Interlude.
I’m gonna kill them...
I’m gonna kill them...
I’m gonna kill them...
Over and over again the words would run through his head like the beginnings of an affirmation. A mantra. A guarantee. A promise. A lone thought about revenge turned into an all-consuming obsession until it became the sole focus of the scarred elf’s life.
I’m gonna kill them...
Xareith was fixated on his own reflection staring back at him, the thought going through his head as though he was trying to tell his reflection more than himself. He twisted his head this way and that to examine the true extent of the damage done to his visage. When his head wasn’t numb from the burns he would feel a droning buzz in his mind that felt as though an entire swarm of angry bees replaced his brain. Thank the spirits above he was spared from a gruesome fate. That instant when Thomas had revealed his subterfuge and a warming sensation could be felt just between his ears was the first time in a long time that Xareith had felt true fear.
It was the kind of fear one would expect upon knowing their demise. The sense of dread when confronted with the inevitable and the feeling of unpreparedness when faced with death. And Xareith had his whole life flash before his eyes when it was all suddenly consumed in flames and agony.
The Elven commander still refused to believe he was fooled so easily by two young men that had no combat experience and had somehow used his own curiosity against him like the sneaky little fuckers that they were. Though he loathed to admit it to anyone least of all to himself, he had to hand it to them for as underhanded as it was, it was indeed a clever trick. He was equal parts sick to his stomach and approving of their use of wit and tactic rather than combat prowess. Perhaps in another life, another time they would have made exceptional tacticians for him. But the part he hated most of all was the weakness he showed for giving in to his own curiosity regarding their machinations and implants.
There was simply no way for them to beat him one-on-one so they had to rely on trickery, deception, and planning skills to defeat him. A cheap tactic but one that clearly worked.
I’m gonna kill them. Those human bastards will pay! I will make them suffer!
The parts of his face that remained untouched by the incendiary device they implanted in his brain sported a sharp, pointed chin and slim facial features with high cheekbones and a dimple in them. His long flowing blonde hair complimented by his porcelain white skin had been charred black and grey along the ridgeline where it had been burned off to expose the cherry red skin on the other side of his face. A part of him felt disgusted by the appearance of looking normal on one side and looking hideous and disfigured on the other. Everything on the left of his head sported a bright red tone from where his flesh had been cooked. He ran a hand along the side of his head in an effort to feel any sensation along his scalp, his fingers caressed the bumpy textured skin that radiated with an unusual warmth but he could not feel his fingers touching his head.
Xareith’s lip twitched angrily and he was about to slam his fists down on the table when he heard a soft rustling of silk sheets from behind.
“Are you okay?” A soft voice murmured.
Xareith turned around to look at the female occupying his bed. She was as naked as a newborn and had her limbs splayed out across his mattress as though her body was signifying her readiness without her mind being aware of it. Or perhaps she was but didn’t want to say it. Even by Wood Elves standards she was beautiful, equal parts fit and elegantly feminine. True, she wasn’t going to beat him in any physical activity but she was known for her domestic skills which made up for her sub-par fighting skills, Xareith knew this when he invited her and had his way with her. Before he had seen her nude he hadn’t realised just how thin and long her legs were, her agility during their amorous deeds had caught him off-guard.
For a moment, her name escaped Xareith’s tongue. That had been happening a lot recently since his confrontation with the human boys. Details large and small, obscure and important had all been slipping his from his mental grasp and it frustrated him further to no end. Then it had hit him: Aleera. That was her name. He had almost snapped his fingers when the name came to him but decided not to as he casted a leering gaze upon her partially covered form.
She moaned softly that could have either meant she was tired or trying to arouse him. “Come back to bed, show me how strong you are again.”
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He let out a huff of bewilderment.
Xareith wanted to do several things but he could only accomplish one; he wanted to obey her and retreat back to the comfort of the sheets mixed with her body warmth and remain in her embrace. He wanted to use her subtle invitations as an excuse to work out some of his frustrations by copulating with her aggressively while another part of him wanted to simply use her for pleasure and refrain from damaging her goddess-like body.
She leaned forward and swung her legs around behind her with such incredible deftness that it had looked like she didn’t disturb the sheets until she was crawling on his bed toward him.
“Xareith, are you alright? Are you still in shock about what happened?” She asked in that soft-spoken sultry voice of hers.
It was both a flaw and a turn on that whenever she spoke it had always sounded so sexual, so sensual and caring. She could make a mundane conversation about the weather arouse him to the point that he had to work out some of the sexual energy lest he become too distracted from anything else. He liked her for it but he also found it quite annoying.
“I’m fine!” Xareith said in a quavering voice. He turned away from her and faced the wall, unable to look himself in the mirror. “I-I just need to... Just need to focus on getting better.”
Aleera crawled off the bed and stood in front of Xareith, the sheets fallen from her exposed body. They were in his room inside a cave that he had been taken to when he was injured by the human boys, after waking up he had killed one of the healers in a fit of anger and claimed the entire area as his private residence, he had also instructed his lieutenants to guard the entrance so no one other than him could enter. Aleera placed her lithe hands on both sides of his shoulders and let them glide up to his face but he could only feel the one on his right, her hands glowed and a pleasing sensation crept along his brain like a fuzzy woodland critter gently hugging each part of his brain. Xareith let out a soft moan that he struggled to hold back in case it echoed out and anybody passing by would get the wrong idea.
Aleera’s magic went on undisturbed until his hands grabbed her wrists and slowly pulled them away.
“I’m alright. I just need to refocus and figure out my next step.”
“On the invasion of the human lands or those human boys?” Aleera asked.
He knew she was trying to determine what he was more focused on and depending on which answer he gave it would affect her perspective of him. Possibly even relay those concerns and fears to everyone else and have them question his authority and fitness to lead, he couldn’t have that. Not now, not after everything. He was going to have to deal with her in a rather unpleasant manner should the worst come to pass,which a small part of him felt ashamed of. She really is a fantastic specimen of feminine beauty, it would be a sin to waste her like that because she decided to run her mouth.
Xareith let out a small chuckle to himself. He was going to feel bad if he had to remove her as a threat but not when he killed a loyal, albeit opportunistic lieutenant like N’karno. Yes, the dragon was more than likely going to attempt to seize power from Xareith once he had amassed a big enough group to back him up. But as an underling he was incredibly useful, if you wanted to rise to the top you have to be prepared to get your hands dirty to ensure you stay at the top, and Xareith had certainly gotten his hands dirty.
“Both,” Xareith said after what had felt like an hour’s silence. “My plans for the human lands will continue as planned. As soon as we can shield the rest of this nation-state and defend the borders we shall use its leaders to control the population and force the neighboring states to surrender.”
“And what of the humans that hurt you?”
“I am still thinking on that.”
This was only a half-truth. Xareith was in fact still thinking out what his plan would be to deal with the brothers but so far he already had a refined outline of a plan put together. The hard part, at least he thought it was, was trying to put his idea together. He wanted to examine the situation and factor in for every variable that could come to his mind except... He struggled to do just that.
Whenever he tried to focus his head would turn into a hazy, droning mess and he would forget what he was trying to focus on. He would get frustrated, short tempered and then drive his fist into the nearest solid surface with the same thought promising him justice.
I’m gonna kill them...
I’m gonna kill them...
I’m gonna kill them...
“Xareith?” Aleera called out as if this was the fourth time saying it. Her alluring voice tinged with annoyance.
“Nothing, nothing. Just got caught up in thought.”
“Good,” Aleera said, her voice returning to its normal sultry tones. “Now, come back to bed with me. I think you have another go in you.”
Xareith thought about that for a second as he watched her carefully stretch herself across his bed. Her shapely posterior deliberately poised high as she crawled to the head of the bed. As elegantly as she looked she slid her legs under the sheets and covered herself once more. Then, without wasting anymore time he approached her.
He had no reason to take advantage of Aleera just yet, he was not as eager to restart their coital activities as he was on focusing how he was going to get his revenge. Thomas, Michael, and whoever that elderly man that was with them was, all were going to suffer tremondously. Then, it had hit him. The idea forming into a coherent concept that could actually be realised. He looked over to Aleera and saw her pale blonde eyebrows raised questioningly. Had she asked him something that he wasn’t paying attention to? Oh well, as if her opinion mattered to him at all, she usually had nothing worthy of note to contribute to any conversation or topic, not to mention that she has no experience with what Xareith was doing which only lessened any value her thoughts may have held.
“What?” He asked.
“I said ‘is it true that the dragon scout was killed in hand-to-hand combat?’ The one from last week that had all the scars and was near that old human outpost?”
That got him to think carefully about his next response. That particular dragon’s body was hidden from plain sight as the healers tried their best to revive him or learn what had happened. The public wasn’t privy to the how or why it had died. If he answered truthfully then it could give the illusion that this trio of humans were more capable fighters than everyone initially thought. Which Xareith had found to be implausible. Sure they had gotten an advantage over them but he had no reason to believe that it would work a second time, if they were able to put up a fight against a dragon then they should have at least been able to fight him, even in a crippled state. But the fact that they didn’t told him that they weren’t capable and if he were to attack them directly then the odds would be very well in his favour.
On the other hand if he were to tell her a carefully worded response with just enough truth sprinkled in such as ‘the dragon had succumbed to the weapons the humans used, they were able to get a few lucky slashes in but nothing fatal’ then it could be enough to maintain their incompetence as fighters. There was also the option to outright lie to her and say that the Dragon had died from some other cause and the humans were lucky to get it in an already weakened state.
Whichever one he chose he would have to maintain that cover to everyone else except those already in the know. He couldn’t count on her discretion even if he had asked her, she was too big a risk to expose it all. Xareith must have frowned when he thought to himself that she would have to be taken care of eventually because he heard her ask.
“Is something wrong?”
“No,” He lied but with a voice of practiced confidence. “Everything will be just fine.”