Hellbound Heart



Alex's smile faded, replaced by a grave expression. He gestured for Zeke and Alicia to join him in a more secluded area. Zeke nodded in acknowledgment, leading Alicia by his side as they followed Alex and Sebastian.

Without beating around the bush, Alex began to speak, telling Zeke of the current predicament they were in. 

Zeke's expression remained stoic, his gaze locked with Alex's as he absorbed what Alex was telling him.

"In short… the situation is really dire this time." Alex said. "To the point that even with you now right here with us, it might be too late to solve this without spilling blood." 

…

As they watched the videos of vampires Elijah had released in the internet, Zeke tapped his fingers. His expression stoic as he rested his temple against his knuckles. 

On the screens, they watched the disturbing videos. Each video depicted acts of violence and chaos, carefully orchestrated to fuel the humans' suspicion and fear of the vampire population. The evidence was overwhelming, as if Elijah had designed the perfect trap, ensuring a constant influx of new videos that kept the humans on edge, stoke their suspicion and intrigue, and sow seeds of fear among the masses.

Sebastian's voice cut through the silence, his tone calm. "We've tried everything to take down these videos, but they keep resurfacing."

A sigh escaped Alex's lips. "Honestly, I fear there may be no bloodless solution anymore. Humans are both intelligent and insatiably curious. Sometimes, their curiosity leads them down paths that bring more harm than good." He paused. "Even if we manage to completely halt the spread of these videos and erase any trace of them, the humans' suspicions will linger. Worse yet, I fear they may resort to drastic measures, perceiving us as a dangerous virus that must be eradicated before it spreads further."

Before Zeke could even say anything, Lucas approached the group. His voice filled with urgency as he reported that a battle has erupted on the western border. And that an unknown militia has launched an attack, targeting civilians and capturing the violence on video.

Alex's jaw clenched, "Clearly, their purpose is to expose the truth, to see if the people of Viscarria are more than just humans." Alex said. "Those little idiots. And? Is any of them still alive right now?" 

Lucas nodded. "Sadly, some human citizens lost their lives in the attack but no vampire is reportedly killed. And some vampires end up killing numbers of those militia out of anger. Right now, the ones who are left alive are held captive." 

After Zeke gave him an instruction, Lucas immediately nodded and left. 

"Have the world leaders begun their meeting?" Zeke then inquired, his gaze now fixed on Sebastian. 

Sebastian nodded solemnly. "They have attempted to convene an urgent meeting online, but we have been intercepting their communications. It's a risky move that only heightens their suspicions, but at present, I see no better alternative to handle the situation."

When Zeke regarded Sebastian with a nod of approval, Alex interjected. "I believe they're now going to be forced to meet in person."

"Let them gather in one place," Zeke uttered, causing both Alex and Sebastian to exchange puzzled glances.

Questions filled their eyes as they sought to understand Zeke's reasoning. Before they could voice their concerns, Zeke continued, "By gathering them in one place, it will make the task easier."

"You're not going out there, brother." Sebastian rose. His voice rang firmly as he looked intently at Zeke. "We are here to hear your plan, but the execution will be done by us. You are you going to stay here with Azy and Alicia."

As the Zeke and Sebastian's gaze held in silence, their attention was interrupted by the arrival of Gav. The man sauntered towards the group, his confident stride and powerful demeanor drawing all eyes towards him. Rather than taking the vacant seat across from Alicia, he positioned himself casually next to Zeke.

"Why don't you let me be your substitute, Zeke?" Gav suggested.

Zeke's gaze met Gav's. "No, you're not allowed to go anywhere far without me," he replied, the firmness in his voice leaving no room for argument.

"Come on, Zeke. It's clear that your unique abilities are needed in this world's situation. Your brother wanted you to remain here, to spend time with your family before we depart. So the only logical solution is for me to step in and handle your part instead. After all, you can't just subject me in doing unexciting task like teaching Sebastian's woman healing magic, or I might burst."

Gav shrugged clearly letting Zeke and everyone know what he meant by letting his demonic power seeped out of him like he couldn't contain them anymore. 

His power quickly turned the room suffused with dark and overwhelming energy that Sebastian own demonic power started to get triggered. 

Zeke glared at Gav and the man sighed before his power subsided once again, making it easier for Sebastian to calm himself at the same time. 

"You know it's not easy holding back this thing inside me, Zeke." Gav said. 

"This task cannot be entrusted to just anyone, especially not you, Gav."

Gav leaned back, as if on the verge of rolling his eyes. "Don't tell me this is another boring task that requires no bloodshed."

"This world is different from the one you know, Gav. It's not brute force or overwhelming power that is needed here." Zeke said calmly before he returned his gaze back to Sebastian. "Don't worry, I'll only deal with this one thing… and it won't even take much time as it's the easiest task out of all after all."

A knowing smirk played on Alex's lips as he chimed in, his voice laced with a hint of amusement. "Indeed, Zeke. That's undoubtedly the easiest task of all. For you, that is."

As Alex playfully shook his head, Sebastian, his expression grave, captured Zeke's attention once more. 

"Tell me, brother," Sebastian uttered, his tone serious and his gaze fierce. "Are we still bound by the mandate not to kill a Reign prince?"

___

a/n: Hi guys, my schedule will change this month. I think I'll be able to update twice or thrice a week. So there's only 2 chaps for now. I'll try to update tomorrow or the following day. Also, I think I surprised you guys by my announcement in my last update, so I'd like to clarify that though this story has reached its final arc and that I am finally seeing the end, it might still take a little while to get there. I am not very sure as often, things change, but right now I think there might be less than 50 chapters left. Which isn't that much already. I hope you guys will stick with me and our beloved characters till the end. <3