Sold as the Alpha King's Breeder-Chapter 1703 - 145 : Eerie Wisps of Black

*Briella*

The tiniest bit of hesitation shot through me as Tian said his “vows” to me. I felt myself reeling with shock at his heartfelt confessions. His words brought me back to when I first saw Tian in Celestial City. I had known he was trouble at first glance, but I had convinced myself that he was just a power-hungry general who wanted to take over everything.

I definitely hadn’t been wrong at the time, but my instincts failed to see the layers behind the situation.

Of course, I had no way of knowing that Tian was actually, in a sense, a physical manifestation of Malphas. The demon lord very literally created Tian out of his own evil essence, but even that part of it wasn’t black and white.

There was compassion in Tian. Sure, he was angry and really only wanted to follow Malphas and take over Embervale with his so-called father, but I saw something else in his dark eyes as well. I saw a glimpse of who his mother must have been, the poor young woman who had birthed him.

Malphas mentioned that Tian’s mother passed away when Tian was still a kid. I thought about how awful that must have been for Tian, who had no idea who his father was. It was only natural that he would long for one so much after his mother died that he was willing to do anything for Malphas.

Tian’s eyes were dark and scary but not as soulless as Malphas’ were. The younger man’s eyes were almost black, but there was a glint of humanity in them.

I couldn’t see it at first since all I had done since meeting him was fear him. Now that I could really see him, I felt compassion for him.

I wished things didn’t have to be this way. I wished that we could save him and help him start over, but he was still created from Malphas. He was likely beyond saving.

It only took one look at Kryzen for my hesitation to dissipate completely. As if he could read my mind, Kryzen lowered his chin slightly, staring me straight in the eye before he nodded meaningfully.

I met Tian’s eyes. I hoped that he could see the resignation in them as well as the apology as I seized his wrists in my hands just as Kryzen and I practiced back in our black prison room. I unleashed my energy, feeling it crackle beneath my skin before flowing through my fingers and into Tian’s arms.

Tian’s eyes widened in shock, his jaw dropping as a roar left his throat. I tightened my hold on him as he tried to jump back and away from me. I stepped with him, keeping my fingers wrapped around his wrists as I fought with the dark energy inside of him.

It took the people around us a moment to process that something bad was happening to Tian. Malphas was the first to react. With a snarl, he reached out to grab at me, but a blur slammed into him, knocking him away from me.

I knew it was Kryzen stepping in so that I could finish my task.

Tian was backing up in shock and didn’t stop until his back hit the wall. I felt fear go through me as his eyes bulged with the intensity of having the dark energy forced out of him.

“You’re going to be okay, Tian,” I told him, guilt ripping at me at the pain I was causing him.

I steeled against the guilt, recalling the dark army he had led against my people. I hadn’t been queen at the time, but the people had still been mine. I still felt an overwhelming sense of responsibility and love toward this land.

“What Malphas did to you wasn’t right,” I continued, squeezing his wrists harder as he tried to pull away. “You weren’t supposed to be this way, Tian. Your mother wouldn’t have wanted this.”

“Don’t you dare talk about her!” Tian roared before shifting his weight against mine so suddenly that it actually caught me off guard and sent us both crashing to the hard, smooth floor.

I yelped as I hit the ground hard, knocking the wind out of me. Miraculously, I was able to keep a hold on Tian. I hooked my foot around the back of his knee and adjusted so that I was on top of him. He was larger than me, but I sensed his strength starting to deplete quickly as the darkness started to leave his body.

“Don’t fight it,” I told him, gritting my teeth as I fought to keep him pressed against the ground. “Let it happen. You don’t want to keep living with darkness inside of you, Tian. It’s not the way to live.”

Tian didn’t seem to be hearing me anymore. He thrashed feebly, his movements much weaker now. I still had to keep my full weight on top of him as he writhed, his pained cries becoming much less guttural.

I needed all the concentration I could muster to do this. While Tian was weakening, the darkness inside of him was resisting harder than ever. I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to drown out the sounds of Kryzen and Malphas fighting. Concern ate away at me when I heard Kryzen grunt with exertion, but I pushed it away, forcing myself to focus on the task at hand.

It was as if I could see into Tian’s soul as I shut my eyes and focused on removing the darkness from him. I saw glimpses of him as a boy, ridiculed by others because of his differences, which were the product of Malphas’ essence. He was clearly different with his physical strength and dark demeanor.

His mother was as kind and sweet as I feared she had been. She held Tian against her chest and comforted him, telling him that he was special and that his father had given him a great gift. It was clear the woman didn’t really understand what happened to her either, but she told Tian that he was a gift. He needed to be proud of his differences.

Tian tried to believe his mother but couldn’t ignore the fear that people looked at him with. He had come from a fairly small village where he was constantly bullied and even beaten up by bigger kids who called him a freak. His mother seemed to believe in him, which kept him going.

Everything fell apart for Tian when his mother grew very ill and passed away. He was alone then. While some kind elderly villagers watched out for him, the bullying and ridicule seemed to get worse. Things didn’t appear to get better until Malphas’ voice appeared.

I gasped and opened my eyes, not needing to see what happened after. I knew what happened next.

Tian was staring up at me with a tortured expression, but it didn’t seem to be from physical pain. His dark eyes were wild, but there was a touch of understanding in them as well.

“Am I beyond saving?” he asked in a strangled voice, looking me right in the eye as his breathing became more labored.

I inhaled sharply, feeling the darkness in him receding even further, but with that was his strength. The darkness seemed to be too much a part of him. He wasn’t going to survive this, which I had known all along.

“I’m sorry,” was all I could think of saying. There was nothing else to say.

He shook his head slowly, straining from the effort. “No,” he said. “Do what needs to be done.”

He shut his eyes. He looked almost peaceful as he relaxed, his wrists going limp in my hold.

My heart constricted, but I did as he said, shutting my eyes again and shoving the rest of the resisting shadow out of Tian’s body.

“No!” Malphas roared.

I whirled toward the horrifying sound as I heard livid footsteps approaching. Malphas was sprinting toward us, his soulless eyes wide and angry. Shadows surrounded his hands, and he stretched them out toward me menacingly.

Kryzen appeared seemingly out of nowhere and tackled Malphas, wrapping his large arms around the demon lord to hold him back. “Do it, Briella!” he yelled at me. “Now!”

I needed no further urging. With a cry of exertion, I released as much energy as I could through Tian’s body.

Tian went completely still as a dark mass rose from his form. It was very different from the shadow creatures we had fought in the past. It looked similar in its dark haziness and red eyes. This one had a more dense evil about it that immediately caused a shudder to go through me.

“Kryzen!” I shrieked, gesturing up at the shadow.

Kryzen released Malphas and jumped up to slice through the dark mass with his energy blade. A piercing cry shot through the air as the shadow melted away.

As soon as Tian’s shadow was destroyed, the handful of guards around us fell to the hard floor as well, signaling that they had been tied to the very same darkness.

The silence that followed was deafening as I stared in shock at where the evil shadow had been. I looked down at Tian and was not surprised to find that he wasn’t moving. With shaking hands, I searched for a pulse, pressing my fingers against Tian’s still-warm skin.

My breathing quickened. While I had known that Tian wouldn’t survive, I still felt the beginnings of grief shoot through me. Before knowing about his mother and all the suffering he had been through, Tian had just been another shadow we were fighting against.

I knew the truth now.

“You destroyed him.”

I stood quickly and turned toward the livid voice. Kryzen was beside me in less than a second, wrapping an arm around me and moving so that he was between me and Malphas.

Malphas looked more terrifying than ever as he stared blankly down at Tian’s still form. His black eyes were even emptier somehow, his hands twitching at his sides as he fully processed what had just happened.

Kryzen’s arm tightened around me as he tensed, waiting to see what the demon lord would do next.

What happened next was truly terrifying and would probably live in my nightmares for many years. The black in Malphas’ eyes suddenly melted away, revealing blood-red eyes that glowed furiously.

Malphas threw his head back and roared. The horrifying sound echoed against the high-vaulted temple ceilings.

“You destroyed my son,” Malphas seethed, striding toward us with his hands glowing with eerie wisps of black. “And for that, you will pay.”