In the past life of Kyros...

Kyros was seat down, with chains binding him. He was bleeding and wounded. Once more, the strange madness that controlled his body and made him mad had ended. The Steele family was once more in trouble.

A woman stood in front of Kyros.

The madness in the eyes of Kyros had not died yet. He growled and shrieked with mad anger as he looked a the woman. The memories of Kyros's wildness were one of his earliest memories.

The woman looked at him and did not say anything.

"I am a woman of scorned destiny. I am married to a man that I hated, into a family I despised. My years of fighting have made me incapable of rearing a child. And the son that I actually get is a madman such as you." The woman approached as Kyros began to howl louder, trying to break the chains that bound them.

"Such a despised life." The woman looked closely at the boy who she calls her son.

"I hated your father too, you know. Perhaps much more than you despise me now. I hated him, and I hated my life and only served the Steele family in combat. The one thing I knew I was still good at. My life was very much like yours. I longed for battle, and unlike the many baroness and women of my age, I sought the sword. Yet destiny was kind in giving me my beauty. Even when I was married, many men rose and asked for my hand. For honor, I refused." 

The woman sat down and looked at her son eye to eye.

"But then... I fell in love with your father. I despised him for so long that when I fell in love, I couldn't help but love him all the greater." The woman smiled.

"Don't tell him that. He's a bit insecure and would long for my praises. Perhaps it's all our previous history that prevents me from telling him how much I really love him." Diana chuckled.

"But just when I fell in love with him, I realized that my foolishness and recklessness had turned me into a woman that couldn't give him a child. Ironic, isn't it? I vowed in my hatred that I won't ever rear his child. In the end, it became true. And I already wanted to start a family with him..." Tears began to fall from her eyes. She approached Kyros, who continued to struggle and rage and even tried to bite the beautiful woman before him.

"So when I heard that you became adopted and would be named as his son... I promised that you would also be my son no matter what." Diana reached down and embraced Kyros.

The rage of Kyros did not stop, and he bit Diana on her shoulders.

Like a wild animal, he tried to tear away the shoulder of Diana.

Diana, however, began to sing a lullaby. She kept patting and stroking the back of Kyros's head.

Tears continued to fall as the pain did not make her flinch.

Soon, the lullaby and the warm embrace drew the crazed Kyros into a strange sensation. As he was born and tortured within the Temple, and through some miracle was able to escape, he had never known what love or warmth was. All he knew was to fight, rage, and kill. And so, the foreign sensation of warmth confused him. And soon, Kyros found himself longing for this embrace and stopped his animal-like behavior.

The two were held in an embrace, and Kyros finally started to cry. But no longer was this an angry and berserked cry, but a cry of fatigue and a cry asking for help. He had cried the many moments in that Temple as he was tortured, yet no help came.

Now, it finally came. The darkness that enveloped his heart was being washed away by the blood of the woman who was bleeding so much that it soaked Kyros.

"It's alright, my child. Cry. Cry your heart out. I will always be here, for I am your mother. No matter what, I promise to love you." 

It was on that day, the wild animal that Branze brought home was tamed.

It was on that day that Kyros finally lived for the first time.

Time flowed, and the love that Kyros received was full from the warmth of his mother and the sheltering of his father.

He lived proudly as a Steele, and while he brought them disappointment after disappointment, his powers soon grew, and he became someone that brought pride to the entire Steele family.

Until the day the orcs raided the castle and massacred the kingdom to which the Steele family served as a duke.

Kyros had seen the mountain of corpses that his father left and had made his own nearby. He immediately rushed inside his home.

The guards were all there. The familiar old faces of the mercenaries who were now Barons and Viscounts of their own rights were there. Their dead bodies were proof of the amazing loyalty they displayed.

Inside the main hall were more bodies, and his uncle's dead body was seen seated on the Seat of Power. How he managed to kill all these orcs alone was a mystery in itself. But Kyros could only press forward and reach the room where his warmth would be.

Her mother was seated. She was wearing a coat of armor and killed every orc that broke in.

"Kyros?" She smiled.

"Mother?!" Kyros ran and caught her mother, who lost all strength and immediately fell.

"Mother, don't move! I will heal you! I-"

"It's alright, my son. I am long gone." She smiled.

"No! No! This skill! [Death Stance]!" Kyros realized it.

"I wanted to say goodbye to my baby. Is your father waiting for you, or is he waiting for me?" She smiled.

Kyros cried. He couldn't say anything. He kept crying.

Diana smiled and used the remaining strength in her body to comfort her child as she always had done.

"It's alright, my child. Cry. Cry your heart out. I won't be able to be with you any longer. I was...a good mother, right?"

Kyros could only nod as hard as he can. He couldn't even vocalize how great a mother Diana was.

"Then I'm happy. I lived my part of the bargain. No matter what, I promised to love you, and I did. Now... You'll be alone from now. You'll be alright. I have to go to your father's. You know how he is. But don't take your anger out on the entire orc race, ok? You know there are good orcs, right? We love that cooked bacon that village cooks us." 

Kyros nodded again. He kept weeping and merely listened. These were the usual things her mother would remind her of when he would be on a trip. So Kyros could only relish the moment and listen.

"I'm happy I get to say my goodbye. Did you talk with your father?"

Kyros shook his head.

"That was awfully irresponsible of him. I'll tell him when I see him. Seeing of his son is the least he could do." Diana joked. She then held her son's head and looked straight into his eyes.

"Thank you, son. You may not believe it, but you gave me joy. The wasted years and my previous pain. You took them all away." She smiled.

The Death Stance finally took effect. Her body remained frozen stiff with that smile and that look the last thing she gave to Kyros.

Going back to the real-time, Kyros saw the woman who gave him the warmth of life, looking at him coldly. He had talked with his uncle Aron and expected this to be the case.

But even as the cold, detached, and strict woman approached, Kyros found himself trembling.

"Hunter, Hems, Hemsey. I see that you are no longer of the living." She took one glance and mocked them.

"Erm... It's nice to see you, Madam." Hunter could only chuckle awkwardly.

"And you must be..." But Diana could not continue her sentence. There was something in the eyes of the boy as he looked at her.

Diana was beautiful, and she has long been used for the longing looks of men. But the look of Kyros was vastly different. It was so pure, so innocent, and so tender. Her cold heart began to sway as she looked at the eyes of Kyros that was wet with tears.

"It's... amazing to finally see you, Mother." Kyros choked on his own spit as he tried to contain the emotions in his heart.

Diana's cold, sarcastic and prideful approach was left unguarded by such pure gazes. She had already trained to mock, attack, and even insult the men who talked to her. But a boy with such an innocent gaze caught her off guard.

"Why... are you looking at me like that?" Diana asked.

"I'm sorry. I... lost my mom. I'm just glad that I have a new one." Kyros smiled.

"I am... quite perplexed to have a vampire as my son..." She was supposed to attack this young boy. But she could no longer do so.

"I know. And it's alright. But no matter what, I promise to love you. Because you're my mother." Kyros gave a warm smile.

Diana could not help but be overwhelmed with such emotion that her heart started to beat.

"I guess... having a son is alright." She finally smiled.

The moment she did, those of the Steele family who were nearby were stunned. Even the Patriarch was shocked.

"As expected of Lord Kyros. There is not a human, vampire, or orc that can best him in any field." Hems laughed. He had already known Diana and had never seen her smile. And yet, there it was.

"I suppose... You'd want to hug your mother. I believe that it's only proper." Diana offered awkwardly.

Kyros couldn't control his body as he rushed and embraced his mother. His warmth was back.

"Thank you!" Kyros contained his emotions.

"Oh! That was sudden. Surprisingly, for a vampire, you are quite warm."

"He is alive and well, Lady Diana. We are part of his Coven. And as you can see, we have traits of being alive. We aren't technically undead." Hunter explained.

But as the group continued to talk, great anger began to boil within Kyros's heart.

He had felt the trembling that coursed in the air.

Branze felt it. Scarlet sensed it as well. Even the Patriarch could feel an eerie sensation.

Destiny had moved. But this time, no notifications of Destiny were shown regarding Diana Steele. It was as if Destiny was mocking Kyros.

Kyros respectfully removed his embrace over his mother.

"I have made a fool for myself. Mother. Please welcome my Coven." Kyros turned to introduce his team. But the real reason Kyros detached was because of the trembling anger he had over Destiny.

"Mock while you can, Destiny. And I will overcome!" Kyros vowed as he harnessed Fate Challenger.

"Grandson Kyros." The bearded man with bright blue eyes called out.

"Grandfather."

"I'll cut to the chase. How do you have that power?" 

"I am honestly curious as to why you have it too, grandfather. As for me, Fate bestowed it to me. But how is it that you have that same power? Why do you have Fate Challenger?" Kyros asked.