Chapter 340: The Altar Of The Crimson Moon
[Music recommendation: Rob Simonsen - Overture]
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But tears blurred her vision as her thoughts drifted to every person she was about to leave behind, including the one who meant the most to her, her love, her lifeline... her Ivan.
Memories from both lifetimes flooded her mind, each moment they had shared striking her heart and weakening her resolve for a fleeting second.
A painful groan escaped her lips.
"No."
"Do not think, Eve. Just do it. He will be fine. He will understand. Do not think," she whispered weakly to herself as tears continued to fall, and she prepared to make the final push to end it all.
Then, suddenly, a vision she had never got to see through completely before flashed across her mind...
"So... what is this magic you speak of?" A dark, heavy voice reverberated through the cavernous chamber. A figure sat within the shadows, his body obscured by the darkness.
Zafira began, "It is a magic....that will bind your soul to another. As long as that person is alive, you will live forever, unless you decide to consume that soul yourself."
She continued, "Lord Azrath, for a being such as you, only a soul as powerful and immortal as your own can withstand this ancient spell. All I need is the blood of you both to perform my ritual. Once the binding is complete, you cannot die."
"And what if that person dies?" Azrath asked.
"If that person dies, you still live. In fact, you will become much stronger because you will absorb their soul entirely. Whether the person lives or dies, it will only benefit you. But if you die, the person connected to your soul will also die."
Azrath’s light silver eyes stared at Zafira for a moment before he asked, "I am guessing you have already chosen your target?"
"Yes, my lord," Zafira replied. "I will cast the spell on Solaira. On the night when the moon drips red, I will perform the ceremony and bind her soul to yours. All I need is her blood."
Eve’s breathing hitched as the unanswered questions that had haunted her began to piece themselves together.
Questions like: Why? Why did Selene never kill her when she was a defenceless child?
Why did she wait for this very day to slaughter her?
Why did Malakai and Solaira not kill the Darklord Azrath but choose to seal him away instead?
The answers sank deep within her.
It was because Zafira had succeeded in taking Solaira’s blood to perform the ritual before the final battle.
Eve realised that what she was about to do might become the catalyst for something the world was not ready for.
It might push events to the brink of destruction instead of saving them.
Releasing a shaky breath, she suddenly pulled her powers back at the last minute.
The wide magic circle that had covered the entire estate began to shrink toward its source before it disappeared completely.
As soon as the magic faded, Evelyn lost all the strength in her body. She collapsed against the stony platform where Damien lay. He remained still, but his breathing was now even and soft.
Her foggy senses, overcome with complete exhaustion, caught a rustle from the area where Selene had been thrown. She could feel the vile woman closing in on her.
Before she could react, Eve was grabbed harshly by her hair. A strike landed hard across her face, causing her vision to go black.
"You f*cking b*tch!" Selene spat in anger. That was the last thing Evelyn heard before succumbing to the darkness.
The next time she opened her eyes, she was back in the binders.
She was being dragged through a dark, dingy corridor in the lowest part of the dilapidated castle. Each of her arms was held by a Darkrot, their grip tight enough to leave bruises.
Everything that had happened before returned to her consciousness with sudden clarity. She remembered exactly why she had stopped the destruction of everyone around her at the very last minute.
With heavy-lidded eyes, she lifted her face and peered at the woman walking in front of her with utter confidence and noticed she was being led outside the building and into the open air.
With a soft grunt, she breathed in a low voice, "Let go of me this instant, unless you want to lose those hands."
Her weak yet cold voice made everyone pause in their stride. Selene looked back at Evelyn and sneered, "Oh? You think you are still in a state to threaten any of us?"
"Your men will find out if they continue to keep their dirty fingers on my arms," Eve replied calmly. She was huffing for air, and her eyes burned golden again. Even though the skin around her wrists and ankles was burning badly from the binders, she did not waver.
That display was enough for the Darkrots to instantly release her arms and step back.
Selene gritted her teeth and threatened, "You wretch! You think just because they cannot touch you, I will not simply drag you by these chains in my hands?"
Eve continued to stare at her before her eyes turned back to blue. She replied breathily through her bloodied lips, "You do not have to pull. I will walk on my own."
Selene narrowed her eyes at Evelyn’s trembling form. It was a clear sign of how badly her body was damaged internally from the stunt she had pulled earlier. Selene herself wondered what had made the girl pause at the last minute instead of destroying everything.
Was it the thought of the young duke in such close proximity?
Selene had experienced firsthand how strong Evelyn’s barrier was around the vampire. Even now, with Evelyn back in the binders, the barrier around him had not diminished or weakened enough for any of them to touch him, let alone harm him.
Despite the questions swirling in her mind, Selene did not have time to mull over them. The moon was reaching its peak, turning a deep crimson. The time was finally upon them to start the ceremony she had waited centuries for.
Without a second of delay, she barked, "On your feet then, princess! Start walking before I begin dragging you like the pitiful dog you are!"
Evelyn stared at the woman spitting venom. Without another word, she forced herself to stand with utmost difficulty. She was so weak that she could feel the heavy weight of her own bones.
With a vicious smirk curving across her face, Selene turned around and tugged the chain forward. "Start walking."
With that, Evelyn began to move.
Returning to the present...
They made their way toward the clearing at the mouth of the volcano.
Her deep blue eyes took in a dark landscape dominated by a massive, crimson moon hanging low in the sky. It cast a blood-red light upon the surroundings, making her feel as if she had entered the realm of the dead.
At the centre stood a circular stone altar marked with a glowing red symbol. Surrounding it were tall stone pillars carved with luminous red runes that formed a ritual circle. The structure was perched right at the mouth of the dormant volcano, overlooking dark forests and jagged mountains while mist drifted through the valley below.
The entire scene felt ominous, as if an ancient and powerful summoning ritual were about to unfold.
The air was thick and pulsed with dark magic. Numerous hooded figures surrounded the stone altar with their arms spread wide. Chants of dark spells spilled from each of them, causing the red glow on the runes and the ominous symbol on the altar to grow stronger by the minute.
Evelyn felt sick to her stomach. The heavy charge of dark magic in the air made it increasingly suffocating for her to breathe in the sinister atmosphere.
Selene pulled her forward, leading her to the centre of the altar.
The moment Evelyn stepped onto it, her knees buckled as dark energy seeped from the stone, coiling hungrily around her restrained wrists and ankles as though it were alive.
Eve hissed in pain, and before she could react, Selene began chanting.
Dark smoke spiralled from her hands and wrapped tightly around Evelyn’s body, lifting her into the air before slamming her back down. A surge of force pinned her wrists and ankles against the altar’s surface.
An evil crackle escaped Selene’s lips as a cry of pain tore from Evelyn’s throat. More dark tendrils twisted around her limbs, binding her completely and rendering her immobile.
"Finally. The long-awaited moment is here. Ah... how long have you all waited for this day?" Selene rasped in satisfaction.
She raised her hands and turned to the assembled dark beings, who fell silent as soon as she began speaking.
"The moment we have all been waiting for... is here and now," her voice thundered across the landscape, as though she were already delivering a victory speech, while Evelyn continued to writhe under the crushing assault of the dark magic binding her limbs.
