Daylight broke through the surrounding trees lighting up the small clearing. I woke easily, nice and warm, and comfortable with Beatrice basically curled up onto me. I sighed softly, happily, as I ran my fingers through her sleep mussed hair that was spread all over my chest and then down her back, comfortingly.

She hmm'd softly and nuzzled into my chest before relaxing again. I looked over the clearing and found Qoy still passed out on the ground, shocking, while lady Aviva was up, awake and getting Hespic ready for the days ride.

"Wake up, love." I whispered into the top of Beatrice's head while running my fingers over her side a little firmer.

"I'm awake, I was just enjoying what you were doing." She replied sounding still asleep.

"Well I'm sorry that I have to end it then but it's time to pack up the mats." I sighed through I didn't move and continued to caress her side.

"You're not helping Vaden." Beatrice grumbled with humour in her sleepy voice making me chuckle and stop my hand.

We finally got up and I rolled up our mats as Beatrice got our horses ready. I went over to Qoy and nudged his side, rolling him over onto his back. He opened his black eyes and scowled at me before letting a huff.

"Yeah yeah, I'm up." He gruffed while closing his eyes again.

I rolled my eyes at him and started covering the camp fire, that was just ashes now, with dirt. "Ready?" I asked everyone.

"Lets go." Lady Aviva stated and got up onto her horse, leading the way.

We're on our way. Anon's voice whispered through my mind.

So are we. When will you get to the castle?

We won't rest and we're riding at full speed. Don't worry we're not riding horses so it's fine. I estimate that we'll get there sometime nearly midnight

Two days ride in a single day, I'm impressed. What are you riding if it's not horses?

Well I'm in wolf form and have two people on my back while two more are flying above us and one running beside me.

I swear to god Anon if Georgia is with you I'm going to chain you down for a month!

Why do you assume it's the princess?

Anon! She's lady Aviva's Mate and I can't protect three people I've sworn to protect at the same time!!

But that's why you have the rest of us.

Athena's not with you, is she?

No, she's looking after the estate. She would have come for sure if she knew but she thinks you gave us a last minute task that Georgia forgot lady Aviva told her to do before you guys left.

Sneaky wolf.

Mercy thought of it.

We're approaching the town just before the castle. Please be safe Anon and I hope I won't have to ask for your help.

Of course Alpha. If you don't need our help, we'll see you when you leave the castle. Good luck.

Be safe Anon.

Always.

"Is it just me or is this place deader than last time?" I wondered out loud looking around at the deathly silent town we just entered. Nothing stirred even in the darkest alleyway. Not even any vermin. Ever window, shutter and curtain was closed. No smoke from hearth fired coming out of chimneys and not. a. single. heartbeat.

I could smell and feel it now. Death and blood was a stench wafting around everywhere. The mana wasn't much better. It was dark mana, a lot of it, but it didn't feel... right. It wasn't the usual shadowy feeling I'd get when I used or felt it. It feels, tampered with somehow. I don't know how to explain it, all I can say is that something about it is wrong.

"This town is dead." Lady Aviva muttered lowly suspicious eyes looking everywhere.

"I've felt this before. Many, many years ago, but it was never this strong." Qoy grumbled almost to himself.

We rode silently on edge through the town until we got to the gate of the castle. I was surprised. There were no longer any cages hanging from the tall walls. What also surprised me was that I couldn't feel anyone inside the castle either.

Anon, be careful when you enter the village, something's not right. Stay outside until I call you to come if I need you. I warned him as we entered the castle grounds only to find it empty of all life, and no corpses either.

Yes, Alpha. Was his reply before going silent again.

"This is very unusual for Enrique." Lady Aviva commented lowly, gold eyes sharp as she looks around cautiously.

"Qoy it might be better if you change into your sword form for now please." I asked the frowning man beside me. He agreed with a nod before in a shower of dark light he was back in the shape of a sword. I attached his sheath to my left hip while I grabbed for his horses reins.

Ahead of us lady Aviva stopped and dismounted her horse. Coming up beside her Beatrice and I did the same. I kept a hand on Qoy at all times just in case I needed to defend against an ambush, but I couldn't feel or sense anything.

"Do you know where the portal is Aviva?" Beatrice asked a short dagger held in hand, hidden by the length of her dress' sleeve.

"Yes, this way." Lady Aviva confirmed and lead the way though I was right beside her and only a step away so that I could react in time to defend her if necessary.

We arrived into the grand ballroom where Enrique had hosted his party that we had attended all those years ago. The hallways leading here were still full of paintings and depictions of the Master destroying everything in the mortal realm and the fireplaces of black stone were still guarded by the grotesque demons of the under realm.

Walking up to one of the demons with ram-like horns coming from its forehead, short fangs and claws that curled backwards towards his fingers, she placed her hand on its forehead between the base of the horns. It's eyes glowed red for a moment before a part of the wall beside it slid back and revealed a dark passageway.

I screwed my nose up at the feeling and stench that wafted up through the opening. No one else seemed as bothered though so I shook it off and went first through the passage with Rhoa az up in front of me as a precaution. The passage almost inconspicuously tilted downward further into the earth until we arrived in a large cave lit by torches in cones all along the walls. I gagged in disgust as the smell of death, blood, and other bodily fluids assaulted my senses. It didn't help that the dark mana down here felt tainted and just wrong. It was disgusting and reminded me of the time I had to sludge through a swamp looking for an annoying pixie that stole my clothes.

"Vaden? Are you okay?" Beatrice asked worriedly as I couldn't stop from dry heaving at the smell. I bent down leaning my hands against my knees as my stomach rolled.

"I-I'll be fine in a moment." I heaved again and felt the back of my throat start to burn and I tasted acid. Beatrice rubbed my back while a worried frown scrunched up her eyebrows cutely. I smiled softly at her before this time vomit made it's way up my throat forcing me to turn around and heave against the wall. I placed my hand on the wall only to flinch backwards with a cry of surprise. Something sticky covered the wall and I realised where the stench was coming from.

"Oh gross." I cringed in disgust as I tried to get away from my own hand and whatever was now on it.

"What is it?" Beatrice asked curiously while lady Aviva looked at the walls.

"I don't know but how can you two just stand there like it's nothing? It stinks so bad in here." I groaned and shuddered as a feeling of the tainted dark mana started to pick at and nudge me like it was wondering what I was. I curled the pure mana inside me up in a tight ball and surrounded it by the purer dark mana from my necklace around it to protect it from the tainted mana.

"It's blood." Lady Aviva stated as she looked at a bit of it on her finger.

"Don't lick it!" I shouted in horror flashing to her just as she was about to place it into her mouth. "It's tainted and might poison you if you get it in your system. The dark mana in here is also tainted. It feels disgusting, murky and just wrong." I pulled my water bag from my belt and washed off the blood from her finger and then my hand. "We need to leave this place before the mana learns that it can taint your own mana too."

Lady Aviva nodded her head in agreement. "Thank you Vaden."

I nodded my head in acknowledgment but quickly ran away from her to heave out any remaining food from my stomach. "Gross." I grumbled while wiping tears from my eyes.

"Here." Beatrice handed me her own water bag that I quickly sculled and used to wash out my mouth.

"Thank you." I sighed though the acidic taste of vomit still stung my tongue. I kissed her cheek as I handed back her water bag.

"No problem, love." She brushed the back of her hand over my own cheek affectionately making me happy and my heart flip giddily. What this woman does to me.

"Come, the portal is this way." Lady Aviva called out as she pointed her thumb down another passage.

"Thank god." I sighed as we headed down the passage and I was glad when the tainted mana was pushed back by purer, yet denser, dark mana the further we walked. Dark mana still put me on edge and didn't feel 'correct' with me but it was better than whatever that tainted stuff was. Plus I know that dark mana is just as natural as pure mana is. Where there is light there is always dark and vice versa.

I was slightly impressed by the vastness of the cavern we came across soon after the last of the tainted mana disappeared. It was bigger than the cave before and was even bigger than the grand ballroom in the castle above us. At the far side of the cavern large fire pits lit up a large square dais that had a black demon statue on each corner facing the middle of the platform where a swirling black and purple disk floated in the air.

"It looks both dangerous and beautiful." Beatrice commented making me nod my head in agreement.

"Though it is the portal to the realm of the most blood thirstiest creatures in the multiverse. As with everything, there is a certain beauty to it." Lady Aviva said as she lead the way towards the dais.

I eyed the demon statues curiously before turning my attention to the portal. The dark mana I could feel coming from it was intense and made the pure mana inside me tremble slightly along with the light side of my soul, but the beast and insanity was loving it. So all together I felt pretty confused with how to actually feel about entering a world that spoke so strongly against half of who I am.

I shook my head and pulled a bit of my insanity out to help me deal with the darkness and protect my lighter side. I sighed softly and felt a grin tick at my lips while claws slid from my fingertips a little. "I'll go first." I told the two people who own me.

Lady Aviva nodded her head in agreement. "If you're attacked, defend yourself but don't kill."

"Yes, my lady." I bowed my head slightly.

"Be careful. Call immediately if anything happens." Beatrice worried while kissing my cheek.

I smiled at her showing my growing fangs as I called on my beast and insanity. "Of course. Come through in a minute unless I say otherwise."

You ready to see your old home again Qoy? I asked the sword as I unsheathed him.

I'd rather not, but I don't have a choice. He grumbled back making me chuckle while I stepped through portal.

It was a good thing I surrounded my light and pure mana with the beast and insanity because the density of the dark mana that engulfed me would have crippled me completely and probably have destroyed me.

I gritted my teeth fighting against the pressure that was about to send me to my knees. I growled lowly and stood up straight fighting the pressure by drawing even more of my beast and insanity out.

Are you alright Vaden? Qoy asked while sending me dark mana through our bond to help fight against the pressure.

Y-yeah, it seems that dark mana really isn't good for me. I chuckled slightly though my jaw was clenched with force.

You're the Pure Child, what were you expecting? Though you're a living contradiction when you're a creature of darkness with a core so pure. He laughed at me making me glare lightly before agreeing with a sigh.

"Are you all right Vaden?" Beatrice asked after stepping through the portal with lady Aviva and coming to me immediately.

"I'm fine." I gritted out. "It's just the dark mana taking a slight toll on me."

"You have to act like it's not affecting you Vaden. If they find out that you can't walk around here easily they'll figure out that you're pure on the inside. I figured that this was going to happen." Lady Aviva sighed with a slight frown.

"It's alright my lady." I breathed in deeply and relaxed. My throat constricted in hunger while fangs grew till they slipped past my bottom lip and my claws dug into my own palms even when I was holding both Qoy and Rhoa az. My stomach clenched and I became incredibly hungry for blood while my vision turned slightly red with black around the edges.

"Vaden?" Beatrice asked worriedly with a tight grip on my arm because I probably look like I did when I was under Enrique's control in the fairy realm.

I grinned at her and I knew that my nightmarish insanity was showing through. "Don't worry love. I still hold my mind, though I'm terribly hungry."

I felt like dancing. I wavered where I stood pushing my weight from one leg to the other and I just couldn't stop smiling. "Shall we go?" I asked just stopping myself from spinning round in a dance like I once would.

"Yes, this way." Aviva answered though she eyed me warily. I only smiled brightly at her before looking around where we actually ended up.

I looked up first to the sky and my mouth dropped open in awe. The sky was black while the clouds were a light, nearly white, grey. There was no sun or stars but something made the world light up enough that we could see easily. The portal we entered through looked exactly the same as the one on the other side except that there were no demon statues on the corners of this dais. All around us was dry desert, deep canyons and dried up riverbeds. On the horizon though, maybe a few hundred miles, I could see the tall walls of either a town or castle.

We stepped down from the dais and my eyes widened in surprise at the sight of skeletons of large beasts scattered across the bottom among the dusty sand. I jumped when a horse's neigh sounded from somewhere, which seemed to activate something because the bones started to quiver and then rise. Soon enough the bones came together to form three large, strange, horse-like skeleton creatures with old ripped saddles on their back.

"I guess these are our rides?" I wondered rhetorically aloud before skipping over to one beast. It easily towered over me and I jumped back when it tried to bite me with sharp teeth that had no lips to hide behind. "I like them." I giggled and quickly jumped up onto the saddle of the beast and grabbed its reins. I laughed when it started to buck and lurch around trying to dismount me.

I placed a hand to its skeletal neck, feeling the dark mana keeping it together, and took control of it easily making it stop dancing around on the sand. "There we go!" I exclaimed brightly while grinning down at Aviva and Beatrice.

Beatrice shook her head almost sadly. I knew she was uncomfortable with me like this, but if I didn't let my insanity out I would be useless down here and I couldn't allow these two to be without protection in such a dangerous place. I knew they could defend themselves well enough, but it's my job to protect them.

I calmed their skeletal mounts down before they could attack them and waited for them to mount before leading the way towards the large walls I saw on the horizon.

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