Empire Of Souls

It was a piercing sound that stabbed deeply into one"s heart. Aleks had never made such a sound, not in any other lives he lived, nor in his original lifetime. Even when his world fell apart, and even when he killed the friend he loved as a brother, that sound of despair never left his lips.

Aleks rushed to rise from the ground, he struggled and fell, only to pick himself up again. He was still slightly stunned and he attempted to shrug it off. He pushed past the pain and his heart beat so fiercely that it wished to burst from his chest. He was a far cry from the man he had been not too long prior. This was a desperate man who had broken down and was on the edge of a cliff, moments from jumping.

He attempted to run towards Lariel and Shelise from where he had been transported to, but his legs kept giving way and he couldn"t stop himself from falling. His clothes had become dirty and torn and his appearance was much like a beggar with none of the majesty of before. This was who Aleks truly was.

A man who was lost, broken and scared. He was no coward, but the horror that was his life had filled him with endless fear and a pathetic sense of hopelessness.

Everything he was, was fleeting, and what he hoped to be no longer mattered. He only wished to reach her. She was that stunning and infinite starry sky that he had always yearned for. She was the woman who had destroyed him, but she was also the one who had filled him with wonder for the very first time.

He didn"t blame her for what she had done, he only blamed himself. If not for his own greed and pride, perhaps things would have been different.

"No, I don"t regret anything. Please, just live." Aleks screamed within his mind.

Shelise looked down in surprise at the female angel who she had stabbed with the cursed dagger of Maa"loch. She had missed her heart at the last moment due to her shock from Aleks"s disappearance. But, it didn"t matter because the cursed dagger of Maa"loch carried a deadly power. Its curse was not something so easily dispelled and it would eat at one"s soul until one was only a husk. Death would soon follow.

Her look of surprise became anger and she callously pulled the dagger from Shelise"s body.

"You disgusting b.i.t.c.h! You ruined everything! d.a.m.n you!"

Shelise kicked Lariel down to the ground and yelled in anger. She quickly looked for where Aleks had gone and saw him in the distance struggling his way there.

"If I can"t kill you, then I will kill this b.i.t.c.h and watch you suffer as I have!"

Shelise raised her dagger once more and planned to stab Lariel to death, but the mask which she had forgotten, suddenly glowed brightly. A bright burst of light flashed and blinded Shelise before she could stab Lariel and she dropped the dagger in surprise.

"Stay your hand!" a strange voice emitted from the mask.

The mask rose from the ground and a semi translucent figure rose wearing it. It had the shape of a man, but it was not a physical form. It was the form of a soul.

"Ishmael, your soul still exists?" Lariel gasped while struggling to breath.

The soul form turned to look at Lariel. Its face was the expressionless mask. It then turned to Shelise, "I do not wish to harm you. It would only bring pain to An-Namrud and you are not in full control of your emotions and thoughts."

Shelise was in pain from the light blinding her and she screamed while struggling to open her eyes, "No, I must kill her! Get out of my way!"

"Evil begets evil, and sin begets sin. I did not wish for my brother to walk this path, but it isn"t a path that has ever given him a choice." Ishmael muttered, but this was incomprehensible to Shelise.

Meanwhile, both Lenia and Nelay had finally broken free from the attacks of their opponents and seeing what happened, both heaved a sigh of relief. Although they didn"t wish to see Lariel die, they were relieved because Aleks had escaped danger and they both furiously rushed towards him. They could only pay a single glance to Lariel and her plight. They were only concerned with the life of their master.

Shelise was still raging in anger and she wanted to strike at Ishmael"s soul form, but Eneran soon arrived by her side and grabbed her.

"Let go of me! WE MUST KILL IT!!"

She tried to struggle free from Eneran, but he held on to her tightly.

"We need to leave, you lost the chance to kill him. This was what we agreed on! If we don"t leave now, we will die! Your brother is far stronger than I ever imagined and we don"t know what this thing is! He is not someone we can face and Tihr"s "Divine Power" has already dissipated."

"Wait, the dagger, we must retrieve it!" Shelise struggled once more.

"There is no time, we must go immediately."

Eneran was wary of the strange soul like being which was staring at them with that expressionless mask. He quickly cast the spell he had already prepared and the two of them escaped with a flash of lightning. They moved far into the distance in the blink of an eye and there was no longer any trace of Eneran, Shelise, or that of Melisana.

Lenia and Nelay had arrived by Aleks side, but he pushed past them as if he didn"t even see them. His eyes were only on the figure of Lariel who was coughing up blood and gasping for breath. Ishmael disappeared once more and the mask fell to the ground. He had disappeared with a light sigh that was carried on the wind. His soul once more returned to the world within the mask and Aleks hadn"t even noticed this.

Aleks finally made it over to Lariel with some difficulty and he fell on his knees and held Lariel desperately in his arms as she bled.

"No, Lariel.. I will not let you die."

Aleks began to infuse some of his "Soul Potential" into Lariel"s body and he even directly connected his own soul with hers in order to heal her body. This came with some risks though, and his fate would be partially tied with hers. The curse was powerful and there would definitely be some negative effects to Aleks"s own soul.

However, despite his efforts he could not heal the damage to her soul. The damage the cursed dagger of Maa"loch had done to her soul was not something so easily mended. Lariel"s body healed and she had stopped bleeding so there was no immediate risk to her life. Her breathing became more gentle and she weakly lay in Aleks"s arms.

Nelay and Lenia watched with both pity and envy. Pity, because of what had happened to Lariel and the pain it must be causing Aleks. Envy, because they wished they were the ones being held in Aleks"s arms so tenderly.

Lariel slowly raised her hand to Aleks"s face, "Aleks, don"t worry. There is no danger to my life in the immediate future. I won"t die yet, so you can calm your heart."

Tears streaked Aleks"s face, but he didn"t even notice the tears. He showed a hint of tenderness and cradled Lariel. This was a sight that none had ever seen and it was a surprise to both Nelay and Lenia. They didn"t even think their master was capable of such an expression.

"How can I save you? What do I need to do? There must be some way to remove the curse."

Lariel smiled weakly, but it was a smile that warmed Aleks"s heart nonetheless. It also filled him with bitterness.

"Maa"loch!" Aleks bitterly cursed, "I am coming for you. Not even h.e.l.l can save you!"

Lariel"s hand fell limply from Aleks"s face and she finally fell unconscious. She no longer had the strength to remain awake.

"Master, haha! MASTER! We succeeded! The Human expeditionary army has fallen!"Find authorized novels in Webnovel，faster updates, better experience，Please click for visiting.

Grobak rushed towards where the great battle had taken place between Aleks and the others with excitement. He was shouting with pride and wanted to show off.

But when he finally arrived at where Aleks was and noticed the scene that was taking place, he couldn"t help but curse, "s.h.i.t. I"m f.u.c.ked."

Two menacing glares aimed towards him caused him to shiver in fear.