The Veil of Darkness
Chapter 369: In Search of Light (Part One)

Chapter 369: In Search of Light (Part One)

Damien brushed away the strands of hair from Annalise’s cheek who was already fast asleep after he and his brother had finally exhausted her.

"I really thought that she would need rest after her time with Valerius this morning, and also because of all the worry and anxiety she faced throughout the day. Little did I expect to find her this needy." He confessed as his fingers traced the soft skin of his mate’s face.

Kenric chuckled in response as he snuggled closer to their sleeping mate. "Don’t underestimate her brother. Our wife is always full of surprises."

The corners of Damien’s lips stretched with a smile as he too got comfortable next to their wife. Her small body was perfectly sandwiched between the two of them.

He then turned his gaze toward Kenric and as if sensing his attention, he too looked up. "The two of us will be taking over our assigned tasks coming morning. Hopefully, she will be able to handle things on her end as well."

Kenric’s expression became serious and he once again took a glance toward their sleeping mate before responding - "She’s strong."

Damien nodded his head in agreement as there was no denying that particular fact. "She is."

"Then let’s not worry about her. I’m sure she will handle things perfectly on her end. We can trust her with that. Also, Esmeray will be there with her. He will look after her for us." Kenric added.

Damien nodded his head in agreement. Though he never found any reason to trust Esmeray completely, somehow, they all knew that he would never betray Annalise. That knowledge was their only reason for putting hope into the King of Darkness.

Now, all they could do was wait and face what was heading their way.

* * *

There was no more snowstorm the next morning or the one after that. But the lack of storm didn’t diminish the gloomy atmosphere that plagued the entire world.

The news of the war was spread across all the Realms, Kingdoms, and Empires, and everyone was preparing for the upcoming battle.

Valerius was in the Midnight Realm, leading the army of unseelies along with the Midnight Queen. They had two main tasks - to lead the army of powerful and strong unseelies with proper strategies and to ensure the safety of the general public of the Midnight Realm.

Elijah left for the Mortal Realm. Since the mortals were not able to fight on the front line, and were also easiest to be targeted, they needed strong protection and their Crown Prince Elijah was trusted for the job. The mortals too had an army of strong men who were good in combat and weapon skills, led by Elijah, who was stationed as the backup.

Leela left to protect the Mer Kingdom and to also lead the mer army along with their Queen.

The light guardians - Sir Niles, Elder Elaron, Edith, Cyrus, and Silas, took over the task of safeguarding the portal halls with their connected guardian powers. They had to ensure that the enemy wouldn’t use the portals to enter different realms and cities to attack them.

Ezra and Marley left for the Sky Kingdom to protect the dragons and lead their army.

As for Damien, he was assigned the task of leading the army of Seelies from the Secret Realm of the Cursed Castle.

And the mission of protecting the Cursed Castle and the Seelie Empire ended up in the hands of Kenric and Pristine along with the King.

And the person who assigned all these missions to each one of these people - was none other than Annalise who was currently accompanied by Esmeray as the two of them ended up strengthening the wards around the Castle. They used the most powerful ward spell that they knew and cast one around the already standing wards of the Castle.

"This is all we can do on our part," Esmeray said once they completed the spell. "It’s time to leave." He reminded.

A sigh escaped Annalise’s lips as she turned away from the shimmering wards and started heading inside the Castle. She knew that there was nothing more she could do to keep the Castle safe since she herself couldn’t stay behind and protect it personally, she was needed elsewhere.

The two of them headed into the basement, finding their way into the secret portion deep under the Castle where the Portal of the Seelie Realm was hidden.

"All set," Esmeray announced as he turned his attention toward the portal standing not too far from where the two of them were currently standing. His hands were stretched out to control the magic of the portal which slowly came to life and opened a passageway.

"Are you sure we are ahead of them?" Annalise couldn’t hide her doubts regarding their plan, but at the very same time, there was also no denying that their plan would put them at a huge advantage if everything went along with their predictions.

Esmeray let out a sigh before he answered in a serious tone - "I’m sure." He was about to end it there but after hesitating a bit, he added - "Unless they too have a different plan than what they are portraying for us to see."

He turned to face Annalise and continued - "I know that you have your doubts, but if we want an advantage in this battle, we need to get there before them."

Annalise nodded her head as a sigh escaped her lips. "I know. I just don’t want to make the wrong decision." For a splitting moment, her insecurities about their current situation resurfaced but she quickly pushed them back and locked them away. "Anyway, we should start moving without wasting any more time than we already have."

Esmeray opened his mouth to say something but then stopped. Instead, he took hold of her hand and started moving toward the portal. A few moments later, the two of them stepped through the portal as it came to life and went cold the moment their figures disappeared from this side of the realm.

~

When Annalise stepped through the portal and entered the Seelie Realm, her body immediately felt the repulsive presence of dark energy even before her eyes adjusted to the darkness surrounding her.

Everything around them was so dark that she could barely see anything for a while, but then the world around her became less black and more grey, allowing her to see everything.

A scream almost tore from her lips when she finally recognized the danger that was enveloping them. The dark energy immediately attacked her in order to devour her just like how it devoured everything else.

She was ready to defend herself from the dark energy but was stopped right before she could use her powers. Esmeray, who was focused on sealing the portal behind them to make sure the dark energy wouldn’t find a way out, wrapped his arms around her and easily pushed back the dark energy that had been surrounding them at a rapid speed.

The dark energy hissed as if it was enraged for not getting its food, but still complied and moved away.

Esmeray unwrapped his arms from around Annalise’s form but instead of stepping away, he took hold of her hand and pulled her closer to him. "Stick closer. It won’t attack you that way."

Annalise’s eyes scanned the dark energy that was still lurking nearby as if waiting for a chance. "Will it not attack you at all?" She asked as the two of them started moving, and while she was totally clueless about where they were heading, she just trusted Esmeray.

"It will." The King of Darkness surprised her with his answer. "The moment it realizes that I’m not a friend despite my connection to it, we will no longer be safe from its wrath."

Annalise curled her fingers around his sleeve as the heaviness of the danger they were in, slowly dawned over her. Even with Esmeray, she wasn’t completely safe from the dark energy.

"But you can fight it, right?"

Esmeray didn’t answer immediately and when he finally did after a while, it wasn’t what Annalise was expecting to hear.

"Fight it? Yes. But probably can’t win. Over the past ten thousand years, it has grown powerful while I have become weaker."

He turned his gaze to look at Annalise and gave her a warm smile before adding - "But I promise to keep you safe as long as I’m alive."