VERMILLION: The fall of Zaleon

Chapter 16

The day of the war summit had come sooner than expected, and both the sibling pair and the immortal pair of Zaleon set off to the borders of Tetra once again, escaping the heavy gaze of Elize who had surely begun suspecting that something was happening behind her back. Stregov had still believed that Dregov was only working with Amana from the inside to save her but somehow the Vermillion Witch refused to believe this, seeing right through Dregov’s act. Though the one thing she could not figure out was what the man was really up to. He had seen them hang around the immortal pair more often, though every time she would try and follow them she would eventually lose them, and everytime she looked into their minds she would see absolute blanks. How was that possible? According to Eliana and Razaar, the immortal pair had often taken trips back into Tetra and Gloarian for business, but if that was the case then where did Amana and Dregov keep disappearing off to? Surely they weren’t crossing the borders either, so what were they doing? They were only rhetorical questions for Elize, who was constantly thinking about the matter to solve the riddle. Nevertheless, she would return by the end of every night and sit on her bed, somehow losing herself with Stregov and consulting the matter afterwards.

As the quartet crossed into Tetra once again, they were greeted by Remo, who was ready to take the elegant looking people, including his mate, to the war summit, where the Vermillion would be introduced to the rest of the Ivory and Amethyst leaders for the first time. Most had not been looking forward to the opportunity, given the fact that all they knew of the Vermillion were that they were trying to destroy their beloved planet. It was a gamble for the lot who only by the word of the immortal pair had no choice but to reluctantly trust the siblings of Crest that -in their eyes- may or may not be betraying them. They had yet to find out that Amana was, in fact, mated to an Amethyst, and that would perhaps change the entire perception on things. Amana and Remo walked hand in hand towards Paulina’s office, and upon arriving, prepared themselves for their grand entrance and debut to the rest of the planet. 

Every leader on the planet, with the exception of the 4 Vermillion, had already been present in to the room, and the first people to enter the room had been none other than great Alpha and Luna of Gloarian and co-leaders of the Hybrids, also known as the immortal couple of Zaleon, the two prophesized leaders that were to save the entire planet. As always their presence had been a good relief for everyone who bowed at their entrance, before the star couple walked in through the door. Glancing upon the tied hands of the Doirekh female and top guard of the Warmecks, gasps emerged through the room. Dregov had yet to make a proper appearance, though he lingered in the background, waiting for her sister to soak up the attention first. 

‘What is the meaning of this Commander Stem?’ Irina asked, her eyes sternly fixed upon Amana. The Doirekh siblings had expected this reaction from the rest of the planet, of course, seeing as they didn’t have the best of reputations, though regardless they had been excited and ready to meet everyone else on the planet and prove to them that they were indeed on the right side of things. 

‘Miss Amana Doirekh is the mate of my top guard’ she announced, and the leaders continued looking at them as if a blasphemous act had just been committed.

‘Please, settle down everybody. All of you, if not most of you here, already have mates, and you know the feeling. This is exactly the same. In fact, because of that you should just understand that whether it was their intention or not, now the Doirekh siblings are in this fight with us because they are bound to us by mates.  Why else would the flame give Amana Doirekh a mate? Perhaps it’s because she’s on the right side of things’ explained Eliana, and everyone seemed to settle down upon her words. 

‘What about the brother? He has no mate, he might be a traitor’ Darcena spoke up from the other end of the room. Dregov had yet to enter the room properly, though he had heard the comment loud and clear, and decided, as his sister spoke to defend him, that now was the time to make his entrance. 

‘My brother would never betray me, he loves me’ she defended, and Dregov stepped foot into the room. His eyes had seen the Ivory Witch leader, who had been standing up in her place, though soon his eyes left hers, and met a particular pair that incarcerated him instantly for what seemed a century. He had never seen a woman so stunning, a woman he wished to hold in his arms with a passion he knew did not exist within him. She was a woman that immediately he knew, was his mate. The rest had caught onto the staring contest between Dregov Doirekh and Clea Menso, leader of Fairens, and yet again they all remained in shock at the slight turn of events. Amana had attempted to shake her brother awake, though when he traced his gaze to Clea, and noticed the similar expression she held of admiration, she knew better than to interrupt her brother’s process of finding his mate. 

‘Mate’ Dregov had whispered to himself, though the rest had heard and seen it, and instantly Darcena sat down, getting proved wrong by the flame. Eliana and Razaar only looked between themselves, before Eliana spoke up again. 

‘Well, that settles it. I think it’s safe to say that Amana and Dregov Doirekh will no longer be a problem to any of us seeing as they both have Amethyst mates’ she clarified, her and her mate taking their seat on the table. ‘Would you like to join us please Amana and Dregov?’ She offered, and Amana began moving in their direction, but before Dregov could take a step towards his mate, Clea stood up, and shocked everyone with her words.

‘This cannot be happening, he is a Doirekh, I cannot be mated to a Doirekh’ she chanted to herself, running out the room. It had been an incredibly odd sight to: Clea Menso was actually vulnerable. There was no way she didn’t already feel a pull towards her mate, but to be mated to one after what Dregov’s father had done to the pixens was something she was not going to settle for, or at least she thought. Dregov stood confused on his spot, wondering what he had done wrong, something that went noticed by everyone in the room. Eliana stood up, and walked over to the man to advise him. 

‘Her name is Clea Menso, she’s the leader of Fairens. The history between Doirekh’s and Fairens is complicated. You should go talk to her’ she suggested, and wordlessly he nodded, taking his leave from the room in pursuit of his mate. He browsed around for the longest time, only finding her by the woods near the waterfall eventually, pacing back and forth and muttering words to herself. 

‘Clea’ he began, and immediately she activated her wings, flying back to keep her distance. ‘I’m not going to hurt you. I’m your mate, please, just trust me’ he begged, and she could not bring herself to fully trust him, even if every ounce in her body told her otherwise. 

‘Trust you? How can I trust you after everything your father did?’ She snapped, and the man was at a loss of words. He had never known what really happened to his father, or what had become to him, but by the look on her face it had become obvious that whatever it was, was not pleasant. 

‘Well I wouldn’t really know would I, given the fact that my father abandoned us all at a young age for something we didn’t even know about and then never returned’ he responded, trying to keep his calm. The woman frowned in confusion, wondering whether to believe the man or not. 

‘You don’t know what your father did? Or what happened to him?’ She asked, getting closer to him to observe his response to determine whether he was lying or not. 

‘No, my father abandoned us. He loved my mother more than anything, but he abandoned her despite her begging him not to, and never came back. We never knew what happened after that. The borders sealed up and we were stuck in Crest’ he clarified, and she saw no hint of a lie. With this new information in mind, she decided to reveal the truth for him. 

‘Time ago, us Fairens, we used to roam with Pixens, our most prized possessions. They were our companions, permanent companions, though they had their own lands. One day your father, Gregov Doirekh, in search of more land, decided to destroy the Pixens to take their land, and so he did. He killed every single pixen on the face of this planet, and all the Fairens were left to mourn that loss. The Warmecks had been asleep for years, waiting to awake only when a war was at large, and when your father terminated the Pixens was when the Warmecks rose to power again, and they captured your father. We kept him alive for centuries, and he was tied down and held for us so we could torture him the way we wished to. One day an old Warmeck commander found his mate, she was a Fairen, but after the loss of Pixens, Fairens became all lonely and terrible creatures. We became evil, so she used the commander, and did him mischief a time too many. The Warmeck commander was angry, so he put your father out of his misery, and killed him, denying us the right to do as we pleased with him. Due to this the flame decided that the borders would be sealed up and no Warmeck could ever go back to sleep when a war was not occurring. This land that you’re stepping on right now, is your father’s corpse. With the help of Yoleg, the old Warmeck commander had the lands of Warmecks created upon the body of Gregov Doirekh’ she terminated, and Dregov’s eyes were as wide as they had ever been. He stepped back in disgust, processing for a moment that he was, in fact, stepping on his father’s dead body, and after years of not knowing what had happened to his father, he had finally discovered the truth, and knew not what to do of it. He looked below him and try to imagine what his mother would say, but nothing came to mind. All he could think of was his father was a murderer, and he got what he deserved in the end, though it was still grosse for him to be stepping on his father’s dead body with such casualty. ‘I’m sorry, I know it might not have been easy to hear and it’s a lot to take in, but that’s the truth. I’m not sure how a mating between a Doirekh and a Fairen is ever supposed to work given our history’ she then added, and he tried to fix his focus on what was happening and what he was meant to do next. As he looked into his eyes, he saw now way out, and knew that there was no way he wanted to abandon this woman know, even after knowing the truth. He wanted to put everything behind him, start fresh, and embrace his opportunity at having a mate. 

‘I grew up caged in Crest, believing I would never have a mate, never know love, never know anything. Yet here I am, standing on my father’s corpse, with my mate, a Fairen, right in front of me, and all I want is to be with her, hold her in my arms and kiss her’ he responded to her, and it made a shiver go up her spine. She had been unfamiliar with this feeling before, and she was unsure of what to do. She was a leader, after all, and this would affect her people as well as her. 

‘Dregov-’

‘No, you can’t just give up on us. I’m not like my father. I do not condemn what he did, and I would never do such a thing. I know that you are a leader, and that your people might think wrongly of me, but I will earn their trust. I will make this right. I will set a new reputation. I came here to protect my sister, and to be a part of right because all I have seen back in Crest was wrong, but you cannot just push me away without giving me a chance. Believe me, I will do anything and everything to be with you now that I know you’re my mate. Why else would the flame give you to me?’ Argued the Doirekh, and Clea found herself unable to respond properly. 

‘It’s complicated Dregov, I can’t just-’

‘Yes you can, stop thinking about it. We have been given an opportunity to make things right and be happy, don’t let it go to waste, let the flame guide us’ he cut her off, now approaching her and grabbing her hands into his. The sparks that flew within them was immense, and none of them were able to pull back for any reason. Clea had a hard think about what she wanted to do, and despite wanting to be with the man, she only wondered what her people would do/say. 

‘Fine, I’ll give it a chance. But we take it slow, at my pace, and I still need to figure out what I’m going to tell my people, or rather, how’ she responded, and he smiled, nodding to her response. 

‘As long as you’re willing to try, I’ll do anything’ he responded, getting slightly closer to her. She couldn’t help the slight smile that for once appeared on her face, and though she wanted to advance in her relationship, she knew that she couldn’t jump into things immediately. Fortunately for her, their moment was interrupted by a curious Amana, who had escaped the tension in the office as they all waited for the new mates, and went to finally check on her brother, who to her surprise, had been doing better than she expected. 

‘Dregov? Is everything ok?’ She asked, and he turned around, snapping back into reality. Despite how harsh the truth was, his sister had a right to know it, and so he nodded at her and turned back to his mate momentarily. 

‘Do you mind if I have a moment with her? I think it’s time she knew the truth as well’ he mentioned, and Clea nodded before detaching her hands from his, and trekking back to the office. 

‘What’s going on Dregov? Did she agree?’ She questioned with concern, though she had no idea what was actually coming her way. 

‘Yeah, Amana sit down, there’s something you need to know. It’s about father’ he introduced, and a puzzled Amana said nothing as she sat on the rock. ‘Remember how father abandoned us for something?’ He asked, and the woman painfully recalled the memories of her mother pouring her eyes out after he had. 

‘How could I forget?’ She merely said, and Dregov continued. 

‘Well it turns out father was trying to get more land on Crest, and he decided to steal Amethyst lands to do it. Now back in the days the Fairens had these bonded companions called the Pixens, and they had their separate lands next to the Fairens, and that is what father decided to target. He wiped out the entire race of Pixens, and sent the Fairens into mourning. It was due to that that the Warmecks arose and captured father; they had him tied down and bound for centuries, leaving the Fairens to do as they pleased with them. That’s why they became heartless. However, at some point a Warmeck commander found his mate amongst the Fairens, and this Fairens was terrible to him, so he put our father out of his misery and killed him. Then the flame put up the barriers of the hierarchy, and decided the Warmecks would never sleep again. Eventually they turned our father’s body into the territory for the Warmecks’ he concluded, and Amana sat confused for a moment, taking in the entire truth she had not expected to hear. 

‘You mean-’

‘Yes’ he interrupted before she would have to say the vile words. ‘What you’re standing on right now is our father’s corpse’ he finished, and the horrified woman remained in shock. She had begun wondering why her mate had never revealed this information to her, though it would come as no surprise why. That would most certainly be an awkward interaction to have. She remained silent for the longest time, taking it all in, and understanding that her father had abandoned them to wipe out an entire race for more territory, and that was terrifying. She despised her father more than she ever had, and as she realised she was standing on his corpse, also understood that he deserved it. 

‘He wiped out an entire race, he abandoned us and mother, put us all through a tough time, made the Fairens lose their humanity. He deserved it, Dregov’ she concluded and he could only nod. 

‘I agree’ was all he said before her attention shifted towards her brother’s new mate. 

‘What about Clea, is she alright with this? Has she accepted you?’ She asked, and the grin on his face said it all.

‘She has agreed to try things out’ he replied, and an excited Amana threw her arms around her brother. 

‘I am so happy for you Dregov. You deserve this. You deserved to have a real mate. Stregov deserves to be stuck with that evil Witch for the rest of his life. I’m glad we chose right, and I’m glad the flame found us worthy of giving us this gift’ she responded, and he couldn’t agree more. 

‘Let’s go back to the summit now’ he stated, and she nodded, agreeing and journeying back with him to the office. Once they entered, they each took their seats on the table, and Paulina stood up to begin the summit. 

‘I take it you and Miss Menso have worked out your issues then, Mr Doirekh?’ She began by asking, and glancing at each other, the blushing couple nodded, allowing the commander to proceed. 

‘Very well. I shall begin. As you all know. This war is being commanded by myself, and being executed by our immortal pair of Zaleon: the great Alpha and Luna of Gloarian and co-leaders of the Hybrids, Miss Eliana Genova and Mr Razaar Solonov. For the past couple of weeks, they have been infiltrating the Vermillion from the inside, trying to find out everyone’s strengths and weaknesses, and have come out with two Vermillion who have kindly decided to take our side, and join us in this war. I think it is safe to say that now we have more help in ending this war than before, and hopefully it won’t come to a full grown war. Regardless, we are involved in this war, whether we like it or not, so if it comes to it, we will need everyone’s troops to be ready. Each of you have received some of my soldiers in the past weeks, who have been coming and giving your people basic war training that will help us should we ever need it. At the moment everyone has been doing splendidly, and I have no doubt that our troops will be ready if the infiltration mission fails. Now, during this summit we will discuss a bunch of things: war strategies if we are forced into war. The infiltration plans for the immortal pair and the Vermillion siblings, and we will also take a moment to discuss the aftermath of the war, should it go our way. Before I begin, if anyone has any questions or anything to mention at all, please do so now’ mentioned the commander, waiting for any concerns at all to be raised amongst the lot of leaders in the room. ‘Is anyone still doubting the Doirekh siblings or are we happy to place our trust in them?’ She asked, and everyone’s faces dropped, except Clea’s. Noticing this, Razaar decided to speak up.

‘Look you may not trust them fully now, but give them a chance, or trust the flame. The flame would not have given them access to our lands or mates if they weren’t worthy, so trust the flame’ he convinced, and everyone nodded, evidently feeling better about the situation, before Paulina took over again.

‘Right, thank you for that Mr Solonov. Now, let’s begin’