Marked Ones: Advent of the Demon Prince

Jade happily watched Lucius getting ready for his conversation with Kalliope. For some reason, the room meant for her and Desmond was not ready yet, so they stayed with Lucius in his until someone told them it was available.

Her idiot brother attempted to suggest they stay with Kalliope for a bit, but using her profound female intuition, she was able to convince Desmond that it was not a good idea. Eventually he relented, but it did take some convincing.

Lucius seemed to be fumbling around clumsily with his clothes in the mirror, so she laughed and stepped in front of him. "Pardon me, I can help." She said with a smile.

She was well-versed in assisting Desmond in preparing for formal parties and other matters, so she was able to use those skills for the simple task of preparing Lucius for his intimate conversation.

No one chose to point out that one did not prepare for a conversation in the manner he was. Instead, they opted to go the route of silent encouragement.

Lucius had several wrinkles in his clothes that he was trying to smooth out. Jade quickly determined that it was because he had not properly tucked his shirt into his waistband. He had also somehow managed to misalign the buttons on his shirt, so she had to correct that.

She had seen bits of his muscles before and the scars, but this was the first time Jade had been so close. Not only was she much closer to him than before, she was actually touching him. She felt the softness of his skin being marred by the scars along his body. Every vein and every muscle in his abdomen was excellently defined that she momentarily forgot what she was doing.

"Jade?"

Lucius's voice brought her out of her daze. "Oh, right, sorry!" She apologized with a bright red face. "You look great… um, go get 'em, tiger!"

"Tiger?" Lucius raised one eyebrow and cocked his head, "I'm a panther beastman."

"R-right…" Jade's flush got deeper, this time out of shame at her sudden behavior. She mentally berated herself for the stupid words she uttered in panic.

Still, it seemed that Lucius was content to forgive, or at least ignore, her strange behaviors. He pulled his jacket taut over his chest and stepped into the hallway. The twins leaned their heads out of the doorway to watch the man walk up to Kalliope's door. He tapped on the door lightly with two knocks. They saw it open slightly.

With a shared smile, they ducked back into the room. Desmond smirked and looked at Jade. "I have a feeling that it won't matter if our room isn't prepared tonight. I don't think Lucius will be coming back to…"

Jade felt something off. Desmond stopped speaking. His eyes started to bulge slightly and his words started to catch in his throat. Before she could ask what the problem was, she felt a frighteningly familiar feeling.

Unlike before, the pressure was malicious. The other times she felt this, there was no malice behind it. That changed now. She could feel the hatred and desire for destruction behind the source. Jade slowly turned to face the shared wall between their room and the one that Lucius was in with Kalliope.

Cracking sounds cascaded throughout the room. Tiny fissures rapidly raced along the floors and walls as the intense mana began to destroy the very building.

"Lucius!" She cried out with every ounce of strength she had.

The moment her voice rang out, the shared wall shattered into thousands of pieces and rained down upon her. Standing in the middle of the destruction was a black-haired man. His hair seemed to be blown about by an imaginary wind that also whipped at his jacket. In his hands was a letter.

No matter where she looked, Jade could not see any sign of Kalliope. Her equipment and all of her belongings were gone. Save for the destroyed walls and furniture, nothing seemed to be in the room to indicate where she had gone.

"Lucius…" Jade squeaked. Her brother limped up to her side and steadied her feet. The strength in her legs were starting to give and it seemed Desmond could tell.

"They took her…" Lucius growled. "Therentil! Get over here. Now."

A flash of lightning struck just outside the inn, bathing everyone in a bright, blue light. The handsome elf who guided them here basically crawled into view. His well-kept hair hung in sweaty strings down the side of his face. Even now, his elven beauty was unmatched.

Despite his pathetic state, Lucius showed no signs of lessening the pressure he was creating. Thunder shook the inn. If the people below them were even still conscious, they were like them and struggled to breathe. Due to this, only the storm created by Lucius's mana permeated the deathly quiet.

"L-lord K-kane… What…" Therentil gasped.

"This faction you want us to hunt… do they typically resort to kidnapping?" He asked.

"I-I don't know for sure, but I wouldn't put it past them…"

"And your faction? Would you go so far as to kidnap someone to ensure support?"

"Never!"

Lucius cast the letter in his hand to Therentil's feet. He swiftly picked up the document and read it. His eyes slowly opened. "Sir, we would never… we already have your cooperation…"

"Yes, by holding my wife and child hostage in Arcadios… what reason do I have to trust your words?"

Lucius raised his hand slowly and pointed a single finger at Therentil. A ball of blue light formed at the tip and a bolt of lightning struck the ground next to the elven guide.

"What happened to Kalliope?" Desmond questioned. He was standing at full attention. Jade could see his arms and legs trembling from the pressure, but he was using everything he had to meet Lucius's gaze.

Desmond slowly stepped up to their benefactor. "I know this is for her. What happened?" Read exclusive chapters at empire

"Someone took her and left a letter asking me to 'support the true queen' as if I would know which of the two these fools meant."

"I don't think it is Therentil's group. As you said, they had your cooperation, this makes no sense… Please calm down. Let's think this through."

"I will kill them. All of them."

Desmond nodded. "As you should… but kill the right ones."

Lucius maintained his stance for several moments. Sweat poured off of Therentil like a waterfall. The ground next to him still smoldered from the last threat. Lightning and thunder continued to rage outside the building and the pressure remained.

Finally, Jade felt her ability to breathe return to her. Her muscles relaxed all at once, and she fell into a heap on the ground. Desmond managed to maintain his stance and continued to walk up to Lucius. He offered a hand.

"We will find her. Trust me. I will stop at nothing to help you find her."

"Me… too…" Jade managed between ragged breaths. There wasn't much she had to offer, but whatever she could do, she would do.