had yet to strike, and unlike the rest on her planet, this lonely woman had absolutely no interest in the subject of love. Her only interests had lied in the art of deception and domination. Her parents had been as firm as any leading family could be, and being a woman of power she had been trained to take over their kind. 

From the early age of 8 her physical training had begun, and for every thing she would do wrong she would suffer the consequences in physical beatings. She did not particularly enjoy the beatings though they had become a prominent part of her life, to the point where it was something she believed she deserved to get if she would commit any errors at all. Life for her was about being error free and listening to what her parents instructed her, and that is how she intended to be for the rest of her own life. With no siblings at all Josita’s parents had put their full attention on her, and it meant that she received the harshest training and no spare time at all. By the age of 20 there was one thing that the woman had become a specialist in: fighting and disguising. She had perfected the art of disguise, and could easily sneak into any area her parents would tell her discreetly to fulfill their missions and tasks. 

Her final mission had consisted of conquering the enemy territory to gather information on the other party that had insisted on being the leader of Vermoca. Their families had been fighting since the beginning of time, though on the outside none would know the real loathe they had for each other. These masters of disguise had covered up even their hatred under the blankets of polite conversations and political corruption. 

So it was that on a random day Josita’s mission had been to infiltrate the quarters of Lerano Vermoca’s family to investigate what their plan had been to overthrow Josita's parents from leadership. She had jumped from one object to another, a wall to a vase to a table. No one had ever suspected her movements because she lingered for barely a moment before grasping onto another. It had been one of the very tricks that had made her successful and a trick that Liem certainly had not inherited from his mother. 

She finally made it into the chambers of the Lerano Vermoca, where he had been passionately mating with his wife, causing a certain discomfort to take over the woman as she retracted herself from the chambers momentarily as she allowed their business to finish. She had been used to viewing these disturbing things though had no option but to keep herself going for the greater good. Once the noise had died down in the room the woman returned, and followed Lerano to his office, where individuals had already been present, seated on the chairs in front of his table.

Pulling his shirt over his chest, he seated himself, lifting his feet so that they were on the table. 

‘Gentlemen’ he began, folding his hands and lazing around ‘Have you got the intel I was looking for?’ He asked, and the first man glanced at the second, pulling out a document and placing it slyly on the table, enabling Lerano to pick it up and scan it briefly. 

Josita, who had been disguised as the pen on his desk, shifted to the desk to the curtains, making swift movements so no one would recognize her presence. She read over the documents herself, and noticed that not only had the papers consisted of the financial details of the Vermoca, but they had been classified documents that her father would only have kept locked up. The two men sitting on the chairs had seemed familiar to her eyes, but she couldn’t quite place her finger on who they were. All she knew was they had betrayed her father, and they were going to pay the consequences. It had become evident to her that Lerano was to use this new found information to frame her family somehow and take leadership into his hands, but she wouldn’t let him. 

‘Thank you gentlemen, you have been most helpful’ he responded with a full grown smirk. Opening the drawer next to him, he pulled out two envelopes which he dropped on the table in front of them ‘your cuts, thank you. Leave now’ he instructed, and they scurried off quickly into the distance. 

The man laughed and put the documents in his cupboard, locking it and putting the keys back into his pocket as he walked back around and out of the office into his chambers. 

The task had become even more difficult as now Josita was to take the documents and assassinate the men that had brought the difficulty to her family in the first palace before returning to her father and ensuring that they would triumph in the end. She had thought several times about ending the life of Lerano, taking away the competition that had been a threat from the very start, but that much had not been approved by her parents, and what had not been approved by her parents was something she was not willing to do.  It was too big of a risk. 

Waiting for Lerano to be out of sight completely, she disguised herself as different things, following him to wherever he was headed, which happened to be his chambers, where he resumed his intimate activities with another woman this time, and she had no choice but to wait for the man to place the key on the table and get to it before she could disguise herself as the curtains, and shift back to her original form behind them. She waited till the man was done, and the pair disappeared into the bathroom together before she grabbed onto the keys on the table, and resumed disguising herself as objects until she arrived the cupboard in the office. She had little time to transform back and unlock the cupboard to retrieve the documents before she re-locked the cupboard and returned to his chambers disguised as things. By the time she returned the keys and transformed away he had just about been getting out of the toilet, and she sighed, feeling grateful that she had made the escape before he had realised his keys had been missing. 

This would buy her some time, and so she returned to her father’s office, handing him the documents with a proud smile. 

‘I recognise the faces of the two men who gave it to him’ was the only thing she had said as he glanced upon the documents. He examined them, and nodded at her, indicating to her that she was to execute them. 

Without a word she dashed away, being a master of disguise as she ran around the mansion of Vermoca’s in search of the two individuals that had betrayed her father for no reason. She had found the men eating and drinking away in one of the lounges, and decided to take her human form to lure them out. 

Striding up to them, she needed not an introduction as she stood in front of them. 

‘Josita, what are you doing here? Is everything ok?’ Asked the first man. With a fake smile she nodded politely. 

‘Yes, I only wish to convey a message. My father is requesting your presence in his office right away. If you will follow me please’ she informed, and they looked suspiciously between each other, nodding and following her out. Once in the passageways, she glanced around discreetly to make sure no one had been around before turning around and within the instant slashing the throats of both men, one after the other with a powerful blade her father had gifted her. It was a blade powerful enough to kill any Vermoca, and in the possession of Josita it meant guaranteed death. 

She got rid of their bodies in the way she knew best: the burning room in the third floor, hidden behind a passageway wall that no one would ever suspect. It was a family secret that no one in the mansion had come across, and she made sure to clean up her surroundings before heading back to her father’s office with a proud gleaming glow. 

‘It’s done father’ she stated, and he nodded at her. 

‘There is something your mother needs to discuss with you. Go see her’ he instructed, resuming his work instantly. She nodded, though he didn’t see, as she walked back and entered her chambers, where her mother had been scouring through her wardrobe. 

‘Mother, father said you wanted to see me’ she mentioned, and the mother turned around, nodding slightly, though she seemed more interested in the task she was doing. 

‘Yes, come here, I need to see what dress will look best for tomorrow’ she mentioned, and Josita remained confused.

‘Tomorrow? What’s happening tomorrow mother?’ Posed the woman, looking nervously upon the dresses she most despised. 

‘You are getting married to Keron Vermoca’ she casually announced, though it had been a shock to Josita. 

Never in her life had marriage been a conversation between her and her parents, and never had she ever felt the need or want to be in love or get married. It had seemed to her for most of her life that her parents would never get her married, and just train her and give her the leadership, though that did not seem to be the case for poor old Josita. She had detested the idea of marriage, and even more so to Keron Vermoca, the one man in her life she despised. 

He had been a family friend, highly ranked, and a man who thought of himself as the King of the world. She had defeated him several times in battle before, though he had denied all information on the matter, claiming that he most certainly was better. She had wanted to destroy the man and now her parents wanted her to marry him. 

She choked on her own spit but could say nothing to her mother, who glared at her in the next minute. 

‘Something the matter, Josita?’ She asked strictly, and instantly the woman shook her head, keeping her mouth shut and allowing her mother to take control and dictate her life. ‘Ah this one will do’ soon the mother said, taking a dress and laying it on the bed. ‘I will have this one ready for tomorrow. Get some rest, tomorrow is the wedding and Keron will be moving his things here tomorrow. Within the year if all goes well the two of you will receive leadership. For now you are to be married and carry out missions for your father. We will not stop until the people do not despise Lerano Vermoca. When people want him out, we will execute him and then you will take over’ she explained, grabbing the dress and exiting the room. 

The woman was left speechless, literally, at the unfortunate turn of events. Just this morning she had been carrying out missions for her father, and now she was to be married to her greatest enemy. Keeping her anger to herself, she fell into her bed, going to sleep and arising the next day with the utmost terror.

She had made it to her marriage ceremony and barely gave Keron a glance, let alone a smile before they were married in front of the Vermoca’s of Crest. 

He soon made his move to her chambers, and the woman remained silent all the way as she did so, only speaking after once again he triggered her. 

‘I can’t believe they made me marry you’ he whispered to himself, though she had caught it. Anything he did pissed her off, and so when he dared to whisper such nuisances in her presence, she found herself in front of him in a second, grabbing him by the collar and pushing him against the wall.

‘Let’s make one thing clear, I’m only with you because of my parents. The leadership is mine, I will be the leader, not you. If you try to get in my way or bother me again, if you even breathe near me again,  I will terminate you. Do you understand me?’ She threatened, pressing her little dagger onto his neck. The terrified man nodded, and she let go of him, making her way into her balcony to get some fresh air. 

When she returned she stripped off her clothes and Keron looked flabbergasted at her. 

‘What are you doing?’ He dared to question. 

‘Strip, we must mate. If we don’t I will never bear an heir to the Vermoca’s’ she mentioned, and the horrified man found himself stripping under the heavy gaze of the intimidating woman, mating in the most awkward way possible. 

Immediately after it had been over, she put on her clothes and slept on a corner of the bed whilst the horrified man quivered on the other side, having had enough of the wedding himself. 

He had thought it would be a decent idea given the fact that he would be next in line to be a leader, though it had escaped his mind what Josita Vermoca was like, and now that she was his wife, there was no escaping it. 

The next morning the pair had entered Josita’s father’s office bright and early, ready for another mission to get through. Keron had never before been on any sly missions, and being forced into one now made him nervous, though he did not dare utter a word to the leader he feared. 

‘You will go to Lerano’s office, steal all his documents, and bring them back. Today we will expose him, then you will execute him’ instructed the leader, and Josita nodded, feeling uncomfortable of having to do the mission with her new husband. 

‘Father, isn’t it better if I do this alone-’

‘Not a chance! You have a husband now, he needs to be trained. The two of you will do this, and be ready for leadership’ he insisted, and she agreed immediately, and nodding and heading out with Keron. Before they made it to the enemy’s office, however, she stopped him in his tracks and backed him against a wall. 

‘You will not interrupt me in this mission, do you understand? I will succeed, and you will stay here and bounce around things so no one finds you, when I’m done, I will meet you here and we can head back together’ she instructed, abandoning the shivering man there as she returned to the very office she had been in not too long ago. 

Lerano sit on his chair, conversing with someone in front of him whom Josita could not see as yet.  

‘They took the papers, and killed them! They’re absolutely insane! Do you see why they need to be stopped?’ He asked, and the man ahead nodded. 

‘What are you going to do now Lerano? They’re on to you’ stated the man in front, and a stressed out Lerano got up from his seat. 

‘I know, they’re going to try and kill me now. That’s why I’ve called you here. They are going to look everywhere to find dirt on me, and having this information here can destroy me, so I need you to hang onto it for me, that way they won’t find it. They will never suspect you’ he mentioned, and when Josita had a look at the man’s face she realised that Lerano was right. The man sitting on the seat was none other than her father’s brother, and her uncle. She kept her disappointment to herself, family meant nothing to her, and waited for her uncle to grab all the files, and finish off the conversations with Lerano before disappearing. 

She knew where her uncle would keep the information, and she knew that before she killed him and retrieved it, she needed to run it by her father. So she returned to where she had left Keron, and they went back to the office where her father had been awaiting them. 

‘So, did you do it?’ He asked impatiently. 

‘Your brother has the documents, he’s a traitor’ was all she said, and Keron remained silent, though surprised at the truth. 

‘Fine, kill my brother, get the documents and kill Lerano. We end this tonight. You will become leaders sooner than expected’ he mentioned casually, and she nodded, taking her leave with Keron from the room. He wanted to utter several words but remained silent, as he followed his wife outside a certain quarter not too far from her own, and he waited obediently as she went inside, and returned moments later with a file in her hand. 

‘I need to dispose of my uncle’s body. Take these documents and hand them to my father. I will meet you back here and then we will go to kill Lerano’ the woman said with nonchalance. 

He agreed, not daring to disagree and ran off as she got rid of her uncle in the same way she did all her victims, in the burning room and out of sight from her aunt and the rest of her family. When she returned, a traumatised Keron had been standing and waiting for her without uttering a word. She had noticed his discomfort and stopped for a brief moment, facing him.

‘What’s wrong?’ She asked him, and for a moment the man had been fooled into thinking she cared about him. 

‘How could you just kill so easily? That was your uncle!’ He exclaimed, letting some of his fears out in a whisper. 

‘He was a traitor, and so is Lerano. You’ll get used to it. Breathe a word to anyone and I’ll make sure you suffer a fate worse than them. I can kill you right now, but I’m not. Be grateful, and don’t mess with my plans. This is what I was raised for, and you will have to learn it too. If you put a toe out of line you will not survive, do you understand?’ She asked him, and he nodded, returning to his life of silence. He was not ready to witness a murder, yet this time he followed the woman inside, until the two transformed into their human forms in Lerano’s office, where the man sat behind his desk. 

‘Ah, Josita, I have been waiting for you. Just in time’ he mentioned casually, getting off his seat. ‘I’m afraid if you’re here to try and find things to expose me then you’ll find nothing. You see, I am a clean man. Search my grounds if you must’ the man said, having not the faintest that this was in fact, his end. He had known that her family were after him, but that he would die so soon he had no idea. 

‘My uncle is dead, and you will be exposed later tonight. Now, you will die’ she said to him, looking him dead in the eye and not giving him a moment to breathe before he was lifeless on the ground. His blood stained the floors, and with a huff of exasperation Josita dragged his body around the mansion to the burning room, and disposed of it as a grossed out Keron cleaned the scene that had surely put him into shock. 

When they returned to the office to report that they had completed their task, her father looked at her with a smirk. 

‘You will be the leaders next week. Get ready for your new responsibilities. Over the next week you will be trained’ he informed, and the pair exited the room to return to their chambers. Josita had been excited at the opportunity, for all she had ever wanted was to be the leader, and now it was her time to shine. Keron, however, no longer cared about the matter, and had been more concerned on how to escape his life from his manic wife. 

Upon returning to their chambers, the man had intended going straight to bed to avoid any and every other feeling in the world, but was stopped when his wife began stripping, and he knew what was coming next. When he stood still in his spot, the woman looked at him daringly and approached him with slow steps that were enough to make him get into action. 

‘You may not like me, but I have not married for love. I have married for duty. If you want to be happy here I recommend you change your mindset and start thinking of survival rather than love’