CHAPTER 365: _THEY GET ERASED

"Proceed cautiously!" Janelle yelled out to the army behind us as we trooped into the throne room.

The throne room was just as Althea had described—towering tens of meters high, its curved ceiling held aloft by black marble beams.

It also had large marble pillars standing like titans, lined on the left and right sides. The floor itself was made with polished white and black marble.

And at the very end of the throne room was an elevated dais and a black throne decorated with spikes.

But no sign of Ryker.

"Look." Althea pointed at the centre of the throne room, where a small black pool swirled.

It brimmed with chaotic magic that made the hair across my arms stand on end.

"I thought this would be the source of the black energy tower outside..." Janelle mumbled while Thorian silently led the soldiers and witches deeper into the hall.

He made gestures, signalling them to split into groups and scout the perimeter.

"He’s here," Regina muttered beside me, her voice shaking. "He’s... He’s still—"

Suddenly, the black pool, which had been spiralling clockwise, froze. It had been the only sound in the throne room but now it was gone.

My body tensed as my eyes scanned the place cautiously.

And then it happened.

The pool burst outward with all its black water like a bomb had been thrown in it, sending a thick black mist around it.

I subconsciously covered my face with my right arm when the droplets got all the way to us—but the worst was yet to come.

Ghastly screeches echoed through the throne room, coming from the pool.

"Watch out!" A man closer to the pool yelled but before he could run toward the rest of the group, a black claw stuck through his chest.

He stiffened, his features twisting with pain as the claw ripped out his heart, splattering blood all over his red uniform. All while the unnatural sounds multiplied around the throne room.

"Alpha King Thorian." An all too familiar deep voice boomed through like a god’s acknowledgement. "Luna Queen Janelle. The European packs could’ve easily stayed out of this."

Beneath the shroud of the black mist from the pool, creatures moved freely.

Black, twisted and embodiments of the word "wrong".

Their screeches and growls echoed off the walls of the throne room while Ryker’s voice continued:

"But since you’ve decided to join my brother in death... Who am I to stop you?" His voice was mocking. "I’ll enjoy sending your heads back to Europe once this is over."

The first of the creatures lunged like a nightmare given shape.

It moved with the wrong kind of grace — joints bending unnaturally, mouths too wide and eyes too many.

The others soon followed, charging at our soldiers like a swarm. But we were ready.

"Wolves!" Thorian roared, spreading his arms as his Alpha king aura burst out. "Gut to pieces!"

The wolves howled, many of them shifting as they charged at the swarm of undead.

"Witches, focus mainly on defending the wolves!" Coven head Arachne levitated, her black cloak flowing like fog. "We will not fall here. By the grace of the triple goddess!"

Her final cry pierced the air like thunder, signalling the witches to join in the battle as well.

When our army met the undead army at the front, the result was a blood bath. Claws sliced, fangs tore, spells exploded and howls echoed through the throne room.

And behind the army of undead, I could sense him.

Ryker.

"Come out, Ryker." Althea stomped her staff on the ground as our group made a line side by side.

Me, Janelle, Althea, Caroline and Regina.

For a second, I thought about how Marcellus would be by my side as well... If it weren’t for obvious reasons.

"Well, well, well... Your audacity is astounding, high priestess." Ryker’s voice filtered through again, but this time it sounded so close that he might as well be whispering beside us.

My knuckles flexed in preparation, Damon already growling with the need for blood within me.

"Is this how you plan to ’erase’ us, brother? Petty psychological warfare?" I sneered, my fangs bared.

The battle ahead of us was still raging strongly, Thorian and the elder witches leading the army in a surprisingly fluid formation.

But then the scales shifted in a flash.

Black lightning exploded from the depths of the black pool, from which the undead creatures were storming out. The lightning was thicker than a tree, splitting into individual bolts that disintegrated several wolves upon contact.

"Shields!" I yelled out, taking the lead by creating a force bubble of pure silver energy.

Janelle followed suit while Althea yelled out a single spell word, creating a larger force bubble layered above the rest.

Yet when my eyes locked on the incoming black lightning bolt, unnerving dread seeped into my core.

BOOM!

The lightning tore through the shields like a hot knife through butter, forcing us to crouch. I gritted my teeth, covering my face with my arms.

"You fools still haven’t caught up!" His voice came from behind us now, forcing us to turn around when we got back on our feet.

And there he was.

Ryker stood tall, donned in a black outfit with a cloak that whipped behind him. His once silver eyes were now bloody red, his form oozing with black mist like death itself had taken shape.

His claws were black and glinted like they could cut through reality itself.

The man’s aura reeked of the Vein’s chaotic energy.

"What the heck are you talking about?" I snarled, taking a few steps forward. "You know what? It doesn’t matter. Everything we’ve gone through. All your lies. Your twisted cruelty. It all boils down to this very moment."

I pointed a finger at him, ignoring the wolfish grin curling his lips.

"I, Kaelos Bloodoak, challenge you to a duel. A battle to the death." My voice was decisive, my bones already aching for release through his blood.

I could feel the shocked looks the others gave me but I didn’t care.

This was long overdue.

"You do recall I dog walked you the last time we battled, right?" Ryker’s voice was hoarse but mocking. "Not to mention now... I’m closer to mastering the Vein’s energy more than ever before."

He paused, his eyes focusing on something.

Or someone.

"I have you to thank, Althea." He suddenly remarked, tilting his head. "You pointed out the wells from the Vein that were easier to tap into. You helped me perfect the artificial hybrid ritual."

The silence that fell between us was only clouded by the echoes of the fierce battle behind us.

Each sentence he uttered felt worse than a slap on the face.

My brows furrowed with confusion, my fists clenching while Janelle questioned Althea.

"High priestess. What is he talking about?"

The answer was already clear but I didn’t want to believe it.

Slowly, I turned to face Althea. The woman Odessa placed so much trust in all her life.

And she looked back at me, her eyes draped with guilt.

"I’m... I’m sorry..." Her voice trembled as she shook her head. "I did help Ryker decades ago... But it was only because I thought he was the hybrid the prophecies—"

"Save your pathetic excuses for later." Ryker interrupted as the air grew thick with the twisted magic from the Vein.

He spread out his arms, his grin twisting into something unnatural. "Right now, at this very moment... You’re all pests in my way. And we all know what happens to pests."

The ground beneath his feet trembled, forming spider web cracks that spread for several meters around him.

"They get erased."

No sooner had those words left his mouth than darkness stretched out like a cloak around him, forming dark tentacles.