(WEEKS AFTER)
It was one of those nights when the demons of Dragavei's past would rouse him from slumber—the images of his childhood, the torments of being wrenched from his parents' grasp.
But, this time, it wasn't his past that disturbed him. A strange feeling took hold instead, a realization that somewhere, he had sired a child. A son, born of his own blood.
When he told Alina, the pain in her eyes broke him.
"His powers must have awakened somehow, that is why I can sense him"
Alina rested against the wooden bed frame, her sad eyes on her husband's face. "Weeks after discovering you are not who you claimed to be, I now learn you've fathered a child with another woman"
"It happened years before I met you, I am sorry"
She nodded "I cannot have your child, though it is my utmost wish that I should. All I can say is I'm happy you have someone to carry on your name and legacy"
Dragavei caressed her face and pressed a kiss to her lips. "You know well that I love you as you are. We have tried and if the Creator has deemed it beyond our reach, then let it be so. I am content, so long as I have you and you alone."
She smiled sadly.
"Alina, I know what I'm about to ask of you is incredibly difficult, but I have to be there for him. I must not let him go through the same fate I went through"
She nodded in approval "How would you find him?"
"Leave that to me"
Dragavei was surprised he hadn't been able to sense it sooner. For the boy's powers to have awakened, he would've grown to an extent.
He thought back deeply, trying to remember when he had been that careless enough to leave his seed in one of his numerous whores.
"When will you leave?"
"Tonight" He responded. "I have to hurry. By the morrow, if the mother turns out to be as heartless as mine was, the people will discover what he is, and they will kill him"
As Dragavei started to rise from the bed, Alina stood as well.
"I will pack you a bag"
That night, as Dragavei prepared to leave to find his son, a pain like never before wrenched through him. He gritted his teeth in agony and clutched his chest, nearly losing his balance. Alina fled to his side, terrified.
"Gavy!" She cried out in panic. "Gavy, are you well? What is happening?"
"Dark magic" he forced through his teeth. The pain was excruciating.
"What?"
"Dark magic" he repeated, "Someone seeks to end me"
"By the gods" Her hand flew over her mouth.
Dragavei ripped open his shirt, a frown creasing his brow when his bare chest came into view. Alina shrieked at the sight.
Long, dark, twisted welts snaked around his heart. He gnashed his teeth at the immense pain consuming him.
He had only known pain once—as a child.
"What is to be done?" Alina cried. "You can't leave me, Gavy. You can't die"
He reached out to touch her face. "Fear not, Alina," he rasped, managing a smile, "I will not."
Suddenly the doors burst open and a mob, armed with pitchforks and torches, barrelled in.
"What is the meaning of this madness?" Alina shrilled angrily. "You tread on private land!"
Sylas, the town leader pointed a finger at her and commanded, a scowl on his face. "Seize her too,"
Snarling like a caged beast, Dragavei rose to his feet, scaring the mob. Some of them hesitated.
"Remember," the leader yelled brazenly, his voice filled with hatred, "He is not as powerful as he once was. You have nothing to fear. Seize them both!"
Encouraged by his words, the mob rushed forward, about forty in number, and Dragavei pounced. Weak as he was, he punched through hearts and tore through stomachs, but he felt himself growing weary.
His feet were heavy, his head pounded with an unrelenting ache and the tightening in his chest worsened.
Someone had taken Alina. Her screams, muffled by the distance between them stirred up a madness within him.
Dragavei's mind flashed back to an ancient memory—the pain of being ripped from his parents' arms, the terror of being beaten half to death and discarded like a piece of rag.
His rage grew.
He moved again with supernatural speed. Bodies tore under his blows.
He only stopped when he held Alina in his hands again, and every person, save the town leader in the room, was dead.
As Sylas fled, Dragavei considered pursuing him, but exhaustion held him back.
"Gavy," Alina whispered, helping him to a chair. "You must rest. I'll seek out healing salves for you," she said, turning to leave. But before she could take a step, he grabbed her hand. "No." Dragavei's voice was weak "They won't work"
Her eyes welled up with tears, it was terrifying seeing a man as powerful as her husband in such a vulnerable position. Before she could insist, Radu's voice interrupted.
"I never imagined you would love a mortal so profoundly," he said in disgust.
Dragavei glared at his brother. "What are you doing here, Radu?"
Radu had left the mansion since they got married.
His twin eyed his chest, a satisfied expression on his face. "Weakened as you are, you still struggle to shield this..." He sneered at Alina "...human"
Radu sighed. "It is up to me now"
All it took was one look at his brother's face for Dragavei to know that he had been betrayed.
In a split second, Radu punched a fist into Dragavei's chest and Alina's screams were the last thing he heard before blacking out.
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The smell of thick smoke roused Dragavei from his painful slumber, his eyes snapping open. "Alina?!!!" he exclaimed hysterically.
Dragavei's head swiveled around, searching for his wife. As he struggled to rise, he discovered he was bound.
"Where is she?!" he snarled, the question directed at Radu who stood next to the town leader.
His own blood had betrayed him.
Dragavei felt worse than before. The weakness had intensified and the pain in his heart was excruciating.
"You are not the first to walk among us, but you have particularly preyed upon our kind. No more. Today you will meet your end." Sylas announced, his eyes fixed on him.
Dragavei's disappointed gaze shifted to his brother who stared at him silently.
"After all I've done for you, this is how you repay me?"
Radu was unmoved. Silently, he walked away only to return with a bleeding Alina.
Dragavei's heart leapt.
"ALINA!" He yelled, straining against the chains in an attempt to move forward, but they held him back—mere fetters that would've been nothing to him before.
"Leave her out of this, you fool!"
"No," Sylas responded bitterly, "Tonight you both die. Along with whatever nightwalkers in the area you've sired. I have heard it said that your downfall shall bring about theirs as well. With their master fallen, they are but weak... like sheep to the slaughter"
Alina stared at her husband, the tears stinging her eyes. She could see the fear in his eyes, the self-loathing.
He hated himself for being weak the moment she needed him.
"Gavy..."
"Silent, whore!" A heavy slap landed on Alina's face. "You've been sharing his bed, I hear, for over two years. You would die for that. You're a disgrace to your kind."
Dragavei gnashed his teeth, chest burning with pain. He lacked the strength to summon the elements.
"Tonight is the night of the humans!" Sylas announced, turning to face the townspeople who had been assembled to watch.
"Great Lysandra has blessed us. Because of her, we will be able to put a stop to this demon who has dwelled amongst us for years, along with his other spawns"
The people cheered in response.
Sylas turned to look at Alina.
"It is not only sad," His eyes ran over her, "But a shame to lose such beauty. I hear you're quite the intellectual."
"Why do you torment us? We have done nothing wrong!" Alina yelled.
"Yes, you have" The town leader's eyes were cold. "You have loved a beast and laid with the devil."
He looked at one of his men. "Throw her to the flames."
"No," Radu interrupted, stepping forward. "Grant me that honor."
He grabbed Alina, dragging her towards the stake.
"No!" she screamed, fighting desperately. "No, please! I beg you, please!"
"Brother!" Dragavei gruffed, tugging at his shackles. "Brother, no!!"
The clouds rumbled, and the people looked to the sky.
"Behold another reason to put down this beast!" Sylas turned to address the crowd "It is too powerful"
Radu stopped walking and faced his twin. "You should never have loved a mortal."
"I love you, Gavy," Alina whispered, wearing a sad smile. "This is not of your doing."
Dragavei shook his head, blood pooling in his eyes. "Alina, no."
Radu harshly pushed her in the direction of the stake.
"Brother! Ask anything of me and I shall give it to you, but do not harm her, I beg of you" Dragavei struggled to get up once more. "Do not harm her, Radu!!" He grunted loudly, fighting his cuffs.
Damn him.
Damn the fetters.
Damn the overbearing weakness.
Radu began to fasten her stake.
"You will DIE for this! Every single one of you!" Dragavei yelled, thrashing wildly "This, I vow, you will all DIE!!!!"