VERMILLION: The fall of Zaleon

Chapter 10

Zaleon had started off as a world that was home to a significantly large number of creatures. All those that existed in the present day and more. The population the Vermillion began with was more than 6, it was hundreds and hundreds of people, until the time came for the first great war of Zaleon, that wiped out a large number of creatures and races off the face of the planet. In the end there were only a handful of people: 2 Doirekhs, 3 Vermillion Witches and 2 Vermoca. Out of these were born the offspring that ruled the current territory of the Vermillion, creatures as vicious as their ancestors. 

Before the initial great war that wiped out most of the Vermillion, however, life on Crest had certainly been more exciting and normal than usual. The members of Crest lived like Gods. With unlimited access to whatever they pleased in not one but several mansions, the population of elite members had much to be grateful for from the very beginning of time. It was all a scheme, of course, created by the flame for destruction as revenge for his past life, though that was the very fun of creating a cast much superior and blessed than the rest: that in the end they would suffer the worst of downfalls. Leopold had been raising pigs for s*******r from the very beginning of time when it came to the Vermillion, and his hatred at the time had been far too fresh for him to miss out on. His current state, of course, was rather gloomy, and approaching its end, though at the start of time Leopold had been as evil as evil could get. 

A century of enjoyment and content it had been for the Vermillion, and for the Doirekh’s it began with love at first sight. There had never existed mates within Crest, of course, but that had not stopped Gregov Doirekh from landing his eyes on the most exquisite creature he could have seen. The Vermillion at the time had the biggest population on the planet of Zaleon, when the Ivory and Amethyst were still in the making, and it just so happened that the rule truly was of the Vermillion. Gregov Doirek was the son of Regov Doirekh, the first of the Doirekh kind, and leader of Doirekhs at the time, he had grown up with the most blessed surroundings: parents who loved him and a buttload of siblings running around their massive mansion. Each creature of Vermillion had their own mansion, and that meant that would make life so much easier for Gregov Doirekh, who had every intention of wooing the stunning creature in front of him, who just so happened to be a Doirekh herself. He had never seen her around the grounds of his mansion before, but then again, the mansion was home to hundreds of Doirekh like himself. 

He had spent much of his time since, enjoying and watching the shy woman read her book under the same tree everyday, and everyday he would go out to the fields, keeping a safe distance to watch her do so, and scrunch her nose when she was completely engrossed in her readings. The man had been popular amongst his kind, as stereotypes would have it, though he had not ever interacted with a woman in that way before, and he knew not how to approach the woman he so badly fancied. His friends had poked fun at him and on several occasions had encouraged him to take a leap of faith, but the Doirekh never made the first move, until one day, lost in his trance, he had gotten caught by the very woman, staring out at her as she read her book in peace. His eyes widened as she began approaching him, and he felt himself sink back into the bush he was sitting by. 

‘How long have you been sitting there watching me?’ She asked, her hands on her hips as she glared down at him. He had no idea what to tell her, surely he wasn’t about to reveal that in fact, he had spent days watching her, for that would be completely inappropriate, instead he cleared his throat and mustered up whatever confidence he had left within him. 

‘I only just saw the book in your hand and was fascinated, I’ve always wanted to read it’ he responded nonchalantly, pretending not to be interested in her in the slightest. She could see right through his facade, however, and decided to amuse herself by playing a charade. 

‘Oh I see. You’re interested in reading Jane Eyre too? Are you as fascinated by these human authors as I am?’ She played, mentioning the name of a book that was not the one she was reading to catch the man out. He nodded eagerly, coming up with yet another lie to play it cool. 

‘Yeah’ he began, having no idea what she was even talking about ‘they’re great, good stuff they write’ he responded with a firm nod. At this, she began laughing, and Gregov knew that surely he had messed up somewhere. 

‘Well I’m not reading Jane Eyre, so I have no idea what you’re talking about’ she responded, chuckling and lifting up her book and displaying the title so he could catch onto her games. If the bush hadn’t swallowed him whole before, now he wished the ground would just engulf him fully and rid him of the embarrassment that took over his cheeks as he averted his eyes from the woman he so dearly liked. Though the woman had not seemed to mind the reaction of the young man -who clearly had taken an interest in her- so she reached out her hand to the mysterious man to introduce herself. ‘I’m Leanna, what’s your name?’ She initiated, and the shy man had been stunned by her boldness. 

‘Gregov’ he responded, placing his hand in hers. 

‘You’re Regov Doirekh’s son?’ She asked, amused by the fact that she was dropping eyes on their own leader’s son for the  first time. She had heard that he was popular, though he still managed to keep to himself most of the time. The man nodded, and now it was time for Leanna to turn shy in front of him. ‘It’s nice to meet you’ she said shyly and with respect, hoping the interaction would not get her into trouble. It had taken her a while to convince her parents to let her out to read to begin with, and the last thing she wanted was for that right to be taken away from her.  Gregov noticed her sudden change and cursed himself for being the son of a leader. The last thing he wanted was to drive the woman away because he was at a superior level. She was just about to turn around when in his moment of desperation he stopped her, doing what he had never had the courage to do before. 

‘You’re beautiful’ he blurted, and she turned around with a gasp, her hands on her mouth as if he had just sinned. On the inside the woman was so flattered, and her cheeks were turning red by the second, though she knew if her parents found out she was interacting with men, much less the son of their leader, she would be in trouble. 

‘You mustn't say that’ she spoke gently, looking away and avoiding eye contact at all costs. Her shyness had only attracted the man more, and he stepped forward, making her even more nervous as he grabbed onto her hand. 

‘I mean it, I think you’re stunning’ he whispered to her, and the butterflies in the woman’s stomach were unimaginable. She looked around frantically to make sure no one was looking at them, and as she did so, he leaned down and placed his lips down on hers, which she embraced for a good moment before she pulled away, and with fear and shock covering her eyes, she ran away from the scene, leaving the man in a state of confusion and bliss. 

He had just kissed the woman he so dearly fancied, and she hadn’t fully rejected him. His intentions were now clear and direct, to woo the woman and marry her, and there was only one way he planned on doing that, and that was by returning every single day to the same spot to court the woman, until she would agree to marry him. When she did, he would face her parents, until then, he looked forward to spending more time with her in the small fields, far away from the borders of Crest or any sort of civilization to begin with. 

Though as the next day arrived, Leanna never showed up again. She had thoroughly enjoyed the kiss, but was driven away purely by the fact that she would get into trouble. This certainly didn’t work for the Doirekh male, who ever since the kiss had set his eyes on her even more firmly, and intended to go search for her. The new location she had picked to go read her book in, had been on the other side of Crest, on similar fields, where she found herself a new tree to sit under and enjoy her book without the presence of her leader's son. Her plan hadn’t lasted as much, however, as exactly 30 minutes into her reading the very man she wished to ignore had made his presence known with the violent rustling of plants and bushes he pushed away in order to get to her. 

‘What are you doing here?’ He asked him in shock. She certainly hadn’t expected the gorgeous man to kiss her, but even more so she hadn’t expected the popular man to chase her like a love struck puppy. Not that she minded it, of course, for on the inside she way bursting with joy, and butterflies had taken over her stomach permanently. 

‘I waited for you on the other side of Crest, you didn’t come’ he stated blatantly, and she looked at him in utter disbelief. 

‘Of course! You kissed me!’ She exclaimed, pretending not to have enjoyed, though even he knew she had, and her eyes said the same. 

‘Are you saying that you don’t want me?’ He asked cautiously, slowly taking steps towards again. 

‘I...I will get into trouble’ she muttered quickly, stepping back until her back hit the bark of the tree she had been sitting under. 

‘I’m the son of the Doirekh leader, I will make sure nothing happens to you, I just need to know if you want me or not. Do you want me?’ He asked, now closer to her than ever. His hands had been strategically placed next to her head on the bark of the tree, and as he looked down at her with the utmost intensity she found herself unable to look away. Words did not come out of her mouth, and Gregov lowered his head, this time capturing her lips passionately and grabbing onto her form so she wouldn’t escape. She didn’t seem to mind at all as she wrapped her own arms around the man, finally giving into her own temptation, and the two embraced each other for what seemed like ages before they parted. ‘I’ll take that as your acceptance’ he commented, and the blushing woman nodded, looking away. For the rest of the evening she sat in his lap, and the only thing she had been reading was the passion within his lips against her own, having no intention of ever letting go now that she had found a man worth hanging on to. Of course, they had only known each other a day, and frankly knew nothing of each other, aside from their names, though for them it had been enough for Gregov to continue sneaking around to meet the woman he knew he would one day marry. 

That day the routine had been set, and every day the pair would meet in the fields by the same tree where their journey began, and they would read verses to each other from one book or another, and end up snuggled in the arms of one another, passionately kissing and spending time with each other. They could see their life ahead of them, and were waiting patiently till they were old enough to embrace a life together, though all that died on a sunny evening when Leanna’s father had stumbled into the fields, expecting to find his innocent daughter reading when instead his orbs landed on the most horrifying scene of his only daughter in the lap of another man, sucking faces like there was no tomorrow. Furious, he stalked angrily towards his daughter, the bushes doing their job and informing the pair of someone’s appearance. A terrified Leanna jumped out of Gregov’s lap almost immediately, and the male Doirekh did the same, her wide eyes signalling that the man approaching them angrily was her father. He had seen the man’s hand lift in the air, though before it could strike upon his one child, Gregov got in the way, holding the hand back with the sudden power that surged within him. 

‘You. Will. Not. Hurt. Her.’ Seethed the leader’s son through his teeth, livid at what was about to happen. Leanna scrambled away slightly, petrified at what was to come. This certainly wasn’t going to end well, and she just knew that on that day she would lose Gregov, as well as all her freedom and perhaps even her right to live. 

‘How dare you? Who do you think you are laying your hands on my daughter, boy? I will have your head for this!’ He yelled aggressively, his fists coming up in slow motion before Gregov blocked it once again. 

‘I am Gregov Doirekh, son of Regov Doirekh, and you will respect me. I am in love with your daughter, and I have no wrong intentions with her, I wish to marry her’ he spoke calmly, though with a tone of intimidation he knew not he had within him. Gregov had never once been up against something like this, though when it came to the woman he loved, he would not back down.

‘You have fornicated with my daughter?’ The man questioned, having no other explanation as to why the leader’s son would want to marry his daughter. A frowning Gregov looked at the man for a moment, attempting to figure out he was serious before he realised he was. 

‘I have not fornicated with your daughter. I just want to marry her’ he said, and Leanna’s father stepped back, needing a moment to think about it. 

‘But she’s so young’ he spoke as barely a whisper. 

‘We have a whole life ahead of us. She will be the next female leader of the Doirekh’s. Allow me to make your daughter happy, and care for her for the rest of her life’ he mentioned, and that seemed to have done the trick for the old man, who took a deep breath, and accepted his fate.

‘Fine, you must marry my daughter as soon as possible. Before anyone finds out of your hidden affair’ he stated, and that seemed to be no issue to Gregov, who would have married the woman that instant. Leanna stood back in shock, surprised that her father had agreed so quickly. 

Within days they had had the ceremony, and within days the pair were introduced to the luxurious life of living with each other. They mated every minute of the day, bearing three children: Stregov, Dregov and Amana, who would go on to be their successors, and also the cause of the break of the family. 

Though times were not the same, and soon the first war of Zaleon neared them in a way they had never imagined. They had heard of the greatness of the Warmecks, though had never dealt with it until the war emerged and the grand majority of Crest was wiped out, leaving only 2 Doirekhs and their children, 3 Vermillion Witches and their children and 2 Vermoca and their child. By the end the mansions had disappeared, and so society shrunk into 1 mansion, living life in the most miserable way possible. Leanna had insisted several times that Gregov, a man who had grown to be power hungry, to drop the war and be happy that he and his family survived. But Gregov was far too gone. 

His lust for blood had taken over, and the gone was the initial love and care he had for his wife, replaced by a love that was nothing but manipulative and filled with lies. 

‘We should start our rebuild. I want us to have a house again, for ourselves, we need to expand our territory’ he had told her one random afternoon as she put her kids down for a nap. 

‘Gregov, I know what you’re thinking, and there is absolutely no point in it. Why can’t you just let things happen as they need to. So much has already been taken away from us. We can’t lose you too. Your kids, they need you, I need you’ she pleaded, placing a hand on his chest as she leaned into him. She waited for an answer but none came, so instead she reached up on her tip-toes and placed a kiss on his lips, wrapping her arms around him in the hopes that he would give into their love. He embraced her within seconds, turning their kiss into a while of intense mating and passion, until they finished, and he resumed his original plan. 

‘The Pixens, they don’t need their land, they can live with the Fiarens. That land should be enough for us’ he mentioned, and his terrified wife ran to him at once. 

‘What are you talking about? Gregov, we don’t need more land. Our children are happy in his house, they have friends who are like family to them, they have their parents and nothing else is going wrong. The war is over and peace is finally upon us, why can’t you let this go? If not for yourself, then at least for the sake of your family, let it go and stay here. Be happy with us!’ She exclaimed, losing her patience. 

‘I want a better life for my children, that’s why I must-’

‘Don’t you dare give me that crap Gregov!’ She interrupted, furious at this point. ‘What has happened to you? When did you get so power hungry? When did you forget your morals and values? Do you not care about your family anymore? About me? Were all those promises you made to me on our wedding day just empty words?’ She accused, and he had absolutely no response. The man had lost his heart the moment the war was upon them, and he planned not to bring back his humanity anytime soon, or at least not until he had achieved what he wanted. 

‘They took everything from us, Leanna. I want to take everything from them. I will take everything from them. That’s a promise’ he vowed in her presence, his eyes wide and lost, indicating to her that it was too late for her husband. It was a painful moment for the woman, but she knew that this was the end of her love, and perhaps in her next life they would last longer. 

‘I see, if that’s what you want, then so be it. You choose right now, whether you want this family or your revenge’ she put forward, and the raging man raged even more. 

‘How dare you? This is my family-’

‘It’s not anymore. If you leave this house and decide to take your revenge, you will no longer be welcome here. You will never see your kids again, you will never see me again’ she said, her voice breaking at the end ‘If you take the land away from the Pixens, I will never accept you again. So that’s a choice you’re going to have to make right now, Gregov. Us, or your revenge’  she repeated, tears streaming down her face furiously. The male Doirekh growled loudly, smashing everything around him as he thought of her words, though Leanna knew ultimately what he would choose to do, and so he did. 

Turning around, he faced the woman he loved so dearly for the past years and for the last time, spoke to her before his departure. 

‘They took everything from me, and now I will take everything from them. For us, all of us’ he decided, storming out of the house, leaving Leanna to collapse to the ground in tears, until the Vermillion Witch came to get her. 

That was the day Leanna lost everything. That was the day Gregov took a step forward in creating history, and turning into the land that now belonged to the Warmecks. That was the day the fate of Zaleon changed.