The Reaper's Wicked Obsession

’His scar,’ Isadora thought as her body quivered. The realization struck her so hard that it propelled tears to her eyes.

All this time, she had felt that scar was a criminal brand or a warrior’s.

But it was his doing, not by choice.

She couldn’t even begin to speculate how much shame he would feel when he stared at himself every morning in the mirror, knowing he had imposed so much blight on his body.

No one wants to live with such a brand, knowing what caused it. And every waking moment was a reminder of his hell and doom.

It made her wonder why he escaped Daudi’s Hand. Was his soul so restless? Burning with rage and the need for revenge? It had to be, and she couldn’t envision the depths of his fury.

Isadora’s breathing hitched, and she swallowed thickly. Her hands were placed together, gripping so hard that she felt her nails breaking her skin.

She closed her eyes, chest heaving. She mulled over the kind of atrocity he had gone through, just because he was different.

’This world is not a pleasant place for what you are—just like me, an outcast. Best we stick together, don’t you think, love?’

His words to her that night, after he stole her away from that brothel. Under the heat of the fire, she glared hatred and fury back at him, while he returned it with a smile.

He was right. He was always right. And she never saw it until now.

They were both outcasts.

"His sister, the High Princess."

Aric’s words pulled her out of her reverie, there was a smirk on his lips as he said. "She drank poison, a lethal toxin that was slow and painful but eventually stopped her heart."

Isadora wanted to cut through that smile on his face. How dare he speak of Kraven’s bloodline in such a way? How dare he scorn their memory?

Aric discerned this look on her face. It was the least reaction he expected, but he wasn’t surprised.

The poor girl was blinded to the truth, and she thought of a madman who dipped her fate in his madness.

Aric suddenly rose to his feet, adjusting his attire. "You wouldn’t understand, you’re young, in love, blinded to what he truly is."

"A monster?" She countered, not the slightest unfazed. "I don’t care. The only monster standing is you."

Aric clicked his tongue. "Either he has swooned you or manipulated you into having feelings for him."

’Such a pitiful creature,’ he thought. ’The Reaper does not deserve her.’

She opened her mouth to speak, but he didn’t let her.

"Come and see for yourself, the fate of a madman who knows nothing but destruction." He walked to a door in the corner. "As well as your fate if you follow him."

Isadora rose to her feet, slowly following behind.

Aric clutched the doorknob and pried the door open, an invitation to go in.

"What’s in there?" Isadora asked suspiciously. This could be one of his games again.

"See for yourself, Isadora." He reached for her, but she turned away.

His hand hung in mid-air but this only amused Aric more. "I pray you won’t make selfish decisions, I want to save you from doom."

She couldn’t see this the way he does. She was far too consumed and he was determined to show her the light.

"My doom is none of your concern." She faced him, pinning him down with a look that could cut through glass.

She darted her attention back to the room and cautiously stepped through it.

The sound of blood dribbling to the ground filled her ears. Her eyes scanned the room until they settled on a massive figure with hands shackled wide apart.

When the torches lit, terror seized her bones.

"Kraven!" She rushed to him. "What has he done to you?" She rose to her tiptoes just to caress his cheeks. He was barely breathing.

Whatever Aric had done to him had made him unconscious.

The constant saturated sound forced her eyes to level, and she took a step back in horror.

There was a chain buried in his abdomen, and it was a gruesome sight that turned her stomach, and made her skin crawl.

"I’m doing the world a favor, Isadora. Do you have any idea what would happen when he loses his sanity? What his father did will be the tip of the iceberg. Kraven wields the power of death, and with it, he will destroy the world."

"And you think you’re a saint!" she yelled, tears streaming down her cheeks hotly. "You think you’re doing the world a favor? Your methods are sick!"

"Maybe I’m not, but it won’t change a thing. He’ll ruin us all."

"He won’t!"

Aric laughed. "What? Think you could swoon him with words or tame him? He can never love you, and what he has for you is an obsession. What happens when he loses that interest?"

Her body stilled.

"He will erase you just like his father did to his mother."

Isadora turned away from him, she moved her hands to summon her weaves but they didn’t respond to her call.

Blinking away the tears, she tried again, but nothing happened.

She gasped, staring down at her trembling hands. They weren’t just shaking because of the anxiety, it was something else she couldn’t explain.

And even as she tried her hardest to commune with her aura, she felt nothing.

"What’s wrong with me?" she mumbled. "I can’t feel my aura."

"I may not have poisoned your food, but the drink was a little something." He seized her hair and threw her to the ground.

A pained yelp fled from Isadora as the floor scraped her knees.

"I took away your aura. You can never weave again."

"T-That’s not possible!"

"It is, especially as one as feeble as yours. Pitiful Isadora’s aura was the only thing making her a potential Fae."

Desperate, she tried to weave again. The only response she got was her hands shaking.

She squeezed her eyes shut just to feel that spark of flame around her chest, but it was gone.

Her aura was gone!

"Now you’re not even worthy to be called a mannfae." He crouched and held her hair, forcing her to look at him. "You’re inferior."

"No!" she shrieked, but he clutched her cheeks harshly, silencing her.

"I may be blind, but my soul has seen many, transcend understanding to the point that when I look at you now? I see the goddess Lifara’s mark upon you." He pressed a thumb against her forehead, and Isadora trembled under his touch, squeezing her eyes shut.

His eyes held a disturbing wonder that unsettled her to the core.

"How else could a mannfae be blessed with such gift? You’re favored and I shall have you for myself."

He pulled on her hair and forced her to her feet.

When he stretched his hand, the rune engraved on the chains burned, jolting Kraven from the depths of unconsciousness.

His chest heaved as he slowly lifted his head, his vision blurred too.

Everything was cloudy and doubled, but he could make out the image, and when they settled properly, he instinctively tugged on the chains, ignoring the hellish pain drilling through him.

"She shall be mine, Kraven." He pulled her more into his body, and Isadora squirmed as he touched her cheeks and rested his hand on her chest.

Kraven’s fist tightened as he yanked harshly, repeatedly, the pain getting worse. "Take your hands off her!" He boomed.

"Never. She shall bear me children, and I shall raise the next generation of Serpents the world has never seen."

Isadora panicked as she tried to reach for her daggers, but her shaky hands couldn’t let her wield them. It was almost as if the nerves in her body no longer listened to her.

"In death, you shall be tortured by the idea of me taking her away from you. Knowing you just stood by and watched."

Kraven roared as he yanked harder, and the chain binding his left hand snapped.

However, the rune burned brightly and restricted his movement, causing him to drop to his knees. Blood pooled beneath, yet he tried to move, forcing his weaves on the surface.

But Aric gave the last signal and the chain planted in his gut tore out and painted the walls with his insides.

"KraaaAVEEEN!" A raw screech tore from Isadora’s throat, scraping past her vocal cords until it burned.

She ran to him, but two Serpents came out of nowhere and grabbed her.

Isadora kicked and screamed as they hauled her away.

~♧~

Kraven’s fingers flinched, causing the chains to clatter. When he opened his eyes, the place was empty, and he was the only person that remained, his blood pooling around him and spreading around the entire place.

It was happening again, but it wasn’t how he remembered when Daudi’s Hand came for him. This was different.

Daudi was present but strangely the figure standing in the dark had a different aura. An aura similar to his.

"Whoever you are, have you come for my soul?" he asked with a weak smile. "I’m afraid I can’t hand it over. Do your worst but you’re not taking it, not yet."

Suddenly, a distorted scream echoed in his ears, and it was familiar.

"Isadora?" He tried to move, but his body wouldn’t respond; he was paralyzed where he was.

"Do you hear her?" the figure in the dark said. "She’s calling for us."