The Kingdoms' Obsession

THE KO┃CHAPTER 2

║Amara║

After a long, brutal night sleeping by the oak tree, Amara finally came to her senses. She was in a world where blood was the most sought out and here she was in the woods, covered in the blood of her mother with a cottage not too far down that seemed to be in the same state as she was. She didn’t know if she should return for clothing seeing as the brutal winter was up and coming but she knew that someone was bound to be sniffing around after this long.

However, she had refused to become a victim to the cold, preferring to enact some sort of vengeance when she felt well enough. Her wet form had made her body feel achingly cold throughout the night and now that she was fully awake, it increased tenfold. Her shivering form slowly but surely made its way back to the cottage, keeping watch for any indication that a vampire was near, and thankfully, there was none.

After having to hide from vampires for the entirety of her life, she was able to become well versed when it came to their movements. They went for the easy kill, never cleaned up any signal of their being there, left a path of destruction in their wake, and left their victims in the exact way they were killed. Careless is what they were and Amara had that to thank for her survival all these years.

She never would have made it this far in life if her mother were to never teach her the basics of vampire survival.

Seeing the lights of her cottage almost had her weeping with joy, finally ready to be enveloped within the warmth of it. Although it no longer provided her with emotional warmth, it sure did bring her shivering body immense amounts of physical heat, which she gracefully accepted with open arms the moment she reached it. She looked around what was once her home and was immediately saddened by the endless images of what could have happened there. The entire home was ransacked—shelves were broken, pillows were torn, clothes were everywhere. Everything she cherished was gone now, including the memorabilia she had hoped to salvage.

Amara quickly but carefully looked for any clothing that was still in good condition apart from a small tear here and there and wore them as best as she could. It was not the warmest or most comfortable clothing she has worn before, but it would do for now.

She could no longer dwell on the comfortable luxuries of life and now had to survive on her own. When her mother was still alive, Amara only had to busy herself with staying out of the sight of the Human Snatchers or any vampire that decided to enter woods. Now, she had to face the real world head on. ‘No more hiding,’ she thought to herself.

Amara had also managed to pack a bag with some necessities: a loaf of bread, a canteen of water, one extra set of clothing, and a steel pocket knife. The food was enough to last her a couple of days so she knew she’d have to enter a foreign town soon. With a sorrowful expression, Amara let out a long sigh and mentally prepared herself for what lay ahead—the unknown.

With one last look around her former home, she blew a kiss to the sky for her mother and headed in the direction of the town her father was originally from: Fort Zarlow, home to the original human warriors that protected us in the past.

Amara didn’t know much about her father, just small things from stories her mother would tell her here and there. Her mother never really enjoyed talking about him so she had to practically pull teeth to get some idea as to what kind of person her father was. To some avail, her mother accidentally let out some information about Zarlow. It was the only sense of a safe haven that she has known since then other than her little cottage.

She could only hope that it was not overtaken with vampires like most towns around here.

║Nikolai║

“Do not tell me what I need and don’t need, Damien. Remember your place,” he barked to his closest friend. Nikolai and Damien were practically brothers. Their mothers raised them together and since then, they were known as the deadly duo who did everything together.

“Do not forget who I am either, Nikolai. She is but a girl you have seen at a moment’s glance. You have been distracted since then. Let. It. Go,” his friend sneered at him. Nikolai knew he was right but the anger bubbling inside of him told him otherwise.

It has only been a week since he last caught a glance of her and his obsession has grown immensely. The Almighty King couldn’t control his lust and hunger for this woman. He has spent years perfecting the art of control yet here he was pining for a woman he was sure he was never going to see again.

‘I must be going out of my mind,’ he thought to himself. It was the only logical reason behind his obsession.

Even though he tried to convince himself otherwise, he was prisoner to her scent. Deep down, he knew that if she were to ever grace him with her presence once more, he would be compelled to do all that is necessary to have her. He would even go as far as to send his men to bring her back to him at all costs—unharmed of course.

Nothing was more deadly than a king captivated by his own obsession.

He was ravenous, but for the time being, he had to listen to his friend. His kingdom would fall if he couldn’t control his desires.

Damien left the room, knowing exactly what Nikolai needed. He brought back his favorite toy—a woman. He could only hope that it would suppress the hunger he felt for the mysterious woman.

Nikolai smiled when his greatest friend returned with a blonde in tow. Usually, he would have gone right for the neck, but this time, there was no hunger that lurked beneath the surface. He inhaled as best he could, catching a scent of the thick blood beneath her veins and before he knew it, he was feeding on her.

What once filled him with lust now brought about disgust but even then, he couldn’t seem to find himself doing anything other than feeding upon the small, frail blonde in his arms.

He should have been consumed with lust. The act of feeding was such an intimate gesture and whomever had the pleasure of feeding him was directly handpicked by the King himself.

He imagined it to be the woman with green eyes and the moment he did, he ravished her. He felt the lust consume every fiber of his being and he instantly hardened. He imagined the sweetness of her blood as she withered beneath him with lust, making him grip her harder with every intake of her blood. He groaned with lust and held her around the waist, pushing himself further into her, needing to feel her wetness against his skin. Like a madman, he continued to consume her, ignoring her whimpers of pain and the growing weakness of her hold.

When he was finally satiated, it was only then that he let her go. The blonde crumbled to her feet, not a single movement made, not even the rising and falling of her chest whenever she took a simple breath.

“f**k, Nikolai, you overdid it,” Damien told him as he shoved him to the side, ready to burn the remains of the woman. “We don’t need word going around of the King losing his mind and control to bloodlust,” his friend warned. Nikolai gripped his fair, feeling stressed of what this woman was doing to him. He had to get her out of his system and he knew the only way to do that was to find her.

Nikolai let out a deep breath, hoping to feel the stress leave his body at the simple action but it was futile.

“Find her,” were his final words before he disappeared from his room.